#like. merlins mushroom soup??? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

musekicker · 2 years

Note

Not sure if you're still doing writing prompts, but if you are: Apparently Remy can suggest dealing with the Night Thorns by using them as an ingredient. Makes you wonder if he's gotten "experimental" with other unusual and/or magical items...

This isn't QUITE the prompt you gave but it does involve Remy and Night Thorns.

Early morning and Muse was on the move. She had some tasks she needed to finish. And she had woken up early and could not fall back to sleep. She thought that it be good to get to the tasks now.

One such task was to cook some more fish related dishes for Scar. Anything to keep the lion from eating a villager. She could had made the food at her own stove, but she also wanted to check in with Remy.

The last time Muse had seen Remy was last night when she popped in for a late, late night snack before doing some mushroom gathering.

She vaguely remembered Remy telling her that he was working on a new recipe idea that night. Now curious about the project she thought she make the food at Remy's restaurant. Maybe even get some tips on the recipes as this was a new for her dish.

The door to the restaurant was unlocked. Remy must had either pulled a all nighter or came in early. He was prone to not always sleeping as much as he should like Muse was. So she was not concerned by this.

"Hey Remy! Couldn't sleep either this morning?" Muse called out.

No answer. And to quote a cliché, it was quiet. Too quiet.

Muse walked past the doorway and into the dining room portion of the restaurant. She still did not hear the tell tale sound of pattering paws or the clinking of cooking utensils. Unusual for this place.

"Remy?" Muse called out again.

She got closer to the kitchen. Close enough that she could see something was on the stove. So Remy couldn't be far if there was food on the stove. A closer look at the pot on the stove revealed some odd kind of soup.

The soup in the pot looked midnight dark. Maybe some sort of squid ink based dish? She couldn't say she liked the smell that was coming form it. It reminded her of mildew and rot. Not at all something she thought of as Remy serving.

She frowned at the sight of it, something about it making her magic in her almost ripple. A warning. She ignored it and got closer, looking into the pot closer.

Looking closer at the soup was a mistake. The smell was only stronger and it made Muse stumble back, her head swimming. It lasted only for a second but it was enough to convince her to not get close to that soup again.

"Hey Remy, if you're in here I'm not sure about this-" Muse called out.

Then her words caught in her throat. She had finally found Remy.

Remy was on the floor in the kitchen. His eyes were closed. He did not look as if he was just napping.

"Remy!" Muse cried, hurrying over to him.

He could had possibly been like this since she left him last night. The thought made Muse feel cold in her gut.

Muse started shaking Remy. No response but shallow breathing.

"Remy please, Wake up." Muse said.

Still no response. Muse stood up and started towards the door, speaking despite being sure that Remy could not hear her.

"I'm going to get help. Merlin should-" Muse said.

That was when Remy began to convulse. Muse's heart sank at this.

There was no time to seek help from anyone else. She was the one here and she had to do something now.

She had no experience in any form of medical care. Much less dealing with convulsions and for a rat. But somehow she knew that this was a magic issue.

There was some sort of... corruption. A familiar one. One that Muse was sure she knew how to draw out now. She hoped anyways. If not...

No, she wouldn't think about that. She refused.

She made the same gesture she would make when getting rid of a patch of night thorns. In her mind she kept happy thoughts and memories going. Honestly she was not sure if that helped any when getting rid of night thorns. But it was something she liked to do. Like how one would say hello to a plush toy or think of two rain drops on the window as racing as they dripped down the glass. Something small that maybe meant something.

And she found herself making the gesture more then once, frantically. Muse didn't know if she really needed to. She couldn't stop herself from doing it over and over again. Not until she starting seeing dark purple smoke rising out from Remy's body.

Muse kept it up until Remy stopped convulsing. Muse sunk back down to the ground on her knees, both exhausted and wanting to get a better look at Remy.

"Please be okay, please be okay." Muse said to herself.

There was the passage of seconds. Maybe five, maybe longer. It felt like hours. But finally, Remy let out a giant exhale of air, especially for a little rat. And then he opened his eyes.

"Muse?" he said.

Muse let out her own exhale of air she had not realized she had been holding.

"Hey Remy. You gave me a really bad scare there." Muse said.

"Was I.. did I faint?" Remy asked, starting to sit up.

"You were out of it." Muse said. "And then you started having convulsions. Are you okay? I don't know much about this stuff but I'm sure that getting convulsions can lead to getting hurt in different ways." Muse said.

"I think I'm okay now." Remy said.

"I'm sticking close for a bit just in case." Muse said.

"Okay... how did you save me?" Remy asked.

"All I did was what I normally do when removing the night thorns." Muse said.

Remy got really quiet. Muse didn't notice. She was going into anxiety mode with the possibility of a new threat presenting itself.

"Oh geez" Muse said. "Is this some sort of new curse or-"

"I... I know what it was." Remy said softly.

Something about the way Remy spoke sounded like a spark of guilt in that tone. Muse stopped and looked at Remy.

"You do?" she asked.

Remy stood up now, brushing some dust off of his fur. Muse got the sense he was trying to delay saying what he needed to say.

"Remember how I've always said I wouldn't serve anything to anyone that I wouldn't eat myself?" Remy asked.

Muse nodded.

"Yes. I recall that. Wait, are you saying you did this to yourself by accident?" Muse asked.

Remy didn't answer.

"Remy... my friend... what did you put into this soup?" Muse asked.

Remy's gaze stayed towards the floor and he held his tail in his hands.

"You got to tell me. How will I have any idea how to help you if you don't?" Muse said.

Remy nodded, more to himself then to Muse. He clenched his paws then told the truth.

"I put ground up night thorns in the soup." Remy said.

Muse stared at the rat for a second or two before shouting.

"What!? Wait... how did you even do that? I thought I was the only one who could even remove those things!" Muse cried.

Remy shrugged slightly.

"I think since you came to the valley the night thorns hold has become weaker. And because of that I was able to get small samples of the night thorns." Remy explained.

That was news to Muse. The fact that other villagers could actually remove a bit of the night thorns now was a interesting bit of knowledge that she would have to share with Merlin later. Right now she had to figure this issue out.

And also yell at Remy a lot. Normally she didn't like to yell at others but the fact she had been terrified for Remy's life only minutes ago awakened the concerned anger in her.

"I thought we had this talk about the night thorns." Muse said. "And I said that they were probably dangerous to eat." Muse said.

Remy nodded.

"We did discuss that eating them could be dangerous, yes." Remy said.

"So why did you do this?" Muse asked.

Remy rightly looked a bit ashamed as he admitted his reason.

"I thought that it was something I could handle and I could make the night thorns useful for everyone." Remy said.

"Your hubris almost killed you. I hope you know that." Muse said.

Remy did look like he understood how much he had messed up, ears down and gaze cast down as well.

"Don't touch that stuff again, okay?" Muse said sternly.

"Understood." Remy said.

Muse began to turn to exit the restaurant and go find Merlin. Then she stopped.

"I should probably have to bring this soup for Merlin to help get rid of. And look over all the cooking tools you used to make this too. Just in case." Muse said.

Remy flinched at the idea of losing some of his precious soup pots, knives, and other tools. But he also knew that Muse was right. He still couldn't watch as Muse gathered up the various kitchen objects and left with them.

#disney dreamlight valley #dreamlight valley

1 note · View note

romione-trope-fest · 2 years

Text

Anywhere With You

We lovethis missing moment!

————————

Fic Title: Anywhere With You

Author Name: ImSoRomione

Selected Trope: DH Missing Moment

Brief Summary: One-Shot of Ron and Hermione talking about places they’d rather be than the cold, miserable tent during the Horcrux Hunt.

Word Count: 1406

Rating: G

Trigger Warnings: Discussion of hunger and a mention of throwing up

***

Anywhere With You

The rain dripped steadily on the canvas of the tent. It felt like it was seeping into everything. The very air surrounding them thicker, heavier, sodden down. Every breath Hermione took felt like breathing in fog. Or a cloud. Her skin had started to feel permanently clammy, cold to the touch.

The small cups of broth she had been able to scrape together for an early dinner hardly brought any lasting warmth for any of them. Harry, stuck in one of his locket-clad silences, had taken his tin of soup to the mouth of the tent to sit watch.

Ron had barely moved from his spot on the couch for the better part of the afternoon. Hermione carefully carried over two cups, carefully placing one in Ron’s outstretched hand. His fingers overlapped hers for a moment. She almost startled at the warmth, the dry brush of skin. It was such a stark contrast to how she’d been feeling for days now.

“Thanks,” Ron mumbled, half into the steam coming from the mouth of the cup, his lips forming a half smile.

Hermione nodded, feeling a small smile creep onto her face too. She perched on the couch next to him, sipping her broth while eyeing his arm from over the brim of her cup.

Ron, not missing her gaze, swallowed thickly. “It’s not hurting much anymore,” he shrugged.

Hermione pursed her lips, “we still ought to be careful. I’m not entirely confident it won’t get infected.”

“You did all the spells you could,” Ron shrugged again, trying to brush it off. When it came to his splinching, Hermione’s guilt was still palpable. He didn’t want it to weigh on her any longer than it already had.

“I just hope it was enough,” Hermione said, placing her half empty cup on the table. “We should change the bandages.”

“Not until you finish your soup,” Ron nodded to the cup.

Hermione huffed out a laugh before admitting, “It tastes horrible. I think my stomach’s better off without it.”

“It’s not… horrible,” Ron murmured, eyes on the half-brown, half-grey liquid, “it’s better than the last batch.”

“Well, that’s not very high praise considering you threw that one up!” Hermione laughed again, leaning back into the cushions.

“Oi! That was because of the pain potions you had me taking. And all the apparating. Really does a bloke in.” Ron gulped down the rest of the broth, fighting the smallest of grimaces.

“Whatever you say,” Hermione spoke softly. She knew her expression was probably bordering on over-fondness at this point. But she really couldn’t find it in herself to care. The heaviness from the rain was in her bones now. And in whatever she usually used to prop up the walls around her heart. The rain was sweeping it all away.

A shiver ran through her at the thought.

“I’d offer to conjure a flame but they seem to be your speciality lately,” Ron said, almost in response to her shiver.

Hermione pulled her wand out and summoned a jar, preparing to ignite a small blue flame to heat the sitting area.

“Merlin, I miss the common room fire,” she cried, feeling another shiver run down her spine. She placed the jar to hover in front of her and Ron.

“Mmm,” Ron said, closing his eyes and letting his head fall back, “bloody hell that would be nice. The fireplace roaring, the couches dry and not at all damp from constant rain and mist.”

Hermione elbowed him.

“What, it’s true!” He said, nudging her arm back.

“I know,” she groaned miserably, “and we could be eating proper meals instead of watery soup from scavenged mushrooms.”

“Don’t even bring up the Great Hall Feasts to me, Hermione Granger. That’s a personal affront, that is.”

She laughed, “Too soon?”

Ron’s eyes popped open, his voice sobering slightly, “I can’t believe I’ll probably never eat one of those again.”

He turned to her, his eyebrows furrowed a bit.

She tried to will herself to smile, “on the bright side you’ll never have to take another class with Snape.”

Ron managed a halfhearted grin, “that is certainly a silver lining.”

“Though, to be honest I might rather be in the Potions dungeon right now than in this bloody cold tent any longer,” Hermione groaned, wrapping her arms around herself.

“Not the Potions dungeon, Hermione!” Ron said with mock disgust, slinging an arm around her easily, effortlessly. As if he’d done it a million times. And when Hermione thought about it, he really had been doing it quite a bit lately.

He rubbed a hand up and down her back, scooting closer in the same movement, pulling her into his side in an effort to warm her up.

“We can’t have you wishing that,�� he continued, “wouldn’t you rather be watching a Quidditch game in the pouring rain?”

Hermione’s head brushed against his shoulder as she threw it back in laughter, “tempting! But I was thinking more along the lines of being frozen in the Black Lake during the Triwizard Tournament.”

“Oh, good one. At least we were unconscious for that one,” Ron said gravely.

Hermione laughed once more, and unable to resist the tempting warmth Ron was emanating, she tucked herself further into his side, resting her head on his shoulder. Ron adjusted a bit to accommodate her closeness.

Hermione shivered yet again. They were silent for a few moments. Both of their eyes on the flickering blue flame.

“Where would you really want to be right now?” Hermione asked softly.

Ron was quiet for a few moments before taking a deep breath, Hermione’s head moving with the rise and fall of his shoulder.

“It’s hard to say. Anywhere I am I’d want you with me. And Harry. And anywhere we go would be dangerous for whoever was there. So I can’t say the Burrow. Or Hogwarts. And I don’t know what else that leaves.”

Hermione pulled back slightly, looking up at him, “where would you go if the war was over?”

