#it’s my curse to bear to think about their hands and the differences and similarities in them ;—;

[kalims]

⊹ㅤasking you to be their valentines | first years

note. happy (late) valentines guys, not proofread

cw. reader implied to be around ace's height (in his part only) sorry I just can't keep the throwing an arm around your shoulder hc off 😢 aghhh but other than that I tried my best to not describe any features. (just imagine you tp to his height for one paragraph then your mc can go back to your height after LOL)

deuce spade ── has everything planned out but most of it doesn't go to plan

deuce sweats.

never in his life has he even considered doing something for someone in valentines day.

correction; he did not make a move to his old crushes so he could very well be compared to that of a kid with no knowledge about the area whatsoever which is embarrassing cause he knows kids younger who had somehow managed to score a lover.

he had always thought nothing of it and wondered about them being too young to even be 'in love' but damn was it humiliating to get humbled now!

the bouquet of flowers seem to be shaking in his grip every second and cater had commented that he should loosen his grip—lest he actually breaks it with his nervous strength alone, and that's the last thing deuce wants. the madol he spent for it was a hefty amount and his mother would strangle him if he broke the only thing he gave to someone in a romantic sense.

there's clear traces of gel in his hair. slicked back, shiny and unmoving. he looks a little weird standing in the middle of the field looking like he was plucked straight out of a private school which is ironic considering his delinquency.

deuce looks back at the hasty morning he spent. waking up, realizing he just slept past the 5 alarms he set up, clumsily finishing his routine before sparing a good moment to stand in his mirror and recite the paragraph he'd been constructing for days.

ace had caught him there once, talking to a mirror like it was someone; you. and snorted so loudly that deuce wondered if anything about it was wrong.

'everything is wrong with it' ace had told him with a dead kind of look, disgusted but amused nonetheless. deuce never took his word for it, his mother had said something similar to his father and look where they were!

he is practically choking the round, white plush in his other hand the more he tightens his jaw out of anticipation. eleanor smiles at him cutely, pink round blush stitched below her eyelids. eleanor, or so he'd named the egg plush. deuce would have went with the signature bear plush but the moment he set his eyes on eleanor he just fell in love.

... with the exception of you of course.

like a puppy brightening up when it sees it's favorite person deuce perks up and does a quick run over.

he'd practically begged trey to bake some of your favorite delicacy and trusted to leave it bravely within the confines of the heartslabyul fridge. of course sticking a sticky note on the container with a threat and an angry face.

if you accept he'll take you right over there for a little date.. (if he's being too presumption that it is that is)

flowers, got it. he misses the wilted petals from his previous vice grip.

"prefect!" he yells from across the field. successfully making you pause in the middle of your traversing towards the gate. your eyes land on deuce spade, looking a little different than you remember—clad in a suit that definitely isn't nrc's, slicked back hair and decked in the 'will you be my prom date' set.

you sweatdrop. but raise your hand in a friendly wave despite it. "hi deuce," you greet sweetly and deuce swoons from his spot. his cheeks erupt to fire as he shyly looks away.

is he okay? you think.

deuce gestures you to come over.

so that's exactly what you did. I can spare a few, you glance at the time and make your way over to the boy certainly acting strange.

once you do his arms reaches up to show a bouquet of.. flowers in it. you stare at it in confusion, then at the several parts that had stared falling off. deuce curses under his breath but keeps a twitching smile. ".. for you," he says.

you smile, unable to stop the laugh that had emerged. "are you sick deucey? what's the occasion?" you tease lightheartedly. nudging him and taking a whiff.

you sneeze.

then blink. oh that's kind of... strong?

deuce grimaces from beside you.

"uh.. nevermind those, you can have this instead," he presents you a plushie in the shape of an egg. once again, perhaps deuce really is sick. you can't help but laugh again at the endearing silliness.

"can I name it?"

"sure..?" he doesn't look too sure. it's name is eleanor he bites it back.

"(plushie name)." I was gonna name it ash but coughs

he forces a smile. "wow. what a nice name,"

deuce suffers in the silence that follows after, and he's a little bothered by the new name of his favorite egg plushie. you will be missed eleanor, he thinks. midst the loss of his friend he supposes the fact that his favorite person ever makes up for it.

you do a quick do over deuce, blinking slowly at the attire that seems foreign. "what's the occasion? you look fancy," that's right. deuce almost forgot the reason why he was standing in the middle of the field in the first place, he doesn't wanna blame the fact that you practically knock the words out of his throat but.. it is you.

and, momentarily he forgot what nerves were in that very moment.

he can feel it come back, to the cold sweat on his neck, the clammy fingers, and the tightening sensation in his throat. deuce unconsciously nips at the skin of his lips as he exhales—then he straightens his top to prolong his question.

"you.. know that valentines is coming up right..?" he asks nervously.

you nod. "yep, about a week from now," you pause. "why?"

he looks down. "do you,,, wanna be my valentine?"

silence.

deuce slumps at the non verbal response of rejection as the shame fully descends on him. how could he do this? now he's ruined the friendship he's glad he'd built with you.

"what's with the gloomy face? I haven't said no, you know,"

a laugh and instantly it shines down a new hope at his darkness, like light upon an enclosed room. sparkling eyes full of suprise stare at you and you resist the urge to pinch his cheeks and simply wrap him up in a burrito blanket. strange, you know but it fits him.

"you mean?" right. he'd burst into tears when he gets home if you're just playing a joke on him.

you smile at him fondly. "there's like, a gala that the school is hosting. let's go as each others valentines date," you laugh and close the space between you two. a hug, deuce recognizes and it's almost the warmest he's ever had.

albeit awkwardly arms wrap around your body and return your love fully.

ㅤ

ace trapolla ── is 'going with the flow' but 'forgets'

"you're totally down bad!"

ace huffs. what could cater know about romance? people would totally run away from him before he could even ask someone out! meanwhile he; the classic boy everyone's after. he claimed, but cater just laughed at refused to believe him.

whatever some people just don't have good taste. ace rolls his eyes and takes out his cellphone. besides, I'm not down bad at all! he groans. the chime of a notification has him looking down, sparing the air from his annoyed glare.

'a user has commented to your post'

at the sight of it his cheeks turn ablaze and he shoves the screen to his chest, obscuring the view of anyone who dares to peer.

(said 'anyone' is just the air, there's no one besides him and a group of students far away)

ace inhales sharply. he's not crazy he was just,, curious. a man's gotta have his secrets! even if he was gonna drown himself if anyone find out.

he spares one more look at the non existent crowd before swiping up. the big letters read: 'how do I ask someone out as valentines' he most definitely didn't run to google, googling things like 'why is the idiot no longer annoying' 'why do I feel like this I like it but I hate it' which would be cringe worthy if cater ever found out.

I am not down bad. he thinks as he clicks on the comment icons then reads the latest one.

monsieur d'amour_ : there is no better way than to speak from your heart! 💖 n'ayez pas peur ~

( n'ayez pas peur — do not be afraid )

this guy has screws loose. speak from his heart? what a bunch of stupid shit.. and he's not afraid! ace is no coward. he stares silently but he can't deny that it was just a tad, bit inspirational. how could he ever do that? his mouth basically runs on auto pilot to protect his pride and his pride certainly doesn't correlate with his feelings.

yes.. he's not scared.

do it pussy. a second conscious voice seems to taunt him, he sighs. sometimes he hates the attitude that his thoughts,, think.

as if the seven really wants to laugh at him for entertainment the object of his affections silhouette keeps getting larger and larger.

you; the prefect of ramshackle. the same person that had him up for a punishment on the first day of school, he can say that you're the reason he was almost expelled but you're also partially the reason why he wasn't. crazy isn't it? his best friend (other), the same person he just had to fall for.

you're coming closer, ace concludes and he squares up his shoulders and presents the most natural grin he can.

ace saunters up to you and throws a casual arm around your shoulders. it's been habit at this point, perhaps ace just does it because you're his friend or maybe he's just finding another reason to keep you close. (he does the same with deuce but there's an almost guaranteed wrestle and ruffling of the head aggressively affectionate right after)

"what's my favorite prefect doing around here?" ace grins. you roll your eyes at his words but mirror his smile. "favorite prefect? are you serious?" you push him with your shoulder lightly but never enough to shove him off and decline the skin to skin contact he gives. technically it is true though. he doesn't like nearly all the dorm leaders, perhaps with the exception of scarabia's but he can't say they're close.

he smirks. "who else?" then the raw confidence he doesn't have a problem excluding dims when he remembers the whole,, valentines thing.

his smile drops for a second before he repairs it back up.

okay ace, go with the flow. speak with your heart. he can't believe he's actually heeding that random idiots advice. "soooo... you must be date-less on valentines, I mean who would want to go with you?" cruel words seem to spout out of his mouth as a habit. it was like that the first time you met but you practically shoved it all back up his ass.

you were used to it so you didn't mind. maybe that's why ace likes you. you aren't as weak hearted, and sensitive like the other people. a little selfish and strange on his part but he always wanted someone who'd joke with him, not minding his rather dark humor.

"no actually. I'm going with someone," you say. all smiley and all and ace feels like barfing his breakfast in the toilet. his smile immediately falls into a deadpan that he could not hide from you. in turn, you smile mischievously at the new revelation. this idiot is so easy to read. you think.

likable, lovable idiot on your part.

ace grimaces and ignores the tight fist he has curled up on his other, free hand. "... someone actually wanted to go with you? suprising," he comments dryly. a little colder than you expected so you still spare a raised brow to his quick, words. you shove him playfully. "I am completely—perfectly date material,"

I'd like to be the judge of that. ace sighs quietly. that kind of thought seems way out of reach in reality now though, whoever got you first is one lucky bastard.

"sure,"

"yeah I just hope grim doesn't get us kicked out of the venue,"

oh.

oh.

incredulously, he turns to you with barely contained shock. "grim? you're going with grim?"

you tilt your head. "who else? we are each others platonic soul mate," you claim with a grin. grim might be a headache most of the time but you can't deny that you've grown fond of the chaos he brought into your life.

if he's your platonic soulmate then what is he? ace gulps. "I must be your, other kind of soulmate then?" he says in a joking manner. your romantic sense of soulmate? you side eye him.

"I think so,"

he blinks. are we flirting right now? he'd like to ask.

ace is great at changing topics.

kind of.

"you can't bring a cat as the one you go with. riddle will literally behead you with his bare hands," moments ago ace had let go of your shoulders and let his hands settle behind the back of his head. act casual, he thinks.

at some point he's been telling himself what to do several times in the middle of the conversation with you, taking in the points he constructs an appropriate action. he's completely gone off track from going with the flow.

you snort. "no way dude. with his tiny little hands?" obviously joking you shiver at the thought of riddle listening to your conversation and comment. you'd be beheaded on spot. he is true though, if you brought grim the rules technically wouldn't account him as a guest so basically you're listed alone.

I refuse to be single in valentines day. you think in determination. but alas.. no one really had ask you. you cast an inquisitive look at ace, you certainly wouldn't mind him..

you clear your throat and look away, I am not down bad!

but if I don't ask now would I be able to spend a valentines with the person I'd like to be mine at all? you both think.

"hey do you—"

"I've been thinking—"

you both pause at each other running over the others words. you point at him then nod, but he shakes his head and nudges you. "you first,"

ugh.

"I've been thinking.. you said I can't go with grim, how about you?" you say quietly. embarassment coating your features and ace's heart actually started racing. is this really happening right now? is this real?

but.. "I'm gonna pretend you didn't beat me to that," he deadpans. and you smirk once you realize what he's talking about. ace does not like being one upped at all.

he fakes a cough and clears his throat. "wanna be my valentines?" you're lucky if you are my valentines. ace tells himself. but I might be even luckier.

ㅤ

jack howl ── actually asked crewel at first (since it seems like that man practically adopted you) before asking you.

