#rolo lives au

[rololamperougeblr]

doodled a ‘rolo lives’ au in my sketchbook. had the idea that rolo would let his hair grow out because lelouch was the only one who’d cut his hair

he has no clue how to style it

#nunnally’s probably like ‘boy your hair ugly as shit. let me style it’ (but like in a nice way) #and rolo just goes ‘ok’ #since haircutter lelouch is real (from the audio dramas) is anyone gonna mention how bad he is at cutting hair #like rolo ily but that haircut is NOT it #stick to chess lelouch #(i lightheartedly jest. he tried) #this was inspired by the fic ‘sea glass’ by sylvalum on ao3 #ok actual tags #rolo lamperouge #rolo posting #code geass #rolo lives au #myart

[gorgynei]

do you ever think about modern au trinket as one of those huge dogs that are as big as a person and slobber all over everything. i do.

#anyone who gives vex a normal sized dog or delete trinket in modern aus are COWARDS. vex is the most annoying dog person #on the planet. her and percy have now 4? bears living in their mansion. #aceart #vex'ahlia de rolo #vex'ahlia #trinket #critical role #vox machina

[givemaycoffee]

I am curious about the ST fic but I'm gonna slap my face into attention and focus instead on what catches my eye the most (and in no way is my guess of your super top secret smutty fic): Please tell me about Pre-Bond and how your Howl's Moving Castle AU is going!

WIP Game

Pre-Bond

The idea here was a play on the idea of mating bonds, but combine omegaverse bonds with some ideas stolen from Vulcan mating bonds - namely, the titular pre-bond. Omegaverse bonds typically happen on the neck, but I was thinking a pre-bond could happen via the scent glands on the wrist.

You know the scene at the end of The Taste of You where Percy does not bite Vex? This fic was What if he did bite her but wisely created a pre-bond (which can be dissolved) rather than a full bond? So they can both reevaluate when they aren't in heat/rut. But then shit goes sideways a bit because of essentially soulmate stuff (true mates are a whole omegaverse thing also and it’s literally just soulmates). Here’s a tiiiny snippet:

She found the skin of his wrist and bit down. It was exquisite. It was all of him, his scent on her tongue and his very being rushing into her own.

Howl’s Moving Castle AU

As for HMC AU… 🥲 it’s completely still stalled. But I don’t think I’ve ever shared a snippet with you??? Apologies if I’m just forgetting, but here’s their first meeting:

She was reaching for the knife when a finely gloved hand landed on her shoulder from behind. “There you are darling, I was looking for you.” She startled at the smooth voice, looking up at the stranger who had somehow managed to sneak up on all of them. Clear blue eyes behind gold rimmed glasses met her gaze, and he smiled fondly at her. She felt a warm rush of familiarity. Except - no. She had never met this man in her life. And she would remember him if she had. 

He was far too richly dressed for anyone in her circles - ornately patterned silk waistcoat and carefully knotted cravat and shining gold buttons. His nose was handsomely hooked under dark eyebrows, and he had the pale skin of a northerner. Most striking though were his shock of white hair and his midnight colored coat that seemed to glimmer with starlight as he shifted his arm around her shoulders, pulling her against his side. He was oddly hot to the touch and looked much too young for that hair. He leaned in as he pulled her closer, and quickly murmured in her ear, “My lady, please play along. I admit, I have been itching to ruin these men’s days for ages, and catching them in such a compromising situation gives me the perfect excuse.” She had been about to shove him off, nobility as he surely must be or not, but stopped short at that. She did not need to be rescued, but also could understand the scope of the situation well enough  - no one would believe her story were she to report this herself. “Mr. Dassur and Mr. Shede, I believe?” the white haired man turned back to the two guards, who were suddenly standing straight-backed and looking rather pale. “I believe Captain Howarth will want to hear what transpired here.” With a wave of his hand, a curl of black smoke seemed to swirl around the two guards for a moment, and then they relaxed slightly, eyes glassy.  “You will tell him, in detail, what happened, won’t you?” “Yes,” they said in unison.  Vex’s heart rate picked up. Out of the frying pot and into the fire. Gods damnit. This man was far more dangerous than the guards. “Excellent. Please, be on your way. Tell him I send my regards.” They nodded, turned, and marched off, still in unsettling unison. Vex was trying to determine her best avenue of escape when she felt him pull away quickly. She looked up to find him blushing, of all things, and he executed a rather flustered bow. “Excuse my forwardness, my lady. It was completely inappropriate,” he straightened to his full, rather tall height, fixing his cloak - and it must be magical with the way she swore she just saw a little shooting star near the bottom, “but I could not let them continue getting away with such harassment. There had been prior reports, but nothing concrete enough to actually land them in trouble.”  He wrung his hands for a moment, staring off, then jerked his head back toward her.  “Are you alright?” “Ah - uhm.” She paused. Took in the concerned look in his wide, blue eyes and the polite amount of space he had created between them. “As well as I can be, I suppose.”

#insomnikat-mused #asks #WIP game #perc'ahlia #percy de rolo #vex'ahlia #vox machina #the pre-bond WIP is still very very early stages and I actually realized after you picked it that it never made it into my word doc - its #mostly living in a notebook at the moment. but i don't know if I want to take an angst route or just a fluffy route or what which is why #that snippet is so small - the original angle was angst because percy immediately freaks out because it feels like they just created a full #mating bond rather than a pre-bond and he is GUILTY. but idk. I don't like my angst to be that heavy handed i think #also I love HMC AU Percy - he's deeply angry and distrustful but also very sweet and shy and he just doesn't interact with people much #he mostly keeps himself hidden/disguised (much like Howl) and he lives with Orthax (calcifer) and Keyleth (Merkle)

[essayofthoughts]

so you've discussed a bit how percy would handle the briarwoods living and atoning. how does cassandra deal with it? what's their relationship to the people of whitestone? what relationship, if any, would they have with the chamber? how do they cope with scanlan being Like That?

For Sylas Briarwood Lives AU?

I mean, to be fair, a lot of Percy's handling it is to Not Deal With It, because he's Bad at that. He avoids them a lot, and still hates them even if he doesn't fear them quite the same anymore, but it's important to remember that Percy is kind of shit at dealing with his emotions and especially his trauma.

Cass is... also in a bad way. Not helped by Percy's... everything. I think she also avoids the Briarwoods - very much helped by the people of Whitestone, which she has incredibly complicated feelings about. After all, under the Briarwoods' thumb she led so many Whitestone citizens to their deaths - and yet here they are, trying to protect her from the very people she let others die to. I think she copes badly for a stretch, though the Briarwoods not being allowed anywhere near her probably helps. I think, too-

I'm playing interestingly with Sylas in this AU because like... I don't think he was entirely 100% a good person, but Delilah seems to have dipped into Necromancy specifically due to his illness and all. I don't doubt she was capable of being dangerously deranged before then (she was, after all, on the Cerberus Assembly, and with the C3 news of the Healing-Preventing-Poison - look, I wouldn't be surprised if Ludinus decided to fuck with his colleagues to see what would happen) but I think it became both more obvious and more overt due to Sylas' illness. And like I said, I don't think he was 100% good - he loved Delilah, and she certainly wouldn't have been, as part of the Assembly, but I think that before his illness they were... well, not normal. But closer to it. After all, they are mirrors - parallels - to Vex and Percy, and they go to great lengths for each other but aren't quite deranged.

Consequently... I don't think Sylas, if given back to his old self... would necessarily be happy with the emotional warping and inherent alignment shift of vampirism. I don't doubt it works most effectively as demons and devils do, by leading people towards sins they'd already be more inclined to commit, but I think being sharply given back to his old self, without the inherently evil necromantic magic of vampirism urging him towards it - I think it'd set his vampiric self in sharp relief to his human self, and I don't think he'd like it! It might even shake his faith in Delilah some - of course she'd go to any length to save him, but was it him that she raised from his deathbed? What does it mean that she loved that significantly worse version of him? Obsession and grief?

