#the thing on the side is my first attempt at finding a sigil/necklace for him that represents his whole deal + lake hylia

[rawliverandgoronspice]

btw, first Viscount attempt. I'm aiming for "massive dickhead" energy, with a side-serving of "completely offbase main character syndrome"

[slytherinbarnes]

Sub Rosa [55]

x. die all, die merrily

Pairing: Bellamy Blake x reader

Word Count: 4.6k

Warnings: I mean, the title says it all, people die, there is fighting and violence. also some light smut, a lil touch of kidnapping, and some language to finish it all up.

Summary: the final conclave begins, and 13 clans fight for the ultimate prize: surviving the apocalypse. 

a/n: I AM NERVOUS TO POST THIS BC APPARENTLY THIS IS A LOT OF YALLS FAVORITE EPISODE EVER SO I HOPE I DID IT JUSTICE! the taglist for this series is open! I hope you enjoy, please let me know what you think!!!

previous chapter // season masterlist // series masterlist

March 27th, 2150; Polis

You wake to the sounds of yelling outside. 

Your eyes pull open slowly, blinking against the bright light of the sun that streams into the room from the balcony. You roll over, coming face to face with Bellamy, who is looking down at you and smiling. You give him a sleepy smile in return. “How long have you been up?”

He glances towards the balcony, before his eyes fall on you again. “An hour or so. Sounds like they’re prepping for the conclave.”

You hum in agreement. “Didn't Clarke say it starts tomorrow? I’m sure there’s a lot to be done and not much time to do it in.”

“Does that mean we have to help too?”

You laugh at the grimace on his face, clearly not excited about this prospect. “Probably.”

He sighs and starts to stand from the bed, but you grab his hand and pull him back down towards you. He looks at you in surprise as you give him a mischievous look, pulling him down even closer, until his face is inches from yours. “We can have some fun first though, don’t you think?”

He catches onto your line of thinking easily, and he gives you a look full of fire and passion. He answers your question with a searing kiss, your previous separation making you savor the kiss more than you usually do. His hands come to land on either side of your face, holding you in place as he kisses you like his life depends on it. Like he’s a drowning man and you’re a tank of oxygen sent to save him. His hands slide from your face, down to your body, sliding all over you, the feeling of his skin on yours electric. 

He pulls you closer to his body, tugging until you move to straddle him, the fur blanket sliding off of you as you do. You run your hands down his already naked chest, his shirt on you, your favorite thing to sleep in, and he smiles up at you. You tug the shirt off and toss it to the side, and his eyes roam your body with appreciation, taking you in. You have to resist the urge to cover up, knowing how much he likes to look at you, but still, you whisper, “You’re staring.”

“I’m admiring. I’m drawing a detailed image of you in my brain for later, and I want to make sure I don’t miss anything.”

His fingers trace over a few of your scars, the one on your shoulder from the arrow, the one on your leg from Roan, and the one on your side from the assassin, and you can see his eyes mapping their location on your body. You copy the motion with him, carefully tracing the scar on his side, the one you stitched up. He glances down at it, the small, jagged little scar, shaped like an uneven lightning bolt. “It is crooked. Sorry about that.”

“Don't be, I like it. It reminds me of you.”

“It looks like lightning. The perfect scar for my stormy boyfriend.”

He gives you a peculiar look. “You think I'm stormy?”

You lean down and kiss him, chasing away the insecurity that seems to creep up. “Not in a bad way. Storms are powerful, forces to be reckoned with. Sometimes they rage and crackle, but they cleanse too, and help the Earth grow.”

He smiles up at you, his face softening and his earlier insecurity now gone. “And you are radiant. Breathtaking. Beautiful.”

He kisses you in between each compliment, lingering on the last one, making it long and slow. You open your mouth, granting his tongue access, and they dance and move together in a perfect symphony. As he kisses you, you both slide out of any remaining undergarments, both of you naked and warm against each other. The usual vulnerability, and fear, that comes with being naked around another person is lost on you, because Bellamy is careful to radiate nothing but love and adoration, wanting you to feel safe and secure. 

He breaks the kiss to watch you as you sink onto him, both of you moaning with pleasure. He rolls you both, situating your body beneath his, his arms supporting his weight next to your head, caging you between them. Your eyes lock as you move together, finding your rhythm, and his other hand slips between your bodies to bring you closer to the edge. You fall first, eyes squeezed shut and head thrown back in pleasure, and the sight of you sends Bellamy over right after.

He kisses you again as you come down from your high, the kiss lazy and sloppy, both of you feeling like jelly as your pleasure rolls through you. Bellamy eventually rolls off you, laying down at your side, turning to watch you. You turn to face him, smiling up at his freckled face and messy curls, “Tell me about the gods.”

He smiles, always ready to oblige, before launching into his story. “Persephone, better known as the goddess of the dead and Underworld, wasn’t always known that way…”

-

March 28th, 2150; Polis

Bellamy’s hand is held tight in your own, slick with sweat from nerves as he leads you down the hall, towards Octavia’s room. The tradition of the Final Conclave has now begun, and in mere minutes, Octavia will walk onto the stage in front of everyone, and accept the sigil of her clan, your clan, and fight until the death for Skaikru. 

When Bellamy reaches the door, he turns and looks at you, nervous, and you nod your head, reassuring him. He lifts his hand and knocks, and Octavia looks his way, quickly looking away again when she realizes who it is. “You here to give me a pep talk?”

He drops your hand and steps into the room, settling onto the couch beside her. You linger in the doorway, here for emotional support more than anything, watching Bellamy make his last attempt to save his sister. “You don't have to do this. We can find someone else to fight. “

“If I die, I die. At least I go down fighting.”

“O-”

She cuts him off immediately, shutting down his argument. “Don't. This is my decision, Bell. I know what the odds are, I don't need you pointing them out.”

You hear footsteps from down the hall, and you peek behind you, watching as your twin approaches you. Her face is set in a grim expression, not optimistic at all, and as soon as she looks up and meets your eyes, she calls out, “It's time.”

You nod, turning to pass the message along to Octavia, but she must have heard because she is already standing and walking your way. You get a good look at her make up as she approaches, the dark war paint painted over each of her eyes in the shape of an upside down “L”. You realize immediately what her inspiration is, and as she stops in front of you, you whisper, “Lincoln’s tattoo.”

She nods once, confirming your suspicion, and you see a quick pass of nerves cross her features. You reach out and squeeze her shoulder, offering her comfort. “He’s always with you, especially now, and I know he's proud of you.”

She gives you a small smile before walking past you and out the door, walking down the long hallway to the stage. You and Bellamy follow her path until you meet up with Clarke, who leads you out a side door and into the crowd, just in time to watch Gaia, Indra’s daughter, announce, “Octavia kom Skaikru, step forward.”

Octavia steps up onto the stage and ducks her head, allowing Gaia to attach a necklace around her neck. “Accept the sigil of your clan and fight with honor as their champion.”

She walks across the stage and comes to a stop beside Roan, and you and Bellamy exchange a look as Gaia begins her final speech. “Soon will begin the Final Conclave, a battle to the death within the walls of Polis. These warriors will fight until only one remains. When that warrior collects all of the sigils from the fallen and delivers them to me, they will be declared the victor. This final champion alone will tell us which clan is meant to survive in the crypt of Bekka Pramheda, and which clans are meant to perish in Praimfaya. Osir koma op daun bilaik slip daun kom bleirona, ba mafta op Won bilaik hef em op mou beda.”

Kane translates for you and Bellamy, able to understand the words faster than both of you can. “We honor those who fall by the sword, but follow the One who wields it best.”

Somewhere behind you in the crowd, someone yells, “Daun bilaik ai!”

That would be me. You all turn and watch in shock as Luna stalks through the crowd, shoving people out of her way to get to the front, and you can sense trouble brewing as soon as you see her face. “Shit.”

Bellamy looks at you, not understanding what you mean, not aware of just how bad things got for Luna on Becca’s Island. She stalks onto the stage and comes to a stop in front of Gaia. “I'm Luna kom Floukru, and I'm the last of my clan.”

“We know who you are...The Natblida who ran from her conclave.”

“I'm not running from this one.”

Gaia turns and grabs the last necklace from the bowl, turning to face the angry Nightblood. “Accept this sigil, Luna kom Floukru. But with your clan gone, who will you fight for?”

“I fight for no one. I fight for death.” She snatches the necklace from Gaia’s hands and turns and holds it up for the crowd. “When I win, no one will be saved.”

Her words immediately send a wave of murmurs through the crowd, and Gaia quickly solves the problem by dispersing the crowd and sending the warriors down into the weapons room to arm up and prepare for the battle. You, Kane, Bellamy, Clarke, and Jaha all cluster in a circle, quietly discussing Luna's arrival when Gaia comes over to your group, voice full of authority. “Skaikru! Three advisors to the worgeda. The rest of you, report to your designated safe zone. Now.”

Kane gestures to you and Bellamy, “Come on. We have to get her ready.”

Jaha reaches out and grabs Kane’s arm, stopping him from leaving. “This conversation isn't over. The death wave will be here within three days, and here we are, risking the fate of our people on a blood sport?”

Clarke corrects him, “The fate of all people, You heard Luna.”

“She's just one of 13.”

You wince, remembering when you walked in a room to save Luna from at least 6 men, only to find that she had already saved herself. And that was after being repeatedly tortured. “You're wrong. She's a Nightblood novitiate, which means she trained in combat exactly like this.”

Bellamy looks at you, misunderstanding you. “You want us to cheat?”

“No.” You look at him, shaking your head. “I only mean that Luna is the walking definition of killer warrior, and that scares me.”

Kane adds, “Besides, you know the rules. If we break them, we lose, and if we lose, we die.”

“The rules are not the problem, Marcus. The game is. Even if we stop Luna, even if Octavia finds a way to win, does anyone truly believe that the Grounders will accept Skaikru as the lone survivors?”

“Yes. The conclave is sacred, they'll honor the winner. Like it or not, we're all Grounders now.” The words tug at a memory, Bellamy standing in the middle of a circle of delinquents, convincing all of you to fight the Grounders coming your way. But Kane pulls you from that memory when he looks at Jaha, and says, “You get our people to the safe zone, we'll have Octavia ready for the fight. The rest is up to her.”

You and Clarke nod at each other, knowing you’ll see each other again soon, after the Conclave. Either as the sole clan to survive Praimfaya, or as one of 13 clans left outside to perish. Bellamy walks close to you as you follow Kane into the weapons area, leading you over to Octavia. As you walk towards her, you eye the competition, taking notes on their weapons, their fighting, anything you can gather that might help her. Kane seems to have the same idea because as soon as he stops in front of her and you and Bellamy stop beside him, he starts, “All right, listen to me. The Blue Cliff Warrior, she has two corvo blades. I just saw her practicing. She's left handed, you go for her weak hand.”

“Okay.”

You add to his point, “Plains Rider and the warrior from Shallow Valley, they're strong, but slow. You can avoid them, not to mention the black rain, which could fall at any moment, so stay close to cover.”

Beside you, Bellamy fidgets in place, turning and looking away, which does not go unnoticed by you or Octavia. She snaps, “What, Bellamy? If you've got something to say, just say it.”

“You don't need any of this. When the starting horn blows, just stay out of sight and let the others thin out the competition.”

“You want me to hide?”

“You don't need to go up against the strongest warrior from every clan.”

“I came here to fight.”

Bellamy bends down a little, matching their heights, his voice almost pleading, “You were the girl under the floor. Use that, just like Mom taught us.” 

Kane nods, “Bellamy's right. You don't have to kill all 12 warriors.”

“I just have to kill the last one.”

