#terra IS listening he just has resting bitch face

[uproariousscarecrow]

cooldown

[lis-muerta]

“The people that were supposed to help me hurt me.”

Tw extremely difficult and dark content, noncon, physical damage. Also an extremely long draft I've been working on this since Anon sent the ask.

Read at your own risk this is the last warning.

TRIGGERING CONTENT UNDERFLAP

If she wasn't a corpse on two feet, she would've been heartbroken. She just felt fragmented, as if she wasn't even human anymore. Her skin seemed fused to the thin line between love and hate.

She remembered where she was—holding her expression steady, with Mako sitting across the table. The men across from them laughed crudely.

"Look at what we have here," they sneered, their eyes devoid of any humanity. Lin couldn't place where she had seen them before; her mind was rebelling against her. Yet, they recognized her, and she must have known them at some point.

"She's ugly now, but I bet she still has all that money—and she doesn't fix her nose, it's crooked, looks like a frog." The men's words slurred slightly, still under the influence.

"What did you say, punk?" Mako's voice was sharp as he glared at the 60-year-old man adorned with tattoos on his face and body. Lin suppressed a look of disgust. They were trying to provoke a reaction; she didn't know why, but she couldn't remember. Her hands trembled—a common occurrence when the weather turned like this. She sensed they were eager to remind her of their past acquaintance, casually using her first name as if they were old friends.

"How's Su, in her fancy platinum city?" The younger men chimed in, their faces lighting up with a mix of mockery and intrigue.

Lin remained silent, her expression unreadable. She waited to see if they would reveal more, but it was Mako who spoke next, his tone laced with suspicion. "How do you dirtbags know Su?"

Lin continued to listen silently, maintaining her neutral facade, unwilling to give these despicable sex traffickers the satisfaction of any reaction. But then they dropped a bombshell: Su had done them a favor, always ready to assist the Terra Triad.

Lin exhaled slowly, focusing on the fact that they had slipped up while their lawyer was still en route. It wouldn't hold up in court; the whole interrogation could be deemed pointless. Reacting to their bait would only jeopardize the interrogation. She needed to ensure they made it to trial.

"Are you confessing to a crime? Everything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law, and you've asked for a lawyer," she stated firmly.

"If this lands me in jail, your sister will be right there with me for facilitating, and I don't think it would be just a small slap on the wrist either," the man with the neck tattoo retorted, crossing his arms, his demeanor showing no fear of the law.

Mako turned to Lin, his eyes searching hers for guidance.

"Depending on what you say next, we might discuss immunity, but remember, your counsel is still on the way."

"I'll waive it," the man declared boldly, his voice echoing slightly in the stark interrogation room.

—

Lin grabbed the paperwork with Mako telling him he would lead; she was disoriented, unsure of what was unfolding. They signed away their rights, driven by a vendetta against Su for betraying them decades ago. They smirked, sizing up Lin with contempt.

"If that bozo Zolt hadn't forgotten to lock the door to the hideout, that bitch would've been in a concrete grave," the man with the neck tattoo said, pointing at Lin, sending a chill through her veins.

The memories flooded back in an instant. She had been out for a run, feeling unwell and deciding to rest on a park bench. It was late; she should have been home already. Her vision blurred, and suddenly, two men appeared from behind the bench. She slumped over, her head ablaze with pain, her stomach cramping, and then she awoke chained to a bed. They injected something into her arm; time became a blur, the abuse relentless.

"Sure would've; she was starting to get boring. It was fun while it lasted. I'm honestly surprised she managed to recover; she was nearly dead by then. We even considered setting her on fire to finish the job, but then the boss thought about stuffing her in a drum, filling it with concrete, and leaving it for her loved ones to find, though they didn't seem to be looking."

"Are you insinuating that my sister was involved in my kidnapping?" Lin asked, her voice sharp and unfazed by the violence they described.

"Well, believe it; she was the one that drugged you before your run and told us where you'd be—that you took exactly 30 minutes to get to the park from the Beifong estates. It was hard to miss a sexy barely 18-year-old. Shame you decided to arrest Gao's right-hand man; he wouldn't have been so rough with you, and would’ve had more time to have fun. The funny part is that your mom found out and buried it; even she didn't give a shit about you."

"Okay, and your proof?" Lin said, her voice steady. Nothing could hurt if you didn't feel anything anymore. Mako, on the other hand, was livid, disgusted, and shocked that her sister might have done something so cruel, that her mother covered it up.

"Well, if you want to give us a deal, I can show you something. I'm sure you would like to have it back. Not like I'll be getting out of prison, but if you don't give us death, we'll give you everyone running this operation."

"Fine," Lin lied, knowing they had made their mistake. They weren't in charge of deals; that was up to the lawyers. They had just waived their right to counsel. It was a reasonable deception.

Mako wondered what was next. Lin was going to let them get away with it. That was when he took off the necklace. Lin raised a brow; he wore the evidence of his crime. He was that sure he had gotten away with what he had done.

Lin stared at the necklace—a jade boar with wings, golden wings, her initials carved in and gold-leafed. Her grandmother had given it to her shortly before she died. She hated the feeling she suddenly got, that they began to laugh, that the memories of what they did to her came back in a flash.

The earthbender remembered calling for her mom, begging for her; she couldn't walk anymore, she crawled, she was barely able to use or reach the bathroom, trapped in that shed. It was cold as it snowed outside. She pleaded for half an hour as they attacked her for not being able to make it, forcing her to drink her next mess.

The way they smashed her face into the floor by jumping on her. The clatter as her teeth hit the concrete, and her nose broke from being pressed into the ground; how she wouldn't be able to breathe from it again until she got surgery years later. How her face swelled more and more as they brutalized her starved body, how they had dropped a boulder on her body many times, breaking many bones in her legs and hands, ribs.

The cuts and burns that were all over her unscarred body. Cigarettes and hot metal were pressed against her skin. The drugs fed to her, and how wild it got as they passed her around like a doll the first weeks to all of their friends in the triad while she still looked pretty. How the ringleader's father joined in instead of calling the police; he didn't want to pass up on sleeping with a hot young lady.

That people could hear her screams but didn't dare call the cops. The word got out, and the other boys in the triad who hated her mother and her type came in droves to abuse her body. Anything and everything became a new way to torment her as they put things inside her body. She never knew pain like this, and she had no memories of not being harmed in her life. That she wasn't publicly seen for a long time due to the damage to her body and her mind, that she was unrecognizable for months, her face was so swollen.

That she wouldn't be able to bear children, not that she wanted them. From all the violence done internally with objects. The glee that the older man gave as he described her screams, how this probably didn't even bother her because she was used up and ran through even before then.

Her mother didn't hesitate to ensure Su wasn't involved, despite the drugs used to ensnare Lin, and make her unable to fight back , were found in her room along with other trophies of their crimes, which the men hid in the Beifong house. They laughed heartily as they described feeding her drugs to keep her unable to bend, how Lin had been reduced to crawling and being unable to eat, drink, breathe, and use the bathroom properly. They destroyed her legs, hands, and body.

Lin wanted to die every day if it meant being freed from this numb world. She remembered how long it took before she was able to walk again, to see; her face was so swollen, nobody recognized her for weeks, she couldn't talk from how much she had screamed. How much this should hurt, but she felt nothing. Lin Beifong died a long time ago, and after Amon, she hadn't been able to regain feelings in any meaningful way. She felt like nothing, a void in her being.

Beifong forgave them; she had every right to be upset at them both, but everyone said lin was the problem. She started to believe it was her, that she was cold and no good. Her sister looked her in the eyes and said she was the reason Lin did a banged-up job keeping the family as it was, broken, knowing what she did nearly crippled her, and Su let that guy steal Lin's last memory of their grandmother, who she had. Her personality and cognitive functions were never the same; she couldn't emote even when she tried. She couldn't express herself no matter how badly she wanted to.

"Every time I see your face in the paper, I look at that necklace and remember how you cried and begged for your mommy to save you. How she was more worried about your bitch sister, How we ruined you—that Master Tenzin lost interest in you because you were broken by us. All that money and power, and you did nothing with it. Wasted, on a dumb broad who's just a good body."

Lin's eyes never left the man's face as he described his plans to kill her, every gruesome detail. Her expression remained neutral, almost bored.she had no idea what he had to prove.

"Hm, is that so?" Lin said, her voice dripping with nonchalance. Inside her mind was churning as those lowlifes got too comfortable.

Nowadays, she didn't even know where she was, with whom, or why; it was all a blur. Nothing stayed still enough to catch the details. It was like her grandmother's hair slipping through her fingers; she didn't know what she was anymore, but she didn't feel human. Chief Beifong was just a response to what was right in front of her, with no details, too tired and impatient of everything, like how long it was taking for those lowlifes to make out their list of people involved with the current trafficking ring, the thing she cared more about. Everything took forever, everything was just out of reach.

The man's grin faltered, expecting a stronger reaction. But Lin just stood up, her movements fluid.

Mako walked out of the room, his statements already taken. Lin followed a small smirk playing on her lips.

"You have tons of time to think about how you wish you had killed me," she said, her voice sweet. "Especially since you're going to get the death penalty. And you made a plea deal with the wrong person, genius."

The man's face twisted in rage, but Lin just turned and walked away, leaving him to his fate.

Mako blinked, admiring Lin's ability to hold onto her emotions. "Hey, Lin, are you okay?" he asked, catching up to her as she walked past him briskly, hoping to avoid this.

Lin shrugged. "Been through worse than what they did."

Mako frowned, concerned, but Lin just headed to her office to work on the paperwork. He decided to follow, his eyes fixed on her back.

"How do you do it, Lin?" he asked, his voice low. "How do you stay so calm after everything you've been through?"

Lin shrugged.

"Lin, wait. Are you going to be okay? That had to be hard to hear."

"Been through worse. It's too late now, no use in dwelling," Lin said, her tone so detached it could have been about anything.

"Been through worse—Lin!" Mako was horrified at the idea she thought this was no big deal. "You're going to let her get away with that?" Mako said, growing frustrated.

"Su already did, didn't you hear? She was a minor, and there are at least two adults who will get all the blame for her facilitation and possession. Besides, it was nearly four decades ago, and with her rebrand that fooled everyone, she'll never see the inside of a jail cell or court," Lin said, her voice measured, caging in all the betrayal. Su and her have been on talking terms for years now. She was actively deceiving her.

The heartache the chief felt as she thought of their words—not even her mother gave a damn about her.

The fact that Su nearly crippled her, that she had serious damage that still affects her, that she couldn't have kids, that she didn't leave her home for a long time. She was silently struggling with the withdrawal from the drugs they fed her. She was unrecognizable for months, never the same person as her brain was damaged by the things they did to her.

"Besides, there's no use risking the tiny bit of stability the Earth Kingdom has. It's barely stabilizing itself, and I won't lose sleep over it," Lin said.

"But you deserve justice for what they—" Mako started.

"I don't deserve anything. Just leave what happened out of the report, and drop it. I've been through the worst; it's going to be fine, and I'm fine. I'm going to turn in after I finish the paperwork."

It was early for Lin to leave, usually being the first one in and the last out.

Mako knew it had to bug her, but she kept herself guarded. She refused to open up, even though she usually preferred working for as long as possible. She was choosing to head in early; she was hurting. He realized she was heading to her office.

"Lin, will you promise me you will consider talking to someone you trust? This has to be hurting, even if you say that it isn't the worst thing you've encountered, that you're no stranger to betrayal, which frankly is terrifying to think." Lin kept the same expression she always wore as it grew closer to the end of most detectives' lunch breaks; they were starting to filter in. She was stone-cold as Lin walked into her office, wondering if she even trusted anyone anymore because she didn't have anyone she turned to show him that Lin Beifong was fine. She wasn't sniveling and crying; she was numb to the world and its evils, hardened and unbreakable on the outside.

"Just omit the things pertaining to me from the report. The last thing I need is for the media to get wind of this," Lin said as she pushed the door open to her office again, closing and locking it behind her, taking a deep breath before getting to work.

—

It had been two days since that afternoon. Lin had not shown up for work and Mako couldn't sleep.The group sat in stunned silence, processing Mako's revelation.

"Su set Lin up?" Korra asked, her voice laced with disbelief. "She facilitated a kidnapping?"

Mako nodded, his expression grim. "Lin was 18. She was kidnapped, abused, and nearly killed. Su's was the reason she was targeted; she told them about Lin arresting the leaders right hand man, that Lin was always on Su’s case as she fed them information in hopes of joining the gang.They told Su they would deal with Lin if she gave info and she wouldn't bother her ever again and she can join their gang." The implication was that Su knew they would hurt Lin but Mako also knew Su was twelve, he really hoped she didn't realize what she set her sister up for.

Tenzin's face darkened, his eyes flashing with anger. "I knew she was kidnapped, but I didn't know the extent. We didn't see her until she recovered from her injuries, away from Republic City."

Pema's expression turned stern, her voice firm. "I'm going to check on Lin, right now. She needs our support."

Tenzin countered, his voice calm . "Pema, we can't just barge in on her. She needs space."

Pema's eyes flashed with concern. "Space? She's been through trauma, Tenzin. She needs us. The people that were supposed to help her hurt her! her own mother covered it up I can't even imagine horrible Lin must feel inside"

Kya spoke up, her voice laced with understanding. "Actually, Pema, Lin's more likely to get angry if we violate her boundaries. She values her independence."

Bumi nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and she's been dealing with Su's betrayal. She needs time to process."

Pema's face was determination. "I don't care. I need to make sure she's okay."

Tenzin's expression turned gentle but firm. "Pema, we're not questioning your concern, but Lin's strong. She can handle this. Forcing our presence on her will only make things worse."

Asami added, "And think about it, Pema. Lin's been through so much. She needs to feel in control of her life right now."

Bolin chimed in, "Yeah, and if we show up uninvited, she'll feel like we're taking that control away from her."

Pema's voice rose, her frustration evident. "You're all just making excuses. She wants to be alone because she's scared. But I know her, she doesn't want to be alone."

Kya's voice turned soft but firm. "Pema, we're not making excuses. We're trying to respect Lin's boundaries. She'll come to us when she's ready."

Pema's expression turned stubborn, but the others stood firm, convinced that giving Lin space was the best decision.

"You're all just making excuses not to check on Lin. She needs our support, and I'm going to make sure she gets it."Pema's breaths were heavy, filled with an anger she had not felt in decades.

Kya countered, "Pema, Lin's not going to want us to be there. I’m telling you it’s going to be a fight.”

“She's vulnerable, she needs someone to fight for her, just as much as anyone else, and I doubt anyone will let her share that or even asked. You all act like she’s a machine and not a person.” Pema felt heated, particularly because of her own similarities in sibling betrayal.

that Pema didn’t doubt Lin endured all of that and was expected to go about her day regularly once her body recovered. Her own mother covered this up. That they were just going to wait until she dealt with it her own way before bothering to check in when she was over it. They were cowards.

Tenzin added, "We're not making excuses, Pema. Lin wont respond well, and we can't just march in unannounced."

Pema's voice rose. "You're always saying that! Lin doesn't want to be alone. She's heartbroken, and she needs us. You're just too scared to face her."

Kya explained, "Pema, Lin's brain damage made her personality and ability to emote change. She wouldn't talk unless necessary. She obsessed with getting stronger and being a good influence on the city. It might frustrate her or overwhelm her if we approach her first it's hard for her to communicate."

Tenzin said, “She didn't speak for months, but eventually, Katara helped her reintegrate. However, she was a different person."

Pema argued, "That's exactly why we should be there for her! But no, you're all too busy making excuses. I'm going to check on her, and I'm not leaving her alone with that."

Bumi sighed. "Pema, we're not trying to abandon Lin. We just don't want to intrude on her space like Kya said it might overwhelm her."

Pema shot back, "when has Lin ever not been there for us? Never! She's always been the strong one, and now she needs us, and you're all too scared to be there for her."

Korra's eyes dropped, her mind racing with regret. "I can't believe I forced Lin to talk to Su. I didn't leave it alone all those years ago. And now,I find out Su was behind a serious crime."

Asami's hand on her shoulder offered comfort. "Korra, you didn't know. You were trying to help."

But Korra shook her head, her guilt evident. "I should have listened to Lin. I should have respected her boundaries. If only I had."

Tenzin's wise voice interrupted her thoughts. "Korra, you can't change the past. But you can be there for Lin now. When she's ready to talk."

The group fell silent, weighing their options. Finally, Pema stood up, her expression determined. "I'm going to check on her, with or without you.I'll come home if she doesn't want company."

Pema thought of the scars on her wrists. The little girl that needed somebody by her side to be her voice that it never came as she became the scapegoat for the things her brother and his friends had done to her.

She would be the person that they both needed; she wouldn’t turn her back like Lin’ supposed family friends. Pema left, got Oogi determination in her blood along with anger at her husband and everyone else turning a blind eye.

@btheleaf Pemas headcanon is theirs, I have more I need to write in part two and Pema gets a bigger part.

@dont-blame-it-on-the-kids

[herstroywritten]

Their Aching Firsts.

I still have no excuse for my obsession with them. Not sure how I feel about this particular story, but I wanted to post something for the start of Rivusa week for the hell of it. It’s about 7k words (I apparently can’t stop writing them once I start and their works end up being endless). Oops.

Fair warning, there is a umm *spicy* scene near the end there. I don’t usually write those and I tried to keep it as vague as I could, but I thought I’d mention it anyways. Other than that, enjoy and let me know what you think!

The first times they kissed, it was fueled by anger- he grabbed, she pulled, they crashed.

The first time they talked about it, it wasn't so much a conversation of words as it was one of looks. His eyes said "I want you and it terrifies me." Her eyes said "I think I want you, too. And I think I'm finally ready to admit that."

The first time Musa realized her new favorite jacket was once his, she stares at herself in the mirror for over an hour. She misses lunch with the gang and Riven comes knocking at her door and opens it to find her standing in front of that mirror in a state of awe. She's bathed in black leather, sleeves reaching the tips of her fingertips.

"You ok?" Arms wrap around her waist as she toys with the hem of the jacket. She looks at him through the mirror and smiles.

"I just want you to know I'm never giving this back."

He huffs a laugh as he lets his head fall to her hair, breathing her in. Lavender and something sweet that he's never been able to pinpoint. "Not even if this falls apart?"

She whirls around to face him. "I don't intend on letting that happen." Her hands are on the collar of his shirt, eyes blazing with stubbornness. He knows then that her words are a promise, a commitment and not just a comment in passing.

"I don't know, Muse. You still have time to regret all this. Regret the ruin of your reputation. What will people say?" His words are teasing, but she can see right through them. She senses his vulnerability, his apprehension.

"There are a lot of things I regret in life- yelling at my mother when I was fourteen because I didn't want to clean my room, being a bit of a bitch to my suitemates at the start of the year, hiding instead of fighting because I was too scared to see what my powers could really do. The regrets are endless. But, you, Riven, are not one of them."

He frowns, blinks away the swarm of feelings within  him. "Yeah?"

She bunches her hands on his collar and pulls him down to her mouth. "Yeah."

"And what if I'm the one to end this?"

"And do what? Date some other girl for the hell of it?"

"Maybe, " he grins. "I hear I'm hot on the market now that I'm on the good side." She pulls him all the way down then, kisses him hard.

"Give it a try. Whoever she is, she won't last more than a day. And she'll defiantly never have you. Not really. I have you right where I want you, Riven. You're mine and you know it." She blazes a fire in him with her words.

"Oh yeah? And how would you know that?"

"You're here, aren't you?" She's all sass as she cocks an eyebrow at his question. "And, plus, it's kinda hard to lie to an empath."

And then she's kissing him again. This time with so much passion that he can't make sense of the world around him any longer. She pulls away only to tell him, "And I bet she'll never get that reaction out of you."

"No. No, she won't."

________________________________________________________________

The first time he calls her his girlfriend, it's not exactly in the situation she had imagined.

"Girls, I need to tell you something." Musa's voice wavers slightly as it rises above the noise that is their friends' laughs and chatter.

They're on the roof of Alfea, clustered among one another on the edges of old, shabby stones. The sky above them is dark and heavy. Stars wink at students from behind perfect clouds, ones that Musa remembers seeing in old cartoon movies that she used to watch with her parents when she was younger. From up here, the rest of Alfea seems like their whole world, its students miniature figures in a dollhouse. It's a perfect night, just as it should be. Rosalind is gone, out of the school and although that's not good enough, it's something. And Headmistress Dowling is alive and back in charge of the magical boarding school, where she belongs. From her perch up here, she can make out the headmistress' perfectly done hair as she leans back and laughs at something Silva is saying. She sees Professor Harvey heading towards their table, scolding students along the way to back away from the school's boarders. She's surprised that they haven't tried to stop all the drinking that going on. It seems that even the professors have had enough of the fighting, so much so that they're no longer focusing on the minute details of teenage life. Plus, she suspects that when they called for a party to celebrate the revival of Dowling and their taking back the school, they had fully expected the drinking. In fact, Musa had even seen Silva sneaking a few drinks to the teacher's table, but she'd never tell him that.

She can still hear Terra's squeal when Dowling had announced the party. And she can feel the toll of the  heels Stella had insisted she wear on her feet. It has brought everyone so much joy, this little piece of heaven that they're being allowed, and she's been so very glad to just bask in it. After months of walking around with her headphones constantly on, trying desperately and failing to block the thoughts of despair, gloom, and pain, she welcomed the change. It had taken a lot out of her, but she had even worked up the nerve to leave her headphones behind for the party. The girls had been surprised at first, but then Bloom had stepped forward, wound their arms together, and led her outside the suite. She's been getting weird looks from them all night, little side glances with small smiles and questioning eyes, asking her if she was okay or if she needed to head out for a bit, take a breather. She'd returned them all with reassuring smiles of her own, letting them know that she was fine. And she was fine, but probably not for the reason they thought. Yes, the students around her were happy and she didn’t have much negativity to deal with from them right now, and yes her powers were getting better. But the reason she was doing so well had to do nothing with the students around them or her ability to control her magic and everything to do with the specialist across from her.

