#i had to sneak a sylv in there

[jujoobedoodling]

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[blue-aconite]

Fe I need to know more about Love he called it part two

Sylv! 🧡

LCHI part II is right now taking a lil nap.

Jake is in therapy and trying his best to work on himself and has struck up an unlikely friendship with our bespectacled WSO. It is however a long road to travel and Jake isn't sure he can do it. A reappearance from Peach might help. Who knows?

A lil sneak peek below the cut for you:

It’s been two months since she walked away. Two months of sleepless nights, a dull ache in his entire body that just won’t go away. He’s been functioning entirely on autopilot, just trying his best to get through each day. He had told Peach that he was nothing without her and it wasn’t a lie. She had been a part of his life so long he didn’t know how to be Jake, without her.  He couldn’t remember the last time he set foot at the Hard Deck or went along with one of Javy’s many invites to hang out. He slept, barely if not at all, ate, worked and went home, only to sit in his quiet house, wishing he could turn back time.  The radio clock on his bedside table flashed, showing him it was only a little after 3 AM. He knows he should try to sleep but he knows he’ll only see her if he tries. Falling back against the pillows, Jake thinks back on the first time he saw Peach again after she left him.  He and Floyd were waiting in line to get coffee when he heard the familiar laugh. Turning slightly, he catches her profile in a corner booth. Peach looks beautiful, smiling and laughing, head thrown back. The ever present dull ache multiplies and the knife twists deeper in his chest. Jake clenched his jaw, blinking back the tears. Seeing Peach hurt. What hurts even more was realising there’s a man sitting opposite her and Jake’s vision goes blurry, his hands starting to shake. His heartbeat accelerates, beating violently against his ribs and it isn’t until he’s outside on his knees, heaving what little breakfast he had managed that morning with Bob rubbing his back, that Jake realised he’d probably lost Peach for good.

[captainbobbin]

I'm having a fucking breakdown over act 3 of dq11 don't nobody talk to me until I'm finished crying over Hendrik grieving and Sylv recognising his pain I'm rambling in the readmore I’m suffering I'm crying I'm tearing at my enclosure walls I need psychiatric help HENDRIK DOESNT EVEN KNOW WHYYYY GOD FUCK

so essentially like. theres two timelines. One where the crew all reunite and travel together, veronica sacrifices herself, and the big bad is defeated; but a greater evil is trapped in a time loop

and then a timeline where the hero goes back in time, prevents veronicas death, and the group instead remain together and grow stronger in different ways, all to ensure both the big bad and the BIG big bad all get taken care of

like in the first timeline, Hendrik is the first companion and he gets a ton of growth, he connects the dots w Sylv, he really really comes to terms with who he is and his own guilt and stuff, and he sees Jasper as the monster he has the potential to become - literally, Jasper becomes a beastman and Hendrik takes the brunt of his wrath and stuff, we see Jaspers full descent into monsterhood due to jealousy

in the second timeline, the fall of Yggsadril is stopped; so Hendrik never gets stabbed in the back, and the group don't get split apart and then travel together and reunite -  instead they face the first big bad almost right away

but instead, Jasper is fucking killed outright at Hendriks feet, by the king (who is still possessed). Like right in fucking front of him, 100% human, Jaspers throat gets fucking slit, dude

and Hendrik is just. In shock. Totally silent and struck by it as he watches one of his only friends fucking bleed out in front of him. the person who was practically his brother, the only one he ever had a meaningful connection with besides Norberto. HENDRIK DOESNT EVEN KNOW WHY JASPER FELL TO DARKNESS, HE DOESNT KNOW THAT IT WAS BECAUSE OF HIM AT THIS POINT GOD FUCKING DAMMNNNITITTTT

IN THE OTHER TIMELINE, HENDRIK IS JUST SO BURDENED BY HIS GUILT AND NOW HE JUST. HAS TO WONDER WHAT HAPPENED. One of the two meaningful people in his life just fucking died in front of him and he has no closure and no answers, just duty and loss and he has to try and be okay but he isn’t

and just. the remainder of the scene like the hero gets his sword and things are happening, the king is being shifty and whatever, big big bad is sneaking around, but you can just see Hendrik, in the background, silently and motionlessly kneeling over the spot where Jasper died, head down and grieving and he's just. He's trying so hard to keep it together.

and the end of the scene its like 'okay, the hero knows the king is bad but no one else does yet, and the king has invited us back, lets see how it plays out, pretend to be positive, we'll get him soon.' Hendrik apologises to the hero for not knowing the truth, the king and hendrik leave,and  the atmosphere is weirdly mixed between anticipation and dread and hope, and you get a second before moving on to chat to the party if you want to

and if you talk to Sylv he just. He's in his animation where it looks like he's devastated and haunted and really thinking on something, and then looks up and does his really sad smile when he's trying to be positive but struggling and he just

 'poor Hendrik... we defeated Jasper, but, Hendrik.... doesn't look happy. It must hurt so bad for him.'

crying screaming beating my fists on the ground this is the timeline where they havent reconnected or talked and learned to rely on each other again and it has still been ten years since they last spoke and hendrik hasnt even looked at sylv yet he doesnt know who he is but SYLV KNOWS HIM AND KNOWS HES HURTING I’M IN PAAAAAAAAAAIN

