#and yes I know the current light trail is supposed to be a lore-thing(?)

[absolute-chaos-skykid]

TGC needs to add a setting to adjust the brightness of the game.

If they can make the light in the camera be adjustable, they might as well add that to the whole game.

Heck, if they can, make a toggle for the flight thing. Bring back the good old ✨sparkles✨ or something, so everyone's eyes won't have a stroke when flying in Golden Wasteland or Vault of Knowledge.

Goodnight skyblr. ✌

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

The Raven; Let Loose

Part 2 of the 1000+ follower milestone! A continuation of the Raven lore outlined in part 1. I believe I will have a few more parts coming out shortly, just to solidify the Raven and Jade lore—and, I suppose, to make up for the lack of events for previous milestones (600, 700, etc.).

Today, we have the Raven’s introduction to Night Raven College! It’s a bit longer than my usual works, so it will be censored under a cut. Please enjoy~

The raven stares into a full-length looking glass. Whoever stares back at them is practically a stranger.

Who is that girl I see, staring straight back at me?

A short girl with milky skin and long hair as dark as the night, swept over one shoulder, wears a perplexed expression. Their amber eyes appear even sharper than they typically are, no thanks to the smoky shadow that lines the outer corner of their lids. They are dressed in long, black robes edged with an intricate gold pattern--the interior of the robe is violet and dotted with gold.

“You look rather fetching in those coveted ceremonial robes!” chirps a jolly voice. It belongs to a man bearing a crow mask, a top hat, and a dark cape--leaning on a walking stick. He taps a talon under the raven’s chin.

“...Wanna stay home,” they mumble, tugging on their hood. The raven’s words are terse, clumsy, and unpracticed. They are too used to cawing and the sounds of bird speak.

“Excellent orating! Before you know it, you will be speaking human as well as you can write it!” The man in the crow mask declares. 

“But...feels weird, Mister Dire.”

“No, no! I’ve told you before, have I not? Refer to me as your dear old Uncle Crowley!” he insists, waving a hand. “And you are...?”

“Erm...Raven. Raven Crowley,” they mutter, wanting to vanish into their hood. The have practiced the line so many times, but it still does not feel natural rolling off of their tongue. “Uncle’s...niece.”

“Correct!” He gives them a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “You’ll do just fine at the ceremony, my little black bird.”

“Scary...” The raven shivers and pulls their robes tighter around themselves. “I...I don’t want to...”

“Nonsense! You cannot keep roosting in the attic forever, toiling over those accursed storybooks of yours. It would do you some good to socialize--and I shan’t have the little bird I have taken under my wing wasting their life away on quill and ink!” Crowley shakes his head. “The time has come to set this raven loose on NRC.”

The raven stares doubtfully at their reflection.

“Let me give you a piece of advice--because I am so very, very kind. Words have power--but so, too, do actions. You must put yourself out there if you wish to change the course of your story, curse be damned.”

“I’ll...I’ll try.” The raven does not believe their own words.

“Very well. I shall see you at the Mirror Chamber, then.” Crowley turns on his heel and makes his way to the door.

“A-Ah...! P-Please wait for me...” The raven cries out, stumbling after the headmaster on unsteady feet, the fabric of their robes billowing out behind them.

“Oh, my apologies--I neglected to mention that you will be making your way to the chambers without my guidance!” Crowley tosses a mischievous grin over his shoulder. “After all, cuckoos must be pushed out of the nest if they should ever wish to fly. Spread your wings, my little raven--and enjoy your new school life!”

He gives a firm tap on the ground with his walking stick--and he vanishes in...a flash of light.

The raven’s stomach sinks, as though they have swallowed stones for breakfast. Vanishing in a flash of light--that would be their own fate if they did not tread carefully.

They sigh, shoving such ominous thoughts into the back of their mind. First thing’s first: make it to the ceremony in one piece, or else they shall never hear the end of it.

The raven throws open a window, then climbs onto the sill, hoisting themselves up and out. (Why did Crowley use the door? Windows are much more efficient for birds.) They tumble into the bushes.

The bird pops their head out and squints into the sunlight. By the Great Seven, the campus is positively teeming with students, all dressed in the same robes as them. The raven shudders at the thought of approaching any of them for directions.

They tuck their head into the bushes and begin to crawl, covered by the foliage. Unfortunately, the raven does not make it long before their path is blocked.

“Ohoh? What do we have here?”

The raven freezes--for young man with a blonde bob cut and emerald eyes has materialized before them.

“Bonjour--a bit early for a game of cache-cache, is it not?” He’s grinning, taking in the sight of a small bird curled up on the ground. “Ah, but more importantly, what is a lovely mademoiselle such as yourself doing in this den of lions?”

“...What?” The raven quirks an eyebrow at him. They have never heard such...strange, flowery phrases before.

“Ah, excuse moi!” His hands go up in the air. “You must be rather lost and confused, mademoiselle. Perhaps I may be of assistance?”

“N-No...I am okay...!” The raven insists, scrambling to their feet--their extensive vocabulary fails to make itself known in its trembling voice. Human language is...so difficult!

“...Mademoiselle.” The stranger’s eyes narrow, but the easygoing smile remains upon his lips. “That cadence with which you speak—it is reminiscent of the language of birds. Are you, perhaps, an animal given human form?”

Her flabbergasted expression confirms his suspicions. The young man breaks out into boisterous laughter and clapping.

“Fascinante~ I have a vested interest in wild life, you see!” he explains, circling the raven like a shark in the water. “I would like to observe more and more of you!”

“U-Um...I...I need to go...!”

But he has grabbed her arms by the elbows, roughly maneuvering them up and down. Her limbs flop around carelessly.

“Where are your wings, mon petit oiseau?” he asks, furrowing his brows. “Surely you must be capable of advanced transformation magic in order to maintain your human form? Are you able to fly as you currently are? Will you not give me a demonstration?”

The barrage of questions, coupled with being grabbed, sets the bird into a panic.

“S-Stay awaaaaay!!” The raven screeches, wildly thrashing.

They manage to land a hit on the young man’s face, sending him stumbling backwards. The raven sprints as fast as her little legs can carry her, not caring who witnesses it.

“Mon petit oiseau!! Please return to me--I must witness it...! The beauty of your flight!” comes his pleading voice behind them, growing ever louder.

The raven dares to sneak a peak over their shoulder--and screams even louder. He’s dashing right after them at a breakneck pace, closing the distance little by little. His hood has flown off in all of the rush, his golden hair whipping across his face. Perhaps he would have been a prince in some fairy tale, if his eyes were not so feral and pulsating with perverted curiosity.

This is it, this is how I will die.

The raven wills itself to run faster--

--crashing straight into another student.

The raven feels themselves falling back, expecting the harshness of the ground, but instead, they are caught and righted at once.

“Oya, oya. Please, do mind where you are going, miss.”

This student, too, is wearing the ceremonial robes. Oh, and how tall he is. Skin like sea glass, wistful lips, and a handsome face framed by teal hair and a black lock--but his standout feature are his heterochromatic eyes, one verdant green and the other a deep gold, edged in violet makeup.

“Pretty...” the raven remarks, their voice trailing off.

“Pardon?” he quirks an eyebrow at the remark.

“Eyes.”

“Ah. I see--”

“Mon petit oiseau!”

Oh no. 

“P-Please help...!” The raven squeaks, ducking behind the tall student. They jab an accusatory finger at the fast-approaching blonde. “H-He is...he is scary!!”

The student regards them with the tilt of the head. “...I understand. Please, leave this to me.”

“Bonjour, Monsieur Mastermind...!” the blonde greets, having finally caught up. “The little bird you are guarding--kindly relinquish her to me, if you please!”

“Bird? Why, I do believe you are mistaken, Rook-san. She is a human through and through--a human that just so happens to be skilled in Animal Languages.”

“What?” The blonde--Rook?--frowns slightly. “Mon dieu, a human?”

“It is quite rude of you to make assumptions. See to it that you do not repeat such a careless mistake,” the tall student suggests. He smiles, but his tone has a bite to it. “You would not want Vil-san to learn of such a blunder, yes?”

“Ohoh. A fair point, Monsieur Mastermind. Cunning as always, I see.” Rook gives a light laugh and throws his hood up again, casting a shadow upon his face. “Very well, very well, I shall relent for today--my queen is expecting me.”

“I will see you at the ceremony, then?”

“Oui. Give Monsieur Kills for Thrills and Roi de Fort my regards~ And apologies for the trouble, mademoiselle!” Rook waves and disappears into a crowd of robed young men.

At last, the raven can breathe a sigh of relief. “Th-Thank you...erm. Mon...sure Mastermind?”

“Rook-san has a penchant for nicknames.” He chuckles into his hand. “I am Jade--Jade Leech. A pleasure to meet your acquaintance, miss...?”

He glances at them expectantly, with those pretty eyes of his.

“U-Um...Uncle said...to wait until the ceremony for giving names.”

Jade’s eyes shift slightly as he takes in this new information.

“Ah, you must be the unusual student the headmaster warned us of. I presume you must have been on your way to the Mirror Chamber before Rook-san gave chase.”

“Y-Yes. Erm...but I do not know where to go.”

“Fufufu. It just so happens that I am on my way to the Mirror Chamber now. The opening ceremony is to start shortly.” Jade raises a hand, gesturing to the students around them. “All you need do is follow the others, like a school of fish in the ocean. However, if you are still feeling unsafe after your encounter with...Rook-san, I would be more than happy to escort you.”

“I-Is that...really okay?”

“It is no trouble at all.” He offers his hand and a reassuring smile. “It is only natural to lend aid to those in need, yes?”

And the raven, mesmerized by his eyes, accepts his hand--and they merge with the sea of robed students milling to the Mirror Chamber. Standing at the entrance is the headmaster himself, ushering young men in.

Crowley catches the raven’s gaze and beams--though his expression falls just as quickly once he registers who it is that towers over his niece. Jade notices, and releases the raven’s hand.

“...Jade Leech-kun.”

“Headmaster. Good day to you,” he greets with a small bow.

“Hmm.” Crowley’s beady yellow eyes stare right into Jade. “Thank you for delivering her to me. Now then--shoo. Join the remainder of Octavinelle.”

“As you wish.” Jade gives a small, polite wave before he heads inside.

The raven waves back shyly. Crowley tsks and whisks them away behind his feathered cloak. He mutters something under his breath about being too kind.

Within the Mirror Chamber, a certain octopus scolds Jade.

“Where have you been? It’s not like you to be nearly tardy.” Azul frowns, hands planted on his hips.

“Ehehehe~ Even I made it here before Jade today,” Floyd laughs, gnashing his teeth.

“My apologies. I was preoccupied with...networking,” Jade says with a slight bow.

“Well, it had better have been worth it,” Azul mutters under his breath. “We’ll need to be in the headmaster’s good graces if we wish to expand the Mostro Lou—“

“Ah-HEM! If I may have your attention please, everyone,” Crowley calls from the front of the Mirror Chamber.

Azul immediately snaps in attention—and Jade follows his gaze. Floyd, meanwhile, groans and rolls his eyes. Lame old crow.

“We have a special little guest joining us at Night Raven College starting this year! They are quite far from our usual demographic, so I ask that you be so very, very kind to them.” Crowley nods to the hooded figure hiding behind him. “Go on, then. Introduce yourself, my dear!”

He steps aside, exposing them to thousands of pairs of eyes. The raven shrinks back. Crowley sighs and gives them a slight nudge forward.

“A-Ah...u-um...I am...R-Raven. Raven Crowley. Uncle’s niece. P-Please...take good care of me.”

Murmurs fill the room. Some students are expressing shock that the headmaster even has relatives, others are questioning the enrollment of a female student at an all-boys school.

“Oya?” A chuckle escapes from Jade’s lips. He leans over and whispers to his dorm leader. “Azul, that is the one.”

“Is that so? Mm, this is highly unusual,” Azul notes, tucking a hand under his chin. “But...if she is related to Crowley-sensei, it would behoove us to charm her. She can put in a good word to the headmaster for Octavinelle.”

