#it’s a very good thing Leon isn’t a bird or he would have been named rebird

[dark-elf-writes]

Between Hibird and Mukurowl I’m starting to see that none of these kids should name things ever

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

Just Fine

Prompts: I just finished your Merlin fic Not Bad, and was wondering if we could have something of a sequel to it, if you're willing? Thank you either way! - anon

hi omg i absolute love your works on ao3, you're such a talented writer! i'm in love with your touch starved! merlin fic on ao3 and if you're still writing merlin fics and if you wanted to write it i would love to see a second part! (i've never used tumblr before so i don't know if this is where you even take promps/ requests but i figured i had to try, i love your works so much!) - anon

So many people asked for a part 2 so now we have a part 2 yay

Read on Ao3 Part 1

Warnings: this chapter is fluff all the way down, folks

Pairings: platonic merlin & everybody, can be merthur if you want I don't care

Word Count: 4729

Healing isn't supposed to be easy, but maybe the others can help make it easier.

He did say he was going to be pulling Merlin into his bed to cuddle with him in the mornings.

The sunlight is a menace, Arthur’s sleep-slack brain decides one day as it slices knife-like over his eyes through a slit in the curtains. He furrows his brow and turns, nuzzling his face into his pillow and doing his very best to ignore the fact that it’s morning now which means he’ll have to get up and do things. He’s royalty, he shouldn’t have to do anything he doesn’t want to.

…well, okay, maybe that’s not true.

Arthur muffles a snort into his pillow.

That should show how much Merlin’s been rubbing off on him since he came to Camelot, Arthur before Merlin would’ve huffed in that arrogant prat way—he’s not too proud to admit he has his moments—and said that he gets to decide what he wants to do, no one else. Arthur after Merlin knows that he’s his people’s servant as much as they are his. He may not have had the words to express it before Merlin but he’s always felt that way. Seeing someone so blatantly defy the status quo—and by extension, Uther—helped bring that out of him.

See? This is why he’s tired and deserves more sleep. He’s already waxing poetic about Merlin. He turns over in bed again and resolves to try and get a little more sleep.

Of course, as soon as his head hits that side of the pillow, the door opens, and in come Merlin’s footsteps.

The curtains are pulled open and Arthur winces, the light beaming onto the back of his head. Merlin putters around, probably setting up breakfast going by the smell of sausages, and then there’s a tug on his blanket.

“No,” he mumbles, holding it closer to his face, “lemme sleep.”

“You have to get up, Arthur,” comes Merlin’s amused snort, “you’ve got a meeting with Leon in a few hours.”

Arthur grumbles, refusing to open his eyes. “Then why can’t I sleep until then?”

“Because if I don’t get you up now, you won’t have enough time to wake up properly.”

“But it’s just Leon!”

“Yes, and you know he has this annoying habit of looking pristine even when he’s covered in mud.”

This is true. Arthur sighs, cracking his eyes open, and is immediately greeted by a wonderful sight.

Merlin, his Merlin, is standing in the sunlight.

It felt like a knife on Arthur’s face, but on Merlin, it looks like a cloak. A cape. Something to be worn with pride. He glows, that’s the only way to describe it. Even his eyes are shining.

How can anyone believe that Merlin isn’t magic?

…yeah, he must be really tired.

“Arthur,” Merlin calls, and only then does Arthur realize he must’ve called his name a few times, “you okay?”

Arthur nods dumbly, still grinning dopily up at Merlin. Merlin looks warm. Warm Merlin. Merlin should be warm. Warmth is good for Merlin.

Something cold ripples through his chest as he remembers how cold Merlin was the first day he let them hug him.

Merlin shouldn’t be cold.

“Arthur?” A gentle tap on his shoulder. “Are you okay?”

Arthur blinks and holds his arms out. “C’mere.”

Now it’s Merlin’s turn to blink. “What?”

“Come here,” he insists, reaching for Merlin, “just come here.”

Merlin’s face flushes an adorable red. “Arthur, I—“

“I’ll get up in a minute, I promise, but come here first.”

Merlin sighs. “Alright, you big baby.”

But Arthur can see the way he trembles with uncertainty as he sits down to take off his boots. He can see the way Merlin’s brow twitches and how he isn’t quite sure of himself as he slides under the covers.

Well. Can’t have that.

“I said come here,” Arthur murmurs, gathering Merlin into his arms, “there.”

“…’rthur?”

“There,” Arthur sighs, snuggling into his new Merlin-shaped pillow, “perfect.”

Merlin’s tunics are scratchy. He’s a bit elbows and knees. He doesn’t seem to know what to do with all his limbs.

But as Merlin’s arms shakily come up to hold Arthur back, a contented rumble comes from Arthur’s chest.

Merlin is warm.

Yeah, they’re not getting up for a few hours. Leon will understand.

2.

Merlin doesn’t like going hunting, which is fine, which is why they’ve affectionally renamed it ‘a woods trip.’ Actually, he’s pretty sure Gwaine calls it ‘get Arthur out of the castle so his prat nature doesn’t consume him,’ but everyone gets the point.

The point is that it’s one of the few times where they can just be a group of men, bit worried about getting stabbed by bandits, yes, but not worried about the rules and hierarchies and eyes of the city on them all the time. They can mess about and joke and partake in the bizarre sense of humor they all seem to have without any of the guards looking worriedly at each other when they think they won’t be seen.

Honestly, most of the guards at this point have just…accepted it. Arthur will never quite get over the one time he overheard a conversation with one of the new guards outside his room.

“Shouldn’t we tell someone that the servant is conspiring against the King?”

There had been a scoff from the older guard, Kodi. “You must be new.”

If Merlin had wondered why Arthur was muffling snorts into a napkin when he returned, he didn’t ask.

The woods aren’t exactly safe, not like Camelot is, but as Leon says, the safest place for a ship is in the harbor but ships were made to sail.

It’s what he tends to pull out whenever one of them complains about camping out for a night.

“Come on,” Gwaine mutters as he tries to get the fire to start, “come on, you bastard…”

Merlin glances over and hides a smirk. “Need a hand, Gwaine?”

“No.”

After a few seconds pass, Gwaine stifles a sigh.

“Maybe.”

Merlin stands, takes the flint and steel from him, and crouches down. He strikes it once and there’s barely a spark. He frowns. Another try yields another failure.

“What’s wrong with this thing?”

“So it’s not me. Great.”

“No, it’s—did someone leave this out?”

“Ah—“ Percival raises his hand— “that might’ve been me. One of the canteens spilled over the pack that it was in.”

“Well, yeah, that’ll explain why the—yeah, that’s it.” Merlin sighs. “Okay, well, um…”

“Can’t you just—“ Lancelot snaps his fingers— “you know?”

Merlin stiffens.

“Hey,” Gwaine murmurs softly, resting his hand on Merlin’s shoulder, “Merlin. Hey, Merlin, look at me.”

Merlin turns, his mouth a hard line.

“You have magic,” Gwaine says gently, “we know. We don’t care that it’s illegal. You’re not bad for having magic and we won’t punish you for using it.”

“…thanks.”

“Anytime.” He nods toward a scrap of kindling. “Now come on, I’m hungry.”

It gets a weak laugh out of Merlin as he stretches his hand out and mumbles something. A fire sparks into existence and roars merrily. Gwaine smiles and wraps his arms tightly around Merlin.

“Good job, Merlin,” he says quietly as Percival drops a hand onto his shoulder and rubs, “good job.”

“…really?”

“Yes.” Percival gives his shoulder a squeeze. “Good.”

3.

New rule they figured out: Merlin isn’t allowed to go near bodies of water unsupervised.

It’s the end of winter and the trees are just starting to grow their leaves out again. The grass is turning green under the lumps of snow that still remain and the birds have started to sing. All around them is the sharp sweet smell of new, the soft cracks as the ice melts.

Soft cracks, mind you. Not big ones that mean someone is about to fall through a thawing lake.

He didn’t actually fall through, but it had been a close thing.

Elyan had fretted for a good few minutes as Merlin’s teeth chattered until they figured out the poor man had just had a clump of snow fall on top of him, he hadn’t fallen through the ice into the lake. He gets a half-hearted scolding as they whip up a fire and a warm drink, quickly replaced by questions of whether he’s okay, is everything still attached to him, is he hurt?

“I’m fine,” Merlin insists, huddling by the fire, “just a bit cold.”

“You’re still shivering,” Elyan points out quietly, “give me your hands.”

“What? Why?”

“I’m going to make sure you don’t lose circulation.”

Merlin frowns but lets Elyan take his hands. The knight begins to rub his fingers in a pattern Merlin recognizes from Gaius, stimulating blood flow back into the digits to ensure that everything is working properly.

Elyan works patiently for a few seconds until he realizes that Merlin’s eyes have glazed over.

“Merlin?”

Merlin blinks and seems to snap out of whatever daze he was in. “Sorry, sorry, I just—um—“

Elyan tilts his head, Merlin’s hands still cradled in his lap as he struggles for words. Absentmindedly, he swipes a thumb over Merlin’s palm and Merlin bites back a whimper.

“Merlin, am I hurting you?”

“I mean…yes? But no, no wait, I don’t want you to stop, I just—it—“

“Shh,” Elyan says, “it’s okay. Tell me what hurts.”

“I just…you’re really warm,” Merlin mumbles, “and I guess I’m just not used to…to…to touch yet.”

“Ah, I see.” Elyan moves his hands slowly, seeing the blood flow is mostly back to normal as he cups Merlin’s hands between his own. “It’s still warmer than you’re used to, right?”

Merlin nods.

“Can I keep holding your hands?”

“Mhm.”

Elyan holds Merlin’s hands in his own until they deem it safe for him to ride back to Camelot.

4.

If Lancelot knows the secret to getting Merlin to feel a little more comfortable in his own skin, it’s to have him hold something.

He’s not sure why it takes Merlin’s mind down an edge as he begins to fiddle with whatever’s in his hands, but it does. The worried furrow in his brow softens into one of concentration, the anxious twitches of his fingers grow more fluid, more relaxed as he twists and turns the thing between them. Over the years, he’s gotten good at figuring out what Merlin needs to be holding, if he does say so himself.

When Arthur has an important meeting that makes Merlin’s eyes dart around the room, Lancelot hands him a shirt that needs to be repaired. Merlin’s hands navigate the stitches with ease as he makes sure Arthur’s got his armor of a different sort.

When there’s a tournament full of knights coming from far away that Merlin can’t trust quite yet, Lancelot hands him a pouch of seeds to sort, collected from one of the children from the flower store. Merlin sorts them deftly, putting each group into a little envelope to be returned, using it to hone his eye.

When there’s a terrible thunderstorm and Merlin can’t sleep, when Lancelot finds him wandering the castle late at night, he gives him a little plush toy. It’s a small thing, stitched together from remnants of clothing, and something that the servants pretend doesn’t exist. But if you know where to look, and who to talk to, there will be a little stuffed toy sitting on your nightstand if you ever need something to hold. Malwen raises an eyebrow when he asks for one but once she knows it’s for Merlin, Lancelot has it before the day is out.

As he watches Merlin fiddle with the toy, twirling one of the buttons around and round its thread, he wonders.

Is this the only form of physical comfort Merlin has ever allowed himself to have?

The answer is an incredibly disheartening yes, and Lancelot resolves to always give Merlin what he needs to help himself.

Then there’s a moment where Lancelot has no idea what Merlin would want to hold.

It’s a visiting lord, because it’s always a visiting lord when it’s not bandits or a visiting knight. They storm inside—Lancelot hadn’t bothered to remember his name—and pronounced that he missed Uther’s way of doing things. That when Uther was in charge, Camelot was strong, that there were roots of evil snuffed out at every turn.

Of course, he was quickly glared into submission by Percival and Arthur had cooly informed him that evil was snuffed out by not giving it an environment to grow, not futility ripping weeds from the soil.

But not in time to stop the lord’s words from getting to Merlin.

Lancelot finds Merlin on the balcony that isn’t a balcony, an abandoned training ground far above the rest of the city. He sits on the old stone, swinging his legs back and forth, staring at the ground with a glazed expression. His hands twist and turn over each other and his breathing is a little too controlled to be safe.

“Merlin,” he calls softly, not wanting to startle him, “Merlin, can I come sit with you?”

“Mm.”

“Thank you.” Lancelot eases himself down onto the stone bench, speaking softly as if he’s trying to soothe a wild animal. “Are you hurt?”

“No.”

Merlin isn’t hurt, good. Lancelot glances down at his hands. They twitch and knead at the fabric of his tunic. They clench into fists only to open a few seconds later. They look like they hurt.

They’re trembling.

Lancelot takes a deep breath and carefully, oh, so carefully, takes one of them in his.

Merlin goes limp, all but slumping into his shoulder. His hands are so cold.

“I’m right here, Merlin,” Lancelot murmurs, giving the hand in his a squeeze, “I’m right here.”

Slowly, he reaches out to take the other, feeling Merlin’s hands twitch lazily in his. Every so often, Merlin will squeeze and he will squeeze back. Merlin’s head tucks itself under his chin and the warm rush of his breath hits Lancelot’s arm. His hands stay safely in Lancelot’s grip.

Lancelot will always give Merlin something to hold. It’s no accident that includes his own hands.

5.

Not many people in Camelot know that Leon isn’t just Arthur’s right hand, but the closest thing Arthur had to a brother.

They grew up together, in the streets and fields and halls of Camelot, running around with sticks before they got given swords, fighting dragons and monsters before they battled the real ones, helping each other in secret before they rose to places where no one could hurt them.

Leon remembers holding an Arthur too young for any of this as his father raged, as the swords clashed too close to his face, as a peaceful village burned around them. He remembers a younger Arthur holding onto his cloak, his sleeve, his hand, always asking, asking, asking Leon to be there, just to be there, the way he didn’t feel anyone else was.

They’re older now, and now Arthur is a man Leon is proud to know. He asks Arthur for things now, for help dismantling the things they hated as children, for help finding ways to take care of the knights when he doesn’t know what to do, for help figuring out what to do in this world where things are starting to make less and less sense day by day.

Arthur is his brother, his friend, and his King. Leon is Arthur’s brother, his friend, and his Knight.

To most others, Leon is nigh untouchable. He is the longest-serving knight in Camelot, he is almost royalty with how close he is to the Pendragon family, and he is near unmatched on the dueling grounds. He has the ear of the King, the unwavering loyalty of the knights, and the faith of the Council.

There is a short list of the few who know he this is not all he is.

There are a few children in the lower town who know he is a kind man before he is a great knight, that there are scrapes and bruises they receive running from something only to be protected by a red cloak and a calm voice. There are a few servants who know that his presence as they walk to Gaius is an impenetrable shield on one side and the softest guiding hand on the other. There are a few stable boys who know that they will never again be beaten for who they are because he is just like them.

But Leon has not truly cared for someone younger than him since Arthur was little. Not the way he used to.

Of course, as he is with most things, Merlin is the exception to this rule.

Merlin, with all his magic and baffling charm and bumbling wisdom, worms his way into Leon’s heart by the time he gets assigned to be Prince Arthur’s Manservant. From there, it isn’t hard for Leon to watch with a certain glow of pride in his chest as Arthur starts to change, from the hardened fist Uther wanted him to be to the man the little boy he grew up with was supposed to be. He keeps his words to himself about how kind Merlin is, relentlessly so, and smiles quietly when Arthur begins to clumsily mimic the acts of kindness. He grows to care for Merlin quickly, making room next to his heart for one more, nestled close.

But it isn’t until he has a chance to comfort Merlin properly that he begins to think of him as a brother.

Don’t get him wrong, Merlin is his brother the same way the knights are his brothers. But Leon hasn’t loved someone the way he loves Arthur in a long time.

He receives a call from Gaius and responds, hurrying down to the physician’s chambers to see Merlin’s face is awfully flushed and his eyes red-rimmed in tears. He hurries faster to Merlin’s side, asking what’s happened, what’s wrong?

It seems Merlin has been fixing something wrong with the magic of this bracelet Gaius shows him, a silver one with a big amber stone in the middle. It looks familiar, it reminds Leon of Morgana for some strange reason, but he can’t quite place it. But it seems something went wrong and now…now poor Merlin is upset.

Leon knows what to do.

He guides Merlin carefully into his room, stopping to remove his mail shirt and leaving him in the softer under-tunic and cloak, and sitting Merlin carefully down on the bed. The poor man looks cold, small, like a scared dog.

“Merlin,” he says softly, “Merlin, I’m going to sit next to you now.”

He eases his weight down onto the bed and waits. Waits for another tear to roll down Merlin’s cheek to let out a soft noise of concern, melting at the sight of someone crying.

“Come,” he murmurs, opening his arms, “shed your tears, Merlin.”

And oh, he hasn’t seen those eyes for a very long time. Not since little Arthur had looked up at him, shining with undisguised hope and want but holding himself back, like a starved puppy too scared to eat. It breaks his heart and he lets out another low noise, reaching for Merlin.

“When Arthur was little,” he murmurs, his voice low and soothing as he begins to gather Merlin into his lap, “he never used to like sleeping alone when his father was away. He said the castle was too big, too empty, even with all the people inside.”

He takes Merlin’s hands and guides them around his neck.

“I never liked sleeping in the castle either, it was too quiet. I didn’t know where anything was, except for Arthur. One night, he came into my chambers and all but tackled me in a hug.” He smiles fondly at the memory. “He insisted I let him stay.”

“St-stay?”

“Yes, Merlin, stay. Stay with me, let me hold him until we both fell asleep. He pulled himself into my lap—yes, just like this, your legs over mine—and wrapped his arms around my neck—there you go, just here, that’s it, you hold onto me now—and we stayed like that until we fell asleep.”

Merlin’s hair ruffles as he settles, Leon’s breath warming the top of Merlin’s head as he tucks the poor man close. Merlin’s hands are ice around his neck.

“And when the nights got cold, we would wrap ourselves up in the blankets,” he continues, beginning to swaddle them both in his cloak, “until we were bundled so tightly together that even the coldest night wouldn’t get it. It was warm, I remember being warm, there, in the bed, in the blankets, safe…and warm…”

There’s a quiet sigh against his neck as he wraps the cloak around the both of them. It’s warm, a perfect little nest. Merlin’s weight settles against his chest and part of him that’s been suppressed for many, many years starts to warm.

“He stopped coming to me when he got older,” he murmurs, “whether because he didn’t need it anymore or if he got too big. Between you and me, I’m sure it’s the second one. He’d still try if he weren’t worried about hurting me. I think he misses it, sometimes.”

He pauses, then leans closer and tucks his face against Merlin’s temple.

“I know I did. I still do, every now and then, but I know Arthur feels safe now in a way he never did when we were growing up. And most of that is thanks to you.”

“M-me?”

“Yes, Merlin,” Leon whispers, “you. You make him feel safe, make the rest of us feel safe. You’re a good person, Merlin, and we care very deeply about you.”

“…you do?”

He can hear the sleep coloring Merlin’s voice. He hushes the poor thing, cuddles him close, rocks the both of them closer to slumber.

“Of course we do,” he whispers to his brother, “of course we do.”

+1.

Sometimes Merlin has good days. Days where he’s smiling and laughing and joking with the knights. Days where he’s bantering back and forth with Arthur like it’s nothing. Days where he uses his magic the way he always has, like it’s a part of him.

Sometimes Merlin has bad days. Days where he’s quiet and they can’t get him to smile. Days where he is every bit the perfect servant for Arthur, which means he’s about as far from Merlin as he could be. Days where he seems to want to pretend he’s never had magic in his life.

Today is a bad day.

Merlin doesn’t talk until one of them asks. He goes off on his chores and they don’t see him for hours. Gaius is worried. Leon is worried. Lancelot is worried.

Percival is angry. Some of the new knights believe Merlin is a traitor—for whatever reason—and spends time educating them on the training fields.

Elyan is afraid. Gwen came to him and said that she hasn’t seen Merlin all day, which means Merlin is avoiding the servants as well as the knights.

Gwaine is upset. Because he can’t find Merlin anywhere and the longer he stays away the worse he’s going to be when he comes back.

Arthur walks into his chambers at the end of the day and sees Merlin sitting on his bed.

He stuffs away the outrage at himself for not thinking to look here first, stuffs away the fear and sadness that Merlin is upset, stuffs away the need to order him to Gaius and have him looked over, and replaces it with a soft call of: “Merlin?”

“Sire.”

Oh, no.

“Hello, Merlin,” Arthur says softly, “can I come over to you?”

“If you like, sire.”

“I would.” Arthur crosses the room slowly, wary of Merlin’s reaction, until he can stop within arms’ reach. “Hello.”

“Hello.” Merlin looks up at him. “May I ask you for a favor, sire?”

“Of course, Merlin, anything you like.”

“…m-may I have a hug, please?”

Arthur’s heart shatters.

His face must do the wrong thing because Merlin flinches, withdrawing into himself. “I’m sorry, sire, that was rude of me to ask. I’ll leave you be, now.”

“No, no, no, Merlin,” Arthur stammers, “no, that’s not what I meant, stay, stay, Merlin, of course you can have a hug, come here, come here—“

He gathers Merlin into his arms, to his chest, wrapping him up as snugly as he can.

“You don’t need permission for a hug, Merlin, that’s why I was upset,” he mumbles, “I don’t want you to think you have to earn it, you don’t—“

It seems his ramblings, however embarrassing to him, are helping Merlin calm down. Or at least get over his fear enough to wrap his arms around Arthur too. Arthur squeezes him tight and is content to sit there for a moment to let Merlin have what he wants, but then he feels something tug at his chest.

Tug, tug, tug.

Arthur frowns, tries to tug back, only for the tugging to grow more insistent. He follows the tugging to scoop Merlin into his arms, carry him to the bed, and lie down beside him. As the tugging persists, he tucks Merlin’s head under his chin and pulls him closer, threading a leg through his. One last tug and oh, oh, he understands now.

“You’re not bad,” he murmurs, ruffling Merlin’s hair as he talks, “you’re not evil. You have magic, Merlin, that’s alright. You’re my Merlin. I don’t want a proper servant, I don’t want a normal servant, I want you. You’re my Merlin.”

There.

Whatever wall there is crumbles as Merlin begins to sob desperately into his chest. The tugging renews, guiding him this way, that way, to hold Merlin close, to pull back and let him gasp for breath, to murmur reassurances in his ear, or to roll a little and hold Merlin down as he seizes with the force of the cries.

And through it all, Merlin never stops asking for comfort.

His fingers never loosen their grip on Arthur’s shirt. His legs never let go of the one Arthur wraps through his. His nose never strays far from the crook of Arthur’s neck. He never stops pushing himself into Arthur’s chest, almost as if he’s trying to climb inside and make a home for himself there.

He already has one.

Arthur realizes the wordless asks and answers, holding him as tight as he wants, listening to the tugs in his chest to take care of his Merlin properly, never stops murmuring that yes, this is good, this is alright, Merlin can have whatever he wants, Arthur’s here, he’s here, he’ll take care of Merlin.

He’ll be here. He’ll always be right here.

After, Arthur will ask him softly about the tugs, and Merlin will blush and realize that his magic was asking for help when he couldn’t. Arthur will smile and ruffle his hair and tease him about his magic liking Arthur better than him. The smile will soften when Merlin shakily admits he’s thought the same thing.

After, Merlin will start asking for touch more. He’ll brush his hand against Lancelot’s, sit a little closer to Gwaine or Percival, start accompanying Elyan on his daily walks, or find himself reaching for Leon’s cloak only for Leon to bundle his hand in his and keep it safe.

After, Merlin will slide into bed the moment Arthur opens his arms, letting them both sleep in a little more and enjoy the feeling of warm, warm, warm.

But right now, Merlin is crying in Arthur’s arms and Arthur isn’t going anywhere.

He’ll always be right here.

[gather-ye-sinners]

can we get uhhhhhh bucci gang dad headcanons like you did for la squadra? i’m soft for all of them. grazie💘

Ooooh hell yeah!! I’ve been stewing on these since I made La Squadad! Anytime baybee!!

Bucci Gang Parent Headcanons

Bruno Buccellati:

Tough love dad

You’ll have to remind him he’s not a capo at home

Good PTA dad.

Chaperones every field trip

He’ll make buccellati cookies for bake sales without fail.

Got called in once cuz his kid licked another kid

He didn’t know what the big deal was so you got sent.

Almost got kicked out of an aquarium for picking up a trilobite for his kid to touch.

He treats his kid to Libeccio’s after big events.

Often arranges opening night/pre-state dinner there for the cast/team.

Loves taking his kids out boating

He’d like four or five kids.

He’s always wanted a big family.

Leone Abbacchio:

Cares a lot about his kid.

Almost a doting father

Almost..

He’s the king of “Walk it off”

Swoops in on his kid like a bird if they get hurt

“You’re fine kiddo go play,” He says dusting them off, setting them upright and ruffling their hair.

A KarenTM on the downlow.

Will throw hands at a soccer match or if a bad word is said about his kid.

Puh-lease let him take your kids to see Operas, Concerts and Musicals.

 It’s his favorite form of bonding. A show, dinner and nice discussion on the drive home.

He used to sing the kids to sleep, but denies it.

Sometimes you can catch Moody Blues in his place if he’s too tired to do it.

He’d like one or two kids.

He’d like to name one after his dead partner.

Guido Mista:

Soccer Dad

The Pistols are his sons already he’s just used to it.

The Pistols become Mini Dads for his kids.

Dinner is hell tho cuz they’re still hungry gremlins.

“No Cinque they need to eat their vegetables!”

He’s very supportive of his kid.

Doesn’t care how old they get they will ride on his shoulders after games and performances.

Will convince them to let him carry them down the aisle like that.

He makes a lot of home videos.

He would like a big family anywhere from three to six kids

Just not four, that’s all he asks.

Narancia Ghirga:

Lowkey a bad dad

He spoils them because he doesn’t want them to be sad.

He’s mostly a fun dad.

He and your kid live at the park.

They play with Aerosmith.

Also a tag pro.

Stresses the importance of school and doing your best.

Over the moon if they decide to go to college.

Rewards all grades cuz they worked hard.

