#this is a direct companion to that halloween drawing and i think i like that one more than this one lmao | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bounce-a-coin-off-your-witcher · 3 years

Text

Trick or Treat

The next A Very Bouncey Halloween installment and a belated birthday gift to my darling @veritasrose. Thank you so much for the last year of friendship, I look forward to celebrating with you again. <3 you are much loved.

tw: curses, Geralt is an idiot, competent Jaskier

---

Light flashes through the room and momentarily blinds Jaskier, who stumbles back against Geralt. He mumbles an apology to the ever-sturdy Witcher as he waits for his vision to return and when he blinks clearly for the first time after a few long moments, the bard feels utterly and totally confused by the scene unfolding before him.

The Duke’s grandest ballroom, which had been bustling with excitable party guests only moments ago, is now flooded with ghouls, ghosts, vampires, and monsters of all sorts. A woman with swan’s wings is huddled in one corner, squawking angrily at anyone who tries to draw near. A minotaur stumbles through the center of the dance floor, lowing in frustration as he tries to control his bulky limbs. Two werewolves wrestle for dominance atop the furthest banquet table to their left. As Jaskier takes it all in, he feels Geralt’s hands wrap suddenly around his bicep; the Witcher is clinging to Jaskier fiercely, leaning his not insignificant weight against the bard’s side as his eyes grow round and watery.

“What’s happening?” Geralt finally asks. His tone of voice seems breathy and high, filled with a terror - almost totally foreign to Jaskier’s ears. Geralt fears nothing and yet… “Let’s get away from this dreadful place, please!”

“Aren’t you going to try and solve this problem?” Jaskier asks, glancing at his companion. He gestures at the various monsters roaming freely past the buffet table. “You’re likely the nearest Witcher, after all.”

“I’m no Witcher,” Geralt declares. He splays a hand over the very center of his blue velvet doublet (a nearly perfect imitation of the way Jaskier reacts to a perceived offense). “I am a Count. Witchers are dirty things, not meant for such a public life as my own.”

“For fuck’s sake, Geralt, now is not the time for a prank of this nature,” Jaskier huffs. “Something is clearly going on here. We need to help these people!”

“I know something is wrong,” Geralt sniffles - fucking sniffles - and squeezes the bard’s upper arm even more tightly. The sound of Geralt crying shakes Jaskier into understanding, even as Geralt begs: “But I don’t know how to help! Please get me out of here, Milord, I’m scared.”

Milord? Jaskier mouths to himself, even as he wraps one comforting arm around Geralt’s waist and ushers him away from the growing chaos at the center of the ballroom. Jaskier hurries them down one suspiciously empty hallway after another until he reaches the small suite that he had accepted as payment for his performance at the party. Jaskier ushers Geralt inside and locks the heavy oak door behind them.

“My Lord Geralt,” he gets the not-quite-Witcher’s attention. “Do you mind taking a seat by the fire for now? I’ll be right with you as soon as the room is secure, and then we can figure out what’s going on and what to do from here.”

“Yes, Milord,” Geralt nods. He hurries to comply with Jaskier’s request, to the bard’s continuing shock and awe, and stays still and quiet as Jaskier removes his doublet and rolls up his sleeves. Using the strength he’s spent twelve years at Geralt’s side developing, Jaskier shoves a bookcase, a dresser, and an unfortunately designed roll-top desk in front of the locked doors for added protection.

Moving behind Geralt with practiced efficiency, Jaskier also closes, shutters, and locks every window in the room, pulling the curtains closed to keep any light from spilling out and alerting stray creatures of their presence.

When he’s finished locking down all of their room’s possible entrances and breathing hard from exertion, Jaskier tugs the Witcher’s xenovox from his bag and flips it open, waiting with bated breath until Yennefer’s irritated voice snaps: “What do you want, Geralt?”

“Who is that?!” Geralt cries from his place near the fire. He has a white-knuckle grip on the overstuffed armchair he’s perched in and his clothing is mussed; Jaskier motions for him to be quiet and Geralt bites his lip, worrying the soft pink skin between his unusually dull canines.

“Was that Geralt?” Yennefer asks. "Did Jaskier summon me?"

“Yes and yes,” Jaskier replies. “I think he’s been cursed or enchanted or something. I was hired to play at the Duke of Rinde’s All Hallow’s Eve celebration and Geralt accompanied me - even dressed up for the occasion - but something happened at the party and now he’s acting strangely. I don’t know what to do.”

"What's happening?" Yennefer prods.

"Geralt is acting rather out of sorts. He’s speaking strangely, he wanted to flee the party rather than investigate the source of the changes-”

“What changes?”

“Everyone sort of… Well, a good portion of the party guests suddenly transformed into their costumes,” Jaskier explains, his speech stunted by his disbelief. “I know it sounds incredible, and it was! One moment we were all enjoying the music and the next… there was a minotaur and a mermaid and a faun… Geralt went nearly mute and started clinging to my arm like some sort of aristocratic maiden!”

“Oh shit,” Yen groans.

“Who is that?” Geralt repeats. Jaskier continues to ignore his companion. He knows that the moment he turns his attention to caring for Geralt, he won’t be able to tear it away again, and he needs to finish this conversation with Yennefer first.

“Why are you swearing?” he asks the sorceress. “What is it?”

“Geralt asked me for advice about this stupid ball a few days ago, while you were busy making arrangements with the Duke. He wanted to impress you with his All Hallow’s Eve costume and prove that he could be just as fancy and well-mannered as all the other men of your status.”

“Why in the world would Geralt want to dress up and act like a nobleman? It makes no sense! He detests small talk, he hates vanity, and he finds most men of my station to be cowardly and overly delicate - myself included! I just- I don’t quite understand why he’d go through all of this just to impress me. Or why he thinks this kind of thing would be impressive in the first place.”

“Jaskier, please tell me that you aren’t as stupid as our mutually beloved Witcher…”

Jaskier considers for a moment, pondering the things that he does to impress Geralt: gathering wood, learning to cook with game meat, preparing the Witcher’s potion ingredients while he's out on hunts, organizing their packs when they're spiking camp, brushing Roach’s mane… Realization dawns suddenly and all at once. He has a moment of pure understanding, a moment much beloved by every poet, bard, and playwright across the Continent: “Oh.”

Yennefer gives a tired laugh. “Yeah.”

“So he’s stuck as… a noble?”

“I suppose,” she sighs. “I’ll portal you to my location and we can figure things out in peace. Get your things together, I’ll open it up in precisely five minutes.”

“What’s happening!?” Geralt demands. Jaskier pulls the Witcher/Count to his feet and bows shallowly.

“I am Jaskier Pankratz, Viscount de Lettenhove. I will be your protector and chaperone for the foreseeable future, Your Lordship,” Jaskier bows shallowly. “I’m going to gather our things together and then we are going to meet up with a very lovely sorceress, Yennefer of Vengerberg.”

“Is she a friend of yours?”

Jaskier barely manages to hide his surprise at Geralt’s utter lack of recognition. His memories of Yennefer have also been taken, then.

“She’s a mutual friend.”

“Are you my friend?”

“I would like to think so,” Jaskier smiles. Geralt remains oblivious to the bard’s heartache, even as he curls himself against Jaskier. He tucks his face against Jaskier’s shoulder and sobs quietly. The bard runs his hands comfortingly up and down Geralt’s spine for a long, soothing moment. The smooth, royal-blue velvet tickles his fingertips. “Shh, dear heart. I’ve got you. Everything will be alright, I swear.”

“I trust you,” Geralt whispers.

Just as Jaskier is about to reply, Yennefer’s portal snaps open in the center of the room. Jaskier hands Geralt a set of bags and hauls his own over his shoulder. “Time to go, Your Lordship. Just take one little step…”

---

“Do you know who I am?” Yennefer asks. Geralt shakes his head before burying his face in the back of Jaskier’s shoulder-blade.

“I’m so frightened, Milord.”

Frightened? Milord? Yennefer mouths. Jaskier shrugs nearly imperceptibly and makes a panicked gesture in the Witcher’s general direction.

“I don’t know what to do either!”

“Well, start from the beginning. Tell me what happened at the party before all of… this.”

Jaskier recounts every detail he can remember in the most straightforward way possible, momentarily renouncing his poetic skills in favor of efficiency - for Geralt’s sake, of course, not Yennefer’s. When he's finished he asks: “And you said he did all of this to impress me?”

“Yes.”

“But why?” Jaskier repeats his earlier question. Yennefer understands that his meaning is different; Jaskier understands that Geralt is interested in him romantically, but the bard can't seem to get it through his head that Geralt has deemed him worthy. Although, knowing the Witcher, he isn't even sure how to go about doing such a thing in the first place.

"I just... I don’t quite believe you," he adds.

“He loves you,” Yennefer reiterates. "And now he’s stuck like this until the effects of the spell wear off, so I suggest you take his precious Lordship to one of my spare rooms and make yourselves comfortable. I’ll see you both for breakfast, providing the magic is null and void by then.”

“And if it isn’t?”

“I hope you enjoy small talk, you bardic bastard.”

Yennefer smirks and disappears from the room in a whirl of black and white silk, the scents of lilac and gooseberry curling through the air in her wake.

Geralt clings to Jaskier’s bicep again as the exhausted bard stands, keeping his larger body pressed against the human’s side as if Jaskier is the one who wields the Witcher’s swords. “So I’m under a spell?”

“Yes, darling.”

“At least I have you here to protect me, Jaskier. You’re so brave and strong; my hero!”

“It’s usually the other way around, dear heart, but I appreciate the sentiment. Now, how about we find a comfortable place to bed down for the night, Milord?”

"Alright."

Jaskier moves Geralt's hand so that it's curled around the inside of his elbow, the proper etiquette for a platonic escort, and leads him quickly down the long hallways of Yennefer's sprawling manor house. He chooses the blue-themed bedroom at the back of the East Wing, far from the sorceress' own suite of rooms.

He has to help Geralt change out of his lordly costume, the Witcher-turned-Count fumbling uselessly at the laces and buttons as if he'd never seen a fastening before in his life. Geralt whispers shyly as Jaskier pulls a nightshirt over his head: "Thank you again, Milord Jaskier. I feel as if I can't help but continue indebting myself to you."

"Think nothing of it, dear heart," Jaskier smiles, ignoring the pang in his chest. "I am happy to help you."

Jaskier tucks Geralt into bed before changing into his own nightclothes, tossing his things back into their travel bags as he swaps outfits. He feels Geralt tense up when he sits on the edge of the bed and his eyebrows narrow in concern.

"Are you alright, Geralt?"

"Are you going to share a bed with me?"

"Would you rather I didn't?" Jaskier answers with a question of his own.

"I... I wouldn't mind it if we shared."

Jaskier wishes he had Witcher sight, so he could catch a glimpse of the blush no doubt attempting to stain the Witcher's face. Despite the mutagens, Geralt's face still went pale pink when he encountered a strong emotion. It was adorable. And incredibly rare.

As soon as he pulls the covers over his chest, Geralt glues himself to Jaskier's side, snuggling close. "Feels safer," he says in lieu of explanation.

"Goodnight, dear heart."

"Goodnight."

---

"Fuck," Geralt groans, sitting up in bed. Jaskier sits up beside him, wiping the sleep from his eyes with the back of his hand.

"Good morning, Milord," he teases.

"Shut up," Geralt groans. Jaskier does get to see him blush this time, and the bard revels in it; he would trade all the gold in the world to see Geralt flush like this. "I can't believe I cried on you!"

"It was rather adorable, actually."

"Hmm."

"Still..." Jaskier reaches out, tentative, and cups Geralt's cheek with his palm. He turns the Witcher's face and locks their gazes together, blue meeting gold. "Still, I think I prefer you as you are. My big, strong Witcher who cares so much about defending the little guy. Willing to step in and help wherever and whenever he can."

Geralt's eyes get a little glassy and he leans forward, pausing and letting Jaskier make the final decision. The bard meets him halfway, pressing his lips against Geralt's without any sense of urgency at all. It's warm and sweet, time fading away as they let their feelings pour through this one simple gesture. When they pull apart again, Geralt gives a surprised, lopsided smile. "Oh."

#geraskier #geraskier fluff #a very bouncey halloween #geraskier first kiss #geraskier and buffy #btvs au #geraskier fluff and silliness #curses #cursed geralt #nobleman geralt #yennefer was there #bamf jaskier #competent jaskier

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silverlightqueen · 4 years

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Prince of Hell

silverlightqueen’s SKZ Scarefest

demonprince!minho x human!reader ft. itzy ryujin and yuna - comedy, sexual content, mild threat of violence

Word Count: 2.8k+

Summary - ‘It’s just a bit of fun, to get us in the mood for Halloween! Nothing’s gonna come from it!’ Ryujin had said. And now there’s a Prince of Hell raiding y/n’s fridge.

Warnings: demon summoning, Minho makes some halfhearted violent threats, Minho touches y/n’s neck and face a couple times, y/n is a virgin and Minho’s into it, if there’s any thing I missed, please let me know!

a/n: here’s the second instalment of my SKZ Scarefest, for the birthday boy himself! happy birthday to our glowing gem Lee Know! I hope you guys enjoy this, and keep an eye out for the rest of the series in the next few days! thank you @silverlightprincess for proofreading, you’re the best and I love you x

taglist: @kodzu-ken @silverlightprincess

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‘y/n! Wake the fuck up before I splash you with water!’ Ryujin whisper-shouts in my ear, making me jolt out of my sleep. ‘What?’ I murmur, rubbing at my eyes. ‘There’s a man in your kitchen,’ she whispers, and I don’t register her words, yawning as I stretch, my back cracking loudly. ‘Did you hear me, stupid? I said there’s a man in your kitchen!’ she says, slightly louder, pulling the sheets off me, and I shiver, grabbing for the warm sheets again, and she lets out a noise of annoyance. I feel her hands on my arm, and then she shoves me. I nearly fall out of the bed, just about grabbing onto her and holding on for dear life, hoisting myself safely back into the bed.

‘Ryujin!’ I exclaim, sitting up in annoyance, wide awake now. It’s still dark outside – I can see the moon shining down onto us through the window – but the lamp on my bedside table is on, bathing us in warm yellow light. ‘y/n, there is a man in your kitchen!’ she hisses, and the words finally sink in, my eyes widening in shock. ‘A man?’ ‘Yes, a man. Unless you have some kind of boyfriend we don’t know about, I’m guessing he’s not supposed to be there!’ ‘How do you know?’ ‘Yuna went to get some water and he was stood at your fridge.’ ‘My fridge?’ I ask in disbelief, looking at Yuna who sits cross-legged at the foot of the bed, the girl nodding confirmation, her eyes wide with fear.

‘He had his back to me so I couldn’t see his face, but I didn’t recognise him. It’s definitely not your brother, or your dad, or anyone I know. Maybe you know him but… I don’t think so,’ she says, and I feel my heartrate increasing. If Yuna doesn’t know him, I doubt I will. We all know each other’s family, and we have all of the same friends. There’s nobody that I know that Yuna doesn’t. ‘What are we gonna do?’ I ask, and Ryujin runs a hand through her hair, looking stressed.

‘Have you got anything in here we can use as a weapon? Like… a baseball bat or something?’ she asks, and I raise an eyebrow at her. ‘I’m not a middle-aged American man. I don’t keep a bat under my bed,’ I say, and she rolls her eyes. ‘They’re more likely to keep rifles under their beds, but go off. So there’s nothing?’ she asks, and I rack my brains, desperately trying to think of what we could use to defend ourselves. ‘Ooh, we could use the curtain rail!’

A few minutes later, Ryujin and I are stood at the bedroom door, each of us holding a part of the curtain rail pole as though they’re swords. Yuna’s sat on my bed – she’s the youngest so there’s no way I’m letting her come confront this weird man with us. ‘Ready?’ I ask, Ryujin nodding with a glint in her eye (this girl can fight, so I’m not too worried), and I turn the handle of the door, opening it all the way. I squint into the dark hallway leading down to the living room and kitchen of my apartment, and I can hear movement coming from that direction. The door to the other bedroom where the other three girls are sleeping is still closed and I hope it stays that way – I’d rather them stay safe. Slowly and carefully, I step onto the wooden flooring, willing it not to creak under my feet as I head down the hallway. Ryujin follows behind, and we’re completely silent, both of us holding our breath. When we reach the door to the kitchen which is open just a crack, I prepare myself, trying to steady my shaking hands as I push the door open a little more, ever-so slowly.

I peer around the corner to see a man stood at the fridge, empty food packets littering the surface beside the fridge, and I feel a little indignant at the sight. He’s broken into my apartment, and he’s eating all of my food? Not cool. ‘Yuna didn’t say he was hot,’ Ryujin whispers, peeking over my shoulder, and I hold back a laugh, covering her mouth with my hand. ‘I heard that,’ the man says, sounding amused, and I grip the curtail rail a little tighter in my hands, ready to swing for him if he comes near.

He turns around with a small smirk on his face, and he raises an eyebrow when he spots the makeshift weapon in my hand. ‘Are you going to hit me with that, sweetheart?’ he asks, and I steady myself a little bit. ‘Well, I’d like an explanation as to why you’re in my apartment first. If I don’t like your answer, then I will,’ I say, trying to hide how scared I am, and he lets out a gentle chuckle. ‘You invited me here, angel,’ he says, and I blink at him in surprise. ‘What?’ ‘Do you not remember what you and your companions did last night?’ he asks, eyes shining with mirth and lips quirked up in a half-smile, and I try to rack my brains. And then I remember.

It was Ryujin’s idea, and me and Chaeryeong were completely against it, but we were outvoted by the others. According to them, it was just a little bit of fun, and nothing real would come from it, and it would get us into the Halloween mood ready for Jackson’s party next week. And now look. There’s a demon stood in my kitchen, eating his way through my fridge.

‘Wait, you’re a demon? So our summoning worked?’ Ryujin asks, nudging me into the kitchen so she can come in too, wanting to get a proper look at him. ‘It did indeed. And yes, I am a demon.’ ‘You don’t look like a demon,’ I observe, sounding disdainful to my own ears, and he raises an eyebrow. ‘What were you expecting? Red skin? Horns?’ he asks, and Ryujin and I exchange a glance before nodding, the man rolling his eyes. ‘I can shapeshift, but demons so rarely look like the crude depictions you humans draw of us.’ ‘What’s your name?’ Ryujin asks, and his lips curve in a small smile. ‘I have many names, but you can call me my human name, Lee Minho. Son of Asmodeus and Prince of Hell, at your service,’ he says with a grin, bending into a low bow with his piercing brown eyes still on us, and I recognise the name Asmodeus. ‘Isn’t Asmodeus the demon of lust?’ Ryujin asks, the demon – Minho – grinning even wider as he nods, looking between the two of us amusedly. ‘I would have thought that is something you knew. You summoned me, and humans tend to summon me knowing who I am,’ he grins, and I frown.

‘Oh, hell no. This is not happening. We did not summon you knowing what you are. We didn’t even think anything would come of it. We’d heard it’s hard to get through to any demons around Halloween, ‘cause you guys are busier than normal. So don’t… think that’s what this is,’ I say exasperatedly, shutting him down straight away. He might be hot (really hot, actually; he’s average height, with black-grey hair swept back, and he’s got a nice body – wide shoulders, small waist, strong thighs and vascular hands. He’s dressed in all black, tight black trousers that mould to his lean legs and a black shirt tucked into his trousers, the top few buttons open and revealing an expanse of smooth, tanned skin), but I am not letting him seduce us. When my eyes meet his, he grins, his head slightly bowed so he’s looking at me through his lashes, his thumb swiping at his lower lip seductively, and my stomach explodes with butterflies. God, he really is hot.

‘Okay,’ he says mildly, turning back to the fridge, and I’m surprised at how quickly he gave up. Ryujin and I exchange a glance, completely confused, and we look back at him when we hear rustling. ‘You know,’ he says, mouth full when he turns back to us, ‘you should stop eating like such a child. There is no nutritional food in here. All I see are processed cheesy snacks and milkshakes. Where are the vegetables?’ ‘What are you, some nutritionist? I haven’t been shopping yet, but I’m awfully sorry my food supply isn’t to your standards,’ I say sarcastically, and he raises an eyebrow, looking amused.

‘You are awfully brave, angel, speaking to me like that,’ he says softly, closing the fridge and stepping towards me. ‘I may be a demon of lust, but a demon I am– a Prince of Hell at that. I could kill you without moving a muscle, sweetheart,’ he murmurs, now stood right in front of me, and he lifts a hand to my face. I will myself not to flinch, wanting to stand strong in front of him, wanting to… impress him, and he just smirks, running the back of his hand down my cheek. ‘I suppose you are lucky that you are so divine. Much prettier even than you seemed in my head,’ he breathes out, moving his hand to my chin and brushing his thumb across my bottom lip. ‘Your head?’ I ask, voice small, and he looks up from my mouth to my eyes.

‘When a human summons me, I can see them, as they are in that moment, in my mind. You said it yourself; demons are busier than usual around this time of year. But I saw the six of you – you, in particular, angel – and thought it best I shake off my comrades and move around my schedule a little to make some time for you.’ ‘Comrades?’ Ryujin asks, and he nods without looking at her, eyes still locked with mine. ‘Are they hot too?’ Ryujin questions eagerly, and Minho lets out a gentle chuckle. ‘Not as hot as I. They will be waiting to hear how it went – the Demon Prince of Lust with five human girls.’ ‘There’s six of us.’ ‘Only five of you are of age,’ he says, and I’m impressed. I didn’t think demons would care about the legal age of consent. ‘I suppose there is nothing I will have to report back to them. It is a shame you summoned me not with the intentions I expected of you,’ he murmurs gently, hand falling from my face as he smirks, obviously aware of the effect he’s having on me. ‘I guess it is a shame,’ I breathe out despite myself, absolutely hypnotised by him, and his smile grows, satisfaction all over his handsome face.

‘A shame it does not have to be,’ he says casually, moving away from me to lean against the kitchen island, and my body feels colder, aching for his closeness again. ‘y/n won’t sleep with you,’ Ryujin says, with a raised eyebrow. ‘And why is that, dear human?’ he asks her, sounding amused as he lifts a hand to push back his silky dark grey locks. ‘Well, she’s a virgi-’

‘Ryujin!’ I exclaim, shocked at her blabbing so readily, and she looks a little shocked herself. ‘Sorry. I wasn’t thinking,’ she says apologetically, and I just fix her with a hard stare. ‘You know… I’m pretty tired so I’m just gonna go back to bed,’ she says quickly, and I brandish the curtain pole at her, the girl ducking away from it and darting back towards my bedroom.

When my eyes meet Minho’s again, I feel my heart stop momentarily at his intense gaze. ‘You have not had sex before?’ he asks, voice low, and I nod, feeling humiliated. I’m stood in front of a demon of lust, who’s probably fucked half of the world’s population over his lifetime, and I’m a virgin who hasn’t even had her first kiss yet. But as I look at him, I realise he doesn’t find me childish, or pathetic. Instead, his eyes have darkened with desire and the corner of his bottom lip is caught between his pearly white teeth.

He takes a step towards me, and a second feels like a lifetime as he lifts a hand to my hair, pushing it back from my face. ‘Fuck, that’s so hot, angel,’ he whispers, the stiff and ancient formality disappearing from his tone, his vocabulary completely transforming, and I feel my eyes widen, skin burning with desire. ‘Hot?’ I echo, and he nods, eyes studying my face intently. ‘I’ve never fucked a virgin. Never tainted someone so pure, so innocent, so… angelic,’ he murmurs, his hand inching its way down the side of my head to my jaw, fingers gliding over me as though he’s feeling the rough lines and bumps of an age-old painting, admiration in each touch.

‘It’s not about to change,’ I reply softly, and his eyebrows raise questioningly, lips quirking up with amusement. ‘What was that, sweetheart?’ he asks, hand straying to the exposed skin of my throat. ‘I said that me being a virgin is not about to change.’ ‘And why not?’ he inquires amusedly, splaying his hand against my neck, pads of his fingers resting against my blood vessels.

‘I want my first time to be… special. I want it to be with someone that loves me, someone that I love,’ I reply, knowing I’m probably an idiot for turning down a man this beautiful. ‘Ah, is that so?’ he asks, tone light but the disappointment in his eyes betrays him, and I nod gently, his hand still around my neck. I realise, maybe a moment too late, that I should’ve waited until he wasn’t holding my throat in his hand before I rejected him. But he could kill me regardless, so I guess it doesn’t make much of a difference.

He’s silent for a moment, eyes clouding over with heavy thought, and I wonder what he’s deliberating, wishing I could have an insight into that gorgeous head of his. ‘Okay,’ he says finally, and my entire being hums with disappointment. I don’t really know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t for him to say something so simple.

He smirks again, as though he knows something I don’t, and says, ‘Don’t be so disappointed, sweetheart.’ ‘I’m not disap-’ ‘Do not lie to me. I can read you like a book. I can smell your every emotion, sense your every thought. If ever you think you have the upper hand with me, I’m letting you think it, angel. So lie not to me,’ he whispers, hand a little tighter at my throat, his tone gentle but his words threatening, and butterflies explode in my stomach. He’s so fucking hot.

‘You did not even let me finish.’ ‘You weren’t speaki-’ ‘Goodness, angel, you really are not aware of when to shut your mouth, are you? I have your throat in my hand. I could kill you right this second if I wanted to.’ ‘But you don’t want to,’ I whisper despite every single braincell I have screaming at me not to speak, and he lets out a little laugh, shaking his head in amused disbelief. ‘You’re right. It is not something I have desire to do.’

