#Dryaded ME FanFics

[whaledenwtf]

Halsin x Dryad!Reader - The Summer Solstice

IM BACK BITCHES!!! Instead of doing my presentation for university I'm typing this. You're welcome.

Cross-posted on AO3 here: Link All other links will be at the end of the fic!! ENJOY

Warnings: afab!reader and Male Smut, Breeding Kink, Creampie, Oral (Female and Male Receiving), BEACH SEX YEAH, Size Difference, Oh Yeah Did I Mention MATING PRESS

Once again, my efforts to keep him as true to character have been made. :)

WORD COUNT: 3630

Link to some Summer Solstice Rituals I reference here: LINK

You couldn't help but be impressed. It was the summer solstice, and the Arch Druid of the Emerald Grove handling the rituals of the day was excelling. Excelling enough to gain the attentions of Silvanus himself. You were watching his back from behind an oak tree, admiring the musculature. He was tall, strong. You liked that. Your mind flitted between the mortal and what had happened earlier in the day. The Oak Father presented himself to you in your mind earlier today, expressing his excitement of one of his followers.

"His name is Halsin. He has excelled in many of the rituals and in assisting nature. He has even reached Arch Druid status." He had said offhandedly. You were always a curious Dryad, and knew you had to investigate. You knew Silvanus was meddling but you haven't been around mortals in decades. You wanted to join the festivities after all; the summer solstice was your favourite holiday! The flowers are already in full bloom, the summer air is sweet with the smell of hydrangeas and peonies. You knew many of your companions were celebrating on their own, with nature and chosen company. You decide to get a little closer to the celebrations, walking out from behind the oak tree you were hiding behind. Many of the druids turned to look at you and gasped. Many of them dropped their lutes and violins, the sounds of nature becoming louder in the sudden silence. Many of them came to you, with offerings of honeyed mead and flower crowns. You crouch down to a small elf child holding a marigold and lavender crown.

"Little one, may I wear your crown?" They look at their parents for guidance before nodding and placing the crown above your head. It blooms further once it is placed upon you, and the smell of lavender wafts around the air. You pluck one of the lavender buds from your crown and put it behind the child's ear, smiling.

"Now we match." The child giggles in wonder, before running to hide behind her mother's leg, watching you in glee. You rise to stand, only to notice the Arch Druid had turned around to watch you. You are stunned by his beauty. His face is angular, with a tattoo on the right side and a gruesome bear scar on the left. He was perfect, in your eyes. You smile at the crowd you attracted, before walking past them to reach Halsin. When you get close, you smell him and are enamored further. Pine, musk and cedar. You can understand why Silvanus had sung his praises; he was the embodiment of nature.

"We haven't had a dryad join in our festivities yet. May Silvanus preserve you." You bow dramatically, the vines and leaves that make up your clothing sway beautifully behind you.

"An honour it is to meet you, Arch Druid Halsin. Your reputation precedes you." He chuckles, his voice deep and booming.

"I hope you heard all good things I hope." He smirks down at you, hazel eyes glistening in the twilight. The last beams of sunlight shine on the both of you. You glow with a radiance, like water reflecting sunlight, and he is attracted to you. Your beauty, your essence, is all captivating.

"Silvanus has only sung your praises, Halsin. I had hoped to see you in person and was graced by your ceremony. Wonderfully done." He blushes, the tips of his ears burning crimson. He seems at shock from your words; Silvanus has praised him? He feels truly blessed. You turn to look at the onlookers, who were still gazing at your beauty.

"Please, continue your celebrations. The Oak Father wishes you all enjoy yourselves in the time of festivities. Enjoy nature as he intended." You words were clear, and not a moment later, did everyone begin celebrating again. You turn back to Halsin, who is watching you in wonder. You blush lightly under his gaze, before sidestepping to look at the altar of light.

"Beautiful spread. I see you added citrine and pyrite; as well as some local blooms." That seems to snap him out of his spell and he nods.

"The celebration of the solstice is one I take very seriously." You turn to look at him over your shoulder.

"May I?" He waves over the altar, allowing you to do your magic. Your eyes begin to glow green, and sunflowers begin to bloom in your hand. You lay them aesthetically on the altar, smiling.

"Thank you." He tells you earnestly. You giggle at his enthusiasm, smiling as you turn back to him.

"Of course-" You look at the horizon, noticing the the sun had set. "Well, I believe it is time for the bonfire and feast! Oh, I haven't been to solstice festivities in years." You tell him excitedly.

"Join us." He tells you. You smile widely at him, and his heart flutters in his chest.

"I'd love to. I'll dance- oh and sing! I'm so excited!" You are buzzing in place. He finds it adorable. His hand goes to the small of your back ushering you forward.

"Go on! Enjoy yourself." His hand feels warm on your skin, and you blush.

"What about you?" He waves you off.

"I tend to look over the festivities. Have to make sure we do not lose any cubs." You bite your lip, thinking. You had an idea.

"What if I ask you to celebrate with me? Would you join then?" His gaze glances down at your lips before meeting your eyes.

"I can make an exception, for such a beautiful guest." You blush once again. He smirks as your skin darkens, and he can't help but wonder if that blush shows up on other parts of your body, hidden to his eyes.

"Then I will make sure to save a dance for you." You go on your tippy-toes, planting a soft kiss on his cheek, before running forward into the fray. His hand holds his face where you had kissed him, and he smiles. He can't wait.

You had spent the last hour dancing with the children of the Grove. You were showing them the dryad's dance, a sensual dance with a lot of swirling; your arms swaying. Like a willow tree you wave and sway, the wind following your movements. Your eyes catch Halsin watching at you, a heat in his gaze. At the end of the dance, you end with a flourish, arms spread up towards the moon. Flowers and flower petals fall over the children, who squeal and giggle excitedly. They come to hug you and you pet many of them, sprouting daisies and marigolds to give to each child. Once they receive their gifts, they run around the grove, chasing each other and playing. The music changes to a very familiar tune. The musicians begin playing "Down by the River", and you begin to sing. Your voice, ethereal and otherworldly echoes in nature. You begin to dance, voice still echoing. Like a siren, Halsin felt the pull of your voice, and began to edge closer to you subconsciously. Once he gets close enough, you grab his wrist, tugging him into a dance. You begin to circle one another, one of your hands palm to palm with one another. You continue to sing, your gazes locked. He is entranced by you.

"Down, down, down by the river." You end the song, twirling around Halsin. You both bow at one another, as everyone applauds you both.

"Thank you for the dance." He tells you huskily. You squirm under his gaze.

"I was hoping for more than one dance." You tell him quietly. He feels particularly emboldened by your response, and puts his hand around your waist.

"What were you thinking of?" He asks you quietly. Your hands lay on his chest.

"Perhaps we can celebrate the solstice together... privately." He hums, his arms pulling you closer to him. You feel his strength through your close bodies, and admire him further, hands caressing his chest, mapping his body.

"What of my duties?" He asks you. He doesn't seem to want to decline. You look around, noticing everyone having fun and participating in ritualistic dances.

"Meet me near the shoreline after the last song has ended and nature's music is loud again. I will wait for you." Your lips graze his gently. You taste like freshwater and thyme. His lips become numb, and his mind is emptied of all rational thought. His eyes glow amber as he watches you walk to the shore, hips swaying. A low growl leaves his chest, and he almost transforms into a bear. He can't help but curse his need to diligently do his duties. This night will feel eternal.

When the last notes of music have died down, and all that is left of the large bonfire is embers, he seeks your company. The night is dark, lit by glowing mushrooms and occasional group of fireflies. His path is dark, but he has never felt such peace. He walks the path to the shoreline, where your voice carries as you sing; the sound of crashing waves accompanying your music. His heart beats loudly in his ears, the tips of them twitching in his excitement. In all his years of existence, he has never lain with a dryad. It seems surprising, for many of his years he had taken an extensive amount of lovers, all of which were of many different races and ages. His bare feet finally hit the sand, and he sinks slightly in his continued path to you. He sees your ears twitch before you turn around, smiling.

"I was beginning to get concerned." You tell him softly. Your voice was gentle, and the emotions that burst forward from his heart urged him to speed in his walk to you, almost sprinting.

"You needn't be concerned of me." You rise to greet him, hands stretch out. He gets close enough to grasp them, and pulls you forward. You land on his chest, and are forced to look up at him. The stars are reflecting beautifully in your eyes. They are focused on his own gaze, and he has never felt more grateful for all of the actions, faults and obstacles in his life that had brought him here; with you.

"Can I not be concerned for someone I care about?" He blushes at the remark, and you notice the druid's skin darken. His hands let go of your own to grasp the sides of your face.

"You care?" You bite your lip, watching his amorous gaze.

"When Silvanus spoke of you, I must admit it was not the first time I've heard of the admirable and fearless Arch Druid Halsin. Your bravery and attunement to nature always attracted me to the idea of you. Now that I stand before you, my heart beats in tune with yours; the idea of any other being is far away in my mind. You take the forefront of many of my thoughts, and have been for the entirety of the day." His hands pull your face forward, his lips smashing against yours. This kiss was unlike the other; passion, excitement and need were felt in this kiss. You moan against him, and his tongue takes advantage of your lowered defenses. Your tongues move against each other languidly, caressing one another. You pull away from him, only to push him down so he is laying in the sand. You sit atop his lap, and begin kissing him again.

He decided that if lightning had struck him in this moment, he'd die the happiest man alive. Such words and attentions he had never heard, especially from the lips of someone he's come to admire so much. The world around them dissipated, and all that was left was them and time indefinite- your words and touches, your two souls joining in nature's basest form of love. His hands caress the sides of your body, his touch igniting heat wherever they touch, a heat blossoming in the very core of your being.

When air becomes a necessity for you both, you separate. You begin to pull his ceremonial tunic upwards, before laying it gently next to you both, taking care in the important garb. His pants are next, and his undergarments fall with them. You kneel between his legs and admire him. It seems Silvanus had taken great care in his looks, and his personality. If you hadn't known better, you'd believe him a god; crafted from your mind's eye. In a moment, he lifts himself up to remove your dryadic clothing, mostly leaves and vines, so he could gaze upon you. Once both naked, your touches become lighter, hovering over him ever so slightly. His skin breaks out in goosebumps, the hairs rising slightly.

"Your beauty is one I never thought I could ever gaze upon." You tell him sweetly. His eyes leave your face for a moment to gaze at the rest of you.

"Sitting here, with you, shows me that some of nature's greatest beauties are ones I hadn't had the chance to gaze upon yet. No words can even begin to describe how I see you in this moment; your beauty cannot be fully grasped with something as limiting as words." You crawl further up into the crevice of his thighs, your belly rubbing against his hardened member. Your noses are touching now, and you are exchanging each other's air.

"I need you." You whimper, and one of his hands grasp the back of your neck, under the thickness of your hair to pull you into a savouring kiss. His other hand goes to tread the path of your body; from grasping and playing with the pebbled peaks of your breasts, to caressing your bountiful curves to the apex of your thighs. You moan into his mouth as his thick fingers tickle the outline of your cunt, feeling the wetness that has gathered there. He moans when he realizes truly how wet you had become. His fingers then dip in between the seam of your cunt, to gather some of your nectar before separating from your lips to taste you.

His eyes flash golden at the taste of you on his tongue. Your wanton moan turns into a shriek as he pulls you up until your cunt is levelled with his mouth.

"I'm going to savour you now. Devour you, until you cannot stand, and your voice is strained. May I taste you, sweet one?" You respond to him by laying your full weight on his face. He wastes no time in savouring your scent, and... devouring you. His tongue explores your depths, as his nose bumps into your clit. You grind on him, juices flowing down his chin. He grabs your plush thighs, grinding you harder into him. He pulls away for a moment to release his grab on one of your thighs before plunging two of his thick fingers into you and sucking on your pearl. You will not last with his attentions. He is feasting on you, your moans and pants urging him further.

"That's right, my little lavender. Finish on my tongue and fingers. Cum for me." The authoritative tone his voice took shook you to your core, and you finish on his fingers and talented tongue. With a moan, your juices leak out of you. He begins to lick your mess, moaning at the taste of your essence. His grip on your thighs have waned enough for you to scramble away, legs shaking. You land with a thump on the ground between his thighs, grasping his cock in your hand. You stroke him once, then twice, before rubbing the pad of your thumb on his head and spreading his precum around. You pull away to taste him, and moan. He growls at your debauchery.

"I'm going to taste you, Halsin. Need to taste you." You huff out as if out of breathe, before taking him in your hand again. Your lips descend on him, tasting him. Your tongue was heavenly on him, and he grasped your hair in his hands, bucking into you. You moan around him, taking him to the back of your throat. He grunts at your attentions, grasp tightening. You pull away for a moment, taking deep breathes before looking him in the eye and taking him further into your mouth. You reach the patch of hair at his base, the tip of his cock hitting the furthest parts of your throat.

"O-oh. Fuck-" Hearing him lose his sense of self, and the fact he uttered an expletive made you feverish, and you began to deepthroat him, ushering him to thrust into your mouth. He takes advantage of your wants, thrusting into you. Your hands move upwards, fondling his heavy sack. Without warning he thrusts deep, finishing in your throat. You swallow as much as you could, the taste of him tart but delicious; you want more. You continue to suck and bob up and down his member, until he cums again, shaking and groaning loudly. You pull off of him, gathering the cum and spittle that leaked from your mouth and putting it back in your mouth, savouring him. He watches you with hunger. He sits up and growls, exciting you. His eyes glow amber, and without warning he transforms into a brown cave bear. You bite your lip at the transformation, aroused by his show of strength. He transforms back into his elvish form, stumbling.

"I-I'm so sorry, I transform when my baser... urges become too much." You shake your head, before sitting down and spreading your legs. Your hand spreads your cunt open, and he watches how your thighs and lips glisten with arousal.

"Breed me, my bear." His eyes flash golden again, but he refrains from transforming again. His arms grasp your thighs and pull them to your shoulders. You're bent in half, and the tip of his still very hard cock is poking at your entrance.

"Please Halsin. Take me. Make me yours." You tell him, urging him to thrust into you. He grunts and thrusts into you with one stroke, burying himself to the hilt. Your back arches off the sand, breasts pressed against his chest. Your lips meet again, teeth clashing at the force of your kisses. His thrusts are rough, and he continues to hit that sweet spot. You keen in his mouth, and he chuckles breathlessly. He continues his pace, hitting that spot effortlessly each time. His hips grind against your clit with each thrust, and your body is overstimulated quickly. You know you will not last long, his passion and accuracy in driving you wild bringing you closer to your precipice.

His lips leave yours, before latching onto your neck and biting you. You caterwaul at the action, gripping his triceps tightly. Your nails are digging into the skin, but he does not care. He is selfish in this moment, wishing you would stay like this with him forever, until the world has disintegrated around them. He removes his teeth from your neck, before his lips latch onto your nipple and suckle from them. Its too much, and you arch your back painfully as you finish. Your constricting walls bring him to completion, your cunt milking his cock. You whimper as you feel his heavy load inside you, leaking around his cock. He thrusts again, and both of you seize with sensitivity. He pulls out of you gently, before laying down next to you. His arm pulls you onto his chest, and you bask in his warmth.

"I'm sorry." He whispers to you. Your head snaps up to look at him. He looks upset, his brows furrowed.

"What's wrong, my bear?" He shakes his head.

