#c: vex'ahlia

[harusuki]

the legend of vox machina gifset per episode season 2 episode 6: into rimecleft

tip jar

[justafandomgvrl]

Bitch you ask for a headcanon I shall provide ya:

How well does the rest of the team do as petsitters for Trinket? Do they fail a lot or are these guys used to petsitting by now? Does Grog try to feed him ale?

Grog definitely tried to give him ale - once, before Vex all but chewed him out so hard he couldn’t look at her. Other than that if anyone even looks at Trinket he’s got his weapon out.

Scanlan refuses point blank to look after Trinket. He just does not like that bear. At all. For no reason. And the feeling is mutual.

Vax successfully sneaks ale to Trinket and Grog pouts about it. Vax is the second best pet sitter for Trinket, partially because the bear is part of his family but mainly because his sister scares him.

Percy and Trinket have a respect and understanding for each other. Trinket knows to be safe. Percy knows to let him do his thing. Vex loves them both.

Pike is sweet with Trinket but she smells like Scanlan and he is not a fan of that. So she has to bathe before she can look after him.

Then there’s Keyleth. Sweet, loving, Keyleth. I think Trinket has a softness for Keyleth, doing as he’s told the way he does with Vex. Sometimes she becomes a bear and they just sit together, other times she druidcrafts flowers to make into a crown for him.

[blorbologist]

Architect of our demise: Chapter 3

Aeor is profoundly unwelcoming when it wants to be. Which suits Percival just fine, given he has a lead. Totally fine.

They soon find that Delilah Briarwood’s notes are a scattered mess of petty missives, stunning dissections of inhumane research, and grand plots of godhood. Typical of a member of the Somnovem, but for the fact her schemes center around a long-gone archmage.

“Vecna,” Vex’ahlia explains. “An imitator of my -” she pauses, painfully sharp, as though she does not expect it “- patron, my god. He failed, obviously, but has been a nuisance ever since.”

“Hm.” Percival holds his thoughts as she hands him another gem. It only takes him a second to crack its sigils, Lady Briarwood’s murmur filling the air. With a lens he spills illusory letters on the table, transcribing the message. “I had a relative - distant, three-four generations back - try something similar. So the story goes, Erathis’ justice descended on her for the hubris, struck her dead where she stood.” A quick skim reveals discussion of some Ozwyn Gruude - interesting. “Poetic flavor for ‘failed ritual splattered the room with fine red paste’, most likely.”

She snorts. “That’s usually how it goes. Any luck?”

“Perhaps,” he admits. 

He had begun to doubt if rushing to decode these notes was the right call. His neck is tender, likely bruised, and with the adrenaline drained of his limbs everything is heavier than it should be. Rest might have been wise.

Rest might have been possible if not for the fever burn at the back of his skull, cooking every thought until it came out smoking, wreathing the image of Ripley on the other end of his gun.

Vex’ahlia scoots closer. Percival points out the name that caught his eye. “Gruude,” he says. “The man has come up in articles and publications tied to the doctor I’m looking for. They seem to have been collaborators, associates. Mostly dated ten years hence, but…”

She reads, overtop Delilah's slower diction, “Dear, I found word that a gentleman going by Ozwyn Gruude has been paying handsome bounties for biological material from magical monsters. His office is located in Vasselheim, in case you would like to deal with the pest. Call it a favor.” Vex’ahlia grimaces, reading the letter over again. “Looks like the bitch never got to send it. This is addressed to one Gloria Cyn. Does that name mean anything to you?”

“Vaguely,” says Percival. “To my knowledge they are another researcher in the Genesis Ward. Not that narrows anything down, and I’d, ah, rather not waste time finding them for a second-degree connection given -” he gestures vaguely at the dried blood on his coat and the looted recordings.

“Right.”

Percival leans back in his chair, kept from toppling only by brumestone ornamentation. He feels almost lightheaded. A lead, a real lead, in his hands. Finally.  

Prologue | Keep reading on AO3!

[likecometsx]

┘rey&vex'ahlia ☄; closed starter* // @circleofstarrs​

“we’re not quite open yet.” rey said as she noticed she wasn’t the only one waiting for the coffee shop doors to open. “my mangers late, otherwise i’d treat us both. not good customer service on his part, honestly. you’d think in this business, he’d realize the importance of a punctual morning opening.” rey smiled apologetically. “should i treat you anyway? for the inconvenience? when someone with a key shows up, i mean.”

[hcpefuldreaming]

"I'm ghost-proof." from vex

Keyleth's eyes widen in amazement as her lips curve into a small smile. "Wow, that's amazing, have you encountered them before and they just don't bother you? That is of course to say if they're real, in which now that I think about it, I hope they aren't. I don't think I'm ghost-proof." She explains quickly before glancing down. "Is there a way to teach someone to be that?"

[kestrael-a]

VEX ASKS  :  Send 🫂 to just hug my muse. No reason.  Hug them.

cassandra ,  by now ,  knows how to accept and reciprocate her sister - in - law’s embrace ,  thin arms wrapping around vex’s shoulders and hugging her close .  “ everything is going to be alright , ”  she says ,  her voice firm and stubborn .  it is rare that she gets to be in a position of comfort ,  but she is something of an expert of being a sister losing a brother  --  several brothers ,  and sisters too .  “ or at least it will get easier . ”  her embrace tightens ,  hoping to comfort @ignistelum​ as best she knows how .  “ and i will be here ,�� on the good days and the bad . ” 

[xamassed]

⟬ @fractisouls​ ⟭

" There you are. " Feeling the effects of the day before, Vex took a seat beside the demon and leaned against him a little to keep herself from falling asleep. Being back in Whitestone made her feel safe and at peace. Strange, considering that their entire world was in danger thanks to dragons but taking a few minutes with Mammon... It helped to ground her a bit.

He always managed to pull her away from the stress that weighed down heavily on her but in that moment with him, she did feel a little anxiety. " I want you to hear this from me. " It really wasn't anything important to share but she had a feeling that one of her party members ( Grog ) would be the one to tell Mammon and maybe Mammon wouldn't like that. So, she figured it was best to tell him herself. " Something happened while we were gone. I won't go into detail but I died. " Silence. " I wasn't dead for very long. Kashaw, Vax, and everyone else brought me back. " Silence once more. " Everyone seems different now. Serious. Downhearted. Guilt-ridden. They shouldn't. I feel fine. I feel fantastic. "

Vex stood from her spot and stretched, " I feel more alive after dying. Is that strange? " The ranger remained quiet once more until a question popped into her head, " Ah. Sorry to change the subject so quickly but I need to ask you something. I've done my own research but do you have any knowledge on the Raven Queen? " She wouldn't give an explanation on that. The deal that her brother made... That was his thing to share. But, she wanted to learn more, for him. " Any information on her would be really helpful right now, darling. " [ :D <3 ]

“I heard you were comin’ back, but I didn’t know when t’come find ya.” Their dynamic was a strange one, constantly balancing between casual and more-than-friendly, but it was after long bouts of silence and soul-deep worrying that he felt himself missing her terribly. Mammon told himself to remain ‘chill’ and not reveal to her that he was excited knowing she had returned, but now that she was there and within reach, his resolve crumbled.

He felt her slump against him, her exhaustion palpable. An arm looped around her shoulders, and the tips of his long fingers toyed with her mussed braid. Mammon wanted to gift her a kiss to her forehead, but the way she decided to broach the subject gave him pause.

