#.....they both also carry the same amount of unexplainable melancholy with them

[azu1as]

HI TINN ITS ME PITTY 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

i was wondering if youre still open for prompts… and if u are can you write about pbss somehow tranported to current mount hua, and everyone is confused af and just watches pbss and divine dragon interact (and maybe argue) with each other

PITTY HELLO ♥✨♥✨♥ yes i'm always open to prompts !!! im literally rotating rotmhs in my head 24/7

this first half was actually born from another prompt by mei on discord but I want to build on it, so dumping it here 👍 HAHAHA

»—————————–✄

The Plum Blossom Sword Saint lets out a ragged breath, his vision rapidly fading. His sword falls from his hand and soon after his body follows.

"...Mount Hua..." he mumbles, aware that the only thing left that awaited him was the cold claim of death.

He dies. And in the next second, he blinks up to a clear sky, the dead bodies that surrounded him gone.

%%%

Dawn had barely broken when an incessant banging against Mount Hua's gates and shouting started and broke the tranquil silence, rousing several disciples.

"OPEN UP!" Someone barks out from the other side. "Fuck. Fuck. Shit. Open this gate right now!!"

Un Am frowns at the lack of manners and respect being shown by the source of the shouting. He reaches the gate and pulls it open. It takes Un Am a bit of effort to ensure that his voice sounded cordial, "Hello, we aren't accepting any visitors this ear—"

Un Am cuts himself off as he takes note of the state of the man in front of him. The man's robes and face were crusted with dried blood despite a lack of any visible injury. That is, if one ignore his lack of an arm.

It still didn't explain the amount of blood he had on his body that was free from any wounds and visible scars.

The man's eyes were bloodshot and trembling. Un Am, even from afar, could tell that there was something deeply wrong with this man. He seemed unconscious of the way he emanated a manic aura; there was a charged sort of energy surrounded him that made an instinctive part of Un Am grip his sword handle in response.

The most notable and unexplainable part of the man, however, was the blood-stained plum blossom embroidered on his chest.

"Who...?" Un Am finds himself unable to react to the man's speed and freezes in place as the man grabs him by the lapels of his robe. He pulls Un Am towards himself and grits out,

"What. Happened. To. My Sect."

%%%

Baek Cheon was quickly ushered into the Sect Leader's residence the moment he returned with a few others from their last excursion to Xi'an.

"What's going on?" He asks.

Elder Un Geom, for a lack of a better word, looked harried. His face twists into a grimace. "It's a bit complicated..."

Baek Cheon doesn't know how he should feel about that response.

Surely, it couldn't be too terrible. After all, their sect was still standing and they did leave Chung Myung behind to stay on Mount Hua as he and the other chosen second-class disciples only had to deliver some goods and tokens to their subsect. Their youngest wouldn't let anything dangerous happen on his watch.

Baek Cheon tries to probe more information. "Before you pulled me away, Baek Sang mentioned something about a guest...?"

"We aren't quite sure of the specifics either, I'm afraid. But the man claims to be one of our ancestors from over a hundred years ago."

"An ancestor? Was he able to verify the claims?"

Un Geom nods. "I've never seen someone weild our plum blossom technique with as much power as he did."

If that was the case, then maybe their supposed ancestor could help them develop and improve their sword techniques even further by teaching them more about the skills that have been lost through time.

"Isn't that a good thing then?"

"It should be, but Chung Myung..."

Ah. Hearing those last three trailing words did not promise anything good.

When they finally opened the door to the Sect Leader's residence, they were greeted to the sight of a soulless Hyun Jong slumped against the wall, a freaked-out Yoon Jong who seemed to be torn between jumping into the fray and throwing himself out the window, and—

"WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO BEAT UP OUR ANCESTOR, YOU BRAT?!"

Their ancestor and Chung Myung pause in their positions as they both turned eerily similar pink gazes towards the two new entrants.

Chung Myung had the end of their ancestor's ponytail pulled towards him and scrunched up in his fists. His knee pressed against the older man's chest and neck while his jaw was unhinged as he was clearly attempting to bite the man's single arm.

Their ancestor in turn had his one hand closed around half of Chung Myung's face, trying to push him away. His legs were wrapped around Chung Myung's lower half in an inescapable hold and he seemed to have been gearing up for a headbutt before Baek Cheon and Un Geom interrupted them.

