#roman empire fandom i hope you find this funny

[caeli0306]

20 questions for writers tag game!

tagged by @widebrimmedhatsblog and @hockeyspiral23

Total number of AO3 works

Nine!

2. Total AO3 word count

287,489

3. Fandoms I've written for

Empyrean and that's literally it lol

4. Top 5 fics by kudos

Violet Sorrengail's Guide to Spinning a Scandal, castles crumbling, Tales from the Airport Bathroom, Did Someone Say Shots?, and Did Someone Say Vacation?

5. Do I respond to comments?

Yes! Sometimes it takes me longer to get to them, especially if I get a lot within a short period of time, but I always respond to comments.

6. What has the angstiest ending?

definitely the present, the past, and you in between. That was the first one shot I ever wrote and I still get comments of people being iike "bro why did you do that???"

7. What has the happiest ending?

All of my fics (except for the one mentioned above) have happy endings if they're done, more or less! If I had to choose one, I think it would be VSGTSAS.

8. Have I received hate?

Yes, once, but honestly in my line of work I get so much online hate that I just find it funny. I wrote a very sarcastic response and moved on. One of the reasons I love this fandom is because its super positive and accepting, so why dwell on the single outlier I've come across?

9. Do I write smut? And what kind?

Yes, and as of now just Riorgail

10. Do I write crossovers?

Unless you count the Top Gun AU I've been working on a crossover, then no. I think trying to mix worlds and characters would get too confusing for me, so doing an AU based on another world is about the extent for me.

11. Have I ever had a fic stolen?

As far as I know I have not! Hopefully it stays that way.

12. Have I ever had a fic translated?

Nope!

13. Have I ever co written a fic?

I have not! I feel like it would be fun though

14. What is my all time favorite ship?

Riorgail. They are my Roman Empire.

15. A WIP I'll never finish?

So I will always maintain that I will finish everything I start, but if there is any story that I think has a chance of not getting finished, it's Swan Song. I haven't had the inspiration to write it for a while, and my backlog just keeps getting longer. I hope I'll get around to finishing it eventually, but it won't be for a long time.

16. Writing strengths?

I've been told that I write angst well, and that I'm good at writing tension between characters. Personally, I think my ability to research (thank you journalism) and write things as close to realistically as I possibly can is my greatest strength. Not kidding when I say I had a 15 page document of job descriptions for senate office staffers that I got from a friend who works on the Hill back when I was working on VSGTSAS and that bad boy was open the entire time I was writing chapter 4.

17. Writing weaknesses?

I think I struggle to describe movement and action in a way that isn't repetitive, and sometimes my writing sounds a bit robotic (thank you journalism). I also think sometimes my sentences can get a bit convoluted.

18. Do I like foreign language dialogue?

I'm not sure - I don't think I've read any fics with that.

19. First fandom I wrote for?

Empyrean!

20. Favorite fic I've written?

This is like asking me to pick a favorite child. I'm going to include Violet Sorrengail's Guide to Spinning a Scandal and castles crumbling because I love them both and they are both my favorite.

I'm tagging @skyfallscotland, @suebswrites, and @witch-and-her-witcher (unsure if any of you have already been tagged!)

[armando-triplepapito]

Armando and Betty are my Roman empire! I would really hate it if they ruined the beautiful relationship they have.

Yes!! Same!! I love them so much when I heard about the new sequel I was excited to see how much stronger their bond has gotten over the years. But after finding out about the amnesia plotline I’ve been having mixed feelings about it.

It sounds interesting cause it’ll be like a do over with their love story. They’ll be able to restart their relationship without the horrible plan Mario created. I’m kinda liking that idea cause tbh I am a sucker for couples falling in love with each other all over again (doesn’t matter the scenario). In a sense it’s kinda romantic for me.❤️

Then again we might not see their great partnership they’ve created from the 20+ yrs of marriage.

In the OG Armando would get into all sorts of trouble but Betty would be able to solve them by assessing the situation now imagine in the new sequel roles are reversed! Instead of Betty solving problems it’ll be Armando taking on that role! Ahh that would be so cool!! But if we’re taking the amnesia route then will most likely not see this unless, by some miracle, towards the end of the series.😒

Also I’m worried that with the amnesia plotline the story will start off with Betty and Armando having a rough marriage with a divorce on sight and end with “thanks to Betty fighting for Armando’s memories(and love) now their marriage is stronger than ever”. I can swear to you this is how it’s going to play out! And if they do then to me that just sounds like lazy writing and uninteresting to me.

Tho I have to admit it would be nice to see Armando avoiding all forms of flirtation from other women cause of his love for Betty even if he doesn’t have his memories. It’s like his mind doesn’t remember but his heart and body does which is romantic to me ngl🙈.

