#hmm... what does ivor hear??

[enden-agolor]

how do you think Jesse's friends would react if they saw Jesse breaking down/sobbing (at least the ones that are still in Beacontown and didn't leave)

Hmm 🤔 Well first we have to discuss how Jesse would act. I do believe Jesse is an emotionally vulnerable person under all that tough muscle and heroic ego, and I really do think those bottled up feelings only got worse and worse as the games progressed and he experienced new trauma. He's definitely the kind of person to hide it, and I don't think he cries often, but when he does, that means it's been a really, really bad day for him. I really do think he would struggle to open up about his emotions while on the other hand doing his best to be there for others when they open up theirs. He's a good boy through and through 😔. To cry in front of someone would be extremely distressing for him, but it also comes down to who it really is.

I'll cover Axel, Olivia, Ivor, Petra, and then Lukas.

With Axel, I personally think he'd be kind of awkward about seeing Jesse finally break. I also think Jesse would do his absolute best to try and suppress the urge to cry in front of him. They've been friends forever, and Axel has more than likely seen Jesse cry before, but I imagine Jesse's view on the emotion would be twisted as a sign of weakness over the games timeline, and he'd reeeally have trouble showing that side of himself to Axel again now that he's the big hero and stuff. If it were to come down to it though, and Jesse can't hold back the tears, I think Axel is the kind of guy to swing his arm around Jesse and like, really do his best to try and cheer him up with jokes or with different forms of positive energy. I think Axel's motive would be more to get the tears to stop rather than to sit there and let it happen, y'know? He'd definitely try to think of ways to do it too, like offer to go somewhere or do something fun to get Jesse's mind off of things.

With Olivia, I think she'd be a lot more compassionate towards Jesse, but she's also the kind of person to sit there and try to find a solution to his problems. She's also the kind to want to stop the waterworks, but while hugging onto Jesse and patting his back and reassuring him she's there, and that they can find a way to fix this together (whatever problem it may be).

With Ivor, he's definitely the one to take the dad role. Sit by Jesse's side and soften his tone to be more on level with Jesse's compromised state of mind. Jesse would express his sorrows, and Ivor I think would listen closely, hear him out, and like Olivia, want to find a solution to his problems, all while reminding Jesse that with life comes the inevitable hardships of past mistakes. Ivor would know, of course, considering he's the one who technically started ALL of it with the Witherstorm. I think he'd use a lot of big words while talking to him and a lot of life lessons he has personally experienced so Jesse could probably find something to relate to from the talk.

Petra is kind of a tough one, and I feel like Jesse would really try to refrain from showing this level of emotions around her (you know like crying and stuff). We could see how well he held it together back when Petra was confessing her fear of losing her friends back in the Admin's cabin, but I feel like that was because he was taking the caring best friend role and wanted to stay calm and collected so he could be there to support Petra properly. Petra though, I feel like would really try to mirror it. As in she stays strong in the moment and supports and talks it out with Jesse in the best way she knows, but she is still far more awkward about it. Petra isn't very good with all the emoitional stuff, and we have seen that, so she would definitely struggle with her words and just kind of, idk maybe even UUGHH at herself because she doesn't know what to say or do but really wants to help Jesse stop crying. She's definitely a hugger, giving this man a big squeeze and promising things are going to be okay, just as they always have been, and maybe even entice Jesse with the idea of a little exploring or mining. Something to get things off the mind.

Now with Lukas 😏

I mean if you read my Recovery fic, you probably know how this is gonna go.

Lukas has always been vocally concerned for Jesse's well being, just as all of his friends have, but Lukas does it so much more and does it in a completely different way. His tone always softens, his words drawing out carefully because he knooows how Jesse gets when it all comes down to him. Jesse gets awkward and brushes most of his problems aside, but I really do think he's a lot more willing to talk about them with Lukas more than anyone else.

If Jesse were to finally break in front of Lukas, it's definitely a moment he's been cautiously anticipating. Lukas is definitely a hands on kind of comforter, similar to Olivia, but instead of trying to find a solution to Jesse's problems, or trying to get him to stop his tears, Lukas accepts and embraces them. He holds Jesse as close as possible, hugging onto him and rubbing his back in soothing circles. He lets Jesse sob into his shirt and clutch at the fabric. Whatever it is Jesse is saying, Lukas listens and doesn't interrupt. He lets Jesse get it aaaall out. Same with if Jesse decides not to say anything at all and just cries it all out until he can't anymore. He's patient with him, and when it's all over, then he'll grant Jesse the reassurance he deserves.

I feel like in all these situations, Jesse definitely tries to hide his face or chokes himself up on how much he's trying to suppress his tears. Lukas though will encourage him, and remind Jesse that crying is important and a healthy and integral part of the healing process. Once Jesse's done, and is at that mute state where he's cried himself speechless, Lukas will go out of his way to make sure Jesse is comfortable and he'll do something on his own terms to cheer the hero up. And at the end of it all, maybe when Jesse's in a cleaer headspace and has a cookie in hand and a warm blanket draped over his shoulders, then Lukas will talk to him about everything. 💙

EDIT: Adding Radar since I TOTALLY forgot 🙈

I feel like Radar would definitely be panicking a bit. Seeing his boss break down?? He's fanatically searching for something to say or do. I don't think he knows Jesse as well as the others do, so he's not as mentally equipped to tackle this scenario as the others, but he still does his very best, just as he always does, to comfort Jesse the best he can. Radar definitely the kind of guy to start speaking fast while he's in a panic, so he starts rambling on and on about how amazing he thinks Jesse is and how great a job he's doing, basically trying to soothe Jesse in the form of compliments which I'm sure does eventually get Jesse to stop and go silent and consider what Radar is saying. You know, like kind of hyping himself up like yeah... yeah!!! He does feel good about those things he does that Radar brought up, and it really helps steer his emotions in a better direction for the time being. Jesse would probably apologize to Radar for the whole thing, definitely embarrassed over it all, and Radar reassures him that it's all well and good, and that no matter what, he still thinks Jesse's the best there is : D

[acrylicscore]

Mmm-hm-hmm!

I has been thinking about Lapis Swap!

And have a reasonable timeline and event plan.

Witherstorm Arc:

Ivor starts off in a cottage next to the treehouse that Axel and Olivia stay in. Olivia’s playing her game of “Which would you rather fight?” while Ivor brews his potions. Axel gives them a scare with his creeper mask.

They head off, and Ivor convinces the two to plan their build out before they get to the competition, and the two decide to build a Witch with their fireworks machine.

Getting to the competition, Ivor greets the Ocelots with Olivia and Axel. Aiden and Axel really only have the tension, but Aiden is quick to get head ruffles from Ivor. Petra comes by and says hi, and the building competition starts.

Meh, you can decide who wins the competition.

The two groups then head to Endercon, Ivor heading off into the woods to collect some spider eyes for his potions. He obviously gets swarmed by mobs and Petra has to come and save the old man. Petra then tells Ivor about the deal, cause Ivor can smell Wither on her. He’s skeptical about the deal, but goes with it.

