#(except for ayla who's mixed)

[magicalgirlypop]

i'm usually not a fan of the fantasy racism trope but i think the way they did it in marionetta was better than most because the ah'kon aren't portrayed as evil. they didn't do anything previously that would get them branded as evil. its all the kalgratt government's propaganda that they're dangerous and none of them sre innocent, not even the children (sounds familiar?). and its obviously meant to parallel how certain groups were genocided in real life.

[greatwyrmgold]

I know this is just a silly joke post, but I struggle to imagine a tabletop system where damage numbers in the thousands would be exciting rather than tedious.

The only system I can think of that regularly goes beyond three-digit damage is TEN MILLION HP PLANET, which demonstrates that this is possible. But that game says in the rulebook that it's "broken and requires an absurd amount of work to actually play [...] I think it's practically impossible [to play] without [an auto dice roller]." I'd also add that you need a calculator, or maybe a spreadsheet if you're a spreadsheet kind of guy.

Granted, it's supposed to scale a bit beyond 9999 damage. But any game whose RNG relies on plastic polyhedra and not electronic circuits is gonna run into the same problems. Rolling four- or five-digit damage requires a lot of dice, a lot of multiplying, or a fair bit of both.

And there's more to a JRPG than big damage numbers. For instance, the calculations for those big damage numbers can get a little complex.

For instance, the Chrono Trigger damage formula creates an "attack" value by combining the character's Power stat and weapon power. (Except for Lucca/Marle, who use their Hit stat as part of a technically different formula. And Ayla, who doesn't use weapons but her damage scales with her level squared. And some weapons have different formulas.) That value is reduced depending on the enemy's physical damage resistance. And Techs have all sorts of damage formulae, ranging from "weapon damage times a random factor" to "mix level, a couple stats, and a random factor in a certain specific way". And don't get me started on Double or Triple Techs!

JRPGs are fiddly, and for people who like them, that's a good thing. But it's a very, very bad thing when you stick this fiddliness on top of the inconvenient dice and math required to get big damage numbers in a TRPG. Especially if there are status effects or buffs that can change the fiddly values on the fly...

Leave the JRPG numbers to computer games, I say.

Hey, game designers! Stop being cowards and make a tabletop JRPG where the damage numbers go into the thousands at least already

[my-watch-begins]

A match for love. Part VII

Pairings: Harwin Strong x Female!OC.

Warnings: it's a wedding... in Westeros. So... fluff, descriptions of violence, death of minor characters, mentions of smut, absolute shameless use of Taylor Swift lyrics, see if you can find it.

Words: 6 k.

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10.

Harwin walked the corridors of Harrenhal with a mix of nostalgia and some trepidation. Harrenhal had been under the custody of House Strong for years, two generations had held the castle, the Strongs had hosted the Great Council of 101 a.C. and over the years some reforms had been made when Harwin and his brother and sisters were little.

The castle hadn't been this busy ever since, well, since Harwin could remember. The only parties it had hosted were so long ago no members of the current staff remembers them. Now, it vibrated with the excitement and last minute preparations for his wedding.

Lord and Ladies from the vicinity had already started to populate the Castle, it had all been arranged to receive such quantity of guests. By far the presence of Lady Jeyne Arryn, the maiden of the Vale, was the highest form of royalty in attendance. She attended only as company to Lady Jessamine Redfort, Ayla's younger sister. The castle had hosted her and her party for a week before the wedding, on which she caught up with the remaining members of the Redfort family. Harwin had only arrived with his family two days ago, in which time he hadn't been allowed to see or talk to Ayla at all under the pretense of 'saving it for the ceremony'.

Now, he was headed to meet the last member to arrive, Ayla's older brother and heir to the Redfort, Rylon and his wife Cyrilla Lannister. Harwin had absolutely no doubt that the antiques of house Lannister were to blame for his lateness, arriving to the wedding ceremony the day it was being held, but it didn't matter, they were there now.

He reached the King's Tower, the biggest of the five that made the castle. It was still being used despite the top of it being melted stone by dragon fire. Upon seeing the five siblings one next to each other, he could see a little bit of Ayla on all of them, all except for Jessamine who was an almost identical twin, if not for her different colored eyes and nose, which wasn't as pointy as Ayla's delicate one.

When he got to talking with the brothers, he also couldn't help but notice that they had been slowly engulfed by the houses they'd married into. Rylon, married into house Lannister, sported the red that most of house Redfort wore, but a few golden details had been sown into the edges of his vest, his cufflinks and the belt around his waist. Harrin, who had married into house Karstark in the north, wore a muted red vest with a long black cape, adorned with wolf's fur at the shoulders and neck, perfect for the northern winter, not so much for the Riverlands. Still, he didn't seem to mind them. He wondered then if he would also be engulfed in Ayla's house and style, or if living in the Keep would engulf her.

He tried to keep the matter of conversation with the siblings, but he also couldn't help but notice the stares the wives where giving him finding himself on the receiving end of lingering eyes on his frame, the wives often looked at him up and down and then shared knowing and almost explicit looks between them.

A bell rang across the castle, Harwin looked to the side to the noise and his stomach quickly tightened into knots. It was almost time for the ceremony. All guests had an hour to finish getting ready and head to the Sept. The surrounding grounds of it had been decorated and a carpet had been rolled from the Sept to the salon where the feast would take place.

The group agreed to meet at the Sept. Harwin headed hastily up to his room to finish with his doublet. He wore all black, the only details standing out from his figure were the shiny buttons, the chain links that cuffed his doublet together below his chin, and the belt that sported the colors of House Strong. He looked at himself in the cloudy mirror, seeing that his buttons had not been linked incorrectly, then looked to his side at the cloak that rested in a chair.

The door knocked behind him, he gave way quickly and held the cloak, running his hand over it to smooth it out. In came Lord Edder, giving Harwin a smile as he walked to him, his hands pressed at his shoulders and patted the front to clean it from non-existent fuzz.

"Are you ready?" He asked, Harwin nodded and held the cloak to his chest.

"More than ready" he replied with a smile.

"You know, handing over my daughter to someone else's protection may be the hardest thing I've ever had to do" he confessed, then reached to the hooks of Harwin's lapel and uncuffed them, he searched into his pocket and placed a new chain link in his hand, Harwin's eyes fell on it instantly "I wanted you to know that you are under my protection as much as Ayla is under yours" he motioned at the hooks, Harwin noticed both House Strong and House Redfort were portrayed in the hooks, the sigils engraved in each hook connected by the chain.

Harwin smiled warmly as Edder cuffed the link in his lapel, not knowing how to express gratitude for being so warmly accepted into the family.

"Thank you my Lord" he said with a nod as he finished "all of your expectations of me I hope to honor and surpass"

"You have my boy, I'm sure you will continue doing so"

Ayla laughed as she hugged onto her brother, he'd taken her by the legs and walked with her on his shoulder over the garden.

"I can walk perfectly fine you know" she complained as she held on.

"There's mud all over the place, I won't hand you over looking all dirty, you're going to be sent back" Adrian said, grunting with effort as he walked.

"You know, Harwin has never grunted like that as he carries me around"

"I would hope not, he is the strongest knight in the seven kingdoms after all"

Adrian paid no mind to Ayla as he plopped her down on the carpeted front door of the Sept, she was surrounded by her brothers, who had wanted to look at her in her bridal state before anyone.

"Is Harwin already in?" She asked, smoothing her gown to the make it fall evenly on the floor.

"No, he is not" Rylon was the first to speak and glance at his brothers.

"This is the part where we break the most awful news to you" Adrian followed.

"We've killed Harwin-"

"In the most horrible way-"

"Because we couldn't bear to not have that gem of a human being Gwayne as our good brother-"

Ayla dropped her shoulders as she looked to her brothers, rolling her eyes at them as soon as she understood they were joking.

"He's the one waiting for you inside, right father?" Adrian perked in as his father walked around the boys and extended the red cloak with the red sigil of House Redfort standing out in white.

"Stop whatever it is you're doing, leave your sister be"

"We're trying to ease her nerves" Kase excused.

The brothers looked as Lord Edder walked around and stood behind Ayla. She moved her hair out of the way and her father hooked the heavy cloak to her shoulders, then extended it and let it fall evenly to her sides. He walked around her and looked up and down at her.

She felt stared at by all her brothers, looking at them she only found tenderness, happiness, a little bit of sadness on her father's eyes, but they were mostly happy to see her be married.

Lord Edder ushered the boys inside, then stood next to Ayla and muttered a little 'seven hells', giving her his arm to hold.

"Why are you cursing? It can't be that bad to marry off your daughter"

Ayla hooked her arm to her father's and looked up at him.

"I'm just glad this is the only time I will have to do this"

"You still have Jessamine" she joked.

"Ah, I'm not to hand off Jessamine ever, we all know that"

Ayla smiled and pressed her temple to her father's shoulder, hugging his arm tightly.

"I'm very happy right now, thank you for letting this happen"

"It was all you, Ayla" he sighed, his breath quivering as he exhaled.

"Don't cry" she whispered, feeling her own tears prick at her eyes. She took a deep breath and stood straight, tall and proud as the doors of the Sept open.

She walked in between the masses of people, her father's arm linking with hers. She recognized some if not all the faces of Lords and Ladies of the Riverlands, the Vale and some had come all the way from King's Landing. It wasn't everyday that the son of the Hand of the King was to be married. Ayla was sure if it weren't such a deal, the King himself would've attended the wedding, after all Lord Lyonel was a dear friend of the King's.

Ayla's eyes moved from one side of the aisle to the other, where most of her family stood and looked at her with smiles, even though Jessamine, Grayce and Jaena had helped her with the gown and the hair, they couldn't help but look at her amazed at how pretty she looked.

When Ayla searched in the smiling faces of Harwin's family, she was already nearing Harwin and the Septon. She thought she'd done a good job to look at Harwin when she was just in front of him, when her eyes find his, looking at her with a twist of eyebrows and a glint on his eyes that only screamed one thing.

She led her hand to take his, the first touch they'd had after two months of not seeing each other, the amount of time between her departure from her visit to King's Landing and Lord Lyonel's next leave from court to attend the wedding.

Harwin looked up and down at her as her hand touched his. His breath hitched in his throat and he could feel his insides clutch. Breathtaking was still the word that came into his mind everytime he looked at her, today specially.

