#cuz like what if I loose whatever little skill I had

[linescribble]

I HAVE DRAAWWWWNNN

Normally I would at least render it a bit but I didn’t have time to actually do lineart properly I’ll render it after seven months ig fuck

Also if anyone sees this does tumblr let you make another blog but under the same account cuz I think I heard that somewhere, and if yes how?

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for killing a guy?

So where I grew up was like all culty, out in the woods, isolated, don’t like outsiders and such. Everyone there sucks. My whole life I tried to prove myself to them but they just weren’t having it. I was a weird little freak and they didn’t know my mom and my dad left so ig that just made me defective or something. Anyways, my big day finally came where I could prove myself without it being subjective opinion or anything. Just plain and simple black and white. Nothing complicated about it. The new second in command was going to be chosen.

How that works is anyone who wants to try to get the newly opened position can volunteer to go in the fight pit basically. Everyone who volunteers goes in at the same time and it’s a big fight to the death (or until forfeit). The only rules once you’re in there basically are: you can’t leave the pit without forfeiting, you can’t kill someone who has forfeited and must allow them to safely leave the pit, you can’t un-forfeit, and the last one remaining gets to be second in command. Very simple rules, no one ever breaks them cuz there’s so few and stuff. People also tend to forfeit rather than die and most people don’t wanna kill the people they grew up with so there doesn’t tend to be as much deatb as you’d think there would be in a “fight to the death.”

Anyways, the big day. I volunteer ofc cuz then if I win, everyone will have to respect me and see me for my skills and how much I’ve trained and everything. My two former best friends (they don’t know what the internet is so I can use their names, haha (ooc: these are ocs. Using names won’t spoil any media or anything). Python F and Leaf M. I basically grew up with them. Python stole the job I had wanted for my whole life tho so I hated her a bit and then the two of them stopped talking to me and pretended we were never friends) also volunteered for the fight. Yayyy… Also I overheard them plotting before the actual fight. Python didn’t even want to become second in command. She was just helping Leaf become second in command so he could impress his stupid mom (she sucks. And that’s not just my opinion, like she objectively sucks. Not the point tho). I feel like that shouldn’t be allowed, but the rules say nothing about it so whatever. I didn’t say anything and it’s not like anyone would listen to me anyways. I’m still pissed about it tho

Fight happens, blah blah, long story short, I dropped some big rocks that were like loose along the walls of the pit on Leaf and the person he was fighting, which would be fine and dandy except for the fact that right as I did so and couldn’t stop the rocks from falling anymore, the guy Leaf was fighting forfeitted, making it so I *technically* killed someone who forfeitted and therefore not only eliminating me, but also getting me sentenced tl the death tunnels (exactly what it sounds like) cuz I killed someone I wasn’t allowed to and yk, murder is bad and all. Then freaking Python got second in command, stealing the job I wanted for a second time, but not only that! Her role was effective immediately. She just watched as I was taken away to the death tunnels and didn’t say a word. Didn’t use her new role to even *try* to save her childhood best friend. Like yeah, I hate her guts, but I find it hard to believe that I’d just stand by and watch her get sentenced to the tunnels without a single word. And everyone says I’m the heartless one! She didn’t even want the job!! If she saved me and everything got cleared up and I wasn’t found to be guilty of illegal murder, I could have taken the job she didn’t want anyways. I could be second and everything would be fine!

Yeah, I did in fact kill two people and not feel bad about it really, but that was allowed. It was legal murder and they knew what they were signing up for. The only issue is that technically that guy forfeitted. What was I supposed to do?? Reverse gravity????? I can’t just suddenly gain magical powers to reverse stuff. If I could’ve stopped the rocks from hitting the guy, I would’ve, but there was absolutely zero way for me to do so so idk what they expect of me. They just saw a chance to get rid of me and also not have me as the second of command, so they took it.

Anyways, though, I know I’m not the asshole, but I need to prove to someone that I’m in the right so I need more people to agree with me. Thanks in advance for helping prove I’m in the right B)

[what-if-i-just-did]

Destiel Prompt List 28. Dean gets drunk and confesses his feelings.

Trigger Warnings: being drunk, drinking cause you don't wanna think, mentions of thinking you're a burden, people that always leave

One Drunk Hunter And His Angel

Dean stumbled down the steps of the Bunker and swayed a little. "Ha.." he mumbled, and a chuckle was trying to make it's way up his throat, but he wasn't sure why it was there and it tasted sour, if that makes, sense, so it only half-made it out of his mouth. Right? That makes sense right? He's not sure it should make sense but it makes sense right now.

"Dean? ..Are you alright?" Sam and Cas are walking towards him like he's got blood running down his face. "Yeh 'm fiiiiiine... jus' a li'le bit drunk.. I think. Maybe a lot bit drunk... yea probably that. I think." The gears in his head are connecting with the wrong other gears, so forming sentences is not exactly a mastered skill right now. "Sorry... I.. I should sleep, right? That's what you.." his sentence trails off, because he's lost the capacity to word his thoughts, because his thoughts are muddled all together like one big heep of silvery, foggy thought or something. He thinks there's probably a reference he can make, but he can't find it and it doesn't seem important.

"Dean, why did you go out to drink?" And there's that deep, concerned voice that does things to him, and he smiles into a dopey grin. "Hey Cas, good to see ya too, y'know, could like, greet me properly or whatever... angel." He slurs. His head tips forwards, but Cas catches it, brings Dean to look at him. "You've got a blood alchohol of point thirty-four. Why did you go drink?", Cas says, and Dean's grin drops and he looks down. "Cwause I di'n't wanna... I don' wanna think righ' now, cause every'ing is so.. bad. Everything's bad. With, with Ch-uck, and Amara, and the whole... the Mark thing, and you!" He spits the names out like they're a spinach-brocolli-banana-smoothie, but when he indicates Cas, he just sounds desperate. He makes a movement towards Castiel, like he's accusing him of something.

Cas furrows his brows. "I'm sorry. What did I do, Dean?"

"You-you're never 'ere! You- you're off doing stupid angel buisness and you leave me behind! You- you never, you never stay, you should stay! 'Ut tha's my fault o' course, cuz when you wann'ed to stay, I toldya ta leave, an' now y-you don't think you can stay, so you leave! You always leave!" Dean was trying to move now, unsuccesfully.

That was.. not what Castiel had been expecting. He's not sure what he was expecting- he's done a lot wrong. To be yelled at for letting Lucifer in, or for being a burden, or maybe something further back- for working with Crowley, for setting loose the Leviathans, for leaving in Purgatory, for letting the Angels fall. Not for this. Not for.. leaving. "Dean... none of that is your fault. I'm incredibly grateful you want me to stay, and I will, until you change your mind. Thank you, Dean. I never mean to leave you." He grudgingly thinks that that may be the instant Dean is sober.

Dean's staring at him like he's said something ridiculous. He's about to ask when Dean finally speaks. "I ain' gonna change my mind abou' letting you stay! Cas, this is your home too!- or I, or I wan' it to be.. 'm bad at sayin' stuff like tha'. 'sgood 'm drunk. You don' gotta be so gratefu' about stuff ya should jus' 'ave. 'm jus' kinda stuck-up sumtimes with the whole.. emosh'on thin'. I care abou' yuu, Cashh.. I love ya! I love ya stupid sumtimes. Can't think with it.. but 'll 'e mad tha' I said tha' t'murrow, so 'ma go.. go s'eep, I'thin-k." Dean sloppily kisses Cas's cheek and saunters off. Both Cas and Sam are too stunned to go after him and tell him he went the wrong way.

[ssuminshan-official]

Zixuan: lovely day we're having.

Yao: really is.

Zish, do you think my tail got fluffier?

Zixuan: yes! It had!

You'll forever be the cutest hulijing.

Yao: aww.

But what do you do when your peacock feathers drop? Well, after they're collected.

Zixuan: they're stored in a vault.

Actually they can be used as a form of money, or become beautiful ornaments.

Yao: amazing. Well Huangdi's feathers are the most valuable.

My fur is also stored in a vault, because it's valuable and it shouldn't end up in the wrong hands.

People can track and control a hulijing by just using their fur.

Zixuan: let's hope that Huaisang doesn't find out.

Yao: never.

Zixuan: I don't like him.

I would have fired him on the first day.

Yao: lol. Speaking of them. Where's our dear attendant?

Zixuan: late.

Yao: oh how dreadful.

Jgs: *entering with torn clothes (torn pajamas lol)

Bosses.

Zixuan: you're late! Should I fire you!

Jgs: sorry boss.

Yao: what happened to you?! Why are you dirtier than usual?

Jgs: boss. I was delivering food to your vermon. Then they tore up my clothes and pushed me in mud.

Yao: maybe they don't like you.

Jgs: they almost pushed me down the stairs.

Yao: *sarcasm* wow, how was the experience like? I want to know.

Jgs: there are also some of your hooligans who are burning my effigy.

Yao: oh you. It's cold these days, so they're using it as a source of warmth.

Zixuan: ungrateful.

Yao: ah, that reminds me. A-Yi. How's my jingjing warming project coming along?

Yi: coming along well, Huangdi. 11 million homes will have an adequate. warming system.

Yao: good.

Jgs: now what do you two pests want!

Zixuan: two gorgeous majesties.

Jgs: yea yea. Whatever.

Zixuan: we don't want anything. Just stand behind us.

Yao: and wait for a command.

Jgs: do you think I have time to spare!

Yao: you don't have anything else to do.

Jgs: won't you let me bathe at least!

Zixuan: later.

Rusong: A-Die.

Yao: my darling! Come give me a hug.

Rusong: *hugs*

Zixuan: how are you Song'er?

Rusong: *smiling* going great, uncle Zish.

Zixuan: marvelous.

Yao: come sit with us, little Dianxia.

Rusong: sure.

Yao: my cute little hulijing baby.

Rusong: *smile*

Rusong: gramps is that you?!

Jgs: spawn of a bastard child, Song'er.

Yao: Song Wangzi to you.

Or Dianxia.

Jgs: *grumbling*

I know that Song'er is close to me!

Rusong: no? I can't remember even spending time with you.

Jgs: little brat!

Yao: you're not allowed to come into contact with Song'er by the way.

You might hurt him.

Jgs: why?!

Zixuan: do you even care? You called him a bastard child.

Yao: and history repeats.

Zixuan: right!

Zixusn, Yao and Rusong: *open their fans at the same time*

Fuying: Huangdi, Huangdi. One of official Xue's fierce corpses broke loose, and now he's chasing some of your subjects around the Manor's compound!

Yao: oh no.

Zixuan: Yaoyao, we should stay indoors.

Fuying: he's not that dangerous, Huangdi, but we need someone to tame him.

Yao: gosh, and team dimple are doing some office work.

Let guangshan do it.

Zixuan: marvelous!

Jgs: m...me?

Yao: aren't you a cultivator?

Fuying: excellent idea.

Jgs: no way I'm fighting some undead beast! Why don't you do it!

Feng: Huangdi, some ministers are here to meet you.

Yao: I'll be right there. Sorry, I got to go.

Zish, Song'er, we'll meet.

Rusong: sure.

Jgs: *glaring at Zixuan and Rusong*

Zixuan: what?

Jgs: you, that bastard and Rusong are skilled in fighting, why don't you do it?!

Zixuan: I'm a guest.

Rusong: I'm a prince.

Jgs: *storms out*

Zixuan and Rusong: *highfives each other*

Zixuan: now let's go, Song'er. I'll teach you some archery techniques.