All of you exchange a nod, now on the same page in terms of strategy. Behind you, one of the Flamekeeper scouts announces, “Ambassadors and advisors, to the tower. Champions, to your flags.”

Kane and Octavia hug, quick and fierce, before she turns to Bellamy. They hover near each other, unsure whether they should hug, and eventually Octavia settles on, “May we meet again.”

“Damn right we will.”

Bellamy’s voice is sad, and he looks like he wants to hug her, but he’s so worried about upsetting her before the battle that he doesn’t. He just turns and starts to walk away, leaving you and Octavia alone. You don't hesitate to hug her, reaching out and grabbing her, squeezing her tight and passing along as much love and strength as you can through the hug. She hugs you back tight, almost desperate, and when you pull away, both of you have tears in your eyes, aware this might be your last goodbye. You smile through your tears, “You were my first friend on the ground, and the first person to see me as someone other than the Invisible Twin. Now you’re my people, my family, my sister. I am so incredibly proud of you.”

She smiles at you and you see her fighting back her tears, not wanting anyone to see her crying. She squeezes your arm and whispers, “I love you. Bellamy too.”

You nod, already aware, because you knew the siblings couldn't stay upset with each other long. Lincoln's death left a mark on their relationship, but that doesn't mean their relationship was irreparable. You start to answer when one of the Flamekeepers grabs your arms and pulls you away, pushing you towards the door to the tower. You turn and wave one last goodbye to Octavia, eyes watching the small girl melt into the crowd of warriors who have been fighting longer than she’s been alive. You meet Bellamy at the elevator, and his face is fallen, completely upset. You slip your hand in his and he looks over at you in surprise, so lost in his own head that he didn't even hear your approach. “What did she say?”

“She said she loves you.”

Surprise takes over his expression, then regret, and he immediately drops your hands and turns away, “I have to tell her I love her.”

But the Flamekeeper who pushed you out of the room blocks his path, pushing him back towards the elevator, not allowing him to leave. You can tell Bellamy wants to fight it and fight him, but you reach out and grab his hand again, pulling him towards the now waiting elevator. “She’s going to win, Bellamy. You can tell her afterwards.”

He nods and you ride the elevator to the top, meeting up with Kane in the throne room, just as the horn sounds, signaling the beginning of the conclave. You can hear the sounds of fighting immediately, and the tensions inside the room are high as you hear the clang of swords and the thud of fallen bodies. Minutes later, Gaia comes into the room and announces, “The first two champions have fallen.”

Everyone turns towards her, absolutely terrified that she will say the name of the warrior from their clan, and you, Kane, and Bellamy are no exception. 

“Gael kom Ingranronakru, yu gonplei ste odon.”

One of the Flamekeepers walks over to the candle that represents the Plains Riders and puts the flame out, ending their battle for the bunker. You all watch the Flamekeeper turn away from the snuffed candle and walk towards the next one, and your heart drops as every step he takes brings him closer and closer to the Skaikru candle. Bellamy whispers, “Please don't be her.”

Luckily, but still heartbreaking, the Flamekeeper stops just shy, in front of the Trikru candle, as Gaia announces, “Fio kom Trikru, yu gonplei ste odon.”

Relieved, you turn to Bellamy. “Octavia's still out there.”

Bellamy’s eyes turn towards you, full of tears, his expression breaking your heart. “I couldn't tell her I loved her, even with the world ending.”

You squeeze his hand, still held tight in yours. “Trust me, Bellamy, she knows.”

He nods and his eyes drop to the floor, lost in his head again, and you and Kane share a look. With nothing else to do now, except wait, you and Bellamy head out to the balcony with your binoculars, watching the fights alongside Gaia. Kane comes out onto the balcony as you watch the Blue Cliff warrior kill the Sangedakru warrior, and Bellamy lets out a small gasp at the sight of the death. When you turn to look at him in confusion, he nods towards Kane, and you follow him as he leads you over to the Chancellor. Bellamy’s voice is low when he mutters, “We just saw the Blue Cliff warrior kill the Sangedakru warrior with a bow.”

“So?”

Bellamy looks at you, and you remember your pre fight conversation with Octavia. You tell Kane, “So, we saw her before the fight. She didn't have a bow, she had two swords.”

“Yeah, the corvo blades.” He shrugs, not understanding your worry. “Well, she could have picked up a bow off the battlefield.”

You and Bellamy exchange a look, both of you aware that someone you know is exceptionally good with a bow, and exceptionally good at betrayal. You both step back inside the room, scanning for the Azgeda spy, shaking your head when you don't see her. Kane comes up beside you, looking between you in confusion. “What is it?”

“Echo's gone.”

As soon as the words leave your mouth, Bellamy stalks out of the room, looking like a man on a mission, and you and Kane look at each other in panic before running after him. “Bellamy, wait!”

He spins around to face the two of you, annoyed at the interruption. “My sister is down there. Echo is cheating, and I'm gonna stop her.”

Kane shakes his head, “Let one of Gaia's scouts find her, and then Ice Nation will be punished.”

“They'll never catch her. Echo's a spy, this is what she does.”

He tries to walk away again but you grab his arm to stop him. “Listen to me, Bellamy, I’m with you. But running out there in broad daylight is not the way to fix this.”

“So, you think I should just stay here and do nothing?”

You shake your head, and Kane vocalizes a plan you were already starting to form in your head. “No. You wait until dark so you don't get caught. And then the two of you get her out of the fight and get back here without being seen. Clear?”

“Clear.”

-

The wait until nightfall is agonizingly long, and all you can do is hope that Octavia makes it until then, safely away from Echo’s arrows. When darkness finally blankets the city, only five lit candles remain. Floukru, Azgeda, Podakru, Louwoda Kliron, and Skaikru. 

Bellamy leads you through the streets of Polis, heading towards the building Echo is hiding in, careful to keep the both of you hidden from the view of any warriors or Flamekeepers. You’re close to the building when Bellamy abruptly stops and pulls you back behind a wall, disguised in the shadows. You know it’s too dangerous to ask why, but you don't need to, because a second later the Shallow Valley warrior comes into view. He seems to see something in the distance that you can’t see, because you watch him brace himself before a scream breaks free from the unseen force, and Luna comes running into view. She kills him quickly, easily, and just like that, five lit candles becomes four. 

Luna stalks out of view again, and as soon as Bellamy is sure it’s clear, he takes off running again, leading you the last few steps to the building. The two of you creep up the stairs slowly, remembering that Echo is up high, and when you reach the door to her hiding spot, Bellamy gives you two hand signals: push the door open and then immediately get down. You nod your head, letting him you know you understand, and then he counts you down from three. As soon as he puts his last finger down, you swing the door open as quickly and quietly as you can, before you immediately duck, Echo’s arrow landing in the door right above your head.

Bellamy runs forward and tackles her to the ground, and the two of them fight back and forth until he gets the upper hand, wrapping his hands around her neck and choking her. She is seconds away from death when you feel a knife to your throat and you freeze in place, voice frantic when you call out, “Bellamy.”

He turns and his face drops when he sees you, his hands instantly releasing Echo’s throat, allowing her to breathe. He steps away from her and the person at your back shoves you towards Bellamy, who catches you with ease, and when you turn around you really aren't surprised to see Roan standing there, sword pointed at you and Bellamy as he glares at you. “I should've known you three couldn't stay away. I heard you all the way down the street, you're lucky I wasn't a scout.”

Bellamy nods towards the Ice Nation spy. “We came to stop her.”

“Explain yourself.”

“I was only trying to help save our people.”

Roan sneers at her, “I am not my mother. I'm not willing to cast aside honor for power.”

“No one has to know.”

“You misunderstand. I will not allow your dishonor to give Luna an advantage, and you will not shame our clan ever again. You are Azgeda no more.”

Shock takes over Echo’s face, and you have to resist the urge to smirk at her. “Sire, wait.”

“You're banished, Echo, and when I win this conclave, make no mistake, there will be no place for you inside that bunker. Now get out of my sight, and off this battlefield without being seen, or know that you are the cause of the death of our people.”

She swallows hard, fighting back tears, before turning and leaving the room, sneaking out and off the battlefield, despite having nowhere else to go. Once you and Bellamy are alone with Roan, the sword comes back towards the two of you again, everything about the king threatening. “I take it by your presence here that your sister's still alive.”

“That's right.”

“If I call for a scout, she'll be executed right now.” He lowers the sword, leaving enough room for you to eventually pass. “But what fun would that be? You really think she can win, don't you?”

Bellamy smiles, looking proud. “I wouldn't count her out if I were you. She's survived harder things than this.”

“Before she dies, I'll tell her she's lucky to have you as a brother.”

“I got a better idea. After she guts you and before you die, you tell her I was the lucky one.”

Roan smirks at him and you feel Bellamy's hand slip into your own, letting you know it’s time to go. You step away first, pulling Bellamy behind you, both of you keeping your eyes on the Ice Nation King until you’re out of the room and back on the street. You begin the careful retreat back to the tower, taking a different path than before, just in case. It takes longer this way, but this path is darker, and easier to stay hidden in, and after a few minutes, you’re just outside the tower again. You and Bellamy look at each other and smile a little, relieved to have made it back without getting caught, but that relief is short lived. 

Just as the two of you start towards the door of the tower, two people jump out of the shadows, each one of them grabbing each of you, holding a rag over your mouth. The substance smells awful, and you know without a doubt that you shouldn't be smelling it, but you don't have much time to process that. You and Bellamy look at each other, both of your eyes wide in panic when you see the other in danger, and you fight against your captives. But by then, it's too late. The chemical has kicked in and you feel unconsciousness seize you rapidly, pulling you under at an alarmingly fast rate.

-

The first thing you notice when you wake is the heaviness in your head. 

It feels like someone popped open your skull, stuffed it full of rocks, and closed it up again. You try to pry your eyes open, but they feel heavy, weighed down by anchors. You groan and try again, prying them open with all your strength, closing them back again when they are met with a bright light. But then you hear someone next to you groan, and a hand brushes against yours, familiar and warm.

Bellamy.

This time when you get your eyes open, you turn his way, both of you looking at each other in shock before you confirm that each other is real. You reach towards each other, silently checking the other out, making sure you're okay. And as soon as you realize you are, you both turn and look around the room, realizing you must be in the bunker. Your eyes land on Clarke, standing at the desk in the room near Jaha, both of them looking towards you. You look between them, at the clench of Clarke’s jaw, the extra weight on her shoulders, and your stomach sinks. “What the hell did you do?”

Jaha is the one to answer, sounding unashamed of what he has to say. “If only one clan could survive, it might as well be ours.”

Bellamy turns to your twin, not believing what he’s hearing. “Clarke, you agreed to this?”

“It was her idea.”

You and Bellamy share an incredulous look, before you turn it on Clarke, in disbelief of what she’s done. She sets her jaw, trying to convince herself, and the two of you, of what she’s done. “We did what we had to do.”

-

next chapter

[bytheangell]

Hey!! Can I request a Thomastair angst <3 feel free to ignore this if you want too!! But the fics you write always give me feels 💜💜

Progress Is a Process (Read on AO3)

Alastair hangs back with Thomas while Matthew and James walk ahead down the streets of London. While he’s doing his best to enjoy the time spent with Thomas, even if it is time on patrol, the fact that Matthew and James continue to glance back at them every five seconds with cautious, narrowed eyes, leaves Alastair feeling far from at ease.

“They hate me,” Alastair says quietly so the words don’t reach the other two down the narrow street they just turned into.

“They don’t,” Thomas insists. “They just don’t know you properly.”

It was Thomas’ suggestion that Alastair be put on more patrols with him and the other Merry Thieves, hoping through sheer exposure the others would come around to him. It isn’t going well.

