#queue: reading or fighting dragons

[sloaaaa]

MY POKEMON BRAINCELLS HAVE BEEN REACTIVATED!!!!!! i kinda wanna open trainersona + pokemon team comms but i still gotta finish my current queue shjkdfg n i would be posting this on my art acc but i made the draft in my main so :((

also watch me ramble about my dream team under the cut

alRIGHT YOU CLICKED THE READ MORE AND YOU’RE IN FOR A WORLD OF WORDS BABEY!!! let’s start w my trainer sona yeah? :]

enterr Sploo from Petalburg city! :D he/they. our trainer starts out in petalburg city of hoenn where his pokemon adventure begins! since the professor’s lab is just a few town away it doesn’t take much for them to get his hands on his starter pokemon treecko! the babey boy ;; he catches lotsa pokemon to fill out the dex, sometimes keeping them on his team, and other times letting them go. he doesn’t like having the pokemon all crammed in the pc boxes :( some pokemon stay for a few battles and others maybe a few days, but things change after defeating his first gym. he meets an electrike at route 110 under the seaside cycling road, she’s just a lil puppyyy a lil babeeeyyy ;;;; super fun playful lil guys sticks around the team! -w- after his fourth gym badge his parents give him a gift pokemon for making it halfway through the gym challenge! a klefki! :3 a tame n helpful lil guys who just enjoys holding keys -w- sploo then continues on to complete two more gyms before his family moves to alola.

now on the boat to alola with grovyle, manectric and klefki sploo kinda just stays by the side of the boat watching the waves go by -w- also trying not to get too seasick shjkdfgl a lone shiny fletchling perches by them and he tries real hard to keep the excitement in and offers the fletchling some sunflower seeds! and asks if the fletchling would like the join their team! i mean who wouldn’t wanna pass up the opportunity of having a shiny pokemon on their team? after docking at akala island sploo travels around and catches some more pokemon to register to the dex, releasing them after as usual. then upon exploring diglett’s tunnel he finds a cover fossil! after cleaning up the rocks and dirt off the fossil spectrobes origins wii style he brings it to the fossil restoration center just along the route and meets the fifth member of his team :] and finally the sixth member of the team! a jangmo-o found in poni canyon, sploo came across the jangmo-o with its head scale stuck in the branches of a fallen tree. he freed the jangmo-o and excpected it to run back to its herd but it kept challenging them for a battle. after a long fight the jangmo-o is worn out, and sploo helps it back up on its feet with some potions and a plate of oran berries. sploo sets up a little picnic in the canyon! :3 helping nurse the jangmo-o back to health -w- the lil dragon sneaks into sploo’s bag and brings out a pokeball in its maw, determination in its eyes. and that’s how the team get together! :D but if u think i am done u are soo wrong sjhkjdfgd now i’m gonna go more in depth with each team member >:]

let’s start with mister! the sceptile -w- he is a grass/dragon type even without the mega evolution bc we were robbed and it’s not fair that swampert and blaziken get double typings while sceptile stays just grass >:[ chill and laid back, my baby boy ;; starter pokemon! he has a sceptilite in the friendship bracelet sploo made for him! :3 when walking through forests and jungles and very tree dense areas he’s always out of his pokeball darting around through the trees while sploo walks through -w- sometimes sploo stops for a lil break so sceptile can take care of sick trees in the forets! when having picnics out in the wild he can be found sitting and photosynthesizing when not playing around the trees. and since sceptiles are cold blooded mister stays in his pokeball when travelling through colder icy areas and he also enjoys having flynt resting atop his head or nesting in his tail leaves -w-

next up is storm! the manectric! a playful steadfast and loyal companion -w- she likes being out of her pokeball a lot and walks with sploo through towns n stuff. she has the manectite embeded in her collar :3 and also sploo charges his phone, pokedex and pokenav+ by just stuffing the charger cable in her mane jshkdfg sploo keeps a pair of sturdy rubber gloves in his bag bc of her :P

steele! the klefki. a very mild mannered pokemon -w- the one who’s always out of its pokeball! other than holding sploo’s house keys it also holds his multitools! since they’re also made of metal and has more mass than keys it has more metal ions for klefki to feed on -w- sometimes sploo will punch holes in bottlecaps of drinks so steele can have more metal to feed on and to enhance its threatening jingle :] steele enjoys playing around with flynt a lot! flynt n steele ;-; they fly around a lot but don’t stray too far from sploo -w- steele does not participate in battles unless it’s to use fairy lock on a wild pokemon that sploo wants to catch

then there’s flynt! :D my shiny!!! >< flynt perches on sploo’s shoulder when travelling through frigid area to keep him warm ;-; also flynt uses fly to deliver handwritten letters to sploo’s friends! :D it lets flynt fly free and enjoy the wind when the pokeball starts feeling cramped -w- flynt finds an everstone as a fletchinder and starts sitting on it like an egg and gets really attached (like that eagle that’s sitting on a rock jshkdfg) so she just holds the everstone now :P

koopa! the tirtouga -w- a bit hard headed, koopa needs a while to warm up to new trainers. he was a bit hard headed to train but after a while things went more smoothly :] koopa loooves the beachside! :D he knows dive and surff and helps sploo travel through water terrain! it’s a lot like how koopa shells worked in super mario galaxy where you hold on to a shell and it propels you through the water :3 stays in his pokeball most of the time unless it’s by the beachside or lake or any body of water

and last but not least rookie! the jangmo-o, a trusty and honorable battler! >:D much like ash's riolu from pokemon journeys! it takes a bit for the rookie to get used to the feeling of the chip in his head scale. but sooner or later rookie gets the hang of it -w- rookie loves getting to battle, but since sploo is a casual trainer and more focused on completing the dex and dragon types need more battling than usual to evolve dragon types rookie just stays as a jangmo-o :c not that he minds but yeagh

mister, storm, and rookie are the ones usually out for battles, flynt and koopa sometimes come out for battle too either when they get the urge or when they’re needed for certain type matchups! okay thank you for reading about my silly little guys they mean a lot to me and means a lot that you’d wanna read about them ;-;

#pokemon #sceptile #manectric #klefki #fletchinder #tirtouga #jangmo-o #trainer sona #aurughuhguhghghuh i love my teamm they r real to me ;;;;;

[seadragon-sailing]

I was going to wait a little while longer, but I felt the need to post another headcanon list.  This time, I’m focusing more on the crew of the Sea Dragon!

Feng’s crew:

A highly organized community of Working Class, and Lower Class citizens that live in a somewhat secluded port town off the coast of Guangzhou, Guangdong.  Both men and women are welcome aboard, and are collectively running on “Fuck you” energy just like Feng.

Many are either farmers, fishermen, silk weavers, laborers, merchants, artisans (”good" commoners), entertainers (“mean” commoners), and former military soldiers (who are apparently seen as a “necessary evil”, and also fall into the “mean” commoner category).  

While great in numbers (Normally the roster consists of 150 to 200 pirates in total), the pirates are committed, loyal and honorable (at least in their values and ethics, they are.  Otherwise, none of them are shy about fighting dirty in a brawl or in a fight to the death).  

They are paid very well, and while Feng is a stern and very intimidating leader, he is fair and treats his crew like actual people.  There’s a reason the crew like him, and he cares about them mutually.

When the Sea Dragon (and/or any other boats they claim) isn’t in use, they work together to hide the boat/s.  

All of them put up a ruse that follows typical etiquette to keep the officials off their backs, but are otherwise very informal when talking behind closed doors or aboard the ship.

Moral code:

No attacking government/trading ships! They’re only menaces to other pirates.

You mess with one pirate, then you get the whole crew.

If other pirates are civil, then be civil (this rule especially applies when visiting Pirate safe havens).  Wait until they try to fuck around then they can find out, unless there is a reason to ignore this rule.  Then it’ll just suck to be them.

If pirates are spotted attacking a non-pirate ship, intervene and destroy the pirates on-sight.

Primary sources of income:

Bounty hunting (They aim primarily for the pirates who have large bounties on their heads, preferably if the poster states they are either wanted dead or alive, or just flat-out dead).

Looting pirate ships for valuables after slaughtering the pirates.

Selling captured pirate ships that are in good condition, and if they just don’t want it.

Treasure hunting (Not a stable source, but a fun one).

Working their normal jobs (fishing, farming, weaving, etc.).

Other Notes:

The primary language used aboard the Sea Dragon crew is Cantonese, but a good chunk of them can speak/read/understand English or another secondary language.

A favorite habit that all of the Sea Dragon crew have is carrying sachets of fragrant, medicinal herbs and spices.  Some carry them in the belly pouch of their dudou, or just hold them in their pockets.

While some of the men also grow out their hair as an act of rebellion against the government, there are still plenty of other male pirates who maintain the Queue hairstyle.  Aboard the Sea Dragon, no one gives a shit how they wear their hair.

#ostrov sokrovishch #treasure island 1988 #return to treasure island #treasure island oc #treasure island #[Return To Treasure Island!AU] #[Text post] #[Headcanons]

[broadway-vriska]

Check one, check, check two.... [Fuck num8ers--]

Check eight!!!!!!!!

Okay, listen up. Or, put on your reading glasses, whatever. Here are the details, I'm only going to hold your hand once.

I'm Vriska. In particular, 8roadwaystuck 2.0 Vriska. What does that mean exactly? Good fucking question!!!! What I do know, is that I'm going to rock your hear ducts.

Here are my tags:

Crazy8s: My songs.

8posting: My posts.

8anter: Where I talk to my 8roadwaym8s. 8lock this tag if you don't wanna see me chatting. I love to chat.

Ask: Fan mail.

Request queue: I'll add requests here, and delete the tag when it's posted or close to 8eing finished.

M!A: A tag for magic anons I receive.

apprici8ion: This will 8e where I post my... """"friends"""" songs. If I like it enough to re8log it, this is where you'll find 8t. (Yes, I know 😒)

aes: Things that I like. It's MY 8log, after all.

WANTED: I'm a muse, what can I say?

If you have any questions, song requests, or just want to send me fan mail, my ask 8ox is open! 8ut don't 8e dum8. I just wont answer you if you waste my time, that, or I'll make fun of you. Not h888 either, you're going to need therapy when I'm done with you.

For some reason, if you want, you can find out more about Broadwaystuck here. Who am I kidding, of course you do ;;;;*

For reference, here is a quick list of songs I've done, and requests that I'm working on:

Done:

Taylor Swift - look what you made me do

Fall Out 8oy - Sugar, we're going down

Jack off Jill - Fear of Dying

Crystal Castles - Empathy

Hole - Violet

A7X - Seize the Day ft Karkat

Imagine Dragons - Enemy

Interlude, Vriska and Nepeta Argue

Adventure Time - Pro8lem

Leann Rimes - How do I Live ft John

Feature Deadgirl Walking, Aradia

Imagine Dragons - Demons

Feature You can't fight the Homestuck, everyone

Interlude, Mindfang's Introduction

Puscifer - Rev 22:20

Recoil - Want

Jill Tracy - Evil Night

London After Midnight - Bondage Song

Elita - mentally not here right now ft Aradia

Feature MEOWBEAST DOLLS - What I grow up

Feature Heathers Musical - 8eautiful

Taylor Swift - I did Something 8ad

Genitorturers - Vampire Lover

Feature Toy Dolls - Livin la vida loca, Tavros

A7X - Afterlife ft Karkat

A7X - Nightmare ft Karkat

Linkin Park - What I've Done

Dresden Dolls - Girl Anachronism (queued)

Requested & w8ing:

Here. Oldest has priority, unless I already know the song, in which case I may 8e a8le to spoof it quicker.

#Tag dump: #8posting #apprici8ion #8s #WANTED #Crazy8s

[disorentedfae]

gasp bonnet its so important

you like albedo (i almost typed beidou that is confusing...) so i was wondering like uh..whats going on there? i missed his event and everything i read about him i am just left with more questions than answers

he is a top favorite because of first 5 star favoritism (it did not occur to me that banners changed i just assumed albedo was a character you got by default-) and i was like 'wow! fun silly science art boy what a lovely time hes so nice and polite and calm'

and then anything i see about him is like hes going to destroy the tri state area and hes not even real, an evil, evil boy future boss fight

since you like him i wanted to ask you since it could be fun to discuss?

Okay so unfortunately I Moises the first story quest with him 😔.

Anyways so I thing in he’s character quest he says ‘if one day… I lose control… destroy everything… destroy mondstat… can I rely on you to stop me?’ That’s why you see a bunch of corrupt albedo floating around -actually there is another reason too-

So for last Christmas we got ✨susbedo✨ now I don’t i don’t you where there for that event but I’m going to tell you again if you were anyways.