Rusong: *smiling* lovely, uncle Zish.

~~~

*team dimple were sitting in their office*

Huaisang: *skipping into the team dimple office* team dimple!

Xue yang: what are you doing here.

Su she: aren't you supposed to be polishing Huangdis boots?

Huaisang: I got a day off. Cuz guangshit is their attendant now.

Mo xuanyu: *choking on tea* what! Lol, really!

Xue yang: ahahahahahaha. Let's go torment him!

Su she: emperor will be so pleased if we do.

Huaisang: can I be a part of your mischief?

Su she: why?

You could never mix with team dimple.

Xue yang: that's facts! Team dimple is full!

Hauisang: relax, I don't want to be a part of your stupid simping group. Even though I agree that San ge is hot.

Don't tell him.

Huaisang: I just want to torment guangshit too.

Mo xuanyu: let us discuss.

Mo xuanyu: what do you think guys?

Su she: maybe he can, for this time only.

Xue yang: if it doesn't hurt Jiggy.

Mo xuanyu: yea that's the point.

This doesn't harm him.

Su she: listen up huaisang.

We're Yao Simps ok! And we won't dance to your tunes.

But you can join us in tormenting him if you like.

Hauisang: I don't like your pushiness, but ok.

Xue yang: Minshan is right. And he must tell you before power and air go up to your head.

Huaisang: guys, that won't happen!

Mo xuanyu: since that Yao gege isn't here at the moment, we should get someone to run team dimple.

So that huaisang doesn't outsmart us.

Xue yang: I would like to nominate Shanshan..

Mo xuanyu: I agree!

Su she: well I must say that I'm Huangdi's right hand man.

Xue yang: and biggest simp.

Huaisang: extra just like San ge.

Su she: let's go, team dimple. And Huaisang.

~

Later on....

After being tossed around like a chew toy by a fierce corpse, as well as taking minutes to tie them up, guangshan tries to relax and have a bottle of liquor.

Jgs: oh what an unfortunate fate I have! I know that I can't fight, but I thought that the skills would just spawn. The fierce corpse chewed on my ankle! Then if it's not them, it's those evil hulijings and their evil emperor.

It doesn't have one evil emperor though, but two!

Jgs: who told me go impregnate these two women! How am I supposed to know that they're empresses? They're only women.

Meng shi was a prost*tute and Madam Jin was just as useless as Mo and Qin.

But they were kinda hot though. Anyways!

Let me drink my sorrows away then.

Xue yang: *knocks the bottle out of his hand.

Jgs: you better buy that back!!

Mo xuanyu: *throws away the rest of bottles on the table*

Su she: bad bad guangshan. Drinking on the job.

Huaisang: the audacity!!

Jgs: oh God, that evil emperor sent you to torment me.

Su she: what evil emperor?

Now freshen up, our Huangdi's meeting is almost over.

Jgs: so what do you want me to do?!

Mo xuanyu: get him refreshments.

Jgs: aren't you afraid that I poison it.

Su she: rest assured. Food can't exit the kitchen without being approved by the imperial chefs and food inspectors.

Hauisang: do you know what delivery is, old man!

Xue yang: you should move with the times.

Huaisang: collect his refreshments. And get some stuff for team dimple too.

Xue yang: tata!

Mo xuanyu: we got to meet Yao gege!

Huaisang: San ge loves punctuality ok. Don't get fired.

Su she: I despise you.

Jgs: you all are savage!!! Can I at least get to drink alcohol!!

Su she: no.

Jgs: why not!

Su she: Huangdi's orders.

Jgs: *goes to choke sms*

Su she: *holds back his hand* yangyang.

Xue yang: *kicks him in his stomach*

Jgs: ugh! *falls on the floor*

Mo xuanyu: you can't touch team dimple, Jin bagaballs.

Su she: *trying to contain his laughter* A-Yu, what the hell.

Xue yang: the name suits him!

Huaisang: it really does, ahahaha.

Xue yang: bye bye, Jin bagaballs.

Su she: we're being deprived of our Huangdi's presence. So we must leave.

Mo xuanyu: before we die.

Like your fertility when you became an old man.

Xue yang: dang, xuanyu, you're on fire!

Su she: I know right!

•

Team Yao: *laughing to themselves*

Su she: bagaballs!!! A-Yu.

Mo xuanyu: lol!

Xue yang: I got a better one. Guangstate

Like guangshan and prostate.

Su she: xue yang, nooo. Lol.

Xue yang: think of one.

Su she: Guanggaids.

Huaisang: more like Gonorrhea.

Su she: guangpee.

Huaisang: guangjaculation.

Xue yang: oh my goodness! We have to tell Jiggy about these names.

He'll instantly die of laughter.

Su she: I know right. Lol.

Huaisang: When San ge laughs, there's no end. I should know, since he spent time in Qinghe.

Xue yang: lol, he do have a humor.

Mo xuanyu: Yao gege is so fun! He really loves our team dimple antics!

Su she: he's so precious.

I can't believe that guangstate did that to him and his A-niang. The legendary Madam Meng.

Mo xuanyu: how about we put a picture of her in his room to stress him out.

Xue yang: what about 200 of them!

Su she: brilliant!

Huaisang: perfect plan! But how would we get 200 drawings of Meng Shi?

Xue yang: She's a goddess and empress in Jingjing, obviously 200 hulijings would love to draw her.

Su she: right.

We'll prank him later, lol.

Meanwhile.....

Yao: *relaxing after his meeting*

Fuying: *massaging his shoulders*

Xue yang: JIGGY!

Su she: we got some news!

Mo xuanyu: how was your meetings, Yao gege?

Yao: it was ok.

What news you guys have?!

Huaisang: bagaballs is acting up again.

Yao: *laughing* who?!

Su she: guangstate, who else. He was drinking alcohol! And calling you and xuan Huangdi evil.

Yao: lol! How dare guangstate. Ahahahaha.

Su she: for real. I can't believe guangpee either.

Mo xuanyu: I feel like Guanggaids should be taught a lesson.

Xue yang: Gonorrhea is very rebellious. Drinking alcohol without your permission.

What if he drinks, gets drunk and guangpiss himself.

Mo xuanyu: that will be known as guangjaculation. But with piss.

Yao: you four, I can't breathe. *laughing more* what is with these names. They're hilarious.

Su she: those are his names from now on.

Yao: yes!!

Yao: lol. Fuying, get me some water.

Fuying: yes. Here you go, Huangdi.

Yao: thank you.

Jgs: *sourly* boss.

Xue yang and mo xuanyu: ew.

Su she: speak of the devil.

Huaisang: you know how long San ge was waiting for you!

Yao: come in.

Jgs: I brought refreshments.

Yao: excellent.

Ah, I need a foot rub, while relishing these.

Omg, you got my favorite tea and snacks. I'm impressed.

Jgs: your imperial chefs did it. I'm only delivering.

Yao: aww, I know.

But you should have taken some credit. You work so hard, despite being a lazy little leech.

Mo xuanyu: Yao gege is so savage lol.

Xue yang: that what makes him hot.

Especially when he handles his enemies like this.

Su she: Huangdi. I can give you a foot massage.

Yao: very soon, dear Shanshan. You're the best.

But I want guangstate to do it.

Jgs: why?! There's no way I'm touching your stinky feet!

Su she: don't insult him!!

Xue yang: can't you believe that he almost choked Minshan.

Yao: *furious* you dare try to hurt him.

How should I punish you!

Jgs: you can't do anything to me!

Yao: *grabs behind his head*

Jgs: let go of me you bastard!

Yao: apologize to him!!!

Jgs: no!

Yao: *tightens his grip*

Jgs: agh! I'm sorry, I'm sorry ok! Sorry Misty Spell Master.

Yao: do you forgive him, Minshan?

Su she: never did. But yea, spare him.

Yao: alright. *let's him go*

Jgs: *grumbling while massaging A-Yao's feet*

Yao: lovely. *sips tea*

Yao: jgs.

Jgs: what do you want? Bosssss.

Yao: you drank alcohol without my permission. That's not good.

Jgs: these four snitches told you everything?!!!

Yao: of course they did.

Nothing is hidden from me, and especially in my residence.

Jgs: why don't your team dimple and staff ask for permission.

Yao: because they're amazing. I'm hospitable to them, and they're hospitable to me.

And you don't know how to treat people,

Jgs: I hate working for you! And that Zixuan!

Yao: *sigh* oh gosh.

We're trying to help you pay your rent.

Su she: he's so ungrateful.

Yao: yea. How stressful as well.

Jgs: *rolls eyes* my life is hell.

Mo xuanyu: you're hell.

@verycatbluebird

[phantomofthecafe]

"Reaper Man" - Short Story

It was a dark and stormy night. Nah, not really. More like overcast evening, slowly fading to night, but that's beside the point. There was a pleasant change in the air, a coolness I hadn't been graced by in a while. You really gain an appreciation for the weather when you live in Louisiana. And you really gain an appreciation for it when you're homeless. Imagine how crawfish feel being boiled, right? Now imagine existing like that, almost every day in the summer. At least Arizona has dry heat. Here? Wet air, like the inside of a pot of rice on the stove, and heat that's more oppressive than the capitalist hellscape of modern America. All right, I'll stop ranting, but fuck this weather.

Anyways, I was on my way to a bar. Not to drink, that'd be stupid. Alcohol is bad, don't do drugs, stay in school kids, blah blah blah. I was going there because I heard of a bard. A very skilled bard, according to what I've heard. What I didn't hear was a name. Why should I get the essential details, right?

The bar looked normal on the outside. A little sandwich board sign out front advertised a band called "Purple Jo & the Crusaders," who were playing right now. From what I could hear of them from the outside, they didn't have to worry about their mid name. When I walked inside, the sound of quality rock music washed over my senses. The thump of the drums and the bass, the slightly fuzzy guitar tones, and the melodic male vocals. Gods, their music would make the Pope put on a battle vest and throw up devil horns.

I sat down at the bar, next to a woman who was cleaning her saxophone. She must be up next after the band.

The bartender walked up to me and asked, "You look a little young to be in here. Got some sort of parent here with you?"

Before I could reply, the lady next to me passed a few dollars to him and waved him away. "He's with me, I'll pay for whatever he orders," she said. "What'll you have, kid?"

"Shirley Temple," I said. Don't know who she was, but who am i to turn down a free drink?

"Coming up, Ms. Nally," the bartender said. I looked at Ms. Nally. She was dressed in grey slacks, a black silk shirt that had two undone top buttons, and a pair of round, purple-lensed sunglasses. Her auburn hair curled in places like wisps of smoke readhing towards the heavens.

"So, kid," she said, "what brings you here? Did you come for the atmosphere? Cuz the bar that highschoolers buy beer at is a street or two away from here."

"Well, the atmosphere here is nice. Classy, but they use neon lights. A good combo," I replied. "No, I'm here to meet someone. Could you tell me which member of that band is a bard?"

She took off her glasses and examined the band onstage. She smirked and put her glasses back on. "None of them. What's a teenager like you need a bard for anyways?"

The bartender came back with my drink, placing it in front of me on the counter. I took a sip of my drink. "It's personal business, I'm afraid," I said.

She scoffed and stood up. "I'm up next," she said, "watch and learn, you might learn something about music."

After Purple Jo and the Crusaders exited the stage, Ms. Nally stood onstage. She tilted her glasses down and winked at the ladies closest to the stage, causing them to blush and giggle. She got ready to play, her mouth on the mouthpiece...

As fate would have it, this was the moment where all hell broke loose. Who could've seen it coming?

A bunch of armed thugs, not unlike the ones I beat up a while ago, bust in through the front doors of the bar, interrupting Ms. Nally before she could even start playing. It was at this moment that I realized that the owner of this place would kill me after seeing the damages.

In a second, I had drawn my sword from the sheath at my belt and had it raised in a defensive stance. Before I could say or do anything, Ms. Nally leapt from the stage, over the small crowd, and landed between me and the mob.

"Y'know, I was hoping to impress those cute ladies in the audience there, but now..." she flexed her fingers on the keys of her sax, "I guess I can impress you guys. After all, not many people get to be blown away by the Hornfreak!"

The Hornfreak? Oh, that was very familiar. I immediately covered my ears, and not a moment too soon. It was then that Ms. Nally began bellowing out the most powerful rendition of "Baker Street" I had ever heard. The bunch of thugs by the door were so blown away by her performance, most of them flew out of the door and into the street. The few left in the building were on their knees, groaning in agony.

Once she was out of breath (like a solid two minutes after she started playing), she slung her saxophone over her shoulder triumphantly. With a smug smile painted on her face, she asked them, "Well, how'd you like that, folks?"

[twstwonderlandstuff]

be mines, valentine? [2/2]

what gifts do the boys give you during this special day?

not beta read.

a/n: there is lots of bias for silver and sebek, and for that, I'm sorry (not rlly)

epel felmier.

he gives you specially carved apples from his farm. with skilled fingers, he carves them just how he would like, dips them in chocolate and magics them, so they won't loose their flavor. in the morning, he hands them over to you, with confidence bolstering over his natural accent.

"hey, heard it's valentine's day an'- cuz' we're real good to each other, I carved ya' sum apples! I made sure to pick out the best ones for 'ya!"

rook hunt.

dramatic and flamboyant, rook's gift represents him well; a poem straight from his heart about his feelings for you. it's filled to the brim with little quirks he associates with you.

"trickster! for this day filled with love, I give you my love!"

vil schoenheit.

vil, concerned for you hands you a product bundle of his best selling kits. he's worried you aren't taking care of yourself, you see, and what better way to show that you care then pampering them yourself? it's elegant, it's refined, it's vil, and he reminds you that it is.

"potato, relax. yes, just like that. don't open your eyes while I apply this on you. don't you move an inch."

idia shroud.

idia can't deal with most people, but he finds your company enjoyable. so, when valentine's day comes, he gives you a valuable item in-game for whatever you're wanting- skins, equipment, anything! just for this day, he'll break his gamer pride and hand you something he knows you'll enjoy.

"h-here. you've wanted this for a while, right? i- I saw you staring at it in the game shop, so... u-UWAH, d-don't hug me so suddenly...!"

ortho shroud.

the robot searches far and wide in the internet and interwebs for your perfect gift, and with his brother's help, he's got it: a small, more compact digitized version of him! you always said he was helpful, so why not take (another version of) him with you everywhere? that way, he can help you more!

"it's valentine's day! according to my searches, it's a day where you show gratitude to someone by handing them presents! so, here is mines- I hope it proves useful to you!"

malleus draconia.

malleus is quite the lonely person, so when you came into his life and brightened it up, he knew he had to thank you, one way or another. when lilia mentions valentine's day, malleus took his chance.

he gifts you a tamagochi in your colors, and pairs it up with his. that way, wherever the two of you are, you'll always be together.

"child of man, lilia told me of this 'valentine's day'. while it is not a box of chocolates, I hope this brings you as much joy as it does to me."

lilia vanrouge.

this old man has seen and gone through valentine's day like an experienced warrior. he's received valentine gifts, made valentine gifts, had a date of valentine, been rejected on valentine's... he uses this knowledge to give you something wonderful: himself, of course!

"consider yourself lucky. it's not everyday a general hands over his entire being to someone, let alone a human. fufu, little bat, let's enjoy ourselves on this day, shall we?"

silver.

since his 'friend' in briar valley consists of only sebek, silver doesn't have a single clue on where to start with gifting gifts on valentine's day, so he consults with his father. ...unfortunately, giving his entire being to you doesn't seem like a good idea, so he does what he does best; protection.

he gives you his protection for the day, and his company with it. he allows you to toy with him however you please; he trusts you enough that you won't make him do something awful.

but during valentine's, he does come up with something; well, he and his animal friends do- a strong cup of coffee and a garland of flowers, arranged intricately to suit you best.

"it's not much, but I hope you like it, prefect. I normally spend valentine's day with my father, so I'm not too sure for things like this. ...you like it?"

he graces you with a small smile.

"I'm glad."

sebek zigvolt.

he is, CONFLICTED! one on hand, you're just a human, there's no need for him to bother with you unless necessary, but on the other hand you have helped him lots, and he is grateful for your help...

and, you do make for good company...ARGH, but- but---!

as he laments over this dilemma, lilia gives him some much needed advice.

"think of this as a training of some sorts. one has to challenge their view of the world, sooner or later, and i'd rather you face this one sooner, sebek."

"it's not really training, is it?" says silver doubtfully as sebek runs off.

"oh shut it, son."

sebek ends up giving you chocolates, shaped like dragons and lightning bolts and also some books he thinks you'll like in such a roundabout way you can't help but pinch his cheeks affectionately.

"human-! sir lilia told me this is a form of training to dispel me of my bias, so- WHAT WAS THAT FOR?! ...oh, be- BECAUSE I WAS CUTE?! d-don't say that so...! argh, this is why humans are so-!"

grim.

grim is inclined to gift you a tuna, but after some discussions with the ghosts, he's decided to give you some food. he knows what it's like to get yummy food for free, so why not give his henchman the same delight he feels?!

"henchman! this ain't cuz' it's valentine's or anythin', but I'm feelin' real generous, so here, take it! it's the great grim's special- paw buns! be prepared to get blown outta this world, hehehe!"

the 3 ramshackle ghosts.

it's been so long since they've had this much fun, and since valentine's is coming up, why not show their gratitude? after some fiddling, the ghosts decide to give you an upgraded uniform! the patches are now fixed, and that annoying hole on the side is fixed, too!

"you know, you've made this place so much livelier for us... have this as our thanks! do you like it...? you do... lots...? that's great news!"

[soulmate-game]

Not related to the other two Bio!mom Harley AUs that I did. Just... similar. I wrote this instead of sleeping, as per the usual.

—*—*—*—*—*

“I need your help.”

No accent, no threats of violence, no beating around the bush (figurative or otherwise). No fighting or unconscious bodies.

Just Harley Quinn with her hair down, no makeup, and completely serious, in the center of the Bat Cave. Even though her usual exaggerated Brooklynn accent (circa 1950s) had become a pretty inseparable part of her personality over the years, every now and then she forcibly stuffed it down and used her mostly unaccented voice. The one reminiscent of days with less colors on her face, a high bun, and a pristine white lab coat.

Every single one of the Bats and Birds present, fresh from an interrupted patrol thanks to her, could count the number of times they had seen Harley like this on one hand. Bruce would have the most recollections, but everyone else would have plenty of fingers left on said hand. So they all knew, especially when Bruce willingly pulled down his cowl so he could look Harley in the eye, that this was the start of something they were not likely to forget. And maybe their chances of survival were slim too.

“Harley,” Bruce’s voice was still gruff, seeing as he was still mostly Batman at the moment, but his eyes were soft. “Maybe you should tell us what you need help with first. And sit down. You look exhausted.”

Sure enough, there were dark circles under Harley’s eyes. She let Bruce-man lead her over to one of their debriefing tables and sit her down. She let out a huge sigh, her fingers tangling in her loose blond locks.

“I have a confession, and it isn’t gonna leave this cave, capiche?” The slight return of her accent relieved a little of the tension, but not much. Taking this as their cue, the rest of the bats spread out into their usual seats at the table. Bruce stayed near Harley, keeping a hand on her shoulder in silent support. Harley didn’t continue talking until he gave her a solemn nod in agreement. She gulped— an action that immediately returned the tension.

“... fifteen years ago, back when I was still with Joker, I disappeared off the Gotham scene for a few months. I’m sure a few of you remember,” she looked up, and a couple of the older vigilantes nodded. Really, Jason has still been Robin back then. But the memory stuck out in his head now that he was thinking about it.

“Yeah, you were breaking away from him a little bit, which was weird at the time,” Red Hood mused aloud, arms crossed. “I think you helped us out a couple times and did some of your first team ups with Ivy before you vanished. Then a few months go by and you were back in action with Joker, so we mostly ignored it as you just being you.”

Harley nodded. “Ah, my Ivy’s a lifesaver, even back then. She helped cover up the timeline by keeping me in action for longer than I should’a been without putting me at too much risk.”

“Timeline…” Red Robin spoke up, eyes huge even behind his mask. “You don’t mean—“

“Harley,” Bruce breathed, having also caught on. “You were pregnant?”

The air went still. Harley sniffed, eyes watering even as she smiled.

“Oh yeah. Shouldn’t have been possible, ya know? Me ‘n Joker being dumped in that damn acid should have made us both more sterile than an operatin’ room. But I knew I couldn’t raise a kid, so after she was born—“

“You kept her?” Damian interrupted, earning a gentle cuff over the head from Dick. Harley just snorted.

“Yeah. Not gonna lie, I thought about abortion. But the baby didn’t do nothin’ wrong, and I was still in love with Joker back then so I was ecstatic that I was able to make something new with part ‘a him in it. Still, I knew a baby didn’t deserve to be raised in Gotham. Especially not my baby, not with my enemies and history. Not with who her father was. I knew he’d never want her, never let me keep her. So I spent the last five months of my pregnancy lookin’ around for the best possible family to take her in. And I found them in Paris, France. A sweet couple, both of them bakers. Sabine, she’s both adorably sweet and super kickass. Comes from a Chinese family that is crazy about teachin’ their women martial arts. But nothing shady about it, I triple checked. Just bonding through kicking people in the face. Which is perfect, I wanted my baby to know how to defend herself. I knew she’d need those skills eventually. And Tom, that’s Sabine’s wife, he’s a gentle giant. Same size as Bane, but as harmless as a puppy and makes the best croissants ever. Seriously, the best.”

“Harley,” Bruce gently prodded, but there was a tiny grin on his face. Seeing her behaving so… so normally, so proud and reminiscent, was a rare treat. Bruce would be lying if he said he wasn’t proud of how far the woman had come. How she had freed herself and become a better person, mostly on her own.

“Right, right. The point,” Harley took a breath, rubbing her forehead. “I came clean to Tom and Sabine, but apparently they knew who I was the whole time. They just didn’t care— did I mention they are perfect? Anyway, once I explained everything, they agreed immediately to adopting my baby. They’d been wanting kids, but it would’a been too risky for Sabine’s health. That’s how I found them anyway, they were in the market to adopt. We named her Marinette. She took Tom and Sabine’s last names, hyphenated. We decided Quinn would be her middle name. And after that, I came back to Gotham and told myself that she was in good hands and I needed to forget about her. Cuz I was no good for her. I knew that. I went back to my old tricks. And then…” Harley chuckled, but it was self-depreciating.

“Then a few years passed, and I started breaking away from Joker for real. Then we broke up, I blew up Ace Chemicals while you guys were outta town doing Justice League and Young Justice shit. I started dating Ivy. And—“ she smiled softly at the table, clearly seeing something the rest of them couldn’t. “Then Ivy convinced me to go see her. Visit my baby, see how she’s been. And I did. Marinette was seven years old, but damn it to hell she was gorgeous. And say whatever you want about me and Joker— most of it will even be true— but neither of us are stupid. And she inherited all of our intelligence. All of it. She got my blue eyes. But she got his hair, which meant Sabine teased me relentlessly about ‘are you sure she isn’t that Wayne’s kid?’ And don’t make that face Bruce, you’d be lucky to have a kid half as beautiful as my Mari-pie. No offense, Damian. Anyway. Anyway, this is the important part. Or part of it.

“She sat there and listened to everything I had to say. Everything. A little seven year old, who could barely understand English at the time, and she listened without interrupting once. She never threw a fit, she wasn’t angry or confused. I told her about the things I’d done in the past— well, G rated versions— and she didn’t care. She called me Momma Harley right away, said she wanted to meet Aunt Ivy sometime soon, and started telling me everything about her that I’d missed. From that day on, she became my sunshine. The light of my life, and I still call her at least once a week every week. When I disappear for a few days out of the city? I’m visiting her—“