It took long enough for Alastair to smooth things over with Thomas, someone who wanted to forgive him deep down. He isn’t sure the same will be possible with the others. Thomas’ friends don’t even know that the two of them have started dating - so far as they know Thomas just wants to be Alastair’s friend, and even that they barely tolerate. Alastair doesn’t want to cause any waves, he and Thomas only just began dating and if it came down to Thomas having to choose between the Merry Thieves or him, Alastair’s relatively confident he wouldn’t win.

But while Alastair certainly doesn’t want to put Thomas in an uncomfortable situation with his friends, he’d also really like to be holding Thomas’ hand right now, instead of just walking close enough that their arms occasionally brush.

Alastair gives a noncommittal noise and turns the conversation back to a book the two of them were reading through together, ignoring Matthew and James’ looks and focusing entirely on Thomas.

...perhaps too entirely on Thomas. He doesn’t hear the sounds of something following them until the shadow crossing over Thomas alerts him to the demon’s close proximity. Alastair spins, shouting, “Thomas, watch out!” with just enough time to turn and grab Thomas’ shoulders, pulling him to the side.

Alastair winces at the feeling of claws breaking through the clothing and skin down his right side, from just under his ribs down to his hip bone.

Ahead of them Matthew and James hear the shout and turn, only to be faced with four demons of their own, boxing the four Shadowhunters  in.

Thomas’ eyes drift down to where Alastair clutches at his side instinctively, but another demon leaves them no time for an iratze as they draw their weapons and begin to fight. There are eight demons total, Alastair notes after a quick assessment, and though they’re outnumbered two to one they seem to be doing alright… until Alastair hears the clattering noise of a dropped weapon - Thomas’ bolas. He turns in time to see Thomas fall beside it, unmoving. Fighting the panic he feels at the sight Alastair throws his spear from where he stands, piercing the demon that moves to descend on Thomas, dispatching it in a splattering of ichor. He moves as if possessed now, protecting Thomas and killing both of their share of the demons in order to sink down to his knees beside his fallen boyfriend.

Thomas is still breathing, and in fact, doesn’t appear to have any cuts at all. An unlucky blow must’ve knocked him out, perhaps? Before he can say any of this, Matthew is beside him, followed by James, both of whom crowd around Thomas and effectively box Alastair out.

“Let me help,” Alastair insists, stele out.

“Why start being useful now?” Matthew snaps, already moving to the other side of James so each of them can support one side of Thomas to carry him back. “Just go home, Carstairs.”

Alastair is tempted to follow, but he doesn’t want to cause a fight - more importantly, he doesn’t want to delay them leaving with Thomas and getting him help. Without another word he turns and leaves, planning to go home, heal himself up and change, and go back to check up on Thomas afterward.

Now that the rush of the battle is wearing off, however, Alastair can feel something’s wrong. The sudden pain in his stomach and rush of dizziness hit him at once, and it’s all he can do to change his course, spot a shadowy section of a small side street for cover, and fall back against the wall of a building, sliding down to the ground as unconsciousness takes him.

---

It takes him a few disoriented moments to place where he is when Thomas wakes up in the Infirmary at the Institute. Blinking slowly he tries to remember what happened to land him here - the patrol, talking with Alastair, and then-

Alastair. Thomas looks to the beds beside him, but they’re empty.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” Matthew’s voice sounds from the far side of the room.

“Where’s Alastair?” Thomas asks immediately.

“Not here,” Matthew says, sounding pleased about that fact as he makes his way over to Thomas’ bedside.

“He didn’t come back to get his wounds looked at?” Thomas frowns. He’s a little disappointed that Alastair wasn’t there for him, but at the very least he should be here for himself.

“What wounds?” Matthew sounds confused. “I told him we didn’t need three of us to carry you back and sent him home. Honestly, I don’t know why you’re so insistent on trying to befriend him, I-”

Just then Cordelia arrives in the doorway looking panicked. “Where’s Alastair?”

“Why is everyone asking me that tonight,” Matthew mutters. “I told him to sod off. I can promise all of you that if you’re ever looking for Alastair Carstairs you will not find him anywhere in my general vicinity, at least not willingly.”

The words would sting more if Thomas wasn’t distracted by his immediate panic, matching Cordelia’s. “He didn’t come home?” Thomas directs the question to Cordelia.

She shakes her head. “He was due back hours ago. I thought maybe he’d be here…”

“He was injured, during the patrol. He got hurt pushing me out of the way, I-” Thomas pauses to focus beyond the fear the strikes him, attempting to take a calming breath. It doesn’t help. “The demon that attacked us, it had claws, there might’ve been venom. Poison. If he never made it home…”

Alastair could be anywhere.

Alastair could be dead.

“We need to find him. I’ll go back home, get something of his to track, maybe-” Cordelia suggests, but stops as Thomas shakes his head.

“That’ll take too long,” he says. Though Thomas sounds hesitant, he only pauses for a moment before making up his mind.

Thomas reaches a hand down the front of his shirt, pulling up a necklace hidden under his clothes. At the bottom of the silver chain rests a ring with a recognizable C and the Carstairs sigil around the sides. It is, unmistakably, the Carstairs family ring. Alastair’s ring.

“Here,” Thomas says, holding it out. “Use this.”

Thomas catches the flicker of recognition in Matthew’s face before immediately looking away.

“Thomas…” Matthew starts, but Thomas doesn’t even have to stop him because Matthew stops on his own, at a loss for words over the revelation.

“Find him,” Thomas begs, knowing that he’s in no condition to try a tracking rune just then. “Please.”

Matthew nods, taking the ring out of Thomas’ outstretched hand. “I’ll get James. We’ll track better together.”

Thomas closes his eyes in the silence that fills the room once more, but knows he isn’t going to sleep again any time soon.

---

It’s an hour later that Matthew, James, and Cordelia return with an unconscious Alastair in tow. They remove the top layer of his clothing to reveal the blood-soaked fabric beneath and 4 angry cuts running down his side.

“He seemed fine when he left,” Matthew insists. “He didn’t say anything about being hurt, I swear it.”

“That’s because he’s a stubborn ass,” Thomas points out. “Who would want to make sure you take care of me first instead of wasting time fighting with him.”

Thomas rises from his bed, ignoring the way the pain in his head throbs from the sudden movement, and stands besides Alastair. It’s easy to see where Cordelia already marked two iratzes when they found him, and Thomas pulls out his stele to go over them again for good measure. Only then does Thomas drop his hand to the side to rest over Alastair’s cold, unmoving fingers.

“Dad is getting a salve for the wound and a potion to help with the demon toxin,” James says.

None of them make eye contact with Thomas so he can only hope they don’t see the shine of tears that threaten to fall for a moment before he gets control again.

“Thank you,” he says, turning back to them, but in such a way that his hand drifts behind him to remain over Alastair’s. “I know you’d just as soon leave him for dead, so...”

“We would never,” James insists.

“Especially not knowing he’s… uh... important to you,” Matthew says, sounding unsure of what he should be saying here. Thomas hasn’t actually said anything on the matter of him and Alastair yet, not that there’s much left to guess at now, but he doesn’t want to get into it with Matthew and the others just then.

“I’ll stay with him,” Thomas says instead, his tone making it clear that this isn’t a request. “We can talk later?” He adds to James and Matthew, knowing that he owes them some sort of explanation but hoping they’ll be willing to wait.

“Yeah, of course,” James says, and Matthew nods in agreement before they both turn and leave.

Thomas sinks into the chair next to Alastair’s bed, thinking of all the things he plans to say the moment Alastair wakes up. He’s relieved but also filled with regret, his mind full of every moment he and Alastair could’ve greeted one another with quick a kiss, or held hands, wondering if they hadn’t still been a secret if Alastair would’ve come back to the Institute rather than leave himself alone and vulnerable.

Wondering if taking so long to realize just how important Alastair is to him, even if their relationship is still relatively new, could’ve been the thing that lost him forever if Cordelia hadn’t come when she did.

He’s so deep in thought he doesn’t notice that Cordelia moves to take the chair opposite him until she speaks.

“I thought he’s been happier lately,” she says, handing Alastair’s ring and chain back to Thomas. “I was glad to see it, and even more pleased to find out the reason.”

Thomas doesn’t have to ask what she means - he only smiles as he puts the necklace back on, taking what comfort he can from the knowledge.

---

Alastair barely has the chance to blink once before he feels someone’s hand squeeze around his at this first sign of consciousness. His eyelids flutter open slowly to reveal what he already knows by the increasingly familiar touch - that Thomas is with him.

“Thank the Angel,” Thomas sighs next to him, and Alastair notes that he looks tired and wary, all the way down to his bones.

“Are you okay?” Alastair asks him.

Thomas pauses, then laughs incredulously.

“You pass out in an alley on your way home and you’re asking me if I’m okay?”

Alastair cringes at the memory, then at the pain in his side as he shifts to try and sit up in the bed.

“Careful,” Thomas warns, placing one hand on Alastair’s shoulder and the other behind his back to ease him down again. “Cordelia will return any minute and if she thinks I let you re-injure yourself she’ll kill me.”

Thomas gives Alastair a brief summary of what happened, including the fact that their relationship, while never officially declared, isn’t quite secret anymore either.

“I’m sorry they found out,” Alastair says at the end. “I know you didn’t-”

“No, I’m sorry, Alastair. I’m sorry I didn’t tell them sooner. I was a fool for trying to get them to like you more first. I don’t care if they like you. I like you, and that’s all that matters. Forgive me for not realizing that sooner?”

Alastair smiles. “I think I can manage that.”

Thomas smiles back, relief flooding through him as he leans over Alastair for a kiss. They’re both dimly aware of the sound of approaching footsteps and, as neither of them break the kiss, have both decided to embrace showing just how much they care about one another, no matter where they are and who is around to see.

They’re done hiding and they couldn’t care less about who the footsteps belonged to just then.

...that is, until the person clears their throat and speaks in the unmistakable voice of Mr. Herondale.

“I see both my patients are feeling better,” Will says, and Alastair can feel the grimace cross Thomas’ lips while they’re still pressed against his, just before Thomas pulls away with a slight flush on his cheeks.

“Much better,” Alastair confirms.

In fact, injury notwithstanding, this is the best he’s felt in a long time, and he has a pretty good reason to believe that things will only get better from here.

Alastair glances to his side and grins at Thomas, watching as that reason smiles back at him.

