#Allistor Rose

[funwalker]

Just a WIP but I've been possessed by the Comics Devil.

Experimenting a bit with a bolder style than usual (at least for these first few panels). We'll see if I can keep this up. lol Why yes, I am inking with that default angled calligraphy brush, thanks for noticing. It really brings me back to my days drawing in macromedia flash, god rest its soul.

[twstbeauty]

“You have to have the proper etiquette, or you will be a social piraya.”

Technical Information: Name: Maxwell Wonder Nicknames: Max/Wonderland (Eric) Voice Actor: Mamoru Miyano (Gakushu Asano, Assassination Classroom)

Biological Information: Gender: Male Pronouns: He/Him Age: 17 Birthday: May 11 Star Sign: Taurus Height: 188 cm Hair color: Black Eye color: Black Homeland: Queendom of Roses Family: Mother; Father; 2 younger sisters; Allistor Wonder (younger brother)

Professional Status: School: Royal Sword Academy Dorm: Hattean School Year: Second Class: 2-A Student Number: 13 Occupation: Student Club: Magic Club Best Subject: Magic Analysis

Fun facts: Dominant hand: Right Favorite Food: Souffle Least Favorite Food: Coffee; Fruit Pies Dislikes: People who are improper Hobbies: Caring for roses Talents: Rose growing

Appearance: Maxwell has long black hair and black eyes. He usually keeps his hair tied up in a ponytail. He has long strands of hair that frame his face. He wears the standard RSA school uniform.

Personality: Maxwell is a proper person. He thinks highly of himself and advocates for what he thinks is right to do. He dislikes it when people act improperly and prefers to follow the rules. However, that goes out the window with NRC students.

Background: Maxwell comes from a semi-wealthy family. He is the oldest of four and tries to teach his siblings to be civil. To him, it is the right thing. He wants to make sure they do not get into any trouble. However, that had changed after his younger brother met someone from Night Raven College. He doesn’t know how it happened, but he saw a change in his sibling. It was a change he refused to accept.

Unique Magic: Maxwell’s Unique Magic is called Smell The Roses. It lets him temporarily change the structure of an inanimate object that he touches. He mostly changes things into roses.

Chant: "Fun and games are at play, enjoy the moment. Smell The Roses."

Trivia:

Maxwell’s younger brother is a current student at NRC.

They have a rocky relationship.

Maxwell raises flamingos at home.

He dislikes fruit pies and coffee.

[koolkat9]

fluff 25 for the pairing of your choice? :P

Prompt: “Your hair is really soft.”

Paring: FrUK (I know surprisingly not GerEng, but come on soft hair is totally Francis)

It was silent, other than the ticking of the old grandfather clock down the hall and the occasional car out for a nightly drive. Despite the late hour, Francis was practically wide awake. He buried himself further in his lover’s embrace as the chill of the night started setting against his bare skin. He may have teased Arthur for always wearing a shirt to sleep, but it did make him a better heat source with it on. Earl Grey with a hint of smoke and roses filled his nose. Francis let out a content sigh, wishing that they could have more of these moments where they were both quiet, wrapped up in each other’s arms, no fighting or teasing, just soft affection.

 

He was almost asleep when he heard Arthur begin to mumble though he was not awake. Although it was late, Francis couldn’t pass up the opportunity of getting something he could hang over the Englishman’s head the next day (so much for no teasing). So, he listened intently as Arthur went off about orders to his “crew”, cooing over little Alfred and arguing with what Francis assumed was Allistor. He stifled his laughs as best he could, not wanting to wake up Arthur and ruin the show. Instead, he giggled quietly and pulled his boyfriend closer.

Eventually, Arthur began running his fingers through Francis' hair which halted the Frenchman’s laughing fit. He leaned into the touch, giving a content hum.

“Your hair is really soft,” Arthur mumbled in his sleep. Francis’ felt as though his heart stopped at the words as his face became bright red. Yes, he was a major flirt and a connoisseur of romance, but when it was turned on him, he couldn’t help but get flustered. And this was Arthur of all people. Hot-headed, prideful, never says how he feels Arthur was saying something so sappy to him of all people.

Feeling self-conscious, he pushed his heated face into Arthur’s chest, hoping that the Brit wouldn’t wake up and see the melted mess he was now. The continued combing and beating of his partner's heart eventually brought his heartbeat back down. Snuggling further into Arthur's arms, Francis closed his eyes eventually falling into a sound sleep.

Prompt list found here

[godofevrerything]

OC Masterlist

Not including MM OCs or their second generation ( @mysticsitcom ) or Arcana OCs ( @apprentice-flame ) or OM OCs ( @demon-kisser )

Not including Hell Rising OCs (novel undergoing a rewrite, on AO3 and here on Tumblr) Aaaand not including TMC OCs (my webtoon, The Middle Child)

Bakugo Kaida (she/her), human, BNHA, Bakugo’s twin, heat manipulation quirk

Yagami Mizuki (she/they), human, BNHA, villian and previous UA student, water quirk

Yagami ??? (She/her), human, BNHA, Mizuki’s little sister, demon quirk

Yashido Emiko (she/her), human, BNHA, third year student, intern at Endeavor’s agency, destruction and mass manipulation Speed and agility quirk

Ruby Hastings (she/her), vampire

Alex Caldwell (he/him), vampire, Ruby’s ex husband

Caius Caldwell (he/they), also vampire, Alex’s twin brother and Ruby’s best friend

Eli Jacobs (she/they), human, Ruby and Alex’s girlfriend

Zephyr (they/them), human, a street fighter, free lance hacker and maker of robots

Aurora (she/her), robot, made by Zephyr to take care of them, also sort of their girlfriend (?)