‘You would do well in Hell, sweetheart. A good ruler you would make,’ he says musingly, and I feel my lips curve up at the praise. ‘I’m not sure Lucifer would like me,’ I joke, trying to distract myself from the fact that a Prince of Hell – and a hot one – has his hand at my throat, and he grins. ‘He would adore you, angel. The… big man downstairs has a particular liking for corruption, you know,’ he says offhandedly, tone light, and I let out a gentle laugh, Minho laughing along with me.

He slowly steps away from me, hand falling from my neck, and I have to physically stop myself from leaning towards his touch, enthralled by him. ‘Well, if there is no business for me here, I suppose I should leave. I am being summoned by another human,’ he says, a spark of jealously lighting up within me, and his smile grows instantly. ‘Be not jealous, angel. I shall find you next week… on All Hallows’ Eve, and I shall bring my comrades for your friends,’ he says with bright eyes, and I feel excitement unfurl in my chest. ‘Why?’ I ask breathlessly, and he grins, running a hand through his hair, the locks falling over his eyes and making him look more like a classic heartthrob rather than a demon. ‘I plan take you to… dinner, as you humans so love to do, so wear something as divine as you are, my angel,’ he grins, lifting a hand in a wave before disappearing into thin air.

I walk back towards my bedroom, feeling a little dazed, and when I step into the room, Yuna looks up at me with her big eyes, Ryujin practically radiating excitement. ‘Well? What happened?’ ‘I… I have a date with a Prince of Hell.’

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alphagirl404 · 2 years

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An Impulse Decision: Chapter 6

Sidenote: Happy Halloween. I hope you enjoy this

Fanfiction.net

AO3

<-Previous Chapter Next Chapter ->

****

Chapter 6: The Heat is On

Heat filled in throughout what appeared to be an underground cavern. A blue mosaic trail lies at the center of this cave, leading to the other end, with four statues of a creature with a long trunk with flames on. Pools of lava lay ahead surrounded by archways of odd designs, along with some floating platforms of rock hovering above the lava pools. Several Fire Keese flew high above the room.

"And I thought it was hot above ground," Fledge commented as Fi exited the sword.

"Masters, you are now in the Earth Temple. Signs indicate it was built here because of the subterranean caverns below. Just as at Skyview Temple, many defensive mechanisms were built here to discourage would-be intruders. I project you will encounter many fire-proficient monsters in this area. In the event you catch fire, you can extinguish yourself by rolling or a spin attack. If you react calmly and quickly, there will be minimal danger. Your current selection of pouch items is survival-focused. Suitability to your current location is 85%. You also have the option to explore using the Beetle, Master Link. Are there any more questions?"

They all shook their heads, prompting Fi to go back into the sword. They all walked on ahead, jumping on the rock platforms to the other stable ground. A large Fire Chucu appeared from below the ground, which soon the group decimated. Several of the Fire Keese met with a similar fate when they tried to attack as well.

A voice called out to them from a small tunnel on the side. A Mogma appeared from below. It was the Cobal, the first Mogma they had met when they arrived.

"Oh, it's you guys again. Come all this way in search of your friend eh?" Cobal said. "My partner's gone missing, and those red guys are everywhere! I never shoulda come here. That reminds me...Before I came in here, I saw a weird-looking blonde girl get dragged away. But don't even think about doing a rescue. Those baddies are everywhere! If you wanna live another day, you all should head home!"

With that, the Mogma dug back underground.

"Do you think that blonde girl he was talking about is Zelda?" Karane asks with worry in her eyes.

"If she is then we need to get moving," Link said with urgency as he and everyone else resumed their journey.

The other end of the room had a draw bridge. The arch of which had a design of a face, with the chains coming out of its nostrils, a design factor everyone else found amusing. With the help of the Beetle item, they manage to lower the drawbridge. Fi then warmed them of new enemies just ahead, claiming to have a very significant physical ability.

Welcoming them on the other side is a creature that was nothing like a Bokoblin. The creature's appearance is that of a lizard, body covered with green scales. It is dressed in a red loin-cloth. A large ball with a spike is attached at the end of its tail. One of the creature's arms is equipped with a large metal gauntlet.

"Let me handle this…" Link stepped forward, gaining the creature's attention. "Fi, what is that?"

"This is a Lizalfos. This unmistakable monster is equipped with an arm guard made of hard iron. Great physical prowess makes it difficult to predict its movements. You will need to anticipate the direction of its arm guard to successfully land an attack on the exposed angle."

The Lizalfos stared down Link, both opponents circling one another. Link made the first strike but it was blocked by the monster's arm guard. It jumped back, breathing fire out of its mouth that barely missed Link. It then tried to attack him with its spike ball. Thankfully, the green-clad senior knight blocked it with his shield, knocking the creature off balance. Link used the opportunity to strike the monster many times before taking it down for good. Like previous monsters that were slain, it disappeared in purple smoke leaving its tail behind.

"It's safe now," Link called to his companions.

"You look like you had some trouble," Karane stated.

"Tougher than the usual Bokoblins but I managed."

"Well you are the best swordsman at the Knight Academy after all," Pipit added. "So what's our next move?"

"The map shows an exit across the room." Link points across to where there was a stone carving of an admittedly terrifying creature. When they reached the middle of the room they could see the exit on elevated ground, with the pathway blocked by large rocks. "Figures...Of course, it wouldn't be easy."

"How are we going to cross it?" Fledge questioned.

"There's another door on my side with a unblocked path." Karane pointed to her side that showed another door, with two stone carvings of lizard heads on each side, with the door having a circle design with a blue gem at the center.

"Fledge, why don't you and I go check it out. Karane, you and Pipit look around to see if you can find a way to the door," Link instructed.

The green senior knight and orange-clad student parted away from their group. They made their way over towards the large door. In the corner of his eye, Fledge notices a patch of bomb flowers.

"There's some bomb flowers over here, Link. Maybe we can use those to blow those rocks."

"Maybe, but at this distance, I don't think we can make it over there in time before it blows in our faces. Hopefully, they'll be something over here."

A Mogma dug up several feet away from the pair. He looked around, worried in his eyes. "Blast! I must have dropped it…"

"Ledd?" Link called to the Mogma.

"Hey! Nice timing. The both of ya showing up here must mean we're connected somehow. You know, like fate or something. Anyways, do me a favor and get my Bomb Bag, Ok?"

"Why?" Link questioned.

"I was behind that door looking for treasure when those creeps showed up. I panicked and hit the road, but it looks like I dropped it," Ledd explained to the pair. "It's a bag for carrying around bomb flowers. I can't imagine not having one. Oh, hey...I guess I don't have to imagine it, 'cause I lost mine! Anyway, it's back there...Do me a favor and get my Bomb Bag back, will you?"

The pair went through the stone door. The room had hexagon platforms connected by a larger one in the middle. Several gusts of lava flew up. There were more strange carvings. A loud clang echoed off behind the pair. Metal bars covered the door, preventing their exit. Looking again at the center of the room they can see two Lizalfos this time. The lizard monsters marched over to the pair, one stretching its arm guard while the other cracked its knuckles.

"Shit. Fledge, stay there!" Link commanded.

"But there's two of them! You barely held out against one!" Fledge tried to protest but Link had already run over to the battle platforms.

The two Lizalfos put all their focus on Link. Him going against a singular Lizalfos he was doing well. It's when the second decided to jump in that it got difficult for the green-clad senior knight. They all repeated the process of Link fighting one of the monsters, the other one jumping it once Link knocked its partner back, leaving him putting all his attention on it while the previous one took that time to recover, jumping back into the fight once Link knocked back the other one.

At one point the Lizalfos that weren't engaged in the fight decided to do something different. It eyed its spike ball and then back to Link, its eyes filled with malicious intent. Fledge knew he had to make a move otherwise those monsters would hurt him. Acting on an impulse, the timid student picked up a rock, ran to the edge of the platform and threw it at the creature's head before it could execute a spin attack on Link.

The Lizalfos rubs its head, turning it over to the source. It stared at Fledge, its eyes filled with pure rage now. Slowly, but shakily, Fledge pulled out his sword & shield. The Lizalfos ran over to him, breathing bursts of fire outwards, giving Fledge little time to move away. He moves to strike the creature only for it to get blocked by its arm guard. The Lizalfos stuck its tongue out in a very mocking manner before executing a punch attack, hitting Fledge on his side.

Fledge clutched his side as he let out a small moan as he laid on the ground. The Lizalfos stood directly above him. It lifted its arm guard high above, moving it down at a high speed. Fledge lifted his sword in a desperate attempt to block the attack. Instead of any sort of impact, the creature let out a pained shriek. A tip of the sword came peaked from the center of its chest. Falling to the ground revealed Link behind.

"You okay?" Link extended his hand to Fledge.

"I think so." Fledge looked around as Link helped him out, realizing that the other Lizalfos was gone.

"Why did you jump in? I told you to stay put."

"That other one was going to hit you with its tail. I had to do something! I didn't want to stand by while something bad happened to you...again."

Link's firm expression softened up once realization struck him. "Fledge... you what happened to Epona on the day of the Wing Ceremony wasn't your fault."

"I know but...I knew Groose wouldn't go through with his threat to me, but I felt so powerless. I knew I should've told you yet I was too scared to say anything. I was a coward. I felt as if this time I could do something but couldn't even take down that Lizalfos. Guess I'm a failure in that department too."

"You're anything but a failure. I'm sorry for the way I reacted, but that was because I was worried. I see now that you might've helped me out a lot by taking that other Lizalfos attention away from me. And you stood your ground long enough. I say that's more of an achievement than failure. You'll get better, I know it."

A small smile grew across Fledge's lips. His eyes found themselves at the center of the room. "Was that chest there before?"

"No, but I think I know what might be inside."

Sure enough, when they opened the chest revealed a blue bag with a picture of a bomb flower on it.

"This must be the Bomb Bag," Link stated.

"You know now that we have something to safely carry those bombs, there's a good chance we can get to places we haven't explored yet. Maybe we can ask Ledd if he would lend it to us," Fledge suggested.

Exiting the now unblocked door, the pair were greeted by Pipit & Karane.

"You two okay? We heard a loud noise and rushed over here but the door was blocked," Pipit said.

"Just retrieving something from some Lizalfos," Link answered. "Is Ledd around?"

"Right here!" The Mogma called out. "And you got my Bomb Bag!"

"Could maybe next time warn us about the two Lizalfos?" Fledge suggested as he rubs his side.

"Oh right. I probably should've. Sorry to put you both through that. I guess I owe you now! So let me have it."

"Actually...we were wondering if you could let us borrow it so we can go deeper into the volcano?" Link requested.

"What's this, now? You want to borrow it so you can go deeper into the volcano?" Ledd parroted.

"We kinda need it to find our friend, and the way to her is blocked." Fledge pointed to the blocked path.

"Oh, right. You're looking for your friend. You sure have yourselves out there, getting this far. That reminds me! How's Cobal?"

"He's uh...worried," Fledge answered.

"He's worried? About me? What kind of pal am I, putting him through that? You all must be worried too. Not knowing if your friend's dead or alive. You know what? I'm not letting you borrow my bag. Nope. I'm GIVING it to you!"

"You don't have to do that," Link said.

"I could always make myself another one. Just promise me you all will take good care of it. And don't blow yourselves up."

"That's very kind of you. Thank you," Fledge said.

"Not a problem! Now you've got my Bomb Bag you can go find your friend! Oh, and another thing before you go. Knowing me that bag's probably empty so you probably fill it up before going on. That bag can hold up to ten bombs. So if you run across bomb flowers, be sure to fill up the bag. Good luck!"

Once Ledd was gone, Fledge let out another small groan.

"You okay?" Karane asks.

"One of those Lizalfos punched me with his arm guard. I can still breathe okay so I don't think anything is broken."

"Alright, but you should drink a red potion and try to take it easy just to be safe. Let me know if the pain gets worse."

"I will. I can see why you insisted I wear chainmail, Pipit."

"I told you it works wonders!" Pipit exclaimed

With that done, Link proceeded to fill up the bag with the flowers. Then they returned to the blocked path. Link took a bomb out and threw it on top of the rocks. Seconds later the flower exploded freeing the pathway from the rocks. They all entered the next room.

A steep hill laid ahead. When they all took one step, the contraptions above let down large boulders of rocks coming straight at them. Once they were safe they looked around for a clue to pass. They soon found a ledge for them to safely stay while the boulders ran down. Once they safely traversed above they found another steep ledge with the same contraption. Except for this time the ledge is covered with rocks. Thanks to keen observation, Link found a ledge close enough to throw a bomb flower to uncover the rocks, allowing them a safe journey.

At the top of the hill lies a large statue of a dragon head with lava pouring out of its mouth. Behind the pouring lava lies a large golden door with a weird symbol on it.

"That door looks similar to the one back at Skyview Temple, but it has some sort of weird shape," Karane said.

"That's because it's a key hole. We need to find a key to unlock it," Link stated.

"Seriously? Another key?" Pipit stated. "Where would it be?"

"It would be in a white chest with a red gem on it. It should be around here."

"Is it the one at the top of the hill behind us?" Flege pointed to a small hill. Below the other dragon statue below is a chest fitting Link's description.

"Yeah...That looks like it."

"I'll go get it!" Fledge started making his way up the hill before Link could say anything.

"This doesn't feel right."

"Why are you so nervous?" Karane took notice of his uneasy demeanor.

"When I found the key at Skyview, I had to go through an elaborate path just to get it," Link explained.

"Maybe whoever designed the temple wanted to be nice?" Pipit suggested.

"Somehow, I think that's not the case."

Fledge soon made his way up the top. The chest was right there, waiting to be opened. Inside the chest showed a Dragon Sculpture. It's a carving of a coiled dragon made out of dazzling gold.

"Weird thing to use a key, but I'm sure we'll figure it out." Fledge went to the edge of the top, holding the key above. "I got it, guys! I'm coming back down!" After only taking a few steps the room suddenly shook. Turning back he saw the dragon statue that oversaw the chest open its mouth, letting out a large rolling boulder. "Uh oh…"

"RUN, FLEDGE!" His friend's voice in the distance called out.

Clutching the gold carving in his arms, the student ran as if he had never run before. He jumped from the ledge at the end, ignoring the stairs on the side, landing on his friends as the large boulder leaped into the dragon statue's mouth, stopping the lava flow. Fledge's heavy breaths echoed as he rolled off his friends, maintaining a death grip on the key. The dragon head statue closed its mouth.

"Are you okay, Fledge?" Link asks his friend as he still takes deep breaths.

"That depends, am I dead?"

"Still very much alive, buddy."

"Thank goodness." Fledge sat right up. He held out the carving. "I got the key…"

"You sure did."

"Maybe you should stick to getting the key from this point."

"I will." Link took the key from Fledge's grip.

"Well...now that's taken care of, how are we gonna use that to get through that door?" Pipit wondered.

"We have to align this carving to match the shape on the door."

They all spent the next several minutes trying to match the carving onto the door shape. When they did, Link pushed it into the hole which gave a small glow before it split in half. Everyone stood still as the doors slowly opened.

They entered the chamber. Up ahead lies a curving pathway. They all jumped at the sound of the door slamming shut behind them. Walking up to the top of the stairs, the large boulder from before rolled across a path that resembled a rib cage.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." Fledge's voice echoed out through the whole room.

A chain caught their sites. Fi appeared when they went over to inspect it.

"Masters, I detect Zelda's aura in the surrounding area. I detect an especially strong reaction from this chain. I calculated the probability that Zelda was bound by it recently at 95%."

"She was what?" Karane exclaimed.

"Those bastards...If they hurt her…" Link seethed, disgusted at the mere thought of Zelda chained up like some animal. How dare they do that to someone as sweet as her?

"Did she escape?" Pipit questioned.

"I surmise Zelda was somehow able to escape and proceed along this path. I suggest we continue with all possible speed." Fi went back to the sword, leaving the humans alone.

Link took a moment to calm himself down, soothed at the news of Zelda being able to escape. "Let's move, quickly."

They leaped down the end of a long ramp. They all proceed to jog to the top. However, when they reached only halfway, a familiar dark laugh echoed off the room's walls. Standing on top of another statue of a dragon head, glaring down, is none other than the Demon Lord, Ghirahim.

"Oh, it's you. Let me see…" He hummed. "No, that's not it. This is so very embarrassing, but I seem to be at a loss for your names. Not that it matters, really. To tell you the truth, I'm feeling a bit frustrated, and right now I just need someone to vent to. I heard my underlings had finally captured the Spirit Maiden, so of course I rushed over here. What can I say? I was excited. Flustered, even."

Disgusted stirred up in the human's guts, Link was the angriest. This guy had the nerve to gloat about capturing his best friend.

"But what did I find when I arrived? That agent of the goddess…She had once again...See what I'm trying to say is…" The Demon spoke as if he was trying to contain his anger, but they quickly fell. "THAT GODDESS-SERVING BITCH ESCAPED WITH THE GIRL!"

"Serves him right," Link heard Pipit's voice mutter.

"I MUST have the Spirit Maiden in order to resurrect my master! I MUST HAVE HER!" Ghirahim continued on.

"Like hell he is!" Karane stated.

"I got a little carried away there, didn't I?" Ghirahim said, much calmer. "I don't deal well with... complications to plans I've laid out so carefully. It's a character flaw of mine. Ah, but something good can still come from this day! I've had all this bottled-up anger smoldering inside me, and now I can release it."

"Then why don't come here then and we can help you with that!" Link taunted.

"Is that really a good idea, Link?" Fledge said.

"There's four of us and only one of him. We can easily take him down." Pipit turned towards Ghirahim's direction. "Unless he's too afraid to come down here himself!"

"Please, I'm anything but afraid of you humans. I just have better things to do than waste my time. I can take you all down with the snap of fingers."

"Then why are up there away from us then?" Karane yelled out. "That's not a good look for you, pal! You know what that makes you look like? A cowardly little bitch!"

Ghirahim seemed taken back by Karane's statement, almost looking offended by her words. "A cowardly little…? Such vulgar words coming from a child! Haven't your parents taught you any proper matters?! Perhaps I can help remedy that. There's someone special I'd like you all to meet."

"Friend? Last time he introduced us to his friends, I almost got cleaved in half by Bokoblins," Fledge muttered.

"Oh, don't be shy! He can help with your poor manners. Not to mention I need to vent all this unhealthy anger, and your agony is such a great stress reliever. I consider it to be a win-win for both of us. It won't take more than a few moments with my friend before you're all charred to a satisfying crisp. And let me tell you, that will put a spring in my step!"

Snapping his fingers, the Demon Lord vanished. The dragon head statue opened its mouth, releasing the large boulder down the ramp.

"Not again…" Fledge muttered.

"Everyone move!" Link yelled.

Each member jumped to one side of the ramp, watching the boulder roll to the bottom. Cracks grew on the boulder before they glowed with lava. Six skinny legs broke out of the cracked boulder. A horizontal line grew across the boulder, revealing its mouth. It let out a terrifying shriek before charging up to the group.

"Get to the top!" Link yelled, prompting his friend and himself to run. "Talk to me Fi! What is that?"

"This is Scaldera. This fearsome monster inhabits the deepest recesses of the Earth Temple. It can be categorized as a Pyroclastic Fiend. Its body is completely covered in rock, but you can see its weak point, the eye, through the cracks in this outer shell. If you are able to remove parts of this creature's rock shell, you will vastly increase your probability of success."

"Right, find a way to break its shell. But with that?" Link wondered.

They all reached the top. A door with the crest of the goddess is laid at the end of it. They all attempted to open it but it would not budge.

"It won't open!" Pipit yelled.

"What we do then?!" Fledge asks.

None of them answered as Scaldera reached the top. Before it could reach them, a small explosion went off near his foot, causing it to roll back to the hill. They all could see the source of the explosion.

"A bomb flower? How did we not see that?" Karane exclaimed.

They all watch Scaldera roll to the bottom. It then opened its mouth to suck in air before spitting out a large ball of fire. As they jumped out of the way an idea came into Link's head. The green-clad senior knight stood still as he watched Scaldera make its trek up the hill. Just like before its feet stepped on the bomb flower causing it to fall back down.

"Follow me, guys!" Link ran down the middle of the ramp, once again missing the large fireball spewed from Scaldera. He pulled out the Bomb Bag. "Ok, when he gets close range, one of you throw a bomb at it!"

"At close range? Are you nuts?" Pipit question.

Link slammed the bag onto the yellow-clad senior knight. "Just do it!"

Scaldera treks up the hill at high speed. When it got close, Pipit threw the bomb flower at it. When Scaldera started sucking up air, Link grabbed a bomb and ran down with it. He threw it into the monster's mouth as it sucked up it. The bomb exploded, causing pieces of its rocky shell to break off, exposing its red eye. Link used his sword to slice against it several times before Scaldera got back up, chasing him.

"I think I know what he's doing! He wants us to throw a bomb at it so it can roll back down. Then he can take another bomb as it sucks in the air!" Karane said as she pulled out a bomb flower herself.

They all repeated the same process about four times. With Link leading the monster to the middle of the hill while one of his friends threw a bomb at it, Link would take a bomb to throw into the creature's mouth. Each time the creature became more exposed. At the sixth attempt of doing this process, Fledge reached into the bag only for a panicked face to grow on his face.

"What's wrong?" Link called out.

"There's no more bombs in here!" Fledge panicked.

"We'll have to refill at the top!" Karane said.

"Hurry!" Pipit urged.

They all dashed to the top with Scaldera hot on their heels. Suddenly the monster lifted itself high above, catching Fledge off guard. He tripped on the ground as Scaldera chased his friends. It then slammed down on the ground rolling straight at him very fast. The student had barely had enough time to roll out of the way.

"That's the third time today I almost got crushed and I don't think it hasn't even been fifteen minutes," Fledge thought to himself as he lay on the ground.

"FLEDGE BEHIND YOU!" The panicked voices of his friends echoed off his ears.

Scaldera stood right in front of Fledge. The student remained in his spot, too terrified to move. Scaldera opened its mouth to suck in the air, along with him. Fledge tried to run but the force of the Scaldera was just too strong. Just when it seemed Fledge would be dinner, Link came running down, throwing a bomb into the creature's mouth.

Once knocked down, Link struck the creature's eye many more times. Finally, the creature let out a pained shriek as it fell on the ground. Its skin turned black before it exploded, leaving no trace of it behind.

"Thank you, Link." Fledge slowly got back to his feet. "Sorry I got left behind…I wasn't watching my footing."

"I'm just happy you're okay. Try to be more careful next time." Link patted Fledge's shoulder. "Between you distracting that Lizalfos, and me saving you from becoming that thing's snack, I think that makes us even now."

"Yeah. I guess it does."

"You two okay?" Pipit asked as the pair made it to the top.

"I am, thanks to Link here," Fledge said.

"Let's go see what's through that door," Link suggested.

Much like what happened back at Skyview, the door vanished showing them the pathway. Everyone found themselves in another spring that was designed similarly to the one at Skyview, with stone pillars leading them to the smaller state of the goddess. Though instead of a wide-open sky surrounded by life, it was concerned with the rocks. Nonetheless, it was peaceful and beautiful all the same.

The sound of a harp echoed off the walls of the spring. On the top of the stairs leading to the spring were two figures. One resembles the tall mysterious woman they all saw on their way to the Earth Temple, though this time her cape is gone. The other is a shorter girl with blonde hair in a white dress, purple bracelets, and two braids held with the same material of the bracelets who was playing the harp. She finished her melody as a glowing pillar about the size of a person appeared.

The mysterious woman gestures to the girl to walk through the glowing pillar. Upon looking closely at the girl, Link realizes who she is.

"Zelda?"

Zelda stopped in place as she heard the familiar voice. A warm smile grew on her lips as she saw her friend. "Link? Is that you?"

"Zelda!" Link exclaimed.

"You're okay! And is that...Karane, Pipit, and...Fledge? You're all here?"

"We are, Zel," Karane spoke with so much relief seeing her friend alive & well.

"Been a tough road but now we're all back together," Pipit stated.

"We were so worried about you!" Fledge exclaimed.

They all ran to the stairs leading to their friend.

"I can't believe it. You're all really here. I missed you all so much!" Zelda attempted to meet up with them, only for the woman's arm to block her way, prompting everyone to stop.

"You cannot go to them, Your Grace," The woman told her. "Remember what we discussed. Restrain yourself. Focus on the task at hand."

The four students just stood in confusion. Why wasn't Zelda going back with them? What was the woman talking about? Why is she calling Zelda 'your grace'?"

Zelda gazes at her friends with a sorrowful expression before transitioning to a serious one. "Right...of course." The girl turned away. "I...I have to go. I'm sorry guys." She told them, voice filled with regret.

Zelda stepped into the glowing pillar, disappearing from the room. As the woman accompanying her was about to step in, Link sprinted towards her, followed by Karane.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Link called out.

"Who are you and what do you want with our friend?" Karane's demanded.

The woman responds with a piercing glare of her crimson eyes, causing them to stop in place. If looks could kill they would've been dead on the spot.

"Not one step further," the woman spoke as if she were...disappointed. "You and your companions took FAR too long to get here. Looking at you, I fear the goddess is mistaken in her choice of agents. If this failure is any indication, you have no hope of defending Her Grace from those who seek to assail her."

"Cut him some slack! He did everything he could to come over here!" Karane barked at the woman.

"Also, we just had to deal with a giant fiery boulder that was trying to kill us!" Pipit retorted. "Where were you at?"

"Doing my duty, unlike you. I had hopes that with you accompanying the hero, you would've kept in check about the task. If you cared for Zelda that much, you would've put all of your effort to get here quicker. But it seems like you three failed just the same as he did. That truly speaks a lot."

The room grew quiet with only sounds of the waterfalls echoing off the walls.