And of course, it's the Briarwoods, I have no doubt they're able to reconcile this one way or another but this is all to say - I think Sylas is more capable of being Normal about things than Delilah is, even if only by a smidge.

Consequently, I think he is also the one to realise just how severely and badly they fucked with Cassandra.

Making amends for Whitestone and the de Rolos as a whole - that's a huge undertaking. That's the kind of thing that might never happen. But Cassandra? What they did to her alone? That is simple and tangible in comparison. That is something they can do something about. I think Sylas might perhaps lead the charge in finding ways to make amends to Cassandra in this AU.

Delilah may take a little more convincing - besides, overall, they are very much dragged kicking and screaming over the line into "no longer abhorrently amoral selfish bastards", doing it primarily out of necessity so they don't get summarily executed for their acts in service to Vecna. Self-preservation is a powerful drive.

But... yeah. I think they volunteer help to the Chamber and to Whitestone as a way of trying to make amends and I think Whitestone as a whole do not like them, but acknowledge, grudgingly, that they are doing something. I think Whitestone doesn't like them at all - they're the wicked witch who lives deep in the wood and they can't be removed but no one's happy about it. I think the Chamber has to accept that due to Pike and Keyleth and Vex, and especially Pike's ideals of redemption, they are going to have to put up with the Briarwoods despite everything, and the best they can do is put them to work fixing everything they broke. (Perhaps, some of the older heads at the table suggest, fixing what they broke might teach them to value it more.)

I don't think Cassandra is ever comfortable with them. Not after the trauma and the stockholm syndrome and everything else - I think she avoids them as much as she can and I think as much as the Briarwoods can they respect that and give her space, though I think Delilah does retain a twisted fondness for her almost-daughter, and that Sylas is... weirdly quietly proud of her for surviving so well? For having such boundaries? For persisting? I think he'd respect that.

I think Percy, in Chamber meetings where they're present, gets incredibly bitchy - I can very much imagine sniping matches between him and Delilah that go nowhere but are a great way of letting off steam when work's been going nowhere. I think it also helps to humanise the Briarwoods to people, though I don't think it'd help for Cassandra.

I think, in the end, Cassandra probably takes Percy's suggestions of holidays away from Whitestone much sooner and much more willingly - space from the Briarwoods, a break, I think is a blessing. (I think too, this forces much more of rulership and the Chamber onto Percy's plate. He's not happy about it, except he is, if it means his sister is healing.)

As for Scanlan... I mean. I think Sylas, back to his human self, is happy to drink and tell stupid stories and jokes with Scanlan. I don't think he ever takes Scanlan seriously, but I don't think he necessarily minds Scanlan.

Delilah, I think, does.

#sylas briarwood gets to live au #sylas briarwood #delilah briarwood #cassandra de rolo #burr-ell #ask #my fic

[roguelioness]

what's Uprooted? 🤩

It's my Tamlen/Mahariel fic that's set during the dalish elf origins. Ilearys (my Mahariel) is bonded to Tamlen, and refuses to leave with Duncan, instead opting to search for him.

I was just very unhappy with the idea of Tamlen dying the way he did (though the angst is so good haha) so I decided to write something very self-indulgent :D

Thanks for asking ♥

#i needed a tamlen lives au #also this spurred a world state where there are 3 wardens (excluding alistair) #and then grew into a what if tamlen and mahariel but throuple with zevran #anyway that's where we are now #i really want to finish writing this so i can start posting it #wip ask game #rolo replies

[critter-genfic-events]

This week, we have thirteen angsty fics for you! Look under the cut, heed the warnings, and don't forget to comment or kudos if you like them!

our lives were never ours by vivolet (145817,Mature) Warnings: canon-typical violence, character death, implied/referenced suicide, implied/referenced torture, Pairings:

The Mighty Nein, but make it Hunger Games fusion.

Reccer says: Hunger Games AUs are a guilty pleasure of mine and I have such a soft spot for this series. It focuses on Yasha and Caduceus, so if you love those two and want lots of angst and torment and focus on their characters, this series has you covered. The level of detail, the continuity porn that utilizes every scrap of canon detail and puts it to use in a new setting, and the beautiful prose make it a compelling read. It will hurt your soul.

wild mountain thyme (among blooming heather) by Aurelie (NowImJustSomebodyThat) (8107,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: Korrin/Vilya

Vilya's memories do not all come back at once

Reccer says: I love considering Vilya's story from her point of view, and the nonlinear narrative here is heartbreaking and beautiful

those that crawl and flutter towards the sun by vietbluecoeur (6163,Not Rated) Warnings: Major Character Death Pairings: Essek Thelyss & Jester Lavorre

AU; Essek's curiosity gets the better of him and he develops a friendship with a creature who only lives for three days. As that creature is Jester, she makes it memorable.

Reccer says: The worldbuilding is beautiful, the prose is gorgeous, and the tragedy is delicious.

the seed that falls on good ground by Ford_Ye_Fiji (1750,Teen) Warnings: Body Horror, Spiders Pairings:

While traveling with the Crownkeepers, Orym receives his own creepy crown dream.

Reccer says: I love Orym as an incorruptible beacon of light and I love it even more when he's being tempted. The angst is delicious.

a walk-on role in the script of your long, long grift by grayintogreen (1136,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings:

Cree delivers the threshold crest.

Reccer says: It's always a good time to feel sad about Cree.

come around when you break by maybetwice (3861,General) Warnings: None Pairings:

In the aftermath of the final fight in EXU, Opal gets taken care of.

Reccer says: I'm a sucker for stories where a sad character gets tended to by their friends and Opal went through A LOT in that last fight. She deserves to get pampered by all of her friends.

my devils they whisper in my ear, deafening me with all my fears (i'm living in a nightmare) by Ford_Ye_Fiji (12128,Mature) Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Disassociation, Suicidal Thoughts Pairings: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Vox Machina

Scanlan does not destroy the pepperbox. For Percy it goes about as well as expected.

Reccer says: I liked it

One, Two, Switch-a-roo by Allise (3712,General) Warnings: Chronic Pain Pairings: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Vox Machina, Keyleth & Vox Machina, Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Keyleth

Vox Machina manage to find some magical box that switches the body of whoever's closest. What happens when Keyleth and Percy get caught in the blast?

Reccer says: It's not that I want other people to deal with chronic pain, but there's something of a wish fulfillment in having someone else experience the pain and

From the Ocean to the Shore by commoncomitatus (7775,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: Jester Lavorre & Mollymauk Tealeaf

A missing scene from C2E16 wherein Jester is hypervigilant about her friends going down and receives some much-needed comfort.

Reccer says: I love Jester angst and this fic has a unique perfectly Jester rhythm to the prose that makes it a fun read while still being very much in the vein of angst. If you like reading characters being sad but in a less gut-punching, visceral way, this is a fic for you.

the infinite grains of sand by jadeandquartz (1327,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings:

A look at Fearne's thoughts as she's forced to make That Decision.

Reccer says: The absolute tragedy of Fearne having to choose between which of her friends to revive is something I love seeing explored, and this fic does it so eloquently and true to Fearne's feyness.

the worst thing to happen by k_152 (2588,General) Warnings: Major Character Death Pairings:

The fight with Otohan ends with everyone but Imogen dead. She acts accordingly.

