#i’ve kinned him for a while i have no clue why he isn’t on my kinlist yet

[smile-files]

chapter 2 ralsei starter pack

#dandy's doodles #screencap #screenshot #deltarune #deltarune spoilers #deltarune chapter 2 #deltarune chapter 2 spoilers #deltarune ralsei #ralsei #kin #i’ve kinned him for a while i have no clue why he isn’t on my kinlist yet #*rubs hands together* *opens up carrd*

[sunforgrace]

okay I’m finally doing it! I am reccing thee fic I read three days ago:

according to all known laws of life: by sobsicles (E, 29.7k)

Summary:

Cas comes back. It's not exactly the reunion that Dean is expecting.

~~~

Dean stares at him, flummoxed. Cas quite literally poured his heart out to Dean, gave a truly sappy and distressingly romantic speech and everything, then proceeded to give his life so that Dean could live his. And he wants to act like he doesn't want to see Dean, be around him, touch him?

Actually, Dean's ninety-nine percent sure that Cas probably wants to fuck him, and while he has no clue how he feels about that, he's pretty goddamn sure that means Cas doesn't get to act like this and make it authentic.

It feels strangely real, though, as if Cas wants nothing more than to get as far away from him as possible. This is a blatant contradiction. Even someone as weird as Cas doesn't want to get away from the person they have the desire to fuck five ways to Sunday, that they're in love with. That's not how these things work, so Dean isn't buying it.

(yes, that title is a bee movie reference. trust me, it works and it’s hilarious. the author’s mind for that one, I am obsessed.) 

my review is looong so I’m sparing you all and putting it under a read through. click through if you want to hear my rambling thoughts on why I think this fic is great or just click through to read it for yourself <3 or just keep scrolling!

the important thing you know about this fic, is that it will leave you going “they are SUCH assholes (affectionate)” and THAT’S why it’s great.

this fic in some ways feels lighter than other 15x20 fix it’s I’ve read, which I enjoy, but it doesn’t shy away from the impact of Cas’ death and where that leaves the characters before he returns, and even after he does. so while there’s a cohesive sense of humor that runs through the fic - even in the beginning - there are moments that starkly remind you that Dean is really not coping, kind of like ice water over the head. there’s one moment that I won’t spoil that made me just think “oh Dean” and also feel slightly concerned over how relatable his way of rationalizing and coping with the circumstance was lmao. this fic does a wonderful job at basically throwing the whole finale out, yet still addressing Dean’s seemingly devil may care cheer in the finale, that brushed off “everything’s fine” attitude (which we have at times seen from Dean before when he’s repressing something in order to cope, like his impending death, just joking about it to diminish how much he’s struggling). this fic does so in a way that we the viewer understand why Dean acts the way he does, what he’s thinking, which I really appreciated since that way of coping is familiar and relatable to me, so this depiction is a great insight into Dean’s character for any part of the audience who doesn’t automatically sort of understand why Dean reacts the way he does to certain things, how his mind rationalizes certain things. 

this theme carries through the fic, so while you are going “Dean you’re such an asshole” you can also see why Dean is acting the way he does, the author uses a sort of dramatic irony so that you the reader understand more about why Dean is reacting the way he is than even Dean is, because his brain isn’t ready to face those truths that have been repressed quite yet and it’s made him quite literally sort of incapable of processing through it. it leaves the reader in an interesting place where you’re already two steps ahead of Dean, where the answers that are blank to him are obvious to you, and you can see why Cas is reacting the way he is the further the story progresses, even as this also remains a confusing and tangled thing to Dean. (sidenote: if you’re a cas girl who’s not dean coded/a dean kin, you may enjoy this fic less due to frustration with Dean and anger towards him over how his relationship is being handled with Cas. for me, while I did experience that “you’re SUCH an asshole,” reaction I also really, really understood Dean’s headspace, so I didn’t feel a strong sense of anger at him. if you’re hashtag dean critical just interacting with the show, this fic might be more frustrating than enjoyable for you. the key takeaway, for me, from this fic is that the point of this fic isn’t to lay blame on any one side. Cas seems like The Asshole initially but as the fic progresses you start to understand and empathize with his motivations, and then Dean seems like The Asshole but since we’re given his POV we can understand and even empathize (if you’re me lol) with his motivations, even as he himself doesn’t really understand them beyond gut reactions and impulse. the point is that they’re both assholes (affectionate) but neither is Thee Asshole, they’re just two people working through a shift in their dynamic and how it makes them feel, even when in Dean’s case he doesn’t understand what it is he’s feeling, and needing to work on longstanding communication issues.)

with that, dean kins, I think you will enjoy this fic in particular. it really dives deep into the Dean headspace and explores how his repression manifests and how he works through it. the author uses the metaphor of “white static” in Dean’s brain to describe Dean’s attempts at processing through the situation, which I really appreciated. it’s a sort of physical representation of Dean struggling through years of repression and working at what it is he’s feeling, quite literally bluescreening. Dean also projects a LOT in this fic, without ever being fully conscious of the fact he’s doing it. again, this fic WILL make you go Dean you’re such an asshole (affectionate) but the author explores why Dean reacts the way he does and why there are certain things he doesn’t understand about his reactions, his motivations. I feel like the fic succeeds in making you understand Dean (there is one, singular reference to John Winchester in this fic. it is a gut punch when it comes). and even without exploring Cas’ headspace through his POV, as the picture broadens you can see his motivations and insight into his feelings come through as well, and this fic does really make you feel for Cas. Cas avoids both Dean and the reality of his confession once he returns, shuts Dean down, and Dean doesn’t immediately profess his love to Cas, hasn’t even allowed himself to even think about whether or not he does feel that way. and you understand why. the author does a fantastic job of making you understand where they’re both coming from and how that impacts their perspective on the situation and reactions to it.

this fic is mainly about getting Dean and Cas alone to work through their Issues in a very Dean and Cas way, so other characters naturally take more a back seat to this one, but what we do see of the saileen relationship I adore. especially after the finale we love to see some Eileen appreciation. the author depicts Eileen as “having a mischievous streak a mile wide” which I feel is so perfect for her character and there are some really fun moments or two showing that streak. again, while Sam and Eileen are off doing their own thing for the crux of their fic, I love the Sam moments we get, the author makes sure he doesn’t come across as a one dimensional character, just there to be shipper!sam in a destiel fic. he gets to have his own reactions, emotions, and motivations outside of Dean, which is partially why he’s away for a portion of this fic, he’s going to Eileen because that’s where he wants to be! he gets to be emotionally intuitive and intelligent AND bitchy. and the saileen chemistry is just *chef’s kiss*. though their story isn’t the centre of this fic, you get to see moments that show what they bring out in each other, how they both love one another and come together as partners. also, he compares the destiel relationship to the bee movie which is just. TRUST me it works and it is hilarious the author’s MIND for that one. (there’s also an allusion to lgbt Sam in this fic for my truthers out there). also Jack gets to pop in, though he remains God. I won’t spoil anything but we get a scene at the end that shows Jack’s ascent into godhood doesn’t mean he can’t be with his family. 

note: this is not a myth arc fic, but a character exploration fic. I’m someone for who elements like character dynamics and dialogue make a good fic. don’t get me wrong, I do love a good case fic or myth arc, but character pieces are where my heart lies, and this is a Character Piece. the dialogue is snappy and has great flow (it got. physical and audible reactions out of me at certain points), the internal dialogue really gets you into Dean’s headspace and their character voices are amazing, you can feel the characters and hear them through their words. again, while I’ve read and really enjoyed the 15x20 fix it’s that deal with the myth arc, this fic doesn’t explore those aspects as heavily. it’s not about an adventure to rescue Cas from the Empty, or the shifting dynamics of Heaven and Jack’s new godhood, or even the more supernatural elements of supernatural. it’s all about character baybee, and in part that’s probably why I loved it so much.

without getting into spoiler territory, there is a moment towards the end of this fic that I just adore. it makes so much sense to me regarding Dean’s character and is really the culmination of both this fic and the confession scene. the author makes you understand why this needed to happen for them to progress, for Dean to process. it just makes so much sense to me and reading that moment felt like something slotting into place. 

TL;DR: the most important thing for you to know about this fic, is it made me go *John Mulaney voice* Dean and Cas are bitches and I like them so much! 

note, this fic is rated explicit, though there’s actually very little description/scenes of anything explicit happening, it’s mainly just allusions through dialogue and rising tension throughout the fic.

for those of you for who reading explicit stuff isn’t your jam, I’ve bolded the starting and ending sentences for the one scene where explicit stuff happens instead of just being alluded to so you can skip it, though it’s also a mild scene where they don’t do much more than kiss. (note, after the scene between these bolded lines there is also a mini paragraph that alludes to another explicit scene, but the author doesn’t describe in detail anything that happens and it’s very brief. skip the paragraph starting with “Shower sex is complicated” and move to the next if you want to avoid it):

Dean is very promptly slammed back against the door, Cas' body covering his, and then he's being kissed before he can even suck in a sharp breath. 

* * * 

"Okay," Dean wheezes, blinking his eyes open and letting his head roll forward. Cas is watching him intently, pupils blown, mouth spit-slick and swollen. He looks—well, he looks really fucking good. "Yeah, this is going to work." 

#long post #PHEW im done #anyways stream this fic it IS the moment

[myblueeyedbuggers]

My Boys

Chapter 10

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14

Pairings: Reader x Steve Rogers (best friend) Reader x Bucky Barnes

Word Count:1843

Warnings: Slow Start, Language.

Summary: After being abandoned by her parents in Brooklyn in 1929, y/n makes a living for herself by working for the Црни лабуд gang until she meets two boys in a back alley and her life slowing begins to change.

Annnddd I’m back! so I know it’s been a while since the last update and I just wanna thank you all for having patience with me while I finished up with college, just a warning this chapter may feel a little awkward to read due to me just getting back into my writing mind so apologises in advance for this one. Anyways I’ll quit blabbering, Enjoy everyone! :)

This was my day of reckoning, my punishment for all the bad deeds I’d done over the past couple of years…I was finally being sent to school. Okay maybe that was a tad dramatic, but can you blame me? I mean who wants to be trapped in a building against their will for 7 hours straight learning about dead guys?! No sane person would willingly agree to that crap!

I’ve tried just about everything to avoid my approaching doom, hell I even went as far as hiding in the basement surrounded by cobwebs to try and get out of this, but as per usual neither Steve or Bucky took mercy on me, hence why in currently trapped between the two. “You are aware I’m perfectly capable of walkin’ by myself aren’t ya? The looping of the arms is not needed boys” I swear down these two are being more annoying than usual, and I didn’t think that was humanly possible cause these two are basically the living embodiment of annoyance. Steve turned and raised his eyebrows at me, shaking his head as he let out a small laugh, “Yeah there’s absolutely no way I’m fallin’ for that again, last time that happened it look me and Buck an hour to get you outta that tree”. Ah crap there goes that plan.

I’m pretty sure the noise I made wasn’t even human, it was a mix between a seal and a possessed monkey “I’m not gonna get outta this am I?” “Nope” and que another frustrated groan. “Is this payback for the time I placed that bucket of flour above your bedroom door and watched the both of you turn into ghosts? If it is then I want you to know I regret nothin’” both of them stopped and glared at me, for some reason they didn’t find that as funny as I did, and I have no idea why. Okay whatever you do y/n don’t laugh, even if Steve’s face looks like a slapped arse don’t laugh! A snicker slipped past my lips and a few seconds later I was full on laughin’.  Goddamn it.

Both of em just let out a bunch of sighs and started draggin’ my butt along the street, wait there’s somethin’ I haven’t tried yet…in hindsight this is completely stupid but screw it. “OH MY GOD LOOK A SPACESHIP!” I’m pretty sure poor Bucky jumped outta his skin, Steve ended up trippin’ up and falling down, I’ll admit that I felt bad about but hey may plan worked! So why am I still standin’ there?… maybe we try this thing called running y/n! I quickly pulled my arm away from Bucky and used my new-found freedom to run in the opposite direction of them, I could hear the shouts of protest from the both of them, so I decided to kindly ignore them and absolutely leg it.  “GODAMMN IT Y/N! THIS IS THE FIFTH TIME THIS MORNIN’!” when were the boys gonna catch on that I didn’t wanna go? Do I need to prepare a firework show and blast it in their faces or somethin’…probably.  

I know I probably shouldn’t be smiling, but the feeling of the wind flowing through my hair as my feet hit the ground made me feel free, after so many years I could finally begin acting my age and enjoy my childhood. I finally felt content with my life, which is probably the opposite of what I should be feeling at this moment in time, considering I was currently making my grand escape. And to completely honest I’ve got no bloody clue as to where I am. I glanced behind me to see where the hell those idiots were, to my surprise Steve was directly behind me, Buck was somewhere in the back holdin’ his knee and I’m guessing the daft sod decked it. Why am I not surprised? Okay maybe I should of kept my mouth shut cause literally a second later my foot tripped over a rock and, you guessed correctly, I landed on my ass for the thousandth time!

“Sh*t! Cr*p! B*lls! That f**king hurt!” and that ladies and gentlemen is my fine command of the queens English, a groan of pain made me loose my train of thought as I turned my head to Steve, to put it simply he was laid flat on his back with his eye closed. Well there’s the rush of guilt I’ve been waiting for, “Sh*t Steve I’m sorry, you okay down there tough guy?” I quickly offered him my hand to help him up, I mean it’s the least I could do. Steve’s hand grabbed mine, a not so quiet grunt of pain made me feel even worse, quick question why am I such an assh*le at times? “Yeah, I’m fine y/n, don’t worry about it you know for a fact I’ve had worse” a quiet sigh left my lips as I brought him in for a hug, which was a tiny bit awkward due to the height difference. Once we pulled away from each other, I couldn’t supress the need to check him for anymore injuries, much to Steve’s embarrassment and Bucky’s amusement, “Jesus I’m gonna have to start wrapping ya up in blankets and pillows, Steve how the hell did you manage to get a bruise on your ear?!”

The sudden gasp behind me pretty much answered the question for me, it’s safe to say barney boy is in trouble…for the first in my life Bucky looks pretty f**king terrified of me, perfect. Slowly I started inching towards him, the glare I was sending him would probably make a demon cry for his mum…so yeah imma go kill the boy. I didn’t even have to say anything, he just started runnin’, “IT’S NOT MY FAULT HE STOLE MY FR**KING PUDDIN’ AND THE PUNK KNOWS I LOVE MY PUDDIN!’” YEP DEFINITELY KILLIN’ HIM “HE IS A SMALL AND GENTLE BOY HOW IN THE NAME OF HELL CAN YOU EVEN THINK OF LAYIN’ A HAND ON ‘IM?!” god this sounds like a bleeding soap opera.

 At this point I wouldn’t be surprised of someone called the cops on us, all everyone woulda seen was a big lad runnin’ for his life as a small lass tried to murder him while a smaller lad ran after the pair yellin’ for em to quit it.  Now that I think about, that’s actually hilarious. Wait, where was I? ah yes the murdering of one James Barnes…okay that is not a normal sentence I am aware. “HE.STOLE.MY.PUDDIN’! THAT A CRIME WORTHY OF DEATH!” oh for f**ksake “HOW THE HELL DO YA KNOW IT WAS HIM?! DID YOU NOT THINK IT COULDA BE BECCA?!” I think he made a sudden realisation, cause the dumbass stopped running and BOOM I was on the freakin’ floor. Again. We both groaned, mine was mostly in annoyance more than anything, but seriously the bloody floor is quickly becoming me best mate! “…. It just dawned on me that that could be a possibility…” if my neck twisted any quicker I’m 100% sure that I’d end up doin’ that weird owl thing “Oh now you realise?! Ya gonna say sorry to Steve or not?” a few seconds of silence gave me my answer. “Don’t give me that look y/n! I ain’t doing s**t till I’ve got some evidence so he’s still under my list of suspects!” oh my Jesus Christ this is gonna be the day I get arrested for murder isn’t it?

“Barnaby…you have exactly five seconds to run for your life so I highly recommend you get your affairs in order and kiss ya ass goodbye” oh hey look at that I didn’t yell at him! Well done me I’m so proud! “could you two quit trying to kill each other for 5 minutes?! We’re already late enough as is it and I ain’t explainin’ to the teacher why Buck’s outta it on the floor!” my f**kin god Steve just yelled! At me! why do I never have a camera when this s**t happens?  “Jeez, alright I’ll murder him later, calm your damn t*ts Rogers” and cue the sound of barely contained frustration in 3,2,1….

“I’m beginning to get the feelin’ that you don’t like me y/n” oh really? I wonder what gave that away “wow you catch on quickly don’t ya Barnaby?” by the looks of things I’m really doing wonders for his ego, buck’s head looks like it’s gotten smaller so the risk of him turning into a hot air balloon’s gone down. The feeling of a pair of eyes glaring at the back of my head once again reminded me that the blonde boy was quickly getting tired of our crap, my worst fears were confirmed once I met Steve’s surprisingly intimidating glare…how he manages to be both adorable and beyond f**king terrifying is a mystery to me. “Okay I’m comin’ just stop staring at me like I just murdered your kitten!” and the little s**t has the nerve to smirk and look pleased with himself, ugh he’s been hanging ‘round me and Bucky too long that’s for sure.

“Ya know Buck and you are gonna be the death of me” right do I be offended or pleased with that statement? “actually, if anything it’s gonna be the pair of you that send me to an early grave cause god knows the both of ya don’t know how to stay outta trouble” two muffled sounds of protest came from my left and from behind me, “what’s that supposed to mean?!” once again the point has been missed “do you really wanna know the answer to that? I’ve got my report and presentation ready on how you two are a pair of numpties”.

Maybe that was a tad harsh…okay wait never mind it seems I’ve learned how to fly again with the assistance of one James Buchannan Barnes. “this is coming from the girl who can’t walk five feet without fallin’ over somethin’?” as much as I hate to admit it the walking embodiment of frustration and annoyance has a point “what you call fallin’ I call floor hugs, now how about you pUT ME DOWN FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!” wait when did Steve walk off? See this is what happens when an overgrown ape demands attention. I don’t even have to look at Buck to know he’s givin’ me that look that says, “what the hell?” and “I’m not surprised by this” at the same time, “Nah I don’t think that’s gonna happen doll” the temptation to kick ‘im where the sun doesn’t shine is too much to bare for me at this point. “And you wonder why I love Steve more that you” Buck’s face kinda looked like someone just shoved a whole lemon in his mouth, I’m almost certain that he woulda dropped me on my ass if it wasn’t for the fact that Steve came over and dragged us both through the gates of hell.

This is gonna be so much fun!……said no-one ever.  

Okay…maybe it didn’t suck as much a thought it did, hopefully my skills as a writer will come back for the next couple of chapters XD Thanks for reading ! :)

Rose xxx

#winter soldier x reader #winter soldier #captain america x reader #captain america #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers #mcu #fanfic #reader #reader insert #sebastian stan #sebastian stan x reader

[onthevirgeofdestruction]

35 Q’s for Fanfic Writers

From this post

I’m having a shitty, rude alter-y, crap night so I’m just going to answer all of these to distract myself and focus and to not bother anybody just making my own post and putting it under the cut btw, notice to anyone not aware: since I’m moving I won’t likely be updating anything until I’m done doing so.

1. From one to five stars, how would you rate your writing?  (No downplaying yourself!) 3/5? Could use more editing and description and can be weirdly paced.

2. Why do you write fanfiction? Because it’s better than focusing on pain 24/7. 

3. What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works? I don’t seem to have a specific narrative voice that people recognize but I’m pretty proud of mostly organic dialogue. 

4. Are there any writers that inspire you? as a rule i never look up to anybody for inspiration but there’s some stuff in my ao3 bookmarks I fawn over.

5. What’s the fic you’re most proud of? Right now, none of them. It changes normally, anyway. If get too proud then I’d get my ass kicked by RSD if someone didn’t like it so it’s safer this way

6. What element of writing do you find comes easily? Dialogue. 

7. What element of writing do you struggle with most? Organic description, poetic language kind of stuff. I can paint a scene but I’m not so great with bring out out a feeling with description alone.

8. Which character(s) do you find easiest to write? Janus and Virgil are probably tied. They both have things I struggle with but I don’t have to go back and do much adjusting of language and tone with them. Though admittedly my Virgil is signifigantly more foul-mouthed than canon and I tend to prefer pre-AA feral asshole Virgil.

9. Which character(s) do you find most difficult to write? Patton. I write him the least, so people can probably tell. I love Patton, I really do, but it’s so hard to keep away from fanon Patton. 

10. What’s your favorite genre to write for? Angst w/ H/C obviously. Or if you’re talking about regular book genres, Fantasy. I fucking love fantasy world building.

11. Who or what do you find yourself writing about most? Trauma. I blame Daeram. As if Ayri isn’t a giant Angst Demon.

12. Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about. Slopes. I’m really into it. I’ve got three one shots running right now. Patrons can read the first part of the unnamed cat remus one, there’s also a coffeeshop au tropey nonsense one like eglantine & lycoris, but Slopes is addiction angst. Mmmmm. Virgil is addicted to coke and alcohol and will listening to his friends even be in time? Who knows, especially not me, but there’s already over 30k. 

13. First fandom you ever wrote for? InuYasha. Or was it Harry Potter? Or shit, The Blue Sword? Fuck, I’ve been writing for a long time, I really have no idea.

14. What’s your favorite fandom to write for? Sanders Sides. The characters are the perfect dynamic for writing since they exist in balance of each other and the popular, easy to project on archetypes featured are incredibly fun to do basically any scenario with.

15. What’s the weirdest fandom you’ve ever written for? Weird storywise? Kingdom Hearts? I can’t even follow the plot anymore. Weird Fandomwise? Sanders Sides. Its simultainiously the fluffiest and angstiest nonsense at the same time.

16. Any guilty pleasure trope(s)? Vampires. Gay ones. Gay Vampires. I also love calm tol and angy smol.

17. A trope you’ll never, ever write for. Any tropes that normalize incredibly toxic behaviour or tropes that are inherantly ableist, but I can’t think of any.

18. Wildest fic you’ve ever written? Incorrigible continues to be complete nonsense.

19. Do you prefer canon-compliant, AUs, or something in-between? AUs. I mean closest I even have is canon-divergence other than a single short.

20. Gen fic or shippy stuff? I like it when there is gay nonsense along with a plot that is treated as more important than the relationship the most. But I like both. There’s more shippy stuff in tss so i read more shipping action by default.

21. Favorite pairing to write for? (platonic or romantic!) Anxceit/Sleepxiety, but in general, give me darksides or give me death/j

22. Do you listen to anything while you write? Almost everything I write has a special playlist I listen to to help me write it, but otherwise I listen to my Nyan playlist, an alter is picking the tunes, or a voidfam playlist. I never have music off. When my internet is down I just listen to the songs I own or Anxiety’s theme on loop.

23. Do you prefer prompts and challenges, or completely independent ideas? I’m fine with all of them. I love working with prompts but I tend to deviate. And I’ve never done a challenge since I can’t do deadlines and bad things happen bingo never sent me a card and I applied three times.

24. One-shots or multi-chaptered works? I am generally multi-chaptered stuff, but I’ve been working on a few one-shots lately that are much longer than most one shots.

25. Have you ever daydreamed about side adventures/spin-offs from your fic? Tell us about them! I was originally thinking of doing some little 13-year-old Dreaming!Roman (y’know, the one with a job) shorts but it turns out I just had an alter of that little bastard and that’s why I inexplicably know more about him then I ever even considered. I still might do them after Dreaming is done. But that’s paced so slowly who knows when that might happen. Otherwise I put stuff in my notes and just do shorts of it if I’m like “oh you know what’s cool???” but since I can’t daydream maybe this question doesn’t apply to me.

26. Is there anything you’ve wanted to write, but you’ve been too scared to try? I want to do more autism stuff, and I’ve had it demanded a few times, but I’m scared of being that explict about it for some reason. Possibly because I might be, possibly because I’m scared of doing it wrong even though I’ve accidentally coded multiple characters autistic. I’m scared of explictly tagging them as such, too. 

27. What’s the nicest comment you’ve ever received? That I can remember off the top of my head? I’m going with one from @a-genz-with-trauma-and-kins. It really helped me out and was just so kind and literally the best christmas gift I got in 2020. 

28. How well do you handle criticism when it comes to your writing? I can handle it alright but Daeram is a little fucking pissbaby about it. Constructive criticism helps people get better, so I appreciate it. I can’t handle critism that is incomplete, though. “i just don’t get it” or “I don’t know I don’t like it” kind of things. If I can’t understand the why to fix it then things get out of control. And then I spiral and RSD for like four days minimum. If it came from an anon or a troll, too, It might not bother me for as long. Things that are just like “this is shit and you should feel bad” just make me laugh. Couldn’t even bother to read it long enough to insult me proper? I don’t care.