"Do my words hurt you, young ones? Do my words sting? Let them. If I had not come when I did, your Zelda would already have fallen to the hands of the enemy. The truth of it is you were late. You were ALL late and failed to protect her.

Both the male and female senior knight just stood with shock, while Fledge kept his head down. Link just stood, unsure what to say as the woman continued on speaking. The woman's tone softens from harsh to more firm.

"I sent Zelda ahead to learn more of the fate in which she is destined to play a part. Listen well, chosen one. If you and your friends wish to be a help to Her Grace, you must summon a shred of courage and face the trails laid out before you. Only when you've conquered the trials will you be used to Zelda. No sooner. Am I understood?"

With that, the woman walked into the glowing pillar, disappearing just as Zelda did. The glowing pillars dissipate leaving the four students alone in the spring. Silence lingers for several moments as they process the woman's words.

"I...I didn't realize how serious this is," Link muttered.

"This isn't your fault, Link," Pipit assured him. "We're partially responsible somehow. Maybe I got a little excited about finding the Rupees."

"And maybe I shouldn't have spent so much time messing with the bomb flowers," Karane added.

"I appreciate you guys trying to take away some of the blame but that woman was right." Link lowered his head. "I should've put more effort into getting to Zelda quicker. Instead, I was late like I always am."

"Then we'll just have to do better," Fledge spoke up. "We now realize how important this quest is that should motivate us to do better."

"Fledge is right. Just because we lost the battle, doesn't mean the war is over," Karane said.

"I don't know how but we'll do better. We'll prove that woman wrong," Pipit said.

"You're right. I'm not going to let someone bring us down. I swear I WILL do better."

"Now there's the Link we all know and love!"

"While it is good that all of you strive to be more efficient on this quest, I must remind you that you must listen to the message at the end of the spring."

"Oh, right. Thanks, Fi," Link told her.

Everyone went to the statue at the end of the spring. Like what Link did at Skyview, he hit the crest of the goddess with a skyward strike. The now purple crest glowed and Fi hovered above the water.

"Masters, I have a message written in the language of the gods of old. Allow me to translate for you." Fi then started dancing across the water in the same matter she did back at the previous temple.

"From the edge of time, I guide you, the ones destined to carry out the goddess's mission. The spirit maiden who descended from the clouds has passed through the Earth Spring and makes her way to a fated place."

Fi then concluded the message by twirling around the statue just like last time.

"The parched desert to Lanayru...That is where the chosen will pass through the Gate of Time into a distant world."

A glowing object appeared from the statue and floated towards Link's hands. It is another old stone tablet, only it has an amber gem this time.

"Guess that's where we're heading to next," Pipit's voice echoed off.

"In that case, we should head back to Skyloft," Karane suggested.

Link stared at the water. Glancing up at the statue he imagined Zelda there exactly how she was on the day of the Wing Ceremony. She turned back, giving out a happy giggle as she smiled back at him. He smiled back.

The woman's reprimanding words repeated over and over in his head. While they made him feel unpleasant, they were oddly motivating. It filled him with a sense of determination. While he might not know exactly what this quest is about he realizes it must be very important. He will prove that woman wrong and he will do better. They all will do better for Zelda.

"Link, are you coming?" Fledge called out to him.

"Oh right! Wait up!" Link, along with his friends, made their way out of the spring.

#legend of zelda #skyward sword #legend of zelda fanfiction #link #pipit #karane #fledge #an impulse decision

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naitiaclo960writings · 4 years

Text

Day 6 - Mask

(Warnings: Alcohol drinking (consensual tho))

Dean almost cursed his brother for dragging him into this Halloween party just to abandon him ten minutes later for the pleasure of Jessica Moore’s company. Even though they’d been married for two years, those two were still disappearing to go get laid somewhere and Dean really didn’t want to be around when that happened. It wasn’t for him, thank you. And really, a Halloween party? He was over 30 and he didn’t even know that adults were still celebrating this kind of thing like any other Saturday night.

But he was apparently wrong considering the crowded dance floor of that theme bar. Everyone had played along, zombies moving their bodies among vampires, witches and werewolves. Some had opted for more classic costumes such as the nurse near the bar or the clown close of the toilet and from whom Sam would surely stay away. As for the DJ, he was on stage in his pirate disguise, giving the microphone to the beatboxer alien from time to time. The atmosphere was still friendly and it’s not like Dean had anything else to do with his October 31st evening, but he didn’t particularly want to meet anyone tonight.

His Batman costume didn’t seem to be as popular as he would have liked and the only girl who had noticed him all night long — a kind of giant pumpkin stained with blood, nothing very appetizing really — had mixed him up with "this guy from Avengers". Yet his mask was proudly on his face, his eyes surrounded with black make-up, and his cape flew according to his movements as his ears pointed towards the sky. Dean spent $50 on that suit and it wasn’t to be mocked by an uncultivated pumpkin.

Leaning against the bar isolated from the dance floor, Dean sighed, grateful to have at least some alcohol to comfort himself with. He had decided to swallow a few more drinks before going back to his apartment to watch TV when, suddenly, someone came to pull him out of his morose thoughts by bumping into him.

"Oh, really sorry." A low male voice apologized. "I should have looked around before I came down here."

Dean turned his surprised gaze to a man wearing a pretty convincing cowboy suit. Though judging by the wide headscarf on his eyes, he certainly personified an outlaw, a bee pin as a sheriff’s badge. Dean raised his eyebrows, moving to make room for the stranger.

"No harm done." He replied with a casual smile, tightening his grip around his shot of Alabama Slammer.

The cowboy came to take the place next to him before ordering as well, his blue penetrative gaze back on Dean.

"Very successful, the Batman." He said, obviously open to make conversation.

The stranger glanced at him for a moment, from top to bottom, and Dean could not restrain a feeling of pride taking hold of him. He smiled more while turning completely towards his new companion.

"Finally, someone with actual knowledge in this bar!" Dean exclaimed with amusement. "I swear, the next person who calls me 'Captain America' gets hit".

"What, someone dared to make that comparison?" The cowboy marveled in a laugh.

"Oh, you have no idea what I’ve heard." Dean lamented before drinking his shot further, savoring it more than the previous ones. He focused his attention on the cowboy and arched an eyebrow. "Your costume is really cool too, a true rodeo pro with that."

Another clear laugh escaped from the stranger’s mouth, surpassing the music that resonated further on the dance floor. The cowboy’s order finally arrived to him as he answered.

"Me, I don’t know. But William Brooks was certainly a fine gunfighter, that’s right." He replied before dipping his lips in his glass of pure vodka.

Dean eye’s widened, his smile growing bigger and bigger. There were so few people who knew that name, it couldn’t be a coincidence. Of course, for a huge fan of old western movies, the comparison was obvious, but he had to be sure.

"William Brooks as…?"

"Buffalo Bill, exactly."

Dean uttered an exclamation of joy.

"Awesome! Buffalo Bill is one of the best outlaws of his time, his adventures are amazing!" He said as he looked into the cowboy’s blue eyes.

"I know, he is my favorite mercenary!" This one replied in an equally cheerful tone.

Dean felt his night was suddenly changing. Maybe if the cowboy stayed here and talked to him, he might consider staying longer and enjoying the party.

"Dean" He said, raising his glass to the cowboy.

"Castiel." He replied with an easy smile.

They clinked their glasses before swallowing them bottoms up. Finally, without either of them really realizing it, hours —and the shots— flew at an incredible speed. What Dean thought was another tasteless evening turned out to be a very good time as he and Castiel talked. Sam and Jessica even came to him around 1:00 in the morning to tell him that they were going back home and Dean had just said goodbye to them before returning to his exciting conversation with Castiel about the best horror movies. Castiel, to tell the truth, seemed rather cowardly, but he listened to each of his words with particular attention which did not fail to warm Dean’s heart.

Neither of them particularly wanted to dance, happy with their own part of the bar and the distant music as the place gradually emptied. Around 1:30, however, their harmony was disrupted by a third person who was obviously already well drunk. Without being invited, a man in his forties, dressed in a chicken costume, came to interfere in their conversation with a lot of hearty laughter and inappropriate remarks, clearly hitting on Castiel while royally ignoring Dean yet less than a meter away from him.

When the man asked Castiel for his number for at least the sixth time of the evening, he rolled his eyes. Despite all the more or less subtle refusals from Castiel, the man did not seem to get the message and the good mood of the cowboy was gradually flying away as the stranger became touchier. Dean had held himself back until now, not wanting to make a scene and risk embarrassing Castiel, but when the stranger passed a hand stinking of cigarettes around his friend’s shoulder and that Castiel flinched, he decided that it was going too far.

Dean grabbed the stranger’s arm and push him away from Castiel, the man stumbling before catching himself at the bar.

"Hey, man. Get lost. I won’t tell you twice." Dean growled while standing in front of Castiel.

"Wow, easy pal!" The stranger replied, raising his hands in front of him, frowning. "It’s just a fra… fri-friendly discussion here."

It was more than obvious that the alcohol had reached what was left of his brain. Dean did not move an inch.

"Why don’t you go make friends somewhere else, pal?" Dean said in an icy voice. "Get out of here."

Eventually, the man grumbled, but walked away without further ado. Dean turned back to Castiel who raised an eyebrow in his direction. Dean pinched his lips. Great, did he just ruin his chances with him just because he wasn’t able to contain his emotions? Well done Winchester.

"Okay, so it’s not just a costume, is it? You’re a real caped crusader." Castiel finally joked with a happy smile on his face.

Dean relaxed and laughed with him, returning to his place near the bar.

"That’s it, keep laughing. Somebody had to save you from that ambush cowboy." Dean replied, returning to his empty glass.

"Save me, eh? Who says I wasn’t ready to draw at all times?" Castiel pouted.

Dean rolled his eyes.

"No offense, but you could barely aim straight with all the vodka you’ve been drinking." He teases softly, smiling at Castiel.

"Mmh, point for you." He mumbled.

And Dean couldn’t have put it better. Castiel did not stop at this drink and Dean was truly impressed that his friend had not yet vomited the contents of his stomach on his shoes. On the contrary, Castiel seemed to be a happy drunk and, although his words were increasingly incoherent, he also became more tactile. Dean didn’t mind, laughing at his friend’s behavior. He couldn’t really blame him for overstepping his bounds, even a skilled party boy like Dean was sometimes fooled by alcohol.

However, around 3:00 in the morning, the bar began to kick out the last customers and Dean found himself with a drunken Castiel completely slumped against him on a bench in the streets of Chicago.

"And it was just crazy because… because his dog wasn’t even white, you know? And then…

"Cas?" Dean gently cut him off, with a small smile on his face. "I think it’s time to go home. Do you live around?"

Castiel pouted. Dean could not help but think that, even when being completely drunk, Castiel was no less pleasant and attractive. The headscarf had still not left his eyes, blocking his face and hiding it from Dean’s curious gaze. Only two orbs of a brilliant blue continued to stare at him with an absent look, almost swallowed by the black of the pupil.

"… Mmh, maybe?" Castiel mumbled before slumping a bit more against Dean, sleepy.

Dean raised an eyebrow, looking around for his car.

"Okay… Okay, I’ll walk you out, right? What’s your address?"

Once again, Castiel grumbled before shrugging and stared at the pavement with intensity, as if it was whispering all his secrets to him. Dean bit his lip and swore inwardly. It was out of the question for him to leave Castiel alone outside in such a state or to take the risk of calling him a taxi.

"Well, come here buddy."

Dean grabbed Castiel by the waist and guided him to the end of the street. The journey to his car was not easy, but in the end he managed to put his companion in the passenger seat before taking the wheel. Fortunately, the alcohol had already somewhat faded in his system but he took the time to drive slowly. Dean glanced uneasily at Castiel from time to time, now leaning against the window and observing the landscape in silence. He had become mute, which gave Dean time to think.

What the hell was he doing? Driving a completely drunk stranger home was like the beginning of a very bad situation. Was it considered kidnapping? Dean nervously licked his lips after another look at Castiel. They didn’t know each other that well yet, and the last thing Dean wanted was to scare his friend.

But at a closer look, he had no other choice. Castiel was unable to take care of himself at the moment and it was not an option for Dean to take the risk of putting him in danger. What if he ran into the other jerk at the bar and took him home? No, Dean didn’t want to think about it. At least he had a warm bed and painkillers waiting for him at home.

When they reached their destination, Castiel was even more apathetic than when he left the bar. He kept mumbling anecdotes that Dean was supposed to understand as he was helping him up the three floors to his apartment.

A bunch of encouragement and much patience later, Dean finally closed the door of his home behind them. Castiel immediately took an interest in his AC/DC key ring for a minute before looking around. He seemed to frown under his mask.

"Pepper?" He suddenly called.

Dean frowned too. Was Castiel looking for someone? Dean lost some of the color on his face. Was it his girlfriend? His wife?

"Who is Pepper?" He asked without being able to help himself.

Castiel seemed confused for a moment before shrugging and mumbling.

"Goldfish."

This time, Dean really had to hold back a laugh at the stupidity of the situation.

"Okay, well, I’m sure Pepper is doing just fine. Now you’re going to go wash up and go to sleep." Dean sighed by dragging him further into his apartment, shaking his head.

When they arrived in the bathroom, it was more than obvious that Castiel was equally incapable of doing anything without help. Dean sat patiently on the edge of the tub while his friend stared at him with fascination, complimenting every little detail with a slurred voice. Finally, Dean knelt before him and began to take off his boots. Castiel did not protest, so Dean did the same with his socks, his long black leather coat, his belt, his gloves, his hat and everything else until the cowboy was only in jeans and shirt in front of him.

However, the headscarf was still in place and Dean hesitated before removing it. The piece of fabric was large and covered at least the entire upper part of Castiel’s face, hiding what he perceived to be prominent cheekbones to go with his square jaw. He swallowed. Castiel was simply focusing on an invisible spot near Dean’s ear when he finally decided to untie the knot behind Castiel’s face to remove the mask.

If Dean had believed that Castiel’s eyes were mesmerizing until then, it was nothing compared to the irresistible portrait that had just appeared before him. Dean held his breath for a moment while he allowed himself to admire each piece of skin offered to his sight, Castiel totally oblivious of the red appearing on the cheeks of his host.

He didn’t know after how long he was able to get out of this state —"No kidding, stop looking at people like that, Dean, you’re gonna scare him" he told himself— but he managed to get rid of the costume and make-up in turn before escorting Castiel to his room.

His friend was now more than silent, letting himself be pushed around when Dean laid him out among the blankets. The effect was almost immediate: barely wedged in his pillows, Castiel closed his eyes and his face relaxed. He fell asleep a few seconds later after turning to his side. Dean smiled softly, unable to prevent this urge of tenderness from growing in his chest at this sight. As a precaution, he decided to leave an empty basin and painkillers on the bedside table before letting Castiel sleep.

He’d take the couch tonight.

* * *

Dean awoke to the sweet sound of someone puking his guts out in the bathroom. He sighed. He had not had enough sleep to his liking and the filtering light in his living room kept coming to attack his eyes. Aware that he could not go back to sleep anyway, he decided to go and check on his guest. Dean more or less effectively dragged himself to the barely opened door of his bathroom before gently knocking against the wood.

"…Cas?" He called out in a hoarse voice. "Is everything okay?"

The bathroom became silent a moment after his words before a barely human grunt resounded. Dean sympathized with him.

"I know." He replied gently. "The towels are in the right cupboard if you want to take a shower. And, uh, I should have clean toothbrushes in the first drawer. Take your time."

Another grunt, this time softer, rose again from the bathroom and Dean closed the door before moving on to the kitchen. Ten minutes later, he heard the shower turn on.

When Castiel was finally able to appear in the kitchen with a slightly more presentable face, though still sick, Dean had already had time to prepare the coffee and a pancake batter.

"Morning sunshine." Dean joked, glancing behind him and trying not to look at his friend again for hours." Was yesterday’s rodeo a little too much for you?"

Castiel stared at him with wide eyes before coughing. Dean turned around, raising an eyebrow.

"I, uh… Hello." A silence. Dean smiled kindly as Castiel looked everywhere but in his direction. "Okay, this is going to be really awkward, but, uh... did we… you know?"

Dean adopted a confused expression before blushing until the roots of the hairs, mortified. He really had to learn to choose his words more carefully if he wanted to stop finding himself in these kinds of awkward situations.

"No!" He hastened to rectify. "No, by rodeo I meant... Well… You drank a lot yesterday and I didn’t know where you lived, so I drove you here. The only thing that happened was you calling for your goldfish." Dean let out a little laugh. "But you slept in the bed and I slept on the couch. My sore back is proof."

Castiel seemed to relax a little before finally getting closer. He still seemed a bit embarrassed, probably because of everything he had imposed on Dean the night before, but at least his shy smile had come back to illuminate his face.

"Thank you. I would have hated not to remember that if we had spent the night together." He replied by looking up at him, and Dean could already say that it was not really a joke.

"Oh." That was the only intelligent answer he could come up with.

All this had the talent of relaxing the atmosphere while Dean served a large cup of coffee to Castiel, throwing him soft glances from time to time. His friend took the cup between his fingers before blowing gently on the surface of his coffee.

"I don’t know how to thank you." Castiel said as Dean went back to his pancakes. "If I invite you next time, do you think you can forget all the embarrassing things I probably did yesterday?"

Dean felt a pleasant sensation in his chest as a fine smile bloomed on his face. Castiel seemed almost in the right place in his kitchen, drinking coffee as if it was the most natural thing to do in the world. He nodded slowly, feeling his zygomatic pulling his lips up.

"Yee-haw cowboy." Dean huffed.

Castiel shook his head, amused, while Dean was simply delighted to learn that there would be a next time.

"On one condition though." He quickly added.

"Yes?" Castiel asked, curious.

"Undisguised this time."

And just like that, this wonderful laugh was back, filling the room with a light and warm atmosphere.

"Deal."

* * * @winchester-reload Hello! Again, I wrote more than I should have written for this story but I’m pretty happy with the result, even though it gave me a hard time. Hope you enjoyed it!

You can find the whole series on Ao3

Tag list /!\ PLEASE TELL ME IF YOU WANT TO BE ADD TO (or removed from) THE TAG LIST so you won’t miss any updates.

@misha-moose-dean-burger-lover @styggtroll @thanks-tacos @petrichoravellichor @iamcharliebradburylevelperfect @ladywaywarddsc @hellfire37 @destiel-221b-sabriel @aloha-cowgirl @destielhoneybee @dysfunctional-destiel @ozonecologne @doofcas @castielrisingabove @zoerayne2426 @tibbinswrites @vicmc624 @thegirlofstarlight @berrieseveryday @staycejo1 @certaindeanwinchesterforcastiel @bab-spnfamily @lo-mindpalace

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grayseekerswritinglife · 3 years

Text

Tricks & Treats 5/5

Chapter Five: The Gold-Sweats

“Fly?” Hook broke stride and gave Starscream an incredulous look. “I don’t think you understand the seriousness of the situation. Skywarp is lucky he can walk, let alone fly.”

“I realize that,” Starscream said irritably, falling in step beside the Decepticons’ chief medic as he resumed walking down a corridor of the Victory’s crew deck. “I’m just looking for an ETA. That’s all.”

After their escape, they had sneaked Skywarp back onto the Victory without drawing undue attention to themselves. Hook had agreed to let Skywarp recover in his quarters rather than the medbay, which had been helpful, though it was only a matter of time before Megatron started asking questions. Eventually, the old bucket-head was going to decide that he simply had to have an airstrike. When that happened, it would be Starscream’s neck on the line if all Seekers weren’t ready to scramble.

“Look,” Hook said, in the clipped tones of a medic nearing the limits of his patience. “The best I can offer is that Skywarp will be ready to fly once ninety percent of the gold has left his system. But that could take up to two weeks.”

“Two weeks?” Starscream let out a string of curses, which Hook duly ignored. They were nearing the door of the quarters which Skywarp and Thundercracker shared. Hook politely raised his fist to knock, but Starscream shoved past him and barged in. He regretted doing so almost immediately.

Skywarp was sitting in a shallow tray positioned on the floor between Skywarp’s own berth and the one he typically shared with Thundercracker. It was easy to see why. He was literally dripping gold. Liquid metal was leaking from his joints, his vents, his transformation seams, and—it seemed—from every other orifice. It was even flowing, like tears, from the corners of his optics. Gold had pooled at the bottom of the tray, leaving him sitting in a puddle of what was, effectively, his own sweat.

“Ugh.” Starscream crinkled his nasal assembly. “How revolting!”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Thundercracker said with a shake of his head. He was kneeling behind Skywarp, using a rag to clean his gold-streaked wings. This appeared to be an impossible task. Every time he cleared some gold away, more came pouring out to replace it.

“That’s very good,” Hook said in approval. “If you keep his transformation seams as clear as possible, the gold will escape from his system much more easily.”

“But I don’t want it to,” Skywarp complained.

“Too bad,” Starscream snapped. “I expect you back in the air within the week.” Hook shot him a glare, which he duly ignored.

“How are you feeling?” Hook asked, crouching to run a medical scanner over Skywarp’s frame.

Skywarp shrugged. “Okay, I guess. What did you put in the gold, though? It tastes terrible now.”

“Nothing,” Hook replied, his gaze never leaving the scanner. “What you’re experiencing is a common side-effect of gold-poisoning. You might even say it’s your body’s way of protecting you from your own questionable habits.”

“Gold tastes bad to you now?” Starscream asked from the doorway. He didn’t want to get any closer to that puddle of sweat than he absolutely had to.

Skywarp nodded unhappily. “It looks sooo tasty, but when I try to drink it—”

“Drink it? It’s your sweat.”

“So? It’s better than letting it go to waste.”

“Trust me, Warp; it is disgusting,” Thundercracker put in.

“It probably won’t taste bad forever,” Hook assured him. “Once your system has returned to a state of balance, your taste-receptors will probably do the same.”

“But in the meantime,” Starscream said, “I guess I can safely leave this by your bedside, without having to worry about you putting on any additional weight.” He drew a small bag of golden ore—the very bag he’d originally confiscated from Skywarp—from his subspace, and tossed it on Skywarp’s bunk.

“Now you give it back,” Skywarp said with a pout, though he eyed the bag with naked avarice, as if he was thinking of trying it anyway.

“Yeah, I’ll be taking care of that,” Thundercracker said, whisking the bag into his subspace. “I’ll make sure he gets some when he’s ready. And that he doesn’t overindulge,” he added, giving Skywarp a stern look.

Skywarp folded his arms over his gold-slick chest, glaring. Mostly at Starscream. “What are you even doing here?”

“Can’t a Trineleader check up on his Trinemates?”

“Watch out,” Thundercracker warned. “We might start thinking you care.”

“Don’t be absurd. I was merely ensuring that Megatron does not hear of our little... adventure,” Starscream retorted. “Which means making sure the two of you remain alive and intact.”

“Whatever you say, Screamer.”

“I just have one question,” Starscream said, fixing his gaze on Skywarp. “I thought the Autobots searched your subspace.”

“They did.”

"How did you keep them from finding your pranking supplies?”

Starscream only asked because Skywarp’s pranks had saved their afts. After they’d gotten past Sludge, Skywarp had used one of his smoke-bombs to distract the two other Dinobots guarding the detention area. After that, most of the Autobots had been in such a frenzy to deactivate the sprinkler system that they hadn’t even noticed the escaping prisoners. Those who had noticed had swiftly fallen prey to Starscream’s null-ray. Or to the reverberations of Thundercracker’s sonic booms, which were deafening at close range. Or—in the notable case of Powerglide—to one of Skywarp’s fake snakes. Which had proved highly effective as a tripping hazard.

“Oh,” Skywarp said with a smile. “They did find them.”

“But they let you keep it all?”

“Noooot exactly.” Skywarp leaned back against Thundercracker, coating his chest in golden slime. Thundercracker made a face, but draped his arms around Skywarp anyway. Skywarp grinned. “The Autobots were all so distracted by the gold that I was able to slide a few things back into my subspace.”

“And naturally you chose the exploding pumpkins,” Thundercracker said. “Priorities and all.”

“Hey, ‘tis the season.” Skywarp smirked. “But you know the part we’re not talkin’ about? The electro-magnetized part.”

“The what?” Hook asked.

“Oh, nothin'. Just the way Starscream busted into the detention holding area and kicked the door open like a ninja and grabbed his null-ray straight from the jaws of one of those Dinobots—”

“Yes, well,” Starscream interrupted. “We simply do what we must, don’t we?”

“Yeaaaaah.” Skywarp playfully flicked gold in his direction. “It’s got nothin’ to do with that picture you keep in your lab.”

“Picture?” Hook looked nonplussed.

“Schematic,” Starscream corrected. “Of the Ark. It’s how I knew where the Autobots were keeping the null-ray. Obviously.” He turned for the door, but Skywarp called after him.

“Know what the best part of all this is?”

“I shudder to ask.”

“The two of you guys comin’ to my rescue,” Skywarp said, glancing warmly between Starscream and Thundercracker. “Nice to see you gettin’ along for once.”

Starscream scowled at them both, and hastily made his exit. He went straight to his lab. If anything good could be said to have come of this, he was at least getting some uninterrupted lab-time. Finally.

“Now,” he said, sinking down at his workstation. “Where was I?” He called up the data-set he’d been analyzing when Thundercracker had invaded, and stared at it for a while. Equations swirled through his mind like wisps of smoke, but his gaze kept drifting to the holocube. Finally, he picked it up and gazed at the two figures pictured within. A silver-and-red Seeker perched on the shoulder of a mech so huge that his wings blocked the stars. Starscream pressed his lips together, sighed, and opened a comm channel. A very old one. So ancient that no one, even Soundwave, would have been able to break its encryption.