"I'm selfish. I'm afraid for the sun's rise for that may take you away from me forever. I... I do not want to let you go, my love." Your eyes get misty, and your hug him fiercely.

"Why apologize? If I could I'd spend eternity in your embrace." His arms wrap around you, holding you to him tightly.

"But you cannot." He whispers. A tear leaves your eyes.

"I'm afraid not. But I can promise to come to you again. When the wind wafts the smell of lavender and marigolds in the air, that will be me calling to you." He closes his eyes and savours his last moments with you.

"Then let us enjoy what time we have left." You nod, wiping your tears from your eyes.

Until sunrise, he spends his time with you in silence, basking in your company. He has never felt such loss when the person has not left his embrace. This time with you has changed him, and he does not know how he can continue his devotion and duties after meeting you. When the dawn breaks, you're moving out of his arms, heartbroken.

"I will visit you as soon as I can." You promise him, getting dressed in your dryadic dress. He pulls his clothes onto his body, which has become cold without your touch.

"I will not forget this moment with you-" He pauses, frowning at his realization. "And… What is your name?" He asks you, cringing as he realizes his poor manners. You look over your shoulder, smiling gently as the sun hits your body.

"(Y/N). Hopefully fate allows us another moment together, my handsome bear." You disappear with a flourish, fully bloomed lavender and marigolds left where you were standing. Y/N… Your name is sweet on his tongue, sweeter than the taste of you. He can never forget a name as sweet as yours, a name that will probably stay branded on his brain until his last breathe.

THE END.

If you'd like to request anything, please do so! I'm getting back into writing and I'd love to write anything inspired by the people! Send requests here: LINK Baldur's Gate 3 Masterlist: LINK

[supernovasilence]

Imagine the Pevensies, returning to Narnia in Prince Caspian, to find everyone they knew and loved is dead. Imagine them rescuing Trumpkin, meeting Caspian, dealing with the Telmarines--being so busy, they have no time to sit and mourn properly. They can only grieve while they walk through silent forests and make their way down strange riverbeds, can only snatch a few minutes before they fall asleep in between days of travel and days of battle to try to make their peace with all they have lost.

Imagine the four of them at that long celebration after the fight has been won. Laughing and feasting along with everyone else, feeling so much joy, and yet they cannot help looking around at it all. Surrounded by dwarfs and fauns, by living trees and talking beasts and dancing waters, by all their dear new friends, they cannot help remembering other celebrations. Other friends. It is all very like it was, once.

And then imagine figures making their way through the crowd to them. One or two at first, but more and more as the night goes on. Tall figures with flowing green hair, brown skin textured with bark, eyes like knotholes.

Some were only saplings, last time. Some bear scars from lightning strikes and beetle attacks. Many have fallen to storm or age, but still, some are there. Still, time has not passed for them as it has for the rest of Narnia. Wading through the earth like water, they do not come to meet the Pevensies, do not come to gape at the kings and queens of legend. They come to greet their old friends.

Trees live a long time, you see.

[lilydalexf]

Looking for a fic I read a few years ago where they had kept William and he had some powers. He was maybe 10 or so? There was a pet cat and a casefile. I think the Gunmen were in it but can’t remember for sure. Definitely Margaret Scully. Any chance that’s enough to go on? 😬

Sounds like you're probably looking for Dryad by @aloysiavirgata. It's a very good casefile with a young William, a cat named Scorn, the Lone Gunmen, Maggie Scully, and of course Mulder and Scully. Its summary: Family fic, meet casefile. Casefile, meet family fic.

There are also some fics in the same universe: A Heart of Star, untitled fic #1, and untitled fic #2.

[britcision]

Anyway I dunno how helpful this is gonna be to anyone but me, but uh… I… may have made a lil summary list of all the chapters of Dungeon Meshi by who’s in them and the vaguest description of what happens

(This began when I was trying to see if Chilchuck and Mithrun had been in a single panel together pre finale for Fanfic Reasons - they had been

One. Single. Panel.

Before Mithrun fucked off upstairs at Thistle’s house)

There are OBVIOUSLY spoilers it’s chapter by chapter but I like being able to pinpoint where the fuck to search for random obscure details so: Spoilers Below The Cut

DunMeshi chapters

1 - Falin goes down, leaving the dungeon, meeting Senshi. Giant scorpion hot pot

2 - man eating plants vs plant eating man

3 - basilisk hunting, meeting Doni and Fonil

4 - how not to pick mandrakes

5 - Chilchuck the trap expert, cooking with traps

6 - living armour, Laios first death

7 - analyzing and eating the living armour, Kensuke acquired

8 - Senshi and the golems

9 - veggie knight Laios, meeting the orcs

10 - meeting Kabru, treasure bugs

11 - spirit sorbet

12 - living paintings, first sighting of Thistle

13 - Chilchuck vs Mimics

14 - hair is important for magic, Anne actually does not like you sir, kelpie soap

15 - corpse collectors find Kabru, Kabru Swears Revenge, instant mermaid tpk, mermaids hate Laios’ singing

16 - kraken attack, parasites in parasites

17 - Marcille and Falin flashback, making fake dungeons, the natural dungeon, rip Laios

18 - planning rests, Marcille vs the Undine, Marcille low on mana - need lots of iron, Namari approaches

19 - Namari and the Tances meet Laios and co, the Undine is Super Duper Mad Actually, how resurrection works in the dungeon, fun with tentacles

20 - the undine fight part 2, trying to send Marcille to the surface for mana reasons with Namari and the Tances, Namari discovers the adamantine wok, Tances to the surface

21 - Laios and co down the shortcut full of tentacles, frog suits

22 - Tances to the governor, Namari and the twins visit a resurrection centre and bond

23 - Laios and co down to the castle town, how to fight the dragon awake and without Shuro? Mapping the town, planning

24 - leading the dragon around, Kensuke defects, stabbing feet is mid actually

25 - backup plan, let’s stand on a pot full of fireworks, the sacrifice play, Laios may learn some healing spells pls

26 - flashbacks with Laios, Falin, and the puppers, healing everyone up, excavating the dragon’s stomach and also guts

27 - putting the bones together, not enough left to reach the surface, it’s Fucked Up Necromancy Time, we gots a FALIN

28 - rest and recovery, dragon cooking season, Falin’s a lil OP now, Thistle Has Opinions

29 - hey guess what there’s still dragon in there, Thistle and Falin vs Laios and co, ghost rescue

30 - orcs on the fifth floor, Chilchuck would like his friends to live please, retreating to the surface?

31 - well shit going back is less easy than it looks, the moving maze, dryad snacks

32 - Tance resurrects Kabru and co, Kabru Swears To Go Home And Chill, attack of the corpse collectors, Kabru Has Morals

33 - Kabru and co working out who keeps “stealing” their stuff, a look at Laios and co from the outside and they all look shifty, sea serpent, Shuro and co meet Kabru and co

34 - teaching Laios healing magic, infinite energy in the dungeon, Laios mana sickness, the castle town is moving again, cockatrice, Marcille is petrified and pickling

35 - Chilchuck maps the dungeon city’s changes, dungeon cleaners, Shuro and Kabru and co arrive

36 - Kabru is kinda creepy okay, Chilchuck has something almost like a map, So Did You Fucking Save Falin (it’s complicated), Splitting The Party But For Safety Reasons, Laios tells Shuro and Kabru what has been happening including his Questionable Decisions, Shuro Backstory Via Maizuru

37 - Shuro is stabby and Kabru is a dick, HARPIES, Laios Maybe Should Not Have Told Shuro, Falin on the rampage

38 - Kabru Fucking Murders Falin (or DID he), reviving everyone, Laios vs Shuro, Marcille can MAYBE heal people I GUESS, Kabru has anatomy question, monster dinner for Kabru, Kabru and Shuro’s combined co go back to the surface and leave their supplies behind

39 - Suspiciously Convenient Downwards Stairs, why are we being attacked anyway, shapeshifters are just like us actually, Laios and all his impressions are super obvious so you can’t be mad

40 - Laios and crew with the shapeshifters cooking challenge

41 - Izutsumi joins the party, use your tools properly, decursing Izutsumi

42 - nightmares, Laios and Marcille

43 - reaching where the dragon fight took place, ice golem, Izutsumi and Chilchuck bond

44 - Izutsumi gets Namari’s coat, flashbacks with Izutsumi, barometz

45 - Kabru and Shuro’s crews reach the surface, Canaries reach the governor and Kabru reports, Laios Sees Dead People

46 - spirit kidnapping, the Golden Country and domesticated monsters, the mad sorcerer’s curse, Prophecies And You

47 - dungeon pancakes in the golden company, Yaad experiences Consequences, frozen over floor, That Is A Griffin Not A Falin

48 - griffin done kidnapped Senshi, making familiars, it turns out crafting skills are important, Senshi rescue

49 - Senshi’s Tragic Backstory™️, griffin vs hippogriff soup

50 - first changeling day! Elf Senshi, through the golden door

51 - changeling’d Laios and co vs gargoyles, We Are The Mushroom Circle, wash up

52 - dwarf elevator, Falin and Laios backstory, Canaries reach the dungeon

53 - Kabru, Namari, Canaries, the shadow governor and Mithrun being intensely fuckable

54 - Kabru, Namari and Shuro, mushrooms attack, Thistle Sighted

55 - Mithrun vs Thistle Round 1, Laios’ party have been changelinged take 2 (ogre Marcille) and eating ointment

56 - bicorn Laios’ party, the Chilchuck wife reveal

57 - flashback Falin and Laios take Marcille to the dungeon for the first time, headless horseman comes for some bicorn

58 - Laios’ party, succubi attack and the party goes down, Izutsumi focused

59 - Izutsumi’s succubi and party replenishment

60 - Laios’ succubus dreams and winged lion conversation, Laios the Dungeon Lord

61 - Kabru backstory reveal, Mithrun’s broke ass self reveal, Be sure not to want too much, The Ship Begins

62 - Mithrun the Dungeon Lord, footrubs work fuck you, their week alone and teleport scroll to meet up with the Canaries

63 - Laios and crew find Thistle’s house, phoenix fight and cooking, found book 1

64 - Marcille opens the book, need to make a meal for Falin

65 - dungeon rabbits and Marcille’s corpse tour

66 - top floor of the dungeon, Bickering Next To Holes Is Bad Actually, Kabru and the Canaries have a snack and Mithrun will not fucking stop staring, Laios and crew prepare a meal, Thistle is Suffering

67 - flashbacks with Laios and Falin, Laios kills Falin, Ready to take and have something taken

68 - Thistle’s backstory, someone has CLEANED, fuck you winged dragon

69 - Thistle and the Dragons nearly rock up a tpk

70 - Thistle shoulda researched dragons more

71 - Laios bondages Thistle to solve problems, Thistle instead creates a new problem

71.1 - Daydream Hour 4, character sketches, Canaries

72 - Thistle’s Brand New Feeder Fantasies, winged dragon eats Thistle and frees Laios and co to recover, Izutsumi finds Yaad

73 - Marcille is hung over, the Canaries and Kabru reach Thistle’s house, Cithis decides it’s hypno-time and Mithrun hunts down Thistle for round 2 (unneeded)

74 - Mithrun constantly accidentally menaces Marcille, Marcille unseals the winged dragon

75 - Mithrun vs Demon round 1, Marcille becomes Dungeon Lord and spiders it up

76 - Kabru, Canaries, Laios and co aftermath of Marcille’s leaving, dealing with the injured, Kabru sucks at explanations and Lycion is impatient, Canaries lose Laios and co

77 - orcs have captured Shuro and Namari, the dungeon shifts

78 - monsters running rampant, Namari and Shuro and Flamelle trying to work out what to do to save the world, sides picked for/against Laios as Dungeon Lord (he isn’t but okay)

79 - Marcille sees Falin and her dad, Laios and crew don’t drown yet, the Canary familiar army gets weird and eats them and promptly regrets it

80 - pooped out by coatl, Laios and co reunite with Marcille to discuss wtf, demon is a stripper, Laios says maybe stop Marcille says stay in the kitchen and make me a sammich

81 - Laios and co getting into Marcille’s past with FakeDad, do in fact make her a sammich, it does not work and subterfuge is still needed to escape

82 - phone calls on the surface, dungeon is leaking

83 - Kabru and the Canaries see the crack, monsters line up for combat, Marcille gets a new outfit that 1000% does not stop Mithrun from coming for her ass, Mithrun vs Marcille round 2 but he’s been listening and totally tries talking her down one whole time, Canaries tpk’d except Lycion

84 - Laios rescues Lycion, reconnects with Kabru Shuro and Namari, demon shares its goals and sides square up to contain the dungeon, monsters stop to let Laios and co through to see Marcille

85 - Laios and co find Falin in the tower, Marcille drowning in desires but the strongest one is for DRAMA (Chilchuck’s family)

86 - monsters will not listen to Marcille’s stop, sealing the bookhand demon, How do I stop being a dungeon lord?, Laios offers to defeat the demon and resurrects Mithrun on that alone so he signs off on eating Falin

86.1 - Daydream Hour 5, alternate outfits and more Canary stories

87 - demon backstory, needs other site

88 - Laios and co inside the demon (still a thot), Laios makes a deal

89 - dropping of Marcille and the gang with Namari and the Canaries, “Laios” makes a break for the surface but IT IS MITHRUN WITH A STEAL CHAIR Mithrun vs Demon round 3, still no noticeable success

90 - what if y’all go hang out with monster Laios instead, The World Is Ending And It’s All My Fault (Marcille and Kabru), Mithrun Is Having None Of It, Marcille and co chase down “Laios”, demon arms go claw machine

91 - vore and reverse vore, Laios vs “Laios”, get cursed bitch

92 - back down the tower then oops gotta escape the dungeon anyway, Marcille and gang find Namari, looking for Laios

93 - Now We Have A Dinner Party, different groups coming to help, found Laios

94 - elves in the aftermath, Mithrun serving up Falin, leftovers and veggie scraps

95 - meal, About That Golden Country, resurrection take 2

96 - epilogue

[rorywritesjunk]

For these foamy green hills are but saltwater desert

Richie, Mohji’s lion, isn’t doing so well. The crew end up at a small island with a dwindling population to seek help and Buggy meets Midori, the mayor who is far more stubborn and trusting with his crew than he can really comprehend.

Rating: PG-13, gonna have smut at some point later though. Warnings: Buggy being obnoxious, of course. I’d call this a fast paced slow burn. It takes the place over the course of the week and days are split into two chapters. There’s also some drama and other pirates. A/N: Full confession. I honestly wrote this because I have been watching the anime and Richie is one of the best characters. Do I know a lot about the anime? No. Is some of this chaotic and characters OOC? Of course! It’s a fanfic. Is it self indulgent? Hell yes. I had fun writing this and wanted to share it. Also, I wrote this more with anime!Buggy in mind since we don’t get to see Richie in the live action.

Title comes from the song “Dryad’s Promise” by Tricky Pixie. this gif is here just because this is Buggy's expression around Midori 90% of the time

Chapter 4

Day 2 pt 2

Buggy returned in the mid-afternoon to find some members of his crew mending one of Midori’s fences. He stood and watched them for a moment, confused by what he was seeing. They were fixing something? It wasn’t normal, they were pirates, they destroyed things, not fixed things! He didn’t see her around so he headed to her house. It wasn’t hard to find her, she was in the kitchen with a big pitcher of iced lemonade. She perked up when he walked in.