Edythe Angelo (she/her), human, the daughter of a mafia boss, aspiring hacker and one of Zephyrs best friends

Ember Angelo (she/they), human, Edythe’s twin sister, also the daughter of the mentioned mafia boss, manager at the street fighting business, Zephyrs other best friend

Serena Angelo (she/her), human, model, voice actress and the mother of the twins

Laurence Angelo (he/him), human, Serena’s husband, the twins father and the mentioned mafia boss

Kiyo (he/they), kitsune, aspiring actor, stripper, hairdresser, the father of twins

Violet Erie (she/her), half siren and half human, singer, actress, model, Kiyo’s girlfriend and the adopted mother of the twins

Nicholas (he/him), half kitsune and half human, small child, chaos maker, Kiyo’s son

Jasmine (she/her), half kitsune and half human, also small child, hair braider, aspiring peacemaker, Nico’s twin

Addison (she/they), previously human and now a ghost, Minnie and Nico’s aunt, spirit that looks over Kiyo and the twins

Sara Barrows (she/they), human, took a hammer to her husbands car after he left her at the alter and was put in an insane asylum

Althea Crowe (she/her), human, may or may not have killed her abusive husband, was sent to the insane asylum and met Sara

Adaeze (she/they), human, grew up on an alien planet and only recently came down to Earth

Leia (she/her), human, kindergarten teacher, eldest sibling of four kids, Adaeze’s girlfriend

Derek Cain (he/him), human, mafia member, father of Mia

Rose Cain (she/her), human, firefighter, Derek’s little sister

Avi Evans (they/them), human, deceased in some AUs, mafia member, Janelle’s spouse and simp

Seth Morehouse (he/him), deceased, previous mafia member, Derek’s once fiancé and father of Mia

Janelle Evans (she/they), human, fantasy author, Seth’s sister, Avi’s wife

Lucas Meyer (he/they), human, restaurant owner, free lance singer, Rose’s boyfriend

Mia Cain (she/they), human, Derek and Seth’s daughter

Ace (he/they), human, illusionist, street performer, son of [REDACTED], Vienna’s twin

Vienna (she/her), human, acrobat, dancer, fire eater, street performer, daughter of [REDACTED], Ace’s twin sister

Zodiacs, (a story made by me and @fairylightsandthings)

Ava (she/they), Ox Zodiac spirit, local mom of the Zodiacs, ex college student and kidnapped by God

Tora (she/her), Tiger Zodiac spirit, a fighter, slight tsundere with supernatural strength and speed whos not so secretly soft, poly lesbian, Jin’s gf

Jin (she/her), Dragon Zodiac spirit, selective mute, can and will kill again if necessary, does her best but is emotionally constipated, Tora’s gf

Allistor (he/him), Sheep Zodiac spirit, soft boy, heavily manipulated, tries to keep his twin in check but often fails, one of God’s favorites

Emily (she/they), Dog Zodiac Spirit, does not know the meaning of sleep, bossy but doesn’t mean to be, also heavily manipulated, God’s spokesperson and Allistor’s twin sister

Raine (she/they), current reincarnation of the Goddess of Death, apathetic and cold, morally grey, occasionally shields the Zodiacs, has a demon

Noir (they/he/she), mentioned demon above, was summoned by Raine and now under a strict contract with her till she dies, doesnt mind at all, simp but also feeds off of human souls and still can and will kill

Feel free to ask about any of em ^^

[usernoneexistent]

Moss Family Profile

Family Heritage

Blood Status: Half blood (Pureblood formerly)

Family Motto: En la rose je fleurie; I flourish in the rose 

Family Emblem: 

A coat of arms crest

A fetterock argent (emblem from clan Grierson)

Scottish Bluebell (plant emblem from clan Grierson)

Notable Family Member:

Allistor Grierson ☠️

Robert Moss ☠️

John Moss ☠️

Aileen Sweets (nee Moss)

Agnes Moss (nee McLaughlin) ☠️

Julia Moss

Jalil Hasni (by marriage, later divorced)

Pierre Dupont (by marriage)

Jacob Hasni-Moss

Juniper Hasni-Moss

Charlie Weasley (by marriage)

Tarragon Weasley-Moss 

Status: Extant

Relationship

Related Families:

Clan Grierson 

McLaughlin Family 

Sweets Family

Hasni Family

Dupont Family 

Weasley Family

Affiliation

Houses: 

Hufflepuff

Ravenclaw 

Loyalty:

Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry; Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Ravenclaw quidditch team, Circle of Khanna, Cursed Vaults

Order of the Phoenix

British ministry of Magic; International Magical cooperation department

Gringotts Wizarding Bank (formerly)

The Naughty Cliff Pub

Overview

The surname Moss is considered to originate from muggles which caused many to speculate on their blood purity and it comes from the family once having lived near a peat bog but it could have came from a pre-existing name of a town, village or parish. Earliest known magical Mosses came from England but they travelled up north at some point in the 11th century, to Scotland. They managed to marry into a Scottish Clan Grierson but managed maintain the surname Moss still to the present day. They are considered blood traitors first for their stance against pure blood supremacy and second for losing their pure blood status. 

The Moss family have distinct characteristics that have persisted through the years. Most notable is the iconic blue hair which have been a source of fascination for genealogists as blue hair seem to dominate genetically but yet there are fewer than 30 people in the world with this gene meaning that they are easy to trace back. They produced many natural born legilimens but over time, their numbers seemed to wean out and even ended up for over a century not a single natural born legilimens was produced until mid 20th century. They were also in extreme poverty due to poor money management but in recent times due to some family members they were able to finally maintain some form of stable wealth. They were also synonymous with Hufflepuff due to their tolerance and openness for all beings but can be considered too soft and a little airheaded at times. The Mosses have a repeated history of being outcasted and ostracised by the wizarding community and then accepted back in until they have another reason to kick them out again.

Family History 

Early History

The Moss family seem to originally come from Allistor Grierson, a Scottish pureblood Wizard and well known legilimens practitioner in the 10th century who helped create and build the cursed vaults to keep something contained. He built the vaults in such that anyone can open them but curses are sent as warnings to discourages those who seek the ‘treasure’ to stop and only those of his blood and legilimency ability can seal them. He also speculated to the first confirmed wizard that has the blue hair gene through an accidental genetic mutation. His lineage acted like guardians for the cursed vaults until after time, they no longer could uphold their responsibilities.

Later, in the 11th century, Allistor’s direct decendents changed their surname to Moss by marriage and had many family branches spread out throughout europe with many different names but Moss remained the most prominent and direct bloodline. The 1300s to 1700s, saw the rise of the witch hunts, and they became main targets due to their unique hair, particularly for the younger ones as they can’t easily conceal it. On top of that, rumours were spreading world wide to both magical and non-magical beings alike of the blue-haired family in europe and saying that their hair contained magical and medicinal properties which can make one powerful and if it’s a legilimen then even better. All the family branches were hunted down by muggles and magical kind whitlling the family line down to just one branch which is the Moss family. They survived through the horrific times by hiding their hair and ability and had to be careful who to trust when anyone married into the family. It wasn’t until the 1600s when rumours cleared up and the Moss family could finally come out of hiding and were accepted back by the wizarding community.

While the Moss family belived to be the only branch left of Allistor Grierson, what they didn’t know was that a unnamed girl from a family branch of the Moss in the 1500s was kidnapped and brought to Thailand where she seemed to have settled down and have a magical family line of blue hair.

