#like a cat who miscalculated the distance and jumped straight into a wall

[waltwhitmansbeard]

"You take that back!"

I'm so wanting this to be a Vaxleth fic. Dealer's choice on who's being protective.

2. "You take that back!" setting this in vamp machina. call it vaxleth-adjacent.

The apartment walls are shaking, and Percy can't tell if it's a result of Keyleth's magic or her anger. They never fight like this; both of them tend toward silent stewing, bubbling boils that must cool over time, but today the rage spits and crackles, and they are red-faced and clench-fisted in the living room. She has called him a hypocrite (which is correct) and a bad friend (which is not), and he has retaliated by accusing her of caring more for an undead monster than his dead family. Sometimes, he wishes he weren't so good at this—six siblings, he is a marksman with words as well as bullets—but he is. He can see it in the jumping of her throat as she fights back tears.

Let her cry. He's right, and they both know it. The vampire comes around and whispers pretty things in her ear, sends her heart aflutter, a cat playing with its food. Keyleth is no mouse, has enough power to defend herself, he's sure, but to invite the thing into their home, to dance with the devil as if she cannot get burned—it's selfish, stupid, cruel.

(Doesn't she get what he gave up, once he learned the truth? Doesn't she know he toppled off the edge and is falling even still, weeks after he realized his own foolish naïveté? Maybe she does know. Maybe she knows how he went to kill Vex'ahlia, maybe she knows how he couldn't do it, maybe that's why she's digging her heels in like this. She has called him a hypocrite, and she's right, and they both know it.)

"There's an easy solution to our problems."

Her eyes narrow, suspicious of the calm tone he's taken suddenly. "What? We stop being friends?"

He blinks. That's not at all what he was suggesting, and the fact that that was the first place her mind went pierces right through his rib cage. "What?"

The first tear falls, and he can feel his own walls begin to shake. "Because you're the only family I have out here, Percy. I don't want to have to lose you."

"Keyleth, you're the only family I have period. It's because I care so much that I'm this pissed off at you!"

"Then what!"

"I'll just kill him!"

The apartment is small, yet somehow his shout echoes, reverberates off the walls and crashes into them, over and over and over. He watches her go ramrod straight, the brightness in her eyes darkening into something new, something he's never seen before. She closes the distance between them, and it's only now that he's realizing just how tall she is—not as tall as he is, but damn close.

"You take that back."

What are they, children? "I'm serious, Keyleth. I'll do it, if that's what it takes."

Her voice is low, even, dangerous, like a riptide waiting to yank him out to sea. "You can fucking try."

He blinks, and she's spun around on her heel. When she slams the door to her bedroom behind her, the walls shake once more, and Percy thinks for the first time that, maybe, he has made a grave miscalculation.

#ask #tiamat-zx #critical role #critical role fic #cr fic #critical role au #cr au #vox machina #vox machina fic #vox machina au #vaxleth #vaxleth fic #vaxleth au #percy de rolo #my fic #vamp machina au

[dragonomatopoeia]

the lupin stories are so funny. i love when a narrator starts out with “SO you know when you’re on a boat and you fall in love with the first person to your immediate left”

#[lupin voice] i am having a GREAT time and i am thrilled actually with having fucked up tremendously #every day is an adventure and i chose to fuck up actually #like a cat who miscalculated the distance and jumped straight into a wall

[tootiredforyourshit3963]

A Small Obstacle - A Destiny Drabble

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@azrakel09

Request: A Ghost being mistaken for a shiny ball of yarn by a playful cat

Word count: 1.5K-ish  

When I tell you I screeched while reading this request-

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The ghost let out a long sigh as he continued to scan the remnants of a small town just outside the Reef. Today marked the third year that he had spent searching the solar system for his Guardian; he had been to Titan, Io, Nessus, The Moon, Earth, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and even The Dreaming City for Traveler’s sake! But he had yet to find his companion, and he was starting to lose hope that he ever would. 