So the adventure’s guild was doing an event at dragonspine - where Albedo resides most time due to experiments - and Eula saw Albedo taking a young boy (I forgot his- the boys’- name but he was the one on the mountain waiting for his dad) to a dangerous area and leave him there. Meanwhile, albedo and the traveler where at a cave ( I forget why) and albedo came out of the cave, said something, and went back in.

So now Eula runs up with amber and Albedo comes out of the cave is like ‘albedo wait the devil were you doing?’ *pans to her butt a solid second somewhere in there cuz it’s Eula and ya know*

So turns out the albedo that came out of the cave the first time wasn’t really the real albedo, and that would be the one who took the kid to that area.

So long story short Albedo, traveler, Bennett, Amber, and Eula where there and then Fake Albedo went and attacked them *queue awesome fight scene* and then real albedo puts his sword through fake albedo’s back so turns out fakebedo was a whopper flower. (Since whopper flowers can mimic other living plants but -*suddenly remembers plot point for this story*- the blood from that one dragon that died in dragonspine (I forget his name damnit 😩. Let’s call him Kalhi) so Kalhi’s blood is infectious and infected the whopperflower so they have to kill it then.

So then everyone leaves dragonspine eventually and goes back to mondstat, and we see a shocking scene back with Albedo

DUN

DUN

DUN

Albeod is talking and it pans up to Another albedo -Susbedo- so Albedo draws his sword and goes to fight this fake.

Next time we see him is in mondstat is when he’s acting very out of character (pretty much probably susbedo and we don’t know where the real Albedo is)

Also I do know the lore as to why there are two of them I could explain if you want

#yeha I forgot about the avilanch okay #sunny my sparring partner #genshin #albedo #susbedo

[murfeelee]

Check In Tag

Thanks @ktarsims​​ for tagging me here!

I’m still not dead--luckily, I’m in the home stretch; just two more weeks and the semester’s done! I just have about a zillion papers and exams to get through, FML, LOL.

_____________________________________________

Why did you choose your URL?

Cuz all I could think of was my frikkin name, like a baby idiot with no creativity.

How long have you been on tumblr?

Too effing long. 2023 will make 10 whole years, good grief.

Do you have a queue tag?

No, but I queue up everything anyways.

Why did you start your blog in the first place?

Cuz TSR was making me mad, and I liked the simblrs that were already here, and figured this was a great way to have some autonomy over how I simmed and shared content, without the peanut gallery yelling at me every stinking time I tried to upload something.

Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

It was part of a dumb silly little story I made for TSR back when Dragon Valley first came out, about how the gods blessed Sakura with a baby dragon. I reuploaded it on my simblr for the lulz. Don’t take it seriously, trust me, LOL.

Why did you choose your header?

It's from the same style of header/border I used way back in my TSR days.

What’s your post with the most notes?

My TS4 Rant - Still Unimpressed rant from back in 2015, jfc. It’s been HOW LONG since this wack AF mobile game in disguise was released? I can’t.

How many mutuals do you have?

How do we even tell anymore?

How many followers do you have?

A lot.

How many people do you follow?

Plenty. And I lurk even more.

Have you ever made a shitpost?

Sadly no; I’m not clever enough. U_U

How often do you use tumblr every day?

Barely at all lately; this new grad school I’m in is effing annoying; their numbers are woefully low, especially after the pandemic, so they’ve got me doing way too much work on crap that I don’t even specialize in; it’s really starting to tick me off. I didn’t come here for this crap.

Did you have a fight/argument with another blog once? who won?

I have stepped on soooooo many TS4 simmers’ toes, it’s hilarious. I’ve had EA sycophants and paywall apologists cuss me out in my PMs, IMs, reblogs, etc. I don’t engage--I post my rants for posterity, not to hash crap out with people. My beef is with EA directly.

How do you feel about ‘you need to reblog this’ posts?

My blog my rules. I reblog what i want, and post what I want, when I want.

Do you like tag games?

I lovelovelove questionnaires and games. I avoid tagging, because I’m always afraid I’ll leave someone out, and I don’t want people to think I don’t like them.

Do you like ask memes?

I don’t even wait around for people to send the asks--I always just answer all of them at once, LOL.

Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

Tumblr famous and Simblr famous are 2 different things. I've had quite a few Simblr famous mutuals, but what even is being Tumblr famous anymore? O_o

Do you have a crush on a mutual?

No, but I am deeply in love with several simblrs’ art styles and gameplay aesthetics, in TS2, 3 AND 4. Pure chef’s kiss. So inspirational; I wish I had more time to sim, and try new things!

_____________________________________________

Thanks for reading!

I tag anyone; y’all know I can’t do this, pfft!

#simblr #the sims 3 #questionnaire

[aceofbooks]

Need Help With My Tags?

These are some of the more specific tags that I use on my blog. Specific meaning: not a show title or a character name or something super generic like #literature.

I might make/remember more tags as time goes on, and I will update accordingly (probably).

I’m more than happy to tag other things so that you can filter them from your dashboard for yourself. Just reach out and let me know! 🩶

#ace of books exists – general life stuff (usually non-rebloggable)

#ace of books partner – stuff about my husband whom I refer to as Husband

#ace of books gets paid to read – stuff about my job as a proofreader

#ace of books queues – I don’t really utilize my queue, but when I do, this is the tag I use (I do have posts queued for the far-flung future, and they utilize different tags)

#ace of books games – stuff about the video games I play (there also might be stuff in there about D&D, I don’t remember)

#ace of books family drama – bitching about my in-laws mostly

#ace of books answers – infrequently used, for when I respond to asks

#ace of books plays – for tag games

#ace of books reads – was used for when I finished reading a fanfic, will now be used for when (if) I read things not for work

#ace of books wants to read – was used for my fanfic tbr, but I have a whole blog for that now; will still be used for tumblr OG content (like responses to @/writing-prompt-s)

#ace of books watches – sometimes I have thoughts that I need to express when I’m watching anime/television/movies

#ace of books cooks – subject to change, used sparingly when I decide to be a proper Housewife

#ace of books navigates – relevant navigation pages

#it’s the ace of books trifecta – posts that conveniently contains my three favorite things (#cats, #books, & #coffee) all in one

#get to know ace of books – answers to those “get to know me” ask posts; also a way of seeing all of the ask prompts; feel free to send any of them in, even if it's "out of season" (just specify which list or include a link in your ask)!

#certified Husband approved post – posts that belong to fandoms I am not in/only consume as a bystander, but he is a fan of, that I showed Husband and he either agreed with wholeheartedly or chuckled at.

#lore drop – brand-new information provided to the internet about my personal life

#i’m hiding in my tags – long-winded rants in the tags of posts

#this blog’s stance – self-explanatory; sometimes political, sometimes humorous

#i’m cackling – posts that I find particularly funny

#good vibes – posts that make you feel good about yourself/the world around you

#it me – what I use for generic “relatable” content

#spooky season – if it’s even remotely connected to Halloween, it gets this tag (if it’s not October 31st, it is pre-Halloween; fight me)

#what is sleep – I have insomnia and hypersomnia, so this tag contains anything about being tired or having to do with sleep

#it’s amorphous blob hours – weird gender presentation stuff, don’t worry about it

#fix tags later – largely used for fanart when I’m scrolling through my dash and don’t have the energy to fill in all of the tags that I would normally use

#tumblr polls – self-explanatory

#uquiz – also self-explanatory

#beloved moots – tumblr posts about mutuals, posts by my mutuals

#not cats – creatures that do not otherwise fit inside my four designated categories: #cats, #birbs, #dragons, or #dogs are an anomaly here

#tumblr – used for tumblr updates, tumblr grievances, and tumblr culture

#fandom writ large – either multi-fandom posts, or posts about generic fandom culture

#selfship things – was used for selfship content/responses, but I have a whole blog for that now

© divider from @/saradika-graphics 🩶

#ace of books navigates #divider from saradika-graphics

[talenlee]

I Got My Library Card!

And it made me feel silly! I got my first library card so long ago that it actually referred to me as ‘Master Governmentname Familyname.’ Like, master, what a ridiculous thing. That, you might not realise, is an archaic term used for a young unmarried man, which means that if you’re one of those holdouts going ‘Ah, Talen is secretly trans, but the type of trans he is is a trans dude‘ there’s some contraindicating evidence. Anyway point is, when I was very young, I loved my library card.

My library card is how I got to read the Robotech series of books. It was how I got into the Fighting Fantasy series of books. It was how I got to read Tintin and Asterix and Then There Were Five. It was where I read Only You Can Save Mankind. It was where I learned about prehistory thanks to borrowing The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs, which is where I got to discover that there had to be some wiggle room between my church’s young earth creationism and the things scientists could work out looking at the dirt.

My library card got me to read The Colour Of Magic and started me on a love of Terry Pratchett. It got me reading, it got me interested in trying to read. My library card didn’t get me the Animorphs books but it got me damn near to it – when we moved away from that library, escaping the cult, it was the library at my new school that got me reading those. I think the first important book in my life that didn’t trace my initial interest to a library was probably Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition’s Player’s Handbook and that…

was a loaner.

From the age of four to fourteen, the library was my favourite place to be. It was away from school, it was away from church, it was apart from the things I hated and it connected me through a thin shimmering thread to a world beyond the immediate confines of the same thirty or so people that hurt me and made me feel dumb. I loved my library. I loved my library card.

And then we moved and I didn’t get another library card.

Part of it was proximity. Back in the first home, the library was a place I could walk to easily with my afternoons, but it wasn’t like we had the internet. Walking up to the library and browsing books and then borrowing one was something I could do with the seemingly endless time I had when I was ten, but when I was fifteen, I had access to the internet at home. Funnily enough, I can clearly remember, not wanting to leave the house for long periods unprepared because if dad went on the internet without me, I’d miss that window, no ifs ands or buts.

The internet, in a weird way, limited my library time.

And whatever, so I didn’t get a library card when I was fifteen. I’d get one when I lived closer to the library. Next place I lived up the road from the largest library in the area, the central library from my entire network of libraries, but also: I didn’t get a library card. I didn’t get one when I turned twenty, not one when I turned thirty. And look, I’ve spent a lot of time in that period very, very skint. I spent a lot of that time wanting access to entertainment media without having the means to pay for it. In all that time I never even considered getting my library card.

But then.

The Pandemic.

A sudden, intense shutdown of everything. Everyone was doing what they could with what they had. Shopping done wearing gloves and masks, and always separated out so nobody had overlapping exposure if we could help it. A perfect time to pick up a new skill or focus on a new project or read an entire book series all the way through four times back to back.

I didn’t get my library card then, either.

Look, part of that is a sheer issue of practicality: I didn’t know what forms I needed, I didn’t want to run the risk of having to put myself in a queue during a time when we needed to be super careful. I didn’t think of, say, for example, of looking up on the library’s website and seeing if they had something like, you know, an online form. Or an online application. Or an online service that would get all my information and get me a temporary number then mail a library card to my house, for free, while giving me access to numerous ebook services. No. That would have been a good thing to look for though, right?

Right?

Turns out that libraries are things whose job it is to make sure you can use the library. They are absolute triumphs of public good, just one of those things in our society that’s too good to have happened with the priorities of our current social and political landscape. Libraries are wonderful and beautiful and amazing. And this past month, I finally, finally went to the online form and filled it in and applied for a library card.

Which I now have.

I got it because of Gideon the Ninth. Or rather, I got it because I read Gideon The Ninth and asked a friend who I imagined would be into it what she thought. She didn’t like it that much, glanced off it, I understand. It didn’t ring for her the way that another, different series did – she really appreciated the Baru Cormorant books by Seth Dickinson. I realised that if I wanted to, I could check my local library for those…

… and thus this story. This reflection. This realisation.

I stopped myself from having something nice for over twenty years because I couldn’t be bothered. The second a friend suggested I do something to connect to her I found the energy and wherewithal to do it.

