faultierclock - Tumblr blog

[faultierclock]

Last night, I had a dream with a guy in it named Cinnamon. He was in a fighting style tournament, but it was just a spelling bee. And whenever the announcer would say his name, it went up a number. Like,

And up next is Cinnaone!

And now we turn to Cinnatwo!

And last but not least, Cinnathree!

[faultierclock]

Liesandra After the War

WARNING! This story contains contains domestic abuse, alcoholism, slavery, and sexual themes. If this triggers you in any way, please don’t read.

Liesandra scoured the abandoned farm's fields. There were hardly any crops left, weeds taking over the soil and their thorns poking into her hardened bare feet. It had been too long since she last ate, so long that she had forgotten what food tasted like. It didn't matter if it was maggot ridden old portage or bread that was more mold than grain. She was starving, and the others wouldn't share their food, and so, the small girl scavenged.

With the sun's hot rays on her back, and the scent of bloody decay all around, she found some corn lying on the ground besides it's stock.

In a swift motion, the head of corn was in the calloused and dirty hands of the girl. Looking around, she tried to find more to no such luck.

With the rumble of her stomach, the small child took off, hopping over the corpses of her former comrades to get to her master's new home. Her footsteps echoed on the empty streets as Liesandra scurried past the looming buildings until she got to the mostly intact mansion and made her way for the servants entrance.

When she reached the kitchen she began to soak the corn in water and start a fire. When the flames were ready, she placed the movable grill over it and place the corn upon it. After some time, the corn was ready.

After letting it cool for not nearly enough time, the girl tore off the husk and sunk her teeth into the golden grain. Juice dribbled down her scarred cheeks and dripped off her chin. It was delicious.

With her belly full, the young Liesandra sat back to catch her breath. Only now did she realize that she had burnt her tongue and mouth by eating before the food had cooled down.

After a while, there was a tug on the tip of her pointed ears as the hoop earring was being pulled. Her master was summoning her to his chambers. She quickly got up from the dirty floors and dusted off her ragged dress before running out of the kitchen and up the stairs to his room. The longer she took the harder her ears were tugged, to the point where she thought her ears would bleed and the rings bould be tugged out of her skin.

When she arrived at the door, she gave it a gentle knock. “Here I am, Master.”

“Get your puny self in here!” A gruff voice slurred at an unbearably loud volume.

With the creak of the large door, the small girl entered the room. It was dark; ragged curtains covering the open windows and balcony. The scent of booze and herb over ran the girl’s senses as the sunburnt and ash laiden carpet crunched beneath her feet.

Liesandra looked at the bed that was covered in a mess of silken blankets and pillows carelessly thrown about. Upon it was a manor sixteen with messy blonde hair, striking red eyes, and robes lazily wrapped around his large and muscular frame. The empty bottle of liquor looking like a toy in his hand.

“What took you so long, Lielie?” He spat. The man was drunk. That much was clear from his flushed cheeks and ears. “And where’s my drink?”

“I-I was in the kitchen cleaning, a-and we’re all out.” She answered. He didn’t need to know of her meal, and was planning on cleaning up after herself so it wan’t a total lie.

“All out?” He growled, “What do you mean that we’re ‘all out’?”

She shrunk in her place by the door. “T-the last bottle is in your hand,” herr voice quivered no matter how hard she tried to stop it.

The master let out a tisk, “ I bet that you drank it all, didn’t you? I’m sure you did, filthy mud blood,” the blonde spat at the end.

Liesandra spoke up, “I didn’t-“

CRACK!

The next thing she knew, Liesandra was knocked to the floor, blood started to drip from her head and down her face, landing in her lap. The darkly stained glass from the former bottle of wine lay broken all around her.

The master of the house dropped his hand after throwing his fragile ammunition.

Lifting his hand, he moved it in a way that the rings on his pinky and thumb could be on display. He got off the bed and walked over to the edge of the glass mess. The blonde pulled his ringed hand up, forcing the earrings on the girl to pull her up. He grabbed a fist-full of the girl’s hair and lifted her over a foot in the hair so she was forced into eye contact with his crimson eyes.

“Did I tell you that you could speak?” He asked through drifted teeth; his hot and fruity breath hitting her in the face.

Throwing her hands over his in pain, she tried to heave her head. “No, sir,” she answered in a horse whisper.

After a short silence, he threw her down into the broken glass.

“Clean this up, then get me some more,” The red eyed brute muttered, going back to his bed to lie down.

The girl pushed herself up with a groan and began to remove the large pieces of glass from her flesh. After that she picked up the glass and cleaned up the mess. She carried the broken pieces out in her dress, receiving a “And make sure it’s strong,” from the man on the bed.

When she reached the kitchen, Liesandra threw out the garbage and began to clean herself. Her wounds didn’t feel deep, but you can never know for sure. She got a bucket of hot water, a sponge, and some soap that she had made the week prior. She planned on tearing apart some old rags that were too worn to use as anything but a bandage.

