#or that she should be remembered as shrewd but is actually remembered as simple

[duchessofferia]

A WOMAN WHO’S JUST IN HIS HEAD

“In death, Jane became the ultimate consort; unblemished (especially in the eyes of her capricious and tyrannical husband), ever young, and the mother of a surviving son. Instead of merely being the wife who ‘died’ and in recognition of her saint-like life — which went beyond the medieval ideal of saintly queenship — Jane should actually be remembered as the wife who was (effectively) canonised.” - Aidan Norrie

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Chapter 9 ~ Witch's House

"I found it, father!" Atreus whisper-yelled, kneeling as he took out his bow. The two adults hurried to his location. Kratos placed his hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

"Shoot when you're ready." he grumbled carefully. "Remember - Draw to your chest. A wild boar's hide is thick." the boy did as instructed and aimed flawlessly, only for the arrow to ricochet from its skin. "That was very good, Atreus!" the woman praised him. "But... I hit it, didn't I?" the boy was so confused, poor dear. "I did what you said and it looked like it bounced off. Could... The boar be magical?" "What do you think?" Kratos crouched in front if his son, testing his shrewdness. "It looked weirder than any boar I've ever seen..." the boy pointed out. "Let's go get it, then!" Kat jumped to her feet and tapped his shoulder. "Tag~!" she played along, running towards the boar. "Come on, child, let's catch our meal!" "H-Hey, wait for me!" the boy's eyes widened as he hurried after her. Kratos remained behind, shaking his head at the two and making sure nothing tries to chase after them. He couldn't believe their childishness, though he shouldn't have, one was an actual child, while the other always did everything in her power to combat his own grumpiness.

Though the fog was making the God feel uneasy, he continued sprinting after the two, calling out to his son - Atreus was able to shoot the boar, only for a lady, a witch, to yell at them for almost killing her friend. By the time Kratos arrived at the two, Katrina's hands were deep inside the boar's insides, bidding the woman's instructions. It came to the God, however, to carry the victim all the way through the gorgeous forest with the carmine-red leaves, to the witch's house that was surprisingly underneath a... A giant turtle tree?

Neither of the two Olympians should be surprised any longer, nothing ever made humanly sense after all. The witch used some kind of potions and powders on the boar, before telling the boy to go outside of the house and search for some plants. After a strong warning about the lack of welcoming manners that the Norse Gods have for outsiders, the witch asked for more ingredients, and it came to the Olympian to help the boy out. Katrina couldn't help but feel absolutely appalled that, despite her magic, she couldn't heal the boar - She was capable of healing any wound, so why not a magical boar's, then? Was it a curse? Or its magical properties? She couldn't tell, but she needed to find out fast, before something bad happens to them and she becomes powerless before their woes. Still, Katrina could only wonder how could this witch discern their identities with such ease... It was almost unnerving.

After the nameless witch drew a mark on the back of their neck, to keep their Godly aura hidden from the other enemies of the same status, she opened the door to an underground passage, through which they were to traverse, battling draugr and nightmares of all kinds, yet none stood a chance when facing them. She also offered them a magically enhanced Compass, to aid their journey. The magic of this world is so different from that from home. Though Kat was exceedingly intrigued and wished to learn more, she also felt unease, being so vulnerable and ignorant in a cruel, harsh wasteland where anything could kill you, and you'd have no clue on how to retaliate.

When finally they found a small boat in the underground cave, Kratos was the rower, Atreus sat opposite of him, excited for his first adventure, while the Goddess could only gaze around, taking in the beauty of the place - It might be a simple cave, but it was nothing that she's seen before. "I just can't believe I'm here, doing all this. There was a time when I thought I'd never leave our woods." Atreus spoke, a little nostalgic. "Or even my own bed, sometimes." "You were not to blame for your sickness." Kratos reassured him quickly. "Oh, I know... I guess I'm just sayin'... This is great!" Atreus exclaimed with glee. "Little One, you've been sick?" Katrina asked, vividly remembering Calliope's sickness, so long ago. "Y-Yeah... But I'm much better now! I haven't coughed even once since we've left home - Right, Father?" Kratos grunted in approval. "You're such a strong young man, Atreus! I feel very safe, knowing I have you protecting me!" Kat giggles sweetly, stealing a glance to her partner, whose expression was set and concentrated as always. "Oh, look, Kat, the mountain! We're so close!" Atreus turned around, staring awestruck at the mountain. "Ahh, the familiar smell of salt water, how comforting!" Kat hummed, her head leaned back, a relaxed smile on her face. "Salt water?" Atreus questioned her, confused. "We flow into the sea." Katros explained. "How do you know?" Atreus blinked, even more confused. "The sea has a rather strong smell of salt. My homeland is surrounded by two seas - The Aegean and the Ionian Seas. Smelling the salty, humid air is so comforting." Kratos avoided Katrina's gaze, not wanting to be reminded by his once home. Atreus, however, scrunched his nose in disgust. "If that smell's the sea... The sea stinks." his childish, innocent comment made the Goddess start laughing. "You are so adorable, Little One!" Kratos continued to row, out of the cave, and into the open sea. "Look at that - It's Thor!" Atreus pointed towards a colossal statue in the middle of the sea, depicting a man with a hammer grasped in his right hand. "Who is Thor?" Katrina asked, unfamiliar with the Norse Pantheon. "Thor... God of Thunder." Kratos' mention of the Gods made the red head shudder softly. "That's right! I never thought you listened when mum spoke of Gods." Atreus chuckled softly. "I seldom did." Kratos noted. "Did she speak of one who could feel no pain?" what a peculiar question, Katrina thought with a soft frown, wondering if this man he was referring to might be the reason for the destroyed land she walked past previously. "Oh - That sounds like Baldr. An Aesir God. Son of Odin and Frigg." it all sounded so foreign to Katrina, that she felt a shudder of fright go down her spine. "And Odin is king." Atreus approved. So Odin was a sort of counterpart for Zeus, then? What a scary thought. "If this Odin is the King of the Gods, then I dearly hope we will never have to encounter him." Kratos grunted in agreement.

Somewhere in the middle of the Sea, a gigantic scale-clad specimen seemed to be occupying a large section of the water bed; A thing, that may as well actually be a being, dead or alive, something that not even Atreus, born and raised in the North, had no clue of. Kratos rowed towards a smaller statue, just close enough for the boy to read the yellow-painted runes. 'Sacrifice your arms to the center of the water; Awaken again the cradle of the world.' "Is... This supposed to be a riddle? As we are now, our only arms I can think of are the boat oars." Kat tilted her head in confusion. "I think we're supposed to throw our weapons into the water." Atreus spoke his supposition. "Guess that won't be a problem for you." he jokes with his father and his fantastic ability of recalling his weapon. "Are... You gonna do it?" "I can do it, if you're not feeling comfortable with parting with your weapon." the Goddess placed her hand on his arm, speaking to him in a gentle voice. Kratos grunted as he rose to his feet, freezing the axe before throwing it far, far away, into the middle of the sea. "Impressive throw." she praised him, as he extended his arm, recalling the axe... Yet it didn't seem to return. "The axe did not return." Kratos pointed out. "No, but the sea in tremoring underneath us." Kat braced herself. "I did not wish for another Atlantis trip!" the once static scale-like being came to life, revealing itself to be the World Serpent, a snake so long that it's supposed to go around the world. The water shook with its movements, propelling their boat farther away, violently. "Hang on!" Kratos exclaimed, holding the two firmly in his strong arms, until the waves stilled once more. "What IS that?" the God asked his knowledgeable child. "It's the World Serpent...!" Atreus was completely fascinated as they faced the red serpent eyes. The snake rose its head, spitting out the Leviathan axe, impaling it into their boat, as if to return it to its rightful owner; Yet now, the weapon had been upgraded, imbued with Eitr, the poison of the World Serpent itself. "Stay calm, boy!" the God cried out to his Son, standing protectively in front of the two, as the Serpent looked down at them. "I am! This is great!" the young boy was captivated by this discovery. It seemed to try to communicate, but it was definitely not a language that even the Goddess of Nature could comprehend. "It speaks?!" Kratos asked his son. "Yeah! Mum said he's friendly!" what a sweet child. "So what is he saying?" Katrina asked. "I don't know!" the boy answered, almost indignant, as he managed to step in front of his father, at the peak of the boat, getting a better view of the serpent settling down.

With this change in sea level, a ship-wreak was revealed, along with the bottom part of Thor's statue, a golden temple, and even a dock. To think that all this was hidden underneath the sea. "This is just like Atlantis all over again." Kratos turned his gaze to the Goddess, grunting in amusement. Atreus even noticed a faint half-smile on his face, something he's never witnessed before. Her long hair was glued flat on her head and body, getting in the way, while the sheer material of her grass green dress took the silhouette of her forms, as though she was a masterpiece statue. As ethereally beautiful as always. "You look like a wet cat." Atreus wasn't sure if his father's joke was funnier, the fact that he actually was capable of such a feat, or that Kat's glare was the farthest thing from intimidating. Who really was this woman, and how did she know his dad? Will he ever find out the truth?

"You know of the Serpent?" the boy was suddenly brought out of his many questions. "He's one of the Giants, and he's so big that he's wrapped around the world and bites his own tail." the boy exclaimed, happy to show his father his vast knowledge of Jormungandr. "An exaggeration." Kratos easily refuted such childish fantasy. "I dunno, it looked pretty big to me." as Kratos helped Katrina step on the dock, he took out the Compass to see what it was worth; Sure enough, the coils of the Serpent were visible. They rushed up the stairs of the Golden Temple, only to get called out by a familiar vulgar-voice; It was Brok, the blue dwarf, welcoming the trio and urging them to take some more upgrades to their armor and weapons.

"If it isn't the rose bush, the bearded-beefer and his sac-seed! Have I got something for you three!" he invited them inside. "Brok?! But how did you--" Atreus wasn't able to finish his question, for he was already cut off. "None of yer fuckin' business. Now get in here, I got somethin' for ya! And don't go makin' pig eyes at my spot... I saw it first!" Brok pushed the large door farther open, welcoming them inside. "What a peculiar specimen..." Katrina murmured under her breath, uncomfortable with his brash tone and the myriad of curse words used - Definitely something she wasn't used to. "What do you think he wants?" Atreus asked, walking ahead, not witnessing the comforting look that Kratos offered Katrina, nor the tender touch of his fingers brushing her cheek, placing a gentle kiss on top of her head. "Thank you." that beautiful soft blush coating her cheeks was enough of a thanks for him. "To test out patience." Kratos finally answered his son, urging the woman to step ahead. "When word gets out about my shop, folks'll finally come outta hiding." Brok replied, a little too cryptic for their understanding. "They'll be clawin' all over each other just to catch a whiff at my wares - You watch!" he boasted cockily as he walked behind his workshop table. "Hey, flower garden, catch!" caught off guard, Katrina squeaked adorably in surprise as she struggled to catch a beautifully glowing light blue gem stone. "Ladies love jewels, don't they, ey?" he chuckled gruffly. "The pile o' rock there -" he nodded towards the rocks behind them that started glowing light blue, just like the gem, and levitated in the air to create a wonderfully carved stone door that seemed to magically connect realms. "With that Key of Yggdrasil, you can open a magic door to the branches of the World Tree - A shortcut 'tween realms. If y'ever see 'em out in the world, use it to get back to me quick." he instructed. "But it's only one way - Straight back here and nowhere else - And whatever you do, never, never, EVER, never, ever, ever, ever, ever throw yourself over the edge of the path... Lest you want death." Katrina shuddered softly, imagining a void-like purgatory. "Yeah, I don't see us wanting that." Atreus sarcastically joked.

Before they continued their journey, Kratos and Atreus upgraded their stuff; This time, Katrina agreed to wear a golden talisman that had the carved skull of a ram engraved in stone, and its horns were made out of some red jewel, while its eyes were green - It almost looked like her, how creepy. Brok mentioned it has the chance to stun enemies you attack, and it strengthens the power of the surrounding runes, how interesting, to think such a little necklace could have such power. Though she was skeptical, she agreed to having her spear embellished and carved with these peculiar Norse runes, under the belief they might enchant it. Now, she just needs to test it out.

Before they left, Kratos looked down at the Goddess and let out a low grunt. At first, he didn't utter a single word, yet his hand rose to touch the amulet around her neck, his calloused fingers trailing over the roughly sculpted charp. "It does not suit you." he muttered. "Yes... I agree. However, the dwarf said it might be of common use... So, I suppose, there is no harm in trying it out." Katrina smiled up at him. Kratos grunted in understanding. His eyes lingered on her body, before stealing a short glance at his child. "Are you not cold?" he found himself asking. "Perhaps a little, during the harsher breeze, but there is nothing that I cannot handle, per se. Though I cannot lie, I do miss the warmth of home." she chuckled softly at him. "I will find you something proper to keep you warm." he said, gently placing his large palm over the exposed skin on her arm. "Your flesh is freezing." he said, feeling the gold bracelet as cold as her skin. "Thank you, Kratos. Ever the thoughtful. There is no rush though, I am doing fine enough as it is." he couldn't look at her tender smile, knowing the urge to embrace her and kiss her was overwhelming his heart, and he didn't want Atreus to see and misunderstand his actions.

Once their business with the blue dwarf finished, the trio went back outside, forwards toward a large golden horn covered by moss. Amusingly enough, Kratos didn't want to blow into it, under some rather amusing pretexts. Poor Atreus was right, usually, they would push every button and pull on every lever they found, until something happened, and they had to beat up a bunch of creatures. Kratos truly was getting old, if he refused something like that. Instead, he opted for pulling on a lever to reach the bottom level of the temple, where they were met with a bunch of undead monsters, full of nasty water and algae - They were going to get quickly killed and returned to the afterlife, where they belonged.

Throughout the arduous journey, Kat couldn't help but look around like a child in a wonderland, admiring and gazing awestruck not only at the gorgeous landscapes that were so different from anything they had back home, but also, the myriad of mechanisms that would offer such fantastic rewards, such as a large copper bell that had to be powerfully hit to echo a strong jingle, or even treasure chests that could be opened not by even Godly sheer force, but through finding certain runes that would light up as soon as you touched them. Different civilizations, different pantheons, and certainly, different cultures, in all ways possible. It truly was fascinating.

Throughout the looktower, they stumbled upon another shrine - A Jotun shrine, they called it, and it had depicted on it, painted with gleaming gold, the World Serpent Jormungandr, ready to bite down on the one God known as Thor, the Thunder God. Katrina shuddered softly, the mere idea of having to meet malevolent Gods again not something she fancied. Still, she focused on admiring the artstyle of the shrine, and its power to predict future events, as they said.

Across the realm, they were met with trap-like flowers that emanated poison miasma that could easily prove fatal. Thankfully, Faye had taught Kratos how to counter them, using the freezing abilities of the Leviathan's Axe. Through more adventuring around the realm, they reached the foggy foothills, where yet another dwarf, garbed in golden armor, greeted them. He was soft-spoken and polite, albeit a little frightened and timid, poor man. He couldn't blame him for being afraid of confronting someone like Kratos though.

"Hey, uhhh, excuse me... How did you come by that axe?" the dwarf stuttered lightly. "That is my concern alone." Kratos rasped, not even sparing a glance to the stranger. "And uh.... While I won't dispute that... I know that blade." the dwarf was desperately trying to keep brave. "It was one of ours, but uh, we didn't make it for you." Kat couldn't help but admire the dedication and passion that blacksmiths had, recognising each of their work with a single glance. Hephaestus was much alike, she remembered the Smith God, long before he was corrupted. "Step aside." Kratos ordered, making the dwarf flinch, yet he bravely stood his ground. "I can't. See - The woman we made this for... I was, well... I am... Quite fond of her." Kat put her hand on Kratos' biceps, squeezing it delicately, as a way to show him that he needn't be on guard. "And I would, uh... Be quite... Displeased, if it turns out that... You did something to her." "You need not worry, little sir. We mean you no harm." the Goddess gently caressed the dwarf's face, immediately calming him down. "It was my mother's." Atreus stepped forward, speaking in a sad voice. "She left it to father before she died." "Faye's dead...?" the dwarf's breath hitched in his throat, and his whole body felt lax with grief. "I'm... Very, very sorry to hear that..." the dwarf sighed, looking away from the trio. "She was a fierce warrior... And a good woman." he sighed, before turning with newfound vigor towards the travelers. "Alright. I will make improvements to the axe." "But... No one asked you to." Atreus rose a questioning eyebrow. "W-Well, it's true, but... But knowing your mother, she would have insisted I repair that act of vandalism perpetrated against her axe by my brother." Kat giggled softly at the childishness of this brotherly feud. "I knew it! You are Brok's brother!" Atreus exclaimed, hopping towards the dwarf's blacksmith tent. "The other half of the brand's here." "The blue one is your brother?" Kratos quired, his eyebrows furrowed. "Yes... Though my talents are vastly superior. No boast - Swear to Freya." Freya... Was that another God of this world? Still keeping the dwarf under a stern gaze, Kratos took out his axe and handed it to the smith. "Do not undo his work. Improve upon it only." "Yeeeeaaaahhh.... But can you put it down over there?" the dwarf asked, visibly uncomfortable and trembling. Kratos rasped a drastic negative answer. "The handle is filthy..." the dwarf sighed shakily, his eyes darting around with great anxiety. "Okay, then... I'll just... I will just..." "By the Gods..." Katrina sighed, placing her hand over her lover's. "Kratos, please. If you will not accommodate him with his clear repulsion to uncleanliness, then at least allow ME to do it. I am getting uncomfortable myself simply by looking at his poor self." It was clear that Kratos had many things to complain about, simply from that look in his dark, stern eyes, peering into the Goddess' own forest-green ones; Instead, he simply gruffed, allowing the woman to slide her hand onto the wooden handle and aid the poor dwarf. "My, this is much heavier than I expected. People of the North must truly be strong, to be able to carry about such weapons." she chuckled softly, smiling at the dwarf as she placed the axe on the workbench. As soon as he finished with the upgrading, Kratos quickly snatched the axe back into his possession. "Anything else I can help you with?" the dwarf asked. "A coat, perhaps? Or a pair of breeches? I have to say, I've never seen anyone wearing such garments before. This silk feels like water... Amazing. You aren't from around, are you?" Sindri gently felt the material of her flowy dress that hugged her body like a godly sculpture. "My home is much, much in the South. I have been travelling for so many moons, that I lost count." Katrina smiled cheerfully, remembering her home. "I see. Well, I think I have just the right thing for you!" at once, Sindri brought a cloak of leaf-green, embroidered in golden thread, and a pair of skin-tight breeches, the same colour of the bark of brown-white trees. Her outfit hadn't lost her lovely nature-like allure. "Thank you for your kindness, Sindri. I feel much warmer now, thanks to you. You have my gratitude." the Goddess smiled warmly at him, making the dwarf blush slightly and look away. "Don't mention it, don't mention it! It's the least I could do! Now off you go!" with a lazy wag of her fingers, Katrina waved the dwarf goodbye, following Katros and Atreus towards the mountain.

During a particularly tall climb up the mountain wall, Atreus jumped on his father's back, being comfortably carried. the Goddess, on the other hand, simply ran up the wall, making Kratos gruff in annoyance, remembering that fool named Hermes, who pestered him similarly, years ago. He will never get over that annoyance. "Do you think for this last leg up the mountain that maybe I can carry her?" the boy asked, while Katrina was idly dangling her feet from the edge of the mountain. "I told you, no." came his father's resolute answer. "Why?" Atreus sighed in disappointment. "She meant more to me than you anyway." "What?!" Kratos rasped immediately. "Atreus!" Katrina gasped in surprise at the child's disrespectful comment. "You do not say such words to your father!" "I-I just meant -- I spent more time with her. You were off hunting a lot." the boy tried to explain himself. "He was out so he could provide your family with the comfort of food and the necessary items of the house. Were it not for your father, it would have been your mother away. It is a father's duty to provide for the family, and a mother's to care for it. Do not be so harsh on your father. He did everything he could for you." Kratos shot the woman a quick glance, half-grateful for the explanation that he would never be able to provide, but also, rather uncomfortable. "How would you know that? You've just arrived. You couldn't know what happened, could you?" true enough, Atreus' words made Katrina keep quiet, unable to muster a relevant reply that would not give away their identity. "It would serve you to stop talking." his father intervened thankfully as he went ahead to decimate a few undeads.

An uncomfortable silence filled the air as the three kept apart from each other by at least three steps. It was Kratos who led the way, as he crouched down to raise up a fallen boulder that was blocking the door. Just as he was able to pull it away, the large gates were sprung open by a hideous monster attacking them. It immediately tried to lunge towards the child, but Kratos quickly grabbed onto its forearm, halting its movement. It seemed to be communicating in low grunts, but they were unable to understand its tongue. "Let him GO!" Atreus tried to dash forwards and aid his dad, but Katrina quickly grabbed him by the  arrow quiver, pulling him backwards, just in time to evade a powerful swiping fist, which she took instead. It was one thing for a God to get thrown to the ground, and another for a child like him.

"Atreus, stand back!" Katrina called out to the boy, but just as she got up, the monster grabbed her at lightning speed, his grasp around her slender body squeezing so tight that it was difficult breathing. At the very same time, not only did the God of War shove his whole arm into the monster's gnawing mouth to protect her from harm, but Katrina, also, extended her hand towards its face, summoning her spear so that she could impale its skull. Finally, the monster was dead, on the ground. "Father!" Atreus called out quickly, pointing towards the approaching enemies. The Goddess quickly ripped away the monster's fingers from around her body and clinged onto Kratos' damaged arm. "Forgive me for getting you harmed, my love." she murmured softly, making sure the child wouldn't hear her words as she quickly healed his bleeding injuries. "It is fine." he grunted, holding his axe. "Ready yourself, boy." "Let me help out with these pests. You have injured yourself on my behalf far too much." Katrina sighed, summoning a bunch of vines from underground that latched tightly onto the undead, ripping them apart with ease. "An Ogre? Here?" Atreus was out of breath with shock at the intensity of this encounter. "Who built this place?" thankfully at least, once they passed through the large base, they reached the Mountain's Base. They were getting closer to the desired destination. "Whoa... I can see why mum wanted us to bring her here." "Indeed." Kratos gruffed, agreeing to the landscape's beauty. "Is there anything like this back at your home, Kat?" the boy asked. "No, not really. I have never seen anything quite like this. In fact, I do not recall ever seeing snow before either." the red head shivered softly at the cold breeze.

Atreus quickly went on ahead towards the bridge engulfed in a pitch black smoke, coming up from the face-like mountain wall. He seemed to try and get close to the smoke, but he was unable to. "Kat, you have magical powers, right? Think you can do something about it?" Katrina stepped forward, slowly reaching out her hand towards the blockage, only to quickly snatch her hand back with an electrifying hiss. "This curse is something that I cannot undo. Its malevolence is foreign to even me. We must find another way." she tried to look around in hopes that she could create a ladder of sorts, but she doubted, given the harsh blizzard around them, that she would be able to safely get them both across. "Then, maybe the witch? Wish she was here. I bet she could get us past this." Atreus sighed sadly. Out of nowhere, the witch's voice startled them with her presence. Was she summoned here, somehow? Creepy. "My magic is useless against the Black Breath, and there's no way around it. Odin saw to that long ago." Atreus quickly skipped to the witch, grinning widely in happiness. "What are you doing here?!" "Making sure you can finish your journey." she bent at his level, her hand squeezing his shoulder motherly. "Why wait to warn us?" Kratos asked defensively. "I was busy saving my friend, if you remember..." Kratos grunted, looking away. "The Black Breath is a corruption of magic even I can't dispel. Only the pure Light of Alfheim is strong enough to break through it, but that road is long. What does this goal mean to you?" "It's everything." Atreus replied. The witch seemed to be touched by the boy's resolve. "Follow me." Kratos grabbed her arm, seizing her with his eyes. "Why help us?" "Maybe I see more of myself in you than I'm willing to admit. Maybe..." she gulped slightly, hesitating in her truthful answer. "Maybe by helping you, I'll make up for a lifetime of mistakes." she shrugged softly, smiling at the child. "Or maybe I just like you." "Even though we shot your friend?" the witch smiled dryly. "Even though you shot my friend, yes." "Where must we go?" Kratos asked, as the trio started following her. "To a realm beyond your own." the witch replied, running off ahead. "We're going to another realm?! Are you coming with us?" Atreus asked, excited. "Only for a little while." she repeated Kratos' reply.

