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chimcess · 3 months

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→ Chapter Nine: Landscapes Pairing: Jimin x Reader Other tags: Werewolf!Jimin, Witch!Reader, Shifter!Reader, Shifter!Jimin, A/B/O Dynamics, Alpha!Jimin Genre: Supernatural!AU, Werewolf!AU, Angst, Mutual Pining, Fluff, Smut, Word Count: 10.2k+ Synopsis: Within the four realms of Lustra lay the Bangtan forest home to the Foxglove pack of the south and known as the “land of magic.” It is also home to the Bridd, a powerful witch from a cursed bloodline who is one of the sacred guardians of the forest. Y/N is the newest Bridd, a young girl who was given her position too early. Now a woman, Y/N is revered amongst the wolves as the most powerful witch they have ever known, but hiding under the surface is a woman who has to battle between her duty and her heart. Warnings: ANGST, strong language, PTSD, flashbacks, self-hate, self-depreciation, talks of death, nosey birds, Moland is a lot of fun to write about, (sorta) theft, home sickness, magic, very tame A/N: Don't know how I feel about this chapter. It was a bit difficult to write. I think you'll understand why in a moment. Thanks for reading!

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Namjoon pov

I stood inside of a small boat house, Bridd’s scent faint, but I knew it was fresh. At least I could give Jimin that. Hoseok said to take a look around outside and try to follow it. I sighed. I had already done that. I had done it yesterday as well, but Jimin demanded I go back to double check. Today’s assessment was much better than yesterday's so I was able to pick up the subtle nuances within it. She had been standing where my feet were planted no more than 48 hours earlier.

“She’s long gone,” Hoseok’s voice was clear in my head despite him being five miles away. “Wonder where she went.”

“Taehyung said something about Viridi Gramine,” Hyuna chimed in. She had been relatively quiet, her thoughts only focused on catching any sign of Bridd. “Do you think she’s headed that way?”

“Doubtful,” I followed the trail from the small cot on the floor to the fridge. “I don’t believe she was ever going to see our cousins.”

Hyuna contemplated this. Hoseok felt guilty. Both of us scolded him for this. He had been hard on himself over the entire ordeal. He thought if he had been able to speak to Bridd and Jimin that this situation would have never happened. Apologizing, the younger wolf went back to wondering where she could have gone.

“Not far,” Hyuna mused.

“She could be out of Moland by now,” I added. “I don’t know which way she would have gone. She might be lost out there.”

That worried all of us. Hoseok knew her better than I did and kept thinking about how little she knew of the outside world. She would have no idea where she was without a map. Hyuna had more faith in her ability to survive out there, and I leaned more towards her thought process. If she needed to fight, she could, and her shifting would lend itself useful regardless. She had probably flown over the swamps and into Clarcton. That would be the easiest and most efficient use of her time.

“That makes the most sense,” Hoseok thought.

Following her scent outside, it stopped on the small deck just outside of the home. She had to have shifted from here. We would not be able to find her. Hoseok huffed in annoyance, Hyuna tried to soothe him, and I could finally pick up my sister’s thoughts. She was worried about everyone, not that it surprised me, Yeong-Mi was always giving herself migraines and panic attacks.

“Shut up,” She snapped at me, her tone biting. I could still hear the stress underneath it. “He’s right, oppa,” Yeong-Mi was talking to Hoseok now. “You can’t blame yourself. We all know who’s to blame for this.”

Sol’s face came to her mind. It was distorted, the Luna’s features not quite right. My sister saw Sol as often as the rest of the village did, and her memories did not do the older girl justice. Mini told me she did not care how wrong she remembered Sol’s face; she had no thoughts of facing the stupid woman anytime soon. Hyuna agreed with a delighted giggle. Hoseok mumbled something about her only trying to help but none of us paid it any attention.

“Sol can’t bear all the responsibility,” I gently chastised my little sister. “Bridd still made the choice to run off.”

“If she had minded her own business,” Mini barked, her stress and frustration boiling over, “-Bridd wouldn’t have run away! God, the nerve. Who would say something like that to Jimin Oppa when we all know just how stressed he’s been?”

“An idiot,” Hyuna bit, her anger surfacing once more. She had always had an issue with Sol. “Between Bo, his brother, and the copiae the man hasn’t had a break.”

I had tried to stay neutral, but I could not help agreeing with Hyuna. Sol had been out of line and overstepped. I found solace in Taehyung’s own reaction to her wrongdoing. The boy had yet to touch his mate since Jimin went into a frantic panic in the middle of the night once he found his girl’s bed empty, and rumors of their constant arguing since the morning Bridd went missing were spreading throughout Bangtan.

“Eun-Jin told me Jimin said she was going to the Ozryn mountains alone,” My sister supplied. “I haven’t been around him since she left, so I don’t know what really happened, but he’s devastated about this.”

Hoseok growled when Jimin’s name came up. Mini took up for her favorite alpha while I reminded him of the situation at large. What Sol told Jimin was a very harsh, unrealistic, misrepresentation of Bridd’s plans. He was reacting on what he knew, or lack thereof, and lashed out. Hoseok vehemently disagreed until Hyuna asked him how he would have reacted if he was convinced she was going off to kill herself after she just recovered from a previous injury.

“She’s alone out there,” Hoseok grunted, his fire burnt out in the face of his wife. “He should have never let that happen.”

“It’s not his fault,” I was pleasantly surprised to hear Jungkook’s older brother, Jong-Hyun. He had been searching the east for a scent but came back around once he realized my sister had left him behind. “They’re both stubborn and I don’t think little miss witch would have allowed him to go. Ji-Hyun said the two of them got into an argument the afternoon she left, and he feels partially responsible for whatever happened between them.”

I growled, “That boy’s attitude is going to get him hurt. Is that why Callisto’s been even more irate than normal?”

Mini laughed, “I think that’s just how she is around you.”

All of us shared a laugh, the tense moment going by. Hyuna and Hoseok had finally found one another, and my sister was their next stop. She was almost to Syrena, and the couple wanted to go for a swim. The rest of us turned down their offer. I did not want to be a magindara’s next meal. Yeong-Mi decided to wait for them so she could keep an eye out for any elves.

Drowning out their voices, I continued sniffing. I knew finding a trail would be next to impossible unless I went deeper into the swamps, but elves could be anywhere. My fear for Bridd came back. I hoped to God that she was safe and watching her back out there. I knew she could handle her own, but she was not infallible.

I sat there, staring out at the brown water, willing it to tell me where to go next, until Hyuna let me know Taehyung was looking for me. My father was concerned about a party of elves spotted in the northwestern corner of Moland and wanted me out of the forest. Jimin was refusing to come home so Taehyung needed me to help him plan strategies. Hyuna had rounded back to meet up with me near Bridd’s cottage.

“We’re leaving him out here alone?” I asked her.

“Of course not,” The small, red wolf replied. “Jong-Hyun and Hoseok are scouting him out. He’s somewhere deep in the forest.”

She was disappointed that their beach trip was postponed but chose not to comment on it. I tried to comfort her in my own way, picturing the two of them swimming and laughing together another day, but she waved me off. She was grateful but did not want to talk about it knowing it would bother Hoseok.

“And he hasn’t found anything?”

“Nothing.”

Stepping into Bridd’s clearing, I admired the wildflowers. She had to have the most beautiful oasis in all of Lustra. Her cottage was surrounded by a beautiful garden filled with vegetables, fruits, and herbs. A large, porcelain bird bath at the very front of the house that, for some reason, never ran out of water. It was odd how perfectly made and curated the meadow was. The Gods must have made it this way so the Bridd would not grow depressed inside. Hyuna was laying in the grass close to the destroyed house. Taehyung said an elf was the one who did all of the damage. Bridd’s scent stuck to the wood, but it was starting to fade.

“I wanted to go inside,” Hyuna looked at the large hole in the front of the house, her mind revealing just how sad she felt. As much as she scolded Hoseok for harboring guilt, she had her own. “I don’t think Jimin would appreciate it. This is the only place that still smells like her.”

“He’s been here,” My friend’s scent was heavy in the air. Fresh. “Is he sleeping in there?”

She nodded, “I think he’s trying to fix the place up. Jungkook was talking about it with Cadoc. Jimin’s obsessed with having everything fixed before she comes home.”

We shared a look. Neither one of us were very hopeful that our little bird would be back anytime soon. I had more faith in her survival abilities than Hyuna did, but neither one of us had any way of knowing when she could realistically get back.

Hyuna remembered her trips to Bangtan back when she still lived in Viridi Gramine. The mountains were harsh, unforgiving, and absolutely lethal. She was a princess, royal and proud in her bloodline, and traveled with the most experienced and strong guides in the land, and still there was always a chance she could never return. After she became of age and found Hoseok, the thought of going through those mountains had never passed her mind before her mother grew ill.

I had never crossed Ozryn myself, but I knew it was a harsh place to be. Hyuna’s memories alone left a chill in my bones. Bridd could very well die out there and no one would be able to stop it from happening. I entertained the thought of Jimin and I leaving Foxglove behind to find her, but one look from Hyuna wiped it clean from my mind. We could not leave the village until we knew more.

Bridd’s death would destroy Jimin, and I was certain Taehyung and Sol’s marriage would fall apart for a time. More than it already had. The Park family would never be the same. For that I desperately hoped she would come to her senses and come home but knew she would not. The little flicker of fire I had seen in those eyes when I showed up to her cottage after Sol’s birthday had told me more about her than the years, we had orbited one another’s atmosphere. She had more in her than Hyuna realized.

“She’s never seen so much of the world before,” Hyuna whispered like we were breaking some unspoken law. “How can she know where to go if she doesn’t know what to look for?”

“She has maps-”

“Maps that predate the industrial revolution,” Hyuna was quick to cut me off. “That girl is blind, and you and I both know it.”

I did not have to speak- we both knew we were on the same page. Still, I told her how fierce Bridd could be when she felt threatened. Showing her our fight outside of the cottage, Hyuna chuckled.

“She’s a fighter, that’s for sure. Still, I worry. When she was in the infirmary all of the witches said that they were used to her fainting spells. How can we know she won’t do that out there?”

I shook my head. “We don’t. We just have to have faith. For Jimin’s sake. For her friends’ sake.”

“And Bridd’s,” Hyuna added.

“And Bridd’s,” I agreed.

A howl echoed through the forest, and I knew I had to get going. Taehyung rarely shifts these days so it must be urgent. Hyuna decided to tag along and wait for her husband at the Temple. She daydreamed of taking a few swings at Sol if given the chance while we ran. I chose to ignore it.

As we got closer to the village, I began to hear the voices of the other copiae that joined the search party. The loudest was Ji-Hyun who complained of his sister-in-law’s melodramatics. Hyuna fought back a snarl, her thoughts murderous. The younger wolf had the decency to drop the subject, but my distaste for him did not change. Taehyung shared my sentiments and told the Park boy to go home for the day. He was able to keep his thoughts to himself long enough to change and our connection severed.

“Irrumator,” Hyuna grunted, her thoughts of Sol swirling into Ji-Hyun.

I chuckled, “He’s young. Cut him some slack.”

“He’s older than Taehyung!” Hyuna barked. “That boy knows better, and what he said to Bridd was so out of line. How dare you defend him?”

I whined, bowed my head, and looked down. Submitting was not something I did often, but I respected Hyuna enough to do so. A fight was the last thing I wanted. Besides, if I had an issue with Hyuna that would mean I had an issue with Hoseok, and that was not something we could not afford right now. Not with this war starting.

“It’s not defending him,” I tried to keep any annoyance for her out of my tone. “I just think this is a time for unity. Arguing and fighting about something we cannot change is pointless.”

She huffed but dropped it. I knew I had won our little exchange and held my head up high. Now, more than ever, we needed to let things go. Taehyung’s thoughts showed his conflicting feelings. While he agreed we needed to come together to fight, to deal with this threat together, he was hurt and angered by his friend’s disappearance. I could see underneath it all, however, he felt betrayal from the one person he held dearest.

Sol brought up mixed emotions of my own. I had wanted her for so long, my longing to be the leader of my people blinding me. When Taehyung was chosen, I was disappointed, but any romantic feelings I may have harbored for the young Luna vanished. Even if my actions after did not reflect it, I was happy for my little cousin.

His wife was never someone I had been particularly close with. She was obsessed with Jimin for years. I could not recall the number of times I could hear her daydreaming about him when we went on walks together. Ahn had asked for me to be her escort when she shifted, and the ramblings of a teenage girl were the last thing I needed to hear. Especially when I found myself wanting to be at her side, to rule and lead, and her thoughts of me only commenting on how ugly I was.

To say she was distraught over Jimin’s lack of interest was an understatement. The poor girl was begging the other alpha to have his way with her- mates be damned. Sol was lucky he was nothing short of a good man. Anyone else might have been tempted, but not Park Jimin. He was kind, cordial, and played with her often, but any sexual advances were immediately shut down. I know why now, and through that lens it was easier to wrap my head around. He was already deeply enamored with another.

Sol’s entire life was flipped upside down once she found herself in Taehyung’s arms. Confusion and disbelief were very prominent at first, but that quickly melted away into adoration. It was as if she had always loved him. For Taehyung the feeling was mutual. Before Sol, he had his eyes set on a local girl called Minji.

Still, I could only guess Sol could not stop herself. It was almost a reflex for her to dote on Jimin at this point. They were closer in age than the rest of us (save Taehyung), though Jimin was a good 7 years older than her, and he was always kind and thoughtful. When she heard that he might be harmed she ran to his side. What she told him, things I only knew because Jimin would not stop thinking about that night, were only meant to help him. She pushed her friendship with Bridd aside to go to him, put her trust with Taehyung under the guillotine, and even risked ruining her bond with Jimin himself in order to protect his heart. It would be admirable if she had thought it over for a few minutes instead of rushing to his house like a bat out of hell, spewing out the most over dramatic and, frankly, not truthful, versions of events.

The argument he had with Bridd was based on what Sol had said. He was already agitated enough as it was. His pack of fifteen had been reduced to seven and the newer recruits were too young. Stress and frustration bubbled over the moment the Luna’s mouth opened. She said Bridd was planning on dying, that the witch was lying to everyone about where she was going, that she was hellbent on making up for her past mistakes. Ridiculous, and while partially true, it was spoken by a teenage girl who did not listen to a word the messenger had said. At that moment all Jimin could hear was his mate marching to her death so she could make up for keeping her mouth shut.

It was still strange to think about what Bridd did. I was annoyed she had kept her visions to herself but that faded once I realized that she was terrified and could do nothing. We were not on good terms. Foxglove had removed themselves completely and Ahn had not been quiet about his plans to go to her cottage. I could not blame her for feeling hesitant to say something when she was not sure what the threat could be. Ahn could have had the witch killed.

“He would have been a fool,” Hyuna mumbled.

“When wasn’t he?” I asked rhetorically.

The others all shared my sentiment. Bridd was the last person to blame for what happened, and her actions the minute she realized what was happening showed how much she cared. Cadoc helped those who were on the fence come back on our side. The way he described waking up and seeing the little witch girl who fumbled and fought by his side, broken and bleeding, was enough to make the toughest cry. When he said the second her eyes opened all she could think about was getting to Foxglove as quickly as possible any whispers of her being ill-intentioned were dashed away. Only a select few still felt weary of her, Ji-Hyun being one of them, but they were at least attempting to be decent for the pack’s sake.

We were at the village’s edge now and I parted ways with Hyuna. She gave me a brief goodbye before leaving me to shift. I was more private than the others, especially Hoseok and Hyuna, and they were used to giving me the space I desperately craved during the shift. It was my most vulnerable moment and I hated feeling seen.

We had various items of clothing hidden within Bangtan. None of it was meant to fit well or be personable, but it was practical. My mother was in charge of keeping the copiae clothed and taken care of a job that she took very seriously, and it was one of the only things my father felt proud of. He would often put her down and tell her she needed to do better, be better, and all of the other strange demeaning slogans the older men in town harped on about. I had never been able to see the fault of any of the women, my mother even more so, but she never commented on it and neither did I.

I found a pair of large, baggy pants and shifted. Putting on the cotton garments, I decided to forgo a shirt and made my way to the Temple. Taehyung was waiting for me, and I would not cause him undo stress. He was dealing with so much already and I did not want to add to my cousin’s weight. I think I have done enough of that already.

Walking through the town, I caught sight of Jimin’s mother. She was helping Jungkook’s father cut wood for his roof. The Parks were a strange family. Mi-Jeong was outspoken, loud, and fierce. She did not bow down to men the way the others did, and her stubborn streak was only rivaled by her youngest child. My own family often spoke of her ‘atrocious’ behavior, but I was only ever endeared by Mi-Jeong.

Ji-Hyun had been a quiet kid, favoring his mother more with his sharp features and moss-brown eyes. He followed his brother around for years and Jimin never complained. That lonely quietness followed him into his teenage years, but when he fell in love with a human girl that forced a fierce, possessiveness to form. He fought for her, both verbally and physically, and that changed him. His attitude was horrible, always defensive and quick to judge, but he had a love and devotion for his family unlike anything I have ever seen. Somehow, even more than his older brother.

Jimin, for all his faults, was someone who had always fascinated me. From the time he was born he had the village at his feet. His father had been a strong, powerful man who was every bit the wolf our people expected. His choice of bride was bizarre, but everyone was sure if anyone could handle Mi-Jeong it was Ji-Won. Jimin, like his father, bore all the hallmarks of a Park. Charming, witty, and courageous. What set him apart, however, was the sweetness he kept hidden away from the others. I saw it. I had always seen it.

The first time was when I watched him chase after butterflies in his backyard. He was no older than four, but at that age boys were expected to show signs of maturity. In public, Jimin was the picture-perfect child. However, as I watched him blow bubbles, giggling a sound so sweet it made my teeth hurt, before taking off after a monarch, I knew whatever he was doing was an act.

I frowned. His sweetness was showing once more, now very publicly, and I was not sure how he was handling it. He was not allowing anyone to speak with him, shunned his closest friends, and was hiding away waiting for the other piece of his heart to return. Such a strange sight, Park Jimin weak and in pain.

Mi-Jeong caught my eyes just then and I could see it in her as well. She was so sad, so worried. I hoped her family would come together but doubted that would happen. At least, not until Bridd came back. If she came back. I shuddered to think about the fate of the Park family if she did not return home.

I did not stop to speak to anyone like I normally did. My mind was too scattered and, frankly, I was done with conversation. Having a constant cycle of thoughts and voices in your head would do that. Luckily, no one seemed bothered by my silence. We were all living in uncertainty since losing one of our strongest fighters.

“Anything new, dog?”

I grit my teeth. I knew that voice. It was grating in its smoothness. Taking a deep breath, I turned to look across the way.

Of course, he would be here.

Seokjin had become my own personal hell over the last few days. The man could hold a grudge and had still not forgiven me for lunging at his friend. Now he was standing there, a stern look on his face, his eyes filled with disdain. Beside him was a face I did not see as frequently. Yoongi looked worse than ever. He was thin and frail, much frailer than he had been before he was blinded, and his hair messy. His eyes were even bluer today than they were when I had last seen him. His pupil was nearly gone.

“Unfortunately, not,” I deadpanned, trying to get out of this as quickly as possible. “There’s still a few out searching, but I was called away.”

“Hmft,” Seokjin crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes darkening even further. “Figures.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded, not liking the tone in his voice.

I did not like much about him.

“You don’t care if you find her or not,” He replied, his voice dripping with anger. “None of you do.”

I was exasperated, “You know that is not true-”

“It’s that bitch’s fault she’s gone,” Seokjin shouted over me.

“Stop yelling,” I was attempting to keep myself calm. We were causing a scene. My father was going to be furious. “I’m aware of what Sol has done. Neither one of us are happy about it, but I’m not God. I can’t turn back time just like I can’t bring her back. What’s done is done.”

“Yet you still follow her orders like some lap dog.”

“I follow Taehyung,” I corrected. “By extension, that means I follow his wife. We are at war, Seokjin. I’m sorry about Bridd, truly I am, and I hope she is alive and well, but my life does not revolve around her. I have a village to protect, a village she is not in, and I will not leave it to burn to go on some wild goose chase.”

Seokjin’s face was red now, his eyes moist from unshed tears. I could not help but pity the fool. Bridd was a close friend of his and she abandoned them. It was a harsh word to use, but that was the only one that truly captured the anguish the witches felt. I could not say how the others were doing. They made their disgust for our governing bodies known the night she went missing. Sol banned them from returning to the Temple after the woman who was always hanging off of Seokjin’s arm shouted at her. None of us had seen their little group leave the Park house since.

“You’re going to let her die,” He finally spoke, the accusation a punch in the gut.

Yes, I would let the witch girl die if it meant saving my own. She was nothing to me. We were hardly friends, and while I respected her, that did not mean I would choose her over my sister. Being here was far more important to me than that woman’s life. If the stakes were not so high then I would gladly hunt her down, but that was not the life we were living. I had to trust that she knew what she was doing and be okay with it.

“Jin,” Yoongi stepped in. I had forgotten he was there. “Let it be. Namjoon has done what he can. Let’s go back to Mi-Jeong’s.”

I was glad he seemed to be more reasonable than Seokjin. Stealing another look at him, I was pleased to see his hair was growing. That meant he was eating well enough. It was a shame no one knew how to help his condition. I could not imagine losing my vision within a blink of an eye. Then I remembered that he did not just lose it. Yoongi had been in agony, his head felt like it had been slammed through the thick cement of the castle walls, and his fear sent him into panic attacks. Samanya told me she had only ever seen it happen once. The spell should have killed him, and he was lucky to have survived with only his eyesight lost. I doubted he felt that way.

“But-”

“Drop it,” The raven-haired man stopped Seokjin before he could get another word in. Without looking, he addressed me. “I apologize for his callousness. We are all worried. I hope you understand.”

This was the most I had ever heard him speak, even counting the time all of us had been at Bridd’s cottage in the Spring. “It’s not an issue. I hope you are better.”

It was unnerving to talk to someone who did not look at my face. Yoongi stared out towards the south end of the village, his eyes untrained and unresponsive, and he showed no signs that he was having a discussion with anyone. Even his voice remained monotone and unwavering. Gruff and smokey while the intention was flat.

“I am fine,” He replied, “We are here because my mother was interested in how far you believe she could be. I will let her know that she must have shifted, and her scent was lost.”

“Thank you,” I replied, impressed he was able to keep Seokjin quiet for this long. “She was inside of a houseboat for a few hours before leaving. Any ideas?”

“Thelma,” Seokjin grunted. “Must have slept and then taken off. Was anything missing?”

I shrugged, “I couldn’t say. I’m sorry.”

Seokjin shook his head angrily.

“No need to apologize,” Yoongi raised a hand and dropped it immediately. I had no idea what he was trying to do but decided it did not matter. “We’ll leave you alone now.”

Seokjin seemed to open his mouth to argue but decided against it. I smirked triumphantly. I should keep the blind witch around more often. He had the perfect effect on the annoying one. Scowling, Seokjin wrapped an arm around Yoongi and turned back toward the direction of the residential district.

Taehyung was pacing when I finally found him in the Temple library. Books were scattered about the tables, a few pages torn out stacked messily on the edge of the large oak table he had been sitting at. His blonde hair was shaggy now, the back of it just past the nape of his neck while the rest hung just below his ears. My little cousin kept thick wavy bangs that fell over his eyebrows which were now so long they had to be held from his eyes back with a headband.

I was worried for him. He was frightened and slowly losing his composure. He was able to hold it together long enough to make it through meetings with the elders. He refused to show them any weakness. He did not want to prove Ahn right. However, anyone could see how much the pressure was starting to affect the young boy. Jimin was trying to keep him sane through this, but he was dealing with his own problems.

I had taken it upon myself to pick up where he slacked. I owed it to the both of them after my part in their exile. Taehyung was better at forgiveness than Jimin, but the both of them had given me grace I did not deserve. I was lucky. Other men might have taken my head after the show of disrespect. Jimin very well might have if he was not so concerned with upsetting his mate.

I needed to stop thinking of them. Taehyung had called me for a reason, and I had to be there for my cousin. His pacing did not slow or stop when I came in, so I was sure he was not about to talk war with me. He seemed to calm down when we talked about strategy.

“Sorry for taking so long, Tae,” I kept my voice low and calm.

He paused his pacing to look over at me. His eyes were red-rimmed and wet, his cheeks swollen and flushed, and his lower lip could not hide its tremble no matter how much effort he put into it. Taehyung’s emotional vulnerability had always confounded me. He was so sweet and kind, gentle and warm, and had never made any real efforts to change himself. He laughed at his clumsiness, skipped when he was happy, and played with his younger siblings like the giant child he was.

Likewise, he was never afraid to cry. When Jimin’s father died neither he nor Ji-Hyun shed a single tear when around others. I knew better than to foolishly think the boys did not sob into their mother’s shoulders during the night, especially Jimin, but the town was thrilled by their show of “bravery.” Taehyung did not know how to put on that mask as perfectly as Jimin had.

Taehyung’s father did not die as honorably as Jimin’s had, no final acts of courage protecting his wife from a stray pack of wolves. Just sickness. Ahn called him a weak man for allowing something as insignificant as an infected wound kill him. No one really thought the same way he had but made no effort to disagree with him. Not to his face, anyway. My own mother had said Ahn was cruel for putting down an already grieving family, and she was one of his loyalists.

“I hadn’t noticed it had been that long,” He mumbled before going back to pacing.

He had never looked more like his father. Dong-Min was respectable, wise and honest, but never a man others flocked to. He had been an artist from Viridi Gramine, and while his paintings and scrolls were the most beautiful in Nantgarth, he was not seen as someone important. When he met Hana, he had found his muse, and she adored his soft-spoken demeanor. She came from an abusive home, and her father had beaten her black and blue the night she ran to Dong-Min. The two ran away from Withertusk hand in hand, his sister’s house the only place he knew he could go, and their troubles ended soon after arriving in Foxglove.

“You’re upset,” I broached the subject bluntly. Taehyung preferred it that way. “What’s the matter?”

“Have I done something wrong?” He asked me, his voice cracking. He must have started crying again. “I want your honesty, Namjoon. Please. Tell me if I have done anything horrible to her.”

“To who?”

