#binary bonding

[askvectorprime]

Dear Vector Prime, When the Last Autobot turned Hi-Q into Optimus Prime, what happened to Hi-Q's body? Did his consciousness cease to exist? Were his own memories and personality overridden by that of Prime's? Does his original, organic Nebulan body still exist, entombed within Optimus' body?

Dear Q Querier,

That’s a very good question. When the Nebulan bio-engineer Doctor Arcana conceived of the binary bonding process, it was with a clear objective in mind: to grant Nebulan pilots fine motor control over Cybertronian bodies, connecting their nervous systems to the circuitry either remotely via radio or through a physical link at the neck. The original minds of the Autobots would themselves remain in radio contact with their human successors, providing invaluable cultural and strategic insight.

In practice, however, Arcana was no neuroscientist—and nobody involved in the project was prepared for the shift in qualia that would accompany the combination. The unique superposition of their brainwaves led to strange patterns of interference, their thoughts perfectly entangled with one another. Organic minds have much greater elasticity than our central processors, and show remarkable adaptability when converting our digital sensory input to analog sensations—so these gestalt beings would usually come to self-identify by their Cybertronian name. Assimilation failure, where the binary bond would fail to reconcile the two individuals within the body, is rare, but not unheard of: amongst the Autobots, Chromedome and Stylor would struggle most to overcome their differences, and have had the operation reversed post-war.

As an extension of Primus, the Last Autobot was blessed with a glimpse of his plan—and though he was initially surprised by the alien form the Chosen One had taken, it was the work of moments to perfect the binary bond between them, melding spark and soul into a singular life, embodied as a techno-organic fusion. The human body which had once belonged to Hi-Q was suffused with Nucleon, and seated there, intact, behind the windows in Prime’s chest. This was something of a vestigial organ, for in truth, the combination went much deeper; the two were bonded at a molecular level, Hi-Q’s DNA replicated throughout Prime’s genetic code. However, as a side-effect of the body’s enshrinement, Optimus Prime was unable to transform.

Perhaps Primus had intended this to be a sign of his will: that the war would end, the Cybertronian race no longer needing to change to meet its needs. Alas, were this the case, the universe had darker designs still. As battle called, Prime underwent surgery to remove the physical remnant of Hi-Q, restoring access to his alt-mode at the cost of the preternatural energy he possessed. At the request of Hi-Q’s relatives, an exemption was made to allow a number of Cybertronians passage to Nebulos, so that a funeral could be held. At the wake, Prime gave a short eulogy, in which he insisted that Hi-Q was not in fact dead, which gravely upset many of the mourners. The funeral marked the last time Prime would visit the planet.

Optimus Prime and Hi-Q were both great leaders who shared similar values of peace and freedom. In the wake of their merging, these feelings were only amplified, leaving their convictions stronger than ever before. However, both had struggled in the past to share their inner thoughts with others, preferring to bear their burdens alone. If Prime remembers being Hi-Q, or if he still thinks of himself as Hi-Q from time to time… he’s never said. However, it brings me some comfort to imagine that the self-doubt which troubled them both would have interfered destructively with their enormous mutual respect—leaving a self-acceptance that neither had independently known.

[stil-lindigo]

call that a gender fender bender

prints

[sophianightdreamer]

Things that happened in the Official Transformers RPG's lore.

So, I've got my hands on all three rulebooks of the official TF RPG. And also the G. I. Joe RPG, but that's irrelevant right now. My batch did not include the crossover rulebook, sadly.

Therefore, notes on the lore and other details in the "basic" canon, because TFWiki did not go into the details, that grew into this list of odd events mentioned.

First thing first, the general continuity is very close to Cyberverse or G1 Fanon, having the basic outline of G1 cartoon, but with details and chunks of backstory pulled from elsewhere - Optimus is a former archivist/data clerk, Bumblebee is a sportscar, et cetera.

To note, there's a somewhat short introductory "who-is-who" list and basic character sheets with profiles both.

Well, I've already got my whiplash, so it's your turn now.