She pealed off her dress and began to wash the cuts. She winced when the warm water leaked out of the sponge and over her cuts. Taking the bar of soap, the child rubbed it with wet hands until she got enough suds so she could clean her wounds. Once that was finished, Liesandra took the sponge and rinsed out her sudsy cuts and gashes, the more she did so, the more and more blue the water got with her blood.

It was still something that she had not gotten over. Only up until eight months ago her blood was red. Red as anyone else’s. She didn’t understand at the time why the others had bothered to keep her alive. But now, she knew why, they needed a slave. They weren't used to manual labor and couldn't handle their anger nonviolently, to be bluntly. This however, did not change Lielie’s treatment. They even made sure that her blood would be the color of mud.

With her wounds ready for bandaging, the strips of cloth tore several times as it was tightly wound around her thin frame. Liesandra pulled her dress back on and dumped the bloody water onto some of the blood sucking bushes.

Liesandra began to slowly walk away from the mansion, limping and wincing with every step. She knew that it wouldn’t be long until she was fully healed, but that didn’t stop the desire to have the pain removed. Not to mention,the cuts and gashes on her sides would take at least a day to heal.

The other survivors would be back soon. She had to find some alcohol and get back to the manor to make them supper in just half an hour. That wasn’t nearly enough time. Her master had already raided the area and left it dry.

Luckily, she knew a spot. She went to an old boutique and ran to the back, past the workstations and mutilated bodies of the seamstresses. She pushed a bookshelf aside and revealed a shriveled up pannel. Reaching into her apron pocket and pulling out a screwdriver. She didn’t know what kind it was, just that it was in the shape of a cross on the pointed end.

She unscrewed the pannel and set it aside before crawling into the dark room. Hitting a switch, a single dim light turned on, revealing a small and cramped space filled with bottles of liquor and valuable fabric. This is where the business would store the spare fabrics and acted as a makeshift safe. Not to mention, great staff were alcoholics. Good people, but addicted to their drink.

Not that Liesandra minded. They did hide her in the safe when bombs were being thrown. It made her realize that there are people who don’t care about your class, weather you are a princess or a slave.

She grabbed a few bottles and sealed up the safe. The slave girl ran back to the mansion and set the bottles down down on a table with as clank. She then pulled out ingredients for her master and his friends’ dinner. With what she had on hand, it would be best to make some bread and soup.

Liesandra pulled out a giant pot and filled it with water. She set a fire and placed the pot upon it. She then walked back out to the garden to grab some of the tomatoes and herbs. She washed them off and began to cut up the fruit. She threw the produce in the pot when the water started to bubble.

While that was cooking, the slave girl began to make some bread. She threw some flour, salt, yeast, and baking powder into a bowl before stirring them all up. She them mixed up some eggs, butter, and milk from the cooler until she got dough. The small girl got a crate to stand on and climbed on it and cleaned the counter before sprinkling some flour on the surface and began to kneed the dough for a good ten minutes. When that was done, she placed the dough back inside the bowl and covered it with a cloth.

Liesandra placed the bowl outside in the sun to rise and went to check on the soup. She took a spoon and stirred, getting the present aroma of tomato soup. She threw in some spices and let it simmer. For half an hour the girl cleaned up ad got the oven ready while waiting for the dough to rise.

When that was all ready, she placed the ball of dough inside the brick oven to bake.

She then began to get the trolly ready with bowls, glasses, cutlery, and drink. She then placed the pot of soup on it with a ladle. The bread was pulled out and placed upon a wooden cutting board, then put on the cart. A serrated bread knife was wrapped up in a cloth and placed beside the loaf. Some cloth napkins were it down under the cutlery.

And just as Liesandra finished, she was called again to the master’s chambers. She quickly pushed the large cart up the steep slope to the second floor and knocked on the door.

This time a large woman of over 6 feet opened the door. She had dark black hair and soft green eyes. Her skin was pale and seemed to glow in the retreating light of the sun as it was setting, making the gold chain in her hair sparkle. He dress was made oof the finest silks and dyed to a deep lavender.

Behind her on the bed with the master of the house was another man with a husky build who stood a little above seven feet. His robes were made from fine lining in whites and browns. His hair, curly and a messy brown and his face covered in a beard. His eyes were turned toward the blonde, their blue giving his red all of his attention in their conversation.

The girl scoffed, “It’s about time!” And left to her seat back on the bed in between the two men.

Liesandra gave her a nod and rolled the cart in beside the bed and went to light the candles all around the room. As she did so, the other three began to dig in. She watched out of the corner of her eye. They had to like it. It had to be good if it wasn’t good, she’d get punished again. And Liesandra couldn’t afford to get punished again today.

The woman turned to the slave and said “Thanks for not messing this one up, Lielie,” before taking another bite.

“Well said, your highness.” The brunette spoke up with a nod.

The royal smiled and puffed up her chest. “But of course! A princess must always look after her people, no mater how small and worthless, dear Father.”

Wrapping his arm around her waist, the blonde leaned in and kissed the side of her head. “How generous of you, your majesty.”

The master’s lips moved to the princess’ as the noirette slid her hand to the thigh of the father, the brunette kissed her neck and looked at Liesandra.

