#arden reis

[tiraviarp]

You Too, Child?

“Ser Reis, I assure you, your food has not been poisoned.”

Arden peered at Overton over the top of his dodo drumstick. In the dim light of the eatery the retainer had invited him to - some sort of pirate’s bar and fighting ring, he had to guess from the decor and the raucous laughter he knew well from Limsa’s streets -, the boy’s expression was somewhat veiled in shadows. Yet where he couldn’t see if he had a twinkle in his eye, he could see his stupidly normal smile.

Of course he could. He almost missed the brief moments where it wasn’t plastered to his face, when Leigh was threatening his life and refusing to let him run away.

“Can’t a guy be cautious?” he replied back instead of voicing those thoughts, baring his teeth in a lopsided grin. “If ya and yer Lord were plannin’ t’ kidnap or kill me, this’d be the place.”

Overton hummed to himself, his fork tines tapping lightly on the small section of his ceramic plate that wasn’t drowned in butter or occupied by lobster tails. “You think we would pay off the chefs and waiters to do such a thing?”

“Or ya own the place and ya haven’t said anythin’.”

“Make no mistake, I would love to eat here every day during my lunch breaks.” The retainer seemed more amused than anything at the accusation. Not that Arden could blame him - he’d act the same way. “Unfortunately for us, Milord’s power and wealth does not come from the restaurant business. Like any other wealthy man, he saw opportunity in providing funds for our meal tonight.”

Arden had seen opportunity as well. There was far more food on his side of the table than Overton’s: a copy of the other’s buttered lobster tail, a basket of dodo wings to accompany the drumstick in his hand, a bucket of crab legs from who-knew-where, an 8onze bison steak he was waiting to cool down to edible temperature, buttered biscuits and bacon bread pushing up against the unopened bottle of champagne they were meant to share…

Would he be able to eat all of this tonight? Of course not. But if Overton’s lord was paying for whatever he wanted to order, why not order delicious food to last him the week?

But Leigh had also told him to ‘draw him to him’. Would Overton’s lord scream at the bill at refuse to ever let his retainer see him again?

Huh. Maybe he should’ve thought this through more.

“Besides,” Overton continued when the silence stretched on a bit too long, “Milord bade me to observe you. Observing you as an unconscious body or a corpse would not be in the spirit of his request. I think both of us would prefer you to stay in good health, yes?”

Well, that was a good point. Arden gave the drumstick one last cautionary sniff, then bit down. 

Chewy, flavorful, and practically dripping with juices. Yep, that was normal meat. Great meat, actually. He hadn’t had such a massive hunk of meat to sink his teeth into in a long time.

Overton watched on with a half-smile, half-grin. “...I can practically see you salivating. It must be good?”

Was he? Arden quickly wiped at his lips, and they came back wet and greasy. The urge to snap and bare his teeth in a wild grin, another chance to see that smile be wiped off the boy’s face in a fraction of a second, surged forward -

No, no, no. He can’t mess this up. Calm, Arden. Stay focused.

With great reluctance, he reached for a napkin to pat his lips dry. Faint black smears from his lipstick stained the cloth as he pulled it away. “Aye, it’s...good. Very good. What’s this place t’ ya again?”

“Oh, it is simply the place where I first met Mx Leigh. As I said, Milord bears no connection to this place. I only picked it for our dinner tonight due to familiarity.”

That couldn’t just be it. Without moving his head, Arden looked out at what parts of the restaurant their booth allowed him to see. Dim lights that created a cozy atmosphere, yet veiled secret smiles and dealings. Tables and barstools spaced just far enough apart, and booths divided by just thick enough barriers, to appear normal, yet provide privacy for their occupants. And while there were tables in the far back corners of the restaurant, Overton had picked a booth relatively in the middle of the space, in the bartender’s line of sight and near enough to the entry stairwell.

Overton wanted an escape route, maybe? And the pressure of the public view? Whatever conversation he wanted to have, he wasn’t interested in secrecy. 

Interesting. Just a minor touch of interesting to retainer so stuffy and seemingly obsessed enough with him to stalk him. 

But he’d need to show more than that over the course of the dinner. Satisfy his curiosity. Impress him with something he wasn’t expecting. Scratch the itch in his mind that made him wonder why him.

A sudden pop! jerked his attention back to the table. Opened champagne bottle in his hands, Overton gave him an apologetic smile and poured some into his empty wine glass. “Do you drink, Ser Reis?”

“Naaaaah, I’m too much of a lightweight. Spiced tea makes me drunk, apparently.” Arden settled back into his seat, allowing himself to be swallowed up by the cushions. Let Overton set the pace of the night and see what he wanted from him. No reason to waste the opportunity to laze about in decadence in the meantime, right? “Why d’ya ask?”

Overton chuckled softly, setting the bottle back in the back of their table without complaint. In its place, he lifted his wine glass. “I was going to offer a toast. To the start of a great evening with a great companion.”

Oh? This time, Arden let his immediate grin show through as he reached for his water glass. “Oh, ya could do with a lot better of a companion. If ya were hopin’ fer an easy night tonight, I’m not yer guy. Unless ya like trouble?”

A bat of his eyelashes, an uncharacteristic snort from Overton, and a clink! of their glasses started off what would end up being a very interesting series of events.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, what does ‘observin’ me’ mean?” 

Overton glanced up from the chunk of lobster speared on his fork, taking a moment to consider. “...I was given no information other than that directive. I have to assume Milord believes me up to the task of determining exactly what he wants me to observe.”

Well, he’d been expecting a longer answer than that. Was he really going to have to prompt him? Arden had just taken a big bite of dodo, and now he had no chance to savor it. “Which is…? I hate t’ break it t’ ya, Overton,” he didn’t, not really, “but yer not gonna catch me in any illicit schemes or anythin’. If yer lord’s lookin’ t’ blackmail a Maelstrom soldier, there’s a lot more fattier fish in the sea t’ pick from.”

“Oh, I agree. If Milord’s intention was blackmail, he would ask me to observe someone in a position of power. It would need to be someone useful, yes?”

“Oi. Don’t talk about me like I ain’t useful.”

The retainer laughed under his breath, raising a soothing hand. “Peace, Ser Reis. I did not mean it as a jab. I was merely…well. From my observations of you thus far, is it not fair to say you have less power in the Maelstrom than your peers?”

Ah. That was an extremely nice way to say it. “I’m movin’ up in the ranks now, though.” Slowly but surely, as they learned to work with him rather than against him. The transfer to the stealth and reconnaissance unit was working out great for him! He almost didn’t have to think about Lieutenant Tanne anymore.

“Really? Congratulations, then.” Overton put up yet another smile. With so much of his time spent smiling, Arden couldn’t tell what smiles were genuine and which were fake. “But, to return to your question...Milord has been upfront with me before about intentions to blackmail certain individuals. As he has said nothing about his intentions for you, I assume he wants me to observe you simply to patch a hole in his knowledge.”

Arden raised an eyebrow. “Really now.” He almost had to laugh. The supposed master of knowledge that knew things that no one should know about Leigh and Alys didn’t know a thing about him? That was hard to believe.

“It is speculation on my side, of course.” Finally, Overton lifted that chunk of lobster up to his mouth and bit down. Fancy retainer as he was, he had to chew thoroughly and swallow before he continued. “So, I see my task as to learn everything possible about you. Anything that Milord already knows, he can ignore. What is new to him, he can keep, and I can keep my job. Simple, yes?”

“And ya thought that stalkin’ me was the best way t’ get that information?”

The retainer hesitated…then breathed out slowly through his nose. “...I will admit, my ability to sneak undetected was…less than I expected it to be.”

Arden grinned, twirling the remnant of the massive dodo drumstick in hand. “Yeah, ya were shite at it. I caught ya day one.”

“...Really?”

“Yup. Take it from a career sneak: ya sucked. A baby could’ve pointed ya out. I bet if they were around, my old unit would’ve spotted ya, too. And they had less than half a workin’ brain from all the cheap swill they kept drinkin’!”

For just a moment, Overton looked almost hurt, with his furrowed brow and frown. His jaw worked, and Arden waited with bated breath for the no-doubt upset and frustrated spiel he was surely about to spew.

But instead, he took a deep breath and reached down to the seat beside him. A worn, purple-dyed, leatherbacked journal landed on the table with a gentle thud, a quill and inkpot following it. Still with that furrowed brow, Overton wet his quilltip and flipped to the first non-paintstained page in the journal.

“...Let’s start with that,” he grumbled. “Likes to rub failure into people’s faces.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------

One bell into their dinner, and Arden had to conclude that Overton was boring. 

Who knew that being the center of conversation would be something he learned to despise? Overton seemed to have an endless amount of questions for him, and he should be reveling in the attention! That was how it normally went: someone would decide to take interest in him for some reason, he’d respond as his usual self - truthful, sharp, maybe a little goading if he was feeling particularly stimulation-starved that night -, and their reaction would be a catalyst to keep the engine of a good night rolling. 

But Overton, as he and Limsa Lominsa’s combined military force had learned, was nothing. He was simply smiles and empty air. The moments when Arden gave into his impulses and fished for a reaction cracked those never-ending smiles, and he could almost see something else on the other side; but like clockwork, the retainer simply patched up the holes and continued on as if nothing had ever happened.

The mission to ‘keep him around’ was important, yeah, but he also needed to stay sane.

Even his current topic of interest, his abilities as a thaumaturge, was utterly dry. Novice-like, but without the true desire to learn anything. Every response prompted more notes written in his journal, and he wouldn’t be surprised of those notes were as dry as he was.

So. He needed to make his own fun. 

“I don’t know where yer gettin’ yer information, but yer plain wrong about a lotta things. Ya wouldn’t survive a single introductory class.” Without moving an inch, Arden extended the invisible tendrils of his own aether toward Overton’s across the table, all while responding to the retainer’s latest inquiry. 

The feedback was…odd. Before he could reach any aether, his senses brushed up against something smooth and obscuring, yet fragile, like fogged-glass on a shower door, extending as far as he could feel. A barrier, maybe, or a containment spell, but a horribly ineffective one; who would make a defense like this as thin as paper? It was oh-so-easy to slip through the porosity of the ‘glass’ -

And immediately drop into what felt like a volcano’s funnel. Overpoweringly fire-aspected aether seared at his senses from all sides, threatened to scramble and melt them by submerging them in the simmer, bubbling pot of lava below. Not a single other element in sight, at least at the surface level. It was a wholly inhospitable place that would set off the fight or flight reflexes of just about anyone, save himself.

99% of people were at least a mixture of two elements. Even he himself was a part of that group. If Overton wasn’t…

“What do you mean?” Overton replied as if nothing was wrong at all.