I have, I am told, a very normal brain.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Diary #Fundie Stuff #Media

[mell-eight]

2/26/23 I have some amazing news! Hunter, the second book in my Witch's Coven trilogy, has completed the editing process and has an official release date!  Look for it on May 9th! I haven't seen the cover yet, but that and reviewing the ARC are all that need to be completed before this story is ready for publishing.  Coven (book one) had such an amazing reception.  I can't wait for everyone to be able to read Hunter!  Also, we're aiming for August/September to release Witch, the final book in the series.  (Keeping in mind all release dates/time frames are subject to change without warning, Lol)  I think that's a doable target, but keep any eye on my blog as I'll update you as I learn more. I also have a release date for my mermaid short story, Water's Price!  NSP plans to release it June 27th. Water's Price is one step behind Hunter in the editing process--still waiting for the final proof--so June is a perfect date. More great news: Twin Elements, my fun story about a pair of twins forced to switch places when one is poisoned, was accepted for publishing with NSP!  The contract is signed and the book now in the editor's queue.  I am hopeful it will be available for purchase this time next year.  I will keep you posted as I learn more, but feel free to check out the tentative summary on my Coming Soon page. As promised, I pulled You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart out of storage and gave it a final edit before submitting it to NSP for consideration.  Letting the story simmer and percolate for a couple of months helped a lot, so the manuscript looked really good (in my opinion).  I do think NSP will also enjoy my quirky sci-fi/fantasy crossover story.  However, this book is currently at the very bottom of their submission pile, and will likely take a while to be reviewed.  I will try to be patient while I wait.  Lol I promised some writing news.  The Chef, my quirky story about a chef being waylaid on his journey to a new job and the ensuing adventure, has crossed the 10k words mark!  I originally thought part one of the story would tap out at 30k, but it's leaning closer to 25k at the moment.  That said, the next chapter begins the build up to the fight scene.  The line that convinced me to start working on this book was when the character in my head said "don't drip blood in my oatmeal", however, this coming fight scene is the bit that has kept me writing eagerly.  It's the first place I get to fully explore the magic in this book, and I can't wait to write it.  I'm very hopeful the fight scene will help me meet my original word count hopes for part one, but either way this book is turning out to be awesome. It's been a busy few weeks, so I haven't been able to work on anything else.  My insurance company came through, but I have to follow up with the remediation company to get on their schedule.  The drama from the burst pipe will soon only be only an unpleasant memory.  I have also been extremely busy at work, so I'm collapsing on my couch in the evenings with very little brain left to make dinner, let alone write.  I do expect work to calm down again, so presumably I'll be able to return to my waiting stories very soon. 

[underground-monarch]

I posted 1,625 times in 2022

That's 975 more posts than 2021!

100 posts created (6%)

1,525 posts reblogged (94%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@. theminecraftbee

@. xelqua-empire

@. moonybamboony

@. scribbling-dragon

@. cabbagegunk

I tagged 1,619 of my posts in 2022

#ky learned to queue - 1,465 posts

#hermitcraft - 599 posts

#grian - 185 posts

#empires smp - 129 posts

#3rd life - 111 posts

#mcyt - 110 posts

#double life smp - 105 posts

#last life smp - 102 posts

#mcc - 79 posts

#jimmy solidarity - 63 posts

Longest Tag: 129 characters

#a̶̘̖̥̱̝̪͕̟͋͜͜a̸͎̲̹̐͗͌̔̀̍͋͒͝a̷̦̳̫̲̹̖̽̈́a̵͉̹̩̭͙̤̖̝̦͇̙̠̅̏̍̈́̉̕a̶̧̙̝̫̪̜̗͂͆̋̏ą̸̜̻̗̤̼̲̗̮̲̖͑̈̿͂̈́̑̽̃̕̕a̶̧̨͈̤͍̣͉̠̦͔̦̣̯̬͗̍̆̎a̶̜̜̲͊̈́̉̀̏̃́͌̕

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

fellas I came to an epiphany in the Trafficsona Central Discord server, and then spent about 20 minutes making this

I’m pretty sure I got all the red life skins from all 3 series, apologies if I missed any. Also, for a few of them the placement is a fight between how the skin objectively looks and how the character was actually played or just general vibes, so feel free to disagree :]

[Image ID 1: a Discord message from ‘shadow’ (me), reading “there is a triangle spectrum of red life skins: at one corner, the hot villain and the elegant badass; at another, the wet cat and the sad-and-scared-of-death; and finally, the completely beaten up and unrecognisable as a living human anymore”. End ID]

[Image ID 2: a triangle graph, with the corners labelled as described above; within the triangle, 19 namemc images of players’ red life skins from 3rd Life, Last Life and Double Life are scattered. End ID]

271 notes - Posted July 26, 2022

#4

- Scar brings a giant-sized jellie to the elven tree to meet the hermits - :] they have a good time /fluff <3

Scar knew that he and Jellie would always find each other in every world. That’s just the way the universe worked. Always, without fail, they would be reunited.

What Scar didn’t know, however, was that this time would be a little bit different.

It was in the jungle that he found her. He was out on a mission for resources to expand his magical elven tree base, and a huge grin spread across his face when he saw her through the foliage.

“Jellie!” he called excitedly, dropping his bag and holding his arms wide. “Come here, girl! Come to Scar!”

At the sound of his voice she turned, and with a joyous “mrrow!” she hurried through the undergrowth towards him, knocking aside bamboo stalks and trampling bushes.

“Look at you!” Scar wrapped his arms around her as she reached him, burying his face in her soft fur and breathing in her familiar scent. “Who’s been feeding you so well while I was gone, hmm?”

“Mrrow!” Jellie bumped her head gently against his chest, almost knocking Scar off-balance.

Scar smiled. “Come on then, Jellie; let’s get you home. I can’t wait to show the others!”

*

“Oh Grian~!” Scar sang, approaching the man’s starter base. “Look who I found~!”

“Who? Hold on, give me a moment…” There was the sound of chests closing from within the building, and then Grian appeared in the doorway. His eyes widened as they fixed on a spot next to Scar’s head. “Woah!”

“I know, right?!” Scar turned and raised his hand to stroke Jellie’s shoulder.

“Is that really her?” Grian asked, taking a step closer.

“Yep!”

“Oh, wow!” Grian reached out towards Jellie, who sniffed his offered hand before leaning forwards and headbutting his chest gently, as she had with Scar. Grian was also nearly knocked over, but he hugged her face to support himself. “Hello, Jellie! Look how big you are!”

“Grian! You can’t say that to a lady!” Scar chided jokingly.

“Sorry,” Grian giggled, “but look at her! She’s like the size of a panda!” He was now giving Jellie scritches under her chin, and her purring was almost loud enough to make the ground vibrate. “What do you think happened to make her like this?” Grian asked, turning to Scar.

Scar spread his arms, half shrugging and half gesturing to his own altered appearance. “A little bit of magic, that’s all.”

Grian rolled his eyes and grinned, still petting the giant cat. “Of course. What else.”

There was a pause, interrupted only by Jellie’s purring.

“You know,” Grian said, “at this size, you might even be able to ride her.”

“Ooh, that would definitely be fun!” Scar’s face lit up even brighter.

“Yeah, a lot of fun. And definitely much less likely to kill you than elytra!”

“Oh, very funny, G-man,” Scar chuckled. Then he asked, “You don’t happen to have a spare saddle, do you?”

“Probably somewhere, or we can borrow Donk’s.” Grian grinned mischievously. “I can’t wait to see this!”

This was fun to write, I hope you like it! :D Also posted on AO3

Prompt format from this post - please send me more!

299 notes - Posted March 27, 2022

#3

327 notes - Posted August 17, 2022

#2

😺

379 notes - Posted March 19, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Martyn said he's never had a good time on Rocket Spleef before this event

sir... you realise who you have on your team? you are not immune to having good times with Scar

762 notes - Posted March 26, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #love that my longest tag js just zalgo lol

[thekingsfairy]

Brain Dump: Magic in AWCA

Filled out from this post.

I’m not great with names so I have some placeholders like “AWCA” and “Space Witches” which needs an actual name like “The Spaewits,” ya know? (Like this.)

“The Space Witches who think they’re hot shit”

The Spae Wit ho thin ot sh

Spaewithothinotsh

Spaewithinots

spaewinaughts

“spae” means prophecize actually so I’ll probably keep that “naught” as in morally bad and wicked lol but also sounds like astronaut

Spaewithnaught

The Spaewinauts or something like that.

The Saewits. The Saewits?

♤ The main foundations:

What can be done with magic?

Fight god lol Creating things “from thin air,” usually simple things. I don’t particularly like the word “mana” but basically HP/MP because if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Usually people use their MP but it’s possible to use your HP in emergencies but it really sucks like life out of you.

head is like intelligence, wisdom

body is like strength, dexterity

heart is like charisma, constitution

[Space Witches] are special in their ability to make Power Crystals and store magic for later (greater) use. They have Power Crystal magic, lightning/electricity, and use grimoires.

The [Space Witches] are reductive and use the Greek Four Element system. They still stubbornly stick to it for the other races, which is inaccurate and unoriginal but they suck so.

Fire for the [Fae] & Fang

There aren’t that many Fae, so no one really remembers what they can do except some of them shoot fire. Fae are actually a sub-race of the Old Gods.

The Space Witches can’t stand the Fang and vise versa, which creates this paradox of secrecy regarding the Fang’s “demonic” abilities.

illusion

“cloning”

dream magic

Water for the magically-gifted Water People & Water Dragons

water manipulation

blood magic

water purification

clouds & mist

Earth for the Old Gods & Mountain Dragons

farming

nature

healing

commune with the dead

paper

beast/creature/cryptid

durability

Air for themselves

Storms, lightning

Flight, duh

Sound, including sensitive hearing & soundproofing rooms (again, kinda inaccurate to categorize as air)

What can’t your magic do.

create life / make something from truly nothing

mimic life with a lil golem to your heart’s content tho

create a different form of life, but that soul/life force comes from ~somewhere~ “I would like to be reincarnated as a tree, please. Or a mushroom.”

Teleportation is a thing, portals, resurrection, time and space manipulation; it’s just that magic costs a lot. 

Slowing, stopping, rewinding, fast forwarding, speeding up time all seems like things one wouldn’t really be able to do. 

So time manipulation is more like bouncing along the timeline(s). 

Time flows, there’s not stopping or changing that, but one can flit between times. 

Dreams are the “exception”

No random Energy Shields. Dodge the damn fireball, lazy ass

A brain only goes so fast; the body can only take so much; materials can’t suddenly become more durable, they are what they are

can’t make yourself just remember more, you’d have to evolve the brain. can’t make yourself read faster, consume information/experience faster. 

The “human”-like brain already has so much space you don’t really need to expand it.

“super strength” is exclusive to those more durable races; a solid uppercut still takes out pretty much anyone

doing some evolution to take on the racial qualities means you physically have those characteristics. So want more durability? Need dragon scales. Queue “dragonborn” (no dragons were boned in the creation of this race)

Can’t achieve absolute zero: 

On the flip side, this magic can’t destroy anything truly. which is a real pain in the ass at times. This one is a new concept that just kinda needs to exist to balance the first one, I believe.

Nothing lasts forever

hard to keep under control; it’s always growing and expanding which not contained properly

interfere all you want with reincarnation. bring your great-great-great-granny back for tea.

Is there a price/cost of using said magic?

An individuals spiritual energy, no one really has that much on their own; it’s possible to tap into one’s life force but, considering how hard it is to keep a lid on things, that can do sideways for more than the individual in a hurry

With [Fae], the average bear can heat their tea, light candles, and cook without strain. They can throw a single fist-sized fire ball with their total spiritual energy

Water: purify your drinking water for the day, treat a small garden, and keep yourself clean. Create one hand-sized water bubble OR a single emergency water-breathing spell for like three minutes.

The average bear’s whole entire MP store makes a crystal about as big as their thumb nail.

Heal a scraped knee with no problem. One life threatening injury such as a stab wound? Takes like five medics. A life threatening injury like decapitation? With thirty people and some good luck, probably.

View and chat with the spirits nearby on the daily, not a problem. Hardly noticeable. 

Summon a “human”-sized spirit? Be careful and take it easy after. It’ll basically knock the breath out of you. 

Wanna have great-great-great-granny for tea? Yeah, a few hours of tea time once a week won’t break the MP bank. No promises she’ll be more than a 2D, cardboard-cutout, filtered version of herself, though. Which is still sweet. 

Wanna give the ghostie physical affect? Yeah, you’re gonna need to either store up energy in a power crystal or risk dipping into your HP. So if ghostie is physically affecting the space around them on their own, that’s a spirit with some hella MP. Probably ate some other ghosts. Or living creatures. Yikes.

What does it feel like to use magic?

strenuous, explosive harder to keep a lid on it/put the lid back on than to unleash the magic

So, wanna heat your tea? It’s easier to get the heat started than to shut it off before you crack your teacup and accidentally use more MP than you need to.

For conflict reasons: What can go wrong by using or having said magic?

Mad and throwing a fireball punch? Not keeping your magic in check? That’s a recipe to eat up your MP and HP in one go.

Crystals are safer bc there’s a hard cut off; you can’t accidentally use your HP

Magical build up is a thing. If you don’t use it or put it somewhere, that’s a recipe for it to come out when and how you don’t want it to

♤ Expanded points:

Who does magic affect?

All.

What can/can’t magic affect?

God?

Can everyone do magic?

Not all races. If you’re from a magical race, then, in various volumes, yes.

Does magic have a feeling even when not being used?

Yes, so that means you can tell when it’s gone or low. It’s a special kind of tired.

Do people have to learn magic or is it intuitive?