“I reckon I’d go just about anywhere peaceful,” he shrugged. “Maybe Bill’s place. It’s meant to be really nice. It’s on a beach.”

“That sounds perfect.”

“Where would you go?” Ron tore his eyes from the flame, finally meeting Hermione’s gaze. But her eyes fell to her lap where she examined her hands where they lay, palm up in her lap.

“Well, I’d have to go to Australia first, of course.”

“Yeah, course,” Ron said softly.

“But it’s meant to be nice there as well. Warm. Beaches,” she trailed off.

“You’ll make quick work of it,” Ron nudged her with his side, “step 1 find your parents, step 2 have a holiday.”

Hermione smiled tightly, “I hope you’re right.”

“It’s been known to happen.” Ron grabbed one of her splayed out hands in his own, “Merlin, you are freezing.”

She wrapped her brittle fingers around his, watching in reverence as his thumb stroked her hand, the gesture leaving a path of thawed skin behind.

“Yeah,” was all she managed to say. Her voice breathy from the simple presence of his hand on hers. She swallowed thickly, willing herself to look up and meet his gaze.

Ron’s eyes were already on hers when she finally managed it. His face was serious, thoughtful. “You know, about Australia—”

The canvas opening of the tent whipped into motion. Harry came in on a gust of wind, rain splashing in behind him heavily.

“It’s a downpour now,” Harry shivered, wrangling the locket from around his neck. Without much of a passing glance, he tossed it into Ron and Hermione’s laps as he left the room, already struggling to remove his soaked layers.

Hermione’s cold fist went to wrap around the locket, before a warm hand overlapped hers once more.

“I’ll take it,” Ron said quietly.

Hermione knew already not to argue. “Thank you,” she told him. She looked up into his face again. Savoring it in the moments before the locket around his neck would cast the inevitable shadow over it.

She fought the urge to yank at the wretched chain. To put it around her own neck. To suffer in place of the man she loved.

Because she knew it now. Knew she loved him not just in warm common rooms and during Great Hall feasts. But on rainy sidelines. And in miserable damp tents.

Even unconsciously. At the bottom of a goddamn lake.

She loved him.

#submission

67 notes · View notes

lancelotdeservedbetter · 4 years

Text

i love that morgana had a vision of emrys and saw him as a little old man and tried to hunt him down. girl was fully prepared to kidnap a pensioner

small additional thought: what if Balinor's father, by some miracle, was still alive and just mooching about in the woods looking exactly like aged up merlin? one day he's out gathering mushrooms for his lunch and comes across this dramatic goth woman who yells something at him but he's old and his hearing isn't great

Morgana: Emrys, my nemesis! we meet at last!

Merlin's grandpa: i'm terribly sorry my dear, my hearing isn't quite what it used to be, please could you say that again?

Morgana: um

Morgana: sure ok

Morgana: EMRYS, MY NEMESIS! WE MEET AT LAST!

Merlin's grandpa: i'm so sorry, one more time?

Morgana, at the top of her lungs: EMRYS, MY NEMESIS! WE MEET AT- why am i doing this just tie him up

and Grandpa is like oh i'm being kidnapped? thats cool i wasn't doing much this week anyway and tries to make friendly conversation with her the whole time

Grandpa: might i ask your name, young lady?

Morgana: i am Morgana Pendragon, high priestess, heir to the throne of Camelot and the greatest dark power the world has seen in centuries

Grandpa: that's nice. i'm steven

while he's in her castle, he talks to her and asks about her and what she's doing and she relents and talks to him because, let's face it, there aren't a whole load of opportunities to vent when you're trying to take over a kingdom and he listens and chips in

Morgana: and then he poisoned me. i thought we were friends

Grandpa: why would he do that? that's terrible!

Morgana: right? i should have smited him right there on the spot

Grandpa: perhaps that is a little extreme

and then Grandpa hears how everyone treated her and is like oh no oh dear this is my child now

Morgana: and after he grabbed me, he threw me in the dungeons

Grandpa: this is your father? bullshit absolute bullshit i will be your father now instead. i will smite Uther's ghost

Morgana: i thought smitings were too extreme

Grandpa, clenching a spoon so hard it bends: the rules have changed

and at some point she realises this guy isn't Emrys and tries to release him but he won't leave because he's decided to adopt her

Morgana: you're free to go

Grandpa: oh, no thank you, the soup here is excellent

Morgana: what? but i'm freeing you?

Grandpa: i think you need someone around who cares about you to keep you rational

Morgana, with tears in her eyes: whatever

anyway the adventures of morgana and her adopted grandpa who successfully talks her out of murder 90% of the time and teaches her how to make stew

#~small additional thought~ yeah i guess not sorry #bbc merlin #merlin #morgana pendragon

1K notes · View notes

sxvxrxssnape · 3 years

Text

minerva mcgonagall’s personal mission to make severus love christmas part 5

aka snolidays/snapemas day 11 and 12 (hot chocolate, baking) // pre-PS/the years between. minerva and severus friendship // content warning: panic attack and mentions of lily potter. i feel like this should be considered a snapetober entry oops. word count: 4287 @blog4snape

The night ended with more hot chocolate as the five stood together and watched a choreography of lights move above the pond, creating elves loading a sack full of gifts onto the outline of a waiting sleigh, watched it become glowing reindeer pulling it off the ground, rising in height and getting smaller and smaller until it disappeared and the light show began again.

It felt like magic and he refused to believe none was involved.

He fell asleep fully clothed that night, contentment and milk chocolate running through his veins as he begrudgingly made another mark on the imaginary scorecard.

Minerva was definitely winning.

Saturday was spent finishing the potions for the infirmary, bottling and stoppering the dozens of phials, and methodically scrubbing the cauldrons clean as he read from a book hovering above the wash basin, the pages turning with a flick of his head.

He dropped the potions off at the hospital wing, secretly pleased that Poppy was far too busy with a floo call to a student’s parents to bother giving him more than a thankful nod and a wave of her hand. He didn’t mind their conversations, but when three students were laid up sick on starched cots, Severus preferred to be as far away from the infestation as possible.

He spent the night reading, a cup of tea in hand, the soft glow of candlelight nearby to illuminate the words of one of the books he had picked up from Diagon Alley.

Sunday morning found him sprawled out on the couch in his living quarters, fully dressed once again, with the candles snuffed and the book astray, the teacup still nestled between a cushion and his thigh.

He spent the day holed up in his office with a correcting quill, the stack of essays he kept putting off, and no less than four packets of crisps. It was dinnertime by the time he finished reading all the scrolls of parchment, his fingers cramping and eyes bleary. He had the beginning of a headache forming, but the grading was nearly caught up on.

The remainder were short-answer questions, at least.

He wasn’t sure he could sit through another stack of eighteen inch essays for at least another month.

Perhaps two.

The crisps had made him nauseous, so rather than attending dinner in the Great Hall, he flooed into the staff lounge and helped himself to his precious french press that had been left behind. As the coffee grounds soaked, he glanced around the room and took in the stockings.

There were some new additions.

There were his and Minerva’s - white, cable-knitted with fur trim, bearing their names embroidered in black thread - but also a bright blue with Filius’ initials, a pastel-pink made from crushed velvet with Pomona’s name spelled out in tiny yellow flowers, a black with silver snowflakes bearing Aurora’s family crest, and a neon orange war crime that could only belong to the headmaster.

All of them had candy canes peeking out.

There was a tree in the corner now - a tall, proud-looking noble fir - looking like an oversized houseplant when it was devoid of lights and decorations. He finished making his coffee and sat down at the round table, eyeing it carefully.

The rest of the castle was still surprisingly devoid of holiday decorations, but if this tree had already arrived, it was only a matter of time before the rest of it started creeping in. Soon enough, the place would look like a tinsel factory had exploded inside of it and the number of trees within the castle walls would put the Forbidden Forest to shame.

He scowled at the thought.

Later, he realized he had spoken too soon.

Monday morning brought a fresh shower of snowflakes, a drop in temperature, and about thirty-six douglas firs into the Great Hall. These were already decked out with lights, ribbon, and colorful baubles. Some of the trees had clearly chosen sides, cheerily standing tall with the weight of red and gold ornaments, while others were laden with green and silver, blue and bronze, or gold and black.

Garland clung to the old brick, neatly tied with red ribbon and perfect pinecones, spaced out above the portraits and high, arched windows.

He didn’t want to think about the rest of the castle.

There was white chocolate peppermint tea waiting for him at the staff table, so he conceded that not everything that morning was absolutely terrible.

Tuesday was a bad potions day.

Not for him as a brewer, of course, but as a professor.

By the time both his classes ended, eight different cauldrons had either melted, exploded, or absolutely disintegrated without a trace. He lost a full jar of moonstones because one student had decided to bring the entire fucking container to her table rather than count them out beforehand like he had advised, and it had taken all his self-control to stop himself from breaking down right in front of the class of sixth years.

He had collected those moonstones himself, wandering the Forbidden Forest all fucking night, with only a lantern to light the way. They were supposed to last him at least another two months before he would need to venture out again - and the last time he had gone out, he’d nearly sprained his ankle on an upturned root and gotten a tree branch to the fucking face.

Tuesday evening found him four drinks in, asking the house elves to please bring him some hot, salty chips from a local shop, and when the darling little elf returned with the newspaper cone, he babbled stupidly for two solid minutes from gratitude alone.

Wednesday was a headache, a blur of back-to-back classes, a lot of frustrated yelling at completely inept students, a full pot of that wonderful white chocolate peppermint tea, and a sudden decision to not assign any more homework for the rest of the year.

Not because the awful little slimeballs deserved a break, but because he did.

The elves made mushroom and wild rice soup for dinner, alongside everything else they always made, and Severus took more comfort than usual in the hot meal.

Wednesday night was his turn to patrol the castle, so he stayed up half the night wandering the empty corridors. He pulled his cloak tighter around himself as he entered the Astronomy Tower, groaning as he realized Aurora was still there, carefully packing away her supplies post-lesson.

“Oh, don’t act like you aren’t glad to see me.”

“Believe me when I say I’m not.” Severus returned, stepping to the edge and looking over the grounds. Most of it was cloaked by shadows, but the silver light from the moon was still enough to softly make out the silhouettes of the greenhouses and Hagrid’s little hut. “What, no comment on how I’m out past my bedtime?”

Aurora laughed, putting a bronze telescope back into its case and fiddling with the straps. “Not this time, no.” She glanced up at him and warned: “But don’t you ever make me miss out on family dinner again or you will regret it.”

Thursday morning he slept in.

He barely had enough time to pull on his teaching robes and run fingers through his hair before he had to hightail it to his classroom, frazzled and out of breath. He hadn’t had time to prepare the chalkboard the day before, and was quickly writing out the recipe in his messy scrawl, when the seventh years started filtering in.

“Alright, you’re going to need number three pewter cauldrons today,” he called out over his shoulder, finishing the last line of script. “Fill them with two liters of room temperature water and put your burners on low. Today we’re going to be brewing a more complex -”

“Professor?”

He scowled at the interruption. “What is it, Mr. Greenwood.”

“I think your robe might be inside out.”

He blinked and tried not to let his face flush with embarrassment. “Thank you, now as I was saying -” he continued awkwardly, shrugging out of his robe and flipping the sleeves inside out.

“Your shirt buttons are fucked up too.”

“Language!” he scolded, swallowing down the sharp coil of emotion building at the back of his throat. “And do not speak to me like that.”

“Hey, you’re the one walking in here, unprepared, with your clothes all fucked.” Greenwood muttered. “Just what were you up to before class, sir?” he grinned, his comment eliciting a few chuckles.

“Detention, Greenwood.”

“Now, wait a second!” the boy faltered.

“Do you wish to make it two?” he asked, his voice dropping an octave as he raised an eyebrow in questioning contempt. “Because we can surely arrange that.”

“No, sir.”

“Good.”

He finished the lesson on autopilot, quickly fixing the buttons on his shirt in the supply closet, fingers shaking nervously as he muttered angrily to himself. He shrugged back into his robes, double-checking they weren’t inside out again, and downed a calming draught on a whim - the shiny light blue bottle catching his eye from its place on the shelf - before returning to his desk.

He made sure to scowl at each of them in turn and surprisingly enough, not another student made an unwarranted comment about his appearance, his teaching, or even each other. It kept him from reaching for another calming draught when he felt its effects lifting.

Friday found him having a panic attack.

Then again, if no one opened the door to the broom closet he had squandered in, if no one came face-to-face with his crouched down, fingers tangled in his hair, not-quite-yet-out-of-breath, full body trembling self, could anyone really prove he was having an anxiety attack?

He’d barely made it through his second class and had dismissed the second years twenty minutes early, sans homework - and oh, Merlin, they were going to think he'd gone soft - before attempting to return to his personal quarters.