SYLVANDO KNOWS HENDRIK SO WELL THEY GREW UP TOGETHER THEY WERE FRIENDS AND HE OF COURSE KNOWS WHO HENDRIK, HERO OF HELIODOR IS BUT TO HENDRIK HE’S JUST A FUCKIGN CLOWN WHO HAPPENS TO BE HERE, HES CHANGED AND HENDRIK DOESNT RECOGNIZE HIM YET THEY HAVENT SPOKEN HE HASN’T FIGURED OUT THAT HE’S NORBERTO YET AND JUST. THE FIRST TIME THEY SEE EACH OTHER IN TEN YEARS (IN THIS TIMELINE) AND ITS A TRAUMATIC EVENT AND JASPER FUCKING DIES AND SYLVANDO CAN’T EVEN COMFORT HENDRIK AND HENDRIK DOESNT EVEN REALIZE THAT HE’S THERE, THAT ITS HIM

HENDRIK HAS LOST TWO BEST FRIENDS, ONE TO RUNNING AWAY AND THE OTHER LITERALLY RIGHT INFRONT OF HIM JUST NOW BUT ONE OF THEM IS THERE, NORBERTO IS THERE AND HE DOESNT EVEN KNOW AND SYLV CAN SEE HIS PAIN I JUST WANT THEM TO BE OKAY

act 2 has such wonderful growth for hendrik and now just. act 3 drops him right into the grief sauce and he's trying not to drown. He has no answers at this point, no understanding of what or why or how. Hes just hurting, and betrayed.

he feels alone and lost and everyone is celebrating around him. like act 2 hendrik is absolutely fucked up by ronnies sacrifice and everything but he had chance to work through it. but this. this is just him being hit by a train standing up and then being hit by another train

THIS IS THE MAN WHOSE ENTIRE KINGDOM WAS DESTROYED. HE HAS LOST EVERYTHING. EVERY ONE OF HIS FAMILY, EVERY FRIEND, HIS ENTIRE BIRTH HOME WAS WIPED OFF OF THE MAP AND ONLY HE SURVIVES. HE HAS NOTHING. the only thing he feels is grief and loss and he just. keeps trying so hard;

I JUST. I’M FUCKING. AUUUUUUUGHGUHGH

[sylvarantii]

Spoilers again hahah

I feel so emotionally drained after finishing TLOU2. God, that ending was rather bittersweet in a way. I don't...hate it, I guess. But I can't say I'm content either.

Honestly, I don't know how to feel. But lord were some levels fucking rough. Particularly the last few before the epilogue.

In a way, it's almost ironic that with the first game, some of the parts that were the scariest were the ones where I had to sneak around in the dark and avoid getting overtaken by infected.

But in this one, the scariest part was being in the middle of a literal war field and having to fight off both ends to get to the boats while traveling with a young boy that I desperately wanted to keep safe.

It was a lot.

I think I've had my fill of these games for a little while. Though considering the game unlocked infinite ammo and health, I might just go ahead and play it again soon since it'll be even easier this time around....we'll see.

[beenasleepfor70years]

AN: A short fic in the Avengers/Pokémon AU for @avengersasssemble who helped come up withthe premise of this idea in our texts :)

“U? U?! Where are you, baby?!”

Flipping over blankets, pillows, and other larger items in their room, Tony frantically searched for his Flareon, U. U was almost always by Tony’s side, ever since he meant her as an Eevee in Afghanistan, so the fact that he couldn’t find her left Tony in a tizzy.

He poked his head in his shared bathroom with Steve, the blond brushing his teeth to finish getting ready for bed.

“Steve? Have you seen U? I can’t find her for bed,” Tony said nervously, moving to the side a bit as Dodger— Steve’s Sylveon— walked into the room with them “She isn’t on our floor and she isn’t in the playroom with the others.”

Spitting out the leftover toothpaste and rinsing his mouth, Steve turned to his boyfriend with a concerned look.

“That’s odd. U always joins you for bed,” He pondered, “She has been acting a little out of sorts lately, hasn’t she? Even then, she is always with you for bedtime…”

“I know, that's why I am worried.” Tony murmured, sighing when Steve laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Babe, its okay. We’ll find her. Dodger and I will help you look,” Steve assured with a soft smile, glancing down at his Sylveon, “Right, buddy?”

“Syl!” Dodger answered in an enthusiastic noise, rubbing against Tony’s legs to try and help his trainer calm the other down.

“Thanks, Dodge,” Tony hummed, scritching behind Dodger’s ears.

“Now then, you’ve checked the playroom and our room, right?” Steve asked, earning a nod in response from his boyfriend.

“Yes. I’ve checked our entire floor, even the kitchen in case she might have been hungry and went there for a snack,” Tony explained, “You know she’s been known to try and sneak into the berries and Poffins.”

“That she is,” Steve nodded, scratching his chin in thought, “Did you go and check your workshop?”

“No... I could’ve sworn U had followed me outta there, though!” Tony answered getting antsy again, “We should probably go and check— oh man, she’s gonna be so mad if I let her in there by herself!”