“Yes, she will be of great use to us in the future,” Jade agrees, his smile twisting into something...demented, jagged teeth on full display. “Then, shall I do the honors?”

“You really do think of everything, Jade. By all means, be my guest. See to it that the little bird is...fond of us, of you. Either works.”

“Fufufu. But of course--I live to serve.”

“Well, I’m bored and hungry” Floyd complains, interrupting the two. He slings his arms around his brother and Azul. “Let’s grab some grub after this booooring ceremony...!”

[alexius-fr]

What’s this, a lore post? Yes it is! 

Chapter One - Arrival 

The newest chapter of my lore is up on AO3 (just click the chapter title) or if you prefer, you can read it below the cut! 

They'd been flying for hours.

They had crossed through the storms of the seemingly endless Shifting Expanse, over the Sea of a Thousand Currents, and now they were flying over the Windswept Plateau, giant kites in the sky above, rocky spires protruding from lush forests beneath. The wind here was soft, warm, whimsical.

Sanguine hated it.

But perhaps it was far enough for now. He looked behind him, to see a group of tired, struggling dragons flying in his trail. His brother Silas was closest, at his side as always, as he had been for years.

“Sange.” Silas panted, his wings barely keeping him adrift. “I swear if we don't take a break soon I'll have a fit.” he pretended to swoon in the air, making a dramatic gesture with his wing on his forehead. He lost balance as a result, flapping his wings clumsily to get back into position, Sanguine frowning with bemusement. His brother had always been a bit of a frivolous brat, but judging by the state of the others, he might have a point.

“Fine.” Sanguine nodded, putting his eyes dead ahead once more. A great spire appeared in the distance, and it looked like it was inhabited. They could rest there, and restock supplies for the rest of the journey. “Over there. Follow me.” Sanguine said, starting the descent.

The spire was like a vibrant little town, the buildings up top scattered all over the rocky ridges, lush growths preventing the making of real paths, but any real Wind dragon didn't need something as mundane as paths. As they got closer, they drew many curious stares from the dragons that probably inhabited the spire, but they were not stopped or questioned, the group flying into the main area up top, a large natural platform that lent itself perfectly for useage as a courtyard or square. It was surrounded by shops, market stands and a small temple. In the middle there was a natural spring, it's crystal clear water carving it's way out in a small stream that eventually formed the smallest waterfall Sanguine had ever seen, as it finally reached the edge of the platform and clattered off the side with a gentle continuous noise.

Tired and thirsty, the rest of his clan also touched down and immediately began drinking from the spring, himself included. He made sure he had his fill before he looked up to investigate his surroundings closer. But by then they'd attracted quite a crowd, inhabitants, shopkeepers and visitors alike having come to watch them, curiously inspecting their guests.

“You in the habit of staining someone else's water with your taint straight after you arrive?”

The deep voice that sneered at them was monotone, yet vicious. Sanguine looked around to find the owner of the voice, seeing a shadowy spectre of a dragon looking down upon them from the temple roof. Deep purple eyes peered at him from above a dark mask, curious and yet condemning.

“Oh is this your water?” Silas was, as ever, ready to sneer back. “I don't see your name written on it anywhere.” he met the Shadow dragon's relentless stare with a look of ire.

“It's not just ordinary water, you stupid plaguespreader.” the dragon on the temple roof uncoiled himself, his shape revealing that he was a spiral. One jump and he glided gracefully down to the courtyard, landing in front of Sanguine and Silas. “It's our sacred spring. It's water is only used for special ceremonies.”

“Yeah? Well there wasn't any ceremonies going on so how were we supposed to know?” Silas rebutted. He threw his head back with arrogance, Sanguine unwillingly reminded of the way their mother always did that, in almost the exact same way

Where would she be now, he wondered. Was she still alive? Was she still the furious, prideful creature he once knew? He hadn't seen her, or heard from her, in years. Shifting his weight from his left leg to his right, he was reminded once more of their duel so long ago, that had left him crippled. The injury had never healed properly, leaving him with a scar and a limp. He'd come to accept both as part of himself over the years, but on bad days just looking at the scar gave him the urge to tear his own leg off.

He was pulled from his thoughts by a loud hiss, seeing Silas and the shadow Spiral about to jump eachother. He supposed he should really intervene, they needed a place to rest their wings for a few days and he couldn't have Silas get them thrown out. But before he could step in, a voice echoed over the courtyard, light and clear as the water that ran in the spring.

“Shen! That's enough.”

Heads turning towards the entrance of the temple, the crowd bowed to the Spiral that had come out of it's main gate. They were a bright mix of mauve, jade and every colour in between, eyes of the purest green, the air seeming to dance around them. Large curious eyes looked at Sanguine, smiling mysteriously. Their horns glowed a spirited light green, their hide shimmering with markings in that same colour. This was a being of great power and wisdom, even if on the outside they looked like just another spiral dragon. Sanguine guessed they were an entity, a spirit of wind. He'd gotten a knack for recognizing power throughout the years.

“Alexius, I was just-” the shadow spiral, apparently named Shen, backed away from Silas, with a reverent bow. Who- or whatever Alexius was, it was clear that everyone here had a lot of respect for them.

“They are just weary travelers, Shen. Let them drink. What good will the water do just running off the spire like that?” Alexius approached them with a light hearted smile. Sanguine bowed lightly to them, nudging Silas to do the same. Silas did not neglect to roll his eyes before he followed suit.

“Thank you, Alexius. I apologize for the misunderstanding, we never meant to offend.” Sanguine spoke diplomatically. “My name is Sanguine, and this is my brother Silas. We lead our clan together. Sometimes.” the snarky remark at the end had Silas scoff, but Alexius seemed to enjoy it, their smile growing wider.

“Be welcome, Sanguine. I am Alexius, and this is my clan. Please forgive Shen's caution, he's very passionate about protecting this place. I'm sure you understand the importance of protecting a place that is home to you.” Alexius said, their body dreamily suspended just above the ground. They seemed to be levitating effortlessly, their wings not moving at all.

“Once we find a home, perhaps that will be a sentiment I can relate to.” Sanguine said politely.

“Ah yes, you have lived a life on the go. You are a survivor, Sanguine.” Alexius' eyes gleamed shortly with a jolt of power. Had they seen his past? How did they know? No, any idiot could see that he'd lived a life of travel, of hardship. He had the scars to show it.

“Ah, but you must be weary from your long flight. You may rest in our caverns. It should provide you with everything you need. And if not, there's not a thing we don't sell or provide up here.” Alexius smiled warmly.

“Alexius-” Shen protested. “Surely you're not thinking of letting them stay? They're plague. They'll bring trouble before long.”

“My spire is a refuge to all, Shen. What would've happened to you if I'd turned you away? What will happen to them if we refuse them a simple place to rest their wings? How will it reflect on us?” Alexius spoke calmly, patient like a teacher would speak to a pupil. “Do you understand?” “Yes, master.” Shen bowed his head, a little shamed.

“You are a bright young dragon, Shen. But you must learn that sometimes your eyes can cheat you. Appearances can be deceiving.” Alexius smiled gently. “There is far more to these dragons that meets the eye.” they glanced at Sanguine with a knowing look, Sanguine wondering what Alexius saw.

“Zephyr, will you show our guests to the caverns?” Alexius called, a young ridgeback quickly making his way up to them. Sanguine couldn't quite place the feeling, but he thought there was something familiar about him. Or it could just be because he was tired from their long journey.

“Of course, master Alexius.” Zephyr spoke with a voice like a light breeze, pleasant on the ears like a windchime. “Please, follow me.” the youngster bowed to them and then showed them the easiest way down, guiding them to a natural cavern below the spire. It was perfect for a short rest, a river running nearby and the dense bamboo forests would provide them with plenty of food.

“Here we are.” Zephyr said, proudly. His pale green eyes glinted with life in the sunlight, his striped hide perfect camouflage for hunting in the forests that were below the spire. He looked young, energetic, healthy. Sanguine hated that he couldn't think of who he reminded him of. Like the thing you know you've forgotten to do but you can't for the life of it remember what it was. How annoying. “Thank you, Zephyr. We'll manage from here.” Sanguine said.

“Are you sure? I can answer some questions, if you have them.” Zephyr said, hopeful. “We don't really get whole clans visiting often. Especially not Plague clans.” he was obviously curious but did not want to admit it outright. “My father came from Plague, but he says he'd never go back.”

“Look kid, we're tired.” Silas intervened. “And we don't want to talk about where we're from or where we're going. We'll be out of your spines before you know it, so just leave us alone.”

“Oh. I'm sorry.” Zephyr recoiled a little, his spines lowering submissively. “I'll leave you to it then.” he was quick to turn and leave, Sanguine throwing Silas an annoyed look. “What did you do that for? He was only curious.” “And annoying.” Silas argued. “This place give me the creeps. Everyone's nice. It's just not natural.” “Imagine being nice.” Sanguine frowned with irony. He watched Zephyr disappear into the cloudy top of the spire, a strange hollow feeling nagging at him. He had the feeling he knew him. But how was that possible? He'd never been to the Windswept Plateau before. And yet..

“Oh come on brother, don't be a spoilsport. He's just a kid. You used to love bullying kids.” Silas grinned widely, sticking out his tongue at Sanguine. “Or have you gone soft?” “I've gone tired. Shut up.” Sanguine grumbled, walking into the cavern.

There were plenty of little alcoves for them all to roost, and he picked the largest one, liking to have space for himself. Of course space was a relative term with Silas roosting in the alcove just below him, but at least it was better than sleeping in an open, unprotected clearing. Come morning, he would have a good think about where to go next from here. For now, all he wanted was to sleep.

“Hey Sange.” Silas' voice sounded from below, just as Sanguine was about to doze off. “What?” Sanguine growled in annoyance. “You ever think back to mom?” Silas asked, for once, not trying to annoy him. Sanguine was caught off guard by the genuine question. He was expecting something stupid to come out of Silas' mouth. But just this once, his brother sounded melancholic.

“Yes. Quite often.” Sanguine replied honestly.

“You think she's alive still?” Silas asked. “I'd be surprised if she's not. An emperor could not best her if it tried.” Sanguine said.

“Old age can catch up with anyone.” Silas argued. “But I'm inclined to agree. We're closer to Plague territory than we've been in years. Think she'll come find us?” “I certainly hope not.” Sanguine said, genuinely. “Now can I please sleep?” “Of course. Good night, brother.” Silas yawned.

“Good night, Silas.” Sanguine mumbled, laying his head down and curling his tail around his weary body.

The morning would bring clarity.

[societydatabase]

*𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐀𝐒𝐊 / regine ren & elisa caspar

Who: Regine Ren, Elisa Caspar, Scooby

Location: Maddox’s Dorm, The New Old Mill

Timeline: November 10th, 2020 - November 12th, 2020

Word count: and then i oop- (it’s a quick read I promise!)

Premise: On Nov 10, Elisa and Regine both get cards saying they have to work together to steal Scooby for 48 hours. This is their story. 

STEP ONE: What the fuck is the plan?

When the girls got their cards individually, it was no question they both immediately went looking for each other, and had found themselves sitting in an empty room 407, thirty three minutes into a dead silence.

“So…” Elisa trailed, looking around the room awkwardly as her feet swayed from the closest bed.

“I’m thinking.” Regine had, of course, been thinking for a long time, chin on her hand and arm slung over her knee à la The Thinker.

“Can you…uh…think faster?” 

“I just…” she fell back in her seat, frustrated. The idea of stealing her old roommate’s dog, of which she lived with herself, left Rei desperate for a way out. The sound of her father’s voice in her head rang and echoed, she was a spy before she was a friend. “If we do it, Scoobs can’t leave our sight the entire time.” she was firm on it.

“Yeah, of course. I don’t want him to get hurt, or anyone.” While Regine was mostly trying to get initiated out of obligation to her bloodline, she also wanted to prove she wasn’t a punk. For Elisa, she thought she owed Gallagher for what it’s given her, for turning her life around, for creating a connection to her mother. She may not have seemed serious about it, but she was. Rei didn’t bother to ask. 

