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sickficideas · 11 months

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never fallen from quite this high || akutagawa & chuuya sickfic

ao3! 2.7k - please refer to the tags and notes in the link for content + warnings! there's quite a bit in this one!

"Akutagawa, do you have a moment?"

Hirotsu doesn't often call him. Even when the Black Lizard have an issue of any kind, Hirotsu can typically resolve it himself. He's a very capable leader, and his many years in the mafia allow Ryuunosuke to put a lot of trust in him.

So he's already on edge about this phone call. Hirotsu would never call him for no reason. He would never call him if it weren't important.

"I do," Ryuunosuke answers. He's in Chuuya's office, high up in the Port Mafia headquarters building, waiting for him to return with some documents. He feels the muscles in his shoulders tense up painfully. He's already sore and in pain after several days of work. "What is it?"

"Gin was badly injured today," Hirotsu starts. He's calm, but his voice is stern.

Ryuunosuke feels dizzy.

Again, this is something Hirotsu would never tell him unless it were serious. Gin is often injured in her line of work, he's aware of that. They're in the same boat, in that regard. But as long as she gets prompt and proper treatment, Ryuunosuke knows he doesn't have to worry. Gin looks after herself, and Hirotsu, Tachihara and Higuchi do as well.

He never has to worry about her. He hates this feeling. He feels as small and pathetic as he did living in the slums.

"A few of our subordinates were responsible for covering for her. Tachihara and I were on opposite ends of the building," Hirotsu explains, and Ryuunosuke leans against the wall. "Her backup is missing, and she was unconscious when I found her. I don't know what happened, but our targets were dangerous and gifted."

"What - what kind of injury, Hirotsu?" he asks, hating just how shaky his voice sounds. It's coming through as anger, he's aware of that, but he would never admit he's terrified. He needs to calm himself down, but he doesn't know how. He didn’t think their targets were going to pose any kind of real threat. He would have gone with them if he was concerned.

"I'm not quite sure. There was a substantial injury to her chest and one on her head. She lost a lot of blood, Akutagawa," Hirotsu tells him. Hirotsu must know that he isn't taking this lightly. He knows it's truly serious. "I'll let you know if I'm given any updates. She’s currently in surgery."

"Thank you," Ryuunosuke murmurs, and soon enough, the line goes dead.

Ryuunosuke realizes can't breathe.

He knows he's having a panic attack, but he's never quite figured out how to stop them, or how to deal with them at all. He doesn't know what to do. This isn't the kind of thing he can just sit back and calm himself down about. Hirotsu didn't say it outright, but the circumstances tell him that this could be life or death. His sister might die. There's nothing to be calm about.

"I told you not to go outside by yourself," Ryuunosuke had chided, several years ago. Gin wouldn’t look him in the eye. She left their shelter in the middle of the night without any of them to back her up, and Ryuunosuke couldn’t understand why. Some of their friends had died doing reckless things like that.

"I can handle myself too," she said quietly, staring at her hands. She's not combative or defensive with her words, she's never been that way. "I want to help us in the same way you do, Ryuu."

She said all of that with a gash in her forearm so deep that bright red blood was still dripping from her arm, pooling in her palm. They had ways to prevent each other from getting hurt like that, and it meant to not go anywhere alone.

He presses a hand to his eyes as his breath shakes.

She's all by herself.

"Akutagawa, I need you to look over this for me. I'm not really…"

Chuuya's voice trails off as he wanders into the office and closes the door behind him, and Ryuunosuke wants nothing more than to leave the room and pretend he was never seen, pretend he was never there, but he knows Chuuya wouldn't rest until he caught him.

"The hell's goin' on with you?" he asks unceremoniously, stopping only a few feet before him.

"Nothing," Ryuunosuke breathes out. barely, trying to somehow gain some composure, but through his mind flashes images of the friends he and Gin grew up with, murdered in cold blood in front of them. He needs to get out, but he can’t move.

He can't lose Gin too. He can't.

He hears the gunshots, the blood, the organ matter spraying from their bullet wounds. He hears the flesh being torn off one of their faces by a rabid dog. He feels the ice-like skin of a friend who died in his sleep from the cold of an unbearable winter, once he wishes he never survived through. All things he'd long forgotten, pushed out of his mind. All things he told himself would never happen to anyone he cared about ever again, and here he is.

The sounds only get louder, muffling everything else. He hears Gin’s sobs after they had found the youngest girl from their group completely mutilated, and Ryuunosuke still sees her. He smells the rotten flesh of the friends they had to wait to bury because of the cold. He hears the incomprehensible muttering of a boy they rescued from being trafficked. Ryuunosuke feels the hands all over him, he hears his own thoughts from back then - whatever they do to me is the price I have to pay to get food for everyone. He hears Gin’s shaky voice asking where he’s been. He thinks he might pass out. The memories on their own are incredibly overwhelming for him, but all at once like this is far too much for him to handle.

He feels himself start to list sideways, but something stops. He doesn't feel anything against him, he doesn't hit anything, but there's a hand on his shoulder gently urging him to sit down, with the help of his gravity ability.

Chuuya's eyes are a piercing shade of blue. Once they're sitting on the floor, it's all Ryuunosuke can look at. Chuuya’s close as he takes his hand back. Ryuunosuke and Gin used to watch the sea in the early mornings, when things were quiet, when they could let their guard down for a few moments - that glittering blue, it's just like that.

"You've gotta tell me what's goin' on. I can't help if I don't know. Don't pass out on me like that," Chuuya tells him with a scoff, but his concern is obvious. Ryuunosuke doesn't want to tell him. He doesn't want to repeat it. He's terrified that saying it out loud will give the universe more reason to make it true, and the panic starts to set in again. If he had any tears left to shed, he's sure his eyes would be flooded with them by now.

What is he supposed to do without his sister?

"Hey. Hey, you're okay," Chuuya tells him, his voice suddenly much softer than before. Ryuunosuke is having trouble breathing, now. He’s quite familiar with the feeling. He tries his best to consciously take normal breaths, but it isn’t working. Someone is screaming in his ear.

Chuuya scoots himself closer to him, the concern and confusion in his eyes only growing. Ryuunosuke brings his knees into his chest and Chuuya lays a hand on one, lowering his head a bit to force some eye contact from Ryuunosuke, but he won’t budge. His stomach churns and twists without much warning and he feels every muscle in his abdomen tense up. He’s so overwhelmed.

"You look like you're about to puke," Chuuya says just before Ryuunosuke brings a hand up to his mouth. He definitely is. Ryuunosuke can barely manage a nod, but Chuuya has already gone with his assumption and stands to fetch the trash bin by his desk, and much to Ryuunosuke’s horror, it’s an effort made too late, because he leans over to the left and chokes up stomach bile without a chance to hold it back, even for a few seconds.

His nausea always sneaks up on him like this, only ever giving him a few seconds to react. All he could manage was that first splatter. He hasn’t eaten a thing today, so he doesn’t have anything left to bring up, even though his stomach is still trying to twist everything out of itself.

It brings him back to reality, for better or for worse. He’s more focused on the fact that he’s just thrown up on the carpet of Chuuya’s office than the horrible memories that were taunting him just moments ago. His face feels hot and his hands are clammy. He wants nothing more than to go curl up and hide somewhere, but there isn’t even room to pretend right here.

He tries to breathe through it. In through his nose and out through his mouth, but all he can manage is a few sputtering coughs and some sharp breaths in. He brings his arms back up to his chest, subconsciously trying to make himself smaller.

“I’m sorry, I - ”

"Don't worry about it. I've seen people puke before. I don't care," Chuuya says, kneeling in front of him, now. Chuuya isn’t the type to lie about things like that, so Ryuunosuke feels a little better about it, but he still feels miserable. His head is swimming in every direction and his stomach hurts, the muscles are pressing up against his stomach and trying to force more out, and he dry heaves into his hand. He wants to lay down. “You’ve gotta breathe, you’re gonna pass out if you keep doing that. Listen to me, alright?”

Chuuya’s hand lands on Akutagawa’s shoulder, and his face is much closer than he expected it to be once he tilts his head up. Chuuya sucks in a breath and holds it for a few seconds, and Ryuunosuke realizes that he’s trying to get him to mirror that. He’s not sure if he can, or if he wants to, but Chuuya isn’t giving him other options.

He struggles the first few times. He’s worried he’s going to throw up again for a few moments there, when his breath shakes and he coughs, but the nausea slowly subsides, the closer he gets to a normal breathing pattern.

“Please don’t leave,” Ryuunosuke had begged her with the little energy he had. It was one of the coldest nights of the year, and Ryuunosuke was so sick he couldn’t move. Gin wanted to go look for food with two of the others in their group, but Ryuunosuke couldn’t bear the thought, in his fevered brain.

“I’m not going anywhere, Ryuu. Don’t worry, okay?”

He’s slowly losing control of his breaths again, and Chuuya reaches forward to squeeze his hand.

“Where are you right now?” Chuuya asks him sternly. Ryuunosuke’s met with those beautiful blue eyes of his again, and he’s pulled out of his memory with Gin.

“Your…your office,” Ryuunosuke manages. He almost forgot, he only remembers because of the vomit on the floor.

“Yeah, that’s right. And what’s today again? I can’t remember,” Chuuya says casually, but Ryuunosuke can still pick apart hints of tension in his voice. He hides it well.

“It’s…December twenty-seventh,” Ryuunosuke mumbles after taking in a deep breath. He shivers when met with the idea that he’ll have to leave the building soon. He really hates the cold.

“Right, right. You got any plans for the New Year?” Chuuya asks him gently. Ryuunosuke shakes his head, he can’t think that far ahead right now. “I’ve got this party I do with my subordinates every year at my place. Lots of drinking, though, I know that’s not really your thing.”

“Not particularly,” Ryuunosuke murmurs. His stomach twists at the thought of alcohol. His voice feels weak and heavy. Chuuya’s grip loosens on his hand and he reaches up to his forehead to lay the back side against it. He frowns, and slides his hand down to his cheek, checking with his palm this time. Ryuunosuke shrinks backward, but Chuuya doesn't care.

"You're warm. Feels like a fever," Chuuya sighs as he pulls his hand back. "How long you been sick for?"

He's always sick, he wants to say, but that's a notion that wouldn't help anyone in this situation. Ryuunosuke doesn't know when he stopped being sick the last time and this time started - he never feels well. But he won't tell Chuuya that. He just shrugs. He’s just glad he can finally breathe again.

"I'm hopin' you just worked yourself up and that's all it is," Chuuya says. "Can you tell me what happened? Did someone hurt you, Akutagawa?"