Riven and her had been a bit of a dichotomy since the start of her second semester at Alfea. They were paired together for combat classes from the very beginning of Rosalind's reign at Alfea. He'd flirted, as he did with everything that had a pulse and walked his way, and she had shut it down. Odd how that had only encouraged his behavior. Odder how she'd eventually come to appreciate it.

It was a slow transition, their thing. She had been resistant to accept she liked someone so very opposite to her last boyfriend, hesitant to give herself to that natural disaster that seemed to be Riven. Honestly, it seemed like a loss for a long time. She'd lay in bed some nights, staring at her ceiling, listening to Terra's slow breaths as she slept, and just think about the fact that just a few months ago (God, it boggled her mind that it was only a few months ago… where did time go? And how did they get here, in a school run by a once presumed dead war leader and a woman that seemed to exude death from her presence alone?) she had been perfectly happy with Sam and the silence that he brought. Sure, they had eventually called it quits once she had realized she couldn't live in silence forever and he realized she needed to learn to shield herself from harm. It had been tough, but they were friends. And she had been okay being single again. Truly, she had. So how she'd come to crave noise- his noise, loud and obnoxious emotions that sent her body tingling and her mind reeling- she doesn't know. But it had happened and once she's finally just accepted it, the ball was in his court. Too bad for her though, because just as hesitant as she was, Riven was ten times more resistant to the pull that existed between the two of them. Musa remembers all the nights they'd sneak out and he'd teach her new moves with a staff and sometimes he'd let her use his swords, teasing her as she struggled under their weight. She'd head back to her suite before the sun came up, always frustrated because couldn't he see?! Couldn't he tell? Why else would she show up every single night without fail? Why else would she stick around when the training turned to teasing and taunting turned to conversations in hushed tones? Long story short, it took him being under mind control and her breaking it for him to just finally, finally kiss her. And from then on, it had been secret meetings in different corners of the school, in their rooms when no one else was around, and anywhere else they could find some privacy.

She's itching to cross the space that separates them currently and slip her arms under his jacket, an action that she'd first done on instinct but which had quickly become a habit once she had realized the effect it had on him. She's been eyeing him the whole night, fully aware of his gaze on her. There's a reason she hadn't argued with Stella when she'd been handed the lavender slip of a dress that she currently wore. She'd even managed to forgive the light fairy for the strappy silver heels she had practically forced into Musa's feet when she caught Riven staring up and down her bare legs. 

"Musa? What is it? Are you ok?" 

Bloom's worried tone pulls her back to reality and she forces herself to face away from Riven and toward the girls. She'd avoided this conversation for so long, but it had to come out at some point tonight and it had to happened before one of the girls found them in some shady corner with their clothes half off. 

"Oh, no I'm fine! It's not that." Now, how to approach what it actually was? 

Aisha's confused tone follows her reply, "Well, then, what is it?"

"Um, it's kind of a little complicated…" Musa's voice trails off and she has to physically stop herself from turning back to Riven to see if he's ok with this, with what she's about to say.

"Musa you're freaking me out a little here," Stella's eyes narrow at Musa's fidgeting her hands. Huh, she hadn't even noticed herself playing with the hem of her dress.

"Oh no! Did you actually kill that poor guy that tried to hit on you?" Terra sounds worried as Musa just groans at her words.

"Ughhh. Terra, we said we wouldn't talk about that."

"What guy?" Riven's question comes at the same moment as her whine, except his is louder and much more aggressive. All heads turn to him, and Musa curses the jealousy that she feels coursing through his veins right now. Damn it, couldn't he just keep it in long enough so she could explain to her suitemates what the hell was going on between them? His eyes are all rage and warning as he stares Terra down. And for some reason, she's all worked up at his gaze and doesn't know what to do with herself. She really shouldn't be so attracted to this side of him.

"What's it matter to you?" Aisha questions, eyebrow raising in his direction.

"It just does."

"Really, Riven? The middle school comeback? Classic."

"Stay out of it, Aisha. I wasn't talking to you."

They're bickering back and forth, and Musa can sense both their patience straining. This is not how she was hoping this would go. Finally, she steps between them, one hand on Aisha's shoulder and the other on Riven's chest. "Ok, that's enough."

Aisha glares his way one more time but steps back, Riven does not.  Instead, he turns to Musa and asks her, "What guy, Musa?"

"It doesn't matter, Riven."

"It does to me."

"Well, it shouldn't. It was just some drunk dude with a bad haircut. That's it." She's trying to reassure him, to let him know that this thing they have going on isn't just something she's going to drop the first chance she gets for any guy that makes eyes her way. She knows that's one of his big insecurities. He has it in his head that he's not good enough to deserve this, something that isn't completely fucked up from the very beginning.

They're trading glances, a secret conversation of their own  happening between them.

"No!"

All heads snap toward Bloom. The second she turns around, Musa knows that her redheaded roommate has figured it out. Bloom is grinning at the two of them, practically bouncing on her heels as she grabs onto Sky's arm and tugs on it. "Did you know about this?! Why didn't you tell me?!" 

Sky (bless his soul) looks at his girlfriend with confusion evident in his face, "Know what?"

Except it's Stella that answers, "They're dating."

And then mayhem ensues and Musa suddenly wishes she had thought this through because she's feeling so much from so many people right now and she's not quite sure how to handle it. She tries to hide the wince that forms on her face as she tries to answer all the questions her friends are practically screaming her way, but Riven must have noticed it because he reaches for her hand and pulls her out of the circle the girls have formed around her and closer to him.

"Alight, that's enough." It's the rasp in his voice that sends her spiraling every time he speaks, and she's putty in his hands. It's pathetic, she should have more self-control than this. "Yes, we're dating. Yes, she's my girlfriend. And, Aisha, no I did not pay her or threaten her into it. Gods above!" He takes a sweep of the room, gesturing to all their friends with a hand as if to say 'you're all very welcome.'

"Any other questions?" No one speaks up. Not that Musa would have heard any of them because good gods, did she hear him right? Did he just say what she thinks he said? Is she his… girlfriend? They'd avoided so many labels for so long that it had completely slipped her mind to actually name this thing between then by the time that they had finally become something substantial. And she's been fine with that deal, with not having to name their relationship, but hearing him call her his girlfriend has send her body trembling, fire coursing through her veins and butterflies bursting in her stomach.

And then he's pulling her away, down the stairs that led them up to the roof and between hallways that blend into one another as her mind focuses on the way his hand grips hers and the lust (his? hers?) that seems to be engulfing her whole being.

She lets him lead her into his room, onto his bed, and just as he leans down to kiss her, she moves down and places a kiss on his neck instead. Looking up at him, she tests out the word that's taken over her brain since it left his lips, "Girlfriend?"

"Fuck. Is that not what this is? I, I don't know- I kind of figured- I don't know. Shit, sorry-" If she wasn't so very in love with the idea of being his girlfriend, his something (just his), she would have let his ramble continue. She didn't get to see this often, a flustered Riven, and it was a sight she found quite adorable. But, alas, she had other plans for tonight.

She bends her neck upward, uses her toes to push herself up the bed, and kisses him ever so lightly on the lips. Just enough so that he stops talking. A feather's whisper of a kiss, against which she purrs "That is exactly what this is if that's what you want it to be." 

His eyes are black with want when he closes them and his hand comes up to trace the edges of her jaw. His breathing speeds up as he leans his forehead against hers, and that's how she knows he's trying to collect his thoughts, watching his words as he often does when he's scared he's about to make the wrong move, say the wrong thing. She swears she's going to get him to stop doing that around her, because she wants his thoughts, every single one of them, as raw as they are. She doesn't want the filtered version. And she can feel them, mingling into the background as his insecurity takes over. Her hands find their way to his jaw and now they're holding each other, "Tell me."

He opens his eyes, opens his mouth to tell her, just as she knew he would. He'd never deny her anything and she's learned that in the short time that they've been together. He'd collect the stars and fashion them into a necklace she could wear around her neck if she asked for the universe. He'd start and end a war if she so much as suggested it. He'd give her his soul, she thinks. All she needs to do is ask, and he breaks for her. Crack by crack. Splinter by splinter. Until he's cleaved wide open and she sees all of him.

"I do, want that. I want you." His voice is gruff, guttural. "What about you? What do you want?"

God, how does he still not get it?!

"You." A whisper, and then a kiss.

_______________________________________________________________

The first time he makes her cry, it's not because of something he said. It's because of something he did.

It had started like any other day- breakfast, classes, social gatherings at the end of the afternoon. Musa and Terra had just left botany lessons and were heading towards the specialists training grounds to meet up with Sky and Riven before they all went to grab dinner together. It had been all fun and games, Terra and her grumbling about how ravished they were and laughing along at each other's comments. But Musa had sensed the uneasiness that radiated from the training grounds the second they had rounded the corner of Alfea's large lawns. Silva was especially on edge, and the fact that he had all the upperclassmen and the best of the specialists lined up as he walked back and forth between them shouting orders could not be a good sign. And with an insane mastermind on the loose, Musa had feared the worst as anyone else would. She'd taken off running, and Terra had followed without any questions, trusting her instincts.

She only caught glimpses of Silva's orders. "… Five burned ones… Two upperclassmen faries out there already… We need to leave now- I'm going to need ten of you out ASAP. Five more will guard the school grounds… Any volunteers?" 

Her heart stopped when in her peripheral vision, she saw Sky and Riven's hands go up. This would be the third one this month that they had volunteered for, and the last time they left the school grounds Riven came back with a broken foot that he's still limping along on. The word left her mouth before she could think about it, "No!"

He turned to her, surprised to find her standing among the specialists. "Musa?"

She can't be bothered to greet him, not right now, not when he's practically signing up for his own death. So, instead, she stares him straight in the eye and says it again. "No." 

But Riven is as stubborn as she is, and she knows he's been itching to prove himself again, to make up for what he did under the control of Rosalind just a short while ago. His words crush her soul, "I volunteer for the outside team." He's talking to Silva, who's eyeing the two of them with an intrigued look on his face. He nods curtly at Riven's words. But Riven is looking at her, his jaw set and tilted upward with determination.

"Alright, Sky and Riven, you'll lead the charge. Get your weapons. We leave in five minute. Go!" And then he and Sky are running toward their weapons bags, Musa and Terra hot on their tracks.

She catches up to him just as he's strapping on his swords. Her hand comes to pull at his wrist, motioning for him to face her.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" He won't look at her, won't meet her eyes. "Riven, I'm talking to you! You can't just volunteer yourself up for everything that could kill you! What the fuck is wrong with you?! Whatever you're trying to prove, stop it!"

He's reaching for his fighting boots, switching into them. Whether he's just not listening or if he just doesn't care, she can't tell. She wants to kill him. She wants to kiss him. 

"Please," she can't believe she's begging. "Please, Riven. Your foot. You can't-"

"I'm doing it, Musa." She sees fury, internalizes it before her insides form it into something tangible and she can see it, feel it. It's red and blinding and raging.

"I'm asking you not to." He won't say no to her, he hasn't done it yet. She asks and he cracks for her right? Right?

Wrong. 

"LET'S GO, SQUADRON 1!" She barely registers what Silva's command means until Riven is standing up.

"I'm sorry, Musa." And she knows he means it, because when his hands fall to her shoulders, quick and rushed, they're firm. He leans down to kiss her goodbye or as a form of apologizing, she's not sure, but she turns her head away from him and he ends up kissing the space between her cheek and jawline. If he won't look at her, then she won't look at him. And if he won't listen to her, then she won't give him the satisfaction of her approval. It's petty, she know that. She senses his emotions deflate at her actions, the feeling of rejection cutting into his heart like a shard of glass ripping through flesh. But she's seen this movie before, she knows how this story ends. Too many specialists have left the school's walls wounded and eager to pick a fight, only to come back on the brink of death or even worse, they haven't come back at all. And the idea of him becoming one of those statistics hurts more for her than her rejection will ever hurt him.

She doesn't turn to watch him leave, but she hears his boots beating against the pavement as he rushes to catch up with Sky… and then silence. 

She's so numb by now. Numb to death, to feeling, to crying. She doesn't cry. Not when Terra comes to hug her from behind. Not when they're back in the suite and Bloom is practically sizzling with anger at the fact that they didn't think to bring her along on the mission and that Sky is being sent on yet another mission. Not when it's midnight and Dowling informs that the specialists made it back safely.

She doesn't go down to greet them when the other girls rush out the door. Terra lingers in the doorway.

"You sure you don’t want to come?"

"I'm good." She's staring outside the huge window of their living room, refusing to look down at the ground and try to make out if someone is missing in the mass of specialists standing in the courtyard.

"Musa-" She feels pity and worry coming from Terra, and she doesn't want to deal with it right now. She just wants to be numb for a little while longer.

"I said, I'm good."

Once Terra is gone, she turns away from the window and goes to sit by one of the couches. She counts the floorboards by the main doorway of the Winx suite. One, two, three, four, five, six…

She counts them three times over before the door finally barges open, it's hinges creaking from the immense force of the push just enacted upon it.

Riven's eyes frantically search the room before they finally fall on her. He walks towards her, limps actually. (She knew his foot wasn't healed, no matter how much he insisted it was.) He has blood splattered on his right side. His or someone else's, who knows? And when he finally reaches her, and falls to his knees in front of her so that they're eye level with one another, she finally cries.

He reaches for her. She pushed him off. "Fuck you, Riven. Really, fuck you."

"I'm sorry. Muse, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. I-"

"Why don't you ever listen? You keep walking into wars as if they're welcoming parties. Do you want to die?! Do you have a death wish? What the fuck is wrong with you?!" She's being mean, unfair. She doesn't care. If asking won't work, maybe screaming will. And she's exhausted. Exhausted of worrying about him every time he leaves. Exhausted of wishing he would listen. Exhausted of fearing he's the one that didn't make it back, because it's almost been him so many times by now.

"I had to Musa." His voice is soft, odd in comparison to the loud tone he usually takes when they argue about this topic.

"You always have to! You don't have to prove anything Riven. And you most certainly don’t have to die for no fucking reason!"

"You don't get it-"

"So explain it to me!" He sighs deeply, and closes his eyes. "No, Riven. Explain it. What don't I get?"

He finally opens his eyes, throws a string of colorful swears at the ceiling before moving his gaze back to her. "It's not just proving something. It's that if I go and… if I go, then one less specialist has to go. And that's one less person with people that care about them having to go. And that's one less tragic death, and then a whole lot less people hurt. If I go… who cares, you know? And, honestly, shouldn't it be me? A taste of my own medicine and all that. After all the shit I helped Rosalind do." She senses his bitterness, feels his anger and destitute.

He's an idiot.

"You're an idiot, you know that?"

"And you're beautiful," he quips back. She watches that smirk that she's come to love make its way onto his face.

"Flattery won't get you very far in life, Riv." Except, maybe it will. Because somehow and for some reason she's here, and she's crying over him.

It's like he can read her mind, not the other way around, "I think it's gotten me pretty far as of right now. I mean, you're here." The look he gives her has her twitching in her seat and she has to remind herself that she still has more to say to him. She can't just let him off the hook that easily. He leans up to kiss her, and she places her hands on his chest, gently pushing him away.

 "I care."

"What?" He's confused by her words.

"I care. If you go, and something happens. I care." She feels the surprise bloom from within him, and then a sense of overwhelming tenderness takes up his mind, and hers along with it. Her hands reach for him, " Come here."

This time, he obeys her. And as she kisses him, he cracks for her. Splinters for her. Lets her see him while he kisses her as if he's kissing her for the first time ever, ravaged and hungry for her. She sees it all- all of him falling into her and consequentially falling into place in her mind, in her heart. His insecurities, his fears, and his wishes. She doesn't shy away from him, but kisses him harder. His thoughts are exactly what she thought they were from the very beginning- a natural disaster. But she doesn't fear falling into them anymore, and in fact she thinks she likes them. She thinks she likes the way his mind works- ten emotions at one time battling to win out over one another. And when he pulls away, she likes the way his green eyes look at her like she's the whole world and the way his hands hold her tight enough for her to know that he doesn't think she's fragile but with enough care that she feels like she is all that he owns.

"Don't you ever," he's panting as he moves to place kisses along her jaw and at her collarbone, above her shoulders, anywhere the collar of her shirt will allow him. "Don't you ever pull away from me again."

She knows he's referring to the other afternoon, when he had left for the mission and she had closed off. "Why? Did I hurt your fragile ego?"

She's teasing, he's not. His hands are in her shirt and moving up, up, up until the offending piece of clothing is off of her. He's eager to kiss down her body, hands roaming the planes and curves that he must have memorized by now. He's kissing, kissing, kissing. Kissing away her tears, kissing right above her beating heart, kissing along her waistline. Frantic, needy, and- 

Oh.

Oh. She thinks she's in love.

________________________________________________________________

The first time they slow down, she feels as though she has seen heaven.

Riven's lips on her lips, steady and firm yet gentle, as his hands lay splayed over her bare sides and his thumbs dig softly into the dips of her hipbones. One of her legs is tangled in the sheets around them and her other is hiked up above his hips, her heel digging into his spine. He moves inside of her, and when she feels her hips meet his, she slides her hands over his shoulders and lets her nails graze his back. He watches her below him, eyes asking if she's ok, she smiles at him and says, "Just… stay. Don't move for a bit."

And he does, closing the small space between them to catch her bottom lip between his teeth and pull on it before he continues with his love bites down her neck, behind her ears, onto her chest. He's making his way as far down as he can in their current position, and she's melting into him and fuck, she wants him to keep going. But she also wants him to slow down because she's on cloud nine right now and from up here she can see the stars in his eyes, can catch them between the kisses of his lips. Her hands move from his back, leaving behind what she can only assume is a mass of fresh red marks. They move to his chin as she drags him back up to meet her on that very cloud and then they're eye-level with one another once more. She feels the want form within him, she always does, but it’s an odd thing to actually see it emulated in his eyes. And there's something else there too, something she can't quite place and doesn't dare to assume of. When his lips brush hers for the umpteenth time, slowly shaping her name between them, she feels herself sink farther into him, a feat she had previously deemed impossible.

And her lips part in a whimper because oh good god, how had they never done this before? They were always so rushed, pulling at each other's clothes and stumbling into bed,  falling into one another in a tangled mess of limbs and lust. Perhaps it was the fact that they had kept it in for so long, refusing to admit they liked each other and once they were together, not wanting to tell others for fear of shattering whatever fragile state they were in. Their relationship had started with fighting fueled by longing, innuendos charged with so many suggestions, and eventually an aching want that Musa still couldn’t wrap her mind around. Really, she shouldn't be surprised at how touch hungry the two of them had been at the beginning of the relationship. (How touch hungry they still were.) But right here in this moment, as she opens her eyes, she regrets not slowing down and taking him all in sooner.

He is a sight to behold, with tiny and larger scrapes all over his body that somehow added to his physique instead of taking away from it. They are tens of thousands of stars and she traces them over and over, forming constellations with his imperfections. The pads of her fingers run over the features of his face, committing every bit of him to memory, and as they skim the tiny scar above his left eyebrow, the question slips from her lips before she can stop herself.

"When did you get this one?" 

He pulls away from her, just slightly so that he can see her face, and his eyes are darker than she's ever seen them as he lazily responds with a "Hmm?"

She's high on want and adrenaline, but she vaguely wonders if this is something he might not want to talk about. Too late to back out now. Plus, she'd like to know. "This scar. Above your eyebrow. How did you get it?"

Riven stiffens at her answer. She can feel his insecurity downing upon him, clouded by the desire and the want that still course through his body but slowly easing its way to the forefront of the battle that is his mind.

"I have them too," Musa whispers as she braces herself against his chest and heaves her body upward, brushing her lips against that very scar in question.

She moves back down again, and pulls her left arm slowly away from under him. She turns her head slightly to her left shoulder, using her index finger to point to a sliver of skin that's more taught and whiter than the rest of her. "I got this one when I was twelve. Tried to climb a tree that was too high off the ground. Had to get six stiches. My mom freaked out."

His eyeline follows her movements, and he stares at her shoulder for a few minutes. His gaze has her squirming a little, suddenly aware that she's naked in front of a boy she's very much into and that she has just pointed out one of the many flaws on her body. But then his eyes flicker upwards and he leans down and kisses her scar, just as she had kissed his.

"You're fucking perfect, you know that right?" She could cry.

"If you're trying to get in my pants, hate to break it to you, but they're already off," she teases, her voice soft and a smile on her lips. How else was she meant to respond?

He chuckles at her words, his laugh causing her to catch her breath as it does each and every time she hears it. It's an occasion that has become more common since they got together but which is still far and few in between. The sound vibrates off his body onto hers and has her writhing under him.

"Love, I would never consider your lack of garments a disappointment." He circles his hips above her, and she groans at the pressure. "And I would most certainly never forget being the one to take them off you, especially when you insist on making those noises."

Her eyes are blown wide as she grabs onto his forearm at the side of her head, where his fingers are buried in her hair. Her chest heaves up and down, up and down, heart beating so fast she's certain its rhythms are all in her mind and that it's no longer there. She's fairly sure she lost it somewhere between meeting him and getting here, to this moment.

He stops his teasing, opting instead to arch down once more and kiss the scar on her shoulder. He kisses it over and over until she feels her heartbeat slow down and her breath return to a somewhat normal pacing.

She tugs on his locks, silently motioning for him to come back up. Up he comes, and she's glad that she's somehow convinced him to continue denying her nothing. 

"Tell me."

He knows she's referring to his scar.

They're nose to nose, foreheads touching, brown eyes boring into green ones.

"About a year and a half ago. Right when things started to get messy in my life. Messier than usual, I mean. Back then I was a bit of a nerd, hung out in the greenhouse all the time-"

"Yeah, I've heard a few stories from Terra," she cuts him off, a smile playing on her lips at the idea of Riven hunched over a lab bench with pretty vines all around him.  It's a sight she hopes to one day see with her own two eyes, a side of him she knows she's so very close to opening up.