He’d need to dig a little deeper to see if there was anything else. Arden crossed his arms over his chest and hummed audibly, putting on a show of thinking. All the while, his aether pressed further forward, searching and probing for -

There. A small, barely perceptible stream of earth aether, existing just beneath the sea of fire. Yet even particles in the stream were ‘waterlogged’ with fire-aspect, clinging to their surfaces like a tick to wolf fur. A parasite.

It wouldn’t stay as earth aether for long. With enough heat and time, they would rise and join the flow. If the fiery heat continued to melt and steam everything in its vicinity, nothing would replace it. 

Was there a source of this heat? Or was Overton shifting to be like him, continually burning in the core of planet, only with no escape?

Overton was looking at him expectantly. Right, this was a conversation, not a diagnosis on potential aetherical corruption.

“Traditional guilds of magic exist,” Arden began, claws clicking on the wooden table. “They teach specific spellcasters specific elements. Conjurer’s guild teaches wind, water, and earth; Thaumaturge’s teaches fire, ice, and lightnin’. Everythin’ else is unaspected.”

Overton nodded, scratching down yet more notes into his journal. “So…you only know half of the elements, then. And can only do things within those elements?”

“If I stuck t’ only traditional thaumaturgy, aye. But why cut myself off from everythin’ else? Once I learn the rest of the elements, I can do whatever I want.”

The retainer paused his scribbling, slowly lifting his head to look at him once more. “...What do you mean?”

“Think of it like this.” Arden lifted his hand, turning it palm up. Overton stared at him with rapt attempt, quill hanging in the air above his journal page. “Everythin’s based in one or more of those elements. By usin’ them in different ratios and in different ways…shouldn’t ya be able t’ do anythin’ ya wanted? By itself, fire’s just fire.” Purple smoked up from his tail’s chain-focus, and in a rush of heat, fire gathered in his empty palm -

Immediately across the way, he felt a wave of fire surge through Overton’s aether, alien in signature and yet somehow familiar.

And then another. 

And another. 

And another.

Like the pulsing signal of a Garlean radio, the waves continued to wash over the boy’s aether. In front of him, Overton simply watched the flame flicker and bounce in his hand.

Now this was interesting. Narrowing his eyes, Arden focused his mind entirely on the sensation and pressed his senses onward, cutting through fiery wave after fiery wave, eventually arriving at their source:

A singular, brightly-burning ember, buried deep in that sea of fire that was Overton’s melted aether. An old, dusty mote of flame that was so dwarfed by its surroundings that it was no wonder he missed it. With the fire in his hand serving as its fuel, the rhythmic waves it unleashed into its surroundings mirrored his experiences of Gyr Abania in the summer months: suffocatingly superheated air that melted the vision, the body, and the mind without reprieve, and the whisper of heatstroke urging all trapped in the labyrinth of fire to close their eyes and rest.

“...Are you alright, Ser Reis?” he heard Overton question distantly, looking at him over the flame with polite concern. As if his melted aether itself wasn’t a concern.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” he replied just as distantly, trying to focus on that ember and figure out why it felt so familiar. As not a piece of Overton’s natural aether, it was technically a corruption - but where did the corruption come from?

And is this why he was the way he was? He seemed to be perfectly ignorant to it all, simply waiting for him to continue his lecture.

“...fire tornado, was what I was gonna say. Fire and wind.” Arden closed his fist around the conjured flame and smothered it. All at once, the waves of heat stopped running rampant through Overton’s aether, and the red-hot ember began to darken and cool. Something in his mind urged that he needed to keep talking, keep Overton’s attention diverted away from his aether or else he might lose this chance. “...Or, uh, true invisibility.”

“‘True invisibility’?” Overton echoed, his quilltip touching paper once more. “The type that shinobi utilize in their missions?”

“Yeah, the…” Perhaps he was putting too much of his attention on Overton’s aether. Even he could tell his verbosity was slipping. But it was much more interesting to investigate this corrupt aether. Like a surgeon with their fancy tools, Arden carefully plucked a strand of the melted aether from the lava and watched how liquid fire sloughed off of it like decayed skin. “The real kind. Making that work would make my work life a lot easier.”

Overton hummed amicably, fingers tapping against the back of his journal. “I imagine it would. You work as a reconnaissance unit, correct? Being able to turn invisible would certainly make infiltrating enemy encampments a lot easier.”

If the fire aether fell apart so easily, then maybe it hadn’t actually corrupted everything. Maybe a core of Overton’s original aether remained, simply covered in lava-like sludge. Yet, as the seconds ticked by, the steady molasses-like flow continued unabated.

Was there really this much corruption?

“Ser Reis…?”

“Uh,” Arden stammered, blinking back into reality for just a moment. Overton looked at him expectantly over the top of his journal, that pleasant smile still in place.

Well, if the corruption was so saturating, it was time to see if it was solid. “...Repeat what ya said again.”

“...I had said that surely, true invisibility would be a great boon to your work, because of your work as a reconnaissance unit, correct?”

Ducking his tail under the table, Arden focused on the fiery sludge coating the ‘melted’ aether and pressed it very lightly in the direction of lightning. 

It refused to budge. If Overton noticed anything, he didn’t show it. 

He pressed harder, molding it under his metaphorical fingers like a glob of fatty, nerve-ridden tissue. Turn to lightning, he commanded.

…It shifted, ever so slightly.

“...Have I said something wrong, Ser-”

“No, yer fine,” he snapped more aggressively than he intended. Keep him distracted, Arden. If he hasn’t noticed anything yet, you might be able to get away with this. “It’s, uh…more than that. If I can turn other things invisible, that’d help too. Got a big aethernet shard I gotta, uh, sneak into a Sahagin lair.”

If he were paying attention at all, he’d notice how Overton’s eyebrows almost shot into his hairline. “...an aethernet shard? Why?”

However, all he noticed was that Overton wasn’t screaming at him to stop. Behind closed lips, Arden grit his teeth and dug his metaphorical fingers in, squeezing it into every last crevice of the mold of lightning, forcing it to change shape.

As soon as he felt the snap of the aether complying with his demands and the zing of lightning-aspected aether touch his’, Overton suddenly stilled, the pleasant smile altogether dropping from his face as a hand came up to the back of his head. “...What’re you-”

A brilliant red light gleamed from under the table, illuminating the retainer in haunting shades of fire - 

And Arden choked as a wave of old, musty, rotten, hadn’t-seen-the-light-of-day-in-years fire-aspected aether slammed into him and his extended, vulnerable senses like a tidal wave, nearly bowling him over in his seat -

A rush of blinding, dizzying-superheated desert air filled his lungs and burned the air he struggled to gasp in -

The acid taste of smoke clung to his tongue and globs of soot and ash imprinted themselves onto his skin, sunk through his skin into his flesh and bones -

The echoes of claws and teeth from a beast much larger than him rested their points against his shoulders and neck, bloodlust and superiority driving them to rip through his jugular and string him up by the shoulderblades -

And then, they were gone, and it was just him and his retainer stalker, seated at their table in the middle of a pirate-themed tavern.

Overton’s frown cut a deep groove in his otherwise-pleasant face, his quill dropping on the table and his hand reaching for his side. “...Ser Reis, are you…feeling alright?”

All Arden could manage was to grab the edge of their table with shaking hands, his body trembling as he hauled himself out of his chair. “I’ll…be right back.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------

That was it. That was the where he recognized the ember from. 

The pulse of fire-aspected aether that’d slammed all of them the first time they’d met Overton outside of Limsa Lominsa had felt odd. It hadn’t dropped him to the ground back then, but now?

Several minutes later, Arden still kept a hand on the wall outside the restrooms, just in case. The level of sheer overstimulation his nerves got in one blast of that aether rivaled the total sum of lightning aether he’d shocked himself with while testing his Manaward capabilities over the course of a week. If this were any other situation, he’d call on a chocobo porter to deliver him to an inn before he even thought about teleporting.

Lesson learned: don’t make yourself vulnerable to aetheric blasts around Overton.

But was was it? Overton hadn’t looked like he’d casted any spell: he didn’t appear to have any spell foci, including the dagger from before. Neither did his expression after the blast look like one of vengeance of smug justification, a retaliation against messing with his aether. And no spell cast using either that ‘melty’ personal aether or the aether of their current environment would feel old.

A bottled fire sprite hidden on his person wouldn’t make it feel like a beast was breathing down his neck. Unless sealed tightly with a spell or some kind of mechanism, the aether of a fire-aspected beast, whether alive or dead, would dissipate quickly into the environment. And if Overton did have the sealed aether of a beast, it certainly wasn’t sealed anymore. If that much aether was being blasted out with each breach of the seal, there wouldn’t be much aether left in it at all after long. 

And nothing explained why Overton, polite and harmless retainer as he portrayed himself to be, who was now on Limsa Lominsa’s watch list partially because of these aetherical blasts, would keep the source of the aetherical blasts on his person where he could easily get caught.

He was so lucky he was suddenly more interesting to him free than he was behind bars.

Below Arden’s overstimulated nerves sat a buzzing feeling of another kind. To dig deeper, to infiltrate the retainer’s aether once again, throw all caution into the wind and investigate to sate his own curiosities. Overton certainly wasn’t going to be forthcoming with the information, if he knew anything at all - the fire corruption was layered so thick over his aether that there was a chance he was ignorant to the utter abnormality of those pulses.

But, no. He couldn’t risk getting actually knocked off his feet by another pulse. If he extended his aether further, and a stronger pulse went out, it could affect him much more severely to the point of health complications. Leigh seemed to bear the brunt of that when they were cornered by the Yellowjacket and his hirelings.

But that didn’t mean he couldn’t get other information from Overton. Information that he didn’t have to ask for, and information that Overton didn’t need to know he knew.

Arden grimaced as his shot aether roiled against his magic, but he forced the nausea down and focused his surroundings. The fire aether that Overton had unleashed still flitted intangibly and invisibly about the room, so he’d need to factor that into his ratio, but there was no speck of aether in this tavern that he couldn’t read. Just because he couldn’t cast spells of all the other elements didn’t mean he needed to, at least in this moment. 

He specialized in twisting aether to whatever aspect and polarity he desired more than he specialized in what the rest of the world called ‘thaumaturgy’ these days. A little bit of missing information wouldn’t hurt Overton.

As quick as he could, Arden fine-tuned every particle of aether in his body to match the particles making up the dimly-lit tavern. There was no telling when Overton would pulse again, and his invisibility didn’t need to perfectly match his surroundings this time. All he needed was just enough invisibility to get close. Only when he couldn’t see the hair lying across his face anymore did he creep forward, balancing on the balls of his feet and doing his best to muffle the sound of his heeled boots on the rickety wooden floorboards.