"My sister’s injured,” Ryuunosuke mumbles, lowering his chin. Chuuya sucks in a breath through his teeth. He must know that Ryuunosuke wouldn’t react like this if it wasn’t serious. He opens his mouth, almost looking like he wants to know what happened, but he stops.

“Do you want to go see her?” Chuuya asks.

“She’s being operated on,” Ryuunosuke says quietly. He needs to trust that they’ll take good care of her.

Chuuya nods. He pauses for a moment, but stands up and offers Ryuunosuke a hand. “You should lay down for a while, then. I have a couch in the other room.”

Ryuunosuke’s first inclination is to refuse that offer. He doesn’t have any right to accept help from Chuuya, not after he’s gone out of his way to help him, not after Ryuunosuke vomited on his floors. He’s embarrassed, but the idea of walking anywhere right now makes him want to pass out.

So Ryuunosuke extends a shaky hand out to Chuuya, and he lifts him from the floor completely effortlessly. Chuuya takes that opportunity to lead him to the adjacent room, not once letting go of his hand.

Ryuunosuke feels his brain spin inside his skull once they walk through the doorway, and he nearly faints as soon as they make it to the couch, but Chuuya doesn’t let it happen. He uses his ability to gently lay him down on the couch, kneeling down with him once his body relaxes. His fingers slide from their grip on Ryuunosuke’s and he lays his hand on Ryuunosuke’s cheek once again with a disapproving sigh, confirming it must in fact be a fever.

Ryuunosuke lays his hand over Chuuya’s, wishing he would keep it there. Chuuya’s hands are usually warm, but right now, they’re just what his fevered skin needs for some relief. A weak, pained groan escapes his throat. He’s lost all of his energy.

“I’ll call Hirotsu and ask him to let me know when she can be seen. Rest 'til then, ‘kay?” Chuuya says gently. "She'll be okay. She's survived this far,"

Ryuunosuke lets his eyes fall shut. He trusts Chuuya. Chuuya wouldn’t lie to him.

…

Two days later, Gin is stable enough to have visitors, and Ryuunosuke’s fever finally breaks.

Ryuunosuke doesn’t remember much past falling asleep on Chuuya’s couch. Chuuya told him he had to bring him to the infirmary at some point because he had become unresponsive, but Ryuunosuke remembers his presence the whole time.

He still has a bit of a temperature, and Chuuya told him to keep the cooling patch on his forehead for a while, but he peels it off before he goes to see Gin. He doesn’t want her to worry about him.

He parts the curtains where the nurses lead him, and the shattered pieces of his heart start to dig and twist into nearby organs. He’s never seen her like this before. She’s surrounded by equipment, lines, and tubing - oxygen, a fluid line, things Ryuunosuke has gotten very familiar with over the years - and things to keep her vitals well monitored. Ryuunosuke hates seeing these things on his sister.

When his eyes finally get the courage to look at her face, the warmth in her smile is enough to release all of the tension in his body.

"Hi," she says quietly, almost like a squeak. He can tell she hasn’t used her voice in a while.

Ryuunosuke can only let himself cry in front of her.

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bellaxgiornata · 8 months

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This may seem a little but out of left field on my part, but I don't have many writer friends who I can ask, and there's no obligation to reply or indulge me 💜

I've recently got back into writing (not marvel, unfortunately, but I really admire the way you write) and was wondering if you maybe had any tips? I struggle a bit with, well, dialog and lack confidence - and your works are always so stunningly spot-on and evocative that I kinda just had to ask. Again, no worries if you dont want/have time to answer!

(Also I hope you are well!)

That is so wonderful! I absolutely love hearing that someone has decided to return to writing or is trying it out! I've been passionate about writing since I was 5, so I will always encourage other writers! And I feel so honored that you would even ask and that you feel that way about my writing! ❤ Thank you!! 😭

I will start out by saying I am not going to claim that I am by any means a writing expert, but I will say I did study it (I have an M.A. in Literature, Rhetoric, & Composition) and I've been writing fanfic for a long time, which comes into play with my writing (obviously). But believe me, I am always learning new things and growing myself. Writing truly is a skill and you can absolutely improve it with practice--I've noticed a change in mine over the past year even. Also, what works for me isn't necessarily what might work for you or others, but I can share some things I do myself, or that I enjoy seeing in fanfics/books, or what I think tends to be beneficial. I will say I know my writing style tends to be sparse and dialogue driven/heavy, which isn't necessarily how you or anyone else reading this might write.

And since this will probably be long and not something everyone cares to read, I'll put it below the cut. But as a note, I'm also writing these tips not knowing what you already know or do, so please do not take offense if they're obvious to you and nothing new!

I think the first and most important thing is to know your characters well, especially when it comes to dialogue. So if you're writing fanfic, I'd say study the source material a bit, see how someone speaks, pick up on any mannerisms or particular phrases they might typically use and when they use it if you don't already feel like you have them down. As for any original characters, Readers, or side characters, I'd say make sure you know them, too. Obviously an anxious character for example isn't going to speak boldly--unless there's a reason for it. So you always want to make sure it seems realistic (at least to you and how you perceive your characters) that they would say whatever they're saying in the situation that they're saying it.

I also find it helps to read dialogue aloud once you've written it. Does it sound like something someone would say in real life? Generally people in conversation don't always respond in full or proper sentences, for example. And I personally do this when it comes to writing Michael Kinsella or Frank Castle sometimes (I feel like I've written for Matt long enough that I literally can hear him in my head just fine 😅). They all have a sort of rhythm to the way they speak and I tend to go back and edit dialogue if it sounds too wordy or unlike the cadence of their speech (but that's also me being super particular 😅). But sometimes reading it aloud might help you realize if it sounds awkward or long winded or too clipped. Or maybe even too heavy of a reaction to what was said before someone's response.

Don't forget to change up your dialogue tags!! You can easily search up a list of dialogue tags (sometimes I do because my brain can't remember the correct one I want), but just make sure you're not trying to use them to add 'flair' to your writing, they have to make sense. Good ol' 'said' is truly just fine sometimes, but sometimes a particular dialogue tag makes a HUGE difference.

Sort of going along with that, it really makes a difference if writers have interrupters in their dialogue when it feels right. Don't overdo it, but definitely don't forget about it if you're comfortable using it. So if your characters are having a conversation, sometimes they won't just be standing there speaking, right? They might be doing something--like making coffee or folding laundry--and adding that in as they're speaking really helps set a scene. It's also incredibly great to add in minute details about facial expressions, tone change, body language shifts in the middle of sentences or between them. Because maybe the character speaking is getting angry, or the one doing the listening is having some sort of reaction to what is being said.

Dialogue should also generally always serve a purpose, which should help give you an idea of what to write and when. Is someone confiding something in someone? Having an awkward first meet? Calling to set up a date? Someone says something and it sparks a fight? Two characters are just being silly? There should always be a reason characters are conversing (which is sometimes just helping readers understand a personality trait about someone or learning a key detail about something), even if you have to throw in pleasantries or other things first that make sense before you can get the conversation to that point. And sometimes that's actually a fun challenge to figure out how to get there 😆

Off the top of my head, that's what I can think of for tips on dialogue at the moment. Hopefully at least some were helpful and not just old news to you. Obviously I also recommend editing a fic and giving it a reread at least once before posting, too. I'm insanely particular so I might edit something like 5 times before it goes up (and then still miss things). I just think that's a good way to catch errors or repeat words or ideas that might throw a reader out of the story.

As for the confidence to share your writing (or so it seems you meant, correct me if I'm wrong), honestly you just have to put it out there if that's what you want to do. I mean, don't feel obligated because you can certainly just write for yourself, but I'm not really sure what other advice to give on that unfortunately. I think any writer just takes the plunge. Sometimes a story flops, sometimes it gets a good reaction. Just try your best to not let it get to you if it doesn't go the way you hope (though whoever says it doesn't is lying because it is still rough to put so much effort into something and feel like it fell flat). But know you're not alone on that because there isn't a fic writer I know who doesn't get that feeling. Famous published authors even feel that way. We can't please everyone, but just try to have fun with it and don't take it too seriously at the end of the day. Do your best to ignore the negative feedback because for every one rude reader there will be multiple others who enjoy what you're doing. Try to focus on that!

But obviously, just have fun. Tell the story you want to read ❤

#bella answers #dialogue writing tips #im no expert though #just writing is your best way to practice and grow your skill

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phantominzie · 4 months

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Hey hey hey, look I have a question

Okay, so me and my friend Neptune are trying to scrounge up some summer cash, as the two of us do not have money and it's just good to have some money. So, I proposed to her that I could write one shots of the customers wants and she could advertise on her Mercari. The one shots would probably be around 3k-5k words, and I'm cool with writing anything NSFW, SFW, any tags you want! I don't feel wool with charging too much either, as I know that if teens or other people lower on cash want a one-shot they don't have to worry! (Believe me, I myself have no money so I get it lol) For those of you who don't know Mercari is kind of like eBay but WAY more easy to manage and filter. (DONT WORRY !! I would be compensated for my work properly! I can't ever order anything online because of my mom so basically Neptune would get the money but anything I want she would buy me. Yes, we talked about this and I love the idea as it benefits us both lol)

I decided to see the mode of what people would pay would be, just so that we could figure out a proper price. So, if you might be interested or just want to put in some feedback then PLEASE answer the poll below! It'd seriously help me out, so thank you! <3

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therealgchu · 5 months

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WIP Wednesday - To the Shore

hey, check it out, actually doing a main fic thing! mainly cos my brane is still stuck in the middle of chapter 4 of Seven Days, and i'm getting real tired of its shit. so tired of it that, apparently, i'm writing back on my main fic.

tagging the coemancer crew, and anyone else if you want to share a WIP.

anyway, something fuzzy and warm for today's WIP wednesday. i've skipped a bit ahead, but not too far. still trying to plot out some major plot points and how that's all going to happen.

if you want to read To the Shore from the beginning, check it out here.

there's also the backstories, Anamnesis here. i'll be putting some some spicy backstories soon, but it'll be in a different fic since i don't want to muddy the tags for the OG backstories.

and, Seven Days, if my brane ever gets chapter 4 finished.

on with the sneak peek!

“I want a bunk bed,” Cora said.

Sam smiled, “I think we can do that, right Hwa?” he asked as he turned to her.

Hwa smiled, “Of course. Why a bunk bed?”

“So, I can put my plushies on top!” Cora answered.

“Makes sense,” Hwa nodded, “yeah, no problem.”

“And, I want a computer, of course. Have you seen the new processors that came out recently? Some of them can get up to a couple petaflops!” Cora gushed. “I’ve got the specs written down,” she announced as she rummaged through her backpack

Sam looked in askance at his daughter, “That might be pretty expensive, gumdrop,” he said, attempting to temper her enthusiasm.