Reccer says: I LOVE a good Villain Arc story and this presents such an enticing what-if while also punching you in the feels.

i wont hurt you by dearestpiers (3038,General) Warnings: Vaguely suicidal thoughts; childhood illness; animal death; offscreen Nein deaths Pairings: Caduceus & Clay Family, Caduceus & Essek

An exploration of Caduceus's relationship with death, from childhood through meeting the Nein to long after.

Reccer says: I liked it

Home is Where the Heart Is by LessAttitudeMoreAltitude (1720,General) Warnings: Panic attacks, vomiting, self-harm, Caleb-typical self-esteem issues Pairings: Caleb & Essek, Caleb & Beau, brief mentions of all canon M9 romantic relationships

Caleb buys a house in Rexxentrum, but being alone there makes him panic.

Reccer says: I liked it

If you liked this rec list, follow along for more! We'll be posting a new list with a new theme each Monday. Want to make your own recs? Check out the rules, and then use the form to submit!

If you didn't get enough angst this week, next week we're going to have recs featuring Percy!

Then, we'll have fights, modern AU's, and cuddling!

Also, the last few rec lists have had errors in their word count and ratings - I just went back and fixed them. If you're looking for more, why not check them out?

#critical role #critter genfic rec lists #gen fic #the mighty nein #Vox Machina #Bells Hells #orym of the air ashari #caleb widogast #percy de rolo #vilya of the air ashari #essek thelyss #beauregard lionett #caduceus clay #otohan thull #imogen temult #cree deeproots #fearne calloway #jester lavorre #mollymauk tealeaf #keyleth of the air ashari

[mintywolf]

So okay here are the notes on my overly-intricate, still-unwritten CR Daemon AU

The catalyst was mainly me thinking about how absolutely unsettling Pâté would be in a universe where everyone has talking animal companions that are an extension of their soul. Matilda lost hers (a rat named Patter), so the major part of everyone’s fear and distrust of her is not that she looks off, but an instinctive, soul-deep dread and disgust because she has no daemon.* So, to blend in better and to alleviate her own crushing loneliness, Laudna (who has renamed herself because she doesn’t feel like the same person anymore without him) started carrying around a dead rat and pretending he talks. :(

(*apparently.)

And Imogen is the first person in a very long time to regard her with compassion rather than horror. She’s still weirded out by her lack of daemon but once she finds out how she lost him she’s very upset and angry on her behalf. Her daemon (a tressym) is more sympathetic than she is at first and wants to approach and comfort her because she’s so distressed that Laudna doesn’t have a daemon, about which Imogen is initially a little jealous, but once it sinks in for her how absolutely lonely she’s been and for how long (and maybe after they’ve gotten to know each other a little better unless this is like, how they came to understand each other’s soul so well) Imogen’s daemon voluntarily breaks the taboo by letting Laudna touch her. (Out of politeness she also gives Pâté a little nose boop but he kind of freaks her out.)

Now originally this was just going to be a sweet little oneshot about Imogen and her daemon finding a daemon-less weirdo in her garden shed and showing her the first kindness she’s seen in 30 years but I am just incapable of NOT getting overly involved in the Briarwoods backstory, haha.

Sooo back in Vox Machina era Ripley, under the Briarwoods, was doing experiments on Dust and daemons and discovered that the burst of energy released by severing someone from their daemon could be used to open a temporary gate into another world. They pointed her research in that direction, intending to use that power to draw the Whispered One into Exandria. Meanwhile Delilah, intrigued by the severing, started doing experiments of her own on unsuspecting castle staff and citizens of Whitestone. The subjects that didn’t die immediately without their daemons became obedient, soulless thralls that were easy to command, if short-lived (so this is this universe’s equivalent of necromancy) but it wasn’t quite what she was looking for. She wanted to become immortal by separating her daemon (a wolf* ) from herself so that it could travel far distances from her and persist after her death to attach itself to a new vessel. (*originally I had Delilah’s daemon as a pine marten because despite having read the books numerous times I always forget that Pan doesn’t settle as an ermine, he ends up a pine marten too. I chose it because they are elegant and auburn and devious and apparently have a pleasant scent. But it’s kind of a rare animal in fiction so I didn’t want to copy the book that closely even in an au based on it. A wolf is kind of a too-generic animal for her but there’s a reason it’s a wolf.) So poor Matilda and the others were invited to the castle “for study,” which led her to believe that Delilah had taken an interest in her magical abilities and was going to become her tutor but alas. :( The other six and their daemons in the study died outright and though Matilda survived the severing, Patter died shortly afterwards, so Delilah, getting impatient because of the approach of VM, considered her a failed attempt and abandoned her, not realizing that Matilda’s own magic had caused her Dust to cling to her and retained some scraps of her personality and agency so she was more than an empty husk like the other thralls.

Making some final adjustments, she tried it again on Cassandra de Rolo, and this time it worked. Cass was severed from her daemon, which survived, leaving Cass under Delilah’s control while she had her daemon imprisoned. Finally she performed the severing on herself, but her magic and its resentment at being parted from her caused her own daemon to become corrupted by the ritual. (So idk maybe it even started out as a pine marten but ended up . . . that. Vax’s daemon started out as a snake but changed into a raven when he became the Matron’s champion and Percy’s daemon was mutated by Orthax so settled daemons being forced into a new shape under extreme duress is possible in this au. I kind of like the wolf —> Hound of Ill Omen foreshadowing though.) Meanwhile VM were on their way. Percy knew that Ripley was doing some kind of nefarious Science under the Briarwoods but they didn’t know exactly what yet. Then they were suddenly attacked by an extremely messed up looking wolf, which took back Delilah’s stolen grimoire and escaped and they were all like wtfffff because they’d never seen a daemon without a person nearby before and it’s extremely unsettling. Especially one that looks like THAT. So they knew something bad was going on in Whitestone even before they got there and saw all the daemon-less people shambling around pathetically. So even though the plan to open a gate for the Whispered One was foiled (temporarily) by VM, her other experiment worked — she was able to send her daemon far away from herself before she was killed and it moved on to her clones, prolonging her life for another year. After Vox Machina finally burned through all of those as well it went off in search of a new vessel and eventually found Laudna but, unable to bond with her like a regular daemon, it forced its way in. So her Hound of Ill Omen is Delilah’s old daemon, gnawing at her ribs, resentful of Delilah for separating them but resentful of her for not being Delilah, whispering promises of power if she will just accept it as her own.

#continuing from a discord discussion and putting it here so it's easier to find

[quietblueriver]

Part II of the Camp Prudaj AU, featuring equine therapist Imogen and children’s vlogger Laudna. Part I here.

In which Laudna appears and charms Imogen through a phone screen.

-

The episode opened on a tiny animated paw batting at a skein of red yarn, which unraveled to spell Crafting Creatures as a melody, something that sounded like it was coming from a phonograph, played in the background. It was cute and seemed fairly normal for a show aimed at children, even if the paw was a little gaunt.

And then the creature to whom the paw belonged came running out after the yarn, scruffy black rodent body and bone-white bird skull head skittering across the screen, a small with Laudna and Pate scrawling in black font behind its tail as it moved.

“What the fuck?”

The words escaped on an exhale, low and reflexive, her head moving away from the screen of her phone, like she might see something different than a half-living, mutant rat chasing a ball of yarn if she gave it a little distance.

She did not see something different.

The creature turned to face the camera and titled its head as it said, “Well, what’re you waitin’ for? Stop starin’ and come on in.” The accent was absurd, something from a community theater production about a chimney sweep in Whitestone, and Imogen huffed a laugh, torn between revulsion and amusement.