“You’re banned from international travel, Harley,” Dick scolded, but he sounded way too amused for it to work. He knew she had her ways, anyway. Nobody could actually stop Harley damn Quinn from doing whatever she wanted.

“—Ugh, she tells me the same thing every time! Disappointed glare and everything. I don’t know how I gave birth to such a goodie goodie, but somehow I did. Not important though! The important thing is, I’m always the first to hear when something new happens in her life. And we had decided that she wouldn’t visit me in Gotham until she was at least eighteen, but apparently she disobeyed me— which I should have expected honestly— and entered you guys’ WE international scholastic competition.”

“Oh no,” Bruce pinched the bridge of her nose. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng? The contest winner?” He finally pulled out a chair and sat down. “The winner gets an all-expense paid trip to Gotham for them and their whole class.”

“Exactly!” Harley threw up her hands. “Mari told me last week, and I’ve been trying to talk her out of coming ever since. But she’s inherited both of our stubbornness too, and she isn’t budgin’ a bit. ‘Momma Harley, I wanna see you and Auntie Ivy though!’ And ‘Momma, Gotham’s nothing I can’t handle,’ or my favorite, ‘Maybe you’ll finally get to see me dropkick someone three times my size then, and I’ll prove it.’”

“So that’s what you meant by you need our help,” Tim said as he leaned forward over the table. “Joker just broke out of Arkham yesterday. You want us to protect her.”

“I’d prefer if one of you was with her outside of the mask too, as often as possible,” Harley confirmed. “I can’t stop her from coming here anymore, but I also don’t trust Joker for a second. As soon as he sees her, I’m afraid he’ll make the connection.”

“She looks like him?” Damian asked, scrunching up his nose at the ugly mental image of Joker as a teenage girl. Harley shook her head, solemn.

“She looks like a dark-haired mini-me,” she corrected. “She even keeps her hair in pigtails as her way of showing support for me. And I know Marinette can kick ass, Sabine’s trained her well. But Marinette inherited more than I’d like from me,” Harley ran a hand through her hair. “I didn’t notice it until she was thirteen. She got a crush on a classmate, and it was almost like watching videos of me back during the early days of— well, of Harley Quinn. Just without the crime and insanity. She didn’t even realize that she was almost stalking the poor kid until I pointed it out, and luckily I was able to put my doctorate to good use and we nipped that right in the bud ASAP. She never meant it that way, anyway. As soon as I explained things to her, she was horrified and immediately asked me to help her learn how to have a healthy relationship. That was a fun discussion,” Harley grimaced. “But she still gets attached to people really, really easily. Once she grew out of her crush on that boy, she adopted him as her unofficial brother. She already calls Selina “Auntie,” even though I’ve barely mentioned her to Marinette. She gets attached fast, and deeply. And I’m afraid that even after all the warning I’ve done, all the stories I’ve told her—“

“You’re afraid she’ll get attached to Joker just like you did,” Bruce finished for her, closing his eyes. “Because she knows he’s her father.”

“Yes,” Tears were slowly dripping down her face already, her hands curled into fists so tightly that her knuckles were paper white. “You know how he is. If he finds out she’s his biological daughter, he’ll immediately try to take advantage of that. And he’s far too good with his words for people like me and Mari. I’m worried outta my mind. Please. Help keep my baby safe from him.”

“We will,” Jason no longer had his helmet on, or the domino mask that he usually wore underneath it. All of them knew masks were merely formality with Harley nowadays. And he needed to look her directly in the eye so she could see how serious he was. “I can sign up as a bodyguard for the class. It won’t be weird, seeing as they’re tourists and this is Gotham. They also have several rich kids in their group if I remember right.”

Bruce nodded, agreeing with Jason. “That’s a good idea. I can lead the class on their tours of WE personally. That’ll serve the purpose of keeping an eye on her and shutting up the investors that keep begging me to make more public appearances for the sake of the company. Marinette’s name is already released to the news as the winner of the contest, so we can’t keep her out of the spotlight long. Tim, you’ll have to keep an eye on any and all pictures of the class. Try to erase or doctor the images with her in it well enough that connections between her and Harley can’t be easily made. Dick, you and Damian will be in charge of keeping an eye out for any activity from Joker. The slightest hint, and you notify all of us. We’ll decide on a case-by-case basis who is necessary to stick with the class and who goes after the clown.”

“She’s gonna sneak out of her hotel to stay with me and Ivy,” Harley admitted, bringing the (now slightly judgemental) attention back to her. She raised her hands up in surrender. “She didn’t tell me that, and I didn’t approve or suggest it! I just know my baby too well to not realize that that’s her plan. Could ya provide an escort?”

Bruce sighed. “This is gonna be an eventful month.”

[nalu-love-4-life]

Dragon Swan Song

Author’s Note:

It’s been a very long time since I wrote a drabble on Tumblr for NaLu. But I have had an itch lately to write something for them, because I haven’t written anything passionately in a very long time, and what could be more fun to jump back into writing than to write about my OTP?

I hope you all enjoy this short NaLu drabble where Natsu is a knight assigned to protect the princess, Lucy!

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

The skirt of my dress flowed freely around my ankles as I paced back and forth from the end of my bed to the chamber doors. A feeling of impending dread was steadily building in my stomach and each time I stopped to take a breath the anxious knots only seemed to pull tighter. The late morning sunlight streaming in from the balcony created patches of heat on the cool stone floor. While the warmth on my skin brought brief comfort, my thoughts were still troubled and they swirled in my head, going ‘round and around, making me dizzy. My pacing stopped only when I heard a low rapping on the doors behind me.

“Excuse me, Princess. I’m coming in,” a husky voice called.

I swiveled around and straightened my back, and hastily tucked a couple loose strands of hair - which had fallen over my face - behind my ear. After clasping my hands together with a firm grip, I answered, “C-come in!” There was a momentary pause before the doors opened and a familiar mess of pink hair peaked into view.

Natsu, I thought with a soft sigh. I could already feel my worries sliding off from my shoulders. As he stepped into the room, I could see his firm build. He stood almost a foot taller than me and his skin was tanned from spending long days training in the sun.

“Princess Lucy, is everything alright?” He asked. “I could hear your footsteps from the other side of the doors. Is there something on your mind?” His voice was deep and sincere, but the formality of his speech felt strange.

“Y-yes! Everything is fine, really. No need to worry. I’m just overthinking some plans that my father had proposed to me this past evening.” I did my best to brush his concern away with a smile and a curt wave of my hand, but the crease between his eyebrows remained and his lips did not move from the slight frown they were set in.

“Hmm,” he hummed aloud. “Well, though I believe you’re telling me the truth, I cannot take your words at mere face value.”

“Huh?” I questioned.

“You don’t look like you’re in full health, Princess. So I will do my own inspection to make sure you are feeling well,” he said in a raised voice while peering down the long hallway. I waited with anticipation as Natsu quietly shut the wooden doors. He paused, and I watched his shoulders rise and fall as he slowly breathed in and out. When he turned around and looked at me I could see the glimmer of mischief dancing in his onyx eyes.

“Natsu,” I said. “What are you doing? It’s the middle of the day. We could be caught!”

He smirked, briefly flashing his sharp canines. A jolt rippled down my spine and my heart beat faster in my chest.

“We’ll be fine, Luce,” he said. Natsu took a couple steps closer to me. He had a confident air about him. “Anyone who was around thinks I’m simply checking on the princess to make sure she’s feeling well. Nothing wrong with that, right?” He raised his eyebrows and the devilish flare grew in his eyes. My knees wobbled underneath the intensity of his stare. As he entered further into the room, the sunlight illuminated the details of his face. I couldn’t help myself from studying him.

The old scar that ran down his right cheek stopped at his jawline, and another stretched across the right side of his neck. The rough skin healed a bit darker than his normal shade, which only made them appear more prominent. His cheeks were dusted a soft rose giving him a healthy and youthful likeness. Light freckles speckled the bridge of his nose and under his eyes, but if you weren’t looking close enough you wouldn’t think he had any at all. There was a bit of dirt on his forehead and his hair was in mild disarray, so he had probably been training in the courtyard or tending to the horses in the stables earlier. My eyes continued to scan over his face. I didn’t want to miss a thing.

“Like what you see?”

“Huh?!” Startled, my concentration broke and our eyes locked.

Natsu chuckled and closed the little distance that was left between us. His smile was warm. “You’re cute when you get lost in thought,” he muttered bringing his right hand to rest on my cheek. It was as if there was fire in his fingertips. His touch was gentle, but every one set my skin ablaze. I could feel the rough callouses on his palm that had formed from years of hard work wielding his sword and perfecting his skills.

“Don’t tease me like that,” I pouted. My hair fell loose around my shoulders as I turned my head to the side.

“Aw, come on, Luce. I was being serious,” he whined, but the slight twitch at the corners of his mouth gave away his amusement. A gasp escaped my lips as I felt two strong arms circle around my waist and pull me forward. Our bodies pressed together and the palms of my hands rested on his chest. All I could think about was how firm and strong it felt.

“Natsu th-this is embarrassi-!”

“You really are beautiful, Princess,” he murmured. His voice was low and tender and every word sounded so sincere. I really admired that about him. Though sometimes he could be honest to a fault, it was just another one of his many charms.

He used his hand that was on my cheek to brush the hair from my face and place it back behind my ear. “There they are,” he said. “Hey, Doe Eyes.” A quiet chuckle rumbled in his throat.

“Hi,” I whispered almost breathless. Natsu smelled like warm linen and earth, with a hint of something sweet, like honey or vanilla. I wished that I could bottle that scent so I could revisit it whenever, but did my best to focus so I could at least commit it to memory. His dark eyes held me as a willing captive and I couldn’t tear myself away. As frustrating as his teasing could be at times, I was never more at ease than when I was enveloped in his embrace. Whenever it seemed like everything was turning upside down and I felt as if I could float away at any given moment, I could always count on him to tether me and bring me safely back to solid ground.

His face relaxed as he scanned over me. “Now,” Natsu said clearing his throat. “Are you gonna tell me why you were pacing so much? Your footsteps were so loud, I bet everyone in the castle thought an ogre was stomping around in here.” Natsu’s eyebrows lifted and his lips puckered ever-so slightly. I could tell he was holding in laughter.

“How dare you!” I huffed and pushed against his chest so that he would relinquish his hold on me. “And just when I thought you were being genuinely sweet for once.” I crossed my arms over my chest and marched onto the balcony.

There was a cool spring breeze and the sky was bright blue with thin white clouds floating lazily overhead. I positioned myself so that my arms rested against the thick metal railing that overlooked the castle garden. All of the flowers were in full bloom and their many scents mixed in a harmonious melody which filled the air and swirled around me. I took a deep breath in to fully appreciate the wonderful aroma. As my muscles began to relax the sound of heavy boots came closer to my turned back.

Natsu stood quietly beside me with his back leaned against the railing. He craned his neck to the side and looked across the castle grounds. “You always did enjoy the garden, didn’t you?” He asked, although it seemed like it was more of a statement to himself. “Even when we were kids, if you were ever upset you’d always go someplace where you could see the flowers.”

I glanced at him from the side. “Of course I like the garden,” I sighed. “The flowers are pretty, it’s always quiet, and I can lose myself walking around in it. I can pretend like I don’t have a care in the world—like I can do whatever I want—be whoever I want—love whoever I-” I stopped myself and turned to look at Natsu. He was smiling at me, but it was small and there was sadness underneath. Natsu shifted his eyes away from me and turned around so that he faced the garden. His broad shoulders slumped forward and his weight pressed down on his forearms that he’d rested on the railing.

“Do you remember that day?” He asked. “When we met?” I ran my eyes over his face, trying to discern what he might be thinking. “You were picking daisies in the far corner of the garden to make a makeshift crown, and I was running from Makorov ‘cuz I accidentally tore a hole right through his trousers with my sword.”

“As I recall, you caused that tear because you were sparring with Gray again over who was going to get to eat the last slice of Miss Mira’s strawberry shortcake that she’d baked earlier that day,” I mocked. “But then Erza knocked your heads together, claimed it for herself, and ate it right in front of you! So neither you nor Gray got any cake and you were both punished for fighting—no sweets for a whole month!” I raised my hand to cover my mouth as I laughed.

“Y-yeah… Erza’s scary,” Natsu muttered.

I stood with my hands on my hips and gave a disapproving stare. “I haven’t forgotten how you ran straight into me and crushed all of my daisies before I could make that crown, by the way,” I said. “And you caused me to fall face first into the dirt and ruin the new dress Father had gotten for me, too,” I huffed. Natsu grimaced and rubbed the back of his head, ruffling his hair.

“Uh, yeah, sorry,” he said. “I remember getting an earful about that too.”

I scoffed in mild amusement. “It’s fine. To be quite honest, Father always ordered the most stuffy dresses back then, anyway, and the one you ruined was particularly stifling to wear,” I said. “Especially when I was out in the garden.”

“Well, I wish you had said something back then before Erza chewed me out for that in between mouthfuls of cake,” Natsu laughed.

“Why would I when it’s so amusing to see how you and Gray shake like puppies when she scolds you?” He pretended to pout at my taunting which only made me laugh more. “Miss Erza’s not so terrible, you know,” I said gaining my composure.

“You only think that because you’ve never had to fight her. After one training session I can barely move for days whenever she’s put in charge of combat practice. She’s merciless!” He whined.

I giggled and Natsu turned his head so he could look at me. His eyes were serious when they met mine. Something about his steady gaze threw my stomach for a whirl. “W-what is it?” I asked.

Natsu shifted his weight and stood tall. His stature blocked the sun and cast a shadow over me. To someone else, he might seem scary using his full height to his advantage like this. But to me, he was no more threatening than a dragonfly.

“Lucy,” he said. His voice came off stern but his eyes were almost pleading. “Tell me why you’ve been so stressed lately. I won’t continue to pretend like I haven’t noticed.” Natsu took my hand in his. I could feel his thumb tracing gentle circles over the tops of my fingers. Unlike before, he kept a respectable distance between us and was careful to hide our clasped hands behind the railing.

We couldn’t risk the groundskeepers or any other castle attendant seeing us, and the balcony was a very public spot. Any affectionate display witnessed by the wrong person was sure to circulate through the castle grapevine, and there would surely be repercussions to face. I knew this, of course, but I still felt my heart longing.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Author’s End Note:

I hope you all enjoyed this first installation of this NaLu drabble as much as I enjoyed writing it! Sorry to leave you all on a bit of a cliffhanger there but it was getting much longer than originally intended haha Should I continue it and make it a real story? If you want more please like, comment, and/or DM me and let me know what you think! And make sure to follow me on here on tumblr for any updates on this story and so you don’t miss any other Fairy Tail NaLu drabbles or fanfic posts/art or story reblogs!

❤️ nalu-love-4-life

[misterewrites]

A Part of Something Bigger (Welcome to the Underground!)

Hello everyone! E here, hoping you are safe and sound and doing good! The new chapter of the Underground is here and I'm excited for this and the next chapter. I am so happy I finally get to reveal something I’ve had in my head since I first started creating the Underground! Man am I cheek E. oh puns, I’m terrible. 

:D

I hope you are all have a great week! Stay safe, wash your hands, take care of each other, get the vaccine if you can, push for companies to give it world wide all that jazz. Feel free to comment (I love feedback) tell your friends, reblog I appreciate it all!

If you’re new and curious what the heck I’m talking about, feel free to check out the whole story and have access to my other work right in the link below (cuz I’m 95% Tumblr has shadowbanned me) 

https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrE42/pseuds/MrE42

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27814297/chapters/68094967 (first chapter)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27814297/chapters/78927370 (latest chapter) 

Have a great week, E is out!

Summary:  Turns out Oliver is a part of the Choir, a secret organization that operates within the Underground. Something big is happening tonight and It's up to Oliver and his allies to ensure it does not. However, the bard has to figure out what's going on before anything else.

-----

Oliver had been many things in the 18 years of his begrudging existence: An orphan, a thief, a con-kid, hopelessly in love, a scout, fry cook that one week and an aspiring minstrel. Many masks and different roles to survive each new day.

The one he took a quiet pride in was being a member of the Choir, a secret organization whose goal was to keep the Underground free from malicious and devious intent.

Every society had their dark, treacherous shadows where evil did its business (Oliver assumed. He only really ever lived in the Underground but you know universal constants and such.) The Choir’s purpose was to ensure those plans never came to fruition.

Rather than being an openly known identity, the Choir was more a loose collection of independent agents operating under secrecy. The organization employed any and everyone who was willing to fight for the cause, each in their own way: Merchants passed coded information, tavernkeepers offered safe havens, those with some level of magical proficiency gathered to study abnormal phenomenon. Fighters fought, clerics healed with lords and ladies used their influence for the greater good.

Sometimes, as is the case now, one individual was too limited for what was required of the organization’s purpose. In these rare moments, agents were granted permission to request help, often leaving hidden messages and imagery for other wandering members to respond to.

That’s what brought Oliver here to this dark alley in the middle of the night: When he first arrived to the capital, he caught sight of the coded symbol asking for any Choir member to lend their skill set to a mission tonight. No details added but that was par for the course.

Terri was the first to recover, her slivers eyes wide with wonder “A soprano? No joke?!Flora, he’s like you!”

Terri was tall, taller than anyone else here. She wore a red vest with torn off sleeves, probably because her muscles were too thick to actually allow them to exist in the first place. Her long jet black hair was elegantly tied into braids with her dark blue leggings tucked into thick hiking boots.

Flora pursed her lips thoughtfully, irises of lavender giving Oliver a curious look “A fellow magic user? Interesting. Wizard?”

“Bard” Oliver corrected “You?”

“Druid.” Flora spoke before drifting into an uncomfortable silence. Oliver suspected she wasn’t impressed by his response.

Flora seemed unassuming but Oliver knew better than to be lured in by appearances: Long silvery hair with petals of green and yellow flowers scattered within. She wore a white blouse with splotches of brown dirt and a long green skirt. Her feet were bare and free to be soiled by the floor.

Terri rushed over to the petrified Tyrell, dragging him into a bone crunching hug “Tyrell here is a baritone like me!”

Tyrell, the youngest beside Oliver, shifted his brown eyes away from anyone’s gaze. He wore rather well kept clothes: A tunic of purple tucked under a leather vest, his leggings were dark gray that blended fairly well in the darkness. His footwear seemed a little too fancy to be workman’s shoes.

“Fighters” Oliver nodded in understanding “Always useful. And you mysterious stranger in the darkness?”

The cloaked figure had pulled back deeper into the shadows, red eyes gleaming in the shades of night. They were trying to hard to hide their appearance but Oliver caught sight of a smooth featureless bronze face. Metallic armor of a matching color and sheen covered the rest of their body, an automaton it seems.

“You may call me Sel. I’m a tenor.” the figure responded, their voice tinged with scratchy static.

“You are going very useful. Lockpicking?”

Sel shrugged casually “Among other less savory techniques. As per usual for tenors.”

Oliver nodded “Okay, fill me in.”

Flora took a step forward, pulling a letter out of her pocket as she did so “Are you aware of one Reiner Brambleoak?”

“Oh fucking hell” Oliver rubbed his eyes tiredly “Him again? What’s he planning this time: Gonna burn an orphanage? Or maybe sell moldy food to the poor? Wait, I know!” Oliver snapped his finger “He’s going to be a terrible piece of shit.”

“Right on the money!” Terri growled.

Sel let out a mechanical click “He is planning to tear down several homes in West Haven.”

Oliver narrowed his eyes “I thought it was illegal to tear down homes in that area?”

“Not if the owners signed them over.” Flora explained “Then he would have the authority to do whatever he wished with them.”

“Let me guess, he tricked them?”

Terri flexed her muscles angrily “His representatives would change languages and double talk when they spoke to the poor folks. Most hadn’t the slightest idea what was going on and the orc thugs his people brought didn’t exactly make them feel warm and safe.”

“So.” Oliver stretched his arms “He’s strong armed his way into property, going to evict helpless folks onto the street and probably fill them with his own thugs to get the rest of the neighborhood to fall in line.”

“Unless we stop him.” Sel spoke with righteous fury.

“Tonight.” Oliver chimed in “Throwing another party?”

“You are good.” Tyrell whistled.

Oliver gave a playful wink “Naturally. What’s the plan?”

Flora reached into her pack and handed Oliver a letter: it was written in such a fancy hand he swore he was getting a headache just looking at it.

“One for each of us.” Flora explained, distributing the rest to the others “A fellow Choir member secured these tonight’s mission.”

“Helpful. Alright here’s the plan….”

“Wait” Flora interrupted “Who said you are in charge bard?”

“Me” Oliver countered with a grin “Because I’ve been to these types of festivities. Have any of you?”

Flora opened her mouth then promptly closed it, irritation in her glance. Tyrell gave a sheepish but unhelpful smile, Sel remained silent while Terri gave a thoughtful scratch of her chin.

“Thought so.” Oliver tried to keep the smugness out of his voice “Look we just need to work together for tonight.”

“Agreed.” Flora spoke with a softness that did not match her glare.

Sel inched closer to the group “What is the plan Oliver?”

“Where’s the party? Merchant Ward? I assume he’s using his office to host it.”

“Correct” Sel confirmed “His office has been chosen as the venue. He claims to be throwing the party as some sort of fundraiser for a charity that is no doubt a front for his illegal operations.”

Terri huffed, crossing her arms furiously “Probably making some more deals to trick people out of their hard earn money.”

“Without a doubt” Oliver agreed “But without any hard proof, we’re not taking him down tonight. Our mission is to ensure those contracts he forced people to sign mysteriously disappear.”

“Will that actually stop him?” Tyrell frowned unhappily “What’s stop him from forging new ones? Or just bullying people again?”

“He can’t forge new ones” Oliver explained carefully “They’re a special type of document only found here in Haven’s Nest. You can only get them from city hall and they’re magically enchanted to be untamperable with. He’ll need to get the ones he has to city hall on open court day which I assume is soon.”