“You idiot,” he began.

A soft laugh greeted his remark. “Are you all safely away?”

“Yes, but you took a stupid risk.”

“Perhaps. Or, perhaps, I prevented a retaliatory attack by the Decepticons. I imagine that Megatron would have wanted the three of you back, eventually.”

“If only to prevent us from revealing secrets,” Starscream reluctantly agreed.

“So perhaps it could be said that I took care of a dicey situation in a way that caused the least amount of harm.”

“Which doesn’t make you any less of an idiot.”

“Possibly not.” A pause. “How’s Skywarp doing?”

“You’re changing the subject.”

“Yes.”

“Whatever.” Starscream shrugged. Then, remembering Skyfire couldn’t see him, added, “He’ll live.”

“Good. And I trust he’s learned his lesson about stealing gold?”

Starscream snorted.

“Thought as much.” Skyfire chuckled. “Thanks for not hurting anyone.”

“Apart from Powerglide,” Starscream pointed out.

“I think it was only his pride.”

“We would have, if we’d needed to. Hurt people.”

“I understand. But you didn’t.”

Silence fell between them. Not an uncomfortable silence; just companionable.

“So it’s Halloween tonight,” Starscream finally said. “I don’t suppose you’re free?”

“Why? Are you going to scare me?”

“I could.” Starscream thought for a moment, then rattled off a set of coordinates.

A beat of hesitation. “Isn’t that where you got captured?”

