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enigma-im · 4 years

Text

Crocodile Rock

Rating: Explicit Relationship: Lizard Man X Female!Human Warning: sexual drought, minor stalking, kidnapping, sex on a mountain, Oral, monster sex, loss of control, scenting, ovulation

Word count: 3660

A monster prowling the streets of a suburban neighborhood. A girl in a bit of a dry spell is driving him crazy.

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One would think that going most of your life without sex would make going a few months without it easy. I'd imagine the metaphor for food would make sense. If you never had spaghetti before you can't crave it, you can want it but not really desire it. I also just compared sex to spaghetti, I really need to get laid.

I believe the last time I was intimate, not even had sex, with someone was almost a year ago. It is fine for the most part, hardly noticed it till recently. Work has kept me busy so it wasn’t a great loss. Now that I have more free time all I crave is the touch of another. Reading hasn’t done me any favors either. Its been a mess of a time.

As I spiral in the depth of frustration I have been noticing the presence of someone watching me. It was easy to brush off at first but once I started seeing strange things do I become worried. In the morning when I'd walk to my car to go to work id catch a pair of glowing eyes in the woods opposite my house. The first time I assumed it was the neighbors' house lights, boy was I wrong. When I come back home and rechecked I saw there were no lights. Next came the sightings and talk around the area. People caught sight of a huge man walking about. Other added on saying it wasn’t a man but a monster, having scales and sharp teeth. I hardly believed any of that until I caught sight of him when looking at my backyard.

I stood in the kitchen and looked out the window at my poorly kept yard. It desperately needed a trim and grooming. I wonder who will be doing that cause its definitely not me. As I was about to walk away with my fresh cup of cocoa I see a shadow move under the trees. I squint and lean against the sink to get a better look. It was big, that was easy enough to decipher. It stepped over my fence and walked towards the back porch. Once it was close enough, the motion sensors caught it. We both stood frozen after that.

Tall was my immediate thought. Big, hulking, scaled, were my next ones. This… thing… looks like a lizard to simplify things. It was covered in dark green and brown scales and had some spikes coming out the back of its head. Before I could detail more it ran out of the yard and into the dark.

"Well fuck me," I grumble in shock. I didn’t particularly know how else to react after seeing that. Big damn lizard in my yard heading to my back door. It felt like watching one of the lost tape videos on YouTube. That creepy feeling crawling up your spine that may turn into a flight or fight response. I shivered at the time, standing in the kitchen for an uncomfortable amount of time.

It's about two weeks after the incident that I am heading back home from work. The day was harsh and aggravating. Not sure why I scheduled a date for today. Just because its Friday, doesn’t mean I'm not tired. still, my sexual drought hasn’t done much for my growing stress around the mystery in the neighborhood. I think I've caught it out the corner of my eye often after seeing him. Always lurking in the woods like some stalker. It's unnerving but I can't help to an awful fantasy of being watched while gratifying myself at night. I won't lie and say I've never thought about it, opening my windows so the lizard man could catch an eyeful. Of course, I haven't don’t it but I feel its only a matter of time.

I make it home with phantom pains in my stomach. Always around ovulation do I get these little pains, about a 2/10 on the scale but still noticeable. Fingers crossed that my date goes well so I won't have to come home and use the detachable shower head to get some peace. I pull into the driveway and shuffle about collecting all my things in the car. I open up the door as I shove my phone into my pocket. Before I could slam the door shut I hear a loud snap in the woods. It wasn’t like a twig being stepped on but more of a branch being broken. The sound echoes over the mountain and bounces off the trees. The noise sending a chill down my spine.

"ok," I grumble in comfort. I quickly shut the door and speed walk to the front door. As I grab the handle I pause. A crawling feeling runs up my spine. I freeze like a deer caught in headlights. A primal feeling of fright gripping my brain. I can't put my finger on it or even explain the reasoning until a puff of air pushes against the back of my neck. I stop breathing.

Out the corner of my eye, I see a large hand slowly reach out and press against the door. On the other side, I see another hand grab mine and gently take it off the handle. Taking in small gasps of air, I do as it says. The heat of the thing behind me increases as it crowds me to the door. I look up at the glass and try to make out the reflection. I gulp when I realize what it is.

I watch him lean down toward my neck and inhale a greedy breath, letting it out in a pleasing growl. I find myself whimpering right after. His hand still holding mine trails up my arm, stopping at my elbow. Slowly, he traces his nails over to my stomach, flattening his hand to cover almost all of me. He pets his thumb just under my bra and releases another growl.

In a flash, his hand tightens and pulls me back. He grabs me and twists me so he can throw me stomach first over his shoulder. I cough as the breath is punched out of me. We twist and in a dizzying speed, he runs away from my house. My chest bounces against his back as he runs us into the woods. Tree passes us in blurring speed till we stop at a short sharp incline of the mountain. Keeping a strong hold he grips the rock and catapults himself upwards.

He climbs up to a flat space high up over the neighborhood. He walks over to a clear space surrounded by trees, stopping and settling me in the flattened grass. I rest on my back feeling like a dog showing its stomach as I get a good look at him. His features are sharp and aggressive. His eyes are extremely dilated, or his pupils are always that big. His teeth are bared in a snarl and a bit of drool dribbles out the corner of his mouth. I don’t know how to interrupts this, is he going to eat me?

"Please," I whimper while trying to sit up. He growls as he quickly presses his hand to my chest, forcing me back down into the dirt. I follow with minimal complaint, too scared to deny him. The man lowers himself with me, settling on his hand so he can press his face close. Startling me he presses his nose to my neck and sucks in another deep inhale, releasing a deep breath with a rumbling purr. His tongue slithers out and licks up around my collar. I accidentally cry out at the warm press of his mouth. He seems to startle as well, jumping back with a gasp. He looks down at me for a moment before he shakes his head vigorously, seeming to clear his mind.

I yelp when he grabs at my pants, jerking at them. I jump up but he makes me fall back as he jerks again. Quickly he rips my bottoms down and tosses them aside. His palms glide up over my thighs, parting them as he nears my crotch. I keen in protest, trying to buck away with a flush face. Our eyes meet as he settles on his stomach. He sneers with a growl, gripping my legs tightly in command. Stay still. I settle in panic, resting on my back with a strange mix of anticipation.

His fingers settle in the cleft of my thigh, massaging gently as his breath ghosts over me. I clench my fist to my sides, refusing to look. I yelp when his tongue runs a slow stripe up my crotch. He grunts loudly as his head rest against my pelvis. I feel a dribble of drool splash onto my hip as he shakes his head slowly, perhaps overwhelmed with the experience. Without warning he licks again, dipping inside before sliding his full length up and over my clit. I choke on my breath, clenching my stomach with a white jolt pierces up my spine. He wastes no time going for thirds, taking his time to taste everything he can.

I can't ignore the sharp pulses of arousal drenching over me. I have never cared for slow but he is making it work. Feels like he is worshiping the experience, worshiping me. His tongue invades me and I can't stop the soft moan escaping my lips. He groans along with me, vibrating my thighs as he does. His fingers dig into my skin, no doubt leaving marks. He laps at me like a dog before using his lips to suck on my cunt. The scales on his chin rub over my rear and entrance, the sensation is different but not unwelcomed. I feel myself bucking against him and ignoring any previous protest I had. I let my body enjoy his assaults, even going as far as to watch him.

"Yes, fuck," I sit upon my elbows, my head dropping to my shoulder. His eyes meet mine with an intoxicating amount of enjoyment. Glad we are both on the same page. His eyes roll back as he adjusts his hold, shoving his tongue inside. His fingers then glide around to finger at my clit. "Ah, yes, please," I cry out. I watch as he drinks from me, rolling my hips into him as I near my end. I whimper out pleads, falling back onto my back as I arch into him.