I went to comfort the boy. His shoulders moved with his cries, but he was surprisingly quiet. It had never crossed my mind that he was desperately trying to cover up his pain from the others, his discomfort so noticeable I had assumed he had forgotten the act. I was always getting things wrong with Taehyung. The only thing he could do was shake his head, close his eyes, and let a fresh wave of tears overtake him.

I embraced him then, his crying making me uncomfortable. The last time he shed tears on my shoulder had been his father’s funeral. It was after Ahn had told him tears would not bring his father back. He tripped running out of the building, unable to breathe in the presence of the chief, and scraped his knee. Blood flowing down his leg, pants ripped, and black clothes covered in dust, Taehyung begged me to hold him when I found him. My father came to check on us sometime later, and in a rare act of kindness, took the younger boy to our house to clean up.

“You could never wrong her,” I was not a good comforter, but I hoped words of encouragement would help. “Whatever happened between you two to have you like this is only a wrinkle in time. Sol is angry with herself. She loves you and knows how dearly you love her.”

Tae sniffled; his cries muffled against my shoulder.

“Not Sol,” He cried. “Y/N.”

That seemed worse to me. I could easily give him meaningless fluff about his mate. Their love was a given. He had been very angry with her about speaking to Jimin behind his back, but I knew they would work through it in time. Trust had been broken but their bond would conquer that. His friendship with the witch was a different story. I had never seen it with my own eyes, but I knew it was strong. He looked at her like the older sister he never had, his thoughts said as much, but I did not feel equipped enough to help him through his grief.

“You did nothing to her, Tae,” I reasoned. I could do logic. “She made a choice to leave and held no ill will toward you. She even left you a note with your necklace. Doesn’t that say enough?”

The red gem was pressed against my skin. Bridd had been so sweet to Taehyung and smiled after everything he said. The gift was a kind gesture he had not truly earned after such a botched introduction. Still, she had given it to him just as she gave me that journal. Ironic that she had given it to me to write about adventures and it had instead become my poetry book. He had refused to take the necklace off since reading the letter.

“I told Sol,” He whimpered. “I told her after she asked me to keep quiet. It’s all my fault-”

“I’m tired of the blame game,” I sighed, gently pushing Taehyung. Now an arm’s length away, I took a hold of my cousin's shoulders. “Everyone has been doing nothing but feeling sorry for themselves. Y/N chose to leave this place to find help. No one is forcing her to do that.

“You and I both know how capable she is, right? Stop acting like she’s dead, Tae. The girl knows what she’s doing, and if she doesn’t, I’m sure she’s smart enough to figure something out. Stop allowing guilt and fear to distract you from what’s important. She left to find some ancient being to help us survive this fight with the elves.”

“What if she…” His voice trailed off, unable to put death in the universe.

“Then we make sure it’s not in vain,” I let go of him. “We plan, strategize, and prepare to fight tooth and nail against those things. For Bridd.”

I did not really want to swear on her name this way, but I knew it would be something Taehyung latched onto. She was not really my friend, but I could live with fighting in her honor. I respected her enough. It worked and Taehyung’s eyes held more heat than they ever had.

“For Bridd,” He said it like a prayer.

Internally, I prayed she would come back soon. I was not sure if this fire would last, and I was afraid of what might happen if it was left to grow out of control. As long as I knew Taehyung, he was obsessive. When he was a boy, he painted like his father. When he got a little older, he sculpted like our grandmother. Early teen years Taehyung was dead set on learning how to garden. That soon shifted into learning about all of the plants in Bangtan. Now, I worry it will become this war. Taehyung was not ready for what was coming, but I had to believe in him.

“You should go and see your mom,” I told him earnestly. “I’m sure Jong and Jin miss you.”

I did not add my worries over him being locked away in the Temple since he got back.

He nodded, “I will. Let one of the maids know I’ve left. I don’t want Sol to worry if I’m gone.”

“You’re not telling her you’re leaving?”

He frowned, “We aren’t on speaking terms at the moment.”

Oh, Bridd why did you have to leave? Why did Sol have to run her mouth? I could not bear to see Taehyung look so defeated. The flames that I sparked in him did not ease my worries. He was still lost at sea, and I fear I had done more harm than good. I should have let him cry and whine. That was easier than trying to navigate if I had said or done the right thing or not.

The rest of the day flew by. After my conversation with Taehyung, he left to see his siblings and I stayed behind to get some work done. Despite our war plans we still had obligations to our cousins on the east coast. After writing for a few hours, warnings and heeds against traveling included, I went back to our maps. The library was filled with them, and I hoped a fresh start would help us get a breakthrough.

All talks of war had gotten loud and angry quickly with my father and Jimin at odds more often than not. I loved my dad, but I couldn't help but doubt his methods. He wanted to march to Northorn and meet our enemy there. Jimin saw this as idiotic. The elves would have an easier time fighting our kind on an unknown field. No one knew the forest like our pack did and we could use that to our advantage. If we were lucky, the elves might find a way to disturb the other creatures that lived here. Even luckier if it happened to be the fae.

Unfortunately, I was not as well versed as either one of them. I knew how to fight and was very good at it, but my skills in a tactical situation were severely lacking. Whenever Jungkook joined the conversation the two of us were on the same side of the debate. We did not want to die but would do so if asked. He, like myself, favored Jimin’s plans. Staying in Bangtan was the most logical step for now.

The rest of the witches from Syrena arrived late in the afternoon. They were loud and angry women, their rage burning bright enough to scare the most well-trained fighter. I felt sorry for them. They lost their leader during the attack and were now relying on the swamp woman to guide them. Thinking of them made me think of Yoongi again.

He had seemed to be adjusting well enough, but fighting would be pointless. He could not see a target. He was dead weight. I frowned. Such a pity. He was a great fighter and I had been impressed with him during the attack. The only way they were able to stop him was that spell and it only took him out temporarily. I had a feeling he would be back on the battlefield even if he was told to stay away. His death would be a respectable one.

Seokjin was another one that surprised me. As much as I disliked the witch, I could not deny the man knew how to fight. He took down elf after elf, defended his girlfriend, and saved his father’s life. I trusted him enough to know he would defend my pack with the same veracity and hoped we could place our differences aside to train together. It would be helpful to all of us if we could find a way to fight as a cohesive unit. I would speak with Jimin about it later.

I smelled her before I heard her. Her feet were normally bare and freezing cold, but I doubted she cared. Rose stuck to her honey-sweetness, and I had to hold back a gag. Sol always tried so hard to cover up her natural scent, but I knew it was not her fault for being so self conscious about it. Ahn had destroyed most of her individuality, made her second guess herself constantly, and called her ugly on numerous occasions. Jimin and I heard it all through the years, Hoseok as well but to a lesser extent, and we tried our best to keep her company.

Jungkook was the most vital member of her circle, but he was hardly around anymore. He was trying to give the couple space, and Sol had been happy with that until a Bridd left. Now Jungkook stayed away to avoid getting caught in the middle of their tug of war. I could not blame the boy. He was too young to be of any real emotional support, and he wanted to stay in Jimin’s good graces hoping the older man would allow him to join the copiae now that Ahn was not around to stop him.

She knew I was in here. She was coming to find me. Her little feet pitter pattered against the marble floors. The west wing was the most luxurious part of the Temple and the place Sol and Taehyung slept. The library here was huge, painted in white and gold, with thousands of books. Spiral staircases led to the second floor where more bookcases were lined up. That was considered the “ancient section” where one could find scrolls and books from our time in Korika. That was Sol’s favorite place in the entire Temple.

She stood in front of me, her hands clasped in front of her little body, and her toes wiggling. Her hair was not covered, something that made me feel deeply uncomfortable, and cascaded down her back. It was beautiful, thick and black with natural waves. Averting my gaze, I stared at her toes. They were small and cute.

“Luna,” I greeted. “Your hair.”

She sighed as if expecting me to say something. She was almost annoyed. I could not figure out why. Modesty had always meant something to Ahn and Sol, and her hair was called “impoper.” Ahn made it seem like it was inherently sexual simply for being beautiful. Not many of the other women in Foxglove would wear a head covering, but I always respected Sol’s choice. She was upset right now and not thinking straight, and I worried she would regret walking around me so exposed.

“Does it matter?” She murmured. “We all know I am no longer virtuous.”

I frowned, “Your virtue is not tied with your virginity, Sol.”

I was more aware of my bare chest than normal. It was improper for the two of us to be alone like this. Family or not, it was wrong. Taehyung would be hurt if he caught us in such a compromising position. I stood and put some distance between us, taking extra care not to look at Sol.

“What’s bothering you?” I asked. “Aside from the obvious.”

Walking over the library entrance, I leaned against the doorframe and stared out into the hall. At least I could say I was far away from the luna. I could hear her sit down in the chair I had left, and I waited.

“You must think I’m pathetic,” Sol spoke softly.

“Why would I think that?” I countered.

She laughed humorlessly, “We know you’re more in tune with my thoughts than most, Joon. You were there before Taehyung. You were always there. You and I were practically betrothed for a while. At least, that’s what my father said.”

I hated when she called Ahn father. He was nothing to her. Everyone knew Cho Haneul and Bong Ha-Yun were her parents. They suddenly disappeared from the village when Sol was less than six months old, leaving her behind and in Ahn’s care. Whispers spread about what had happened to them, but I always believed what my mother said. Ahn banished the couple from the village and took their child. No one had seen or heard from them in 18 years, so it was hard to say, but I did not trust Ahn. Not at all.

“I was never fair to you,” She continued. “I was mean and rude. Cold. I wanted Jimin so badly, probably because he did not want me, and I treated you like a problem. Maybe it was my own way of rebelling. Either way, I’m sorry.

“I think you understand me more than anyone else. You were always there with me. You never complained. It’s one of the things I always appreciated about you, your ability to stay calm. Taehyung is similar, though not as stoic. I love that about him.”

I did not have to see her to know her eyebrows were pulled down, her teeth nibbling her lower lip, and her leg shaking. Sol was very obvious in her discomfort. Her voice gave her away.

“Why are you telling me this?” I asked, not unkindly.

“You knew me before Taehyung did. I know you did not really like me very much, but I trust your opinion more than the others. I know I don’t deserve your kindness, but I’m asking for it anyway.”

Her voice was tired and worn, and I was not sure what to do about it. Not for the first time I found myself bored of the Luna. I reminded myself of her age, her youth, and her innocence, but it did not change how I felt. She made a mistake, overstepped boundaries and lied while doing so, and caused a mess of things. The fact that I knew her only made it worse, because I knew she did not consider a single person outside of herself. I doubt she thought anyone would be angry with her. In fact, she was probably hoping for praise and attention.

“Am I a bad person?” She asked, her voice weak and frail.

“No,” She was not a bad person for what happened, “But I won’t lie to make you feel better. You should not be trusted by anybody after the stunt you pulled.”

I heard her sniffle, “It’s not my fault he said the things he said. He chose to be cruel and mean to Y/N. She decided to leave! How is anything my fault?”

I rolled my eyes. Typical. Not even her gentle cries stopped my genuine annoyance with her from shining through. I had not been there for the argument between Jimin and Bridd, nor his conversation with Sol, but his thoughts had been enough to get me up to speed. She had done nothing but stir the pot between them, well intentioned or not, and made all of this far more dramatic than it needed to be.

“It’s your fault your relationship is suffering. It’s your fault that the pack is angry with you. You did that. No one else. Actions have consequences, Sol. You and I both know that,” Sparing her a brief look over my shoulder, I refused to let her tears soften my resolve. “If you were hoping I was going to lie to save your feelings, you were mistaken. Go to one of your maids and cry to them. They’re trained to dry your eyes, but I’m not.”

She did not speak and so I decided to leave. I had been here most of the day now and needed to find somewhere to sleep for the night. The Temple was the last place I wanted to spend time in right now, but my options were limited. Maybe if I could find Sam, she would not mind making space for me in her bed.

I fought back a smile. She was an amazing woman, her beauty striking and confidence refreshing. We had found ourselves alone a handful of times since her people came to our aid and our flirtatious relationship was amusing. I had come to know that quietus was not monogamous and rarely took on a full-time lover. She only knew of her king and queen, but they had another woman who joined them after the Century War. Sam and I shared a laugh about how scandalous that would be in the village, not just a threesome but same-sex relations, but I had not truly entertained her advances. She was not someone I imagined myself with.

I did not want to go to my family home either. Being around my parents for too long would drive me insane. I was always putting on a front with my father and my mother refused to stand up to him. Most of my childhood was spent getting beaten while my mother watched, relieved that her own punishment was over. By the time Mini came along those days were in the past. When my dad stopped drinking our relationship got better, a little less violent, but I never got rid of the resentment I held. Sometimes I truly believed I hated both of them.

I had been sleeping at Hoseok’s the last few nights, but he had asked for some privacy, and I got too caught up with work to ask someone else if they had any space for me. It was a far cry from the lavish room I had within the Temple, but I could not stand being there most of the time. I would have joined Jimin and the rest of the copiae, but my job was important enough to give me pause. If I stepped down as head council that would mean that my father or Bo would be placed in charge of public relations. I would eat my own shoes before letting that happen. Taehyung would go insane if those two were the only ones left in charge.

I thought about other friends I could visit. The Parks would open their door for me, but they were housing such a large group I felt awful going there. Yoongi and swamp witch’s families were still there. Jin’s little group was with Taehyung’s family, and the Syrena witches were spread out between a few wolf families and the humans. They were originally planning on staying at the Temple, but Sol made a mess of that. I sighed. Everything went south so quickly.

“You look lost.”

I stopped walking. I did not realize I had walked into the copiae grounds. Jimin was sitting on his porch, a large glass in his hand and a dark look in his eye. I could smell the alcohol on him from across the street. Going to him, I tried not to think about my dad.

“You’re drunk,” I took the glass from him and sniffed. Mead. If I had to guess, from Jungkook’s house. “This isn’t going to make you feel better.”

He shrugged, “I know. Just wanted a distraction.”

For the third time today, I was being asked to support someone. Even if Jimin had not asked for help directly, I knew I was going to drag his ass inside and make him go to sleep. At least I knew I could stay here afterwards. In the morning, I would make sure he ate and then try to convince him to come to the Temple and look over documents. He was the battle guy.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” I stated bluntly. “I’ve already had to deal with two crybabies today and my emotional battery is drained. So, you’re just going to do me a favor and then we can talk in the morning.”

He scoffed, leaning back against his house. A faint sheen of sweat covered his body, and his hair was tangled. Jimin never looked so unkempt before. Showing no signs of moving, I rubbed my face roughly.

“Fine,” I sighed. “Look, how about I cut you a deal?”

He did not reply, but I decided to keep going anyway.

“I need somewhere to sleep. I can’t stand being around Taehyung and Sol right now. And you-” I gestured at his body, face tight, “-look like shit. Obviously, you’re upset but the pack needs you to pull it together so we can get through this.”

He was like a statue. “I’m going to stay the night, and tomorrow we’ll talk about feelings or whatever. Then, you and I are going to come up with a plan to get you back in the game. How does that sound?”

Jimin rolled his eyes, laughing humorlessly, “What’s the point?” His face crumbled and again I felt lost at sea. I could not deal with him crying. Thankfully, he gathered his composure. “What’s the point of anything? Without her… it just doesn’t matter.”

I sighed and sat down beside him. The wood was cold and rough, but it was easy to put that out of my mind. I had to think about this as two friends talking. Jimin had never asked me for anything, and when Taehyung was chosen, he had been the first person to tell me I needed to stand my ground against Ahn. I had been foolish at the time and ignored his advice. Now he needed me to stand my ground against himself, and I had no other option.

We could not go on like this. Jimin was not in the right state of mind right now, and I knew the only way to get him out of it was Bridd. My brain was already devising a plan, one that I had thought foolish and improbable this morning, and I wanted to laugh. There was no way we would be able to do it, but maybe bringing it up would make him feel better? Maybe knowing that someone would help him find her if we got the chance would motivate him to get work done. Feeling guilty, I decided to go for the jugular and deal with the consequences later.

“I know you're hurting right now,” I tried to soften my tone, but could not hear if it had worked or not. "I can't imagine how you feel. I know when you and Taehyung were gone how the guilt ate me alive. It must be worse for you."

"You don't have to say anything," He tried to interject, but I brushed off the comment like he had not said anything.

"I think I do. No one else is, apparently. We're in deep shit right now Park," I put my hand on his shoulder. "We need you, man."

He shook his head, "I wouldn't be much help right now, Joon."

"I don't believe that," I replied. "In fact, anything you do would be more helpful than whatever the hell you got going on. Your girl is on my side, by the way. She'd be on your ass if she found out how much you've been slacking."

That made him laugh quietly.

"That's fair," He was smiling, dazed and flushed from the alcohol. "She's such a little firecracker, isn't she?"

I nodded, "She tried to set me on fire once."

We shared a laugh at the memory. Truth is she terrified me. If she wanted to kill me that day she could have. If she did not have to worry about the sun, there was a real chance I left her house with more than a few scratches and bruises. Jimin beat my ass when she got hurt, but I had the added benefit of a lifetime worth of memories stopping him from taking my head off. I did not have that with Bridd.

"What if I wagered you something?" I asked.

That got his attention, “What?”

"If we get through this next wave of violence on top, I'll help you find her out there."

He looked at me, eyes more alert than they had been in days.

"Truly?"

The guilt made my stomach twist painfully. I did not truly believe we would ever get to that point. Elves were everywhere, the fight in Northorn growing in their favor as the days went by, and we were nowhere near ready. We had lost so many in this fight not to mention talks of traitors.

The alliance with the quietus was shaky at best without the proper bonds being formed. I was the only person in a position of power even attempting to reach out. Then there was the witch problem, and the only person I could see mending that fence was Jimin. It could be weeks, maybe even months, before we could go after Bridd. Still, I had to use her as leverage. We needed strong leadership right now and the witch was the best source of motivation one could come by.

“I’ll go with you,” I doubled down. “We can have a small party. I’ve made friends with a quietus who knows her way around so finding her could be fairly simple.”

“You’d do that for me?” I could tell he was genuinely surprised.

I nodded, “If we're in the position to do it, why not?"

I could see him thinking about it. The faraway look in his eyes was gone giving way to a refreshed, almost serene look. He was going to go for it. Hope blossomed in my chest. If I had Jimin on my side, Taehyung would be a piece of cake. He desperately wanted to make amends with the older alpha. Seeing the two of them back in action would bring Hoseok back into the fold as well.

Already our odds were turning. Soon the elementals and witches would be joining in on our meetings, the elder council getting pushed out for a new crowd of leaders, and the war would finally seem less daunting. I might even be able to convince a new wave of warriors to join the copiae once the village saw Jimin's new resolve.

"Stay here as long as you need" Jimin finally said, and I was cheering internally. "You can take the couch."

I stood up, ready to go to bed, and pushed his head playfully. He chuckled, swatting my hand away. We used to mess around like this all the time as kids. Jimin always ended up winning our wrestling matches. He was too slippery.

"Let's go, kid," I stretched my arms above my head. "We have to get up early. Council meeting."

He nodded, asking me to help him stand. He must have drunk more than I thought. It takes a lot for alcohol to affect us this much.

"Hopefully Taehyung will get rid of the two dinosaurs in the Temple," He slurred, walking inside grumbling about his bed feeling too big.

A/N: So Joon pov??? How do we like? He's not the only pov switch we're going to have, but we will be seeing a lot of our favorite (to hate) alpha joining our main squad. I thought he would be a good outside mind to get inside of since he's not as emotionally connected to Bridd as the others. Any guesses as to who our other switches might be?

p.s. These pov chapters will be a bit shorter than our normal, reader pov ones, but not by much.

Taglist: @greezenini@adventures-in-bookland@kthstrawberryshortcake-main@zae007live@jimin-neverout@nikkiordonez12@canarystwin@yamekomz @chimthicc@michiiedreamer@amorieus@mima795@yunki-yunki-yunki

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rebeccathenaturalist · 2 years

Text

Dead Wood Isn't Dead Weight in Habitat Restoration

I've been slowly rewilding my yard; almost every plant growing in it when I moved in was non-native, from purple foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) to sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella) to at least four species of non-native grasses. The natives were sparse, mostly limited to beach strawberries (Fragaria chiloensis), trailing blackberry (Rubus ursinus), and field horsetail (Equisetum arvense), along with a few native shrubs like salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) and twinberry honeysuckle (Lonicera involucrata).

A lot of what I've been doing is removing non-native species while introducing native ones. It's been an uphill struggle since the non-natives are largely species that have evolved to quickly colonize disturbed land and out-compete most of the natives, which has meant a LOT of weeding. In some cases when I've had to open up entire areas of the yard that will have heavy foot traffic, I've had to sow various clovers as a quick solution to keep the other non-natives from crowding their way in. Clover, at least, is easier to remove, and once I have a chance to kill it it will release the nitrogen it has collected into the soil, making it a better spot for whatever I plant there next.

This morning before I started work I decided to get just a little more gardening in. I had these three log slices I was given a while back; the largest is over a foot in diameter. I decided to use them to create a small woody debris pile in one part of the yard that was rather sparse on such things. It's nothing too fancy; they're simply leaning on each other to create a little space underneath.

But these are important additions to this habitat in progress. Lots of living beings rely on dead wood for food or shelter--or both. While these wood slices look pristine now, it's likely that in the next few years they'll collect an array of inhabitants, from lichens and moss to insects and bacteria. Some of these will simply take up residence in the shelter I've created; others will do their part as decomposers and break down the cellulose and lignin in the wood. Eventually, if left in place, the slices will eventually return to the soil, adding to the nutrient load being passed around from being to being in this ecosystem.

Most often when woody debris is mentioned in habitat restoration, the focus is on large example like entire snags, nurse stumps, and nurse logs, or on dead trees piled up in rivers and streams. These are, of course, important examples thereof. However, many people don't have the space for an entire dead tree in their yard. In that case, smaller installations are perfectly reasonable and will still create habitat for your local wildlife like insects and other arthropods, snakes, toads, etc.

I also took the opportunity to take a quick peek at a stack of red alder (Alnus rubra) logs I had set up a couple of years ago. They'd already brought their own patches of moss, but the wet weather and resident decomposers have been doing their work, and the bark is beginning to slough off of some of them.

The previous owner of this property did some landscaping with dead wood; this is probably the largest, an old log about five feet long that I think looks a bit like an alligator's head. As you can see, it's pretty weathered at this point; the old knot has rotted out and the remaining wood has numerous cracks and splits, and the bark has long since decayed.

I'm going to keep adding small wood piles around the yard as I'm able to make space for them. They do need to be worked around when I'm attending to live plants, and can be an obstacle to mowers and other tools. I want to not have to disturb these little habitats once they're established, so I'll be adding them in deliberately. This sort of planning is important if you're going to be creating woody debris piles in your yard as well, so that your local wildlife are free to set up their homes without worrying about sudden eviction. If you're in an area with venomous snakes, or if you're concerned about termites or carpenter ants using a wood pile to hopscotch over to the wood in your home, you may want to make sure you create habitat further away from the house and other buildings. Finally, make sure that no one uses these piles as jungle gyms; the animals living inside them can be easily crushed if the wood is shifted around or compressed.

Did you enjoy this post? Consider taking one of my online foraging and natural history classes, checking out my other articles, or picking up a paperback or ebook I’ve written! You can even buy me a coffee here!

#habitat restoration #ecology #nature #wildlife #animals #plants #fungi #science #scicomm #gardening #garden #outdoors #environment #environmentalism #conservation #long post #rewilding

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nualaofthefaerie · 7 months

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Hi!! I've been thinking about the femslash event so I'm curious, are there any characters that you'd like to see with/ship with Nuala during the femslash event? If other people want to make Nuala femslash stuff, do you have any ideas or recs?

Hello 🪷,

I am looking forward to participate in the femslash! as well!

Well, Nuala is a pansexual character and as all are well aware, I am mostly shipping her with Morpheus (any gender Morpheus).

Nuala and Lucien were a couple in "the Dreaming" and the thought of NualaxLucienne is a very plausible WLW in my books.

I feel I have zero right to tell people about what ships are acceptable. I know I am the Nuala presides, but I can't tell what people should like. As long as she is not put in a situation that grossly misinterprets her character, you will never hear me complain.

Some WLW ships of the Sandman that I endorse to a variable degree:

Nuala x Lady Morpheus (SapphicFlower) - Lady Morpheus is a separate canonical version of Morpheus so I think they are different to Sandflower. Dynamic wise as well. I think Lady Morpheus, which unlike our Morpheus is not self-destructive, recognizes the pretty fairy with the kind tone and she dotes on her greatly.

Nuala x Lucienne - It is technically canon, but also not really. But I like it a lot, I think they gather flowers and read together.

!!! Bast x Johanna (big ship of mine) - very obscure and crackship, but if anyone has the time, I will go into detail why those are LESBIANS!

!!! Wanda x Death (big ship of mine) - second pair of extremely important for my mental health LESBIANS!

!!! Lyta x Calliope - the MOTHERSHIP. IF YOU GET IT, YOU GET IT. IF YOU DON'T...try.

As to where to read about any WLW Nuala ships, there isn't any. Almost all written Nuala content, with the exception of I believe two, is written by me. There is a very big Sandflower Project that is taking the majority of my time in the last four months and will probably continue for the next at least six, so I do not have the free time to write as much free form as I want.

However, I do most ARDENTLY hope that a lot of people will participate in the femslash and will write about Nuala, Lucienne, Johanna, Lucifer, Foxglove, Hazel, Barbie, Nada, Death, Desire, Despair, Titania, Alianora, Lyta, Calliope, Rose, Wanda, Chantal, Zelda, Gault. We have so many beautiful WOMEN and Non-binary femme representation to write and celebrate!

If I can help with anything else, my asks are always open! <3

Love,

Li 🪷

#the sandman #nuala #nuala of the faerie #the sandman netflix #nuala the sandman #fluff #the sandman comics #femslash #wlw #sapphic #Li answers

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soul-teller · 4 months

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Sorry you aren't feeling well. I know you interact with my Chelley/Blue Sky art a lot so here are some of my headcanons for after the fic:

Wheatley and Garrett run a little radio station together, called Foxglove Broadcasts. Wheatley wakes up a little bit before Chell so he can be running the station while she gets her baking done for the day- he knows she likes to listen to him ramble, and he make sure to play songs that she will enjoy. Her radio is always, without fail, tuned to his station.