Still seated at their table, Overton looked perfectly at peace despite the explosion of aether just a few minutes ago. Had he really taken the opportunity to finish off his lobster while he was struggling to not throw up? No matter what would end up happening with him, Arden had to respect that at least. Now that there was no bulky buttery plate in the way (someone must have come to take it while he was gone), the boy’s journal was laid out across it. And of course, he was still writing in it.

Not that that was a bad thing. It gave him time to snoop.

Arden hovered just behind the retainer’s chair, peering at the pages visible past Overton’s bent head. Fairly neat handwriting - though not as neat as his own, he declared with pride! - covered a majority of each page, and the cycle of his thought process was clear. Start a list of notes and observations, embellish far too much and start disrupting the flow of the notes, add additional notes in a diagonal scrawl around each item, add notes on top of those additional notes to the point that a page became a cluster of words all smashing into each other, then finally go to a new page. Rinse and repeat, and Overton had a journal full of detailed notes he’d have to spend days to decode before he could actually use them. 

Oh, but there were little doodles interspersed throughout the jumble of words! Little doodles of little things, like each piece of gold jewelry he wore tonight and the shape of his hands down to the perfect points of his claws. How cute.

If Overton hadn’t sought him out purely because of his aetheric corruption, maybeLeigh’s, Suki’s, and Alys’ theory that the boy had a crush on him bore some weight. Boy was he going to be disappointed when he learned the truth.

Everything else about the journal felt very mundane, though. As far as he could tell, for how complex Overton’s scattered notetaking ‘style’ made it look, all the written notes were just about the various conversations they’d had tonight. Nothing in particular stood out, aside from the confirmation that the retainer was a complete novice when it came to magic.

Except when Overton turned to the last page, and both he and Arden were faced with two things: a rather detailed sketch of Arden himself (again, cute), and a page dedicated to a different kind of notetaking altogether:

It was a code, obviously. He only had minimal codebreaking experience; this was far beyond what he knew how to solve. But why code language in his own journal in the first place? Unless he was meant to hand it over to his Lord - but why would he write his secrets in the book he was giving away?

Interesting. The more and more he looked past Overton’s normal exterior, the more interesting he got.

Slipping his hand into his pocket, Arden pulled out his tomestone and activated the aetherograph, snapping a picture of the code array -

Just in time for Overton’s shoulders to hunch protectively, and his head to turn to look directly at him. Arden froze on instinct, looking down at the rest of where his body should’ve been.

Still invisible, thankfully, but maybe not forever. Overton’s gaze may’ve been looking through him now, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t realize he’d been snooped on if his just enough invisibility chose to out him. 

Arden cautioned a step backward, doing his best to muffle the sound. The wood flooring forced a low thunk out of the motion anyway, and this time Overton turned his whole side to follow the sound, eyebrows furrowing together.

Shite. He was going to have to take off his boots, wasn’t he? Arden began to bend low, but paused as a glimmer of gold caught his eye.

The lapel of Overton’s jacket hung open in the way the retainer had twisted to stare right through him. Pinned to his undershirt and glinting faintly in the tavern light were two pieces of jewelry: the intricate, fragile-looking gold…no, bronze? timepiece that caught his eye, and a thumb-sized silver brooch framed in tiny emerald jewels. And now that he was close enough, he could spy a silver necklace chain looping around his neck before disappearing below his undershirt’s neckline.

Odd that he would hide jewelry. If either the timepiece, brooch, or apparent amulet were aetherically treated, they could serve as magical foci. But just looking at Overton's journal proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was a complete and utter novice to magic. And if they were magical artifacts gifted to him, like that dagger…Arden wouldn’t be able to prove that without putting himself at risk of a fire aether pulse to the heart.

As if feeling the curiosity roiling off him, Overton called out, “...Ser Reis, are you there?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Arden caught a glimpse of chain-adorned red fur streaking briefly  into view. Any moment, he could get caught. 

Yet, underneath the eustress that made him hold his breath tight, he also felt…something else. A trickle of sensation that wended and wound itself around and around his mind like a coiling snake, pulling his attention toward the center of Overton’s chest, where the amulet’s chain seemed to end.

Where despite a reason he could find, he felt an absence, a void. 

The call of that void.

He needed to figure out what it was. Slowly, Arden stood back up to his full height and chanced to lean forward, peering down the small gap between the undershirt’s neckline and his skin. 

As if swallowed by the darkness beyond, the dim light of the tavern didn’t penetrate far. But it did show him…

Deep, dark purple crystal, a starless twilight sky captured for eternity.

Grooves and facets that, when put together, produced the shape of a flame.

The familiar sign of a meteor carved into its front, only visible by the remnants of light catching in the groove.

Arden’s hand snapped forward to grab the necklace’s chain, claws tangling in its links -

----------------------------------------------------------------------

“What,” Overton hissed angrily, “were you thinking.”

Try as he might, the bone-deep ache in Arden’s wrist from where the retainer had grabbed him refused to be ignored. In the back of his mind, he knew he should be questioning why a scrawny kid had that much strength, and why all of it would be funneled into the instinct to break his wrist. Maybe he’d circle around to those thoughts later.

Or maybe he wouldn’t. His mind was thumming with other thoughts rushing through his head, fueled by the overwhelming desire that drove him to such a reckless attempt at claiming that hidden prize. Until he got his hands on it, would he even have a mind for anything else?

“Why’d have a Black Mage soul stone,” he hissed back in return.

“Does it matter why I have one?” Overton waved him off as if it wasn’t important. As if he didn’t care. “You attacked me, Ser Reis.”

“Yeah, so?”

“So?!”

“Yeah, ‘so’!” Arden jabbed a claw in the direction of his stupid scowling face. “What ya have there is what I’ve been lookin’ fer fer years! Any smart guy would try t’ get it off ya, whether yer alive fer it or not.”

“Ser Reis, I have done nothing to warrant this kind of behavior -”

“Ya were stalkin’ me fer two sennights, and ya what ya did t’ Leigh -”

Overton’s face pinched together, and he cast a sidelong glance to the rest of the tavern. The security guard that’d pulled Arden off of him and nearly kicked them out was still watching from near the stairwell. “...I did not do anything intentional horrible to Leigh,” he said with a lowered voice. “All of my intentions with you, Mx Leigh, Miss Alys, and Miss Suki have been well-intentioned.”

Arden raised a brow. “Really now.” Oh, he wished he hadn’t eaten all of the bacon bread earlier. It’d make a great, chewy substitute for popcorn, and he needed to either get his hands on that Soul Stone soon, or else need to bite down on something to contain all this buzzy energy.

Overton nodded. “I swear it. Milord bade me observe you, and nothing more. My inclination was that you would rather not be approached by a random stranger asking to observe you like a statue at a museum -”

“So ya thought that stalkin’ me was better?”

Overton breathed out slowly through his nose at the reminder. He looked so silly when he was mad - it was as if his face was never meant to display anything other than a smile and polite happiness. “...We already discussed that, yes? But I thought it best to not impede your life, out of respect for your life as a working man. As for Mx Leigh, my warning was so that they did not waste the effects of their gift.”

His advice that night did fall in line with that, yes, but… “Are ya still not gonna say where yer lord got that information from?” 

What did it take for Leigh to reveal that information to Arden willingly? Several months of getting to know them, and a few dangerous escapades along the way? It was something they’d never dare speak carelessly about, for some random lord to overhear.

This was getting away from the big point that he had a Black Mage soul stone, why was he even engaging in this -

“No, because I do not know.” Overton gave him a steely look. “I would appreciate it if you told Mx Leigh this, and encourage them to accept my request to never cross paths with them again. Lest we get derailed, what I am trying to say is that all of my actions thus far have been done out of kindness, but…my ability to continue this kindness depends on how I am treated.”

Arden gave him a flat look to compliment his steely one. “Whaddya mean?”

“Simply put: I am as kind as you allow me to be.” For this first time in quite a while, Overton smiled. “I am what you make me to be. If you make room for me to remain being kind, I shall continue being so. But if you view me as an enemy, or attack me in any way like you just did…then that is the role I shall play.

“Does that make sense?”

His tail thump, thumped hard on the cushion beside him, the chain rattling erratically. Overton was trying to threaten him?

Really?

Well, that made things easier for him. He felt his face split into a grin.

The retainer stared at him with an echo of disgust in his expression. “...Even saying that, you look like you will stop at nothing to take it from me. Whether I am dead or alive. Am I right?”

Arden simply smiled a predator’s smile. “I can’t control what my mind wants, Overton.” What he wanted, truly, but a less savage creature would surely have more elegant ways of going about it. Kill Overton, and get the soul stone that rightfully belonged to him and score some points with the retainer’s gift targets. Win-win.

For as tired as he looked of the conversation, and for as buzzy as his own mind was, Arden could almost see the gears of the retainer’s mind turn.

“...Well, I would like to continue living.” Overton said after a lengthy pause, straightening up in his seat and ooking the part of the proper retainer once more. Except for the frown replacing his usual smile, of course. “...If you are not the sadist I think you are, then I would like to propose a deal.”

Oh? He thought he was a sadist? Quite an odd observation given that he hadn’t shown any of the signs most people would point to as ‘proof’. He would’ve understood if the man called him a beast, but ‘sadist’? “Ye’ll find that I’m a far more agreeable and peaceful person than the stories make me out t’ be…”

But a deal…? 

The buzz of infecting his mind and every ilm of his body intensified, and the claws of his right hand dug into the table to steady himself. “...Especially if mutual gain’s involved. I’m a team player, believe it or not. But yer gonna have t’ make the deal real enticin’.”

Overton’s head tilted very slightly. “Oh, I have no reason to believe you would refuse, Ser Reis.”

“Aye? Why’s that?”

“Because…all you would have to do is simply wait.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Arden trudged his way into Maelstrom Command with the darkest circles under his eyes yet. There was no way he could sleep after all that.

The door guard spared him and let him through easily, raising an eyebrow. The soldiers he passed in the hallway did the same, and he heard murmurs and smothered snickering in his wake.

He ignored them as always, dragging himself to the storage room rather than following the voices floating out of the mess hall. His claws rapped on the doorframe. “Hey, lemme in.”

The storage manager, a Miqo’te man who’s only trait he only knew was that he was exceptionally sleepy, only slowly blinked over the novel he was reading. “...What, you forgot something?”

Arden slowly blinked at him in turn. “Uh…yeah? I guess.”

“You only had one job, man.”

“...I still do…?”

The storage manager only stared at him with nary an expression on his face. Arden stared back.

Then, the storage manager yawned and plopped his book down, reaching for the key around his neck. “...Fine. Make sure you get all you need this time.”