“Can you grab that tray of cups?” She asked as she finished stirring the drink. “Some of your guys came to help me with my fence while you were gone, so I wanted to make sure they were thanked.”

Buggy didn’t budge, instead glaring down at her. She looked up from her task and pointed at the tray. “Please?”

“Why do you have them fixing your fence?!” He demanded, pounding his fist on her kitchen table. She jumped at that and the lemonade sloshed around in the pitcher. “We destroy villages, you know, we don’t fix fences for crying out loud!”

“Well… I didn’t ask them to help.” She told him calmly as she once again pointed at the tray for him to grab. “I had already started when they walked up and offered, said I was a nice person to let them stay on the island. They took over the job so I came in here to make them a drink. Now, can you grab the cups and follow me out there? I can’t grab both.”

He grumbled in frustration but did as he was asked, sulking as he followed her back out to the others. They cheered at having a cold drink, thanking Midori as well as thanking their Captain. Once Midori made sure they had their fill, she collected the empty cups and headed back to her kitchen with Buggy following close on her heels. She set the dishes down beside the sink and turned to face him. He had gotten closer than he meant to, only a foot from her, and he took a step back.

“Listen, Buggy, I can see you’re not used to being around someone who isn’t a part of your crew, but stop talking to me like that.” She said as she took a step towards him and jabbed him in the chest with her finger. “I know you’re a pirate, you have made that very clear, but there is more to you and your crew than just being pirates you know! You have very skilled men out there fixing my fence and they are doing a better job at it than I would have done! Now please stop talking to me like I’m up to no good, okay?”

She was breathing rather heavily after that, her finger still pressed against his chest as she stared up at him. Buggy grabbed her by her wrist, his touch far gentler than she was expecting. He pulled her closer and she stumbled, putting her other hand on his chest to keep from falling into him. She huffed in annoyance and pulled back from him while he smirked at her. She felt her cheeks burn, but she wasn’t sure if it was the feeling of being close to him, to actually touching him, or because his damn smirk was annoying her,

“Nice to see you get frustrated.” He chuckled as he let go of her wrist finally. “Thought you just were always happy go lucky, Mayor. Glad to see you have other emotions.”

She crossed her arms and glared at him. “I have a lot of emotions, Captain.”

“Yea?” He smirked. “Hopefully I can see the full range before the week is over then.”

~

The five children on the island adored Richie already. The lion allowed them to ride on his back, which stunned Buggy, because he thought only Mohji was allowed to do that. The pirate captain was standing outside, arms crossed as he watched the kids with a frown. Mohji was there to keep an eye on everything, but Richie was having fun. He really was just a big kitten when it came down to it, only being destructive and ferocious when the situation called for it. He was loving the attention.

“Stop frowning, the kids won’t want to come near you.” Midori said as she came up behind him, startling him, though he tried not to show it. She patted him on the shoulder. “Unless you want the kids to be scared of you, then keep frowning.”

“Shut up.” He grumbled, jerking away from her touch. “You know that lion is dangerous, right? He could destroy your village with one command from Mohji.”

“Yea, I know.” Midori replied, voice just a bit tired sounding. “Because you’re pirates, and that’s all pirates do, destroy and plunder.” Buggy glanced at her and she smiled. “Good thing I don’t have much of a village here for you to destroy or any treasure to plunder.”

Buggy looked sulkily back at the lion. He was rolling in the grass now while one of the kids picked flowers, weaving it into a crown. Buggy was going to scream if that crown ended up on Richie, but instead the kid ran over to Midori, holding it up for her. She smiled and knelt down so the kid could crown her.

“Thank you, Oak! It’s beautiful.” She squealed excitedly as Oak made sure it sat on her head just right. Midori looked up at Buggy with a smile. “How does it look, Captain?”

“Um, it’s… fine.” He mumbled, not wanting to mention how the color of the flower petals complemented her eyes, or how the green stems looked lovely against her hair. “Good job, kid.”

Oak beamed. “We’re gonna make more for the feast! The whole crew can wear’em!”

“Oh, that’s lovely!” Midori beamed. “I can’t wait for that!”

The kid grinned widely and took off running. Midori bumped her shoulder against Buggy’s gently. “And when these kids say the whole crew, they mean the captain as well. I’ll make sure they use the biggest and best flowers for you.”

Buggy’s cheeks reddened and he reached up to flick one of the flowers of her crown. “What makes you think I’ll wear it?”

“Because even for a scary pirate, I don’t think you can deny five children begging you to wear a flower crown.” Midori chuckled. “It’s impossible.”

~

She was still wearing the crown as she made dinner. Buggy sat back and watched her as he sipped a beer. She was humming that song again, the one she didn’t know the lyrics to, and he listened, wanting to commit it to memory so he could hold it over her head should he ever learn the lyrics before she did. He made a face after he thought that. After this week he wouldn’t see her again. He didn’t need to remember anything about her, this place, anything.

He had been on the island two days and already it felt like a lifetime. Why did he agree to a week? It should have just been a few days. Richie was already better so why did they need to stay? He looked down at his drink and cleared his throat. 

“I think the crew and I will head out tomorrow.”

“Huh?” Midori stopped what she was doing and turned to look at him. “What was that?”

He looked up at her and paused. She was drying her hands with her apron, the flower crown still sitting perfectly on her head as it did hours ago. She looked… wonderful. She had this pull towards her that made Buggy realize he wanted to stay those extra few days, even if it was just to annoy her and argue with her. She had a smile on her face as she turned her attention to him.

“I said…” Buggy took another sip. “Uh… the moon should be out tomorrow, and the stars. We should… go look at it. You have some nice viewing spots on this rock you call an island.”

Midori perked up and smiled brightly. “Yea? Do you know the constellations? I’ve struggled to remember which ones are which.” 

“Yea, yea, I know’em.” Buggy grumbled as he set his drink down. “We’ll do it tomorrow, just pack a snack for us.”

“I will!”

~

Buggy laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He egged her on again during dinner and she did the same to him, but it was hard to stay frustrated with her when she wore the flower crown. He saw her put it in her ice box after she cleaned up after dinner. He had finished his second beer before getting up to help her clean. She didn’t protest at all and he went to work washing dishes.

He held his hands up and looked at them. The same hands that maimed and killed people, even his own crew sometimes, washed dishes. Willingly! And he didn’t break a single one either. What was going on? He was a pirate, he needed to be out destroying villages with the Buggy Balls while the crew ransacked them. He needed to be collecting treasure, not taking her out to see the damn stars. 

But there was something simple about being on the island as well. The villagers knew they were all pirates, it was no secret, but they welcomed them in and fed them. The little bar in the village made more berry from the crew than they ever had before. And Richie was already thriving. Just a short time off the boat and he was back to his lively self. Buggy was ready to order the crew back on the ship by tomorrow, but he needed to spend a bit more time with Midori. He wanted to figure her out, rile her up some more before they left. 

And now he was going to venture out into the night with her to look at the damn stars tomorrow night. Why did he offer that? But she was so excited, and there was a weird fluttery feeling in his stomach when he saw her smile after he mentioned it. Maybe he was getting sick from all her cooking already. Maybe it was slow acting food poisoning. 

Or maybe…

He rolled onto his side and covered his face with his pillow as his cheeks burned. No, no. He just met her. She drove him crazy with her stubbornness and insistence that she wouldn’t ever leave the island. He had no feelings for her except annoyance. Sure, she was pretty, and he was starting to enjoy seeing her smile whenever he’d tell her a dumb joke or a funny story, but it wasn’t anything else. It couldn’t be anything else. No one fell in love that fast ever. It wasn’t possible. He wasn’t in love. He was incapable of it, he knew it.

He had to stop getting her to smile so much.

[pixies-and-poets]

Music of the Night - Chapter Six

This part is pretty long, and also a bit time-skippy, but I had to do both or else I could easily get caught up writing this fanfic for the rest of my life. But now I can safely say that the next chapter will be the last. Thanks to everyone who's come on this terrible journey with me!

Slight emetophobia warning, and body horror as usual.

Chapter One - In Sleep He Sang to Me

Chapter Two - Do I Dream Again?

Chapter Three - Our Strange Duet

Chapter Four - To Glance Behind

Chapter Five - Those Who Have Seen Your Face

Chapter Six - Where Night is Blind

Woodrow had made it about halfway back to Palletteville, his mumbled cascade of words seeming to hang in the air and follow him like his own cloud, when another voice cut them short.

“Warden!!” came the urgent hiss. He stopped in his tracks and turned around to find Dryad, her eyes wide and panicked.

The poet blinked for a moment, shaking his head, trying to come out of his poetic reverie and back to reality. “Yes?” he said finally.

“What in the name of all stars is going on?” She spoke rapidly, getting close to his face and inspecting him. “Are you alright? Is the Phantom alright? I heard that awful screaming from clear across the forest! I was just heading to the cabin as fast as I could, but saw you here on my way…”

“Ah,” said the warden, scratching at the back of one paw with the other, nervously. “Yes, Phantom is alright, for now. But…” and so, he went ahead and told her about his efforts with the mask.

Dryad listened to his story in concern, her ears drooping slightly. When he had finished, she nodded. “I see. For a moment I thought you- well, I thought maybe he was reacting to Sweetlopek’s fashion sense…” but her attempt at a joke fell flat, as Woodrow seemed too crushed for levity, and merely twitched the corner of his mouth into a failed half-smile.

“Well, anyway,” said Dryad, waving her paw. “Thank you for telling me. But listen- you mustn’t try that again. We can’t have him screeching to shake all the leaves in the woods. You might attract the minions of Cursa… including… you know.”

Woodrow’s eyes widened. “Oh- Dryad, do you think-”

“I think it’s fine for now,” said the forest spirit. “As for our main concern, he’s been keeping his territory elsewhere the past few days, in deeper and darker parts of the forest. I’ve been using my magic as best I can to lure and keep him there. Still, I will guard this area for a while.”

“Thank you,” said the warden. “I’m sorry for the trouble.” Then he suddenly clasped his hands together. “But oh, Dryad- what’s to be done? About Tom? Do you have any ideas?”

Dryad blinked, recalling that just yesterday Woodrow had claimed to not have the closeness with his patient for such names as Tom. But she only remarked upon it internally.

“Hmm,” she said, frowning. “All I can say is, I don’t think that mask is really the source of his troubles. If you almost had it off, and the darkmess was still being produced, then… the problem is probably internal, I’m afraid. It would be good to remove it, of course, but perhaps we had better concentrate on curing his poisoning first. If we get rid of the darkmess, that thing will likely fall off on its own.”

Woodrow nodded sadly. “I’m not in any hurry to try again,” he said. “But… alas! We still seem so far from finding a cure, for those overtaken by the dreadful substance.”

Dryad shrugged. “It’s hard for me to look into things, when I’m busy protecting the animals and the trees, but I’m doing my best. As are the people of your village. Have you heard from any of the other wardens about any breakthroughs lately?”

The poet shook his head. “Our best bet was Terra Flora, and- they’ve still been silent for about a week. Ever since Bea disappeared… last I heard, Alkementor was too distressed to work, and we’ve lost contact since then.”

“Poor Bea,” said Dryad, her ears drooping once more. Meanwhile, a thought crossed Woodrow’s mind- he wondered if Phantom had heard of her recent disappearance. After all, the two of them… well, he wondered if it would be appropriate to even bring it up. Would it distress him? Would he feel guilty that he had never made amends with her? He had best not broach the subject, when he was already in such a delicate state…

“What about Barrendale Mesa?” asked the nature spirit. “They’re still holding strong out there, right?”

“Indeed, I think so,” said the warden. “But Momma and her crew have been working on ways to purify darkmess from the environment. Medical cures aren’t really their expertise.”

“Well, when there is a breakthrough… whether it’s on this planet, or if we get some kind of shipment from elsewhere…” she looked the warden firmly in the eyes, “remember that the first doses will be given to those who need it most. And those from Palette Prime take priority. They are your people, and this planet is your ward. Don’t you lose sight of that.”

Woodrow closed his eyes for a moment, and nodded.

“And especially… you know who we must concentrate on first. Not only for his own sake, but for the sake of the entire planet he’s been menacing.”

“Of course,” said the warden quietly, opening his eyes again.

And, after a few more moments of discussion and brief goodbyes, the two were parted.

—

Three days and three nights came to pass. In that time, Dryad kept busy - guiding and protecting and caring for animals, laying spells, attempting to protect and restore the trees and other plants where she could, and much more. She heard no more screams ring out across the forest, and in fact was so caught up in her business that she never ventured back by the little cabin. She had no contact with Woodrow, and barely with any other rabbid at all, and assumed things must be going well enough.

As for the people of Paletteville, it took them a little while to notice, but it soon spread throughout the population that something was wrong with the warden. He was even more reclusive than normal, and looked even sadder and more tired on the rare occasions he was seen. It had been the habit of some townsfolk to visit his home and ask for advice; he was respected enough in that regard to have been elected to his position, after all. But in these days, they found he was hardly ever at home, or not answering the door if he was. In fact, as time passed, he seemed to never be there at all. Knocks at his door went unanswered, and no one knew where he had gone.

What’s more, they began to notice the cloud over his house growing thinner and smaller - until one day it was gone completely.

That cloud, of course, was intimately connected with him. With his soul, his curse, his destiny. This was more than a bad omen, to the people of Palette Prime. It was proof.

“He’s gone,” the villagers murmured amongst themselves. “Somethin’ got ‘im.”

“Ya think he was tryin’ to tame the Beast?”

“Maybe. Prob'ly wrote him a poem to try and talk some sense into him.”

“That poor pathetic soul, bless ‘im. He wouldn’t give up on his best friend if he was actively tearin’ the warden apart.”

And so the assumption spread that the warden had met an unfortunate fate, which was- they all admitted- bound to happen eventually. At any rate, it was decided that search parties would soon be sent out to find his body, and give him a proper burial if they could.

“Near the moon. That would be appropriate,” one villager had said, and everyone agreed.

He was the Plague of Palette Prime, the great harbinger of disaster, and on top of that a terrible poet, or so his planet-mates thought.

But he was also their warden, and a good man. And he deserved the respect in death that the Fates had not given him in life.

—

That man was very much alive. And he was good. And any good person who has made a promise in earnest passion, and then failed to keep that promise despite their absolute best efforts, would understand the pain that encroached upon his soul from all sides.

After trying to pull of the mask, Woodrow spent the day checking up on various things in town, using the computer in the post office to send out more fruitless messages to the other planets, and - in his spare moments - scrawling mad snippets of poetry in the journal that he had retrieved from the cabin.

But in the afternoon of that day, he decided it best to check back on Phantom, and the moment he entered the door, found that the ghost’s own assurances of being fine, of being safe, had been proven false.

He lay on the bed, his eye closed, breathing hard. A large amount of darkmess had leaked out from his porous ectoplasm, forming a puddle on the bed, a smaller version of the state in which Woodrow had first found him. The puddle dripped over the edges and corners of the bed, and the ghost seemed to be fused to it now. One of the poetry books lay splayed open on its bent pages on the ground, where he had clearly dropped it- his paw drooping over the bed as his chest shook in a pained sleep.