There's something very funky going on with Devastator. Prowl's introduction blurb directly states that something Combiner Wars-esque/Prowlstator has happened, and reads as implying that Autobots hijacked Devastator. By all accounts, Scrapper is alive, making it a possible genuine canonical instance of Prowlastator with Scrapper alive, but the Constructions as whole are placed with the Decepticons. But, Tergamax mentions that among people that were at any moment replacement parts of Devastator there were five Autobots, Prowl included. What happened?

The "who is who" listing for Autobots includes declarations of jobs/roles/traits. Some of these are notable: 1) Ironhide is a chemist 2) Swerve is in Public Relations 3) Rung is Psy-Ops 4) Perceptor is specifically an engineer 5) Bumblebee is noted as "Hero of the People". Must be popular.

Speaking of roles, monochromatic SIC of the day is Jazz, who is also a strategist now.

All of the people in the introductory list are implied to be the Ark crew, and there are problems regarding space travel for Autobots right now. This means that Anode, Lug, those two kids from IDW2, Elita's team and Glyph are on the crew.

Rattrap is a Decepticon.

Optimus Prime has a thick Iaconian accent in Cybertronian. It turns "Teletraan" into "Teletron".

Character sheets include a list of languages that character speaks. Some of these past the standart English+Cybertronian are completely random. Optimus Prime speaks Dutch. Korean is surprisingly popular. In what could be a nice callback, Slingshot has Arabic. The only two people who know the language of newly-introduced alien species of Catharsians are Ratchet and Wildrider. But the crown is taken by First Aid, who has both ASL and Quileute. Yes, the basically extint language of a small tribe warring legally with Stephanie Meyer.

Speaking of languages, both Megatron and Shockwave are noted passable polyglots, and both lack the Universal Translator perk Soundwave, Blaster and Perceptor have. But while Megatron has vague but limited "languages from across Decepticon territory", Shockwave has "all common languages", implying he knows at least a bit of almost everything manually.

Tracks is a triple changer, apparently.

Decepticons' thing is mass-producing sparkless drone clones of their own members.

There's a general threat level system with lists included, where 0 is a random human civilian, 24 is Optimus and Megatron, and 25 is Omega Supreme and Scorponok. Chosen numbers for some characters are thought-provoking. Jazz is 14. Ratchet is 15. First Aid is 9. Wildrider is 6. Ironhide and Starscream are tied with 17. Lord Zarak by himself is 10.

Transformers The Movie sort-of happened, with no apparent notable casualties except for Megatron, who got Galvatroned, but there is a chance that Cyclonus, while a minion of Unicron, predates those events. He is also in an odd position of formally being a part of Decepticons and not the followers of Unicron, who are technically a separate faction.

Scorponok and Deathsaurus are member of Decepticon High Command/Conclave along with Shockwave and Soundwave. Nobody trusts Starscream, so he is not there, but he has the air force.

Mindwipe is, once again, a sorcerer.

Predacons, the combiner team, somehow adopted a sharkticon.

The evil plan du jour of, apparently, pre-Unicron era is converting Earth into the second Cybertron via several colony sites.

[star-stages]

I made an Unbreakable Bond AU 😄🌌✨️

Binary-Star System Sonic & Tails

Sonic is based on a Blue Main Sequence Star

Tails is based on a Red Giant

When they're in this form they can't be separated, and they have ultimate destructive power!

Probably my personal favorite AU I've made yet 🌌 I'm still working on a story for it, but for right now I have their designs ✨️

[pluralsword]

tysm again!! we love this piece so much. It helped our eldest headmate (the one who came with our human body) with her dysphoria over said body a lot, we really love Danielle Witwicky & Arcee's binary bonding writing as people who read the Autosignet Cycle may know, where we also write both of them as trans hence above. Arcee's frame draws on her IDW1, IDW2, and Transformers vs. Terminator iterations, which are all frame designs we and she like a lot. <3

The colors of Danielle's exosuit were a nod to PrimeRadiant's writing in the fic Showdown at Sherman Dam of Sunbow Danielle as a teenager sometimes 'feeling like a teenage guy, and sometimes giant and pink' and the notion that she wanted to be part of the awesomeness of her binary bond partner. Reading the story and talking with Radiant about Arcee and Daniel gave us the bravery to write the two ourselves. The armor has also got some cyan on there because yknow~ also in our writing the head partners undergo cyborgification and can curl up to fit inside of the larger person's head

We do have an ask blog in the works indeed, we haven't done the intro post yet, but you can find it at askarcanamagnus ! just been very busy, will try to finish the intro post this weekend, and if you asks please send them!!! Very much an asking multiversal mortal traveler Arcee in gestalt with other Arcees kind of blog

Commission for @pluralsword !

