#so she using her weapon only as last resort

[glupiypryanik]

Sketch of demon-lady OC for @wh00pwh00p 's BP&I

Gonna change design a bit later tho....

[buckysbabygorl]

Say It

Summary: Bucky hates you and the feeling is mutual. It didn’t matter if he was attractive, or heroic, he was a grade A pain in your ass. The petty insults and the constant staring. It unnerved you. But you know how to get under his skin….

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Warnings: SMUT, enemies to lovers, swearing, gun use (no violence), begging, dom/brat dynamics

Sergeant Barnes was nothing more to Y/N than a nuisance.

He was always giving Y/N shit. At the compound, on the streets, during missions. He just never let up.

She did her best to avoid him, as being in the same room as him always brought out her worst.

He made her feel snippy and childish, resorting to constant defenses and quick retorts that left her with her head spinning afterwards.

It always felt like he got the final word, the last laugh, and it drove her crazy.

But with all his insults he dealt out, she had one solid retort. The one thing that could get under his skin… his army title.

Sergeant.

She wasn’t sure why, but nothing else phased him.

For him, it was the way she phrased it. Laced with disdain and contempt, throwing his authority back in his face.

His title be damned, she didn’t care. He may have been an authority figure in the army but he was by no means her superior. They were equals on the field and she made sure to remind him of that every chance he got.

She never called him by anything else, other than a few nicknames like asshole, dick, etc.

Never Barnes, never Bucky, never James.

Just sergeant.

And today was no exception.

Barnes and Y/N had both failed their firearms tests, or rather, neither had shown for their scheduled tests due to an emergency mission. Both were extremely skilled in their previous tests, but without passing the second time, neither of them would be reinstated as agents.

Not wanting to take any chances, Fury mandated bi-weekly training for the two. Why they had to train at the range at the same time, was beyond them.

“Your stance is off.”

Y/N huffed, glancing at Barnes out of the corner of her eye.

He stood to the side, arms crossed over his vest, gaze piercing under neath his protective glasses.

“Noted,” she chided, “Though your input wasn’t asked for, it’s noted.”

He chuckled, “Just trying to help. Wouldn’t want to fail your second time, would you?”

She reminded herself to unclench her jaw, nearly shattering her teeth in annoyance.

“I didn’t fail. I missed it. Same as you did.”

She sturdied herself, aiming for her target at the far end of the range.

She calmed herself, breathing in and out. In… and out… in—

“You’re gonna miss if you keep that stance.”

She growled, “Will you shut up and just let me shoot?”

“You need all the tips you can get, kid. No need to get hostile.”

A nickname she loathed, kid. He was always throwing it up in conversation, even when addressing her to other people. His constant reminder of how “young and inexperienced” she was.

“If you don’t stop talking, I’ll show you hostile.”

He stalked closer, leaning against the firing stall wall.

“Considering that you’re so inexperienced with a weapon, I don’t feel all that threatened.”

She disarmed her rifle and rested it, turning to face him.

“Right, right.” She said, “I have no experience with weapons. If only I had as much experience as you, tell me another fucking war story while you’re at it Sergeant.”

His face lost its smirk, dark blue eyes now glaring at her.

“You should show me some respect.”

She laughed, turning away from him.

“I should show you nothing, I don’t owe you anything.”

She picked up her rifle again, rearming it and getting set to shoot. She could feel his eyes boring into the side of her head. Her face grew hot, a trickle of sweat slipped down her temple.

Just breathe. Be steady, be certain. Fingers on the trigger, get ready…

“You gonna wait all day?”

That was it.

7 shots fired from the barrel, fast and paced with perfect precision.

7 holes left in the target’s chest, all she needed to pass.

She would be ready for upcoming test.

She disarmed her rifle once more, removing her tactical gloves and tossing them to the table.

“Anything else you care to say?” She asked.

His eyes had never left her form, and he smiled.

“Lucky shots.” He replied, “Hopefully they don’t clock your form on Friday.”

“Fuck you.”

She moved to walk passed him, her arm colliding with his shoulder.

He grabbed her wrist and whipped her back to the stall.

“Don’t talk to me like that. Be quiet and stand here.”

His hands gripped her hips hard, and he spread apart her legs with his. His stubble scraped her cheek, his breath hot on her ear.

He moved her as he spoke, his hands harsh and controlling. “Face the target squarely, feet shoulder width apart. Toes should face the fucking target flex your knees—”

His hips bucked against hers, “Lean forward towards the target. That’s how you take a fucking shot.”

He was breathing hard against her neck, his heart ramming against his chest. She hoped he couldn’t hear hers ramming too.

“That’s isosceles. I prefer the weaver stance.”

He didn’t move, and neither did she.

“Yeah?” He uttered, “You do that and you expose an area. Right here—”

His large hand wrapped around her torso, nearly encompassing her side.

“—that’s open from your armor. You get shot there, you die.”

She shoved him off of her, whipping around to face him.

“What difference does it make? They’re both accepted stances by the government’s protocol.”

“If you don’t give a fuck about your survival chances then why give a fuck about your test at all? Your stance matters.”

She stepped to him, her face inches from his.

“I give a fuck about my survival chances. Just because I don’t like your old school, traditional bullshit stance, doesn’t mean I don’t give a fuck about my test.”

“You refuse to take any criticism about your skills, it’s gonna get you killed.”

“Oh you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Their chests heaved in unison, their eyes wild as they dared to look at one another.

“Then you wouldn’t have to deal with the hot-shot rookie that knows more than you, that could replace you in a heart beat.”

Discarding his eyewear, he scoffed in her face. As he stalked forward, her back inched towards the opposite stall wall.

“You think you’re so much better than me, than everybody on this team. You couldn’t replace me, I’m one of the strongest and most experienced members on this team. You’re nothing but an entitled brat with your head in your ass. I can do more than you could possibly imagine.”

Things were turning dangerous. She hated that he insulted her age, she hated that he called her inexperienced, she hated that he was constantly fucking with her head. She hated that he looked so fucking hot when he was this angry, standing right in front of her.

“Oh yeah?”

She grabbed the tactical gloves and shoved them into his chest.

“Then why don’t you show me how it’s done—”

He watched as her lips snarled, hand pressed against his chest.

Don’t say it. Don’t you fucking say it.

She smirked.

“Sergeant.”

His hands flew up so fast.

Gloves fallen to the floor, her hands were pinned to the wall.

He pushed her up with his hips, body taut against her.

Her eyes were blown wide, lip dropping in awe.

“Say it again. I dare you.” He growled through gritted teeth, noses touching.

She urged her body not to tremble at his grasp, heat pooling in her abdomen.

He was testing her. Playing some twisted mind game. He wouldn’t hurt her, he wanted to see if she backed down. She wouldn’t.

“Sergeant.”

Blue eyes turned black.

His mouth was hard on hers, fingers digging desperately in her wrists. He pressed his hips forward, pushing his hardness into her clothed core.

She gasped into his lips and he took the chance to battle with her tongue. He ground himself against her again.

He pulled away, taking in her shocked gaze.

“You wanna mouth off to me? Give me attitude?”

He ducked his head into her neck and she shuttered. His hips continued their bucking.

“No respect… I’ll teach you how to behave.”

Her head was spinning, thoughts running wild from the man in front of her. All this hatred, all this fighting, now his hands were releasing hers and stripping off her vest.

Her hands were free now, why wasn’t she pushing him away?

She grabbed his shoulders to stable herself, watching as his hand dipped into her waistband. The other gripped the underside of her ass, keeping her clothed pussy right against his hardening cock.

He laughed to himself, “Is this you showing me hostile? Look at you now, nothing to say.”

She stifled a moan as his fingers drifted across her panties.

“Barnes, I—”

He awed, “There it is. No ‘sergeant’ this time, huh kid?”

He rubbed at her clit through the fabric, watching as she struggled to keep her composure.

Her nails dug into his shoulders, and he hissed.

“Don’t call me that.”

He leaned in to her neck, fingers shifting her panties to the side.

His voice vibrated against her throat.

“You don’t like it? Be good and I’ll call you something else.”

She gasped as his fingers entered her, strong and purposeful.

He groaned at her wetness, licking the skin at the base of her neck.

Her legs clenched around his waist, he rewarded her with another finger.

“If I’d known fucking you would have shut you up, I would’ve done it sooner.”

She swallowed a sigh as his fingers pressed against that perfect spot.

“You aren’t fucking me. You’re teasing me.”

He bit her neck and she gasped again.

“Be patient sweetheart, I’ll fuck you soon enough.”

As his thumb circled her clit while his fingers pumped into her, her eyes rolled back. Head drawn back, she couldn’t help but moan.

Bucky hummed as he fucked her with his fingers, “You like that?”

She bit her lip as he continued his teasing, his face moving away from her neck.

He leaned back and grinned, “Is that what you want? Me calling you sweetheart while I fuck you?”

“I—”

Her moan interrupted her as he picked up his pace.

He tsked as he rested his forehead against hers.

“Use your words. You wanted to before.”

She whimpered as he withdrew from her, angry with herself for giving into him as much as she had. She couldn’t let him win like this, she had to bite back a little.

“No,” she huffed, “Try something else to turn me on.”

He smirked at the challenge, and his hands dipped back into her waistband.

She wasn’t prepared for him sliding her pants to the floor, hiking her up further onto the wall.

“Fine,” he said, “but you’ll have to ask nicely.”

He was as soft as before, his fingers moving at a harsher pace. The newfound angle left her crying out, desperately clawing at his arms in pleasure.

“What do you think, huh? Maybe baby?”

He dipped his head to her chest, sucking at the delicate skin.

He didn’t need to watch her to know what she liked, he could feel it in her body. The beating of her heart and the rapid breaths she gave as he pulled her closer and closer to her peak.

“Princess?” He drawled, “No, no…”

He curled his fingers, pulling another whimper.

“How about Angel?”

She clenched around his fingers and gasped as he bit into her breast.

“Oh god—.”

“Ask me nicely, Y/N.”

Her back arched against the stall, eyes closed as he edged her.

“Fuck, yes. Yes Barnes, yes.”

She cried out as he drew her orgasm from her, hips rutting into his hand.

He groaned as she coated him with her wetness, the mewing mess he had made of her.

This was so much better than training.

“I knew I’d get you begging. I fucking knew you’d be good for me.”

He pulled her away from the wall, and she stumbled into his arms. Her eyes were glossy, hair tussled and lips swollen. All from him, all his doing. Pride welled in his chest, but he wasn’t done yet.

He spun her around, leaning her against the table that faced the targets.

“Remember what I told you Angel. Feet apart, bend forward.”

He pushed her chest down to the table, hands raking over her backside.

She growled, “I don’t need another damn shooting lesson.”

Her ass stung as his hand spanked her.

“What happened to being good, kid?”

She propped herself up on her elbows, “I said, don’t call me that—ah!”

He smacked her ass again, “That fucking mouth again. Why don’t you put it to good use?”

She sighed as he pushed her down to the table again, “What? You want me to suck you off, that it?”

He chuckled, “No Angel, I’ve got something else in mind.”

His hands swiftly removed his belt, slipping down his pants and boxers to leave him in nothing but his vest and t-shirt.

Pulling out his cock, he teased her entrance. Slowly sliding his head along her glistening folds, listening as she moaned in anticipation.

“You’re gonna say my name.”

He dipped his throbbing head in, feeling her legs tense… her pussy clench around nothing.

He pulled back and she exhaled.

“You’re gonna beg me, and you’re gonna say my name.”

She attempted to rut back against him, desperately hoping she’d take him in.

She couldn’t say his name, she couldn’t beg. She’d never live that down.

His metal hand held her in place, not letting up.

“Say it Angel,” he demanded, “Beg me to fuck you.”

“Screw you Barnes—”

His thumb was harsh on her clit, and she yelped at the rough circles he drew into her.

“I’ll leave you here, a wet fucking mess. Don’t test me, Y/N. Say it.”

“Fuck,” she cried out as he teased her with his fingers. “Fine I—”

He put the head of his cock in again, stretching her entrance.

“Bucky, please.”

He hummed, “Better. But not what I want.”

She felt herself grow cold in her exposure, Bucky pulling away and hand leaving her side.

She whipped around, “What? I said it!”

He smirked at her, shaking his head.

“First name, Angel. And beg.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

He could see it in her eyes, how desperate she was. Yearning for more, but so damn proud.

“Just say it, Angel. All you have to do.”

She hissed through her teeth, so touch starved she could cry. This would be the death of her, her legs shaking and wetness pooling at her thighs. Fuck, she had to.

“For god’s sake James, please just fuck me.”

He strode forward with ease, pushing her back onto the table.

He knew she’d give.

“That’s my girl.”

Her hips were around his waist in a second, hands in her hair and kissing her roughly as she moaned beneath him.

He bucked his hips against hers, sliding his cock along her dripping entrance.

He lined himself up and thrust into her, her head rolling back in a loud cry.

He groaned as he filled her up, her pussy tight around him.

“Fuck, you feel perfect.”

He rutted into her at a relentless pace, unforgiving as his hands gripped her waist.

“So good, Angel. Could fuck you forever with a pussy like this.”

Her fingers curled into his hair, gripping tightly as he pounded her harder against the table.

“You want that? You want me to fuck you over and over? ‘Til you can’t say nothing but my name?”

She exhaled a yes, mind too clouded from pleasure to stop herself. She was melting in his hands now, completely at his whim.

“Say it Angel, say my name.”

She was going to cum again, her vision growing blurry as it pooled in her stomach.

“James, oh god, James!”

She came hard, the lights blinding her as her orgasm took over her body.

His thrusts grew harder, determined to keep her cumming until he finished.

“That’s it Angel, cum for me. So fucking pretty when you cum.”

His hips stuttered as she looked at him, a moaning mess with her pleading eyes.

“Cum inside me James, please.”

He was done for.

He finished with a groan, body falling limp against her. Their chests rose and fell in unison, their breaths filling the quiet room.

It was dawning on them now, the wild scenario that had played itself out.

How did they get here?