“Think you can handle me for 48 hours straight?” Regine cocked an eyebrow at Elisa who in turn matched her with a sleek, ambitious smile. 

“No.”

“Alright, let’s get to work.” 

STEP TWO: The Plan

They needed to find somewhere they could camp out for the 48 hour window they were required to steal Scooby for without being spotted, given Rei had planned an entire schedule of when one would sleep and the other would watch him. (She had almost rationed their food, but didn’t want to overwhelm Elisa). It was Elisa’s idea to stake out in the New Old Mill, since they could reserve the venue for events and meetings it would (hopefully) deter others from visiting it during a period that it was booked. Standing shoulder to shoulder in the hallway of the rec center, gazing up at the bulletin board that housed the sign up sheet, they both sighed simultaneously.

“We shouldn’t reserve it under our names. Cover our tracks, right?” Rei said, a bit unsure. Was Regine taking this a little too seriously? Probably. 

“That’s a good idea, yeah.” Elisa nodded, not bothering to look over at the other girl. Regine hesitated before shrugging, and grabbed the pen with her less dominant hand before stepping up to the sheet. It took a few seconds of thinking, but she realized they were on the clock. She pressed the ball point down lightly over the paper and messily began writing letters in every sign up slot over the next two days.

L-a-n-d-o-n B-e-n-n-e-t

When it came to stealing Scooby, it wasn’t hard to hack into the schedule database and find out when all of the students in room 405 would least likely be in the dorm room. They made a point to leave a note for Maddox, Regine insisted, in the cryptic form of mismatched magazine cutouts. They’d made it together, with thick latex gloves, for the fingerprints of course! (Again, a little too seriously). Scooby was happy to see Regine, which only made her feel worse, but they left the note quick and headed for the mill. It read:

I’ll be back in a few days, Dad. I am safe! 

- Scooby (x)

STEP THREE: The New Old Mill

Three Hours

Pizza’s halfway eaten. Rei realized too late that she’d left her laptop in her dorm room. They’ve played UNO seven times. Scooby won four of those times. 

Fifteen Hours 

The sun sets early and they’ve turned all the lights off in the mill with the exception of a few candles, of which Elisa thought would add to the lore. Regine was pulling on her pajamas when she heard spooky, muffled tunes and sprung to a turn, nearly tripping over her own pants. She was met by the harsh brightness of a flashlight under Elisa’s chin as the other girl grinned, playing late Halloween music from a cassette player.

“Elisa, no.”

“Legend has it—”

“Jesus Christ.”

In retrospect, the scary stories they told that night weren’t exactly ghastly, but Regine had the night shift and of course Scooby demanded a walk at four in the morning. What was she supposed to do, tell him no? She took him out back as Elisa slept, “Can’t you shit at a regular hour, like a normal person?” Regine grumbled as she rubbed her cold hands, and Scooby looked back up at her with his tongue hanging out. “Right, sorry I asked.”

Thirty Five Hours

They were having a staring contest. Elisa bit down to fight the laughter that knocked at the door of her mouth, and Regine sat with her back perfectly erect. 

“No laughing.” Regine tried not to smile.

“That’s not how the game works, Rei.” Elisa rebutted, cheeks rosy and quickly moving the stray strand of hair out of her face. “So are we like, friends now or something?”

Rei stood quiet. She had decided a few weeks earlier that she had too many friends and wouldn’t make a point to attain anymore. In fact, she’d made a few pros and cons lists on who she was going to drop after the New Year based on how much energy she had to exert. “Maybe.”

“It’s…more of a yes or no question, but okay.” Elisa’s fingers pressed into the arm of her seat as her eyes grew wider with restraint, trying not to blink. “But we kind of have this secret now, you, me, and Scooby. So…we’re, like, bound by that. We’re friends.”

Regine kept her eyes focused, nearly squinting, before the corner of her lips dared a smirk. “Friends then.”

Perking up, mostly at having finally gotten Rei to soften, Elisa felt her eyes come to a close in the process “Ah, fuck!” she laughed, only a little upset.

“Actually, you blinked about fifteen seconds beforehand, didn’t want to kill your vibe.”

Forty Eight Hours

When the phone alarm went off the whole room jumped up and they looked at each other, yes, Scooby included. Two full smiles fell on both of their faces, and then ran over and laid on the floor beside the dog to take a selfie (you know, for the memories). They sent a lonesome photo of just him to the number that had texted them beforehand, which they both assumed to be those who wore the masks at the intro meeting. Rei had recognized one of them, Elisa the other, and they contemplated if they’d address them by name in the text to be ballsy.

“You know, to assert dominance.” Regine said seriously. Elisa blinked, not quite sure how to feel. Not just about Rei ‘asserting her dominance’ but just the fact that they could address the two leaders - one of which had been her roommate and the other she was currently rooming with - with such bravado. But she’s long abandoned the urge to overthink the whole thing and continued to push down the awkward feeling she’s had for these last two days and get their task over it. They had sent a photo 48 hours prior of Scooby on their way to the mill, and had now dressed him up with a blanket tied around him like a cape, a masquerade mask, and a black dahlia flower between his teeth. The text read ‘It’s been fun. Thanks for the vacation, Natasha & Aria. - Scooby’

He was back outside the door of room 405 only an hour after. 

[spnjediavenger]

Chapter 4: “I told you”

Disclaimers: I do not own Supernatural, or any of its characters, credit to Wikipedia for information on satoris (yes! Another real mythical creature brought to life!)

Time frame: set mid S5

Warnings: very very small hint at past sexual assault

Notes: Big thanks to @sarimaposthumous for proof reading my fic as always and helping me out of my mild writers block!

Please leave a comment and let me know what you think! And much love to those who have liked and/or reposted!!! <3

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

Chapter 4: “I told you”

           Sam and Dean arrived in Sheridan, Wyoming a few hours ago and were currently getting settled into their motel room.

           “Do you think it’s worth it to keep doing the ‘first in the phone book’ thing?” Dean asked from his bed, sounding a bit defeated. “It’s been over a month, man – what if Elliana’s not even looking for us?”

           “Dude, don’t think like that. We’ve sent out word to everyone we know and Bobby has his contacts looking out too. She has to at least know we’re looking for her,” Sam replied, ever the optimist. But truth be told - he was just as unsure as his brother. They had tried their hardest to find Elliana when they got away from Gabriel, hoping she followed the phone book rule, but they didn’t know that she had given up quite early on waiting for them. They knew she must have thought they left her but part of them still hoped it wasn’t true. They loved having Ellie with them and just wanted to find her again.

(Two days later)

Elliana all but jumped off the bus once it parked in Wyoming; she was beyond ready to be reunited with Sam and Dean.

             “Hello?”

           “Hey, Bobby,” Elliana said, trying to contain her excitement.

           “’Bout time you called,” Bobby said on the other line. “Was startin’ to wonder if you even remembered me.”

           Ellie rolled her eyes. “Of course I remembered you, Bobby; I’ve just been trying to figure things out.”

           “Speakin’ of which, the boys have been lookin’ left and right for you since they escaped that damn archangel.”

           “So I’ve heard,” she said, smiling. “Are they with you now?”

           “They’re in the yard; ‘bout to head out on a hunt any time now. You gonna get over here? I can have them hold up,” Bobby informed the girl.

           “No, that’s ok. Where’s the hunt? Maybe I can surprise them there and give them a hand.”

           Ellie heard Bobby sigh but he continued. “Wyoming. Bighorn Range of the Rocky Mountains. Handful o’ people have been found dead, their flesh eaten off.”

           Ellie’s face distorted a bit. “Just the flesh? Do we know anything else yet?”

           “No not- listen, Elliana, the boys are comin’ in so I’m gonna hang up. But text me when you get there alright?”

             Elliana smiled as she recalled the conversation and texted Bobby as she had promised. Then she went to one of the big rules from the “Winchester Handbook”, as Ellie called it - if you get separated, go to the first motel in the phone book. Ellie could only hope Sam and Dean were going by that since they were looking for her.

           So, she went to the first motel listed, walked in with Anaya (thankfully the place didn’t have a pet policy), and approached the woman at the counter.

           “Hi,” Elliana smiled. “My brothers got here a couple days ago and I’m supposed to meet them here but they aren’t answering their phones, so I don’t know what room they’re in,” she continued, giving a convincing ‘older brothers are so annoying’ look.

           “One really tall boy and a shorter one? Signed in as John Bonham?” the woman questioned, raising an eyebrow.

           Ellie had to try hard to keep a smile from breaking onto her face. Dean and his classic rock references, she thought.

           Elliana nodded in reply.

           “That his real name?”

           “Yeah, it is,” she assured the woman. “Everyone questions it. Our parents were just big rock fans.”

“Room 113.”

           “Thanks!”

           Ellie walked down the hall and, making sure no one was looking, pulled out the lock pick Sam had given her, and opened the door. Her heart raced at the thought of seeing the boys again but came up short when she saw the room was empty. She sighed and closed the door, dropping her things on the ground a few feet away.

           A quiet ding sounded and Ellie pulled out her phone to see a text from Bobby.

           Bobby: Glad you got there alright. Boys are in the range – coordinates coming up. Be safe, idjit.

           Elliana rolled her eyes but smiled. She took a few moments to gather what she thought she needed and left again, bringing Anaya along with her.

           And that’s where the trouble started.

           Bobby had revealed to Elliana that the killings had happened in an area with about a ten-mile radius.

When Ellie reached the beginning of that area, the maps on her phone failed. So she hiked for a while and, after getting around higher elevations, noticed some paths in the dirt – like a body had been dragged over it.

           Ellie let Anaya off her leash and followed one of the tracks until she came across a patch of gravel and dirt stained deep red. Blood. She moved around a bush there and found the source – definitely human, though at this point the gender was impossible to tell as the flesh and much of the muscle had been eaten. Elliana pulled the bandana hanging around her neck to cover her nose at the stench.

           Anaya sniffed at the carcass and let out a low growl, looking up at Ellie with flattened ears - something she did when the body was still warm. Ellie pulled her knife from one of her boots and let out a ‘sh sh’, signaling Anaya to quietly follow her lead.

           It was beginning to darken a bit as dusk started settling in, causing an uneasiness to grow in Ellie’s chest. Without knowing what kind of creature this was, having to face it at night, and not having found they guys yet, she was afraid of what the outcome might be. What if –

           “What if Sam and Dean left already?”

           Elliana spun around upon hearing a hushed voice…speaking her thoughts aloud.

           She closed a lowered fist to the husky next to her to –

           “Hold, Anaya.”

           Ellie froze as she realized what this creature was.

           “It’s a satori. It reads people’s minds out loud and – stop! This can’t be happening! Where is my phone?!”

           Elliana frantically searched for her phone once slow rustling noises started coming her way.

           “If Sam and Dean are here, I need to  – stop it! Stop!”

           Ellie tried to place her thoughts elsewhere while trying to craft a message the creature wouldn’t read in her mind first. She remembered coming across satori while reading some lore in her down time – they were monkey-like creatures that read the minds of people and could speak them aloud faster than a human could. They would use this to drive people crazy and it made them practically impossible to sneak up on. Once they had the upper hand, they would kill the person and eat their flesh –

           “Which explains the vics’ profiles. Knock it off! Where are you?!”

           The voice had become increasingly louder until Elliana was knocked to the ground by a large figure. She swung her knife blindly, as her bandana had risen up over her eyes when she fell, but only managed to get the blade knocked from her hand.

           The weight on top of her was temporarily removed when Anaya lunged at the creature, successfully pushing it over.

           “Die, canine!”

           “Anaya run!” Elliana shouted over the satori. Sure enough, the dog ran off. But not to Ellie’s command; she heard a couple voices a bit deeper in the trees.

           A force hit Elliana over the head and she blacked out.

           Sam and Dean had been hiking for hours, trying to find something, anything else out about what they were hunting. Unfortunately, the creature didn’t leave any survivors so far so there weren’t any witnesses. And to add insult to injury, both boys had lost cell phone service for a majority of their hike, only getting a few seconds’ worth every now and again.