The young girl quickly left the room and closed the door. She didn’t need to be in the same room as them when that did that. And she certainly didn’t like how the priest was looking at her. It made her chin crawl, she felt like that whenever he looked at her. It was why Liesandra always made sure to never be in a room alone with him.

She went down to the kitchen and began to clean up the mess she made while making dinner. There was extra bits of vegetables, a cracked pot and a couple of bowls. She could have dinner. And because there were guests over, she couldn’t eat here.

Liesandra picked up everything that she needed and ran out into the night until she arrived at the abandoned farm. Her dirty, bare feet went up the path and into the farmhouse.

The door opened with a loud creak and sent dust and dirt into the air. Walking over to the wood pile, the slave grabbed a few pieces and set them down in the hearth. She lit a fire and went to grab the wooden bucket in the corner. The girl then left to draw some water from the well a three minute walk away.

When approaching the well, she saw it. A woman with very long white and wavy hair and skin as pale as the dead. Her figure was thin but not unhealthy. She wore a knee length white dress with puffed sleeves, and a pair of nice leather boots and some white gloves. Around her neck a fine steel chain and a small locket on it. Her eyes looked to be made of silver as they turned to look at Liesandra. She looked to be eighteen but didn’t have the height for it, only being around five seven. And upon closer inspection, her ears did not have pointed tips, they were round as a baby’s.

“Oh, hello. I did not know that anyone is here.” The pale lady spoke, her voice high in pitch but soft in tone. “I am not intruding, am I?”

Liesandra shook her head. “No, I just came for some water.”

The woman nodded. “Ah yes, water. It is very wet and delicious. I like to eat it very often.”

The girl nodded. “Yeah… so could you please move? You’re blocking the well.”

“Oh! I am so sorry, I had forgotten where I was for a moment.” The pale woman hopped off the well’s edge and watched as the girl worked with giant equipment. “Everything is so big here, it is kind of incredible.”

“Mhm.” Liesandra acknowledged what the woman had said whitest puking up a now full pail of water.

She then began her walk back to the cabin with the strange lady following beside her. “Say, are we in the land of the giants?”

The girl looked to the pale woman in confusion as she opened the old farm house’s door. “You aren’t from around here, are you?” She asked as they entered.

“What makes you say that?” The woman asked while taking a seat by the fire.

Liesandra paused while pouring the water into the cracked to and stared at her. “Are you serious? You don’t look Blablurian, and I doubt that you’re a survivor, you’re too clean.”

“Survivor? Is that where we are at now?” The woman asked to herself, earning a puzzled look from the girl as the scraps were thrown into the pot.

Shaking her head, Liesandra turned her attention back to the pot. When it began to heat up, she pulled the screwdriver out of her pocket and used it to stir the pot.

As the food was finishing up, Lielie grabbed one of the bowls and filled it with the stew. And when she did so, the woman asked. “Can I have some?”

The girl looked at the woman, then the pot, and then to her own bowl. She had planned on having seconds, she didn’t know when the next time she could wat was; but she also couldn’t bring herself to let another person starve. That was a pain that she knew all too well.

Liesandra gave her bowl to the woman and grabbed the other one and filled it with what was left of the stew. She sat down to eat and set the screwdriver down on the floor.

After a few minutes of eating in silence, the lady grabbed the screwdriver and looked it over. “A Phillips, good choice,” she said and set it down.

“Phillips?” The slave asked with food still in her mouth.

“Do not speak with your mouth full, it is rude.” The woman nagged. “It is the same of that type of screwdriver.” She set down her empty bowl and stretched. “Well that was good, Phillips. Thank you for the meal.

“I-what? Who are you calling Phillips?” Lielie piped up.

“Why you of corse! You have been carrying around a screwdriver in your pocket. Cookie?” The lady stuck a hand in her hair and pulled out a cookie and placed it in the girl’s hands.

“Ah-thank you.” She began to eat the cookie and chewed slowly. It tasted like a painterly but there was something else. She looked down at the cookie in her hand and saw that there were brown chunks inside it, Lielie’s eyes widened. That was chocolate. Why did this lady give her some? This was strictly for those that were a much higher statis than a slave.

“It is good, right? Tell you what, I like your cooking. If you work for me, you can eat good food and have a warm bed every night.” The pale woman piped up.

It wasn’t that bad of a deal for Liesandra, but there as only one problem.

“I would love to, but I can’t.” The girl shook her head.

The woman frowned, “And why is that, Phillips?”

Liesandra motioned to the rings on her ears. “I’m a slave. I have a master, it’s not my decision to make. And don’t call me Phillips.”

“Then what if I become your master? I will never harm you, and give you a safe place to stay. You will even receive pay. And I will make sure that you will never go hungry again.” The stranger offered. “You would just have to give me your owner’s rings. What do you say?”

Liesandra stared at her and thought. After a few minutes she spoke. “Do you promise? Will you make an oath?”

The woman smiled, “I swear on the name of the Goddess of Time, Snowflake, that if I become your master, that I will never cause you any harm.”