Something ticked in his sluggish, yet still-buzzing brain, but he shook it off and grimaced as the world spun. Maybe he did need the mess hall after all. Coffee sounded good right now, especially if he was supposed to sneak this aetheryte in…

With a click of the lock, the storage room’s door was open, and Arden stepped into the darkness beyond. With the snap of his fingers and a light pull on his aether, a small flame lit on the surface of his palm -

And as warm light spilled across the room, he spotted something dart back into the shadows behind the aetherytes.

Even in his sleeplessness, Arden’s attention snapped forward. Now what was that? Not one of the usual rats, that was for sure. That was much too large, even for the rat lords the size of small wolves that prowled the streets at midnight.

No, that was a person.

Flame now floating gently beside him, he took staff in hand and carefully took one step forward, then another. In his wake, light flowed forward, illuminating the dark that the person dared to hide in. “C’mon out,” he called out, though quiet enough to not alert the sleepy guard outside. Maybe he was already asleep again. Maybe it didn’t matter.

When he took the third step, he felt something pull against the flame, and he paused.

Then, his flame suddenly streaked forward, against his control -

Arden snarled, charging forward after it, brandishing his staff and striking forward -

For a split second, the flame illuminated an extended, dark-skinned hand. Arden aimed the spearpoint head of his past it -

Just as the flame, aether and all, was consumed by that extended hand and the storage room plunged into darkness. The darkness didn’t stop the improvised lance, though. Arden felt a shudder rip through his staff as it made contact with -

Rock. The rock wall behind the person, behind the clump of aetherytes now separating them. In the dim light they cast off, he saw…

A pair of green eyes, identical to his own, alight with a secret fire of their own. 

Arden stared down at the intruder, mind quickly putting the pieces together.

Then, he grinned. “Oh, now this is interestin’.”

[ardentrhyme]

Volo: This is persecution! Why can't you leave me alone, what did I ever do to you?! Rei: You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet. Volo: ...Apart from that.

[lilibetbombshell]

[jonismitchell]

no matter how many times i listen to cinnamon girl it stills feels like being run through

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden

Author: Katherine ArdenPublisher: Del ReyReleased: February 13, 2024Received: Own (Aardvark)Find it on Goodreads | Aardvark | More Fantasy | Historical Book Summary: Laura Iven worked hard as a field nurse during the war, saving as many soldiers as possible. That was until she was wounded and sent home. Not that coming home proved to be any safer.  Now Laura is facing the death of her parents…

[marlboromermaid]

Peachy Keen!

[myreygn]

Mint and sky blue

Also I'm back from the dead!! Aye :DDD

gotta be honest i was so confused for a second xD like "mint?? sky blue?? what the fuck are they talking about??" but then i got it and THANK YOU!

hell yeah we'll bake cookies <3 and you can know everything about my fucked up lil brain if you like, just send me a topic and i'll rant about it for hours lmao <3

also i'm so happy you're back yeyy hope you're doing alright!! 💛

[darklinaforever]

Here is the first list of ships that may most likely interest you if you are a fan of Darklina ! Essentially it's about enemies to lover, or a dynamic reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast !

▪︎ Merlin & Morgana. (Mergana) | Show, Merlin BBC. [Tragical Ending]

▪︎ Halbrand / Sauron & Galadriel. (Haladriel / Saurondriel) | Show, The Rings of Power. [In progress]

▪︎ Rey & Kylo Ren / Ben Solo. (Reylo) | Star Wars, postlogy.

▪︎ Osha & Qimir. (Oshamir) | Star Wars Show, The Acolyte.

▪︎ Dracula & Mina. (Dracmina) | Movie, Dracula 1992. [Tragical Ending]

▪︎ Sarah & Jareth. (Sareth) | Movie, Labyrinth 1986. [Open Ending ?]

▪︎ Dongfang Qingcang & Xiao Lanhua / Orchid. | CDrama, Love Between Fairy and Devil. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Xiang Liu & Xiao Yao. | CDrama, Lost You Forever. / Book, by Tong Hua. [Tragical Ending]

▪︎ Tantai Jin & Li Susu. | CDrama, Till the End of the Moon. [Open Ending] / Black Moonlight is Guaranteed a Bad Ending Script, by Teng Luo Wei Ji. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Erik & Christine. (Erikstine) | Le fantôme de l'opéra, by Gaston Leroux. / Phantom, by Susan Kay. / The Phantom of the Opera, 25th anniversary, at the Royal Albert Hall, by Andrew Lloyd Webber. [Tragical Ending]

▪︎ Raistlin & Crysania. | Trilogy, The Legends, from Dragonlance universe, by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. / Musicals. [Tragical ending]

▪︎ Warner & Juliette. (Warnette) | Book series, Shatter Me, by Tahereh Mafi. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Julian & Jenny. | Trilogy, Forbidden game, by L.J Smith. [Tragical ending / Open Ending]

▪︎ Addie & Luc. | Book, The Invisible life of Addie Larue, by V. E. Schwab. [Open Ending]

▪︎ Vasya & Morozko. | Winternight trilogy, by Katherine Arden. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Marya Morevna & Koschei. | Book, Deathless, by Catherynne M. Valente. [Open Ending]

▪︎ Kasta & Zahru. (Kastaru) | Trilogy, The Kinder Poison, by Natalie Mae. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Jude & Cardan. (Jurdan) | Trilogy, Folk of the Air, by Holly Black. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Corien & Rielle. (Corielle) | The Empirium trilogy, by Claire Legrand. [Tragical ending]

▪︎ Ruhn & Lidia. (Ruhnlidia / Daynight) | Trilogy, Crescent City, by Sarah J. Mass. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Feyre & Rhysand. (Feysand) | Book series, ACOTAR, by Sarah J. Maas. [Happy Ending / In progress]

▪︎ Elain & Azriel. (Elriel) | Book series, ACOTAR, by Sarah J. Maas. [In progress]

▪︎ Emilia & Dorian. | French book series, Vila Emilia, by Elodie Faiderbe. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Laila & Darius. | Trilogy, When the Stars Alight, by Camilla Andrew. [In progress]

▪︎ Jane Eyre & Mr Rochester. | Book, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronté. / Show BBC, 2006. / Movie, 2011. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Will & James. | Trilogy, Dark Rise, by C.S. Pacat. [In progress]

▪︎ Laurent & Damen. (Lamen) | Trilogy, Captive Prince, by C.S. Pacat. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Evangeline & Jacks. (Evajacks) | Trilogy, Once Upon a Broken Heart, by Stephanie Garber. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Agnieszka & Sarkan. | Book, Uprooted, by Naomi Novik. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Auren & Rip / Slade. | Book series, The Plated Prisoner, by Raven Kennedy. [In progress]

▪︎ Ash & Mary-Lynnette. | Book series, Night World, volume 2 : Daughters of Darkness, by L.J Smith. [Hapoy Ending / In progress]

▪︎ Hades & Persephone. (Persades) | Webtoon, Lore Olympus, de Rachel Smythe. [In progress] / Greek mythology.

▪︎ Xibalba & La Muerte. (Xibamuerte) | Animation movie, The Book of Life. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Beauty and the Beast. | Fairy Tale. / Animation Movie Disney. / Movie, Jean Cocteau 1946. / Show, Once Upon a Time. [Happy Ending]

▪︎ Chise & Elias. | Anime, Mahou Tsukai no Yome, 2017. / Manga, The Ancient Magus Bride, by Kore Yamazaki. [In progress]

[saturniasxenos]

Cyber / Virtual ID Pack

Inside this pack, you will find: Pronouns, Titles, Names, and Genders that relate to Virtuality, Cybernetic, Robots, and anything alike!

This features a LOOOONG list of pronouns and dystopian-ish names!

Pronouns:

Cy/Cyb/Cyber/Cybers/Cyberself

Vir/Virt/Virtual/Virtuals/Virtualself

Ne/Net/Network/Networks/Networkself

Ne/Net/Nets/Nets/Netself

In/Inter/Internet/Internets/Internetself

Co/Comp/Computer/Computers/Computerself

In/Inpu/Input/Inputs/Inputself

Ou/Out/Output/Outputs/Outputself

Vi/Viru/Virus/Viruses/Virusself

Anti/Antivir/Antivirus/Antiviruses/Antivirusself

Er/Erro/Error/Errors/Errorself

Sys/Syste/System/Systems/Systemself

Pro/Proce/Processor/Processors/Processorself

Di/Digi/Digital/Digitals/Digitalself

Do/Down/Download/Downloads/Downloadself

Up/Uplo/Upload/Uploads/Uploadself

Cor/Corru/Corrupt/Corrupts/Corruptself

Mal/Malwa/Malware/Malwares/Malwareself

Se/Secur/Security/Securitys/Securityself

Cry/Crypt/Crypto/Cryptos/Cryptoself

We/Web/Webs/Webs/Webself

Web/Webs/Website/Websites/Websiteself

Fu/Futu/Future/Futures/Futureself

Ro/Rob/Robot/Robots/Robotself

Rob/Robo/Robotic/Robotics/Roboticself

By/Byt/Byte/Bytes/Byteself

Fi/Fil/File/Files/Fileself

Ra/Ram/Rams/Rams/Ramself

Scr/Scre/Screen/Screens/Screenself

Te/Tech/Techs/Techs/Techself

Te/Tech/Techno/Technos/Technoself

Tec/Techno/Technology/Technologys/Technologyself

Ma/Mach/Machine/Machines/Machineself

Wi/Wir/Wire/Wires/Wireself

Na/Nan/Nano/Nanos/Nanoself

Da/Dat/Data/Datas/Dataself

Plu/Plug/Plugs/Plugs/Plugself

Ele/Elect/Electric/Electrics/Electricself

Ke/Key/Keys/Keys/Keyself

Pa/Pass/Password/Passwords/Passwordself

Ter/Term/Terminal/Terminals/Terminalself

Cy/Cybo/Cyborg/Cyborgs/Cyborgself

Ty/Typ/Type/Types/Typeself

Fi/Firm/Firmware/Firmwares/Firmwareself

Ha/Hard/Hardware/Hardwares/Hardwareself

So/Soft/Software/Softwares/Softwareself

Ha/Hack/Hacks/Hacks/Hackself

Ha/Hack/Hacker/Hackers/Hackerself

Si/Sig/Signal/Signals/Signalself

Clo/Clou/Cloud/Clouds/Cloudself

On/Onli/Online/Onlines/Onlineself

In/Insta/Install/Installs/Installself

Co/Cod/Code/Codes/Codeself

Ad/Admi/Admin/Admins/Adminself

Gra/Graph/Graphic/Graphs/Graphself

Sy/Syn/Synth/Synths/Synthself

Phi/Phis/Phish/Phishs/Phishself

Phi/Phish/Phishing/Phishings/Phishingself

Do/Dox/Doxs/Doxs/Doxself

Si/Sit/Site/Sites/Siteself

Bo/Bot/Bots/Bots/Botself

Pho/Phon/Phone/Phones/Phoneself

Key/Keyboa/Keyboard/Keyboards/Keyboardself

Mo/Mou/Mouse/Mouses/Mouseself

Chi/Chip/Chips/Chips/Chipself

Moth/Mother/Motherboard/Motherboards/Motherboardself

Co/Com/Compute/Computes/Computeself

Pi/Pira/Piracy/Piracys/Piracyself

En/Encry/Encrypt/Encrypts/Encryptself

PDA/PDAs

CPU/CPUs

URL/URLs

404/404s

📱/📱's

💻/💻's

⌨️/⌨️'s

🖥/🖥's

🖱/🖱's

💿/💿's

🎙/🎙's

Titles:

The Cyborg

(X) Whos Wired

Made of Nanotech

(X) Who Uses Nanotech

Scholar of Machines

The Cyber Security

(X) Who Has Cyber Wings

Connected Online

Offline

Unable to Connect

The Administrator

Synthesizer

The Hacker

Nanohacker

The Antivirus

Reconnecting...