           “I think we should head back, Sammy. I don’t think we’re getting anywhere else tonight,” Dean said, taking a swig from his water bottle.

           Sam sighed. “Yeah, I think you’re right. Once we get service back, I’ll call Bobby and-“

           Sam was cut off by his phone buzzing in his pocket. He hurriedly pulled it out and saw a text from and unknown number.

           Unknown: satori. Reads thoughts, hard to sneak on. Onto me –E

           Sam’s head immediately snapped up to look at Dean. “Dean, it’s Ellie!”

           “What?” he said, jogging over to look at Sam’s phone.

           “She’s here, she found it! But I think she’s in trouble,” Sam responded, words almost starting to run together.

           The guys quickly tried to figure out which way to head when they heard running footsteps coming up on them. Raising their guns, they found themselves shocked to find Anaya approaching them.

           “Anaya?! What the hell is she doing here?!”

           “Elliana hunts with her, remember? God, Dean, she’s only been gone for a month-“

           “Ok, not helping, Sam! Find the kid first, yell at me later!” Dean huffed.

           “Anaya, find Ellie,” Sam spoke as he stepped towards the husky, remembering some of the choice phrases and commands Elliana usually used with her during hunts.

           The dog didn’t waste a second to turn around and bolt through the trees, Sam and Dean hot on her trail.

           “How the hell do we kill something you can’t sneak up on?!” Dean commented as they ran.

           “I have an idea,” Sam said, filling his brother in on their way to Ellie.

           When Elliana woke up, her head was pounding and she had an increasing sense of dread in the pit of her stomach. She opened her eyes and looked around.

           “I’m not tied up – this thing must be stupid. Satori is not! Satori knows human can not escape it,” the creature taunted, coming into the light that shone from a lantern – presumably from a camper it killed.

           As Ellie got her first clear view of it, she saw it was a little taller than she was, the basic build of a man, but otherwise had every characteristic of your average monkey: the face, the tail, the hair.

           “I can’t believe this! I- oh my gosh, just knock it off! Ugh, I need to think of something else. Stop repeating everything, just leave me alone!” Ellie found the satori speaking over her own words as she shouted at it, including the things she didn’t verbalize.

           The satori stepped closer until it had Ellie backed up against a tree, and it leaned down to put its face just inches from hers.

           “It feels discomfort…and fear…and- Dean, let’s go the other way, the wendigo wouldn’t be here. Then where would it be, Sam? Your friends, they search for the wrong thing. Good for me,” the creature continued, smiling evilly in Elliana’s face. What she and the satori didn’t know, was the boys were purposefully thinking the wrong things so they could sneak in and at least get Anaya on it so they could finish it off.

           “Too bad satori will kill them anyway. But better feast first – more strength after eating,” it growled, pushing Elliana to the ground. It put one hand on her head and the other on her shoulder – going in to bite her neck. This made Ellie’s heart rate spike and her to struggle more.

           “You see fangs…a boy…poor thing. Don’t worry, no more pain soon.”

           Elliana screamed when the satori’s teeth dug into her flesh. It didn’t get too far when Anaya knocked him over for the second time that night, snarling and barking as she fought the creature long enough for Sam to run in and take over.

           “Dean, grab Ellie and go! I’ll be right behind you!” he shouted over his shoulder as he grappled with the beast, which was trying to flee.

           “Dean!” Elliana gasped, face contorted in pain as she held her neck tightly.

           Dean ran over to her and wasted no time in scooping her up and running, to the best of his ability, towards the Impala, which they had been able to park closer to the killing radius.

           “See, kid? I told you we’ll always protect you,” Dean said. Upon reaching the Impala, Dean looked down at the girl in his arms to see tears streaming from her closed eyes. He set her down on the ground and inspected her for wounds. The neck was obvious (he took the bandana from her neck to bunch it up to put pressure on it), so he moved to look elsewhere, only finding a few scratches.

           “Ok, kid, I need to look at me, alright? I know your neck hurts but I need you to tell me if anything else is wrong,” Dean pleaded, though keeping his tone solid.

           Elliana leaned her head back against the car, only to let out a weak yelp. “Head,” she gasped. “It hit my head.”

           “Dean!” Sam called as he jogged up to his brother, Anaya running past him to sit next to Elliana. “She ok? Where’s she hurt?”

           “Damn thing bit her neck and it got her over the head,” Dean replied, a look of worry crossing his face.

           Sam walked forward and knelt in front of Ellie. “Ellie? Sweetheart, I need you to open your eyes for a second, ok? Good, now what’s your vision like? Can you see ok?” Sam said calmly.

           Ellie lightly shook her head before closing her eyes again. “There’s…there’s kind of two of you,” she informed.

           “I’m gonna take a look, ok? See if it’s bleeding.” Sam gently took her head in his hands and ran them along her skull, feeling for any bumps or blood, earning a soft cry from Ellie when he came across one near the back.

Sam sighed a bit. “Let’s just get her in the car and back to the motel and we can finish checking her there.”

           Dean nodded and unlocked the car, climbing into the driver’s seat as Sam lifted Ellie into the backseat, sliding in next to her to keep an eye on her as they drove away from the mountain range.

           When the trio got back to the motel, the boys discretely walked through the lobby, trying not to let anyone see the blood covering Elliana’s shirt. They got into the room and Sam helped Ellie lay on one of the beds, Anaya jumping up right after and placing herself over her owner’s legs.

           Dean had walked off to grab water and came back, handing the opened bottle to Ellie, encouraging her to drink.

           “Sam, why don’t you stitch her up?” Dean suggested. Sam nodded and got up to grab some supplies and Dean took a seat on Elliana’s other side, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “How ya feelin’, kid?”

           “This isn’t really the reunion I imagined,” she said jokingly, mustering a small smile.

           Dean chuckled and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Yeah, there’s gotta be better ways, huh?”

           “Alright, Ellie, this definitely is gonna suck,” Sam said honestly, taking a seat next to her.

           “I know,” she said, like it was obvious. “How do you think I’ve been on my own for a year? I’ve had to stitch myself up,” Ellie explained. The boys gave each other a look but didn’t question her.

           Sam pulled the bandana off her neck and began cleaning the wound. When he began stitching, Ellie hissed and unconsciously grabbed Dean’s hand, surprising him but making him lightly smile.

           Sam finished up, put everything away, and sat back down next to Elliana again.

           “How’s your head? Your sight clear up yet?”

           Ellie nodded in response.

           Sam sighed a bit, glancing at Dean before asking the next question. “What was that satori talking about earlier?” he asked cautiously. “What he said you were seeing?”

           Elliana froze a bit, not wanting to think back to the partial memory that had come back to her. She shrugged her shoulders, wincing a bit when it pushed at her neck too much. “Just…just a memory from a tricky hunt, I guess. It wasn’t anything that crazy,” she said, trying to brush the subject away.

           Dean looked a bit skeptical but didn’t push any farther, and Sam didn’t either.

           “Well,” Dean spoke up. “We’re glad to have you back, kid. We missed you,” he admitted with a smile.

           Ellie smiled back and sat up to wrap her arms around the older Winchester. “I missed you guys too,” she whispered.

           “Ellie, you need to know that we didn’t just leave you or anything,” Sam said urgently as the girl pulled away from Dean. “We were checking something out and this arch-“

           “I know,” Ellie cut him off. “I heard. That’s why I came back to look for you. I mean, I didn’t know you were looking for me until a few days ago, but once I heard you were looking…I couldn’t come back fast enough,” she continued, smiling a bit bashfully. Sam smiled back and pulled her into a hug.

           “I’m glad you’re alright,” he said, squeezing her a bit tighter. With everything that was going on, the boys were glad to have another addition to their team and more glad that she was likely to stick around for the long run.

After a few moments, Sam spoke up again. “You should probably get some rest now. Ellie?”

           Sam looked down to see Elliana’s head resting against his shoulder, her chest rising and falling with her soft breathing. He looked over at Dean who wore a small smirk.

           “Did she really just fall asleep hugging you?” he chuckled.

           Sam smirked a bit as well and attempted to get up. When Ellie groaned lightly in her sleep, he just laid down, positioning the girl a bit more comfortably on him, and smiled down at her as her form cuddled into his.

Chapter 5 ->

[terraclae]

The city of Paramo

Arodan and the residents of castle Paramo head into the city itself. All dragons are in bipedal forms.

Lore pings: @cityofinoue @yuushanoah-fr

‘This is your first time here right?’

‘Yes.’ The city was vastly different from what Arodan had imagined. There were the cave homes he had expected but otherwise the city was far more modern than what a massive hollow under the ground should allow. The layout of the city was mostly rectangular and the streets were wide enough for generally all dragons to pass through in a non bipedal form. The houses itself looked like they were built from the stone around it or on top of existing houses with many forms of greenery winding around it. Arodan wondered how one grew plants underground for a moment until he took note of the bright fixture of energy that beamed at the ceiling of the cave in the very center of the city. The spires that held up the cave no doubt were lined with machines and wires that could only be intended for pumping air into the underground city and creating condensation which piled up at the ceiling of the cave and fell as rain. Judging by the many lights and windows along the walls of this massive hollow there must have been walkways along the sides. ‘Woah.’

‘You're daydreaming.’

He snapped out of his thoughts and wonder to look at Carmen who had gone to pacing before him, backwards. ‘I've never been in an underground city, much less so one like this. It's new for me.’

‘You look like a first-timer. It's kind of funny.’ She chimed. With a hop and a skip she landed right next to Arodan again to walk besides him. ‘Eyes all starry and mouth catching flies.’

‘Hey, it's too early to start making fun of him Carmen.’ Epoch walked up to Arodan's other side and glanced around him. ‘At least give him until the noon hour.’

‘You're not getting to make fun of him darlings, he's under my watchful eye today.’ Kassa had been trailing ahead of them all this time alongside Atlas, all the way from the castle. Only now they decided to speak up. ‘We have a disaster to avert.’

‘The disaster at our doors or…?’ Carmen's eyes which had momentarily focused on Kassa now drifted back to Arodan. ‘Ah, I get it.’

‘What was that again about not making fun of me in the early morning?’

‘Lighten up Danny, it's all in good faith.’ It was Atlas that spoke up this time. He carried a rather large halberd with him at the moment. ‘Everybody, change the subject or I'll tattle to king Balam.’

‘What are you, my dad?’ Epoch said, with only a hint of humor. ‘Ah well, we will split up soon anyway.’

‘Before we do, can I ask you a quick question?’ Arodan asked, turning to Carmen and Epoch. ‘How does that artificial sun on the ceiling work?’ He wondered if they ever dimmed a light of such a magnitude, and how difficult that might be. ‘Doesn't it mess with the sleep cycles of the residents?’

‘Ah, you're right to ask us.’ Carmen and Epoch chimed in unison. Epoch continued. ‘It is linked to the natural cycle of day and night. If it's night outside, it will automatically dim until it's completely extinguished, and if the sun rises it'll steadily lighten up.’ Carmen followed up with ‘It has a connection to the surface to a machine that measures the daylight outside so that is how it roughly keeps up with the actual time.’

‘Ah, that's interesting. I take everything strapped to those pillars is for air then?’ Arodan continued to ask and focused in particular on a pillar closest to their location. ‘How did you build all this? There's even greenery, I'm impressed.’

‘Aw shucks.’ Carmen waved her hand in odd fashion to wave away the compliment. ‘We had some help. In the past Stratus Corporation did a lot of business with the city of Paramo and that is how we have all these technological advancements. I designed all the magic dependent systems though. It used to be a bit more archaic and that did work, we still have those systems that aren't dependent on a constant flow of magic, but transitioned to the new one consistently as new cargo arrived to make all of this possible.’

‘Via boat?’

‘Yep!’ Carmen and Epoch chimed in unison. The mention of boats seemed to capture Epoch’s attention in particular. He was the one to continue speaking. ‘It was a smaller trading vessel of the clipper variety used more often for transporting building materials before it was retired. It's name was the Saltspray, I got to view it once.’