And then the camera zoomed out and faded to black, opening again on a woman—Laudna, she assumed—sitting in a worn, ornate rocking chair that looked as though it could’ve been pulled from a few centuries back. Its occupant might’ve come with it. She was all delicate, high cheekbones and big, dark eyes. The tilt of her head and the cut of her jawline, the way her hands moved effusively and still somehow gracefully with her words, which were, themselves, lilted out in a distinctive accent (Whitestone, she thought, but about as far from Pate’s overexaggerated growl as possible)–all of it was classic and classically feminine, a match to her chair and the lace of her high collar.

“Hello, there. Welcome to Crafting Creatures. I’m Laudna and…” Her hand disappeared for a moment over the side of her chair and when it appeared again, it was maneuvering the wooden sticks of a puppet, a familiar and horrifying rat thing coming to sit on its hind paws (Haunches? Her rat anatomy was lacking.). “You’ve already met Pate.”

The rat took a bow, tiny front paws dipping low as its body tilted. “‘Ello. Pate de Rolo at your seeervice.”

Laudna made a small effort to hide the movement of her mouth but seemed much more concerned with Pate’s movements, and, Imogen imagined, maintaining that fucking accent. She was smiling, really smiling, as Laudna drawled, voice unnaturally low, “What’re we up to t’day, boss?”

Laudna’s eyes met the camera directly again, and in her own voice, she offered, body moving side to side very slightly in what might’ve been anxiety but which seemed much more like irrepressible delight, “Well, I thought we’d make some acorn dolls.”

The screen shifted to a list of materials, ones that had also been posted in the description, Imogen noticed, and Laudna read them and then said, easily, “And if you don’t have these, don’t worry! You can pause here to go find some acorns or draw the dolls on paper or just imagine on your own!”

The screen shifted again and Laudna tapped a long, bony finger against her temple, black nail a stark contrast to her pale skin.

“Remember, your mind is a wonderful thing. It can take you wherever you’d like to go. And anytime you’d like! So, today, if you’d like to make dolls the same way that Pate and I will or differently than we will—with shells or pen and paper or in your fantastic imagination—please do! We’re excited to make something with you.”

“Enough talkin’,” Pate said, dancing across Laudna’s lap to perch on an arm of the chair and stare at the camera with the black holes where its eyes should be. “Let’s get to it.”

Imogen followed along as Laudna and Pate decorated their acorns—faces with various expressions, pants and skirts and dresses of every color—and then stacked them together to form little dolls. The camera shifted occasionally, shots from above of the decoration and process, Pate’s little claw making an appearance every now and again, and wider shots of the small table where they worked.

She tuned out after a few minutes, caught in watching Laudna. Her mannerisms and tone and vocabulary all made Imogen feel like she might be watching one of the classic movies her math teacher had loved so much, one well-worn copy or another in the old VHS player on an afternoon close to a holiday break.

It took her a few minutes to notice, because Laudna was incredibly charming and incredibly gorgeous and because, relatedly, Imogen was incredibly gay, but there was something different about Laudna, something that made Imogen’s brain whisper, Look again, although she hadn’t, from the moment Laudna appeared on screen, considered looking away.

She was alluring in the same way all of those actresses had been to (equally incredibly gay) teenage Imogen, undeniably beautiful and out of her time.

But unlike the lead in An Evening in Whitestone, there was something just slightly too much about Laudna. Her skin was too pale, too thin, her eyes too wide and too dark, her hands moved just this side of too quickly, closer, upon examination, to anxious than ethereal. The smile stretched too far across her face and the features were too sharp, sliding from delicate to the kind of worrying thinness that warned of illness.

It didn’t make her less gorgeous. Not to Imogen, anyway, who appreciated unique features and who, with her own scars climbing from her fingers to her sternum, liked to believe that imperfect didn’t mean unattractive. (It didn’t, on other people. The opposite really. She was a sucker for a scar and a story. As for herself, well. She was trying.)

It did, though, make her different, and it made Imogen, who understood very well how differentness could shape a person, consider her (examine felt too clinical and also at least a little creepy but was probably, if she were honest with herself, the best word for what she was doing)—the way she moved, the way she dressed, the musicality of her voice, Pate. Laudna seemed so wonderfully herself, but Imogen wondered how much of the way she carried herself was meant to distract, whether Laudna had always been built for a different time, what made her want to make a children’s series with a nightmare puppet. She wanted to know her, she realized. And she might get to.

As Laudna and Pate settled back in the rocking chair and began to discuss next week’s project—some furniture for the acorn dolls—and what materials they would be using, Imogen found herself looking forward to coffee.

Laudna laughed at something Pate said, which Imogen considered, after this brief time watching, to be endearing rather than disconcerting. She took a look at the time and plugged in her phone. There was a whole playlist of these videos, and she had a whole evening of nothing.

“What do you say to a quick story, before we go?”

“Yeah! What abou’ the one with the crickets?”

“Wonderful choice. Do you know, I made some finger puppets that will work beautifully for this.” She rummaged in the basket beside the chair and emerged with a handful of small, knitted multicolored creatures. “Alright. Ready, then?”

Imogen kicked off her shoes and settled back into her bed. Ready.

#imodna #southerngothic #imodna fic #camp prudaj au

[ravendruid]

Darkness

This work is part of the @percahliaweek event. Day 2 - Darkness Set in my Exchange AU. Percy, Vex'ahlia, and Keyleth are part of an exchange program and they are currently staying with Korrin in Zephrah, while Keyleth is in Syngorn with Syldor. During Percy's second year in Zephrah, he receives news about his family's death.

In the still dark of night, Percival tosses and turns on his bed, trapped in a dream he can’t escape. He sees the faces of his family, his mother, father, and siblings—all six of them—paler than ghosts. Percy’s vision changes: the faces are gone, and he is alone in the darkness. He tries to run, but his legs are heavier than a boulder. He tries to reach forward, to touch his surroundings but gets no purchase. He tries to scream, but no sound comes from his lips. He tries to cry in despair, but no tears come out. All Percival can do is shiver like a blade of grass in a hurricane.

Vex’ahlia has had trouble falling asleep since the first night she set foot out of the carriage months ago. She has always been a light sleeper, but being in a strange town, without her brother no less, has turned her sleep as light as a feather. Which means she effortlessly hears Percival’s whimpers through the wall. This is the third night in a row that he has nightmares. Vex’ahlia knows this because she has been counting them. Because when she is finally able to close her eyes, she still hears Percy’s screaming in her sleep. A brief moment of silence alarms Vex, and she sits up, preparing herself. It comes then, the scream louder than a hawk, and another, and a third one. Every night is the same routine. Percy’s whimpers give room to silence, only to bring deafening screams right after, mixed with loud sobs and names she assumes belong to his now-deceased family. And every night, Vex’ahlia sits and brings her knees to her chest, feeling useless in the darkness, incapable of doing anything more than keeping her ears open for the sound of Korrin’s loud footsteps as he runs to comfort Percy. Every night, Vex’ahlia cries into her pillow, alone in the darkness, for missing her family, too.

When morning comes, Percival is exhausted. His spectacles do a poor job of hiding the dark circles under his eyes, and he knows his face is almost sunken to the bone. Still, Percy tries his best to make himself presentable and leave the bed quickly, even if his energy is nonexistent. He already feels like such a heavy burden to the people he shares a house with. Percy cannot further bother them, so he has to get up. He has to be a human being, whatever that means.

When Percy enters the kitchen, Vex’ahlia is already by the stovetop stirring eggs like she has done since the morning after the letter arrived. Next to her, on the counter, sit two empty plates and two glasses of orange juice. Percy would give anything right now to be allowed to drink coffee, but his parents have consistently declined his requests, claiming that he was too young and he would have plenty of time for it when he grew up. The irony of the memory makes him chuckle. Percival was, assumingly, the last living de Rolo, the founding and most noble family of Whitestone, at only thirteen years old. People expected him to lead the city, yet he wasn’t even allowed caffeine.