The slave stared at her in shock. “I want you to be my master.”

The woman smiled. “Good! Now Phillips, I need you to get me those ownership rings.”

“Why can’t you get them? They’re going on your fingers.” Lielie asked. “And it’s Liesandra.”

“Because if I get them, it will be considered stealing and then I can not ever be your master.” The lady answered.

Lielie nodded and took a deep breath. This was going to be hard. Her current master was so big and strong, and she was so weak and small; not to mention that she was only a kid! She was just twelve! Still, it had to be done. To live a better life.

The child stood and walked to the door. She turned to the woman and said, “I will be right back,” and left to her master’s manor, taking the screwdriver and putting it back in her pocket.

She snuck in quietly and began to slowly walk up the stone steps and to the master suite. She put her ear to the door to listen and see if the other three were awake. It was quiet with the occasional snore and sigh. Perfect.

Liesandra cracked the door open and took a peek, and it looked like and easy mission. The blonde was on the far side of the bed with the princess in the middle and with the priest closest to the door.

She crept in and quietly made her way around to the other side of the bed, being sure to keep to the shadows. She reached over to grab the blonde’s right hand and began to slowly slide the rings off of his fingers. Thank the Gods that all three of these people reared of booze, sending them into a deep sleep.

The one on his thumb slid off with a twist, the problem was the pinky’s, he had a closed fist. Liesandra began to carefully unwind his hand just enough to slide the second ring off.

The priest made a loud snort in his sleep that made the slave girl jump. She stared at him as she finished with the second ring. Liesandra slowly pulled away from the triad and crept out of the room and down the stairs.

She got down the stairs when she heard her master say, “What? That bitch!”

The girl took off and ran for her life, holding the rings close to her chest as the sound of the blonde man quickly untangling himself from his sheets, waking the other two up in the process. She clamored out of the main door and down the moon lit road as her master jumped off the balcony and took off after her.

He soon caught up and tackled her to the ground. “What in Snowflake’s name do you think you’re doing you filthy little slut?” He growled and slapped her face before wailing on her.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the screwdriver and plunged it into his side, earning a hotel from him. It bought her enough time to scurry away from the giant man as the other two approached.

Liesandra booked it for the farm house, loosing the others on the way.

By the time she arrived at the location, he rungs were on fire and her legs felt like gelatin. The woman stepped out of the cabin to greet her.

“Oh there you are Phillips! I see that you have made it back in one piece.” She said and wiped away some of the blood from the girl’ face. The woman then noticed that Liesandra was holding a bloody screwdriver.

The girl looked down at the bloody tool. “They followed and got what was coming to ‘em.”

“Ah, living up to your name, eh Phillips.” The woman put the slave maser rings on and stood, putting a key inside of the keyhole of the cabin door.

Lielie stood and watched the woman in anger. “For the last time, my name is Liesandra! Why can’t you get that? I shouldn’t have to be called that, especially when you haven’t given me your name?

The woman laughed and opened the door, on the other side was a completely different place than the farm house. “I guess that I forgot to say it. You may call me Snowflake. Come along now, we have much to do, Phillips.”

The girl’s eyes widened as they followed Snowflake through the door. If God says your name is Phillips, your name is Phillips.

[faultierclock]

I have fallen down the Sonic rabbit hole again.

[faultierclock]

Concept: reverse-stealth puzzle platformer where the player character has whatever abilities NPC observers think you have, but only while actually being observed.

Abilities are initially acquired by arranging circumstances so that you appear to have performed a particular superhuman feat in front of witnesses, thereby gaining a reputation for being able to do that.

NPCs are organised into factions, such that once you've gained a particular reputation, it "spreads" to all other NPCs of that faction, but not between factions. Thus, which abilities you have access to in a given situation depends on who can you arrange to be seen by.

Some reputations are mutually exclusive of others, while others may be believable only to certain factions, or even only to certain subsets of certain factions – for example, abilities that only children will believe you possess. Additionally, some factions may not be not present in all areas of the game, so arranging for useful configurations of who believes you can do what may pose a complex logistical challenge.

[faultierclock]

i don't beat around the bush. i don't mince words. i'm not going to repeat myself. i'm not some circus parrot born for your amusement. im a real person with feelings and hopes and dreams and two part time jobs and a dog and bad dreams sometimes that scare me. i've been through more shit than a plumber at a malfunctioning wastewater treatment facility in new jersey. i've had more time wasted than a garbageman who works at a functioning clock disposal factory. trust me, i've had enough of all the fucking bullshit. so when i say something i just damn well say it. i'm not going to repeat myself. im only going to say this one goddamn time, so i'm gonna make this real crystal fucking clear for you. hi

[faultierclock]

today is video games’s birthday.

[faultierclock]

An alien desires to 'court' another alien, of the race called humans. The human is desirable in every way: talented in multiple skills, professional and domestic, with soft, squishy flesh and an eagerness to learn - the alien could go on and on, but people complain when the alien talks about their 'crush', as other humans call it

The problem is, the alien's species relies on scents and pheromones for communication. Their first meeting with the human was during a crisis, and their natural scent was strong, sweat mixing with that fabled human instinct to survive with all members of their extended pack alive, too. No other human smelled quite like this one. It sent the alien's hearts a-flutter, and shivers through their many wings.