"so puppy," in an empty classroom—his, empty classroom crewel sits on his velvety cushioned chair. over the table jack howl sits tensely, ears stiffed up high. his tail in a similar dilemma, listening to even a single sound of displeasure on crewel's face.

jack has never felt so nervous in the face of his professor, but he doubts crewel is even his professor right now. the 'technically' only family you consider right now would be the best word to describe him. even he wasn't this nervous the first time he was let on the field. his first magishift game.

he doubted crewel would even spare him the time. but when he mentioned something about you, the man's face shifted into something blank and frankly the way he peered down at him was terrifying. jack realized you were something precious to the man and had gotten a look deeper into his fatherly protectiveness.

of course crewel assumed something worse. and demanded, that he spit out whatever he has to say about you before he makes him. jack thought no one would find anything if he were to miraculously disappear right now.

he does understand, rather than thinking it was cruel jack emphasized. he would do anything for his pack too, his family.

"let's continue with that conversation we had shall we? now in particular," crewel hums. "I'd like it for you to spit it out, if anything happened to the prefect I assure you. the following events, you will not like,"

jack shivers at the underlying fury beneath his words and hell. he completely forgot to tell crewel the reason why he's in front of a noticeably worried parent. and perhaps if he did about a while ago? maybe he would be facing something more bearable, and less.. scary..

"I,,, I apologize sir. nothing bad happened to the prefect," jack clears his throat and breathes in the air in relief when crewel's sharp stare softens—he breathes a similar sigh to his. "why didn't you start with that? I can't say I like puppies who beat around the bush,"

he is not a puppy. jack would like to add but he doesn't think he'd like to see another sharp stare for the sake of his pride.

this one is fidgety. crewel notes, noticing his tense shoulders and averting gaze. he wonders what kind of business he has with him when the boy practically had done everything to 'discuss something' with him. maybe a failing grade? he is quite strict with academics. if he mentioned you then are you the one failing?

crewel huffs. impossible, you can't have a failing grade! he tutors you after class!

the man crosses his arms. "what is it then?"

the moment of truth. jack wills the anxiety to evaporate out of his body as he faces the man whose answer will depend on his answers. "I would like to ask if I could ask the prefect out this week—" jack feigns a cough. "—as my valentines as well,," not entirely consensual on his part but his voice trails off weakly at the end.

(okay I might be writing this too seriously. jack treats this seriously it's kinda comedic lol)

crewel blinks, huffs and barks out a laugh. a little out of disbelief but it's quite entertaining to him to see this puppy on his knees figuratively asking him? for the prefect? on a date? how funny.

maybe he would have said a simple; 'absolutely not' because no one could ever have someone as good as you. but he's seen enough, clearly this boy's love for you might even be beyond his imagination. if he says yes it will only continue to grow and surpass even his own.

the thought of someone loving you more than him is preposterous! maybe he feels a little old for this time to happen so soon. and no way he's letting some,,, boy take you away from him!

but it would do the both of you some good. he concludes.

jack stares at him in confusion. was it so ridiculous that he had to laugh?

crewel plays a rare smile, small but one nonetheless. "you must be jack," the prefect has told a lot about you. it seems like your love is returned in full. he thinks.

the door opens and jack jolts. speak of the devil. crewel smirks. this will make up for good entertainment.

what an unlikely pair, jack and crewel? you raise your brows in suprise. your eyes slide to the former, he looks kinda scared wonder what happened here. you wondered.

the smirk on crewel's face has jack internally praying. "has anyone asked you for valentines, honey?"

you deadpan. that is quite concerning, the first thing crewel would've done if that was the cause was hunt whoever that was down. "... no, why?"

crewel stands up and saunters over to the other side of the table—where jack sits and the boy tensed up quickly when he felt the skin of crewel's gloves on his shoulder. crewel was gripping his broad shoulders, menacingly but yet managing to smile at you.

"how about this one?" he grins.

in all fairness—you gaped, and stared at the two like they had grown three heads. "w-what?" you gulped. a little embarrassed by the stammer but can you blame yourself? you had gone in the room you know whose crewel's to unwind and maybe have a chat with him not.. this strange predicament.

you know full well what he's implying and if it were any other person you'd have no problem saying no.

but it's jack!

you scratch your head. awkward silence drifts over the atmosphere when you and jack both meet eyes. crewel's hands finally leave the former's shoulders but not without an aspirated sigh. he thought this would be amusing to watch, not... overbearing.

"oh for seven's sake. why don't both of you go to the gala as each other's valentines?" crewel smiles thinly, and it seems like there's no room for arguments. "any objections,"

you stare at jack's silence. he's alright with this? you nervously think before frowning. "that's.. unfair, jack would want to have a valentines that's his own choice," you shake your head. willing he strange pressure around your throat as you do so. hell you're practically already jealous on the person he'd choose.

"no." jack denies. "I'm glad, you're the only person I'd like to be mine," you assume he's referring to you as his valentines but honestly? the way he said 'mine' had you feeling kinda warm.

finally. crewel is pleased with his work.

he scowls. "good. now get out," enough of this teenage romance. crewel's had enough for the day.

ㅤ

epel felmier ── tried to ask you several times in a planned day but ended up chickening out. that is, until the situation just called for it

"what did they say?"

epel blinks away from his haze at the sound of vil's questioning voice. "what?" he dumbly mumbles out. besides heartslabyul famous rose maze, pomefiore has a rather beautiful garden. more variety of flowers and wildlife. exclusively only accessible to the dorm's students.

even epel can say that despite his hate for the dorm itself it's very nice to be around this particular spot—epel would have stayed, and used it as his hiding spot if vil didn't like it as well. unfortunately for him it meant that the garden is still under the scrutinizing gaze or the dorm leader.

which meant that he basically gets no break. epel would like to climb over the dorm's walls.

right now the field isn't housing people other than him and vil. he assumes rook had shoo'd them away, given how vil is currently using it. the latter sets down his tea cup on it's tray before raising a brow at epel. "... the prefect? you were going on all about how you were gonna ask them to be your valentines earlier," vil says.

epel curses in his mind and hoped that the distraught look was something vil didn't catch. though he doubts it he still hopes.

vil stays silent but keeps the raised brow for a second longer. he shakes his head after dropping it entirely. "don't tell me you failed," something as simple as that? come on. vil is sure that you wouldn't even deny the apple of pomefiore. anyone could see how reciprocated epel's feelings are.

his stare hardens in disappointment. "epel,"

epel keeps his mouth shut and replies in his mind. what? he told me to not tell him. epel resists to roll his eyes..

vil crosses his arms over his chest just as rook chimes from the entrance. "what a shame. I thought it was a perfect time to strike!" he grins.

epel blanches. "what the—rook you were there?" that, he did not know. epel points an accusing gaze at vil whom pretends to not notice, sipping on his tea and all. the smile on rook's face does not waver as he tips his hat as a greeting. "fufu.. we simply could not leave our precious apple without guidance,"

"I don't need your guidance, imma a grown man!" epel snaps. letting his accent accent slip past for a second before deflating once he realizes. vil stares at him silently, though rook spares him a look of pity. which is not really helping!

"I mean.. thanks?" as some kind of last effort to lessen the fury epel clears his throat.

fortunately vil was in a good mood so he let it slide.

"we were speaking about the prefect?"

vil urges epel to explain whatever happened and the boy's face twists into awkwardness. probably having war flashbacks hours ago, it was embarrassing because all the things he had planned went to waste. epel does not want to talk about it.

"prefect? oh they were looking as magnifique as ever~ they are on the way here as we speak now,"

what.

epel completely freezes as he practically was on the road to breaking his neck with how fast it snapped over to rook. did he hear that right? if he did epel hoped he was deaf in that moment. he looks down and hastily pats the crumbs of crackers out of his uniform.

oh seven no! he looked atrocious right now, his hair still had twigs from the mishap with you earlier and the literal reason he ran away was because he definitely did not want you to see him like he just crawled out of a jungle.

vil shoots him a look. I told you so. he should have taken up his suggestion of taking a bath to clear out the dirt. he didn't even have time to change, epel slumps. it's a miracle vil let him walk around like that which epel actually hoped he didn't for once.

maybe this is vil's influence. epel suddenly caring about appearance and all but he does admit he had grown a little self conscious when you were in his case.

he doesn't get a chance to ponder about it any longer since your head popped in to peer into the garden, suprised at the three guys looking right at you. all varying faces of happiness, indifferent and grief?

vil clears his throat even though it feels completely all right. "ahem.. rook why don't we finish our plans for the annual magishift?" the man is already walking to which the other follows. his words catches your attention.

your brows raise. strange "magishift? i thought you guys didn't like that," true. comes vil's blank face but his dorm isn't a loser. after all, their performance reflects on the evil queen and vil would hate it to be a bad light.

"hmph. we are not just beauty you know," he smirks and continues on towards the path, rook trailing behind him nodding along.

on their way out he can still hear the duo. vil's huff; "it's painful to watch them," and rook's response; "I am merely pleased i could bear witness to the fruits of love,"

you take in his messy appearance and epel winces, placing a carefully practiced 'cute' smile on his face. "don't say anything about it," please. epel has an abnormally softer voice compared to that of he shows you.

this boy is trying to manipulate me? you wonder in amusement. he does look quite messy though, it's a wonder vil acted so casual with him a few minutes ago. since you were the one who scared him to tripping on that poor bush you suppose the least you could do was help him clean up.

epel recoils away from your outstretched hand the moment it touched his hair. heat soars through his face as he nearly screeches. "what are you doing?!" calming down the slightest at your bewildered expression.

"there's twigs in your hair,"

",,oh,,"

reluctantly he sits back down in his chair, squirming at the sensation of your fingers digging in for the sticks and twigs he had forgotten to shake off. epel feels awfully flustered by a simple thing.

the time passes. the sky gets darker, and epel gets more comfortable. the tense in his shoulders eventually deteriorates into a relaxed posture. he's never felt so comfortably before. I hope there's more stuff in there so you don't have to go. epel thinks.

"all done,"

yes, epel will do anything to get you to stay longer.

"what if you were my valentines tomorrow..?" he blurts out.

you movements stutter in response. well that was forward. you think, you'd expect nothing less from epel, plans weren't his forte anyways. with vil's absence he has no problem saying his mind. then again, the reason he probably failed before was because of the presence of rook.

"I mean,, it's just a what if,," he trails off looking unsure.

you sigh and shake your head. unable to keep the smile off your face. "sure. let's ditch the gala tomorrow, yeah?"

the grin on epel's face is practically shining. "yeah!" he perks up in excitement before pausing. "I mean,, yeah," to pretend he's cool. you suppose.

ㅤ

sebek zigvolt ── ITS ALL LILIAS WORK

"you! where is the human prefect?"

the student at the end of sebek's finger pretty much all but froze up. staring stupidly at it (admittedly looking a bit scared) only igniting the impatience within sebek since he scowled and the scared silence and shook his head. what else did he expect from a human?

the intense sharp stare from sebek probably ran off the shock and fear from the student because finally, they started speaking. "u-uh... who are you looking for?" they quietly ask.

sebek's eye twitches.

did they not hear him? "hmph. if you were listening to what I was saying, you'd know," maybe a mouth he just kind of got from the early years of his father, maybe he did actually get that from lilia.

the student cowers. I want to go home. they knew they shouldn't have rolled off their comfortable bed... far better than this predicament. they definitely don't deserve this anger. but there's like,,, 4 human prefects, they'd like to add to defend themselves but the word just dies up in their mouth when sebek huffed—and turned like he didn't figure it would be wise to waste his time here.

they sigh.

further down fhe hallway sebek marches. quickly, quietly—back stiff yet proper, just as he'd been trained to do. proper manners. something you don't seem to have. you're always cooped up in the center of chaos somewhere, in the back of sebek's mind a voice reminds that you weren't given the same treatment and training as him but he needed a reason.

a reason to hate you, and love you less he supposed.

it doesn't seem to be working though, given as he's literally about to turn the school upside down to look for you.

he has no idea why he'd even asked his father in the first place. attempting to 'court' a human! it seemed preposterous when you're just about every trait he dislikes. ahem, the fact that you aren't a fae is enough for him to consider it horribly.

what if you were taken? someone delusional tells him in his mind.

why should you care? another chips in.

yeah why should he care? he grumbled incoherent words. currently he has the brain to stop in his tracks, not waste his time here—but not the heart.

because his heart speaks the feelings his mouth won't let him, because it beats for you, and is just about to leap out when you do anything that he'd really like to keep the withering smile out of his face.

he doesn't smile. soliders do not, a great one like his father had learned to control his emotions but the one they call 'love' is something he can't get the hang of.

sebek thinks back to the occurrence that had went by a while ago.