29. Have you ever gone outside of your comfort zone for a fic? How did it turn out? I have a few times. Mostly in shorts and prompts, I think. I think they turned out okay. They’re not particularly inspired or anything.

30. Tooth-rotting fluff or merciless angst? Depends on my mood. Am I triggered? give me the fluff. Am I vibin? Angst. 

31. Do you have any OCs? Tell us about them! Fuck, fam, no, I can’t, I have so many. I have multiple original stories and some of them have very large casts and like holy fuck. Or do you mean in Sanders Sides fandom? Um, Morgan and Thorn in PD. The lesbian and her himbo dynamic. I love them. They’re dorks. Morgan is strong person with sharp tongue and soft romantic heart and Thorn is just so kind and so dumb and so exciteable he’s like a puppy. They were just filler characters and I got attached to them. Felton even gets redemption for being an ass later in PD, like oof i never intended to include so much OC content, especially for names I just picked randomly. 

32. Summarize a random fic of yours in 10 words or less. nope I’m doing all of them because these are fun plea for my new self: 2 gay vampires, 4 humans, 1 braincell dreaming while I wake: trauma child needs therapy and so do you break: big oof, oh dragons, oh why, go virgil go rebuild: virgil is so not okay there’s more virgil to deal painful death: gay teens drink themselves into a new religion stargazing: whoops we didn’t realize people actually cared whole castle: everyone will throw down for kid!patton, even you incorrigible: found family with a shot of psychological horror and crack dangerous instincts: wholesome crime syndacite action  slopes: addict gets mugged and thinks that’s just fine with him conflagration: logan avoids everything ever like a champ cat!remus: bored fae shifts gay pining from one person to another  caffeine cyptids: caffinated gay panic goes faster than regular gay panic eglantine & lycoris: more tropes than you can toss a shoe at storytime: overpowered virgil also overreacts literally always

33. Is there anything you wish your audience knew about your writing or writing process? an alter and I write together and I have absolutely no idea what’s going to happen, what I’m writing about, or even what year it is. I often don’t even remember what I wrote. There’s no outline. I have an idea and I pick things at random for it. There’s just notes and an evil gleam in a demon’s eye. The only reason I know more than readers is because I take a long time to edit and some of these stories have fucking alters up in my head who can tell me things. Daeram tells me nothing. The writing demon supposedly has all this knowledge but I have absolutely no clue because he does not talk to me, he just fronts and slams out 9k in a few hours or we cofront to write and I’m like “oh no she didn’t” while typing 

34. Copy and paste an excerpt you’re particularly fond of. i’m fond of the entire painful death series and I tried to find something I really liked without spoilers in stargazing and I couldn’t so here’s a random thing from incorrigble: “So, what do you do with your friends?” Patton continued on with a megawatt smile. “Grand larceny,” Virgil deadpanned and glared at Patton, who was taken aback. Remy and Andy just broke out laughing while Virgil tentatively sipped his still-too-hot-cocoa. 

35. Ramble about any fic-related thing you want!  slopes my dudes slopes i have learned so much about cocaine! like wow! I thought for a minute it was going to end with MCD around 30k but it swtiched from whump to hurt/comfort and I still don’t know if it’s going to be MCD but look at that funky little coke/alcohol addict go, it’s a medical wonder he’s alive! It’s not like there’s what seems to be a little talked about interaction between alcohol and cocaine that causes a toxic chemical to build up in the liver which can result in liver failure and sudden death at basically any moment! Which is part of why it may result in MCD but this time no ghosts! maybe it’ll be h/c with whump elements or maybe it’ll be whump with h/c elements we can’t know for sure

#ayri writes #tw drug mention

[mousehole5000]

 this is it... the final post.... 226 through THE END!!!!!

this shit with mu qing and the river of lava is SOOOO dramatic im loving it

oh my god theyre on a FUCKING bridge of course they are okay let’s go boys

“You’re right. We’re alike. You think me odd, I think you to be rather weird too.” - so what im getting from this is that xie lian and mu qing are the only characters in this book with working gaydar okay yup got it this checks out

god... the fact that xie lian is ready to be like “look mu qing we can just forget about the past it doesnt matter we dont have to be friends i know you dont like me but im not gonna let you die over it” and then mu qing is like “.... god i really do admire you huh”

“You...certainly...are rather amazing. You’re...also...a better person...than me. Long story short, I...very much wanted...to become your f-f-friend.”  - going to think about this for the rest of all time im about to become utterly unintelligible im overcome with emotions

“And, at the end of the white silk band, Feng Xin was gripping Ruoye with one hand while the other was holding on to a steel-faced Mu Qing, and he shouted towards him.” - the fucking IMAGE of this im gonna cry this is everything i could have asked for im so happy also mu qing dangling there like “ welp. guess ill live“

“Feng Xin was almost burnt by that pillar of fire, and he shouted in outrage. “WHAT’S WITH THIS BAND OF DOG SHITS, ATTACKING PEOPLE WHILE THEY’RE DOWN, SO VILE! FUCK YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY!” Xie Lian responded, “IF THEIR ENTIRE FAMILIES ALL LOOK LIKE THAT, YOU SURE YOU WANT TO FUCK THEM??” - theyre so funny!!! and theyre best friends!!! theyre joking together now in the middle of all this i could cry theyre back!!!

“Using sticks as arrows, he held the bow with one hand and used his teeth to bite back the bowstring.” - no clue how practical this is but okay archer boy. hot

i actually have so many little quips between the three of them highlighted but we’d be here all night if i included them all. im literally so delighted by this omg worth the wait

“Each sabre strike slashed to the bone. It wasn’t like Xie Lian had never seen Hua Cheng use the sabre before in the past, but his style had always been easy and leisurely, nonchalant and casual. Rather than say he was handling a weapon, it was more like he was toying with a small knife. Yet those blade marks were filled with killing intent. It was easy to imagine just how skilled the one exchanging blows with him was, and how perilous this battle.” you have no idea how mad i was when i read this and thought we missed witnessing the fight between hc and jw omg

“Behind him, Feng Xin muttered, “Dear fucking god, may all the gods and buddhas grant their blessings, that better absolutely be Crimson Rain Sought Flower, otherwise he’s gonna go mad!” “Stop your rubbish,” Mu Qing berated. “We’re all the gods and buddhas ourselves and we can’t grant shit, just keep up with him! Look at the stumbling way he’s running, he’s gonna trip and fall to his bloody death before he even sees the man!” - okay i know i said no more quips but this is literally too funny i just wanted to read it again

“ However, for whatever reason, that vicious ghost, in its muddled state, took that large group of live mortals under its wing and fled for many days. In the end, they were still surrounded by millions of ghosts, trapped in a dead end, and it was going to be eaten along with those humans.” [...] “That vicious ghost almost made a move against those humans, but for some reason, in the end, it didn’t. It instead used one of its own eyes as the price to forge a blood weapon. That vicious ghost was already forcibly hanging on with its last breath; after digging out its eye it should’ve broken apart completely. Yet somehow something had shocked it, and it instead woke to its senses completely. “ - THIS IS AMAZING ARE YOU KIDDING ME???? IS THIS ALL WE GET ABOUT HIS GHOSTLY LORE?????? HUA CHENGGGGGGGG

“What a terrible offence, his old habit had come out, and he quickly apologized. “I’m sorry! You don’t have to listen to me!” Hua Cheng, however, only smiled happily. “Everything gege tells me is the best advice, so why wouldn’t I listen?” - this isnt the fucking time afjdkfjsdkl they really never stop

“So you can hold the illusion of a perfect Crown Prince of Wuyong to face and dismiss the Jun Wu now. Isn’t that your objective? Did you think I don’t know what you’re thinking?” “THAT’S NOT IT!” Guoshi cried. “Stop getting tied up in right and wrong, victories and defeat, I’VE NEVER THOUGHT THAT WAY BEFORE!” - jun wu only being able to see xie lian as his successor and believing that thats all anyone else sees too... okay

honestly this whole final showdown was a blast i cant put everything in but it was so much fun to read. the DRAMA the LAVA the SHOUTING t

“Hua Cheng had poured too much spiritual power into him. There really was too much, so much that it was completely outside the amount the cursed shackle could withstand.” - okay.... okay... the love you give will set you free... okay....

“With Jun Wu in his grip, he carried both their bodies and forcefully slammed into the incomparably-solid rock wall! He used all of his power in this smash, and in the rumbling and crashing of rocks, he also heard the sound of something breaking.” [...] “A moment later, Jun Wu suddenly asked, “That move. What is it called?” “...” Xie Lian raised his sleeve and wiped away the blood on the side of his face. “Shattering boulders on the chest.” YES!!!!! YES!!!!! xie lian actually lived that life!!!!!! i loved this detail so much

“After a moment of silence, Xie Lian took off the bamboo hat carried on his back, took it in his hand, and covered it over Jun Wu’s face.” - xie lian... good... another detail i love. a hat that protects from the rain, given in a moment of need, even to someone who has caused you hardship... we do not forget the kindness granted to us

“There was gratefulness, there was shame, there was heartache, there was wild joy, but above all else, there was incurable love.” - :pleading: i wish it was just that easy tbh. “i have to tell you about the worst parts of myself” “ive already seen them and i dont care i still love you“ truly the dream

“ It’s been so long since anyone listened to me talk, won’t you stay? Don’t...actually do this. I won’t be able to take it. Twice, it’s been twice already! I really don’t want there to be a third time!!!” - the bit about just wanting someone to listen to him talk... xie lian... :(

emily corpse bride moment.... i knew it had to happen.... butterflies.... death and rebirth.... inevitable

xianle trio bickering about ruoye..... mu qing complaining but not letting anyone else fix it... im so happy

“The Rain Master sat down on the spot, looking like she was going to perform a passing service for her. After all, Xuan Ji was the only one left of the Kingdom of Yushi besides herself.”  - xuan ji you sure the hell were... a character. this little moment tho..... yushi huang... many thoughts

“ Who hasn’t made promises, or swore to the mountains and the seas when they were young? Talking of affection, of love, of forevers. But, the longer I hang around in the world, the more I understand, something like ‘forever’ is impossible. It’s never going to be possible. Having it once was already good enough. No one can truly achieve it. I don’t believe in it anymore.” - jian lan im happy for you bummer it didnt work out with feng xin but yeah that was looooong ago. also this quote me same mood kin but its chill. having it once was already good enough

although yeah tbh if theres anyone who can have a forever like that... it would be a ghost and a god

fasdfjadklfj GOD... pour one out for ling wen.. but is that not the truth of this world? the one can be pardoned for being good at paperwork that no one else wants to do? isnt that the plot of the shawshank redemption?

okay but the fact that all xie lian’s friends come to visit him while he waits for hua cheng is making me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.... fengqing coming together to try to get him out of the house but get scared off by his cooking... amazing

“Last time, they spent eight hundred years running towards each other. This time, it only took an instant to fall into each other’s embrace.” - im completely unaffected by this. im not lying i swear (i am lying im very emotionally affected)

okay i love this final wrap up chapter party its so fun. mu qing moving on from the broom thing!!! good for him!! the beggars get their reward!!! the fun ghost city chefs!! SQX!!!! and he xuan is?? here too??? he’s hungry??? fjadlkfjsdl

“The grounds that Feng Xin and Mu Qing had just swept were once again filthy from that giant crowd of muddy feet. Mu Qing gripped his broom, looking like he felt someone had infected him with fleas, and his eyes were wide.” - me when my dad comes into the kitchen when ive just finished washing dishes i get it king

the little folklore bit... fun!!! oh my god its over..... :(

that was really fun i had a blast reading it and on the whole really liked it i WISH soo badly that hua cheng had gotten more outside of being cunty and devoted even tho those are both important i just wish there was more about like how he got by during those 800 years and like did he ever have doubts? what shaped his worldview was it all xie lian or was it his experience as a mortal as well? why is he so mean to e’ming? theres bits and pieces here and there and i know it was already SO long but that really would have been great if there was more about hc cuz tbh by the end, at least for me, the hualian relationship didnt actually feel as fleshed out as the xianle trio relationship like i still liked hualian’s dynamic and it was really sweet how much they clearly really liked each other and  everything but i kind of wish some of the other subplots had been dropped or diminished in favor of more hc development i think that would have been cool

but anyway thats some of my thoughts and i really did enjoy the hell out of book 5 that was a riot and uhhh thanks to everyone who read these or commented *lends you spiritual energy through a high five*

#tgcf liveblog #it is Complete i can move on now #i actually have a lot more thoughts about hl because i uhhhh relate. to things. and have opinions due to my experiences #but its also quite Personal soooo i might just keep them tucked away #anyway im freeeeeee #mouse mumbles

[conceptstage]

Survival is a Talent {Part One}

AO3

“What is it?” Beau asked, frowning down at the swaddled creature in the crook of her elbow.

Caleb stood beside her, nervously scratching his arm as he watched it squirm. “I believe, Beauregard, that that is a half-elf baby.”

“I know what it is,” she hissed.

“Then why did you as-”

“I don’t know!” The baby’s face screwed up in distress at the shouting and Beau cursed as her little lip started to wiggle. “Fuck, what do I do? What- Shh, shh, don’t cry. I’m sorry, I won’t yell.” She started bouncing quickly, rising up on the tips of her toes and then falling back down sharply. The baby had the dark purple skin of a drow and the slightly pointed little ears of a half elf. She was wearing a cloth diaper and was wrapped in a beige and red plaid blanket that was fastened closed by an elegant hair clip.

“Wait, wait, wait-” Jester said, reaching out to grab Beau’s shoulders and hold her down. “Slower, slow. Can I hold her?”

Beau practically shoved the baby into Jester’s arms. “Please.” When she was baby free, she threw up her hands and turned away to pace along the alleyway.

Jester grinned and lifted the girl up above her head. “Hello, little baby! Hello, are you having a good-” The baby burped and spit up landed with a splash right on Jester’s face. She sighed and closed her eyes to keep it from getting in and held the baby out to where she’d last seen Caleb. “Okay. I’m done now.”

Caleb hesitated but took the baby and looked back at the others who were keeping their distance. He cleared his throat and looked down into the baby’s wide brown eyes as she gummed at her own fist. He thought of the dead drow woman laying nearby, presumably the mother. “Ah. Hallo. Do you know where we can find your next of kin?” 

Beau groaned. “Oh my god…” she mumbled. “Does anyone in this fucking group know how to take care of a baby? Caduceus? You had siblings, right?”

“Older siblings. I’ve never been this close to a baby before. But I could give it my best shot.”

Beau instead looked at Fjord, who shrugged, then Jester, who was cleaning off her face and muttering angrily to herself, then to Nott. A lightbulb went off in her head. “Nott! You’re, like, a mother or something, right?”

“I’m not ‘like’ a mother or something. I am a mother.”

Beau snatched the child from Caleb’s grip and held her towards Nott. “Here.”

Nott gave the child a critical glance. “She’s… so much bigger than Luc was at this age. I don’t know if I can hold her.”

“Don’t say that, you’re gonna give her body issues,” Beau chided. “Look, just sit down or something and we’ll put her in your lap while we go get supplies and try to figure out where she came from.”

Nott sighed but sat down on the ground with her back against the stone wall of their house. Caduceus had heard the crying from the dining room while they were all eating breakfast and had come to investigate. The woman was dead when they arrived.

“I bet that she’s from a border town,” Jester said, her voice taking on a dreamy tone. “She was out picking flowers one day when she came across an injured human man who was escaping bandits in the mountains. She took him back to her little cottage and they fell in love even though they knew they shouldn’t. The made love in the moonlight and he left to go back home to take care of his sick mother but he promised to come back for her when he could but then she discovered that she was pregnant! She came to the city for medical attention but when the nurses saw that it was a half human baby they grew violent and called the guards. She ran for her child’s life and has been in hiding ever since, but tonight she was found and chased down until she was shot dead in the back!”

“Natural causes,” Caduceus said, checking the woman’s body over. “She died from pneumonia.”

Jester pouted and crossed her arms. It wasn’t nearly as romantic.

“Is the baby sick?” Beau asked, pausing as she tried to situate her into Nott’s lap. She was more than half nott’s size, almost two feet in length.

Caduceus frowned and shook his head. “I don’t believe they had enough contact for it to transfer. This isn’t the baby’s mother. She’s been dead for two days and moved here.”

Beau frowned and stood up while Nott struggled to hold the baby’s giant head up off the ground. The baby started to cry again and wiggled violently and Fjord rushed to keep her from falling down hard.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Beau asked. “Was this staged? Someone dragged her here and dropped the baby beside her... why? What do they want?”

Caduceus frowned and looked solemnly back at the baby. “So that we would find her and take care of her. Maybe they assumed we’d think this woman was the mother.  I suspect, if we investigate this woman we’ll find she had no family or anyone who would miss her body. No one who would be willing to take ‘her daughter’,” his finger quotes were clunky and odd looking. “-off our hands.”

“So this is just a convoluted way for someone to abandon their baby?”

“They wanted us specifically to find it though?” Caleb asked, moving over to check the woman for clues. “Because it is half human?”

“I suspect half human children aren’t common in these parts. The baby looks drow but it will have the metabolism closer to that of a human and will need specialized care that a drow unfamiliar with them would be unable to properly provide. We have humans in our group and the rest of us are very familiar with humans and their anatomy, they probably hoped we’d know what to do.”

“We don’t though!” Beau exclaimed. “We don’t know what to do!” She turned to look at Caleb with wide, scared eyes. “What do we do?”

“We need food,” Nott said. Beau and Caleb spun around to look at her as she gently leaned the baby back and forth. “She hasn’t been here long, she’s not cold, but it’s better to have it ready than scramble for it when the time comes.”

“We can mash up some carrots?”

Nott nodded. “We can do some vegetables. She can probably handle stuff like rice, maybe some plain, soft beans. And diapers. Not for eating, for the other end.”

Beau nodded and walked over to pick up the baby and hold her at arm's length. “Alright. Some of us should stay at the house with her and get her set up. We have some milk in the ice box but we’ll need more supplies. The rest of us will go shopping and then try to find her mom.” 

Jester turned to Fjord and found that there was some moisture gathering at the corners of his eyes. “You alright?” she asked, quietly as everyone moved out of the alley.

Fjord cleared his throat and nodded. “I-I’m fine. It’s just… they left her.”

Jester gave him a small smile and put her hand on his arm. “But now she’s with us just like you are. We’ll take care of her until she finds her family again.” She gave him a bright smile and started skipping after the others.

Fjord heard Beau call out from around the corner. “Hey Nott, how do I hold this thing!”

Jester gasped. “Don’t call her a ‘thing’, Beau! She’s a beautiful, perfect little ange- ah! Don’t give her to me! Ew, she’s got spit up all over mouth.”

Fjord sighed and started to follow.

-

Essek stared at the baby with a curious frown. “A half drow child,” he mumbled. “How unusual.”

Nott had volunteered to watch the baby and Fjord had drawn the short straw so they were both stuck at the house, Nott with the baby in her lap and Fjord pacing across the room. “So you have no idea who she could belong to?” They had called Essek over before Jester left because there was a dead body behind their house and they needed a grown up to deal with it.

Essek hummed. “Not a clue. You said the scene you found was staged?”

Fjord nodded, chewing on his fingernail. “Beau thinks it was someone’s convoluted way of abandoning her and throwing us off their trail.”

Essek looked thoughtful. “I am inclined to agree with her, though I would appreciate it if you did not tell her so.”

Nott nodded sagely. “Yeah, we get it, we won’t tell her.”

“What can you tell us about the woman?” Fjord asked. 

Essek frowned and crossed his arms, idly tapping his finger on the inside of his elbow as he pondered. “I did not recognize her but I have a group of guards coming over to collect her body. If she’s a few days dead, I imagine that she was stolen from a morgue. I’ll have someone go around and inquire about any morgues missing a body. My suspicion though?” He sighed. “There is no report with the guard’s office about a missing body. Either the leader of the morgue is incompetant and doesn’t realize the body is gone or she never made it to a morgue in the first place.”

Fjord frowned. “Then how did the real mother find her?”

Essek considered this for a moment. “Perhaps she merely stumbled across the body by chance. Perhaps she knew the woman somehow. Speculation at this point is useless, we do not have enough information.” He seemed about to turn to the door and leave, but paused and looked back at them. “Will you all be okay with taking care of the girl until we get this settled? I have no other people familiar enough with her needs that I could trust such a sensitive matter too. I will have someone begin working on finding her a suitable home but for now…” he trailed off, staring at the half-elf in Nott’s lap as she snored quietly.

“Of course,” Fjord said, nodding.

Essek nodded back and then continued towards the door. “I have much to do, I will contact you with my findings. Farewell.” Then he left them alone in the dining room of their house. There was a ruckus at the door. “Oh, Jester. How.. lovely to see you,” Nott heard Essek say dryly.

“Hi, Essek,” but she didn’t stop to bother him today and ran right for the dining room, squealing when she saw them sitting there. “We got things for the wittle baby!”

Caduceus followed her in with a small, tranquil smile and held up a burlap bag. “Diapers and milk.”

Jester gasped. “And I found her the cutiest little purple dress and I just really, really hope she doesn’t puke all over it right away.”

Nott sighed and held the baby out to Caduceus, who took her extremely carefully into his arms. “I’ll set up a diaper change station. Fjord, go get me one of your clean shirts that you don’t mind never seeing again.”

Fjord blinked and uncrossed his arms. “For… For what?”

“For cleaning up poop.”

Fjord winced. “What? Why my shirts?”

“Because you spent the entire time they were gone complaining right in my ear. Shirts, now.” Fjord groaned and sulked out of the room while Nott started pulling the diapers out of the bag. “Where are Caleb and Beau?”

“Sleuthing,” Caduceus said. “Beau said that they were going to see what they could find out about this dead woman and see if anyone knew about a half elf baby being born in town.” Nott frowned but let it go, instead focusing on find a clean enough surface to work with.

“We should name her,” Jester said, rocking back and forth on her feet at a safe distance from the baby's vomit hole.

Caduceus was holding her gently in the crook of his arm, bouncing her and swaying slowly back and forth like Nott had shown him before. “She’s several months old, I suspect she already has a name.”

“Yes, but we don’t know it and she can’t tell us. So maybe we can give her a temporary name, like a nickname. Something cute like… Matilda or Calla Lily or Sunshine.”

“Matilda is nice,” Nott said, laying the baby down on the table and undoing her clothes to change her diaper. 

Fjord was frowning as he walked back into the room. “Matilda? No way.”

Jester gasped at him. “What’s wrong with Matilda?”

Fjord handed his shirts over to Nott reluctantly. “It’s an old lady name. Seeing a kid with an old lady name is just… off putting.”

Jester pouted. “Well, I think Matilda is lovely. Do you have any ideas?”

“He has a silent ‘J’ in his name,” Nott interjected. “He shouldn’t have any naming rights at all.”

Fjord and Nott started to bicker and Jester blocked them out, turning to Caduceus so that she could make faces at the baby. “What do you think, Caduceus?” 

Caduceus didn’t answer right away but he looked thoughtful. “Suvi. She was left alone in a heartless, deadly world but she is a survivor. Suvi for short.”

“Oh, Suvi is perfect! I love it so much!” She grinned and let the baby grab her finger. “Hi there baby Suvi! We’re going to take such very, very good care of you until we find your family. I promise.”

Suvi just stared up at her with big, dark eyes and gave a little cough, shooting spit up down her bare chest and Jester’s hand.

“Oh, why does this keep happening!” Jester exclaimed, rushing over to the wash basin.

Nott finished laying out one of Fjord’s shirts on the table and then made grabby hands towards the baby. “Here, sit her down. Diaper change. I’ll show you all how to do it, but then we’ll take turns, alright? I’m not being saddled with this by myself. And I’m not doing any fucking blow outs, so you just need to draw straws or something.”

Fjord blinked at her incomprehensibly. “What’s a blow out?”

Nott snorted. “You’ll know it when you see it.”

-

Beau was getting antsy. She was sitting in the chair of the guard’s station, chewing anxiously on her cheek and tapping her foot. “Why the fuck won’t anyone talk to us,” she hissed.

Caleb sighed, tapping his fingers against his knees. “Maybe it was a bad idea for just the two humans to do this?” he suggested, watching two of the guards across the room looked at them with disdain and talk quietly with one another. “We cannot get any information if the people here are too suspicious to speak to us.”

“Goddamn it,” Beau hissed, probably a little too loudly. “Prejudice blows.”

It was perhaps the understatement of a lifetime but Caleb just shrugged in agreement. Caleb looked up when the front door opened and he sat up straight when Essek walked inside. “Ah, Essek!” he called, clearing his throat and getting swiftly to his feet.

Essek looked over at them and smiled softly. “Ah, Caleb, Beauregard. I assume that you’re here for the same reason that I am?”