Hwa grinned at the girl, the first real smile she’d had in weeks. “Don’t worry about computers. I’ve already got some specc’d out for the both of us.”

“Hey, don’t I get to have a say?” Sam interrupted.

Hwa moved over to stand by Cora’s side and the two looked at each other, then looked back to Sam. “Umm…Dad, would you even know what we’re talking about?” Cora asked.

He grunted and shook his head. “Fine, you two do whatever. No illegal stuff, though, got it?”

“Yessss,” both answered sarcastically.

“Good,” he said as Cora raced down to her berth in the lower deck. Sam crossed the way and put his arm around Hwa’s waist. “It’s good to see you smiling again, darlin,” he said as he kissed her cheek.

She leaned against his chest, “I’m sorry. I know it’s been hard on the both of you,” she said.

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” he said as he gave her waist a squeeze. “I’m glad we’re going back to Ternion. I kinda missed working on the homestead.”

The term made her smile, “Homestead, huh? Your Akila is showing,” she ribbed him.

“Well now, miss, I reckon that as an Akila man, born and raised, we should rightly call our home a homestead. It only sounds right and proper,” Sam said, laying it on thick.

Hwa laughed as Sam cocked his hat to her. They both heard Cora moan from the lower deck, “Daaddd! That’s terrible!” she shouted. He grinned even wider.

“Really, though, we should come up with a name,” Hwa said.

A herd of small horses was heard on the lower deck as Cora made her way back and up the ladder. “I want to name it!” she shouted.

Hwa and Sam looked at each other, both seeing agreement on the other’s face. “Sure, gumdrop. What do you want to name the homestead?”

“Pemberley!” Cora said excitedly.

Sam looked quizzically while Hwa chuckled, “It’s Mr. Darcy’s estate,” Hwa explained.

“I remember that now, thought it sounded familiar,” Sam said, scratching his head.

“You don’t like it,” Cora said, crestfallen.

“It’s not that I don’t like it, it’s that, well, I don’t think we’re a ‘Pemberley Estate’ sort of family,” Sam explained.

“We could be if we wanted to be,” Cora wheedled, pouting a bit.

“Cora, I don’t think I could be an ‘Estate’ person if I tried,” he said, trying not to be too harsh.

“How about a compromise,” Hwa interjected, “Pemberley Homestead,” she suggested.

#starfield #sam coe #fanfic #fanfiction #space husband #hwa kim #space cowboy #coemancer #to the shore #spacefarer #the coemancer crew #therealgchu writes #wip wednesday #sneak peek #cora coe

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jellymellydraws · 5 months

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Masterlist ~ <<Previous Chapter ~ Next Chapter >>

Astarion x Dark Urge

Chapter 17

Rating: E

Tags: Angst, Fluff, hurt/comfort, slow burn, two guarded people fall in love so hard it makes them stupid

Chapter Summary:

Rose needs to carefully handle which questions she’s going to ask, what information she is going to share, and what type of working relationship she can pretend to have with the Drow. It was going to be so easy— except Minthara knows how to handle her tadpole more skillfully than her party.

Minthara gestured to a map spread over a stone slab as she explained the crisp markings made with ink. She spoke like a proper leader. Direct. Clear. Unwavering. The pride in her position emanated from her stance: shoulders back, spine straight, and head held high.

As she spoke, Alfira, Lae’zel, and Shadowheart surrounded the slab. Rose maintained her spot across from the commander, hands splayed on the surface as she followed the purple finger that strode over marked parchment.

Minthara abruptly stopped, just as Wyll quietly squeezed between Alfira and Rose. The drow’s attention snapped to him.

"That is close enough."

All eyes went to the Blade, who stood uncertain about what he had done wrong. A hint of defiance lingered in his brow.

Shit.

The tadpole behind Rose’s eye squirmed. There was no chance to fight itâ€” Gale’s voice whispered to her, unimpeded.

"Careful, drow culture generally frowns upon men. We would do well to heed to her cultural preferences.”

Rose refrained from looking back in his direction. From the way she saw Lae’zel and Shadowheart wince, they likely heard the same message. While Minthara stared down at Wyll, she stayed posed, albeit visibly displeased.

Expectant.

Gale was right: they had to tread with caution.

“What are our options, here?” Rose inquired. Gale happily answered, though the tone of his thoughts indicated that he was watching the scene just as closely as she was.

“I'm afraid those of us who are of the masculine persuasion will not find any favor with her."

”I’d like to avoid getting on her bad side, can we manage that? Wyll?”

"Oh, we're going to start whispering in each other's heads now?"

”Astarion, this is not the time,” Wyll pleaded.

Rose began to weigh her options for approach. Pushing back against Minthara could put a strain on their plans. But what does it say about her, their leader, to easily bend?

"What? I’m only trying to make sure we are all on the same page! I thought we were trying to be polite about everyone's privacy."

"Are we certain the drow isn't listening in, right this moment?"

Why would she let the Drow command her team? Her natural instinct was to defend them, stand behind them.

"I doubt she'd stay quiet for this long if that were the case, darling."

"Rose, what’s the plan?"

Ah, that familiar thudding has returned. Great.

"Let her think!"

"I didn't expect Rose's thoughts to stay quiet for this long. She’s always thinking about something, and yet…"

The voices in her head got louder. Or was that due to the headache?

"Cease this bickering!"

She couldn't concentrate with this noise.

"Rose?" A small distant voice tried to reach her, snuffed out by the hurricane of voices swimming in her head.

"Oh Rooooseeee, it's been too quiet out here. Perhaps say something before we draw suspicion, hm?"

"True Soul." Minthara's voice snapped her back to reality.

Alfira was looking over with worry, a hand gently placed on the back of her shoulder. Rose realized her fists had curled tight, wrinkling the edges of the map. Her brows were knitted tightly, head pulsing. That last part might not be as easy to ease.

Meanwhile, the voices in her mind were silent. Well, not quiteâ€” she could hear the whispers of worry tickle the tadpole behind her eye.

As close to silent as it was going to get with the tadpoles connecting them.

It must have been quite the sight for their untadpoled friend. The poor woman, free from the burden which was the everpresent mental connection.

Blissfully unaware of a silent argument being had amongst the group!

On second thought, the lack of knowing could become fatal. Quiet strategies were not possible. Needing to repeat vital information could hurt themâ€” put them in danger.

Wait, that was it!

“Commander," Rose straightened her posture and slowly relaxed her stance, "I need my whole team to have the same information."

"Proceed-- and I emphasize this next part-- carefully." Gale shifted awkwardly in the back of the room. Astarion rolled his tired eyes, further wrinkling his nose in irritation.

"You have your own way of managing your charge, as I have mine," Rose continued. "Whoever I bring with me is expected to be paying attention. Should they have input or a skill of value, I want to hear it."

Minthara hummed with a hint of irritation on her face. She passed another look to the men of Rose’s group doing little to hide her distaste for them. Like they were nothing more than worms beneath her boot.

“Very well," Minthara conceded, "but I will not be repeating anything I’ve already covered."

“Understandable.”

The assassin beckoned for the other half of her party to come forward. Astarion sighed loudly, earning a glare from Rose. Gale quietly stood by Lae'zel, becoming as meek and small as possible— or perhaps it was because he knew she would be the best shield for him if the drow were to wield her weapon.

Regardless, the first hurdle had passed.

As Minthara continued going over the war map, Shadowheart scribbled away on her own with a piece of charcoal.

Many of the drow’s notes were accompanied by smaller writing beneath. It was quickly evident which marked their various camps and what their purposes were.

‘Caravan - GOBLINS’ was written northwest of their current location, right around where they had Waukeen’s Rest marked on Shadowheart’s map. The initials “DR” had followed, along with the date, weather, and time of the raid party’s departure. Then, a small star, which caught Rose’s attention: ‘Objective: Deliver Duke to Moonrise.’ The journal was pulled from her pack, a note quickly scribbled into the next blank page.

“The raid is going after a Duke?” Rose asked as casually as questioning the weather.

”Yes, orders from the General,” Minthara confirmed.

”Which Duke?” Wyll asked, “Why?”

Despite the threatening gaze in her blood red eyes, the drow answered, “Grand Duke Ulder Ravengard. Our Goddess asked for him.”

“You don’t know what they’d want from him?”

She was being very patient with the man, and Rose wasn’t sure how much thinner her patience would wane before it snapped.

Taking a page out of Gale’s book, Rose tried to nudge into Wyll’s mind with her tadpole. A sensation she still wasn’t fully sure was working, but his acceptance shook those doubts with ease.

Though the prospect of The Absolute controlling a Duke was concerning, it was exactly the type of strategy she would expect from a group of zealots wishing to spread influence. But the jovial swordsman had a storm of emotions brewing. Her head swirled with the fire simmering within him.

Anger, concern…fear? Worry?

”Wyll, we can’t push on this now.”

“If they’re capturing Duke Ravengard, they must be after control of Baldur’s Gate.” He grit his teeth and averted his gaze, “but…damns you’re right.”

”I’ll make a note to ask her for details later.”

“When do you expect to hear about the raid’s status?” Rose continued the conversation along, hoping to brush away the tension Wyll restarted.

”Any day now. I dispatched some of my drow to ensure success, and they will let me know when they begin their delivery of the Duke.”

Rose scribbled those additional notes into her notebook, underlining the duke’s name so it stood out to her.

The other markings on the war map included the village that they had passed through, along with a path directly north of the village. The notation read ‘Toll House - GNOLLS.’ Minthara explained, briefly, that she had arrived after the gnolls were released into the area, but was told to leave them to their own devices.

Alfira remained silent, but her eyes remained trained on that single spot. The firelight reflected angrily in her glassy glare. She was fighting to contain herself, no matter how her rage boiled.

Minthara rested her hands behind her back once the map discussion ended.

”I have already sent my report back to Moonrise Towers, but have you been briefed since you departed for this camp?”

Moonrise Towers, a name to remember. Headquarters, most likely, by how the drow spoke of it.

Rose shook her head, ”I was assured you would be more than capable of detailing the status of your operation. Seems you’ve made an impression over there.”

A proud smile stretched over the woman’s hardened expression.

Ah, how easy. A proud woman soothed by appealing to her image. In this case, her image as a competent commander.

“Tell me,” Minthara asked, “what was your last report?”

”You were closing in on a Sanctuary of Druids, but for one reason or another had not yet found it.” A story began to weave, using the very information handed to her just moments ago. An operation to capture a duke, a base of operations, and a General calling the shots. It was almost too easy! Minthara handed her more than enough information to work with! “They hoped you would have located the druids’ home by the time I arrived. The General mentioned needing reinforcements depending on how one of your other assignments went— I presume they were referring to retrieving the Duke.”