Percy’s chuckle must have been louder than he intended to because Vex’ahlia turns around with a surprised look that quickly gives in to a smile. He sees in her face that she must have barely slept a minute longer than he did. The idea that he has been keeping her awake at night with his nightmares makes his stomach turn with guilt. 

Without a word, Vex divides the scrambled eggs between the two plates and grabs the butter and bread set aside. She doesn’t ask Percy if he would like toast with his eggs or if he even wants breakfast at all. Percy knows he has no option but to eat what the girl sets in front of him. Vex is not that much older than him, maybe a year or two, but she has a bossy attitude within her that makes his knees buckle in intimidation. He has no doubt Vex’ahlia could get whatever she wanted from anyone without so much as lifting a finger for it, which is almost as impressive as it is scary.

Breakfast is eaten in a silence that is only broken by the clanking of cutlery hitting ceramics and the singing of birds that come in through the open kitchen window. Somewhere outside, Korrin is busy at work hammering nails on wooden boards as he whistles cheerful tunes with the birds. 

“What do you reckon he’s building out there,” Vex’ahlia finally breaks the silence, nodding at the window. Percy shrugs, not having found his voice yet. “Would you like me to close the window?” She presses on. Percy shakes his head in reply, and silence falls between them again.

It takes only a week for Korrin’s project to be completed. A week of nightmares that haunt Percival every night, a week of screams and cries that keep Vex’ahlia awake in the darkness, a week of breakfasts in silence broken only by the occasional questions that get no spoken answer. Percival notices that Vex only asks ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions and is usually satisfied with the nods or shakes of his head and the occasional shrugs. He doesn’t mind her poking and probing. Her attempts to cheer him up and get him to remove the mask of darkness he’s trapped in are amusing but not enough to actually do something. Korrin tries, too. He asks Percy all kinds of questions about tinkering, school and his learnings, always careful to avoid mentioning Percy’s family or the letter.

So that morning, almost a week and a half after the day that changed Percy’s life forever, Korrin brings the two kids to the backyard, where he presents them with a handbuilt shed. “It’s far from perfect, but I thought you two could use it for whatever you want and add the finishing touches,” Korrin explains bashfully. He’s trying so hard that it breaks Percy’s heart. “I can buy paints and other materials you need if you give me a list.”

“Thank you, Korrin. This is really nice,” Vex’ahlia is always so polite. Percy can tell she is learned in manners and etiquette, and he wonders if she comes from a noble family, too. He wants to thank the man, too. For giving him shelter for a year and a half now, for not sending him off into the unknown by himself once the letter arrived, for trying hard to give him comfort, safety, and an escape, but he can’t. His voice is still gone, and if it weren’t for Vex’s insistence that he must eat a full breakfast every morning, his body would have decayed, too.

They are shown inside. It’s a cramped space and still bare, but on one end of the shed sits a new work table with a brand-new set of tools. On the opposite side of the shed is a comfortable-looking armchair. “I thought you could use this as a workstation and a reading nook,” Korrin says, waving his hand to the table and the chair. “I thought you could build your own bookshelf to go in that corner,” He points at the empty space next to the armchair. “I don’t mind buying the materials for it. Both of you are free to use it and make it your own,” He finishes, looking at Vex’ahlia with a soft smile. 

Although Vex is meant to leave after the school year, the idea of having someone to occasionally share the space with for the time being isn’t that bad, and once Keyleth returns, Percy would be more than happy to share that space with her, too.

“This is amazing, Korrin. Thank you again,” Vex walks in and looks around. Percy recognizes the look on her face as the same one his sister Vesper used to have every time she was allowed to plan something, and he can almost hear the familiar wheels turning in Vex’s mind. 

“Should we build the bookshelf out of cherry wood, Percival?” Vex’ahlia asks him a while later, sitting cross-legged on the armchair as Percy organizes the few tools Korrin gave him. It’s not much, and they’re pretty basic, but it’s something he can start with and build up from there. “I think it would look great with that table, don’t you think?” She presses on but doesn’t wait for an answer as she changes the subject to which color they should paint the shed—“Maybe we should leave it natural on the outside and paint it blue on the inside. You like blue, right, Percival?”—and follows with a million other questions to which she doesn’t really expect an answer. 

It doesn’t take long after that for Vex’s contagious light and energy to spread itself around Percy’s darkness. His nightmares become less frequent and easier to handle, and the screams don’t wake Vex as much anymore. Even though he probably sees her as a beacon of light and positivity, a much-needed breath of fresh air in his closed-up space, Vex feels like a fraud every night as she lies in the dark, sometimes crying herself to sleep for being away from her brother and missing her mother, whom she hasn’t heard any news in months. 

Percy hears Vex’s sobs one night, and the following morning, when she descends into the kitchen for breakfast, he’s already up, stirring some eggs in the pan and waiting with two glasses of orange juice and a cup of coffee for Korrin. He doesn’t mention hearing her cries, just like she never mentioned being awakened by his screams, but the knowledge of each other’s pain is there.

That afternoon, when they’re sitting in silence in the shed, Percy pouring over designs of bookshelves and Vex’ahlia reading a book in the opposite corner, his voice finally returns to him, “I think cherry wood is a great idea. And blue is my favorite color.”

Vex’ahlia looks up from her book with a smile so bright that it could easily blind anyone who looked directly at it. Finally, the mask of darkness that imprisons Percy is removed.

#critical role #cr fic #vox machina #perc'ahlia #exchange au #percahliaweek

[romeoandjulietyouwish]

Below you will find a (mostly) complete list of all the aus created here on my blog! Do you have an idea? Send me an ask about it! You can tip me on my ko-fi!  (seriously y’all I’ve spent a lot of time on these aus so it’s really great to have my work appreciated!)

#happy ending au - The Raven Queen doesn't come for Vax, instead he's able to build a life with Keyleth after everything. (also on ao3)

#hunger games au - Pretty self explanitory, a vox machina hunger games au. (Do not send me asks or prompts based on this au)

#ballet au - The vox machina are members of a ballet company, this is mostly vaxleth and percahlia with a shit ton of angst but also some fluff (also on ao3)

#childhood friend au - What if Keyleth had met the twins before they left Byroden? This is mostly vaxleth, but also some percahlia

#twitch au - All of vox machina are twitch streamers, this is mostly fluff (but with occasional doses of angst)

#soulmate au - Soulmates can feel sensations from the other, pressure, pain, etc. vox machina

#medieval au - Keyleth is a princess and the rest of VM are knights/hunters/healers (also on ao3)

#percy’s deal au - Percy took the deal with the Raven Queen instead of Vax, giving his brother the remaining years of his life to spend with his family

#modern au - Pretty self explanatory, it features EMT Vax and farmer’s daughter Keyleth

#foster care au - A modern au where Percy and Cass are fostered by Kima and Allura after their family’s murder and grow up along side Keyleth.

#famers market au - Vax and Keyleth meet at a farmer’s market and she offers him and his sister a safe place after they run from Syldor. A few months later Percy wanders onto the farm covered in blood.

#firefighter au - All of vox machina are EMTs, firefighters, or social workers.

#bookstore au - Keyleth runs a small bookstore and Vax is working for the Clasp, things don't go well. (also m9 is here and forcibly adopting Keyleth)

#biker au - All of VM are bikers when Vax and Vex are forced to take in Velora.

#vampire vax au - Vax was turned into a vampire by Sylas.

#aasimar percy - Exactly what it sounds like

#lighthouse au - Vax gets sent to work at a remote lighthouse as a punishment but meets the very bubbly Keyleth, the daughter of the owner.