Wheatleys feet hang off the end of the bed just a bit, so there is an extra stool at the end with some pillows propped up to keep him comfortable.

In the fic, Chell holds his head while he recalls his first memory, so I hc that she really likes holding onto the sides of his face and pulling him down a bit so she can give him a kiss.

Chell proposes in the middle of the night, she was having trouble sleeping and was looking around her little room that, for four years, had been empty with just a mattress on the ground, now full of colorful knick knacks, old furniture, and pictures hanging on the wall, and decides she likes the changes Wheatley has made. She wakes him up and asks if he would like to get married, which of course he enthusiastically says yes to. They start planning a quick, last-minute wedding for the next day. Chell borrows a dress from Romy and Garrett cries when Wheatley asks him to be the best man. Everyone in Eaden is invited. Aaron officiates. They have a wedding pie instead of cake.

Chell asks Wheatley if he's ever had any more memories of his previous life and he says no, but sometimes, in a rare, quiet moment, he will look at her and think "Oh my God, I'm with bagel girl"

They adopt a cat and name it Kevin. Wheatley takes him to work pretty often, and so you can often hear him meowing in the back of broadcasts.

They love watching cheesy old sci-fi movies with bad effects. Having loved through a real sci-fi nightmare, it's almost cathartic to make fun of the mad scientists and experiments gone wrong.

I hope you feel better soon and this helps even a little bit 💜

://0c

thank you so much for sharing these! they did make me feel better, and it felt very nostalgic <3

man, I need to reread Blue Sky... ahh, I miss those 2017 days

#got that feeling when a cool person you like interacts with you ://зс #thank you for keeping Chelley nation alive in these trying times 🍎🥯🦄

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dansnaturepictures · 7 months

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1st October 2023: Walk from Bolderwood in the New Forest and bits at home

Photos taken in this set today: 1, 4 and 9. Some of a varied and colourful array of fascinating mushrooms on the forest floor, very autumnal. 2 and 10. Views on the great walk round. 3. Hawksbit. 5. One of four Woodlarks it was a true pleasure to see late on in the walk, striking, bold and sweetly coloured birds. It was another occasion during my week off where they were a very pleasant surprise, a bird I love. 6. A fallen chestnut ensconced in heather. 7. A dazzling Common Lizard which we got an exquisite view of on bracken, a precious and captivating moment with a reptile that has been a star of my week off after seeing the many at Thursley on Tuesday. A wholesome moment. 8. One of a few New Forest Ponies seen well this afternoon.

Other bird highlights on the walk were an exciting Great Spotted Woodpecker early on, Swallow, Chiffchaff, Chaffinch, a Marsh or Coal Tit I couldn't quite get a clear enough view for long enough to tell which, cheery Stonechat, Starlings, Mistle Thrush and there was a nice moment as I heard a whoosh as a Woodpigeon burst into the air and then saw the bird. Elsewhere another Small Copper butterfly of late, a micro moth, slug and a bee were nice to see. I enjoyed seeing a lot of sweet little tormentil, water lily on a pond, surprise centaury a very pretty flower to see, some gorse in flower, bog myrtle leaves I believe, foxglove leaves, seas of holly berries and apples, nice plants and fruit to observe. Enigmatic yellow stagshorn one of my favourites and another common earthball this week were mushrooms I know that we saw. At home today I enjoyed views of many Starlings, Collared Dove, House Sparrow, Goldfinch including young, I heard Blue Tit calling nicely and excitingly saw the Robin which has returned to the garden always a lovely moment. I heard Robin on the walk too. Sedum, fuchsia, chamomile, the Black-eyed Susans as they fade a bit and other flowers were nice to take in when in the garden today.

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namedafterflowerstournament · 1 year

Note

Mixing it up a bit: what are some of the unique flower names, where only one character has been submitted with it?

I love your question. I picked the ones refering to real plants (and mushrooms they got a pass for this tournament) who were only used once (Ex : if 2 characters are named after the same plant, even if their names are different, none of them will be in this list - think Ran, Dendrobium and Orchid) because the list's already taking me forever

Disclaimer : I didn't include names such as Bulbasaur, Chloris, Myoudouin Itsuki (Cure Sunshine) and Ianthe/Iolanthe refering to non specific plants. Or imaginary plants for the matter (Mare, Elanor etc.)

Acerola, Shirona/Cynthia, Diantha, Gardenia, Grusha, Guzma, Hop, Kukui, Nemona, Plumeria, Elm, Magnolia, Sycamore from Pokémon

Aerith Gainsborough from Final Fantasy VII (justification by a submitter : Irit is Hebrew for asphodel flower and FF7 has Jewish related themes)

Althea from The Lightless Trilogy

Amanita Nightshade from Monster High (other submitted characters are named Nightshade but there's no other Amanita so far)

Aspen Leger from The Selection

Amaryllis "Rilla" of Exile from The Penumbra Podcast

Arsène Lupin III from Lupin III

Artemisia of Naimes from Vespertine

Asami Sato from Legend of Korra

Ashfur, Brackenfur, Gorse Fur from Warrior Cats

Black Dahlia from Skullgirls

Blackberry from Watership Down

Bluebear, Coco, Broccolo, Pecan, Tangy from Animal Crossing

Boa Hancock from One Piece

Cagney Carnation from Cuphead

Clementine from The Walking Dead

Cornflower from Redwall

Crocus from Greek Mythology

Cure Papaya and Cure Passion from Precure

Fennel Marlborough from Camp Here and There

Flox Pollimon from Fairy Oak

Foxglove from The Sandman

Fujiwara Zakuro from Tokyo Mew Mew

Geranium from I Was a Teenage Exocolonist

Goldenrod from The Mapmakers Trilogy

Hisagi Shuhei from Bleach

Hortensia from Fire Emblem

Ivy Muscade from Leif & Thorn

Jambu, Pineapple, Tamarin from Wings of Fire

Katniss from The Hunger Games

Kobayashi Matcha, Masaoka Azuki from Vocaloid

Kurosaki Karin and Yuzu from Bleach

Lady Fuschia Groan from Gormenghast

Leuke, Myrrah from Greek Mythology

Midorikawa Lettuce from Tokyo Mew Mew

Mercury from RWBY

Mimosa Vermillon from Black Clover

Nepeta Lejion from Homestuck

Nettle from Seafire

Ogion and Vetch from Earthsea

Papyrus from Undertale

Potpourri from Heartcatch ! Precure

Prince Peasley from Super Mario

Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic) from Marvel's Fantastic Four

Natsume Ryuu from Paradox Live

Sash Lilac from Freedom Planet

Solanum from Outer Wilds

Sorrel from The Darkest Part of the Forest

Strelitzia from Kingdom Hearts

Tamar Kir-Bataar from the Grishaverse books

Tech-Acquisitor Scaevola from Warhammer 40,000 : Mechanicus

Thorn Estragon from Leif & Thorn

Honda Thoru from Fruits Basket

Twenty-Fifth Bam from Tower of God

Venus McFlytrap from Monster High

Viney from The Owl House

Yorigami Joon from Touhou Project

Zinnia from Pokemon (well now I have other Zinnias and probably a few other characters with the same names that the ones here but I nearly have 1400 submissions and it takes time to go through them and explanations for the ones I don't know the language of.

Ah and special mention to The Cabbage Man from Avatar : The Last Airbender. Look, I've never seen ATLA (I'm not into anime and not much into animation generally speaking) and neither has the submitter but I have to accept this one. I mean everyone knows this guy.

#not polls #flower game #unique flower names #finally i've finished this #it's been days

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cypriathus · 1 month

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Here's my version of Lilith!

WARNING: There are mentions of a mental health issue, coitus, and misogyny (in regards to her ex-husband).

Lerszukotha is a no-nonsense and humble former Awukhoziel of the Admuszroktebi tribe who was cast into Nifjazroghetus, becoming an archdemon of the libertines. She has frequent mood swings from energetically optimistic and joyous to extremely miserable and irritable. She possesses a deep-seated desire to be loved, but she struggles with forming romantic relationships and platonic friendships with men due to how horrible the previous ones went. Despite having PTSD and a fair amount of emotional anxiety, she slowly learned how to live with it and not let it drag her down. She knows how to be self-assured and confident to speak the truth without acting on aggression and intentionally hurting anyone’s feelings. She’s brutally straightforward, forthright, and frank in her communication, only lying when she feels threatened or uncomfortable. She greatly refuses to be subservient, preferring to live her life as a strong-willed and free-spirited woman. She takes pride in her willpower and strives to be self-reliant, rising up to any challenge and using her leadership skills to inspire others. She’s strongly against those who intentionally harm children and women, showing no fear and hesitation in enacting vengeance. Lerszukotha’s presence evokes a sense of terror and sensuality, and she doesn’t mind playing into her seductive and manipulative nature when needed.

She possesses a height of 7’ 11” (241.3 cm) and an hourglass mesomorphic body type with a bit of muscle, broad shoulders, upper arms that carry some of her weight, and prominent thighs. She has pallid skin with scattered brown moles and purplish stretch marks on her belly, hips, and chest. She has sparkling emerald eyes and long, feathered, side-parted light mahogany brown hair. Her hair is decorated with small pieces of grass-green fluorite and metallic purple ribbons. Like all Admuszroktebi women and chieftainesses, Lerszukotha wears leafy undergarments and a waist girdle of dried blueberries, crape myrtle, and silver bells. She has a black veil of glittery gold, a crown of foxgloves and barn owl feathers, and a pair of rope sandals. She dons an eminence purple mantle with an embroidered pattern of coral roses and purplish-red phoenix feathers, which surrounds a golden skull-headed jade rabbit. She has a long, low-necked silk dress covered in a pattern of wisteria paws, wavy golden serpents, red-violet rhombuses, stylised dark purple eyes, ocean green triangles, turquoise water ripples, and Persian plum rectangles. The bodice of her white dress is open all the way to her well-defined waist, which exposes her large breasts.

After being sent to Nifjazroghetus, she has the upper body of her former self, but her lower half is something similar to a 12’ 6” (381 cm) amphiptere. Her serpentine body is covered in light-coloured feathers that imitate twilight, and she has a spiked tail. She possesses seven charcoal black wings that have a faint violet and emerald sheen. Lerszukotha’s light mahogany brown hair has voluminous curls and she has four eyes in a grass-green hue with dark burgundy highlights. The musculature of her Awukhoziel upper body is more muscular, her hands have golden claws, and she has a somewhat swollen belly. Her skin is now a warm ivory with scattered dark red moles and pinkish stretch marks on her upper arms, chest, and belly. She only wears a Persian plum shawl with tassels and an embroidered pattern of coral roses, purplish-red phoenix feathers, and wisteria paws that surround a silver skull-headed jade rabbit.

Lerszukotha possesses supernatural stamina and an incredible mastery over in black magic, agriculture, beast-taming, peacekeeping, visual arts, and music. She can lift cars, trucks, buses, bulldozers, small-moderately sized boulders, and the tallest trees ever recorded. She’s capable of performing any offensive action with the force of destructive conventional explosives, causing damage to tall buildings, neighbourhoods, and house-sized asteroids. As a result of her unnatural dexterity, she has better control over her limbs, muscles, and digits than most living creatures. She’s highly resistant to large objects of supersonic speeds, hydrogen explosions, natural disasters, temperatures near kelvin and below negatives, extremely-heavy armour penetration shots, and asteroid impacts. She can manipulate the night, storms, diseases, desires, libertines, prostitution, mythical beasts, familiars, dark energy, pheromones, hormones, and body chemistry. She possesses a mind that exists everywhere and anywhere simultaneously, and she’s able to induce death through sexual intercourse. She can easily perceive and know everything about a person's sex life, and psychically intuit information about feminine sexuality and reproduction. Lerszukotha is able to shapeshift into humans, animalistic forms, and a dark fog, and channel her soul for creating weapons, shields, energy blasts, and nocturnal animals.

FAMILY:

Admenozithus (ex-husband)

Ezasvoghin (younger sister)

Kairszoben (son)

Utsimoderva (son)

ALIASES/NICKNAMES:

Lilith

Night Hag

First Woman

Screech Owl

Breaker of Chains

Howler In The Desert

Kindler of Denied Desires

Mistress of Deceit and Betrayal

She Who Walks Without Shame

Elegant Maiden Who Has Stolen Brightness

Angel of Sacred Prostitution (by Samuvozeli)

FUN FACTS/EXTRA INFORMATION:

She’s heterosexual

As an Æylphitus, her name means “night”.

She’s the queen of Concupiscence

She was made from the same red clay as Admenozithus

A piece of her rib was used to make Ezasvoghin, which she rightfully labelled as her younger sister.

Despite being the wife of Admenozithus, she was mostly treated as a concubine and inferior to her husband.

She quietly left Admenozithus after he cheated on her with Ezasvoghin, which was the last straw that broke the camel’s back. She still holds resentment and disgust towards her ex-husband despite having some feelings for him.

She slept with multiple men after leaving her husband

She has a habit of kidnapping babies at night as she finds genuine comfort in young children.

She absolutely despises Samuvozeli for what he did to her and her twin sister, never finding it in herself to forgive his heinous actions.

She’s ashamed of having Utsimoderva

After pleading with the divine council, she was sent to hell for three reasons: (1) she didn’t think she deserved to be in heaven; (2) if her ex-husband was ever sent to heaven, she wouldn’t want to see him or be near him; and (3) she wants revenge for what Samuvozeli did.

She smells like cinnamon, frankincense, and myrrh

The foxglove is her most favourite flower

#writerscorner #writing #creative writing #original character #personality #physical appearance #outfit #abilities #power #lilith #adam #first woman #ancient human #night #lust #queen #fun facts #extra information

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hello-im-not-a-possum · 9 months

Text

Shattered Identity.

Chapter Eight: Pretending to have amnesia's all fun and games until you find out something big about yourself you genuinely didn't know.

Chapter one. Chapter two. Chapter three. Chapter four. Chapter five. Chapter six. Chapter seven.

It was a rare, mostly ghost-free day that normally would've been a much needed breather for both Amity Park itself as well as the heroes protecting it. But while the Fentons were fine-tuning their latest creation, the Phantom and the Huntress were enjoying the peace and quiet, the GIW noticed that something was suspicious.

Several things were suspicious…

Mayor Masters suddenly disappeared under mysterious circumstances and hasn't been seen for days, that alone wouldn't be any cause for concern. He did that surprisingly often only to reappear claiming that he had an 'urgent emergency overseas' or some other bizarre excuse that didn't quite hold up when scrutinized too deeply, the GIW got used to it, they knew something fishy was going on with him, but given his wealth, position of power, and the sheer amount of destruction he could afford to bring down on them if they struck first, all they could do was chalk it up to rich people peculiarities until something supernatural became public. What set THIS disappearance apart from all others was that not only did he not reappear, but two strange children claiming to be his appeared. Not only that, but the two kids whom the public eye has never seen before had the paperwork regarding their existences filled in all at once, were in the process of getting Vlad's death certificate officialized, and were getting everything arranged for an upcoming funeral.

Stranger still, when police investigated the Mansion and last known whereabouts of the Billionaire, no body was uncovered. To other branches of the government, this was an extremely fishy case of fraud at best and a planned murder at worst unless those two had darn good explanations but to the GIW, there was something supernatural at hand. …Still obvious fraud, but from their experience with ghosts, it was clear that ghost trickery was at hand here. They didn't know if the kids themselves were ghosts or if ghosts 'helped' make Masters disappear and the kids were in on it but either way they were going to tag those two in secret and get to the bottom of this.

One assigned set of the GIW looked over all drone and other camera footage from the dates between Vlad's disappearance and now and didn't find anything relating to his case. He wasn't caught in a ghost attack, didn't get in some kind of accident, nothing, he was just here one moment, completely gone the next. They did however, notice that on the first day Masters went MIA, The Wisconsin Ghost was completely disintegrated into ectoplasmic ash by a Fentonworks gadget. …As much as the GIW hated to think about them being competent, sometimes the Fentons made genuinely good ghost-hunting devices and they might even need to look into either getting that bad boy or making identical replicas of it. And if it came to it, surely they wouldn't mind if they 'borrowed' it…

A second set were trailing the two kids themselves, eavesdropping in on their conversations with townsfolk but keeping their distance just enough to not tip them off…

“Okay, so white tulips, white orchids, yellow daffodils, blue hyacinths, pink roses, and forget-me-nots for the funeral arrangements themselves. That's understandable and will look beautiful. But you want the body to hold a bouquet of… geraniums, foxglove, yellow carnations, and orange lilies..?” The florist gave the teen and the tween an odd expression. “…You've checked and double checked the meanings of these flowers right..?”

“Our relationship with our recently deceased father is… complicated.” The masked teen explained. “And it's not exactly easy trying to hold ourselves together when by the time he finally reaches out to us, we arrive to find him dead. Lots of mixed emotions and all that…”

“The timing made it kinda feel like he only wanted us in his life to clean up the mess he left.” The kid with a red beanie added with a nod. “Plus, it's not like we can publicly air out our problems without getting backlash for it.”

The florist bit his lip as he glanced back and forth between the kids of the Masters estate, the flower order he wrote down, and the GIW member pretending to be looking at the poppies on sale. “Okay then…” he hesitantly took the kids' money and got to work on prepping their order, weird request that might cause MORE backlash than they intended or not, the sooner he got them out of his store, the less likely it would be for his workplace to get destroyed.

You could cut through the tense air with a knife…

The kids knew they were being watched, the florist knew they knew they were being watched as he saw the older one pull the younger one close, subtly putting himself between her and the admittedly dangerous government official and occasionally glaring at the GIW member, and the Guy In White occasionally glared back when the boy wasn't looking.

The two hadn't set off the ghost detector, but that didn't deter the Guy In White, the boy was on guard and saw him, if he was nervous enough to keep a keen eye out and had the nerve to glare at the GIW, he HAD to be guilty, and if those two were being honest with the florist, it meant that they HAD the body somewhere..

——

The first team had to do this a little… underhandedly. Disguising two of their members as out of town ghost hunters and buttering up the Fentons on their weapon craftsmanship and asking for a model of their own.

Luckily for them, Mr. Fenton bought into it and let them buy the prototype as he and Mrs. Fenton were currently working on a new and improved version. But unfortunately for them, while the patriarch of the family was easier to convince to let them buy it, he also had a tendency to ramble. Which he did a lot throughout the buying process.

“-Now before you go testing it out, there's something really important you need to know: it's really sensitive to high temperatures including its own ammo, so try to only use one shot at the ghost and wait for it to cool down. No rapid firing just because you missed the first one! …We learned that the hard way. The melted remains of its predecessor are still stuck to the floor and our coolant keeps disappearing so we can't use that to help. Personally, I'm starting to think that a spook managed to figure out a pattern of when the ghost portal closes and opens and uses it to its advantage…” Jack explained to 'Kode ghostless' and 'Overkill' while the two ghost hunters nodded along.

“Uh huh… how long does the Ghost Duster need to take to cool down?”

“At least an hour or so, if you put it in the freezer.”

Ideally, they would've been out of here and hunting down ghosts thirty minutes ago but unfortunately there was enough important information in what was mostly meaningless fluff that them being the ones to leave first might make the man forget to send them the rest of the important information over Email or something.

“Operative J to Operative K, the punks are out of the flower shop and are currently on their way to Fentonworks” K's headpiece crackled. “Is the weapon secured and can you and O leave discreetly?”

“Hold on, I need to take this…” K walked out of the room to talk with J in private. “Weapon bought and secured, we stayed to get more information from the Fentons on how it works and what its weaknesses are. If we're lucky, our men can make sturdier models of this thing. Did you uncover anything about the mystery Masters kids?”

“First names are Jack and Dani, the older kid, Jack, has some strange wounds on his hands, forearms, head, and neck, younger one, Dani, doesn't appear to have any external injuries. Neither of them set off our ghost detectors but both of them set off the ectoplasm detectors. Either they're ghosts good at hiding their ghost…ness from our sensors or they're humans in frequent contact with ghosts either way they're no good news. Judging by what they said in the flower shop, they also know where Masters' body is, they want the body to hold a bouquet and if they didn't know where it was, they'd probably make it easy on themselves by just putting random ashes in an urn and calling them his ashes. I suspect they're hiding it somewhere.”

“Rodger that, what do you think they want at Fentonworks? Do you think the Fentons are in on it?”

“No clue, they are onto us though, so approach this situation with caution.”

“Copy that.” K hung up and returned to the living room.

“Kode! Great for you to join us! I was just about to tell your partner over here about-”

“Yes, yes, say, do you know a… Jack Masters by chance? I've heard some… interesting things about him.”

“Jack? Why he's my old pal Vlad's son!” The man smiled warmly. “I've only met him in person once, but he's a good kid, just recently moved into Amity and I know he'll fit right in.”

“Right, and have you ever noticed anything peculiar about him..?” K raised an eyebrow, knowing that the Ghost Weapon Engineer probably wasn't in on it but was instead being played like a fiddle, but that didn't mean that they couldn't get information out of him.

“Hmm… Now that you mention it…”

“Hey Mr. Fenton?” the front door opened and the pair the GIW were looking over entered. “I uh.. have good news and bad news. The good news is that I found out I have a half sister and she also was in town to visit. But the bad news is… …you might want to sit down for this but when we looked, we found that Vladimir-” The words died in the older teens throat when he saw the Guy in White holding THAT gun.

His eyes were wide with horror, his tongue and throat felt dry, his hands felt sweaty and he didn't know if it was genuine sweat or ectoplasm, his brain was screaming at him to run but his legs felt like they were nailed to the floor, time felt like it stopped, he was so focused on Maddie and trying to change her mind that he had completely neglected the other groups of ghost hunters.

He was doomed. Danielle was Doomed. Danny was Doomed. The ghost zone was doomed. EVERYTHING WAS DOOMED! And his stupid fixation on her, albeit existing for a far different context than before, had doomed everything he was trying to build once more.

Maddie with that gun was horrible, but it was still one thing. Maddie, despite her hatred of ghosts was still a human being with morals and emotions. Vlad knew that if he played his cards right, he could show her that she went too far by creating that thing, showed her that she had made a terrible mistake by pointing it at her old college friend, by making orphans out of innocent children… But the Guys In White? They might have been human, they might have had emotions and morals, but they were merciless, their emotions would not be invested in the suffering of humans in the slightest as long as the ghosts were dead, their morals were rooted in law and law alone, not genuine ethics. Sure, he knows that he crosses the ethical line at times, but he still has morals that he wont cross!

He should've destroyed the gun, destroyed the blueprints for the gun, and told Maddie to her face that she killed Vladimir Masters. He should've gathered as many of his own ashes as he could and dumped them on her desk to make her face the reality of what she did. Then the GIW never would've had the chance to get the gun in their possession.

“J-Kid!” Big Jack got up to greet his nephew. “Kode here and I were just talking about you! And who's this little lady?”

“Hi! I'm Danielle!” She waved at the man in the orange jumpsuit, noticing Small Jack's distress but wanting to lighten the mood. “Jack and I have the same dad, but different moms.”

“Do you now?” The GIW Agent mused as he rested his arm on the gun.

“hEY-” Small Jack cleared his throat after his voice cracked out of nervousness. “Hey Mr. Fenton, can we talk about something important? Just you, me, and Dani?”

He could still manage this.

If he stayed calm and kept his head together, he could break that horrible weapon with ease the second the GIW turned their backs. Judging by the check Big Jack got from them, they had just bought it, so as long as he broke it before they could replicate it, he could continue his plan as normal but also include some extra tweaks, like figuring out what to do with Valerie before she also tries to get her hands on that gun.

“Sure thing kiddo! Er, Kode, Overkill, you two don't mind seeing yourselves out, do you?”

“Not at all, we were just about to leave anyway.”

“Happy hunting you two!” The orange-clad ghost hunter waved the pair off.

'Deep breaths, Deep breaths… collect yourself, stay calm, contain your emotions, do NOT pass out on the floor again…' The hospital halfa mentally reminded himself as he held his hands together. He needed to handle this carefully, respectfully, break Jack Fenton gently now so that there wouldn't be too big of a scene at the funeral itself, Danny might think it's a plot to embarrass him in public otherwise.

“So, J-Kid, how was meeting your dad for the first time? I bet you two got along great! Maybe in the future we could talk about having a good ol' barbecue, Fentons and Masters, or one of those joint family vacations…”

Oh Butterscotch Flavored Fudge, this was going to be harder than he thought…

“Uh, well, about that, I didn't… actually get to meet Vladimir.”

“Oh? That's odd..” Big Jack hummed in thought. “Maybe he went on a business trip? He tends to get called out at sudden times. He'll likely be back in a couple of days at most, try not to worry too much.”

“Er-” C'mon, Ja- Vlad, just say that he died and rip the band-aid off…

“Oh! I'll go get Mads, this type of discussion should probably include her too!”

…Yeah, she'd do a better job at comforting Big Jack than Small Jack.

The blue-clad ghost huntress was surprised to see the teen and the tween, but happy to see that the white-haired kid was looking a bit healthier (Albeit a little shaken up, maybe he saw a ghost?).

“Hello again Jack! Who's your friend?”

“This is Danielle, she's my half-sister from a different mom.”

“Hi Mrs. Fenton! We discovered that we're siblings yesterday and spent most of today running errands together.”

“Oh! That's …fun…” Her smile looked fake and Jack Masters noticed its falseness clear as day, the type of smile a mother who just cleaned the house gives a young child who brought in a mud-covered toad. “Did your dad help?”

“Um…” Danielle didn't know how to answer that, at least not without accidentally outing that she knows what she knows.

“…About Vladimir Masters…” Small Jack tried to find the courage to say it.

“Let me guess, he left you two without a word and left you to fend for yourselves.” She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head in annoyance. As much as she wanted to hold back for both Jacks' sakes and Danielle's sake, she just couldn't help it, Vlad had crossed a line with her by just… abandoning his own kids like that! “Why would I expect any better from that man?”

“…Why would you expect any better from him..?!” Without the rose tinted glasses of obsession clouding his mind, Maddie's words invoked a lot of anger in Vlad, he balled his hands into fists as buried rage was quickly bubbling to the surface. “WHAT DO YOU EVEN KNOW ABOUT VLADIMIR?!”