“No, you will not lose hope. My Guardian is out there, I know it.” The Ghost muttered to himself in hopes of raising his spirits, if only slightly. 

Fallen screeched in the distance, and Ghost flinched slightly. He hated being out in the open like this, it never ended well, and he had scars to prove it. His red and white shell -gifted to him by the Speaker himself- was covered in dirt and talon marks from when he was attacked by a hawk in the EDZ just weeks prior. It took him a full day to lose the damned bird and cracked his shell in the process.

“So much for peaceful adventures” He had grumbled to himself after finding refuge in a rundown church inhabited by Devrim Kay, who was happy to listen to the Ghost’s rambling while sipping a cup of tea. 

You wouldn’t expect a Ghost to tire out quickly, I mean, they were made to scour the world in search of their Guardians, right? 

Wrong.

Many people assume that Ghosts are just machines that just go-go-go all the time. But in truth, they have souls just like every other living creature. They require rest and time to recuperate after a stressful day.

And quite frankly? He was exhausted. 

Traveler, it had been so long since he was last able to visit the city. The small Ghost longed to be back in the comforting presence of the light, surrounded by fellow ghosts who understood the pain of not being able to find their Guardians. He would give just about anything to snuggle into a warm blanket -usually provided by the Tower Staff- and sleep this horrid week away. 

The faint sound of water pulled him from his thoughts and caused the Ghost to perk up slightly. Rounding the next corner, he found a small waterfall that softly flowed down the cliff-side and into a small pond below. 

The Ghost quickly flew into the downpour, letting the water wash away all the dirt and grime of the past few months in mere seconds. Allowing himself to relax, he focused on the sound of the small forest around him, finding some form of comfort in this strange world. After a few moments, he forced himself to leave the water and continue searching the town. 

The droplets left his shell looking sparkly and clean, leaving the Ghost feeling refreshed and filled with a bit of newfound confidence. But before continuing his search, his eye landed on a sizeable cat-like creature sitting peacefully on the lip of the small pond.

It had dark, fluffy blue fur that resembled the night sky -he could’ve sworn that it was sparkling with hidden stars- and misty purple eyes that looked an awful lot like the Reef.   

“Oh, um…” The Ghost flew forward to meet the feline, lowering himself to eye level. “Hello there.” 

The creature cocked its head to one side, its tail flicking back and forth as it studied his small form. He watched with unease as it tentatively rose one paw towards him as if to touch him. 

“What are you- ACK!” The Ghost jumped, just narrowly missing the cat’s paw as it swiped at him. 

He quickly flew back towards the water in hopes that it would be hesitant to follow. But Ghost’s dreams were shattered as it walked right out into the water without a care in the world. 

“Hey, now, let’s talk this out.” He pleaded as the cat stalked towards him tauntingly. 

It’s shoulder blades bobbed up and down and lowered itself closer to the ground before suddenly pushing off and swiping at his shell. 

“That is very rude! You can’t just go knocking Ghosts out of the air-” Cutting him off mid-sentence, it pounced, lurching its body in the air and tackling his small form into the water below. 

“Unhand me this instant!” Ghost demanded as the cat held him in between his paws, turning his shell over as if to examine him and occasionally smacking him as it would a ball of yarn. 

With one last grunt of effort, he let out a small surge of light that knocked him out of the cat’s grasp. He must have miscalculated something because the wave sent him hurtling towards the waterfall. He braced himself, ready to smack the rocks behind it, but the impact never came. Instead, he passed straight through the water and into a hidden cave behind it. 

After collecting himself, Ghost whirled around to the feline who had followed him into the water and was now sitting back on his haunches and grooming its left paw. 

“You could have killed me!” He yelled, exasperated at the cat who simply paused and looked at him with -what seemed to be- an amused expression as he continued to rant. 

“I’ve been doing nothing but search this solar system non-stop for the last three years. But never, never in all my days have I been hunted for such enjoyment! I just want to find my Guardian without being smacked around by some, some animal!” Before he could continue, a small pang of light pulsed throughout his being. 