“You’ll like it,” Starscream promised. It wasn’t as if the Aerialbots would be there standing guard, and besides, the pocket valley was private and rather beautiful. Plus, tonight was a full moon. He wanted to see Skyfire by the side of that spring, wet and gleaming in the moonlight. “Bring all your tricks,” he said, “and I’ll bring treats.”

~~~~~~~

This was written for @darkstarofchaos for the @transform-or-treat Halloween gift exchange. There are five chapters of it in all, and I will be posting a chapter a day until Halloween! Many, many thanks to @justawayninja or being my awesome beta. Your suggestions helped me get the story to the next level.

#transform or treat 2020 #transform-or-treat #darkstarofchaos #transformers #maccadam #halloweeen #starscream #skywarp #thundercracker #skyfire #humor #hijinks #pranks #secret relationship #trine dynamics #team as family

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lornashore · 3 years

Text

Happy Halloween Carnival

Summary: An Arthur Fleck reader insert. You bring him over to your house for some halloween fun!

A/N: Halloween is most definitely my favorite holiday so this was incredibly fun to write! As we all know, Arthur deserves the best so I’m giving him a wonderful Halloween. Happy Halloween everyone!

Arthur watched out the window at the trees as the car sped down the empty street, observing all the gold and wine colors of the leaves. He had never seen such vibrant colors before, being used to the dull, drizzly days surrounded by the grey buildings of Gotham.

As you brought the car to a stop at a red light, you turned toward him for a moment, gently squeezing his knee. He looked at you, smiling brightly, clear excitement showing on his wrinkled features.

“Is this where you live?” He asked, motioning to the small neighborhood that was across from the long line of trees.

“I do. In fact you can see my house from here.” You said, pointing to a yard that was lit up by an orange and purple glow. Arthur's feet began to bounce up and down, unable to keep his nerves contained any longer. You giggled at him when he leaned forward in his seat to see the yard as you drove closer to it, pulling into the driveway and shutting off the engine. His features brightened even more when he was finally able to see your house in full view before him, exiting the care as swiftly as his feet would allow. He had always wanted to be able to decorate for holidays like this, but between his job and mother, he never found the time or reason to.

“Do you like it?” You asked him, wrapping your arm around his thin, boney waist.

“Yes of course! I think this little guy here is my favorite.” He said, pointing to a short, pudgy zombie jester sitting on one of your steps. Leaning forward, he reached out, grazing his hands over the blood soaked hair on his head when suddenly, the figure spun towards him. It’s pupils lit up red and a high pitched laugh sounded from the internal speaker, making Arthur startle, standing up straight.

“Happy Halloween!” The animatronic cackled, and Arthur laughed along with it, no longer frightened by the sudden movement.

“He’s motion censored, so anyone who walks past will get a frightful greeting! He’s one of my favorites too.” You said, leading Arthur up to your front door with your two grocery bags in hand and Arthur's overnight pack slung over your shoulder. He ducked beneath the fake webbing you strung all across the front deck, smiling when he noticed sparkly black bats and ghosts hanging from the roof.

Once you entered your home, you switched on the lights, revealing more of your spooky decor. A large cardboard coffin leaned against the wall in the entry room, lid ajar with two skeleton hands clung to it. You noticed him observing it and smirked as you plugged in the fog machine that was hidden within. He took a few steps back when he noticed the artificial mist collect around his feet.

“We’ll be leaving this on once the trick or treating starts. For now, come help me with these. I still have to fill up the candy bowl.” You said, taking Arthur by the hand and into your kitchen where you had a large plastic bowl decorated by white skulls setting on the counter.

“Here, can you fill that up for me?” You asked, handing him two large sacks of candy. He

did as you asked, stealing a couple pieces for himself when your back was turned.

“For now we can keep this on the little table next to the front door. Otherwise, let’s go get into our costumes!” You said, watching as he placed the bowl where you instructed and followed you to your bedroom.

You reached into the bag, taking your costume from it. Looking at the picture on the front of the package, you smiled at the soft rainbow colored clown costume Arthur had chosen for you. It wasn’t your first choice, but meeting those large blue orbs and puffed bottom lip, you couldn’t say no. He wanted to be a clown couple, so that’s what you intended to do. You changed quickly, seeing him deeply focused in your vanity mirror, his makeup and brushes strewn out in front of him,

You approached him, observing how the brush glided across his skin with an experienced hand. He paused for a moment to look at you, in your colorful polka-dotted dress and matching bow.

“I was right. You do look really cute in that.” He spoke softly. A light blush coated your face at his compliment, knowing he was doing the same despite the white paint that fully covered his cheeks. Leaning forward, you wrapped your arms around his neck, resting your head against the side of his. He grasped onto your arms and kissed you softly there, still watching you.

“All you need now is a bit of paint.” He said, turning towards you.

“Oh..no I think It’ll be ok. You can finish yours.” You told him, not knowing where to begin as far as makeup went. You didn’t know the first thing about coming up with a look like that.

“Mines all done though. Please? I really want to do yours. I have plenty here.” He said. And again, you didn’t have the heart to tell him no.

You took a seat beside him on the two seater bench, closing your eyes so he could do whatever he wanted with the greasepaint. The gentle strokes of the brush relaxed you more than you thought it would, and you tried your best to imagine in your mind what he was drawing. When he was finished, he turned you towards the mirror.

You opened your eyes and studied your now painted face. The heart shaped pastel pink lips, matching cheeks, painted freckles, and an impressively detailed sun painted over your left eye tied it all together. You blushed again beneath the makeup, seeing your reflections side by side made you realize again how much he truly loved you, and loved spending moments like these together. The thought made your heart race, wishing the moment could last forever.

“One last thing.” He reached into his pocket for the spare red nose that never came with the costumes. He wanted you to feel like a real, professional clown like him, even if it were just for a night. With one hand, he turned your head towards him so you couldn’t see yourself anymore. You closed your eyes as well, remembering what he told you before about how one should never see the nose be put on. He did the same, and then pressed the puffy red ball to your nose, tying the string around the back of your head to secure it. Once again, he directed you towards your reflection. You opened your eyes and immediately they went wide, a shy grin slightly crinkling your painted skin seeing the costume completely done and ready.

“I think we should call you...Loonetta.” He said after a moment of pause. You giggled, covering your mouth with one hand.

“Look at you, you’re so cute! There’s no need to be shy.” His voice was high pitched as he spoke, now fully into his character. With both hands, he took your hands in his and began to dance. You moved along with him, humming an unknown tune out of key as you stepped in time with him. He spun you a few times, holding you close to his rigid frame and kissed the back of your neck. Even with the paint you thought his lips felt warm, leaving tingles on the cool flesh. You relaxed into him, still swaying back and forth in your bedroom, not wanting the moment to end.

The doorbell jingle brought you back to the present. You quickly dashed off smiling wide at the clown that was close on your heels.

“Who could be here at this time?” Carnival asked you. You paused at the door before opening it to turn to him.

“Just wait, I know you’ve never seen this before.” He cocked his head at your words, wondering what it was that he missed in your yard. You opened the door when you heard the bell ring again, stepping aside so he could see.

“Trick or Treat!” The small group of kids said in unison, holding their buckets and pillow cases out in front of them. Unsure of what to do next, he glanced over at you, then back at the expectant children.

“It’s ok, give them each a piece of candy from the bowl!” You instructed. And he did, happily, waving as he watched them walk back down the drive and onto the next house.

“Where did all these kids come from?” He asked, looking out at the many bodies crowding the street. You giggled at how silly he seemed, standing so close to the door that his nose almost pressed against the glass.

“It’s always this busy on Halloween! This year is actually more so then last. I hope I bought enough to last the whole night.” You said, eyeing the bowl that was once almost overfull now slowly losing its contents. You stepped out onto your front porch, propping the door open just as another group of kids approached.

“Trick or Treat!” They shouted from halfway up the yard. Immediately Carnival stepped beside you with the bowl in his hands. He dropped a piece in every bag that was held out to him with a different sound effect each time. One little girl in particular dressed as snow white found him to be very entertaining. She didn’t leave with the others and clapped her hands together when he produced a long string of handkerchiefs from his jacket sleeve. He beamed at this, clearly having the time of his life on that very night.

“What’s your name?” She asked, pointing at him with a tiny finger.

“Why, my name is Carnival! And this here is my companion, Loonetta!” He said, wrapping his arm around your shoulder.

Suddenly, the little girl approached him, arms outstretched and her candy sack left on the wood stair. She tightly wrapped her arms around one of his knees, resting her head there for a moment.

“I love you Carnival.” She said, tightening her grip. I looked at his face just in time to see a tear slip past his lashes, clearly surprised and touched by this child's kindness.

“Lucy! Geez, I’m so sorry. She doesn’t understand boundaries yet.” A curvy blond lady said, rushing towards the little girl that was still latched to Arthur's limb.

“It’s quite alright. She’s very sweet!” He leaned down then to pat the top of her head. “And you know what? I think I know what you would like.” He straightened his posture, placing his heels together before pulling a bouquet of pink flowers from his suit. She perked up immediately, stubby fingers reaching for the fake flowers he held out to her.

“Thank you!” She said before following her mother down to the street.

It was quiet after that, only a few older kids stopped by every so often.

Once everything calmed down, and the once crowded road was now quiet and empty, The after excitement fatigue creeped upon your tired, slumped frame. You shivered, feeling a cold breeze cut through you as you gazed out into the night.

“That’s everyone. Let’s head back in now.” You said, turning to your door. Once you were inside, Carnival closed and locked the door behind you. He grasped onto your wrist, pulling you to him as close as he could before you could walk off, resting his hands on the small of your back.

“Thank you for inviting me, I never knew Halloween could be this much fun.” He said, his voice husky and tired.

“I’m just glad you agreed to come over. I knew you would enjoy it.” You said, placing a kiss to his soft red painted lips. He brushed his rough fingers through your hair, stopping at the back of your head to massage gentle circles there. You wrapped your arms around his neck and rested your forehead against his gazing at each other. Neither of you wanted to let go of the other, yet both began to feel a tingle of sleep fast approaching.

“Happy Halloween Loonetta.” He whispered after a long moment of comfortable silence passed.

“Happy Halloween Carnival.” You replied, kissing his forehead. You then led him down the hall so the two of you could ready yourselves for a long, much needed sleep.

#arthur #fleck #arthur fleck #arthur fleck x reader #arthur fleck reader insert #arthur fleck imagine #arthur imagine #arthur x reader #joker #joker x reader #JOKER2019 #2019 #joker movie

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rangikuxmatsumoto · 4 years

Text

– halloween shenanigans

“Oh come on, you guys are no fun,” Rangiku bemoaned, a slight pout forming on her lips as arms crossed defiantly across her chest. Yes, she was pouting and yes, it actually was working. A soft sigh escaped Izuru as he threw a knowing glance towards Shuuhei. Matsumoto’s pouting was easily going to work to sway his decision; Izuru could already see it having the desired effect as Shuuhei scrambled to appease the blonde.

“Ah, I mean if you really want to, I don’t see why we can’t…” Shuuhei stammered.

“Isn’t it a little….cliché?” Izuru questioned his tone level as his gaze shifted between the other two. Rangiku had already accepted Shuuhei’s reluctant acceptance to her proposal, which meant that most likely no matter how much Izuru protested he’d be forced to tag along.

“What’s cliché?” Renji chimed as he found three of his companions in huddled discussions in the corner of the fukutaichous’ meeting room.

“Nothing,” Rangiku shot, throwing a slightly glare toward Kira before turning her attention towards the red head, “I want to go out on Halloween but someone wants to be a party pooper.” Knowing that she could shift the tide heavily in her favor, her arm coiled around Shuuhei’s before looping the other around Renji’s, drawing the two males in close with a slight tug. “What do you say Renji? Want to come with Shuuhei and me to the World of the Living for a little Halloween mischief?”

“Uh….” Taken aback by Rangiku practically strong arming him into the planning, Renji felt he had little choice in the matter. “I mean, I guess…”

“So you’re coming,” Rangiku firmly decided for Renji, on his behalf.

“I’m not being a party pooper Matsumoto-san,” Izuru lightly protested but now with the decision three against one, he knew better than to press the issue. “…Fine, I’ll come too.”

A chorus of excited squeals erupted from the blonde female as she gave the two boys still wrapped up in her hold a little squeeze before releasing them to wrap an arm around Izuru’s form in a quick hug. “You guys won’t regret it; we’re going to have so much fun!” Rangiku announced as she bounced between the three of them, “Saturday, let’s say 8 PM, sound good?” Like they had any choice in the matter at this point, they nodded reluctantly, sealing their fate. With the plan in place, Rangiku tossed them a glance over her shoulder and offered a small wave, “8 PM, don’t be late.”

“What did we just agree to?” Renji questioned, still trying to figure out the whirlwind planning session he had accidently involved himself in.

“Uh, I guess we’re going out on Halloween,” Shuuhei responded, casually fantasizing over just how scandalous Rangiku’s Halloween costume might be.

“You just agreed to pay for Matsumoto’s drinks all night you know that don’t you,” Izuru chimed in, arms crossed as he realized Renji and Shuuhei were going to be absolutely useless.

As the week wound closer to Saturday and to Halloween night, Shuuhei, Renji and Izuru came to realize the predicament that they had found themselves in – Rangiku was highly invested in this, casually dropping hints very opportunity she got about the night they were going to have. It was Thursday night, the three of them out for drinks, when their conversation shifted to the looming weekend festivities.

“Wait, are you guys dressing up?” Renji questioned, the notion of Halloween costumes still a difficult concept for him to wrap his head around.

“I mean, Rangiku said she was…” Shuuhei chimed in as he refilled his glass, throwing a glance from Renji to Izuru, “You were planning on dressing up right Izuru?”

“…I’m still not happy about going…” Izuru sullenly replied as he downed a drink.

“Come on, you don’t want Rangiku to call you a party pooper again do you?” Shuuhei was trying his best to get the other two more on board with this adventure, figuring it might win him some brownie points with Rangiku.

“Okay so then what are you dressing up as?” Renji questioned his companions, pointing a drunken finger in their direction.

“Something cool,” Shuuhei chimed, trying to sound cool but only coming off cheesy in the process.

“Something easy,” Izuru groaned as he slumped forward, head to the table in a drunken state.

‘These two aren’t any help,’ Renji thought to himself, knowing that he’d have to go to Matsumoto for help.

The next morning Renji made his way to the Tenth; with the impending evening out only a day away he knew he’d find Rangiku in a good mood. Unfortunately, she wasn’t in her office but her taichou was. Renji was ready to turn tail and run knowing that Hitsugaya probably wouldn’t be pleased to hear about their plans but he wasn’t quick enough to get out of the sight of the young captain.

“Matsumoto isn’t here,” the ever present bite to his tone gave Renji the idea that Rangiku was supposed to be in the office, and the pile of undone paperwork was even more of a dead giveaway. The young captain pinched a note between his fingers, Rangiku’s elegant script fluttered across the paper but from where he stood he couldn’t make out what she had scribbled down as an excuse, “She had an errand to run – and since Kira and Hisagi have also stopped by over the past week, I assume the four of you are up to something.”

“Uh…” How was it that Renji was constantly finding himself put on the spot, “We’re just celebrating Halloween tomorrow…” Had he said too much? Based on the piercing glare he was receiving he might have.

“I figured,” Hitsugaya offered as a groaned escaped him, leaning back against his chair he let go of the note, “And what you’ve come to try and get out of going?”

“No,” Though the thought had crossed his mind a handful of times over the week, “Uh, I don’t have a costume yet and I was going to ask Rangiku’s opinion.”

“Do something clever,” It was the only advice Toshiro would offer, returning to the paperwork in front of him, “Or funny, she’ll appreciate that.”

Renji had been looking more for an actual costume idea, these vague notions as to what to look for in a costume weren’t helping him much. All he had gotten so far was cool, easy, clever, or funny – none of which helped and with Rangiku nowhere to be found at the moment he would be forced to figure this out on his own.

As the clock ticked closed to Saturday at eight, Rangiku put the finishing touches on her costume before sprinting off to meet the boys. For once, she was actually on time, unfortunately two of her companions for the evening were early. Her stride slowed to a stop as she took in the sight before her. Shuuhei was clad nearly head to toe in leather, leather pants, belt, vest – clearly he was going for the ‘biker’ look and Izuru, oh sweet Izuru, he really had gone with something easy, well something that made him look easy, a nurses’ costume.

“What the hell are you two wearing?” Rangiku questioned, slipping between them to get a closer look at the front of their two outfits.

“Halloween costumes,” they replied in unison, as if there was any question.

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” Shuuhei was the first up for judgement, Rangiku’s pale blue gaze narrowed as she turned her attention directly on him. Under her gaze, suddenly Shuuhei began to sweat, maybe his costume choice was completely wrong, Rangiku looked absolutely stunning in her witch’s costume, the low cut front, and the short frilly skirt – oh god he could feel the nosebleed coming on.

“Well, what even are you? A biker? You look like you belong at a gay bar with that outfit; all you’re missing is the leather ass-less chaps.” The bare chest, the short little croptop like leather jacket, god – the sailor style biker cap that he was now squeamishly clutching in his hands. She should have dictated their costume choices – allowing them free will in the matter clearly had been a terrible idea.

“—At least I’m not wearing a girl’s costume,” somehow Shuuhei had managed to squeak out a retort to Rangiku ripping apart his Halloween costume, trying as best he could to shift the judgment and ridicule to the other member of their party.

“It’s not a girl’s costume!” Izuru practically snapped, though there was a faint blush on his pale cheeks.

“It’s a girl’s costume. Your skirt is nearly shorter than mine and your heels are actually higher than mine,” Rangiku turned her wrath on the other blond, “But you had that in your closet already didn’t you?”

“…Maybe.”

A groan escaped Rangiku as she pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration, whatever – it was Halloween, no one was going to judge, no one was going to care – honestly, they’d probably get more attention because of how those two were dressed. “Where’s Renji?”

“He said for us to go ahead and he’d meet us, something about his costume…” Izuru chimed, tugging lightly at the hem of the sexy nurses’ costume.

“Fine, tell him where to meet us.”

Rangiku was going to need a drink or ten in order to get through the night with these two and whatever crazy costume Renji ended up showing up in. If he showed up at all, the night was early yet but as an hour or so passed by with no sign of the red head, Shuuhei and Izuru started to wonder if he had somehow managed to pull off ditching this evening out. Though, they were actually having fun, and Rangiku was enjoying herself with all the attention being paid to her and the drinks being bought for her. So when the door to the bar opened and another patron began to shove their way in, their obnoxiously large inflatable costume bumping into people left and right – the three didn’t think anything of it, until they noticed just who and what it was.

First it was Rangiku, drink poised at her lips as she caught sight of the inflatable green crown of leaves that nearly towered over the other patrons of the bar, stalking through the packed party. Her gaze lowered, catching sight of a crimson mane that was far too unique to one person, but it was the scowl on Renji’s features that made her nearly choke on her drink from the laughter that threatened. She couldn’t even get the words out before Shuuhei was in stitches at her side, having followed her vision to level on Renji.

“A pineapple!” That was all Rangiku managed, half buckled over in laughter, and clutching Shuuhei’s arm for support as the two, semi-intoxicated individuals laughed their asses off at their friend’s unfortunate choice of attire for the costume.

“Yeah, yeah, a fuckin’ laugh riot. Urahara said it was all he could get on short notice!” He snapped, trying as he might to cross his arms against the large yellow inflatable costume that consumed his entire torso.

“You went to Urahara for a Halloween costume?” It was Izuru who at the moment was still managing to keep his composure at his friend’s costume choice, even if he could feel a slight tug at the corner of his lips threatening to give way that fact that he too found Renji’s predicament amusing. “You know he did that to mess with you, right?”

Renji, the realization dawning on him that perhaps he had been taken for a sucker by the mysterious shopkeeper, hadn’t been thrilled already and now he wasn’t happy at all.

Having managed to regain some of their composure, even if a bubble of laughter threatened to consume Rangiku the minute her gaze shifted back towards Renji, Shuuhei and Rangiku tried their best to console the red head. “No, no, it’s perfect,” she managed, waving a hand in front of her face to dry the tears that formed from laughing so hard. “You look great, it really suits you Renji.”

“…Shut up.”

#drabble #this is just pure crack

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bisexualpirateheart · 3 years

Note

18.'I'd say you make my heart pound but well...You know'-Miranda Barlow/Idelle for Halloween asks ❤

~ A Visit To the Opera ~

Miranda takes her seat in the opera box and looks around with interest. The invitation had been unsigned but she already knows exactly who had sent it...

She tries to remember the last time she had seen Idelle. Well over a decade at least, she decides at last. After a while the years often blurred together and Miranda mostly only remembers them by the fashions. Fashions had been better in other years, in her opinion. Though they were easy and convenient nowadays, she misses the flare and inspiration of the old days.

The opera at least is a good excuse to get dressed up and she has a feeling that was why Idelle had chosen it. Well, one of them at least.

She reaches for her opera glasses and glances around. She’s a little early, but no matter.

A footstep soft as velvet behind her. Miranda’s ready in case it isn’t her expected hostess, but all the same she doesn’t turn.

“Have you grown so complacent?" A voice purrs in her ear as familiar lips brush the curve of it.

Miranda smiles then, turning her head so she can greet her lover with a kiss. "I knew it was you."

Idelle's lips are cool as her own, but Miranda likes to imagine the warmth that used to be there. It’s been well over a century since she had turned Idelle. First she had kept the girl as her personal maid, but eventually Miranda had grown attached to her and turned her. After seducing her of course. It was not difficult. Miranda had seen Idelle watching her and her guests, felt her eyes upon them when they were in bed together. She had never tried to persuade the girl to join her and her companions for she wanted Idelle to join her of her own free will, and at last she had.

Miranda smiles.

"What're you thinking of?" Idelle sits in the seat beside her, removing her hat and glancing around the opera house, much as Miranda had done. She wears a creamy silk dress that plays well to her pale skin and the rouge on her cheeks is as good as true color.

"I'm thinking of when I turned you." She murmurs. "It's a favorite memory, after all."

Idelle's smile answers her own. "I think of that night sometimes. and all the ones after." She brushes her hand along her bodice. "At times when I can't sleep or the one I’ve taken to bed hasn't afforded me enough pleasure."

"Tis a pity when that happens." Miranda agrees.

"It's not too often." Idelle tells her with a wicked grin.

"So what made you think of the opera?"

"I missed you." Idelle says simply. "It's been too long and I thought...why not?"

"A perfect excuse." Miranda smiles. “And the game?" There is always a game.

Idelle's grin is infectious. "If you come three times before the opera ends, I win. If you don't, you win."

Miranda smiles. "That sounds like a delightful challenge."

She's interested to see what sort of tricks Idelle has in mind for tonight. It isn't as though they haven't played these games before. But whereas Idelle is only a mere three hundred years old or so, Miranda is much much older than her. She's had centuries of knowing herself and teaching lovers the way to please her, and feeding her own desires. If a mere mortal had challenged her to this she would have laughed in their face, but Idelle is different.

Before she was Miranda's maidservant and lover, she had been a prostitute, working out of a brothel that Miranda had visited once when she was bored one dull rainy evening. She had been pleased by the girl and taken her for her own maid, offering far more money than she was getting paid in the brothel, simply to come and be a maid in her own home.

And then, well...Miranda smiles at the memory of turning the woman. How satisfying it had been to seduce Idelle and make her her own.

And now here they are.

She leans back in her seat as the lights dim. Idelle settles more comfortably in her own seat. It isn't until they're nearly through the first act that Idelle makes her move. Her hand brushes Miranda's arm, stroking it lightly with her fingertips. Slowly, she draws her fingers along the slender curve of Miranda's arm up to her bare shoulder, and there Idelle drops a silent kiss upon her skin. She keeps stroking the inner curve of Miranda's arm while she mouths soft, sweet kisses along the dip of Miranda's shoulder and throat.

Miranda shivers only a little. She wonders if Idelle will bite her. It's always been part of their lovemaking on and off, and she grows aroused at the thought of Idelle's fangs sinking into her neck, mirroring the delicious moment when Miranda had first turned her.

Idelle's hand grows bolder, dipping down inside the bodice of Miranda's dress. She skims her fingernails over the swell of Miranda's breast as she sucks a lovemark into the side of Miranda's throat.

Miranda arches into the sensation, loving the way Idelle's lips always feel on her. She feels her arousal growing, and it's only the first time, she can surrender a little to the game. After all, it's been such a long time and she wants to enjoy tonight. She parts her legs beneath her skirts and offers a soft moan.

Idelle laughs lightly against her throat. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing." She kisses the words into Miranda's skin. She cups Miranda's breast, tracing her nails all around the tip.

"Don't think you don't want to do it." Miranda whispers back.

“Of course I do.” Idelle breathes. “I always want to make you come.” Idelle turns her head and kisses her on the mouth. She deepens the kiss as she strokes and teases Miranda's breast before sliding her hand to the other and squeezing it as well.

The need between Miranda's legs grows heavier. She likes to think her skin feels hot, or rather the memory of it warms her. The longer Idelle touches her elsewhere, the more she aches for it. It would be embarrassing, if it were anyone else. It's not as though she hasn't fucked anyone since the last time they were together. There have been many lovers in Miranda's bed, some vampire, some human, since that time.

But there is something special about being with not only another vampire, but one you made yourself. Miranda would never say this to any of her others, but Idelle is possibly her favorite. She had fallen seamlessly into the vampire way of life, simply reveling in it. There had been a few mistakes along the way of course. That was to be expected. But overall Miranda had guided her and taught her well and Idelle had been a model pupil.

Now though as Miranda leans into the persuasive touch of Idelle's lips trailing back down her throat, she simply enjoys the ache in her cunt. She enjoyed sex before she was a vampire and has reveled in it ever since then. The desire and lust within her has never faded and she doesn't believe it ever will.

Idelle moves in her seat so she's sitting behind Miranda on the chaise. Both her hands are inside Miranda's bodice now. If anyone looked into their box, they would see the debauchery happening there and Miranda grows wetter thinking of some unsuspecting, slightly bored opera guest glancing their direction and being caught by the sight. Shocked and aroused perhaps, though they wouldn't want to admit it. Perhaps they would touch themselves, brought to an unexpected passion by the spectacle of the two women in the dark opera box.

"What're you thinking of now?" Idelle nips at her ear slightly, still caressing Miranda's breasts.

"If someone happened to see us." Miranda tells her. The opera house is dark. It's unlikely, but the scenario is still pleasant to think of. She feels Idelle chuckle against her throat.

"Remember Rome."

Miranda stifles a laugh. "I do indeed."

Idelle's hands finally touch her nipples, toying with them idly, pinching them until Miranda has to bite her lip from crying out. She's so aroused by now that she knows this first one will barely be any surrender at all. She's practically given it to Idelle on a platter.

Idelle grazes her neck again with just the hint of fangs and Miranda shudders faintly as her first orgasm of the night ripples through her.

Idelle settles back on her side of the chaise lounge with a satisfied smirk.

Miranda takes a sip of wine and composes herself. "You really are looking lovely tonight."

"As are you." Idelle returns. The rouge on her cheeks suits her and the stylish low cut of her bodice suits her very well. Miranda thinks of the way her skin feels under her lips and smiles to herself.

She fans herself lightly, turning to actually gaze at the opera.

Out of the corner of her eye she can see Idelle watching her. Miranda's lips curve upward into a smile. "That first one was very nice." She murmurs. “I'd say you make my heart pound but well...you know.”

Idelle stifles a laugh. She takes a sip of wine. "Good."

She looks innocent enough when Miranda glances her way, but Miranda knows the girl is up to something the second time around. She waits, half focused on the opera, half on what Idelle is scheming. But her mind is easily distracted, and she finds herself thinking of the past once more.

The second time after the intermission where they've sipped champagne and chatted politely, Idelle merely waits for the lights to dim again before slipping off the chaise. She draws Miranda's skirts up to her waist, stroking along the insides of her thighs through her silken underclothes.

She brushes her fingers ever so softly upward in smooth circular strokes. Each of them sends little zings of pleasure through Miranda's body. She can feel herself quivering as Idelle draws higher and higher, closer and closer to her aching clit.

And then just when Idelle's fingers are right there, she draws back, starting again at Miranda's knees.

"Such a tease." Miranda breathes.

Idelle smiles up at her. "I said I wanted to make you come. I didn't say it would be quickly."

From her position above on the chaise lounge Miranda has an excellent view of Idelle's bodice. She gazes at it affectionately as Idelle leans in again, still stroking her skin.

With the tips of her fingers, Miranda reaches down to nudge at the stiff lacing along Idelle's bodice. She tugs a little, and then reaches for the lace, undoing it just a little.

"What're you playing at?"

"It's only fair that I should get to see you." Miranda says. "It's been too long." With those words, she tugs at Idelle's bodice a little more and there, finally, her aim is achieved. The tips of Idelle's nipples are freed from their imprisonment.

Idelle rests her chin on Miranda's knee, still lazily stroking her inner thigh. and then without warning, she raises her other hand and slips two fingers straight into Miranda’s waiting slit. Miranda catches the groan trying to escape her at the sensation. She spreads her legs as wide as she can with Idelle sitting between her thighs. She leans down, slipping one hand inside Idelle's bodice, stroking the full swell of her breast.

Idelle's fingers move almost lazily inside her cunt, but still she doesn't touch Miranda's clit. By now Miranda is practically throbbing with need and still Idelle's fingers move idly in and out of her, curling now and then, making Miranda shudder. Her breasts rise and fall with need. She wants Idelle's hands on her, all over her. Her legs tremble, wanting to wrap around Idelle's body and draw her close.

It's not enough. She needs more. "Please." She gasps. "Please."

Idelle smirks. She adds a third finger and Miranda moans again, watching her fingers move between her legs. Her breasts pressed Miranda's legs as she toys with her. The reddened tips taunting her, begging for her mouth there. Her clit feels so hot Miranda fears she will explode with desire if Idelle doesn't touch her soon.

As though she can read her mind, Idelle leans down and breathes softly right over her clit. The warm breath from her mouth make Miranda's clit tingle. She feels as though she's dripping with desire and Idelle laughs, drawing her fingers out of her cunt and licking them before pushing them back inside her. Deeper this time, fucking her more steadily as she rubs the tips of her nipples against Miranda’s thigh.

And then she pulls them free again and lowers her head. She grazes Miranda's throbbing clit with her teeth, teasing and nipping, sucking sharply again and again until Miranda is shaking all over with the steady rush of her second orgasm. Her handkerchief is crumpled and shoved between her lips, keeping herself from screaming aloud in the crowded opera house.

Idelle nips her still sensitive clit a final time and Miranda shudders helplessly. If Idelle keeps going, she'll come a third time here and now. They both know that now. She waits, feeling the sweat dry on her skin, and the throbbing sensation subsides a little between her leg, but only a little.

Idelle settles back in her seat a second time.

Miranda smooths her skirts down over her legs.

The opera plays on.

"More wine?" Idelle asks so innocently that Miranda has to smile.

"Please." She takes out her fan to cool her cheeks as she glances around. No one has observed their behavior or Idelle slipping back into her seat.

Idelle refills her glass and then her gaze lingers upon the fan in Miranda's hand. Miranda's breath catches. She knows exactly what Idelle is thinking and her cunt throbs in response. Idelle licks her lips in a decided way and smiles at her.

She takes the fan from Miranda's fingertips and runs her thumb over the ivory handle. With a wicked grin she reaches for Miranda's skirts again.

Miranda bites her lip as Idelle eases the fan handle inside her. It's delicate and smooth, a slim teasing weight inside her cunt. Idelle wields it deftly within her, fucking her with long steady strokes.

Miranda takes a sip of wine as she does. Normally the simple motion of the fan inside her wouldn't be enough to simply make her come but after the two previous orgasms she's feeling so delightfully aroused. Her clit is sharply sensitive and her cunt dearly aches for more attention.

She drains her wine and sets the glass aside. Idelle watches her as she does, moving her other hand to toy with Miranda's clit. A light brush or two of her nail and Miranda feels her cunt tightening, limbs falling open and eager for more.

Miranda closes her eyes briefly even as the sight of Idelle's fingers working between her thighs is a pleasing one. She focuses on the sensation of how Idelle fucks her with the fan handle. Each stroke leaves her eager and breathless. Idelle's featherlight teasing over her clit is both sweet and agonizing after the last orgasm.

Miranda feels herself tipping over the edge again and then Idelle grasps her clit between finger and thumb, giving her cunt one last tight stroke and Miranda comes with an unladylike moan.