"You want me to call this brat my ancestor?!" Chung Myung shouts out as he renewed his attempts to bite the man by roughly grabbing onto the base of his ponytail.

"I'm one hundred years older than you!" Their ancestor grits out as he unashamedly bites Chung Myung's arm. "You disrespectful descendant! Back in my time—"

"'Back in my time', my ass!"

"You...!"

Off to the side, their current sect leader lets out a pitiful moan of mental pain. Baek Cheon would comfort him if he didn't feel the same amount of psychic damage as he watches his youngest sajil and ancestor continue their childish scuffle, rolling on the floor and uncaringly biting into each other like they were both five-year olds.

Later on, after tempers have cooled and everyone (read: Chung Myung and their ancestor) had managed to settle down into a tenuous truce, Hyun Jong turns a tired, but respectful nod towards the bruised man, "May we know this ancestor's identity?"

"Hm?" Said man absently rubs against the embroidered plum blossom on his new uniform. "Ah, I supposed you would know me as the Plum Blossom Sword Saint."

They would have expressed their shock and surpise, but they get easily distracted by Chung Myung's mocking scoff as he rolls his eyes in response.

[celosia-starfall]

A Chance Encounter (Part 13)

AO3 LINK

AU: Futuristic Fantasy

Pairing: Romano x Canada

Summary: In a world where magic and technology are at odds with each other, Lovino is a fire faery that has escaped from an American laboratory that had been holding him captive in order to experiment on him. After escaping, he managed to flee across the border into Canada, where Matthew finds him nearly unconscious in the cold and carries him home in order for Lovino to heal.

Setting the pot of ratatouille on the stove to warm back up, Matthew stared at the soon bubbling stew, glancing over every now and then to watch Lovino prepare the tea that he had insisted on making for them. There were so many questions running through his mind that he wasn't sure what to make of any of them. Most of it revolved around Alfred’s visit and the threats towards Lovino’s safety. But a large part also consisted of Matthew’s newly discovered magic powers.

If he was being honest though, he was more distracted by the lingering sensations of Lovino’s fingers against his lips and the back of his head. As he stared at the stew, Matthew found his thumb reaching up and brushing against his lip as if he could recreate the feeling from earlier that morning.

No, the more that he thought about it, the more that Matthew couldn’t help feeling as though there had been something...off with Lovino’s actions just moments ago. Or perhaps he should count the entire day. At the same time though, who was Matthew to judge what might be considered “off” with Lovino? After all, it wasn’t as though they had known each other for very long, so perhaps he was simply reading too much into the fae’s actions.

“Oi, Matthew?”

“Huh?” The blonde blinked in surprise, snapping out of his slowly spiraling thoughts as he looked over at Lovino removing the pot from the stove, one of his eyebrows raised in concern.

“You were spacing out for quite a while. Are you okay?” Lovino asked, his brows furrowing together as Matthew’s face flushed. Which, to the Italian, only seemed all the more worrisome as he pressed the back of his hand to the Canadian’s forehead. He didn’t feel like he had a fever, but at the same time, Lovino couldn’t be completely sure, especially with the way that Matthew still seemed to be in a daze. “If you’re still feeling sick, then you shouldn’t be straining yourself so much. I can handle taking care of you and everything around the house until you get better.”

Matthew reached up, gently grabbing Lovino’s wrist and pulling the Italian’s hand from his forehead. “No, no. Sorry. It’s fine. I’m fine. I was just...thinking. About everything.” He stared down at Lovino’s hand as he gently ran his thumb against the man’s wrist, staying mindful of the persistent injuries that remained there. It made a small frown tug at Matthew’s lips. “If anything, you should be the one resting after everything that you’ve gone through. You don’t need to push yourself so much.” A small smile soon ghosted across his lips as he patted Lovino’s hand with his free hand. “There’s no need for you to try so hard to prove yourself or your loyalty to me. I trust you, Lovi. You already earned that much...”

The words shocked Lovino, his mouth opening and closing for a few moments as he tried to find something to say. It wasn't often that he could say that he was taken completely off-guard, and he found that this happened to be one of those times. His face flushed darkly, his fingers tightening around Matthew's when the blonde was about to pull his hand away. "I wasn't-- That's not-- I'm-- I hadn't been trying to…" he eventually fumbled out, each stumbling word only making his face burn hotter in embarrassment. "Like I keep telling you, you’re just too damned nice, and it would make me feel like I’d be taking advantage of you if I just slacked off like a lazy ass bum around here…”

Raising an eyebrow, Matthew huffed out a small breath of laughter although his face flushed as he glanced down at their hands linked together. “Lovino. There’s a difference between resting in order to heal, and simple laziness. It’s important for you to be able to rest and heal and get back up to full strength…” He trailed off, melancholy filling his eyes as he turned away from the fae and stared outside at the snowdrifts.