[home-is-where-beels-tiddies-are]

i lost the post i had that gave all of caragan’s info, so i’ll just post it again here. first pic is caragan after they die, because only obey me could drive me to design a character post-death 

i did design the sigils myself. then i added the sin marks from the cards, put that little pact symbol on it, and i took the original symbols from the actual demons and simplified/altered them. because i didn’t think it was a good idea to use the actual symbols. don’t wanna manifest something ya know lmao 

very long info dump under the cut. (info dump is copied from the post i lost) and yeah, caragan is a generic super powerful protagonist. so prepare for cheese 

likes: drawing, reading, gaming, and staying at home. they are drawn to dark things; horror, dark colours, literally most things dark.

home/family: they live alone, but near their parents, and they visit almost daily. they have a cat and three snakes (while caragan is away, the fur and scale babies are taken care of, don’t worry) 

age: 27 yrs old, born Jan 7th 

gender: nonbinary, they/them 

height: 4′10 / 147 cm

occupation: part time job, they also make bits and bobs to sell; art, crochet, etc. they went back to college too (and how they signed up for a certain exchange program; in my headcanon, they signed up for it and expected something mundane) then, after their first visit to the devildom, they start learning about the peace that diavolo proposed in their own time, and volunteer for the human organizations involved 

the design after they die: neither angel or demon, appearance shows physical attributes of both. (i also have a lot of post-death info, but… this is already so much, so i will leave it out) the ref i made is below: (worth noting that before their “fall,” using the term very, very loosely, everything on them that is red was white)

appearence: 

they wear all black with small, brightly coloured accessories 

brightly coloured accessories are normally bracelets, scarves, or pins. socks are also always nauseatingly bright 

casual outside attire: black hoodie, black t shirts, black ripped jeans, and converse 

casual around the house attire: grey sweatpants, obnoxious socks, a tank top, and sometimes a sweater or jacket they’ve stolen from the brothers 

formal attire: usually a suit, but asmo can convince them to wear a dress by finding amazing ones and wearing a dress too 

school uniform: jacket sleeves rolled up, or while in classrooms, off completely. no tie, ever. dress pants, wears black flats instead of dress shoes. during their first year, they kept their hair in a ponytail in class 

always wearing their favourite necklace 

first year piercings:

left ear - bar piercing in top, three normal piercings on bottom

right ear - three normal piercings on bottom 

second visit piercings:

left ear - same

right ear - three normal piercings on bottom, and two new normal piercings on top 

they wear binders to their classes and almost always when they go out for less active shenanigans 

rarely wears a binder in the house of lamentation; the first thing they take off when they get home 

hair is greying on both sides of their head, also some greys on top

always, always has dark circles and bags under their eyes 

brothers + romance: they are absolutely smitten with all of them, and they are very blunt and obvious about it. their favourite, though, is beel. this is kept as plainly obvious as their feelings for the others. since they love all of the brothers, they don’t hide their attraction to anyone. for the most part, it works out. 

pact mark locations:  (see first ref pic) 

lucifer - throat 

mammon - upper back 

leviathan - lower back 

satan - left inner thigh 

asmo - right inner thigh 

beel - right inner wrist 

belphie - left inner wrist 

overall, they’re very shy and awkward, and they like to joke around to cover it up. generally quiet, even around those they’re comfortable with. (they don’t talk a lot unless they’re having a ‘moment’ - a day where they’re hyperactive) they have crippling anxiety and depression, but the medication they take eases it. gets irritable around loud noises/people. they make an attempt in having a decent sleep schedule, but most nights they’re awake for hours longer than they intend to be. sleep schedule is more erratic when in the devildom. (probably belphie’s fault.) 

everything below is uh… like, how they act/react to the other characters.  

lucifer:  they mirror what lucifer offers them; if he’s being soft, they will be soft in turn. if he is upset with them, they will apologize and attempt to do better, and they expect the same if the roles are reversed. stuff like that. they don’t openly flirt with lucifer the same way they do some others, instead they focus on gentle interactions. they kept close to lucifer when they first arrived in the devildom (when mammon ditched them) because they deemed him more trustworthy than anyone else. 

mammon:  when with mammon, every filter caragan has is demolished instantly. given mammon never tried to kill or charm them, they grew to respect him very quickly. they also don’t treat mammon like an idiot; they’ve dealt with that themselves enough. yes, they tell him off for doing things that will very clearly come back to bite him in the ass, but they never target his intelligence because they know he’s smarter than he lets on. they openly flirt with mammon because they like to make him blush. they both get into trouble often, but they have each others’ backs throughout. 

leviathan:  they don’t spend as much time with leviathan, but they do enjoy his company. they usually lock away their info dumping and interests, but not with leviathan. he gets to gush about the things he loves, and they match his energy. he tries to offer the same courtesy. they also like to flirt with leviathan to make him blush, but they don’t do it as heavily or as often because his rejections/self deprecating comments make them feel bad. they are also thankful that they can talk to him about their anxiety and he understands it. they rarely call him “levi.” 

satan:  they also don’t spend as much time with satan, but less so than leviathan. they can’t help but feel stupid when they’re with him, so they don’t socialize with him often. buuut any time he offers to socialize, they don’t turn him down. in fact, caragan gets excited. he’s also where they turn to when they’re struggling with their studies or curious about something demon related. they do attempt to joke around and flirt with him, but it’s like a game of chicken, and caragan always ducks out. fairly quickly, too. 

asmodeus:  caragan adores asmo, but they can’t really place why. they also consider him as much a work of art as he does himself. they are very soft with asmo and they rarely flirt with him in a conventional way. even though they reject most sexual advances, they are as handsy as asmo is. asmo is their official cuddle buddy and they love to shower him in gentle affection. if asmo is in sight, they can often be caught staring. at first, they’re very embarrassed by this, and the brothers poke fun. eventually, though, they’re utterly shameless and just widen their smile if asmo catches them. 

beelzebub:  they love beel more than life itself, and that is absolutely not an exaggeration. at first, they were very avoidant and anxious when it came to beel, but when they started to hang out with him, they found him very easy to be around. the attraction started then, but then became way too strong when beel went into full demon mode over his custard. (mood) they started following him around everywhere. they continued that trend well into the year and the following visit. they’re very affectionate and clingy, sitting his lap and hugging him constantly. they carry around as many snacks as their pockets can hold for beel and beel only. 

belphegor:  they knew from the start that belphie was lying to them in the attic and probably meant them harm, but they never held it against him. they never really held their death against him either. they’re quiet around belphie for the most part, even when they started to like him. they often nap with him (against their better judgement) too. the two of them talk a lot about their ideal “me and you and beel” future. more than is healthy. their conversations outside of that are often filled with snark and a weird tension that caragan doesn’t understand. it usually melts away after a cuddle and a nap, though. 

diavolo:  they instantly liked diavolo. they’re very cautious and anxious around him, but they try to be warm in their interactions with him. they do call him “lord diavolo,” and treat him with due respect. he usually throws them for a loop with most things he does, but they try to keep up and be understanding. they have a strong need to get closer to him, for reasons that they don’t understand or even try to understand. they don’t do much about it either. his demon form causes them to become flustered. very flustered. the not-oblivious brothers tease them for it. they have such a huge crush on him. 

barbatos:  they don’t interact with him that much, or try to interact with him outside of things that are necessary. they have nothing against him, they just don’t feel the need to. they’re very polite to him, as polite as they are to diavolo. while they’re curious about him, they don’t go out of their way to interact with him. there’s really not much there besides mild curiosity. 

solomon:  they think he gives off a copious amount of mischievous vibes and it puts them off. at first. they are kind and polite towards him, and they would consider him a friend. the friendship is essentially that “we have no friends in this class so we will become friends to fill the void. but only in this class. we will never speak to each other outside of this place.” it’s not nearly as specific, but that’s the flavour of friendship they have in the beginning. eventually, he grows on caragan and they end up looking forward to seeing him. they just find him very fun. 

simeon:  they think simeon is beautiful and has been caught staring almost as much as when they stare at asmo. with simeon though, they will never be shameless about their staring. they continue to be embarrassed about it forever. forever. they’re polite and kind to simeon, but they feel he keeps himself closed off from them. during their second visit to the devildom, with the play and all, they become a little scared of simeon. it doesn’t change the way they interact with him, but it does put them off for a bit. and after some overthinking, they end up being more drawn to him. 

luke:  they were very anxious around luke, at first. they don’t like kids, and generally become twice as awkward around them. eventually, they found him adorable. when they speak to him, they will focus on child logic, but they do speak to him the way they would speak to anyone. never patronising. happily helps him with studies if they can, gives him affirmation and reassurances whenever needed, and is protective. they have even been known to stand up to lesser demons when they target luke. (when simeon isn’t around; it’s rare) even though caragan is scared shitless the whole time, they try anyway. seeing as they’re only 4′10, they never make short jokes or anything of the like. when the brothers make short jokes, they shoot disapproving looks and will express disappointment if it drags on too long. 

the end of their life time:  they go on to live for a while, dedicating themselves entirely to diavolo on the human side of things, even becoming a public speaker for it. sharing their experiences n all that. which is something they’d never do for anything else. 

at a certain point though, about 50 yrs old or so, they do stop visiting the demon brothers because they’re getting old. they die shortly after in an accident. brothers don’t find out because caragan was already avoiding them. (though, there is general unease because of the bonds they have with caragan. they know something’s very, very wrong but not what. they fear the worst, and they’re right to.) 

but for all the things they did for “the cause,” they were to be judged in the celestial realm. (and… i see it as… in a horrible, horrible way, the big guy upstairs knew everything that would happen with lilith, and deemed her and her brothers an acceptable loss in exchange for peace. it was all orchestrated. i also think that diavolo knew the plan, for the most part. he has his own reasons for wanting the peace, but he does know what the plan was.) 

but they’re escorted to The Big Guy by simeon and luke (a cute reunion with hugs) and he straight up asks caragan what they want. like they can stay here, go to the devildom, or remain in the human realm. 

in any case, they’ll be given all the attributes needed to thrive in all three realms, but only if they continue in their trying to maintain peace. obviously, caragan is all for continuing. and of course, they choose to make their home with the brothers. god’s all like, “you will retain your angelic status, but you do have to fall to achieve the status of demon. are you sure?” they have to have demon attributes to ensure survival and comfort living among demons, so that’s why. 

and caragan straight up says, without missing a beat, “even heaven is hell without them.” everybody knows who they’re talking about. simeon is torn between “that’s so rude” and “that’s so sweet” and luke is horrified. god just laughs. 

they all talk a bit longer so caragan knows exactly what they’re getting into. they will have a lot of power as both angel and demon, but they have to keep their humanity in exchange for that power. which means, inevitably, their long life will become a curse. no human is built to live for a millennia, so it’ll take a toll on their mind and at the end of it all, they won’t be themselves anymore. 

caragan basically says, “yah, worth it. lezgo.” god hands them paperwork, some explaining what caragan is and why, as well as a peace treaty thing to give to diavolo when they get home. i was thinking it’d be something cheesy like “the treaty of the last fallen angel.” no more fallen angels after caragan, they fell so no one else has to again. idk, symbolism or something. but even the future angel/demon hybrids won’t have to fall. 

cue caragan yeeting themselves from the celestial realm. 

diavolo knows caragan’s about to fall (barbatos n all that) and gathers the brothers to the place it’ll be. caragan is just a ball of blue flames, then a crater, the brothers are baffled. 

falling hurts a shit ton (even without losing wings and all that), so caragan ends up crying, but they cry blood. (for angel reasons. i dunno why i think angels cry blood.) which drips from their face and onto the white fabric of the thing they’re wearing, and then everything white fades into a red, even the white of their eyes. (i want to try very roughly animating that one day.) 

then there’s another heart warming reunion, but also with a shit ton of heart break because not only did caragan die, they also just fell. the brothers are angy.

before the brothers can get all “let’s fight god,” caragan hands diavolo the paperwork, all of which he reads out loud for the brothers. 

uh. roll credits. 

just tidbits:

caragan is an angel of perseverance and a demon of despair. 

they have six wings and six eyes on each wing. 

their halo was a tangible ring of golden light, but when they fell, it became horns. but like… still in a ring shape. still a halo. just different. 

they are barefoot in their angel/demon form because they have talons and also just… hate shoes. 

when all the white turned red, all the gold turned silver. 

they look as they did during their second visit to the devildom when they enter their “afterlife.”  

their human form is also just… them. hoodie, ripped jeans, everything, they’re just themselves. 

[sunshine304]

On to eps 25 + 26, my friends! It’s heating up!

Yang Jin was concerned because he saw Yu Wenzhi’s troups – but he definitely, absolutely was NOT concerned for Li Yan, no no! XD They keep on going together, but only... for 5 min or so? Until Li Yan tells him to go help A-Fei in town, since she can make the rest of the way herself (that worked so well before...). It’s cute how Yang Jin doesn’t want to go, but she makes puppy eyes at him and so he leaves.

I guess in the long run that isn’t such a bad decision to send him to A-Fei’s aid. 