Maddie crossed her arms “Jack, I know I shouldn't talk bad about your father, but I've known him better than you-”

“DON'T. YOU. EVEN. DARE! I MIGHT HAVE NEVER MET HIM BUT YOU DIDN'T REALLY KNOW HIM AT ALL! FOR TWENTY YEARS YOU- YOU TWO HAVEN'T SO MUCH AS PAID HIM A VISIT IN THE HOSPITAL, WROTE HIM A SINGLE CARD, GAVE HIM A SINGLE PHONE CALL… ANYTHING! YOU WERE IN THE WRONG WHEN YOU RUINED MY LIFE- HIS LIFE WITH A TERRIBLE, CHRONIC DISEASE THAT I- HE CAN NEVER RECOVER FROM NO MATTER WHAT I- WHAT HE DID! A DISEASE SO TERRIBLE THAT ALL THE MONEY AND POWER IN THE WORLD COULDN'T POSSIBLY COMPENSATE HIM FOR! YOU SHOULD'VE BEEN THE ONES TO REACH OUT TO HIM! NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND! AND TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, YOU'VE NEVER EVEN SO MUCH AS APOLOGIZED! YOU JUST TRIED TO BRUSH IT UNDER THE RUG AND PRETEND THAT IT NEVER FUDGING HAPPENED! AND GUESS WHAT? NEITHER OF US WILL EVER TRULY KNOW HIM BECAUSE HE'S DEAD AND YOU KILLED HIM!”

The group was stunned into silence as Small Jack caught his breath, desperately trying to regain his composure. The teen wiping his tears on his sweater sleeve.

“All…all I know him from is the one of a kind genetic disease we share, the letters he left behind, and the crap everyone else says about him, but I still know him better than anyone on the planet ever could!”

“J-kid… I'm sorry, but we couldn't visit him in the hospital or do those other things even if we wanted to. And believe me when I say that we did.” Big Jack put his hand on the still fuming boy's shoulder. “The hospital your dad was admitted to burned down shortly after he was brought in. Authorities at the time said that there were no survivors, only a single set of footprints in the ash that led to a lake. I didn't even know he was still alive until years after it happened and by then, he seemed to be living his best life and I thought it would've been better for him if I didn't reach out and drag those bad memories of his back to the surface.” He explained to Small Jack with a degree of sober somberness and seriousness the latter didn't know the former was capable of.

Jack was an idiot, a goofball, and sometimes he just rambled absolute nonsense that was put through layers of rose-tinted glass. But what he was telling him didn't feel like any of that even though Vlad couldn't remember it. There was just… something that made it feel real to him, like if he looked it up online, he'd find an old newspaper about the hospital in question and the tragic event.

“W..what…?” The teen's voice wavered “What do you mean the hospital burned down…? I haven't done- I haven't read about that in any of Vladimir's letters or journals…”

“Well, his situation at the time must've been terrifying, to be the sole survivor of a fire THAT size, right along other kid patients too, some of them younger than him at the time…” Jack winced just thinking about it. “I don't think he wanted to remember, let alone write about it.”

”But… But I… I…”

“There, there…” Big Jack pulled him into a tight hug. “It's okay…”

And with that, Small Jack shakily returned the hug and broke down into tears.

#danny phantom #vlad masters #vlad plasmius #danielle phantom #jack fenton #maddie fenton #guys in white #fanfic #shattered identity

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blink182times · 1 year

Text

EXCERPT from BOOK TEN (Spoilers! (Maybe...)) (via Diana Gabaldon on Twitter)

SIR

Half an hour later, the whisky bottle was empty, but all three of us were stone-cold sober, and there was a ball of cold dread in the pit of my stomach. According to William, Perseverance Wainwright was dead, and Lord John was missing—kidnapped by a man named Richardson. Or so Percy had said, before dying messily, poisoned on the hearth-rug in Lord John’s house.

Jamie rubbed a hand hard over his face, opened his eyes and looked at me, one eyebrow raised.

“Is it possible?” he said.

William’s lips pressed tight together and he made a noise that might have been a stifled snort.

“I shouldn’t be surprised that you think me a liar, sir. But ask yourself why I should tell you such a tale. Or why I should be here.”

“I have been,” Jamie said frankly. “Askin’ myself, I mean. And now I’m asking my wife.”

“Possible, yes,” I said, trying not to show just how disturbing that possibility was. “John’s brother—you know, the Duke-- sent me a note last year, asking me what herbs I’d recommend for the extermination of…um…pests. I wasn’t sure that he was serious—but I’ve never known Hal to make jokes.” Jamie made a noise that was definitely a snort.

“Oh, his Grace has a sense o’ humor,” he said, very cynical. “But ye’re right, he doesna make jests or play wi’ words like his brother. So, did ye answer him?”

“I did,” I said, exchanging stares with him. “On the basis of what I knew was growing in Savannah at the time, I told him that an alcoholic extract of foxglove would be poisonous, but he should take care in using it. I thought that he might be intending to use it on mice or rats,” I added defensively. “There are mice in most houses in Savannah—and cockroaches.”

Both of them snorted. I ignored this.

“But do you actually think Hal intended to—to poison someone, a person, I mean? Or Percy, specifically? Because your description of his symptoms sounds very much like foxglove poisoning—but from what you say, it sounds as though Percy got hold of a bottle of poisoned brandy entirely by accident, doesn’t it?”

“God only knows.” William closed his eyes briefly, and I saw how tired he was, his young face lined and smeared with the grime of long riding. He summoned his strength, though, and straightened.

“I don’t care how or why Percival—or Perseverance—Wainwright happened to die in Lord John’s house. He came to tell me where Lord John was, and—and why.”

Why.

Jamie glanced at me, then fixed his gaze on William.

“So his lordship is—to the best o’ your knowledge—being held aboard a ship called Pallas, in the hands of a man called Richardson, whom ye ken yourself as a right bastard that’s tried to kill you more than once—and now he’s said he means to kill Lord John?”

“Yes.”

“But ye dinna ken why?”

William rubbed his hands hard over his face and shook his head.

“I told you what bloody Wainwright told me. How would I know whether it’s the truth? It sounds--” He flung out his hands in a violent, hopeless gesture.

Jamie and I exchanged a quick glance. How, indeed? It sounded like insanity to William; it sounded much worse to me, and to Jamie.

Jamie cleared his throat and set both hands on his desk.

“I suppose that bit doesna really matter, aye? Whether we believe it or not, I mean. The only thing to do is to find where his lordship is, and get him back.”

It was said so simply that I smiled, despite the situation, and William’s bunched shoulders dropped a little.

“You make it sound so easy,” he said. His voice was dry, but the note of strain in it had gone.

“Mmphm. How long have ye been on the road, lad?”

“Don’t call me ‘lad’,” William said, automatically. “Three months, more or less. Looking for my fa—for Lord John, or for my uncle. I can’t find him, either.”

“Aye. Well, twenty-four hours willna alter your prospects of findin’ either one. Eat, wash, and rest now. We’ll lay our plans tomorrow.”

He turned his head to look out the window, then glanced thoughtfully back at William. It was nearly evening, but the yard and the nearby trees were still alive with people and I could tell what he was thinking. So could William.

“Who do you mean to tell…them—” he nodded toward the window, “—that I am? A lot of them saw me. And Frances knows.”

Jamie leaned back a little, looking at his son. _His son_, and I felt, rather than saw, the warmth that touched him at the thought.

“Ye dinna have to say who ye are.” He caught William’s skeptical glance at his face. “We’ll say you’re--my cousin Murtagh’s lad, if ye like.”

I swallowed a startled laugh that went down the wrong way, and two pairs of dark blue eyes looked austerely down two long, straight noses at me.

“I’ve done with lies,” William said abruptly, and shut his mouth, hard. Jamie gave him a long, thoughtful look, and nodded.

“There’s no way back from the truth, ken?”

“I don’t have to speak Scotch, do I?”

“I’d pay money to see ye try, but no.” He took a deep breath and glanced at me. “Just say your mother was English, and she’s dead, God rest her soul.”

“If anyone asks,” I said, trying to be reassuring. Jamie made a brief Scottish noise.

“They’re Scots, Sassenach,” he said. “Everyone will ask. They just may not ask us.”

Music was beginning to gather, fiddlers and drummers and zitherers coming down from the woods; there would be dancing as soon as it grew dark.

“Come with me, William,” I said. “I’ll find you some food.”

He took a breath that went down to the soles of his boots and stood up.

“Thank you, sir,” he said to Jamie, bowing slightly.

“Surely you needn’t go on calling him ‘sir’,” I said, glancing from one man to the other. “I mean…not now.”

“Aye, he does,” Jamie said dryly. “All the other things he might call me are things he can’t--or won’t. ‘Sir’ will do.” Flicking a hand in dismissal of the matter, he rose from his chair, grimacing slightly at the effort needed to do it without bracing himself with his hands.

“You know,” William said, in a conversational tone, “there was a time when you called _me_ “sir”. He didn’t wait to see if there was a response to this, but went out and down the hall toward the kitchen, his steps light on the boards.

“Why, you little _bastard_,” I said, though I was more amused than shocked, and so was Jamie, from the twitch at the corner of his mouth. “Fine thing to say to someone you’ve just asked for help!”

“Aye, well, I suppose it depends who ye say it to.” Jamie lifted one shoulder and dropped it. “He was six, the last time I called him that.”

#outlander book 10 #outlander #claire fraser #jamie fraser #william ransom #william fraser #diana gabaldon

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lady-wren-of-tella · 10 months

Text

chapter 3 of bk 2: zira sevaan

TRIGGER WARNING: near-torture for medical reasons, mild abuse

hope you like this one!

it super angsty (even more than last time)

Zira fastens one of the sixteen glass plates to her shin, clicking it into place on her suit before doing the same on her other shin.

On the other side of the locker room, hidden from view by a wall of lockers, Foxglove says, “It’s been a while since I played amittere, so I’ve probably forgotten the rules” The sound of a click echoes as she snaps one of her glass plates into place too. “I hope I don’t make myself look like a complete fool.” Another click. “Do you think they’ll put us on the same team?”

Ignoring her sister for a moment, Zira snaps in four more glass plates; one on the side of each thigh and one on each knee. “Refs usually do a basic overview of the rules before starting the game, so I think you’ll be fine.” She fastens one plate to each forearm. “I have no idea what they’ll do for teams, though.”

Foxglove huffs in frustration. “Help me with a plate?” she asks. “I did almost all of them, but this stupid one on my arm refuses to snap in.”

Zira rolls her eyes, but stands up from the bench she was sitting on. “Fine. I’m dressed, so you can walk over.”

She has to hold back a laugh at how uncomfortable her sister looks when she walks out from behind the wall of lockers, visibly out of place in her classic amittere uniform: the classic, black, skin-tight suit with nearly invisible hooks all over for the glass plates to click into.

Foxglove hands her sister the stack of plates in her hands and turns to the side, holding out her arm. “I don’t know how the pro players do it, Zira. These silly things are impossible!”

Swallowing a snippy comment, Zira snaps the plate into the spot on the side of her upper arm effortlessly, quickly taking care of the ones on her sister’s shoulder, elbow, and forearm too. “Done.”

Foxglove steps away, twisting her arm to look at Zira’s handiwork. “The one on my back looks secure, right?”

Zira takes a quick look and then nods, quickly going back to fastening the last few she needs to, mentally running through the checklist: Two shins, knees, and thigh plates. Two for the forearms, elbows, upper arms, and shoulders. One chest and back plate.

She grabs her helmet from off the bench. Foxglove hurries around the wall of lockers to do the same, quickly returning with the sleek-looking thing tucked under her arm too.

Zira nods once and turns to leave the locker room, excitement humming under her skin the second she steps onto the court.

Further down the court, talking to Calla and some other nobles, Prince Erix waves when he sees the Imanian royals, beckoning them over,“We’re just waiting for a few more people to change,” he calls as Zira and Foxglove walk across the court. “I think I can start introducing you now, though.”

Calla nods her hello. “Goodmorning.”

A tall young man with dark skin and a handful of gold beads in his locs waves when Erix gestures for him to start off. “Lord Aiden Rossias, son of the Duke and Duchess of Burnsley,” he says, voice deep. “Lovely to meet you, Your Highnesses,” Lord Aiden bows, hand curled into a fist over his heart.

“You as well,” Zira and Foxglove reply in unison.

“Duke Nicholas and Duchess Alytha are good friends of my parents,” Calla explains, before gesturing for the next person to introduce themselves.

A young woman with silky, straight, black hair bows too. “Your Highnesses,” she starts, bowing shallowly. “Lady Suki Ashthorne. Daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Alverton.” She smiles, and as it is with all courtiers, the expression lacks warmth. “Captain of the Doves, the reigning champion team of professional Lazian amittere.”

Zira fights the urge to laugh when she feels Foxglove tense beside her.

“I remember watching the championship match,” Zira says. “Your duel in the final round was impressive.”

Erix gestures to a young woman with tan skin and dark-brown hair. He coughs when he seems to realize who it is, eyes darting between Calla and Zira rapidly, but waves his hand anyway.

The woman bows her head briefly. “Lady Alexis Valfina. Daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Presric.”

Zira blinks.

Alexis. Calla’s new- she cuts herself off.

Her circlet tightens on her forehead and Zira has to force herself to return it to normal.

The door to the court opens and six more people walk in. Sleek and shiny helmets sit tucked under the arms of the four young nobles and the referees trailing behind readjust the straps of their bags. The nobles wave their hellos, which Erix and Calla return enthusiastically, beckoning them over.

“Lady Safiya Kyone of Goldfield,” Calla says quickly, pointing to the young woman with the headscarf. “Karina Caibrenn and Felix Moya are both professional amittere players too, starters for the Hurricanes.”

Felix brushes his thick, brown hair back and puts on his helmet. “Are we all ready to play?” he asks, voice muffled by the thickness of the helmet.

Karina laughs but moves to do the same. She suspends her helmet in the air as she ties her dark hair back into a low ponytail. After she’s done, she grabs the helmet and slides it over her head, completing the full amittere uniform.

A telekinetic, Zira remembers seeing next to her name on the player rosters at the beginning of the year, and a really good one at that.

“Alright!” Erix says, putting on his helmet along with everyone else. He waves over the referees. “Let’s start this match already. How are we going to split up teams? Anyone care about who they’re with?”

“I need to go over basic rules first, Your Highness,” one of the referees says. “It’s customary.” When Calla and Erix nod, he continues. “We’re playing an unconventional game today; three ten-minute rounds of team play and two ten-minute rounds of duels. Other than that, normal rules apply. As you know, you’re trying to be the team with the most players standing at the end of each round. You eliminate players by breaking all sixteen glass plates on their suit. Don’t cross the centerline.”

Calla cuts in. “We have Healers on site, so don’t worry about that, but still, no headshots.” She points upwards towards a window up on the wall. “Queen Anastasia, King Eldridge, Queen Kamara from Imani, and a few people from the press will end up watching, so let’s keep this civil. You all know the drill.”

Everyone nods.

Zira puts her helmet on and sees Foxglove do the same out of the corner of her eye.

“I need to know everyone’s Mythican abilities to make the teams fair,” the other referee says, gesturing at them all.

“Cryokinetic,” Erix says, putting on his helmet.

“Hydrokinetic,” Calla answers.

Foxglove answers after an awkward pause. “Umbrakinetic.”

Zira doesn’t make the same mistake. “Ferrokinetic.”

Karina answers next. “I’m a Telekinetic.”

“Terrakinetic,” Suki says.

“Electrokinetic.” Aiden.

“Chlorokinetic,” Alexis.

Felix snaps his fingers and a little plume of fire explodes in his palm. “Pyrokinetic.”

Safiya rolls her eyes at Felix’s show. “I’m a Swift.”

A Swift, Zira thinks with a flash of excitement, remembering their near incomprehensible enhanced speed. It’s been a while since I played amittere with one of those.

The referee thinks for a second before clapping his hands once to get their attention. “Since the Imanian royals have traveled all this way, I think it makes sense if we make one of them captain.”

“Zira,” Calla cuts in and Zira feels her eyes widen in surprise. “I haven’t seen either of them play in a long time, but Princess Zira’s a leader in their military.”

Zira huffs a quiet laugh. Well that was daring of you, she thinks. The entire continent has been all too invested in the two of us since our betrothal was called off and you had the guts to show obvious favoritism even though the heir to the throne is right there.

“Fine with me,” the referee says when he’s recovered from his momentary shock. “Princess Zira and Prince Erix, you two will be captains. Princess Foxglove, Lady Suki, Lady Alexis, and Karina, you’ll all be on the prince’s team. Princess Calla, Duke Aiden, Lady Safiya, and Felix, you’ll all be on the princess’s team.”

Erix takes his team to one side of the court and Zira takes hers to the other.

One of the referees walks to press a button on the wall and the floor outside the markings of the court gets replaced by boxes and boxes of things to manipulate. One box of sheets of metal for Zira, one filled with rocks for Suki, one of water for Erix and Calla, and one with plants for Alexis. The other boxes are all filled with knives for everyone to throw.

“Ready?” both referees call in unison after everyone has grabbed a few knives and tucked them into the little side pockets of their suits. “Captains!”

Zira looks around at her team, silently asking. They all nod. “Ready!” she answers.

“Ready!” Erix repeats.

“Round one, begin!”

The court erupts.

Zira calls metal to her from the box, forms two long shields to hover around her sides as she starts sending knives flying with vicious speed at all the other players on the team. Karina tosses the one aimed at her aside with a blink. Suki rolls under the one for her before throwing her arms forward, launching a rock at a blur in the air to Zira’s left.

It connects and Safiya crashes to the ground, the shattered pieces of her chestplate scattered around her.

Felix sends a massive burst of fire to cover her front, giving her time to get to her feet and dash back to the back of their side of the court before anyone could break the rest of her plates.

Zira swears under her breath, heart beating fast with adrenaline and feeling of using her ferrokinesis again. I didn’t even notice that the blur was Safiya. How did Suki see that?!

Aiden fires two bright bolts of lighting, one at Foxglove and the other at Karina. Foxglove tries throwing a wall of shadow up, but it still strikes her, breaking the glass plate on her shoulder.

Karina dives to the ground. “Bolt!” she shouts in warning.

Suki, one of the other pro amittere players, reacts by punching out her hands. Countless chunks of stone fly out from behind her towards Aiden. “Erix!” she calls, prompting the prince to support her attack by sending a barrage of icicles at the Duke of Burnsley.

Overwhelmed, Aiden can’t do anything but call “Shattered!” as all sixteen of his plates get broken in one go, taking him down too. He rolls to the side and walks off to the side, joining the referees and taking off his helmet to catch his breath until the next round.

Safiya becomes a blur as she sprints across the room to dodge an incoming blade of shadow and Zira sends a few blades whizzing towards her sister in response.

Another one of Foxglove’s plates shatters.

Zira throws herself to the ground but continues to throw knife after knife, successfully shatting one of Suki’s, Karina’s and Foxglove’s plates

Felix breaks two of Alexis’s with two blasts of fire, burning her attempt at a shield made of plants in the process.

Calla punches her arms forward and a jet of water follows the motion, crashing straight towards her brother, taking advantage of how Erix is distracted by trying to break more of Felix’s plates.

Karina calls out a warning, but Erix can't react fast enough. His chestplate, left thigh, and right shoulder plate all break under the pressure of his sister’s attack, sending him stumbling backwards a few steps too.

Zira takes advantage of his disorientation and sends a flurry of knives to attack the crown prince, grunting her teeth as a rock from Suki breaks all three plates on her left leg, sending a spark of pain through her knee.

Still, her knives strike true, and the remaining thirteen of Erix’s plates break, knocking him out of the round.

Zira ignores the little flash of pain and continues playing.

◄ ◆ ►

Foxglove helps her sister to the table and Zira has to swallow down a scream.

“You’re so stupid,” Foxglove hisses in her ear before stepping away, but it sounds sad. “You know your knee is a problem and you still pushed yourself to the absolute limit.” She looks down at Zira with tinged disdain as she gingerly settles down on the examination table.

“Shut. Up,” Zira retorts through gritted teeth, taking a deep breath to combat the growing nausea. “Just be quiet right now, for the love of Delphine.” She finally gets passably comfortable on the examination table, injured leg stretched out in front of her and good leg dangling off the side.

A Lazian Healer walks in the room, bowing once towards each princess. “Welcome to the Infirmary Wing, Your Highnesses. My name is Esme.” She looks at Zira. “How can I help?”

Zira has to put energy into speaking. “My knee,” she chokes out. “I can’t–”

“It’s a recurring injury,” Foxglove cuts in mercifully. “She hurt it years ago, it never healed properly, and she refuses to get it fixed properly.”

The Healer cocks her head to the side in confusion. “How did it not heal properly?

“Wasn’t able to see a Healer right away,” Zira answers, and it takes even more effort. She slumps backwards against the raised back of the examination table, eyes falling closed as her gut roils with every wave of pain in her knee. “It started healing–” she tries shifting but quickly stops when it nearly makes her cry out “–on its own and then a Healer finished the job. They couldn’t completely fix it without a rebreak.”

“I see.” Esme takes a step forward, hands outstretched in a silent question. When Zira nods, she cups a palm over the princess’s joint, eyes closed as she reaches out with her power. It takes a second before she steps back. “I’m sorry, Your Highness, but there’s nothing I can do for you besides temporary relief if you don’t want a rebreak.”

Foxglove huffs and Zira’s heart drops, even though the news was expected.

Her knee throbs.

“Just rebreak it and get this over with,” Foxglove tries pleading, and even through the haze of pain, Zira hears the desperation in her sister’s tone.

Zira still remembers getting the injury, still remembers screeching as a chunk of stone fell from an unstable ceiling onto her leg when she wasn’t able to crawl out of the way in time. She still remembers the fuzzy image of her mangled knee, the horrified looks of her squadmates when they dragged her out from under all the debris.

Her face falls into the perfect picture of someone livid. “No,” she counters, voice strained and dead. “Temporary is fine,” she says to Esme. “Just heal me. Now.”

Esme nods. “Forgive me for the discomfort, Your Highness. It will subside in a moment.”

Zira closes her eyes. “Whatever. Get on with it.”

“Princess Foxglove,” The Healer says quietly and Zira frowns in confusion, “I’m going to need your help to hold her down and… keep her quiet. I wasn’t kidding when I said this is going to hurt.”

Zira’s eyes shoot open and she tries to scramble off the table, but the movement makes it feel like someone’s flaying her right leg open and Foxglove’s surprisingly strong hand clamps down on her shoulder, keeping her pressed against the back of the examination table. “What are you going to do to me?!” she shouts, voice cracking with panic and pain.

Esme reaches around the side of the table to push a lever and the back of the examination falls back flat slowly, taking Zira with it. “In your current state, the most temporary of fixes would only last a few hours. I’m going a bit deeper with the Healing to ensure the relief lasts at least two weeks.”

“Let her do this,” Foxglove says, attempting to soothe, but she uses solidified shadows to keep Zira pinned down and the chilling touch only makes her panic more. “This is going to help you.”

Zira thrashes to the best of her ability, adrenaline cancelling out agony. “No! Let me go!” she screams. The princess lifts her head, looking Esme right in the eyes. “Let me go right now, I command it.”

A shadow slides over her mouth and Zira looks up at her sister.

“I outrank her,” Foxglove says, unnervingly calm and confident, “and I command you to go through with it.”

The Healer looks down at her patient and Zira screams and writhes under the hold of her sister’s shadow, tears of pain and rage streaking down her face.

“I order you!” Zira tries to scream, but the shadow muffles it too much, and she sobs at how intelligible it sounds even to her own ears. She twitches weakly, all but giving up on fighting the hold of her sister’s shadows. The solid darkness keeps her down against the examination table and Zira is reduced to sobs. “Let me go,” she tries weakly, but it’s just as muffled as her earlier scream.

“Do it now,” Foxglove orders the Healer, sharp words startling Esme’s focus away from Zira. “Hurry, please.” The last word sounds truly desperate and Esme finally caves.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness,” she whispers before gripping Zira’s knee, wincing when the princess howls in agony.

Zira screams as she feels the Healer’s magic tear into her leg, surging off of the examination table in pain, but her sister’s shadows keep her down. She sobs tears falling freely as she struggles weakly, pain not subsiding.

“I’m so sorry, Princess,” Esme mumbles.

Zira’s ferrokinesis calls, calling her attention to all the usable metal in the room.

Too tired to manipulate her circlet mentally, Zira twitches a finger as she screeches, and the cool silver melts away from her forehead, beginning to morph into something new.

Foxglove notices with a sharp inhale, calling out to Esme something Zira can’t decipher through the heady combination of anguish and exhaustion.

A cold shadow slides over Zira’s forehead – like a replacement circlet, Zira thinks dumbly – and everything goes dark.

She wakes with a start, eyes flying open as she pushes herself up from the bed in panic, looking around the now empty room in the Infirmary Wing. She looks down, frowning at the sight of her right leg wrapped in a thin layer of white bandages.

At least the pain is gone.

The sound of someone clearing their throat softly makes her head snap around.

“How are you feeling?” Foxglove asks gently, reaching up to smooth down a few flyaways, and the little imperfection is the only indication that Zira hadn’t dreamed up her sister’s involvement. “Are you okay?”

“I–” Zira coughs, frowning again at how hoarse and strained her voice sounded, at how much one syllable burned her throat. Tears pool at the corners of her eyes as she lifts a shaky arm to point accusingly right at her sister’s face. “You let that happen to me. You helped her do that to me.”

Foxglove shakes her head firmly. “No, Zira. You needed that help. It was…,” she trails off, skin paling, “painful, obviously, but it was necessary. Imagine your suffering if you had just gone with the far more temporary relief.” She stands up from her chair, crossing the room in two swift steps to reach Zira’s side.

“Zee,” she begs, and Zira can’t decide if she wants to cry or slap her sister more. “Zee, listen to me.” Foxglove takes a gentle hold of Zira’s shoulder, stays even when she tries flinching away. “I was helping you. You have to understand that.”

Zira shakes her head, eyes falling closed when her sister reaches up to wipe away a tear. “Did I pass out?” she asks after a few seconds, and then has to cough after once again.

“No,” Foxglove answers carefully. “I helped you fall asleep so you wouldn’t have to feel the rest of the treatment.”