They get to Endercon, Ivor being the quirky dad-friend he is and checking up on his kiddos. He does that thing where he makes it obvious he’s keeping a secret, then leaves with Petra to do the deal. Aiden decides to follow the two, much to Petra’s dismay since the deal was supposed to be in private.

Petra leaves to find the unnamed-at-the-moment guy she’s doing the deal with, telling the other two to stay and stall if he showed up. Ivor chats with Aiden, before Jesse shows up. Ivor questions if Jesse was the one that wanted to deal with Petra, but is hit with “That’s none of your business.” Petra shows up and deal begins.

Jesse isn’t a con-man. He did actually plan to fullfil his side of the deal, actually having 3 diamonds to give Petra. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t have the diamonds on him, so he panicked. He got the skull and fled, resulting in the chase.

Aiden and Petra inform the others about the problem while Ivors starts searching. He catches a glimpse of Jesse heading into the Show Hall, and slime block problem solving time.

They find the little basement area where Jesse supposedly resides. They take a look around, scanning the area. Ivor is quite fond of the place, admiring some of the potions scattered around and is impressed by the capabilities. He does have to take a moment to try and stop Axel from stealing things, especially when he tries to take the fancy potion, which he manages to do.

Maya finds the lever and pulls it, revealing the Soul Sand and Command Block. Lukas and Petra realise that its a formula for the Wither. They are collectively concerned as to why someone who was probably younger than them wanted to make a Wither. They then all scatter when they hear the boy return.

The group hear Jesse talking to himself as he wanders around frantically in the basement. “Where the heck did they go? I swear I had thise diamonds on me! I don’t need someone on my back right now, and I promised I would have her diamond. Ugh! I even had 3 diamonds I was going to give her!” Petra does feel bad since she realised he was actually going to fullfil that deal with more than he was going to offer to her.

Ivor decides to try and let his children escape, so he calls out to get attention. “Hello? Anyone here?” The children escape, and Ivor talks to Jesse for a short while before Jesse respectfully shows him the door.

“Oh there is someone down here. Wonderful!”

“What are you doing here? Wait hang on, you’re the guy that was with… Petra?”

“Oh yes! I was with her. Just making sure she was doing alright. Anyway, I was… looking for the bathroom.”

“Well, you took a wrong turn.”

“So I guessed, but may I ask- is this your little workshop down here?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“I just wanted to say how wonderful it is! The potions, the books! I say, I wouldn’t mind a place like this myself. I assume that skull was the element to bring it all together?”

“O-oh… Yeah! Yeah, the skull… I thought it would, uh, bring the room together.”

“It would be a nice touch.”

“Yeah… anyway, you better be on your way. I’ll show you the door.”

“Why thank you, young man!”

Ivor comes out and finds that Gabriel’s show had started… and his children were doing a terrible job at trying to tell the warrior about the monster in the basement.

A voice comes from nearby, taunting Gabriel. Gabriel does respond to the voice, answering any questions thrown at him… until the source jumps down from above and onto the stage.

“So that’s what I did wrong? I didn’t work hard enough for you?!”

“What…?”

“Don’t pretend, Gabriel! You know you didn’t care! If you did, you would have worked hard to find me!”

“I-it, it can’t be…”

“Oh, but it can be!”

Jesse brings up the Wither formula with the lever and threatens Gabriel and the people in the room with it. Gabriel attempts to fight against Jesse, but ends up being tripped off the stage by the boy. The Wither is then unleashed, and instead of continuing to threaten with it, Jesse splashes a potion of invisibility on himself and leaves everyone to their sources.

Gabriel leaves everything up to the large group of children and their father figure. Ivor saves Petra from the tractor beam before he gets thrown into the Nether.

The adventure continues, but the group don’t encounter Jesse. Ivor supervises his kids as they continue on. They end up splitting up to go find Ellegaard and Magnus, Aiden and Axel to find Magnus, and Maya and Olivia to go find Ellegaard. Ivor does keep the amulet with him, but gives it to Aiden temporarily because he thought that Magnus would be hard to find.

The teens round up Magnus and Ellie, Boom Town getting destroyed in the process. The group of teams do start to lose a bit of respect for the two heroes when they witness the two start arguing, and Ivor being the one to have to break them up.

They head off to Soren’s fortress at dawn, get caught up in a few things, then Ivor finds out about Petra’s Wither Sickness.

“Have you tried milk?”

“You think I haven’t?”

The two then encounter Jesse in a room in Soren’s library. Petra actually pulls the sword out on Jesse first, so Jesse quickly moves to defend himself. Ivor tries to stop the fight, but then the other teens show up and Aiden, Maya and Axel are quick to jump into fight. Jesse is quick to try and defend himself and escape, using potions to defend himself, then a slowness potion to escape and lock them in the room.

They eventually get into the End and into Soren’s fortress. Lukas has a pout and confides in Ivor about his concerns for Petra. Ivor, being a good father, informs Lukas but tells him not to worry and that he has it covered.

Ivor keeps an eye on Petra, so Lukas, Olivia and Gill find Soren’s mini lab where they realise he’s outside with the Enderman. Gill finds and puts on the other costume, accidentally making himself the candidate to go out and find Soren.

When Soren comes in, he’s very nervous and a bit ignorant towards the teens. Ivor visibly doesn’t like that Soren is purposely ignoring the kids.

Enderman shenanigans, and Gill leads them out.

They have the Formidabomb, and Ivor quickly realises that the heroes that his kids looked up to weren’t really the heroes they thought they were. He goes to step up, but Aiden isn’t having any of that. Ivor then has none of the heroes offering their armours, solely because he doesn’t trust them. He gives Aiden a set of armour that he enchanted himself; not exactly flashy but it does the job.

No one dies, Witherstorm is in three, Gabriel has amnesia, shit’s gone sideways.

They escape the Storms and take shelter in the cave. Ivor, being the great father he is, checks in on all of his kids, letting them all vent onto him and he provides the comfort they need. The Order watch the man do his thing, Ellie and Magnus visibly saddened and guilty looking. Soren has a go at Ivor for being so focused on children rather than the situation at hand. Ellie and Magnus defend Ivor, so Soren storms off.

Ivor eventually goes outside, finding Soren pinned under the foot of a familiar chaos child. Ivor stands there, watching as the interaction between the two ensues.

“You left me to die!”

“N-now, now! Lets not get ahead of ourselves-“

“You left me! And you never told them, did you?!”

“That’s not-”

“Don’t lie to me Soren! You’ve done enough of that already!”

“Please just listen-”

“They cared for me! They loved me! But you had to ruin that for your own personal gain! You threw me away because you were afraid of me! You didn’t even consider anyone else’s emotions!”

“Please… Jesse-”

“You don’t have the right to use my name! And you will NEVER speak my name again!”

Ivor is quick to step in before Jesse drives a sword into Soren, and the commotion catches the attention of the rest of the gang. Jesse doesn’t take it too well at first.

“You’re defending him? Do you realise who you’re defending?!”

“Young man, you were going to drive a sword into him-”

“He’s a coward! A cruel, selfish coward! That’s the person you’re defending! He should die for what he did to-”

“Jesse?”