They came by a large contraption, which Sindri had previously talked about. Seems that he was able to finish repairing it, what a fantastic smith. The witch explained their destination was Tyr's Temple, the one previously under water, and from there, they will be able to travel to Alfheim. When the God asked about the World Serpent's whereabouts, she explained that there is no one with such knowledge, though when Thor attacked it, their battle was felt across all the realms. The fight ended in a stalemate, and though Thor returned empty-handed to Thor, they are destined to kill each other, come Ragnarok. Kat wasn't quite sure what Ragnarok was, but the witch seemed to be rather terrified of that notion.

She guided them back towards the large gates, where there was no way across. Instead, the witch was smug, and she took out her bow, firing an arrow towards a large gem glowing blue. "Ljosta!" she exclaimed, and a solid bridge of pure light spawned across. Elven architecture, she said. Her bowstring was soaked in the Light of Alfheim, and it has the ability of reawakening the magic of the Elves.

The witch was rather impressed by Atreus' knowledge of Vanir magic, from the realm of Vanaheim. He mentioned his mother telling him that the Vanir Gods are always at war with the Aesir Gods of Asgard. He said they are 'Good' Gods, compared to Odin and Thor, but are there truly any good Gods out there? "There are no good Gods, boy. I thought I taught you that." Katrina pondered over a little Kratos' reply. Gods are all selfish, yes, she often warned him of that notion - But she never did think that Gods like Hestia or Hebe were evil. She could even say that Aphrodite, Anteros, Psyche and Eros were very kind... Not that she could ever see Kratos getting over his hatred of the Gods.

Once they went past another great set of doors, they reached Tyr's Temple. The witch mentioned that, with the help of the Giants, Tyr was able to travel across all nine realms and keep the peace between them. Something must have happened to this Tyr, considering the amount of dead things overflooding the premises and destroying everything in their path. With the aid of Kratos' fantastic Godly strength, they were able to turn the whole entire bridge into position. It was a fantastic sight, seeing Kratos' incredible power in action once more. Hopefully, he wasn't hurting.

The Witch mentioned this temple being the very last construction where all nine realms worked together. With some kind of immersive magic, the witch used the last bit of Alfheim Light to create the bridge, before swapping around her bowstring with Atreus', instructing him on how to infuse his own weapon with such power. She also said she doesn't think she'd be able to follow, considering a numerous amount of measures had been taken to keep her trapped in Midgard. Was Midgard the human realm they were walking on, then? The more Kat learns, the more she realises her lack of knowledge is even greater than she anticipated. She said the Gods don't care much for her - But surely, the Gods wouldn't make sure she's unable to travel, if she were unimportant. How peculiar.

They entered together in this Realm Travel Room that was pitch black - She says they need the light of the Bifrost to reawaken, for the temple had been underwater for over a hundred and fifty winters passed. They reached a large tree, known as the World Tree, which makes this traveling between realms possible. It was glowing a magical blue. The Witch offered Kratos a small gadget which could capture the Light of Bifrost and allow this kind of traveling. "Amazing...!" Katrina was breathless at the beauty of this place, once Kratos stuck the gadget into its rightful place, and the lean surface of the water starter glowing a lovely fluorescent blue, waving and emanating cinder drops around like fireflies. From underneath the small water basin, a miniature layout of the temple emerged, whilst at the same time, blue fire came out from the ground in nine different places across the room, signifying the different realms. The witch explained these realms all exist in the same physical space as reflections of each other. These doors, the towers outside, and the nine realms are all intertwined and co-exist on the branches of the World Tree, separated only by the Bifrost light of Alfheim. Katrina could barely pay attention to the explanation, as her eyes were bewitched by the work of lights surrounding them in the darkness, illuminating the place with blue sparkles of all kinds. This place they were in, could focus and control that said light.

Atreus voiced what the Goddess was thinking - This World Tree was merely an artistic representation of the much more impressive and grand Yggdrasill. The Tree of Life is bound to the fate of the world, just as they all were bound to it. The tree nourishes the soils; The dew from its leaves feeds the valleys and rivers. The Tree's very existence supports all of creation along its boughs - Its life energy interwoven into the tapestry of life - Birth, growth, death and rebirth. Every strand - Transcending time, transcending space. Everything comes back to the Tree. The Goddess was in awe, her heart having stopped altogether, as a gentle flurry of blue snow swished around them, and the small sprouts of flowers growing at the roots of the tree bloomed together in perfect sync.

The witch explained how, by turning this wheel around the water basin, the great wheel that Kratos previously moved would also be spurred, as the bridge aligns to the different realm towers on the lake outside. As Odin had prevented access to vanaheim, and Jotunheim was currently unavailable, for the Realm Tower was missing, they were urged to move towards the Alfheim tower. She drew a symbol rune on Kratos' palm, so they can lock into this realm and begin the sequence at once. Everything around them changed, and a single part of the room got illuminated in brilliant blue, as the roots grew longer towards the crystal glowing there. Each realm has a corresponding crystal that focuses and amplifies the power of the Bifrost, she said, opening the bridge to that realm. As she continued speaking, a powerful blue lights engulfed them - Yet it was not a blinding one, but a soothing blue that seemed to caress their souls.  Before they left, Atreus was curious about the missing Jotunheim Tower, to which he was told that the Tower went missing by the time the Giants disappeared from Midgard, and no one knows its whereabouts. As the blue lights subsided, the boy thought nothing happened. The witch hummed in amusement, urging them to follow her

Kratos pointed out the Bifrost became dark - It was out of power, thus, they could not return without being replenished by the Light of Alfheim. But Katrina wasn't concerned by such trivialities; She was captivated by the flowers that turned red, just like her hair, the same colour as the Maple Tree Leaves. Kratos had to grab her by the wrist and pull her towards the exit, revealing what looked like a city overgrown with trees. The witch's smile quickly vanished once she realised the Light was barely visible - The Column of Light in the horizon, housed in the heart of a ringed temple, was supposed to be far more powerful.

But the witch was beginning to dissipate in a glowing green light. The trio grabbed onto her, but it was in vain, for the curse was too strong to be resisted. "To restore the Bifrost's magic, you must step into The Light - But be very careful not to get caught up in the --" before she could finish her warning, however, she was pulled inside a portal, no doubt, back to Midgard. "How convenient, being unable to finish the full warning." Kat chuckled, shaking her head. The boy's panic was almost hilarious to her. The whole placed seemed to be fused up with some kind of plant-based organism... Though it also looked a little like corals. How peculiar, she's never seen anything like it."Are you ready for yet another misadventure?" "No."

< Previous Chapter Next Chapter >

[asmallexperiment]

Lance Reddick: 1962-2023

I get that we call everyone who isn't maybe one of the 20 or 30 most famous actors on the planet a "character actor," and he was that--it would not be entirely unfair to describe him as "a character actor who played a lot of cops." But...Lance Reddick was just amazingly talented and seemed from the outside to be one of the good guys.

In saying "a character actor who played a lot of cops," it, to say the least, doesn't capture the whole of it. The Wire is my favorite television show and so I guess I would say he's best known as Daniels, who was mostly a man of few words, at least until more were necessary. I'm sure there is one, but I don't know that I've ever seen an actor play the mannerisms of a fictional character so far forward. And, while that sounds like an awful thing, the way Reddick did it was nothing short of brilliant.

But your frame of reference, given his career, could be entirely different. If you're a gamer, maybe you think of him more as Sylens or Commander Zavala. Both Bosch and Fringe share with The Wire the phenomenon of being underappreciated, at least in their own time (The Wire, obviously, has evolved into a thing, culturally, that it wasn't in its time). He also had that period where he spun on that reputation a little and did a bunch of comedic bits, including a legendary appearance on Eric Andre. And he did play a bunch of other cops, with appearances on L&O, CSI: Miami, Numb3rs...I think it must have been Oz where I first became aware of him, though he was also a cop in the episode In Excelsis Deo from The West Wing, which was, at least for a moment or two, regarded as one of the best hours of drama in television history (it's still very good, though I know some people think the show hasn't aged well and a lot of the people who are still on board would probably now go for Two Cathedrals, which came a couple years later).

And, of course, he's been a persistent presence in the John Wick movies. Just reading this bit from his interview with Vulture makes me like him and Keanu more than I probably should:

Speaking of Keanu, can you give us some insight into his personality?  I’m a journeyman character actor. And whenever I work with a big movie star for the first time, I keep my guard up to protect my work from an ego. And if there’s any big movie star who’s not that person, it’s Keanu. I remember my first scene that I shot with him — it’s the first scene you see us together in the first movie — he was struggling with the timing. I said, “Keanu do you want to do XYZ?” I don’t even remember what it was. And he kind of smiled and said, “No man, you just do your thing.” My experience with him after that continues to be one with someone who’s very generous as an actor and then all about the work. He’s also very shy. This is going to sound really weird, but — he seems simple, but spiritually he’s very advanced.

That makes perfect sense, actually.  He’s incredibly deep and insightful and thoughtful. But watching him in social situations, he can be like, “I can only take so much input from other people so don’t bother me.” Which is fine. He’s very shrewd. On one hand I feel like I don’t know him very well but on the other, I just adore that guy. He’s such a wonderful human being.

How has your friendship changed after four movies? We’ve gotten to know each other a little better. I hope I don’t get in trouble for telling this story: During John Wick: Chapter Four, my first day of filming happened to be Keanu’s birthday. But he wasn’t in the scene. He came to the set anyway at nine o’clock at night with his girlfriend who I had never met. And she is … can I say a bad word?

Go for it.  His girlfriend is cool as fuck. And she told me that she asked Keanu what he wanted to do for his birthday and he said, “I want to go see Lance.” He’d never done this before but he wrote me a note thanking me for what I brought to the character in these movies. And he wanted to give the note to me. I’ll never forget it. I’m going to cry now.

Even just opening Netflix last night, it was readily apparent that I wasn't the only one who wanted to go back and watch the man's work--I ended up opting for the first couple episodes of The Wire. So, to return to where I started, I understand that Reddick isn't Keanu-famous, but in the little world of my mind and the media I have liked over the years, his place in it is prominent enough to be that kind of superstar for me.

[alj4890]

I have an ask. We know in TRR Book 3 Ch10 Drake is the one being challenged by Neville but what if The King is the one to challenge Neville? After all he’s the one that would talk down to Riley during book 3 and nit once did Liam stand up for her during those times? So I wonder if Liam knew what Neville had said to his future Queen what would his reaction would be. I feel at least that Riley had the choice to punch him! Lol

A/N: Okay, seriously. WHY didn't all the other love interests tell Neville off?! He even annoyed Olivia with his pouting and whines. I get the tension between him and Drake and all; but Neville was talking bad behind Liam's back about his choice to elevate MC to becoming a duchess regardless of whether or not she was engaged to Liam. He was such a jerk to Hana and who in their right mind could be mean to her??? As protective and sacrificial as Maxwell was, (he did show getting ticked off whenever Neville opened his mouth), why wasn't there a dance fight between the two🤣 Now that my mini rant is over, let's see what would happen if Neville pushed Liam too far.

Masterlist

@gkittylove99 @darley1101 @krsnlove @kingliam2019 @texaskitten30 @yourmajesty09 @mom2000aggie @ofpixelsandscribbles @twinkleallnight @lodberg

Too Far

It wasn't noticeable at first.

He even somehow managed to make friends.

Neville had a way that made him appear as the perfect example of a gentlemanly noble. His cultured tone uttering compliments and his ability to appear humble before his betters had assured his place within Cordonia's high society. Being heir to an earldom and not too horrible to look upon also set him up in life to have a variety of ladies to choose from.

Or so he believed.

When Prince Leo abdicated, the nobles of Cordonia were actually laughed at by the rest of the world. The teasing began with mere good natured ribbing at parties of how unfaithful a Cordonian must be.

It was enough to sour any disposition, especially one that was already so.

Neville Vancoeur kept his noble mask firmly in place. Nothing was going to stop him from his destiny.

Nothing. No one. 

But the newest crown prince was best friends with, it was disgusting simply thinking of the word, a commoner. A commoner! What noble much less a direct descendant of the king himself would ever align themselves with someone who was absolutely worthless

Yet, the embarrassment that was Prince Liam didn't end there. He then went on to favor a poor waitress from America of all places. A waitress. He redeemed himself in Neville's eyes when he chose Countess Madeleine Amaranth of Fydelia to be Cordonia's queen. Though he didn't quite understand why the normally shrewd countess would allow the waitress to travel with the nobility, perhaps it was to give Drake Walker a playmate (one has to entertain pets, he supposed) he accepted it as a way to appease the people they ruled over.

Then New York happened. King Liam threw aside a well respected, birthed to perfection noble for that mongrel American who did not possess the first clue of how to behave amongst Cordonia's elite court.

Neville would have found it humorous if he was not permanently tied to his country.

To top it all off, not only was he forced to endure such unworthy company, he was shamed in front of them by some minor noble who had failed to win Liam. He blamed that brief moment of weakness for finding Lady Hana attractive on being inadvertently influenced by what had to be Drake and Riley's baser inclinations.

There was only one action left to a man so much more above these lowly peasants.

He was going to have to put these people in their proper place.

*******************

Liam knew that some of his fellow nobles took their positions as some sort of right in lording over those they considered their inferiors. It had never sat easy with him. He himself had a mother who had been a, "simple commoner". Yet, being in the tenacious situation he was in as a new king, he had to ignore for the most part their rude behavior.

But there was only so much he could stand when it came to the one he loved.

He knew something was going on the night of Madeleine's ball. As he stood on the other side of the ballroom, listening to Duke Godfrey drone on and on, he noticed Drake bump into the future earl. He knew there were very few nobles his best friend respected so seeing the flash of anger was normal.

Riley's though was surprising.

That unusual bitter twist to her normal, friendly smile followed by what he could only assume were heated words between his love and Neville made him feel the need to rush over and place himself between them. That desire to protect Riley was so strong that his body had already turned to leave Godfrey mid sentence.

But then Neville walked away.

Maxwell's brief sadness followed by Hana's irritation had him focusing once more on Riley's anger turning to resigned acceptance. Her relaxed stance returned as his group of friends found a table to sit and enjoy their meal.

He knew then that he would need to keep an eye on Lord Neville for the rest of the Unity Tour.

*****************

It didn't surprise him at all the insults and tension between Drake and Neville during the charity polo match. Liam felt sorry for Rashad and Maxwell being stuck on their team and forced to work with the two men that seemed to truly despise one another.

Liam also felt a large bit of pride when Riley used Neville's refusal to pass to Drake to score.

He also was relieved that Neville had not turned his disdain toward her.

Perhaps he was beginning to respect his future queen.

**************

It shouldn't have affected Liam like it did. Maybe it was the fact he was under so much pressure from keeping his father's cancer hidden, the fear from hearing he had been rushed to the hospital, all the terrorist attacks and threats, and then having to focus on pampered nobles instead of actually running his kingdom that caused him to lose his last shred of patience.

This ball was one that he had looked forward to. It would be the first of his escorting his Riley before the court. He had waited so long for such a moment to show his world how proud he was to have won her heart.

And Neville had to ruin it during their first dance.

The heated exchange of words escalated when Riley jumped in to defend Drake. Liam could see the utter hatred and lack of respect Neville had for the two people he was closest to. The way the young lord talked down to his beloved sent a bitter resolve through Cordonia's king.

"I've had enough of your insolence!" Neville snapped.

Liam saw his hand reach for his pocket and begin to withdraw a white glove. Before he could think through what he was about to do, he slapped Neville with the back of his hand, cutting short the challenge the lord was about to issue to Drake.

The entire court gasped. Silence fell as all watched this rare occurrence of Liam losing his temper.

"I've had enough of your insolence." Liam bit out. "Lord Neville, I challenge you to a duel."

Neville paled. His eyes darted around the ballroom, searching for anyone who might possibly be on his side. Seeing no sympathy, his chin lifted.

"I accept." His voice cracked slightly.

****************

"Liam, why are you doing this?" Riley gripped his hand as they walked out to the courtyard.

"I'm tired of his attitude." Liam explained. "Especially around you."

"I can handle his snide remarks." She countered. "What I can't handle is the thought of you possibly getting hurt."

Liam paused and slipped his arm around her waist. "You don't think I can take him?"

She smiled, looping her arms around his neck. "I know you can." She snared him with a tender kiss. "Just make it fast. There's a certain king I want to slow dance with."

His lips curved once more before turning toward the growing crowd. "As my queen wishes, so it shall be."

With a wink to her, he removed his sword from its sheath with a dramatic flourish.

Her delighted laughter followed him as he faced his opponent.

Neville swallowed uncomfortably as Constantine laid out the rules for the duel.

He barely managed to block Liam's blows, footsteps retreating most of the time. His lip curled into a snarl when the new king sliced into his blazer.

"My lady was right," Liam taunted, "that is a dreadful dinner jacket."

Neville's cheeks burned when those watching nearby chuckled. Each time he tried to make an offensive strike, Liam not only blocked it but somehow turned it into a point in his favor.

At one point they locked swords. Neville hated he had to tilt his head up to meet Liam's eyes. He hadn't expected to see the coldness there.

"You will apologize to Riley and Drake." Liam commanded in a low tone. "You will also never speak to either of them with such disrespect again."

"Why should I?" Neville breathed. "They need to learn to respect their betters."

"Really?" Liam's tone held a sinister edge. 

With an elegant spin that happened in the blink of an eye, he knocked his opponent’s sword out of his hand, caught it in mid air with his free one, and had both blades crossed with Neville's neck in the middle.

"Well done!" Constantine cheered from the sideline.

Riley let out a whoop as she hurried over to Liam's side. 

"Wasn't there something you wished to say to her grace, Lord Neville?" Liam asked

Neville's ready sneer died when he felt a slight nick to his tender skin.

"Forgive me, your grace." He managed to say without choking. "I will remember my manners when next we meet."

Riley gave a regal nod of acceptance.

Liam lowered the swords. "You're dismissed."

Neville scurried through the amused crowd, keeping his eyes downcast.

Riley yanked Liam into a passionate kiss once all the compliments were given and the crowd dispersed.

"My lady?" He asked with a grin. "What brought that on?"

"Nothing except my impressive Prince Charming fighting for me." She responded. "Perhaps he would like to find somewhere more private where I can better express my admiration."

"As you wish." He handed his swords to a servant as the couple sneaked away for a moment alone.

[michals]

May I request some Allison and Ben and best wishes for your regular projects to get easier, I absolutely love your fics.

Firstly: 🥰🥰🥰 thank you!! Also this was very much inspired by this post by knif2thrower.

-

Nostalgia is tricky for Allison considering, well, everything. As soon as she left the house at 18 the majority of her past took on a harsh, ugly light. She’s always tried to move past it, tried not to look back and especially not let it get to her. But in the wake of two apocalypses and some disorganizing and reorganizing of the timeline and finally everything getting back to the way it should be – with a couple bonuses – she finds the memories don’t leave quite the bitter taste they used to.

A week past the re-righting of the universe finds her absently picking through her old bedroom, searching for nothing in particular except idle thoughts. A rare quiet moment in the house these days. When she finds the stack of old magazines they’d been in as kids she only means to flip through the top one, just a quick glance through. But the picture on the cover of the next one is so cute she has to check out the others inside too, and then naturally she goes through a third and soon enough she’s sitting cross legged on her bed with the magazines spread out in front of her as she browses through them.

They’re mostly teen beat magazines, simple colorful things meant for preteens with articles about dealing with crushes and homework. She laughs when she finds a picture of Lil Bow Wow she’d drawn a heart around. And the pictures of her and the others only make her feel sentimental. They’re smiling in all of them, posing goofily with their arms around each other, pulling mock superhero poses. She couldn’t help but like those photoshoots. They never got to leave the house except for missions and press and unlike the boring, serious articles in the newspapers and Time, when it came to Bop magazine they got to act like kids and talk about their favorite ice cream flavors.

A photo of her standing with the boys around her, her hands posed cheekily under her chin with Luther, Klaus, Diego and Ben around her gets to her. That had been a fun day. She runs a finger over it like she’s trying to smooth down Klaus’s messy lapel when the door whooshes open and Ben rushes into the room, swinging the door shut behind him but making sure it doesn’t slam. He whirls on her with his eyes wide, poised like a frightened rabbit.

Her heart rate immediately picks up. “What’s wrong? What happened?” They think they’re in the clear, almost sure that nothing’s gonna fall on their heads anymore but she can’t stop her mind from preparing for the worst.

“Nothing!” Ben chirps, stepping carefully into the room, scanning it like he’s looking for something, “Nothing’s wrong, I did nothing wrong.”

A smirk comes to her lips. Oh, she knows exactly what’s happening. “What’d you do and who’d you do it to?”

Ben breaks into a sly, knowing look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, I would never. Unrelated but can I hide in here?”

Ben was supposed to be the shy one, quiet and introverted. He never spoke much in those interviews, shied away at too much attention. But all of them knew he was actually a little shit who pulled more pranks than any of them.

That he wants to hide tells Allison exactly who he played one on this time. “It was Five wasn’t it? In that case no, you have to deal with that on your own.”

“Really? You won’t help your own brother?” he puts his hand to his chest.

“Against my other brother?”

“You’re supposed to play favorites here,” Ben says shaking his head at her. There’s a distant thump and he practically throws himself on the floor and crawls over to the other side of the bed.

Allison leans over to look down at him. “What’d you do?” More conspiratorial than accusing.

Ben lays on his back, eyes innocent but his smirk giving him away. “Nothing! I just thought, maybe, Dolores might want to change up her look for spring is all.”

Allison reels back, laughing, “Oh you are so in for it!” But then she leans over further, eyes sparkling. “What color eyeshadow?”

“I was thinking pink but blue fit her so much better.”

Allison shakes her head at him. Ben had been one of those bonuses after they got back, a reward even. When they’d all landed on this side of it he’d been here, in the flesh and beaming. And he was the right one, he was their Ben. Allison hadn’t had to wonder if he’d fit in like he hadn’t been dead for so long because he’d dashed any doubts right away. He was bolder, perhaps, probably from years of Klaus’s influence, but he was him. This right here is proof of that.

She props her chin on her hand, “Remember when you told Diego people eat spiders in their sleep and you had just seen a big hairy one crawl into his room?”

Ben laughs. “Oh yeah, he slept with a bandana over his mouth for a month. Remember when I put a pebble in all your socks?”

Oh she remembers it now; she hadn’t noticed until they were in front of the cameras and she’d been on the evening news shuffling awkwardly the whole time. She’s not quite so nostalgic for that. “You little jerk,” but it’s fond.

This is what she likes about those silly teenage magazines, they could never actually show exactly who they were, especially the little hidden things like this, but they were the closest they ever got to appearing like actual kids. Sometimes a picture would manage to capture that mischievous twinkle in Ben’s eye.

“Remember when Luther broke that beaker and you told dad it was you?” she asks.

Ben’s smile is softer. “Yeah. I mean he looked like he was going to have a heart attack.” He shrugs his shoulders against the carpet. “Besides he did all my physics homework for a week.”

He hadn’t done it for that though, Allison knows, he’d been protecting Luther. That was who Ben was too.

“I’m glad you’re back,” she says, gentle sincerity in her voice. Ben smiles back, fond and happy.

Then there’s the distinct ‘thwip’sound of Five blinking from just outside the door and Ben’s eyes go wide and he scrambles to pull himself under the bed.

Allison’s just sitting up as Five suddenly appears in front of her. He looks over the room with narrowed eyes. “Where is he?”

Allison feigns ignorance. “Who?”

Five trains his skeptical gaze on her. “Ben. He’s around here somewhere.”

Allison shrugs, “I haven’t seen him, I’ve been here by myself all afternoon.”

He studies her face for a moment but only frowns deeper in frustration. Five’s shrewd but Allison is an actress after all. “If you see him tell him I’m going to find him.”

And in a flash he’s gone, she can hear him stomping around in the hall. Luther’s voice calls out:

“Five it’s not that bad! It’ll come off.”

“If you like it so much you let him do your eyeliner!” Five shoots back.

Klaus’s voice chimes in with, “Ooh I’d like to see that actually.”

Allison stays quiet for a long moment until the noises outside go away. Ben pops his head up over the side of the bed.

“Coast’s clear I think,” she tells him.

He gets to his feet, peeks outside and doesn’t see anyone.

“Thanks sis,” he says, makes to leave only to turn around and ask: “So tonight, when Luther’s asleep, you’re gonna help me with his eyeliner right?”

“Oh absolutely,” Allison says, as if there were any question.