“You studied your ass of for that F! Let’s get pizza!”

Really excited if they join band or a dance team.

Learns choreography with them.

Takes them to lots of concerts.

Kills it at Father/Child dances.

Ideally wants two kids.

A Torture Dance takes three right?

Pannacotta Fugo:

Terrified of being a dad

Worried he’ll be terrible like his parents due to his anger issues.

Is a really good dad.

Let’s his child vent.

Trusts his Kid over anyone else.

Isn’t allowed within 30 feet of some people.

Really spoils his kid.

Books, movies, games, you name it.

Gets on Narancia’s case for doing the same.

He bonds really well with his kid.

Very Nurturing.

Cries if your child’s first word is “Papa.”

Really just wants your kid to feel safe and loved.

Reads them stories all the time.

One is enough for him.

Giorno Giovanna:

Most spoiled kid

Startlingly humble

Teaches his kids to appreciate nature.

Very protective of his kid.

Not to the point of being a helicopter dad.

Absolute PTA dad.

All of the PTA moms are split on whether he is a jerk or a hottie.

“This is a bake sale Karen not a from the store sale.”

Loves having his kids sit on his lap while he does paperwork.

His favorite thing to do is read his kids bed time stories or cuddle them to sleep.

A sleepy Giorno with a baby on his chest is a beautiful sight.

Preferably wants one or two kids.

Trish Una:

Her spoiling ability is seconded by Giorno’s

Once again very humble child

Is your kids go to with math or art homework.

Head of the Prom Committee

Helps organize all school dances really.

Co-ordinating outfit holiday cards are one of her favorite family activities.

Does that involve the entire Bucci Gang sometimes?

You bet your ass it does.

Has Helicopter mom tendencies

Tries not to be overbearing, but she just wants to be there for them.

Always kisses the kids goodnight.

Always even if she has to do it over face time.

Wants a big family 3-6 kids.

[lyranova]

Leon and Alistar

Hi guys! So here’s Part 1 of a co-op fic of mine and @thoughtfullyrainynightmare ! We had to split it into 2 parts because it was so long 😅! Anyway hope you all enjoy~! Also this isn’t edited very well my apologies!

Word Count: 3,034

Taglist: @eme-eleff @jovialnoise @simpingforthisonedeer @succulentsunrise

Warnings: None

———

Clouds floated through the blue sky as people started gathering at the training grounds of Magic Knights' headquarters. New squad members had been admitted to the squads once more this year, but for most of them it was a day off.

However, that wasn't the case for these knights, who had been off on the evaluation day, since their parents had admitted them to the squad even without partaking into the exam. And this training took place for the purpose of bringing together the next generation of potential squad captains, or those who'd otherwise most likely end up in prominent roles in the kingdom.

The young knights were no strangers to each other; having passed each other by because of their parents' relationships, but this would be the first day of properly training together. Training and building towards a a more unionized generation of Magic Knights, where the robe you wore wouldn't be a stigma, creating "us or them" mentality within the knight ranks.

The Wizard King and Magic Knight Captains considered it one step closer to realizing their dreams of making one unified society. Alistar Vangeance, son of the Golden Dawn’s Captain, was the first to arrive at the Magic Knights HQ for this ‘bonding’ exercise. He admittedly thought it was a good idea, but he was a little hesitant as he didn’t know much about the other children except for Hikari. He leaned against one of the walls in the room as he watched the other children enter one by one, the Captains were all seated in the gallery above so they could get a bird’s eye view of the exercise.

“ Hm I wonder why the Vermillion kids are?” Hikari asked suddenly, making Alistar look at her. All the other children were there except for them.

“ Maybe they’re just running late?” He shrugged simply before the doors opened to reveal the Vermillion twins. Leonidas and Cyraleona.

“ Sorry we’re late, we got held up in the city, it won’t happen again.” Leonidas promised as his sister nodded in agreement. Fuegoleon sat down in his seat quickly as well.

Alistar admittedly had only met the two in passing and was usually very polite. As the orange haired young man walked past him Alistar nodded politely.

“ Leonidas.” The young man turned and nodded politely as well.

“ Alistar.”

Cyraleona quirked an eyebrow at her brother. He was keeping it civil, but there was something about the exchange that seemed tense, more so than usually. It was supposed to be about building better relations, but instead it seemed, at that moment, more as if both of them being prepared to defend their family honour.

"Hikari,"" she acknowledge with a smile while glancing at the raven haired girl next to Alistair, in the hopes of gently nudging her brother.

"Hi," Hikari greeted back. "Nice day, isn't it? Training is much more fun when it's not pouring down."

"Yes," Leonidas agreed with a small nod, glancing at Hikari and giving her a polite smile.

"Indeed," Alistair agreed as well, doing the same.

A moment of silence hung in the air as the grown-ups talked amongst themselves on the balcony; probably going through the day's agenda.

"I wonder what will be in store for the day," Hikari pondered out loud. "I can't imagine we'll be sparring for the whole day."

Alistar shrugged as he also looked up toward the adults. He was sure they probably had more planned then just fighting, especially since they kept calling it a ‘bonding’ experience. He noticed the Vermillion twins doing the same.

“ I would like to think it’ll be more than training. But who knows with our parents, especially since they do like to surprise us every now and then with something unexpected.” He chuckled and Hikari nodded.

“ They’ll probably have us start out with sparring and maybe even have us go out on a mock mission or something to test our skills as a team.” Cyrleona said softly as she turned to look back at the small group. Leonidas nodded.

“ That would be the smartest move, pair up two people to spar against one another and then make them have to work together.” Alistar placed a hand thoughtfully under his chin.

“ You sound like you know a lot more about this than you’re letting on.” Alistar meant it to come off as a joke, but it came out more like a serious statement. He watched Leonidas’s eyes narrow a bit before Hikari sighed beside him.

“ Well if that’s the case I hope I’m not paired up with you Alistar,” Hikari said quickly changing the subject. “ As your bodyguard I’m meant to protect you, not hurt you.”

As Alistar went to open his mouth to reply he watched as all the adults stood at the balconies edge and faced their children

"Listen up you brats," Yami was the first to speak up as he let his gaze travel around the room freely, but still looking at Hikari fondly for a brief second. "We have a full day planned ahead for you, so listen first and ask questions second."

Charlotte glanced at him from the corner of her eye, clearly disagreeing with his choice of words. But. He had always been like that, and though he was much more gentle around their kids, he hadn't changed the way he spoke to other's kids.

"Thank you Yami," William smiled at him. "I believe we all know why where here, so we can skip right through to the events of the day. You can probably guess that our aim isn't to only have you train in combat, but also grow in other areas of life."

Hikari could see a faint smirk pass over Alistair's lips as his father spoke the word 'grow'. But the moment only lasted for a fraction of a second, and no one else had noticed.

"You will begin the day by sparring in pairs, and to avoid our personal opinions on who should train with whom, we'll be drawing lots for the pairs," Fuegoleon continued. "And after you have sparred, you'll be partaking on a treasure hunt with your peer."

"A treasure hunt?" Cyra mumbled to herself. Her voice was full of surprise and spoken with a delicate tone, one that no one but the four of them could most likely hear.

“ Now,” Charlotte began as she stepped forward with a small goblet full of lots with the childrens names on them. One by one the Captain’s pulled out the names written on them. Alistar partially hoped he would be training with Hikari, but a small piece of his heart protested; he didn’t want to fight her, ever. Because that meant he could possibly hurt her.

“ Alistar Vangeance,” Yami suddenly announced as he looked at the lot with the white haired boy’s name on it. He hoped beyond hope the next lot would be Hikari’s, but his hopes were dashed when Yami read. “ Leonidas Vermillion.”

The two teens looked at each other with wide eyes as did the young girls. None had been expecting that. Alistar couldn’t even remember what Leonidas’s affinity was and Leonidas happened to be thinking the same thing.

Leonidas and Alistar quickly looked up towards the adults and saw the looks on their father’s faces; there was no way out of this.

“ Which leaves Hikari and Cyraleona as the last pair, we’ll be calling your names randomly to start the sparring matches.” William announced and the kids went off in their pairs. Hikari looked at Alistar apologetically and quickly mouthed ‘you’ll be ok!’ before going off with Cyraleona.

“ Well you were right; our parents do like to surprise us.” Leonidas told him before walking away and Alistar nodded in agreement before following after him to a nearby corner where they stood somewhat uncomfortably next to each other as they watched the other kids spar when their names were being called.

They walked up to the training grounds, standing on opposite side of the arena and looking at each other. Alistair took out his grimoire, leaving Leon wonder if he should do the same.

‘I've just finished crafting it, and I've been fine until now... But mom always says that I shouldn't rely on more simple spells at all times.’ He thought to himself, seeing Alistair frown.

‘Why isn't he taking out his grimoire? He does intend to use spells, right?’ His gaze shifted for a moment to the adults who hadn't yet given them permission to start the battle.

At the side of the field, Cyraleona couldn't help but lean a bit forward, while trying to keep herself otherwise composed. Leonidas hadn't yet shown her his grimoire, and he had used a good while in the process of making it in the first place. Thus, she couldn't help but feel the flicker of excitement of probably seeing him fight with it for the first time.

‘No... I think I can manifest it during the battle if need be. Because your grimoire is your lifeline, right? Any attacks to it would mean certain death, right? Because Cloverians' life is connected into their grimoires while for Theans it's a manifestation of their powers, right? And I'm both, so I can't say for certain.’ He took a deep breath and set his mind to the task.

"Oy-oy Vermillion. What's up with your boy?" Yami asked on the balcony. "He's not taking out his grimoire."

"It's something he gets from his mother's side," Fue only commented. "I can't say that I agree with it, but it's his choice to make."

William frowned at Fuegoleon’s comment but didn’t say anything, he just turned to look back at the battle. Alistar looked calm and relaxed, but those that knew him knew better; he was anticipating his attack. Possibly even trying to guess what the young Vermillions first move would be.

“ You may begin!” Nozel shouted suddenly just as Alistar tilted his head curiously.

‘Let’s see what you’ve got, Vermillion.’ He instantly flipped through the pages of his grimoire as he finally landed on a spell. He smiled slightly before it disappeared, this would probably be his safest bet to try since he didn’t know what magic to use.

“ World Plant Creation Magic; Ice-Plant’s entanglement!” He watched as the fire resistant plant began to spring up from the floor and tried to wrap around Leonidas.

The boys began to dodge and maneuver around the arena as they cast offensive and defensive spells at one another. Hikari watched with a smirk on her face; he was giving Alistar a run for his money, the only one she had seen ever give him this much of a challenge was herself.

‘Come on Alistar you’ve got this! Push past your limits!’ She cheered internally, she wanted her best friend to succeed.

“ Your sons doing a very fine job Fuegoleon.” William complimanted, Fuego smiled and nodded.

“ As is yours. We raised two very capable mages I think.” Fuego said as his son sent another spell towards the young Vangeance

"Burning Sun Magic; Sunrays!" He called out while shooting scorching rays at Alistair.

‘Damn it! I can't win like this. This isn't Thea so I don't have a nearly endless pool of mana from which to draw. He's going to run out of mana too if we keep this up, but then it'll be a question of which runs out first. And relying on the 'chance' that it'd be him, would be just bad tactics.’ He took the moment he had while Alistair was dodging his attack to collect his mana, and manifest his grimoire before him.

"Hm?" Yami hummed while leaning closer. "He's creating a grimoire?"

"'Creating' wouldn't be the correct term to use here," Fuegoleon commented. "He has had his grimoire for a few months now, but for some reason he refuses to use it."

William glance at Fuegoleon, unsure of how to feel because of the explanation. But if Leonidas indeed refused to use his grimoire freely then that must've meant that Alistair had forced him to do so. And that could be counted as a compliment, right?

Leon collected mana, as if waves of pure energy collecting in his hands. And as soon as it had formed into a shape of a book, he let the pages flutter open as he called out: "Burning Sun magic; Heat wave!"

The arena became flooded with scorching, burning mana, while Leon spoke out: "I might not be able to burn your plants. But they can still wilt, right? And even if your magic won't, the 'you' can get dehydrated, right?"

‘This is my safest bet. I might not be able to hit him, but if he can't get far enough from my spell's reach, then he has to go all out and maybe, maybe exhaust himself.’ Leonidas thought.

———

Alistar and Leonidas stood there listening as the Captain’s explained the Treasure hunt. Both had fainted from excessive mana use, which was somewhat embarrassing, but not as embarrassing as Hikari chewing Alistar out for it in front of everyone, while Cyraleona had gently scolded her twin. Fuego and William both shook their heads in disapproval, but their battle ending in a draw meant two things; one, that they were evenly matched, and two they both still had a lot to learn.

“ Now the rules are simple; each team has a map and a compass, you are not allowed to use mapping spells as not every mage has one. You have 2 hours to find the treasure, if no one finds it then it will be a draw.” Vangeance explained quickly.

“ Your time begins now.” Fugeo announced and each team went off in different directions.

Alistar glanced over at Leonidas as they went off in the direction the compass led them, he gave Leonidas the compass while he held the map. They walked silently for the most part, saying a few coordinates here and there.

“ What does this thing even look like?” He muttered and the orange haired male shrugged.

“ Like a box I assume.” Leonidas muttered as well, both were feeling a little defeated at their sparring match, but maybe if they found the treasure before anyone else would make up for it. Alistar for sure wanted to find it before Hikari, they had made a small bet that the losing team would have to do whatever the winning team asked for an entire day.

"I really thought that they would have had something more... intellectually stimulating in store for us...." Alistair muttered to himself as they continued forward.

"Yeah..." Leonidas agreed. "Something more than travel an X amount of miles to a given distance and dig up a box would have been nice."

"If it even is a box," Alistair frowned while looking at the map in his hand.

"What else could it possibly be? It has to be something small enough for us to carry, right?" Leonidas shrugged again while looking at the white haired male.

"That's true," Alistair admitted. "But the girls went to the opposite direction, so we aren't competing for the same treasure. That has to mean something."

They shared a glance as they both thought about what it could possibly mean while a silence settled into the air.

"How far is it supposed to be?" Leonidas asked after a while of pondering.

"Well, given how much we've moved during this time, I'd say half an hour more," Alistair commented.

"You think it could be a dungeon, or is it an open area?" Leonidas asked, wanting to have a better idea of what they'd be instore for.

"I don't think it really qualifies as a dungeon, but there might be a structure nearby it."

“ Hm,” Alistar looked around before he started walking again. “ they would want it to be concealed but not too concealed where we can’t find it.” He muttered looking around.

“ How about that building over there? It looks like the perfect spot.” Leonidas pointed toward a small, half standing building in the distance. It was in an open area but behind it stood dark woods, an ambush could easily be inside. The two boys quickly made their way towards it slowly.

“ Be cautious; we don’t know what we’re in for.” Alistar said and the orange haired boy nodded in agreement, Alistar and Leonidas stood still for a few moments. Both trying to sense if there was mana inside the building.

“ It’s faint, but it’s there.” Leonidas said as he looked towards the white haired boy who nodded.

“ Yeah, someone’s in there. But it feels like one person so I think we can take them.” Alistar said thoughtfully before the two boys rushed in and saw...nothing?

“ Hm this is odd, why do we feel mana but there isn’t a single person here?” Leonidas mused as he looked around, Alistar shrugged as he walked to the center of the room where the “treasure” sat.

“ Well, this is anticlimatic.” Alistar chuckled. “ I was hoping it would be something *more* then just a box-.” He didn’t get to finish his sentence as they were attacked suddenly by people in bandits robes.

“ Ah I should’ve know; our parents wouldn’t make getting the treasure that easy.” Leonidas chuckled as he and Alistar began to fight off the “bandits”.

Luckily it was the two of them against three, and since they knew it to be a fake fight, the battle didn't take long. And, as suspected, the "bandits" turned out to be members of their parents' squads. ‘Too easy’ Alistair and Leon thought to themselves.

They were able to grab the box, which was a simple wooden one, seemingly nothing much on it. There was only a faint glow of mana from it, almost as if long forgotten, dormant mana.

"Should we still see what's inside of it?" Leon thought out loud.

Alistair turned his head for a moment before shrugging. "Well it's not against the rules, so suppose there's no harm in it."

The two halted their steps to inspect the box. The lock of it didn't pose any problems to them, so it didn't take long for the two of them to crack open the lid to reveal... an image of a red herring.

———

Part 2 will be posted shortly! Thank you guys for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

[mala-sadas]

Shielded

Summary: Hop is on a losing streak, and Chairman Rose wants to talk to Leon about it. Leon just wants to keep his little brother from getting hurt.

Length: 2,435 words

Or, if you’d prefer: [Read on Ao3] [Read on FFN]

“Morning, Oleana!” Leon calls, jogging up to the door to the chairman’s office. The chairman's secretary stands in front of it, her arms folded and a scowl on her face. He flashes her a big smile, but her scowl only deepens.

“You’re late. Again.”

He chuckles. “I took a couple of unplanned detours on the way before Charizard took pity on me and steered me in the right direction.”

“The chairman’s time is a very valuable resource. You cannot keep wasting it like this and getting away with it, Champion,” Oleana hisses.

“Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry,” Leon says, dropping his smile. Once upon a time he would have tried throwing in a cheeky remark or a compliment to lighten the mood, but he’s learned by now that Oleana doesn’t appreciate that sort of thing. She doesn’t appreciate much of what Leon does, honestly, but the least he can do is try not to agitate her any more than usual.

Oleana narrows her eyes and steps aside, giving Leon access to the door. “I’m not the one you need to be apologizing to. Go inside. You’ve kept him waiting long enough.”

Leon nods and opens the door, heading into the office. It always feels larger and more spacious than it really is because there’s so little furniture inside; three of the four walls are covered in plaques, photos, and certificates commemorating all the brilliant things the chairman has accomplished. The last one is a row of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a magnificent view of Wyndon – just like viewing the city from atop Charizard’s back.

As he approaches the chairman’s desk, he looks out the windows at the people bustling about, going about their days with their Pokémon at their sides. There aren’t too many people out right now, but in a couple of weeks the streets are sure to be packed with visitors coming in for the Champion Cup. It’s his favorite time of year, both for seeing such a wide variety of people and Pokémon and for the thrilling battles that the Gym Challengers are going to have. He’s been counting down the days – between his little brother, his brother’s rival, and Piers’ little sister, this year’s Champion Cup is certain to be full of exciting and passionate battles.

“Something on your mind, Leon?”

“Huh?” Leon blinks, taking in the birds-eye view of Wyndon through the window in front of him. He turns around, realizing the chairman’s desk is still a few feet away. Chairman Rose has put down the documents he was reading and watches Leon with a bemused expression on his face. Leon smiles sheepishly, hurrying the rest of the distance to the chairman’s desk. “Sorry, I got a little distracted.”

“With you, I’m not surprised,” Chairman Rose says. He gestures to one of the two chairs on the opposite side of the desk. “Have a seat.” As Leon sits down, the chairman adds, “What was it this time?”

“Pardon?”

“What had you so distracted that you couldn’t make it from the door to my desk without making a wrong turn?” Chairman Rose asks, eyes sparkling with mirth.

Leon laughs. “I was thinking about the Champion Cup, actually.”

“Yes. It’s coming up soon, isn’t it?” Chairman Rose muses. “My, how the time flies.”

“Right? It feels like just yesterday that I was giving Hop and his friend their starter Pokémon and seeing them off on their journey,” Leon chuckles. “But soon, they’ll be right here in Wyndon, battling it out for the right to challenge me!”

“Assuming they make it that far, that is.”

“Of course they will! They’ve both got great potential as Trainers. I wouldn’t have endorsed them if they didn’t,” Leon adds with a playful smile.

Chairman Rose hums in acknowledgement. “That’s what I wanted to discuss with you, actually.”

Leon tilts his head. “The endorsements?”

“No.” He shakes his head. “Your little brother.”

Leon tenses. “What about him?” he asks. The last two times that the chairman had brought up Hop in conversation, he’d been looking for Hop’s assistance with something regarding the tests he was conducting at the Power Plant in Hammerlocke. Leon had made it clear both times that he didn’t want Hop getting involved with the chairman’s tests. But Chairman Rose is just as stubborn as Leon himself, so he doesn’t think that it’s the last attempt the chairman will make.

“I’m concerned about his performance in the Gym Challenge,” Chairman Rose says. “He’s been on a losing streak lately.”

“Oh, that,” Leon says, relaxing a bit. “I’ve noticed that too, but…it’s not unusual for Gym Challengers to lose some battles here and there. Hop is resilient – he’ll get through this. You don’t need to worry about him, Chairman.” He grins cheekily. “That’s my job!”

“Normally, I wouldn’t be,” Chairman Rose says, steepling his fingers on the desk. “But once it starts becoming bad for public image, that’s when I have to step in, I’m afraid.”

Leon’s grin fades. This kind of thing is exactly why he’s always tried to keep Chairman Rose as far away from his little brother as possible. “He’s just a Gym Challenger,” he says, keeping his tone level. “His public image is none of his – or our – concern.”

“No, no, Leon,” the chairman says, giving him a pitying smile. “It’s not young Hop’s image that I’m concerned about. It’s yours.”

His brow furrows. “Excuse me?”

“The unbeatable Champion endorses his little brother to take on the Gym Challenge,” Chairman Rose says with a flourish. “It’s a sweet gesture – the kind of thing that really catches the public eye and touches hearts. Unfortunately, that kind of attention has opened him up to greater scrutiny from the media, and with this losing streak, there have been harsher whispers… People are wondering if he’s really fit to be taking on the Gym Challenge.”

“Of course he is!” Leon retorts immediately. “I know my little brother; I’ve watched him battle. He’s got great instincts and he’s even more knowledgeable about Pokémon than I am. Once he learns to trust those instincts, he’s going to be–”

“You’re biased, Leon,” Chairman Rose interrupts. “It’s easy for you to overlook his faults because you’re so fond of him, but the truth is Hop’s just not as talented of a Trainer as you think he is. And the public is starting to take notice of that.”

“He’s… I’m not…” Leon trails off. He’s got so much potential – but doesn’t everyone? I’m not biased – but that’s exactly what someone who’s biased would say. Hop isn’t perfect, Leon knows that. But he can overcome those flaws and become a truly great Trainer…right? Or does Leon think that just because he’s blinded by love and pride for his brother?

“If not personal bias, the only other explanation is that you’re losing your touch.” Chairman Rose leans forward in his chair, staring Leon in the eye. “And that couldn’t be true, could it? You’re the unbeatable Leon. You can’t have weaknesses.” He leans back, drumming his fingers thoughtfully on the edge of the desk. “But, if the Champion endorses a Trainer who’s as weak as that… Maybe his eye isn’t as sharp as it used to be. Maybe his judgments are off. Maybe he’s not unbeatable anymore.”

Leon narrows his eyes. Are people really saying that about him, Galar’s beloved Champion, all because his little brother struggled in a couple of Gym battles? Or is this just Chairman Rose’s forward thinking going a step too far, trying to preemptively put a stop to rumors that may never spread about him at all?

“With all due respect, Chairman, this is all just speculation,” Leon says tersely, getting up from his seat. “I’m done with this conversation.”

“No, you’re not. Sit down. Now,” Chairman Rose says sharply, pointing a stern finger at the chair Leon just vacated. For a moment, it’s like he’s ten years old again, being chastised by the chairman like a father scolding his son. He sits back down on the edge of his seat without protest, but keeps his hands clenched tightly into fists. He doubts he’s going to like where this conversation goes.

Chairman Rose folds his hands and rests them on his desk. “We can’t have people going around thinking less of our Champion because he let his weak little brother take on the Gym Challenge. We have to do something about it.”

Leon clenches his jaw, resisting the instinct to defend his brother. Hop isn’t weak, but Chairman Rose has clearly already made up his mind on that particular point. If he wants make sure that whatever action they take won’t put Hop in the crossfire, he shouldn’t argue with the chairman any more than necessary. “What do you have in mind? I can’t just take back his letter of endorsement for no good reason.”

“Oh, you certainly can. But that’s not what I’m asking of you,” Chairman Rose says calmly. “I simply need you to…nudge him in the right direction.”

“You want me to tell him that he should quit the Gym Challenge,” Leon says flatly.

“Mm…don’t be so straightforward about it with him. But in essence, yes. If young Hop quits of his own accord, he’ll stop dragging down your good name and no one will know that we had anything to do with it. If anyone can convince him to do that, it’s you.”

Leon stares at Chairman Rose with his mouth dangling half-open, unable to form words to express just how appalling of a solution that is. The chairman has taken extreme measures to preserve Leon’s public image before, and Leon isn’t always happy with the role he has to play in them. But the chairman’s never asked him to do something as underhanded and manipulative as planting an idea in someone’s head – an idea that would make his brother miserable.

The last time he spoke to Hop, Hop had apologized to him for losing a battle. If he told Hop that those losses were starting to reflect poorly on him, how awful would Hop feel then?

Leon takes a deep breath, finally finding his voice. “No,” he declares. “No, absolutely not! I’m not going to – to trick my little brother into giving up the Gym Challenge to save face for myself!”

Chairman Rose sighs. “Fine, if you insist. I’ll just have to make some room in my schedule to go talk to him myself.”

“What? No, you can’t!” Leon exclaims, eyes widening.

“Why not?” Chairman Rose asks, raising an eyebrow. “I’m doing you a favor. You don’t want to have this conversation with your brother, so I’ll do it for you.”

“I don’t want anyone to have this conversation with my brother!”

“I’m sorry, Leon, but it has to be done. So, either you go talk to him, or I will.”

Leon folds his arms, considering his options. Letting Chairman Rose talk to Hop is the absolute worst one. Knowing him, he’d convince Hop to quit just by letting Hop think he’s too weak to complete the Gym Challenge, and he might even make Hop think that Leon wants him to quit. That’s the last thing Leon wants his brother to hear. If Leon talked to him, at least he could frame it as an opportunity to find something else to do with his life, something that would make Hop happier.