“Syl Syl!” Dodger nearly barked, darting out the bedroom and towards the elevator that went to the other floors.

“I take that as a sign of where we should look,” Steve said, running after Dodger and Tony to the elevator to ride down to the workshop.

——-

Once on the level of the workshop, Tony quickly typed in the passcode to get inside. His heart skipped, relief coming over him when he saw a big floof of red and yellow fur on the spare couch in the space.

“U! Baby, Daddy’s sorry! I was so worried. I thought you had followed me outta here early. Are you okay?” Tony gushed, reaching out to pet U’s fur.

“Flaaaare~!” U cooed back, purring from the pet of her trainer and warming from the touch. Her tail moved and wagged happily, a flash of something brown and light tan peeking behind it. That certainly caught Tony’s attention.

“U? What do you have there, sweetie?” Tony asked, carefully moving U’s tail out of the way before he stopped and froze for a moment.

“Tony? You find her? She alright?” Steve asked, he and Dodger following in after. The blond stopped when he saw his lover stop, the brunet oddly quiet, “Tony? Everything okay…?”

Tony turned around, body rigid and a none too amused expression on his face as he looked back from Steve, to Dodger, then back to Steve.

“Steven Grant, why does U— my precious baby— have an egg?” Tony emphasized, gesturing to the brown and tan shape beside U.

Steve blinked, looking back at Tony confused until it clicked in his brain. His eyes then glanced down towards his Sylveon, surprise and intrigue in his expression.

“Dodger… Buddy, you didn’t…”

Dodger looked up at his trainer almost sheepishly before quickly traipsing over to the workshop couch. He hopped up on the opposite of U on the couch, nuzzling the side of her face with happy purrs coming from the two of them.

“Well that's uh… that’s apparently a thing,” Steve said with a huff of breath, still earning a look from Tony “It explains why U had been acting out of her normal self lately, too…”

“An egg, Steven. An egg!” Tony emphasized further, sitting on the other side of U on the couch and giving Dodger on the other side the stink eye, “I have quite a few words for you later, mister. You better be a good dad and help with that egg. And you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.”

“Sylve,” Dodger voiced, giving almost an eye roll in response before going back to nuzzling U.

“Don’t be mad at him, Tony. U seems to like him enough,” Steve tried to offer “And just think; it means you’ll have a new Eevee to coddle and gush over. How long has it been since you got to do that?”

Tony still had a pout on his face, but did offer the other a small nod.

“You have a point. Suppose you should go and make an extra spot on the bed tonight for the egg. Make sure it can be comfortable and warm and safe,” the brunet murmured, earning a soft smile from his boyfriend “Dodger is still on the floor tonight, though. I’m not budging on that.”

Dodger looked to Steve in response, giving his trainer the best Baby Doll Eyes he could muster, earning a laugh from Steve.

“Sorry buddy, but ya gotta do the time for your crime of passion.” The blond chuckled, earning a whine from his Pokémon in response.

“Such a drama queen. Just like his trainer,” Tony said with a smirk, earning a pout and an incredulous ‘Hey’ from Steve in response.

[dragonquesttbh]

Perfect Aim

For @nedrynwrites and @omgitsaddyc !! (no spoilers)

7. Trying to remember how that inside joke got started

Sylv swiped at the enemy with his sword, narrowly missing his target by a hair's breadth.

"Ooh, somebody needs to work on their aim," Erik cooed, elbowing El's ribs with a smirk.

El snorted, bringing a palm to his face. He tried to steady the trembling hand grasping his sword, failing miserably when he spluttered and it shook wildly. His eyes met Erik's mischievous gaze again and he dropped his sword, slapping a palm to his knee as he shook with laughter.

Erik watched on fondly as the Luminary of Legends was reduced to a giggling teenager, unable to hide his wide grin splitting up his face. That was exactly how El should be, Erik reckoned, a happy kid enjoying his adolescence. Something he'd been much more able to enjoy when it was just the two of them, fumbling about in their tent, their home, and finding eachother under the stars.

Something abruptly taken from them as soon as the twins arrived. All they had now were these precious, rare moments... Or the occasional handjob in the stream.

Erik felt his chest swell with pride as El's face creased as another wave of giggles overtook him.

His mouth went dry.

He thought of other times that he'd caused El's face to screw up like that, losing himself to images of sending his partner over the edge and–

An animal hunger took over.

He battled the urge to grab a handful of that soft hair and crush their mouths together, slide his hands up his duster, mark a possessive trail across his neck and, and–

He barely registered the sabrecat swing at him.

A burst of flames.

He jumped and glanced towards the source of the fire.

"You IDIOTS! You could have got yourselves KILLED!" Veronica cried, sharp elbows pointing outwards as she shoved her hands to her hips. She stared at him with piercing eyes, fire on the tip of her tongue.

Erik shrugged and cast a casual look over at El, who was panting for breath, face pink with laughter. He caught Erik's eye then sniggered uncontrollably, tumbling back onto the soft grass as he cackled.

Veronica stormed over to him, jabbing an accusatory finger towards his chest. "And what exactly is so funny, young man?!"

El glanced back up at Erik and snorted loudly.

Veronica growled and stared back up at Erik.

Erik held his palms up in surrender. "Sheesh! Don't look at me like that! S'not my fault I'm so darn hilarious."