"Please, please, please," I chant. His growls push me over the edge, bucking and squirming into him as I cum. He licks up everything I offer as I dig my fingers into the dirt. My fist ripping up the grass as I cry out.

As I fall he sits up and watches. I roll my head back and forth against the ground, whispering thank you. He is the first person to give me an orgasm in nearly a year. That thought should be sobering but all I can think is, he is kind of cute. For a giant lizard, he did great, better than most, if not all, my exes.

Once I come down I sit up and look at him. He isn't looking up at me, well he is looking down. Motion catches my eye and I look down at his hand wrapped around his cock, and what a cock it is indeed. He is hung like a soda can, thick as all hell. His hand is teasing along his length as he eyes my crotch. He passes a quick glance up at me, his look seems debauched if not predatory. I quirk a brow at him as I try to stray off a smile. I kind of want him inside me, I won't lie. I didn’t imagine I was this desperate for sex but here I lie, ready to plead for him.

I look from him to his crotch, spreading my legs a bit as I lick my lips. This breaks his last strand of control as he grabs at me. He clutches my hips and slides me so his tip rests against my entrance. With no preamble, he bucks forward with a loud growl. Not ready for him to go full hilt I fall back to the dirt with a clenched yelp.

"Jesus," I huff. He takes no time wildly thrusting into me. His hips clapping at mine, leaving my thoughts scattered. Sweet fuck I might die. His cock stretches me like no other. His claws piercing my skin a bit as he slams in and out. Wanting to see what's happening I sit upon my elbows again.

I watch his hips roll, ending with a sharp snap. His stomach muscles pull taunt then flow with his movements. I'm in rapture watching his motions, feeling the effects of his actions. Sitting on my elbows I watch his thick cock pound quickly into me. His cock pulling out swiftly before bucking forward. My face clenches up as I think too much on it, feeling him rub against my walls. I want to look up at him, see what this creature's face looks like when taking me so quick and hard. Yet I can't bring myself to look away from this erotic sight. I hardly notice this keening sound coming from my throat, I also hardly care.

"Fuck, please," I cry as I fall back into the dirt. His grunt and growls echo up the mountain. With a quick squeeze to my hips, he falls forwards on to his hands, hovering over me with a sneer. His bucking picks up pace, slapping against my hips with loud claps. He bares his teeth down at me, his eye nearly clenching shut. The sight is anything but ghastly. His monstrous snarling with his beast-like thrust is all the more arousing.

"Fuck-," I try to whine out a name but nothing comes to mind. The acknowledgment that this beast is using me like a sex toy hits hard. I don’t know anything about him, except how well he can eat a girl out. The taboo of fucking some strange monster in the woods is erotic, like some over the top romance novel. I can't help but squeeze around him with a fluttering of tension. He clenches his eyes close and stutters in his thrust. Soon he falls forward onto his forearms, hanging his head near my neck. I can hear his panting breath and grunts clearer now.

"Heath," I hear him huff out. I lazily swing my head to the side, eyeing him confused. He watches with a side-eye. I can't help but squeeze again when I notice that I'm bouncing with him. "Heath," he growls again.

"Heath," I mumble out around heavy breaths. As he hears me he drops his forehead to the ground and bucks harder into my hips. I choke on a gasp as it feels like his cock is in my stomach. "Fuck, Heath," I growl out between clenched teeth. I find myself reaching out for something sturdy, grabbing at his biceps near my shoulders. As I call his name again he grunts and groans. His noises sound delightful next to my ear. I squeeze around him as I listen, fighting off my nearing peak just to prolong this experience.

I can feel everything. The way the head of his cock leads the way deep inside me. The sensation of his scales rubbing against my hands and thighs. I can feel the air puffing from his heavy panting, brushing my hair slightly. I hold on to every sensation until I can't take it anymore. "Heath, shit- you-… Fuck," I try to speak. My brain seemingly mush as I cry out, hearing my whines echo over the mountains. No doubt startling some of the residences below.

Quickly everything turns white. My hearing becomes a ringing as I suddenly stop screaming. My mouth opens in a silent yell. My insides clench around his impressive length, making him stutter in his thrust. I clench his arms with a vice grip, listening to his short whines as he frantically pounds into me. He takes all he can get before slamming once more. He stills, his breath caught in his throat. I feel his hot load jet into me, coating my insides with his seed. Giving just one final buck we both lay silent. His face buried to my neck and my hands gripping him tightly.

Neither of us moves, still coming back into our own and catching our breaths. I relax my hold and tilt my head back with a content sigh. That was amazing.

Heath startles me by pressing his face to my neck. Licking a short stripe up to my ear. I can feel his chest rumble with a soft purr. His satisfied behavior is pleasing in an almost primal way. I trail my hands up his arms, over his shoulders, and down to his chest. I press my palm to him, feeling his vibrations.

"Jesus, you have been driving me insane all week. I tried taking myself in my hand but it didn’t work, your cunt was the perfect cure," he growls out next to my ear. It's startling, if not embarrassing, to finally hear his voice. Well, hear it in a full sentence anyway.

What he says is still a bit concerning, "I've been driving you crazy?"

"Yes, your scent was too potent. My little sexually frustrated female, practically screaming for my cock," he rubs his nose to my cheek, licking and kissing as he does.

I push his head away while trying to bite down on my smile, "I was not, you big brute." he finally sits up, cocking an eyebrow down at me.

"Right, shall we make a repeat performance than? I will have you begging in the dirt in seconds," his smug face is both charming and annoying.

"Cocky aren't we?"

"Only when I'm right," he grins. He settles back on his forearms, pressing gentle kisses around my face. It’s a strange contrast to his previous domineering actions. Despite my denial, he did have me screaming into the dirt like some kind of whore. I won't lie and say it was unpleasant or unwanted but I will say it would have been nice to know his name beforehand. Not everyone can say that they found out someone's name when it was growled into their ear while that someone's big cock was rearranging their organs. That would be weird if it was a common thing, be concerned about today's way of life if that were the case.

Without warning, Heath grabs my hips and tilts us sideways. He is on his back, cradling me to his front. Letting out a content sigh that ruffles my hair, he closes his eyes. I rest my palms to his chest a bit perplexed. Is he going to sleep? What a typical man. With a roll of my eyes, I rest my chin on his sternum, just observing this strange beast. As I too begin to fall captive to the grips of sleep I remember my plans for tonight. Instead of catching some comforting rest, I begin to rouse with questions.

"Now what?"

His eyes peak open, "Now what?"

"I need to get back home, I have a date tonight I need to get cleaned up for," I clarify. It seems wrong to go out after being thoroughly fucked on the plateau of a mountain but I can't imagine this is going to form into something more. A taboo rendezvous that won't result in a committed relationship.

He still surprises me by saying, "Date? Not anymore."

I regard him confused, "hmm?"

"No man is taking you away, I will state my intent right now. I will have you again, and again, and again because you are mine," his fingers dig into my naked hips. A growl rumbling from his chest into mine. I'm not put off by the idea, far from it, but I won't make it easy for him.

"I don’t remember agreeing to that," I answer in a cheek to tongue way.

"You agreed when you took my cock," he counters with a wicked smirk.

"I feel there wasn’t much say in that. Didn’t exactly ask," I pretend to ponder.

"Why would I need to when you were begging so beautifully? I couldn’t prolong our torture by asking. Also, I don’t think I could have arranged enough words into a coherent sentence with your arousal surrounding my nose," he sits up and rubs his face into my neck. I can feel his sharp teeth grazing along my collar. It was a fair point, not a good one but a pleasing one.

"I'll let it slide, this time. I expect to be properly courted, don’t need some brute coming in and just staking his claim," I submit, not without my own demands. He stops his assault and leans back with an annoyed look.

"You are exhausting," he thumps his head back to the ground.

"Maybe you shouldn’t have thought with your prick before your brain then," I poke to the top of his head.