But now? The human smells different, and not in a normal human way. One week, citrus and palm fruits from the black jungles of the planet Cerib. Another week, exotic vanilla from their origin planet, with something warm and spicy the alien can't place. Lavender and honey from Blackcurrant bees. Something juicy like apples. Something this, something that, and they're all beautiful scents - but it's not the human's scent, and they can't really smell their emotions through it. Frustrating.

One day, the alien sulks, watching their desired one rush past, tablet in hand. They smell like sweetened coffee and chocolate - the latter a romantic treat to humans, and a reminder of how far they are from that romance to the alien. The human next to them breathes in the scent, and smiles.

"Man, (name's) got some great perfume on today," they say.

The alien lifts their head. "Perfume?"

A little research later, and things suddenly make sense. They'd heard about perfume before, the human wasn't the only one to wear scents, but they'd been so lovelorn they hadn't used their brain. But that wasn't important. What mattered was that humans used perfume and similar products to draw in desired partners.

Two can play at that game.

Three days later, the alien walks in to their normal location. To their surprise, the human their hearts are set on rushes towards them, calling their name.

"I'm so sorry!" They apologize. They aren't wearing any scents today. "I didn't realize my perfume might be messing with your senses. I've switched it out with another type that you'll find easier to deal with. I was just trying to..."

They trail off. The alien waits, hopeful. A new scent spikes from the human.

"Is that... Cinnamon?"

"With a little bit of Ophelion flower, and Soljoiner lemon," the alien says, smiling like the humans do. "I got inspired by your choices."

A hesitation. "Do you like it?"

The human breathes in deep. From them, now the alien can sense what they've wanted. Interest.

"You smell amazing," the human says. The glow in their eyes as they look at the alien, well, the alien adds that to their list of all the reasons they want the human as a partner.

"Are you sure you know what you're getting into?" Another alien says later, at the communal garden. "Humans are hardcore."

The alien looks across the way to the human of their hearts. They are smiling, they smell a bit like the alien now, from their hug.

"For that one? It's worth it."

[faultierclock]

Yesterday, one of my preschoolers came up to me very concerned, and said, “Miss ____, this book doesn’t have any pages!”

Now, this kid is only three, and I can’t always understand what he says because he’s still so little. However, he carries himself and has the conversational lilt of an 80-year-old academic, so I absolutely believed him. Also, like any library, not all of our books have been as gently used as one might like, so there’s always a chance that the pages of the book this kid was holding actually had fallen out somewhere, and he was only holding the cover. I hurried over to see if this was the case and he opened the book for me, still very concerned.

He had only opened to the end sheet, that blank page at the front of a book. I turned the page for him to reveal the title page. This look of absolute relief crossed his face and he went, “Oh, silly me. I didn’t look hard enough!”

I love kids.

[faultierclock]

Cultivating the Heart

Chapter 5: Fish ‘n Beer

*Warning* The following chapter contains Alcohol. Reader’s desgresion is advised.

Fern made it to town went to the bar, hoping it was still open. She just hoped that they had a room to rent for the night. She had a cabin but Darkrai didn't want her anywhere near him.

"Hello! Late night huh?" Gus was there.

Fern nodded, wiping the rain and tears off her face. "Yeah. Do you have a room for rent for the night?"

"We do." He nodded, "Follow me."

Fern followed him, her braids heavy with water, her muddy and wet shoes in her hand.

He showed her to a room, "You can stay here for tonight."

Fern nodded and took out her wallet. "How much?'

He told her.

Fern paid the man and went into her room for the night. She flopped onto her bed and laid on her side. Why did Darkrai have to be so mean? She didn't know. The red head buried herself into the covers and cried herself to sleep.

Darkrai got up at the crack of dawn, he was not feeling like a horrible person. Not him. No way. Hadn't he told her not to touch him? She was such a stupid girl.

The plants were already watered by the time he came out and some strawberries planted too. She couldn't of. It was about a half an hour walk to the town to the farm. Did she really come back to do her job? She didn't just go home? Why? It made no sense. He had been nothing but a dick to her the entire time. He sighed, grabbing his fishing rod.

Fern sat in the Ceader Sap forest and fished off the dock.

Darkrai entered the forest and flinched. Why. Why was she here. Hopefully she wouldn't see him as he went to a different spot to fish.

She just sat there and stared at the water. Her hair was still wet from last night and now disheveled. Her clothes were extra dirty, being the ones the had worn the day before. She had her shoes and socks off sitting next to her as she let her feet dangle into the pond's waters.

"Hey." Shane walked up and sat next to her, "You look like you've had a bad night."

She chuckled. "Guess you could say that." she gave him small yet sad forced smile.

He handed her a can of beer silently.

She took it and took a sip. "Thanks, Shane." odd, she never really introduced herself to him, she always just gave him vegetables excitedly and hoped he'd like them. Never even got her name.