“Hear what from ya?” He’d heard that tone before, mostly from his older brother. Based on experience alone, the demon knew this conversation would take a turn. “What happened, precious?”

        I died.

Mammon was known to run hot. He blamed the devil’s blood coursing through his veins and the hot-blooded lifestyle he had chosen for himself. He rarely felt cold, but hearing those two words made him feel as if he had tossed into a frozen lake and left to drown.

“Wait, woah. Hold on.” The arm he had snaked around her adoringly retracted as he pulled himself away. It wasn’t out of disgust, clearly, because a second later his hands were on her — on her shoulders, her arms, her face. “You died?! Why are ya tellin’ me like it ain’t a big deal?”

Vex’ahlia stood, but he remained where he was, face set in wide-eyed horror. She wasn’t human, so she wasn’t as feeble as some, but that hardly mattered to him. He cared for her, whether or not he liked it, and the thought of her having perished without him knowing was chilling.

“Babe, ya died!” He raked his fingers through his hair, only to realize then that he had broken out into a mildly panicked sweat. “How d’ya expect people t’act after somethin’ like that? It wasn’t like it happened once a couple’a years ago! It just happened, right? Shit, Vex, that’s gonna stick around for a while!”

It shouldn’t surprise him that she would dance around the subject. There would be no pushing her, of course. He had spent just enough time around her that he knew when she was done talking and wanted to move on. They would touch on it again later, but for now. . . he would relent and let her have this.

She was here, she was alive, and he had to be glad for that.

Hand out, he motioned for her to come closer. He needed her there, at least, in his arms and against his heart. He wanted to keep her warm and happy, even if it was only for a short while.

“Raven Queen?” For a split second, there was contempt in his eyes. It was a rare emotion to see on him, but it was as glaring as the noonday sun. There was a moment of silence that matches her earlier ones, but there was only the one. He grumbled after it, eyes down and lip pulled into a scowl. “I know of ‘er, yeah. My brother’s one’a her worshippers. We. . . Eh, never mind. Doesn’t matter. Don’t know much about her, honestly, except that she hates undeath. Lucifer’s told me more, but I wasn’t really listenin’ to him.”

[two-of-them-tournament]

TWO OF THEM TOURNAMENT ROUND 1

Begins March 15 at noon EST. There will be 8 polls per day. Matchups under the cut.

DAY ONE

Troy Barnes & Abed Nadir (Community) VS Booster Gold & Ted Kord (DC Comics) WINNER: Troy & Abed!

Ingo & Emmet (Pokemon) VS Newton Geiszler & Hermann Gottlieb (Pacific Rim) WINNER: Ingo & Emmet!

Kagamine Rin & Len (Vocaloid) VS Sherlock Holmes & John Watson (The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) WINNER: Holmes & Watson!

Sans & Papyrus (Undertale) VS Sun Wukong & Six-eared Macaque (LEGO Monkie Kid) WINNER: Sans & Papyrus!

Breekon & Hope (Magnus Archives) VS Ace Trappola & Deuce Spade (Twisted Wonderland) WINNER: Breekon & Hope!

Dipper & Mabel Pines (Gravity Falls) VS Achilles & Patroclus (Greek mythology) WINNER: Dipper & Mabel!

Mario & Luigi (Super Mario Bros) VS Ash Ketchum & Pikachu (Pokemon) WINNER: Mario & Luigi!

Jessie & James (Pokemon) VS Timon & Pumbaa (The Lion King) WINNER: Jessie & James!

DAY TWO

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern (Hamlet) VS Benson Mekler & Dave (Kipo) WINNER: Rosencrantz & Guildenstern!

Pippin Took & Merry Brandybuck (Lord of the Rings) VS Benton Fraser & Ray Kowalski (Due South) WINNER: Merry & Pippin!

Frodo Baggins & Samwise Gamgee (Lord of the Rings) VS Sailor Uranus & Sailor Neptune (Sailor Moon) WINNER: Frodo & Sam!

Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens) VS Finn & Jake (Adventure Time) WINNER: Finn & Jake!

Statler & Waldorf (The Muppet Show) VS Strong Bad & The Cheat (Homestar Runner) WINNER: Statler & Waldorf!

Bert & Ernie (Sesame Street) VS Vex'ahlia & Vax'ildan (Critical Role) WINNER: Bert & Ernie!

Sonic & Tails (Sonic the Hedgehog) VS Jadzia Dax (Star Trek) WINNER: Sonic & Tails!

Phineas & Ferb VS Carl Carlson & Lenny Leonard (The Simpsons) WINNER: Phineas & Ferb!

DAY THREE

Sam & Max VS Will Graham & Hannibal Lecter (NBC Hannibal) WINNER: Sam & Max!

Spongebob & Patrick (Spongebob Squarepants) VS Eddie Brock & Venom (Marvel Comics) WINNER: Spongebob & Patrick!

Wallace & Gromit VS The 10th Doctor & Donna Noble (Doctor Who) WINNER: Wallace & Gromit!

Geordi LaForge & Data (Star Trek) VS Frog & Toad WINNER: Frog & Toad!

Spock & Jim Kirk (Star Trek) VS Wug Test (Linguistics) WINNER: Spock & Kirk!

Bill S. Preston & Theodore Logan (Bill and Ted) VS Fireboy & Watergirl WINNER: Bill & Ted!

Nadja of Antipaxos & Laszlo Cravensworth (What We Do in the Shadows) VS Heinz Doofenshmirtz & Perry the Platypus (Phineas and Ferb) WINNER: Doofenshmirtz & Perry!

Nastya Rasputina & The Aurora (The Mechanisms) VS Harry DuBois & Kim Kitsuragi (Disco Elysium) WINNER: Harry & Kim!

DAY FOUR

Pinky & The Brain (Animaniacs) VS Scooby & Shaggy (Scooby-Doo) WINNER: Scooby & Shaggy!

Nico Di Angelo & Will Solace (Percy Jackson) VS Timmy & Tommy (Animal Crossing) WINNER: Timmy & Tommy!

Calvin & Hobbes VS Bunsen & Beaker (The Muppet Show) WINNER: Calvin & Hobbes!

Kris & Susie (Deltarune) VS Mercutio & Benvolio (Romeo and Juliet) WINNER: Kris & Susie!

Wirt & Greg (Over the Garden Wall) VS R2-D2 & C-3PO (Star Wars) WINNER: R2-D2 & C-3PO!

Mac McDonald & Charlie Kelly (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) VS Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde WINNER: Mac & Charlie!

Phoenix Wright & Maya Fey (Ace Attorney) VS John Doe & Arthur Lester (Malevolent) WINNER: Phoenix & Maya!

Legolas Greenleaf & Gimli (Lord of the Rings) VS Jedediah Smith & Gaius Octavius (Night at the Museum) WINNER: Legolas & Gimli!

RECAP

[nellie-elizabeth]

The Legend of Vox Machina: The Echo Tree (2x08)

Ahhhh Percy and Vex my babiesssss.

Cons:

I've been thinking about the "Lady Vex'ahlia" moment and why I'm not 100% happy with this adaptation. I'm pretty happy, but there was something holding me back from loving it unconditionally. First of all, they changed the kicker line to: "Despite your relationship, do watch your manners towards a noble." Instead of just ending on "do watch your manners" which is stronger and cleaner. I think the point would have gotten across without adding the extra words. But more important than that, I think the atmosphere of how that happened on the stream was just so... intense, and memorable, because it was in front of a live audience, there were screams and applause, and you saw Laura's overwhelmed reaction. And Syldor was legitimately put off-balance by it. It was a blow that landed.