Beau hopped to her feet and marched over to him, tension in every line of her body but Essek didn’t seem bothered. The guards nearby all reached for their weapons, though none of them drew yet. “We’re here to see missing persons reports from the last few weeks but these clowns keep giving us the runaround. We even flashed our badges but they won’t listen.” She snapped her head around to glare at the guard at the desk who had been telling her ‘Just five more minutes’ for the last hour and a half. “A woman is dead and there’s a baby without a family and these fuckers don’t even care cause we’re human. Fuck all of you!” Caleb put a hand on her shoulder, maybe to hold her back, maybe to calm her down, and squeezed. She growled under her breath from the effort it took to keep from yelling some more and just relaxed beside him. 

Caleb sighed and cleared his throat. “Beau is just a little high strung. She is really worried about the baby.” Beau sneered and crossed her arms but didn’t speak. “Do you think you would be able to assist us?”

Essek just smiled, seemingly unbothered by Beau’s outburst. “Of course. I'm here to ask if any of the local morgues were missing bodies, I didn’t think to check missing persons, that’s a good idea. I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thank you, Essek,” Caleb sighed.

Beau was still fuming when they both walked back over to their chairs and Essek was lead inside a door across the room. “I’m not worried about the baby,” Beau said quietly. “I just want to get her out of our hair. We’ve got more important things to worry about.”

Caleb pat her shoulder placatingly. “Of course.”

#critical role #critical role fic #beauregard #caleb widogast #jester lavorre #nott the brave #fjord #caduceus clay #Empire Kids #disaster siblings

[kyouxa]

Diabolik lovers Chaos Lineage: Shin Tsukinami (Story 03)

In terms of the gameplay: The black choices lead up to a bad ending, the white choices lead up to a good ending. Please no reposting onto other sites, ask me before translating this into another language too! I’m an amateur translator, but I hope you do enjoy it anyway!♡

Place: Orange mansion — Outside

Ayato: — Good, seems like Ruki’s still busy.

Kanato: Then let’s go and leave already.

Ayato: Yes. For real, as if the great me would do what that asshole Ruki tells me to.

Kanato: Ruki really is an idiot. Ayato wouldn’t be more helpful than a familiar anyway.

Ayato: Hey, don’t say something so extra!

Whatever, let’s remain silent and finally leave this place.

Kanato: So we’re going to take revenge on him?

Ayato: That’s right. We’ll make Ruki regret his yesterdays choice.

I wonder what face that dude with glasses would make!

Kanato: So you mean the mansion Reiji’s the owner of. It sounds pretty fun for me. I’m highly looking forward to it.

Monologue

The situation doesn’t move in only one direction and time is always advancing.

How can I make Shin-kun’s memories return back to him, how can we return from this place to our original world?

I think of it, but I can’t find any solution at all. In a situation where I can’t find any clues, I have begun to be a little bit impatient.

Place: Orange Mansion — living room

Ruki: They’re not in here either…

Shin, Eve. Did you see Kanato or Ayato around here?

Yui: What… ?

Shin: No, I haven’t seen them. What’s wrong, brother?

Ruki: …That’s strange. I haven’t seen the two of them for awhile now. They’re not in their rooms either, just where in the world…

Shin: *sigh* … Those guys. I hope they didn’t lock themselves somewhere again.

Ruki: I thought that at least you knew, I see, you don’t know where they are either.

I asked them to go out for a reconnaissance today, but like this my instructions are useless.

Shin: I’m sure they didn’t ran away that far anyway. The battle for the king has already started which should scare them a little.

Well, maybe that’s the case. Besides brother, why aren’t you letting a familiar look after them?

Ruki: Yes. I prepared that already. I really have to use magic to watch over their movements…

It seems like the familiar can’t see their appearance either. Don’t tell me, Ayato and Kanato, did they ran to another mansion… ?

Shin: That could be another possibility. It would be pretty weird if they did though.

Going to the enemies mansion without any permission…

Ruki: Yes, that would be a problem.

Yui: (Ayato-kun, Kanato-kun, where did you go?)

*familiars return*

Ruki: Oh? The familiars attached to them and came back with a report.

Shin: Let’s listen to them then.

Yui: (Maybe the familiars really know where the two of them went… !)

Ruki: …Ngh, what did they…? These two are going to attack the Scarlet’s mansion… ?

Yui: (Eh!? What… !?)

Shin: What!? You’re kidding… Just what are they doing!?

Ruki: I can’t believe that they really went to attack the enemy. Everytime they do something selfish, my head starts to hurt.

Yui: But, I wonder why they suddenly decided to go to Reiji-san’s mansion…

Ruki: According to the reports of my familiars, it seems like they’ve been acting strange since yesterday.

Probably, yesterday’s cleaning was the trigger for their actions.

I guess, they wanted a payback for my action and that’s why they went to the enemy.

Yui: Such…

(Seems like the memories of the current Reiji-san are strange as well…)

(If they really went to such a place, Ayato-kun neither Kanato-kun will get out that situation easily…)

Ruki: They really are troublesome. I was going to avoid a fight until I completely understood the current situation…

For real, they keep acting on their own selfish behavior and I can’t stand that…!

Shin: What will you do, brother? Will you really chase after them and get in trouble with another mansion?

Ruki: …Yes, I can’t help it. I’m going to bring them safely back to our mansion.

Shin: Fine. Then I will go as well.

Ruki: No, you’ll stay here.

Shin: Eh? Why is that?

Ruki: You’ll remain with Eve as her guard, as you were chosen.

Shin: But… !

Ruki: I can’t take the risk to take Eve outside. It could be possible to get behind our backs and she’d be taken away by the enemy.

That’s the reason, Shin, you understand that, right?

Shin: … I do, brother. It can’t be helped if it’s my role to protect her.

Yui: (Shin kun, he looks very dissatisfied with his given instructions…)

(Do you want to go with Ruki-kun because you want to be useful to him? Or maybe…)

Shin: Even if I we’re alone here, you shouldn’t act extra and just do what I tell you.

You never know what could happen if we spent some time alone here, right?

Yui: Y-Yes. That’s true…

Place: Orange mansion — Outside

Ruki: Well then, I‘ll get going.

Shin: Yes, be careful brother.

Ruki: No, it’s you who should be careful.

Yui: …?

Ruki: There may be something while I’m away. It also could be a high chance that another family member may come to attack.

Keep your eyes on Eve the entire time so nothing happens. Those are the conditions, for leaving you two alone.

Shin: I know. I’ll leave never leave her alone and watch over Eve the entire time so she can’t be robbed.

Ruki: Yes. See you.

Yui: Ruki-kun, I hope he’ll bring them back safely.

Shin: What? It’s obvious that he’ll come back safely. You, do you really think my brother would get hurt so easily?

Yui: T-That’s not what I meant …

But in this situation, I thought it would be better to worry a little since I can’t do anything useful.

Shin: If that’s the reason, don’t be worried. There’s literally no one who could beat my brother.

My brother’s power are strong. Yes, he really can’t be beaten…

Yui: (Huh? His voice just got lower …)

Shin: Aha, for real. If it wasn’t for your safety, I could’ve follow my brother.

Can’t you defend yourself somehow, for example with your special powers as Eve?

Yui: …S-Sorry. I don’t have such powers.

Shin: I see. Make yourself useful in any other way then.

Whatever I give you as orders, you’re supposed to obey me.

I’ll tie you to my bed and hurt you until your face is distorted in fear if you won’t obey me. Understood that?

Yui: Y-Yes

Shin: Now, let’s go back into the mansion. We may be attacked by the enemy if we just stay around here.

Place: Orange mansion — entrance hall

Yui: (Ruki-kun is gone now, only I and Shin-kun are in this mansion now…)

(This might be my chance. He might listen to my story if I talk about it now)

Place: Orange mansion — living room

Shin: Aha. Being alone really is boring. You can’t be useful for me either.

Hey, you said you’re able to make some tea, right?

Maybe a wonderfully and delicious cup of tea would kill at least a little of my boredom.

Yui: Yes, I understand. I’ll be right back.

(I’m glad he asked me to do something for him, maybe his cold attitude will settle down while we’re alone in this mansion)

(After all, Shin-kun didn’t change at all. But, I still want his memories to return back to him soon …)

*time passed*

Yui: There you go, Shin-kun.

Shin: Took you long enough. I wondered how much longer you wanted me to wait.

Yui: I’m sorry. It took me a long time to prepare it because it’s a kitchen I am not familiar with.

Here. Enjoy it.

(I’ve been flowing the tea over and over again, and I finally got confident with the way the tea tasted, so I think …)

Shin: …Well, the smell isn’t that bad.

Ngh… heh, you really did good work, with making the tea.

Yui: Is that true? I’m glad.

(Shin-kun really seems to be in good mood now, maybe I’m now able to talk about his memories?)

(If I won’t act, nothing will change. I’ll try to do my best, so he can remember everything about himself…)

Hey, Shin-kun. After all, I still think that everyone’s memories are fake ones.

It may be difficult, but please don’t be foolish and believe in what I’m trying to say… !

This place, it’s not the usual place where I, Shin-kun and Carla-san lived…

Right now, we’re living and fighting as a fake family in a place we don’t even recognize…

Don’t know what’s the cause of all this…. but I’m sure this isn’t happening in any naturally way!

Shin: Hah? You, really keep saying that. Looks like you don’t have discipline.

Moreover, what did you say earlier? I was usually living with Carla and you, haha… how laughable.

Could it be, you want to go to Violet’s owner Carla as well? You really are a greedy woman.

Yui: That’s not it! I didn’t said anything like that…

Besides, Shin-kin’s real brother wasn’t Ruki-kun to begin with, it was always Carla-san!

Shin: Ha, Carla being my brother, are you really continuing to say that? Stop fooling around already.

Generally how are you supposed to know they’re fake, do you know what you’re saying? Well then, what about this memories?

Yui: I-It’s true! Carla-san really is your brother!

It may be…, that you can’t be convinced so suddenly about your current fake memories…

(After all, it still seems to be difficult to believe me)

(But, I can only continue to tell the truth …)

Shin: Weren’t you, sleeping in the church until recently?

If so, aren’t you mistaken for the memories because it might be a dream you had at that time?

Yui: Such… ! That’s not…

Shin: Well then, show me proofs if you keep saying it!

*shin comes closer*

Yui: Kya… !

(Shin-kun’s face tends to be close… !)

Shin: Hey, you keep saying this so enthusiastically the entire time, isn’t there something? Something that would convinces me!?

Yui: Even if you want proof, I really have nothing to convince you… ngh

Shin kun …! Please don’t get so close… !

Shin: Haha, what are you so shy about? You were the one having a big mouth, and now, your face is turning red.

Don’t tell me you’re really pleased with this already? It at least looks like it.

Yui: …Ngh

(Because …)

Shin: I see. You and I were lovers in your dream. It can’t be denied with your reaction.

Yui: (That’s right. We are lovers… and it hurts my heart when you act like I just dreamed about it)

Shin: Your smell has gotten sweeter for awhile now, could it be, that you’re getting excited by me saying you’re my girlfriend?

Yui: Stop… !

Shin: I already told you, there’s no use in resisting. Ah really, the smell is completely unbearable…

Yui: Are you going to suck my blood? But, if you do that, Ruki-kun will definitely get mad…!

Shin: Heh, did I ever mentioned that I was going to suck your blood? After all you really are aroused.

Yui: …Ngh!!

Shin: As you wish, I’m going to suck your special blood. See, how about this spot right here?

Yui: Ah…

(He’s stroking my neck… it tickles and my voice might come out… !)

Shin: Hehe, you’re really excited. Your body is pretty honest.

Now, you told me that you don’t have any evidence, but that’s not true. Ah, maybe it’s your blood or something?

Yui: P-Please wait! I really don’t have any evidence… !

*Shin backs off*

Shin: Heh? Is there really nothing? Well then, I don’t have a reason to believe in your story either.

Choices

1) — can’t say anything (black)

2) — suggest to meet Carla-san (white) ♡ ♡ ♡

— can’t say anything

Yui: …

(I can’t say anything…)

Shin: Heh… apparently the story seems to end here.

Yui: How can I make you believe me… ? There’s literally nothing I can do as a proof for you. In that case…

Shin: What? I don’t know either. Think about something yourself.

Yui: That is… that’s right but…

(Ah, I can’t do that. If there was only a chance to make the two of them meet each other—)

Shin: Are you done now? If you still want to joke around about that topic I’m not joining it.

— suggest to meet Carla-san ♡

Yui: If you’d meet Carla-san, I’m sure you could remember everything… !

Shin: …Carla?

Why would I want to meet a person like Carla?

Why should I stimulate the enemy with this, sorry. Even my brother wouldn’t forgive me.

Yui: That’s true…

end Choices

Shin: Don’t think about those silly things again, you also should drink some tea to settle down.

Yui: Yes… okay…

(I guess my suggestion wasn’t good …. what exactly can I do to make him believe in my story… ?)

(Even if you say so, the memories in your head, you’re having a hostile feeling because you maybe think you’ve met Carla-san before, right?)

(I’m sure you’re feeling nostalgic about it, aren’t you?)

Hey, Shin-kun. Tell me, why can’t we meet up with Carla-san… ?

Weren’t there any nostalgic feelings, aren’t you feeling like you’re close to this person?

Shin: Woah, now you’re just talking nonesense… Seems like you forgot. That guy is an enemy, an enemy. I can’t just meet up with them like this.

…Hmm? Wait. As you said, for some reason… I feel strange thinking about Carla now.

Yui: What… !?

Shin: The feeling of not wanting to lose, that I would definitely want to exceed him… But, he’s a man I can only admire from far away…

Yui: (Yeah, that’s right Shin-kun! Carla-san is Shin-kun’s older brother, who Shin-kun highly respects and admires)

(A little more! I’m sure he can remember… !)

Shin: Well, it’s only natural that I don’t want to lose because he’s an enemy. Violet’s eldest son, he’s a decent opponent.

Yui: (… I see. He still got none of his memories back…)

(But, I felt like I could see a little hope, even if there was no change until now)

(Even if fake memory are planted in his head, somewhere in his mind he may remember his true memories… !)

(He said he’d be a decent opponent, maybe we can meet him because of that. Let’s ask Shin-kun again)

Shin-kun, after all…

Shin: ….Ngh! Shh, I hear something.

Yui: Huh… ?

Shin: I felt the appearance of some people just now. I don’t know if they’re outside or inside the house, maybe they’re just near here.

Yui: I-Is that so? I didn’t hear anything strange …

(Shin-kun’s expression is more serious than ever… did someone really come close here… ?)

*glass breaks*

Yui: Kya!!

(The glass broke!? What… !?)

Shin: After all they came. It’s an attack from the enemy. They really choose the best timing, it seems like I’ll really meet that guy.

Yui: That’s… !

Shin: Besides it seems that this flashy noise… means he’s not coming alone.

This really is a messy situation. Eve, this way.

*Shin takes Yui’s hand*

Yui: Ah… ! What are we doing!?

Shin: We are the only people here. I don’t know how many people are attacking us either.

It could get really dangerous if they found us now. We’ll be hiding, once we got away.

Yui: Yes… !

Shin: If they knew that you’re the only person besides me in the house it’s obvious they would attack, they’re pretty agile.

However, that really is a bold behavior… there’s only one guy who’d be able to do this.

Yui: Who is it …?

Shin: Carla, who else!

Yui: (Carla-san!? Does that mean he’s the one attacking us… ?)

Shin: Hurry up. As expected Carla probably brought all of his brothers, we need to get away — Ngh!

Carla: Stop.

Shin: Tch, he saw us right away.

Yui: (Carla-san… !)

Laito: Eve, we caught you ♪

Kou: There’s no need to run away anymore~ All of us came together just to pick you up Eve.

Subaru: You should just give up. There’s no point in resisting anyway.

Azusa: Eve…

Yui: (Laito, Kou and Subaru-kun. Also Azusa-kun is with them)

(Seems like, the battle will begin…)

#chaos lineage #diabolik lovers #chaos lineage translation #translation #diabolik brothers #shin tsukinami chaos lineage #shin tsukinami chaos lineage translation #shin tsukinami #diabolik lovers chaos lineage translation #diabolik lovers translation #carla tsukinami chaos lineage #diabolik lovers chaos lineage #diabolik lovers ayato #otome game translation #ayato sakamaki #kanato sakamaki #ruki mukami #carla tsukinami #laito sakamaki #kou mukami #sakamaki subaru #azusa mukami

[aweebwrites]

Move on Dragons Ch3

Eternal thanks to the light of my writing life @thelucariosfish for beta-ing!

____________

'Alright. This is it. Hiroshi's Labyrinth. Miles and miles of unexplored territory. I think Mr. Borg had an old base here a few of you can use as a den. Maybe your Cole could widen it a bit.' Kai suggested as the thunder of dragons focused on him where he was still perched atop Garmadon's head.

'Perhaps you could show us this… Base.' Wu requested, the large white and gold dragon focusing on the half dragon and Kai scratched the back of his head, having no clue where it was.

'I'll take care of that.' They looked over to the hovering Bounty where the Oni that was Lloyd had spoken from, his hand absentmindedly petting the small black dragon taking a nap around his neck.

The dragon version of himself flew over and without prompting, Lloyd hopped out on his back, startling the smaller dragon around his neck. The wide eyed black dragon looked to where they once stood on the Bounty then back to their place on the back of a far larger dragon than he. The small dragon began chittering and nipping at Lloyd as if reprimanding the Oni for doing something so risky.

"Ow! Ow! I'm fine! No need to bring teeth into this!" Lloyd yelped, pulling his face back from the cranky black dragon.

'It's strange that he is obviously kin but yet… I cannot understand him.' Draconic Lloyd says as he flew him over to his uncle.

'It's odd to me too.' Lloyd says back, apologetically petting the black dragon's head. 'I could understand Firstbourne and while she's in the same dimension as I am, she's in a different realm. Well. That's assuming that this little guy is from this dimension.' He added, remembering that other dimensions were a thing.

"Well, lead the way." Kai says to Lloyd from his pace atop his dragon self's back.

The Oni nods then told his dragon self to fly straight ahead, the rest of the dragon nation following.

"We should follow too." Cole says to Nya from the Bounty and she nods, navigating the Bounty behind them.

Zane kept his focus, even as Jay poked and prodded at the microscope he was using while waiting for the results of the blood test he had ran. Looking at something at a microscopic level was beyond his abilities as a Nindroid after all. Though, what he was observing at this point does prove to be… Worrying. Zane sat back with a frown, professing all he has observed so far. Back then, years ago, Nya had said there was a theory that elevating one's heartbeat could cure the bite of a Fangpyre. It was all theoretical though. They should have known to give Jay a full check to see if the venom was truly gone. It wasn't gone, only had been lying dormant in Jay's very DNA all this time. Being exposed to the draconic dimension and its ways of mutating humans by simply being in that dimension for long had triggered it. 

Zane was just guessing here but the changes from human to draconian started the very second they crossed over to the dragon's dimension. It's just an incredibly slow process that gets faster over time. But while the change may have run smoothly in Cole and Nya, it must have ran into some trouble with the dormant Serpentine venom spread out through Jay's body. He imagines that both may have clashed for a bit before the stronger rose up- the stronger being the venom in Jay's DNA since the draconian influence would have been very weak at that point. The venom must have overpowered and used what little energy drive the draconian influence had to become active again, starting off as sluggish as it was now. But within a few days, a week at most, Jay would be almost completely Serpentine. He would retain most human features Zane felt sure of, but yet again, this was all theory. He can't say for sure this is the direction in which things will go.

"I take it that you've found something?" Zane looked up at Sensei Wu as he approached him.

He breathed out slowly then nodded.

"Yes. I have." He says, gaining Nya and Cole's attention as well. "I still need the blood work to say for sure what changes to expect but… The venom he had taken in from pricking his hand against the Fangpyre skull years ago hadn't disappeared with unlocking his true potential. Rather, it had became dormant. I theorize that the exposure to the Dragons' dimension is the trigger of why it's suddenly active again," Zane explained.

"I don't get it. Didn't it take Kai a month or two in the dragon dimension to start showing changes? And how does being in a dragon dimension turn one into a Serpentine?" Nya asked, confused.

"A change as big as going from human to dragon isn't a sudden thing. It's more logical for the change to start from the moment one enters the dragon dimension and slowly proceeds from there. My hypothesis so far is that once the influence of the dimension met the dormancy of the Serpentine venom in Jay's blood, there was a bit of a struggle between both genetically-changing forces. The venom which was more likely the stronger of the two forces must have overpowered the draconic influence and took it's drive to become active again," Zane explains then looked towards Jay who was only half listening. "From what I've seen so far, Jay will be completing his change by the end of the week." He added and they gasped.

"But- but if he's been bitten by a Fangpyre, surely we can just meet up with some Serpentine and make some antivenom, right? Right?" Cole asked and Zane frowned.

"We could try… But it's unlikely to work. The venom was from a skeletal system that dated back almost a hundred years. Serpentine now have evolved much since then. Their venom may not be the same. The antivenom may not have the components needed to cure him. Moreover…" Zane explained then looked over to Jay as the blue ninja smiled at him, cheeks in hand. "The venom has been in his system so long that it has become apart of him- apart of his very DNA. That alone is enough to almost guarantee that even if the antivenom is correct, it wouldn't be able to do anything." Zane told them and the others frowned.

"No need to look so glum!" Jay says cheerfully, gaining their attention. "I'm just becoming a snake man permanently is all! You guys can just kick me off the team if it comes to it. No biggie." He shrugged and his teammates looked at him in disbelief.

"As if, you damn airhead!" Cole snapped at him, leaving Jay to blink at him curiously. "We're gonna try everything we can to keep you normal and even if that fails, you'll still be apart of the team! Serpentine or not! Does it look like we give a damn what any of us become?! That won't stop us from being family! From being Ninja? No, so shut your damn mouth before I make you!" The Earth ninja says as he took a threatening step forward.

"Yeah! Cole's right! Heck, we could all become inhumane and I still wouldn't care! I didn't care that you were being Serpentine back then, and I sure as hell don't care now," Nya says, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes at Jay.

Said ninja blinked at them then smiled.

"You two sure do get worked up easily, huh," Jay jokes but Cole, Nya and Zane's eyes widened once tears fell down their blue brother's cheeks. "Still, it's a nice thing to hear. Thanks." Jay says softly and for a moment, he seemed like a completely different person, smiling and crying as he was.

"Come here you big-" Cole cut himself off to hug Jay instead, the blue ninja hugging back tightly, smile still in place, even as he buried his tear-stained face into Cole's shoulder.

Nya joined the hug, then Zane himself, though he had something else Jay-related on his mind…

___

'Here it is.' Lloyd says, looking down at the small clearing that hardly looked like anything else was around.

That was because the base was underground.

'The entrance might be a bit small for you guys. First, let me check if he still has traps out and about,' Lloyd said and his dragon self nodded then lowered to the clearing.

The green-eyed Oni hopped off before his dragon counterpart could land, earning more reprimanding from the tiny dragon traveling with him.

"Ow! Ow! I'm fine, aren't I?" Lloyd hissed then took him off from around his neck, leaving the small black dragon to coil around his hand. "Jeez. I know what I'm doing. I'm a ninja for crying out loud." That didn't appease the small angry bundle of scales it seems if the little guy's hisses and chittering were anything to go by.

"I'm not as careless as you think you know." Lloyd huffed as he walked towards the base on his hind legs.

The unimpressed look he received from the dragon had Lloyd sputtering.

"Ok, so maybe I'm not the best with self care but I'm getting better." Lloyd huffed and the small black dragon crawled his way back up around his neck, rubbing against Lloyd's cheek with a purr that made the Oni boy smile.

He then dropped down on all fours, shifting as he does to his full Oni form then took off, deciding not to keep the dragons waiting.

Kai in the meantime felt a bit guilty to not have come here all those years ago. If they had, would it have made a difference? The fire ninja only shook his head. He blinked once he caught wind of a few dragons murmuring to themselves.

'Why should we live underground like Oni scum?'

'Be grateful. These humans are willing to share their world with us.'

'But at what cost? To hide and burrow like snakes? If it were up to me, I'd-'

'You'd what?' The toxic dragon froze once he gained Garmadon's attention. 'Conquer this world? Do as you please?' The large black dragon asked, turning around to face the cowering toxic dragon as the others parted away from the grass green dragon.

