#I'd like to be optimistic but this really feels like the end - a goodbye in many regards

[cosien]

Goodbye little ones <3

[im-a-king-baby]

Hey, I love ELYN 😭❤️

So my two fave scenes/ moments were the 'keep of the lake house for now' and 'I've been in love with him since' so any commentary will be amazing. Any extra stuff will be amazing so 🪻please 😊

Hiii <3

Gonna put these 3 under a cut because length

“So hold onto that lake house for a while longer,” he says. “Okay?”

Context: i wrote the majority of the first draft of ELYN for Nanowrimo in 2022 (basically a challenge where you write a 50k novel in the month of November) and then I rewrote and edited it over a bunch of months.

So this chapter was actually very similar to the original draft, except that in Draft 1 all of the vote fallout was in one chapter which had the Simon scene first then the Nils scene. In the editing/developing process all the non-Wilhelm characters grew a lot so I knew I wanted to expand Nil's role, and add some more Felice which meant I could bump Simon into his own chapter.

(there was absolutely not meant to be a giant posting gap between the Nils scene and the Simon scene. To be completely honest if I'd known I was going to need that long to finish the fic off I'd probably have chosen to put the gap immediately after the debate because... tension 😈)

The main places where the Simon scene got extended was in the details - Simon's life and career was not well thought through in draft 1 and a lot of the extra length across the whole fic came from building that up - but the lakehouse beat was always there because it was important that Simon's rehab process had to be something he did independent of Wilhelm, so this idea of Wilhelm offering up this house and Simon rejecting it, then clarifying that it's a 'not yet' but hopefully one day when he's in a better place.

Wilhelm's 'I keep thinking about the last time you went to L.A.' was not in the original and was one of those character beats that didn't come to me until months later, but that really pulled together Wilhelm's feelings at that moment and his reluctance to let Simon leave, and that then led really nicely back into Simon saying hang on to the house, because hopefully its not goodbye this time.

“Keira asked what was different about you,” Simon says. “I said: I fell in love with Wilhelm when I was sixteen, and I have been in love with him every day since.”

Okay so this part was possibly the slowest part of the fic to write mostly because I was still figuring out how to articulate this ending which was meant to be optimistic but not magic-wand-everything's-fixed-now. This line in particular came about because I was trying to find where Simon was sitting emotionally and ended up writing a very short therapy in L.A. scene in which Simon dropped this line and I was immediately like 'well, that has to get into the main story.'

It's a nice parallel to Wilhelm's 'I'm never going to stop being in love with him.' in chapter 8, and it highlights that the issues between them have never been a lack of love or not wanting to be together, it's always been these outside forces that they need to break away from.

Also its one of those lines that you write down and then you read it and you're like 'people are gonna quote this one back at me' and its nice when you get that right 😅

And on that theme, your 🪻 is:

“Do you want to tell me what you’re thinking about?” This is the worst part of therapy. “Wilhelm.” Keira’s eyebrows twitch slightly, which is the only reaction he ever gets and means he’s surprised her. “We haven’t spoken much about Wilhelm, not since you asked if you could text him. Are you ready to tell me more about what happened between you?” “You could check the tabloids.” Her ‘you know that’s not what I meant’ look reminds him of Candace, except that she hasn’t figured out how to also convey ‘and I’m disappointed and you’re exhausting and you’d be nothing without me.’ “I’d like to hear it in your own words.” Simon absolutely can’t look at her. “I fell in love with Wilhelm when I was sixteen,” he says. “And I’ve been in love with him every day since. He’s the one I think about every time I sing a love song. Still. I have slept with - I don’t know, hundreds? - of people since I left Sweden and none of it meant anything, compared to him.” “What was it like, seeing him again?” He’d been drinking steadily in the car on the way to the benefit concert so that he’d be able to smile and read a teleprompter and not just stand there staring but it was a close thing. After his performance they’d swept him into a room where he drank champagne and smiled for the cameras. Wilhelm had touched a fingertip to his bare shoulder and Simon had wanted him so badly it hurt in places he’d thought could no longer feel anything. He doesn’t have words for that, except that it was like being in love. “He showed me I could do this,” Simon says instead. “That I could get out. That these systems we were caught up in weren’t infallible.” She frowns very slightly. “Do you think he spoke out against the monarchy for you?” Maybe? He offered once. On a cold night in his ridiculous scarf in so many words that it was Ayub who figured out what he was getting at after he’d walked away. But, no. “He did it for him. Because he needed it. And I did this for me. But there couldn’t be an ‘us’ before. Because of all those things getting in the way. And now… and maybe we both did it a bit for that. For love. Or whatever.”

[sun-marie]

I finished BG3 for the second time last night, and I have many spoilery thoughts about it (including PICTURES) so I'll put them under a cut. BG3 spoilers ahead, be warned!

I enjoyed the ending a lot more than my first playthrough (even Karlach notwithstanding, since this was the first time getting her sick Avernus ending). My first time I felt a little left out to dry by how it felt cut-off with no epilogue, but now that I saw that coming I enjoyed it more for what it was, if that makes sense! Though epilogues would still be nice, especially if there the same level of quality as Karlach's Avernus ending (but honestly I'd be fine with a slideshow too)

I have also made my peace with Ruathym becoming a Mindflayer. I don't think he wanted to do it per say, but I do think it suits him, and I'm cautiously optimistic in believing the game on him being an unprecedented mindflayer who may still retain himself and his soul. Plus it adds a really tasty tragic twist to his character, especially being in a romance with Lae'zel. Both Zephyr and Ruathym's romances have the potential for tragedy, but Gale's is seen ahead of time by the characters in the story, making it more satisfying to fight against it, while there's no way any of the characters could anticipate Ruathym having to become a mindflayer to free the prince of his lover and save the world, so it's more satisfying to lean into that dramatic irony. Plus, like, he lived in the Underdark anyway, and I don't think animals would shy away from him? So he'll be okay in the long run, I think. (Copium? Undoubtedly.)

I would really like to see like epilogue slides for the characters. If I wasn't romancing Gale I'd have no idea his plan was to go back to Waterdeep, and I had to look this up but if you romance Halsin he tells you he's going to start an orphanage! Why is that romance-exclusive information?? And like Shadowheart and Astarion are left out to DRY, people have already mentioned it before but there's no way the party would just let Astarion run off like that without following him. And if you let Shadowheart's parents die, there is zero follow up on what her plans are after all this. So idk, I know Larian said they're working on the ending, and I'm looking forward to it.

I would enjoy the ending much much more though if it actually worked. Like, I had to reset the game multiple times bc it just refused to render

Like idk I know it's a big game and my PC isn't the newest, but it's not ancient either and some people are playing this on their laptop for crying out loud!! I shouldn't be dealing with this level of graphical issues. (The same issues were cropping up during Gortash's coronation btw, which is what made pics for my mod such a pain to get). And while I do mod my game, I can't believe the mods I have are enough to cause this 😭

So, that kinda put a damper on things, but the *content* of the ending, I mostly like! It does feel very epic, and I appreciate that it was challenging but not impossibly difficult. It's also very satisfying to see everyone again, almost teared up when Rolan and Barcus Wroot gave their support to me! They were just That One Grumpy Tiefling At The Grove and That One Gnome We Saved From A Windmill, and look at them now!! ahhh that was really good.

And while I think it still needs to be extended, I do actually like the immediate nature of the goodbyes. Wyll and Karlach have to go to Avernus now, Astarion needs to get out of the sun now, and Lae'zel needs to leave for her people, and Ruathym is a Mindflayer now. It gives the ending an appropriately bittersweet note. We won, but we still lost people, even if we may see them again. It all happens so fast because the tadpoles died like *snap* that.

I loved this game, and I like this ending. I'm going to make myself wait before I replay it (bc this one of those games I want to be playing all the time), and when I do I want to see if I can squeeze one more oc or one more romance in there. I don't really do AUs, which include other playthroughs with different protags, and I'm not a huge fan of having a pc for every romance option, but I think between the options that are free (Halsin, Shadowheart, Wyll, Karlach, Astarion,....Minthara(?)) somebody could pair up! Even if it's after the events of the game lol. So I'm kinda tossing around the idea of a Wyll origin playthrough and finding who he'd romance, but idk yet, we'll see 👀

[lumilasi]

So, I don't often share about my irl much here as Its not really that relevant, but....I guess I just feel the need to say something rn, a little bit?

My grandma passed away yesterday morning, she'd been in hospital for weeks by now, due to fever if I recall right. (Normal influenza, just to clarify. She was 89 and her immune system was quite weak by now)

This has been....especially rough to my mum (her daughter) as only just this summer we also said goodbye to her big sis/my aunt (she had cancer), whom she was close with.

Now, I hadn't seen grandma much for the past 4-5 years due to my earlier studies keeping me busy, so I was no longer as close with her, but it still hurts ofc. She was an amazing lady who always looked at life's ups and downs with a glint in her eye and a smile.

I still remember the stories she told me when I was a kid, from that time their cat showed up one day with buncha kittens, to the 'mud war' between mum, her siblings and the neighboring kids. How she got jokingly all jelly pouty, because I really liked the Karelian pies (a traditional finnish pastry) her friend made. (She didn't make those often herself)

She had all those drawings/paintings I'd made for her still hanging on her bedroom wall, including a poem I made when I was like....10 or 7, can't remember exactly which. (Apparently it was really good? She knew like a pro who was surprised to learn the writer was a kid lol)

We'll all miss her, she was such a resilient, optimistic sunshine lady, who even near the end was still smiling and jesting with her kids.

Rest in peace grandma, I'm so glad I had you as part of my life

[andiinaraethtash]

What's this? A chapter?

Chapter 19: Cause I See Smoke Up Ahead (And I Got Steel in My Hands)

Notes:

... yeah. It's been over a month. Blame an ongoing mental health crisis. I'm hanging on by the skin of my teeth, but I'm hanging on, so. There's that. To everyone that has left comments and kudos, thank you. I don't know if I'd be able to push on without you guys. Tw: This is the start of the big battle. So, y'know, blood and violence and all that. Otherwise, should be good. Chapter title from Goodbye by Arcane

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

The good news is that they have a plan. The bad news is that the plan is terrible, at least in Gem’s humble opinion. But they don’t have much of a choice; they can’t stop the ritual, seeing as the groundwork has already been laid, was laid months ago, and if it isn’t performed, the resulting explosion will level the empires.

At least, that’s where the research Gem, Sausage, and Scott have been doing is pointing to. They can’t be sure, but they really don’t want to test that theory.

So instead of interrupting the ritual, they’re going to change it. During his journey through the spirit realm last year, Sausage found a different form of corruption, light corruption, an equal and opposite power to the corruption that Exor is so fond of, and when Scott sees it, he immediately confirms that it is tied to Aeor. Therefore, if they can replace the corruption Exor’s going to be using in the ritual with the light corruption, they can summon Aeor instead.

That’s the hope, anyway. As Jimmy points out when they present the plan to him, “There’s a lot of room for things to go off the rails, and knowing us, knowing our luck, it’s going to.”

But even with that optimistic outlook, it’s the best shot they have. They have three days to prepare, three days to rest, recover, and make sure they’re in peak physical condition, three days for Scott to master his powers and for Gem to regain control of her magic.