“Did you… feel that?” The Ghost spun around and took a good look at the cave. 

He found himself amid an old hideout, filled with empty crates, a few lanterns -long since burned out- and some rifles that lined neatly against the far wall. The ceiling of the cave was overgrown with a type of moss that left it looking like a sky full of stars. But what caught his eye was a body that laid on the ground not too far from the entrance. It was a woman, dressed in Awoken Corsair armor and armed to the teeth. It was safe to assume that she had been dead for a long time. 

Upon this sight, a surge of light flooded his consciousness, and he was filled with the urge to help this person. An invisible force seemed to pull him to her side, and when he got closer, it clicked. 

This was a Guardian. This was his Guardian. 

He glanced back at the cat who sat patiently, any sense of playfulness from before had vanished. The way it looked at him, it was almost like it led him here. Like it knew. 

Shaking the thought out of his head, the Ghost focused back on the matter at hand. Floating a little closer, he reached out and tethered his light to the lifeless form before him and uttered one command; Eyes up, Guardian. 

Tendrils of light encircled the Guardian, and they woke with a start, ripping the helmet off their head and doubled over coughing. The warmth immediately flooded her hollow blue cheeks, and her black hair was a tangled mess. But Ghost was too ecstatic to notice their struggle or care about their appearance. She had just come back from the dead, after all. 

“Thank the Traveler, I found you! Finally!” He spun around in excitement before lowering next to her shoulder. 

“Oh, uh. Are you okay?” He floated a little closer as his Guardian sat back and looked at him, confusion clouding her bright eyes. 

“What…” She coughed again before continuing, “What happened?” 

“I revived you.” 

“I’m sorry,” she shook her head. “You did what?” 

Ghost went on to explain everything he could about the light, the dark, the Traveler, and his lifelong search. As he did so, the cat decided to move from its spot and make its way towards the Guardian. Prompting to settle in her lap, it purred softly as she scratched it behind the ears.

Once he finished explaining, she paused -much to the cat’s dismay- and looked up at Ghost. 

“So, let me get this right… I’m a ‘Guardian,’ and there are countless other beings like me who were brought back to life to fight in this battle between The Light and The Darkness with powers that were given to us by a giant orb in the sky?” She questioned. 

“That ‘giant orb’ is called the Traveler; it created the Ghosts to find you all. But yes.” 

“Okay… sounds legit,” she muttered to herself. 

If Ghost could smile, he would be grinning ear-to-ear as he said, “I think it’s about time we got you to the Tower.” 

----

“Can we bring the cat?” 

“No.” 

“Aw, but why not.”

“It mistook me for a chew toy, and I'd rather not be gnawed to bits.” 

“Oh, common, please?” 

“Absolutely not.” 

“I’ll get you a new shell first thing when we get back to the Tower.”

“...Fine.” 

“Yay!” 

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Hopefully that's along the lines of what you were thinking... I had a lot of fun writing this one. 

Any who, feedback is greatly appreciated (and needed!) 

have a good day, y’all 

#ghost #destiny #destiny 2 #guardian #the young wolf #fanfic

[cass-chan12]

Unexpected Equilibrium (Ch 3)

Fandom: Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir Pairing: Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng Genre: Romance and Adventure Story Type: MedievalAU Rating: T

Summary: They were destined to bear the marks of Good and Bad Luck but perhaps they weren’t meant to suffer their fates alone. Maybe they could find a purpose through each other.

Previous chapter

"The Lady of the house hasn't been faring well since her and her husband's return from the East" A servant whispered to another in the mansion halls one morning.

The house had become very worrisome of the Lady Emilie's of the Agreste manor, as most had adored her over her husband. She had gotten ill for no apparent reason and even the doctors couldn't identify the cause nor what she was ailing from.

Gabriel Agreste being the most affected tried not to leave his wife side and still reassures his son that she will be well soon. His son although being fourteen was not going to be cohered into believing such a thing as he is witnessing his mother fall deeper into sickness.