“Indeed. Tomorrow in fact.”

Oliver continued on “So since open court day is the only day any major changes are allowed to be introduced to the city, if we grab them he’ll have to wait a month for another chance of snatching up that land. He’ll no doubt try to bully the folks again but now that they know what he’s up to, hopefully they’ll won’t be as easily pressured and if a few rough looking folks who can take punches and give them back start hanging around the neighborhood when his goons come knocking again…”

“They’re gonna be less eager” Terri cracked her knuckles cheerfully, already savoring the feel of bruised skin and broken bones that would bless her hands.

Oliver caught Tyrell’s eyes “One problem at a time. If you look at the mountain, you’re going to get scared.”

Tyrell nodded timidly in agreement.

“So.” Sel’s voice crackled with curiosity “What is the plan bard?”

Oliver closed his eyes, mentally mapping out the Brambleoak bank: three stories of corrupted, immoral finance who preyed on the helpless and lost. He could still see the faded green hue and cracked paint of the building in his mind’s eye. The ground floor would no doubt be where the bulk of the party would be taking place: a large space with an elevated stage normally reserved for long winded speeches could easily repurposed for a band or some sort of entertainment. His guests would range from any and everyone with any amount of influence or wealth. The second floor were the offices of his lecherous employees while his office took up the entirety of the third floor.

“Alright” Oliver spoke after a moment “I have a good idea what to expect. We’re going to break up into two teams.”

Everyone stared him expectedly.

Oliver gestured to Terri and Tyrell “You two are going to hang out at the bar across the street: The Stinkeye. Charming place, ran by a former pirate captain. Sunday is sea shanty night I think."

“Whoa, wait a minute” Terri grumbled unhappily “I am not letting Flora go into that place without me! It’s enemy turf and I don’t feel comfortable with the idea."

Flora took Terri’s hand within her own “Agreed sweetie.”

“Look this isn’t exactly a fist loaded, knives out situation. Any sort of brawling inside will be dealt with swiftly and painfully. Brambleoak doesn’t like anything scaring away the prey and causing a scene inside won’t accomplish anything. Outside, however.”

Terri’s eyes knowingly sparkled, Tyrell just looked dumbfounded.

Oliver gestured with his hand, muttering a phrase under his breath as magic formed around his hand in a golden light. A small image appeared in his palm: A heavily scarred elf with ashy blonde hair, one eye a brilliant forest green the other dull and cloudy. He wore an elegant officer’s uniform, dark green with various medals pinned to his chest with a long flowing red cape that trailed behind.

Oliver opened mouth to speak but Terri’s low snarl beat him to the punch.

“Lea Foot.”

“Acquaintance I guess?””

Flora nodded, gently squeezing Terri’s hand to get her to calm down “Lea has been a constant thorn in our sides. I believe he suspects we are a part of some greater organization. He has never seen us but he sends his underlings to bully us.”

“So I don’t need to explain his whole mercenaries for hire deal. Been exclusive to Brambleoak for a while now.”

“Can I punch him?” Terri murmured darkly.

“Yes, can she?” Flora chimed in, unable to keep the plead out of her voice.

Oliver shook his head “Maybe but we’ll see. He’s gotta show up at some point but I doubt he’ll be there right at the start. Likes to push old people around, probably eat a child or two before ‘working.’ Your job is to keep him distracted at all costs. He’s a sick man that likes to watch a good fight and the longer he’s out there, the better chance we’ll have.”

Sel tilted their head quizzically “Why is it important to keep him outside?”

“Basically” Oliver cracked his fingers “He’s very perceptive and the person most likely to catch our plan in action. His crew is made up of a nobodies with a perchance for cruelty and a thirst for violence but Lea is an old hand. Keeping himself outside is the best chance for success and if you guys accidentally get too close and managed to stray a hit his way…”

Terri chuckled manically the idea. Tyrell just looked sick.

“Meanwhile Flora, Sel and I will be inside. We’ll be looking for a chance to get Sel into the stairway so he can break into Brambleoak’s office. Without any sort of information, there’s no point to flesh out a full plan but we’ll make it up as we go. It’s a giant party of people who think they’re special. Shouldn’t be too hard to cause some drama and distractions.”

Flora said silent for a moment before speaking up “It’s not a lot to work with but admittedly better than anything I would’ve come up with.”

“Agreed.” Sel added “Without proper intel, it would be pointless to attempt to formulate any sort of long term plan. This works best to our strengths. Wait and create an opportunity,”

“That’s on us.” Oliver cut in “Your job is to get in and out. Preferably without being seen but who knows what will happen.”

The group, previously lost and anxious, glowed with renew sense of purpose and determination: 10 minutes ago they had no plan and now they were ready to do what they signed up for.

“Get ready team” Oliver gestured about “We leave in five.”

Everyone broke away to prepare for the mission: Terri cracked every bone in her body, ready for any brawl she would start. Sel slunk back into the shadows and remained still among the darkness. Tyrell held leaned unevenly against the brick building nearby, trying to steady his breathing.

Flora, on the other hand, approached Oliver, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“Oliver.”

“Flora.”

“I have a question for you.”

Oliver was confused “I’m not sure what about but go ahead.”

Flora pursed her lips “You were coming from West End, delivering a package to a Choir member out there correct?”

“Yeeeeees.” Oliver unsure where this was going “The old man. Lady Rozalin said it was the upmost importance.”

Flora bit her cheek nervously “Before you left, did you see him?”

His stomach turned cold as he remembered how uneasy he felt the day he left with Archie and Abigail, the chill that ran down his spine “No, why?”

“We haven’t been able to contact him. He is not responding to our wizards long range message spells. We’re…..worried.”

Oliver could feel his skin crawl with anxiety, his pulse raced as a horrible realization dawned on him.

“He’s missing.” Oliver spoke what Flora did not.

She nodded in response “As a high ranking member, he is important to our cause and since you were the last person to see him, the higher ups were wondering if anything suspicious happened the last day you spoke with him.”

Oliver remembered it clearly: The free money, rushing them out the door, his ‘tiredness.’ There was no such thing as free money in his mentor’s eyes and Roland was never known for pushing a guest out of his house or being tired in the middle of the day. He was attempting to get them to leave to prevent something from happening.

“He was acting weird.” Oliver admitted “At the time I found it strange but he gave me little room to argue. Now I’m wishing I had.”

Flora’s face was indifferent but Oliver could hear the sincerity in her voice “I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this. If you need a moment…”

“No” Oliver cut her off quickly “I’m good. We have a mission to do and we need to focus on that now. Afterwards we can talk about finding out what happened to the old man.”

Flora gave a simple nod before wandering over to Terri’s side, lightly kissing her cheek with affection.

Oliver took a deep calming breath: There was no point to let his mind wander, to worry about things out of his control. Even if he wanted to do something, he was needed here and now. Besides the Choir would investigate Roland’s disappearance and there were agents far more experienced than he about.

He would leave it up to them. For the moment he needed to balance out the universe and root out the evil that laid in the shadows.

[arya-skywalker]

Pleasant Surprises (Sanders Sides Fanfic)

Secret Santa fic for the amazing @nightashes ! Hope you enjoy

Prompts used:

- Familial (brotherly) anxceit, analogical

- Fantasy, (emotional) h/c

- Hugs, firelight, new beginnings

- “I think I understand now”

- “I’m here for you” (slightly different phrasing but same idea)

Read on AO3

Summary: Virgil risks a journey home to the dark forest to reconnect with brother Janus— and invite him to a potential wedding.

~*~

“I need to tell him,” Virgil said, curled up by the fire.

“Hm?” Logan looked up from his book. “Tell who, what, exactly? I’m afraid I’m not quite following.”

Virgil grimaced. “My brother. About....” He gestured vaguely. “Us? Me not being dead?”

“Ah.” Logan closed his book. “Would you like me to come with you?”

“No.” Virgil quickly shook his head. “No. I need to go alone. Besides, it’s not safe for you there.”

Logan folded his hands on his lap. “You left for a reason. Are you quite certain you want to go back?”

“I was scared, Lo. But now... I know what to expect. I’m ready.”

“Very well. Contact me if you need assistance.” Logan stood and walked over to his desk, taking out a small handheld mirror. “Say my name into this mirror, and we will be able to communicate through it.”

Virgil looked at the mirror warily. “And if I break it?”

Logan sighed. “It will still work on a shard of the mirror, but please be careful.”

“Always am.” Virgil smiled wanly as he took the mirror, cautiously placing it in his satchel.

Logan kissed his forehead and squeezed his hand gently. “Come home soon, please.”

Virgil took his hand and stood. “That’s the goal. I’ll miss you.” He stretched and took a deep breath. “Well, see you later, I guess.”

“Farewell and good luck.”

Virgil forced a smile and waved, then quickly packed his things before heading out the door— not giving himself the chance to back out.

~*~

Virgil tugged his cloak close against the chill. This was a bad idea. He knew it was a bad idea. Five years. Five years apart.

Maybe Janus wouldn’t even want to see him. Hell, maybe he wasn’t even here.

No. Too late to turn back.

Eerie whispers echoed in the mists and shadows lurked behind skeletal trees, but Virgil ignored them. That was normal here. As was the eternal night. Perfectly normal.

Here lived the monsters of the realm. The forsaken. The lost and abandoned. The only advantage was that they never hurt one of their own.

Virgil stopped in front of the door built into the cliffside and knocked. Snakes, spiders, and tentacles were carved around the doorframe, but there were no windows— only narrow slats to let air and light inside. Easier to defend without having to worry about glass.

It felt like eternity before the door opened. “Well, this is unexpected,” Janus drawled, his scales gleaming in the dim light.

“Hey, Jan... umm... can I come in?” Virgil rubbed his arm, not quite meeting his brother’s gaze.

“Depends on what brought you here.”

“I just wanna talk.” Virgil bit his lip. “And... apologize?”

“Go on, then. Say what you came to say.” Janus leaned against the doorframe.

Virgil took a deep breath. “I think I understand now,” he said slowly.

Janus arched an eyebrow. “Oh do you now? What do you understand?”

“Why you did what you did. Why we lived how we did. Why we were always hiding, never leaving the forest. How the world really works— well, not as much that, but more than I knew—“

“Did someone hurt you?” Janus cut him off, taking a step closer, concern in his eyes.

Virgil winced. “No. Well, yes, but that’s not important right now. What’s important is you don’t need to do that anymore. We can help you.”

Janus’s brow knitted. “We?” he echoed.

“I... uh... met some nice people. Like, really nice. I think you’d like them, if you give them a chance.” Virgil picked at a loose thread at the edge of his cloak.

Janus gave him a look, then sighed and stepped aside. “Come in. Would you like some tea?”

Virgil sighed in relief and walked through the doorway. It was just as he had left it— fur blankets piled around cushions and chairs, rickety table, a large fireplace with snakes around the mantle. “Sure. Something herbal?”

“Chamomile?” Janus suggested, filling a pot with water and placing it over the hearth.

“Whatever, sure.” Virgil warmed himself by the fire, then grabbed a blanket and took a seat on a nearby cushion.

Janus laughed softly. “Still prefer the floor to a chair, hm?”

Virgil shrugged. “It’s convenient. And warmer,” he said.

“Mm. Indeed it is,” Janus said. “Honey in your tea, yes?”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

A moment later, Janus set a cup of tea on the floor next to Virgil and sat down a few feet away. “Careful. It’s hot,” he said. Which was obvious due to the steam.

Virgil wrapped his hands around the teacup anyway, breathing in the aroma. “So... umm... what’s up with you?” He winced. “I mean, like, what have you been up to? How have you been?”

Janus chuckled softly. “More of the same. Hunting. Strengthening the wards.” He gestured vaguely.

“Right, yeah,” Virgil muttered.

“I am far more interested about you, spiderling. Care to talk about your grand adventures?” Janus arched an eyebrow.

Virgil snorted. “I wouldn’t call them that. But uh... I guess.” He took a sip of his tea once it had cooled down enough. “Well... I headed roughly northeast from here. Traveled with the spider-people for a bit. But as we approached the border, some elves attacked. When they heard me speak, they stopped and demanded I bow before the prince.“ He smiled sideways. “Did you know we even had a prince out here?”

Janus hummed thoughtfully. “A prince in this forest? No, preposterous.”

“Anyway, Princey insisted on ‘rescuing’ me and ‘breaking the curse’.” Virgil gestured to his face, where dark spiderwebs still patterned his skin. “So he whisked me away to ‘civilization’.”

“Oh the horror,” Janus said, his lips quirking into a half-smile.

Virgil blushed slightly. “It was... overwhelming. So many people in one place. All so loud! And the buildings— they make walls out of wood, can you imagine? And the top out of grass! They wouldn’t last a second out here.”

Janus hummed in agreement, but remained silent, sipping at his tea.

“And... well... I don’t think the people liked me very much,” Virgil admitted, looking into the fire. “When they saw my face, they shied away. Some threw fruit and stuff, but the prince quickly put a stop to that.”

Janus narrowed his eyes. “They hurt you?” He asked in a low voice.

Virgil bit his lip. “It’s fine. It didn’t really hurt, just made a mess. And like I said, some people were nice.”

“Hmph. People do not think kindly of our people. Hence why it is safer to remain within the forest.”

“I know, I know.” Virgil ran a hand through his hair and exhaled sharply. “Anyway.... a little while later I met the prince’s advisor, a half-elf mage. He’s so handsome and smart and gentle and kind and—“ He stopped, blushing slightly. “His name is Logan and he offered to let me stay with him. He helped me learn how to control my powers.”

Janus arched an eyebrow. “You like this advisor, don’t you?”

Virgil nodded slowly. “I... yeah. We understand each other,” he said quietly.

Janus was silent for a moment, then reached over and put his hand on Virgil’s arm. “If he makes you happy, then stay with him.”

“Do you want to meet him?”

Janus blinked. “Come again?“

Virgil took out the mirror. “This is an enchanted mirror. We can communicate through it. If you want to.”

Janus touched the scaled side of his face. “Are you sure he wants to see me?”

Virgil smiled sadly. “You’re my brother. Of course he wants to meet you. And he didn’t hate my markings, so you should be fine.”

“Mm.” Janus sighed, then flicked his wrist, making his cowl float over and wrap around his face, hiding as much of his scales as he could. “Very well.”

Virgil took a deep breath and held the mirror so they were both in view. “Logan? Can we talk please?”

A moment later, the surface of the mirror fogged up, then cleared to show Logan’s face. “Virgil? Is everything alright? Can you see and hear me?”

Virgil nodded, holding Janus hand. “Yeah, we’re good. This is my brother.”

Janus cleared his throat. “Yes, Virgil is my brother,” he said. A moment later, he added, “You may call me Dee.”

“Oh. Hello, then. It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Logan,” he said, blinking a few times.

Virgil shot Janus a look. “Logan is a friend. We can trust Logan,” he said, keeping his voice low.

“You may trust him. That does not mean I do,” Janus countered, then flashed a smile at the enchanted mirror. “Virgil has told me so much about you.”

“I hope he has said that which he so urgently wanted to tell you,” Logan replied.

Virgil groaned. “Don’t say it like that,” he grumbled.

Janus arched an eyebrow. “Oh? Have you said ‘that which you so urgently wanted to tell me’?”

Virgil rubbed his face. “Lo and I... we... uh.... we were thinking about... maybe... getting married?” Gods, words were hard.

“Virgil is correct. We have discussed the possibility,” Logan said.

Janus’s reptilian eye twitched. “You leave for five years, and return with a potential spouse,” he said slowly.

Virgil bit his lip and nodded. “Potential. We haven’t decided for sure, cuz weddings are expensive pageantry and shit, but...” He took a deep breath. “If we do get married, I want you to be there. I want you to lead me down the aisle.”

Janus leaned back in his chair, glancing between them both. “This is quite a lot to take in,” he said, steepling his hands like the dramatic shit he was.

“Oh for fucks sake! I’m asking for your blessing!” Virgil blurted, then groaned and flipped up the hood of his cloak.

“If it will make you happy, then by all means...” Janus said. “However, I will need to know more about this potential spouse of yours.”

“I am an open book. Ask your questions,” Logan said.

Virgil blinked. “You... you’re not mad?”

“Mm. I wouldn’t call it mad, no.” Janus sipped at his tea. “Now, Logan, tell me about yourself.”

“I am the royal advisor to Prince Roman and Prince Remus. I am skilled in the mystical arts,” Logan said.

Janus rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I know that. Tell me more about yourself. Your likes, dislikes, hobbies, whatever. Why should I let you marry my little brother, hm?”

Logan blinked. “Well... I enjoy learning whatever I can. I have known Virgil for just over four years now. I would never hurt him, and truly wish him the best.”

Virgil tugged his cloak closer. “I’m right here,” he muttered. “And you don’t need to interrogate him.”

Janus inclined his head. “I believe I have enough information for the time being, although of course I would love to meet you in person. Virgil, you wanted me to leave the forest, did you not?”

Virgil blushed slightly. “Uh, yeah. I can take you to them. If you’re serious about coming with me. And as long as the forest will survive without you.”

Janus waved an arm dismissively. “Of course, of course.”

“I look forward to seeing you both. Farewell and safe travels,” Logan said. The surface of the mirror shimmered and his image faded.

Virgil exhaled slowly. That wasn’t as bad as it could have been.

“Virgil?” Janus asked softly. “This will make you happy, yes?”

Virgil rubbed his face and nodded quickly. “Yeah, thanks. Really. I’m uh... bad with words, but yeah.”

“Would you like a hug? Or is this a no-touch-time?” Janus asked, spreading his arms.

Virgil half-fell into the embrace, holding on tightly. “I missed you,” he whispered. “I’m sorry.”

“Mm. I know. I missed you, too, spiderling,” Janus murmured, rubbing gentle circles into his back. “I am glad you are safe.”

Virgil took a few deep breaths, letting himself relax. Safe. He was safe. He was home.

“And I will always be here for you. No matter how long we are apart. No matter what happens,” Janus said softly. “You didn’t really think I’d be mad at you for leaving, did you? I was simply worried.”

Virgil grimaced. “Worse case scenario shit. I’m good at that, remember?”

“Mm. But this is not a worse case scenario. Things are going well for the time being. Enjoy it.”

“While it lasts,” Virgil said with a half-smile.

Janus chuckled. “Indeed. Cherish every moment.”

[genshin-djinn]

Genshin Impact Chapter 1 Act 3: A Reaction.

Chapter 1 Act 3 is what took my experience with this game from “good game” to “masterpiece”.

THIS POST CONTAINS MANY, MANY SPOILERS FOR GENSHIN IMPACT CHAPTER 1: ACT 3

Genshin Impact has some problems— actually, it has a shit ton of problems. But during the fight against hordes of Fatui, with the Adepti channeling their abilities through my gang, flying through them as Oz, decimating them with Diluc— I just thought, this is the best time I’ve had in a mobile game in my life.

This game might not be perfect now— it’s only a quarter of the way done if we’re counting Karenri’ah. But it will be a fucking masterpiece once it’s all out. If this is the level of quality we’re getting for our archon quests, this game is going to be an amazing time on story alone.

KEQING

I love Keqing with all my heart. If she were alive today she would be a socialist here to topple the ruling 1%. When ningguang asked Aether who they trusted more, her or Keqing, I hit the Keqing button as fast as possible.

I think one of my favorite things about Keqing is that she’s so completely honest, which is unusual for a Liyue politician. If she doesn’t like something, she’ll speak out against it. If she thinks something else should be happening, she’ll make it happen. She can probably be deceitful at times, but in general she’s straightforwards in that she wants a government for the people and by the people.

I can’t wait for her story quest!

NINGGUANG

pretty.... voice pretty....

Ningguang is cool. Her JP voice is very pretty, like she could do ASMR videos online or smth. One thing I decidedly did not like about Ningguang is how her personality just ???? flips? In the middle of the quest, for no reason other than “because plot”.

It’s established that Ningguang cares about two things more than anything— the Jade palace and Mora. Why, then, would she destroy the Jade palace for the sake of Liyue? I get that she’s a good person at heart at all, but I want to see more of her indecision, her brain saying “mora” and her heart saying “Liyue”. The way she just flips on a dime isn’t really strange but it does contradict with her preexisting characterization.

Childe’s Boss Fight!

The section of this quest from Childe’s fight to the Adepti + Qixing battle is just nonstop adrenaline.

Childe is IMO a lot more fun than Dvalin (sorry Dvalin). I’m at WL5 and have a tendency to play fast and loose with important mechanics like.... dodging, for example.... and Childe’s Mask Electro form ended up destroying my team. I killed him with Guoba because everyone else besides Xiangling was dead. I

Another thing I really enjoy about Childe’s boss fight is that in the irrationalities of Childe as a character, it actually makes sense. Genshin is decent at making weekly bosses logical excursions— Andrius wants you to get stronger, Dvalin’s weekly fight is ~~all a dream~~; but tbh sometimes the weekly bosses don’t make sense. Andrius wants to train us, not murder us! How does dvalin, a dream slash memory that doesn’t exist, manage to knock someone out?

Childe as a weekly boss actually makes perfect sense. He’s an adrenaline junkie addicted to the thrill of fighting people— to put this in modern AU terms, he’s the guy who’s first in line to ride the rollercoaster that failed all of its health and safety checks. Childe wants to befriend the Traveler entirely because they’re stronger than him, so that he can fight them over and over again until he’s the strongest. Of course, this will never happen, because the Traveler is the MC and therefore is stronger than all others. However, in this way Childe being a repeatable boss makes 100% perfect sense— he actually wants to fight the Traveler again and again and again.

The one question I have about Childe is how in the living feck are the Fatui letting him join the Traveler and fight for them *against the Fatui*??? I think this might be touched on in Childe’s Story quest, which I’ll do in a bit, but like????? They let him keep his delusion and just walk over to Aether like “aight fam I’m on your team now”? How?

Jade Chamber/ Guizhong Ballista vs Sea Monster Fight!!

Basically, all my charged adrenaline from nearly dying to Childe just came to a head in this one huge fantastic fight.

And Xiao :)

I absolutely loved seeing the Adepti and the Qixing work together. This fight was probably my favorite fight in the whole game— the music was amazing (soundtrack where), the graphics were so nice, the adepti were so feckin cool, using everyone’s abilities was n I ce. My adrenaline was reaching its highest point at this fight and it was just perfect. It was just so fecking fun after days of WL5 pain, having to pop like five ultimates to kill one hillichurl, to be able to just demolish swathes of enemies with Fischl and Diluc, run around like a madman thanks to Xiao, have infinite health idr who did that for me but bless them, just absolutely destroy.

Ever since I hit WL5 I haven’t been able to really just go insane during a fight and stop caring about HP/ when to use skills/ dodging and this have me that opportunity.

Zhongli’s Deal

*punches Zhongli across the room with the power of being the player character* I love this man so much.

Zhongli Zhongli Zhongli Zhongli Zhongli. I AM VERY ANGRY AT HOW THE PLOT RESOLVED HIS STORYLINE. But it also makes a lot of sense. And I think, for once, Zhongli should be allowed to be selfish.

Because choosing to leave Liyue was a bit selfish. He’s leaving the country that adores him, loves him, gives him shit for free; to its own devices and then to a completely unknown fate once the new Geo Archon becomes god and takes over. But he made a frankly fantastic plan and can now leave the country, for now, in peace.