Just because it is intuitive doesn’t mean that’s a good thing. One really should learn how to control it so things don’t go kablooey.

Who teaches magic?

The micromanage-y, smothering [Space Witches]

Village elders, usually connected to religion and philosophy.

Is magic inherited by blood?

Naturally, yes, connected to race. The races and villages fiercely protect their educational secrets from the [Space Witches].

Does the magic tie in with the religion of my world and if so, how?

Oh hell yeah. The most powerful of each type of magic/race/culture are regarded as gods.

Do people need instruments through which to use magic? ie. a talisman or wand

I guess you could count the Space Witches needing Power Crystals to use other race’s magic.

Is magic a thing a person has or is it acquired? ie. do they just have magic they can access at any time or do they need to drink magic juice™️ for a quick burst of power?

You have the amount you have, and you can use crystals.

How is magic used in daily life?

This varies greatly between cultures.

Water People: magic is sacred, don’t use it willy nilly in daily life. Curate and nurture your skill through daily training.

Grey Mountain Dragons: Go ham. In fact, show off how strong you are often. Beat your chest. Get in a fight and heal yourself to establish dominance.

Forest People: sure, but the skills they hone aren’t really practical since they are incredibly specific. They value individuality, so while Space Witches may use lightning, a Space Witch born in the Forest Village would specifically hone maybe lightning bolt throwing and maybe two other skills (spells) in their life.

Space Witches: quality of life should be raised at every available moment. Why stir your tea yourself? But don’t show off. Only reveal your wings when using them, but when are you really going to use them? To fly? How obnoxious. Make your own power crystals. But not too much, that’s gaudy. Oh, you know forty spells? Poor thing. Oh, you have 400 spells/skills in your grimoire? No one, likes a show off.

Old Gods: Easy as breathing. Chat with a cryptid. Turn a skimpy bush into a lush topiary. Cook a stamina replenishing, soul healing meal. Herbal healing teas for whatever ails you.

Lower Witches & Fang: do what you wanna do. Fortify your awesome armor with your power crystals. Indulge in magically heated healing green tea baths. Cuddle with your tiger familiars. Bust out your wings whenever you feel like it.

There’s still Fae, Blossom Dragons, Water Dragons, and all the lil intersectional bits.

Can anything stop a person’s magic?

Angels are the only ones who can fully take away someone’s magical ability in part or as a whole.

You can take away but not destroy someone’s magic. 

Take someone’s current MP for yourself with a handy dandy power crystal. Just don’t, uh, dip into their HP on accident. Or do. That’s, uh, your prerogative.

Can magic be found anywhere?

Not in all races and creatures.

#brain dump #setting #magic #cultures #races

[kristallisims]

Tag game thingy

I was tagged by @buddydollysims2, thank you! :) 

Why did you choose your url?

• My main blog url, kristalliankka, means “crystal duck” in finnish, it comes from the little duck decoration i used to have on my desk. Sims blog url logic was simply to slap “sims” somewhere there and be good to go :D 

How long have you been on tumblr?

• I made my main blog in 2014, but I had one before that, I think I made it in 2012 or something? Had to remake my blog when I lost access to my old email.

Do you have a queue tag?

• Not really, I am very bad at tagging things in general.

Why did you start your blog in the first place?

• Idk, I just felt like having all my sims stuff in one place. 

Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

• Because sims 2 penguin is the best. So fluffy. Iconic. I used to have Nervous as icon, I love him dearly, but I wanted some change and penguin seemed like a good choice as it doesn’t directly tie into any neighbourhood or anything and perfectly represents my random blog content. 

Why did you choose your header?

• Same reason as the icon 😂 I just really love the penguin.

What’s your post with the most notes?

• It’s either the Vidcund shitpost, or the collection of Sims 2 death messages. Not sure which one.

How many mutuals do you have?

• Honestly, no idea :D I  

How many followers do you have?

• Somewhere around 200 ish I think? 

How many people do you follow?

• 300-400 I think, but a lot of them are inactive blogs.

Have you ever made a shitpost?

• Shitposting is my passion.

How often do you use tumblr each day?

• Depends on how busy or bored I am :D  

Did you have a fight/argument with another blog once? who won?

• I had a couple of arguments during the dark days I thought it was a good idea to express strong opinions in the Dragon Age fandom. I like to think we all lost.  

How do you feel about ‘you need to reblog this’ posts?

• I hate them so much. No matter how good cause if you try to guilt trip me into reblogging them I won’t, I don’t want to subject my followers to that. 

Do you like tag games?

• Yeah they’re fun :) 

Do you like ask games?

• Also very fun. It’s fun to answer questions, and it’s fun to read other people’s answers. 

Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

• Hmm, not sure. Can we simply reject the idea of fame and all be little gremlins reblogging incomprehensible memes from each other?

Do you have a crush on a mutual?

• Not really, though they are all lovely. I just get crushes really rarely :D 

I tag anyone who wants to do this, i love to read people’s replies to these things :) (sorry for being boring and not tagging anyone directly but I’m doing this on mobile and tumblr app is not agreeing with me today. at all.)

#tag game

[adrasteiax]

(...) you play along, because you want to die for love, you always have.

Richard Siken, from Planet Of Love in “Crush”

#poetry #richard siken #planet of love #crush #literature #poem #lit #from my collection #queue: reading or fighting dragons

[predalien]

Witch?

Answer: Good witch, mostly. I’m an eclectic witch, so I like to dive into all aspects of paganism, though I prefer to not take heavy parts in serious dark magic and curses. “What goes around comes around” is what I live by, baby 💪🧙‍♀️ (no matter how protected I may be).

Yautja x Reader, SFW

Halloween 2021: yautja and their (real) witch S/O

Your yautja’s first reaction to you sharing the knowledge of your craft with them is that of pure star-struck and wanderlust. Humans with magic… what a concept in the eyes of a yautja! Chances are they’ve never heard of anything like it before hand, at least on planet earth.

There are all kinds of witches and practices you’d explain to them, and I can assure your your alien companion will make an effort to at least learn about your practice. How do you use and control magic? Are there others like you? Can you speak to the gods and ancestors?

The look on your yautja’s eyes when they see you perform a spell or do some tarot/oracle readings… Absolute astonishment. Sure, the yautja have their own set of beliefs and mythology, but human witches and beliefs are something they are not very well versed in. So expect a very curious yautja.

Shamans and spiritual leaders, I headcanon, are a thing on Yautja Prime. I think your yautja might be interested in taking you to meet their spiritual leaders. Have you ever seen Avatar? Yeah, I imagine something like that.

They might be interested in seeing if you yourself can connect with their gods and ancestors. If you can speak to and ask for guidance from spiritual beings on planet earth, perhaps you can do the same on prime planet?

Now, religion and craft are similar but aren’t exactly the same, so seeing a human (of all creatures) with the ability to guess future actions (intuition) and the world working under your fingertips would almost terrify some yautja…. Can you, uh, bless them with good hunts and battles? Sure, Cetanu is already a thing, but double the power means double the win and honor.

Incense, candles, and smudge sticks… my oh my! What a concoction of smells and… uses? Dragons blood incense… you mean, you humans have giant fire breathing lizards here on earth? And their blood is used for your craft? You’d have to explain to them that no, there are no dragons on earth, lol. No, yautja, we do not use their blood for our craft.

Good luck getting them to keep their hands to themselves. Practically impossible when there’s so many shiny things and aromas and books of craft. Can I eat this? Why does it smell so strong, ‘ooman? Damn aliens just can’t keep their hands to themselves, and hopefully they won’t touch your altar…

Your yautja might first meet your familiar thinking it was a snack for them or something like that. No, you cannot eat my cat, you’d have to explain to them. Queue the hissing fights between your earth cat and your alien cat.

#november 2021 #old work

[comradekatara]

what do you think the gaang/fire nations kids’ respective playground activities were in elementary school?

well obviously not all of them attended elementary school (toph was homeschooled; it seems like zuko was too?? but maybe he did go to school like azula but he simply had no friends) so im kinda just gonna base this off what kids did in my elementary school for those of them who had a less than ideal upbringing

obviously aang was playing, the center of attention as he showed the other kids his advanced airbending tricks his marbles or his air scooter, flying around on his glider, flying around on his bison, running around the temple, eating fruits straight from the trees, laughing, loving his friends and being beloved by them in return.

katara was playing little team sports like 3 on 3 soccer or dodgeball or kickball, jump rope, hopscotch, snowball fighting, freeze tag, penguin sledding, red rover red rover you have to come over, playing make believe that she was a dreaded pirate king, or a daring and valiant knight, or a mom in a family (for some reason to little girls these are all interchangeable???), gossiping about the cool older boys, and you know, trying not to show off her waterbending in front of the other kids because her mom said it was dangerous even though she doesn’t really get why...

when sokka wasn’t trying to convince the other kids to play pai sho with him despite its reputation for being a boring game for old people, practicing with his boomerang and other weapons, or simply just joining katara in whatever game she felt like playing, he was trying to prove to the older boys that he was basically grown like them and trying to get them to take him hunting, reading books that were way too mature for his age before they got confiscated by kanna “for his own good,” or finding the nearest adult and asking them really specific, intelligent questions that they absolutely did not have the answers to.

toph would have loved the opportunity to hang out with a bunch of kids her age, even though she also would have quickly realized that she is far smarter and wiser than these simple children. she would learn this fact by telling them a story that is obviously made up, with no intention to obfuscate the fact that she was making it up on the spot, only for all the kids to lap it up fully believing that this actually happened to her no questions asked. at which point she would marvel at the stupidity of her peers—nay, the human race.

zuko was the type of kid who liked to pretend he was a cat or a dragon (one of those) and run around in his own little world on all fours meowing and snarling and hissing at people, blissfully unaware that all the other kids thought he was an absolute freak.

suki was leading the other kids on expeditions across the island, running through the woods, climbing trees and picking fruit, tackle fighting them in the dirt, pretending to be a kyoshi warrior, pretending to be avatar kyoshi herself, stealing freshly baked pies off of windowsills, denying the pie stealing allegations with crumbs around her mouth, apologizing to her neighbors for stealing their delicious pies, etc.

ty lee was always the center of attention, dazzling the other girls with her perfect cartwheels and backflips and other gymnastics and acrobatics, or entertaining everyone with fanciful little stories, or telling girls which boys totally had crushes on them, or having a queue around the block as she told everyone one by one what their fortunes would be (she was totally bullshitting them but they ate it up), or sometimes simply running around in her own little world only half aware that everyone was following her with their eyes as her braid swung around her shoulders and she laughed.

mai would sit quietly in the corner and simply observe, a book in her lap, trying to avoid making conversation with any of the other kids, or worse yet, being roped into one of their games, the ultimate torture.

azula didn’t like watching ty lee show off to her adoring audience or sitting in the corner with mai in silence, and since those were her only two friends, her other option was simply to demand that she be given more work during recess hours. while the other kids may be happy playing like simpleminded fools, she was not like them, she was smarter and more gifted, and therefore would benefit from using her extra time to advance far beyond them, surpass her peers in every way, simply because she could, and thus she ought to.

bonus: jet liked using his recess hours to try to convince the other kids that it was obviously in their best interest to escape the tyranny of adults who tried to force them into being brainwashed by such hideous forms of groupthink as “reading” “writing” and “arithmetic” by running away into the woods to start a kids’ only cult commune in the trees. at which points his parents would get complaints from the other parents that jet was being a bad influence on their kid, and they’d be like “oh my god jet your teachers arent the thought police please just do your homework”

#moonkinds #the gaang and #asks #gonna tag this #babygaang #also re the katara one im not familiar with traditional inuit children’s games so I decided to just kinda base it off my own experiences #as like. an equivalent #anyway tag urself I am (as always) mai toph sokka #in that order

[legends-of-apex]

‘Finally’ - Kung Lao x Reader (smut)

Rating: 18+ for smut

Word count: 5,000 words (I know it’s a lot, lmfao)

A/N: I’m so sorry this took so long!! Just really wanted to make it good :D there’s so little written for him that I just had to! In short, Kung Lao and the reader have been pining for one another for months and finally decide to do something about it. This fic contains both fluff and smut. Reader is AFAB. Hope you all enjoy, please feel free to let me know what you think and thank you for reading :D

You were trapped between him and the table. His arms on either side of you, braced against the table’s edge so he could lean down to your level where you sat. “It’s very rude you know. To tease your friends.” His eyes held a challenge, a sprinkle of mischief that never seemed to leave when he was with you.

“We were never just friends though were we?”

You weren’t sure why a sudden burst of boldness had overcome you. Perhaps it had something to do with the absolutely unbearable frustration that had been training with him mere moments ago. You were both so distracted by one another and intent on teasing with small jesters and jabs that you couldn’t take it for another minute, delighted when the sudden appearance of the moon relieved the necessity to train. You couldn’t be sure exactly what had sparked it that day but one thing you were sure of was that you wanted him. And you needed him to know that.