“We’re so close, I can taste it,” the drow hissed. “Our primary objective is simple: search for the weapon which threatens the Absolute.”

A panic briefly charged through Rose’s mind. Not her own, Shadowheart’s. The cleric knew her mystical box was in danger.

“This weapon, what are we looking for, exactly?” If the assassin wasn’t quick with her follow up, the break in conversation could raise suspicions.

”Something that would threaten a Goddess— I’ve estimated that it may be the very idol the druids worship. A powerful source of magic, a so-called God to rival that of another. We’ll know for certain once we find the blasted place.”

The panic began to calm once the cleric realized that the Absolute seemed ignorant of exactly what they were looking for. At least, this particular True Soul hadn’t a clue.

They could use this to their advantage.

Rose would continue to let Minthara think she held all the key information in this exchange.

The proof of her own expertise would be within the questions she asked, how she asked them, and importantly when. Prompting a question without clear motive could raise suspicions. Not asking enough questions could be a cause for caution. At worst, complete distrust.

“Any other leads for the Sanctuary? I overheard you talking to the goblin about a prisoner,” Rose asked, turning to the page in her journal regarding the missing Druid Leader.

The trap was set.

Give me something…

”There was a breach in security within the last tenday. We managed to take a few prisoners before the others escaped. One of which was a druid!”

The trap snapped.

Perfect!

”How can you be certain it was a druid?” Rose asked, skeptically, even though she felt the excitement build within her.

”He turned into a bear before we captured him.”

Astarion couldn’t help his scoffing at that comment. Rose narrowed her eyes at him. Minthara, wisely, ignored the elf.

”We also had a dwarf and a human— the former was not forthcoming. I was hoping the human would be easier to break but the goblins have failed in that. I could hardly believe I was notified that outside assistance was requested. A priest who supposedly knows what he’s doing.”

”A Sharran?” Shadowheart chimed, hiding a hopeful look with curiosity.

”Loviatarran. The goblin tormentor insisted.” Minthara waved her hand dismissively, releasing another puff of disgust, “Failing that, I’m going to start making examples of their failure.”

“Doesn’t sound like you really need the druid, then,” Rose said.

”Perhaps not, I’m still considering what to do with him. He’d make a decent meal for my spiders, or the worgs. The Absolute could find use for him…maybe after we handle the Sanctuary, I take him back to Moonrise with me.”

”Hm, both seem tempting. The worgs would be an easy solution, but what benefits do you see by sending him to Moonrise?”

“If our efforts to find the Sanctuary continue to turn up fruitless, converting one of their own to infiltrate may be our best alternative.” she slammed her fist into the stone wall, shouting with frustration, “if only these damned--” quickly she took a breath, cautious for eavesdropping ears from the nearby goblinoids. Once the goblins went back to minding their own business, she continued, more measured, “if only the goblin scouts had returned with anything, I could be well on my way back by now.”

Another trap, one Rose didn't need to set this time! Minthara set it herself, and snapped it within the same breath. The assassin hid the delight behind her eyes, averting her gaze to the pouch on her belt.

The question tiptoed in the back of her confidence: what exactly did Sazza share with the drow?

Why would Minthara play this charade with her, if Sazza told her about the grove? Was the drow spinning a web right around her? Who was the spider and the fly in this scenario?

No, none of that. She couldn’t doubt herself now. She was in too deep.

Gods, Rose hoped Sazza kept her mouth shut, or her next move was going to screw them all over.

With a flourish, a folded note was retrieved and extended to the drow commander between two nimble fingers. She eyed it for a moment before taking it and unfolding. It was the note she retrieved from the cadaver sitting within the grove. A clean “M” signed the bottom, and she started to have a hunch about who that initial belonged to.

“Judging by this, they’re going to continue evading your scouts,” Rose explained as Minthara scanned the folded parchment.

The drow’s eyes widened with recognition.

Snap, went another trap.

“Found it on a drow corpse to the east.” Rose explained flatly, “looked like they were mauled by a bear. I came upon Sazza shortly after.”

“I knew we were getting close. Quickly, what else did you find?”

“Besides Sazza, not much.”

A lie. One she executed as smoothly as the truth. Whether it was bought, well…

Minthara scanned over the parchment again, then back down to the map. Then, finally, back to Rose. The assassin steadied her breathing. A few of her companions’ nerves flashed into her headspace, all of which quickly snuffed themselves out as they tried to compose themselves. Lae’zel and Shadowheart did the best with their act. The others were nearly holding their breaths.

”A pesky target, good thing you’re here.” Minthara crumbled the note and tossed it aside, “show me where.”

Rose felt relief wash over her. Her body language nearly relaxed, she had to remember to stay as tense as she was when she was speaking. She leaned over the map and drew her finger along the path leading away from the Selune Temple.

”Here,” she replaced her finger with the end of her charcoal stick, marking a spot near the owlbear cave. Just far enough to be believable, but still not in direct line to the druid grove.

Minthara stared at the mark, which sat cleanly inside the encircled area that they were searching within. A few more marks had been made on the eastern side of the map, likely other places where they had lost scouts. A careful finger trailed from the western side of the map, passing their location and following the path laid out by the assassin. She repeated this gesture, more slowly going from the western edge of the map, past the temple, to the marked spot.

The hair began to stand on the back of Rose’s neck.

“You said you were sent by the Absolute,” Minthara began, eyes starting to narrow at the assassin accusingly, “yet your first stop wasn’t this temple?” She straightened her stance, “you walked right past it.”

The drow charged into Rose’s mind, seeking her own answer. The headache flared as she tried to fight her off. Too quick to draw a blade. Too sudden to speak any defense.

“The Absolute told us to!” Alfira exclaimed.

The mental assault stopped. Both women looked to the bard.

“Th-that’s what Rose said,” the tiefling continued, looking over her shoulder to the surrounding party, “Isn't it? I distinctly recall, we were happy to be close— except we had to keep walking.”

No tadpole in her precious little brain to connect with. No way to communicate her plan, her story, her intentions. And yet…

“Who are we to question the word of The Absolute, after all?” Gale supported.

“Yes,” Astarion groaned dramatically, “I was looking forward to the end of our journey but whatever the Goddess says, goes, right? I haven’t had my beauty rest in days, it’s doing my complexion no favors.”

Minthara eyed the men, unconvinced.

“Surely, this was part of her plan the whole time?” Shadowheart pressed, focused on hiding the disgust in her false worship of another goddess. “We thought you, another True Soul, would understand— quite unfortunate that you have your doubts in Our Lady.”

Her voice was the support needed. The drow relaxed, a confident smile stretching across her face. Either to ease tension or save her own hide as a True Soul, the reason didn’t matter. She backed out of Rose’s mind entirely.

“Of course. I’d never question her.”

“She was,” Rose agreed, gently massaging one of her temples. “As I was saying: we were in the area when we saw that ship crash, so I sent some of my people to search for the Sanctuary, posing as survivors from it.”

”Hm, clever. Druids should be willing to lend a helping hand. A clever plan you devised.”

”I’m glad you think so.”

Relieved, more precisely.

“I might not need to send the druid to Moonrise Towers after all,” the Drow had a glint in her eye.

”Honestly, I’m surprised the Druid hasn’t escaped— if he can turn into a bear, what’s stopping him from turning into a mouse?”

”Hm…” Minthara hummed in thought. After a few moments of silence, she took calculated steps towards Rose. Her voice lowered, “check on the prisoner for me. The Absolute may have me working with goblins, but I haven’t had much to be impressed by. The Hobgoblin’s raid, if successful, would be one thing— but the others who loiter about seem useless.”

”Consider it done. I’ll report my findings shortly.”

Next Chapter >>

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #astarion #dark urge #astarion x dark urge #baldurs gate 3 #durge #oc: rose #astarion x tav #bg3 fic #fanfic #angst #slowburn #astarion romance #longfic #Rosestarion #Fic: I've Got You #I've Got You #Jellymelly writes

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eveenstar · 2 years

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Hello!! Glad to see new people in the fandoms (just saw the post abt GOT and house of the dragon)

Can I please request a soft scenario with Jon snow? He's angsty about being a bastard and the reader comforts him with hugs and kisses, saying how important he is to her and in general, that he's doing great and him being a bastard doesn't matter. Just fluff, seeing him happy is just so heartwarming idk

If you accept the request, thank you and know that i appreciate your work <3

Hello there! <3 Soooo happy you requested for Jon! I feel like we're in desperate need of more Jon content. This got a bit longer than I planned it to be but I hope you like it! Last year (when I first got introduced to GOT) I told myself I wouldn't write for the fandom because the characters were too complex but yelp, here I am.

Tags/Warnings: Angst, secret marriage, reader is referred to as a noble lady but you can imagine what house she belongs to. There might be some inconsistencies since it's been a year since I last saw the show so my bad!

The door slowly creaks open. The night had long ago fallen in Castle Black. Jon could barely make out the silhouette of the beautiful woman laying on the bed. He closes the door with a soft thud and his cloak falls to the floor.

There's a dark gloom over his face as he makes his way towards the bed - the one he'd often find empty up until a few months ago. Now, a beautiful young woman lays in it most of the nights, but not all, it was too much of a risk to have anyone suspicious of their marriage.

Jon pulls a chair over to her side of the bed, and he sits down. At first, he doesn't say anything as he doesn't want to disturb his wife's much needed rest, and also because Jon himself has no idea of what to say.

As if sensing her husband's troubled mind, (Y/N) rolls over in bed and looks at Jon with tired eyes and a sleepy smile, going as far as reaching for his hand to pull him into bed - when her invitation is left hanging, she realises something is wrong. "What's the matter, my love?"

The question is left out in the open for a few seconds before Jon looks away at the fireplace, as if pondering whether he should sleep off his feelings or admit them to his lady wife.

"I know that you're tired - but I need to talk to you, (Y/N). It's about our marriage." Jon begins, his tone heavy with worry.

The young woman slowly sits up and rubs off the sleep off of her eyes. "What about our marriage?"

"What I meant to say is..." Another pause, one that sends (Y/N)'s heart racing. He seems a bit anxious about what he's about to say - but he also seems resolute about doing so. That doesn't stop him from looking away. "You deserve better. A better...husband."

There it is, the truth. His wife's gaze hardens in worry, mind racing over everything they've been through so far. It didn't take her too long to put two and two together, and her gaze softened as did her voice.

"Because you're a bastard?" (Y/N) asks a question with the answer already in mind.

"Because you're a noble lady, (Y/N)," A forced smile plays in the corners of Jon's lips as he says this. He's always wondered how he managed to marry her at all, due to their differences. He looks down at the floor for a few long moments, his heart heavy. "And I am a bastard."