Recent History

Robert Moss and his close friend, in the early 1800s became famous for opening an all inclusive pub called the Naughty Cliffs up in Scotland and was the first to implement a no discrimination tolerance code in Britain and manage to cast a spell in which anyone discrimanting against for whatever it may be, they get kicked (better word is yeeted) through the roof and implemented a 3 strike system. Many of those who hold racist ideals turned their nose up and tried to shut it down, but it became a popular hangout place for werewolves, vampires, goblins, giants, etc that they fought back and the ministry of magic allowed it to remain open. The pub was passed down throughout the family until John Moss passed away in 1972, so for a while it taken over by a close family friend until Jacob took over the family business in 1990s. 

For a while it was just the Moss family and the one in Thailand until John’s sister Aileen married an American wizard and passed on the blue hair genes thus creating a new branch for the Moss. In the 20th century, the Moss family went through a lot, first when Julia Moss got pregnant and had a shotgun wedding with Jalil Hasni, a rich Algerian wizard causing many to see her as social climber despite not being her intentions to have wealth. Jalil felt that he married a woman way too low for his social standing and that always caused issues between the Moss and Hasni family. Their firstborn son Jacob showed promise that the Moss reputation could be changed for the better when he became the first to be sorted into Ravenclaw and also was the first natural born legilimen since over a centruy of the last one. But he uninentionally made the family’s reputation worse when he hunted for the cursed vaults which he found a handwritten book in their attic by accident. His expulsion caused many in the wizarding community to turn on the Moss yet again leaving it to his little sister Juniper to restore their family name again. 

Juniper was the one to finally truely break the family mold, like her brother she was sorted into Ravenclaw thus breaking the long line of Hufflepuffs and through her father was taught at an early age how to manage money so when Jalil left, Juniper took over the role of family banker. Proving the vaults exsistent alone helped the family’s image tremedously and when Juniper sealed the final vault, her family’s honour was almost fully restored. Until, the ministry of magic realising that only Jacob and Juniper can seal the cursed vaults so they threaten them into silence by threatning to ruin their friends careers so Juniper helped them by creating the cursed vault taboo rumours. The Moss family took a hit but they could shift the focus away and onto Juniper’s curse breaking career but after some time the Moss family became less and less center of attention, finally giving them peace after recieving so much grief throughout the years.

[celosia-starfall]

This is my entry for the @aphrarepairweek2020 prompt “Thunderstorms”!!! I decided to base my picture off of a scene from my fanfic “Of Feathers & Roses” [LINK HERE] during chapter 17 of the story, where Matthew ends up talking to Allistor about his fae heritage and the lightning magic that he was granted along with it.

Most of the crew had already retreated below decks to wait out the storm. Other than a few stragglers that were smoking, it left the pair almost completely alone. As it was, most of the storm had already passed with only a faint mist still falling from the sky. The crispness of the rain was a welcome contrast against the nearly dizzying heat of his skin. In the distance, not too far from their own ship, he could make out the shape of Arthur’s skyship flying next to theirs.

Leading Allistor to the bow of the ship, Matthew eventually let go of his hand, staring out over the dark rolling sea of clouds that the skyship was soaring over. His eyes slid closed for several moments, simply listening to the distant rumbling of thunder and whispering of the wind.

Letting out a shaky breath, Matthew glanced over at Allistor, the redhead watching him with a mixture of concern and interest. “It was at a time not too long before Gilbert had been brought to the castle to begin training as a knight… It was some time between my fourteenth and fifteenth birthday… My mother knew that I had magic and had been doing the best that she could to train me ever since I had begun to develop signs of my...gift,” he murmured, Allistor moving closer and resting his arms on the railing next to him.

Matthew resisted the urge to lean against Allistor’s shoulder.

“Under her tutelage as well as Lovino’s, I was able to learn how to control my magic...for the most part…” Matthew stated, his hands tightening against the wooden bannister. “However, the problem is that my magic is derived from lightning. It’s powerful and beautiful and strong, yes, but...it’s also volatile and unstable. It’s dangerous and unpredictable.” Matthew held one of his hands out, palm up. Purple sparks of lightning danced between his fingers. “No matter how much I try to control it, there’s always the chance that it’ll backfire and that it’ll hurt someone…”

For the first time since they had left the office, Allistor spoke up, his statement making Matthew flinch. “...It wasn’t really a fire that killed yer mother, was it?”

Biting his lip, Matthew nodded slowly. “It wasn’t the fire that killed her. It was me…”

[ofdogsandwriting]

Emerald Fire

[Ao3 Link]

Hey, @paranormalstopsign I decided to be your back-up santa for the @weekofhetalia holiday gift exchange! I went with the soulmates prompt, I hope you like it c:

Word Count: 1,705

Characters: Canada, Prussia, Scotland

Rating: General

Pairing: Canada/Prussia/Scotland

Summary:  Matthew was born only being able to see red and green, the color of his soulmates' eyes. He always wondered who they are. Slowly, he discovers them, all in due time.

Matthew loved being able to watch the trees change from a bright green to vivid hues of red. He could see the entire transformation before his eyes, like a flower opening its petals, and each year fall came, he was mesmerized by the sight before him.

Red and Green. They were the only two colors he could see, a rarity in itself when it came to soulmates. Often, people were able to only see one color before they met their soulmate’s gaze, then the world became all the more vibrant and full of life, dull greys transforming into something magnificent.

He would stand in a room of grey, and that vibrancy he felt would leave. Sometimes he would only see red or green in the monochromatic world, and try to envision the red in the eyes of his soulmate, or the green eyes that would crinkle upwards in a warm smile as they laughed. 

Red was a rare color for people to see, it would make it easier to find them, someone that more than likely had albinism.

Green was more common. He had met people with green eyes, but they were never the right green, not like an emerald glowing under a night’s sky. They were still beautiful, but not the right one.

Matthew always thought about his soulmates, since the only two colors he could see reminded him of them, putting the idea into the back of his conscious made it complicated. It was hard to find one, let alone two. He had slowly become resigned to the fact that he may never see them.

Until he found himself walking outside on a rainy day, wet leaves of red blowing in the wind and landing in puddles, trees baren from the oncoming winter. He had brought an umbrella that was a darker shade of grey, because he enjoyed the type of grey it was, but the curiosity of its color always laid in the back of his mind.

He turned to enter a shop, but roughly bumped into someone. The other man fell backwards, landing his behind on the hard, wet pavement. 

Matthew gasped, reaching out a hand towards him to help him up. “I’m so sorry,” he apologized profusely.