ERROR: Unable to Connect

ERROR 404

ERROR: Malware Detected

Names:

Since names don't usually have "techy" meanings, I picked one's that sounded the most cybernetic, cyberpunkish, dystopian, virtualish, etc!

Fem: Althea, Ameris, Astoria, Arcadia, Astra, Beretta, Cyra, Crystal, Crosselle, Eve, Io, Jinx, Kit, Lilith, Meridian, Morrian, Nebula, Nova, Neve, Noxia, North, Octavia, Odette, Odile, Prota, Pistol, Rey, Rue, Rain, Raine, Stormy, Seraphina, Sona, Skye, Thundra, Tempest, Vega, Viva, Vinette, Venus, Xenia, Xya, Xena, Xiomara, Xenara, Xanthe, Zephyria, Zyla, Zadie, Zia,

Masc: Alaric, Aksel, Arden, Antares, Apollo, Ace, Asher, Cole, Cyrus, Code, Draven, Drift, Ender, Flynn, Hawk, Isaac, Jericho, Kip, Kai, Koios, Knox, Nox, Neo, Nero, Octavian, Orionis, Oghma, Paine, Rocket, Ray, Rai, Silas, Slader, Sebastian, Seth, Seraphim, Thalax, Theo, Thatch, Vox, Vector, Wyatt, Xyon, Xane, Xylan, Xerxes, Xayden, Xavier, Xander, Zander, Zayden, Zenith, Zev, Zale, Zane, Zaire, Zeke,

Neu: Andras, Axe, Axiom, Alloy, Allele, Ash, Arrow, Beetle, Chrom, Corvus, Dakota, Dell, Eos, Echo, Eden, Fox, Ghost, Glöckner, Hydrae, Ion, Jesper, Jett, Kursk, Lesath, Locklyn, Lyrae, Maddox, Nemo, Orca, Onyx, Oxygen, Panther, Rikko, Robin, Rune, Scorpion, Scorpius, Saturn, Sparrow, Sonar, Tore, Tauri, Techne, Techno, Ursae, Vesper, Volt, West, Wolf, Xen, Xenon, Zephyr, Zodiac, Zenon, Zeru, Zero, Zen

Genders:

Futuracityc: A gender related to futuristic cities

Futurafashic: A gender related to futuristic fashion

Futurahousic: A gender related to futuristic houses

Digigender: A digital gender. Rangeable from any digital thing or file; virus, malware, .txt, .mp3, antivirus, trojan, email, etc.

Cybergender: A gender or form of gender expression where ones gender or expression is deeply tied into Cyberpunk lore, culture, fashion or media.

CYBERWEAPONIC - a gender that feels like a digital or robotic weapon. this gender may also have ties to sentient AI used as a weapon, but not necessarily.

BIOAMOROBOTIC - a gender connected to being a robot who loves humanity and the world and finds joy all around them!

RobAnatomic - a gender under the anatomic system(link) related to robots, anatomy, robotic anatomy, the anatomy of robots, robots made to teach/study anatomy, anatomy based/related robots of some kind, the anatomy/biology of someone or something being robotic, having robotic anatomy, being a robot with an interest in anatomy and more.

Robogender - for people who’s gender identity aligns with machines/robots/androids/mechs/AIs.

Cyborwebic - a gender related to webcore, evil scientist aesthetics, artificial beings such as androids/cyborgs etc, turtleneck sweaters and old computer monitors

AI flag - this can be used for nonhuman, otherkin, gender, delusion.

Gendervirtual / Genderdigital - a gendersystem in which your gender is related to virtual ) digital themes and x , such as being a virtual ) digital x , a x who loves virtual ) digital themes , a virtual ) digital being who loves x themes , etc.

[46snowfox]

Subaru Sakamaki Chaos Lineage Capítulo 2

[Capítulo 1]

Monólogo

“Cuando me dejó salir de la celda, Subaru-kun sostuvo fuertemente mi brazo y empezó a caminar.

Azusa-kun y Kou-kun también se apegaron a mí para vigilarme.

Me sentía como una criminal que había cometido un crimen abominable, a la que no le iban a dar ni la más mínima oportunidad de escapar.

No puedo imaginar que mi novio, que Subaru-kun me trate de esta forma.

Mis ojos me arden. Siento que mi tristeza va a desbordarse.

Es como si estuviera viviendo una pesadilla.”

Lugar: Mansión Violet, pasillo.

Subaru: ¿Por qué te tambaleas tanto? ¿Acaso no puedes caminar en línea recta?

Yui: …

Yui: (El brazo que está sosteniendo me duele… Es cierto que Subaru-kun se enoja fácilmente, pero se supone que también es amable.)

Yui: (Que me tironee tan violentamente hasta arrastrarme… no es algo propio de él.)

Yui: (No me recuerda en lo más mínimo.)

Yui: …Disculpen, ¿a dónde vamos?

Kou: ¿No nos escuchaste? Dijimos que Carla-kun te llamaba.

Azusa: Vamos al living… Carla nos espera allí…

Subaru: No tiene sentido preguntar a dónde vamos. De todos modos tienes que obedecernos.

Yui: …

Yui: (Puede que tengas razón. Pero aun así quiero hablar contigo, por más redundante que sea el tema…)

Azusa: … ¿Eh?

Azusa: Hay un… olor dulce. Eva, viene de ti…

Yui: ¿…Eh? ¿De mí?

Kou: ¡Es verdad! Este olor tan dulce~ viene de tu sangre, no hay duda.

Kou: Y que ese olor sea tan fuerte significa que… ¡Subaru-kun no me digas que tú!

Azusa: ¿Succionaste la sangre de Eva…? Si haces eso sin permiso… Carla te regañará…

Subaru: No me importa.

Kou: Amas hacerte el duro, Subaru-kun.

Subaru: Cállate. Estoy colaborando para que Carla se convierta en el rey supremo.

Subaru: No pienso hacer nada más y nada menos que eso.

Yui: (Parece que Kou-kun y Azusa-kun obedecen a Carla-san.)

Yui: (Pero Subaru-kun no.)

Yui: (Y también parece que Carla-san considera a los vampiros como sus hermanos.)

Yui: (Pese a que un fundador como él jamás haría algo así.)

Yui: (Pero si de verdad los considera sus hermanos… ¿Entonces significa que no siente que hay algo fuera de lugar?)

Yui: (Si tan solo alguien, quien sea, se diera cuenta de que esta situación es una locura—)

Lugar: Mansión Violet, living comedor

Kou: Carla-kun, trajimos a Subaru-kun y a Eva.

Carla: Siéntense allí. Tengo que hablar con ustedes.

Yui: (Como imaginaba, los trata como si fueran sus hermanos. Eso significa que los recuerdos de Carla-san también han sido manipulados.)

Carla: Muy bien, mi casa ha conseguido a la pista para que uno pueda convertirse en el rey supremo, a Eva.

Carla: Sin embargo, incluso tras conseguirla seguimos sin saber cómo convertirme en el rey supremo.

Carla: Y mientras no lo sea, no tengo dudas de que el resto de familias seguirán intentando obtener a Eva.

Carla: Definitivamente nos atacarán. Asegúrense de no mostrarle ninguna apertura al enemigo, no bajen la guardia.

Kou: ¡Entendido! ¡Deja que yo me encargue!

Laito: No entregaré a Eva ante nadie.

Carla: Entendido. A partir de ahora vigilen los movimientos de nuestros enemigos y asegúrense de seguir mis órdenes.

Carla: En pos de ganar esta batalla no permitiré que me desobedezcan.

Kou: Lo sabemos. Nadie va a ir en tu contra.

Laito: Es una molestia, pero es inevitable. Me esforzaré para que puedas relajarme un poco.

Azusa: Además… no quiero perder a ninguno de mis hermanos…

Subaru: Haré lo que sea para poner fin a esta ridícula batalla. Te ayudaré con eso.

Carla: Hmph… Parece que todos tienen sus propios objetivos, pero si aceptan actuar bajo mis órdenes, entonces no me quejaré.

Carla: Al menos hasta que me convierta en el rey supremo.

Kou: ¿Y? ¿Qué haremos ahora? Trajimos a Eva, ¿pero te sientes ya como un rey supremo?

Kou: Algo así como que… Tu poder haya aumentado o que hayas abierto el tercer ojo, algo así…

Carla: …No he sentido nada así. Para serles sincero, no tengo la más remota idea de cómo podría convertirme en el rey supremo.

Laito: Oh, ya veo. Como te veías confiado pensaba que ya tenías alguna pista.

Carla: Nada de nada. Por eso Eva, hay algo que deseo preguntarte.

Yui: ¿Eh…? ¿A mí?

Carla: Ha pasado una noche desde que te conseguí. Sin embargo, no he experimentado Ningún cambio.

Carla: ¿Acaso no basta conseguirte? ¿Existe otro requisito para que pueda convertirme en el rey supremo?

Yui: ¿Un requisito para ser el rey supremo?

Carla: Si se te ocurre algo, entonces no te contengas y dilo.

Carla: Y si intentas ocultar información, incluso si eres Eva, te aseguro que no te tendré piedad.

Yui: No puede ser…

Yui: (Por más que me hable de Eva y el rey supremo, yo no sé nada al respecto.)

Yui: (Mas no creo que en esta situación sea correcto decir eso.)

Carla: …

Yui: E-ehm… ¿Sucede algo Carla-san?

Yui: (De repente se levantó y ahora se acerca a mí… ¿Qué sucedió?)

Carla: …Quédate quieta.

Yui: ¡¿…Qué…?!

Kou: ¡Wow, que atrevido eres Carla-kun~!