While in the main bedroom Gabriel sat next to his wife while she found it hard to stay awake for more than thirty minutes.

"Darling I think this is all caused because of-" Emilie started to say before going into a fit of coughing.

With a reassuring hand on hers she looked to see her husband's face twisted in sorrow

"The book… yes I thought it to be a possibility. It hasn't just affected you since our return, looking at some events in Paris of late." Gabriel confirmed her thoughts.

"Have you deciphered in the text how we can fix all this?" she said weakly.

"Somewhat… I could only pick up that if one were to recite the following text that a wanted recipient would receive certain gifts. Some vary but the stronger powers are of Luck and Misfortune." He explained.

Emilie frowned "I know that face, what else is to be said?"

"The holders of Luck and Misfortune can only be activated at the same time since they only exist because of one another."

A sigh of disappointment escaped her lips "So activating the holder of Luck could be dangerous in odds of the Misfortune holder to be awoken too. And we have no knowledge of who it could be correct?"

"If we select a candidate for one of them, the persons opposite or confidante will be the other holder with or without consent." Gabriel confirmed.

Emilie nodded sadly "And getting rid of the book won't solve this?"

Gabriel shook his head "I've tried to dispose of it but it finds its way back in my personal library."

Emilie laughed bitterly "I'm afraid we've gotten into something, haven't we?"

Gabriel frowned not responding, watching his wife slip into slumber. He stood up and exited the room to let his wife rest. As he exited the room he got a fright to see Adrien trying to walk away from eavesdropping.

"Adrien." Gabriel said sternly.

Jumping in surprise Adrien turned around timidly and rubbed his neck "Y-yes father?"

"How much did you hear?" Gabriel went straight to the question.

Adrien could only feel frightened at the tone of his father's voice and he couldn't lie to him as his mother always had told him that it would do more harm than he thinks it would.

Adrien gulped "All of it…"

Gabriel feared that to be the answer and he sighed to hear his suspicions confirmed.

"I'm sorry you had to find out all of this Adrien but do try not to concern yourself with it." Gabriel tried to dismiss his son.

"I want to help Papa!" Adrien blurted out.

Gabriel turned around just as he was going to take his absence and looked at his son in shock.

"We need a candidate for someone to be the luck holder and I'll take up the task." Adrien said in a bolder tone.

"Adrien you know the repercussions, the holder for misfortune will awaken too."

"Then I can find the holder and my good luck can solve it."

"We don't know that." Gabriel turned down the notion.

"We can figure it out before Mama is gone, just please let me do this!" Adrien pleaded in tears.

Gabriel close to his own breakdown looked to his heartbroken son and laid his hand on his shoulder.

"I will give it careful consideration."

...

'What a horrifying mistake that was…' Adrien thought to himself as he was lying against the cave wall.

The young boy lying in the dark cave, looking like a rabid wild cat was recalling the biggest mistake he had himself tangled up in. In hindsight it was a good plan but the execution was miscalculated. He wasn't meant to be the holder of Misfortune yet why did it happen so?

Adrien bitterly remembered how his father and himself went to his mother's room where she had slept and his father stood in front of him and read a verse from the mysterious book. That's where his memory stopped and only came back to the stench of decay and his mother was dead. It only later came to his traumatised state that he was the one responsible for it and not to mention his fathers petrified face that he could never forget.

Before Adrien could comprehend anything else he dashed out the mansion running away from the town. He kept going and going until his legs were about to give up and he managed to find something to hide in and that's where he had stayed for the next couple of years.

He had been so dispirited to not move and to waste away bitterly from where his sat. Maybe once or twice he went to look outside during twilight and he saw how the land around him had become more of a wasteland than when he first arrived. He thought the distance from the town would suffice.

He also thought his death would come around due to starvation but his body hadn't disintegrated from hunger. The rest of him did change though apart from growing of age but his hair had gotten to wilder state and his sight in the dark was 20/20. He remembered his face had black streaks on it but every time he looked to a reflection in a puddle he didn't notice anything of the sort but he did notice how frightening his eyes looked glowing green and looking similar to a black cats.