He gives her a giddy grin before slipping out into the hallway. She shakes her head, chest tight with affection. She turns back to the magazine she has open in front of her. There’s a picture of Ben in it, his face in a big cheesy star graphic, and yeah, there it is, there’s that glimmer in his eye. She’s happy then that nostalgia doesn’t hurt so much anymore.

In the hallway there’s another ‘thwip’ followed by a panicked high pitched yelp.

[mittelfrank-divas]

Dance of the Black Heron chapter 3

In which Dorothea attempts to sort out how to teach Hubert to dance and words are exchanged. 

AO3 link here!

===

"No, no, no." Dorothea dropped the spoon that she'd been using to tap out a steady rhythm on the side of an overturned crate, letting it clatter onto the sun-bleached wood. "Are you dancing, or are you attempting to recite chapter five of our tactics textbook to Professor Byleth?"

Hubert dropped his stance to fold his arms together. Twenty-five minutes into their dance lesson, and he already felt sweaty and overly warm in his uniform. The afternoon sun beat down on them despite the mid-autumn season, making him regret his preference for black. His long hair was already starting to stick to his cheek on one side, and he was pretending not to notice this. "I do not understand the question."

Dorothea advanced on him across the small room. Well… "room" was a generous term for the location of their private lesson. Hubert had spent weeks sniffing out the more abandoned corners of Garreg Mach when they first arrived at school. The monastery grounds were a maze of ruins, both above ground and below, and many of the abandoned locations appeared to never be included on the guards' regular rounds. Of course, he had always imagined that when he utilized such hidden spaces, it would be for much more nefarious purposes than practicing for a dance competition.

The size and dimensions of this particular building were reminiscent of the knights' hall, but whatever use it had seen in centuries past was long since lost. The wood roof had long ago rotted and caved in, and no door remained in the doorframe. But the tile floor, once cleared of debris, made for a smooth enough surface to dance on without risk of tripping, despite weeds pushing up between a few of the cracks, and the brick walls offered some amount of privacy while they practiced. The open door faced away from the monastery, and the path here was overgrown enough to dissuade anyone from choosing to wander in this direction, so he could be confident that none would be nearby to witness his humiliation. In essence, they had their own private courtyard in which to stage their lessons.

Dorothea took him by the shoulders and gave him a shake, even though she had to reach up to do so. "You're too stiff! You look like a waiter in one of those fancy Enbarr restaurants where they fold the napkins to look like doves."

Strictly speaking, Hubert had hardly visited any restaurant, in Enbarr or anywhere else. Restaurants existed for those who were socializing or traveling, or who did not already dine in the actual Adrestian Palace, served by the royal family's own chefs. But he had a vague impression of what she was describing. "And I am to understand that that is a bad thing."

Dorothea's hands flew to her head in a dramatic fashion. "Yes! The point of dancing is movement! You cannot move and be rigid as stone at the same time. The scowling doesn't help, either."

Hubert felt himself flush. "I was merely concentrating."

Dorothea pursed her lips sympathetically, but her voice retained some of its impatient edge. "Concentration is important, but you'll need to learn not to let that show on your face. The judges want to see a smile. Can you do that, Hubie? Do you know how to smile?"

With some effort, Hubert conjured the most pleasant smile his face could allow.

Dorothea visibly recoiled, her hands leaving Hubert's shoulders so she could step back. "Never mind. You look like you intend to flay me alive. Don't smile like that at the judges, alright?"

Hubert tried to ignore the sting that her comment induced. "I was not intending to be sinister." Not at this exact moment, anyway.

"I've never met someone who could be threatening by accident, but somehow you manage it." Dorothea threw herself back onto her seat and took up her spoon again. "Fine! Let's start from the top!" With that, she began drumming out a beat for him. With a groan, he went back to it.

It surprised Hubert how quickly the dance came back to him. He had not even thought about waltzing for years, let alone put it into practice. His feet still remembered the steps, his shoulders still remembered how to set themselves as though preparing to cradle another in his arms. The basic mechanics of it were really quite straightforward.

And yet he could feel Dorothea's eyes on him, evaluating his every movement. The steady drumming of her spoon on the crate provided a simple enough beat for him to keep time to, but it was a grating sound, one that reminded him with every strike that he was not simply one dancer among a crowd. He was alone on an empty floor, foolishly dancing along to cutlery. Could the entire school hear the noise? Would a face appear in that open doorway any moment? He felt horribly foolish and woefully exposed.

"Augh, just stop!" Dorothea suddenly snapped, the spoon slamming down on the crate. "Honestly, could you look any more miserable? You act like you don't even want to be here."

Hubert bent over to catch his breath, hands on his thighs. There was a reason that he devoted most of his energy toward magic, something that allowed him to stand perfectly still while still fighting with deadly force. "This may come as some shock, but no part of this experience delights me. I am here for my duty, nothing else."

"Really? You think I love being here, pretending to be happy about you getting chosen over me?" Something in Dorothea's voice broke. Hubert tilted his head up to look at her through the sweaty bangs hanging in his face, and realized that she was on her feet, hands clenched at her sides.

He stood upright, hands still clutching at the stitch in his side. Hellfire, was he out of shape. "Is that what you think this situation is?"

Dorothea snorted. "At least have the decency to be honest with me. You and Edie just couldn't have your class represented by a commoner, could you?"

Hubert would have laughed, if he had the breath for it. Instead he merely stared at her in confusion. "Where in Cichol's cursed name did you get that idea?"

"Come on, Hubie. We both know I'm the best dancer in our class. And you come to me with the flimsiest of excuses for why I wasn't chosen? That you need me to concentrate on learning magic? Dancing is a magic class! There is no reason I couldn't do both." Furious tears were pooling in her eyes, threatening to spill. "I'm not an idiot, Hubie. I know there are plenty of people who think I don't deserve to be here. And maybe that would be enough to sully our house's reputation, having someone like me represent us. I just thought you and Edie were above that sort of thing."

Hubert tried to work out where exactly this situation had gone horribly wrong and saw that he'd mishandled it from the start. He should have seen how this would look to her. He straightened his jacket and laced his hands behind his back, feeling that he owed her at least some proper manners. "On the contrary, the thought of watching you outmatch those pitiful nobles and inflict upon them the shame of failure that they have too rarely encountered in their wretched lives fills me with a joy that I rarely know. Yes, you are in every sense the ideal candidate for this competition, and the Black Eagles would be proud to have you represent us. Not despite your origins. Your unique experience is exactly what makes you so adept at what you do. You know what it is to hone your skill for professional use, not as some parlor trick. It was not I who argued against your candidacy, nor was it Lady Edelgard. It was the professor's preference."

Dorothea processed this quietly, her green eyes fixed on something behind him, her arms crossed defensively. "I really thought they believed in me more than that."

"They do," Hubert said flatly, not wishing to obscure the message with what might seem to be insincere reassurance. "Enough to ensure that you do not deviate from your aspirations. Dorothea, why exactly did you come to the officer's academy? Gaining admission while working full time as a Songstress could not have been an easy task."

Dorothea sniffled, giving a dismissive shrug. "Oh, you know. A school filled with Fodlan's wealthiest young noble bachelors? How could I pass up an opportunity like that?"

Hubert rested his chin on his palm, letting his gaze drift to the tall, sun-dappled grass outside the door. "If that is your goal, then it's certainly not the worst plan for going about it. In fact, I would call it downright shrewd. But of course, the fact that you would also be learning skills here that could be used in any number of positions in the future must have crossed your mind. A backup plan, as it were."

Dorothea snorted, though it came out more as a sniffle. "I mean, what gal wouldn't want to learn how to strike a guy with lightning whenever he gets a bit handsy?"

"Indeed, but you could have learned that in Enbarr. There are other schools, easier schools to access." Dorothea said nothing, impulsively reaching to fix her long hair, as if it were ever anything less than perfectly coiled about her shoulders. Hubert persisted. "I have read your application."

Her gaze snapped back to him, wide-eyed. "But that's--"

"Highly confidential, of course. I don't trust just anyone to have such free access to Lady Edelgard. I need to know just who is sitting behind her chair every day." It had not, in fact, been a remotely easy task to gain access to the academy's records. Hubert was still trying to puzzle out where the bishops hid their archives. Fortunately, Professor Byleth was not quite so paranoid about the files they were given, and so he had managed to leaf through the documentation on the Black Eagles. Would that the other two professors could give him such ready access to their own classes.

"It's also very rude," Dorothea muttered.

"I do not tend to concern myself with what is polite." Hubert felt a faint smirk tug at his lips. "Quite an impressive application, actually. Your test scores were average, but your essays were most engaging. You have a practicality that many others lack. You do not allow the big picture, as it were, to blind you to facts. You have valuable insights that our class needs."

Dorothea flushed, looking away from him. For someone who seemed to thrive on attention, she did not seem to know what to do with this sort of praise. She sighed impatiently. "Is there a point to all of this, or are you just heaping compliments on me so I'll drop it?"

"My point, Dorothea, is that you did not come to the officer's academy just to be a Songstress by a different name. The professor fears that making you a Dancer would send a signal that you are valued only for your appearance. That it would lead you to limit yourself. Frankly, I would be inclined to disagree, had I not seen you in action."

"They said that?" Her voice hitched a bit when she said it.

"That is what they told me. That they want to see you succeed as a gremory, a class that very few ever manage to achieve. Though I do not agree with our professor on every front, their instincts on our class composition have been largely accurate. Do not think I haven't noticed you studying the chapter on Meteor, a spell so complex that I doubt even Linhardt would be bothered to learn it."

She gave him a startled glance, but did not deny it.

Hubert nodded to her. "So I ask you again: why did you come to the officer's academy? If you are happy remaining as a Songstress, if you would be satisfied only to become a Dancer and nothing else, then I will gladly end this farce and accompany you to persuade Professor Byleth to change their mind. But if you came here to prove something, as I suspect you did, then I would be remiss to allow you to make such a sacrifice."

Her eyebrows arched disbelievingly. "Hubie, that almost sounded generous of you."

He chuckled. "Lest you mistake my actions for kindness, allow me to remind you that I seek only to ensure that Lady Edelgard's people are maximizing their potential."

"Right, of course. You could not possibly be trying to help your friends achieve their dreams the way you're always talking about helping Edie with hers." She was smiling now, even as she wiped at the corner of her eye with her sleeve. "To answer your question, I... I don't know if I have just one answer for you. But I do know that I have been around simpering nobles my whole life. And I would give just about anything for the chance to wipe the smile off their faces. And beating them at their own game? Learning the spells that all their fancy tutors and expensive libraries couldn't teach them? I'd like that very much."

Hubert smirked in triumph, and offered her a low bow. A proper bow, the likes of which he normally reserved only for Edelgard. "Then, Miss Arnault, I suggest a trade. I will help you reach your goal if you help me reach mine. Teach me to survive this blasted competition and I promise that all I know of magic is at your disposal."

Dorothea laughed. "Okay, okay, no need to turn this into the opening of an epic drama. Though... hmm. I think I have an idea of how we're going to present you now. You are actually quite charming in your own way, Hubie. There's no reason to try to cover it up with a fake smile."

Now it was Hubert's turn for skepticism. "Somehow I doubt there is much charm for you to find."

Dorothea waved him off. "Oh hush, you'll see what I mean soon enough. Anyway, we're focusing on your stance right now. Here, take my hand." She stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder and held out the other for him to hold.

He surveyed her in confusion. "Does the contest not require each contestant to be performing alone?"

Dorothea huffed. "Yes, despite the waltz being a couple's dance. It's a silly requirement, really. But right now you're letting your nerves get in the way of your movement. You need to stop being so embarrassed about me watching you. So let's take out the audience factor entirely. There is nobody left to watch if we're both participating, right?"

Hubert sighed as his gloved hand took hers, the other resting lightly on her waist. "Perceptive, as ever."

She grinned up at him. "That's why I'm your teacher. Now, you lead. Teach me to waltz as though it's my first time. I'm a lowly commoner who's never been allowed to join in on such a high class dance before."

Hubert chuckled at her, pulling them into a slow, steady rhythm. Dorothea followed smoothly, exposing her lie for what it was. "Does that work on the brainless nobles you seduce? Pretending to be clueless?"

"Some of them." She smirked, unapologetic. It was harder to match each other's steps without music, but Dorothea was a professional. She adjusted to Hubert's pace, reading his body language well enough to anticipate his steps. "Good. Loosen your grip on my hand a bit. You're directing me, not pulling me like a dog on a leash."

"Quite the analogy."

Her head quirked in an approximation of a shrug. "You'd be surprised how necessary that comparison is. Far too many noblemen can't tell the difference."

"Not as surprised as you might think." He complied with her instruction, letting her hand simply rest in his rather than gripping it.

"Better, but you're still too rigid. You're worrying too much about what I'm doing. Dancing with someone is about trust. Which I know is in short supply with you."

"What gave you that impression?" Hubert tried not to stare down at her feet, certain that he was about to tread on her toes.

"I can't believe I have to tell you this, but my eyes are up here." She laughed at his startled look. "Trust, Hubie! You need to trust me that I know how to keep up with you. And you need to trust yourself. You know these steps, right?"

Hubert studiously kept his eyes on hers, realized his hand had tightened around hers again, and pointedly loosened it. "Knowing and doing are not the same."

Dorothea sighed. "Alright, stop. New plan. I'm cashing in that magic lesson right now."

Hubert let his hands fall away from hers as she stepped back, and tried very hard to keep pace with Dorothea's shifting moods. "I did not realize you were in such a hurry to learn."

"I am now. The wall makes a good enough target, right?" She moved to stand beside him so that they both faced the same direction, with only a wall of bare brickwork ahead of them. "So? What's the most basic Dark magic you know? What's the spell you can cast in your sleep?"

Hubert regarded her. "You are aware that Dark magic and Black magic are quite different, I'm sure. Black magic utilizes the elements, while Dark magic draws on something more internal and primal."

Dorothea sighed impatiently. "I have read chapter one of the textbook, yes, thank you Hubert. Show me anyway."

Hubert puffed out a breath. At least this would be a respite from his stumbling around. "Alright. The simplest Dark attack is Miasma Δ. It goes like this." It was easy. So easy to gather the dark magic in his chest. To draw his hand across his body as he muttered the incantation, feeling the cold sting of power spreading its tendrils down the length of his arm. To flick his fingers outward just as the magic reached them, casually lobbing a sphere of crackling darkness at the bare wall. The impact resonated with the magic's hollow sound, leaving a blackened scorch mark on the bricks. How strange that trying to dance had felt like wading through waist-deep mud, but casting this spell felt like stepping back onto dry land, as light and easy as walking on a summer day.

"Hmm." Dorothea experimentally moved her hand across her chest. "Like this?"

"Palm inward. Arm parallel with the floor." He reached over and tilted her elbow up a few degrees. "You want to draw the magic in toward your hand before you expel it. If you allow your arm to droop, you risk casting at the floor rather than at your target."

Dorothea imitated his movements, right down to a small flourish in her wrist that, strictly speaking, was not a necessary addition to the spell, but that Hubert habitually added on principle. "And your feet? Do you step forward with your right or your left?"

"Always lead with your casting side."

"Right. Of course." She practiced the motions again. Hand across the chest, elbow out, step forward, flick of the wrist. Again and again she repeated the steps, imitating him perfectly without the actual orb of magical darkness firing from her hand. And then she tried it again using the other hand.

"Dorothea, what are you doing?"

Dorothea flicked one hand in front of herself and then another. "What's it look like?"

Hubert crossed his arms. "It looks like you are being very smug."

She grinned, but did not stop her impromptu dance routine, working in much more hip sway than the original spell called for. "Don't I have a right to be? I'm finding all your secrets, Hubie."

He could not help the amused smirk that crossed his face. "I very much doubt that."

"Well I've found one, anyway. You are a good dancer when you're not getting in the way of yourself. We just have to draw it out of you. What is spellcasting other than a very precise dance routine with a purpose?" She did a careless twirl, her hair fanning out around her. It looked so effortless.

"Ah yes, deadly magical force is naught but prancing about." Hubert watched as Dorothea spun the movements he had taught her into an intricate routine that grew with each new iteration. Here he was, betrayed by his own lesson.

She came to a standstill, grinning in triumph. Whereas Hubert felt bedraggled and exhausted by dance, she looked invigorated, her peach skin glistening radiantly. "From now on, we'll warm up our sessions with a magic lesson. It's something you're already confident in, so it'll get you into the mindset you need. Come on now, let's get back to it. We've got lots of time yet before the sun goes down."

Hubert groaned, casting his eyes up at the treacherously clear blue sky, still shining bright with the low evening sun. If only he believed in the Goddess, he might be tempted to beg her to nudge it towards the horizon just a bit faster.

[shypotato-translations]

QTVW Chapter 23

Showbiz* Sexy Queen (X)

----

In the end, it was Ling Tianye who came to the rescue and opened a celebrity cocktail party on the top floor of the hotel, so the director happily took the crew to the cocktail party for a meal.

The crowd: "......" really shouldn't have any hope for the world's most stingy director.

The crowd moved on to the location and once they had taken the lift to the top floor, they were greeted with a wide selection of fine food on one side;

On the other side, an elegant international art orchestra plays music that is bright and pleasing to the ears.

The guests at the reception, who were all dressed in evening gowns, were a little uncomfortable with the casual clothes they were wearing, but when they looked at the calmness of the director's face, they immediately discarded the image and went on to do other things.

Mei Mu Lan walked to the food area, picked up a plate, forked a piece of cake and ate it slowly. She was acting like she was taking advantage of the situation, but she just wanted to be angry with the director. After she crossed over to this world, she ate almost every meal with good taste and high prices.

She was wearing a close-fitting knee-length dress at the moment, her face unpowdered, eating cake slowly and gracefully, only so lightly, but attracting the attention of many, many people at the reception.

Unconcerned by the looks of these people, she turned to lean against the wall and watched Bai Jieying, led by Ling Tianye, meet many flamboyant people, who she had been paying divided attention to for the past six months, finding a few usable points of information between the signs and traces.

For one thing, this traveler is such a superb actress that it is obvious that she is either an actress or in a special profession;

Secondly, the traveler has a strong taste for the world and is able to play with all kinds of men; her background should not be pure;

Thirdly, the traveler has refined tastes and can be seen to have been educated in relevant areas;

Fourthly, the traveler is well-handled and is able to do it all on her own when she is in the cast and acting in martial arts scenes.

In summary, Mei Mu Lan has a few guesses as to the identity of this traveler, but as to her exact identity, she will have to wait to continue to observe for some time before she can come to a conclusion.

As for the "hidden task - solving the travelers" in the system, Mei Mu Lan thought of murdering her.

But if it were really that simple, the Virtual Time Master System would not need, at all, to set up administrators like her to enter the virtual world and perform tasks.

The hidden mission, solving the travelers, should have a deeper meaning. She just didn't understand it yet, so she couldn't do anything rash at the moment, she had to wait until she, herself, understood the true meaning of the mission before she could do anything to solve it.

As Mei Mu Lan thought of this, her thoughts once again came to a standstill and she shook her head off, her gaze falling on Ling Yi Yao.

The film 《The Burial Man》was finished, and according to her plan, it was time to move next, Mei Mu Lan thought to herself: The first thing I need to do is pack my bags tonight and move there early tomorrow morning. According to the plot, Ling Yi Yao has already moved into this villa, so she must make some big noise to get Ling Yi Yao's attention for this move.

So thinking, she suddenly remembered Father Mei. That said, during the time she stayed at home, the original owner's father had been away.

The butler once overheard that Father Mei was going to participate in a large auction in Europe for six months, so she guess he would be going home in the next two days.

In fact, Mei Mu Lan does not hate this man, Father Mei is still a wise and fair man in many ways, except that he insisted on marrying this childhood friend.

But he was a shrewd man with a sharp mind, and as mentioned in the novel, after the original owner's death, Father Mei aged by more than ten years in an instant, and he really had feelings for the original owner. And immediately after the original owner's funeral, he handed over all the big and small affairs of the Mei family to the Mei butler to handle, and on the same day, he announced the news that the Mei butler had become the new patriarch of the Mei family.

Even when her stepmother pleads, he does not change his mind, showing that he does not let his feelings sway his mind.

In that case, Father Mei was still worth getting close to, Mei Mulan thought, and perhaps she could talk to him when he returned.

The accidental death of the original owner's mother, the death of the original owner in an 'accidental' car accident, and the fact that Mei Mu Lan does not mention it does not mean that she has forgotten about it.

After observing her stepmother, she came to the conclusion that the original owner's mother's death, the original owner's death by poisoning, and her stepmother, should have nothing to do with each other. Because the stepmother was a rather idiotic person, with little intelligence or fighting ability, and only had a mouth that didn't allow people to get away with it, such a person was the easiest to deal with. Of course, we can't rule out that it was the stepmother who acted too well and fooled her.

So, assuming it wasn't the stepmother, why was the original owner poisoned at the college graduation party? And why was the car destroyed?

This poisoner must have known the original owner's temperament well enough to know that the original owner would drive onto the highway and look for Ling Yi Yao after she had lost her mind in a drunken stupor.

Mei Mu Lan searched around among the people the original owner knew, but in the end, she still couldn't get a clue.

Everything is hidden in the darkness, dimly lit.

Mei Mu Lan could only sip her wine helplessly and focus her attention on the reception.

Her eyes casually scanning the entire venue, then she felt a blazing sight and she frowned as she looked over to see a woman with semi-long hair and an elegant tight black dress, picking up a glass of wine and walking over.

This woman, with her pale skin against the black dress, is as fair as can be.

The eyes are dark, extremely dark, and give an eerie sense of dread when looking at people.

She looks like she is in her forties, but her wrinkle-free face makes her look as if she is in her twenties again.

A peculiar woman, Mei Mu Lan defined.

This woman walked over, strong emotions welling up in her deep dark eyes. She approached slowly, her posture elegant, and she spoke, her voice husky like a man's, as she said,

"Mu Lan, hello."

Mei Mu Lan showed a puzzled expression and asked,

"Who are you ......? I haven't seen you before."

The woman smiled lightly, a deep dimple at the corner of her mouth, looking playful and cute, making it even more impossible for Mei Mu Lan to tell the person's age.

She continued hoarsely,

"I'm a friend of your mother's, I've lived in America before and only returned a few days ago, you look a lot like your mother, is she okay now?"

It turned out to be a friend of the original owner's mother, and it dawned on her,

"Hello auntie, my mother, she, passed away four years ago."

The woman's face was stunned for a moment, then the smile on her face deepened as she let out a feigned sigh and suddenly asked an unrelated question as she said,

"Is Wen Xueluo okay now?"

Wen Xueluo is Aunt Wen, it seems they all know each other, Mei Mu Lan doesn't like this woman much, so she drops her eyebrows and says in a nonchalant tone,

"Aunt Wen is very nice and looks ...... very young."

The woman froze again, then she smiled even more and said,

"You're funny, you're much better than your mother, first time we've met, introductions, I'm Seven, you can call me Miss S."

This time it was Mei Mu Lan's turn to freeze, Miss S?!

Of course Mei Mu Lan knows Miss S. This lady, the writer and screenwriter of 《Love in a Fallen City》, a long-time overseas patriot, a well-known writer specializing in fringe literature, domestic and international, the most awarded female author of literary awards.

She smiled deeply and said,

"I have long admired Miss S' name, but I didn't expect you to be my mother's friend.”

Miss S hooked her lips into a smile, her originally ordinary and common appearance actually had a seductive charm after she smiled lightly and deeply like this.

She moved closer, leaning close to Mei Mu Lan, she exhaled softly, her nostrils blazing, hitting Mei Mu Lan's neck as she said,

"We will meet again, and when we do, I look forward to it, you will lie in my *** and be naked with me."

Mei Mu Lan had black lines, but on this occasion she couldn't push her away, she could only take a step back herself and lean against the wall, she teased,

"Auntie, being so old, this kind of thing is not for you anymore, be careful of twisting your old back."

Miss S laughed merrily, then took a step back and turned to walk away, and by the time she had taken five steps away, she turned back and said,

"Tsk, Mu Lan, take a word of advice from your aunt and watch out for Wen Xueluo! Haha, I''ll see you in a month."

Mei Mu Lan was stunned and turned to think: this mission world is really a universal yuri, did she have an accepting face? How come everyone likes to be imposing and talk in her ear.

By the way, why didn't Ling Yi Yao do that, she was looking forward to it, ah. She resentfully searched for Ling Yi Yao's back, but after searching for a long time, she couldn't find her, and she wondered, when did this woman leave? Strange.