She does her best to make sure she’s ready, but her sleep is interrupted by the echoes of fWhip’s last scream, and she can’t eat because the food just tastes like ash in her mouth. She’s jumping at shadows, and there’s nothing that makes her feel better, especially seeing as they all left to their respective empires to secure them and set up successors in case anything happens to any of them. None of them are nearby to reassure her that everything’s going to be okay, that they’ll make it all through this. Instead, she’s left to give instructions to Gandalf and Rohan, who both had been so happy to see her and devastated that they might be losing her all over again, and pray that they’re unnecessary.

So instead of eating or sleeping, she practices, making sure to rest and take breaks when she needs to, but her magical abilities were somewhat strangled by her captivity, and it takes a bit for her to get back into the swing of things. Once she does, though, she finds her magic is actually stronger, and maybe that’s because of whatever cure Katherine gave her, or maybe it’s because her magic grows with her. She doesn’t know, and doesn’t care enough to do the research to find out.

There’s something relieving about being more powerful, something that feels a lot like courage. She knows she’s strong enough to stand up to Exor now—maybe not beat him, but she’ll definitely make him kill her if he wants to beat her. She’ll never be his captive again.

Finally, the day of the new moon dawns, and they all gather in Rivendell once again, this time in Scott’s secret meeting room instead of in his house. He and Jimmy greet them all—Jimmy must have come early, but since he’s more or less taken charge, no one really questions it—but Scott’s wearing his antlers again, and they’re still gleaming gold, but they now have ice crystals dancing around them, with small icicles, like small daggers or sharp teeth, hanging from the antlers themselves.

Gem has her big hat, the one that fWhip and Sausage had taken to teasing her about, and her staff and the sword fWhip made for her. Just putting it on her belt had nearly reduced her to tears. She misses him more than she would have thought she would, especially given that she’s lost him before, but she supposes there’s no getting used to this kind of pain.

The rest have their sturdiest armour, their strongest weapons, and even with all the swords, shields, tridents, bows, and quivers full of potion-tipped arrows, they know they’re not strong enough. There’s no way they can beat a god with mortal weapons.

Even as Gem looks around the room, thinking this, Scott takes his seat at the head of the table. Joey, Joel, and Sausage immediately claim the seats on one side of the table, and Pearl produces a stool which she sets at the foot of the table and proceeds to all but collapse into it. She looks as tired as Gem feels, and she doesn't doubt that her friend has gotten as little sleep as she has.

Pix gestures her, Katherine, and Lizzie into the three remaining chairs, electing to stand next to Shrub, while Jimmy stands next to Scott. As soon as they’re all seated, Jimmy beckons Shrub over and she lays out a map of a city surrounded by gorges, lava pits, and the tentacles of corruption Gem remembers vividly from when Xornoth was loose.

It’s so unrecognisable it takes a moment for Gem to recognize the city as Eastvale, and the surroundings as the plains of the Grimlands. The city stands on the map like a beacon of light, but even it is slowly being overrun by the red. The Manor and the Forge both still stand strong, seemingly untouched, but Shrub’s words quickly break that illusion.

“He’s setting up shop in the Forge,” Shrub says, and Gem feels her heart sink and her throat close up. Of course he’d desecrate everything that fWhip had built, if only for laughs. If the damage is even repairable, it’s going to take so much time and resources, she wonders if it’ll even be worth it, or if the Grimlands are destined to become something dead and uninhabitable.

Jimmy nods, then gestures at Sausage. “You’ll be in charge of switching out the summoning items, Sausage. Pick two to go with you. Pix, take one and clear out Eastvale. We want to save as many people as we can. Scott and Gem, you, me and the other three will need to hold Exor’s attention.”

Sausage, Pix, Scott, and Gem all nod, and Pearl adds, “There’s a secret tunnel under the chapel, it goes directly to fWhip’s farmhouse. It should help you get the villagers out safely.”

Pix nods again, then turns to Shrub. As he asks her to go with him, Sausage turns to Lizzie and Joel, who quickly nod at the unspoken question.

As soon as that’s decided, Scott clears his throat, and produces a wrapped item, which looks suspiciously like a sword. “There’s something else you should know about.”

They all still, and look at him expectantly. Jimmy nudges Scott, encouraging him to go along, and Gem holds her breath. This is big, she can feel it.

Scott sighs heavily and unwraps the sword, and Pix immediately gasps. “Is that…” the prophet asks, and Scott nods.

“It’s called the Rune Blade. It has… a great deal of power. According to the book I found on it, it can sever the bonds between ruler and land.”

“Not just that,” Pix puts in. “It sends the victim to the afterlife of the wielder’s choosing. That… that is a powerful weapon, and a deadly one. Where did you even find it?”

Scott gestures vaguely upward and behind him. “The festival grounds. It was encased in ice up there, ice I didn’t summon. If I had to guess…”

“Aeor,” Gem breathes, hope and fear in equal measure rising in her chest. “It has to be. There’s no way anyone or anything else could have found it and put it there. The ice practically confirms it. So why would he give it to you?”

Scott shifts uncomfortably. “I’m not sure.”

Now, Gem is no expert on Scott, or his body language. She can’t tell what he’s thinking without him saying anything the way Jimmy can. But even she knows he's lying, or at the very least is hiding something.

Interesting… and concerning.

Still, she doesn’t pry, though from the look Jimmy is giving him, she has to guess that he will.

Slowly, she stands, reaching for her staff. “We should get going,” she says, nerves gathering in a ball in her stomach. “It’s not getting any earlier.”

Nods all around, and the others all stand, grabbing weapons and shields. They’re all nervous, she realises, and it does nothing to ease her nerves. Gods, what are they doing? They have no way of knowing if this is even going to work. They could all be headed straight to their deaths—and the deaths of everyone and everything they hold dear.

They head out, and Gem takes a second to pull Pearl into a hug, then gets wrapped up by Sausage. “I love you guys,” she whispers, “just in case something happens, I need you to know—”

Sausage shushes her before pulling away. “Hey, now, none of that. We’ll be fine. I’ll see you when this is over, okay? Just stay safe. I… I promised I wouldn’t let anything happen to any of you. Don’t make me a liar.”

That’s a bit of a tall order, but she nods anyway. Pearl does the same, and they stand around in a circle that should have one more member, and they all know it, before finally Lizzie calls Sausage over, and Pearl and Gem head over to where Scott, Jimmy, Joey, and Katherine are waiting. One way or another, this ends now.

And she has a sinking feeling in her gut that it’s not going to end the way they want.

_______

The plan goes off the rails almost the instant they arrive. As soon as Eastvale comes into view, the Forge, which had been sitting innocuously on top of the jagged cliff, explodes, sending a fireball into the sky as the top of the building is flung straight up into the air, before coming crashing down at the base of the cliffs.

Gem pulls up in shock—a bad thing to do when gliding through the air—and she can hear the others exclaim in surprise as soot and ash are thrown in every direction. She coughs as she struggles to regain her balance, which, again, is hard to do in midair, but she manages to stabilise her flight enough to land on the roof of the walls that surround the city.

The only ones who don’t land next to her are Pix and Shrub, who are leading the rescue effort. They’re entering the city through the secret tunnel Pearl had mentioned, and Gem dearly hopes that Exor doesn’t know about it. But then, he’s had free reign of the city for about two weeks now, he might have found it in that time. It’s hardly a secret to the people of Eastvale.

Still, she exchanges a look with Jimmy and Sausage, the former of whom gestures her best friend forward, along with Lizzie and Joel, before turning to Scott, herself, Joey, Katherine and Pearl.

“Let’s go cause some noise,” Jimmy says, looking grim.

They all nod, unsheathe their blades—or in Gem’s case, readies her staff—but she can’t help but notice that Scott isn’t using the Rune Blade. He’s using his own sword, which, while effective, doesn’t have the same power that the Rune Blade does. He’s probably trying to keep it secret, as an ace up his sleeve in case things don’t go the way they hope.

Scott takes the lead, diving down and firing a rocket to help boost himself toward the Forge, where debris and ash is still raining down, filling the air. Gem has to cover her mouth with the hem of her tunic to keep from breathing in the filthy air.

They land right outside, careful not to step on any of the rubble, which has heat waves rolling off of it, and look around carefully.

Exor is nowhere to be seen.

They all exchange a look, silently agreeing that it’s a trap, and go to step inside.

Immediately a red forcefield springs into existence in their faces, and Jimmy, who was in front, bounces off of it with a yelp. Scott catches him as he stumbles, helping him keep his feet, then whirls around. Gem copies him, and is thoroughly unsurprised to see Exor waiting for them.

Well, her brain says it’s Exor. Her eyes, her heart says it’s fWhip, because while his skin still has patches of corruption growing on it, is still blackened in several areas, is still riddled with red veins that pulse with unholy energy, it’s also showing through in its normal colour in places. His eyes are red, still, but they somehow look more alive than they had the last several times she’d seen him.

But then she takes another look, and her heart catches up to her eyes which catch up to her brain, and she can clearly see the deer god in place of her brother. His stance, his expression, his body language, scream arrogance, scream malice in a way that fWhip had never projected. This isn’t her brother. Her brother is dead. This is just the thing wearing his body.

She gathers a fireball on the end of her staff and points it directly at the god. “Exor.”

“Gem,” he says, smirking. “I see you’re back on your feet. How fortunate; you living is just as beneficial as you dying would be, if not more.”

Gem scowls, and the fireball grows. “Believe it or not, but I’m hoping to inconvenience you more with my living than with my dying.”

Exor’s smirk broadens, and he turns to Jimmy. “Well, well, if it isn’t the cod boy. Finally stopped running from your responsibilities, have you?”

Jimmy swallows hard, but readies his weapons. “I don’t run from anything. Not anymore.”

With a laugh, Exor then turns to Scott and gestures at Pearl. “And I see you’ve managed to forgive her. After everything she did to you, you still are too weak to finish her off.”

“She’s my friend. Of course I forgave her.”

“Oh, so your friend gets your forgiveness, but not your brother? Not your blood?”

Scott bristles, and Gem shuffles a little closer to him, letting him know she’s there for him, he’s not alone. “My brother killed my parents, tried to damn the entire kingdom to a living hell. Tried to kill me, did kill some of my friends. You might have influenced him, but those were still his choices, and I can’t forgive him for that.”

Gem winces. She knows, somewhere deep inside her, that Scott still loves Xornoth, it’s just buried by layers and layers of loneliness and hurt. She knows because despite every mistake fWhip ever made, every time Sausage betrayed them, she still loves them. The only difference is that she can forgive them. She’s not sure Scott is lying when he says he can’t.

Exor grins. “ Were they? You forget, I am perfectly capable of puppeting someone around even without my true self being present in this realm. Eventually Xornoth’s will crumbled and gave way to mine. Granted, it took decades—time I didn’t have with this meat puppet” —Gem growls when he says that, and Pearl bares her teeth in a savage snarl— “but I did it. And now, now my plan has come to fruition.”

There’s a yelp inside the Forge, and Gem has to fight her instincts not to turn around, because Exor is grinning, and she knows the battle is about to start. “Oh, little elf, did you think you could sneak past me? I may not have an agent on the inside anymore, but I can still guess your next moves. You are so predictable.”

Distantly, Gem is aware that the sun is setting, and the new moon is rising, but she’s more focused on Exor’s next words.

“Ready for my next move?”

He hurls a fireball at Scott, and Gem releases hers as Pearl and Joey charge. While Katherine hangs back and shoots from a distance, Gem takes off, circling the air above them and raining fireballs down at the enemy.

Exor exchanges a few blows with Joey and Pearl, then bats the jungle ruler away with a backhand that sends him flying, and shoves Pearl backward into the forcefield, where she bounces and lands in a heap. As she scrambles to her feet, Gem lands, exchanges a look with Scott, and charges, swinging her staff and sword in perfect unison.