── 

"I don't get it father. I don't need to calm down I need a doctor!" sebek explained loudly. trailing after the much shorter boy like a puppy. lilia can tell that his very jolly dear son is taking hid 'disease' very seriously by the exaggerated hand motions that he pairs with his equally flabbergasted words.

lilia chuckles, silly yet so endearing. "go again by your symptoms dear," he strolls in the kitchen, completely missing sebek's mortified face.

should he run right now? but he must not ignore lilia's request!

some things need sacrifices. he concludes. "well! my chest is beating very fast, it's like I am going to have a heart attack. which is why I need a healer, father!" he argues before pausing. "—also I've been very warm lately, I think I have a fever as well," he adds.

my dear little sebek is oblivious, lilia giggles to himself. but in the face of his son he merely raises his brow in feign suprise. "and,,, all of this is with the prefect around?"

sebek nods.

lilia's giggles intensify.

"I know just the thing!"

the younger boy perks up. he knew going to lilia was a spectacular idea! lilia seriously beckoned sebek to bend down to his height a little. "you have to proclaim your feelings to the prefect themselves so it would go away,"

lilia added, "and to seal the deal you have to ask them to be your valentines,"

he grinned.

though sebek blinks in confusion.

── 

sebek thought his advice was strange but if lilia thought it was the right thing to do then he'd do it.

after a period of just questioning people around the halls. he found you himself—and all by himself. hm, if he knew the humans wouldn't serve any purpose he would have did this in the first place. to think he had conversed with them for nothing after all.

you remove one earbud from your ear at the light flooding into the room. you stretch your arms and yawn lightly. "sebek? what's up?" you greet shortly. the green haired boy shutting the door behind him with no regard to his strength as it lead to a loud sound of impact.

atleast it closed?

sebek scours the room with disinterest but answers you. "the ceiling, I'm suprised you don't know,"

you deadpan. "i- whatever, I meant to ask if you needed something from me," you gesture to him. "seeing as you entered my humble abode without knocking,"

he crosses his arms over his chest. "I thought ramshackle is your abode," less humble. sebek thought, watching you shrug and flop down on a cushion comfortably. the music still plays in your other ear, so it was kind of hard to hear him fully.

you hum along the melody. "it's quite far so I set up my little corner in the school," you snort. so this is where you probably disappear to. sebek thinks. he can't bring himself to insult anything.

"anyways. why're you here?"

"you've made me sick and father told me to tell you some things," he explained. surprising you with the lack of intensity and volume in his voice. sebek would very much like to flop down next to you right now but that wouldn't be proper at all..

and, he doesn't know if he can ever control that feeling if he does.

you raise your brow. "uh? go on?" am I going to be told a briar valley secret then executed for knowing? you wonder.

he exhales slowly. "I've told father about my symptoms you've infected me with," sebek huffs. his first words both concerning and confusing you. "the heart attacks, and warmth so I've come here to tell you to get rid of them,"

I have no idea what he's talking about. you think, other than a flu a month ago you're pretty alright in terms of health..

"to seal the deal i would like to ask you to be my valentine!" he proudly says.

you stifle a laugh. lilia, that bastard. poor sebek doesn't have an idea of what he's asking. with the whole valentine deal you can see what kind of 'symptoms' he's talking about. "um,, I'm not sure you're aware of what you're asking right now," you say. as much as you'd like to take him as your valentine you wouldn't be too happy if you knew it's not because he wanted you to be.

"how about I tell you what lilia's talking about then I'll ask you again if you want me to be your valentines?"

you smile at his nod then pat the spot next to you.

sebek is no fool.

he understood what lilia was doing. but to him it's a clear opportunity to take you for valentines without you knowing that,, he is. he feels kind of horrible for using lilia to cover it up but..

the time you spent together is enjoyable enough to let it slide.

[yuesya]

Xiao straightens, and flicks his spear.

The downed form of the man-shaped demon before him fades slowly, crumbling motes of darkness drifting up and gradually vanishing in the air. It’s not dissimilar to the demons of Liyue that he’s familiar with –the demons that Xiao has spent so many centuries hunting and slaying in an endless, eternal cycle– but at the same time, he is able to discern the difference.

This demon was not one born of the restless grudges of fallen gods that refused to accept their own deaths. If anything, its origins seemed more… but no… no, that was preposterous. Surely it couldn’t be–

A monstrous roar sounds behind him; Xiao whirls around. There’s another demon left, struggling futilely in a pool of its own blood. The signature of its energy is far weaker than the one that he’d just fought, and all four of its limbs have been broken… and yet it’s still alive, and struggling to crawl forward on its belly.

Xiao exhales, raising his spear–

–and pauses.

There’s a pale hand that rests upon the bladed edge in a clear gesture for Stop. Xiao looks up sharply.

“You intend to let it live?” The girl –yet there is no doubt that this is no mere mortal girl– doesn’t say anything, but presses insistently upon his weapon. Please stand down, is her unmistakable, unspoken request.

The only reason why Xiao doesn’t point his spear at her in turn is because he knows that she actively fought the demons long prior to his arrival. It’s the only reason why there are humans who managed to escape this catastrophe.

Her appearance… Xiao does not recognize her. He admits that she looks similar to the snow women yokai of Inazuma, white hair and pale skin and clothed in Inazuman dress as she is. But she does not bear any powers of ice nor snow. If anything, the way the sword in her hand cuts through every obstacle without pause reminds him of the whispers of kunado-no-kami. But to his knowledge the last of them had died along with the Watatsumi Omikami that they served.

Regardless, Xiao does not intend to allow the current situation to go unanswered. If she was present here, fighting those strange demons that were decidedly not of Liyuan origin, then surely she knew how this incident came about in the first place.

“Explain,” Xiao says. He banishes his weapon, allowing it to dissipate into motes of golden light. “How did this situation come to be? Has the war in Inazuma worsened to such a state that it’s no longer able to contain malicious spirits within its own borders?”

The girl opens her mouth–

Oh.

Xiao blinks, genuinely surprised and caught off-guard. Her words…

“That’s a dialect I haven’t heard for quite some time.” He doesn’t have a perfect understanding of what she’s saying, especially given that the last time he’d heard this was… during the time of the Archon War, perhaps?

Xiao tilts his head. Is he looking at a survivor of the kunado-no-kami? … So far from the shores of Inazuma?

I apologize. I don’t understand what you’re saying.

Luckily for them both, Xiao is also old enough to know of the dead language that she speaks and discern the general meaning of her words, if not the precise details. Although Xiao is a Liyuan adeptus who has never once left the land in the thousands of years he’d lived, he has encountered gods of other lands, so he is not unfamiliar with other tongues.

That she is apparently unfamiliar with the language that is spoken in the present…

“Thank you for your assistance,” the kami bows. Polite, graceful. Xiao folds his arms across his chest and waits for her to explain. “… I’m afraid that this also came as an unexpected situation to me. I didn’t think that there would be a long-distance transportation array, and the barrier should’ve… no, I suppose that’s unimportant.”

She shakes her head.

“I was investigating a matter that was entrusted to me by my cousin, and ended up being ambushed by cursed spirits. Four total, the last of which you just slew,” she nods towards the fallen demon beneath him. “There was also a curse user, but he doesn’t seem to have been transported along with us. Ah, he would be the one responsible for teleporting us here. He needs to die.”

The words are spoken calmly, serenely. Xiao is aware of the dissonance here, but it’s not as if he disagrees. The regrettable casualties and wanton destruction around their current surroundings speak for themselves.

“And the demon you wish to spare?”

“Demon?” The kami blinks, then instantly understands what he’s referring to. “Ah, Muta-san? I’m afraid I can’t allow him to die yet, he’s the one I’m supposed to investigate. Although, given his current state I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to interrogate out of him…”

“I cannot allow such threats to remain within these lands.” It is his contract, and the duty that he must uphold as one of Rex Lapis’ adepti and his last yaksha.

“I understand,” she nods. “We will depart as soon as possible. If I may ask a question of you, where… are we?”

“You are within Dihua Marsh,” Xiao answers. Pauses, upon the uncomprehending way she looks at him, and elaborates, “Located upon the Bishui Plains.”

“… Did Not-Geto teleport us to China?” the kami mutters. “An entirely different country?”

Xiao stares at her. “This is the country of Liyue.”

The kami falls silent. Then, proceeds to take out a small pouch from her sleeve, and procures a strange device from it –a rectangular piece of metal that lights up with an artificial glow when she taps at it. There’s a small frown on her face, before she wipes the expression from her face with a long sigh.

“By any chance, do you have a name for this continent?”

Continent?

“… If you mean this world, it is named Teyvat,” Xiao says slowly.

Going by these questions… this is very likely not a kami of Inazuma who stands in front of him.

[strwberri-milk]

Baizhu, Zhongli, Xiao, Dainsleif, and kaeya (separately) x reader who has the same element or powers as them? Like for xiao another adeptus and for zhongli another immortal geo user , Dainsleif could have a reader who is also immortal and used similar powers to his? Fluff plz

Also how are you ?

a/n - I'm doing alright!! I started a job so that does monopolise my free time now since it takes up the slots I'm not using for classes but it's going well! I hope you enjoy the read - im still learning how i wanna write these charas so its probably gonna be ooc :D - also, i totally made a reference to my "series" Eternity is a Little Warmer With You bc i just had to aejiofwajw also crying shitting screaming this has been living in here for FAR too long i dont even know when it will be posted im SOBBING the same way i was when my coworker tried to put [REDACTED] in my face to fuck w me (i think shes great no worries shes so funny oawejfwaiod)

I don't think he expected to see another Dendro user in the area, much less one with an unfamiliar face. He makes it his business to know everybody in the harbour in case they require his services.

But, when you show up one day with a minor illness and the Dendro vision hanging from your clothes it piques his interest, which led to his continued visits to you under the pretense of taking care of you.

When things begin to develop further between the two of you I think he'd love to experiment more with your visions!

I see him using his vision in conjunction with his research and when he sees how different the way you use your powers he decides to experiment a little himself and see how effectively he can mimic it.

Overall, he would be fascinated with your abilities and would love to mess around with it a little! Even more so since you're doing it with him.

He had a lot of reservations when he first met you.

You were a terrifying anomaly to him, stirring emotions deep in his chest that he could never understand. However, with time you taught him he was allowed to embrace such thoughts and feelings,

It was terrifying to imagine a single day without your smile, but he knew that he would never wish this curse of immortality on you. He could never hurt you like that, force you to bear a burden that he was cracking under.

But when he told you about his curse the tears that slipped from your eyes matched with a happy smile made him take pause. He had no idea why you were reacting that way and only held your hand silently, brushing away tears with his other hand.

His hand stopped as you told him you were the same, your grasp tightening around his fingers as the realisation sunk in.

He was so afraid to hope for some sort of dimly lit future that could have you in it, intimately aware of the trials and tribulations you had to go through.

Now, with your hands joined together he can only think that eternity will be a little warmer at your side.

Xiao was aware that not all of the Adeptus perished in the war. He's only heard of a few of the others, less famous than him but still just as deserving of the title in his opinion. After all, you both worked hard to serve your Archon and were continuing to do your best.

When the two of you first met it was simple. A nod of your heads and you were both on your ways.

Once your patrol routes began to intersect it only took time and a few conversations under the light of the moon for him to find himself endeared to you.

It was easy with your smile and lack of pretense around him, and fortunately it seemed that the humans really were capable of protecting themselves.

Both being Adepti made it easier for him to understand why you said or did certain things what with your shared background. If anything, it helped make your bond stronger because the moments of silence were filled with an innate understanding he didn't feel like he had to explain.

At its core, your relationship is full of trust and unexplained pauses that fit comfortably between the space of your bodies. He feels fully at peace with you and knows that he can trust you with his heart and life.

He's still worried his karmic debt may stain you but the soft words of reassurance you whisper into his ear calm the thundering rush of his heart.

When Morax decided to live as Zhongli he knew that there would be things he would have to grow accustomed to as a human but also lots of things to learn.

When he first met you he didn't think he'd learn about love.

But it came so naturally to you, what with your natural curiosity and penchant for charming in the most innocuous of manners. To him, it seems human to explore the feelings you give him and so he does.