But even doing that would make Leon feel terrible – Hop’s dreamed of doing the Gym Challenge his whole life, and Leon wants to see him succeed. He wants to see Hop make it all the way through the Champion Cup and fight him for the title of Champion. And most importantly, he believes that Hop can do it. That’s what Hop really needs to hear.

“Chairman,” Leon says slowly, “I may be the Champion, but I’m also Hop’s brother. I’m supposed to support him, not tear him down. And I know how much he looks up to me. If he thought even for a moment that I didn’t believe in him, it would crush him.”

“So?”

“So, I’m not going to let you do something that would break my little bro’s spirits!” Leon retorts. “I’m not going to suggest to him that he should quit the Gym Challenge, and neither are you.”

Chairman Rose frowns. “I’m afraid that’s not an option, Leon.”

A rare flash of anger bubbles up in his chest. “Like hell it’s not!” he snaps, leaning forward in his seat. “Look, this is only necessary because Hop’s on a losing streak, right? So if I can get him out of this funk and back to winning, there’s no need for him to quit the Gym Challenge. I just need to talk to him.” His voice gets quieter, and his arms fall down to his sides. “Give me the chance to do that, Chairman. Please.”

It’s a desperate plea, but it seems to be enough. Chairman Rose is pragmatic, not heartless. He leans back in his chair, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Hmm. Has he challenged the Gym in Circhester yet?”

“No, sir. His battle’s scheduled at noon today.”

The chairman hums again, checking the time. “You won’t be able to make it there before it starts,” he muses. “Get going to Circhester, then. Talk to your brother. I expect to see improvement in his rematch.”

“And if he doesn’t need to rematch the Circhester Gym?” Leon asks.

“He will.”

Leon cracks a smile, even though he doesn’t feel like smiling. “I like to stay optimistic.”

“If he hasn’t improved in the rematch, I will be stopping by to have a word with him myself,” Chairman Rose adds.

Leon wants to protest, because if anyone has to tell Hop that he needs to drop out of the Gym Challenge, Leon would rather do it himself. But he’s already testing the limits of Chairman Rose’s generosity, and he’s hopeful that no one will need to tell Hop that at all. “Thank you, Chairman,” he says instead.

“That’s all. You’re dismissed.”

Leon nods, getting up from his chair and heading back towards the door. Rematches usually happen the day after the initial match, so he has about a day to figure out why Hop is struggling and help him work through it. Not quite as easy as a Pokémon battle, but still doable. And he can’t wait to see the look on Hop’s face when he finds out that Leon is visiting him in Circhester for a whole day.

By the time he reaches Oleana, still hovering outside Chairman Rose’s office, Leon’s not faking the smile on his face anymore.

[flowercrown-bard]

A new us will begin (10/ ?)

word count: 6k

AO3

part 1   / part 2 / part 3  / part 4  / part 5 / part 6  / part 7 / part 8 / part 9 / part 11

Slowly, the snow began to thaw as winter melted into spring.

Dandy had only asked him to stay for the cold months. There had never been any talk of Geralt staying any longer than that.

He did it anyway. No one mentioned it and maybe it was just Geralt’s imagination, but when the first flowers bloomed and Geralt was still with the troupe, the smiles they gave him were warmer and when Nadine hugged him one morning, before he went away for a bit for an easy contract, it felt like a hug that welcomed him to the family.

It took a while to convince Dandy that the contracts Geralt took while the others performed, were nowhere near as dangerous as his fight with the skullwarg. It took even longer until Dandy’s worry for him turned into giddy curiosity.

Dandy kept insisting that Geralt had to give him all the details of his hunts, so that he could stop worrying about him. Geralt gladly obliged.

There was a fluttering in Geralt’s chest like a bird’s wings, when Dandy first announced that he was going to write another play, this one about monsters and witchers.

Watching him work was like watching the sky change colours when the sun rose. Breathtaking, no matter how often he got to witness it.

Sometimes, Dandy dictated the lines his mind created to Geralt or one of the other players. Other times, he wrote them down himself, in a scrip that Geralt had never seen before. The rest of the troupe knew how to read it though, for Nadine read over Dandy’s scripts with a critical eye and gave suggestions where she saw fit.

More and more often, Dandy also asked Geralt for his opinion on what he was writing. His mouth formed a surprised “Oh” when Geralt reminded him that he didn’t know how to read what Dandy wrote.

From then on, Geralt spent most of their evenings after the performances or the fight scene rehearsals with Dandy, who taught him patiently how to read the way he did.

“Here,” Dandy said, when he was satisfied with Geralt’s progress on recognising individual letters. Out of a pocket in his coat, he produced a single sheet of paper and handed it to Geralt. “This was the first thing I ever wrote.”

Geralt hesitated, before unfolding the paper carefully. “You always carry this with you?”

Dandy hummed in affirmation. “I almost left it for my parents to keep. They were so proud when I finally learned to write and read. My mother actually cried and my father hugged me so tightly I thought he was going to break my back.”

A soft smile spread across Dandy’s lips and his fingers gently ran over the paper, tracing the word he had written there decades ago.

It did something strange to Geralt’s chest. “Why did you keep it then?”

“As a reminder. Of my parents.”

Geralt’s hands clenched and unclenched, not knowing what to do.

“I’m sorry,” he said finally, placing one hand over Dandy’s. “I know you never mention them, but…if you want to talk about it…”

Dandy’s sudden laughter startled Geralt.

“Oh, no no, they aren’t dead or anything like that.” Dandy turned his hand to guide Geralt’s fingers to the thing he had written there. “Here, read that.”

Geralt did as he was told. “Leon Nowak, Baron of Whitecoast?” Geralt looked up at Dandy to see if he had read it correctly. Dandy beamed and pressed a kiss against Geralt’s cheek. It was a fleeting little peck, nothing more, but Geralt wished it would linger, wished he could just lean down and steal a real kiss from Dandy.

Instead he ran his fingers over the name again.

“Who is that?” Geralt asked.

“Oh.” Dandy waved his hand around, accidentally – or perhaps not so accidentally – swatting Geralt’s chest in the process. “That’s me.”

Geralt’s brows shot up. “You’re a baron? I thought you said you weren’t rich?”

“Well, it’s true. I’m not. My parents are.”

Geralt’s jaw clenched. “They didn’t disinherit you, did they? Because you’re…”

“No. Gods, no they would never do that.” Dandy looked affronted by the very notion. “If I wrote them a letter asking for money, they wouldn’t hesitate to send me a small fortune They even offered the troupe their patronage, should we ever be in need of it.” He let out a small, content sigh. “But I don’t want that. Don’t get me wrong, having money is nice and I love visiting them and not sleeping in a wagon or an inn for once. But I like earning my own coin. Even if it’s not nearly as much as they could give me.”

Geralt gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “You’re good at acting. You seem happy when you’re on stage.”

“I am.” Pride tinged his voice that made Geralt’s heart flutter like a hummingbird’s wings. “It’s really important to me being able to do that.” He let out a short laugh. “I can’t say my parents weren’t worried when I announced that I wanted to travel, but they have supported me every step along the way until I could support myself.”

Geralt ran his fingers over the bumps and dots that were Dandy’s name once more. “They taught you how to write.”

“Eh, not exactly. They had no idea that this kind of script even existed. But they have wealth and influence and they love me enough to use it to get me the best tutor they could find. A sorceress, if you can believe it.”

Geralt’s breath hitched. “What? Sorceresses don’t just become tutors. They are at court or work for the lodge or –“

“Yeah, believe me, I have no idea why Philippa agreed to teach me.”

Geralt’s heart skipped a beat and his blood turning cold. “Philippa Eilhart?”

Dandy drew back in surprise. “You have heard of her?”

“I know her.” I asked her if reincarnation could be possible. I asked her if you could still be alive.

A strange expression flickered over Dandy’s face. “That makes a lot of sense, actually. She talked about you a lot. I always wondered by she kept insisting that should I meet a witcher I should go with him.”

Geralt’s mind was racing, unable to grasp what Dandy was saying.

“She said…that’s why you reacted like that when you found out I was a witcher.” The realisation hit Geralt like a punch, leaving him breathless. “When I told you who I was, you said you needed to think, but you didn’t hesitate to ask me to come back.”

Dandy scooted closer again. “I did. But, Geralt, believe me, I didn’t just ask you to come back because Philippa had told me to. I mean, that was a part of it, sure, but I also wanted to get to know you. And I’m glad I did.”

“I-yeah. I’m glad too.” His thumb caressed Dandy’s knuckles, a soft, soothing motion that was more for Geralt’s benefit than Dandy’s. There was too much to think about, too much he didn’t understand. How long had Philippa known that Geralt’s theory of the reincarnation had been true? And why had she agreed to tutor Dandy without telling anyone who he was?

Knowing that the sorceress had a hand in Dandy’s life, perhaps even orchestrating the way his life would go, left Geralt with a sense of unease. Especially since it was Philippa. The sorceress had never done him any intentional harm, but not once in the long time they have known each other, had she been open about her goals, always playing a different game than anybody else.

“Geralt?” Dandy asked tentatively, when Geralt had been quiet for too long.

Geralt forced himself to snap out of his crushing thoughts and put as much teasing as he could in his voice as he said, “I just have one more question. Why Dandy? Out of all the new names you could have chosen for yourself, why this?”

Dandy let out a bark of laughter, burying his face in Geralt’s shoulder. “I know. It’s a terrible name. In my defence, I didn’t exactly come up with it myself. Technically.”

Geralt chuckled. “It’s not a terrible name. I think it suits you.”

Dandy poked a finger in Geralt’s side with a little growl. “Don’t let Mika hear you say that or I’ll never get to hear the end of it.”

Geralt gave a questioning grunt to which Dandy replied with an overly dramatic sigh.

“You see, when I joined the troupe, I wanted to give myself a stage name.”

“Naturally.”

“Exactly! Good to know we’re on the same page.” Dandy stopped poking Geralt, instead sprawling his fingers across Geralt’s side. “I wanted to call myself Dandelion. You know, sort of as a little wink to my given name. Dande-Leon, as it were.”

Geralt didn’t even try to supress the snort. “That’s a terrible pun.”

“Ah the others agree with you there. No one appreciates my remarkable wit and humour.” He let out an exaggerated sigh. “They kept teasing me about being all posh and a dandy when I first joined and somehow that name stuck. Oh, you wouldn’t believe how indignant I was when they started calling me Dandy, but…it was also nice. I’ve never really had friends that would tease me before. Maybe it was because no one wanted to piss off a baron or maybe they thought they needed to be extra careful with me because I’m blind. But the way the troupe talks to me and teases me…it makes me feel like I really, truly belonge.” He nuzzled closer into Geralt and Geralt wasn’t sure if he imagined the stifled sniffle. “And to be fair, Dandelion probably wouldn’t have been the best name.”

“I think it would be a fitting name,” Geralt said softly, stroking Dandy’s hair soothingly. “It’s always the yellow flowers with you, isn’t it?”

The words escaped him without thinking. Dandy’s brows furrowed in confusion, but then he snorted.

“I wouldn’t know about that, now, would I?” He tightened his hold on Geralt.

Geralt hummed in contemplation. “It still fits. My friend always used to wish on Dandelions. Just small things that would come true anyway. ‘I wish for the next performance to go well.’ Or ‘I wish that Roach will start recognising me as a friend and stop trying to bite my fingers.’”

Dandy’s shoulders shook with a chuckle. “Those sound like great wishes. Did they come true?”

“Hmm. He always said they did. But I am pretty sure he just snuck Roach treats behind my back until she started liking him.”

“Sounds like a wise man. If Roach didn’t already love me, I might have tried the same thing. But why would Dandelion be fitting for me then?”

“Because being here with you is everything I could have wished for.”

“You did it!” Dandy beamed with pride. “You read your first play!”

Geralt grunted, but Dandy’s joy was contagious. “With a lot of corrections and help from you. And it was a short play.”

“So?” Dandy nudged Geralt with his shoulder. “You still did it. I can’t believe you really learned to read like that for me.”

“It’s important to you.”

“It is,” Dandy agreed softly, before a sly grin spread over his face. “Now that you’re able to read my scripts, you will be able to learn the lines for your first role.” Mirth brightening his voice and he twirled his cane in excitement.

Geralt made a noise not unlike a startled horse. “My role? I don’t think so.”

“Ah, but my dearest Geralt,” Dandy drawled his name and leaned forward with a shit eating grin. “You promised me you’d play with me if I joined your lessons.” That cheeky bastard.

“I meant the lute.”

“Well, I didn’t. And I don’t have a lute.” He nudged Geralt playfully. “Now come on. I’d love to see you act.”

Geralt put up some more token resistance, but he still joined one mock-rehearsal the players put on, all of them cheering for Geralt to join them and read the lines of the witcher-character.

He felt ridiculous, trying to mimic the actors’ dramatic gestures and way of speaking. It hadn’t taken long until everyone agreed to never have Geralt act on an actual stage, but between his laughter, Dandy assured Geralt, that that was the funniest performance Dandy had ever had the pleasure to listen to.

From then on, the only times that Geralt read lines and tried his hand at acting, was when he helped Dandy practice his own lines by reading the other parts.

Geralt closed his eyes and hummed softly, as Dandy played with his hair.

It was a peaceful moment. Had anyone told Geralt a couple of months ago that he would get to have such moments again, he would have laughed in their face.

And yet, here he was, with Dandy, the man he fell in love with more with each day they spent together. Every morning when he woke up holding Dandy close, his heart felt like it would beat out of his chest. Every time, Dandy laughed at Geralt reading his lines, Geralt wanted to taste that laugh with a kiss. Every time Geralt practiced reading the script Dandy had taught him and Dandy squeezed his shoulder with pride, the words ‘I love you’ burned on Geralt’s lips, begging to be spoken. He thought maybe, Dandy already knew.

It was moments like these, that Geralt was sure that he knew Dandy felt the same way, telling him with each touch he gifted Geralt and each word spoken softly between them.

It felt simultaneously strange, so familiar and right, lying with his head in Dandy’s lap, as if he belonged there.

The soft tug on his hair was soothing and nearly enough to lull him to sleep, but Geralt fought his heavy eyelids, unwilling to let this moment be taken away from him by sleep.

Softly, Dandy hummed the melody of the lullaby Geralt had taught him. It was a little off, since Geralt himself hadn’t been able to sing it right, but the melody was just as tender and tearing at his heart as it always had been.

Eventually, the song faded.

“What’s on your mind?” Dandy asked quietly, his fingers never stopping.

Geralt hummed quietly. “Who says that something’s on my mind?”

“There always is.” Dandy’s voice was full of fondness.

“Thinking about you.”

“A very good thing to think about,” Dandy teased and he tugged lightly on Geralt’s hair for emphasis.

Geralt didn’t know if it was the comforting feeling of Dandy touching him or the tone of his voice that loosened Geralt’s tongue and make him ask the question that had been burning at the back of his mind for months.

“Where did you get the inspiration for that play? The one about the pirate?”

Dandy’s hands stilled.

Months ago, Geralt would have begged him silently, please, remember me. Please remember that you loved me.

Now though, that voice inside his head was quiet. Geralt awaited Dandy’s answer with mere curiosity and not that desperation from before. Dandy didn’t need to remember his former feelings for him. It was enough that he was trusting Geralt and holding him dear enough to lie with him as they did now. Even if it turned out that it wasn’t what it had been before, it wouldn’t be any less perfect for it.

“I don’t know,” Dandy said finally. “It just came to me. Sometimes you just start writing and have no control over what comes out and it just felt right, writing that.”

Strangely, Geralt’s heart didn’t sink at that admission. Instead, he gave an acknowledging hum.

“Inspiration is a strange thing,” Geralt repeated what he had said once before, decades ago, when Jaskier had tried to explain to him why exactly it was so inspiring about watching Geralt fight.

Dandy let out a quiet laugh and resumed his ministrations.

“It sure is. And lately, I’ve found that I am chockfull of inspiration.”

Celebrating Belleteyn with the troupe was even more opulent than the festivities Jaskier had always dragged him too. And yet, it was nothing compared to the celebration that came about a week later.

The players pulled all the stops to make Dandy’s birthday truly unforgettable. With food, music and wine to spare, it would have been hard to believe that they were not-so-humble actors instead of nobles, if it weren’t for their total disregard of manners as they celebrated.

Dandy was blossoming in the attention like a flower in the sun. He was filled with so much palpable happiness that Geralt didn’t have the heart to refuse when Dandy grabbed his hand and asked him for a dance. It wasn’t one of those complicated danced with far too many steps to remember, that Jaskier had loved so much. It was but two people swaying in place, holding each other close. Geralt wasn’t sure if Dandy had chosen this dance because learning the steps to any of the elaborate dances was exhausting work for him, or because he liked holding Geralt close just as much as Geralt loved being near him.

That feeling in his chest was warm and fuzzy while they swayed and when Dandy rested his head against Geralt’s chest, he was sure he must hear his heart fluttering. Dandy’s hands on Geralt’s shoulders wandered a bit, playing with his hair and Geralt’s hands on his waist twitched in response, tugging him impossibly closer.

They slowed until they were barely moving anymore. Geralt couldn’t tell which one of them brought the dance to a halt first. All he could focus on was Dandy’s closeness.

Ever so slowly, Dandy lifted his head off Geralt’s chest, one of the hands leaving their place on Geralt’s shoulders and wandering up to cup Geralt’s cheeks.

Geralt leaned into the touch, like a drowning man leaning onto a piece of wood to keep him afloat. In this moment, he knew Dandy’s touch was the only thing keeping him from drifting away, from drowning in the miserable life he had led before Dandy.

“Geralt,” On Dandy’s lips, his name sounded almost like a plea, like a whisper of awe. “Thank you. For being here with me.”

“No place I’d rather be.” He had never meant anything more in his life. A soft smile spread across his lips. “My Dandelion.”

A small gasp escaped Dandy. His hand slowly trailed down until his thumb brushed against the corner of Geralt’s lips.

It wasn’t enough. Geralt wanted more, more, everything. He wanted Dandy. He wanted him to know that he was everything to Geralt.

Had their faces always been that close or had one of them moved closer?

Geralt’s heart sped up when Dandy tilted his head up a little. He was so close. All Geralt had to do was lean forward and capture Dandy’s lips in his.

“Geralt.” This time there was no mistaking that it was a plea.

They were so close that their breaths mingled. Geralt leaned forward and –

He froze, just before their lips could touch. He couldn’t do this. Not now. Not like this, with Dandy trusting him so openly to not even have his cane with him, just Geralt to guide him. But he couldn’t trust Geralt. Not when he lied and kept secrets and pretended that they were nothing more than two men who had found each other out of pure chance when there was something so much bigger and more terrible going on.

He pulled back and pretended that his heart didn’t shatter when Dandy’s face fell.

“I think we should join the others again,” Geralt said, his voice rough. “I’m sure Kara is sick of playing that slow song by now.”

“Oh,” Dandy said, his lips pressed into a thin smile that couldn’t hide his disappointment. “Yeah. You’re right. Still got a birthday to celebrate.”

Geralt led Dandy the few steps back from the makeshift dancefloor to the other players.

It shouldn’t have hurt when Dandy let go of Geralt and grabbed his cane again. The ache in Geralt’s chest dulled to a numb throb as Mika whisked Dandy away and brought back the smile that Geralt had stolen from Dandy.

Seeing Dandy happy again – singing and joking with his friends, letting them show him how much he meant to them – was beautiful, but Geralt couldn’t keep dark thoughts from creeping up at him.

He did his best not to let them show, to put cheer into his voice or not speak at all when it became too much, but Dandy noticed anyway. Of course he did.

Dandy didn’t mention it in front of the others, but he did take Geralt’s hand in his, holding it tightly and running his thumb over Geralt’s knuckles in a comforting gesture that soothed Geralt’s whirling thoughts, even though it wasn’t enough to fully keep them at bay.

“Do you want to get away for a while?” Dandy whispered, while Mika and Kara challenged each other to a drinking contest under the shouts and hollers of the others. “It doesn’t have to mean anything. I just don’t want you to feel bad.”

Geralt’s throat grew tight. “I don’t want to ruin this for you. This celebration is yours, you should enjoy it.”

“I’d enjoy it much more if I knew you were comfortable too.” Dandy squeezed his hand. “It’s fine if this is all a bit too much for you. I don’t mind going somewhere quieter. You know I love being alone with you just as much as I do being the centre of attention.”

“It’s not- it’s not that. It being too loud and too much. I-“ His voice broke off. He couldn’t say it. Not here, not while his friends were cheerful and happy.

Dandy let him take his time but Geralt could read the burning question on Dandy’s face. If it’s not too loud and too much, am I the reason why you’re miserable?

When Geralt didn’t continue, he tugged lightly at his hand. Geralt followed without any resistance, as he always would.

They didn’t walk far, simply putting some distance between the celebrating actors and themselves. They were still close enough to hear the cheering and singing, but it became background noise, same as the wind in the trees or the birds flying up above.

They sat down in the grass, Dandy laying his cane across his lap and pulling Geralt close, until his head leaned against Dandy’s shoulder.

A tremble went through Geralt’s body, as Dandy put an arm around his waist and held him tightly. So often, it was Geralt holding Dandy protectively, whether it was in his sleep or when sitting next to each other while talking. So rarely did Geralt get to feel like he was the protected one, like he didn’t need to carry the weight of the world on his own shoulder. But here Dandy was, offering to share the weight or at least have Geralt tell him just how heavy it was.

And so he did. The words came haltingly, as if a rope around his neck grew tighter with every attempt to speak. Dandy waited patiently for him to gather the courage to share his burden.

When he finally did, it felt both like he could breathe again freely for the first time that day, and as if the words were cutting into his own flesh.

“Today is the anniversary of a…friend’s death.”

Dandy stilled, his only movement came from his free hand plucking out grass nervously.

“Jaskier?” He asked, hesitating.

Geralt blanched. “How do you know that name?”

Dandy’s hand on his waist twitched. “It’s the name you said when you were hurt.” His voice was tight, but soft. “I don’t know if you recognised anything around you, but that’s the name you called out then.” He hesitated. “You say his name in your sleep too sometimes. Did you know that?”

Geralt’s mouth went dry. “I…what?”

A strange smile appeared on Dandy’s lips, too small to be a real one. “Just before you fall asleep. And sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, because you pulled me closer. You always ask me not to leave. And you always call me Jaskier.” The smile was still on his face, but now the stinging scent of salt pierced the air. “He must have been really important to you.”

“He was,” Geralt said quietly. “So are you.”

“But not like him.” Dandy let out a strained laugh that held no humour. “I don’t… I shouldn’t say that. Especially not today. I’m sorry. I should be comforting you. I didn’t mean to…to make it about me.”

“It’s always been about you.” Geralt only realised how his carelessly spoken words must have sounded, when Dandy winced and his hand retreated. Geralt’s hand shot out to stop him from pulling away. “Not like that. It…it’s complicated.”

“Complicated how?”

Geralt’s lips pressed into a thin line. “It’s not Jaskier who died that day. Not exactly.”

Different expressions flickered over Dandy’s face, as if he couldn’t decide which reaction to settle on. Finally, the uncertainty and confusion won out.

“What do you mean?”

An iron fist enclosed Geralt’s heart, squeezed until he thought he would burst. He couldn’t tell Dandy. He couldn’t put that knowledge, that burden, that pressure on him.

But with every second that Geralt hesitated, something crumbled in Dandy’s expression more and more. Geralt couldn’t begin to imagine what was going on in Dandy’s head, but whatever it was, it couldn’t be anything good.

Jaskier had sometimes cried in Geralt’s arms, thinking he wasn’t good enough, he was too loud, too much, too annoying for anyone to like him enough to stay with him for more than a night.

Yarrow had sounded so broken when he had asked Geralt to be his friend and then he had died alone.

Dandy was his own person, with his own struggles. And with his own doubts and the doubts of all the lives before pressing down on him. Geralt ruining his birthday, the day that should be a celebration of Dandy and nothing else, must have only made things worse.

The only thing Geralt could do to try and make this right, was tell him the truth and hope he didn’t destroy Dandy’s life with it.

He took a shaky breath.

“There was someone else. His name was Yarrow. He was…” Jaskier. You. “someone I met on Belleteyn.”

“Oh.” Dandy’s brows drew together. “You met during the feast of lovers. Is that what he was to you then?”

“No. I think he could have been. Or maybe we could have just been friends. Anything would have been better than what really happened.” When Geralt broke off, trying to find the right words, Dandy remained quiet, giving him all the time he needed. Time. The one thing Geralt hadn’t had with Yarrow. “We met in prison. I- We were both alone. He asked me to be his friend. I gave him some light and – I said we weren’t friends.”

Dandy’s breath hitched.

“Geralt,” he said slowly, a palpable tension in his voice. His body was rigid, not daring to move a single muscle. “You asked me about my first play. Geralt, why did you ask me about that play?”

Geralt closed his eyes, focussing all of his attention on Dandy’s hand in his, praying it wouldn’t be the last time that he would get to hold it, knowing that there was little chance Dandy wouldn’t tear it away when he knew what Geralt had hidden from him all this time.

“Because Yarrow and I were friends. In a different life.” His smile turned bitter as he quoted the final line of the play. “Long before I ever met Yarrow – lifetimes before – I was friends with Jaskier.”

“Friends?”

Geralt winced. “First and foremost friends. But also so much more.” His voice broke and he was sure Dandy could feel the tremor of his hand. “And when he died… I couldn’t let go of him. Somehow he came back to me, only the gods know why. He wasn’t the same, but he was. Yarrow wasn’t a bard. He was an artist. But he was Jaskier.”

When he opened his eyes again and glanced at Dandy, afraid what he would find, he saw Dandy’s lips tremble. “Geralt. Why did you call out Jaskier’s name when you were hurt? It was… it wasn’t just you being delirious, was it.”

“No.” Geralt’s throat grew tight, the noose around his neck becoming tighter with every word and yet, he kept going. “When I woke up, I thought I saw him. It was you, of course, but…”

“But it was also him.” Dandy’s voice was completely void of emotion. “Geralt, you don’t think that I’m Jaskier, do you?”

It wasn’t a question. Not really.

“I’m sorry,” Geralt whispered.