I was absolutely delighted to see Zhongli in Morax form. Making deals with La Signora, being a complete and utter puppet master who set this entire situation up and played Childe like a kazoo; but just like his dear friend Venti, I think Zhongli is happier when he’s just Zhongli, the eccentric mortal. He seems so much happier and so much more relaxed when he’s forgetting about mora and eating dinner with Aether and Paimon. Rex Lapis might have just put Liyue through the wringer, but he can now put down his 3000- year long reign and just be the happy, eccentric Zhongli.

Zhongli’s little bit of insecurity over being a “bourgeois parasite” makes perfect sense now— he doesn’t want to be seen as Morax, a superfluous god who’s using his name to get whatever he wants from the humans he watches over.

But also the part of my brain that feeds off lore nEEDS to KNOW what Zhongli got from Tsaritsa. What could be worth a gnosis? His own happiness isn’t enough— Tsaritsa is likely going to use his gnosis to try and destroy Liyue. What could be worth that?

My main thought would be either “someone’s protection” or “another gnosis”, but I don’t think the latter is possible. The former could be possible but doesn’t really make sense either— a) whose protection is worth putting an entire country, much less the world, in danger and b) the Fatui are out to kill everyone who isn’t Fatui, so they won’t agree to spare a major player in the war to come like that. Brain go brrr.

I’m very hyped for Zhongli’s story quest, which I think is coming with his banner on Dec 1, when Childe’s banner ends. I really hope that Zhongli visits Mondstadt and chills with Venti for a while, but anything with this guy would be fine lol.

LORE

We got a lot of lore this update and I am delighted by it.

Firstly, we get a tiny hint of how Visions are bestowed— “if a person shows true strength of will at a desperate and fateful moment in their life, the gods will look upon them with favor.” Vague but more than we had before.

Next we got some neat lore about Inazuma— firstly, that it’s led by a god named Baal and secondly that it steals everyone’s visions. I’m very hyped to visit because guess what fam aether doesn’t have a vision.

Final Thoughts

In case you can’t tell from my insane ramblings, I loved Chapter 1 Act 3 and I absolutely cannot wait to play through Childe’s story quest and Chapter 2 and beyond.

The Prologue in Mondstadt set the stage for Genshin. We started out in a fantasy environment with a fantasy tale of an immortal bard and a dragon. Mondstadt was an excellent introduction to the world of Genshin.

And now? We’re starting to build on that. Chapter 1 brings us another story of another god and their relationship with the country they watch over. Liyue is much less of a traditional fantasy setting and takes the darkness we saw in Mondstadt— a friendship ruined by manipulation and suffering— and build on it. Now we don’t just see the Fatui more often but we also see more of the Treasure Hoarders and the way both groups kidnap and experiment on humans.

Mond started to introduce us to the Fatui, but Liyue is where they really start bringing continuous plot relevance. Inversely, we saw much more of the Abyss Order in Mondstadt than we did in Liyue. I’m extremely disappointed we didn’t see any more of the Princess this chapter, but it makes sense given that Chapter 1 was really more about the Fatui than the Abyss Order.

All I’m trying to say is the Liyue arc was an excellent continuation to the stage Mondstadt’s arc set. Now, we’re on to the world of the Eternal Shogun, Baal! I’m really excited to meet new characters and experience new stories of Inazuma, but I hope we’ll continue to see Mondstadt and Liyue in the future. Mondstadt is likely going to be the most “boring” of the countries we experience, cuz it’s just so classically fantasy- themed, but it will always be the first country we explored in this world.

After Inazuma (if I had to take a shot in the dark, inazuma’s arc will take from December 23 to maybe March or April) we’ll go to Sumeru, which I am really extremely hyped for because it sounds extremely different from Mond and Liyue and we’ll meet Cyno and possibly even Collei! (just me extrapolating lol). I can’t wait to see where Genshin Impact goes story- wise, because its first major update has brought so much to the table.

.

[sinemoras09]

The train ride to Kyoto was a long one, but Kiyotsugu's brother didn't care about the commute. He rested his head against the window and watched as the rolling landscape streaked through the glass; green grass and a bright blue sky, a few errant farm animals peacefully grazing. The scenery was completely at odds with how he was feeling, and he turned his head, closing his eyes.

It was his sister who invited him after he called. "You sound like shit. What happened?"

"I dunno. I'm just feeling really depressed."

"You should come over," his sister said.

He took the train the next morning.

The clouds darkened. Kiyotsugu's brother glanced back outside, surprised at how quickly the blue sky was suddenly filled with storm clouds. A flash of lightning flickered in the distance, and after a few seconds, he could hear the sound of thunder mixing with the sudden rain.

A loud crash, and the train slammed on the brakes. He pitched forward in his seat, people's belongings tumbling from the overhead compartments. The thunder clapped louder and the passenger car violently rocked sideways, the passengers screaming. There was a squealing sound as the train skidded on the railway. They screamed again as something exploded through the roof like an arrow, lightning slamming into the cabin.

"Why have you not contacted me?" Kiyotsugu's brother whirled around while the voice boomed and echoed through the car. "Do you not realize you can come to my shrine and pray to me?"

"Do you hear that?!" he said to another passenger, but another spike of lightning flashed, splitting the ceiling further.

"HUMAN," the voice said, and he looked up and saw a flash of lightning shaped like a dragon.

"What the fuck?!" he said, and the lightning crackled. The dragon form involuted on itself, revealing the figure of a long-haired man.

"It seems I finally have your attention," the man said, and Kiyotsugu's brother jumped up, pointing at him.

"What the fuck-- what was that?! Are you a fucking lightning dragon?! You look like a fucking priest, what's up with the way you're dressed?! Are you in some kind of freaky cult or something?!"

"What you saw was my true form, which forces beyond my control sought to suppress." The man sniffed and ran a hand through his hair. "I have been looking for you, human, as I have not yet granted you your wish."

"What wish?" he said. "Dude, I don't know who you are, or if you're some sort of freaky shinto priest or something, but I ain't joining any cults, okay, so you can just find another shmuck and fucking move along."

"Does the name Hirano Kiyotarou mean anything to you?" the man asked. He tucked his hands into his sleeves.

"The fuck is that?" Kiyotsugu's brother said. The man sighed and shook his head.

"So the cursed vessel cast another spell on you. It is as expected. Come here, human," the man said, and he motioned for him to follow him.

"Dude, this is fucked up, I'm not leaving here."

The man threw his hand out and blasted open the side of the car, the passengers shrieking and lightning bursting forward and creating a man-sized hole.

"There are many ways to grant a wish. I could just as easily solve your problem and force you to reincarnate by killing you."

"Oh, fuck," he said, and the man yanked him up by the collar.

*****

"I cannot reverse this spell. The best way would be to kill you and make you my shinki."

"WHAT?!" Kiyotsugu's brother said. The man held up his hand.

"It is as I've said," the man said, and lightning crackled at the tips of his fingers. "I shall give you a name and let loose your true name. You have already been touched by a God's Greatest Secret, so I suspect the name I give you will remain intact."

"What the fuck-- wait a minute, you're gonna kill me?! Don't do that!"

"Do not worry," the man said. "If this works, you may continue to live your human life as you see fit, as there are many spells that can alter your appearance. Besides," the man said, the lightning crackling down his arm.

"If unleashing a God's Greatest Secret breaks your name and turns you into a phantom, it is of no consequence to me, I shall simply smite you where you stand."

"Wait wait wait, what the f--"

Lightning. He was killed on the spot.

Takemikazuchi sighed, annoyed, and lifted his fingers into a halberd.

*****

"Dude, that was totally not cool!" Kiyotsugu's brother said. He rubbed the brand on his shoulder while Takemikazuchi snorted.

"I have just gifted you with eternal life," Takemikazuchi said. "At the very least you should be thankful."

"I'm supposed to visit my sister, you can't leave me like this!"

"Then go visit her," Takemikazuchi said. He gestured. "You have all your memories, you know your human names. But know this," Takemikazuchi said, and his eyes narrowed.

"If you let loose a God's Greatest Secret to the other shinki or speak about your death, I shall revoke your name and exorcise you as a corrupted spirit, where you will cease to exist and have no hope of reincarnation."

"What the fuck!" his brother wailed. Takemikazuchi frowned at him.

*****

"Hey, Little Brother, you little bitch! Way to erase my memories ya freakin' nerd!"

"Wha- Nii-san?" Kazuma started. "How did you get your memories back?"

"Uh, maybe it's just 'cuz I'm frickin' awesome," his brother said. "Hey hey hey, don't walk away! We all did some things we both regret--"

"How is what I did to you remotely anything like what you did?!"

"Look man, I didn't mean what I said about Father, okay. I just wanted to piss you off, you know, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. It was messed up and I'm really sorry.

"Wait wait wait!" he said, as Kazuma started walking again. "Dude, can't we just talk about it?!"

"I don't have time for this," Kazuma turned. "Forget."

His brother snorted at him. Kazuma frowned.

"Forget. Forget! Nii-san! Forget!"

"Not gonna work," his brother said. He grinned. "That stupid thunder guy killed me and gave me another name."

"What?!"

"And guess what, you can't see it, ya know why?" and he threw out his arm and showed him an ugly tattoo of a purple phoenix. "I got a tattoo artist to freaking cover it! And this guy's good, okay, you can't use your stupid voodoo bullshit. I don't know why all you guys don't do this."

"Nii-san, Takemikazuchi-sama killed you?!"

"Yeah, that's what I was saying."

"And somehow you know a God's Greatest Secret?"

"Well your stupid magic had something to do with it, but yeah, he told me my real name," his brother said. "Look, we're both shinki now, we're both gonna run into each other, let's just bury the hatchet, okay? I'll even let you beat me up, okay, punch me in the face or something, let's do this!"

"Umbra," Kazuma said.

"Wait, are you serious?!" his brother said. "What the fuck..."

*****

This is what happened the next time his brother ran into Kazuma.

"Umbra," Kazuma said, but his brother threw a bucket of paint on him.

*****

They walked to the training fields just before dawn, the sky still dark and Kazuma quickly scanning the area to make sure they weren't being watched.

"Okay Nii-san. I'm going to show you one of the most basic skills a shinki can learn: a simple borderline," Kazuma said. He lifted his hands into a halberd.

"A LINE."

A quick swoop, snapping tightly as he threw it. The borderline shimmered in front of them.

"Whoa," his brother said. "And this is a shinki's only weapon?"

"Well that and casting spells, and I suppose whatever physical training you've had, much like when you were a human." Kazuma looked at his borderline, pleased with himself. "Okay, Nii-san. Just copy the movements I made: put your fingers in a halberd and make a sideways swiping motion. And don't get discouraged if you aren't able to do it at first, it took me years before I mastered it."

"Like this?" His brother held out his arm.

"A LINE!" he said, swiping fast and hard, and the light exploded, the line that he threw easily twice as high and twice as dense as Kazuma's.

Kazuma blinked. "Oh...wow."

"Yeah! That's what I thought, son!" His brother smacked him on the back, making Kazuma pitch forward a bit.

Kazuma pushed up his glasses. "Well that went surprisingly well. We'll do the next step in our lesson."

"Oh?"

"Throwing borderlines like projectile weapons." Kazuma lifted his hand again.

He threw his arm out, back and forth, in successive sweeps, his borderlines zipping out like shuriken. One sliced the top of the training post, the other sliced the top of a tree. The third one split into two and sliced through the both of them. "It's just precision and concentration," Kazuma said.

His brother nodded. "Oh yeah, it's like throwing knives, I totally get it." And he held his arm forward.

Swipe! Swipe! Swipe! Swipe! He threw compact blades of light toward the training post, slicing it in four successive pieces. "Little Brother, watch this!" he said, and he threw a vertical borderline, slicing through the four pieces vertically, cutting them in half. "Okay, cool! What else have you got to show me?"

"Uh." Kazuma blinked again. "That was basically it for a borderline."

"OOOH! Can you make them change shape?" and he threw one vertical and one horizontal borderline, which combined to make a spinning cross, slamming into the tree in front of them. "Oh! Cool! You totally could!"

Kazuma pushed his glasses up again. "I mean, that's flashy and all, but there are instances when you can't use a borderline, you'd have to use a spell."

"What? And memorize shit? Please. I used to guard the emperor, gimme a regular sword and I can totally defend my master."

"I guess it makes sense that you'd still remember your training as a human," Kazuma said. "By the way, Nii-san, what is your vessel form? I heard that you're a bladed weapon."

"Oh, dude, I'm more than that, okay, I'm a frickin' lightning sword! And I can shapeshift into different weapons!"

"Wha- really?" Kazuma said. "My Rekki form is a divine garment and lightning sword, and I can turn into a bow and arrow depending on how Yato holds the scabbard."

"Oh, cool! What other weapons can you turn into?"

"Uh, just the two."

"Seriously?" His brother made a face at him. "I can turn into any weapon Takemikazuchi wants me to. I can even arm his stupid dragon."

"Wait, you can arm Ouki? How?"

"I can turn into friggin' armor and wrap around him, so that people can't go injure him," his brother said. He thumped his chest. "Just the other day I augmented his weapons and made them more accurate! All his weapons were crackling with lightning and it was way easier for him to kill phantoms!"

"You draw borderlines for the other shinki?" Kazuma stared at him. "Nii-san, you didn't even know what borderlines were until this morning, how were you able to do that?"

"I dunno." His brother shrugged. "Instinct, I guess. I mean, let's face it, Little Brother, of the two of us I've always been more physically talented."

Kazuma rubbed his head. "I couldn't even coordinate Veena's shinki until I became an earring," Kazuma said. He rubbed his head again, then looked up at his brother. "Do you think I can watch you in action, when you're patrolling with him?"

"Yeah, sure! I'll tell my master you wanna watch and learn!"

*****

She was sitting at her desk when Kazuma opened the door and flung himself into the chair next to her.

"Veena." He banged his head on the desk. "You should release me."

"What? Why?" Bishamon said. He banged his head on the desk again and covered his head with his hands.

"Because my stupid brother is a stronger weapon than I'll ever be, and I'm already a hafuri."

Bishamon frowned at him. "Don't you think you're being a bit melodramatic?" she said.

His voice was muffled against the desk. "....No." Bishamon stifled a laugh.

"Alright." Bishamon patted him on the head. "You're just a bit rattled. You're still strong, I wouldn't worry too much about it."

"A shinki is only as strong as his confidence, and my brother has always been stronger than me. I can't convince myself otherwise - he was controlling Takemikazuchi's shinki and he's not even a hafuri."

Bishamon patted him on the head again.

****

"Nii-san," Kazuma said. His brother looked up. "Bind."

A flash. His brother froze in place, horror in his eyes.

Kazuma smirked. "It seems I figured out your name, Nii-san."

Another flash and his brother stumbled forward.

"Dammit, Little Brother! How did you know?!"

"Those feathers that make up that phoenix's wings, while well-hidden, all have an outline similar to the character 'Shio,' or 'En', as well as our obvious connection to salt mining and your unfortunate pen name. So your name is Shio, your vessel is Enki, and your human name is Shioun based on the family name used by Takemikazuchi. "

"Fuck!" his brother said. Kazuma sparkled.

("Why didn't he just ask Kiun?" Yukine said. Yato shrugged.

"'Cuz it's Kazuma, I dunno.")

Excerpt from the fic, Layers, where Kazuma runs into the reincarnation of his brother. AU. kazubisha.

[thatsystemerror]

the best things about Outer Banks

*spoilers ahead*

Holy hell, this turned out so long. I decided to make a second post solely dedicated to quotes because I just could not fit that in here anymore. I guess it speaks for this show that I had enough material to make two... Anyways, enjoy!

pt.2 - The Best Quotes From OUTER BANKS

NOT the pace at which John B and Sarah’s relationship develops

noT AT ALL

sorry, done with the venting now

anyhow, the group being TIGHT ™ 

JJ making you feel one of three ways:

“oh heLLO, JJ” (mostly without a shirt scenes)

“ugh, JJ” (he brought the gun and/or is being a dick scenes)

“awww, JJ...” (you know which scenes)

Kie’s outfits

the golden hour lighting

the sets being actual houses

the beach/sea/surfer aesthetic

the van

The Chateau™

JJ’s rings

Pope’s contributions being overlooked, always

everyone’s motivation on this show: “How much?” “400 mill”

conclusion: that’s worth fucking shit up

Kie actually being really skilled in politely but determinedly shutting her guy friends down when “macking” on her

ya know, until the Pope pity party at the end...

cuz that’s what it felt like, for real

I actually thought JJ and Pope might have a thing going...

the soundtrack full of surf guitar music

the intro font always making it feel like some 90s Miami-set crime show is about to start

John B’s hair, I think?

I mean, I don’t know what you’re into...

I just feel like it’s a breath of fresh air on the boy’s-hairstyles-tv-landscape

getting major “Don’t Breathe” vibes from the blind old lady shooting up her house

I appreciate them trying to make her actually kinda creepy, because they usually fail miserably with "scary” elements on non horror stuff

I don’t know if you catch my drift, just thought it was well done...

Sarah getting stung by a jellyfish and everyone just like not really caring??

all of them thinking for even oNE SECOND that they weren’t gonna get screwed over with the gold

JJ looking like the lead of any 90s teen production at all times

JJ just effortlessly blending in with the waiters at the party

or that time when he fake cried on command to save his ass

but like every character has good acting skills (or simply is a good liar, I guess it’s a matter of philosophy)

JJ and Pope betting money on Kie and Sarah

Kie starting a fire to save everyone’s ass

the Vlad and Val thing (cheesy for sure, but adorbs nonetheless)

highkey though the guy playing the drug dealer is a really good actor, cuz I’m sure he’s nice and cool and all irl but as Barry all he makes me think of is this:

Topper’s Frosted Tips™ (gosh that sounds so unbelieveabley sexual I can’t believe it’s not sexual)

JJ constantly trolling every authority figure

Sarah not being the perfect-snobby-rich-chick-daughter despite being expected to be by everyone

JJ robbing the coast guard of a pen? because he ignored him

“bring it on Aggie, you bitch” sign (I don’t think stroms can read but nice touch)

especially the first few episodes finally being an accurate depiction of how teenage boys always wear their hat floating like 5″ above their head and hoW FUCKING DUMB IT LOOKS!!! thank you! please stop...

Pope loosing his pants at the cemetary (like imagine him having to explain that to his mama)

the “friends” awkwardly waving at Kie’s dad

that one silouette shot ✨cinematography, bitches✨

never actually seeing John B give the BMX bike back to that poor kid...

going back to save the Big John photograph from the street (tears, man... tEArS)

John B being a major wuss while Sarah is cleaning his wound

NEVER having the gun when actually needed

ALWAYS having the gun when it could get you in major trouble

JJ taking the blame to save Pope

JB’s finger guns after his first kiss with Sarah (John B you smooth mf...)

that opening shot in ep.4 zooming in on the boat through the storm clouds

everybody being collectively surprised to see JB in a school building

the blood splattering against the window of the car with JJ and his dad in it (terrible scene, A+ effect!)

JJ sneaking through the swamp with a backpack on his head

the actor of Sarah’s dad managing to give you the creeps with some subtle crazy eyes even before it turns out he’s actually crazy

Kie fooling Pope with her British accent

Rose thinking she’s some kind of High Priestess at the midsummers party

John B putting a bow tie on JJ

BROMANCE™ (alternative title)

JJ delivering the note dancing flirtatiously

Sarah thinking pushing John B down would magically have made him invisible to Topper watching them for thE LAST 5 MINUTES??!

JJ twirling Kie around when leaving the Kook party

Topper accidently confessing his creepy-stalker-love to a 13 year old

Kie slapping John B

John B slapping Kie

violence is not the answer, kids! but I guess these were friendly slaps, so it’s okay

JB telling Sarah how “everything’s fine” with the Pogues and then cutting to it being definitely not

John B saying: “I don’t give a shit if she’s an axe murderer” and Pope making this face: 😲

a brilliant plan being ruined by a porch light

everybody constantly shitting on 1... 2... 3!

is that a The Shining reference I’m seeing????

how tf did it take them so long to realize she’s blind I-

and then once they did, Sarah states: “that bitch can’t aim” ???

like yeah, obviously, you just said it yourself sHE’S BLIND!!!????

anywho, John B not even bothering to fake excitement over the fishing trip

JJ finding “that’s what she said” disproportionately funny

the group wordlessly agreeing that somebody should probably look after JJ at the drug dealer’s

Sarah confidently telling JB she’s a virgin without it being all awkward (rare sight in teen shows back in my day)

Pope’s “Thrasher” shirt (like damn that’s off brand, but funny!)

JJ getting floaties for drinks in the whirlpool

the Whirlpool Group Hug™

JB telling Sarah goodbye before the fishing trip and me deadass thinking for a sec that he set an alarm to creep into his gf’s room in the middle of the night

Ward having sOmE NErVE to interrogate JB after killing his father (and later basically calling Rafe a psycho?!! like bitch get a mirror and baptized, thank you)

John B driving through the fence at the airport

Sarah yelling at her dad “you’re gonna kill him” like that’s gonna stop him lol

the cop at the airport giving us real talk about what police first aid training probably looks like

JB wanting to tell the cops what happened out of the goodness of his heart

Wheezie sticking up for her sister

Rafe calling John B a maniac (the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, I see)

JB locking himself in, in a house with Topper (like god damn, Karma’s a bitch huh)

Sarah, a teenage girl mind you, getting away from a trained-special-force-FBI-whatever-cop-dude in full armor by KNEEING him

Rafe talking to his Emotional Support Dealer™

the Pogues standing up to their parents for frIEnDsHIp!!!

JJ about to play “Operation” on his dad to get the keys

the missed opportunity to use “I Shot The Sheriff” on the soundtrack

I’m still a bit salty....

JB getting out of the cop car like that’s just normal

Pope going to shake Kie’s hand to make up

Sarah making it just in time

Ward being the “final card” lmao

Pope’s fam taking JJ into their group hug

the chill fisherman dude (with a wild romantic past?) taking in JB and Sarah

I demand a spin-off for that guy’s story btw

I’m so sorry for how long this must’ve taken to read. Seems like a good time to remind you that there’s more though: 

pt.2 - The Best Quotes From OUTER BANKS

It’s a great show (even though in parts I would’ve preferred them to step off the cheese grater a little bit). Overall (aside from the obviously heavy themes), it reminds me of all the Australian teen shows I used to watch growing up (mixed with “the Outsiders” maybe?) and it makes me actually a bit excited for summer. 

And I hate summer, so that’s saying something!

@thatsystemerror

the best things about - masterpost

[lisatelramor]

Truth and Lies

I’ve wanted to write something for FF15 since I started playing the game and reading fic, but hadn’t had any ideas my brain latched onto. So here, finally, is something it deigned to write. @vulcansdarkest, hope you enjoy <3 (It’s not detective!Ignis, but it is Ignis-centric ^_^ ) To everyone in quarantine or living their lives, hope you can keep safe! 

***

“I’m bored,” Noctis groaned, flat on his back in the tent. It was raining outside as it had been all evening. Ordinarily, this would mean a round of King’s Knight, but their phones were on the last dregs of battery life after days of hiking in the wilderness. Their second-best option would have been a card game, but a mishap during one of Noctis’s fishing marathons had taken away that option.