Too tired to question it, Bucky lifted himself off of her.

He gently wrapped his hands around her waist, guiding her to sit up.

Silent, they look at each other.

Their faces were unreadable, dripping with sweat and cheeks swelled with red.

She tried to discern that look in his eyes, she never knew what he was thinking.

Unless he was right in her face, snarling at her, then she knew what he felt.

Anger, frustration, hatred.

This look… now that was something new.

He cleared his throat, running a hand through his hair.

“Okay…” he started, “no more ‘kid’ and no more ‘sergeant’.”

She swallowed, not trusting her voice she responded with a nod.

He nodded back. “No more fighting. It’s exhausting.”

She was taken aback that, and he laughed at the look of shock on her face.

“C’mon. It is.” He pointed between them, “Our energy is much better spent on this.”

She laughed, shaking her head. “Wow, just like that?”

He nodded. “Mhm, just like that. You drive me crazy but, I can’t say I haven’t been thinking about this since the day we met.”

Speechless again, she stared at him as he continued.

“You’re frustrating, you make me worried, you—hell you’re reckless and it scares me. Feels like I have to keep an eye on you all the time.”

“You are frustrating. You don’t trust me to take care of myself or the team.” She said

He shook his head, “Not true. You’re a great agent, but I meant what I said. You don’t take criticism.”

She scoffed, “And you criticize too much.”

Still shocked at the events prior, she didn’t shove him away as he moved to hold her.

She shocked herself further by wrapping her arms lazily around him.

“Well,” he said, kissing the top of her head, “we’ll work on that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sloppily written but hey, we get what we get and don’t get upset.

Taglist:

@pigeonmama

@dontputyourfckingdrinkonmytable

@dumb-ass-3

@cuddlycalcifer @babyblue-07 @babybluereads @lonewolf471 @niiight-dreamerrrr @fandomsfallnomore @elliee1497 @godspeedlover @sexwithhiddlesbatch @shower-me-with-roses @yougottalovefandoms @rebekahdawkins @gentlybarnes

Bucky tag list:

@emmabarnes

[holylulusworld]

Sewer Rat (1)

Summary: He broke your heart. Now he must pay for it.

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky Barnes x fem!Reader, former Mobster!Tony Stark x fem!Reader

Warnings: angst, scared reader, Bucky is scary as shit, mentions of a breakup, Tony is the worst in this (sorry), mentions of groping

Sewer rat masterlist

He leans back in his expensive leather armchair, one leg crossed over the other. The kingpin of his own castle of blood, fear, and power smirks at you because you hit the bottom.

Coming here was your last resort, and you’ll do anything he wants.

He knows it. You know it. His men aiming their guns at you know it.

James Buchanan Barnes. Cold-hearted and calculating boss of the most feared organization in town. Well, except the one your boyfriend leads—or rather ex-boyfriend.

“What can I do for you, doll?” He clings his pinky ring against the glass filled with the most expensive whiskey a man can buy for money. Bucky watches you with those cold steel-blue eyes, making you shrink into yourself.

“I—” Your voice cracks. “I need your help.” You bite your lower lip, chewing on it. “I think you already heard what happened.”

“Oh, that—” He smirks while his eyes are glued to your trembling lips. Bucky enjoys your predicament; you’re sure about it. “It spread like wildfire that you are no longer Tony Stark’s arm candy, doll.”

“I wasn’t his...” you trail off. Bucky is right. After what happened a few hours ago, you know you were never more than a body he could use. A pretty thing to dress up and show off to his friends and allies.

Bucky takes a small sip of his drink, humming as the amber liquid burns on his tongue just right. “You were only his pretty doll to play with,” he insists as you drop your gaze and nod. Beggars can’t be choosers, so you’ll just let Bucky throw everything he wants your way. “Now that he’s done playing, he tossed you onto the street.”

“Mr. Barnes,” you say, and take one step toward Bucky, causing his men to unlock their guns. Your body goes stiff, and you hastily lift your hands in the air. “I-I…” You whimper in fear.

“Guys, relax,” Bucky laughs. “We checked her on weapons, didn’t we?” He quirks a brow and looks in Steve’s direction.”

“Rumlow did,” Steve replies, and goes back to watching your every move.

“Hmm…yeah,” Rumlow replies. He licks his lips as you drop your gaze. “She was soft and warm but not armed, boss.”

Bucky makes a face but doesn’t say a thing. Rumlow can get a bit handsy when it comes to pretty ladies. He doesn’t blame him, though. “So, no weapons, gentlemen. Please relax and secure your guns. I’d hate to shed her blood.”

“Got it, boss,” the men murmured in unison and secured their guns. “What are our orders?”

They expectantly look at Bucky, awaiting his orders. He leans forward, eyes glued to your exposed legs. Bucky licks his lips before he washes the taste of victory down with the rest of his whiskey.

“I want her to tell me what happened tonight,” he smirks and winks at you. “Come on, doll. Amuse me.”

“He kicked me out,” you stubbornly glare at Bucky. He’s enjoying this a little too much. “You already know that, Mr. Barnes.”

Bucky’s features darken. He slowly rises from his seat to stalk toward you. Bucky grips your face with his metal hand, making you whimper in fear.

“If I ask you a question, I expect you to answer me. Tell me every little detail, Y/N.” He leans closer to breathe in your face. You can smell the alcohol he drank and his cologne.

“He told me to leave, believing I am cheating on him,” you splutter without thinking twice. If Bucky wants to know every detail, you’ll give him the full heartbreak experience. “I tried to tell him that it’s not true, but Tony wouldn’t listen. He saw me with an old friend and assumed the worst. That old friend is in town to get married. He asked me to meet up with him to catch up. I used to work at the library with him.”

“What else?” He whispers in your ear, almost gently. If not for his metal hand holding your chin in a tight grip, you’d believe he’s a gentle man wanting to flirt with you. “Doll. I want to know everything.”

You sniffle. It’s so hurtful to repeat the words Tony threw at you after he dragged you out of the showers. Not half an hour ago you made love, and then he kicked you out of his life.

“Please don’t make me say it.”

“I want to hear everything, or you can go out there and try your luck,” Bucky growls in your ear. “I’m waiting. Time is running out on you.”

“He called me a sewer rat, and that he regrets bringing me into his life,” you choke out a sob, remembering the hatred in Tony’s voice. “He said that it would’ve been if he left me out there for dying.”

“And he just did that, didn’t he?” Bucky steps away. His hand drops from your chin as you look at him with watery eyes.

He’s not wrong. Tony pushed you out of his house in nothing but a towel. You barely had the time to grab your bathrobe before you ended up on the sidewalk in front of his house.

Bucky’s eyes drop to your bare feet. Now dirty and full of blisters. You had to walk toward the next house, begging them to allow you to call someone for help.

None of your so-called friends answered. Suddenly you were dead to them. You left the house, sitting on the sidewalk, until a black SUV stopped right next to you. Calling Bucky to beg him for help was your last resort. You remember his number because Tony saved it under “the devil.”.

“So, you came here to ask me for help?” Bucky laughs in your face, but you can’t find your situation funny. “You got that I’m your sugar daddy’s enemy.” He quirks a brow when you stubbornly lift your chin and glare his way.

You square your jaw before you nod. “I know you hate each other and that you’d love to take over his empire.” You smirk now as you get something out of the pocket of your bathrobe. “If you promise to help me get revenge on him, I’ll help you bring him down.”

You throw Tony’s little black book in Bucky’s lap. “What’s that?”

“A list of people he pays to look the other way,” you take a careful step toward Bucky. “This is a pledge of our confidence, and such a pledge is justified only if you do your part too. If so, I can help you bring him down.”

“How?” Bucky smirks as he thumbs through the little black book. “You were his bed bunny, not his right-hand man.”

“Oh, didn’t you know that men love to talk about business in bed? During sex, after, or while I suck them off?” You snap at Bucky. “Tony is very talkative, close to an orgasm, or after. All men are.”

“You’re a little vixen, huh?” Bucky seems to be amused, but his mind is running a mile in a minute. If you know more about Tony’s business, Bucky could easily take one of his biggest enemies down. “What do you want in return?”

“You will protect me until I’m back on my feet. I’ll need a little money to leave town and start anew somewhere far away from here. Whatever you do to Tony, I don’t care because I won’t be around when it happens.”

Bucky looks at the little black book again. He heard about it through the grapevine. Tony Stark is an old-fashioned man in many ways. He loves technology but doesn’t trust it enough to save his contacts on his computer.

“If you can deliver me more information, you’ve got yourself a deal, doll,” he holds out his hand, smirking as you reluctantly shake it. “Steve, make sure that Natasha gets my new informant new clothes and toiletries. Rumlow, tell the maid to prepare the guestroom next to my bedroom. Y/N and I have a lot to discuss, gentlemen. Please leave us alone now.”

The men leave the room without a second glance. Only Steve, Bucky’s best friend since childhood and the most trusted man, stays put.

He watches you with interest as you stand next to his friend. Lion with its prey. Steve thinks to himself. He pities you because you have no clue what you got yourself into.

Part 2

Tags in reblog.

[pippin-katz]

Iron Burns

Something I'm super curious about is just how badly iron hurts when a ghost touches it. I posted a little ramble about Charles being chained and unable to help Edwin while she tortured him, and how we didn't get a reaction shot of him hearing Edwin screaming. And something clicked in my brain. I will preface this by saying that I can't prove anything, and could very well be completely wrong. This is just a possible explanation/option.

This was supposed to be relatively short, and that did not happen lmfao Here's your long post warning 😂

Charles VS Iron

This is Charles we are talking about. He is fiercely protective of Edwin, and let's be honest, can get physically violent when provoked. He was sitting there, listening to Esther, until she specifically brought up rescuing Edwin from her plans. It's only when she says that that he starts moving, and he very obviously intended to attack her.

It confirms in Charles' head that there is a specific reason why Edwin is separated from him, and that is bad. Very bad. He possessed Esther to get them out of their first fight with her; she very nearly succeeded in getting them eaten by that Forest Elemental. She is seriously dangerous, and he knows it. Whatever she has planned for Edwin, Charles knows it's vicious and vile.

That thought spurs him to physically attack Esther, without hesitation. Based on the fact that his hands are open, Charles was going to grab her rather than hit her, and, based on her proximity to him, by the throat. That is the only effective attack from his position I can think of; it's the only way he can completely incapacitate.

Logical reasoning aside, choking someone is a pretty common violent anger response. It's probably because it's the easiest way to kill someone with your bare hands; in shows, many characters use a weapon to hurt their adversaries. It's the bullet, the blade, the bat, or whatever that actually hurts them, makes contact with them. It feels different when it's literally you hurting them. Your hands are weapons on their own if you know how to use them. Ex: Vi from Arcane has boxing as her go-to fighting style.

Okay, I went on a bit of tangent there, but my point is that Charles is fucking pissed. This is Charles, who fears being like his father, wanting to hurt Esther.

Violence is the last resort for all of their cases and situations. Charles will take out his cricket bat if he senses danger, but it's more of an intimidation tactic than a true threat. Charles does not actually attack anyone with the cricket bat who is not already an established threat. He takes it out during their first encounter with Esther, when they meet the Cat King, in the Devlin House, when the Night Nurse first shows up, in the forest against David, and against the snake. Most of those encounters are not a matter of negotiation; the first fight with Esther, the Devlin House, David, and the snake were all situations where "talking it out" was not an option, so pulling out the cricket bat to intimidate them would have been pointless. When he takes the bat out in those cases, he's already fully intending to use it. When he takes it out against the Cat King and the Night Nurse, he waits. He holds it up to send a message. It says, "Don't make me hurt you, because I will if I have to."

Charles doesn't want to hurt people, and usually tries his best to find another solution; even when we see him having to fight someone, a military veteran no less, he apologizes and only defends against him because he knows this is a ghost who's cursed, and doesn't deserve it, despite his violent behavior. They attempt to talk the Night Nurse out of taking them for several minutes before she attacks him. She attacks him mentally and emotionally in a way the others don't see and can't fathom; you could even argue that it is a physical attack as well because she makes him relive being beaten by his father and stoned by his friends. The Night Nurse does not hit him, but she hurts him, hurts him bad. When Charles hits her with that music box, despite what the others see, he's retaliating, not initiating. Because again, Charles wants to find another solution first.

But with Esther? He is so far passed that. He is so furious that he wants to attack her. He wants to hurt her. And that is before she starts torturing Edwin.

When he heard Edwin screaming, do you realize just how angry Charles would have been? I can't comprehend how badly he would've wanted to break free and fuck Esther up for what she did. Charles is genuinely intimidating when he's angry; he would have been absolutely terrifying.

Tiny Note: this is the best shot of Charles in the whole show. Let my boy beat the shit out of someone without getting judged for it, please! Let him go apeshit, please!! 🙏🏻

I struggle to believe that anything would have stopped him from getting to Edwin in that state, iron collar be damned.

But Charles doesn't. He doesn't break free. He tries, and continues to fail repeatedly. Almost every movement makes the collar burn him.

The thought I had was how little Charles would care about his own safety/pain if it meant saving Edwin. This boy willingly enters and traverses Hell itself for him. He tells the Night Nurse that if he goes, he can either succeed in bringing Edwin back, or get stuck in Hell so she knows where they are. Charles admits that he would rather be stuck in Hell with Edwin than spend another second without him. When Crystal asks, "What if something happens to you?", he has no response. He honestly does not care if something happens to him, but he doesn't want to admit that to Crystal's face cause that would hurt her, so he refuses to answer.

Getting hurt does not matter to him, so just how painful was that iron that Charles, at his angriest, and in his most desperate state, could not break out?

We see him pulling on the chain and struggling, but he's moving as little as possible because he's trying that hard not to touch the collar. He lets go because it hurts too much. Even when his bag is just out of reach, which is the solution to all of his struggles, he can't bear the burning long enough to get his foot under the strap.

Based on all of that, my brain told me this: the iron burning was so painful that Charles could not endure it long enough to escape, even in his angriest and desperate state, listening to the most important person in his world screaming in a way he has never heard before, and pleading for Esther to stop hurting him.