Here, I didn't need it to be a big huge mic-drop moment, I'm fine with it happening in only private company the way it would have from the stream version too. But I don't like the change that Syldor doesn't even hesitate before scoffing at it and saying it's just a stupid ploy. I wish he had been a little unsettled. I wish we'd seen him offended or confused or just... at all affected by the whole thing? He brushes off Percy's big grand gesture, and he brushes off Vex snapping at him, as if it doesn't matter at all. I get that there needs to be some build to something bigger, but I feel like it made the moment less fun because of it.

Also, this is fine for me as someone who's watched the stream, but the fact that Syldor lives in Syngorn, and there's also a character name Saundor all in the same episode... too many similar sounding S-names. That must have been annoying.

I had a question just logistically speaking... where exactly is Wilhand Trickfoot supposed to live? Because at the end, they're talking about how they have to go to Westruun. So he's not in Westruun? Even though the Grog backstory from the next episode seems to imply that his whole redemptive moment with Wilhand was happening where his herd had taken over? That just confused me a bit.

Pros:

To start off, I love the twin vibes on "we seek an audience with Ambassador Vassar" from Vex, and then "Ugh... we're his children" from Vax. So good. This episode appropriately shined more of a spotlight on Vex, but you still saw the solidarity between the two of them. Each has their own shit going on at the moment, but the strained awkward family vibes were exquisite. We see how Vax is willing to throw down with his dad from the jump, but Vex is still holding back yelling at him until the moment when she snaps at her dad for insulting Percy.

And yeah, while I wish there had been something to punch up the big "Lady Vex'ahlia" moment just a smidge more, I was otherwise totally 100% satisfied with the way the Percy/Vex stuff played out here. We got another one of the best shippy lines from the show, where Percy tells Vex he's known a lot of people with titles and money, "and none of them are worth you". My heart!!! And speaking of hearts, we have Vex opening up to Percy about how difficult things were for her and Vax growing up, and Percy says that she has a pure heart, that it's wonderful, and nobody can take that away. Percy, my baby! He's being so sincere and kind and gentle, and it's killing me! He also made her a cool new arrowhead, which was 100% the Percy method of flirting from the stream, so I'm glad we got a nod to it here.

A detail I have to point out because a part of me will always be Perc'ildan trash, is that Percy started defending both of the twins from their dad right from the jump, saying "your son and daughter are leading the fight." Hell yeah, Percy.

We got to meet Velora, and she was as adorable and perfect as I ever could have imagined! Vex giving her the blue feather is just the sweetest. This is a moment that really complicates and enhances the twins' drama with their shitty father. They have a cordial relationship with their step-mother, and they adore their little sister so much. It's not some one-note thing where they resent the family Syldor has built without them. There are layers here, and they (rightfully) do not blame a child for the sins of her father.

The whole Saundor encounter was amazing, everything I could have wished for and more! Saundor looks SO COOL. He's sexy and creepy and I love that he says all these awful things to Vex in this really seductive, simmering voice, but then the second she rejects him he says "you bitch!" and just starts snarling at her like any creepy incel bitter loser would. It's such a good turn, and it makes the point eloquently without spelling it out for you. Everything about the corrupted forest, the tree, the bow, the effect on Vex when her eyes go all dark and she nearly succumbs... it was so tense!

Meanwhile we get Vax, Percy, and Keyleth teaming up to defeat a couple of walking tree creatures that are trying to keep them away from helping Vex. I loved the teamwork, of Keyleth getting Vax's knife off him and Vax cutting Percy free once he was free himself. Then you've got Keyleth going into her Fire Elemental form again, and walking through the trees using her magic to defeat them. Not only was that an adaptation of one of Marisha's most brilliant Keyleth moments in the whole game, it was also a reminder/reaffirmation of this cool new ability she has to turn into a giant fire being, so we can be reminded that she has that card up her sleeve for more fights down the road.

And now, after Vex declares that her "heart is someone else's," and stabs Saundor with the arrowhead Percy gave her, she is officially in possession of Fenthras, her very own Vestige!

I heard people complaining that they've stripped away some of Vex's complexity, making her nothing more than a girl with daddy issues and an angsty anime love interest and I... I mean, okay, if Vex is your favorite character you're going to notice the shortcuts they've taken with her character for the sake of the shortened format. Same as if you love Keyleth most, or whoever else. But I personally think the final scene, where she declares that she's not going back to Syngorn because she's not ready, proves that there's so much more depth to her character than just a few cliché traits. Because you'd expect one of two things, here, right? You'd expect her to either go back and throw her victory in her father's face, or you'd expect her to declare that she's enlightened now and no longer needs his approval... but it's neither of those things. She still needs to face him, but despite the fact that she won Fenthras from Saundor and confronted the insecurities within her, she's not ready yet. It's a journey that will take longer than a single incident, much like Keyleth's self-confidence is much better now than it used to be, but she still has her moments of doubt.

I know I keep saying it over and over again, but I'm so impressed with how thoughtful they've been to every character getting their due on this show. There are seven main characters and a ton of important side characters and in a D&D campaign there are no protagonists. It's a hard sell to adapt, and I think people go too hard on it if their favorite moment didn't hit the way they wanted it to, or if a character they're less interested in got a big important moment when they felt their fave should have gotten it instead.

And so Garmelie helps our heroes out of the Fey Realm, and then transforms into a tall, imposing figure with a different voice, and universes in his eyes... I'm so excited to see where this all goes.

One thing that was so great about this episode was the parallel between meeting Syldor and meeting Wilhand. Even as Vex and Vax's father puts them down and accuses them of just coming to him because of his status, we see Wilhand emerge from his front door, give Pike a big hug and admire her cool new armor, and immediately set to work helping Grog out without really asking many questions. Casting Henry Winkler in this role was inspired, I was instantly charmed by him.

There wasn't a ton of motion here for Grog, just a pill that he had to take with some... ahem... assistance from Scanlan, and no improvement on the weak, noodle-y muscles front. The gnomes are ready to head off after the vestige they know is in Westruun, but Grog has some news for them. That Vestige is in the hands of his uncle, and he killed Grog with them. Dun dun dun....

I loved Travis's line read on: "Hi, Pop Pop. I fucked up." I also love how Grog gets the comic relief treatment but there's still a real gravity and grief to him over this situation. It's no small thing, to lose your strength when it's such a big part of how you identify yourself. I know what this is all building to, and I'm going to scream so loud when Grog tells us where his strength comes from in next week's batch of episodes...

So yeah! Say goodbye to the Fey Realm for now, and we're off to Westruun to meet some of Grog's family in the final installment of this week's drop. Man, they go by so fast, I wish the seasons were twice as long!

8/10

[harusuki]

the legend of vox machina gifset per episode season 2 episode 8: echo tree

tip jar

[magic-and-maybess]

ND/mental illness hcs for Vox Machina!!

Keyleth: ASD, GAD, PTSD

Pike: ASD, PTSD

Vex'ahlia: British (/j), OCD, PTSD, SPD

Vax'ildan: ADHD, PTSD

Percy: BPD, C-PTSD, depression

Scanlan: ADHD, PTSD

Grog: ASD, PTSD

[blorbologist]

Two for joy - Chapter 15

Keyleth is already awake, wrapped in shawls and her mantle when Vax pads, barefoot, to join her in a breakfast just outside their modest home.