'You're better off listening to your brethren. We are here out of courtesy and we will not cause the humans any trouble or harm outside of self defense. If any of you find yourselves unable to follow those simple terms for our very survival, then you will be sent back to our home world.' Garmadon declared and all of the dragons visibly shrunk at that.

They all knew going back would mean death. Even if they manage to find corpses of animals, the air quality would be so low and the waters would soon be impossible to drink, that it wouldn't ever be possible to live for long. They knew better than to test that claim. Of the two brothers that lead them, Garmadon was not only more strict, but he was never one to go back on his word. The toxic dragon swallowed thickly then flew back, head bowed in submission and acknowledgement.

Kai leaned against one of Garmadon's fabled horns of destruction. He hadn't even considered them wanting to overthrow humanity. He closed his eyes then crossed his legs. He still won't. Garmadon was different. They all were. They were good. Kai rubbed his cheek against the massive dragon's horn, a low purr leaving him- a sign of trust. He blinked his eyes open once he felt him lowering from the sky, landing quietly moments later. Kai shifted then slid himself down on Garmadon's nose, watching as large, red eyes focused on him.

'The base is more of a start. You guys don't have to stay underground. We expect you all to spend almost all of your time on the surface as the dragons you all are. We're prepared to help you all build a sort of home base anyway.' Kai shrugged, wanting to clarify with his adoptive dragon father. 'I mean, you will all be here for a while anyway. Might as well get comfortable.' He says, prodding at a large scale on his snout.

Kai was unphased when Garmadon tilted his head down, allowing Kai to slide right off his snout to land in his waiting paw.

'We will forever be in your debt,' Garmadon rumbled softly and Kai shot him a wide grin.

'What do you mean? You're paying your debt as we speak.' Kai says, confusing the elder dragon. 'You're surviving, aren't you?' The fire ninja asks, tilting his head to the side, grinning wider once Garmadon's eyes widened.

'That's Kai for you. He always has a way with words.' Kai looked back at the bright green dragon with gold horns that was Lloyd who was looking at him amused from his place seated before his father, at the perfect level with his father's paw.

'I wouldn't know about that…' Kai says, rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish grin.

'Course you wouldn't. It would take away the appeal. You know?' Kai looked up to see the dragon version of his sister coming in to land, the rest of the dragon version of his family coming in too.

Before Kai could make a bashful comment, Lloyd returned, still on all fours. Kai hopped out of Garmadon's paw, using his wings to glide down to the ground, folding then against his back once he landed.

'There were a few that were still active but I've disarmed them. We're good to go.' Lloyd reported as he looked up at Kai, getting up onto his hind legs a moment after.

'Sounds like it's my time.' They looked back to the dragon version of Cole then nodded.

'I'll supervise,' Zane says as he walked forward, narrowing his slitted, icy blue eye at his fellow dragon who flicked his tail at him with a huff.

'I'm not some kind of out-of-control dozer bull.' Cole huffed and both Kai and Lloyd snickered, looking up at the dragon.

'It's called a bulldozer.' The small Oni corrected, amused.

'Let's go. We have a lot of work to do and very little time to do it.' Zane says, looking up at the sky.

It was getting close to midday already and they had to make a settlement there so everyone could rest.

'You guys go ahead. We'll get our Cole to help.' Kai says, taking Lloyd under the arms.

"Are you sure you can-" Lloyd's question was cut off when Kai beat his wings a few times, lifting then off the ground. "Oh. You've been working out?" He asked as Kai flee them towards the ship.

"Yeah. Since I'm the only one of us that can fly, it's only natural I work up the muscle strength to carry one of you guys." Kai says then beat his wings faster the strain getting to him. "I just… Can't carry you for long yet." He got out then almost dropped him on deck.

He set him down gently then blew out a breath of relief, flexing his wings a bit.

"Hey Cole-" Kai cut himself off, noticing the upset yet determined looks on everyone's faces.

"... Did we miss something?" Lloyd asked, shifting back to normal as he looked amongst them all.

"... I'll catch you up on things." Zane says as he walked over to them.

Minutes later, both Kai and Lloyd shared the same upset yet determined expression.

"We won't know unless we try. Skales is our ally so I'm sure he can convince a Fangpyre to spare a few drops of venom." Kai says and Lloyd nodded.

"The change is still in progress so maybe if we get him the antivenom before the change is complete, it'll have a better chance of turning him back!" Lloyd says and Zane only nodded.

He had major doubts but he won't dismiss the slight margin that this might work.

"You both need to stay here to help the Dragons settle in and you need Cole for it. Zane and I will head to New Ninjago City to talk to Skales." Nya instructed and they all nodded.

"But who will look after Jay?" Zane asked, taking the microscope from the spacy Ninja.

The team shared a look.

"I'm sure Lloyd and I can multitask. Besides. We should probably talk to him about this anyway." Kai says, looking to Lloyd who nodded once.

"Alright. So we're set then. Zane and I will take the Land Bounty. We'll be back soon." Nya says before both of them took off.

Lloyd looked Jay of as he hummed to himself, smile unwavering. He walked over, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry Jay. Things will turn out fine, human or Serpentine. You'll see." Lloyd reassured quietly.

Jay looked up at him with clear blue eyes then grinned.

____________

(Update! We're finally starting off somewhere! Yeah starting considering that this will have a lot of chapters. I have something else working on but it's,,, nsfw so that'll go on Ao3. Anyway, thanks for reading!)

#ninjago #kai smith #kai ninjago #ninjago kai #ninjago lloyd #lloyd ninjago #lloyd garmadon #jay ninjago #ninjago jay #jay walker #zane julien #zane ninjago #ninjago zane #cole ninjago #ninjago cole #cole brookstone #nya ninjago #nya smith #ninjago nya #ninjago wu #ninjago sensei wu #wu ninjago #ninjago garmadon #garmadon #aweebwrites' work

[kuriquinn]

Wayward Son [SPN Fusion]

The Usual Disclaimers ETC (Also, Supernatural doesn’t belong to me either)

Author’s Note: So I didn’t actually write this recently, cuz I’m still not having a great time of it writing-wise, but I had outlined it like two months ago and just fleshed it out today. 

Warning(s): Appropriation of dialogue from the spn episode Lazarus Rising.

Dedicate to: All my followers who are part of other fandoms than the SS fandom :)

The only light in the warehouse comes from naked lightbulbs hanging and spluttering from the roof, loose wires winding down the walls to the generator.

Kakashi draws an obscure character on the cement floor with a spray can, one of countless symbols on the ground, walls and ceiling. Sasuke frowns at the nearest ones, studying them for a clue as to their meaning.

“I’m not sure I’ve seen most of these symbols,” he remarks.

“Traps and talismans,” Kakashi murmurs, adjusting his bandana around his face to keep the fumes at bay. “I had to dig deep into mythologies all over the world for some of these.” He glances up. “How are you doing?”

“The usual fare,” Sasuke replies, nodding at his stash of stakes, knives, tire irons, silver bullets and salt. “I suspect we can catch or kill anything I have ever heard of.”

“I still think this is a bad idea.”

Sasuke doesn’t reply.

He knows exactly what Kakashi’s thoughts on the matter are. If he’s being honest with himself—which he has always actively avoided—he feels the same. There’s nothing good that can come out of this, but he has learned better than most that ignorance can kill you just as much as knowledge.

His head feels too full, too busy since he awoke in an unmarked grave somewhere in Shiga Prefecture, surrounded by a field of dead earth and trees. He doesn’t remember Hell—it’s a small mercy, and one he doubts will last much longer, given his luck. All he remembers is being torn apart by the hellhound, and then waking up and looking for Kakashi, and then Itachi. His reunion with Itachi, and his brother being…different.

Sasuke knows Itachi is hiding something but getting him to open up will take time; it has never been easy to get him to talk, and there’s somehow too much distance between them to reach him right now. He suspects at least some of that is residual guilt—Itachi is the oldest, he was supposed to protect Sasuke and find a way to save him from Hell, but he couldn’t—and perhaps resentment of Sasuke for putting him in the predicament in the first place.

For bargaining his soul to keep his older brother alive.

But it’s been twenty-four hours since he’s been back, and he can’t do anything to deal with Itachi just now, and he’s never been good at waiting. With all the strange things that have been happening since he dug himself out of his grave—the high-pitched scream following him around, that seer Kin getting her eyes burned from her skull, the yōkai at the restaurant being too afraid to even try to kill him, the burning hand-shaped brand on his right shoulder—he wants answers, and he wants them now.

He wants to know why this—Sakura, Kin called her before her face erupted into flame—is hunting him.

He doesn’t say any of this to Kakashi, of course, and the man who all-but raised him and Itachi knows better than to prompt him. He simply nods, reluctant, and treads over to a rickety table nearby to take a pitch of some foul-smelling powder and sprinkle it in a large bowl.

Smoke wafts in the air, and Kakashi begins to chant in an ancient Chinese dialect; Sasuke doesn’t know what it means, but he’s familiar enough with most incantations to get the gist of it. He half-expects there to be an explosion, or the air to vibrate and twist the way it does when a ghost materializes, but nothing happens.

The smoke keeps billowing until it vanishes completely, and the warehouse remains empty.

Kakashi seems unsurprised, and hoists himself up to sit on the table, drawing a battered paperback novel out of his pocket.

“Is now really the time?” Sasuke grumbles, scowling at the lurid cover.

“It could be a while,” Kakashi answers, opening up the book. “For all we know, whatever it is that’s been following you around is out of phase with this dimension and needs time to materialize. Or it could be a yōkai created by whatever spell brought you back and is simultaneously existing and not existing. Sort of a Schrodinger’s Demon.”

He’s worse than Itachi when he gets started, Sasuke grumbles to himself. Out loud, however, he prompts, “If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be best to be prepared when it shows up?”

Kakashi’s attention remains glued to the bodie-ripper, but he lifts his rifle with his right hand, and Sasuke knows there’s no point to arguing with him. Besides, even when he’s supposedly immersed in his books, Kakashi has the best reflexes Sasuke has ever seen outside of the Uchiha family.

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke leans back against the table, arms folded and stares at the sealing circles, bordered by jumon incantations and mantras, and surrounding the Devil’s Traps on the floor.

What is there that exists that wouldn’t get trapped by that?

“Are you sure you didn’t get the ritual wrong?” Sasuke asks twenty minutes late when still nothing has occurred.

Kakashi glances up from his book, raising an eyebrow at him as if he’s just been insulted. Sasuke doesn’t back down—he’s said much worse to the older man in his time—and Kakashi shrugs.

“It’s a dead language,” he replies. “Older than Buddhism. One that isn’t spoken anymore. It’s possible I mispronounced something, but that shouldn’t affect the invocation itself.”

“But how can you be sure—”

A loud rattling shakes the roof.

“I’m sure,” Kakashi remarks, jumping to his feet with his rifle. Sasuke checks the two semi-automatics in his shoulder-holster, then puts his hand to the katana at his waist. The demon-slaying Kusanagi has killed every supernatural beast it’s come up against, and so it stands to reason he might need it now. 

The air is charged, like it might be just before a bolt of lightning arcs through it, and there’s a thundering sound moving closer. When it hits up against the far-end of the warehouse, the walls themselves tremble as if they are about to fold inward. Before they can do so, however, the wide door slams open.

The gust of wind that emanates from behind her makes Sasuke’s eye’s water, and he blinks rapidly to keep his eyes on the figure that has materialized in the doorway.

That’s…not what I expected.

The creature has the form of a petite woman, dwarfed by the giant doors still straining back against their wall. Her hair is the colour of cherry blossoms, a somewhat bizarre contrast to her pantsuit, tie and what appears to be an immaculate white lab coat.   

She glides toward them with a slow, deliberate ease that is marred only by the light bulbs that shatter above her as she passes, raining sparks down on her.

As she gets within their range, Sasuke and Kakashi both open fire, intending to slow her down.

It becomes apparent almost immediately that the bullets have no effect, and so Sasuke tosses his semi-automatic to one side and bends into a stance for battōjutsu.  

“Who are you?” he bites out, hand poised and thumb ready to flick his sword from his sheath.

The woman cocks her head to one side, as if confused by the question. “I am the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition.”

“Allow me to thank you, then.”

He darts forward, drawing Kusanagi and slicing the blade upward and across her abdomen, before reversing the blade to shove through her chest. He waits for the flicker of electricity to sizzle through her body, the sign of the blade destroying its host, but nothing happens.

She doesn’t even flinch.

He is sure of this because his move brings him within inches of her face, close enough to observe that her eyes are a startlingly clear green for a Japanese woman. Something about them makes him release his hold on the sword and jump back.

What is she?

The woman considers the blade sticking out of her front, and then slowly pulls it out. There is no blood on it.

As the sword clatters uselessly to the floor, Kakashi attacks, charging forward while shooting his rifle point-blank at her face. With a movement Sasuke barely sees, she slides forward, taking hold of the weapon and using it to draw close, before touching the side of Kakashi’s head.

He crumples to the ground while Sasuke’s heart clenches, and the woman then looks up at him beatifically.

“We need to talk, Sasuke-kun,” she tells him. “Alone.” He swallows painfully, eyes flicking to Kakashi. “Your friend is alive.”

“Who are you?” Sasuke asks again.

“Sakura.”

“I figured that out already. What are you?”

“I have been called many things. Tennyo. Apsara. Angel of the Lord.”

“There’s no such thing,” Sasuke says immediately.

“Oh, Sasuke-kun…” she sighs, sounding disappointed and comforting at the same time. “This is your weakness. You have no faith.”

Lightning flashes—from where, he’s not sure, because they are still inside the warehouse—and he watches in astonishment as the shadows of two massive wings stretch out against the wall, like a bird about to take flight. An aura of unquestionable power radiates from the woman before her, and for a moment he thinks he sees something on her forehead gleam, and black designs crisscross around her body.

The electric light fades away and the image disappears, leaving the small woman before him, looking human but not.

“I apologise for earlier,” she says, looking contrite. “My real voice can be a little overwhelming to humans.”

It takes a beat for him to realise what she’s talking about, and he remembers the high-frequency, glass shattering scream that had him bleeding from his ears for several hours the day before. “That was you talking?”

A little overwhelming?

“Yes. I am sorry. Normally, certain people—special people—can perceive my true form and my true voice. I believed you would be one of them, but I was wrong.”

“And what form are you now?” Sasuke demands, flicking his eyes over her form again. “Holy hospital CEO?”

“This…this is a vessel,” she replies, sliding her hands down the curves of her body in a way that a human might intend as seductive, but comes off as clinical.  

“You mean you’re possessing that girl.”

“She is a devout woman. She prayed for this.”

“Bullshit. No one volunteers to give up their body,” Sasuke snaps. “What are you really?”

“I told you.”

“Even if I believed you, why would a celestial being pull me out of Hell?”

“Good things do happen, Sasuke-kun.”

“Not in my experience.”

In his experience, everything always goes to shit just when they seem to be getting better. He and his brother haven’t been able to catch a break since the fire that burned their mother to death on the ceiling of his nursery. The fact that he survived as long as he did before getting himself killed was dumb luck.

It has always been Itachi doing everything for him and protecting him. If anyone should be saved, should be given a second chance at life, it’s Itachi. Itachi, who was happy in law school before Sasuke dragged him off to look for their missing father, who was cursed with a demon’s powers, who had his spine severed right in front of Sasuke which led him to make the deal in the first place.

Sasuke clenches his fists, and Sakura frowns, cocking her head to one side. Those luminous green eyes fix upon him again, and he has the uncomfortable feeling she can see right through him.

“What is the matter?” she asks him. “You do not think you deserve to be saved?”

“Why’d you do it?” he asks harshly, though it comes out in a whisper.

She smiles then, pleased at the question. Reaching out—farther into his personal space than he allows even his family—she settles her left hand firmly on his right shoulder. Immediately his entire body feels bathed in light, burning from the inside out, but it’s not a painful sensation so much as disquieting. There’s a very real, very terrifying sense that this woman—this creature---knows every molecule of his being.

When she pulls away, he is torn between leaning in and scuttling away from her as fast as possible.

At last, she tells him in a serene voice, “I saved you because it has been commanded from on high. Because you have a greater purpose.”

Staring into those clear, sure green eyes, Sasuke almost believes it.

I realise it’s an odd choice to have Sakura as Castiel, but I find that comparing Team 7 and Team Free Will, she has the most in common with Castiel. Also, the only brothers of consequence in Naruto are Itachi and Sasuke, so they had to be the Winchesters. I would probably make Naruto Crowley. You know, since he’s BFFs with Sasuke/Dean lol.

Don’t think I’m going to go anywhere with it, but the idea wouldn’t leave me alone :P

栗

#sasusaku #rating: t #sfw #fusion au #naruto fanfiction #supernatural fanfiction #uchiha sasuke #hatake kakashi #haruno sakura #spn #drama #angst #prelude to ust

[sol1056]

set it up and pay it off

This was going to be part of another post which I ended up breaking into two. Finally had a chance to get to this tonight. 

I’m watching tDP and istg I’m trying my hardest not to compare it ... but every mistake [other shows] made, tDP is doing a right (and an amazing right). But in terms of writing?? The fact that they solve small issues without dragging it to the next season making the audience tired and not interested?? Amazing!!

Hello, payoffs! Not only does tDP do setups and payoffs right, it knows how to gracefully remind us, and then delivers those payoffs that’ll have the most bang for the screentime.  

For those unfamiliar with the term, if the classic chekov’s gun is the setup, the moment the gun is used (in whatever way) is the payoff. Payoffs are delightful things, and very little compares when it comes to satisfying readers (regardless of the nature of the payoff). Humans like getting the answers to questions.

Behind the cut: types of setups and payoffs, four things to remember, choosing payoffs and their role in the narrative, the dangers of doing them cheaply, and how to destroy a payoff’s weight. 

Spoilers for the first episode only; everything else is vague or uses non-tDP examples to illustrate.  

a bit about setups and payoffs 

When the story asks a question or raises a possibility, that’s the setup (aka the gun on the mantle), and the payoff is the answer. This is not the same as a character asking a question; setups and payoffs are designed for the audience. 

Frex, talking about bad weather is effectively asking, ‘what if the weather got really bad?’ Now when the tornado strikes, the audience was primed for the possibility. A setup can be to show a character’s skill, so the audience isn’t surprised when the character devises an ingenious solution in the finale. Odd descriptions and curious hints will spike the tension and raise the question, ‘what if this house is haunted?’ long before a ghost even appears on the page. 

Most stories have an overall question, like ‘can A win the Kentucky Derby’ or ‘can B find true love’ --- this is often what we call the throughline. But stories are also full of ongoing questions for the characters, and also about them (or their world, their backstory, their perspectives). Some get answered right away, some explained later, and some, well, never. 

Nearly every conversation between Viren and Harrow raises about twenty questions and answers perhaps five. The characters know (or think they know) the answers to a lot of these questions; their dialogue works on the level of exchanging information, and also to provoke or establish possibilities in the viewer’s mind. When we later see Ruunan’s skills or Amaya’s rank or some other detail that resolves the setup, it’s an aha! moment.  

four things to remember

1. Setups should make sense at that point in the story. If a character is busy trying to master unfamiliar machinery, it’s probably not the most appropriate time to mention the character is a croquet champion. If the character is in a room with no windows in the building’s interior, it’s going to be awkward if you decide it’s time for them to worry about the strange weather. 

2. A setup needs to make sense in hindsight. If the ghost died by drowning, and your tension-raising questions are all prompted by lightbulbs breaking and the smell of an open fire... that’s not going to make much sense, thematically. 

3. A setup must be intriguing. Say a story raises questions about a character’s animosity or honesty. If the reveal is, well, he always looks like that, or she’s always nervous, the reader’s going to apply that retroactively and decide that question had no point. (That’s a fast track to losing an audience’s trust, by the way.) If your setups are boring, the audience will find the payoff boring. 

4. Don’t delay all your payoffs until the end. You don’t want to answer everything too fast, or you’re losing a great source of tension. But you can’t put off answering for too long, or the audience will get frustrated and quit. (Or they’ll hold on just long enough to get the one answer they really want, and quit then.) 

answer this, not that

As tDP’s three protagonists move through the season, they know nothing of the larger intrigue going on, and they have no clue what lies ahead. Resolving any of those other questions might answer some world-detail for us, but they’re not an immediate concern for the protagonists. That makes those setups less valuable for an emotional payoff, because they don’t hold as much story-weight, comparatively.

What tDP did so well was that it never lost sight of the protagonists’ own questions. The writers then identified what they could answer without giving everything away --- and of those questions, they chose to answer the ones with the greatest urgency and emotional weight. 

To understand why you’d answer those in the middle of the story, it helps to understand what payoffs do, in the narrative. 

the role of payoffs in the narrative 

I’ve talked before about the promise of the premise, and the payoff of the setup is a parallel to that concept. When the story sets up a question (a premise), that payoff is where it delivers on the promise. It’s not always good news. Payoffs are consequences; sometimes it’s more powerful to have everything go wrong. 

Here’s an example of a mid-story payoff that doesn’t have emotional weight, vs several that do. In LotR, the fellowship is forced to go through the Mines of Moria. This is a double setup: one, can Gandalf remember his way through the labyrinthine halls, and two, can they get through without alerting whatever now lives in the mines. The tension hangs on those setups, and the story delivers four payoffs for it. 

Gandalf halts the party while he tries to remember which branch in the path is correct. When he does, it’s a payoff, and it does double duty: yes, he remembers enough to guide the fellowship (what a relief) and now they can proceed (as opposed to spending the rest of the book wandering around in the dark). We readers get a breather from the oppressive tension, and the story is pushed forward.

For at least a chapter or so, Gimli’s been insistent they should go through Moria. A marvelous place, distant kin sure to show them dwarven hospitality, etc. Seeing Moria is a question that only appears once they reach the mountains, and Gimli’s interest in it is mostly from a need to impress: his constant talk becomes another setup.

The second payoff comes Gimli forces a detour to investigate a tomb. We get a short passage where Gimli reads the eye-witness account of the mine’s last occupants. It’s an emotional payoff... but only for Gimli. It’s certainly not much of a payoff from the perspective of a reader who’s focused on the urgency driving them through the mines. Had the mines been a planned part of the route from the beginning, with the entire company desperate for the safe shelter, the mine’s disaster might’ve carried greater emotional weight.  

When Pippin knocks a helmet down a well, it’s a third payoff, addressing the setup created by Gandalf's strict warning about stealth. The tension rises but it’s alleviated in another way: the setup has been fulfilled. Now to find out the consequences: a fight scene, a chase, and the situation turns dire.

Gandalf’s fight with the Balrog is the fourth payoff, pushing the setup to its limit (whether they can all get through safely), but also resolving a setup planted much earlier in the story. That is, that Gandalf is what will make the journey possible, and keep them safe (and together). 

That setup (of Gandalf’s necessity) is fulfilled when the story yanks him out of the picture, and it comes with substantial emotional weight. We’ve had seventeen chapters showing how much Frodo admires, even adores, Gandalf. Not only is the result of that setup potentially threatening the fellowship’s success, it’s also emotionally devastating for Frodo and the other hobbits. 

In sum, payoffs do three things in the narrative: they remind readers of the stakes by delivering smaller consequences along the way, they deliver emotional beats (including the catharsis of laughter if the payoff is the punchline to a humorous setup), and they regulate the story’s tension and pacing.  

disingenuous setups make for cheap payoffs

If you look at some of the turning points in tDP, there are payoffs previous to the final episode. Think of every place the story is begging a question, and you end up with a whole lot of chekov’s guns; tDP practically has three mantles’ worth. 

If the elves swear an oath to fulfill their duty, what happens if they fail? If the boys can’t protect their prize, what will happen to them, to Rayla, to the humans and elves? If the boys trust Rayla with their prize, will she betray them? If the elves assassinate King Harrow, will the other human countries march to war? And what’s the deal with that mirror, anyway? 

What makes tDP especially satisfactory is how it plays with closure before any payoff. This can be a little tricky; it requires a narrative voice that’s gained the audience’s trust. In short, you take any given question, let the characters acknowledge the consequences of failure, and then let them accept this as the price of making their choice. Skip this step, and any reversal will feel cheap. 

Take the pivotal moment in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. From the moment Edmund meets the White Witch, he’s set on a path to betray his siblings. With Narnia’s prophecy hanging on the need for all four children to sit on the thrones at Cair Paravel, the story has setup Edmund’s actions to have significant payoff. If the White Witch kills him, the prophecy won’t be fulfilled. 

When the Witch delivers her ultimatum, and Aslan decides to offer himself as substitute sacrifice, Susan and Lucy end up bearing witness. Aslan explains his choice (but not all of his intentions), and the moment is heavy with emotional weight as the girls realize the consequences of their brother’s actions. The story doesn’t shirk from their grief, either; it’s a long passage of their distress as they do their best to undo --- or at least ease --- the worst of the Witch’s damage. 