Ellegaard and Magnus step in, stopping Jesse in the moment. At first, they are horrified that their first encounter with Jesse after so many years is when the boy is trying to kill Soren. However, Jesse does win The two over easily.

“Jesse how could you…”

“Me?! He’s the one that left me to die!”

“What-”

“Small fry, he told us you ran off!”

“What? No! He took me to the Farlands and left me! Alone! Defenseless! He left me to die!”

“Soren…?”

“Dude, Soren. Is that true?”

Soren is then left to admit the truth. Back when the Order were still together but doing their own things, they would share custody of Jesse. They would rotate each month, passing Jesse on to each other so he would get to spend time with them. Soren said that, the second time he was given Jesse, he became overwhelmed by the child. He wasn’t thinking when he did it.

Ellegaard and Magnus are pissed, Jesse wants to call bullshit, Ivor is furious with this ginger-bearded bastard, the teens felt really bad for this kid, and Gabriel doesn’t know what the fuck was going on.

Jesse admits that he did unleash the Witherstorm fully knowing it would destroy everything and he didn’t really care for it, but when it turned into 3 he realised that it wasn’t right. He originally thought he would be perfectly okay because the storms were following the amulet, but quickly learns that Ivor has holding the amulet, not Gabriel.

The group splits. Axel, Magnus, Ellegaard, Maya, Gill and Petra go and distract the Witherstorm for the group, much to Ivor’s dismay. Ivor, Lukas, Olivia, Aiden, Gabriel, Soren and Jesse head to the Farlands. Jesse is very reluctant to take Soren at first, but has a think, then allows it. Ivor provides Petra with a few different potions to keep her going, because Petra is stubborn and wants to fight.

The Farlands group gets to the swamp, and Ivor goes to search for food with Jesse. They find the witch’s hut, and Ivor is reluctant to go in, but Jesse goes in full swing and grabs the cake. The group then get attacked by witches and skeletons, so Jesse runs off to distract them while the others flee.

Maze shenanigans and they find Jesse’s lab. They enter, a room dark and full of bookshelves with twists and turns. They hear shuffling throughout the lab, which has them on edge… then they hear levers flip. Traps trigger left and right, different potions fired, loud growling noises filling the room. Everyone manages to find spots where everything missed, waiting until the level flicks and everything stops. They of course regroup and are on edge.

A large shadow patterns on the wall, and whatever it is turns the corner… and its a large, creature. Long skinny black legs, long black “fur” draping its body, and a large beast-like head that produced odd roars. Everyone is terrified of this thing, Lukas and Olivia clinging to each other for deal life, Aiden cowering behind Ivor who has a sword drawn, Gabriel actually trying to defend the group, and Soren going to flee but runs into a bookshelf. The thing approaches them and…

Jesse whistles from behind the group, telling the thing that the group is with him. The thing drops, the legs folding on themselves and the main body landing on the floor. It then runs to Jesse, the “fur” draping its body falling off in a cloth-like fashion and revealing… a pig. Jesse takes the mask off of the pig, picking it up and talking to it.

“You did a good job, Reuben. But these guys are with me.”

“Oink!”

“I know, but they’re the best we have.”

“Oink oink!”

“I know he’s here but we’re just going to have to deal with him.”

“Oink…”

“Its fine. He won’t touch anything. I’ll make sure of it.”

“… is this guy having a conversation with a pig?”

Jesse goes to leads the group down to the secret passageway, but Soren trips the trap, locking Ivor, Gabriel and Soren down in the passage. Jesse panicks and goes to find the redstone to fix it with Olivia’s help, while the men go down to continue. Jesse’s has his first puzzle, and instead of certain items from each adventure, he had presents from each member of the Order as his keys, with the final key being a gift from everyone in the Order. The second puzzle is still the Ender Dragon fight.

They get into the weapon room, where they find the End Crystals. Soren is panicking and starts spilling his tea, saying he thought he hidden the crystals deep into the Farlands where no one could find them. He then starts getting angry, saying he should have never given the command block to Jesse and never should have left such a child in the one place he did. Ivor starts forcing questions on Soren, getting the man to admit the truth. Soren tells the truth about the Ender Dragon, tells a but of history about Jesse and the Order, and why he abandoned the child.

Jesse and the teens are suddenly there, and Jesse snaps at Soren. Ivor also snaps at Soren and levtures the man, defending the child. Soren is now very guilty.

Jesse leads the teens and Ivor to the armour area, letting them choose their armour and make the super weapon. The teens leave the room when they have their armours and the weapons, leaving Ivor with Jesse. Ivor collects armour for the other teena, but has a heart-to-heart witb Jesse.

“So… you’ve just been here…? Alone…?”

“I wasn’t alone. I had Reuben.”

“Not for your earlier years, I assume…”

“…”

“… you shouldn’t have to be alone.”

“I can manage. It’s all I’ve known, and besides. After all this, I’ll be returning here again.”

“You shouldn’t have to.”

“It’s fine. I’ve lived this long already.”

“You were left alone for so long. No child- no one, should have to live alone like this… no wonder you wanted to fight back against the world. You were given such a rough start, and when you were given a chance, some rotten person had to ruin it for you.”

“…”

“May I use your name?”

“… yeah. You can use it.”

“Jesse, you shouldn’t have to live like this. I would like to offer you a real home.”

“You don’t have to.”

“You may have done some wrong doings, but you’re young. You only thought that you were doing something right, and you with your harsh conditions, I’m sure I would have one the same. So please, you and Reuben can come back with us… for a new start.”

“… I’ll consider it.”

Off to fight the Witherstorm they go. The teens don’t let Ivor fight it, so Ivor instead watches over a very weak Petra. Jesse and the teens go and fight the Storms. Gill is given the weapon to destroy the command block, and Jesse goes with him because he wants to set things right.

Everyone lives and the Storms are dead! New Order of the Stone is formed with the teen group. Jesse strays to the side though, him and Reuben staying by Ivor at the ceremony. Gabriel admits the truth to everyone on his own accord with Magnus and Ellie, all three having a very bug dislike towards Soren.

Jesse gives Petra the 3 diamonds he was meant to trade to her.

Portal Arc:

Jesse had been giving tips to the New Order for adventure and treasure spots, since they had been adventuring while he had been trying to fit into society with the help of Ivor. Jesse had been accidentally advising the town when people were having troubke making choices, which Ivor found quite intriguing.

The group come across the Flint & Steel, come back, find Jesse being a good person before they decide to drag him inside the Order Hall to sus out this Flint & Steel. They learn about the Eversource from Ivor, Jesse also commenting, and the group head off. Olivia, Maya, Axel and Gill stay behind for a bit of calm down time and help around town. Ivor and Jesse join the adventurers. Reuben stays home because he is happy house pig.

In Sky City, they chat around and talk to Milo, who they find is a bit quirky and shady. The group does get taken into the Founder’s Palace, but Petra and Aiden somehow get dragged off by Milo reluctantly. Jesse, Ivor and Lukas talk to the Founder, trying to tell her that they didn’t mean any harm. Jesse’s the one that gets through to her, explaining that they had no idea that building was against the law and only wanted to find somewhere they thought was safe. She allows them to stay in the Palace, and Hesse managed to convince her to send a few people out to find Petra and Aiden.