“Tom!” cried the poet, then clapped his paws over his mouth, remembering Dryad’s warning about making too much noise. He rushed over and stroked the ghost’s hair, then kneeled down, picked up the limp paw that was hanging off the bed, and rubbed it. “Tom- my dear- wake up…”

Indeed, the ghost’s eye opened, then closed again, then opened once more and slowly rolled over to look at his companion. He smiled, warmly but clearly in pain. “Ah… there you are," he said, between heavy gasps. "I’m sorry… you have to see me like this again. Oh! Don’t cry, mi tesoro…”

Woodrow and his eyes, of course, ignored this command. “Tom, I’m the one who should apologize. I should have stayed…”

“Nonsense!” said the Phantom, still weak, but gradually gaining some energy at the other’s presence. “What could you have done? I feared my ailment would reassert itself… that this is a problem we could only stave off temporarily… I just… hoped it might take a little longer.”

“Oh, what am I to do-” said the warden in panic, standing up once more, still holding his darling’s hand with one of his own, and raising the other to his head. “I can’t… all of the soap on the planet can’t clean this…”

Phantom kept smiling, and let his eye close. “Mon chéri, you mustn’t work yourself up like this. If this is how it is to be, then… so be it. Let me lie in it. It will happen, no matter what you do. I just have to keep fighting it from the inside, and hopefully I will win, and then I can be free…”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” cried the other, leaning over and stroking his hair again, and his ears. “Come now. I can’t give up so easily, I can’t… I…” he trailed off, as a thought began to creep up from the back of his mind. He was considering how to best dispel a puddle of darkmess, and it suddenly occurred to him that his own home was blessedly free of it, and perhaps he could move Phantom there- but no, there was a reason for that, and wouldn’t it be easier if…

“Jinx!” he said in excitement, looking at his cloud. “Your rain… can it…” 

The cloud gave a little bob, and took position above Phantom. It began to rain over Phantom’s stomach, over the bed. And indeed- it didn’t dissolve the black sludge, but it did push it away; washing it off, so it slid down like oil being repelled by water, over the sides of the bed and onto the floor. Jinx then moved towards the glob, pushing it towards the door - which Woodrow had left open in his shock - and out onto the ground outside.

Phantom sat his upper body up, and watched the process with speechless amazement. “Well,” he said as Jinx herded the darkmess out of the door. “I never would have guessed!"

Woodrow smiled, blushing, but genuinely very happy and relieved. “Wonderful, isn't it? I know water and rain don't normally wash away darkmess by themselves, but... there is something special about my own little storm, here. My theory is that two manifestations of misfortune repel each other, like the similar poles of a magnet."

"Impressive indeed," said the singer with a nod. "But- next time ask me permission before raining on me. It was cold! I should have liked to brace myself. Although, I suppose it WAS energizing...”

Woodrow blushed even deeper, but still smiled. "Apologies. And my apologies too, that you must now lay on a damp bed, but surely it’s better than the alternative.”

“Certamente!” said the ghost. “I hardly mind it at all.”

“Now,” said Woodrow, tapping his foot in deep thought- looking around at the bed and the trail of water on the cabin’s floor, and at Jinx, who was quite depleted again. “Jinx - would you be able to keep watch over Tom, when I’m not here?”

The little cloud, barely visible, was coming back over to Woodrow, but stopped short. Then, after a moment, it shook itself back and forth, and swirled around the poet’s head.

“Yes, I know you want to keep watch over me. But… he needs you more than I do, right now.”

The little cloud roiled turbulently, and probably would have thundered in agitation, but was too rained out to have the ability. Instead she just positioned herself around Woodrow’s ears, where she felt like a light mist.

“Alright, alright, let’s compromise. Can you… convince some of the rest of you to come over? From my home? A little piece of the big cloud can split itself off and come here, how is that?”

The cloud sprang in front of Woodrow’s face again, then bobbed up and down enthusiastically. It then zoomed off in the direction of the warden’s house. Woodrow smiled, and sank down into the chair next to Phantom’s bedside.

“Oh, Tristan,” said the ghost. “You are as clever and creative as you are kind. Truly I am lucky that you of all people found me, my portafortuna.”

And so it was that Jinx soon came back, with a chunk of larger cloud behind her, which took up residence above the cabin, ready to rain down through the holes in the roof when Phantom next went through another burst of darkmess production. And the two rabbids talked for hours, of art and poetry, and imagined themselves in all the romantic spots of a healthy Palette Prime, and spun hypothetical tales of what they would do in better days. All seemed well in the world that evening, when Woodrow lay devoted kisses on his companion’s palm and wrist and the back of his hand, and on his forehead and the tips of his ears, before bidding him farewell.

….But the next morning when he returned, he peered into the cabin to see things much as before, as Phantom had produced more darkness during the night than the poor cloud could produce water to keep up with. And so, filled with determined and anxious adrenaline, and stepping around the goo that now puddled all over the floor to be with his patient, Woodrow ordered Jinx to come back with even more of the cloud.

And at the same time, he decided then and there that he must stay with Phantom full-time, only leaving when absolutely necessary, and to sleep elsewhere in safety.

Thus it went for the next couple of days. And this is where, despite Woodrow’s greatest efforts, he began to falter in the promise he had so passionately made.

The reader need not hear every moment of the chronicle, and indeed Phantom would probably be embarrassed that people were getting even part of it. Suffice to say, that in the coming days, the endless wellspring of darkness inside him started to work harder than ever. He would suddenly ooze out through his porous underside; sometimes he would suddenly, in the midst of softly talking with his dear companion, choke and cough and vomit out a burst of it down his face and chest; and sometimes it seeped out anew, all over his face, from under the edges of his mask.

Ever more of the cloud came, until its entire volume was there: part of it settling above the roof and part of it inside the cabin, forming a stormy ceiling, raining as much as it could, washing and pushing the darkmess out and away. But the cloud needed to rest at times, to gather more moisture from the environment… and the sludge kept coming back. Half the time Woodrow sat there, soaked and shivering, the skin of his paws and ears slightly wrinkled and blue, shadows underneath his wild eyes, as the rain fell on both of them, and he did not seem to care at all for his own health. He had propped his own umbrella up, resting on the bed and against the wall, so that it covered and protected Phantom’s head and chest, keeping that part of him dry. Whenever it was needed, Woodrow reached over with a rag and soap and tenderly wiped off any new ooze that was leaking from under the accursed mask.

The warden lost track of all things besides Phantom. He no longer knew or cared what time of day it was, or how many days had passed. When the fatigue became unbearable, he dragged himself back home, set his alarm for a few hours of sleep, and then came back. All other duties and responsibilities to his planet ceased to cross his mind. He brought back his full store of darkmess-battling soap… every citizen had been given a certain amount, and as warden, he had been given extra, to ration out in case of emergencies. This was an emergency.

Eventually, Woodrow tired of going all the way back to his house on the outskirts of Paletteville to rest; and what’s more, it was a waste of time. Time he should be spending at Phantom’s side. He realized there was a much closer spot, halfway… and thus he found himself, dizzy and half-awake, at Sweetlopek’s door once again. He hadn’t even locked it after his last visit to retrieve the clothes, but nothing seemed to have been disturbed since Dryad left. Everyone on the planet had enough respect - or perhaps fear - to leave it alone.

And yet there was Woodrow, crashing himself onto the familiar couch where he had fallen asleep many a time after an evening spent with his friend, when he was too tired to make it home after a night of wine and games and talking. Now the place was silent, and their laughter rang out no more. Before Woodrow fell asleep in his exhaustion, his eyes fell on a framed picture on the table near the couch. It was the woodsman and the Dryad together on their planet’s famous bridge, hugging each other and smiling in lovestruck glee. He had never noticed this picture before, and indeed, it must have been new… there was only a small window of time in which it could have been taken.

He looked away from it in grief and closed his eyes. Would any couple on this planet ever experience that happiness again? Would any in the entire galaxy?

And he was soon asleep.

—

It was the fourth day since Phantom’s arrival, and dusk was gathering. Dryad was making her way across the forest, floating as fast as she could. As exhausted as she was from her recent efforts, this could not wait. Rumors had reached her, from rabbids she had seen in the woods: the warden was dead. His cloud was gone. But she knew better, for she had heard from the animals that the cloud had merely taken up new residence above a certain tiny shack in the woods. At any rate, she could no longer trust that things were alright with Woodrow and Phantom. If Woodrow had been isolating himself so much that people thought he had perished… well, she could only hope that indeed he had not fallen into a permanent sleep, entwined in the darkmess that seeped from the man he was trying to save.

Before long she heard the sound of rain in the distance, and indeed came upon a cabin with a dark halo of raincloud, dripping down onto its roof and directly into its structure. And, to her horror, from under the door and all around the edges of the cabin, was a thick moat of darkmess. She floated above it towards a window and peered inside, with no small amount of dread.

The scene that met her eyes was so upsetting that she gasped softly, and needed a moment to comprehend what she was looking at.

The warden sat on his chair - both it and him soaking wet - his knees pulled up to his chest, and he was shivering; heedless of his own self-destruction, as the rain poured down onto him and the Phantom alike (albeit the latter at least partially protected by an umbrella). After a moment of observation, Dryad understood what the plan here was… the rain was washing the darkmess away from Phantom, although even now, more oozed out from his stomach as if it were an overfilled, dripping sponge, and the water from above washed it to the floor and then towards the doorway or the walls. Indeed, there was not much of the stuff around the two rabbids inside, but still, they both looked barely alive. The poet was soaking wet, possibly suffering from hypothermia, and the Phantom’s eyes were closed, his skin pale.

Dryad was about to enter the room on a rescue mission, when suddenly the ghost stirred.

“Tristan,” he said, in a low, raspy whisper. “Oh- I can… barely speak. I think… I will lose my voice again soon. It- hurts….”

The warden moved, showing his first real sign of life since Dryad had been observing him. He leaned forward, putting his wet paw on the side of the Phantom’s face. “Ssshh,” he said. “Don’t talk then.”

The ghost shook his head. “I don’t… want to lose it again. Tristan… I want… I want you to read me your poems. Can you do that for me?”

“Darling, you know I can’t,” the other said, with a sad smile. “We can’t risk it. Any bit of bad luck could… could… well… let’s keep your luck as good as possible, right now.”

This was clearly a private moment, and thus Dryad floated off to the side of the window, so as not to gaze upon them - and so they would not see her, as well.

“It’s a lost cause,” wheezed the Phantom. “Look at me, mon cœur. I am dying. And I want to hear your poetry from your own lips before I do.”

“No, Tom, no…” Dryad couldn’t see his face, but could hear the tears in his voice. “You can’t give up like that… you have to hold on, until we find a cure…”

“You have to give up on saving me,” said the other. “Look… you are destroying yourself, portafortuna… give me your words, your precious words, my love, and let me rest…”

“But I promised, Tom, I promised I would save you… don’t talk like that, darling, I-”

“I think soon I shall not talk at all,” he said. “In fact, I-” he coughed, and gagged. “I, Tristan, I- GHH- love-”

At the sounds of Phantom’s distress, Dryad had peeked back in again, just in case. As his voice cut off, his jaw snapped shut, and he motioned to his throat, to his mouth. He could open it no more.

Woodrow leaned his weary head onto the ghost’s chest and lay there, his soaking arms draped over the other in defeat, his body shaking. “No, Tom, your voice…” he was sobbing. “Don’t… don’t leave me without it… don’t leave me… my sunshine… don’t leave me…”

Dryad couldn’t take this scene anymore. She came in, right through the window, which lacked any glass. To Phantom’s astonishment, she went over to the warden and pulled him up. He barely reacted, flopping around like a sopping ragdoll.

“Woodrow!!” she cried, shaking him. “Woodrow! Listen- he’s right, you know. You’re destroying yourself, and you won’t do any good to ANYONE that way.”

Phantom, for all his weakness and surprise, nodded and pointed to her in agreement.

“I don’t care anymore,” he said. “Let me be destroyed, then. What does it matter? I can’t save anyone…”

“Woodrow, go rest,” the nature spirit commanded, the rain now falling on her own leafy head. “Go dry yourself off, and warm yourself up, and get a GOOD night’s sleep. I’ll watch over Phantom.”

The warden stood up weakly, his eyes barely focusing on anything. “But what if he gets worse,” he said, barely audible. “What if I’m not here when he… if he…”

“If he gets worse, I’ll come get you,” said the Dryad.

Woodrow swallowed, then nodded, with no feeling. “I’ll be at Sweetlopek’s house.”

Dryad gave him a look of indignance, but then took a deep breath, and decided now was not the time to argue about it. “You’re right,” she said. “That’s closer. Alright. You go there.”

“Mmm,” said the warden, swaying on his feet, and Dryad was mildly concerned he wouldn’t make it.

“Do you want me to accompany you?” she asked.

“I’ll be fine,” he mumbled. “Stay with Tom. Watch him for me. Please.”

Then he turned back to the bed, met Phantom’s eyes, and gently took some strands of his messy hair into his paw… then let it fall.

“I’ll see you soon,” he said tenderly, then turned and left, followed by one small fragment of Jinx, as ever.

He dragged his feet through the leafy bed of the forest, winding as if drunk around puddles of darkmess and fallen trees.

But he did make it to Sweetlopek’s home. He had locked it again last time, and so he reached into one of the inner pockets of his wet coat, and took out a keyring. With fumbling and shaking hands, he managed to eventually get the right key into the lock. But just as he was turning it, he sensed the presence of… something. Something big. As he froze, his eyes blankly staring at the door, he heard a loud THUD and the crunch of countless leaves behind him.

He turned. There in the twilight was a massive figure, a shadow blocking out the trees and the sky behind it. It was a rabbid… mostly… wearing the shredded remains of a flannel shirt. He was huge, and bestial, with claws, and fangs, and wild and shaggy facial hair in which sticks and leaves and gobs of darkmess were jumbled. His entire lower body was covered in darkmess as well, with a line of it running across his chest and back, forming a strap on which a massive axe was mounted behind him. Not to mention the darkmess on top of his head, onto which was welded a perpetually distressed-looking beaver.

The creature’s eyes glowed yellow as he stood there, hunched over, almost on all fours, and he sniffed at the warden and snarled. But Woodrow was too done with everything to be truly shocked, or afraid.

Most of the other rabbids had taken to calling him the Beast. Woodrow was one of the few who still believed it most respectful to use his name. That maybe, buried deep inside, there was someone who would still recognize it.

The warden blinked slowly. “Good evening, Sweetlopek.”