The contrast of that seeming abject loss with Aslan’s return --- and his explanation of the loophole that only he knew about --- could’ve been a cheap trick. What makes it such a pivotal moment is that neither of the point-of-view characters (Susan and Lucy) have any idea of what lies ahead, nor does the story ever slyly wink in the reader’s direction. 

In tDP, there’s an ongoing looming consequence of Rayla’s choices, and she goes through the stages of handling that with all the gravity of what she believes to be true. The story never contradicts her beliefs; in fact, it reinforces them repeatedly, closing each additional option until only one terrible consequence remains. 

We can hope that some loophole might exist, but the story never winks in our direction: it does nothing to reinforce that hope, instead pushing the setup inexorably towards its logical payoff. Like tLtWatW, nothing breaks the looming anguish of the setup’s apparent consequences, just as Aslan’s resigned wish for the girls to look away closes the door on hope that he'll at least fight his fate.

embrace the weight of a payoff

There’s an excellent video that deconstructs the use of bathos in Marvel movies (good to watch if this paragraph confuses you). Bathos is an abrupt turn from the serious to the trivial, which parallels a cheap payoff in that it tips its hand. It tells viewers: hey, we’re not taking this seriously, so no reason you should, either. 

This is where tDP --- like Trollhunters --- really shines, because it never raises the veil to show the writers behind the curtain. Too often, stories (especially in current media) back away from committing to the payoff; it’s almost like we’ve got a generation of TV/film writers afraid to show any depth of emotion. The tension gets above a 2, and the writers retreat to a joke.

There’s plenty of humor in tDP; it’s filled to the brim with witty lines even funnier in context. What keeps it from being bathos (too much) is that it’s rarely an intentional quip on the part of the characters. Rayla is deadly serious when she tells the boys, “I’m not falling for that flashing frog trick, again!” If the writers expected me to laugh, the narrative doesn’t allow even a beat as indication. The story treats its characters --- and every payoff --- with a sincere gravity. 

I think the crucial ingredient comes in how the narrative understands itself: as an intimate portrayal of a character in this situation, vs that of an actor onstage before an audience. You may’ve heard that over-quoted bit about ‘dance like no one is watching’ --- the same is true for stories: they must unroll as if there’s no audience other than the characters in that scene, in that moment. 

This goes back to a setup that revolves around characterization such as honesty or duplicity. If a character cries in private, the reader’s assumption is that this character’s grief isn’t meant to be seen as feigned. With no audience (as far as the character knows), there’s no reason for pretense. If the payoff later is a reveal the character was faking all along, the story did worse than laughing at its own characters: it lied to the audience. 

It set up a premise which the audience trusted as valid, only to deliver a payoff that hinged on the audience's gullibility. If bathos trivializes an emotional payoff, a story’s duplicity mocks the audience’s engagement. 

A story can lie to its characters, can mislead them into thinking they have options when they have none, can maneuver them into thinking they have no options beyond one... but a story should never, ever, lie to the audience. If there’s a setup, its payoff must be honest. 

To paraphrase Gaiman, a story doesn’t have to be real to be true --- and the place we most often glimpse a story’s truth in how it handles its payoffs.  

#the dragon prince #writing #story structure #setups and payoffs #sol thinks about stuff

[ifihadneverpickedthepenup]

Down this road again...

Did I really forget how to swim?

Is the ice we skate on really this thin?

I thought maybe I would not go through this with him.

I thought all the love given would be enough to be forgiven.

So why do I live in this fear, in this cage?

Where do I find an outlet for my sadness and rage?

I am afraid.

And I am sorry, but to me, you have it made.

I know you’ll never see it this way.

So I’ll try to silence these thoughts day by day.

Where is the graciousness, gratitude, or simple recognition?

That in this life you can create a beautiful vision,

Which can easily come to fruition,

If you simply make the decision,

Find yourself internally driven,

And come to terms with all that you have been given.

Whether it wisdom, financial stability, health care, or just a real support system.

And I know that things were broken for you too.

I understand that I will never understand what you have been through.

But if you can’t wake up and see,

Your life is something so many envy.

Maybe you can’t be the one for me-

And before you chime in with you “if that’s how you feel I will let you be”-

It’s not because I want to be free,

But rather that you won’t fight for me.

It is that you will never understand how broken this life has made me.

People: friends, family, and lovers constantly betray me

Always praying someone is going to save me.

I’m experiencing mental and physical despair.

I know you probably barely care.

I can see it now, our conversation, your distant stare.

But it really isn’t fair.

You left me to rot,

I don’t care if you see or not.

I spend hours now daily staring at the clock.

When you don’t call I wonder if you forgot, didn’t care, or were too distracted by some other girl in there.

But I mustn’t say that, I wouldn’t dare. Why would I risk being called a jealous, crazy bitch?

Because I drive myself crazy.

Because I love you.

Because I care.

Oh and to find true love can be so rare.

And I know we could have it, I swear.

But not until you see past the pain in my heart that I so nonchalantly wear.

Babe, I beg you would just understand all the pain that I’ve felt,

And my desperate need to escape.

Or recognition that this might be my fate.

Maybe it’ll never get better than the first date.

But all you see is my inability to wait.

I’m just acknowledging the truth, that it may be too late.

Maybe I’m not meant to have a mate.

Maybe heaven filled up early and they had to close the gate.

My own flesh and blood was the first man to ever give me a drug.

He made me believe ecstasy was the same thing as a fathers love or a warm hug.

But he hid the badness, he swept the darkness under the rug.

But all those dark and evil prices crept up when I found myself in love.

When I try to find understanding my mind draws blanks.

I’m not trying to turn this into a competition, some kind of sick race.

I just want you to see where in the world I was placed.

It’s like the joint your friends pass you without warning you it was laced.

As soon as I could taste it was far too late,

Pushed towards hell and told it will all be well.

It’s my fate, something I have to face.

Forget that bullshit,

That’s all fake.

Life just didn’t want me to be great.

Doomed to be an addict,

Doomed to be a whore,

And absolutely nothing more.

I have no God to open windows,

Only the devil closing doors.

Knowing good and damn well I can not compete with most girls.

We live in different worlds.

You go to your parents as an escape,

For me it’s always a mistake.

Your family tells you to drive straight,

Mine would probably let me drive into a lake.

My father would definitely let me get date raped.

I know you think I’m exaggerating,

But moments ago we were smoking heroin together, let that sink in.

You don’t really know him.

There are some really dark things about him.

Things I hope will die with my generation.

Narcissism is the only word he wants to live in.

But he always wants to drag me down with him,

Knowing he has constantly failed his children.

Although it may be impossible to fully protect them,

Seems pretty basic moral integrity to look out for ones own kin.

If you think it’s just “tough love” that I was given, I would really like to share a portion,

Seriously I would have preferred my mom have an abortion.

Even that description can not begin to scratch the surface of the shitstorm that I live in.

And just like that my happiness was stolen.

I understand you’ll never know what it’s like to be a weed in the trash, while simultaneously being told your a flower with limitless potiental to grow.

Yet every bit of growth seems to stagnant, so slow.

I wish my past was like a map you could unroll.

I could take you where I’ve been, you could show me where to go.

But for now your advice is insulting because you’ve neglected to take the time to really get to know me.

Who am I? Do you have any clue?

What it is like to be anyone but you.

And don’t think for a second I haven’t tried to put myself in your shoes too.

I constantly try to understand because I do love you.

But I don’t think my whole past is even a story you could sit through.

I know just hearing some of my pain utterly disgust you.

Shit it does me too.

I use dark and sick humor to mask my mistakes.

Sometimes I believe my own bullshit and become a heartless bitch.

I turn off that switch.

But that should not invalidate my feelings you dick!

Great, now I sound like a prick.

Why can’t you just understand this shit?

Oh how I wish.

Don’t get me wrong, I get it, things had to be fixed.

But I am sick and tired of you saying it had to happen like this.

You left so quick that I could not pull myself together to get a goodbye kiss.

Now I do not know if I will ever get it.

You lied over and over,

Making me feel like I constantly had to look over my shoulder.

You stole from me repeatedly, so why should I believe you didn’t just use me?

You say I’m jealous?

What do you expect when our relationship is sexless?

You have often called me by the name of another bitch.

Do you even comprehend that shit?

You told me another woman’s sex was better than mine, but it’s “okay” because you were “out of your mind...”

But sure, “you’re in love with me”.

I’m not blind.

What you’re doing is not kind.

You probably are not in love with me and that is fine,

But do not let me do this time after time.

Trying so desperately to have you really love me.

Or make you want to be mine.

I’ve never been someone to be proud to have.

But for me, I want you to be my baby’s dad.

I want you to be my husband,

And I want you to be glad.

But again I know it’s something I will never have.

So I am sorry that I am sad.

Why am I so disgusting and broken?

Why is my pussy so scary to cum in?

You say you want a future, but you’ll never want my children.

Can you even picture a house that we are both happy to live in?

No really, think about that again.

This isn’t meant to be a sweet little hym.

This is the life I’ve created or been given.

I don’t know how to live in the system.

I’ll probably end up in another toxic relationship or abused by men since you think I’ll deserve it because I “hit” them.

Shit I’ll probably end up dead in the streets.

Hell maybe it’ll happen before you get out in the next couple of weeks.

So while I know I sit here and endlessly weap.

I shall consent to defeat.

Your family gave you an ultimatum.

Which ultimately made you choose them.

To me it’s sick we were put in a situation to make that decision.

And I get it, it’s cool, if I had your family I would probably choose them too.

And when you say “just don’t worry” or “don’t mind them,”

I wish you’d take a step back and look again.

Realize you will always choose them again and again.

To you, I am not family.

I’m barely even “your baby”

You’ve already shown your sister all of my crazy.

They already hate me (if they even waste the energy on me).

I’m trying so hard to explain don’t you see?

I don’t know how I will handle you going to leave me.

But I see for you it was pretty easy.

There wasn’t even a question of you staying with me.

The threat from your family was enough for you to leave oh so quickly.

And yet you do not even see that your family deceived you and me.

I wanted to be your family but now I see, that was extremely silly.

You probably won’t even spend another night with me.

So when I rant and bitch and try to explain my life it is simply because I never had it that nice.

You will probably find me dead before you ever understand what is going through my head every night before I go to bed.

My circle of support is so small and fake, I am not going to get better at all at this rate.

But yet when you ask if you should stop calling, I don’t know how to say yes, it would probably rip out my chest.

But if I had to guess, it won’t be long until no love is left.

The things she said honestly destroyed me and every time I read it, it makes me want to die,

I may as well be out of my mind, out of sight.

Just so she can be right and I can be the “bad guy”.

But I am realizing as I write this that it will all be okay, maybe even better this way.

I bet you don’t even know what to say, just like every time, everyday.

But your giant heart always makes my world fall apart.

Even at your darkest I see your spark.

Even with this time apart.

And you are so fucking smart.

The intelligence of 100 men, the strength of a lion.

A beautiful mane, looks that drive me insane.

The gentle grace, which will have me follow you any place.

You can do anything you set your mind to and I really hope that you’ll find the courage to take the time to.

You gave me some of the best memories of my life.

You are so sweet, too damn nice.

Though I know I will dream of you every night,

I recognize I am toxic and will respectfully remove myself from your life.

And maybe in moments when I’m high, I can hang on to your beautiful light and momentarily forget about my life.

I am sorry I held you back,

I am sorry I took your friends,

I am sorry I took your happiness,

I am sorry I made you loose yourself.

I really hope you hang onto your health.

I love you forever and you will always make my heart melt.

~ifihadneverpickedthepenup

#poetry #dark #breakup #poem #orginal #anonymous #poems on tumblr #love poem #dark poems #sad poems #drug poems #sad #life #art #poetic #poets on tumblr #sharepoetry #self expression

[letterstosestrilles]

Dear Tyko,

We're back on Mir—things do seem to circle back here for me, don't they? Here and Nosirion-1 below, where we're going in the morning and where I'll learn the sigil sequence for their newly finished Teleportation Circle so I can see the children whenever I want to and have the magic and time to spare. This time, I'm back because of a summons from Athan.

When I was out of contact before Hangi Syr, I can't remember if I told you that the data Thricusi's Horn offered me went to Athan and Kian, since they have the processing capabilities to deal with that amount of data. Athan told me they had a little information, asked if I'd please come, since some conversations are best had in person. So we stayed one more night on Sumula Station (yes, there was another week there, I'll tell you all about that in a moment), and then this morning I took us to Mir, casting Teleportation Circle for the first time. It was late afternoon to our early morning when we arrived, so I expect I'll be up all night, but that's fine, there's plenty to write about.

I had warned Athan we were coming, but he was a little surprised at the speed (I hadn't told him I was planning to cast the spell, so that makes sense). We had some breakfast, or early dinner, or something like that, and then Athan and Kian took us into the back room where they seem to give people information when they've been doing research.

The ship itself isn't in the logs from Thricusi's Horn. But there's mention of a colony ship known as The Blaze of Shadai that left gnomish space a bit before the Horn, with a crew member named Procyon ni Firda ken-Hadnai on it. (Perhaps not to do with the kin-Proceo clan that Snapdragon mentioned months and months ago now after all, though I'm not discounting that possibility—if nothing else, it might be a given name given in honor of another clan.) They dropped out of contact and never came back into it, but it's still a big lead—maybe my Procyon was named after this Procyon, if some ni Firda ken-Hadnai clan members split off into a new vessel at some point, or if the Blaze was wrecked and built anew.

What do you think? Do I seem like an Elyn ni Firda ken-Hadnai? I'm not sure of it, really. Most days I feel more like an Elyn bint Tiriel ken-Mara bi'Procyon, but even that doesn't sit quite right. Maybe nothing really will, but I suppose I'll have to wait and find out.

Kian also had a few things to say. The Horn sent on the star map as decompressed as they could get it with their tech, which is much much better than we've been able to do so far. He consulted with some astronomer contacts of his (who he can put me in touch with) and, miracle of miracles, they recognized the area, which is a large one with no known inhabited planets. The loop that's drawn on doesn't even go through any known settlements. It's also an area of space known for having all sorts of wormholes, planar gates, and other irregularities, which means the Procyon could well have entered through one and left through one, which is almost certainly why I've never been able to find a vector for it.

Can you have Lindanas open a reference query for me, if my library card is still active? Or for you, if I can't do it by proxy? I've asked Alion, but I want to ask you and him too—is anyone on Sestrilles keeping a record of godsfalls, planar gates, anything else like that opening up anywhere in the space around Sestrilles? No guarantee that the Procyon's would be close enough for a record, but if there is one, it would be good to know about—timing, maybe if there were any clues in the signature. I've got no idea at all how to read signatures, but someone must.

I also think that while I'm on Nosirion-1, I want to talk to Niko. She came through a suddenly opened portal. Maybe this region of space would be familiar to her? But she was so disoriented that it's impossible to know.

Athan also gave me a more concrete next step: Legend Lore. It's a spell I know I could learn, now, but it's never seemed like a priority and frankly I don't think it will be one in the near future, either, with all the other useful spells I could learn. He, though, knows someone who can cast it, and is willing to put us in touch—a mage on Nellaser's Landing, which I'd actually heard of recently, from Nuli and Thvara on Hangi Syr. There was an archmage, apparently, a planar expert, and that seems like the kind of person who might be able to help with this. And who can cast Legend Lore to seek out information about the Blaze of Shabai. I don't know what it will bring up, but it will be more than I know now.

This is a big step. And a frightening one. I was content with the slow pace of learning my variant of Speak With Dead, but this is a lot all at once and I'm excited and terrified with neither emotion seeming to win out. I guess I'll feel that way until I know one way or the other where all these leads go. At the least, I'm trying to remind myself that I can't keep changing what I want. Until I started finding answers, all I wanted was answers. Now I'm wondering about searching for survivors or distant family or resurrecting the dead. Some of it's useful thinking—Speak With Dead will come in handy, with a few more weeks of study—but most of it, I think I should stop worrying so much over until I know what the situation is, at least as much as I can.

Of course, I tell myself that, but I'll be able to stick to it for about five minutes.

Everything else I have to say is about Cloudleaper, and I feel a little guilty for telling you before I've even started writing about it. It's all secrets on secrets, but I need to talk to someone at least halfway impartial about it, and while I have Alion looking up a related query, I feel more like I can confide in you, if only because Cloudleaper knows I tell you pretty much everything.

She seemed upset a few days ago, and declared her need for milkshakes when we asked about it, so we went and she ordered a dozen, and then she started talking. First, it was things I was happy about—she told Stormflight that she's in love with him (and told Pika she was telling him) and showed us her confession, which was so like her in all the best and most heartbreaking ways, talking about wanting to be the best version of herself before she would dare let herself have him, if he would want to be had. His response so far has been that he doesn't have much in the way of privacy at the moment (he's staying with Pika, who still enjoys the vents), but that he'll write her when he does, and she was so terrified she couldn't even look at her inbox, so I've forwarded hers to me and am mostly being treated to Pika's long-distance delight and teasing so far.

And then she said—in order to be the best version of herself, there's something she wants to do. Has to do, she feels. She wants to find someone—her brother, her twin.

I don't even know where to begin with everything she said, how many secrets to keep. I know Alion will tell you what I asked them, and I know you're stubborn, so I think probably I should just say as much of it as I can.

Liadon Technologies—I know you and Alma have fixed up some of their tech, you mentioned that gun mount a few years ago, I realized when I went looking in my archives for any connections I might have. A hundred years ago, there was an explosion and a child of the family that runs the company died, and about eight years after that, another one disappeared, the head of research and development.

Only the first part of that isn't true. She caused the explosion, to destroy a technology that could—I don't know what it is. But it could have hurt a lot of people, and it was her brother, her twin, who came up with the idea, and she destroyed his work and everyone thought she died, and instead, somehow, at some point, she found her way into the deserts of Rugira Prime.

Even when I write it like that, an impersonal story, it seems like something out of a movie or a book, but Cloudleaper was too overwrought to be telling anything about the truth.

And of course Maliah and I will help her search for her family, that was never in question, but I think our courses may sharply diverge if and when we find him. Cloudleaper insists that he should go home, back to the family, who shouldn't have had to lose both of them. I think he shouldn't have to go anywhere he doesn't want to, and that if what he does when he's with his family is design weapons of mass destruction, he shouldn't be allowed anywhere near him. What if he's still doing it, in secret, on his own, with some plan that could hurt people?

Cloudleaper says that if that's the case, they'll go out together. I don't even want to think about that.

That's only the worst-case scenario, but nothing I can think of is good. The best I can hope for is that he figured out she's alive, and that he's been looking for her. Nearly as good (if not for him), is that he's been in seclusion with grief, but a hundred years can dull that kind of horror. Maybe he's captured, or in hiding, from the ecoterrorists who were trying to kill him and who Cloudleaper took out when she blew up his research. Maybe he's under Disguise Self and there really won't be any finding him.

And then the scenarios with Cloudleaper: she seems to think that her mother might be some kind of terrifyingly powerful warlock using her patron to get her ahead in business (though the loss of her son means there's been very little getting ahead in the past hundred years). Powerful magic might be able to tell her that Cloudleaper is alive, or where she is. And even if she doesn't have such powerful magic, she does have money and power, and we're getting well-known these days (Athan has said he's heard a few mentions. I am too terrified to ask more). What happens if Cloudleaper's face shows up in the news? What if her brother sees, and what if her mother does?

It's dizzying and terrifying and Cloudleaper is set on one course and too terrified to give much thought to other ones. Maliah and I are both very worried about what she's planning, though, and I think things could get very bad. I try to tell myself that if you'd disappeared, I would want to hunt you down and drag you home, so it's only natural, but there's a difference in what I would be dragging you back to do. And Maliah, without even that weak analogy, seems even more concerned about where this could lead.

But hope for the best means that I do want to find him. It's just that preparation for the worst means that I need to think about what's going to happen if Cloudleaper and I end up on opposite sides of a fight.

Maliah, at least, doesn't have anything too heavy going on. She's talking to her mothers right now, catching them up on the past few weeks and her adventures in lockpicking, after Cloudleaper and I attempted to give her advice about Marsa. I told her she might want to let Marsa know we're off Sumula Station and in this area, in case Marsa's around here, or in case she was passing by Sumula Station and hoped to meet up. Maliah was shocked by the suggestion and terrified that she might be bothering Marsa and Marsa wouldn't tell her if she was, and I don't think we managed to quite reassure her that that will not be the case.

I did venture to mention that when I was dating Araglas—we just had him for a few weeks before he transferred to The Siren's Jewel, remember him?—I would let him know our port schedule, and he'd do the same, both as a concrete way to stay in touch and to see if we could sync up on leave, and it's the only reason we lasted as long as we did. She was still worried about bothering Marsa, but I think maybe she'll actually write her. We did say that if Marsa doesn't answer, probably it means she'd like to cool things down, but really, I don't foresee that being a trouble. Marsa seemed very interested.

I would advise Maliah to ask Marsa if she wants to be girlfriends in a serious kind of way, but I can't imagine Maliah actually doing it, so I think for now, I'll leave them to figuring out their own happiness. I have plenty of other things to worry about.

Sorry, this letter is very long and I've hardly asked about you at all. Please do catch me up on everything—work and your book group too, I'm not just being nosy about Lindanas. Though of course I'll happily listen to anything you tell me about him.

Love,

Elyn

#in character #in character: letter #letter to: tyko #episode 75 #location: sumula station #location: mir #person: cloudleaper #person: maliah #person: shaan liadon #person: marsa lerwun #people: kian and athan #the search for the procyon #someone else's backstory #feelings

[helplesslyfictional]

Chapters: 2/? Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Characters: Loki (Marvel), Thor (Marvel), Odin (Marvel), Frigga (Marvel) Additional Tags: References to Norse Religion & Lore, Prophecy, Siblings, Pre-Canon, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Infinity Gems, Time Travel, Swearing Series: Part 1 of Children of Time

Chapter 2 Summary:  Loki finds a prophecy and shares it with his brother, Thor. Together they decide on their next steps to find out the truth behind their vision.

Thor was at a dinner with the Warriors Three when Loki found him, carrying his prized find. He strode into the room, focused on Thor, before realizing what situation he’d just walked into. The Warriors Three were his brother’s closest friends, and he’d interrupted them doing the activity they liked best besides slaying and sparring - eating.

Loki put on his best grin and began to back out of the room. “Perhaps later,” he said quietly, as all eyes were on him. Loki had learned that this type of affair was not his, as the evenings tended to be full of boasting, laughter, and unsubtle jabs at his general incompetence.

“Nonsense!” came a voice behind him, and Lady Sif came in the entrance behind him. “You’re welcome to eat with us, Loki.” She strode confidently to the table, her ponytail mirroring her swift movement. “Sorry I’m late, boys. Did you devour everything?”

“Oh please,” Fandral said snidely, “He’ll just ruin the fun.”

“What fun?” Loki quipped before thinking, then winced. Lady Sif snickered.

“What are you after, Loki?” Thor asked, visibly annoyed.

“Is that a book?” Volstagg, his red beard splayed across his chest, said incredulously. “I thought we had databases for those sorts of things.”

“People still read books, Volstagg,” Fandral said, frustrated. “Just because you don’t doesn’t mean the rest of Asgard follows.” There were chuckles across the table.

Loki held the book close. “I need to speak with you, brother,” he said, finally. “About personal business.”

Thor took another bite. “Whatever you need to say, Loki, you can tell me right here.”

Loki’s smile tightened. “I’m afraid I can’t, Thor.” Please don’t ask why, please don’t ask why…

“Why not?” Thor said, looking hard at Loki.

The other four were also regarding him intently, now. He was going to have to come up with a solid clue that his brother would be able to grasp.

That wasn’t going to be easy.

After a brief pause, he finally came up with something. “It regards our mutually received message.”

All eyes turned intently to Thor. Thor frowned. “What message?”

Damn.

Now he really needed to get Thor’s attention. “The one regarding children.”

Thor’s eyes went wide. “Children?” asked Volstagg with a laugh.

“Got something to tell us, Thor?” asked Sif with a wide smile.

“Please excuse me, friends,” Thor said, getting up with a stressed smile. He gave Loki a reprimanding glance.

He took Loki’s arm, giving it just a little too strong of a squeeze as he pulled him around the corner into the hallway. “Really?” Thor asked, annoyed, “Was there no more tactful way to phrase that, brother?”