Now that I think about it I remember AMO mentioned in an interview that in this sequel Betty will think about the choices she’s made in her life. I really do hope it doesn’t involve Betty regretting marrying Armando!! Cause if that’s even mentioned I will not take the sequel seriously. From that point onwards I’ll just think about it as a live action fanfic and not a continuation to the novela.😒

Sorry for being so negative! It’s just that I don’t have much hope for the writers. I remember someone mentioned that the writers for the sequel were involved in Pasión de Gavilanes. Even tho I’ve never watch that novela Ik a lot of people hated the progression and ending of it. I just hope the writers have been listening to the ysblf fandom and not mess things up!

Anyways things that I really want to see in the new sequel is lovey dovey scenes from B&A, jealousy on both sides, them defending each other, their different parenting style and how they harmonize, and most of all I want scenes of Armando being his sexy self🫦

Also it’ll be funny if they end the sequel with them wanting another kid🤣 cause ngl I’m still shocked how they only had one lol!

[chuluoyi]

How I grinded, huh... Do you really want to know? 🫠 It's a painful process... So 400 from temple of Themis, 300 from his birthday puzzle thingy, 175 (If I rmb correctly) from the last level of Trials of Themis, 180 from 1 Achievement ( level up 20 skills to level 10), 50 from Achievement (upgrade Luke cards 100 times) + daily 60 for 3 days...

Right!! That's why I love childhood friends to lovers sm!!! And omg you find Vyn sus too?? So I'm not the only one after all 😭. And HELP Artem IS the perfect kind of man! Especially for Asian parents... My mum would probably go nuts if I had a bf like Artem...

And I totally agree, baby Sugu deserved sm better... He's actually the sweetest like I am still not over the way he calls 'Satoru' like this could be my ringtone and I wouldn't even care- 🫠🫠 volcano man 👎🏻👎🏻

Same man I pulled Venti cause I could make things fly HAHAHA Plus I just love that drunk little bard sm he's so funny and cute 🥹 HAHAHAH RIGHT Omg we just pull cause they're hot 😭😭 And like it's only after getting them then you realise "Oh he's not THAT good" but you tell yourself "It's fine he's hot".

Hoyo stuff just expensive in general.... 🫠🫠

And I wanna try too ngl but I think I'll wait till the next hottie pops up *heh* UNLESS Wrio is still having his banner then that's a different story 😁🥸

Yea... JJK season 2 really is just killing us internally... Your friends made the right choice! The only good thing is the Hidden Inventory arc when they were all happy and young and hot hshdhhd

I'm so glad you enjoy talking to meeee 🫶🏻🫶🏻 I also hope you'll never experience any drama... cause it CAN get quite messy.. And yeah I realised the JJK fandom can be quite scary.... I thought AOT was bad whew...

-🪩

….that’s quite a lot😭 YOU KNOW WHAT I MISSED THE BDAY THINGY EVEN THO I WAS SOOOO CLOSE🤧 upgrade the cards omg i’m so stellin broke i can’t even do that after levelling up the bakerlon card and the side story card😭

my roman empire is childhood friend and arranged marriage i swear pls someone write this up for me😫 add angst and i will be happy✌🏻 HAHAHA yeah i thought he was a bad guy at first i’m so sorry vyn lovers i didn’t mean to🥲 so truee!! asian moms are just so specific with their wishlist that make us just 🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻

yessh🤧 like he’s so soft for gojo aaaa i want to write geto too sometime soon but i’m afraid i won’t do him justice so i might take more time to do his characterisation🥹 THE THUMBS DOWN AHAHHAHA

nevermind i barely have any primo i’m closing genshin😔 maybe sometime soon i’ll grind when i don’t have to do overtime *sigh* i must grind LUKE FIRST SJSJSJ i’m buying the monthly pass and now i have like 200 a chips

to me jjk ended after hidden inventory 💀 really i can’t even imagine how culling games would be after this bcs haaah🤧 what do we even see there?

right😭😭 it’s scary because i think most of the causes are actually nothing major but then it spiralled out into a full-blown discourse🤧 really?? in aot too? do you watch aot as well?

[voice-of-dissent]

she vedi on my vici till veni

[deceits-left-glove]

Oh

My god.

I just found a really old logicality one-shot I made when I was very very very new in the fandom and dear god- I didn't think there was a time i wasn't a Janus Stan but here we are I guess

°•.•°•.•°•.