“You knocked me out?!” Zira hisses. “How, though? I don’t have any bruises.”

The silence that hangs between them worries her for a second, but then Foxglove answers.

“It was something Mother’s been teaching me,” the older sister says, eyes falling to Zira’s bandaged knee. “Powerful and skilled umbrakinetics can help people sleep by manipulating something called mental shadow-vapor.”

Zira’s blood chills in her veins.

Foxglove reaches behind her, pulling something off a side table Zira didn’t even realize was there. “Here you go,” she says, dropping an ugly, deformed strip of metal in Zira’s lap. “That’s your circlet.” She combs back the stray strands of her sister’s hair behind her ear, completely ignoring how greasy they are.

Zira has to take a significantly longer amount of time to gather the concentration to even tap into her ferrokinesis before manipulating the metal, but eventually, she rubs her thumbs over the mangled strip of metal, blinking as she reforms it into her circlet.

It’s comfortingly cold when she puts it on again.

A sharp knock on the door makes both girls jump.

Queen Kamara opens the door angrily, slamming it shut behind her as she walks to stand at the foot of Zira’s bed. “Has it become your personal mission to cause problems for me?!” she demands, voice managing to echo around the small room. “You decided to overwork yourself in a trivial amittere match and you couldn’t even suck it up enough to suffer the consequences. Now, the press is screaming about you being weak,” Kamara spits the last word disdainfully.

Zira feels her face fall blank, knows being impassive will provoke her mother the least. I’m too tired to be combative anyway. “My injury snuck up on me,” she says, hoarse voice sounding dead. “I’m sorry for all the trouble my stupidity caused you.”

Internally, she winces at the sass hiding at the edges of her tone.

Foxglove’s fingers twitch against her skin.

Kamara laughs sardonically, gray eyes going a bit wild with anger. “I have done nothing but push you to be the best, and time and time again, you only return with ungratefulness and more problems for me to fix.” She takes off her crown to run an angry hand through her black hair, and the few silver strands there catch the light of the room.

“Mother,” Foxglove starts, and there’s a bite to her voice Zira’s surprised to hear. “Your daughter is hurt right now, and all you’re yelling at her. Maybe wait until she feels better?”

“Be quiet, Foxglove,” Kamara orders, gaze trained on Zira as she goes back to scolding her younger daughter. “You know how horribly the peace talks went, so I’m going to need my most powerful soldiers on the front lines but I can’t send you because you’re injured too often and last time you were there, you–”

Foxglove cuts in again. “Mother.” Her grip tightens on Zira’s arm and she winces. “Are you sure it’s wise to tell her this right now?”

Zira raises a curious eyebrow. “Explain,” she demands. Now.

Queen Kamara’s eyes narrow. “Zira, the Lazian royals demanded you be executed in retribution for your killing of a protected general. I had to do a lot of negotiating to convince them to take another general instead. I saved your life and all you’ve done is made my life difficult.”

“You told me–” Zira starts, but she snaps her jaw shut at the sight of a shadow flashing out to strike her face. She screws her eyes shut, too tired to bother hiding her flinch, but the slap never comes.

She opens her eyes to find Foxglove with a hand outstretched, stopping their mother’s shadow in the air, just a few inches away from Zira’s face.

“I said it once before and I’ll say it again,” Foxglove warns, cold and resolute as she holds the queen’s gaze unflinchingly. “You will not lay another hand on her.”

Zira finds herself caught between laughing and sitting there shocked.

Minutes ago, you let a Healer basically torture me just because you thought it would help in the long run. But still, it’s rare seeing you stand up to her like that. What changed between you two?

Queen Kamara smirks, amused by her daughter’s display. “I’m simply correcting another one of your sister’s many mistakes. Calm down.”

Foxglove falters, confidence giving way to desperation. “I know you mean the best for us, but can’t you realize how awful your methods are?” she pleas. “I’ve tried, for so long, to give you the benefit of the doubt, but you’re making it impossible.”

“If you can’t overcome your own weakness enough to see how my methods are making you two the best versions of yourselves, then that’s your own problem,” Queen Kamara counters, gray gaze cold. “Accept mediocrity or accept hardship.”

Zira hears her heart pound in the silence, wonders if her sister can feel it where she’s still holding her arm gently. She gathers her courage before breaking the silence. “Leave, please. Both of you. I need to rest.”

Her mother’s eyes narrow as she prepares another lecture but Foxglove nods, beginning to lead Kamara out of the room with her. “I’ll make sure someone can walk you to your chambers. I’m sure Esme would,” Foxglove says over her shoulder once their mother has left the room.

“Not Esme,” Zira says, almost too quickly.

But Foxglove just nods. “Not Esme.”

#lady wren:: writing #ladywrenoftella #my writing #wren is writing #writing #writblr

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chimcess · 8 months

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→ Chapter Three: Harboring a Fugitive Pairing: Jimin x Reader Other tags: Werewolf!Jimin, Witch!Reader, Shifter!Reader, Shifter!Jimin, A/B/O Dynamics, Alpha!Jimin Genre: Supernatural!AU, Werewolf!AU, Angst, Mutual Pining, Fluff, Smut, Word Count: 14.2k+ Synopsis: Within the four realms of Lustra lay the Bangtan forest home to the Foxglove pack of the south and known as the “land of magic.” It is also home to the Bridd, a powerful witch from a cursed bloodline who is one of the sacred guardians of the forest. Y/N is the newest Bridd, a young girl who was given her position too early. Now a woman, Y/N is revered amongst the wolves as the most powerful witch they have ever known, but hiding under the surface is a woman who has to battle between her duty and her heart. Warnings: Long haired Jimin, Strong language, blood, main character injured, main character beaten (not explicit), fighting, argument, near death experience, angst, fluff, backstory time, flashbacks, I’m putting PTSD on all of these because poor reader is suffering, I love Taehyung so much, I forgot how much I missed his playful attitude, brooding Jimin as always, crying, hurt/comfort, I hate Ahn, let me know if I missed anything A/N: This rewriting has been more fun than I thought it would be. I think the next chapter will have the most changes thus far, but I am still trying to keep everything as close as possible. Thanks for reading!

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I was awoken by rapid knocking at the front door. Cracking my eyes open, they burned in protest as I surveyed my surroundings. I had been changed and the blood was washed off of me, but I could not hear Yoongi anywhere in the house. Jimin must have left as well, but I could not remember when Yoongi arrived here. I was already too far gone to sleep. The knocking continued and I forced myself out of bed.

My body screamed in protest, and I limped to the living room. I heard Shiloh’s soft breathing inside of her nest and I frowned. She must have been exhausted from last night if the knocking did not wake her. Finally making it to the door, I opened it to one of the most pitiful sights I had seen in a long time.

My heart ached at the sight of Taehyung Kim. He looked worse for wear, his unruly hair tangled into matts that would take hours to brush out, and not a single piece of exposed skin was left tanned and untouched. He was purple and blue everywhere and I forced myself to stand up tall. I was so tired, but it would seem we both were. Ushering the boy inside, my heart broke when he started to sob.

I knew Ahn would do something to the sweet boy that wedged his way into my heart the second he stepped foot into my cottage. My rage simmered just below the surface, but I kept my mouth shut. Taehyung was in pain, both physical and emotional, and I would have to focus on his needs right now. In between his anguish he told me about what had happened.

After we left, Ahn pulled Taehyung into an isolated room at the palace where the beating began. Apparently, the old man believed he could beat the man into the boy, and I had to stop myself from screaming. Soon, three others from the council joined in on the fight. Taehyung said that there had been others who objected to what was happening, but none of them were brave enough to stand up against it either. Sol was taken away from him and he could hear her screaming the entire time.

“I’ve got your face,” I mumbled, reaching back into another jar of salve. I had used two on his face and neck alone. “Take off your clothes. I need to make sure nothing is infected.”

Taehyung nodded, still crying. I did not mind. I felt pity for the alpha. I was not surprised to find his body in just as bad of shape as the rest of him. I took great care not to stare for too long. I was not uncomfortable with his nakedness, but I was still aware that he was a man. Grip harsh, I started with his stomach. I let out a large, frustrated breath through my nose.

“I can’t believe this,” I grunted. “Why would you allow them to do this to you?”

Taehyung hissed in pain as I pressed too hard on a tender spot. I mumbled an apology.

“I did not want to fight,” He replied. “I do not want to rule with violence. I don’t like fighting or shouting. It’s… uncivilized.”

I laughed humorlessly. “So, they get to do as they please with you then? You’d let them kill you?”

He did not know what to say.

“If you ever want to be taken seriously-” I opened up another jar of salve and began rubbing it into his chest, “-this will never happen again. You know your definition of civility does not line up with the older generation in the village.”

Taehyung bit his lip and furrowed his eyebrows. He seemed upset by what I had said. He was such a naive boy, and I felt my eyes watering with anger. If Ahn were here right now, I would kill him myself. How dare he allow anybody to do this to a child let alone orchestrating an entire attack? I would be sure he knows just how unhappy I am with him if I had my way.

While I agreed with him, I knew that the others would have a difficult time swallowing that pill. Taehyung needs to fight if he wants to be seen as an equal. It is the only way to garner respect unless he wants to be compared to the others for the rest of his life. Chief Ahn would never allow that. Again, my anger spiked. Kim Taehyung was twice the man that miserable waste of oxygen could ever be. I knew Sol would cherish his mind and all at once I had an epiphany. No one else was more suited to rule Foxglove than the diplomatic, sensitive, and kind Kim boy.

“I understand you, truly,” I winced when he flinched away from my hands. “I’m sorry. What I mean is that you cannot allow them to push you around like trash.

“Their ideas of what makes a man are archaic at best and I think your village knows this, but fear is a powerful thing. Sometimes we will take the evil we know over the potential of change being worse. Ahn knows this and exploits it in order to parade around with his chest puffed like the loser he is.”

He looked at me strangely then, but I could not decipher what the expression meant. While his face was filled with life and never sat still, the alpha had a set of impenetrable eyes. Eyes that followed my every movement but gave nothing away. Taehyung seemed to consider his words carefully.

“I wanted to fight,” He whispered as though he was ashamed of himself. “I wanted to kill them all, but then they would win, right? I would be the man they wanted me to be, but the rest of the village would fear and resent me for it. The way they fear Ahn.”

His introspection was a surprise but not abnormally so. I had never heard him talk intellectually before, but it suited him nicely. His voice was deep but smooth like molasses that hummed a gentle tune with every word. He always sounded like he was singing, and it was such a juxtaposition from his boyish charm it was easy to forget he had turned 18 less than a month ago.

“Isn’t running away also letting them win?” I asked.

Taehyung sighed, “I had no choice. Ahn was attempting to rile up enough people in order to get someone, anyone, to challenge me for Sol. As far as I know no one was taking the bait, and it gave me enough time to sneak out. Jong-gyu helped get me out of the village while Eun-jin told our mother I was leaving.”

Somehow Taehyung always found a way to sneak his little family into every conversation, and his little siblings were the stars of his life. Jong-gyu was only eleven while Eun-jin had turned six in February. They were mischievous children and always got into trouble, but Taehyung loved them more than anything. Picturing the three of them making an escape plan so the oldest could get help shattered me to pieces.

I wiped my hands on my nightgown and stood. Taehyung was covered from head to toe in the salve, and already the marks were going away. It would take more than that to heal his bruised ribs. So, I went to the kitchen and looked around for a healing potion. I did not feel like making one at this hour and we both needed to get some rest.

“Why did you come here?” I asked, gently.

Taehyung sighed. “Because I knew you would help me.”

Again, my pity returned. While my blood boiled, my heart hurt for the alpha as well. I could imagine him hurt and abandoned, nowhere to turn to, and not being able to trust the local doctor. I found an old potion in the back of a cupboard. After quickly smelling it, I was sure it was still good to take.

“You can stay here as long as you need to,” I offered, handing him the potion. “Sol is my friend and I’m making it my job to keep you safe.”

Taehyung seemed at ease with this. Downing the potion, he curled up on the couch and closed his eyes. “Thank you, Bridd,”

I did not reply. Instead, I used my magic to bring him a few blankets and struck up the fireplace. He was weak and may not be able to regulate his body temperature as easily. It got cold in the living room at night. Seemingly satisfied with his place on my small, uncomfortable couch, Taehyung fell asleep within seconds.

I had never seen anything like it in all my life. Stifling my laughs, I began blowing out the candles around my house, and put away all the used tubs of salve. I would need to make more soon. Exhausted and still recovering from the ceremony, I drug myself back to bed. Shiloh was waiting for me when I arrived.

“How many times do I have to tell you to take your bedrest seriously?” The barn owl nagged.

I groaned and rolled into my bed. It was warm and soft. Shiloh flapped to her nest, a few feathers falling on my sheets that I ignored. I had gotten used to the constant cleaning many years ago.

“It was Taehyung,” I argued.

“I don’t care if it was Fenrir at the door, you better stay your-”

“Shiloh,” I warned, “Swîgian âstillian.”

The bird grumbled to herself, but I was too far gone to pay attention.

Someone was knocking on my front door. Groggy and still stiff, I groaned and rolled on my side. I could hear voices outside, none of them sounding happy, but I heard someone calling for Taehyung and my temper flared. Angry and sore, I used magic to lift myself out of bed and threw on my robe. I saw Taehyung curled up in a ball in front of the sofa. He did not notice me until I was standing in front of the door.

Shiloh was shouting at me to get back in bed, to let the wolves handle their own business, but I ignored her. When they decide to take their politics to my doorstep, I have every right to give them a piece of my mind. Squaring my shoulders, I took a deep breath before forcing my arms forward.

My front door flew off its hinges and into whoever was standing behind it. Namjoon was unfazed by this and slapped the thick wood out of his way. I could see the shock in his eyes, but I was not finished with my assault. I began to sing, a whirlwind of objects floating around the room. Namjoon backed away but this only pissed me off more. Shiloh shouted as a large, hot, blue flame sprouted from the palm of my hand and flew at the wolf.

“Hwæt−hwugu ðrîstian êow?” I shouted, everything dropped once my singing stopped. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

Hoseok and Jimin stood on either side of their brother. I knew I would regret attacking them eventually, possibly the moment they left, but I would not let myself falter. No one was going to come here and intimidate me. The rational side of my brain told me to stop, breathe, and listen to what they had to say, but the other (louder) voice wanted to break them into pieces. Taehyung was broken and bleeding last night and yet none of these people helped them.

“Bridd-” Hoseok pled.

Ignoring him, I kept my gaze perfectly trained on Namjoon. He stared at the large, ashen spot at his feet as I stared at him. My face burned with anger, and I felt another surge of magic rush through my body. A dull ache began to form in my back, and I knew I was bleeding again. I had used too much magic, and my body was having a hard time healing.

“Sê ðafian êower m¯ægð teohhian êower weorðfulnes?” I roared, eyes burning. “Sol chose him. The Gods chose him! Do you all somehow believe you to be superior to them now? Are you all that blinded by your precious Chief's biases that you would allow for this to happen?”

Namjoon swallowed thickly before finally looking at me, “Of course not. I-”

“You listen to me,” I sneered. “If you ever get the gull to come bang on my door again, I swear to you, I will not show you the same mercy.”

Namjoon stuttered over his words, unable to form a proper sentence. I could feel myself growing tired again and the red in my vision was dissipating. Shiloh was still shouting at me to come inside, to let Taehyung handle this himself, but I could not let him stand here alone. No one else was here to help them if the three men decided to attack and I would never forgive myself for leaving the boy defenseless. I stood tall but visibly more relaxed.

“We’re here to speak with Taehyung,” Hoseok pleaded. “I swear we have no intentions to fight with you or him. Namjoon needs to relay a message.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but a voice from behind me beat me to it.

“I’m fine, Bridd,” Taehyung said. The alpha looked at the others but stayed safely behind me. “What’s the word?”

“Don’t be angry with me, cousin,” Namjoon started, stepping towards us.

Instinctively, I got into a defensive position. Namjoon stopped walking and held his hands up in surrender while Hoseok flanked him. Jimin was still standing perfectly still, his eyes on me, and I wondered if he was thinking of a way to get at me if need be. If I was thinking rationally then I would understand why, but in my elevated state it only served to hurt my feelings.

“I have challenged you,” Namjoon continued and all thoughts of Jimin left my mind.

“Quare?” Taehyung’s tone was incredulous, and I could hear the betrayal that coated his tongue. “What have I ever done to you?”

Namjoon seemed to soften but I felt my muscles clench as I readied myself to defend the boy in response. No one was going to hurt him. Sol was my good friend and I refused to let harm come to her mate. I would sooner drop dead before I allowed someone like Ahn to destroy the lives of a group of people because of his complexes. I knew Namjoon well enough to know that he would try to play both sides if it meant keeping the peace within the village. I did not respect that- not at all.

“So no one else would,” Namjoon willed Taehyung to believe him. “We are trying to buy time to come up with a plan, Taehyung. I swear, I have no intention of fighting with you.”

“Putasne me stultum esse?” Taehyung hissed and I could feel his body heating up. “Sol a me auferre conaris!”

Namjoon blanched. I was proud of the young wolf, and I had to admit that I agreed with him. Namjoon was so proud of the fact that Sol would be his mate that I had a difficult time believing the challenge was only for Taehyung’s benefit. Looking at the other two wolves it was clear to me that they also did not believe the eldest man.

“I do not want to hurt you, Taehyung,” Namjoon plead but I could see his growing agitation. He did not like the way he was being spoken to. “I mean what I say even if you are too dense to understand that.”

Taehyung growled, and I had to steady my racing heart. I would have to protect him inside. Namjoon would have the advantage of leaving, and I was vulnerable to the sun’s rays if he decided to extort that. Still, I positioned my hands defensively. Taehyung was done talking and both Hoseok and Namjoon waited for his next move.

Suddenly, Shiloh flew out of the house and screeched loudly. Everything happened quickly. First, Shiloh was barreling towards Namjoon and then a wolf was standing in his place. I knew it was an accident, and Taehyung was only trying to protect me, however, his massive frame surged me forward. I was in the sun before I could save myself, and soon my face slammed into my front steps and the sun beamed on my back. My ankle burned as the metal cut through.

My skin burned immediately, and I could not help the tortured screams that flew out of my mouth. Unfocused eyes trained on Shiloh and saw her turn towards me before a large, russet wolf shoved her out of the way with his nose. I felt many hands on me, and I was dragged back inside. My body trembled as I screamed. Every inch of my skin was on fire, and I closed my eyes only to see white. It felt like someone was tearing me apart. All around me I heard screaming and shouting.

“Quid irrumabo facimus?” Hoseok shouted.

“Nescio,” It sounded like Taehyung was crying.

My eyes rolled to the back of my head, and I could not think straight. The pain was numbing. Opening my eyes again, I saw my ceiling and raised one of my shaking hands. Black feathers had pierced through the skin, and I cried out once more.

“Recedite ab ea!” Someone screamed but I could not make out who.

“Licuitne futura est?”

I knew something was happening a few feet away but all I could focus on was the fire in my body. I knew this would subside eventually on its own, I had not been in the sun long enough for the full transformation to take place, but I had something that could help. I just needed to gather the strength to get it. I opened my mouth to speak but could only scream.

“It burns,” I managed to grunt, convulsing.

I could feel hands on me, but I could not get my eyes to focus. Sleep would be impossible now and I knew my body was in the worst shape it had ever been. Between the ceremony, the small amount of magic I used, and the sun I would be out of service for an entire week at this rate. Possibly even more.

“Move,” I heard Shiloh’s voice through the rest of the nonsense going on around me.

Looking through my lashes, instead of an owl there was a beautiful woman before me. Her fiery hair glistened in the sun and looked like it was underwater. Her skin had a dim glow to it and shimmered brightly. She looked like diamonds, and I reached out to touch her. The spirit had tears in her eyes, the water shining brilliantly, before she caressed my hand.

“Slêpte,” She whispered, fingers grazing my arm.

Instantly, I felt the relief I had been begging for wash over me. Sighing in relief, I closed my eyes and curled closely to Shiloh’s side. I felt her fingers running through my hair and the exhaustion hit me all at once. I could hear growls and snarls, but the frantic talking was much louder. Someone was crying but I was too tired to figure out who it was.

“I’m going to put you to bed,” She whispered. “Where you belong.”

When I woke, I could smell food cooking. I was in my bed, my memory faded and hard to recall, but I knew Shiloh had been in her spirit form. It was what she wished to look like in her next life, and I secretly thought she would be extremely beautiful. Rubbing my eyes, I could not remember the alphas leaving and knew I needed to get up. My body screamed in protest as I sat up, but I pushed forward. No one was going to harm the boy- not while I still had air in my lungs, and I could only hope that he was alive and well in my living room.

Upon entering the kitchen, I had to grasp my door frame for support. The stove was lit, I could smell the applewood, and one of my large pots was on top of it. The rest of the room was clean. Far cleaner than I ever left it. Someone had mopped and swept by hand. I could smell the lemons they used on the wood mingling with the strong scent of onions.

“You should be in bed.”

I jumped up. Whipping my head around, Jimin was sitting in my recliner across the room. Taehyung was staring at me from in front of the fireplace. Neither Hoseok nor Namjoon were there. I could not feel or smell my familiar’s presence either, and I had a pang of fear shoot through me.

“Where’s Shiloh?” I demanded, stumbling forward and grabbing on my island.

Taehyung stood up and came toward me quickly.

“Please, don’t push yourself, Bridd,” He said softly.

The alpha led me to the small loveseat that was tucked away and helped me to sit down. Jimin stood and covered me with one of my spare blankets before taking the seat next to me. He must have gone digging around while I was asleep. Sparing a glance at my hands, all of the feathers were replaced by nasty scars that were already lighter than the surrounding skin, like they had been there for years, and I felt sad looking at them. I could only imagine the state the rest of my body was in. It seemed like Jimin sensed my mood and placed his hand over mine.

“She stepped out for a while,” His voice hoarse like he had been screaming.

I had been angry with him; I remember vividly I thought of him and Namjoon as one entity here to hurt Taehyung but being in front of him now it had all but vanished. There was no way Park Jimin would ever be fine with what had happened. Nor would Hoseok or Namjoon. Even thinking of him I found myself hurting for him. I could only imagine how he had felt after everything had happened. I did not think anyone could have prepared for that amount of shock. However, gazing at Taehyung, most of my sympathy stopped there. Namjoon was still acting like some know-it-all, high who was high and mighty for what he had done. If Taehyung did not believe his intentions were good, then neither would I.

“Is everyone alright?” I asked.

Jimin hummed, “Everyone but you. Namjoon and I got into a fight before he left but he’ll be fine.”

I scowled at Jimin. “I don’t like the idea of you fighting.”

He grinned, “Don’t worry, amica. I won.”

“Doesn’t change my feelings.” I grumbled and looked at Taehyung.

He seemed confused. While most of his face was perfectly schooled, his eyes told a different story. As they bounced back and forth between Jimin and I, I could see confusion turn into something… other. Almost, acceptance. Strange, I thought. I did not think about it too much. My affection for Jimin was likely apparent, and stronger, than that of the other alphas. The boy was probably trying to get used to it. Then he winked at me, and I looked away,

Was it possible that he had caught onto my feelings? Had I sized him up too quickly? I knew he was mischievous and carefree, but I also knew he was very aware of others. When he had spoken so passionately about being what a good ruler was, I had gotten that impression as well as his own naivety. However, my troubles were quickly dismissed as I looked into Jimin’s eyes. It was impossible to stress when he was around.

“If it is alright with you then I would like to stay here until Taehyung decides what to do,” My eyebrows shot up.

“What for?” I replied.

“I’m sorry for pushing you,” Taehyung butted in. “I didn’t realize you were standing so close, and I was overwhelmed.”

I shook my head and assured him an apology was unnecessary, “I’m serious, Taehyung, it wasn’t your fault.”

“Yeah,” He scoffed, “You’re covered in scars because of my actions, and now my cousin is angry with all of us because of the fight. Hoseok said it was best if we stayed away from the village for a while. We can’t go back home.”

This was not surprising, at least, not to me. I did not plan on Taehyung leaving my cottage for a while, but Jimin’s own exile was either completely self-inflicted, or a way for Hoseok to calm Namjoon down before he made any other rash decisions. Like challenging Taehyung. Even if he claimed it was only to stop others from doing so, I could understand why his little cousin would be offended by his complete lack of faith in him. A challenge did not sound like a great way to get others on Taehyung’s side and would only make the boy’s stress raise.

“I found the letter that your friend sent you in your coat pocket,” Jimin suddenly said.

Confused, I frowned. I knew he was trying to change the subject, but I had no clue what he was talking about. Racking my brain, I found myself at a loss before the lightbulb went off.

“Wendy!” I exclaimed.

Going to stand, Jimin gently grabbed my arm. He looked bashful and unsure of himself. I was just like the last time he had been here, only it felt different. He almost looked… afraid to tell me what he had read. My breath quickening, I pulled my arm out of his grasp.

“What did it say?” I asked, wearily.

When I got no response, I lifted myself up and ignored the two men. I hobbled to my coat rack. However, strong arms wrapped around me before I made it a foot away from the sofa.

“Taehyung,” I threatened. “Put me down. Now.”

“Sit. You’re hurt.” He pleaded and walked me back over to the living space.

Frustrated and anxious, I turned my head and bit the side of his arm. The wolf yelped before letting go of my waist. I stumbled, wobbled over, before landing on my ass.

“This is ridiculous,” I complained, slowly lifting myself up. I ignored Taehyung’s outstretched hands. “You come to my home, go through my things, and then not allow me to read my own letter? She’s my friend! If it’s important I ought to know.”

Jimin sighed, frustrated. I refused to back down and continued to stand despite the slight sway I was fighting. Taehyung had given me some space, which I appreciated, but was close enough to catch me if I fell down again. The older alpha and I had a stare off.

Finally, after a few minutes of silence, Jimin spoke, “If you had more patience, I could have given it to you. It’s in my pocket.”

“If you had just said that instead of looking at me like an idiot-” I countered, limping back to the sofa, “-then I couldn’t have gotten up.”

The alpha glared at me but said nothing more. Snatching the paper from his hands, I made myself comfortable in my spot. Taehyung came closer, a weary look on his face. An apology was in order, but I fought with my own pride to give it. He picked me up without consent and so I bit him. End of discussion. Still, the need to tell him I was sorry was strong.