Like, that sounds crazy to me. Seeing how angry he got at the Night Nurse, and the intensity of his rage in that scene makes me wonder what was going through his head while chained up.

Edwin VS Iron

But my brain was not done with this information. One of my favorite details that I want to be explored in the future is how nonchalant Edwin is while his hand is burning.

He did not notice it was burning until Crystal pointed it out. He looks and sounds genuinely surprised when he sees it. His expression and the way he says he was careless makes me feel like he wasn't in pain and trying to play it off, but was upset with himself for making a very noticeable mistake in front of Crystal while trying to show off and prove a point.

Edwin's pain tolerance is so high that he does not even notice a simple iron burn.

The second time he gets touched by iron is when Esther knocks him across the garden. He looks down at the burn that's what's hurting him, but I don't buy it.

This boy just got swatted like a tennis ball across a courtyard into a small greenhouse.

We all know that Charles does the fighting/takes the hits, so Edwin getting hit like that is probably a new feeling. Since iron makes them tangible for a couple seconds, he probably physically felt it when he landed.

Being burned and crashing into things are two very different sensations, and one of them Edwin hasn't experienced in thirty years. The burn is localized to his hand, and it's a burn. It stings. Hitting a structure that fast and landing like that is going to effect your whole body. It's aching, it bruises every part of you, from your skin down to your bones. It's so much more uncomfortable and hindering than a simple burn. If you burn your hand, you can still operate day-to-day almost normally, but if you mess up your body in some way, you're not going to be able to walk without being in pain. If you asked me which one I'd rather have happen to me, I would take the burn so fast.

Point being that him looking distressed and hurt after that hit makes a whole lot of sense, despite his high pain tolerance. It probably surprised him more than hurt him. It doesn't last long either.

The only time we see him truly react to iron is in Esther's torture device, which is obvious but I'll talk it through anyway.

The cuffs restraining his arms are touching his bare wrists, tightly and constantly. His wrists smoke from it. Him gasping at that makes sense.

But the real kicker here is obviously the rods. Upon first glance, it looks like they touch down on his torso, zapping him or whatever you'd call that, on a surface level. But if you pay close attention to the shots where he's somewhat transparent you can see that those prongs are actually going through him, at least a little bit.

I took a screenshot, up-ed the brightness, and marked where it looks like the rods hit him, versus where they actually end.

Edwin moves around a bit, so there are definitely some shots where they are just touching his skin, but that's kind of the point I'm trying to make. The rods are not moving, they are static, so when Edwin's body moves around them, they stay put. That is fucking painful.

The rod is not moving, but Edwin's body is, and there is nowhere for his skin/muscles to go but through the metal, like it is cutting through him in reverse. If you push a knife down to cut through something, like a carrot, it cuts. But if you hold the carrot, and push it down on the blade, it still cuts.

That would explain even more why Edwin reacts to whenever Esther touches him, even when the device is paused. It would also explain why he was begging Esther "don't come any closer" during one of the cutaway shots.

If you think about it, that doesn't make any sense. Esther's proximity to the device doesn't determine whether it's on, off, or higher/lower. She walks around the room with her glass of ghost juice or whatever you want to call it. She gestures with her hand when she turns it on and turns the intensity up.

Esther getting closer to him wouldn't matter since the device is already on. That is, unless she was actively doing something to him while torturing him. Considering how sadistic she is, I wouldn't put it past her to mess with him whenever she got bored of just watching. Touching him, shaking him, whatever, would almost definitely make it worse. Edwin not wanting her to get close to him would make perfect sense if she was occasionally doing something like that.

So, we have iron making him corporal, burning him, and zapping him with some kind of electricity-like energy, that are also piercing into him, and yet Edwin doesn't scream from the pain initially. There's quiet moaning that you can tell he's holding back, but he doesn't gasp or yell. This is same metal that hurt Charles so badly he couldn't escape in his angriest state. It takes hours of prolonged exposure and gradual increasing of the intensity to make him scream.

The secondary question to this whole thing is just how high is Edwin's pain tolerance that he is able to endure that while withholding making noise?

I can't comprehend it, honestly. Though Edwin spent 70 years in hell being literally torn apart over and over again. We have no idea how long he feels the sensations of his previous body after he respawns or how quickly he does so, especially since the manner of death in this case wouldn't be instantaneously fatal. If his head and heart are in some capacity intact, he'd still be alive for at least a few seconds. As Dr. Alan Grant explains to that kid about raptors in Jurassic Park, you are alive when they start to eat you. It would be believable if Edwin is basically immune to pain unless it's a fucking insane amount of it. I mean, in the Cat King's words to Esther, "Edwin has been through more pain than you, or I, could ever imagine."

That would be pretty fucking crazy if this is all true/accurate.

Is it intentional? Probably not. Could I be reading too much into it, and unintentionally hyperbolizing it? Absolutely. I'm using observation and some information about their characters that I can't actually prove to be true. Maybe I'm just seeing things with the prongs and they're not going through Edwin. I can't prove that Charles would've been angry enough to break out of restraints if they hadn't been made of iron. Maybe iron effects all ghosts differently. Who the hell knows?

Even if I'm not 100% accurate, we do at least know for sure that Edwin has a way higher pain tolerance than anybody else based on the burning hand that he didn't even notice was burning, and how long he was in that device before he started screaming, and that's badass as hell on its own.

(ko-fi)

[unholy-virtue]

Here's a hot take:

I know that Azula losing her bending (I mean Avatar taking it from her as punishment) is commonly used to redeem her, but I honestly feel that it would make her worse instead of better.

Aside from the fact that Aang, who typically refuses to mess with spirit and energy bending stuff and only uses it as a last resort, would not do that to her if he didn't see any other option, Azula losing something so integral to her identity would push her further into her beliefs. Remember, she's the prodigy. That's the main reason she had Ozai's approval in the first place. It's all she has.

Losing something so integral to her identity would make her double down on her desire for vengeance. She already wants revenge for her loss of the Fire Lord position, which was the goal she had been striving for all her life. Losing her bending, which to her is even more important than the position of the Fire Lord, would validate her belief that the world is against her even further. Consequently fueling her desire for revenge.

In addition, it would be an attempt to fix the problem without addressing it from its cause. And this is the difference between Azula and Ozai. Ozai wants power. Azula wants to be loved. He's a wielder, she's a weapon. Taking Ozai's bending worked because to him it was a tool for power. But the root of Azula's problem is the reason she uses her bending. It will be properly solved when the motive changes, which can only be achieved if she manages to trust somebody enough to let them love her. Which is the hard part, but that's for another time.

[nyrandrea]

hiii I’d like to request (again if that’s ok, it’s me the one who asked for the injured ) but if so then may I ask for this time so what if everyone’s at camp all asleep when a few people sneak in and kidnap reader but Astarion wakes up hearing something wasn’t right seein what’s going on watches as reader disappears then ofc hunting them down to see them being used in an ritual all tied up and weak dndeueududid ( sorry it’s like 1:18am I’m laid awake thinking about random things 💀 )

Helloooo again! I enjoyed your last request and certainly had fun with this one too so thanks again! (1:18am is the best time for random thoughts :D )

Warnings for canon typical violence, kidnapping, rituals (kinda), blood and swears

Word Count - 2.9k

Enjoy!

xxx

Under the silvery embrace of the crescent moon, nestled within the heart of a tranquil forest, you and your companions had surrendered to the gentle clutches of slumber, a collective of soft snoring weaving its way through the rustling leaves and whispering trees. 

A clearing in the woods served as your base for the night after a long, grueling day of travelling. The grass beneath you was like a plush carpet, and a delicate blanket of dew kissed the blades, glistening like diamonds. The air was crisp, yet tender, cradling you in its nocturnal embrace. 

Your team had all gathered in a sort of semi-circle, heads pillowed upon hands or nestled into makeshift cushions fashioned from backpacks and rolled-up cloaks. You weren’t sure how or when, but throughout your sleep you had unconsciously rolled over and inched yourself closer to where Astarion lay, his delicious scent drawing you in. 

One could observe the group and note the serene expressions etched upon their faces. They appeared as though they were sculpted by dreams, their features softened by the embrace of rest. Your eyes fluttered beneath closed lids as you chased the remnants of recent adventures.  

Unfortunately for you, you were being observed. 

You flinched as the corner of your vision registered a goblin kneeling beside you, the tip of his dagger against your throat before you could even scramble for your own weapon. 

“Ah, I wouldn’t do that if I were you," he purrs, smiling smugly down at you. “Not if you want your friends to keep their innards intact.” 

Your eyes widen and dart over to where the rest of the group lay, completely oblivious to the goblins that threatened their very lives. You were even surprised to see Astarion still in a deep trance of meditation; he was usually so much more alert at night. 

“What do you want?” you whisper. 

“For you to come with us, true soul,” the goblin answered. “We are in desperate need of your... assistance.” 

‘Great,’ you thought. ‘Just what I need, more Absolute nutjobs.’ 

“Look, I don’t think I can help you.” 

“Oh, but you are the only one who can,” he retorts, slowly pulling the knife away from your throat. “It’s our leader, you see. She is gravely ill and only a true soul like yourself can cure her.” 

Your face scrunches up in disbelief. “If she’s ill, then it’s a healer you need, not me.” 

The goblin frowns. “It’s you she needs, she said so herself.” His blade edges closer to you once again, signaling for you to get up. “Now, if you’ll be so kind as to come with us. Or am I going to have to resort to a bit of… persuasion?” 

He exchanges a glance with one of his men, who seemed all too giddy to slash Astarion’s neck. 

“No…!” You almost shout but restrain yourself so as to not alert the others and incur a massacre. “I-I’ll come with you, just... leave them be.” 

The goblin grinned up at you, and you had to force down the bile that was rising in your throat. 

“Now that’s what I like to hear,” he crooned, gesturing for you to follow.  

You hesitate for a moment, your gaze darting between your weapon and the goblin, his eyes are trained on you, almost as if he was daring you to try. Ultimately, you were outnumbered, and they held the element of surprise over your companions. No matter which way you tried to cut it, there were going to be casualties if you didn’t do what you were told. 

So, you begrudgingly allowed yourself to be led into whatever hellish fate this cult of the Absolute had in store for you. A plan of escape would have to come later, when you were far enough away from your friends. 

Unbeknownst to you, one of them was already on your trail. 

xxx 

Amidst the shroud of night, when the moon hid its luminous face behind a thick blanket of heavy clouds, you and your merry little band of kidnappers ventured into a meadow cloaked in long, swaying grass. The air had an eerie stillness about it, broken only by the distant whispers of nocturnal creatures. 

As you traversed the meadow, moving with cautious steps, your feet sinking into the cool earth with each stride, you silently weighed up your options. The grass was like a sea of shadows, their whispers brushing against your legs like ghostly fingers; it would be so easy just to blend in and disappear. 

You would have considered it, if it were not for the worgs. 

The air was imbued with the scent of dew-drenched grass, but those beasts would still be able to track you down within seconds. Only... there were most certainly four of them the last time you checked. But looking around now, you only noticed two. 

It appeared the goblins had noticed too; their hushed conversations were like faint echoes in the vast expanse, mixing with the symphony of crickets and the occasional haunting call of a night owl. You couldn’t make out a damn word they were saying, but they looked nervous. 

“It would seem that we have a stalker in our midst,” the leader of the group growled, holding up a hand for everyone to come to a halt before he grabbed your wrist, forcing you down to his level. “Sod it, change of plan. You’re with me,” he commanded one of his men before turning to the rest. “You lot deal with the bastard while we take our friend here back to base.” 

“Hey!” You grabbed his wrist and tried to wrench yourself free. “Let go!” 

“With pleasure,” he grinned as he simultaneously released his grip and struck the back of your head with a blunt weapon, rendering you unconscious just as the ambusher seized the opportune moment. With lightning speed and calculated precision, he pounced from the grass, launching himself like a shadowy wraith. Long grass bent and swirled in his wake, mimicking the dance of phantoms. 

In that fleeting moment, you caught the glint of a blade unsheathed, reflecting a cold, silver streak in the night. Chaos ensued, and the long grass became a battleground, hiding the combatants in its tangled embrace.  

The clash of steel rang through the night, intermingling with the desperate cries of your name as you slipped away into darkness. 

The ambusher moved with ruthless determination; his scarlet eyes ablaze with a wild, unholy fervor. In the end, silence fell upon the meadow, broken only by the ragged breaths of the victorious, standing amidst the long grass, a solitary figure bathed in the haunting glow of the moon, his cloak billowing like a specter as he followed the trail of broken grass the other goblins had made as they carried your prone form away. 

 xxx 

The first thing you could feel was a pounding in your head. You try to sit up, to pull your knees up so you can curl up and settle the turning in your stomach. Slowly, your eyes opened as your breath sped up. 

You were lying on the dirty floor in the middle of some sort of temple, hardly able to move due to your wrists and ankles being bound by chains. You struggle to draw in shallow gasps as you blinked through the blurriness of tears that clung to your eyelashes. 

“What?” you whisper to yourself, wiggling to try and find an opening in the chains, trying not to hyperventilate as the bindings dug painfully into your skin the more you tried to move. 

You bite your lip as your mind races with ideas to escape, to get away from this place, to kill these people for having the audacity to kidnap you, to threaten your friends. 

Different scenarios play out repeatedly in your head, but the reality was that you were powerless to do anything. 

“Comfortable, are we?” 

A goblin slinked her way over to you from the shadows, she was unlike the crude and menacing stereotypes that often plagued her kind. She possessed an eerie, captivating beauty and moved with an uncanny grace; as sinuous as a serpent. Her skin, the color of moss, bore intricate tattoos that seemed to pulse with an otherworldly energy.  

Your skin tingled, hairs on the back of your neck prickling up as the goblin prowled behind your back to watch over your shoulder, her warm breath brushing behind your ear.  

“I do hope so - it is truly an unimaginable honor to have a true soul like yourself amongst us, especially one with such... soft, tender flesh.” 