“Morning,” she greets. “Man, I've missed food from home. Not that Whitestone’s or the Mansions’ weren’t great.” Her brows furrow as she registers what she just said. “I mean. The chicken and waffles at sunrise weren’t great. Not at all. But could be worse-”

“Have you ever had a dream you half expect to be wistful thinking?” Vax blurts out. Rubs at his eyes. “Sorry, Kiki. Hardly awake yet.”

Keyleth nudges him sympathetically and offers him her fork. Absentminded, Vax pilfers with permission - shoveling some scrambled eggs onto a bite of jammy toast.

“What kind of dream are we talking about?” she asks gently. “Do you mean - like, I’d sometimes dream my mom was still around. Or that we weren’t fighting dragons. That sort of thing, or something bigger? Also - gross. Jam and omelet?”

“I’m efficient,” Vax argues. He uses a buttered slice for his next mouthful, though. Gods he loves her. Gods he loves Gilmore, too, sleeping in no matter their chatter. “I’m not sure, Kiki.”

Another bite. She’s right - Zephrah makes killer breakfasts. Counterbalancing the fresh eggs and bread tasting of sunshine with bites of fruits that bottled that warmth and made it almost candylike. He’s sure most kings and sovereigns eat ignobly by comparison.

“It’s - what if you dreamt of a goddess who wasn’t your own. Saying exactly what you dared hope - that it might have been a mistake. That, maybe, you could change things.”

Keyleth’s fingers alight on his wrist. Vax can feel his entire face melt with affection as she guides the next bite her way instead. She hums in thought as she chews.

“I think,” she says, “that I’ve never dreamt of any gods. And I hope I never will. But… I think, instead of me, I’d ask Pike.”

[One for sorrow] [Ch1] [Keep reading on AO3]  

[ao3feed-crimeboys]

a lesson on how distracted spellcasting can lead to unexpected and unforetold results

by uhohbella

In an attempt to bring some normalcy to their situation, an inspired Tommy decides to give freshly revived Wilbur a tour of everything he missed while in Limbo. What neither of them counted on was being interrupted by two mercenaries just trying to get home.

Or

A one shot where c!crimeboys meet a few members of Vox Machina.

Words: 3303, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Dream SMP, Critical Role (Web Series), The Legend of Vox Machina (Cartoon)

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen

Characters: Wilbur Soot, TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III, Vex'ahlia (Critical Role), Keyleth (Critical Role)

Relationships: Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit, Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III/Vex'ahlia

Additional Tags: Crimeboys meet Vox Machina, Dream SMP crossover with Vox Machina, revivedbur, tommy gives wilbur a tour and it gets weird, percy de rolo meets wilbur soot, they're basically the same person, One Shot

source https://archiveofourown.org/works/40328946

[beauregards]

vex’leth modern day instagram posts that i found in my instaedit folder and apparently made

[nicolewrites]

heartstrings - i

hurray for writing motivation and late nights and realizing that this thing that started as a one-shot is entirely too long for that. so it’s a multichapter fic now though it’ll probably be max 3 parts.

Rating: T Genre: Romance Characters: [Vax’ildan and Keyleth] [Percival de Rolo and Vex’ahlia] Words: 6,979

Kiki @keylethashari has tagged you in a tweet: New Q&A up and we’re talking music! creds to @vexmachina @vaxmachina @burtreynoldsesq @thelumineers and others!! // CR1 Vaxleth+Perc’ahlia YouTuber/Musician/Celebrity AU

AO3

Vax had played guitar since he was seven years old. He had sung along back then too, his voice wavering at his young age while his sister’s voice drifted along clearly overtop. Through his whole life, music had stabilized him and had bound him so tightly to his sister that he did almost anything she asked.

In the end, it was Vax’s close friend Gilmore who insisted that the twins make a YouTube channel even if they just uploaded one video in the end. Vex was all for it, but she liked the spotlight. Vax hesitated, but, Vex and Gilmore were his favourite people, so when they ganged up on him, he caved.

Vex argued that they should use their names, Vex’ahlia and Vax’ildan, as the channel name, but it felt too personal, so Vax looked again to Gilmore. Gilmore suggested a play on words and the twins considered it. Three days later, Vax shook his sister awake with the name they would eagerly assign to the channel as they uploaded their first video.

They went simple for the first cover, choosing an Ed Sheeran song that basically broke the music industry. They sat side by side on Vex’s bed and Vax spent most of the video singing while staring at his hands as he played the guitar. Vex floated through the tune, smiling at the camera and her brother.

It took them a while to get the footage cut and to a reasonable sound quality, but as of March 3rd, Vox Machina’s YouTube channel went live with a single video: Thinking Out Loud.

Vex was quick to share it to her Twitter and Instagram, and Gilmore retweeted her tweet, and between them, they got a few hundred views and about 10 subscribers off of one single video.

Vax agreed to film another video when he saw how happy it was making his sister. He fiddled with chords and eventually they settled on a cover of Landslide that made them both happy. Vax let Vex sing while he played and just harmonized where it was appropriate.

This video got a few more views and the subscriber count on the channel jumped to around 200. Vex was giddy and dragged her keyboard in front of the camera and filmed one of her own covers. Vax was content with this as he headed off to work at the café he worked at.

After about a week, he found himself in front of the camera again as Vex insisted the duo act was more popular. Vax agreed on the condition that he picked the song and they did a stripped down version of House of the Rising Sun. This time, Vex pushed him into the lead and Vax sang, but he still restricted the amount of time he actually looked into the camera.

A few more months flicked by and the twins worked hard at their day jobs to support their tiny, crappy apartment. Any time not spent at work was spent practicing music, filming, and editing to make more music. It was a tough life, but the consistent presence of music made both Vex and Vax a lot happier than they had been in a long while.

Eventually, they had fifteen covers uploaded and around 300 subscribers, most of whom came from friends or people following Vex’ahlia and Gilmore on Twitter.

It’s a hot summer night when Vax couldn’t sleep and he rolled over to check the time. His screen was so clogged with notifications that it took him almost a full minute to process that something was happening. It was all notifications for his Twitter page and requests to follow his Instagram account.

Vax pulled his phone closer to his face and blinked at the screen in shock. He opened Twitter. He had almost 8 thousand followers compared to the 50 ish he had had the previous night. His notifications were clogged with people tagging both him and Vex in tweets sharing links to their videos, making song requests, and just generally complimenting them.

Vax’s brain short-circuited and he quit the Twitter app quickly. He had 17 unread texts and over 300 Instagram notifications. He ignored Instagram and opened the text app. A few were from work friends or mutual acquaintances that were questioning his sudden popularity explosion, but 9 of the messages were from Gilmore.

Vax scrolled through Gilmore’s messages to the first unread one and saw it’s a link to a YouTube video. He pressed it and was taken to the YouTube channel of one Scanlan Shorthalt, one of the biggest YouTube musicians on the platform. Vax knew that Scanlan released a video each month discussing good YouTube musicians that he’d found on the platform.

Vax skimmed quickly through the video before a clip of him and Vex appeared on the screen. They were currently ranked number one to watch for YouTube talent by Scanlan who praised their range and musicality despite low production costs.

Vax fumbled through his apps and pulled up Twitter again, doing a quick search for Scanlan Shorthalt. Scanlan’s page came up, and the words “follows you” stared Vax in the face.

He heard a shriek from down the hall and he realized that Vex must have just discovered the same thing he had. He rolled off his bed, phone in hand, and made it halfway to her room before she burst out of it, brandishing her phone in his face.