Aiden and Petra are actually interagated by Milo and his Build Club. They try and get crafting recipes and materials put of them, only actually getting an anvil and ladder recipe from the two. Petra beats a guy up and the two escape back to the street and get inside the Palace to where the others are.

Aiden and Petra tell the others and they all try and inform Isa. However, when they go to find her, they find the passage to the Eversource was open. They head down and find the guards and Isa battling against the Build Club. They jump in to help, Milo throwing a Creeper egg that explodes and creates a hole in the floor. Lukas gets thrown off the edge, followed by Jesse and Isa. Isa goes to put the blame on Jesse, but Jesse is quick to tell her he had no idea who those people were and all he knew was that his friends were captured by them and they were no good. Rest of the episode is basically the same, except they fight Milo.

Episode 6 is basically the same.

Episode 7 is basically the same, but Jesse connects more with Harper and is devastated when she gets chipped.

The Portal Arc is actually what shapes Jesse up to become a leader, and Ivor is happily watching this happen. The other teens are looking towards Jesse more and Jesse is actually allowing himself to connect with other around him.

Episode 8 is basically the same, but when Hadrian drags Jesse up to his office and the Home Gang are found to be locked behind obsidian, Hadrian starts poking.

“Come on bucko. You’re the leader. Surely you won’t let your teammates down-”

“Excuse me, but I am not the leader.”

“Oh? Then how come they look to you when something goes wrong?”

“That’s-”

“But even if you aren’t, surely you won’t let your friends sit here and rot away. Or will you…?”

Jesse takes the deal, claiming that if any of them were to live out their life alone, it would be him. He doesn’t want them to live the life that he had to live, so he sacrifices his freedom to the deal. He wins though, so everything’s fine.

The teens all collectively decide that Jesse is the leader, much to Jesse’s dismay. Ivor does convince him by retelling the whole Portal Arc and how Jesse has grown on that journey.

It takes Jesse a very long time to accept himself as a leader, absolutely refusing the idea but is continuously being a leader without realising it. Its very entertaining to watch.

Season 2:

Season 2 is basically the same, but Maya and Gill are in the mix.

I thought Season 2 would be the same, but Romeo would have more eyes on Jesse this time around. A kid that went from nothing; no friends, no family, growing up all alone and abandoned, and yet that kid rose to have it all and is loved despite all his wrong doings. Romeo would definitely have eyes on someone like that.

Romeo doesn’t let Jesse go that easily though. He still keeps Jesse as his Champion, despite him not playing the game right in the Icy Palace. Gill and Maya are given the role of a being guards, but the plan becomes “Gill make a distraction while Maya gets as many companions on our side”. Maya does whatever it takes to rise in the ranks, and Gill becomes an inmate again real quick. Petra is forced to fight Jesse before Romeo runs of with Jesse’s identity.

Everything follows on normally.

Ninja Ivor and everyone gets big hugs from him.

Everything follows on normally, but Aiden and Lukas are being rebellious with their new group when they get to that. Reuben is hiding in a corner somewhere during all of this.

When its all over, Jesse hands Beacontown over to Radar since Jesse wants to settle down and help Romeo with redemption, since he knows a thing or two about redemption himself. Maya and Petra go adventuring, everything is happily ever after.

I’m open to ideas for Portal Arc and Season 2, since I’m not really following anything for those Arcs. Lapis Swap really only takes place in the Witherstorm Arc, and there are only minor changes with the rest of the Story Mode story.

I’m very open to more ideas for the story.

[lucastheunlucky]

Below my Feet Part IV - self

In continuation: Part I ; Part II, Part III

Luke's chest vibrated, and his breaths started panting, every inhale drawing in the scent of the other. He barely blinked, just frozen still in a messy lycan form that he was about to allow to feast.

"You are pushing back, aren’t you?" the hunter said with a long sigh, calm even in the presence before him. "How about this, Lucas, just you and me. We leave here right now-- without anymore bloodshed."

Luke swallowed down the bile, but couldn't speak as his arms elongated, and his fists unfurled into lean digits with sharp claws.

"Why do you keep doing this? I’ll even let you pick the humans? Is that the dilemma in all this? We can choose some bad ones-- turn them into money, boy! I’ll share with you. What is mine, will be yours. What does your life even mean right now? Barely hanging on-- you have never once been happy. You lie to everyone--”

"Stop--" Lucas barely got out, the word almost a bark, and curled around his fangs that dripped with saliva. Regardless of this position, Lucas was fighting a losing battle with exhaustion, the lingering fear from before, anger, and the natural response to submit this hunter tortured into him. Blackness crept up on the edges. Memories put this face in place where it once was blurry, ones that had Lucas screaming in them, and people dying around him. He closed his eyes, the anguish in his mind creating a fierce headache and pulse under the scar on his forehead.  

"That isn't how this works," the hunter glanced sideways, and Luke knew this man had full control of this situation. That no one would hear him call for help right? No one, even in a precinct of cops, would care about him.

"Seeing your mind spin is always entertaining, Lucas. I've asked you so many times-- and you keep denying me. I even sold you off, and you still survive. I'm getting quite angry about it all. Come back to Louisiana with me."

"I'm not-- turning humans into wolves for you--” the words difficult, rough, and almost a language of it’s self. “So you can sell them off!!" Lucas gasped out, exhausted. The horror of it. He stood up, unfolding his body which had grew. His height curled his spine forward, dropping his arms, and tilted his head. But though he was in a lycan form right now, and though he had the capability to kill this man. Lucas’ face was damp with tears he didn't want to shed, the wet lines getting caught in fur.

No one knew the fear this man instilled in him. How all-encompassing it was. The decade long torture ruining his bravery, and the pain debilitating even in this moment.

"Hmm," the throaty tone rumbled like thunder. "Hmm," another came, and Lucas felt like it was a timer. All his physical training, everything he's prepared for involving this man, was for a battle. Lucas could fight him now, consequences be dammed-- he could pull him apart, chunk by chunk of flesh in these close quarters. But right now, Lucas realized how wrong he was about this fight. That this never was about some big moment that he and Miles thought, it was small consequences that etched into Lucas to encourage fractures. Luke was breaking right now, he could feel it. The pitfall, the darkness surrounding his ankles, and the shadows shackling his throat.

It swirled in his mind, everything he's done. All the people he had killed because he kept telling this man no. Why didn’t he just do what he wanted? Wouldn’t that save more people? Those memories collided against his exhaustion, breaking him down from the inside without a single muttered word. Lucas shivered, his hands growing cold, and with a gentle release of tension he turned around and sat down, a creek of bones, a cry of pain as the muscles shortened, and the tendons released their taunt position into a weakened human visage. Lucas could see all the faces of the dead, could hear his mother’s voice on the phone, and blame settled on him like a weight in haunting whispers.

He checked out with a single exhale, his body going limp, and leaned up against the wall.