It was selfish. Of course it was, but something deep within your gut was begging you to just do something about the way you felt.

“Sounds like you’ve been having some improper thoughts.” He was joking but his voice held little semblance of his usual jest, the tone soft almost timid as he took one of your hands in his and brought your knuckles to his lips. He looked as though he was almost apologetic for having such an effect on you.

Romantic affection and other such distractions weren’t permitted by Raiden. But right now, being so close to Kung Lao, you couldn’t have cared less about what Raiden did or did not permit. His scent was all around you, coupled with the dirt from the fight pit where a kick had sent him tumbling. You swallowed hard, attempting to calm the strange feeling in your stomach in response to his affection.

“Most of my thoughts of you are improper.” That was it then, you’d finally done something that feeling. It was pointless pretending like you didn’t care for one another. You were done with this, done with the longing glances and the pining.

Moving your hand away from his lips so he could speak, he instead pressed your palm to the red dragon enshrined on his chest plate. You were so close together now that he seemed to have a hard time concentrating on your eyes, his gaze instead directed towards your lips. “Perhaps some meditation might remedy the issue.” His tone held absolutely no sense that he meant or likely even knew what he was saying. He was far too focused on drinking the image of you this close to him into his mind.

“It just…” you allowed yourself to lean in closer to him so your lips almost grazed his as you held his cheek in your free hand,”...doesn’t quite scratch the itch.”

“Oi, if you two are going to fuck in here at least let me get in on the action!” Kano’s grating drawl cut straight through whatever moment you had.

Lao moved to stand up straight and likely confront him, jaw clenched and eyes narrowed, but you took hold of his forearm, silently asking him to stay. The both of you turned your heads to glare at the man and for once he shifted uncomfortably on his feet, “Well, worth a try! I’ll leave you to it. Don’t fuck on the table, we gotta eat there tomorrow!” With that, he left.

As soon as Kano rounded the corner, Lao turned back to face you and before he could even register it, you pressed your lips to his. The exchange was soft, sudden. But you felt him smile into the kiss and cup your cheek with his hand. His lips were so gentle. You couldn’t help but sigh when he deepened the kiss just a little, clearly testing where the boundary lay. You had both been holding back so much for so long, and yet you held back still for now.

When you pulled back for a little air, you kept your cheek pressed against his, wanting him close. “Finally,” you whispered and he smiled once more. The tension between you felt like it had finally subsided, even just a little. You pulled away a little more to get a better look at him, admire him in his hazy state. “Finally,” he agreed.

That one singular word was enough to reassure you that he’d had the same issues you had for a while now. You had been pining for him from the moment you met him when you first entered the temple. His cheeky smile and bold words had you hooked. Not to mention literally everything else about him. And you had noticed, the way he looked at you sometimes like he was gazing at the stars. The quick glances at dinner or in training that sometimes weren’t all that quick or subtle. The softest of touches when your fingers grazed his when he would pass you a plate or fill your glass with water without you having to ask him to pass the jug. The way Lui Kang would shake his head at him whenever Lao was a little too excited to help you with something or even just to spend time with you. All of this and more should have told you that he’d felt the same, but you were far too engrossed in the potential scandal of it all to put two and two together. Lord Raiden would surely have your heads for falling prey to such distractions and for breaking Kung Lao’s vows.

“So what now?” You asked him, hoping, just silently praying that he’d take the hint of how much you needed him right now. Hell, you’d have dropped to your knees before him there and then if you could be sure Kano wouldn’t interrupt. He pulled back from you, extending to his full height once more, grabbing his hat and offering you his hand to take.

“What would you like to do?” He asked, his face held a look of almost pleading but his pride and the public setting wouldn’t let him do so. It was then as he held his hand out to you in invitation that you noticed just how tightly the thin leather cords were tied around his upper arms and how wonderfully under stress the cord seemed right now. One side of his mouth quirked up into a smile like he could hear exactly what your mind was screaming, he saw you admiring his thick arms. He had done many times. The slight hitch in your throat at his question too told him everything he needed to know about what you wanted right now but he wanted to hear you say it.

“I think….” You took his hand, trailing your finger over the centre of his large palm before entwining your fingers with his, “That we should take this somewhere a little more private. I mean unless you want Kano to join..”

He looked like he wanted to devour you. His chest heaved a little, tongue darting out to wet his lips as you rose from your place at the table. He couldn’t speak properly, couldn't believe you truly wanted this with him. So many days spent pining for one another yet he still couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that you wanted him, not Liu Kang or anyone else, him. You tugged on his hand lightly, yanking him out of his thoughts and towards your bedroom.

As you hastily unlocked your room with your keys, he couldn’t help but place only the faintest of kisses along your neck from where he stood behind you. His hands found your waist and circled round to meet at your middle, your back pulled flush against his chest. You were so beyond touch starved that even the faintest of touches had you in pieces. You couldn’t help the soft moans that slipped from your lips when he bit down on your skin ever so gently. And he couldn’t help what hearing that sweet sound did to him.

When you flung the door open and tugged him inside, all bets were off about being reserved. His hands were all over you, trying to make up for the lost time that he could have been touching you. Kicking the door shut behind you, you pulled him against you once more. Desperate to have him close. The metallic rattle of his hat hitting the floor rang throughout the room. His lips were far less gentle on yours now and you loved every second of it. A slight nip of his bottom lip between your teeth had him groaning. Such a gorgeous sound. He had you pinned against the door in his efforts to be near you. You were thankful as it gave you just enough leverage to hike your leg over his hip. He took that as his queue to lift your other leg up too, bracing you against the door with his strong arms supporting you.

At the new angel, he nuzzled his face into your neck, pressing kiss after kiss, light bite and after light bite to your soft flesh. You dragged your fingers through his dark hair, careful not to undo the red ribbon he had so carefully tied. A gasp escaped you when he kissed his way down to your chest, mouthing his way over any exposed skin he could find.

You wanted to tell him to just take you then and there. To shove your underwear aside and have you against your bedroom door. But his stature was far more caring than that right now. He was wound tightly, the hardness against your thigh told you that much. So much pent up tension between the two of you and yet he treated you as though you were glass. You’d soon fix that.

“Bed. Please.”

He carefully carried you towards your bed and set you down, mouth never leaving your skin as he did. When he released you to remove his robes you couldn’t help but stare at him. Of course, you’d seen him bare-chested in training many a time before, but it was a view of which you would never tire. His chest was strong and broad, the muscles were defined and well-worked but benefitted from a soft layer above them so his skin was soft to the touch. You couldn’t help it, dragging your fingers over his chest and stomach. You felt each shiver that wracked through him at your touch and revelled in the way his chest heaved from your fingertips alone.

His hand came to shadow your own, near dwarfing it beneath his as he held your palm over his heart as he had done mere minutes before, “Are you sure you want this?” His voice was low, heavy with want, but gentle. You could see the desperation in his eyes. You shared it too.

“More than anything.” You replied, and he smiled, taking your hand and carefully pressing your knuckles to his warm lips for a long moment as though he was almost praying to you. Butterflies spread throughout your stomach, you couldn’t believe the effect he had upon you.

“In that case, lay back,” you quirked a brow at that,”I want to taste you.” He clarified.

You hadn’t been expecting that. You did as you were told for once, shuffling back onto your bed but propping yourself up on your elbows so you could see what he was doing. He ever so gently undid your shoes and slipped those, followed by your socks, off your feet. Next came your trousers once you lifted your hips enough for him to take them off. He let out a huff at the sight of you, staring almost in disbelief at you sprawled out before him. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are? It is truly distracting.”

“Is that why I keep whooping your ass in training?”

“Maybe.” He chuckled before turning his attention back to your dripping underwear, “So wet for me already and I haven’t even touched you.” His eyes held a hunger as he parted your legs at the knees a little more so he could get a better look at you. Taking your knee, he hooked it over his shoulder as he sank to the floor, pressing slow kisses along the inside of one thigh and then the next. The touch sent shivers through you, right to your already dripping core. You whined when he got so close to where you wanted him, only to turn his attention to your other thigh again.

“What’s the matter? I thought you liked teasing?” He asked when you whined. You dared not look at him, knowing he’d have his smuggest smile on display.

“Please.” You mumbled, desperation for any touch at all. With a nod of his head towards you in compliance, he rid you of your underwear, tentatively rolling the material down your legs to expose your heat to the nighttime air.

“I’d hold on to something if I were you.” His mouth returned to the tops of your thighs, only this time he let his lips ghost over your core rather than skip over it completely. Your folds were so slick and warm that it almost felt as though his lips melted into you. A long groan escaped you as he began to move his mouth and tongue, laughter vibrating through him at the sound you made. You didn’t know what to do with your hands, you wanted to tug on his hair but settled on grabbing the sheets beneath you. When his tongue flicked your clit, that was out the window and one hand shot to the back of his head in desperation.

He pulled back from your pussy for a moment, “Please pull as hard as you’d like.” He’d obviously caught on. You tangled both hands in his hair then, before he returned to your warmth and he moaned before bringing his lips back to your core. Oh, he liked it when you tugged on his hair, you’d have to remember that.

He sucked your clit between his lips then and let it go so he could lick a strip right up the middle of your folds. “Oh fuck,” you exclaimed, “P-please, do that again!”

“Since you asked so nicely.” He repeated the action, this time taking extra care to move as slowly as possible. Another lick and he was gathering your wetness on his tongue and once again groaning at your taste.

He moved one hand from your thigh and brought his fingers to rest by your lips, “Get them nice and wet for me.” He told you, and you didn’t need to be told twice, sucking his two digits into your mouth and lathering them up with your tongue. “Gods.” He breathed, no doubt imagining that was his cock in the place of his fingers. He withdrew them from your mouth and brought them to your core, circling them slowly in your juices before ever so slightly prodding your entrance with them, slipping the tip of one in and out, followed by the other, in and out, intermittently whilst he worked the rest of your pussy with his tongue.

The very sight of him between your legs would have been enough for you on any other day, but today you were spoiled for choice on what to focus on. He snuck a glance at you from beneath his brow every once and a while, watching your facial expressions in between closing his eyes in pure concentration. You were close now if the coil in your stomach was anything to go by. Honestly, you were surprised that you’d lasted so long given the circumstances.

“I’m close!” You told him.

“I know.” He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

He hooked both his fingers into you at once now, noting how you clenched around him when he did. Pleased with himself when he hit a spot within you that had your head flung back so your chin pointed towards the sky. He chuckled to himself and looked up at your face, not wanting to miss the reaction on your beautiful features.

“What are you- Oh!” The new motion of his fingers, pressing firmly exactly where you needed them to be, was an entirely too overwhelming sensation. Not only did you grab his hair now, you pulled on it, grinding your core against his face in a desperate plea for your release. In your haste to keep him close to you, you’d accidentally pulled the tie from his hair letting the strands fall upon either side of his face in a beautiful frame. He put his mouth into overdrive too, moulding his lips around your nub and giving it as much attention as he could, eyes never leaving your face now. You clenched around his fingers once more before the dam broke and he’d swore he’d never heard a more delightful sound.

His name fell from your lips as if it were the only thing you’d ever known as your orgasm washed over you. He held your hips down with his free hand as he helped you ride it out, never once stopping his movements until you’d finally collapsed back on the bed. You continued to pet his hair as he lay his cheek upon your thigh, brown eyes gazing up at you in a haze.

“They teach you that at the Shaolin academy?” You asked in jest as your breath began to even again. You tilted your chin to look down at him and the adoration in his eyes was enough to send your stomach fluttering once more. He smiled up at you then, his usual half-smile with a slight tilt of his head that you’d grown to love. “Seriously that was great, thank you. Would you allow me to return the favour?”

“If you wish, but please don’t let me finish too soon.”

“Too soon?”

“If you would allow me such a privilege, I would like to feel your body around me as well as your lips.” Gods, you wanted to feel him inside you too.

Once you were ready, still aching with want but satisfied for now, you slipped down off the bed and onto your knees. “Oh you poor thing. Need me to take care of that for you?” You asked when you saw the strain in his trousers. You pulled the waistband of his trousers down with ease, revealing his underwear. You could tell from the outline that he was big and painfully hard but you couldn’t help but tease him with a few soft strokes with the pad of your thumb through the fabric.

“Please-” he gasped when a particularly long stroke had his cock twitching. “Oh sweetheart, it looks like you’ve been hard all day.” You pulled his pants down and allowed his cock to spring free. His cock was thick, thicker than you’d ever imagined. It had ample length too but it was a particularly large vein that ran along its side that really caught your attention.