“We were number one of Burt Reynold’s Star Search!” she basically screeched. “We have seven thousand subscribers on YouTube and I’ve got twelve thousand Twitter followers.”

“I guess we should probably thank Mr. Shorthalt,” Vax muttered. “For the publicity.”

Vex’s eyes widened and she opened her Twitter app quickly.

Vex’ahlia @vexmachina • Just Now

Thank you from @vaxmachina and I to @burtreynoldsesq for the feature on Star Search! New music coming soon!! #voxmachina

Vax raised an eyebrow and his sister smirked. “I guess we’ve got a big thing going for us, brother dearest.”

Vax’s phone chimed in his hand as his notifications blew up from Vex’s tweet. “I guess so,” he mumbled.

-

Their popularity didn’t, to his surprise, taper off shortly after Scanlan’s video. Instead, their subscriber count climbed to 40 thousand and they had nearly 70 thousand Twitter followers between the two of them.

Gilmore took them out for drinks to celebrate the release of their next cover, Everything Has Changed, and Vax knew he hadn’t seen Vex this excited about anything in a long, long time. Gilmore tweeted a photo of the three of them, Kima, and Allura, two other friends, at a bar and immediately blew up on Twitter.

Kima found the whole thing hilarious and pushed the twins up to the karaoke machine the bar had. Neither twin was one to back down from a challenge and Gilmore tweeted out 4 videos of them singing while Allura recorded the whole thing for a future video.

Vax continued to allow Vex to drag him to her room to record music and he started to love the process of making the videos and picking the songs as much as he used to love just playing casually. Their popularity grew slowly and Scanlan featured them on his Star Search again the next month.

The internet seemed to have realized that Vax wasn’t a social media person because he only followed his sister, Gilmore, Kima, Allura, and a handful of others and hardly ever tweeted or posted. He would share the link to a new video when they posted, but not much else. He hovered around 30 thousand Twitter followers which was still completely insane.

Vex, on the other hand, easily cracked 100 thousand followers on her own as she promoted the channel, interacted with their fans, and teased new music and their personal lives. Vax was content to let Vex handle all the personal questions and he only really responded to tagged tweets when people got confused and named them as a couple instead of twin siblings.

Their growth was pretty steady and they could usually predict when their channel would hit the big milestones. They released 3 extra videos in honour of fifty thousand followers and were preparing a Q&A video for 100 thousand followers.

One day in October, Vex was sitting in the main part of the café where Vax worked part-time. He was wiping a counter nearby when he glanced over at her and she was staring slack-jawed at her phone. He stepped to her side quickly and she turned the screen towards him.

Their channel, which had previously been hovering around 89 thousand subscribers, had jumped almost straight to 150 thousand subscribers. Vax froze and swiped at the page to refresh it. The number increased to 180 thousand subscribers. He exchanged a shocked look with Vex.

“What the fuck just happened?”

Vex shook her head mutely and they both resumed staring at her screen until she got a Twitter notification.

Kiki @keylethashari has tagged you in a tweet: New Q&A up and we’re talking music! creds to @vexmachina @vaxmachina @burtreynoldsesq @thelumineers and others!!

Vex clicked on the notification and her phone jumped apps to Twitter. Vax hadn’t the slightest clue who this Kiki was, but the tweet was almost brand new and already had over a thousand likes and over 300 retweets.

Vex glanced at her brother. “Do you know who Keyleth is?” Her voice was giddy with excitement.

“Haven’t a clue,” he replied honestly.

Vex smacked him. “She’s one of the most popular vloggers on YouTube and the best part is, she’s actually really nice.”

Vex turned back to her phone and pulled up Keyleth’s Twitter page. Keyleth had 1.5 million followers and was following around a thousand accounts. Vax glanced briefly at the tiny bubbled icon and felt his heart skip a beat. Keyleth had fiery red hair, vibrant eyes, and freckle-covered skin.

She was the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen.

His phone vibrated in his pocket and he heard a heavy cough from behind the counter. His coworker was giving him an odd look. Vax flashed an apologetic smile and hurried back to the counter.

“Big news or something?” his co-worker asked. “Usually you and Vex can at least wait until after your shift to chat.”

Vax shrugged. “Got shouted out by a major YouTuber and may have accidentally jumped to fame, but we’ll see.”

He turned back to the espresso bar before he saw his co-worker's reaction.

-

Three hours later, Vax was staring at his Twitter feed. He had retweeted Keyleth’s tweet, as had Vex, and the vlogger’s response had been to follow both of them on the platform which had only increased the influx of followers he was gaining.

Vex had tweeted a sweet message out a while ago, and Vax was still dumbstruck. Vex was currently in the process of skimming through their channel’s email, looking at a couple of offers from producers which had appeared suddenly.

Swallowing tensely, Vax clicked on Keyleth’s profile and then clicked on the little mail icon, leading him to her DM inbox.

@vaxmachina: hey, i really don’t know what to say besides thank you for all the crazy publicity we’ve been getting. it means a lot to my sister and i.

He hit send before he could think better of it. He dropped his phone onto the couch beside him and looked over at Vex. She was scrolling through stuff on her laptop and looked up when she felt his gaze.

“We should write our own stuff,” Vex said as soon as they made eye contact.

Vax raised an eyebrow. “No more covers?”

Vex waved at him dismissively. “Fewer covers. Come on, I know we’ve both been writing lyrics for so long. We have all these offers of people who want to work with us, we have over 100 thousand YouTube subscribers out of nowhere, and we have a chance to get out of this dump.”

Vax smiled. “When we moved out to LA after mom died we found this dump, Sister, it’s been good to us.”

Vex returned his grin. “And now we can both quit our shitty day jobs and do what we’ve been meant to do all this time.”

Vax’s phone chimed before he could reply.

@keylethashari: Oh but of course! You guys have such a unique sound and range and I’ve loved everything I’ve heard since I found you through Scanlan.

@keylethashari: I’m eagerly awaiting new content from you guys too!!

Vax blinked at the quick reply and easy positivity from Keyleth that he’d received.

“Hello? Brother? Are you still there?” Vex demanded. Vax snapped his head up and she tipped hers, questioning, in response.

Vax waved his phone. “I DMed Keyleth to thank her and she’s awaiting new music, apparently.”

Vex gave an airy laugh. “This is crazy. Absolutely crazy.”

-

As it turns out, crazy had been an understatement. Keyleth’s video continued to provide them with fame, and Scanlan shouted them out for the third month in a row. Still, as it turned out, they weren’t the only big YouTubers taking note of Vox Machina.

“Vax,” Vex called from across the room.

Vax spun in his desk chair, looking away from the monitor where he had been editing their latest video, raising an eyebrow at Vex. “What?”

She waved her phone at him. “Check Twitter, you goof. We’ve gotten another big shoutout and I bet you know who these folks are better than I do.”

Vax blinked, but Vex turns away, back to the keyboard she had been playing a moment before. Vax minimized the video editor and pulled up Twitter. He had a bunch of new followers and a couple of new tags, but a quick search through Vex’s page gave him what he was looking for.

Pike @thetrickfootp • 1 hour ago

It’s that time again! Time for @barbariangrog and I to roast @burtreynoldsesq but at least he’s given us @vexmachina and @vaxmachina this time. youtube.com/watch?v=fTgqwhK

The tweet was fairly recent and Vex was right, he did know who it was from. Pike Trickfoot was a variety YouTuber who did a lot of gaming streams and videos along with the occasional vlog and workout video. Her channel, Major Monstahs, was a collab with her and her best friend Grog Strongjaw. One of their most notorious video series was the monthly roast video that they published to make fun of Scanlan, who was also a very good friend of theirs.