Patton PoV

As long as I could remember, I'd had a  tattoo on  my wrist. It was a cute little pair of glasses! My soulmark. There would be one other person in the world with that same pair of glasses on the same spot on their wrist! The thought had always made me giddy. There is someone out there destined to be with me, we've been looking at the same little picture all our lives! Like a secret museum just for us! Whenever I went out in public I would always look for peoples wrists. I didn't think about how weird it was until someone pointed it out to me. I didn't do it anymore after that. I was just scared of missing my soulmate! Imagine if you never found your soulmate! Knowing that you were destined to be with someone, and spending your whole life looking for that person, and then... I don't want to think about it. I was so so happy when I found out I needed glasses! I chose ones that looked like my soulmark, obviously! Then if my soulmate looks at my glasses, they would be reminded of their soulmark.  I was on my way to the cafe to meet up with my three best friends. Logan, Roman and Virgil! I was scared I was going to be late so I was running. My cardigan fell off and I had to go back to get it. It was around my shoulders, as usual. It was cold outside, but I hated covering up my soulmark! And hate is a strong word. I just thought that if my soulmate had their mark covered, then  them seeing mine could be the only way to find out. So I almost never covered it up. I was just glad  my cardigan didn't fall into a puddle! 

Logan PoV.

as long as I could remember, I'd had a tattoo on my wrist. A pair of glasses. It was my soulmark. I despised it. It was honestly a flawed method of finding the person you want to spend the rest of your life with. You could end up being the opposite of compatible. You could constantly argue and that would be an unhealthy relationship. I just think the whole thing is a falsehood. How can a mutated birthmark show the person you are going to be in a relationship with. It makes no sense and I just ignore  the whole... Mess entirely. I have never intentionally shown anyone  my soulmark and I never hope to in the future. It will always be covered, if not by a shirt then by that concealing makeup. I refuse to acknowledge my consentless tattoo other than when hiding it. I disregard it that much that when I was choosing my glasses, I found some particular frames rather familiar and  didn't realize why until I was at home with too pairs of the same glasses. That was one of the few times I have face-palmed in my life. The other times are normally when  Roman or Patton do something stupid. Like now, where I can see Roman at the counter trying to take three cups at once. I sometimes wonder how they are still alive. Probably because they usually have Virgil and I to reel them in from doing something overly dangerous. Like now, when i can see Virgil going over there to help him out with the other cups. With a ding from the shops bell, I watch Patton run through the door, hastily tying his cardigan around his shoulders. 

Patton PoV

I rush through the door and meet Logan's eyes. I smile at him and go over to our regular table. I felt other eyes on me, but that was probably me almost running into the door in my hurry to get to my friends. I pull out  my chair and sit down opposite him. 

"Hi!"

"Hello."

"I told you you couldn't pick up all our drinks at once!" Virgil (that was the 666th word. I thought it would have been another character tbh ;) ) and Roman  come over from the counter, each holding two cups. Roman has a  chocolate milk and a  black coffee, and Virgil has a  mocha and  a hot chocolate. 

"I would have been fine!"

"Romano, buddy... you only have two hands." Virgil hands the hot chocolate to me from his seat, but Roman walks round to give Logan his drink. But there was someone walking past and -im sill not sure how it happened- Roman  tripped, spilling the coffee all over it's the guy who was ment to receive it (logan). Oh no! 

Deceit PoV (yea that's right! boom!)

From the moment I saw Patton pull out his chair I new what I had to do. He used his left hand. And on his left wrist was a pair of glasses. Just. Like. Logan's. I knew that wimp wouldn't do anything. When I saw his wrist he got all defensive. It's not like I did it on purpose! Jeez. Roman  carrying the drink round just made my job even easier- I didn't even have to waste my drink! I stood up and knocked  into him, and in an 'attempt to steady him' I pushed the drink out of his hand and onto Logan's left arm. Simple. He would either have to roll his sleeve up or take off his shirt- it was unbuttoned and he had a vest on, don't worry readers, I'm not making him strip (oi shut it you! Be grateful I added you into the story! Don't go turning into Deadpool) . Sure, I look like the bad guy, but I'm helping them, whether they realise it or not! 

"The Empire has fallen!" Virgil sweetie, as funny as that was... Leave the puns to Patton. He knows there's a time and a place. This isn't it.

"Ooh ya-"

"Logan! Are you ok?" At this point I can see the barista run around the counter with a cold cloth. He will be fine, just a little angry. 

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" I've got to pretend to be at least a little remorseful. I can't look like a complete villain!  Then I lean closer to Logan and hiss in his ear  "you're welcome!" He knew what I ment. I  kept on walking to the bathroom so that it didn't look suspicious, and to stop  Logan from going in there to sort out his arm. This was fun. I should help people With their Soulmates more often.

Logan PoV

That snake! Why did he do that! He knows full well how I feel about my soulmark and he is making me show it for no reason! I should never have trusted him with something like that! 

"You're welcome!" What? Why would he say that. I'm stronger than him. I can show my soulmark just this once, nothing bad is going to happen, right? I roll my sleeve up and  take the damp cloth Remy is  handing to me. 

"Well he was rude.. anyway! lo, are you like, good? That was some hot coffee, girl!"

"Don't call me lo, or girl. And you don't need the 'like' in there."

"That's the Logan I know! At least it had no, like, permanent side effects!"