Poor Li Yan of course meets an outpost that’s already infiltrated by Disha. At least the man helps her instead of selling her out. And then it turns out that Li Sheng didn’t even include a message, just sending her away from where the attack will happen. Oh Li Sheng... He could have thought about how the outpost might be in Disha’s pockets, though, since it wouldn’t be the first time. Anyway, Li Yan steals a horse and goes to find help.

So much stuff is happening at the same time! Yang Jin asks after the Intinerary Gang who surely will help him (good idea), while Chuchu listens in on the Elders talking about how Li Sheng is very likely dead. She is devastated. T_T

Yu Wenzhi starts distrusting Kou Dan, because she now mentions a rumoured hidden path to the 48 Strongholds. She’s all like, “What, it’s just a rumour.“ and even I side-eye her for that. He wants to set a trap for A-Fei and leaves.

Meanwhile, Xie Yun has already strongly hinted to A-Fei that it would be an advantage if they could get YWZ to distrust at least Kou Dan. A-Fei uses YWZ’s ruse for just that, basically telling Gu Tianxian that this was an assassination attempt lead by Mingfeng Sect. 

OMG the kiss by proxy!! I flailed!! Give me moooore! ♥

XY is off to distract GTX while A-Fei looks for YWZ's new hiding spot. But before that she stares into space, thrown by XY's proxy kiss. I swoon along with her. XD

Li Yan meets Li Jinrong, who was on her way back anyway since she missed her husband yet again. The army seems to have some problems, though General Wen is… perhaps downplaying? Anyway, LJR now knows that 48 Strongholds is under attack and hurries home.

Shen Tianshu has waited out the fire, it seems, and is now in front of the main gate to the 48 Strongholds. Also, YWZ’s private army has arrived. All in all, this huge combined army consists of about 30 people; 6 of them leave to find the secret path. I can’t get over the fact that the mean villains only have so few people! You really didn’t have a budget, huh? XD I mean srsly, there are definitely more people hiding at the 48 SH! XD

Look at his smug face! He always squints smugly at everyone, he’s so weird! XD

Love how XY is leading Disha around. Also happy that Wang Yibo could do lots of wirework in that scene, since he likes to do that stuff. XD Meanwhile, YWZ feels super threatened. Rightly so, asshole.

Aww the Elders Zhao and Zhang at the 48 SH want to go fighting! I actually enjoy that this show has many older characters as well.

Aaaand A-Fei has found YWZ! And she fights! And then there’s Yang Jin and the IG to the rescue! I love how they’re all fighting, while YWZ just stands there and watches with Kou Dan protecting him. Kinda. I cheered for the IG just fighting with big sticks and whatever else was at hand against that trained (? I assume) private army with swords – and they win by brute force. XD

A-Fei is all confused and Yang Jin explains, “I met Li Yan on the road and she started crying. She’s so annoying, I can’t say no to her!” He is so whipped. XD

YWZ really is a totally useless fighter. A-Fei reaches him and overpowers him easily. What kind of position does that guy have in the government? Doesn’t seem to be an army position… Since they won they want to get Disha to stop the attack on the 48 SH.

Meanwhile I fucking knew it that Ma Jili would betray them! Did he actually kill that one Elder? Or did they really encounter Disha and the Elder got killed there? Hm.

Anyway, look at Chuchu grabbing a sword! That was cool, you go queen! Though she didn’t get to use it, I’m sure there will be another chance for her to fuck some shit up!

A-Fei is so devastated that Uncle Ma betrayed her. I feel you, A-Fei. And then Uncle Ma feels guilty (or… was also misled by Kou Dan?) and fights KD, which doesn’t end good for him. 

That fight between A-Fei and KD was really cool. Loved how they used the end credits song! I’m a sucker for that song! A-Fei gets her revenge and doesn’t even watch KD die.

Seriously, those poor kids will all be so traumatised. Yeah in CQL they all went to war at 19 or so, but they at least all had fighting experience in a real life situation against monsters, fierce corpses and whatnot. The kids from 48 SH grew up sheltered with this kind of fighting just a theoretical exercise. 

OH nooo Xie Yun uses the super power needle! O_O He sees that 48 SH will likely lose (how, against only 20 Disha ppl, IDK…) and decides on that, because he can’t lose A-Fei.

Look at his conflicted face!!!

He also throws some exposition in there, that Chuchu’s necklace is the main key for the HTYS which he is looking for. Okay. Whatever, now pls fuck Shen Tianshu up, my man.

He does. He also tells A-Fei that he wants to enjoy himself here. (Meaning he doesn’t have long afterwards anyway and wants to go out with a bang I guess. T_T) STS is shocked because it seems that Xie Yun has some SERIOUS FIGHTING SKILLZ.

This is getting really long... XD

Xie Yun fights and it's pretty cool! A-Fei also keeps fighting, but she gets weaker, and also seems overwhlemed by the situation. I can’t blame her.

And then Li Jinrong signals her arrival and Shen Tianshu kinda panics while A-Fei decides that this is a good moment to faint. She does a lot of fainting in this show.

Have this gif for the drama of it all. XD

Yay, Chuchu has found Li Sheng! She had to wade through some corpses for that at the river bank, but she is a badass and doesn’t care. MVP Chuchu! ♥

Excuuuse me!? STS punches (!!) Li Jinrong's horse. Seriously, asshole?! WTF?! LJR fucks him up anyway, destroys his metal hand (he later has a new one so I guess he just... has a lot of these things lying around?). Disha + YWZ’s troups finally retreat, and Chuchu immediately tells them where Li Sheng is. He is now safe, yay!

Okay this shot of LJR is really cool.

There LJR goes again with her tough mother routine. XD A-Fei is awake and happy to see her; she also aks after Xie Yun, and her mother is like, “Do you know who he is?” and A-Fei conveniently does not mention that she knows he's royalty and just tells her the important stuff like, “He does poetry and songs to make a living.” LJR just dismisses her with, “We'll talk about him later.” Oh oh.

Cute scene with A-Fei and Li Sheng, who tease each other good-naturedly. Li Sheng now can admit that A-Fei is better than him at martial arts, but he doesn't want to give up – perhaps he'll manage to be better than her one day anyway? ;D I like his growth so far.

Xie Yun comes over to flirt and invite himself into A-Fei's bedroom. XD But this time A-Fei flirts back! It's the, “I know I'm good looking, but you have to pay money to stare at me,” and A-Fei answers, “You can stare at me too and we'll call it even,” scene. XY is surprised and delighted. XD

That whole conversation between these two. ♥ T_T A-Fei knows XY so well by know that she sees through his act of putting on a happy face whenever he's worried. She wants to ask so many questions but doesn't because she thinks he won't answer them honestly anyway. T_T And she sincerely asks him if he's alright. T_T He's obviously thrown by all of this, and he talks around some things and yep, he isn't really honest. And then she asks too many questions anyway and he uses her accupoints to knock her out. My God, just talk to her!!

And there's the other ship that's shyly circling each other! Chuchu and Li Sheng have an awkward conversation, because now that it's not live or death they don't know how to act. XD He wants to look for Chuchu's brother and they perhaps could live at the 48 SH? *puppyeyes* I mean seriously, where is that kid?!

Shen Tianshu is pissed, Yu Wenzhi is too. He's going on about how Xie Yun (=Xiao Chuan) should be dead, damnit, since he was poisoned 10 years ago with that super rare and deadly Bone Piercing Blue poison (we remember, the one that 9th Madam Duan also suffered from until Li Zheng helped her). We get STS exposition that a master must've helped XY so that he survived (and the master should've died of it), but now that XY used the power needle his meridians are no longer blocked and the poison is free to circulate again = He only has a few months to live. OH NO! T_T They don't know if he's also looking for the HYTS but want to keep looking anyway; Disha masters are sent out after the two men yet again bitch at each other. XD

Sometimes it's nice to actually get some exposition here...

There's a funeral scene at 48 SH with cool music and all of them swearing their oath again to do their best with a clear conscience before Heaven, Earth, and themselves. That “clear conscience” idiom is really popular I think?

A talk between Xie Yun and Li Jinrong. She thanks him and seems sincere enough, but she also seems wary/distrustful of him (well, he fetched her ill husband to go to war again, sooo...). He yet again circumvents actually answering her questions about his former master (although I assume she at least has a hunch who he is), and he tells her she should perhaps be nicer to her daughter and compliment her from time to time. Well, I guess he's dying anyway and hasn't anything to lose. XD

She comments on his pale complexion, is he perhaps ill? Wow the passive-aggressiveness in this scene from LJR. XD Then she hands him a sigil to pass the guards and basically throws him out. Charming. Good start into that in-laws situation. XD

OMG Li Sheng sends pastries to Chuchu! ♥ And Li Yan is all excited, like, “Yes please fetch your little brother, I always wanted a little brother, that would be awesome!” XD

Xie Yun and A-Fei have a romantic stroll under the not-moonlight. ♥ They are holding hands, be still my heart! ♥  While they are hand holding we also get a MV of their best moments so far.

She tells him she's working on a gift for him, and she wants to help him look for the HYTS since it seems to be a shitty thing and she doesn't want it to fall into Disha's hands. Xie Yun would like to stay at 48 SH and of course doesn't tell A-Fei about his talk wit LRJ nor that he's, you know, dying. It's obvious that he will leave without her because he doesn't want to drag her into this (the trope of “I know what's best for you without giving you a real chance to make a decision yourself” ugh) and also because he's fucking dying. OMG. T_T

We end with A-Fei knocking on his door the next morning (where he very obviously isn't anymore) to give him her gift. Before she can actually see that he isn't there Chuchu intercepts her, so A-Fei tries to give her back the necklace. Chuchu is all like, “Nooo you keep it, it's far saver with you!” so there's that. This will surely be important later. The two girls leave for town to fetch medicine, while Xie Yun sits near the river and sadly plays his flute. T_T

[enby-hawke]

For I Have Sinned- Chapter 2

Chapter Title: Leandra, Scion of the Amells

Chapter Summary: Leandra can't forget about the kiss even if the name of the even if she can't quite remember the man’s name. Still, as she readies herself for the day of her betrothal ball, doubts about her path start to creep into her mind.

TW: parental abuse, sex in passing (nothing graphic)

Words: 6424

------------------------------------------

“An elf?” Mara’s obnoxious tittering laughter filled Leandra’s bedroom three mornings later, which was when Leandra finally had the courage to tell her. Mara was Leandra’s lady in waiting but more importantly, Leandra’s best friend, yet there were times that she questioned her decision. She was a fair skinned fit woman with short chin length chestnut brown hair. Today, in honor of Leandra, she had on a black and red rose ruffle sticking out of a tiny spike of hair, with dangly red earrings and a chunky red stone necklace, that clattered against her rather plain red and black work dress that Mara somehow made look flattering.

Leandra buried her face in one of her many pillows, face burning as it had been the whole time that she had been describing her handsome dream rescuer, whose name had somehow escaped her. “Leandra Amell, do you have a secret elf kink?”

She threw one of her pillows at Mara, who expertly caught it with both hands. “It wasn’t anything like that,” Leandra jutted out a pouty lip. “He just happened to be an elf.”

Mara laughed and threw her pillow back, which bounced off of Leandra’s chest as she fumbled. “Don’t give me that. He was the literal manifestation of your brain.”

Leandra groaned and threw her head face first into her pillow throne, knowing that she couldn’t rebut that point.

Mara slunk up next to her like a cat waiting to pounce, her cat eye make-up swept over her unhooded eyelids, completing the effect as her lips stretched in a predatory smile. “And what did you say about that kiss?”

“Kill me,” Leandra muffled.

“No,” Mara put a polished pink nail on her chin, “I think it was ‘I didn’t know that I could get so wet so quickly.’”