Vax clicked the link in the tweet and it brought him to the newest video on Major Monstahs. The video, titled September 2018, Scanlan FINALLY hits something good, started and Vax saw Pike and Grog sitting together on a couch, with a view of their TV edited over top of their lower bodies as they watched some of Scanlan’s more recent videos.

Pike and Grog were playful and teasing as they roasted Scanlan while also throwing the occasional backhanded compliment. He skimmed through it quickly and played it again as soon as he realized they were reviewing Star Search for the month.

“And well, the one thing Scanlan actually did that was good, was introduce me to Vox Machina! Man, their sound is so nice and they sound great together. Even Grog, who’s more of a heavy rock kind of guy likes them,” Pike said as she gestured animatedly.

Vax chuckled and paused the video. It had over 18,000 views and the channel has 2.3 million subscribers. Two clicks later and Vax was looking at the homepage for Vox Machina’s channel. They had 260 thousand subscribers now and the channel was looking better than ever.

Gilmore had taken some pretty professional shots of Vex and Vax posing so they finally had a good icon, and Allura had created a neat looking text banner for them that served as the channel background. They had invested in a better camera and a real microphone along with a better video editing software so even the videos were of a higher quality.

With all of their new equipment and the sudden burst of fame, both Vex and Vax had quit their part-time jobs and were in the process of packing all of their stuff to move to a better apartment in the better part of town. Their lives had completely turned around, and as Vax listened to Vex start to sing over by the piano, he didn’t regret any of it.

They had stuck to releasing covers on the channel so far, but they were working on more original stuff. Vex was polishing the instrumentals for a pair of songs she had written, and Vax was working on lyrics for a piece he was writing.

His phone chimed and he lifted it.

@keylethashari: hmmm, i like that verse a lot but maybe something about where you guys started. You were trying to be grounded, right?

Vax smiled when he saw the message. Since the first time Keyleth had tweeted at him and he had DMed her, they had been keeping a steady conversation over Twitter and had become decent friends. Vax has sent her a couple of lines of lyrics and asked for her opinion, and she was, naturally, teeming with useful advice. He quickly typed out his reply.

@vaxmachina: that’s pretty good! hm now I have an idea, thanks Kiki

It was only a minute before she replied.

@keylethashari: no prob!!

@keylethashari: also hey I saw the Monstahs shouted you guys out during their roast! That’s awesome!! :)

@vaxmachina: :) yeah, pretty cool

Vax placed his phone down and looked back at the editing he had been working on. Struck by a different sense of inspiration, he saved and jumped up from his desk, heading towards his room.

Though most everything was packed away in boxes, the guitar was leaning against the bedside table as it always was. He grabbed it and sat on the edge of his bed. He plucked a couple strings before moving into a C-F-A-G chord progression warm up.

He then played a soft melody and hummed under his breath. He repeated the pattern, changing the root chord and adding an inverted chord in for good measure. He went back to the original chord and let his mind whir.

“One day they’ll tell the story of the girl they left for dead,” he sang gently. Vex’s music stopped abruptly and he heard her walk in the direction of his room. Vax grinned. “Indomitable, unbeatable, unbreakable, she said,” he continued. He paused and strummed an A minor and a C arpeggio.

“She had fire, but he was the fuel,” Vex sang back, slipping through the door and leaning against the far wall. “Those who left them would soon be the fool.”

Vax nodded along with his sister before putting the guitar down. He pulled up his conversation with Keyleth. “From the ashes they arose, starving and broken, you know how it goes.”

Vex clapped excitedly. “Wow that’s really good,” she said. She crossed the room and peered over his shoulder at the phone screen. Her eyebrows shot up and she rested her elbow on the crook of his shoulder. “Advice from the girlfriend?”

Vax shook his shoulders, tossing her off. “Butt out Vex, it’s just a couple DMs. She’s nice.”

Vex rolled her eyes. “Yeah and the last person who you made heart eyes like that at was Gilmore and that was years ago. You like her.”

“Well it doesn’t matter much, does it? She’s a big shot, we’re just on the rise.”

Vex stepped away, pausing to look back at him. “Record her something exclusive,” she suggested. “A snippet or a preview or something. She’d love it.”

Vax looked contemplatively between his sister and his guitar. “I’ll think about it.”

-

He did end up sending Keyleth a small recording of the song that would eventually become Vax’s original song, Phoenix. Naturally, she loved it and had demanded he stop wasting time and finish it so that she could brag about how much she loved it.

The move to their new apartment was finally done and the place was high class. It had originally been far out of their price range, but the real estate agent had apparently seen some of their covers and Vex had charmed him into accepting a much lower price than originally agreed in exchange for some authentic autographs. The building was rich and apparently housed the places belonging to several other celebrities, both internet and from the film or music industries. Vax hadn’t seen anything to back up the rumour, but it was an interesting thought.

There was a coffee shop just around the corner that he liked to frequent: it reminded him just enough of his old job that he felt comfortable enough there to hum and tap out rhythms while he scrawled lyrics or edited videos. They’d recently released a cover of Just Give Me a Reason which, thanks to Keyleth using it in the background of one of her cooking tutorials, had quickly become their most viewed and most beloved videos.

Their Q&A video had become popular enough that they’d made it a monthly tradition and Vax was currently filtering through submitted questions to put together a good panel for variety. He was sorting through a whole slew of questions inquiring about the relationship status of both twins when the bell above the café door chimed. He allowed himself a cursory glance up out of curiosity, but the people he saw had him stop dead.

It was Pike Trickfoot with her blonde hair coiled into two twin buns atop her head and her smile as sunny as ever. At her side was Grog Strongjaw who was laughing loudly at something the third member of their party had said. Scanlan Shorthalt stood between Grog and Pike, smirking proudly.

Vax was frozen in his seat. He knew the three of them were close friends and that they were definitely in a more influencer-influenced area of L.A. now, but in the two weeks they’d been in their new place, he had never seen any of them around the small coffee shop. He found himself unable to tear his gaze from the trio as they approached the counter to order.

By chance, Pike glanced back at Grog and her gaze landed on Vax staring at her from nearby. Her lips parted in shock before curling back into her brilliant, sunny smile. Vax blinked and looked back at his computer, almost praying that she hadn’t recognized him. He stared blankly at the screen in front of him for a long moment before someone cleared their throat next to him.

Pike was standing right next to his table. “Hello, I’m a huge fan of you and your sister,” she said pleasantly. She slid into the seat across from him without asking and beamed at him. “I’m Pike, and you must be Vax, right?”

“Well, I’m definitely not Vex,” Vax replied. He was a little shocked that she was sitting with him, and as such, his brain couldn’t find more words.

“Wow, ever since Scanlan found you guys, I’ve been listening non-stop!” She glanced at the laptop before her. “Working hard, I see.”

Vax shrugged. “At least this type of work is fun.”

Pike laughed. “You should try streaming: all the fun of videos with almost none of the editing pressure.” Vax cracked a grin. Pike was definitely as charming and sweet as her videos made her out to be.

“Pike! You just disappeared on us!” A voice boomed and Vax and Pike both looked up sharply to see the hulking form of Grog above them.

Before anyone could say anything, Scanlan smoothly stepped around Grog and offered Pike a to-go cup with a flourish. “Your coffee, my lady,” he said teasingly.

Pike smiled and accepted the cup. She waved a hand between Grog, Scanlan, and Vax. “Grog, Scanlan, you’ll never believe who this is.”