"What can I say, he made a good choice," he chuckles.

"I can agree with that," I answer as I rest my cheek to his chest, tracing some of his scales with my finger.

"Then we agree, you are mine," he asks with a large grin. I look up at him, my lips quirking at his full toothy smile.

"As long as you are mine," I shoot back.

"I was yours the minute I got to taste your cunt," his smile goes from playful to teasing. His fingers trailing down to cup my ass.

"Brute and vulgar," I can't help but laugh.

"Shut up, you love it," he purrs. His hands grope and squeeze my rear, his tongue lapping along my neck. If he keeps this up I may be partial to another round.

I grin like a fool, "perhaps."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is almost exactly how a dream of mine went. only difference is i woke up before he said anything. Bruh was hella hung, miss him.

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#Enigma-IM #monster boyfriend #lizard man #exophilia #crocodile rock #kidnapping #reader insert #Heath

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aethuviel · 4 years

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TES Elves lifespan and fertility

I’ve been playing Skyrim for four years, and am fairly new to TES lore. One of the things I wonder, like many others, is how long do the races of mer (talking the three now, falmer and orcs don’t count) live, and how do they avoid overpopulation with their obviously lengthy lifespans (and as horny as they seem to be)?

I’ve read around on various discussion forums where people ask these same questions, but never found a satisfying answer.

The common answers to the lifespan questions are “up to 1000″, sourced from The Real Barenziah, but this was just written in an in-universe book, which makes it unreliable at best, and the second common answer is “max ~300, unless they’re using magic to extend their lives”, because an official quote from Bethesda goes like this:

"Elves live two to three times as long as humans and the “beast-races” (Orcs, Khajiiti, Argonians). A 200-year-old Elf is old; a 300-year-old Elf is very, very old indeed. Anyone older than that has prolonged his or her lifespan through powerful magic."

But I call BS on this, because it’s broken by the world itself.

Examples (all powerful mages and wizards are excluded, for obvious reasons):

- Avrusa and Aduri Sarethi are Dunmer farmer in the Rift, and according to Avrusa, she used to have a shop (meaning she was an adult) in Morrowind before the eruption of the Red Mountain, 196 years ago. That puts her and her sister at well over 200 years old, and Aduri gives the impression of being young (her girly voice). - Lleril Morvayn and Adril Arano (and add to that Adril’s wife Cindiri) have ruled Solstheim together for 136 years, Lleril taking over after his mother’s death, and they show no sign of being particularly old. - Legate Fasendil is an Altmer soldier who was “stationed in Hammerfell” (meaning, an adult) 159 years ago, and he does not appear old.

- The only one I can find to sort of confirm the Bethesda quote is Elynea Mothren, mycologist at Tel Mithryn, who says she remembers the eruption of Red Mountain as a “little girl”, and that she’s “an old woman now”, which she certainly looks like. She would be perhaps in her early 200s.

The third common claim about mer lifespan is from a quote that follows like this:

Well, I'm fifty, done my twenty years in the Service, and I'm in the prime of life. I expect another fifty good years, and then I'll be old, and slow, chatting with gaffers around the hearth for another twenty, thirty years. I've known mer still mind-sharp in their late hundreds, and heard of folk 200 and older. My family usually makes it to 120-130, providing we don't get sick or poked in the eye.

But this brings us back to The Real Barenziah. Many claims are made in it, such as...

"I think Straw will be a very old man before 'someday' comes, Berry. Elves live for a very long time." Katisha's face briefly wore the envious, wistful look humans got when contemplating the thousand-year lifespan Elves had been granted by the gods. True, few ever actually lived that long as disease and violence took their respective tolls. But they could. And one or two of them actually did.

Now, this book was approved by Barenziah herself, but that does not assure us of its accuracy, only that she liked it.

But I think this is still closer to the truth than “a 300 year old elf is very, very old indeed”, because of all the things that are unreliable in TRB, what is set in stone is the birth year of Barenziah and her children.

Barenziah and Symmachus had Helseth (now one can doubt whether Symmachus is actually Helseth’s father, but that is for another time) in 3E 376, when Barenziah was a whopping 379 years old. She then had two more children in the next couple of decades, her third and last child born when she was 394 or 395 years old.

There is to my knowledge no claim at all that Barenziah was using magic to extend her life (nor Symmachus for that matter, and he was three decades older than her, slain in battle at the age of 422). And it is confirmed by the lore that she became a mother of three at nearly four centuries old. So this wipes that quote by Bethesda completely, in my opinion.

TRB quotes on elven fertility:

"You ought to meet some nice Elven boys, though. If you go on keeping company with Khajiits and humans and what have you, you'll find yourself pregnant in next to no time."

Barenziah smiled involuntarily at the thought. "I'd like that. I think. But it would be inconvenient, wouldn't it? Babies are a lot of trouble, and I don't even have my own house yet."

"How old are you, Berry? Seventeen? Well, you've a year or two yet before you're fertile, unless you're very unlucky. Elves don't have children readily with other Elves after that, even, so you'll be all right if you stick with them."

And later, after banging Talos for a time...

"You appear to be with child, young as you are. Constant pairing with a human has brought you to early fertility.”

Barenziah then marries Symmachus immediately following Tiber Septim’s death. This is said to be “half a century” later, which would put Barenziah at almost 70 years old, but the actual year Tiber Septim died was in 3E 38, when she was ~41 years old. Anyhow. (Goes back to how unreliable the books are.)

The years passed swiftly, with crises to be dealt with, and storms and famines and failures to be weathered, and plots to be foiled, and conspirators to be executed. Mournhold prospered steadily. Her people were secure and fed, her mines and farms productive. All was well -- save that the royal marriage had produced no children. No heirs.

Elven children are slow to come, and most demanding of their welcome -- and noble children more so than others. Thus many decades had come to pass before they grew concerned.

Some three centuries later...

Directly after the Nightingale's theft of the Staff of Chaos, Symmachus had sent urgent secret communiques to Uriel Septim. He had not gone himself, as he would normally have, choosing instead to stay with Barenziah during her fertile period to father a son upon her.

Speaking about the Nightingale some time later, when Barenziah was pregnant...

"Dark Elf in part, perhaps," said Barenziah, "but part human too, I think, in disguise. Else would I not have come so quickly to fertility."

From this we can draw that, 1) Elven women become fertile around the age of 18-20 2) They conceive easier with other races, rather than with male elves (implying that both sexes have low fertility), and can even be brought to fertility faster by sleeping around a lot with other races 3) And by her eventual pregnancy leading to the birth of Helseth, we are to believe that the Nightingale didn’t touch her, but that simply the passion she felt for him made her fertile, after centuries of no results.

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And when Tiber “Talos” Septim forces a child (as he viewed her) to have an abortion (I am forever disgusted with Talos for this), the Altmer healer says:

"Sire. It is her child. Children are few among the Elves. No Elven woman conceives more than four times, and that is very rare. Two is the usual number. Some bear none, even, and some only one. If I take this one from her, Sire, she may not conceive again."

It is widely quoted but again, a book in-game is not a reliable source, and while looking around Dunmer names in ESO, I found a fellow named Quell Andas, who has four siblings.

Unless, for some reason, they are called siblings but there are at least two mothers involved (i.e. half-siblings), or they’re lying, this is a case of an elf woman bearing five children. I’m sure there could be more cases among any of the mer if I looked further.

So that healer was at least not being entirely truthful.

But it does make sense that the mer would have much lower fertility, on both sides (males and females), simply as a price to pay for their long lifespans.

Humans live for about seventy years. Women are fertile from about 15-45, a 30 year “baby bearing window”, if you will.

The fact that Barenziah was pregnant three times in her late 300s, says not just that they live that long, but that she had not entered menopause - if elves even have that.

Her first pregnancy was when she was 17-18. Her last, at 394-395. That is, for her, a “baby bearing window” of at least 376 years. And there is nothing, I might add, in the books to imply surprise or shock that Barenziah bore children at that age.