This was it. This was when Dandy would pull away his hand as if burned and tell Geralt to leave.

Instead, Dandy’s hand tightened its hold on Geralt, clutching him almost hard enough to hurt.

“What are you sorry for?” Dandy asked carefully.

Geralt looked away, unable to watch Dandy’s face twist in anger.

“I’m sorry because I couldn’t save them. Jaskier, Yarrow, all the other ones. They…they all died. I could have prevented it, I could have done something, but I didn’t even know who they were and then I saw you and –  I couldn’t let you die. Not again.”

Dandy’s face did something complicated. The hand not held in Geralt grasped his cane so tightly that Geralt could see the white of his knuckles.

“Geralt, please answer this honestly. Why did you agree to stay with me?” He blinked furiously, but the salt smell only got stronger. “Is it just because I look like him? Because a play I wrote was similar to something that happened to you? Because while you’re with me you can imagine that I’m someone else, someone more important to you?”

“Dandy.” The name tasted like a storm on his tongue, waiting to get unleashed. “You are important to me.”

“Then why? If you think I’m Jaskier and you loved him – if I am important to you, why didn’t you kiss me?”

“Because I love you.”

There was no storm. Only the frightening calm, the fear of what was to come, the terror of having already destroyed all there was.

Geralt’s breath came ragged, while Dandy stilled completely.

“I love you,” Geralt repeated, his voice breaking on the last word. “Which is why I can’t kiss you and lie to you.”

“Because... you only love me because I am him?” Dandy looked so small, so helpless.

Geralt closed his eyes, letting his face fall. “That’s exactly what I was afraid of. That you would think that.”

“It’s not the truth then? You didn’t love Jaskier?”

“I did,” Geralt said sincerely. “I always will. I would have loved him in any lifetime. But I also love you. For being you.”

Geralt shifted so that he was no longer sitting next to Dandy, but facing him.

“I love watching you go on stage and silence an audience with your performance. I love listening to you sing with your friends, as if music was more beautiful to you when shared. I love that you still hum that lullaby for me all on your own, even if you still get the melody wrong.” His voice became thick with emotion, but he couldn’t let himself stop. Not before Dandy knew it all. If he still decided to leave then, at least he would know what Geralt saw when he looked at him. “I love that you fiddle with your cane when you’re nervous or content. I love that you wear ridiculous hats and curl your hair. Jaskier did none of those things. And I love them still, because they are a part of who you are, my Dandelion.”

He prayed Dandy would still be his after this. His friend, if nothing else. Because no matter what, Geralt would always be Dandy’s.

Hesitantly, his free hand came up to Dandy’s face, hovering just above it, close enough that Dandy would be able to feel its heat. For a terrifying moment, Geralt thought Dandy would jerk away, but then he leaned into the touch, turning his head just enough to press a kiss against Geralt’s palm.

“Dandelion…” The name was naught but a breath on Geralt’s lips. A breath like the one a drowning man sucked in when he realised that he was saved.

“Are you sure?” Dandy asked softly.

“That I love you? I have never been so sure of anything in my life.”

“That I’m Jaskier. I- please, Geralt, I need to know that you are absolutely certain.”

“I am. I’m sorry.” Even while he said it, he could see Dandy think of every interaction they ever had, viewing it all in a new light. Dandy’s lips parted and Geralt could practically see the pieces of Dandy’s life slot into place, creating the same picture Geralt had seen since he had met him.

Philippa telling Jaskier to go with Geralt, should he ever meet him. The inexplicable burst of inspiration that had driven him to write his first play. The nearly immediate trust he had put in Geralt. The rhythm he sometimes tapped out and that Geralt just so happened to recognise.

Perhaps there were more puzzle pieces that Geralt had never seen. Strange memories that Dandy had never shared with him but that made more sense now than they ever had.

Whatever details of his life Dandy was thinking about, Geralt could see the moment the uncertainty changed into total conviction. For some reason Geralt couldn’t dare explain, Dandy didn’t draw back, didn’t yell at him, didn’t push him away. Instead, something soft and warm spread across his face; the sun breaking through the stormclouds.

“And you love me.”

“With all my heart.”

“And when I die, I will come back to you again?”

Geralt’s insides went cold. “Dandy, don’t- I’m not going to let you die.“

Dandy’s quiet laugh interrupted him. “That’s sweet, but I’m afraid it’s inevitable. Just, tell me. Will I come back?”

A muscle twitched in Geralt’s jaw. “I think so. I’m sorry, I don’t know why or how, but somehow we are bound to each other. You always come back and sooner or later I find you.”

“That’s good. I would hate for the man I love to be alone again.”

“Dandy –“

He never got to finish what he was going to say, for Dandy let go of the cane, finding the back of Geralt’s neck again and bringing him closer to him.

Their first kiss was little more than a tentative brush of lips against each other, Dandy searching him and Geralt not quite believing what was happening, not yet understanding that he could have this.

Dandy pulled back again, just enough to be able to speak. “Geralt? Just to make this clear, I love you too. I love that you saw me at my most vulnerable but you still don’t think that I need help in everything I do. I love that you are a terrible storyteller and an even worse actor. I love that you tell me of your contracts and help me with rehearsals even so. I love the way your scars feel beneath my fingers and I love the way you don’t let me go in the mornings, even when you wake up first.” He drew in a breath and pressed their foreheads together. “I love that you can love me for me.”

Geralt let out a wet laugh, unable to blink back the burning in his eyes or fight down the tightness in his chest.

“You just had to make a better declaration of love than I did,” he said, too full of emotion to even attempt a teasing tone.

“Of course.” Dandy darted forward, stealing another kiss that felt more like a gift. “You know I can’t let a chance to be dramatic pass by.”

Geralt hummed, his hands tracing Dandy’s face, his thumb caressing his bottom lip.

“And that’s another thing I love about you.”

“Careful,” Dandy said teasingly, pressing a kiss against Geralt’s thumb. “If you keep making such dramatic declarations yourself, I might consider putting you on stage again in the role of a lover.”

“The point of theatre is that it isn’t real,” Geralt repeated Dandy’s favourite opinion. “This is real.”

Dandy surged forward, pressing a sweet kiss against Geralt’s lips.

“It’s better than any play I could ever write.”

[new-sandrafilter]

Timothée Chalamet and Eileen Atkins Interview - British Vogue May 2020

“Maybe your knuckles weren’t bleeding, but there was ice,” Timothée Chalamet tells Dame Eileen Atkins. He is recounting, with no small amount of awe, how he first came to hear of the legendary 85-year-old actor with whom he is about to appear at The Old Vic. It transpires that Oscar Isaac, Chalamet’s co-star in the upcoming blockbuster Dune, was at the receiving end of Atkins’ fist in Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood (all in the name of acting, of course). Chalamet was duly impressed.

“I gave him the worst time of his life,” says Atkins, bristling at the memory, before merrily launching into several candid, very dame-like stories from her time on set – “That was a nightmare movie. A nightmare.”

It is a Saturday afternoon in late February, and the two actors – one a titan of British theatre with an eight-decade career; the other, Hollywood’s most in-demand young leading man, with an insatiable Instagram following – have just finished being photographed together for Vogue. Chalamet, 24, in louche, low-slung denim and a white T-shirt, has folded his Bambi limbs into a chair next to Atkins, whose hawkish frame, in a navy jumper and jeans, belies her 85 years.

“Do you like being called Tim or Timothée or what?” Atkins asks in her warm but brisk RP, all trace of her Tottenham upbringing erased.

“Whatever works,” he replies in a bright American accent, that shock of chestnut hair falling into his eyes. “Anything.”

“So you won’t object to ‘darling’? I call everyone darling. I’m told I mustn’t say it these days.” He assures her he is fine with it: “It’s a rite of passage, being called darling by Dame Eileen Atkins.”

“You always, always, have to put the dame in, otherwise you can’t address me,” she jokes.

It’s good the two are getting all this sorted now. A couple of days after our interview they will begin rehearsals for a seven-week run of Amy Herzog’s play 4000 Miles, in which they star as a grandmother and grandson, each quietly dealing with their own grief. Chalamet takes on the role of Leo Joseph-Connell, a somewhat lost 21-year-old who experiences a tragedy while on a 4,000-mile-long cycle ride with his best friend. Atkins plays Vera Joseph, his widowed 91-year-old grandmother, upon whose Manhattan doorstep Leo unexpectedly arrives in the middle of the night, unsure of where else to go. What follows is a wonderful, and wonderfully witty, study in human relationships, a portrait of two generations with decades between them trying to make sense of the world.

Its stars, who’ve met twice previously, in New York last year, are still very much getting to know each other – and are confident in the appeal. “There are things like this play – hoping I don’t butcher it – where you can just sit back and go, ‘Oh, this is a delicious meal,’” says Chalamet. Atkins agrees. “I have a phrase in mind that I shouldn’t really say because it’s going to sound terrible in print.” Which is? “I find it a dear little play, a really dear little play. I think it should be very moving. But who knows? We might f**k it up.”

It’s unlikely. Atkins has been a regular on The Old Vic’s stage since the 1960s, going toe-to-toe with greats from Laurence Olivier to Alec Guinness, and fellow dames (and close friends) Maggie Smith and Judi Dench. Chalamet, meanwhile, is a relative novice, with only two professional plays under his belt. But since his turn as Elio in 2017’s Call Me by Your Name (for which he was Oscar-nominated), his celluloid rise has been meteoric. Roles in Lady Bird, Little Women, The King and Wes Anderson’s upcoming The French Dispatch have not only earned him the slightly fraught badge of “heart-throb”, but proved him to be among the most captivating actors of his generation.

He says he couldn’t resist the opportunity to come to the capital. “There was something exciting about doing a play that feels very New York in London,” Chalamet explains of taking on the part. He’s a diehard theatre fan, too, revealing he saw the six-and-a-half-hour epic The Inheritance – twice. “There are films like The Dark Knight or Punch-Drunk Love or Parasite that can give you a special feeling. But nothing will be like seeing Death of a Salesman on Broadway with Philip Seymour Hoffman or A Raisin in the Sun with Denzel Washington.”

Herzog’s writing particularly spoke to him. “Leo’s in a stasis that was very appealing to me,” he continues. “We find our crisis in moments of stasis, but there’s an irony to it when you’re young, because the law of the land would have you think that to be young is to be having fun, to be coming into your own. But as everyone at this age who’s going through it knows, it’s often a shitshow.”

It’s safe to say that, in casting terms, director Matthew Warchus, also artistic director of The Old Vic, has hit the jackpot. He first took the play to Atkins three years ago, but it was only towards the end of 2019 that Chalamet came on board. When it was announced, in December, that Hollywood’s heir apparent to Leonardo DiCaprio would be making his London stage debut, the news was met with a level of hysteria not usually associated with the 202-year-old theatre’s crowd.

“Oh, my friends have told me who the audience is,” Atkins chimes in when I ask who they think will be coming to see the show. “It’s 40 per cent girls who want to go to bed with Timothée, it’s 40 per cent men who want to go to bed with Timothée, and it’s 20 per cent my old faithfuls.” Is Chalamet prepared for the onslaught? “I think it will be 100 per cent Eileen’s faithfuls,” he demurs.

On the surface, they can seem quite the odd couple. Chalamet, raised in Manhattan by an American dancer-turned-realtor mother and French father, an in-house editor at the United Nations, may be living a breathless, nomadic movie-star life but there’s an iron core of Gen Z earnestness there. He arrives on set with minimal fuss, even deciding to wear the clothes he came in for one shot, before knocking out some push-ups, politely ordering an omelette and generally being divinely well-mannered.

He turns on the star power for the camera, though, and I can confirm it’s as dazzling up close as it is on the red carpet, where he has, famously, casually redrawn the rules for male dressing. From that Louis Vuitton sparkly bib at the 2018 Golden Globes, to a dove-grey satin Haider Ackermann tux at Venice last year, he’s a true fashion darling. Then, of course, there’s his dating life – from Lourdes Ciccone Leon to Lily-Rose Depp – that remains an endless source of fascination to millions worldwide. (All this, it must be said, is of significantly less interest to Dame Eileen.)

Atkins started dance lessons aged three, shortly before the start of the Second World War. By 12, she was performing professionally in pantomime, not far from where she grew up in north London, the youngest daughter in a working-class family. A fast-established theatre star, wider fame didn’t find her until late in life. Despite memorable turns in Upstairs, Downstairs and Gosford Park, it was the 2000 television hits Cranford and Doc Martin, when she was in her early seventies, that finally made her a household name. Today, she lives alone in west London, since her second husband, the TV and film producer Bill Shepherd, died in 2016. She has often spoken of being happily childless, and has zero time for razzmatazz.

And yet, despite their differences, the pair appear perfectly matched. They already have their grandmother-grandson dynamic down pat. Atkins does a fine line in mischievous eyebrow-raising, and at one point recites a limerick that is, honestly, so rude it almost makes her co-star blush. Chalamet, meanwhile, is politeness personified, still trying to work out his thoughts on various subjects, less inclined to give so much of himself away. There is a physical likeness, too, in their delicate features and fine bone structure. They share a naturally melancholic look, one that melts away when they laugh.

Their upcoming play, which premiered to rapturous reviews Off-Broadway in 2011, “about a block” from Chalamet’s high school, LaGuardia, could have been written for them. “Other than not being American, I’m very like the old woman,” says Atkins of the Pulitzer-shortlisted play. “I can’t be bothered to learn the internet.” If there’s one thing she won’t tolerate in rehearsals, it’s people on their phones. That’s the only thing that will “piss me off ”, she says, brusquely.

Ah, phones. Are they really the symbol of generational disconnect? “It’s easy to point to these things,” Chalamet says, tapping his phone on the table, “as the cause or the symptom, but I think my generation is a guinea pig generation of sorts. We’re figuring out the pros and cons and limits of technology.”

Equally, Atkins is keen to distance herself from some of the criticism levelled at her age group. “There’s a saying isn’t there: if you’re not very left wing when you’re young, you’re heartless. And if you’re not very right wing when you’re old, you’re foolish. I’m not political, but I’m not with this government I can assure you – and I’m not with Brexit. I wanted to wear a sweater saying ‘I did not vote Brexit’, because it was all old people who did. Not me, not me,” she snaps. “I went on the march.”

Both are in agreement that intergenerational friendships are too rare these days. “So. Important,” Chalamet says, hitting the table between each word. “There is so much to learn from people who have walked the path of life. That’s why I’m so looking forward to these next couple of months.”

Atkins is thoughtful on the matter. “I don’t miss the fact I don’t have children, but I do envy my friends who have grandchildren,” she says. “About five or six years ago I met a couple of young people – they are just about 30 this year – and, do you know, we go out together. And people immediately say to me, ‘Are these your grandchildren?’ And I say, ‘No.’ And they say, ‘Your godchildren?’ And I say, ‘No, they’re just friends.’ Everybody thinks there is something weird about all three of us. They just don’t get it. But the boy makes me laugh more than anybody and the girl is enchanting. I have more fun with them than I do with almost anybody else.”

I remind Atkins about her description of today’s youth as being overly serious. “I do call them the New Puritans, yes,” she says, before motioning to her young co-star. “He probably drinks like a fish.”

Chalamet, currently single, is remaining tight-lipped about plans for his new London life, and how many late-night manoeuvres in Soho or Peckham it may involve. “I’ve got friends here, which is nice. But I’m here for this – to be terrified at The Old Vic.”

Before we leave, there is a final thing to clear up – Atkins’ aforementioned limerick. “Do you know about the Colin Farrell situation?” Eileen asks Timothée. No, comes his reply. “Better get it over with now because someone will tell you,” she says, proceeding to explain how, when she was “69, about to be 70” and filming Ask the Dust with a 27-year-old Farrell, “he made a pass at me. He came to my hotel room. He was enchanting. I let him chat for two hours, thoroughly enjoying it, but no not that. He was very cross I didn’t.”

But then, she explains guiltily, she later told the story during “some stupid TV show” (Loose Women), where despite her best efforts at keeping Farrell’s identity secret, the internet did its thing and news got out. An apology to Farrell was required. “So I left a limerick on Colin’s phone…” she says. She clears her throat: “There once was a **** of a dame…” she begins, in her imitable theatrical timbre, before reeling off one of the filthiest rhymes I’ve ever heard.

There is a moment of stunned laughter. “Wow, that’s sincerely amazing,” comes Chalamet’s response, as Atkins finishes the verse. He gives her a solemn oath: “I promise I won’t hit on you.”

4000 Miles is at The Old Vic, SE1, from 6 April

[stillchaoticlogic]

Falling: Chapter 3

Pairing: Raihan x Reader

Falling in love is easy…

It’s falling out of love that’s the hard part.

As you try to run from old feelings you meet someone who is determined to bring the spark back into your eyes. Raihan isn’t sure what happened in the past and he doesn’t care. He’s got one shot to make you his and he’s going to take it.

First Chapter: Here

Second Chapter: Here

Cry for Me

Gazing down at the phone on the table you watched as it lit up again for the fifth time in the last thirty minutes. You heave a sigh when Hau’s name pops up on the screen. Leaning forward you pull the phone towards you and answer it. 

“Hello?”

“(NAME!) YOU ANSWERED!” his voice loud in his excitement.

“Yeah sorry for leaving so abruptly… and the radio silence… I got a job opportunity and had to act fast. Things got crazy quickly. How are you? How’s being champion?”

“I-I wish you were here… When will you be back?” His voice is rife with self-consciousness. He’s scared.

“I...don't know…” your answer is hesitant. 

“But! I need you here! We all do! We miss you!”

“And I miss you guys too, but I need to do this for me. I need this opportunity.”

“Is this because I took your job?” he sounds guilty.

“Hau… Alola is no place for me anymore and I need to move on. This has nothing to do with you.”

“But...you left… Are you mad at Kukui? He said something seemed to be bothering you…”

“I’m not mad at Kukui, I just needed to leave. I have opportunities here that I didn’t in Alola. I need a break and to heal from some things.”

“Heal? What happened?”

“I’m tired Hau… I’m just overwhelmed with things and I have some things to sort through…”

“So you won’t talk to me about it, what about grandpa?”

Thinking of Hala, the island Kahuna and Hau’s grandfather makes you feel even guiltier. He had become like a grandfather to you and while he had encouraged you to leave, you hadn’t told him of your plans either. 

“Hau, I’m going to be fine. If I need to talk to Hala about anything I’ll call him okay?”

“So you aren’t coming back?”

“I have been offered a job in Galar and I’m taking it.”

“But isn’t that guy their champion?! What are you even going to do!?”

“I’m the new...chairwoman… of their league.”

He’s silent for a moment. 

“You’re really not coming back…”

“...No…I’m not…”

“I’ve got to go… I have a match… I’ll…”

“Hau! Wait!”

“Bye (Name)...”

You close your eyes in pain at the sound of the call ending. He’ll be fine, you know this, but you wish you had handled this differently. In your desperation to get away from Kukui you had left everyone else without an explanation too. 

“I can’t believe I fell in love with a married man…” you grumble to yourself as you throw your phone onto the table. Rotom buzzes in annoyance and you quietly apologize to him. 

Your phone rings again this time it’s Leon calling. 

You answer it and put on a brave face, “Hey Leon! How are you?”

“Hey! I’m good! I heard you had a good day with Raihan!”

“I did!” you say with a laugh remembering the banter between you and the Dragon-type gym leader. 

“Well, we’re going to start touring the gyms tomorrow! I figured we would start with the first three and then go down the line. How does that sound?”

“Sounds good! How long will the tour take? I need to start looking for a place to live and I should probably start prepping for the next tournament right? It’s a month away?”

“Don’t worry! This shouldn’t take more than a week… You can also scout places to live while we travel around!” 

“Sounds good! What time can I expect you tomorrow?”

“Does eight work for you?”

“Yeah that works!”

“Perfect! I’ll meet you tomorrow morning then!”

You say your goodbyes and the two of you hang up. The light padding of Aurora your Alolan Ninetails alerts you to her presence. Ember your non-Aloan Ninetails following close behind. The duo finds themselves on either side of you on the couch. You lean back as the fire and ice foxes endeavor to curl up next to you. 

“You know the two of you aren’t Vulpix anymore right?”

They both look mildly affronted before they settle themselves half on you and half on the couch. 

“Yes… well, I’m so excited about this bonding time…”

They promptly ignore you and continue to lay happily in your lap. You close your eyes and recall the day you just had. Raihan seems to be a fun guy, you can see yourself being friends with him. You’ll need those here, friends. You recall the way he held you while you watched the sun go down and you try to recall a recent moment when you laughed as much as you did today. A ping interrupts your musings and Rotom hovers in front of you. 

Dragon Boi: So did you have fun on our first date? Is tomorrow too soon for a second?

You: It was a rather good first date… too bad there wasn’t a kiss at the end… Where is that Leon?

Dragon Boi: Still?! You know if it’s a kiss you want I can be there in about twenty minutes right? 

You: Twenty minutes? I thought you were in Hammerlocke?

Dragon Boi: I’m staying with Leon tonight since we’re starting the tour so EARLY tomorrow!

You: Oh? Tell him to come. 

You: I’ll be waiting eagerly!

Dragon Boi: I thought we had something but you’re using me to get to Leon, aren't you?

You: Yep. 

Dragon Boi: Damn that’s cold… I thought we had a better time than that…

Dragon Boi: I thought we were going to get married, but if you really want Leon…

You: So dramatic…. 

Dragon Boi: Dramatic?!

Dragon Boi: Naw I am… I’m not gonna lie to you about that…

You: hahahahahaaa

You: I did have fun today and if you’re there tomorrow I’m sure I’ll enjoy the tour. 

Dragon Boi: Wait.

Dragon Boi: did you just ADMIT to having fun…

Dragon Boi: With ME

You: Well not if you’re going to make a big deal out of it…

Dragon Boi: Still.

Dragon Boi: You had fun today.

Dragon Boi: With me.

You: Yes…. congratulations… 

Dragon Boi: Thank you thank you

Dragon Boi: Our wedding will be spectacular

You: All I ask is that we fly away on your Flygon after the ceremony. I want a truly memorable exit!

Dragon Boi:  Ugh! I woman after my own heart. You can have anything you want my queen!

You: Queen?

Dragon Boi: Don’t like it?

You: Oh no… quite the opposite… I could get used to that…

Dragon Boi: Good. You deserve to be someone’s queen. I don’t mind volunteering for the role of your king either… just sayin…

You: Very funny Raihan…

Dragon Boi: I’m being serious! I’m just sayin if the position is open… I will happily fill it. 

You: I’ll consider it…

You: Good night Raihan…

Dragon King: Good night my queen. 

You bite your lip to keep the smile at bay, you can’t get involved with a man you just met as a means of getting over Kukui. Even if that man is sweet, funny, charming, handsome, strong and kind. Nope. Absolutely not. 

Your screen lights up indicating Kukui is calling you and without even thinking about it you mumble the word that you’ve felt all along. 

“Reject.”

Falling into bed that night your pokemon curl themselves around you the best they can. They’ve been extra concerned about you lately and they rarely leave your side. You can feel their protective auras surround you and you love it. You love them. You don’t like that they are worried, but feeling their concern makes you feel loved. 

The next morning you are greeted by both Leon and Raihan in the lobby. Raihan is quick to greet you with breakfast and coffee, both of which you take happily. 

“Ahh my hero has brought me coffee again!”

“Of course milady!”

You chuckle as you take the breakfast sandwich from him and the coffee. Leon chuckles at the interaction before he interjects. 

“You kids ready to go?”

“Hush Leon, I’m being pampered right now! Can’t you see that? You get me up at this ungodly hour and then try to deny me being showered with adoration. I think not.”

“You heard the lady, Leon… She wants me to adore her… this might take a while.”

Leon rolls his eyes at yours and Raihan’s antics, “The taxi is waiting.”

“Oh? Are we taking the goth bird taxi?” You ask as you take a bite of your sandwich.

“They are called Corviknight, and yes we are,” Leon answers.

“I want one… Where can I get one?”

“They are pretty common...They evolve from Rookidee.”

“Hmm… Rookidee…”

“We should be able to find you one today,” Raihan pipes in.

“That would be delightful! I really want to train some Galarian Pokemon…”

“Oh? Like what?”

“Dreepy! An Applin! I heard they evolve depending on the type of apple they eat. A Ponyta…” you continue to list the pokemon as you head out to the taxi.

“Dreepys are kind of hard to find… I’ll show you where they like to hide,” Leon says as he opens the door for you. 

“I have a pair of Volcarona…. Nothing is more annoying than searching for their annoying ass… I’m sure I’ll be fine!”

“You have 2?!” exclaims Leon in shock. 

“Yep… I have a pair. I was going to breed them, but they hate each other.”

“They hate each other?!” says Raihan in surprise. 

“Oh yeah… if I put them anywhere near one another they just fight.”

“That’s insane! Why don’t you ever battle with them?”

“Well I had a League sanctioned team that I had to use in Alola, and they weren’t on it. It was mostly to keep people from trying to go out and catch them. They live at the foot of volcanoes so not exactly the safest place for young trainers.”

“I can’t believe you have one let alone two!”

“I got bored…”

“Bored?”

“Yes… bored…”

“So you caught two pseudo legendary Pokemon?!”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“I really just want to know when our wedding is…” Raihan interjects as he gazes at you as if the sun rises and sets with you. 

“Wedding?!”

“Quiet Leon, can’t you see the man’s trying to propose?”

“Propose?!”

You arrive at Turrfield and head into the gym. You are greeted by a stout looking trainer with a dazzling smile. That’s why he’s the first gym leader, he instantly radiates comfort. 

“Milo! This is (Name), our new chairwoman. (Name)! This is Milo, he’s our first gym leader!”

“Very nice to meet you, Milo! I’m excited about touring your gym! Especially since I really want to know more about the gym challenges.”

“Likewise! Let me take you on the tour and explain my logic for the challenge.”

You stop in front of a large field and notice a bunch of sheep-like pokemon. 

“How cute!” you exclaim as you approach them. 

“My family is Wooloo farmers, we raise them for their wool. My challenge is to have the trainers herd about twenty of these little guys to the other end of the field.”