Grog looked puzzled for a long moment, but recognition flashed on Scanlan’s face immediately. “Ah half of my new favourite music duo!”

“Nice to meet you,” Vax replied carefully.

Scanlan spun and snagged two chairs from the table next to them and dragged them to the table so the four of them were crammed around one small table. “Scanlan Shorthalt, at your service.”

“Vax. But, I guess you already knew that.”

Grog pointed at Vax. “There’s normally two of you.”

Vax smirked. “Vex’ahlia is currently at our apartment.”

Scanlan leaned forward conspiratorially. “So any insight on who you guys are considering signing with? I’ve heard a lot of offers are going your way.”

“I think last we discussed Whitestone Records was our first choice.”

Scanlan nodded sagely. “They’re great. I have an in there, so I can definitely shoot them a message.”

Pike elbowed Scanlan. “Or you know, just invite them tonight!”

Scanlan glanced at Pike. “Pike, you really are a genius.” He looked back at Vax. “My good sir, it would be an honour if you and your sister joined us and our friends tonight at my place. Going to be a small party, but it’s great for networking if you’re going to be into that kind of thing.”

Vax raised an eyebrow. “I should call Vex.”

Pike nodded. “Of course. Well, it was a pleasure to meet you Vax. I hope to see you tonight! Come on boys, let’s roll.” She stood up from the table and gave Vax one last sunny grin before she swept away. Grog and Scanlan both smiled and followed her out, leaving Vax alone with a racing mind.

It took a long moment for his thoughts to slow down enough to be decipherable, but just as he pulled out his phone to call Vex, it pinged with a new Twitter notification.

Pike @thetrickfootp • 48 seconds ago

They really exist, guys! @barbariangrog, @burtreynoldsesq, and I just had the immense pleasure of meeting @vaxmachina in person and now I absolutely must meet @vexmachina tonight! #voxmachinaisreal #voxmachina

Scanlan almost immediately retweeted the message, as did Grog and Vax chuckled. He liked it before replying to it with the side-eye emoji. His notifications dinged several times, but before he could check any of them, his phone buzzed as his sister’s photo filled the screen.

“Vex’ahlia, hello,” he said as he answered her call.

“You met Pike, Grog, and Scanlan?” she demanded, forgoing a greeting.

“I just had the pleasure. I did invite you to join me here today so it’s your loss.”

“Oh fuck off, Vax. What happened?”

Vax paused, thinking about the best way to drop the news on his sister. “What are you doing tonight?”

-

One DM to Scanlan and a twenty minute Uber ride later, the twins arrived at the Shorthalt mansion. The place was spectacular, as expected, and they could hear the music from the road. Vax was suddenly almost nervous. Vex linked her arm with his and tugged him up the driveway.

“Come on brother dearest, we have some socializing to do!”

The bouncer at the door barely even cast them a glance as he waved them inside. Light flashed through the room and people milled about exuberantly. Vax spun as he walked taking in the open foyer, glittering decorations and the dozens of people dancing and singing and talking. Scanlan really didn’t know the meaning of “small party”.

“You made it!”

Vax turned and saw Pike and Grog weaving towards them. Pike was grinning and wearing a sparkly cocktail dress with her hair still in her “fun-buns”. Grog was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but Vax wouldn’t be surprised if he was wearing that all the time. Vex smiled brilliantly at the pair and pulled Vax forward.

“So this is the famous Pike Trickfoot and Grog Strongjaw, it is an absolute pleasure to meet you both,” Vex greeted, her charm oozing from every word.

Grog laughed and waved his hand at both twins. “See! There are two of you.”

Vex laughed and Pike elbowed Grog. “You must be Vex’ahlia, then.”

“Just Vex is great.”

Vax smiled as Vex wrapped her arm through Pike's as the two women chatted pleasantly. Vax turned an eye to Grog who looked increasingly bored with the small talk. “Hey big guy, is there somewhere I can get a drink around here?”

Grog and Vex both perked up at the same time.

“A drink?” Grog asked.

“Something hard, preferably,” Vex chimed in, a smirk playing at her lips. “We’re going to need some courage for this night.”

“Then let’s go take shots!” Pike cheered. “I know where Scanlan keeps his best liquor. Plus, he’ll never get mad at us for drinking it if we say it was my idea.”

-

Several shots and a lot of hand-shaking later, the party was still in full-swing and Vax was fully buzzed. Vex had disappeared from his side an hour ago, sliding off to work her charms on an attractive guy with stark white hair who looked vaguely familiar. Knowing his sister, he would probably be headed home on his own tonight.

Scanlan, Pike, and Grog had all spoken with him at different times during the night, though the last he’d seen of Grog was him absolutely destroying the competition at a drinking game inside while Pike and Scanlan had disappeared onto the dance floor. Despite Pike’s insistence that the two were just friends, Vax had seen the identical grins they wore as they danced and sang along to the music.

He leaned back against the wall and sipped his drink. Rich people parties were definitely different from what he was used to. Not for the first time, Vax wished they had thought to invite Gilmore along with them. Gilmore was both a better social creature than Vax, but also an excellent networker, especially on behalf of Vox Machina since he was the closest thing the twins had to an agent or manager.

He was just considering slipping out of the party when a blaze of red hair along the side wall caught his attention. For a moment he wondered if it was possible that it could be Keyleth, but he forced himself not to get his hopes up. Most of the people who were at the party had tweeted about it at least once during the night and Keyleth’s Twitter had been notably dead. Still, he peeled himself off of his wall and headed to where he saw the brilliant flash of hair.

He slid between two dancers and ducked under the exuberant flailing arms of another. He twisted to get out of the way of two dashing figures and was rocked back on his heels trying to regain his balance when he stumbled back into someone. Quickly turning, he held his hands up and burst out an apology.

“Sorry!”

His eyes and brain finally caught up with the rest of him as he noticed who he had unceremoniously crashed into. It was a beautiful young woman with flaming red hair and fair skin that was dotted with freckles across her face and shoulders. She was wearing a strapless green cocktail dress that matched her eyes and was staring at him with wide eyes. Vax blinked and his brain short-circuited.

Keyleth was staring at him and he had just bumped into her like an absolute fool.

“Vax?” she asked carefully. The uncertainty in her tone was charming and her voice was as melodic as he recognized it to be from her videos.

“Yeah, and you must be Keyleth,” he replied.

She smiled at him and he swore it was the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. “Wow, I had no idea you’d be here tonight! It’s amazing to finally meet you!”

Vax was about to offer her a hand in a handshake when she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. She was a tiny bit taller than him in her heeled shoes and her waist was slender. Her frame was much more willowy than Vex’s, but it suited her. He hugged her back, unsure of what else to do, and then Keyleth pulled back, still smiling.

She shuffled her feet and bit her lip, a charming blush darting across her cheekbones. “It’s almost weird to see you in person when all I’ve had before was your videos and our Twitter DMs.”

Vax lifted a hand and brushed back some of her fiery hair with a courage that came from God knows where. “You’re even prettier than I’d expected.”

Keyleth’s flush deepened and she stepped out of his personal space. “Thank you,” she said softly. She glanced around the crowded house where people were shouting and dancing. “Do you, by any chance, want to head somewhere quieter? This is all a bit overwhelming for me,” she admitted shyly.

Vax reached down and took her hand. “As long as we still get to hang out, I’m one hundred percent on board with that idea.”

Keyleth smiled brightly again. “Great!” She tugged on his hand and led him towards the front door.