"What does that even mean? It's coffee! Not a potion!" 

"What do you mean by  'potion' ?" I'm not even listing to the conversation anymore. Patton is staring at the table and looking  distressed. Before I can ask, he blurts out 

"GLASSES!" He now has almost all of the shops attention. I take off my glasses to check if something has happened to them when he slams his arm down on the table, making all of us jump. Then Remy squeals. Drawing even more attention and confusing me even more. Then I notice Patton has a mark on his arm. It looks like a tattoo. His glasses? Wait. Oh..

I don't think he was looking at the table. 

°•.•°•.•°•.

This is my first one-shot and overall I'm happy with it. And I don't really know what else to put here.. so.. 

~Cyan 🖤

°•.•°•.•°•.

bonus scene (3rd person)

Patton is babbling nonsense, Logan is flushed and completely unresponsive, Remy reluctantly hands a very smug Virgil 5 dollars and Roman keeps repeating something under his breath. Deceit  comes back from the bathroom, struts up to the table like he owns the place and just

"You're welcome~*" 

And then Roman, slamming his hands on the table and screeching.

"SEE IT'S JUST LIKE A DISNEY FILM!"

°•.•°•.•°•.

3.9 pages 

1435 words

°•.•°•.•°•.

O O F

First person PoV! I outright talked to Deceit! He didn't even get a name! I'm going to regret posting this but growth is important y'all!

[onceuponamirror]

hi! A while ago you mentioned how you subscribe to the belief that your personal experience should be priorized above than objective "truth". I just find that super interesting (esp. when it comes to shipping and our engagement with the media we consume) and I wonder if you could expand on that, bc I'm currently taking a class that touches very heavily on the subject =)

i’d be happy to! but i should clarify that it’s incredibly subjective and really, really depends on circumstance. feel like it would go without saying, but i was referring to storytelling and narrative. just want to emphasize that, because objective truth vs experience is more complicated in the real world, especially vis-a-vis racial/gender prejudice/bias. and that’s a whole other conversation.

(occasionally it also can work in terms of actual interpersonal relationships and communication, but, i digress)

anyway. in high school i read a book called “the things we carried” by tim o’brien, which is a war/anti-war collection of short stories. in the chapters, he would take you through a war experience, presented as a memory, and at the end of the chapter, he would sometimes reveal if it was actually a “true” recollection. at first i was annoyed, but then i realized what he was saying was:

fiction can be relative. the experience you personally had interpreting something isn’t. because you felt it, you made it real, for yourself. that’s the skinny. it’s what i feel the entire point of storytelling is—what matters is whether you’re moved by the content, whether you experience things alongside the characters, and sometimes no matter the cost, even if it’s a lie to your reader. 

it’s sort of a parallel of death of the author, which is the theory that the creator’s intentions and motivations are moot once they’re received by an audience; that each person’s personal history informs the way they absorb/react to text. this happens in either circumstance.

the difference is that sometimes a content creator is upset by different interpretations by the audience, whereas someone like o’brien did it deliberately to best tell his story; sometimes something was better explained by a dream-like metaphor that didn’t actually happen smack dab in the middle of a “nonfiction” book. so in the case of it being deliberate, it’s in the service of the story; it’s the unreliable narrator. 

(ironically, i guess the main difference is the definition of death of the author itself lmao—does it matter what was intentional? philosof etc) 

as it applies to fandom—and here’s where the two theories kind of blend up a lot—i feel like it shows up most in arguments of “canon” and shipping wars. does it matter if x ship never comes to fruition, was never planned, never even in the writing, but two actors had some chemistry or there was a moment in the direction, etc? the whole notion of fandom is that the content has a hand off to the fans, which somehow leads to a lot of elitism and false hierarchies over who then “gets” the most content. 

but those who are unrepresented or uninspired by the canon often seek to create their own out those tiny moments, and that’s what makes their experience outweigh the “truth” of the story. it changes shape and form by those who want to relate to something else, and what those people experience/feel is absolutely no less than what is felt by those getting “canon” content. 

it’s funny tho because—and this is just like, my personal brand of nerdy, i’m going off topic slightly—historically, stories have been changing hands and taking new forms and branching off one another for…forever, basically. i mentioned this in a recent post, but cinderella, for example, has roots in both ancient greece and 9th century china. things like the silk road and the roman empire traded a lot of stories around, and in many ways, the content gets owned by whoever is told it. each person brings their own personal experiences and culture to the story they share, which informs the next, and the next, etc. 

the concept of death of the author has existed for centuries (PLEASE read this historian explain how there were legit king arthur fanfics in the 1500s—the traveling bard was a thing because each storyteller had their own version, and came to town with a new but familiar fan fave. that’s why shakespeare as an “original” bard is hilarious)—but it’s only in modern times that the stigma appeared.