It won't stop the nagging voice in his head reminding him not to get too attached lest you slip from his fingertips far earlier than you should.

When you confess to him that you're immortal as well he does a bit of a double-take. Sure, he doesn't personally hand out visions but he thought he would have at least been familiar with a fellow immortal Geo user.

Regardless, he discloses to you a bit of his own truth with a kind smile, hugging you tightly to his body when he sees your body slump forward with relief.

Maybe one day he'll be able to disclose the other half of his secret but for now he was more than content to know that you two were going to be spending a lot more time than initially thought.

Cryo users aren't exactly rare so that wasn't what caught Kaeya's eye.

Instead, it was the fact that you pushed him out of the way when a hillichurl came barrelling towards him so fast he barely registered it.

The cold blast of ice against his skin made him think somehow he triggered his own powers without thinking until he heard the clinking of your vision against your clothes.

From there on he decided that he'd have to return the favour, deciding the best way to do that would be training with your visions.

Paradoxically, the chill of both your cryo visions does nothing to abate the warming of your bodies as you find some sort of rhythm while sparring together.

In fact, it only serves to make you both warmer when he pins you down underneath him. His cold hands hold your wrists in place over your head with a cocky, albeit out-of-breath smirk as he tries to think up what he wants to ask of you for his prize.

[allieebobo]

While I am salty abt Rayyan’s lack of faith in our MC, I am also absolutely endeared by their consistent dedication to tennis and being the best ❤️ Their passion for the sport is definitely one of the reasons I’m attracted to them, and same goes for my MC. Their reaction to the doubles pairing is upsetting, but if you were aiming to make these characters feel real and authentic, then you nailed it! I’m happy Rayyan doesn’t change or give up their passion for the sport just because they’re starting to gain feelings for the new freshie. Tennis is their first love, not anyone else 😆 Rest assured though that my MC will still try to make them eat their words 😉

Ahh I'm glad Rayyan's response is something folks are thinking about and enjoying(?) To summarise, I think Rayyan has this almost obsessive fixation on tennis because they know how good they can be, and a lot of their self-worth is derived from that, for better or for worse. To the second anon, you're absolutely right in that this gives them a "standing at the edge of a cliff" feel to their frenetic, almost all-consuming passion/ambition.

Very long answer below hahaha :p do I psychanalyse all of my characters? Unfortunately... yes 🤣🤣 it's a blessing and a curse 😂

Tldr; Tobin and Rayyan have grown up with different family backgrounds and different experiences of being "othered", and this informs the way they react to big events.

Rayyan's family, as one of the only Egyptian (and Muslim) families in their neighbourhoods, are inevitably more isolated and insular--their family does their best to cling on to their traditions and religious beliefs and history, but this doesn't always help with assimilating to a new country. Rayyan has always felt alone, different, and have grown up learning to be independent, often with the mindset of taking on adversity alone. Hence their instinctive response to MC, and their dislike for doubles.

Being born into an immigrant family, Rayyan has also always felt as though they've had to prove themselves twice over: first to the outside world, then to their family--especially their father and grandmother who want nothing more than to see their child/grandchild succeed. Rayyan, as the oldest of the youngest generation, bears the responsibility of being the family's 'proof' of successful assimilation into America in some ways.

Rayyan is consumed by the need to do well at tennis and at school because it is tied not just to their own self-worth, but also their family's, by extension. So, they've always found it hard to accept anything less than perfect from themselves--there's just too much riding on them for them to "fail".

Tobin, in this IF, is a foil to Rayyan in that they deal with similar, but very different pressures of being a black athlete, but they respond in a very different way. Rayyan tends to focus on one thing and one thing alone: winning - the classic "I let my tennis do the talking". Tobin, on the other hand, has always prioritized people, over anything else.

Tobin's parents have always been very active and plugged into the African-American community where they live, and so Tobin has always felt like they belong squarely in the world they inhabit, unlike Rayyan. Tobin's parents are also big proponents of solidarity and kindness, so Tobin's stance has always been: the world's fucked up, but we're all in this fucked up world together.

Then there's also the dimension of their personality. Rayyan is hot-headed, almost brash, and they're also proud, fiercely independent, and distrustful of anyone not in their inner circle. On the other hand, by virtue of their charisma and more lighthearted demeanor, Tobin has always commanded/attracted/built their own "tribe". They're also far calmer and more laid-back than Rayyan, and their responses are always measured, thoughtful, and almost slow to act/anger--there's a con here too though, they often end up losing their own gut reaction in the midst of all that careful deliberation, not just of their own feelings, but everyone else's.

So in conclusion, CT:OS will always have its characters at the heart of it, and I've tried my best to give these characters rich and unique experiences and histories and ways of relating to the world.

That's not to say these characters aren't contradictory at times, and they will evolve through the course of the IF--MC will even have a big part to play in that, through their actions and words and the way they choose to interact with the characters.

As another ask mentioned, now that the characters are more fleshed out, I'm hoping a lot more of these dynamics can come into play! :) (oh dear, that got very long!)

[lunathebee]

Hi Luna 🌙✨ I was wondering if I could request the moon boys standing up for the reader after someone insulted her? Please and thank you <3

THE MOON BOYS STANDING UP FOR Y/N AFTER SHE GOT INSULTED

Warning: cursed word, over-protective moon boys

A/n: ty for sending in a rq 💞 This is interesting hmmm, and I'm sorry if it kinda turn into a reaction thingy 🌚🌚

🍓 Steven Grant 🍓

If the insult is more like mocking, he will point at that person and be like, "Oi, that's not quite nice of you to say that, innit?".

If that person just straight up insults you, he will get angry and yell at them.

I don't understand where y'all get the idea that Steven is just a small, innocent bean.

He can scare off anybody just as well as the other moon boys.

"HEY! Are you saying that to Y/n? You think that's funny?-"

"Steven, it's not worth it."

Just drag him out of it Y/n, I trust you, you can do that.

Steven would still be so mad tho, he usually comes back with a sassy answer if the victim is himself, but if it's you, he won't allow that.

He'll also comfort you afterwards because he's afraid you'll overthink it.

"Love, you shouldn't think too much about that nonesense; it's not true!"

🍓 Marc Spector 🍓

He thinks he misheard it at first.

Who does this dude standing here think he is? God?.

"Are you trying to pick a fight with me?" Marc said, his eyes darkened, but the guy kept being cocky.

"So what? I'm just saying what is true."

That would be Marc's final straw; he's done being a nice guy.

"You sound of a bitch" Marc muttered the sentence before gripping that man's collar and pushing him up near the closet wall.

"MARC DON'T-" (Here we see Y/n trying her best to convince Marc but failing)

"You think you're the shit, huh? You think you can just go around saying that?"

Oh lawd Marc 🫣🫣

He's very serious, and if that man doesn't say sorry to you, he might just as well use his fist to get to the point.

IM SORRY but that's how I imagine Marc would react; he's not scared to get his hands dirty.

🍓 Jake Lockley 🍓

Ummm.....do I even need to say???

Jake is like a dark, glooming bear that always follows you, and he's only left to buy a pack of cigarettes for 5 minutes.

How in the world is it that when he comes back, someone is already yelling insults at you??

He cursed in Spanish seeing that

We already know Marc is violent, but JAKE?

Chile... anyway so

He would pretend to let it go shortly after and tell Y/n "Let's go home."

But of course he lied.

"Oh, I forgot I have to meet up with some of my friends, would you mind going home alone?"

"No it's fine, I can go back alone" Y/n can't seems to noticed anything strange.

"Good girl"

AhEM, so when Jake is sure you're far gone, he will track down the person who insulted you.

"Do you mind having a little chat somewhere else? Just you and me?".

""Woah woah dude, I'm not going anywhere with you."

"You WILL" Jake then drag that person into a small alley to teach them a lesson.

I'm saying his reaction would be similar to Marc, the only difference is that he doesn't fight in front of YOU

[catyo90]

Fighting Fate: Chapter 8

Ganondorf was still, his heart was racing along with his thoughts for what felt like hours to Zelda who awaited to see what he would do after her request. The sudden feeling of him climbing onto the bed and crawling over to her as he carefully held himself up towering over her, she could feel he was slightly tense as he paused in his movements. She brought a gentle hand to his own that laid beside her, gently she brushed her hand over his arm up, in doing so she couldn't help but trace the tattoos along his arm bringing her other hand to match the other as she held his face in her hands and gently spoke.

"Ganondorf?"

He said nothing as he looked down at her, her face so similar to Sonia, but the slight differences were clear. His breathing was heavy as he lowered his head a tad bit closer to hers, his hair falling around his shoulders as the feeling of her hands on his cheeks felt so welcoming. Compassion was not unheard of for him, but this kind...it was something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Suddenly the glow from the stone along her necklace started to glow, the golden glow took both of their attention away from the other. His eyes shone from the light and his mind began to wrestle with the thoughts once again. His breathing became unsteady as he looked away from the stone with his eyes closed, Zelda could see his chest breathing faster and his eyes twitched as she could see and sense the stone was effecting him. It pained her to see him like this, he never asked for this curse. None of them did. Why did the actions of gods from eons ago still echo in them. For her and Link it wasn't the same, she couldn't imagine how Ganondorf felt when he figured our that all he was to the world was a incarnation of Demise. But he wasn't just that...not anymore. She suddenly realized what the stone was doing. It was amplifying her bloodlines power, light, pure light.

Zelda removed one of her hands to hold the stone tight before taking it off her neck in one swift motion as she laid it down beside the bedside table, her power of light slowly diminished away as she brought her attention to him seeing his eyes were still closed but his breathing had steadied. A small sigh of relief came to her as she brought her hand to the side of his chest where his heart laid.

His eyes opened at the feeling of her touch as he looked down to see her eyes fixed on his.

"Are you alright...?"

He closed his eyes once more a he brought his hand over hers gently rubbing his thumb along her skin. His heartbeat started to slow down as his pain dimmed away as he looked at her. He said nothing as he moved her hand away from his chest and slowly sat up now sitting on the side of her as he laid her hand down on the bed. Zelda turned her body toward him seeing he was still holding her hand.

"That was unpleasant...but this." he gestured their intertwined hands.

"I will not lie...is nice. Different but nice."

"I must apologize, my powers effect you in both good and bad. I did not think about the repercussions of the stones effect...perhaps this arrangement...maybe I was wrong." she slowly turned her gaze away from him lost in thought as her grip on his hand loosened. But he would not allow it as his grip tightened.

"Whatever pain I feel, if I must bear it to break this curse. It will be worth it."

What she saw in his eyes was both fear and determination. And with it came a feeling of exhaustion. Clearly the pain from the light took a toll on him and in turn while it didn't show easily, Zelda felt the presence of Demise in that moment, it may have only been for a few seconds but it was more than enough for her to understand. Ganon felt her hand loosen a bit as he looked down to see she had fallen asleep making him sigh as he felt the exhaustion of the day wash over him. He gently and carefully removed his hand from hers before laying the blanket over her small form. He stood up and walked out of the room he eyes glancing at the stone on the table for a moment.

Link POV

It had been a few hours since he left to head toward the Gerudo town, he figured it would be important to find anything about Zelda and now even Ganon. Fortunately Riju had sent word that she and a few other warriors discovered ancient writings, what of though said could only be known in person. In case the Yiga clan tried to cause any trouble. Though it had been some time since he ran into the banana loving clan. Link looked out toward the horizon and saw what he despises every night, a red sky and with it those damn hands again. Every since the day he lost Zelda in those tunnels under the castle those accursed hands would follow him almost every day. He drew his blade and prepared to fight them off, the desert sand would slow him down and with nothing to climb he had no choice.

The hands started to rush him as he jumped up in the air managing to strike two of the hands down before being grabbed by one of them, he quickly felt the gloom's effect on his body as he raised the blade upward to strike once more, causing the hands to let go and shriek in pain. Link looked up and quickly drew his bow shooting a few thunder arrows off at them, luckily he had managed to finish off the last one. But that was far from over, he knew what was to come next. The phantom of Ganon, he quickly drew another arrow this time watching where the shadows were gathering, but something was off. The red shadows started to set ablaze and the form unlike before was not a reflection of the mummified version that he saw underground, the form was covered in black scales and a large x scar on the figures heard burned a bright white. Whatever this thing was, it was different.