Early the next morning, Mei Mu Lan left the Mei family's home with her luggage, rounded off with the keys to her new villa, and drove to the Jiangnan Town area.

She was halfway down the road when she started honking her car horn in defiance of her image, and it's a good thing the villas in the area hadn't been sold yet, or someone would have sued her for disturbing the public.

Two minutes after she pressed the button, a security guard appeared in front of her car as if he had fallen from the sky and raised his hand to stop her,

"Please keep quiet. Civilisation depends on you, on me, on everyone."

Mei Mu Lan: "......" This odd security guard, where did you find him.

Mei Mu Lan swept her eyes around and found that the villa just two metres behind her was Ling Yi Yao's residence, and two metres in front of her, was her residence.

So she blinked and discharged,

"Uncle Security, I can't find my villa, can you take me there?"

The guard grimaced and replied,

"I'm sorry, I'm only 19 years old and I can't be your uncle. Also, I'm only responsible for the safety of the residents, not the part of giving directions."

Mei Mu Lan: "......"

Mei Mu Lan blinked, took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, opened the car door, stepped out of the car and said,

“I know, I was blinded just now, so this house is my villa, well, I found it, now you are not needed here."

The security guard, with a paralyzed face, said,

"Excuse me, please park your car in a fixed position and do not obstruct the passage of others, thank you for your cooperation."

Mei Mu Lan: "......"

Ling Yi Yao, who was leaning against the window watching: "......" suddenly felt like the sun was shining and the birds were singing, and the mood was so relaxing.

As she faced Mei Mu Lan speechless and a thousand times over, the scene dropped off and actually looked so amusing. Maybe she could call the head of Jiangnan Town today and ask him to arrange for this little security guard to be promoted.

Mei Mu Lan drove into the garage with a wooden face, and it was only when she stepped out of the garage and into the courtyard of the villa that the security guard left at ease.

Mei Mu Lan: "......" What is this indescribable feeling of fuckery? Can I call and complain to the person in charge of Jiangnan Town about the replacement?

Anyway, now that she is living next door to Ling Yi Yao, she will wait until the evening to take the neighbourhood love dessert and go over and fake-slut (really seduce), her future neighbour for good.

With this in mind, Mei Mu Lan revived from the spot and opened the door with the key in high spirits.

Ling Yi Yao, "Suddenly I feel so cold, the weather has cooled down? It's just March now, strange."

As night fell, Mei Mu Lan put on a light trench coat, carrying a plate of cupcakes, and walked to the door of Ling Yi Yao's villa. After she straightened her face to ensure that her facial muscles could perfectly portray her mood, she knocked regularly on the door**, and then the door opened, and Ling Yi Yao, wearing a short shirt and grey jeans, opened the door, with an expression on her face that said: You've finally come.

There are a few meaningful moments of looking beyond the horizon.

Mei Mu Lan immediately showed herself stunned, shocked, jolted, and then haughty with a smile as she said, "...... Hey, don't go." You haven't seen my expression, it's a waste of acting.

The moment Ling Yi Yao opened the door, she turned and walked away, leaving a forlorn Mei Mu Lan shivering at the door.

Ling Yi Yao walked over to the sofa and sat down, pointed to the sofa opposite and said,

"Close the door and come and sit down."

Mei Mu Lan immediately doggedly closed the door and pounced ...... on her.

Ling Yi Yao looked at her, narrowing her eyes with such a hint of danger as she asked in a slow and profound tone,

"Why are you, sitting, on, my lap."

That's right, what was happening was that Mei Mu Lan, without any delay, pounced on Ling Yi Yao's body, her thighs pressed against her thighs, their chests against their chests, their noses against their noses.

Mei Mu Lan covered her face with a shy face and said,

"Oh, nasty, it was you who said you wanted me to sit over here, so I sat over here."

Ling Yi Yao: "......"

Ling Yi Yao picked up Mei Mu Lan with one hand, opened the door of the room while the other party was still imagining various plays, and threw her out with one hand.

Mei Mu Lan: "......" This is too fierce, isn't it?

It was Mei Mu Lan who wrote on Weibo that night: My goddess is a little arrogant and a little violent, tossing people around and sweating profusely, and they are now aching all over.

She is looking forward to the expression on Ling Yi Yao's face when she sees this tweet one day in the future, it must be very emotional.

For the rest of the day, it was a daily routine of Mei Mu Lan to go to Ling Yi Yao's house, then within five minutes, she was thrown out again by Ling Yi Yao with one hand, then she went to Ling Yi Yao's house again, then was thrown out again.

The days were very sweet and kudos must be given.

Then one afternoon, Mei Mu Lan, who was planning to clean herself up and have her mind in various plays, received a call from Miss S.

[scriptaed]

his side, her side | 7:10 P.M.

genre: angst/fluff/implied smut; (bold = genre for this particular drabble)

pairing: reader x jungkook;

length: 2.7k;

synopsis: a collective snapshots in time shared between two, whose fates were undeniably intertwined and futures would never come to be.

a/n: this is not a chronological series; more so, his side her side is a collection of drabbles in which each drabble helps paint the overall picture. each drabble can be read separately without having read the others. // alternatively: his side, her side pt. 5;

her side;

“So are you attending next week’s Q&A?” 

Jungkook’s aloof reputation is no secret to anyone. This observation has only been exacerbated ever since you had been paired up with him for an overtime project, especially considering that your own detached demeanor was what had landed you a spot right next to that of his own in the first place. After months of working closely with this infamously stoic albeit deathly dashing colleague, you’ve come to acknowledge his one redeeming quality: this boy might not have the best work ethic amongst your colleagues and he really does not give, in his own words, “one shit” about work, but he is willing to invest the least amount of hours in order to avoid a big fat “fired” on his resume.

And that’s when you start wondering, regardless of how “little of a crap” someone gives about others’ opinions, no one would be willing to attend a work-related-turned-social event without an equally sadistic friend… right? So, as his partner at work and one of his few colleagues that he actually interacts with, it would only be natural for your curiosity to be piqued, right…? At least that’s what you’ve been trying to tell yourself lately to keep you asleep at night. 

“Are you?” Jungkook answers your question with another in the classic Jeon Jungkook fashion. 

Still, you can’t help but pause in an odd sense of admiration over the deep cut of his voice amid the frosty winter air. Low, groggy, rough, it’s almost as if he had just awakened from his weekly nap after gym or perhaps even throughout the workshop session. Some might have found it ditsy, some might have even found it embarrassing, particularly the pair of colleagues who had made a joke out of your partner, but you find it endearing… maybe a bit dorky, but mostly endearing, because that’s what’s so different about Jungkook. 

“Uhhh, I don’t know,” you shrug. “I guess I’ll ask my friends if they’re going and decide from there.” 

On the outside, you and Jungkook have your fair share of differences. To others, you’re the outgoing one often found laughing in the corner, despite keeping to your circle of friends. Jungkook, on the other hand, is reclusive and, more often than not, found in the other corner of the room with the one colleague he considers a friend. The more you spend your Tuesday evenings working overtime with Jungkook, however, the more the gaping similarities stand out to you. 

Sure, you have a wider range of peers at work, but none of them are as close to you as your friends at home. Still, you’d rather make friends out of your daily acquaintances than enemies. It isn’t that you’re fake per se… it’s just that you never clicked with them. It’s ironic how the friends whom you’ve spent the last two years with are the ones most distant in your circle, while someone you just started to interact with in the past months has already been one of the few to know the real you; because somehow at some point in time, you’ve noticed how much more real you feel around your partner Jungkook. Maybe he doesn’t realize it, but you two definitely share more similarities than differences. 

And as much of an indifferent persona Jungkook put on at work, you have to wonder if he ever felt the same around you as you did around him?  

“Oh,” he answers, pausing before adding, “you mean Yezi?” 

Wait a minute, you ponder internally whilst turning to look at him in slight bewilderment, he knows you’re friends with Yezi? The only way he would ever know that is if he had noticed you from afar throughout the past two years… so the fact that he’s aware of whom you keep in your circle of friends must mean he had taken note of you to some extent, right?  

Well, for now, the only fact you can surmise is how silly you feel having just over-analyzed his simple question… not to mention the way your heart races with an unfounded exhilaration. 

“Yeah,” you nod and clear your throat in fear of having catalyzed a dead end to the conversation, “I-uh-I heard Q&A is actually really helpful. Aaaand considering how you’ve been doing on monthly evaluations, maaaybe you should go?”

“Woooow,” he gawks at you—it’s the most exaggerated expression he’s ever adorned in front of you and it’s most certainly a playful one feigned as offense, but something about having elicited such a reaction from a usually apathetic boy makes you prouder than anything in a long while. “You really had to call me out like that?” 

“I don’t know,” you sing-song with a grin stretching from ear-to-ear and a voice rising just like the high building in your chest, “maybe some time off of Fortnite might help you.” 

“Whaaat? You’re saying I have to work at work?” he drawls. 

“Maybe, just maybe,” you giggle to your heart’s delight, but his softer chuckle and the silence that follows have you regretting just how loudly you had laughed. It wasn’t really that funny, huh? 

Thankfully, your slight embarrassment is short-lived before it’s replaced by a dejection that settles in your chest when you notice the next block approaching. To your disappointment, this intersection would usually signal the end of your weekly, ephemeral conversation. Usually, you would bid your casual goodbyes as you watch him walk off in the opposite direction and he only utters a cool “see ya later” before heading off to his car in the parking lot. Tonight, however, and to your pleasant surprise, the boy crosses the street with you. 

“Hey, don’t you usually park over there?” you question when he opts out of providing an explanation. 

The boy continues to stroll through the dimly lit sidewalk with you, “I’m heading to the gym now.” 

Doesn’t he usually gym before workshop? His sudden change in routine has you and your usual shrewd self intrigued, but all you can manage to mutter is a short “oh,” as the two of you prolong your fleeting, shared moment. It wouldn’t have been a big deal to ask him why he had changed his plans, yet a part of you feels reluctant enough to overpower the curious side of you. Maybe it’s the desire to spend these precious minutes on more exciting topics outside of work, or perhaps you would like to retain this fantasy of yours that maybe, just maybe, he, too, searches for an excuse to extend these ephemeral conversations? 

Ultimately, it doesn’t really matter how his detour had gained five extra minutes for the two of you, because time passes by in the blink of an eye when you’re genuinely enjoying yourself. Maybe Jungkook wouldn’t say the same, maybe these five minutes are nothing but a burden to him, and maybe he’ll start parking in his usual spot again next week, but you would rather not dwell on it. Why? It’s a natural defense mechanism. 

“You live across that bridge?”

“Huh?” you say, dumbfounded that he had actually remembered something you had told him during your first real conversation with him. Turning to face him and squinting in the direction of the gym that outpours a warm, golden light which outlines his silhouette and casts shadows onto his profile,  you find yourself stuttering in bewilderment. “Oh, uh, yeah.”

“So you gonna run now?” he quips with the cockiest of quirked grins. 

This shithead is teasing you over a genuine fear you had shared with him months ago, isn’t he?

A quick scan at the jet black skies bedazzled by glittering stars that loom over you two is all that precedes before you reply with a meek, “...maybe.” 

“Better get going then,” Jungkook smirks with his hands in his pockets as he starts taking a few steps backwards toward the gym but never unlocking his gaze from yours. 

You should have been irked, you should have responded with your own clever retort against his teases, but all you can do is stare at him silence with that stupid, cheeky grin of yours, because maybe you had just discovered the true reason behind his detour tonight and the remainder of your shared weeks. You can hear him calling out to you in that smug tone of his even as you begin your trek over the bridge and you can’t help smile even wider. 

“Hey Y/N, try not to get mugged!”

You know it’s more than you should ask for or even expect, yet you still wish he would completely follow through and cross the bridge with you; but if your theory is correct and you’ve truly unpeeled a second layer of this enigma that is Jeon Jungkook, then you think you’ve found yet another reason as to why you had fell so hard. 

-

his side;

“So are you attending next week’s Q&A?” 

Before he really got to know her, Jungkook had been under the impression that Y/N was just another good girl at work. He’s always seen her as the bubbly gal with the diligence and work ethic of a model employee, especially when compared to his own. It isn’t really a bad thing—Jungkook would never belittle others like that, unless narcissism was in the equation—but it’s always been the one noticeable gap between the two. 

“Are you?”

Of course she is, he figures, yet he answers the question with another for the sake of conversation. 

Within the short timespan of the last few months, however, Jungkook has come to acknowledge the fact that Y/N really isn’t as much of an open book as he had once thought.  To a certain extent, she’s become somewhat of an enigma to Jungkook. Y/N has always been surrounded by at least one friend or two regardless of when or where he bumps into her—which occurs enough times for even an unobservant boy like Jungkook—so the empty spot beside her on the first day of the workshop came as a surprise to him. It only took one real icebreaker of a conversation for him to recognize that this girl, in fact, is anything but a bookworm. 

“Uhhh, I don’t know,” she shrugs and Jungkook subtly glimpses at her in surprise. “I guess I’ll ask my friends if they’re going and decide from there.” 

She always answers his questions—which are certainly much more elaborate than his to hers—but she never gives herself all away. Maybe it’s the repercussions of working overtime, but it surprises him to observe the frown she wears paired with a stoic demeanor whenever he’s around her. The most confusing—or rather, amusing—factor of it all is in those occasional moments when she bursts out laughing with a profuse, genuine joy after hearing one of his rare jokes. Why do those moments outshine the dull smiles he often spots her adorning around at work? 

In other words, why does she appear much more like Y/N—or at least the Y/N he knows—around him than around her close friends? That is the last puzzle piece of hers that he just can’t quite figure out. 

“Oh,” he answers, pausing to recall the name of the girl he would often spot by Y/N’s side, “you mean Yezi?” 

Jungkook isn’t exactly the most likely person to intermingle with his colleagues; but he’s always had the decency to at least learn their names… whether or not they know of his name, however, he doesn’t give two shits. He never really talked to Yezi after that one icebreaker he was forced to partake in during orientation, but he always noticed her strolling through work with her elbow attached to Y/N’s.

“Yeah,” he sees her nodding her head through the corner of his eyes, “I-uh-I heard Q&A is actually really helpful. Aaaand considering how you’ve been doing on monthly evaluations, maaaybe you should go?”

There it is, her constant teasing that has somehow become a normal dynamic between him and her. He would have laughed it off with a chuckle if it were anyone else, yet he decides to play along because heck why not? 

“Woooow,” his gawk blends with his cocked grin, “you really had to call me out like that?” 

“I don’t know,” she sings with the smile that has him confused to no ends, voice rising and lips stretching ear-to-ear like that of a jubilant child, “maybe some time off of Fortnite might help you.” 

There she goes again, insulting his almighty, favorite pastime. The disrespect.

“Whaaat?” he opts out of defending his hobby for whatever reason. “You’re saying I have to work at work?”

“Maybe, just maybe.” 

He can tell her giggles are a genuine manifestation of her filled heart and he can’t help the chuckle that befalls his lips. It isn’t exactly that funny to him, but he doesn’t mind being teased if it means she could be as seemingly carefree as she does now. In fact, he finds an odd sense of amusement over the satisfaction she seems to garner through her teases against him. 

He must have been really funny to her, huh? 

“Hey, don’t you usually park over there?” 

There it is, yet another element of his partner’s that takes him by surprise. Jungkook didn’t anticipate for her to notice his usual location of departure, although any other normal person would have done otherwise, so he assumed she wouldn’t notice his change in locations tonight either. She might have been the reason behind this change, but it isn’t exactly something he wants to flaunt nor explain. 

After witnessing the genuine fear underlining the mask of what she only wanted to pass on as a joke, he surmised that it was only reasonable for a girl like Y/N to fear crossing a dodgy bridge in a pitch black night. It really only took a minute or two after that conversation for Jungkook to decide on a schedule change that would accommodate the newfound revelation. Gym after workshop would be fine and he could get in more sleep before workshop. He doesn’t want any praises or favors. He just did it because it felt like the right, decent thing to do for his partner. 

Plus, an additional five minutes of conversation doesn’t sound too bad. 

“I’m heading to the gym now.”

Thankfully, Y/N doesn’t press him further for an explanation—which, judging from the curious impression he had of Y/N, is surprising—nonetheless, he figures it comes as much more of a relief than anything when they reach a gym that sits a short distance off a street across from the bridge. 

Jungkook breaks the silence as he turns to face her with his back on the gym entrance, “you live across that bridge?” 

“Huh?” she utters, turning to face him. “Oh, uh, yeah.”

The trace of bewilderment plastered across her face is evident to even a dense person like Jungkook. Initially, he had fallen under the impression that he would like to avoid any sense of gratitude from Y/N—and he still does—but something about the way her eyes light up, as if reaching an epiphany, has him patting himself on the back…

...and he wonders, has she realized the intentions behind his gesture tonight? 

“So you gonna run now?” 

He can’t help but grin.  

The girl scans the darkened skies that she had mentioned as her one nemesis just weeks prior, before replying with a meek, “...maybe.” 

That cheeky grin of hers is enough for him to know his job here is done. 

“Better get going then,” Jungkook chuckles under his breath and sticks his hands into the pockets of his gym shorts. He starts backing up toward the gym but, for whatever reason, his gaze never budges from her darkened silhouette that proceeds down the street off in the distance. It would have been odd for him to follow her along the bridge—because it isn’t like he’s her boyfriend or bodyguard—but he would like to see his intentions through to the end. The least he could do is to ensure you make it across the bridge in one piece. 

Is he being too kind? Will she start expecting much more of him if she discovers his intentions? The thought irks Jungkook, so just as she starts her trek over the bridge, he decides to return the teasing she had initiated just minutes prior. 

“Hey Y/N, try not to get mugged!”

And when she whirls around at the sound of his voice only to flash him a scowl, Jungkook finally realizes just why Y/N finds so much joy in teasing him because he, too, finds an equal sense of pride in evoking such a response out of his enigma of a partner. 

[amongtheshadowandlight]

In Twilight: Chapter 5 of ?

Chapter Five:  A choice of Regret

The room was...underwhelming.

It was rather bare for a room in a wondrous castle, outfitted with nothing but a simple bed and desk, a lit fireplace to the right of the room. None of the giant paintings she had heard of, a four poster bed and grand wardrobes. It felt like no more than her bedroom back home. |

What caught Ombretta's eyes was the cloaked figure standing by the far side of the room, staring out of the wide window. They slowly approached the figure, a growl escaping Link as they got closer. The cloaked stranger turned around with a small gasp, the only thing showing was the lower part of their face. 

"...Midna?" The stranger asked, the light voice sounding familiar to Ombretta, as if she knew them or rather her.

"You remember my name?" Midna giggled out. "What an honor for me."

The cloaked stranger looked down, "So, this is the one whom you were searching."

"He's not exactly what I had in mind....but he'll do. And then some."

The stranger looked back up and towards Ombretta, who shifted slightly in her spot. The gaze bored into her deeply. "How strange..."

Why is everyone saying that towards me?

She finally moved her gaze away, lowering herself to Link's level, in what Ombretta could only think was to get a closer look. "You were imprisoned?"

"Both of us were." Ombretta finally spoke up, lowering herself to their level as well, holding out her still cuffed wrist in view, hiding the grimace of the metal rubbing into her skin uncomfortably.

"I am sorry."

"Poor things." Midna cooed. "They have no idea where this is or what's happened. So, don't you think you should explain to them what you managed to do...?" Midna leaned back slightly in a stretch. "You owe them that much...Twilight Princess."

The stranger shrunk her shoulders slightly, almost like she was carrying a weight on top of them. "Listen carefully...this was once the place where the power of the gods was said to slumber. This was once the Kingdom of Hyrule. But that blessed kingdom has been transformed by the king that rules the twilight...it has been turned into a world of shadows, ruled by creatures that stun the light..."

It was quick. Quicker than anything that has been dealt with before. How quickly the shadowing fog filled the room, the light blotching out instantly. Hearts pounding as seconds dragged on, guards standing in formation, waiting on what, no one knew.

The chaos was swift to follow. Monsters of a grotesque form came from the fog, their screeches deafening to all who could hear it. The guards' cries added to the mix as they ran to them, to their duty of protection, not only for the crown, but all of Hyrule. But the fighting was in vain.

The noise ceased almost nothing, but just as deafening as bodies laid shrewd about, some struggling to move as others stayed still as stone. A sight hard to stomach, looking at the little guards left, looking for more of the assault to come. But all that came was the sound of footsteps. Footsteps of a man who gave no regard to what he had accomplished to do, what he had already destroyed. The room was at a standstill, no movement was made, as if every muscle was frozen. Then came a voice, a voice that carried out a single question, a question that brought our lives to it's knees.

"It is time for you to choose: Surrender or die."

Ombretta could do nothing but lower her head, her gazing falling to the ground. Her heart became heavy as the words floated around her, she couldn’t even imagine being left with such a decision.

"Twilight covered Hyrule like a shroud, and without the light, the people became as spirits." She continued, making Ombretta shoot her head straight back up. "Within the twilight, they live on. Unaware they have passed on into spirit forms. All the people know now is fear...fear of an nameless evil."

The stranger, now standing straight once again, turned from the window to back towards them, "the Kingdom succumbed to twilight, but I remain it's princess..." The hood was lowered, the familiar voice now matching a face. "I am Zelda."

Ombretta hastily lowered her head back into a bow.

"You don't have to look so sad!" Midna cried out, making Ombretta widen her eyes as the casualty of Midna's being. "We actually find it to be quite livable! I mean, is perpetual twilight really all that bad?"

"Midna, this is no time for levity. The shadow beasts have been searching far and wide for you. Why is this?"

Midna jumped off Link's back, floating in midair as she turned her back on the princess, shrugging her shoulders. "Why indeed, you tell me."

"Wait! Your Highness!" Ombretta stood straight, taking a step forward. "My cousin, Pendrick. He's a knight. Is he one of the ones that...?"

Princess Zelda shook her head. "I couldn't tell you, I have no means of looking at the records, if they were even in order right now."

Ombretta nodded her head and stepped back, her hands wrapping around her forearms. She didn't like that answer. An answer that burrowed itself into the pits of her stomach, churring it ruthlessly.

"Time has grown short. The guard will soon make his rounds. You must leave here. Quickly."

Midna plopped herself back onto Link's back, looking towards the door. "Come on then!" Pulling on Link's ear, she forced Link to turn, heading out the door. Giving the Princess a slight bow, she followed them, bouncing down the stairs. Her hands flew to the wall to steady herself as she skidded to a stop as they heard a door opening, barely stopping herself from stepping on Link.

"Not that way! The guard's coming, boy...he's prompt!" Midna looked around before pointing to the opening they came in before. "There!"

Ombretta waited for Link to get up to the opening that led them outside of the castle, before jumping up herself, following Link in a slow stroll as she watched Midna float off ahead of them, bouncing towards the end of the roof. Giving Link a slight shrug, Ombretta jumped down onto the roof and walked to where Midna was, the rain already beginning to soak through her clothes.

"Well, I guess a promise is a promise, so I'll take you back to where you first tumbled into the twilight...but, are you sure that you should be going back? Aren't you forgetting anything important?"

Ombretta watched in horror as Midna spun around, her form changing into the likeness of both Colin and Ilia, the yells of terror sending Ombretta's stomach down to her knees. "What happened to them!?"

"You want to save them right?" Midna asked, still in Ilia's form. "Well, in that case, little Midna will be happy to help you! But, you'd have to be my servant, and like my servant, you'll have to do exactly as I say!"

"Like hell!" Ombretta cried, her fists clenched at her sides. "I don't know about Link, but I'm not going to be your servant! We barely know you!"

"Well, why don't you two go back, take some time and give it some thought."

"Wait-!" Ombretta barely got more out as she felt her body break apart bit by bit, vision going blurry, nothing but swirls of colour.

The swirling finally stopped as she felt her body getting put back together, the yellow and black covered stone was now the clear sky of the Spirit spring. She fell back into the water, her legs being without any feeling. She could feel the water seep into her already soaked clothing, but ignored the chill it was giving her as she looked around the spring, her gaze eventually landing on Link, who was standing next to her, a quiet whine escaping him.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine, Link." Ombretta scratched behind his ear lightly. "Do you have any idea what's going on?"

"Oh! That's right. I forgot to mention something.."

Ombretta slowly rose on shaky legs as she looked around the spring, trying to find the source of the voice.

"Though you left the darkened realm, you haven't transformed back into your former self and won't anytime soon! Now, why could that be?" The laughter felt like a slap to the face, a scowl appearing on Ombretta's face as she looked down at Link, who looked just as annoyed as she did. "See you later!"