They don’t have a choice. They have to win.

_______

As soon as Lizzie, Joel, and Sausage enter the Forge, a forcefield springs into being, trapping them inside. Lizzie whirls around, hearing footsteps from the shadows, and is thoroughly unsurprised to see illagers, zoglins, and ravagers hurtling toward them.

There must be some sort of magical mechanism summoning them, she figures, but that’s largely unimportant, because right now she has to defend Sausage while he tries to alter the ritual. Almost as soon as she’s set her shield, though, Sausage lets out a strangled yelp, and she risks a glance behind her to see him reeling backwards, hand clutched to his chest as a force field smokes at the point of contact. That’s not good.

But within the next few seconds, she’s too overwhelmed by enemies to pay any attention to what he does next. He’s cursing behind her, but all she can focus on is whirling her trident around in savage arcs, skewering, slashing, and shoving the enemies that threaten to overwhelm her. Somewhere above her, arrows are being fired down at a rate she’s only seen from Joel a handful of times. She knows, though, why he’s so desperate to win, to survive. Gods know she’s desperate as well (JimmyJoelPixKatherineScottGemPearlSausageJoeyShrub all fighting to survive, fighting to keep the empires alive).

There’s a zoglin bearing down on her, and she manages to impale it, but her trident gets stuck in its ribcage, and she wastes precious seconds trying to rip it out. It doesn’t budge. Cursing, she scrambles for her sword—unadorned netherite, enchanted but not well-used—but she sees a crossbow headed her way and knows she can’t block it in time. So instead of grabbing her sword, she reaches into her bags, closing her hand around the base of a totem as the crossbow hits.

It hurts, it always hurts when she dies, but this time she’s not exactly dying, she lives, because the totem of undying she had in her hand dissolves into liquid gold, which flows up her arm in a familiar rush to seal the hole in her chest, pushing the crossbow bolt out and filling her with renewed strength.

Still, she curses, because that was the only totem she had that wasn’t buried under useless junk she’s never bothered cleaning out of her bags, and she hadn’t meant for it to be used so early. It’s better than dying, but that’s not the point.

Desperate, she reaches out to the utter extent of her powers, calling the ocean to her in the only way she could, the only way it could reach her all the way inland, and as a great bank of thunderstorms roll in from the northwest, she grins savagely and thrusts out her hand, recalling her trident. It flies into the palm of her hand as the rain clouds above burst open, and she calls down the biggest lightning bolt she can.

The following thunderclap is loud enough that it temporarily deafens her, and though Lizzie closes her eyes, she’s still rendered blind by the enormous flash of light. She lashes out blindly, feeling the blows she lands as they reverberate up her arm, but she can’t see where they’re landing or where the enemy is coming from.

But there’s a lull in the action, like she killed more than could spawn at a time, and she takes a split second to breathe, blinking the stars out of her eyes. Her vision clears just in time to see Joel go down as a vindicator strikes him in the back with an axe.

With a scream, she takes off, landing on the minecart rail to stand over her husband. Crouching in a defensive manner with her shield covering them both, she ducks her head down and checks on Joel, who is surprisingly conscious and looking confused, but he’s also growing paler by the second as a blood pool gathers beneath him, staining his magenta shirt a deep maroon.

“Joel, stay with me,” she says as she rolls him onto his side so she can see the wound. It’s deep, but it mostly just hit the shoulder, not the lung or liver (or whatever Joel has that passes for that) so it’s just blood loss she has to worry about, though that’s no small thing.

“Not planning on going anywhere,” Joel manages, slurring his words slightly. “You and me… we’re getting our happy ending if I have to kill for it.”

“Good news on that front,” Lizzie says, as lightly as she can, because her hands are shaking, and her shield is shuddering as the illagers rain down blows on it. It’s not going to last much longer. “You may just have to.”

Joel glances around the shield and his eyes go even wider. “Oh.”

Snorting a quick laugh, she splashes a regen potion on him, then gives him a health potion. “Here, drink that, then get back to the fight. I need you—”

“Aww, I need you too,” he interjects, and she glares.

“I need you to watch my back,” she finishes, and he deflates slightly.

“Right.”

As he downs the potion, Lizzie roars a battlecry and charges forward. The illagers are all nicely lined up for her along the rail line, and she grins savagely as they all fall off, toppling to the ground below like autumn leaves before a gale. With a flying leap, she jumps off the suspended railway and comes crashing down on a ravager, imbedding her trident in the base of its skull.

As her impromptu mount dies with a shriek and a frankly unnecessary amount of thrashing about, she hops off and launches back into the fray. The tide is turning as the numbers of the enemy are whittled down, by herself, and Joel, and even Sausage who takes a moment from whatever he’s doing—he hasn’t removed the piece of red corruption from the altar, why hasn’t he removed it—to fire off a round of rockets from his assassin’s league-issue crossbow.

She turns to look at what Sausage has done as the last of the illagers falls to Joel’s arrows, and is shocked to see that he’s constructed another altar. “What—?” She starts to ask, but Sausage grabs her arm and tugs her—a mean feat, considering she is nearly four feet taller than him—toward the opening they sneaked in through.

“C’mon, we gotta go!” Sausage says, sounding worried but not overly stressed, which is odd because he hadn’t done what he’d been tasked with doing, why is he so calm—?

She doesn’t have any more time to wonder about that, because they’ve come up on a problem: they’re sealed in by the force-field that had sprung up in their wake. As Joel lands next to them, massaging his bad shoulder, Lizzie exchanges a look with Sausage. They’ve got no way out.

______

The ground above them shudders as Pix and Shrub turn the corner. He holds the torch up as she stumbles, grabbing her arm with his free hand to keep her upright.

“Sorry,” she pants as they press on.

Pix shakes his head, not sparing the breath to tell her it’s fine. It’s not, they both know it, but he wants to pass on the sentiment anyway. So he squeezes her arm just lightly enough to be taken as reassurance and lets go, pressing onward.

They’re still not quite to the exit that takes them up to the village, with Koda, Nova, and a few of the wolves tagging along, though the bulk of the rest of the wolves are stationed around the farmhouse, hiding behind the rubble of the Forge’s roof that had nearly crushed fWhip’s former retreat.

So they press on, Pix leading the way despite Shrub’s familiarity with the Grimlands, because she has never been down here, and while she is capable of defending herself, Pix feels better knowing he’s the first line of defence. They’re almost there, and he isn’t sure what they’re going to find, but he knows whatever it is, he’s going to protect Shrub from it as best he can.

Finally, they reach the exit, a series of stairs that leads out a cellar door to one of the back streets of Eastvale. The sky is nearly black, fire still spewing out of the top of the Forge, and there’s a thin blanket of ash covering everything. There’s a small garden to their right as they round the corner, but all the crops in it are dead, strangled by thin red vines.

But most concerningly, other than the flashes of magic from over the wall and the sounds of battle, there’s no signs of life. No movement, no sound; it’s like the city, once teeming with life, has died.

Behind him, Shrub gasps, her hand reaching out to clutch Pix’s robe. “No… where is everyone? They can’t have all…”

They can’t have all died, Pix finishes in his head. She’s right. There’s no signs of that level of violence, and Exor isn’t exactly the type to clean up after himself.

Turning to Koda and Nova, he kneels and scratches behind their ears. “Can you find them?”

As Shrub lights up, clearly finding hope in the possibility that the dogs can track down the missing people, Koda perks up, lowers his head to the ground, and starts casting around for a scent. Nova just watches, but she’s little more than a puppy, so he can hardly blame her for not knowing what’s being asked of her.

Finally, Koda seems to find something, because he barks and races off, through the main market place and down a side street that leads to a shop Pix doesn’t recognize. Shrub must, because she whispers something that sounds like, “Of course!” but she offers no explanation. It’s not needed anyway, because as soon as Pix pushes the door open, Koda and Nova both barrel forward, down some stairs that lead to a basement of sorts, clearly used for storage.

Pix tries not to feel too crestfallen, but it must show on his face because Shrub is nudging him and pointing to a painting. “Behind that,” she says, and Pix swingings it open, revealing a ladder that leads even farther down.

“A secret workshop?” He asks, and Shrub nods.

“It’s where he did all his tinkering. He even had a map of the empires down there. I didn’t know the villagers knew where it was.”

Leaving Koda, Nova, and the rest of the wolves at the top, they descend carefully, wary of any traps Exor might have set, but there are none. It’s quiet, like the cavern is holding its breath, but as soon as they turn down a tunnel, a makeshift club comes swinging at Pix’s head, and he barely gets his shield up in time to block it.

“Wait!” Shrub cries, and the villager who’d swung halts, looks down at her, and relaxes.

“Lady Shrub?” She asks, and Shrub nods.

“Is everyone here?” She looks around as she asks, and Pix does the same.

The tunnel seems to lead to a large cave, where sure enough, Pix can see a map of the empires stretched out across the wall. Huddled in the corners are maybe fifty villagers, less than a third of the population of Eastvale, but there are a few more people coming out of hiding places along the tunnel walls, and a few more curious heads poking out of another tunnel that undoubtedly leads farther into the caves.

The villager nods. “Everyone who survived. We lost several people to disease and starvation. But the children are still alive. Most of the women as well. Are you here to help us?”

“Yes,” Pix says, “we’re here to get you out. The other rulers are trying to kill Exor, the one who has possessed Count fWhip, but we need to know that you are all safe, otherwise, we’ll be distracted going into the battle, and that's something none of us can afford.”

Behind the woman, who looks ready to argue, a young boy, probably no more than ten, comes forward, grabbing her hand and looking at Pix with pleading eyes. “We can’t leave. Our lives are here, where else can we go?”

Pix kneels to be at his level. “Your lives aren't measured in the things you have here; your lives are here," He rests his hand against the boy's chest, against his heart. "That's all that matters, is that you have this." He taps the boy's chest one more time, then straightens. "Are there any who are unable to walk?"

A few people--an older woman, a girl with crutches, and a young man in a redstone powered wheelchair with a cat in his lap--all move forward, and Pix gestures them to the front. 

"Shrub, lead the way. Those three first, then the children and women. All the able-bodied men should space themselves out amid the group, to protect them. I doubt Exor will bother attacking us himself, but he has more minions than we have fighters, we can't afford to risk your lives."

Nods all around, and Shrub turns on her heel, gesturing the disabled people and the children forward. Koda and Nova both run through the crowd, greeting everyone with enthusiasm, and Pix smiles as the man in the wheelchair shoos Nova away, cradling his cat closer, and whispering, "It's okay, Jellie, we'll be alright."

As they proceed forward, Pix hurries to the map and observes it for a long moment. The bridge from the farmhouse to the Crystal Cliffs had been utterly wrecked, so that way is hopeless, but they have to get the villagers out of the Grimlands entirely, out of the corrupted area, out of Exor’s way. So that leaves either Rivendell, which has a target on it the size of the mountains it rests upon, or the Lost Empire. 

He supposes they could go to the Undergrove, but there is little room there for the hundred-odd villagers who've survived. That wouldn't be the smartest move. 

No, the smartest move would be to go to the Lost Empire, but that would mean traversing the shattered plains of the Grimlands, which is hard enough on a good day, but with women, children, and injured, and the plains the way they are… that seems impossible.

They'll have to cross that bridge when they get to it. Possibly literally.