"No problem. What's your name, by the way?"

"Fern" she answered.

"What happened?" He looked over at her.

She let out a sigh and took another swig before answering. "My boss yelled at me after helping him."

"Seems like quite the asshole. Darkrai right?"

Darkrai winced, he really was an asshole, wasn't he.

She shrugged, getting a tug on her line and starting to reel in. "He acts like one for sure, but something tells me its more of a way to protect himself, you know?"

"I wouldn't know. The only time people actually see him is at the bar late at night." Shane shrugged, "He never talks."

"He's really good with plants, quite a green thumb actually." she finished reeling in only to get trash.

"Huh. Well, he does constantly have grass stains." He shrugged.

She nodded. "Yeah." she went quiet again. "Hey Shane?"

"Yeah?"

"Should I go home? Let them send another farmhand to replace me?" Fern asked softly, her voice a whisper. Her eyes on her hands as she gripped the fishing rod tight, biting her lip to halt the tears in her eyes.

He thought for a moment, looking up to see Darkrai watching them. "No. I think you should stay. I think you are exactly what he needs."

She looked up at him " really?"

"Yes." He nodded, "Only someone as stubborn as he is can help him. I think you can do it."

She let her eyes water and suddenly hugged him tight. "Thank you Shane."

"Uhh, no problem." He awkwardly pat her on the back.

She pulled away. "Oh, sorry about that." she blushed and played with the hem of her shorts out of embarrassment.

"It's fine, I guess."

Darkrai almost growled. She HUGGED him? And now she was blushing! Why did that make him feel so... pissed?! He hated her! She was a human! Humans don't require his sympathies! They were all terrible. They all wanted to hurt him. They would hurt him if they learned what he was. He hated all humans. He huffed and walked further into the forest.

She was no different. But why? What made her so special? Nothing. There was absolutely nothing special about her. She was a human, If she knew what he was yesterday, she wouldn't have helped him. She shouldn't have. He didn't deserve it. All he ever did was cause pain and suffering. Why would anyone want to be around him? He didn't want to be around himself. She should have just left him to die in the mines.

He went to the part of the river farthest away from her to fish. He didn't care. So what if she hung out with someone else? He didn't care. He hated her. He hated all humans. She probably hated him. Everyone did. The only way he could make people happy was if he just died.

Made with @spoop-dee-boop

[faultierclock]

Leaf Sheep Sea Slug (Costasiella kuroshimae)

✧˖° Gifs made by me! Please credit if used! °˖✧

(Video source)

[faultierclock]

Cultivating the Heart

Chapter 4: Soup and Tea

"I'm... I'm fine." He snapped, obviously not fine. He tried to stand up before falling down again, "Damn it. That better not be fucking broken." He'd had broken bones before and they were never fun, especially if it was his ankle, sprains weren't a walk in the park either but he preferred those.

She sighed and went to help him up, walking with him to the elevator. "We're going to the doctor's."

"It's expensive." He said then sighed, she wouldn't listen to him anyway. He did not weigh as much as someone his height should.

"How much do you weigh?" She asked looking up at him.

He gave her a look, "111 pounds." Why the hell did she want to know that?!

She looked at him with wide eyes before continuing to walk out. Her little sister weighed more!

He huffed, it wasn't that big of a deal. He was silent the rest of the way.

That didn't bother Fern. She took him to his cabin, thinking of recipes.

He thought that they were going to the doctor but he wasn't complaining. He had never felt happier to be in bed, though he wasn't going to let himself sleep.

Fern went outside and came back in about half an hour later with a bag covered in dirt. She took it off her shoulder and pulled out the pot her mother had gifted her when she left home. She began to make some soup, using firewood over the old stove.

He wasn't paying much attention to what she was doing, he didn't really care. Until his stomach growled, it hadn't done that in a long time and it surprised him into moving too sharply and groaning.

The smell was partly to blame. The soup smelled pretty good. Parsnip and walnut soup with honey sweetened pine tea.

It was mostly the tea that sparked his interest, he loved honey. "That... that smells good." He mumbled. "What are you making?" He asked in a slightly louder voice.

"Soup and tea," she answered.

"It... smells good." He tried to complement it. He was so tired... No. Don't sleep.

"Lay down and rest. You passed out in the mines." Fern said, glancing at him.

"Alright." He was too tired to complain. He wanted to read something but that meant he had to sit up, and his ribs did not want him to do that.

It began to rain, the smell of the wetness hitting the dry soil hit his nose. The warmth of the blankets began to take effect. Everything sounded calming and warm feelings and smells surrounded him in the cabin.

He felt so sleepy, so very sleepy. It was so hard to stay awake, but he had to. He didn't want to sleep, sleep meant nightmares. He rubbed his eyes, trying to stay awake.

"It's ok to rest your eyes" Fern stated, finishing up the soup.

"If I do that then I'll sleep." He muttered, "And that is the opposite of what I want at the moment."

"If you don't sleep then you can't properly take care of the plants," she retorted.

"I've been taking care of them just fine, sleep or no sleep." He shot back.