I’m happy to hear you are feeling better. However, I’m sure by the time this reaches you the Luna’s ceremony would have taken place and you’ll be back in bed again. I’ve always marveled at how powerful you are and yet so fragile. My mother thinks it was the way the Gods meant for it to be. You’d be far too much if you had all of your abilities and the same willpower as any other witch. In other words, good luck and I hope you have a fast recovery.

My sister has decided to marry a man by the name of Bastian. I am very happy for her, and I know Nixie will make a good wife- even if their children will be raised as humans rather than witches. Apparently, Bastian’s family is against magic and Nixie is unbothered by it. She was always rather bad at it, so I can guess why she has no issue giving it up. The entire time I have been here I’ve been barred from playing around. Nixie is very strict when she wants to be. They are very in love, and I am happy for her.

This trip, however, had made me think of my own life more than I thought it would. Y/N, would you hate me if I told you I was considering staying here? My time in Northorn has opened my world to many possibilities. Then I think of you, Yoongi, and Seokjin and the thought repulses me. Oh, I love him. I love Seokjin. I want him to be with me and yet… my eyes still wander. Is that wrong? I know you understand me more than anyone else. Have you ever thought about telling him how you feel or is it too scary? Because I’m scared, Bridd. I’ve hurt him too much.

I should stay here, right? Spare both him and Yoongi the heart ache. God knows I’ve put too much of a strain on their relationship already. From what I hear, they’re already back to being friends since I’ve kept away. Yes, I think I will stay here.

Please help me. Do something for me. I’m confused and unsure of myself. Nixie says I’m overthinking everything, but I know you will be more honest. Sending you all of my heart- at least what is left of it.

Your dearest friend,

Wendy

Rereading the letter over again, I felt my heart sink. Shiloh must have decided to go and see her after finding out. I mentally thanked her and immediately went to fetch a pen and paper. Neither wolf tried to stop me.

It made sense now why Jimin would hesitate to talk with me about the letter. He had never, as far as I know, met Wendy. It must have been confusing to read through. I remembered her line about me understanding her and my stomach sank. That must have been a strange thing to read about, too. I cursed under my breath before I began to write.

Wendy, darling,

I am fine. There is a lot happening in Bangtan at the moment, most of which I hardly understand, and it has taken its toll on me. Between the ceremony and now I haven’t one moment of peace. I do hope you can help me relax once you return. I know you will.

Forget about those two fools and remember why you have stayed here all this time: your mother, the sisterhood, your coven, and the forest. Who else can tame a magindara like you? No one. Who can purify the sea and sing with the shore like you? No one. Do not let petty, childish things stop you from enjoying your life. You will always have me, and I will forever be there. I’m happy for Nixie! Her engagement is splendid news and I wish I could be there with her.

However, life has chosen a different path for me just as it has chosen one for you. I am frightened, Wendy. Every day I am scared of what it will bring, but I do not let that stop me from enjoying the sunshine. I love the flowers, the trees, and the winds that ripple through them. Aldara used to tell me, “Fear reminds us that we’re alive, and without it many would surely be dead.” So, don’t kill yourself off just yet, darling. Keep swimming and come home. Talk to Seokjin and he will understand. Yoongi has no ill will toward either one of you. Let go of your fantasies and stay rooted in the reality of your heart.

You have made many mistakes in this life, but who hasn’t? I do think that we can salvage our friendships if nothing else, and if you truly want to be with Jin, then I would say try to win him over. He has spent many years running behind you while your sights were set on someone who did not see you very clearly. I want our circle back together again, but I want all of you happy within that circle. So go for it. Even if I am afraid, you do not have to be. See you soon.

Missing you greatly,

My body was beginning to loosen, and the pain was becoming bearable. Satisfied with my response, I waved it in the air to make it dry faster as I rummaged through my drawers for an envelope. I could only hope I could muster the strength to send it off. If Shiloh were here, she would have gone off herself or asked one of the boys, but I was on my own now. Alone and in desperate need to get this damn letter to Wendy. Shuffling to my ceremonial bag laying by the front door, I sifted through it until I found my meteor powder.

I knew I was taking a risk with this sort of thing, but I had to be willing to risk it if it meant I could change Wendy’s mind. I was already hours behind. Without a second more to lose, I gathered up a piece of parchment and a pen to begin drawing. Remembering Wendy’s face was simple enough, years of drawing and perfecting using the powder making it almost easy to do, but I still felt uneasy. My heart would not rest until I received word back or the sea witch showed up at my door.

Praying that I got every soft feature right, I contemplated adding color but quickly dismissed the idea. It would not really make any difference and I was not sure if her hair was dark or light anymore. Wendy often went through fazes with that sort of thing. Laying the paper on the floor, I said her name for good measure, and threw the powder on top of it. Less than a second later, the paper was gone, and I sighed.

“Hope she got it,” I mumbled to myself.

It was Taehyung who broke my trance.

“That was so cool!” He exclaimed.

I chuckled, “Not as cool as my own magic, but it’ll have to do. I can hardly feel anything in my body.”

Walking back to the couch, I curled up beside Jimin. He looked worried again and I realized I had messed up. Admitting that I was weak and tired would only make him drag me back to bed. Readily myself for another spat, I squared my shoulders and looked at him.

“She seemed upset,” He said instead. “I had not realized your friends were involved in that way.”

I hid my surprise well. It did make sense for Jimin to worry about others, I had just never imagined he would take my friend’s hardships so seriously. Looking away, I nodded.

“It’s been a thing since we were children. Don’t worry too much, she will come back, and they will be together. It’s their never-ending cycle.”

“Why aren’t they now?” It was Taehyung who asked.

“Because,” I sighed, “they don’t truly know what they want.”

Jimin fixed me a bowl of the cabbage stew he had made for us. It was rather plain but filling and lulled me into an unsettled sleep on the small couch. I could vaguely remember waking up shouting, but for the life of me I could not recall the dream that had frightened me so. It was Jimin who brought me to my bed after that and I did not wake up again. Not even when I shifted after sunset.

Taehyung was a nice company to have around. He took good care of his things, cleaned up after himself, and was useful. I had stopped sending supplies to Foxglove, something that neither Taehyung or Jimin agreed with, but it did not change my mind. They did not deserve my help if this is what they were going to do with it. No one had come to collect anything either, so I assumed they were boycotting my services indefinitely, or no one felt comfortable enough to come here with the wolves present.

Wendy had written to me the following morning confirming she was coming back. She had even written to Jin. While I did not know what she had said I could take a few guesses. It was only a matter of time before Seokjin told me all about it. He was the worst at keeping secrets.

Taking a deep breath, I opened my eyes and stared at my altar. My magic had come back a few days ago and I had been allowing it to rest. Today was the first time I had performed a ritual spell in days. Looking over my shoulder, I smiled gently at Jimin napping on my sofa.

While we had not spoken much since that night, he was doing his best to help Taehyung make a plan to win over the town. While I thought it was foolish to think he could do such a thing without a fight, I believed in them enough to support it. Jimin was a beloved figure of the community and having him on Taehyung’s side greatly increased his odds. I knew the pack was feeling both of their absences and I hoped Namjoon would show his face here again. We had much to discuss and I wanted to apologize for my loud outburst. No matter what anyone else had to say I placed much of that terrible encounter on my own shoulders.

“What’s a cah-dee-jo?” Taehyung asked, obnoxiously loud.

“A cadejo-” I corrected, rolling my eyes, “-are spirits that help worthy travelers find their way.”

Taehyung raised an eyebrow. “And if they’re not worthy?”

“They’ll eat them,” I replied easily.

The alpha had been interested in my books after finding something I had written about the magindara when I was a kid. He was going through them so quickly, I was having to go to the cellar to get new material for him. As naive as he was, Taehyung Kim was a bright young man with a vivid imagination. He always asked questions, never settled for one answer, and listened carefully.

“Why?” He asked.

“Why not?”

He said nothing after that and went back to reading. I had started growing fonder of the man and hoped he was able to go back home. When he spoke of his siblings his eyes lit up and it broke my heart. His parents must be worried sick.

Having spent most of my morning sitting, I decided to make lunch. I was expecting Shiloh to be back later today. Wendy said my familiar had gotten to her inn just before she sent off her letter, so I knew the owl was safe. Thinking about her I grew emotional. Exposing her spirit form was extremely dangerous, a risk I would never have asked her to take, and she had done it regardless.

Going to my kitchen window, I whistled loudly and began pulling out a pot and pan. Tomato soup sounded lovely and I could always make a quick loaf of bread. A few minutes later, Delinah was at my window. Looking up from the onion I was dicing, I grinning at the deer.

“Morning, Dee,” I greeted.

She bowed her head. “Glad to see you moving around. You gave us all a fright.”

I hummed, scooping the onions and throwing them into the pot along with three whole heads of garlic, some fresh herbs, and oil. In the corner of my eye I saw Jimin beginning to stir on my sewing chair.

“I’m good as new,” I joked, using a spell to light my stove. “Would you mind fetching some tomatoes from Seokjin’s garden? I’d ask Shiloh but she’s out of the forest for the day.”

“Where’d she head off to?” Delinah asked, pulling the cloth tote I kept on the windowsill into her mouth.

“Northorn,” I replied.

“Northorn? What’s so important in that miserable place?”

I laughed, placing my knife down to help my friend get the tote around her neck. Delinah nuzzled my hands. Giving her a quick pat on the head, I promised her carrots when she got back.

“And to answer your question,” I walked back to the counter. “Wendy is attempting to run away so she’s bringing her back.”

She laughed, “Oh, that Wendy Byrd. You never know what you’re going to get with that one.”

“But we love her.”

Jimin was up and walking around right after Delinah left. Taehyung was still head-first in my magical beasts book. I took over my try of onions and garlic and let them begin roasting over the open flame of the stove. The tomatoes would not take long to char. I could hear the two men talking quietly but decided to play them no mind. It was hard to have privacy in this house as it was.

Delinah was back quickly and I sent her off with a bundle of carrots. After roasting the tomatoes, I used my pestle and mortar to blend everything together. Working in small batches, I took my time to be sure everything was smooth before throwing it into the pot I had taken out.

“Bridd,” Taehyung called out. “Can I get your opinion on something?”

I nodded, “Ask away.”

“I want to write a letter to Namjoon but I’m not sure how he’d take that.”

I paused for a moment to think. While it might be a wise idea to test the waters with a note of some kind, I was also not foolish enough to think he would be able to deliver something to the village at this time. People were looking for him and to show his face might lead to more speculation. However, he had to do something before the elders made a decision as to what to do with him.

Namjoon had officially challenged him and only revoking that, which would terminate the fight, would be his best option. I had full faith in Taehyung’s ability to defend himself if he truly wanted, but his personality would make it hard for him to commit to a brawl. Namjoon would win just from his determination alone, if it came down to that, but I had a difficult time believing it would. The only way for Namjoon to win would be killing Taehyung in exchange for Sol and he would never bring himself to do that.

“I don’t think that would help much,” I admitted. “You are aware of Ahn and his tricks. I don’t believe a letter would arrive to him if you wrote one or not.”

I heard his sigh of defeat and felt saddened. I empathize with the alpha’s situation. I knew he was preparing himself to fight his older cousin, possibly kill the man, and no one was pleased by this. In my younger years, Aldara enjoyed teaching me defensive magic but I could never strike her back. It was not until that night I truly saw what I could be capable of if left to my own devices. I shuddered at the thought. I would not wish that on anybody- especially Taehyung Kim. Mixing the soup, I spoke.

“I’m sorry it has to be this way.”

“Me too,” He replied.

The three of us ate our lunch in silence. Jimin had been more quiet than usual and I knew his brain was on overdrive. He had also been away from his family, his pack, and his home for three days without an end in sight. I knew how hard the silence could be and even then I had been quieter. Still, it must be hard on him. It was a wolf’s nature to be with his family.

Taehyung did not ask anything after that. The rest of the day, he sat on the floor near the fireplace and read book after book while Jimin looked out of the windows and wrote down in a journal I had given to him when he asked. They never went outside. I managed to do a few chores, practiced some new spells, and wrote in my grimoire, but nothing else had struck an interest in me. The tension in the house was suffocating. It was not until Shiloh returned at sunset that the house stirred.

In a whirlwind, the barn owl flew through my bedroom window, her loud voice bouncing off the walls. Carelessly I threw my pen down onto my grimoire. Black ink smeared into the pages ruining all of my hard work, but I did not care. She was back and I could breathe a bit easier then. I knew Shiloh would have an answer. She always knew what to do.

“Between those wolves and you witches,” She complained, “I’ll never, ever catch a break.”

“Oh, Shiloh,” I cooed, opening my arms to her.

My familiar raced into my waiting embrace and let herself be babied. I pet her head and smoothed her feathers down gently. The owl leaned into my touches with joy. I could not remember the last time I had smiled so widely since she had gone.

“You’re so strong and mighty, little one. I missed you dearly.”

She laughed, “I’m so happy to see you up and walking around.”

“Where’s Wendy?” I asked, letting her go.

Shiloh flew into the kitchen and I followed behind her. She must be exhausted after the long journey. She pecked at the bread from lunch and made note of the wolves in the living room. Pleased that they were still here, Shiloh told me how much she liked Taehyung before giving up any other information. I chuckled at her antics.

“She’ll be back after her sister’s wedding.”

“Oh, wonderful!” I clapped my hands together in delight.

“Another pain in my ass,” She mumbled.

And I laughed, and laughed, and laughed.

It was always an adjustment when you first transform, I found. Even after all this time I was slightly disoriented after the whole ordeal. The first night Taehyung had been here, he had almost broken my bedroom door down trying to see if I was alright. If Jimin had not reassured him, I was sure he would have been traumatized by the scene. It was the fourth night now, and Taehyung slept peacefully through my screams. Shiloh had gone to bed extra early. Jimin was the only person still awake when I flew through the kitchen window.

He was still dressed in the same clothes he had been wearing for days. I hand washed everything twice but he insisted on keeping them. I had made clothes for Taehyung and was a bit upset at Jimin’s rejection. However, I never brought it up again. I simply washed them and used magic to get them dry.

Tonight, however, he had taken off the long cape he usually wore. His socks and shoes were also somewhere else and I noticed his belt was also missing. He wore his hair down, the silver strands sitting at his waist, and I saw a simple headband keeping his bangs out of his eyes. He was sitting at the kitchen island staring at whatever he had been writing. I decided to go to him.

“Hello,” He offered, a smile that did not meet his eyes thrown my way.

He looked tired, more so than usual, and worn. Taehyung snored loudly on the floor and rolled over. Jimin did not bat an eyelash and continued looking at the papers. I hopped closer and twisted my head to look at them. The alpha did not try to stop me. It was difficult to make out everything as the ink was smudged and worn, but I recognized the handwriting from anywhere.

I realized it was the paper I had used when I had visited him a few weeks ago. I felt myself growing emotional. He had kept it… something so inconsequential and yet he had kept it. Apparently, he even walked around with it. My heart grew fonder with every encounter we shared, and I found I could not breathe properly.

I’m feeling better.

Not if it’s something you like.

I love blueberries.

You did nothing wrong, Alpha. I promise.

“It brings me comfort,” Jimin whispered. “Knowing that you’re out there.”

Turning to look at him, I found him crying. The moonlight illuminated his delicate face and the tears that ran down his cheeks. For the first time since I have known Jimin, I felt sure of myself. Drawing near, I gently flapped my wings and landed in his lap. Clicking, I rubbed my face on his stomach and allowed the warmth within me to shine. He kept it.

Jimin grabbed me and held me tightly as he wept. What his sorrows were for, I was not sure, but I had to guess it was something to do with this situation. Whatever the case may be, I melted into his touch. He was always so open with me like this. I wished he would hold me tightly as a woman, too. I knew I was beginning to grow greedy but did not care anymore. He had kept that stupid piece of parchment and I was completely done attempting to care about customs or the opinions of others.

“I don’t know what to do,” He whimpered. “I understand them both, know that neither one of them are happy with the way they left things, but I can’t do anything about it.

“I don’t want to leave Taehyung, but I don’t want to watch my friends kill each other over a miscommunication.”

And as mad as I was at Namjoon, as badly as I wanted to throw him against a wall and scream in his face for playing into the game the others were creating, I could not say I wanted him dead. We were friends after all. Even after our spat the other morning I could call him that freely. I knew something had to give sooner or later.

The alpha only allowed himself two minutes to cry. After that, he apologized to me profusely before gently setting me back down on the island. Wiping his face aggressively, he excused himself before leaving the cottage entirely. I wanted to go after him but thought he might need the space and time to think. Looking down at the paper at my feet, I felt something shift inside of me.

So what if a letter is offensive? They beat Taehyung to a bloody pulp, exiled him, and made his family think he needed to be challenged in order to keep the pack in order. If a simple letter would be the thing to set them off then I would happily be the bad guy. Knowing that I was more than likely making an awful choice, that the chances of someone else getting their hands on Namjoon’s letter were high, I still had to try. I would never see Jimin cry like that again. My mind made up, I gathered up some paper and an ink jar and began to write.

“Y/N,” Auntie whispered, her fingers running through my hair.

The sun had just begun to rise, the sky was still purple, and I struggled to open my eyes. Stirring, I moaned and rubbed my face. My eyes continued drooping closed and I yawned loudly.

Aldara chuckled, “Wake up, sleepy head. I want to make breakfast together.”

Shaking my head, I flipped over the pancake. In the dining room, Taehyung, Jimin, and the witches were talking about the best fishing spots in Bangtan. Seokjin and Yoongi had decided to drop in this morning, and while I did not get a reason for the sudden visit, I assumed it had something to do with Wendy. Jin seemed surprised about the wolves and asked if we could speak privately after everyone had eaten. I heard Taehyung asking if vegan pancakes tasted good and I laughed.

I had started a vegetarian diet after Aldara died. It was nearly impossible to get meat when I was unable to leave my home. I cut out animal products completely four years ago after I got closer with the critters in the area. It felt wrong to eat someone I could have known.

“They’re not that different from ‘normal’ ones,” I answered. “I just use oat flour, bananas, and flaxseeds mixed with water. Everything else is the same.”

I could not see the face the alpha made, but I knew it was similar to disgust. Taehyung emoted the same for several emotions. Confusion, disgust, and anger were all similar enough to take a guess. Yoongi laughed and it made me smile. The two of us were the most similar in terms of lifestyle choices, but he ate fish with Seokjin from time-to-time.

“Why would you mix flax seeds and water together?” Taehyung asked, his bewilderment coating his tongue.

Grabbing a plate, I flipped the fresh pancake onto my small stack before heading over to the table. Various jars of preserves and marmalades were out along with Yoongi’s homemade syrup he had sent to me. While I had always enjoyed honey on my pancakes and toast, after cutting out animal products, I started mixing and matching to find something I liked more. Peanut butter and banana slices have not been topped by anything else. However, I had used all of my bananas making breakfast and had to settle for syrup.

“It replaces the egg,” I explained. “You mix it with the banana and let it sit for a few minutes to thicken up. It’s something a boy called Enver taught me. He lives in Moland and doesn’t get access to the market very often.”

“How do you get things from the market?” Jimin asked.

“I go very often,” Seokjin replied. “I always get things for Yoongi and Y/N when I go. Yoongi does the same as well.”

I hummed and nodded. “I have great friends.”

After breakfast, Yoongi invited the boys to go on a walk with him in the forest. Taehyung had brought up his newfound interest in the beings that lived in Bangtan, and the witch had offered to show him a jackalope borough a few minutes away. Jimin offered to go so he could keep an eye on Taehyung. I knew they could handle themselves, but I caught Jimin’s eye before he left and knew he was giving Seokjin and I space to speak. After they left, I began picking up the dishes with Jin’s help.

We worked quietly for a time. I washed while he dried. I knew whatever he wanted to say was on the tip of his tongue, his constant opening and closing of his mouth making that known, but I stayed patient. Seokjin was hesitating, which was strange for him, but I knew he was trying to collect his thoughts. Wendy threw him off kilter often and all of us were friends, so it made talking openly challenging. Yoongi had the same problem but would only come alone if he needed to vent. Enver was always his first pick since he was far removed from the forest, but he was too young to understand what Jin was feeling.

After the dishes were done, I began to wipe down the table and put away the toppings. Seokjin lingered but did not help with this. Instead, he put away the dishes. It took a few more minutes before he spoke.

“Wendy wrote to me,” He said.

I hummed. I did not want to talk about her letter to me yet. I tried to respect privacy as much as possible and kept a lot to myself. We were all too close for comfort at times and overzealous. Wendy was the worst with this, and Seokjin was unable to keep his mouth shut for forever, and so I tried to be someone reliable. Yoongi was better than I was but that was because he never gave much thought to other people. Their problems were not his and therefore did not truly matter.

“She said she wants to be with me.”

“Well,” I sighed. “How do you feel about that?”

He ran a hand through his hair. “It’s… complicated.”

Lifting myself onto the kitchen island, I nodded.

“I’m sure I can keep up.”

“For as long as I’ve known her, I’ve liked her to some capacity. She’s never really liked me in the same way, at least, not as much as I liked her.” He reasoned. And that was true.

Wendy had always looked the other way, said one thing and did another, and never truly opened her heart to him properly. Sure, she admitted that she liked him but would run after Yoongi when given the chance. At first, I thought Seokjin was reading too much into things, but when I stopped to think about it, he was right to be upset. Wendy placed Yoongi on a pedestal and often ignored how much she hurt everyone else in the process. Even the kitchen witch himself, a man who found himself an unwilling participant in their love triangle.

“I knew she meant it when she said she liked me,” He continued. “I knew that she had feelings and affections, but the second she saw him it was like we were twelve again. How can I know she’s serious this time? She’s been away, hasn’t seen anyone in months, and decides she is in love with me. What about when she sees Yoongi again? Will it still be true?”

I felt sorry for Seokjin. He’s never looked away from Wendy, much like Wendy was never able to fully look away from Yoongi. I knew his heart was genuine, but I was also aware of how sheltered he was. Bangtan was secluded and meeting others was difficult. I was not sure if his want for Wendy would be the same if he realized that the world was much broader than this forest. Still, I was not foolish enough to think that telling someone that there were more fish in the sea would be helpful.

“I don’t want to get hurt again,” He whispered.

“I know,” I replied. “I wouldn’t want that either.”

“How can I trust her words?”

I shook my head. “I… I’m not sure. I’ve always thought you two were just stubborn. I can see how much you both care, but I’m not okay with the toxicity. As much as I want the both of you to be happy, preferably together, I can’t stand the tension.

I think you should try it out- if you want to. See what happens. Maybe seeing her sister getting married changed something for her, or the time away- I don’t know. I do know that if you’re coming to me then that means she said something that sat with you. I would think about that and your own feelings.”

“She said that she loves me,” He muttered after a long moment of silence. “She said that after you two spoke- thank you by the way, that she felt more confident to talk to me. It was the first time I felt her apology was genuine.”

We had a long stretch of silence, the two of us just looking at one another, before Seokjin looked down. With a deep sigh, he ruffled his hair before asking to borrow a paper and pen from me. He knew where everything was, so it was an easy yes. I was no surer of what was to come than before, but hoped whatever it may be that my friends would be happy.

He sent off his letter soon after. I had started sweeping and making a schedule for the day in my head. There was a lot that I needed to get done. My absence had caused a large supply chain blockage to the sea coven, and I needed to get on it right away. Shiloh was asleep, her schedule still recovering from her trip, but I would wake her up to make the delivery later. No one else lived close enough to justify the trip and with Wendy still gone I had no one to send it to magically. After some more thinking, I asked Seokjin if he could write Cordelia and ask if anyone would be willing to pick up the supplies. He agreed easily and got to work.

It was a rare moment of silence with the solar witch. I knew his mind was all over the place, and his anxieties were not helping the matter one bit. I feared the worst but knew he would speak to me about it when he was ready. I would give him his quiet.

“I rejected her,” He finally said, voice cracking.

“Oh, Jinnie,” I cooed, putting my broom down and gathering him in my arms. That was a hard thing for him to do. I was proud of him for doing what was best for him, even if I was hoping my friends could make it work for both of their sake. “Yfel am sorig.”

He sobbed, “I can’t do it again, B. I just can’t.”

And I understood. I would deal with Wendy later, her own emotions probably bubbling over. I was sure Seokjin had alluded to being friends, keeping in contact- something that would give her hope like she had done so many times before. I knew he meant it and wanted the four of us to be like we were. I was no fool to think it would actually happen. Too much had been done and said for anything to be the same as it was.

Still, I hope with time we could grow together. I loved my friends dearly and hoped we could spend Yule together like we had when we were young. I was also not foolish enough to get my hopes up either. The never-ending cycle.

“I know. I know,” I whispered, rubbing his back.

Seokjin held me tightly and cried.

Over the next three days, Jimin and Taehyung started to venture out of the house more often. I had not heard from Wendy or Seokjin, but Yoongi wrote daily to make sure that I was alright. He was worried I would get another unexpected visit from the wolves. I was not sure if that was the case, but I was prepared to speak to someone eventually. I had a feeling Hoseok was staying away in order to keep the peace. When Jimin and I spoke about him it seemed like he was trying to make Namjoon change his mind. So far that had not been very successful, and the oldest alpha was still bitter about the fight with Jimin. Taehyung was becoming more resolute to the possibility of a fight and had been sparring with Jimin in case it came down to a brawl.

Shiloh had woken up earlier and earlier over the course of the last few days. Not as early as I was used to, but I would take noon over eleven at night. Taehyung and Jimin were still getting used to my late mornings. After staying up well into the night I was not out of bed unless absolutely necessary. My magic was stronger than it had been, but I could feel my body was still adjusting. Ever since I was child my magic drained the life out of me and defensive magic more than anything else. The Namjoon incident had thrown me for a loop, and I was having a difficult time coming back fully.

Aldara used to worry about my fainting spells after our lessons. She said that it was unnatural for a witch to become so overwhelmed by their own magic, but after many years of self-reflection, I realized that my body was always using magic. Unlike other witches who could control their output, my gifts left me vulnerable and weakened. The constant possessions and lack of self-control were two of the biggest downfalls of my own power. However, a small outburst would no longer make me as depleted as it once had. The last time I fainted after using magic had been the night, I found the cottage on fire.