I guess he could call himself that…

An Unlucky Black Cat…

But what of his confidante that was supposed to exist after his transformation. Yes he had intended to hold Lucks power but held Misfortune instead so who got the power of Luck? Who was it? Was the person happy that they got such a gift?

Thinking of this person made his heart pound for some reason. His father told his mother that everyone has an opposite and that proves truer than he thought it would.

Like being Push and Pull or Forward and Backwards. Good Luck and Bad Luck.

A wave of a familiar sensation swept through him. It felt like cool water running through his veins or maybe it was fiery tingles stretching all over. The sensation was so strong he didn't know how to handle it.

Was someone close by?

'Seriously how did I land up in this situation?' Marinette whined internally staring over the southern wastelands.

She was clad in her red armour, excluding her helmet, that she got fixed and polished the day before. She had a lot of time to think about what she was heading too and her parents couldn't help but voice their concerns. Marinette came to a realization that perhaps she was the right person to do this. She did have this gift for some type of reason so maybe she could put it to use along with her own skills. Maybe this was her true purpose? She honestly doesn't know what having a true purpose even means so perhaps after all of this was over she might know where to head from here.

A small part of her did wonder if it was worth the risk to find ones purpose or goal in life but Marinette was stubborn like that. Despite all that had been given and done the young woman felt like it was her place and her place alone to find out.

She walked on the wastelands and noticed how truly dead it seemed to be out here. The grass wasn't even here, despite the massive amount of rain that had been around the ground should be lush but the soil seemed hardened and dry, as if it was like that even before the rains came and nothing had been absorbed.

Marinette wasn't sure how long she had been walking but the sun hadn't been fair on her nor were the dusty winds that swept by.

Once she had been thinking this track could be futile, a hard thump banged in her chest without warning. She initially thought it was nothing or was the exhaustion but ten another thud pounded in her chest and then her veins felt like they were on fire.

I became hard to breathe all of the sudden and she had to take a knee to steady herself from her heavy panting and rigid feeling. The power was overwhelming and was all so new yet familiar. She could best describe it as feeling exhilarated but overpowering and the rigidness she felt had passed. She felt so ethereal all of the sudden and she hoisted herself up to look around for what had caused the feeling she felt. Her instincts though kept telling her to track forward and without hesitation she did so, she tracked up until she saw a steep slope and her gut was telling her that something was on the top.

Her breathing was burning her lungs from overexertion from running up the hill and the relentless clanking of her armour should have alerted someone if they were at the top hence why she kept one hand on top of her sheathed sword.

Once she reached the top was more wasteland and her mind was irritated while she huffed and wheezed for air.

'To your Left.' A soft foreign voice whispered in her head.

Marinette almost jumped out of her skin at the stranger's voice that appeared. She unsheathed her sword prepared for battle but she didn't see anyone there.

"Is being in these Badlands making my mind rot?" Marinette asked herself aloud.

She looked to her left as the voice told her and she faintly saw something in the distance. Marinette thought she would feel fatigue but the fire that was ignited inside of her earlier still burned and was ever more so with each step. This truly was something she couldn't walk away from now.

Sunset had come and Marinette had to carry on without stop. As she got closer she noticed a cave in the distance next to a dead tree. Finally reaching the entrance of the cave she noticed it was small in appearance but the real size was far larger underground.

Her small body scorching on the inside confirmed that something was in this location. She went to the tree and cut the branches and nested them together tying it with a cloth she had. She also brought out her water pouch and drenched the cloth and set the branches alight with a flint. She cautiously shimmied her way down into the cave and when on a more level ground she began to track slowly and the sensation was swirling and twisting inside of her stomach. She wasn't sure how much further the tunnel went but the burning sensation is pretty much a clear compass from here.

She stopped abruptly and drew her sword and her other hand held the torch she made but her chest was ready to explode, she felt much unprotected. Something was here.