Laito: ¿A qué viene ese cambio tan repentino de actitud?

Carla: Mujer, muéstrame la herida de tu hombro.

Yui: ¡¿Eh?! ¡P-por favor espera un momento! ¡Carla-san!

Carla: …Esto es.

Yui: (Ah, todavía tengo la herida de la mordida que Subaru-kun me dio en el calabozo…)

Yui: (¡Carla-san descubrió que succionaron mi sangre…!)

Carla: Desde hace un momento que sentía que había un olor fuerte, así que esta es la causa.

Carla: ¿A qué se debe esta mordida?

Yui: Pues…

Carla: ¿Quién fue el que succionó la sangre de Eva sin mi permiso?

Laito: No fui yo. He estado a tu lado todo este tiempo.

Kou: …

Azusa: …

Yui: (El aire está muy pesado debido a lo intimidante que está siendo Carla-san ahora.)

Yui: (Quién sabe qué pasará si se entera de que fue Subaru-kun quien succionó mi sangre…)

Subaru: …Fui yo, yo succioné su sangre.

Yui: (¡¿Subaru-kun se entregó por su cuenta…?!)

Carla: Así que tú. ¿Admites haber actuado sin mi permiso?

Subaru: Solo succioné la sangre de una presa. No necesito pedirte permiso para eso.

Carla: No, tienes que hacerlo. Eva es la llave para ser el rey supremo y mientras lo sea no permitiré que le hagas lo que se te antoje.

Subaru: Tsk, que fastidio…

Azusa: Actuar por nuestra cuenta conllevará a un conflicto… Y nosotros debemos llevarnos bien…

Laito: Aunque admito que no imaginé que el más desinteresado de nosotros, Subaru-kun, fuera el primero en probar a Eva.

Kou: Bueno, es cierto que al oler este dulce aroma es difícil contenerse. Pero creo que se le pasó la mano.

Carla: …Su aroma eh. Es cierto que no es el aroma de una sangre común, es especial.

Carla: La sangre de Eva…

Carla: ¿Acaso esa sangre especial estará relacionada con el rey supremo?

Yui: No lo sé, no sé nada…

Carla: Está bien si no sabes nada. Solo tendré que poner a prueba todas mis hipótesis.

Carla: Por ejemplo, puedo succionar tu sangre para comprobarlo.

Yui: ¡¿Vas a beberla…?! ¡P-por favor detente!

Carla: No te rebeles. No importa cuánto intentes resistirte, no puedes oponerte a mí. Aah… Nn…

Yui: …Uh…

Yui: (Duele… ¡Me inmovilizó y clavó sus cuellos en mi piel…!)

Yui: Duele… detente…

Subaru: Espera Carla.

Yui: (¿Eh? ¿Subaru-kun…?)

¿Intenta ayudarme? ♙

¿Lo hace porque soy su presa? ♟

Intenta ayudarme:

Yui: (¿Acaso intenta ayudarme?)

Subaru: ¿Te parece bien esto? Ella parece estar sufriendo.

Subaru: Puede que no puedas convertirte en rey supremo si Eva te odia.

Yui: (Actualmente los recuerdos de Subaru-kun han sido modificados, así que no sé si serán sus verdaderas intenciones.)

Yui: (Pero está intentando que Carla-san me suelte, ¿no…?)

Yui: (¿Acaso incluso con los recuerdos modificados los sentimientos que siente por mí, por su novia, siguen existiendo…?)

¿Lo hace porque soy su presa?:

Yui: (¿Intenta detener a Carla-san?)

Yui: (Pero imagino que lo hace porque me considera su presa, ¿no?)

Subaru: Deja de mostrarnos esto, es molesto. Si vas a succionar su sangre, entonces hazlo en donde no podamos verte.)

Yui: (Le molestó tener que ver como alguien succionaba mi sangre.)

Yui: (¿Puedo creer que es porque todavía siente algo por mí?)

Fin de las opciones

Carla: …Kgh.

Carla: ¿Qué pasa con esta sangre? Es asquerosa.

Yui: ¿Eh…?

Carla: Subaru, me sorprende que hayas querido beber esta sangre.

Subaru: ¿Ah? ¿Tan mal sabe?

Carla: Sí, es horrible. ¿La sangre de Eva es tan asquerosa? Estoy decepcionado.

Yui: (Claro, como Carla-san es un fundador mi sangre sin purificar le resulta asquerosa.)

Kou: Hm, así que sabe mal. Cada vez tenemos menos pistas sobre cómo conseguir que seas rey supremo.

Carla: …No, todo lo contrario.

Laito: ¿Lo contrario?

Carla: Lo asquerosa que es esta sangre ha de ser prueba de que Eva todavía no ha madurado.

Carla: Y es probable que cuando su sangre madure se abra el camino para convertirse en rey supremo…

Yui: (¿Eh? ¿Será así…?)

Laito: ¿Entonces hay que hacer madurar su sangre? ¿Entonces qué tal si partimos liberando a Eva?

Carla: ¿Por qué?

Laito: Si quieres que su sangre se vuelva deliciosa, entonces no puedes mantenerla encerrada en el calabozo.

Laito: Creo que el estrés afecta negativamente al cuerpo de las mujeres.

Laito: Tenemos varias habitaciones disponibles, así que podríamos tratarla con más mimo.

Carla: …Entiendo. Además, necesitamos la ayuda de Eva para poder convertirme en el rey supremo.

Carla: No conseguiremos progreso si solo la mantenemos encerrada bajo la vigilancia de Subaru.

Kou: Hm. ¿En resumen te convertirás en rey supremo si la sangre de Eva se vuelve deliciosa?

Azusa: ¿Se volverá deliciosa cuando madure…?

Subaru: …Pues a mí su sangre no me pareció tan asquerosa como dices.

Laito: ¿No será que tus papilas gustativas están muertas?

Subaru: ¡¿Ah?! ¡Claro que no!

Kou: Entonces nosotros también probaremos la sangre de Eva, así sabremos quien tiene razón.

Laito: Además, puede que suceda algo si todos la bebemos.

Azusa: Si eso ayuda a que la sangre de Eva mejore… yo también ayudaré…

Yui: (Esto va por mal camino. A este paso…)

Carla: …Entendido.

Carla: No conseguimos una pista concreta.

Carla: Si esto me permite alcanzar el puesto de rey supremo, entonces les doy permiso de succionar su sangre.

Yui: ¡No! ¡No puedes decidir eso…!

Carla: Es posible que la sangre de Eva presente algún cambio al succionarla.

Laito: Ya veo, entonces sí podemos succionarla. El aroma es tan denso que se me ha hecho irresistible.

Kou: Que generoso eres, Carla-kun.

Azusa: Que bien Eva… Estoy seguro de que tu sangre se volverá deliciosa…

Subaru: …

Yui: No puede ser…

Yui: Espere un momento Carla-san. Yo no soy la Eva de la que todos ustedes hablan…

Carla: Silencio. No te pedí tu opinión.

Yui: ¡¿…?!

Carla: Sin embargo, tal y como dijimos antes, a partir de ahora te trataremos con hospitalidad.

Carla: Ustedes también sean cuidadosos con Eva, que ni se les ocurra mancillar su sangre.

Kou: Sí.

Laito: Entendido. Cumpliré con esa regla.

Azusa: Sí… Te obedeceré…

Subaru: …Tsk…

Carla: Eva, no necesitas volver a la celda. Te daré una de las habitaciones que están libres.

Carla: A partir de hoy puedes vivir allí. Estoy seguro de que te resultará placentera.

Yui: Carla-san…

Carla: Subaru, guía a Eva hasta una de las habitaciones.

Subaru: Sí.

Subaru: Oye, sígueme.

Yui: …

Yui: (Me alegro de que me dejaran salir del calabozo, pero no puedo sentirme realmente feliz.)

Yui: (Ahora todos van a succionar mi sangre solo para ver si eso ayuda a acercarse al puesto de rey demonio…)

Yui: Disculpa Subaru-kun… ¿De verdad no me recuerdas?

Subaru: Que persistente eres. Ya te dije que no te conozco.

Yui: Pero… ¿No te molesta que todos vayan a succionar mi sangre?

Yui: A mí no me gusta. No quiero que nadie más que tú la beba.

Yui: ¿No te desagrada ni un poco? Porque si es así, te aseguro que esos son tus verdaderos sentimientos…

*golpe*

Subaru: ¡Cállate!

Yui: ¡Ah…!

Subaru: Deja de decir lo que se te antoja. ¿No entiendes cuando te digo que estás siendo insistente?

Subaru: ¿No entenderás a menos que te golpee?

Subaru: En tal caso podría succionar toda tu sangre aquí y ahora.

Yui: (¡Me está susurrando…!)

Subaru: Si lo hago incluso alguien tan ruidosa como tú se callaría y no tendría que escuchar a Carla parlotear.

Yui: …

Subaru ¿Qué pasa? ¿Estás tan asustada que no puedes ni hablar?

Yui: …No lo harías. Sé que no lo harías, Subaru-kun.

Subaru: ¿Ah?

Yui: Te conozco. Sé que puedes decir las cosas más crueles que se te ocurran, pero al final eres el más amable de todos.

Yui: Por eso sé que jamás me harías algo horrible.

Subaru: ¿Qué tonterías estás diciendo…?

Yui: (¡No son tonterías! ¡Por favor recuerda a tu verdadero yo…!)

Yui: …

Subaru: …Maldita sea.

Subaru: Escucha, tú eres Eva. Nada más y nada menos.

Yui: (Subaru-kun…)

Yui: (No soy Eva. Y no sé nada sobre el rey supremo.)

Yui: (Me pregunto si estos días en los que todos pelean entre sí sin razón continuarán…)

Yui: (Incluso si intento pedir ayuda, parece que nadie aquí podrá dármela.)

Yui: (Hasta Subaru-kun, la persona en la que más confío, ni siquiera me ve ahora.)

Yui: (Subaru-kun, ¿de verdad has olvidado a tus verdaderos hermanos y a tu novia…?)

[Capítulo 3]

[Masterpost]

[citizenscreen]

Howard Da Silva and Eve Arden in Irving Reis’ THREE HUSBANDS (1950)

Howard Da Silva and Eve Arden in Irving Reis’ THREE HUSBANDS (1950)

[tiraviarp]

Where There is Love, There is Pain

(WARNING: this story contains implications of past character death and gender dysphoria.)

It was halfway through the annual Valentione’s Day celebrations, and Arden was in a mood.

Not any of his usual moods, anyway, the kind that would make him scramble for his ideas list and find something to sate his mind. Not a mood where he felt on the verge of exploding, or at least approaching it, and preparing himself for the fallout that would inevitably ensue.

No, it was a particular mood, one that he hadn’t felt since June of the previous year.