The form rushed at him with such speed he almost didn't dodge it. If it weren't for his reflexes he would have been struck. He quickly used Sidons summon and guarded the next strike. But it only managed to stop the horrifying form for a moment. A waited to feel the pain from the blow but it never came. In an instant a bolt of lightning stuck the form causing it to vaporize before him, he looked behind him to see Riju holding her snapped fingers up at the now smoking pit of sand.

She had her signature smirk and her dual blades on her hip. And to match her look, the newly refitted crown of the Gerudo. A sight he was always grateful to see, especially when he needed to fight enemies.

"Seems you ran into the same trouble we have Link." She said lowering her hand to him offering him help to stand, which he took gladly. He brushed the sand off of his skin and the new arm. He gave her a smile before signing to her.

"Glad you showed up when you did...whatever that thing was...it was different from the phantoms I've fought before." He signed as Riju looked with concern.

"Your not the only one to face that demon. Some of our finest warriors have come into contact and for that reason that's why I've called you here. We might have an idea on what it is."

Link smiled as he followed Riju back to the village, where he was secretly glad not having to sneak in like before. Though he did find wearing the clothes to be comfortable it was a little odd for other hylian men to swoon over him. The sounds of the Gerudo children running up to both of them made him smile as they welcomed him.

"Alright children come along...time for your lessons." Riju said as they sighed but they all turned to Link with smiles on their face.

"Will you come by later Link. Please." All of the children started to plead, Link smiled as he nodded and watched as the children ran off to continue their teachings for the day.

Riju motioned for Link to follow her as she they walked down the stairs to the secret entrance to the underground hide out, since the rise of the phantoms and the Gibdos the Gerudo have had to stay on alert. Fortunately though Riju was not one to back down from a fight, Urbosa's blood ran strong with her. Link saw no doubt in her leadership and thanked the goddesses that he had an ally like her. He followed her down to a hidden chamber where he saw across from him a mural with seemed to show a sort of shrine and a way to make it appear. But Riju turned away from it and struck a hidden mechanism on the side making it open to reveal another mural hidden behind the first.

Link took it in, the sight he saw made him worry and wonder. The mural showed the Demon King split into three forms, one of a boar like monster, one of a simple Gerudo man and the last of a dragon. And above the Demon king was a carving of what looked to be Zelda using the stone to split them apart. Link had faced the monster before but the man and the dragon. If he had to face them he would.

"It seems this mural depicts Princess Zelda trying to separate the evil form Ganon. Wither it was a success of not. I'm not entirely sure of which has happened. You faced the boar monster years ago, so perhaps she was able to rid him of that power. You've seen the phantoms of his regular form, but that dragon. I fear that is what to come."

Link feared that what she tried to fix in the past was not possible. The dragon shown may be something he would soon have to fight. A fight he felt could not be avoided. Though what he found odd was how the regular was not angered or rageful but instead bore an expression of gratitude. He saw Riju walk over to a small shelf and grabbed a large red book with the initials N.D.

"We found these a few days ago, they seem to be the few surviving writings of Naboris Dragmire. From what we have been able to translate Naboris claims that one night both Princess Zelda and Ganondorf found out their powers can cause not only harm to the other but in a way negate their own. He would stop feeling the eons of rage he was cursed with, and Zelda was able to keep the words of the goddess at bay." Riju said opening the book revealing some of the text along with very old paintings of the events mentioned.

"But one record has us concerned. it's fragmented and unclear, but it seems the Demon king came to be when a Hylian Royal died, while its unclear as to who this was, some of the writings claim that Ganon was not in control of his own when the deed was done. The rage of eons of bloodshed and wraith made him break."

Link paused for a moment as he signed to her.

'The tear I saw of Zelda and Queen Sonia, it showed the queen's death. I saw him kill her and take Queen Sonia's stone perhaps thats what was written.'

Riju thought on it for a moment and nodded in agreement.

"If so it seems one difference though is the Ganon you saw wasn't in control. He may have been taken over by the ancient incarnation of Demise and that caused him attack but if that were the case. What would have made Demise finally appear after all this time."

-

Ganon was sitting in his throne, contemplating what he would do in his next act. His mind racing with too many thoughts. This union to Zelda was a valuable asset to getting rid of this curse. But he knew that Rauru would never stop until he swore fealty to their kingdom, peace between all of the realms but only the Hylians had true peace guarantee. The night air welcoming as he pinched the bridge of his nose, wondering where everything became too much for him. The sudden sound and feel of someone nearby made him react. He sighed when he realized it was Naboris, ever the thorn in his side when he was troubled already.

"What is it now sister."

"You seem to be lost in thought again...is the idea of the ceremony coming up making you get cold feet?"

"No. I'm starting to think this marriage will be nothing but a fraud."

"You truly think Lady Zelda would do that? Lie just to make you behave?"

Ganon sighed as he stood from the throne and turned his gaze toward her.

"She is hiding something, either about me or herself. Possibly even both. I see it in her eyes every time her stone glows."

Naboris watched as he started to pace back and forth as she removed her sage mask. Her long red hair cascaded around her face as she placed it down on the throne.

"Brother...She and Sonia are not the same. What happened all those years ago was not for you to question and you know it."

Naboris sat on the throne as she crossed her legs thinking on her next words.

"Rauru and Sonia married and you can see they are powerful, but theirs was not a political marriage like yours will be. They love each other. And while I know you were pained by it... perhaps Zelda offering you such a chance at peace...is worth the secrets she keeps."

Ganon scoffed as he ran a hand through his hair, perhaps he was right. She was the hylian the seemed to treat him as a equal. But he knew that behind that look was one of fear, an emotion he was all too well with. He looked at Naboris and smirked seeing his little sister. She looked like an actual queen...one he knew could lead his people. Some nights he wished that she was born first...or that he had never been born. A fate it would seem he would never be permitted.

"Perhaps you are right...you are wiser than I would have thought Naboris. If it were possible I would relish the crown to you, a proper leader."

Naboris was about to speak but he held a hand up to pause her.

"No need to worry. It is a role I know you would never truly accept...at least for now."

He walked up to the throne standing beside it placing a gentle hand on her shoulder looking up at the full moon.

"Naboris. If Demise ever returns, I would ask that you do not hesitate. End my life as quick as you can."

[freshlybakedspiderbread]

my immediate (well its been a whole day and then some, so not really) touhou 19 impressions for all the new characterbelow the read more so beware spoilers!

for context, all my knowledge and understanding of the plot and dialogue comes from a scattered mix of the translated omake, official profiles, a pal explaining this or that line, various different snippets of online talk i saw, and general me absorbing vibes through the screen after playing the game for over seven hours. if i got something wrong, oh well, there will be plenty of time to come to get a clearer picture of everyone!

its neat how the three new animal girls on the cover are all associated with one of the leaders from the animal realm. Although at first i assumed that meant there wouldnt be much to think of them beyond that because i also assumed they came from the animal realm to work with their respective leader. But actually they all come from Gensokyo, and the animal leaders got them to join their cause! That's way more interesting to me, and makes me wonder if all those three's posturing about taking over gensokyo might not just be hot air after all...

All three of them also have either direct or indirect connections to the final boss but i'll get to her later. for now my thoughts of all the newcomers one by one...

son biten 🐵 : okay so when i first saw an image of her, i went 'oh its sun wukong. okay...' and didnt think much of her beyond that, but her story is a lot more funny than that. she was (is) in fact just a normal monkey girl (normal by gensokyo standards) who got into big trouble but was 'saved' by Yachie, who convinced her that she's the legendary sun wukong. Now she proclaims herself as a hero and thinks Yachie, who only wants to use her as a tool, is her best friend. That's a lot more endearing to me than i thought and maybe i am more than a little invested in this bizarre dynamic between monkey and tortoise.

mitsugashira enoko 🐺🐺🐺: pretty similar to Biten's story albeit more straightforwardly charming. she was a regular animal who turned into a monster and was well on her way to becoming a really nasty one at that, but then Saki came along, showed off her back muscles, and was like 'join my gang', and then Enoko calmed down and was happy to do so! its funny but also kinda sweet? but really the most i have to say is that the bear traps on her wrists are funny. the profile and ending images make it seem to me like they do Not come off and those may as well be her hands. I know for sure Saki offered to shake her hand and did not regret it 🤠

tenkajin chiyari 🩸: what a freak!!!!!!! just some lanky, hunched over creature that literally nobody even knows what species she is, who lurks in the deepest depths of hell who loves doing nothing more than gulping up pools of cursed blood in her free time. I thought Momoyo, who lives in a cave and eats rocks was a freak, but Chiyari is on a whole other level. I love her. it's so easy to see how she and Yuuma beccame friends due to their 'common interests'.

yomotsu hisami 🍇: she's so cool!!!!!!! i can't believe she's probably the least revelant out of the newcomers 😂 great design and concept, and her whole thing in nearly every route she appears in is trying to drag you to hell, offering a sweet deal and then happily resorting to force if refused, its so good. Hisami is also technically subservient to the final boss Zanmu (because she's hot) but will also just do whatever she wants and Zanmu just has to deal with that... Speaking of!

nippaku zanmu 👹: i think she's neat 🙂 I mean, like a lot of touhou final bosses, most of their meat comes from their elaborate backstory and someone else will have to comment about how its a cool intepretation of this or that myth. as mentioned, she has at least some form of role whether minor or direct to the backstory of every other newcomer, which is cool and lends a more connective tissue to the cast as a whole, and she's also a big authorative figure in hell! all the different profiles like to emphasize how Zanmu is a planner type who controls everything with guile and information, and the plan she sets in motion in the game's plot mostly goes off without a hitch, even with so many different characters butting heads with one another. The most interesting bit of all this only really comes in at the very very end, where she calls off her plan to take control of everything herself, instead choosing to trust Reimu because she sees her as a kindred spirit. fun to think about the implications of that...

[twstbookclub]

Adronitis

Summary: Deuce met you once, and he thought that was the end of that. Until, he bumps into you twice in two different occasions. POV: 2nd Person Pronouns: Gender-neutral Admin/Writer: Cressa🦋 Tags: Third Time’s the Charm, Puppy Love (if you squint), Slow Burn with an open ending, Deuce Spade being an Awkward Sweetie, Romance, Fluff, MC is not the Ramshackle Prefect/Yuu Word Count: 1, 554

i’m alive lmao. finals are over, so i have the chance to post this. it’s been in my drafts for months, and i finished this while nursing a stomachache ;; this isn’t proofread, by the way.

Deuce first met you during club hours. He didn’t think much of you, not when he’s focused on becoming an honor student that’d make his mother proud. Your first meeting didn’t unfold like a romance drama. There were no cherry blossoms drifting in the breeze. Time didn’t slow down nor freeze when your eyes met. His heart didn’t pound so much that it’d jump out of his chest. It felt like any ordinary day in Night Raven College minus his shenanigans with the Ramshackle Prefect, of course.

If anything, it started with a water bottle.

Sweat dripped down Deuce’s jaw, slightly gaping due to his tired panting. With his hands on his knees, he watched the salty droplet fall to the ground as he gathered his bearings. The sun seemed harsher today, glaring down at the runners in the field. Deuce heard some of his clubmates groaning about the sweltering heat, either in loud complaints or hushed curses.

Water. I need water, was all Deuce could think at the time.

As if someone read his mind, a water bottle dangled in front of his eyes. Deuce blinked in disbelief, then his gaze trailed from the hand holding the miracle to another vaguely familiar face. You stood there with a lopsided smile and a hand on your hip. Under the blinding afternoon sun, you seemed like a guardian angel that descended in the middle of a desert.

“You look like you need it more than I do,” you chuckled. Once Deuce took your offer, you shot him another smile and continued on your way. The grime and sweat from all the running didn’t bother Deuce. The cold water bottle soothing his dry throat and hot skin didn’t deter him either.

Deuce just watched you run with a curious gaze.

The second time the Heartslabyul freshman saw you, Deuce had bumped into you in the cafeteria. A special menu came up, so the area was more crowded than usual. Students argued and dragged each other away from the line. Some snuck and cut into the queue in hopes of getting to the limited-time menu early. No matter where you went, you’d always bump into arms and elbows. He almost got hit on the neck by someone else’s elbow when Ace dragged him through the masses.