“What is your reasoning for having them herd them?”

“It shows patience. These young trainers have a long road ahead and a lot of work to do. Not to mention training new Pokemon is not easy. They need to prove they have the patience and discipline to advance.”

“That’s an excellent point!”

“So you approve?”

“It doesn’t matter if I approve, it’s your gym, you clearly know what you’re doing.”

“Why don’t you give it a shot?” Raihan asks as he comes up behind you. 

“Huh?” you murmur as you turn back to look at him.

“That’s a great idea!” exclaims Leon. 

“I don’t…”

“I think you should give it a shot!”

“Oh dear…” you mutter. 

You eventually relent and take your place. 

“This is ridiculous…” you mutter as you begin to herd the Wooloo towards the gate. You huff as one goes rogue and you have to chase after it. A couple of others break away and you have to roll them back. After a little back and forth you finally get all twenty at the other end. You trip and hear the men laughing at you as you pull yourself back up. The Yamper end up scaring the Wooloo and you pout as about five of them break away and scatter. With a huff, you rush back down the field until you are back at the beginning. 

“You know the Wooloo is down there?” Questions Raihan as he holds back a laugh. 

“Very funny…” you pout as you grab his and Leon’s hands and drag them behind you. 

“You’re going to help me though! Chop chop Milo!”

The three guys follow you out onto the field and you all head over to the Wooloo who are eyeing you all warily. The four of you end up laughing as you chase the wooly Pokemon up and down the field. Each one of you getting in the others way and changing directions at a moment's notice. You notice Raihan’s Rotom filming the event as you all rush around happily chasing after the Wooloo. When you had all of the Wooloo at the end of the field you all collapse at the end and laugh until you can’t breathe. 

“Was that what you were expecting?”

“It was something all right!” 

You leave the gym chuckling to yourself before you all head over to the Hulbury gym and meet Nessa. The Raging Wave is everything you would expect her to be. 

“So, you’re whipping these boys into shape?” She asks as the two of you head out of her gym. The afternoon sun drying your damp clothes after completing her gym challenge.

“Oh, you know it…”

She laughs as she bumps your arm, “I love it! So the real question is when are you going to battle Leon? You could be our next champion…”

You chuckle, “I have no intention of being a champion right now… Perhaps in the future, I’ll take him on, but right now I’m just enjoying life.”

“Like you could beat ‘The Unbeatable Champion,’” Leon says as he poses. 

“Are you posing? For no reason…?” you ask in confusion. 

“He does that… So weird…” you mumble before waving to Nessa. 

“Let’s get lunch soon! I’ll need some girl time before this is all over!” 

Raihan drapes his arm around your shoulder as you head off down the road. 

“You got it!” Nessa yells back. 

“Aww, you made a friend…” Raihan says as he pulls you close to him. 

“It would seem so…”

“That’s good, I’m glad it was Nessa?”

“Why is that?”

“Well, Nessa and I go way back…”

“And?”

“No reason…”

“He’s already asked Nessa to put a good word in for him,” Leon says with a grin as he walks along behind you.

“He did?!”

“BRO?!”

“Oh yeah…”

“BRO?!”

You throw your head back and laugh, “Dragon Boy is pulling out all the stops…”

Raihan looks away from you and goes to pull his arm back. 

You chuckle as you wrap your arms around his waist and look up at him through your lashes, “You know Rai…”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t need a good word…”

“I don’t?”

“Of course not… We’re getting married remember?” You ask as you pull away from him and rush down the street. 

“Hey wait!”

“No way!! I heard there were Vulpix at the Motostoke gym! I want to pet the baby floofs!” you yell over your shoulder as you rush off down the street.

“So how bad do you have it?” questions Leon with a laugh. 

“Pretty bad… I mean I’m pretty sure she’s perfect…”

“Yeah, I figured… you’ve already proposed and you’ve only known her two days!”

Raihan laughs as he scratches the back of his neck, he can see your silhouette as you rush down the pathway back towards Motostoke.

“Yeah… that’s a... uh…. Running joke…”

“Well, she seems to be running with it too…”

“Nah… She’s not serious… She’s been hurt and she’s dealing with herself right now.”

“Then be there for her. Be the friend she needs now and who knows man, when she’s ready maybe you will get the chance to propose to her?”

Raihan laughs, “So we’re just jumping straight into marriage.”

“Were you or were you not straight-up pampering her this morning? Just adore her and treat her like she’s the most sublime woman you’ve ever met and if things fall into place then you know.”

“She is the most sublime woman I’ve ever met…”

“Are you saying that as her fan or as a man? Remember, just like you’re more than ‘Raihan the Dragon-Type Gym Leader,’ she’s more than ‘(Name) The Alolan Champion.’”

“I know that!” 

“Just… remember to treat her like a person and not just your idol. She’ll love that too.”

“Since when did your single ass get good at giving dating advice?”

Leon glared over at Raihan, “I date!”

“Since when?”

“Shut up…”

By the time the duo arrived at the gym Kabu was chuckling as you clutched about three Vulpix to your chest. 

“I want to take them all home with me!” you exclaim as you bury your face against the soft fur. 

“I don’t think you need 5 more Vulpix when you have two Ninetails already,” Leon says in exasperation. 

You gasp dramatically, “Leon! How dare you? You can NEVER have too many Vulpix!”

Raihan laughs, “What if we head to the wild area tomorrow and find a Dreepy for you?”

You narrow your eyes but nod, “That’s acceptable.”

“Why do I feel like we just got played?” questions Leon. 

“Because you did… I was doing some research, I would also like a Toxel!”

 “Shouldn’t we be focusing on the tour?” Leon asks. 

“Oh, come on Leon! The Wild Area is right outside the city, plus we can explore while we head back to Hammerlocke,” Raihan interjects. 

“It would be nice to be able to start familiarizing myself with some of the native pokemon as well,” you chime in.

“Still…”

“Leon… I’ve been running a league for the past 3 years… Don’t worry I’ll have everything taken care of. Plus I wanted to check out the area around Hammerlocke, since it’s central, I think it would be a good city to move to.”

“Really?!” questions Raihan. 

“Yeah! That whole gothic castle look is to die for too. I’ve had my eye on it since I got here!”

Raihan smiles as he watches you go back to playing with the fire foxes, ‘Things are looking up…’ he thinks happily.

Note: Hey everyone! I hope you all had a great Holiday! I know I did! I’m having way too much fun playing FFX for the Switch. If you haven’t ever played it...highly recommend! I like this chapter but the next one will be even better! Raihan is totally catching a Dreepy isn’t he? Love. Please as always let me know your thoughts! I love hearing from you all!

[vampiresuns]

Birds Of A Feather

✴︎ BIRDS OF A FEATHER ✴︎

1.1k words. In which Anatole looks for, and finds, a new personal assistant.

Dani is @apprenticealec​‘s new OC. This is mostly a how she gets hired, and less of a establishing dynamics. This is an auteur’s kitchen.

Anyway I love us, and I love the janiverse.

Portia makes an appearance too, as does one of my R-C NPCs, Medea.

Anatole was leaning back on his chair, head tilted back over the edge as a loud groan escaped from his lips. 

“Medea, I love you with everything I’ve got, but I swear if I meet one more prospect who tries to change my routine, defenestration will be the next thing in my schedule — whether it’s done onto me, onto something, or onto the applicant is completely irrelevant to me.”

“Isn’t attempted murder a little bit dramatic for the occasion?”

“Probably, most likely… but I need someone who works with me, not someone who has a deep, unfulfilled desire to micromanage people.”

Medea snorted. “Or has a delusion of grandeur about being the Consul’s right hand?”

Anatole looked at her, head still hanging. “You get it. I swear the personnel division of the Palace staff has very interesting concepts of what I might or might not need.”

“I think they just go off with Valerius’ standard.”

“Yes, because I am the type to go ‘take this out of my sight and come back when it’s solved’.”

Medea levelled him a look, and Anatole sat upright again. “Alright, but I only do that with smaller things.”

“Well, you’ve always been bordering on obsessive with your job,” Medea said with the cheeky familiarity one has with those people one has known for years. 

“I prefer passionate.”

“That you sure are, Nana. Should I call the next one in?”

Anatole agreed with a dismissive gesture, and as the next hour and a half rolled around, interview after interview, he wondered what he would ever do without Medea and her never ending people’s abilities. Medea Pryce, Vesuvian born and half raised, worked in the Vesuvian Court, coordinating its different offices, somewhat of an equivalent to Portia’s duties as handmaiden and head of staff, but for the political coming and goings of the Court. They had met in Prakra as they both attended the exact same lecture program in university, albeit with different ends in mind. Then, they had both decided to study for a period of time in Balkovia and eventually make their return to Vesuvia together, having begun to work in the Palace at a similar time. 

Needless to say she was one of the people he trusted the most in this world. So when the inevitable had happened, and Anatole caved into the admittance that he did need an assistant, Medea was the person he wanted next to him to do the interviews. Portia had also helped, but she had done so with the pre-selection and would help with the definitive selection later too.

“Alright, we have to do two more, and then we’re done.”

“Oh, thank fuck,” Anatole said, pacing around the room. He had had too much of sitting down, and stood up two interviews ago in fear he would zone out completely; on the brightside, moving around in interviews ended up working in his favour in more than one way — it was easy to tell people who were put off by his need to fidget, or move around. 

Swaying slightly from side to side, leaning against an open window he made a non committal hand gesture for the next applicant to be called in. 

She must have been around his height without heels, perhaps a little shorter. Glasses framed her brown eyes and slightly raised eyebrows as she walked in. She looked confused for a second, looking back and forth between Medea and Anatole by the window.

“Did I come at the wrong time, I thought I was called?”

“You were called,” Anatole said, extending his hand to shake hers, “I’m Consul Aelius Radošević, this is one of the Court’s head coordinators, Medea Pryce, personal friend of mine as well.”

“Your name is Danielle Phandoum, correct?” Medea asked.

“Yes! Well, Dani, Danielle. People call me Dani.”

“Then so shall we, as long as that is alright with you.”

“It is, Miss Pryce.”

“Just Medea is fine.”

“And you may address me as Consul or ‘sir’, if you’re not comfortable using my name,” Anatole had begun to fidget with his fingers, making ladders with them, joining his thumb and his index together, one above the other. “Some people like to make up titular forms to call me, and it gets under my skin. You don’t mind me standing here, do you?”

“No, not at all sir.” 

Anatole smiled. “Good. Do make yourself equally comfortable.” 

The interview was simple and followed the same structure as the rest of them did: personal details, motivators, previous work experience, and cross referrals. Medea carried the most of the bureaucratic part of it, Anatole waiting for his turn to ask questions. 

When the time came, he detailed his routine, put her in a couple of hypothetical scenarios, wanting to know how she’d solve them. They bounced ideas on and off, to the point Medea was happy to sit back and watch them bounce situations on and off.

Yet, it wouldn’t be until the three of them were sitting at Portia’s cottage, drinking something warm and sharing some honey bread, that Anatole would realise Dani was one of the few applicants who worked with him, following the grain of Anatole’s own routine, making due in the places he couldn’t reach or was stretching himself too thin — an hypothetical reinforcement, instead of a new structure that was unfamiliar to him. 

“I like her. I like these other two as well, but I like her. She thinks—“ 

“Like us?” Portia interjected. 

“She does. She’s also good with multitasking, by the sound of it.” 

“True,” Medea said after taking a sip of her tea, “you offered her scenarios and she gave actually helpful replies.” 

“And she cracked a joke about my packed schedule.” 

“Seriously?” 

“Yes, asked how did my spine hold up managing all that weight.” 

“So, she’s the one? Nana, you’ve talked almost of no one else.” 

“Portia’s right. Besides, I think one of your applicants would work better in my department.” 

Anatole hummed, absorbed in his thoughts until he sighed, setting his cup down. Something inside him told him Portia and Medea were right, that he had found the person he was looking for. “Well,” he said at last, “all I can do is try.” 

Medea rolled her eyes. “You always do that when you have a hunch.” 

“It’s called silently diving into. It’s all here,” he said as he tapped his temple. 

“If anything, your Leon will be the happiest about it.” 

“Oh, Gods,” Anatole rah his hands through his face, “Lee sure will. I’m sure it was a matter of time before he barricaded the bedroom door and didn’t let me out.” 

“I have a feeling he wouldn’t do that,” Medea smiled to herself, “Lee seems like the kind of person who is too aware you’d escape through the window.” 

Portia’s laugh was bright and bubbly as she echoed the sentiment. “She’s right,” she laughed, “he’d sit on you instead.” 

[booleman]

merlin WIP that’s been in my docs for too long and I need to share it

Arthur watched the young knight with pride in his eyes. Since he made Mordred one of his knights, the druid had shown a great improvement in the art of the sword, visible by everyone – Merlin being one of them, even if he still didn’t trust the boy, the Seer’s words being the reason why. Just after the knight was shoved on the ground, the King found the right to add: «You are getting good, Mordred, very good.»

Blushing, the younger person on the training field murmured something in the lines of “my lord”, while the King decided that the best remark had to be a chuckle. «I may have to start trying soon.» 

Merlin decided that it was the right moment to save his kin from Arthur’s ego, so he got up from his usual place and, clapping, he asked: «My lord?»

Arthur ignored him, too much invested in trying to make Mordred understand why he lost the friendly duel, so the former manservant just went away, the sassy remark almost urging to come out, deciding that this war was not worthy of care; he just went straight to his chambers.

──────────

«Did you see how Mordred used a contre quarte to my high-line attack? It was a very skilful move, really!» the King started, trying to put his beloved one in a talkative mood. When Merlin didn’t respond, he decided to add: «You do understand what a contre quarte is, right?»

Merlin rolled his eyes, but responded nonetheless: «At a guess, a type of parry, beginning in the quarte position, ending with a twist of the wrist.» At this Arthur smiled, a smile he reserved just to his lover when he was trying to make fun of him. «You have been paying attention, then. What do you think of young Mordred?» 

Merlin tried to hide his disappointment at the turn this conversation was having. 

«He’s, er, making progress,» he said while sitting on the bed, resting his head on the King’s shoulder in a matter of seconds. The latter smiled, and put a hand on Merlin’s hair, stroking them gently. «He has all the makings of a fine knight, don’t you think?»

The warlock stayed silent for a while, closing his eyes to better feel the vicinity of Arthur, a thing he loved to do since the early days of their courting. In the end, he settled down with a fact, instead of an opinion: «There are many fine knights in Camelot.»

Arthur smiled, calmly, playing with his lover’s hair for the last time before finally getting up to go and participate in the Council’s meeting. «Yes, but if I’m not mistaken, he’ll be one of the finest, and I’m determined he’ll receive nothing but encouragement from me.»

Merlin shrugged, succeeding in stealing a kiss from Arthur’s lips before the two of them had to leave the bedroom. Maybe it wasn’t going to be a bad day after all.

──────────

Arthur was bored to death in the Council chambers, that until Leon spoke up to divulge what the Eastern border’s report said.

«Serious news, I'm afraid, Sire. As you know, a few days ago, our garrison in the Forest of Brechfa intercepted the man who goes by the name of Osgar,» the knight said, watching every one of the men’s faces pale at the sorcerer’s name, even though they weren’t aware of his true power. 

He stayed still for a moment, letting the nobles take the information in and digest it, and he started speaking only after what seemed like an eternity: «They were trying to apprehend him when he used his powers to escape. I am sorry to report... Sir Ranulf was mortally wounded.»

Some of the Council’s men gasped, a bunch of them because they knew Sir Ranulf, the others because of the brutality the Camelotian knight was speaking of. 

This time it was the King’s burden to break the silence, with just a few words for the guard’s captain: «Place all the men in the Eastern territories on high alert.»

Leon nodded his heart heavy with the loss of a loyal brother in arms such as Ranulf. At the umpteenth Council’s silence, the King spoke up again, his eyes searching Merlin’s ones in the room. «I personally shall lead a patrol to bring this Osgar to justice.» 

The warlock bit his lip for a while, afraid to speak up in front of the people who were more likely to judge him, even if he was, by all means, the King’s Consort. «Is it necessary for you to go in person?» he asked just to have the answer he was preparing himself to. «He wasn't just a knight, Merlin, he was a friend. We knew each other as boys, I must go. Have no fear, for I will be perfectly safe. As you said before, I have many fine knights.»

Merlin nodded, not completely sure, just a bit before the Council’s meeting met its end.

──────────

In the King’s chambers, Merlin was trying to pack for the quest, while Arthur was pacing in the room. The only sound was the one made by his boots hitting the floor and, when someone knocked at the door, the two of them almost jumped out of their skins. 

When Mordred came in, Merlin relaxed just a bit and decided to sit on the bed, almost to remind the people in the room that it was his, too. The young knight disposed of Merlin’s behaviour as normal Emrys’s jealousy and went on about the reason why he came into the room. «Your Majesty? You wished to see me?»

Arthur finally stopped pacing and, after seeing his Consort on the bed, decided to keep his standing position. «The time has come for you to accompany your King.»

Mordred raised an eyebrow, not completely sure of the extent of Arthur’s request, trying to find his lord’s eyes in the room. No matter what level the hatred between the two was, Mordred often found in Emrys’ facial features the meaning to go on. «My lord?» he said, in the end, unsure if he was speaking to Merlin or Arthur. 

Neither of them answered right away, and the knight found himself more unsure than before. Was he being rejected by both of the people whom he swore fidelity to?

Arthur’s answer was the first one to come, while Merlin was still thinking about what was the best thing to say to the druid. While he was proud of him, being a knight and a skilled magician, the prophecy was still something that Merlin couldn’t ignore. «I want you to join me on a patrol to the Black Mountains.»

Mordred’s eyes lightened up, and he didn’t even try to hide the smile that found home on his lips just after. «Me? To Brechfa?» he asked, eyeing Merlin eagerly awaiting for his approval. The latter nodded, though nobody but Mordred saw that, and this just made his smile grow bigger.

<i>I’ll watch every move of yours</i>, said Merlin, his voice clear in the druid’s mind. <i>Even if I can’t trust you yet, you have earned your place. Be ready to ride at dawn.</i>

The knight bowed, to both of his lords, murmuring something in the lines of “I shall be, my lord. You won’t regret this. I promise” while exiting the room, the excitement obvious on his face.

«He has all the makings of an excellent knight,» said Arthur, finally eyeing the bed, a little smile on his lips. He laid down, waiting for Merlin to do the same. When the warlock did that, Arthur wrapped him in a hug, his lips fast on his lover’s temple. «I do believe you’ve grown fond of him,» Merlin said, his body pressed against Arthur’s, his hand on the King’s cheek, yet completely still. 

«He’s a good fighter, a brave knight,» Arthur tried to answer, and Merlin just nodded, trying to find something to say as a remark. «He’s young.»

Arthur wanted to say something like “so were you when you came here”, but the words died in his mouth. Thinking about the time Merlin had to live under his father’s reign – under the promise of a public execution as a sorcerer – made him feel bad. Made him think about the fact that almost three years into his reign, he still hadn’t repealed the ban against magic.

«Where would any of us be, Merlin, if no one had given us a chance?» he said, then, feeling his Consort squeezing a little against him, and tucking their blankets in.

«You should sleep,» said Merlin, and Arthur did just that, giving himself to Morpheus without resistance.

────────── 

Merlin fidgeted with the ring on his finger, the one Hunith gifted him when Arthur proposed. It was one of her most important possessions since it had been Balinor’s before, but she decided that if her little bird was to marry, he needed to have something to remember him of home.

He smiled at the memory, gripping the reigns of the brown mare he was mounting a little steadier. 

Meanwhile, Leon and the other knights were having fun with the new knight – something they always did, to ensure that the bond between the Knights of Camelot was at every time forged in the best of friendships. «You sure you haven't forgotten anything, Mordred?»

Mordred paled at this, mainly because he didn’t want to disappoint Arthur nor Merlin, and asked, agitated: «D’you think so?»

At this, the others tried to hide their smirks and started to list things that the druid most certainly didn’t forget.

«Isn't he missing a dagger?» came the voice of Leon, the noble sure on his horse.

«I can't see a water bottle,» remarked Elyan, the smile badly hidden on his lips.

«His boot. He's missing a boot,» decided Percival in the end, finally making all of the knights laugh, and Mordred repeated to himself that those were Emrys’ friends, and he shouldn’t kill them.

«Gentlemen,» said Arthur in the end, his voice putting an end at the knights’ banter.

«Merlin?» asked Gwen, her new dress – acquired when she became the Kings’ First Advisor – gentle on her body, the gryffin pin that symbolized Lancelot’s knighthood fierce just upon her heart. The warlock turned to her, his expression unsure, as he didn’t want to go. «You will take care of him?»

Merlin smiled the thin layer of red cloth which his cloak was made of shamelessly flattering behind him and the fact that his friends knew of some of his birth gifts making his heart light. «He doesn't always make it easy,» was what he said, even though he nodded, trying not to think about all those times when he almost lost him. 

She responded with a smile and a whispered “I know”, which was Merlin’s clue to follow the men and take his rightful place next to the King.

──────────

«It is a tradition,» said Leon, almost immediately finding Elyan to buck him up with: «Goes back years.»

Percival couldn’t resist, so he added, smiling: «We all had to do it on our first patrol.»

At this Arthur turned around and, seeing his youngest knight sat backwards on his horse, couldn’t find a way to repress a laugh. «Mordred, what on earth are you doing?» he asked, his words making Merlin turn too. At the warlock’s attempt at hiding a laugh, Mordred decided that killing the Camelotians knights was the only intelligent thing to do.

«Melding the saddle, my lord,» said the druid, his cheeks red and his voice unsure, feeling a little calmer when Gwaine said: «As in the ancient tradition... of melding.»

Arthur chuckled softly, the words leaving his mouth before he could think of stopping them. «Of course. I trust your breeches are on inside out?» 

At this Merlin let the mask he wore just for the Council’s men fall, a brief smile on his lips and, his blue eyes shining in the light. Arthur replied with just a smile, full of love and devotion, things Merlin never thought he’d have seen in an Arthur who was aware of his magic.

Not that Arthur knew everything, like the talk he had with his father’s spirit about his magic, or the fact that he, indeed, had known his father. Those were pieces of information that were futile for the King’s wellbeing, so they were unimportant and mostly overlooked by the warlock himself.

──────────

Gwaine raised a hand in the sky, the “stop” signal easily for everyone to interpret. At the questioning look on his lord’s face, his response was just: «It's Osgar. He's close.»

Percival nodded and after he found a piece of cloth, said: «He’s getting careless.»

While Arthur examined the fabric in his hands, Mordred went just a little forward and, with his sword raised, asked: «Sire?»

Arthur turned in the druid’s direction, all of this while Merlin was carefully controlling the situation, staying just behind them. They saw the sorcerer moving in the wood and, without wasting time, they ran after him, two by two until Gwaine and Elyan found him sitting on a fallen tree and drinking from his waterskin.

The drunken knight approached him silently, taking the sword out of the sheath without a sound, while the blacksmith’s son followed him not long after. In the end, it was Gwaine who broke the silence, making the sorcerer turn. «Who are you? What's your purpose?» he said, his sword fiercely on his dominant hand.

Osgar got up, his face emotionless, and said: «I was beginning to fear you had taken the wrong path,» thing that made Gwaine repeat his question, his voice just a little bit high. «Who are you?»

At the obvious last chance to make the encounter remain peaceful, the sorcerer decided to oblige the knight’s request. «My name is Osgar. And I have an important message for your King. Take me to him.» 

Elyan moved a bunch of steps forward, and responded with: «It’ll be our pleasure,» pointing his sword at the sorcerer’s throat. At this, Osgar responded with: «do you not know who I am?»

Gwaine decided to take the floor and said: «you are a sorcerer, a heretic and a murderer,» words that made Osgar shake his head and say: «No. Just a man who values his freedom. Take me to your King,» he made the knights lower their swords, a thing that, of course, the two found wrong, seeing that they raised them again. At this the man lost his patience and, hands raised before him, said: «Would you challenge me?», while the knights’ swords flew from their hands. Gwaine was quicker than him, and so his dagger was stuck in the man’s stomach before he had the mind to pronounce any kind of enchantment.

Osgar bent over, his hand on his side, trying to stop the bleeding. The knights moved forward to see the damage the dagger did and, taking advantage of this, the sorcerer cried: «<i>Forth fleoge!</i>», making the knights fall backwards in the wood.

Osgar then got up again, his face a display of the pain he was feeling, but walking in the rest of the party’s direction nonetheless. He found what he was looking for seconds after, in the silhouettes of Mordred, Merlin and Arthur, turned with their back on him. As a stick broke under his feet, the three of them turned quickly, their red cloaks were long forgotten on the back of their horses.

Arthur shouted a “stop”, while he and his two magical protectors walked forward to the sorcerer, who knelt on the forest floor. «Sire... My name is Osgar,» he said, his head down. 

Merlin watched him eagerly, studying every one of his movements as his King was slowly getting closer to him. After a few seconds, Arthur answered, «I know who you are,» while pointing his sword at the man’s throat, just to feel safe.

Osgar changed his expression from a pained one to an almost fierce one, the fact that he was speaking in the Triple Goddess’ blessing helping him find the courage to do so. «I am sent from the sacred Disir to pass judgement on Arthur Pendragon, the Once and Future King.»

Mordred responded, without skipping a beat, the fact that he had once been a druid being the reason why he was the only one who knew what the Disir represented: «What right have you to pass judgement?»

The sorcerer looked at Mordred strangely, as he was asking himself why a being who smelled like magic was loyal to a Pendragon when his sixth sense made him feel the vicinity of his deity’s child, the one the humans had taken pleasure in calling “Emrys”. He nodded, at this, even though it wasn’t meant for anyone. It made sense that magical people were drawn to other magical people, especially if the second type were as powerful as a God’s child.

«No man is above the Disir - however royal,» he then said, making Mordred lower his sword. «I must pass their judgement on to you, dread King. My sacred duty.» As he said this, he put his hand inside his cloak, just to get something. Mordred moved closer to the man, threatening him with his sword, now raised again. The sorcerer got a coin-shaped token out of his pocket, which both the King and the Consort watched as closely as possible, with ruins on it. At his King’s stare, Mordred lowered his sword again.