He exchanged a quick look with Lord Edder, who seemed to be fighting with himself as he took the cloak of House Redfort from Ayla's shoulders, leaving her beautiful gown exposed. It was all white, sleeveless, the corset had been sown with beautiful and intricate twirls in shades of red, Harwin noticed, as she climbed up the step to stand next to him, that her collar and the rims of her sleeves sported the red, blue and green of house Strong in a delicate but noticeable thread.

His hand gripped hers as they both faced the Septon, but didn't look at him for the first few minutes of him starting the ceremony, their eyes were on each other's figures as they took in the other one's state, formally dressed, Ayla looking absolutely ravishing in his eyes, Harwin looking irresistible in hers. When their eyes found each other they couldn't help but smile, fighting the urge to pull themselves together and to kiss, to touch, to hold each other in their arms.

Ayla tuned into the sermon of the Septon, after he recited the name of the Seven under whose blessing they were about to be united, he motioned at Harwin.

"You may now cloak the bride to bring her under your protection"

Harwin left Ayla's hand as he grabbed the cloak he was absentmindedly holding on his forearm, then straightened and faced the sigil of House Strong to the public, Ayla turned slightly to the side and held her long hair out of the way, feeling the heavy material being draped over her shoulders. She secured it over her, both ends almost meeting at her front.

Standing side by side, Harwin's hand found Ayla's again over the cloak as the Septon continued the ceremony.

"We are here under the sights of Gods and Men witness the union of man and wife: one flesh, one heart, one soul, now and forever"

The Septon took a piece of ribbon that had been hanging loosely from his forearm the entire time. Harwin lifted his and Ayla's joined hands, and heard Ayla take a shaky breath as the Septon tied their hands together, then pressed his own hand over and under theirs.

"Look upon one another and say the words"

They recited the names of the Seven, eyes on each other, and when it was Harwin's turn to say his vows, he spoke them with security, wanting Ayla to know he meant every word.

"I am hers and she is mine, from this day to the rest of my days"

When it was Ayla's turn, Harwin felt as if everyone had suddenly left the room, it was just him and her, their hands joined, their words only for each other.

"I am his and he is mine-" she lingered on the last word "from this day to the rest of my days"

The Septon held their joined hands and slowly unwrapped the ribbon as he spoke.

"Let it be known that Ser Harwin of House Strong, and Lady Ayla of House Redfort are one heart, one flesh, one soul. Cursed be them who would seek to tear them asunder."

They faced each other, Ayla smiled and nodded agreeing with the Septon as she looked at Harwin.

His forehead came down to hers, Ayla chuckled as she lifted her head up, the bridge of his nose fitting perfectly over the shape of her forehead. The seconds they stood there felt like an eternity before Harwin spoke up.

"With this kiss, I pledge my love"

He looked for her lips with his eyes closed, moving down on her face, his nose tracing hers until Ayla pulled herself up to meet him halfway. Harwin sighed over her lips, his hands leaving hers and cupping her cheeks as he held her without moving, the guests clapped and cheered around them.

Ayla smiled over his lips, then chuckled our of pure happiness.

They spent the feast, as the guests were eating, with their hands linked and foreheads together, talking in hushed tones being interrupted by sudden chuckles and short kisses.

"You're a vision, Ayla" he said, his eyes scanning over her body, the dress sat over her so delicately above her body, her figure accentuated at all the right places, he almost had the need to lick his lips at the mere sight of her.

"Did you like the collar? It was a last minute addition"

"It was my favorite part" he ran his finger over the line of colors sown in, then his finger dipped inside and traced along her collarbone.

"You look better than what I imagined you would" she placed her hand over his chest, moving up to his shoulder "imponent, and soft at the same time" she then cupped his cheek and rubbed her thumb under his eye "still can't believe you're all mine, that I finally get to call you husband for all to hear"

Harwin took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles, then pulled her closer by grabbing her from the neck, Ayla's hand rested over his knee as she closed her eyes, foreheads touching again, a feeling so intimate it was weird how it could be felt in a room full of people eating and laughing.

"I wonder, since this has been your home for a while now, why haven't you snuck up around the castle to see me when you arrived?"

"I tried, last night, your brother was stationed outside your door" Ayla laughed in disbelief shaking her head, then leaned in to kiss him shortly. "Had you been one floor down I could've climbed up, and promptly been kicked out by your brother as soon as he found out I was there"

"Why would he have found out?" She teased.

"Probably because the way I would've made your scream" he trapped her lips with his, his teeth bitting at her lower lip, his hand dropped from her cheek to her leg, squeezing at her inner thigh making her close her legs together at the feeling that was beginning to rise on her.

She was about to tell him they could loose the stupid feast for ten minutes, she would actually beg him to rail her in some forgotten room and return to the festivities, but she had her thoughts interrupted as the music began to resonate on the hall, giving way to the bridal dance to open the dance floor to the guests and begin the party.

They performed the dance, mostly out of tradition and their interest in keeping them more than wanting to dance. The only thing Ayla saw in both their eyes was the mutual need to be a mess of entangled limbs moaning on a bed until their throats turned sore.

They were well into the party and the wine, talking with his now Good Brothers, when Harwin felt his skin crawl, just at the base of his neck. He looked around and turned to the table to leave the wine, suddenly feeling ill. He searched around the room, looking for Ayla's figure.

He found her on the other side of the room near the main table, standing with her sister and two other ladies as they talked.

She could feel his eyes on her, and when she also looked for him in the crowd she didn't find the playful stare she was hoping to see, instead she found him frowning, his body rigid. Their eyes met and Ayla gave him a little shake of her head to ask him what was wrong, he looked around and excused himself.

As soon as he took a step to the side, away from Ayla's brothers, he saw what his intuition told him was wrong. No guards in the exits and cloaked figures walking around the guests. He grabbed one of Ayla's brothers, the one closest to him, and whispered to keep an eye on those.

He walked briskly around the table, decided to get to Ayla's side as soon as possible. There were guests mingling and drinking around it, it took him a while to apologize as he walked around them, pushing himself in between some.

Just when he was trying to convince himself it was nothing, that he probably was in a paranoid state induced by the excess of wine, he heard the first scream and the unmistakable sound of steel being drawn.

He now pushed his way between the people when the steel rung against another blade and the people erupted in chaos and screams. He didn't get far before he saw a glint of silver, he dodged to the side, the long dagger swung in front of him again as he took a step back dodging the attack as well. The attacker swung at him again and now Harwin turned to his side as he grabbed the hand that held the blade, squeezing it and making the attacked drop it as he felt his bones being crushed between Harwin's hand at the handle of the dagger. Harwin pushed quickly his elbow into the man's face, when he felt free he leapt over the table and crossed it, coming to the other side as he pushed people out of his way.

He heard it, Ayla's voice, but he couldn't see her. He didn't know what was happening with the people fighting, he didn't know where his sisters or her family where, the mass of people moved around with people trying the get out of the dance floor, when he saw an exit, he pushed through and saw a flash of white to his side.

Ayla was looking around, worried that she'd seen her brothers enter the mass of people with clear intentions on their faces.

She looked behind her startled when she heard a commotion, only to find Harwin's fist landing heavily on someone, then he took the sword he was holding and kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying back.

He turned around and grabbed Ayla by the waist, pulling her up and dragging her away from the crowd as it moved, threatening to become a domino of people falling on top of each other.

He heard someone scream commands, Ayla grabbed herself to his arm once Harwin left her near the table. He twisted the handle making the sword twirl on his hand, scanning for anyone who might come near them.

He heard Ayla behind him, asking what was going on and if he could see any of his family members, he couldn't.

From inside the crowd, as it was slowly thinning down and allowing Harwin to see,  Ayla's brothers were commanding for the dance floor to be cleared, their swords in hand covered in blood.

Ayla slipped from a grasp at her wrist that Harwin didn't know he had her in, and almost ran to the side, Harwin glanced to see that she had gone to tend to his sisters, who seemed fine but startled.

Harwin's eyes finally stared at the massacre before him, at least five cloaked men were laying on the floor, not counting the one that Harwin had kicked. He looked to the side expecting to see him there. He wasn't.

"And you told us to not carry our swords tonight, uh Ayla?" Rylon chuckled, clearly amused at the fight and not at all concerned. Lord Edder walked to them, also sword in hand, but was stopped halfway when the doors of the side flew open.

The sounds of metal clanking filled the room, guards walked inside in formation, when the two at the front broke formation and stood to the side, one Lord Harald Mooton stepped in.

The four brothers stood one next to each other, their swords up at him, each one of them looked at one guard and decided on their target if things went badly.

"Lord Lyonel" he addressed, avoiding Lord Edder's daggers for eyes. "We had an agreement, I'm terribly sorry that the life of young Ayla had to be cut so short. She will be not so sorely missed."

Lord Lyonel walked in front of Harwin, he had to decide if he was going to follow his father or keep an arm stretch away from Ayla, whose presence had gone past Lord Harald since the white of her gown was covered by the body of his two sisters.

"If an agreement was struck with you, it was without my knowledge or consent, the wedding held here was legitime and broke no previous arrangements"

Lord Harald's breath hitched in his throat when he saw Ayla appearing form the side and holding herself to Harwin's spare arm, the other one busy with the sword still up in the air.

"You, however, have disgraced yourself with this tran-"

Lord Lyonel's speech was cut short when Edder leaped in front of Harald, a glint of steel was all that was seen heading towards the Lord before the sickening sound of flesh being sliced, then, a dry thud on the floor.

Harwin tensed when the men looked at the lifeless body of their Lord, head separated from the neck in a clean cut. Their hands moved to the handle to take their own swords.

"Let's not" he now pointed his sword to the men "you are to return to Maidenpool and tell the new Lord Mooton of his father's transgressions, that he is not to take any sort of retaliation over this matter and if he so wishes he can met me on the battlefield"

He proceeded to put down his sword, his sons following only when the guards began to walk backwards to the door after exchanging frightened glances.

Edder turned, putting away his sword and giving his sons a glance as he walked between them.

"The threat of war was uncalled for" Lord Lyonel said as he walked past him. Lord Edder looked between him and the couple, Ayla being comforted by Harwin as she cleaned her under eye.

"The children were threatened, it was absolutely called for" he kept walking to the couple, Ayla's arms folded on her chest as Harwin rubbed her cheeks to free them from tears. "Are you two alright?" He pressed his hand to Ayla's shoulder.