The man groaned, looking downwards to the ground, muttering something inaudible as he rubbed the back of his head. A head of white, messy hair.

He looked up and their eyes met. Red, a red he had never seen before that glowed in flames of life, providing warmth around it, shining brightly over every other shade he had seen before.

Slowly, other colors swirled in his vision. He could see the color of his skin, the true color of the shop’s door, and so many more that surrounded his vision. It had nearly been overwhelming, so he decided to stare into that beautiful red until his eyes adjusted.

The man broke his gaze, looking upwards to the umbrella in wonder before slowly looking down to him again. “You’re-” he began, but cut himself off, entirely at a loss for words.

Matthew smiled then, nodding, a warmth spreading inside him.

He noticed that Matthew’s hand was still offered to him, and blushed out of embarrassment before gingerly taking it in his own. Matthew helped him up and they stood in silence, until, “The names, Gilbert, by the way. What’d they call you before they cast you out of heaven?” He grinned then, and even without the fact of them being soulmates, he knew that it was blinding for any stranger to see.

Matthew quickly learned more about Gilbert’s quirky and upbeat personality, all with an ego that he might have been fond of enabling. They started hanging out, and going on dates.

They discovered that they still could not see certain colors, but mainly, they could not see the colors of their own eyes. Gilbert informed him that his eyes are blue like the sky, that the umbrella he owned was a darker shade of blue. Matthew tried to get him to explain what it looked like, but explaining colors were more complicated and harder then it seemed.

Matthew told him that his eyes are red, like the bracelet he wore from his brother, or like the perfect apple, and the leaves on the trees during the fall that he was always so captivated with. He tried to explain red in return, but imagining the colors when they were never seen before are hard to imagine.

It was on one of their dates that they finally met him.

A locally owned coffee shop that had just opened recently, filled with greens with accents of red. The door to the entrance was large, and a pale yellow, he learned of the color after some research. He sat down at the table with Gilbert, the booths red and the menus green as the waiter served them.

Gilbert prattled on, joking around and leading much of the conversation, waiting with interest whenever Matthew spoke.

A commotion behind Gilbert caused some turning of heads, including said boyfriend, turning to see two men bickering.

One was blond with green eyes, large brows furrowed, lips formed into a pout as his foot tapped impatiently against the ground. He wore an apron covered in flour. Matthew could tell by the name tag that he worked here, and possibly owned the restaurant, with the stance he carried himself with.

The air was tense between them, until the other man cracked a teasing joke, red hair obscuring his eyes as he smirked. 

The first man lightly shoved him, and let out a sarcastic laugh. There was a slight quirk on his lips, giving way that their argument no longer held any heat.

He turned then, intense green facing them. Emerald like the other man’s, his brother, he assumed, but they stood out so much more vibrantly.

Matthew and Gilbert met his eyes, Gilbert’s jaw went slack, and the entire world came to life. More colors exploded around them, unfurling at every corner, moving from the restaurant, to the outside, the sun’s rays filled with yellows inside of the shop, the tables and chairs, booths, to the scratches on the wooden surface all had color, all came to life.

He looked down, and could see the color of his his cup, and the steam that slowly rose from it. 

The stranger looked genuinely surprised, and the man next to him leaned over to him, mumbling something in concern before his shook his head and looked back at him. He eyed the other, as though he was seeing him for the first time, like he was staring at a complete stranger before his shook his head again and spoke.

They talked in hushed tones, until the man with red hair cocked his head towards them, gesturing to Gilbert and Matthew. 

The other smirked and nodded in response, shoving him towards them before dusting off his apron and disappearing into the back again.

The man approached them, standing at the edge of the table, crossing his arms and leaning his weight onto one foot.

Before they could speak, he talked first. “I never really believed in soulmates, you know. Seemed like a hassle, seemed unfair that people couldn’t just see in color when they’re born, and that these people who are fated-to-be get to.” Gilbert seemed disappointed by that statement and Matthew frowned, a despondent feeling rooted in him.

“Don’t expect me to like you right away, just because you two are my soulmates. However,” a small smile formed on his lips, “that doesn’t mean I won’t try, since you two are here and all. Say, you two have room for one more today?”

Gilbert’s grin returned in full force, and Matthew smiled, inviting him to sit next to him.

They discovered that his name was Allistor.

Matthew loved being able to see in full color, but his favorite colors were still green and red. They always stood out to him more, able to easily see the two colors in the room above all else.

They share dates together, whether it be restaurants, picnics, homemade dinners, visiting each others homes. They usually met at Arthur’s restaurant, Allistor’s brother’s business. They got discounts during lunch, and it quickly became their favorite place to meet.

As months passed to years, they eventually all found a home together. Gilbert brought his dog with him, Matthew had his own dog as well, and Allistor had a cat. Their household quickly became a family with all of the additions. Luckily, all of their pets got along, aside from the bump between Allistor’s cat and Gilbert’s dog.

They make dinners together, lay on the couch in a pile and watch movies, sit at the table and share stories over morning coffee and tea.

It was all so incredibly domestic, and Matthew was happy with it. He appreciated simplicity and love, and in their household, not a moment went by without Allistor staring at one of them fondly, or Gilbert’s excited smile, or Matthew’s reminder of how much he cares about them.

They still went out on dates together.

Matthew sat under a tree with Gilbert and Allistor. Gilbert had his head resting on his lap, strumming the acoustic guitar Allistor had bought him for his birthday. He had learned how to play it relatively quickly, a natural talent he had. He did not sing, but he strummed the guitar, a soft melody befitting their surroundings.

Matthew rested his head against Allistor’s shoulder while he leaned against him in return. He listened to his soft breathing in tune with the music. His eyes were off in the distance, but his lips quirked up in the faintest of smiles. 

He looked down to the pond before them, watching as two swans drifted over to the cattails nearby.

He paused to appreciate the scene before him, the blue water of the pond, still, save for the small waves formed from the swans movement, the red leaves of autumn’s return floating atop the water, and the green grass that surrounded them.

But most of all, Matthew loved their eyes, the emerald green, and the fiery red, those were the most beautiful colors he had ever seen.

[mochasnake]

Seemingly unpopular opinion

And I sorta hate to say it but, I really like Sword and Shield.

I came into this game expecting to hate it and honestly sort of scared to because I've literally played every gen since the beginning. With all the hate toward this one I didn't expect it.

Sure, the direction you're given is a lot more linear than past games and the dialogue is a little weird (aka Leon and Sonia telling you to continue your Gym Challenge despite literal all hell breaks loose around you) but theres a lot of things I actually like about the game.