«Your hand... Arthur Pendragon,» said Osgar, and waited for the King of Camelot to reveal his gloved hand before putting the token on it. As he tried to not fall on the floor, blood loss being the reason, he murmured ”it is done”, words at which Arthur responded with a questioning: «What is the meaning of this?»

Osgar took a moment to think about the answer, sure that only the truth was going to satisfy the King’s need to understand. After a bunch of seconds, he spoke, his blue eyes pointed in Merlin’s cerulean ones: «It is both judgement and fate. You have waged war on the people of the Old Religion. Now the ancient gods answer you. The Disir has spoken. The circle of fate begins to close. For even as Camelot flowers, the seeds of her destruction are being sown.»

The warlock’s response was to raise an eyebrow, for he knew who his mother was, even though they didn’t have a real bond these days, and he knew that her hand was behind all this.

Arthur turned his head to Merlin, who was slightly behind him, as he saw that the sorcerer was speaking to him in particular, and asked: «What nonsense is this?»

Osgard took Arthur’s hand in his and, trying not to be impressed by the amount of power Emrys had unleashed just to frighten him, spoke again: «It is not too late, Arthur. Not too late to find the true path. Redeem yourself. No further chance shall be given,» falling on the ground just after, dead on the spot.

──────────

Merlin was piling stones one upon the other, his gaze lowered and what seemed similar to a prayer leaving his lips. As he heard Mordred approach, his work stopped, and his face suddenly snapped up to the druid’s direction. «What would the King say, Merlin? Sorcerers are not permitted marked graves. Not officially.»

The Consort frowned a bit, then released a quite shaky breath. «What Arthur doesn’t see can’t hurt him. And he’ll come around, eventually, just- give him time. You would have done the same.» At the misplaced druid’s apologies, Merlin shook his head, waiting for the rest of Mordred’s words that came into the form of: «He was one of us, after all. D’you really believe that?»

Merlin nodded, his -too-long- hair falling right in his eye. He thought of the last time he cut them- Arthur was the one that did it, his hands secure on the scissors and his fingertips cold that made him laugh so much. And now they were going to have a conversation with the Disir, and the Disir was going to tell everyone the truth. And there would be no more laughing alone on the big bed of the Kings’ bedroom.

«One day we’ll live in freedom again,» he said, his voice secure and just a tiny flick of power in his words to ease the young druid’s spirit. «Until then,» replied Mordred, his voice unsure but still less scared than before, «we go unmarked in death as in life.»

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #531: Returning from The New Horizon (Super Smash Bros Ultimate)

4:00 p.m. in front of Smash Town......

Wolf: (Smell The Fresh Air As Him and His Crew Made Their Way to the Mansion) ('Ahhh') Yeeup. It's good to be back home, boys....and Izzy. (Winks at Isabelle)

Isabelle: (Giggles Softly as She's Hugging Wolf's Arm While Walking Beside Him)

Leon: (Carrying Some of his Packing Bags) I'll admit, the New Horizon Island was a pretty decent experience if I do say so myself.

Panther: (Carrying his Packing Bag as Well) I agree. While it's not as fancy or luxurious as any resorts I dreamed of visiting someday, it was still enjoyable for the most part. What's your thoughts on the experience, Wolf?

Wolf: I had good time there. Learning how to fish for the first time, setting up campfires, meeting new people, the good stuff. (Smiles More Softly) But if there's one thing I would say I like most about this trip is.... well....(Blushing a Little) Getting to spend quality time with beautiful pup right here~ (Kiss the top of Isabelle's Hair)

Isabelle: (Giggles Softly While Blushing As Well) Oh Wolfie~ I love spending time with you too~ And I'm so happy you and the others enjoyed our vacation together. It means so much to me that you all gave it a chance.

Leon: Yes. I honestly wouldn't mind going back there for another visit next year if any of you would like to go back as well.

Wolf: Shit. I'm down for that.

Panther: I as well.

Isabelle: (Smiles Brightly) Then it's settled. Next year, we're going back to New Horizon-

????: IZZY!!~

Isabelle: (Gasps in Joy as She See her Girlfriends Happily Waiting For Her on the Doorway) Girlfriends!!!~

Once she took her hands off of Wolf's arm, Isabelle immediately rushes over to her group of friends and form a loving group hug with one another for a couple of minutes before letting go.

Isabelle: I missed you girls soooo much!~

Peach: We missed you too, dear!~

Daisy: (Smiles Brightly) Sooooooo?~ How was the vacation?

Samus: Were you guys able to catch some fishes?

Palutena: Did you guys set up a campfire?

Rosalina: Were you able to gaze upon the beautiful stars?

Bayonetta: (Starts Smirking) Did you and Wolf got busy one of those night?

Peach: (Glares at Bayonetta) Bayonetta!! How could you ask Izzy something like that?!

Palutena: (Gives her Witch Girlfriend an "Annoyed" Look While Pulling her Ear) Seriously.....You know that isn't any of your business.

Bayonetta: True. (Shrugged with a Smile Still on her Face) But there's really nothing wrong with having a little curiosity about juicy topics like this, my dears.

Isabelle: (Giggles Softly While Rubbing the Back of her Head Back and Forth) The vacation was amazing. We did everything you girls guessed we did and then some. And....to answer your question, Bayonetta......(Starts Blushing while Turning her Regular Smile into a Bashful One) Let's just say that.... you're not entirely wrong in that assumption.....

Peach/Rosalina/Palutena: ('GASPS')

Samus: (Eyes Widened in Genuine Surprise) Well, I'll be damn.......

Bayonetta: (Smirk Grew Wider) Ohhh my~

Daisy: HOLY SHIT! REALLY?!

Isabelle: (Happily Nodded) It's the honest truth~

Bayonetta: (Smiles Excitedly) Izzy dear, you GOTTA give us some details on this!

Daisy: Yeah! Don't leave us out on this here!

Samus: Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm kind of interested in wanting to know too.

Palutena: Yeah. Me too now that I think of it.

Rosalina: (Blushes a Little) I am also curious as well.

Isabelle: (Giggles Softly) Calm yourselves, ladies. I promise I'll tell you everything. Once we have our tea time prepared of course.

Peach: YES!

Ladies: (Stares at Peach, Some with Raised Eyebrow and Some with Smirks on their Faces)

Peach: (Starts Blushing) I-I mean....('Clears Throat') I agree to this as well. N-Not because I am interested in the conversation we are having right now, but only because I want to celebrate Izzy's return. That's all.

Daisy: (Rolled her Eyes with a Smirk) Whatever you say, cuz. Now let's get this tea time started already!

Ladies cheers in rejoice as they make their way back inside the mansion together.

Isabelle: (Waves at Wolf) I'll see you later on tonight, Wolfie!~

Wolf: (Waves Back at Isabelle) Sure thing, babe! Have fun with the gal pals in there! ('Heh Heh') I love that pup~

???: Just what I needed to see. Wolf O' Donnell.

Wolf: (Starts Smirking Once he Sees a Very Familiar Face Making His Way Towards Him) Well, if it isn't McCloud himself. You miss me?

Fox: ('Scoffs') As if. I was having the time of my life not seeing your smug face last week. But joking aside, how was the vacation?

Wolf: Pretty good. Thinking about going back there next year with the gang.

Fox: Nice. You know, I kind of never expected you to be this easy going, Wolf.

Wolf: (Shrugged) What can I say? I'm a change man.

Fox: (Raised an Eyebrow)

Wolf: Okay. Maybe not completely changed, but you know what I mean.

Fox: Perhaps. But as much as I would love to continue this chat, I got some errands to run. (Walks Away) I'll see you later.

Wolf: Sure thing. (Turns Around and Gives Fox a Smug Look on his Face) Oh and try not to lock yourself out this time, McCloud! You don't wanna embarrssed yourself like last time, do ya?!

Fox: (Gives Wolf a Middle Finger While Walking)

Wolf: (Chuckles Lightly) Not gonna lie. I missed that fox......Missed messing with him, that is.

?????: 'Eyyy, Star Wolf! Welcome back!

Panther: (Turns to see a Familiar Face Make His Way to Him and Leon) Ah, Mocking Bird, it is somewhat good to see you again.

Falco: .....Okay. Just this once, I'm gonna ignore that. How's the vacation? Y'all did anything interesting there?

Leon: For the most part. We learned how to catch fish for the first time, set up campfires on each nights, experience the outdoors and it's true natur-

Panther: (Begins to Smirk) I just got myself a phone number from a very beautiful feline.

Falco: Oh shit. Really?

Panther: That is correct, my mortal competitor. Her name is Ankha and her beauty is so much to be desired.

Leon: (Rolled his Eyes) She's more of self centered brat if anything.....

Panther: Come now, Leon. She wasn't that bad. She just has her own opinions and taste on certain things.

Falco: Sounds like your kind of girl, Casanova.

Panther: (Chuckles Lightly and Confidently) Yes. I couldn't agree more. (Points at Leon with his Thumb) I've been trying to get Polwaski here to join me on the Island's night club for almost the entire week, but he always turn down the offer.

Leon: In case you haven't noticed, Panther, I was never interested in anything romantic related. Especially something trivial as getting into a relationship. I prefer to remain solo for the time being. Just me, myself, and I.

Falco: Ah come on, man. Being in a relationship isn't that trivial or anything. I've been kicking it with Katt since day one and so far it's been great.

Leon: (Raised an Eyebrow) Really? Then tell me, Lombardi, when exactly was the last time you called Monroe as of late?

Falco: .....................Touché, Polwaski. Touché.

@keyenuta

@ma-lemons

@26shann

@cyber-wildcat

@chompycroc

@ink-correctsmashbrosbloo

@italian-love-cake

[druddigoon]

prompt fill #1

@shame-cubed: bede and gloria in a raid together

this was supposed to be a simple one but then i decided to add 3 more people and a metric fuckton of tension and it kinda blew up. word count: don’t worry about it

————————-

“Where’s the dynamax pokemon?” 

He eyes you with a mask of disdain, attention briefly flitting to the vikavolt you have buzzing over your shoulder. “Not an issue, no thanks to you.” 

“There’s been reports of energy flares in almost every gym, so it took a bit of time to get here.” You pause to catch your breath, removing your beret to run a hand through your windblown hair after a harrowing flight over the Tangled Woods. Dangling under a vikavolt fifty metres off the ground doesn’t do well for vertigo. “I’m here to help. There’re other people coming, just show us where the pokemon’s at and we’ll calm it down.” 

There’s muffled banging at the main entrance, a drawn-out holler cut off with a sharp rebuttal. Hop and Piers. Bede’s voice ices over. “Then go play hero for the other towns. We don’t need you here.” 

The nerve of him. “I don’t know if you’ve stuck your head out of your little me-bubble yet, but people are trying to save the region from collapsing, and maybe if you stop babying your ego for just one second you’d accept help when help is offered—” 

“I believe Bede is suggesting he’s already dealt with the issue.” Opal cuts in, stepping out from under the shadow of the backroom. She looks the same since your gym challenge—angular face drowning amid her ample ruff, deceptively leaning on her umbrella-cane like she isn’t capable of throwing it away in a heartbeat—but it’s the way Bede stands straighter and draws closer to her presence that has you thrown. 

This is not the Bede in Galar Mines, not the Bede in Hammerlocke, tired and disgraced; this is not the Bede at Wyndon semifinals, desperate for redemption. This is the Bede who’s found his home, confident and grounded when you’ve had the rug swept from under your feet. 

The gym challenge changes people, they say. 

(You’ve never felt more alone.)

“Miss Opal! We’re here to help you with the dynma—” Hop skids to a stop once he notices Bede, and the way they size each other up reminds you of fights between wild pokemon. 

Coming here was a mistake. 

“Evenin’, ma’am.” Piers brings up the rear, eyes glued to his rotom-phone, unheeding toward the palpable tension in the room. “Dynamax readin’s gone, I reckon you’ve got it taken care of then.” 

“Why yes, my protégé handled the rogue shiinotic brilliantly a little while before you came.” 

Bede smirks at her praise; you lay a hand on Hop's shoulder to stop him from pulling anything, only to have him roughly shrug it off and stalk out of the building. 

“I wouldn’t bother with him,” Bede says as you stare at the still-swinging doors, something close to shame prickling deep in your throat. “Someone who thinks he's entitled special treatment because his brother’s the champion doesn’t deserve to take his spot.” 

Deep breaths. Opal watches you with hawk’s eyes, and for a second you feel more bone than flesh, surrounded. Think of secret summer grottos, ponds with water so clear the remoraid’s scales gleam as they swim through, think of how happy Crustle was when his crabapple tree bloomed, maybe wiping that smarmy expression off Bede’s face even though you can’t throw a punch to save your life. 

When you dare to speak again, your voice comes out lowed like a hiss from a boiling kettle. “If you’re so good at dealing with dynamax pokemon, I’d like to see you handle the rest of this problem.“ 

“I fail to see how the rest of the gyms fall under my jurisdiction. We’ve dawdled for long enough, it’s time—” 

“He’ll do it.” 

“—for you to...what?” 

You’d savour the look of disbelief on Bede’s face if the implication of Opal’s comment didn’t sink in. She regains control of the situation with a smile, too pleasant for the gravity of her words. “It must be difficult for the three of you to handle all of this on your own. These bones are too old to hitch a ride on unlicensed fliers, but Bede here can accompany you while I guard the gym.” 

Bede runs a hand through his hair, considering. 

“Fine,” he bites out, releasing his gardevoir before striding out the entrance. You quickly jog after him, hoping to reach Hop before he does. “Let’s go.” 

“—very keen on addin’ fuel to the fire.” Piers comments far behind you.

“They’ll sort it out,” Opal replies, “Sometimes all it takes is getting a little burnt.” 

————————-

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Hop gapes at the skulking figure of Bede from his perch atop his corviknight, an imposing bird outlined in scintillating angles against the dead of night. “Glor, please tell me you’re joking.” 

“He wanted to come. You...we need all the help we can get, and having him just means we can get this done faster and safer. Please. This is for the greater good.” 

“Are you siding with him now? Is this what it is? This is a bloody insult to injury, Glor. Do you remember what he’s done to you? Do you remember what he’s done to me?” 

“I’m not taking anyone’s side! You can choose to never see Bede again after this is over, Hop, it’s just that we have a bigger issue at hand and everyone’ll need to put aside their difference until we can stabilize the region.” 

“I know, but I'm a hundred percent sure that we. Don’t. Need. Him.” He punctuates every word with a jab of his finger in Bede’s direction. “We were fine in Turrfield. We were fine in Hulbury. We were fine in Motostoke, we were fine in Stow-On-Side. We’re almost done, we’d just finish everything with more peace of mind if he buggers off.” 

Bede crosses his arms. “Flattered you think so highly of me. Honestly, Hop, you’re desperation is showing. Worried that I’ll steal your thunder?” 

“Guys, please—” 

Hop’s corviknight lets out an ear-piercing screech, rearing up and flapping its wings in a way that forces the rest of you to back up. Bede’s gardevoir steps in front of him, her horn glowing with the beginnings of psychic energy. 

“ENOUGH!” A dark shape, too fast to make out, cleaves between the two boys, the acrid smell of something sour lingering behind. 

Piers steps out, followed closely by his obstagoon, the vestiges of a night slash still roiling off its foreclaws. “This isn’t what I was expectin’ from a finalist and a gym leader, and you two ought be ashamed of yourselves for this kind of behavior.” He sighs heavily, rubbing his temples. “I need a smoke break. Gloria, come with me.” 

————————-

“Marnie told me you lot were good kids.” Piers takes a slow drag of his cigarette. You fidget with the hem of your skirt, sneaking peeks at the clearing even though neither of the boys are in sight. “So imagine my surprise when I end up babysittin’ two kids who look one second away from tearin’ each other’s throat out, with you actin’ like you’re the reason they want to.” 

“I am.” The floodgates burst all too easily; you never expected to pour your heart out to a near-stranger, fraying dye job illuminated in the harsh glare of the street lamp and wreathed in a halo of cigarette smoke, but lately all your friends have been worse than strangers and Piers. Piers sits still and listens. “I-I never wanted to do...this. The championship is always Hop’s dream, and I promised to help him get it like a friend before pulling it out from under him. Could’ve supported him after Bede broke his spirit—he said he was a disgrace to Leon’s name, even though he isn’t even relevant—but instead I decided to hammer it in by battling him and winning.” 

You shut your eyes, grind the heel of your palms hard onto them until you’re seeing stars. “I saw Bede’s disqualification. I was there to see the hope go out of him when Rose told him he no longer worked for them, was there and did nothing. I’ve done nothing but shirk and shirk, and now i’m supposed to stabilize Galar’s dynamax outbreak when I can’t even lift a finger for the people closest to me.” Bitter smile. “Some champion I am.” 

Piers huffs. He drops the cigarette, crushing its embers under the heel of his boot, before looking up and speaking. “I don’t know enough to say it’s not your fault, but you’re takin’ your mistakes out of proportion.” 

“Spikemuth’s never been my dream; most people don’t end up doin’ the thing they want, believe it or not. This may not be yours and yet you’re tryin’, and you’ve got heart. I doubt a bad champion would be risking her life travelin’ from town to town confrontin’ rampagin’ pokemon like you are now.” 

“That...still doesn’t make me a good champion.” 

“No, it doesn’t.” He stands, brushing off lingering ash. “But Galar doesn’t have a ‘good champion’. It has you. And even if you can’t redeem yourself in the eyes of your friends, you can redefine yourself in everyone else. Come, let’s head back.” 

You return to the same silent standstill you left. Hop can’t meet your eyes, face buried in the feathers around his corviknight’s neck. Bede only stares back; a challenge. 

“Which cities do you have left?” he asks. 

Piers checks. “Only Circhester and Hammerlocke, it looks like.” 

“We’ll split up, then,” Hop interjects, not even looking up. “Piers and I’ll go to Circhester, while Gloria and Bede go to Hammerlocke.” 

“That’s fine,” you concede after a moment’s pause. He’s trying to distance himself from you, but can you blame him?

(You can’t, not really. This must be a nightmare situation for him—losing to the false heirs, failing to catch them, fighting alongside his former-friend-now-champion knowing he could’ve been the one in her place, watching her strike the final blow as his cinderace heals on the sidelines. Every reminder is driving a nail in the coffin, and Bede’s arrival is simply the stake that split it at the seams.)

“Best of luck to you, then.”

“Good luck to you too.”

————————-

“Everything you’ve said to Hop applies to you, y’know.” 

“Are we really going over this now?” The Hammerlocke gym halls are far too empty for comfort, deep rumbles echoing against your skull as you catch flashes of light past stadium doors. You stalk onward, eager to get the situation over with and return to Ballonlea. Damn Opal. “We have a bigger issue at hand.” 

Out of the corner of your eye you see Gloria puff out her cheeks. If someone were to back you into the corner of an alley with a knife pressed to your throat, you’d admit you do respect her; becoming the Champion is no easy feat, and nobody expected it from a quiet girl with a team full of bugs, the beginner’s route fodder others grind to train their battlers. It’s her altruism that irritates you, a relentless selflessness that will get her bitten, somewhere down the line. “Can’t you accept help without fighting it?” 

You fall silent. 

Oleana’s voice, ice against your ear. “Is this how you’ll treat the man who found you, back when you were all alone?” 

(More wishing stars. Always more wishing stars.)

A rattling roar resounds ahead. Sensing she’s needed, Hattie coalesces by your side with a chiming noise, and you continue on, pushing past reinforced double doors. “The last person who offered me help was Rose.” 

And look where it got me.

The dynamaxed haxorus is huge; its scythe-like tusks crest above the open roof of the arena, claws as large as longswords carving deep furrows into the turf, an excess of power and energy given a corporeal form while the haxorus’s original body is tucked away behind layers of shields. An entire section of bleachers had been razed to the ground, steel gouged with millions of tiny lacerations that fractal in draconid energy. Gloria finally shut her mouth, calling out her crustle as you start putting distance between you and her.  The flash of light catches the haxorus’s attention. 

Its eyes are impossibly wide—a deerling in headlights, more prey than predator—and when it roars, it's a pained cry pitched like a plea.

The raid begins. 

Gloria fights like battling is innate to her, instinct ingrained through bone in a way no amount of textbook memorization or controlled-environment training can hold a candle to. Bugs are notoriously more id than superego; rather than suppressing it, hers seem to have tailored their natural behavior towards battling, where her commands are less commands than they are suggestions, tips, and warnings, a coach to her players. She trusts her pokemon, and they make it worthwhile. It makes her incredibly hard to read, as most of the time she isn’t even giving instructions.

Helpful in a singles matchup, not so much in a tag-team battle.

You hear her call out from the other end of the stadium, and her crustle withdraws into its shell just fast enough to dodge the brunt of Hattie’s dazzling gleam. In the split second when the haxorus is sent reeling, it pulls off a shell smash, darting out of its shell in a blur of orange to land a stone edge that shatters the haxorus’s shields. 

It keeps up the distraction long enough for Hattie, slow as she is, to charge up another dazzling gleam. The stadium lights up in a brilliant light display as it explodes against the haxorus’s side, sending it reeling. Crustle is also sent flying a couple metres back before getting back on its feet, the exoskeleton of its claws warped from where it used to to block the worst of the attack. 

“Stop hitting me!” Gloria calls. 

“Then dodge out of the way! Hattie can’t avoid you without compromising her output!” 

Haxorus finally notices you, letting out a bellow as its tail warps into something steel-tipped, sharp with metallic ridges gleaming crimson in the dynamax light, before swinging the entire thing towards you. 

Of course. Bloody thing knows steelspike. 

Your back collides with the stadium walls before you realize there’s nowhere to run. Damn Opal. Couldn’t make do with just the shiinotic. Hattie matches the haxorus with her own war cry, energy streaming through her coat in a last-ditch attempt at damage. 

In the span of a split second, something orange collides with the tail, knocking it off track. 

Then the world flashes white. 

When you finally regain your vision, the haxorus is back to its regular size and barely conscious, keeling over onto the ground. Hattie twirls, unscathed save for shards of steel tangled in her hair. 

You could hardly recognize it without its boulder shell, but buried in the sand beside her was the fainted body of Gloria’s crustle, who’d taken the brunt of the steelspike. 

“What was that?” You ask Gloria, who had recalled the fallen haxorus into its gym-issued pokeball. 

She crouched next to her crustle, checking it for injuries before withdrawing it as well. “Crustle blocked its attack. Don’t worry about him; he’s tough, and I’ll reward him with extra fertiliser to his favorite tree after this.” 

“Hattie could’ve take—” You stop, because no, she wouldn’t, before amending “It’s unnecessary. Crustle could’ve utilized the chance to get its last hits in.” 

“He might’ve missed. This gave us the best chances of winning, and he wanted that. Wouldn’t have followed my order if he didn’t. Also...Hattie?” 

“Stop changing the topic. You’d let it throw itself into the path of danger for a chance?” 

“Yes.” 

She looks a little dejected, but doesn’t push like he expects her to. Nobody gives charity for free; he’s learned this through his multiple orphanage relocations, Rose’s too-large watch, Opal’s quest for an heir. His mind is quick to point fingers at pity, just like the others, but he can smell pity a mile off and Gloria’s never been the type for it, not to him. 

Why?

“Isn’t this a betrayal to Hop?” 

Her face steels over. “He doesn’t have to like anything I do. He’s not here, and this isn’t about him.” It’s a far cry from Stow-On-Side, her fury on Hop’s behalf. You’ve noticed the two seem more distant lately. The gym challenge changes people, they say. 

The outside air is cool on your face. Gloria’s vikavolt has its claws latched onto her backpack, carrying her in what you’d describe as the most dangerous method of flying and you still don’t understand, why why why why why? 

“Gloria?” 

She glances back at you, head tilted slightly to the side. Your question dies in your throat. 

“Stay safe.” 

She looks at you strangely. “T-thanks. Stay safe too.” 

You watch until her figure becomes a dark speck on the horizon before heading home, alone.

[falseh0od]

So I had the idea... what if the boys were Pokemon trainers?? I know the idea of a Pokémon/Sanders Sides crossover has been done by many (I’m particularly partial to the one by @sugarglider9603- I name my eeveelutions after the boys respectively 😅)

But! I decided to take the Pokémon they chose as the ones they’d be in the Q&A video and give them 5 more Pokémon for a full team! Only three of the boys have a specific typing, but each one has a trait that sets their team apart!

I ALSO included Janus, Remus, Emile, and Remy in this. Janus and Remus’s partners are straightforward as Arbok and Alolan Raticate respectively, but I chose a possible oddball for Emile in Ditto. I’ll elaborate more! Remy’s partner is Snorlax though, which I think is also a perfect match.

I’ll also be explaining the backgrounds of each of the boys and how they caught each of their Pokémon.

Anyway, here we go!

Logan Berry

(TW for mentions of abuse)

Logan was born in Hoenn, way back before any of the events of the games happened. Steven Stone is still champion of the region and is very, very well known. However, Logan’s parents were abusive and very strict, and absolutely hated Pokemon. They weren’t very secretive of their abuse, though, and one day it got bad enough that the neighbors came to investigate and called the police. This was when Logan was officially taken from their custody and sent to live with his Grandma in the Galar region... aka, Professor Magnolia. In this AU, Logan takes the place of Sonia. Which means he becomes a Pokémon Professor, which shouldn’t surprise anybody lmao. He does also end up being Leon’s rival in the gym challenge too! He also decides to specialize in Psychic-Type Pokémon.

Alakazam

Logan found his Alakazam when it was just a baby, a young Abra. This Abra was his first Pokemon, and one of the only two Pokémon he caught in Hoenn. In fact, this Abra is what set off the argument with his parents that led to them being arrested in the first place. His parents forbid him from having a Pokémon, despite the fact that Logan loved Pokémon with all his heart and it was his dream to be a trainer. This resulted in them becoming furious when he came home with his Abra. However, Abra actively protected Logan from the blows of his parents (using its psychic powers ofc) and is the main reason why Logan wasn’t in worse shape after that. Because of this, Alakazam isn’t just Logan’s partner, but is also his emotional support Pokemon, and Logan hates to be away from him for too long.