"Yes, Harwin came to me just in time" she praised "I'm just angry" she said, her voice tight as she bounced in place, looking to the side "I'll be fine"

"You have all the right to be angry" her father soothed her, Ayla shook her head dismissing him.

"We should retire" now Harwin pressed his hand to Ayla's side, a little spot on her ribcage below her armpit he knew she liked being held from.

Lord Edder nodded, when he turned around to leave them, Lord Lyonel called him in for a word. Harwin visibly winced as he led Ayla to the side.

"What?" She asked, glancing shortly behind her as she walked.

"Nothing good ever comes out of "a word" from my father. I've staid back training for longer than I wanted to just to avoid his "word" with me"

"I doubt your father can be so stern, he's always so nice"

"You'll have time to know him in his sternness"

"Hopefully not" she said with a little chuckle.

As they neared the top of the stairs, the floor they were staying in, Harwin leaned and swopped Ayla of her feet, making her squeal and hug his shoulders as he carried her.

"I will not let the events of the night sour the night I've been thinking of for months"

Ayla smiled and kissed him, securing herself on his shoulders as he opened the door of the bedroom.

They took their time undoing the pins that held her long hair, Ayla had decided they could benefit on some wine as they worked laying chest to back as they lounged on a chair.

Once Harwin was done, he ran his fingers on her scalp relaxing her hair from the tightness of her updo, she sighed in content, leaning fully back on his chest, engulfed by his broadness, her hands raked over his thighs, making Harwin's hand lower to her neck, his lips descending shortly after.

The door knocked, Ayla sighed and before she could send the knocker away, she heard her father's voice.

"Two minutes Ayla" she sighed again, now in exasperation and looked at Harwin.

"Would you mind getting some more water? I think we'll need it" she kissed him shortly after he nodded.

They stood and Harwin walked to the door, opening and giving way to Ayla's father.

Once Ayla thought they were alone, she sat back down and looked at her father to prompt him to talk.

"Lord Lyonel -"

"Larys didn't send the letter" she interrupted, her anger over the matter made her bounce her leg nervously "Lord Mooton was still under the impression Harwin would marry his daughter"

"Could've been Simon Strong as well"

"You told me Lord Lyonel told you that Simon Strong had ended the negotiations of the betrothal as soon as he heard his disagreement on it. So it was Larys, waving around the privilege of talking with the voice of the Hand." She had to scoff humorlessly "hypocrite" she sentenced, her arms crossing at her front.

"Listen, Ayla" he reached to grab her hand and untangle her once crossed arms "the Red Keep is a dangerous place, do not judge a book by it's cover, Larys Strong is conniving and dangerous in his own way, he's clearly well aligned. You have to start trusting your husband on these matters, it is his job to protect you now"

"I will" she glanced at the door, minding for the footsteps that warned her of Harwin's presence "later. I do not wish to bad mouth my Good Brother so quickly"

"But he will, he will try to get under your skin, which is why you must create an united front with your husband"

"I'll bend when I can, and snap when I have to" She assured.

"As soon as I know more of Lord Mooton, I will write to you" Ayla nodded, her ears picking up the footsteps leading to the door. She crossed her arms at her middle again and dedicated a little smile to Harwin as soon as she saw him, he walked to the side table with a pitcher of water.

"You were saying -" Ayla prompted "about the talk you had with Lord Lyonel"

"Yes" he cleared his throat, Harwin walked and stood next to Ayla in her seat, her hand quickly came to hold his "we disagreed on the method of dissuation I used earlier, but I gave my reasons and both him and Lady Jeyne said they would back my doing with both the King and the Tully's. Since Lord Mooton was sanctioned before for his transgressions, I don't think we will encounter much problems with any of them. He did commit conspiracy to commit murder"

"Let us hope" Harwin said, his finger running over Ayla's knuckles. "What about the attacker that I knocked down?"

"Captured and forced to talk, he said his target was Ayla, he was to take advantage of the commotion the other caused, they were decoys"

"And Lord Mooton was to come triumphantly after he killed me to do what exactly?" She frowned, trying to wrap her head around the situation.

"A wild assumption would be that Harwin, free of his marriage with you, would honor the agreement and marry Lady Myra"

Harwin chuckled humorlessly, his hand grabbing tightly onto Ayla's.

"I would have first fallen on my sword than marry the daughter of my wife's killer"

Lord Edder followed with his own short chuckle, patting Harwin's arm.

"And if you had, I would've killed you myself"

"Father" Ayla scolded, standing next to Harwin, being enveloped by his arm and pulled to his chest.

"I would've glady let you"

"Okay" Ayla patted Harwin's chest and looked at her father "anything else, father?"

"No my girl" he pinched Ayla's cheek and smiled at her "I'll leave you to rest"

Ayla smirked when her father turned around, looking up at Harwin as he returned the same devious smirk.

Once the door was closed and they were alone again, it wasn't long between Harwin's fingers wrapped on the lace of her dress to undo it and those very fingers found themselves holding Ayla's waist as he pounded into her, her hands wrapped around his forearms pushed her breasts and the sight of them bouncing up and down was Harwin's only motivation to keep the relentless and quick thrusts he was providing. That and the loudest moans he'd heard from her yet.

All the pent up stress had quickly dissipated from his and Ayla's body transformed in the adrenaline that was cursing through Harwin's body as he fucked her, but had long left Ayla's body, who had reduced to let herself be deliciously manhandled around, knowing that the result would always be Harwin ripping another orgasm from her, each one threatening to make her lose consciousness. As she felt herself numb and shake at the same time, see black and flashes of light, she gave herself completely to the man she loved, complete trust as he knew how and when to stop, keep going, faster, slower rougher, how to touch her, when to touch her. She only wished she would some day find a way to pay back all the favors he provided.

If only she knew Harwin found his own extasy in pleasuring her like he had.

Ayla open her eyes, eyelids heavily closed without her control, the room was lit by the sunlight peaking, a small breeze flowed on her skin making her take account of only the lower half of her body being covered. She sighed, sending comands to her body to move. Nothing. Now she sighed in frustration. Suddenly, a heavy hand rounded her perked up behind, patting her ass cheek, she couldn't even comprehend, much less feel her body or in what twisted position she was in, but the pats, rythmical on her ass, she felt those.

"Are you trying to soothe me like a baby?" She asked, noticing how sore and gravely her voice sounded.

"I am, it worked for an hour"

Harwin wrapped his arm around Ayla's body, his lips kissed her shoulder and moved her hair a and out of the way of her neck.

"How are you my love?"

"Spent" she managed to say "why are you clothed?" She complained, the fabric of his shirt avoiding the skin to skin contact she needed.

"Because it's noon my love, I went downstairs to eat something, brought some other things for you-" he dipped his lips again to her shoulder, now moving up to her jaw and the shell of her ear "do you want some?"

"Sure" she managed again, but by the time Harwin climbed out of bed, rounded it and found a gown for her to wear, she was fast asleep again.

Being so spent didn't disuade her from climbing on top of him the very next night, coaxing him to have her and to leave her whimpering, sore, filled with his seed in however way he wanted, and that he did.

Ayla swore that she wasn't going to cry when she said goodbye to her family. She had grown accustomed to living without her brothers, she wouldn't feel their absence. Her father on the other hand, her sword and shield, she was going to miss him terribly. She clung to that last hug for more than necessary, only pulling back when Harwin pressed his hand at her lower back, they had to leave some time that day.

Her father placed a kiss on her forehead, she leaned back and took a deep breath, her tears at bay.

"I will come see you in King's Landing when my granchild is born" he assured, his hands pressed to Ayla's shoulders "I've also arranged for your brother to go with you"

That surprised her, she looked to the side at Adrian, who returned her a little smile.

"For how long?"

"Adrian is going to participate in the tournament that's to be held for Princess Rhaenyra's firstborn." Her father explained "if he does well, he will be vouched for by Lord Lyonel and become part of Princess Rhaenyra's detail, maybe even her Queen's guard in the future"

Ayla felt a relief instantly wash over her, her lungs at first constricted now relaxed in her chest and allowed her to breath properly.

Once in the carriage, Ayla pressed herself next to Harwin, her head coming to his shoulder as he kissed her forehead.

"When will be return to Harrenhal? To live there?" She asked, her arms tangling with one of his.

"When my father commands me to take the family seat. Though that might be some time" he pressed his lips to the top of her head "you will enjoy King's Landing"

"If you're there, I certainly will"

Larys sighed, gripping his cane as he looked over at the young Queen in front of him.

"So the wedding was..." She lingered, grabbing her cup and looking at Larys over it.

"It was fulfilled in it's entirety. I had hoped for a different outcome at the end of the night but-" he sighed again "I've underestimated them"

"Who?"

"All of them, the brothers are immensely skilled fighters, Ayla is extremely smart. She works her father with tremendous skill, all the while looking naive, innocent and completely unaware of the going of the word." He smiled, glancing at the Queen "a formidable opponent"

"We've lost Harrenhal then, it can be assumed it will always be guarded by Redfort forces, our allies in the Riverlands and the reach would not dare cross them"

"Time, it's all we need and all we have. Patience is what warrants, if it is the Queen's wishes, Prince Aegon will sit the throne"

taglist: @her-fandom-sanctum @mostlyskateboarding @evyiione @agentstarkid

[visionmarred-archive]

Shepherds of Haven Recruit Form

thinking about my boy lately and everybody else did this so why not me :^) template by @shepherds-of-haven​​! one should read it if they haven’t! it’s great!

minor spoilers for the alpha demo

(face claim: Ruba Wilson)

Biographical Info

Name, Nicknames: Tysinno Maratis, sometimes called “Tysi” by friends

Callsign: Cure

Gender: cis man

Sexuality: biromantic demisexual

Pronouns: he/him

Age: 28 years old

Background Info

Weapon: guns

Magic Specialization: Elae (Healer)

Racial Heritage, Birthplace: Hunter heritage, presumed born in Maj (but who knows?)

Education: Circle taught

Miscellaneous Info

Past Jobs: bodyguard for hire, sailor, farm hand, shop hand, accountant (is that a thing a medieval-esque dude can be when he doesn’t stay in one city for too long? we’ll roll with it), various odd jobs

Likes: art, both creating and discussing. literature. learning things. cats of any kind. clothes shopping. he’s a goth mage with an interest in the morbid and bizarre of the world.