It was an absolute delight to draw their version of Danielle and Arcee! Check out their RP blog!

I still have commissions open! My patreon, Ko-fi if you are interested in seeing how this art work was made, or want a high res version of this drawing!

[g4rchomp]

my colleague saw my calico critter and she started to tear up so I was like well you had a tough day and you clearly love it so keep it! I gifted it to her and she full on cried so anyways I got myself another mistery bag and came home with this cutie

[pien-art]

happy pride to binder moiraine my most beloved <3 lan and moiraine exploring gender together <3 rj i am ignoring your extreme binaries xoxo

(click image for optimal quality!)

[kittydoremi]

Drew Binary Star System Sonic from @star-stages's Unbreakable Bond Au ✨💙 He's a Blue Main Sequence Star! 😄

[bunnybonesstudio]

Cobra Kai Fact #9241

Tory and Demetri have tea together every Thursday after training at the LaRusso’s house. They don’t talk. They just read together and drink herbal tea in silence.

No one can figure out why exactly and, at this point, everyone is a little too scared to ask.

[n0t-evenhere]

It’s clear I’ve been on a roll for BSH. I have so,etching I’ve been considering. I’m deciding to let the people choose.

Option one, I’ve been thinking, I love Ray, I really do, amazing, BUT, what if we were on the opposite end. He is very obviously no stranger to violence. What if, there is no cat to show that you were human and still a good human. What if you were just a criminal, needing to stopped? What if, you were made to be an example of why criminals need to twice before committing a crime? A horror story about a heist group. This could be and x reader or just like a character I make up. Just make no mistake, it wouldn’t be romantic. It’s a horror story. 😂

Second thing I’ve considered doing is making audios, toying eleven labs to make audios from the game. Like making his lines into voice lines cause the creator said that Frank from song worry darling is Rays voice. It was like aha moment. Idk, I’ve been tempted but I feel unsure. “So…. You must choose now Mr. Bond.”

(I just like this picture)

[ahalliance]

sometimes i think about how the person etoiles got the gayest with on the server was not actually a person but a piece of floating binary code

[1000punks]

bonding. ¹⁶//rising MASTERLIST.

pairing: spawn!Astarion x named!Tav (non-binary OC)

warnings: 18+. nsft. mdni. PWP (plot without porn).

word count: 4,090

summary: Festé, an unassuming tiefling ranger, has convinced Astarion to not go through with the Rite of Profane Ascension. He continues life as a vampire spawn and begins to face all of the challenges it offers. The two begin a relationship with one another; and explore mutual healing through shared kinks, domesticity, and a new quest.

Together, the two are slowly figuring out what it means to want to live.

named!Tav is my non-binary tiefling ranger, Festé. i was seeing far too few fics with tiefling!Tav and i thought it was crucial, nay, critical to include them in the headcanons. i hope you all enjoy! ♡

Their sense of relief had completely dissipated by the time Gale and Shadowheart had led them both inside the perimeter and gotten them settled in front of the crackling fire. The worry, the panic had begun to set in. Festé sat with a tin bowl of stew clutched in their hands - courtesy of Gale - gazing warily at the glowing embers in the very center of the fire. Astarion bristled at their side, finally reaching out and smacking the back of his hand on their thigh. When the tiefling looked up at him, he was scowling.

"Don't," he hissed. They narrowed their eyes at him. His own widened, as if to say 'try it.' Festé cast their eyes down with a scoff, and the elf curled his hand tightly - a warning - around their thigh.

Shadowheart looked between them with a dry smile, sipping her stew. "Why don't you tell us what we missed?" she suggested.

"What a good idea. Darling, why don't you start?" Astarion turned to his imp. His voice was a touch too cheerful, that dangerous sing-song tone he tended to use when he was particularly annoyed.