#arranged marriage au - Beau and Bren get married, Bren to find information about the Cobalt Soul and Beau to find out how to break Volstrucker programming.

#kiki and percy arranged marriage au - Keyleth and Percy get married and live in Zephrah and have a qpr

#kiki and percy childhood friend au - Keyleth and Percy are nextdoor neighbors and family friends born three weeks apart. They meet the rest of VM at a fancy private school.

#space au - A future version of Exandria is corrupted by magic and uninhabitable, Exandrians take to the stars. VM and M9

#paranormal au - Percy has always been sensitive to ghosts, something that comes in handy when he joins Vex and Vax's paranormal investigating team.

#lavish chateau au - Vex, Vax, Scanlan, and Grog are courtesans at the Cheateau.

#teacher au - All of VM are teachers at a public school, the M9 are some of their students.

#keyleth’s wife - Many years post VM, Keyleth finds love again in widowed Tempest Blade Elenora.

#rock band au - Vox Machina is a rock band.

#ashton de rolo au - As a teenager, Ashton was adopted by the de Rolos. Years later, he and Vesper joined the Bells Hells.

#werewolf kiki au - I mean, it's what it sounds like.

#four seasons au - All of VM represent different times of year.

#baby box au - Kaylie is left in the hospital as a baby with only a phone number, when NICU nurse Pike calls it, she finds her college friend Scanlan.

#dragon au - All of VM are dragons, the Chroma Conclave are an adventuring party trying to take over the world.

#age swap au - What if Percy and Cassandra’s ages were switched? Normally this au features 18 y/o Percy, Kid!Percy denotes him being 15.

#orym's baby au - A few years into their marriage, Orym and Will adopted a baby halfling girl.

#empire siblings neighbor au - Caleb is Beau’s tutor as she grows up, they lose touch when he’s taken to the Soltryce only for them to reunite as adults.

#surfing au - Keyleth, Pike, Grog, and Vex are all surfers while Vax is a lifeguard and Percy makes surfboards. Scanlan plays loud music on the beach.

#keyleth’s brother - What if Keyleth had an older brother?

#cassandra in vm au - Cassandra was the one to escape Whitestone instead of Percy.

#circus au - all of VM are circus performers

#once upon a time au - All of VM, M9, and BH are stuck in Storybrooke. With only Vesper and Vax to save them.

#royalty au - Vex and Vax are a prince and princess, the rest of VM are commoners who befriended the twins without knowing who they are.

#cassandra is julius's daughter au - exactly what it sounds like

#zombie apocalypse au - Exactly what it sounds like, VM

#broadway au - All of VM are broadway performers

#reincarnated au - Vax is brought back to life with a single purpose, to kill Keyleth

#fight club au - Inspired by Creator Clash, Keyleth is a boxer in an underground ring.

#wild west au - a cowboy retelling of the Chroma Conclave are

#cheerleading au - all of VM are cheerleaders on the same squad

#volstrucker au - Caleb is sent to kill Princess Jester of Nicodranas. She tries to break is programming

#siren au - Vex is a siren and she draws Percy in, but falls for him before she can kill him

#pixie hallow au - all of VM are pixie hallow faries

#byroden au - Percy goes to Byroden after his family was killed

If you want to request that I write any fics in in these aus, or any fics in general, please refer to this post about my request guidelines before sending anything in And if you want to write a fic in any of my aus or based on any of my headcanons, all I ask is you credit me with the idea/au and tag me or link to my blog if you post on Tumblr. And if you post it on ao3 please list it as a related work if it's an au I've already written or link to my Tumblr or AO3 page here’s the link to a post with the rest of the aus tagged, this should make it easier to find all the posts for each au!

#happy ending au #hunger games au #ballet au #childhood friend au #twitch au #soulmate au #medieval au #percy's deal au #modern au #foster care au #farmers market au #firefighter au #bookstore au #biker au #vampire vax au #aasimar percy #lighthouse au #arranged marriage au #kiki and percy arranged marriage #kiki and percy childhood friend au #space au #paranormal au #lavish chateau au #teacher au #keyleth's wife #rock band au #ashton de rolo au #werewolf kiki au #four seasons au #baby box au

[rightpastnowhere]

MORE. FOR U

Ok ok ok we all collectively will not shut up about how Percy is endeared by Vex's ears, right? well UNO REVERSE CARD! His lil round human ears are so fucking cute to Vex. It's also very funny for her to parse out how sensitive they are vs half-elven or elven ears.

In modern AUs their taste in music seems very different at a glance but meshes SUPER well. Percy is rocking to MCR and anime intros and Fallout Boy and old rock'n'roll (that his dad and Julius loved), Vex is grinding to pop and country, and everyone is like 'surely not' until they pull up to give Pike a ride and are just blasting a Taylor Swift song together (she joins in obviously). Or on a train sharing earbuds and the poor folks the next seats over can hear Monster by Skillet from there and these two are mouthing along and sharing Dramatic Looks.

Trinket keeps bringing cubs home. He's a male bear, bears don't raise cubs in pairs (males don't participate at ALL), but he's a Ranger companion and lives as long as Vex does. And given he's a fit specimen he's probably the sire of a lot of cubs in the area (Vex and the Grey Hunt have got to watch out for inbreeding effects KJTRNHRKN). So every now and then he'll find a hurt or abandoned or sick cub and bring it back, and Vex nurses it back to health (and Dan too), and suddenly they Have Another Bear. Oh Dear. Sometimes Vex and Trinket make a conscious effort to train the cubs to live in the wild and release them a ways away once they're old enough, but the three bears we see in C3 is Only The Beginning.

The first time Percy tried really growing a beard, Vesper made Unhappy Faces when he'd give her kisses and in a fit he shaved it all off. He needed some talking-tos about it. His baby girl was SO upset and it make HIM upset OKAY -

It's advised that guests do not wander the halls of Castle Whitestone alone at night. They assume, naturally, that this is due to Ghosts or Restless Spirits - no the de Rolos are just. like that. Cass would rather everyone avoid the trauma of hearing them having a good time. Also the kids' darkvision means they have shining pupils if light hits them in the dark and someone fell down the stairs once so there's that too.

Percy fucking agonizes over blue now. Getting a gift to match Vex's feather takes up at least 3-12 hours of a given project. At this point he has custom paints mixed for it and will scour stalls and shops for gems of the right turquoise.

He also owns way more fur than he'd expect, because Vex is a ranger and can at least make a decent muffler or trim for mittens or ruff for his winter coat out of some of her more impressive catches. His favorite, though, is a tiny fur thing that's badly worn. Vex insists it's a bird. *it does not look like a bird,* it looks like a pointed rock with two bead eyes. It was the first thing she tried making him and it, well, it didn't come out as she'd expected. He still stims with it often, it practically lives in his pocket - like she was in Pandemonium, when VM were transformed into birds. She says she hates it, but his earnest adoration for this little silly thing she made really makes Vex so damn happy.

OH MY GOD SHE WOULD LOVE HIS EARS,,, HIS LIL ROUNDED EARS,,, SO SOFT N ROUND,,,,,,,, OMG

YOUR MUSIC TASTES FOR THEM ARE SO IN LINE WITH WHAT'S IN MY HEAD NGKJRNGK. vex imo has the most chaotic playlists because there's just one for all of her music. it switches from lizzo to mumford & sons without rhyme nor reason. and they WOULD be taylor swift stans with pike i LOVE THIS. AND GOD,, THE MENTAL IMAGE OF HER AND PERCY DRAMATICALLY LIP-SYNCING LIKE HUGE NERDS..... MY CROPS ARE WATERED. MY SKIN IS CLEAR

THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING NGKJRNKJGNR i simply think vex deserves an entire legion of bears who love her, and many of them on the castle grounds. only the best for the grand mistress of bears. (trinket mimicking vex's adopting behavior is SO CUTE I'M GONNA CRY)

percy upsets his baby One Time and suddenly he must change everything about himself. i love him so much i cannot stand it

NKGJNKJENG the de rolos fuck nasty and it is a burden upon those who think themselves to be fearless... my heart goes out to the unlucky few who dare. ALSO THE FUCKING. QUARTER ELVES. JUST LIKE A BUNCH OF CATS IN THE KITCHEN AT 2AM WHEN YOU WANT A SNACK. IS PERFECTION.