1. The Wild Area

I love that the game suggests you back track in order to grind since the Wild Area is more full and useful for grinding levels than the routes in the game.

I also love all of the spuratic weather patterns in the wild area so theres constantly different Pokemon in certain areas.

Despite Dexit, there's a good range of Pokemon to find in the game (not just in the Wild Area). I also like that they actually made some Pokemon new and old harder to find and under certain conditions so despite their only being 400 Pokemon, there will be a little more challenge catching them all.

Pokemon chasing you is also really funny.

2. Character

Hop. Hop is actually such a good rival. He's a breath of fresh air to me from the last few gens where the rivals had little to no character development (sorry Hau). Hop goes through a literal crisis through the game, albeit watered down since it's a kids game obviously. After being beaten by Bede and being dragged down by him, he questions if even really wants to go on anymore.

The gym leaders are such fun characters! As a Shield player I enjoyed shy Allistor and Opal is honestly hilarious. Again to contrast Sun and Moon where it felt like the island kahunas didn't have much character to them other than just being there. You even get cards with their backstories!

Leon and Sonia are awesome guides as well.

3. The Pokemon

I had some strong opinions about the Pokemon designs in this gen and as did a lot of people I feel. I complained and complained that a lot of these Pokemon didn't even look like Pokemon anymore. In all reality though, that isn't even the truth. I think people started complaining more and more progressively since Black and White, but since then everyone has gotten used to the look of them. These Pokemon aren't worse than any designs we have had before, the style is just changing. It always will be.

4. Complaints

I think one of the only complaints I have aren't even about the graphics or the scale of Pokemon or whatever (I'm a simple goat. I'm used to just using my imagination for sprites and I just appreciate they were able to bring them to life in 3D). It's the pacing of the story. I feel like it could've been slowed down a bit. There's so much I'm interested in, so much I wanna know. I wanna see the build up more clearly of Sonia collecting all the evidence for a solid theory on the Darkest Day and the heroes, I wanna see Hop questioning why he's doing the Gym Challenge, I wanna see Bede's slow descent into madness as he does everything to please Rose, and I wanna see Marnie questioning whether she should take her brother's place as the gym leader or not. I also just want to see more of the gym leaders! They're such interesting characters that seem like they have a lot to say, including to each other.

I haven't finished the game yet but these are just my thoughts as I near the end of the main game. I think this game is a lot better than people want to make it out to be and it kind of breaks my heart. I know tensions have been high and building between fans and Game Freak for a while, but we don't have to rip apart one of our favourite series' because it's not up to our huge and rising expectations. Do I think that Game Freak could have done better? Yes. But do I think the fans are at fault? Yes. No ones right in all of this drama. On one hand, Game Freak needs to build themselves up for a main console system and reevaluate their system of making games but on the other, fans need to be more understanding. I know we want the best for a game series we grew up on, but hostility isn't a way to go about this at all.

Sorry for the long post but I just thought I needed to say something about the game.

Tldr, Pokemon Sword and Shield aren't that bad of games.

PS, Unpopular opinion that Inteleon is a good Pokemon.

[writersblockandapotoftea]

Aldriff Bjarn 

(Nee. Draga)

Age at Death: 39 years old

Daughter of Syralth and Lenore, Aldriff is the mother of the two protagonists, Arthur and Allistor and one of the major influences in both of their lives. Best known as the only rose-coloured dragon, her magical center was kindness and her honorific is the Loving.

From her mother, she and her brother, Akos, inherited the power of prophecy, a fact that is amplified by their draconic father’s blood. This power is passed onto her eldest son, Allistor, who really does not use it.

Like. He actively avoids using it once he realizes that he has it.

She grew up near the Dragon’s Mouth, a lake where Arthur later begins his magical training, alongside her brother, Akos. When they turned 21, she and Akos left to go explore the world and figure out who they wanted to be. 

A gifted fencer and mage, she soon won over her husband, Ivar, by beating him in a sparring match. (Although later, she admitted to using a fate spell to make his sword slightly lighter than he was used to) and the two of them soon became inseparable, living in the village where Ivar was raised and eventually leading it together when Ivar’s father, Artor, passed away. She eventually became the village midwife and healer, a job Arthur looked forward to one day inherit. 

Once Allistor was born, she made two vials of a potion to lock away her children’s powers and two more to unlock them, should the time come because a magic baby is very difficult to handle. This also gave her an excuse to keep the rest of the dragons away from them to keep them safe until they were old enough to protect themselves. 

Aldriff’s influence over her sons remains strong, even seven years after her death. Both young men are gentle and forgiving and continue to protect and love each other. 

And while she may be psychically gone, her love and devotion will never be forgotten.  

Taglist: @expositionpreposition @coldinmyprofessions @onfablesandfictions @pinespittinink @writerightmegpie

[atomicstrawbrys]

If you’re still doing doing prompts M for Muscles please!!!!!

“Muscles”

Arthur knew he’d regret going to the gym, but he didn’t think he’d be so disgusted the moment he walked in the door.

His oldest brother Allistor had gotten him a full year’s gym subscription for Christmas. Although he meant it as a joke, Arthur wasn’t one to waste money. However, he was beginning to rethink this as the stench of sweat invaded his senses.

Arthur glanced around. The floor was crawling with gym rats. They seemed nice enough, encouraging each other and smacking each other on the shoulders as they walked past. Arthur hoped they wouldn’t try to get friendly with him. If one of those giants tried to clap him on the back, he was sure he’d topple over.

He walked in, trying to find a more isolated corner to exercise in. Arthur hadn’t the faintest idea how to operate most the equipment, so he opted for the treadmill. He kept it at a low speed, setting his pace at a brisk walk. After all, he wasn’t here to compete- these people could probably snap him in half. There wasn’t any point in trying to impress.

It was then that one of these gym rats happened to catch Arthur’s eye. He was tall- taller than most. He was not as muscular, but still rather fit. He was staring at Arthur, for who knows how long. When Arthur finally made eye contact with him, the stranger’s cheeks flushed, and he flexed, trying to pose. Arthur snorted at the display, and turned away, though a small smile managed to find its way onto his lips.

Arthur kept running into the man while he wandered the gym. He’d notice those bright blue eyes out of his peripheral vision. Each time he turned, the man would just ‘happen’ to be flexing, or stretching, or otherwise showing off. Arthur couldn’t help but wonder why this person seemed to have eyes for him when there were far more impressive specimens all over the place. But, he tried not to let himself linger on such thoughts. He shook his head, turning away from his admirer without so much as a second glance.