‘That's…. A lot.’ Or well, everything was relative. For Arodan the current conversation and his current surroundings were a sensory overload. The city around him was bustling with shoppers, spotters and restless souls going about their days. The shops, now he looked closer, were richly decorated with hanging trinkets, with stalls before their doors loaded to the brim with vegetables and fruits, and too much, too much for his head to comprehend.

No wonder outside forces wanted this city and its castle, it was almost too idyllic.

Before he could stop himself he had asked ‘So what's the catch?’

‘The catch?’ Carmen asked, turning her head in an odd manner. ‘What do you mean?’

‘The city’s sheltered, and we are running out of space.’ Kassa answered. They glanced over their glasses but it seemed like their heavy eyelids still hid their eyes. ‘Unless you're fine with living in a cave for the rest of your life you might grow bored with it too.’

‘Well, it's not that bad right?’ Carmen added, catching on to what Arodan had meant. ‘I mean, it's safe in here.’

‘You're asking a claustrophobic.’ They snickered and glanced towards Carmen. ‘And I just want to fly, stretch my wings a little.’

‘Well…’ Carmen scratched her head and had already decided she wasn't going to argue with Kassa, with a look that could only mean it must have been routine at some point. ‘Anyhow!’ She perked up and turned to Arodan. ‘Me and Epoch are going to be running around town to run some errands, by the time you're done we’ll probably be telling stories in the park over yonder.’ She pointed towards a small park set in between two buildings which seemed a little overgrown. ‘Let's meet up there again once it's time to head back to the castle.’

‘Alright. You okay with that too Dan?’ Atlas glanced sideways at Arodan and readjusted the halberd on his shoulder. Arodan nodded and he turned his head to look another direction. ‘There's this shop owner I was supposed to meet, thingy for Balam and something for me.’ He walked off and absentmindedly waved at the group behind him. ‘So later dorks, have fun.’

‘Let's head off too then.’ Epoch turned the other way and hooked his arm into Carmen’s. ‘Kassa, leave him in one piece and keep the amount of feathers to a minimum, will you?’

‘Yes, yes.’ Kassa grinned as they said this. They weren't going to keep their promise when it came to feathers, that was certain. They firmly grasped Arodan’s bicep and tugged at him to follow along. ‘Let's get you armor darling, can't have you dying anytime soon.’

‘Easy on my arm.’ Arodan snapped, pulling himself loose. Kassa was a lot faster with their big strides and fast pace and he had trouble keeping up. ‘So, are you certain that they have armor that fits me? I'm not good with heavyweight armor.’

‘Just the way you look at things is a dead giveaway. I can tell you to start lifting weights but there's no time to get beefy now, no?’ Kassa headed into a narrow alley which was cast in the darkness of the buildings it was in between. ‘So, if you know your magic well, that is what your armor will be tailored to.’

‘As long as it's not too gaudy and protects me from harm I'm fine with anything.’ He near tripped over a crate in the alley and wondered where in the blazes Kassa was taking him. ‘Oh, and do not make it green, I hate the color green.’

‘What a shame, I had a lovely shamrock body armor for you in mind.’ Kassa jested. They exited the alley into a small courtyard between buildings, where mostly elderly dragons sat reading books or newspapers. ‘No worries though, I think you'll only look good in blues or blacks to be honest.’

‘And orange?’ He came to a halt before a small shop in a corner of the square. It looked as if it had seen far better days but was still being cared for lovingly. ‘What is this place?’

‘My favorite place in this city. It's been here for ages and before we permanently closed Paramo.’ Kassa answered, opting to not go into Arodan's question whether he'd look good in orange. They opened the door which loudly creaked as it moved inwards. ‘If I wasn't a strategist, this is where I would work.’

‘I guessed so.’ He sounded almost sarcastic as he said this and entered. It occurred to him this shop didn't really look like it had been built with dragons in mind. The musty carpet under his feet definitely felt dragon made however. ‘What was that about the feathers anyway?’

‘Oh, dear Epoch doesn't know why I like to use feathers in fashion, but I will let you in on a secret.’ Kassa hummed, and picked a particularly fluffy coat from a nearby rack with a copious amount of feathers sewn to it. ‘Tell me, what are feathers?’

‘A very complex organic structure coating avians but also some dragons, that allows flight and grants insulation?’

‘Yes.’ But that definitely wasn't the answer Kassa was expecting, judging the look on their face. ‘They are hollow.’ They pulled a feather out of the coat in question and held it up to Arodan. ‘Now tell me what you see.’

It took a few seconds for a green fluid to start leaking from the tip of the feather and even then it did not leak fast. Arodan beheld it with wide eyes. ‘... Poison?’

‘Good boy.’ Kassa returned the coat to the rack and took the feather along to dump it in a bin down the aisle. At the very end of it was a vast wall lined with armor plating of various kinds. ‘I made that coat. The feathers don't loosen particularly easily and are rather sharp.’

‘For what purpose? Why would you make something like that?’ Arodan asked them as he frantically followed. ‘I didn't think you actually made clothing.’

‘It is my passion!’ They hissed, coming to a skidding halt by the wall. ‘My hands were made for making clothing! They just ache to create!’ They threw their hands in the air in a moment of excitement. ‘Just because I'm not a tailor by trade doesn't mean I'm not one by heart and skill.’

‘Alright, I get it, but I meant the poisonous feathers.’ He backed away defensively. ‘How did you get that anyway, isn't that Serthis poison?’

‘Oh, that.’ They shrugged and held up their hands in a noncommittal gesture. ‘Trader’s secret. And it's more for the fashionable assassins under us or the folks who want to be discreetly armed against abusive figures.’

‘I see. You have more of that hanging in here?’

‘Half the fashion in this store was made by her.’ A new voice echoed from the back of the store and soon a four eyed figure appeared in the doorway. ‘Luckily she works faster than they sell, there's just no end to it.’

‘They is fine Estelle, he's good company.’ Kassa responded, and the mirror quietly bowed her head in apology. ‘Arodan, this is Estelle, she owns this shop.’

‘Pleased to meet you.’ She presented herself with a little flourish and looked very out of place in an environment such as this one. Her brown eyes revealed she must have been from earth territory. ‘I'm known as Estelle, and I do not answer to pet names. Please just refer to me by my name.’

‘Don't worry, I understand.’ Arodan shot her a knowing look and extended his hand. ‘I'm Arodan. You seem familiar… Somehow.’ She reminded him a little of someone else he had met a long time ago when he was roaming the outskirts of the Hewn city. She had a similar square face. ‘Do you make clothing too?’

‘Sometimes.’ She said. Her voice had a deep mellowness to it that reverberated uniquely through the room. ‘I'm better at selling fashion than making it but that is fine with me. What I do make often tends to be armor.’

‘Peculiar. This place seems to be rather well hidden.’ Arodan glanced around the shop and found plenty of racks had yet to be restocked. ‘I take you're a popular venue?’

‘Sometimes.’ She repeated, and her lips curled into a small smile. She didn't look like she entertained the emotion of joy a lot, dressed in all black and with gloomy eyes. ‘So, new boy, where you from? You don't look like a true blue iceborn dragon.’

‘I was raised in a light-aligned clan. Lots of shade hunters, people who are a little bit uh…’

‘Holier than thou?’

‘Exactly.’ Arodan said, a sigh escaping him. He could hear Kassa stifle a laugh behind him. ‘It was fine but I wanted to travel and see Sornieth.’

‘Ah, I see. So how do I know you're not similar to the sort of people you grew up with?’ Estelle asked, finding the counter behind her to lean against. ‘You know, y’all seem to be keen on appearing better than the rest.’

‘Miss, the last few weeks I've got a few too many revelations, so I'm not going to argue with you on that.’ He soured a little at that but she was right. ‘How did you end up here?’

‘Same reason as you. I wanted to travel, I just sorta stumbled upon this place. Caer let me in.’ Estelle now sat on the counter and sometimes she leant to look around Arodan. Kassa must have been doing something behind him. ‘What about you?’

‘I fell off a ship and almost died.’ He said. At this point it wasn't really a particularly strange thing to mention anymore. ‘Atlas was the one who fished me from the ocean, I couldn't remember initially but after I collected my thoughts I recalled what happened before I was put in the cells below the castle.’

‘Ooh, that's rough buddy.’ She pat his shoulder from her spot on the counter and dropped off it in the process. ‘At least some shining white knight saved you.’

A knight was not the first thing Arodan thought of when he thought of Atlas but he digressed. ‘Yeah, it's good to be alive.’ There was a clattering behind him and he whipped around to see Kassa had dropped a pile of various types of armors at his feet.

‘I need you to fit all of these.’

At this point Arodan knew better than to start arguments with the generally more hard headed residents of Paramo. Fairly well was the proper description of it though because he refused to fit a few armors on the grounds of it being too much and that he needed something simple.

At the end of a long selection of armors he was left sizing up himself in the mirror wearing a fairly lightweight black one, decorated with swirls. ‘I like this one.’

‘You are boring as sin.’ Kassa hissed. They were perched on one of the racks, clutching their pipe between grit teeth. ‘At least you didn't pick a cape.’

‘A cape would be-’

‘Don't. Think. Of it.’ They pointed their pipe at him in threatening fashion, then put it back between their teeth in absentminded manner. ‘But this will do fine. Plenty of magical protection clings to this one and it will deflect most weapons for a while like it’s nothing. And I can probably decorate it a little because it's so plain now.’

‘Exactly.’ He could feel the armor whirring with the enchantments that were granted to it, and it felt safe. He pulled the necklace from beneath it and slung it so it hung visibly on top of the armor. ‘It has to be this one.’

‘I'd say it fits him fine.’ Estelle said, who stood at Arodan's other side. She currently was readjusting a shoulder plate a little. ‘I take you're going out there to defend the city from the approaching threat?’

‘I'd like to, yes.’ He turned his head so he could look Estelle in the eye and nearly got his shoulder plate rammed against his nose in the maneuver. ‘Call it dumb, but I feel like I should.’

‘I'm not going to call anyone dumb for wanting to save a place that for me personally, means a lot.’ Estelle answered. ‘I think there's a lot of us that share that sentiment. We have different ways of expressing it, and Paramo isn't perfect, but it's ours and we love it. If I was better at fighting I'd go out there but I've found I'm okay with making armor for those that do and staying in the city to be a second wall of defense.’

‘That's noble.’

‘It's normal.’ She fastened the shoulder way in a proper way and tutted at the fact it had been fastened the wrong way in the first place. ‘If you have a home, someplace you really care about, you should be ready to protect it. I didn't get to do that back in Dragonhome, many others weren't brave enough, we’re not making the same mistake twice.’

‘But what if you die protecting it?’ Arodan asked. The shoulder plate sat what better now and actually clicked into place with the other parts of his armor. ‘Are you willing to put your life on the line?’

‘Listen, if you're going out onto the battlefield with the intent to kill people you should be just as ready to die too.’ Estelle said, harshly almost. ‘Especially the people commanding all these soldiers that are willing to fight for their cause. Kings and commanders should be just as ready to put their life on the line for their people.’

‘That sounds amazingly reckless.’ Arodan looked over to Kassa for a moment and back into the mirror. ‘People need someone to lead them.’

‘She isn't implying you should throw a leader at the enemy, just that you have to rationally realize that if you start fights you need to keep in mind you could get hurt.’ Kassa shrugged and breathed out through their pipe with such a force it sent a cloud of smoke billowing up in rapid pace. ‘I myself believe in survival at all costs, it fits snugly into her little mantra.’

‘You all are kind of nihilist.’ Arodan grunted, and spun around so he could view his armor once more. ‘But I can't say I can't see the logic of it either.’

‘Hey, you don't just have to go along with it either.’ Estelle said, walking back towards the counter. ‘There's less heavy subjects to talk about like divination and to be fair I like divination a lot more as a subject. Or gem collecting if you don't believe in that sort of stuff.’

‘I'll let you try and predict my future sometime. Why not?’ He could see Kassa was approaching him again with a look that could only mean it must have been time to leave. ‘Gems, that's my kind of thing though.’

‘Good. Come back sometime for a casual conversation then and we'll talk fancy rocks.’ Estelle hummed. She watched as Kassa took off and neatly stacked Arodan’s armor and mentally she was already tallying how much she was gonna charge for it. ‘Stay alive for me will you?’