Deuce spied some guys trading lunch while another pair started a fist fight. Although, that ended when Jack lifted the boys by the collars; like a mother cat scolding her kittens. It was pandemonium, and Grim hasn’t even started making a ruckus. One pair even started fighting with magic until his housewarden collared them with his signature spell.

Honestly, that was dumb of them, but that’s not the focus right now.

He already found out some things about you at this point. You’re a freshman, just like him, and you joined Track and Field—again, just like him. Although, that’s where the similarities ended.

You didn’t attract too much attention. You didn’t seem to cause any trouble, which is rare in an all-boys school filled with the most rambunctious and rebellious students. With so many students attending NRC, you were just another face in the crowd. It was no wonder Deuce hadn’t noticed you until that day.

“Oh!” You beamed, another water bottle in hand. “It’s you! Um, Deuce, right?”

“Yeah,” Deuce stiffly nodded, feeling a bit awkward at his friends’ stares, “You’re part of Track and Field, too, right?”

Your name smoothly rolled off his tongue, like honey dripping into tea. Another huge smile graced your lips as your eyes shone brighter. Deuce felt his heart stutter at your change in demeanor. The ground under his feet felt unstable, which made him a bit dizzy and disoriented.

“I always wanted to run like you,” you sheepishly admitted. A wince from a hit to your side broke Deuce from his trance. “I could go on, but this isn’t the time and place, huh?”

Before he could say anything, Deuce watched you maneuver your way through the crowd with a wave. “I’ll see you around!”

“Merciful Seven,” Ace groaned and checked Deuce on the shoulder as he shoved past him, “Get your goo-goo eyes and head out of the clouds, man! We’re gonna get nothing at this rate!”

“Huh? What’d ya say?!” Deuce growled, chasing after the redhead. “Come back here, you punk!”

He could vaguely hear the Ramshackle Prefect exasperatedly sigh and call for them. Grim choked out an annoyed scream from behind. As the noise and jostle of the crowd consumed Deuce’s senses, the image of your bright expression seared itself into his mind.

The third time, he found you in the courtyard on his way to Sam’s shop. Deuce saw you fiddling with something as you muttered to yourself. Your fingers twisted a tiny key lodged into a mahogany box with gentle precision. Your tongue poked out of your lips as your eyebrows scrunched together. Deuce noticed that you’ve always made that face whenever you ran in the field. He just knew that the world around you didn’t exist whenever it happened. Not even the harsh heat stopped you.

“Hey Deuce!”

He almost flinched at your voice. Smiling, you patted the spot beside you on the grass, then returned to fiddling with the contraption. It was a music box, Deuce realized. It was an antique music box with some scratches and dust. The tiny thing had seen better days.

Wait, how did he end up in front of you? Better yet, when did he go off the path towards you?

“Hey, uh, what’s that you’re holding?”

… It’s obviously a music box. Why did I ask that? Deuce thought, nearly smacking himself in the face at how stupid he sounded. If Ace could hear him right now, he’d be cackling and howling til his stomach hurt the next morning. He could just imagine the mischievous smirk on the Prefect’s face while Grim snickered behind their legs.

Embarrassing would be an understatement.

“Oh, this?” You chuckled, and Deuce felt his heart almost burst out of his chest. “It’s a music box. I had Sam fix it up for me, so I’m checking if it works like before.”

Your smile faltered, replaced by a melancholic expression, as your gaze lingered on the tiny contraption. Deuce quietly sat beside you, who still stared at the music box. The frown on your face and the dull look in your eyes were something foreign to him. For some reason, Deuce didn’t like seeing you this way, much less feel this sad.

“My mom gave me this.” Your voice was nothing but a tiny whisper as your thumb traced a scratch on the box. “It’s the last thing I have of her, so… I hope it works.”

Deuce felt like he had been punched in the gut. The image of his own mother—dark circles under her eyes and calluses on her once smooth hands; crying into the phone about her delinquent son; smiling as she tells him how proud she is of him—flashed in his mind. His heart sank at the thought of a life without her. He can only imagine the pain and sorrow you felt at the moment.

“I’m sorry.” Before he could think about it, Deuce clapped a hand on your shoulder in an attempt to comfort you. His lips were pressed in a thin line as your eyes met his. What else could you even tell someone who’s grieving over a deceased loved one, especially when the wound was still fresh?

You stared at Deuce for a bit, then the corners of your mouth twitched into a small smile. You huff as your hand squeezed his, the one on your shoulder. Deuce noticed that you had a firm grip despite your unassuming demeanor. He admired your smile, lips moving to answer him with a heartfelt, “Thanks.”

Nothing else disturbed the peaceful silence between the two of you. Even though it was peaceful, Deuce felt restless. He wanted to talk more; wanted you to share more about yourself. That tidbit about your mother made his heart hurt, but he wanted more. All of your attention returned to the music box, and he didn’t know what else to say. That antique clearly meant a lot to you. He should leave you to it.

But, for some reason, Deuce couldn’t. He didn’t want to. Even if Riddle threatened to collar him right now, he’d choose to stay next to you.

“It works!” Your voice brought him back to reality. A lullaby, one that he heard of as a child, rang in the air. The wind-up key slowly turned as the music box played its tune. Then, Deuce’s attention drifted to you.

The grin that stretched across your face and the sparkle in your eyes made the former delinquent’s heart lurch. He couldn’t look away from you, even when you turned to look at him with that huge grin. The world seemed to fade away. Your voice was muffled, and your words seemed to go into one ear and out of the other. His cheeks burned the longer he looked at you. As you excitedly marveled about the music box working, Deuce only thought of one thing.

Ace was going to have a field day once he figured out that Deuce has a crush.

[hererafjastori]

I don‘t know if it‘s fanon or canon, that some of Hunter‘s scars where inflicted by Belos when he was in his cursed form, but I can‘t get this scene out of my head.

There is this specific kind of fanfic that I love, where Hunter gets adopted into the owl house and slowly unlearns all the toxic nonsense Belos taught him. He is allowed to be loud. He doesn‘t have to earn his bed, his meal, medical supplies, the roof over his head, etc. He is allowed to be loud. He is allowed to be childish. He is allowed to take a break. He is allowed to make mistakes. He is allowed to talk back to, and disagree with authority figures. Love and care (especially from a guardian to their child) should be unconditional. Getting physically punished is NEVER an appropriate reaction, he deserved better, and Eda would never do that, no matter what he does. And so on.

But I want to focus on the curse thing. Because in Belos has a cursed form. And the worst physical scars Hunter has, were inflicted upon him by Belos when he was in this state. And Hunter thinks that Belos isn‘t at fault for those things because he wasn‘t in control. That it was his own fault for triggering his uncle in some way or another. That he deserved those injuries because he set Belos off in the first place.

Eda also has a curse she doesn‘t have total control over that makes her more volatile. And we know, that even after turning into the harpy, she still needs those elixirs to stay in control (see ftf). There are infinite ways this can play out, but I can think of these:

1. Eda turns into a harpy and Hunter inacts plans to put himself in harms way to let Luz escape without injury. (physically shielding her; playing distraction;…)

2. Eda gets stressed/scared/starteled/frustrated/… and starts growing feathers. Hunter immediately panics, backpedals, apologises, maybe he has a panic attack.

3. Luz gets injured somehow. Maybe elixirs have run low and they couldn‘t get a hold of Morton in time. Maybe Eda grew claws at an inopportune time. Maybe there was a trial and error phase before she was able to properly judge the Harpy‘s strength.

4. Luz was injured by the owl beast in the days leading up to the season 1 finale, where Eda transforming seems to have been a regular occurence. She could have been attacked. She could have stood too close during a transformation. She could have held a shiny in her hand and get badly scratched whem the beast grabbed it. No matter what happened, she and Hunter start comparing scars inflicted on them by their guardians, and tell wildly different stories.

No matter how they got there I want to see Hunter react to Eda‘s reaction. She is in a similar position as Belos. She could use the same excuses: ”I couldn‘t control myself, why didn‘t you move out of the crossfire, or better yet, never let it get to this point in the first place, this is your fault”. She doesn‘t. If there are injuries, she helps patch them up. She gives them space if they need it. She apologizes. She takes accountability. She does everything in her power to keep then out of harms way. She is open and clear about what sets her off, what can be done to avoid that, what she does to keep the curse at bay, what are signs of an oncoming transformation and what they/ he can do in case she does transform/ lose control. She offers to help him move in with Darius/ the Parks/ Gwendoly/ Dell/ anyone who can protect him, and won‘t sell him out to Belos he would feel comfortable with, if he isn‘t willing to bear the risks of living with her. She doesn‘t demand forgiveness for whatever harm she caused, or for him to trust her in spite of that.

And Hunter is confronted with the fact that Belos could have - no, should have done the same, and has no excuse for doing what he did to him.

___________

tldr: Eda would be the second parental figure of Hunter, that has a curse liable to cause anyone in her vincinity harm, and I want to see Hunter confronted with that and the way she handles such a situation.

[vidalinav]

Snippet 1: Bear Suit 

“She’s thinking about moving out of town,” Feyre says, setting brush to paper. “I don’t know whether it’s to get far from us or because she’s ashamed.” 

Elain hums where she kneads, quiet in her contemplation, but Cassian’s brows furrow at the statement. What would make Nesta Archeron feel such shame that she’d run and hide like a coward? He shakes his head. No, it’s more likely to get away from him, but Cassian can’t tell her sisters that. 

What would they say if they knew about their tumultuous relationship that rocks as steady as crashing ships out to sea--that never settles into something calm and permanently still? There’s never any ease in which they talk. No happy smiles or casual touches. Every touch of her skin leaves him burning. Every expression makes him feel guilty somehow... like he’s stolen it. Like it isn’t really gifted to him. 

Her curious thank you at the gift as she rubs her fingers along soft muted browns is a harsh enough punishment. What would be the consequences of holding her hand? Of loving her sweetly? Of Nesta allowing him the presence--of time? 

Shame? If Nesta is ashamed, then there’s no hope for him. 

“The world we live in is much different than the one before,” Elain offers, slowly. “Nesta wouldn’t have to go. It’s not like when we were young... maybe she doesn’t know that.” 

“Know what?” 

Elain blinks lightly at Cassian’s question, as if he should already know. “That she wouldn’t be an outcast for being pregnant.” 

Cassian’s brows furrow further, and he frowns at the two Archeron sisters who study their projects like it will offer explanations--answers from flour and paint. “Children are treasured.” 

“Fae children are treasured,” Feyre notes. “A woman without a husband is blasphemous... unheard of.” 

Ah. Cassian knows almost too much about that concept.

It’s a very Illyrian thing for the humans to do or maybe a very human concept for an Illyrian rule. Cassian can seldom find the root of the cause and he can’t quite figure out how two cultures could be so similar. 

If she was still human, Nesta’s baby would be a curse. 

“Fae children are rare,” he says anyway, shaking his head as if that says enough. “There’s no one here would scorn her for that. Wish her well, maybe. Feed her, probably, but never scorn her.” His voice sounds outraged at the thought.  

“Maybe we should tell that to Nesta,” Elain says, hopefully. “Maybe she’ll stay if she knows.” 

“Well I’d certainly like to see my niece before Nesta decides the best place for a home is the woods.” Feyre scoffs and the deep blue of her paint reminds Cassian of storms. He wonders what she’s painting, but before he can ask, Elain is smiling lightly, the dust already settled. 

“You think it’ll be a girl?” 

Feyre frowns, “you said it was a girl.” 

Elain shrugs, “I just didn’t like calling the babe an it... Could you imagine though? A sweet baby girl that looks exactly like Nesta.” 

With her scowls too, Cassian’s thinks. A little girl with pouting lips and a scrunched up nose, and a scowl already indented in her forehead. A little girl who smiles lightly when she thinks no one watches. A secretive fondness that catches them all by surprise. A little girl who blinks wide and curious, ever searching the world for more answers. 

He can imagine her already... and she looks exactly like Nesta. Scowls and all. 

But Cassian sighs inwardly. Nesta will never let him hold that baby. He’ll be lucky if he even knows her name. 

~

Nesta had one night stands, the baby’s dad is one of them. She doesn’t know who. Let me make that clear. It’s not Cassian’s biologically. But emotionally? He’s become attached. 