[breserker]

which alternate universe would you drop tserith in? personally, i think i'd go for atla! i have a need to see a katara adjacent tseng LOL

omg well to your point, i dont' know near enough about atla as i should but under the assumption that the world can be endlessly expanded upon i'd love a water bender tseng not of the northern tribe but say, some marshland/seashore type tribe. lsiten i just got out of the bath so i had some good good no-screen time to think about this and like. say he's really skilled at separating water from salt, or water from its impurities one might say (seashore/marshland water goop) which sounds really useful and also if you attribute that to bloodbending or separating water from the impurity of the whole body, that'll get gruesome fast (shoutout to that one mermaid movie where an 11yo girl just ripped a dude in half by controlling the water in his body. made for kids. GOD that movie got kids like no other)

so i am. horrifically, a funny little guy lover. almost immediately when i get my hands on a new ship i throw them in the "what digimon/pokemon/etc would they have!!!" machine and i've already done that with tserith for sure. ironically i remember less of the digimon one than the pokemon one but tseng had a qilinmon and aeris's would eventually evolve into smth like ancientkazemon. pokemon i developed with my dear friend @bbunbbi and aeris had brionne (gift from ifalna), floette, hattern (hated morgrem), and tseng had dragonair (childhood poke from wutai), seviper, and morgrem (shinra-appointed). morgrem had a huge character arc and brionne died with aeris. very sad! and god damn it while i was in the bath i was like. yeah give them medabots fuck it. that didn't get very far but i can say that tseng's medabot would work similar to snake man from mega man 3.

i don't think that's entirely in the spirit of this ask though since all of those would still take place ~in ff7/midgar~ and not like, true alternate universe. my actual answer is so corny. Plop them in anywhere from the early 19th to the early 20th century and my ass is Game. gothic regencies to wwi espionage sounds like such a goddamn romp and i will eat that shit up.

as a fun fact though the book i thought i was gonna write last year before vel chokeslammed me into the asphalt was one of those "fanfic-jump-to-actual-book" ideas where like. in a fantasy world that is starting to see magic-adjacent things recede from the world there's a monster prince arranged marriage romance going on between the last naga prince and a descendant of the now-gone(?) dryads. you know, "not tserith". but then vel, that fucker, fucking??? exploded out of thin air in late april last year and the rest is history whoops. i still want to write the naga prince book someday but whew.

[raging-violets]

Or, send in a ⭐star⭐  to have the author select a section they’ve been dying to talk about!

Hey, Rhuben here. Figured out the other thing I wanted to talk about. This is about my Narnia fanfic, "Caged Nightingale" and my OC, Issi.

-

-

I got the idea of the fic overall while I was at the time reading A LOT of WW2 set historical fiction. At the same time, I was hearing Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" in stores and on the radio a bunch of times and I just had it in my head once again wondering what it was like for the Pevensies to leave Narnia and live normal lives again.

I know, per C.S. Lewis, that they gradually forgot about their adventures in Narnia, but was wondering just how much it changed them. Between the trauma of the war, and then the trauma of everything they've experienced over their years ruling over Narnia and it just switches back with the snap of their fingers? They'd seriously be in weird head spaces.

Then I re-watched the movies and Peter's line of "We didn't mean to leave" stuck out to me and I knew I wanted to write a fanfic focusing more on their guilt and inner turmoil and feeling of what could they do to fix what the Pevensies had "allowed" to occur by leaving. I also wanted to focus on how I felt Edmund (because he's my fave) is a king of Narnia, but between Peter and Caspian is stuck in the middle and still holds onto his actions of betrayal in the first place.

As much as I love making OCs and I love shipping, I did also create my OC Issi mostly to have someone connect with Lucy over Lucy's seeming to really have a sensitivity and unspoken understanding of the Deep Magic of Narnia. With Issi's ability to communicate with spirits, Lucy has someone to speak with that truly believes and understands Lucy's connection to Narnia, and the dryads, and the trees, and why she seems to be the only one that can always see/feel/hear Aslan.

[celluceta]

꧁•⊹٭𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐!٭⊹•꧂

Introduction

Hi there!

In this blog I'll post fanart and random scenarios whenever I can, since I'm mostly busy with college :') Also I may start posting fanfics and original art some day!

This is my first time ever trying to use Tumblr in a more serious way, so I'm still learning how this platform works.

I'm keeping requests closed until I feel confident enough!

🌕 This blog is multifandom, but I'm currently enjoying One Piece ! 🌕

About me

My name's Kada, but I also go by Iruni 🌷My pronouns are she/her.

I'm 20 yo and I'm from Spain, so I speak both english and spanish.

My favorite colours are green and pink, both neon and pastel! Although many people associate me with purple because of how much I love drawing galaxies and space-related content⭐

I love puppets, clowns and aliens. Most of my OCs are non-human!

My favorite music artists are Don Diablo, Dua Lipa, Kupla, Rosalía, La Casa Azul and Snail's House.

I have many projects that I'd love to start as soon as I finish my studies, such as an otome game, a webcomic and experimenting with music since I can play the piano and guitar!⭐

I'm INTP 4w5 and my birthday is December 9th. I was born in 2003.

I take some time to answer asks or comments, usually a day or two, because I always need to check if I'm writing things correctly,,, so excuse me🫠

You can find me in other social media like Instagram or Twitter!

Fandoms

❥ Pokemon, specially BW!

❥ Magi

❥ One Piece

❥ Professor Layton

❥ Houkago no Pleiades

❥ A Hat In Time

❥ Vocaloid

❥ Omori

❥ Genshin Impact

❥ FNAF

❥ Inside Job

❥ Danganronpa

❥ The Dryad's Garden

❥ Monsters Inc./University/At Work

❥ Spiderverse

❥ No Straight Roads

❥ Nanbaka

Comfort Characters

Pokemon

❥ Banette, Sableye, Maractus, Burgh, Cilan, Cress, Chili, Ingo, Emmet, Elesa, Iris, Hau, Lillie, Ilima, Leon, Milo, Allister, Juliana, Florian and Katy

Magi

❥ All of them, but specially Aladdin, Alibaba, Kougyoku Ren, Ja'far, Sinbad, Sharrkan, Yamuraiha, Hinahoho, Rurumu, Pipirika and Kassim

One Piece

❥ Usopp, Shanks, Uta, Reiju, Vivi, Perona, Luffy, Sabo, Sanji, Hiyori, Shirahoshi, Rebecca, Franky, Corazon, Penguin and Shachi

Others

❥ Disney Cinderella, Disney Jasmine, Keroro, Kururu, Kel, from Omori, Hershel Layton, Kaeya, Glamrock Chica, Sundrop & Moondrop, Hikari, from Houkago no Pleiades, Marvin the Martian, Hatsune Miku, Rin Kagamine, Togata Mirio, Uraraka Ochaco, Hawks, Sero Hanta and Zim

DNI IF:

You support any kind of incest, p*dophilia and weird fetishes.

You don't support LGBT+, feminism, black rights...

You like shotacon/lolicon.

You enjoy relationships with a big age-gap. That kind of relationships make me really uncomfortable. If you like it, good for you, but I don't want to be exposed to that type of content.

And that's all for now, I may edit this post in the future! Have a good day🌼✨

[ikaroux]

Chapter 2 : In another world.

Hello everyone, here is chapter 2 <3

Author's note: As a reminder, you can replace Eve's name with any name you like. I always write from the reader's point of view <3.

Please note that Pierrot, Pulcinella and Varka will not be part of the "harem". They will be more fatherly characters <3

I should have an AO3 account by November 2nd, it will be easier to post big fanfics!

For chapter 3, I will write next to it what I had planned for the "Jealousy" theme (NSFW to come)

I hope you will like it, good reading to the brave ones who will read this pavement!

Happy birthday my sweet Kazuha <3

Chapter 1 (I will be making corrections to chapter 1 by the beginning of the week!)

Standing on the platform of the station, you were looking at the little girl in front of you. You two were alone in an ethereal place... Like in a dream. Tears were running down her cheeks, her lips were moving without making a sound.

"Who are you?" The child balled her hands against her chest and shook her head in dismay. "Let me help you!" You were about to jump onto the tracks to join her, but the sudden passing of the train caused you to fall backwards. The scene changed with it, plunging the platform into total darkness. Looking from right to left, you looked for the little girl who had disappeared. "Don't go... Come back... Let me... Let me help you..." Getting up on your weakened legs, you spun around, looking for any sign of life around you. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing.

You hated being alone in the dark, bringing back bad memories of your teenage years. Reminding you of the worst day of your life...

Your mother, so strong and brave, so beautiful and joyful, had died to protect you during a violent earthquake that had hit your area, trapping you in the rubble for several days, alone, in the dark with your mother's lifeless body lying beside you.

You hated the dark.

You hated being alone.

You hated your weaknesses.

"Don't leave me alone...please." You say in a trembling voice.

"Who are you? " You instantly turned back to the voice calling out to you, finding yourself face to face with that scary Jade spear near your neck. The man holding it looked blurry to you, unreal. Xiao? His image sizzled at the mention of his name, as a television screen would have.

"Who are you? "he repeated. Who were you? You didn't know how to answer him. Who am I? What am I? I am... nothing...

The darkness seemed to engulf you a little more every second you spent moping around. You felt that the place you were in was a reflection of your heart. A heart that for years had been keeping to itself.

"You are not alone, Eve." You let go of Xiao's unreal figure with your eyes to turn away from him, finally meeting the little girl on the pier. She stood, in front of you, a sweet smile on her lips. Her outfit was unlike anything you knew. Her little white and emerald dress and her little boots that left the tips of her feet in the air reminded you of the dryads in Greek mythology. Perhaps she was some sort of forest goddess? "I am the Rani Kusanali, the archon dendro of Sumeru. But call me Nahida." She quietly closed her eyes, letting her power emerge from her, turning the darkness that enveloped you into light. You now felt as if you were floating in a clear sky, pure white clouds appearing all around you in perpetual motion. "I am the archon Dendro ruling the region of Sumeru, but I am also the goddess of dreams and wisdom. I have been watching you for some time, Eve."

"All this time... Was it you who was calling me in my sleep?" Nahida slowly shook her head.

"I've been a mere observer, until a... rift presented itself to me. I was finally able to meet you and talk to you when you were on the platform of your train."

"If not you, then who... ?

"I unfortunately can't answer you. Your dreams... your nightmares are chaotic, I would even say that the word blurred would be more appropriate. It seems that someone, or something is trying to awaken a force in you that you have forgotten..." Nahida took your hands in hers, her warm smile disappearing with the action. "Eve, I sense a power in you that could save us all... or harm us. Please, Eve, trust those around you. Don't lock yourself away in loneliness and darkness. Don't let your heart crack further. Darkness is coming, an ancient evil ready to rule. Teyvat needs you. We need you." Young women from different lands appeared at his side. Hope lit up their exhausted features. One of them came to stand beside Nahida. Her beautiful blonde hair matched her golden eyes. She looked like an angel. Her outfit was as white and pure as the clouds around you and the bindings that made up her outfit sparkled with the same brilliance as her eyes. The young woman smiled sweetly at you before she ran her hands through her hair, pulling out one of the flowers that adorned her head. You didn't know which flower it was, it looked like a lily without being one. Holding the flower out to you, you grasped it in your hands. Her slender fingers brushed your skin as she nodded happily. Eventually, she beckoned Nahida to continue. "You must hurry, Eve. They're looking for you."

"Wake up..."

The shrine Nahida had created shook violently, making you groan in fear. The silhouette of the women disappeared one by one, leaving only the Dendro archon in the end, watching the scene with concern.

"Wake up!"

Nahida turned to face you with a shout before diving in your direction, her hand reaching out to grab you.

"Wake up Eve!" She screamed as everything around you shattered like glass, letting the darkness rush inside the sanctuary. Nahida was engulfed by a wave of darkness, her last expression on her face begging you to wake up.

"NO!" You violently straightened up on your bed, immediately putting your palms over your eyes to wipe away the tears you felt flowing. Your breathing was jerky, as if you had just run a marathon. As you slowly came to your senses, images of your dream came back to you, you immediately thought of your notebook to write down what you had seen and heard. Trembling, you slowly lowered your hands to your thighs. In the hollow of one of them was a lily flower whose petals seemed frozen in time. Frowning, you slowly raised your head to your right, sensing a foreign presence there, only to come face to face with a man leaning towards you, his ruby eyes watching you curiously.

A deep silence settled in the room as you both looked at each other without a word in the whites of your eyes.

...

...

...

Your heart leapt wildly in your chest. In shock, you violently backed away from the left side of your bed until you fell backwards, finally landing on the floor with a shrill sound, dropping the lily under the bed.

"Look out!" Shouted several voices.

"Ouch~" With your legs still half-hung on the bed, you gently rubbed your aching head. "Where am I?" As you remained stunned for a few more seconds, a man's laughter snapped you out of your stupor. Glaring at the person who was openly mocking you, you were greeted by the man with an eye patch, whose smirk made you blush with embarrassment.

"Well princess, the fall was not too violent I hope." His hand, stretched out towards you, offered you help to get up. Staring at it intensely, you frowned before gently pulling it away from you. Painfully getting up, you looked around for your bag, which, fortunately, was right next to you. "Princess, take it easy, you still have a trickle of drool on the corner of your lips." Hastily raising your head to him, you saw him rub his finger over the corner of his lips.

"I didn't... ! " Dubious, you touched your lips, only to realize that he was just teasing you. His smirk irritated you more than anything else and, in a fit of anger, you hit him on the arm. Taking your bag in hand, you frantically looked for something... Your books, your notebook, your medicines, some delicacies to calm your hunger, the wallet, your phone, everything was there except...

"Are you looking for something beautiful?" You turned sharply towards the man with the eye patch. He was holding a small bottle of pepper spray in his hand that you always kept on you for this kind of... situation.

"Give it back to me." You furiously reached out to him. The man smiled more, moving his hand away from you.

"I'm curious to know what it is... You see, I'm unable to read what it says on it, but you seem to care enough to make me interested. What would happen if I pressed it?" Said he, facing the bottle.

"But please, press it." You answer him in the same arrogant tone. The others were watching your little battle silently, impressed to see the young woman who was so weakened a little while ago with such a response. Kaeya looked at you sideways, searching your eyes for any malice. His smile faded, quickly understanding that it was not best to challenge each other, as you seemed apt to viciously play into his hands.

"I'd rather not. I even think it would be better to throw this thing in the trash." You lunged at him, catching him off guard.

"Make me a fool! It's my only defense against guys like you!" The man frowned, gently placing an arm around your waist to keep you steady.

"Guys like me? I wouldn't hurt you princess..."

"That's enough Kaeya." The red haired man took the bottle from his hands, looking sternly at Kaeya. He then turned to you, his eyes softening instantly before he handed you the object of your quarrel. "Look, I'm willing to give it back to you, but on one condition. Don't use it. No one here wants to hurt you." You looked at him for a long time, trying to probe his soul. You noticed how handsome he was, his fiery pupils giving off a soft, comforting warmth. His outfit showed his social status. This man was wealthy and certainly quite influential, yet there was not an ounce of arrogance about him. Noticing the look in your eyes, a warm smile lit up his face. His free hand came to take yours to delicately deposit the spray bottle in the hollow of your palm.

"I didn't tell you I agreed not to use it..." You murmured softly, your cheeks blushing as you felt his gloved fingers slide over your skin as his hand left you. His hand was so warm...

"I trust you." You smiled softly, stepping back to your bag again to put the spray away.

"Hmm~ I'm jealous Diluc. She seems to like you. She didn't even notice we were there too." Your attention turned to Venti, who stood leaning on the mattress of your bed, a mischievous smile on his lips. Diluc sighed, placing one of his hands in front of his face in mock exasperation, though he couldn't hide the flush that was forming on his cheeks. Venti was right about one thing, you hadn't paid any attention to what was going on around you. Curious, you looked around the room. You were no longer in the lecture hall, but rather in a sort of infirmary quite similar to the one you had at your university. On either side of your bed stood Venti, Kaeya, Diluc, the man who had frightened you when you woke up, and, if you remembered his name correctly, Tighnari. At the foot of your bed, other men you didn't know yet were scattered all around you as well as Zhongli and... Xiao. A shiver ran through you as your eyes met. You quickly looked away, an incoherent fear emerging in your stomach. Was he going to attack you with his spear again?