With a human’s 30 year fertility window, in a world of no contraception, some rare women can have 20 or more children.

Now increase that to 300+ years, and if elves were as fertile as humans, an elf woman could birth a hundred children in her life, as easily as a human could birth ten. This would lead to an insanely unsustainable population growth, as elves are people(!) and we cannot compare them to animals that have that many offspring (since those are typically unintelligent animals where almost all die soon after birth).

Since they live for centuries but can have children at twenty, this also means children can be surrounded by a long line of ancestors. Not just grandparents, but great-great-great grandparents, and so on, people living on and using up resources for much longer. This means population growth has to be slow.

So, to keep a normal population growth at 2-4 children for most people (with some having more and some having none), elves naturally have to be much less fertile to “pay” for their lenghty lifespans.

We don’t know why, if it’s by some divine power, nature, or whathaveyou, but I imagine (absolutely no source on this, just my imagination) mer women might have much rarer ovulations, like once a year instead of once a month (imagine only some 3 fertile days per year instead of some 36 days), or requiring some special “event” to ovulate (as TRB implies), and that male mer have heavily reduced sperm counts compared to other races.

That would make sense, but is only my personal speculation.

And as for lifespan, I still choose to believe TRB, as while statements in it are unreliable, we know a woman had multiple children near her 400th birthday, with no known magical intervention to slow down her aging. That couldn’t have happened unless all elves could live to a thousand, but most die during the centuries from injury or disease.

#Skyrim #TES #The Elder Scrolls #Barenziah #The Real Barenziah #mer #Dunmer #Altmer #Bosmer #elves #high elves #dark elves #wood elves #tes lore

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hunterartemis · 5 years

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The Assistant: (Theseus X OC) Epilogue (Finale): Nostoi

Words: 5562

Chapter Theme: The Shores of Scotland by Max Richter : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgAQtr8g_mA

Theseus waited behind Ms. Nishimori because he couldn’t see a blooming thing because of the thick shroud of foggy mist.

“The sky was completely clear until now...” Theseus exclaimed, “where did the fog came all of a sudden?”

“Sore wa Kiri ja nai—It is not fog” Ms Nishimori had already advanced few steps, her silhouette hazed and edges softened as she entered the whiteout, “they are watering the trees.”

Theseus stopped for several seconds, watering the trees? He couldn’t believe that such massive amount of mist which only appears in the dawn of deep winter can appear thus by watering the trees. Either the trees were inhumanly massive or the waterbearers were airy sylphs floating around and throwing miniscule droplets of water—but all that seemed possible in the Beedle the Bard’s stories, not in real life.

“You don’t believe me do you?” Someone spoke from his behind.

Theseus swiftly turned at his back, and saw Ume Nishimori standing on a rock with her hand extended towards Theseus, and as their hand joined, with a crack they vanished from the edge of the misty veil near the moonbridge.

When Theseus’ vision adjusted with the views, he found himself standing under the endless canopy. He could not comprehend where Ume Nishimori disappeared, and even after several called, no one answered. Confused with this unexpected abandonment, he nervously where he was. And like the streak of sunlight peaking from the mask of cloud, a strange melody entered through the labyrinth of the leaves.

He had no choice but to listen to the strange song the reverberated through the forest around him. A strange mist felt against his skin and for the first time he felt warm and comfortable. His heart relaxed as he looked around him from the ground to the heights of the ceiling of leaves; suddenly he felt stupid about his loss of direction—it was right there... straight ahead.

His pace lead him steadily towards the lighter section of that forest as he followed the direction of that strange tune. His eyes looked straight up towards the canopy as he saw a great silver blue bird glided over the forest singing that strange song that filled Theseus with surety and direction. At the the same time he felt that he wasn’t alone in that forest, someone or something was running past him with a strange invisibility that felt his heart with ease. He tried to look around to see them and he saw a strange creature. It looked like wolf but had none of it’s feral nature—it had glowing silver coat, beautiful turquoise eyes and many bellowing tails that left a trail of glowing mist as it almost floated alongside him. Theseus knew about that creature; it was the most famous and mysterious Japanese Nine-tailed-fox. It had been attempted to be captured and bred by foreign breeders for many centuries but none of them were successful. He looked at his other side and saw couple of more, each one with different eye colour. Their presence assured that he was never alone, never lost.

He had no idea why the beasts were trying to befriend him, he was unknown, he was a foreigner... he should fear them, as they should be wary about him. He was so mesmerised by them that he didn’t even realise that he was standing at the edge of the forest.

The scenery was something out of a fairytale. A brook flowed with roaring current like a flashing line of thunder through the brown arms of the surrounding mountain. The song of that great bird resonated through the valley and as if to enjoy the song, the endless lines of foreign flowers lolled their head. Pink and white petals blew with the gentle and warm wind like lost love letters from some unknown trees. In the world where everything slumbered in wintry covers, this Eden woke with the spirit of spring. Nature seemed to embrace the unknown man from the faraway land with open arms. Not even the first glimpse of the great forest of Hogwarts evoked such a passion in Theseus’ heart. He put aside his coat and sat on the pebbled shore of the brook...

For the first time, in a long time, he could see the heart and spirit of his brother; for the first time he understood the rush behind the life of wilderness—and it made him tremendously peaceful. However no matter how hard he tried he could not fit Maxine’s silk clad, diamond laden, sharp figure into the peaceful Eden. In his spirit of serenity, a mild tremor arose that compelled him to rethink about the woman who pulled him in this far eastern shore. Like an illusive dream, he felt she was slipping away once again. He felt tremendously jealous of Newt who saw her in wilderness—why else she would voluntarily choose such an obscure job! He tried to imagine Maxine’s face in the midst of those nine-tailed fox or that bird, nothing but haze appeared before him. He looked at the silvery mid-day sky, perhaps hoping that her face will appear there.

In the meanwhile, Ume Nishimori was already other side of the forest, upon the hill from where women watered the trees. With swift feet she entered her living quarters and sat herself down. She needed to make herself scarce lest she mars the union of two waiting people. The moment she saw Theseus, his mind was made clear to her like an open book—she was a skilled legillimens after all. However she did not want the straight-forward meeting, thus under her slightly bitten lip hid a plan of mischief.

“Who are in water-duty today?” she called an attendant, dressed in violet cotton yukata.

“Yoka-san, Ryoko-san, Mine-chan--”

“Tell them that they can take the day off...”

“But Nishimori-sensei, who would water the trees? It is still not spring yet, the trees will lose moisture--”

“I didn’t tell you not deprive the plant, I have just given them a day off. And as for your concern, Matsu-chan would be enough to handle the entire forest.”

“Hai...” the attendant left without another word. After she left, Ume Nishimori poured herself some tea, and through every sip, smiled a mysterious smile.

“Now then, Matsu-chan, let’s see how much you’ve learnt”

...

The moment the attendant reached in the inner sanctum of the living quarters, Maxine knew that either she was summoned for the water duty or for Nishimori-san. As soon as she heard about her duty, she bid the attendant goodbye and started to dress. She picked up a maroon pinstriped juban top and the black hakama pants to put on for today. It was quiet meditative, the process of Japanese dressing, or as she thought. Because a snippet of yesterday’s conversation with Ume-sensei was still plaguing her mind.

“what is going on Matsu-chan?” she asked softly leaning on the door panel as Maxine sat under the window, looking outside ponderously. She glanced slightly and stood up as soon as she heard her professor’s voice. She sat down obediently as Ume-sensei decided to take a seat beside her.

“What is going on Matsu-chan... ” Ume spoke with her meandering tone, “your thoughts are so loud and distracting today, I couldn’t concentrate on the firebirds at all! You know they are ovulating right?” seeing that Maxine didn’t respond at all, Ume turned her student towards her by the shoulder to take a proper look at herself, “look at you, all tensed up—no no, occlumency won’t work on me now—I have seen too many things.”