"I think it would be better if you did, love," Festé replied flatly. Before the irritated expression could appear on Star's face, they added, "The goings-on of the meeting will be important for what I have to say to everyone." They turned to Gale and Shadowheart. "I'm afraid that I may have put us all in great danger, but I intend to rectify that immediately." They studied their companions' confused looks for a moment before pulling at the back of Astarion's hand. "Go ahead, Star," they murmured. Festé knew that he had seen the dagger in their memory - the one that had been eerily identical to Caeusan's - if only due to the fact that they had been ruminating on it since the unfortunate bounty hunter had waved it in front of their face. Perhaps he hadn't seen all of the times that the tiefling had knelt, of used excessive force on a target, or…

The elf's voice cut into their thoughts. "Very well," he snarled, shooting them a withering look. Festé simply raised their eyebrows at him with a subtle nod. "The short version is that Daressin has an entire army of spawn." He paused, shaking his head a bit. "Well, had." That got everyone's attention. It even shocked Festé out of their confusing, tangled thoughts. However, Gale was the one who beat them to the punch.

"Erm… 'Had'?" the wizard repeated.

"Oh yes, before her right hand had them all burnt to a crisp with a Daylight spell, that is," Astarion answered nonchalantly, checking his nails. "Oh! I forgot to mention," his voice dripped with sarcasm, quickly morphing into another snarl. "Daressin's right hand is a full vampire, not a spawn. And whoever they are, they're primed to kill. If you're asking me, I think they're like to turn on the old bat at the first opportunity that presents itself."

Shadowheart reached around the small fire, laying her hand on top of the elf's. "Why don't you start at the beginning?" she asked calmly. The cleric briefly glanced at Festé, eyes wide. "What was the meeting like?"

Astarion seemed to deflate as soon as she touched him, and his grip tightened around his imp's thigh. A frown crept over his lips, but the anger seemed to dissipate. "It was…" He blinked, and his eyebrows pinched together.

"Tense?" Festé supplied quietly, while Gale narrowed his eyes, watching Astarion closely.

"Tense is one word for it," the elf muttered. "Like I said, her right hand is a full vampire; and I assume," Astarion sighed and moved his hand to curl tightly around Festé's. "That all of the spawn in that tavern were people that they stole and converted, themself."

"Did you get any names, Astarion?" Gale inquired.

"Just the one of the least expendable spawn. The ringleader forced all of them to test the ring, and…" he pressed his lips together for a moment. "Safaen was the lucky shit who got to wear it while a cleric blasted the other seven. I doubt that one will even survive once this self-important… Once they realize that the ring is missing." There was a pregnant pause while the elf reached into his pocket with his free hand and produced a small, simple-looking box. Festé watched him drop his gaze while he flicked the lid open with his thumb. It didn't take the imp any careful study to recognize the look of consternation on their husband's face; and they briefly recalled the first time that Astarion had told them about Cazador and his siblings. The abuse he suffered, and how he had assumed the others would be taking it on in his absence. Perhaps a similar guilt, a survivor's guilt, was eating at him now, too. "I got it, though," he sighed, voice more muted than before.

"You did well, love. I know that can't have been easy," Festé soothed. "I'm sure that even if we don't know the vampire's name, Jaheira or Nine-Fingers will be able to fill us all in." The two exchanged a long look, with Astarion's eyes widening, and his face seeming to soften overall.

"I suppose," was all he offered in return, tossing the box to Gale for inspection. The wizard looked over the ring, sliding the tip of his finger over the band and the center stone - a large topaz that seemed to crackle with strands of the Weave - humming as he worked.

"At first glance, it seems to be authentic," Gale mused. "I assume that you picked it up after it was tested?"

"I happened to bump into Nine-Fingers, yes," the elf hissed, arching an eyebrow in annoyance.

"Good show, then." Gale smiled, passing the ring to Shadowheart. The cleric, who had been watching Festé with a quiet intensity for the past several moments, hummed softly and gave the box back to Astarion. "I suppose you're going to be testing it out yourself at sunup?"