It didn’t quite work out as planned.

His knees had felt shaky and he’d felt as if something were gripping at his throat, pressing down on his lungs, and he had to sit down and ground himself before he had a full-on breakdown in the middle of the corridor. He’d found himself stumbling, as he hid behind the closest doorway, the tidal wave of unchecked emotions too much.

His resolve was breaking.

He tried to focus on his Occlumency shields, tried to push back the unfiltered pain and fear he refused to think about - could not think about - because if he did, he was afraid he would never be able to function again. He was afraid he would break.

The dam was already broken though and now, now the rest of it felt inevitable.

Now he was simply gasping for breath, tears welling in his eyes that he refused to let fall, sitting on the floor of a dusty broom closet, bathed in the dull yellow light that flared whenever it sensed movement, like some sort of spotlight - a beacon honing in on him, existing solely to put his downfall on display.

Far too many thoughts were flitting around his head, crashing into each other and making it difficult to tell them apart, to pinpoint just what had been the trigger, the reason behind his weakness - because surely, that’s what this was right now: weakness.

Footsteps sounded in the corridor and he tried his best to muffle his ragged gasps, hand curled into a fist and pressed into his mouth, teeth sinking into the pale flesh, threatening to break through from the force he was using, so desperate he was to not make a sound.

It didn’t work.

The footsteps paused, their owner faltering.

Voices were speaking from the other side, hushed and mumbled, and with another stroke of panic, Severus realized they belonged to more than one. Students, most likely, and he curled tighter into himself, vehemently wishing for the ground to open up and swallow him whole.

“Are you okay?” a hesitant voice traveled through the aged wood.

He didn’t answer, but he figured his breaths were answer enough.

“Are you having a panic attack?” a different voice called out, sounding just as unsure as the first. “It sounds like you’re really struggling.”

“Do you need help?”

“They probably can’t answer, dummy.” a third voice spoke up, but this one wasn’t addressing him. They were all familiar, but his brain wasn’t letting him process anything to fruition. “Hey, if you can hear us knock on the door.”

He considered ignoring them, but in the end he knocked.

“Good!” the first voice praised. “Alright, knock if we were right about the panic attack.”

Again, he knocked.

“Do you want help?” the second student asked. “I’ve helped my share of students through these.” He suddenly recognized Casper Jenkin’s voice, one of his seventh year Slytherin prefects.

He groaned; as if this situation could get any worse.

“I’m gonna take that as a no.” Oliver Greenwood’s voice muttered, so apparently yes, it could get worse. He was stumbled upon by his own snakes - and his disrespecting seventh years, at that.

“Do you want us to get someone?” Allison Bone, the original speaker, questioned. “Madam Pomfrey or your Head of House? If you’re all the way down here, you’re probably a Slytherin, huh?”

He choked out a laugh at that.

“Laughing!” Bone approved. “Laughing is good! That means you’re getting control of your breathing. The worst part of it is over now.”

“I’m going to open the door, okay?” Jenkin told him, and the doorknob started turning. “It’s probably pretty cramped in there - definitely won’t help.”

“Don’t!” he let out, just as the door opened and he found himself blinking up at his snakes, the three of them blinking down at him, equally dumbfounded, and he wanted to scream at whatever joke of a higher being had shifted the cards enough to lead him here.

“Oh!”

“Professor Snape?!”

He lifted a shaky hand to his face, brushing back disheveled locks of hair. “Get out.” he whispered, low and angry, not caring about the semantics that it technically didn’t apply.

“Are you sure you don’t need -” Bone started, then faltered at the growing expression on his face. “Right, we’re leaving.”

Greenwood eyed him a second longer than his companions, but rather than the teasing glint he usually held whenever addressing him in class, he wore something softer. “Sorry.” he mouthed, genuine concern flickering for a brief moment before he also left.

He put his head in his hands and started laughing, softly at first, but when it became an ugly sob, he fought to regain his composure, nails digging into his scalp.

He managed a deep breath, wiped his face on the sleeve of his robe, and hurried to his personal quarters. He was moving on autopilot now, slipping out of his teaching robes and into a jumper, grabbing a bit of floo powder and calling out a quiet, “may I come through?” when the flames turned a brilliant green.

He stepped into Minerva’s quarters, bypassing her concerned look and collapsed onto the old couch, pointedly ignoring her as he stared at the vaulted ceiling.

“Severus?”

“Panic attack.” he mumbled.

He remained silent after that, listening to the rustling of parchment and paper, the soft scribbling of a quill nib making its way across the page. For a few minutes, that was the only sound, until suddenly Minerva stood up and opened up the floo. Hushed voices followed, then silence, and he finally sat up when he heard the distinct pop of a house elf apparating into the room.

Dorset, one of the school elves most identifiable by his height, was balancing a tray on one hand and a heavy-looking box on the other. He placed both on the kitchen table, nodded at the two, and apparated away.

“What’s this?” Severus asked, his voice gravelly and tired, as he stood up and approached the table.

The box was filled with an assortment of items - butter, eggs, icing sugar, flour, and the like. He could see a bag full of dirigible plums sitting right on top and he smiled despite himself. The tray was holding two ceramic mugs, their contents hidden by the mountain of whipped cream and cinnamon they were topped with.

“Sit down with me.” Minerva said simply, picking up the tray and bringing it to the couch. She sat down at one end, placing the cups on the coffee table, and waited. When he sat down, facing her, she handed him a warm mug. “I asked for hot chocolate.” she told him, eyeing him carefully. “Specifically the gingerbread one we had last week.”

“I liked that one.” Severus mumbled, staring down at his cup.

“I know.”

They were quiet for a few minutes, sipping on their hot chocolate, and Severus could feel his anxiety slowly ebb away as it was replaced by warm comfort.

“You look awful.” she finally spoke up.

He smiled ruefully, but it felt more like a grimace. “I appreciate the honesty.”

“Have you noticed, how every time you experience feelings of distress, someone always tends to interrupt before we can talk?” she asked, watching him. “I think we’ve been putting it off long enough, don’t you think?”

“No.”

“We never got to talk about Yaxley.”

“We didn’t need to.”

“We also never finished our conversation about how you ask for my company whenever you venture out of the castle.”

Severus gripped his mug tightly. “You said enough.”

“You still flinch when people touch you.”

“Can you blame me?”

Minerva paused, studying him in a way that left him feeling exposed. “They’re all connected.”

He kept silent.

Her next words were unexpected. “What about Lily?”

“What about her?” he growled out, anger taking hold and manifesting into shaking hands. He swallowed down the bile he could feel rising, the taste of milk and chocolate suddenly acrid on his tongue.

“You never talk about her.”

“That’s because I don’t have anything to say about her!” Severus finally yelled, nearly dropping his mug. He set it on the coffee table and balled his hands into fists, refusing to break eye contact with the professor before him. “Lily died four years ago, but she stopped being my friend long before that! Do you want to talk about the guilt I carry, knowing it was my fault she died? Because no amount of talking, nothing I do will ever be enough to make up for the fact that I killed my best friend! And I hate myself for that, but Merlin, do I hate her too.”

“Do you?”

“Yes!” he burst out, the words he could never dare himself to say aloud now slipping off his tongue without trouble. “She was my best friend and then she sided with them, with him, after what he did to me! And that’s when I knew she was never really my friend! She saw what he - what he did,” he was starting to gasp for air again, “and she still, she - he -”

He focused on steadying his breathing, arms wrapped around his torso.

“I don’t.” Severus finally amended, in such a soft voice he wasn’t sure it even carried. “I want to hate her so much - and I am so angry at her, angrier than I’ve ever been at anyone - but I don’t hate her. I can’t. Maybe I wasn’t her friend, in the end, but I know she was mine. I lost so many people in the war, but she’s the one who hurts the most, so no, I don’t want to talk about Lily.”

Minerva hummed. “You sort of already did.”

He scowled.

“Drink your hot chocolate before it gets cold.”

Some of his anger fizzled out as he finished the drink. When they were done, Minerva stood up and started pulling out the contents of the box, lining them up on the counter. He joined her, watching as she leafed through a cookbook he hadn’t noticed.

“We’re going to do some holiday baking now.”

“Are we?”

“If you’re not going to talk to me about what led to all this,” she gestured in his general direction, “then we’re going to bake some things for the staff party tomorrow.”

He nodded, sighing. “Where do you want me?”

They spent a few minutes in stilted silence, as he washed the bag of dirigible plums and cooked them down into a sauce, stirring in ground cardamom and honey. Meanwhile, Minerva whisked double cream and cornstarch with vanilla sugar and salt, the pot resting over low flames. He added the plum sauce and smiled as it came together and turned into the warm orange color he remembered.

“What next?” he inquired, after the thickened mix had been poured into a mold and tucked away in the cold cupboard.

“Biscuits?”

The sugar dough came together easily enough, pale yellow and perfectly smooth, and as they sprinkled flour over the table to roll it out, Severus started fiddling with the holiday cutters.

“I can hear you thinking.” Minerva spoke up a few minutes later, dusting her hands off on a clean towel. She reached for a tree-shaped cutter and started pressing it into the dough. “Are you ready to talk now?”

“I have nothing to say.”

“Sure you don’t.”

They finished cutting out all their shapes, moved their biscuits into the oven, and cleaned off the kitchen table. Minerva was opening small jars of sprinkles while Severus whisked together icing sugar and egg whites. He focused on dividing the royal icing into small bowls, adding droplets of colored dye and stirring carefully as if they were a temperamental potion, when he finally broached the earlier subject: “They are all connected.”

“Pardon?”

He didn’t look up, merely repeated himself. “They’re all connected.”

Minerva pulled the baking tray out of the oven and cast a cooling charm before bringing the perfectly baked biscuits to the table. Severus picked one up and absentmindedly broke it into pieces. He shared it with Min and picked up another biscuit, carefully dipping this one into the bowl of red icing and shaking off the excess.

He reached for the star sprinkles. “I try not to think about any of it.”

“You’ll have to, eventually.”

He thought about the broom closet. “I know.”

Minerva dipped a star biscuit into the bowl of yellow icing and handed it over to Severus, who immediately covered it with three different colors of sprinkles. They worked in tandem for a few minutes, dipping and sprinkling all their biscuits, and eventually a spoon was introduced to their project and Severus found himself drizzling thin stripes across some of them.

“I’m giving this one a Dreadful.” Minerva decided, picking up what was supposed to be an ornament, originally dipped in white icing, but then covered with uneven globs of blue.

“Fair enough.” Severus shrugged, levitating the dirty dishes and moving them to the wash basin, spelling the water on. He picked up a candy cane-shape that had been rolled in yellow and violet sprinkles and then drizzled with green. “This one, however, is deserving of a Troll.”

Minerva spelled the dishes to wash themselves and then raised an eyebrow at him. “Severus, you decorated that one.”

“I’m aware.”

The yule log cake was a little more time consuming to make. He sat down at the table and watched Minerva separate eggs and whisk the whites with sugar until it foamed.

“It would be faster if you spelled the whisk.” Severus offered.

“We tried that once.” Minerva laughed, not slowing down. “It worked great at first, but all of a sudden, the whisk was flinging meringue all over the room.”

“How delightful.”

Meringue was light and shiny and the brightest white he could imagine. Min filled a piping bag with the foam and showed him how to pipe little mushroom tops on the baking paper. When he took the bag from her, he was surprised to find it bore no weight.

“Do you not know how to hold a piping bag?”

“Evidently not.” he grumbled, looking at his hand and the fluff of meringue that had spilled out of the bag and over his hand.

“You’re supposed to hold the end closed, you numpty.”

“Numpty?” Severus muttered under his breath.

“Elphinstone always did the same thing.” Minerva shook her head, fixing the bag and finishing the job. “No matter how many times I corrected him, that man couldn’t hold it right. Always went off about how he’s the ministry liaison for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Min, I don’t need piping meringue mushrooms in my skill set.” She took in a shaky breath and set down the bag. “See? Perfect.”

“Min-”

“Don’t just stand there, Severus.” she scolded, thrusting the cookbook in his hands. “Get to work measuring the dry ingredients. You can make the cake while I make the frostings.”

He started sifting flour and cocoa powder. “It’s okay to miss him, you know.”

“Of course I know that.” she humphed, putting the tray in the oven and spelling the dishes clean. She unwrapped a stick of butter and stared at him. “Do you know that?”

“Minerva, I only met your husband twice.” he deadpanned.

She flicked a bit of icing sugar at him. “Don’t be smart with me. I’m not the one repressing all my emotions and pretending they don’t exist until I can’t stave off the impending panic attack and end up crashing in my colleague's quarters because of it.”

“Fine, you win this one.” he muttered. “You are the pinnacle of mental health, professor.”