A soft whimper pressed from your throat as warm hands slithered over your shoulders, kneading gently into tensed muscles. It sent a shudder down your spine, pressing your entire body in on itself.  

“No need to be so coy, dear,” she said. “We’ll be getting to know one another, after all. For what is to come.” 

Your lips pressed tight together as you swallowed down a knot in your throat, but your chin was forced up so that your eyes locked with hers. The symbol of the Absolute flashed on her face like a dazzling light, but no matter how much the tadpole wriggled and pulsed inside your head, nothing was happening. 

You held no authority here. 

“Those little mind tricks won’t work with me,” she sneered, pointing a clawed finger to her temple. “For I too, am a true soul. In fact, I am the one and only true soul!” 

“W-w-what do you mea-?” 

You were silenced with a hard slap. 

“You may not speak in my presence, worm,” the goblin growled. “Speaking of, I’ve got so many of the little buggers up there, I may as well be as powerful as the Absolute themselves!” She barked a laugh and grinned maniacally down at you. “And your parasite will make a fine addition to my collection.” 

‘Gods, this bitch is fucking crazy,’ you thought, but your mind immediately seized up and burned as she pried her way into it, and she was not too happy with your choice of words. 

“You haven’t even seen crazy yet,” she growled as she traced a claw down the side of your face, drawing a thin line of blood. “I think I’ll pry your worm out myself with my bare hands and make you watch as I consume it before we gut you and roast you on the spit with the rest of the pigs.” 

Strong hands took hold of your arms and legs and dragged you onto a slab of stone that had markings etched along the edges. You could just make out they were in Infernal—akin to the ones on Astarion’s back—but like his, you couldn’t decipher their meaning.  

You kicked, flailed and screamed in desperation, but you were soon silenced by the goblin as she wrapped her hands around your throat while the others formed a circle around you and started muttering some sort of ritualistic prayer. 

Your senses were dulling further by the second and a part of you wanted to give in to the pain, to just let yourself black out and fade away, but something within you pulsated with the will to live. To fight to your very last breath. Was this the parasite’s doing? Or was it something else? 

“Just give in to the Absolute, dear, "the goblin said, her tone almost sickeningly gentle. “You’ll be all the better for it.” 

“F...f...” 

“Aw, your last, dying words,” she purrs, leaning in closer to listen. “I will permit it.” 

“...Fuck you,” you spat. 

The goblin’s smug expression warps into one of pure fury, and she bares her teeth at you as she grabs a hold of your face with one hand, using the other to slowly inch her claws towards your left eye. Her hiss garbles into a shrill wheeze as a dagger is plunged into her back and through her chest several times, relentlessly. A stray drop of blood trails down her mouth as she screams silently before she is rolled away from you, her body plopping onto the ground with an unceremonious thump. 

You try to catch your breath, thanking whatever Gods were out there that they decided to spare you today. 

“Don’t thank them, darling, thank me,” a familiar voice teased, though his shaking voice betrayed his light tone. “They would have done bugger all, anyway.” 

A tiny, joyful laugh escapes from your raw throat as your eyes fall onto the welcome sight of Astarion, who seems just as relieved to see you.  

“Are you alright?” he asks, quickly approaching with what appeared to be a pair of bolt cutters. 

You nodded desperately, holding out your wrists. 

Astarion took a moment to get the teeth of the bolt cutters properly in place where they wouldn’t bite through the skin but snapped them together fairly easily. 

You shuddered a soft sob, relief dripping from your eyes as you rubbed at your wrists. Astarion didn’t wait for further instructions, you needed to move. 

He knelt by your feet, slotting one link of the chain between the thick metal teeth, then braced one handle against his thigh. It bruised and dug into the flesh of his leg, but he didn’t stop. 

The metal didn’t relent, but neither would he. 

“Astarion-”  

“Just... hold on, darling!” he says, pausing only briefly to give you a reassuring smile. “I’m no Lae’zel or Karlach; strength isn’t exactly my forte but I’ve... almost got it...!” 

Teeth grit, fueled by fear and desperation, Astarion pulled harder and harder, feeling the bruise work against the bone and listening to his back crackle at the strain. He shifted, readjusting – maybe one half of the link would be enough? It was dented – that was a good sign. 

You rested both hands on Astarion’s shoulders, steadying you both as he groaned under the effort. He jerked the handle to and fro, desperately trying to force the iron link to submit to iron teeth. 

With one final effort, the metal finally crunched, and you were free. 

Astarion’s arms encircled you with a strength that made you feel safe and cherished, while you nestled your head against his chest. 

“You... how did you...?” 

“I knew from the moment they took you,” Astarion said, smoothing down your arms, the motion was slow and helped calm you down a little. “I was, let’s say, aware of their presence in camp. But like you, I wanted to avoid a messy fight and so I tracked you down myself and... thank the gods I did.” 

“Guess they helped out a little, after all,” you weakly joked. 

“Oh shush,” he softly retorted. “It was fairly easy, what with that awful stench those creatures' reek of.” 

“So, it was you... in the meadow.” 

“It was,” he smiled, but it was tinged with bitterness. “I almost had you, if only I’d been quicker, or less sloppy, you wouldn’t have...” 

His eyes, pools of worry and tenderness, never left your face. He reached out with a hand that trembled, his fingers brushing away strands of your disheveled hair. His touch was feather-light, as if he feared causing you any more discomfort. 

With a voice softer than a whisper, he asked, “Did… did they…?” The words carried the weight of a thousand unspoken emotions. 

“It’s okay,” you said, reaching out to caress his cheek. “I’m okay.” 

He nodded, his lips curling into a tender smile as he leaned into your touch. Gently, he began to inspect your injuries. His fingers traced the contours of your throat, seeking out any sign of any permanent damage. With each touch, he was meticulous, ensuring that he didn’t aggravate the forming bruise. 

"Does it hurt much?" he inquires softly, his expression unreadable, almost dazed. 

You wince slightly but shake your head. "It's bearable.” 

He leans in, his breath warm against your skin, as he presses a soft kiss to your forehead. "You're so, so strong, my dear," he whispers, his words a soothing balm to your wounded soul. 

 His soft gaze hardens as he glares down at the goblins' bodies that littered the room. “Death is too good for them. I’m almost tempted to have them revived so I can make them suffer just a little longer.” 

“How did you even manage to kill so many?” you ask, you knew he was a dab hand at killing but even he couldn’t take on a whole horde by himself. 

“They were all so engrossed in their little ritual, they didn’t even see me coming,” Astarion said with a shrug. “That’s what you get for blind faith, I suppose.” 

You wanted to laugh, but your throat hurt too much. 

“Come on, darling,” Astarion gently looped your arm around his shoulder and guided you, going as slow as your aching legs would allow. “Let’s get you home.” 

Your eyes met his in a gaze that transcended words, a silent conversation of empathy and understanding. In that moment, the world ceased to exist beyond the contours of your bodies, and the only reality was the sensation of skin against skin, the intoxicating scent of each other's presence, and the unspoken promise that he would never allow this to happen to you again. 

xxx

Links to my other Astarion works

Everything's Fine

Restless

Request - Astarion kills everyone in his path to get to you

[emilystheories]

How HOFAS set up

Nesta Archeron to be High Queen of Prythian.

A theory.

ACOTAR and CC3 spoilers ahead.

[art by Gabrielle Ragusi]

A connection to Theia.

In HOFAS, we finally learn about Theia; the original High Queen of Prythian.

Interestingly, Queen Theia was depicted as holding and wearing the Dread Trove items — this was a symbol of her rule.

Evidently, this is just like Nesta.

[art by mistilteinnart]

We also witness Theia’s backstory: that she stood next to the Daglan’s throne, serving at their side “for a century.”

This is near identical to the vision Lanthys (a confirmed Daglan member) showed Nesta in ACOSF. That just like Theia, Nesta could serve at the side of the Daglan, and ensure their rule.

Interestingly, Lanthys even refers to Nesta as “Queen of Queens.”

And, just as Queen Theia used the Dread Trove to overthrow the Daglan, so too did Nesta, when she used Ataraxia (part of the “new” Dread Trove) to slay Lanthys.

The parallels between the two are stark.

[art by luverihu]

Gwydion.

In the past, I had theorised that Bryce Quinlan would be High Queen of Prythian; that she was the most eligible to rule, given her Starborn lineage, and her possession of Gwydion — the sword of the High King and Queen.

This was actually canon (or at least heavily implied). Bryce could indeed claim the High Queen title.

But, she didn’t.

Instead, Bryce handed Gwydion to Nesta, citing the importance of Nesta’s tattoo: the eight-pointed star, and the symbol of the Starborn Fae.

Nesta is now the owner of Gwydion; the sword of the High King and High Queen of Prythian.

The royal sword.

Passed on from one queen to the next.

[art by nearixx]

But, that’s not Nesta’s only claim to the throne.

As mentioned previously, in ACOSF, Nesta forged her own blades — a new Dread Trove.

Amren looked at Nesta’s ‘Made’ weapons and declared that if Rhys used them, he could “set himself up as High King.”

That each of these blades, including Ataraxia, is a “kingmaker.”

But the blades don’t belong to Rhys.

They belong to Nesta.

[art by gessueter]

In fact, the 'Made' weapons actively resisted Rhys’s presence.

Which brings us to another hint…

Rhys vs Nesta.

Some argue that Rhys has the greatest claim to High King of Prythian. Given his lineage (and what was revealed in HOFAS), they may be right.

It’s almost as if SJM is setting up both Nesta and Rhys as potential rulers.

A High Queen vs High King.

This is in line with what is said in HOFAS; that a Fae Queen vs a Fae King rivalry is “history repeating itself.”

Perhaps this is why SJM is continuing the rivalry and tension between Nesta and Rhys, despite them making amends towards the end of ACOSF.

[art by book_s150]

This is further exemplified in the HOFAS (Ember and Randall) bonus chapter.

We see Nesta making decisions on her own (to give the Mask to Bryce) without consulting Rhys or anyone else.

We see Nesta declare that she doesn’t answer to Rhys or Feyre.

And Ember watches on as Rhys assesses the “challenge” in Nesta’s expression — that to Rhys, Nesta is a “worthy opponent.”

But, as SJM typically likes to write about women coming into power, I believe Nesta will win the High Queen title at the end of the day.

After all, Nesta has been repeatedly foreshadowed as a queen throughout the entire series. Feyre even refers to Nesta as a “queen without a throne.”

[art by natserpiece]

However, I don’t think Nesta will come into the High Queen position randomly. Instead, two things have to occur:

Something bad needs to happen to the entirety of Prythian (perhaps whatever Koschei has planned…), causing a last-resort need for a queen to unite under.

Or, tensions with the Inner Circle will continue to grow, and Nesta will leave the Night Court.

But, where would Nesta go?

The Dusk Court.

Or, what is otherwise known as the Prison Island.

Which in HOFAS, was explicitly said to be a “royal territory.”

And was regarded as the “sanctuary” of the High Queen.

That is to say, Nesta being both High Lady of Dusk and High Queen isn’t just a pipe dream.

Canonically, it’s suggested to be the same thing.

(Fun possibility #1: perhaps the Dusk Court will be ‘removed’ from Prythian and will gain independence— that way, Nesta will be High Lady and Queen of Dusk, and Rhysand, or someone else, will be King of Prythian).

Thematically, it makes sense.

As we know, the courts of Prythian are thematically organised, and work in tandem with their opposing courts.

Summer and Winter.

Autumn and Spring.

Night and Day.

Which leaves, Dawn and Dusk.

The Dawn Court is associated with healing powers. To further corroborate this, firstlight (in the Crescent City world) has the capacity to heal.

‘First light’ means dawn.

In the Crescent City world, the opposite of ‘firstlight’ is ‘secondlight’ — the power made upon someone’s death.

If the opposite of dawn (firstlight, healing) is dusk (secondlight…?), does this mean that the Dusk Court is associated with death?

It would make sense: dawn signals the start of the day and new beginnings, whereas dusk signals the end.

And whose powers most closely align with death?

Nesta Archeron’s.

The court of the Valkyries, too.

If this theory is true, I have no doubt that the Valkyries will follow Nesta to the Dusk Court as well, setting up their own domain, completely separate to the Illyrians.

This likely explains the pegasus foreshadowing in ACOSF, as the pegasus’s originated from the Dusk Court.

[art by kelly.vieir.a]

I also believe that the Valkyries will expand their ranks, not only recruiting more priestesses, but also:

Merrill: with her “twilight” coloured eyes (twilight is another word for dusk).

Mor: whose family once owned the Dusk Court, long ago (also lending itself to a Mor x Emerie book).

And another important connection: Bryce Quinlan.

With the introduction of “thin places,” HOFAS made clear that Avallen Island and the Prison Island (Dusk Court) are innately connected, despite being worlds apart.

If Bryce is in Avallen, then it makes sense that Nesta is residing on the Prison Island — side by side.

And, as Bryce still has the Horn on her back (coupled with Nesta having the Harp), perhaps their friendship will continue.

(Fun possibility #2: No one is more connected to the pegasus’s than Bryce, and I can’t see her passing up the opportunity to join an all-female, pegasus-led warrior group. Perhaps a cameo is in store…).

[art by paint faery]

In conclusion:

All hail Queen Nesta Archeron.

[art by artinelysian]

[thatsmzbitchtoyou]

Please come back... Oneshot

Word count: 2681

Y/N was found by Nick Fury a year ago in a Hydra facility that was mysteriously blown up while S.H.I.E.L.D was surveilling it.  She was a mutant born with the ability to manipulate energies, which had a broad spectrum of uses, but Hydra focused on her ability to take life.  Life itself is an energy, and Hydra had wanted to use it to their advantage and make her a walking angel of death.  Unfortunately their efforts backfired, and Fury found her as the only thing that had survived her self-made explosion.