‘I basically just met you.’ Arodan grunted some more and near squeaked when Kassa dropped a heavy piece of armor they pulled from his arm onto his foot. ‘What about being prepared to die?’

‘Then stay alive for Paramo. Then you can come see me after this whole mess has been cleared up.’ Estelle wrote a small note and left it on the counter. ‘Forgive me for being grateful Kassa brings new people along. It's fun being around people.’

‘Fine. I'll do it for Paramo.’ He now had several reasons to stay alive for and now he considered it summing it up as doing it for the city of Paramo was probably the most concise way to put it. ‘That's what I'll fight for.’

‘Good. Knock em dead.’ Estelle leant to look around Arodan again. ‘You going out to fight too Kas?’

‘A strategist is usually useless on the field honey. But I'll be there.’ Kassa replied. They hauled the entire pile over to the counter and had Estelle tie the pile together as they paid. ‘I know what you're thinking and don't you dare die on me either. I'd like for this shop to stay in business.’

‘Oh, I won't. But I'm gonna pike me some lanternheads if the opportunity arises.’ Estelle cheerfully responded. She raked all the coins to her side once Kassa finished stacking the correct amount and dumped the entire stack into a drawer. ‘Even if we evacuate. The city’s on edge but not afraid.’

‘I noticed.’ Kassa glanced at Arodan and they handed him the heavy pile of armor. ‘Anyhow, we should be heading off again. Too much to show our newcomer.’

‘Yes, sure.’ Estelle nodded and was halfway into the backroom again. ‘Lemme know when you have time off again so we can run this shop together for once.’

‘Babe, once I have time again you're not going to get a letter I'll just come here directly whether you like it or not.’ They walked the other direction with a wide and sharp grin parting their lips. ‘See ya Stella.’ They pulled Arodan along so he stopped lingering in the shop and a faint goodbye in return could be heard as they left.

‘So, is everyone in this city like that?’ Asked Arodan as soon as they were back in the dark alley again. He struggled more to walk now with the added bulk of his armor which wasn't as much heavy as that it had been handed to him in an inconvenient manner. ‘This-’

‘Roughly everyone that isn't old or a child wants to fight yes. If everyone here picked up a weapon and went out there we'd outnumber near army.’ Kassa answered, this time quietly warning Arodan for any jutting tiles. ‘Not everyone is made to be a soldier however. Some people are more built to be battle fodder so it's better to protect them from themselves.’

‘I see. That seems like a dangerous predicament.’ He huffed. Hopefully that wouldn't be too much of a problem. ‘What made them this way?’

‘What an odd question.’ Kassa mused over it for too long and didn't initially seem to understand what he had meant. ‘Some have just been burned by life. Otherwise they are just folks who came here out of curiosity and never left. So, either life made them this way or they themselves are responsible for that.’

‘Right.’ The city seemed similar to the castle in that manner, he thought. They approached the exit to the Main Street but Kassa stopped him before they could head into it. ‘What-’

‘I’d rather not have you sharing my little trick with the feathers.’ They started, tilting their glasses down a little. ‘I'm cagey even with the little secrets, so, if you blab I will sew your mouth shut. Got it?’

‘Gods, fuck, yes!’ Arodan backed away and held his armor pile in front of him as if it was going to protect him from someone like Kassa. ‘No need to threaten me, sheesh!’

‘Good.’ Kassa pulled him out of the alley onto the street. ‘Now pretend like I never said that, will you darling?’

‘How am I supposed to do that?’ By their silence he could guess what they meant, so he didn't add anything to his question. Instead they walked, and chose to observe city life some more. The people around him varied greatly and even though the majority of the city must have been ice dragons he could still see there was a great diversity in the sort of people they were and what had influenced their behavior just by the way they walked or spoke to others. Even the way a baker argued with the next door undertaker was unique in its execution and it only occurred to him that he was staring as soon as Kassa had to haul him along by the shoulder again. ‘Kassa?’

‘What question do you have this time?’ They didn't turn to look at Arodan and instead dragged him into another street that seemed to have shops more specialized in knickknacks and toys of all kinds. ‘Do you ever stop?’

‘Not as long as I breathe.’ Arodan bluntly responded and immediately added ‘What do you know about the Shade?’

‘Oh, that is not something you should ask out in the open.’ They dragged him closer so he now walked practically wedged to their side so their conversation could be kept to whispers. ‘But I know as much as there is to know at the moment and that it's the most useful weapon one can have at their disposal.’

‘Weapon? Useful?’

‘If you know how to control it, it's useful for all sorts of things. Communication, offense, hands that don't tire from endless work…’ They seemed almost lyrical at that moment. ‘Why the question?’ They echoed his own words in almost mocking fashion.

‘I just sorta…’ He was a little scared now, he realized. ‘I want to know if you can still reason with someone who's fully taken by a shade infection.’

‘Oh, definitely no. The Shade is something you have to control.’ They noticed Atlas coming out of a shop in the distance. Good, he hadn't noticed them yet. ‘Someone like that isn't something you can reason with anymore. It'd be best to act then as if you're handling the Shade itself and not a person, and strike it down. Keep it on a leash.’

‘Got it.’ That seemed like the best answer at the moment. Maybe assuming all was lost in such a case would be the best option. For now Arodan chose to rush forward towards Atlas, so he could distance himself from Kassa as quickly as possible. ‘Atlas?’

‘Yo, Dan, got your armor already?’ His ears pointed up in excited manner and he turned to meet Arodan. ‘You should show me when we get back to the castle, I want to see it.’

‘Yes, I will, once Kassa is done decorating it.’ Arodan replied. He tried his best to tuck the armor under one arm so it wasn't in the way of his developing conversation with Atlas. ‘Is it time to head back already?’

‘Carmen and Epoch should be in the park by now, so not quite, but we can head over there-’ He searched through a large felt bag slung over the halberd he somehow was still holding, and retrieved a checkered board of sorts. ‘And I can teach you to play checkers. The pieces are scattered through the bag and it smells a little like garlic, hope you don't mind that.’

‘Well, that'll keep the bats away.’ Even if those didn't feed on dragon blood you could never be safe enough. ‘Let's go then.’

‘Aight, although…’ He came to stand at Arodan's left hand side and glanced over to Kassa. ‘Kassa’s giving you weird looks, so whatever you said to them, I'm gonna walk in between you two.’

Arodan only took a very brief glance at Kassa from the corner of his eye and they didn't seem out of the ordinary. It was when he got closer that he started to understand that their posture had bent in some invisible sense. ‘... Thanks.’

‘Tell me later what went down.’ On that note he headed over to Kassa, Arodan trailing besides him. It was as if a weight hung above him the entire walk back to the park that only barely lifted once they found Epoch and Carmen again, one that seemed to follow him to bed that night. Why, he wondered.

[shieldoflegend]

Primal Instincts

A bit of context for this; Logan was always supposed to start learning Dragoon at some point during 3.0, after Cherise, giving him a DPS class I thought would work for him, instead of just being a Paladin. But when we read the lore entry for Blood of the Dragon, we thought it would be neat if he had some difficulty with it. On top of that I saw an opportunity to use his fear of/connection to Bahamut I’ve used a couple times to help make things even worse. I’ve been sitting on this for literal months trying to figure out a way to make it feel the way I wanted it to, and I’m super happy I finally get to share it.

Cherise and Aiko belong to @awoken-zodiac Akio belongs to @edgiestshadow

“Try it again,” Cherise said.

Logan gripped his Lance, closed his eyes, and tried to find the power of the Eye flowing from his crystal. He tried to find that draconic power. He could see it, but whenever he tried to reach for it, it slid away. Like it was scared of him. Or maybe he was scared of it.

Logan inhaled sharply and his eyes snapped open. He looked at Cherise who shook her head.

“Nothing.”

He sighed and planted his lance on the ground with more force than necessary. “What am I doing wrong? I can see it, I know what I'm supposed to do, but it's not working! The crystal even showed me!”

Beside his sister stood Akio, one of the Wanderers’ other Dragoons, one who had been at this longer than either of them. The three stood together in a training area for Ishgardian knights, graciously offered to them by Aymeric, as long as they followed the same rules and scheduled their time like every other training group.

The towering Au Ra turned Cherise aside for a moment, the two talking low enough that Logan couldn't overhear much.

“...Only way…”

“No… to him…”

“Cherise…”

“...Don't like…”

They paused, and Cherise sighed and turned back to Logan. “I'm going to ask you to do something you're not going to like.”

Logan frowned. “What?”

She seemed pained to respond. “We think you need to tap into your connection with Bahamut. Whatever happened to you during the Calamity, and later when we found him in Dalamud’s ruins…”

“We think you have a connection stronger to him than Nidhogg’s eye,” Akio finished, as Cherise trailed off. “The crystal shows you only a connection to the Eye, but you might need something else. Try it.”

Logan looked from Akio to Cherise. His sister wouldn't look at him. He had been a lot better around dragons since they'd faced Bahamut, that was true. He'd faced off against Nidhogg, and argued with Hraesvalgr, become a linchpin in the Dragonsong War. But he was still afraid. Maybe that was why he couldn't reach the power. It wasn't moving away from him, maybe he was moving away from it.

“Okay,” he said finally, taking a deep breath. “I'll try it.”

Cherise finally looked up at him and they shared a glance. She didn't really want him to, he didn't have to. He assured her it was fine, he wanted to try, he wanted this to work. She relented. All in a glance. Having a twin sister had its perks sometimes.

He closed his eyes again, lance gripped tight and held at the ready. Once again he could see the power, but he largely ignored it. Instead he looked around for something else, for that fear he'd felt when he first laid eyes on Bahamut. He found it, circling above, as if waiting for him to notice. He reached for it, but it snapped at him, and Logan drew back. He could see it now though, he was the one retreating, not the power, he was scared, afraid of this primal essence and of letting it in. This was far more than facing a foe on the battlefield.

But… had he not determined to stop letting fear sway him from moving forward? No, he had to do this. Logan reached out again, and when Bahamut struck out at him, Logan found a spear in his hand and struck back. Bahamut melted into a glowing essence that overtook his spear, then his arm, then flowed over him completely.

Logan's eyes snapped open. He could feel the new energy swirling around him, and he looked over at Cherise and Akio. Their eyes were wide, surprised.

“What?” Logan asked.

“You did it!” Akio said with a grin.

“I can't believe that worked…” Cherise breathed. She then took a moment to compose herself and spoke louder. “Okay, now try to focus all that into a jump on a target. You should find that you can hit it much-”

Before she could even finish, Logan leapt into the air, then came flying back down, his spear ripping through the practice dummy on the other side of the training ground. He leapt back and landed smoothly, took a moment to ensure everything felt okay, then looked back at his dragoon mentors.

“Like that? That definitely felt stronger!” He said excitedly.

“Yes!” Akio exclaimed, and seemed overjoyed that Logan had managed to progress.

Cherise looked more unsure however. “Yeah, pretty much that. There's more to it, but keep practicing that. The crystal will show you more when you're ready for it. For now, go take a break.”

Logan blinked. A break? But he just- “Wait, what time is it?” He asked suddenly.

“Why? I mean…” Cherise looked into the sky. “Not far past noon?”

“Ooh, I gotta go!” Logan said, running past both of them, practically tossing his spear to Cherise on his way past. “Meeting thing they wanted me at, Warrior of Light stuff!”

“Logan, wait a second!” Cherise called after him, but he just gave her a wave and ran out of the practice yard. “What does he think I am, his personal assistant!? ...And what was that golden glow…?” She muttered that last bit under her breath.

Akio gave her a careful look. “I... could take it if you don't-”

She gave him a punch on his arm, and stormed off the field herself. “He's going to get himself into trouble, isn't he…”

Hours later and Logan found himself slumped back into his chair half-listening to the most boring meeting he could’ve imagined. The new group of Ishgardian leaders were sitting around the table chatting away about various politics. More changes or policies that had to be thought of following the end of the war, or something like that. Logan had stopped paying attention mere minutes into the meeting.