"You'll say yes," the words suddenly growled near his ear. A rough hand landed on his shoulder, fingers trailed near his neck that pushed up against it, thumb in the hallowed point of his jaw. Lucas sat there. His body hit the wall lightly, and his head flopped back. He could smell him again and his natural instinct marked it. The hunter leaned forward, inches away as he was looked over. Touched along his arms and chest. Lucas' breaths were even, eyes distant. 

"You always make me do this-- you always make me hurt you. When will you learn?"

A sizzle of skin and flesh suddenly burned in the cell, and Lucas grabbed the arm on him, gripping the forearm to the point it broke the bone. A howl rolled up, and almost belted out, but he swallowed it down. He couldn’t breathe. The silver blade had carved up his entire forearm from wrist to elbow, and the rush of pain and shock blew his pupils to tiny black dots. He shivered as his mind gave a delayed proper reaction. He didn't even scream. That part of him long tormented and broken just settled into immediate resignation. The man’s face a inch from his own, showing pain to the broken wrist gripped in Lucas’ hand with a faint snarl, but he looked Lucas in the eye and smiled. Holding the blade in his arm, deep enough to hit the muscle, his free hand slipped up to the back of his head, breath on his damp face.  

“When you are in the hospital, you will run away-- we are leaving. I’ll retire, and you-- will-- fund it. If you aren’t on that road Lucas, if I don’t see you standing there waiting for me. I will take someone you love. I will cut off their fingers, I will cut off their ears, I will cut into their face to the point for the rest of their life, they won’t forget me and I will let them go-- knowing it was your fault. Do you understand?” A pause and he leaned closer. 

“Do. You. Understand?”  

Lucas gritted his teeth, but couldn’t respond.

Ivor Gotch peeled Lucas’ hand off his own, the silver blade clattered to the floor where he retrieved it and replaced it with one Luke might have had on him and the cops missed. He tossed it in Lucas’ lap.

Tears silently spilled over as the throb of pain made his stomach clench. The blood from the wound was horrifying, and it bubbled out between his fingers loosely laid on top of it. The smell filled the holding cell, overpowering everything. His eyes grew heavy, and his breaths evened out; lips tinted blue from the drop in his temperature. Lucas felt one thing and whispered it.

“I hope I die-- ”

A laugh, “Your brother is next--” the words weaved as a threat between them. Ivor holding his broken wrist to the side. “He asked another beast hunter of all people. Like we don't hear things and know each other-- like we don't look out for one another even if we won’t like each other. This was why you didn't want to tell him, isn't it? Because you knew-- he’d want to kill me, at stupid cause he loves you so much. You don’t want your brother in my cross hairs.”

Lucas squeezed his arm, not answering to the truths being said, but it was true. He didn’t want Miles to murder anyone. It would change him for the worse, it had to of. His morals shattered-- Lucas didn’t want that, no matter how badly he wanted this man gone. A hand pet the side of his head, and Lucas wanted to throw up at the contact, the thumb just struck the edge of the scar.

“It's okay boy. It’s almost over. When we leave, you don’t have to worry about anything anymore,”

The man rose as the edges of Lucas’ vision blurred. He heard the cell door open and a shout that Lucas hurt himself and needed medical attention. But he couldn’t feel anything, or speak to declare otherwise. The quiet stream of blood between his fingers was gushing too fast. His mental state already weakened found himself removing his hand, and it further soaked his pants, and stained the mattress. He slumped.

[minecraftoworymode]

picked a whole bouquet of whoopsie-daisies the other day reading some Very badfeel content so to cheer myself up here’s some super self-indulgent ramblings about romeo recovery post-s2

“YOU CAN DANCE IF YOU WANT TO YOU CAN LEAVE YOUR INTERNALIZED MISOGYNY BEHIND” or how romeo learned to stop worrying and indulge in the ““feminine”“ shit in life

when romeo transitioned he scrubbed everything that could be potentially viewed as feminine from his appearance and behaviour. while he did everything he could about the former (hairstyle, clothing, body language, voice), it didn’t feel like enough bc he couldn’t change some things that ppl used to be jerks- his frame (short and lithe), his family, his being trans- so he made up for it by trying to “act” like a “real man”. this unfortunately meant he was super vulnerable to manipulative alt-right indoctrination tactics (”we will validate you as a man as long as you endorse our assholery and share our shitty beliefs about what it means to be a man”) and he was on the verge of getting sucked into gamergate ideology when [THIS LORE IS ANOTHER POST] and hey, now the world is minecraft. u dont gotta perform gender roles for villagers they dont care. xara will not only actually eat ur liver for pulling The Bullshit but when you are kind she smiles, so bright and warm, and it is very very nice so maybe you should keep on doing that. n fred? fred is chill with their Everything in a way uve only ever Dreamed of. romeo marinates in this sauce for a couple centuries and comes the closest to being comfortable in his own skin he’s ever been.

however,

after the Incident he slam-dunked himself back into the hypermasculinity juice bc it was a mindset “safe” from feeling pain, whether his or others’. n since the worlds the admins created dont have the same ideas of gender as the world they came from, once he’s been dethroned romeo has a particularly hard time adjusting wrt That on top of all the other 2750347502730 issues he has to face

anyway flash forward a couple months of being incredibly volatile bc he now has to confront all the terrible things he did and how Dare u make him do that and maybe if hes nasty enough he can provoke someone into killing him and saving him from having to unpack All Of That- (note from @simple-mooshroom-herder​: Xara and Jesse at least grasp that Romeo will probably burn himself out on this bullshit eventually and the best thing to do is interact with him with a certain level of healthy detachment. Eventually he'll see that theres no "getting out of this" and he'll start to do the Work but until then its very frustrating to see that tactic take him nowhere.)

- one day petra notices how he’s constantly staring at all the ppl wearing cute dresses in beacontown and at first she thinks he's being creepy but then realizes that he's not being creepy and actually she knows exactly how he feels bc she also used to look at ppl wearing clothes super not suited for combat like that, like she wished she could wear them too, like if she just didnt have to keep up this image of the Warrior who is Not Soft Ever-

n ok. listen. these worlds have been specifically engineered to be better and kinder than the one the admins came from, and when people mess up- even REALLY mess up- people are generally not only willing to forgive you but support you as you try and get better. it’s instinctual for communities to respond to misdeeds with rehabilitation and reconciliation, rather than retaliation and renunciation (tho its not an overnight thing and it generally takes 1-3 people to spearhead the process, esp if the actions have affected a large group of people). like. ivor created something that almost destroyed the entire world, not just beacontown, yet by the end of season one he’s grown to be a part of the team- n its not just jesse & co being forgiving here, bc when ivor made his s1 build with 3 lava source blocks people objected to it, but by s2 he not only has lava in his build but a giant lake of it. (im assuming the fences around said lake are coming eventually, bc safety is still important, but the implications im choosing to take from this are a) despite almost ending the world people let him into their lives anyway and b) the community not only grew to accept but encourage his self-expression.)