She feels her body settle. The opera house air is stale and she desires suddenly to be outside.

Miranda opens her eyes. The fan handle sticks indelicately between her legs and she watches it with satisfied amusement before Idelle removes it. Idelle licks the handle before returning it to Miranda's handbag.

"There." She says as Miranda smooths her skirts a final time. "I do believe I've won."

"I do believe you're right." Miranda murmurs.

She gazes at Idelle fondly. "I've taken a house in Belgravia Square for the season." She strokes Idelle's face. "Come home with me and claim your prize."

"Of course." Idelle kisses her. "I picked up a new cock and harness while I was in Paris last and have been waiting to be with you again to try it out."

Miranda laughs and they settle down to watch the last of the opera together with their wine before they return home and enjoy the rest of the night.

#bs ficlets #black sails #black sails fic #miranda/idelle #miranda barlow #idelle #f/f #not for the faint of heart #vampire!Miranda #vampire!Idelle #date night at the opera

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wintersoldierland · 4 years

Text

not too broken to fix

part 3 of witch bucky au, which can be found here

also on ao3

For a long while, he doesn’t remember his name.

Not just because of the HYDRA but because of the many many memories, tangled together. Thousands of years all bound by his memory, different names, genders, religions, races. He remembers them all yet none of them.

He remembers being Veles, the Slavic god; Tezcatlipoca, an Aztec deity; Anulap, a god of magic in Truk Island mythology; Hecate of the Greeks; Baba Yaga of Russian folklore; a witch in eastern Europe, over and over again; a witch in Salem, burning bright with the flames of stakes.

He remembers it all.

Most of all, he remembers Tony. Not always named that, not always looking like he does now, but he remembers his soul, bright with creation. His wife, companion, husband, lover, forever love.

He remembers it all and none of it.

It’s confusing, so he runs. He gets on a plane, then a train, then a bus, and ends up in rural Azerbaijan, surrounded by mountains and old, abandoned villages. Something is tugging him there, so he sets a base in one building and goes off to explore.

It feels strangely familiar as if he walked those streets before, and when he stands on top of the mountain, with the sun slowly setting around him, he knows where did the memory come from. He looks down, takes a deep breath and throws himself off the ledge.

For a second, there’s only wind and quietness, but then his memories surge up and James takes a deep breath of the cold, mountain air, before calling his magic to him and changing shape.

A raven soars over the hills and James’s mind heals.

He lets out a happy sound and lets the wind take him, over the familiar mountains and long-abandoned villages. Over paths lit with magic and old stories, forgotten for generations. James soars and feels free.

It’s something he forgot about, but now it sings in his blood. A witch cannot be tamed, cannot be bound. A witch of Old Magic is always wild.

James relishes in his newfound freedom and his mind drifts to Tony. His Tony, who exists in this world, who is as brilliant as always, a creator to the bone.

There’s a reason why he was the deity of creation so many times, even without direct magic in his soul. They’re tied together and James knows he’ll come back to him. Sooner or later he’ll come back when he puts himself back together enough to protect his heart. His little genius.

He flies for miles, never tiring, magic surging in his small body, thousands of years of memories slowly starting to set in their place.

James remembers their last meeting, how small but fierce Tony was, how curious. How his soul recognized James’s, even amidst the magic and darkness of the All Soul’s Day. If he could smile, he would.

There’s something soothing in seeing the lands below him pass, in the cold air of the wind, of the Old Magic of the Earth. James can feel it calling to him, the skies rejoicing that he’s back. It feels like coming to the childhood home, not quite where his heart lies now but filled with good memories. He flies and flies and his magic trails behind him, a bright blue hoe on a black sky.

He thinks of Tony and his heart sings, anticipating their meeting, even as he lands and gets lost in the small, people-filled cities near the rivers. James soaks up the atmosphere, builds himself back, brick by brick, learns to smile again. There’s a lot that can’t be fixed so soon, even if his months of travels, but it’s a start. He’s not scared of himself anymore.

James starts to practice his magic again. Helps the villagers, makes flowers for the girls, makes butterflies from his hands, heals a pregnant woman. He heals others and by that, he heals himself.

It feels good to be useful again. He’s always been a helper, even as a god. Put on the Earth to aid humans, mortals, in their short lives. Make it a bit easier. He feels more like himself, more like Bucky Barnes, more like Veles and Anulap, like Evelyn of the Rhear village, helping her neighbours with her gentle magic; like a witch.

It’s good.

He comes back to Irland, where he traces back the steps of druids he once belonged to, visits Newgrange and spends the winter solstice there, laughing when the rays of Saturn and the Sun warm up his core. He revisits his many roots, takes from the Earth and gives back.

Eventually, James visits Peggy Carter who’s old and weak but her spirit is strong. She remembers him as the witch, not as Bucky Banes, but James just smiles and presses something into her shaking hands.

“You remembered,” she says softly, watching the small stone statue with gleaming emeralds emerge. James smiles bitterly.

“It’s a work in process.”

She just laughs. “You’re a good man. A good witch. It is my time, isn’t it?”

He sighs and squeezes her hand with his metal one, so reminiscent of the black one he always has. The price of his magic. “It’s close,” James admits.

Peggy just nods, content. “I had a good life,” she tells him. “I love my husband very much, and maybe I’ll meet him this time.”

James looks at the energy around her and chuckles when he notices the fierce pink hue around her heart. “He loves you too, very much. I don’t know the future, but you’re strong. Sometimes it takes a bit of waiting.”

“You know something about it,” Peggy snickers. For a second, his magic works and James sees her as young and beautiful as she was during the war, dressed in her uniform. It makes him warm.

“It’s worth it,” he replies.

“I know.”

They sit in silence some more before she stirs again. “It’s time for you to go,” she says. “Thank you for visiting.”

James laughs and kisses her forehead. “I had something to return to you.”

They don’t say goodbyes, they’ll meet again. Sometime.

He leaves, feeling lighter than he has in years, and then promptly escapes New York before Steve can find him. James remembers him, he really does, but he’s not ready to come back yet. There are things waiting for him still.

This time, he doesn’t take the plane, he just changes into a raven and flies, for miles and miles, watching as land turns to water and then back to land again before the Andes start towering over him. There, James finds his old path and lands on a ledge.

The old kingdom stretches below him, bright green and pulsing with life. James can feel the pollution of humans who have no idea just how old and powerful those lands are, so he sits down and breathes slowly.

His magic stretches over the jungle and the earth welcomes him, recognizing him even with centuries that have passed. James smiles and lets himself get lost in slowly healing what’s broken. Countless souls come to kneel before him, and then go home, where they belong.

It’s exhausting, but also rewarding, healing something so old and powerful, fixing the damage of years of abuse.

He gets a piece of himself there, a bloody and important one.

The piece of a fierce witch, drawing with blood on people’s faces, standing in the flames and laughing in the faces of gods. Someone bold and cruel, someone capable of anything. It’s not pretty, but James feels stronger, with his dark parts and bad memories.

There’s a weight on his shoulders when he leaves but he stands straighter.

It takes James a few months, and it feels simultaneously like seconds and forever. After all, what are months next to eternity? And what are months while waiting to be reunited with your heart?

He doesn’t hurry though, because he knows Tony will understand. It doesn’t matter if the man remembers because even if he does, he’ll understand. His love is incredibly forgiving and kind. It only makes James love him more.

James keeps tabs on the Avengers, smiles and huffs at Steve, stares at the image of Tony Stark on a shitty TV deep in Bulgarian mountains, smirks when he sees another HYDRA base destroyed. He does his fair share of destroying and dismantling, but it’s not a priority now.

All he wants to do is gather his pieces, glue himself back together and get back to his love.

It’s only right that the day he deems himself right enough is All Soul’s Day. Now called Halloween, he knows, it’s cliche and tacky and the power cracks in the air. Nature doesn’t forget, and neither does James.

He gets on a plane and lands in New York well into the night, and it’s only there that he realizes that something is wrong. Someone is using magic, Old Magic, and using it wrong. James growls when the Avengers appear on the screen fighting and old woman. A wannabe druid at that.

James rolls his eyes and then gets to work.

At the end of the day, he has Tony Stark in his arms, smiling into his neck and his heart feels whole. James doesn’t kiss him yet, because it’s not necessary. Their souls know each other, this meeting a mirror of their last one, and James just closes his eyes, rejoicing in the moment.

There will be time for explanations yet.

#winteriron #bucky barnes #tony stark #avengers #my writing #witch bucky #yes i still love this au with my whole heart #bamf bucky #i will make him op in every fic and you cannot stop me #i loved writing it but its weird idk

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fullmetaldevil-blog · 5 years

Text

Stitched AU: Halloween Birthday Bash

OK, Ladies and gentleman it is that time of year where not only will my boy Benny be celebrating his 1st birthday, but also Halloween in right around the corner. I wrote a short story to go along with this festive time of the year as I’ll be releasing it in chapters since it is rather long.

Characters (either mentioned or appearing in this chapter):

Shadow the Ink Cat belongs to @zanzaflux , SINdy the wandering demon belongs to @trashboatprince , Bendy the ink devil belongs to @soniccrazygal , Beast Bendy belongs to @doberart , Angel Henry belongs to @inkspottie , Fate belongs to @vespavespa

Benny belongs to me

Without further delay.

On with the show~!

The summer days had slowly dipped down to cooler days where the sunlight was warm, but the air had a cool crisp feel to it. The trees had all put on their best displays of oranges, browns, reds and yellows with each leaf trying to outdo the other before they danced to the earth below. Lawns were covered in the fall leaves like snow only waiting for a grumbling individual to come along to rake them up.

The older man wore a heavy flannel shirt and long jeans as the crisp air was a bit colder then his preference, but was still too warm to wear a sweater. He grumbled as he raked up the leaves into a pile mentally cursing the trees for shedding their growth before the winter months as he was tasked with cleaning the yard. All the while he worked a pair of eyes watched him with little snickers drifting in the air as two figures hid out of sight and waited for the leaf pile to be sufficient size. Thomas pulled the last of the leaves into his huge pile and gently set the rake aside to grab a can to rake them into. Just as he reached for the can with his back turned to his pile a loud 'wheeee!' was heard followed by a series of loud crunches and laughter. Thomas whirled around to see Benny's head barely floating above the leaf pile with his body completely submerged and Allison next to him half buried laughing.

"God damn it I just swept that up." Thomas loudly groaned while rubbing his hands down the sides of his face as he walked to the edge of the pile earning a few chuckles from his wife.

"Oh lighten up Tom." she snickered "It's time to kick back and enjoy the fall."

On cue Benny's threads wrapped around Tom's ankles and tripped him up sending him crashing face first into the leaf pile with a loud crunch and a yelp from the older man. When he raised his head out of the pile of leaves with a good collection of them stuck in his hair, he glared at Benny before a smirk grew on his face while the toon grinned mischievously.

"I know you put her up to this, c'mon here!" Thomas lunged for the demon who practically swam away in the leaf pile laughing.

Allison laughed as she watched her husband chase Benny all through the leaves trying to catch him with the occasional light hearted taunts from the demon. It was like watching a real life cartoon as the demon kept popping out of different parts of the pile while Tom was steadily in pursuit. The toon taunted no more when Thomas finally secured his body and tickled him till he fell apart at the seams from his laughter. Satisfied, Thomas laid Benny's wheezing body down next to the can so he can pull himself together while he retreated towards the house with Allison stopping before he reached the door.

"Hey, I saw these at the market and thought we can try a little idea." Allison held up a roll of orange trash bags.

Tom lifted a brow while taking the roll from her examining them. "What exactly do you want to do with the bags?" He looked back at the bags in hand.

"I think we can fill them with the leaves and paint faces on them like Jack -o- Lanterns since it's too soon to carve a pumpkin." Allison sheepishly grinned.

Her answer was met with a raised brow from her husband along with the hint of a scowl "I guess."

Allison couldn't hide the small frown that formed on her own face. She gently grasped onto Tom's sleeve and nudged him towards the house, but stopped when Benny lightly tugged on her pant leg.

"Are we still going to fill the bags?" He looked up at her noticing her small frown.

Allison bent down wearing a small smile as she rested her hands between Benny's horns. "Can you start filling them for me while go inside for a minute? I'll join you once I'm done."

Benny looked up at Tom before looking back at Allison worried before nodding and gathered up then roll of bags from Tom. He opened up a bag and started stuffing them with leaves while Allison followed Thomas back into the house.

Once inside the house Allison nudged her husband gently "Hey, what's wrong? You've been very quiet lately and you tickled Benny till he fell apart which you normally don't do."

Tom sighed heavily before leaning against the wall. "Sorry, it's just that this time of year reminds me about the time the studio fell. I still get nightmares about it and building that damn machine. Seeing the yellows and browns reminds me of that damn place." He covered the sides if his face. His mind drifted to the time where the halls were echoing with the screams of trapped staff followed by the inky monsters. Ink swallowing the halls and the studio as a whole. His thoughts were disrupted by warm hands placed over his own and had gently directed him to look forward to be met with Allison's soft sympathetic eyes.

"We all have things we regret and still endure the nightmares from that place. A lot of good people died that didn't deserve it, but at least we are alive. You may believe building the ink machine was a mistake and it's your fault, but it's Joey's." Allison gently hugged Tom "He put the monster in the machine, not you. Besides, you did finish the machine at this time of year and with your efforts it helped give birth to our little toon. Benny's birthday is coming up and it's just in time for Halloween."

Allison's words made Tom's eyes go wide. He completely forgot that he finished the machine and made Benny before Halloween. He remembered he had finished the machine in October but couldn't remember when. A small smile graced his face as he leaned his head onto Allison's shoulder. While he always felt guilty about building the machine and the events that followed Allison had bluntly pointed out the fact that he didn't put the magic into the machine, joey did. That his boss is responsible for all the lives lost, not him, and that at the end of the day they made it out with their lives and the lives of their toon companions. Despite the hell they've seen, Benny and Bendy both were the lights in their lives and that one of them would be celebrating his first true birthday alongside a fall holiday.

"Sorry for that. I-" Tom silenced when Allison put a finger gently over his lips smiling warmly at him.

"There is nothing to apologize for. We are all human and have our crosses to bare. We will have our tender moments and we are entitled to them, but we need to have the strength to keep walking. Not just for ourselves, but for those around us as well. Now c'mon. Benny doesn't know about his birthday and I want to combine it with Halloween since they are so close together. Put on a smile for him, he's already looking forward to Halloween." Allison gently grabbed Thomas's sleeves and tugged on him pulling him outside to join Benny in stuffing the orange trash bags.

The family spent half an hour stuffing all the bags to the brim to make the nice round uniform shape before tying them off. Once they were done and they made sure the bags wouldn't open, Benny's stomach grew teeth as it took on a smaller version of his 2nd mouth as Ragdoll. He opened his 'mouth' and allowed the ink to pool at its base before taking a small cup and scooping out a cups worth of the accumulated ink before closing back up. He got a few concerned looks from his parents, but told them it was completely safe and that it was only excess ink. After some persuasion Tom and Allison finally grabbed 3 paint brushes and dipped them into the ink. Allison showed Benny how to make a basic Jack-o-lantern face as she carefully painted one on one of the bags getting a nod from the demon.

Benny dipped his brush in the ink and looked at the orange bag before him. He wanted to paint his own design and asked Allison if he had to repeat the face she had drawn earning a 'no'. A small grin grew on his face, he wanted to draw his friends! He carefully started outlining his best friend SINdy's face on the bag before carefully filling in the black along with the dripping ink from SINdy's eyes. He liked how it turned out. While he started painting then other Bendy he knew, both Tom and Allison looked at his Jack-o-Lanterns with increasing concern. Allison was dead certain something was wrong when Benny painted a strange looking cat with a large grin, a cat she remembered had once appeared in her yard along with an Ink demon she did not know.

"B-Benny?" She approached the little plushtoon.

He looked up at her just as he finished painting an outline of a Bendy that wasn't filled in with black and had round eyes instead of pie cuts with little bags making it look sleepy. "Hmm?"

"Umm… what are these?" She gestured to the various bags the toon painted. Depictions of beast Bendy on one bag, a strange eyed Bendy leaking ink from his eyes, an orange bendy, another with a white in the pie cut, a humanoid toon with a halo and the inky cat she remembered.

Benny looked at her worried with a small frown forming on his face. He wanted to paint his friends, but forgot that his parents never met them and after the incident with Shadow it left his mom shaken.

"Ummm…. Can we talk about it later?" He nervously fidgeted earning a raised brow from his father.

Allison bent down and gently rested her hand on his head. "Fine, but for now let's finish up and head inside for dinner." Her comment earned a small nod from the toon.

Benny went back to painting leaving Allison and Tom to watch. Allison suspected that the images Benny was painting were other characters he somehow knew. If that was the case, how? When? Where? Benny didn't go out unless he was with her or her husband and Tom would have mentioned something if they bumped into another demon. Especially if it was like the one that looked like Bendy in his ink demon form that came for the ink cat and kitten. She pondered over many possibilities while Tom silently watched with equal concern.

Tom knew he only made two Bendy's with the ink Machine and after Allison's explanation of her encounter with another Bendy he couldn't help but question how many there were. He could have sworn the accursed machine had been shut down till Henry accidentally started it up again 30 years later. God he hoped that Joey didn’t somehow make more of them. IF that’s the case where are they? How did one suddenly appear at his home after all this time? His mind raced with thoughts and potential scenarios before he glanced at Allison. He knew his face must had betrayed him as she lightly smiled and rested her hand on his shoulder whispering 'I'll handle it' before urging him back inside to get ready for dinner. Truth was he didn’t want to leave her, but Benny was the only one that would know of any other demons as well as to be able to fight back if need be. He’ll have to trust her to find out what’s going on from their little plushtoon.

Allison watched his husband reluctantly retreat towards the home occasionally glancing back before going inside. She knew he was concerned and truth be told, so was she, but the last thing she wanted was for him to fly off the handle at the toon in fear. It wouldn't solve anything. She took a deep breath and walked back to Benny who had just finished the last strokes on his bags.

"So Benny" her words caused him to flinch before he looked up at her "Do you want to talk about it?" She bent down and sat in the grass patting the ground next to her.

The toon looked at her with concern, but knew there was no getting out of it. Benny let out a sigh in defeat before setting his brush back in his hammerspace along with the excess ink and sat next to Allison. He felt warm hands gently lift him up setting him on her lap hugging him. They stayed like that for awhile with the toon completely content at her warmth while she lightly rocked back and forth before he heard her speak.

"So." Her voice was soft. "Who are they?" Allison put on a soft smile trying to mask her concerns. Being gentle with the toon was the only way she knew she would get a straight answer from him, unlike her husbands breaking down the front door approach.

Benny could tell she was anxious but was trying to hide it. His friends can be a bit energetic but they mean no harm. He took a deep breath before sighing and gestured to the first bag he painted with an oval eyed Bendy with an iris and pupil whose eyes were leaking ink along with his widows peak. His best friend that stumbled into his hut one day and since then they hung out at every opportunity. "His name is SINdy."

"Sin...dy?" Allison lifted a brow while following Benny’s gesture to the bag.

"He's my best friend and is really nice and fun to hang around. He can't speak though, and has a cardboard sign he carries with him that writes what he wants to say. He accidentally fell through a portal in his world that lead him to ours" Benny watched as a look of horror flashed on Allison's face "But only he can come through the portal." He quickly explained. "Nothing from his studio can follow him as its an ability unique to only him." He watched as Allison looked at him and then back at the bag concerned. He could tell she didn't like the idea of a demon coming and going without her knowledge.

Allison looked at the bag mulling over Benny's explanation. It did concern her that another strange Bendy had just popped up in their home or somewhere nearby without their knowledge. Then again it was a serious question as to how Shadow and Cloudy ended up in her yard that day, a question that never got answered. What was more baffling was the 'his world' comment. Did that mean there are other worlds similar to theirs? Did Shadow and the intimidating Bendy come from another world? How do the Bendy's just come and go without anyone noticing? Before she got too deep into thought she felt a small tug on her sleeve making her look back at the little devil in her arms.

"He is still stuck there." The toon spoke softly as turned his head towards the bag "He is stuck at another version of the studio with his father and a demon. They haven't been able to escape despite their best efforts so far and they have a horrible demon there trapped with them and I can't help him other than to let him stay here for brief moments."

Benny's words tugged at a painful string in Allison's memory. The pain of confinement and inability to obtain freedom from a living hell. Seeing Benny's concern over another Bendy who can only get a fleeting taste of freedom before having to go back was heartbreaking. If Benny called this 'SINdy' his best friend then SINdy must be similar to him. A little sweetheart who is trapped in hell on earth.

"What about the other one? The one with the odd horns?" She softly spoke gaining the toons attention once more.

"Oh he is Bendy" Benny looked at the bag. "He has a 'reading room' where not only does he have a library but also portals to other worlds. To him our world looks like a book that he can enter." Benny looked back at Allison and wore a small smile "He and SINdy are the ones who's been helping me read. SINdy will sit with me reading and will help me break down the words while Bendy provides books as helps out as well. Bendy loves bringing over adventure books to where we sometimes make little toys out of either his ink or my fabrics to play with. He is really good at making sculptures. Though occasionally if we have a bit of a problem with some of the reading or if we get a bit too loud Confessional will come out to either help us read or to tell us to tone it down so we don't get into trouble."

Allison lifted a brow "Confessional? Which one's that?" He sounded like he was older than the small group as she looked around trying to see if any of the images on the bags could be perceived as an older figure.

"Ummm admittedly I didn't draw him" Benny mumbled making her look back at him in surprise. "He lives inside SINdy and only speaks on occasion, SINdy did a few drawings of him but he doesn’t come out."

Allison raised a brow "Inside SINdy?"

"Benny reached into his hammerspace and pulled out a piece of paper and a bit of ink. "SINdy is like me except he was a cardboard cutout instead if a doll." he explained as he drew a rough outline of the toon, Allison nodded as he listened. "SINdy wears his heart out in the open and if he's in trouble he can remove it allowing Confessional to come out.” Benny drew a small heart in the outlines chest and then a ghostly figure that wore a mask with teeth. “Confessional watches over SINdy kinda like a big brother, but he is a real demon. He is pretty nice, but if we mess up too much we get a lecture." Benny sheepishly chuckled.

Allison listened to Benny's description of Confessional's relationship with the toons as well as another Henry whom was turned into an Angel toon in his world. Both man and demon oversee the younger toons and provide support or words of wisdom as needed. He admitted that they liked to visit the Angel Henry as often as they can and all of them have been learning sign language from him since he is mute. Uncle Henry as the group calls him has a Bendy as well, but he gets a little clingy to his father figure and can be a bit standoffish at the other toons wanting to spend time with their uncle. The description of the other Bendy being clingy to his father nearly made Allison laugh since she remembered that when they got out of the studio Benny was almost glued to her. It was amusing to see that many of the little demons are somewhat clingy to their parental figures.

Benny then proceeded to describe a familiar sight to Allison. Beast Bendy. This Bendy has escaped his studio with his Henry (Allison couldn't help but notice the steadily growing Henry count) but he was stuck in his beast form for a long time. He was eventually able to revert back to normal and is pretty good at domestic chores as he was showing them how to properly fold clothes and clean. His mother listened to the tales of this Bendy chuckling at the mere thought of Beast Bendy folding T-shirts while looking totally pleased with himself. Despite his looks he was a good boy at heart and had a strong desire to help his older parents.

A look of nervousness flashed on Benny's face as he looked at the last bag, the bendy with only with an outline and round sleepy looking eyes. He chuckled as he pointed at the bag. "He is Fate. He's technically a god who looks like a Bendy at the moment. He's pretty funny and can shape shift into many animals. Sometimes if we are wondering what an animal looks like he'll turn into it to show us. Though he is a prankster through and through his friend Goldy who is another Bendy but much taller, keeps Fate somewhat in check. Both of them are funny when together as Fate likes to play with Goldy."

A fond smile crept on Allison's features as she listened to the remainder of Benny's stories of his friends. He told her that occasionally another Bendy named Ben drops Shadow off on occasion where they play for a little while in his hut. Cloudy can’t come over as Ben doesn’t want the kitten traversing the dark puddles with him for fear of losing him which is understandable. Shadow loves to sit and listen to the toons read or will play with some of Benny’s yarn. He described all the times his friends came over and they mostly kept to his little hut playing or working on little craft projects. Allison realized that the common denominator was that small stone building that they decided to let Benny use.

"Benny" the toon stopped talking and looked up at her. She put on a warm smile. "Can I see your hut?"

The toon looked nervous but nodded. He slid off her lap allowing Allison to stand up and she followed him to the stone hut towards the back of the property.

Allison remembered when they first moved into the home they didn't know about the hut till Tom explored the backyard and discovered that what they thought was just a wall of weeping willow trees was actually a ring of them and in the center was a small stone shed large enough to be a single room. The roof if the shed needed a little work, but the building itself was sound and Tom decided that it should be a playroom for Benny for on the off chance that people come over and he can't be seen. She had a hard time believing that this was a gathering place for other Bendy's until Benny opened the door.

The interior of the room was well kept with a small pile of pillows beneath a what looked like an ink stain on the wall. A small table had been set up with a small pile of books and a few papers along with a few drawings. On one side of the room was a bookcase filled with books and some of the titles she did not recognize at all. As she paced about the room Benny watched her nervously. She asked about the stain on the wall learning it was a portal for SINdy, the strange book with a stitch pattern being something similar for Bendy. She asked about the various little projects the toons had been working on together all the while Benny answered her nervously.

"You're not mad ... are you? He wrung his gloved hands together.

His inquiry was met with a smile and a gentle hand on his head. "Sweetie. I'm not too mad and I wish that you were more comfortable with saying something sooner. I admit when Shadow showed up along with the other Bendy I was scared, but if I had been warned about the possibility of toons hopping from one world to the next I could have been better prepared. You do know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

Benny nodded in understanding with a small smile gracing his features, she wasn't mad at him. Next thing he knew Allison scooped him up lightly tickling him in her arms earning a small fit of laughter from him.

"C'mon let's go eat some dinner" his mother cooed.

Allison carried Benny into the home and set him down at the table only to have Thomas give him the miniature stare down before Allison threatened to muzzle her husband before he got started. Benny was uncomfortable eating next to his father especially after their earlier episode with him, but Allison reassured him that nothing was wrong and that she'll talk to his dad later. The toon ate his dinner before excusing himself to his room to read before bed.

While the toon was disposed of Allison took a moment to explain to her husband as to what Benny told her for which the man naturally got angry. He calmed when she bluntly told him that the reason why Benny never said anything was because the visiting demons were his friends and didn't want to cause any harm and kept to only the hut and on the rare occasion the backyard.

Thomas let out and exasperated sigh while rubbing his temples "So you're telling me that there are more of them and that they can somehow hop from their world to ours. That somehow the stone hut outback is a meeting place for them and they can communicate with each other." His statement got a nod. "And you're telling me you want to invite his friends over to spend the night and then go Trick-or-treating as his Birthday present? Personally I don't think it's a good idea" he crossed his arms in a huff.

"I figured you didn't, but Benny has no reason to lie about his friends let alone his best friend. He was scared to tell me the truth, but fully admitted to everything he and his friends have been doing. I think things will work out as they sound not all that different from him. Plus it's a night to where they can openly run around and not have to hide their horns." Allison wrapped her arms around her husband. "I'll handle things so you don't have to worry."

Toms shoulders sagged as he rested his head on her shoulders returning the hug "You know I will anyways."

His statement was met with a chuckle and a peck on the cheek. "I know, and I appreciate it."

Allison broke the hug from her husband and finished washing the dishes before cleaning up the remainder of the kitchen. Tom retreated to Benny's room to check on him and to make sure the toon was tucked into bed. Allison snickered when she heard Tom's shouts as Benny was roughhousing with the man as the toon clearly wasn't ready for bed and was in a playful mood.

A thoughtful expression graces Allison's face as she heard Benny whoop in triumph over defeating his father before his cheers turned to cries of 'nooo'. Since both were disposed of she quickly retreated to her room and dug around her dresser. Her grin stretched wider when she grasped her prize and quickly retreated to the kitchen seeking out any spare stationary. She set a small watch down and made sure the time was correct and that Am and Pm were correct before carefully writing out a small note.

Dear. Mr Sindy

I would like to invite you to my son Benny the stitched demon's first birthday party. His Birthday is actually on the 27th which is 2 days from now, but I'd like to celebrate it on the 30th and 31st with the 31st being Halloween. If you are able, I would like for you to come over on the 30th in the morning and to stay with us until the evening of the 31st. Room and board will be provided. I hope to see you soon.

Sincerely,

Allison Connor

The letter was carefully folded and placed inside an envelope along with the watch. Allison double checked the watch to make sure the day and time were accurate before sliding it in and sealing the envelope. She wrote the SINdy's name on the front before pulling out several other pieces of paper and wrote out similar letters, but requesting for the toons to arrive on the morning of the 31st. She carefully addressed the envelopes to Bendy, Fate, Beast Bendy, Angel Henry and Shadow. She paused briefly at Shadows letter as she wasn’t completely certain the ink cat could read but suspected it could, if not the other Bendy, ‘Ben’ as Benny called him, should be able to.

With the last stroke of the pen Allison grinned at the finishing touches on the envelopes on the letters before gently sealing them. She carefully grasped onto her treasures before slipping out the back door and made her way towards the back of the house where Benny's hut was concealed.

The hut wasn't so welcoming at night as it was during the day. The willow trees cast eerie shadows consuming the structure they guarded, almost as if they were warding off any intruders. Allison slipped between the trees and felt around the wall of the structure making mental note to have Tom install a small light so they can at least see the door. Her fingers finally grazed the border of the door before she felt around further until her fingers felt the smooth metal of the door knob. A triumphant grin graced her face as her hand eagerly grasped onto the door knob and twisted before pulling on the door. The door didn’t budge. She looked at the door baffled as to how Benny simply opened it for her earlier with ease. She tucked the envelopes under her arm and used both hands to try and open the door. A small twist and a few tugs later the door finally gave way granting her access to it's interior. Her fingers immediately sought out a light switch that cast a warm soft glow on the room.

'Great. Now how do I get this to them?' Allison pondered as she paced around the room. She ravaged her memory on Benny’s commentary about how he communicates with his friends. She noticed the book on Benny’s table that had an elaborate cover with the characteristic outline of Bendys head. Benny commented about how this was to the other Bendy, the owner of the reading room which should be the easiest to contact. She looked at the envelope addressed to the first toon and carefully lifted the cover of the book and slid the invitation under it’s pages. God she hoped this worked and that she wasn’t grasping straws. While she waited to see if there would be some sort of response or if the letter even go through she turned her attention to the large ink stain that was on the wall. SINdy's portal and the one she needed to contact the most.

Allison studied the ink on the wall wondering how exactly she was gonna get the letter to him. Benny said it was a portal to the toon for which Henry’s Bendy had commented on the dark puddles being like a tunnel. However that wasn’t helping her now as she didn’t want to ask for help from her toon as it is supposed to be a surprise with his friends coming over. Allison lightly pouted with her growing frustration as to how the ink worked for the demons. She recalled Bendy walking out of the ink and Benny reaching into himself to pull out what he needed. Maybe she could just copy them and put the letter in the ink as well. She paused her thoughts and looked at the letter. ‘Gotta test the theory first.’