The elf didn't answer, but Festé could sense his bristling again. They squeezed his hand as a thought crossed their mind. A private discussion that the couple were bound to have later.

"Festé, you had something to add?" Shadowheart prompted, trying - and failing - at nonchalance. Her hand had since left Astarion's, and her arms were now crossed. The tiefling's jaw clenched. Knowing that they had not only been dishonest with their closest allies, but their husband as well, weighed heavily on them.

They sighed. Who could blame them, really, if they had assumed that a certain chapter of their life was closed, and wasn't going to come back to haunt them?

"Well… yes." The imp looked around at the other three, pursing their lips. "I'm just trying to figure out the best place to start. Shadowheart, you…" The half-elf straightened in her seat, eyebrows pressing together in concern. "You might understand where I'm coming from the best, considering your past." Her eyes narrowed at that. Festé closed their own eyes for a moment, unsure if they wanted to block out or tap into the memories of their life with the Guild, with Caeusan. "When my parents died, I abandoned Baldur's Gate, and I travelled to Amn. I was only seventeen, and I was looking for work, anything, really. Something to be a part of because my family was gone. I ended up working for a Guild for a number of years, sort of… a fringe group of the Zhentarim." Their eyes snapped open, and they took a deep breath. "There's no easy way to say it, I guess. I used to be a Banite."

The imp heard Astarion's mouth fall open, then shut quickly with a click of fangs. Slowly, they chanced focusing their eyes and looking around, first focusing on Shadowheart's face, then Gale's. Lastly, they turned their head to look up at their husband, who, to their surprise, was smiling. Festé swallowed their shock at that, turning back to the other two. The cleric had drawn one hand over her mouth, but didn't seem to be upset. The wizard, on the other hand, looked just the smallest bit disturbed.

"A Bani-" he started, but Shadowheart cut him off with a laugh.

"That's all? Festé, that's… Well, you know I can't really be judgmental towards you, or anyone for that matter, for something like cult worship. Besides, you don't seem like the type to…" She trailed off, seemingly at a loss for words. A long pause descended around the campfire circle for several moments.

"You've changed a lot, if that's true," Gale finally blurted out. Astarion was still smiling, not even opening his mouth to make a sarcastic comment. "You didn't, er…"

"Torture people? No, not directly. It's not as if I was a mindless cultist, it was more of a… circumstance of the crowd that I fell in with at the time," Festé replied calmly. "I've done things that I'm not proud of, but that's a bit tangential to my point, here." The tiefling sighed in exasperation. "The short story is that there's someone from my past that's looking for me." They glanced up at Astarion, who was now smirking and checking his nails, giving a subtle shake of his head. "The Guild that I was part of was responsible for a lot of the organized crime in Amn for the past decade or so. There was a job that I had one night, several years ago, in Candlekeep. I was tasked with stealing a very specific book from the library, and," they chuckled cynically, "…Being the talented young thief that I was, I made a lot of money from that venture."

The imp shrugged, raising their left hand to smooth over their right shoulder and clavicle. In their peripherals, they spied their husband's eyes widening, then his mouth dropping open. He had pored over Gale's journal as many times as they had, and could probably see the exact passage that Festé was alluding to in his mind's eye. Gale's scribbled note about the library records and one very specific missing tome.

"Oh, interesting," the elf purred. Not betraying anything else for the moment.

"There was a missing book that you made mention of in your journal, Gale." At the sound of his name, the wizard perked up. "The one about vampires, correct?" He nodded slowly, face screwed up in deep thought. "That's the one I stole. I have reason to believe that someone in Daressin's court, or the woman herself, paid the leader of my Guild for the job." Festé waited for another long moment, counting their own heartbeats. Then, like a wave of nausea giving way to vomit, they blurted out, "I'm sorry that I deceived you all, and made you think I was someone that I'm not."

Astarion's face fell into a scowl. "What the Hells are you talking about, darling?" he growled. The imp glanced up at him, then across the campfire at the others. Their expressions were similarly arranged. Festé was confused, suddenly; and even more so when Gale spoke up.