"Yeah, well, I'm sure you know how much of a dick I was after I started distancing myself from them. Sky, he got real mad one day. We were in Specialism class, learning some new sword tricks. I said some shitty things and then he tried to play the Saint Sky card. I got mad, I fought dirty. Scraped his arm with the sword. He finally snapped at me, landed a good blow right above my eyebrow." He laughed a bitter laugh at the memory. "Nearly missed my eye, the wanker. He apologized for two months straight. Either way, we both ended up in the infirmary and I figured I couldn't get rid of him. He kept me around and I stayed, almost like when we were children and we fought over dumb shit like who was the taller. Only difference now is that his scar healed and mine stayed."

That last sentence was loaded with so much, and Musa wanted to ask more but she didn't want to push her luck. She smiled at him, nudging his nose with hers. "So you used to fight over who was taller? The mental image of a baby Sky and baby Riven getting angry over something like that is almost, dare I say, adorable?"

He scoffs. "We were not adorable! We were two very manly twelve-year-olds with very some very manly, very reasonable arguments."

"Mmm," she hums against his skin. "Is that what you two have to this day? Manly arguments?"

"Are we really bringing Sky into the conversation while we're in bed?" She laughs, a full on laugh that comes from within her because his words were not what she had expected. "If you must know, now we argue over who’s got the hotter girlfriend."

His eyes are all mischief when she shakes her head at him. "Glad to see you two have really grown up."

"And I'm glad that I got the hotter girlfriend, because I'm not sure how else you've managed to keep me completely turned on while bringing up my best friend in the middle of us fucking."

And then it's her turn to tease him, turning her head slightly to the side so that she can catch his earlobe between her teeth and whisper in his ear. "I'll make it up to you."

And then she's flipping them over so that she's on top and she feels his breath catch. She smirks down at him mischievously and then they're off again, finishing what they started. She makes sure to go slow, to feel every bit of him as she moves, catch every angle of him below her and store it in her mind for safekeeping. 

And when it's over and he's lying on his stomach, back facing the ceiling, she moves herself on top of him once more. Only this time, she kisses every scar on his body, sometimes asking where and how he got them until he finally gets the hint and starts sharing their stories before she can even ask. There are so many of them, some tiny and some much more noticeable. All of them have stories. She vows to herself that she will one day know all of them. That she will be there to soothe the next scrape, the next trauma. With each one of her kisses, she can feel the natural disaster within him reach a rhythm, not quite silenced but at peace.

They don't sleep that night. Only once she's sure she's kissed every inch of his body does she finally worm her way back into his arms, but they're both wide awake at that point. His eyes watch her in the dark, hair loose and splayed around them like some sort of blanket. It had been in pigtails at one point in the night.

"What are you thinking about?" she asks.

"I…I just," words knot in his mouth. His eyebrows furrow at her in frustration as he tries to untangle and spell them out for her. "God, I love you."

Just for that, she kisses his body all over again. And again. And again.

________________________________________________________________

Their first times have been nothing short of unexpected. It's never how either of them imagined all these firsts would go. They're not soft and tender, though there are moments like that in-between, but neither had expected that. Their raging passions did not allow for it. But what they had expected was a lot more arguing, a lot more push and pull. Instead, they seemed to somehow fall right into each other- crash and burn style, no holding back.

Their firsts were painful lessons that needed to be learned. They were gnawing pains that needed to be had, throbbing emotions that had to be felt and delt with. They were stinging feelings, these firsts- stinging because they felt too much too soon and too fast and neither knew what to do with all of that expect for let it bubble until it exploded before them in an aching manner.

Their aching firsts.

[fitztragedy]

Things I Want Changed in Fate S02

Better Costumes

Like, seriously, wth happened there? They were dressed awfully, and that's not news. The costumes were like straight out of a 90's teens movies, it was so obvious there was an adult trying do find out what teens used and maybe saw that 90s fashion was trending and thought that was the hype. Costume designer Catherine Adair has been a costume designer in 29 projects, none of them was a teen TV show (except her most recent project, after Fate, which is a disney kids mystery series) and 16 of wich were in the 90s. She has dressed TV shows before Fate but things like Desperate Housewives and The Man in the High Castle- Definitely not even close to the vibe Fate has. Hopefully she'll either do more research or they'll hire another costume designer since she's aparently working on this new Disney series. IMDb says we have a new Art Director in S02 (Justin Warburton-Brown, who apparently done The Witcher S02!!) so my hopes are very high!

New locations and sets!

I loved Alfea and the Winx Suite but I feel like we need more sets. That's not the fault of the art direction or set decoration (which were done by Karl Clifford -who isn't credited for anything but Fate- and Jil Turner who has a very good resume, having worked on Vikings and a lot of other fantasy movies and tv shows), I feel like they did a pretty good job with what they were given. Having the entire season be basically that got very repetitive and because of the number of views I'm hoping they have a bigger budged in S02 to be able to have different sets. I wanna see Magix! The cartoon did a wonderful job with the city near Alrea, it was super cool to see the futuristic town in a fairy show, which was a contrast to what me, as a kid, imagines what a magical town would look like. I don't think they'll to this for Fate but it'd be cool to see like magic being used in day to day lives. Also if Alfea is in the middle of nowhere where do the girls get like stuff? Where do they buy tampons if they need it? I MUST know!! Also it'd be pretty cool to see Solaria sometime. IMDb also told me we got a new set decorator in S02 and he's been the set decorator of Shadow and Bone (Kevin Downey) so I'M EXCITED.

More plot and Backstory for the characters

Let's skip Bloom and Sky because I think @lilshitwayne would do a better job talking about them and then focus on the others.

Aisha

WHERE IS AISHA'S PLOT??? They done my girl wrong, so wrong. Seriously, what is her backstory? What are her goals and dreams? What are her insecurities and challenges? What is her personal arc? What is her role in the series arc? I wish I could answer all these questions but I just can't. I saw @lilshitwayne and @rivusa dms about her yesterday and I want to give them the floor to talk about it so I'm not gonna say what they said, but I do want more from Aisha's character next season and I want her role to not be as suporting as she was in S01. I do think that the fact that she's a poc character had to do with her lack of development and I will HATE it if they make her also LGBTQ+ and continue with Netflix's trend of shoving all the minorities into one character. Hopefully because of the backlash they'll listen. Precious is a beautiful and great actress and she deservers better.

Musa

Musa had a pretty big part in S02 I'd say. She was basically the second most important character after Bloom, BUT she did not have a plot, let's be real. Her whole arch was basically "I hate my powers, they are useless and just make me suffer and I try to ignore them" and then she met Sam and was like "Oh he basically feels nothing so it's nice to spend time with him" and then she found out Sam was Terra's brother and wanted to keep their relationship a secret, then she told Terra and there was like too much drama for a non-dramatic revelation. Then she had to face her powers when Sam was dying but then he lived so she went back to being the same as she was but with a boring boyfriend now (I know people like Sam and that's okay because people have different tastes but I just don't see the appeal, okay? he's boring in my opinion). So like her whole development and plot was based around a guy. No internet struggle solved, no character development. Yes Musa is my favorite character but I still don't like her "plot".

Stella and Terra

idk what I'd say about them. I think one of the other girls in the fate fandom might have takes and stuff. Terra had the self-steem and body issues that basically went no where and Stella has mommy issues and issues in general that are probably gonna get more developed already so I'm not too worries about them.

I know people didn't like that they made Stella have a very different personality than the cartoons and (hot take) I kinda like it. Don't @ me. Stella was hella annoying in the cartoons and I like this very messed up Stella we got, yes she's a bitch but she's got layers and I can't wait to see them Explored.

Terra was not a cartoon character and I have no fucking idea why they didn't just put Flora. Flora in the cartoon had also a very different personality so maybe they thought she didn't fit, but then why not keep her and just change the personality like they did with Stella? Also if they had made Terra latina it wouldn't have changed anything in Terra's plot. Idk what happened behind the scenes but that's what we got. I do want Flora to appear and be this cute cinnamon roll but also badass (and latina) so *fingers crossed*

Riven

ah, Riven... He has so much potential and I can't wait to see his character development throughout the series. I can see a lot of troubles at home and internalized homophobia and fuck he's just so god damn Bi. Hopefully that little interaction with Dane about just liking whoever depending on the gender will make Riven be okay with his sexuality and I really like this plot okay?

Also, yes, as a Rivusa shipper I want that to happen and I've already done two huge post about Riven and Rivusa in Fate so if u wanna read more go and do it (here and here).

The rest idgaf about them (I do but i'm too lazy to type)

Future characters

I wanna see Brandon. They call even make Stella bi and change Brandon to like Brenda or something, I've done that in fics and I think that'd be interesting.

Flora, of course, as said above.

Helia if they bring Flora along. They should pair him with Terra, he's Flora's.

I don't wanna see Tecna and Timmy tbh, might be a controversial opinion but I didn't really care for them in the OG and with all the normal technology in Fate I don't really see a reason for them. Unless they change Tecna's powers like they did with Musa, but we don't need another white basic bitch character.

I think that's it!

If yall want to answer and discuss Fate feel free to reblog! I'd love to talk about how we could improve the show!

[unseelie-bitch]

Season 1 Episode 5: Wither Into the Truth [Part Two]

Hate that they've decided since Riven is getting a redemption arc Dane is getting the edgy "bad-boy" music

Also it's fucking ridiculous that they've decided the young, black, bisexual guy is going evil while the homophobic, misogynistic white man is actually just a sadboy who never wanted to be here and just needed someone who would listen to his feelings

"One bad thing" you PUBLICLY mocked her for being fat and liking you. YOU'RE A FUCKING DICK, DANE, DON'T PUT THIS ON TERRA

Going absolutely INSANE over the fact Aisha just used her magic spray Dane in the face

Silva would DEFINATELY sacrifice the few for the many Sky, come on

Imma say that Bloom's town created the Burned Ones and any fire fairies have a connection to them, which is why they disappeared after the Incident and why Bloom was taken out of the fairy realm and Beatrix wasn't. But now she's back and so are they, and also, let's be honest, Rosalind probs only saved her to try and control the Burned Ones

There are torches Bloom, why did you light the ground on fire

And Bloom and Sky are kissing. I just... don't care

Oop magic disc is GLOWING

LMAO SHE DRUGGED HIMMM

Oh Noura's fucking dead

Oh shit that's a LOT of Burned Ones

"I have feelings - and if I can't express them verbally, I'm not above poltergeisting" THIS IS THE STELLA WE DESERVE AND THE ONE WE COULD (AND SHOULD) HAVE HAD ALL ALONG

Okay so I hate this show but I am literally BEGGING someone to gif the "*snap* I have an opinion" moment and let me download it to use for everything because it's so important to me. Genuinely guys please can someone give me that gif idk how to make it myself and it's literally the entirity of this blog summed up in a single moment

Dowling's face when Bloom said "Asterdel" LMAO this woman did NOT need this today

PLEASE give us backstory Fara

Fara, Rosalind and Greenhouse man have THAT MUCH POWER?? Shit, man

"Why would she do that" because Rosalind is a shady👏bitch👏

"I will help you get the answers you need. I give you my word" she seemed to mean that so... Dowling's gonna die

Beatrix is NOT okay and clearly has 0 independent thought who the FUCK raised her to be like this

Why is Bloom happy to see Stella y'all haven't had a SINGLE positive interaction for the entire show

This writer has never had an actual friend in his life and I know this because THIS IS WHAT HE THINKS FRIENDSHIP IS

Yep send the kids out to defend Alfea. Good planning, lads

Once again, super unnatural dialogue. Dowling doesn't need to describe what she's doing it would have been obvious from... the sounds of the forest getting amplified

So Aisha's snitching. After they deliberately wrote the line with her saying 'no, she isn't Dowling's pet, she was in fact actively spying for Bloom because that's how much she cares about her'. Because he is literally INCAPABLE of writing the black woman as a consistant character, oh no, instead she just becomes whatever he decides he wants for that scene. And the worst part is - you had a character that would have snitched! Terra! Terra could have easily told her dad who would then tell the rest of them, all without breaking her predefined character. But no, of course Aisha should be the one to break because CLEARLY he doesn't value her character at all

Lmao you're using Dane to spring the trap?

LMAO STELLA'S USING BEATRIX YES STELLA

"See? My ideas rock" THIS is accurate Stella rep, lads

That was clearly supposed to be a callback to Terra saying she missed Stella insulting her but it just felt super weird and forced. Who the FUCK let this man write

How do you know it's that door there's a whole other tunnel??

Also I swear when Beatrix came down here it was just like... a stairwell into a room? What happened????

Cave walls straight to brick, of course

Hello Roz you sneaky motherfucker

HATE the mind talking but here we are

[One episode left. Thank GOD it's almost over]

[tfw-needs-baby]

tfl | being ours isnt up to you

for @quicksilver-ships

My boyfriend.

Make me so fucking happy, sunflower. Love you.

🌻

His first mate was no other than young Castiel. 

He was always different than the rest, more of the observant type than fighting kind. Watching how other angels interacted, fought, played, loved. Castiel wasn’t the sort of angel of partake in activities either, preferring to stay off the side in the sidelines and let his mind wander aimlessly.  It wasn’t hidden very well that Castiel was Gabriel’s favorite. The young angel never questioned his actions, but smart enough to not bother to partake in them. Whenever Gabriel longed to have Lucifer’s grace wrapped around his, Castiel never called him a fool for such longing, but instead wrapped his own grace around the hurting archangel, humming random notes he’s heard Gabriel terribly sing before.  Michael told the youngest archangel that he needed to find a mate and soon, or he would be given one for him. 

Of course, he asked Castiel, holding his hands into his, with nothing but love and adoration in his eyes. He spoke of all the ways he could’ve spoiled the young angel, of how he would no longer be spoken lowly and would actually be praised and cheered upon, of how happy he could make Castiel if he would just become Gabriel’s mate. 

Castiel refused. 

“What? Why?” Gabriel’s wings arched up in annoyance. “I could force you to become my mate.” “You wouldn’t.” Castiel shot right back, head tilting slightly. “You wouldn’t care if it was anyone else, but you have too much love for me in your heart.” 

“I can see how much love you have for me in yours. Why do you deny me, the opportunity is right in front of you.” His grace carefully wraps around the angel’s taking note of how much pain it is in. 

“I am undeserving of you, Gabriel.” The angel replies. “Look at me, Gabriel. Do I shine as brightly as you? Do I have as much power as you? Do I have a high status as you? No, I have none of those. What do I have to offer you?” 

“Your love. For the rest of eternity.” Gabriel cradled Castiel’s head in his hands, as Castiel cried and nodded in happiness.  They made love to each other in a far corner of the garden of Eden, wrapping their graces and wings around each other as tightly as they could, and for a while, they were happy.  Gabriel visited Terra often, his visits to his father’s land more and more frequent, spending more and more time there until it became clear one day after three full moons that he wasn’t going to return to heaven. 

The other angels encouraged him to please find another mate, yours is a traitor and trickster and terrible, but Castiel stood his ground and hoped for his love to return soon. 

And then he was sent out on an assignment to retrieve the righteous man. 

Sam Winchester never understood Gabriel very well when he was screaming about which candy was superior to another, about how their true forms looked in heaven or how he was bitching about generation z.

However, he understood Gabriel when he put up an act to hide how he felt about certain situations.

How did he know? Because he’s been in his position before.

Whenever he did, though, Sam would carefully approach Gabriel, wrapping him into a hug and holding him close, letting the archangel rest his head against his shoulder and hum some of Dean’s terrible songs. Like Castiel once did. 

It hurt seeing his previous mate look at another with nothing but love. Castiel really had a bad preference in men.

And when he finally started to notice that Sam was looking at him like that, he pushed him against the current motel room they were occupying for the night glaring at him angrily. “What gives you the right not to speak about your feelings for me?” 

“I’m sorry?” Increased heartbeat, eyes widening in fear and gulping. No way did Gabriel see right through him.

“Mind reader too, Sam.” The archangel winked, afterwards rolling his eyes when he couldn’t read them anymore. Sam must’ve learned a spell to block out angels entering his mind or something - which was pretty reasonable, after the whole situation with his older brother mentally breaking Sam down.

“You know I don’t like it when people enter my mind without permission.” Sam shoots right back.

“Still doesn’t disregard my point.”

“Which is?”

“You want me, Sam Winchester.”

When Sam averts his eyes, refusing to look him in the eyes, that's all the answer Gabriel needs. Tucking Sam’s hair behind his ear, he smiles softly before standing on his toes, pecking him on the cheek and almost falling onto him. The beautiful flush of his shocked face makes him chuckle, and there’s nothing but adoration in his eyes.

“Sam, it’s okay to take something for yourself for once.” He promptly places his finger over Sam’s mouth before he can protest. “And don’t you dare say you don’t deserve it, you do. You deserve everything.” 

The kiss he gets in return makes him the happiest living thing on the Earth for a long, long time.

Gabriel fakes his death a short while after his first kiss with the younger Winchester, and falls into hiding. He makes a few attempts to make himself known, drops a few hints, but Team Free Will are too busy to notice.

[That, and the three of them were fucking like there’s no tomorrow. Well, the apocalypse was arriving then.]

When he does make his grand reappearance, there’s a large rift between the three of them and aren’t in a relationship any longer, and Gabriel can’t decide whether or not he should be happy about that. Sam and Castiel don’t have any visible interest in him, and the only one who actually sticks around long enough is Dean.

They’ve never verbally gotten along, but understood each other on a mental level, and that’s why they still manage to be friends. Or something along those lines.

But when Dean sees him awake, drinking a beer and watching Friends reruns, something flashes behind his eyes that he can’t quite understand. He raises an eyebrow at the look he’s getting, before the older Winchester sighs and sits right next to him.

“You don’t drink Hennesy?”

“More of a Corona kind of guy.” Dean says, and passes an appreciative smile to Gabriel when one appears in his hand.

It’s peaceful silence between the two for a couple of episodes, besides from the small laughter and occasional critique and references.

“So, what brings you down here?” Gabriel asks.

“Thoughts are loud, can’t sleep, pretty lonely, any other excuse I’m forgetting?” Dean grins.

The archangel beams. “You practically stole mine. Besides from - I’m not fucking an angel or your brother anymore - then no, I don’t think so.”

He regrets it the moment he says it, because Dean is turning away from him and the moment is lost and he feels a ache in his chest again and he hates feeling that way and he jumps out of his seat to grab the Winchester by the wrist and he can feel tears running down his face- 

His thoughts come to a halt when Dean wraps him in a hug, holding Gabriel tight and lets himself be open, just this once.

“You want them too, don’t you?” Gabriel sniffs, not giving a damn if his snot ends up on Dean’s shirt.

“Yeah, I do. But they don’t want us.” He rests his chin on top of Gabriel’s head.

“I can’t live without them.”

“We got ‘em as family still - that counts for something, right?”

“It’s better than nothing.”

Another moment of silence. Then:

“Ever consider a friends-with-benefits only relationship?” The Winchester suggests.

He snickers, as he allows his tears to be wiped away. “How do I know I won’t catch feelings for you?”

“You don’t. But if we do, then we just go along with it.” They seal the deal with a kiss.

And as per usual, Gabriel does catch feelings - so does Dean. But he doesn’t say anything, because nothing needs to be said. Dean has caught feelings for the trickster too. Sam and Castiel send weird looks in their direction, clearly caught off guard when Gabriel makes a reference while they’re watching Star Wars and Dean starts laughing like it’s the last time he’ll ever get too.

And everything is happy once more, just for a bit before Gabriel fakes his death once more.

Then he finds out that his dad has gone batshit crazy, killed the nephilim, and that other universes are leaking into his own.

What the fuck, dad.

And he finds out his eldest brother has escaped the cage too, and apparently not as batshit crazy as his father. In fact, he gets along with his vessel and they plant together and work in a small restaurant in a small town nearby.

Michael is just as surprised as Gabriel when he finds out he’s alive.

“I felt you die. Twice.” Michael’s arms wrap around his body, letting his tears fall freely. It’s weird, as the couple sitting in the booth behind them watch them seriously and he’s openly sobbing, drawing attention towards the archangels. “Twice, Gavri'el.”

Hearing his old name is like a punch to the gut. “I’m here now, aren’t I brother?”

“Yes, but for how much longer? Father is planning to wipe his creations clean.” He looked at Gabriel sadly. He could see Adam inside of Michael, just listening into the conversation awkwardly.

“Well, the Winchester’s are coming up with a plan, aren’t they?” Gabriel states, wiping his brother’s tears away.

“They're coming up with something.”

“They have to.”

“Are you ever going to go back to them?”

“What?”

Michael glares at him. “You heard me loud and clear, Gavri’el.”

“Way to sound bossy.” He shoots right back.

“I’m serious-”

“I know you are! But, I can’t go back to them. Not after everything. I’ve hurt the three of them badly enough.” He runs a hand through his hair, and Michael’s eyes turn blue for a quick moment, and Gabriel knows that Adam has taken over.

“Gabriel, the three of them are in a relationship.” Adam revealed.

“Oh.” He doesn’t have the heart to cover it up right now. His heart has already shattered, Gabriel doesn’t understand why a piece of him was hoping he would be able to find solace in one of their arms. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because one part of them longs for you, even while you are, dead.” He emphasizes the end with air quotes.

The trickster rolls his eyes, as Adam’s eyes light up blue once more, noting the shift from Adam to Michael, and he places a hand on his brother's shoulder. “Please, little messenger, don’t make the same mistake I once did when we were mates.”

It’s not like Gabriel had the chance to say anything anyway, because next thing you know he’s magically appeared in the bunker library and the three of them are busy flipping through books while Castiel laughs at something Sam said while Dean spits out his beer. Why did Michael send him here? It’s clear enough that they’re happy without him. He takes a step back- 

Worst mistake in his entire existence. The damn floorboards need fixing, and he feels small underneath his ex-lovers gazes.

“Miss me?” Gabriel jokes, but their faces are blank. “Come on, you three, it’s me!”

He takes a step forward now, and Castiel pulls out his angel blade while the Winchester’s thwip out a gun. Not the warmest welcome he’s ever gotten, really, but understandable with his whole psycho father situation.

“You're not Gabriel.” Sam states.