A soft sigh leaves her, "Jon..." She takes his head in her hands, gently cupping his cheeks. "You know I couldn't care less about your bastard status."

"I know, (Y/N)," He looks up at her as (Y/N) takes his face in her hands and cups his cheeks. He smiles at her - but this time it's not forced, but a genuine smile that's laced with both sadness and admiration. "I know. I just... I'm putting you at risk. You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. You could easily marry into a proper house with a good lord."

(Y/N) shakes her head in disbelief, as she has done the last time they had this discussion - which was the day they secretly married.

"Are you forgetting I am also married to you? I knew the risks when we said our vows." Her voice is stern, but her gaze is full of understanding and love. "We will be alright."

"Do you really believe that, (Y/N?" Jon asks quietly - though there's a hint of uncertainty in his voice. "I broke my vows for us. You're a noble who married a bastard of the Night's Watch - if the truth comes out one day-"

"I don't care what the realm thinks of our relationship." (Y/N) looks into his eyes, "No one will hurt you as long as I'm around." (Y/N)'s thumbs caress the sides of his cheek. "What brought up all this, hmm?"

Jon meets (Y/N)'s eyes, and he takes a deep breath. If he could - if the world was kind - he'd lean against his wife's touch and never leave. No more Night's Watch, no more wars, no more fighting... just her.

"I married you. You're a nobleborn, and I'm just a bastard. When I look at you..." Jon takes another deep breath, his voice a bit heavier with emotion. "...you make me wish that I was better."

"You think you're just a bastard?" There's a hint of sorrow in her voice as she repeats Jon's words. The lady was well aware of Jon's thoughts about being a bastard and also his tendency to pretend he had made his peace with it, but she knew the man she married. Hells, she might even know him better than she knows herself.

"Isn't that what I am?" Jon asks quietly. He looks at (Y/N) again as if he was looking for reassurance. "I'm not a Stark, not by name. I don't have any titles, like all of the other men in this world. I don't have a family name - just Snow. I'm just a bastard (Y/N)."

She sighs with a frown in her features. (Y/N) hates when she hears her husband speaking so low of himself, something she's been trying hard to correct.

Jon avoids her gaze altogether as he continues to speak. Though he can admit he feels like there's been a weight taken off of his shoulders as he does so. "Eddard raised me with many ideals - honour, honesty, loyalty. He taught me the customs of the North and about the history of our family. But he never talked about being a... well, a bastard, my love. He never told me how to deal with it... how to be a... to know that you don't belong."

"Mmm." (Y/N) hums, acknowledging his words. She pushes a few strands of his hair out of his face. "And yet you're far more honourable than any of them." Another smile plays in her lips, "I would take you over any trueborn man any day."

Jon's heart flutters at her words, yet he continues to look down at the floor, shaking his head in what could be resignation. "You can be honest with me, my love. You can tell me that you've always wanted a trueborn husband and not a bastard of the North."

"All I want is you." (Y/N) replies, "You're the one I want to wake up with," She rests her forehead against his, "Is that too much to ask for?'

Jon's eyes are filled with remorse as he gains the courage to finally look at his wife's face and takes in her features as a breath of fresh air. If the world was truly just and fair, he would deserve her. He just wished that the pain he had to go through in this world - the pain of feeling like he had to prove himself over and over again - would go away. He wished that he could truly be better so that he could one day be the man that (Y/N) deserves to be married to.

"Now, why don't you come to bed? Tomorrow I'll make you a family cake recipe." (Y/N) adds with a playful smile as she pats the side next to her in bed.

His wife's smile is enough to convince Jon, as it had always been. It was with a smile that he fell in love with her, and it was also with a smile that she convinced him to marry her. Jon climbs into the bed and wraps an arm around her.

"Yes, I would love that."

Jon has been a part of the Night's Watch for years - but it's only here, now, that he finally feels at home for the first time ever since he arrived at the Wall. If the Gods are fair, Jon and (Y/N) will go live to her family's homestead, far, far away from the problems of the Seven Kingdoms.

#fun fact this was originally written for my oc #jon snow x reader #jon snow #game of thrones #game of thrones x reader #game of thrones x you #jon snow x you

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cicerosfavouritelistener · 17 days

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Got WIP'd Wednesday'd on Out Of Touch Thursday

Tagging: @pyrotechniccake @manekinoodle and anyone else who wants to

Tagged by @plutoprophecy Cheers bud

Got like 6 Disco Elysium fics on the burner and this is the one that opened on. It does not have a proper name yet.

Harry groans as he walks into the Whirling-In-Rags, arms shaking from the cold as he stumbles into another man.

I have a key.

Shit, sorry didn't see you there.

YOU -- "I have a key." You tell him as you fumble in your pockets, pulling out the key and showing it to him. "Do you know where this is?"

The man looks at you with mild annoyance, though as his eyes catch something shining on your shoulder and the mild annoyance becomes abject horror.

EMPATHY: 'No,' he thinks. 'This can't be the man from the 41st'.

"10-4 officer, I uh, believe it best that you speak with Satellite-Officer Kitsuragi about this. Over."

ESPRIT DE CORPS: 20 minutes away from you a button is pressed by Officer Jules 'Oldboy' Pidieu. This button causes electrons to zoom through the wires in the floors and walls of the RCM to the desk of one Satellite-Officer Kim Kitsuragi, causing a small but bright red light to flash on his desk.

A wave of relief washes through him, followed by one of anger as he stands up. It doesn't take him long at all to get out of the bullpen, down the hallway and into the communications office where Oldboy was sitting. Oldboy nods and hands him the Radio.

KIM KITSURAGI: "Officer,"

EMPATHY: Shame washes through you as the word reaches you past with the power of radio waves. This word, when said to you by him, in this tone, makes you want to shrivel up into a ball and melt into obscene nothingness.

-1 MORAL

KIM KITSURAGI: "Why haven't you contacted us in days?"

AUTHORITY [Challenging:Failure]: Don't let him speak to you like that! You answer to no one, make sure he knows this.

EMPATHY: No. This man is deeply worried about you. Do not frustrate him more by insulting him.

DRAMA: Sire, perhaps you should change the story here. Calm him down by telling him how busy you've been while working on the case.

"Hey, fuck you, buddy! If I don't want to make contact, I don't have too!"

"" (Lie)

"I'm sorry, I don't know where I am or what's going on"

Say nothing.

JEAN VIQUEMARE -- The man puts his lighter away, pointing a yellow-nailed finger at the first row. "This first one here has eighteen perforations. That means you've got eighteen years of RCM service."

YOU -- "Wait, eighteen years I've done this?"

JEAN VIQUEMARE -- It's difficult for him to tell if the surprise in your voice is genuine or feigned, he doesn't like the idea of his partner not knowing what the hell's going on. He nods slowly as he takes a drag of his smoke.

"Yeah," he says. "You're a veteran now."

YOU -- "I don't feel like a veteran."

VOLITION -- That's simply because you've forgotten. Relax, it'll come back to you and you'll feel better than before.

EMPATHY -- The lieutenant doesn't respond to your statement. How would he know how to react to that? He's just a man on a job. He wasn't here to babysit an amnesiac and remind him of who he once was.

VISUAL CALCULUS [Challenging: Successful] - You count 216 perforations. Considering that nice, large number, a wave of pride washes over you, though you can't say why, precisely.

JEAN VICQUEMARE -- "Do you know what this second set of perforations means?"

YOU -- "No, but there's two-hundred sixteen dots."

JEAN VICQUEMARE -- "Two-hundred sixteen," Jean repeats, feeling a wave of disbelief. "Yeah, that means you've closed over two-hundred and seventeen cases in your time with the RCM."

YOU -- "Yeah, I don't think I can ever re-become this person… What's the last number?"

JEAN VICQUEMARE -- "This right here is the last set. Three perforations, meaning you've taken the life of three people in your entire 18 years of service."

YOU -- "So I'm a killer…"

JEAN VICQUEMARE- "Hey, don't think about it like that," he says, trying to keep you from getting upset. "Three kills in eighteen years? That's nothing. I know some officers with higher body counts after their first year of service alone."

YOU -- "Have you ever killed anyone, Jean?"

JEAN VICQUEMARE -- The man sighs as he drops his cigarette, crushing it under his heel as he pulls out another and lights it. "Yes. Plenty of them."

ESPRIT DE CORPS -- He's not proud of this, but he was doing his job. There was nothing to be done.

As you walk down the stakrs you see two men standing in the foyer.

He raises an eyebrow at you and you're locked in place. "And… what colour would you have associated me with, Detective?"

"Green."

"Orange."

"Wait, actually, nevermind. This is actually stupid."

"Thank you kindly." 2. EMPATHY: Try to figure out what he's thinking about.

EMPATHY (Challenging: Failure) -- You cannot. The lights from the disco ball shine over his glasses and the darkness blankets his face. You cannot tell what is going on in this man's head.

Maybe in another life.

1. "Thank you kindly."

#Listener's Commands #WIP Wednesday

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ink-flavored · 1 year

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Incorrect Quotes Tag Game

Tagged by @liv-is!!

Rules: use this generator to make some incorrect quotes with your characters

Okay this was fun :3c I did the dynamics that best fit the generator's quotes, since not all my characters are easily memeable. This also got pretty long so go under the cut to see everything!

Pride & Justice

Pride: Justice likes to say, “You can be part of the problem or part of the solution,” but I happen to believe you can be both. Pride: I’m a reverse necromancer. Justice: Isn’t that just killing people? Pride: Ah, technically. Justice: I have a new hoodie. Pride: Wrong. Pride: We have a new hoodie. Pride: I truly go into housewife mode when I'm someone's soulmate—like, I'll make you pancakes and bacon every morning. Justice: This is a lie. Justice: I'm literally dating him. This is a lie. Justice: HE DOESN’T EVEN KNOW HOW TO COOK A PANCAKE, WHAT IS THIS. Justice: *eating a cinnamon roll* Pride: Cannibalism. Justice: *confused chewing noises* Pride: Go big or go home! Justice: Please, for once in your life just go home. I'm begging you. Go. Home. Pride: I'm going big! Pride: You are the love of my life, and I would do anything within reason to make you happy. Justice: I would be happy if you ate, stayed hydrated, and got a reasonable amount of sleep. Pride: I said within reason, Justice. How about I murder that guy? Justice: So murder is in reason, but proper self-care isn't? Pride: Well, duh. What kind of question is that?