"Half of the plants were unwatered when I first got here," she replied pouring a bowl of the delicious soup.

He huffed, he was doing fine. He didn't want- no, he didn't need sleep.

She sighed and walked over to the bed and sat on the side. "Say, ah." Fern said, lifting a spoon full of the warm liquid.

"I'm not- mph!" He started protesting, but she shoved the spoon in his mouth before he could finish.

"Shaddup and eat the food, Tina." Fern stated and got another spoonful.

The soup was delicious, and awoke his internal hunger. He was so hungry, and his stomach betrayed that to Fern.

"Who the fuck is Tina?"

"It's a movie quote," She sighed and tried to feed him another spoonful.

He actually didn't fight her this time. Fine, he was hungry.

Fern seemed to smile at this and fed him the rest of the bowl. "Would you like some seconds?"

"Fine." He huffed slightly. He was so incredibly hungry, not that he would admit that out loud.

She brightened up even more at this and went to get him some more soup and then some tea.

Once he ate he felt just a tiny bit better, but again, he wasn't going to admit that she was right.

"Would you like some tea as well?" She asked, a pure smile on her freckled face.

"Sure." He nodded. That was what had started making him feel hungry, the honey in it.

She put the tea in a water bottle and gave that to him. "Here you go!"

"Thanks." He took it and started drinking. Damn, it was good tea. It tasted like the forest. The forest was his favorite place to be, surrounded by plants.

Fern smiled and went to go and eat before cleaning up the soup, finishing up.

With the combination of the sound of the rain, and the feeling of having food in him for once, he fell asleep. He didn't want to, but his body didn't listen.

Fern sighed with a smile and cleaned up and got ready for bed. She'd sleep on the floor for tonight, Darkrai needed his rest.

It didn't take long for him to start having a nightmare.

She stood up and went to comfort him, tickling his arm and whispering nice things in his ear, like one would do with a small child.

He whimpered, shaking badly. He clutched at the blankets like a child.

She frowned and tickled his face softly. "Darkrai." She muttered.

He woke up with a strangled gasp, he looked terrified. He had been dreaming that the townspeople had found out what he was, and tried to kill him.

"Hey, hey. You're ok."

He realized that she was touching him and flinched away, "Don't touch me." He growled, still shaking.

She pulled away. "I-I'm sorry. I-I just wanted to help."

He frowned and looked away, "I don't need any fucking help. Least of all yours."

She winced and looked away. "O-oh. O-ok. I. I'll just leave." She said getting up and going to the door.

He didn't care. He told himself he didn't care. He didn't need anyone. He'd gone this long without someone. All people did was hurt him. She wasn't any different. She was a human. And all humans were terrible.

"I'll come in to work in the morning." She said, grabbing her wallet and a change of clothes and walked out into the cold rain and began to walk to town, biting her lip to not cry. "I'm sorry." She muttered under her breath.

Darkrai huffed and got his book. He didn't need anyone. He definitely wasn't feeling at all guilty. He didn't even want her here. If she hadn't been here he wouldn't have gone to the mines, and he wouldn't be hurt. All humans were stupid.

Made with @spoop-dee-boop

[faultierclock]

Cultivating the Heart

Chapter 3: The Mines

When morning came Darkrai was up before Fern and watering the plants.

Fern got ready for the day and began to help with watering the plants, seeing that he only had a beaten up watering can.

He looked at her for a moment before huffing softly and gathering the eggs, "I don't know if you checked the tv this morning but if you didn't it's gonna rain tomorrow and the luck for today is fucking shit."

She nodded, "I understand, I'll just start clearing out the trees and such."

He made a face at the idea of cutting down the trees but sighed, "I'm going to get you a cabin." He wasn't happy about this whole thing and it showed. He didn't exactly stomp as he walked to Robin's, but it was close.

She just cut down enough to make room for a small cabin. "Meany." she muttered when he left.

Pretty soon a red haired woman came down the same road Darkrai had gone, said Darkrai behind her, "Hello! You must be Fern, I'm Robin."

Fern nodded and held out a hand to shake. "Nice to meet you."

Robin shook her hand, "I'm gonna make you a cabin so you won't have to share a house with grumpy over there." She motioned to an indifferent Darkrai.

Fern chuckled. "Thanks, I appreciate it." she said. "I made sure to clear out an area and some wood for you."

"Oh thanks! Darkrai already brought me some but it's appreciated." Robin said and went to work on the cabin.

Fern stood by Darkrai and then looked at him, "What do you want me to do?"

"I don't really care what you do but if you really want me to tell you then go fishing I guess. You can get a rod from Willy, he's probably on the docks." Darkrai said, grabbing his pickaxe.

Fern just sighed and went to see where the docs were.

Darkrai headed to the mines, she'd figure it out, he did. He didn't care about the luck, he wanted to fight something. It was just so annoying that the stupid Fern girl had to stay here. That he didn't have a choice. He practically punched the elevator button to floor 50, that was as far as he'd gotten last time. The little coal sprites were cute but annoying when they ganged up on you.