BUT ANYWAY before i go off on that even more one day petra and romeo basically put on an impromptu fashion show in jesse’s house (bc their house is huge and, kind of perfect for a fashion show, and also right next to the order hall’s armory whence they stole a bunch of fancy swords to match the outfits) n theyre having a blast until the hero in residence , returns to their residence (and with COMPANY) n romeo is absolutely Mortified- caught red-handed showing feelings of an almost human nature, oh my god, this will NOT do- n this whole grand soliluquy of shame and excuses and apologies grabs the steering wheel of his tongue but he cant even spit a single syllable out bc jesse and lukas almost immediately dip leaving romeo panicking for a second before they come back with their inventories FULL of cute outfits, including a billion skirts and dresses, some of them are even enchanted so theyre like. super shiny or constantly flowing or things like that.

this actually ends up spiralling into a town-wide... not quite fashion show bc there's no runway or anything, everyone just shows up in their cutest/coolest outfits .. fashion convention?? Anyway several people come up to him and compliment him on his outfit casually before continuing along, not recognizing him not only bc of how hes done his hair and makeup n what hes wearing but he just seems... so happy (he might be wearing something on his head? like a headpiece or hat or something? but also maybe not hmm)- whoever this is, he's not hunched over like he's got several centuries' worth of sins crawling on his back he’s not trying to shrink and make small a human-shaped apology for the simple fact of his existence not dragging his feet like hes ready for, dreading, a hundred mile trek through the desert repenting hes just. hes literally just Vibing

anyway he's mostly been silent or just providing very quiet "thank you"s but when it turns out that some people showed up ready to play music and there's a song that he knows he literally cant help but start jamming out its the GOod Stim everyones a-dancing and a-jiving and some people start to sing and so of course he does too (the healing power of dancing and singing in cute outfits.... unfathomable) but. ppl recognize his voice

and after a few seconds he notices how quiet it's gotten all of a sudden n everyones looking at him like "oh shit thats the admin" and honestly his heart breaks. visibly

but

then someone starts singing, so quiet it takes a moment for him to hear over the sound of an encroaching panic attack (oh god he has airpods in), but when he looks over theyre smiling - theyre smiling at hiM???? AND IT DOESNT EVEN LOOK MEAN??- and doing this very simple step, that he catches onto just as easily as he matches their singing (its a fairly common little tune n dance)

theyre like standing like a good few meters away but as they take turns with lines in the song they slowly inch closer

and he thinks hes starting to recognize the dance that the steps theyre doing is from but at the part in the song thats coming up ur supposed to allemande left and even tho theyre like, less than a meter away now literally no one has really wanted to get close to him, let alone actually touch him, so hes totally expecting them to be like 'psych' and humiliate him in front of the entire crowd-

BUT THEN THEY ACTUALLY GO FOR IT???

he completes the step without even thinking about it n continues onto the next in this state of dull bewilderment where there is but one braincell active in his head and it is just going, in a very tiny voice, "danser?"

- when they linked arms the person briefly seemed surprised that he didn't like, chew their arm off or anything (he had. kind of snapped at people a few times during the past few weeks), but then their shock turned into a wide smile and they sort of- nodded? at someone over his shoulder like 'come and join us, it doesn't look like he's going to kill me after all you guys can put the eulogy writing on hold'

what rly makes his heart do the confused and hopeful conga is that this isnt even anyone romeo knows, its a total stranger. or- like- he saw them while he was pretending to be jesse he just didnt care to get to know them beyond ‘name and gimmick’- its not even someone who has any reason to think he'd be cool to befriend its literally jsut someone taking a chance on him (tkae a chance take a chance take a chance take a cha)

afterwards hes like "i should thank jesse for putting you up to that, it was fun" and theyre like "what? jesse didn't "put me up to" anything, dude, you just looked super choked. * something something surfer lingo who would i be if i just left someone to feel bad when they could be having fun dancing you know?*"

he H

[mcsmseason3]

MCSM Origins Book I: Enter Lapilisia Lazul - Part 1

Summary:

Lapilisia Lazul, or Lapis for short, is a Gemonyk from Krystalyx in search of adventure beyond her own world. Her travels lead her to Emerl, another Gem from Krystalyx and a knight of the Order of the Stone. Little does she know that her life is about to change completely.

Next Chapter: Here

Many years ago, before the defeat of the Ender Dragon…

 It was a sunny afternoon. The forest was silent aside from the occasional trickling of a stream or the odd animal or bird passing by. A cliff stuck out from the tree line, looking out over the woods which seemed to stretch out for blocks and blocks. The sound of footsteps on grass interrupted the silence as a woman seeming to be in her mid-20’s wearing sky blue robes and a blue cape hiked up the cliff. She had brown hair with blue highlights, pale skin, and golden freckles. What stood out most was a round lapis lazuli stone with a golden casing around the edges that seemed to be embedded in her chest.

  Lapilisia Lazul, otherwise known as Lapis, looked out at the forest with bright eyes. “Wow…” she gasped in awe as she admired the view, “This is even prettier than the forests in Verde.” Lapis sat down on the cliff edge, her legs dangling off the edge as she felt a light breeze blew past her. Lapis had been travelling for the past few months, travelling by ship from her home in the Azurialis Archipelago to the Kingdom of Verde before crossing the Farlands that separated Krystalyx and Minecraftia. There were quite a few similarities between the two worlds…the biggest difference, of course, being the lack of magic in Minecraftia compared to Krystalyx. That and the lack of humanoids that are made of light and have gemstones embedded in their bodies. The people of her home were sad to see her go – she was the Blue Shard after all, she was pretty much their national hero-to-be – but knew that the journey would be good for her.

 Lapis’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of hissing coming from behind her. She looked behind her, only to be greeted by a creeper trudging towards her. “Uh oh!” Lapis went to get to her feet, but the creeper was quicker on the draw. It exploded, causing Lapis to fall backwards off the cliff. “Please just poof, please don’t shatter, please just poof, please don’t shatter!” Lapis prayed as she squeezed her eyes shut and fell to the ground below.

 *POOF!*

*TINK, TI-TINK!*

 Lapis’s form disappeared upon impact with the ground as her gem clattered onto the earth, thankfully unharmed.

“Who goes there?!”

A voice rang out followed by the sound of footsteps running through the forest, “I heard an explosion! Is someone hurt?” A woman – roughly in her late 30’s – rushed through the trees into the small clearing near the cliff. She had short, side-swept, black hair with bright green tips and bangs. She wore a green shirt with long flowing sleeves and exposed an emerald stone on her chest, black trousers and green boots. There was a bright green sash around her waist and black and green gloves. Covering her outfit was black cape with an odd green symbol on it. She had pale skin and bright green eyes with pupils shaped similar to her gem.