“Ask my little moonlight-” Castiel’s eyes narrow at his old nickname, “Whether or not it’s really me. I know you can feel my grace, Castiel.”

He can feel Castiel’s grace near his, then wrap himself around Gabriel’s for a moment, trying to find a single flaw or imperfection to let him know that it’s some fake, copy, sick joke - but nothing. It’s truly Gabriel. Gabriel immediately misses his contact with Castiel’s grace, the warm, euphoric feeling gone as the angel drops his blade, gasping loudly as tears start to roll down his cheeks.

“Gabriel. It’s you. It’s you - but - I don’t understand - I - we - how?” Sam wraps his arms around Castiel as he cries softly in his arms, and his head collides with the wall, an angry Dean Winchester holding him up with just his fist. Oh, how the tables have turned.

Gabriel winks at Dean. “Missed you too, Dean-o. But I don’t recall you topping the last time you and I fondued.”

“Shut up!” Dean spits. “Why are you back now? Are you going to help out Chuck?”

“Please, I’ve gotten my older brother back, who seemingly has gotten himself a vessel-boyfriend. And he’s happy, which is a surprise, because last time he tried to kill me off.” Gabriel sighs. “I just wanted to see how the three of you we’re doing and take my leave.”

“Leave?” The elder Winchester forces a laugh out.

“Are you trying to get yourself killed, Gabriel?” Sam looks at him with that damn kicked-puppy face while stroking Castiel’s hair.

“No, there isn’t a place for me here. That’s all I’m saying.” He shrugs like it’s no big deal, and Dean tilts his head in confusion.

It’s a few moments of silence, before Castiel looks at Gabriel with a tear-streaked face. He silently walks over to Gabriel, brushing a few strands out of his face and looking at him with concern and anger. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t scared.

“Do you have a death wish, like these damn Winchester brothers?” He asks, as the archangel scoffs.

“Have you seen yourself, Castiel? Your practically just like them-”

“Don’t avoid the question, Gabriel. Answer me. Do you want to truly die? Do you want to go into the afterlife for angels? There is no heaven for us Gabriel, only darkness. You wouldn’t know - but I’ve been there, and I have been terrified of death, just like any other rational human being in the right mind.” Castiel doesn’t snarl or spit or growl, but with such calmness that practically radiates anger.

Now Gabriel is definitely confused. His baby brother has been into the darkness - and returned? That should’ve been impossible - but he clears his mind. Two can play this game. He raises his chin high, looking down at Castiel like some sort of peasant.

“You dare speak to me like that, Castiel?” Gabriel barked.

Castiel laughed. “Really? The whole powerful archangel thing? Drop the act, Gabriel. You couldn’t hurt me then and you wouldn’t forgive yourself if you hurt me now.” 

“Listen, I’d think it would just be safer if… you were here. With us?” The younger, much more reasonable Winchester puts his two cents in, and curses him for blocking Gabriel from reading his thoughts.

“I’m not staying here.” He replies, and Sam’s sighs, shoulders drooping. If Gabriel wants to do this, then he’s not going to stop him. Neither are Dean or Castiel. He turns on his heel, walking out.

“I wish for you to find better mates than we could ever be.” Castiel says.

What?

The archangel turns back around sharply. “What?”

“It’s clear that we failed your criteria of ever being a worthy mate-” The angel starts, but Gabriel’s mind is flashing right back to somewhere around the beginning of time, where Castiel had mentioned something similar to him when Gabriel was found flocking with another group of angels. “And that you deserve something better.”

“Shut up!” Gabriel shouts, and the Winchester’s are wearing that same damn irritable expression Castiel is wearing. They have all felt this way? How - what - why was he so damn blind sometimes?

“Dean?” He questions, and Dean crosses his arms.

“You’ve heard Cas. We weren’t ever enough. Really wanted you to stay a little longer, but y'know, life ain’t always work out. Didn’t mean we didn’t miss you.” Dean shuts up after that, his little chick-flick moment done.

“Sam?” Gabriel asks, but the way he averts his eyes are answers enough. Fuck.

“It’s okay, Gabriel-” Sam tries, but the trickster quickly cuts him off.

“It’s not okay, Sam! You’ve all been hurting because of me! You’ve all been feeling this way for years because of my stupid, irrisponsible, childish actions! None of this is right! You’ve all been the greatest mates any angel could ever have - I just - I don’t deserve you. Not what after I did.”

Gabriel’s confession is out there now, and his heart is in their hands, to do whatever they please. Tear it, stomp it, make it bleed out would be the better option. He closes his eyes, and is startled a moment later when Sam cups his face, and the three of them are so close to him, blocking him from leaving. Gabriel has the power too - with just a flick of his wrist, but he can’t, his body isn’t allowing him too.

“Is that why you’re trying to run away, Gabriel? Because you feel as though you aren’t worthy of our love?” Castiel replies, kissing his cheek. “You know that is far from true.”

“You sure about that? I’ve killed Dean over here-”

“And I’ve since forgiven you for it.” Dean replies, kissing him on the forehead.

“I’ve left you all heartbroken-”

“Because we thought you were dead and when you returned to us, we were mad and took it for granted. Not anymore, Gabe.” Sam brings his hand up to his lips, kissing his knuckles. “You belong with us.”

“But after everything I’ve done, I don’t deserve you!” He shouts right back, and Dean sighs, rolling his eyes once more.

“You think that choice is up to you, man? You think we haven’t felt the same way you're feeling right now - hell, I don’t deserve Castiel and Sam but here we are. We don’t deserve each other - and we might sometimes feel that way - but we need each other, okay? And right now, we need you, with us, that way we can all be happy.” Dean’s hand cup the other side of his face. “And I’m asking you right now, will you do us the honor of being our boyfriend, Gabriel?”

“Please? We need you, just as much as you need us. We can be happy, together.” Sam says before Gabriel can even open his mouth.

Castiel smiles softly. “We can be your mates, your flock, your loves. All you have to do is say yes and our hearts will belong to you as well.”  

Gabriel’s heart feels like it’s going to explode out of his chest.

“Yes.”

And, well, they spend the rest of night learning to map out each other's bodies again, whispering praises and promises and don’t sleep until the next afternoon, wearing proud marks of being Gabriel’s mates.

[cadday]

Collateral  Damage - Chapter 5

Braig almost thinks last night was a dream, or a weirdly mellow nightmare. He realizes that it’s not the case when he sees the lantern sitting by his door and well of he concentrates he can feel it. The other heart sleeping in him, which is terrifyingly familiar but not all the same. None of the hearts he hosted before were so...quiet. Still he had made this choice and would have to live for it for now at least. He briefly realizes he should have thought this through better but hindsight was a bitch. 

Oddly though he honestly felt better then he had since, well since being possessed by some ancient asshole bent on fulfilling the prophecies of his absentee most likely equally an asshole master and was probably seeking the end of worlds or some bull but really just wrecked Braig’s life like he didn’t do a good enough job being a disaster.

The other presence did some strange humming, warm feeling, in agreement and he laughed a bit startled at the feeling. So the heart was familiar with the jerk who possessed him, charming, at least it agreed that the guy was a dick. 

The morning besides his new guest was uneventful. That was Master Ansem called them together to ‘introduce’ them to Isa and Lea. Which one was hilarious because they had met the twerps before, two activated the headache he got almost every day as his brain tried to not picture taller red and blue brats, and three the two brats looked like they had been caught red handed which made him wonder if they had been sneaking around again when they were offered jobs. 

Isa got stuck with Even, who began to rant about babysitting and Ienzo merely looked long suffering in his direction before heading off with them. Lea was stuck with guard duty, he doubted the kid had patience for the lab stuff anyway. To be fair Braig rarely did either, Dilan and Aeleus took more shifts with the lab work then he ever did. Which was fine by him because he had a habit of letting experiments, well, explode.

“Alright Lea, I guess we’ll do a quick round of what guard duty routine looks like. Your probably familiar with the rounds near the front gate’s though.” Hey, would you look at that full sentences. He wondered if it had anything to do with his new resident. Braig decided that was on the worry about later list too. The kid at least looked guilty for a second before he shrugged. 

“I’m an overachiever, already got em memorized.” And geeze Braig had to stop for a second and steady himself because, yeah this was going to be difficult.  Dilan frowned at him as Braig pressed a hand to his bad eye. 

‘Axel!’

‘Axel? Please. The name’s Lea. Got it memorized?’

‘Your not supposed to be here.’

‘Promises to keep, I’ll always be there to get my friends back…’

“BRAIG!” He jumps back from Dilan who is shaking his shoulder. Aeleus and Lea are gone he realizes and he frowns. Dilan is looking at him funny and he realizes his new heart friend feels kind of panicked. He blinks stupidly at Dilan and carefully drops his hand.

“Sorry, migraine. Wh…,” He looks around the room with a frown. “Where’s Aeleus and,” Axel, “Lea…” Dilan was still holding his shoulder, he wasn't talking and Braig’s head hurt so freakin much. 

“It’s fine. I’m fine. Let’s get going.” Dilan didn’t look like he believed him, which you know was fair, but slowly he released Braigs arm like he was afraid the other guard was about to collapse, which yeah that was also fair. 

“ You should let Even check you out, maybe he can give you something to help,” Braig made a disgusted face, “Or don’t and suffer needlessly and unnecessarily worry everyone around.”

“Oh come on that’s low. Fine whatever I’ll ask him. I don’t know if it will do any good but whatever.” Braig waved a hand in a dismissive manner. Dilan smirked in what he recognized as his I totally won this fight face and Braig rolled his eyes at his smug expression.

“As annoying as your voice is, I am glad you’ve regained the functionality to form coherent thoughts at the very least. I was concerned you would be forever limited to speaking like a two year old, now I see you’ve managed the language  of a three year old and offer you my sincerest congratulations on the development.” Braig snorted and swung an arm around Dilan pulling on his shoulders intentionally to bring the man down to his level.

“Hey as if. My vocabulary is way too colorful to be some ankle biters. If a kid talks like I do I’d be concerned about their upbringing.” 

“Fair as we are all so concerned at upbringing must have occurred to create you.” Dilan stood back up to his full height and Braigs hand dropped to the closer shoulder.

“Clearly I popped into existence a fully grown bastard.”

“This explains so much…” 

Aeleus and Lea came into view when they entered the garden and Aeleus was explaining post rotations to a very bored looking red head.

“Geeze Flamsilocks, you look like someone stole you ice cream.” His head gave a warning throb at the usage of the nickname and the other heart felt like it was more awake. Great he needed to try to focus like a person not having a mental breakdown. Lea scowled at the nickname. 

“Oh come on kid, maybe later you can get a tour of parts of the castle that you haven’t snuck into yet.” The kid crossed his arms and made a point of not looking at any of them.

“Geeze we were just trying to visit the girl. I don’t see what the big deal is, why doesn’t she ever come out anyway? You creeps locking up girls or something?” Lea’s hands are on his hips and he looks determined…

Axel looks so determined when he goes to try to save Roxas but he’ll fail. This is all destined to fail. It’s all destined...prophesied...stupid book, stupid box…. 

The other heart pushed at something and Braig blinked away the memories, future, thoughts, whatever, and was glad that no one noticed this time as both Aeleus and Dilan were now explaining there is no girl. Braig supposes their not completely wrong and the heart in his chest agrees. The situation is complicated and he doubts Lea would listen if he tried to explain it.

“It’s a weird game to be playing at your age isn’t it, imaginary princess you have to save from a castle.” Would you look at that the kid can turn red in the face too. 

“Whatever, you're all full of it.” Braig shrugs and Dilan and Aeleus look long suffering, but that’s normal in the long run of things.

“We’re friends so me and Isa will get her back, from wherever you hid her.” Braig stared at Lea. Lea stared back determine till he realized Braig wasn’t going to respond and he shifted nervously. Blinking slowly Braig shook his head to try to focus and grimaced at the other two guards who were watching him concerned. 

“Yeah kid. Whatever you say.”

The rest of the tour was pretty routine and Lea even being a dumb kid seemed to get the gist of it. They met up with the other apprentices for lunch and Isa was immediately glued to Lea’s side and trying to act subtle about how he looked at Lea. Ienzo made a disgusted gagging face at Braig when he noticed and he cackled because yeah the kid had a point. Even seemed to have gotten over the babysitting issue because apparently besides breaking and entering Isa was pretty much a perfect student.  

It’s weird because this has happened but not happened once already. There’s no Xehanort, and Ansem is still here. The heart experiments are still just theoretical for the most part and Radiant Garden is still a beacon of light. He keeps expecting to find Terra with the Old coots heart unconscious on patrols. He keeps waiting to feel Luxu taking control periodically till he can’t get control back and Braig is just a silent observer in his own body. He keeps waiting for the other apprentices to call him a traitor, to accuse him of crimes he didn’t, did, hasn’t, will, won’t commit. When he looks at the other’s he sometimes see’s an Ansem cloaked in red and full of hate, a closed of Even with no regards to lives, a Dilan who feels nothing but rage, a Aeleus silent and intent on destruction, a Ienzo with dark bags under his eyes and no trust for any of them anymore. He expects to see a scarred Isa, and a tear tattooed Lea. He expects to wake up and see nothing but darkness. Braig feels panic rising in his chest and he tenses in anticipation of the suffocating feeling and anxiety but then...it stops.

His heart,mind, whatever it is settles and untangles and he’s just in Radiant Garden. It takes him a minute to realize what happened and his hand absently wander’s to his chest as if he can physically touch the other presence.

‘it will be okay. we will not let it happen.’ He lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in and tries to convey the feeling of gratitude silently. It must get across because he feels warmth in response and then he assumes the heart has gone back to sleeping.  The other apprentices haven’t noticed thankfully that he was having a moment, and honestly these days he was always having a moment. 

After lunch and the rest of patrol and giving Lea a hard time just for the hell of it Braig excuses himself to turn in early. Dilan reminds him he promised to check in with Even about his head and Braig points out he didn’t ‘promise’ jack. He did agree he would see about pain med’s in the morning. So he makes to retreat to his room and is a little startled to be joined by Master Ansem. 

At first they're just walking the same way and he thinks that maybe it’s just coincidence but then he realizes that Master Ansem is keeping the same pace intentionally and he fights back a sigh. This means they're going to have a talk. He isn’t sure about what though as he definitely hasn’t blown up anything recently and they already established he’s as recovered as he’s going to get. It certainly hasn’t been long enough for Dilan to tattle on him about his headache issue. Would take like a week of not doing anything usually for the other guard to get fed up and go to Ansem to deal with his bull. 

They make it to his room in silence and Braig looks at Master Ansem expectantly but he’s only being watched with a raised eyebrow. He feels like a child whose parent is waiting for them to admit to their wrong doing, and though it hasn’t even happened yet, and will not ever, he wants to admit everything he’s done or at least his body did. But at the risk of sounding crazy he bites back the urge to spill his guts, or heart for that matter. They just stand there watching each other for what for Braig feels like a small eternity. When nothing happens he slowly turns and goes to enter his room.

“Braig, if you were in danger of some kind, from something or someone, you would tell me?” Braig turns back around and blinks stupidly in a not reply.

“I mean yeah, if it didn’t put you in danger too. Of course I would.” He feels like that’s obvious. He’s been a guard so long part of his job was dealing with danger and reporting it. Sure his reports weren’t always timely but he always finished them eventually.

“If it doesn’t put…” Ansem frowns but nods slowly like he understands something and Braig is so confused by this conversation. He feels like he is missing something important here.

“I would hope that even if it was dangerous to me that you would still consider coming to me for help. Do you understand Braig?” Frowning he shrugs but nods regardless.

“I mean I guess...Kinda defeats the purpose of having guards if I’m putting you in danger don’t you think. But sure. I gotcha.” Ansem stares at him a while longer like he’s looking for something else but then he nods seriously and turns to leave.

“I bid you goodnight then. I apologize for keeping you up.” Braig watches him go and then shakes his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts.

“Yeah you too old man.”

[islelight]

i don't care that you're closed i want lea to give kairi a forehead kiss bitch

princess  kisses  //  @fireize //  closed

      THE  LAST  FEW  MONTHS  have  been  difficult  (  has  it  been  months ? she  really  has  no  concept  of  time  at  this  point .  it  could  be longer ,  it  could  be  shorter .  all  she  really  has  to  go  on  is  that the  seasons  seem  to  have  been  changing  every  so  often  — not  on destiny  islands  though .  no  on  the  islands  an eternal  summer  reigns   ) .  difficult  for  more  reasons  than  she  can  count  as  well .  though  perhaps  as  people  say  it  has  to  get  worse  before  it  gets  better .  she  would  most  definitely  consider  the  most  recent  days / weeks  things  getting  worse .

      IT  HASN’T  BEEN  FOR  NOTHING  however .  no  everything  has  a  purpose  in  this  world  —  even  pain .  the  only  question  is  whether  one  is  willing  to  suffer  through  such  pain  to  meet  their  own  goal ,  &  for  how  long  for  that  matter .  kairi  may  consider  herself  a  strong  person  but  even  those  with  inordinate  strength  will  fall  under  the  weight  of  their  own  pain  &  misfortune .  she  can  think  of  a  few  off  the  top  of  her  head  that  she  knows  personally .  but  that  says  nothing  about  their  own  strength  or  resilience  it  simply  says  where  the  breaking  point  was .  all  heroes  fall  eventually ,  it’s  only  a  matter  of  when  or  how  they  fall .

      SHE  CAN  ONLY  BE  GRATEFUL  that  she  hasn’t  crumpled  under  her  own  guilt  &  self  doubt  as  she’s  made  strides  to  move  on .  she  cannot  speak  for  herself  for  herself  in  the  future  however ,  for  who  knows  what  the  future  will  hold .  she  can  only  trust  in  herself  &  put  trust  in  her  friends  that  everything  will  be  okay .  

      SOMETIMES  SOME  FRIENDS  are  more  helpful  than  others .  it  sounds  cruel  to  phrase  it  in  such  a  way  but  what  she  really  means  is  sometimes  certain  friends  are  more  helpful  for  certain  occasions  &  when  she’s  feeling  a  certain  way .  like  aqua  or  riku  (  sometimes  terra  too  )  are  always  a  good  to  go  to  if  she  wants  to  talk  out  what  she’s  feeling  inside  or  something  that’s  troubling  her .  they’re  good  listeners  &  tend  to  give  good  advice  so  she’ll  usually  go  to  one  of  them .  the  twilight  town  gang  &  people  like  ventus  are  for  when  she  needs  to  lift  her  spirits  &  have  a  little  bit  of  fun  in  her  life .  they  always  know  how  to  make  a  day  fun  &  bright .  people  like  namine  are  just  to  talk  to  for  hours  or  not  talk  to  (  she  finds  namine  is  one  of  the  only  people  she  can  comfortably  share  silence  with  these  days  ) .  sora  —  he  was  everything .  everything  &  more .  her  best  friend  in  every  sense  of  the  word .  she  doubts  there  will  be  anyone  who  will  be  able  to  replace  him  &  fill  the  gaping  hole  his  absence  has  left  in  her  heart . 

      BUT  WHO  KNOWS ?  times  are  changing  &  changing  more  hurriedly  by  the  day .  every  day  she  comes  across  new  faces  &  worlds  —  so  many  things  she’d  never  dreamed  of  just  a  few  years  ago .  &  now  in  more  recent  weeks  with  her  project  with  namine  she’s  had  old  things  coming  back  to  her  as  well .

      KAIRI  WILL  ADMIT  she  was  surprised  at  first  when  namine  first  proposed  the  idea  of  helping  her  bring  her  memories  of  her  past  back .  she  didn’t  know  she  could  do  that ,  didn’t  know  anyone  could  do  that .  she  figured  she’d  just  have  to  rely  on  herself  to  regain  her  own  memories .  perhaps  she  was  a  bit  naive  in  thinking  this .  after  all  she’s  affiliated  with  some  incredibly  powerful  sorcerers  since  her  time  becoming  a  keyblade  wielder .  surely  one  of  them  would  have  some  knowledge  on  how  to  help  her .  though  it  turns  out  they  were  both  useless  in  the  end  as  neither  of  them  even  bothered  to  reach  out  &  ask  about  her  memories . 

      IT  DOESN’T  MATTER  THOUGH ,  no  what  matters  is  that  she  has  namine  here  &  now  to  help  her .  frankly  she’d  rather  have  namine  to  help  her  anyway .  she’s  a  much  more  pleasant  person  to  be  around  in  her  own  opinion  &  it  gives  kairi  an  excuse  to  spend  more  time  with  her  other  half .  

      THE  WORK  BRINGING  BACK  her  memories  is  grueling  &  almost  painful .  she  would  describe  the  sensation  as  like  staring  into  the  sun  for  a  long  period  of  time .  they  come  in  flashes  at  a  time ,  each  time  more  clearer  than  the  last .  in  time  she  begins  to  notice  recurring  faces  —  a  kind  looking  old  woman  &  a  boy  with  a  mischievous  grin .  she  assumes  the  woman  is  her  grandmother  as  she  still  had  some  memories  of  her  intact  before  meeting  with  namine .  the  boy  on  the  other  hand  is  completely  new  to  her  yet  all  the  same  he  bears  a  familiarity  that  she  can’t  quite  explain .  

      KAIRI  FINDS  HERSELF  DRAWN  to  the  boy  as  she  gains  each  new  memory .  from  what  she’s  seen  he’s  a  positive  figure  in  her  life ,  probably  part  of  her  family  judging  by  the  vibrance  of  his  red  hair .  kairi  didn’t  know  she  had  family  —  the  thought  that  she  could  have  a  brother  or  a  cousin  or  whatever  out  there  …  haunts  her  every  waking  moment .  she  has  to  find  him  if  he’s  out  there  somewhere .  &  if  he’s  not  she’ll  have  figure  out  what  happened  to  him .  she  owes  it  to  him ,  this  mystery  boy  who  looked  at  her  with  kind  eyes  &  a  goofy  grin ,  who  most  certainly  impacted  most  of  her  childhood .  but  first  she  has  to  learn  his  name .  