“Read a book,” Gladio said, tossing one of his paperbacks at Noctis’s head.

“Ow! Not all of us are into whatever historical epic-romantic whatever you’re reading at the moment,” Noctis grumbled tossing the book into the Armiger.

Ignis was about to suggest Noctis help go over their inventory and funds if he had such a dire need to keep himself engaged when Prompto sat bolt upright with a wide grin.

“Ooh, I got an idea!” He pulled something out of the Armiger and set it on the tent floor with a soft thump. “Ta-dah! We could play a drinking game!”

“Prompto,” Ignis said looking over the bottle of high proof vodka he’d pulled out. “Where did you get the funds for that?”

“Psh, I didn’t raid our budget, Iggy,” Prompto said with a wave of his hand. “I sold off some bits and bobs I collected a while back. Sometimes you can find neat stuff near all those fishing spots. I figured it might be nice to relax and have a drink once in a while.”

“I’m not sure we can really afford a night of drunken revelry,” Ignis said, though it was tempting. They’d been working hard lately, pulling hunt after hunt to gather up a better buffer of money. And when they weren’t doing that, they were looking for any hint of a royal tomb around them. It was wearing them ragged even when they weren’t roughing it camping for over a week straight.

“Please?” Prompto asked with the puppy eyes that were far more effective on all of them than they would ever admit to Prompto lest he abuse them. “It doesn’t have to be drunk-drunk, just like, a few shots?”

Gladio examined the bottle. “Vodka’s crap, but you got a less shitty brand so, sure, sign me up. Noct?”

“Sounds better than staring at the tent ceiling,” Noctis said.

Outnumbered three to one, Ignis sighed. “Very well, but we’re not drinking straight vodka.” He had a can or two of fruit juice in the Armiger to water it down with.

“Yes!” Prompto did a little seated dance. “Ok, what’re we playing? Never have I ever? Buzz? Most likely?”

“Dude do you just have a list of drinking games you want to play?” Noctis asked.

“Uh, maybe if you’d have come to one of the parties in school you’d recognize them.”

“Yeah, that was never going to happen back then and you know it.”

Prompto pouted and Ignis and Gladio exchanged an amused look. Ignis pulled out juice and a carafe and started mixing the alcohol. “Well it’s not like we can do the games with other props,” Prompto said after a moment. “No cards. No cups and balls for beer pong. Not drunk enough for the games like Thump.”

“I can’t even remotely imagine what any of those games are with names like that,” Noctis said with a yawn. “Hey Ignis, what game do you think?”

“Well, considering there’s only four of us and we don’t have props, games like never have I ever are probably the better choice. Although given how many shared experiences we have here…” Everyone grimaced. Between growing up together in the citadel to running around all of Lucis on this trip, Prompto would likely get them all drunk very fast on the sheer principle that he had more unique personal experiences that the rest of them lacked. But a game that involved talking was more or less a given. “How about… two truths and a lie?”

“Not truth or dare?” Prompto asked.

Ignis gave him a look. “With everyone’s competitive streak and magic to fuel drunken shenanigans, I think not introducing the possibility of wild dares is the best option.”

“Ok, yeah, fair enough.”

Ignis still remembered a memorable occasion where Noctis got stuck on a roof when he was still new to warping thanks to one of Gladio’s dares. They were not going that route. “Besides, two truths and a lie will be a good test to see how well we actually know each other.”

Prompto sighed. “Dude, you guys all grew up together. Kinda rigged.”

“And yet we have very little knowledge of your life,” Ignis countered. “So if any of us has an advantage, it’s Noctis for knowing all of us.”

“Ooh, good point. Guess it works in the name of bonding.” Prompto grinned. “Gonna know you guys better than I know myself at the end of this trip.”

“Quite.” This hadn’t been what any of them expected when they left but leave it to Prompto to find a glimmer of brightness in the mess. “Here’s how we’ll play: we each have a cup, no more than two helpings of the drink to work with, and will take turns telling various facts and lies while the next person in the circle guesses which was the truth or lie. If they guess wrong, they take a drink, if they guess right, the person whose turn it was takes a drink. When you run out of alcohol, you’re out of the game. Does this seem fair?”

“Geeze, Iggy, that’s a lot of rules for a drinking game,” Prompto says. “But sure, sounds great, gimme the booze!”

Ignis rolled his eyes and handed around glasses of vodka mixture.

Gladio sniffed it. “Smells more like juice than vodka.”

“The point is not to have a debilitating hangover tomorrow,” Ignis said drily.

“Ok, but those two are lightweights and I have an iron liver.”

Ignis rolled his eyes again and added a shot to Gladio’s cup. “Is that satisfactory?”

Gladio grinned. “Yeah, that’s a bit more like it. Now who goes first?”

“Specs,” Noctis said, sniffing his own cup with a wrinkle of his nose. “Since you chose the game.”

“Very well.” Ignis sat in their loose circle. Two truths and a lie… “I speak six languages, I stabbed a man when I was five, and I can do a backflip in heels.” He looked pointedly to his left at Prompto.

“Damn, starting things out on hard mode,” Prompto said with a grimace. “Uh… The flip in heels is the lie?”

Ignis smirked.

“Aw man.” Prompto took a drink. He at least didn’t seem to dislike the taste. “Wait, you can do a flip in high heels?” A beat. “You’ve worn high heels?”

Ignis kept smirking.

“Iggy!” Prompto groaned. “What was the lie?”

“He only speaks three languages,” Gladio said. “He can read six. I don’t remember you stabbing anyone when you were five though.”

“It was an accident learning how to use daggers.” Ignis’s lips tilted into a real smile. “I never said I stabbed someone purposefully.”

“None of you are surprised by the heels?” Prompto asked.

Noctis and Gladio exchange a look. “A bet,” they said in unison. “Though only Ignis would take it as a challenge to master movement in high heels in general,” Noctis added.

“One never knows if that skill might be useful,” Ignis said. He wasn’t exactly going to admit that he’d liked how they’d accentuated his legs.

“The more ya know,” Prompto said. “Okay. My turn! Uh, lesse…” He tapped his cup absently. “My first kiss was with Jessia from eighth grade, I love cucumbers, and I have a whole USB filled with nothing but dog pictures.”

Noctis pointed at Prompto. “The first kiss is the lie.”

“Bzzzt,” Prompto said.

“What? You’d have told me if you’d had your first kiss!”

“Dude, I had it before we were friends. Also, like, it went horribly and she never talked to me again so I don’t really bring it up much.”

“Wait, so either you don’t have a USB of dog photos—which you totally do—or you secretly hate cucumbers? I thought you liked vegetables.”

“I eat healthy cuz it’s healthy not cuz I like all of it,” Prompto said. “You should try it.”

“Pass.”

Ignis made a mental note to avoid giving Prompto anything with cucumber in the future. “Drink up, Noct,” Ignis said when Noctis kept giving Prompto a look like he’d just destroyed one of the pillars of his understanding.

Noctis rolled his eyes and took a swig. “Whatever. Ok, Gladio. My favorite character in King’s Knight is Toby, I once pet a cat that had ten toes on each paw, and I caught a two-headed fish one time.”

Gladio raised an eyebrow. “That’s not even hard. You’d have talked our ears off if you caught a two-headed fish.”

“Eh, fair enough.” Noctis took another swallow of his drink.

“You just want to get drunk, don’t you?” Gladio said, amused. “My turn. I can bench a hundred and twenty kilos, on one of my camping trips I hiked forty kilometers in one day, and I once ate eight cup noodles in one sitting.”

Ignis hummed, turning the numbers over in his head.

“You know,” Prompto said, “I honestly would believe all of those actually happened. You’re not normal.”

Gladio snorted. “Thanks for the backhanded compliment.”

“You’re welcome.”

“The hiking one is a lie,” Ignis said after a moment. “I know your average bench press numbers and I remember you trying to prove something stupid with how many cup noodles you could eat in one sitting—and definitely remember you throwing them back up.”

“Worth it.”

“So the hiking distance has to be the lie.”

“You would logic it out,” Gladio said, snickering. “Yeah, you win.” He took a drink. “Your turn again Iggy.”

“Wait wait wait,” Prompto said. “I’m not going to have to guess Ignis every time am I? He’s like, way too good at deadpan for that.”

“Hmm, you have a point,” Ignis said. “Noctis and I can swap positions this next round and then you can swap with Gladio and by alternating like that we can keep things fair.”

“You’re making this way too complicated,” Noctis said, but he obligingly swapped places in the circle with Ignis.

“It makes things more interesting,” Ignis countered with a sharp grin. He had every intention of playing this game to win—by which he meant he intended to stay as sober as possible while watching his friends fall into drunken antics.

“Whatever, just get on with it,” Noctis said with a sigh.

Ignis glanced at Gladio. Gladio was privy to far more of Ignis’s private life than perhaps anyone in part because while he couldn’t always talk to Noctis—because friend or not, there were still the occasional professional boundary lines—Gladio was someone who shared a responsibility in caring for Noct and as such someone who could commiserate over some of the worse aspects of their prince’s personality. Still, he didn’t know everything about Ignis’s life. “My favorite knives are a gift from my uncle, I’ve always loved the taste of Ebony…” He pretended to put an extra second of thought into this, like he was hesitating over a lie. “One of my earliest memories is of reading a book.”

He could see Gladio labeling the knife fact as truth; Ignis hadn’t been subtle about his preferred weapon choice in combat and the topic had come up before. But Ignis was also banking on Gladio’s association of Ignis and Ebony; he’d been drinking some form of coffee since his early teenage years, and for as long as he and Gladio had any significant interaction.

“As hilarious as the idea of baby-Iggy reading is, I’m calling that out as a lie,” he said after a moment.

Ignis smiled triumphantly. “While not my earliest memory, I was reading full sentences by the age of three, so yes, it is one of my earliest memories. I actually detested Ebony the first time I tasted it and poured the can down the drain. It was only the lure of caffeine that ever got me to pick up another can.”

“No kidding.” Gladio didn’t look the least upset by guessing wrong, but he was probably happy enough to be ingesting some alcohol. “Sometimes I think you pretty much run on the stuff like the Regalia does gasoline.”

Ignis snorted. “It’s not an inaccurate assumption.” Thank goodness for caffeine for his overworked, frequently sleep deprived body.

Gladio took a larger-than-necessary swallow from his cup. “Right. So. I ran away from home when I was six, I tried to give Iris away when she was first born because she kept crying, and I can’t float when I swim.”

Noctis frowned. “I’m pretty sure everyone can float. That’s swimming 101.”

“Take a drink because I can’t.” Gladio grinned, then grimaced. “It’s actually a downside to muscle. It’s dense as hell and sinks more than my lung capacity can make me float. I can swim just fine, but it’s kind of hell trying to tread water for long.”

“Huh. You learn something every day,” Noctis said taking a drink.

“Did you really try to give Iris away?” Prompto asked. “Because I can’t see it.”

“No. I mean I was tempted because she was the worst, colicky baby ever but I was old enough that I wasn’t that impulsive.” Gladio picked at the edge of his cup. “Now if I was a couple years younger at the time…”

“I remember hearing your dad complaining to my dad,” Noctis said. “She was only quiet when she was asleep and even then that was almost never the first month.”

“Yeah, I feel so lucky she grew out of that.”

“Noctis’s turn!” Prompto chirped. “Go easy on me, buddy.”

“You wish,” Noctis said, sticking his tongue out at him. “Okay. I’ve killed every plant I’ve tried to grow, I broke three priceless vases as a kid and told no one, and I set Iggy’s first boyfriend on fire once.”

“Noctis Lucis Caelum!” Ignis said, scandalized and more than a little annoyed. “That was you?!” Ignis had been dumped very soon after that incident.

“That guy was a jerk,” Noctis said.

“I could have dumped him myself instead of the indignity of it being the other way around!”

“Uh,” said Prompto. “I’m guessing that’s not the lie.”

Ignis huffed, and Noctis waited.

“Plants are the lie?” Prompto said tentatively trying to steer things back toward the game.

“Nope. Actually it was Gladio that set the guy on fire.”

“Way to throw a man under a bus, Noct,” Gladio grumbled. He held up his hands when Ignis turned his glare on him. “Hey, he’s right. The guy was a dick.”

“Gladiolus!”

Gladio leaned a bit away from Ignis, a sheepish grin on his face. “I mean, no one got permanently injured.”

“Which of you ran off my next boyfriend, then?” Ignis demanded. Neither of them met his eyes.

“Uh,” Prompto said again into the tense silence. “So… Iggy, you like dudes?”

And Ignis had the horrifying realization that Prompto didn’t know.

“Oh shit,” Noctis said. “Uh, sorry Specs…”

“It’s fine,” Ignis said, hoping that it actually was fine and this revelation hadn’t just made their current close-quarters living arrangements strained. He’d forgotten for a moment, too comfortable with Noctis and Gladio being in the know, that not all of his friends actually had the knowledge that he was more interested in men than women.

“No, hey!” Prompto waved his hands frantically. “It’s cool, I’m fine with it, shit, I wasn’t trying to make things weird!”

“Prompto…” Ignis took a breath. “If this is—”

“My turn next,” Prompto blurted over him and Ignis frowned, trying to cut in only to have Prompto keep talking over him. “I’ve only kissed girls,” he said, which stung a bit considering what was just revealed, “I’m bi,” oh, “and I’ve never, uh, never had a crush on anyone here,” Prompto finished, his confidence draining into nerves. There was a faint blush on his face.

“Prompto,” Ignis said softly, “you didn’t have to do that.”

“What, continue the game?” he said with a forced smile. “Uh yeah I did, we still have booze so…” His gaze pleaded for Ignis to play along.

And Ignis couldn’t refuse considering his friend had chosen to out himself just to make Ignis feel less uncomfortable. “I take it the last one wasn’t a lie,” he said gently.

“You got me there.” Prompto took a large swallow of his drink. His cheeks were pink and he couldn’t meet anyone’s eyes.

“Shit,” Noctis mumbled. “…I wasn’t trying to make this real, I just wanted to tease Ignis.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Full disclosure, you’re not the only one who’s had a crush on someone here, Prom.”

Prompto’s jaw dropped. “Wait, is Gladio the only one here that’s straight?”

Gladio snorted. “I mean I’m mostly straight,” Gladio said. “But if we were playing a game of never-have-I-ever, the only one of us who wouldn’t drink to having a crush on Ignis is Ignis.”

Ignis went bright red.

“There was more than one reason we didn’t think your boyfriends were good enough,” Gladio said with a snort of laughter.

“…Did either of you approve of any of them?”

“Uh, the one Glaive was okay but…”

Noctis finished for him, “You weren’t into him half as much as he was into you.”

Ignis pinched the bridge of his nose. He was going to have to reevaluate so many previous interactions with a new perspective.

“Wait, Prompto, is that why you keep taking ass shots of Gladio?” Noctis asked.

Prompto sputtered. “I do not take ass shots! Of anyone!”

Gladio laughed. “Uh, hate to break it to you but you kind of do. Don’t worry, I don’t mind.”

“You take ass pics of Gladio, Ignis whenever he’s doing acrobatics, and usually half of what you take of me is mid-warp.”

“That’s just because you’re always warping, Noct,” Prompto said, settling into an embarrassed pout. “And Iggy’s usually doing backflips or setting something on fire like a boss so…” His shoulders hunched. “Also Gladio’s always rushing in so of course I get pictures from behind in battle.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” Noctis said with a shit eating grin.

“Well,” Ignis said, feeling vaguely uncomfortable and ready to finish the game, “I think we’ve learned enough about each other for one night.”

“No, no,” Gladio said. “Prompto’s right. We still have booze. Also you and Noct haven’t interacted yet and I haven’t traded lies with Prompto.” He swished his cup around. “Besides, we’re still bored. Scared you’ll get embarrassed more?” he teased.

Ignis rolled his eyes. “Not at all.” It was just that if things continued along the current lines of affairs things could get complicated in ways that their trip didn’t allow for. From the way Gladio gave him a teasing eyebrow wiggle, he was thinking along the same lines without considering the fallout. He sighed. Ignis was not going to let things run in even more flirtatious directions thank you very much. “Noct.” Coming up with something for Noctis was about as hard as Gladio. On the one hand, Noctis could be unobservant. On the other, when he did use his powers of observation, they were uncannily accurate and stuck in his memory. “I choose to keep my accent,” he said after a moment of thought, “I had tutors before I was chosen to train to be your chamberlain, and I hated cooking when I first started learning.”

Noctis frowned. “I could see you keeping the accent because you like it and it reminds you of home. I know nothing of your life before you came to the Citadel more or less, and knowing you you’re probably banking on that. So, weird as it is to think of you hating cooking, I’m calling the second one a lie.”

Ignis smiled ruefully. It figured that he’d apply logic to it. “You’re correct.” He took a swallow of his drink and was pleased at its flavor, the alcohol a faint aftertaste on his tongue.

“If you didn’t like cooking, why’d you stick with it?” Prompto asked.

“Because it’s a useful skill,” Ignis said. “Knowing it is an important life skill as well as useful for caring for others; it was non-negotiable to learn. It just took a bit of a learning curve to get good enough at it that it wasn’t troublesome. Once I started looking at it as a puzzle made of ingredients it was a lot more enjoyable.”

“You know, you’re allowed to like or dislike something based on other things than usefulness,” Noctis said with a slight edge to his voice like he was somewhere along the lines of sad and exasperated.

Ignis, of course, knew that. But when growing up with a large job to fill, there had never been much room for non-useful things. Even his hobbies were chosen to be practical. “I can also enjoy things that also happen to be practical,” he pointed out. He liked languages. And while he couldn’t say he liked cleaning, it gave him a sense of satisfaction. Cooking was similar. These days it was one part puzzle, one part challenge, and the satisfaction of an end result. Baking on the other hand… “I do enjoy baking though.”

“Oh?” Noctis said.

Ignis smiled. He’d started because he’d hoped to make Noctis smile. And every time Noct ate one of his desserts and looked a bit happier, it had made Ignis happy. “I’d have to to make the same dessert over and over with slight changes for years.”

“Wow, that almost sounds like you’re accusing me of something,” Noctis joked.

“Accuse? Never,” Ignis said, grinning back. “I am surprised you never got sick of me trying though.”

“They were good,” Noctis said. “Even the worst of the failures. And they were…”

“They were?”

Noctis looked faintly embarrassed. “They were part of how you showed you cared so… it meant a lot.”

More than the cleaning and cooking or giving condensed reports ever did if Noctis’s embarrassment meant anything.

“And this is getting weirdly emotional,” Gladio cut in. “I know Noct drank a bit, but you only took a sip.”

Ignis rolled his eyes. “It’s reminiscing and nostalgia, Gladio.”

“Uh huh. Sure.” Gladio gave him a look that had Ignis blushing slight enough that hopefully no one would notice. “Anyway, Noct, either you go or I’m going next.”

“Fine.” Noctis drummed his fingers for a moment. “I like traveling and helping people out. I don’t like how crowded we are. I sometimes wish that things could always be this simple.”

Ignis had the strong desire to give Noctis a hug, like he’d done when they were children. There was vulnerability and defensiveness warring under his attempted nonchalance and if they still had the sort of uncomplicated relationship that children had, he’d already have Noctis in an embrace. But they were adults and Noct might accept side hugs and slaps on the shoulder from Prompto and Gladio, there had been a wall of propriety between him and Ignis for a while. A wall that he should really start to take down. Propriety was pointless when there wasn’t anyone left who would care.

“The second one is a lie,” Ignis said softly.

Noctis smiled, lopsided. “Yeah.” He took a drink.

“Aw, we like crowding you too,” Prompto said, nudging Noctis with an elbow. “I mean, sometimes a little privacy would be nice, but honestly you can’t feel lonely like this and that’s been good.”

Left to their own devices they weren’t the sorts to spend every waking moment with another person, but they had been spending more or less that for months now. Ignis, if asked before their trip started, would have thought that they’d have gotten on their last nerve at some point or another, but they hadn’t. There was quiet, introspective time on car rides, or brief moments at havens to break away from the group and have a private moment, but surprisingly they hadn’t needed more than that so far. It was almost nice if Ignis didn’t think about the circumstances. And for Noctis who had never really had enough time to spend with friends with his busy life… Well, Ignis, having a busy life of his own, could more than understand why the lifestyle they’d been living appealed.

“We can’t forget our purpose though,” Gladio pointed out.

“Dude,” Prompto said, “I don’t think any of us could no matter how many fetch quests people send us on.”

“I’m just saying,” Gladio grumbled.

“And I’m just saying that tonight’s time to not think about the things that are always looming over us,” Prompto said, pushing back more than he normally would. “Please? Like we’re all strung out, that’s why we gotta relax and recharge sometimes or we’ll just burn out.”

Gladio rubbed a hand down his face and took a drink even though it wasn’t part of the game. “Yeah.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Noctis added in a quiet voice. “I promise.”

“We’re really missing the point to this game,” Prompto said with a sigh. “Getting too real, guys. On that note, Gladio—Two truths and a lie. I’ve always wanted a pet, I bought my first camera with allowance money, and I am naturally a morning person.”

Gladio took a second to switch gears but when he did he relaxed in a very deliberate looking manner. “Well considering how you go on about chocobos, I wouldn’t be surprised if you always wanted one as a pet. And how you’re friends with Sleeping Beauty over there, it’s a mystery because you don’t need coffee in the morning like Ignis and you don’t sleep in like Noct. So, how’d you actually get your first camera?”

“I bought it with money from a part time job,” Prompto said after taking a drink. “Technically I had a phone camera before, but I was kind of frustrated at the limitations and after taking a photography class… Yeah, I was hooked.” He smiled. “So I saved up and bought this beauty,” Prompto said patting his camera. “It’s not like high end, but with multiple lenses and filters and a hella good zoom, it’s a pretty dang good first camera, you know?”

“I commend your work ethic,” Ignis said, though Prompto’s work ethic had always been good, even if he and Noctis were enablers in indulging in their gaming interests at the expense of other tasks at times. Prompto had gotten decent grades his whole life, and worked from no prior combat knowledge to full-fledged Crownsguard, pulling his own weight on this trip purely because he cared for Noctis. It wasn’t really surprising that he’d seen the goal of a nice camera and put the effort into getting it.

“Thanks, Iggy,” Prompto said with a pleased grin.

“Now if only Noct had a bit more of that,” Gladio joked.

“Of all of us, I think Prompto and I have the best work-life balance,” Noctis shot back.

“Besides,” Ignis added, “Noctis is hardworking. Unfortunately he just has a tendency to drop less pressing tasks in favor of immediate ones.”

“Is this about not sewing the button back on my shirt? Because I’m going to sew the button back on my shirt.”

“I’ve actually been impressed by how much help you’ve been with tasks like dishes and laundry,” Ignis said, a bit mean to do, but it was a sore point between them. Then again, Noctis was more likely to drop what he was doing and help than Gladio. Prompto was fine if given directions at least. Goodness knew Ignis couldn’t run every minutia of their lives no matter how much he wanted to.

Noctis groaned. “You’re never going to let high school go are you?”

Ignis smiled. “If it was only high school, I would.”

“He’s got you there, dude,” Prompto said. “You’re kind of a trash master when you get distracted.”

Distracted being anything from work, to a gaming binge, to one of Noctis’s occasional depressive episodes. Ignis was sympathetic to the latter and exasperated by the former.