"Well...." Ombretta spoke up after a few moments of silence. "That sucks for you, huh?"

Link huffed.

"I don't know what that means, but don't give me it." With a small sigh, Ombretta rubbed her forehead lightly. "Genuinely don't know what to do now- hey! Where are you going?" She swiftly bounded up to Link, who was walking out of the gate, but stopped at the oh-so-familiar voice speaking up again;

"So, now what?"

Ombretta jumped back as she watched Link's shadow come out from under him, the shadow forming into Midna. Oh, so that's where she went.

"Did you think I'd disappeared?" She asked. "Listen, there was another thing I forgot to tell you. Don't you think you can just run off and save your friends, because you can't."

"And why not?"

"Just beyond the bridge, the land is covered in twilight. Last time, you both were pulled through by a shadow beast. If you want to go that way this time, you'll need the cooperation of someone from the twilight, like me. So you really do have to listen to me, saving your friends and all that...that'll depend on your actions."

Ombretta scoffed lightly, hanging her head. She knew that Midna had a point. She wanted to help her friends and as much as she didn't want to admit it, Midna was right. They needed her.

"Well, what do you say, weird girl?"

"Well, looks like there isn't much of a choice, is there?"

"Glad you came around. But now, I need a sword and shield that'll suit me." Midna said, crossing her shadowy arms. "So what do you plan to do? The more you dawdle here, the twilight continues to expand." And with that, Midna shot down back into Link's shadow and out of sight.

"A sword and shield huh?" Ombretta mumbled, tapping her chin lightly. "Oh! Wait, the gift for the royal family! That would work."

A whine came from Link.

"I mean, it's not like the royal family is going to be needing it right away?"

Link huffed, making Ombretta smile.

"So, it's decided." Ombretta began the trek to the right, Link following beside her "Let's go then."

The trek to home was slow, both of them now moving with caution. Something felt...off. It was quiet, too quiet for Ombretta's liking. It seemed like everything was at stand still, as if the very life was sucked out of the forest. Not even a small breeze blew through the darkened leaves, leaving the air slightly hard to breathe.

"Something doesn't feel normal..." Ombretta mumbled, knowing she wasn't going to get an answer. "What happened since we've been...gone?" Ombretta pointed a finger when she felt Link's gaze on her, "don't answer that."

A growl from Link caused Ombretta to stop both in mid-thought and mid-step. Following his gaze, within the cleaning in front of Link's house, was a bulblin. The bulblin was just standing there, occasionally looking around the area, as if it was looking for something or someone. What made Ombretta shiver was the weapon it was holding. Not the size of the weapon, but the telltale colour of drying blood spattered across it.

With another low growl, Link stalked towards the bulblin, making the lunge once he got close enough. Ombretta -who was remaining out of sight- was so enraptured by the fight, didn't hear the footsteps behind her or see the weapon raised.

Ombretta cried out as the club came into contact with her side, flying into the ground with a hard thud. Flopping onto her back, Ombretta barely had a moment to turn to the side before the club came crashing down on the ground. With as much power as she could muster and ignoring the screaming pain in her side, Ombretta kicked the bulblin, sending it tumbling back enough for her to scramble backwards. Ombretta could only watch as the bulblin stood back up while she scrambled across the rough ground, only to be tackled by Link. Wincing as he sunk his jaws into it's neck, tossing it aside like it was nothing.

Link let out a quiet whine as he walked over to Ombretta once the bulblin had exploded into the dark mist, sitting on his hind legs in front of her.

"Thanks, Link. I didn't see the second one, must’ve heard the commotion." Ombretta huffed, pressing her hand into her chest. "Din, my heart is racing."

Link looked down at Ombretta, more specifically, down at her right leg and let out another whine. Following down to where he was looking, Ombretta grimaced at the long cut down her leg, the wound already starting to bruise and swell, a rash starting to form around it.

"Must’ve gotten that when I fell, didn't even feel it..." She winced at the pain that shot through her leg. "...feeling it now, though. I should clean this up." With a small grunt, Ombretta pushed herself to her feet, using a nearby trunk for support. "You don't mind if I use your house to clean my leg, do ya? Thanks."

She slowly made her way over to the ladder, gripping one of the ladder rungs as she looked back at her furry friend before making the climb up to his door. "I'll watch out for you. Be careful alright?"

Ombretta walked into the darkened house, not bothering to start up the fire but rather choosing to light a simple candle. "Okay..." Ombretta muttered, looking around the room as she waved the match out. "Where do you keep your medical stuff again...?"

After a few moments of intensive searching, Ombretta let out a little cheer at the sight of the small basket tucked away in the back of a cupboard. Pulling it out, Ombretta plopped herself gently on the floor, pulling out a wad of bandages and a small vial of spring water. "Whaddya I tell you about keeping spring water on hand, Link?" She muttered as she poured a small amount on her wound before wrapping the bandage around her leg. "Serves me right for not wearing longer pants today, huh?" 

Ombretta huffed at herself for that last sentence. It wasn’t like she knew that this was going to happen today...or was it yesterday? She sighed as she tightened up the bandaged and secured it to her leg, her hands pausing in their movements for a split second. The dull ache in the back of her head became more noticeable once again. Giving her head a slight shake, she finished securing the bandage and placed the rest of the roll and vial back into the small basket.

Once the basket had been put back where it belonged, Ombretta got to her feet once more, making her way back to the door before looking out the small window, looking for any sign that Link was back, and hopefully in one piece. Ombretta shuddered at that single thought. With Link's current form, it wouldn't be a shock if the others thought of him as a simple beast, a monster coming back for the feast. She really hoped that he was heeding her warning. She knew that even her own father would quickly slain him if given the chance, dead set on protecting the village and wouldn't be the wiser that he was killing one of their own.

But she would know.

Her stomach flipped, shaking her head to try and rid that ugly thought. Her fingers began to drum on the doorframe, bottom lip in between her teeth as continued to watch out for Link, the seconds now beginning to feel like hours as her mind ran through every scenario possible, one being worse than the other. But nothing felt more like a breath of fresh air once she saw Link walk back into the clearing, sword and shield strapped to his back. Blowing out the candle, Ombretta exited his house as quickly as she could, climbing down the ladder. "Did it go well?"

A few huffs from Link, making Ombretta sigh.

"Oh, right, can't talk. I miss you being human already."

Link whined, beginning to walk the path towards the forest, Ombretta following beside him. They walked in silence, the nerves starting to jump as the bridge was coming into view, the shadows almost seeming to crawl over the wooden planks, trying to reach out to them.

"Wait...." A whispering voice called out, stalling both Ombretta and Link. "Come...to my spring..."

Ombretta's gaze bounced between the gate to the spring and Link, who heedfully walked into the spring.

"You have....been transformed....by the power of shadow...come...to me..."

It was almost hypnotic, her feet almost seeming to move on their own, like her soul, her very being wanting to know who exactly that was. They both looked around the spring, humming when they realized it was just the two of them-

Ombretta let out a scream at the sight of large stones landing heavily within spring, seemingly coming from the sky, a red barrier connecting the pillars. She whipped around, her eyes bulging as she realized they were trapped.

"Beware...A shadow being...it approaches..."

Quickly, Ombretta ripped the sword out of the scabbard, gripping the hilt tightly as she scanned the area. She gasped as a large black mass landed in front of them, recognizing it as a monster from the princess' story.

Link was the first to lunge at it, his teeth managing to nick the monster before it swung at Link, sending him back into the water. With a snarl, Ombretta swung the sword, gashing the monster's back, a loud scream escaping its mouth (at least, Ombretta hoped it had a mouth under that mask). In it's stunned movement, Link jumped up and sank his teeth into the being deeply, another deafening scream coming from it before it dropped into the low water.

A glare was hard on Ombretta's face as she watched the being explode in a flurry of black squares, flying back up in the air. She slumped forward once the black squares were out of sight, her free hand resting on her bent knee, a small pained laugh escaping her as she exhaled. The joy was short-lived as wonder took over as she watched as the stones began to glow, the worn out etchings becoming more prominent, the water looking like liquid gold as it swirled around their feet.

However, that wasn't the main beauty of the spring's glow as a ball of light rose from the water, it's light mesmerizing to them as they watch the ball hover above them, mouths dropping open as translucent figure began to form, the form taking a shape of a goat, specifically an Ordon goat.

"O brave youths..." The ethereal voice circled around them once more, the pure command laced in his voice nearly made Ombretta fall to her knees. The thought of just standing in front of something so mystical felt insulting.

"I am one of the four light spirits that protect Hyrule at the behest of the gods. I am Ordona. The black beast you slayed was a shadow being, it had come to seize the light I wield." Ordona paused before continuing once more; "My brethren in Hyrule already had their light stolen by these fell beasts. The entire kingdom has been reduced to a netherworld rule by the cursed powers of darkness."

Ombretta fought the urge to grip at her hair once more, instead choosing to grip more at the hilt in her hand. A feeling began to overwhelm her. Anger, disbelief, guilt?

"The blight will not stop with Hyrule. Before long, the entire world of light will fall into the hands of the king who rules the twilight. To save this land from the king of twilight, the lost light must be recovered. There is but one who can revive them. You."

Ombretta swiftly looked down at Link, who seemed to be frozen in place, unable to tear his gaze from the glowing entity.

"You still have not discovered your true power...those transformed by the twilight cannot recover their true forms. Unless...if you were to return to Faron Woods where you were first transformed...if you were to revive the light spirit...there, you may find the means to regain your other state of being..."

Ombretta's free arm shot up to cover her face as a bright light shone over them, the light fading away after a few moments. "Well...that's not something you see every day..."She said slowly as she lowered her arm. Twisting the blade that was still in her grip, she kneeled. "Hold still for a moment." She slid the sword back in it's scabbard before standing back up and walking to the gate. "Well, let's not waste anymore time."

Link let out a loud bark, pausing Ombretta mid-step.

"What?"

Link stayed planted, a hard stare boring into Ombretta.

"I don't speak wolf, Link." She crossed her arms. "Let me guess, 'It sounds dangerous, maybe you shouldn't come', right?"

Link nodded firmly.

"Huh, maybe I do speak wolf...anyway! Link, I'm coming. And there really isn't anything you can "say" to change my mind." Ombretta turned around, continuing towards the bridge, a small smile stretching across her lips as she heard Link's footsteps coming up next to her.

As they made their way across the bridge, they could spot the black wall of twilight, the black mass effectively cutting off Ordon to the rest of the world. As much as Ombretta didn't really want to admit it, the wall was enticing to the eye, the beauty of the glowing orange markings seemed to call out to her.

"Hey...look..." Midna's voice popped in as she flew out of Link's shadow. "The Faron Woods that you know so well, they're now covered in twilight. You two might not be able to come back but, do you still want to go?"

Both Link and Ombretta looked at each other before nodding at Midna.

"So...you're telling me that we need your help to get through here?" Ombretta asked as she walked over to the wall, hesitantly holding out her hand towards it. "Will it hurt if I-ah!" Ombretta let out a loud gasp as she watched her fingers go through the shadow wall, like it was purely just a mist.

She made no move to take her hand out, but just stared at it. "This...shouldn't be possible, should it?"

"Nope."

"Figured." Slowly, Ombretta inched forward, letting the shadow cover her like a shawl. "See you on the other side.

[border-spam]

Leech Lord: Shame

Troy

How much he desperately tries to be good enough for the people he cares about.

It's different to the mimicking, the bizarre give and take of worming his way into the good books of someone he is going to be working with or wants to be on controllable terms with. It's genuine, and that's probably why he's so unbelievably shit at it.

When Troy isn't playing a part, when there is no act he can slip into, you see the reality of how socially inept the man actually is, and there is no one this comes across to as clearly as someone he really cares about.

In the past it was to people he thought he had loved, but now? His friends.

He wants to say the right thing to them when they hurt, the way they know how to help him, but he never mouths the words properly. They gum in his throat and come out wrong, barbed sometimes. Accidentally sharp when they are meant to comfort.

He wants to embrace them and let them feel the warmth inside his chest when they laugh with him or make him feel like he's part of their world and not some alien thing, but Troy is uncomfortable with touching... and it never feels correct when he tries, he never gets the sense they want it, so he shies away instead.

He'd love to express how much they matter and have helped him. Prove that he wants to show them and can't understand how to, but it never happens... every time he tries he makes another mistake that leaves him more frustrated and less able to believe they would trust it anyway.

He reads, pathetic online guides from Doctors he's pretty sure aren't really ones, on how to make friends. How to connect with people. He follows the steps and sometimes they work, sometimes Ven laughs, sometimes JK slaps his back, sometimes Seifa lightly strokes a palm down his arm and wrinkles her nose with a grin, but he's not sure it makes him feel better, not really.

Because do they like him, or do they like the act he just played.

Maybe he should just stop being him.

Tyreen

Ty went through a good few years of her teens genuinely not liking women.

It made total sense at the time, she doesn't hate herself for it because she can absolutely recall the context, but looking back she can see how mistaken it was, and has always moved away from the subject on the very rare occasions Troy has mentioned it.

They had such limited echo-net access on Nekro. Text logs mostly, data feeds from 4 years in the past that Mom and Dad would slowly parse together with the basic tech they had access to that could still get any connection at all.

What the twins mostly had growing up, were old movies.

Adventurers and dames, brave kings and wilting queens, dashing knights and delicate princesses... she hated those women.

They weren't like Mom and they WEREN'T like Tyreen. Tyreen was going to be an adventurer, a star. She wasn't going to faint while Troy fought the dragons, much as he loved the idea of it, of him brandishing a sword at monsters while his sister sang his praise.

All they had growing up were these broken tropes and their parent's stories, tarnished by the gender roles she applied to them from habit.

She wasn't going to be a stupid woman, she was going to be strong.

It took less than a year on Pandora and seeing how fierce femininity could really be, to realise how wrong she'd been, but still - she doesn't like to remember those feelings.

She's beautiful and deadly now, and that's perfect.

Seifa

That Goth phase never happened shut the fuck up shut up. Shut.

How much of the fortune she earns that actually ends up in her accounts is something she keeps very close to her chest.

JK she's told, an olive branch, a gesture of vulnerability to help them understand where she was approaching from, what her true angle was, and how much they had in common in mindset if not life experience.

Tyreen knows, easily piecing it together from the small amount of time she's spent in Seifa's personal ship, shrewd eyes noting the repaired tech, the patched together furnishings that never seemed to be replaced with luxury she should easily be able to afford, but no one else.

Ven and Eli? They know no different. They've lived in shitholes, her ship is a palace in comparison, and they've no context for how nothing has changed or been upgraded in years.

Troy doesn't notice, he's always showered her in expenses, gifts, things he thinks can show his appreciation but she actually has no use for, and her home? Well Sei's ship is Sei to him. It's comfortable and warm, it's her sandalwood perfume and that coffee she always offers him that he hates but drinks anyway. He doesn't see any of the faults, none of the cracks or sewed together cushions matter. It's like how he looks at her, he doesn't recognise the failings.

She's passed almost all her non required cash since landing the Saint position back to Boss and the people across her network who are struggling and need the support. She can now offer it... so that's how it needs to be, it's how she grew up. They've dragged her out of poverty before, kept her belly full and ship running when she had nothing in her coffers, she's repaying the favor now that she has no worries. That's family you've chosen to be part of, strong and filled with love.

She's softer than she would like anyone to know when it comes to helping others, staff debts, required upgrades for run down stalls in the slums, slipping cash for medication to oil-hands fresh on Pandora after a long journey to be closer to their Gods, her purse is far easier to prise open than you'd expect for someone with such an apparent lust for wealth.

If anyone does ever pick up on how Ur-Machina tends to wear the same outfits often, or how simple the mounds of jewelry she wears actually are... they'd do well to keep that shit to themself.

That's good business.

Asks are Open!

[justjessame]

Double Shot Chapter 20

The security system that Jensen put in at Clay’s request was simple enough to get used to. Explaining the need for it to my employees, a little less easy. Keli was staring at me with a look of shrewdness that almost caused me to squirm, but I couldn’t tell her that Clay and the others were fucking assumed dead black ops, and that my dad and his two butthole buddies were gunning for them, could I?

Baking, creating new sweet treats, kept me mostly sane, and almost nightly visits from Clay helped too. Actually the nightly visits more than helped, but I was worried about when the other shoe would drop. Matthew and Alex Xavier along with my biological sperm donor wouldn’t just go away on their own, not with Clay and his group still working to bring them down. Even with Clay keeping my bed warm and the rave reviews I was getting from customers for the newest pastries I came up with.

Time seemed to keep slipping by, and I lost track of the date, even while keeping the inventory and ordering schedule on track. I was crouched behind the counter, checking out the supplies that we kept there, when Keli nudged me with her knee. I almost tapped her leg back, but then I heard her mutter out a greeting to Davey and George. Shit.

I nearly smacked my head on the counter as I rose to my feet, fuck shit fuck. “Hey!” I offered, sounding high pitched and slightly freaked out. Way to go, Char. “I didn’t realize it was time for you two to visit.” A call would have been nice, a postcard, a fucking email. I walked around the counter so my two uncles could embrace me between them. My two sweet, loving uncles.

“When did you put in the security system?” Davey asked, as he pulled away and smiled down at me. “Didn’t think our little town was a hotbed of criminal activity.”

My smile felt forced, because it definitely was. “The fire across the street, I told you about it, remember?” George tsked and pulled me back into his arms. “I’m alright, Uncle George.”

“Has the donor been by lately?” Davey looked like he smelled and tasted something disgusting which was apt, since my father was pretty fucking gross. I shook my head, not since the last time, thank God.

I sighed. “No, but my two favorite officers have started to come in every other day.” Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum I called them in my head, which was a hell of a sight better than some of the nicknames I heard Keli mutter at them. “I completely forgot that you guys were coming,” even if you come every single fucking year around the same fucking time. “How’s Florida?”

Davey and George had kept their house in town, so while I was expected to have dinner with them almost every night, we weren’t all squished into my apartment upstairs. Once I locked up that evening, I went upstairs to change into something more comfortable so I could drive to their house, completely forgetting my new routine. When I heard Clay’s soft knock, it hit me that I hadn’t told my uncles about the new man in my life. In fact, I hadn’t told them anything about Clay or the others. My fucking life had been in complete upheaval for months, so give me a break, would you?

“Hey,” I offered, after I killed the security system and unlocked the door. He was staring at the dress I’d pulled on, my hair down from the topknot that was part of my unofficial uniform for work.

“We going somewhere, Char?” He and his team hadn’t been in for their daily dose of caffeine so I hadn’t been able to tell him that Davey and George were visiting, and now- Shit.

“Dinner with my uncles,” I bit my lip, wondering if I should call and tell them I was bringing a guest. “Give me a second, I want to make sure they made enough food for four.” He shook his head, but was smiling, so I knew that he probably knew I’d forgotten to tell them he was coming along.

I called and told George that I’d be adding a plus one for dinner. He chuckled and said he’d heard from Keli that there was a certain someone. After assuring me that he assumed that my guy would be coming along, and so they had more than enough, especially if the rest of my gentleman’s friends wanted to tag along. Shit, Keli was just a little sharebot wasn’t she?

“I think it will just be the two of us,” I answered, smiling as Clay’s eyebrow raised in curiosity. “Let me make sure though.” Holding my hand over the mic, I asked him if his team wanted to join us.

“Jensen has another date with Carrie,” he offered. “Pooch went home for a furlough with his wife and son. Cougar is doing what Cougar does. Just you and me, Char.”

Confirming with George that it would just be the four of us, I told him we’d be on our way soon. Clay’s arms were around me as soon as I hit END. “This is nice,” I leaned back into his chest.

“But,” he kissed the top of my head, “we have to go.” Ugh, the thought of not climbing Clay like a tree was repulsive to me, but he was right. “Come on, Charlotte, let’s go so I can meet your family.”

Davey opened the door and his face broke out into a wide grin at the sight of Clay practically wrapped around me from behind. “Oh, Charlotte, this must be Clay.” I guess a part of me was happy that Keli had told them Clay’s name and not his ‘nickname’. “Come on in,” he stepped back and let us in. I shook my head as I saw my uncle look Clay over from top to bottom and then back up again. Who could blame him? “George is in the kitchen,” he offered as I walked toward the scent of my favorite meal. “Clay, come into the family room, Char is heading toward her happy place.” I was grinning over my shoulder reassuringly at Clay as I moved with purpose to the one person who understood my love of baking and cooking.

George shook his head when I came through the swinging door of the kitchen. “You have a man with you and you’re going to come hang out with me, I thought I taught you better.” He was smiling too, and I knew that he was teasing. “I made your favorites.”

“I know, I could smell them through the front door.” Hopping onto a stool at the island, I watched as my uncle moved around his kitchen with the same confidence that I did in mine and the cafe’s. “You know, I completely forgot-”

“That we were coming?” His eyebrow arched perfectly, making me jealous of his natural aptitude. “I think your mind was on other, far more pleasant, topics.” From an arch, both eyebrows waggled, causing me to giggle. “Not to mention Daddy Dearest deciding to touch base. Fucking asshole.”

I stole a bite of food and nodded. “Yeah, it was different.” I wanted to know what the twins and my father had brewing that would cause him to show up now. The town wasn’t huge, so the fact that we hadn’t bumped into one another at all until recently told me far more, but not nearly enough. “How long are you guys staying this time?” While my uncles came home yearly, their stay lengths varied depending on what else they were planning. A cruise shortened one trip to a week, but another year they stayed almost a month.

“We’re playing it by ear,” his eyes met mine and I knew this was a sudden choice. One made when they learned that the cops were becoming regulars. “I want to see how harassing the police are, Char, and there are a few things Davey and I want to discuss with you.” Shit.

Dinner, once we all gathered in the dining room, was a hell of a lot less awkward than I’d thought possible. Davey and George included Clay in the conversation, and for his part, Clay honestly seemed to enjoy himself. Dessert was one of my own recipes, one that George told me was a favorite among their circle in Florida, and while rushing away so we could be alone was tempting, we didn’t.

Sitting in the family room, surrounded by family photos, with me as a center focus, I listened as my uncles regaled Clay with stories about my younger years.

“There she was, covered head to toe in mud, glaring at Carrie’s big brother Chris like she was going to throttle him and it was all we could do to not laugh.” Davey was chuckling at the memory. “I swear, I can still see her almost steaming from her rage.”

“He called me a dog,” I muttered, “and not a female one. Just a dog.”

“How old were you?” Clay asked, eyes twinkling and dimples deep.

“Sixteen,” George laughed. “She was sixteen and contemplating murder because an eighteen year old was being a douche.”

“He tossed me in a mudhole that could have fucking drowned me,” I glared, the memory coming back fresh. “And said even dogs were cute with mud on them, but not me.”

Clay pulled me into his body, kissing my head. “Carrie’s brother sounds like a blind asshole.”

“Didn’t he marry the Costello girl?” Davey asked, his smile widening and I giggled and nodded. “Talk about unattractive.”

“Davey,” George admonished, but his chuckle ruined it. “That’s not very charitable.”

“Charity was marrying that girl.” Davey muttered, offering to top our drinks off, but I begged off. “That’s right, you need to get home so you can wake up early.” His eyes landed on Clay’s hand running down my arm and I shook my head. “Get at least a little rest, would you?”

We said our goodbyes, my uncles hugging both of us and telling me that they wanted to talk to me at the cafe about something important, we left.

“Davey and George are pretty great,” Clay was holding me, our naked skin pressed together, the well earned exhaustion pressing down on both of us. “Thank you for taking me to meet them.”

I looked up at him and smiled. “Thank you for coming with me.” His finger traced my lower, kiss swollen lip. “They like you.”

“Good,” he pulled me up so he could replace his finger with his lips. “I-” I heard him swallow hard. “Char, I think I-” I pulled back so I could see him a little better in the dim light that was coming through the lace curtains. He looked hesitant and unsure, not at all Clay-like. “Shit.”

I smiled and kissed him. When I pulled away again, I shook my head. “Trying to say you love me?” I heard him gulp again. “Took you long enough,” I mumbled, nipping at his bottom lip. “I love you, Franklin Clay.” Then chuckling I broke the tension that seemed to be radiating off him. “Does that make me a necrophiliac?”

[aion-rsa]

Star Wars Canon Timeline in Chronological Order

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Need help starting your Star Wars adventure? Check out our beginner's guide to the canon timeline!