After refilling his water bottle at the fountain, Arthur decided he’d try the punching bags. He did quite a bit of bare-knuckle boxing in high school and college, so he was eager to see if he still had it in him. He surveyed the area and picked the punching bag closest to the wall. Wrapping his knuckles in the bandages provided, He assumed his stance behind the bag, and struck, hard.

He was lost in it, really. All his memories from high school and college came flooding back, giving him a rush of adrenaline he hadn’t felt in years. He bounced on the balls of his feet, striking the object, again and again, sweat glistening his face and arms, as well as dampening his bangs. He grinned, wiping his hair out of his face as he went to grab his water.

He was in such a good mood, in fact, that when his admirer got his attention and posed again, Arthur just gave a good-natured chuckle and flexed one arm.

He wasn’t jacked by any means, but there was some solid muscle as he flexed his bicep. Arthur was strong- perhaps not more than average, but he wasn’t weak either. He thought he must look rather silly, but the blush and the agape mouth of his strange friend told him otherwise.

Arthur returned to his boxing, so he didn’t notice when his observer finally got up the nerve to approach him.

“Hey there.” The man said, grabbing the punching bag in order to halt its momentum. “Name’s Alfred! I don’t think I’ve seen ya around before.”

“Well, you’ve seen a lot of me today, Alfred.” Arthur smiled, brushing his bangs out of his face. His chest heaved as he breathed heavily, in and out. “My name’s Arthur.”

“Uh, yeah, sorry. You’re- you’re a real cutie, y’know? And. yeah. I’m dumb, I should have come up and talked to you, haha-” Alfred rubbed the back of his neck, biting his lip.

Arthur rose a brow and rolled his eyes with a grin. “Well. You’re here now, aren’t you? And you’re talking to me. So far, you’re two for two.” He took a sip of his water, then sighed, wiping his forehead. “I do have to get going, I’m afraid. But it was very nice to meet you, Alfred.”

“H-hey, wait!” Alfred shook his head, taking his arm while Arthur packed up his things. “Can I see you again? Here, maybe? I’ll show you around some more!”

Arthur scoffed. “If you’re suggesting that our first date should be at a gym, I’ll have to decline. However, I would love to go to dinner.” He winked, making Alfred’s face go absolutely beet red. For such a muscular, imposing figure, Alfred sure was a softie. It was…charming.

He exchanged phone numbers with Alfred, and then slung his duffel bag over his shoulders, going to the door.

“Arthur!” Alfred called once he was in the doorway, making Arthur turn. Alfred flexed his arms, giving him a blinding grin that could only be described as giddy.

Arthur laughed and flexed an arm in return, briefly. He walked out and headed back down the sidewalk. His cheeks were red, but it wasn’t from exertion.

He’d have to remember to send Allistor a thank-you card.

[stayarmytinyzenmoa-l]

Remember When I Was Like “Ima Start Dropping Bits of my Novel That I’m Never Gonna Publish”? Well, Here’s One

TW: NSFW since it’s NSFW hours I guess but nothing too nsfw just some implied stuff don’t worry

“God, Jesus, fuck, can’t you knock for once?!” Diana immediately covered her chest when her best friend walked in.

“I usually do but we’re late, put your shirt on,” Daniel tossed the shirt at her face and she groaned loudly before putting it on.

“I hate you.”

“Who’s that?”

“Hey, name’s Allen,” the blond raised his hand while he pushed himself up from the bed.

“Hello there,” Daniel smiled and nodded and turned back to Diana. “Let’s go, we’re just waiting on the other agent Allistor sent over and we’re ready.”

“Fine,” Diana got off of the bed and grabbed her pants.

“Wait, Allistor?” Allen rose an eyebrow. “Wait, Diana, babe, dig through my pockets really quick.”

“This is not what I had in mind when I said I wanted to get in your pants,” Diana huffed while looking through the pair of jeans. She pulled out a badge and opened it, immediately recognizing the symbol inscribed on top of it. “Shut up!” She turned and pointed to him. He pointed back and they both made a loud squeaking sound, to this Daniel shook his head and sighed.

“Oh god, he just created dumb and dumber,” Daniel scoffed. 

“Oh wait, that sucks,” Diana frowns. “I have a strict ‘no fucking co-workers’ rule, it just messes with things, you know?”

“Yeah, I get it, respect,” Allen flashes a smile and pulls his shirt back on.

“That’s it?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re not gonna complain?”

“Nah, why would I?”

“Oh god, I think I love you,” Diana sighs.

“Diana you’d fall for anyone who said that your eyes were pretty,” Daniel clears his throat. “Alright, fine then, let’s get going.”

“Already?”

“If it helps, you get to wear a big billowing dress that flows when you run down stairs.”

“Seriously?!”

“Yup, let’s get going then. Jones, you too.”

“Yessir,” Allen gave him a lazy salute and the trio walked out of the room and into another.

“In you go,” he ushered Diana through the large portal first before he and Allen followed.

[funwalker]

Keep forgetting to post this guy, but I made a nice ref for him a few days ago.

Made him initially for a Triangle Agency game but decided to toss him into a little art-based OC RP. Hopefully, I'll get some nice short comics out if it. :3

It feels like it's been a good decade since I made a proper ref sheet like this for one of my own characters. Haha.

[twstbeauty]

“Wonderland is a strange place, isn’t it? Wait… what am I talking about?”

Technical Information: Name: Allistor Wonder Nicknames: Rockfish (Floyd); Monsieur Wonder (Rook); Allie (Alroy), Al/Lily (Jianyu), Starry eyes (Ziwei) Voice Actor: Kosuke Kuwano (Yuga Aoyama, BNHA)

Biological Information: Gender: Male Pronouns: He/Him Age: 16 Birthday: July 26 Star Sign: Leo Height: 175 cm Hair color: Blond Eye color: Blue Homeland: Queendom of Roses Family: Father; Mother; 2 younger sisters; Maxwell Wonder (older brother)

Professional Status: School: Night Raven College Dorm: Heartslabyul School Year: First Class: 1-A Student Number: 1 Occupation: Student Club: Gardening Club Best Subject: Magic Analysis

Fun facts: Dominant hand: Right Favorite Food: Crumpets Least Favorite Food: Spinach Dislikes: Being interrupted Hobbies: Gardening Talents: Can do most tongue twisters

Appearance: Allistor has long blond hair. This is his natural hair color contrary to what people may believe. In his hair, he wears a white headband. He has deep blue eyes. He wears the standard school uniform for Night raven College.