      IT’S  FUNNY  HOW  MEMORIES  WORK  like  that .  she’s  seen  several  scenes  of  her  spending  time  with  this  boy  &  she  still  doesn’t  know  who  or  what  he  is  to  her .  she  hopes  today  will  be  the  day  she  learns .  she’s  growing  rather  impatient .  but  she  knows  these  things  take  time .  she’s  not  the  one  actually  restoring  the  memories  so  who  is  she  to  act  like  things  are  taking  too  long .

      THOUGH  IT  SEEMS  DESPITE  her  growing  impatience  &  probably  bad  attitude  it  seems  her  prayers  have  been  answered .  though  it  comes  as  a  blessing  &  a  curse  as  when  she  hears  the  boys  name  fall  from  her  past  counterpart’s  lips  she  feels  her  heart  drop  into  the  pit  of  her  stomach .  she  doesn’t  need  to  find  him ;  he’s  been  with  her  all  this  time ,  fighting  with  her ,  laughing  with  her ,  going  to  get  ice  cream  with  her .  all  this  time  she’s  been  wondering  about  her  past  &  her  family  &  her  family  was  right  in  front  of  her .  

      SHE  BOLTS  UPWARD  in  the  chair  she  &  namine  have  been  using  as  they’ve  restoring  memories .  she  instantly  springs  upward  out  of  her  seat  &  sprints  out  the  door ,  shouting  a  hasty  excuse  &  goodbye  as  she  exits .  she  has  to  go ,  has  to  see  him  —  hopefully  namine  will  understand .  

      THE  TRIP  TO  TWILIGHT  TOWN  is  short , partially because  kairi  exceeded  the  recommended  speed  of  the  gummiship  this  time  around  (  yen - sid  will  understand ,  she’s  got  a  long  lost  brother  to  reunite  with .  she  didn’t  kill  anyone  on  the  way  here  so  that’s  what’s  important  ) .  she  hops  out  &  finds  herself  rushing  around  the  city  like  a  madman  trying  to  spot  any  sign  of  him ,  a  lock  of  flaming  red  hair  or  black  leather  boots  —  anything .  though  it’s  not  until  she  reaches  the  ice  cream  shop  (  she’s  not  surprised  in  the  slightest  that  that’s  where  she  found  him  )  that  she  spots  him .

            LEA ,  KEYBLADE  WIELDER  &  NOW   —  HER  BROTHER .

      HER  EMOTIONS  GET  A  little  bit  to  the  better  of  her  as  she  reaches  him ,  not  greeting  him  like  she  normally  would  but  instead  rushing  to  him  &  wrapping  her  arms  around  him  in  a  furious  hug .  she  can  feel  the  tears  running  down  her  face  as  she  buries  her  face  into  his  black  shirt .  she  feels  lea  go  stiff  with  shock  then  resting  a  comforting  hand  on  the  top  of  her  head  he  asks  her  in  a  voice  that  she  would  consider  a  mixture  of  protective  &  gentle  if  she’s  been  hurt  somehow .

      SHE’S  SILENT  &  MERELY  shakes  her  head  against  his  chest .  she  finds  the  words  hard  to  muster .  what  do  you  say  to  someone  who  you  until  that  moment  you  had  not  known  what  they  really  meant  to  you ?  there’s  no  instruction  guide  on  how  to  speak  to  your  long  lost  brother  you  forgot  about  for  over  ten  years .  so  she  suppose  she’ll  just  wing  it .  

      SHE  LIFTS  HER  HEAD  UP  from  his  chest ,  her  eyes  red  &  puffy  from  tears .  she  lets  go  of  his  waist  but  instead  clings  to  the  front  of  his  shirt  as  she  struggles  to  form  her  words .  finally  after  a  minute  or  so  of  silence  she  chokes  out .  ❛    did  you  know ?  —  did  you  know  you  were  my  brother ?    ❜ 

      IT’S  ALMOST  AS  IF those  very  words  stopped  time  itself  for  how  still  they  made  both  of  them  at  that  moment .  if  kairi  hadn’t  been  so  close  to  lea’s  chest  she  would  have  questioned  if  his  heart  stopped  beating .  on  the  contrary  his  heart  moves  rather  rapidly  —  just  as  hers  is .  the  moment  doesn’t  last  very  long  however  for  in  a  few  moments  she  can  hear  him  speak in  perhaps  the  most  quiet  voice  she’s  ever  heard  from  the  man . “ how  long  have  you  known ? ”

      SHE  TELLS  HIM  ABOUT  the  memory  restoration  she’s  been  doing  with  namine .  he  nods  silently  but  kairi  can  see  a  dampness  in  his  eyes  that  is  most  undoubtedly  tears .  he  begins  to  apologize  in  usual  fashion  &  she  stops  him  almost  immediately .  she  knows  he  had  a  reason  for  not  telling  her  &  she’s  not  angry .  telling  her  earlier  would’ve  probably  made  things  more  complicated  than  finding  out  this  way .  she’s  just  glad  he’s  here ,  that  he’s  alive ,  that  he’s  here  with  her .  she’s  lost  so  much  in  the  past  year  she  can  be  grateful  to  gain  something  in  this  cruel ,  cruel  world .

      LEA’S  FULL  ON  CRYING  now  &  kairi  never  actually  stopped .  together  they  make  a  pair  of  very  emotional ,  soggy  looking  siblings .  kairi  feels  her  knees  give  out  &  her  brother  (  it’s  so  strange  to  say  that  )  is  quick  to  catch  her ,  sinking  to  the  floor  as  well  as  he  wraps  her  in  a  tight ,  protective  hug .  neither  of  them  want  to  let  go ,  or  more  like  they’re  afraid  to .  they’ve  been  without  each  other  for  so  long  the  idea  of  parting  now  sounds  unbearable .  she  feels  a  slight  bit  of  pressure  on  her  head  &  realizes  he’s  pressed  a  soft  kiss  to  the  crown  of  her  head .  she’s  never  seen  such  softness  from  lea  before  —  then  again  it’s  the  first  time  lea’s  ever  really  been  her  brother .  in  return  she  rises  herself  up  a  little  &  plants  a  gentle  kiss  to  his  cheek .  she  doesn’t  recall  a  time  they’ve  ever  been  that  affectionate  with  each  other  save  perhaps  for  times  from  their  past  but  there’s  a  first  time  for  everything .

      SHE  HEARS  A  SOFT  chuckle  &  she  raises  a  brow .  lea  pulls  away  &  points  to  the  very  pink  lipgloss  mark  left  on  his  cheek .  she  feels  herself  flush  in  slight  embarrassment  but  she  laughs  too  all  the  same .  she  hopes  her  makeup  mishap  didn’t  ruin  their  moment  but  perhaps  there  will  be  other  times .  they  do  now  have  all  the  time  in  the  world  or  so  it  seems .  so  she’s  just  going  to  lean  into  her  big  brother’s  chest  &  let  the  time  pass  by .  

[ask-constantinvaldor]

Old Man Valdor  (Logan AU)

This fic is a little AU I came up with a few weeks ago. I might continue it or this might end up being a oneshot.  @sisterofsilence

Constantin Valdor, former Captain-General of the Legio Custodes awoke to whispers and the clanking of hand tools.  He let out a groan of frustration and he moved the driver’s side seat of his 25 Mars pattern limo backup.

He stumbled out and found himself facing four gangers, all gene-forged hunks with poorly casted iron teeth.  They were trying to steal his car’s hubcaps.  If they were smarter, they might have just considered stealing the car itself

“Evening, you do realize those are chrome plated lugs right?  You’re going to strip them.”

The gangers did not even respond.  Instead, they shot him with stub cannon.

He lay there for a while on the cold, irradiated dirt and then rose again.

“Gentlemen I’m going to give you one chance to leave.  I’m in a good mood tonight.”

The gang raised their weapons.

Constantin drew his own.

 When Constantin Valdor became the first Custodes his King had gifted him strength that had surpassed a Space Marine, Speed that was as fast as a motorbike, a healing factor that granted him virtual immortality and claws of bone that sprouted from between his knuckles.  Late he had undergone   a rather painful procedure that had bonded the unbreakable metal Adamantium to his bone claws and entire skeleton.

The gangers rushed him.  One of them bashed him in the skull with a shock maul.  Constantin rewarded him by burying his claws into the man’s skull.  Valdor removed the hand of the ganger carrying the stub cannon.  Unfortunately, it went off and a round pinged off the door of the limo,

“Motherfracker!”  Valdor roared.  He rammed his claws deep into the ganger’s chest.  He pulled them out and raked them across his face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The third ganger emptied an auto pistol into Valdor and ran.  Valdor staggered as his enhanced physiology and healing factor handled his injuries.

Valdor caught his breath, his blood pooling from his wounds.  He grunted as bullets slowly and painfully exited his body.  Twenty-five years ago, the gangers would not have been able to lay a finger on him.   

 But that had been twenty five years ago

And Terra and the Imperium of Man was not the same one it was twenty-five years ago.

Neither was Constantin Valdor.   His hair was no longer in its signature Mohawk but in a disheveled mess.  He had grown a beard.  His eyes were no longer that of a vigilant bodyguard, but of a broken old man trying to survive in the smoldering ashes of a galaxy that had once been on fire.  

 He stumbled back into the limo he had leased and drove off

 “And in today’s news, Lord Guilliman reassures citizens that warp travel is still stable after yesterday’s flicker in the Astronomicon. Citizens are reminded -

Valdor changed the vox station, than growled and shut it off.

Constantin hated funerals.  He hated foul weather.  Both had reared their ugly heads today.  The former was because he never had the chance to bury his fellow Custodians or the woman he had loved.  The latter was because like any sane human being, rain was always a nuisance.

He let the semi -acidic rain patter on him as he guzzled a flask of Vostrayan amesac.  It was empty in seconds;   He chucked the flask and walked to those mourning some bigshot Administratum clerk.

“Constantin Valdor.”  A cultured, raspy voice said.  

 The former member of the Ten Thousand turned and found himself facing a traitor.

Fabius Bile was no longer the promising young Apothecary of the IIIrd who interned in the gene labs of the Imperial Palace in the heady first years of the Great Crusade.  He was still a thrice-damned traitor, but he had looked a lot better during Horus’ temper tantrum than he did now.

Bile was thinner than an Ogryn.  His face was gaunt and heavily lined.  His hands were shaking and his hair was thin.  He no longer wore his Power armor or coat of human skin.  Instead, he wore thin grey robes with a brown cloak.

“I need your help.  Please, I am in trouble.  Guilliman has gone madder than my own father has.  He’s opened your master’s gene forges he’s-”

“Stay the frack away from me.”  Valdor replied.  He walked away, not even listening to him ramble about “Gland hounds and “He’s trying to make more of you Custodes.”

The former mad scientist drove past him in a battered red car.  A young girl in a red cloak was staring at him.   

“Who was that?” one of the mourners asked.   

‘Some crazy old man.”  Valdor replied.  He reached for the second flask of Amesac in his coat pocket

“As I live and breathe, Constantin Valdor himself.”

 Constantin quickly jerked his head around, shoving the medication he had gotten through ill begotten means in his suit pocket.

“And he’s a junkie now.” the Astartes said.

“Who the frack are you?”  Valdor asked.

“Captain Aenoid Thel.”  The Astartes said.  He was handsome clad in a blue chiton and combat boots.  A  combat knife and bolt pistol strapped to his hip.  Valdor noticed his right hand was not original but a cloned one.  

“I hope you noticed there’s a bullet hole in your door.” the Ultramarine said

“Did Fabius find you yet?”  Thel asked.

Valdor did not reply. 

“You know the Arbites found a couple of dead Dhakal gangers in a pull out on Route 50.  They narrowed it down to a Night Lord, or the old holo film character Freddy Kruger.  And neither of those makes sense.  One’s rotting in the Eye of Terror the other being fictional.”

Valdor remained silent.

“You see my lord; I’m not looking for you, or Lady Arlette.  In addition, while my primarch would be elated to know where you took his father, that is not my primary objective.  I'm looking for someone who’s looking for you.  Besides I already know where you three are anyway.”

Thel leaned forward.  He had the smugness that all the XIIIth had.  It made Valdor want to jam his claws through the Ultramarine’s brain.

“You see, Fabius Bile was sentenced to forced research for the rest of his life.  He stole something from me.  Something I am responsible for.  Something that is invaluable to the future of the Imperium of Man.”

“If I had seen Fabius Bile, I would have killed him myself.  Now get the frack out of my car.”  Valdor said as evenly as he could.

Thel pulled a business card out of his chiton.

“If Bile does find you.”  The legionnaire said as he exited the card.

Valdor was quite surprised that the Ultramarine had a business card.  Valdor had never had one and he had commanded the bodyguard of the Emperor himself.

The card read:

Captain Aenoid Thel- Captain 2nd Company of the Ultramarines

Chief of Security- Imperial Palace Gene Labs

 “Frack!  Frack! Frack!”  Valdor roared.

Valdor’s destination was old smelting facility that had been the property of Tribune Arlette Augusta Amon Rakaposhi Gorro.  Something the history books left out was that the Imperium wasn’t just built by the Legiones Astartes, Solar Auxilla and Mechanicum, it had been built on the property of warlords who allied with the Emperor of Man in the Unification Wars.  What determined how wealthy someone was in the Imperium of Man was not the coin in their pockets or the valuables they possessed, but their estate.  Whether it was few acres of farmland or an entire planet.

The former Empress had not changed at all.  Physically she was just as beautiful and just as awe-inspiring as she had been in the glorious days of the Great Crusade.  She wore the plain robes of a remembrancer under a thick, tan cloak.   

“He’s having a bad day.”  Arlette greeted.

“They’re all bad days.”  Valdor growled as he placed the medication on the table.  He scoured the fridge, retrieving some lamb chops and vegetables.

“Stan, the dosage is too low.  This won’t last us a week.”  Arlette said in a tone that implied she had lost count of the number of times she had told him..

“I’m working on it.”  Stan said as he shoved the food into the battered microwave.

“He claims to be communicating with someone.” Arleete continued as Valdor waited for their shitty microwave to warm his food.

“Sure he does.”  Valdor replied as he took his food outiside the cheap plastic confines of the Microwave.  He  grabbed a clean fork and knife and took a bite of lamb.

“It was much more detailed than his usual delusions.”  Arlette said with a sad smile.  “He’s been asking questions.  Trying to read my mind.”

Valdor sighed, picked up the medication, grabbed a syringe and made his way to the tank outside their humble abode.

 Time may not have been kind to Constantin Valdor, but she had been a bitch to the Emperor of Mankind.

Former Emperor of Mankind that is.

Valdor still called him the Emperor.  Guilliman was not a legitimate ruler or regent and Valdor did not know his King’s real name.

“Is that you Alistair?”  The Emperor asked.  

The Emperor of Mankind’s mind was shattered.  The betrayal of nine of His sons, the death of two that had stayed loyal and one of His closest friends, His greatest work and the only hope for humanity’s salvation from the gods of Chaos ruined.  It had all been too much for His mind to bear.  The weight of that trauma, coupled with all His previous lives was a jumbled mess.  A hurricane of love and loss, victory and defeat.

The Emperor’s mind was just as broken, His body was a shattered mess.  He was missing His left arm and eye and He was now confined to a wheelchair.  His lustrous black hair had gone silver and was now greasy and stringy.

Constantin stood before his king.  His king who just like him, was shell of their former self.  

“Make way sir.” The man who had once fought the Void-Dragon said.

“I said make way!  Do you  know who I am you  wretched peasant! I am Lord Lionel Nevermoor!”

Constantin let his lord wheel himself around for a few minutes and then stood in front of him when he finished circling around the chamber.  

“Who are you?” The Emperor asked as Constantin rolled up his sleeve.

“You know who I am.” Valdor said.

“The man who puts me to sleep.” He answered.

“We could both use some sleep my king.” Valdor said.  He raised the syringe.

“ No!” The Emperor howled.  He grasped Valdor’s arm  with a surprising amount of strength.  The two grappled for a minute   The Emperor tumbled out of his wheelchair.

‘What are you doing to me?” The Emperor cried.

“My king please-

 Golden light surrounded the Emperor as a pulse of psychic power rang through  the air.  

Valdor groaned in agony.  He strained against a tidal wave of power.  His adamantium bones creaked.  

He pressed onward’s the needle descending in slow motion. Valdor prayed to half-forgotten deities that his King’s  malfunctioning mind’s power would not shatter him and reduce him to  paste.

The needle punctured flesh and in a second the pulse of warp energy faded.

Silence filled the tank.

 Valdor picked up his liege and  placed him in his bed.  He pulled a comforter over the Emperor, than placed two pills in his trembling hand.  Valdor  opened a bottle of water and poured it into  a cup.

“What are these?” The Emperor questioned.

“The shot’s mellow the seizures  The pills keep them from happening.” Valdor stated.

“You  want to  blow on them?” Valdor said, trying to cage his frustration.

“Fuck off Constantin.”  The Emperor of Mankind said.  He held out his hand for the cup of water.

“So you remember who I am.”  

“I always remember who you  are Constantin.  It’s just that I sometimes I don’t recognize you.”  The Emperor said after he took the pills and placed the empty cup of water on the nightstand..  

“Leaving my alone with that fracking wench that looks like Arlette. Like I don’t know what  a speciation is.”   The Emperor mumbled.

 “A what?” Valdor questioned.

 “There’s a Ligo Aetos.   A young one. The XIIIth and his sons want her.  She needs our help.”

“Well it's too bad you’re not in that business anymore my King.” Valdor said as evenly as he could.  He wished the cold feeling in his blood would go away.

“It’s not my help they  want, it's yours Stan.  That’s how stupid they are.  They’re waiting for you.  At the Statue of Ishtar.”

“The Statue of Ishtar  was a long time my king.  A long time.” Valdor said.   He remembered that day  like it was yesterday.  The first battle he had fought in as a Custodian.  The first battle the Emperor of Mankind and Arlette Amon Augusta Rakaposhi Gorro fought side by  side against the techno-barbarians  that would not bend their knee to  them.

“There hasn’t been any Ligo Aetos in twentyfive years.  No Sisters of Silence either.” Valdor  stated.  It wasn’t the first time he had told his King this.  He had a feeling the words would not sink in.

“Impossible.” the Emperor of Mankind replied.  He bit his lip and studied the empty sleeve where his arm was.

“You always thought humanity had a destiny My King.  Maybe you were wrong.  Maybe humanity was a mistake.”

“What a disappointment you’ve become.” the Emperor stated coldly.  

“When I found you, you  were pursuing a career as a blade for service in the Khatun of the Caucuss Step’s horde.  You were little better than an ork.  But I took you in.  Turned you into something better.  Gave you a family.”

“They’re gone now.” Valdor said barely holding back  the snarl that almost escaped his lips.

Valdor turned to leave.

“Constantin, what did you do?” the Emperor asked.

“Answer me!  I command it! Why are we here?  Is Arlette safe?  Where’s Malcador and Jenetia? Where are Rogal and Sanguinius? Where’s Jaghati?   Answer me Janus! ” 

Valdor opened the door.

“Not even an Eldar should have to live like this! Drugged and kept in a tank!”

“It’s for your own good!” Valdor snapped.  The anger he was holding back pouring into  the five words that left his chapped lips.

“No it’s not!   You’re waiting for me to die!  You betrayed me like Horus did!”   The Emperor wailed.

The door slammed shut and the Master of Mankind was left alone to babble in a million dead tongues.  His only company the ghosts of a million lives.

The passing train  shook the glass of whiskey on the desk. Valdor ignored it, for he was occupied with  pulling out one of his claws that had failed to  fully extend.  Blood dripped from the adamantium talon to mix with blood that had stained the floor yesterday.  He grunted in pain as it finally fully extended.

 Valdor studied the claw for a minute.  Than the former Custodes stared at  Veracity.  The beautiful silver greatsword was the only clean thing in the room.  It was the only thing Valdor had taken with him when he fled the Imperial Palace with Arlette and the Emperor.   

 What would you think of us now Jen?  Our King, now a paraplegic madman whose power could wipe out everyone on the Throneworld.  Arlette, once the woman who  ruled alongside the Master of Mankind, now playing nursemaid?  What would you think of me? The Captain-General of the Legio Custodes, The sun to your moon?  Now a drunk, dying old man?  What would you think of the Imperium you helped build?  Guilliman hasn’t ruined it yet but he will.

 By all the forgotten God’s and Goddesses why does a piece of grox-shit like me draw breath while your bones lie cold and left to rot by the Ultramarines?

 Constantin Valdor fell asleep that night the same way he always did.  Half-drunk and in indescribable emotional and physical pain.

[templarhalo]

Old Man Valdor

A little AU idea I had.  Not sure if this will  be expanded upon or remain a one shot.  @sisterofsilence

Constantin  Valdor, former Captain-General of the Legio Custodes  awoke to whispers and the clanking of hand tools.   He let out a groan of frustration and hemoved the driver’s side seat of his 25 Mars pattern limo backup.

He stumbled out and found himself facing four gangers, all geneforged hunks with  poorly casted iron teeth.  They  were trying to steal his car’s hubcaps.   If they  were smarter, they might have just considered stealing the car itself

“ Evening, you  do realize those are chrome plated lugs right? You’re going to strip them.”

The gangers didn’t even respond.   Instead they shot  him with a stub cannon.

He lay there for a while on the cold, irradiated dirt and then rose  again.

“ Gentlemen I’m going to give you one chance to leave.  I’m in a good mood tonight.”

The gang raised their weapons.

Constantin drew his own.

When Constantin  Valdor  became the first Custodes his King had gifted him strength  that had surpassed a Space Marine, Speed that was as fast as a motorbike, a healing factor that granted him  virtual immortality and claws of bone that sprouted from between his knuckles. Late he had undergone   a rather painful procedure that had bonded the unbreakable metal Adamantium  to  his bone claws and entire skeleton.