“Then tell me what should I do?” Maxine asked her sincerely, “my days are getting closer and I have said something irresponsible to someone I don’t know what to feel about—I have told Theseus that I will wait for him before I left.” she looked away from the penetrating gaze of her teacher “how I am supposed to face him--”

“You are having second thoughts about him?”

Maxine couldn’t answer. She silently lowered her face with shame and confusion.

“Any sane person would have told you that you shouldn’t have done it, or advised you to give it some time” Ume said reflectively “but what can I say,you have always been very hasty Matsu-chan. The moment you started Mahoutokoro, I have been watching you. You are hasty, attention seeking--“

“Attention seeking?”

“Yes, and irresponsible—and that it what also makes you insecure and do things that you feel oblidged to do but do not mean.”

“I am not a people pleaser, if that’s what you mean. I never were--”

“Oh yes you are... it’s your survival mechanism, otherwise how else you survived in that house of your family if you were not. Humans, no matter how we claim to be better than the animals, are the same as them. We fit ourself to adjust to our environment long enough for us to leave or change. And as for the dilemma of yours, it’s the same.”

“That seems a little extreme even for a legillimens for to figure out.”

“How would you justify your thoughts about him then? You fall for him but do not pursue him, you get cowardishly angry when he was with someone who was not you. And you found yourself a perfect situation to justify your departure from him, in conclusion you decided to return your poisonous roots—to Anatole.”

“Sensei, you know very well that I do not want to talk about it--”

“—you chase, you cheat but you never try to reach, because you cannot stand rejection. The child that feared exclusion have grown up to be a woman who is too insecure to take a ‘No’. And like a unsatified man with a virgin wife, you loiter around with thirst in your heart and grab the nearest whore who stands in your way”

“—please professor, I beg you to refrain from using that term. Newt was everything that I ever hoped for and he is not the ‘whore’ you are suggesting--”

“—and again that chase begins, that superiority complex kicks in and replacing his fiancee with the mistress begins. You know it, deep down in your heart that you never want to give in—you would rather have a whore than someone your equal. and the further I see, I feel that the man of you is the same also—coward, full of himself, reluctant to be rejected from the person he is mad for and thus he chooses convinience over passion.”

Maxine listened to her without interruption. Her face was low and reflective—never in her life has her entire character been stripped naked in front of her own self. She felt as if she was witnessing her own autopsy.

“—so you are saying that I should abandon him--”

“—no... no.” Ume shook her head irritably as if Maxine got the entire thing wrong, “I am so sick of you feeling afraid, I am sick of seeing you fearing that once more your heart would be broken... in fact I think that I think you’ll leave him the first chance you have--” she stood up on her feet, “when you are insecure you do not only hurt yourself but others as well. I suggest you to think it through like an adult.”

Why would she say something like that? why would Ume-sensei say something like that? She was well aware of her mind games, hell! It was from her she learnt the art of twisting words but this time, she felt everything was piercing through her skin. Does she not believe in her own student, or does she think that her student is not confident enough...

Maxine climbed the mountain with doubts and counter-doubts firing against her mind. She tied the bowstring against her longbow as her frown deepened. Her quiver full of glittering transparent looking arrows fell off her shoulder with her absence of mind—disaster! In Futen Sanctuary, when the rain is scarce and the grounds are dry, specially trained archers fire water-arrows from the highest peak of the mountain towards the forest. The arrow melts into mist and precipitation to moisten the soil. The archer needed to be exceptionally nimble and steady to fire the water-arrows, each of which in their solidified form packed the power of a raging flood that had the power even to erode a mountain. Those who studied Beast Trainership in Mahoutokoro under the governence of Yonomori Family are well aware of how hard it was to master the archery of waterarrows, and very few are as capable. A long time ago it was the art that showed Maxine the centre of peace in her mind when the world she knew fell apart.

The mental state of Maxine requires no explanation at this point; tension of firing the bow properly added into her jeopardised mind. She forcefully breathed in as she lowered her bow to fix her arrow. Her posture erect and fixated at the very top of the forest, the upper canopies fluttering into the gentle wind caused by the Song of the Forest guardian, the silver Heron bird—she warned the occupants of the forest to take cover as the archer is in position to fire the arrow.

Theseus sat on the bank of the brook, that strange songbird that he heard earlier floated like a great silvery-blue kite at the gray sky towards the mountain on the other side. Theseus’ eyes followed his gliding motion, until he saw her.

No, it was no mistake. Despite all the distance, the unfamiliar austere clothing, he knew whom he saw. It was the old familiar figure of Maxine, standing like some tall mast of a ship as her unseen long hair bellowed like some black standard behind her. Something glittering and long was rested upon the peculiar looking bow, and her figure stood still as the marble statue. Theseus rose slowly, without blinking an eye, he could see her drawing the bow taut and far, his heart throbbed like a boy and his whole body couldn’t contain the impulse to call her

Maxine...

WHOOSH

Her hand shook as she let go of her arrow, something which was forbidden on every account. The entire mountain valley resonated with her name, as if the entire forest was calling her. She knew that voice, for a moment she thought she hallucinated but when she looked at the other side, she saw the tall figure of Theseus, standing and looking at her way. When Maxine got into her senses, she had already fired her first arrow—it was going straight towards him.

Trouble.

The arrow followed it’s crooked passage towards Theseus’ heart and he stood there as if he has locked his eyes with the basilisk, he couldn’t even see Maxine’s figure on the rocks. The glinting point of the arrow grew closer and closer and suddenly he felt a pressure on his chest, as he toppled at his back towards the stony ground.

After several moment of darkness, Theseus’ eyes fluttered into the light. In the greenish chroma of the forest, he saw Maxine was leaning towards his face. After a few moment when he realised the close proximity of their distance, he uncomfortably wiggled himself up. However he wasn’t prepared for the next.

“ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?” Maxine thundered as landed a tight slap on Theseus’ cheek, “who stands in the middle of a forest and screams at someone who is about is fire an arrow--”

“It was just an arrow though—I would have stopped it with my wand--”

“Right... you would. Have you ever wondered why you are standing like a soaked imbecile?”

Theseus didn’t notice until now. Suddenly he looked around him: the soil the trees looked like they had been hit by a massive flood. He then looked at Maxine, completely soaked and dishavaled who was pacing up and down with the great bow tied at her back

“Merlin’s beard, I could have killed you—and lord knows how much blood I have on my hand already”

“Maxine...” Theseus stopped her with a disapproving frown, as if he wasn’t really surprised with her self-guilty, only very concerned that she was still investing in it.

“Why are you here...?” Maxine asked with a tone of surprise, as if his presence didn’t register in her mind earlier.

“I came here...” Theseus stopped in his words, chewing and tasting it. “--to take you home.” Theseus asserted with his head held high and lack of confidence in his voice.

Maxine’s brows gathered in a frown, as if she couldn’t believe what he was saying. Her earlier contemplation starkly clashed with Theseus’ upright confession.

“is that because I asked you to wait for me?”

Theseus stopped for a while, his face reddened and hsi brows frowned as if she had said something offensive, “why does everything have to be about you... everything I do has to be about you isn’t it? How spoiled could you be—no, no, how dense could you be to understand that something does not happen because you ask people to tell so--” he said heatedly. And with natural phenomenon of contagious affect, it caught on Maxine too.

“Why are you being such a prick? I just asked a question—a mere question and you just going around like a--”

“It’s not fair!” Theseus screamed on the top of his lungs, “it’s not fair how you push into my boundaries making a complete fool out of me; it’s not fair how I try to be someone else and do things that I never did for anyone—do you know, I am scared to death to sea and I spend a FREAKING WEEK IN IT JUST SO--”

Maxine could not find the reason behind Theseus’ anger and irritation; as far as she knew him, he was one of the most patient person she had ever seen. Otherwise he wouldn’t have put up with her despite her track records of playing the trickster to get what she wants. He paced and fumed in the muddy soil of the forest as Maxine watched him with a stupefied expression.