@arinbelle

[skitter-kitter]

👀 for wip ask game

Okay so a few months ago I started a character study of my OC in an au where he’s a vampire and this shit is now 22k and five chapters long. This man Rowan FASCINATES me, especially in a world where he’s has eight hundred years to get Worse. In this au, Lear (his son) got badly injured so turning him to a vampire was the only way to save him and Rowan is helping him heal. Lear has a wound on his neck which is very important so don’t read the read more if that bothers you

Still hurts, Lear complained every few minutes. His notebook was full of the two words. Repeated for Rowan, for his retainers, even for Hoopa. He wanted anyone and everyone to know the agony he was in.

After the fifth time in as many minutes, Rowan snapped. “Why are you being such an annoyance about this? We both know you’re not in that much pain. Just bear it in silence until the medication kicks in” — Rowan paused, trying to find a good allegory — “like a good soldier.”

Lear’s eyes turned frenzied at that. He pushed himself up with a pained huff, lips drawing back as if to curse his father out. Before he could even attempt to make a sound, Rowan put his hand over the prince’s lips. His eyes were narrowed, meeting the furious purple. It was odd seeing eyes so similar to his adoring wife’s so angry with him.

“Stop hurting yourself,” Rowan commanded him. “Write down whatever you want to say.”

When he took his hand off of his son, Lear’s body was shaking. His breaths stuttered and stopped like a dying engine.

I’m your son not your soldier, Lear wrote. He stared at the page for a few seconds before hastily adding more. Why do you think there isn’t a difference?

Rowan frowned at the notebook, more annoyed at the sloppy penmanship than his son’s pointed question. He knew his beliefs and he knew what he wanted Lear to believe of him; so long as his son didn’t think Rowan would hurt him he didn’t care what Lear thought. If Lear was still human, the king would have turned around and left him in silence. But he wasn’t. They would have to coexist for centuries. At least with his late wife he’d only had to be her perfect husband for a few short decades. He’d planned for more, but…

It didn’t matter.

“I wouldn’t send you to war.” Rowan’s tongue instinctively moved inside his mouth to press against his fangs, remembering the thousands of humans he’d had to kill with them. His kingdom hadn’t been very willing to accept a murderer as their ruler, especially one who had killed their king and queen. He’d had to earn it. Lear wouldn’t have to. “You’re too fragile for that.”

[ficretus]

Theory: Speculating about Relic of Destruction

I had some thoughts about the matter so I wanted to throw some theories about it. This will be slightly different than my usual output of looking at plausible ways for certain ship to happen.

When Relics were first introduced with Relic of Knowledge its attributes made perfect sense. It's inspired by wish granting lamp so of course it will have a spirit inside and 3 wish restriction. But then similar attributes were repeated with Relic of Creation. Once again it has spirit inside and significant restriction of needing precise instructions as well as only one creation at the time can exist. To me this implies that remaining two Relics will also have an ability that requires spirit to function as well as have some significant restriction.

This brings me to Relic/Sword of Destruction, which we know quite literally nothing about. Usually when I make speculations I'll base them on confirmed literary influence, but with this one there is not much I can definitively base it on. So bear with me.

I've been reading about various mythological swords and best I can base it on are various cursed swords like Muramasa, Dainsleif and Tyrfing. I choose those influences because I feel they work best with given criteria (ability comes through spirit, has restriction). Is it weird that Relic that is placed in Middle East inspired region could be Nordic inspired? Kind of, but then again, Relic of Knowledge is Middle Eastern inspired artifact in East Asia inspired region, so, eh.

There were some relatively attractive options like Joyeuse or Durandal, but thing with those is that they are mostly just really strong famous swords. If Relic of Destruction is just some really strong sword (that let's say erases existence or something like that), where does spirit and restriction fit in? Does spirit then become wielder's hype man?

Appearance wise, Tyrfing also work relatively well as an influence. Both Relics so far were golden, and Tyrfing has been described as having a golden hilt as well as gleaming like a sun every time it gets unsheathed.

Tyrfing and Dainsleif also work as parallel to Sword being Maiden kept relic. Maidens are essentially royalty, both holding divinely mandated hereditary powers (also 4 Maidens, 4 kingdoms). Similar to that, Tyrfing and Dainsleif were swords used by royalty. Tyrfing itself regularly switching its owner between various kings and powerful warriors. I've seen on one page (and nowhere else, which makes me sceptical) that Dainsleif was originally forged for Odin before it was given to various kings. If that is indeed the case, this once again works well with Relic, being given to Ozma (who has lot of parallels with Odin) and handed down to Maidens for safekeeping.

While Muramasa, Dainsleif and Tyrfing don't literally have spirit inside, all three share the aspect of wielder being compelled to fight to death as soon as they are unsheathed. This makes me believe that spirit of the Relic will this time work through possessing the user and fighting for them.

Ok, but what would sword's ability be? If Relic of Creation (which would logically be destruction's counterpart) creates something when given instructions, how about Relic of Destruction destroying given target. Now, I don't think something like Death note where intended target immediately dies, more like it becomes intended goal of Sword's rampage. Spirit possesses the wielder and makes him go berserk hunting down intended target. Berserk mode gets disengaged if target is killed.

While in berserk mode, user is almost invincible due to spirit's combat prowess being transferred to it (similar to something like Sword of Freyr). Three blades I listed inflict unhealable wounds and are capable of cutting through anything. In RWBY, this might translate into Sword completely negating Aura's defensive and healing properties.

This does sound fairly overpowered, so time to slap some usual restrictions. First, there can only be one target at the time, mirroring Relic of Creation's restrictions. Berserk state rapidly consumes user's Aura, and if that runs out it continues draining their life force. This prevents abusing the Relic as well as cheating the system. You can't pick some impossible target to kill (like Salem) and keep permanent combat buff until the end of time. Just like those three blades I listed (and especially Muramasa), Sword wants blood, be it yours or enemy's, it doesn't matter. Either you or your opponent will be consumed by Destruction.

Alternative to disengaging the berserk mode would be if Sword is somehow separated from the wielder. Due to spirit's possession, wielder would be unable to drop the Sword on their own unless they can somehow break through spirit's control with their own willpower. Both of these are unlikely scenarios due to spirit's overwhelming power.

Anyways, what are your thoughts? Do you consider it plausible or do you think only thing Sword ever destroyed is prospect of ever seeing Volume 10?

[dvarapala]

pictured above: udyati, watching me think about her in relation to the tua characters.

i always love thinking about udyati in relation to the umbrella academy characters because she feels so at ease in the tua-verse despite the fact that it's all falling apart.

she took to klaus (@theseancekid) so fast. there's a reason she called him uncle klaus from the get go. he gets her. he gets her in a way few others do. she can ramble and mumble and mutter and he follows that stream of consciousness all the way down, from the start to the end. she likes hanging out with him. likes talking to him. he's warm hearted and funny and witty and fashionable. she's just glad to exist at the same time as him, honestly. to her, he's also one of the smartest people she knows. he's no super genius like five but there are more than one ways to be smart. i think she would not be afraid to be vulnerable with him. she knows she can talk to him about anything. about liking boys. about liking girls. about liking people. about lost loves and loves gained. about life and death. about the dead. about carrying them around with you. inside you. about the relationship with her mom - tempestuous but filled with love either way. about the expectations that parents have of you and how they can bear down upon you like a hand on your back. like a brand. like a curse. because if there's anyone who understands all of this and so much more, it's klaus.

upon first glance, she and five (@tempportal) are so different. she's sunshine, he's midnight rain. she looks older than he is, but he is older than she is even if he doesn't look like it. he's the smartest person in any room, anywhere. she relies more on brawn (fighting techniques) than brain. he's her best friend and grandfather figure rolled into one. and if she's ever in trouble, he's the first person she calls. if she needs help with her homework, he's also the first person she calls. what the handler did to him reminds me very much of what dhumorna did to her.

i like to think that she'd call diego 'uncle diego' too. that is, if he allows that. if not, then it's just diego and that's fine too. i like to think he'd be the fun uncle. or an older brother figure. that's the vibe i get from those two. he's a knife thrower; she loves knives. five would probably keel over from the stress and the shenanigans those two would get up to but in my head and in my heart, i know she would love diego so fiercely. not just because of their shared interests in knives and daggers and such but also because i think she and diego are similar in a way. not just because they're both people of color in a very white environment but also because i feel like academics have never been either of their things despite having been educated (by mr. hargreeves and having gone to college, respectively).

in my head, udyati would call allison 'miss allison' out of respect but udyati calling allison 'aunt allison' after a certain point is also very cute. much like diego, allison understands what it's like to be a person of color in a predominant white environment. much like allison, udyati's powers - if applied that way - could 'rumor' people as well: her strings and threads can turn people into puppets and she can get into their heads, if she connects a string to their temples and to her own. lila rumored allison and udyati has been a puppet for nine years so they'd have something in common there, too. aside from their powers, they have both lost a lover as well.

i think i stated somewhere that udyati can technically see ghosts but i don't quite know what happened to that piece of canon. anyway, i feel like she would be very curious about ben.

viktor would have to deal with udyati asking ten thousand questions about playing an instrument and how do you know to read the notes without throwing the sheet music across the room?! aside from that, udyati and viktor both have the capabilities to destroy. not just people, but the planet(s). and i think they could bond about a lot of things.

in my head, i can definitely see udyati sit down next to luthor and ask him about the moon. i can definitely see her ask him about his hobby's and the stuff he likes to do - i can see luthor as a writer. and udyati likes to write too.

lila is british and udyati is dutch; they're both europeans in america. they're both indian. they've both survived impossible things. the handler and lila's relationship kinda mirrors udyati and dhumorna's.

ps i also can see udyati sit with grace in the portrait gallery. or help her out in the kitchen.

[xandriagreat]

Brave Brothers | chapter 7

First chapter | Last chapter | Next chapter

Author's note: this is for @the-girl-with-the-glass-heart. 

Notice/Warnings: transformation, breaking things, roaring, weapons

▪▪▪

Remus helped Roman to bed and put the covers over him. “Now you rest, Roman.” Remus said, gently patting the covers on Roman. “And then you’ll probably have something different to say about the marriage-”

“What was in the cookie!?” Roman yelled in pain.

“Cookie?” Remus asked like it was a silly question.

Before Roman could say anything else, he groaned in pain again and fell off the bed with the blankets.

“So… I’ll tell everyone that it’s off then.” Remus said to Roman, thinking that it was the spell finishing up. 

Remus was about to leave the room but stopped when he heard Roman groan again… but this time, it was deeper.

“Roman?” Remus asked out loud worriedly as he walked over to the side that Roman fell off the bed. He stood in front of the blanket that covered Roman’s whole body, that was still at the moment.

“Ro?” Remus asked again worriedly as he thought, ‘Please don’t be dead. Please don’t be dead. Please don’t be dead-’

Roman groaned again, making Remus sighed in relief but only for a moment. 

When Roman stood up, Remus’ eyes widened as the blanket on top of Roman did not show his normal height and size but bigger and taller. 

“Ro-?” Remus asked again, pulling the blanket off. When the blanket was fully off, there did not stood Roman but a big black bear!

Remus gasped loudly as the bear turned around, looking dazed. 

The young prince fell to the floor and slid back until he hit the wall with his back, screaming loudly. The bear was confused as to why Remus was screaming.

“B-b-bear!” Remus yelled out, pointing at the bear. 

The bear’s ears went up and turned around, looking at the shadow it casted. It roared in fear, falling back and slid next to Remus. Then the bear was breathing heavily and put an arm over Remus, protecting him from the shadow. 

Remus was still as he looked at the bear, fear in his eyes. ‘What’s happening?!’

Then the bear looked at Remus and roared worriedly, making Remus scream again. The bear stopped roaring and looked confused at Remus, who just stopped screaming. The two locked eyes with each other for a moment, both breathing heavily.

The bear looked at its paws and was shocked to see them before using them to feel its snout. Then it went through three drawers of a nearby drawer and grabbed a hand mirror, looking at the reflection in shock. 

The bear roared in fear as it stood up, panicked, backing up and stumbled, breaking a lot of things in the process, including Roman’s bed. 

Remus was close to the wall as it happened, trying to not be hurt.

The bear stopped breaking stuff when it sat down, looking at itself like it was new.