GERKGNERJN percy will do anything to maintain his wife's aesthetic

VEX CRAFTING HIM THINGS...... PERCY KEEPING HER FIRST LIL BAUBLE BECAUSE HE LOVES HER................ STIMMING WITH IT CAUSE IT'S SOFT................................ picturing vex finding out and endeavoring to acquire so many soft things, making him a bunch more knick-knacks once she's better at it, wearing soft clothes, just, oh my GOD she loves him SO MUCH

thank you again for this absolute unfathomable joy, i squeaked out loud at least 3 times, i am full of serotonin once more

#THE SCREAM I SCRUMPT AS BURR WOULD SAY #oh my god you make me want to write so many little things for them #i'm crying. i LOVE THEM VERY MUCH #vex’ahlia #percival de rolo #perc’ahlia #fave #critical role #vox machina #blorbologist

[essayofthoughts]

In your Sylas-Lives-AU, does Sarenrae's blessing cure the illness that originally killed Sylas or is he returned to human life on borrowed time and health? In either scenario, who is aware of the situation? Do people leverage Sylas' life to ensure Delilah's cooperation? (Side note: how much understanding of the Briarwood's backstory do you think Cassandra has, in canon or in your AU?)

Well, as I recall canon, Delilah went looking for a cure for Sylas, and when she returned he was dead and that's when she sought the rites of vampirism to bring him back, so in this case, he gets brought back to full life! Cured of what was killing him an dno longer a vampirism.

This is, in good part, because of Pike's prayer (and the Divine Intervention she invokes from Sarenrae) which is to return Sylas and Delilah to such a time as when they didn't need redemption from them. Consequently, all of Vox Machina is aware, to some degree or another, that Sylas is alive and human once more - not all are aware of or consider that he was ill before his vampirism, but they know he's human now.

Generally they don't leverage Sylas' humanity to get Delilah's co-operation. The fact he's human again - that Pike's god could return him to life when none of Delilah's efforts managed - is kind of significant enough on it's own, and significantly alters Delilah's thinking. Vox Machina deciding to hold them accountable for their actions, without killing them but instead expecting them to make amends (Pike's influence, as Sarenrae is a goddess of redemption) is... unexpected? But the fact that Sylas is... at least in Delilah's mind "fixed", and no longer undead, no longer binding them to Vecna by his continued existence... it's pretty earth-shattering for them? The Briarwoods are still terrible people, but such a huge and fundamental shift in the state of things is... well, life-altering for them, and they're kind of figuring out what to do about it and with themselves.

Cassandra knows random fragments of the Briarwoods history, just from spending much of the occupation in their grasp. She does not want to put it together to understand them, but still understands more than she'd like.

(In canon, I imagine she has a similar understanding of the Briarwoods. She spent a good portion of the occupation in their grasp as their Stockholmed almost-daughter. I would be shocked if she didn't know a lot of details just from small passing conversations or mentions - bits and pieces that build up over time.)

#sylas briarwood gets to live au #delilah briarwood #sylas briarwood #cassandra de rolo #ask #anonymous #vox machina

[blorbologist]

😭😭😭 please i need angst

I like the idea of one of the older de Rolo siblings (Julius or Vesper) not having been present for the masacre. Maybe attending to business in town, or courting a prospective spouse. And then they come home, try to save their little siblings, and get caught. Julius and Vesper, being the heir and spare, are likely well-trained in statecraft and politics, and thus way too big a risk to leave alive (unlike, say, Percy or Cass). So they get axed - up to you if Cass and/or Percy get to see them alive before they go. The ideal candidate for this would be Vesper, given we don’t see her in TLOVM in Percy’s nightmares, yet he notes that she’s dead in his monologue to Delilah, and in canon Tal says she was thrown from a tower - suitable example for the heir who came back to try and save the day.

Inspired by a recent vent with @rightpastnowhere: I think we, as a fandom, idealize the dead de Rolos. Partially because they usually only get written in the context of happy memories or fluffy AUs where they’re infinitely better than fucking Syldor (though that bar is admittedly low as hell). In reality? The kids were likely mostly raised by wetnurses, nannies and their tutors - Johanna was the Lady, fat chance she was breastfeeding much or dealing with diapers. Percy likely was closer to Anders than his father. Cass would have likely been married off for a political ploy. They were likely prejudiced to no small degree - all the happy AUs where Vex is arrange married to Percy, they’d likely look down their noses at her either due to her birth or the half-elven heritage or both (not to the extent of Syngorn, let’s be honest, so to her it would still be a breath of fresh air. But by no means perfect, there’d be microaggressions aplenty). Julius might have unacknowledged bastards running around Whitestone from his time in brothels (ask me about my angsty Julius bastard thoughts). I do think that the pre-Briarwoods were not exceptional nobles - not exceptionally cruel, but not above bias or pettyness or practicality either. However! I think most of that could have been eased with time and exposure. Cass and Percy have both had ample time among the lower class and with their noble past completely worthless, so they’ve had time to grow past this, but both of them likely were huge privileged pains in the ass pre-Briarwoods. But they have to either live with the fact their family would dislike most of their friends today, or cling to a version of them that never existed (worse: their reaction to the quarter-elves, to Gwen). Percy isn't sure which is worse - the choice comes easily for Cass.

Gnomes are long-lived - I’d like to think Scanlan’s father is still alive. Maybe he even comes a knocking, in the decades and decades to come, if he somehow figures out the famous Scanlan Shorthalt is the son of Juniper Shorthalt he knocked boots with. I… highly doubt his reaction would be pleasant lmao. Pike might chase him off with a mace. Scanlan would likely have a long tearful talk with Kaylie, after, because man… he gets it, now. He really fucking gets it and it sucks, and he just wants to hurt this fucker for the years he and his mother spent alone. (In a similar vein, again, gnomes live so long that I suspect they have a strong culture of family bonds - Wilhand lived to raise his great-great granddaughter and that does not seem too abnormal! Chetney is 400+, and given Scanlan likely had Kaylie into his 30s-50s and Pike had their kids in her 30s-40s, you could fit a whole lot of generations in a lifetime. With that said: Scanlan must be so, so bitter that Juniper can’t be around for the lives of his children, and grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. It’s unfair. And because she died when he was fairly young, he doesn’t have nearly as many stories of her to share as he’d like. Sometimes he’s tempted to make some up. He hates the impulse.)

Send me a 😭 for one of my saddest headcanons about a character

#ask #critical role #vox machina #cr headcanons #ask game #percival fredrickstein von musel de rolo iii #percival de rolo #cassandra de rolo #de rolo family #scanlan shorthalt

[critter-genfic-events]

Keyleth Fic Recs!

Hi all! We're back from a hiatus with some recs for some good Keyleth fic! Eight fics that feature our favorite socially awkward druid under the cut - and of course, if you like them, don't forget to comment and kudos!

A Conspiracy of Raven by Senor_Sparklefingers (77384,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: Past Keyleth/Vax'ildan

After the final battle with Vecna, Keyleth discovers that she's pregnant with Vax's child.