A quick search later and Allison held a small piece of paper before the ink spot and she steeled herself before gently folding the paper vertically to give her hand and the wall some distance before gently placing the edge of the paper to the ink. Must to her annoyance the paper looked like it was only covered in ink until she felt a small pull and the paper disappeared into the ink soaked wall. She waited with baited breath wondering if it went through before another piece of paper emerged from the wall with a note written on it.

'Hiya! How are you?' There was a little happy face drawn on the side of the paper.

Allison chuckled at the note. She couldn’t believe it worked! This must be SINdy that Benny spoke of. She looked at the envelope and carefully placed it on the ink spot and gently pushed it through along with a reply written on the note. 'Please read this, I would like to see you soon.'

---------- On the other side ----------

SINdy was getting ready for bed and was passing by the recording booth and was shocked to see a piece of paper emerge from an ink stain in the booth. It had to be Benny! Setting his sleepiness aside for a moment as his dad could wait a bit before bed, he quickly picked up the paper and carefully ran the tip of his finger under his eye before scribbling his message and passed it back into the ink.

His grin stretched wide in anticipation from his friends response only to get an envelope with a paper attached to it saying 'please read this, I would like to see you soon.' His face morphed to confusion as he plucked the envelope out of the ink feeling that there was a small weight to the parcel. He carefully pulled the envelope open and slid the watch out looking at it confused as to what was the purpose of the time piece before his eyes landed on the invitation.

His eyes grew wide at the invitation as he was instantly excited about it being his friend's birthday. Worry quickly replaced his excitement as he realized that the sender beyond the portal was Benny's mother, that somehow his family found out about him. A small frown formed on his face as he reread the letter. She wanted him to come over to play? Would she be ok with someone like him?

SINdy grabbed a black piece of paper and thought for a little while before carefully writing a response.

Dear Mrs. Connor,

I would love to come, but are you ok about another demon like me there? Benny told me about shadow and Ben. I don't want to scare you since I don't look like a normal 'Bendy'.

He carefully folded the paper and slid the note back through the portal and waited. SINdy had to admit he was excited about being in Benny's home for the first time, but was also wary. Benny had told him of his mothers very concerned reaction about Shadow and Ben whom showed up out of the blue one day. Benny's father his world's Thomas Connor reacted even worse given his history with the Ink Machine.

SINdy fidgeted while he waited for a response. God he hoped Benny's mom would allow him over. He would really like to play with his friend without fear of being seen, let alone the possibility of being told to never come back.. A little piece of paper emerged through the ink, he slowly reached and plucked it out of the puddle and began to read with his eyes growing wide.

Dear Mr. Sindy,

Regardless of how you look I'd still like for you to come over. How a demon looks on the outside doesn't attribute to how they are on the inside. Looks don't matter. Benny said you were his best friend and that is more than enough for me. The backdoor will be left open on the morning of the 30th. Please be there.

Ps. I don’t know how to contact the remaining guests. If you are able, can you please send these invitations to them for me?

A grin stretched itself across SINdy's face. He couldn't believe it. Benny's mom really wanted him over regardless of his nature and how he looks. He hastily grabbed a paper to reply.

'Thank you, I'll be there. I will gladly deliver them for you as a thank you for inviting me.’

Once the letter vanished into the inky void, SINdy grabbed the invitation and carefully looked at the watch. He waited patiently for the remaining invitations to come through the portal for which he quickly stowed them in his hammerspace. The little cardboard demon could hardly contain his excitement and practically skipped down the hall to his father’s side eagerly showing him the invitation for which earned a chuckle from the man and a promise that he would be careful. He was going to a party! The little wandering demon leapt onto his father's lap leaning into him while his gloves were on his back, it was the best he could do to hug his dad since he has no arms. Now all he had to do was wait. He looked at the watch hoping for the day to hurry and come before he was tucked into bed. Sammy turned off the small light they had in his office while SINdy looked at the little glowing hands of the watch. SINdy vowed that the first thing he would do in the morning was to send off the invitations to the rest of his friends.

----------- Benny's world----------

Allison chuckled at the thank you note and quickly pocketed the page before checking the other Bendy book. To her pleasure the invitation was gone and had 3 simple words; ‘I’ll be there’. She could hardly contain her own excitement but decided to brush it aside for a touch of caution and determination. She had never met these toons before and truly didn’t know what to expect from them. She could only hope that she wasn’t getting in over her head, but there were 2 older figures that act like guardians so it won’t be just her and Tom watching the demons.

The cool night air welcomed Allison giving her a small chill as she left herself out of Benny's shed and quickly retreated back towards the house. The woman made a mental note to get extra blankets since the nights were cooler now and with them have a guest sleeping over they needed some extra covers. Allison reentered the home to find it quiet and still unlike how she had left it a few minutes ago. Assuming that Tom had finally wrangled Benny into bed she gingerly strode down the hall to her bedroom. Much to her surprise, the room was empty as there was no grumbling figure in the bed as Tom is usually worn out after playing with Benny. Lifting a brow, Allison back tracked to Benny's room to locate her missing husband. She stopped in the doorway smiling at the sight before her. Tom and Benny were both tangled up amongst the blankets on Benny's bed and both were out like a light, looks like their little game ended in a draw.

Allison chuckled and turned off the light singing a small ‘good night’ as she closed the door. It was a relief to see that the two boys made up after their little tense moment earlier, though she could already see a tickle torture session in the morning since Tom is too big for Benny’s bed. If Benny was already this excited then she couldn't wait to see how his Birthday unfolded.

#batim stitched au #Allison Connor #batim allison #thomas connor #batim thomas #benny the stitched demon #benny the stitched devil #benny the stitch devil #benny the stitch demon #SINdy the wandering demon #wandering sin bendy #wandering is a terrible sin #bendy the ink demon #other batim Ocs are mentioned and will come later

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stupidnephilimlove · 5 years

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Written for the @frightening-fall-fic . A few days late, but here’s my take on the week 1 prompt: bad decisions were made. Read here or on AO3 Summary: When Izzy stumbles upon an old ritual book in a used book store, she decides it's perfect for her Halloween party. It's supposed to be a little fun, but the book and the idea give Alec the creeps. But really, what could go wrong? -

Alec wonders how - despite wanting to do something epic every year - Isabelle manages to leave settling on a Halloween idea until the last minute.

"Just throw a fancy dress party," Alec suggests, only half paying attention as his eyes scan the bookshelf. This was supposed to be a solo outing, an afternoon of perusing the recently opened used book store, but Isabelle insisted she tag along.

Isabelle throws Alec a disgusted look in response to his suggestion. "That's so unoriginal, Alec. It has to be better than last year."

Alec's pretty sure they had this exact conversation around a year ago, but he figures mentioning that isn't going to help the situation. Instead, he pulls a book from the shelf and scans the blurb.

"So do a seance or something," Alec says.

Isabelle sighs at his lack of interest and pulls the book from his hand. She sets in back on the shelf and looks at him.

"We did that last year. And yes, it was awesome, even if I say so myself. But it needs to be something different."

Alec resists the urge to roll his eyes at her and moves deeper into the store. He spots the fake spiders and cobwebs covering a section in the corner.

"Maybe they've got something over there?" Alec gestures to the Halloween themed area as he speaks. He doubts it, but if it means he can look around the store in peace for a few minutes, then he's more than willing to suggest it.

Mumbling to herself that Alec's no use, Isabelle heads off in that direction and Alec goes back to his book search. He makes it ten blissful uninterrupted minutes before Isabelle comes bounding over, excitement in every step.

"I've got it! Alec, it's the perfect idea," Isabelle says.

Finally.

"Oh, yeah?"

Isabelle holds up an old, battered book. The binding is starting to come away, and the gold text on the cover has faded so much that Alec's unable to make out the words.

"A ritual," Isabelle says, offering Alec the book.

Alec takes it, and he's off-put by the way the leather feels in his hands. He flicks carefully through the pages, they're well-worn and in what Alec takes a guess at is Latin.

"I'm not sure, Izzy."

There's something about the book that has the hairs on Alec's arms rising.

"Oh come on... it'll be brilliant and fun. No one will expect it."

Alec's sceptical about the 'fun' part, but if Isabelle's got it in her head that this is what's happening, then Alec knows better than to argue with her. So when Isabelle insists she buy the book, Alec makes his first terrible decision by not talking her out of it.

Alec stands outside of the intricate chalk circle that Izzy had Clary draw on their floor. That better come off, or he's going to kill her, Alec thinks. There's music playing, something instrumental, and it's giving Alec this feeling of tension. The feelings only increased by the dozens of candles that flicker, shadows chasing each other around the room.

It's a small group tonight, just Clary, Isabelle, Simon, Jace and Alec. Five Izzy had said once she'd settled on the ritual - one for each point of the pentagram the circle surrounds.

"Are you sure about this?" Alec asks.

Jace gives him a companionable punch to the shoulder. "It's just a bit of fun. Don't tell me you're scared, Alec?"

"No... 'course not," Alec says. That's a lie, but he's not going to admit his unease to his brother. There's this feeling of wrong and stop and this is a terrible idea, and it's not like Alec at all. He doesn't believe in this stuff. He believes in what he can see, what he can understand, what he can explain, and Alec tries to shake off the feeling.

Isabelle instructs them to take their places at each point of the pentagram. She tells Alec his point represents fire and she gives him an unlit candle to hold. Clary's is air and she holds a feather, Simon's is earth and she gives him a jar of dirt, and Jace's is water and he grasps a cup half-filled.

"And I represent spirit," Isabelle tells them, taking her up her spot.

Then in a hushed tone, voice serious, Isabelle says, "Before we begin, I have to warn you all not to step into the circle until the ritual is complete."

"Why, what happens if we do?" Simon asks.

Izzy grits her teeth at the interruption, the charade falling for a moment. "Then I'm gonna kick your ass for ruining the evening, Simon. Trying to set the mood here."

Simon grins sheepishly and nods his head. "Oh, sorry. Go on."

Isabelle finds her character again, turning to pick up an intricate bowl. She sets it down by her feet just inside of the circle and then stands to full height again. Isabelle picks up the book, and the room falls silent.

God, why does the sight of that book give Alec chills?

Isabelle holds the worn book in one hand and gracefully lifts the other. Four sets of eyes are trained on her and Alec's heart feels like it's beating double time in his chest.

"Me invocare te in tenebris," Isabelle says. The words sound odd and mispronounced, but the tone of her voice has Alec holding back a shiver and clutching his candle.

Izzy throws her hand out, something falling from her fingers and into the bowl in front of her. Smoke rises from the bowl on contact and she continues speaking.

"Venire ad me."

Neat trick, Alec thinks.

Isabelle repeats the words again, voice louder. "Me invocare te in tenebris. Venire ad me."

The room feels cooler, noticeably so, and Jace shifts uncomfortably next to Alec. Alec's glad he's not the only one this is freaking out.

"Me invocare te in tenebris," Isabelle says. The pronunciation is better, at least to Alec's ears, and each word is filled with conviction.

"Venire-" Isabelle's voice cuts off mid-sentence and she doubles over, clutching her stomach and cries out, "No! Please."

Clary reaches out from beside Isabelle in concern, and despite himself, Alec steps forward. "Izzy?"

Isabelle raises her head, and there's a goddamn grin on her face, before she doubles over for an entirely different reason, laughter shaking her body.

"Oh, you should have seen your faces," she says between gulps of breath as the group grumbles.

"I knew she was playing," Alec hears Jace tell Simon, and Simon nods saying, "Yeah, sure. Me too."

Alec sighs in exasperation, and as he does, his candle flickers to life. Alec almost drops it in surprise.

"Nice one, Izzy. Quit it now." Alec says, trying to keep the shakiness from his voice. Her tricks are really beginning to get to him.

Isabelle's laughter dies out and she looks at the candle. "That wasn't me."

"I'm not falling for any more of your pranks," Alec says taking a step back to his previous position. His foot stops as if it's hit a wall, and Alec looks down. He's standing inside the circle.

"What is this?" he asks, eyes lifting to Isabelle's.

"Now who's playing pranks?" Jace says.

He tries to move again, panic rising in his chest, but he can't. He doesn't know how Isabelle's doing this, but it's not funny anymore.

"Alec, come on," Clary says and Alec can hear the annoyance in her voice.

The music abruptly stops playing and all at once the candles go out, plunging them into darkness. Except for the small flicker of light from the candle Alec's holding.

There's the smell of burning. Alec tells himself it's due to the candles all burning down to the wick at the same time. And the lack of music? It's probably on a timer. The whole thing some elaborate plan of Izzy's to scare them.

"Izzy, this is a bit much," Clary says in the dark.

"Seriously, this isn't me," Isabelle insists. "Who hijacked my evening?"

The group breaks out into bickering. But Alec doesn't move, a hand closes over his shoulder and there's breath at the nape of his neck and Alec's going to kill Isabelle as soon as the lights come back on.

"I hate the twenty-first century," a male voice, low and sultry, says close to Alec's ear.

The bickering instantly stops. Alec doesn't know that voice, and though the hand is gone from his shoulder, his blood runs cold. The candles suddenly flare back to life and Alec's not sure who screams. Jace? Simon? Possibly Alec himself. Because standing in the circle in front of Alec is a man - at least, he looks like a man. Of course, he's a man, Alec tells himself. A very well-dressed, well-styled, entirely too hot, man. Apart from the eyes.

The eyes are golden and catlike and... fucking brilliant contacts, that's all. Alec's feeling a little hysterical and takes a breath to calm himself.

"Mmm," the man says, tilting his head as he looks at Alec. "A worthy offering though."

"Jeez, Izzy. Where'd you find this guy?" Jace asks.

"Enough," the man says, voice deep and commanding, lifting a hand, and for a reason Alec cannot explain, silence falls. The man turns back to Alec. "You may call me Magnus."

Alec doesn't want to call him anything. Okay, there's a thread of desire that has Alec imagining another evening, in a completely different setting with this Magnus. But right now? Right here? Alec wants this whole nightmare to end. He considers that they must all be in on this, and he doesn't know how or when, but he's going to get them back.

"What do you request of me, in payment of your soul?"

"M-my soul?" Alec stutters. Magnus can't be serious, but Alec can't bring himself to look away from Magnus' eyes. He feels almost entranced by them.

"Yes. You summoned me. I answered the call. Now make your request known."

"What? Like getting that promotion my boss has been holding back?" Alec asks stupidly.

Magnus nods and steps closer. "Unimaginative as usual, but if you insist."

"What are you doing?" Alec asks, but he doesn't move away.

"To be binding, I must seal all business with a kiss." There's a suggestive raise to Magnus' eyebrow and Alec feels his cheeks flush.

Is this guy - in the middle of this prank - really flirting with Alec?

Oh, what the hell. Magnus is hot, and Alec's not giving the rest of them the satisfaction of him backing down. Bolstered, Alec closes the space between them.

Magnus reaches up, hand settling at Alec's neck, and heat spreads through Alec from that simple contact. Magnus pulls him closer, leaning in to take Alec's mouth with his. The kiss is like nothing Alec has ever felt before, and he opens his mouth, accepting Magnus. Alec feels it everywhere, feels a fire burning beneath his skin, and if he examined it closer, he might see that it isn't entirely caused by desire.

The candles burn brighter as they kiss, and as Magnus' lips leave Alec's they blink out again. Alec can hear someone scrambling for the lights and there's a whisper at Alec's ear in the last of the darkness. "I look forward to collecting you, Alexander."

Simon flicks the switch and the room is illuminated, but Magnus is nowhere to be seen.

"Can't believe you stole my Halloween prank," Izzy says, clearly annoyed, though Alec thinks they all look a little shaken.

"I didn't," Alec says. "Didn't you guys set me up?" Dread is creeping up on him again.

Izzy shoots him an unimpressed look. "Honestly, Alec. You didn't need to go to that much trouble for a make-out session."

"Yeah, dude. My eyes cannot unsee that," Jace says.

And the group comes to the conclusion that Alec was messing with them despite all of Alec's protests. He tells himself it's just part of their prank, just them trying to psych him out even more.

Though, as Alec heads to bed at three am, a flash of catlike eyes in the mirror, the phantom press of lips against his, and that heat still burning under his skin, a part of him wonders if he really did just sell his soul.

Shaking his head at his fanciful turn of thoughts, Alec crawls into bed. He doesn't believe in souls, so he can't have sold one, and Alec puts the whole thing down to too much sugar and alcohol.

However, when Alec's boss offers him a promotion the next week, Alec struggles to convince himself it's merely a coincidence.

#frightening fall fic fest #shadowhunters #shadowhunters fic #malec #sorta #oh look i wrote a thing #fic: venire ad me #week 1: bad decisions were made

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riverteatime · 5 years

Text

A burning soul (MC, Snatcher, Vanessa fic)

“Warning : Mention of blood, pain, torture, violence, hurting feelings of love, painful past, a very angry noodle and an ice bi*ch. I warned you !

“Snowing ?! At this state of year ?! But we are not even in winter !” You thought at watching the news in your TV

It’s the evening and like every days you have regain your spaceship after passing a day on the planet. It’s the autumn so you are not very surprised that temperature are more and more colder. But at the point of snowing…Yes you are very happy to see the snow but the air of this part of the planet is much hoter than in the Arctic.

“Perhaps it is the consequence of climate change. I mean that maybe that temperature raise in this planet too. I hope that this planet is not going to change as a big desert” You say sarcastically to yourself. But that thought brings back painful memories about your past. You shake your head to not think about that and you switch off your TV to sleep on your bed.

—————————————————————

Meanwhile in a certain ice castle…

“WHAT? SHE AGAIN PASS THE DAY WITH MY PRINCE?” Yells a feminine voice in the shadow

Even if the ice statues are headless, they don’t like how their queen scream. Even if they can’t see her head they can feel her expression. The expression of surprise, anger, rage and disgust. And they know what is the cause. This human-alien who land on their planet some months ago had build a very strong relationship with what would have become their king if this accident did not arrive. Now that this person is very close to her prince, the queen is so jalous. She hate her, she want to murder her.

“But maybe if we make her disappear, MY prince will be mine.” She says thinking “Headless statues, I know your power of destruction is explosive like a dynamite. But pay attention to my words! It’s clear that you are not lights but we are talking of queens and even you can think about this. So prepared of the chance of your life, be prepared sensational news !!! A shining new path open in front of us…

“…And what we have to do…?” Asks one of the statues

“Just don’t cut your queen. I know it sound morbid but you’ll be rewarded and become my minions! Do what I tell ! BE PREPARED !!!”

“S-sorry to cut your speech majesty, b-but they love each oth-” Starts an headless statue. But with a movement the icy-queen destroyed him.

“Fool! I know that” Says the queen with a disgusting voice “But she is not immortal like us. My statue, today is the day that start our freedom ! Stick with me and you’ll never going to be banish again of this kingdom!” And with this fact the headlesses statues jump of happiness and say “Long life the queen!” in harmony.

“But at one condition. Capture this human alive, BUT NOT DEAD !!! I deserve her a nice treatment for her. She will remember my face even in the death. No one take the prince of the queen Vanessa” Says the icy-queen before laughing cruelly.

——————————————–

You wake up earlier today. You thought that it would be nice to see Subcon Forest covered up by the snow. So you dress up warmly because you don’t want to catch a cold like the other day. And you set you teleport destination to Subcon Forest.

Arrived at Subcon Forest you feel something different in the atmosphere. Subcon is always a quiet place good for the rest of the dead people that are buried in all the forest. But it is too quiet. Normally some minions are walking through the forest and spirits are flying. But you see none of them. And the snow start to be a snowstorm. You decide to go in the house of Snatcher to protect yourself.

In front of the house you knock at the hardwood which serves as a wall.

“Snatcher?” You ask, waiting for an answer. “And you are not there. Geez, what’s happen here?” You ask yourself while you enter the house. Your friend is not there and his minions are not guarding the forest. “Maybe he is at the village or with Moon.” You think.

So you go outside. The snowstorm calmed down but you cannot see very well because of the cold. You walk in direction of the village despite of the road that is cover by the snow.

But before you can arrive at the village you see something at your right… or seemed to have seen something. Indeed with the snow that covered the ground and trees, it’s difficult to recognize something. But you are certain that you have seen a shadow.

“Snatcher? Is that you?” You ask immediatly. But no one answer.

“Come on! I know it’s you! And it’s not Halloween so you have not reason to scare me!”

No answer

“Don’t be stupid with me! I’m here since five months and I know you!”

No answer. Just silence and the wind.

“Snatcher?” You say, starting to shaking. You start to walk on the direction of where you seem to have seen your friend. But you see what it is and it’s not your friend. Instead of, you see something else. Two humanoid creature are in front of you but they seem to not have seen you. Your reaction is to hind behind a tree and to watch what they do. Wait?…. Is that a Subconite laying on the ground ?

“What we have to do with this living soul?” Asks one of the humanoid to the other

“Bring him back to the queen and find others insurgents. And if you see the human catch her” Says the other

The humanoids monsters go on opposite direction. When you certain that they are far enough, you get out of our hiding place. What was these things? And why one of them as a Subconite. Suddenly you have a revelation. Perhaps they are ennemies of the Subcon Forest and they bring a Subconite for torturing him !!! You yell but you think that if they hear you they can make the same thing to you. You have to find Snatcher and quickly. But you can’t let this poor Subconite with us. And don’t know where THE HELL is Snatcher.

So you make the choice to follow the humanoid who have the unconsious minion. You follow him, paying attention that you don’t make ANY noise. You hide sometimes behind the trees when the humanoid turns around. Fortunaly, you were the one the most quiet in your colony when you hunted for surviving in your former planet.

After following the humanoid thing for what you seem an hour, you arrived at a big old mansion covered by ice. Here, the snow is more heavier, like a snowstorm. But you keep your goal. When the forest end to an cleairing you think that is safest to wait behind a tree. The humanoid go inside the house and you follow him.

—————————————

You slowly open the door. You watch if they have no danger and you go inside. You walk carefully in the woody-corridor. Painting are hanging on the wall and a elegant red carpet is on the floor. The one who live here have a wonderful taste for luxury objects. You watch from the opening doors if there have the minion.

Suddenly you hear some noise at the first floor. You go upstrairs, walking slowly and carefully and hid at one of room. It is a nice bedroom with a big bed and others furnitures that can make think of a room for a woman. A diary is on one of the tables. You open it at the middle and start to read.

“Why? What have done wrong? In his letter he talks about her. A ‘tutor’

He say he loves me. But SHE see him. I get letters and SHE get his time

He is MINE. Once his studies are finished I will have him back”

“What the hell?” You ask to yourself

The other pages talk about a “princess” that wait for his prince. But at what it is write you think that the princess is like possessive with her prince. You think instantly at a bad fairy tale.

You hear again some noises but now closer. You watch where you can hide. A wardrobe is your choice and fortunally it is empty so you can go inside. Two humanoids enter the room. They are like earlier but you can see a detail that you don’t pay attention before. They are both headless. One of them try to immobilize a Subconite. And you cannot let the minion fight two headless things.

So you jump of your hidding spot. Earlier you saw two spears hanging on the wall. Even if it is a decoration you grab one of them. And even if you haven’t fight for years with a spear you try to hurt the headless. Key word is try. Indeed, they are like stone statues or ice… Ice headless statues. Even you don’t hurt them you succeed of to draw the attention and the Subconite is now free.

“FLEE!” You yell at him. With reluctance the minion ran away.

You fight with your spear and you paying attention to the door of the other room which is open. An idea come to your mind. With your spear you protect yourself and at the ideal moment you give at one of the headless a violent kick. The headless fall with his companion behind him and you shut the door. You move the wardrobe in front of the door. You succeed of trapping the headless on another room.

“Headless! It’s more brainless!” You tell

“Indeed. I’m agree with you” Says a feminine voice behind you.

“Oh NO!” You think. You turn around to be face to a shadow. “Oh peck” You say.

“I am very surprise that you come here without hurting you! But you cannot stay here safe, MC” Says the shadow

“What the f-… You know my name?” You ask holding your spear and ready to fight.

“I know you. And you know me.” And before you can say no she tells “I’m HER”.

“HER? … Wait you are the rival of Snatcher it’s right” You ask. But behind you the headless are breaking the door. You are surround by enemies now.

“Yes and no. I’m his … Killer? It is like that you call this type of person?” You think at something. She as a crown in her head. She is the “princess” of the book? Right?

“You are a princess?” You ask, keeping her in front of you.

“I was a princess. Your shadow friend was my prince” At this though you gasp “We were happy before he let me here for his studies. I waited him for years. For so long years-” She grabs a glass and and throw it at you. You protect yourself but you feel cold on your hands. Your spear start to be heavier and turn to a ice spear. You drop it. Now you are in front of a wall and you are ready for fleeing.

“When he comes back I was so happy… But. I saw him. He was with a girl. He was holding HER hands. I ran away.” She walks at your direction. “When he go to my castle he try to convince me but I ordered my guard to bring him to the jail” She is now in front of you. You shake like a leaf for the fear and for the cold. Indeed, even if you have warm clothes, you are cold.

Suddenly she grabs you to the neck, strangle you with so much power. “You are a beautiful lady. Perhaps on another life we will be friends but. I . AM . THE . ONLY . QUEEN . HERE .”She yells at you. You try to breathe but you can’t.

Suddenly a big blue fireball breaks the window, making melt one of the living statue. Surprised, the queen throws you. Strings that come to the door fly to the other statue, wrap the headless like a cocoon. The headless break up with a detonation noise.

You are lying on the floor and try to stand up. Two hand that you know grab you and help you to stand up. You raise your head to be face to Moonjumper.

“Moon…” You say with no voice. The corpse ran away in the house with you in one off his arm. “What you do?” You ask now with your voice.

“I keeping you safe” He says quietly.

But you don’t think the same way. You succeed of being free. You run to the bedroom, grabing the other spear that is laying on the floor. You think at one thing : help Snatcher with this demon. Moonjumper try to grab you but he lost track of you.

When you enter the room you look at ruins. The bedroom is totally destroyed. The bed is now laying on the floor with the ice shards of the headless statues. Wood furnitures are now burn and the two shadows are looking to the other like deadly carnivorous animals.

“My prince~~~!” Says Vanessa

“Don’t approach me !!!” Says Snatcher, hissing like a dangerous snake

But the two are tired and you can fell it. Vanessa run in the direction of Snatcher with her clawed hands. You know that he cannot dodge this. So you go in front of him making a shield with your body.

“MC !!!” He yells but too late

You fall on your knees. You let your spear fall. You touch your stomach. A warm red liquid sink of your clothes. Blood, she have hurt you.

Snatcher looks at you, then look at Vanessa “What did you do?” He asks to her “You. Have. Hurting. My. Wife” he says before jump on her, making everything to kill her.

“My prince! Stop this! I have to kill her for you!” She yells at him trying to breack free. And she succeed. She ran to one of the wall. “I am your wife! Your queen! But if you don’t hear me so die for a second time!” She yells at him

“NO!” You scream. And with a invisible power you stand up. Your spear that was ice is now make of fire. Like a zombie you walk to the dead queen. “NO ONE KILL MY HUSBAND” You say with a shaking voice. You turn to yourself, hurting her so badly. You kicking her with your spear, backing her to the bathroom. When she is in front of the door, Snatcher opens it and you kick her to the room. Then Snatcher closes it more violently than you with the headless. He locks the door with some incantation. When the fight is done Snatcher breath heavenly.

“God!” He whisper. “What a day.”

But your invisible power that keep you stand up leave your body and you fall again on your knees.

“What?! MC STAY WITH ME!!!” He yells and grabing you in his arm. You touch again your bloody stomach and now you can feel the pain. Moonjumper who was in some part of the manor finds you and your friend.

Then you don’t remember the rest of the day. You fall unconscious but your eyes are opening. You watch with no reaction your friend carry you to the house.

————————————-

You slowly return to the consciousness. You are laying on a cushion. And you can see Snatcher reading a book.

“Snatcher…” You slowly whisper

Like an electro-shock Snatcher jump of his chair and float to you very quickly.

“MC? MC YOU CAN SEE ME?” He asks very conscerned by you. He grabs you but your stomach is hurting.

“Ouch! You silly! I can see you!” You yell at him.

“Oh excuse me! You were unconcious before. Don’t make such things again.” He tells to you

“Such things like what?” You ask slowly trying to sit on your cushion.

“Such things like become a super fighter and be a shield-body with no warning.” He says frowing at you.

“What your are saying?” Then you remember what you done earlier. The Subconite kidnapping, the headless, Vanessa and the fight, it was not a dream.

“I am very impressed by you of your surviving but the next time don’t go to the danger” He says.

“But it was for keeping you safe…” You start.

“ENOUGH” He yells.

“But…” You try.

“DON’T” He lays you on his body.

“But…” You whisper.

“TALK” He grabs his book to continue his reading

“Umf…” You whisper grabing his fluff

On Snatcher’s book it is writing :

“Fire souls

A very rare soul that can survive of the spell of the ice soul. A strong fire soul can destroy an ice soul with one shot. A very rare portion of the people who have a fire soul can become strong fighters near the death. But, causing of the immense power that is require for this, the people who have become the fighter become unconscious after this fact. It is primordial of a fire soul people to regain strengh after such a fight.”

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matildainmotion · 4 years

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Fear: A User’s Guide. Or, what do you do with your fear?

Halloween. This year my son is a vampire, blood capsules ready to burst between his teeth on the doorstep of unsuspecting neighbours. Last year he was Darth Vader. The year before that he was a pumpkin. We still have the pumpkin costume. His little sister is now big enough to wear it. The nights are growing longer and she is growing older. This year is the first that she has grown enough to grow afraid.

Every day as the light fades she tells me, “Mummy, I am getting scared.” “What are you scared of?” I ask her. “Three things,” she says, holding up three fingers, proud of this number and well versed in it because it is her age: “Of Mr Tod [the fox in Beatrix Potter’s books], Old Brown [the owl from the same] and all the other baddies.” So, she has it covered. The fox, the owl and every single other baddy. I look at her with admiration – she is so clear, so sure of herself even as she names her fears, counting them out on her young fingers, that I have one of those moments as a mother of feeling poorly qualified for the job. The memory of being a frightened child myself is too keen for me to be entirely sure that I can pull off the role of the adult in this transaction. Certain stock responses come to me. I count them out on my fingers – there are also three of these: to reassure her, to distract her and to dare her.

I try out all three. “Don’t worry love, you’re totally safe,” I say, as it gets dark, going for tactic number one, reassurance. “Now, let’s get the fire going. Are you going to help me?” – tactic number two, distraction. “I don’t like the dark!” she says again. “Come on out into the dark with me and we can get some more logs – come on!” – tactic number three, confrontation, the ‘Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway’ approach. I am unconvinced by all of these approaches, as is my daughter. “What about the baddies?” she asks. She is right. It is no use to pretend that they are just pretend - they are real enough to her and, remember, she includes ‘all the other baddies’ in her list and there are some within that category that are real enough to me as well. Nor can I simply get her to look away, nor march towards. None of these give due respect to her fear. “Trick or treat?” the ghosts and vampires on the doorstep ask, baddies in their best bad outfits. “Isn’t there another option?” I want to ask. Why do I have to pacify the fearful danger with sweets or come under its spell, its victim? Isn’t there another approach I can offer to my daughter?

When I first became a mother I did what many modern mothers do – I read the baby books. In doing so I was both shocked and amused to come across the notion of ‘self-soothing.’ Apparently, this is a skill which a baby as young as 3 months can acquire, and certainly by the age of 6 months they should be able to learn it and consequently the famous holy grail of ‘sleeping-through-the-night’ can be attained. I am in my mid-forties. I do not sleep through the night – I never have (ask my mother) - and I am still on a quest to learn the enigmatic skill of self-soothing which I should have picked up after half a year of life. As a child I relied heavily on reassurance (tactic number one) to get me through both day and night, reassurance that my mother would not die, that there were no worms in my bed, that no one would murder me or any other family member in our sleep, that I was not a bad person that should be locked away in a tower to prevent my inflicting evil on the world. As a teenager, when asking for reassurance from my mother no longer seemed appropriate, my attempt at self-soothing took the form of a chronic eating disorder.