It was Valentione’s Day. An inescapable tidal wave of red hearts, lovey-dovey couples, and romantic marriage proposals happening in front of aetherytes for all to see.

He was here, in Gridania, at the heart of the celebrations, strapped to the side of a veritable child to promote the event, because he sucked at money management and he was promised a nice sum to be warm and excited to random people on the street.

Why did he even come here in the first place? He knew what celebration was going on at the amphitheater, yet in this mood of his, his feet took him here anyway.

And it really, really was not helping him at all.

“Valentione’s Day celebrations are being held at Mih Khetto’s Amphitheatre! There will be costumes and merrymaking and a special congregation wherein participants profess their love! Please join us if you have the time.”

The little Elezen girl, Emilie, at his side was a chatterbox once he’d shown her how to hawk something confidently. Why was he like this? Why was he seen as a good person to do this kind of job? Just because he spoke loud and brashly and was easy to grin, didn’t mean he had passion.

And certainly not passion for this. He was just here for a paycheck. As soon as the gil was in his hands, he was ready to teleport back to his sad little cottage on the edge of the cliff and deal with all these squirming, writhing feelings of frustration (and sadness?) that were threatening to burst out of his chest.

“There’s no shortage of Valentione’s gifts to choose from at the markets. By all accounts, the most popular chocolate is from the Bismarck.”

Because why wouldn’t those feelings take a break for the season? They were always there, fluctuating in strength day by day, and they just had to notice the decorations and clamour all around. Hiroc was never far from his mind, and likely never wouldn’t be.

Would Hiroc have liked chocolate? He didn’t know. He liked savory things, with lots of spices, but that was hard to come by. Maybe chocolate would’ve been too sweet for his diet of hardtack and soldierly rations. Why was Arden, of the two of them, gifted the blessing to even have the chance to know what chocolate tasted like?

And could his mind please give him a break from thinking about him this time of year?

“Are you planning to give a special someone a gift, too? Assuming you have the skills, they say nothing conveys your feelings quite like chocolate you made yourself. And if you’re thinking flowers, a red Azeyma rose never fails to please!”

Apparently not for as long as he stayed in this suffocatingly sweet place, on this job he shouldn’t have taken.

The hilarious thing about how his mind turned over and over the thought was that who was to say what they’d had was love? It wasn’t, at least not to Arden. One lonely rainy night, he’d opened up his tomestone and searched for what is love. Besides the great music that’d turned up (he’d found himself humming along with ‘baby don’t hurt me’ for a few days after that, thinking of all the people like Hrudolf that he’d - well, he didn’t need to think of that, either, and open that can of worms), he’d read through the numerous sites that came up to help poor saps figure out if they were in love or not.

Do you feel charged and euphoric around them? Check.

Do you feel like you can’t wait to see them again? Check.

Do you always make time for them? Check.

Do you idealize them? Check.

Do you mind making sacrifices for them? Check of all checks.

Yet, deep down, he knew he didn’t love Hiroc. Even if all the words were right. Love implied something…else that he didn’t know, and Hiroc and him weren’t that.

“Um…are you okay?”

Love, at least, implied that there’d be a wholehearted attempt at making chocolates and getting special roses. He’d tried, yet everything he cooked comes out as inedible cinders and burnt pans, and all of his Azeyma roses turn out black and dry, never getting the chance to bloom. If he even had the mind to make chocolates to set out at Hiroc’s grave, or gave enough care and attention to grow even a single flower right for someone, maybe that would be considered something, but he never ever had thoughts like that, so that meant -

“Arden…?”

Arden snapped out of his rumination, grunting a single “Aye” and refusing to look down at Emilie. “Let’s get this job done.”

He could practically feel the girl’s nerves return, and all that was doing was rattling around the already-jumbled thoughts in his head. Good Emperor grant him strength and resolve, he was going to have to convince her now that he wasn’t some loveless lunatic stray she’d had the misfortune of picking up off the street.

Ugh.

______________________________________________________________

“A very good day to you, miss! Do you not simply adore this sweet season of ardor and affection?”

Arden recognized that he was a horrible liar. But in place of that, he was a terrific performer, and he was putting on an award-worthy showing of an excitable Valentione’s emissary.

“It only comes around once a year, aye, but it’s such a wonderful time. When else can ya let loose the flames of passion in front of a crowd and not get gaoled fer - ow!”

Emilie’s surprisingly sharp elbow jabbed him in the side, her happy smile dropping into a disgruntled scowl for a moment. “Ignore him,” she said, picking back up her expression for the woman in front of htem. “He’s new to being an emissary assistant, and can get a little lost in the fun himself!”

“Hey, I was doin’ great,” he hiss-whispered, just as the woman laughed, “It’s quite alright! It’s great to see young ones like yourselves having a good time. Now, tell me, are you here about the Valentione’s celebrations?”

“Indeed we are!” Emilie brightened, the chance of reading from the script seeming to smooth over her annoyances. “Over at Mih Khetto’s Amphitheatre, we are hosting a delightful event with gorgeous costumes to try on and an opportunity to speak of love to your heart’s content!”

The thoughts that threatened to rampage all around his mind again, he shoved away into the farthest recesses of his mind as he waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Be a brat, be an annoyance, do whatever it takes to keep his mind in the now - with any luck, the woman would be offended and threaten him, and he’d be able to preoccupy himself with trying to de-escalate her before she called the Wood Wailers on him.

Unfortunately, the woman was a sprightly one, only waving him off and snickering. “Well now, what passionate, dashing, and daring emissaries you are! Thank you for the invitation - and good luck with the festivities!” And then she wandered off, leaving just the two of them.

Where Emilie previously was dragging him about too and fro, a little stammer in her voice as she announced their next target, she was now still and staring off into the distance.

Maybe all of this was done, and she was going to announce that they were done, and Arden could take his pay and leave. If that were the case, maybe he’d actually start believing in miracles and gods watching over people.

Instead, all he got was disappointment. “...Dashing?” she murmured under her breath, sighing long.

“What’s the matter?” he drawled out. “We’ve hawked t’ everyone all around. Ye’ve earned the compliment.”

Emilie turned to him, startled. Did she think that he couldn’t hear her? “I…I know it was said in kindness, but I just…” She shook her head. “No. This is no time to complain - not when Astrid’s trying so hard to do her sister proud.”

He raised a brow. Did she not like it?

“She was hesitant about the dress - said that such attire doesn’t become her - but she donned it anyway in order to be like Lisette. And she positively shines in it, don’t you think?” The girl smiled almost wistfully, picking at the cuffs of her tuxedo jacket. “It was to help her shine even brighter that I decided to wear this suit. I believed it would serve to provide contrast when we’re side by side onstage.”

Ah. He had an idea of where this was going. Something unpleasant prickled at the back of his mind, but he shoved it away.

“But this - this simply isn’t me. I’ve always preferred to look ladylike. Adorable. And being called ‘handsome’ and ‘dashing’ reminds me of how far from myself I am right now. I need to persevere, I know this. It isn’t the time to be selfish. And yet -”

Ah, there is was. Of all the times for dysphoria to rear its ugly head, it had to be now, too? Not only a big festival dedicated to love, but now gender presentation was a thing he had to deal with.

This was the worst holiday. And the worst part was that he couldn’t just leave her like this, as much as he wanted to leave and deal with his mind suddenly remembering oh yeah, you have a problem with that too!

“Yer allowed t’ wear whatever ya want, y’know? If it feels better t’ wear a dress, wear it. Hells, go swap with what’s-her-face - I’d bet she’d be thankful.”

Emilie blinked slowly, staring up at him. “You…think so? But what about our roles? It’s always been a ladylike lead, and a gentlemanly assistant. Lisette created Valentione’s in the image of herself and her partner.”

“People aren’t gonna get excited about a holiday if the leads are sufferin’,” Arden snorted. Would logic appeal to her? “Just go and offer t’ swap. I know I’d be excited t’ swap on my bad days.”

“...you too?”

Shite. That is not what he wanted her to say. He knew he was a master of digging himself into holes on purpose, but this was not the time to enjoy climbing out of it. The only way this could be worse is if he saw his reflection in a pond on the way out and see himself looking like this, instead of what he really looked like in the past and in his mind’s eye, and, ah hells, now he was intimately aware of the fact that he wasn’t feminine enough for his tastes switching at just that moment.

If only she could just go home and change into something that would feel right and get him the right type of attention. People would just see him as some stray, feral guy right now, and people like Emilie would see him as some stray, feral guy that preferred feminine to masculine, and neither would be right in this moment because nothing could ever settle down in his brain, could it? Always hungry for ideas and stimulation, always thinking about Hiroc and what could’ve been, always jumping around between different presentation styles as if it had to matter. It didn’t have to matter, if only his body actually performed right and did what he wanted it to do. It didn’t have to betray him, now did it? And it didn’t have to betray him in such a simple, way, no - it had to be extra, just like he himself.

He often wondered if this was his ultimate punishment. Never knowing what to expect and never feeling comfortable, always looking at the past for the comfort he’d never have again. It popped up in all sorts of unexpected ways - first Hiroc and this stupid festival filled with red hearts and people feeling passionate about each other, now being reminded by a tiny Elezen girl of what he lost and what she still could have, if only she would just take it.

“Yeah,” is all he said in a clipped tone, crossing his arms. “I ain’t talkin’ about it with ya, though. Go talk it out with her. I’m goin’ fer a walk.”

Without waiting for Emilie to reply, he turned on his heel and stalked away. He needed to vent some steam, quickly, before he boiled over.

______________________________________________________________

When Arden returned to Mih Khetto Amphitheatre a bell later, sweaty and undignified with thunder still tingling his fingertips, he saw that something had changed.

Obviously, the two Elezen girls had swapped clothing. At least, he thought so - even if he couldn’t remember which was which, they both looked happier, which he doubted would be the case if Emilie didn’t speak up. But there was also a different vibe around the stage, an expectant one.

Of course, the expectant vibe was pointed directly at him. He saw it in the ways both girls locked eyes before waving him over. Well, the good thing is that he’d be out of here soon, whether they liked it or not.

“I’m here fer my pay,” he said before they could say anything first.

“Arden, you’ve returned!” said the one he thought was Emilie, now dressed in an adorable suede leather dress. “We were worried about you, you know. 

“Haw? Nah, ya don’t have t’ be worried about me. I take care of myself plenty fine.”

“Do we need to be worried for the Hearers?” the black-suited one said, eyeing his still-crackling fingers. He quickly shook them out. “I hope you didn’t disturb any of the elementals.”

Arden rolled his eyes. “Just because I’m a thaumaturge doesn’t mean I go around destroyin’ things, kid. I was just tossin’ a lightnin’ ball around.” They didn’t need to know that the ball was ready to explode at the slightest touch, and that he was flinging it around trees and beasts to keep his mind occupied.