Leandra flung at Mara with a pillow, which she parried with her own. “I regret telling you.”

Mara bowed her head mockingly. “Pardon, my lady. I’m only repeating what I heard.”

Leandra’s shoulders slumped as she lowered her pillow, all amusement from the earlier moment left as Mara saw the look on her face. “It’s just…I’ve kissed Guillaume about 5 times now and not once did it feel anything like that.”

Mara lowered her gaze sadly. “It was a dream.”

Leandra looked at her best friend, searching her face for honesty. “But will I ever feel like that with Guillaume?”

Mara looked away and Leandra couldn’t tell if she was just choosing her words carefully or if there was something that Mara had been hiding from her. “Maybe. Things can change.” Then she threw on one of her signature devilish grins and said, “But if you want, you can always have some hot elf side piece.”

Leandra nudged her playfully, rolling her eyes. “Mara…”

“I’m just saying. Men never keep it in their pants. Why should you?” Mara threw up her hands in mock innocence as she slid off the bed and to Leandra’s spacious closet, before she looked back and said, “except Gamlen. I told him I’d pickle his pecker if I catch it in another woman’s vagina.”

Leandra shook her head in laughter, when a flash of red caught her eye through the closet. On a mannequin was a red maria clara gown with golden embroidery of the Amell sigil pouring from the bodice and cutting into the gown. The sleeves were huge and puffy with a modest sweetheart neckline, her mother’s specifications. It had all the makings of the perfect Amell betrothal gown and Leandra was not feeling like wearing it. Somehow it felt like everything was too real. In two short months Guillaume would take her name and be Lord Amell, like her father before her. She would become the true heir of House Amell, and though Guillaume himself was a delightful, kind man, she found that she felt nothing for him.

They had been destined to marry since childhood, arranged matches by their parents while they were still playing hide and seek in the maze gardens of the Viscount’s palace. He never raised his voice, was always patient, even when she was stubborn, and was a wonderfully attentive listener. From her friends, to her parents, to the local Chantry mothers, all insisted that Guillaume and Leandra were the perfect match, and yet a small voice, that was steadily getting louder and louder, was telling her that someone out there was waiting for her and she felt like she was waiting for him.

Perhaps the man, whose name was just on the tip of her tongue, was not who she was supposed to be with, but the kiss they shared had awakened a longing in her, that had only gotten more desperate. She had attempted to have the dream again, even going so far as daring to dip her toes into the ocean, as if she could find him somewhere out there in the water, but those beach walks only resulted in the usual strange dreams, which lately have been of hosting tea parties with nugs who are also Guillaume’s and her children.

What her subconsciousness was trying to tell her, she couldn’t say, but she did know that she would be wearing that dress tonight at her betrothal to Guillaume Du Lancet, hotel mogul, heir to billions. Suddenly she wondered if she could milk her mysterious “fever” a little longer and escape tonight.

Read more on A03

[sorrowsflower]

Chemical Defect (The 100 AU)

This is an Adlock / Clexa / Supercorp AU, and there is no excuse for this AU other than my apparent compulsive need to make one GIANT crossover of my 3 most beloved OTPs. 

Also, I know not everyone likes these ships (especially with all my experience as an Adlock shipper) but please don’t shit on my AU if you don’t ship them. You don’t have to read it if you don’t want to. I’m really just putting this up because it just will NOT get out of my fucking head!!!! and I need to be able to focus again.

So, basically an AU where Lexa is an Adlock child. Title is from Sherlock’s whole Love is a “chemical defect found in the losing side”. Which is basically a variant of Lexa’s “love is weakness”.

I adore Irene Adler, and I can’t get it out of my head that she’s Lexa’s birth mother, especially since The 100 never actually shows Lexa’s parents or gives any background from before Lexa became Commander. Here’s my Irene in this AU:

Not too much of a stretch to see her as Lexa’s birth mother. Also, their personalities are quite similar. They both have a commanding presence. They’re both highly intelligent, ruthless, calculating, and make an art form out of compartmentalizing emotions. And they’re just both really badass. Also, CHEEKBONES.

So, here we go...

As in the show, 97 years after nuclear war ravaged the earth, and rendered it supposedly uninhabitable, there are 3 groups of survivors:

The Mountain People/Maunon, who live in Mt. Weather, a bunker facility where diplomats and high ranking officials were kept. Three generations on, this is where Irene, Sherlock, John, Mary, Mycroft, Lestrade and Molly all grow up together. 

The Grounders, descendants of people who survived the apocalypse outside Mt Weather. In the show, the higher ups at Mt Weather kidnapped Grounders to use their blood (Harvest Project), since they have the immunity to radiation that the Maunon do not.

The Sky People/Skaikru, descendants of the people who survived the apocalypse in the space shuttle, the Ark.

Anyway, when Irene is in her early 20s, she and Sherlock find out about the Harvest Project, which was initiated by Mt. Weather’s President, Dante Wallace (in my hc, he was quite ruthless and cold as a young man, but became remorseful with age)

Irene distracts Dante Wallace, pretending to ally herself with him, while Sherlock investigates the experiments and tries to find out how to stop them without endangering their fellow Mountain people. Mycroft is part of the President’s advisory council and tries to deter Sherlock’s investigation.

Sherlock brings John and Mary into the investigation but doesn't tell them about’s Irene ruse because of course, John can't keep a secret. They both just think Irene betrayed them all by forming an alliance with Wallace.

Soon, rumors spread that Irene and Dante are lovers, which worsens this betrayal, and even Sherlock is affected by this.

Things accelerate when Irene finds out she's pregnant. Dante thinks the baby is his. Sherlock, plagued by doubt and jealousy, isn't sure what to think.

He thinks, and on some level, knows, that it's his. But there's that kernel of doubt - the grit in the lens - that says it's not. So he forces their hand and reveals to Dante that he knows about the Harvest Project.

This is extremely unfortunate because several months into the pregnancy, Irene discovers that the baby she's carrying has a genetic mutation.

In the show, the Grounders have a Commander, whose spirit they believe is passed from one Heda (Commander) to another. The Spirit/Flame is actually an AI that gets implanted in them

All Commanders, however, are born with black blood (they have to be, for the AI to work inside them). They're called Nightbloods / Natblidas.

During the course of the pregnancy, Irene (with Molly’s help) discovers that the baby is a Nightblood. Maybe a near miscarriage reveals this, when Irene starts bleeding black blood mixed with red, I dunno.

It's unprecedented, a child descended from Mountain people, having Nightblood. Irene knows that she can't deliver the baby inside Mt Weather, because the minute Dante and the others from the Harvest Project find out that Irene is growing a Natblida in her uterus, they'll want to experiment with her and the baby

Also, in my hc, carrying a Nightblood gives Irene an immunity to radiation (don’t ask me why, I have no idea what the fuck is going on in this AU). What this means is, unlike the other Mountain people (including Sherlock and Dante and the others), Irene can actually walk out of Mt Weather without suffering the effects of radiation

So, Irene reluctantly goes to Mycroft for help to escape Mt. Weather, and Mycroft reluctantly helps her (because it’s family, and the kid is his niece).

Irene flees Mt Weather and Sherlock is arrested. Outside the mountain, Irene meets a young native Grounder, Anya of the Trikru clan. I haven't thought up how yet, but she saves Anya's life. In return, Anya hides her until she gives birth.

^^(Though Anya would probably be much younger when she met Irene)

In the meantime, Dante has Sherlock arrested and wants to execute him, but Mycroft persuades him not to kill Sherlock, but imprison him instead

Dante then begins to hunt for Irene outside, and as he closes in on her, Irene begs Anya to take the Nightblood baby and hide her from the Maunon (the people from Mt Weather)

Before Irene is captured she gives Anya a sigil (from a necklace she got from her own mother) and asks her to give it to the baby.

It’s the one on Lexa’s forehead: she later wore it there when she was chosen as Heda

Anyway, Irene is captured but she's critically injured in the process and ends up in a coma. Mycroft tells Sherlock she's dead. He also destroys all evidence of the baby being a Nightblood, and for Sherlock's safety, all evidence of his investigation against the harvesting

John and Mary are effectively scared into silence when Rosie is threatened (yes, Rosie is in this). I’m thinking, maybe Mycroft told John that Sherlock was dead too, not just imprisoned, to deter him from investigating as well.

Outside the mountain, Anya takes the Nightblood baby to the Trikru clan, names her Lexa (Alexandria after her older sister), and when she's old enough, brings her before the present Commader so she can join the guild of young Natblidas

When Lexa gets older, Anya begins training her as a warrior, and Lexa becomes her Second.

There are 12 Grounder clans and they were all at war at the time young Lexa joins the guild of Nightbloods

When the Commander dies around the time Lexa is 11 or 12, she gets chosen as Heda when she beats all the other Nightbloods at a Conclave (literally a fight to the death in which she's the only survivor; this is canonical in the show, including Lexa’s age).

Upon her Ascension Day as Heda, Lexa begins to unite the 12 Grounder clans under a single Coalition.

Except when she's around 15 or 16, she meets this girl, Costia, and she falls in love. Lexa is utterly devoted to her

BUT one of the Clans, the Azgeda (Ice Nation) is resistant to Lexa's Coalition. The Ice Queen, Nia, kidnaps Costia, tortures her, beheads her and delivers Costia’s head to Lexa’s bedside.

This is where Lexa begins to see that "Love is weakness" and becomes hardened to emotions. Despite Costia’s murder, she extends an alliance to Queen Nia, because it will unite the clans and prevent further loss of life.

As in the show, the space shuttle, where the Sky People live, is running out of supplies and oxygen after almost 100 years in space. So to see if the Earth is inhabitable, they send 100 juvenile delinquents to Earth.

Long story short, once they land on earth, one of the Delinquents becomes the leader. Clarke Griffin:

But at some point, Clarke gets captured by people from Mt Weather, who try and experiment on her to see if they can use Sky People for the Harvest Project too

In Mt Weather, Clarke meets Anya (who was captured by the Harvest Project too). They form a reluctant alliance, and try to get out. While trying to escape, they discover the Harvest Project, as well as Irene. Anya recognizes her.

I don’t know how but Clarke manages to wake her up, and Clarke gets the message to Sherlock that Irene is alive and they all attempt to escape Mt. Weather

Unfortunately, Anya gets killed in the attempt. Before she dies, Anya tells Clarke about the Commander who was once her Second, and that she needs to build a truce with the Heda to keep her and the Sky People and the Trikru safe from Mt Weather

In the meantime, Lexa sends 300 Trikru warriors to neutralize the threat of the Sky People (I mean, from the Grounders' POV, a piece of the sky just dropped down in their lands, bringing 100 potentially dangerous strangers in their midst; Lexa has to answer that threat)

So, anyway, the Mountain People (Irene and company) strike a deal with the Sky People, to help them free all the people in Mt Weather (cos there were other Sky People there) in exchange for blood transfusions, to enable the Maunon (Sherlock and the rest, Irene is still immune), to survive outside until their bodies adjust to the radiation

And since there are both Skaikru and Trikru trapped in Mt Weather, Clarke approaches Lexa for a truce.

So in the show, their alliance is a very fragile one, Lexa and the Trikru being ruthless and distrustful of strangers for their own survival (their clan motto is Jus drein Jus daun "blood must have blood"). A lot of shit happens.

The Mountain People and the Skaikru think the Trikru are savages. But also there’s bad blood especially, between Lexa and the Mountain People because Mt Weather has been kidnapping her people and harvesting them for blood.

When Irene, Sherlock and the rest of the Mountain people first approach Lexa with Clarke to help them bring down Mt Weather with minimum casualties, there's a scene where Irene tells Lexa what happened. That she had a baby who was born a Nightblood, and that her hope is to find her daughter.