He propositioned her to join the Avengers, hoping to help her hone her abilities for better use, or as their own last resort when there were no other options.  She agreed, and was accepted by the rest of the Avengers happily.  Y/N was quiet, still dealing with night terrors and the demons of her past with Hydra.  Bucky had been quick to help her through it, being the first to reach her room each night when she woke the whole tower with her screams.  She had naturally gravitated towards him, and they were rarely seen without the other.  

It was pretty obvious to everyone but them that they had feelings for each other, but no one wanted to put that pressure on either of them, so they let them be to figure it out on their own.  Bucky felt damaged, like he didn’t deserve her, while Y/N was afraid to put him in danger as she still worked on getting a hold of her abilities.  She knew they were both mentally still healing, and she didn’t want to derail his efforts or ruin their friendship by telling him about her feelings that may or may not be reciprocated.  

After her first year with the Avengers and many hours of training and working on figuring out how to handle her abilities better, Tony decided to throw a party for Y/N to celebrate her joining the team.  That night was quite the rager, with dancing, singing, and lots and lots of drinking.  Y/N had come out of her shell as she drank, and the rest of the Avengers had cheered her on as she enjoyed herself.  Thor had brought quite a lot of Asguardian mead, and Bucky had indulged himself a little too much.  As the party continued that night the Avengers were too far gone and hadn’t paid attention as Y/N dragged Bucky out of the party, or seen them start making out passionately in the elevator.  

The next morning Y/N had woken up entangled in Bucky’s arms, which wasn’t new due to their previous times with him helping her through nightmares, but this time they were both naked.  She had sprang away from him, waking Bucky up and making him jump out of bed ready to fight.  They stared at each other in panic, realizing they were both naked and grabbing the bed sheets to cover themselves.  Y/N had shut down at that moment, shutting her eyes tight.  “I’m sorry,” she had whispered before turning, grabbing her clothes off his bedroom floor and running from his room.  

After that they hadn’t spoken again, and avoided each other like the plague.  As much as it worried and confused everyone else, whenever someone tried asking either of them about it they refused to talk and would either walk away or change the subject.  Unfortunately they couldn’t avoid each other forever.

“Avengers!  Assemble!”  Steve called out one day.

Friday’s alarms started blaring, and everyone quickly got ready and loaded into the Quinjet.  Fury filled them in over comms as they flew to the drop point.  “Looks like a subset of Hydra operatives have been messing around with more otherworldly things they shouldn’t be.  A door has been opened into another dimension, and basically…we’ve got vampires.”

“Vampires?” Tony scoffed.  “So what do you need us for?  Just wait till morning and the sun will kill them.  Or, oh!  We’ll drop ten tons of garlic on them.  Where’s my wooden stake?”

“These vampires are a little more than urban legend, Stark,” Fury said in an annoyed tone.  “So far all we know is that the sun only maims them.  Silver bullets have been loaded into your weapons.  They are the only things that have proven to work, so aim for the heart,” he said.  “Y/N.” She perked up and looked at the screen.  “We might need the angel of death on this one.”  She inhaled deeply and nodded.  Bucky watched the interaction with a deep frown, glancing at Y/N as she settled back into her seat.  She flexed her fingers and shook out her hands as she continued to breathe deeply.  Wanda approached her as Fury ended the call and they were soon reaching the area.

“You ready?” Wanda asked her quietly, kneeling down in front of her.

Y/N looked up at her as her power overtook her body, making her eyes black and purplish-blue veins spread around the skin of her eyes.  “I’m ready,” she answered, her voice distorting to sound deep and gravelly.  

Bucky and the rest of the team hadn’t fully seen what she could do, only glimpses during training, so seeing her like this was jarring.  The hanger door opened on the Quinjet and they all prepared to jump.  Y/N didn’t need a parachute with her ability to manipulate the kinetic energy she would have in falling, but Bucky did.  “Can I catch a ride, doll?” he asked her, trying to break the silence between them.

Y/N looked up at him, her black eyes intimidating.  She nodded and opened her arms as if to hug him.  He stepped into her embrace, then she fell backwards out of the Quinjet.  They hurtled toward the ground headfirst, and as scared as Bucky was, he held her tight, trusting her to save them.  After what felt like an eternity she spread her arms and twisted them both in a kind of whirlwind that slowed them down, and then glided them onto the ground where they held each other tight and rolled in the grass.  They finally came to a stop with Bucky hovering over Y/N.  He let out a huffed laugh as he tried to get his bearings.  “Thanks,” he said, looking down at her.

Y/N didn’t say anything and just pushed him by his shoulders to get off of her.  He stood quickly and helped her up before getting his gun ready.  They stayed close to each other for a while, hearing the other Avengers touchdown, their voices whispering through the comms as they spread out.  The first scream came from Wanda, and Y/N bolted toward her.  

“Y/N, wait!” Bucky called out, then he was tackled from behind.  He fought with whatever was behind him as it pawed at his uniform, trying to rip at the guards on his neck that had been added for this mission.  He was finally able to kick it off and turn around to see what it was.  If he had to guess what vampires looked like, this was pretty close to his worst nightmares.  It looked like a regular man, but a whole head taller than him, with angular features that made it look unearthly and glowing red eyes in the dark.  The moon illuminated its iridescent skin and glinted off its two long sets of fangs.  “You are one ugly motherfucker,” Bucky scoffed before shooting at it.  The vampire didn’t move out of the way in time and was shot through the heart, letting out a gut wrenching, high pitched scream as it spasmed and fell to the earth.  Bucky watched its body begin to melt from the gunshot wound, the silver disintegrating it from the inside out.

“Fury was right, aim for the heart,” he said into his comms earpiece.  “The silver disintegrates them.  They’re strong, but not too fast.”

Y/N was on the other side of the field they had landed in, trapping vampires in her energetic grip as the other Avengers ended them one by one.  The Avengers seemed to have the upper hand, the fight attracting any other vampires that may have tried to explore the newfound dimension.  Bucky rejoined the group soon after, shooting more vampires dead as they arrived to try and join the fight.  

Bucky and Steve were physically fighting more of them.  They were getting overwhelmed and one vampire ripped off one of Bucky’s neck guards, its teeth dangerously close to him.  “Buck!” Steve yelled out, trying to get through the vampires to him. 

Y/N heard Steve and whipped her head to Bucky’s direction.  “NO!” she screamed.  She stretched her hands forward, her power ripping through the earth and scattering the vampires around Bucky and Steve.  Her body flew forward, her hands shaped like claws in a cupped position as she gripped each vampire’s life in her hands, making their bodies twitch in unnatural and strange ways, grunting and whimpering in pain.  Her power spread across the field and beyond, rooting out all the vampires that hadn’t joined the fight yet, their stiff bodies floating towards her.  Bucky lay watching in shock.  Her black eyes and the veins around her eyes were now glowing indigo, the same color swirling around her fingers and sucking the vampires’ lives out of them.  “Enough,” she growled, and her hands closed into fists.  The vampires’ screams filled the field, ripping through the air as their life forces were taken.  Each one went suddenly silent, and the resounding thuds of their bodies hitting the ground sounded like an earthquake.  Bucky looked around at the dead vampires with wide eyes as he caught his breath.  She saved him.  She had saved all of them.

Bucky looked up to see Y/N panting and shaking as she floated back down to the ground, then collapsed.  “Y/N!” he ran over to her, falling to his knees as his hands hovered over her, unsure of what to do.  The other Avengers all came running to her.  

“Friday?” Tony asked.

“All vitals are stable,” Friday’s voice echoed from Tony’s suit.  “From what we know of her abilities, the immense amount of energy she has taken in from taking so many lives needs to either be expelled immediately or absorbed, which will take time.  She is in a coma of her own making to heal.”

“How long?” Bucky asked, looking up at Tony.

“Unknown,” Friday answered.

They all sat in silence, staring at Y/N.  Bucky fought back tears as he leaned down and cradled her into his arms, picking her up and walking to the Quinjet.  He sat on one of the larger chairs, making sure she was settled in his lap comfortably as the others filed in.  Bucky’s flesh hand pushed her hair back and traced her face as he looked down at her.  Steve walked up as the Quinjet lifted off, squeezing Bucky’s shoulder.  “She’ll be okay, Buck.”

“We don’t know that,” Bucky whispered.  “What if she never wakes up?”

“She will,” Steve reassured him.  He walked away and Bucky held her close, pressing his forehead against her forehead.  

“Come back to me, Y/N,” he whispered, nuzzling her nose.  “I know you’re not talking to me right now but…I need you.  You can’t leave me.  Please come back.”

***

“Hey doll, good morning.  You’re looking better today.  Got more color in your face.”

“I know that neither of us really remember anything from that night.  That Asguardian shit really took it out of me.  I wish I did…I always thought that if we had a first time it would be special.  But that’s not our style, is it?  Um…I don’t regret it, though.  I wish you would have stayed that day, so we could have talked it out.  But I guess I understand why you ran, too.  Maybe we can try again, for real this time.  I’ll take you out on a real date, we won’t get wasted, maybe some dancing.  Or just staying in like we usually do.  I don’t care.  As long as it’s with you.”

“Y/N.”

“Please wake up.”

***

Y/N’s eyes fluttered open and she breathed deeply.  Her body felt sore and stiff, and as she tried to slowly move to stretch she felt something in her hand.  She looked down to see Bucky holding her hand, his upper body laid on her bed and fast asleep.  She smiled as she turned to lay on her side to face him, groaning at the effort.

Her groan woke him up and his eyes snapped open, his head jerking up to look at her.  “Y/N!” he said loudly, standing and hugging her.  “Oh my god, doll.  You’re awake!  She’s awake!” he called out towards the hallway as he looked back down at her.  

“Hey Buck,” she croaked, her voice gravelly from being unused.  She cleared her throat as his hands cupped her face.  “Water?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah, yeah,” he nodded frantically, letting go of her and grabbing a water bottle he had next to the bed, bringing it to her lips.  

She drank a lot then sighed heavily when she finished.  “Thank you,” she whispered.  “How long was I out?”

Bucky grimaced.  “Three weeks, three days and ten hours,” he said quietly.

Y/N nodded, opening her mouth to speak when her door flew open.  “Y/N!” Wanda’s voice cried out as she rounded the bed, standing next to Bucky as she touched Y/N’s face, her own power flitting around Y/N to check on her.  “Are you okay?  How are you feeling?”

“Tired,” Y/N said, her eyes blinking slowly.  

“Don’t you ever scare us like that again,” Steve’s voice came from behind her, and he leaned on the bed so he could look at her.  He looked stressed but relieved and it made Y/N smile.

“Yes, Cap,” she muttered.

Dr. Choi walked in the room and shooed everyone away to do an examination.  When she was done she called them all back in.  “She’s fine.  It seems the coma worked to absorb all that extra energy.”  She turned to Y/N.  “Just try not to end an entire population of vampires again anytime soon.”

Y/N huffed a laugh.  “Yes, doc.”  The team each visited her, making sure she was alright and commending her for her abilities and her sacrifice to help them all.  Once they all left she was alone with Bucky again.  “You stayed the whole time,” she said, reaching her hand out to him.

He sat back on the chair he was on before and took her hand again.  “Of course I did,” he replied.  

“I heard you,” Y/N said.  Bucky’s eyes slightly widened and he blushed, but nodded.  “I was asleep but…not fully.”  She squeezed his fingers.  “I’m sorry I ran away from you that day.  I couldn’t remember anything from the night before and I just…I was scared of your reaction, and embarrassed, and afraid that I had done something wrong–”

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Bucky shook his head, leaning toward her more.  

Y/N nodded.  “I don’t regret it, either,” she whispered.  “I don’t regret you.”

Bucky's breath sputtered at her words and he blinked back tears, his lips twitching up in a smile  “I love you, doll,” he whispered back.  “I’ve loved you for a long time.”

Y/N smiled.  “I love you, too,” she said.  They smiled at each other for a long moment.  “Can I have a kiss?  You know, to help me heal faster?” Y/N asked, her smiling turning into a teasing smirk.

Bucky laughed, then stood and leaned forward.  He slowly pressed his lips against hers, kissing her like he was afraid she would break if he was too firm.  Y/N’s free hand lifted up to cup the side of his face, holding him to her as she kissed him back.  When he pulled away he didn’t go far, his nose nuzzling hers.  “So about that date?”

[bellaramseysgf]

Good Cop (A.A)

Warning(s); Smut (18+ ONLY), mention of cuts,strap usage,oral (r receiving), multiple orgasms,daddy kink,condescending Abby,brief thigh riding & pussy job,praise & degradation kink!,a little begging.

Pairing(s); Police officer!Abby Anderson x Wife!Reader.

Summary; Patching up your girlfriend leads to her teasing you.

A/n; First Fic for Abby, been a few months since I wrote wlw smut so I’m so sorry if it sucks! Pls enjoy??

This was normal, you sat on your girlfriends lap slowly tapping away at cuts or bruises on their body. Her arms normally faced the worst, you having to stitch her up on more than one occasion.

You met Abby almost 5 years ago she was fresh out of the police academy, your mutual friend Jesse introduced you at the end of year party. It was love at first sight. (That’s what you say anyways)

“They give you weapons! Use them for Christ sake!” You barked out at her frustrated with the women. “I’m only supposed to use them as a last resort.” She argued as you glared at her “I’m alive arent I?” She offered and you sighed.

“Yes…” you mumbled “if I thought it was me or them you know I would kill them in a second.” You nodded a small pout still on your lips. “I just hate seeing you with bruises and so many scars..” Abby nuzzled your jaw as you focused on a gash in her shoulder. “I’m okay…gotta make sure I come back to you” she winced and gripped your hips as you hit a sensitive spot with the cotton ball.

Her actions jerked you forward your clit catching on your panties as the rolled over her jeans you managed to keep your moan down but Abby saw the face you made.

Abby couldn’t help it. Honest. How was she supposed to not tease you, you’re so vulnerable,so innocent looking. She just couldn’t help herself from bouncing her thigh just once.

This time you didn’t catch the moan it coming out in a squeak. “What?” Abby asked a smirked falling onto her face as she tilted her head at you. “You know what.” You bit out glaring at her causing a chuckle to erupt from your girlfriend.