They kept ganging up on him and sticking to his legs. He tried to shake them off but they did not want to let go. Well, this is why he had a sword. The two ghosts that had decided to attack him weren't helping either, maybe this was a mistake. The air was green and fogged. Bad. "Damn it!" He yelled and tried to get back to the ladder before he would really get swarmed. Needless to say he didn't quite make it before getting knocked out.

Fern, who had decided to look around and went into this cool cave with an elevator. There was a rusty sword laying by the entrance and the numbers went down to 55 on the elevator. She picked it up and pressed the number on the elevator and went down. "Cooollllll."

Darkrai was passed out just around a corner, with multiple bites and scratches. Once he'd blacked out the monsters left him alone. He woke up and groaned, everything hurt. A lot.

Her eyes widened and ran over to see if he was ok. "Boss?"

Made with @spoop-dee-boop

[faultierclock]

Once I played an entire session with my 12 year old trifling rouge who had to solve a series of kidnappings that were taking place around a village who was forced to team up with a priest and a monk. All while hung over.

Needless to say, she entered a crime scene through a window, broke into a mansion, escaped the mansion through a 2nd story window after stealing a book about black magic and lending onto the town sherif. Gets arrested, pukes on a rock and then takes said rock with her and kills 3 guys who were kidnapping another person. She then takes the hair from the corpses and adds it to her hair rope. Did I mention that she has a hair rope?

Needless to say, I love that character. 🤣🤣

[faultierclock]

The Bard and the Beholder by Zuzanna Wuzyk

[faultierclock]

Cultivating the Heart

Chapter 2: The Farmhand

Around this time the bus was starting to arrive. A woman got up from her seat to grab her bags and got off of the bus. She walked away from the bus station confused, where was she supposed to go?

She looked up and down the roads and saw a town at one end and fields in the other. That was probably where she was supposed to go. She started walking down that way until she came to a farm with an old cottage.

The young woman walked up the steps and knocked on the door, setting her bags down.

Darkrai groaned and got out of bed, having totally forgotten about the farmhand. He opened the door, looking very grumpy.

The young woman couldn't be older than in her early twenties, her long flaming red hair was in a pair of dutch twin braids that went down a little past her plump booty. She was in a short pair of worn overalls and a blush pink blouse under it, with a pair of boots, socks, and gray gloves to match. Her freckled skin was the color of pale honey, her eyes two pools of the pine tree forests. She gave a chipper smile and extended her hand out to shake his. "Hel-"

Darkrai shut the door. He slowly walked back to his room and flopped on his bed. "Nope."

She huffed and knocked on the door again and spoke loudly so he could hear her from inside. "Um, Hello? I'm Fern, the state sent me to help you on your farm? This is the right address, yes?"

"No!" He shouted back and put his pillow over his head.

"Mr. Darkrai, you need to let me help!" she exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. "I did not come across the country to be denied!"

He didn't answer, hopefully if he just ignored her she would go away.

Fern sighed and picked up her bags to see if there was even a cabin where she could sleep. Just one look and you could see that it wasn't there. She then spun on her heel and marched back up the stairs and pounded on the door. "You don't even have proper lodging for me?!"

"I didn't ask for a farmhand so no! I don't!" He shouted back.

"It doesn't matter! It is MANDATED that you need one! If not, you will be arrested and the farm will become property of the state!" she shouted back.

"Oh fucking hell." He muttered and got up, Robin would be open now, he hoped. He opened the door, "Wait in here." He walked past her.

She just glared at him and walked inside with her suitcases and sat down on the chair, "Thank you."

He didn't hear her, being on the road to Robin's. "OH YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING. ITS TUESDAY!!" He'd gotten halfway there before remembering.

Meanwhile, Fern had changed into her pajamas and was looking for something to eat and drink in the fridge. "Tuesday?" She thought.

The only thing in the fridge was coffee. A lot of it. And like two eggs.

Fern sighed and took one to hard-boil and took a sip from her dirty water bottle. She then ate the hard-boiled egg for dinner.

Darkrai came back and watered his crops, which he hadn't done today. "I can't get you a cabin today. You take the bed, I don't need it." He told her as he got himself some coffee.

She sat on the stairs and shrugged. "I don't mind sharing."

"Yeah, well I mind." He grumbled and went to sit on the porch.

She nodded and got up. "Well, night."

"Night." He responded absently and sighed. What the hell has he gotten himself into?

I hope that you enjoyed it! I wrote this with @spoop-dee-boop!

[faultierclock]

This is the idea of Fern and this is actual Fern. I really like the idea of her in a pair of overall shorts and a powder pink shirt under it that might be just a little too big. The second picture is with @spoop-dee-boop 's darkrai in a human form. I had no idea how he would have looked back when I drew it, but man are they cute! Plus, this is the same Fern from Cultivating the Heart!

And Cultivating the Heart is essentially a Crack fic that @spoop-dee-boop and I began to write together about what if these two had met differently? What if this was in Pellican Town? We both love the game, Spoop loves Pokémon, and I'll take excuse to do an AU.

[faultierclock]

Daphne