(i would guess partially because the ability to directly engage back with the author/actor/etc has changed and blurred the lines. we all have role models who have had impacts on our lives through the work they put out but what a person means to someone doesn’t entitle them to “content,” because a real person’s life isn’t…..content. it’s their life. i think you prob know what i’m referring to.)

(i’m also NOT talking about plagiarism, which is something totally different and is straight up theft of direct text, etc. “you know it when you see it”) 

tl;dr, 

so in terms of storytelling, “objective truth” loses to “personal experience” because truth is a narrative relative. in a story, regardless of what, say, i-the-author am expressing for myself, what you-the-reader feel makes it real for you. 

then an audience inherits whatever story they’ve been told. how the individual interprets it and retell it is the birth of another. 

fandom/fanfic are new phenomena only in the sense of their accessibility of scale, but that they’re basically, basically iterations of the oral tradition that have existed as long as language has. the nature of storytelling is that it changes hands and becomes someone else’s story that they expand upon and modify. and again, and on, and forever. 

anyway. that was rambly and possibly not very clear. hope it answered your question! i’d love to hear what you’re discussing in your class! 

[chroniclesofdancer]

It’s like a piece of you is missing chapter 1

Fandom: Octopath Traveler

Pairing: Cyrus/Therion

Rating: Teen

Summary: A comment Cyrus leaves on a video of a short film Therion made,  sparks a new friendship between the two of them. But what will happen when the feelings go from friendship to love? They live in separate countries Cyrus in the UK and Therion in America, can they make it work despite the distance?

Part 1: Therion

Therion had finally finished editing for the short film that he had directed and performed in. He had never edited a film before, he was pretty certain that he hadn’t done the best job of it; however the editor he had hired for the project had to quit and there was nobody else available at such a short notice, and thus Therion had bitten the bullet and decided to edit it himself. The project had been way more stressful than it had any right to be, but he was at least glad that it was over now. He decided that it was time to post it online, at the very least the film would gain some recognition.

Once he had posted his video he went about his day normally, he had an audition later that afternoon for a TV show. He made himself a mug of coffee and went through his script for the audition, he would be auditioning for a main role in the second season and the show was pretty popular in America, so he hoped that he would get it. It would be a good opportunity to put on his CV in any case. Once he had drunk his coffee it was time for him to leave to get the train. The audition was in the city of Pittsburgh, an hour away from where Therion was living.

When he came back later in the evening, the audition having been a success, he decided to check to see if his video had been watched yet. He booted up his PC and opened up the video. To his surprise, he found there was a comment already.

~

Cyrus A:

I must say this short film is well acted, I enjoyed the plot very much. I see no problems with the script or performance. Might I point out that the editing transitions were a little off? I mean no disrespect when I say this, it’s not so jarring but it is a little noticeable. In any case, I think you did a pretty good job.

Therion read the comment a couple of times as he thought through how best to respond to it.

Wolfblade productions:

Hey, thank you for commenting on my work. I’m glad you enjoyed the acting and the scripting. Truth be told I’ve never edited a video before as you can see. I don’t think you were being disrespectful, you have to learn to take criticism in this industry.

He didn’t have to wait long before another reply came through.

Cyrus A:

Thank goodness for that. I would say that for a first attempt at editing, you did a really good job in any regard. Heaps better than what I would have been able to do I can assure you. Anyway I better not keep posting and filling up your comment section with my ramblings. If you would like to keep up this conversation, you are free to email me. My contact email is on my profile, keep up the good work!

~

Therion was curious so he went to check out the email address, he began typing out an email thinking carefully about what he wanted to say. He had always found it much easier expressing himself in writing than he did speaking, even though it took him a while to learn how to read and write since his childhood and adolescence was so chaotic. He shook his head, this wasn’t the time to think about that. He was in a much better place in his life, he had a job that he loved. The past was in the past, even if he still had nightmares.

Back and forth all evening he sent emails to Cyrus, he found out that he was a university professor who lived in England. It was funny how intrigued he was about him, something about the way he wrote was so charming. How he said he was looking forward to seeing more from Therion, it was nice to know that somebody enjoyed his work. It was beginning to get late, so Therion decided to send his last email for the night.

~

To: Cyrus Albright

From: Therion Wolfblade

Hey.

I think it’s time that I went to bed now, I have to get up early to see my management in the morning. It’s been nice talking to you, I hope to hear from you again so you can give me some more pointers on how to improve my editing haha. I hope your classes go well tomorrow man, I know it’s later for you over there than it is for me.

Therion.

~

With that email sent, he shut off his computer and made his way to bed. His dreams that night were peaceful, for once he was not plagued with nightmares he had landed the job in the TV show, he had gotten to know somebody. This day was going well for Therion, he didn’t know that this email was the start of something truly amazing. There would be rough times ahead for him, but his life would change for the better. All because of Cyrus Albright.