He knew the others often complained about how much the Warriors of Light were abused for menial tasks, but he'd never thought it was that bad. Not until now, anyway. He wanted to do something. Not sit around, he wanted a fight. That's what he was good at, right? He was, after all, a Warrior of Light. He needed to take something on, head to head, fight it, win. Like that Ishgardian knight at the door. He could beat him. He could rip him apart. Into shreds, literally, sink his blade into him and watch him-

“Logan!?”

Aymeric’s startled voice snapped Logan back to attention, and he found he was leaning far over the table, fists clenched, staring at the knight at the door, who, even with his helmet on, looked terrified.

“Wh... what?” Logan stuttered, leaning back in his chair, wondering what had just happened. “What were we talking about?”

There was a brief pause before Aymeric slowly continued. “We were just talking about how it might do some good for you to make an appearance at-”

“An appearance!?” Logan snapped back, jumping to his feet and slamming his hands down on the table. “I sat here for hours just so you could announce that I'm to be paraded around again!?”

His anger leapt back to a boiling point, and a part of him wondered why he was so angry, but most of him didn't care. He was so tired of being looked at, shown off, doing menial tasks. He was a hero! Not a trophy!

“I… I simply thought-” Aymeric tried to respond, but Logan cut him off.

“Yeah, I bet you did. Forget it, I'm going home.”

And with that, Logan spun and left the room, giving one more terrifying glare to the knight at the door, who visibly recoiled. Logan's laugh echoed through the room as the door swing shut behind him.

Aymeric turned to Lucia. “See if you can track down the Wanderers. Something is not right here.”

The trusted knight nodded and she quickly hurried off through the door as well, while Aymeric began to try and smooth things over with the others.

“He did what!?” Cherise exclaimed.

“I know, that’s why I came looking for you,” Lucia confirmed with a solemn nod. “I thought you might be able to, er, handle him.”

Cherise stormed past the taller woman. “I’m gonna punch his brains out! What an idiot! What was he thinking!?” She stopped suddenly and spun around. “Wait, where did he say he was going?”

Lucia blinked, unsure how to handle the raging redhead. “Um. ‘Home’ I believe is what he said.”

Cherise didn’t move for a moment, thoughts racing, and then she spun on her heel and ran off again. “Oh hells, this might be bad.” As an afterthought, she looked over her shoulder back at Lucia. “Oh, and thanks!”

Lucia sighed and began walking back to the meeting room. “Siblings,” she muttered with a small shake of her head and just the slightest hint of a smile.

“Hello?” Cherise called into the currently empty house belonging to Awoken Wanderers.

Their headquarters in the Mist had been somewhat abandoned after the events in Ul’dah, and with the Dragonsong War going on in Ishgard they hadn’t had time to reassemble everyone and get it up and running again. A few of them still lived here however, though they often spent most of their time away. But if Logan was headed “home”, this is where Cherise believed he’d end up.

No one answered her call however, so she opened the door leading to the private rooms, found Logan’s, and knocked. “Logan, are you in there?”

The door opened and Aiko stood in the doorway, holding a bedsheet up to her otherwise naked body. “Oh!” Cherise immediately took a step back and looked at the ceiling.

“Yeeees?” The Miqo’te asked, her voice a bit airy.

Cherise cleared her throat but continued, avoiding looking forward. “Um. Did, uh, Logan come here?” The answer seemed obvious, but she asked anyway.

“Yes. He. Did,” Aiko answered, as if answering an entirely different question.

“Ooookay, nope, oh gods, no, no,” Cherise shook her head and stepped away from the doorway, pointing past Aiko and into the room. “No, go put clothes on, I need to talk to you and this isn’t working, or happening, just. Oh Twelve, no.”

Aiko laughed a little as Cherise made a few gagging noises, but did indeed go back inside and shut the door.

“List of things I did not need to see or hear or imagine, ugh…” Cherise muttered to herself, rubbing her forehead as if it may remove the memory from her mind as she walked back to the main room of the house.

A few moments later Aiko reappeared looking back to her full senses, and fully clothed, much to Cherise’s relief. “Alright Cherise, what’s wrong?” She asked.

The Hyur crossed her arms and scowled. “Well you saw Logan didn’t you? Isn’t there something wrong with him? Acting oddly?”

“Well I was a bit distracted,” Aiko said, the slightest hint of a purr in her voice bringing out another gag from Cherise. “Though I do have to admit there did seem something a bit odd about him. And familiar, too, actually… I can’t place it though… What's going on with him anyway?”

“He…” Cherise hesitated, unsure of how much to say. “He used a technique called Blood of the Dragon, which usually uses power from Nidhogg’s eye. But he never interacted with them, not enough. So… he used Bahamut’s aether instead.”

Aiko’s eyes widened. “That's what felt familiar! He was practically drowning in Bahamut's aether! Cherise that could be incredibly dangerous!”

“No shit!” Cherise flung out her arms. “What do you think I'm doing!? Now did he say where he was going when he left?

Aiko hummed, tapping a finger against her lips. “Mmm… No… I think he mentioned he was hungry though?”

“Oh boy…” Cherise groaned. “There’s only one place in all La Noscea he’ll go if he’s hungry.”

“The Drowning Wench,” they said together.

Cherise and Aiko weren’t even halfway up the stairs to the second level of Limsa Lominsa when they heard the fighting. They didn’t even trade a glance before charging up the stairs. When they turned the corner the Drowning Wench was living up to its namesake, ale covered the floor, at least three men were unconscious, a pair of barmaids were hiding behind their serving trays, and Baderon came up from behind the bar to spot the two women.

Right in the center of the brawl, which consisted of at least ten men and a few women, was Logan. He was unarmoured and unarmed, but attacking anyone who came too close like a rabid, cornered animal.

“You two!” Baderon called out, gesturing to the pair. “Ge’ o’er here!”

Without hesitation Cherise and Aiko slipped along the wall and jumped the bar, crouching down next to Baderon.

“Wha’ in th’ seven ‘ells is goin’ on wit’ yer brother?” Baderon demanded of Cherise.

“Long story,” she answered. “What happened?”

“No idea. One momen’ e’ry thing was fine, an’ then bam! Chaos like I 'aven’t seen since th’ Calamity!”

“Okay, well stay down, we'll handle him.”

“Gladly!”

Aiko turned to Cherise. “How do we even stop… whatever this is?”

Cherise paused. “I’m… not sure. Usually it takes some effort to keep it up, and I never told him how. I’m not sure how he’s kept it going so long…”

“I could be the first to tell you that if he’s channeling Bahamut he could be going for awhile,” Aiko explained, pulling out her tome and flipping through some pages.

“Great, so what, just tie him down until he calms down?” Cherise asked as she heard a heavy thud that must've been a combatant dropping unconscious.

“Mmm, as much as I might like that-”

“Do not.”

“-I think I might be able to put him in a trance and possibly siphon it off.” Aiko pointed to a page of her tome, but Cherise didn't understand a thing on it. “But you will still need to knock him down. I'll need time.”

“Knocking down I can do,” Cherise nodded, punching a fist into her palm. “Get ready.”

With that, Cherise jumped up on the bar and shouted. “Hey! Logan! You want a fight, I'm right here!”

The fight paused and Cherise got a closer look at her brother. There was a faint glow of orange and gold, the effects of Bahamut's aether. But worse was the savage look in Logan's eyes, a look that did not belong to him. It hurt to see, but only steeled her resolve. The other fighters broke off, sensing a battle they shouldn't be a part of, and Logan stared down Cherise. A calm silence came over the tavern as everyone waited to see what would happen.

Then both of them dashed forward. Cherise slammed into Logan, but he caught her by the shoulders and simply slid back, growling and then tossing her across the rest of the room. She skittered to a halt on all fours, wiping her hands of the ale on her jacket. He shouted wordlessly and charged at her again, but she sidestepped him, grabbed his shoulder, and threw him into the wall. He smashed into it, bounced off of it, turned with a snarl, and took a fist to the face. Just like that Logan was laid down flat on the floor.

“Aiko, now!” Cherise shouted.

Aiko leapt over the bar, held out one hand, and muttered incantations from the book she held in the other. The golden-orange glow representing Bahamut’s aether flowed from Logan and into Aiko’s outstretched palm. She squeezed it shut and the aether dissipated.

Cherise kneeled down by her brother and checked his breathing. “Did it work?” It was even, he seemed okay.

“I think so,” Aiko said, sounding unsure. “I mean, it did what it was supposed to do, but whether it worked to keep him from being… whatever that was, we won’t know until he wakes up.”

Cherise sighed and nodded. “Well, help me get him back home then. We wouldn’t want him to break out of the inn rooms and terrorize the bar patrons again.”

Baderon, now back on his feet and turning tables back upright looked up at Cherise and nodded. “Aye, get ‘im ‘ome, I can take care o’ things ‘ere. Twelve knows ‘e’s done loads for us, a messy bar ain’t nothin’.”

Logan stirred and sat up. His head felt like paste, that his brain was flopping about inside his skull. What had happened anyway? Last thing he remembered was storming out of the meeting in Ishgard.

“He’s awake!” Aiko’s voice called, though Logan refused to open his eyes just yet.

“How is he?” Cherise’s voice called back from somewhere further away.

“Stop yelling…” Logan complained, attempting to wave his hand at them but finding lifting his arm to be somewhat difficult.

The next thing he felt was Aiko’s cool hand stroke the side of his face. “Are you feeling okay?” She asked softly.

“No… What hit me…?” Logan mumbled.

“That was Cherise,” Aiko said with a hint of laughter to her voice. “But you’re okay? You don’t feel um… Like you want to pick a fight or anything?”

“What? No, the thought of that just makes my head hurt more…” Logan groaned.

Lips touched his forehead. “Good. Then lay here and rest.”

“But what happened? I don’t remember anything after the meeting…” Logan insisted.

He heard someone enter the room, and Cherise’s voice was heard again, much closer. “I think it was the blood of the dragon skill… I think Bahamut’s aether took you over or something. The ability is supposed to give you extra power and combat instincts, but it does mean giving a bit of yourself over to the primal instincts of the dragon. I guess in your case it was just too much…”

Logan felt the bed sink a little as Cherise must’ve sat down next to him. “So… so what… happened…?” He almost didn’t want to know, and felt his stomach sinking.

“Well…” Cherise started. “You stormed out of the meeting in Ishgard enough to scare half the people in the room and insult the other half.” Logan groaned. “Then you came here and, uh…”

There was an awkward pause and Logan swore he felt the bed shake a little.

“You spent some time with me,” Aiko said simply, her tone pleased, though Logan felt immense disapproval from Cherise, even without seeing her.

Cherise cleared her throat. “Then you went to the Drowning Wench where you, apparently, ate more than Baderon’s seen a man eat, save for a 'starving bilgerat’, then no one’s quite sure what happened, but a fight broke out, you knocked four people unconscious - yes, they’ll be fine - and I had to smash your head into a wall to knock you out and let Aiko pull some of Bahamut’s aether off of you.”

Logan swallowed deeply. “I… did all that?” He started to shake his head but thought better of it immediately. “Just because of that dragoon ability?”

“I…” Cherise started.

“It seems so,” Aiko confirmed. “As someone with experience, Bahamut’s aether is not to be taken lightly. You just weren’t prepared. I can help you with it, if you want.”

“...Sure…” Logan said, not sounding sure at all.

There was a brief silence. “Get some rest,” Cherise said softly, and Logan felt her fingers brush his hair.

“We’ll be nearby if you need anything,” Aiko confirmed, planting her lips upon his forehead once more.

“Okay.”

Logan listened to them leave. He’d be impressed at their ability to work together, but he was far too distracted by his missing memories and the story Cherise had just told him. He’d spent so much time rebuilding their reputation after Ul’dah, and now this. Could he even truly manage the power of the dragoon if this was a possible result? Was it responsible of him to even try? He’d been so scared of Bahamut both in the past and present, even if he had overcome much of his fear. Despite his insistence to no longer act out of fear, maybe this was one act of caution he should heed.

Maybe he should just give up on becoming a dragoon.