  Emerl Verdyk glanced around the clearing, an emerald sword with a golden hilt in hand, with a confused look on her face, “Hello? Anyone here?” Emerl looked up and the cliff top and noticed a small crater taken out of it. “Tch…creepers. Such a pain…” she sighed. Emerl turned to leave before a small glint of the sun hitting something caught her eye. She dismissed her sword and walked over to the object and picked it up. “A lapis lazuli?” Emerl muttered, confused as to why loose lapis was just lying around, “No wait…this is a Gemonyk. What are you doing all the way in Minecraftia, friend?” Almost on cue, the gemstone began to glow and levitate into the air. Emerl took a few steps back as the light being emitted from the gem shifted into a humanoid form before scattering to revel Lapis – good as new. “Whoa!” Lapis exclaimed as she landed on her feet, stumbling a bit before examining herself, “Okay, gem’s intact…outfit still looks awesome…still have hair, that’s a plus…can’t see my face so gonna have to hope my freckles are still there. I love my babies! Alright, overall: looking good!” Lapis breathed a sigh of relief. Noticing a presence behind her, Lapis turned around to see Emerl standing there with a small smile. Lapis noticed the emerald stone on her chest and her eyes lit up, “OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH!!! You- you’re a Gem! You’re like me!”

Emerl nodded before extending her hand, “Emerl Verdyk; former knight of the Kingdom of Verde, current knight of the Order of the Stone. At your service.”

“Lapilisia Lazul, but you can call me Lapis!” Lapis grinned shaking Emerl’s hand before her eyes going wide, “Wait a sec! Emerl Verdyk? THE Emerl Verdyk?”

“That’s me.”

“No way!” Lapis’s jaw nearly hit the floor, “You’re the Green Shard that went rogue and disappeared! You’re in Minecraftia?”

“Yep. When you’re trained from the moment you emerge from the earth to be a ‘great warrior-hero of legend’, you tend to get sick of it after over 30 years.” Emerl shrugged, before looking around, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m guessing you were poofed by that creeper explosion just there, right? Come. I’ll bring you to the Order’s temple where we’ll be safe from any more day-time monsters. You can tell me about how you ended up here on the way.”

“Alrighty! Lead the way!” Lapis smiled cheerfully as she followed Emerl through the trees.

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

 “So you’re a Shard too, then?” Emerl asked as they emerged from the forest. “Yep!” Lapis replied with a smile, “But I don’t have a handle on my powers yet. They tend to come and go as they please.”

“The Blue Shard’s power is Future Vision, right? You can see glimpses into the future?”

“Yup. It’s a pretty cool power, in my opinion! But not so cool when you get a bad vision, especially since the events are kinda set in stone.”

“How do you know that?”

“I’ve tried to change the events myself. But it seems that every time I try, I somehow end up ensuring they happen. Ugh…even just thinking about it makes my head hurt.” Lapis then laughed nervously, “Kinda wish I was given a heads up about that creeper though. My visions tend to have lousy timing sometimes.”

“You’ll learn to control it eventually.” Emerl gave a reassuring smile as she summoned a green and gold shield, “You’d be surprised how many times I’ve summoned this thing by accident. Hit my mentor in the head one time!”

“Oh no!” Lapis giggled. “Yeah, got an extra hour of training for a month after that.” Emerl chuckled as she dismissed the shield, “But it was pretty funny.” Emerl looked up as she spotted the temple peeking over the hilltops, “Ah! Almost at the temple now!”

“By the way,” Lapis began, “Who are the Order of the Stone? You’ve mentioned them a bit now.”

“Where do I begin?” Emerl chuckled, “They’re a group of heroes that travel to the far corners of the world in search of adventure. They’ve been from the Nether to the bottom of the sea!”

“Cool!” Lapis’s eyes brightened in awe, “You guys must have to travel a lot.”

“Yeah, but we have a rail system in the Nether that helps us get to places.” Emerl replied, “Their actually down there working on it while I patrol the are around the temple. Looks like it was a good thing I did, eh?” Emerl gave Lapis a playful nudge, earning a giggle from the Gem.

 The two Gems entered the temple. Lapis gazed in awe at the beautiful structure. “Watch your step!” Emerl warned as she stepped over a pressure plate, “There are anti-monster traps set up here to protect the place.” Lapis looked at the walls and saw small dispensers embedded in them. “Aww! They look like lil’ faces!” Lapis cooed. “They’re not so cute when you take an arrow to the foot. Trust me.” Emerl chuckled, remembering the time Magnus stepped on one of the plates by accident and Emerl nearly got poofed as a result. “So what are the rest of the Order like?” Lapis asked as they walked through the Library, “Well, the Leader and Founder of the Order is Soren.” Emerl began, “He’s a master builder, a genius, but also a bit of a goofball…and prone to burst into song for reasons I’ll never understand. There’s Gabriel the Warrior, who is the strongest out of us. He’s a little full of himself, but he means well. Magnus is the Order’s rogue and a walking disaster zone. Seriously, his room is so full of TNT and I’ve no idea how he hasn’t blown a hole in the temple yet. Ellegaard is another genius of the Order. She knows pretty much everything about redstone and what it can be used for. The stuff she’s able to come up with is incredible. However, she and Magnus tend to butt heads a lot. If you ever hear shouting echoing around the temple, it’s more-than-likely them. Last is Ivor, the Brewer. He’s an expert in potions and enchantments. He looks grumpy but he’s actually quite eccentric when it comes to adventures. Whenever we leave on a trip, he always yells at the top of his voice ‘ADVENTURE!!!’”

Lapis laughed as Emerl mimicked Ivor’s shout, her voice echoing off the walls as they walked up the staircase. “What about you?” Lapis asked. “Well, I’m not really a member of the Order per se. I’m more like…” Emerl searched for the word in her mind, “…a bodyguard! Like, you know how the Shards had the Royal Guard back in the dark days? I’m like that!”

“That’s kinda funny considering you’re a Shard!”

“I guess it is!”

As the two walked up the stairs into the map room, Lapis’s eyes were drawn to a small trinket standing upon a pedestal. “What’s that?” Lapis asked. “That’s the Order’s Amulet.” Emerl replied, “The Order uses it to track the other members when they’re on the surface. Hmm…” Emerl glanced between the Amulet and the map, “Odd…they should be on the surface by now. What’s taking them so long?” Emerl turned to Lapis, “Hey. Ever been to the Nether?”

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

 “Whoa!” Lapis gazed up at the obsidian framing the purple portal, “This thing leads to the Nether?”

“You got it.” Emerl nodded, “Just a heads up: the heat in there is pretty intense, so water powers might not work.”

“Don’t you worry.” Lapis grinned, “I don’t need my powers to kick butt!”

“Keep that enthusiasm going!” Emerl smirked, “Off we go!” Emerl jumped into the portal, Lapis following suit. Lapis’s jaw nearly hit the floor at the view around her. Red rocks, fire and lava as far as the eye could see. The two gems stood upon a dark coloured platform with stairs leading downwards to several minecart railways. “Keep up.” Emerl called behind her as she made her way down the steps, “If I remember correctly, they took…this one.” Emerl hopped into a minecart and Lapis hopped into one behind her. “Hang on tight!” Emerl grinned as the carts took off down the railway. “Whoa! Whoohoo!” Lapis laughed as the carts sped through the Nether, “This is amazing!”