“Just so?” she asked tentatively.

She could see a slight change of expression in his face, the frowns unknotting and the lines smoothing. His blue eyes looking straight towards her, “Maxine... I was annoyed and angry when you joined Newt without the ministry notice. I was jealous like a stupid child when I saw you dancing with my brother at Yule Party, I was hopeless when I saw you kissing him at the church—but I never realised what was the reason I felt those emotions towards you--” he came closer to her, speaking with his fullest sincerity, “can you forgive me?”

“No...” Maxine said firmly, “No... It is I who must ask forgiveness...” Maxine stepped two steps closer towards Theseus and grabbed him by the shoulders, “I had been so mean towards you—I had been so jealous when you started with Leta—I shouldn’t have done that. Furthermore, I hurt you the most when you needed me. You trusted me and I hurt you and that’s why all those emotions had been generating in your heart. Truth is, now I realise—I refused you in anger and I sought after Newt when my heart was hungry, I wasn’t in my rational self and I almost ruined three lives—of course I forgive you Theseus, but in return I ask for yours--”

“Tell me...” Theseus’s face darkened like a clouded midday sun, “are you still in love with Newt?”

“Yes, I am... ” Maxine looked upwards, “however there is no expectations in that. I went to him in a distraught mind—I am grateful to him because he looked inside my heart and knew what I was running away from. I caused him pain and his companionship showed me where I was supposed to be--”

“Where were you supposed to be?” Theseus asked with eagerness in his voice, in reply he got Maxine’s meaningful silence.Theseus used this pregnant pause and pulled out the emerald box out of his breast pocket and knelt on the muddy ground to put the ring in Maxine’s fingers. Maxine inspected the ring in the little light she got inside the forest and said with an amused annoyance.

“This is what you get for me, Roses and Filigree?” Maxine replied sarcastically.

“Look closer...” Theseus said with a mysterious smile.

As Maxine looked closer the outer layers of rose-gold melted away and vanished. Instead of the soft rose-gold design, a beautiful black gold baroque ring held a miniature crown; the crown was actually a scepter of a fiery opal that looked like a miniature sunset.

“For the dark and fiery soul—for the trickster and perfection of my life” Theseus said softly, admiring Maxine’s expression.

“So, Maxine Adrienne Odessa Valois--”

“I hate when you take my full name--”

“—stop interrupting me, you minx—“ Theseus rebuked her with a paradoxical smile, “so, Maxine Adrienne Odessa Valois, I would like to ask you, if you are willing to spend the rest of your life with me?” he asked with a deep voice.

Maxine paused for a bit. Her eyes glistened with moisture and her usual Devil’s Attorney crooked smile graced her wet lips, “are you, Mr Theseus Scamander willing to bear my wickedness for the rest of your life?”

“—you are suppose to answer in ‘yes’ or ‘no’” Theseus said with irritability, but his face said he felt otherwise.

“Trust me; it is a great responsibility—so, are you?” Maxine repeated.

“—yes!”

“Then yes... I shall be willing to do the same!”

The forest suddenly filled with claps and laughter. They both looked around and saw the entire sanctuary was applauding to them, as if they were waiting for this to happen. Suddenly out of the crowd the old familiar face peeked through the crowd, Maxine knew her—she was Professor Nishimori. Her face could not be seen from Theseus’ side, as if she was a phantom who appeared only before Maxine. Her black eyes streaming in a motherly joy as she applauded with the rest. Through her tears, Maxine felt as if her own mother was standing behind her whispering that she was proud of her own daughter. Her eyes veered towards Theseus, whose eyes too was streaming with joy. There was a pharse in Japanese community she heard for many times, but never understood its full meaning. Now today, as she stands realising that there was more than the shame, jealousy, rejection and fear she recieved in her life.

Umarete Hajimeta

She was reborn.

...

“Merlin’s beard if I don’t have a firewhisky within three seconds I am going to be petrified--” Theseus murmured as Newt fixed his bow tie, very patiently in their room in the Family home in Scotland. The merry morning rays of spring crept in with the roaring sound of sea through the east window.

“Isn’t the bride be the nervous one?” Newt asked as he straightened up and Theseus fixed his tie with an irritable frown. Newt smiled on his own to see his brother on his toes, struggling to cope with the gravity of the situation.

“—nervous? She? The dead shall rise from the grave just to see her flinch a little—Merlin knows what I have put myself through.” Theseus exasperated. Newt wasn’t particularly impressed with the situation, he gravely commented “—Theseus I thought you were looking forward to marry her--”

“—who said I don’t want to marry her...” Theseus interrupted Newt irritably and plopped on the ottoman to put on his silk socks, “—I am out of the world with happiness—but the problem is not her... it’s her family. As long as she was solo, everything was fine, but as soon as her family made up with her... boom... Saint Chappell all over again.” Theseus pulled his socks so hard that the elastic snapped audibly and painfully, “I am scared to death for their expectations—Newt, you don’t understand, I have met her father and all the time I felt like the worst piece of crap in front of his influence and extravagance—they have booked the Drum Castle.... THE Drum Castle for the wedding--”

The train of rant was interrupted with a warning notice by Tina, who huddled inside in a bright turmeric flapper dress and a myrtle bouquet.

“Five minutes...” Tina huffed as she totted, “They have send a Rolls Royce... a flying one”

Tina hadn’t looked anywhere until now, and when she looked at Theseus tying the strings of shoes through his calves. Before leaving an unexpected snigger left her lips.

“IT’S A KILT....” a desperate scream of Theseus left a trail behind her.

The people on Groom’s side, including Theseus, his best man Newt, Mother of Groom Mrs. Bronte Scamander and finally Tina boarded the car nervously. The Royce flew across the Caledonian ranges of beautiful glen until it landed at the front of the castle. Tina huddled through her heels to Maxine because it was a tradition of Scamander family that the bride is to be dressed by the sister of the groom, since the Scamander had no girl sibling, the immediate choice was Tina, and she was soon to be sister-in-law too, if the circumstances permitted. She may have been difficult in some cases in the past, but she had learned that even the worst of the people can change.

“Oh... Ma chere, you have arrived...” Marguerite was standing at the bottom of the tower, dressed in Mauve bell-epoch dress and tilted pillbox hat—Tina had a mini-heart attack at how well this woman looked, the flaming red hair arranged in beautiful chignon and her entire figure exuded power and elegance. But she had to pay attention to her words, “thank Merlin... would you be glad to ‘elp Maxine to add some final touches?”

Tina didn’t know that such mellow and polite lady can hold so much power in her soft voice. She didn’t know if she even had to decline her.

“Of course Madame...”

They apparated at the top of the tower with a crack, Svetlana who was at Maxine’s service opened the door to reveal the bride sitting upright near the ornate Victorian mirror.

“You look beautiful Maxine...” Tina admired Maxine with a tinge of envy as she beheld her. Maxine had rose from her former seat. The simple satin wedding gown adorned her tall figure gracefully and it added the space to the flowers and jewels to shine. Tina, for a moment compared her soft and fluid look with that of the winter wedding in Paris. This Maxine didn’t look like Ice queen with blood lips and decked in diamond—she looked like a bride.

Tina, with fullness in her heart, added red lacquer in her lips, added the baby’s breath and myrtle flower crown at the back of her perfectly pinned curls. After huffing and puffing over her already finished near perfect look, Tina finally stepped down.

“How do I look?” Maxine looked at Tina through the mirror, a nervous tone disturbed her natural cockiness of voice. Tina smiled internally, even the most confident gets nervous.

“the most beautiful bride I have ever seen” her reaction evoked a stray tear in Svetlana’s light blue eyes.