"Festé, my friend… you are the single kindest person that I know." The wizard said firmly. "I think the rest of us here could reasonably agree, for their own personal reasons, of course. You taught me that I am not- Nay, that none of us are the reproductions of our environments. You taught us that we were all worth more than what our supposed betters thought us to be." Shadowheart nodded sagely when he finished speaking, though she seemed to have nothing to add.

"I just can't help thinking that I've put us all in grave danger. If that bounty hunter is, in any way, in league with Daressin and her vampires, then -" Festé started, but Astarion spoke over them in exasperated tones.

"Then we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. I can promise you, however, that whatever happens, I will protect you," he snarled. There was a short pause where the tiefling and the elf exchanged eye contact, before the two began to laugh. Partially out of leftover nerves, partially due to Astarion's tone not matching the sentiment of his statement. "I mean it," he murmured into their ear when their laughter had died away, and he had slung his arm around their shoulders. "If it comes to a fight, you have me. That bounty hunter, those… detestable vampires, they can pry you from my cold, undead fingers."

"Correction," Gale cut in, slapping his knees and standing up. "You have us." The wizard walked around the edge of the fire, carefully kneeling in front of the tiefling and gathering up their hand in both of his. "What are friends for, otherwise?"

"It's not just me, though, what if someone comes after Astarion? After you two?" Festé protested weakly, shaking their head. "Especially now that we have the ring? Daressin is going to come looking for it, sooner or later." A sudden wave of calm washed over them, drenching them from horn to toenail, and their eyes flicked over to Shadowheart, who smiled dryly and tilted her head.

"I suggest you don't worry about that, at least until the morning," the cleric remarked softly, all but crushing the imp under the weight of her spell. Slowly, she also got up, looking towards the sky. "It will be sunrise in a matter of hours. Gale, we should be getting to bed, don't you agree?"

"Splendid idea, my friend, I - oof." Gale got unsteadily to his feet. "The old knees certainly abide." The wizard chuckled, straightening out his robes. Festé realized that the two of them were unsubtly trying to give Star and themself a moment alone. "The perimeter I've set up is impenetrable, more or less," he mused, folding his arms behind his back. "That is, we're all safe and hidden until morning. There is a small clearing, just over there…" he pointed with his chin to his left, "…and it might be just the perfect spot to set up a tent." Gale smiled warmly, looking between the imp and the elf. "I'll have breakfast ready before we all push off tomorrow. Goodnight, you both." He gave a deep bow, and when he moved, he revealed Shadowheart rolling her eyes playfully.

"Goodnight, you two," she echoed simply. Festé glanced up at Astarion once their backs were turned and their tent flaps were drawn shut, and sighed softly.

"Let's go set up the tent," they whispered.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · · "I know you're afraid, darling. I know that there are risks involved. But consider that this is the first time that I've gotten to live in two centuries?" Astarion paused to let out a snort. "Whatever comes, I won't live in fear now. I have you. I have life. We're together, and that means we can face anything."

They were tangled up in one another, laying on their backs in the grass and squinting up through the canopy of the tall trees to see the stars. Neither had wanted to - nor had the energy to - set up their tent, but they had both at least taken their armour off. Festé curled closer against Astarion's side, nestling themself in the crook of his elbow and throwing their arm over his chest. "I know, love. I just don't want you to resent me," they murmured softly. The tiefling tried not to let their frustration with themself show. They had wanted this moment, Astarion's moment, to be perfect. When they lifted their head, the elf had one crimson eye trained on them.

"Life isn't perfect, darling. It's just a damn sight better than it used to be." Festé was a bit surprised to see that he was still smiling. That he had been able to keep a smile through all of this.

"What do you make of my past, Star? Does it change your perspective of me?"

"Well…" Astarion's voice took on an airy quality. "Am I glad that you potentially tortured people? Not really." A stony expression briefly overtook his features. "However, I can be glad that you're just as much of a freak as the rest of us." His smile was back, and he chuckled softly. "I was beginning to worry that you were so perfect that you were untouchable."

"Nobody's perfect," the tiefling sighed. "Everything I told you about Caeusan is true. I wasn't just a thief, though. I was a black widow." The tiefling rolled to their back, pushing their forearm over their eyes. "I've killed people. Innocent people."