He watches as the villagers file out of the tunnel, following his orders as to who goes where. It's a relief; he was half expecting some of them to push to the front or put up a fuss, but no, they're all being quiet, solemn, even, as they leave, their possessions in bags slung over their shoulder. 

Even Shrub's wolves are following his orders, spacing themselves along the line of refugees, though quite a few of them are waiting on him, his own personal bodyguards. He feels honoured, but he also knows that them waiting on his depriving the villagers of more protection. Hopefully, none of them will be lost because of that.

Finally, the line of refugees thins out and Pix unsheathes his sword, readying his trident in his off-hand as he casts one last glance around the room to ensure that they aren't leaving anyone behind. There's no way they make it to safety without a fight; he just has to hope they'll win it when it comes.

Notes:

I promise I'll update again within the next two weeks. Assuming I don't have to go to a mental health facility. Which, at this point is still a possibility. Anyway, did you catch the cameo from one of our favorite miners and crafters? I love sneaking these little Easter eggs into my works.

[rebelheartsmustbefree]

Valentines Day- 

No good deed… 

I don't know if I'll be back. It's a long story and I sure as fuck don't want to talk about my feelings. 

*It sounded harsh but Jason was pushing the issue and I didn't want to "hash out" what I was going through. I heard his sigh, I frowned.* 

I need time, Jay. I got a couple locals to fill in so you're not there alone every day. 

*He grumbled and I listened but I wasn't changing my mind. There was literally nowhere back there that I could be without it hurting so running from it was the best choice. It was MY choice. We said our goodbyes and the call ended, he was in no better mood and neither was I. I tucked my phone into my pocket and walked into the bar. I'm sure there was a joke somewhere about an Angel walking into a bar but I was in no mood for humor.* 

Ah.. what the fuck? 

*The place looked like cupid blew his load all over. Red and pink streamers hung up all over, little hearts dangling from them, love songs pathetically playing from an old jukebox in the corner. Please.. why did it have to be today.* 

Are you here for the speed dating?

*I heard a voice from behind me and then a tap on my arm. Chuckling as I turned around, this woman with a pretty smile greeted me.* 

No, I'm definitely not here for that. But I would highly appreciate you pointing me to the darkest corner I could be alone in and the best bottle of whiskey you can give me.

*I wasn't about to sign up for some dating thing. I figured in back woods Arkansas, gays are probably frowned apon. Besides, I was here for a night to sleep and be on my way and making uncomfortable small talk with anyone right now was the last thing I needed. She motioned over to the corner by the dart board and told me she'd bring me the bottle here in a minute after she helped her customers.* 

Take your time, sweetheart. 

*I felt bad about being the rain on her parade. She seemed excited about this whole dating Valentines Day thing she's set up. I had a thought. Before I'd reached the table I turned back and followed her over to the bar.* 

Hey.. did you want to join in on that dating shindig you got going on? I can run the bar for you while you do. *I turned on the charm and offered her my best smile. She seemed lonely and I could relate. Maybe she could find herself a date and not feel so lonesome tonight.* 

I.. I.. can't really pay you or anything. *I waved my hand, dismissing all that.* 

Let me have that bottle so I can have my drink and we're even. I'll even let you have all the tips. 

*She was grinning ear to ear at that point. Eh.. what the hell, might as well do a good deed. Maybe it will help my mood. I could tell she was a romantic, setting all this up so people could meet people and maybe find love. She was an optimist. I used to feel like that but cynicism won out in the end. But tonight for that chick, I'd stow away my bullshit and help her. 

She was practically skipping over to sign up and pay the organizer the entrance fee when she turned around and looked at me.* 

Wait.. do you know how to bartend? 

*I laughed and nodded, telling her not to worry. Her bar was in good hands. I poured myself a shot and downed it, grinning over at her.* 

You just have fun and leave the bartending to me for the night. 

*And she did. I tended to the customers and hopeful daters while she let herself be bubbly and talkative, trying to find a good one out of the bunch. Everytime the little bell would ring for them to switch, I'd look up to see which male was sitting down at her table next. 

Everyone seemed to be having a good time, the talk was like a continuous hum of excitement that filled the room. Also filling the room was all the hormones. Jesus these people needed laid. I finished up waiting on a couple guys and I leaned back against the bar and had a couple more shots while watching. The bell chimed out another time, signaling for the males to switch tables again and that's when I saw her walking quickly to the bar. It was the terror in her eyes that alarmed me but when she mouthed for me to "call the police", the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. 

My eyes quickly scanned the room and I searched for who or what she was running from and then I saw him. He was making quick strides towards her, yelling for her to stop. My heart caught in my throat when I saw the shimmer of light as the gunpowder ignited just before the bullet launched from the chamber. I didn't even think but instead before I knew it, I was grabbing her and shoving her down and out of the way of the bullet. 

The man stared at me, probably wondering who the fuck I was. But two of the male daters tackled him to the ground and kicked away the gun. I kneel down and check on her, making sure she was okay. As I help her up, she's explaining how that guy is her ex boyfriend and he's been nothing but trouble.* 

I can see that. But are you okay? Did you get hit??

*She was getting to her feet with the help of me and another girl when they stopped and stared at me. I felt the warmth spreading up and down my right side, blood soaking through my shirt in a hurry. Apparently I'd taken the bullet for her. I hadn't even felt it at first but now it was like someone stuck a hot fireplace poker right through my lungs. Fuck. It must have gone right through. I took a shallow breath and stumbled back, holding my side. I heard the girl screaming for someone to call 911 as I hit the flood mid blackout.* 

#TBC 

[lumine-blight]

LDK ― a thoma imagine.

inspired by LDK but thoma isn't an asshole like shuusei, and y/n isn't that much of an idiot as aoi. pretty much the only part i'm basing off of, is how they end up living together (and satsuki's appearance (?) for the latter part.) part two to be linked [here] pairing: thoma x fem!reader tags: fluff, maybe a tiny little bit of angst but not in this part yet, high school au, thoma from monstadt who lived in inazuma left for studies in sumeru this was supposed to be just a one shot but i just have this thing about writing long expositions and building foundation so you might feel like the story is slow paced but i swear, you'll get there at one point. ... As the class representative, it has always been your responsibility to guide your fellow classmates, to coordinate with the teachers and the student council, and more tasks of the same nature. Of course, you were also the one assigned to give tours to transferees/late enrollees when there are—and speaking of, there is. It's something you're actually more willing to do so, but the only thing is that you were never that well versed in one-on-one conversations unless they're official business. Being someone's tour guide meant that you had to be friendly and approachable, because if not then there's just no use of being the navigator. You're supposed to be the one to provide answers to your tourist's questions, and give them info about the ins and outs of the place. Luckily enough, Thoma isn't as socially awkward as you are. Well, you could still hold conversations quite well yourself but it just doesn't feel right, if that made any sense. It's even as if the tables are turning; you're slowly becoming the guest and he's accommodating you. Still, you'd answer if he asks anything about the library, or the home economics club, or other matters that are better known by the insider. “Here's the H.E. room, but it's not really accessible for everyone. You either have to be a part of the club, or have a cookery or Home EC class. I mean, I think if you're close enough with the home EC teacher he might give you the key if you ask for it,” you explained, stopping in front of a locked door with a wooden sign hanging on it, reading “Home Economics.” Thoma wasn't really thinking of getting close to the teacher for teacher's pet privileges, so he thought of just joining the club. Besides, he'd love to be a part of their future activities. “Well, I guess I'd have to sign up for the H.E. club. Why is there still a one when Home EC /itself/ is a class already anyway?” said Thoma. “Ah, I don't know either. This place has a thing for doubling shit up. I mean, we literally already have math and science as major classes but there's still a club for those certain subjects. Actually, there's a club for all subjects. And mind you, students can't start their own orgs—nothing here is student-driven, pretty much.” “Ah, I see, I see.” he nodded. “Well, on the brighter side, at least all the decision-making isn't left for the students. It can get tough sometimes, especially since we all have different preferences. There's the faculty to guide you, at least.” You figured Thoma was simply just an optimist. He did make his point, but you still felt somehow unsatisfied with the way things are run in your school. But then again, what can you do about it? You glanced at the screen of your phone, noticing how much time has passed already. “It's 4PM already. You should go home. We can continue the tour tomorrow—curse this school for having way too many buildings. I can also introduce you to the H.E. club if you want,” you said, which you followed with a wave of goodbye. And just as you were about leave, rapid steps and shoes creaking against the floor grew louder before you could even realize it. Then, there came a familiar shade of orange (or ginger) who zoomed past you and Thoma. With you and Thoma currently facing each other, he was nudged (more like redirected with much force) by Tartaglia, who was chasing Scaramouche down the hallway. The bastard didn't even bother saying his apologies,

and continued to run after the

shorter boy as soon after he regained his composure. So, there you were, stuck on the wall with a dangerously close distance between you and Thoma. You were sure you heard a crack before that—or maybe it was simply the sound of Thoma having to support himself against the wall. You weren't quite sure, because there was no room for coherent thinking when Thoma was only a few inches away from you. Years. It felt like years when you were holding your breath. Of course you didn't make it too obvious when you gasped for air, but boy did you feel so cramped up and suffocated. After you regained yourself (which was pathetic because you could still feel heat all over your very being) you have come to realize that Thoma was rotating and massaging his wrist, wincing as if he was in pain. “Are you okay? I'm sorry for earlier, they're just really a bunch of troublemakers. Don't worry, Tartaglia will soon come to his senses and find you to apologize. Probably--he'll have to, anyway.” “Oh, no, no. It's fine, really. I did injure myself earlier in my P.E. class so it wouldn't be his fault entirely,” said Thoma. You noticed he had a habit of laughing and scratching his neck, which is pretty cute, you thought. At first you simply found it endearing in a platonic way, because that's totally possible. But now that your heart rate still hasn't recovered, it's like you can feel yourself starting to crush on this guy. Well, it's just a crush anyway. Nothing too deep, nothing further than that. It would disappear quickly, you thought. Especially since it was started too abruptly. “Couldn't you have just skipped? You know, since you're still new and all.” “I'm still a student, so that wouldn't be an excuse. It's just a little cramp, don't worry too much. I'll get going now, see you tomorrow!” With that, Thoma bid his goodbyes and headed down the stairs, almost tripping on his own foothold, which caused your reflexes to act up on their own. Though, the accident was easily prevented by himself luckily grabbing onto the rail fast enough to regain his balance. You sighed. “Be careful on your way home! Don't get run over by a truck or something!” “Don't worry, it won't be a truck!” ... Somehow, you're in the same bus stop as Thoma. “Oh, you ride the same bus? I guess we can be buddies then,” Thoma chuckled. “Yeah, I've been taking this one since three years ago. You live in the same direction?” “Yes. I live alone though, since everyone I used to know is in Monstadt and Inazuma. I've only gone here to Sumeru for the studies, and it's my first time too.” You noticed with his tone that he seemed a little...sad? Nostalgic? Reminiscent? You weren't exactly sure what it was, but somehow you could relate. Speaking of, you haven't seen your sister for a long while now...But you shrugged off the thought. Throughout the years, you've learn to control your feelings and thoughts better. “Oh, I see. That must've been nice, y'know? Having been into many different places? I'm Sumeru born and raised, and has never left the country ever since,” you said. “Well I guess one could say that. But at least you won't have to say your goodbyes too often.” “You always find a way to bring a situation to a brighter side, you know that?” “Not the first time I've been told.” You both entered the bus as soon as it pulled up, settling on a seat somewhere in the middle. Thoma made you sit first, next to the window, then he followed sitting next to you. He even asked if it was okay, which /is/ polite of him but you also thought was a little too much. You were already talking, so it's only natural if you sit together. But then again, maybe it's just because you've not known each other for too long yet. Or maybe you're just overthinking—right, that's it, your brain loves to overcomplicate simple things. You sat comfortably in silence for a minute or so, before you decided you felt like sparking another conversation. Sure, small talk isn't your forte, but you wanted to talk. And so, you will. “I noticed you're also a vision wielder. I guess you got yours