Emilie coughed into her hand at the resulting silence, offering him a small sack. “W-Well…we’ve got your pay right here. Thank you for all your help! I wouldn’t have learned to talk like an emissary if you weren’t there. Were it not for your encouragement, Astrid and I might have continued to be miserable, trying to be someone we’re not. You helped us be true to ourselves.”

“Good, good,” he replied without much thought, reaching for the bag. It felt like a nice sum, more than he’d been promised. They’d thought he’d done a good job, then, which was fine by him; that just meant he could save more for that nice ring he’d found -

“...Actually, before you go, we’d like to propose something.”

Arden stopped his motion to pocket the bag, raising an eyebrow at the girl called Astrid. “...Ya’d better not be askin’ me t’ do more.”

“We were, in fact!”

Oh, for the love of - Would this day ever end?

“Why?”

“Because I told Astrid what you told me,” Emilie declared. The traitor. “About how you felt similar to us. You didn’t say how you felt, but your words inspired us to have a conversation. As emissaries of love, our duty is to help people embrace their hearts - but how were we to do that if we didn’t embrace our own, and didn’t love ourselves and pursue our own happiness? That is what led us to swap clothes, in the end. But do you love yourself and pursue your own happiness?”

“I can’t fit into yer tiny clothes, kid, so I don’t know what yer talkin’ about -”

Emilie continued as if he hadn’t spoken at all. “I wasn’t blind to your frustration while we worked together. First it was the festivities itself that you clenched your teeth at, especially when I asked you if you had someone special in mind. Then, you got frustrated with my nerves about asking Astrid to change, saying that you felt similar.”

“We aren’t asking you to make you madder,” Astrid placated with arms outstretched. “We’re asking because the best way to learn about and understand something is to work with it, rather than hide away from it. You’ve lost someone special to you, haven’t you? And you still struggle with feeling comfortable in your own appearance?”

He could feel all that frustrated energy he’d spent time working out building back up, writhing and seething. More than that, though, a memory was bubbling to the surface, one that he unashamedly clung to as soon as it appeared:

“Yer not gonna get any better if ya don’t try, Hiroc,” she said, towering over him lying on the ground. “Don’t ya wanna be a hero? Get up - they won’t accept ya as one unless yer good.”

Hiroc closed his eyes, heaving a slow sigh. “I want t’, aye. But we’ll have t’ hurt them. I know I signed up fer this, but…”

“They’ll learn. As long as yer gentle and let them learn, they won’t see ya like they see the Garleans. Ye’ll be the bridge between Ala Mhigo and Garlemald, and they’ll thank ya! And ye’ll  be famous!”

“We’ll be famous, Arden. I’m not taking the title all for myself.” Hiroc’s eyes snapped open, and as he went to sit up, she backed up. “If I’m going to be a hero, ye’ll be right up there with me.”

“Aye, aye. Fine.” Though she rolled her eyes, she was grinning. “I’ll be the sidekick. Happy?”

And Hiroc smiled right back at her. “More than ye’d ever know.”

“Valentione’s isn’t all about being a festival of romantic love. While it can be, and it can be very passionate and bold, it’s about all forms of love. Romantic, platonic, and anywhere in-between, a love for life or something you’re passionate about…and as we’ve just remembered, a love for yourself. By working our festival and talking with our guests, we think that you could benefit.”

Which of the girls was speaking? He couldn’t tell. As he shook off the memory, his vision was a little blurred. All of that pent-up energy was suddenly gone, leaving him feeling drained.

“Not to mention, you wouldn’t go empty-handed! You’d earn a nice sum each day, plus have access to our wardrobe. You could wear whatever style you’d feel comfortable in, and switch whenever you want. You’d have time to explore that part of yourself, too, in a comfortable environment. You already know you aren’t the only one who’s felt that way!”

It was all ridiculous. A week-long event filled with red hearts and passionate professions of love everywhere was affecting him more than an entire month and a flag he’d hidden under the broken couch at his cottage, and certainly more than the technical research he’d done about himself.

Why? Why was it this way? 

“O-Of course, we wouldn’t want to pressure you into making a decision now,” said the one in the dress. Emilie. Right. “You’re welcome to think it over, or even decline outright. We won’t think less of you.”

Arden sighed long and heavy. “...Gimmie time t’ think.”

______________________________________________________________

The next day, as the sun was just beginning to rise over the Shroud treetops, Arden returned with bitten-up lips and a sobering look. Astrid and Emilie watched as he made his way to the stage.

Well. Here goes.

“...Gimmie the heart stencil”.

[writingkitten]

Wait!

Now that I mention that about Robert's blurb. What are your HC about the songs the guys would play on their weddings?

-🐾

THIS SHIT RIGHT HERE IS AMAZING I THRIVE ON MUSIC ASKS!!! Thank you, 🐾!!! Also things aren’t necessarily going to line up timeline wise especially for characters from older eras (this is the “first dance” song, but I can do a “walking down the aisle” one if someone requests it)

Ricky: I Walked The Line (Johnny Cash cover) by Halsey

Robert: Tiny Dancer by Elton John (for obvious reasons)

Harold: Unchained Melody by The Righteous Brothers

Otto: The Scientist by Coldplay

Doc Ock: Infinity by Jaymes Young

Harding: Like Real People Do by Hozier

Edelweiss: Yellow Submarine by The Beatles

Chandler: All or Nothing by Theory of a Deadman

Big Boss: Hurt (cover) by Johnny Cash

Andres: Do It For Me by Rosenfeld

Boris: Heart Like Yours by Willamette Stone

Dunlop: Make It To Me by Sam Smith

Arden: Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello

Jim: Stole You Away by Benjamin Francis Leftwich

Jimmy: I’m In Love With You by The 1975

Armand: Is There Something In The Movie by Samia

Manuel: Hallelujah (cover) by Jeff Buckley

Maxim: Finally // beautiful stranger by Halsey

Hank: As the World Caves In by Matt Maltese

Frank: Say Goodbye by Skillet

Oswald: Young And Beautiful by Lana Del Rey

Dick: Chocolate — Acoustic Version by The 1975

[ind1exo]

[ How I Pronounce WH Characters' Names ]

Elias Goldstein: (2017) El-li-yahs Gold-steen; (Now) El-li-yis Gold-steen

Yukiya Reizen: (2017) Yu-kai-yah Rey-zin; (Now) Yu-key-ya Rey-zin

Luca Orlem: Lu-ka Or-lem

Klaus Goldstein: Claus Gold-steen

Randy March: Ran-dee March

Azusa Kuze: Uh-zu-sa Ku-zay

Joel Crawford: (2017) Johl Crawford; (Now) Jo-el Crawford

Vincent Knight: Vincent Night

Leon: Leon

Cerim Leiado: Ser-im Lay-ah-do

Guy Brighton: Guy Brai-tin

Glenn Qing: Glenn King

Leslie Roseblade: Les-lee Rose-blade

Sigurd Curtis: Sih-gurd Kur-tis

Mel Glover: Mehl Glow-ver

Zeus Brundle: Zeus Brun-dul

Hiro Tachibana: He-ro Tah-chi-ba-na

Alfonse Goldstein: Al-fonse Gold-steen

Caesar Raphael: See-zar Ra-fai-el

Lucious Duller: (2018) Luh-cious Dul-ler; (Months ago) Lu-see-is Dul-ler; (Now) Lu-cious Dul-ler I've taken years of vacations off the game twice so that's why the timeline is drastic

Hugo Peers: Hue-go Peers

Hisoka Hagakure: He-so-ka Ha-ga-ku-rae

Willem V. Rembrandt: Will-em V. Rem-brant

Nox Noir: Nohx No-ar

Rex Blanc: Rehx Blahnk

Gray: Gray

Ted: Tehd

Lars Lagrene: Lars Lah-gren

Clive Lagrene: Clive Lah-gren

Florin Arden: Floor-in Ar-den

Albert Auburne: Ahl-bert Au-burn

Light Fildora: Light Fill-dora

Felix: Feel-lix

Viggo: Vih-go

Vain: Vain

Zett: Zeht

Augustus Cole: Au-gist-us Kole

Scarlett Quinn: Skar-let Quin

Randolph: Randolph

Conrad Schuyler: Cohn-rad Sk-huy-ler (It's hard to tell how his last name is actually pronounced...)

Loran Merkulova: Low-ran Mer-ku-lova

Thanatos: Than-na-tohs

Lacan: Lah-kan

Carbuncle: Car-bun-kle

Eress: Air-ess

Ronnie: Rah-nee

Chica: Chi-ka

Mischa: Mees-cha (Surprisingly, since my accent is supposed to make me say Mihs-cha like mischievous)

Chocolate Cake (Coco): I just call him Coco because saying the whole name is a pain. Luca reference

Nidhogg: Nihd-hog

Shu: Shoo

[jonismitchell]

inspired by jo thank you

[weeklydoseoffeelgoodtunes]

July 13, 2024 (207)

Top 30

1. Chappell Roan- Good Luck, Babe

2. Hozier- Too Sweet

3. Sabrina Carpenter- Espresso

4. almost monday- can’t slow down

5. Washed Out- The Hardest Part

6. Deorro- Me Caes Muy Bien

7. Billie Eilish- LUNCH

8. Toro y Moi- Tuesday

9. Artemas- i like the way you kiss me

10. Quinn XCII- Close Calls

11. Cage the Elephant- Rainbow

12. SOFI TUKKER- Spiral

13. Kenia OS- Tortura

14. Danny Ocean- Si no no

15. Fred again.., Anderson .Paak, CHIKA- places to be

16. Lost Frequencies & David Kushner- In My Bones

17. Billie Eilish- BIRDS OF A FEATHER

18. bludnymph- Deserve Each Other

19. Yung Gravy- Lone Ranger

20. Sigala, Trevor Daniel, 24kGoldn- It’s a Feeling

21. Vintage Culture & NoMBe- Pleasure Chasers

22. Barns Courtney- National Treasure

23. Washed Out- Wait On You

24. Omar Apollo- Spite

25. Mau y Ricky- Pasado Mañana

26. Dillon Francis, Galantis, Arden Jones- Pretty Low

27. Chappell Roan- HOT TO GO! **DEBUT**

28. Suki Waterhouse- Supersad **DEBUT**

29. AWOLNATION- Panoramic View

30. Wallows- Calling After Me **DEBUT**

Close Calls

1. Quavo & Lana Del Rey- Tough

2. Kylie Minogue, Bebe Rexha, Tove Lo- My Oh My

3. Kelly Lee Owens- Love You Got

4. Sabrina Carpenter- Feather

5. Artemas- dirty little secret