"Is someone there? Show yourself!"

"So did someone actually send a young girl to kill me off?" A voice spoke out in the darkness ahead.

Marinette frowned "Seems that way."

The voice went quiet but very soft sounds of footsteps kept coming her way and she saw eerie green glowing eyes in the darkness. Once her eyes met the green they opened wide in shock and awe.

"Make yourself known Warlock." Marinette bolstered.

"Warlock? They sent a pretty faced girl like you to face a warlock? Sorry to burst any egos but…"

Out of the darkness stepped out a blonde young man who looked war torn and ragged but that didn't affect his handsome face. His eyes were so intense even though he tried to hide them under his long locks of hair.

"I'm no warlock." He finished.

She felt blindsided and her body felt like it was pulling her to get closer to him but she fought herself to remain where she was.

Her brow rose and she lifted her sword to point at the boy "Fine then you claim to be no warlock but then are you or are you not the one responsible for all the atrocities that have plagued this town for the past four years?"

He was dazed at her; he wasn't sure how to form his next words for it had been so long to speak or to even see another person. When seeing properly in the light he couldn't help but to ask why a beautiful woman would ever come to a place like this.

'Beautiful?' he surprised himself with the word. But it was accurate nonetheless.

He chastised himself for zoning out after she asked him a question "I am the one responsible. But I am no warlock I swear… I'm just cursed that's why I am here. I thought me being here would be further enough from the town to not affect them…Guess I was wrong." the boy said looking deflated.

"C-cursed?" she sputtered then dropping her sword and holding onto her chest.

"Mademoiselle! Ah!-" The young man tried to help her but was attacked by the ache he had for the last hour.

He couldn't help but push himself forward to her as he wobbled on his legs and she was on her knees. She plunged the torch into the ground and used her free hand to support her then she too tried to crawl forward subconsciously.

He fell on to the floor and panted from the burn sensation reaching his throat. His instincts were yelling at him to do what he feared most.

"Gr-rab my h-hand" he choked out.

It was an extreme risk, he knew it was but he felt like this was the only thing to do.

Would this be it for him?

She didn't argue and she stretched her hand out to his, fingertips away and with one foul swoop he grabbed her hand and cool water washed over him.

He felt reborn.

He looked up to look at how she faired and she although looking fine breathed in deeply like she just came out of a pool of water. She pushed herself up while still holding onto him.

"Are you alright- What happened to your face?!" Marinette almost jumped back.

The boy she grabbed hands with had transformed into another boy, one with shorter hair and normal green eyes that were human unlike the ones before. Perplexed the boy put his free hand on his face and felt no change in his opinion.

She picked up her sword and faced the blade to show a portion of his reflection. He looked and his heart felt like it was going to combust with joy!

"I'm.. me again." He said tearing up.

She couldn't help the pang of sadness going through her at his words.

'So he was telling the truth about being cursed.'

Without warning to her he jumped forward to grab her in a hug that made her heart pound harder than she ever recalled. She didn't know this boy but her body felt so right being with his and his arms felt happy and ever the more loving.

He realised his actions and retreated from his hug and pulled away bashfully "I'm sorry that was improper! I don't even know your name, how shameful of me!"

Marinette's face felt hot but her heart that was pounding a minute ago was now was fluttering. She coughed and tried to hide her red face.

"No, its fine. I didn't mind… I just feel rude as to not now your name."

He smiled so sweetly, the first she'd seen and her heart couldn't bear it. How that is so since she just met this boy, ready to kill him no less and yet she feels so drawn to him, forgetting that mission.

"It's Adrien and you m'lady?" he asked

She smiled at the title "Marinette and… we have a lot to talk about what just happened" she motioned getting up ad releasing his hand which felt cold.

He followed the motion and looked her straight into her blue bell eyes "Indeed we do."

#miraculous lady bug #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #ml fanfic #ml fanfiction #MLB #adrienette #ladynoir #adrien agreste #marinette dupen chang #marichat #ladrien #medieval AU