Dislikes: friggin snobby nobles and the Autarchy. gossip for the sake of being hurtful (which he can be hypocritical about, because he’ll definitely engage in that if he dislikes somebody enough.)

Strengths: usually composed and calm in most situations, with exceptions of course. compassionate and caring, and good at making people feel calm and safe. good at thinking things through in a logical way. gifted with his magic. knows how to heal people without magic, and how to mix up potions for the occasion.

Weaknesses: incredibly self-loathing and blames himself for what happened to Maj, and has a hard time not seeing himself as bad luck for people that he cares about and who care about him. depending on the situation, that self-loathing or his frustration with the world can influence his decisions, and not necessarily for the better. physically a limp noodle and definitely won’t be winning any strength contests anytime soon.

Hobbies/Special Skills: painting and sketching, writing (prefers poetry that he will never let another living soul read tysm), letting cats into his room even though Blade said that’s against the rules. enjoys gardening when he gets the chance. Tysinno also possesses one heck of a poker face and composure in most situations, which translates well to gambling.

DnD Morality Alignment: chaotic-good

Meyers-Briggs Personality Type: INFJ-T

Personality

(Bold which way your recruit leans.)

Heart of Gold/Will of Iron

Rebellious/Loyal

Independent/Social

Tactful/Straightforward

Bold/Cautious

Charming/Stoic/Intimidating

Witty/Sincere (depends ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

Resentful/Forgiving

Self-Preserving/Self-Sacrificing

Book-Smart/Street-Smart

One-God/Atheist/Old Faith

Relationships

Best Friend(s):

Shery - calm and loving soul who deserves good things. somebody to have chill discussions with while they gush over cats and drink tea together. romance novel reading friends.

Chase - Tysinno’s kinda surprised about this one because he keeps to himself and Chase is Chase LOL but their friendship is surprisingly solid! Chase brings him out of his shell and helps him to have fun. may or may not have thought Chase was cute for a bit there, but their relationship is firmly platonic.

Briony - see above but with less surprise lol. they bonded in the arena and they’ve been close ever since.

Preferred Mission Partner(s):

he’s generally chill with working with anybody if they’re right for the job, but probably feels most at ease around Ayla and his closest friends.

Friendly Rival(s):

Halek - if anybody fits the bill then prooobably Halek? but idk if I’d even call them rivals, it’s more just that their relationship is complicated lol. Tysinno longs to be involved with Hunter culture and to be a part of that community again, and he can’t help but be just a little bit jealous of Halek coming from that world but being so ready to walk away from their people when being a part of it is what Tysinno wants. but he also recognizes that it’s irrational on his end and that Halek has absolutely valid reasons to want to get away from the Reach, so it’s just. complicated. lol.

Love Interest(s):

Ayla - local healer man crushes on this amazing and tough wind mage who is?? pretty much perfect as far as he’s concerned like have you looked at Ayla Aescar?? I Have Eyes Only For You.mp3 as he thinks about this kinda smooch

Ship Name(s): Tysayla? Aysinno? Marscar? idk their tag is “OTP: Windswept”

First Kiss Scenario: 👀

Art

Enemies:

Lavinet - they can work together and be civil and polite, but that’s probably the best it’s ever gonna be. she hasn’t forgotten Prihine’s death, and even if that hadn’t been a thing, their personalities and views on the aristocracy would likely clash too much for them to ever be friends.

pretend that this picrew let him have a streak of white hair bc Hunter heritage <3

[sanfranjamiea]

about jamie ashford

tw: death

Who are/were their parents? jamies parents are named mariana and jenson ashford, though his mum has sadly passed away. His dad is a builder and he is moody and rude but also very caring at times. 

Do they have any siblings? What are/were they like? he is an only child,

Do they have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses? no allergies or diseases or even physical weaknesses.

Are you right- or left-handed? Right handed. 

What words and/or phrases do they use very frequently? alright or it is what it is

How would they describe their childhood in general? a pretty decent childhood, apart from always on the move, he was given a pretty chill and relaxed childhood. 

While growing up, did they have any role models? If so, describe them. not really. 

While growing up, how did they get along with the other members of their family? Well he got on really well with his mum but him and his dad used to argue a lot growing up. 

As a child, what did they want to be when they grew up? he wanted to be a teacher when he was growing up. 

As a child, what were their favorite activities? reading mostly and running. 

When and with whom was their first kiss? he had his first kiss at 14 with a girl from school. 

What do they consider the most important event of their life so far? Probably coming out as bisexual or losing his mum. 

What do they consider their greatest achievement? Building his own business. 

What is their greatest regret? pushing people away when he gets scared. 

What is the most evil thing they have ever done? he’s not really doen something evil except break someones heart. 

Do they have a criminal record of any kind? nope. 

Do ythey believe in the existence of soul mates and/or true love? not really. 

How honest are they about their thoughts and feelings? not honest at all, usually keeps it to himself. 

In general, how do they treat others (politely, rudely, by keeping them at a distance, etc.)? Does their treatment of them change depending on how well they know them, and if so, how? Most of the time he treats people kindly and politely, he tends to be sarcastic to people if he feels awkward around them. 

Have they ever been in love? If so, describe what happened. He thinks he might be in love right now but it involved him pushing the guy away and breaking his heart. 

Who would they turn to if they were in desperate need of help? his best friend Ayla, she just knows him and gets him. 

Do you trust anyone to protect you? Who, and why? Again Ayla for sure and Clarissa, just two people who would always be there. 

Do they tend to argue with people, or avoid conflict? Prefer to avoid conflict if it can be avoided. 

Do they tend to take on leadership roles in social situations? It’s usually a mix and depends on the people. 

What is their idea of good entertainment (consider music, movies, art, etc.)? Going to bars or to watch live music events really. 

Do they smoke, drink, or use drugs? If so, why? Do they want to quit? He drinks when he goes out but only socially. He also smokes but agin not that much but he does want to quit altogether. 

How do they deal with stress? Usually by going for a run or reading a book or going for a drink with a friend. 

Are they generally organized or messy? he is very organised. 

Name three things thet consider themselves to be very good at, and three things they consider themselves to be very bad at.  three things he is good at, selling, being friendly, and orgnising. three things he is bad at, communicating, being on time and cooking. 

What goal do they most want to accomplish in their lifetime? a stable relationship.

[mookybear12404]

Dnd asks: 1, 11, 21, 31, 41, 51, 61

I’m not sure which character you are referring to so ill just choose for each one!

1. why did they choose their class(es)? their subclass(es)?

Desmond decided to be a bloodhunter after another bloodhunter was able to subdue the demon possessing him and get him control back over his body. He basically followed the dude around and was like “please please i have no other thing worth living for I basically killed everyone i love PLEASE TEACH ME BLOOD MAGIC PLEASE” and through the sheer force of pestering he was able to convince him to train him. 

Desmond eventually gets sick of not being able to do enough to help people that he decides to make a pact with the demon in him. Despite the fact this demon has been messing with his head, his intentions, his thoughts, and his emotions, he decides its worth the risk to use this creature’s magic if it means getting a better chance at killing more monsters. (thus, the fiend profane soul subclass!)

11.  what skills are they proficient in? why?

I’ve played Nina in a few different campaigns, so I changed her proficiencies often to reflect the team she was with. She is proficient in Athletics (Because she is a MASSIVE firbolg who has worked a lot in her life), Intimidation (From her past), Insight, (She was a momma and she knows how to read people), Medicine, (From spending many years tending to the wounded,) Nature, (While she never formally studied, her time serving for a goddess of nature gave her lots of knowledge of nature) Religion, (from her goddess) Perception, which is an expertise in one game (she is VERY perceptive in general) and Survival (From as a hermit in the middle of nowhere) 

21. do they follow their head, their heart, or their body?

Characters that follow with their head - Ronan, Ayla (except when it comes to Will, the little boy she’s adopted,) Cree somewhat, Evira somewhat

Characters that follow with their heart - Arlo, Rosie, Celeste

Characters that follow with their body - Somewhat Cree

31. they’re given a blank piece of paper–what do they do with it?

Ronan would take the paper and use it to practice his ink paintings. He’d probably make a nice landscape painting or something silly for his daughter.

 41. what are they attracted to in other people?

Evira is very much the “If you are an underdog, or an outcast of society, I will care for you deeply.” She is drawn to those who are weird, those who overlooked, those who are deemed “unworthy”. This is partially from being a reject of society herself, feeling a close kinship with them, and partially because she has a VERY strong sense of justice. Her best friend was the shy girl in class. Her husband was the awkward one with the stutter. She befriended the terrifying looking guy who runs the bakery. She liked to sit and chat with the weird dude that talked to pigeons. She rarely has any patience for those with money, social status, or beauty. (This is something my DM hopes to use to tie her into the party! She will likely adopt anyone who is even remotely sad or rejected lol)

51. what is the most beautiful thing in the world, for them?

Ronan thinks that his wife and daughter are the most beautiful things in the world. 

61. what kind of flower would they choose to pick from a meadow?

Rosie would absolutely pick the pink flowers only, maybe with some white ones mixed in

[addictedforbooksquad]

P I C K (S)  O F  T H E  M O N T H: O C T O B E R

Crier’s War by Nina Varela

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

Beard with Me by Penny Reid

Tempt by Natalia Jaster

Crier’s War by Nina Varela

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, LGBT, F/F romance

Synopsis:

After the War of Kinds ravaged the kingdom of Rabu, the Automae, designed to be the playthings of royals, usurped their owners’ estates and bent the human race to their will. Now Ayla, a human servant rising in the ranks at the House of the Sovereign, dreams of avenging her family’s death…by killing the sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier. Crier was Made to be beautiful, flawless, and to carry on her father’s legacy. But that was before her betrothal to the enigmatic Scyre Kinok, before she discovered her father isn’t the benevolent king she once admired, and most importantly, before she met Ayla. Now, with growing human unrest across the land, pressures from a foreign queen, and an evil new leader on the rise, Crier and Ayla find there may be only one path to love: war.