~

Part 2: Cyrus

Cyrus hadn’t had the chance to check his email since the night before. He’d ended up staying up later than he intended and had to quickly rush to the university. Thankfully Oxford university was only a ten minute drive from his house. It was funny, he had been born and raised in Oxford and had studied at the university himself. He had never left, the university had been a big part of his life since his late teens. He had found himself often dreaming of travelling, exploring the world a little more. But he never had.

He opened up his laptop and the first thing he did was check his email, he had spent so much time emailing Therion last night, often times it was him rambling. He read through the last email that Therion sent him with a small smile on his lips. He hoped that the other had a good day too.

~

To: Therion Wolfblade

From: Cyrus Albright

Good day Therion.

My classes went very well today thank you. I had to give a lesson about the Roman empire today, I haven’t taught that subject in a while, so it was good to refresh my memory on it. I’ve found that I have many historic dates just stored away in my brain. The students seemed to enjoy having their brains refreshed on the topic too, I would imagine that the Roman empire was something that was taught to them when they were children; at least it was for me.

I hope your day went well, and that your meeting with your management was successful. It must be so exciting that you’re going to be acting in ‘The Eight Travellers’, I’m such a huge fan of that show. It’s funny, when I first watched the show; it was almost like I knew it really well you know? It’s great that there will be a second season, and that you’re going to be a main role. I can’t wait to start watching it.

Anyway I shall look forward to hearing from you later.

Yours sincerely Cyrus.

~

It was about an hour later when he heard the ping of an email coming through to his inbox, he opened it and read the newest email from Therion. He told him that his day had gone very well, and that his management were pleased both with his audition and the short film that he had posted. Cyrus felt a grin on his face as Therion wrote how he already said his film had a fan, oh he wondered who that possibly could have been.

He continued to email Therion back and forth once again all evening, he had almost forgotten to eat; however Therion had reminded him when he had said he needed to get food himself. Cyrus had never emailed somebody so much, it was quite curious how easy it was to talk to Therion. The other didn’t write much and he got the impression he wasn’t much of a talker, but Cyrus didn’t mind. Therion was attentive, he asked questions; he seemed as curious about Cyrus than he was about him.

How could he have possibly known that this curiosity would lead to him finding the love of his life? Cyrus had never had a serious relationship before in all of his thirty years. Life would become truly amazing for him, all thanks to Therion.

[tokyoteddywolf]

Altea: The Lost Empire Chapter 1

Here we go! @show-your-fandom-side

 @futureblackpaladin (can you find the little easter egg i put in for you?)

*This diverges from the movie a little bit, okay? Keith makes it to the meeting, so this happens instead of what happens in the movie. Enjoy! *

“Good afternoon, gentlemen. First off, I’d like to thank to thank this board for taking the time to listen to my proposal.” It took all he had not to growl when one of the board members yawned. Keith amped up the polite factor, since these guys were the only chance he had… “Now, we’ve all heard about the legend of Altea, a continent somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that was home to technology far more advanced than anything we had back then. According to Plato, it was struck by some sort of cataclysmic accident that washed it under the sea. Now, you may be asking, ‘Why Altea? Isn’t it just a myth? Pure fantasy?’ Well, guess what, before the Egyptians built the pyramids, the Alteans had electricity, advanced medicine beyond anything we had then, and even the power to fly!”

One of the board members snorted trying to hide a laugh, and Keith sent a deadly glare in his direction. “Oi. Yeah, you in the back! Fuck off! It’s real!” He snapped, shuffling the papers in his hand irritably. “Anyway, the Alteans had a power source greater than anything we could harvest with lightning or coal or gas. Gentlemen, I propose we find that power source and bring it to the surface.” He grinned and pulled out a certain paper, sticking it onto the little ‘conspiracy board’ with a flourish, though he still got mad at Shiro every time he called it that.

“Now, this is a page from an illuminated text that describes a book called the Shepherd's Journal, said to have been a first-hand account of Altea and its exact whereabouts. Now, based on a centuries-old translation of a Norse text, historians have believed the Journal resides in Ireland. But after comparing the text to the runes on this Viking shield, I found that one of the letters had been mistranslated. So, by changing this letter and inserting the correct one, we find that the Shepherd's Journal, the key to Altea, lies not in Ireland, gentlemen, but in Iceland.” He stated proudly, hoping that it got through their silly little brains. He paused for a moment. Just to be dramatic. “Alright, any questions?” The old men all looked at each other, and frowned. “I’m afraid we have to reject your proposal, Mr. Kogane. It’s absolutely ridiculous!” Keith winced, yup, here we go again…

“This boy gets crazier every year.” “Honestly, if I hear one more word about Altea, I’ll throw myself in front of a bus!” “I’ll push you!” They all roared with laughter. Keith clenched his fist, biting back the urge to deck some of them. Mr. Iverson turned to Keith with a pitying look. “Listen, Kogane, the museum funds expeditions that are based on scientific evidence and facts, not legends and folklore. Besides, we need you here. It’s almost winter, the boiler’s going to need plenty of repairs!” Laughing, the fat old man left Keith in the hallway, like he had wasted his time or something.