Personality: Allistor is an observant and straightforward person. Sometimes he can be found daydreaming, but he mostly pays attention to what people do. He tries to see the best in a person.

Background: Allistor comes from a semi-wealthy family. He is the second oldest of four. Things were fairly normal for him, and he enjoyed his time with his family. He was certain that things wouldn’t change, that is until he met someone from Night Raven College. Since that day, he was curious about the magic in the world. Allistor sent out an application to NRC and was accepted.

Unique Magic: Allistor’s Unique Magic is called Through The Looking Glass. It lets him create a copy of a person. However, this copy is the opposite of how that person would normally act. The clone lasts for 30 minutes.

Chant: "People hide secrets, pretending is a game. Show me the other side, Through The Looking Glass."

Trivia:

Allistor’s birthday is the day Disney’s Alice in Wonderland was released which was: July 26, 1951

He tells people that Maxwell dyes his hair.

Allistor has a pet bunny named Hopps.

He likes to go exploring.

[hetaliafandoms-blog]

((LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! Scotland with freaking GLASSES!!❤))

 Allistor only rose an eyebrow “....What’s so special about it?”

 ~Admin Malwina & Scotland... Credits: http://hurrhurrr.tumblr.com

[ohnohetaliasues]

Hello! This is my Yorkshire OC, and it would make me really happy if you’d review her! She’s my first British Isles OC so I hope I did an okay job XD

Of course! I’d be happy to look at her for you. I’ll be gentle, don’t worry. I’m in love with her hair.

Country/City/State Information-

Name: Yorkshire Age: Romans arrived in 71 AD, so about 2088 years old

Good. I like how you were right to the point.

Capital City (if country): N/A, but centered around York

Good, I like how you looked into that. 

Biggest City: Leeds

Boss (Mayor/President): Theresa May Flag (Coat of Arms): Blue flag with a White Rose of York

This is all looking very nice.

Biggest Ethnic Group: White Language(s) spoken: English, but with a Yorkshire dialect

Makes me think of Hagrid.

Population: About 5 million people Religion: Christian Climate: Generally cool and fair. It doesn’t get very hot here. It does snow quite a bit in winter, however.

Good. You knowing this makes me wonder if you’re from Yorkshire.

Human Information- Name: Lucy Kirkland Nickname(s): Luce Age: 21

Good, she’s younger than England. That’s also a good age considering how long Yorkshire has been around.

Gender: Female Birthday: August 1

It was a good idea to put her birthday on Yorkshire day. I give you a big thumbs up.

Current Residence: England’s house Language(s) spoken: English, Scottish Gaelic Bad Habit(s): Stubborn, selfish, egotistical, harsh, looks before she leaps Like(s): Cheese, pie, Yorkshire pudding, Yorkshire tea, meat, plaid, Terrier puppies, her brother England, her relative Scotland, football, cricket, flat caps, money after hard work, the arts, alcohol

Your OC makes me very happy.

Dislike(s): Being told what to do, loads of influence from other cultures, spending lots of money, expensive things, having to control her language Hobbies: Playing cricket and football, cooking, reading and writing Personality: Friendly, prideful, free-spirited, immature, energetic, does what she feels is right, stubborn, hardworking, scrimping, pretty forgiving

Appearance- Height: 5'8" Weight: 167 lbs Hair: Brown Eyes: Green Skin: Pale white Accent: Yorkshire accent Anything on your body that represents your country?: Not really, but she has bushy eyebrows as a Kirkland. 

You’re actually kind of right. The only things I found were the Yorkshire dales, which are a famous wildlife preserve, so maybe make her a nature lover.

Outfit(s): Typically wears plaid a lot and flat caps. Leisure outfits and comfortable pants, nothing too fancy.

NOTE: Since Yorkshire is a county and therefore wouldn’t have independent relations to other countries, I simply chose countries that Britain as a whole likes and dislikes for friends and enemies.

I have seen way too many OCs who are a part of a country, but they still have relations with random countries. Someone once asked me if it was a good idea to ship their Mexico OC with Russia and I was like ‘What gave you that idea?’ Or the Statue of Liberty having a friendship with Japan.

Relationships-

Ancestor: Britannia, but was mostly raised as a small child by Rome Family: England (brother), Scotland (brother)

I’m thinking Ireland and Wales should be included, correct me if I’m wrong.

Friends: France to an extent, America, Japan Rivals: Denmark, Sweden

Understandable, considering the history between the Vikings and the Saxons.

To sum it up, not good history. So good job there.

Enemies: Not any huge enemies, really Potential Love Interest: N/A Foreign Relationships: England- Lucy’s big brother. The two disagree with different personalities to mismatching opinions throughout history, but they still love each other greatly and are happy to have each other as siblings. America- Lucy sees Alfred as a little sibling or a nephew figure. During the American Revolution, some societies in Lucy’s county were having a bit of influence in the war to America’s benefit. They were abolished by Arthur, however. But to this day the two get along rather well and they enjoy each other’s company. 

I like the representations here.

Japan- Arthur had ties with Kiku and therefore Lucy did too. While the Japanese man was more present in her life for her brother, they did find time to talk with one another. They don’t have an incredibly close-knit friendship due to Lucy’s loud nature, but they do go back awhile and respect one another. Scotland- Allistor is Lucy’s older brother. Incredibly close to one another, they have similar personalities and culture. Lucy’s enjoyed supporting Allistor when it wasn’t a threat to her in the past. 

True in a sense, so this is okay.

France- Francis and Lucy have a shaky relationship. They’re not the best of friends due to tensions in the past and clashing personalities, but they do trust each other as allies in the present and Lucy can appreciate the French arts. 

Nice.

Denmark- An incredibly shaky relationship, Mathias and Lucy don’t have a great past together. Danish occupation of Britain didn’t fly too well with Lucy or her family and put a sour taste in her mouth for Mathias and the rest of the Nordics.

While she has (for the most part) forgiven Mathias in modern times, she still can’t help but roll her eyes when he speaks.

Perfect.

Hey, so this looks really really nice. I’m in love with her personality, and would love to see more! Maybe my London OC Audrey and her can be friends! I like the representation she has going on, and it all looks nice and polished, and I can tell you put a good amount of research into her. Keep up the good work!

~Kat

[inkyinkblot]

It wasn’t often that Francis would receive a phone call at one o’clock in the morning. So when the ringing started needless to say France was caught off guard.

He removed the covers of his duvet, shivering slightly at the bitter cold that greeted him. Half of him wanted to let the phone keep ringing so he could crawl back into the warmth of his bed. Yet what if it was important? Carefully pulling his slippers on, he crossed the room to where the phone sat on small end table next to a vase of roses.