Flipping through my grimoire, I tried to find the potion I made that reduced anxiety. Wendy was returning tomorrow, and Cordelia asked if I could send some to Syrena. I had only made this particular recipe twice and was still too unfamiliar with it to make it from memory. It would be Wendy’s luck that I sent over a shifting potion rather than a mood stabilizer, but I had faith in Griselda’s recipe.

I was worried about her. While it was normal to go weeks without talking, I was afraid she may be upset with me over the situation with Jin. She had to be suspicious we had spoken and probably thought I told him what to do. That, or she had convinced herself that Yoongi had something to do with it. Wendy had a difficult time seeing things for what they were, and while I felt empathy for her, I would never choose between my friends. I loved and respected them both and wished I could get out of the middle of everything. It was her who told him about our conversation in the first place.

Unable to find it I grew frustrated. I hated being so unorganized. Everything was sprawled about and jotted down in sloppy, rushed writing. Half of it hardly made sense to me and I pitied my successor. Poor girl will have to learn how to read hieroglyphics before she could understand half of what was written. Giving up, I slammed the book shut and decided to write Enver. He was the only witch I knew that would have something like this on standby. Carefully rolling the paper, I began to chant a new spell I had learned after reading Pippa’s grimoire and blew. The paper turned to ash and was gone.

Pippa was by all accounts a whack job. She had the most unorthodox methods of any witch I had ever read or heard of. Even looking through her countless spell books made that abundantly clear. She drew many of her spells in a step-by-step fashion that was somehow more difficult to follow than normal. Every spell and potion had strange ingredients that you would never put together and yet worked. She was brilliant. Aldara always made fun of my adoration for the woman, called me the next “nutcase,” and teased me about my own muddled grimoire. Still, no one could deny how talented Pippa was. This spell in particular was one of my favorites I learned so far. It was simple, used hardly any energy at all, and was extremely effective. I was happy my days of meteor powder were gone- even if I invented that one.

The front door slammed open. Screaming, I felt my heart speed up and my vision flash black and white for a moment. Composing myself, I shot daggers at Taehyung as he strolled into the cottage. Jimin bowed, his apology clear, before following the younger alpha inside.

“It’s such a beautiful day!” Taehyung exclaimed, rolling onto the couch.

My eyes twitched.

“Try that again,” I demanded.

The man shot up. His confusion was clear. Jimin stood in the doorway, an amused look on his face. Walking inside, he stood near the door and crossed his arms over his chest. I forced my eyes away from his toned back and continued to scowl at Taehyung.

“Try what again?” Taehyung asked.

“Walking into my house like a civilized person,” I deadpanned. “I swear, you act like you’ve never learned manners a day in your life. First putting your dirty, disgusting, muddy boots on my counter and now this? Thin ice, Tae. Thin ice.”

Taehyung scratched the back of his head and did as I asked. This time he gently opened the door and shut it. Satisfied, I hummed before going back to looking at my spell book. I really needed to buy a new one just to fix how ugly it all looked. I wanted to slap the little girl who thought this system was going to work. Groaning, I stood up and decided to take my work to the cellar.

“What are you looking for?” Taehyung asked, face glowing when he realized where I was going.

The wolf enjoyed taking trips with me and looking over my shoulder. I knew he hardly understood anything since most of it was written in Latin, but I knew it meant a lot to him. His curiosity never seemed to lessen or change. Jimin had not asked to come but I had a feeling it was his way of not being “rude.” I wished he would.

“I need to find a spell for a friend,” I answered. “I have one, but I wrote it when I was twelve and did not care if I could read it again. Such a childish thing to do.”

Taehyung laughed and was by my side without another second passing. Both of the wolves enjoyed hearing about my childhood. Tae had said it made me more human, but Jimin always told him that everyone knew I was. I wondered about their own childhood days. Jimin had been brave and reserved when we first met, just as he is now, but there was a sweetness there that was no longer present. This innocence that he could never get back. I knew that he could say the same about me. Seeing him again after all of those years had been a shock to my system. It was almost like our time in the forest had been completely erased from his memory. I was happy to see the gentleness within him again.

“May I join you?”

Pausing, I looked up at the alpha. Taehyung had already gone down the stairs and I could hear him shuffling through things. Jimin smiled at me, and I nodded. I was still riding high after the other night. We had not talked about it, but I knew something had changed since then. Jimin was more willing to be near me, his eyes ever so slightly softer, and his voice was like clouds. It felt like the wall of ice he had around himself had melted and I was able to feel his warmth once more. Jimin followed behind me closely.

After lighting the sconces on the walls, I found Taehyung curled in a corner of the room with a book in his hand. It was probably another one of Aldara’s monster books. She had seen so much in her long life. Before she took her place as the Bridd, Aldara had been a monster slayer. The first person in the world to defeat a Quietus, and was so good at it, she chased them out of Bangtan. All the ones that remain are in the northern part of Moland and tend to stay out of the forest. The book Taehyung held were the short stories Aldara had written about her adventures. She was far cooler than me at that age.

“It’s bigger than I thought,” Jimin whispered.

“It grows whenever we need a new bookcase,” I replied.

Jimin did not ask for clarification. He did not ask as many questions as Taehyung did, which I also chalked up to the etiquette training he received when he became an alpha. Taehyung had barely started those before being exiled. I thought about Namjoon and my letter and sighed. I still had not heard back from him. Jimin said my name, breaking me out of my thoughts.

“Who was the first Bridd?”

Shaking my head, I smiled. “Her name was Rosette.”

“How did this family thing even start?” Taehyung wondered out loud.

Taking a breath, I sat down at my small desk and gestured for the two men to sit. I recalled the first time I had heard this story. Back then, Aldara was less rigid and tense. Her hands were so much bigger than mine, and I remember her cooing at the dimples where my knuckles should be. I had been entranced by the blonde woman she had spoken so highly of.

“Rosette was from the Foxglove Village. This was many years ago when the town was home to all the shifters in Lustra. She was the daughter of a merchant and grew up surrounded by people who adored her. Life in Bangtan was hard but calm. That’s when the tales of the Quietus started to spread down south.”

Quietus were air elementals that had been the first settlers of Lustra along with the dragons. Aldara had called them “lost souls” who were scorned after the Sarkans attacked their land over a thousand years ago. The attack on Bangtan was a result of the people who lived here not coming to their aid when the humans came to take their cities, but they ended up getting it back soon after.

“After the Century War with Etelin, however, their people had been reduced to living in the swamps once the elves had allowed the Sarkans to inhabit what was once elemental territories. The few that came into the forest were stragglers hell bent on avenging their people or those who were so starved they had slowly lost their minds.”

Jimin’s face told me he knew of them. Taehyung was still lost in the fairytale. I sighed before continuing.

“These creatures were unheard of to the shifters; their people had only come to Lustra after their island had been destroyed by a natural disaster. Their treaties were still so new, so fresh, and their numbers so depleted, they had never gotten word of the siege. Rosette said that the first time her people heard of it was when their village was up in flames.

“They were convinced that the Reikans had something to do with the attack, and even if they were not directly involved, they were complacent. The Quietus queen, Nerezza, lost her youngest child during the Sarkan invasion. It was her grief of losing her child that drove her vengeful attack. Of course, they were wrong. The Reikans were skittish and afraid of fighting.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” Taehyung interrupted. “Shifters are strong.”

“Yes,” I agreed. “Your ancestors were strong people who lived through losing their homeland and were able to find a home here. However,” I pursed my lips. “Your kind are from Korika and were born fighters, but the people from Reika were very different from those your people remember. Whoever landed on your land integrated into your cultures. The others were left to build this land in their image.

“Those that lived here were no match for the Quietus. Even their warriors lacked the stomach for a true fight. It was said that no one but one made it out alive. Of course, that was not true. Many escaped but only one became significant.”

“Rosette,” Jimin muttered.

“Yes, Rosette,” I nodded. “She was a beautiful girl. Her long, blonde hair and bright green eyes made her stand out in a crowd. She was a bird shifter who was in love with a fox in town. She was only 16 when the attack on the village began. She, her sister, and a lucky few were able to escape.

“Rosette was the oldest and was familiar with military strategies from her time with the fox boy. She told them all to split up and find their way to safety. Rose found herself in this very clearing when she called out to the sky to help her. She asked the Gods for help. Suddenly, she was surrounded by warmth despite the blizzard going on around her. She knew it was them, she never knew how she did, but it was a feeling, and the wind around her asked what she wanted.

“Rosette asked for her sister’s life to be spared and in exchange she would do whatever the Goddess wanted. They accepted this offer. In exchange for her sister, Rosette and her bloodline would be tasked with being a guardian of the forest. That was the day we lost our freedom.

“She woke up the following morning in this cottage, her leg chained just as mine is now, and magic she had never had before. After being alone for over 100 years, she was sent Jordana. We never know when we’ll be sent our pupil but when it happens, we have 16 years left. It’s our duty to train them, raise them, and prepare them before our ascension to the spirit world.”

“Why can’t you shift as you please then?” Taehyung asked. Jimin smacked his arm, but I waved him off.

No harm in asking.

“Our transformations are directly tied with the moon and sun. The Gods love to see us dancing, whirling, and twirling through the sky. We’re lucky we were able to keep that part of ourselves in the deal. Magic and shifting is simply unheard of outside of these woods.”

“Is it the same for genuine werewolves?” Taehyung asked. “The sun and moon thing?”

I laughed, “No, silly. Werewolves are cursed to be compelled by the full moon. They’re practically animals after their first transformation. No one comes back from that, and they usually die within the first three months. Nothing like what you and I are.”

Taehyung seemed placated by this. He often called himself a werewolf much to Jimin’s chagrin. I could understand why the older alpha would be offended. They were born what they are, and their bloodline is strong. A werewolf has to be made and their species is dying out in the Ozryn Mountains from starvation. The last werewolf outbreak was decades ago and was swiftly dealt with by the dwarves in Idris.

After the story was over, Taehyung went back to reading Aldara’s book and I got to look around for that stupid potion again. I had yet to hear back from Enver and assumed he was busy. He was awful at writing back.

Jimin walked around the cellar and traced all of the books. It was astounding just how many were in here. Aldara alone had written over forty grimoires in her lifetime, and she was known to only figure out defensive magic spells. Rosette had 120, Jordana had 205, and Griselda had the record for the most with 223. I could not imagine having so many ideas. I have only finished three so far and was working on my fourth. I came up with more spells in my youth than I did now. I had a lot more fun with my magic then, too. Feeling bad about myself, I decided to take a break.

“Your aunt was so cool,” Taehyung said.

“Yeah, she was the coolest,” I grinned, my voice growing quiet at the word “was.”

It was getting late. The three of us had spent the day in the cellar. Jimin quietly skimmed through the books and was happy when I pointed him towards the diaries on the small shelf in the back. Taehyung had enough stories to last him a few more years. I flipped through Pippa’s spell books and made small talk with Taehyung. He always had something to say, and it was nice to have someone fill the silence around here.

Taehyung had gone up to take a nap over an hour ago leaving Jimin and I alone in the cellar. He was hunched over a book, eyebrows knitted in concentration, and tongue sticking out ever so slightly. I was sure he knew I kept stealing looks but chose not to comment on my ogling. It was rare to see him so closely and relaxed. Shiloh had let me know she was visiting Morla to give updates on Wendy. Mumbling under my breath, I watched as the pen and ink I had brought down earlier wrote in my spell book. I caved and let them do the work for me.

While reading over the other grimoires and books within the cellar, I had made myself a few notes of things I could experiment with. It was not as fun as Pippa’s nor as straightforward as Griselda’s, but I was happy to have thought of anything in the first place. Most of my experimenting went to the wolf pack and it was nice to have fun for myself. Aldara would be happy to see my creative muscles flexing again.

“Bridd?” Jimin called, voice soft and smooth.

I hummed and looked over. His hair looked dark gray in the candlelight and I eyed the messy flyaways floating around him. I wished I could brush them down. Jimin regarded me with the same stoic face I had come to love. I knew it was only a small facade put in place for the sake of his people. They needed a strong, dominant leader around them and no one else wanted to fill that role. I saw the ghost of a smile graze his lips and relaxed further into my chair. Those were only reserved for a chosen few.

“Why don’t you have anything here?” He asked.

“Everything that I own is upstairs,” I replied. “It would be far too much effort to come here anytime I needed to write or look over my work.”

He chuckled, “So, you do have a diary?”

Blushing, I nodded. “All of us do. It’s the best way to keep records for our successors.”

I would not allow him to read mine. It had far too many thoughts that I never wanted to reenter my mind. There was a particular time where I wrote daily and thus created five separate books detailing my misery. I would be mortified if Jimin or anyone for that matter got their hands on those. They held my deepest fears, darkest desires, and above all- what happened to me. I was always the most open in my writing and never felt the need to keep anything hidden. No one had ever noticed them on display or bothered to care much for them at all.

“Yours must be very interesting.”

I shook my head, “Not really. Mostly the angsty ramblings of a teenager. Nothing more.”

I sounded convincing enough. I heard Jimin shuffling around but refused to look his way. Deciding that I was done for the night, I began closing and stacking the grimoires I had taken out. I will sort through them later. Glancing at the walls, I could not tell what time it was but knew it had to be close to sunset. I needed to get to my room soon.

Going to turn, strong arms found themselves resting on either side of my waist. Shocked, I turned my head to find Jimin standing directly behind me. He chest pressed against my shoulder as I turned to face him. He had never been so close to me before.

I could count the small, individual freckles that dotted along his nose. His eyelashes were longer than I thought they were and flared out accentuating his eye shape. Everything about him was overwhelming and his scent hit me like a freight train. Hands gripping onto my desk, I struggled to speak.

“Jimin?” I managed to get out.

“Can I tell you something?” He whispered, getting closer.

Our chests touched and his hands moved behind my back. I felt his arms wrapping around me, but his hands stayed on the table. Nervously breaking our eye contact, I glanced behind me to see his hands sitting one on top of the other. I was shaking and had a hard time breathing. Jimin called my name, and I snapped back to his gaze.

“Can I?” His eyes were as black as coal.

A deep shiver went up my spine. Unable to form a coherent thought, I nodded. I swallowed thickly and reminded myself to breathe. Jimin smiled at me.

“I enjoy your company.”

Again, I could only manage a nod, my heart racing and mouth dry. Jimin’s face drew closer to mine. I took a sharp breath and held his eyes. I was searching for the meaning of this but found I could not read him anymore. This was a different man from the person that had been reading moments ago.

“I like being close to you. Is that alright?”

“Yes,” I replied breathlessly.

“Do you want me to stop?” He whispered, his breath brushing my lips.

I knew I should have pushed him away and told him that this could never work. Our lives were too different. It was far too complicated. He had a mate out there waiting for him. He would forget about me soon enough. Even knowing all of that, I shook my head.

“No.”

It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Jimin’s lips were soft and warm and lit my body on fire. The kiss was searing, and I felt the flames so deeply they licked at my bones. Hot shots of electricity licked my spine, and I grabbed a hold of his chest without another thought. Jimin’s arms encased me. Everything that I feared, wondered, and regretted did not matter anymore. None of it matters. He was here and he was mine.

Pulling away, I opened my eyes and saw him already gazing down at me. His eyes were so soft, gentle, and kind. Everything about him made me feel safe. He bent down and nuzzled his nose into my hairline.

“Thank you,” He whispered.

Dazed, I only nodded before seeking his lips out again. Jimin cupped my face and drew me impossibly closer. Any tenderness was gone the moment my tongue accidentally grazed his bottom lips. With a small growl, Jimin licked his way into my mouth and roughly grabbed a hold of my hips. Using his leg, he gently pried my legs apart and lifted me onto the desk. My hands had a vice grip on his shirt.

Suddenly, I felt a cold shiver run through my body and yanked away. Jimin took a few steps back. I could see that he understood what was happening. After choking out a “go,” I stood up from the desk and screamed. Jimin was out of the cellar before the first feather broke through my scarred skin.

Translations:

Swîgian âstillian. - Be quiet.

Hwæt−hwugu ðrîstian êow? - How dare you?

Sê ðafian êower m¯ægð teohhian êower weorðfulnes? - Who do you people think you are?

Yfel am sorig. - I am so sorry.

Thither is êower hygd? - Where is your mind?

Belāda mē - Sorry.

Quare? - Why?

Putasne me stultum esse? - Do you think I'm stupid?

Sol a me auferre conaris! - You are trying to take Sol from me!

Quid irrumabo facimus? - What the fuck do we do?

Nescio. - I don’t know.

Recedite ab ea! - Get away from her!

Licuitne futura est? - Is she going to be alright?

Taglist: @greezenini @adventures-in-bookland @kthstrawberryshortcake-main @zae007live @jimin-neverout @nikkiordonez12 @canarystwin @yamekomz @chimthicc @michiiedreamer @amorieus @mima795

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butterflyheartau · 8 months

Text

Welcome to the Butterfly Courts.

Generations ago, there were small groups of cats living in the forest. They called themselves Circles and were constantly fighting. Then one day, they awoke and a meadow had bloomed in the center of their woods. Intrigued, these cats entered tunnels around their territories, and at the bottom, they found it. The Butterfly Heart: a giant opal with a swirling lavender core in the center of the biggest cave. As they beheld it, the cats underwent a change that continued to alter their way of life until today, when there are four great Courts who live in (relative) harmony.

~Blog Intro~

The Butterfly Heart is an AU I created because I wanted to use different terms for certain things in the world of my fanClans. As these Clans grew, so did the world, until I ended up with a six-page Google doc about the lore of this world, seven separate docs of (mostly) genetically accurate cats, and one doc that was a page and a half of lore about a group not part of the Courts, so they’re separate. I decided I wanted to share it and my fanClans with the denizens of Tumblr, which is what this blog is for!

The following tags are what I will use to categorize my posts:

#butterfly heart territory post

#butterfly heart lore post

#butterfly heart culture post

#butterfly heart termswap post

#butterfly heart allegiances post

#butterfly heart character intro

#butterfly heart art

And of course the normal Warriors tags. These tags are how you will find things on my blog. Every lore post I make will be linked in a public Google doc that I will link in this post as well as the allegiances and art posts in their own docs.

I do have three other blogs:

My main blog (https://www.tumblr.com/o5-7-firefox?source=share) where I just reblog stuff and never remember tags. Some of it may be triggering to some but I don’t remember what all is there. Most of that blog is, however, one of the following: agere, Nico di Angelo, Warriors, Welcome to Night Vale, LIOM, or random things from my mutuals.

My hypokits blog (https://www.tumblr.com/fox-hypokits?source=share) which currently has one post in drafts and zero posted. I swear I’ll get around to posting my Leafpool design. I promise. I’ll trans a lot of cats’ genders on there.

My OC blog (https://www.tumblr.com/foxgloves-oc-blog?source=share) which also has no posts but is mainly for those OC prompts and OTP prompts that you see. I might draw for it. Probably not.

Feel free to follow these blogs, or to stay on this one! I don’t mind at all. <3

Google doc links are below the cut :3

Allegiances:

Lore:

Art:

#warriors au #warriors #warrior cats #butterfly heart #butterfly heart territory post #butterfly heart lore post #butterfly heart culture post #butterfly heart termswap post #butterfly heart allegiances post #butterfly heart character intro #butterfly heart art

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transfiguratiion-ooc · 2 years

Text

‎‎‎‎‎ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤMUSE LIST

Name: Cycad

Fandom: None

Birthdate: February 12, ????.

Age: 4 (Young Adult)

Species: Katanga lion

Gender: Male, He/Him.

Appearance: Cycad is a large sandy-colored lion who interestingly possesses no mane, He has dark brown eyes and a number of scars on his flank and back legs his fur is short and has a texture similar to hay. he (excluding certain circumstances) weighs about 215 pounds his nose is a spotted black.

Personality: Cycad is a friendly and kind lion, He is of average intelligence. though he struggles to connect emotionally with others he tries his best to be kind and understanding toward his friends.

Backstory: Cycad came from a rather unusual pride a group of about 12 female lions & Their cubs. With no real territory or leader they wandered the savannah. He was born in a age of relative peace for the pride and was raised by his loving and attentive Mother. He spent the days lazing in the sun and being taught various important skills. As he reached maturity he left the pride and began his life alone following the nomadic lifestyle of his pride.

Relations: Marula (Mother), Croc (Sister), Buffalo (Brother), Mamba (Sister), Adder (Sister), Honeybush (Grandmother),

[ Verses ]

Cub: Cycad is about five months old still running with his pride. He is cheerful and Curious

Anthro: what it says on the tin, Cycad 21 years of age is from a large family. he decides for a fresh start to take to the road in a trailer and travel the world.

Name: Nightshade

Fandom: None

Birthdate: March 17, ????.

Age: 6 (Adult)

Species: Jaguar

Gender: Male, He/they.

Appearance: Nightshade despite being called a black Jaguar has a coat which is more brown it is especially visible in the sunlight. He has one dark green eye and one yellow his fur is short but smooth. He often wears many flowers wether they be tucked on his ears or around his neck.

Personality: Nightshade is inquisitive and intelligent he is not cold on the contrary he is rather playful spending long days entertaining his daughter. Though at times he can be rather petty and emotion driven. He can also get rather frustrated at times. He isn’t particularly driven to find a mate or have cubs.

Backstory: Born in South America apart of a litter of three, He quickly left home a three or four months short of when it’s usual for his species due to his relationship with his family being rather turbulent . He was eventually captured by humans and sold into the exotic animal trade where he was then shipped a few continents over to rich collector. Eventually escaping and making his way into the larger continent. He took quite awhile to get used to his new environment but he eventually settled down. A few years later finding the now orphaned tiger cub Jasmine and taking her in as his daughter.

Relations: Jasmine (Adopted Daughter), Aconite (Brother), Foxglove (sister),

[ Verses ]

Anthro: A 34 year old single father, he tries his best to maintain a happy life for him and his daughter. Though his work does sometimes get in the way.

Younger years: Before Nightshade was taken from south America and he met Jasmine, Just a guy doin his thing.

Name: Jasmine

Fandom: None

Birthdate: July 4, ????.

Age: 3 months (cub)

Species: Tiger

Gender: Female, She/her

Appearance: Jasmine has the iconic bright orange pelt and black stripes as well as a small scar on her back leg. Her body is round and slightly chubby she has dark green eyes and white paws, Her tail has a slight kink in it.

Personality: Jasmine is sweet, brave, and empathetic though she does have her moments of sass. The tiger cub loves adventure and often spends her days nestled in her fathers side daydreaming. She is a bit of a slacker when it comes to honing her skills getting distracted rather easily.

Backstory: Jasmine was born a single child, She was raised by her loving mother until tragedy struck, her mother was killed by poachers Luckily she was found by Nightshade who had been hiding from the poachers when Jasmines mother had been killed. In a surprising turn of events the jaguar adopted the child. She had been weaned at the time of the events so feeding the cub was no problem. He raised the cub as his own and they now wander together.

Relations: Nightshade (Adopted father), TBA,

[ Verses ]

Anthro: After the death of her mother three month old Jasmine ended up through a long series of events being adopted by Nightshade. She is now six and attending school being cared for by her father and living a relatively happy life. Though she doesn’t have the best grades.

Name: Azalea Aaronson

Birthdate: December 12, ????

Age: 26

Species: Were-Coyote

Gender: Female, She/They/He

Animal form: A amber-eyed coyote with red & White fur that fades to a more sandy color on her legs and tail. She has large slash mark scar on her left front leg and is about 20 percent larger than the average coyote.

Human form: A pale skinned women with dark orange hair & Brown eyes. Usually wears a pair round bronze glasses as well as having both a lobe and helix piercing on each ear. She often wears jeans and a sweater. Her body type is mesomorph though its usually hidden by her baggy clothes.

Personality: A athletic loner Azalea has a love of nature and will often go on hikes. She gets overwhelmed in very loud spaces and is also stressed very easily, She suffers from anxiety nature being a retreat for her. She can be rather biting and defensive at times.

Backstory: Azalea was born in a very rural area she spent the first years of her life helping out on her parents farm, However she moved to a area more populated once she came of age. She lived a very monotonous life until on a night hike she was bitten by a coyote. Worried about her health she went to the doctor however they didn’t find anything she was assumed to be clear and she moved on with her life..That was until the night of the full moon. Azalea can now shift on will or forcibly on the night of the full moon into her coyote form. She disguises her nights as a coyote as hikes.

Relations: TBA.

[ Verses ]

None (for now)

Name: Croc

Birthdate: February 12, ????.

Age: 4 (young adult)

Species: Katanga Lion

Gender: Female, She/Her

Appearance: A sandy-golden lioness with piercing dark yellow eyes. She has to light streaks under each eye and a black spotted nose scars litter her body. Her tail is missing a large portion of it almost half the size that it should be she is large and broad.

Personality: Croc isn’t nearly as friendly to those she doesn't know as her siblings are though once she warms up to you shes very loyal. Croc isn’t the kindest lion and can be blunt to a fault. Though if she hurts or offends her friends she’s usually quick to apologizes.

Backstory: Eldest of the litter Croc was pegged from a young age to be a fighter. Her mother training her from the day Croc could be trained. She is one of the best fighters in the pride but still has a good relationship with her siblings having enough time between classes to bond with each of them. She plans to permanently stay with her pride traveling and hunting together.

Relations: Marula (Mother), Cycad (Brother), Buffalo (Brother), Mamba (Sister), Adder (Sister), Honeybush (Grandmother),

[ Verses ]

Cub: Croc is about five months old in this, Yet to start the training that would define the latter part of her life she is much more carefree and willing to make friends spending a majority of her time with her siblings.

Anthro: Helping around her familys moving shop however she can (and exercising on the side. ) Croc is content to sweep the floors and stock the shelves. Shes even set to inherit the shop when her mother perishes.

Name: Belladonna A. Shortz

Fandom: None

Birthdate: December 15, ????.

Age: 9

Species: Human

Gender: Female, She/her

Occupation: Student

FC: Samara Morgan (The ring)

Appearance: A thin girl with extremely pale skin and Straight black hair that reaches her knees as well as doe-shaped brown eyes. She is often wearing purple dressess or similar attire. She is about 4’7 and Lanky with a button nose.