Irene immediately recognizes Lexa on their first meeting when she sees the sigil on her forehead. But Irene knows she can't tell Lexa the truth yet on their first meeting, because she wouldn't believe her. Also because of Lexa's animosity towards Mt Weather.

Instead, to prove that she had indeed given birth to a Nightblood, Irene slices her own hand open in front of Lexa to show the black blood mixing with her own red blood

This is older Irene, btw:

In the show, Clarke and Lexa grow closer as they plan their assault on Mt weather. They're basically teenage girls called to lead their people,  with enormous responsibilities on their shoulders

Lexa, has been Heda longer than Clarke has been leading the Skaikru, so she offers Clarke advice. At times, the lessons she teaches Clarke are harsh and ruthless, but as she tells Clarke one has to make tough decisions to be a good leader, one her people look up to

One of my favorite scenes in the show is when she tells Clarke "The truth is, we must look into the eyes of our warriors every day and say, 'Go die for me'."

There’s a mutual respect between them and even if Clarke feels that Lexa's decisions are harsh, she knows they're right. That they have to make sacrifices in war for the greater good of their people

In the show, Lexa eventually betrays Clarke. On the night of their assault, Lexa and Clarke get separated, and one of the men in Mt Weather offers Lexa a deal, to get the Trikru inside out safely without casualties, if she'll deliver Clarke and the Skaikru to him. She took the deal, because it results in no casualties for her or her warriors or the Trikru hostages. As she says, Clarke would have done the same thing. Lexa leaves them at the Mt Weather, and Clarke is forced to irradiate everyone inside

I DO have a version where this happens, BUT for this AU, I prefer my other version, WITHOUT the betrayal because I just need to give my little baby gays a hug:

They develop a plan of attack that gets the Trikru and Skaikru out alive. (I feel like with Irene and Sherlock's help in there too, they could achieve that). It helps that Mycroft is still inside and quite high up the chain of command in Mt Weather.

As a compromise, since they helped take down Mt Weather, Lexa spares them (Sherlock, Irene, Mycroft and everyone else who helped) and all the children. Everyone else she has killed in a giant pyre.

They begin talks to make Skaikru (and the surviving Maunon) the 13th clan in Lexa's Coalition.

Lexa takes Clarke and several of the Skaikru/Maunon delegation (including Irene and Sherlock) to Polis (the Coalition’s capital city) to seal the alliance.

Quite a few things happen in Polis. 

First off, Lexa names Clarke the Ambassador for the Skaikru, and Irene the Ambassador for the Maunon. (The scene where Clarke kneels to Lexa, hell yeah, that’s happening).

THIS most definitely happens:

Also, shortly after this (because I keep wanting to spoil Lexa’s happiness), I have a scene where Irene tells Lexa the truth about her.

"That child I spoke of in our first meeting,” Irene’s voice is cautious. Quiet but firm. “The Nightblood child I bore and surrendered in exchange for her life..." Lexa holds her breath. Everything freezes, and she knows what the Maunon will say even before she speaks the next words. "Do you know the name of the Trikru girl I left her with?" Lexa holds up a hand, to stem the flow of words that make dread settle in her stomach. But Irene forges on. "Her name was Anya kom Trikru. She promised to care for my little girl. She promised to protect her with her life." Lexa whirls around, dagger in her hand, its tip pressed against the older woman's throat before she has even finished speaking. "Lies!" Lexa hisses, her eyes flashing dangerously. She has killed bigger prey than this slender Maunon with her fragile body unhardened by the harsh punishment of Trikru lands. "All lies!" Irene’s eyes are calm, displaying the same unshakable certainty that Lexa so often exudes with her own gaze. "You can kill me, but you know the truth. Just as I knew it when I first saw you, sitting on your throne with that sigil I left Anya on your forehead. I was so proud to know you were my daughter, just as I am proud of you now..." Lexa grits back tears as she presses the dagger's tip closer, but her tears are not summoned by affection or pride, but by denial. She all but spits out the next words at the older woman "You lie! I am not Maunon!"

Sherlock interrupts them before Lexa can harm Irene, bringing news that an Azgeda messenger has come with a message from Nia.

The Ice Nation disagrees with the Skaikru/Maunon becoming the 13th clan, and even though they brought down Mt Weather, the Azgeda see it as a weakness on Lexa's part - her teaming up with Clarke and the Mountain People and the Sky People to accomplish this. 

Also, her sparing some of the Mountain people is also seen by the Azgeda as weakness (since "blood must have blood")

Also, Queen Nia's always been out to destroy Lexa and wrestle control of the Coalition from her (which is why she killed Costia) so she's just looking for a way to ruin her

Nia sends some of her Azgeda soldiers to attack and kill Lexa. Lexa is shot in the chest with a gun, to make it seem as if it was a move from one of the Skaikru or the Mountain People (Grounders don't have guns) and she falls down a very high waterfall (no, not Reichenbach)

Everyone thinks she's dead. Including Clarke

(Because of course all Adlock children must "die" and come back to life at some point, otherwise their DNA is questioned)

Clarke is wrecked, after what happened to Lexa. But she knows she has to make sure that the Coalition and her people are safe.

In the show, Lexa trains her own guild of Nightbloods, to succeed her as Commander upon her death

In one version of this AU, Lexa's favored successor is an 8 year old Nightblood named Lena

(Because of course I need Supercorp in this as well)

Lena is Lexa's most promising Nightblood. She's a little prodigy, just like Lexa was. She has a sharp, strategic mind, she’s been training with her fellow Natblidas since she was a little girl and is quite mature for her age. Lexa sees a bit of herself in Lena, when she was that age.

I have a scene where Lena and Kara are playing together, along with the other Skaikru kids (Alex, Winn, and James. I’ve decided Brainy is a Mt Weather kid. Nia is Trikru and Sam is maybe Azgeda), and Lexa appoints Lena as her temporary successor in Polis before they attacked Mt Weather, which I might post later (this thing is getting too long as it is).

Upon Lexa's "death", Lena is appointed successor to protect Polis until the Conclave can begin, and a new Commander is chosen

But since little Lena doesn't have the Commander's Flame (the AI, which is still in Lexa's body), her power in Polis and the Coalition is fragile, so Clarke rushes to help her.

Lexa made all her Natblidas promise to honor her alliance with the Skaikru and the Mountain People, so Clarke has to protect Lena's place as the new Heda to secure it

Sherlock, Irene and John join the hunt to find Lexa's body, ostensibly so the Commander's Flame can be secured. But actually, Sherlock and Irene are still hopeful they can find Lexa alive (even though it seems impossible she could have survived the fall) and they bring John with them because he's a doctor

Molly and Mary stay behind to offer Clarke support and protection (respectively). Clarke decides to make a deal with the Ice Nation for safety of the Skaikru and the Maunon, as well as the rest of the Coalition.

Molly asks her why she's making a deal with the woman who had Lexa killed. Clarke responds "I'm doing what Lexa would have wanted. The same thing she did when her lover was killed by the Ice Nation. She would want her people to be safe."

Irene and Sherlock manage to find Lexa and rescue her from the waterfall. John has to dig the bullet out of her and stitch her up. He insists that she needs to rest, but Lexa is determined to go back to Polis. The other three accompany her.

Meanwhile, Clarke is attacked in another ruse by Nia, who knows that as Lena’s self-appointed protector, she is the biggest obstacle to the her takeover of Polis.

Basically, Lexa returns from the dead by saving Clarke SEE VID 1 (let’s just imagine those are Azgeda attacking her; I just need a badass return for my baby without actually KILLING her off): 

After it’s revealed that Lexa has “come back to life”, she calls out Nia as a traitor and issues a challenge to end their conflict. Nia summons her son, Roan to fight Lexa for her. (Also, that scene where Lexa says “I am the Commander. No one fights for me.” oh yeah, that’s totally happening) SEE VID 2

VID 1

VID 2

Yeah, so Nia dies. Titus dies (cos fuck you Titus, I might just have Irene kill him). AND THAT’S IT.  NONE OF MY BABIES DIE! LEXA IS HEDA AGAIN, LENA EVENTUALLY SUCCEEDS HER (at some point), KARLENA/SUPERCORP WILL EVENTUALLY BECOME A THING (that’s a whole ‘nother story, fuck) AND CLEXA CAN HAVE ALL THE SMUTTY SMUT THEY WANT WITHOUT ONE OF THEM GETTING KILLED OFF FIVE SECONDS LATER!

OH MY GOD, I finally got all of it out in one fucking long-ass post. At least I think that’s everything. I might post that scene with little Lena and Kara later, and then hopefully I will be rid of this AU for now. Congrats to you if you got this far down the rabbit hole. If you did, please tell me what you think, thanks!!!!!!!!

Now maybe I can get some work done. See y’all next time!

[darionrennard]

Setting the Board

Darion had one of the nearby ghouls chained to the wall. A chance to flex some of the new things he had been learning. It's emaciated form snapping and slavering as it pulled against it's bonds. Feral instinct to feed and unliving hunger for warm flesh driving it's need with a meal so close. But it would fall back with a screech when the warlock raised a hand, glowing green at first with fel energy. Runes alighting along the wall and causing the creature to burn. "Molorum, volar.. dovest.." his low voice would intone in a chant. And the screeching ghoul would  sink almost to it's knees. The weight of the chains becoming more than it's dead frame could bear.  Darion nodded, taking the beast by the remains of it's hair. Shaking his fist to make sure the hold was firm, that it's scalp wouldn't simply peel from the bone.  Much to his delight, it held firm. And he began with his other hand, extending a black claw, glowing with green fire. And began scripting runes into the creature's dead flesh. It would be his eyes above ground. And his message, when the time came. Across the chamber, would be a small array of tools considered for torture by the living. But in his hands, they became something.. else. He had chosen a different chamber for this endeavor, not wanting to disturb the lady with the creature's screams. And he nodded, completing his work. Turning for the door, his hand would touch  single sigil on the door as he closed it. Sealing the room for now. Couldn't risk that thing getting out, after all. Not yet. And made his way for the central chamber, where the bath would be, but also where he met Lady Anelise.

Anelise already appeared impatient, while things seemingly were going smoothly as far as Itraeis' efforts were going she wasn't as pleased with Darion's. She sneered as he entered the chamber, "I trust that eventually these baths will get me closer to the true form I need to be?"

Darion blinked slowly. Reaching for the side of the entrance as he passed through. He idly reached for his cane, the green gem atop it beginning to glow at his touch. And he strode into the room with an irritated countenance, "They will." He starts, though he worked to keep his temper in check, a small edge of a growl could be heard in his voice. "But you're asking me to mend a dead husk back to a passable form to wander amongst the living." And his eyes would narrow.  "As such, it takes quite a generous amount of work to convince dead flesh to.. cooperate."

"Well make it cooperate faster." she demanded, her voice nearly as hollow as that of an Ebon Knight. With another sneering scoff she began to unfasten the robe but kept it upon her shoulders though the robe itself was open. "Perhaps more of your tinctures or a spell."

His eyes would flare visibly at her presumption before he closed them to compose himself. His manners coming to the fore, his tone would be even. "Lady Holt." He attempted a reassuring smile. He would look her over, his eyes sinking lower as the robe opened. Far from any lascivious intent. It would be more of a tradesman inspecting his work. Though she seemed upset with the pace of the regeneratives. Her skin was no longer cracked and broken in nearly as many places. And she even had a bit of softness to her that hadn't been there previously. All things considered, others might have considered it phenomenal progress. But not this one, with so many scores to settle. She was chomping at the bit, he realized.  "I'm already working on a short term solution to the problem while your body knits." His hand would pass over her belly. But he would look for her permission before pressing his fingers against her to test.