“It’s Gladio’s turn,” Noctis said pointedly turning the conversation away from himself.

“Fine,” he sighed. “I am a dog person, I kill houseplants no matter how I try to keep them alive, and I kind of wish I’d gone to college.”

Prompto squinted at him. “This is the sort of thing I was worried about playing this. I have no idea which of those is a lie.”

“Guess,” Gladio said unhelpfully.

“Plants?” Prompto asked more than stated.

“Bzzt. I’m not a dog person. They’re cute and all but they’re high maintenance compared to cats.”

“Harsh, dogs are great,” Prompto said taking a drink. “They’re loyal and hard working. Don’t get me wrong, cats are adorable, but they’d abandon you for a sardine.”

“Lies and slander,” Noctis said.

“Dude, they’re super picky and you fall for their begging every time.”

“You feed every dog that looks your direction,” Noctis countered.

“Uh, no, we’ve seen like three dogs and one of those is Dave’s. You’re the one busting out super expensive cat food. Anyway, we can all agree chocobos are best.”

Noctis laughed. “I think it’s just you there.”

“Nah, chocobos are more useful and better fighters than either of them,” Gladio said, “so they win in my book too.”

“Why didn’t you attend university?” Ignis asked.

“You think I’d have had the time? I don’t know how you did it, honestly. I had my plate full learning everything I needed to protect Noct.”

Ignis could see a small, guilty twitch from Noctis. Ignis’s own university years had been…hmm, eventful. And the largest reason for his caffeine addiction. “Out of curiosity, what would you have studied?”

Gladio shrugged. “I dunno. I like history, and some of the stuff I’ve talked with Sania about’s pretty cool.”

“Oh yeah, you are friends with her aren’t you?” Prompto said. “Are frogs really that exciting?”

“Okay, the frogs are just one of the things she studies,” Gladio said. “Her greater research is on wildlife in general and you’d know that if you listened to what she said when we help her that she’s been looking into the change in daylight and the increase in scourge infected wildlife—”

“Holy shit have you been hiding a nerdy side this whole time?” Prompto said with the expression of a man who’d just witnessed something life changing. “Gladio, are you a science nerd under all that muscle?”

Gladio frowned. “Could you not say it like that? Also, I haven’t been hiding anything. I already know a lot about physiology from training, and nature is a thing I clearly enjoy as you guys love to complain about how I like camping. At least one of the books I’ve read on this trip was Sania’s research.”

“Well shit, man.” Prompto downed the rest of his drink. “The more you know. I think we all learned something today.” He blinked. “I should not have drank that all at once.”

Noctis laughed. “So we’re all on board to just drink now, huh?” He took a pointed swallow of his drink. “Might as well.”

“Really?” Ignis sighed.

“Eh, let ‘em,” Gladio said, taking a drink from his own cup. “As you guys keep saying, we’re trying to relax. Besides we were getting nowhere fast with the game.”

“That’s the point,” Ignis said. “To not get drunk.”

“They can’t get that drunk,” Gladio pointed out. “You made sure of it.”

Ignis pursed his lips, but Noctis and Prompto were elbowing each other and laughing and no one was going to end up so inebriated they were hung over the next day. It was almost like back in Insomnia…

Gladio slung an arm around him. “Don’t think too hard.”

“I am trying not to but…” They hadn’t really given themselves any proper time to grieve had they? One moment they were watching Insomnia burn and the next they were throwing themselves into seeking out royal arms and helping random strangers and going on hunts with barely any time to breathe because if they relaxed too much it might all fall apart. Ignis was used to setting how he felt aside, and so were the rest of them, but that didn’t necessarily make it healthy. Noctis and Prompto could laugh like this, so they would be okay. But sometimes Ignis wondered if he would be. That if he ever stopped he’d pull himself back together again.

“Drink if you think it’ll help,” Gladio said softly under the shriek of Noctis engaging Prompto to an impromptu tickling fight. “If you think it’ll be worse, leave it. Be in the moment, not the past.”

“I know that,” Ignis said. “I have been.” But the game had been about the past. On automatic, he saved the alcohol from getting spilled all over the tent floor as the tickle fight got wilder. Gladio gave his shoulder a squeeze.

“How about we team up against them, hmm?” Gladio offered.

Ignis pushed the mess of feelings back to deal with another day and managed a smile that almost reached his usual standards. “Would that be fair?”

“Anything’s fair in a tickling fight,” Gladio said. “Noct or Prompto first?”

“Noctis; Prompto is easier to subdue.”

“I’ll get his arms.”

“And I’ll handle his feet.”

Noctis and Prompto jumped when they entered the fight and Noctis yelped as Gladio caught him and Ignis exploited his weak points until he was gasping. Prompto laughed at his misfortune. At least until Ignis and Gladio shared a glance and turned to him, leaving Noctis to recover.

Later, much later, after more alcohol and Gladio ultimately emerging the victor of the tickle fight—he was only ticklish on his neck and that was hard to reach even when he wasn’t guarding it—they collapsed into a comfortable pile of bodies, curled up around each other, propriety and personal space be damned. They needed this, Ignis thought hazily on the edge of sleep. The laughter. The contact. The reassurance that they were still friends and close even after—or perhaps because of—everything that had happened.

“I haven’t done something like this in ages,” Gladio said, breaking the silence. “Not since… Hell, I don’t know. When I was a teenager?”

“Same,” Noctis said.

“Do our elbow fights over racing games not count?” Prompto asked. “Because we did that less than a year ago.”

“Yeah, but that’s… different,” Noctis muttered. “For one, Ignis joined in this time.” He lifted himself on one elbow long enough to fake-scowl in Ignis’s direction. “You’re brutal, by the way.”

Ignis laughed and had to stifle it on the nearest surface, which happened to be Noct’s thigh. When the laughter ran out though, he felt a bit drained, happy and sad at the same time. “I don’t think I’ve let go quite this much before.”

“Eighteenth birthday?” Gladio countered.

“Mm, but not everyone here was present for that.” And it hadn’t ended in a cuddle-pile on the ground. This was much better and would hopefully have less hangover-induced nausea the next morning.

“Well we’re all here now,” Noctis said, and like that was all that needed to be said, they went quiet, just the soft sounds of breathing and the occasional shift of limbs as they got comfortable.

Ignis ended up with Prompto’s head on his stomach and his own in Noctis’s lap. Gladio was both Noctis’s pillow and a heat source in how he managed to curl around Noctis and half of Prompto in the process. They were all going to wake up with limbs asleep and cricks in their necks, but for the moment it was all terribly comfortable.

Ignis drifted, letting the familiar sounds of his friends existing lure him toward sleep.

He was almost there when Prompto shifted against his chest.

“Ignis?” Prompto whispered, easily heard above the whistle-y start of Gladio’s snores and Noctis’s softer breathing.

“Mm?” When Prompto was silent, Ignis let a hand curl against his back, reassuring.

Prompto breathed out, relaxing minutely. “Do you think we’ll do this again someday?”

Ignis hummed. They didn’t have much downtime, though playing games happened when they did, but he knew that wasn’t what Prompto meant. They’d all shared parts of themselves tonight and boundaries had been crossed in other ways too, or they wouldn’t be curled up like this. But would it last beyond the morning?

Altissia loomed in their future and Ignis, for all that he would be glad to reach the city safely, equally dreaded it. It was one more step along some pre-destined path Noctis had laid out for him that only seemed to grow more burdensome the more Ignis let himself dissect what little he knew about Noct’s fate.

No, Ignis didn’t think that they would do this again. Not with this level of uncomplicated friendship, with their burdens as easily set aside. Those burdens only grew as days trickled by.

But he knew that wasn’t what Prompto needed to hear though, so for the moment he pulled on comforting hopes instead of his more realistic fears.

“We will,” he said, making himself sound sure.

“Promise?” Prompto asked.

He was so young, all of them were, but Ignis felt it in this fragile moment. All the more so because Prompto didn’t come from a life where things were predetermined. He’d forged his own path here, and perhaps that made him the most driven out of all of them. But because of that, he didn’t hold the same assurances. He didn’t see that he’d forged his own bonds here or that they were just as strong—if not more—as anything Ignis or Gladio shared with Noctis. Or with each other truly.

They were all friends and more than by this point. Comrades. A family of a sort, the last that each other had.

Ignis wanted to protect that with all his heart.

“I promise,” he said gently.

“Double promise,” Noctis slurred, patting randomly in Prompto’s direction. “Now go t’sleep.”

Prompto stifled a giggle. “Back at you, dude.” Noctis, apparently, fell truly asleep at that. Or perhaps he was already asleep and in one of his odd, in-between lucid moments.

“You’re one of us,” Ignis murmured, “and we’re going to stick together.”

“I’m holding you to that,” Prompto said, getting comfortable again.

As Ignis relaxed again, letting sleep pull him under, his last thought was how lucky they were to still have so much in each other.

[dragonastra]

1-100 on the DnD questions, for Deah >:3

Wow you're sure as hell fishing to kill me huh xD

I'll answer these under a read more cuz FUCK. I'll also try to keep it spoiler free -- I may mention stuff that hasn't come up in game but it would be stuff that might not ever come up explicitly anyway. Everything else has either been said or can be gleaned.

If your character wasn’t an adventurer, what livelihood would they lead Probably what she had been doing -- being a pirate

Who in the party would your character trust the most with their life Probably Maddie and/or Gael. Maddie is a divine soul sorcerer and probably the one Deah is closest to. Gael is our barbarian/paladin who is probably the emotional backbone of the group? He is very earnest and genuine, and also hits like a brick house.

What are your character’s core moral beliefs? [Brushes off notes I made like a year ago] Promises must be kept, and debts one day fulfilled. Clean up the messes you made. Family is more important than self. Survival means not letting the past define you. (Not all morals but those are her ideals)

What relationship does your character have with their parents and siblings? She has a twin brother, whom she would die for. Their relationship used to be solid, but theyve currently broken apart somewhat due to lies and building tension, and the brother needing to go his own way. She is still very broken up about it. Her parents are both dead, and she has not spoken of much closeness there, but describes them as "they tried their best." Her pirate captain was basically a surrogate father for her teenage years and onward until their separation, and she... misses him.

Does your character have any biases for or against certain races? Not really. She probably doesnt trust ratfolk based on where she grew up, but beyond that? If you're good, you're good.

What is your character’s opinion on nobility? On authority? (: fuck em. She is... shall we say... less inclined to help rich people.

Describe your character’s current appearance: clothes, armor, scars they’ve picked up along the journey, etc. She's grown out her undercut so she has an asymmetrical style, one side of her head buzzed. She is still wearing her bright red pirate coat, but now wears a dark brown vest with purple accents underneath, as well as a long black sleeve to cover magical scars she received when she accepted a warlock pact with the hunter god. Also covering her scars is a gauntlet made by Maddie, so that they can't be detected by Detect Good and Evil and such.

What location encountered in the campaign has your character felt the most “at home” in, or just generally liked the most? Sometimes she still thinks about that nap she had on the beach at a random island they had stopped at to restock on food.

What deity, if any, does your character worship? What’s their opinion on other people’s worship? As i mentioned, she has a pact with the hunter god, Erastil. She does not worship him. In fact, she rather doesnt like gods much. She doesnt really understand other worshippers, but if they're not hurting anyone with it she doesn't really care. Their worship doesnt affect her.

If your character had time to pick up any artisan’s tools, game set, instrument, etc., what would it be? Let's get this binch some navigator's tools finally!

Describe your character’s current relationship with the player character sitting to your right. We are entirely online so we don't really have table seating. Based on the order of our nicknames in discord though, that would be... Haru, our new kitsune Oracle who joined us to fill a gap while some other players went on hiatus. Deah is uncertain about him, and she is generally pretty wary about strangers in her party, but he is useful. Their relationship is not deep by any means tbh.

What is your character’s current goal, summed up in one sentence? Stop the lord of the sea, and stop Aleksander.

Does your character ever want to “settle down” with a spouse, children, house, etc.? ;) you'll have to ask her

Has your character ever been in love? Before the campaign, certainly not. She's hella ace, and doesn't open up easily, so she's got some confusing feelings right now for Maddie ;)

What battle in the campaign has been most memorable to your character The battle against Tokt, since this was the battle that she was able to help save a person from being possessed by a demon -- something she figured out beforehand and convinced her team about.

If your character wasn’t whatever class they are, what would they be instead? I mean... probably a fighter???? Or maybe a full warlock, if she was desperate enough.

What is your character’s favorite season? Probably the fall? Sailing is usually good during that time, plus the harvest is coming in on land, so there's a lot of fresh food.

What would your character’s Zodiac sign be, following stereotypical astrology? She would be an Aries based on her birthday! Our homebrew world just uses "Season Day" as time markers, with 90 days each season. She was born on Spring 12, which would translate to the first week of April.

Where in the world does your character most want to visit? She's been all over as an adventurer and a sailor. The place she'd like to visit the most is one she doesn't know about -- somewhere important to her old captain.

What is the biggest mistake your character has ever made? Deah would maybe even say joining the pirates. It was the happiest she'd ever been, but it led her brother to a path he regrets and feels pain over, and she feels a... bit guilty about that.

Does your character have any noticeable scars? If so, what are their stories? The only scars she has are from her pact to Erastil. She hides them, though. She's not ashamed of them, but she likes to keep them to herself... she's private like that.

What animal best represents your character? I always liken her to a hawk, especially a sea hawk. In some ways she’s like a cobra or a porcupine too -- kind of hard to get close to!

If your character could go back in time and change one thing about their life, what would it be? 😬

Which other player character does your character find themselves having the most in common with? I don't know about most in common, really, but she gets along easiest with Ro, our halfling. Their banter is 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻. Honestly though? She probably has the most in common with Mercy, our tiefling fighter/paladin.

Does your character regret any particular choice the party has made? She probably regrets the party not staying behind in a certain town after a powerful enemy escaped. They thought the immediate threat had been dealt with and that another team from their guild could keep watch over the town, but then that team got surprised by an undead and two of them died. She feels at least partially responsible for that.

What would your character say their best trait would be? Her ability to perceive and track things. She has the observant feat plus the invocation that lets her see through even magical darkness!

What is your character’s greatest fear? Deep, irrational? Being abandoned.

What is currently motivating your character to stay with the party? No where else to go, really. Like, sure, she likes at least most of them and they've been through a lot!!! And she DOES you know, feel like this is a stable job, and she does feel good helping people. But... she really does have no where else to go. :(

What are your character’s hobbies and interests outside of their class? She does enjoy reading, though she's a little slow. Her favorite books are detective/mystery novels! She also sometimes likes to practice magic tricks (like... sleight of hand stuff). And technically this isnt outside of her class, but she really does enjoy training. Let's her burn off steam.

What would most people think when they first see your character? Pretty little waif, but that resting bitch face looks like she will cut me of I even say hello (this is by design).

What stereotypical group role does your character play in the party? (The Mom, the Mess, the Comic Relief, etc. Optionally: What role would your character play in the “Five Man Band” structure?) [Googles five man band] probably Lancer. Initially she wanted to be the Leader type but with the group dynamics and her own insecurities and issues, that isnt really truly possible for her. But she still tries to lead...

What is your character the most insecure about? :)

What person does your character admire most? Her old ship captain. Her DEAD ship captain :(

What does your character admire and dislike the most about the player character sitting to your left? She admires maddie's strength and kindness (and to a degree, innocence). Maddie's cooking skills. Maddie's family. She dislikes how nervous/anxious and possibly depressed Maddie can get :c

Why is your character’s lowest stat their lowest (the in-character reason, not “because there’s no reason for a wizard to have 16 strength, duh”)? Her lowest stat is strength, and her second lowest is constitution. This is because she grew up poor, and was at times starving and definitely malnourished. Once she was om the pirate ship, she was regularly fed though.

What would be your character’s theme song/favorite band/favorite genre of music? I've been saying if she was in modern time, her favorite band would be Florence and the Machine. There's just something about the Florence sound that speaks to her. She'd definitely be into that kind of music, plus some heavier stuff leaning more towards metal or symphonic metal...

What stereotypical role would your character play in a high school AU/if they attended a normal high school? (Nerd, jock, bully, goth, etc.) She's got the soul of a goth but the hobbies of a jock (in our team's college AU she's totally on the fencing and sailing teams). When I've drawn her in modern day she is usually wearing athleisure (capris leggings, loose tank top, sports bra, e.g.) but also it's mostly dark colors. She's Joth.

What treasure/item/artifact that your character has collected during the adventure is the most important to them? Toby :) just kidding, the pseudodragon isn't an item!!! Specifically collected during the adventure, probably her force blade. Her brother had found it, but had given it to her, near the beginning of the adventure.

Is there any particular weapon, item, etc. that your character longs to find? She's not really looking out for items, no.

Where does your character feel the most at home? On the beach, on the ship. Specific locations to call home, she does finally feel like she has a stable place to call home in the patty's estate.

Does your character care about how they’re perceived by others? How do they change themselves to fit in with other people? She's worn disguises and fake names before, but that's mostly to protect herself during her pirate years. She doesn't care a whole lot, but she does want to appear somewhat intimidating so that unsavoury people won't approach her LMAO. But she also wants to be seen as nice by children and poor folk, so she does soften a bit when they're around.

What does your character think is the true meaning of life? Happiness. Safety. Survival. Family/community.

What is your character’s scent? (Bonus points for a description that sounds like it could be from a bad [or awesome] fanfic.) She's always got a slight scent of salt on her, reminding you just a bit of the sea. For herself, she prefers to just smell... clean, so there's a fresher floral scent lingering...

Does your character think more with their heart or their brain? She tries to think more with her brain but sometimes the bottled up emotions get to be a bit much.

What is your character’s most recent or frequent nightmare? BEING. ABANDONED.

What opinion does your character have on [CERTAIN ESTABLISHED GROUPS/AUTHORITIES IN THE GAME WORLD]? (Dragonmarked Houses, royal crown, etc.) She hates (most) rich people and used to be a pirate, so you can kind of figure it out.

How did your character spend their childhood? Where did they grow up/who were their childhood friends? :(

What aspect of your character’s future are they most curious about? (If they could know one thing about the future, what would it be?) I dunno man she is just taking things one step at a time.

What colors are associated with your character? Red is her primary color. She also uses blacks/dark grays and a light purple as an accent. She's using more brown now tho to represent her connection to the hunter god.

Who in the party would your character prioritize rescuing, in dire circumstances? Maddie always. Then Ro. Then Gael. Haru would probably be up there because he is squishy and also mostly blind.

Is your character the most swayed by ethos, pathos, or logos? A mix of pathos and logos is most effective on Deah. Logos probably most of all, but there are pathos buttons that hold away above all that... if you know which buttons to press.

If your character was granted a single use of Wish, what would they use it for? Currently? To bring back her pirate captain. She knows its selfish but...

What is your character’s favorite spell? If they don’t use spells: what is their favorite personal weapon/combat maneuver/skill/etc.? Her favorite spell is stab with rapier.

How does your character feel about keeping secrets from the rest of the party? She keeps secrets pretty regularly! Basically if the party needs to know, then the secret should be shared. But if it doesnt really affect the group or something important, and the person doesnt want to share, then go ahead and keep the secret.

What type of creature in the world is your character the most intrigued by? Dragons probably, at this point. Definitely an influence by me the player, haha, but it's buoyed by an early meeting with a particular dragon that sparked her interest.

When they were a child, what did your character want to be, or think they were going to be, when they grew up?  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ she didnt have life plans as a kid. She just wanted her and her brother to live.

The player character to your left admits that they’re passionately in love with your character. How would your character respond? That's already happened LMAO. Deah didnt know how to react so her brain blur screened and she ran away from the situation for a bit.

If somebody (an NPC, someone from their backstory, etc.) your character trusts/loves asked your character to do something against the party’s best interest, who would they side with? If it only involved herself, Deah would probably go do it. But if it was a huge net loss for the group, she wouldn't, if that makes sense? It's hard to make sweeping statements like that.

Does your character value their own best interest more than the party’s? She values her own interest for sure, but she would prioritize the party's if one meant dunking on the other. She knows what it's like to sail with a tight knit crew; sometimes you sacrifice to make the group as a whole better/happier.

What decision would the party have to make in order for your character to consider splitting off from the group? Oh gosh, uh.... I mean, if they decide to help her enemies (not likely to happen, there are a couple shared ones). If they don't let her do something she REALLY wants... I can't really think of anything specific.

How does your character imagine the way they will die? Tragically. 

What is your character’s greatest achievement? Taming her pseudodragon ;w;

Is your character willing to risk the well-being of others in order to achieve their goal? Hmm... not to a certain degree. Eh, probably not. She only really wants to risk herself, not others. Risking others doesn't give them the choice.

What is your character’s opinion on killing others? She does it all the time!! But if they're defenseless or not fighting back, she won't.

What is your character’s favorite food? Beverage? She really loves fresh baked bread!! As for beverage, uh.... I guess she'd like water with like, something fruity mixed in???

How generous is your character? Especially to those they don’t know? To the poor and to kids? Very. Also, recently, she gave all of the money she got from a quest to a townsperson to help them rebuild their city a bit (secretly of course. Not even her team knows she did that, though maybe some of them suspect hahaha)