They cut through the kitchen to get there faster, but as they were just about to leave the kitchen, Vax heard his sister’s familiar laugh. He paused, unintentionally pulling Keyleth to a stop, and looked around for his sister.

Vex was standing next to the window, pressed close to the same attractive young man with white hair from earlier. She was obviously flirting with him, and by the smug look on the young man’s face, it was definitely mutual, but Vax saw his sister sway gently and he knew what that meant. Vex was very excellent at pretending she was far soberer than she was, but the moment that swaying was involved, her night was almost over.

“Vax?” Keyleth questioned and he snapped his head back to her. She was looking between his face and their joined hands curiously.

He sighed. He really, really, wanted to get to know Keyleth and to hang out with her, but he needed to check on Vex. Just because she was handling the popularity better, didn’t mean that her mental state could cope with the fame.

“Kiki, I’m afraid I’m going to have to take a raincheck on this early morning adventure. I think my sister needs assistance getting home.” The nickname slipped out before he could stop it and he felt his ears burn gently.

Keyleth glanced past him and noticed Vex and the white-haired stranger. She smiled at him and laughed. “Of course, don’t worry at all. But,” she paused for a moment and disentangled their fingers. “Give me your phone. I’m giving you my number so we can actually reschedule this thing.”

“Hopefully not at two thirty in the morning,” Vax joked as he passed Keyleth his phone.

She giggled. “Maybe not, but if Scanlan invites you guys around again, you never know what could happen. Now, go help your sister, Vax, I’ll see you around.” She leaned forward and kissed his cheek gently and for a brief moment, Vax wanted to abandon Vex and go on whatever adventures that Keyleth could dream up.

But then Keyleth was slipping away from him with one last playful wave and Vax was left in Scanlan’s kitchen with a few strangers, his sister, and his sister’s flirting partner. He sighed and strolled in their direction pointedly.

The white-haired man noticed his approach and inclined his head to meet Vax’s eyes. Vex turned to face him when she noticed that her new friend’s interest had been stolen from her. She smiled sweetly when she saw Vax.

“Brother! Isn’t this a great party?”

Vax shook his head at the obvious drunkenness of his twin. He looked again at the white-haired man. “Vax’ildan, Vex’s brother,” he introduced, holding his hand out.

“Percy,” the man replied, shaking his hand firmly. “You’re the other half of the dynamic Vox Machina then?” To Vax’s surprise, Percy had a British accent, one complementary to the lingering accent his sister held.

Vax nodded, shifting his gaze to his sister as he tried to gauge her level of drunkenness. “Yes, I guess she mentioned that.”

Percy shrugged in response. “Actually, I just recognize you both. I like your music.”

Vax’s eyebrows rose. Vex was notorious for finding easy prey at parties, but this guy actually seemed to be drunk enough to have low inhibitions but was still sharp enough to hold a fast-paced conversation.

“Well, thanks,” Vax replied. “I do need to steal my sister though, I need to get her home before she can’t walk.”

Percy chuckled. “Do you need a hand at all?”

Vax stepped closer to Vex and slid an arm around her waist. “No thanks, this is about normal for us.”

Percy shrugged and stepped away from Vex, giving her a look that Vax recognized carried some attraction. “Well, hopefully our paths can cross again another time.”

Vex laughed. “If you keep smiling at me like that, I don’t think they’re ever going to diverge,” she teased, flashing him a flirtatious smile.

Vax chuckled under his breath as Percy’s ears tinged red and he blinked, caught off guard by Vex’s forwardness. He nudged his sister towards the front door. “It was nice to meet you, Percy,” Vax said before he turned and escorted Vex out of the kitchen.

Vex stumbled along with him, but as they exited the mansion, he noticed she was pouting. “You always have to ruin all my fun, don’t you?”

Vax sighed. “And you always have to throw yourself at the ones who don’t know what to do with you, don’t you?”

Vex laughed loudly. “But he was so pretty and smart, so I really don’t know why you’re complaining about him.”

Vax nudged her towards the road, calling an Uber on his phone. “I’m not complaining about him. He actually seemed like a huge step above your type lately. I’m talking about you and this drinking obsession you’ve developed recently.”

Vex waved him off, stumbling a few steps away. “I’m not even drunk, Vax.”

“Yes, Stubby, you can barely walk, so you are drunk. Very. Just like you’ve been almost every night this week.”

She scowled at him. “Mind your own business.”

The Uber pulled up and Vex marched towards it, purposely not looking back at him. Vax sighed. “I wish I could.”

-

The next week, Vex and Vax had finally decided to meet with the owner of Whitestone Records about potentially signing onto the label. The very thought that the two of them could sign to a major recording label was absolutely mind-blowing and a few months back would have seemed incredibly unlikely.

The twins were in their Uber on the way to the fancy restaurant that Cassandra de Rolo, the owner of the label, had selected as the meeting place. Vex was fidgeting with the hem of her stylish black dress, but she was smiling nonetheless. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he slid it out, his lips twitching into a small smile when he saw the message.

[Keyleth] Good luck with your meeting with Whitestone!! I’ve heard nothing but good things about the label since it moved to LA from London!! You’re gonna kill it!

Since the night of Scanlan’s party, Vax hadn’t found a moment of spare time or confidence to reschedule his night with Keyleth, but they texted every day and he had been sending her snippets of the new song he was working on while she asked him if he had any suggestions for a DIY video she wanted to do.

[Vax] Thanks, Kiki. i’ll let you know how everything ends up.

[Keyleth] of course you will :P

The car pulled up to the restaurant and Vex basically dragged him out of the back as they threw quick ‘thank you’s’ to their driver. Vex raised an eyebrow at the phone he held in his hand as she adjusted the neckline of her dress again.

“Texting your girlfriend?”

Vax rolled his eyes. “She’s no more my girlfriend than Percy is your boyfriend.”

Vex shoved his shoulder. “Rude. I didn’t even manage to get his number or his last name so it’s not like I’ll ever see him again.”

Vax shrugged. “He has white hair, how hard can he be to find?”

“Not hard, apparently,” a familiar voice chimed in. Both twins turned to see another well-dressed pair behind them on the sidewalk. It was the man who had spoken. He had tousled white hair and sharp flint-blue eyes that were strikingly familiar. Vex’s brain put the pieces together faster as she did a double take.

“Percy?”

“Hello, Vex’ahlia, Vax’ildan,” he greeted politely, a smile playing at his lips.

The young woman at his side cleared her throat. “I’m Cassandra de Rolo, the one you’re actually here to meet. You apparently are already well acquainted with my brother, Percival de Rolo.”

Vax’s eyebrows shot up. Everything in his brain clicked as he glanced between the siblings, his brain aligning their similar bone structure and eyes. Cassandra was the owner of the recording label and notably, the younger sister to the actor, Percival de Rolo, who was the very same Percy that Vex’ahlia had flirted with ruthlessly at Scanlan’s party.

Cassandra smirked as she looked between the twins and her brother, all of whom seemed appropriately puzzled. “Let’s go in and talk music, shall we?”

-

Vex left the lunch with Percy’s number saved in her phone and a promise to meet for coffee sometime while Vox Machina left the meeting with a contract to look over about signing on with Whitestone Records.

As they walked along the sidewalk side by side, Vex elbowed Vax. “So if I actually manage to snag Mr. de Rolo despite his famous Hollywood status, does this mean you actually have to call Keyleth, because God knows you want to.”

Vax bumped their shoulders to push her back. “No promises.”