"I'd better go..." Xiao's voice was etched deep inside you. He was the first person you had heard when you arrived here, so it was only natural for you to recognize his voice without even looking at him. The regret you could hear in it made you miss a beat. You didn't want to hurt him, not when he seemed genuinely concerned about you. Moving as fast as you could, you jumped up on all fours on your bed so you could grab his wrist, preventing him from leaving the room. Slowly, Xiao turned his piercing gaze on you. He was still a little scary, but like Diluc, you could see gentleness and kindness. Your hand slipped gently over his wrist to return to your side. Your eyes lowered to your knees where you had been sitting and you didn't know what to say. A heavy silence deafened the room, which was quite surprising given the number of people in it... "I'm sorry... For earlier..." You looked up at Xiao, who had his back turned to you. You wondered what kind of expression this cold and, presumably, proud man was capable of making when apologizing... But his red ears let you easily imagine it, making you giggle into your hand. Zhongli, smiling fondly, placed a hand on the top of his head, making him tense up like a crossbow.

"He's not mean, just a little clumsy." Xiao flinched as he heard his lord's words. Zhongli turned to you, his amber gaze looking at you warmly. After a few seconds of silence while you looked at each other, his eyes finally turned to each of his comrades, then back to you. "Eve, listen, I'm sorry to barrage you with questions as soon as you wake up, but we need to know who you are and how you managed to get into our world. You are certainly not from Teyvat, and I don't think I'm the only one here who feels that way, but you give off a very special aura."

"A special aura?" You shook your head before laughing nervously. "I don't have anything special. You should question the quality of your instincts, sir."

"Zhongli." He cut you off with a smile. Warmth rose to your face, once again... Shaking your head slightly, you inhaled silently before continuing.

"Zhongli. You want to know who I am? I'm just a simple astrophysics student who lives miserably in a small apartment in the city. I work in my spare time to pay my rent. I study hard to be able to do what I want to do in life. My mother is dead because of me. My father lives on the other side of the country with my little brother and he doesn't even bother to hear from me. I am nothing more than what you see, Zhongli. That is, nothing. I have nothing for myself... I am... nothing but a wall that people walk past without noticing." A sigh escaped you as your shoulders sagged under the weight of the obvious. In your world, you were just a transparent young woman, living your life without really enjoying it. Lowering your head to your hands, you squinted. What did you do in those last years? You had few friends, your studies taking up most of your time. Boys would try to flirt with you from time to time, but your cold and distant facade would eventually isolate you from others. You had gotten used to it...

You felt a comforting hand on your shoulder, bringing you out of your slumber. Aether had placed himself at your side, a soft smile on his lips.

"Take your time Eve, but don't think too much about the meaning of your life. We are often too strict with ourselves. So please don't think you're miserable or that you're nothing more than what you want to show. I don't know you, but I feel through your aura that you are a good person. You have a lot of kindness and gentleness in you. You're just afraid of getting hurt." Your cheeks took on a slight pinkish hue as you listened to his words. Groaning a thank you, you nervously lowered your head as you noticed that the others were in agreement with him. How could they all be so kind to you when you barely knew each other? Taking another breath, you continued to clear the air.

"I don't know how I ended up here, really. I was just leaving for my first class of the day when..." Silence fell over you, the image of Nahida coming back into your mind. You wondered if talking about it was a good idea. Wasn't he going to think you were crazy?

"When?" The soft voice of a boy with ashy blonde hair snapped you out of your thoughts. His curiosity was palpable through his teal eyes that stared at you intently. As you looked at him longer, you could see a strange star-shaped mark on his neck. You found it strangely beautiful... A part of you wanted to touch it.

"Ah! Uh... yes, just a moment!" Turning on yourself, you jumped out of bed. Diluc and Kaeya stepped aside, curious to see what you were going to do under the bed. A fierce blush invaded Diluc's face as you got down on all fours on the floor, forcing him to look away, while Kaeya looked at you with a smirk on his face. Unaware of the stares you were receiving, you continued to search for what you had dropped under the bed earlier. To everyone's eyes, you were undeniably a curious and charming being. Curiously, none of them could take their eyes off you. You were beautiful, no doubt about it, yet you showed a lack of confidence that left men speechless. How many of them had longed to shut you up when you were talking down to them a few moments earlier? A wall that you don't notice? Yet you had glowing eyes and a beautiful, haunting, unforgettable face. "Found it!" Turning back to the boys, you handed them the fleur-de-lis you had obtained in your dream. Each of them stared at it for a long time, a heavy silence hanging over the room. You soon noticed that some of them had more shaken expressions than others. Kaeya, the young man with teal eyes, an older man with half his face hidden by a mask, Venti and Zhongli... And then there was Aether who was undoubtedly the most expressive of them all, looking like he was about to collapse as his irises remained fixed on the fleur de lys.

"Eve... Where-Where did you get that Inteyvat?" His trembling hand brushed one of the petals. Watching his face become distorted with emotion, you wondered if you had done something wrong. Aether must have sensed your fear, because his hand came to rest gently on your wrist to reassure you.

"I have frequent nightmares. In fact, I haven't had a peaceful sleep in months. But today... It was different. There was this little girl telling me not to be alone, to trust those around me..." You looked at each man in the room, making them realize that they were the ones she needed to offer her trust to. "And then behind that little girl appeared women I didn't know. One of them was wearing this flower in her hair before she pulled one out and offered it to me. I think... I think she would have liked me to give it to you..."

"Lumine..." Aether took the flower in his hands, tears welling up in his eyes as he held it to his chest. Paimon gently stroked his head, hoping to show him that she was there if he wasn't feeling well.

"The little girl... Or rather, Nahida told me that she had been watching me for a long time... And that I had a strength in me that could save us all. I don't understand why she told me that. I'm just an ordinary girl and I..." A gentle hand rested on my cheek. Looking up, you could see Tighnari's soft, warm face, his gentle smile soothing you a little.

"Lady Kusanali is the voice of wisdom." He brushed a lock of hair away from your face. "I'm sure she saw a power in you that you wouldn't dare imagine. Cyno, Alhaitham, Kaveh and I know her well enough to know that she is rarely wrong." All three men nodded, but something was gripping your heart. Fear was seeping into you like water through the cracks in a wall. They are looking for you. That's what Nahida had told you before she disappeared. Who was looking for you? Why you? You had never shown any supernatural power until today... Your hands began to shake with all the questions that were coming at you... Until Kaeya's face came to your level, covering your vision. He placed a finger between your eyebrows, making you almost squint. You noticed then that your expression was tense, eyebrows furrowed as you rambled in your thoughts.

"Hey, I don't know what you're afraid of princess, but you're safe with us." You gave him a long look before smiling at him. Kaeya was a mischievous man, but he knew how to be thorough and observant.

"Before we continue, how about we all introduce ourselves properly?" The white-haired young man, whose single red lock stood out nicely on top of his head, looked at his friends with a big smile before giving you his full attention. His voice was incredibly soft and soothing. Offering him a smile, you thanked him with a small nod.

A small man walked towards you, his cane gently tapping the wooden floor of the infirmary.

"You should have started there! Have you become nothing but savages, gentlemen? Forgive us my child, we forget our manners. I am Pulcinella, a humble old man in the service of her majesty the Tsaritsa." Pulcinella clasped one of your hands between his, putting a slight warm pressure on it. You smiled at him before turning to the ruby-eyed man who was trying to get your attention by clearing his throat.

"Dottore, or the doctor. Researcher, genius, doctor no matter what title I'm given. Now that introductions are made, tell me about that strange device tucked away in your bag!" Said he as he leaned towards you from the other side of the bed. The device? Oh, the phone probably. My goodness, so they had gone through your bag. Good thing you weren't carrying anything personal... Just as you were about to answer him, a tall man with ebony hair and white streaks came and covered his mouth, forcing Dottore upright on his legs. This one looked at the man of a glaring glance...

"Don't pay any attention to him. He may be very intelligent, but he is still completely out of his depth when it comes to human relations. I strongly advise you to stay away from him." The menace in Dottore's eyes did not seem to affect the smiling man at his side. "Allow me to introduce myself, Pantalone. I am the manager of my country's economic policies." You slowly nodded, smiling as you looked at the couple in front of you who were glaring daggers at each other. Pantalone gave off something fake, whether it was his smile or his demeanor, yet when he spoke to you, it was the only moment of warmth he seemed to allow himself, making him a little more human than you had ever observed. As for Dottore, there was something scary about him, but he was still very attractive.

The others introduced themselves one by one, some in a traditional way, like Ayato or Albedo and others in a more hilarious way, like Arataki Itto. His voluminous voice and enthusiastic laughter made you feel good.

Eventually they explained their situation to you. The women you had met in your dream had been missing for several months. Strangely enough, only the ones with a vision had vanished. Since that day, each man here had been looking for clues, for traces that might lead them to their friends. They explained to you that when you had appeared in the amphitheater, each of them had just returned from a mission to the four corners of the world, revealing their findings. Apparently, some had not yet returned. The absent ones were mainly from Fontaine, Natlan and Snezhnaya. Others, far fewer in number, were from Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru and Khaenri'ah.

"That's strange..." Aether exclaimed. "Dainsleif had sent me a missive to tell me that he would be here for our meeting... I hope he didn't get into trouble on the way." All of the boys had taken a seat on a chair, couch or bed as they theorized about the events happening around them.

"I've heard rumors that strange creatures are appearing all over Teyvat." The man who had just spoken, was named Capitano. A tall man always wearing a scary mask on his face. His features were not visible, hidden in the shadow of the cold metal of his helmet, but his voice, calm and composed, let appear a wise and thoughtful man.

"These are not just rumors. My information network told me a few days ago of an attack on a village in Natlan. Vision bearers did try to stop them, but his creatures seem completely immune to elemental and physical attacks." Diluc sat on the bed next to yours, arms crossed as his gaze seemed to dart around.

"Only now are you bringing this up, Ragnvindr?" Scaramouche huffed, annoyed. He stood up abruptly from his seat and walked over to Diluc. "Couldn't your network have warned us too?! We're supposed to be working as a team!"

"Hmph, we may be allies today, but that doesn't erase your past misdeeds, Fatui. I don't trust you." Scaramouche's eye jumped with anger. Pulcinella, Capitano and Pierrot rose from their seats, preparing to calm the two men. Scaramouche, ignoring the glares on him, grabbed Diluc's collar, who remained unmoved.

"Stop!" Your body had acted on its own as it rose to stand between the two men. Your hand gently rested on Scaramouche's forearm as you gently leaned in front of his face to catch his eyes. "Stop." You said in a softer voice. Scaramouche looked at you, his eyes wide with surprise. His grip on Diluc gradually loosened. You noticed that behind him stood Xiao, Cyno, Razor and Childe ready to dive on the young man if he raised his hand on you. Even Diluc seemed to be prepared to strike back... Luckily, this was not the case, and Scaramouche allowed himself to be guided by you to sit by your side, keeping his hand in yours in a reassuring gesture.

After a long silence, Pierrot was the one to speak. "Do you think that Dainsleif could have met one of these creatures? Khaenri'ah has long been the cradle of the abyss, it wouldn't surprise me if other foul beasts took up residence there..." Kaeya lowered his head, the pain in his eyes pinching your heart. You didn't know what had happened all those years ago, but you could easily imagine the pain one could feel when one lost his home, his friends, his family... Unconsciously, your hand squeezed Scaramouche's a little tighter, who responded to your embrace.

"In that case, I'll go on the spot and get him."

"Aether, that's too dangerous!" Xiao exclaimed. "Let's wait a little longer, we may hear from him later today. If by tomorrow morning we don't have anything, we'll go looking for him." Aether clenched his fists in frustration. Dainsleif was obviously a good friend, someone he cared about and had had adventures by his side.

After several minutes of discussion, the group of men decided to leave the infirmary and let you rest. Only Kazuha, Pulcinella, Albedo and Tighnari remained at your bedside, thinking that the others were already numerous enough to organize themselves on what was to come.

"Here my child, drink this tea and eat this. You need to regain your strength, you have skin on your bones, it is very worrying!" Pulcinella placed a tray adorned with a fruity-scented tea on your thighs, along with a plate filled with two well-stuffed pitas. You swallowed as you looked at the food, not knowing if you would be able to finish what was on your plate. You were used to eating small potions, trying to save your rent money. But more importantly, what did the food in this world taste like? The pitas looked like the ones from your world, and the tea carried the smell of mango... "Eat up young lady, it will do you the world of good!" Pulcinella said sternly, making you jump on your bed.

"Yes grandpa! Sorry!" You immediately grab a loaf of bread between your fingers before biting it hesitantly. Chewing slowly, the flavor of the food gradually reached your taste buds. Crunchy salad, sweet tomatoes, a sauce that went perfectly with the meat and the warm bread encompassing it all... It was... Delicious. Taking another bite with more gusto, Pulcinella expressed his relief with a deep sigh.

Kazuha's point of view.

Kazuha admired Eve from the corner of his eye, a sweet smile on his lips. Sitting on a window sill, staying away from her so as not to disturb her meal, he could not look away from her. Eve was in every way mysterious, full of secrets. Something in her breathed strength, but also fragility. She was like the wind, sometimes gentle, sometimes non-existent and sometimes unleashed. Kazuha had watched her throughout her conversations with his classmates, and he could feel the pain and sadness emanating from her. However, this smell seemed to soften since she had become a little more familiar with his companions. Nevertheless, she was still a lonely young woman. She was...

She was lonely.

She was sad.

She was... Broken.

The realization gripped Kazuha's heart. He himself had experienced loneliness and loss in the past. Knowing that such an innocent young woman had gone through so much pain to the point of hating herself upset him. Yet... She smiled and laughed as she listened to Pulcinella's stories. The old man seemed to have found in the young woman a new member of his family, considering her his grand-daughter.

"Pulcinella, let my patient rest for a while." Tighnari asked with a hint of annoyance in her eyes.

"I am fine Tighnari. I love hearing the stories of your world. Besides, I only have to look around to see how different everything is. The architecture of the places, your customs, your visions. Everything seems so... unreal!" Tighnari sighed before smiling. His hand rested tenderly on her head before resuming a stern look. "Fine, but be careful what you say Pulcinella, I don't want her to have nightmares tonight because of you!"

"That boy is a little too uptight if you ask me..." He whispered against Eve's ear.

"I hear you!" Tighnari shouted from the other end of the infirmary where he had moved to put away a box of medical supplies.

"My archons, I forgot that boy had acute hearing!" And Pulcinella laughed with Eve, making the scene touching in Kazuha's eyes. He loved to hear her laugh and he noticed that Albedo did too, who, like him, was observing what was going on in the distance, a drawing book in hand.

"What are you drawing Albedo?" She asked, a hint of curiosity in her eyes that made Albedo smile.

"You." The young woman's face took on a beautiful pink hue, making her look more beautiful than she already was. Pleased with his effect on her, Albedo set his notebook down beside her before joining the young woman. Sitting down on a wooden stool right next to the bed, Albedo leaned towards her, making Kazuha frown. "I have a question for you, Eve." And she leaned toward him with a knowing look.

"And I'll only answer it if you'll be on first-name terms with me." Albedo had a subtle blush, not expecting this reaction from the young woman. Nevertheless, he did not look away from her and Kazuha felt compelled to stand up from his corner and join the trio. Tighnari, curious, listened from afar to what they were saying to each other with strained ears.