“Excellent.” Minerva grinned, but her smile seemed a little bitter. “Does this mean you’re going to talk to me now?”

“No.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Numpty.” she repeated.

---- a/n: i was in the mood for angst tm also the ending feels a little rushed but it is 3am rip. im not gonna finish this series by christmas but my goal is new years. time exists in a vacuum anyway and is not real. ps. let me know what you think pls!! it gives me all the seratonin

#snapedom #pro snape #snapemas #snoliday2020 #severus snape #professor snape #snapecember #holiday writing challenge

43 notes · View notes

futurewriter2000 · 4 years

Text

Sweater

A/N: I actualy enjoyed reading this one but I never wanted to read it through because I’m really lazy. I know there are sentances and words I don’t like but idc. Hope you guys like it and all the love <3 (ALSO YOUNG JENSEN ACKLES AS REMUS?????? COME ON???? (he also hot now))

REQUEST: i'd like to request a one shot in which Sirius has a sister in ravenclaw who isn't prejudice like her family but isn't as loud mouthed accepting as her brother & they don't get along but some how she finds herself falling for her idiot brother's friend remus which she's baffled by because how could she like anyone stupid enough to tolerate her drama queen of a brother voluntarily 24/7 even if he's as smart & dreamy as remus

It was as if you were strangers. It was as if all three of you were three different poles of the Earth. The youngest, Regulus, was the South pole, the oldest, Sirius, was North pole and you, the middle child, were the equator. The middle. The mediator. You weren’t as South orianted as Regulus was; always obeying, following and being the polished trophy on your parents’ shelf but you also weren’t as North as your brother Sirius- always pushing their buttons, waiting for your mother to explode and then feed on that.

You obeyed... sometimes.

You rebelled... sometimes.

You were neutral and sometimes that was a good thing, sometimes that was the loneliest feeling in the world.

When Sirius was still living with you, there would be moments where your mother and father would praise Regulus and the two of you would just give each other that look- look that just tells everything and later tease little Reggie (as both of you liked to call him). But then again there would be moments where your parents would just scream and talk down on Sirius, leaving you and Regulus in an uncomfortable position. Sirius and Regulus would both be compared but you were just there. Like a void. Nobody paid attention to you, nobody acknowledged your presence. You could have murdered someone and they wouldn’t care in the world. And when Sirius left all of those moments were just giving you a lonely pit in your stomach.

You were furious at your brother for leaving, crying, just being so aggrevated you wanted to murder him and James Potter but then you accepted it. Your brother wrote you and he kept writing you until you replied- which you eventually did, sending him a Howler. First day of school and he just burst in your comparment being annoying until you talked to him or laughed with him. He just annoyed the anger out of you. It didn’t leave, no, it was still there but it was smaller and you always goaded him with it.

He hadn’t had much luck with Regulus. Mostly because he was a Slytherin and Sirius just couldn’t, for the love of God, deal with Slytherins, let alone be in their presence. You were a Ravenclaw, meaning you were easier to get to than your younger brother.

You all still lived pretty divided life. You were close with both them, Sirius somehow more since Regulus despised that you and Sirius were on talking terms and he wasn’t. With months passing, he barely even talked to you. He did but it was so faint that it was worse than not talking.

But again, you were the equator. The middle.

“Oh how I love my little Ravenclaw sister, who has done nothing but bring me so much joy and love.” Sirius hugged you from behind, leaning his head on yours. “Beautiful, smart- just a peachy rainbow in the sky.”

“You must be reading Poe.” you said unfazed, putting a spoonfull of mushroom-cream soup in your mouth.

“Actually.” he breathed in a sharp breath, sitting beside you and smiling forcefully. “I’m not reading Poe and also not reading my Divination book, which has all the subjects and information for my Why do dreams affect wizards stronger than Muggles essay.” he leaned his head on the side, watching you with pleading eyes.

“You must be keen on writing it.” you continued to play daft.

“Funny... um...Well...I...” he tried to form a sentance. “I WAS planning on writing it, you know? For my good well-built brain but- khm.” he cleared his throat, leaning forward and looking at you with his eyes....his red, puffy eyes and you just knew.

“Oh Merlin.” you burried your head in your palms. “Again?”

“It was one smoke, sissy.” he lied and after seeing your murderous glare, he corrected himself. “Maybe more than one. I stopped counting after one.”

“You are an utter dumbass.”

“Point proven on many occasions- so would you do what I ask you of??” his voice continued to get higher with each word, implying into you writing an essay for him, “Pleaseeee.” he whispered, dragging the letter ‘e’ with his breath.

“Sirius...” you looked at him worriedly. “Why are you doing this?”

“Don’t sissy. Please.” he shook his head. “Later, please.”

“I’ll murder you later. Why doesn’t one of your friends do it?”

“Who says they didn’t do this with me?” he forced a smile on his face again, acting so innocent but it was as looking mischief in it’s face.

“I’ll do for you for the last time and in return we will have to talk. No outs, you have to promise me this, Sirius-” he grabbed your head by the sides and pulled it to kiss your forehead, beaming at you.

“I fooking love you, baby sis.” he jumped on his feet and started jumping away. “Love you!”

You laughed, shaking your head at the idiot.

“I wish he’d say that to me.” your friend said in front of you, letting you form a grimaced look on your face as she continued to look at him dreamily. “Imagine that bum-”

“oKAY!” you got up and grabbed your sweater. “I just lost my apetite. See you when you wash your brain.” you walked out of the Great Hall, grimacing at your friend back in the Great Hall and sobering up after feeling a cold breeze touching your bare arms and making you put your sweater on.

But just as you pulled it over your head, you saw broad chest in front of you and before you could stop, it was too late- You were already in someone’s hold.

“I’m so sorry-” you looked up to see his emerald eyes illuminating the crescent. “Remus.” you smiled and he took a step back, licking his lips and smiling back.

He was attractive. You can give him that. He was wearing grey sweatpants, which he never wore and a red Gryffindor sweater that hung on his body just perfectly. His hair was for once messy and his eyes were not red as your brother’s but free- Yes, in one word...they were free.

“(y/n).” he said so lazily, rolling it off his tongue after letting it sit there for a taste.

“You’re high.” you smiled cheekly and crossed your arms over your chest.

“And you’re cute.” he blurted out but continued to smile. Surprised, the smile on your cheeks disappeared and you felt an enormous amount of heat reach your cheeks. He took a step forward, stretching his long arm until his palm was against the wall. Excatly then you realized your back was against the cold white wall. “Really cute.” he continued to speak slowly, careful not to sound tongue-tied.

“Remus- uhm.” you tried to speak but as soon as you looked up at those eyes, your stomach turned into a knot and your heart jumped to your throat. He was so attractive- his look was provocative, his smirk erroticaly dangerous.

“Yes?” he tilted his head to the side, pretending to be confused when knowing just how much he flustered you.

“I- I-” you stuttered as he kept coming close, his elbow resting where his palm did, his nose only a milimeter away, his breathing in sync with yours. His lips were so close to yours and they were pulling you closer- like a magnet you felt the pull on your lips and just before your upped lip could touch his, you heard a clattering sound from afar, sobering you up and making you pull away. “I gotta go.” you said, looking up at his grinning face and slipping out of his hold.

Your cheeks were so hot at the moment that the sweater felt like an oven.

“Wait!” you heard him shout, causing you to stop in your tracks and turn around.

He was shirtliess.

Why in hell was he shirtless?

“Take it.” he said, offering you his sweater.

“Remus, I have a sweater.” you said, trying to keep your eyes away from his abs.

How in hell can a man, who does nothing but seat behind books have such chiseled abs?

“I want you to have my sweater.” he said and at this point you could hear his words tripping over one another.

“Why?” you asked, smiling at him- a bit confused a bit amused.

He was close to you again, his chest against yours with only a ball of his sweater between the two of you.

‘Merlin he smells good.’ - you heard yourself in your own head, taking a deep breath of his scent into your nostrills.

“Because...” he looked down at his sweater, turning it in his hand. “I want you to look cute in my sweater.”

“You want me to look cute in your sweater?” you quirked an eyebrow.

He shook his head, narrowing his eyes and smirking again. “I want to see you in my sweater.” he said firmly and determined.

“You’re high-” you tried to brush it off but his hand went up to your cheek, brushing away the fallen strand of your braid. You kept looking up at him with wide, innocent eyes and that just caused him to chuckle.

“I’m high but at least I know what I want.” his voice got deep, husky and seductive. “And I’ve got my eyes on it for quite some time now.” he leaned forward. forcing the sweater in your hands and causing you to grab it with clenched fingers. “I want to see you in my sweater.” he growled, his eyes blazing into yours until he pulled away and started walking to his house, leaving you speechless and out of your mind.

---

You got to your dorm with his sweater in your hands and mind stuck somewhere between what the fuck just happened and Remus’ abs.

So many questions filled your head, so many pictures you have never thought until now and you were still like a boiling tomato. You walked to your bed and sat on it. His red Gryffindor sweater was in your lap and your eyes fixated on it. You got up, sat back down, got back up, looked on the sweater, thought of his abs, sat back down and laid on your back.

“What the fuck?” you mumbled to yourself, smelling his scent come off his sweater. You turned your head to the side and saw it laying there, such an innocent object yet filled with so much... thoughts.

Of course, you always had liked Remus since he seemed to be the most normal out of all four of them. He dated a girl or two but it never lasted. He used to be lanky boy with tidy hair, always smiling or with his nose buried in a book. He was the responsible one, he was the no trouble one- so who the hell was the person you just bumped into in the corridor because it definetly wasn’t the Remus you knew?

You kept smelling his scent- his wonderful masculine scent and it just drove you insane. You grabbed the sweater and threw it in your warderobe.

You have to write an essay for your brother. You have to write an essay for his best best best best best friend in the world, your idiotic brother.

---

You stood at the top of the stairs and just kept watching down. ‘What if Remus is in there? - Why should you care?- You shouldn’t. He probably does not remember. He was high on his ass.’

You took a few steps than stopped.

‘But doesn’t he wonder why he was shirtless? - He could remember. It’s not like the cannabis plant can take away your memory. Its main psychoactive ingredient, THC, stimulates the part of your brain that responds to pleasure, like food and sex. That unleashes a chemical called dopamine, which gives you a euphoric, relaxed feeling.’

‘Yes. He was relaxed. He was chill. He was - fuck, he can remember. ‘

You turned around and went a step down, then stopped again.

‘You know what? No.’ - you told yourself and turned back around. ‘I’m a chill person. I’m relaxed. I can play just as dirty as he can.’ you then turned back around went up to your dorm, took off your sweater and dragged his from your own warderobe. You put it on, letting his strong scent wash all over you and cause goosebumps to appear on your skin. Warmth washed your body like a hot shower and you felt a smile form on your lips.

Looking at the mirror and seeing your naive smile looking back at you, you sobered your infatuated expression and proudly walked to the Gryffindor tower. Your brother already sent you the password this morning so it was easy getting in.

You didn’t even try to think, only knocked twice as you always did and barged in.

All heads popped up and you tried to ignore all three of them, focusing on your brother and making your way towards him.

A big bright smile appeared on his lips and he jumped off the bed. “Oh Merlin!” He kept jumping on his toes excitedly, taking the papers from your hands. “It looks so beautiful and so pure.” he kept jumping to his desk and put in in a drawer. “You deserve a hug, my dear sister.”

“Sirius.” you put your hand up as he tried to approach you. “I will kick you if you try.”

“Ah, come on. Sibling love.” he opened his arms again but you continued to narrow your eyes.

“I will kick you, Sirius Orion Black and you will not be able to get up.” you warned and he laughed.

He turned to the others and pointed his finger at one of them. “She’s right. That happened already once. “ you followed the direction of his finger and locked your eyes with his emerald ones.

Sirius voice became part of the background and all you could see was his seductive eyes, watching you with a playful curve on his lips. You crossed your arms over your chest, leaning back and raising an eyebrow, accepting his daring challange.

He was surprised to say the least. The corner of his mouth draw closer to his cheek and a dimple formed on the side of it. He locked his fingers together and put his hands behind his head with his elbows pointing out. The hem of his shirt exposed his light skin, the biceps tensing and his shirt outlining his chest.

You lost because you felt your whole body collapse from the sight. It was so innocent but so cruel.

You turned your head to the side, seeing James saying something and when you unmuted the background you heard him arguing with Sirius.

“It is unfair.”

“Life is unfair.”

“She’s a Ravenclaw and those spit on a paper and BAM! Essay!”

“She’s a gift.” Sirius turned to you with a prideful look in his eyes, smiling girlishly.

“And you’re a pain in my arse.” you snarled, letting all four boys laugh. “You owe me, brother. “

“I really do not have talent for school but if you ever need a partner in crime, you can always give me a bell.” he winked, walking towards you and rufflinf your braid.