Why we love it:

amazing world-building, intriguing setting and established mythology

Crier is the Softest™ and Cutest™ person ever and we just want to hug her

enemies to lovers excellence

beautiful writing, with lyrical undertones, full of tension and longing

character-driver story but it keeps you on the edge of your seat

WE. NEED. MORE. PLEASEEEEE

Trigger warnings: n/a

≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Mystery

Synopsis:

Audrey Rose Wadsworth and Thomas Cresswell have landed in America, a bold, brash land unlike the genteel streets of London they knew. But like London, the city of Chicago hides its dark secrets well. When the two attend the spectacular World's Fair, they find the once-in-a-lifetime event tainted with reports of missing people and unsolved murders. Determined to help, Audrey Rose and Thomas begin their investigations, only to find themselves facing a serial killer unlike any they've heard of before. Identifying him is one thing, but capturing him---and getting dangerously lost in the infamous Murder Hotel he constructed as a terrifying torture device---is another. Will Audrey Rose and Thomas see their last mystery to the end---together and in love---or will their fortunes finally run out when their most depraved adversary makes one final, devastating kill?

Why we love it:

final installment to Stalking Jack the Ripper series

Thomas Cresswell remains one of the best written male characters - we love his wit and playful humour

plot with intriguing mystery to solve, along all the romance

best cressworth moments; they will make your heart race!

a very satisfying conclusion to the series

Audrey Rose and Thomas will be missed!

Trigger warnings: graphic violence

≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡

Beard With Me by Penne Reid

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, New Adult

Synopsis:

No one is better at surviving than Scarlet St. Claire and making the best out of circumstances beyond her control is Scarlet’s specialty. In an apocalyptic situation, she’d be the last person on earth, hermitting like a pro, singing along to her CD Walkman, and dancing like no one is watching. Scarlet is clever, Scarlet is careful, and Scarlet is smart . . . except when it comes to Billy Winston. No one is better at fighting than Billy Winston and raging against his circumstances - because nothing is beyond his control - is Billy’s specialty. In an apocalyptic situation, he’d be the first person on earth to lead others to safety, overcome catastrophe, or die trying. Billy is fearless, Billy is disciplined, and Billy is honorable . . . except when it comes to Scarlet St. Claire.

Why we love it:

origin story of Billy Winston and Scarlet St. Claire

first love ending in heartbreak

provides insight into Billy and Scarlet’s backstory

Cletus offers some lighter moments in the book

we can’t wait for the final installment to this amazing series!

*intensively crossing fingers and toes for Billy and Scarlet to get their happy ending*

Trigger warnings: torture/abuse, parental abuse of children

≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡ ≡≡≡≡≡

Tempt by Natalia Jaster

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, New Adult, Retellings

Synopsis:

Don’t miss this seductive urban fantasy retelling of Hades & Persephone! Make a deal with the devil... Wonder is a wildflower goddess who once loved a hero—until he became a villain. She’d thought her history buried and forgotten. She’d thought she would never see him again. She was wrong. Now, on the brink of an immortal battle between rebel deities and celestial rulers, Wonder must find a way to defeat her enemies. The key lies deep inside a magic, subterranean library filled with twisting corridors, forbidden books, and secret legends. Yet trespassing through a deadly forest and breaking into an ancient library isn’t the problem. The problem is she’ll have company: the devilish god from her past. And he’s got his own agenda with her.

Why we love it:

intriguing unusual take on Hades/Persephone retelling

enemies to lovers mixed with forced alliance and proximity mixed with excellence

reincarnation trope done well

Natalia’s signature vivid lyrical writing is present on every page

beautiful emotional journey for both characters

best installment of Selfish Myths series!

Trigger warnings: n/a

[nadjadoll]

Character Interview

Okay so I was tagged a bunch of times by so many people for this and I was putting it off but I’m finally getting to it so here we go!

Thank you for the tags @noonvraith​ @foofygoldfish @devotchkas @colesphelps @statichvm @honesthearts and @outranks

Buckle up because I’m going to be doing three of these in one post

name  ��� ayla edwards

are you single  ➔ i think i’m kind of in that in between stage with a friend of mine...

are you happy  ➔ i try my best to be upbeat as much as I can

are you angry  ➔ funnily enough, i don’t actually remember the last time I was angry!

are your parents still married  ➔ they are, and happily so!

EIGHT FACTS

birthplace  ➔ edinburgh scotland

hair color  ➔ strawberry blonde

eye color  ➔ blue

birthday ➔ june 14th 1999

mood ➔ extremely worn out but optimistic!

gender ➔ female

summer or winter ➔ summer, though there isn’t much of one in gotham

morning or afternoon ➔ morning, just as the sun is rising and everything is quiet

SEVEN THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔ yes  (◠‿◠✿)

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ absolutely! a lot of things can happen with just one look

who ended your last relationship ➔ i did, it broke my heart but i’ve never been a fan of long-distance relationships

have you ever broken someone's heart ➔ i’m afraid i have

are you afraid of commitments ➔ not at all!

have you hugged someone within the last week ➔ a few people actually! one being marv, the others being a very nice couple i saved from a mugger

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ well how would i know if they were secret?

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔ love, and all the soft hugs and kisses that go along with it

lemonade or iced tea ➔ lemonade with lots of sugar

cats or dogs ➔ both! though i do prefer dogs a little more

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔ a few best friends

wild night out or romantic night in ➔ romantic night in, i don’t have the energy to have a wild night out

day or night ➔ day! there are about 5 days of sunny weather a year in gotham and i love every one of them

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔  i’ve never had to, my hometown was pretty boring and my parents were always lax about me coming and going

fallen down/up the stairs ➔ so many times, there are an incredible amount of stairs in the university and i have fallen on all of them

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt ➔ do the dogs i see on the sidewalk count? i swear if my dorm allowed pets i’d have 10 dogs by now

wanted to disappear ➔ after the accident that gave me my powers, i was really embarrassed and scared and didn’t know what to do, i don’t think i left the house for a couple of weeks after that

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔ smile!

shorter or taller ➔ taller, it’s not hard to find people taller than me, being only 5′3

intelligence or attraction ➔ intelligence

hook up or relationship ➔ relationship

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ yes! i haven’t been able to get back home to see them in a while but i talk to them on the phone at least twice a week

would you say you have a "messed up life" ➔ ironically, no. despite my powers that let me multiplicate myself, i have great parents and amazing friends and i’m so thankful for that

have you ever ran away from home ➔ i’ve never felt like i wanted to

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ never

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends - no! i love all of my friends 

do you consider all of your friends good friends - 100% i would do anything for them an di know they would return that feeling

who is your best friend - song! not only is he one of the first people i met when i moved here, he also has powers

who knows everything about you - song again, i feel like i can tell him anything

name ➔ august seed

are you single ➔ no

are you happy ➔ generally

are you angry ➔ 75% of the time

are your parents still married ➔ well they’re both dead so no

EIGHT FACTS

birthplace ➔ a place called new york

hair color ➔ brown

eye color ➔ blue

birthday ➔ april 4th 2013

mood ➔ bored, charley and I haven’t made a good death maze in too long

gender ➔ female

summer or winter ➔ summer, the less clothes i have to wear the better

morning or afternoon ➔ afternoon

SEVEN THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔ i guess you could say that

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ no i think it’s all crap

who ended your last relationship ➔ technically it was the vehicle that drove over them

have you ever broken someone's heart ➔ probably

are you afraid of commitments ➔ no never

have you hugged someone within the last week ➔ i don’t do hugs

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ i have gotten a few “odd” gifts, mainly things like teeth and fingers so maybe

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔ lust

lemonade or iced tea ➔ what are those

cats or dogs ➔ dogs, big ones

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔ neither, i like to keep to myself

wild night out or romantic night in ➔ wild night out, drinks and drugs and all the fun things in between

day or night ➔ night

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔ i snuck out a few times from the camp my mom and i were living at, never got caught though

fallen down/up the stairs ➔ no

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt ➔ if i want something, i go get it

wanted to disappear ➔ nope, never

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔ eyes

shorter or taller ➔ shorter or same height

intelligence or attraction ➔ attraction, can’t do much without that

hook up or relationship ➔ hoop up, i don’t care about feelings. charley is the only exception

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ i’ve never met my dad but from what i’ve heard of him, i feel like i would get along with him more than i ever did with my mom

would you say you have a "messed up life" ➔ i think some people would say that, not me though. the only thing i think i would change is bring my dad back so i could kick his ass for never being there for my mom and me

have you ever ran away from home ➔ i stuck with my mom until i was about 16, i figured i would have more fun out on my own

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ i’ve been kicked out of a few gangs i used to travel with, until i found the highwaymen

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ it’s no secret i hate most of the other highwaymen

do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ i don’t have friends, people say i’m “untrustworthy” and “horrifying”

who is your best friend ➔ closest thing i have to a best friend would be charley though i hate the term best friend

who knows everything about you ➔ no one, and i’d like to keep it that way

name ➔ scarlett campbell

are you single ➔ no

are you happy ➔ i am now

are you angry ➔ i’m pissed off someone kidnapped my baby but it’s alright, i’m doing everything i can to find him 

are your parents still married ➔ had they somehow survived the bombs, i imagine they would be or maybe not. it was always hard to tell if they really loved each other.

EIGHT FACTS

birthplace ➔ i was born right here in the commonwealth

hair color ➔ blonde

eye color ➔ brown

birthday ➔ sometime in september, i never cared much for birthdays

mood ➔ currently apathetic

gender ➔ female

summer or winter ➔ winter, after it snows and just before sunrise

morning or afternoon ➔ afternoon

SEVEN THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔ hopelessly so

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ i thought i did when i met nate, now i’m not so sure

who ended your last relationship ➔ i guess the nuclear bomb did. i had plans on leaving nate and taking shaun the day they dropped, they beat me to it.

have you ever broken someone's heart ➔ many, i do regret some of them

are you afraid of commitments ➔ in my younger years i was a wild child and would have said no. these days i’m more hesitant to those kinds of things

have you hugged someone within the last week ➔ yes, i was having a bit of a down day the other day and all i wanted to do was hold piper, thankfully she let me

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ haha i’m sure i have, i suppose piper was one of those at some point?