Reccer says: This story is absolutely lovely, full of excellent worldbuilding for Zephrah, a lot of focus on Keyleth's character and her relationships with her people.

the first (and last) soul saved by one Caduceus Clay by InTheMidnightHour (7063,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings:

Keyleth investigates the Savalirwood and meets a new friend.

Reccer says: I am a sucker for Keyleth and Caduceus friendship as a concept and this fic explores the concept beautifully.

From My Rotting Body, Flowers Shall Grow by keyleth_clay (10954,Teen) Warnings: Major Character Death Pairings: Caduceus Clay & Keyleth

Five hundred years after Campaign 1, Keyleth says goodbye to Caduceus Clay

Reccer says: It's filled with love even as it's about grief - I liked the flashbacks to their friendship

Garden-variety Training by charmedward (2158,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: Keyleth & Grog

Grog finds Keyleth crying, and wants to help her out. Keyleth wants to fight.

Reccer says: Keyleth and Grog's relationship isn't talked about much, but I love anything that lets Keyleth be angry and Grog be sweet.

What You Leave Behind by CitizenMocha (10175,General) Warnings: None Pairings: Keyleth & Vilya | Viridian, Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Keyleth, Keyleth/Vax'ildan

AU - After the fight in the water plane, Keyleth thinks back on her mother.

Reccer says: It's an angsty imagining of what might have happened after the fight, and the realization of what Keyleth is doing and what she would see hit like a gut punch.

I Say We're Made of Love by azhdarchidaen (3298,General) Warnings: None Pairings: Percy & Keyleth

After Percy's death in C1E69, Keyleth comes to comfort him.

Reccer says: Keyleth and Percy's friendship is one of my favorite relationships through all of Critical Role - they're extremely different and disagree a lot, but they still love and support each other. This gets their characterizations right.

These Days are Precious by SnowboundWanderer (3370,Teen) Warnings: Choose not to warn Pairings: Keyleth & Vex'halia

Decades into the future, Keyleth visits an aging Vex.

Reccer says: A lot of Keyleth fic has a good amount of lifespan angst - she is going to outlive the rest of Vox Machina by centuries. This fic gets the balance right - allows Vex to age but still very much be Vex, and for them to talk and still go about living.

the diplomacy of aunthood by justlikeswitchblades (2028,General) Warnings: None Pairings: Keyleth & Vex'halia

Keyleth visits the De Rolos and their new baby.

Reccer says: Keyleth is adorably awkward here, and I empathize with her inability to understand what to do with tiny humans (or quarter-elves).

Amethyst and Flowers on the Table by Operafloozy (2291,Teen) Warnings: none Pairings: Keyleth & Caduceus, Keyleth & Vilya

Vilya introduces Keyleth to Caduceus

Reccer says: Keyleth and Cad aren't quite friends here, but you can imagine them becoming friends in the future. Both of them are rough in a way that seems very in character for them.

Voice to the Rain by J (jaywright) (12808,General) Warnings: None Pairings: Orym & Keyleth, secondary Keyleth/Percy/Vex

Orym accompanies Keyleth to Whitestone for a visit, shortly after Will's death.

Reccer says: I liked it

If you liked this rec list, follow along for more! We'll be posting a new list with a new theme each Monday. Want to make your own recs? Check out the rules, and then use the form to submit!

Next week, we'll be looking for Gen fics featuring Minor Characters! Did they have two seconds of screentime but steal our hearts? Are they only mentioned but don't appear onscreen? It's free real estate, and there's some great fic out there for them!

And hey, if you're looking for more great genfic, check out all of the critter gen week creations!

#critical role #cr fic recs #gen fic #keyleth of the air ashari #critrole fanfic #vox machina

[rebrnlove]

A hazbin hotel au for uh reasons.

After Shirley died, she was sent to heaven but after her bitterness remained due to Rolo killing her and her losing Lelouch, she was sent to Hell for the crime of feeling Wrath. Once she awoke in the Wrath ring she was turned into a sinner, and after a few years of living on the streets she found the Hazbin Hotel.

#ღ › ┊shirley deserved better ╱ : mun. ◞ #ღ › ┊hazbin hotel ╱ : verse. ◞

[masterqwertster]

Send an AU for 5+ headcanons: Consecution Quest AU please.

🔮 Laudna/Adeline does retake the Warlock class, but this time her Patron is Ashton. Having a new life granted new perspective that made it easier to say 'No' to Delilah and 'Yes' to Ashton when the idea of a Patron swap was brought up. And I feel like it does have to be a Patron swap since it's been revealed that Delilah basically entwined their souls, so I'm not feeling super confident about saying consecution would separate them. Unless it brought them back into separate bodies... Oh shit, that could be kind of cool with a bit of a Ted-and-Opal-ish type of situation for the Warlock aspect, except Delilah has a body. For a while. Will expand in the next point.

So anyways, like Fjord, Laudna/Adeline upgraded to a new Patron of greater strength. I lean towards the Genie patron/subclass because Baby Titan, but an argument could be made for Undying given consecution.

🔮 So about the above Delilah thing that just occurred to me. How it works is as follows: Bells Hells obviously isn't going to tell much of anyone of power about Delilah and her grip on Laudna for fear of Lord de Rolo coming for their asses with all his resources and the rest of Vox Machina. Bells Hells are also the idiots who sweep their problems under the rug and ignore them until they're actively problematic once more, so they're not going to consider what happens to Delilah if Laudna is bound into a cycle of reincarnation because she's under the rug at the time.

Because of the intertwinedness of Laudna and Delilah's souls, they both end up passing through a "Beacon" with all its possibilities to be reborn. Don't kid yourself into thinking for one second Delilah wouldn't pick a possibility where she has her own body instead of riding shotgun in Laudna's.

So Delilah is reborn. And since she's got wild necromancy powered by the babiest evil god, she doesn't really suffer the past life memory issues. Which gives her the side effect of knowing but being physically incapable of acting. But she's probably murdered the family she was born to and resurrected Sylas by age 10. Or maybe the family lives (probably in fear of their scary powerful necromancer child). It's honestly hard to tell how the madwoman would feel about having blood family given by the time we know her she's all-consumingly obsessed with Sylas.

And, of course, being the hateful thing she is, Delilah has to go after the de Rolos (and the rest of Vox Machina). She doesn't succeed and ends up dead again at like, 15. The only reason Vox Machina even really knows it was Delilah was the involvement of Sylas, back yet again after his last death at Dalen's Closet, and they've honestly got no clue how Delilah came back again since a) they thought Laudna was the last anchor and that was severed when Pike resurrected her and b) Laudna is dead now anyways.

Being disembodied once more, Delilah realizes she's still got a tether to Laudna, so apparently it's time to ride that wonky horse again. Also because she was too far from a Beacon to be passed into a new life by Laudna's consecution that she was riding.

Unfortunately for Delilah (and fortunately for most everyone else), a new blank slate of a life without her has given Adeline the spine and context to reject her and fall into safer arms.

Thus Delilah is finally put down for good.

🔮 Caduceus would definitely actually get to say "Someone please take this child away" about Ashton in this AU. Essek has definitely brought the Baby Titan to the Blooming Grove as an escape point from danger or just because he needed a breather from all this baby-sitting and Search Quest travel

🔮 I don't know if I want Imogen's reincarnation to be an eisfuura or a centaur more. On one hand, flying dates with Laudna (and fun tension with Ruz/FCG because of bird trauma). On the other hand, literal horsegirl and riding your girlfriend.

🔮 Because Fearne now has the Spark of Rau'shan, she'd be reborn as a fire genasi. I was planning tiefling previously to keep her horns and a bit of a fire theme, but oh well.

Send an AU (new or established) for 5+ headcanons

#MQ&A #MQ AU machine #consecution quest au