“Ger’ off!” you pushed his arm away. “Twat.”

He turned his head to laugh at you but his eyes directed themselves on your sweater. He pointed his finger on it and narrowed his eyes. “That’s not my sweater.” he said seriously. “And it’s not theirs either because I wrote their initials on it with black ink.”

You looked down on your sweater, innocently as you could.”Hmm...” you wondered. “Don’t know.” you looked up at him, smiling wickedly.

His face got extremely stern, humorless. “It’s a Gryffindor sweater, little sister.”

“So I’ve noticed.”

“Who is it?”

“None of your busniess.”

“None-” he scoffed. “NOne oF mY bUsinEsS.” he kept scoffing, shook and looking around.

Your eyes glanced at Remus and he kept grinning, clearly enjoying the current scene in front of him. He winked at you, you smiled and turned back to Sirius.

“I don’t go into your crazy business.”

“It’s different. Just tell me who it is. I won’t do-”

“Well, Sirius. You sort of left us so my business is clearly not to be shuffled by your long crooked nose especially when you get to call me only when you need something from me.” you snapped at him, leaving him speechless. “So yeah. It is none of your business.” and with that you left the dorm, feeling a pit eat your stomach.

‘I should have just told him it was Remus’ . What could he do about it, anyway? Stop being my brother? He stopped being that the moment he decided to leave and never come back.’

---

You felt the guilt eat you from the inside out. Of course, you and Sirius always poked each other but sometimes when he got under your skin, you spat out all the wrongs he ever done you.

But it was true. Deep down inside you, you felt abandoned by your older brother, who has always had the need to protect both you and Regulus but he left. He left and that was selfish of him.

“That was a bit harsh, what you said there.” someone snapped you out of your thoughts and before you could turn around, he was already next to you, smirking.

You quirked your lip and looked down on your book. “About his long crooked nose? He’s probably looking at the mirror as we speak.” you said and he laughed beside you.

“You know...” he put his head on his palm and smiled. “He did all morning.” he laughed and you joined him, giggling yourself and closing your book.

“So what are you doing here?” you asked, placing your hands on the book in front.

He looked down on them, seeing the sleeves of his sweater cover both of your palms, leaving only fingers curved in. He licked his lips, feeling such satisfaction of you in his oversized hoodie that he completely forgot on your question.

“You know, if I didn’t clean this Gryffindor sweater, Sirius would flip out on both of us?” he said and you raised an eyebrow, amused by his sudden nervous act.

“Why would he?”

“Because you’re his little sister.”

“And you’re his best friend.” you said, crossing your arms and leaning on your chair. “Which I have always wondered how could someone as smart as you be with someone as idiotic as my brother?”

He mirrored your position and chuckled. “I’ve been wondering that same thing for all seven years but then again, when I look at your brother, I know that I can trust him.” he put his arms on his knees, crossing them and leaning forward to you.

You tilted your head to the side and uncrossed your arms. “As if you have something to hide...” you narrowed your eyes, mirroring his position. “Do you, Remus John Lupin?”

“Well, if you must know I’m a werewolf and we all go running through the woods on a full moon.” he said jokingly and you laughed.

“Yeah right.” you leaned back.

“It’s true. James is a stag, Peter is a mouse and Sirius is-”

“An ass.”

“Unfortunately a dog.”

“Well, we all can’t get everything, can we?”

“No.” he laughed, draping one hand over the chair and leaning on the side. His eyes locked on yours, digging deep inside with his green diamonds... smiling stealthily. “No, we can’t.”

You felt bubbling in your stomach, your cheeks getting red due to his blazing gaze and your whole throat go sore. “Uhm-” you cleared your throat, looking away shly then locking back your eyes with his, this time bravely. “You still didn’t answer my question.”

“Which one?”

“What are you doing here?”

“Oh.” he chuckled, leaning forward again so his eyes could dig into yours and his hands took a hold of your own. His fingers slid under the sleeves and his thumbs carrased the back of your hands.

You felt your fingers tangle with his long ones and the heat on your cheeks rise as he pulled you close. “So?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” he answered, getting closer until his nose brushed against yours.

It was.

“No.” you smirked and he raised an eyebrow. “I think I’ll need more clues.” your fingers untangled from his and your arms slid up his thighs, triggering him to crash his lips into yours and pull you into his lap. His hands went to your hips as yours went up to his hair, deepening the kiss and feeling him smile.

You pulled away, looking at his hungry eyes. “What?”

“That a good clue for you?” he stretched a grin on his face and you rolled your eyes, unable to stop smiling.

“That was a clue?” you teased and he chuckled.

“Not good enough?” he started to kiss your neck and you felt your head fall back. You felt your fingers cramp from tugging his shirt so strongly, barely breathing but it wasn’t until you heard something fall among the shelves that caught both of your attention.

Both of you turned your head to the source, both dazed and confused.

“James?” you heard Remus in front of you.

“Moony- what the fuck?”

“Umm...” you heard Remus humm and looking up at you.

“Don’t look at me.” you laughed and his eyes narrowed.

“Pads’ sister? Really? From all the girls, you had to chose your best friend’s sister?” James started to scold him, leaving you to hold your laugh.

“Not my fault I am irresistable.” you got up from his lap and started grabbing your books.

“I’m telling Padfoot.” said James, making Remus stand up and point his finger at James.

“You try that and I’ll kill you.”

“Not if Pads kills your first.” James grinned, backing away and running out of the library.

Remus tried to go after him but you took him by the arm and pulled him back. He turned to you as if ‘what the hell are you doing?’ but honestly, you didn’t care. “Let him go.”

“I’ll be dead.”

“James won’t say a thing.”

“You clearly don’t know James.”

“Probably but it’s not like this should be a secret- should it be?” you asked and he smiled, wrapping his arms around you.

“I don’t know. I kind of like this.” he said, making you relax at the sound of his sincere voice.

“You do?” you asked, clearly doubting his words, no matter how sincere they sounded.

“Don’t you?”

“You keep answering my questions with questions.” you stated and he laughed.

“Well, don’t you?”

“I do.”

“Well, then so do I.”

“And Sirius?”

“I think Sirius would-”

“IT WAS YOUR SWEATER!” you heard a shout from the shelves and both of your turned to see Sirius standing there with wide, shocked eyes.

“Speaking of the Devil.” you rolled your eyes. “Guess, I really was wrong about James.”

“And I was right... clearly.”

“YOU CLEANED THE INK?!” he continued to shout, pointing his finger at Remus. “IT WAS SUPPOSED TO MAKE US MATCH!!”

“And here you were worried about him being mad about you and me snogging in the library.” you smiled, leaving Remus chuckling.

“Wait for it.”

“AND FROM ALL THE BOYS YOU DECIDED TO TAKE MY BOY?”

“You’re mad at me?!” you perplexed, looking at your brother with wide eyes and hearing Remus laugh beside you.

“BLOODY HELL I AM!” he started pointing his finger at you. “And my nose is not CROOKED!”

“I think it’s a little crooked.” you started to tease.

“If I look closely, you might be right.” Remus joined you.

Sirius gasped and took a hold of his nose. “You both deserve each other.” he stormed out of the room, leaving both of you laughing a few moments before returning back and taking a look at the two of you, smiling kindly. “I’m happy for both of you, just so you know.”

You smiled at your brother, feeling Remus’ hand on your back as he pulled you close and look down on you. “ I’m happy too.”

#remus l upin #remus lupin imagine #remus lupin x reader #remus #remus lupin #sirius black imagine #sirius #sirius black #jamesp otter imagine #james potter imagine #james potter #james #marauders #marauder #marauders x reader #marauders imagine #marauders fanfiction #marauders fic #hp marauders

358 notes · View notes

and-damntheconsequences · 4 years

Text

Does anyone else ever wonder what the Dochraid was up to? Like I think we see her twice that I can remember — when Morgana needs her help to bring Lancelot back as a shade and when Merlin asks her about the Tiene Diaga to save Gwen — but like she's just never really mentioned outside of that?

I mean, is she even human?? That's literally never addressed? She says she's a creature of old magic and can't be killed (except by Excalibur) but Morgana says she can't either so that's not saying much. But she's old. Like hella old. Possibly immortal until Merlin shows up. She's lived long enough for skin to grow over her eyes and I'm pretty sure most humans I've met haven't done that. I don't know if that's an added special bonus for high priestess-ery???? But also she knows more than the high priestesses and " the earth speaks to" her so is she one step up? Demi-goddess? Super-High priestess?

Also what did she DO in a day?? She doesn't appear to ever leave her little cave thing? Does she eat, or drink, or sleep? Or is she like just spending eternity bonding with the earth and slowly decomposing into moss (the dream honestly). Does she have hobbies? Does she go out every morning and go foraging for mushrooms to make like a Really Good Soup that's been perfected over literally 1000 years.

Can she see everything in Camelot... because she seems to know what's up when Merlin asks about Gwen?? Is the entire series some reality show to her up until Morgana turns up and she becomes a Guest Star in her favourite TV series? And then shortly after the prophecy dude Morgana doesn't like just turns up and stabs her because she wasn't being very helpful. That's harsh.

Also for someone who knows who Emrys is, and therefore presumably knows that he's the most powerful sorceror ever... she's VERY quick to wanna throw hands. Like "are you challenging me, Emrys" and deliberately avoiding questions... like babe, you WILL die if he goes full bamf mode on you, he's literally magic itself and you don't look like you could walk down a flight of stairs without falling dead on the spot. But she wants to fight him anyway? Just for fun?

I just have so many questions.

I'd like to personally HC that she can't see Camelot (bc if she could she wouldn't be SO surprised at the dragon-breath sword) and has moderately basic magic. Literally all she has going for her is good memory of magic times and mushroom soup that is Just So Healthy its been powering her through the last several centuries. The only reason she knew about Gwen being enchanted is because after 4x9, Morgana felt sorry for her being a little old lady by herself and started sending her braille letters to update her on life (via the crow/raven that the Dochraid seems to just Have). For Morgana it was also free therapy. She learned braille especially for it.

#please suggest cryptids for me to ship the Dochraid with #I Just Feel She Deserves Love #merlin #merlin emrys #bbcmerlin #bbc merlin #merlin bbc #emrys #morgana pendragon

91 notes · View notes

ai-katsuu · 4 years

Text

Hans and Briar Rose (1/1)

story is made thanks to @oceanspray5 and @hanadoesstuffbadly <3 i wanted to write a bit about them, specifically after they break their curses. to read about what happened previously see their backstory

-------

“Are you ready?”

Hans looked at the beautiful princess beside him. The small holes of sun rays hitting her face as the wall of bushes blocks her last path.

Briar Rose nodded firmly, “I’m ready.”

Hans took her hand and gently squeezed it. They both stepped forward and made their way through the bushes, outside the forest.

Briar held her hand up to cover her face as fresh sunshine shone. Once her eyes had adjusted to the light she took in the sight. Beautiful green mountains with snowy white tips, grass so much greener than the grey ones in her forest, flowers that never bloomed back there, and a gentle breeze that lifted her braid midair. Briar let out a small gasp, which Hans noticed right away.

“I understand it’s been awhile, and it might be a little scary but-“

“AHHH!” she lifted her arms and screamed out of joy.

Adrenaline completely took over her body. She ran barefooted across the cool grass, she did cartwheels near the lake, just in pure bliss that she was finally free.

“Briar please, your dress-! And the river, you might fall!” Hans said with a light red face, unsure where to look as his gaze went back and forth checking on her to make sure she didn’t fall doing her cartwheels.

Briar tumbled on the grass, laughing and giggling to herself as she sat up. She tried her best to fix her hair but it was practically useless by then.

Finally, Hans caught up to her. “Briar...please..” he said trying to catch his breath, “I’m very happy as well but-“

“Oh Hans!” she suddenly jumped up and embraced him, tackling him down on the grass. Surprised by the sudden action, Hans could only widen his eyes, flustered, unsure where to put his hands.

“I can’t believe it really worked! Thank you so much, I don’t even know what I could do to thank you!” she smiled down at him. As much time they spent together in the woods, she still managed to make him downright melt at the sight of her smile.

He laughed a bit, “You sort of just broke my curse so we’re kinda good.”

Briar giggled and placed a quick kiss on his forehead before running back around the field. Hans sat himself up as he smiled at her, his hand touching his forehead. Briar continued to explore the outside world while Hans followed her as she sprinted through the fields. She picked several flowers, swung around fruit trees, and even almost jumped in the lake before Hans just barely managed to stop her.

When she had finally calmed down the pair had found a small shaded area where Hans could cook them a quick lunch. Lying down on her stomach, resting her head on her hands, Briar swung her legs up and down as she watched Hans cook, eagerly awaiting the food in the pot. (Which Hans became used to at this point but he found it adorable.)