"Hm! Well, save your hilarious jokes until after battle next time. Unless, of course, you want the Luminary to die because of your idiocy!"

Erik's chest tightened unbearably. He clawed the back of his hair as he looked to the ground.

He hated that she was right.

He'd failed in his Luminary protecting duties. It was selfish to distract him during battle just to earn one of his winning smiles.

Without El he was nothing, a shadow without light. A broken half.

And, well, Erdrea would be doomed.

"Veronica!" Serena squealed excitedly, crouching in the undergrowth. "Oh look! Aren't these violets awfully similar to the ones growing in Arboria?"

"Coming, Serena." Veronica scowled and pointed a V-sign at her eyes then the two messy boys in front of her.

El bit his lip as he tried to withhold another snigger, palm shielding his face.

Sylv sheathed his sword and narrowed his eyes at Erik. "I need to work on my aim..?" he said sceptically.

"Oh, um, yeah coz one time..." Erik furrowed his brow and reached out his palms to El, who gratefully took them and hauled himself up. His heart fluttered as El's hands fell from his grip.

Erik's eyes flitted down as El stretched his arms above his head, sneaking a appreciative glance at what little he could see through El's duster. He laughed, holding a hand to his mouth as he noticed large clumps of grass seed stuck to his behind.

"Oh, babe, you got a little..." Erik tutted and dropped to his knees.

El's legs trembled as Erik knelt behind him and tugged a clump of seeds out from the fabric, fingers lingering a little longer than necessary.

Sylv chuckled and tapped his foot against the ground. "I'm waiting."

Erik hummed thoughtfully, pulling out another particularly stubborn grass seed. "Oh, coz... We were fightin' monsters, or somethin'?" He lifted his head to look up at El's face. "Wait, you remember how this started?"

El looked back at Erik's knelt figure and shook his head quickly, suspiciously quickly, cheeks flushing a deeper shade of pink. He swiftly averted his gaze, eyes darting to the floor.

Erik stroked him over the fabric, searching for further grass seeds, then gave him a stealthy pinch– just out of Sylv's eyeline.

A muffled squeal.

Erik grinned evilly, then stood up and brushed grass off his knees. He shrugged in Sylv's direction. "I dunno... it's just somethin' we say when one of us misses in battle. Not really sure how it started, I guess it's some kinda tradition."

"Yeah, t-tradition!" El piped up, blush somehow deepening even further.

Sylv rolled his eyes affectionately. "Okay, sweetie, if you say so. Just try not to distract eachother so much in the next battle, mm-kay?"

Erik put a hand to his hip. "Uh, well tell that to silky locks over there with his distracting hair blowing in the–" His gaze darted between them. "I mean, c-coz you've got such a stupid haircut."

El gave him a playful shove. "Shuddup. You love my hair."

I love you, I love you–

Erik pushed him back. "Uh, in your dreams, bowlcut boy!"

Sylv hummed and pressed a finger to his lips. "I think I'll leave you two to it."

Before Erik could protest, Sylv was skipping towards Serena, who was now proudly clutching a small bunch of violets.

El plucked a daisy from the ground and tucked it behind Erik's ear. "I felt that, y'know. Very naughty." He flashed Erik what could only be described as a scheming little shit grin, then ran over to the others.

Erik growled, gathering all the restraint in Erdrea to stop himself from shoving El down into the wildflowers and smacking him into oblivion.

...

Erik stared into the white hot centre of the campfire, an entirely different heat consuming him– one hotter than any flame.

He groaned and forced his eyes shut, fighting every impulse in his body to run over to El and drag him away– to the nearest field, hill, beach, he didn't care. He just needed to feel his touch, his kisses, his whispered comforts.

El's skin on his.

Something still not possible while surrounded by their painfully oblivious friends.

He kicked at an offending stone.

There was a scuffle to his left.

"You okay?" Jade asked quietly, crossing her legs next to him.

Erik nodded weakly, tilting his head towards her. His gaze remained downcast, resting just below her chin, unable to meet hers in case his eyes betrayed him.

"I can see where your eyes are going, you know?" Jade prodded, punching his arm lightly.

Erik jolted. It was then, he realised, to his horror, just where his eyes had been sitting on Jade's halter neck. The memory of the Octagonia arena stung across his face, old bruises re-emerging. He really didn't want to receive another pounding like that.

He frantically waved his hands in front of his face and leant away from her. "No, no, no! I wasn't eyein' you up or nothin'... Swear! Uh, not that I'm sayin' that you're not pretty, uh, you are, you're smokin', b-but I'm not into tits... Or women! Heh." He held his hands in front of his face and winced, eyes tightly shut.

"Finally, he admits it!" Veronica announced, honouring him with a slow clap.

Erik peeked through his fingers, noticing Jade chuckling gently, evidently amused by his outburst.

"Don't stress, honey. We're all very proud of you for feeling comfortable enough to share that with us–"

Erik groaned and hid his face in his hands, blocking out the rest of Sylv's congratulatory speech.

Jade laughed and thumped his back with a fist. "I didn't mean me, you idiot," she whispered, "I meant that."