Loki bridled. “Look, I can’t help it if you forget possibly the most interesting thing that’s happened in the past few months. I tried to be tactful, you ignored me.”

“I can’t read your mind, Loki!” Thor hissed. “Now what is it?”

Loki held up the book, a faded red with gold-gilded edges. “I found the phrase.”

“The Children of Time one?”

“Yes, but could we get out of the hallway to a more private spot, please?” Loki looked around his brother’s shoulder at a servant that had scuttled by, holding a platter of half-eaten cheeses.

They moved to a relatively more quiet spot, a terrace surrounded by a hedge. A couple of braziers gave warmth to the otherwise cold spot, as the first frost of the year had already been given. They shed just enough light for Loki to read without a spell.

Thor leaned against a wall. “You’re building my anticipation, brother, this had better be good.”

Loki smiled. “I make no guarantees.” He began,

“Children of Time Three become One Shall grace the Halls Of Bor’s kin Godkillers, all Shall harness the light And with its strength Unite disparate aspects And from all ashes Ignite the fires of creation.

“Appropriately vague for a prophecy, I think,” Loki added before looking up at his brother, whose brow was furrowed.

“Bor’s kin,” Thor rumbled, rubbing his beard thoughtfully. “That’s specific; how do we know that this prophecy hasn’t already been fulfilled when Father was younger and King Bor still ruled?”

Loki tapped his finger on the page and began to pace. “This was spoken and recorded by a Seer named Sefa, who prophesied while Buri was still king and Bor was still a prince. I don’t, however, know of any events similar that have already occured, do you?”

Thor shook his head. “No, nothing in what I’ve learned, certainly, and nothing that Father’s mentioned.” He paused, his eyes tracking the movements of Loki. “It seems to me the most important part is the ‘three become one.’”

Loki was deep in thought. “‘Godkillers’ is the part that stands out the most,” he said softly, “it comes in the middle of the prophecy.”

Thor wasn’t about to be sidetracked. “The three in one, it sounds like the triquetra.” He raised an eyebrow, more than a little pleased that he’d offered a helpful contribution rather than letting Loki do all the work.

Loki stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening as he looked at Thor. The triquetra was a common symbol in Asgard, a three-pointed knot that was ubiquitous in the palace’s many adornments. “I’ve never considered what that symbol means,” he said hesitantly.

“I remember asking Father once,” Thor said, shifting, uncrossing his arms to a more relaxed position. “He never answered but one of the Council members at the time…” he stopped, considering. “I don’t recall his name, but he told me that the three points represented Asgard, Midgard, and Jotunheim.”

Loki frowned. “I wonder why those three out of the Realms. It seems that Vanaheim and Nidavellir, being our closer allies, would be better represented than our enemies and…”

“And a backwater realm?” Thor said, laughing. “I thought so, too. Didn’t give his explanation a second thought.” “Perhaps he was just trying to pander to you,” Loki said wryly, “and he didn’t actually know.”

“Who can say?” Thor said, a glimmer in his eye. “Honestly, I thought what you’d find would be a bit more dire, with the dread that I’ve been feeling.”

Loki snapped the book shut. “I agree, particularly since the other well-known prophecy is that of Ragnarok.”

Silence fell on the terrace as the two of them contemplated the prophecy.

“Do you think there’s someone we could ask to interpret this further?” Thor said finally, with a sigh.

“Someone with more….what? Knowledge?” Loki asked. “I suppose I could search for…”

“It seems knowledge isn’t really the issue,” Thor said, walking towards his brother. “You’re knowledgeable, you know where to find further information.”

“Well, yes,” Loki said, with a smile.

“It seems like the best person to go to about a prophecy would be...a prophet. Perhaps the Chanter, or,” Thor said, gesturing at the book, “a Seer.”

Loki couldn’t help but chuckle. “There aren’t any Seers left. They disappeared.”

“They did?”

“Well yes, effectively. The last prophecies in the Archives are from just before Odin came to power.”

“So then...perhaps Chanter Skirnir might know something.”

Loki ran his finger over the binding of his book. “I’d prefer not to go to the Chanter myself,” he said, a jolt of fear running through him.

Thor shrugged. “Not a problem, Loki, you can accompany me.” He turned to go. “Thank you, Loki, for doing that research.”

“You’re welcome, brother.”

As Thor’s large form melted into the shadows, Loki was left on the terrace, the cool breeze stirring the edges of his jacket. It was unusual to receive thanks from his brother, and it was the first time, in a long time, that he felt they’d had a connection. A common goal, as it were. It felt satisfying, since they’d drifted apart over the years, focusing on their separate goals.

Of course, he’d never admit that to Thor’s face.

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

Chanter Skirnir had held his position as long as Odin had been king; his position had been created in order to provide the traditional services the King would provide, had the population of Asgard not swelled in size. For the most part, the Chanter would preside over weddings, adoptions, and funerals that were not directly overseen by royalty. Because of its connection to the monarchy, however, its halls symbolically connected the palace with the rest of the city.

Thor strode confidently amongst the pillars, his broad shoulders and red cloak seeming to almost hide the less imposing form of Loki. Thor seemed comfortable here; he’d been asked to perform rituals there previously for some of the more prominent families in the city. Loki, however, had never done so. He didn’t particularly care for currying the favor of the elite.

Loki’s relationship with Chanter Skirnir was rocky, to say the least. He’d delighted in tormenting the man when he was younger, particularly ruining the Chanter’s fastidiously groomed outfits just before ceremonies. He’d scattered in as an errant squirrel during one marriage, causing the most amusing chaos as women screamed in terror and men tried to beat him down. Good times.

“Welcome, your majesties!” Chanter Skirnir’s booming voice filled the hall. He stood immaculate in robes of white, trimmed with gold. As Thor approached, he held out his arm, with Thor took in greeting. Skirnir glanced over at Loki, who tried to give a magnanimous smile, and Skirnir looked him over. While the Chanter’s expression did not change, Loki was keenly aware that he was not welcome.

Skirnir addressed Thor. “How may I help you, my prince? Has someone asked you to preside over a ceremony? Lady Sif, perhaps?” he asked with a slight grin.

Thor laughed awkwardly. “Ah, no, Chanter, I was wondering if you could enlighten me on a topic. I’m aware you know the people far better than we do,” he said, gestured to Loki and himself.

“Well,” the Chanter said, “I don’t like to boast, but I do see more Asgardians than the King nowadays.” He leaned slightly towards Thor with a smile. “Of course, when it comes to soldiers, you are far more of an expert than me! I’ve heard nothing short of praise for your prowess in battle!”

“Ah, well, it seems like the Realms need intervention more than ever,” said Thor dismissively. Careful, Thor, Loki thought impulsively. Information runs the court.

“Yes, well, with the future of Asgard in your hands, I’m sure that the Realms will be put to rest!” said Skirnir smoothly.

Thor smiled. “Chanter, I did come here with a question, not seeking praise.”

“Name it, my friend.”

“I’ve heard a prophecy, and…”

“A prophecy!” Skirnir interrupted. “Please, my Prince, tell me you are not taking the guidance of witches.” He glanced over at Loki, then back at Thor.

Thor frowned, seemingly confused. “Witches? I don’t - I thought prophecies came from Seers. Witches, they are the dark ones from tales...”

Skirnir shrugged. “Witches, Seers, they’re merely different names for the same thing.”

Loki’s heart felt like it had stopped. He’d thought the Seers as entirely different from the dark magicians in the stories told to children.

“What happened to them?” Thor asked, frowning.

“It doesn’t matter,” said Skirnir, laughing. “Please, Thor, do not trouble yourself with such superstitious nonsense. Before your father, the kings were a cautious, superstitious bunch. They’d consult witches for everything - even before going to war!” He laughed again, the halls echoing it back. “Imagine - asking anyone’s permission before going to war?!”

Thor’s face held mixed emotions. “I thought they could tell the future, maybe it was wise…”

Skirnir frowned. “No, Thor, there is no authority above the king. I would’ve expected that your father would have instilled this in you as the crown prince.”

“He has…”

“Then listen. We make our own destinies, and as king, you will be the one forging the way forward for Asgard. You will define how people remember the past and you will be one making their future. There will be many who will whisper to you and divert you from that path,” said Skirnir, glancing at Loki, then back at Thor intently, “or seek to stain your family’s legacy. I know the people; do not let them see your family as weak, Thor, and do not be the one to make your family seem so.”

Loki was holding his breath. He’d never heard anyone be so forward with his brother.

Thor nodded. “I wonder, however...if you know of anyone who identifies as a witch.”

Mixed emotions flickered across Skirnir’s face. “Do you seek to root them out, my prince?”

Thor glanced at Loki. “I...simply wish to know where the whispers to ignore are.”

“Ah,” Skirnir replied with a broadening smile. “I’m glad you’ll take my advice. Fortunately there are no longer many, but Osk is an elder who still practices. I would stay away from her and her granddaughter, Maer.”

Thor seemed deep in thought. “I thank you for your wisdom, Chanter,” he finally said, then strode away. Loki paused briefly, and Skirnir looked at him haughtily, his chin raised. However, the Chanter said nothing to him. Turning, Loki walked quickly to try and catch his brother.

As Loki caught up, Thor seemed lost in his own thoughts. “Thor,” said Loki, trying to catch his breath. “Thor, we have to find her. Osk. It was clever you still managed to get that information while letting him think you were taking his advice.”

“No brother, we do not have to find her.” Thor said, still walking. He glanced at his brother, looking almost ashamed.

“Oh, come on,” Loki said, exasperated, “You have to be joking. That man in there? He was trying to get to you, to stroke your ego.”

“Chanter Skirnir is nearly as old as father and, perhaps, as wise,” said Thor, rounding a corner as they headed into the palace. “If he suspects that the Seers used dark magics, then perhaps that was the case. Father’s reign has nothing but improved on that of his fathers’.”

“Are you implying that superstition may have crippled King Bor?” said Loki, laughing, then stopped when he saw Thor’s expression. “Brother, we cannot just let what happened go by without finding out what it meant.”

Thor stopped, his cloak swinging to follow as he faced Loki, who nearly ran into him. “And what happened, what was it? Was it a dark magic, brother?”

Loki blinked rapidly. “I don’t think so -”

“What that vision meant to influence us? To guide us down a path we shouldn’t follow?” Thor’s blue eyes were bright and hard, reflecting the sunlight that dappled through his golden hair. He pointed at Loki’s chest. “How do we know you were not possessed by some fell spirit when we had that vision?”

“Now you’re the one sounding superstitious,” Loki spat, jerking back from his brother’s accusatory gesture. “What, shall we run to Mother and see if I’m cursed? Possessed? Oh, what about a Changeling - or, maybe a demon in disguise? That’s a good one.”

“I didn’t mean that it was you -” Thor said with resignation.

“No? I’m the one who’s done most of the work for this anyway! Why would I lead you down a rabbit hole with nothing on the other side? Dark magics, please! What we saw was...transcendental.”

Thor shook his head. “No brother, what I saw was fear.”

Loki put his face in his hands, trying to figure out what would motivate Thor to at least follow this lead.

“Thor, whether or not this is sorcery, or prophecy, what is key is that we get to the bottom of what happened...if for no reason other than to prevent it from happening again.” Loki looked up, trying to read Thor’s expression. “If nothing else, perhaps you owe me that after all the work I’ve put into this.”

Thor reached out and grasped Loki’s shoulder. “You have put much effort into seeking answers.” He paused, thinking. “Perhaps we can visit her, even just to meet her at the door. Can we get there clandestinely?”

Loki smiled. “Does a cat have claws?”

#loki #loki laufeyson #loki odinson #loki of asgard #loki fanfic #thor odinson #seidr #volva #try not to spoil in the tags #nervous writer

[blankdblank]

Sneeze Pt 4

Pt 1, Pt 2 , Pt 3

Tags - 

@himoverflowers, @theincaprincess, @aspiringtranslator, @sweeticedtea, @ggbbhehe4455, @thegreyberet, @patanghill17​, @evyiione, @sweetlytenacious25, @abiwim, @allison-rosewood-maximoff, @whutizthiz

 …

Drying your hands on a small towel after rinsing the last of the dishes while Thorin and Celeborn finished their tea while the Dwarf King finished the story of your journey admiring the impressive tale about his Daughter’s strength and position among the Dwarves. Thorin’s smirk deepened, “Jaqi may be a bit rough compared to most Elves in her behavior towards others but she is a high ranked member of our Dwarf Lord Council, there isn’t a Dwarf in these lands who wouldn’t follow her path to go after a Dragon.”

Celeborn finished his tea and set his cup and the small plate for it down on the table between them, “Lord Elrond did mention she was a bit eccentric, though I don’t have any doubts she doesn’t know how to act up to her proper rank with all the time she’s spent with various Kings.”

Thorin set down his cup as well before asking, “What exactly is her rank? We’ve allowed her to settle on Lady in the past to silence my Kin for some sort of title on her behalf.”

Celeborn’s mouth quirked up into a smirk, “Her Naneth was the same way. If it were just my rank now she would be a Lady, but for her relation to Thingol through me and the King from her Naneth’s side marks her as a High Born Princess bumping Elrond down on his ranking in that succession since she is far older than he is.”

“Her mortal portion doesn’t affect that?”

“No, if anything her Vanyar portion replaces it entirely and shifts her rank even higher than the other full blooded Silvan or Noldor Elves within these lands.”

“Are they really that rare?”

“The Vanyar, well the few that I’ve met have been gifted with abilities similar to the Valar. Abilities that leave them unrivaled by any of my Kin, abilities I have a suspicion she might be possessing from her lone trip into Greenwood that healed it. Has she shown any signs to you or your people?”

Thorin’s smile grew, “As for her abilities you’d have to speak to Jaqi about that, though I will say she is far more powerful than she appears at first glance, you should see what she’s done with our greenhouse. We have been wondering why living things seem to shift around her even without her meaning to, if you wish for a trip to the Shire you could easily trail the path of spreading green between us.”

“I hear the Shire is quite an incredible sight to behold. I’ve always hoped to witness it for myself one day.”

Thorin chuckled, “Well you could travel with Jaqi and Bilbo when they return to pack his belongings for the move out here.”

“When is she leaving?”

“Few months probably, we have some more urgent matters to see to and Bilbo’s Kin are keeping an eye on his property for him.”

“You have a fondness for the young Hobbit?”

He watched as Thorin’s eyes lit up and his smirk grew, “He’s my One.”

Celeborn gave him a soft smile in return, “Congratulations, I wish you both the best. Are you aware if anyone had courted my Daughter?”

“No one, as for Dwarves we only claim our Ones, though she’s had her fair share of admirers. No to any of the Elves she’s mentioned before, as for Men they tend to flock around her, I’m sure she’s gotten a few offers, though none at the rank we’ve granted her or with any true intentions behind them. I’m sure she’ll be getting another wave of offers once my Kin returns to Erebor.”

“From the Dwarves?”

“I was thinking more from the Men in Laketown or possibly the Elves in Greenwood.”

Celeborn’s head tilted slightly, “Have any of the Elves shown any intentions towards her?”

Thorin’s eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief as his smirk deepened, “I’m not sure of the intentions or of his normal behavior around females prior to this but I have noticed a shift in Thranduil’s behavior since he met Jaqi. Though it might merely be an attempt at fondness for his friends lost child.”

Celeborn nodded, “That would explain the staring.”

Thorin chuckled, “He’s been doing that a lot lately. Kept glancing at the door until you both came up. And the look he had when he saw her in her Mother’s dress seemed to seal the assumption.”

“It was her Naneth’s dress?”

Thorin nodded, “Yes, we helped her fix the hem before you arrived. She has a few of Mire’s finer dresses to use for special events. So the shift from her informal attire to that dress could have also done it.”

Celeborn nodded, “Thank you for telling me, I’ll keep a watch for any signs myself. I’m certain if he does have any intentions he would handle them properly according to our Silvan customs.”

“You might have to clue Jaqi into what those are, she hasn’t had a chance to learn them properly I’m sure.”

“Of Course, but I think it best to wait until there’s a confirmed reason to. Meddling could turn things in a worse direction if there’s nothing behind it.”

Thorin glanced up in time to raise his hand for the tired Raven that flew into the room bearing a messenger bag, Celeborn eyed the bird curiously as it did the same to him after a slight bow of its head while Thorin drew the letter from the bag and shifted the bird to the arm of his chair offering it the last of his bread and his glass of water. Looking up Thorin smirked as he spotted you entering the room and he stood saying, “I have to take care of this, I’ll leave you to Jaqi’s care.”

Celeborn nodded and eyed the bird again before turning as he noticed your hand collecting his cup and Thorin’s, his eyes locked with yours and he smiled at you then stood and followed you into the kitchen, “Do you normally clean up after the Dwarves?”

You giggled softly, “I’m far more tidy than they are, though I’m not acting as their servant. It’s strange but I like cleaning some times. It’s a great way to relax if you’re angry or nervous and it’s far more effective than breaking everything in sight along with giving you plenty of time to think.” His eyes darted to the swinging chain around your neck and widened as you bent to grab the small towel you had accidentally knocked to the floor when he followed it to the end landing on the cursed ring you had been hiding that instantly started to whisper as it was uncovered. 

Straightening again you wiped your hands on the towel and set it on the counter before turning to spot Celeborn’s eyes darting back up to yours with a small forced smile, you sighed and said, “I suppose I should fill you in on the rest of our plans. Thorin sent word once we arrived that we’d found it, all Seven Dwarf Kingdoms are sending their armies, first for the coronation to give them time to rest before we all march to the Gates. They won’t be here for another week or so, I thought it was a bit much to start out on.”

“When did you find it?”

“Goblin tunnels after we left Rivendell a few weeks ago.”

“How are you handling it?”

Your smile grew back, “As long as I wear it, it stops screaming. I can form a shield around it to keep others safe from the whispers.” You gently raised the chain and tapped an invisible barrier around the ring that sparked when you touched it. “Keeps him out of my dreams as well.”

His eyes watched as you slid it back under your shirt then he smiled at you again, “I’ll send word to Elrond and my armies tonight, we’re all going to stand with you through this.”

Your smile grew as you let out a deep breath, “I know. I was going to check on my greenhouse did you want to see it?”

He nodded and followed you through the Mountain admiring the craftsmanship and various detailed carvings before taking in the vast greenhouse filled with sprouting crops that all stretched and grew more through gentle pulses from their roots as soon as you entered the massive chamber. “You did all this?”

“Me and Bilbo though Ori helped some with the tomatoes.”

Walking through it all his eyes traced their growth as you passed along with the stream of water rising from the stream you’d built to split the different sections from the large river under the Mountain. All linked with sprinkler system you’d made to help water the crops as they needed it, the swirl rose from a clogged pipe allowing you to reach in and remove the small pebble that had gotten stuck before setting it back in the now free flowing stream of water in the cleared pipe. “Is that the only ability you have?”

You shook your head, “Nana asked me to hide it, she was scared of what would happen to me.”

Celeborn stepped forward setting his hand gently on your arm with a sympathetic glance, “No one is going to hurt you. Do the Dwarves know?”

You nodded, “Through the battles we fought they’ve all learned about them. They were so scared of me at first, but their Kings kept me safe while I rested after and they remembered I’d never done anything to harm any of them before and they eventually relaxed that at least I was on their side.”

“Could you show me what else you can do?” You nodded again giving him brief demonstrations of you shifting water and the dirt between the plants along with drawing a gasp from him as your body became coated in a soft white flame. Stepping closer he gently reached out his fingers and taped your open palm you had extended for him before clasping his hands around yours as he said, “It doesn’t hurt. Does it hurt you?”

Giving you a worried glance, “No, only when I’m angry if I don’t relax, then it shifts into sparks.”

His brow raised, “Sparks?” Trailing his eyes following your left arm you extended out to your side he watched with wide eyes that lit up as a string of lightning split through the air extending from your pointed index finger causing his hands to curl tighter around yours. His smile returned when you looked at him again with a worried glance, “How long did it take you to control it?”

“I still have slips, I don’t have an exact number for when, it took at least a few centuries. But even when I have my slips it just bursts out, anyone around me is unharmed, there has to be intent behind it to harm anyone.” Your other hand laid over his as you coated his body and yours in sparks making him follow their trails with an amused smile before they dimmed with your flame, watching his large smile you smiled again, “You haven’t even seen me fly yet.”

His brows rose, “You can fly?”

You giggled and nodded, “Want to try it?”

His smile grew and he gave a small nod before following you keeping his hand fixed in yours as you led him to the nearest bridge with a straight path to the front gate. Nervously he glanced down at you, “How does this work?”

You smiled up at him drawing your glider halves from your boots and twisted them together before uncurling the mithril wrap around your hips, “Just hold on tight.” Gently curling his arms around your chest when you turned your back to him your smirk grew when you felt him latching on tighter as you gripped your free arm around his back and forced you both backwards to fall from the ledge. Feeling his heart pounding behind you through the fall as you reached back securing the glider before tilting it to lift taking the level five stories above the ground and shooting straight for the open path to the overlook as you folded the wings and sharply turned twice leaving you to barrel roll from the speed before slowing as you locked the wings back out and felt him relax as you slowed allowing him to admire the view. Your giggle drew his attention again, “The first fall’s the worst. Am I going too fast?”

“No, where did you learn this?”

“I fell from a cliff in my first battle, got tangled in a banner, managed to make something like a balloon to slow down my fall to the river, after that it was just trial and error until I got the design for this one right.”

“Legolas was right, this is amusing.”

You giggled again, “We can go tell him that if you like.”

He chuckled softly, “Have you taken Thranduil on a flight?”

“No, just the Prince. I don’t think Thranduil’s even seen my glider yet. Want to fly through the forest? See if we can catch them?”

He nodded, “He used to be so jumpy as a child. Always jumped when he saw me.”

You giggled again and forced your glider through another turn and made straight for the forest trailing the sound of hoof beats echoing through the trees that swayed around you greeting you excitedly as you sped past them until you neared the source of the sound. A pair of blonde heads turned as they heard your soft giggle. 

Unable to see you as you sped behind a tree before turning forward again as the Elf King let out a quick scream as you passed in another roll easing Celeborn onto the back of his horse they were escorting back before circling around and landing on the back of the same horse and crouching as you curled your wrap around your middle holding the bar at your side as the Prince laughed and said, “I told you she could fly.”

Thranduil nodded forcing a quick smile at you as his eyes locked onto you memorizing your large smile and soft giggle as you sat sideways behind Celeborn crossing your ankles as you stroked the horses hip softly, “It seems she can.” His eyes trailed over to Celeborn who was watching his memorizing of you curiously gauging his interest. “It seems you’re back to trying to terrify me.”

Celeborn smirked, “It’s not as hard as you imagine it to be.” Making the rest of you chuckle again as the King shifted his eyes back to you while you pulled your hair over your shoulder completing the long braid you had started while gripping the staff between your legs. Tracing each movement of your fingers as you wove your hair together before baring your teeth to the wrist you raised to your mouth to draw the hair tie from your wrist to secure it at the end and peering up at him through your curled bangs spread across your face catching his quick smile before forcing himself to look ahead again. 

Squinting your eyes for a moment at him eyeing him curiously before looking around and scooting closer to Celeborn and rested against his back and closed your eyes listening to his heart beating steadily as his left arm swung back to rest across your crossed legs to gently hold you in place. When your eyes opened again the King was looking at you again as he asked, “Would you like that tour now or later?”

His eyes trailed your Mother’s ring on your right hand through its brushing your bangs from your face before they met your eyes again, “It’s up to you, if you have things you need to tend to it can wait.”

Through your rest against his back he had shared a mental conversation with Thranduil about the Dwarves and the ring, watching as he kept his eyes on you with a growing concerned expression as they spoke. The corner of his mouth twitched up as he shot you a playful glare that caused Celeborn’s brow to rise at the sudden shift, “That’s not an answer to what I asked.”

You shrugged, “Either way is fine, but I can’t stay long, Thorin would be looking for me soon.”

Thranduil replied trying to mask the hurt in his voice, “He doesn’t trust you among your Kin?”

You giggled, “He trusts me, merely it’s easier for him to face what’s coming soon at my side.”

Legolas, “Must be hard for him, the wait for his Kin to return home after so long.”

“It is, they’ve been waiting for such a long time to be back. There’s a lot to repair.”

Thranduil met your eyes again with a timid gaze, “His Kin is pleased with the courtship?”

You smirked back at him, “Hobbits and Dwarves bond often, Thorin’s found his One, they’ll be thrilled when they meet Bilbo.”

His eyes widened slightly realizing he’d missed their connection entirely and taken your bond past that of Kin while Legolas said through a chuckle, “No wonder it was so important to celebrate his birthday that you’d risk sneaking through our lands past midnight.”