Keith hissed angrily, face reddened and strands of hair loosening from his ponytail. “If you won’t accept my proposal, I’ll quit! I even have a letter of resignation right here!” He yelled at Iverson’s retreating back. The elder turned and sneered at the young cartographer. “Oh please, you’d flush your career down the drain like your grandfather? You have a lot of potential, Keith. Don’t throw it away for some fairy tale.” He left out the door, Keith scrambling after him. “But I can prove it exists! If you’d just listen to me I-” But the old museum director stopped Keith on the doorstep with a glare as he got into his car. “Listen, you want to go on an expedition so bad, how about you hop in a trolley and go down to the Potomac! Maybe the cold water will clear your head! Heinz!” The car took off, leaving Keith on the sidewalk with an armful of papers and notes.

Thunder rumbled in the sky, so Keith sighed and decided to head home instead. Luckily, he got to his and Shiro’s house before the rain started, so that was at least one good thing for today. “Shiro? I’m home…” He called into the darkened room, swinging the door shut behind him. He tried flicking on the light, only for it to stay unresponsive. Just great. The lightning flashed and illuminated his window, startling him for a moment as he realized that someone was in his house. “Keith Kogane?” A woman with hair so blonde it was practically white asked from his favorite chair, gold eyes glinting in the faint light of the window. “Okay, who the fuck are you? How the hell did you get into my house?” Keith demanded, folding his arms across his chest and raising an eyebrow. “I came through the chimney. My name is Haggar Sinclair. I’m here on behalf of my employer, who has an… intriguing proposition for you. Are you interested?” The pale woman, Haggar, asked, tilting her head slightly to the side and adjusting her cloak. Keith figured she was dressed like that to try to impress him or something, low cut dress with leg slits and the dark color contrasting nicely with her light colored features. Too bad Keith was the gayest fuck this side of Washington D.C.

“Oh? Who’s your employer then?” Haggar merely smiled.

Keith’s jaw dropped at the huge mansion looming behind the giant wrought-iron gate, a stone block baring a gold plate with the word ‘Marmora’ in big bold letters as they moved up the driveway. He was ushered inside, Haggar moving quickly forward and speaking as she walked towards an elevator. “This way, please. And don't drip on the Caravaggio. Step lively. Mr. Marmora does not like to be kept waiting.” Keith hurried into the elevator behind her, slightly nervous. Haggar’s hands flitted over him as the elevator descended, tugging out his ponytail to smooth his hair down, adjusting his jacket, correcting his posture, and tilting his head up to look at her as she spoke with the motions.

“You will address him as ‘Mr. Marmora’ or ‘Sir.’ You will stand unless asked to be seated. Keep your sentences short and to the point. Are we clear?” Keith swallowed thickly, nodding confirmation as the elevator reached its destination and opened the gate. “And relax. He doesn’t bite… often.” Haggar smirked, sliding the gates shut and leaving Keith in the strange room full of knickknacks and odd things. He approached the fireplace, raising an eyebrow at the large picture hanging above him. “Grandpa Kolivan?” He muttered, jumping when a voice answered him from near one of the creepy Roman statues. “Finest explorer I ever met!” Keith padded over to the source, an older male with almost purple black hair streaked with silver and eyes like old amber stretching in a weird pose on a mat. He grinned at the startled Linguist, offering his foot out like a hand. “Thace Marmora, pleasure to meet you, Keith! You’re Shiro’s younger brother, right? Shame about the accident. Heard that he can’t look at a fishing boat the same way since.” Keith shook the foot quickly before wiping his hand off in his jacket, slightly disgusted. “He’s better nowadays, actually. Said he might try stepping on a boat sometime again.” He replied calmly.

“Join me for some yoga?” Thace offered, only for Keith to shake his head and decline. “So, you really knew my grandfather?” He asked, tilting his head like a confused puppy. Thace straightened up and nodded, moving over to the couch. “Oh, yeah. Met old Kolivan back in Georgetown. Class of '66. We stayed close friends till the end of his days. Even dragged me along on some of his danged fool expeditions. Kolivan Kogane was crazy as a fruit bat, he was. He spoke of you often, hell, he rivaled Shiro with going on and on about you whenever we went on road trips.” Thace said, stretching out a little. Keith frowned. “Funny, he never mentioned you.” “Well, he knew how much I liked my privacy. I like to keep a low profile.” The strange man explained, moving into a different yoga position.