She nodded towards El– bent over the forge, stripped of his duster, turtleneck sticking to his sweat slick muscles, face tightly screwed up in concentration–

Erik huffed out a nervous laugh and frantically scratched at the back of his head, flickering his gaze to the ground.

Then it hit him like a club to the head. Of course.

He leapt to his feet. "Hey, EL! El, El, El! I remember!" he yelled, grinning wildly.

El pushed himself to his feet, brushing soot from his knees. The forge hammer remained clasped in his right hand. "Remembered what, sweetheart?"

Sweetheart. How their relationship had escaped these idiots still baffled him.

"The thing! The thingy thing!" Erik ran an ecstatic hand through his hair, pulse racing. "We were in the Kingsparrow, you had me over the altar, and you couldn't find my spot so I said– Oh!" He jumped back and held a hand over his mouth.

All those sleepless nights pressed up against El had really taken their toll.

El let out a muffled cry as the hammer came crashing down on his foot.

"The Kingsparrow? Isn't that some nasty ass ancient tomb?" Sylv poked, failing to suppress a giggle.

Jade wolf whistled, the sound interrupted by her own laugh.

Erik was sure there were some other noises, ones his brain couldn't process as he was overcome with a crippling embarrassment.

He pulled an arm over his face, screwing his eyes shut. "Don't look at me..."

Veronica snorted loudly.

Erik's knees quivered, one embarrassing thought away from buckling right from underneath him.

He gasped as strong arms wrapped around him, soothing lips finding his forehead. His tremors calmed against El's firm, but gentle grip, sword calloused fingertips grazing his scalp. Erik melted into him, allowing El to hold him up as his legs turned to jelly.

El brushed his lips against Erik's cheek. "I'm glad you blurted that out, my love, because that means now we can do this." He hoisted him up by his hips and brought Erik's head down to his, mouths clashing messily with repressed want... need.

Erik wrapped his legs around El's waist and held their lips together, relishing the feel of El's hands on his hips, holding him. "You're not mad at me?" he whispered, voice coming out as a small whimper.

El's mouth pulled down at the corners. "I could never be mad at my perfect, gorgeous thief. In fact, I'm very, very happy with him."

El tossed him up in his arms and Erik giggled and squirmed, clinging onto his neck for dear life despite knowing El would never drop him. El cradled him in his arms then sank to the floor, planting sloppy kisses all over his neck.

Erik sighed and leant into his touch.

"Hi everyone, this is my boyfriend Erik, and we once had terrible sex in an ancient tomb. But I still love him all the same." He kissed the side of Erik's face.

Rab chuckled heartily and slapped his knee. "Och! That's my grandson!"

Sylv and Jade exchanged an enthusiastic high five.

"Congratulations!" Serena said sunnily, voice brimming with glee.

Erik pouted and puffed his cheeks out. "Ugh, gay."

El kissed the corner of his mouth. "I hate to break it to you, but you're gay, sweet pea."

"Oh, so you're using vegetable names for me now, huh?" Erik said grouchily, trying to hide his grin.

"It's a flower, my love. But I can call you veggie names too... Like pumpkin. My sweet little funny coloured pumpkin." He giggled and pressed their cheeks together.

Sylv clasped his hands together. "Well, aren't you gonna say it back, sweetie? Tell your country boy how lovey dovey you are over him?"

Erik scrunched his nose, sticking his lower lip out even further. "Nope. Not unless I want my dick sucked."

El scoffed and prodded his cheek. "What a rude, grumpy pumpkin!"

Erik grinned and cast him a sly glance. "Mm, okay, maybe I do want–" He shifted to straddle El's lap, grasping his chin and planting greedy kisses all over his face. "I love you, love you, love you, love you, love you, love..."

El giggled and squashed Erik's cheeks between his palms. "Stop it. Stop being so naughty."

"Make me."

And El did, grasping a handful of blue and pulling Erik's lips to his. Erik sighed into his mouth, feeling the warm caress of El's hands on his back.

Veronica leant forward on her log. "So you're saying, this entire time you've been together?"

"Yup," Erik said smugly, resting his head on El's shoulder and curling into his loving embrace.

His. His Luminary.

"Well, you better not have done anything in our tent," she muttered, lip curling.

Erik bit back a snigger and glanced up at his partner. "Well there was this one time where we did but somebody made a mess everywhere and I ended up going down to the river in the middle of the night to wash–"

El swiftly tugged Erik's hood up over his face, grasping his cheeks through the fabric. "Shush, naughty pumpkin, that's enough spilling for one day."

Erik giggled and took El's hand in his. "And that's exactly what I said when you–"

[romijuli]

Six-ish Sentence Sunday: Tumblr Mobile Hates Me Edition

This title font was fashioned out of pure spite, fuck you mobile. ANYWAY, this was gonna be troublerouser because that and my valenslime were the only things I worked on, but I had an idea this morning and it fucking latched onto me like a goddamn koala so here we go

The sun barely peeks above the edge of the world before Eleven awakens. He half-expects a chiding remark from Veronica (after all, it was more than a few concerned comments after some rather tough battles that prompted him to kick his late-sleeping habits), but she seems to still be asleep.