pretty early on, huh?” “Oh—this? Yeah. I wield pyro, though I can't use it much on my hobbies. Maybe except for cooking and other fire related things. But for the most part, not really. It still holds my ambitions though, so the god's eye is one to be treasured.” “Well...you never struck me as someone who's very into combat, so I understand why you don't use it much. I have mine too, Electro.” You pointed at the necklace that hung around your neck. Sometimes, you'd wear it as a keychain of some sort, or attach it do a different accessory depending on your outfit. Today though, you decided to wear it around your neck but hid it under your uniform, which felt a little uncomfortable but it still worked somehow. ... Walking to your place has never felt so suffocating before. Despite the blow of the cool breeze, you still found yourself with a lack of air and the need to fake cough just so you can inhale a sufficient amount of it. “Y/N, are you okay? You've been coughing a lot, did you catch a cold on our way? Oh—I just got mine a week ago...perhaps there's still residue and I passed them onto you? I apologize.” “Ah—no, no, don't worry about me. I'm totally fine, just some allergy probably,” you brushed it off, and made a mental note to just breathe and stop fake coughing to breathe. “Anyway, do we really live so close by? I mean, I didn't expect you'd be my neighbor—not that I mind it, of course,” you laughed, soon getting closer to your dorm. “I mean, who knows? We could even go to school together—but only if you're fine with that. Don't feel pressured to do so, really.” He put his hands in defense, as if to take back what he just said out of embarrassment. Again, your stupid brain decided that it was cute—and your heart started beating faster again. You let out a laugh, then waved it off: “I'd love to. But anyway, this is where I live. Yours must be close by, too. See you tom—” “But /this/ is where I also live!” “Wait, we have a new tenant? And it's you?” “I thought you lived with your family...who knew we practically live under the same roof now?” “I had to move here since my home is too far from the school, so there's that,” you shrugged. “Ah! You've helped me a lot today.” He clasped his hands. Thoma proceeded to invite you in. “So how about I cook you dinner for tonight? That sound good?” “No, no, it's fine, really! Besides...your wrist is still injured, I don't wanna trouble you.” “Oh, this?” he held out his hand and started shaking it on the air, attempting to prove that he's fine but a crack was heard and a wince was visible from his face. “I'm fine...promise,” he chuckled, nervously. “Come on! It'll be my pleasure. Think of this as rice cakes—that's what we do in Inazuma. When you're new to the place, you give rice cakes to your neighbors. But in this case, I can treat you dinner instead!” You sigh, giving in. It didn't seem like he would let go of it any sooner, anyway. “Okay, but I'll help you cook—” “Alright! What do you wanna have tonight? Hm...I think I still have a lot of ingredients since I recently went grocery shopping. Oh, and also goods from Inazuma!” ... Thoma's room was pretty much the same as yours—living, dining, and kitchen in one studio sized room. True LDK, indeed. The kitchen is to the left of the door as you entered, and to the right is the bathroom. In front of you, of course, is the living and dining area. There were still packed bags and only a few things around, like the folded futon and blankets. “Sorry, it's still kind of messy. Since y'know, I just moved in a few days ago.” Again, there he goes scratching the back of his neck. You still found it quite endearing. “It's fine, you're treating me dinner anyway. Speaking of, let me see what ingredients you have...” You began to check out the fridge and the cupboards. This guy surely does have enough ingredients to start a restaurant--probably even more skills for it. Your eyes caught a certain bottle of transparent golden liquid which you guessed /could/ be alcohol, basing on the bottle. "Heyyyy, what is this

huh? I mean, you did say you're from Monstadt..." you picked the bottle up and settled it on the counter. That's when you realized it was actually white wine and not champagne. Either way, it's alcohol. "Oh--that? Just a little ingredient for cooking. I'm not very good at alcohol, don't laugh. And before you say, yes, I've wondered what this says as my identity as a Monstadter. But, y'know, too much alcohol is bad for you anyway. So, not drinking is a good thing." (a/n: thank you mhy for this voice line^) "Just say you're lightweight and go," you joked and proceeded to get yourself a glass. "Well, if you won't be drinking this anyway, better to make myself at home..." you poured yourself a glass, settling it down on the counter. "Okay, okay, now. Enough drinking, you were here for a dinner and not an alcoholic beverage--besides aren't you also underaged?" "Doesn't stop me from wanting a sip. But anyway! I'll go get the ingredients ready, you wash them and I'll take care of the rest." You said, taking out meat from the fridge and some other vegetables and seasoning. Thoma started to wash them under running water, and you kept taking small sips of your wine. Maybe it's the alcohol, or Thoma just looked good washing vegetables...? You we're kind of checking him out, and also kind of thinking that he's a boyfriend material. You wouldn't say you can be blamed--anyone would probably feel this way if they had the chance to witness Thoma in the kitchen. Soon, you realized your thoughts, which made you put down your glass in the counter. You took another one and filled it with water. Thoma was quite aware you were looking at him, though unsure what for. He decided you were probably just looking if he's doing his job properly. He's gotten used of people doing that, especially as a Monstadter in Inazuma—his descent has had this derogatory stigma surrounding it for a long while now. While he didn't mind that back then, he wondered if you had that mindset too. Maybe he's overthinking it, or simply just trying to get his mind off of that idea that you are, indeed, checking him out. You've only met this week, and so it would be weird to immediately have those thoughts. Thoma told himself that he was just getting carried away, especially since he's far away from home and all alone. And you're here, accommodating, seems to have a good heart, friendly, and quite possibly checking him out. He cleared his throat. “Here, they're all washed. I'll go get changed real quick,” he said, and almost rushed to the bathroom. You nodded, then started to heat the pan. You got a little confused at the beginning, and also scared you might turn something the wrong way and burn the whole kitchen down. Thoma had a gasoline tank attached to the stove, whereas you're accustomed to the electric one. Perhaps, the last time you've probably operated a gasoline tank was back at home. Fortunately, you were able to set it up without catching something in fire. You tired your hair with the elastic on your wrist before then turning the stove on, to the left. There's a snap, then blue flame followed. You lowered the heat and put the pan on top of it. While waiting for the pan to heat up a little more, you grabbed the glass of wine once more. It's really been a while since you had a taste of alcohol—you used to sneak out some of your dad's wine along with your sister. Usually, you'd get caught but always manage to find a way out. You put your palm over the pan with just the right amount of distance to test the heat. Once you knew it was alright, you grabbed the bottle of oil near the stove. Thoma came out fully changed with some house clothes. “Oh man, I wanna change now too. This uniform is fucking hell,” you said in envy, then decided you'd take off your outer layer at least. He was a little shocked with your wording--and air caught to his lungs as you took off your jacket but that's irrelevant--mostly because he hasn't heard anyone speak in such a vulgar manner the whole time he was in Inazuma. “You can go change then. I'll take care of the

kitchen and you change in your room,” Thoma suggested to which you denied: “No, it's alright. I'll get changed later after I cook. If I change now I'm gonna smell like meat and oil.” “Meat smells nice anyway, just sayin'” he chimed, and for that you looked at him weird. He laughed and claimed it was a joke—only to say that fishes smelled better. At this point you just let it go, and poured a tiny bit of oil in the pan. Something made the flame react differently, making the color shift to red-orange, then the fire grew bigger, surrounding the pan. It was impossible to touch the stove to turn it off now, you thought. Now you just remembered why you only used electric stoves. Panicking, the first thing you could grab was a glass of water, pouring it all over the pan—but why did the fire grow even bigger? That's when you felt Thoma move you away from the stove, but you still ended up sticking yourself to the corner, so close to the fire as your heart pumped wildly of fear. You could see Thoma picking something up from the floor. A fire extinguisher. Though, before he could learn exactly how to operate it, the fire alarm has already started blaring. With how low the ceiling is, it set the sprinkler off. Well, at least the fire's out. Your dinner is ruined and so is the whole kitchen, along with the whole room. Your sauteed vegetable turned into tasteless veggie soup. You immediately felt guilty and embarrassed of what you've just caused. Really? Setting your new neighbor and classmate's house on fire? What a way for an introductory meal, is it? Thoma probably had nowhere else to go, and you had to ruin the only place he could go home to right now. You cursed yourself under your breath, and all Thoma did was immediately rush to your side, asking if you're okay. He disappeared quick and came back with a towel, handing it to you. “Are you okay? You didn't burn yourself or anything, did you?” he asked. You shook your head. “I'm sorry,” you apologized, pursing your lips in utter embarrassment as you finally looked at him. There came knocking on the door. You sighed, probably the landlady. You got yourself ready for scolding as Thoma opened the door, letting her in. The floor is flooded all over with water, and Thoma's things are all wet now, too. You hoped that his bags were at least waterproof. That would put you at ease at this moment for at least the tiniest bit. Thoma and the landlady talked, and you stayed silent. They said the fire control also had some problems which made the sprinkler set off too early, and Thoma also claimed that the pan you used earlier actually was broken and leaked some the oil; the fire got bigger because instead of water, you poured the wrong glass with wine. It almost felt as of Thoma was defending you and putting the blame in something else which, admittedly, made you feel better and less guilty. You didn't notice the hole in the pan though, but maybe it was just really small enough to be seen from afar.

[starsarestars]

I’ve got the Cure on the brain, again, so which albums and songs remind you of Lucas and Marisol? I noticed you did it for some of the LIs, but I’m interested in your interpretations of those two in the Cure albums.

My braincells are levitating at this ask so thank u so much first of all.

Second of all, I'd say The Head On The Door is Lucas's album. Right off the bat it details a lot of insecurities that resonate with Lucas's character in game, but at other points it's whip sharp and witty. It's the more whimsical sound of the top only fine tuned and curated before they ultimately found their iconic sound on kiss me 3 so it's almost the successor to it. I think the songs that really remind me of him are: A Night Like This, Screw, Six Different Ways and Sinking.

As for Marisol I was really stuck on her as I always associate her with The Teardrop Explodes (the peel session version of the culture bunker especially) but if I had to really pick, I'd say the 2018 edition of the mixed up album. The Hello Goodbye version of A Night Like This and the Paul Oakenfold remix of close to me stick out especially.

It's funny that both Marisol and Lucas are people I associate with A Night Like This but I guess it kinda represents an overlap in similarities in terms of their personality. ANLT would be in the context of V!Lucas after switching to Blake and acting on the impulse of his insecurities "your trust's the most gorgeously stupid thing I ever cut in the world/I want to change it all - I want to change" whereas with the version I chose for marisol it's a bit more optimistic so maybe it's her finally accepting the feelings she harbours for MC and that she should really end things with Graham while also wistfully wishing the circumstances she was in were different.

[angrychuu-huahuas]

A Help when you need it

Fandom: Obey me

Summary: Asmo has a rough day,but his brothers are there to help because they all care.

Notes: This is the first fanfiction I ever finished and I'm nowhere as good as I'd like to be, so feel free to correct me or give me some advice. Btw English's not my native language.