“Mr. Marmora, is there a reason you wanted me here?” Keith asked, a little low on patience, his foot tapping the floor. “Yes, actually. Look on the table. Your grandfather left it for you. Said if anything ever happened to him, I should give it to you when you were ready. Whatever that meant, he liked speaking in cryptic clues like that.” Keith sighed but moved over to the rectangular package on the small ornately carved table, picking it up and frowning as he hefted it in his hand, eventually unwrapping it from the string and brown paper. It felt a lot like… “Oh my god.” Keith choked. “You’re kidding me. This- This is the Shepherd’s Journal! Mr. Marmora, this is the key to finding Altea!” He was bouncing on his heels at this point, feeling more hyper than he’d ever been before. And to think that today started out so shitty. Thace sighed. “I wasn’t born yesterday, kiddo.” “No, no, no, see there are coordinates and clues-” “It’s all in gibberish, a dead language. Useless, really.” Thace countered. “No, actually, I’ve been studying dead languages since I could read and I could probably decode this entire thing!” Keith snapped back, nothing was going to ruin this for him. He was so close! “It’s probably fake.” “Mr. Marmora, there is no way this is fake. My grandfather would have known if it was. I’m willing to stake my life on the fact that this is the real book.” Keith declared fiercely, determined. “Well, even if it is real, what would you do with it?” Thace questioned, raising a brow. Keith thought for a moment. “Well, I’d need funding, maybe from the museum…?” “They’d shoot that down faster than you could blink. They won’t believe you.” “Okay, point, but dam I will fucking buy a rowboat if I have to! I am not giving up on something I’ve worked my whole life to try and find!” Keith declared, dark eyes full of fire.

Thace smiled and sat up on the couch. “I’m glad you said that, my boy. That’s just what I hoped to hear. Though, how about something a little classier than a rowboat?” Keith froze, slowly turning towards what he assumed was secretly an angel in disguise. “Huh?” Thace pulled a folder file out and grinned. “It’s all been arranged. The whole ball of wax.” “But, why?” Keith was confused as fuck right now. “Well, partially due to a bet I made with your grandfather after I’d had my ears bent enough with stories about that book and Altea. I told him that if he actually found the book, I’d not only fund his expedition but also kiss him full on the mouth! So uh, I was a tad embarrassed when he actually found the damn thing. I’m a man who keeps his word, and I’ll go to my grave with no regrets and debts paid!” Thace said, shooting a smile at the painting.

Thace’s smile dropped though, when he turned back to Keith. “Kolivan… he died a broken man. You have no idea how great he really was. Those museum buffoons made a laughingstock out of him, dragged him down and spat dirt on him. If I could bring back a shred of proof, that’d show them.” Keith nodded solemnly. “But, you do realize that to pull this off, you’ll need a crew?” “Already done!” Thace tossed the folder file to him, who fumbled a little as he caught it and flipped it open. “Hunk Garrett, demolitions and medic, best in his field.” “Oh my god, you got Pidge Gunderson too?” Keith gawked at the page. “Yup! Our tech and mechanic expert. Had to break her out of prison, actually. Mind you she’d already halfway hacked her way out when we got to her.” Thace stated casually, looking smug at Keith’s shocked face.

“I also got the crew that brought the journal back.” “Wait, where was it?” “Iceland.” “I FUCKING KNEW IT!” Thace laughed. “We just need an expert in gibberish and an engineer.” Keith gaped at him. “What about my job?” “You resigned this morning.” “My brother?” “Where do you think we got the engineer from? He’s already on board.” “My cat?” Keith was startled by Antok, his Sphinx cat, jumping up on the couch and mewing at him. Keith’s jaw dropped again. “Holy shit.” Thace looked highly amused.

“Your granddad had a saying. ‘Our lives are remembered by the gifts we leave our children.’ This journal is his gift to you, Keith. Altea is waiting. What do you say?” Keith bounced up and down giddily. “I'm your man, Mr. Marmora! You will not regret this. Holy fuck, I am so excited, l-l-l-I can't even hold it in!”

A few hours later however, found Keith leaning over the side of the ship heaving into the water while his brother rubbed circles into his back. “Why… is it always… carrots? I didn’t even eat any carrots today!” He whined to the amused man chuckling next to him. “If it helps, I got seasick my first time on a boat too.” Shiro tried, still holding in his laughter. Keith reached up and flicked the white forelock on Shiro’s head, pouting. Shiro patted Keith’s back with his wooden prosthetic as she was called over to take a look at one of the engines for the routine checks before submersion.

Even though he was suffering from a burning throat, Keith figured that there was absolutely nothing that could darken his day right now. He was going to find Altea, and prove that he and his grandfather were right about its existence. He couldn’t wait to see it.

// wheezes- holy fuck that was a lot to write- okay, next chapter, the Crew gets introduced and shit goes down and woohoo I’m tired and my back hurts and ugh- hope you like it!