In fact, the only person awake is Sylv, it seems, hard at work on something far away from the tents. Curious, Eleven channels all of the sneaking skills he learned from Erik into staying quiet as he joins the group’s resident soldier of smile.

“Oh, good morning, darling!” Sylv whispers as Eleven peers at his current project. Nothing fancy, for once, just a simple bouquet, from the looks of it.

[sarushell]

Day 5: I've got Red in my Ledger

CW: Death, murder, blood

Summary: Eleven returns to the World Tree after going back in time.

Word count: 698

Eleven was panting by the time he arrived at the top of the World Tree. He staggered along Her boughs, reaching for any branch he could grasp to steady himself as he ran.

Air wasn’t coming cleanly through his lungs. It kept hitching as his side burned, but he pushed onward nonetheless, reaching for the Sword of Shadows on his back and yanking it out.

He heard voices and could see Yggdrasil’s heart in the distance now.

The others weren’t paying attention to Eleven as he approached, Eleven’s eyes shifting from Sylv, Jade, Veronica, and Serena to a copy of himself standing next to Erik and Rab.

But Eleven could not bring himself to worry about that now. His first priority was Mordegon, who hadn’t revealed himself yet, remaining in Carnelian’s body. Jasper was saying something; Eleven didn’t know what, zoning in only on “Carnelian.”

Eleven readied his weapon and darted forward, sinking it into Carnelian’s back.

A gasp wrenched from Carnelian’s throat and Jade screamed. Jasper reacted immediately, drawing his sword and advancing on Eleven. Jasper swung his sword and Eleven stumbled, landing on his back with a sore “humpf!”

The air squeezed out of Eleven’s lungs and he gasped, drawing his sword up just as Jasper swung down at him again.

“The Darkspawn!” Rab shouted.

Eleven bit his tongue and kicked Jasper off him, giving himself just enough time to roll into a crouch with his sword raised above him.

“Father!” Jade shouted.

No, no, no, Eleven thought. He hadn’t killed Carnelian! He’d killed Mordegon!

“What is the meaning of this?”

Hendrik’s voice joined the fray as Eleven once again shoved Jasper away from him. Carnelian lay in a crumpled heap on the floor of the World Tree, and El approached with the Sword of Light grasped in his hand. Eleven’s old team gestured to him, and Hendrik approached, grasping his wrist.

Hendrik yanked Eleven to his feet. “So you have shown your face, Darkspawn!”

“We must kill him immediately, before he can cause more trouble,” Jasper said.

“Usually I’m not one to agree with the enemy, but I think they have a point this time,” Erik said.

He said it so matter-of-factly. With his hand on his hip and a nonplussed look on his face.

“But to kill him makes us no better than the enemy,” Hendrik said. “We must bring him into custody. Certainly he knows something of the Lord of Shadows.”

“Yes, quite,” Jasper added.

Eleven’s mouth worked but no words came out.

He’d been panicked. He hadn’t been thinking. He was tired. Nothing about the act had been calculated, he will admit that, but to so readily cast him aside as a Darkspawn? He would defend himself if he thought he could, but he was already rendered too shocked for words.

“Jade…” Carnelian’s withered voice muttered, and heads turned toward him.

He was grasping his side, which was stained red. Jade was kneeling in front of her father, grasping his hand in hers. Her other hand settled over Carnelian’s chest.

“Father… your heartbeat…”

“Worry not for me,” Carnelian whispered. “I be not long this world, but for now, for this one moment…”

“Hendrik, Rab, is there anything you can do?” Jade asked.

Rab shook his head. He was also at the king’s side, though his hands had stopped healing. “No. It was a fatal hit.”

“Jade,” Carnelian began, drawing her attention to him again. “Before I go, please… promise me.”

“Anything,” Jade said.

“Do not let the Darkspawn get away again,” Carnelian said.

“Of course,” Jade said. “I will never forgive him for what he’s done to you!”

Jade glanced to Eleven as she said it, and the spark of hatred in her eyes made Eleven’s very core shutter. Even worse than that, however, was Carnelian.

There was the glint of something in those eyes. Something devious that lurked just beneath the surface, managing to sneak past under the guise of a dying father. "Carnelian" smiled, too, when the others weren’t looking, a taunt Eleven had to assume was for him.

Eleven was absolutely certain Mordegon was hiding in a dead man’s body.

A body which he had dealt the killing blow.

[bittykimmy13]

Are there any one shots of Jon and Sylv at the same height, like Sylvia temporarily being human? Is that something we might get to see?