"I took the liberty of reading your notebook..." He waited to see her reaction before continuing. Although she squinted slightly, she did not interrupt him." And you see, I found some very interesting things in it. May I?" Said he, reaching for his bag. Eve nodded, interested in what the alchemist had supposedly discovered. Albedo quickly found the notebook he had mentioned. Carefully flipping through the first few pages, his teal eyes followed every line written inside. Kazuha frowned when he noticed that Albedo seemed to be able to read what was written inside. "Pulcinella, Kazuha, Tighnari, can the three of you tell me if you see the same thing I do?" Kazuha and Tighnari looked at each other with an unconcealed frown before joining Albedo and Pulcinella.

"Well... Here's another surprise from you my child." Pulcinella wondered, his nose still buried in his notebook.

Kazuha and Tighnari looked curiously at the pages Albedo was scrolling through. Kazuha's eyes opened wide in amazement. How was this possible?

"Wh-What? Is something wrong?" Eve's worried intonation made all heads turn up towards her.

"Eve... Everything written in it is in our language." The tone Kazuha had chosen was as gentle as possible, not wanting to alarm her more than that.

"Huh? No, it can't be! Let me see!" Albedo handed her the notebook, which she hastily took... Her irises trembled as she flipped through the pages. "How... I don't understand... I've never... But at the same time..." One of her hands rested on her forehead, a pained expression settling on her features as her breathing became more panicked. Kazuha ventured to her side, sitting down on the mattress, one leg placed cross-legged on the bed while the other remained suspended outside. Gently, he took the young woman in his arms, praying that it would calm the pain that invaded his body. He wasn't used to being so tactile with others, let alone those they barely knew. But Eve was... Different. Kazuha found himself liking to touch her, to have her in his arms, safe. It seemed to calm her down and a little bit of pride made his heart beat faster. Gently moving away from her, keeping a reassuring arm around your waist, Kazuha caressed her cheek that remained plunged against his chest. Albedo took one of her hands in his, caressing her skin with his thumb.

"Eve, it's okay. Just take time to breathe." Albedo softly whispered reassuring words to her as she remained strapped to Kazuha's chest.

"I told you not to overwork her." Displeased, Tighnari quickly left to retrieve a glass, pouring a questionably colored drink into it before bringing it back to her. "Drink this Eve, it will calm your headaches." Said he gently while stroking her hair. The young woman was decidedly pampered by all the men in this room, which made a pang of jealousy rise in Kazuha's heart.

"I'm sorry Eve, I didn't mean to hurt you." The young woman shook her head, slowly pulling away from Kazuha's warm embrace to stare at Albedo. Tighnari retrieved the glass she had emptied in one gulp with a grimace contorting her face.

"It's not your fault..."

"Have you always had these migraines?" She shook her head again in response to Albedo's question. "May I ask since when?"

"Since my mother died? Or maybe after... I don't really remember." Albedo nodded slowly, gently squeezing her hand still in his.

"One more question Eve, and I promise to leave you after this." Kazuha tightened his arm around her, looking Albedo straight in the eye. The questions were pertinent, and he seemed to have hit on something, but he still thought the young woman should rest. Couldn't the questions wait a few more hours? "Do you know the people whose names you wrote in that notebook?" She shook her head negatively.

"I have only just met Morax, Barbatos and Paimon." The two archons had formally introduced themselves to her as the former gods of Liyue and Mondstadt, giving the names they had before living among humans. "As for the others, I don't know who they are... Everything is so fast when I have these nightmares. I feel like they are swallowing me up... And at the same time, I'm overwhelmed with a lot of information... I'm afraid I'm going crazy. I didn't even realize I was writing in an otherworldly language!" She brutally closed her notebook, offering it to Albedo who took it carefully against him. Eve let herself fall back against Kazuha's chest, finding comfort in his warmth. "You know... When I first came into the amphitheater, I could understand you... even before Paimon touched me." Kazuha spread his eyes, looking around for Tighnari who was frowning. Albedo seemed to be deep in thought while Pulcinella stroked his mustache thoughtfully.

"Thank you Eve, rest now." Albedo stroked her hair before rising from his seat. "Keep this notebook with you. Keep filling it in after every dream you have, maybe they can answer the questions that are still lingering one day." He placed it on the bedside table beside him. "Night is falling, I'll check on you again tomorrow, sweet star." With a final smile, Albedo retrieved his sketchbook before leaving the room at a slow pace, his mind still occupied with Eve's words. He still had so many questions on his mind. Albedo, like Kazuha and Tighnari, knew that the young woman's nightmares had a deeper meaning...

Pulcinella stood up in turn, kissing Eve's knuckles gently before wishing her a good night. Kazuha too was about to leave, his leg slowly sliding off the bed, but he was held back by the young woman's frail hands.

"Please... Don't leave me alone." The trembling hand against the sleeve of his kimono made Kazuha miss a heartbeat. Was she afraid to be alone? Yes, he had noticed it long before. Even without saying it out loud, her expressions, her search for touch, everything showed a need for contact. But that wasn't all... "Don't leave me alone... The dark... Scares me." A deep blush painted her cheeks with shame as she pressed her face against his chest. Did she feel like a child? Perhaps. Kazuha stared at her for a long time, a small voice in his heart screaming with joy that she was clinging to him with such confidence.

"I'll stay with her Kazuha, you can go rest." Said Tighnari in a soothing voice, a hand coming to rub her bent back.

"I would stay too..." Eve raised her face to Kazuha and then to Tighnari. Seeing their warm expressions, a beautiful smile lit up her face.

"Thank you..." Tighnari walked away from them.

"But I'm warning you, there's no way you're sleeping in the same bed with her!" Tighnari's stern tone startled Kazuha and Eve at the same time. Kazuha's cheeks flushed violently. "I'll move a bed forward so you can sleep next to her. But no more!" Kazuha huffed as Tighnari complied, moving the bedside table as well as the young woman's belongings before pushing the bed next to her. The minutes passed quickly, Tighnari was still hanging out in the infirmary, preparing a few bottles of medicine before moving to his bed placed right next to Eve's. Kazuha was already lying in his bed, his body turned towards the young woman who was dozing against his pillow... A hand joined to his, she seemed to sleep a peaceful sleep. Kazuha looked at her with tenderness, caressing her slender fingers with his thumb. The lights went out slowly.

"Good night Eve" he whispered. Kazuha closed his eyes, quietude taking over his soul. He hadn't felt such a peaceful feeling in years...

[numinousmysteries]

Fanfic ask time! :DDD 10, 25, 30~

Thanks for the ask @randomfoggytiger. Here you go:

10. shortest wip of the year: Hmm I really only have one WIP going right now that's somewhat long (or at least long for me) but I did start another shorter piece that's within the same universe as the longer WIP and might become part of it at some point, so I guess that?

25. a fic you read this year you would recommend everyone read: I've read (and re-read) so much fantastic fic that I know I'll forget some. I only just started using the bookmark feature on Ao3 to save my favorites so there are dozens that have slipped through the cracks, as well as others on Gossamer and other places, of course. Here's what comes to mind immediately:

I re-read Isometry by @syntax6 which is just perfect, and that led to reading Universal Invariants for the first time and it's equally fantastic.

I am a 20+ year prufrock's love stan but I actually never read A Moment in the Sun until this year and I adored it. I'm not the biggest AU fan but I will trust prufrock's love to translate Mulder and Scully to any world in any century. I also re-read Promises to Keep which is super angsty but worth it.

I re-read Blinded by the White Light by @dashakay at least once a year and it never fails to make me cry.

Times Colliding by OnlyTheInevitable. So well-done and I'd love another chapter!

The entire Unfinished Business series by aka_Jake. I like to pretend MSIV never happened (along with like, everything post-Existence) but aka_Jake makes it right.

How have I never read Dryad by @aloysiavirgata before? I adore everything she writes and this is no exception.

Hour of Lead by Darla Black hurts so good.

And like everyone else in the fandom, Gaslight by @sisterspooky1013 kept me on the edge of my seat for weeks.

30. favorite fandom to read fic from this year This is an easy one. The X-Files always and forever.

[crimson-creature]

Tag game: get to know me

thanks @mollynoble

Name: let's go with A.

Pronouns: she/her

Star sign: Aries

Number of siblings (+any fun facts): one brother and one step sister. Her and my birthday are the same day :D

Number of pets & their names: 1 labrador Max(o)

Fandoms: 9-1-1, Generation Kill, LotR (forever and ever), Star Wars, MCU (much less now), idk. Things come and go... and come back again. I'm expecting a comeback for my The Losers phase.

Favorite color: judging by my wardrobe - black. Blue and red are also great.

Favorite song: changes all the time. Currently it's Wishmaster from Nightwish

Favorite author (books, fanfics, zines, webtoons, etc): JRRT

Favorite fic type: probably slowburn? also time travel. I have a weakness for powerful characters going back in time and blowing people's minds with their skills.

Favorite holiday: Christmas

Do you have a partner (romantic, qpr, etc)?: nah

Hobbies: reading, walking, sewing, i also do amateur theater acting in my free time

Fun facts about you: if I really like you and I'm comfortable with you, prepare yourself for rants about whatever thing currently grabbed my attention. Space exploration. Civil aviation. Rare diseases. Random movie trivia. I WILL, however, forget most of these facts within a few weeks.

tagging (if you wanna) @mywitfailsme @local-dryad @waystone @stormhunting @ilovetextingandscones @greenleaves-never @lankinen @mrs-silence-dogood

[mdhwrites]

Ruby Gillman Trailer

So... This trailer has theoretically been living in my brain for the past day and I want to talk about it. My first thought was just “This is cute. Looks neat. I’ll keep an eye out for it and maybe see it if I get the opportunity.” Theeeeeen someone made art of the mermaid and kraken kissing and I mean that’s just perfect. There’s even a lot of good potential for shipping there with the person who is defined by their powers and what they are and the person who doesn’t care about any of those things. The attraction from the mermaid to the kraken is immediate and obvious and filling in the gaps could be fun. Which actually brought me to stage two: This trailer is bad... but in a good way? It fails in just making an audience interested as it also defeats the purpose to watching it for people who mostly care about the big plot points rather than the journey. After all, we know her powers, see her first accidental transformation into full kraken mode, see the villain’s super mode reveal, get it confirmed that it ends with a kaiju fight, see how superfluous the love interest will be, etc. like that. When people talk about trailers showing the whole movie, this could actually be used as a textbook example of it... With one exception: How it does it also easily facilitates fandom interaction. The main designs are shown fairly clearly, with their variants being shown as well so artists don’t have to fill in the gaps left out by lack of references, the plot of the movie is clear so you can take educated guesses on what they’ll do so the movie won’t as easily contradict fanfiction made before it, etc. like that. Hell, you could just try to write a fanfic that’s effectively the movie with those guesses. It’d be like those cheap knock offs of hyped up movies like “Atlantic Rim” that you would find in old video rental places. I... I swear I’m 26 (one month away from my birthday to the day actually which is actually pure coincidence). So... Here’s the multiple levels of thought in full: This idea is neat. I like monster girls and monster girls trying to fit into human society is something I’ve enjoyed enough to write multiple times in multiple ways! The last book I released had a dryad in it even. Oh! Yeah, this antagonist and protagonist actually have great potential for a sapphic romance and we KNOW how much I love those. My first proper length novel, instead of novella, was based on a popular werewolf girl falling for a nerdy human girl after all. You do know so much though that you could try to take the same premise and flip it in time for the movie to come out. Books would have a way easier time with a deadline of ‘this Summer’ than making a movie yourself though. You’d have to be able to pump out a whole book’s worth of chapters in like a week, let alone if you don’t have practice with mermaids. Of course, I am well documented as having experience writing mermaids, and even more hostile ones at that. With all that said... There’s MORE than enough differences between Ruby Gillman and the story percolating in my head right now. There won’t be a race based rivalry, it’ll be focused on a romance rather than shoving it in there because apparently it needs one (that’s really how the trailer makes it feel for Gillman) and just the shift from the two being entirely against each other from go to actually working together and getting closer inherently requires a very different story. As well as the fact that a book can’t get away with the main character being blue and people just theoretically ignoring it (I’m curious what the explanation for that will be) and the fact that a kraken might be hated while a mermaid is loved in the world has already led to worldbuilding that will play into the romance, the climax, themes and character arcs. This also isn’t me trying to say “I’m gonna outdo Dreamworks!” It’s more my silly way of announcing a new project I’m going to try and focus on and try to get done in like two-three months. I know I can more than easily do it if I can get my mind to work with me so... we’ll see but my mind is excited and I think it’s a fun, silly experiment. I am a little sad that it means I likely won’t be writing fanfiction for the movie before it comes out though like I did with Wenclair and Wednesday. Again, I think Ruby and Chelsea already have a good possible dynamic together but my job as a professional writer takes precedence unfortunately.

[rorywritesjunk]

For these foamy green hills are but saltwater desert

Richie, Mohji's lion, isn't doing so well. The crew end up at a small island with a dwindling population to seek help and Buggy meets Midori, the mayor who is far more stubborn and trusting with his crew than he can really comprehend. Rating: PG-13, gonna have smut at some point later though. Warnings: Buggy being obnoxious, of course. I'd call this a fast paced slow burn. It takes the place over the course of the week and days are split into two chapters. There's also some drama and other pirates. A/N: Full confession. I honestly wrote this because I have been watching the anime and Richie is one of the best characters. Do I know a lot about the anime? No. Is some of this chaotic and characters OOC? Of course! It's a fanfic. Is it self indulgent? Hell yes. I had fun writing this and wanted to share it. Also, I wrote this more with anime!Buggy in mind since we don't get to see Richie in the live action. Title comes from the song "Dryad's Promise" by Tricky Pixie.

Chapter 1

Day 1 pt 1

It was Mohji who requested they dock at the first island they came to on behalf of Richie. He said the lion wasn’t doing well, seemed depressed and was refusing to eat. It had gone on for days and the first mate was worried, and well, Richie was part of the crew so Buggy relented. It was another few days before they spotted an island they could dock at and Mohji hoped he could find someone to help his lion companion. Buggy thought anyone willing to go near a lion had to be pretty stupid.

He knew what Richie was capable of. He’d seen the lion wreak havoc and destruction on unsuspecting people and animals. Those paws of his could level a city block with one swipe. 

So when Mohji left the ship and came back an hour later with a woman, Buggy realized there was someone stupid out there, even if she was pretty.

She was wearing boots, a dress with a thick wool apron over it, and a bulky sweater. Her boots and hem of the skirt were caked in mud and the apron had what looked like crumbs stuck to it. Was she a vet or a baker, or something else? Buggy wasn’t sure but he followed Mohji as he led the woman to where Richie was resting.

“How long since he last ate?” The woman asked as she approached the lion. Buggy instinctively wanted to tell her to be careful, that that was a damn lion, but she held her hand out for Richie to sniff it, and when the lion nudged her hand she moved closer. “When did he start acting like this?”

“He last ate a few days ago.” Mohji told her as he chewed on his nails worryingly. “And he’s been acting weird for about a week. I don’t know what it is.”

Nodding, she knelt down in front of him and lifted up one of his paws, checking over his toes and feeling between his pads, checking for any splinters that could be bothering him. Buggy crossed his arms as he leaned over to his first mate.