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens ushered in an entirely new generation of fans looking for more adventures in the galaxy far, far away, but with the whole issue of Legends canon vs. the new canon and a whole slate of new books, comics, and movies arriving in the next few years, it can be hard to figure out where to start. Luckily for you, it's become a bit easier to dive into the canon materials now that a clear line has been drawn between Legends (pre-Disney) and new canon (post-Disney) stories, but that new material is quickly growing, too. 

In order to help new fans get a clear look at the official Star Wars timeline, we've put together a list of the most central Star Wars books, comics, and games and detailed how they relate to the movies and TV series.

Read More: Everything We Know About Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

What won't you see on this list?

Most Star Wars Insider short stories, Star Wars Rebels Magazine comics, Forces of Destiny shorts, or Disney novelizations like The Princess, The Farmboy, and The Scoundrel. Star Wars Insider stories have been included where we felt they contributed most to the overarching timeline -- or if we felt they were particularly good.

This timeline is intended to help you find the best jumping-on point. (There's always the "pick up whatever you find first" approach, though.) Dates are sometimes approximate and are based on years before (BBY) and after (ABY) the Battle of Yavin, equivalent to before and after A New Hope, as per the official canon chronology.

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32 - 20 BBY - Age of Republic

Written by Jody Houser

Art by Cory Smith and Luke Ross

The Age of Republic comics miniseries is composed of one-shot issues that prove writer Jody Houser is a powerful new addition to Star Wars fiction. The series focuses on Prequel characters such as Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Maul, Jango Fett, Padmé Amidala, Anakin Skywalker, Count Dooku, and General Grievous. They each get their own issues, which can be read together or separately. Age of Republic Special stars Mace Windu and brings in heroes and villains from across the Clone Wars.

32 BBY - Marvel's Darth Maul

Written by Cullen Bunn

Art by Luke Ross

Set before the events of The Phantom Menace and the villain's first demise at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi, this comic book miniseries follows Darth Maul in the early days of his apprenticeship under Darth Sidious. While he's not allowed to engage the Jedi just yet, Maul still manages to come face to face with a young Jedi Padawan during one of his missions for the Dark Lord of the Sith. The events of the series show how the dark side makes Maul more powerful but also incredibly flawed.

Buy Marvel's Darth Maul

32 BBY - The Phantom Menace 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy The Phantom Menace

29 BBY - Marvel's Obi-Wan & Anakin 

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Marco Checchetto

This comic series, written by Charles Soule and penciled by Marco Checchetto, is Disney’s first foray into deep Prequel territory, without even The Clone Wars to hang on to. Devoid of any ancillary material. Obi-Wan & Anakin paints a slightly different picture of the iconic Jedi team-up than the Legends stories did before. Anakin is a headstrong tinkerer, but there is also an edge of vengefulness or self-hatred around him in the first issue when he summons a hologram of Darth Maul that surprises and disgusts the Jedi Council.

The series expands on how Anakin’s life as a slave affects the way he views the Jedi. This isn't an easy apprenticeship for either Jedi, but we know that it’s leading up to at least some camaraderie by the time of Padme’s attempted assassination in Attack of the Clones.

Buy Marvel's Obi-Wan & Anakin

28 BBY - Queen's Shadow

Written by E.K. Johnston

This young adult novel details the lives of Padmé Amidala and her handmaidens. The loose plot follows Padmé as she transitions from queen to senator, but the episodic story is much more than that. It confronts the idea of slavery in Star Wars, the tragedy of the way Papatine manipulated Padmé’s political path, and the problems and privileges of ruling at such a young age. Padmé is presented as a formidable warrior, a teen still learning to hold her own, and a shrewd negotiator. 

22 BBY - Attack of the Clones 

Directed by George Lucas

Written by George Lucas & Jonathan Hales

Buy Attack of the Clones

22-19 BBY - The Clone Wars 

Created by George Lucas

Buy The Clone Wars

21-17 BBY - Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel

Written by James Luceno

Before Jyn Erso embarked on her fateful mission to steal the plans to the Death Star from the evil Empire in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, she lived on Coruscant with her parents, Galen and Lyra. Galen is a scientist who means to use his kyber crystal research to produce renewable energy for the galaxy, but his friend Orson Krennic has very different plans. The scientist doesn't know that he's actually helping create a weapon for the Death Star!

Buy Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel

19 BBY - Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir 

Written by Jeremy Barlow

Art by Juan Frigeri

Although Mother Talzin appeared to have perished in The Clone Wars, she returns in what may or may not be a spiritual form during the many battles in Son of Dathomir. This comic miniseries, like Dark Disciple, was adapted from unused scripts from The Clone Wars, and is something of a battle royale, pitting Darth Maul against a variety of foes, including Count Dooku and General Grievous.

Buy Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir

19 BBY - "Kindred Spirits" 

Written by Christe Golden for Star Wars Insider #159

Often, Star Wars Insider stories will tie directly to one of the recently released novels, exploring side characters or presenting scenes before or after the book. In the case of "Kindred Spirits," the author was also the same: Christie Golden penned this tale of Asajj Ventress finding an unlikely ally shortly before Dark Disciple. Readers interested in the bounty hunter persona Ventress adopted during The Clone Wars might especially appreciate the tone of this one, which also features another tough female character.

19 BBY - Dark Disciple 

Written by Christie Golden

While fans clamored for more of The Clone Wars after the animated series’ cancellation, stories set in this era, and overseen by many of the same writers and producers, began to emerge in different formats. Some unaired episodes of The Clone Wars were aired during conventions or released online; others were adapted into comics, as in Son of Dathomir. Dark Disciple was one of the more high-profile results of this effort, as it is a full-length novel telling the story of Asajj Ventress after her story on the television show had ended.

Ventress is reluctantly recruited by Quinlan Vos, a morally ambiguous Jedi in pursuit of Count Dooku. Dark Disciple is, in part, a love story, showing Ventress and Vos’ relationships with one another and how that affects their views of the Force. It’s also a war story, with the inventive action typical of The Clone Wars.

Buy Dark Disciple

19 BBY - Revenge of the Sith 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy Revenge of the Sith

19 BBY - Marvel's Kanan 

Written by Greg Weisman

Art by Pepe Larraz

If you watch Rebels but haven’t read Star Wars books or comics before, Kanan series is a good place to start. The stories alternate between the crew of the Ghost undertaking what at first seems to be a simple mission on Lothal, and Kanan’s memories of Order 66 and his training with his Jedi Master. This is a good way to learn about this fan-favorite character.

Buy Marvel's Kanan

19 BBY - Marvel's Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Giuseppe Camuncoli

This series literally starts at the moment Darth Vader is born, a second after the end of Revenge of the Sith. Unlike Marvel's first Darth Vader series, this new ongoing book tackles the earliest days of Anakin's transformation into the feared Sith apprentice, more machine than man. 

Buy Marvel's Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith

18 BBY - Ahsoka

Written by E.K. Johnston

What happened to former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano after leaving the Order in The Clone Wars? This is the story of what led Ahsoka down the path to becoming the Rebel agent Fulcrum. Anyone who loves the character's appearances in the animated series should read this book.

Buy Ahsoka

14 BBY - "Orientation" 

Written by John Jackson Miller for Star Wars Insider #157

Like "Kindred Spirits," John Jackson Miller’s "Orientation" has some of the same characters as the Star Wars novels that came out around the same time. It was packaged along with Lords of the Sith, but touches some other Star Wars material, too.

Darth Vader is ostensibly the main character of the story, strutting his way around an Imperial training ship. But the other star of this story is Rae Sloane, a young cadet. Remember that name.

14 BBY - Lords of the Sith

Written by Paul S. Kemp

Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine have crash-landed in the dangerous wilderness of Ryloth in this dark side road trip. Lords of the Sith also has a connection to Rebels and The Clone Wars: freedom fighter Cham Syndulla sees a potential advantage for his rebels and tries to assassinate the Sith while they’re working their way through the wilderness.

The novel explores Vader and Palpatine’s tense power struggles as well as the things that bind them together. Lords of the Sith also has the new canon’s first LGBT character, the slovenly Imperial Moff Mors, who has her own character arc as the story goes on.

Buy Lords of the Sith

14 BBY - Tarkin 

Written by James Luceno

Another tale from the dark side, Tarkin shows the history and martial rise of the man who would one day command the Death Star. James Luceno was known for writing big, encyclopedic novels in the Legends timeline—he’s particularly good at fitting different parts of the canon together and talking about the political landscape of the galaxy far, far away. The Tarkin novel brings both of those things into the new canon and tells the story of Tarkin’s attempt to retake an experimental starship from Rebel saboteurs.

Buy Tarkin

13 BBY - Lando's Luck

Written by Justina Ireland

Disney Publishing has been knocking it out of the park with the young adult Star Wars novels, and Lando’s Luck is the most entertaining of the Solo tie-ins. Funny dialogue and a fast-paced adventure make this story—in which Lando and L3-37 team up with a young princess—a good one to pick up if you liked Lando in either Solo or The Empire Strikes Back. 

13-10 BBY - Solo: A Star Wars Story

Directed by Ron Howard

Written by Lawrence Kasdan and Jon Kasdan

11-5 BBY - Lost Stars 

Written by Claudia Gray

Although Lost Stars spans throughout the Original Trilogy, it starts beforehand, with two young people joining the Imperial Academy. It’s essentially a love story, with Thane Kyrell and Ciena Ree still holding their feelings for one another even after Thane joins the Rebellion. This book is also a great look at the psychology of the people inside the two armies.

The new Star Wars books have dispensed quickly with the idea that all Rebels are noble (or noble scoundrels) and that all Imperial loyalists are scheming. Lots of different things drive people to make their choices in war, and Lost Stars shows that. It also culminates in an exciting battle that ties into The Force Awakens. After reading this one, you’ll never look at Jakku quite the same way again.

Buy Lost Stars

11-2 BBY - Thrawn

Written by Timothy Zahn

When the old continuity was turned into Legends, it meant that many of the greatest characters introduced in the old EU were no longer canon. It seems like even that couldn't keep the Empire's greatest tactician down, though. The cold, Chiss admiral Thrawn returns to continuity with this new origin story from writer Timothy Zahn, the man who created the character back in the '90s. 

Buy Thrawn

11 BBY - A New Dawn 

Written by John Jackson Miller

For fans of Rebels, A New Dawn shows the origins of some fan-favorite characters and sets the tone for the new canon Imperials. It introduces the ruthlessly efficient Count Vidian, who goes up against Hera and Kanan when the fate of a planet is on the line. Joining them are the unlikely duo of conspiracy theorist Skelly and ex-Imperial surveillance officer Zaluna. Although it explains more about Kanan’s history than Hera’s (more about her can be found in the short story “Mercy Mission,” in the Rise of the Empire collection), A New Dawn is a good piece of the continuity puzzle for Rebels fans.

It was also the first book in the new canon, making its title doubly appropriate. Author John Jackson Miller was well-known for Legends material, like the novel Kenobi and the Knights of the Old Republic comic series, before he contributed the first book to the new canon.

Buy A New Dawn

6-4 BBY - Servants of the Empire 

Written by Jason Fry

This four-book young reader series follows Zare Leonis, the Imperial cadet who helped Ezra escape the stormtrooper academy in season one of Rebels. Like Rebels itself, the series can be enjoyed by people outside of its grade-school audience, too. Part of the appeal is the characters: the story switches between Zare and his conflicting ideas about the Empire to his friend, hacker Merei Spanjaf, who launches her own investigations while trying to avoid being caught by her security expert mother.

Zare is on the hunt for his sister, a promising, Force-sensitive Imperial recruit taken by the Grand Inquisitor. Like in A New Dawn, Rebels fans will be able to find plenty of connections to their favorite characters.

Buy Servants of the Empire

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6 BBY-3 ABY - Battlefront / Battlefront: Twilight Company 

Video Game Developed by DICE

Novel Written by Alexander Freed

Like John Jackson Miller, Battlefront: Twilight Company author Alexander Freed came to Star Wars novels through short stories and comics. His canon short fiction has appeared in Star Wars Insider before (“One Thousand Levels Down” and “The End of History”).

Twilight Company visits some of the same locations available to players in the 2015 Battlefront video game, but its characters are new and unique. The cynical protagonist is Namir, a soldier who fights doggedly for the Rebellion’s cause without ever really believing that the cause is as noble as others do. He finds an unlikely ally in Chalis, a former Imperial governor whose ruthless plans for the Rebel squad’s success cause some dissent in the ranks.

Buy Battlefront

Buy Battlefront: Twilight Company

5-2 BBY - Rebels 

Created by Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, & Carrie Beck

Buy Rebels

3 BBY - Leia: Princess of Alderaan

Written by Claudia Gray 

After winning fans' hearts with the political novel Bloodline, Claudia Gray returned with a young adult novel about Leia's youth on Alderaan and her first missions with the Rebel Alliance. Leia: Princess of Alderaan focuses on the princess and her parents, Breha and Bail, but also includes cameos from characters such as The Last Jedi's Amilyn Holdo, Captain Panaka, and Grand Moff Tarkin.

Buy Leia: Princess of Alderaan

2 BBY - Thrawn: Alliances

Written by Timothy Zahn

The wildly popular canon Thrawn novels continue with a story set during the Clone Wars. Alliances jumps between the Original Trilogy and the Prequel era, showing how Thrawn worked with Anakin Skywalker before and after he became Darth Vader. The book also features Padmé on her own mission during the Clone Wars. She finds herself reluctantly teaming up with the titular Chiss mastermind. 

0 BBY - Guardians of the Whills

Written by Greg Rucka 

A fun look at Jedha before the decidedly less fun events of Rogue One, Guardians of the Whills captures Baze and Chirrut's voices well and shows what Jedha City was like before its destruction. 

Buy Guardians of the Whills

0 BBY - Rogue One

Directed by Gareth Edwards

Written by John Knoll, Gary Whitta, Chris Weitz, & Tony Gilroy

Buy Rogue One

0 BBY - A New Hope 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy A New Hope

0 BBY - 5 ABY: Battlefront II/ Battlefront II: Inferno Squad

Video Game Developed by EA DICE, Motive Studios, Criterion Software

Novel Written by Christie Golden

A prequel to the video game Battlefront II, the novel Inferno Squad introduces players to Iden Versio, special forces commander and daughter of Imperial loyalist Admiral Garrick Versio. Assigned to infiltrate a group of Saw Gerrera's Partisans, she and her team grapple with the morality of both the Empire and the violent splinter group of the Rebellion. 

The video game's campaign follows Inferno Squad from shortly before the destruction of the Death Star to the Battle at Jakku, where the Empire finally fell. Fans who read the novel will have much better context for the relationships between the characters in the campaign, which also introduces playable versions of Luke Skywalker and Kylo Ren. 

Buy Battlefront II

Buy Battlefront II: Inferno Squad

0 BBY - Marvel's Princess Leia 

Written by Mark Waid

Art by Terry Dodson

Many of Marvel’s Star Wars comic series so far take place in the Original Trilogy time period. Before information about The Force Awakens was public, Marvel was already doing all it could with its re-acquisition of the Star Wars brand, launching three ongoing series (Star Wars, Darth Vader, and Kanan), along with a succession of miniseries. The Princess Leia story picks up immediately after the end of A New Hope, touching on Leia’s feelings—or lack thereof—about the destruction of her home planet.

Although Rebel High Command wants her to keep a low profile, Leia makes it her mission to recruit surviving Alderaanians to the Rebel cause. They are in diaspora, but not all of the people she meets want to go to war. She’s helped by Evaan, a Rebel pilot with a not-so-favorable view of the woman she calls “ice princess.”

Buy Marvel's Princess Leia

0 BBY - Heir to the Jedi 

Written by Kevin Hearne

Heir to the Jedi was published right in the middle of the transition from Legends to new canon. Originally branded as part of the Empire & Rebellion series, along with Razor’s Edge and Honor Among Thieves, it alone of the three books in that series survived the cut-off. Kevin Hearne’s story explains how Luke learned the telekinesis he used in The Empire Strikes Back.

Since Obi-Wan never taught him that, someone had to encourage Luke to use the Force—and in Heir to the Jedi, it’s Nakari Kelen, a fellow Rebel pilot with whom Luke goes on a mission to retrieve a Rebel codebreaker.

Buy Heir to the Jedi

0 BBY - Marvel's Chewbacca 

Written by Gerry Duggan

Art by Phil Noto

Some time after the events of A New Hope, Chewbacca finds himself comfortably crash-landed on the planet Andelm IV. He’s willing to have a bit of a nap before beginning a leisurely search for parts for his ship, but there are other people on the planet who aren’t so relaxed.

A girl named Zarro and her father have been conscripted into working essentially as slaves in a mine run by a man who plans to profit off of the Empire. Chewie and Zarro hatch a plan to free her father in this fun, five-issue series with beautiful art by Phil Noto.

Buy Marvel's Chewbacca

0 BBY - The Weapon of a Jedi  

Written by Jason Fry

Prolific Star Wars writer Jason Fry tells a quintessential Luke story in The Weapon of a Jedi. A young Luke travels to Devaron on a hunch sent by the Force and discovers an ancient Jedi Academy where he can hone his skills—and where he fights with a lightsaber for the first time.

Although we don’t know for sure whether the Jedi Temple on Devaron will affect the Star Wars universe going forward, it’s Luke’s best canon example of a place where Jedi can go to learn, and maybe influenced the academy he eventually built in the New Republic. The book also features flash forwards to Jessika Pava, the Resistance pilot who flew with Poe Dameron at the battle of Starkiller Base.

Buy The Weapon of a Jedi

0 BBY - Marvel's Star Wars & Darth Vader 

Star Wars: Written by Jason Aaron, Art by John Cassaday et al

Darth Vader: Written by Kieron Gillen, Art by Salvador Larroca

Some of the best—and more surprising—stories in the Marvel Star Wars line come out of the ongoing series, which occur concurrently and crossed over in their first big event, “Vader Down.” The series follows both heroes and villains of the Original Trilogy, including Luke’s earnest, enthusiastic slide into learning how to use his Jedi powers; Vader’s conflicted relationship with Emperor Palpatine and the Sith legacy of betrayal and competition; and Han’s maybe-wife Sana Solo. 

The longest-running Marvel Star Wars series so far are also the ones that most clearly show how Marvel is handling the core characters going forward, so check these out if you want to see what Luke, Han, and Leia are up to after A New Hope.

Darth Vader recently wrapped and it's easily one of the best stories to come out of the new EU so far. You NEED to read this series!

Buy Marvel's Star Wars

Buy Marvel's Darth Vader

0 BBY - Marvel's Doctor Aphra

Written by Kieron Gillen & Simon Spurrier

Art by Kev Walker et. al.

After becoming a breakout hit in the comics, Doctor Aphra became the first Star Wars character who never appeared in the movies to helm her own comic book series. Her title reveals her history, including her parents and how she became a rogue archeologist. 

Buy Marvel's Doctor Aphra

0 BBY - Smuggler’s Run 

Written by Greg Rucka

Smuggler’s Run is one in a series of three young reader books put out as part of the Journey to The Force Awakens line. Along with Weapon of a Jedi and Moving Target, Smuggler’s Run follows one member of the Original Trilogy trio and is bookended by scenes set in the Sequel Trilogy era.

This one focuses on Han Solo and Chewbacca balancing living the lawless life with their work for the Rebellion. Written by Greg Rucka, Smuggler’s Run shows Han as he reluctantly takes on a mission to save a Rebel scout from the Empire.

Buy Smuggler's Run

0 BBY-3 ABY - Marvel's Lando 

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Alex Maleev

Lando, written by Charles Soule, with art from Alex Maleev, shows the suave baron-administrator before he got his title. Lando thinks he has scored big when he plans to steal a valuable starship, but it turns out that the ship once belonged to Emperor Palpatine (and Darth Maul), and there are plenty of unpleasant Sithly surprises in store.

As well as featuring Lando himself, the comic has a lot of great supporting characters, including mysterious twin aliens and Lobot himself. Watching Lobot’s stoic expressions in The Empire Strikes Back will never be the same after reading this comic.

Buy Marvel's Lando

0-3 ABY - Marvel's Han Solo

Written by Marjorie Liu

Art by Mark Brooks

Buy Marvel's Han Solo

3 ABY - The Empire Strikes Back 

Directed by Irvin Kershner 

Written by Lawrence Kasdan & Leigh Brackett

Buy The Empire Strikes Back

4 ABY - Moving Target 

Written by Cecil Castellucci & Jason Fry

Leia’s installment of the Journey to The Force Awakens series follows her on a mission to distract the Empire from the Rebellion’s growing fleet—the fleet that will attack the second Death Star at Endor. Her team travels through various adventures in their effort to do that, while Leia weighs her feelings about duty against the idea that she might be sacrificing some Rebel sympathizers in order to buy time for others.

Like the other two Original Trilogy books in the line, Moving Target is a quintessential Star Wars story with a few connections to other parts of the saga. The flash forward involves PZ-4CO, the blue droid seen in the Resistance base in The Force Awakens, interviewing Leia for her memoirs.

Buy Moving Target

4 ABY - Return of the Jedi 

Directed by Richard Marquand

Written by Lawrence Kasdan & George Lucas

Buy Return of the Jedi

4 ABY - Marvel's Shattered Empire 

Written by Greg Rucka

Art by Marco Checchetto

The timeline between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens is a bit sparse right now, with the Aftermath trilogy expected to fill up the years after Return of the Jedi. Another novel, Bloodline by Claudia Gray, due out in 2016, is set about six years before Episode VII.

However, Shattered Empire wastes no time in showing where Luke, Han, and Leia were immediately after Return of the Jedi, while also introducing Poe Dameron’s parents. Pilot Shara Bey and soldier Kes Dameron join the Original Trilogy heroes in mopping up what’s left of the Empire on Endor—and find some strange, Force-sensitive trees.

Buy Marvel's Shattered Empire

4 ABY - Alphabet Squadron

Written by Alexander Freed

This military novel is primarily concerned with the titular squadron, a bickering but charming group of Rebel sole survivors and ex-Imperials tasked with hunting down an elite TIE Fighter squadron. It’s one of the heavier books in the saga, not just because of the page count but because of the thorough look into the characters’ psychologies. (Thankfully, they are provided an in-universe therapist.)

It also earns its place on the timeline because it sits between the formation of the New Republic and the establishment of a truly stable galaxy. Characters like General Hera Syndulla show the struggle of former Rebels, whose lack of a central leadership helped them survive, as they adapt to being the dominant power in the galaxy. Alphabet Squadron is the first novel in a trilogy. 

4 ABY - Aftermath 

Written by Chuck Wendig

The first novel set after Return of the Jedi brings a new cast of characters to the story, Rebels who, with varying degrees of reluctance, find themselves embroiled with a meeting of the surviving Imperial officers. Remember Rae Sloane? She’s back, as an admiral this time—and she has her own plans for how to restore the Empire to both greatness and stability.

Aftermath also stars Norra Wexley, an X-Wing pilot who fought at the Battle of Endor. She has become estranged from her son Temmin, who will one day become “Snap” Wexley of The Force Awakens’ Resistance fighters, and recruits him, plus a bounty hunter and an Imperial deserter, on a quest to find her missing husband. Aftermath is followed by two sequels, Life Debt and Empire’s End.

Buy Aftermath

5 ABY - Aftermath: Life Debt

Written by Chuck Wendig

Buy Aftermath: Life Debt

5 ABY - Aftermath: Empire's End

Written by Chuck Wendig

Buy Aftermath: Empire's End

7 ABY - Last Shot

Written by Daniel Jose Older

After years of friendship, Han and Lando reminisce about getting older while facing the same old trouble these two always seem to get into. This is a must-have tie-in novel to Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Buy Last Shot

9 ABY - The Mandalorian

Created by Jon Favreau

28 ABY - Bloodline

Written by Claudia Gray

Star Wars: Bloodline by Claudia Gray gives a clearer picture of the state of the galaxy before The Force Awakens than any other new canon entry. The New Republic has been standing strong for almost thirty years, and the events in the novel tips things toward the chaotic scenario we saw in Episode VII.

Buy Bloodline

28 ABY - Phasma

Written by Delilah S. Dawson

The history of the First Order's feared enforcer is revealed secondhand through a Resistance spy interrogated by the First Order. The Phasma novel explores the irradiated planet Parnassos and the way Phasma first met Brendol Hux, shedding some light on the premier stormtrooper without explaining everything behind the mask. 