Dragon Raising

Lenora: Can you recommend a book that'll make me cry? Hayden: General Mathematics 8th Grade Edition. Lenora: You believe me? Hayden: Lenora, you’re the last good person on this planet. I‘d believe cartoon birds braided your hair this morning. Hayden: You spent all our money on THIS?? Lenora, putting tiny raincoats on the dragonlings: They need it. Hayden: I’m so tired. Lenora: Did you get to bed late? Hayden: No. Lenora: Did you do something strenuous? Hayden: No. Lenora: Then why are you tired? Hayden: I’m alive. Lenora: Sounds exhausting. Lenora: I made this friendship bracelet for you. Hayden: You know, I’m not really a jewelry person. Lenora: You don’t have to wear— Hayden: No, I’m gonna wear it forever. Back off. Hayden: We either die free, or die trying! Lenora: Are those the only choices?

Henry & Priscilla

Henry: *Answers phone.* Hello? Priscilla: It's Priscilla. Henry: What did she do this time? Priscilla: No, it's me, Henry. It's actually me. Henry: What did you do this time? Priscilla: Ask me anything. Go ahead, I'll give you a straight answer. Henry: Why are we so fucking awesome? Priscilla: That's the best fucking question anybody's ever asked. Henry: People always shoot down my ideas and I’m sick of it. Two sentences in and everyone’s always shouting, “What the fuck? That’s illegal!” and “You can’t do that!”. Like, c'mon, let me talk! Henry: Where are you going? Priscilla: To either get ice cream or commit a felony. I'll decide on the way. Priscilla: You know, I used to play back in my gory days. Henry: You mean glory days? Priscilla: Ah, that too. Priscilla: Who the fuck— Henry: Language! Priscilla: Whom the fuck— Henry: No. Priscilla: Don’t worry, I have a permit. Henry: ...This just says, “I can do what I want”.

The God-Dragon's Wife

Jao: Xinya, gather the others. We need to have another Yu-Qi-is-doing-something-stupid-again-and-we-have-to-stop-her-before-she-hurts-someone convention. Xinya: Is anyone going to tell me what's going on in here?! Jao: It's kind of complicated, but Yu-Qi— Xinya: Got it. Forget I asked. Jao: How has life been treating you lately? Xinya: Horribly. Yu-Qi: I am a responsible adult! Xinya: *raises brow* Yu-Qi: I am an adult. Jao, talking about Yu-Qi: Is this a friend of yours, Xinya? Xinya: Kind of? Not really. She's in my life and there's nothing I can do about it. Jao: I have a bad feeling about this... Yu-Qi: What do you mean? Jao: Don't you ever get that little voice in your head that tells you if you're going to get into trouble? Yu-Qi: No? Xinya: That actually explains so much.

Tagging: @sigridhawke @duelistkingdom @zonnemaagd @hallwriteblr @stuffaboutwriting and anyone else who feels like it!

#annika talks #ask game #pride & justice #the god dragon's wife #henry & priscilla #dragon raising

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skepticalarrie · 2 years

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hi! i was a larrie back in the days and now just recently got into it again. i love your blog so much and i was wondering if you have any tags related to all the bad things liam said about larry and larries while on the break.. what's your opinion on it, also? thank you so much for keeping me company at my breaks at work lol i really love going through all your posts!

Hi, lovely. Thank you so much, that's so sweet of you and I'm glad my blog brings you some joy 😊 I have a tag called LIAM X LARRY, but it's more regarding old clips and Liam's reaction about some of them being jealous or cute stuff like that. I don't particularly remember Liam talking too much about larry or larries in recent years, to be honest. I know once he was asked about it in a Q&A - which is absurd - and he was noticeably quite nervous about it. I don't think it went further than that, unless I'm missing something. But my general opinion is always the same when talking about DENIALS, regardless of where they're coming from. I think it's a sensitive topic for friends and family, they need to play along and it's uncomfortable and there are a lot of fans out there that are proper disrespectful annoying the shit out of them. Insisting on asking stuff like that to people around them is a massive no, we're talking about real people and a very real and rough closeting so I think it's just people reacting accordingly and I mean... we're always going to be punching bags, that's what we are.

Plus, what's interesting about Liam, is that I always felt like at the beginning of the band they put him as the "responsible one", he was always the spokesman when they had to answer hard questions or address something uncomfortable. So I'm sure he always felt responsible for the things happening in the band and IMO in the beginning is quite obvious larry was a very big concern for him, he was always worried and rolling his eyes for HL when they did something they shouldn't. And of course with time things changed and he became extremely supportive, but it's very interesting to watch Liam's role in the band in the early days and imagine all kinds of shit they had to deal bts and how much they were put against each other.

#ask #liam x larry #liam payne

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occasional-drabbles · 2 months

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I'm Not Him - Chapter 9 - Horseplay - A BOTW Fic

Finally getting to the fun parts! And this is the longest chapter to date.... by far. Enjoy! :D

Read the Fic on AO3 Here!

Quick Summery of the Fic: This is basically a ‘What If’ Fic. What if Link had actually died in BOTW, instead of being resurrected? The Hero would have to be reincarnated… into someone who isn’t Link.

Chapter Warnings: None that I can think of? Ask to tag

First | Previous | Next

Leaving Kakariko for the third time, Kibo was finally ready to make proper progress on his quest. Despite how daunting of a task it is, his excitement made it difficult for him to wind down enough to sleep last night, Impa having insisted once again that he stay at the inn before he left. So as he walked out of the village, he reviewed the notes he’d made in a notebook he bought at one of the stores.

He plans to go to the Lost Woods first and foremost, hoping that he’d be able to get the sword that seals the darkness. If he manages that, he has a feeling it’ll be easier to handle all of the other tasks laid before him. If having the sword makes it easier to convince people that he’s the Hero… that’s just an added bonus.

It would help if he got a horse to travel across Hyrule a bit easier and much faster, especially since there’s plenty of stables everywhere, and close enough to key points of his trip that he doesn’t have to worry about it being in danger. However, that also means ensuring that it has what it needs for different weather, and that it’s got enough food. Right now he’s still having to ration food for himself … At least he doesn’t have to worry too much about whether or not he has the know-how to care for a horse, since he learned back in Hateno growing up. It’s a very useful skill, after all!

You could always ask at the stable, there’s always people who travel and would be able to give you better insight.

“That’s true…” Kibo mused, glancing up from his notebook occasionally to make sure he wasn’t going to end up walking off a cliff or anything. “Though, they’ll also be biased, since it’s a horse stable… Then again, they’ll care about the horse’s well being too…”

Nodding to himself, figuring that simply asking really would be the best course of action, he shifted his backpack to his side so that he could put the notebook away. “So first thing’s first, Dueling Peaks Stable to look into getting a horse, and then from there I can worry about going to the Lost Woods to get the sword that seals the darkness. After that, I can figure out what order to tackle the Divine Beasts…”

One step at a time, Kibo

The Princess’s reminder was honestly necessary, as much as Kibo was at least attempting to pace himself.

“Can you tell me what to expect when I get to the Woods?” Kibo asked, tilting his head slightly despite not having anyone to physically look at.

There was silence from the Princess at first, though the connection was still there. Kibo was content waiting for an answer as he walked, figuring that she was trying to figure out what is relevant or not.

I must admit, I am unsure if anything will have changed, or what trials will await you on your way to the sword that seals the darkness. I left the sword in the care of the Great Deku Tree, before I went to face Ganon. It is not a simple task to reach him, however I am confident that you will find your way.

That sure sounded… strange . There wasn’t very much to gather from all of that, but he figures he can try prodding at her a bit more once he gets there. Maybe it’s hard to explain without him being able to see it?

Fortunately, trying to think of what the forest might look like managed to keep Kibo occupied until he could see the Dueling Peaks Stable in the distance. Though, the peaks themselves, massive and imposing, were far more impressive. Some part of him almost wanted to climb up the mountains, to see how far he could see from up there. Though, the mere idea of being so high up dissuaded him just as quickly. It would be way too easy for him to slip and fall and bust his head open or something.

Instead of dwelling on that fact, Kibo chose to turn his attention back towards the stable. He noticed a… building? Structure? A structure surrounded by some sort of brush or barrier, just across the path from the stables. It didn’t look like anything he could recognize…

Actually, scratch that. It honestly kind of reminded him of the Shrine of Resurrection.

You are correct. That is one of the many shrines, found all throughout Hyrule. I do not know what that one contains, but they are such fascinating structures. You can access them with the Sheikah Slate. It’s such a fascinating process. I wish I had been able to dedicate more of my time to researching them…

Kibo found himself a little startled by how… wistful the Princess sounded.

“Well, hopefully you’ll be able to, once this is all over.” He offered. All the more motivation to try and help her, so that way she can do something that she enjoys.

The Princess chose to go quiet as they approached the stables, giving Kibo the ability to focus on the people there.

A few dogs were running around, seeming to be playing with the few children living there. A traveler sat at the cooking fire just outside of the stable, seeming to be working on a stew of some sort, and one of the stablehands was tending to the horses in the paddock. There was also… what Kibo figures is a merchant, with a backpack practically 4 times his size, in the shape of… beetle? A few other people were wandering about, doing their things, but he didn’t pay them too much mind for now.

After some thought, he went to the stablehand that was tending to the horses, a girl a bit older than him, if he had to guess. She had an odd amount of colorful accessories on, compared to most of the people he’s seen who work with animals. It was weird.

She must’ve heard him walking over, her pointed ears twitching slightly, but she didn’t turn to face him. “I’ll be done with the horses in just a minute,” she reassured “Then I’ll be happy to see what you’ve got for me.”

Kibo blinked, then tilted his head. “What I’ve got for you?” He echoed.

The girl jolted at the unfamiliar voice and finally turned to face him instead of focusing on the horse she was checking the bridle of. “Do you not have mail for me to take? Or are you expecting something?”

Poor Kibo was still confused, even as a few things started to click into place. “No, I just had a few questions about horses… You take mail?”

She nodded, grinning as she turned to him properly, putting her hands on her hips confidently. “Yup! You’re looking at the best mail-woman in Hyrule!” She beamed, her tone lighthearted and playful.

“Oh! I think I’ve heard a bit about you! You take letters and packages and travel all across Hyrule, right??” Kibo asked, starting to match her energy. Looks like he really did choose the right person to ask, then!

She nodded, giving a small two finger salute and a wink in response. “That would be me! My name’s Cava. What’s yours?”

“I’m Kibo.” He answered easily, adjusting his hold on the straps of his backpack.

“Nice to meet you, Kibo.” She beamed “Well, why don’t you set down that pack of yours and sit down for a bit? Once I’m done with tending to these cuties, I’ll come find you so that I can answer your questions. Sounds like a plan?” She offered

Kibo considered the offer, nodding. He’s not in so much of a rush that he can’t give her a couple more minutes to finish up. It would be rude to rush her, after all! So he went to find somewhere to sit, setting his bag down just inside the inn. He almost sat down at one of the tables, but caught sight of the man with the giant backpack again, his curiosity getting the better of him.