If you'd ask him, Asmo would probably say that person as perfect as him can only have good days. Well this certainly wasn't one.

It all started in the second class when he failed a test. all students immediately got up to comfort their perfect, lovely, upset Asmo. Who, in fact, wasn't upset by the test, but rather the closeness of said students.

Of course, he did love the attention. And when in a good mood he would even tolerate a comforting pat, as long as it didn't affect his perfect look. But this was too much and his mood was far from good.

Still, he couldn't just shout at them to let him be, he had a reputation to uphold.

„I'm fine, really. It's not the end of the world, is it now?" he tried, through it only earned him a coo of „You're so optimistic!" from one of his classmates and more people talking to him, touching him...

This was more than he could take. He needed to find Satan, he could shout at them all he wanted. Asmo checked his phone and sighed. He didn't have any joined lessons today. He'll have to make it.

„Urgh, Do you mind?" he says in an even voice, pushing away the hand on his hip bone. Cringing as another replaces it.

„Hey! Whatcha think ya doin'!" Asmo was never happier to hear Mammon's voice. „Give Asmo some space!" Mammon continued, as he he pushed some of the demons away.

The crowed slowly dissolved. Mammon gently put his hand on Asmo's shoulder. „Saved your ass there, didn't I?" He smirks. „Fine. What do you want?" Asmo exclaims, unimpressed.

He probably should have argued more, but he was too damn tired to give a fuck. Mammon, of course, doesn't notice. „ Nah, I'll let ya have it for free today. That's how good the Great Mammon is!" Asmo just let out a relieved sigh and watched his brother walk out of his classroom.

But when he reached for his diamond pen, which he left on the desk, he found nothing. „Damn it Mammon!" he murmured angrily.

Normally he would chase after him, but Mammon did save him. And he did offer him payment, so he'll take it as that. And just like that he said goodbye to his favorite pen and pulled out a cheep, plain one.

This pen stopped writing not even hour later. He had to borrow one from a classmate, who now considered himself Asmo's favorite. The rest of day demons were competing for Asmo's attention.

When he finally got home, he thought he'd be feeling better. Instead his annoyance formed into some strange kind of melancholy.

Only one person to turn to, Asmo through bitterly. Whatever he might say, he still hated interrupting the sorcerer. It always made him feel guilty, but he needed the comfort, only his friend could provide.

He headed towards his room to get dressed. To his surprise his room wasn't empty, rather it contained a really mad Lucifer.

„I told you to call me when you leave school!"Asmo flinched at the tone. „Shit, I forgot! I'm so sorry Lucifer. I'm visiting Solomon, so I can bring you something as apology?" Lucifer's angry expression turned downright furious.

„Sorry!? Get me something!?" He shouted. Then, quietly he added „Asmo do you have any idea how worried I was?"

A wave of guilt washed over Asmodeus. „Lucifer I..." he didn't know what to say. He just wanted Lucifer to stop looking so damn hurt. He didn't want to be hurting his brother.

Lucifer returned to his regular stern face as he continued „As for your visit, you're not going anywhere for the rest of the week." With that he turned around, leaving Asmo alone, sad, guilty and panicking.

He understood why Lucifer did this.Hell he'd probably do the same, but he already felt so overwhelmed. He didn't even notice the tears, running down his cheeks and staining his beautiful clothes.

He didn't know how much time went by before he finally stopped crying.

knock

‚huh?'

Knock, knock

‚what?'

„Asmo? Are you there?" ‚Satan' Asmo thought, looking up at the door. „Come in." The door opened revealing not only Satan, but all Asmo's brothers excluding Lucifer.

All looked equally worried.

„Dinner time?" Asmo managed o ask. Satan shook his head.

„We heard about what Lucifer did" Belphie explained. Asmo didn't like the angry tone. „I don't blame him. He was really worried." He tried to defend the oldest. „Well you're obviously not taking it well" Levi countered, for once leaving out any anime references, or whatever shit it was.

Now it was Asmo's turn to shake his head. „It's not that, I could handle that, it's just..." Asmo trailed of.

He could feel the bed dip beside him as Mammon sat down. „C'mon Asmo, talk to us." He said gently, pulling Asmo closer to his side.

Asmo sighed. „I just had a really bad day and I wanted to go see Solomon, but now I can't." It actually sounded very stupid once he said it out loud.

Though his brothers thought otherwise, if the group hug he was pulled into was anything to go by. „We'll distract him."

Everyone turned to Belphie, clearly confused. „And how do we do that?" Satan asked after everyone seemed to understand what was Belphie going on about.

As a response he got a „I don't know." barely understandable over Beel munching on whatever he had sneaked into Asmo's room, and a shrug from Belphie.

„We could make up a fight between Mammon and one of us!" Levi happily announced. „Why me!" Mammon Shouted. „ It won't be suspicious that way, we fight with you all the time." Satan explained exasperatly, which Mammon answered with a „Hey!" but didn't argue any further.

„I'll do it." Beel offered. Asmo watched his brothers, eyes wide with surprise. „Wait, are you sure?" He asked. All brother's turned to look at him, confused. „What do you mean? It's no big deal, Lucifer's just gonna lecture us for a while." Beel answered with a shrug.

Mammon seemed like he wanted to argue with the gluttony demon, but decided against it after receiving a harsh look from Satan. „Just go and try not to take too long just in case." Belphie gave Asmo an encouraging smile.

The avatar of lust nodded „Thank you." With that he gave his bond with Solomon a gentle tug, signaling for the sorcerer to summon him. He gave his brothers a smile, they all returned.

And when Solomon noted a soft „You have a great brothers." He just smiled and answered „Yes, that I do."

[siennadraws]

OC interview: Terys Lavellan

Thank you @thatssolavellan for the tag!!!

INTRODUCTION

1. Can you introduce yourself?

I am Terys, a hunter of Clan Lavellan, I go by she, and I'm Mythal's Chosen.

2. What is your gender identity, orientation and relationship status?

Gender identity is something different from elves to shem, but I feel comfortable being called a woman. I'm attracted to all kinds of people and single.

3. Where and when were you born?

I was born on the 7th day of the second month of Spring. The calendar we Elvhen use is different from the shem's Chantry's, but I think the month would be Cloudreach. I was born in my clan's camp, in Ferelden. We used to live there before the Blight.

4. What is your weapon of choice and fighting style?

I use daggers and I prefer finishing the fight before it starts. I try to kill as many of my enemies as I can before they notice me.

5. Lastly, are you happy?

That's a difficult question. I am and am not. There's a moment for every emotion. Just because my life is hard doesn't mean I don't find happiness. But my life has been hard.

The rest of the questions under cut because it gets long.

FAMILY AND FRIENDS

1. What’s your family like? What is your relationship with them?

My family is wonderful, and I love them.

My mother is a very wise woman, she's the more quiet one, listening in on everything before speaking. As the Keeper, she's also a very powerful mage. My mom is wise as well, of course, but she's more adventurous and loud, my uncle still tells stories of all the trouble they got into as children.

My sister is a sweetheart. She loves finding things and learning, a bit like me, but she's more of a open book, despite her shyness. She also loves all kinds of dogs, especially the wolves our clan travels with, especially Arla, the pack's leader.

2. Have you ever ran away from home?

Never, and I've never thought about it or found the need, to be honest.

3. Would you consider marriage or having children?

I'd consider marriage, but having children isn't something I want. I'd rather just help my fellow clan mates with their kids when they need and I can.

4. Do you secretly hate one of your friends?

No. Not at all. But I have hated some of them, and they hated me back. But we have moved on from it. Cass and I only started getting along after Corypheus was defeated. I had that weight off my shoulders and she had started realizing her biases. Awkward talks ensued but we're friends now.

Viv and I started getting along after Haven fell. I realized that she truly cared for her fellow mages and everyone else, just has a different way of thought on how to protect them, and I spoke to her about Dalish mages, and how we didn't actually abandoned them in the wilds. I think my sister joining the Inquisition was also a great help.

5. Which friend knows everything about you?

The one friend whose goals would find him using that knowledge against me. Solas.

ASKED BY FANS

1. Are you literate? Have you been to school?

I can read and write both Elvhen and Trade, my Trade was a bit rusty before joining the Inquisition. I was taught alongside my clan mates my age many different things, trades and history, survival and the ways of nature, religion. And I tried to learn more, and learned much more as life went on.

2. The eeriest prediction you made that later came true?

I may have made a few jokes about Solas being the mastermind behind the Breach.

3. What is something you were embarrassingly late to realize?

That the rumors Mother Giselle warned me about weren't that Dorian was manipulating me, or that we were working together for nefarious ends, but that we were in a relationship. I only realized it when Dorian made a joke about it, when he was saying his goodbyes.

4. Do you have mental health or physical issues?

I obviously have one physical issue, my missing arm. Thankfully I have a prothesis, but it causes problems of its own. And my mental health is... Probably shaky. I'm more paranoid and anxious than I used to be.

5. What is your current main goal?

My current goal is to stop Solas from ending this world. Hopefully finding a way to return it to it's natural state in a peaceful way.

CHOICES

1. Drink or food?

Food.

2. Cats or dogs?  

My sister would kill me for this, but cats. I still love dogs.

3. Optimist or pessimist?

A balance of both. It depends on what I'm thinking about.

4. Sassy or sarcastic?

Sassy.

HAVE YOU EVER

1. Been caught sneaking out?  

Yes. My sister and I used to sneak out to explore ancient Elvhen ruins, after they were cleared by the hunters. We told our mothers we were going to gather blueberries, but they caught on the lie. I suspect they sent some hunters to watch over us without being caught.

Once we got older my sister and I still went to explore the ruins, but this time with authorization, and a couple of my hunter friends as backup.

2. Broken a bone?

A couple, it happens when you're a hunter, or a reckless kid, or when you're trying to repair a big hole in the sky made by a Magister.

3. Received flowers?

Yes. Romantically and platonically. Dalish kids love making flower crowns, it's something that keeps their hands busy and that they can brag about.

4. Ghosted someone?

No. When you're Dalish there aren't many ways to ghost someone, even if it's during an Arlathvenn, so you don't really find the need later in life, even outside the clan.

5. Pretended to laugh at a joke you didn’t get?

Never. This may be the cause of a couple of Josephine's grey hairs.

I'm tagging @dreadfutures @little-lightning-lavellan @vakarians-girl @vvakarians @tireddemigod @vronism (no pressure) and whoever wants to do this (pls tag me!)

[geekgirles]

Goodbye & Broppy

After the song was released, I felt the need of doing something I haven't done in a while for the Trolls fandom: an in-depth analysis.

The lyrics of the song were a real tearjerker; the separation, the longing, the sadness, the impression of giving up as the only option... And, considering it said Justin Timberlake was supposed to sing it, and the mentions of "My queen", "My love"; it totally sounds like a Broppy song.

Now, I know @georgebeard mentioned they'd talked to an animator who confirmed the scene was indeed deleted from the film. However, as a loyal and experienced member of the Miraculous fandom, I know better than to cross out the possibility of being misled in order to avoid spoilers (I'm looking at you guys, Chloé redemption, Félix , and Chat Blanc). So, there's that.

And even if the song did not make it in the end, we must not forget the first movie and its extra content.

If you purchased a DVD copy (like myself), or were obsessed enough to search for every possible Trolls-related video on YouTube (like myself), you must have surely found the deleted scenes from the film.

Poppy's dresses.

Poppy's storytelling.

"Bringing Back Happy."

And that's what I wanna talk about!