“Here you are,” he handed her a bowl of mushroom soup. “To your first meal outside of the forest!” he exclaimed.

Briar giggled and took a sip of the meal. “Mmm, oh Hans, amazing as always!” she closed her eyes and savored the taste of a warm meal. Hans merely smiled, the usual pride in his chest whenever she ate his cooking.

It’s like what his father used to say, ‘The secret in becoming a good chef is to meet a woman that will make you want to give all the food you make to her.’

Content with the results, he leaned back on the tree as he took a bite of his own meal. “So Bry, where are you going now?” Hans asked her.

She suddenly stopped eating and looked up as in thought, “I..I haven’t really thought about that.” she said in realization.

“If you want!” Hans spoke soon after, “You can join the rest of the group back in the White Castle! That’s where they mostly hang out and they’d be happy to have you.”

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand out of habit, “You think so?”

Hans nodded, “I’d especially love to meet Gretel at least. Oh and they don’t even know my curse is broken, you should definitely be there for that.” he laughed.

“Mm..yeah..” she looked sideways and took another bite of her food.

Hans noticed her change in demeanor, “Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded, “Yeah it’s just..I’m a little scared,” she admitted, “I’m sure they’re all lovely people but I don’t wanna make a fool of myself. I know you’ve told me all about them but I just wanna make a good first impression.”

“Hey, hey,” Hans looked at her, “You have nothing to worry about, I of all people know you have a good heart. And although it takes a few years off my life to see it, you’re very spontaneous and active. You don’t have to worry about acting all royal there, being yourself is the best thing you could do.” he assured her.

Briar looked at him for a bit before breaking into a smile and stirring her soup, “Thanks, Hans.” They finished up their lunch and made their way back to King White’s castle.

Hans looked at the large gates and thought for a bit. It would probably be too much to enter through the main gates, it would be better if they used the basement entrance, otherwise known as the triplets workshop.

He opened the door, relieved that they had left it unlocked. “Wow, it’s really dark, can you see anything?” Briar moved around.

“I don’t know, but be careful, the triplets have a lot of stuff here. Let me get the light switch.” he tried navigating his way through the room, careful not to bump or trip on anything.

“Oh!” she lightly yelped as she stepped on something.

“You okay?” Hans whipped his head around and rushed to her side.

“Yeah yeah,” she stood on one foot as her hand held her other. Hans steadied her balance. “I just stepped on something sharp, I should really get some shoes after thi-”

Flick

For the second time that day Briar’s eyes had to adjust to the changing light. Once her vision had cleared she saw several individuals sitting on chairs and couches on the far end of the room, all eyes staring at them. They seemed to have been in the middle of a snack meeting as there was food around the table.

“Oh-uh” Hans stood up, suddenly unsure what to say.

“He brought the girl home, pay up.” Merlin nudged Arthur to which he groaned and gave him another bag of Dog Food.

“Wait, you guys aren’t surprised? I’m human again!” he moved his hands up and down.

“You snuck out of the castle almost every day with a basket of food that was way too much for even you to eat. It was kind of obvious.” Jack traced the rim of his teacup with his pinky.

“Yeah, you would always have this stupid smile on your face while cooking.” Goldie laughed.

“W-what smile? I don’t smile!” he said stuttering and looking back and forth between them and Briar, clearly embarrassed.

“Don’t believe them, I wasn’t excited to see you. No I mean I was excited to see you but I never smiled while cooking, I mean who does that?” he rambled on.

“Urgh stop, you’re scaring her.” Gretel rolled her eyes and smiled. She was the first one to walk over and both took Briar’s hands with her own.

“Hi, I’m-”

“Gretel, right?” Briar shyly smiled, “Hans told me so much about his beloved sister.”

Gretel looked taken aback and looked at her brother, “Beloved?”

Hans frowned and averted gaze, “What..I don’t know what she’s talking about..” he mumbled.

“Aww you do love me!” she beamed and ran towards her brother, head locking him like she used to do when they were kids.

“Ow! Gret stop, I hate it when you do this!”

“Oh don’t be such a weakling.”

“I am not!”

While the twins were busy wrestling on the far end of the room, Snow, Audrey, and Goldie got out of their seats and made their way towards the seemingly dainty girl.

“You’re so pretty!”

“Oh, thank you, I-”

“What’s your name?”

“Uhm..Briar Rose,”

“No way I’ve heard about you so much! Where have you been this whole time?”

At Goldie's question, Hans poked his head up and pushed his sister off him (resulting in a small ‘ow’ from her) he quickly went to her side, putting his hands on her arms as he spoke to the girls, “You guys don’t have to ask. Bry is a lovely person, that’s all you need to know.”

“Aww gross, you two have nicknames.” Peter Pan jokingly said while smirking.

“Hypocrite,” Kio mumbled before throwing a bag of Dog Food at his face.

“Snow White?” Hans called her, “do you think you girls could show Briar around the castle? Get to know her a bit.”

Snow smiled, “Of course. C’mon Briar, there’s this really cool room we have I wanna show you!” she eagerly pulled her along.

“Oh, alright,” she said, smiling a bit. Once the girls left the room Hans sat down with his friends, clearly exhausted.

“Alright, you did it!” Merlin threw him a bag of Dog Food, to which Hans gratefully accepted.

“Looks like you’re the last one, sword boy.” Jack looked in Arthur’s direction.

“Watch it, blondie.”

“Are you really not going to tell us where she’s from though?” Noki asked.

“It’s not really my story to tell,” he told them.

“Well we’re very happy for you Hans!” Pino grinned and handed him a glass. “Looks like your cooking finally made its way to a woman's heart!”

Meanwhile Snow had brought the girls to the courtyard for some fresh air. “So what do you do for fun Briar?” Goldie asked.

“Oh! Well…” she thought about making a good first impression by saying something elegant like her parents had taught her, but after what she’s been through with Hans she decided she no longer needed to do that. “I like to sword-fight!” she said.

“No way really? Why don’t you show us? I’ll go against you!” Audrey beamed.

She stretched her arm towards the fountain and the water came flowing to her hand, forming what looked like to be a thin sword. “I promise I won’t use any of my powers aside from this.”

Briar, amazed by the magic, got excited and rapidly nodded her head. “Yeah, sure!”

Audrey had a lot of experience using her magic, her water made it easy to capture her enemies, and thus her battles ended quickly. But aside from her sword, she wasn’t supposed to use any magic, which unfortunately also meant that she didn’t have enough stamina to last her a full on sword fight.

Panting as she held the fountain for support, she breathed out, “H-How..how are you not even sweating?” she looked at Briar.

“C’mon, you can still last!” she shouted encouragingly.

“Yeah no I really can’t…” she whispered tiredly.

“What’s going on here?” the F7 and Peter walked in the courtyard.

“You,” Audrey pointed her sword at Hans, then at Briar, “Your woman is crazy athletic, she’s not even tired.” Audrey breathed out.

“Or you just have really bad stamina without your powers,” Peter flew and hovered above her. “you look like you're dying.”

“Shut up, you're next.”

“I have to say,” Gretel walked up to her brother, “I’m a little surprised she broke your curse, she’s so...different from you.”

Hans laughed as he gently pushed her. “Indeed she is.”

#red shoes and the 7 dwarfs #red shoes and the seven dwarfs #briar rose #briar x hans #red shoes movie #red shoes #prince hans #hansel and gretel #red shoes hans

33 notes · View notes

tempportal · 4 years

Text

mun things / share your self-care

favorite comfort food: macaroni and cheese!! or anything with mushrooms (the best is obviously grilled chicken smothered in portobello mushrooms, but a close second is potato and mushroom soup) favorite hot drink: coffee favorite relaxing activity: a day out in the woods, under the trees and out in the sun!! failing that, a hot shower, a good book, a true crime documentary, or a challenging puzzle/logic game! favorite book: Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Seanz favorite calming scent: earthy scents!! wood smoke, pine trees, cedarwood, sage, anything like that favorite uplifting song: It Only Gets Better by WILD favorite white noise: the sounds of the forest - birds singing, and the wind rustling through the trees - but i’d never say no to a nice, cozy thunderstorm or a howling snowfall, either! favorite chill-out TV show: BBC Merlin!! but when that’s not on the table, my go-to fallback is The Great British Bake-Off (yes i’m That Bitch who likes garbage reality TV. what of it)

tagged by: @nvmbcrtwo (thank you! 💙)

tagging: @theseancekid @13years @theirsorrows @rumorsabound @conjuredead @mstinteresting @oncegoldenn @coffeeislaw @immortalled @nirgama and, of course, anyone else who would like to do it!! just swipe it and say i tagged you

#tag game #i don't usually do mun stuff on here but i have been tagging poor bonbon INCESSANTLY for the last two weeks lmfao #the LEAST i can do is respond to this one lol

7 notes · View notes

ironemrys · 5 years

Text

The Last Stand

Pairing: OC x Peter Parker (kinda), Mild Tony x Stephen (probably)

Word Count: 6.3k (wow can you believe? I haven’t written sh*t for three years and still this number appeared)

Tags: (do I have to do tags? okay) #OC x Peter Parker, #sort of, #Peter Parker, #Tony Stark, #Stephen Strange, #their surnames are not mentioned since this is like old school medieval long long ago and shit, #loosely based on Merlin, #and some others like Lord of the Rings, #if you’re into that, #I don’t know what else to tag, #how do these tags even work, #I was inspired, #Merlin-ish AU, #Alternate Universe

A/N: okay, obviously, this will be the first time ever that I’m going to post a fic here. And honestly, I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, I don’t even know what even this story is about. I just got a lot of ideas and they poured out all at the same time so here it is. It’s not the best but eh, worth a shot.

Long ago, there were eight kingdoms that made up the earth. There was a kingdom for man, for beasts, for the holy saints and for those who lie in between. The Southern Kingdom; Haradren – home of the holy saints – came from a long lineage of elves. They were the most peaceful yet powerful of all the kingdoms for their people were blessed with the gift of magic.

But not all of them were peaceful.

Aeron; a wise but greedy Elven Sorcerer saw darker power in their gifts of magic. He began experimenting with means forbidden by their law and when confronted, Aeron and his followers; the Unholui, retaliated and waged a war among their brethren. The war between good elves and bad elves lasted for many years. In the midst of the war Aeron discovered that the magic the holy saints have can be harnessed and transformed into a darker form of magic and vice versa. With this knowledge, the population of the holy saints began to diminish as Aeron and the Unholui stripped the saints of their power and claimed it as their own.

Seeing how their kind was slowly dying and falling into the hands of the Unholui, the saints turned to the other kingdoms to help fight their losing battle. But it was futile. The power of the Unholui had grown and the eight kingdoms were reduced to four.

King Anthony of the Northern Kingdom of men prayed to many gods for help and by miracle and conviction, his prayers were answered. The gods of old sent a messenger to the king in a dream and advised him to create a weapon. This weapon would be able to bring down Aeron and the Unholui and would bring peace back into the lands.

The king immediately set to work once he woke up and followed what the gods had told him. Time passed and the weapon was complete. The king then wore it to battle and when he struck down on the ground the Unholui were powerless against it. The Great War ended with Aeron defeated and the Unholui scattered. Some say they deteriorated once Aeron fell and others say they’re in hiding, too weak to carry on without their master.

The Four Kingdoms were now back on their feet and at peace.

But how long will that peace last?

Fifteen years later…

“Father?” A young girl walked inside a small hut. Setting her basket of vegetables on the dining table, she made her way to the fireplace and kneeled in front of the hearth to ignite a flame and start cooking for supper.

“Im nall-bo I lach” she muttered and her usually dark colored eyes turned a bright shade of crimson. Flames appeared on the firewood as a small smile slowly formed on the girl’s face.

“Kenna.” A sharp voice caught her attention and she turned around to face her father. He looked worn out, of course he was; he was in their village all day, curing the people from a sickness brought by the winter.

“I told you not to use your powers when not necessary.” Her father warned and Kenna bowed low.

“It was just to make things a little easier.” She replied and glanced at the fire.

“I know. But your power is a rare gift Kenna. Right after the war, the holy saints were stripped off their magic by the Unholui, and when the Northern King offered to revive them of their magic using one of the gods’ gems from the weapon, they refused. That was the end of magic for all they know. Those who survived the war now live in fear that if magic is present, history will repeat itself.” Kenna knew about this story, more so than others, the minute she started showing signs of possessing the gift at a very young age, her father and mother sat her down and told her the danger that comes with her ability.

After the war the rest of the holy saints decided to remain stripped off their power, fearing what would happen if somebody once again used it for unholy means. They isolated themselves in the mountains in self proclaimed exile. Of course their lineage didn’t end there, the next generations were born but since they were now mortals, there was no one born of magic anymore and they intended to keep it that way.