Remus looked at the bear and slowly went to it. He remembered when he looked at the bear’s confused eyes, he noticed that they were very similar to Roman’s eyes. 

“Roman?” Remus asked the bear, still slowly walking to it.

The bear looked up at Remus and made a grunt sound, nodding.

“You’re… a bear!” Remus exclaimed in shock. Roman looked at himself and made some confused whining noises. “Why a bear? Oh, that cursed wizard gave me a bad spell!” Remus said out loud, stomping his foot.  

“Huh?” Roman managed to say in bear form, looking at the young twin.

Then Remus put a hand on his chest and said, “I didn’t tell him to change you into a bear. I just wanted him to change… you… oh…” 

Remus had a realization and awkwardly smiled at the brother bear while Roman breathed angrily at him before roaring in his face.

◇

Roman was talking, even though he's now a bear, to Remus like it was normal, walking back and forth on his hind legs, while Remus sat on the floor and just crossed his arms, listening to Roman making bear noises. “It’s not my fault. It’s the wizard’s.” Remus said, pouting and getting up. Then Remus started to talk to himself while Roman picked up what’s left of his clothes that he was wearing.

They were basically ripped… except for his crown, that was still intact.

Roman placed his crown perfectly on his head before picking up his blanket and ripped clothes, putting on in front of him before the next, like choosing an outfit for the day. He ended up choosing the blanket and wrapped it around his waist, like a towel. He doesn’t want to be an animal for anyone.

“Ugh… will this day get any worse-” Remus started but then he noticed Roman going out of the room. “Roman! Where are you going?!” Remus called after him. 

He ran after him and had to pick a few things up after him after knocking over. He quickly went in front of him when he caught up, having both of his arms near the two hallway walls to not let Roman pass. Roman growled confused at him. 

“Roman, do I have to remind you of Mom and Dad!” Remus explained, in a panic. “The king and queen of the hunt! If they see you, you’re dead!”

Then there was shouting down the hallway. 

“Oh no…the game… ‘The Hunt’!” Remus exclaimed worriedly. But when he looked back at Roman, the bear brother left. So, Remus ran after him again before anyone could.

◇

Remus ran after Roman, almost done with chasing him “Ro, stop!” he yelled in a whisper. “Stop!”

Remus ends up grabbing the blanket and pulling it off by accident. Roman did stop and looked at Remus, his paws covering himself. 

“Roman! You’re covered with fur! Not naked!” Remus explained angrily. “It’s not like anyone is going to see you-”

In perfect timing, a door opened and there were three gasps.

The twins slowly turned to see Virgil, Logan, and Lilian, about to exit Logan’s science room. All three were shocked to see a bear and it looked like they were going to scream. 

“Don’t scream.” Remus warned them, slowly walking over to them. 

“Why?!” Virgil whispered angrily.

“Because this is Roman. Not Regina or any other bear.”

The three blinked for a moment. 

“In the room. Now.” Logan said, pointing into the room. Everyone went into the room.

When the door was closed, Roman and Remus noticed the cookie, which was smaller than they remembered  and looked more like a half cookie than a bite out of one side. “Why’s the cookie here?” Remus asked, looking at the three. “Did you eat some-?”

“No, we did not.” Lilian said, her arms crossed. “We were experimenting with it. But look!” She points at the wall that her shadow casted along with Logan and Virgil’s shadows. 

Roman and Remus looked at the wall and were surprised. Instead of human shadows, it was a fox shadow for Lilian, an owl shadow for Logan, a cat shadow for Virgil, and a wolf shadow for Remus. The only one that was a shadow of a human was Roman’s.

“What-how?!” Remus exclaimed in confusion.

Logan pointed at the cookie. “I was trying to do some experiments but there was nothing. So, very angry, I tossed the one piece in the fire, which turned blue for a moment.”

“It scared us.” Virgil admitted, playing with his hands. But then he stopped playing with his hands and pointed at Remus. “But besides that, where did you get this!”

Remus gave an offended look and gasped at him. “What makes you say that!?”

Virgil sighed and got a blade out. “I think it’s time to have a clean cut.” he said, bringing the blade to Remus’ mustache. “Don’t you?”

Remus didn’t want to shave his mustache. So, he panicked and explained, “No! Okay fine! I got it from a wizard! It’s NOT my fault!”

Virgil pulled the blade away from Remus’ mustache and put it away. “So, you just gave it to Roman… with no questions asked?” Logan asked as Virgil walked away from Remus. 

“Well, I asked one question…” Remus mumbled to himself. Then he talked louder, “But with that aside, we need your help!”

Lilian, Logan, and Virgil looked at each other for a moment. “We’ll help.” they said together, nodding.

Remus smiled big. “Great!”

Before the five left, Remus tossed what’s left of the cookie into the fire. Everyone jumped as the flames turned blue and big for a moment.

◇

Virgil and Lilian went to distract the hunt group with a pot, a cooked big frog on a stick, and shadows. They use secret passages and tunnels to be ahead of the group. While they did that, Logan helped guide Roman and Remus to the kitchen.

But first Remus had to change, because he felt like the outfit that he was wearing was going to rip more at any second, and get some weapons that he may need. 

Roman and Logan waited outside of Remus’ room. 

“I know that I won’t understand you but did you apologize to Remus?” Logan asked, looking at the bear. 

Roman looked down at him and shook his head. 

Logan hummed and nodded slowly. “Figured.”

Roman grunted confusedly at him while Logan gave him a look. Then Remus came out of his room with his hunting blade, arrows, and new version of his old bow. 

He was wearing a light weight green shirt, black pants, a brown belt that holds his quiver, black traveling cloak. 

He held his bow in surprise.

“My bow… It’s fixed…” Remus breathed, looking at Logan and Roman. 

“Roman fixed it with Virgil.” Logan explained, pointing at Roman. “But we need to get going now.”

They carefully went to the kitchen, even though Roman knocked a lot of things over. Thankfully no one was near.

When they got into the kitchen, Virgil and Lilian greeted them, both covered in soot. Roman slipped on the stairs and hit his head with some pots and pans. ‘I hate this.’ he thought as he got back up on his back legs.

“Roman, we need to go!” Remus exclaimed at him. 

‘I’m coming!’ Roman thought, growling at him.

The twin went to the outside door as Remus looked at Lilian, Logan, and Virgil and said, “Thanks again.”

The three nodded and waved to them as the twins went to the woods to clean up this mess.

[brick-a-doodle-do]

Well thank you!

How come you're gonna attack my ask box? 👀

I'mma use this to give you a short paragraph now:

Idk if you really got what I was asking completely but I'm gonna do what I meant regardless

(btw your thing being in light mode is a curse to my eyes when I see the screenshots lmao)

Paragraph:

This game had been going on for a while now. The two had been trying to get at each other for similar reasons. Except now night had fallen and the larger was asleep for once, prompting the smaller to sneak grab their sharpened, blade like needle, and head out there. They ran across the floor and expertly got onto the table. Only after jumping the gap to the bed did they start to sneak, being as quiet as possible. Once to the target, the back of the neck, they raised the needle and swung it down to plunge it into the skin...but it never happened. A hand reached around and grabbed them in a loose fist, the larger's crimson eyes staring up after they rolled into their back, holding the smaller above their face. The chilling, cold voice calmly enthused, "Seems I won our little game." Whelp. Guess this was karma for trying a sneak attack.

—

I will stop there but I fully combined both of what you mentioned mwahahaha

I love combing two things into one

It could be an au of my original idea...but I mainly didn't mean both the borrower and human being vampires, only one. I don't really think vampires could feed off each other very well. Maybe as a fill in for not having human blood? Hope you like the paragraph I gave you tho...you can do with it what you wish, and yes, I purposely didn't go to the noms part, suffer

(Not rly I just didn't want to put the first attempt in a random paragraph I didn't really intend to continue atm)

Enjoy the paragraph of a story that I didn't detail as much as I could have :P sneak peak of how I write books

yes of course! and i meant i'd attack your askbox with any ideas i had. so like in a /pos way :D

ooooh treated immediately :0 a treat!!

oh my godddd light mode. i have so much to say about this, so just bear with me,,,

i have tried SO many different modes on computer. i LOVE goth rave and could DEFINITELY get used to it, but the activity box! it's so bright!! i have to strain my eyes to even see text 😭 and dark mode i have the same problem with, also it's too dark. low contrast mode looks like it's fucking underwater, cement is WAY too bright, cybernetic is kinda cool but again the activity box sucks and pfps don't go well with the colors (and that pisses me off), canary is blinding, ghost is worse, vampire is cute but the ACTIVITY BOX MY EYES IT'S SO GREY WTF, pumpkin is alr but the orange is overpowering and THE ACTIVITY BOX!!!!!!, snow bright sucks, and pride is just way too wild. so true blue for the win! i will sit with goth rave and see if i can live with it, but for now i'm sticking with light mode as painful as it is (fyi i don't have light mode for ANYTHING else if that eases the pain <3)

OKAY now that that's out of the way!

OHHHHH 3D I LOVE THIS! I LOVE HOW YOU MIXED BOTH PROMPTS TOGETHER AND AJDSJFJ I AM BEGGING FOR MORE SOON! JUST A CRUMB! FEED THE POOR!!!!

ohh okay sorry i totally misinterpreted that :') oh my god totally i didn't even think of that i am stupid for not realizing that would just NOT work DSJFGFJSD

i do love it!!! i'm already hype for more :D

and mmm creative process sneak peak!! fun fun :> and no hard feelings for not wanting to waste your first nom writing on a paragraph that'll be showcased on my blog AAJFD i totally get that lmao

[theroguescientist]

A Bird Sits On Your Head (Expectation vs. Reality)

I would like to show you guys two pictures, which, I’m sure, would make for a beautiful “expectation vs. reality” meme. Unfortunately, I don’t think my artistic talents can quite do the scenes justice and anyway I have never actually seen either of them myself. So I’ll try to paint the picture with words instead.

 The first scene happens at some point in the 1980s, at an unspecified location in the Eastern Bloc. The large rectangular building is essentially a college dorm, although most of its inhabitants are grad students and university staff members who don’t have a place of their own. The room is small, cheaply furnished, cluttered and, at the moment, quite crowded. People are sitting on the few wobbly chairs, on the mattress that serves as the couple’s bed and directly on the threadbare carpet, drinking tea from chipped mugs, eating cake from cracked plates and talking. It is summer and the room has no air conditioning, so of course the window is open.

Suddenly a small bird flies in thoruogh the window. My sources don’t say what kind of bird it was. Maybe some day I should ask a biologist who was probably there, but there is no guarantee that he remembers such details. The bird circles under the ceiling for a moment before before descending to perch on top of the host’s head. The man, about thirty years old, with dark hair and beard, sits still, mug of tea in hand, unsure what to do. His friends hold their breath, careful not to scare away the unexpected guest. The bird sits there for a while watching the suddenly silent gathering, then takes off, circles under the ceiling one more time and flies out of the window, never to be seen again.

There are no pictures of the incident. Back then hardly anyone had a camera on them at all times, and getting up to grab one from another room was not an option. The brief interruption might as well never have happened.

 The next scene takes place a little over thirty years later, in a very different place and maybe even in a very different world. It also happens to a different person, although she does bear more than a passing resemblance to the man from the previous scene. She is about the same age and at a fairly similar point in life, having recently moved to a new home, defended her PhD and signed a new contract at the university. Oh. And she is his daughter.

She is travelling across Europe on a budget, more out of habit than necessity at this point. Last week she was in Brussels for work, but right now she is on vacation, strolling along the streets and canals of Amsterdam.

Somewhere near the Dam Square she buys a hotdog from a foodtruck. She takes a bite and suddenly something swoops down upon her head. The pigeon thrashes about and flaps its wings madly. She holds her snack at arm’s length, whether trying to protect it from the bird or to lure the it away from her head, not even she knows for sure. All the knows is that she must look ridiculous, with a pigeon tangling itself into her hair, holding a sausage in a bun at arm’s length, laughing her ass off because what else can she do? Out of the corner of her eye she sees a girl, a few years younger than her, wearing glasses and a blue headscarf, raise her phone to snap a picture. But by the time the bird is gone, the girl is too. The image exists somewhere out there, but she will likely never see it.

 In conclusion, I think my bloodline is cursed. Or something.