Whatever embarrassment that Lovino had felt was quick to dissipate as a cold sense of sobriety made him shiver, his hand tightening almost painfully around Matthew’s. But if it bothered Matthew, the blonde didn’t make any mention of it or try to pull away. “Oi, you listen here…”

But Matthew was already shaking his head, cutting him off. “No. I know you’re not human. That you’re not weak in a way that a human is weak. I know that you’ve endured an...unimaginable amount of horrific, inhumane things… But…” Violet eyes stared down at Lovino, a storm of emotions clashing in their depths as he gently cradled Lovino’s cheek in the palm of his free hand. “But right now, neither of us is capable of going up against any of the dangers that we could easily be faced with if the police or government comes knocking on our door. I may have magic, but I can’t even use it. At least, not on command. Which makes me useless--”

“You’re not useless--”

“--in that situation, and a liability,” Matthew continued on, despite Lovino’s interjection, propping his hip back against the countertop and tilting his head back to frown up at the ceiling. “You’d be the only one between us that would be able to fight your way out. But not in the condition that you’re in right now. Sure, there’s always a chance that we’d be able to make it out alive, but those chances would be very slim and likely almost nonexistent. You’d end up getting sent straight back to the hell that you just escaped from, and I would likely be killed on the spot as an enemy of the state or aiding and abetting a wanted fugitive. Some sort of excuse that they’d pull out of their asses to justify what they were doing. That’s provided that they don’t end up knowing about my magic. If they did? They’d end up experimenting on us both, I’m sure… And if we were captured, we may as well say that we’re as good as dead, since I’m sure they’ll have ended up putting in security measures to prevent another breakout from happening again.”

Matthew’s hand tightened around Lovino’s, his eyes soon finding the fire fae’s, and it made the Italian’s breath catch in his throat with the seriousness and fatigue in the blonde’s expression. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since last night. Perhaps that’s what’s been subconsciously bothering me so much as of late. One of the reasons why I keep suggesting for you to get out of the country. So that you can be safer… Which only adds to the seriousness of the reason of why you should be focusing on resting. That way you can escape if something goes wrong or you get discovered here.” He sighed as his thumb gently, almost absentmindedly, rubbed against Lovino’s cheek. A self-deprecating smile soon spread across Matthew’s face. “But then… I would be a fool to think that it would be any safer for you back over in Italy… After all, you were captured from there and brought here… But at least you'd be far enough away that it would buy you some time to find someplace safer…”

Lovino bit down on his lip, staring up at Matthew. He was starting to get rather accustomed to the blonde’s sporadically long speeches, especially when it seemed as though the Canadian had put so much thought into everything. When it was obvious that these were things that had been bothering him for a while. When it was obvious that above anything else, he seemed to hold Lovino’s safety as a priority above his own health and well-being. So much so, that Lovino couldn’t help but to be concerned over the possibility of Matthew working himself to death… He’s a human. Fragile and mortal…

“And what if I don’t want to go?” Lovino blurted out, catching Matthew off-guard with the statement. And not for the first time, he felt that unexplainable pull in his chest as he wet his lips with his tongue, swallowing around the sudden knot in his throat. He took a tentative step closer to Matthew until their toes touched. He keeps sounding like he’s going to end up sacrificing himself or throwing his own life away in order to protect me. And I don’t want to think about that ever happening… Furrowing his eyebrows together, Lovino puffed out a breath. “What if I didn’t want to go anywhere without you?”

Violet eyes widened as Matthew caught his lower lip between his teeth, his heart pounding against his ribs so hard that it nearly made them ache. If only those words were meant in the way that he wished that they were.

“Lovi…” The countertop dug into Matthew’s lower back as Lovino seemed to drift even closer to the blonde. Or perhaps it was Matthew that was pulling the fae closer, his eyes scanning the other’s face almost desperately, as if searching for answers. He hadn’t even noticed when his hand had become tangled into the back of Lovino’s hair, the silky locks wrapping around his fingers. Any other words that he tried to muster merely died away before he had a chance to intelligently string them into a sentence.