Bringing Back Happy was a, rather early (considering its storyboard stage), villain song that Chef was supposed to sing. So, even if Goodbye doesn't make it into Trolls World Tour, the chances of it appearing as extra content are pretty high, considering it was even mentioned before the release of the movie.

If that weren't enough for ya, there's more. Don't worry.

As I mentioned earlier, if you're familiar with the deleted scenes, you'll know 2/3 were in a very advanced stage of animation before being scrapped. Not to mention, the one major change we got no info about: turning Poppy's coronation party to the 20 year anniversary since they escaped the bergens. Again, a scene so advanced in its animation stage that even made it to the trailer!

Moreover, there's this detail in the very first trailer of Trolls World Tour that stuck with me: Branch's quote "This is a terrible idea that will blow up in your face!"

Which, if we compare it to his supportive attitude in the latest trailer ("I'm coming with you"), is completely different and even unexpected.

And that leads me to this: there are many reasons why a scene would be deleted; it gives a character a quality they didn't want, Chef didn't get to sing because it made her too funny, while Poppy didn't wear her dresses because it made her look spoiled; it becomes longer than they expected, another reason for the dresses and, I think, for the storytelling; or it changes the vibe of the movie greatly (if you guys knew the original script for How to train your dragon 2...).

On a side note, I remember a post from long ago that explained that one of the reasons its OP liked trolls so much was because, unlike the vast majority of films, Poppy and Branch never really had a fall out. They were always together.

What do I mean with this?

What if their fall out happens in this movie? What if Branch says that line out of frustration and Poppy and him, both devastated, are forced to go their separate ways?

That would be the perfect cue for a song as romantic and heartbreaking as Goodbye.

Not to mention, it would also explain how on Earth Poppy could be captured by Barb, alone. Because there's no way Branch wouldn't go down with her otherwise, and you know it.

Now that the song analysis and theorizing is out of the way, let's move on to the deeper part of the analysis: Broppy itself.

As someone who's been a hardcore Broppy shipper even before watching the movie, you can believe me when I say that it'll devastate me if they killed Broppy.

Even so, I also consider myself as someone both highly emotional and analytical, hence, why I create such analysis on the things I love. Trolls being no exception.

Something I want to talk about to make you all understand my point of view is the way Dreamworks works (as I see it). And for that, I'd like to compare Trolls, HTTYD, their tv shows, and their main ships, Broppy and Hiccstrid; respectively.

If there's something I've noticed about Dreamworks and Disney, that's that Disney movies have a much greater stand-alone value than Dreamworks'. That's why 95% of its films end with an extra-official couple or why their sequels are either shitty compared to the original (Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Mulan...) or a fucking masterpiece. I mean, take Frozen, for instance. The film made a major point on criticising Disney's "I get together with someone I barely know and we live happily ever after" trope. And yet, even if it was much subtler and less intense than usual, that's exactly what happened with Anna and Kristoff. Maybe they weren't married, but they got officially together. And as for Frozen II... I haven't seen it, but I've been told it's very, very different than the first one, and very, very good.

So, yeah. Stand-alone value.

But Dreamworks... Dreamworks manages to reach beautiful conclusions that, at the same time, let the plot perfectly open for more stories to be told.

Seriously, just watch How to Train your Dragon!

Every film had its ending, but it also made you wonder what was gonna happen next. It made you understand that the saga wasn't over, just a part of it. And I think that's what they're trying to achieve with Trolls.

I mean, sure. The plot of the sequel wasn't what we expected at all and made many of us think about the astounding amount of fanfics that delved in the possible existence of different kinds of trolls... But it left us all with one question in our minds, "what now?" And, at the same time, the film had reached a beautiful conclusion.

See what I mean?

I wholeheartedly believe this is something Dreamworks aim to achieve with its pairings. They don't want them to be rushed, they want to develop them. Sure, they want us to see there are ships, but they strive to form deep, strong relationships with much more meaning behind than just sharing an adventure together.

And that, that is something I can clearly see with Hiccstrid and Broppy.

If we take HTTYD, the hints on the romantic relationship between Hiccup and Astrid were even greater than Poppy and Branch's. Heck, they even kissed. And you know what was their official description for Riders of Berk to half of Race to the Edge? Not-so-platonic best friends.

But that's because they took the time to naturally develop and strengthen their bond!

Which is what I think is supposed to happen to Poppy and Branch.

Sure, they are close. Sure, they were on a life-changing adventure together. Sure, they are countless hints on their romantic feelings.

But they still spent 20 years being practically strangers.

They still need to learn how to be a team together. They still need to learn how the other works. They still need some basic ground.

If we keep on comparing the two films, we must not forget that HTTYD 2, despite having Hiccup and Astrid as betrothed, wasn't as heavy on their romance as the first and third movie were.

Because the focus of the film was Hiccup becoming a leader. Not becoming Astrid's husband.

And, considering the plot of Trolls World Tour, it's still very possible that it won't be as heavy on Broppy as it was the prequel. After all, TWT is more about diversity and harmony than happiness, which is what made the contrast between the optimistic princess and the cynical survivalist so important for Trolls.

But, please, fear not. This does not necessarily mean that Broppy is dead. It just means we might have to be careful about letting our hopes up and, more importantly, in case nothing is conclusive about these two in Trolls World Tour, that we just have to be a little more patient.

After all, a good written ship never disappoints.

[mewmewnyaart]

I'm not very good at drawing horror and blood but I recently have been getting into OFF lately so I figured I'd try to draw batter to pratice lighting and shadows

I also made my own au where batter and hugo switch places but I doubt anyone would like it or even read it heck I couldn't even get a single like on any of my posts

But here I go anyway :

So common belief that the world of OFF isnt real and that its all happening inside Hugo's head because hugo is in a comma and that the batter resembles the father and the queen resembles the mother

And that the guardians are the boy's immune system and organs that are intolerant to the drug liquid plastic that is being experimented on hugo

The mother was always a working woman and never gave hugo attention while the dad was a straight forward and loving man (I also have a personal theory that he's religious)

The mother wants hugo to live but the father wants to let the boy die because he's tired of seeing his own child in pain everyday

Ok now that I have that out of the way here's my au:

In this au its the father that ends up in a comma and hugo is the one who tries to save him from dying

Backstory to how the dad ended up in a comma:

Hugo in this au is healthy and lives a normal life the father was once a baseball player (as a hobby) so hugo got inspired by his dad and started to take baseball classes at his school

One day the dad was dropping hugo off for baseball practice and while waving goodbye while slowly moving out of the parking lot a reckless older student who wasn't looking quickly backs up his truck hitting the father and sending him into a comma

Ok now for the characters:

We enter the game as hugo and we are greeted by the judge and we start our journey of "purifying" the world just like batter

The enemies represent different family members who dislike or or even hate the father and the father's phobias or fears as well as microbes or poisons in the father's system

Then we have other characters like pets,neighbors,friends who are good guys or people who side with hugo in the this au

Also the puzzles would changed in this au

Hugo is a child and the father would probably play alot with hugo and his games since the mother was always busy ,so instead of floating boxes we'd get more complicated versions of kids puzzles like connect the dots or fill in the shapes etc.

Now for who each character represents and then I'll move on to what the goal of the game is or what Hugo's mission is:

Hugo= he represents the son in real life but he also resembles a new antibiotic that's being experimented on the father

The judge = in real he's the family house cat named milk ingame he's a guide but I have my own head canon

so alot of people tend to draw batter with his eyes closed some draw 4 eyes some draw no eyes at all

I like to think that the father irl has bad eye sight or sensitive eyes so he wears special glasses but will not wear any glasses when at home because he doesn't like to so he will walk around with his eyes closed

So milk will guide him throughout the house by purring or meowing at him

As for the smile the judge has on his face hugo likes the movie Alice in wonderland over and over so the image of the Cheshire cat would be embedded in the dad's memory which is why the judge appears that way

He views the judge as someone who is helpful

The queen = the queen is his wife however they start to have alot of problems and arguments before the father fell in a comma

And the relatives try to convince her to turn off the life support and move on with life

Dedan= irl he's the father's brother in law with a snappy attitude and he hates the father alot and even objected in thier wedding day he will do anything to hurt the father or cause trouble

The father sees his brother in law nothing more than a all bark no bite a big mouth

Japhet= in real life is the lady that lives next door (yes I KNOW japhet is male but he's based off if her in the father's head)

She's is very controlling person who enjoys gossip and can't mind her own business always sticking her nose where she can as well as pushing everyone around she does everything she can to get attention and impress people and she's flirted with the father mutiple times but she's ignored her every time

She has very loud and noisy birds and has killed thier other family cat Venice saying that she did it as self defense (Venice is Valerie basically)

The father views her as a parasite

Enoch= he resembles another dad that takes his kid to baseball practice but is in bad terms with the mother and will constantly pick on hugo for fun

He assumes if the father approaches him its because his wife told him to do so

and will constantly say that his child and wife are happy ,living a life with no problems thinking that he's got life figured out

Even though its clear that his son isn't enjoying baseball at all, is quite over wieght as well as his wife ignores him all the time not to mention he's constantly eating meaning that he has some sort of food addiction it seems he sees no irony in his life at all

The father sees him as an irresponsible over wieght person who's always lying to himself and to blind to see the truth thinking that his life is ok when it's clearly not

Zacharie = irl he's the father's best friend since middle school and they've known each other for years he was the best man at the wedding he's bisexual and in a relationship with a girl named sweetie (please don't hate me batterie shippers QWQ!) He used to crush on the father and even confessed to him on the wedding day he was heartbroken but accepted that the relationship was never gonna happen and was even mad at his best friend but realized it was wrong of him to feel that way

He eventually moves on

He likes to bring and buy alot stuff and show them to his best pal later somegimes illegal stuff (he even brought weed over one time oh boy) he's like an uncle to hugo and is always happy to help and defend his best friend no matter what

He views him as a brother and family member aswell as a very optimistic chill dude and will jokingly refer to him as "the merchant"

Sugar: irl she's zacharie's gf (before her he had 2 toxic exes and she helped him out of those toxic relationships) she and the father don't really talk all that much so he knows little to absolutely nothing about her aside from the fact that she likes to talk funny sometimes and is really into dolls and aliens and a slight addiction to eating pixie straws (straws filled with powered candy or sugar)

He views her as a silent person nothing much

The elsens= they are the people that the father meets/sees/interacts with everyday/every once in a while but don't have much of a connection with (you know like a co worker you have small talk with or barely ever see)

Now for the plot :

After the father enters a comma the son starts to go from school to the hospital (they're very close to each other and you can say hugo is 5-7 years old and ) and visits his dad everyday and calls out to him hoping it'd wake him up

The mother scolds him for running off without super vision and that his dad won't wake up if he keeps calling him that whatever he does is useless that his father will remain to be a lifeless bag of meat on a bed

Hugo doesn't give up ignoring his mother's words

She realizes that hugo has an obsession with his unconscious father that is affecting his studies along with his social life

Zacharie doesn't make this any better because he offers to pick up hugo after school to prevent him from getting abducted or lost along with his jokes all the time

She slowly starts to Contemplate turning off the life support machine wondering if it would fix everything

Hugo hasn't been paying attention in class and thier marriage has been having a issues lately her family never liked or accepted him she sees zacharie and others as annoying and problems bringers and maybe they'd have less expenses if hugo didn't have to go to baseball pratice every day not to mention he'd less likely get hurt if he stopped playing

Everyone else started to convince her to turn off life support they discuss this next to the unconscious father