Buy Phasma

28 ABY - "The Perfect Weapon" 

Written by Delilah S. Dawson

"The Perfect Weapon" by Delilah S. Dawson was the first short story to feature one of the new characters from The Force Awakens. Like the young reader books listed earlier, it’s part of the Journey to the Force Awakens line and was released as an ebook and excerpted in Star Wars Insider #163.

Bazine Netal, the woman who informs the First Order of the Resistance fighters’ presence at Maz Kanata’s castle, works as a bouncer and hired gun in this story. It doesn’t take place at the same time as The Force Awakens or particularly illuminates Bazine’s actions during the movie, but if you’re interested in her from the few glimpses in The Force Awakens, it might be worth checking out.

Buy "The Perfect Weapon"

28 ABY - "Bait" 

Written by Alan Dean Foster for Star Wars Insider #162

The Star Wars Insider story that ties most closely with The Force Awakens so far is also tied to "The Perfect Weapon." "Bait" follows Grummgar, the alien seen lounging with Bazine in Maz Kanata’s palace. Like "The Perfect Weapon," it takes place at an unspecified time before the movie and shows a hunting trip that doesn't quite go as expected.

28 ABY - Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens 

Written by Landry Q. Walker

Although four of the stories in this collection were released as e-books, six of them, all by Landry Q. Walker, are only available in this collection. The anthology tells selected tales from the lives of the denizens of Maz Kanata’s palace, including the Jakku lawman Constable Zuvio and the red-masked Crimson Corsair. The stories follow in the tradition of Legends' "Tales" anthologies that were set in the Original Trilogy and have some surprising connections to the Prequels.

Buy Tales from Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens

34 ABY - Marvel's Poe Dameron

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Phil Noto

Before he destroyed Starkiller Base, ace Resistance pilot Poe Dameron was already taking on missions from General Leia and fighting the good fight against the First Order. This comic book series shows what Poe was up to before he met Lor San Tekka on Jakku. 

Buy Marvel's Poe Dameron

34 ABY - Marvel's C-3PO Special

Written by James Robinson

Art by Tony Harris

Want to know what was up with Threepio's red arm in The Force Awakens? This touching one-shot tells the story of a droid adventure for the ages that is surprisingly full of emotion. Who knew droids could feel so much?

Buy Marvel's C-3PO Special

34 ABY - Before the Awakening 

Written by Greg Rucka

There’s something to be said about not having to answer every question about a large science fiction universe in a movie, but for people who have questions about The Force Awakens, this is the book that answers them.

How did Poe Dameron become part of the Resistance? What was life actually like for Finn in the First Order stormtrooper corps, and why does he make his decision on Jakku? When did Rey hone her piloting skills? Before the Awakening answers all of these questions, as well as tell three fun stories suitable for young readers.

Buy Before the Awakening

34 ABY - Resistance

Created by Dave Filoni

Overlapping with The Force Awakens, Resistance follows former New Republic pilot Kaz Xiono on a mission to discover a First Order spy on a floating platform where starship racers rule the roost. Kaz is joined by the aspiring pilot Tam and quirky Neeku in the mechanics’ shop run by deadpan ex-racer Jarek Yeager. Poe Dameron, BB-8, General Hux, and Captain Phasma make cameos in this laid-back Star Wars romp, which might be best for the younger set who aren’t ready for Rebels.

34 ABY - The Force Awakens 

Directed by J.J. Abrams

Written by Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt, & J.J. Abrams

Buy The Force Awakens

34 ABY - Marvel's Captain Phasma

Written by Kelly Thompson

Art by Marco Chechetto, Andres Mossa 

Set immediately after The Force Awakens, Captain Phasma follows the titular stormtrooper captain out of the trash compactor in which she was imprisoned at the end of Episode VII. She quickly finds her way to an inhospitable planet in pursuit of Sol Rivas, a First Order lieutenant and the only person who knows that Phasma lowered Starkiller Base's shield. The comic shows how Phasma escaped and some of the tough choices she had to make in the aftermath.

Buy Marvel's Captain Phasma

34 ABY - Canto Bight

Written by Saladin Ahmed, Rae Carson, Mira Grant, John Jackson Miller 

The Canto Bight novella collection includes four stories set in the lavish casino city from The Last Jedi. Its varied visitors include a down-on-his-luck gambler, a casino servant, and a salesman who won a trip to the city. 

Buy Canto Bight

34 ABY - The Last Jedi 

Directed by Rian Johnson

Written by Rian Johnson 

Buy The Last Jedi on Amazon

34 ABY - Resistance Reborn

Written by Rebecca Roanhorse

Leia Organa called for allies at the very end of The Last Jedi, and this novel, the first set after Episode VIII, shows who answered. Characters from across the Expanded Universe reappear for a who's who of current Star Wars. It also takes a look at the more banal side of the war, showing a middle manager in the First Order instead of a wartime villain at the helm of a starship. Resistance Reborn's heroes and villains are no less heroic or villainous for trying to survive in their day-to-day lives (and in Poe Dameron's case, trying to deal with his interpersonal complications). 

35 ABY - The Rise of Skywalker

Directed by J.J. Abrams

Written by J.J. Abrams and Chris Terrio

Megan Crouse writes about Star Wars and pop culture for StarWars.com, Star Wars Insider, and Den of Geek. Read more of her work here. Find her on Twitter @blogfullofwords.

John Saavedra is an associate editor at Den of Geek. Read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @johnsjr9.

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Feature

Books

Megan Crouse John Saavedra

Dec 17, 2019

Star Wars

LucasFilm

George Lucas

Marvel

Disney

Del Rey

from Books https://ift.tt/2zmX097

[three-houses-text-files]

ferdinand/marianne

c-a support + paired endings

c

Ferdinand: Ah, Marianne. Praying to the goddess? Marianne: Yes, I am. F: Excellent! So persistent in your devotion. I quite admire that about you. M: Oh, no. It's not like that. F: No need for false modesty. I hardly know anyone with more piety. M: I need to be going. F: Wait a moment! M: Oh! Um, yes? Did you need something? F: I have a suggestion. I have been meaning to tell you about it for a while. Have you ever considered projecting more confidence? F: Your every word is laden with pessimism and devoid of enthusiasm. F: To gain the trust of commoners, you must appear self-assured at all times. M: I have no need to earn the trust of the common people as a noble. M: All I want is to live a quiet life and to not be a bother to anyone. I dare not hope for anything beyond that. F: But you are the only daughter of the esteemed Margrave Edmund! F: Regardless of what you hope for, you must concede that you have inherited certain responsibilities, by virtue of your birth. M: If that's the case, then I don't care to be a responsible person. Farewell! F: One would think she does not wish to be a noble...

——————————————————————————————

b

M: Are you enjoying this lovely day, Dorte? Everyone seems to be in such good spirits. F: Marianne, do you have a moment? M: Oh! Ferdinand! What do you need? F: I have been thinking about what you said. M: I didn't mean to upset you. You should just ignore me and— F: You misunderstand. It is not that you upset me. F: Honestly, you mystify me. You are a noble, and yet you do not wish to be one. Is that not so? F: I did not expect to hear that from the daughter of Margrave Edmund. M: But…I'm not actually his daughter. M: He's a distant relative. We share very little of the same blood. F: But still, you come from a noble lineage, do you not? M: Oh, no. I'm just a minor noble from the countryside. F: Minor though it may be, you were born into a noble family. Which means you are a noble too. F: We did not choose to become nobles. We were born into the nobility. M: I understand, but that's why... M: Why I said I don't care to be responsible. I had no say in the matter! F: Marianne! I— M: My parents and I have suffered because of this bloodline and Crest. M: Even so, I am prepared to do what I must as the daughter of a noble family... M: But to be told that's still not enough, I...I just... Ugh! F: I...I see. I will not pretend to understand. But you should try to calm down a bit. F: Certainly, things did not turn out the way you had hoped. But the conditions are such that— M: The conditions? Those will never change. There's nothing to do but give up! M: Please, just leave! Ignore me! F: There will be no convincing you. Very well. I will go. M: Oh Goddess... Why did you curse me with such suffering?

——————————————————————————————

a (i?)

M: … F: Marianne. Are you not going to pray? M: I’ve finished. What is it? F: I just wanted to apologize. M: It’s fine, Ferdinand. You did nothing wrong. F: Last time we spoke, I did not quite finish saying what I wanted to say. F: You say I did nothing wrong, so perhaps you will hear me out this time? M: Very well. What is it? F: Rather than mourning the way things are, is it not better to accept reality and move forward from there? M: Accept and move forward? F: Precisely. F: You curse your heritage and reject your present situation. That makes you gloomy, even despairing. F: As long as you are held back by that way of thinking, nothing is ever going to change. M: What about you? Do you really believe that you accept whatever comes in life? F: I do. Come what may, I will never falter. F: Look at me. I lost my lands, my wealth, my status. I accept this reality, dark as it is. M: How? F: Well, each person is born with a purpose. F: We must fulfill that purpose, no matter our circumstances. It imbues our lives with meaning and direction. F: That is what I believe, anyway. Everyone has something they are meant to accomplish. That is true for nobles, commoners, even bandits. M: I-I see...so that's what you believe. M: Do you...really think it's possible that someone like me has a purpose to fulfill? F: Yes! Of course. M: Oh! M: I’ll give this some serious thought. Thank you, Ferdinand. Your words have deeply moved me. F: Is that so? How wonderful! I will pray that you find the answers you seek.

——————————————————————————————

a (ii?)

F: Mmm… Delicious... F: Marianne, may I join you? M: Yes, Ferdinand. Of course. F: Hmm. M: Um, is something wrong? F: I am sorry, but, uh... You seem very different. Compared to how you were before. M: That may be true. F: Right there! You are smiling. I do not think I have ever seen you smile. M: Please…you're making me blush... F: I do not mean to embarrass you! I am just saying, you seem to have truly changed. M: Well, I have you to thank for that. M: In truth, I spent a lot of time thinking about what you said. M: It meant so much when you told me that everyone has a purpose to fulfill. Even me. F: I am so glad to hear you say that, Marianne. I wonder, did you find a purpose for yourself? M: No, not yet... But I've been much happier since I started thinking about it more. M: I remembered a time back when I was working at the animal clinic. The rest of the staff was so thankful for the work I had done. M: Even in something as simple as looking after animals, I was able to make myself useful to others. M: Thinking about it made me realize that anyone can make other people happy. Even someone like me. F: It sounds to me like you have already found your answer. M: What do you mean? F: Making people happy. If you ask me, that is a truly worthwhile purpose. M: You may be right! M: Ah! I just remembered! I wanted to ask about your food. F: Yes, what about it? M: Today was my turn to prepare the meal. How is it? F: Oh! It is delicious! F: The flavor and the texture are superb. So you are certainly making me happy! M: I'm glad you like it. F: I hope you will learn to like yourself. For what it is worth, I like you. M: Oh? F: Maybe, if you have the time, you can cook something for me again? F: For me alone, I mean. M: Of course! It would be my pleasure!

*i can’t tell who says what, but after some deliberation, i’m guessing marianne is the cook and ferdinand is the one eating

——————————————————————————————

paired endings

Ferdinand announced his engagement to Marianne just after becoming the new Duke Aegir. While he got started restoring his territory, Marianne returned home to study politics under her shrewd adoptive father. When she returned to Ferdinand's side, they were wed, and with her new skills she proved herself to be an asset to the rebuilding effort. Aegir territory flourished under their reign, becoming one of the most prosperous regions in all Fódlan. It is said that Ferdinand commissioned a bronze statue of his wife to honor her, but that Marianne ordered it to be hidden away in storage for eternity. (other)

Ferdinand announced his marriage to Marianne just after becoming the new Duke Aegir. With the support of Margrave Edmund, they set to work restoring Aegir territory. The support of Marianne's adoptive father was essential, but not sufficient, for the relief effort. As more difficulties arose, Marianne herself took on an increasing amount of responsibility. She proved quite capable and dedicated, and the Dukedom progressed through a steady recovery under the couple's collective efforts. It is said that Ferdinand commissioned a bronze statue of his wife to honor her achievements, but Marianne ordered it to be hidden away in storage for eternity. (golden deer route)

[surianshing-blog]

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[alindakb]

Letters to my Parents - Friday 18 December 1992 - by Alinda

Friday 18 December 1992

Dear mom and dad,

I want it to stop. I want it all to stop. It’s a good thing most children are going home for Christmas tomorrow because I can’t do it any longer. There is not a single person in this school that doesn’t think I’m the one causing the attacks now. Another boy has been petrified, together with Nearly Headless Nick. I would never hurt Nick, he’s a friendly ghost. He even helped me at the beginning of the year when Filch was trying to give me detention because he had left mud on the floor. And he was so nice to invite me to his party. Why would I hurt him? But nobody seems to care about that. No, they only see the boy who can talk to snakes and has been spotted at the scene of the crime, twice. And I was missing for the other one, so it must be me. But I’m not doing this. I promise mom, I’m not.

It’s because of that stupid duelling club that Professor Lockhart tried to start up last week Wednesday. Hermione and I thought it would be fun and useful. Learning how to duel might help with keeping the bullies at bay. It’s not as bad as last year; it’s mostly just Nott saying mean things. But Hermione is right, and now that Draco isn’t teaching me defensive spell anymore I’ll have to learn them somewhere else.

And it started all of great. Professor Snape was also there to help Professor Lockhart give a demonstration. Professor Lockhart said that we didn’t have to worry, that we would still have our Potions master before he was through with him. And I wondered why Professor Lockhart was still smiling; if Professor Snape had been looking at me like that I’d be running as fast as I could in the opposite direction. And maybe Professor Lockhart should have because Professor Snape made him fly backwards with just a simple Disarming Charm. I thought it was funny and I clapped for my head of house. Hermione was all worried about her precious Professor Lockhart; she still thinks he’s amazing. I think it’s the smiles and the hair. If I hadn’t been so hung on Draco, I might have felt the same.

It got worse after that. We were paired up by the professors and against complaints from both of us Professor Snape paired me with Draco, saying it was time we tried to work out or differences, so Draco could start helping me with my Potions homework again. Professor Snape was tired of reading my horrible work. Hermione was forced to partner with Millicent, a girl in my house that is I think dating Vincent at the moment.

I couldn’t keep my eyes of Draco, and neither could he. When we were supposed to bow, we both barely inclined our heads. We both raised or wands, but I couldn’t remember the spell Professor Snape had used so I went for something else that wouldn’t be harmful. The only thing I could think of was a Tickling Charm. Draco had used it on me before when I was annoying during one of his study sessions last year. So when it was time to cast the spell I shouted Rictusempra. A jet of silver light hit Draco in the stomach and he doubled up, wheezing. I could hear Professor Lockhart shouting in the distant that we were to disarm only, when Draco sank to his knees, barely able to move for the laughing. His eyes found mine and for a moment I could see he remembered too, that night and the fun we had together, and a proper smile formed on his face before it fell back into his neutral form.

And then he turned his wand on me, and for I moment I was afraid he was going to hurt me. But he hit me with a Tarantallegra, making me dance a kind of quickstep. And the memories that came with that were even more painful. Draco had made Crabbe dance around like this last year when he tried to hit me again close to the exams. I had been so proud of Draco for not using anything that would hurt, that he remembered that I don’t like hurting others. I don’t know, but it felt like he wanted to tell me something, that he still cares, that he still doesn’t want to hurt anyone. But why does he hurt me then? By staying away from me and have Pansy hang over him all the time? Doesn’t he know that that is even worse than all the beatings I’ve had from Nott and Crabbe?

Snape made all of us stop with a simple Finite Incantatem and I could see Ron apologise to Neville for whatever his broken wand had done. Hermione and Millicent looked like they were fine. Only Draco looked worried at Nott like he was afraid Nott had read more in him working with me that there was. And this was the moment that Professor Lockhart decided that it was time for a volunteer pair to teach us all a blocking spell. And of course, Professor Snape volunteered Draco and I. Professor Lockhart showed me some complicated sort of wiggling action before he dropped his wand, expecting me to now know what to do. Meanwhile, Draco was almost fighting with Professor Snape, and when the professor told him he should, Draco just ran out of the Great Hall. I think he was crying and I wanted to follow him, but Professor Snape had already found a replacement for Draco and now I was facing Theo Nott.

Professor Snape had told Nott to use a spell called Serpensortia. The end of his wand exploded and a long black snake shot out of it. The snake landed in front of me, ready to attack. Professor Snape was just about to get rid of it, seeing I was frozen in place when Professor Lockhart stepped in and managed to only make it fly through the air. The snake was now hissing furiously at Justin Finch-Fletchley. And I don’t know why I did it, I can’t even remember deciding to do it, but I walked towards the snake and told him to leave him alone. And the snake slumped to the floor, and I knew it wouldn’t hurt anyone now. I looked up at Justin expecting him to be grateful, but he was angry and scared. He screamed: ‘What do you think you’re playing at?’ and stormed out of the hall. Everyone was muttering around me and Professor Snape looked at me with a shrewd and calculating look.

By then Hermione was pulling me out of the Great Hall. People on either side of me drew away as though they were frightened of catching something. Hermione dragged me all the way to Myrtle’s bathroom before she turned on me and asked me why I had never told her I was a Parselmouth. I told her I didn’t even know what that mend and she explains it means I can talk to snakes. I told her I know I can talk to snakes, that I once accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo. I thought loads of people could do it, talk to snakes. But it turns out it’s very rare and that it was bad. I asked why it was bad. Didn’t people understand that if I hadn’t told that snake not to attack Justin… And that is where Hermione cut me off and told me that she could only hear me speaking Snake language and that it sounded creepy. I had never realised I spoke a different language, and that still freaks me out a little. How can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it? And then I asked again why it was bad and Hermione told me that being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for and that now the whole school will be certain that I’m his great-great-great-grandson and therefore the one who attacked Colin and Mrs Norris.

I couldn’t sleep that night, just lied in bed staring at Draco’s drapes through a gap in the curtains for hours. First I listened to Draco cry and wondered why he had been so against doing the spell Professor Snape had told him to do at the duel. I was happy when the sobbing turned into even breaths and I knew he was sleeping. But that just left me to think about what Hermione had said. Could I be a descendant of Salazar Slytherin? I don’t really know anything about my father’s family. I tried to say something more in Parseltongue, but the words didn’t come. I think I need to be face-to-face with an actual snake for it to work.

Form the next day, people started to turn around when they saw me. I tried to find Justin to tell him I told the snake to stay away from him, but I didn’t find him anywhere. During meals I would sit alone at the end of the Slytherin table, nobody wanted to sit close to me, so the next students at the table were at least 2 meters away from me. I spend almost all weekend with Hermione in Myrtle’s bathroom. Myrtle is really enjoying the company. Always asking if we want to cry with her and if we already decided about how we want to kill ourselves. And sometimes I think she might be right, maybe it’s easier to just put an end to it all. But then I look at Hermione and remember what an amazing friend she is and I just can’t do that to her.

And then on Monday Herbology got cancelled. We have that class with the Hufflepuffs this year, so I decided to go look for Justin and explain. I went looking for him in the library, but he wasn’t there. Some of his house-mates were and they were talking about me. They said that Justin had gone back to their dormitory to hide. That he should be careful now that I had marked him as my next victim. One of the girls asked if Ernie was sure. And he said that I was a Parselmouth, so I must be a descendant of Slytherin. And then they said that I had a run in with Filch and the next thing you know, his cat gets petrified. And that Colin was annoying me at the Quidditch match when I wanted to leave, next thing you know he gets attacked. Hannah then said I always looked so nice and I thought that was nice of her. She also pointed out that I had made You-Know-Who go away. But Ernie also had an answer for that, that only a really dark wizard would have been able to defeat him, especially because I was only a baby. And that that is probably why he wanted to kill me in the first place. That Voldemort didn’t want another Dark Lord competing with him.

I couldn’t take it and turned around, with tears in my eyes. If even the Hufflepuffs think I’m an evil wizard. They are normally the nicest of everyone here in the castle, always seeing the good in people. But even they were now convinced that I’m the dark wizard terrorising the school.

I didn’t really look where I was going and walked straight into Hagrid when I turned around a corridor on my way back to Myrtle’s bathroom. He was on his way to the headmaster to get permission to put a charm around the hen coop since something was killing the roosters. It was either foxes or a Blood-Suckin’ Bugbear, whatever that may be. And then Hagrid took another look at me and could see that I was crying. He asked me again if I was sure that I was alright. I quickly pulled the sleeve of my rope over my eyes and told him it was nothing and that I had to get my books for my Defence Against the Dark Arts class I had next.

Leaving Hagrid behind, I still wasn’t really looking at where I was walking. Ernie’s words just kept spinning in my head. ‘Justin has been waiting for something like this to happen ever since he let slip to Potter he was Muggle-born.’ How could they think this of me? My best friend is a Muggle-born. Why would I hate them, if the only person in this castle that still cares about me is one of them? I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn’t see something lying on the ground. I tripped over it and when I turned to see what I had fallen over I felt as though my stomach had dissolved. Justin was laying on the floor, rigid and cold, a look of shock frozen on his face, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. And next to him was Nearly Headless Nick, no longer pearly-white and transparent, but black and smoky, floating immobile and horizontal, six inches off the floor. I got to my feet and looked up and down the corridor and saw a line of spiders scuttling as fast as they could away from the bodies.

I was panicking. I could run and no one would ever know I had been there. But I also couldn’t just leave them there. I had to get help. But who would believe I didn’t do it? I was so lost. What was I supposed to do? And then Peeves came by and saw the bodies next to me. He started screaming: ATTACK! Attack! No mortal or ghost is safe, run for your lives. And of course that made every door in the hallway crash open and students were coming in from all directions. It wasn’t until Professor McGonagall came on the scene and she had ordered everyone back into class that I dared to move. Professor McGonagall looked at me and told me to follow her. I tried to tell her that I hadn’t done it, but she said it was out of her hands. And then she took me to headmasters Dumbledore’s office.

Professor McGonagall left me alone in the headmaster’s office and I was sure I was going to get expelled. What else could they do? Everyone was certain that I was the one behind all the attacks. And now, I was again found on the scene of the crime. After just standing there, looking at all the amazing things in the headmaster’s office I heard a strange, gagging noise behind me. I turned out I wasn’t alone in the office. Headmaster Dumbledore has a bird, a very special bird, but I didn’t know that at first. So I yelled when the ill-looking bird burst into flames. And then the headmaster stepped into the room. I gasped, that there had been nothing I could have done. But headmaster Dumbledore just smiled and said that it was okay. Fawkes is a phoenix, and they burst into flame when it is time for them to die and are reborn from the ashes. We watched together until a tiny, wrinkled, newborn bird pokes its head out of the ashes. Headmaster Dumbledore assured me that he is normally a very handsome bird, with wonderful red and gold plumage. He also explained that they can carry immensely heavy loads and their tears have hailing powers.

It was then that Hagrid came bursting into the office, to defend me, saying it couldn’t have been me since I had been talking to him only seconds before the kid was found. And then the headmaster surprised me by saying that he knew it hadn’t been me. That made Hagrid stop talking and he went back out to wait for the headmaster to finish with me.

Headmaster Dumbledore asked me if there was anything I wanted to tell him, and for a moment I thought about telling him about the voice I had heard saying it wanted to kill. But I remember that Hermione had said that hearing voices no one else can hear isn’t a good sign, so I decided not to tell him. And maybe I should have asked him if he knew if I was somehow related to Salazar Slytherin. Or told him that the children and even some professors at the school are consciously avoiding me, afraid I’ll go after them next. But I said that there was nothing and after that, I was allowed to leave.

After those attacks, almost all the students decided to go home for the Christmas holidays. Hermione tried to convince her parents to let her stay, but they agree, saying they missed their daughter, so she also had to go. Draco is also leaving, going to his elaborate Christmas dinner at the manor. I hope he will have a good holiday. I think he’s really scared and sad right night. He’s been crying more often at night. I hear him every time I wake up from my nightmares. They are still the same. I see Draco somewhere, I try to get closer to him and then he disappears. What if he doesn’t come back from the holiday?

I’m also a little scared because Nott, Crabbe and Pansy are staying here for Christmas. What if they decided to go after me? I know they think I’m some dark lord that has released a dangers monster on the school. But I’m sure they remember how easy it was to almost hex and beat me to death last year. What if the fear of me being a dark lord doesn’t stop them and I end up in the hospital wing again? Or worse, death? Well, I don’t really think that will be worse. Nothing can be worse than this, being avoided and looked at with fear. I’m tired of people skirting around me in the corridors and all the muttering, pointing and hissing as I pass. I’m tired of it all, I just want to be with you, mom and dad. I just want to be somewhere where I can be happy and don’t feel so alone all the time.