What is your character the most envious about, regarding anyone in the party? Once again... probably most envious of Maddie!! She comes up a lot doesn't she ;P

The player character to your left and the player character to your right are both telling your character two different versions of the truth. Who does your character believe? Maddie vs Haru? Shed probably lean towards Maddie :p

What is your character’s sexuality/relationship with sex? I've described Deah as Panromantic Asexual. She is rather sex averse and has difficulty pinpointing romantic feelings as well, being rather prickly at times.

What is your character’s biggest pet peeve? When people try to dig into something she doesn't want to share at the moment.

Describe how your character feels about the party’s current situation/objective/etc. The current objective/situation involves her backstory, so you'll see soon ;)

Who in the party would your character trust the most to keep an important secret? Maddie of course! She trusts Gael, but not with secrets. Similarly, she trusts Mercy to hold an oath to the best of her ability, but not if a secret comes up -- same with Rudi. Ro does what she wants LMAO and she isnt telling Haru anything personal atm.

If your character knew that they were going to die in a month, how would they spend the rest of their life? I dont want to think about that question and neither does Deah

What makes your character feel safe? Having her weapons. Having her pact/her pact scars.

If your character had the chance to rename the party/give the party a name, no questions asked, what would it be? Nah, she likes Fortune's Blades

What memory does your character want to forget the most? Cal leaving. It's probably her most painful memory.

If your character had to multiclass into a class they currently aren’t the next time they level up, what would it be and what reason would they have for doing so? She's already multi classed and her reasons for becoming a warlock are kind of muddied. She explained them initially but maaaaybe wasn't 100% truthful. If she had to pick a third, probably uh.... fighter?????

What television/book/video game/etc. character would your character be best friends with? (Or: what media character is your character the most influenced by/similar to?) I would HOPE she would be friends with Elizabeth Swan (: but idk lol

What unusual talents does your character possess? Sharp senses and magic tricks.

How does your character feel about receiving/giving orders? Are they more of a leader, or a follower? It's rather situational. She tries to be a leader type, but she also realizes she's not at the top of the leader chain (and, with her party, at times different people take the head, so it's almost more consult-y like).

What does your character’s name represent to them? (Or: why as a player did you choose your character’s name?) The player of Cal, her brother, chose his name first from a generator. I like to construct my names sometimes from different name elements, so I made hers to match the sound of her twin's (that is, make it sound like it came from the same language). Her name is constructed of "Feld-" (field) and "-Deah" (dye) so her first name translates roughly to "field of dye." Her original last name is Shearwater, which is a real life sea bird but also follows the traditional elven naming convention (their dad was an elf). She never felt much of an attachment to her last name. She recently changed her last name to Blackheart, which was the moniker of her captain.

Is your character more of an introvert, or an extrovert? Introvert for sure

How far is your character willing to go to pursue the “greater good”? Do they believe in a greater good at all? She would go as far as she needs to, but would never force others to make that same decision.

What does your character want to be remembered by? At one point she thought she would eventually be a famous pirate captain. But mostly I think she just wants to be remembered by those who love her and by those she helped...

What would be your character’s major in college? Fuck, uh... I had discussed this before.... I think I made her pre-law??? Math major???

Does your character consider themselves a hero, villain, or something else? Something else. She doesn't really care about that, she's just Being.

What major arcana tarot card best represents your character? I believe last it was discussed I had picked the Chariot for her.

Where does your character see themselves in 20 years? If not dead from adventuring, then settled somewhere nice, hopefully...

What is your character’s relationship with magic? Are they scared of it, wish to know more about it, indifferent to it? For a long time she was the Sokka of the group, the only non-magic user. Then she got her pact. She's still kind of awkward about it, and at times really doesn't like magic, but she sees it as a tool. A means to an end.

Who is your character’s biggest rival? Rival?????? I guess Morrigan tbh??? Cuz a rival isn't an enemy, and she had a thing going with Morrigan (her player is on hiatus tho). In some ways she rivals Mercy too. A dance of similarities and differences.

What is your character’s guiltiest pleasure? Fine, beautiful dresses. She doesn't own any, because it's a waste of money, but.... she wants them. Secretly.

What does your character hope for the afterlife? Peace and rest.

Who in the party does your character trust the least? Haru, currently, simply by virtue of being new.

What is your character’s biggest flaw? BIGGEST flaw???? Uhhhmmm..... Her secrecy probably. Her tendency to run away from really big, painful problems, to bottle up her emotions around that until everything just gets worse.

How did your character learn the languages that they speak? Common, prucrician and Elvish she learned just growing up. Deep, she just... mysteriously knows. Doesn't know why she can speak it. Draconic she learned at first from Rudi, and then from a dragonborn NPC to finish her lessons during a timeskip.

What is your character’s favorite school of magic/type of weaponry? Rapier

What is most important to your character: health, wealth, or happiness? Why must she choose? Wealth, because that brings health and happiness in her eyes. (Because money buys food and when you have food.....)

What advice would your character give to a younger version of themselves? I know it's hard, but open up more. You don't have to keep it to yourself to protect others. Your brother can be your friend as well... you don't have to just keep holding yourself back for your friends and family.

Are there any social or political issues your character feels strongly about? She doesn't feel super strongly about politics, having been a pirate. She feels strongly about protecting children and poor though, as I've mentioned.

What, currently, is your character the most curious about? The afterlife. Erastil, but specifically just that one god. Her ship captain.

[rareficsnstuff]

Teamwork [Tendou, Kuroo, Bokuto]

Summary: Tendou is the resident tickle monster in his, Bokuto’s, and Kuroo’s apartment and the other two can’t handle it. This was the last straw, but one thing is for sure: you can’t take the tickle monster on alone.

Words: 3,095

AN: Sequel to this. Is this a series now? Also, this is super long... I’m sorry, I couldn’t figure out how to end it...

                                          ____________________

“I’m home!” Kuroo announced to the quiet apartment. He paused in the entry way, a bit perturbed by the lack of activity in their ordinarily lively shared apartment.

“Hello?” Stepping further into the room, he noticed a shock of bright, red hair draped lazily on the arm of the couch. “Tendou?” he whispered. As he approached the lanky figure, coming up to stand behind the couch, he saw his soft, relaxed features and understood that Tendou was asleep. Limp and utterly dead to the world. He smiled softly and turned towards the kitchen, feeling hungry now.

“Oh, that’s right. Bokuto said he’d be hanging out with Akaashi today. I’ll just have leftovers from last night,” he mused aloud before opening the fridge and pulling out a tupper wear container of fried rice and broccoli.

In the other room, a single beady, red eye slowly slit open, peering at the tufts of dark bedhead.

Kuroo continued to prepare his reheated meal, spooning a generous portion into a bowl and placing it in the microwave. As he bent down to punch in the cook time on the number panel, he was suddenly interrupted by his own bellowing shout of surprised and his arms involuntarily slamming down against his sides.

“Hi there, putty tat ~,” Tendou sang sweetly from behind Kuroo. The latter turned, wide-eyed to see hooded eyes and a honeyed expression playing on the red-head’s thin lips.

“Tendou!? Wha- How- how did you-? I-I thought you were asleep!” he finished in a squeak when Tendou wiggled his fingers under his arms again. Kuroo was paralyzed by nerves.

“Was. Woke up when you came in.” He began wiggling his finger in earnest now, making Kuroo convulse before he doubled over, cackling wildly and slowly sinking to the floor.

“NYAAAHahahaa! C’mohon, man! Whyyeehehehaha?!”

“’Why?’...” Tendou shrugged. “’Cuz. It’s fun,” he replied simply as Kuroo slumped fully to the floor. Now kneeling, he leaned against the cabinets as he twisted his torso from side-to-side, desperately trying to dislodge the evil fingers from one of his weakest spots. The overwhelming sensations caused him to collapse further into a fetal position, at witch, Tendou finally pried his fingers out from under his arms in favor of torturing his lower ribs. This made him shoot upright again, flailing backwards to escape the feeling and falling on his ass.

“Duhude, STAP! Cu-HAHAhaa! Cut it aaahahahaout!” With the new position, he was able to put up a meager defense of swatting and grappling at the offending fingers. But it was a loosing battle. Tendou’s skilled, clever hands found their way past his flimsy defense to the sensitive grooves between his ribs and his coordination suffered drastically. Tendou chuckled. He was just too ticklish. Overwhelmed, Kuroo’s head fell back as he howled with laughter, rolling onto his back, hugging himself loosely and legs kicking desperately.

“STAHAHAaa! Tehendou- pleahese! PleAHAHAHAa! Pleahese- I juHAhAha- just wahant fooohoohoooode!" That did it.

Tendou was sent into his own fit of laughter, highly amused by the pitiful, defeated whine.

“Oho my god, man! Haha! I’m gonna have’ta give you that one! That was just… heartbreaking! I actually think I’m crying a little,” he teased feigning a sniffle as he wiped at nonexistent tears with a finger. “Poor baby ~ So cuuute ~!”

“Shuhut up,” Kuroo panted, a smile still pulling at the reluctant corners of his mouth.

Just as Tendou stood, the front door opened once again, ushering Bokuto through with a loud chorus of his signature “Hey, Hey, Heeey!”

“Welcome home, Bo-Bo ~” Tendou gushed, approaching the new arrival in a half-stalking-half-sauntering walk, leaning forward with his hands folded behind his back and his neck craning up at him at an odd, teasing angle, his playful, crooked grin still in place. “Did you have a good time with your old pal?” Bokuto grinned brightly.

“Sure did! We had a lot of catching up to do! He said the volleyball club’s pretty quiet without me there. He totally missed me!” The red-head smiled slyly up at him.

“Sure, Bo-Bo. Whatever you say…”

An exhausted huff sounded from the kitchen and Bokuto peeked around Tendou – the latter looking over his own shoulder – and saw the slumped, worn-out-and-red-faced Kuroo still laying on the floor.

“What happened ta him?” Bokuto asked, looking curiously back at Tendou as he pointed at their other roommate. Rather than giving a reply, Tendou simply reached out and scribbled his fingers over Bokuto’s belly, immediately making the larger of the two burst into light, snorty chuckles and double over in mirth. This attack was short, however, and Bokuto was soon standing upright again, grinning broadly. Tendou sat lazily on the couch, his face smug with pride.

“Gotcha again, did he, Kuroo?” Bokuto teased, going over to him and offering a hand to help him up.

“Not faaaair!” he whined.

“Oh c’mon, man, it’s not that bad.”

“No! You don’t understand, Bo! This was my darkest secret; no one was supposed to know! Now I’m living with a couple of sadistic tickle monsters! Just kill me.” Hearing this, the red tickle monster piped up.

“That can be arranged ~.”

“Nooooo!” Kuroo groaned, hiding his red face in his hands. Both tickle monsters laughed.

“Tendou tickles me too, Kuroo,” Bokuto consoled.

“Yeah, but you’re… YOU!” Bokuto just chuckled, turning to the red-head.

“Are you ticklish, Tendou?” he asked plainly.

“Nope. Sorry.”

“…”

“…”

“Do you believe that?” Bokuto asked, turning back to Kuroo.

“Not in the slightest.”

“Me neither… You wanna-?”

“Yep.”

Abruptly, the two turned, approaching their lanky roommate. Tendou didn’t move, seeming utterly unconcerned about the impending demise. Half sitting, half laying, he had one arm thrown over the back, the other elbow propped up on the arm of the couch and his temple resting on a loose fist. His expression was calm; mocking, but his eyes clearly read ‘try me’. Wasting no time, Bokuto began worming his fingers into his sides. Other than a derisive smirk, there was no reaction – no twitch, no flicker of panic in his eyes, his breathing didn’t even change. Still unconvinced, Bokuto moved in to his stomach, than up to his ribs. A slight squirm. That was all he gave before he suddenly reached forward to knead at Bokuto’s belly. He collapsed, laughing outright and bracing himself with his hands on the couch cushion before he fell completely.

“Bo!” Kuroo shouted, incredulously.

“Iha’m sorry! I cahhAHAHA! I cahan’t help ihihihit!” he wheezed. Tendou grinned wickedly when Bokuto’s knees finally hit the floor. Attempting to rescue his accomplice, Kuroo grabbed for Tendou’s wrists. But the latter was quicker, releasing Bokuto to recover on the floor and catching one of the raven-head’s wrists, pulling him down on top of him and wrapping his arm around his back to plunge his fingers under the exposed arm.

“Shit! NOHO! Stahahaha!” he laughed, free hand trying to find purchase on Tendou’s chest and push himself away from this gremlin. “Boho, heeehehelp!” Recovered but still chuckling, Bokuto stood and successfully grabbed Tendou’s wrists, pulling his hands away from the near-hysterical Kuroo. The sudden freedom caused the force of his restrained momentum to throw him backwards onto the floor with a loud ‘oof’. Tendou looked as if he was trying really hard not to laugh at them.

“You guys are the cutest,” he teased.

“Shut up, scarecrow! This isn’t about us!” Kuroo whined. With Bokuto still restraining his arms, Kuroo stood and grabbed his ankles, pulling them to the other end of the couch into a full laying position against the cushions before taking residence on his hips. Tendou chuckled at the disgruntled look on his face.

“You’re so mad,” he grinned.

“No! I’m desperate! Bokuto’s just curious.” Bokuto nodded in confirmation.

“As true as that may be, I can’t say I’m opposed to some justice on my part, either. Kuroo?” he prompted with a nod to his accomplice.

“With pleasure ~,” Kuroo sang. Figuring it was as good a place as any to start, Kuroo started prodding at Tendou’s ribs, but aside from a growing impish smirk, there was no reaction. “You gotta be kiddin’ me,” he grumbled.

“Like I said: not ticklish.”

“Like I said: I don’t believe you!” he said, fingers traveling under his arms. “I SAW THAT!” Kuroo shouted suddenly, making Bokuto jump a little and look at him curiously.

“Saw what?” Tendou said, scoffingly.

“Don’t play dumb with me! Your abs just contracted! You’re totally trying to hold it in!”

“Okay, fine; I’m ticklish. Are you happy now? Get off me, you overgrown cat,” Tendou drawled, feeling a little panicked when he felt Kuroo’s fingers crawling upwards.

“Oh? You’re giving up already?... Am I getting close to something, Sa-to-ri ~?” Kuroo purred.

“Hey, hey, Kuroo! His ears got pink!” cheered Bokuto. Kuroo hummed teasingly.

“You gettin’ nervous, buddy? Or are you just shy?” he asked, hands momentarily stilling.

“N-no, I just think you guys’ve wasted enough of all our time. Anyways, weren’t you just whining about wanting to ea-WAIT!” he shrieked when Kuroo suddenly began dragging his fingers up his arms again. Surprised by the outburst, he froze again.

“Okay. wait… wait a minute. Are you…?” On a hunch stemming from the reactions Tendou gave the closer he got to the spot, Kuroo slooowly dragged his fingers over his pale, knobby elbows. The unearthly scream that melted into wild, wheezy cackles made both Kuroo and Bokuto’s jaws drop in disbelief and Kuroo had to pause again.

There was a stalled moment of absolute silence in which Tendou was left to realize what had just happened while his two tormentors processed the information. They glanced at each other before suddenly bursting out into amused laughter.

“Duhude! Are you serious?! Your elbows are your tickle spot?!” Bokuto roared in bafflement. Tendou merely set his jaw and squeezed his eyes shut as he attempted to bury his face in his arm, ears and neck darkening in color.

“Oh my god, are you hiding?!” Kuroo asked, grinning like the Cheshire. “Bo, pin his arm down.” Obliging, Bokuto maneuvered around the couch to press one knee just above his armpit and – gathering both wrists into one hand, leaving the other free to torture the red-head as well – pulled taut at the pinned arm. Now Tendou didn’t even have the relief of wiggling that arm to make him feel better. He couldn’t move it at all! Not to mention, he had to deal with three hands now. “Try his neck,” Kuroo directed before delving back into his task of tickling their captive’s elbows.

“GYAAAAHAHAHAA! SHIhit STAAAPphehehehaHAha!” Tendou cackled, head thrashing and legs kicking helplessly.

“Wait, Kuroo, I can’t tell if he’s ticklish here or not. Stop tickling him for a sec.” Kuroo withdrew and Tendou took the chance to heave in oxygen. But his momentary relief was interrupted by curious fingers skittering around his neck again and he tensed. Spidering touches on the sides had his lips quivering and sharp, sporadic breaths forced through his nose. His throat and jaw weren’t much different, but the back… Specifically his hairline threw him into a full-on, bubbly giggle fit with the occasional mini snort mixed in.

“Tsehehehehaha! Stahahehe-sniq! Boho-Bo, dooohohon’t-hehaha!” Bokuto grinned.

“Aww ~. Too much?... Too bad ~.” His fingers suddenly jumped to feather over his ears and Tendou squealed.

“Naaheheheh! Oho-gahehed, stahAAA-NAHAHAO!” Kuroo had joined in, tormenting his elbows again.

“You sure seem to talk big for someone who’s got ticklish elbows, Satori! What’s with that?! Maybe now you’ll think twice before you decide to be a brat, huh?!” he lectured, shouting over Tendou’s wild, high-pitched cackling.

“NAHATA CHAHAHANCEHEHEheheheeeh!” Even while drowning in laughter, he still managed to be a snarky, defiant little snot. Kuroo and Bokuto laughed, stilling their hands to give him a rest.

“Are yo-heheheh. A-are you dohone now? Ihi’m gonna pass ohohout,” he panted.

“Oh, we’re not even close to done, bud!” Bokuto said, accenting with fluttering fingers against his ribs. To their surprise, it caused him to erupt into light, breathy giggles as he attempted, again, to hide his face.

“Wait, what?! You weren’t ticklish there a second ago!” said Kuroo in delighted astonishment. “What, did you have it switched off before?!” He joined Bokuto, relishing in this new information.

“I thought I saw you squirmin’ earlier! Oh, you’re good, Tendou! You almost had me convinced!” said Bokuto, grinning.

“I-heeheheheheh! Dahaheheeh! Stahappt!”

“As fun as this is, Bo, we gotta get his other half,” said Kuroo, never stopping his fingers.

“You’re right. Hang on, scooch down a bit…” Taking his knee off his arm, Bokuto lifted Tendou’s wrists above his head, suspending the smaller of the two several inches off the couch. Tendou started squirming in new panic as the white tickle monster moved to sit in the new space behind him, pinning his hands to his chest with one hand. As soon as he was settled in, Kuroo turned away from the two, taking perch on his upper thighs and, with one last, evil look over his shoulder, he began squeezing at the meat of his thighs. Although his legs squirmed and Bokuto could feel his back tensing and untensing, the only sounds he made were spastic breaths through his nose. He was smiling, though.

“Really? That’s it? Wow. Okay, what about here?” said Kuroo, tickling down to his knees. A snort and the giggles were back along with an increase in his squirming. “Well, that’s better, but, knowing you, I bet the good stuff is riiiight… here!”

Screaming. You’d think he was being murdered. Tendou couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed this hard. His free leg kicking any way it could, back arched and his head thrown back onto Bokuto’s shoulder as waves of screaming laughter were torn from his lungs. Kuroo had leaned forward to grab a hold of one of his ankles to keep his leg still before he started spidering at his shin and kneading his calf. Just as he had suspected, this was his death spot. A weird spot for a weird guy.

“NAAAAHAHAHAOO! NAAAO- STAHAP! OH- GAHAHAD- STAAAP!” Kuroo grinned back at Bokuto who was laughing warmly at poor Tendou’s predicament. The red-head’s laughter almost stuttered and a jolt shot through his body when he felt the monster behind him join in with his free hand, switching between skittering his finger over his elbows and digging into his ribs. At this point, tears were beginning to roll down his cheeks and his face, neck, and ears nearly matching the color of his hair. Bokuto felt him go limp as he lost any ability to fight back and his laughter was going silent. The monsters took his weakened state as their cue to give him a break and shift positions once more: Kuroo climbed off his legs, allowing him to pull his knees to his chest in flimsy defense and Bokuto released his wrists, squeezing out from behind him, only to let him fall onto his side in a fetal position as he buried his face in the back of the couch, giggling breathlessly.

“Well, Satori ~,” Kuroo purred, kneeling on the cushion by Tendou’s feet. “Seems the big, bad tickle monster’s pretty ticklish himself ~.”

“Dude, you match your hair,” Bokuto chaffed, gold eyes sparkling with mischief. He glanced at Kuroo, meeting his eyes and, as if they had read each other’s minds, spoke in unison.

“You’re so cuuuute ~!”

“Oh, gohohooood,” he groaned, covering his face with his hands.

“Aww ~, what’s the matter, buddy ~? Can’t handle what you dish out ~?” sang Bokuto, bending over his huddled form and squeezing at his rib cage with one hand while the other tickled at the back of his neck. Tendou’s shoulders scrunched up and his knees pressed tighter to his chest as he tried to curl further into the thin protection, squirming weakly.

“Gyahaha! Bo-Bo, c’mohohon! I-heheehehehe- NO! Dahahaheheheh! You guhuys, please!” Kuroo had decided to torture his lower legs again, making Tendou give a startled kick before curling back into himself and resorting to just fluttering his legs sporadically. Being exhausted and thoroughly tickled-out, the torture drew out a new kind of laughter. A string of giggles, sprinkled heavily with hiccups and tiny gasps bouncing off his tongue and trickling out of his mouth had both Kuroo and Bokuto cooing gleefully.

“Staha-ahaha! Stahap, pleahehehehese! You gohot me, okahay! I-hi give up! The tihickle monster gihives up! Yohou’re gonna kihill meeeehehehehe! I-I-hahaha! I cahahaheheheh! I chahahan’t-hahaaahehehehe-hehehe! Pleeeeehehehease!”

“You think he’s had enough?” asked Bokuto, looking to his accomplice for confirmation.

“Mmn… Yeah, I guess. He did say please.”

Finally, they relented. Kuroo adjusted to sit normally on the couch, one arm thrown over the back as he grinningly observed Tendou’s unfaltering giggle fit. Bokuto pulled back and settled himself criss-cross on the floor in front of the couch, beaming and eyes sparkling with child-like joy.

“You can stop laughing, Tendou. We’re not tickling you anymore,” he said with an amused chuckle.

“I-hehehe! I knohow! I’m tryihihing, but I-hehehehaha…!”

“Tendou’s got the giggles ~.” Kuroo sang, quickly skittering his fingers under his socked toes and making him squeak.

Several minutes later, Tendou finally calmed down to sighing pants of breath, bright smile still clearly present.

“Gotcha good, huh?” said Bokuto. The others chuckled.

“Yeah, yeah… I deserved that.”

“Okay, but seriously: your shins, your calves, and your elbows, man?! Those are such weird places to be ticklish!” shouted Kuroo incredulously.

“I can’t help it. That’s just the way I am… Why are you so overly ticklish everywhere?”

“This ain’t about me…” Kuroo deadpanned.

“Wait, there was something else…” Bokuto mused. “Do you get more ticklish the longer someone tickles you? ‘Cus you didn’t react hardly at all until we got your elbows. But then, all of a sudden, your ribs had you squirmin’ real bad. What’s up with that?” Tendou blushed.

“I… Yeah- well… Not exactly… It tickled the whole time, but- but I can usually stand it for a while… unless you get one of the kill-spots…” he pouted.

“You ticklish everywhere?” Kuroo asked, honestly curious.

“Pretty much.”

“You’re all red again ~,” Bokuto teased. Tendou looked away and the other two grinned.

“WELL!... I’m getting food,” Kuroo said abruptly, standing up from the couch and heading for the kitchen where he had left his food so long ago.

“Food sounds good.” Bokuto followed.

“… I hope you guys know this means war,” Tendou warned, smirking over his shoulder at them. Kuroo stiffened.

“You know what, Bo? This is all your fault…” Bokuto just laughed.