“Shouldn’t we be concerned he may eat her?” He asked as Richie opened his mouth all of a sudden, but only to yawn. Mohji shook his head.

“He wouldn’t unless I told him to.” He replied as he watched nervously. He was a wreck over Richie. He hated it when the large feline wasn’t feeling well, and especially since they had been out to sea for so long, it worried him how long it took for them to get help. “I think she knows what she’s doing.”

“Wait, you think?” Buggy asked. “Is she even a vet?”

“Oh, uh…” Mohji shrugged. “I found her at a farm near the shore. She was feeding her animals and she said hi to me. I asked for help and she came with me.”

Buggy stared incredulously at his first mate. He really brought the first person he saw to the ship? He would wait to berate him after the woman left.

“How long have you been out to sea?” The woman asked as she reached up to run her fingers through Richie’s mane. The lion closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. She smiled and scratched behind one of his ears. “Because I think he’s bored. He needs some enrichment on land.”

“He’s used to being out at sea!” Buggy told her harshly. “He’s fine on the ship.”

“Bored?” Mohji repeated. “Oh, Richie! I’m sorry! It’s been a while since we raided any place, no wonder he’s miserable!”

“Raided?” She frowned. “Are you pirates?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact!” Buggy laughed. “You’re looking at the Buggy Pirates!”

“Oh.” A pause. “I’ve never heard of you. We don’t get a lot of visitors to our island.” She pulled back from Richie and looked at Mohji. “If you and your crew are able to stay for a few days, maybe a week, your lion can spend time on the island. There’s not a lot of us to worry about here, and I have some old cows and sheep he could hunt.”

“W-Wait, I’m the Captain!” Buggy snapped. “You should be asking me this!”

“Are you Richie’s owner though?” She asked with a frown. He looked dumbfounded but shook his head. “See, that’s why I’m talking to this guy. He came to me for help, not you.”

Buggy seemed, well, shocked he was being spoken to like that. Mohji looked to his Captain with a pleading expression; Richie looked at him the same way. Buggy grumbled under his breath and caved. He didn’t want his first mate or first lion to be miserable.

“Fine. Only a week!”

~

Her name was Midori. She was the mayor of the only village on the island, population 15. She wasn’t a veterinarian by any means, just a farmer who had been tending to her animals when Mohji came across her. She was kind, as were the villagers, to the crew as they came on shore. Richie was given a bed of hay in one of her smaller barns. Mohji joined him. She even offered her guest room to Buggy, saying it was proper for the mayor to host the Captain. He accepted, but he wasn’t sure what to think of her yet.

Buggy was confused. The villagers didn’t seem scared of him or his crew. Had none of them ever heard of him? Was he not famous in these parts? How could his name not strike fear in the heart of Midori when he had told her who he was?

He sat at her kitchen table as she fixed lunch for the two of them. It was a little odd. It was just him, the rest of the crew were going about the island, checking out the bar for beer and food. He watched her suspiciously, wondering what she had planned for him. Was she going to poison him to collect a bounty? Was this all an act and planned to murder him in his sleep? 

She placed a bowl of soup with some bread on a plate in front of him before grabbing him a beer. He watched her open the beer and took it from her, taking a few sips. That couldn’t have been poisoned, right? He would wait for her to start eating before he made his next move. 

“So, Captain Buggy, I’d love to hear about some of your adventures.” Midori said as she started eating. He watched her have a few spoonfuls before he started helping himself.

“What d’you wanna know?” He asked between mouthfuls. 

“Anything at all.” She smiled. “Please?”

Buggy eyed her suspiciously before he lifted the bowl up to his lips, drinking half of the soup before setting the bowl down and downing the beer. He swore she giggled before getting up to grab him another bottle. The hospitality was borderline uncomfortable for him, but if she wanted to hear stories then he would tell her stories.

By the fourth bottle he was telling of their last raid where they leveled an entire town and took all of their treasure. Midori was listening with rapt attention, hanging onto his every word, and she even let out a gasp at a particularly exciting part. Buggy sat back in his chair as he finished off his drink. She got up to grab him another one and he watched her, suspicion in his eyes.

“What are you getting at?” He suddenly asked. She looked at him in confusion as she opened the bottle for him. He took it from her.

“I don’t understand what you’re asking.” She frowned. “I… just wanted to hear stories of your adventures, Captain Buggy.” She sat back down. “That’s all.”

“You’ve really never heard of me or my crew?” He asked. Midori shook her head. He looked a little put out by that.

“Captain, there’s only 15 of us on this island, including me.” She told him. “When I came here 17 years ago with my family, the town was bustling and full of people, but now everyone wants to leave to find treasure or have their own adventures, leaving many of us behind. We are either leaving on our own or dying, and it won’t be long until I’m the last one here.”

He took a sip of his beer, contemplating her words. “Why would you be the last one?”

“I love it here.” She smiled sadly. “It’s a beautiful island and I can’t imagine leaving it.”

“You may have to leave some day if you’re the last one left.” He said. “It would be stupid to stick around.”

“I guess I’m a bit of a romantic then.” She laughed. “I’m waiting for someone to take me away from here, you know, and we will fall in love and all that.” A wistful look crossed her face as she looked out toward the kitchen window. His ship was in view. She looked back at him with a small smile. “But like I said, not many visitors come through here so that limits my chances that a handsome stranger would come by and take me away. Who knows, maybe someone on your crew would offer me the chance!” 

He nearly choked on his drink, cheeks flushing. Take her away from here? What if… no, no. He couldn’t. He didn’t know her and couldn’t ask her to join the crew, to come along with him and leave the island. He was supposed to be suspicious of her, not feel wooed by her words of longing like that. It was a romantic notion, to be swept away by a handsome stranger like that, taken far from home for new adventures, having tales of her own. Instead he shook his head and sat back in chair. It wouldn’t be him since what woman would find him handsome? Even with a dwindling population she would have better luck finding a husband on this island than with a pirate. 

“Yea, well…” He grumbled as he raised his bottle to his lips once more. “I’m sure something will happen.”

Midori smiled at him as she collected the empty bottles and took them to the sink to rinse out. He kept his eyes on her, a thought coming to his mind. His hand detached from his wrist and flew over to her, tugging on the back of her dress. At least he was being polite enough not to pinch her ass (though there was a bit of temptation there). She turned around, eyes widening at the floating hand. Buggy let out a laugh as his hand flew back to him.

“H-How do you do that?!” She demanded as she stomped over to him, grabbing his hand and pulling it towards her. She gave it a few tugs, trying to see if she could remove it herself. Buggy jerked back from her.

“It’s the Devil Fruit I ate.” He told her, slightly alarmed by her more physical reaction than fear. “The Chop Chop fruit… my body can separate.”

He didn’t like the look in her eyes right then. Now he was regretting even accepting the offer for lunch at that point.

“I need your help with something, Captain.”

[not-poignant]

Hi Pia. I was rereading the chapter of ice plague where Augus supervises Eren dominating Mosk and, UGH it's so good. I love how careful Augus is when it comes to Mosk.

I'm also enjoying Smoke in autumn too but would you ever write a scene between fae Augus and Mosk some point in the future?

I'm really curious how Augus the waterhorse would be with Mosk the dryad.

Hi anon!

I've sort of put writing the fae versions of those characters behind me after the Fae Tales canon (with the exception of The Nascent Diplomat because it's very different and so I can handle writing it).

Besides, Augus and Mosk as the pairing I'm writing right now is not super popular overall. But that's the version of them I'm most interested in writing, so that will probably get a few more chapters over time.

I suppose the other thing is, it's hard for me to just dislocate characters from their locations like that. I'd need a reason for Augus to want to sleep with Mosk, I'd need to kill off Eran to make him okay with it, lol, and a Mosk without fae Eran is a Mosk that Augus isn't interested in. And I just...don't know that I have the brain space to really make that work when I'm already writing Augus/Mosk.

I know other people can just go 'let's magically forget all the worldbuilding details and here are these two characters having sex because they have chemistry', but... I would find that easier re: fanfic and a lot harder re: these characters in these versions of themselves. Tbh not wanting to solve that problem anon is how we ended up with something like Smoke in Autumn in the first place.

Unfortunately fae Augus and fae Mosk hooking up will have to be something y'all have to figure out, because I get too deep in my head about it and I can't actually see a way of it working without some kind of tragic ending (because fae Augus wouldn't want to end up with fae Mosk, fae Eran would never actually want it, and there's basically no way for it work out without like...killing someone, or leaving someone abandoned and alone, at least in my head. Hell, I was like 'if Gwyn was adopted by the Raven Prince he'd have a happy life' and when I was pressed to write it out, we got The Nascent Diplomat where Gwyn got the opposite of a happy life. If you leave me problem solving worldbuilding details, there's way more sadness than if someone else just writes a oneshot, :D ).

[pixies-and-poets]

Bramble’s Fanfic Collection

Hi friends!! I’ve been wanting to do this for a while: since I don’t, as of yet, post my work on AO3 or anywhere else besides here, I wanted to get together a collection of my writing. I will keep this post current, so if you are looking at this from a reblog, be aware that it might not be up to date unless you visit the original post!

This isn’t everything I’ve written in my life, of course, but it’s everything that lives here. I have much older stuff that I might port over here gradually if I decide I’m still happy with it. 

Nothing I write is too explicit, but it sometimes may deal with body horror, injury, death, and distressing themes such as depression and suicidal ideation. Content warnings are given on individual posts.

Fanfics are collected into general fandom categories below. Thanks to anyone who’s ever read, commented on and enjoyed my work!

Super Mario RPG

I first played SMRPG over half of my lifetime ago, but it never really captured my imagination until the remake came out. Being older, I felt like I was in a better spot to appreciate some of its more subtle themes, and became enamored with the Smithy Gang in particular. I haven't written all that much yet, but I'd like to do more.

The Forging - A Spear is born.

Smithy Gang Headcanons - My personal timeline and background from which I hope to eventually build more ideas.

Mack/Claymorton Headcanons

Mario + Rabbids

This is the fandom that brought me back to tumblr and got me to stick around, and also got me writing on my own again after ages of drought. Years ago I would have never believed that rabbids would get me to write so much, but here I am, and I’m grateful for it!

Most of these so far are about Woodrow and Palette Prime more generally, because that’s where my brain lives, and the catastrophe poet is very special to my heart. I’ll eventually branch out more though, I swear.

I write a bunch of Phandrow (Phantom x Woodrow) stuff specifically; it started out with me trying to justify a crackship to my own brain and then whoops! I became obsessed

Of Verses and Curses 

My magnum opus of fanfics, as of yet, and the longest work of fiction I have written independently in my life, this is a story of finding the person who loves you even if your passion in life seems to only bring failure and misfortune. It’s a deeply personal story built off a lot of my own feelings and struggles. It’s also a story about two gay rabbids who have never canonically met. [Phantom x Woodrow, also includes plenty of Dryad x Sweetlopek] 

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Epilogue

Music of the Night

The dark inverse to Of Verses and Curses, set in the Sparks of Despair AU created by @pastelprince18​, this is a far more upsetting tale of doomed love and unhappy endings. There is a monster at the end of this book.

(Body horror warning, especially at the end, so just be aware before you get invested.)

Chapter One - In Sleep He Sang to Me

Chapter Two - Do I Dream Again?

Chapter Three - Our Strange Duet

Chapter Four - To Glance Behind

Chapter Five - Those Who Have Seen Your Face

Chapter Six - Where Night is Blind

Chapter Seven - Angel of Music

Other Woodrow or Phandrow stuff

Bwahstrella’s Warning - an exploration of what might happen when you push the galaxy’s own disaster poet to the heights or the depths of his passion. [Phantom x Woodrow]

Poetry Slammed - Sweetlopek’s perspective of a certain boat incident. [Sweetlopek and Woodrow, platonic]

Happy Phandrow Things - not really a fanfic so much as a collection of thoughts/headcanons but they make me happy so they’re going here, gosh darnit!

The Eulogist - Woodrow necromancer AU. Not sure I need to say more than that. [character death and slight body horror warning]

Wolf of the Woods - An exploration of a Werewolf Woodrow AU! While not much in itself, people liked it; not only did it spearhead a lot of fun discussion/art, but it’s pretty much what got me writing again and therefore led to EVERYTHING above!

Unmerged - Not really a fic, but an exploration of an idea that makes me too sad to think about too much D:

An Appeal to the Heavens - In a time long past, a poor poet makes a desperate plea to the god he yearns to serve.

Pocket Poet, Part 1 | Part 2 - my one exploration of the Borrower AU: tiny Woodrow experiences the theatrical world of his lover, up close and personal.

Non-Woodrow Stuff (wtf, it DOES exist)

Something from Nothing - before we really knew what the Tower of Doooom was about, we had thoughts. Unhappy thoughts. [featuring Spawny and extra-evil Phantom]

M+R Timeline Analysis - Not a fic, but some background on how I view this universe.

Tools of the Traitors - A mini Super Paper Mario crossover between Kanya and Dimentio.

The High Seas AU

Sirens and Soliloquys - a pirate poet who bears a curse in secret is tempted by a siren's song, and gets more than he could have possibly imagined as a result.

Further worldbuilding and character background ideas for the AU!

Sea Legs - just a little more Phandrow silly sweetness

The Vampire [Phanpire?] AU

A Phandrow-centric AU that really speaks for itself, collaboratively created. Usually Phantom is the vampire and Woodrow his willing prey, but sometimes the roles are reversed, sometimes the ""victim"" is Prima Donna (Phantom's drag persona), sometimes they're both vampires- look, we like to have fun here.

As a general warning, pretty much anything in this collection will deal with blood and mild injury.

A Bite for Good Luck - my starting point for this AU, and its companion piece from Tom's perspective.

Burning Like The Sunrise - a little prequel to the above. A tale of passion at first bite.

One Paw in the Grave - Woodrow learns just how vulnerable a vampire can be.

Bat's Eye View - A vampire shows his beloved the world as he sees it.

Batsong - Lord Phan runs into misfortune; but thankfully, it's only of a rather amusing kind.

Various Vampire Phandrow Ideas: A Duet | The Lord's Protection | Thoughts on Sleep | Something More Than Blood | Nothing Wasted | Paeans to Prima Donna | Sacred Anatomy

Donkey Kong/Banjo-Kazooie/Rare-Playtonic Universe

A Donkey Kong’s World - this is a narrative record of the homebrew D&D campaign I was in, and includes elements from all of the things mentioned above, as well as Sea of Thieves and the Mario series. I’m including it here because not only was I involved as one of the characters, but I actually novelized most of the whole story (taking over from our DM who did the first few chapters) based on our session recordings. It was an extremely special experience for me, and is quite a long read, but if you’re a big fan of any of these franchises I think you might enjoy coming along with us. [Link is external and goes to the forum where the story is hosted.]

Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (+ Bowser’s Minions)

These are years old, from before my tumblr hiatus, so they may not be quite up to my current standards... but I still like them.

Anamnesis - While Popple and Rookie plan their biggest heist yet, Rookie tries to remember who he is... and almost does.

Wallflower - In the quiet moments, Captain Shy Guy realizes just how much he cares about that silly Goomba... [Captain Shy Guy x Captain Goomba]

The Stolen Birthday - a little headcanon for a Popple backstory.

That’s all for now!!