They felt Astarion shift beside them, and huff out a breath. "So have I," he hissed. "You've never judged me for it, even if… by all rights, you… y-you could." His hand clasped around their wrist, dragging their arm away from their face. "What makes you think that I would judge you?" The elf's face appeared in their vision when he leaned over them, further obscuring their view of the stars. Festé suddenly remembered their first night together, the one they had shared in the cemetery, and how the moon had framed his face perfectly. They watched his eyes go a bit blank when he saw the same in their mind. The elf let out a heady breath, bowing his head slightly before fixing his gaze on them once more. "There are several versions of oneself that they become over the course of their life, darling. You have to let them die in order to…"

"To move forward," Festé finished in a quiet voice. "And start living again." Before they could process what was happening, the elf's cool fingers had descended on their cheek, dabbing away some of the tears that had sprung forth.

"That's right," he whispered, moving to brush his lips against their forehead. "You taught me that. Now you ought to learn the lesson for yourself, hm? We'll get through this together. Whatever comes." He shifted to press a kiss to their lips, drawing back after a long moment. "Don't ever hide the truth from me again, though," he sighed, eyes downcast. "Good, bad, or ugly, I want everything about you."

Festé squirmed when Astarion moved to lay his head on their chest, now. The imp reached up to stroke through his curls on instinct.

"I won't, I promise. I can't now." They managed a wet chuckle. "You see nearly everything."

The two lay in silence for a while, with Astarion listening to their heartbeat, and Festé threading their fingers through his hair. Slowly, the imp's thoughts turned to the many faces and encounters with their targets. Opening the book of memories that they had been careful to keep shut for nearly a decade. Guiding the elf quietly through some of the deepest recesses of their past.

It almost helped, not having to speak. Not having to admit to anything out loud. They could feel his reactions, nonetheless. Each time that he flinched in quiet recognition of something that hit close to home for him as well. Finally, Astarion lifted his head, just as the sky was beginning to lighten behind it.

"You didn't have to do that," he murmured softly. "But, thank you sharing, regardless."

"I just don't want to hide anything from you, going forward. Like you said," Festé replied. "Even the things that make me look bad." The elf rolled his eyes.

"You heard the rest of them. That isn't who you are anymore. Clearly." He lifted onto one elbow, pushing his hand over their chest to rest it against their shoulder. The elf spread his fingers and wiggled them gently, chuckling. Festé twisted to look down at his hand, spotting the topaz stone and gold band quite easily. Astarion's voice dropped to a murmur. "I don't think someone so supposedly brutish would shower me in gifts like you do." The tiefling gazed at the stone, taking in the fading moonlight that was glinting off of it. "I'm running out of ways to say 'thank you,' darling," he sighed, cupping their cheek and drawing their gaze back up to meet his own.

Festé blushed, groaning a little bit at their own embarrassment. "You know that I would do anything for you, no questions asked," they replied softly. The imp blinked, trying to look away. Astarion squeezed their jaw, not allowing it.

"Will a kiss do?" the elf purred, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not letting it go, darling," he added in a more exasperated tone. "Please, let me dote on you a moment." Festé let out a long breath, nodding. The mental connection was a bit disturbing in moments like these, where there was nowhere for them to hide from him. Astarion lowered his head to peck at their lips lightly. They needed to get used to feeling this vulnerable. The tiefling's mouth fell open slightly under his, inviting him in a little further. He pulled away after only a moment, however, and sat up on his knees.

"Oh. Shit, it's nearly sunup," the imp muttered, pushing up to their elbows. "Should we… Do you want to test it out?" With a grunt, they got to their feet and held out their hand for him. He looked up at them, wide-eyed, before taking it. the elf drew a deep breath, looking apprehensive.

"I…" Astarion started, but he trailed off when the tiefling gently tugged him forward to the edge of the clearing. There would be a more private place beyond the trees - even if it meant sacrificing the safety of Gale's barrier for a few moments. Festé paused when the elf became more still than a statue.

"What is it?" they whispered. "Are you alright, love?"

"I'm nervous," he breathed. "What if it doesn't…" His lips clamped together and shook his head.