You pressed a kiss to his leaking tip, another to the vein. Such sweet noises left his mouth already and you’d barely touched him. Dragging your tongue along his underside whilst looking up at him seemed to really do it for him because his cock twitched in your hand. “Oh, gods. Do that again. Please.” You obliged him and earned the most breathy, muddled sound from him.

You gave the tip another kiss before wrapping your lips around just the first half an inch or so.

“Fuck-“ He pulled his cock from your mouth, “As beautiful as you look with your lips around my cock, I’d rather not finish so quickly.” He brought you up from your knees to kiss you again before lifting you slightly so you sat on the edge of your bed once more.

“Do you still want this?” He asked, hand lovingly caressing your cheek, eyes soft and locked with yours. You stood, gliding a hand from his stomach, up along his chest until you reached his strong jaw, eyes never leaving his as you did.

“More than anything. I just want to be close to you.” You confessed.

“We can just lay together if you’d like? We don’t have to do this, I’m more than happy to wait until you're ready.”

“I’m ready,” you told him, “I want you, so long as you want the same?”

“Oh I do. I've wanted this since the day we first met. You have no idea how much I want you.”

“Oh I have some idea.” You pushed on his chest lightly and he fell back onto your bed, taking you with him in his arms, shimmying until he was comfortable. You tugged your shirt over your head and rid yourself of any remaining underwear, flicking your eyes towards him only to see him dumbfounded at the sight of you bare before him. Heat rose to your cheeks for the first time that night. The man had just been eating you out like his life depended on it yet his gaze still made you giddy.

“You are so cute when you’re nervous, you know that?”

“Oh, shut up and fuck me.” You laughed, taking his head in your hands once more and kissing him, revelling in the feeling of his mouth on yours. “Fuck, you’re beautiful.”

“I know.” You rolled your eyes playfully at his cockiness, sitting upon his hips, careful not to let your body sit fully on his stomach or any other sensitive part of him. His hands glided down your sides until they reached your hips, resisting the urge to tickle your sides as he would have in any other situation.

“You ready?” You asked him, sitting up on your knees, hands braced at the base of his thick chest. He nodded, swallowing hard in anticipation.

With one hand you took hold of his achingly hard cock and directed it towards your entrance, taking care to coat the tip in your wetness before aiming it at your aching pussy. A sharp inhale and you were sinking down onto his lap until his cock filled you completely. With each inch, Lao arched further off the mattress before collapsing back once fully inside you, a long moan escaping him as your pussy enveloped his cock within you. The fullness you felt was something else. His velvety cock filling you so pleasantly you thought you could just sit there like that forever if you wouldn’t have gotten needy.

“My gods,” you groaned at the overwhelmingness of it all, “you feel so good.” You told him and he smiled amid his haze, absolutely delighted he was able to make you feel good even from his place beneath you. He let you take it completely at your own pace, supporting your hips when you moved up of him and then slide back down onto his cock. He wouldn't last long, not with months worth of pent up frustration finally coming to a head. He never thought the day he’d be inside you would ever come, didn’t let himself wonder what your walls would feel like around his member. To be fair, usually, just the thought of kissing you was enough to get him off.

You rocked forwards again once you were sure your body had adjusted to his size. Falling forward to essentially lie directly atop him. You didn’t want to ride if you couldn’t touch and be close to him. Another grind of your hips and a moan fell from his lips right into your ear, his hands now gripping your lower back, helping you move on his cock whilst keeping your form flush against his. His hips moved up in tangent with yours.

“Shit!” You cursed when his cock hit a particularly sensitive spot.

With another roll of his hips, he made contact with that spot again, your hands desperately grabbing fistfuls of the sheets at either side of his head to attempt to transfer the tension in your body from such pleasure. “Again!” He obliged you, full concentration on helping you reach your release.

“Lao, please!” You almost begged, “harder please!”

To your surprise, he pulled out of you completely, gripping your hips and lifting you off of him. In one swift movement, you were on your back, Lao leaning over you and tugging your knees around his hip so he had easier access to your pussy.

“You ready for me?”

“If you don’t get back in there and fuck me I think I’m going to die!”

A laugh escaped him but in truth, he felt that desperation too. In fact, he would have come ages ago had he not been in essence edging himself so that he wouldn’t finish long before you.

You sat up so you cling to him, wrapping your arms around his neck and bringing him in for another kiss. You couldn’t get enough of his lips, or hips scent, his arms around, or really anything about him. His arms wrapped around your right after he entered you as you kissed, your moans swallowed by one another’s mouths. That wonderful fullness was back again and he waited until you gave him the go-ahead that you were comfortable again before moving. His thrusts were measured, slow but forceful in a way that had you mewling against his shoulder.

He took his time with you, basking in the feeling of being with you in such a way. His lips found your neck once more, then your shoulder, then your chest and over the tops of your breasts. A particularly loud moan on your part had his attention turned back fully to spearing you on his cock.

“There?” He asked, looking to you for your response. You nodded your head into shoulder and he kissed the top of your head tentatively, smiling at your pleasured state. He focused on hitting that spot again, and again, until your nails started to dig into his shoulders. He let one hand drift between your bodies and down to your core, using the knowledge he’d gained from exploring you with his mouth to heighten your bliss.

“Lao!” His name left your mouth, along with obscenities. You weren’t really sure what you were saying at this point apart from his name. His fingers dancing over your clit combined with his thrusts had you feeling so stimulated that you swore that was all you could feel right now. The coil in your stomach had been rigid and pulsing for a few minutes now.

He pressed another kiss to your temple, “I’m almost there!” He told you, voice shaking both with intensity and the constant movement of you both.

“These bed sheets are a pain to clean.” You informed him in a moment of clarity and he laughed, but his voice was strained as you met his thrusts with your hips.

“Where-“ he gasped, “Do you want it?”

“Inside.” You quickly replied, knowing that you had taken any precautions you needed to.

He laughed again, “I swear you’re trying to kill me.”

As he rubbed harder and more sloppily on your clit, you knew he was extremely close. His forehead was tucked into your shoulder now, skin glistening. When you tugged the hair on the back of his neck between your fingers, he was done. A cry escaped him, cock twitching as he filled you with his release.

That feeling, the feeling of his body shuddering against you, his warmth filling you, was what finally made you come for a second time. You fell back against the covers, taking him with you as you worked through your release. He kept going, lightly and sloppily moving in and out of you until he was sure you were spent. He collapsed a top you, chest heaving in tandem with yours as you slowly came down from your high. When he turned his head to look up at you, a smile spread across your face and his in turn.

“We really shouldn’t have waited so long.” You sighed, feeling the stickiness between your legs as he carefully pulled out of you, not moving his cheek from your chest.

“Agreed.” He huffed in another large breath before his breath evened. It was so good to be with you, in any capacity really but this, this was something almost heavenly.

“Sorry, I think these sheets are still going to need to be cleaned.” He leant up off of you and off the bed, careful not to crush you under his weight, his playful little side smile returning as he walked to your en suite to grab a towel.

You looked down between your legs to check, groaning at the mess. “It can wait for tomorrow!” You didn’t feel like doing any kind of cleaning right now. Your body was spent and your muscles had already begun to ache. He returned with a damp towel and ever so gently wiped away any mess from between your legs, his movements so tentative that it was hard to believe he’d been the one to make that mess in the first place.

“Why? You got something else planned for tonight?” He asked, chucking the towel in the general direction of your bathroom before scooping you up in his arms and setting you down against your pillows.

“Yeah I was just about to go train.” You said in a mock serious tone, actively shoving the covers down so you could both crawl beneath them.

“Ha! Sure.” He had already settled beside you, bringing his arms to wrap around your frame. You turned to face him, your hand sliding beneath his upper arm to gently caress his back as you buried your face in his chest. You felt his lips on your forehead again, his arms tightening to bring you as close to him as he could.

Yeah, you weren’t moving for the world.

#kung lao #Kung Lao x reader #mortal kombat #mortal kombat 2021 #mk 2021 #fic #my writing #reader insert #smut #lemon

[crystalninjaphoenix]

Bone and Bond

Fantasy Masks AU: Chapter Forteen

A JSE Fanfic

Almost forgot to queue this, oops. Been busy with class recently. But in between all my classwork I found time to write another chapter! This one is about Marvin and Jameson. They’re ready to leave Wyvernlair, but run into someone along the way that makes them hurry and run back. It seems the camp might be in danger...or maybe not. Who knows? Not me, lol. You’ll have to read to find out ;)

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It had taken a full two weeks, but finally, Marvin’s new magical focus was complete.

His old one had been made of emerald, silver, and gold. It had been a family heirloom for generations, one that he’d stolen from the family vault partially out of spite, partially because it was genuinely one of the best-made focuses he’d ever seen. But, of course, that had been lost when he was captured. Marvin had no doubt it had been returned to the family. 

This new one was...different. Though it was still an amulet, and was about the same size and shape, the materials were new, working with what was available in the mountains. Its base was now made of rowan wood, reinforced around the edge with a line of smooth black obsidian carved with runes. Set into the wood was a perfectly circular bit of dragon bone. The whole thing could fit comfortably in the palm of his hand, and had a small metal loop at the top for a string or chain to fit through.

Marvin wasn’t happy about the long delay, but he had to admit it would have been a much longer wait if he tried to do it all by himself. He had to ask several of the Phantoms for help, mainly in finding and carving the raw materials—though Marvin himself did the runes and fit the whole thing together.

And now that he had a new focus...he didn’t need to stay here any longer.

He felt somewhat ashamed of thinking that. But it was true. If he was going to take down the King once and for all, he couldn’t do it by waiting in a forest on the edge of Glasúil. Regardless of what Jackie or Henrik or any of the other Phantoms thought, he still believed they needed a more dramatic approach if they wanted to depose the King permanently. The King and his warriors were relentless, their allies unwavering in their loyalty; subterfuge could only get them so far.

Perhaps the shame came from knowing that the grand majority of the Phantoms here meant him no harm. Indeed, he enjoyed being around people again. Even if he hardly interacted with them. Interaction wasn’t his strong suit, he mostly just liked being in their presence, listening to people talk, and knowing they’ll be there. He really appreciated their help in making his new focus. And he knew that a lot of them would be disheartened to know their third leader was once again leaving the group.

But...the others were the problem. His...friends. (Former friends?) Especially Jackie. He and Henrik had been able to get somewhat close again, but he and Jackie had barely spoken in the two weeks he’d been in Wyvernlair. He just...didn’t want another fight. So, he ended up not approaching him. And Jackie hadn’t approached him, either. Clearly, he didn’t want to talk.

Marvin couldn’t stay here if this matter was going to persist. So, the day his focus was complete, he started preparing to leave.

And part of those preparations...included talking to Jameson.

Jameson continued to spend most of his time in their shared tent, so after Marvin made sure his new focus  was working correctly—it was—he headed straight back to the tent to find Jameson awake, practicing speaking in hands. Today, he was concentrating on memorizing some lesser-used words. But when Marvin came in, he stopped.

“Hi,” Marvin said, sitting down on the tent floor.

Hello, Jameson said.

“I’m...going to leave camp today. Around noon.” Marvin took a deep breath. “I was wondering...do you want...to leave with me?”

Jameson said nothing. He didn’t look directly at Marvin. Do the others know you’re leaving?

“I told Henrik. Jackie was there, too. And Chase. And they’ve probably told the whole camp by now.” He tried for a laugh. “I know, because I saw everyone staring and pointing at me. So they know somehow.”

Jameson didn’t laugh. He seemed to have shrunk a little.

Marvin’s voice softened. “Are you...afraid the King will find you?”

Do I really need to answer that? Jameson asked slowly.

“Well, I’m not all that good with...um, hidden meanings,” Marvin said carefully. 

Jameson looked upwards, staring at nothing. Morning sun leaked through the tent fabric. He always said he would find me, he said, gestures small. The first two years, I kept trying to escape, and he always knew where I would be. Even when I didn’t fully know where I was going. I gave up, eventually. It wasn’t worth it. He paused. I keep thinking...that he’ll show up here. And he’ll not only find me again, but find you, and all these lovely, brave people. But I don’t want to leave. Despite those thoughts, this place feels...safe.

“It is pretty safe,” Marvin admitted, speaking slowly so as to not give away the tight coil of fear in his stomach that was about to spring loose. He reminded himself that Jameson didn’t have to come with him. It was his own choice. “You don’t...have to come with me,” he said out loud. “If you don’t want to.”

A long pause. It’s not that I don’t want to, Jameson said. It’s that...I feel...terrible.

“Huh?”

Because he’s going to come for me. Jameson’s expression was strangely unreadable. He’s going to figure out where I went, and everyone here is going to be—to be hurt because of that. Because I’m here. And if I left with you, then you’re going to be hurt. Because I’m with you. And the King will find me, and you—or everyone here, depending where I end up—will be...He trailed off.