She prevents zacharie from seeing hugo and locks out any other connections the fatehr has

finally she becomes convinced however there's 1 barrier preventing her from doing that.....Hugo

The only person who truly gives hugo attention and love is his father without his father he'd feel lost and scared his mother is always working and doesn't give him much attention

Everyone tells him to give up on his dad and move on but hugo stands his ground

Alot of the arguments and conversations happen in the hospital room next to the father so he hears everything in his comma which leads to the creation of the world of OFF in his head

Therefore we play as hugo through out the game (dressed in a baseball outfit) solving puzzles and fighting enemies "purifying" the world

Not much changes the boss battles the add ons etc. Will remain the same in this au

Maybe there will be more rubber duck /duck/ bird themed stuff in this au aside from the pedalos (ex:move the boxes to make them look like a duck idk lol)

However the final boss will change

Canonly batter is stopped by the judge but in this au the judge sides with hugo because its the queen (the mother) who is trying to turn the switch off and hugo is trying to prevent that

So instead of the judge stopping hugo

Hugo will meet the queen, she will tell him to halt and not bother going any further that her intentions will not change hugo will begin to tell her off everything she's done wrong she will respond saying that she's doing it for thier sake (Hugo's and her's) but hugo calls her out and tells her its not true and she loses her patience with him leading to a boss fight if hugo wins then she will refer to him as "my little sweetheart" and fade into dust

"The room" will also change instead of hugo it'll be his dad (the batter)chained to a wall (basically a prisoner in his own mind) hugo will take 1 step forward activating a trap causing him to plummet down a tube and fall unconscious for a few minutes

When he wakes up he sees the queen and all the guardians standing before him the queen states that he can give up or die trying then she speaks to the puppeteer (the player) the you are given 2 options

1.aide with the queen

2.side with hugo

If you side with the queen you will have the guardians ok your side then Hugo's appearance will change as well he will appear to have a large head with a huge gaping mouth a baby rattle and apron and speech bubbles that say "wah wah" "whine whine" (stating that his mother sees him as a cry baby)

If you defeat hugo then the switch is immediately turned off and it gives 1 out of the 2 bad endings this ending is called "check mate" as a reference to a queen from chess

If you side with hugo then you will be defeated but you won't get a game over yet instead the queen will give you 1 last chance

Then you are given 3 options

1."surrender" 2."gasp for help" 3."cry"

If you choose surrender then you will get the 2nd bad ending in which in life support is turned off the father dies hugo becomes lonely with his mother busy all the time (and not allowing him out side the house and not trusting people) which leads to hugo growing up cold,plain and unloving

At some point there's a scene where adult hugo stares at his old mother laying on the kitchen floor in pain for a few minutes instead of helping her immediately indicating that he doesn't care

If you choose "gasp for help" then you will get the good ending "aye batta batta,strike!" In which hugo will call for help (while in deep pain from the fight) after a few calls judge,zacharie,sugar and a few elsens will come to the rescue and revive you fighting by your side allowing you to defeat the queen and guardians

Everything slowly starts to go back and the father wakes up from his comma everyone in the room stares in shock but hugo had the biggest smile on his face while standing next to his dad's bed "did...I miss something?"

"...daddy *breaks into tears*"

The 3rd ending called "better late than never" is triggered when you choose "cry"

Hugo will cry very loudly

The mother changes her mind and doesn't turn off life support but hugo stops visiting his dad and similar to the 2nd bad ending hugo grows up to be cold and unloving 13-16 years later hugo visits his father again and he finally wakes up from his comma and is discharged from the hospital after 1 year of rehabilitation therapy

By now the mother had remarried and the father missed his son's childhood so now he has to relive his life

However hugo meets a girl who is a complete opposite to him at work and church (rainbow hair,optimistic,enjoys music of various kinds,loves cute things,baking,jokes,and artist etc.) And is forced to work with her as well as she tries to get Hugo's attention so he asks his father for advice on how to get rid of this woman which leads to alot stuff going on and hugo allowing how to love and live life leading him to falling in love with the girl and becoming a new man

(This is personally my favorite ending lol and I MIGHT write fanfic of it on wattpad or here idk tbh )

Anyway this my OFF au I GUESS the name can change to the ON au or OFF/ON au lmao idk

Reblogs and feed back is appreciated

PLEASE DONT STEAL MY AU i worked hard on this thing spent 5 hours to write it all

Heh I sat this as of anyone is even gonna read whatever I dount it'll get noticed at all

[fematchups]

I'd like a matchup for all 3 games, and I prefer men. Upon meeting me, I'm very stoic, shy, and hard to read. When I speak, it's usually to say something funny. I have a unique and sarcastic sense of humor. I'm very introverted, and my primary hobby is writing. Not big on PDA, but I'm very physically affectionate in private. I'm an empath, so I easily pick up on other people's emotions, and tend to have people randomly tell me personal stories. I also lack a gray zone; I'm all the way or no way.

I think I mentioned this in my request I just sent, but in case I didn’t, I prefer men. If I already mentioned it and just forgot, I’m a doofus.

You already mentioned it in your first ask but it’s all good bun! You’re not a doofus ❤️ anyway hope you enjoy!!Nohr: Arthur

🦅You didn’t mean to laugh so hard, but you did. Arthur had clumsily fallen yet again in your presence, and you couldn’t help but joke about it with others around you.🦅Arthur is an incredibly good sport, however, and so every time you giggle he just takes it in stride and actually revels in the fact that his clumsiness could make someone laugh. After all, he is an optimist.🦅You waited to see him again next time to apologize to him for laughing at his clumsiness. However, your next encounter didn’t go exactly as you would expect it to.🦅You were looking around for him, not watching where you were going when you slipped in a puddle of mud. Before you could make contact with the ground, you felt a pair of arms prevent you from feeling the full impact of the fall.🦅It’s none other than Arthur himself! He was now covered in mud, but was happy because he was able to save you from a slightly worse fate.🦅You take no time in thanking him and in letting him know that you’ve been meaning to apologize for laughing at him. When you try to apologize, though, Arthur tells you that there’s no need for that. Surprisingly smoothly, he says that if you want to make it up to him you could let him take you out to dinner.🦅To his surprise, you accept and the next time you see him you’re eating dinner together. Arthur ends up confiding in you when you ask him why he decided to catch you instead of letting you fall in the mud to get a good laugh out of it himself.🦅He tells you about his life and how he doesn’t allow his clumsiness to stand in the way of protecting others, which is what he loves to do. He also tells you about why he feels so strongly about helping other people out.🦅Once the two of you start dating, you talk about him often and tell people how proud you are of him and his strong conviction to help others.🦅Sometimes people will even share their own personal stories where Arthur had helped them or saved them in some way, and this only makes you grow fonder of him.🦅You’re grateful to have him by your side, and often tell him that he’s your hero (this works especially well when he’s feeling down).🦅He’ll often respond enthusiastically to that sentiment, as he either peppers your face with a hundred kisses or picks you up and spins you around in a tight embrace.🦅Arthur is quite the gentleman, always giving your hand kisses when greeting you or when saying goodbye. He always treats you the way you deserve to be treated, and never takes you for granted.

Hoshido: Takumi

🏹Takumi never really intended to pick up writing as a hobby, it just kind of happened, and became a good outlet for him when he was feeling emotional. When he did, people told him to ask you for help at improving on his writing skills.🏹He’s hesitant to ask you, since he already had a little crush on you, and since your writing talent was much better than his.🏹He plucks up some courage, and decides to ask for your assistance in becoming a better writer. Your stoic countenance almost makes him walk away without even waiting for your response, but you do speak up and tell him that you’d be willing to help.🏹He’s ecstatic; not only will he be improving his newfound hobby, but he’ll be doing that with his crush! Takumi agrees to meet with you at a certain place and time to discuss his writings with you.🏹You mainly give him tips on how to draw an audience in, how to hold their attention. You also comment on his poetry, which you find is actually pretty good.🏹Takumi grows on you a little more each time you see him, and soon enough the two of you grow closer as you read his writings, some of which are personal.🏹These little meetings increase in frequency and Takumi makes it up in his mind to confess to you through one of his poems. Little does he know, you were planning the same thing for the next time you met.🏹He asked you to review his poem, and you gave yours to him to review as well. He gave you a suspicious look, but you had shrugged and told him that you just wanted to let him improve upon his reviewing skills too.🏹After reading one another’s poems, your eyes widened as you looked at each other as if to ask if this was a confession.🏹You’re both relieved to find out that you’re each doing the same thing, and immediately start making plans for a date.🏹Your date is filled with laughter and a lot of sarcasm. You’ve grown comfortable enough around each other to go from being sarcastic, to serious, and then back to being silly.🏹Your relationship is one filled laughter and even spontaneous little competitions: Takumi loves to turn simple things into full on competitions, and you’ve learned to live with it.🏹Like you, Takumi is much more affectionate in private. The only time he’ll show affection in public is when he has a sudden impulse to show you how much you mean to him, and will sneak in a little kiss on the cheek or hold your hand.🏹Takumi loves letting his walls down around you; he’s told you some things that he’s never told anyone else before, and it makes him feel safe knowing that you’d never let his secrets out.

Awakening: Lon’qu

🗡It’s a mystery to other people how you two stoic individuals ultimately fell for each other and began a relationship.🗡It’s even a mystery to yourself; the best way for you to pinpoint how Lon’qu began to show interest was when he would start showing up randomly to present you with various gifts.🗡Lon’qu would just come up to you, blushing madly, drop a gift into your lap and walk away quickly and without a word.🗡Of course you’re baffled from this behavior—after all, he was a hardened warrior giving you gifts and hiding an intense blush!🗡One day you grab his arm as he turns away from you, and ask him what the meaning of it all is.🗡He clears his throat, musters all the courage he can, and stutters out his reply: “I-I like you, b-but I don’t know how to say it.”🗡You’re a bit taken aback, but can easily sense his nervousness. So, you take the initiative and tell him that you’re willing to give him a chance to know you better. Not to mention, you also thank him for the little gifts he’d been giving you.🗡The next time you meet is your first date. The two of you have dinner, sitting at a semi-private table.🗡Lon’qu is nervous and extremely shy at first, so you take his hand and just start talking about the first thing that comes to mind.🗡He’s grateful that you can put him at ease so easily, and he admits that that’s a quality he’s noticed about you before and that sparked his interest in you in the first place.🗡That night the two of you loosen up enough to even start joking around a bit. He takes a stab at making you laugh with awkward jokes, and is very relieved when he finds he can make you smile.🗡He even opens up to you, telling you his life story and how he became a swordsman. It’s not until after that night that he realizes he’s never opened up to anyone in the way he has with you before.🗡As for you, you find that Lon’qu’s honesty and openness makes it easier for you to trust him.🗡Like you, Lon’qu doesn’t care much for PDA but once you’re alone together he will be very affectionate. In private, Lon’qu tends to be touching you in one way or another. He likes to leave his arm wrapped lazily around your waist or to hug you from behind when he’s feeling especially cuddly.🗡He really, really likes it when you kiss his forehead and when you plant little kisses on the various wounds he receives in battle. It makes his head swim knowing that you care so much for his well-being.🗡The two of you only fall for each other more deeply as time goes by, and know that while the world may see you two as very stoic individuals, you know the real people behind that expression. Songs listened to:Personal Jesus // Depeche ModeLeather and Lace // Stevie Nicks and Don HenleyListen to the Music // The Doobie BrothersEnter Sandman // Metallica