[cutegirlmayra]

Sonamy boom 14? :)

This fits them, huh?

Prompt:

It was a rainy day, to say the least, and unlike her usual prepared habits, Amy was stuck under a tree’s canopy, bundled in a blanket and trying to read a book with a lantern on.

She had gotten so absorbed in a lore about real places on the island, and what artifacts may still remain there from those stories, that she spent all day looking around for any clues on where remains of some of these objects in the lores might be.

She shivered, the blanket not much against the wind.

She pulled the lantern into the blanket, a bad idea, but she didn’t have anymore matches…

She lowered her head into the warmth…

All felt tolerable for a moment, except her back, until the wind blew so harsh that her blanket flung up and the lantern was blown out.

“Wha!? UGH.” she spread her arms out, getting a look at the empty lantern, before flinging her head up.

“Noooo-ho-ho-ho… not me.” She whined, before snapping herself out of it. “Get a grip of yourself, Amy!” she shook her head, and threw her blanket off of herself, getting up on one knee. “You are Amy Rose The Hedgehog! You aren’t afraid of mere windchills and storms! You’ve got skin as tough as leather! A heart of gold~ A free spirit with a pure soul~ A-”

Lightning crashed.

“HEY! I was givin’ myself a pep-talk here!” she threw her arms down and scolded the lightning.

Ironically enough, the lightning moved farther away.

“Hmph.” she snuffed some air out of her nos, annoyed, before trekking onward.

There’s a small montage of her climbing muddy hills, storming the rain with her blanket, and wiping some sweat from her brow till she reached a wooden entrance in front of a structure made into a hill.

She peered in, unsure, but when the lightning struck again, she gasped and ran in.

“I’m not scared! I’m not scared!” she repeated to herself, before leaning up against the dirt-wall.

“I’m just not used to outdoor slumberparties…” she frowned, as if holding in her regret at taking this journey.

“Ohh… I wish the gang were here.” she hated doing things on her own for too long. She enjoyed greatly her friends company.

She sighed and walked further in, “At least there’s no wind here…

A howl was heard, and she fidgeted.

“Oookay. Maybe some wind passing by…” she gulped, before summoning her hammer and turning her on her glow-in-the-dark suit.

She walked on before turning the outfit off once seeing some faint light above.

“Hello?” she put her blanket down to her shoulders, not needing to cover her head anymore. “W..woah..” she looked around, “It’s an ancient aqueduct!”

She spread her arms out and spun, seeing she was walking on old water trails, and bent down to investigate.

Growing excited, she noticed the lights around her were huddled fireflies.

They were feeding off of a beautiful, but unkept garden that Amy supposed purified the water somehow…

“Wow… those ancients don’t kid around.” she put her hammer to her side, letting her guard down as she sniffed one flower…

“Ack!”

She dropped her hammer, having it bounce as it dropped.

She gripped her throat. “What… what’s going on…?”

The fireflies all swarmed her, spinning around in a now frightening, yellow glitter show as she felt her whole being was getting dizzy as they spun around her, and her consciousness slipped…

When she woke up, or at least, thought she did, she noticed there was now free flowing water where she lay.

“AH!” she immediately got up, and looked around herself. “What on earth..?”

“Ah, so you awaken?”

Amy turned to see the figure in front of her.

A man stood, very tall, must be fully matured, stood with a cubed glass full of fireflies, before closing the door and turning to her.

His nose poke out over his brown hoodie, and he smiled to her.

“Welcome to the Ancient Spirit Conduction Ceremony. I’m guessing you came from the realm of the living?”

Amy’s jaw dropped.

“…It’s… It’s not an aqueduct?”

The figure folded his arms, something she recognized but didn’t know how she could, and looked up a moment, his face still completely hidden.

“Hmm.. That too.” he nodded, smiling, before putting the glassed cube down with the fireflies.

He moved over to her, and gestured his hand out to her, offering assistance on getting up.

“Don’t worry. I’ll explain then.”

She nodded, and took his hand, blushing slightly as his exquisite manners.

“This ceremony is for the future to speak to the wise spirits long gone from this world…” he lightly let go of her hand, and walked away, gesturing to the images on the walls.

“Huh. And those flowers..?” Amy raised an eyebrow, walking over to the wall to try and translate it, skimming her fingers on it.

“Part of the ceremony.” His fingers traced up to hers.

She fidgeted, and looked up at him as he looked down at her.

They both awkwardly turned away, clearing their throats and adjusting themselves.

“So… you happened to come by when I was traveling in this realm. I’m actually here for knowledge. At the current time I’m in, I’m actually alive.” he stated, readjusting his hoodie. “I need some help on something… I’m not so good at.”

“Oh? I would love to learn more about your time! Maybe we do a… kinda trade off!” Amy held a finger up, as he turned and nodded.

“Sounds good. It’s amazing your a woman though. I think you may be able to help me more…” he scratched the back of his head.

“H-huh?”

A moment later….~

Amy gasped.

“You have a crush on someone!?”

“A friend! Partner, actually…” he held up his hands, before letting them drop on his knees and looking away, a small sweat drop on the side of his face. “We’ve known each other for a long time now… but I’m more skilled in adventuring then wooing.” he sighed.

“I haven’t been able to admit that to anyone in my world… it’s kinda nice… this place.” he looked around, “I feel I can say my darkest secrets and get away with it.” he grinned wildly, as Amy couldn’t help but feel that was familiar too… somehow…

She tilted her head. “Hmm… well, is she an adventurer too?”

“Why yes!” he grew excited, turning back to her. “She’s a very fierce warrior! Which makes it all the more awkward because one false move and I’m sure to be done in for the rest of time.” he drooped his head down.

“You see my dilemma…”

“Hmm…” Amy tapped her finger to her chin, thinking… “Well, first things first.” she adjusted herself, and looked up at him. “Do you love her or what?”

He freaked out, and stood up tall and straight, “H-how bold of you to ask that so suddenly!”

“Aww, you’re freak out says everything. Sit down, sit down~” she coaxed him down with a fanning of her hand, swooning over how charming he was in his emotions being exposed, before he reluctantly did take a seat next to her again, acting like a child as he put his hands to his pushed in feet, and looked away.

“Is your time really this… forward about this topic?” He inquired.

“No. But I like making you squirm~” she grinned tauntingly up to him.

“Ack! A she-demon!” he muttered to himself. “You clearly must have men fleeing from you.”

She twitched in a moment of anger.

She shifted over to look proper and polite. “Now then, treat me as your friend, and try and flirt with me.” she batted her eyes, letting the comment go for his sake.

He seemed to blush under that cape.

“Now that I think about it.. you actually resemble her quite a lot…”

“What was that?” Amy blinked.

“O-oh! Nothing! Ehem. I shall attempt at, how did you say it..? A moment ago just now… ah! ‘chatting you up’! that was it.” he nodded, and pumped his fist into the palm of his other hand, getting pumped.

“How is your training going?”

“Training? No, no, no.” Amy put a hand to her temples and the other shaking in front of her. “Try something she likes. Compliment her.” Amy grinned, then went back to acting like she was doing something else.

“…Ehem.” he gulped, trying again. “…You… You seem to look.. em.. radiant in the light…”

“…Better.” Amy encouraged him on. “The light of what?”

“…Day?” He shrugged, “I’m clearly not the best with words.”

“That’s okay. Try actions then. Show her you care~” Amy placed a hand on her heart.

“…Very well…” he looked down, and then scanned the room.

He sped over quickly, like a blur of blue, but there was so much wind he picked up that Amy couldn’t see the color as she hid her eyes.

She coughed at the water spraying up, before he sat back down.

“Open your eyes!”

She did so, hearing how excited he was.

He held a flower up to her face.

She flinched back.

“W-what? Is it hideous!?” he looked worried.

“N-no. It’s just… the last time I saw that flower it brought me here.” Amy sweat dropped, as he looked down at it, and scratched behind his head.

“My apologies. I completely forgot of that matter.” he placed the flower down and sighed.

“You know… something inside me tells me I’ll never be able to form the right words or make the smoothest approach at ever creating such a bond with her.” His hopeless tone broke Amy’s heart.

“Don’t you DARE say that!”

“Ah! M-Miss!”

She had thrust herself forward, holding her hands to his shoulders, as he bent back, nervous at the closeness.

“Just follow your heart! If she can see your trying, then you never need to actually say it! She’ll feel it. In her own heart.” Amy moved back and tapped where her heart was.

He blinked, listening…

“Heart’s have their own language. Just like you have your own kind of writing than my time. We have our own way of speaking, though it’s amazing I can understand you… actually, now that I think about it… didn’t you mention this place spoke with the ‘soul’ and not the ‘mind’? It’s the same thing!”

He saw how earnest she was for his sake, and warmly smiled, before nodding to her. “Do you have someone you also fancy? Miss Rose?”

She blushed slightly, and looked away.

“Well… I … Um…”

“I see.” He nodded, looking down, before getting up. “In that case. I shall also wish you luck. Though we may never admit it… it seems our hearts are wiser than any spiritual ritual of old and aging minds could ever discuss together.” he placed a hand on his hip, standing proudly.

“As a hero.. I need to save not only my realm, but also my heart from whatever travesty I may conduct upon it.” he lowered his hand to her, and she graciously accepted it again. “Thank you, Miss Rose. I shall attempt to ‘chat her up’ again, as it were. You have given me the confidence to try.”

He then rubbed his head. “Even.. if the consequences may hurt just a bit if I fail.” he smiled sheepishly.

“That good of a wallop, huh?” Amy laughed.

“Well, yes.”

Amy giggled, seeing he was leaving, and getting back to where she was.

“Her hammer is the quite the evasive weaponry.”

Amy’s hand held frozen by her side.

“Sorry. What I mean by that is…”

He turned around, smiling.

“She tends to avoid her own heart sometimes. I’m not sure why.”

Amy held her heart.

“Wait!” He took off his hoodie as she turned around, and her eyes widened at the striking blue quills, as he turned to wave her off.

“Good luck! Amy Rose!”

The vision faded and Amy woke up to pollen all over the air.

“A… a hallucination?” she shook her head, getting up. “I’ve gotta study these plants!” she took out a bottle and was careful to hold her breath as she plucked one from it’s ancient wall-slot, and then quickly took off, seeing the storm was over.

While heading back, a blue streak passed by, and Sonic quickly about-faced to greet her.

“Ames! Long time no see!” he waved, walking beside her.

She looked to him.

She tends to avoid her own heart sometimes. I’m not sure why.

“I was wondering when you got back. Any luck?” he smiled.

I shall attempt to ‘chat her up’ again, as it were. You have given me the confidence to try.

She grew shy, and looked down. “..Sonic?”

“Hmm?” he blinked in innocence. “What’s up?”

“…I think… I like how you ‘chat’ with me.” she gave him a pleasant smile.

He froze suddenly, his quills spiking up.

“W-wh-what gave you that-!? I mean,” he shook his head, growing flustered. “I just said hi!” he admitted.

“I know. And I’m happy you did!” she chimed, before walking off, holding her head high, trying to fight off the shyness of it all.

Even.. if the consequences may hurt just a bit if I fail.

“You’ll never fail to make me smile, Sonic! Haha!” she tilted her head forward.

She was beautiful.

Sonic stared, as if shock at fully come over him.

“..Hey, if you ever want to say anything important to me… you know I would be fine hearing it right?”

She couldn’t read his next expression, and just grew nervous again.

“W-we-well, I enjoyed this little conversation, b-b-but I have some research to do! Lov-I-I MEAN! I-I do love you as a friend and everything but what I truly meant to say was-s-s….” she was too nervous, starting to falter before looking back up at him. “…S-see ya!” she bolted with a stream of dust behind her.

“THAT WAS THE STUPIDEST THING I’VE EVER DOOOONE!!!!” Amy scream to herself, crying at her horrible awkwardness.

Sonic just continued to stare in amazement, before his body finally reacted and he blinked his eyes, then freaked out, pressing his two hands against his head.

“HOW DID SHE READ MY MIND!?!?!?” he shouted out in total hysteria.