“Jair,” Marvin said simply. He inched closer to him until they were sitting side by side. “Nothing is going to happen to me—or anyone here—because of you.”

When the King figures out where I—

“He might not. But...let’s say he does. That’s not your fault, you know. The Phantoms here, they want you to be safe, and they’re...they’re choosing to take the risk that might come with having you stay, as long as you’re safe.” Marvin paused. “I...I feel the same way. If you’re...alright, then I’ll take the possibility. A-and I don’t mean just safe, I mean, if you’re doing what you...what you want to do. You should be able to do what you want to do.”

Jameson didn’t move for a bit. Then, he reached up and wiped his eyes. He looked at Marvin and smiled. I think I would like to come with you, to wherever you’re going.

Marvin’s heart leapt. He grinned wide. “Really?”

Yes. If you’re...if you’re okay with everything that might happen.

“I promise I am. I can handle myself, surprisingly. And, if worst comes to worse...” Marvin bumps his shoulder against Jameson’s. “I’ll protect you. I promise.”

The two of them set off around noon, armed with packs of supplies—food, bedrolls, lanterns for the nights, some money, and more. Draco came with them, of course, since Marvin was loathe to leave his familiar behind. 

They only said goodbye to a few people. Chase and Henrik...and Jackie. Well, Jackie was also there, at the very least. He started to say something at one point. “Marvin, I...” But then he trailed off, and finished with, “Don’t die or get captured again.” Marvin nodded, but said nothing back.

Other Phantoms watched them leave. Soon, they disappeared from the clearing with the dragon skeleton and vanished into the woods.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Normally around this time of year, the air would begin to warm up again, but it was as cold as ever walking through the forest. Marvin wrapped his cloak tighter around himself, looking back over his shoulder at Jameson doing the same. Jameson caught his glance and gave him a quick reassuring smile. Nodding, Marvin returned the grin.

The branches of the trees above were coated in a thin layer of frost, looking more like gilded silver than ice. A similar frost layer laid on the ground and undergrowth. As the group passed through, they left two sets of boot prints, and one set of paw prints as Draco weaved between the humans’ legs.

Night fell, early in the evening but still later than expected. They’d reached an area of the forest composed of pine trees that quickly obscured the remaining light. Quickly, the shadows surrounded them, and they stopped. “We should probably camp for the night,” Marvin said.

Jameson nodded. He looked a bit out of breath.

“Are you alright?” Marvin asked.

Nodding again, Jameson said, I’m just not used to carrying supplies around. It’s fine.

“Oh, don’t worry, I get it. Walking is all good, but then you have to factor in the weight and suddenly it’s a thousand times more difficult.” Marvin laughed to lighten the mood. “Well, like I said, we should camp anyway. This area is fine. Help me look for a good spot to set up.”

Help you look? It’s pitch black around! Jameson pointed out.

“True. I can barely see you speaking. But I have something that can help.”

Jameson looked confused for a second, then gasped. Of course! You’re going to conjure a light with your magic!

Marvin laughed, much more genuinely this time. “I could. But I don’t know if I want to use that energy just yet. Not when I brought this along.” He took the pack off his shoulders, reaching around to the side to grab a cloth bag that had been hanging there. Inside was a collection of candles, a pair of flint stones, and a small brass lantern. In what little light there was coming from in between the trees, Marvin fumbled about until he managed to get a spark from the flint and light a candle, which he put into the lantern’s compartment.

Oh. So that’s what was in there, Jameson said, looking fairly embarrassed. Why’s it in a bag, anyway? Couldn’t you just attach the lantern itself to the pack?

“I...I’ve never thought of that, actually.” Marvin paused, then shrugged. “It’s probably like that for a reason. Maybe so you know where the spare candles are.” Draco, staring wide-eyed at the new light source, reached out and tried to bat at the flame. Marvin quickly grabbed the lantern and lifted it up before the cat could knock it over. “You’re lucky there’s glass there, Draco. Don’t want to burn your paw.”

Now with a small circle of yellow light surrounding them, the pair found a relatively flat patch of ground to spread out their bedrolls. Marvin hung the lantern from a low-hanging branch nearby, and they sat down underneath it.

Jameson glanced around at the darkness, eyes darting. Is it just me, or was it less...creepy...when we first traveled through the woods to get to your base?

“It’s because there were more people with us before,” Marvin said, currently looking through their packs for their food supplies. “More people, more possible reasons for weird noises and movements.”

Clearly, that did not reassure Jameson. Did you know Fair Folk are more likely to attack travelers in small groups?

Marvin barely caught that, glancing up just in time to see Jameson’s gestures. “Fair Folk? Don’t you know? The Fair Folk aren’t around anymore. They went the same way as the dragons.” He reached up and touched his dragon-bone focus under his shirt. 

That’s...kind of sad, Jameson said thoughtfully.

“You just said they would attack us.”

Well, that doesn’t mean it’s better if they’re not around, Jameson mused. Less dangerous, certainly. But...He shook his head. Like I said, it seems sad.

“Hmm.” Marvin nodded. “I suppose you’re right.” He returned to looking for their food. “Well, I don’t think they’re entirely gone. Not like dragons. The Fair Folk have their own world, they probably just...stopped coming to ours. But I hear they still roam the Wyldlands.” He chuckled. “If we head west into the Wyldwood, maybe we'll see some.”

No thank you, Jameson said, vigorously shaking his head.

Marvin grinned. “Alright, alright. We’ll continue east, then.”

They couldn’t find any dry wood for a fire, so they ate bread and dried meat for dinner while huddled in their cloaks and bedrolls. Though it wasn’t that late, the dark night sky was making Marvin tired. He rolled over and closed his eyes just for a minute...

And suddenly woke up to Jameson shaking his shoulder. “Hrmmm wha...?” Marvin blinked, clearing his head of the fuzziness that comes with being asleep, but not yet dreaming. It was darker than it was when he lied down. Evidently, their lantern had gone out. “Whassit?”

Jameson made a shushing sound, and pointed into the darkness. Marvin sat up, and at that moment, noticed said darkness was not as dark as it once was. There was an orange glow in the distance, almost hidden behind the trees. The sound of voices drifted through the cold air, too far away to make out any words. They—and the light—were getting closer.

Marvin looked at Jameson. It was odd for people to be this far into the Dragon’s Greatwoods, especially in winter. “Did you put the lantern out?” Marvin whispered.

Jameson nodded, his eyes wide.

The orange light approached quickly. It wasn’t coming straight for them, but soon, Marvin and Jameson saw a group pass by, only separated from them by a couple trees. Six people, three mounted on horses, all carrying lanterns. They all wore dark colors...and in the center of their tunics was a green circle on a blue-and-black shield. The royal crest. The moment Jameson saw that, he froze.

Luckily, the two of them were hidden from the group in the darkness. Neither of them moved until the orange light was well in the distance. Marvin sat up slowly. “Jair...are you alright?” he said in a hushed voice.

Jameson was stiff, muscles clenched. For a moment, Marvin wondered if this was another one of those oracle visions. But no, it looked different. Jameson was breathing heavily, quickly, his eyes locked on the distant orange light. He reached out and grabbed Marvin’s arm.

“Jair? Jair, it’s fine,” Marvin said softly.

In response, Jameson squeezed tighter. He shook his head, then suddenly buried his face in Marvin’s shirt. 

“Jair!” Marvin gasped. He could feel his heartbeat, as fast as a galloping horse. “It’s fine, I promise.” His own head dropped, resting on top of Jameson’s. “I said I was going to protect you. I promised I would, and I will. Nothing’s going to happen to either of us.”

A few moments passed before Jameson raised his head. He said nothing, merely looked at Marvin. His eyes were red.

“I promise,” Marvin repeated.

Slowly, Jameson nodded. He was still breathing fast, but was trying to get control of it.

“I’m going to find out what they’re doing here,” Marvin said quietly. “Oh, uh, don’t worry, I’m not going over there. I have a better idea.” He scanned their small campsite. “Draco?”

Draco had curled up on his legs at some point, but jumped off when he sat up. Now, the cat came slinking back into view, walking right up next to him. 

Marvin reached up and took his focus out from under his shirt, running a finger around the edge of it. White light curled around the obsidian edge,, then traveled up along his finger to twist around his hand. Marvin set his now-glowing hand down on Draco’s head, petting his fur. The shining magic rubbed off on Draco as he did, and the cat’s eyes glowed faintly white for a moment. “Be my eyes and ears,” Marvin whispered.

Without any of the usual cat mannerisms, Draco turned around and immediately trotted towards the orange light. Jameson squeezed Marvin’s arm, worried, but Marvin said, “Don’t worry, they won’t see him. I’m going to close my eyes for a second. Shake me if something happens.” Jameson nodded, and Marvin shut his eyes.

When he opened them again, his vision had changed. The dark forest was now much clearer. The shadows hadn’t lightened, but his surroundings were now just as detailed as if they had. The undergrowth, usually only coming up halfway to his knees, was now almost eye level. He could hear the faint rustling of a slight breeze, and the slight sounds of those few insects who survived the long winter. No matter how many times he cast this spell, he was always surprised at the difference between a cat’s senses and a human’s.

Draco approached the orange light on silent padded feet, causing barely any movement in the undergrowth. Soon, the six-membered group came into view, along with their three horses—gigantic when this close to the ground. They were walking along slowly. Draco sped up a little, getting closer. They were talking, having a conversation.

“—hate these trees,” grumbled a man on a horse. “I keep banging my face, and it’s not even that much faster!”

“We told you, didn’t we?” said a woman on foot, glancing at the three horse riders. “No horses this far in the Dragon’s Teeth, the terrain isn’t good for them.”

“Yes, well, how was I supposed to know?” The man said, swatting away a branch that was coming close to his face. “I’ve never been here before.”

“You could’ve taken us on our word,” said a man on foot.

“Alright, we get it, we’re sorry,” replied another person on a horse. “You three were right and we were wrong.”

“Thank you,” said the first walking woman, looking smug.

The walking man rolled his eyes. “If your horses slow us down, or somehow keep us from finding this rebel base, the King will be so upset.”

All six made various sounds of dismay.

The horseback person looked unsure. “Do we even know it’s here?” they asked. “I mean, the King won’t tell us how he knows about this place. Maybe it’s just a wild stoat chase?”

“No, the King is always right,” said a woman on horseback.

“The King is always right,” repeated four voices in unison.

“Of course the King is always right,” the horseback person said. “I just wish he would tell us how he knew.”

“He doesn’t need to do that,” said a second man on foot. “He’s the King. Don’t you trust him?” The other five muttered, giving the horseback person uneasy glances.

“I do! I do!” the horseback person protested. “I would never distrust him!”

“Well, that’s why we’re out here, anyway,” the walking woman said. “We’re just the scouts, after all. We’re here to confirm the King’s suspicions to everyone. Right, Nema?”

The horseback person nodded, and went silent.

That was enough information. Marvin whispered, “Come back,” and Draco turned around, darting through the forest plants and returning to their small camp. Marvin saw, through the cat’s eyes, his own body, and Jameson sitting next to him and holding his arm. Then Marvin opened his eyes, and looked down at Draco’s furry face. “Good boy,” he said, petting him. “Very good.”

Jameson finally let go of Marvin’s arm, freeing both hands to ask, What was that? Did you find anything out?

Marvin nodded. His stomach was twisting into knots. “They’re a scout party sent by the King. They...they’re looking for Wyvernlair.” He shook his head. “They—they know about it—the King knows about it! H-how did he find out?! We’ve been careful, so careful, i-it’s just not possible, it’s just not—!”

Marvin, Jameson said, waving his hands in front of Marvin’s face to draw his attention. Take deep breaths. Calm down. This isn’t the time to worry about how.

Nodding, Marvin took a couple deep breaths. “You’re right. We can figure out how they know later. Right now, we have to head back and warn them.”

We’ll have to move quickly. I’ll start packing things up. If we run—

“Run? We don’t need to run.” Marvin grasped his focus. “I know a shortcut.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Moments later, a doorway traced in light appeared on the side of the dragon’s skull in Wyvernlair. The inner part of the skull, to be exact. The part that served as a wall to the room inside. A couple seconds later, Jameson, Marvin, and Draco ran through the doorway, appearing from seemingly nowhere. Behind them, the doorway showed a dark forest for a brief moment before the light faded and it disappeared.

The skull was mostly empty. Only two Phantoms were inside, sitting at desks and writing. They both stopped and stared in shock at the sudden appearance of the door. And that shock only increased when two men and a cat walked through it.

Henrik was there as well, standing at the central table and looking over some maps. Unlike the other Phantoms, he knew exactly what that doorway was. But he was equally shocked that it—and Marvin and Jameson—showed up. “Was in aller—what are you two doing here?!” he gasped.