It was the first time that Lovino realized just how tall Matthew was, the Canadian towering several inches over him. For some reason though, it had never seemed like there had ever been that much of a difference between their heights. And somehow… Lovino found himself not minding it as much as he would've thought.

A shiver ran down his spine as his gaze flickered across Matthew's face, his free hand bracing itself on the counter behind Matthew. And in spite of himself, Lovino could vividly imagine what it would feel like to lean forward past the few remaining inches between each other and capture Matthew’s lips with his own; to slip his hands beneath his shirt, trailing his fingers against the soft, smooth expanses of Matthew’s skin; to press their bodies close until the space between them had vanished, until they were all but melded together, leaving nothing but the heat between their bodies. He could imagine Matthew’s hand tightening in his hair to tilt his head back, lips and tongue and teeth exploring his neck. And because it was Matthew, Lovino could imagine him whispering sweet, soothing words against his skin with each kiss, with each bite, with each--

A muffled yelp escaped his throat as his face was suddenly smushed against Matthew’s chest, the blonde propping his chin on top of his head with a sigh.

“That’s enough of your teasing for one night,” Matthew murmured, ruffling Lovino’s hair. The oddly happy tone in his voice belied the rapid thumping of his heart, the faint tremors in his hands, the deep flush permeating his cheeks. “You’re going to end up giving me a heart attack if you keep it up.” Clearing his throat, Matthew gently pulled the faery back away from him, his voice taking on a cheery tone. “Now, come on and let’s eat before the food ends up getting cold!”

Lovino blinked slowly, standing stuck in place and suddenly feeling very cold without the Canadian standing close to him anymore. He watched Matthew busy himself with preparing their bowls of ratatouille and carrying everything over to the table. Still, he couldn’t calm the racing of his heart...nor the embarrassment that he felt. At least Matthew’s acting calmly… But then why do I feel so...disappointed?

Grumbling under his breath, Lovino shuffled over to the table. “You know I can just warm it back up…” he mumbled as he sat down, pursing his lips as the tea and stew were scooted closer to him, staring at the steam rising from its surface.

“I know,” Matthew stated simply, almost hesitantly as he added, “but like I said, I don’t want you to have to use your magic unless you need to.”

“I know,” Lovino mumbled, shoveling a spoonful of the stew into his mouth. Admittedly, it tasted even better than it did last night. However, that didn’t help to brighten his mood any. “But I also know my own damn limits, especially when it comes to my magic, and I haven’t even gotten close to overexerting myself at all!”

The statement caused Matthew to pause, his spoon halfway to his mouth and his eyebrows furrowing together. Part of him felt...hurt, and he didn’t know why. “If that’s the case…” he murmured, placing his spoon back into the bowl and propping his elbows on the table as he fixed Lovino with an impenetrable stare. “Then why did you lie to me earlier out in the greenhouse? Especially with as much as you've emphasized being straightforward with one another so that things don't become tense with us living together…" Perhaps that was the reason. And the fact that he felt stupid for not noticing something had been off with the way that Lovino had reacted earlier.

The question caused Lovino to tense as he realized that he had just contradicted himself, his expression settling into a grimace. But even if he was loath to admit it, Matthew was right. The fae had been the first to make the suggestion, and now here he was being a hypocrite about it himself. The guilt, coupled with Matthew's unwavering stare, made him shift uncomfortably in his seat. “Right…” Sighing, he ran his hands through his hair, glancing out the window. “Sorry… I guess I’m still new at this too. And it’s not fair of me to expect you to put in more effort…” He paused for a moment, biting his lip and watching Matthew’s reflection in the window. “I guess the best way I can explain it is...that I just ended up feeling really nervous... Especially with everything that’s happened the last few days…”

Falling asleep and accidentally cuddling together... Matthew practically moaning when I massaged his neck… Wearing nothing but a towel in front of him at one point… Hugging and sitting on his lap at breakfast… The feeling of his magic or even just his skin against mine… The moment just a little bit ago...

Blinking slowly, Matthew finally glanced back down at his food, rubbing the back of his neck. “Alright. I understand… I know everything has probably been a big adjustment, and likely not the easiest of adjustments. So if there’s anything that you end up needing to have an easier time here…” he murmured, picking up his tea and beginning to sip on the hot liquid.

At least until several choice words came blurting out of Lovino’s mouth, surprising both of them.