The holy saints became a small tribe of farmers, fishermen and blacksmiths. They now live in what was once the eighth kingdom, between the mountains and rivers, far away from the rest of the world.

“Well something smells delicious!” A cheery voice came to the door and Kenna turned around with a smile and arms opened wide to greet her mother who just walked in.

“Welcome home mother. I made mushroom soup for us this evening. I managed to pick some up at the forest near the river.” Kenna smiled and her mother gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“Mushroom! Excellent! I’m really hungry there’s so much work that had to be done at the shop today.”

“The old man Bill can no longer carry out his tasks the way he used to, I presume.” Kenna’s father joked and his wife let out a chuckle.

“Oh hush, Gideon, Bill may be old but he is still a member of the council.”

“Yes but my dear Eden, you and I both know that the council today is no more than a pack of old wise men.“ Gideon sighed as he helped Kenna with the table setting.

“Still they are wise. And they were once great and holy saints.” Eden reminded.

“Speaking of holy saints why don’t you tell your mother what you’ve been up to before she arrived?” Gideon said and both adults turned to Kenna.

“What? I was making supper.” She smiled and her mother raised an eyebrow.

“Did you use magic again Kenna?” Of course, her mother could detect a lie even if she was a hundred miles out. The gloomy silence that fell on Kenna’s face was answer enough and so Eden sighed.

“My dear, you know we’re so very proud of you and we’re happy that you were born with such an incredible gift. But this gift, most of the people see as a curse. You have to be careful.”

“I know, mother.” Kenna replied and she sat down the table to join them for supper.

“It’s not a bad thing having these gifts; we just have to be very careful in how we use them.” Eden smiled and her sky colored eyes turned a light shade of crimson and the burning firewood at the hearth died down a little.

“HONESTLY.” Gideon shook his head but there was a proud little smile present on his lips and Kenna grinned gladly at the sight.

If only she knew that that would be their last time together as a happy family, she wouldn’t have gone to sleep.

“Kenna!” a hushed but urgent tone woke Kenna up from her sleep. She blinked and took in her surroundings, she was in her bedroom, the light of the candle on her bedside table was almost dying but it was enough to shine a light on her mother’s face.

“Kenna! We need to go!” Eden said and frantically pulled Kenna up and about. She grabbed a pack and started to stuff Kenna’s clothes in it, she grabbed the now distressed youth and they ran downstairs.

“What’s going on?” Kenna finally asked once they were out of the house. She was scared and panicked, especially when she smelled smoke and saw flames rise in the air and surround their village.

“Where’s father?!” She asked again as they ran.

“He’s at the shop helping others to escape.” Eden replied.

“Escape? Escape from what?” Kenna didn’t get to hear an answer when she heard the screaming of men, women and children, all of them were coming from the village.

“Hurry child!” Eden urged her on and they ran. They arrived at the village in flames and the sight was something Kenna wished she didn’t see. There were bodies everywhere, some were burnt and some were violently wounded by some kind of weapon. Others were being cradled by their loved ones as they cried and looked around for help.

“Gideon!” Her mother’s cry broke her out of her thoughts and she turned to the direction she was looking at. Her father, standing with some of the men and remaining council members of the village was holding a staff and he was protectively shielding the rest of them from something Kenna cannot quite clearly see.

Suddenly, a cold chill went up Kenna’s spine and she felt something heavy weighing her down. It was like the earth was draining her energy. She took sharp breaths at an attempt to normalize her state and when she looked up, she was mortified.

An army of dark cloaked men moved towards her father and the others. Gideon took a step forward and slammed the staff on the ground, emitting a white light. All of them were taken aback.

“Gideon! You have the gift?” A council man said in disbelief.

“Now is not the time to be surprised, Alastair.” Gideon said and his eyes were now a bright shade of crimson.

“Your powers are strong, holy saint.” One of the cloaked men said as they regained their composure.

“But I’m afraid that is not enough.” He added and with a spell created an unusually large ball of fire.

“Who… Who are they?” Kenna shook in fear and her mother faced her.

“Kenna. You must run.” Eden said and with wide eyes, Kenna turned to her mother.

“What? What are you saying?”

“I know you can feel their dark power Kenna, I can feel it too, we cannot stop them with the way we are. All we can do is buy us some time.” Kenna couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her mother is asking her to leave them? Why? And how could she ask such a thing?

“Kenna you must go.”

“No! I can help father! I can help them!” She cried but her mother wouldn’t have it.

“The only way you can help us right now is by being safe! If they kill us all here no one will be able to warn the other kingdoms of this massacre. You must go my child!” Eden pushed Kenna away and towards the other side of the village.

“Where will I go?” Kenna asked through her tears. She didn’t want to leave but her mother is right. She is not yet strong enough to handle such a dark and immense energy that is coming from the cloaked men.

“To Forodren, find Stephen, he will help you.” Eden said and gave her daughter one last kiss goodbye on the forehead before letting her go and running to the line of fire.

Kenna turned away still overcome by grief and ran to the safety of the forest. She could still hear the screams of the children and women as she made her way through, and then in a fleeting moment, she felt life come out of her. It wasn’t her life that she felt for she was still alive, but she was down on her knees in the middle of a clearing and she could feel that something inside her was stripped away. She knew what it was and her eyes turned crimson as she screamed in agony. Her parents were gone.

Travelling alone was a new thing for Kenna. She slept alone, hunted for food alone, walked alone, and cried alone. It took her hours before she moved from the spot where she felt her parents’ life disappear and after walking for a while she lost her energy and collapsed on the ground. It wasn’t until after two days when a deer started to chew at her hair that she woke up.

She didn’t move a muscle right away. She sat there crying, hunched and hugging her knees, trying to remember what her mother’s touch felt like before she sent her away. The only reason she started to move was that she remembered what she must do; go to Forodren and find Stephen, a long time friend of her parents.

And so, months after the attack at her village, she has made her way to the borders of the Northern Kingdom.

Kenna estimated a few more days walk until she reaches the lower town of the kingdom and the sky was getting darker by the second. She could continue on knowing she can very well protect herself but she was too tired and very famished. Besides, the borders of Forodren were home to the scattered beasts of every kind imaginable, she wouldn’t want to run into any of them. Some of them were not exactly friendly to men right after the war.

Kenna created a bonfire and started to cook with the herbs and mushrooms she picked along the way. She then took out a book in her pack and placed her hand upon it.

“Treneri-nin cin golodh.” The spell caused the book to reveal markings of an ancient making, they emitted a bright orange light and the book was opened.

Kenna began reading where she last left off, the book was given to her by her father and she used it to study incantations that would help her control her gifts at a young age. She didn’t realize her mother packed it for her on the night she escaped.

Night fell quickly and soon Kenna was in deep sleep.

“Kenna… Kenna…” a repetitive voice called out and Kenna opened her eyes. She was no longer in the forest of Forodren. She was in a field of tall grass, the sun shone brightly beyond the horizon and as Kenna shielded her eyes from the sun she saw a lonely figure standing a few feet away from her.

“Kenna.”

“Who are you?” She asked and the figure walked closer. It walked and stopped in front of Kenna who had tears in her eyes upon recognizing who it was.

“Father?” She said in disbelief. The figure smiled and stretched out his arms and she immediately sprinted towards him for a hug.

“I’m sorry father. I couldn’t save you. I couldn’t help you and mother.” Kenna cried loudly. All her grief and sorrow from the past months simultaneously enveloped her. But her father placed a soft hand on her head and kissed her hair.

“There is nothing to be sorry about my dear daughter. We did not pass from this world in vain. You are alive, and that is what matters. You have to become stronger Kenna, the enemies we have faced are nothing but a taste to what’s truly about to come. You must warn the remaining kingdoms. They need to be prepared.”

“If I reach the king surely his weapon from the gods could help bring down the men that attacked our village.” Kenna guaranteed.

“I’m afraid it won’t be that simple. Not this time.” Gideon said and this brought a fear in Kenna’s eyes.

“The enemy we faced was the Unholui.”

“But I thought… I thought they were long gone.” Kenna muttered in disbelief.

“Some said they were vanquished when Aeron passed but I’m afraid that was nothing but hearsay. The others survived the power of the King’s Weapon and they fled into hiding, and slowly they started regaining their powers over the past years. They scoured the earth to find the last of the holy saints, and when they found us…” Gideon stopped and removed his tunic to reveal a huge burn mark on his chest. Kenna gasped and looked away with tears in her eyes.

“They took your gift.” She said through gritted teeth after a moment of silence.

“They took everyone’s gift. The rest of the holy saints may not have such obvious gifts like your mother and I but inside them was a dormant power they didn’t bother to rekindle. The Unholui took them and became more powerful than ever before.” Gideon finished and placed both his hands on his daughter’s shoulders.

“You are the last of the holy saints Kenna. You must protect your gift with your life, if the Unholui found out one of us has escaped, they will not stop hunting you and they will kill you. Promise me, child… Promise you will keep yourself safe.” He said and Kenna nodded.

“It’s time for me to go. I must get back to your mother.” Gideon smiled which Kenna returned warily.

“Don’t worry Kenna, your mother and I are always with you. In here.” He pointed to her heart and then he was gone.

Kenna sat up from her sleep. She was back in the forest of Forodren.

Forodren was a powerful kingdom. Right after the war, the rest of the remaining kingdoms pledged their allegiance to the king. All was safe and the weapon used to defeat Aeron and the Unholui was sent back to the gods but the gems that hold the powers of the weapon were gifted to the remaining kingdoms.

Six gems, four kingdoms. Three of these gems remained in Forodren while the remaining three got one each. Once joined together and placed on the weapon of the gods, the gems can emit a powerful force of magic that can diminish any darkness that threatens the earth. After the Great War, the four kingdoms believed Aeron and his followers to be dead and so the gems became no more than a gifted relic, a reminder of the dark ages.

Today was especially a good day for the kingdom for it was that time of the year where they celebrate and remember the day they won the war. They called it The Great Victory. A weeklong festival was in the making and the kingdom had opened its doors for the rest of the land to come and visit.

King Anthony was in the throne room, asleep on a stack of papers piled on top of his table. His snore was cut short when Steve, his royal advisor, came running in.

“My liege!” Steve shouted and walked briskly towards the king’s table. The king looked up with a paper stuck on his sweaty forehead.

“What is it Steve?” He asked and abruptly removed the embarrassment off his face.

“Your son has gone missing. Again.” Steve answered and the king sighed.

“I’m sure he’s just with Harry. Don’t they always disappear at this time of the day?” The king asked and began rearranging the papers on his table.

“Yes. But sire, today is a particularly special day, and the prince should be in his chambers getting ready for the arrival of the other kingdoms.” Of course, his royal advisor was right, he wasn’t appointed in that position for nothing.

“Fine. Have Clint find him. It’s better to send that guy than the whole battalion.” The king said and Steve gave a low bow and left.

King Anthony stood up from his seat and looked out his window which had the perfect view of the kingdom. He could see everyone busying themselves with preparations but everyone was happy and that was all he ever wanted, for his people to be safe and happy.

The window took in his reflection and the king eyed the three pieces of gems on a round crest hanging on his neck and in front of his chest. The blue gem, the yellow gem and the green gem shone dimly and it slowly reminded the king of the Great War.

He shook his head and held on his left hand, the feeling of the weapon still embedded in his veins. But now is not that time to remember such a burden, now is the time for the Great Victory, the Great War was over, there is peace and he vows to keep it that way.

The king looked down at the castle gates just in time to see a man in hunting gear with a bow and arrow strapped behind his back, ride out towards the town to find his son.

Kenna walked in the gates of the lower town of Forodren. There were so many people present she didn’t know where to look for Stephen. She can’t even remember how the man looked. All she knows is that Stephen is a skilled healer just like her father.

“Hello! A lovely flower for the lovely lady!” A young boy walked up to her. He was carrying a basket of an assortment of flowers and he had this cheerful look on his face as he handed her a sunflower.

“Oh. Thank you but I don’t have any money for that.” Kenna replied politely.

“No need for money milady, the flower is free. One of the gifts King Anthony gives every festival.” The boy replied and handed the flower to Kenna once again and this time she took it with a smile. The boy then skipped away and started to hand out flowers to anyone that passes by. Kenna then noticed other children doing the same thing and that the adults were busy running about and putting up colorful decorations in everything they can get their hands on.

Kenna walked towards the center of the lower town and there she saw a great banner with the words: “The Great Victory” being put up by soldiers and helpers alike. She was too busy admiring the sights she didn’t notice where she was walking and bumped into a boy in a blue cloak.

“Oh. I’m sorry. I wasn’t looking.” She said and bowed.

“No. It’s okay. No harm done.” The boy replied and brought the hood of his cloak lower to his face and turned away. Kenna looked curiously at the boy but didn’t bother anymore when she heard a familiar name.