After setting his backpack down, he went over to the man, fidgeting with the strap of the Sheikah Slate again. “Um, excuse me, sir?”

The man looked up, brightening. “Ah, I don’t recognize you! You must be a first time customer! My name’s Beedle, but you can call me, well… Beedle works just fine! I buy and sell just about anything and everything!” He introduced, clearly energetic too. Looks like everyone at the stable is pretty chipper today.

“Anything?” Kibo echoed curiously “Even monster stuff?”

Beedle nodded. “Yes, even monster stuff! I especially like insects and beetles, though.”

Kibo gave a slow nod of understanding before dragging his bag over and sitting on the floor in front of Beedle, starting to rummage through his bag to find some stuff to sell. Mostly he just has pieces from bokoblins he’s fought, horns and fangs, the only remnants after they poof into whatever mist they come from.

The back and forth of Kibo finding parts to sell and Beedle telling him how much they were worth was plenty enough to occupy the both of them for the better part of an hour. Enough so that once they were done, Kibo was startled to find Cava sitting in one of the chairs nearby and watching them. She was sitting backwards, so that her chest was against the backrest, her arms crossed on top and supporting her chin.

When she finally had Kibo’s attention, she grinned and stretched out. “Done selling your stuff?”

Kibo nodded, thanking Beedle again as he closed his bag again and nudged it off to the side again, ensuring it was well out of anyone’s way.

“Question time, then?” Cava asked, earning another nod from Kibo. She didn’t bother standing up for now, instead shifting to sit in the chair properly as Kibo took the chair opposite her at the table. He dug out his map, setting it on the table.

“I think the most important one, is… I’m going to be doing a lot of traveling all over Hyrule, to all the big places. Rito Village, Zora’s domain, the desert, and Goron City.” Kibo started, pointing to his best approximation of each location on his map.

Cava hummed as she listened and nodded, leaning forward slightly to look at the map as well. She did gently correct his pointing once or twice, but only when he was too far off from what he was naming.

“I know it would be faster if I had a horse, but… I don’t want to have it getting hurt or anything, and I don’t know how hard it is to take care of a horse while traveling.” Kibo admitted, his eyebrows furrowing.

“Well, it’s definitely not easy .” Cava admitted “But fortunately, there’s stables relatively close to each of those places.” She said, getting out her own map to show him. She had marked hers up a lot more than his was, circles scattered all across the map to indicate stables. “So if you want to use a horse, then you definitely could. You can use them between stables, so that will drastically decrease the amount of time you’re walking on your own two feet. If you have a fast enough horse, then you could run away from pretty much any of the dangers you’re most likely to find while on the road. Or you can always hop off once you notice a threat to keep the fighting away from the horse, unless you could learn to fight on the horse, but that’s risky depending on how you fight.”

Kibo listened eagerly as she spoke, nodding along. “That makes sense… I know how to hunt at least, but I’m learning to use a sword too…”

“Ah, a fellow archer!” Cava beamed. “If you want then, I can give you a few pointers on how to shoot on horseback!” She offered.

“I mean, I’d need to have a horse to do that, wouldn’t I…?” Kibo asked. He may be excited too, but it’s kind of hard to learn to fight on horseback… without a horse . So unless she’s willing to let him fight on the back of her horse…

Cava snorted, lightly smacking her forehead with the palm of her hand. “Right, right. First step is getting you a horse. Fortunately, there’s almost always a group of horses not too far from the stables. We tend to feed them when we have a surplus of feed, plus I just like spending time with them, so they don’t wander too far unless there��s danger.” She explained, standing up and stretching out. “So! Why don’t we go catch you a horse?”

“Just like that?” Kibo asked, standing up with her despite his skepticism.

“Just like that!” She confirmed, grinning down at him. “We can go together, and I can try to catch one for you if you want, but it’s better if you try to catch it yourself. Otherwise there’s the risk of the horse not respecting you or listening to you.” She explained as she led the way out of the stable and towards the nearby stone ruins.

Kibo trailed after her, still uncertain. “But… how ?”

“Do you know how to mount a horse?” Cava asked, earning a nod from Kibo. “So all you have to do is sneak up on whichever horse you want, and mount it! Some of them are more calm and won’t panic too much, those tend to be the easiest to tame. Though, they aren’t usually the fastest either. Others are more wild and stubborn, and you have to soothe it to get it to listen to you. Then your best bet is to hang on for dear life, and pet it until it calms down and gets used to you.” She laughed, her voice getting quieter as they began to approach.

“That somehow sounds so easy and so hard at the same time.” Kibo pouted, looking at the pack of horses. There were about five of them to choose from, but… he didn’t even know what he was looking for in a horse. Did the coat color matter? He couldn’t tell if any of them were more or less muscular than the others…

Cava snickered, moving to sit on some of the rubble casually, surveying the field. “Just follow your heart with this one. Give it a try yourself, and if you need me to, I’ll help.” She reassured, thinking for a moment before grinning and offering him her hand, just her pinky outstretched. “Promise.”

Kibo blinked before grinning, accepting her pinky with his own. “Alright. I can live with that.” He decided, fidgeting with the sheath of his sword thoughtfully.

His sword was so loud that it would give him away while he’s sneaking, but he’s not sure if he should take it off… He doesn’t know how dangerous it is here.

“I can watch over your sword, if you’re worried about it.” Cava offered, having a similar train of thought.

After a few more beats of consideration, Kibo relented and took off the belt that held the sword, propping it up on the ruins beside her. With that situated, he looked towards the horses again, slowly starting to approach.

He didn’t bother trying to completely crouch, since that would make it too difficult for him to jump up enough to get onto the back of the horse, but he still hunkered down a little to draw less attention to himself. Though as he approached, something felt… off . The hair on the back of his neck began to stand on edge, but he didn’t see anything strange.

Just as he began to hunker down further in preparation for jumping on the nearest horse, something shifted in the grass just under him.

Two chuchus sprung up from the grass, startling Kibo into falling backwards with a startled yelp, scrambling backwards. Not so much from the chuchus themselves, but from the now panicked horses, who began to scatter with cries of their own.

All but one of the horses. A rich brown horse, with light hair. Instead of running like the others, it almost seemed to double down, squashing the chuchus underneath its hooves.

Cava hadn’t even had the chance to start running towards him with his sword before the chuchus were nothing but jelly on the ground once again, the fierce horse trotting off in borderline satisfaction.

“Are you okay??” Cava asked worriedly as she jogged over to Kibo, offering a hand to help him up.

He easily accepted the offered hand, standing up and looking himself over. “Yeah, I’m okay. I didn’t get hit or anything. Just spooked.” He answered honestly, looking up at her, then back over at the horses. “But I know which one I want, now.”

Cava followed his gaze, quirking a brow. “It’s not going to be an easy one to tame. I think that’s the first time I’ve even seen a horse almost enjoy fighting a monster.”

“I like a challenge.” Kibo answered without even looking at her, grinning eagerly.

With that, he hunkered down to try again.

And again.

Despite how many times he was getting thrown off, he brushed himself back off and went right back at it. Cava had offered to help, but he refused. He’s determined .

The determination paid off over an hour later, as he successfully settled on the horse’s back, guiding it over to Cava by its mane. He had a huge grin on his face, alongside the dirt and a few scrapes, to say nothing of his poor hair or clothes.

Cava got off of her perch again, hands on her hips and his belt over one shoulder. “Well I’ll be, looks like you did it! You managed to out stubborn her.”

“I’m nothing if not stubborn.” Kibo responded with a laugh, admittedly blobbing a little against the horse’s neck. As fun as that was, it was exhausting .

Snickering, Cava motioned for him to follow her back to the stable. “Come on, let’s get her registered, and��both of you need to clean up. While you clean yourself up and deal with those scrapes, I’ll get her cleaned and set up with some gear, all that good stuff.”

“Are you sure?” Kibo asked, feeling bad she’d be doing so much of the hard work for him.

“Positive!” Cava reassured with a grin, getting the horse to follow her even without Kibo prompting it. “You did the hardest part with taming it, and everything else is really basic. Just brushing and things like that. I’ll show you how everything goes on and comes off later. And you can always stop by at a stable if you need help with anything.”

Well, she’s not wrong . So Kibo didn’t fight it too much harder, giving another tired nod. “Okay… thank you, Cava.”

“No problem, Kibo.” Cava hummed, offering her arms up for him to stabilize himself as he gets down, which he gratefully accepted before she shooed him off to get cleaned up.

By the time he was done and just needed to patch up some of the worse scrapes, Cava was almost done putting a saddle and bridle on the new horse.

“Feel better?” Cava asked playfully, looking over to him.

Kibo felt his face flush in embarrassment at the tasing, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “A lot, yeah.”

“Then get over here and help me with this.” She motioned him over, having him hold the saddle in place while she worked on buckling it. “Have you decided on a name for her yet?”

“I think so.” Kibo answered, snickering to himself. “I wanna name her Truffle.”

“Truffle? Like the mushrooms?” Cava echoed curiously.

Kibo’s snickers grew louder as he nodded, even though she couldn’t see it. “Yup! But also ‘cause it sounds like ‘trouble’.”

It didn’t take more than a few moments of consideration before they were both laughing at the suggestion, Cava standing up again once satisfied the saddle wasn’t moving. “I think that’s a perfect name for her. Why don’t you go let the stablekeep know, and I’ll get her set up with some food and water. We can make sure we get some food for ourselves too, then we can worry about teaching you to fight on horseback, if you’re still interested in that.”

“Yes please!” Kibo nodded eagerly before going to do as instructed.

By the time Kibo had finished the registration paperwork, Cava had a fresh stew in the works for everyone at the stable.

“So, Kibo, why are you traveling all over? Any particular reason?” Cava asked curiously, trying to make conversation while waiting for food.

Kibo hesitated, unsure how to answer. As understanding as Lady Impa had been, he has a feeling most people would react just like his parents had… Dismissive and doubtful.

“I just… want to.” He settled on, glancing at her for just a moment to see if she bought it.

Based on the new furrow to her brow, she didn't. But she didn't pry, seeming to accept that he didn't want to tell her the truth.

“Well, you're in for a treat.” She hummed, stirring the pot casually. “I haven't gone into the various towns myself, since they're too far from the stables and I try to keep on a predictable routine, but what little I have seen is absolutely beautiful. Each race has such a unique style! The weather extremes can be a bit of a pain, though.” She pouted.

“I've heard a bit about it, like how non-Gorons would catch fire in Goron City without elixirs or special armor.”