Anorexia involves a curious mix of all three of the tactics to combat fear that I have outlined above. There is the reassurance: “As long as I can stay this weight or lower, everything will be alright.” The gargantuan act of distraction: the importance of checking the calorie content on the side of the soup packet, and the constant hunger, enables me to forget all the baddies in the world. And finally, at the same time, anorexia requires an act of daring, a kind of squaring up to the ultimate baddy, the thing that we most fear - death. It is a commitment to live with fear full-time, to confront it multiple times a day because food, and the need to eat it, are ready and waiting on every street corner. At its worst you end up looking like a Halloween character, a skeleton or member of the walking dead, though with no treats allowed -their calorie content is too high- only a great big terrible trick against yourself. I stuck by this method of self-soothing long after I was officially ‘better.’ Right through my twenties and much of my thirties, whilst I was busy being a circus aerialist and performer. I would say that a new approach to my fear only began to emerge for me when I was lucky enough to be cast in a show aptly named ‘Panic.’

At the outset of that first show I did with Improbable I climbed to the top of the set and explained to the audience that even though I was an aerialist I was still in fact afraid of heights. However, since I was also afraid of being on the ground, afraid of being here, on earth, alive, taking up a dangerous job was a relief because my ordinary, daily level of fear at last felt appropriate. In this there was a kind of key – a new way to frame my fear as a force, even a skill, that meant I was well-suited to hanging ten metres in the air. Instead of being its victim, crippled by it, fear made me strong enough to climb up a rope, to dangle by my knees. I was not very good at self-soothing, but I was, I realised, very good at being afraid.

Here is one of my favourite quotes of all time from Russell Hoban’s novel, Soon Child: “John was a good shaman because there was nothing that he was afraid to be afraid of.” I felt great joy when I first read that line. In my late thirties and forties I have begun to explore this idea of fear as a kind of super-power, a special gift. I boast that, like Hoban’s shaman, I am ready to be afraid of anything, that I can imagine disaster striking in almost any situation. And as a mother there is a whole new lot of items on my fear-list: the fear of anything happening to me, for my children’s sake, the fear of anything happening to them, and then, under it all as a constant now, is the fear of how the world will be for them as they grow up. But especially given the terrifying facts with which we are faced in relation to climate change and our children’s futures, it feels more important than ever to develop a different relationship to fear.

I read a book recently called Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. Its subtitle is Creative Living Beyond Fear. I loved it, but I noticed that I did not agree with Gilbert about fear. She presents it as a necessary but very boring and rather annoying companion on any creative voyage, one to be tolerated but one who should never be allowed anywhere near the driving seat. I beg to differ. I am interested in whether fear could in fact be one of my key collaborators.

I know that what I am doing now – being a mother, trying to write – is far more dangerous, difficult and scary than anything I ever did ten metres in the air on my circus rope. I know for sure that fear is an invaluable guide when I am writing – if there is something I am scared to write, I need to head in that direction. This is not quite as simple as tactic number three- the daring act of bravado. I am not suggesting doing the scary thing regardless of the fear, but rather I must regard the fear all the way, have regard for it, because it has power, tremendous power. Fight or flight – both are fear-powered. I think there is an ecological issue at stake here. Rather than seeing fear as toxic, a pollutant, I am wondering whether fear could be a green resource, a form of renewable energy, like wind or sun. I am amazed how rapidly and consistently my fear renews itself, resets me, ready to run again, or stay again, ready to turn towards the present challenge, heart thumping. As we face the environmental crisis, maybe our fear of what is to come could be our best resource in tackling it if only we can learn to hold it and harness it creatively. It makes me think of a Bible story that fascinated me as a child, Jacob and the angel, a wrestling match in the dark with something unknown that seemed like a foe but turned out to be better than a friend. I am exploring whether my relationship to fear could be like this – not a thing to smooth over, hide from or muscle out the way, but rather the creature with which I wrestle and dance through the long dark night, the one whom I embrace as morning comes.

When my daughter expresses her dismay that night is coming on again (“Why does dark have to happen every day?!”) I have been experimenting with a new way to respond to her. “What could you do with your fear?” I ask her. “What would you do if Mr. Tod were at the door now?” She frowns and considers this. “We could set him a trap,” she says at last. At this her brother joins in and soon an elaborate story is unfolding which involves several pots of rancid custard and a misleading sign which will direct Mr Tod to the toilet, where my son will be stationed, ready to flush the fox away when he topples, pushed from behind by my daughter, headfirst down the loo.

I know it is not always this easy. I know not all baddies can be flushed so expediently down the loo and I know well how crippling fear can feel – remember I am 45 years late in learning the skill of self-soothing. But I am keen at least to ask whether there could be creative ways to use our fear, not tricking it, or being tricked, not treating it, but perhaps dancing a foxtrot with it, holding it close and drawing on its power.

So, here are my Mothers Who Make questions for you, for this month of lengthening nights:

What do you fear? As a mother? As a maker? And how do you use your fear?

What, if anything, could you make from it?

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hotchocolatefanfics · 5 years

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PoTA: Test The Relationship

Hi guys! So this just came to me a couple of days ago and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head so I wrote it out.

Basically, it’s a PoTA-based relationship test. The idea is you imagine your favorite PoTA characters/PoTA shippings (canon or not) in these scenarios and, based on their personalities, backgrounds and actions in the books and movies, imagine what they might think, say or do in them. These scenarios can also be used to explore your PoTA OC’s character and expand on their personality and relationships.

Some of the scenarios are based off of things that happened in the movies and books and by the actions of the characters (both the good guys and the bad guys) and some are real-life based and others don’t follow the PoTA mold at all (so some are serious, some are romantic/comfort, and some are just random and silly).

Types of couple that can be used in these scenarios:

Canon

Made-Up Shippings

OC Shippings/relations

Crack Couples

Ape x Human

Ape x Ape

Human x Human

OC x Canon

OC x OC

Gay or Straight Shippings

Literally anything you want!

Subjects included in (some of these) these scenarios:

Character Death

Divorce/Breakup

Government Corruption/Propaganda

PTSD/Past Trauma

Self Harm/Suicidal Thoughts or Actions

Abuse

Drug Addictions

Alcoholism

Cancer/Serious and/or Fatal Illness

Miscarriage/Infant Death

Adoption

Betrayal

Seperation

Depression/Anger problems

Birth Defects/Disability

Murder/Attempted Murder

Homophobia/Harassment/Bullying

Oppression

Ape-Based Polygamy (where they have multiple mates)

If any of these subjects trigger you or make you uncomfortable, don’t read the scenario and don’t do them! I could personally direct you to the scenarios that DON’T have that particular subject but please be aware that a good 80% of these scenarios cover these things and the whole point of them is to test how the characters handle them and the relationship of the said couple. It’s all meant PURELY for fiction and character exploration, not in any way shape or form meant to encourage or glamorize these subjects. As a precaution, I may repost this on my DA incase this is taken down.

PoTA Movies/Books that (some of) these scenarios are inspired by:

Rise

Dawn

War

Firestorm

Revelations

Original PoTA Movies

Tim Burton’s Remake

While these scenarios were made up based off of the PoTA universe, some of them CAN be used for other franchises you’re interested in. The scenarios are primarily romance-based but there are a few that are based on friendships, parent to child relations, and spouse to in-laws.

The scenarios are all open ended. You choose the couple/the characters in them (the “you” refers to the character you chose to be that role), how far it goes and how it ends (This ______ means fill in the blank! LOL). You can use these scenarios as prompts for drawing, one-shots, discussions, or role-plays.

This is not a contest or a challenge! If anything it’s just something I made up for fun and maybe others may find fun in it to. There’s 100 scenarios on this list but you don’t have to do ALL of them if your don’t want to!

Sorry that my description has taken up more room than I thought it would but have fun! Happy character exploration and relationship testing! XD

1 - 10: Falling in love

1) You have been captured by apes/cruel humans. You just met a/another ape/primitive human. Is it love at first sight?

2) You see your companion being abused/tortured/whipped by your captors. Do you intervene?

3) Your companion makes a flower crown for you. How does this make you feel? Do you make one for them?

4) You’re in love. However, the person you love will never love you back due to your species/different opinions on humans. What is it about them that you love so much?

5) You and your companion are not the same species (one is ape and the other is human) but you have feelings for them. Do you hide it? Do they feel the same?

6) You want to impress your companion by________. It goes horribly wrong and you end up embarrassing yourself. Do you laugh it off? Do you hide your head in shame?

7) You want to give your companion a gift. After much consideration, you decide the best gift would be________. How do they react to the gift?

8) You’re about to be killed by______. Your companion saves your life and in doing so, gets hurt themselves. What do you do?

9) Your companion suddenly disappears as you’re traveling. Do you search for them? Or go get help?

10) You and your companion are alone together. You catch each others eyes and gaze at one another. Your heart is pounding. Do you kiss them? Do they kiss back?

11 - 20: Something Cute

11) You feel like making cookies. You invite your love to join you. How do you know they aren’t going to eat all the cookie dough first?

12) It’s your love’s birthday. It’s as easy to celebrate these things anymore, but you think you can make it work. What do you get for them? Do you attempt to bake a cake?

13) Halloween is coming up. Your love has never celebrated the holiday. Do you dress up in costumes? Go Trick or Treating/eat candy? Watch horror movies and stay up all night?

14) You and the group you’re in are all bored. You decide to play Truth or Dare. You’re group includes apes and humans, some having done wrong in the past and others had gone from friends, to enemies, to ‘not really friends but we can tolerate each other now’ kind of relationship. What can go wrong? And what is the craziest dare you can think of?

15) It’s summer! You decide to take your love on an adventure. Where do you go?

16) You feel lonely but your companion can’t talk. Do you try to teach them how to communicate?

17) Apes can’t swim. Yet, they see you playing in shallow water. The water isn’t deep and only goes up to your waist at most. Do you invite them in? Do you all end up having a splash-fight?

18) It’s Friday night. That means no council meetings, no hunting, no fighting, no war, no killing, no nothing. You and your human and ape friends know what that means…Party time!!! During the party, you notice your love interest is there. Do you ‘play it cool’ and approach them? Or do you keep rocking out with your friends?

19) Your love is feeling blue. It doesn’t appear to be anything serious, but you don’t like it. What do you do to cheer them up?

20) Your love is having trouble sleeping. You decide to do something sweet and silly for them! Do you sing them a lullaby? Read/tell a bedtime story? Or do you do something else entirely?

21 - 30: Opening Up

21) Your love has always been secretive and extremely hateful towards (other) humans. One night, you confront them about it. Are you prepared to hear about the abuse and torture your love was subjected to?

22) You came from another planet/the past. Everyone you’ve ever known, your friends and your family, are gone. Leaving you homesick for them. You feel all alone in this new, strange world with seemingly no one to talk to or no one who cares. Still, not all apes in this world are ‘human haters’ and the humans here are good listeners. What’s the harm in seeking company from them?

23) Being locked in a cage for so many years does things to a person. It caused you to have depression and anxiety problems, and caused you to fear humans as well as hate them. It’s hard to talk about these things, even if you weren’t the only one to experience it. Sometimes you cry yourself to sleep, thinking about it. One day, another ape approaches you and asks if you’re ok. Do you let them in? Let them be the one to free you from your cage?

24) Your love suffers from PTSD, due to all the abuse and trauma they’ve endured. They have good days and bad days, but it’s never easy. All you can do is be there for them and help them in any way you can. What happens when a particularly bad flashback leaves your love in tears and you holding them as well as crying with them?

25) Your love tells you a secret. A secret so shocking that, if it ever came to light, it could ruin your love’s life. But keeping it a secret is also dangerous, as it threatens their life too. You don’t want to destroy your love’s trust, but there’s no way you can keep this a secret either. What can you do?

26) You lost your parents when you were young. You don’t like talking about it, not even to your own love. What happens when they find an old picture of you and your parents? Do you tell them how you lost them?

27) You have been made to do horrible things. Things that you never want to remember or speak of again. But one day, something from your past resurfaces and your love demands explanation. Do you lie to protect them from the truth? Or tell them everything?

28) There are certain subjects your love noticeably avoids. Mostly its small things: handling knives, refusing to look at blood, covering their ears at loud noises. You don’t think anything of it until one day…What happens that makes you rethink this behavior? Do you try to find out the source of these problems?

29) Ape Law has always been flaky at best. You never gave it much thought and preferred to live about your daily life as if nothing is happening around you at all. Trouble is, your spouse works very closely with Dr. Zaius and the orangutans. It’s normally uneventful, but lately weird things have been occurring in the village and your spouse is either denying that it’s happening or trying to hide it. You’ve never been interested in this subject before, but you cannot ignore that somethings not right. What is your spouse hiding? What do you do to find out what it is?

30) You decide it’s time to profess your feelings to your love and take the step from friends, to lovers. How do you do it?

31 - 40: Marriage

31) You and your partner love each other. You live together, eat and sleep and even go out in the forest and Ape Village together. You want to ask the big question, but you’re so nervous of what the answer will be that you keep putting it off. Your partner finally notices and asks about it. What do you do?

32) You and your partner have been through a lot. You’ve survived a virus, dangerous humans, and your spouse has survived abuse and neglect by them. You have your differences and neither of you are perfect, but you love each other all the same. If they were to ask you to marry them, would you say yes?

33) Despite everything that you have done, your partner still loves you and lets you know that everyday. As much as you feel grateful for them, you can’t help but feel guilty for all you put your partner through during the war and the events leading up to it. You secretly wonder if they also resent you for what you did, like everyone else. So how do you feel when your partner, despite all your mistakes, asks your hand in marriage?

34) It was obvious for years that you two were a couple. The entire village knew of it. Not even Dr. Zaius bats an eye when you two announce your engagement. Problem is you have friends who are apes who you want to invite, but you also have human friends too…This wedding is going to be very interesting.

35) You are ape and your partner is human. Your love is forbidden, and seen as a betrayal to many with both sides outcasting you. Fed up with the constant harassment, your partner decides to leave the village and asks you to go with him-as his spouse. This is a hard choice to make. There’s not much left for you if you stay but leaving would mean you’d have to leave your home, your family and all you’ve ever known behind. Will you say yes and go with him? Or will you stay in the village with a ruined reputation?

36) Due to war, you and your spouse have to be separated. The timing is horrible as you have just gotten married and were just about to settle in as spouse and spouse. You talk to each other as often as you can, but it’s just not the same. Can your marriage survive this long-distance relationship?

37) Being an outcast by your own people is hard. Everyday, you put on a brave face and tell your spouse that you’re ok but they know when you’re lying. They know it’s unfair and awful how the village treats you just because of your species. You think it’s just you who they oppress, but it turns out your spouse is also a target. How does it effect your relationship?

38) Some apes have multiple spouses. There are no laws against it and it isn’t seen as cheating or anything wrong. Still, you weren’t raised with it. Your father only had one spouse, and that was what you wanted. One, and only one, spouse. But you have fallen in love with another ape too. You know you won’t be judged for having two spouses and your current spouse wouldn’t mind either, but do you really want this? Or do you ignore it and stick with what you’ve originally wanted?

39) Your parents are cruel to your spouse. They don’t accept them and constantly tell you that you should leave them. Your in-laws (your spouse’s parents) are the most nicest, most caring people you’ve ever met and you are honored to be part of their family but it also makes you feel horrible about your own parents behavior. On your wedding day, they ruin it by throwing _________ at your spouse and yells at them. This is the last straw. What do you do?

40) It’s your wedding day. The day where fantasy and day dream become reality, and it’s almost mystical. Straight from a storybook. As you and your spouse hold each other, is it everything you’ve ever dreamed of?

41 - 50: Building A Family

41) You want to have kids but your spouse doesn’t want to talk about it. The subject appears to make them angry and depressed. One night, you decide you have to ask. Would you be prepared for what you hear?

42) You and your spouse are unable to have children. One day, you find an abandoned child while at the Market Place. This child is malnourished and appears hungry. Would you Adopt this child? How would your spouse feel?

43) You and your spouse never thought having children together was possible but it turns out, your spouse is pregnant! Are you shocked? Scared? Happy? What about your spouse?

44) Your child is an outcast, due to you and your spouse being a human-ape couple/past choices made by you or your spouse. One day, your child asks what an ‘abomination’ is. What do you tell them?

45) You and your spouse are currently wanted fugitives and your child is being hunted. If you are captured, your child will be murdered. The only way to protect them is to give up your child and then you and your spouse will have to flee. Who do you leave your child with? Do you fully trust them?

46) You and your friends aren’t related by blood, but you are the closest thing to family that you have. You’re all different, some are apes and some are human, but you stick together as if you were all brothers and sisters and you never let anyone, human or apes, hurt you. How far does it go?

47) You and your spouse find out that your child has a birth defect/has health problems. In a post-apocalyptic world, not much can be done to help your child live a normal life. There is also a possibility your child may die. How do you and your spouse cope with this?

48) You now have two children. As you and your spouse watch them play, do you two worry about their futures? More specifically, if they’d be accepted as equals by the apes and by humans?

49) Your spouse is pregnant and it hasn’t been easy. As you talk about it together, you find that both of you are afraid. Not just for weather or not your spouse and the baby will survive the birth, but also the child’s future as a whole. You try to be strong for your spouse, but can you be strong for yourself too?

50) Your spouse is in labor, and it’s worse than you imagined. You’re scared but you’re more concerned for your spouse than anything else. The baby is finally born. How is your spouse? Are they going to be ok? But then, as you look at your child for the first time, what are you feeling?

51 - 60: Problems

51) Your spouse has a history of treachery, deceit, murder, attempted murder and manipulation and is outcasted and disliked by many in the colony. It has also put a strain on your relationship, as it makes it hard to fully trust them. Do you ever talk it out with your spouse? Does your spouse regret their past actions?

52) You do not wish harm on humans, but your spouse does. Its to the point where your spouse wants to kill them all. You love your spouse, but you do not like where this is going. Do you try to reason with them?

53) War has taken it’s toll on your spouse. They no longer seem as confident and powerful as they used to be. In fact, your spouse looks like they’re about to crumble and break before your eyes. One night, they do. They need you to be their strength for the night. How strong can you be for them?

54) You drink your pain away with alcohol. It’s not healthy, but it’s the only thing that gives you peace. You know your spouse hates it, but you’re honestly sick of their nagging. They’ll never understand how bad it hurts. How bad everything hurts…But would you give them the chance?

55) Old mistakes from the past and continued bitterness over them has made their way into your marriage. Now you and your spouse fight constantly, to the point of yelling and shouting at each other, only to end with one of you leaving and slamming the door behind them and the other to go bed to scream into a pillow. Why is this happening? And how can you and your spouse fix it?

56) Your spouse finds out that someone at work has been mistreating you and they are not happy about it. One day, they show at your work place and beats up the guy that had been bullying you. Did you know it was coming? Were you shocked to see it happen?

57) You decide to do a harmless, non-aggravating, prank on your spouse. The prank you have in mind is suppose to be confusing rather than to make it’s victim angry and upset or cause damage. One of those ‘wholesome and innocent’ pranks. You pull the prank and-!…It’s not your spouse you’ve just pranked…It’s your spouse’s mother!!! How do you get out of this awkward situation?!

58) Your spouse has an awful fear of the dark. It’s so bad that they need a nightlight, something to hold and you to be in the bed with them before they fall asleep. One night, they wake you up and say they think someone/something is inside the house/cave. It could be nothing, but do you really want to take that chance?

59) Your child has a friend who is a bad influence on them. This friend is shady, secretive and always has an answer to everything. You have a bad feeling about them but no evidence to prove anything. You talk it out with your spouse and they too feel something isn’t right with this friend. Then one day your child comes home, badly beaten and bleeding. When it becomes known that the friend did it, you decide then and there that you are going to make them pay for this. What do you do?

60) Homosexuality is not uncommon in Ape Society. In fact, it’s almost as common as heterosexuality. You are perfectly fine with this, as some of your ape friends are married to other apes who are the same gender, however you also have human friends find it ‘unnatural’ or ‘disgusting’ or ‘sinful’. You have been very careful to avoid those friends and keeping them from meeting your ape friends but of course, they eventually find each other. The ignorant friends realize they are looking at two male apes kissing and start harassing them, calling them horrible names right in front of you. That’s it, any feeling of friendship you had with these people dies at that moment. How do you intervene? Do you use just words to stop them or do you have to use physical force?

61 - 70: It’s A Matter of Life and Death

61) Your spouse has a disease that could kill them. Thankfully, there is a cure that can save them, but this treatment comes with serious consequences. Would you save your spouse’s life? Do you value their life enough to make sacrifices?

62) Colonel McCullough has kidnapped your spouse! Problem is, he also has the entire colony in the base too! Do you save your spouse first? Or your people?

63) Your spouse and your child are both in serious danger, having been kidnapped by the enemy and are now about to be killed by them/inflicted with a fatal illness. Despite your best efforts, you could only save one of them but not the other. Who do you save? The love of your life? Or your child?

64) Your spouse is an experiment in a laboratory. Every second they are in that cage, their life is at risk. You need a plan but it’s hard to think of one when there’s so little time. What are you feeling? How do you try to rescue them?

65) Your spouse has been acting strange lately. You try to ask them what’s wrong but they wouldn’t say. One night, you catch them with a blade in their hand. You stop them just in time but it leaves you shaking as you now know your spouse has been harming themselves and may have suicidal thoughts. What goes through your mind as you realize this?

66) Your spouse is an addict. One day, you find them passed out and not breathing. You rush to get help, but is it enough to save them? Is it too late?

67) The village has deemed your spouse to be a murderer and a traitor. They were banished and is now locked away forever. But your spouse is innocent. You don’t have proof that they didn’t do it, but the Orangutans don’t have evidence against them either. Suspicious, you do some detective work of your own. No one believes you and Dr. Zaius is determined to silence you, but you don’t care. You’d stop at nothing to save your spouse’s life. But if your spouse is innocent, who is the actual murderer? And what is Dr. Zaius trying to hide from you?

68) Your in-laws died recently. Your spouse tells you that their parents have told them something about the apes history. Something that should have been buried centuries ago. What did your in-laws tell your spouse? How do you console them?

69) Your spouse had a miscarriage. You take it hard. Everyone knew the pregnancy would be difficult, but you never thought this would happen. Your spouse blames themselves despite you telling them it’s not their fault and you both fall into a deep depression…What now?

70) The forest is on fire and your family is trapped inside! You race through the flames, desperately yelling out their names but their voices seem to come from all directions. The smoke is getting heavier, harder to breathe as the air seem less and less. You refuse to give up, you’re either going to save your family or die trying! Do you get burned? And if you do find your family, which one do you save first?

71 - 80: With or Without You

71) Your spouse has started a war. You always knew they hated humans, but never dreamt they’d actually do this. When you find out that your fellow apes are also being threatened, and some have been killed, you confront your spouse. Do you try to stop them? Or is your life also at risk?

72) You are finally getting revenge for all the pain humans caused you. Sure a couple of apes died on the way and a couple of them refuse to follow you, but you see no problem with it. But then, your spouse shows up and demands you stop it. It’s getting on your nerves, and you decide you need to make another choice. Do you love your spouse enough to spare them? Or would you choose revenge over their life?

73) You don’t know what the heck your spouse is thinking. They’ve taken control over the remainder of the colony and now some are dead and others are held captive. Your spouse is talking about killing the queen and they’re convincing other apes to help carry it out. What do you? Get answers from others? Or reason with your spouse and try to stop them before this goes too far?

74) Your spouse has enslaved the entire ape colony. Even Caesar is locked up and chained, reduced to another slave. You know why this is all happening, but it just seems so wrong. So against everything that you stand for and believe in. The more that happens, the more you hate it. Do you go against your spouse’s back and help the apes? Or do you confront them yourself?

75) Your spouse has gone off to exterminate the human race. You can’t stop them, and you both know it. Their hate has made them mad, to the point of no return. Do you say goodbye then and there? And as they leave, for what feels like the last time, what are you thinking and feeling?

76) Your spouse has been banished by the colony for their crimes. As of right now, you’re the only one who still cares about them. Do you go looking for them to join them and start a new life somewhere else with them? Or are you so angry with what they did that you just want to forget about them?

77) Your spouse has joined the enemy and is now seen as a traitor to the colony. How do you feel when you find this out? Are you angry with them? Or do you plan to try to change their mind?

78) You have a chance to go back home. Back to your own world, where humans rule the world. But do you really want to go? And leave behind your new friends here in this ape planet? What does your heart say?

79) You want revenge for the murders of your family but your friends are in the way. To you, they are just waisting your time and slowing you down. You know they mean well and they’re worried for you but it doesn’t make you feel any less angry at them. Do you continue to travel with them? Or do you push them away and go down the rhode of vengeance without them?

80) Your spouse is on the verge of curing a disease that has hurt millions of lives and threatens even more, but is it worth it? Finding this cure means using innocent apes as lab rats and playing with nature…One of the victims trapped in all of this is your spouse’s own adoptive child. Not even they are spared from this. You understand why your spouse is doing this and you know their heart is in the right place, but you cannot agree with any of this. Do you try to convince them to stop? Even if this is wrong, how can you tell then to give up something they have worked so hard on?

81 - 90: I’m Sorry

81) You had no choice. Your spouse has become a monster. You didn’t want to do it, but you had to. It was the only way you, your family, your friends and your colony would be safe. You had to kill your own spouse…How did it come to this?

82) Your spouse has sacrificed themselves so you live. You never asked them to do such a thing, but they did and it seems they would have done it even if you begged them not to. Wrecked with survivor’s guilt, all you can do is cry for your brave spouse. If you had known that day would be the last day you’d be with them again, what would you have said?

83) Being an astronaut came with consequences. You have left your spouse and children behind on Earth, your home planet. All you want now is to see them again one more time and tell them how much you love them and how sorry you are for leaving them. If you had the chance to do just that, would you?

84) You took part in creating the virus that’s whipping out the planet. Everyone is blaming the apes for this, but you know that’s not true. It’s your fault, and the fault of Gen-Sys for doing this. You say your sorry as your spouse and children die before your eyes, but there aren’t enough sorries in the world that can save them. How can you live with yourself now?

85) You really did it this time. You are now a traitor to the colony and will never be able to return to them. You have no one to turn to and no where to go. Worse of all, you’ve left your beloved all alone. Abandoned them. That was never part of your plan and never what you wanted, but your spouse is now paying the price for your treachery. If you got to see them again, what would you say to them? Do you think they’d still love you and forgive you?

86) Your actions cost the lives of several in the colony and has hurt many others. What you regret the most is how much it has hurt your spouse. You never talk about it with them but you see the hurt in their eyes. You used to have a loving and trusting relationship with each other, now it just feels like your spouse has given up on you. How can you show them how sorry you are?

87) You are haunted by the faces of the people who have died because of you. There are too many to name, some are ape and some are human, but they all form this mob of angry ghosts wanting revenge for their murders. You may not have killed all of them, but you did cause their deaths. How can you put these demons to rest? In fact, are these ghosts real? Or are they just figments of your imagination created by your own guilt?

88) You had to do the unthinkable. You had to kill your own loved ones and friends to save your species. The virus that threatens to destroy your very existence is everywhere you look. In the faces of the people you kill, in the eyes of your enemies, and even in some of your own ‘pets’. You are meant to save and protect your species…But in doing so, you are also killing them…Who do say your sorry to? To those you kill? To all who oppose you?…Or to yourself?

89) You and your spouse had a fight. It was a over something stupid and small, but it got ugly really fast and now neither of you are talking. Who started this fight? And how do you make it up to each other?

90) You have an anger problem and it’s caused a lot of problems between you and your spouse and you with your children. It gets particularly bad one day when your oldest lies to you about where they had been. You get into a fight with them and, in a rage, you smack them. Your spouse intervenes and starts a yelling match with you too. It ends with your children avoiding you for the rest of the day and your spouse giving you dirty looks. Is this enough for you to admit you have a problem? Why was your oldest child lying about their whereabouts anyway? How do you try to make amends with them and your spouse?

91 - 100: The End

91) Your spouse is dead. Killed by Caesar for their crimes. Despite the chaos that had just happened, and the impending danger caused by your spouse, do you still mourn for them? Do you give yourself a chance to say goodbye?

92) Your spouse has suffered a fatal wound and is about to die. You have just enough time to speak them one last time. You don’t want them to go and leave you, but there’s nothing you can do. What do you say?

93) You’ve had enough. You’re tired of the bullshit your spouse has started. Your marriage may have been beautiful at first, but now it’s toxic and lethal. Threatening your own life as well as the humans/apes that are imprisoned here. How do you plan to escape?

94) Your spouse has sacrificed themselves/died during the war. Now you’re at the Oasis, the ape’s new home. As much as you miss your spouse and mourn for them every day, you know one day you’ll have to move on. When will that day come?

95) You and your spouse both have the virus. As you lay dying, the two of you stare at each other in silent sadness. All the things you could have done you never did. Your dreams never came to be. As all this goes through your mind, what do you regret the most? The things you never got to do? Or the things you could have done differently but didn’t?

96) You had cancer years earlier, now it’s come back and it’s worse than before. You have been given less than a year. Within that time, what do you want to do? Rekindle old friendships? Spend time with your family members one more time? Tell your spouse how much you love them?

97) It’s not working out. It’s not your fault or your spouse’s, but you just aren’t close anymore. The spark that brought you together has died out and your marriage is falling apart. You both know it’s over, but neither of you want to admit it. What do you say to each other? Are you ready for a divorce?

98) Your spouse is abusive towards you. You don’t know why they do this to you, but overtime they hurt you, your heart breaks a little bit more. Don’t they love you anymore? Finally, you decide it’s over and start thinking about escape. Do you reach out for help? Who do you turn to?

99) It was an accident. Neither of you saw that car/bear as it came after you. Regardless, it has taken your beloved spouse. Now you’re all alone, despite the constant wave of support and sympathy from your friends and family and nearly everyone in the village. Then, you are confronted with the being that caused the accident. How does looking at them make you feel?

100) You and your spouse have lived a long life together. You have survived war and oppression, been part of creating a new era of human and ape-kind and have had children, and now grandchildren. All your hopes and dreams have come true and all is well in the world. The only problem is, you’re both dying. Your old bodies are falling apart, no longer strong enough to fight. The good news is, it will be a peaceful death and you’d died together with the one you love. As you and your spouse lay in your bed, waiting for death to take you, what do you reflect on? If you got live your life a second time, would you do it all again? Would you change anything at all?

#pota #POTA OC #planet of the apes #Rise of the Planet of the Apes #Dawn of the Planet of the Apes #Warfortheplanetoftheapes #prompt #what if this happened #test the relationship #it's basically a create your own adventure thingy #Tim burton's pota #i hope someone likes this #Damn this thing is long! X'D

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