As Newt and Theseus settled near the isle, Theseus’s nervousness pumped through the ceiling. He had a sip of firewhiskey already, but it did nothing—he was marrying a Duchess for Merlin’s sake. He looked around the wedding hall, all the important figures of European ministry were there, looking at Theseus’ way, sitting at the most elegantly dressed hall. The wedding hall somehow transformed from a stony room to a Baroque palace—golden filigreed chandeliers glowed against rose-motived pink walls, he felt like he was an insignificant part of a French painting. Newt could see the tumultuous waves of inferiority and nervousness on his brother’s face. He softly grabbed him by the shoulder.

“—‘Seus, she is their only daughter—she has no blood relatives left in the world, they are trying their best to make up to it all.”

“—Newt, I am not sure if I can keep her happy or not...”

“I believe in you...”

Theseus looked at his brother with widened eyes, his little brother hid again under the unkempt strawberry blond bangs, but the strength he channeled through his softness made Theseus extremely proud of his younger brother.

Maxine fidgeted behind the great Cypress door of the wedding hall. The door will open at anytime soon. In the absence of father, she will walk alone and her bridesmaids Tina and Svetlana will follow.

The door swung open and the entire hall blazed with a very non traditional music for a bridal march. Maxine knew it was the choice of her family, who would have opted for some ecclesiastical pieces by Vivaldi, Monteverdi or Faure like her wedding; Arrival of the Queen of Sheba was an unusual choice for a bridal march. Maxine slightly leaned back before walk towards Tina to ask who was the one to pick the music.

“It was Theseus...” Tina said with a smile.

Maxine’s lips curved into a full, genuine smile as she stepped forward with light feet. Her eyes veering towards her wedding guests, who were giving her a standing ovation. She saw Charlemagne, Lucian Carr and entire Auror department looking at her; at her right she saw Bongartz and the other wizards from Romanian dragon reserve smiling at her way; a little further stood her professors of Durmstrang and Hogwarts. Dumbledore looked handsome in his tweed suit, accompanying Mcgonagall and Nishimori sensei in a petal pink Silk kimono and really elaborate hairdo. Everyone important in her life gathered under one roof to witness the one thing she needed most in her life.

“Dearly beloved we’ve gathered here to witness the holy union of Theseus Delian Chrysostomus Scamander and Lady Maxine Adrienne Odessa Valois--”

“So... ” Maxine discreetly whispered, “Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, huh! Nice touch, bit Baroque and old, but classy—you know your Handel”

“I had to resort to it, because Handel didn’t write anything for The Duchess of Croy...”

“Chrysostomus...’golden mouth’, how come I never heard that name before?—”

“Because I hate it... and the person after I was named...”

“Who?”

“My great uncle, Chrysostomus Scamander—he gave that name to himself once he became a Seer; none of his prediction ever came true... including me marrying an ugly wealthy widow--”

“—I don’t know whether I should slap you in the face or the old geezer who dared to call me ugly--”

Theseus could not understand what she was talking about until he realise what he has said, “—Oh... I am so sorry, Maxine I didn’t mean that” he whispered under his breath.

“Concentarte Mr. Scamander, we are at a ceremony” Maxine said with a forced deadpan face, painfully suppressing a laughter.

“Why you always put me in an embarrasing position and don’t let me apologise?”

“First of all, it is not my fault that you have no brakes on your mouth and secondly when someone ignores someone’s embarrasment it means that they have already let it go--”

Theseus stopped for a while, so that is what she has been doing all along? All the scolding and anger outburst he had with her at the later years, the ones for which he tried to apologise and she ignored it—that is what she was doing? Silently forgiving him? He felt a rush of gratitude towards her and a pang of guilt in his heart. But as he looked at his left, he could see the radiance of Maxine’s face even under her veil—nothing bothered her anymore. Before she looked like a shiny outer skin masking darkness, but now she looked like something was cleansed from her heart, a weight she had carried all her life was lifted.

While they conversed with each other, the sermon was mostly complete, they both now looked at the Cardinal who had a look in his eyes that he heard everything, but chose to ignore it.

“Do you, Theseus Delian Chrysostomus Scamander take Lady Maxine Adrienne Odessa Valois as your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do...” Theseus confessed.

“And do you, Lady Maxine Adrienne Odessa Valois abdicate your position as the Duchess of Croy and take Theseus Delian Chrysostomus Scamander as your lawfully wedded husband?”

“I do...” with her confession the entire hall stood up to applaude.

“Or do I?” Maxine turned towards the audience with her crooked smile and witnessed the flabbergasted audiences abruptly stopped in their standing ovation.

She savoured the audience’s bafflement. Newt almost slipped from his pedestal, the pastor at the side nearly dropped the wine glass and Theseus looked like he was about to have a breakdown. In the midst of the nearly cruel words, she broke out into a heart-lightening laughter, pointing a finger at Theseus like a small child.

“Come here you minx--” Theseus pulled her by the face to kiss her.

Before Maxine closed her eyes completely immersing herself fully, from the corner of the eyes she saw Newt hiding beneath his unkempt bangs, squeezing his temple with his fingers for a brief moment. Perhaps he saw that the bride was looking at him, and he did one of the rarest things he ever did. He looked straight at Maxine’s eyes with tears streaming down his face.

The tears that said so many things he wanted to say.

Nostoi: a Greek word taken from Odyssey which means “Homecoming”. You might have noticed that one of Maxine’s name is “Odessa”, which is a female version of “Odysseus”. The entire story of Assistant is Maxine’s journey from returning “home” or to people whom she was meant to be. It is not only about Theseus or their “skinny love”, but also to her own family who finally accepted her, and Newt. She may not have the relationship she wanted with Newt, but without him her “homecoming” would have been impossible.

It is Theseus’ homecoming as well. He lost hope on Maxine, terming her unattainable, which caused a rift between them and Maxine’s wandering. When he finally came to terms with his heart and mind he could finally pick up the courage to pursue what he had wanted for so long. Theseus too, sought for Maxine, like Odysseus’ son Telemachus went to Voyage to look for his father. (There is another myth I have based on Maxine and Theseus’ story, I will later reveal it it a post as an addendum)

Yukata: The easy version of traditional Kimono, worn mainly informally and inside the household.

Juban top and Hakama pants: mainly worn by archers and samurai, and is still worn as ceremonial outfit in Japan.

Yume or Japanese Longbow: see above picture

Drum Castle: Drum Castle is a castle near Drumoak in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. For centuries it was the seat of the chief of Clan Irvine. The place-name Drum is derived from Gaelic druim, 'ridge'. Maxine’s family arranged something that would be the last splendor for Maxine before she abdicates. They chose it with the mutual agreement of the Scamanders because the owner of the Drum Castle, the Irwins, were the starting line of the Scamanders. The Scamanders are descended from a Muggleborn Witch named Maud Irwin.

Also I wanted their wedding to be on Scotland to give Maxine a closer; she was wed to Theseus on the same soil where her mother was born. Although Aberdeen and Edinburgh are far apart, but they are both on the west coast of Scotland

Arrival of the Queen of Sheba: A piece written by George Frideric Handel from his Opera Solomon. Although it is a popular choice for bridal march today, but it was certainly not in 1920′s. The fast violin conveys the excitement of the mob to see the queen, and the wind instrument convey the welcoming bugle of the entrance of the Queen. Theseus chose this to convey his excitement to marry Maxine who was an Aristocratic Witch. It is also a Baroque or 17th Century piece, a time which was most valued by Maxine’s family (it wasn’t intended by Theseus, just a coincidence).

Listen to this piece : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TGKJ9MgCOQ

Delian : a name of Apollo who was born in the city of Delios. Notice, how Newt had ‘Artemis’ in his name, so I thought why not give Theseus’s middle names a bit Apollo-centric, but Apollo seemed way too obvious, so I chose this name.