“Even without that he still deserves a celebration for handling the group of Dwarves so well after his peaceful days in the Shire.”

Thranduil blinked still slightly stunned and glanced forward to hide the reaction from you, “I’ll be sure to congratulate them next time I see them.”

“Oh, they’re still treading lightly, full courtship hasn’t started yet. Thorin still needs time to form his axe.”

Thranduil’s head turned to face you again, “Axe?”

You nodded, “You propose a courtship with an axe.”

The Elf King’s eyes narrowed slightly in thought as he softly said, “Hmm,” before facing forward again getting lost on his thoughts as your head turned back to the Mountain drawing you to hop to your feet on the horses back, reforming your glider and saying, “I have to get back.” Their heads turned back to you only to find an empty spot after you’d sped off leaving only a glint of silver soaring through the canopy to return as Thranduil mumbled, “Why an axe?”

Legolas chuckled again, “To prove you can protect them maybe?”

Thranduil, “There’s better ways to prove that…”

Celeborn smirked, “Maybe we’ll find more out about it later as they get farther in the courtship.”

Legolas, “And I guess the tour’s going to have to wait for now.”

Thranduil, “Let’s just get our things together and get back. You seem two be getting along well.”

Celeborn’s smile grew, “So far yes.”

…

Soaring back to Erebor you heard Thorin’s voice growing louder calling your name in his search for you soon to be silenced as you landed on the ledge before him with a faint smile that grew as you spotted his large smile and relieved sigh, “There you are, were you in your greenhouse?”

You nodded, “Yes, and I took Celeborn on a quick flight.”

Thorin turned and started the walk back to the Royal sitting room as you joined his side, “Got word from Dain, he’ll be here in the morning. He’s eager to have our forces combined for the march. We haven’t had such a front assembled since we reclaimed Moria.”

“Oh yes, I’m sure we’re all eager to feel the ground trembling again from the Dwarven boots pounding the earth.”

He chuckled softly, “It is an incredible feeling. Especially now that all our Kingdoms are solidly protected again.”

You curled your arm around his shoulders carefully shifting his hair out of the way, “And what a dangerous bunch we all turned out to be.” You giggled as he laughed softly.

“Bombur’s helping Bilbo with second breakfast, hungry?”

“I’m always hungry, I think I might make some more bread.”

He chuckled softly, “Hopefully Lord Celeborn enjoys your bread more than Bofur’s, he seemed a bit disappointed with the blueberries.”

“Well it is my Nana’s recipe, he should at least tolerate it.”

He smirked at you again as you giggled looking over his face remembering Thranduil’s reaction about Thorin’s courtship, “What is it?”

“Thranduil sends his congratulations for your budding courtship with Bilbo, seemed a bit shocked about the axe part though.”

“Well to my understanding, Elves mostly start theirs with art or jewelry depending on which race is involved. The topic came up with Celeborn of courtship and he mentioned he would fill you in on Silvan courtship customs should anyone give him the impression of intentions for you.”

“Why would courtship come up, I doubt there’s any advantageous marriage to be found now he’s got another unmarried daughter.”

Thorin curled his arm around your back through a deep laugh, “It was brought up after I informed him of your trip with Bilbo to move his belongings back here, when I’d told him he’s my One, which sparked his curiosity if you’d been courted. Or if I knew of anyone who’d shown any intentions for you.”

“The only one acting past basic kindness would be Thranduil, has he always been such an odd character?”

Thorin chuckled, “Odd, hmm, I will say, for his interactions with women before we fled he’s never behaved the way he has with you.”

You giggled again sarcastically replying, “Oh that’s nice to hear. Now that I think about it he seemed a bit stunned you were courting Bilbo.”

He glanced at you with a smirk, “He thought we were courting?”

“Possibly.”

He chuckled again, “No wonder he couldn’t keep his eyes off of you, thought he’d missed his chance with you perhaps.”

You rolled your eyes, “Barely a week, marriage is out of the question, there’s so much to handle.”

“Either way I’m sure Lord Celeborn won’t hand you over so easily, even to the Elf King.”

Giving him one last nod as you let out a sigh he chuckled again leaving your side to curl around Bilbo’s back as he cooked allowing you to scrub and start making your bread. When you’d finished your second batch of cinnamon raisin loaves the Elf Lords had returned, following Celeborn trailing the scent of your baking leaving him smiling at the fresh loaf set on the table alongside the tea Bilbo had finished brewing while the Princes added new place settings for the Elves as Kili took full advantage of claiming the empty seat at Tauriel’s side.

The entire company took their seats starting a conversation while you and Dwalin entered the dining room drawing everyone’s attention to you mid eye roll on both sides as you folded a piece of your bread in half mixing the jam and cream cheese you’d spread across it as Dwalin munched on a cookie he’d saved from Bilbo’s birthday party saying in his gruff voice, “Can’t see why you’d eat it like that.”

The Company smirked glancing from Celeborn, who was holding a similarly formed sandwich with a smile watching as you slid your pinky finger along the edges and ate the mixture off your finger before saying, “You haven’t even tried it.” All smiling at your shared pattern for creating your snacks.

Taking a bite of your snack giving an emphasized content hum making him shake his head and raise the last half of the cookie, “I’ll stick to my cookie. Cinnamon has always been a bit much for me. I will steal some raisins though.” Reaching out to happily claim two of the raisins from the bread in your hand and popping them happily in his mouth while claiming his seat. You curled your legs in front of you in your chair at Celeborn’s side giving him a smile mid chew as you set the small jars of cream cheese and boysenberry jam between you. Swallowing quickly after another chew you glanced at the sandwich in his hands making your smile grow before you looked back at Dwalin and said, “See, I’m not the only one that eats it this way!” Making Dwalin roll his eyes and point playfully at Celeborn, “You’ve got blood between you, doesn’t count at all!”

You rolled your eyes again turning back to Celeborn who softly asked, “How do you get it to taste like this, I’ve tried for centuries and I couldn’t get your Naneth’s recipe just right.”

Your smile grew wagging your finger and leaning closer to him causing him to lean in with a curious smile that grew hearing your soft whispered secret, “You have to add in just a few drops of vanilla when you’re kneading it.” His mind raced back to Mire kneading her special dough and softly urging him to leave the room so her secret recipe could remain intact, always leading to a snuggling game of him trying to guess at the recipe as she fed it to him. Making sure to show him the best spreads and toppings to mix well with the bread after the fold transforming the taste entirely leaving a shared eating habit between the two of them, and happily for him, now the three of you. Straightening up again in your seat he smiled at you again softly saying, “I would have never guessed that.”

You giggled, “Turns out it was an accident, knocked some into the mix when she was switching between cookies and bread for a party, just subtle enough to make a difference.” Shifting your eyes over to Thranduil who had spread some of the jam in front of him across a slice and took a bite smirking softly at the change in the recipe to the bread while Legolas had made yet another sandwich mixing several jams on his before happily biting into it. Turning back to the rest of the group you smiled at Bilbo who handed you back your now filled cup of tea giving him a soft thanks and taking a sip. 

Noticing from the corner of your vision Thranduil glancing between Thorin and Bilbo softly speaking to each other then to you again finally managing to get Dwalin to try a piece of your bread, gaining a soft approving hum before he timidly claimed another slice and spread a small amount of the various jams across it. After eyeing the courting pair’s behavior his attention shifted back to you watching your interactions with everyone around you until he’d finally sensed Celeborn’s eyes on him drawing his eyes to his friend and a small smile to his face mentally saying, “She seems quite relaxed around you already.”

Even through the kind comment Celeborn had taken notice of a seemingly relieved expression shining through his friend’s eyes as he watched you. A look he was sure he’d worn after noticing Mire the first time, a look that brought an urge to cling tightly to you and wedge a space between the two of you at his short time with you so far. But quickly he fought against the urge knowing his friend would surely never attempt to take you from him so quickly and even if a bond did form between you he would ensure you had every chance to be together. 

Turning back to focus on your again Celeborn smiled and agreed to allow you to show them your apartment in the Royal Wing bringing smiles to their faces at the shining deep green walls and deep stained wood furniture all Elven sized that was normally used for King Thranduil and Legolas on their visits. The pair of them smiled claiming their usual rooms across from yours as Celeborn chose the silver painted room beside your purple one, running his fingers along the freshly scrubbed blankets on the large bed, turning to smile at you as you asked, “Is the bed large enough?”

He nodded, “Yes, when you first mentioned your small beds I pictured something different.”

You moved closer to sit on the foot of his bed resting your heels on the frame of the bed, “The first apartment I chose apparently was meant for Dwarves, Thorin thought this one might be more comfortable for me when he caught me sleeping sideways on the bed. And it’s better for you all and your tall statures, not even mentioning the belongings Thranduil and Legolas had forgotten or left behind on their last visits.”

Celeborn’s face shifted slightly in concern, “Do you like these rooms better?”

You nodded, “Yes, had to move my arm chair down though, the Elven style chairs in the sitting room are a bit awkward for reading. At least for how I sprawl out.”

He chuckled moving to his trunk and opened it starting to unpack, “I’ll let the others know it’s your chair.”

You giggled softly, “I doubt they could fit in it without hitting their chins with their knees.”

He chuckled and smiled watching you lifting one of his robes from the chest to hang up in the small carved out closet, joining your side to hang it up for you as you stretched on your toes and still couldn’t reach the tall bar, “If you add the hangers them I’ll put them up.”

You nodded again through a soft giggle, “I wonder how they even got the bars up there in the first place, all I can imagine is a Dwarf on another’s shoulders straining to get it fixed in place.”

He chuckled again accepting the next robe you’d passed him, when the chest was finally empty you helped him slide it into the closet under his clothes beside his spare set of boots and the second chest containing his weapons and armor before your head turned through a curious squint drawing his concern as he asked, “What is it?”

Your eyes met his again through a soft exhale, “Someone’s heading for the gate.”

Celeborn glanced away then back to you, “Elves or Dwarves?”

You shook your head again, “Neither, must be from Laketown.” Turning you headed for the door with Celeborn at your side, giving a quick smile at the Elf Lords and Tauriel who’d unpacked and watched you both curiously until you glanced back at Thranduil, “You’ve had dealings with Men from Laketown correct?”

He nodded and joined his friends side following you through the Royal Wing headed for Thorin’s room, “Yes, planning a trip there?”

You shook your head again, “No, there’s a group of Men heading for the front gates. Figured it had to be them.”

Knocking squarely on the thick door to Thorin’s room you smirked at Legolas who asked, “How can you hear that, even in the forest you could hear something inside the Mountain.”

“I just can,” turning to smile at Thorin giving an awkward smile in his lopsided shirt as he noticed the Elves behind you, “There’s a group of Men headed to the gates.”

Thorin’s face went serious and he gave a curt nod, “I’ll be down in a few moments, if you don’t mind watching them.”

You smiled catching a reflection of Bilbo sneaking around to listen from Thorin’s bedroom securing his pants again, “Don’t mind at all, take your time, I’m sure they’ll be making a speech when they get here. I’m sure they’ll be expecting a crown as well.”

He chuckled softly as you turned heading for the gates with the Elves behind you as Thranduil asked you, “How are you so certain they’ll make a speech?”

You smirked at him after a soft giggle, “When you arrived you greeted is formally, for Men I’ve learned when they meet a King for the first time they give speeches to give an idea of who they are. Have you met the Man in charge of Laketown?”

Thranduil answered in an irritated tone at having to speak of the man in question he dreaded allowing you anywhere near him with his behavior, “He calls himself the Master, prefers to fill his own table rather than his subject’s. I wouldn’t count on much past him asking for gold.”

Chuckling softly you led the group down the last flight of stairs to the long great hall leading straight to the gate as Dwalin and Balin rushed from a doorway on your right mid pant stopping to straighten their clothes waiting to join you at the foot of the stairs while the Bur Brothers came from a door on the left as the rest of the group started down the stairs behind you as Thorin and Bilbo finally left the King’s apartment several floors above you. Fili chuckled helping Kili straighten his outer vest as they all followed you up the stairs to the overlook catching the group timidly approaching once they noticed King Thranduil on your left.

The portly man leading them stepped forward and Thranduil whispered softly, “That’s him.” Sighing and raising his chin sternly staring at the man through his bow giving the Elf King a cocky grin straightening again while he smoothed his vest down over his stomach before calling out, “King Thranduil, congratulations on your conquest! Besting a Dragon, a mighty deed to add to your long reputation of victories!”

Thranduil coolly replied, “I did not best the Dragon I am merely visiting with King Thorin.”

He nodded slightly stunned, “Thorin, hmm, A Dwarf you say. Well that would explain the band of Dwarves beside you.” His speech muddled together as he continued doing his best to play up to the King who he assumed to be amongst the group as you softly whispered in Elvish, “See, speech. I don’t pity Thorin for having to deal with this nonsense.”

Your eyes darted to Celeborn to grip his arm as he turned to grab Tauriel’s bow and arrow as the Master shouted out, “I AM SPEAKING ELF WENCH!”

Thorin stepped through the group of cursing Dwarves and stunned Elves that all went silent at the streaks of lightning cracking through the air above the Men driving them to their knees as the river around them rose to freeze into a wall behind them. Your pulsing white flame coated hand stretched across Thranduil’s chest held him silently in place while bringing his racing heartbeat to your attention as Thorin let out a soft growling breath through a snarl resting his hands on the stone half wall before him with a fiery gaze making sure to speak clearly, “Whoever you are, you dare come to my lands and insult my Dragon Slayer, My Kin!”

The Master staggered to his feet hands raising shakily in surrender, “I did not offend any of your Dwarves, King Thorin.” Bowing lowly and timidly looking up at the fuming King while your hands slowly lowered from the Elven Lords.

“No, you have insulted one of the greatest members of my Kin. Princess Jaqiearae, Daughter of Lord Celeborn of Lothlorien, akin to My Elder Sister, and Dragon Slayer amongst my Company. You come here for what exactly, gold? The right to live within the Dwarven city of Dale again once we rebuild it.” Thorin shook his head slightly, “No, you couldn’t possibly be that foolish to treat anyone amongst my company thusly and expect anything from me. So I ask again, What could you possibly have intended to gain from your visit behaving in this manner?”

Your eyes dropped to Celeborn’s hand tightening around Tauriel’s bow driving you to slide your hand over his to hold it gently after pulling the bow from his grip and passing it back behind your back to Tauriel quietly before noticing the dagger Thranduil was gripping in his right hand. Lifting your left hand you slid your hand gently around his slightly trembling arm, resting your palm and fingers around his wrist gently drawing his attention away from the stammering man below long enough to gain a glance from him. Releasing a long steady breath Thranduil slid his dagger back into its sheath along his thigh before you’d released his wrist drawing his eyes back to your hand once it rested at your side feeling the sting from the absence of your contact already while Celeborn tightened his grip around your hand as the Master sent a terrified apology your way.

Thorin’s eyes narrowed at the man and stated plainly, “Perhaps it would be best for you to leave, our contact at this point, from here on out consider any attempt for gold or safe passage into Dale for yourself denied by me and any of my Kin here on out.” The wall of ice fell behind them causing the group to flinch and turn before looking back at your group as you led them all back down the stairs again while Oin and Gloin closed the metal shutters blocking off the overlook in case they foolishly attempted to attack you all with your backs turned.

Stopping in the great hall Thorin glanced at you with a sympathetic smile speaking in Khuzdul, “I wish we didn’t have to handle this so often.”

You smirked at him, “Wench really isn’t the worst thing I’ve been called. So who’s going to live in Dale then?”

He smirked back, “Maybe we can move in some Hobbits.”

You giggled and glanced up at Celeborn who was still gripping your hand before leaning against his side and curling your arms around his switching to Elvish, “Let’s take a stroll through the library, see if there’s any books you want to try out.”

The Dwarves smiled at your group shifting towards the library as Ori eagerly joined you drawing a list of titles he’d been meaning to search for but was to timid to claim on his own while the Princes tagged along to give Kili time with Tauriel and Ori time without Dori fawning over him. Glancing back you caught Bilbo getting a translation from Thorin while their hands twisted together again and they returned back upstairs as the others went back to their own exploring within the vast halls.

Celeborn glanced down at you and let out a steady breath relaxing finally as you neared the library before asking, “What did Thorin say?”

You smirked up at him, “I asked him who would stay in Dale and he suggested offering it to any willing Hobbits.”

Legolas, “I thought Hobbits rarely traveled.”

“They don’t, Bilbo’s among the few from the Shire who have traveled past Bree.”

Fili, “Wishful thinking, very kind people Hobbits, once you get them warmed up to you.”

Kili, “A lot like Dwarves that way.”

The Elves’ eyes traveled upwards over the large statues of Owls with their wings outstretched and overlapping covering a pot along the wall outside the library with the inscription in Ancient Dwarf Runes, “No greater treasure shall ever be found beyond that sealed within these doors.” 

Your translation caused the emerald eyes to the carved Owls to glow sending a pulse through the statues causing them to shift their wings to uncover a gold gilded door causing Ori to gasp softly and bow his head to the large Owl statues as his Cousins and your group did the same before entering and heard them shift behind you to block the door again. 

Turning back to the vast dark room ahead of you a soft spark sounded from a hanging bowl along the wall on the right side of the door behind you before its twin on the other side lit up as the fire stones inside sparked up at the deep Dwarvish whispers of your phrase echoed through the library. All causing the dips along the walls and chandeliers filled with firestones sparked to life bringing the millions of books coating the spiraling shelves in the twelve story hidden treasure hoard of knowledge all into view.

Your eyes locked with Ori who turned with a nearly tearful gaze as he curled into your free left side accepting the kiss to his forehead you put there before starting your search inside to eagerly fill a cart with books for you all to take back upstairs for further study.

Pt 5

#Thranduil x Reader OC #Hobbit #lotr

[theafternoonroom]

bed 26

I'm not entirely sure what I'm waiting for.

The nurse has stuck her head through the door once—no, maybe twice or three times—to tell us that the patient has coughed up a lot of blood, and that his blood pressure was crashing.

Not quite enough to make my seniors rush to his bedside. He was a DNR Maxward patient with terminal cancer and multiple cormorbidities, both physical and emotional. Estranged from his family, I hadn't seen any next of kin by his bedside in the whole time that I'd been posted to the ward. And he'd always been a little difficult. We had tried to speak to him multiple times during this admission, only for him to turn his back against us or close his eyes, a clear signal that our one-sided monologues was over.

As we wrap up our exit rounds and walk from the MO room to bed 26, I'm barely thinking about the patient. My brain is caught in the rush towards MBBS and I run through the causes of hemoptysis in my head. First thing to do—rule out any coagulopathies (I had learnt that the hard way by embarrassing myself in a tutorial). My thoughts are interrupted by the resident, frustrated about how she had tried to page for the granddaughter multiple times to no avail. I offer to try again.

I punch the numbers in mechanically, before realizing that I had no idea what to say. Sure, I had updated families before. Your dad is going for this scan, your mother is doing great in the wards - you can bring her home tomorrow!—nothing about how your loved one only has a few hours left to live; please come to the hospital now to say goodbye.

I call the resident over and tell her that when I reach the granddaughter I'll pass the phone over, for a real doctor to handle these sensitive, often painful, end of life issues. She declines and proceeds to give me a summary of everything I should tell the patient. How we think he's not going to make it through the night, how we're doing everything we can to keep him comfortable, how they should make plans to come down immediately. Her voice is muffled in the background, distant, and I realize that I knew exactly what to say, I just...didn't know how to say it.

The phone rings for what seems like an eternity and I'm torn between praying she won't pick up and hoping she does, because this is the last chance she has to say goodbye. But she does, and I soften my voice to tell her the news. I trip over pronouncing a word and there is heavy silence from the other end. Before I can mentally beat myself up for the nerves that have caused me to stumble, I hear her promise that she’ll be there right away.

My only task is now done. And I’m left with nothing to do but to stand around and be a space-occupying lesion. (I should have been used to it at this point, 5 years into medical school, to be honest.) The consultant is long gone. The resident thanks me for the help (I've done nothing?) and leaves the ward to hand over the case to the on-call. "A sickie," they say. "Won't last the night."

I gently tug the curtain back to see the staff nurse standing by the patient, hands busy with fresh sheets, clothes, and pillows. I almost choke. The smell of fresh blood and sputum is heavy in the air. And I see him, lying there, in a puddle of his own blood, fading in and out of consciousness, gasping for air.

I step inside the cubicle and pretend to fiddle with the IV drip. It's late and I should be on my way home, but I don't want to leave. Not just yet. I have absolutely no clue what the protocol is, what I'm supposed to do for a man that is dying, but I know if it were me, I wouldn't want to be left in a pool of my own blood. So I tell the sister I'll help her tidy him up. She's surprised, but grateful.

I've never been good with managing my emotions. Somewhere in between finding wet wipes to clean his blood-stained cheek and arranging his black, tattered shoes neatly by his bed, I found myself struggling to keep from crying. I tried to ask if he was comfortable, but my throat was tight, and I had to do it twice before he understood what I was asking.

If you have ever seen a completely immobile patient being dressed, you would know that it is an incredibly uncomfortable process. Joints bent at awkward angles, face squashed against the sides of the bed at times, it takes some maneuvering skills to prevent catheters and IV lines from being dislodged. I hold the patient on his side as the staff nurse changes the sheets and removes the soiled linen, and repeat to him, "Don't worry; it'll be over in a moment." It was only after that I wondered if he knew I was talking about the dressing, not about his time left.

The nurse leaves to get a larger set of clothes and for a moment, it's just him and me and the IV drip machine beeping steadily in the background. I reach out to hold his hand and ask him if he can hear me. His eyes are closing and opening, and rolling up at times, but he weakly nods and I'm satisfied. I don't know what to do, so I pray for him, quickly and quietly, and stroke his head. He doesn't have much hair left, but whatever he has is neatly parted. I try not to muss it up. The nurse returns with more clothes and tells me to throw the dirty linen on the floor. We'll clean it up later.

We finish the dressing too quickly, and I'm left again with my empty, fidgety hands and a dying patient. I still don't have the heart to leave, so I wander into the nurses' station and find myself in front of a computer. I pretend to type and tidy the clinical notes, but I'm really just counting his breaths and watching every movement he makes. He coughs again, a chesty, deep rumble that sounds painful and exhausting. He's trying to cough up the blood that's flooding his lungs, but his effort is so weak that nothing comes up.

The granddaughter calls again. The staff nurse pages for me and I answer. She sounds like she's rushing. "Could you please tell him L and E are coming?" Her voice breaks a little as she speaks (and if I am honest, my heart broke a little too).

I go to his bedside, satisfied that I had found another excuse to sit with him, and take his hand. "Your granddaughters are coming, uncle, just hold on a while more. Just a little while more, they're on their way." His eyes open at the mention of their names and there's a stray tear. I wonder when was the last time he saw them. I repeat this again and again, gently, stroking his frail hand, hoping and praying that he understood what I was saying. O God, please let him last the next few minutes until his family comes.

They make it before he goes.

I go to find my resident, but she's long gone. "Handed over to the on-call already," one of the MOs tells me, "Why are you still here anyway?" I don't have a good answer. "One of our patients isn't doing too well and I wanted to make sure he was okay." My statement hangs in the air for a while, before she shrugs and turns back to her computer, to complete the stack of changes she has to finish before home STAT. In that moment, I feel silly for staying so long; why stay when you need to rest before another long day tomorrow? Not to mention, there was really nothing I could have done to improve his care. Another overenthusiastic student that doesn't treasure their student life.

I check the bus timings—I've got 5 mins to get down to the bus stop if I want to catch the next bus home. I think I can make it if I pick up my pace. I pack up my things and find my half-finished cup of bubble tea from lunch. Having left the cubicle, the sights, smells, sounds of death seem like a distant memory and the events of the past few hours fade. I suddenly remember that I'm hungry and tired from the day, wanting nothing more than to leave the hospital and go home for a cold shower. And dammit, I have to be up so early tomorrow...and I've forgotten that I need to finish studying chapters—

I catch myself mid-thought.

Perhaps the most dangerous thing that could happen to a healthcare professional isn't the sick patient that could desaturate at any moment. Maybe it isn't even the silent myocardial infarctions in our elderly and diabetics. Perhaps it's our tendency to forget. Caught between the 5am mornings and the long call hours, we often don't stop to hold death by its shoulders and stare into its cold eyes for long enough to remember what it feels like to be a victim, to imagine what it feels like to have our hourglasses slowly draining away. Our tendency to forget that for many of our patients, that is their reality.

We are all slaves to time. The clock that ticks mercilessly waits for no man and with every second, we march nearer to the same final destination. Perhaps I'll see bed 26 there one day. But for now, I have a bus to catch.