“It’s fun, right?” Emerl chuckled, “So a few Nether-Need-to-Knows. Number 1: don’t attack the pigmen. They won’t hurt you if you don’t hurt them. Number 2: Keep a distance from blazes and magma cubes – or lava accordions as I like to call ‘em. Number 3: Soul sand is the sandy brown stuff. That’ll slow you down if you step in it so be careful. And number 4: beware of-”

Emerl was cut off by a distant wail followed by shouting which was coming from up ahead. “…ghasts." Emerl finished with a sigh as she summoned her sword in one hand and held tightly onto the minecart with the other, “I should’ve known. You ready for a fight, kiddo?”

“Bring it on!” Lapis cheered.

This was gonna be fun!

 To Be Continued…

[lunaraen]

“You’ll freeze to death if you sit on your own.” w/ Axel x Petra please?

Some people don’t do well withquiet. It’s the sort of thing that gets in their head, makes them either feelway too uncomfortable or like they have to start talking and making noise tomake up for it.

Axel’s one of those people.

And for a bonfire, hugemulticolored flames crackling and constantly moving in the wind and through thefalling snow, it’s awful quiet.

It’s important to keep that firstpart in mind, because it’s a bonfire, large enough that sometimes the tipsstretch as high as the walls surrounding the temple, and automatically at leasta little loud and awesome, but that doesn’t mean it’s as good as it could be.

Part of it might be the reasonthe flames are actually multicolored, shifting and changing between warmer redsand oranges and colder greens and blues. It’s a neat light show, especiallywhen they can all enjoy some hot chocolate while watching it.

Ivor, crazy or not, definitelyhas some good ideas now and then, and some cool potions to make the ideas work,and Axel hopes he can pull off the same trick the next time they have a fire.

Or, well, the same trick, butmaybe a little louder.

And sure, okay, it’s not totallyquiet, not with the rest of his friends having their own conversations, notwith the crackling of the bonfire or the way the wind winds through the treesand wraps around the walls to create a dull roar that sometimes whistles andhowls, but it’s nothing like exploding TNT or the louder, constant roar peoplescreaming and yelling at each other makes.

They’re out here to unwind, andthat’s part of why they’re all wrapped in a dozen fuzzy layers, their armorstill stashed back in their rooms, and the hot chocolate helps, but it stillfeels… off.

It’s quiet to him.

It’s almost the kind of quietthat’s suffocating, and Axel’s more than happy to latch onto something else tofocus on, especially when that something else is Petra.

Who’s been far too quiet too anddoesn’t seem to plan on moving any time soon, but still.

The bonfire’s burning in whatcould be considered their huge backyard, everybody sitting around it, thecircle of logs that work as makeshift seats almost as far away from the fire asthey can get. But while everybody else is at least sort of close together,Petra’s sitting on the opposite side, alone.

She’s hunched over and nearlycurled up, arms crossed over her middle and her hood yanked over enough tocover part of her face.

It doesn’t hide how red hercheeks are, a little darker than everyone else’s and probably the result of thewind blowing straight into her face, said wind also pressing the hood down overher eyes, or hide the tight, small frown she has. She’s one of the only oneswithout any kind of scarf, despite being the one with the most thick and furrylayers on overall, and Axel doesn’t hesitate before going to grab a second mugof hot chocolate.

It’s what friends do, right?

By the time he comes back, shedoesn’t look any happier, gloved fingers digging into her arms and her frownlooking even tighter.

Petra doesn’t always smile, butit’s not usually a good sign when she frowns either.

Axel’s been around her longenough to know a thoughtful frown when he sees one, and what she’s got nowisn’t it. It’s the kind of frown she gives when she’s ready to snap at justabout anybody, grumpy about someone or something.

All the more reason for him totry and cheer her up.

The snow crunches quietly underhis feet, too soft and too fresh to be any louder, the sound stopping as Axelstops a bit to the side of the log, tugging down the bandanna so she can hearhim. It’s good for griefing, but there’s a reason he almost never uses itaround his friends. What can he say? He likes being understood.

“You’ll freeze to death ifyou sit on your own.” It takes Petra a moment to look up at Axel, pullingthe hood back enough to uncover her eyes. She squints up at him and against thewind, parts of her hair and her bangs escaping her hood enough to twist and getblown back, for another few moments before her expression relaxes, corners ofher mouth turning up in a small smile.

“I’m fine.” Despite thesmile, her words and tone are short, tense, and scream just as loudly asanything else could that Petra doesn’t care and won’t care anytime soon.

The good news is that Axel isreally good at noticing obvious hints and choosing to ignore them.

“Sure you are.” Herolls his eyes as he sits down beside her, the log shifting slightly as hedoes, before he holds up the second drink, fingers wrapped tightly around thewarm mug that somehow manages to keep steaming, his smile turning toothy.“I guess if you’re not cold, I’ll just have to take the extra cocoa Igot.”

“Hey!” Axel getsshoved, lightly, in the side as Petra laughs, her hand pressing slightly intohis coat, and his grip tightens a second too late as her other hand swipes thesecond mug.

He quickly moves his now free handto his chest, giving a mock wounded gasp as she sticks her tongue out at himand holds the drink closer to her chest. Even if he wanted the mug back, there’sno way he’s getting it now. Somehow, that really doesn’t bother him as Petratakes a drink, shoulders relaxing almost as soon as she does.

It’s not a lot, but he doesn’tmiss the small, brief smile.

Axel’s hand drops back to hisside as he smiles down into his mug, shifting the cup and making the hot chocolate swirl slowly.

“…thanks.”

“No problem.” Heshrugs, tugging the bandanna down more to take a long drink from his mug,nearly emptying it. “Can’t let this stuff go to waste.”

Not that it would. Enough of them have a sweet tooth, Axel himself especially, and the weather’s almost permanently stuck between cold and absolutely freezing during winter. Even if they don’t finish it all by the time the fire starts to die, the hot chocolate will be lucky to last past tomorrow.

Petra doesn’t say anything as shenods, lifting the cup but stopping it just before it can reach her mouth as hereyes narrow slightly, still looking at Axel.

It probably shouldn’t make himfidget, but it does, and there’s not much he can do to change that.

“What?” His smile’s lopsided,but he really doesn’t know what’s got her so interested, and, knowing Petra andknowing how bad he can be at reading her looks, it could be anything.“What is it?”

For a second, he thinks shedidn’t hear him, the wind choosing now to pick up and start making more noise,and then her smile gets warmer.

“You’ve got chocolate onyour face.”

Axel’s already wiping his mouthoff before she can finish the sentence. Sure enough, the back of his sleevecomes away smudged a light brown and he tries not to grimace.

Smooth.

He glances at Petra beforequickly lowering his arm again, shoving his hand into his coat pocket.

“There. Fixed it.”

“Hmm….” Petra hums asshe tilts her head before grinning, quickly leaning forward. The next thingAxel knows, her lips are on his and he thinks smoke’s coming out of his ears.The kiss doesn’t last longer than a few seconds before she pulls away, lickingher lips and still grinning. “Missed a spot.”

His face feels like it’s on firein the best way possible and all he can do is hope that the grin he gives isn’tas goofy as it feels.