Chrysostomus: Greek for ‘Golden Mouth’ or someone whose speech is always true (an oracle). Apollo is also God of Soothsaying and Oracle.

Thank you for all the support you gave me.

#the assistant #fbawtft #crimes of grindelwald #theseus x oc #theseus scamander x oc #romantic ending #happy ending #wedding #coming all togather #theseus x oc finale

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beerbaby210 · 3 years

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Stress + Depression + PCOS = *insert exploding head emoji here*

I’ve dealt with stress for most of my life. Was it not making the right grade in school or how am I going to pay my car payment this month or I am now responsible for a functioning business...how do I not fail?! Stress comes in all shapes and sizes and it can be extremely hard to manage. I am a naturally emotional person, catch me on a bad day and look at me funny....TEARS! Or cursing...depends on the mood lol. But in being a natural bag of all the feels, makes dealing with stress even harder. Sometimes you just gotta cry it out or lock yourself in a walk-in (damn should’ve kept one of those around). Imagine the trash compactor scene in Star Wars: A New Hope, that’s a real feeling. Do I manage my stress very well after years of dealing with it...hell no. Have I tried to find some useful ways to help cope...hell yes. Sometimes they work and sometimes I’m right back where I started, or worse than I started. And then there is trying to hide said stress so everyone thinks you’ve got your shit together on a regular basis. That only makes it worse, that dual persona thing...I don’t recommend it. Fake smiles are harder to create than natural ones. I’ve been to therapy, loved it in fact, but got to a point where I thought “I’m cured!” so I quit. Lies. I wasn’t cured, I was on the path, but I never picked it back up. People are still to this day so hush hush about seeing a therapist...why? Because that must mean that we’re psycho...completely unhinged...could snap at any minute. Here’s a clue...people that have been in therapy for YEARS still have those moments. It’s natural. Doctors have told me that a certain level of stress can be healthy. Ha! I guess I’m the one that has to decided my levels but certain situations call for certain levels of stress. Not everything in my life has been stressful mind you, and even things that used to cause me stress don’t anymore because I’ve worked on that particular piece and gotten it to a maintainable level. But something that causes what feels like never ending stress...PCOS.

Now depression...I’ve only been knowingly dealing with it for about 6 or 7 years, for all I know I was probably dealing with it before that. The only reason I know about it is because I went to see a new Primary Care doctor and I had a questionnaire to fill out on a tablet before my appointment. I answered the questions the way I thought I should answer them, and then I get back in to see the doctor and before the end of my appointment she’s telling me that some of my responses in that questionnaire registered as warning signs of depression. Of course I’m in shock...you think about it sometimes but you never want to be that person...the person you see in all the Zoloft® ads on tv. I’m not as bad off as some people, but I’m not dismissing their illness, depression, like stress presents on all levels, and I admire the people dealing with more crap than I am. So of course she prescribes me medication, that’s also supposed to help with my migraines and my lack of sleep...it didn’t. I was on that crap for 5 years and it didn’t change a thing, I still felt sad about a lot of things, I still felt stressed about a lot of things. I gained even more weight which just added to the depression and the stress. I moved across the country and decided that I was going to stop taking the meds, I wasn’t seeing that doctor anymore, and I didn’t feel any benefit to taking some drug that was doing god knows what to my body. I’m 100% positive that I’m still dealing with the depression as I am with the stress, and not seeking help for it is my own fault. Hopefully some day soon I will pursue said help and start making progress on my mental health. But something that causes what feels like never ending depression...PCOS.

PCOS is a new term. Not new in the sense that I’ve never heard of it but new in the sense of...I have it. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. More or less the lack of or off schedule ovulation (I know...eww avert your eyes) for those unfamiliar with the term and potential infertility. This is the gist...there’s tons more information about it. But man...add that to the other 2 and you’ve got a recipe for female mass destruction. I was diagnosed with PCOS early summer of last year, Kyle and I had been trying unsuccessfully for 2 years to conceive children. You wanna talk about stress and depression. Wow. I’m 33 years old...my time is starting to run thin as far as the window for conceiving healthy children. Ya know that whole “biological clock” thing...it’s a ticking. In just 2 more years if we haven’t conceived anything after that will be considered a geriatric pregnancy...at 35...a geriatric pregnancy. And there are women out there who’ve conceived past 35 and they deliver perfectly healthy babies, but the chances of that are significantly lower the older you are. Having PCOS makes those chances even more miniscule. Doctor says I’m not infertile, but we’re still struggling. We’ve gone through almost 6 IUI cycles now with zero success, even a miscarriage would’ve been ideal because at least it means I can get pregnant. It’s a million times worse going through a procedure with a 10% success rate, when you conceive naturally its a surprise when you miss your period and take a pregnancy test to find out yay you’re pregnant! But going this route every month I go through a set of blood tests and ultrasounds, and 2 IUIs and then in 14 days I have to go back for another blood test and then sit by the phone and wait for them to call me with the bad news. Those are the most agonizing 14 days...they tell you not to stress, don’t do anything differently, think positive uhh yah...sure...right. I got another negative test just yesterday, and I assure you positivity was the furthest thing from my mind. I’m constantly left wondering, what did I do wrong? Especially after 5 of these things...with one more to go before we move on to the next option. IVF. I wondered to myself last night...if I had known years ago that I had PCOS would it have made any difference now? Maybe? But I suppose it’s one of those things that you always think to yourself “no way, not me!” The weight gain over the years from the stress and the depression...that helped lead to PCOS. Along with that I get acne breakouts like I’m twelve and going through puberty (I actually had better skin when I was going through puberty), weird hair growth on my face where women, well even men don’t want hair growing. I’m sure my migraines are at the root of it somehow and this could’ve been going on FOR YEARS! Ladies, with little girls, I implore you to be pro-active when your daughters start getting older to be part of their life in this most delicate way. I’m not saying everyone assume that their daughter will have PCOS but it’s one of the most undiagnosed and common female disorders. Most women don’t even know this exists, my mom sure didn’t, how would she have known to even suggest asking my doctor about something like that. For me it falls under the same category of my skin issue, there’s so few out there that know about it so there’s not a lot being done to create awareness. Something like 5-10% of women of child-bearing age have PCOS and a lot of them don’t even know it. It’s treatable/manageable, I’m told, I guess I’m being treated for it correctly and managing it to the best of my ability, taking all the vitamins and what not that I’ve been prescribed that can help combat it. But man after almost a year of treating and managing it and still not having a kid...it wears on you. And I know there are millions of women out there going through the same crap I am and my heart goes out to each and everyone of you because damnit...this sucks. I always see friends of mine posting this one particular meme on Facebook about “Please Stop Asking Women Why They Don’t Have Kids Yet” This is one of those reasons, because it’s a sad, debilitating thing to deal with and then on top of that to have to smile when someone says why don’t you have kids yet...and then think well geez do you have a minute so I can make you feel terrible for asking?!

I know it’ll happen when it’s supposed to happen for us, but until that perfect moment comes along I try to remind myself to stay positive as hard as that may be at times. Just remember that life isn’t always cupcakes and unicorns for everyone...sometimes it’s dark and scary, but we’re built of stronger stuff, I won’t let me illnesses defeat or define me. This is just a detour around to the cupcakes and unicorns. I’m just putting this out there for a little awareness, maybe someone sees it that had no idea and this could possibly explain their issues. These are real illnesses that I and many others struggle with on a daily basis. I don’t typically put my business, out there like this, I didn’t write it because I want anyone to feel sorry for me, all hope is not lost yet. Just throw some good juju out into the universe on my behalf, whatever your juju may be. I certainly could’ve gone into more detail than I did...but it’s raw and it’s real. If you’re reading this thinking this could be me and you wanna talk about it, please by all means, reach out to me. You’re not alone. Thanks for reading :)

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