WELLLLL 👀 There is a scene in an upcoming Shot in the Dark book where Jon is fairy-sized!! He gets some firsthand experience of what it's like to be in a pocket--though luckily he has Sylv there to guide him through it (and distract him with many kisses). Here's a sneak peek under the cut :D

((Co-written by the lovely @marydublin5 💕))

~~~

Jon squeezed Sylvia’s hand, breath catching as Cliff’s footsteps rattled through them like one earthquake after another. She stirred, mumbling sleepily. He let out a tight laugh as she straightened.

“What’s so funny?” she said through a yawn.

“You slept through all that, and this is what woke you up?” He squeezed her hand again, relishing the way her fingers tightened on his in response.

“I… I fell asleep?” She sighed fretfully. “Sorry. I meant to keep you company, I just--”

“It’s fine, Sylv. You needed the rest.”

He paused, breathing in sharply as Cliff came to a stop, asking to rent a room. It was an entirely mundane task, but it had been easier for Jon to forget the reality of his plight while he was cooped up in the darkness with only the sounds of Cliff and the car. There were people around now--giants--and the only thing separating them from him was a wall of cloth.

“Jon?” Sylvia’s fingertips brushed his cheek.

“I-I’m fine.”

But she knew him too well to fall for that lie. In an instant, her hand tilted his face toward hers, and she pressed her lips against his, providing the most wonderful distraction he could hope for. He fell into her eager kisses, barely taking notice as Cliff began walking again. Before he knew it, she was on top of him, knees hugging his hips.

Light flooded in from overhead, and he was treated to a view of her face right in front of his. But way up past her, an enormous green eye narrowed at them.

Cliff groaned. “Seriously? In my fucking pocket?”

[bittykimmy13]

DAY 12. SURPRISE!

Shot in the Dark Universe. In which Sylv does something special for Jon's birthday :)

Sylvia had been acting strange all week. Normally, she hung around Jon during their downtime. And if she wasn't with him, he could find her lounging on Cliff's shoulder while they watched TV. But lately, she seemed to have isolated herself.

     More than once, he had spotted her working behind the digital clock on the nightstand, head bent over something on her lap.

     "Hey, what are you doing?" Jon asked as he approached.

     "Nothing!" She hurriedly tossed her work into her little box of clothing and slammed the lid.

     Afterward, he had to resist the urge to sneak a peek at the box while she was occupied with something else. But it felt invasive. As a fairy traveling with a pair of hunters, privacy was hard to come by for her, and he hated the thought of taking that away from her, too.

     The strangeness all but slipped his mind until one day when he was on his way back into the motel room after a grocery run. Cliff promptly headed for the door.

     "Where you going?" Jon set the bags down on the table. "Where's Sylv?"

     Cliff waved a hand at the far side of the room. "Over there somewhere," he said, wearing what could only be described as an amused grimace. "I'll be back tomorrow. So, ah… get it all out of your system by then. Please."

     "Tomorrow? What—"

     Cliff shut the door.

     Jon strode curiously to the dresser on the other side of the room. There was a little present on top, brightly wrapped in red. Everything clicked at once: Sylvia's unusual secretive nature, Cliff's hurry to leave, the day.

     The moment it started to make sense, the top of the present flipped open from the inside, and Sylvia popped out, her arms raised grandly.

     "Surprise! Happy birthday!"

     Jon stared, slack-jawed. She was wearing red lingerie. Lace barely concealed her intimate parts, straps looped everywhere, silky ribbons hung waiting to be untied. And her face was flushed as she waited for him to say something.

     "Sylv, you—" He stammered, barely restraining himself from reaching into the box to pounce straightaway. "You look... hot, I mean, incredible. You made that?"

     "All from scratch. I got Cliff to buy me some lace to work with. He looked like he wanted to die when I told him what it was for, but… he knows you deserve it. His gift to you is not griping about it."

     Jon nodded absently, looking her up and down a dozen times a second.

     "So." Sylvia slung one leg over the side of the box and dragged her fingers up her thigh while caressing one of her ribbons. "You gonna unwrap your present, or what?"

[bittykimmy13]

Day 25. Nightmare

Shot in the Dark Universe. In which Sylv tries to sneak off.

Sylvia knew she had been caught when she heard the bed creak. She pulled to a hover, but there was no way to make her buzzing wings any quieter. Jon’s groggy voice came from behind.

     “Sylv? Where you going?”

     She bit her lip and turned to face his massive silhouette in the darkness. He was sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand. Guilt stabbed at her. No matter what she did, she always found a way to disturb his sleep.

     “I…” A few fibs came to mind, but none of them would solve the problem. “I just wanted to give you a break tonight.”

     “What do you mean? C’mere.” He beckoned her, offering his hand as a perch.

     Reluctantly, she took the offer and alighted on his palm. “You know what I mean,” she said, searching for his gaze in the shadows. “I’ve woken you up three nights in a row because of my nightmares. You deserve a full night’s rest, Jon.”

     His sigh washed warmth over her. “Where were you planning to sleep, then?”

     “You left your jacket on the back of the chair. I thought maybe I could go inside the pocket and—”

     “What?” He laughed in disbelief. “You’re not sleeping in a pocket when there’s a perfectly good bed here.” 

     “But you need to sleep!”

     “Hey,” he whispered, curling his thumb inward to stroke her arm. “Nightmares or not, I’ve been sleeping better since you came along.”

     That made her pause. “Really?”

     “Really.” 

     He laid down carefully and lowered his hand so she could climb down on his chest. She hesitated, then made herself comfortable. He rubbed gently between her wings, making every muscle in her body melt into relaxation.