“I’m not the one who’s needy, am I?” She asked and your cheeks turned pink as you went quiet knowing she was right. She gripped your hips pulling it against her thigh and you whined looking at her. “I’m not done p-patching you” you stumbled as she controlled your hips once more. “I’ll live” Abby assured and lifted you up.

She dropped you onto your shared bed and you let out a small huff as she took the cotton ball from your hand and threw it to the side, your clothes soon following.

Now your girlfriend had her head buried between your thighs laving at your cunt like she hadn’t ate in months. Her tongue pressing in your hole before hearing the disgusting sound of her slurping up your juices that had leaked out.

She finally lifted her head and you lost it at her face, covered in glistening slick and her lips slick and puffy from her hold on your clit. “Feeling better?” She asked and you nodded tiredly already feeling rung out from your past orgasms.

You were so gone and Abby smiled down at you her hand rubbing your arm “you still with me? Give me your color.” She checked in and you nodded mumbling a green before you watched her stand up. You could guess where she was headed her favorite toy already set up. She slipped the harness over her boxers and you let out a whine bringing her attention from fixing the straps.

“Look at you. So Fucking perfect” she praised as she climbed back over you leaning down to press a kiss to your lips. “Daddy- enough. Please need you!” You whined and Abby smirked.

She knew how far you were gone from that title and nodded “shh, daddy’s here let her take care of you” you nodded and watched intently at the silicone tip rubbing between your lower lips.

It felt heavenly feeling the rough bump to your swollen clit. “Good girl. That’s it” Abby encouraged you as you began to bump your Hips up to match her pace. “Missed you so bad” Abby nodded “yeah? Did you miss daddy cock?” You nodded desperately.

“I know you’re just a cock obsessed baby. It has to be so hard for you.” Had you not been so far gone you would have cared more about the condescending tone. “Just- daddy feels so good” you cried out and Abby smiled and nodded. “I know baby, I know” she cooed and finally sheathed herself inside you.

It was just too much you body Immediately convulsed sending your body into waves of tembles as small squirts of clear liquid fell out around the base of her silicone. “Awh, that was a big one baby. Good job” she praised and you sighed softly.

“That’s it just let daddy take care of you princess.”

[multi-fxndom446]

Pretty like the sun

Alex Keller X Reader

Summary: you are upset with Alex for constantly leaving you in the dark, unaware of his reasons for doing so. (This is a part two for his ‘you came? You called scenario that I will link)

Warning: hurt/comfort, blood mention, gun mention, Alex being so in love with u idek

Word count: 4.3k

.

Again this is a part two to his scenario in you came? You called.

I wanted to write it as its own fic, sue me.

His part one is here

(Also screw this man for being this goddamn hot. Who let that happen??)

Alex could remember the last time he saw you clearly. He could remember every last detail about it only because it ended in an argument between the two of you. One of the worst ones you’ve ever had.

You had hunted him down the moment you found out he was back on base, steam practically blowing out of your ears as you leveled him with a glare. He was cornered in his room the minute you set foot in it.

You had been mad at him for falling off the face of the earth again. For calling you at the last minute again. Although he didn’t call you into the mission this time he had called you for intel for the mission you didn’t even realize he was on and Admittedly you had every right to be upset and he knew that and that’s why he stayed silent and took your anger.

He tried to apologize but you weren’t having it, you were so angry at him that you told him next time he called you doing this shit you weren’t picking up.

He didn’t believe you.

He believed you now though after you didn’t pick up his third call and he had to resort to calling Captain Price. Which he knew if you wouldn’t hear him out you would hear the Captain out, your respect for him was always unwavering.

He believed he could smooth it over when he saw you in person but the moment he saw Farah practically run away he knew he was wrong.

He could see the hurt in your eyes when he looked down at you and he knew right then he crossed a line he wasn’t sure he could fix now

The way your words held such annoyance told him everything he needed to know. You were pissed, rightfully so. Not only pissed at him but the situation, pissed at the fact you came running to him once again.

He could still feel the sharp jab of your finger to his chest as he now sat further away from you ‘inspecting’ his gun while he took multiple glances in your direction.

The jab to him didn’t hurt nearly as much as your words that seemed to settle deep in his bones. You announcing to him that you both weren’t okay worried him. It made him feel like this could truly be the last time he saw you.

“So are you going to explain now?” Farah came out of nowhere, taking the spot next to him as she got her weapons ready as well.

Alex stayed silent long enough for her to look up at him. She rolled her eyes when she saw the look on his face. “Alex I’m not stupid, there’s something that happened.” The gun clicked in her hands as she assembled it. “You both denied being exes so it’s something else but there’s definitely something so talk.”

“There’s really nothing.” Alex said, taking another glance at you. You were there speaking with Gaz about something with a small smile on your face, a smile he missed seeing this whole time.

Farah followed his line of sight to see you before she turned back to Alex who was now aggressively loading his gun. “Alex..” his movements halted at her tone. It was the authoritative one she used when one of her soldiers wasn't cooperating.

He sighed, setting his gun down next to him. He looked over at you one more time before settling on Farah, who’s whole attention was on him—waiting. “We enlisted at the same time.” He started as he picked up his hand gun. “We were practically inseparable, every mission we went on, we went on together.”

Farah watched him as he got lost in his story while his hands got more aggressive with the hand gun. “We trusted each other with our lives and it just worked. We trusted each other to get the job done no matter if the others life was at risk, we knew they’d get out of it alive.” His jaw was clenched tight as he loaded the gun. “And it worked. Until one of the last missions we went on together. She got compromised. She told me to leave her to get out of there to finish the mission but I didn’t listen. I went after her and I saved her, but in the process I almost jeopardized our mission and put our men’s lives at risk.”

“Alex..”

“I knew I was starting to gain feelings for her for a while at that point but I trusted myself not to jeopardize anything over it. I trusted myself to let her do her job.” Finally with a click the gun was finished being prepped and he had nowhere to look but at Farah. “But I couldn’t…I couldn’t let her die. After that I started taking missions alone so that wouldn’t happen again and more often than not I’d drop off the face of the earth and it took a strain on us. This last time I did it seemed to be the final straw.” He explained, looking down at his hands.

“So you stopped going on missions with her because you couldn’t trust yourself not to go after her in a crisis?” Farah clarified and he nodded, “yet you call her to this one?”

“She’s one of the best soldiers I know. I never said I couldn’t trust her to get the job done.” He was quick to defend but Farah had her brows pinched in worry.

“But you don’t trust yourself?”

Alex sighed, “we’ll be on different teams and she’ll be with the Captain.” He could see the doubt on her face. “I’ll get this done Farah. This is more important than my inner turmoil. I know that and she knows that.”

Farah just shook her head. “But does she Alex?” He must’ve looked confused because all she did was sigh and stand to her feet. “Obviously whatever feelings you have are mutual, you should talk to her before this mission.”

“No no, the last thing I need to do is distract her.” Farah crossed her arms.

“But you won’t be distracted?”

“I promise..” he said looking up at her. “I promise I won’t.”

“I’m trusting you on this.”

“You can, I’ll get it done.” Farah hummed and gave him a look that he knew meant she wasn’t entirely convinced but she left it alone and walked away to help everyone else prepare.

Alex watched her go before he took one more risky glance at you. His breathe caught in his throat when your gazes connected. He couldn’t even bring himself to wave or smile because you were frowning at him and turning away before he even could.

He remembered that day vividly. The day he almost lost you, it played on repeat in his mind continuously. So much so that he often had nightmares about it. How what if he didn’t go to you, what if he left you or what if he didn’t make it in time? You wouldn’t be here glaring at him.

He remembered you desperately telling him to go, to leave you and he stood conflicted. one foot already moving in the direction of your location while the other was firmly planted to the ground.

He remembered his men grabbing onto him, trying to yank him to the evac but still he wouldn’t move. His entire world seemed to slow to a halt that day.

He wanted to trust that you would get out, that you would live because you always somehow managed to do just that but then he heard your ear piercing scream and gunshots.

The world seemed to start spinning in that moment when he took off in your direction, ignoring the calls of his men behind him.

He remembered when he made it to you, you were barely clinging to life. You had your gun clutched loosely in your hand trying your best to kill any enemies that came near but you ran out of ammo.

The rest of your team was dead caused by the ambush that nearly stole you from him so he was quick to help you up. He put your left arm over his shoulder while his right went around your waist to help you walk.

He got you out, but he almost missed the evac. He got you out, but he almost got his own men killed when they started to get surrounded at said evac.

When you woke up in the hospital days later, he told you what happened and although you weren’t mad at him he was furious with himself because not even two beds away there was one of his men that got injured trying to hold down the evac site while they waited for him.

It's what made him decide he could no longer go on missions with you. He accepted a while before that, that he had fallen in love with you, he even accepted that you wouldn’t feel the same and probably even be mad that he’d drop what he was doing to run to you like you were a damsel in distress.

But then you didn’t get mad at him and suddenly he was faced with the possibility you felt the same. And he knew that at some point one of you would jeopardize a mission, the worst part was he wasn’t sure he would regret doing it if it meant you got out alive.

Alex always prided himself on being a good soldier. It was something as simple as breathing. He was a good soldier and a decent person..he followed the rules and did as he was told by the higher ups. But when it’s you at risk he can’t do that.

In a last second decision he decided that Farah may be right and he should just talk to you, rip the band aid off and get everything he needed to say off his chest.

He got to his feet and took only a few steps in your direction calling your name. You barely had time to turn around before Price clapped him on the shoulder. “Alright we’re heading out, you ready Alex?”

Alex watched you glance over to him before you followed Gaz and he let out a short sigh. “Affirmative sir.” Then he was being pushed in the direction where Farah and her soldiers were loading up.

The whole way to the mission site Alex couldn’t stop thinking about how Farah probably was right. He should’ve talked to you because he never knew if the next mission would be his last. He could hardly live with the regret of not telling you he didn’t want to think about how he’d feel having to take it to his grave, he was sure he’d roam this earth forever if that were the case.

The moment the mission was in full swing Alex was laser focused. Both teams were together and he wasn’t wondering about your status because he was right next to you as if he just gravitated towards you. To used to fighting by your side when you were on the field together.

Subconsciously the two of you seemed to fall back into the way you used to fight together. Covering each other's asses like you used to back when you went on every mission together.

The moment you went down to reload he’d cover you and then when he would be out in the open throwing a grenade you’d be right beside him keeping him covered. You called to each other effortlessly.

It was one of the many reasons you were always paired up in the beginning. You worked well together, angry at each other or not.

Then came the moment the teams had to separate. It was fast, almost unnoticeable how your eyes connected with his and you mouthed a quick ‘stay alive’ before you were turning away and he was leaving with Farah.

He knew in that moment he was right to stop going on missions with you. The entire time he was away from you he felt like his heart was squeezing tightly in his chest like some sort of string that was attached to you pulled on it and made him weak.

Farah spared him one glance before the real fight began almost to ensure he was still with her and although he was she could see that there was the tiniest bit of himself that was focused solely on you. But she could also see he was determined to ignore it.

And he did just that the moment his detonator was destroyed.

He ignored the want to know if you were safe the entire time he was fighting the man in a juggernaut suit and the entire time they swept out the rest of the enemy forces.

He ignored it for as long as he could until he couldn’t anymore and he was face to face with Farah, grabbing onto the broken detonator as he prepared to sacrifice himself.

It was a situation he was dreading, he didn’t want to die. But he also couldn’t help but be happy it turned out this way instead of the way that equaled him losing you. He had faith you would move on eventually, he couldn’t say the same for himself if he lost you. No matter how selfish it sounded.

“Alex…” Farah called softly, watching him hesitate at the door. He looked at her from the corner of his eye as he tried not to let her see his inner conflict.

He wanted to tell you, but would it be too selfish of him to do it in a situation where he would likely die? Would you ever forgive him if he did?

“Tell her.” His head snapped in the direction of Farah who held a knowing look on her face. “She deserves to know. No matter what happens when you walk out that door she deserves to know.”

Alex stared at her for a long moment before giving her a soft smile. “I’ll be quick.” She nodded and watched him walk further away for some privacy. “Y/n come in.”

It was silent for a moment and he was worried you would ignore him then your voice finally came through, slightly muffled. “Alex? We’re setting the bombs on our end, you and Farah good?” You asked him and he could hear the slight worry in your voice.

“Can you switch to a different channel?” He asked, diverting away from your question. You gave a quiet okay before flipping to the channel he requested. “I don’t have a lot of time but there’s something I need to tell you.”

“Alex, you're making me nervous.” You sounded out of breathe and he wondered if you were still in the process of setting the last of the bombs and it almost made him feel guilty again. When he stayed silent for too long you called his name urgently.

“I-“ he paused, second guessing again in a situation he shouldn’t be taking time to think. ‘Rip it off like a band aid..’ he told himself, taking a deep breathe. “I’m in love with you.”

He heard you pause. “What?”

“I’m in love with you.” He said again making sure you understood every word he said. “I’ve been in love with you and I’ll continue to be in love with you even after whatever happens next.”

“Whatever happens next…?” He could hear the panic starting to rise in your voice. “Alex this isn’t funny. You better tell me you have the bombs placed and are ready-“

“My detonator is broken.” He confessed quietly, letting the statement settle in the tense silence as you processed his words.

He could hear you take a breathe, “Alex, don’t tell me what I think you’re about to tell me.” He felt his heart break the same moment your voice did. That invisible string he felt around his heart tugging harshly. “Alex!”

“I have to go detonate it myself.” He could practically feel you stop breathing at the realization. “I’m sorry this couldn’t be done the way I wanted it to, and I’m sorry for disappearing on you all those times. I just couldn’t put myself in a position where I could lose you again or put everyone else at risk.”

There was a long pause where he was worried something happened but then he heard you take a shaky breathe. “And you think I want to put myself in that position Alex?! You think I don’t want to run to you right now and tell you you’re stupid?!”