“I wanted to kiss you, Matthew!”

The Canadian choked on his drink, spewing out the hot tea as his cup slipped from his hand. The tea splattered across his shirt and pants, seeping through the fabric and scalding his skin beneath as he leapt backwards with a yelp, knocking his chair over in the process. “Shit!”

“Matthew!” Lovino immediately shot to his feet, his own chair clattering to the ground as he reached a hand out towards Matthew, but the Canadian was already shaking his head and hurrying his way out of the room. A sinking feeling of anxiety, guilt, and despair made his heart clench painfully in his chest as he scrambled to follow after the blonde. “M-Matthew! Wait!”

Before Lovino could manage to catch up to Matthew, however, the other had already managed to dash off into one of the other rooms and disappear from sight. Swallowing against the lump in his throat, he forced his feet to move forward despite the way that they wanted to stay rooted to the ground. He hesitantly knocked against each of the doors that he came to, receiving no answer from behind each one until he reached the bathroom, hearing the water running inside.

"Matthew?" he called out hesitantly, hating the way his voice wavered as he pressed his hands against the door. Surely he doesn't hate me now...does he? He ran off so quickly without saying anything… Why did I have to open my fucking mouth? Everything is going to be ruined now, and he's going to hate me now, and he's going to end up kicking me out, and then I'm going to freeze to death, and--

Lovino's train of thought came to an abrupt halt as the door opened and he fell face-first against Matthew’s chest, the blonde’s arms quick to wrap around him to help steady him.

“Sorry…” Matthew’s voice was a soft rumble in his chest as he gently stroked Lovino’s hair, listening to the other sniffle softly. “I’m sorry if I worried you,” he continued, moving his hands to cup the fire fae’s face and wipe away the tears that were once again staining his skin. “It’s just a little burn. I’ll be fine. I just wanted to get the shirt off and get the burn treated before it got any worse. It’s not your fault.”

“But--” Lovino started to speak, only to be cut off by a finger being pressed to his lips as he stared up at Matthew and that gentle smile that always seemed to be on his face. It made his heart ache in his chest.

“Trust me, Lovi. When I say it’s not your fault, I mean it. You didn’t do anything wrong. You were just being honest, and that’s not something that I can fault you for,” Matthew murmured. The look of despair that had been on Lovino’s face when he had first opened the door… He hadn’t meant to make the Italian feel bad; he had just been acting on instinct to take care of the burn from the tea. That wasn’t to say that he hadn’t been completely shocked by Lovino’s comment though. “These last few days have been pretty hectic, so how about we try to get some rest, eh? I’ll get everything cleaned up in the morning, okay? And we can talk some more then.”

Matthew didn’t miss the mixture of relief and disappointment that swirled through Lovino’s eyes when he finished speaking, the fae’s shoulders slumping. His next words still took him by surprise though. “So you...don’t hate me? Because of what I said?”

“Hate you?” Matthew’s eyes widened before he let out a small laugh, resting a hand on top of Lovino’s shoulder. “Never. There’s nothing that you could say or do that could make me hate you. I’m certainly not going to be upset over something as normal as you expressing your feelings, and it’s normal to end up feeling...attraction to someone--”

“Have you ever...?” Lovino asked suddenly, glancing off to the side and crossing his arms over his chest as he awkwardly scratched his cheek.

“Hm?”

“Been a-attracted to somebody before…?”

The question made the heat rise to Matthew’s cheeks as he cleared his throat. “Well, not really. Other than my mother, I had been alone almost all of my life, so I never ended up being around too many people. When I have been around people, I feel more disgust than anything else because of how corrupt humans and society are. But…” Matthew trailed off, shrugging slightly and slipping past Lovino to head towards his bedroom. “I suppose...there’s been one person.”

He had almost made it to his room, his hand resting on the door handle when he heard Lovino inhale sharply. Raising an eyebrow, Matthew glanced back at the faery to see that his face had become pale and there was a distinct look of horror etched across his features.

Blinking, Matthew raised an eyebrow, glancing down at his chest and the burns from the tea which were already starting to fade. Frowning, he looked back over at Lovino, unable to figure out what had caused the severe reaction. "What? I don't look that bad shirtless, do I?" he asked, keeping his tone light.

It wasn't until Lovino spoke up that Matthew understood the horror on the other's face. "Your back… Those scars… What the fuck happened to you?"