“Hello?” Sleepiness permeated his voice, as he stifled a yawn with the back of his hand. Most of his golden locks still pulled back into a loose ponytail that had started to come undone sometime during the night. Francis assumed it was probably his boss, reminding him to finish the paperwork that sat upon his desk in stacks. “It will be ready by the meeting tomorrow, sir. There is only a little bit left. I still have to go over the economic plan but that shouldn’t take too lon-”

“F-Frog” a voice softly whispered into the receiver.

Frog? There was only one person France knew who would ever call him such an insipid name.

“Sir Eyebrows? To what do I owe the pleasure?” He asked playfully. How he enjoyed messing with Arthur. It was one of the few things that brought joy to his life, that and wine or course. Oh! and love. Also roses, you get the picture.

There was no response from the other line.

That was unusual. Normally Arthur would have responded with an insult rather quickly, something brutish to be sure. Yet even stranger was it to receive a call from him in the first place. If he did, it was usually due to the fact that he very inebriated. In that case, Francis would be sure to record this conversation so he could lord it over the grumpy British man at the next meeting, the thought of it brought a smile to his lips.

“Iggy, is this another one of your drunken confessions?” The Frenchman laughed lightly, waiting for the serenade of curse words to greet his ears. “One would think you’d have learned your lesson by now. Just because Allistor can drink whisky like water doesn’t mean you are able to too. Or that you should try. Although I must admit, I do rather enjoy watching you dance on the tops of tables

Minutes passed and still nothing. Francis began to pace in his room, the soft padding of his footsteps against the wood was the only sound that could be heard.

This could be a prank. Francis mused, then just as quickly he dismissed the thought. Arthur was very obvious with his pranks to the point where it was quite sad. If he were to prank someone, he’d be the sort of person to put a bucket of water on top of the door. Or he’d make a plan so intricate that there was, no conceivable way that it wouldn’t backfire on him, but calling someone at one in the morning? That wasn’t his style.

“Arthur....”

“I couldn’t help them.”

“Help who? Arthur? What’s wrong?” He sounded...detached. Like he was off in another world, his voice wavering, his breath coming out as shaky gasps as if he wasn’t able to breathe. If France was beginning to panic already, he sure as hell was now. The sluggishness of sleep burning away as the adrenaline began to pump in his veins.

He quickly made his way into the living room. It was extravagantly furnished as expected, gold and crème colored furnishings made it looks as it had come from the royal palace itself (which it in fact had. Francis thought it would have been a waste to sell it during the revolution and elected to keep it. For...historical purposes. Shhh! Ohonohonohonohon) In his haste he accidently knocked over a lamp, shattering glass all over the floor, under normal circumstances he would have been horrified, but in this instance he couldn’t have cared less.

“I couldn’t...I couldn’t stop them...Oh God” Arthur choked out.

A barrage of questions came forth “Stop who, Arthur? How can I help? Is everything okay?”

Finding what he was looking for, Francis quickly turned on the television, fervently rummaging though all of the major news stations. After about several minutes of finding nothing, he quickly did the same on his laptop, pulling up every British news outlet he could think of. Nothing there either.

“Arthur, talk to me. Please! What’s going on?” Francis begged, as he could feel a rising sense of hysteria beginning to take hold of him

“Never mind, it...it’s nothing. Just a bad dream. I’m sorry for disturbing you at such a late hour Francis...I-I...hope you have a good night.”

“Arthur wai-”Click. Both relief and dread swirled around inside of him, in equal parts. On one hand Francis was relieved that nothing had happened to his friend, he was glad that England was safe. On the other hand, he was afraid of what Arthur was going to do.

All the countries go through rough nights. The nights where all the darkest things from your past decide to haunt you, reminding you of what you lost, what you failed to protect. Some nights ended better than others, and some nights you curled up into a ball wishing the world away. Francis himself had a few of these nights. The anniversary of Joan’s death, for example. Usually he would just get blackout drunk crying to himself wishing he had done more, or done something different. When he woke up the next morning though, he always found himself in bed, a burned scone waiting for him in the kitchen and although Arthur would never acknowledged it, Francis was always extremely grateful, even if it did insult his classically trained taste buds.

With a growing sense of desperation, Francis hurriedly grabbed his coat, keys and shoes before bolting to the nearest airport.

It had been a very long flight, but an hour later Francis touched down in London, and like a bat out of hell made his way to Arthur’s place. When he arrived at the small cottage he raced up the stairs two at a time, practically throwing the door off its hinges.

“Arthur!?” he shouted, a weak laugh came from the back bedroom. Francis slowly pushed the door open wincing a bit as it creaked loudly.

Moonlight flooded the room from the open window behind Arthur’s desk, papers were scattered about carelessly. On the wall a newly formed stain was beginning to set it. Francis carefully made his way over to it, letting his fingers graze over the soft fabric wallpaper, smiling to himself. The fabric was one that resembled a grandmothers couch, and completely clashed with everything else in the room, how completely like Arthur.

Crunch!

A teacup shattered under the weight of his boot. He knelt down examining the remains of it before setting it upon the mahogany desk. Scanning the rest of the room he noted that Arthur’s bed was empty. His sheets had pooled to the end of the bed where they draped gracefully towards the ground. All of his six bookshelves had been spared any cruel mistreatment. He had maps, encyclopedias, dictionaries, books about culture and of course cooking all crammed onto the shelves. Journals he had kept over the years had also called those shelves home.

Over by one of the bookshelves, the one closest to the left side of the wall, a figure sat with his head on his knees quietly rocking himself. Slowly he looked up towards the Frenchman whose heart dropped to his stomach.

That look. The look of self loathing and hate. Francis had seen that look far too often on his friends face. Those green eyes that put the richest of forests to shame, his eyes rimmed red, swollen, filled with such clawing despair that Francis felt as if he were drowning in it. His lips were bloody from biting on them trying to stop the gasps that plagued his body, causing his sandy locks to fall in front of his face.  

“W-what are y-you doing here? I said I-I was fine.” The Brit ferociously rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. Francis sidled along side of him on the floor.

“You don’t look fine to me...” Arthur let out a pathetic attempt at a laugh, the hopelessness in it evident. The silence seemed to stretch on for years, the only noise that could be heard was their breathing, Arthur struggling to control his own, trying to sync it to the man who sat beside him. He opened his mouth to speak voice cracking with enormous emotion.

“I was in the middle of the Blitz again, Francis.”

TO BE CONTINUED!