Cava groaned and nodded. “Yeah… even just at the stable it's so hot that it's almost suffocating, and that's still pretty low on the mountain compared to the city.” She confirmed. “Do you know where you plan to go first? I can help you make sure you have what you need.” She offered

“I'm… not actually sure.” Kibo admitted, getting out his notebook again. “I want to stop at the Lost Woods first, but after that I don't know…” he mused, absently tapping at the book.

“Well, Rito Village is the furthest away, so you could start there so you're working your way back this way?” Cava suggested. “Or if you want to start closer to here, Zora’s Domain? Plus the Zora don't have such extreme weather. Just… constant rain.”

“That still sounds pretty extreme.” Kibo pointed out, quirking a brow. “But you're right about going to Rito Village to get the farthest one taken care of. Plus then less backtracking…” he mused out loud, looking at his map too. “What would I need for Rito Village?”

Cava hummed, leaning back slightly as she thought about what she usually ends up needing. “It's always snowing on the way there, so you'd need a lot of warm clothes. And make sure you have enough food too, and some flint, since it's harder to hunt and forage there.” She answered, her head tilted. “And if you can find one, a tent or something for shelter is good, but not mandatory.”

“That's… a lot.” Kibo frowned, eyebrows furrowing. He's not even sure where to get half of that stuff. Would there be any clothes stores on the way there? Especially ones that sell warm clothes? Does he have enough clothes he could layer up to make up for it?

“It is, but that's what I usually need to get to the stable, if nothing else.” Cava shrugged casually. “You could focus on making elixirs if that’s easier for you though. I noticed you selling a lot of monster parts to Beedle, after all.”

“Do you need monster parts for elixirs?” Kibo asked.

Cava nodded, a little surprised that he didn’t know that. He’s even less prepared than she initially thought, and for such a grand trip as all around Hyrule? And it seems like he’s unsupervised, too?

After a few moments of thought and stirring the pot again, she nodded to herself resolutely. “How about this, Kibo. When do you plan on heading out to your next destination?”

“I want to head out for the Lost Forest tomorrow morning, I think. Around sunrise.” Kibo answered. “After that I’ll probably go on to Rito Village, since it’s the furthest away.”

“Will you pass by this stable again, follow the paths?”

Kibo nodded.

“Then I’ll put a little something together to help you with traveling. Tips, ideas of what to expect where, things like that.” Cava offered with a grin. “My parents made sure I had as much information as they could offer before I started to go all around Hyrule, so it’s only fair I do the same for you!”

Kibo lit up at the idea, sitting up straighter. “Really? You don’t mind?”

“Not at all!” Cava reassured. “It sounds like you’re not super well prepared anyways, so I might as well do my best to help you along.”

“Thank you so much!” Kibo beamed, not having expected so much support, especially with so little expected in return.

Cava reached over to ruffle his hair playfully, laughing as he tried to bat her arm away. Though with that settled, she started to dish out the stew for the both of them, as well as the people who were meandering over to get some.

“Once we’ve let the food settle, I’ll teach you a little bit about horseback archery, and then you can rest for the rest of the day. Sound good?” Cava asked as she finally started to fill her own bowl. She looked up to Kibo again, only to laugh when seeing he already had his mouth stuffed full of stew.

Trying to ignore the deep flush of embarrassment, he nodded in response. Honestly, he wouldn’t mind if they worked on it until dinner, but he figures she’s right. He did get thrown around a lot today, so he needs to take it easy where he can. He needs to make sure he won’t end up so sore that he can’t move or anything, after all.

After finishing their fill, cleaning up after themselves, and going about their own business for a bit, Cava finally grabbed Kibo for more training. Grabbing some boxes and barrels, she managed to set up a make-shift obstacle course for them to use.

“First thing’s first, you need to get used to working with Truffle without fighting. You may have done the hard part of taming her already, but to be able to fight and ride you need to be able to guide her without your hands.” She explained, leading him and Truffle out to the makeshift course. “So for now, just have her walk through the path twice, circling the barrels. Then at a trot twice, and so on.” She instructed, watching Kibo climb on to Truffle’s back.

“Alright, that sounds easy enough.”

It was not, in fact, easy. Truffle was easily distracted, and if they passed too close to Cava, she would detour and attempt to eat Cava’s hair until she got swatted or pushed away. Kibo couldn’t help but think of all of the times that he, or the other kids in Hateno, would intentionally be difficult like it was a game. Go figure, the horse with the most fight in it would enjoy the same kind of ‘game’.

By the time Kibo managed to get Truffle to walk the two laps, Cava was snickering to herself. “Okay, I think you need to focus on just riding with her first. In the meantime, just leave Truffle a small ways away when you’re expecting a fight. Though, we should probably see how fast she is, so you can know your odds of running away from a fight too…” She mused, tapping her cheek thoughtfully before again shoving Truffle’s head away from her hair again with a lighthearted laugh. “Let me go get Tara, and we can race!” She beamed, running off before Kibo even had the chance to react.

“Guess she’s itching to do some riding too, huh…?” He mumbled, giving Truffle some absent minded pets.

Truffle just let out a snort in response before following the track one more time at Kibo’s urging.

It wasn’t long before Cava was trotting over to him on a black and white patchwork horse, the horse’s mane braided with large beads where the ties were. She maneuvered to be next to Kibo and Truffle, humming. “Let’s do something pretty simple, how about we go around that thick tree over there and back to the stable?” She suggested, pointing to the tree she was talking about.

Kibo looked at it and nodded, shifting on Truffle’s back anxiously. He has no clue how this is going to go…

“Ready…set…go!” Cava counted down, quickly urging Tara on once the race began. The two of them took off almost instantly, Cava hunkered down with a huge grin.

“Let’s go!” Kibo encouraged Truffle, taking off after them. While the response wasn’t near as quick as it was for Cava and Tara, Truffle still reacted quickly. She even seemed to be faster than Tara, catching up to them despite the small head start.

Glancing over at Cava for a moment, Kibo noticed her reaching for something as they approached the tree. She let go of Tara’s reins completely, while he still had a firm grip on Truffle’s.

Cava pulled an arrow out of the quiver built into Tara’s saddle, guiding Tara using only her legs. Reaching the arrow up as they rounded the tree, she let out a triumphant laugh as she speared an apple with it, even as Kibo and Truffle surpassed them. Carefully settling the arrow in her lap she picked Tara’s reins back up, urging her faster to catch up. Kibo still managed to beat her back to their starting point, if only barely.

“That was amazing!” Kibo cheered with a grin, slowing Truffle to a stop as he looked over to Cava.

Cava grinned and stopped next to him, carefully taking the apple off of the arrow, wiping the arrow off on her pants and putting it back where it belonged. “And you still beat me!” She beamed, grabbing a knife next to cut the apple in half. She offered one half to Kibo for Truffle, then leaned forward to give Tara the other half.

Kibo accepted the half, watching how she fed Tara before trying to mimic. It was harder for him to reach, and he nearly ended up falling off of Truffle’s back, but he still managed! Truffle still kind of nipped his fingers, not enough to hurt though! Just a little spook. Tara was much more gentle when eating out of Cava’s hands, even seeming to be extra careful not to hurt her. “Yeah, but you did a cool trick! Truffle kept trying to wander off.” He pouted, watching her.

Cava snorted “I’ve also been riding horses ever since I was little, and I’ve been riding with Tara for a couple of years now, even before I started to do the mail thing.” She reminded, petting Tara’s neck affectionately. “I’m sure that you and Truffle will get to that point too in no time. It just takes a lot of time, and trust.”

“Time and trust… right.” Kibo nodded. “I’ll do my best.”

“Your best is all anyone could expect.” Cava reassured, stretching out. “As fun as that was, you should probably go work on winding down for the night. If you want to leave early, you’re going to want to make sure both you and Truffle have plenty of time to rest.” She reminded. “I’m going to take Tara for a few more laps, let her get the energy out. We’ve still got another day here, so I’m sure she’s itching to keep moving.”

Kibo couldn’t really argue with that, nodding in agreement. “Sounds like a plan. Have fun, and be safe.”

Cava gave him the same playful salute she did earlier as an acknowledgement before she and Tara trotted off to go burn some energy.

Kibo turned his attention back to the stable, hopping out of the saddle and taking Truffle to the paddock, getting her situated and taking off her saddle and bridle. He gave her a quick brush down before sitting down to work on notes. Things that he’d need to make sure to have on hand, and what he remembers about taking care of horses.

After he finished listing off what he could think of, he realized how quiet things had been in his head, so he absently poked at the Princess’s presence in his head.

It appears as though you have had quite the eventful day.

“Good, you’re still there.” Kibo mumbled, keeping his voice down. While he could probably just think his responses instead of saying them aloud, it felt like their thoughts might get too jumped up for him to keep track of. Though, he’s ever mindful of how crazy he’d sound to these people who didn’t even know him.

You were enjoying yourself, I had no intention of interrupting. But I am still here for you.

He couldn’t help the small, grateful smile as he looked blankly down at the plain leather cover of his notebook. “Thank you.” After some consideration, he tilted his head. “Have you ever ridden a horse?”

Of course, it was part of my training. I was taught from a young age. Though, I was not taught the same skills that that young lady displayed. I quite enjoyed riding, though I didn’t get to do it as much as I wish I could have.

“Another thing to add to the list of things for us to try and do after this is all over, then.” Kibo decided, opening his notebook again to start making a list.

Study the Shrines

Ride horses for fun

You don’t have to…

“I know I don’t have to, but I want to. Especially since you don’t tend to express your own interests.” Kibo countered. As far back as he could remember, as much as he’d ‘spoken’ with the Princess, he knew… frustratingly little about her. Her goals and hobbies, things like that. She’d told him stories about the Hero, and the Champions. But he knew so little about her . “It’s only fair I try to learn more about you, when you already know so much about me.”

Zelda couldn’t argue against that logic, since well… he isn’t wrong. She focused so much on the others, on their accomplishments, and the path he would be following. Her personal interests seemed inconsequential. They have a common goal, and would never have likely even met if not for their destinies intertwining. If not for this never ending cycle. What need was there to bring personal preferences and hobbies into the fray?

Thank you, Kibo.

“Of course.” He hummed, closing his notebook again and yawning.

You should heed her advice and get some rest. It’s quite the trip to the Lost Woods.

“I don’t wannaaaaa.” Kibo whined playfully, even as he put his notebook away to get ready to sleep. While he did have money now to pay for a bed, he figured he’d still sleep out by the fire and save it for now. He’ll probably need it for other things, like clothes. And food.

So fireside nap it was! He’s starting to get used to this, for better or for worse.

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