"We'll do it together. It'll work, Star. I'll be right here, holding your hand."

A long pause passed between them. Then he took a cautious step forward, and another. Bit by bit, the couple crossed the clearing slowing when they both reached the trees on the other side. The imp squeezed the elf's hand, looking up at him. The sky was growing lighter by the minute.

"Do I… Should I…?" Astarion all but stammered. His eyebrows were wrinkled with worry.

"When you're ready, love. I'm here beside you."

With some hesitation, Astarion dropped Festé's hand, taking a few steps ahead of them. The tiefling watched him with apprehension, shoulders cowed forward and holding their right hand in their left, glancing down at it, then up at the elf's back. They heard the soft rush of air over his lips as he took a breath, and studied his slow step forward into the first rays of sun. Festé lingered near the edge of the trees, gazing in astonishment as, for the first time in over a year, the sunlight painted Astarion's hair and skin a pale gold. He looked almost as if he had a halo resting serenely atop his head as he tilted it back.

The anxiety started to set in amongst the awe. What if it didn't work? What if everything that they had done had been fruitless?

Their chest had just barely begun to clench when they watched Astarion hesitate, the sun drawing him in like a portal. Slowly but surely, he turned around and extended his hand out to them, a curious expression on his face.

"Darling, come here," he murmured softly. "You brought me here. I want to bask in this moment with you." Festé gave a shudder of anticipation, their interest piqued at the mere sound of his favourite petname for them. The imp stepped forward, a bit stiffly from the nerves, and closed the distance between them in a heartbeat. Their hand slotted into place atop his own, and the elf tugged them close against him immediately. Festé gave him a bashful grin when Astarion placed his free hand at the small of their back, guiding them to stand in front of him. The next thing that they felt was his lips against their earlobe.

"This is a gift," he breathed. "I won't ever forget this. Not in a thousand years." They felt him tense against their back, shifting his posture. One hand lay at their hip, the other curled tightly around their own. His voice seemed to break as he pressed his face into the crook of their neck.

"You gave me the sun again."

A/n: oh, my god. if you're reading this i want to personally applaud you for your patience in waiting for this fic to update writer's block, art block, and i suspect a healthy amount of seasonal depression got my ass this winter. i also... i think i needed to put this fic down for a while and recharge, and fall in love with it again. so if you're here, i sincerely thank you for reading, and i promise i'm taking care of myself in the meantime.

[mustangs-flames]

unsurprised to see I wasn't wrong about YouTube being dogshit for Veilguard content lmao

[kateis-cakeis]

It's still fucking wild to me how many moments in BBC Merlin scream out with pure love and devotion between Arthur and Merlin.

I mean take the journey to Ismere for example, Merlin is so ready to give up on Gwaine and Percival, which seems so unbelievable but that's just the point Merlin's gotten to in the last three years (I believe it all comes from him killing Agravaine, something shifts with him in that moment)

And then you have Arthur as loyal and stubborn as ever to his men.

Which how you get him saying his men are more than friends, more than brothers. It's so wild, like what does that leave Arthur, what does that bloody leave.

And Merlin replies with "I understand. I wish I didn't, but I do."

It's so like, what is this, what is this. Why do they gaze into each other's eyes for 9 damn seconds after that.

Truly is a conversation that feels so layered, they never directly talk about their care for each other directly, and it feels like such a roundabout way of saying it, while Arthur also makes it clear that he would never abandon his men and it's so honestly wild.

Because it is so gay sdjhfgjhsdfg

[cobra-wives]

not even a single dungeon lord reference in s6b. what are they DOING AS WRITERS?????

[winged-self-indulgence]

Ever since playing Binary Star Hero I haven't been able to get the idea of like, magical girls out of my head? Like the NAHA would for sure do Pink Capitalism. Make a crime-fighting girl group in the style of Sailor Moon or Tokyo Mew Mew but instead of letting them fight crime they're mostly treated like an idol group to sell the sort of toys and costumes and 'girl power woo feminism yay!' that we have irl.

Except one day they get targeted by a villain and everyone dies because they haven't been trained to take on such violent threats. My OC is the sister of the "lead" idol and she decides to take on the mantle while working to get revenge.