The gangers rushed him. One of  them bashed him in the skull with a shock maul.  Constantin rewarded him by burying his claws into the man’s skull.   Valdor removed the hand of the ganger carrying the stub cannon.  Unfortunately it went off and a round pinged off the door of the limo,

“Motherfracker!” Valdor roared.  He  rammed his claws deep into  the ganger’s chest.  He pulled them  out and raked them across his face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The third ganger emptied an auto pistol into  Valdor and ran.  Valdor staggered as his enhanced physiology and healing factor handled his injuries.

Valder caught his breath, his blood pooling from his wounds.  He grunted as bullets slowly and painfully exited his body.  Twenty five years ago  the gangers wouldn't have been able to  lay  a finger on him.   

But that had been twenty five years ago

And Terra and the Imperium of Man was not the same one it was twenty-five years ago.

Neither was Constantin Valdor.

His hair was no longer in its signature mohawk but in  a dishevelled mess.   He had grown a beard.  His eyes were no longer that of a vigilant bodyguard, but of a broken old man trying to survive in the  smoldering  ashes of a galaxy that had once been on fire.  

He stumbled back into  the limo he had leased and drove off

“ And in today’s news, Lord Guilliman  reassures citizens that warp travel  is still  stable after yesterday’s flicker in the Astronomicon.   Citizens are reminded -

Valdor changed the vox station, than growled and shut it off.

Constantin  hated funerals. He hated foul weather. Both had reared their ugly heads today.    The former was because he never had the chance to bury his fellow Custodians or the woman he had loved.   The latter was because like any sane human being  rain was always a nuisance.

He let the semi -acidic rain  patter on him as he guzzled a flask of Vostrayan amesac.  It was empty in seconds,   He chucked the flask and walked to those mourning some bigshot Administratum clerk.

“Constantin Valdor.”  a cultured, raspy voice said.  

The former member of the Ten Thousand  turned and found himself facing a traitor.

Fabius Bile was no longer the promising young Apothecary of the IIIrd who  interned in the gene labs of the Imperial Palace in  the heady first years of the Great Crusade.  He was still a thrice damned traitor,  but he had looked a let better during Horus’ temper tantrum than he did now.

Bile was thinner than an Ogryn.  His face was gaunt and heavily lined.  His hands were shaking and his hair was thin.  He no longer wore his Power armor or coat of human skin. Instead he wore thin grey robes with a brown coak.

“I need your help.  Please, I’m in trouble.  Guilliman has gone  madder than my own father. He’s opened your master’s gene forges he’s-”

“Stay the frack away from me.”  Valdor replied.   He walked  away  not even listening to  him ramble about  “Gland hounds and “He’s trying to make more of you Custodes.”

The former mad scientist drove past him in  a battered red car.   A young girl  in  a red cloak was staring at him.   

“Who was that?” one of the mourners asked.   

‘Some crazy old man.” Valdor replied.   He reached for the second flask of Amesac in his coat pocket

  .    

 “As I live and breath, Constantin  Valdor himself.”

Constanitn  quickly jerked his head around, shoving the medication he had gotten through ill begotten means in his suit pocket.

“And he’s a junkie now.” the Astartes said.

“Who the frack are you?” Valdor asked.

“Captain Aenoid Thel.” The Astartes said.   He was handsome clad in a blue chiton and  combat boots.  A regular combat knife and bolt pistol strapped to  his hip. Valdor noticed his right hand was not original  but a cloned one.  

“I hope you noticed there’s a bullet hole in your door.” the Ultramarine said

“Did Fabius find you yet?”  Thel asked.

Valdor didn’t reply

“You know the Arbites found a couple of dead Dhakal  gangers in  a pull out on  route 50.  They narrowed it down to a Night Lord, or the old holo film character Freddy Kruger. And neither those makes sense.  One’s rotting in the Eye of Terror the other being fictional.”

. Valdor remained silent.

“You see my lord, I’m not looking for you, or Lady Arlette. And while my primarch would be elated to  know where you  took his father, that’s not my primary  objective.   I’m looking for someone who’s looking for you.   Besides I already  know where you  three are anyway.”

Thel leaned forward.   He had the smugness that all the XIIIth had. It made Valdor want to jam his claws through  the Ultramarine’s brain.

“You see, Fabius Bile was sentenced to forced research for the rest of his life.   He stole something from me.  Something I am responsible for.  Something that is invaluable to the future of the Imperium of Man.”

“If I had seen Fabius Bile, I would have killed him myself.   Now get the frack out of my car” Valdor said as evenly as he could.

Thel pulled a business card out of his chiton.

“If Bile does find you.”  The legionnaire said as he exited the card.

Valdor was quite surprised that the Ultramarine had a business card.   Valdor had never had one  and he had commanded the bodyguard of the Emperor himself.

The card read.

Captain Aenoid Thel- Captain 2nd Company of the Ultramarines

Chief of Security- Imperial Palace Gene Labs

“Frack! Frack! Frack!” Vador roared.

Valdor’s destination  was old smelting facility that had been the property of Tribune Arlette Augusta Amon Rakaposhi Gorro.    Something the history  books left out was that the Imperium wasn’t just built by the Legiones Astartes, Solar Auxilla  and Mechanicum , it had been built on  the property of warlords who allied with  the Emperor of Man in the Unification Wars.   What determined how wealthy  someone was in the Imperium of Man  was not the coin in their pockets or the valuables they  possessed, but their estate.  Whether it was few acres of farmland  or an entire planet.

The former Empress had not changed at all.  Physically she was just as beautiful and just as awe inspiring as she had been in the glorious days of the Great Crusade.   She wore the plain robes of a remembrancer  under a think tan cloak.   

“He’s having a bad day.” Arlette said.

“They’re all bad days.” Valdor growled as he placed the medication on the table. He scoured the fridge, retrieving some  lamb chops and vegetables.

“Stan, the dosage is too low. This won’t last us a week.” Arlette said.

“I’m working on  it.” Stan said as he shoved the food into  the battered microwave.

“He claims to  be communicating with someone.” Arlette continued as the Microwave beeped.   Valdor removed his dinner and sat down.   

“Sure he did.” Valdor said as he grabbed a clean fork and knife and took  a bite of lamb.

“It was much  more detailed than his usual delusions.” Arlette said with a sad smile.    “He’s been asking questions. Trying to  read my mind.”

Valdor sighed,picked up  the medication, grabbed a syringe and made his way  to the tank outside their humble abode.

Time may not have been kind to  Constantin Valdor, but she had been a bitch  to  the Emperor of Mankind.

Former Emperor of Mankind that is.

Valdor still called him the Emperor.  Guilliman was not a legitimate ruler or regent and Valdor did not know his King’s real name.

“Is that you  Alistair?” The Emperor asked.  

The Emperor of Mankind’s mind was shattered.   The  betrayal of nine of his sons.  The death of  two that had stayed loyal and one of his closest friends.  His greatest work and the only hope for humanity’s salvation from the gods of Chaos ruined.. It had all been too much  for his mind to  bear.   The weight of that trauma, coupled with all his previous lives was a jumbled mess.  A hurricane of love and loss, victory and defeat.

The Emperor’s mind was just as broken, his body was a shattered mess.  He was missing his left arm and eye and he was now confined to  a wheelchair. His lustrous black  hair had gow silver and was now greasy and stringy.

Constantin stood before his king.  His king who just like him, was shell of their former self.  

“Make way sir.” The man who had once fought the Void-Dragon said.

“I said make way! Do you  know who I am you  wretched peasant! I am Lord Lionel Nevermoor!”

Constantin let his lord wheel himself around for a few minutes. Than he placed himself in front of him.

“Who are you?” The Emperor asked as Constantin rolled up his sleeve.

“You know who I am.” Valdor said.

“The man who puts me to sleep.”

“We could both use some sleep my king.” Valdor said. He raised the syringe.

“ No!” The Emperor said.  He grasped Valdor’s arm  with a surprising amount of strength.   The two grappled for a minute   The Emperor tumbled out of his wheelchair.

‘What are you doing to me?” The Emperor wailed.

“My king please-

Golden light surrounded the Emperor as a pulse of psychic power rang through  the air.  

Valdor groaned in agony.   He strained against a tidal wave of power.  His adamantium bones creaked.  

He pressed onwards the needle descending in slow motion.   Valdor prayed to  half forgtton deites that his King’s  malfunctioning mind’s power would not shatter him and reduce him to  paste.

The needle punctured flesh and in  a second the pulse of warp energy faded.

Silence filled the  tank.

Valdor picked up his liege and  placed him in his bed.    He pulled a comforter over the Emperor, than placed two pills in his trembling hand.  Valdor  opened a bottle of water and poured it into  a cup.

“What are these?” The Emperor questioned.

“The shot’s mellow the seizures  The pillows keep them from happening.” Valdor stated.

“You  want to  blow on them?” Valdor said, trying to  cage his frustration.

“Fuck off Constantin.”  the Emperor of Mankind said.  He held out his hand for the cup of water.

“So you remember who I am.”  

“I always remember who you  are Constantin. It’s just that I sometimes I don’t recognize you.”  The Emperor said after he took the pills and placed the empty cup of water on the nightstand..  

“Leaving my alone with that fracking wench that looks like Arlette. Like I don’t know what speciation is.” The Emperor mumbled.

“A what?” Valdor questioned.

“There’s a Ligo Aetos.   A young one. The XIIIth and his sons want her.  She needs our help.”

“Well it's too bad you’re not in that business anymore my King.” Valdor said as evenly as he could.  He wished the cold feeling in his blood would go away.

“It’s not my help  they  want, it's yours Stan.  That’s how stupid they  are.  They’re waiting for you.  At the Statue of Ishtar.”

“The Statue of Ishtar  was a long time my king.  A long time.” Valdor said.   He remembered that day  like it was yesterday.  The first battle he had fought in as a Custodian.  The first battle the Emperor of Mankind and Arlette Amon Augusta Rakaposhi Gorro, the Khatun of Caucuss Stps  fought side by  side against the techno--barbarians  that would not bend their knee to  them.

“There hasn’t been any Ligo Aetos in Twenty Five years.  No Sisters of Silence either.” Valdor  stated.

“Impossible.” the Emperor of Mankind.   He bit his lip and studied the empty sleeve where his arm was.

“You always thought humanity had a destiny my King.  Maybe you  were wrong.  Maybe humanity was a mistake.”

“What a disappointment you’ve become.” the Emperor said.  

“When I found you  you  were pursuing a career as a blade for service in the Khatun of the Caucuss Step’s horde.  You were little better than an ork.  But I took you in.  Turned you into something better.  Gave you  a family.”

“They’re gone now.” Valdor said barely holding back  the snarl that almost escaped his lips.

Valdor turned to  leave.

“Constantin, what did you do?” the Emperor asked.

“Answer me! I command it! Why are we here?  Is Arlette safe?  Where’s Malcador and Jenetia? Where are Rogal and Sanguinius? Where’s Jaghati?   Answer me Janus! ” .

Valdor opened the door.

“Not even an Eldar should have to live like this! Drugged and kept in a tank!”

“It’s for your own good!” Valdor snapped.  The anger he was holding back  pouring into  the five words that left his chapped lips.

“No it’s not! You’re waiting for me to die!  You betrayed me like Horus did!” The Emperor wailed.

The door slammed shut and the Master of Mankind was left alone to babble in  a million forgotten tongues, His only company the ghosts of a million lives.

The passing train  shook the glass of whiskey on the desk.   Valdor ignored it, for he was occupied with  pulling out one of his claws that had failed to  fully extend.   Blood dripped from the adamantium talon to  mix with blood that had stained the floor yesterday.  He grunted in pain as it finally fully extended.

Valdor studied the claw for a minute.  Than the former Custodes stared at  Veracity.  The beautiful silver greatsword was the only clean thing in the room.  It was the only thing Valdor had taken with him when he fled the Imperial Palace with Arlette and the Emperor.   

What would you  think of us now Jen?  Our King, now a paraplegic madman whose power could wipe out everyone on the Throneworld.  Arlette, once the woman who  ruled alongside the Master of Mankind, now playing nursemaid?  What would you think of me? The Captain-General of the Legio Custodes, The sun to your moon?  Now a drunk, dying old man?   What would you think of the Imperium you helped build?  Guilliman hasn’t ruined it yet but he will.

By all the forgotten God’s and Goddesses why  does a piece of grox-shit like me draw breath while your bones lie cold and left to rot by  the Ultramarines?

Constantin Valdor fell asleep that night the same way  he always did.  Half-drunk and in indescribable emotional and physical pain.

[justawriterofthings]

It’s Because I Care

Requested: Could you write a Drax x Reader Story where the Reader is also a guardian and they're together and the reader gets hurts during a mission and Drax is worried?

Word Count: 3,867

Warnings: Reader gets injured (but nothing big)

Author’s Note:  Oh my gosh I am so sorry this took so long.  I’ve been so occupied with work, my writing slipped through my fingers and got put on hold.  But, now I’ve got more free time and hopefully I can get all of these requests done.  I will do my best to get them up in a timely fashion my loves.  Thank you so much for the patience and for liking my stuff <3  Again sorry it took so long and sorry for the mistakes....

You were sitting quietly on the lower deck of the ship taking a nap with Rocket when you were startled awake by Drax’s loud bumbling footsteps.  Rocket jumped to his feet, ready for anything.  You jolted up hitting your head on bunk above you. “Son of a bitch.”  You mumbled, rubbing where you hit it, feeling the bump start to form already.  Rocket yawned, jumped down and waited for you to get up.  “Come on, come on.  You gotta go tell that oaf of a brick wall to walk like a normal person.”  Rocket complained as his tapped his foot impatiently. “Yeah, like he’ll listen to me when it comes to anything besides- well anything really.”  You slowly got up off the bed and headed to the ladder that led to the main deck.  

“You don’t give him enough credit.  He listens sometimes.”  Rocket was acting out of character.  “Are you sure you didn’t bump your head too?”  You joked, climbing upstairs.  Rocket just let out a short ‘Ha’ before following you up.  You looked around to see Drax frantically searching the main floor for something.  “Hey big guy, maybe keep the steps light.  Like you’re sneaking up on someone right before you take ‘em out.” You suggested as he continued to rummage through every box he could find.  Drax stopped what he was doing and looked at you first with wide eyes and then confusion.  “Where would I take them?”  He was genuinely confused by your wording.  “It’s another expression for killing someone, sweetheart.”  You clarified, but your pet name earned you another confused look.  “You don’t literally have a sweet heart, it’s like another name to show affection to someone you like.”  You explained.  You found yourself doing that a lot with Drax, though you didn’t mind it.  

Rocket wandered off after your small conversation with Drax, you assumed he was going to check up on baby Groot.  “So yeah, just maybe keep the footsteps a little quieter.  Rocket and I were napping and ya know, neither of us are happy right now for being woken up.”  You tried to stay as kind as possible since he was a large man and couldn’t really help how loud he was when he walked.  “Okay, sweetheart.”  He repeated your phrase back to you and you couldn’t help but smile.  Peter and Gamora walked over then.  Peter was looking rather pleased with himself and you knew that only meant one of two things.  Either he just got laid or you all had a mission.  

“Lay it on us.”  You commented, seeing how giddy he was getting it was a mission and apparently a good one at that.  “Pirate treasure.”  Peter finally spit out with such enthusiasm you almost couldn’t make the words out.   “No. Way.  Really?”  You started to match his grin, but the rest of your group was confused.  Rocket walked in with baby Groot who was finally out of his pot and walking around.  “What did he just say?”  Rocket asked, unsure of why Peter and yourself had been so happy.  “Yes!  Space Pirate treasure!”  Peter started to jump up and down like a child and you couldn’t help but match his movements.    “Real pirates!”  You squealed.  The rest of the team was even more confused now.  But you were too excited to explain to them that all of you could be richer than you ever imagined by the time the mission was over.  

Peter raced over to the ship’s control consol and you followed suit, though you beat him there when you used your gift to teleport yourself there.  “Y/N, we need you to explain.”  Drax called through the main level as he walked to the front of the ship with the rest of your friends behind him.  “Pirates!  Like Ravagers, but on Earth they have more of a reputation for being rich and ruthless. If this mission is what I think it is, we could all be bathing in loot by the time this is over.”  You bounced on your toes while Peter pulled up the coordinates he was given.  “Why would be bathe in loot?”  Drax asked. “I am Groot.”  Groot answered him, but still confused since he couldn’t understand the little tree yet.  “Of course he still takes things as literal.”  You replied to Groot, then directed your attention back to Drax.  “It’s another expression.  Meaning we’ll be richer than ever before.”  You clarified.  

“These, Pirates.  They are like Ravagers, so they are as dangerous?” Drax asked you, unsure of the new concept of Pirates.  “Well, yeah I guess if they have a lot of valuables, then they want to protect them so probably just as dangerous.”  You thought about the question a moment before answering him and when you had you regretted it.  “Then you will not go.  It will be too dangerous.”  Drax countered.  

“Look, you and I and everyone else on this ship know I can take care of myself.  Just because you have- what a few hundred pounds on me- doesn’t mean I can’t kick any less ass than you.”  You said before teleporting behind him, tapping him on the shoulder and then ending up in the place you started.  “I’m a Guardian, same as you.  We saved the universe together, remember?”  You brought up when you all took out Ronan since you had been there by his side helping him in case he forgot.  

“You are my sweetheart, so I worry.”  He explained which caused your face to heat up.  The rest of the team watched the exchange and the tension was growing slightly in the cabin.  “Okay, time to head out before this gets anymore uncomfortable.  Baby Groot you didn’t hear any of that.”  Peter was blowing the slight affection shown by Drax out of proportion before setting some coordinates and taking off.

You took your seat next to Peter, coming up with all sort of crazy ideas as to what the treasure could be. “Maybe it’s a ship full of gold?” You pondered.  

“Or a billion units!” Peter exclaimed, practically salivating at the thought of that much currency.

“Do you think they’re Terran?  I mean, no one else seems to grasp the concept of pirates.  And who would call themselves that if they didn’t know what they were?”  You asked, mostly to yourself since you were sure Peter was still ogling at the prospect of a billion units.  

“I am Goot?”  The small tree interjected.  

“No, it’s not really common now.  More so two hundred years ago.  So they’d have to know of Terra history or be Terran themselves.”  You answered.  You could feel Drax watching you and listening to the conversation, but he was holding back his questions.  

Little Groot looked over to Drax and then back at you.  “I am Groot.” His little voice was full of concern.

“No you idiot.  They don’t need a room to go talk.”  Rocket yelled from his seat as he messed with one of the many guns he had stockpiled.  

“I might do just that, Groot.”  You smiled at the small plant, then appeared next to Drax and grabbed his hand.  In a split second the two of you were below the main deck where Rocket and yourself had been taking a nap earlier.  “You looked like you wanted to talk.”  You let go of his hand and sat on the bed.  

“Give me a warning next time you do that.”  He yelled and you could hear Rocket laughing from upstairs.  You ignored it and so did Drax.  Then he sat next to you, his face lighter.  

“So what questions did you have?”  You finally asked after the both of you sat in silence for a moment.

“You said these Pirates would be as dangerous as the Ravagers.”  Drax stated.  

“Yes, I did say that. But it should be something different if memory serves correctly.  They’ll be less space-like and more Terran.”  You tried to explain but his confused look only stayed.  “Back home they would sail the oceans with huge ships and they would attack other ships, sometimes naval ships run by the countries they would call home.  They had cannons and muskets and swords.”  You went on and noticed the smile on Drax’s face even though you knew he understood about half of what you were saying.  “But more importantly, they were notorious for having vast treasures.”  You continued.  “They would supposedly burry treasures, and sometimes their loot would be lost with their ships when they sunk to the bottom of the ocean.  But out here, they would have to keep their treasure with them unless they found a planet far away enough.”  You pondered how they would hide their loot out here.

You thought he would ask you questions but instead he looked you dead in the eyes, nodded his head for a moment.  “We will find the Pirates and take their loot.”  He smiled, repeating the words you had used.  

“Damn straight.”  You giggled, then teleported the two of you back upstairs. When you got to the front of the ship and looked out the window you saw that Peter had taken you all to a part of the galaxy that had yet to be settled.  “Wow.”  You were caught off guard at how beautiful the scene was.  Drax stood beside you and tilted his head slightly.  

“I am Groot.”  Groot responded to you.  

“It really is a sight.” You added to the small tree being. You then looked around the cabin to see the rest of your companions were in less awe than you or Groot.  But it made sense since they all spent time out here.

“From the information I got, we’re pretty close to the coordinates.”  Peter spoke up.  You looked around in slight disbelief.  “But it doesn’t look like much.”  He added, mimicking your thoughts.  You kept an eye out for any other ship, but you didn’t see anything.  Then the ship started to shake.  

“Guys?”  You held on to Peter’s chair.  

“It’s coming from above us.” Gamora hurried to the back of the ship and you could hear her rummaging around for who knows what.  Then there was a flash, the ship shook once more, then you were no longer on Peter’s ship.  

Your vision went black for a moment, and when you finally opened your eyes you were alone in what looked like barracks.  “Drax?” You called.  “Rocket?  Groot?” You didn’t know your surroundings so you couldn’t risk teleporting and ending up in a wall.  Taking a look around, you noticed you were most likely below deck since there were no windows and rows of hammocks.  “YES!”  You tried to whisper but it came out as almost a yell.  You were on the Pirate’s ship, which meant you and your friends were in danger but you couldn’t help but feel giddy.  You wandered around to see what they were like, since you could always tell how a person was by their living conditions.  

“Y/N?”  Drax was in panic mode.  He looked around the deck of the ship for you but he noticed you and Peter were gone.  “We must go get them.”  Drax was the first to jump into action.  Rocket looked back to Gamora, with some hesitation but nodded in agreement.  

“I am Groot.”  Groot agreed.  “We’ll have to get onto the ship first.”  Rocket added.  

You saw a stairwell that you assumed brought you up to the deck of the ship, hesitantly you took it, knowing you could get yourself back down here in an instant if you needed to. “Peter.”  You whispered, heading up the set of stairs but you quickly made yourself quiet when you heard more voices.  Creeping up the steps you started to see more and more shadows of who you assumed were the pirates.  Peeking around the corner you saw a handful of terrans.  And you thought to yourself that you were right.  Which also meant that you might be able to talk yourself out of this situation you’ve found yourself in.  “Anyone bother to check up on the two people we just took aboard?” One man asked from behind the control consol.  “Sure thing, Captain,”  Another replied.