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔ a healthy mix of both

lemonade or iced tea ➔ iced tea, it’s hard to find now of course but it reminds me of the days before the war

cats or dogs ➔ hm neither, i’m not really an animal person

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔ many regular friends, it’s good to have lots of people on your side

wild night out or romantic night in ➔ romantic night in is the way to go for me nowadays

day or night ➔ night, the commonwealth just seems more peaceful at night

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔ many times, i was a bit of a party girl years ago, it drove my parents nuts and they tried everything to keep me in

fallen down/up the stairs ➔ oh a lot, high heels + the stairs in diamond city do not mix

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt ➔ yes, once upon a time i thought i wanted nate but he wasn’t who i thought he was

wanted to disappear ➔ towards the end of my marriage that was the plan. but now he’s gone and i don’t regret saying i’m glad about it

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔ eyes, they say a lot about someone

shorter or taller ➔ either works for me

intelligence or attraction ➔ little bit of both

hook up or relationship ➔ old me would have said hook up but i’m really getting used to having piper around long term

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ i wouldn’t say we necessarily “got along”, my parents and i had our ups and downs, they didn’t quite understand who i wanted to be. but we loved each other in our own ways

would you say you have a "messed up life" ➔ well let’s see i was married to an asshole, our country got bombed, i was locked in a freezer for 200 years, my son was kidnapped by a secret institution and now i have to figure out how to survive in the wasteland that used to be my home

have you ever ran away from home ➔ that was always a thought it the back of my mind, not because i hated my home but because i wanted to go out and do my own thing, be my own person. i never did but now i wish i had gone through with it

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ there was a time i had gotten into a bit too much trouble and i thought for sure i would be tossed out but no, they let me stay but i had to watch my step for quite a while

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ no

do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ that would be a strong way to say it. i do love them but i try to keep a bit of distance

who is your best friend ➔ piper

who knows everything about you ➔ it’s actually nick, he’s a very good listener and god knows i’ve needed to vent to someone

[collectingvoices]

IR Secret Santa!!

@immortal-rain-secret-santa

I got to make a gift for @sytacus!! Jay asked for literally anything as long as F*lk wasn’t involved, so I decided to write something based in the household’s beloved modmeme universe.

Happy holidays, and I hope you enjoy!!

Calvaria Labs Presents: A Bleak Midwinter’s Night

The tiny apartment was freezing. Frost coated the windows, glowing gold due to the streetlights outside. Inside, Machika grumbled as she tugged the duvets around herself, trying to conserve the tiny island of heat in the middle of her bed. Every exhale billowed out as a tiny storm, warming her face before the cold struck back and made her face feel even colder. Her toes slid out into the open air, and she hissed at the burning feeling before she tugged them back to safety.

“Stupid heating,” she grumbled, “Pay good money and it still craps out.”

Turning over, she resigned herself to trying to fall back asleep in the icebox of her room. A knock at the door, however, had her sitting up, bundled up in her sheets. “Who the hell…?”

A second knock, and Machika reluctantly brought out her feet, quickly stuffing them into the slippers at the side of her bed. With the comforter still wrapped around her, she shuffled to the front door, footsteps muffled by the carpet. There was a third knock, quickly halted as she pointedly turned the lock. Cracking the door open, she peered out into the hallway. Then up, her eyebrows rising.

“Rain?”

The tall figure nodded as she removed the chain and pulled the door open. Machika could barely make out her friend’s eyes, peering out from a space below a large, fluffy hat and above several clashing scarves that were wrapped tightly around his face and neck. Even with the obviously heavy coat, she could see him shaking as he shuffled in.

“ M’ heating gav’ out.”

Machika had to strain to hear his voice, muffled as it was by layers. She pulled the duvet closer, and told him, “Mine’s not much better.”

Rain seemed to deflate. “ Oh.”

They frowned at each other. Machika shifted back and forth, trying to warm up. It wasn’t very successful, and Rain wrapping his arms around her wasn’t very successful either.

“This sucks,” Machika said.

Rain nodded.

“You know… my bosses live near here.”

Rain looked at her, his eyes going wide. He rapidly shook his head as he whisper-shouted, “Bad idea, bad idea!”

“Do you have a better one?” she snapped back. Rain’s expression told her all she needed to know.

“Then it’s settled. Lemme pull on some more layers, and we can raid their house.”

Rain raised his eyes skyward, but didn’t stop her.

Ys was the one to open the house’s monumental glass and steel front door. Or at least, Machika thought the nearly round polar coat in front of them was Ys. It was the right height, at least.

“What do you want, Machi?” Came the disgruntled voice of Yuca’s tiny clone, “It’s 2 am, on the weekend. Emergencies can at least wait ‘til the sun is actually up.”

“Our heating gave out.”

Ys squinted at her, and then looked past Machika. Spotting Rain, he said, “Ah. the desk guard. Wouldn’t have thought you two were a thing.”

Machi and Rain both began to splutter, cheeks turning bright red.

“That’s not-”

“We’re not-”

“I mean, we could be-”

“But not right now, no-”

“Whatever,” Ys said blandly, “Anyways, go away. There’s no heating for you here.”

“You and Yuca are literal geniuses, who make six figures each, and your heating gives out?!”

“No, we turned it off. Obviously.”

Rain and Michika blinked at him, before yelling together, “Why?!”

Ys shrugged. “We wanted to make ice cream and the freezer wasn’t getting cold enough.”

Machika put her head in her hands. “Why,” she asked, voice muffled, “Didn’t you just put it outside?”

He gave her an unimpressed look. “Because it would have gotten snow in it.”

Machika shook her head, face still in her hands. Rain shuffled awkwardly behind her. “Um. Isn’t it in a box?” the tall man asked.

A voice echoed from the depths of the house. “Yes, but someone decided to use the lid as a petri dish.”

All three turned to look. From the darkness came the lanky form of Yuca, rubbing sleep from his eyes with his palm. Machika felt her jaw drop. The mad scientist was only wearing a pair of star patterned shorts and pink fluffy slippers.

Ys narrowed his eyes at his creator, seemingly unsurprised by the older man’s attire. “I had to, you kept using the actual petri dishes to microwave your leftovers in.”

Yuca scratched at his chin. “And?”

“And, you useless block of donor cells, we have perfectly usable bowls!”

“Hey now-”

As the two began to squabble, Rain leaned down and asked Machika in a whisper, “How is he not cold?”

Machika shrugged. “I don’t get paid enough to ask that.”

Eury was having such a good night. His siblings had gone to see Sharem’s old man for the holiday, leaving him alone in their townhouse. As such, he’d invited Ayla over for a late night dinner of leftover chinese. They’d eaten while watching dramatic racing movies, and now that the boxes covering the coffee table were licked clean, the promise of her staying the rest of the night was definitely on the table, if how close she was snuggled up to his side was any indication.

“Hey Eury, got anything to drink?”

He hummed. “There’s some water and juice in the fridge. The beer’s in the cupboard.”

“I was thinking something hotter.”

“Oh?” he asked with a grin.

Ayla promptly hit him with one of the throw pillows. “Not like that. I meant a warm drink.”

“I know what you meant.”

“Suuure. Anyways, have you got something or not?”

Eury scratched the back of his neck. “We probably got some coffee in there. Maybe that apple cider mix…”

“You know what, I’ll just go take a look.” Ayla said as she stood.

“Nooo, don’t leave me,” Eury said dramatically, reaching his arms out after his girlfriend. She merely rolled her eyes at him and continued into the kitchen.

“You’re so dramatic. You can survive a few minutes without me.”

“That’s debatable, babe,” There was a knock at the front door. Eury let out a hefty sigh, “Aylaaa…”

“Get it yourself!”

“Damn it.” Eury muttered as he dragged himself off the couch and towards the front door. Pulling it open, he snapped, “What?” Rain raised a gloved hand and gave an awkward little wave. Machika peered around him, dark bags around her eyes as she stared Eury down. Ys and Yuca, identically impeccably dressed, stood further back, but both seemed unimpressed by Eury’s rumpled state.

“Rain. What fresh hell have you brought to my doorstep?” Eury asked his friend.

“Our heating is out.” the group said, collectively tired.

“Oh.” Then Eury realized what that meant, and his tone quickly changed, “Oh no. No, no, no, you guys can’t stay here. Go check into a hotel or something, cause I ain’t letting you in-”

“Eury? Who are you talking to?” Ayla called from the kitchen.

Machika raised her eyebrows at Eury, grinning. He groaned, and leaned against the doorframe as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“Eury, I asked-” Ayla stepped out of the kitchen, “Oh, hey Rain! Oh, and is that Machi?”

Machika slipped past Eury, shooting him a smug grin, like a cat that’s gotten into the cream, before wrapping her arms around Ayla. “You’re so warmmmm.” Machika moaned.

Ayla patted her head. “Want some hot cocoa? I found a box.”

Machika nodded vigorously.

“Ok then. How about the rest of you?”

Rain gave one short nod, while Ys and Yuca looked at each other, before answering together, “Yes please.”

“I’ll put the kettle on then!” She said, before pulling Machika with her into the kitchen.

Eury looked at the group of men outside his door, and the men looked back. Finally, he sighed, and stepped aside. “C’mon then.”

As the three slipped past him, sighing in relief at the warmth - except for Yuca, who seemed rather blase about it all - Eury shook his head. There goes my plans for the night. Happy fucking holidays to me.

[aylacassia]

appetizinggael​:

✧₤✧

Gael liked to think he didn’t have preferences when it came to vampires, but truth be told the bite from the oldest of their kind was a delight unlike any other. The grace and power someone like Ayla could exude with just a flick of her eyelashes were all-consuming. He would never dare ask how old, but Gael figured her life spanned greater stretches of time than he could ever hope to conceptualize. How many before him have received the honor of nourishing her? How many have thrown themselves at her feet like he so desperately wants to? Gael could imagine just how insignificant he was to her, how he must’ve been another mortal face she’d barely remember in another thousand years. God how he loved that feeling. 

Except tonight, the high of being putting him in his place because of a goddess’s mere existence was not the source of his grin. History and future mattered little, the present was most important. And at the moment, he was in the boss’s clutches, the only thrall capable of holding her interest which proved the quality of his blood. Combined with the euphoria of Ayla drinking from his veins, a surge of superiority rushed through him as he felt his heart begin to beat for her. “It’s much better now that you’re here. You’re usually so mean, always forcing me to watch you from afar, never letting me enjoy your fangs. It’s torture only being able to observe true beauty from a distance.”

He was the best thrall, that was a fact the others would have to deal with since Ayla clearly preferred him. Even as he pouts and wistfully praises her, his posturing is not enough to make Gael forget to be grateful. There truly is no sight quite like a vampire feeding on him, and his pupils are blown wide as he refuses to miss a second. He tries to quietly press a napkin to his freed wrist but can’t hide his disappointment well. Gael doesn’t want to be pushy, but… “It’s been a slow night for me, and I only have one more workout today. Are you sure that’s enough? My arm is barely tingling. You should have more. Please?”