Personality: A rather sullen & quiet child, Belladonna is not usually one for many words though when she does speak she is usually rather blunt. She is suprisingly rather open to making new friends and such. Willing to strike up a conversation though usually only when the person approaches her first or she has something to say to them.

Backstory: Belladonna was born to upperclass family, parents where busy people with not much time for their daughter. So they where unaware of the..Particular talents she had been born with. Possesing both a Medium and Telekinetic by birth she managed to mostly suppress her abilities around her parents. She grew up wandering the halls of their large home or sneaking out into the forest to commune with spirits. As she got older this constant connection with the dead began to rub off on her fingernails sharpened, her already pale skin gained a deathly pallor to it, Most animals feared her. she now attends 2th grade at her local elementary school. Friendless except for the schools lingering spirits. Though she tries to socialize she cant ever seem to get anybody to stick around.

Relations: Mariam & Robert Shortz (father and Mother), Honeycomb (friend), Tba

[ Verses ]

Anthro: Belladonna takes the form of a black tuxedo cat, As well as her parents Mariam (A brown tabby) and Robert shortz (A black tuxedo).

Name: Honeycomb

Fandom: None

Birthdate: ????

Age: [̴̨̧̧̢̧̧̧̨̢̧̧̛̛̛̟̯̞͓̮̮̩͔̬̙̻̯̲̻̠̬͕̘̼̗̦̥̙̯̣̹̦̱͕͍̮̼̻̰̩̺̹͖̦̤̬̠͚̰͔̰̪͉͚̰͓̪̮̱̤̗͇͔̥͓̗̦̫̰̥̟͔̝̞͖͔̞̻̘̼͙͙̰̈̌̌̽́̇͑̽́̇͗̈́͒̌̈́͆͆̔̽͊̐͑̑̀̀̏̽̆͛͂͑̎̄̆̓͌͊̓͒͐̓̏̍̈́̈͊̄̈̌̿̋̒͘̕͘̚͘̚͜͜͜͝͝͝͝͝[̵̨̨̧̢̧̧̨̨̡̢̢̡̧̢̧̡̨̨̧̡̧̡̧̢̧̛̫̟͙̻͕̤͓̮̣̰̙̼͓̟̱̞̘̠̗͇͇̯̪͙̲̯̻͖͔̠̰̱̮̳͔̮͇̳̱̭̥̥̬͕͖̤̟͍̥̝͓̗͚̞̣̯̠͈̝̘͔̮͕̬͉̲͔̮̰̞̦̥͖͈̮̱̝͔̮̥͎̭̰͎̳̫̜̙̱̩͉̦͉̥̰̤̠̳̳̗̱̙̣̳͚̖̖̮͎̣̗͈̗̬̱͍̫̱̲̙̮̝͕̫̠͎̭͚̼͉̞̰̘͈̪̼̝͔͉̞͓̩̯͉̤͚̮̹͖̹̺̫̣͓̱̹͙̮̬͕̤̜̙̱̙͉̝̳̦̳̯͇͙̻͎͍̞̖̬̻̥͍͕̣̭̦͖̣̥̝͕̘͕̺̗̘͉̱̠̗̗͈͙͈̥͓̰͔̯͕̯̫͙̱̳̳͇̤̹̱̜̖̥̙̙̳̘͖̞̳͎̞̟̺͈͌̌͂͒͒͂̐͑̿̽̀̇̂͑̅̌͗͆̎͑̍̆̇̌̈́̋͌̈́̄͂̆́̿̐̃̈́́̆̓̿̄́̀́̈́̀̾̈́̍̂͌̅͆̃̇̐̿́̐̔͌̌̂̆͊́͋͌͆͂̊͊̃̋͛̿̿̆̄͋͐͋̊̔͐͗͂͗͛̅̅͗̄̉͐̽̌̓̃̏̄̂̊͛́̂͊̂̃̒̇̑̑̈̊̎̌̊̽̿̆̏́͐̀̊̋̄͊̄̽̏͆̏̋̇́̉͆̇̉̽̔̀̓͐̇̽̌̌͆̆͋̃̉͌̓̄́̊̑̍̑́͛̏̉͐͂͑͂̂̇̃̑͂͐̍̉̐̌̅͒͌͊͌̏͐̿͊͒͋͒̇̒̚͘̕̕̚͘̚̕͘̚̕͘͘̚̚͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͝͝͝͠͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͠͠͝ͅͅͅͅͅ[̷̧̨̢̢̨̨̢̡̨̡̛̦͍̻̣̝̙̦̤̗̜̩̺̝̭̻͉̯̤̘̜̯̜̼͕̮̰̟̼͇͖̖̪͖̘̫͈̼̺̝̜̫̞̱͕̤͇̦͔̰̼͍̝̜̲̻͉͎̥͈̹͖͉͓̟͓̙͔̘̲̪͕̞̯̪͈̮̺̦̗͇͔̺̩͈̖̦͇͚̙̺̖͎̞͖̲̻̮̹̰̺̫̜̫̟̱̙͚̼̯̺͈͇̰̱̟̰̺͚͔͖̹͚͕̹̮̪̳̥̟̠̟͓͓̦͚͈̗̟͕̰̗̦͚̐̆̓͂̇̈͐͊̔̊̾̇̽̾͆̃̾̉́́̇́̓̒͊͒̀̐͐̈́͗́̔̔͊̌̓̋̉͋̏̑͒̉͛̀͊͋̌̓́͑͐̈̓̆̉͘͘̚̕̚͜͠͝͝͝͝ͅͅͅͅͅͅ[̵̨̨̢̨̨̧̧̧̧̢̡̢̨̧̨̨̡̧̧̨̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̩̫̘͍̖̲̞̩̘͎̣̜̦̜͎͇͍̜̩̳̹̲̣̹̺̖̟̳͓͚͙̺̹̜̮̳͚̖̖͎̫̹̭̹͖̼̼̯̮̱͈̼̜̹͈̲̬͕̟͙̝̦̘̫̼͕͕̤̫͙̫̻̟͇͖͚̳͉̖͓̟̺̣̣̠̙͈͔̘̯̟̤̖̥̼̭͔̘̲̹̗͍̪͇̱͇͉̺̹̗̮͈̜̞̫̤͔̙̬͎̝͉̼̪̻͍̺͎̰͎̳̹̩̯̩̼̱̼̣̗̘̟̦̰͙͇̲̬̗̦̗͎̥͍͉̝̦̞͈͖̬̣̲͕͙͓̬͇̥͚̹͈̞͇͎̞̙͍̞̮̝̘̭̺̪̭̳̱̺̝̣͓̱̗̹̼͉̫̮̞̟̭̲̹̟͖͈͚͍̓̈́͗͂̓͐̅͂́̾̏́̀̑̂̃̓̓̍̆͂̇͌̍̐̀̀̂̆̿̿̈́̀̎̉͌̽̽͋̄̊̀̔̄̓̏̀̇͛̽͆̀͛͒̅̊͆͆̏̾̊̔͐̅͛̈͂͌̅̑̒̍͊̃̇̓̓̀̃̂̐͑͑̄͊͛́̃̈̐̉͆̀̑͂̄̓́̌̒͆̽̿̅̔̇̇̐̾̀̿͆͛̔̔̽͗̋̉̌̀̓͗͊̎̎̑͊̑͊͂̾͑̂͌̊͋̅̿̉̊͆͐͗̂̇̎̌͐̊́̑̐̀͆͋̐͛̒͗͌͛͒̌̍̋̿͐̾̐͛̊̈̒̊̅̉̔̾͆̽̇̅̈̑͑̃̐̌̐̀̇͂̇̄̀͋́̍͐̈̔͋͐̽͐̊̀̂̕̕͘͘̕͘͘̚̚̕̚͘͘̚͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͝͠͠͝͝͝͠͝͝͠͝͠͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͠͝ͅͅͅͅ[̷̸̷̶̡̢̨̡̧̨̧̨̨̨̡̡̢̧̨̢̡̡̧̧̡̨̨̢̨̡̧̧̧̧̢̧̢̢̡̡̡̨̡̡̧̧̧̡̨̡̨̨̢̢̧̨̨̡̢̨̢̡̢̢̨̨̧̢̧̨̢̨̨̧̡̧̡̡̨̨̧̡̢̨̧̢̢̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̛̭͈̪̮͚̟̼̩̺̱̞̟̱̤̱̰̯͈̙͕̜͎͉̦̤̺͙̲̭̥̺̻͇̮̜̮͔̦̰̮͕̻̠͈͙̱͓̦̙̮͖̠̥͔̣͉̞̰̝̱̥̤̫̬̠͓̺̭͇͇͍̮̬͚̼͍͓̟̠̫͉̻̟̙̖͇͚̹̦͔̭̘̞̲̘̰̻̝̻̣̝͖̘͈̮̝͍̣̬̠͉͓̜̰͕̭̤͇̠͕̭̫̦̮͙̙̞̱̬̰̝̗̥̙̟̬̠̜̥̥̝̫̘͔̖̣̫͓̰̱̺̰̝͙̟̹̠͈͕͉̺̠͕͔̲̲̝̙͇͉͕̳̤̭̳͙̝̖̺̟̝̩͈͔͕̠͖̤̲̳̳̼̫͚̩͕̯͍͈̙̼̬̱͓̖̪̣͖͎̮̫̞̼̖͈̼̟̫̳̮͉̖̘̗̙͈̭̺̣̱̭͎̱͕̲̮͉͚̭͚̱͉͈̱̜̠̹̦̺̩̙̦͖̻͖͔̜̮̠̬͉͇̖͈̳͚̫̗̬̲̫͉̩̗̦̤͍̞̣͎͉̯͔̪̯̱͓̪̭͓̞͍͚̗̩̘̰̭̱͇̟̘̗͖͕̼̮͖͈̜͔̲͎̮̖̳͉̙͍̤̝̪̱͇͚̤͍̫̳͕͇̥̲̱̜̳͓̩͚̞͖̗̱̥̹̮̻̟̱̙̗̥͖̟̭̺͔͎̩̞̣̞̬̮̥̖͖͓̠͎̼̳̹̤͇̠͇̭̞̱̲̻͖̠̣͙̥̺̬͓̰̤̼̹͚͓͎̱̻̹͚̞̳̰̩͙̙̖͎̘̞̮̯̺̩̹̝̤̖͇̮̤̥̺͓̖͉̬̲̞̮̪̞̟̼͚̹̝͕̙̗̪͚͇͖̤̬̝͈̜̹̲͈͕̞͇͚̦̼͔̦̰̟̲̩͈̺͍̱̹̩̤̟̟̰̗̘̮̳̞͍͕̤̥͔͕̗͖̳̗͓̰̞͖͕̝͇͖̬̙̖̦͇̬̬̺̣̘̳̻͓͔͓̬͔̩̭͙̱͖̳̙̟̻̬̬͓̩̻̫͚̼̫͓̘̗̜̲̥̖̝̖͓̹̺̫̟̝̳̖̬̥̹̖̩̞̪̩̖̭̼͔̤̝͓̞̺̣̮̮͓̩̖̙̜̗̘͉̙͓͓̟͇͓͈̳̼͖̘͖̳͖͕̰̞̜͎͇̭̜̗̱̩̘͈̤̻̩̮͇̻͕̪͚̤̯̞̤̘͍̙̙̹̹̝̖̱̯͍͇̳̮͎̫̦̹̫̜̗̯͖̟̣̖̪̗̯̭͎̳̟̼̦̰͉̬̹̩̹͇̠̱͔͓̹̮̗͈̲̭͓̖̲̯͕͙͔̜͚͍̗̰͈̫̳̘̠̹͉͔̪̱͎̠̝̜̤̪̞̠̣̟͈͓͔̖͈̫̰̻̩̟̲̣̝͈̥̲̣̩͕̳��͚̩͉̜̠͚̘͔͙̘̹͔̣̱̰͙̖̱͍̗͚̖̳͙̙̥͈̝̘̘̬̫̺͎̻̗̭͍̲̟̫͓͍͓̱̼̝̲͍̰͓̯̦̹͎̺̥̯͇̱̟̲̙̻̯̻͎̳̟̲̟̺̠̘̘͕͚̼͖̬̻̩͇̬͕̮̱̤̠͇̱̻͇̰͇̤͕̩̤̝̬͖̩̲͈̝̘̪̳̪̯̰̣̪͖̠̬̘̟̫̪̬͈͓̲̗̗͚͍̘̙͎͎̤̪̘̞̟͉̩̝͚͎̳̲̮͍̺̬͔͔͖̗̟̙̭͇̹̮̫̯̭̗̔̋̓̓̓̾͆̎̅̓̄̓́̍͆͑̈̀̈́̇̍̍̑́̄̈́͌̃͐̒̄͊̿̔́̈́̓͌̄̎͛̂͗̇̏̌̔̈́́̐͌͆̅͛́̄̉̉̋̀͒̿͋̏̍̓̆̉̂̐͌̋̌̀͒̋͊͒̂̒̑͊͌̽͐̂̌̎̽̏̈̑̂̇́͋̃̋͑̃͑͐̈͋̌̑̒͑̽͆͆̿͑̄̀̑͒̾̍͛̀͗̆̀̐̔͗͊̑̄̒͊́̈̆̎̐͗͂̏͐̓̈̆̉̏̂̓̋̉̏͂̽̔̽͌͂̽͊͐͐́̀̇͂̍̐̆͌̏̒͊̄̅̐̽̐̃͛̃͒̊͌̉̉̒̿̑̉̈͒̽̉́̎̓̿̎͒͆͑͛̔̀̀̒̔̐̏͗̄̔̋͂̐̑̽͊̄͑̉̃̌͗͌̏̀͆̃̈́̈́͒̂̈́͛̃͗͋̉̅̔̾͊̂̀͆̐̄̿̏͒̅̈́̓͗͆̿̄̍̓̓͆̊̊́̊̿̀̒́́̉͗͐̂̔̉͌̏̐̒̆͊̑͗͌́̀̽͋͑̌͊̆͂̃͊͗̋͒͌͐͂͒̊̏̌̄̅͊̔̄̆̃̎͆̾̋̍̿͂̂̌̃̎͊̑̋͛̆͛̇͐̉̈̏̋͆͑̅̆͑̃̑͐̏͒̅̏͂̒̀̇̾̒͂̉̆̍̅̀͊̔̾̒̐̾̔̇̀̈̅̃̐̂̅̔̐̌̋̏͊͆̃̏̄̍̎̉̋̇͋̆̾̀̿̿̔̿͗̊̃͂̾̏͋̃͊͐̄̉͌̃́͌̔̈́̓̂̌̐̂͐̒̑̏̿̿͑̐̋̅͗̾̇̈̆̔͋̑́̉̆̿̐͒͗̐̾̈̓̿͋̍̔͐́̋͋̋̍̇̒̀̐͒̽͋̋̿͐͛̓̎̿̐͐͊͒̂̉̑̌͂͋̇͐̏͌̿͗̔̀̎̀̔̇͐̌͂͛̈̍͆̅͋̇̄͛̾̾͌̄̄̏̾͂͑̽̆̒̀̊͌̓̽̋͆̊̔̿̍̅͌͑̾͋̌̌͌̓̾̍͛̂͆̒̉̄͑̉̑̋͗̍̂̈͂̋͌̓̿̉͐͛͐͂̍̃͒̒̃̈̒̄̽̂̾̂̆̔̎̒̾͒̓͋̐̉̌̀͐̀̆̆̑̿̇͛̊̔̑̃̓͌̊̅͂̈́͐̈́̎͒̍̀̿̌͊̒͌̑̔͆͋̌̀̋̑͛̓̅̆̔́͊̆̍̑͗̄̋̎̊͋̒̐̅̓̍̇̇̉͂̿͑̿͋̽̊̽͐̕͘̚͘̕͘̕̕͘̚͘͘͘̚̚͘̕͘̚͘̕͘̕̕̚̕̚̚̕̕͘̚͘̕̚̚͘͘͘̚͘̕̚̚̕̕̕̕̕͘̕͘̚̕̕̕̚̚̚̚͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͝͠͝͝͝͝͝͠͠͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͝͠͝͝͝͠͝͝͠͝͝͠͠͝͝͝͝͠͠͝͠͝͝͝͝͝͝͠͝͝͝͝͝ͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅ[̷̸̧̡̡̢̧̨̡̢̧̡̡̧̡̢̛̛̛̛̛̛͔̼͖͉̠̺̬͙͚͇͚͚̙̠͙̞̯̟͎̬̹̥̪̦̬̣̖̙̠̯̫͙̳͙̱̗̹͇̩̼̮͎͉̘͍͓̞͓̱̹̖̖̣͔͇̹͚̰̟̝͈̤̹̠̱͕̪̘͍̗͉͉̼̭̫̯̹̼͇̣̮̬͓̘̱̥͉̩͖͖͖̯̮̺̟̱͎̰̗̯͇̹͉̤̪͉͎̣̤̼̦͙̳̩̼͙̭͇͔̲̹̭̳̻̻͍̺͕̞̖̣̥̤͙̖̪͎̣̰̹̯̝̗͙̘̳͖͔̤̗͈̱͓͖̩̮͙̣͖͓̇̿̌͒̄́̃͂͛́̑̉̐͂̐̎̓̂̈́͛̀̄̃͐̅̅͒͑̇͐͑͒̇͐̒̓̏̃̊̾̓̔̐̊̊̌̄̑̃̈͊̊͋̑̍͆͗͛̾̈̾̋̂̽̑̔̃̿̄̿͑̐̌̾̽̾͆̿͐̃̆̊̓̂͑͊̈̽͆̉́͐̉̈͂͂̿̔̅͐̂̽̇̇̏͋̿̀̌͋́̋͊̎̄͒̇̈͑̿͗̒̽̊̋̍͛̃̏̇̽̒͛̾͗̐̓̆̂̐̌̔͑̇͊̿̇̏̎͒̏̇̏̍̉̐́̎̂̌̉̇̔̔͐̉̓̿̒͌͗͑̈͑̍̈̑͐̍̍͊̉̉͊̉͋̉̉͛̽̌͒̉̔͗̌͊̈̎̎̃͑̆̊̃͒͑̄͊̇̑̿̏͋̄͑͗͐̑̂̒̇͛̈́͌̇̎́͘̕͘͘̚̕͘̕̚̕̕͘̚̚͘͘̚̚̕͜͜͜͜͜͜͝͠͝͝͝͝͝͝͠͠͝͝͠͝͠͝͠͝͠͝͠ͅͅ[̶̨̡̰̘̯͚̖͍̫̮̱̻̜̪͉̼̙̗̟͈̟͇̙͈̣̘̞̤̳̭̘͖͈̟̭̝̙͇̘̟̝̺̤͈̻̱̎̾́͗̊͑͛̍̄̌͆̄͛̇̚͘̕͜͜͝͝͠ͅ_̴̢̡̡̨̧̨̧̧̧̛̛̛̛̛̟̪͚͍̺͕̪̱̜̮̩̗̥͓͔͚̟̬̗̝̝̝͇͇̭̝̼̩̟̮̞̮̝̯̪̥̥̹̯̘̗̰̩̱̤̠͖̟̥̣͎͙͚̘̩̖̤̱̺̩̮̯̲̻̲͙̣͇̻̳͉̯͔̞͙͙͓̺͓̺͈͕͉̟̞̘̗̘̖͚̩̳̝͛̑͋́͌̈́́̇͊̉̒̔̎͗̈͒̔͑̉̍̏͆̏̍̆̔̽̒̈́͊͗̔̋͊̈́̿̈̎̊͌̆̇͊͂̈́̓̽̓̓̆͌͊̇͛̏̐̊̅͛̐̌̂̀̍̍͐̍̉̋̀͐͗͆̋̆͒̇̆̐̏̏̾̊̐́̄̉͒̒̉͐̽̾̄̐͒̔͒̾̄̀̈̉̽͒̍͌̃̄̍̐͊̋̏͘̚̕̚̕̕̚̕͘̚̚̕͜͜͜͜͜͜͝͝͠͝͝͠͝ͅͅͅ

Species: Psychical manifestation of chaos & Mischief

Gender: Agender (It/they/She)

Appearance: Honeycomb is uncannily lengthy and too skinny to be even remotely human as well as being so flexible it is as if they possess no bones (Which they do not) There arms, torso, and legs have washed out orange stripes on them as well as a two-pointed jesters hat of a slightly more vibrant orange (with bells of course) and a large white neck frill and pointed wooden shoes painted a bright gold with carved in flower accents. She wears white frilly lace gloves with sparkly purple bows on the cuffs. It was a gift. There face is mask like with a what looks to be painted on almost permanently wide smile and Pitch black holes where there eyes should be. It has two rosy cheeks with a similar painted on affect to them.

Abilities: Flight & Levitation, Shape-shifting, Vocal mimicry, Object summoning, illusion crafting, Agility, Acrobatic skills, Flexibility, and surprising speed & strength. All which strengthens during the nights where the veils between worlds are weak.

Personality: Friendly and enthusiastic it’s very easy to please honeycomb, Though she does tend to get bored rather easily especially by things it finds tedious. They can come off very strong at first though and of course tend to cause quite a bit of trouble wherever they go though they are usually not one for being actually evil or malicious.

Backstory: Honeycomb was born into a age without chaos or humans, Its visage manifesting to balance out the calm the world was currently bathed in. They spent the first few thousand years of her life relatively bored alternating between “hibernating” or overseeing the areas around her. However eventually she noticed things cropping up, Not like the single-cell organisms It was used to Marrella, Anomalocaris, and many other wondrous animals appeared. eventually changing forms and spawning many species which overjoyed her, she didn’t visit the land much in the age of the sea it being nothing but sparse vegetation until the first few creatures began to crawl onto land and then she followed. Soon the years began to fly past them she saw many animals come and go though she still did spend a rather long time hibernating Going through many periods of history however.. Soon appeared humans. She hadn’t even noticed when the first few humans appeared but then their numbers started to grow and grow and she finally stumbled upon them.

She was of course extremely happy to see this new species who seemed quite a bit different from the others, Taking the shape of them though Her mimicry paled in comparison to the real thing. She began to watch the humans trailing behind them as they began to spread out to each continent as well as causing quite a bit of mischief she spent most of her time hopping between developing cultures, Eventually she decided to hibernate for awhile having got a bit bored with the humans and wanting to wait a bit before checking up on them again. When she woke up it looked like they had developed quite a bit. Their where now large empires cropping up, She of course went back to her usual routine of Watching, Pranking and hibernating she had even began picking up the humans many languages. Eventually after quite awhile time reached the Middle Ages she became entranced by the appearance of the court jesters adopting much of their looks. She had began to get quite worried with the direction the humans where taking though it was causing quite a bit of entropy. She even began to gain a reputation in some areas though this never really caught on eventually the centuries trickled by and she did as well modernizing her outfits here and there and of course hibernating.

She now hops from place to place siphoning off energy from the mischief she causes and having a darn good time.

note: honeycomb can be in pretty much any era or place, though her appearance will change a bit depending on what century it is.

Relations: Belladonna (Friend),

[ Verses ]

Crossover: Honeycomb has somehow managed to slip through the veils between dimensions and has ended up…somewhere. Atleast she’s not earths problem anymore.

Name: Robert A. Shortz

Face Claim: Tom Ellis

Fandom: None

Birthdate: Nov 12, ????.

Age: 45

Species: Human

Gender: Male, He/Him

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Mariam R. Shortz

Face Claim: Mandy Moores

Fandom: None

Birthdate: Sept 19, ????.

Age: 37

Species: Human

Gender: Female, She/Her

Occupation(s), Former child star, Stay at home mom.

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Orchid

Fandom: None

Birthdate: January 3, ????.

Age: 7

Species: Maned Wolf

Gender: Female

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Bramble

Fandom: None

Birthdate: July 12, ????.

Age: 5

Species: Cougar

Gender: ??? (He/Him, But uses female honorifics)

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Swallowtail

Fandom: None

Birthdate: February 12, ????.

Age: 4

Species: Bobcat

Gender: Male

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Hibiscus

Fandom: None

Birthdate: September 28, ????.

Age: 5 Years

Species: Spotted Hyena

Gender: Female

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory: Hibiscus was born to a mother on the lower end of the hierarchy, Which left her susceptible to the jeers of other pups. Particularly the leaders daughter Amaryllis. She grow up bitter which was amplified by her distant mother. As she came of age the Leader would perish leading Amaryllis to snatch up the position. Not wanting to live under her childhood tormenter she fled the pack and quickly set off in gathering support making fast friends with quite a few other packless hyenas and eventually joining together as a pack with her as leader. She now is the proud leader of her pack and has been trying to leave the bitterness of her childhood behind her.

Relations: (Tba.)

[ Verses ]

Name: Calla L Carlson

Fandom: None

Birthdate: July 4, ????.

Age: 32

Species: Human

Gender: Female

Occupation: Cryptozoologist

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations:

[ Verses ]

Name: Magnolia Winspur

Fandom: None

Birthdate: September 7, ????

Age: 46 (in main verse)

Species: Human

Gender: Female

Appearance:

Personality:

Backstory:

Relations: Salvia Winspur (adopted daughter)

[ Verses ]

Name: Larkspur

Fandom: None

Birthdate: June 15, ???.

Age: 7 months, ???.

Species: Horse, Unknown breed.

Gender: Female (she/her)

Appearance: A deep chestnut brown coat with snowflakes on her back, rear, and legs, as well as dark brown eyes and a short mane and tail. She has the customary scrawny build of a foal though her legs are slightly shorter than usual. She also has a small light brown diamond shaped marking above her left eye.

Personality: A spunky and intelligent foal, Larkspur is always ready for the next adventure she is friendly but slightly cautious of strangers especially if they are a predator. Though she has a big heart she can be sassy and does have a bit of a attitude. She tries to tone it down around adults though.

Backstory:

Relations: Rosemary (Mother), Paprika (Father), Lilly (Half-Sister), Tba.

[ Verses ]

MLP VERSE 1: Larkspur lives in a small valley village tucked into foal mountain, She is still young and does not yet possess a cutie-mark and isn’t in any rush to get one. She lives a slightly sheltered life not having much knowledge of the world or creatures outside of her home. Mostly spending her days in school or messing around in the fields by her family home.

MLP VERSE 2: Larkspur leaves her village to partake in a long-term exchange program in ponyville. She now lives with a host family and study’s at the local school.

SARABELLA VERSE: TBA.