You heard a pair of footsteps come closer to you and you teleported back down stairs.  A few seconds later a man dressed in fancy slacks, a black vest, and black dress shirt with a red tie was standing in front of you.  “Uh. Hi.”  You waved awkwardly at him.  “Care to tell me why you brought me and my colleague aboard?”  You asked, hoping to get an answer out of him.  

“The names Ash.”  He greeted, ignoring your question.  

“Where’s my colleague?” You asked, hoping he would answer this time.  

“The deck below us.” He answered as he strode towards you. “Are you also from earth?”  He asked, caressing your cheek with the back of his hand.  You quickly teleported back as far away from him as you could.  

“What’s it to you?” You asked, watching him more closely now.  

“Your friend there was and asked a hell of a lot of questions about pirates.”  Ash responded after he took in your power for a second.

“Yeah, I’m from Earth. I take it you are too, by the way you’re dressed and the way this room is.”  You said, motioning towards the very obvious earth items.  “Now, why are we here?”  You asked again, hoping this time he would answer.  He started to move closer to you but stopped when there was a thump on the side of the ship.  “Why are we here?”  You asked again, louder this time.  Then you heard Peter yell your name from below you, but he voice was strained.  

“You’re here to help us get the biggest treasure any of us have ever dreamed of.”  Ash answered then walked back up, leaving you there.  But he left you free and conscious.  

“Big mistake, buddy.” You snickered and tried to find a way down stairs.  Wandering around the barracks again you found a door that you hoped led you to Peter. You tried to open it, but it was locked so you pictured yourself behind it, hoping that there was nothing directly behind it.  Letting out a sigh of relief to see the stairs and that you managed to not be impaled by anything.  You quickly headed downstairs to find Peter tied to a post.  “Oh man.”  You took in the sight of him and ran over to undo his restraints.  

“Did they hurt you?” Peter asked when you finally got him free and he could look you over.  

“No.  Are you okay?”  You asked, looking for any sign they hurt him too.  

“Yeah, now let’s get the money and get out of here.”  He smiled, but it fell when he saw you didn’t return his grin.  

“We have to leave, get back to the others.  I have a bad feeling about these guys.”  You told him, grabbing his hand and getting ready to teleport the both of you back to the deck of his ship.  He ripped his hand away just as he felt you gather your energy.  “At least let me go get them then?”  You asked, knowing you and Peter wouldn’t be able to take all of them on your own.  He gave you a skeptical look but nodded his head in agreement anyway.  You were then gone in an instant but back with Rocket just as quick.  Peter informed him of the plan as you grabbed everyone else.  And once everyone was there Peter and yourself went back over the whole plan.  

“We’re taking their loot guys, as of now we’re also pirates.”  You should have seen you were going down the rabbit hole, since you yourself had said you had a bad feeling about those guys.  

“This is not smart.” Drax said, mostly to you.  He always worried about you.  You gave him a look before teleporting upstairs, now that you knew the layout you didn’t have to worry about being impaled .  You were back in the barracks, then snuck up the stairs to the upper deck.  You got a good look so you could use your gift later if you needed to, then went back down with the group.  

“There are six of them on the upper deck.  Which should be easy peasy, since Groot alone, could take on six guys with his eyes closed.” You shrugged, sitting cross-legged on the floor, ready to go over the plan again now that you knew how many you were dealing with and the layout of the deck.  “Drax and I will go up and take out the two who are patrolling, one of them is the guy who was with me downstairs.  Rocket, you take Groot and take out the two closest to the control panel. Peter, you’ll get the scary looking guy with the arm tattoos and Gamora will take on the last one with the weird Mohawk.”  You got up, went to the door that was locked and tried to open it from this side with no luck.  “I’ll get everyone on the other side, then it’s a clear shot to the upper deck.”  You said before grabbing Drax’s hand and bringing him to the other side of the door.  

Once everyone was in the barracks room, you all made your way up the stairs and continued with the plan.

It didn’t take long to take out all six guys.  You chose to knock out Ash, but before you could get behind him he managed to slice you with a hidden blade he concealed in his sleeve.  Drax saw this and you could tell his vision went red.  “Go back to the ship.”  He ground out, holding the guy in a choke hold.  

“I’m fine, he just grazed me.”  You argued back, while punching Ash square in the face.  The rest of the gang watched on after already doing their part.

“You will go back to the ship, the mission is over.”  He didn’t bother keeping his voice down in case there were more.  He dropped the pirate he was holding and moved towards you. You quickly backed up towards the door the two pirates were guarding and opened it.  But you stopped dead in your tracks when you saw what was inside.  

“Guys.”  Your voice was just above a whisper.  Groot and Rocket were quick by your side.  “I am Groot.”  Groot’s tone was somber.  “Yeah, this is big.”  You replied to the small being.  You looked around the rather large room and saw cages, both full and empty. Creatures from every part of the galaxy of all sizes resided in this room and you assumed that they were endangered. “We found our loot, I guess.”  You entered the room and took in the site of all the creatures.  Drax was quickly by your side, hovering.  “Drax I’m fine.  We have to get these little guys home though.”  You saw the sad eyes peering at you and your friends.  When you got to the back of the room, Drax still hovering, you saw the crates stacked up to the ceiling.  Peering indie you couldn’t help but smile.  “This whole room has to go back to the ship.”  You sounded so triumphant.

“What’d you find?” Peter strode over and peered inside a different crate.  “We’ll never have to work again.”  He laughed, after taking in all of the precious items the crates had to offer. You and the rest of the group managed to get everything from the room onto the ship before the pirates woke up.

You made it safely away and that was when Drax blew up.  “You can’t put yourself in danger like that!”  He yelled. “What if he had cut you worse?  I don’t know what I would do if I lost you too.” His tone lowered at the thought of losing yet another person in his life he cared for.  

“I can take care of myself, Drax.  And you’ve gotten hurt worse than I have.  You don’t see me babying you, or hovering.  When either of us do that, we’re in more risk.  You can’t put all your focus on me you have to be present when we’re on a mission.”  You tried to reason with him.  But you could just see that your words weren’t getting through to him.  

“You are terran.   You are fragile and small.  Look at how you bleed just from what you called a graze. What if it was worse?”  Drax pointed to your side where the knife got you. You finally looked down at it and saw it was a little deeper than you first thought.  Your adrenaline had been going and you couldn’t even feel it when it happened.  Only now was it just starting to sting slightly.  But you didn’t show any outward sign that it was bothering you, you were too stubborn to do that.  

Drax lifted your shirt to take a good look at your wound, you didn’t bother stopping him.  But you were glad you brought the two of you down stairs instead of doing this in front of everyone.  “See.  It is bad. And you lied about it.  How can I trust to fight alongside you again?  You knew that it was hard for me to fight with you to begin with.  You are my sweetheart.  I can’t lose you.”  He repeated when he was crouching down to your level and trying to clean your side with his large hands and a damp cloth.  You took the cloth from him and moved his hand away, cleaning it yourself.

“I know you’re worried, and I know you care.  Drax I know you only act like this because you lost your wife and daughter.  You don’t want it to happen again and it won’t. Not any time soon, anyway.  You’re stuck with me for a while.”  You tried to smile at him but it never met your eyes. Then you gave in.  “I’ll be more careful.  I’ll listen to you more, okay?  If you think something is off or wrong and you want me out of there I’ll leave in a blink.  I promise.” You compromised, which earned you a reluctant head nod from the large man.  

The two of you stayed down in the second level for a while. Drax cleaned your wound and the two of you talked about his wife and daughter.  You talked about earth and what life was like back home.  But you knew the closer you two got, the more reluctant he would be about letting you go on missions even though you have proved yourself before.  Drax asked if you would stay on the ship when the rest of the group gave the creatures to the Nova Corps.  You agreed to stay put, to appease him and gain his trust that you would keep your word, even though every part of your being wanted to go with since you were as much a part of the Guardians as him.  But you knew where his feelings were coming from.  And deep down you wanted the same for him.

[trashpandaorigins]

The Body Keeps the Score Ch. 17 Little Lies

"You said it yourself bitch, we're the Guardians of the Galaxy." Gamora is finally a part of something. But the past always follows you, eats at you and she must come to grips with her deeds as she tries to build a future. Meanwhile Rocket has never cared much for anyone or anything. Together the two of them discover they are more alike than different and try to heal themselves by befriending the other.

*Content Warnings: Mentions of child/animal abuse, trauma, character death, physical torture/pain*

Title of this fic is taken from the book of the same title "The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma," by Bessel van der Kolk

Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love?

Can the child within my heart rise above?

Can I sail through the changin' ocean tides?

Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Oh oh, I don’t know…...

Well, I've been 'fraid of changin'

'Cause I've built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Landslide - Fleetwood Mac

Groot was proving to be a much welcome distraction from the ongoing trouble with the Nova Corps. Thus far they had outmaneuvered two more convoys of ships, Peter rightly refusing to engage with them no matter how much Drax wanted to attack. They’d finally found a jump port bringing them to safety and despite Peter’s tries he had not been able to contact Nova Prime or Dey.

“Can you say slarg nut?” Gamora held the tiny nut between her fingers, just out of Groot’s reach. The flora giggles and strained his small arms,

“I am Groot!”

She listened intently, there is a difference, I just can’t tell what, she tried to think how the phrasing was any different from the previous words she’d asked him to say.

“One more time Groot, say slarg nut, slower this time.”

Groot pouted, pulling one foot out of the soil and reaching forward for the food.

“One more time, I’m trying to understand you, say slarg nut.”

“I AM GROOT!”

This time it at least sounded the same, though more inpatient.

“I’ll assume you said it,” Gamora popped the little nut into his waiting mouth and couldn’t help but smile down at him as he gobbled. “I’ll get it eventually, I promise!”

“I am Groot!”

“You want more?” She guessed, reaching into the bag and pulling out another nut.

“I am Groot!!”

That was definitely a ‘more’ It didn’t sound like a “more,” rather it was understood to be a “more.” From what little Gamora had picked up from the flora, it wasn’t the words he said that were different but the way they were said and the way they were understood, the way they felt. “To understand Groot” - she’d pulled up the info from a database of Asguardian lessons on languages across the Galaxy-was not to learn the words but to understand the context and the individual or group you were speaking with.” Very different from the Kree language Thanos had drilled into her, Kree was direct, clear, easy enough to understand once you knew the words.

“I am Groot!”

“Okay, but just one more or you’ll spoil your dinner.”

Gamora handed him another nut, beaming as the little wooden fingers curled around her own. Warm and rough and so fragile.

“Do you want more water?”

“I am Groot!”

She nodded, understanding that he said he had enough.

At least I accomplished something good today.

“Any luck?” She stood as Peter walked into the kitchen, brow furrowed.

“I’m trying to hack into the Nova coms system so I can reach Dey directly. Are those slarg nuts?”

Gamora handed him the bag, despite Groot’s whines for more.

“I’ll get it eventually,” he sighed. “I just hope I do it before they send another squad after us.”  Gamora nodded, the sense of danger and paranoia crashing over her once more.

“Any read on Rocket or Nebula?”

“Not yet.”

Peter ran a hand down his face, rubbing his eyes.

“I’ve looked at the radar for the escape pods and we haven’t lost them yet, we’re still headed in the right direction but there hasn’t been any signal or coordinates. Just visuals.”

“Better than nothing,” he shrugged, giving another nut to Groot who squealed in delight.

“You’re going to spoil his appetite,” Gamora admonished. “He still needs the second round of trellian grow.”

“Was it twice a day? Rocket didn’t leave me instructions.”

Of course he didn't!

“I am Groot?”

The little flora’s smile fell suddenly, looking with large brown eyes between the two of them.

“What’s that bud?” Peter asked.

“I...am..Groot?”

The human man looked at her for help but Gamora only looked at the baby, trying to read his tiny face.

“I AM GROOT?” He  cried, clearly frustrated. Sap began to fill his eyes.

“I think he wants Rocket,” she guessed. “Is that what you want? Rocket?” Though the name tasted like bitter ash in her mouth, she was not about to let Groot suffer for her own anger. The tree baby in question nodded through his cries, a new bubble of sap now running from his nose.

“Rocket went on a little trip, remember?” Peter tried. “He’ll be back soon.”

“I AM GROOT!!” Groot reached down, gathering fistfuls of dirt from his pot and throwing them at the two of them.

“Groot no! Stop!” Peter tried to be forceful.

“Will you quiet that irksome ficus?!”

Drax awoke from his routine nap and lumbered into the kitchen area.

“I’m trying!” Gamora watched Peter dodge another clump of soil, only for it to miss his face and land on his chest.

“You may be a good couple but you are both terrible adoptive parents. I hope you never procreate.”

Gamora waited for Groot to pick up more dirt and grabbed him, kicking and shrieking for Rocket. She held him against her shoulder, trying to steady him.

“Drax Peter and I aren’t a….” she glanced at Peter cautiously. In truth she didn’t know what they were. Something between friendship and something else. An unspoken thing, she supposed. Groot’s wail cut her off from finishing the thought.

“When will the puny animal return? He needs his father.”

Groot’s little fingers hit lamely against Gamora’s shoulder, drumming into her skin.

“Rocket isn’t his father,” Peter explained, the mention of Rocket's name only made Groot cry harder. Gamora rolled her eyes. “They aren’t biologically related. You know that right? It’s really important to me that you know that.”

“Give me those slarg nuts, I am famished.” The destroyer grabbed the bag from Peter, tipping his head back and inhaling the rest of the snacks. Then crossed over to Gamora, hands out. She gratefully relinquished the baby.

“Stop this at once,” Drax held Groot out at arms length. “Rocket will return but we do not know when. So you must be strong and behave until he comes back.”

Drax must’ve been some parent, Gamora exchanged a glance with Peter.

“If you continue this tantrum  you will not have any more snacks. But if you are good I will let you play with my ukillian knife. It is very dangerous and not for children but you enjoy dangerous things so I will concede. Do we have an agreement?”

Whether out of fear or comprehension Groot sniffled, nodding. Drax’s stern frown broke into a warm smile.

“Good. Now do not be dishonorable and break this….”

For whatever reason Groot burst into angry tears again.

“Well, I tried.” Drax shrugged, dropping Groot on the table.

Beep, beep...beep,  Gamora turned, looking down the hall towards the flight deck. Beep, beep, beep the nearly imperceptible noise sounded among Groot’s screaming.

“Guys,”

“Dude you can’t just drop a baby!”

“Why not! I was dropped countless times as a child and I turned out perfect.”

“Yeah, you sure did.”

“Peter! Drax!” Gamora snapped, even Groot sniffled and looked at her, “

“That’s the pods.”

She took off down the ship’s main corridor to the flight deck, running to the escape pod locator and examined the screen, looking at the planet that illuminated the screen and the coordinates leading there.

No…

“What planet is that?”

Gamora’s throat went dry, tongue heavy in her mouth.  A million thoughts flooding through her mind.

“It’s….Ha..Halfword,” her voice broke at the thought.

“What’s Halfworld?” Peter asked.  Gamora ignored him, that’s impossible. Rocket would never go to that place on his own volition. The people who stopped me, they must have captured him. Or...Nebula must have sold him to them. A shiver went through her, the cybernetics in her face and arms twinged. The device they had given her still sat in her quarters. We should leave Rocket there. It’s what he deserves for what he’s done. No! NO! I am not that evil. I am NOT. I refuse to be.  But she  built her whole existence around Thanos and his whims. A method of survival, conscious or not.  She had built her life around him and his voice, his desires still spoke to her. Her worse impulses stoked by his torture still surfaced. Maybe she was beginning to change but it would take time...time she could not spare now.

Drax’s large footfalls followed them, Groot on his shoulder.

“Groot,” Peter asked, turning to the little flora. “Do you know what Halfworld is?”

“How would Groot know where that is?” Gamora snapped, “he’s not the same Groot. We’ve known Rocket longer than he has.”

“Oh,” Peter rubbed the back of his neck with a cute, embarrassed grin. “Right, so uh, do you know what Halfworld is?”

“There are many horrors in the galaxy little one.” Thanos had said to her, after she watched him kill an innocent skrull. “The merciless storms of Evay, the battle slaves of the Kree, the corrupt politicians of Terra,  the fire dancers of Yrekret, the experiments of Halfworld. All are evil. That is why we must cleanse the galaxies.”

“It’s where Rocket was made,” she explained shortly. Please don’t let him ask anymore questions. She didn’t want to talk about origins anymore. Not her’s or Rocket’s.

“I recognize that place.”

Gamora turned to Drax who stood resigned, arms folded.

“What about it?” She asked tentatively, it’s alright. You can tell us...but you do not have to if you don’t want to, she did her best to tell him with her eyes.

“When I was seeking revenge, I traveled many places across the galaxy and hired my services in battle and mercenary work. I once came across a creature who was made in that place. She had cybernetics on her head and more wiring that I saw when I split her skull. She was a formidable foe.”

Gamora bit her tongue. How many creatures had been tortured there? And worst of all, what if Thanos had some part in it? His evil knew no bounds.

“Well,” Peter began slowly, “that’s disturbing.”

“Is there anything else you can tell us?” She implored, “anything about who that creature was? How they made her? Why they made her?”

“Oh, no. She only said she was from Halfworld. And that she was sold away from there to be a fighter. She was horrendous to look at.”

 Drax continued but she hardly listened, studying the image on the console. The other pod is on some unmarked keystone in the third sector.  Nebula must have either hitched a ride to Halfworld after selling him or she’s still on that rock. If Nova ships are patrolling looking for us they’ll find her and she’ll tell them anything.

“Gamora, Gamora?”

“What?” She looked up, surveying Drax, Groot and Peter. The three of them stared at her with confusion.

“What are we doing?” Peter asked. “We gotta go after them, or...one of them at least.”

“Nebula is trying to kill you,” Drax put in. “We should go after her and subdue…”

“We’re getting Rocket,” she decided, jaw set.

“But…” Peter began, looking at her with a mix of “are you sure,” and “we don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Gamora nodded, as much to confirm it with him as herself.

“We’re going after him.”

If I were brought back to Thanos, her skin prickled with the thought.

“What about Nebula?”

“Nebula can wait,” Gamora strode to the pilot seat and flipped on the navigation. “Where’s the nearest jump?’

“Twenty seven lengths away,” Peter instructed. The jump port he selected blinked on the screen and Gamora guided the ship forward.

“I am Groot!”

“Yes we’re going to get Rocket,” Gamora answered, thrusting the ship forward. Her hands tightened around the grips, curled knuckle white. Her rage mixed with a torpor of fear as they sailed through the keystone quadrant.

This is cruel, even for Nebula. Rocket should be punished for what he did, but not like this. NOT like this. She’d dealt him the blows he’d deserved and was nowhere near forgiving him, but Halfworld was different.

“I’m going to try to hack Nova coms again,” Peter stood up. She could tell by his footfalls but did not take her eyes from the sky.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“It’ll be fine...oh dammit Drax! You have to actually strap him into the seat with a seatbelt!”

“I am Groot!”

“I did try! That contraption is cumbersome. I could not get the belt to click!”

Gamora flew the ship but mustered a small laugh sparing a look over her shoulder at Peter futilely trying to secure the baby flora. Drax is wrong, he would make a good parent. He’s just as much a dad to Groot as any of us. Even more so than Rocket as of late.

“There, haha! I got it! Hell yeah! You stay there Groot!”

Peter triumphantly fist-bumped at the air and took off down the hall.

“I am Groot?”

“We’ll get there when we get there.” Gamora answered, there’s the jump point!  “Everyone hold on!” The Benatar surged upward through the narrow invisible space between a cluster of stars.

CRASSH!!

“OWWWW!”

“Peter I said hold on!”

“I’m okay!”

Gamora shook her head, holding her breath, bracing for the stomach dropping feeling of momentum. No matter how many times I go through a jump, I never get used to the feeling. She steadied the ship as it reached the other side. Nothing but stars and keystones all around them.

“Drax how close are we?”

“Not far,” he answered.

“Hello? Dey! Dey it’s Peter Quill!”

Gamora hit the autopilot, finally.

“Drax, call me when we get there, we’ll want to approach slowly.”

She raced down the steps to the communication controls. Leaning over Peter’s shoulder to look at the hologram of Denarian Dey.

“Listen Dey, my man, we gotta talk.”

The officer’s usually pleasant face frowned.

“I’ll say. I’ve been hearing reports for weeks.You’ve been accused of killing Nova officers and destroying ships! Do you know what I had to do to get your records expunged?”

“We…”

“I know you saved our planet, and we’re totally grateful for that, but murdering!” He sucked his breath in rage. Face nearly red.

“Dey,” Gamora leaned forward. “Dey, we know this is bad. It was a misunderstanding. It wasn’t us. We heard reports that there were Halfworlders around the Keystone quadrant, we were tracking them down but...it was too late. We saw the aftermath of the wrecked ships and the officers, Dey I’m so sorry.”

Even in the form of a hologram the Nova officer bit his lip, looking down at something out of their view.

Peter raised a brow with confusion,

“What are you doing?!” He whispered, panicked, “we can’t lie to the Nova Corps! They were probably transmitting all the auto from their ships and visuals, they’ll know it's us! Even if they didn’t, they aren’t gonna believe us! We have to come clea…”

“There have been reports of Halfworlders around, we’ve been unable to locate them.” Dey finally spoke, fingers rubbing his temples, Gamora read the exhaustion on his face plain as day.

“We picked up their radar too. They’re after one of our companions. That’s why we were tracking them. They probably knew you were after them too and didn’t take any chances.”

“Rekal,” Nova swallowed, refusing to look at them, “Officer Rekal he….he had this throat torn out...we found him shredded still in his seat on his ship.”

“Probably one of their crazy monsters,” Peter jumped in on the spot, a little too much of a giveaway for Gamora’s liking. “That’s what they did on that planet right? Illegal experimentation?”