“No time to be surprised,” Marvin said, running right over to him with Jameson close behind. “Henrik, there’s a royal scout party in the forest, looking for this place. They’ll be here by midnight if they head straight here.”

“Ah.” Henrik took one second to get over his confusion and jump straight into high alert. “Kerrie! Killian!” He spun to look at the pair of Phantoms at the desks. “One of you go get Jackie and the other branch leaders, the other start spreading the word! Hurry!” The two immediately dropped what they were doing and ran out of the skull.

Only a few moments later, Jackie burst into the room, followed quickly by Lukas, Holly, Nemhet, Tripp, and Anna. He was also dragging Chase in by his arm, in the middle of audibly protesting at this. “—really not all that important, especially not for this,” he was saying. “I’m not anywhere near a leader, I’m just another member.”

“You’re my moral support,” Jackie said bluntly, and Chase instantly shut his mouth and turned bright red.

“What’s this about a scouting party?” Holly asked, getting straight to business.

“How did they find us?” Nemet fretted.

“Do we need to go take care of them?” Lukas was already armed with his sizable longbow.

“You will have to ask them,” Henrik said, gesturing to Marvin and Jameson.

Now that everyone was gathered around the central table, Marvin quickly explained how they saw the scouting party and overheard them discussing a rebel base. Luckily, it didn’t take too long.

“So we have a few hours,” Tripp muttered. “What do we do when they get here? Defend ourselves?” He flexed his fingers, causing a slight spur of wind. 

“Don’t you think it will be suspicious if a scouting party of six suddenly disappeared while looking for a rebel base?” Nemet asked. “If I were the King, I would assume they found it, and send a warrior band next.”

“What if we spread rumors that they were spirited away?” Lukas asked. “I’m sure there are some local magical creatures we can attribute that to. Right, Brodyson?”

“Huh? Oh.” Chase, surprised at being asked, took a moment to consider this. “I guess you could. There are already said to be banshees and kelpies about, and sometimes people claim the Wild Hunt passes overhead, going west. But, um...I don’t think the King would believe that if he already knows about Wyvernlair being in the forest.”

Jameson looked back and forth between all the others, head on a swivel. Surely you have a plan for this happening? You have to have considered this! His expression held more than a hint of desperation.

“We’ve thought about what to do if a scouting party happened to get close,” Jackie said. “But that plan depends on distracting them and getting them away from here. I doubt it’ll work if they’re actively looking for us.”

“Well, we have to try it, don’t we?” Anna pointed out. “We don’t exactly have anything better up our sleeves.”

“No, hold on,” Henrik protested. “We still have time before they will be getting close. We can come up with something.”

Marvin, mostly silent up to this point, took a deep breath. There was an idea brewing in his mind, but if it worked, it would still have a cost. He hesitated for a moment. Then said, “Actually, I think I could help.”

All eyes turned to him. Jackie’s especially, wide in surprise.

“There’s a...a spell. That can be cast across a large area.” Marvin reached up and began toying with his focus. “Not only will it render everyone in its boundaries invisible, but it’ll divert any outside attention away from the area. Meaning the scouting party will walk right past without realizing we’re here.”

Henrik nodded, slowly at first before getting faster. “That could work. Can you cast it?”

“Normally, over an area this big? No,” Marvin admitted. “But the camp is surrounded by dragon bones, which we all know are very magical.” He held up his amulet. “And my focus is created from a portion of that same bone. Like calls to like in magic. It’ll help enhance the spell.”

A moment passed. “Is there a catch?” Lukas asked, catching on that there was more.

“Well...even with the dragon bone, it’ll drain all my magic to cast over something this size,” Marvin said. “A-and I won’t be able to hold the spell for that long. Maybe half an hour at most. We would need to time it perfectly.” And afterwards, he would be stuck here while he recovered, delaying his departure.

Various mutters spread through the group. Jackie kept staring at Marvin, who tried not to squirm under the scrutiny. Then Chase asked, “Jameson, are you okay?”

Jameson glanced over at him. Why do you ask?

“You suddenly, um...jumped,” Chase said. “Like a rabbit who just realized a wolf was watching and bolted.”

Lovely comparison, Jameson drawled.

Marvin looked at him. “Is everything alright?”

Jameson nodded slowly. Marvin, I...I think you have to do it. You...need to change the course of the future.

Silence fell, heavy on their shoulders. While the other leaders looked a bit confused at the way he phrased that, the four who knew Jameson’s magic felt the weight of that statement. If an oracle tells you to change the future, it would be unwise to not listen. “Alright. I will, then,” Marvin stated, plainly and without embellishment. “I’ll just need to know when.”

Jackie started to say something about the guards around Wyvernlair being on lookout, but Jameson interrupted him. The moon will be close to its zenith when they pass right by the bones.

“Um, sorry if I’m missing something, but what does that mean?” Nemet asked.

“Yea,” Holly added, nodding. “How d’you know that?”

Jameson froze. Marvin immediately turned on the rest of the group and said, “He just does, alright? It doesn’t matter how, we just need to listen. The guards can be out anyway, if you don’t believe him, they’ll back that claim up.”

“Alright, alright.” Holly raised her hands in surrender. “Whatever you say.”

They talked more about preparations and timing. Every Phantom would need to be hidden within the area covered by the dragon skeleton if they wanted to be invisible to the scouting party. And they had to be incredibly silent—the spell would fall apart if the scouts had a reason to give the area real scrutiny.

They had a few hours to get everything ready.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The half moon was nearing the peak of its nightly cycle. For the past while, people had been running around camp, either hiding all signs of life or gathering weapons in case the plan failed. But now all that activity has ceased. A hush fell over Wyvernlair. About half the Phantoms had gathered in the middle of the camp, right in the center of the circle created by the skeleton. The other half were stationed near the edges and holding their weapons at the ready.

Marvin sat on the ground outside the skull, feeling the cold seep through his pants and into his legs. He had one hand placed against the dragon’s jawbone. Henrik, Jackie, the other leaders, Chase, and Jameson were all gathered around him. Which was not helping the nerves jumping around his ribcage. “Can you all leave?!” he snapped.

“Ah. Sorry.” Henrik backed up, waving for the others to do the same. Which they did, all muttering similar apologies as they did so. “We are just nervous about this.”

“You aren’t the ones doing it,” Marvin pointed out.

“Fair, fair.” Henrik nodded and turned to Jackie. “We should go be on lookout.”

“Right.” Jackie nodded as well. “Everyone, out.” He clapped his hands and the group slowly dispersed.

As they all left, Marvin noticed one of them lingering. “You can stay, Jair,” he said quietly.

Jameson let out an audible sigh of relief. He knelt down on the ground next to Marvin.

“Can I ask you something?” Marvin said quietly.

You just did, Jameson said with a small smile. But yes.

“You said...something about changing the future,” Marvin recalled. “You gave us the position of the moon. Jair...did you...have a vision about this?”

Jameson hesitated. Then nodded, slowly. It was a while ago, the day after they rescued you. I woke up, and I saw...well. I don’t think I should tell you.

“Why not?”

It might worry you. And you need all your focus for this. He paused. But...at the time, I didn’t recognize this place. When we approached the camp and I saw the skeleton, I realized what it was, and I...I knew this wouldn’t last forever.

“Don’t be absurd, of course it will,” Marvin said, gritting his teeth. “I’ll make it last.” He looked up towards the sky. “Do you think this is a good time to start?”

Jameson looked up as well. He saw the moon, nodded, and said nothing more.

“Great. Magnificent.” Marvin took a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”

He’d only done this once before, years ago. Back when he, Jackie, and Henrik were first starting this whole resistance thing, they had a close call with warriors almost finding their hideout. But back then, it was just a single house. This was much different.

Marvin grabbed his focus, rubbing the dragon bone in the center. Slowly, it started to glow. At first the light was tinted green, but as the magic moved from his amulet, sunk into his chest, and crawled along his torso over to his arm, the color shifted. Now, it was a silvery white—somehow both ethereal and metallic. The light ran down his arm to his hand, and from there it spread to the solid dragon bone. And continued to spread. Like wine spilling from a goblet and staining a tablecloth. 

The magic covered the bone, following its curves perfectly. Marvin felt his focus get warm. And then hot, as the silver magic coated the entire dragon skull and headed down to cover the rest of the bones as well. Then Marvin realized it wasn’t just the focus that was hot. There was a ball of heat in the center of his chest, feeling like it was coming from inside him. He tried to ignore it and concentrate on the spell.

The magic continued its course. Now the dragon’s ribs were silver. Now the wings, spread out to the side, were glowing that same shade. Now it traveled down the spine, to the legs, then to the very, very tip of the tail. Marvin could faintly hear gasping from nearby Phantoms. Faintly. Because for some reason, it felt like his ears were stuffed full of cotton. Or perhaps it was his entire head.

The heat had spread from his chest to his entire body. If someone reached out, they would feel warmth emanating from his skin. They would notice how he was panting as if struggling for air. They would see the somewhat glazed look in his eyes.

And someone did. Jameson, still right next to Marvin, pressed his hand to Marvin’s forehead. Marvin pulled away, but not before Jameon noticed. You’re burning, he said, surprised. Is that...normal for magic-wielders? 

“Big spell,” Marvin muttered. “An’ for a while.” It had been about ten minutes since he started casting. His palm, pressed against the dragon bone, was starting to itch. “So...yea.”

Jameson stared at him, forehead creased in worry. Are you going to be alright?

“O’ course,” Marvin said. “Jus’...jus’ tell me when th’ scouts’re...gone.” He blinked dully. Concentrate. Concentrate. If he lost it for even a moment, the spell would fail.

Concentrate.

The ground was cold.

Concentrate.

His hand was starting to sweat where he held his amulet.

Concentrate.

Where was Draco?

Concentrate. Concentrate. Spell. Spell. Spell.

Jameson put a hand on his shoulder. Marvin jumped a bit, and almost turned to look at him before realizing he’d almost forgotten. Luckily, his mind returned to the matter at hand before the spell could even flicker. But there was still a moment where the bones’ silver covering shimmered like ripples in a pond. “Don’ touch me,” he mumbled.

Instantly, Jameson drew away. Sorry, he said. It’s been fifteen minutes since you started. I think it’s fine.

Unfortunately, Marvin didn’t have the space in his mind to translate speaking in hands, so he just stared blankly at Jameson’s gesturing. Spell. Spell. Concentrate.

It felt like ages passed, time moving at the speed of snails. Jameson had unconsciously moved closer to Marvin, but he didn’t reach out again. He almost did, but stopped just before. Pulling back, he looked up to the moon. Marvin, he said, using a special gesture just for Marvin’s name. It’s past time now. You can stop. Nothing happened.

Concentrate. Concentrate. Spell. Spell.

Footsteps. Marvin didn’t look away, his eyes fixed on the point where his hand was placed against the bone. The silvery light was in his eyes when he blinked. “We just saw them go past,” a voice said. It took a moment for him to recognize Jackie’s voice. “I don’t know what you did, but thank the elders it worked.” He laughed.

Hear that, Marvin? You can stop now, Jameson said. When Marvin didn’t respond, he hesitated, then slowly raised his arm and grabbed Marvin’s wrist. Once again, there was no response. So Jameson pulled, moving Marvin’s hand away from the dragon bone. His fingertips lingered against its surface for a moment more before finally leaving ivory surface. The moment contact was broken, the silvery magic rippled, and then disappeared.

Marvin gasped. He let go of his amulet, and all the magic coursing through his body disappeared. He should have felt cold in the absence of its heat, but instead, the heat lingered. Without any warning, he fell to the side. Jameson hurried to catch him.

“Wait, what?!” Jackie gasped. “What happened.”

Jameson shook his head, at a loss for words.

Marvin blinked, and looked up at the two of them. “‘m goin’ t’sleep now,” he mumbled, words running into each other. “Tired.”

“Marvin, are you okay?!” Jackie asked, kneeling on the ground next to him. “You’re—Elders and Sisters, you’re hot!”

“Don’ worry ‘bout it.” Marvin started to close his eyes.

“Don’t worry about it?! Marvin!” Jackie reached out and shook him until he opened his eyes again. “What happened?!”

“Mmmhm. Lots magic...tired.” Marvin gave a small smile. “I’ll be fine when I...wake up. Might be...a day ‘r two.”

Jameson shook his head, stunned. You knew this would happen? Why did you do it, then? he asked, awkwardly gesturing while still holding Marvin. We could have found another way.

“Coul’n’t...jus’ let it happen,” Marvin said. “No other way f’r sure. Had t’do somet’in’. For ev’ryone here.” He looked at Jameson. “An’ I promised.”

With that, his voice faded away. He closed his eyes and slipped into unconsciousness.

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