Metagross

This is the second Pokémon Logan brought with him to Galar from Hoenn, and it just so happens that this Pokémon was a gift to him. Steven Stone himself heard that there was a young boy who had been abused by his parents, and took it upon himself to come visit Logan before he was sent to Galar. The two struck up an immediate friendship, and Steven decided to gift him with the one thing the boy loved more than anything- a Pokemon. A Beldum, to be exact. He told Logan to take good care of the young Pokemon and Logan promised he would- and he would keep that promise.

Espeon

Espeon was the first pokemon Logan caught in Galar. It was just an Eevee at the time! Professor Magnolia had taken him with her when she went to visit Milo at one point, and when passing through Route Four Logan had found the Eevee. Professor Magnolia gifted him with a Pokeball to use to catch it, and Logan had his third Pokémon!

Xatu

It was in the wild area as an older teen that Logan found his fourth team member. He found a little Natu hopping around in the grass, minding its own business. Logan initially didn’t think much of it, and went on with his business... but the Natu thought MUCH of him, and ended up following Logan all around the Wild Area. Logan eventually caved in, catching the little bird and forming such a close bond with him that he added him to his team when he evolved into Xatu.

Galarian Rapidash

Logan found the Galarian Rapidash when he was in the middle of his Gym challenge with Leon, as he was on his way to Ballonlea. It was a Ponyta at the time, and it was actually injured. Logan quickly caught it and ran back to Wedgehurst to have Professor Magnolia take a look at her, almost missing his sixth gym. However, the Ponyta made a quick recovery and Logan added her to his team.

Reuniclus

Logan’s final team member was also found in its unevolved form, Solosis. He found Solosis in the wild area as well, in after he had beaten every gym and before he went on to Wyndon for the finals. There wasn’t much fate about the meeting- but Logan felt a connection from the moment he saw the Pokémon. He caught it, trained it, and it joined him in Wyndon, a Duosion, and Logan’s final team member.

Roman Prince

Roman (and Remus, his twin ofc) was born and raised in Alola. He had his mom, a kind and caring woman who loved her sons deeply. His dad had died when he was very little, so he didn’t remember much about him. His mom was also friends with Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet, and Roman was close friends with their adopted son... Remy. In fact, Professor Kukui was the one who gifted Roman his first Pokemon, and we’ll get into that story right now!

Wigglytuff

Wigglytuff (an Igglybuff at the time) was Roman’s first pokemon and has since been his loyal partner. He received the Pokémon as an egg, a gift from Professor Kukui when he, Remus, and Remy were all old enough to start training Pokémon (Remus originally thought Pokémon were stupid, however, and would change his mind and get his first Pokémon later). After he got the egg, Roman spent every waking hour working to hatch it, and three days after receiving it, it hatched, much to his delight, and Igglybuff was brought into the world. He and his now Wigglytuff have an incredibly close connection, and Roman almost never puts her in her Pokeball.

Gardevoir

Gardevoir was Roman’s second Pokemon, the first wild Pokémon he ever caught. It was just a Ralts, but Roman was super excited to find a rarer pokemon, and immediately struck up a lasting friendship with Ralts. It evolved quicker than any Ralts Professor Kukui had ever seen.

Alolan Ninetales

It was during a ski trip to Mount Lanakila that Roman stumbled upon a lost and scared Alolan Vulpix. Roman didn’t hesitate to bring it back to the group, and helped it calm down. It was plainly evident not long after that the Vulpix was destined to be Roman’s. He caught it, and went to the ends of the earth to find the ice stone that eventually she evolved with when she was ready.

Aegislash

(tw for killing mention and technically animal abuse?)

Professor Kukui was beyond shocked when a teenaged Roman barged through his door holding a Pokeball that held a Honedge, another incredibly rare Pokémon. Roman told the dashing story, how he rescued it from a hitman who was trying to catch it to make it kill for him against its will. Kukui still doesn’t know how true the story is... but between me and you, Roman didn’t exaggerate a word.

Altaria

Roman’s Swablu was another gift, from a traveling friend of Professor Kukui. After hearing the professor speak so highly of the three kids and their dedication to Pokemon (Remus had decided to be a trainer by this point) the stranger gifted all three with a Pokémon not normally found in Alola. All three of the boys added said pokemon to their teams. Roman fell in love with the Swablu and was elated when it evolved into the majestic Altaria.

Milotic

Roman was traded Milotic. There’s not a big, fluffy story to his 6th pokemon, really. It was his first trade ever and when the other person traded him a Feebas holding a prism scale, he was super excited to watch the Pokémon evolve into Milotic. And so he added Milotic to his team on the spot.

Patton Hart

Patton is from Kalos, and doesn’t have much to his backstory. His mom died when he was ten, and his Dad raised him. His dad was a doctor and also Patton’s hero, so Patton ended up also going on to go to med school to become a doctor as well. He would eventually decide to move to Galar for a change in scenery, but not until he was in his mid-twenties. However, Patton has a major quirk to his Pokémon team. Patton decided to become an expert in training Pokémon to their full extent while they were still in their basic forms, aka not fully evolved... but not just any kind of Pokémon. You’ll see what I mean!

Togepi

Some of you might already have noticed the specific kind of Pokémon Patton specializes in. Anyway, Togepi was hatched an egg Patton found in the wild. His dad wasn’t terribly thrilled with the idea of Patton raising a wild egg since they had no idea what it would be, but after persistent badgering from Patton eventually gave in and let him raise it. Let’s just say he was relieved when it hatched into just a baby Togepi!

The rest of Patton’s team were gifts from various people who had eggs they were looking to give away. There’s not a whole ton of background so I’ll just list off each of the Pokémon in order of when he got them!

Pichu

Munchlax

Magby

Azurill

Riolu

Yeah, if you haven’t noticed, Patton specializes in baby Pokémon! Each holds an everstone and an eviolite, and each was given specialized training with Patton to make them as strong as possible! He holds a close relationship with each one! Patton is incredibly proud of his team, and is even one of the strongest trainers in Kalos!

Virgil Storm

Virgil was born and raised in Galar, and he loves the region more than anything and never plans to move. He’s also a close friend (and *cough* boyfriend- I’ll go into that more at the end of the post) of Logan! Both his parents are alive and are super awesome. They almost become like a second family to Logan. Virgil also has a fascination with ghost Pokémon, and as such, decided early on to be a trainer specializing in Ghost type Pokémon.

Haunter

Virgil met his Haunter before he ever even met Logan. He was wandering in the woods, and was hopelessly lost. Scared and crying, he caught the attention of a young Gastly, who approached the boy and helped him find his way out of the woods. It was when they had finally made their way out that Virgil found an abandoned Pokeball on the ground, and decided to catch the Gastly, who had at that point basically adopted the small human and was more than happy to be his partner. While it eventually evolved into Haunter, Virgil has vowed that he will never give away his Haunter, pretty much making it so the Pokémon will never evolve into Gengar. Logan has offered to try and find a way to get Haunter to evolve without a trade, but Virgil denied. He prefers Haunter over Gengar anyway (though he won’t deny that Gengar is his favorite gigantimax form).

Chandelure

Virgil found Chandelure as a Litwick when he was on a walk in the same woods, this time with Logan by his side. He immediately felt drawn to the Pokémon, and while Logan was terrified that something horrible would happen, the Litwick felt the same connection, and decided to let Virgil catch it. Eventually evolving into Lampent, Virgil was elated when he found a Dusk Stone lying around in the Wild Area, and helped the Pokémon to evolve into Chandelure.

Trevenant

Virgil found his Trevenant as - you guessed it, a Phantump. It was in a forest, but this time, in the forest leading up to Ballonlea. He was on his way to watch Logan’s gym match with Opal! It took some coaxing to get the Phantump into a Pokeball, but the little Pokemon eventually decided to go with Virgil. Though Virgil was resigned to having the Pokémon be a Phantump forever, the incredible connection Phantump made with Virgil led to it surprising Virgil with an evolution out of nowhere one day. (I know- don’t fight me on this, I just have a major problem with trade evolutions and Pokemon needs to make it so there’s another way to evolve those Pokémon 😡).

Dragapult

To no one’s surprise, Virgil found his Dragapult as a Dreepy. It was actually in a Max Raid battle, one that he and Logan did together. Virgil was elated when they found one for Dreepy, because he had been dreaming of getting a Dreepy for years.

Mimikyu

Mimikyu was one of the weirder encounters Virgil had. It was in the wild area, and Virgil was wandering in the fog alone when he noticed movement. It took some time to track down the movement, but it was then that he found the Mimikyu, one of the smallest Mimikyus anyone would ever see. He fell in love and his connection with Mimikyu is incredibly strong, seconded only by his connection with Haunter.

Dusknoir

Dusknoir is the only pokemon any of the boys found in the wild as-is. Not a Duskull, not a Duskclops, a full-out Dusknoir. While the encounter got rocky because the Dusknoir was big and formidable, after Virgil won a battle against it, it let Virgil catch it. That is still one of Virgil’s proudest accomplishments.

Janus Sawyer

Janus is a wandering soul at heart, and never stays in one place for terribly long. He was raised in Kanto, but not being able to travel made him miserable. As soon as he turned 18 he left home, and has never settled down since. He also has a connection with Pokémon that resemble snakes (and no one should be surprised by this).

Arbok

Arbok was the first pokemon Janus ever caught, when it was just an Ekans. Janus found the Ekans in the wild, and though his mom was terrified, he immediately was drawn to it, and begged his mom to let him catch it. His mom finally relented and gave him a Pokeball to use. Janus loves his Arbok more than anything.

Dragonair

Dragonair was the only other Pokémon Janus found in Kanto before he left. He found it as a Dratini, and will never let it evolve into Dragonite as he prefers Dragonair and finds it ridiculous that Dragonite looks nothing like the snake-like Dragonair and Dratini.

Cofagrigus

Cofagrigus is the only non-snake-like Pokemon on Janus’s team. He found it in Unova, the first region he went to after he left Kanto. He wasn’t originally gonna have it on his team, but eventually realized that he had too close a relationship with the Pokémon to not keep it on his team. He loves Cofagrigus a lot.

(AN: I included cofagrigus because arms.)

Serperior

Serperior is another Pokemon Janus found in Unova. He found it as Snivy. He’s especially proud of the odd coloring on his Serperior, as it is a lighter green, and has blue accents. (Yes, it is shiny!)

Zoroark

Zoroark is the last Pokemon Janus caught in Unova. After hearing of the pokemon, he became obsessed with Zoroark and vowed to catch it before he left Unova. He did find it, but it took a few weeks before Zoroark would let him catch it. In those few weeks, Janus stood back to observe Zoroark. Finally, Janus saved Zoroark’s life when it was attacked by a Pokemon hunter, and it decided to allow Janus to catch it. Janus and Zoroark are very close.

Salamence

In the second region he ever travelled to, Hoenn, Janus found a Bagon- he wasn’t entirely down to catch it, but Bagon desperately wanted to be catched by him. Janus eventually relented and caught the Pokemon, and with some research realized he would love to have a Salamence on his team. The two eventually grew closer and closer, and by the time it evolved into Salamence, they had a bond close enough for mega evolution- so when Janus first heard about the concept, he put all of his effort into finding a key stone and a mega stone for Salamence, which he eventually would.

Remus Prince

Remus, Roman’s twin, originally thought that being a Pokémon trainer was a stupid idea, and vowed never to be a trainer nor to own a single Pokémon. This changed when he was a teen, and he now loves Pokémon and is one of the strongest trainers in Alola (ironically enough). He completed the entire island challenge, and Kukui ends up asking him to be in the Elite Four when he creates the Alola Region Pokemon League. He doesn’t have a specific type, though a good portion of his team is Poison type, so he primarily uses the Poison Z-Move.

Alolan Raticate

Alolan Raticate was the Pokemon that made Remus change his mind about being a trainer. He found the Pokémon, a small rattata, being attacked by a Gumshoos who was way stronger than the Rattata. Remus chased the Gumshoos off, and then Roman handed Remus a Pokeball as if to say “you know you want to”. Remus gave in and caught the rattata. Now, Raticate is his partner, and he is closer with Raticate than with any of his other Pokémon.

Garbodor

Once Remus had given in to being a Pokémon trainer, Kukui finally got to give him an egg for him to raise. It took some time because Remus wasn’t sure how to go about raising the egg, but eventually it hatched into Trubbish. Remus loves Garbodor a lot, and though there’s no real way for him to figure this out, Garbodor is also gigantimax.

Alolan Muk

Muk was a Pokémon that, once he decided to be a trainer, Remus had his heart set on catching. It took a few years, but he finally found a Grimer, and added it to his team. Muk and Garbodor are very close.

Alolan Exeggcutor

Remus has always loved the concept of Exeggcutor- it’s long neck, the egg shaped heads, everything! Yet once he saw how they looked everywhere but Alola, Remus realized just how special the Alolan variants were. He spent three months trying to catch an Alolan Exeggcutor once he decided he wanted to, and was eventually successful.

Swalot

You remember the story of how Roman got his Swablu? That also happens to be how Remus got Swalot. Swalot was merely a Gulpin when he was gifted it. Remus instantly fell in love with the Pokémon and loves that he’s one of the only trainers in Alola with one.

Weezing

It was during a short trip to Kanto that Remus found his Weezing. Professor Kukui was visiting Professor Oak, and had also booked a ticket for Burnet, who unfortunately got sick last minute. With Roman and Remy both busy, Kukui offered to let Remus tag along, and Remus was more than happy to come. It was a chance encounter with Koffing, but Remus instantly fell in love, and Weezing was added to his party as his 6th pokemon.

Remy Burnet-Kukui

Remy was orphaned at only a year old, so he has very little recollection of his parents. Kukui and Burnet were not exactly looking to adopt at the time, but after hearing of Remy’s story, decided they had nothing to lose. They didn’t keep it a secret from Remy that he was adopted, not wanting to lose his trust at a later date. Remy is still incredibly close with his adopted parents and loves them with his whole heart. He became obsessed with the idea of moves Pokemon can use while asleep, and once he became a trainer, decided to specialize in using sleep to his advantage. He only has five Pokémon on his team, but if you saw him battle, you would see that that’s all he needs. He made it most of the way through the island challenge, but was never able to defeat Hapu.

Snorlax

Snorlax was Remy’s first Pokémon, the Pokémon gifted to him by Kukui while it was just an egg. It hatched into Munchlax and Remy was ecstatic. His Munchlax and Burnet’s Munchlax were always close, and while Burnet’s Munchlax never evolved, Remy happily evolved his when they became close enough.

Komala

Komala was the second Pokémon Remy caught, the first one he caught in the wild. It was in the middle of a busy street, sleeping as usual and just barely avoiding getting trampled. Remy rescued it, and Komala let him catch it.

Slaking

Remy found Slaking in the wild, just a Slakoth. Remy had the absolute worst time wrangling the Pokémon when it evolved into Vigoroth, and he will tell you that the day it evolved into Slaking was the happiest day of his life.

Slowbro

Another wild encounter, Slowbro and Snorlax became very close very quickly, when Slowbro was just a Slowpoke. They can often be seen napping together, and occasionally Remy will join them.

Musharna

Musharna was gifted to Remy as a Munna when Kukui’s friend from a different region visited. Remy fell in love with Munna and Kukui helped him locate a moon stone to evolve it into Musharna.

Emile Picani

Emile is Patton’s cousin, and also his best friend! Also raised in Kalos, he moved to Galar when he turned 18, much to Patton’s chagrin. He was also one of the main reasons Patton himself decided to move to Galar. Emile is a therapist, and is also close with Logan and Virgil. He’s also Logan’s therapist! He prides himself in being a normal-type trainer.

Ditto

Ditto was the first Pokémon Emile found. It was a wild encounter, and it terrified Emile at first because it had shapeshifted into Gengar. Once he realized what it was though, Emile was fascinated, and decided to catch it. It became his partner and helps Emile in his therapy sessions too!

Stoutland

Emile found Stoutland when it was just a little Lillipup. It was hurt, and Emile rushed it to the Pokémon Center. After waiting anxiously to see if it was alright, Nurse Joy gave him a Pokeball to use to catch it once it was fully recovered. Stoutland is one of the gentlest Pokemon Emile has ever seen, and he cares for each of the other Pokémon on Emile’s team, almost like a Dad friend.

Blissey

Blissey was gifted to Emile as an egg. He vigorously cared for it, and was elated when it hatched into Happiny. He made sure to form a close friendship with the Pokémon, wanting nothing more than for it to evolve fully, which it eventually did.

Poryon 2

Emile’s Porygon was an odd gift, given to him by a stranger he had a Pokémon battle with who was intrigued by Emile’s strength and bond with his Pokémon. Emile never saw the man again, but he loves his Porygon and went to the ends of the earth to get it to evolve into Porygon 2.

Smeargle

Another wild encounter, Smeargle was the last Pokemon Emile caught one Kalos before he moved- in fact, he caught Smeargle on his 18th birthday! Smeargle is incredibly loyal to Emile, and doesn’t particularly like other trainers. He gets incredibly competitive during battles.

Dubwool

The day he moved to Galar, Emile immediately knew he desperately wanted a Wooloo. They were cute, they were fluffy, and they were incredibly strong once evolved. He caught one within his first week in Galar, and it evolved within the first year.

And that’s all folks! I hope you enjoyed each of these stories and explanations! I dunno if I’ll ever write this AU, but if anyone else decides to I’d be elated, just please tag me! Also, this would be a great LAMP AU, in my opinion, but if nothing else I really want it to at least be an analogical AU. If ya wanna do something different from there then be my guest!

[ducktracy]

13. lady, play your mandolin! (1931)

release date: august 1931

series: merrie melodies

director: rudolf ising

starring: n/a

well, here we are! our first ever merrie melody! this is the first cartoon to be directed by only one director (rudolf ising). characters such as porky, bugs, and elmer (as well as lesser known characters such as sniffles and egghead—the debate between whether he’s actually a prototype elmer fudd or a totally separate character wages on, similar to happy rabbit and bugs) would all make their debuts in merrie melodies cartoons.

a little bit of history here. during the 1930-1931 season, leon schlesinger produced a series of live action musical shorts called “spooney melodies”, though only the first out of 5 actually was called spooney melodies—the remaining 4 shorts were titled “song’nata”. after production ceased, it was replaced by merrie melodies, which would focus on animated musical shorts. to sum it up, all the previous anthropomorphized animals and objects coming to life shorts singing and dancing would now be under merrie melodies, whereas more plotbased cartoons would be under the looney tunes names.

the merrie melodies cartoons were, as explained above, musical cartoons. the cartoons served as a way to plug soundtracks from movies made at warner bros, advertising sheet music and recordings.

beginning in 1934, all of the merrie melodies cartoons would be made in color (using the cheaper two-strip cinecolor process as opposed to disney’s richer three-strip technicolor process, which they had the rights to), whereas the looney tunes cartoons would be in black and white. merrie melodies soon began to phase out their emphasis on musical advertising, and the only distinguisher between MM and LT was the color difference. starting in 1942, looney tunes would eventually go into color, and by 1943-1944 there was practically no distinguishable difference between the two except for the opening title songs (looney tunes would use “the merry go round broke down”, whereas merrie melodies would use “merrily we roll along”).

interesting, isn’t it? anyway, here we have lady, play your mandolin! by rudolf ising. funnily (or frustratingly) enough, voice credits have yet to be identified. foxy is either voiced by carman maxwell or johnny murray—his voice is deeper than johnny murray’s bosko, sounding on par with carman maxwell’s bosko from bosko, the talk-ink kid and sinkin’ in the bathtub (albeit without a stereotypical accent), but it could just as likely be johnny murray talking in a regular voice that isn’t a falsetto. some notable firsts: first merrie melodies cartoon, first appearance of foxy (and thusly the first appearance of a new character made specifically for looney tunes—bosko was brought into looney tunes from the outside), and first cartoon to have bob clampett on the team as an assistant animator. he, friz freleng, and bob mckimson (who was an in betweener) would all be animating at the time and all grow to be notable directors.

the short opens in a mexican café with a bunch of drunks singing a rousing chorus of “lady, play your mandolin”. what a way to abide by the rules of prohibition! this scene is very peppy and immediately puts you in a good mood. it almost feels more uplifting than the same premise/scenes with bosko, but that’s probably because those scenes are overshadowed (for me, anyway) with the uncomfortableness of bosko’s existence as a black caricature. nevertheless, highlights including a gorilla stuffing a duck’s gullet with beer, a bird playing a horn and dancing along the keys of a piano, and an enormous hippo bellowing an ear-splitting scream in celebration.

pan to our hero, foxy. foxy would have a pretty limited career, only starring in 3 shorts (and getting KILLED OFF in one more time after walt disney expressed concern to ising about the resemblance to everyone’s favorite mouse). this entire cartoon is quite similar to disney’s the gallopin’ gaucho from 1928. enough history, though. here foxy is happily galloping along with his horse when he approaches the café.

equally as thrilled as foxy, the horse makes a run towards the café. foxy grabs him by the tail, and cruelly (albeit funnily and cleverly) ties his neck around a cactus to keep him tied up while foxy heads in to liquor himself up.

foxy bursts into the saloon and is greeted by thunderous applause and cheers. seems he’s a regular. he launches into “a gay caballero” as he swaggers away in this great walk cycle above. the animation is so smooth! this is the most personality we’ve seen in a cartoon yet!

an anthropomorphic coat rack comes up and physically takes foxy’s cape and hat while he orders himself a beer. foxy flips the coin before giving it to the gorilla we saw at the beginning. the gorilla pushes his nose down and out come his teeth like a cash register as he stashed away his shiny new coin—a very fun and imaginative little gag!

a duck saunters to the front of the stage in the saloon, and, taking off its sombrero, uses it as a horn to signal the start of the show—the same gag reused from ups ‘n downs where his body inflated as he takes a deep breath and gets paper thin as he blows.

we’re greeted with an unnamed female counterpart to foxy. she appears in an animaniacs episode under the name roxy, so to make things easier i’ll just call her that. this post is already a mile long! foxy says “oh, baby! play your mandolin!” in a voice similar to carman maxwell’s bosko voice, complete with the stereotypical accent...? no wonder there’s no identifiable voices for this cartoon. it seems he’s been switching from carman maxwell’s bosko voice to johnny murray’s bosko, but without an accent. ANYWAY, roxy and foxy sing “lady, play your mandolin” together in a duet. the melody itself is really catchy and upbeat! foxy’s singing isn’t too bad, but roxy is a bit obnoxious, but leaning on the endearingly obnoxious side.

we’re reminded of the horse, who frees himself from his restraint with a pull of the tail accompanied by some beautifully smooth animation. the horse chimes in with the festivities (mimicking the sound of a muted trumpet? trombone? some sort of horn). foxy, clearly agitated, smashes a beer bottle against the horse’s head, who gets snookered by the impact alone.

a lot happens next that you sorta need to see yourself to really comprehend. the horse saunters into the bar chugging more liquor as the scene ravages on. foxy and roxy are still singing (foxy a clear imitation of al jolson), a dog’s beard takes a life of its own and starts dancing while his teeth pop out of his mouth and chatter to the rhythm while a mouse pops out of his sombrero, various shots of foxy and roxy... the pacing is very frenetic and fast. GOOD! it’s a nice change. this cartoon itself is paced relatively quickly—not many of the previous cartoons can boast the same.

the horse stumbles up to a counter and sees itself in the mirror, when all of the sudden it starts having these wonderfully terrifying hallucinations. the horse lets out a scream and runs down the aisle through the bar, drunkenly dancing and giving a delightfully freakish grin towards the audience.

the cartoon ends with the horse spontaneously combusting and a final verse of “lady, play your mandolin!”. foxy closes the cartoon with a “so long, folks”, the tagline that would be used for merrie melodies (whereas looney tunes would utilize “that’s all, folks!”). the merrie melodies sing-offs would change depending on who starred in the cartoon. it wasn’t until 1936 that both series would adopt “that’s all, folks!” written out in script. porky would use the drum ending from 1938-1946, where the script ending was revitalized against the colored rings instead of a plain black background.

what a cartoon! this is certainly one of my favorites. the cartoon is still relatively plotless, but foxy seems to have some more personality than bosko (like that great gif of him swaggering down the aisle). the voice acting is still pretty painful, but the background score is catchy and makes it a bit more bearable. this is a very high energy cartoon with a lot of absurd visuals, it’s hard to pin them down! the horse spontaneously combusting is great. i could definitely see how this cartoon would be scary, but i find it more fascinating than frightening. overall, it pales in comparison to the shorts that’d be churned out by the end of the decade and onwards through the 40s and 50s, but it’s a nice, cheery change of pace from the bosko cartoons that tend to drag on and on. i’d recommend a watch!

[xb-squaredx]

Pokémon Sword and Shield: A Franchise Turning Point

The Pokémon franchise has been around for over 20 years, and in that time it has proven to be more than a passing fad and has carved out a massive multi-media empire. Outside of some rare spinoffs like the Pokémon Stadium games or the likes of Colosseum or Pokken Tournament, the series has stayed primarily on handheld consoles. For years fans dreamed of what a true, mainline Pokémon game could be like on a home console. During E3 2017 when Game Freak announced that such a title was in development for Switch, people got excited. The resulted games, Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee were not quite the main leap people expected, instead being a strange hybrid of Pokémon GO and remakes of Pokémon Yellow. However, the announcement that a true new generation of Pokémon would hit the Switch in 2019 reignited that hype. While at first excitement was high, over time a dark cloud hung over the titles, Pokémon Sword and Shield. Controversies erupted over the announcement that not every little critter would be featured or transferable to the game, and as time went on any new announcement was met with pushback. Everything from visuals to new features was criticized all the way up to launch day. Now that Sword and Shield are in players’ hands, at the end of the day…how did it all turn out?