“Stephen! It’s a rare sight to see you out of your hole and here where the fun is starting.” A man with dark skin and short hair, wearing a dark blue and green robe called out. Kenna stretched her neck to see through the crowd and there in front of the man was another man, taller and more lean. He had dark hair with streaks of white on both sides and he was wearing a red cloak over a dark blue tunic.

“Yes Mordo, it is rare. Though it is also rare to see you here when you should be at the church, assisting, what was his name? Wong? With the preparations for the sermon this evening.” Stephen chided and Mordo gave a laugh and patted Stephen’s shoulder.

“You got me there Stephen. I’ll see you at the festival.” With that, Mordo left.

Kenna made her way through the bustling crowd and she followed Stephen into a house which she assumed was his home.

“Hello?” She asked as she walked in. The house was huge and it was full of books, bottles, herbs and liquids of different sorts. It reminded Kenna of one of the rooms at their house where her father usually did his studying of medicine.

“Who are you?” A deep voice resonated from above and Kenna looked up to see Stephen floating. Yes, he was definitely floating. Kenna blinked twice to make sure and when she was sure that Stephen was floating in midair her mouth fell open.

“I’m… uh… I’m… I’m sorry, but you do realize you’re floating, right?” She asked and she actually thought herself to be stupid at her own question.

“Yes I am aware. And do you realize that it’s rude to enter people’s homes without knocking?” Stephen asked back and Kenna felt embarrassed.

“Sorry. I was just… I was looking for you, and I’ve traveled very far just to get here. I needed to find you immediately.” She said and Stephen finally went down to the ground. He removed the red cloak and hung it on a rack near the fireplace.

“Which brings us back to the question, who are you?” He asked as he turned to face her.

“I’m Kenna.” She answered and Stephen took a moment before registering the name.

“Kenna. Gideon and Eden’s daughter?” He asked and the smile on Kenna’s face was an enough answer for him.

“Why are you here? Did something happen?” Stephen asked and immediately, Kenna’s smile died down. She held on the strap of her pack tightly her knuckles started to turn white. She looked at Stephen, her eyes were brimming with tears and when she closed them to regain composure, a single drop fell.

“They’re gone.” Kenna choked out to the best of her ability and the look on Stephen’s face was a mixture of grief, pain and pity for the young girl in front of him.

“I… I don’t know what to say.” He finally answered and offered her a seat.

“It happened three and a half months ago…” She started and Stephen began to brew tea and he set a plate of bread for Kenna to eat while she continued on with her story.

“The Unholui? Are you sure about this?” Stephen asked and Kenna nodded.

“My father told me in a dream that it was them. That they were more powerful than before and that they wiped out all of the remaining holy saints in order to strip them of their gifts.” She replied and drank from the cup of water Stephen offered her after she cried again about her parents’ death.

“Not all of them. You made it out.” Stephen said.

“Yes.”

“You are now the last of your kind.” He added and she gave a sad nod.

“I must keep this information a secret. If the Unholui finds out that one holy saint still lives, they will come for me and kill me.” She replied. Stephen understood this and gave her a pat on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry. Forodren is the safest place for you to be. No harm will come to you here.” He assured her with a smile.

“You must be tired. I have a spare bed right next to my room upstairs.” Stephen offered and stood up.

“But what of the king? Shouldn’t we tell him about the Unholui?” Kenna asked as she grabbed her bag and walked after Stephen towards the stairs.

“We can tell the king later in the day. In the meantime, you should rest. Tonight, the start of The Great Victory Festival will commence. You’re going to need your strength for that.” Stephen smiled and escorted Kenna to her room.

“Thank you Stephen.” Kenna said as Stephen waited by her door.

”I need to ask one thing.” Stephen then said and of course, Kenna expected this. She was actually surprised Stephen didn’t ask about it in the middle of her story.

“I know Gideon and Eden and I know what they are capable of, they were the ones who taught me a little bit of magic. I just need to ask, do you also have the gift?” He wondered and Kenna gave him a nod.

“Yes.” Her eyes turned a bright shade of crimson and she held out her closed fist towards Stephen, once she opened it, a replica of the sunflower in her pack sprouted out of her palm.

“You really are Gideon and Eden’s daughter. Don’t worry Kenna, no one will know your secret but me. We can’t have the Unholui discovering what you can do.” Stephen said and Kenna nodded in acknowledgment

“Get some rest. I’ll wake you in a few hours.” With that, Stephen closed her door and left her to sleep.

“Peter Benjamin! Son of Anthony Edward! You better be ready before the festival or so help me I will tell your father to stop your combat lessons with the knights.” A tall and very beautiful woman with light golden hair shouted as she entered the royal chambers of the prince.

“I am! I am! I’m ready!” An exasperated young boy stumbled out behind his changing doors. His hair was disheveled but he was dressed for the upcoming occasion nonetheless.

The woman clicked her tongue and approached the boy with her long blue gown trailing behind her she then sat the boy down in front of a mirror and started to comb his hair properly.

“Honestly Peter, you know very well what this day is about, why do you make it so difficult?” She asked and placed a small crown on top of the prince’s head.

“I’m not making anything difficult, Pepper. I just wanted to have some fun before the rest of the royalties arrive. No one from the other kingdoms is my age except for the Western King; King T’Challa’s younger sister Shuri. But she won’t be coming due to a terrible cold. I’m gonna be stuck with the old kings for the rest of the night.” Peter answered and Pepper sighed. She knows the prince didn’t like to stay in one place and he only does so because he loves his father and wouldn’t do anything to disobey him. Clearly there was no rule that said he couldn’t go out and have some fun before the actual festival but there was a rule that he was supposed to be back before the afternoon strikes and since he lost track of time, Clint, one of the royal knights was sent to find him.

“Well you and Harry certainly had your fun, now it’s time for the “old kings” to have theirs.” Pepper smiled and Peter chuckled in return before making their way towards the banquet hall.

“My friends! Welcome!” King Anthony greeted guests left and right as they arrived in the hall. Everyone bowed in respect to the king and he smiled at them in return.

“King Anthony.” A younger king approached. He was wearing black and purple robes. An orange gem was hanging on his neck like a necklace. The younger king crossed his arms in front of his chest like an X as a form of respect and salute to King Anthony.

“King T’Challa. I told you to just call me Tony.” The king did the salute in return and then stretched out his hand after for a handshake. He gave the King of the West a firm tap on the shoulder as he welcomed him and ushered him to the banquet table.

“King T’Challa.” Peter greeted with the salute and the king reciprocated the gesture.

“I’m sorry my sister won’t be joining us this time. I fear her fever didn’t heal in time.” T’Challa said and Peter was saddened at the thought but he smiled nonetheless.

“I’m sure she will recover soon. In the meantime, please enjoy the festival.” Peter said politely when they heard trumpets by the door; a sign that another King has arrived.

“It’s Nicholas.” Tony grinned.

“I thought he said not to call him that.” T’Challa smiled and they turned toward the door. An older man with only one good eye stood in dark robes. A red gem was pinned on the left side of his robes. A woman with blood red hair stood next to him in a silver gown and right next to her was another woman clothed in the armor of the Eastern Kingdom.

“Nick.” T’Challa greeted and the other king gave the salute as a sign of respect before bowing towards Tony.

“I see the fun has started without me.” King Nicholas said and he laughed.

“I’m afraid it has! But don’t worry, we got all week for the fun I’m sure you won’t be missing.”

“Now all that is left is King Erik.” Steve then joined the kings at the table.

“Yes but you know how he is, stylishly late.” Maria; King Nicholas’ Captain of the Guard said as she drank a glass of wine.

“Well nothing ever changes. Will you please excuse me for a moment?” Tony then stood up and made his way towards a familiar face in the crowd. Peter followed his father’s movements, dreading the idea that he was left at the table with the “older kings”.

“Stephen!” Tony yelled as he made his way towards the Physician.

“My king.” Stephen bowed and Tony chuckled.

“I told you there’s no need for that.” He said and then looked behind Stephen to see a young girl.

“Who’s this?” He asked and the girl bowed.

“I am Kenna, your majesty.” She said and the king smiled in acknowledgement.

“Sire, I have a concern that I must discuss with you.” Stephen said and Tony turned to him. Stephen looked troubled and that was enough to catch the king’s attention.

“What seems to be the problem?” He asked and Stephen looked at Kenna before turning back to the king.

“The Unholui are alive.” With this, Tony’s world slowed down. This was something he didn’t think he would hear, especially today.

“What? What are you talking about?” Tony asked in disbelief.

“It is true sire .They attacked my village and killed everyone they laid their eyes on. They possessed horrible and haunting abilities. I was lucky I got away.” Kenna started and Tony looked at her. She didn’t seem to be lying and Stephen seemed to trust her. But how? How are the Unholui still alive? And why now have they started to make an appearance again?

“When was this?” Tony asked.

“Three and a half months ago.” Kenna answered and Tony paced back and forth.

“We must warn the other kingdoms. They need to be prepared in case of an – ” the trumpets sounded again and the King of the South along with his son and daughter came in the banquet hall.

“Sit with me by the table. I will need to hear your full story on this before I make my move.” Tony said and gestured Stephen and Kenna to follow him up front.

King Erik, his son Prince Pietro and his daughter Princess Wanda; bowed to the other kings in respect and as soon as a toast had been made for the festival, everyone was back to their own business.

Tony turned back to Stephen to continue their talk when King Erik proposed another toast.

“May I have our attention, please?” He asked and every chatter died down and they turned toward the Southern King.

“Many years ago, this land was saved under the clutches of a dark and powerful sorcerer. Thanks to my good friend King Anthony here, we were blessed with a weapon to destroy this darkness. But we have been deceived!” Erik started and the rest of crowd murmured in response. Tony and Stephen looked at each other and then Stephen looked to Kenna.

“The darkness is not defeated! It lives! And it continues to grow in power and corrupt all that is hopeful and good.” He continued.

“What kind of madness is this King Erik?” Nick asked.

“It is not madness my friend, it is the truth. This darkness only grows in secret and while you…” he pointed a finger at the other kings, the purple gem glowing dimly on his ring, “you sit here and celebrate a battle that you’ve won once and never thought to seek if the enemy really is vanquished.”

“But the enemy is vanquished! Aeron turned to dust the moment the weapon was used against him.” T’Challa replied.

“I am not talking about Aeron. I am talking about the Unholui.” At the mention of this Kenna’s eyes went wide and she turned in a state of panic towards Stephen who looked at her in return.

“They live! Their powers grow! They are becoming a force you wouldn’t even begin to believe to face.” Erik continued when Tony stood up from his seat.

“How do you know this?” He asked with a suspicious look towards the other king.

“I have seen. They have shown me.” King Erik smiled and the ring on his finger, the ring with the gem, turned black. A power so intense shot out of the gem and towards Tony and if Stephen hadn’t grabbed him and pulled him away he would’ve been hit.

Screams of panic and terror filled the banquet hall as the air began to pick up and destroy the place. Chairs and tables were overturned, the candles were blown out, the kings and their people looked in horror as King Erik started to rise above the ground. The prince and princess were then surrounded by their own knights. King Tony’s knights marched in the hall and started to fight with the Southern Knights and prevented them from hurting any civilians.

“SURRENDER TO THE POWER OF UNHOLUI OR PERISH.” King Erik said.

“Erik this is madness!” Nick shouted and the dark king laughed.

“Isn’t this what you just asked?” He taunted and directed his ring towards the Eastern King.

“Than hain” Kenna whispered behind a column in the banquet hall she dove behind earlier in order to avoid the first attack. The power of the ring was blocked and it disappeared. Erik was taken aback, as were the others.

“You cannot hurt the kings while they are wearing their gems.” Stephen then said but he knows it wasn’t the king’s gem that protected him.

“Then I’ll settle for anyone not wearing the gem!” Erik raged and the power of the black gem on his finger started to grow, Kenna could feel a large amount of dark magic coming from the maddened king.

She needed to stop this from getting worse and she needed to protect the people from any more harm. She looked up and saw the great chandelier hanging loosely above the oblivious king. Her eyes locked on the chandelier and as soon as her eyes turned crimson, the chandelier broke and fell.

“FATHER!” Prince Pietro yelled and ran towards their fallen king. The rest of their knights were down on the ground thanks to Forodren’s Knights and they held the princess captive.

“Stop this right now, Erik, you wouldn’t want another war to start.” Tony then said but Erik let out a dry chuckle before his blue eyes turned a dark shade of red.

“Oh but I do.” And with that, everyone from the Southern Kingdom had disappeared.

tagging: @silverofthunder you’re the only person who knows about this mess hahaha!

other notes: I used a sindarin translator for the spells and other stuff.

2 notes · View notes