“But you won’t.” His words cut deep. He knew you would go to him on a moment's notice. He knew if he called to you, you would come but he couldn’t let that happen because it wasn’t just your life, it was Farahs, it was her people and you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if you did what he asked. “You have a job to do.”

He heard you sniff as you tried to contain your tears. “Alex, you better come back to me. I won’t forgive you if you disappear from my life permanently.” He could hear your voice crack. “Come back to me Alex.” You begged and a sad smile lifted on his face.

“Yes ma’am.”

Then he was turning back to the door and running through not even letting himself think about the fact you hadn’t gotten to tell him you loved him too.

But it was a moment in which you would feel for the next coming days and months as his words would live on repeat in your head.

~~

It had been months since he last saw you.

Months.

It was safe to say Alex was nervous. He was practically shaking where he sat with Farah on the back of the truck, his leg bouncing anxiously as they got closer and closer to Farahs base.

From what Captain Price told him, before he and Gaz left their separate ways, you were at Farahs base and you had been for a while.

“Think she felt pretty guilty after what happened.” Price told him with a small sigh. It made Alex feel like shit because it would be just like you to feel guilty over something he did. It would be just like you to try and pay back his sacrifice in any way you could even if you didn’t have too.

“You don’t have anything to worry about Alex.” Farah finally told him when she got tired of hearing his foot bounce against the metal of the truck. “I think a lot of her reasons for staying with me is because it made her feel closer to you.”

“Does she know?” Alex asked, his heart hammering in his chest. “I’ve been gone for a while, does she know that I’m-?”

He didn’t even want to finish the sentence. If you had thought he was dead this whole time he didn’t know what he would do. Farah made the executive decision awhile ago to not have you involved in the mission Alex went on so there was a possibility you didn’t.

“She knows you're alive. As for where you were…” she doesn’t continue but she doesn’t have to, he knows what she’s trying to say. She never gave away that she knew his location and Alex had no idea until now that you were so close this whole time.

He figured it was better this way. It let him focus his entirety on the mission but now the mission was over and he was growing more anxious as the base finally came into view.

The moment the truck came to a stop he felt like his whole world started moving in slow motion. Sounds become muffled as if he were underwater. He couldn’t focus on anything else, nothing else mattered except the fact you were on the same ground as him.

His eyes glanced everywhere the moment he was standing on solid ground. Head snapping in every direction as he took in every face that passed by him. He heard Farah call his name but didn’t care until she grabbed his arm and suddenly sounds became crystal clear for him.

He looked down at her and when she saw she had his attention she nodded her head in the direction of the bunkers. “Come.” She let go of him and he was left to blindly follow her.

Alex followed after her silently for what felt like an eternity. When he opened his mouth to finally question her she came to a halt right outside one of the meeting rooms she had.

He went to ask what she was doing when he heard it. Your voice. The same voice he’s been missing for months.

You were talking over more game plans with some of Farahs soldiers and Alex felt like his heart completely stalled. You sounded just as beautiful as the last time he spoke to you when he confessed his feelings.

Farah glanced up at him to see his reaction and almost wanted to laugh when all he could seem to do was stare at the closed door. You were so close to him yet he couldn’t get himself to move so she made the first one.

She opened the door with no hesitation and gave you and everyone else a kind smile as she greeted you. “Y/n, hard at work I see.” You didn’t see Alex yet, he was still stuck out in the hallway in disbelief.

“As always Commander.” You laughed softly and it was like music to his ears.

Farah smiled at you before motioning to her people, “will you guys leave us? There’s something I need to discuss with Y/n.” They did without question, dodging past Alex who still had yet to move.

“Something wrong?” You asked when you were alone. He could hear it in your voice, the worry. You were worried she had more news on him and you were worried it wasn’t good.

“I have something for you.” You stared at her in confusion before the door behind her opened softly and your eyes were immediately drawn to it.

You felt your breathe hitch. There stood just behind Farah was Alex who looked just as breathless as you were. You were stunned, your arms that had been crossed fell to your side as you took him in before you started moving towards him, eyes never leaving his. He watched you nervously as you slowly made your way around the table to come closer to him.

“Y/n…” he said softly, nervous as you came closer to him with a look on your face that he couldn’t decipher. He was almost sure you were going to punch him in the face which he would accept wholeheartedly.

But then as he was spewing out apologies trying to get you to listen to him you stopped right in front of him, grabbed onto the vest he had yet to take off and pulled him down to you. Crashing your lips together.

Your other hand that wasn’t clinging to his vest wrapped itself around his neck and his quickly wrapped his around your waist to pull you flush against him.

In the background he could faintly hear the click of the door as Farah left to give you both privacy. But he honestly couldn’t care if she stayed or not, not when you were finally in his arms again.

You kissed him like you had been deprived of oxygen for the months he was away from you, he was sure he wasn’t any better as one hand came up to tangle itself in your hair trying to keep you as close as possible.

When finally you pulled away from him for air you didn’t go far just far enough to gain your breathe. You stared up at him in a way that made his heart ache, like you were wondering if you were dreaming.

When he opened his mouth to say something you beat him to it. “I love you too.” You said softly, smiling at the way his eyes widened and a relieved grin formed on his face. “You didn’t give me a chance to say it.”

“I’m sorry.” He sounded sincere and he was. He wished more than anything to hear you say those words. He wanted to hear them the moment he realized his feelings. “I came back to you.”

“I knew you would.” Both your hands came to rest on his face while you took him in, fingers tracing delicately across his jaw reveling in the way he shivered at your touch. “Your hair is darker.”

He laughed. It was your attempt at not pointing out his obvious missing leg. “You’re just as beautiful.” He whispered, placing a soft kiss to your lips while his hands fell back down to your waist. “I’m so sorry..”

“Alex you don’t have to-“ you shook your head but he stopped you.

“I do.” He said sternly, “I need to say it to you properly. I’m sorry. For everything. For making you worry about me, for disappearing, for not telling you any of this sooner. I’m sorry.”

Your eyes flickered between his as his words settled in the air, he had a small frown on his face but refused to look away from you. Relief flooded him the moment your lips turned up and your fingers ran over his cheeks. “I forgive you Alex..”

He let out a sigh he didn’t know he was holding and pulled you in for a small kiss. “I love you.” He whispered against your lips

You smiled and pulled him back down to you. “I love you too.” You murmured before closing the distance again, feeling him smile against you.

—

Hope yall like it I tried really hard to live up to expectations 🙏🏻😭 thank you for everyone who requested a part two for him tho love yall

[jelzorz]

174.

The Celestial elves say no. Of course they say no. Callum doesn't know what else he expected. Did he really think they could just waltz into the Star Scraper and ask to borrow the Nova Blade and a handful of quasar diamonds, and then get them, no questions asked?

His head still hurts from that vision, that dream that felt far too much like that time he'd collapsed after doing Dark Magic for the first time, and though he and Rayla have been granted a room for their trouble, the Nova Blade is still out of reach, and those quasar diamonds are embedded into that crown the blind priest refused to share. Rayla is lying on the bed, her eyes staring blankly at the ceiling of stars, dazed and a little defeated, he thinks, because those diamonds are the only way to free her parents, and they'll never get them, not like this, and meanwhile the sword—

Callum makes a face. He's been pacing up and down the length of the room for about twenty minutes because there is... one more thing they could try. One last chance to obtain the weapon that might save them all and the jewels that would free her parents. It's just... not a particularly bright idea. Not a very legal one, even here.

"What are you thinking?" asks Rayla at last. She sits up in the bed, wary, exhausted, like even she doubts their mission here is one they can complete. "You've been pacing for ages. Want to share with the class?"

Callum presses his lips together. "I don't know," he says after a moment. "I just... We need that sword and those diamonds, there's got to be a way to convince them—"

Rayla lets out a hollow laugh. "Yeah, no. I don't think there's anything we could say to change their minds."

"Yeah, but—"

She flops back down. "I dunno, Callum," she mumbles. "I want to get my parents out of those coins so bad, and I know you want that sword to use against Aaravos but... I don't think there's anything else we can do here. They've made it clear it's not happening and I... don't want to get my hopes up for nothing."

He grimaces then, hating how hopeless she sounds, hating the wobble in her voice and the way it makes his heart ache in ways he will never be able to explain. There's still that last resort, isn't there? The final chance to get everything they need in one go, with permission or without it, and it all comes down to what they are and aren't willing to do.

But that would mean—

He shakes his head. No. It's stupid. It's dangerous. It would bring the wrath of the Celestial elves right to Katolis' doorstep. Ezran would be furious, but it would also mean...

He glances at Rayla, at the way her eyes are dull and unseeing with resignation. His heart stutters for her, for the thought of her happily reunited with the people she loves most, the brilliance of her smile and the love she deserves.

Hasn't she done enough for everyone? Hasn't she sacrificed enough to get just one good thing?

"Don't give up yet," he decides. His resolve feels like steel and jelly at the same time, like he would do this for her, no question about it but ony as long as he doesn't give himself the time to think twice. Rayla turns her head to him, confused, daring to hope, and Callum closes his fingers into fists at his side, refusing go home empty handed, refusing to let Rayla down like so many others before him.

"Get your stuff together," he says. "Wait for me here. When I get back, you gotta be ready to run."

She narrows her eyes at him. "Callum."

"You trust me, right?"

She sits up slowly, suspicious of him, of the resolve in his eyes. "Yes," she says after a moment.

He swallows, his nerve wavering, just for a moment. Then he nods and clenches his jaw tight. "Back in a minute," he mutters, wrenching the door open before he can change his mind.

He would do anything for her. He's done worse.

Stealing is not the furthest he can fall.

[eschergirls]

It's been 2 weeks so it's time to announce the winners of the June caption contest!

I got a ton of entries this month which is amazing and they were all so good, so it made it really hard to choose.  Also because there's so many I'll be awarding some honorable mentions that will get prizes if the winners decline.  

Each winner will get to choose a prize if they wish (but you don't have to, you can just participate for fun too.)  The prizes are extra Steam codes that I've acquired through bundles over the years and I figure that giving them out for contests would be fun. Honorable mentions can get a prize if any of the winners decline  

Anyway here are the entries, grouped by the platform they were submitted on:

Fedi/Mastodon:

Adriano: “this is where I keep my *third* fist!” Jessie Nabein: her pussy is so fucking vulnerable my god :blobfoxsweating: risking it all for the look Morning Song: No wonder she's grimacing like that. That codpiece has to be uncomfortable as hell.  socketwench: They all mock her for her codpiece and lack of pants, but her explosive flatulence carries the day. TO VICTORY!  PFFFFFFYBBBBBBTTTT 

Disqus:

Imry: 🎵But it's the pelvic thrust* 🎵That'll drive them insa-a-ane** 🎵Let's do the Time Warp again! * the wtf clothing also helps ** and apparently level a city block Karmazyna: She's channeling her inner bard. Only she skipped the "seducing" part and decided to get right into business. Leak: Seems like the desire gods from Fine Print didn't just weaponize Lauren Thomas' vagina... D: P J Evans: Is she going to use that short sword to cut off that leather wedgie-maker?

Tumblr:

@angelicspikes: Shrink wrap activate! @atomicmosaic: she's talking Italian with one hand @beelzebufo: "Rocket pack? Those are for people with money. All i needed was 1003 gas station bean burritos, a bic, and a dream. LIFTOFF ACHIEVED motherfuckers." @cenobitic-anchorite: as the dragon swooped in for the kill, Mercy McKnight bit her lip, distracted. The screws on her new snooch-plate had caught her pubes, and she wasn't sure what was going to hurt worse: draconic hellfire, or taking this goddamn thing off after the fight. @chaoscheebs: That is the face of a person holding back the *wickedest* fart because she doesn't want to make the fire behind her worse. @chasedbybuildings: YES! I GOT THE HOOVERING DONE! TIME TO KILL STUFF WITH MY SWORD! @chibisketches: 'I'll take 'Obviously Traced From Porn' for 200, Alex-' @couchkitty: This is actually the most practical outfit for ripping ass @deluske: The only warrior who lights her farts to intimidate her foes @embervoices: "Then it's the pelvic thruuuust that really drives you ins- FUCK YOU I'M BUSY HERE!" @fancyfade: "This is what people mean when they say 'she put her whole pussy into it' right?" @gabbi-the-grackle: "Who woulda thunk a dragon would crash the kink party? Thank goodness my strapon doubles as a blade, and thank goodness my outfit is fireproof!" @haveievermentioned: METAPHOR! @milkawa-and-co: "If anything, this will be a great promo for my waxer." @mousetaur: When the jalapeño poppers finally reach your lower intestine @post-grammatic-stress: She can ignite both farts AND queefs defensively @rosstmcd: "You cannot *believe* how much this outfit chafes and it is making me *very cranky* so let's just skip ahead to the part where you die." @salroka: Is that a chastity belt? @silveraptor: “The Chili Dog Backblast is a powerful yet dangerous attack intended as a last resort. For while it will take out any foe behind oneself, it requires one sacrifice their dignity and pants to the flame.” @spears-and-tears: "When you have a fight scheduled but those new vibrating panties are SO GOOD and putting anything over them would lessen the sensation." @spider-honey: "My labia might be barely covered, but I'm serving you Big Dick Energy!" @tartapplesauce: When you're re-considering your choice to try out that new menstrual cup @woodsworth: Fanny burns all the way to hell! @zombiemollusk: when your wedgie has so much friction it burns

The honorable mentions go to: @chaoscheebs, imry, socketwench, and @zombiemollusk

The runner-ups are:

In third place: @milkawa-and-co: "If anything, this will be a great promo for my waxer."

In second place: @beelzebufo: "Rocket pack? Those are for people with money. All i needed was 1003 gas station bean burritos, a bic, and a dream. LIFTOFF ACHIEVED motherfuckers."

And the winner is... Adriano: “this is where I keep my *third* fist!”

Please stay tuned for a new caption contest in July!