A WHOLE NEW WORLD

This time around, trainers embark across the Galar region, basically the Pokémon equivalent to the UK. I do like Galar as a setting; it has a ton of character, with probably the most interesting aspect to it that Pokémon battles are treated as a major spectator sport. If you want to join in the Gym Challenge, you need a sponsor, and your Gym battles take place in massive stadiums filled to the brim with roaring fans. It’s an interesting deviation from past games, even if the basic formula is about the same. The characters within Galar also have a fair amount of charm from your main rivals to the Gym Leaders, to the undefeated Champion. A lot of people give Hop, your main rival, a lot of flak, but I found he had a lot of hidden depth to him and he has a satisfying arc as the story goes on. As he loses to you again and again, he doubts himself and subsequent battles have him throwing in random Pokémon and strangely his signature partner, the adorable Wooloo, is absent. Once he gets his act together, however, he forms a pretty balanced team, and Wooloo’s back front-and-center. It was a neat moment of character growth shown off through gameplay. As far as Champions go, Leon has a lot more presence throughout the game than a lot of past Champions. His flair, his awful fashion sense, his inability to follow directions…it all made him a bit more endearing. Most of the Gym Leaders are pretty much just there as stepping stones, but they all are fairly memorable either for designs or flashes of personality. It helps that everyone gives you neato trading cards too!

Galar’s main claim-to-fame is the Wild Area, a huge collection of different biomes located smack in the middle of the map. It has far and away the largest collection of Pokémon within, with different monsters appearing depending on the weather or time of day. It’s a place you’ll be returning to time and time again, and it made a big impact. It’s the only area in the game with a controllable camera, for one, and rather than follow a linear balance curve, the Pokémon you encounter in the Wild Area are often far too strong to handle. You’re even forbidden from catching Pokémon if you lack a certain number of Gym Badges, so the place is full of Pokémon you can only really admire from afar until you’re “worthy” of getting them.

Take the Wild Area away though, and Galar feels pretty small. With only ten Routes in the game, Galar is among the smaller regions. Most Routes are very straightforward, not many branching paths or hidden goodies, and there isn’t any neat new areas opened up after beating the game either. The Wild Area, from a franchise standpoint at least, is pretty impressive, but looking at the game on the whole it feels a little lacking. That’s not to say Sword and Shield don’t bring in new mechanics to mess around with, but whether they make up for what’s been taken away is going to vary with people.

GO BIG OR GO HOME

Since the games went 3D, each region tends to have its own core “gimmick” to differentiate it with older titles. X and Y had Mega Evolution, Sun and Moon had Z-Moves and for Sword and Shield we have Dynamax. Something in the air in Galar can allow Pokémon to grow to colossal size for a short time, granting them extremely powerful Max Moves for its duration. While Dynamaxing seems cool at first, the spectacle kinda wears off after your first few uses of it (not to mention the animation lasts forever), and upon further inspection it’s not as great of an upgrade as you’d think. For one, a Dynamaxed Pokémon only gets a health increase, and all other stats stay the same. Abilities and their elemental types stay the same too, so it’s not a game-changer like Mega Evolution was and it really has more in common with Z-Moves. The Max Moves can be nice, as they’re usually a good deal more powerful when it comes to raw damage, and can come with nice side-effects, but it’s kinda inconsistent. The stronger Fighting-type moves actually become weaker as Max Moves, for one. On top of the base Dynamax ability, some Pokémon can use “Gigantamaxing” instead. This changes their look overall and grants them a unique G-Max Move, though considering how hard they can be to acquire I’m not sure it’s all that satisfying. It doesn’t help that rather than having a certain species of Pokémon capable of Gigantamaxing, it comes down to unique Pokémon themselves that have the trait and it can’t be passed down through breeding either. Overall, Dynamaxing has its uses but I highly doubt it’ll become a staple of the series and will likely be replaced with something else for the Generation 9 games, and I can’t say I’ll miss the mechanic much.

One big addition to the series is Max Raid Battles, found in dens littered all over the Wild Area. Teaming up with up to three other players, locally or online (or team up with awful CPUs if alone), your goal is to take out a permanently Dynamaxed Pokémon. You get a limited amount of turns and if you suffer more than four knockouts, the Raid will end in failure. Victory, however, enables you to get rare and powerful Pokémon, some even coming with really great stats and difficult-to-obtain Abilities, and it’s practically the only way to get Gigantamax Pokémon. The difficulty of the Raids increases as you progress through the game, however, and the Five Star Raids can be brutal. The rewards are great though, getting a lot of extra loot. Bonus moves to teach Pokémon, EXP candies that eliminate a lot of grinding, and more, even if the capture attempt fails. The one real issue with Raids is that some Pokémon can be pretty stingy with appearing in Raids, and you’ll have to use somewhat rare items, Wishing Pieces, to kick some Raids off. There are also the occasional connection issues, but I have more to say on that later.

Outside of these new features, there are the standard quality-of-life changes that each game has, though some can be harder to notice and appreciate than others. You can send Pokémon in storage out on Jobs, to get some neat rewards and some EXP for them, though I find them to be a bit underwhelming. Being able to swap Pokémon on the fly now is a godsend, and together with the EXP Share built into the game, it allowed me the freedom to switch up the monsters in my party and get newcomers up to speed quickly. Most games I barely bother with more than the maximum six, but the sheer variety of Pokémon in Galar let me feel more comfortable with constantly swapping around. On that same note, no National Dex aside, there’s a LOT of choices in Galar. Route 1 alone has over ten Pokémon you can catch right at the start, as opposed to the common mammal, common bug and common bird. It was nice to see some under-represented Pokémon make the cut, but I won’t argue with anyone bummed that their favorites aren’t allowed in. It is a regrettable decision overall, even if it might have been unavoidable here.

Now, you’ll notice I didn’t mention the story much at all because…there isn’t much of one. Pokémon as a franchise isn’t known for its storytelling, despite the Black and White and Sun and Moon games existing and having very well-done stories. Overall, Sword and Shield seems to focus more on characters than an overarching plot and that isn’t too bad overall, but it makes the eventual climax more than a little disappointing. Team Yell, our villainous organization this time around, are just a bunch of hardcore fans for another rival of yours, a girl named Marnie. The conclusion to their story felt very flat, and the eventual main problem involving the Legendary Pokémon is tacked onto the end of the game with little build-up. It doesn’t help that the main villain’s motivation doesn’t make sense. He wants to avert an energy crisis that’s 1000 years from actually happening, and for some reason he refuses to let you get your shot at fighting the Champion because apparently putting things off for one day is unacceptable. It’s just very sloppy. And honestly, “sloppy” can describe a lot of this game, sadly.

WHY Y-COMM WHY

No game is without flaws, and Sword and Shield are far from the first Pokémon games to have their fair share of issues, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that these games in particular are a victim of compromise. Game Freak doesn’t have the luxury of delaying games and polishing them up to a fine sheen, not when the multimedia empire has merch and anime to launch at the same time. I’m also certain that working on this game alongside the Let’s Go games AND Little Town Hero did them no favors. So there are areas in the game that lack polish. The story’s abrupt conclusion, the visuals in general, and Galar itself feeling a tad empty; these are all compromises that had to be made to get this game to ship on the date decided well in advance. I can sympathize with the developers here, and really they’re in an un-enviable position. But at the same time, I’ve been playing Pokémon games for over twenty years, and I kind of expect better, you know? Far too many times I have to shake my head and question why something is designed the way it is, or why it feels at times like the games are going backwards in quality. Problems that were solved several games ago rear their ugly heads again, and for this being a brand new generation and the “proper” debut on a powerful home console, I can’t help but feel that this is just a 3DS game that’s been blown up onto my TV.

NPC character models and the Pokémon themselves look fine, as does the sleek UI, but environments look kinda rough. The Wild Area itself, I say with no exaggeration, looks like it was ripped out of a GameCube game. Those trees are a meme, but at the same time, they also look that bad. Some of the main towns are pretty grandiose, be it the giant castle theme of Hammerlocke, or the steampunk designs of Motostoke, while others feel incredibly barren. It’s kind of intentional with Spikemuth, but I was more than a little disappointed with how small towns feel. While it’s great that HMs have been officially retired (starting from Sun and Moon), Galar itself feels like it has little to offer those that want to explore. You don’t get access to a way to cross water until near the endgame, but there are only a small handful of areas you’d need to backtrack to with that ability. There’s not even a Victory Road in this game, or a rough equivalent.

Sword and Shield, from a competitive standpoint, seems to be trying to make strides in breaking down barriers and allowing more casual fans to dip their toes into competitive play, which I really appreciate, but I think there’s still room for improvement. While on the one hand, it’s never been easier to tweak and customize your Pokémon to your heart’s desire, the game is still not as transparent on certain subjects. You can view a Pokémon’s Effort Values, extra points you can place towards stats, on their stat screen, but only if you hit the X button on that screen, and there’s no indication that’s a thing you can even do. I was more than fifty hours into the game before a friend even told me that! There have been some pretty major strides to reduce the time commitment however, so I have to give the game credit there. As far as game balance goes, having less Pokémon to choose from does inspire creativity, though from what I hear, a fair few Pokémon are a bit of a problem, but that’s no different than any other game. Honestly, even attempting to balance a game with so many moving parts and possible strategies is pretty admirable. I’m not deep into the meta of competitive Pokémon though, so I feel there’s not much I can add to the conversation. If there’s one thing I can’t defend however, it’s this game’s connectivity features.

Starting from the DS era, Pokémon has had online features, but Sword and Shield marks the first time that the Global Trade Station, or GTS, has not been available. This means it’s impossible to put up a posting for a desired Pokémon, or fulfill other’s requests. This wouldn’t be so bad if the way to trade with friends wasn’t such a chore. Rather than being able to freely select a friend and initiate a trade or battle with them, players must enter four-digit codes and HOPE the game pairs them up. This is in every way a downgrade from the past several games. X and Y released over SIX years ago and solved this very issue with the Player Search System. Y-Comm, as it stands, is an awful replacement and there’s not one thing about it that other systems didn’t do better.

If you connect online, the game will have “stamps” appear that show you what friends are doing, alongside broadcasting trade or battle requests from random people, but often those requests are out of date, and trying to join in will result in error messages, the requests fulfilled long ago. Trying to join friends in Raid Battles is an exercise in trial and error, and if online in the Wild Area, other players constantly appear within it and as a result the game begins to chug along. What could have been a neat way to interact with other players across the world results in the game becoming worse to play, so I mostly left it off. Connecting with others has always been a franchise selling point, way back to the days of the Game Boy Link Cables. To see this game drop the ball so severely is worrying. I care about this far more than the graphical issues, far more than the National Dex, and it makes me hesitant to try out the next titles if they can’t solve these issues and KEEP them solved.

AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE

Pokémon Sword and Shield are not bad games; they’re in fact filled with charm and fun. I’ve logged over 80 hours into the game over the past few weeks and the hours flew by. There’s a lot of work that’s clearly been put into the game. The Pokémon designs and concepts this time around are really creative, for one. There’s the Applin line, dragons that hide in apples, and the abominations that are this game’s fossils; carelessly stitched together pieces of incompatible fossils resulting in a freak of nature. I love them. My heart goes out to Game Freak, because it’s clear people worked hard here, but this simply can’t be the game they wanted to make. I think Sword and Shield are turning points for the series, but it’s unclear if that’s a good thing or not.

For all the backlash and negativity surrounding these games, they’re still the fastest-selling Switch games ever. Many fans are pretty satisfied with the game as-is, and the real bitter pill disgruntled fans need to swallow is that…these games have no real reason to improve in quality. Think about it; sales aren’t down, and there’s not a true rival to these games anymore, so why would the hire-ups at Nintendo and The Pokémon Company give these games more time and resources? On top of this, remember that these games are only one part of the massive whole that is the Pokémon brand. Pokémon GO makes a frankly disgusting amount of money, the anime has been going strong for two decades, merch is in no short supply, and now we can likely add major Hollywood films to the list as well. If Game Freak was any other developer, behind any other franchise, they’d likely be able to delay the games to polish them up and add in content that would otherwise be cut, but they can’t do that when they MUST launch simultaneously with the anime, the card games, the merchandise, etc.

The series has been around for so long now as well, while many fans have likely moved on from the franchise, new ones are lining up to take their place. On top of that, there are Pokémon diehards that will likely always support the series. Pokémon is a constant for them; it’s almost like comfort food in game form. They’re not WRONG for feeling that way, and I’m kinda in that same boat. I knew going in that these games were going to be somewhat disappointing, but I still bought the thing! For all the rage directed at these games, many people still gave them their money, and I think the message has been read loud and clear: Pokémon can get away with cutting Pokémon, so it’s unlikely Game Freak will change course any time soon.

Now, of course, that’s one way to look at things. A negative way to be sure. It’s also possible that Game Freak can learn from issues they had with developing these games and push past them. As they get used to console development, to HD development, and get a better idea of what fans want, the next games might actually surpass all expectations. Pokémon as a franchise has always had feature creep to deal with, and Sword and Shield is clearly where it all boiled over. So maybe if they don’t have to worry about accommodating nearly 1000 critters in every single game, they can make larger strives towards higher quality. I don’t want to count them out, but at the same time, I won’t hold my breath either. I’ll always be open to what path this franchise takes, even if they stumble a bit to get there.

In the end, Sword and Shield feel more than a little rough, but there’s some real bright spots glimmering in what might be the franchise’s Darkest Day. The Pokémon themselves are still fun to use and capture, the characters and world of the games are still wholesome fun, and I’ll reiterate that pumping over 80 hours into this game didn’t feel like a chore and I was largely engaged for the entirety of that time. Here’s to hoping that brighter days lie ahead, and a few years from now we can look back at the Dexit controversy and laugh.

-B

[julietandcinderellavocaloid]

Broken Juliet Chapter 1

Author’s Note: Hello, beautiful people! May I present to you the prequel to my Vocaloid fanfic Blood Rose! It’s not necessary to read BR before reading this, but there will be some world building lacking as a result. Not a lot, so you should be fine.

This novella follows one of the characters, Rin, living through the events that lead her to where she is at the start of Blood Rose. Rin seems to be everyone’s favorite character in the main fic. Now it’s time to learn how she became the person she is in that novel.

Broken Juliet is Rin’s story, and it isn’t a happy one.

Trigger warnings for physical abuse and character death.

I do not own Vocaloid in any way, shape, or form. This fanfic purely exists for non-profit entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Scrunching up her face, sixteen-year-old Kagamine Rin studied the cabbage. After deeming it satisfactory, she added it and others of similar quality to her basket. She also picked up a few turnips and walked to the counter to make her purchase.

"Will that be all?" asked the clerk, a look of disinterest on his face. Rin nodded to answer. When the clerk totaled the costs, he told Rin, "That will be thirteen coin."

"Thirteen?!" Rin exclaimed. "I spoke with Aoki Merli earlier today, and she told me she paid less than half for the same things I'm getting."

"Yes," the clerk agreed, "but Aoki Merli is an Alice."

Rin grit her teeth. "Are you truly going to discriminate against me like this?"

"I need to make sales one way or another. Now either pay seventeen coin, or get out of here."

"It's seventeen coin now?"

"Twenty since you insist in arguing with me."

Jaw clenched, Rin stared at the man for more than a moment. What she wanted to do was walk away without making the purchase. It's what she would have done if she wasn't required to get everything on her shopping list. Rin had to get the items regardless of their price. The clerk knew it as well as she did.

Without a word, Rin slammed the twenty coins onto the counter, picked up her basket, spun on her heel, and walked out of the shop. She covered her eyes and squinted at the sunlight as she stepped outside and waited for her eyes to adjust before she continued with her errands. There was barely enough coin now to buy a new cloth pattern, but perhaps Ms. Yuezheng would feel generous and offer Rin half a pattern now and the rest when Rin could afford it.

Rin kicked up the dirt road as she went. The wooden shacks dotted the town, and many of the villagers walked on foot from business to business, either running errands like Rin or moving to the next job. Laughter and chatter filled the warming air. The boys and Alice girls played outside of the schoolhouse, making the most of their recess. Women gossiped over their bread and cheese as they sat under their tent, their sowing left unattended for now.

Just the sight of the bread alone made Rin's stomach growl with earnest. Before Rin bought the produce, she had hoped to use the leftover coin to buy a pork bun for her first meal of the day, but now she would have to wait till she cooked dinner that evening to taste even a morsel. With a heavy sigh, Rin kept marching to her next destination.

"Rin!"

Freezing at the shout of her name, Rin slowly turned around to see Mr. Chris waving her over. She didn't want to think about what the gruff blacksmith wanted with her, but she approached anyway. The last thing she needed was another complaint filed against her reaching her father.

Yet Mr. Chris, a tall man with black skin who was mostly muscle and had an ugly scar disfiguring the right side of his face, didn't seem upset at Rin for whatever reason that had been dreamed up since the last time someone, namely Luki, wanted to cause her trouble. Instead he looked to be displeased with the young man by his side. The young man shifted from foot to foot, seemingly more out of energetic restlessness than concern over this big man glaring at him.

"Yes, sir?" Rin questioned, switching her basket to her other arm.

Mr. Chris, whose arms were crossed, used his chin to point at the other guy. "This lad here is looking for your father's farm. Your father's still looking for more helping hands, right?"

"Yes, sir." Rin turned her attention to the young man by Mr. Chris's side. He was a tall, skinny fellow who looked more like a scarecrow than a person. Unless he was applying to scare birds and other pests away from the vegetation, she doubted he would get the job. The poor soul didn't look as if he could hold a rake he was so thin.

"Then he can follow you home." With that, Mr. Chris waved his hand in the air as if wiping off an item on his to-do list. He turned away, and that was the end of the exchange.

The young man turned to Rin and grinned, and she used the opportunity to study him a little more. He had olive skin, dirty blond hair that stuck out in every which way, and golden eyes. His clothes fit far too loosely, giving away just how gawky he was. Nothing about this man made him appear qualified to work on her father's farm. She was never going to see him again.

"Nice to meet ya!" the young man greeted, sounding far too cheerful, as he and Rin walked away from the blacksmith's shop. "Name's Akita Nero. You are?"

He doesn't know what I am then. Okay, good. It's been a long while since I had decent conversation with a stranger.

"Kagamine Rin," she told him. Nero held out his hand, and Rin hesitated a moment before taking it. After Nero gave her hand a firm shake, Rin pulled away and asked, "Where are you from?"

"Tangerice," he answered.

"Isn't that village far from here?"

"Only by twenty miles. I was looking for work when Kagamine Leon's want ad reached the border of town. When I caught wind of it, I grabbed my purse and came straight here."

"Did you walk the whole way?"

"Yep. Stopped last night to rest, then woke up before dawn to finish the journey."

Not sure what to make of Nero's chirpy attitude, Rin said, "Well, your journey is nearly over. The farm is a twenty-minute walk from here. Follow me and—"

"Pardon the interruption," Nero cut in, "but were ya running errands when that scary man called ya over?"

"I can do them later. It's really no trouble."

"Nah, finish them now," Nero replied. "I don't mind the wait. Ya said it's only a twenty-minute walk from here? That's nothing! Ya do what ya need to do before we head that way."

Rin wanted to argue, but she knew arguing wouldn't end well if he saw her left wrist. Even if he really was kind enough to insist Rin finish her errands first, she still didn't want to risk it. Of course, this man was new to town and likely wouldn't stay after not getting the job. Never seeing him after this interaction motivated her to be a little careless in conversation. Although she knew better, Rin held her left arm in a way to hide her exposed wrist as she gave in.

Working quickly in case Nero lacked patience, Rin dropped off her letters at the church before Pastor Fukase knew she stopped by and visited Ms. Yuezheng's shop to buy, to her relief, half a cloth pattern. Rin folded the cloth and stepped outside the tent. When she didn't see Nero, Rin looked around and tried to swallow her heart.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to ditch ya," Nero suddenly called out, causing Rin to jump. A pork bun in each hand, he explained, "I smelt something good and thought I'd give it a try."

Rin looked at his hands and asked before she realized her mouth was open, "You're going to eat two?" She couldn't even afford one. There was nothing left in her coin purse.

That was why it surprised Rin when Nero held a hand out and answered, "Actually, I bought one for ya, as a thanks for taking me to your father's farm. Well, I know we're not there yet, but we will be soon so I guess an early payment isn't too big a deal. Unless ya aren't hungry?"

Feeling her stomach tie itself into knots at the sight of the very thing she wanted for lunch being offered to her, Rin greatly desired to accept the pork bun. Yet she didn't trust this man, and she especially didn't trust his kindness.

"I did already eat, but thank you regardless," she said, her stomach tightening so hard it hurt. It was as if her body punished her for refusing the food she badly needed. Rin reminded her stomach it was better to starve in safety than to feast in beatings.

Nero shrugged before biting into the first pork bun. The sight too painful to watch, Rin turned away and told him that she was done with her errands and they would be going to her father's farm now. He followed close behind, finishing the first pork bun and then eating the second.

After he had devoured both pork buns, Nero began conversing with Rin. "So, what do ya grow on the farm? What kind of help does your pa need?"

"We need help picking our cherry trees and also preparing the soil to plant butternut squash, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins. Maintain the crops all through summer, and then harvest in autumn just in time for the Celebration of Colors."

Nero nodded along as Rin spoke. He didn't ask about wages or if housing was provided. Instead he asked, "Will I get to see more of ya if I get a position?"

Cheeks heating up, Rin answered Nero's question with one of her own. "Why are you asking something so insane?"

"Is it insane to want to spend more time with ya and get to know ya?"

So he hadn't seen her tattoo yet after all, and Rin didn't help the situation by keeping it hidden against her body. However, she really wanted to talk to someone who saw her as another person too much to be more rational. "You're being too forward, Mr. Akita."

"Please, call me Nero, and I apologize if it seems I'm being forward. It's only that you're the first person I met in this town – well, not including the blacksmith – and I would like to think we could be good friends if given the opportunity."

"You don't want to be friends with me." Rin regretted saying the words, but she didn't doubt their truth.

Nero didn't ask why Rin thought that, however. What he said was, "I think I should at least get to know ya before deciding whether or not I want to be friends with ya. Does Mistress Kagamine not wish to be friends with me?"

"I'm no mistress. Just Rin is more than fine."

"Okay, does Just Rin not wish to be friends with me?"

Despite herself, Rin snorted. "You are persistent."

"Ya haven't answered my question."

"Very well. Like you, I would need to get to know you before I can decide whether or not I want to be friends with you."

"And will there be opportunities for us to get to know each other?"

"I fail to see why this is so important to you."

"Perhaps this is important to me because I think you're interesting."

"Interesting?" Rin looked at Nero from the corner of her eye to see him smiling widely at her.

"I know first impressions don't tell a lot about a person," he began, "but my first impression of ya when the blacksmith called ya over was how pretty ya are."

Rin ducked her head down. If her burning cheeks was an indication, she didn't want Nero seeing her blush.

"Next was you seemed rather passive," Nero continued, either ignoring or oblivious to her turned away face. "Now, as it's only the two of us around, ya seem rather outspoken. Interesting indeed. I'm curious to know if you're strong-willed or without agency, and if the former, why ya pretend otherwise with an audience."

He still hasn't figured it out yet. "And if you get your answer," Rin replied, "what then?"

"I would like to find out if my other impressions are correct."

"Other impressions?"

"Calm, level-headed, easily fed up with the likes of me—"

"I'll tell you now that last one is correct," Rin stated, laughing. She then slammed her jaw shut.

However, Nero didn't seem offended. He simply laughed as well and added, "Blunt, too. I can respect that."

"Most people don't. They like to be told what they want to hear."

"Not me."

"What if you don't like what you hear?"

"If I'm going to take offense at every comment that doesn't agree with me, then I'm too emotionally immature to have valid arguments and opinions."

As her cheeks no longer felt flushed, Rin turned her attention back to the young man. He was smarter than he looked, that much was now evident. Yet there was still a skip to his step, his arms swinging carefree by his sides. There didn't seem to be any burdens of life on his shoulders. Either that, or he carried them well.

"I think you're the interesting one here, Mr. Nero," Rin slowly replied, looking away again.

"Is that a compliment or an insult?"

"I'll leave that for you to decide." Before Nero could reply, Rin announced, "We're here."

"Thank ya again for guiding me," Nero said as they stopped. He moved to stand in front of Rin, reached out, and took her free right hand. "I hope this won't be the last time I see ya."

Rin didn't expect Nero to kiss the back of her hand, that was why she was too stunned to yank it out of his grasp. He smiled as he dropped it soon after. If nobody had seen it, that would have been the end.

Only somebody did see.

And that wasn't the end.

What was meant to be a simple expression of gratitude was going to be a crime for which Rin would be punished.

It was from the corner of her eye Rin saw him coming. She jumped away from Nero, her heartrate shooting up. Pointing out the approaching man, Rin told Nero that the newcomer was her father.

Kagamine Leon glared at his daughter as he grew closer. Yet when he was within earshot, he called out, "Greetings, young man! What is your business here?"

"Greetings, Mr. Kagamine!" Nero returned, grinning the way he did at Rin back in town. "I'm Akita Nero from Tangerice. I saw your want ad and immediately was on my way. Tell me, do ya still need a hand?"

Looking Nero up and down, Leon clearly had the same initial thoughts Rin had. However, he couldn't deny Nero employment without first seeing what the young man had to offer. It was a law that never worked in Rin's favor, but perhaps it would give Nero a chance.

"Go inside the house and begin your chores," Leon told his daughter. Nero couldn't see it, but Rin could and did.

Rin forced herself to swallow. "Yes, father."

As she treaded to the house, she heard her father tell Nero, "I'm so sorry Rin had to be the first you met here. I promise, employment here won't be a shame for you to bear. My daughter is the only Juliet on this farm."

Not hearing Nero's reaction nor wanting to hear it, Rin kept marching forward. Now that Nero knew, he would be repulsed and wonder why he didn't seek out the blood rose tattoo on her left wrist sooner. That's how the story always ended for Rin's potential friends.

And that, Nero, is why you don't want to be friends with me, Rin silently told the young man as she walked farther and farther away from the first and last taste of kindness from a stranger she experienced in a long, long time.