Oh, I must tell you about Fred and George, you remember Ron’s brothers. They are the only students, next to Hermione, that don’t think I am the heir of Slytherin. They make jokes about it all the time. When they see me walking down a corridor, they come to march ahead of me, shouting: ‘Make way for the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard coming through.’ And making jokes like: ‘Harry’s off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea whit his fanged servant.’  It makes me feel a little better to know that there are at least two other people that think it’s ludicrous that I’m the heir of Slytherin.

I think I’ll try to go back to sleep now.

I love you,

Harry James Potter.

[pikapeppa]

Cullen/Lavellan smut: Plaidweave

I AM EXTREMELY EXCITED TO PRESENT THIS GIFT FIC TO @schoute OF HER PIPER LAVELLAN AND CULLEN!! [raises a glass] May this be the first of many wonderful fic/art exchanges we will do, my friend!

For @dadrunkwriting Friday! NSFW smut. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Read on AO3 instead.

*****************

Piper bolted into the rotunda and almost slammed into Solas in her haste.

He stumbled back in surprise. “Inquisitor,” he exclaimed. “Are you-”

“Sorry Solas, can’t talk, urgent business!” she called, and she ran straight through the rotunda and out the door that led onto the battlements.

The cool mountain air was a sharp contrast to the castle’s cozy warmth, and Piper smiled as the cold fingers of wind tugged at her hair. She briefly considered slowing down in her race across the battlements - she was the Inquisitor, decorum and decency and all that crap that Vivienne would needle her about - but she couldn’t be bothered.

She was far too excited to see him.

She skidded to a stop as she reached the closed door to her favourite place in Skyhold, then quickly ran her fingers through her silvery hair and nodded in satisfaction. Braid’s not too messy, bangs aren’t too sweaty, we’re good to go, she thought.

Piper shuffled her bare feet in excitement - being away from him for two weeks was far too long for her liking - then knocked on the door.

“Enter,” he barked.

Piper grinned to herself. But damn, did she ever love that gruff and bossy tone of his.

She pushed open the door and leaned sinuously against the doorjamb. “Am I interrupting?” she asked.

Cullen looked up from his desk, and Piper grinned at the blush that instantly lit his cheeks. He straightened with a smile, then nodded respectfully. “Inquisitor,” he said. “I’m… it’s very good to see you.”

“You too, Commander,” she purred, then forced herself not to laugh as Cullen’s cheeks pinkened even further. She pushed off of the doorjamb and wandered into his office. “You received my report from Dinan Han’in, I trust?”

“I did,” Cullen replied. He tapped one of the many letters on his desk. “I was just reading it again now. It seems that you had an interesting visit, to say the least.”

“We did,” Piper confirmed. The elvhen ruins had been… well, rather disturbing in fact, but she had other things on her mind right now.

She leaned her palms on the desk and tilted her head coyly. “Reading my report again, you say? How many times have you read it already?”

Cullen hesitated, then ducked his head bashfully and scratched the back of his neck. “More times than was strictly necessary,” he admitted. He treated her to that stunning smile that never failed to make her heart flutter. “I am… very pleased that you’re back.”

“Me too,” Piper said huskily. Gods, she’d missed him far more than a two-week absence warranted, but he was just so…

Ugh, he’s so fucking wonderful, she thought. It was almost annoying how thoroughly this handsome human had come to occupy every scrap of her attention that wasn’t focused on the Inquisition. Unfortunate that they had an entire world to save, or else she’d have her hands all over him every moment of the damned day.

But she’d have to restrain herself for now. It was only early afternoon, and Cullen was a busy man; clearly he’d been expecting someone else when she’d knocked, or he wouldn’t have used that officious (but sexy!) tone. So Piper forced herself to stand up straight and take a step away from his desk.

“I brought you something from the Emerald Graves, actually,” she said brightly, and she reached behind her back and pulled out the garment that she’d tucked into her belt. With much pride, she thrust the garment at Cullen. “Here.”

He took the piece of clothing gingerly and stared at it, and Piper had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing as he struggled to maintain a polite expression. In her opinion, the cut of the garment wasn’t bad at all - it was a fitted sleeveless vest, and she was certain it was going to look fine as hell on him.

It was the cloth that was the problem - or, in Piper’s honest opinion, the best part.

Cullen was clearly struggling for words, and Piper waited in high amusement until he finally spoke. “Thank you, Inquisitor,” he said carefully. “It… it’s… well…”

“It’s plaidweave,” she blurted. “It’s hideous, I know.” In truth, Piper loved the unpopular gold-and-brown pattern, but that was a dirty little secret Cullen didn’t need to know.

He wilted slightly and smiled at her. “Maker’s breath, I didn’t want to be rude…”

Piper burst out laughing, then skipped around the desk and pinched his chin playfully. “It’s ugly, but it’s functional,” she explained. “Plaidweave is made with august ram wool, did you know that? It’s very lightweight. Good for wicking away sweat.”

“I see,” Cullen said slowly.

Piper scoffed and rolled her eyes. “It’s good clothing for training, you handsome felasil,” she scolded. “You can wear it under your armour when you’re working with the troops. Or, you know, just wear it on its own. Show off that fine body of yours.” Unable to help herself, she sidled closer to him and pressed herself against the fine body in question.

“Oh, I - that is - thoughtful, thank you,” Cullen stammered. Despite his endearing discomfiture, his gloved hand was sliding over her hip, and Piper inhaled slowly to quell the inconvenient rising of her own lust. It was such a simple touch - just his hand on her hip, a nearly innocuous caress. So why was she getting so riled up?

She should back away from him. He was at work. Technically she was working still, damn it - she had to meet Leliana in the rookery in about ten minutes. But her errant libido was running away with her.

She pressed her breasts against his chestplate and lifted her chin. “I have a matching vest under my shirt,” she whispered. “Want to see?”

Cullen’s ears were flaming red. “I - I do, very much,” he muttered. “But I… Inquisitor, I must insist…”

His voice was a tremulous whisper. His breath was warm against her cheek. Gods, she wanted to feel that hot breath of his on her bare skin, ghosting across her nipples…

With an enormous force of will, she stepped away from him. Let no one ever say the Inquisitor had no discipline at all, she thought ruefully. A tiny hint of a scrap of discipline it might be, but still it existed.

She smiled at him. “Should I make an appointment for a private viewing-”

He suddenly shoved away from the desk, and Piper had a split second to gasp in surprise before he was kissing her, his arms around her waist and his lips firm and hot as they slanted across hers, and - oh fuck, now her arms were wrapping around his neck and she was writhing her hips toward his, and - and this, this embrace, the spicy leather scent of him, this was what she’d been missing for the past two weeks -

She slicked her tongue against his own, and he broke away with a gasp. He cupped her cheek in his palm and panted for breath. “I - forgive me, Piper, that was - I’m sorry, you were leaving -”

“Are you kidding?” she said breathlessly. “Never apologize for that.” She grinned at him, then stroked his neck and forced herself to step away from him. “To be continued,” she said meaningfully. “At your earliest convenience, Commander.”

He ran a hand through his gorgeous hair. “Y-yes, of course,” he said. “And… thank you. For the gift.”

She stopped at the door and shot him a mischievous smile. “You are very welcome,” she said. “Just remember, it’s highly practical! Try it on sometime.”

He winced slightly and scratched the back of his neck once more. “I… will consider wearing it the next time I train,” he said.

Piper chuckled at his reluctance. “That’s all I ask,” she said. She blew him a kiss, then ran off to the rookery.

The sooner she met with Leliana, the sooner she could finish up her day… and the sooner she could return to the extremely urgent business of stripping her handsome Commander until he was wearing nothing at all.

**********************

Later that evening, when Skyhold’s shadows had taken over the courtyard, Piper was on her way to visit Krem at the tavern when a surprising and very enticing sight met her eyes.

She grinned, then raced over to the training ring as quickly as her bare feet would carry her. She skidded to a stop at the edge of the ring and braced her palms on the fence. “You’re wearing it!” she called out.

Cullen threw a practice punch at the Iron Bull’s broad belly, then turned to face her with a rueful smile. “I thought it only polite,” he told her. “I started imagining Mia’s voice in my ear telling me I was being ungrateful.”

Piper threw her head back and laughed in delight. With his scarred and muscled arms exposed, he looked just as scrumptious in the plaidweave vest as she had hoped. “And?” she asked. “Is it comfortable or what?”

He huffed a little laugh. “It is,” he admitted. “The sweat-wicking quality is especially comfortable.”

“Hey Cullen,” Bull interjected. “Are you finished here already? You’ve barely even broken a sweat worth mentioning to the Boss.”

Cullen shot him a shrewd look, then turned back to Piper with a crooked little smile. “Excuse me, Inquisitor,” he said. “It seems that a certain mercenary captain requires a solid lesson in hand-to-hand.”

Bull let out a rolling belly laugh. “Big words from such a small human,” he rumbled. “Come on then. Let’s get some sweat rolling down that pretty face.”

Piper grinned and leaned her elbows on the fence to watch. Cullen and Bull sparred for some time, and although Bull was undeniably better at this kind of scrappy hand-to-hand combat, Cullen managed to land a handful of strikes that made Bull grunt with discomfort.

Piper bit her lower lip as she watched. Her eyes were unerringly drawn to the shifting of Cullen’s muscles beneath his vest, not to mention the shape of his finely muscled backside in his loose training trousers. His hair was growing damp with sweat, and she could hear the harshness of his breathing as he dodged from Bull’s huge fists…

Harsh breathing, like the way he breathed against her ear when they moved together in his bed. Harsh breathing that drifted across her thighs when he lay her back and spread her wide. Harsh breathing and sweat and that perfect golden hair falling into his perfect brown eyes…

Piper took a deep breath and tugged idly at her braid. Then Cullen suddenly grabbed Bull around the back of the neck and hauled his head down.

Piper recoiled in surprise. Suddenly Cullen was behind Bull with his arms wrapped around the qunari’s thick waist, and -

CRASH. Bull hit the ground on his left hip. Cullen’s arms were still around his waist, and the qunari captain was roaring with laughter.

Cullen released Bull and rose to his feet with a broad grin, and Bull sat up on his elbow. “Well played, Commander, well played! You learned well,” he announced.

Piper closed her mouth and swallowed hard. “That was… wow,” she said lamely. Gods, where were her words? Where was her fucking brain? Her wits seemed to have been washed away by the sudden roar of lust that was blasting through her veins.

Cullen smiled at her. “We’ve been practicing that for the past few days,” he explained. “It took some time, but I believe I’ve got it down.”

“Hah!” Bull exclaimed. “I will see you coming now. We’ll see how you fare tomorrow.” He pushed himself to his feet, then offered Piper a brief salute. “See you, Boss,” he said, and he strolled off toward the tavern.

Cullen chuckled, then smoothed his fingers through his messy hair as he approached the edge of the ring. “Thank you for the vest. I mean it genuinely this time,” he said. “I didn’t realize how much of a boon it would be to not be fully drenched in sweat.”

Piper stared at him. He looked so pleased with himself, so innocently pleased with his combat prowess, and the stupid plaidweave outlined every line of his abs so damned well. For fuck’s sake, if she didn’t get him naked in the space of minutes…

She grabbed the collar of his vest, and his eyes widened as she pushed herself onto her tiptoes to lean closer to him. “You know what else is good for wicking away sweat?” she breathed. “My tongue.”

His cheeks instantly flushed red, and his eyes darted to her mouth. Very deliberately, she traced her upper lip with the tip of her tongue.

“Do you need a demonstration?” she asked.

“M-Maker’s breath,” he muttered. “I - yes, that would be… yes-”

“Come on,” she said, and she released his vest and made a beeline for the nearest stairs up to the battlements.

An instant later, Cullen was walking beside her. They didn’t speak as they walked, and their quick pace was nevertheless decorous - Vivienne would be so proud of her! - but Piper was exquisitely aware of the warmth of his skin as his bare arm brushed against her own.

Then they were on the battlements. They made their way toward Cullen’s office in silence, but his little finger was sliding against the edge of her hand as they walked, and the mere gentle stroke of his finger on her skin was raising the pulse between her legs.

Gods, she was so unbelievably turned on. It was madness. How the simple touch of his finger on the blade of her hand could be such a damned trigger for her lust, she had no idea. But by the time Cullen unlocked and pushed open his office door, Piper was ready to scream.

He gallantly stepped aside to let her through, then closed the door behind him and turned to face her. “Would you-”

She shoved him back against the door and pulled his face down to hers. “Take that stupid plaidweave off,” she demanded, and she kissed him hard.

He grunted in surprise, then dragged her against his body and pushed his knee between her thighs, and Piper whimpered into his mouth as she pressed down against his leg. His hands were firm on her back, and she ground herself against his thigh as he gathered the fabric of her loose linen shirt in his hands and pulled it from her trousers.

He rolled her shirt up, and Piper reluctantly allowed him to break their kiss so he could pull her shirt off. Then she moaned as he palmed her breast.

His thumb swept across her nipple. “You really are wearing a matching vest,” he marvelled. He slid his fingers beneath the hem of her cropped vest and played his fingertips over her nipple, and she inhaled sharply at his exquisite touch. “You thought I was lying?” she panted. “Shame on you, Commander. I never lie about cute clothes.”

He chuckled. “Forgive my disbelief,” he said. “But I’d much rather see you without the vest.”

He rolled her nipple between his fingers, and Piper gasped again, then grabbed his wrist. “You first,” she begged. “Take yours off now.” She plucked at his blighted plaidweave garment. She was desperate to look at him, to trace the planes of his muscles with her greedy eyes, and - damn it, she needed his vest off now.

He slipped his hand out of her top, then pulled his own vest over his head and dropped it on the floor, and Piper wasted no time: she ran her tongue hungrily across his pec.

Cullen groaned as she swirled the tip of her tongue around his nipple. She slowly lowered herself to her knees, trailing her tongue and lips down along his salted skin and listening with growing satisfaction to his rapid breaths.

He slid his fingers into her hair, cradling her head as she pulled eagerly at the laces of his trousers, and as soon as the laces were loose, she hauled his trousers down to his knees.

“Piper,” he gasped. “Do you want - should we go upstairs -”

“No,” she chirped. “Right here is perfect.” She spread her palms on his thighs - such lovely hard muscly thighs - then licked his left thigh, taking his delicious salt on her tongue and ever-so-gently grazing his flesh with her teeth. Her hand travelled across his right thigh until her knuckles were stroking his balls, and she heard the soft thump of him resting his head back against the door.

“M-Maker’s breath,” he panted.

She lifted her mouth from his skin and grinned cheekily up at him. “Wrong,” she purred. “The only breath that will touch your skin is mine.” Without further warning, she took his steely cock in her mouth.

He cried out his pleasure, and Piper relished the sound. She loved the needy strain in his voice, this voice that was usually so stern and no-nonsense but that softened and warmed when he was alone with her, and which carried such a beautiful thread of helpless desire when their clothing and their duties fell away.

She slid her lips along the length of his cock, taking him as deep as she could until her nose nearly brushed his abdomen. Cullen moaned and slowly tilted his hips toward her mouth, and Piper shifted her angle slightly so she could take him deeper.

Yes, deeper was how she wanted him. The further his cock slid into her throat, the more she got to savour his scent - that primal, earthy, masculine scent that was only heightened by the fact that he’d been working out with Bull.

She hummed appreciatively around his cock, then released him and grinned up at him. “You smell amazing,” she said.

Cullen’s rosy cheeks flushed even further. “Piper, please, that’s - I am sorry, the training and all-”

He made as though to cover his cock with his hand, and Piper pushed his hand away. “Hands off, serah,” she said playfully. She laced her fingers with his, then took him into her mouth once more.

Cullen squeezed her fingers, and Piper happily closed her eyes as his length slid along her palate to the softness of her throat. His pleasured voice, his strong fingers in her hair, the salty taste and scent of him: it was a perfect combination of sensation melded together in this man who was steadily held in her thrall, and Piper savoured it like the favoured fantasy that it was.

He gasped as he hit his peak, and his fingers tightened against her own as he shuddered and gave his weight to the door, and Piper sat up on her heels and greedily swallowed every drop of his release as it graced her throat. A long, breathless moment later, Cullen stroked her chin. “Stand up. Please,” he panted.

She swiftly did as she was told, and an instant later she was in Cullen’s arms. He walked around the desk and carefully placed her in his chair, then knelt at her feet and slid his big callused palm up along her ribs.

She grabbed the armrests and arched toward him as his thumb slipped beneath the edge of her top. “Cullen,” she whined. The edge of his thumb was teasing the underside of her breast, stroking her tender flesh and avoiding her nipple entirely, and gods, she wanted more.

“Yes, Inquisitor?” he said.

Piper opened her eyes. His tone was mild and his eyes were on her body, but his lips were curled in a mischievous little smile.

She smiled slowly back at him, then arched her neck as he pushed her vest up and ran his knuckle across her nipple. “You cheeky man,” she gasped. “Are you teasing me?”

“I’m only giving as good as I’ve gotten from you in the past,” he replied. “Take this vest off, now.”

Piper saucily bit her lip. “Ooh. Giving orders now, are you?” She swiftly peeled her cropped vest off and tossed it on his desk.

He raised one eyebrow at her and smirked. “I don’t see you taking orders very well,” he drawled, and he slid his palms over her breasts.

She clenched her fingers in the armrests of his chair. “Orders from you? Sexy ones? I could be persuaded - oh gods!” She threw her head back as he slicked his tongue over her nipple.

He lifted his face and smiled. “An interesting thought, that. Let’s hang onto it for later.” He took her nipple in his mouth, and Piper clasped the back of his neck as he swiftly unbuttoned her trousers. Then he was pulling her trousers down and pushing her thighs apart, and she was panting with excitement and lifting her hips toward him, and his mouth - that gorgeous scarred mouth of his was grazing the skin beneath her navel, and his heated breath was drifting between her legs and sending shivers down her spine -

“Fuck,” she gasped. His tongue was between her legs, smoothing along the length of her cleft and dancing across the bud of her clit, and she squeezed her eyes shut and sank into the blissful feel of it.

This is the best fucking feeling in the world, she thought deliriously. There was just something about the way Cullen treated her with his tongue, something in the way his lips moved between her legs as though he was kissing her mouth… It was so damned good that it made her lightheaded. Maybe it was the time they’d spent apart, or maybe she was just that damned besotted with him, but her climax was rising with an almost indecent speed, building and roiling under his lovely mouth, and before she had time to do much more than gasp her pleasure and grasp his golden hair, her peak was rushing over her and rendering her breathless.

She arched her back and pressed her hips toward his mouth. “Cullen, please!” she sobbed. Then she cried out more sharply still as he slid one finger inside of her.

He gently kissed her clit and curled his finger, and Piper panted sharply until he lifted his mouth away. “Let’s go upstairs,” he rasped. He rose to his feet and extended a hand to her, and Piper’s greedy eyes fell on his swiftly rising manhood.

She allowed him to help her to her feet, and it was a good thing; her thighs were shaky still from her climax. She followed him to the ladder, then tossed him a cheeky grin as she began to climb. “No sex on the Commander’s desk this time?”

He chuckled. “Not today,” he said. “The desk is for… special occasions.”

Piper laughed as she pulled herself through the trapdoor to his bedroom. She planted her hands on her hips as she waited for him to join her. “Special occasions, you say?” she teased. “What do you call this, then?”

He rose to his feet beside her and cradled her cheek. “I misspoke,” he said softly. “Every time is always… what I meant to say…” His cheeks were turning red again, and Piper’s amusement softened at how damned bashful he was.

She slid her arms around his waist. “It’s all right, Cullen,” she murmured. “I know exactly what you mean.”

He released a soft exhale and smiled at her, and she beamed helplessly back at him. He looked so happy right now - so relaxed. He was so worried all the time, worried about the lyrium-corrupted Templars and the Breach and about her, and it was so damned nice to see him looking this much at ease. And to think she had played a part in helping him relax…

This was the best feeling. Knowing that she’d helped to wipe Cullen’s worries away, even for a little while: this was the best thing about these moments that she spent wrapped in his strong embrace. These moments were too few and far-between for Piper’s liking, painfully separated by her lengthy forays into the field, but when they were together… Gods, when they were together, every second she spent breathing the same air as him was a second well-spent.

She tightened her arms around his waist and gently kissed his collarbone. He draped his arms around her shoulders and sighed, and Piper relished the languid rise and fall of his ribs against her chest.

He pressed his lips to her forehead, then her nose as she tilted up her chin, and then his lips found hers in a careful kiss. The urgency of their earlier clinch was all but gone now, softened and smoothed into something far slower but just as sweet, and Piper swayed dreamily into the heat of his body as they kissed.

His lips pulled gently at hers as his hands pulled gently at her hips, cupping the curves of her bottom as he walked them back toward his bed. He sat on the bed and pulled her down with him, guiding her thighs to straddle his hips, and they gasped in tandem as he pressed himself inside of her in a long, smooth stroke.

His hands were pulling her closer, firmly guiding her against the steel of his cock, and - and oh, his hands: how she loved his fucking hands. They were rough from training with his sword and shield, and warm against the skin of her hips, and with every rolling thrust, she gave herself over to Cullen a little bit more. His hands were so confident, and his cock was driving so perfectly along her inner walls, and what need did she have for control when his beautiful hands gave such perfect tactile commands to her pliant body?

She clenched her fingers against his biceps, then clasped his neck as she fought for breath. Then one of his hands was cradling her nape.

“Piper,” he said. “I… I meant to tell you before, I…” He trailed off with a groan as she ground herself against his cock, then he moaned into her mouth when she cut him off with a hard kiss.

She stroked his tongue with her own, then pulled away and panted against his cheek. “What is it?” she breathed.

“I missed you,” Cullen blurted. “When you are gone, it’s… it’s very hard. It’s - important, of course, nothing is more important than the work you’re doing-”

She clasped his face in her hands and stared into his eyes. Her heart was already pounding, thrumming with the rhythm of their sex, but hearing him say such words, hearing his confession of the same feelings that were constantly pounding through her blood when they were apart…

She bit her lip and rested her forehead against his own. “I miss you too,” she whispered. “All the time, Cullen. Every fucking moment that I’m out there. Don’t you forget it.”

He smiled, and Piper released a breathy laugh, and then his hands were pulling her against his hips again, pulling hard and swift as she grasped his shoulders and twisted her hips toward him. His lips were on her breast, his pleasured breaths pouring across her skin as his teeth pressed against her nipple, and she arched her back and gasped as he drove into her, striking her sensitive flesh in harmony with the melody of his guttural breaths.

He clenched his teeth, his fingers tight against her hips. “P-Piper,” he begged. “I’m - I’m going to-”

She nodded furiously, unable to speak through the breath that was caught in the cage of her ribs, and when Cullen thrust into her hard, she cried out in release and clutched his shuddering shoulders in her hands.

Her pulse was thundering in her ears. She pressed her lips to his hair, breathing in his warm and spicy scent as they both fought to catch their breath, their arms sliding more firmly around each other until they were a tightly wound tangle of limbs.

She kissed his hair, then his temple as he tilted his head, then finally the rounded edge of his ear. “I should bring you ugly gifts more often if this is the attention I get,” she whispered.

The corner of his eye crinkled in a smile, and Piper giggled as he nibbled her throat with his lips. Then he lifted his face and smiled softly at her. “You don’t need ugly gifts to get my attention,” he said.

His gaze drifted to her lips, and she happily lowered her face to meet him in a kiss. A blissful moment later, she pulled away and smirked. “So you admit you think that vest is ugly?”

His ears instantly turned red. “No, no,” he blustered. “I - that’s not what I -”

Piper cackled merrily, then clasped his face and kissed him again until he smiled. He broke away to kiss her cheek, then his lips were at her ear. “You’re a little minx, Piper. Were you aware of that?” He whispered.

She closed her eyes dreamily at the beloved sound of his voice. “Of course,” she replied. “But I don’t mind hearing you say so, <em>Commander</em>.”

His rumbling little chuckle rolled across her ear and straight down to her happily beating heart, and Piper grinned against his temple. She would be heading back out to the Emerald Graves in two days’ time, and already she was loathe to lose the heat of his body against her own. Of all the difficult things about being the Inquisitor, her constant separation from Cullen was the worst. But the lure of his bashful smile would always call her back.

The travelling and the fighting, the quests and the corpses and the rifts in the sky: she would brave it all with a grin on her face and a bow in her hand if it meant coming back to him.

For another moment with Cullen, she would brave anything.