If you won and would like a Steam code as a prize, please message me with which prize you would like.  If you came in 2nd, message me with 2 choices in order of preference...  I'll give you your top choice that hadn't been taken by the other winners. (To clarify, every winner only gets 1 prize, but winners other than the one in first place should give me their list of games in order of preference so if one is taken, I'll give you the next on the list.  It makes it easier for me to hand out the prizes.)

If the winner or the runner ups don't claim a prize, then the honorable mentions get a prize if they want one.

The Steam codes I have available as prizes are for: Castle Crashers, Hotel Giant 2, Latte Stand Tycoon +, Riot: Civil Unrest, Shattered - Tale of the Forgotten Kings, Steel Storm: Burning Retribution, The Hong Kong Massacre, Trifox, and Uncertain: Light At The End.

[slavonicrhapsody]

Bernahl and the Blasphemous Claw

Bernahl seems to be the most senior recusant at the Volcano Manor; he’s been an agent of the Manor since we meet him in Limgrave (“You are an enigma, to be certain. The Volcano Manor awaits you.”), he’s a seasoned killer on the Manor’s behalf, and he wields a very important weapon to the Manor’s mission — the Devourer’s Scepter, depicting the serpent cult’s prophecy of the serpent devouring the world. Tanith bestows weapons upon the manor’s greatest champions, so it makes sense that she gave Bernahl the scepter as a reward for his exemplary service. This begs the question, though: if Tanith’s goal is to feed Volcano Manor’s strongest champions to Rykard, so they might join the “family” and aid in his growth and power, then why was Bernahl not eaten? 

I think this is because he was entrusted with a special task; by Rykard, or by Tanith in Rykard’s stead. After Bernahl leaves the Manor, the next time we see him, he invades us in Farum Azula, carrying the Blasphemous Claw:

“A slab of rock engraved with traces of the Rune of Death. Can deflect the power of the Black Blade. On the night of the dire plot, Ranni rewarded Praetor Rykard with these traces. Should the coming trespass one day transpire, they would serve as a last-resort foil, allowing Rykard to challenge Maliketh the Black Blade, the black beast of Destined Death.”

Why does Bernahl have this object? Given that we encounter him on the way to Maliketh, and that the claw has the unique ability to deflect the power of his black blade, it’s safe to assume Bernahl is going after Maliketh. On our own journey, after Melina gives herself to the flames, we are transported to Farum Azula, where we defeat Maliketh in order to unbind the Rune of Death, bringing “death’s dark fate” back to the Lands Between and causing the Erdtree to burn. Crucially, Maliketh must be defeated so the Rune of Death can be unbound, allowing the Erdtree to burn… so this must also be Bernahl’s intention in going after Maliketh. This reading is supported by Bernahl’s speech to us before leaving:

“So. You killed Rykard? I harbour you no ill will. The strong take. Such is our code. Even he was prepared to meet a wretched end when he first took blasphemy unto his very flesh. But anyroad, the Volcano Manor is no more. Though we may yet fulfill an old promise. We hunted our own kind, and took what was theirs. And with everything in hand, the time has come to rise, against the Erdtree. O Greater Will, hear my voice. I am the recusant Bernahl, inheritor of my brother's will, and you will fall to my blade. We refuse to become your pawns. Consider this fair warning.”

Bernahl says that now, the time has come to rise against the Erdtree, and he calls out the Greater Will specifically. I think it’s clear that he intends to fight against the Greater Will by first burning the Erdtree. When Bernahl refers to “his brother,” he’s referring to Rykard, in the sense that they are brothers-in-arms in a wider struggle against the Greater Will, and that Rykard’s will has now become Bernahl’s will… in fact, Rykard has actually intended to burn the Erdtree and to go after Maliketh and the Rune of Death for a long time: there are paintings of the Erdtree burning hung throughout the Manor, and Ranni had given him the Blasphemous Claw in the first place so that he could challenge Maliketh, “challenge” implying an offensive attack. 

I believe the “old promise” Bernahl speaks of is not only a promise he made to Rykard and Tanith to fulfill this task, but it might also refer to a promise Rykard himself made to Ranni. Long before the Shattering, the siblings mutually agreed that the Greater Will must be overthrown: the “coming trespass” mentioned in the Blasphemous Claw’s description refers to an open act of treason, one that Rykard and Ranni must have intended to carry out against the Erdtree. I speculate that the two had a kind of agreement, that Ranni would slay her empyrean flesh, then eventually kill her Two Fingers and be free of their influence for good, while Rykard challenged Maliketh and burned the Erdtree, opening the door for a new age free of the Greater Will��s control. Obviously, things went... awry. 

But indeed, Bernahl’s message to the Greater Will that “we refuse to become your pawns” is essentially the exact same sentiment as Ranni’s words against her Two Fingers: “I would not be controlled by that thing.” For me, that’s proof enough that Ranni and Rykard’s joint struggle against the Greater Will left a lasting impression. 

[flicklikesstuff]

Not Disney establishing their characters with trauma but still going out of their way to frame them as the ones in the wrong despite what they’re doing is in some way a survival response. TWICE.

Explanation in case some of you take this the wrong way:

Magnifico reacted terrified because the bright light brought back memories of his village getting destroyed. The forbidden book was meant to be a last resort since literally no one else took the “threat” seriously. The kingdom’s citizens only concern was just asking for more wishes. Which made him understandably upset.

Amaya and Dahlia even looked through the book themselves to see if they could break the “book’s hold on him.” and even found out “there’s no way to return back from using dark magic.”

So, the movie implies that what used to be a protective king who wanted to protect his people from the same tragedy that occurred to him was possessed. His actions weren’t his own. If the movie didn’t want us to conclude that Mag wasn’t possessed, maybe they shouldn’t have put the book as a lazy excuse in the first place. Or even yet, why give him a tragic backstory if they’re never bringing it up again later on?

And while you can argue that Magnifico’s method of taking people’s wishes wasn’t right, his punishment in the end wasn’t completely deserved. And claiming that there’s zero chance of redemption when there was implied possession? Seriously?

…..

Raya and the Last Dragon is self-explanatory. Raya was framed to be the one in the wrong despite the MULTIPLE times the movie itself even showed how betrayal is a thing that can happen.

Raya believed in her father’s cause, but placing too much trust is what led her to losing everything. Sisu almost got turned to stone for trusting someone else in Talon.

It’s understandable why she’s so cautious around everyone. And when she saw Sisu approach Namaari even when she was holding a weapon at her direction, Raya’s trauma as a child from putting too much trust in someone else had caused her to use her weapon. She wanted to protect Sisu from what could happen because back then, she COULDN’T save her dad from his fate. It was Namaari’s finger on the trigger!

And still, the film had the AUDACITY to say it was RAYA’S fault and not a single scene was given to Namaari apologising for what she’d done.

[dragonridernoobie]

Hi!

And this is a succubus!Reader x Autobots (again)

In secret, the reader left the Decepticon base and was with the Autobots, spending time with them, having fun and telling the Decepticon information

The reader has already managed to make friends with the children (especially Miko) and Jack's mom

And one day, the reader gave the Autobots their weapons when they would turn into people.

For Wheeljack, I do not know which weapon to draw for him(

(Miko also wanted a weapon for herself, but the reader said it was too early for her..)

Hmmm, ok, I will try my best.

Demon Reader X Autobots

Part 4

Months ago, there was an interesting person who joined the autobot team. They were not human nor cybertronian. They were a demon named (Y/N).

No, they were not here to hurt the humans of the team, but they were there to just hang. They helped the autobots and, surprisingly, the decpticons to.

They gave them a rare gem that made them have the ability to turn into a human. Not a full human but a cybertronian disguised as a human.

This helped the autobots a lot since they were very bad at hiding in the more population areas. Though they were still a demon, they loved to cause chaos. They gave the gems to the decpticons as well, which caused them to hide in the human race just like the autobots.

Neither side knows what (Y/N) has been doing, but they were to focus on eschother then the demon.

Which leads us to today. The autobot team has been struggling with wepons and energon. So, (Y/N) decided to help them the best way they know how.

Stealing a whole military arsenal and bringing it to the autobot base.

They made an excuse that in hell, they have a bunch of spare wepons but it was not true.

They don't need to know, though. (Y/N) also made sure to add a bit of their demon powers to the wepons so it's more powerful and can change sizes depending what size the autobots are.

Optimus

When optimus received his new wepon. He made sure to take a good look at it.

It seemed to be a better version of a shot gun (since I think that is what his weapon is, can't tell if it's a shock gun or a double barrel shotgun)

He tested out and messed with it for a bit to meet his needs.

Once he got the hang of it, he thanked (Y/N) for the gift.

He never uses it, though. He only uses it as a last resort since he is not gonna kill for the sake of it.

Ratchet

Ratchet received (Y/N) and looked surpised.

This was a huge ass sniper gun! (If it is, if not, sorry)

He was confused since he was never on the field fighting.

Though, he was thankful for it when he was on the field one day and had to use his sniper to shoot at a decpticon.

Now he keeps it with him all the time.

Arcee

Arcee was a bit confused on the gloves she received.

That was intel they transformed into swords. (Since that's what they do right? If not sorry, I'm really trying here.)

She was surprised since he already had swords on her arms.

That was ijtel she realized she could use them as a sheild to if she holds her hands together.

She just became more bad ass.

Bulkhead

Bulkhead was excited when he received his weapon.

He was a wrecker and getting a massive hammer as a weapon was awsome to him.

He had to get use to it though since it was heavy but once he understood how to use it, he used that weapon everytime he can.

When he learned he could send a wave of electricity guy charging it up by swinging it, he fell in love with it.

Bumblebee

When he was given a sword. He was excited.

Since he dident have knife hands or arms like the rest of the team. Like hell, even ratchet had knife hands.

He immediately trained with it, getting it down.

He did forget it a few times when he went on missions since he is not used to having a weapon.

The team loved their gifts and used them. The kids thought it was awesome and asked for weapons. Optimus told them they couldn't have weapons. Though, it doesn't stop (Y/N).

(Y/N) gave Raphael a pair of glasses that worked just like normal glasses, but he can also use them as a hacking device since they where intelligent glasses.

Jack got a sword that can turn into a wip if needed to. (Mostly because I see jack being more of a mele weapon then a fire arm person)

And miko, miko got a hammer just like bulkhead. Though, just a tad difference. Mikos hammer can also transform into a suit around miko if she needs to fight a larger decpticons.

(Since you know, the tfp episode where she was able to have the metal armor)

Everyone loved it.

[coolchocolatespreadart]

SPLATOON OC DUMP!!

A lot of this stuff is art from last year but I still wanna share it!!

introducing...

O.K.T.P.S! OCTARIAN KILLER TUNE PRODUCTION SQUAD!

An organised collective of ex-soldiers from Octavio's army, all with one goal - To show all these surface-dwelling inklings what's what!!

As long as they have their harsh techno sounds and funky grooves, nobody can stop them! These tunes are headed for world domination!

MEET THE SQUAD!

AMANA (she/her) - the bassist. tired and moody.

-Amana fondly remembers her years in the army with her fellow troops as they fought around the time in the first game. In the aftermath of the calimari inkantation however, there was a massive rise in escapees, fugitives and rebels who revolted against Octavio. Amana's team was tasked with capturing/suppressing this resistance, but one by one, as they dealt with rebel groups, Amana lost all but one of her friends - whether that be to the conflict or joining the crowd.

-Eventually staying in the army was too much for her, so she too headed to the surface. despite her internal resentment and loyalty to octo society, she was keen to start a better life, and that would start with her music.

-Amana is kinda like that emo war veteran in those action movies idk

KURUMA (he/him) - the drummer! Foul-mouthed and rebellious

-he's a bit of a crazy goofball who likes the idea of breaking the rules but doesnt have all of the guts to follow through with it

-he was enlisted as an aoctoling soldier alongside his bff (and crush) Hokkia - his friend would made up for the guts he didnt have so they both worked as a duo as troublemakers

-some time After the events of the first game Hokkai was reported missing whilst on a patrol. Upon hearing this, Kuruma volunteered to help search for him. After 2 months Kuruma was left as the only one still looking for him- one day Kuruma had gone out and searched for Hokkai for so long that he had been separated from his fleet and also reported missing. From there he had to find his way up to the surface in order to survive and continue looking

-once kuruma reached the surface, he resorted to making a living off of his percussion skills, which he used to practice alongside Hokkai. Due to these memories he was very passionate about his playing, which allowed him to make a living out of busking for a while until he met Amana, Moyebi and Caramote 

(Hokkai was actually captured and sanitized by Tartar but Kuruma hasnt found this out yet)

CARAMOTE (they/them) - The chill, confident guitarist

-Octocommander

-moyebi's closest friend. Gives them advice and stands up for them

-they can come off as very sassy and bitchy to strangers but supports their bandmates till the end

-never wanted to be in the army but were pressured into it due to their good tongue-guitar skills which allowed them to use commander weapons

-they always had a secret obsession with the surface and its customs - From the trendy clothes to the inkling's freedom of expression. Caramote was sick of following orders, and wanted to use their tongue not for shooting, but for playing sick guitar licks. The only thing keeping them around was Moyebi, who depended on them. But after the mass exodus caused by the inkantation, they were ready to get out of there. They convinced Moyebi to come along and together, they started a new band and a new life on the surface.

MOYEBI (she/they) - The singer/leader of the band! Sweet, but nervous...

- Twintacle octarian 

- singer/keyboard player for the band O.K.T.P.S.

-They served behind the lines in the octarian army as a mechanic for weapons and armour making

-whilst friendly and well-meaning, they often come off as awkward and lack self-confidence in their music and engineering

-They created a metal suit to emulate a humanoid body, and use it to create more of a stage presence. Although she feels more confident in it, Sometimes she feels like she relies on it too much to try and fit in.

-After experiencing the calamari inkantation, she couldn't help but be inspired and embrace a passion for singing. Her new dream was to sing and dance much like the squid sisters had done, but the only way she could acheive such a dream was by escaping to the surface, which was NOT about to do any time soon. The thought of leaving the comfort of her home terrified her. She had to be dragged along in an escape by her best friend, Caramote, before seeking out a new life outside the army.