*

She had always envisioned Just a Bite being a sanctuary of sorts, vampires came first to her and always had. The blood that waited on ice, contained in wine bottles and mixed into cocktails, the fresh blood that waited beneath the skin with the staff that offered their veins and those that had felt a connection while visiting who had traversed to the backrooms was all part of the plan to offer to her kind. She has spent nearly a thousand years in this form, as a being with power, strength and speed that it is hard for her to remember a time before where she wasn’t a vampire. She didn’t enjoy too remember her years spent as a human, she was a thrall, serving as priestess to the Venus line until she was of the right age to be turned.

She cared for the thralls in her own way that came through her club, especially with her current position as senator. It was important that no one died at her club and if there was an enthusiastic vampire who didn’t know their limits, bodies would never be discovered and secrets like that were better kept buried. Gael was someone who had made himself known but there wasn’t any loyalty in him, he’d offer his blood to any vampire with fangs. Vampires tended to take pride in their bloodline and without a sire bond were unlikely to take on another progeny.

“Mean? I never wished to be mean.” Her finger finds his chin and lifts it so he can see her kind smile. “You make the vampires who come through here so happy, I enjoy the gifts you offer them. Having such a crowd-pleaser like you has really helped in making this club a success.” Honeyed-saccharine words dripping with reassurance. She doesn’t need the money but she enjoys success. Her lips press down and take from his wrist once more, the heady rush of vermillion fills her mouth but it’s nothing compared to the fey blood she recently drank from and does little to satisfy her. Still, she drinks. “Thank you Gael.” Her teeth match her blood red lipstick as she smiles. “That is enough.”

[actual-lich-queen]

The Queen of Cups Chapter 8: The world perishes not from bandits and fires, but from hatred, hostility, and all these petty squabbles. - Chekhov

Varric and Cassandra deal with the East Road Bandits and some of the wider questions of Andraste, the Chantry, and how your story is told.

Read on Ao3

The clouds rolled in the sky over Varric’s head as he squinted at a spot on the horizon, lost in thought. Something about...arrows? Quiet. Quick. In a back alley. Guardsmen shouting, but the bow wasn’t hers…

“Varric, when was your first kill?” Cassandra’s sudden question took him from the mean streets of Kirkwall back to the, quite frankly, boring wilds of Ferelden.

“Why, Seeker? You writing a biography?” Varric gave his most engaging smirk.

“No, I was thinking about Ayla.” Her leather gloves squeaked as she reflexively gripped the handle of her blade, “I had not...considered her situation before I brought her into battle.”

“So you’re asking me?”

“I was simply trying to understand her feelings. But it has been so long since I…”

“Since the first time you took a person’s life.”

“I still remember. They were an apostate and a blood mage.” Cassandra frowned, “Involved in the cult that tried to murder Divine Beatrix.”

“Do you remember how you felt?”

“Angry.”

“Somehow I’m not surprised.” Varric pursed his lips and cocked a brow, “You’re always angry.”

Cassandra grunted.

“They were the ones who had killed Anthony.” She said after a pause.

“That was the business with the dragons, wasn’t it. The story of how you became the Right Hand.”

“You would call it a story.”

“That’s who I am, Seeker.” Varric idly pet Bianca with a finger, “A teller of stories.”

“It was a problem.” Cassandra frowned, “The right choice was obvious. I followed with action. Then I was followed with stories.”

“That’s why you’ve gotta tell your own story. Get ahead of it, before someone else starts telling it wrong.”

“Like your account of the Champion.”

“Exactly. It would have been a mess if I had let Hawke tell it.” Varric’s lips twitched up in an asymmetric smug smile.

“Would the Champion think you are telling their story wrong?” Cassandra’s tone still had the usual brusqueness, but it was tinged with curiosity. It was strange, and made her seem a bit vulnerable in that I-can-still-kick-in-all-your-teeth-without-breaking-a-sweat kind of way.

“Hawke?” Varric scratched his chin, eyeing the Seeker, “I think they like not having to tell the story themselves.  When you’re living your life as a roguish fugitive from Chantry law it helps to have a reputation that precedes you.”

“But what do I know.” He hastily added, “I haven’t seen them since they left Kirkwall.”

“So you’ve said.” Cassandra grunted.

They fell into silence for a time. Varric found himself being absorbed into the scenery. The sun was shining and the air was clear and full of nature sounds. The smell of manure from the nearby farms tickled his nose. That in itself was a strange novelty, coming from the city the idea of a ‘clean shit smell’ was bizarre, but here he was. In the country. The smell of fertilizer in the air. And people thought it was a good thing. It did smell cleaner, somehow, than that distinct odor of darktown, or even the alienage, places in Kirkwall that sewage drained into and never out of. Both literally and metaphorically.

“How would you have told story of the attempted assassination of Divine Beatrix?” Cassandra interrupted his thoughts a second time. Varric looked up at the Seeker. He wondered if this was what she thought friendly conversation was. At least she wasn’t threatening him with anything sharp and pointy. That, at least, was an improvement.

“That depends, what do you want people to get from the story?” He asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” Varric settled into a more comfortable position, “Stories can be told for a lot of reasons. To entertain, to teach, to warn, to make people fall in love, or think. What would you want people to do when they heard your story?”

“To not attempt to assassinate the Divine.” Cassandra’s lips pressed into a thin, wide line, “Although it might be too late for such tales.”

“I’m sure whomever the next Divine is would appreciate the effort.”

Cassandra grunted. Varric laughed.

“Alright, Seeker. Don’t get your pauldrons in a twist.” He shook his head, “I’ve only ever heard the bard tales. What’s your side of the story?”

“The blood mages plotted to kill the Divine and were stopped by the Seekers allied with a handful of mages.”

“And the parts about the templars?”

“I would have said that the templars were an honorable order. Undeserving of the shadows cast upon them by the actions of one man.” She frowned, “But in light of recent events, I...have been given doubts about all I believed to be true.”

“Haven’t we all.” He sighed, dragging his eyes to the hole in the sky that loomed like a least favorite aunt at the family dinner.

“You mock me.” Cassandra tensed, “I should not expect sympathy from doubters.”

“You think I don’t have faith, Seeker?” It was Varric's turn to frown.

“I-I thought with your opinions on the Chantry...and your association with Hawke and Anders…” Cassandra stammered.

“I have no faith in the Chantry, that’s true. But in Andraste? In the Maker?” Varric shook his head, “I’ll admit I’ve said my share of prayers.”

“But without the Chantry-”

“Without the Chantry you have a story free of greed and corruption. Without the Chantry, you’ve got a miracle.” He crossed his arms, “You’ve got something to try for. Something to hope to be someday. And even if you wake up waist deep in shit, you remember that you’ve got Andraste in your corner, rooting for you.”

“But the Chantry is the hands and voice of Andraste in the mortal realm.” Cassandra spoke her sentence reflexively. Something she had memorized, repeated, and always taken unexamined as fact.

“Is it?” He shook his head, “And the woman who march on Tevinter to free the slaves, in the company of mages and elves as equals. She would definitely be for in squabbling and politics that the Chantry has made famous.”

“Perhaps not.” Cassandra shifted, uncomfortable, “But perhaps…”

“Perhaps?”

“Perhaps that is why she sent us Ayla.”

“You think she’s really the Herald of Andraste?” Varric felt his eyebrows shoot up so fast he was worried they might fly off into the clouds.

“I am…” Cassandra faltered, “Unsure. But I cannot believe her appearance when we needed hope the most is coincidence.”

“You might have a point there. Time will tell.”

“And...the stories?” Cassandra asked.

“Of course.”

“Stories you tell, Varric?”

“Oh, I’m sure I’ll at least have one tall tale to share over drinks when this is all over.” He shrugged, “But I’m no Brother. I’m not sure I should be getting mixed up in this religious shit.”

“That might be the best argument for why you should.”

“I’ll take that under advisement, Seeker.” Movement caught his eye, “I think we’ve finally got company.”

Bandits moved through the brush, almost undetectable, and completely unnoticed by the band of refugees that were making their way towards the crossroads. Just like recruit Belette had warned them. There was the soft whisper of metal and leather as Cassandra drew her sword beside him.

“What’s the plan, Seeker?” Varric cocked Bianca.

“Get their attention. Warn the refugees and distract the bandits so that I can get in amongst them.” Cassandra’s eyes were fixed on their target.

“I like everything about it except that I’m the distraction.”

“Varric.” Cassandra warned.

“I know, I know. Better me than the refugees. Fine.” Varric nodded at Cassandra to indicate he was ready.

The Seeker stalked off like a cat. Cassandra may be stilted and awkward in most social situations but on the battlefield? Pure poetry. He counted to three under his breath to give her a chance to get into position.

“Any blighters out there want a kiss from Bianca?” Varric yelled, standing up from where he’d been hiding in the brush.

The refugees froze and looked at him, confused. Varric fired off a shot into a clump of grasses hiding a bandit. There was a scream cut off by a wet thud. A few of the refugees looked to the grass, then back at him.

“You might want to think about running.” Varric answered their questioning stares before firing off a few more shots.

The bandits seemed to figure out what was going on the same time as the refugees and exploded onto the road as if they were propelled by a repulsion glyph. The refugees managed to get over their stunned druffalo act and started running.

He squeezed Bianca’s trigger, one, two, three more times. Bolts blossomed in fields of red in the chests of two more bandits. The third crumpled to the ground with the arrow piercing his knee. Those that remained of the bandits began focusing their attack on him.

This was a mistake as Cassandra emerged behind them, thrusting her sword clear through the chest of one, placing her boot on their back and kicking them off the blade as she turned and yelled who’s face became a mask of terror. The fight from that point was brief as he and Cassandra made short work of the bandits.

“I don’t think these were amateurs.” Varric toed a corpse, “Desperate and dumb usually doesn’t have access to good armor.”

“Agreed.” Cassandra knelt by a corpse, methodically going through their pockets, “We should ascertain their true purpose.”

They spent a few moments in silence, searching the dead bodies for clues. Varric took the opportunity to pocket anything he thought might be useful later. It was grisly, but you never knew when you’d next have the opportunity to replenish your bolts or stumble into the Deep Roads. The latter happened to him with astonishingly high regularity that at this point stealing health potions from dead bodies was less ‘morally grey’ and more ‘practical mindset’. One of the bandit’s pockets turned up an illuminating scrap of paper.