[retroreaderr]

Go Steady With Me? (Remus x Reader)

some fluff for my husband, Widow because he can always do with a little more Remus fluff in his life. (Lowkey don’t have any clue how to write Remus so this is almost 5K words of t r a s h)

Words: 4838

Tagged: well guess what no one has asked to be tagged in Remus fics whOOPS

Thursday 25 May 1978, just a few more weeks of school until sweet, sweet freedom. The marauders could practically taste that decadent, untouchable fruit that is Adulthood, where they’d go out into the world and make something of themselves. Though, to be quite frank, deep down all of them were scared out of their wits to be thrown into the real world and have to make their own doctors appointments and shit so they’d been deliberating a way to take the edge off, just for a little while.

Sirius burped under his breath, ruffling his own hair before reaching over to his bedside table and flipping the record. He smiled, closing his eyes as the familiar sound of a slow bass riff came from the record player, Pink Floyd’s legendary album “Dark Side of the Moon” blessing his ears with “Money”. The teen relaxed back on his bed, arms behind his head as he tapped his toe to the music.

“Does that actually help you think?” Remus sighed, casting a glance over to his friend.

The marauders sat pondering existence in their dorm room, James sitting on the floor polishing his broom, Sirius atop his mate’s bed, his feet pressed against the headboard and his head at the foot of the bed. Remus lay on his own bed, half finished homework on his lap, Peter was lazily going through the newest edition of “Wizard Weekly” on the floor by the heater.

“Of course it does, Moony,” Sirius quipped with a smirk, rolling over onto his stomach. “It gets my brain waves flowing, ya know?”

Remus merely chuckled in response.

“Well if it get’s them flowin’, oh wise paddy-kins,” James teased, looking up to his mate. “Then what should we do this weekend?”

“Let me think, sometimes it takes a minute for the waves to reach maximum capacity.” Sirius closed his eyes and put a finger to his temple, concentrating really hard.

“We could go camping,” Peter suggested, not bothering to look up from the magazine.

“Exactly, Wormtail!” Sirius shouted, starting James a bit. “That’s exactly what I was going to say! We should totally go camping!” Peter chuckled, shaking his head and going back to figuring out who he should date based on his wand core.

James nodded along, looking to his werewolf buddy with a shrug. “Sounds cool with me. Moons ya think you could get the Lovely Minnie Magoo to let us out?”

“Ah, well, I don’t know Prongs,” Remus winced, not really wanting to go outside and making up an excuse to not go as fast as he could. “I mean, best mates or not, four lads hanging out alone in the woods sounds a bit...”

His voice trailed off and they caught on. “Yeah, it does sound a bit fruity, doesn’t it?” Sirius sighed.

“Why not bring some girls along then?” James suggested, the answer seeming pretty obvious. “I mean, I’ve got Lily, and uh.. well I’ve got Lily.”

A lull once again took over the room when Peter spoke up once more. “I hear (Name) fancies Moony,” the rat turned the page. “And for you, Sirius, well you can go Stag- no pun intended, Prongs.”

“Wha-” Sirius gasped, looking offended. “Why do I have to go stag?”

“Because you’re scared of commitment?” Remus chuckled, reaching over into his nightstand and pulling out a bar of chocolate.

“Because you can’t hold down a serious relationship due to the aforementioned fear?” James added on, holding out his hands for Remus to toss him a piece.

“Because-”

“Alright, alright,” Sirius groaned, catching a piece of chocolate that Remus had tossed to him out of habit. Peter got a chunk too. “I’ll go stag but I’m not sharing a tent with Peter, sorry mate but you have the night sweats.”

“It’s fine, I’ve actually got plans anywho,” Peter sighed, stretching his arms out. “I, your beloved Wormtail, have a date.This weekend. With Marlene McKinnon.”

“Good for you, Wormtail!” Sirius congratulated, giving a few claps in appreciation.  “So where are you taking her?”

And on the night went, the four lads chatting and having some bants.

“So, is Madam Lovely on board?” James asked as Remus exited McGonagall’s office.

“So long as a prefect-” he pointed to himself with pride. “Is there, she feels there is nothing to fear.”

“Then let’s get our ladies and get scootin’!”

“Never say that again, mate.”

“So, do you think you’re up for it?” Sirius asked, crossing his arms and leaning against a post in the Gryffindor common room. Lily stood in a similar pose before the trio of troublesome twirps, her potions partner (Name) beside her.

“Out, in the woods, with you three, and bugs, for two days?” Lily raised a brow, pausing every few words to emphasize how stupid this sounded. “Why don’t we just so swim with the giant squid and hope we get poison ivy while we’re at it?”

“Actually- Lily- you.. You can’t really.. Get poison ivy while swimming,” You piped up from beside your friend, almost instantly regretting it because now you’re that person. Lily was looking all cool in front of her boyfriend and his friends and now she looks foolish. Great job, (Name), A+ for you. “Sorry, I just-” Taking a deep breath you look to the redhead. “I’ll go if you do?”

Lily shrugged, “Sounds cool to me,” looking to the marauders, she smirked. ‘But we’re going this my way- the muggle way.”

Cue a symphony of groans from the boys.

“How- Sirius move your hand over- No not there- Remus!” James huffed angrily and threw his hands up in the air, looking sharply over to his girlfriend.The group of teens had hiked into the woods near a muggle village, nowhere close to the Forbidden Forest. It was just a normal forest, with normal creatures and lots of bugs. They’d found a clearing big enough for that they needed, and started setting up camp.

“Lily!”

“Yes, dear?” Said redhead reclined with her gal pal by the campfire, their tent already pitched and ready to go. “Are you boys having a bit of trouble?”

James merely whined in response, slumping his shoulders. “Why did you make my leave my wand again?”

“Because this is a muggle experience, James,” Lily chuckled, looking very smug herself. “Look, Remus has the hang of it,” she gestured to said werewolf who, now that his friend’s had given up on “helping” was doing pretty well fixing up the tent. “He really knows how to pitch a tent, eh (Name)?”

You looked away from the fire towards the object of your affections who was very focused on his work. “Yeah, he is pretty-” your words cut short when you realized the innuendo. “Lily Evans!” You shouted, grabbing a hot dog from the bag at your feet and throwing it at her.

“Hey guys!” Sirius shouted, laughing at the scene. “Evans just took a weiner to the face!” The punkass lil hoe howled with laughter before pointing to his friend with a quizzical look.” Hey James, isn’t that your job?”

“Okay, you know what-” James tackled his friends, the boys playfully wrestling on the floor.

Remus merely sighed and pulled the almost erected tent away from their brawl.

Within an hour or so, three tents stood erect in the clearing, all surrounding a beautifully roaring campfire. A few logs the boys had found sat around the fire as seats, Sirius claimed one for himself, James and Lily sat on another totally canoodling, so that left Remus and you on your own little log. The sun was nearing the horizon, and the Scottish woods didn’t provide much warmth.

“Geez,” you muttered, leaning closer to the fire and rubbing your arms. “It’s getting pretty chilly.”

Sirius cast a quick, reassuring glance towards Remus who hastily used the encouragement to remove his jacket and place it on your shoulders. “Here, take my jacket.”

Chuckling a bit shyly, you smiled at him with a thanks that he awkwardly nodded to.

“Yeah, James, it is getting a bit cold.”

“Well damn, Lily! I can’t control the weather!”

Cue a prompt punch to James’ shoulder. “Geez, I was only kidding!” James laughed, rubbing where she punched before removing his jacket and wrapping his beloved in it.

Sirius stretched with a groan. “Well, I don’t know about you guys but I’m getting hungry,” he reached over to Lily’s bag and pulled out the bag of hot dogs. “Now would be a good time to have our wands, ya know.”

“Go find a stick,” Lily teased, scrunching her nose. “Fetch, doggy.”

Sirius looked open mouthed at her, looking genuinely hurt. “James-”

“BURN!” James shouted, holding one hand up to his mouth and giving Lily a high five with the other. When Sirius looked at him with a “dude really?” look of defeat, James merely shrugged. “What man, I can’t deny a good burn!”

“I’ll go look for some sticks, but you-” he pointed to Lily, “Don’t get one.”

Lily shrugged, snuggling up to James.

Sirius came back with enough sticks for everyone- but Lily of course. James however was being all gooey and in love and let her use hs and said he could wait for her to get her fill, going so far as to pull out a blanket for the two of them to cuddle up under. #goals

“Are you enjoying yourself, (Name)?” Remus asked timidly as he handed you a bun for your hotdog.

“Yeah, actually,” you smile at him, scooting a bit closer to him- for warmth of course. “It’s.. nice here.” You closed your eyes and rested your head on his shoulder, not noticing the way he stiffened up at the touch.

With eyes wide, he looked to Sirius across the fire who gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up. Grinning broadly, the Gryffindor got up and hurried over to his other half, whispering in his ear excitedly. James nodded smugly, whispering to Lily as Sirius went back to back to his log.

James stretched, yawning dramatically. “Well, I think it’s time we all go to bed, don’t you think, darling?”

“Yes, dear, I do think so,” Lily chorused, standing up and wrapping an arm around her hubby’s torso. “(Name), would you mind too terribly if I slept in James’ tent tonight instead of yours? I almost forgot, tonight is our three month anniversary and um.. he.. ya know.” She winked with a smirk.

Retracting yourself from Remus’ side sheepishly, as though you’d been caught doing something naughty even though it was completely innocent- adorable even. “Oh well, sure, that’s fine Lils, I’ll just sleep in the singular-”

“Actually!” Sirius interrupted, jumping over the shrinking fire and running to it. “This is mine, sorry (Name), I kinda peed on the back earlier thinking it was a tree. Don’t think you’ll wanna be sleepin in there, eh?”

“Ew,” you muttered, sighing and looking to the only other tent with realization, turning to the werewolf at your side with a mildly apologetic look. “Then, I guess..”

“We can share a tent,” Remus offered fidgeting a bit with awkwardness, gesticulating more than he should have. “That’s... uh, that’s fine with me, as long as... em, as long as you’re- you’re okay with it?”

“Oh, well, yeah, it’s fine with me, I mean...” You scratch the back of your neck and look towards your friends shaking your head and shrugging too dramatically than necessary. “Why, uh, why wouldn’t it be?” You clapped once, just to keep your hands from moving more than they already were. “Yeah.”

“Yeah,” Remus echoed, nodding along, his lips pressed into a line.

James and Lily had retreated to their tent, it appears Lily was a hypocrite because she brought her wand along and used a silencing charm on the tent. (They legit were just cuddling and being cute and domestic but they had to play it up ya know, for effect.) Sirius was taking a leak in the woods, so you thought it best to go ahead and get ready for bed.

Remus was finishing off a hotdog when you excused yourself, heading into the tent to change into your pajamas. The tent was small, even for muggle tents, the opening small enough for you to have to crawl into it and hardly tall enough for you to sit up comfortably, unless you were in the dead centre.

You discarded Remus’ jacket and put it on his side of the tent and had just started to unbutton your flannel when the tent flaps opened and a fluffy head of mousy brown hair emerged.

“Hey, (Name), where’s your sleeping-” His eyes met about 8 inches below your eyes where your flannel was open and then shot up to your eyes, his mouth dropping open. Your hands flew to pull your shirt closed as you bit your lip and looked away from him.

“Um, I uh-”

“Oh wow, I uh, I mean, not wow, I mean not that it- you, aren’t- I mean-” Remus tensed up, his face going red as he stumbled back over his hands. “Bye.”

One hand kept your shirt clasped together as the other went to your mouth, your teeth anxious nibbling on your thumb nail. He totally saw my boobs, Merlin's beard! You thought as you rushed to change into your pajamas.

Oh Merlin, I totally saw her... oh Merlin, Remus thought as he sat outside of the tent, his knees in the dirt.

“You okay, Moons?” Sirius questioned as he reentered the camp sight, wiping his hands on a leaf before dropping it to the ground.

Remus stood and rushed over to his friend, fidgeting and anxious. “She was changing and I sorta...”

“Oh dude nice!” Sirius exclaimed, prompting Remus to clout him about the head. “Well, did you see anything?” He inquired in a more hushed tone.

Mouth open and eyes wide, Remus shook his head sternly. “No! Of course- Okay maybe.. Merlin.. just like, like a little but not-”

“You totally saw her rack, didn’t ya mate?” Sirius chuckled lowly, biting his lip and nodding appreciatively. “Up top,” he raised his hand for a high five.

“No!” Remus pawed down his friend’s hand- no pun intended. “I didn’t mean to! I didn’t know- no lingering, there, there was no lingering, mhmm, none.”

“Aw, come on man!” Sirius groaned, bending his knees and gesturing with his entire body to the campsite. “You’re gonna be with her for the entire weekend! You know she has the hots for you, and you totally think she’s beyond rad-”

“Sirius, please stop talking like a muggle.”

“”And besides!” Padfoot went on, ignoring his friend’s complaints. “That’s the whole reason we brought her here! For you two to finally shack up and stop pining after each other!”

“Just… be cool ok,” Remus pleaded, still red in the face and a bit breathless. “I’m just going to head to bed, okay. You get some sleep too.”

“As long as you two lovebirds don’t keep me up all night,” Sirius winked and headed towards his tent with a spring in his step.

Remus had taken a breath or two to settle his nerves before finally turning towards the tent. After giving a side-glance to the embers of what used to be the fire, Remus swallowed the lump in his throat, forcing his jitters down with it. He strode towards the tent and kneeled down, whispering “(Name)?”

“Yes?” Came a sleepy voice.

“Are you decent?”

“Mhmm.”

Remus hesitantly opened the tent flap and peeked in, seeing your sleeping form cuddled up in your sleeping bag, your back facing the middle. Guess I’ll sleep in my clothes then, he thought with an internal sigh.

Feeling inept, the werewolf crawled into the cramped tent attempting to find his preplaced sleeping bag in the faint light. He stumbled, feeling with his hands as best he can, though that wasn’t the best idea.

Suddenly, your head shifted towards your tent mate. “Um… Remus?” Your voice was squeaky and faint.

“Yeah?” He responded, his voice just as high, if not more.

“You’re hand is… it’s kinda grabbin’ my boob…”

“Merlin’s beard, oh!” Remus exclaimed, jumping backwards and hitting the top of the tent with his head causing the middle rod collapse in the middle. “Oh Merlin,” he sighed, the tent falling atop his head.

Struggling to get your arms out of the sleeping bag, you found yourself laughing louder than you should be. “How did you-?” Your laughter mixed with Remus’ as he realized how ridiculous that must’ve looked.

“I don’t even know!” Remus managed between cackles as he held the tent up so he could see you too busy laughing to pull the tent up yourself. “Merlin, (Name),” Remus chuckled, reaching over and tugging down the zipper of your sleeping bag so you could get out easier.

“Thanks,” you chuckle breathlessly, pulling the tent up over your head. As soon as you and Remus locked eyes, your hands over your head attempting to hold the tent up, you both broke into another fit of giggles. “You lift this, I’ll crawl out and try to put the rod back in place.”

You attempted to move forward, but soon realized that having him be the one to get out- being closer to the entrance and all- seemed like a better idea.

Within ten giggle filled minutes, the tent was back up and you were once again settling in for sleep. “G’night, Remus,” you muttered, your back facing the werewolf.

“Good night, (Name), sleep well,” Remus responded, curling up in his sleeping bag and settling in for sleep.

Morning rose and brought with it a layer of dew on any and everything at the camp site. Remus was the first to wake, the early morning sun beaming through the thin layer of polyester of their tent and waking him. He knew it would be difficult to weasel out of the tent without waking you, but as he looked over to your sleeping face, he wouldn’t dream of disturbing such serenity.

Gentle as he could, he shifted out of his sleeping bag, noticing how you shivered slightly with the gentle breeze that wafted in through the opening in the tent. Letting out a small chuckle, he unzipped his sleeping bag all the way and laid it over top of yours, gently tucking it around you. The added warmth was almost immediate, causing a content expression to cross over your sleeping face.

Smiling at your adorableness, Remus realized how awkward it’d be if you woke up to having him staring at you while you sleep. So, taking up his jacket from the night before, Remus squirmed out of the tent and went over to the smouldering remains of last nights fire.

One by one, everyone joined Remus by the campfire, indulging in a mediocre breakfast of lukewarm hot dogs and weak coffee. The day was spent doing boring camping stuff; hiking, splashing about in a river, looking (in vain- unless you count James in animagi form) for wildlife and playing hide and seek in the trees.

Sirius seemed a little too excited when nightfall came. He had good reason, an ace up his sleeve would prove interesting very soon. “Alright everyone, pack in!” The sly dog announced after cooking up some hamburgers over the fire. “I have a surprise waiting for everybody down at the lake!”

Lily gave her beau a suspicious glance to which the goofy stag merely shrugged in pure confusion, grease from his burger dripping down his chin.

Half an hour later, you and Remus were the last following the pack through the woods towards the lake. “Any idea what’s in store?”

Remus sighed, shaking his head. “Knowing Sirius, probably something involving nudity and/or minor law breaking.”

And our beloved anxious boy was right, boy was he right.

“Take off your clothes,” Sirius instructed simply once everyone had caught up to him. Unfortunately for everyone else he had already followed his instructions (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it- no innuendo intended.)

“What the bloody hell are you goin’ on about, Pads?” James screeched, covering his girlfriend’s eyes. You simply chose to enjoy the half-moonlight instead, Remus was a bit flustered about the whole ordeal to say the least.

“Skinny dipping, obviously,” Sirius gave an overdramatic shrug, “Why else would we go camping?”

“Um, to hike and get out of the castle?” Lily responded, moving James’ hand off her eyes. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Childhood trauma. Now get naked.” Without further word, Sirius turned on his heel and ran towards the lake with abandon. It was truly a sight.

Meanwhile, on land, James was stripping down as fast as possible and urging Lily to do the same.

You turned to Remus with a panicked expression, biting your lip. “Eh, Moony, wanna head back to camp and not get hypothermia and possibly a lake-dwelling parasite?”

“I would love to,” he said a bit too hastily, shaking his head at his friend’s antics. “I wonder if they realize we didn’t bring any towels?”

“Prolly not,” you chuckled, shrugging. “Have fun guys! Remus and I are going to save our recklessness for another time, see ya back at camp!”

They waved as the two of you walked off, the obligatory sex joke from Sirius’ part being a fond farewell. Halfway back to camp, you bumped Remus’ shoulder. “Thanks, by the way.”

“For?”

“This morning, your sleeping bag,” you glanced up at him, a small smile dancing on your lips. “Thanks.”

“Oh, oh, you’re welcome,” Remus stuttered a bit, your smile proving contagious. “Actually… since you brought them back up, I think I have an idea.”

“Could you just grab that end real quick?” Remus instructed, holding up yours and his sleeping bag at one end. You did as asked and he smiled at the product. “Perfect.”

He’d managed to zip one end of your sleeping bag to his to make a jumbo sleeping bag; with it splayed out open, it made a comfortably large blanket to sit on. “I saw this place not far away, do you trust me?”

“Enough,” you teased, taking up your end of the sleeping bag and following Remus past a few trees and down a hill. He led you to a beautiful valley with tall swaying grasses and the occasional shy bud of a flower. “Woah.”

“I thought so too,” Remus beamed, gesturing for you to help set out the blanket.

“Why didn’t you mention this place when we were scouting campsites?” You asked, splaying out the sleeping bags.

“And let James and Sirius destroy it?” Remus chuckled, fixing the corner before letting you get comfortable on it first. “I know they’re my best mates and all, but they can both be a down right git sometimes. They have habits of making messes, you know.”

“Yeah, I suppose,” you sighed, relaxing back on the makeshift blanket, your hands behind your head. “Remus, look! The stars are coming out!”

Remus lay beside you, his hands clasped on his stomach. You were right, the stars were shimmering high in the sky, the bright hustle and bustle of Hogwarts and the cities far from here, allowing the stars to bless the ground below with their unpolluted brilliance. The moon sat hardly a half crescent, yet still outshining even the most glimmering star.

You and he sat in awe, enjoying the stars in silent admiration. Faint in the distance, Padfoot howled, antagonizing the local wolves into their own howling fit, causing a chuckle to rumble through you. Remus was less amused by the persistent howling of wolves. A cricket chirped nearby, his sound constant and oddly comforting; not far away an owl hooted calmly, the rustle of leaves insinuating he’d caught his dinner.

“Do you know any constellations?” He mused, not looking away from the sky but still leaning his head towards you to show his attention.

You thought a moment, looking at the sky in attempt to find any. “Well, you see those three?” You pointed up vaguely, gesturing to the heavens. “That’s Orion’s Belt; and that star right there, that’s Sirius, and if you join it with those over there, you get Canis Major.”

“You’re making all these up aren’t you?” Remus chuckled, looking to you with an amused smile.

Lowering you arm, defeated, you groaned. “I had hoped you wouldn’t notice.” You turned to him, rolling onto your side with your bicep under your head as a pillow. “What gave me away?”

“For starters, Sirius is on the opposite side of the sky,” Remus chuckled, pointing to said star. “Having known the man for seven years, he made sure I could find him in the sky.”

You and he shared a laugh, going back to looking at the sky.

You had closed your eyes to enjoy the gentle breeze of the early night when Remus spoke up. “(Name)?”

“Yes?”

“I was…” He paused, obviously choosing his word choice. “Actually nevermind, it’s ridiculous.”

Sitting up, you huffed in an amused manner. “You can’t just leave it off there, Moony, now I’m curious!”

Remus sighed, his eyes tracking a silhouette across the sky as he sat up. “I just heard something earlier… about you, and I was going to ask about it but it’s-”

“What did Sirius say?” You groaned, knowing that playboy gossip always had something juicy on the end of that silver tongue of his.

“He possibly insinuated that you might… fancy me?” Remus seemed as though the words were uncomfortable in his mouth. “I almost told him to sod off, you know. Such nonsense, you liking me? Honestly, it’s pretty preposterous don’t you think?” He gave a chuckle, lowering his head and scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. “Poor sod probably just had too much firewhiskey that night, was dreaming things.”

“I don’t think so, Moons,” you muttered, nibbling your bottom lip with worry. “It’s not totally ludicrous.”

“Of course it is!” Remus exclaimed, tossing his hand up in the air. “I mean, look at you!” His eyes glanced over you, a bewildered smile on his face. “You’re absolutely stunning, with more brains than you know what to do with, and… you’re an absolute delight to be around, you’re breathtakingly witty and clever as the devil.”

Your lips fumbled to create words, your eyes wide as dinner plates as they searched the blanket for a response. Remus meanwhile, had continued to go on.

“And look at me, a mess beyond correction.” He slumped his shoulders as he continued. “I hardly sleep, eating is the last thing on my mind half the time. I’m not sure how I made it to Prefect, I never study and I always feel like I’m behind in class because… well, because I am! And for you, to possibly like that, is indeed ludicrous.”

“I have a different opinion,” you shrugged, looking up through the bit of hair the wind had pushed to your face. “I do like you, believe it or not.” You hesitantly reached your hand over to his, he flinched at the contact. “I don’t mind all those things, Remus, because… well, because they’re wrong.”

“They-”

“Wrong, Remus,” you insisted gently, finally looking him in the eye. “You’re the smartest person I know, James and Sirius would’ve been expelled by now had it not been for you. You keep them together, you keep them from killing themselves, or others. You’re responsible for your entire house, you’ve been given that title because you earned it, Remus.”

His lips were parted, words forming at the tip of his tongue yet swallowed down by his nerves.

“You’re clever, cleverer than I am, cleverer than anyone in Hogwarts,” you took his hand in yours, lifting it up. “And you’re the strongest person I know. All of this,” you gently ran your thumb over a scar on his hand. “I… It’s admirable, I am in constant awe of how strong you are.”

“Look at me, (Name),” Remus whispered, shaking his head. “Look at me, scars and scrapes and cuts and bruises and-”

“And the brightest eyes, and the softest hair and the sweetest voice,” you continued on, placing a hand on his cheek. “Remus, you’re really, really awesome, you know that?”

“You’re one to talk,” Remus chuckled, leaning into your hand. “You’re insane for thinking all of this, you know?”

You sighed, tracing your thumb over a scar on his cheek. “Oh well, but it’s not going to go away.”

“How can I make it go away?” Remus murmured, his breath hitching at the feeling of your thumb on his skin.

“You can try kissing me.”

Remus’ breath hitched, his mouth falling open and his eyes widening. “I… uh, I don’t… not that that I mean I-”

“Remus,” you interrupted, smiling at the flustered boy. “Here.” You slowly leaned in, kissing his cheek, right on his newest scar. “Go steady with me?”

#remus x reader #remus fluff #remus lupin #remus imagine #remus #marauders era remus #mod emerald #mod emerald writes #mod emerald rants