Dey nodded, the lines on his face grave. A twinge of sympathy hit Gamora, it wasn’t his fault the corps wanted to keep tabs on them. Dey’s always been someone we can count on. It was his superiors who were after her.   If there’s any hope for forgiveness after the things I’ve done for my own superior...Thanos, I can’t blame Dey.

“Do you have any evidence?” He asked, composing himself. “Any discarded weapons or parts of their ship? Any tracers?”

The device they gave me, Gamora pictured it still lying on her cot.

“I’ll be right back.”

She fetched the device from her bed, holding it with apprehension and showed it to Dey.

“They left this,” she held it up carefully. The Nova officer nodded.

“Any chance you can send it our way?”

“We tried,” Gamora lied perfectly. “But it wouldn’t go through. We can send you scans though, we’ll get them to you soon.” Dey agreed, smiling good naturedly.

“Very well.”

“Now that this is all cleared up,” Peter began in earnest, “mind telling everyone what happened and calling off your guys?”

Gamora watched the man’s face decide, going back and forth with uncertainty finally breathing a sigh of relief when he grinned,

“I’ll let them know. We look forward to getting those scans and try not to get into any more trouble okay? I can only do so much.”

“Of course Dey. We are so sorry for your loss, please extend our condolences. If we come across them again we’ll bring them straight to you.”

Dey saluted them and clicked the comms off, hologram fuzzing out and then gone altogether. The tense silence hung over the lies she’d told. Peter ran his hands down his face, laughing wildly and leapt up, bringing her into a bear hug.

“Oh my god that was amazzzzing! You were so good! I’ve told likes before sure but that?! That was…! Wow you sure you never considered being a ravager?”  She threw her head back, laughing as Peter spun her around, dizzy, exhilarating.

“You learn how to lie well when you work for Thanos.”

Peter beamed, setting her down.

“I could...I could kiss you!”

Yes! No….no not….not yet...I...I can’t… the impulse was there but reason demanded otherwise. It wouldn’t be right to give him false hope. If she kissed him now it would only be for the thrill of the moment, with no meaning behind it. Instead she hugged him, head resting on his shoulder for a moment. Savoring his steady presence. A warm hand patted  the back of her shoulder,

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “I can wait.”

“You might be waiting a long time,” she answered.

“I’m part ancient whosie whats it remember? That probably means I got some sweet life extending powers. I can wait a long, long time.” Gamora’s lips tugged into a smile but she forced herself out of his hold, nice as it was.

“Gamora! Quill!” Drax bellowed from above, “I see the place that is called Halfworld but there is something wrong.”

Gamora raced up to the flight deck, sword out and ready.

“What is it?!”

“This planet,” Drax gestured out the window, “it is not half of a world. It is an entirely round and complete planet.” Gamora followed where he pointed and sheathed her weapon. Halfworld loomed over them like a vast ominous creature. Half of the planet was covered in purple tinted forest, unbroken and almost fuzzy looking at this altitude. Millions and millions of trees. The other side, barren. A sickly grey, dotted with buildings of vast shapes and sizes, many of them dilapidated and in different stages of decay. Storehouses and bunkers and ships, all strewn to pieces.

“What happened here….?” Peter’s mouth hung open looking out the windows.

“I am Groot,” Groot piped up, face twisting up into fear. His large eyes watched transfixed as they descended. He let out a small whine, she looked down to see the little flora clinging to her leg, fingers trembling.

“Shhh Groot it’s okay,” she picked him up and he burrowed into her chest, crying. Maybe he does remember this place, she guessed. Even if it was some vestigial memory. He may not even know why he’s scared.  Gamora gently patted the baby’s back, swaying back and forth.

“Peter, get our weapons ready. Drax, be wary headed in.”

“This place is abandoned! I see no one to fight. This is quite disappointing.”

“We don’t know that,” Gamora hissed pushing the lever for the landing gear. They’d come in just on the line of the two halves of the planet. They continued to descend, the surface of the planet becoming more detailed.

Are those…? Gamora squinted, ….bodies. Some of them charred, others with bullet wounds, scratches, that one has it’s face peeled off. They’re all….decaying or just bones….

In her other arm Groot cried with mounting distress, his whole body shaking.

We should've come here….

The Benatar touched down forcefully, the walls rattling.  

No, we're here now. No turning back. Brace yourself. Breathe….in...out….good. This is not the realm of Thanos. This is not your nightmares. Breathe...for Groot...for Peter....for Rocket.

Gamora passed Groot gently to Peter and gathered her weapons.

“I got this too,” Peter held up the device the Halfworlders had given her. Gamora reached out, taking it with a sweating hand and looked at it with reproach.

It might come in handy.

She locked it into her belt next to her daggers and swords.

“We go in, we get Rocket, we leave. Got it?”

Drax and Peter nodded, Groot gave a soft sniffling whimper.

“I….I am G...Groot?”

Gamora shuttered, hair raising on her spine and pressed the release button for the exit ramp. This time she’d understood the quivering flora loud and clear.

“Yes Groot….they do hurt people here.”

They hurt lots of people everywhere.  Thanos whispered in the recesses of her mind. You must hurt them back.

[evanaaml]

EVGN Ch. 8

Chapter 8: Return to Vale

The car ride had remained uneventful since they left the farm house. Though conversation broke out occasionally, it always ended abruptly and turned into minutes of silence. This, however, didn’t seem to bother the hunters. They wanted to take advantage of the quiet; choosing to soak it in before they would inevitably be thrust into battle once more.

Eallgréne spent the trip thus far checking over his equipment, making sure his arrows were primed and ready should something occur. Nickel decided to try and relax, laying back and allowing the sun’s rays to keep him warm while he rested his eyes. He was afraid of falling asleep entirely, should the truck hit a pot hole and bounce him around the cab, and so remained at least somewhat attentive.

Gael looked out the window in front of her, trying to keep to herself. Sitting in the middle made sense for her compared to the heavily-armored Violette, but it did make for an awkward trip. She couldn’t stretch out, and kept her hands on her lap like a child. Luckily, both door windows and the back window being down allowed a nice breeze into the cab, which at least kept her cool. Her hair blew around from the wind and the fur on her upper ears swayed.

Suddenly, she was smacked in the face with long blonde hair. She wiped her face instinctively and turned to Violette. Wearing her helm, only the lower half of her long blonde hair was affected by the wind, though it did tend to fly around wildly. Violette had immediately noticed what had happened.

“Oh! Sorry, Gael!”, Violette said apologetically, trying to keep her hair tamed.

“Oh, it’s fine. I know what it must be like to keep it from blowing around in this breeze”, Gael replied. It was then she noticed Violette’s project. The knight was widdling at a dust crystal; much like she had done the night prior, when they were at the saloon. This crystal was a dark green in color, and was barely worked on. “Working on that secret project of yours again?”, Gael asked with a smile. Violette looked to her crystal, then back to her with a smile of her own.

“M-hmm, suuuuper secret, shhhh!”, Violette replied, putting a finger to her mouth. Gael giggled.

“I’m excited to see what this turns into. Hope it comes out as well as you hope!”, Gael said with genuine enthusiasm. She loved seeing people follow through their creativity with things like crafts and writing. Always a fan of the arts, seeing someone’s imagination come to life, in a way, really made her happy.

Violette was an easy example of this, as she always had something stirring with that mind of hers. Violette was also a skilled artist in her own right, and often showed Gael her work, which she always appreciated.

“I hope so too. It’s not something that’s going to be a work of art, but it’s personal, so I intend to make sure it’s done right”, Violette explained.

“Not to slow down your progress, but do you mind?“, Nickel asked suddenly, his hand sticking out through the back window. Violette took a moment before realizing what he wanted.

“Oh! Yeah, of course”, Violette said, handing him the knife. Nickel took it and spun it around in his hand. The knife opened and the blade swung around. Before long, it turned into his cigar cutter. Nickel pulled out a fresh cigar from his suit jacket pocket and cut the tip off. He spun the cutter around some more before it reverted back to the knife and handed it back to Violette.

“Men and their toys”, Gael said with a giggle. Nickel scoffed.

“Don’t hate because you’re jealous”, Nickel replied, lighting the cigar with a match. Violette immediately began widdling the crystal again. Terra, who had for the most part remained quiet for the trip, glanced briefly at the crystal.

“Isn’t that dangerous? I always thought dust crystals were pretty, well, explosive”, Terra said.

“They can be, depending on what you do to them. It typically requires a source of heat or electricity for them to react. They’re inert in this state”, Gael explained. It wasn’t uncommon for people other than hunters or scientists to be confused on how dust worked in its different forms. In their defense, understanding something so powerful and diverse was tricky for anyone.

“I guess those hunter schools teach a lot more than just fighting then, huh?”, Terra said.

“The schools teach the same curriculums as any other school, really. They just have the added classes for being a hunter included. You can theoretically send someone who’s not a hunter to one of the hunstmen academies and they’d get about the same education anyway, it’s just impractical”, Eallgréne explained.

“Impractical? How so?”, Terra asked.

“Cause those academies are a real bitch to get into”, Nickel replied. With Acqua no longer in their presence, he was no longer worried about his language.

“Not only do they have a difficult exam you have to pass, but generally you have to have at least some fighting experience. It’s technically not required, but unless you have connections, odds are you wouldn’t make it if you weren’t serious about being a fighter”, Gael detailed. Terra thought of all of this for a moment and chuckled to himself.

“You know, I never really thought much of any of that behind the scenes stuff. It’s amazing what you learn when you actually listen to someone and think it over”, Terra said.

“There’s a lot that people don’t put into perspective when it comes to being a hunter. Not that that’s a bad thing, but it does lead to a lot of unintentional ignorance”, Eallgréne said, screwing on one last arrowhead before putting his quiver away.

“Guess you got a point there. I only ever met a handful of hunters before you all, and they weren’t nearly as, well…”, Terra said, trailing off.

“Friendly?”, Gael asked with a hopeful smile. Terra smirked.

“Well, I was thinking “talkative”, but friendly works too”, Terra said. Gael’s faunus ears lowered and she looked disappointed. Nickel laughed out loud. Before any reply could be made, Terra noticed something before them and smiled. “Well, any of this look familiar to you?”.

The hunters looked ahead of them to see that the farming fields had expanded, with more buildings dotting the landscape. The fields were worked on by many farmers, some independently, others in large groups. Large farming machines were driven on and around the fields. Several buildings appeared to be mills or animal pens, showing that these were upscale farms. “We’re going through Vale’s farming district. Guess that means we made it”, Eallgréne pointed out.

“Yep! Not gonna lie, as much as I love working my own little fields, it’d sure be nice to have a few of these machines to make work easier”, Terra said, eyeing some of the large tractors. Gael turned to Violette.

“Like I said, men and their toys”, Gael remarked. The girls giggled.

“We should be hitting the commercial district shortly. That’s where I’ll be setting up my stand. Is there any place in particular in the city you’d like me to drop you off at?”, Terra asked.

“No, no. That will do just fine. You’ve already done enough for us, no need to make more work for yourself when you have all this cargo. Besides, my sister’s in that district anyway, so that works out well for us”, Eallgréne explained.

Driving through the farming district took little time. The road cut through the fields and led directly to the city of Vale itself. As the fields and barns gave way to upscale buildings and shops, the group of hunters found themselves feeling antsy. It had been a long time since any of them had been back to the city. There was a lot that they wanted to see and check up on. But they couldn’t forget, they were there for a mission, and that took priority over everything.

Well, mostly everything.

Terra stopped the truck when they had reached a open lot in the middle of the commercial district. Already, many other kiosks and stands were being set up, selling all matter of goods. The hunters hopped out of the truck and looked around. They had made it.

“Vale…we made it”, Gael said, spinning around slowly to take in the sights. It was like stepping out of a dream to her. Something she hadn’t seen in years, experiencing it all again. It was a lot to take in, but it felt good. This was a second home to her. And for someone always on the road, that meant something.

“It certainly hasn’t changed much, has it?”, Eallgréne said with a smile. Nickel shrugged.

“Ehh, let’s see…”, Nickel said. He then looked around before spotting a passerby walking passed. “Hey!”. The passerby stopped and looked to Nickel. “Ozpin’s a terrible headmaster!”. The passerby looked confused and continued to walk on, faster this time. Nickel scoffed. “People are still wimps…yep, Vale hasn’t changed at all”. The others shook their heads and sighed.

“Good job Nickel. Make headlines immediately when we make it into the city, that’s what we need right now”, Eallgréne said with heavy sarcasm. He turned to Terra, trying to change the subject before Nickel retorted and made matters worse. “Need any help with the stand?”

“Oh no. I do everything out of the truck, so little to actually set up. I’ve done this loads of time. If you all have anything you need to do, you go right ahead”, Terra explained. Eallgréne nodded and approached the farmer.

“If that’s the case, then I guess it’s goodbye. Thank you for all you’ve done for us. May you and your family be blessed in your future endeavors”, Eallgréne said, holding out his hand. Gael appeared impressed at his unprompted gesture, but kept it to herself. Terra replied by holding out his own hand and the two shook.

“It’s I who should be thanking you all for what you’ve done. Hope you all have a good stay in Vale. And if you’re ever in the neighborhood again, don’t be strangers, come say hi!”, Terra replied.

“Absolutely; we’d love to, and look forward to that day. Thanks again!”, Gael said, giving Terra a quick hug. Violette curtsied and Nickel gave a little head bob. The hunters waved goodbye one final time and walked off.

“I’ll sure miss them”, Gael said to the others.

“Yeah, they’re good people. We’ll have to see them again sometime”, Nickel remarked through gritted teeth as the smoke from his cigar lightly billowed in the air.

“I’m sure we will soon enough. We kinda have to”, Eallgréne stated.

“How so?”, Gael asked.

“We make connections with everyone we meet, for better or worse. They become a part of us and help make us who we are. Connections that strong can’t be ignored for long. We’ll see them again at some point in our lives; likely sooner than we think”, Eallgréne explained. Gael smiled at the wording. Nickel scoffed.

“Eallgréne once again being the poet”, Nickel remarked. Violette playfully bumped into him in response.

“So where to first?”, Violette asked, changing the subject.

“At some point I wanna see if I can find that contact, see what they know on Amber and this mysterious group; if anything”, Nickel said.

“I assume you’ll want to see your sister first. She may know something herself, and she’ll have a phone for Nickel to contact his connection”, Gael explained. Eallgréne remained quiet during the team’s discussion. They noticed that he seemed to be in deep thought over something. And whatever it was he was thinking about, it wasn’t a light subject. “…Eallgréne?”, Gael asked.

“…Yeah, we’ll see my sister soon…but there’s somewheres I want to stop by first”, Eallgréne replied.

“Really? Is this place about the mission?”, Gael asked. Eallgréne shook his head. “Then…”. Eallgréne looked down at the ground. The others didn’t understand why the question made him feel so solemn.

“…I want to check out the spires”, Eallgréne answered. The other hunters kept quiet. They simply nodded in understanding and left the subject at that.

They knew the importance behind the visit.

The walk to their destination was short and quiet. They knew exactly where it was, and didn’t waste their time getting there. In the middle of an open plaza, away from any buildings and surrounded instead by park benches, open grass, and flower gardens, were 4 tall spires. They were arranged in a diamond shape, and were made of shined marble. Each were colored differently; white, blue, green, and orange. In the center of the diamond was a smaller, black column, with a plaque on the top. The words on the plaque were written in gold lettering:

“These spires, erected by the 4 Hunstman Academies of Remnant, are dedicated to the huntsman and huntresses who lost their lives protecting the world we live in. May their names and memories never fade or be forgotten”.

Team Evergreen approached the spires, looking over the names etched in them. Each color corresponded to a hunstman academy; listing the names of the deceased huntsmen from that region. Names of deceased individuals were placed near the names of their team and the date of their death. Gael sighed.

“…The lists have gotten a lot longer since the last time I saw this”, Gael remarked.

“…Before long, they’ll need to add new spires”, Violette added solemnly. Nickel approached the blue spire, which represented Mistral and Haven Academy. He read the names in his head. Some he recognized and knew already of their passing. Others he didn’t know at all. As he bent down to read the names lower on the spire, one name he spotted suddenly caused his heart to sink in his chest.

“Oh no…Beryl passed away". There was a brief pause of silence before he continued. “Beryl Morgan was a friend of mine from when I went to Sanctum Academy. We were pretty tight…I hadn’t seen him in a long time…never got the chance to catch up when I should have”, Nickel explained. He covered his mouth, trying to hold back emotion. Expressing sorrow was something he wasn’t used to doing, at least not publicly. Violette, understanding what it meant to him to show this in front of the others, approached him; bending down to his level and hugging him in support.

Nickel looked down at the ground, his eyes closed. The others didn’t know if he was praying, or just recalling past memories of his fallen friend. Eventually, he pulled out his flask from his pocket and unscrewed the top.

“Beryl always did appreciate a good drink, like me…here’s to you, buddy”, Nickel exclaimed, holding the flask out to the sky briefly. He then poured a small amount on the ground, the whiskey splashing on the concrete and blue spire, before taking a swig for himself. With Violette’s help, he stood back up.

“Are you going to be ok?”, Gael asked, concerned for her friend. Nickel nodded.

“Yeah…yeah, I’ll be fine”, Nickel replied. The unfortunate truth of their job was that this was common. Losing friends and loved ones who were huntsmen was something almost everyone dealt with. Because of this, grief periods often felt short. Gael continued to watch as Nickel stood and looked at the name. She then approached Eallgréne.

He stood in front of the green spire, which represented Vale and Beacon Academy. This spire had the biggest impact on the group, as it was littered with the names of former classmates, teachers, and friends they had known attending the school and growing up. Eallgréne, hailing from Vale himself, likely knew more of the names than the others.

“…Azul from Team WATR, Onyx from Team OXYD, all of Team BRAZ, Cinna and Piperi from Team SPCE…we’ve lost a lot of friends over the years”, Eallgréne said solemnly.

“I didn’t know that a lot of these people had passed. When you’re in the field, you just…don’t think to look it up”, Gael remarked. She felt guilt build up, and she resisted the urge to cry. The idea of not talking to these hunters, people she considered friends, before it was too late hurt her. It was taken for granted. She didn’t know why; she knew that it could easily have happened. But she did none the less, and now they were gone forever.

“You can’t blame yourself for that”, Eallgréne replied, sensing her emotions. “You know that the same thoughts crossed their minds too. Our jobs…our livelihoods, they’re time consuming. We’re rarely ever able to catch a breather and just talk. I haven’t talked to my own sister in months, I haven’t seen you all in about two years, and you’re all FAMILY. You can’t kill yourself with guilt over not talking to everyone you once knew. As awful as it may feel, you’ll just have to accept it”. He then turned his head towards the faunus. “Life’s too short to have that on your conscience”.

“You don’t think about it? The people you never got to say goodbye to?”, Gael asked. Eallgréne sighed.

“Everyday. But I don’t let it slow me down. I may not have gotten to say goodbye, but I’ll always remember them. So long as they’re not forgotten, then that should be enough”, Eallgréne explained. He put his right hand on the stone. It felt warm to the touch, even through his fingerless gloves; Eallgréne smiled. “They’re not truly gone anyway…they’re here with us, always”.

Gael stared at Eallgréne for a bit, then to the spire. Slowly, she put her left hand on the stone, right beside the archer’s. She felt the warm touch of the stone and closed her eyes. The huntress took a moment to think of those who died, and promised to herself to always remember them. A small breeze blew passed. Her ears, which were lowered for the time they were at the memorial, finally stood up. She smiled, Eallgréne was right.

They WERE there with them.

Gael turned to her partner and nodded. He smiled in response. He looked to the stone, seeing his hand close to hers. There was a moment’s pause before he pulled his hand away, his smile faded. Gael did not understand the motion, but didn’t think heavily on it.

“Are we ready to head out?”, Eallgréne asked the group. Nickel had recovered, (for the most part), and nodded. Violette, who had been looking over the white spire of Atlas, turned to them.

“I am, if you all are”, Violette declared. Eallgréne turned to Gael. She nodded.

“Yes…I’m ready”, Gael replied.

“Ok then. Let’s head out. When we’re at Steorra’s, we’ll contact Faramant, and Nickel and see if he can get a hold of his contact”, Eallgréne explained.

The group left the memorial and made their way back through to the commercial district. The group looked over the shops and stands, reflecting and recalling memories they had of the places, and how remarkable it was that little had changed in the years since. They watched as adults led their kids through the shops, looking at clothes and produce. Young hunters and huntresses, likely new to Beacon Academy, browsed the stands. It made the group think of their first year at Beacon as well.

Before long, they finally reached the all-too-familiar street they were looking for. It was relatively close to the school, which was a good location for the shop they were walking to. The street had a brick path down the middle, with large potted plants of small trees and shrubs on either side of it, separated several feet from one-another. All the shops were connected, with some buildings having a few stories on top of them.

Eallgréne stopped in front of one shop in particular, followed shortly by the others. The shop was two stories tall, and made of cobblestone and wood. Large windows in the front revealed an array of different weapons. Swords, pistols, axes, bows, and the like were on display. Long, wooden flower boxes hung under the windows, filled with pansies, marigolds, and hyacinths of orange, red, blue, yellow, and other colors. Hanging on the second story was a large wooden sign, which read “The Armory”.

“Well, shop’s still standing. At least we know she’s still in business”, Nickel remarked. The girls turned to him. He looked back. “…What!?”.

Eallgréne ignored Nickel and approached the door. It was wooden and thick, with a small window in the front and a gold-colored handle. He opened the door, which rung a bell on the inside. He sighed.

He hoped she wouldn’t be too upset with him.

Quick short update before 4th of July. Maybe another chapter out before then, who knows? Wanna do a quick shout-out to @gaelfox for promoting EVGN on her profile, and for showing me the names of other authors/artists who worked on their own stories/interpretations of RWBY Gael, so cool to see! Thanks also to the anonymous person who asked her the question to begin with! Hope you’re all enjoying the read as much as I am writing it! If you have any questions, about the characters or lore or whatever, feel free to write a note or send me a message! Have a good day! :D