“Better take a look at this, Seeker.” He called out to Cassandra. She stood up, dusting off her knees and walked over to him, taking the note from his hand. She grunted when she finished reading it.

“Looks like someone’s bankrolling mercenaries to scare off potential witnesses.” Varric rubbed his jaw.

“Who would do such a thing?” Cassandra snarled.

“I’m more curious as to why. Maybe we should check out this villa the note mentions.”

“That is what I was thinking.” She started marching up the road in the direction the letter had indicated. Maker help any mercenaries they encountered on the way.

[bastetwrites]

The road to Love

A really late addition to the Think Outside the Lovesquare Month.

In a world were miracles happen everyday the impossible could become a possibility: A fluffy love story between Alya and Nathanael.

On Ao3

It started with the Ladyblog.

The one year mark of the appearance of Ladybug and Chat Noir was approaching and Alya wanted to do something on the Ladyblog to celebrate the occasion.

She spent over a month trying to come out with something but nothing felt right. In the end, she went for an album of sorts.  A special place where she would gather all the fan’s contributions (videos, pictures, stories, art) and she would write a short post to go with it.

The project on itself was a lot of fun! It was amazing the number of things people had send her over a year. Patrol pictures, battle videos, the random shot of one or both heroes playing with some children in the snow during winter break. Several mini Ladybugs and Chat Noirs from Halloween and birthday parties. Drawings. The story of a rescue.

In a year the duo had won over the heart of many and it showed. The layout was done by herself and the music picked by Nino. Still, there was something missing.  The page for the album needed a special look and even though Alya was a girl of many talents, art was not something she exceled at. Luck had it she knew someone who did.

A quick good bye to Marinette and a little sprint up the steps of the classroom she reached her target. “Nathanael, may I talk with you for a bit? I need to ask something important.”

“I-sure, is ok if we talk at the Le Chat Bistro? I was heading there for lunch.” He answered, a surprised and curios expression on his face. He and Alya never really talk that much.

“Of course! That works for me.”

Both grabbed their bags and headed to the exit, the classroom was already empty except for Rose and Juleka who were still deciding where to eat lunch. A quick goodbye and walk later they were sitting in front of each other, ready to order.

Small talk about homework and their plans for the weekend filled the time while they waited for their orders.

“What do you wanted to talk about Alya?" Nath asked taking a sip of his drink.

“Right! You know I am planning something for the anniversary of the first appearance of Ladybug and Chat Noir right?”

“Yes, you have mentioned on class before and there is an announcement on your blog.”

“The project is mostly done, but I want some nice art to go with it. Like a header and a background. I have some ideas, the general concept, but still need someone to do the art.”

Nath was rather surprised. He was not aware Alya liked his drawings enough to as for this. “You want me to do the art then?”

“Yes, and I would pay you of course! Like a commission.” She said grinning at him. “You can say no too Nath, if you are not comfortable or interested on it." She added after taking a look at his expression. A mix of confusion and surprise. 

“I… I’m actually interested. You just took me by surprise. Tell me more about what you have in mind for it?”

The rest of the lunch hour was spent on discussing what Alya wanted for the project, how long it would take Nath to make the first draft and payment. The food had been delicious and the walk back to school was rather pleasant, with both loving superheroes and comics it wasn’t hard to find common ground. Numbers and e-mails were exchanged and after a couple of weeks they were talking regularly, and not just about Ladybug and Chat Noir.

_________________

“So… you and Nath uh?" Alya look up startle, and put down her cookie before answering. 

“What are you implying Marinette? We are just friends." A frown on her face, Alya went back to her cookie. She had never considered that before. 

“Just joking Alya, I’m glad you guys are friends now. He seems more… enthusiastic lately. Less shy.”

“I haven’t done much Mari. We mostly just talk about wherever.”

Marinette smiled at her, one hand up, touching her earrings and the other one holding a Macaroon. Alya may not know it or realized it yet, but even if it was just for a couple of weeks, she talking with Nath and encouraging him about his art was doing wonders for him. After all, it had only taken just one meeting with Alya for her to inspired Marinette to stand up for herself and hold her ground.  

 _________________

Their relationship had progressed slowly and steady in the last few months. Spending time together was fun and even if they haven’t say anything yet, both cared for each other. Maybe it was time to do something about it?  

“The movie was amazing!” Said Alya, one fist on the air and grinning. “I like the way they portrayed the characters, Majestia was spot on.”

“The digital effects were good too, it wasn’t over the top and looked realistic.” Nath was walking besides her, a smile on his face.

“Yes, that too. For the first movie of the series they didn’t disappoint. We definitely need to see the rest when they come out Nath”. “We will” He said, taking her hand and interwinding their fingers without thinking and blushing a couple of seconds later. Ayla’s hand was warm and it felt nice to hold her hand like that. He tried to release her, but the look on Ayla’s face and the gentle squeeze she gave to his hand prevented him from it.

“That’s a promise then, now let’s go. I’m on the mood for some ice cream.” They held hands all the way to the ice cream parlor.

[campionsayn1]

LOSH with number 10 for the AU prompt

Ayla Ranzz: Who is The Head that the emotions function for and protect the best they can. Who lives with her two older brothers after their parents die in a hurricane and wakes up from a coma that freaked ALL the emotions out. Who had to move in with the boys immediately and leave for New Metropolis as she JUST got out of the hospital; realizing that the house they all grew up in was flat-out gone. Who started suffering PTSD a mere two days after starting a new school and getting a cast off of her arm that she didn’t realize showcased electrical burns–the memories coming in fast and hard and creating a Core Memory that was a Fear/Anger combo. Who started off an internal journey not just to straighten out her feelings of not being a completely happy person, but being a person who survived trauma.Clark: Who is the Joy of the emotional spectrum and came into being in the same instant as Kell, both right behind Brainy, which is not that uncommon among emotions–different strokes for different folks, after all. Who is actually a very pleasant, not-annoying emotion. Who does what he needs to do and stays out of the way when the other emotions are required far more than he is. Who was admittedly really freaked out when the mixed Core Memory popped out during the trip to the doctor, but tried to keep Brainy from freaking out worse and tossing it out into Long Term. Who actually JUMPED after both Brainy when the suction tube pulled him in and Kell wasn’t going to go after the frightened emotion–Clark yanking his slightly taller sibling along because, “THIS IS YOUR FAULT, TOO.”Kell: Who is the Anger of the spectrum, but doesn’t really do much very often, except when Ayla is being passive aggressive. Who spends most of his job just helping Ayla decide that maybe snapping the stem on a flower configuration is the best revenge, or leaving muddy footprints on a brand new rug or–his favorite–leaving that toy clown Garth was afraid of on his chest while he’s sleeping. Who was the one to plot the course back to Headquarters, but reluctantly–mostly he spent the journey picking Brainy up from the fetal position and preventing the green child from tossing the Core memory into the dump or replace it with another memory from the shelves. Who literally blew up on the Dream Productions people when they tried to show a dream about the hurricane and also trashed the Subconscious when it showed mostly ridiculous fears from back on the farm. Brainy: Who was basically the only one with any waking memory during The Coma and suffered tremendously because of it–being fear of the emotional spectrum, this meant it was his job to turn up the adrenaline every so often to keep Ayla from going Into The Black. Who clung to every one of the emotions who lifted up out of the quiet when Ayla woke up to her brothers’s gaunt faces looking over at her from the uncomfortable hospital chairs next to the bed–actually gripping Clark like a lifeline since he came upon the light of the observation deck first. Who did not want to have that mixed orb memory get to the Core holder, because he couldn’t imagine what kind of Island would rise from it–would it hurt Ayla? Would she become numb to whatever it was? Would it bring to mind every day the thoughts of her parents dying horribly? Who kept breathing in bursts and becoming paralyzed the entire trip back to Headquarters because, honestly, he was awake the entire time the others were away; did Ayla really need him anymore, “Does she Clark, I mean, really? I don’t want to make her even worse off than she is.” Who was aware after the pep-talk from Luornu that things changed, and it wasn’t anybody’s fault, but that’s life; and he accepts it. Tinya: Who was fourth born of the emotions as representative of Disgust–although she prefers to think of herself as Distaste (she is a lady, she knows her words). Who works very well in her job of keeping Ayla away from that which is worse for her, but also knows when her opinion in not needed in the least. Who was the loudest when it came to the realization that Ayla would be living with the two older brothers who had gotten off the farm as fast as they could, “It’s gonna be so ugly, though! It’ll be a boy’s apartment and it’ll smell! We all know that neither Garth or Mekt know how to put the laundry in the hamper where it belongs–grife!” Who mostly left the controls to Brin when the other three found themselves in Long Term on a perilous trek back and found herself making sure that the other Islands were running properly and also ordered up as many untainted memories from Ayla’s youth as she could find to keep things running not-disastrously. Who opened the door for the Train of Thought so fast to let the others in that she almost hit the unexpectedly welcome Luornu in the face; so embarrassing.Brin: Who represents the Sadness Ayla has to feel, and was probably the best person to be set at the controls while the twins and Brainy were working things out. Who knows things that the other emotions don’t simply because he is the mature feeling in the heart and root of all movements into adulthood and is the first sign to the world in the event of trouble. Who let Ayla cry, who made sure she did so where she could be seen, who made so many memories of Garth finding her sobbing in her room; Mekt climbing up to the roof to offer her a hot drink and his oversized (so warm) jacket; the new teacher finding her in a stall and telling Ayla, “Hey, hey. I know in class you have to call me Miss Ardeen, but if you’re every hurting or in trouble, you can call me Imra, and I’ll know what to do. Is that okay?”Luornu: Who was Ayla’s imaginary friend. Who was aware that things were changing when Imagination-Land went in lock-down during The Coma and when it was started up again, everything was being corroded like sand from a beach castle. Who was serving lunch at Dream Productions when they were showing flashbacks and hauled Kell out of there when he started tearing up the place and making the footage somehow more volatile. Who was there to comfort Brainy when he was standing on the precipice of the memory dump, about to throw away the Core Memory, and making him realize that he can’t just forget something because it’s terrifying, not if it will eventually make Ayla much stronger in the long run. Who followed the three emotions back up to Headquarters and, while she didn’t touch anything, became something like the Voice of Reason–and also, finally, another girl to balance out the testosterone Ayla seemed to be running on the entire time of her childhood because her father really wanted another boy.