     “I’m not letting you face those nightmares alone,” he said, and the gentle rumble of his voice beneath her made her heavy eyelids fall shut.

[dragonquesttbh]

Eleven 11 (hahaha), Hendrik 12, Mia 15?

11. Favourite piece of clothing, Eleven (hehe) Ah, El's favourite piece of clothing is easy– his hood. Y'know, the one Erik gave him when they first met. It reminds him of the times they had together when it was just them, running from Hendrik, linking hands while on horseback etc. etc. Don't get me wrong, El loves all the new friends he's made but kinda misses the intimacy of it just being them, especially as Erik sometimes struggles with integrating with the rest of the group, being a self-confessed "lone wolf". Anyway, often occasionally El will snuggle the hood at night and pretends it's Erik coz he's attached to it and he can't really wear it as there's no real reason to anymore (his fellow party members would be like ??). He does this particularly when him & Erik have been separated, like in Gondolia & the start of Act 2, clutching at it like its the most important thing he owns and maybe giving it a sniff, coz it still smells a little like his favourite rogue. Someone definitely catches him doing this, but he cares little.

12. How they sleep, Hendrik He's gotta be a back sleeper, I mean, the man's ready for action (...not that kind, unless, well Sylv or Jade...) Ahem. Yeah, Hendrik's all about protecting the Luminary so sleeping on his back gives him the best vantage point for Beating The Shit out of any threats. More than once he's accidentally grabbed a fellow party member re-entering the tent after some midnight mischief (Veronica, Rab and Erik sometimes sneak out for a cheeky pipe smoke) then apologised profusely. He's slept like this since he was orphaned by the destruction of Zwaardrust because he worries intensely about the people he cares about being hurt. Jasper used to take the piss out of him for sleeping so rigidly, calling him uptight and telling him to "loosen up". Though, sometimes he would sneak into Hendrik's room and curl up on top of him like a possessive cat... then refuse to talk about it the next day.

15. What perfume or cologne they would wear, Mia Okay, so Mia and Erik have various flowers growing in their shelter and I can imagine Mia crushing violets and pressing the juice onto her neck/ wrists, so she can smell nice like the rich ladies she sees in Snifflheim (who are often snobby towards her). One day, Erik catches her doing this, and she yells and tells him to go away, thoroughly embarrassed. The next time Erik goes away pillaging with the Vikings, he returns with a small, ornate vial: violet scented perfume. Mia squeals and hugs him, then quickly withdraws and probably says something like, "Uh... well, I guess this is okay... But bring me jewels next time, idiot!" She wears it (sparingly) every day after that.

[dragonquesttbh]

🔪 for Hendrik, 🎈 for Serena, 🔗 for Erik?

Act 2 Spoilers!!

🔗- A memory about their proposal/wedding, Erik

El proposes to him the night before they go to Yggdrasil (cruel, I know), after many nights of not letting Erik see what he was making on the forge. They all make camp in the First Forest and El and Veronica disappear for a couple of hours. Erik gets insanely grouchy and jealous– "Why did he ask HER to go with him and not ME?!" then El returns and asks Erik to come with him to look at some "sparkly spots" and he practically jumps out of his seat to follow him. El leads him to a glade filled with candles, which Veronica had kindly helped to light, and proposes. Erik cries, and he never cries, and shoves El against a tree so they can have weird kinky forest sex. They return and El's hair is completely messed up, full of twigs and leaves and it's pretty clear what's gone on. Not that anyone minds. There's lots of cheering and wolf whistling and Erik settles on El's lap, the happiest he's ever been.

I was originally going to write a fic about this uhh... 4 months ago, where Erik wakes up with no memory, just a ring on his finger and desperately searches for his fiancé (who he thinks is a girl). He was gonna meet a load of people, e.g. Prince Faris who draws him a terrible picture of his friends and can't remember their names properly (M and Sabrina) and Jasper, who tells poor Erik that they used to be firm friends and he needs to avoid the corrupt Sir Hendrik at all costs... It was a whole mess tbh.

🎈- A memory about a time they were safe and relaxed, Serena

Serena likes playing the harp, and one time after a long, demoralising day of orb hunting, Sylv suggests she plays it for them to give everyone time to relax. At first she's reluctant and feels incredibly awkward with everyone's eyes on her, but when she starts playing, a calming aura comes over her. She gingerly opens her eyes and sees her fellow party members smiling gently, El and Erik swaying together in time with her strums. Then she realises how lucky she is, to be surrounded by her rag tag friends, each with their own weird or vibrant personality yet all stopping to listen to an Arborian girl play her harp. When she eventually stops, Jade demands for her to play more, and she continues playing until they all decide to go to bed. This becomes the go-to when everyone's stressed and needs a little Serena calming. Serena enjoys this, a lot, helping her friends being the thing that fills her with the most joy.

🔪- A memory about a dangerous situation, Hendrik

Zwaardrust. He doesn't remember much, being such a small child at the time, but the flashes of blood and burning buildings still haunt him at night. The poor guy probably suffers from PTSD, not that he'd open up about it, being the stoic, mountain of a man he is. It's something he's never really talked to anyone about, except Sylv and Jasper who have spent enough time with him to see the effect these painful memories have had on him (Sylv mentions him crying himself to sleep as a kid in the party chat). Jasper has likely had an equally painful past, so chooses to distract him with stupid ventures– such as when they tried to sneak around the castle at night and Hendrik got caught. Sylv goes more for the let's talk about your feelings approach, but still has only managed to get him to talk about his trauma twice.