With a huff she canted her head to stare coldly towards him, nodding, "Fine but it would do us both well to be prepared for what I hope will be a very enticing and conducive meeting with my children. Itraeis tells me he has my younger daughter, Rinoha, on board already."

A nod would be his only sign he had heard her words. His eyes growing dark in the shadows. The room flickering with torches and candle light. Taking the que, he pressed his fingers to her belly softly. Kneading the skin underneath. It was still a bit loose, but it didn't pull too far. He grunted, taking his hand away. "A few more..." And he looked her over closely. "Rinoha, I don't know this one. What do you know of her?"

"At one time she was my middle daughter." she replied, unflinching of his touch. "But with my youngest dead, she is now the youngest of the two left alive, Adhelin being the eldest. Rinoha is pure, though not in the way of light, but in life. She has acclimated well to what haunts her, I understand she studies vigorously."

The wheels behind his eyes would clearly be turning while digesting the information. Opening her hand, he placed a glowing stone. It's energy seeping into her to facilitate her regeneration. "This is your family, if you want to use her..." He left the thought at that. Turning for a nearby table. He produced a necklace, it would be a simple gold chain with an onyx stone as the centerpiece. "I am a stranger to these lands and it's people. So in many of these affairs, I'll differ to your.. judgement." Anything resembling a smile would fade from his lips. Replaced by a distasteful expression at the thought of working with the living nobles of the house. But he kept those thoughts to himself. "Now..." He began. "if the lady would indulge me for a moment." He stepped forward, whispering a word. The necklace flickered shadow black in the light for a moment. "Imagine yourself, as you remember.. when you were among the living."

The flow of dark energy began to seep inwards, a brief flash of known warmth embraced. "A gift, for me? How very generous of you master Rennard." Her once hollowed tone seemingly richer in pitch.  "I trust there is more to this than just a stunning piece of jewelcraft."

Darion nodded grimly. As he brought his arms around the woman's throat, the stone would flash again, catching the thoughts from it's recipient and amplifying them. As the clasp clicked shut. She would appear as she remembered. "Alaego..." He would rumble, his voice thrumming with the growling, wicked intonation of the demonic speech. The word used would translate to <memory> in that gutteral language. The necklace would flash again. Then still. "That.. is the word." And he reached up to caress her cheek softly. Though she appeared human, her dried skin could still clearly be felt under the illusion. "It will last roughly a few hours per charge. But.. for a time. You can use this when needed. At least until we finish our work here." He nodded. Turning away again. "Helping you helps my goals as well." He clicks his cane against the stone while making towards the table containing his alchemical stores.

Her cool fingers reached up to trail the hemmed necklace. "Phenomenal." she remarked though she was referring to herself and what she looked like, not the actual ability of the piece. "This will certainly be used to advantage, especially since the last time several of them saw my body I was headless."

"Yes, well..." He would allow himself a true smile of amusement at that thought. Headless nobles did that to his mood. "Can't have you walking around with your head under your arm like that poor sod they tell stories about with the pumpkin, now can we?" The flasks would be arrays on the table as he turned to regard her once more. And an eyebrow did raise. And for a moment, just the barest one... he forgot his principle distaste. "You were quite lovely, I see." He remarked. "And you shall be again."

Her lashes fluttered as she smiled, fingers trailing over exposed skin to come to realize her robes were open and her was undesirable figure held a bit of perk and form. Quickly she closed her robe, and the visual catalyst for his remark. " I had better be. Now then, will I require a bath now or later?"

Darion let his expression fall. While she had been away, he had taken the liberty of replacing the water in the basin. He was nothing, if no thorough in his methods. "The mixture will be ready for your next one, soon." Taking a few stones from his pocket. His hands would glow with that fire once more while crossing the room, brushing past her with a wink. "Now, then..." He tossed the near molten stones in the water, the accompanying sizzle the only sound in the room for a moment as they sank into the depths. "What do you intend to do with your newfound lease on existence?"

"Enjoy a nice hot bath before I work at locating my love, and father of my children." Some would assume she would be referring to raising her dead ex-husband when really she meant someone else. "I just need to scry his location before I can feel his arms around me once more." She didn't whether his gaze was on her or not when she dropped the robe into a pool of satin on the floor and stepped into the near scalding hot water. To her it felt like a cleansing. "I won't be long."

Darion stepped out of the way, even offering a hand to help her in. "And what.. of the children, themselves?" His finger would trace her hair over her shoulder leaving her neck revealed to him. And the circlet that would be holding her together. "The one's that did.. this..." His finger traced the line of the neck piece. "What do you have in store for.. them?" He would be curious at that.

Taking up his hand she eased herself into the hot bath, permitting him to toy with her hair and trace at her scarred flesh. "I suppose that all comes down to whether Adhelin accepts what we have accomplished here or whether she is going to attempt my life a third time. I mean to find Bron so that perhaps he can talk her down or at the very least, even the fight."

He nodded. Dark hair spilling over his shoulder as he looked down and thought about it all. He took his hand away. "Well you do know..." His tone would frame it as a question. "That, as much as we can do with that body you inhabit. It will never truly be alive?" He raised an eyebrow inquisitively that she seemed to relax in the water. That she could feel anything at all was a wonder, given the time and nerve damage. But he had no illusions as to it's permanency. "Without these baths, your body will revert to withering and rotting. This is a temporary fix." Swiftly he crossed the room, reaching for the mixtures that needed to be combined just so. "I've seen this Adhelin, she carries some of your grace. As well as a few of the people that surround her." He smiles as a thought begins to form.

"I will make the best of the time I have, I assure you, master Rennard. But yes, Adhelin was groomed to take after me in the line of succession. Bred and raised to carry a strong political mind, and be able to land herself a formidable husband. That said she's at least been able to accomplish the former. She truly is skilled in the way of manipulation, strategy, illusionary and so forth, talents when combined could have secured her a marriage to the most powerful man in Stormwind." she silenced herself for a moment, "But she's to wed some barbaric babbling fool pretending at being anything of worth.  A Darkmoor? My eldest daughter is to be a Darkmoor, a name with zero substance or standing, and who is this man really. Has he always been so barbaric, how was he able to adapt so quickly, was he actively providing an illusion to those of my family so that he could worm his way in and hold a firm grip over our coffers?!" the very thought made her furious. "Hurry up with this blasted bath, I feel the sudden urge to pay someone a visit."

Rennard nodded. Smiling secretly while his back was turned. In no time, he would be warming that familiar flask with fel fire. "This will take a few moments. In the mean time... " Once he turned his face would be that calculating mask once more, though it did retain the slightest hint of his earlier smile. "Tell me what you know of the family, particularly the females."  With a slow, careful gait. He carried the mixture back to the bath once it was ready...

@adhelin @rinohaholt 

[deathtouch]

⋆ femfeb day 2 // my femfeb masterpost ⋆ xposted to ao3 ⋆ moira / symmetra // 2k // explicit ⋆ alternate universe, demon symmetra, occult, demon summoning, demon sex, oral sex ⋆ moira attempts to summon a demon

From Light Into Being

Moira checked her pocket watch in a manner that would appear to others as anxious. She wasn’t anxious. She was simply tight on time. There was a difference. She had no reaction at all to the position of the minute hand, but she certainly didn’t like it’s placement. She glanced around the jewelry store again.

It was a lovely place, really. The walls and cases were all a deep, rich wood stained a color so dark it almost seemed black. The lighting was low and the scent of the shop was earthy. This particular jewelry store had been in the same spot for a hundred years. The business had been passed down from family member to family member. The building was steeped in history. She would have liked it better if she didn’t have to deal with another setback every time she came here. Moira took a quick breath, approaching the clerk who was standing behind a case full of diamond necklaces. “Could you just tell your boss-“ “He’ll see you when he’s ready.” The clerk replied. She was a pretty girl with a beautiful cupid’s bow of a mouth. Moira had thought her quite appealing the first time she’d come in here. In the dozen or so times since that first meeting, the clerk had grown less friendly and less prone to smiling. Somehow she didn’t seem as cute anymore. Thankfully at that exact moment, the jeweler emerged from the back of the shop. He was an older man with strong fingers and a slight stoop to his back. He wore thick framed glasses and clipped to them were a set of magnifying glasses. He walked over to the two of them, hand cupped to hold what he’d been working on. “They’re all done then?” Moira asked, a touch of hopefulness in her voice. “Yes, they’re finished,” He said warily. He’d been working on them for weeks. “Cut to the exact specifications I asked?” She pressed. “Yes, Ms. O'deorain. The exact specifications.” “Because even a millimeter off and-“ “They won’t work.” He finished the sentence for her. Yes, yes. He’d heard this a hundred times by now. “And what exactly are you needing them for?” Moira straightened, lips pursing into a tight line. She didn’t like that he kept asking. It’s not like she could tell him the truth. He wouldn’t believe it for one thing, and if he did he wouldn’t be too pleased to know what he was complicit in. “Just so long as they’re accurate,” She said after a long pause. The jeweler extended his hand, passing along the precisely cut prisms of topaz, diamond, garnet, hematite, onyx, obsidian, quartz, sapphire, tanzanite, and zircon. Some of the stones were worth more than others, but it wasn’t the cost that mattered. It was the cut. They needed to be precise; they needed to be perfect. The Goddess only responded to perfection. Moira appraised them in her hand. The bright colors stood out against the pale skin of her palm. They seemed right. The shape matched the drawings and sketches in her gramarye. It had taken months to collect stones big enough, and to find the right jeweler to cut them. All that time and effort whittled down to a handful of colored rocks. “Thank you,” She replied sincerely, producing a small drawstring pouch from her breast pocket to rest the stones in. She paid the man in cash, a fat stack of bank notes wrapped in a band. She had plenty of money to spare and left the jeweler a hefty tip for his fine craftsmanship. +++

The sky was dark overhead, flickering with lightening and rumbling low with thunder. Gusts of warm wind swirled the brittle brown leaves on the ground. Moira found her ginger hair and the lapels of her jacket fluttering in the wind. The incoming storm was a good sign. There was energy and electricity crackling all around her. It would suit the summoning ceremony nicely.

She went over everything again in her head as she walked, recounting the instructions for the ritual. She knew them all by heart. The heels of her boots clicked on the pavement, sidewalk passing underfoot as she hurried back to her apartment. It was only a temporary living space. She’d really only rented it because of the proportion of the room. It had taken her a long time to find the right place to conduct the ritual. She needed a perfectly square room, equal on all four sides.

She must have visited over a thousand apartment buildings, homes, hotels, hostels, and hovels in the city before she found the right one. She’d gotten down on her hands and knees and measured the baseboards with a tape measure. Often times rooms were off by centimeters. That just wouldn’t do. The apartment she finally found wasn’t in the nicest part of town but that didn’t matter. All that mattered was the perfect proportions.

“Moira?”

Moira glanced up from the sidewalk, breaking away from her thoughts.

“Moira O'deorain, is that you?” To Moira’s surprise, an old colleague of hers crossed the narrow street to greet her. Angela Zeigler. They’d gone to school together a long time ago. She didn’t look much different, in fact she looked positively the same. Her light blonde hair was still done up in that insufferable messy hairstyle she seemed to think was casual and cute. Her modest clothing, a turtleneck sweater and an ugly brown pencil skirt, made her look like someone’s mother. “Mercy,” Moira greeted, somewhat unkindly. “Oh goodness, no one’s called me that in ages.” Angela laughed. It was an old nickname from their medical school days. “I’m sorry, we’ll have to catch up another time. I’m on my way and I’m in a hurry.” Moira told her plainly. “Moira,” Angela reached out to clutch her by the arm and stop her going. “Are you alright? You look a little…” Her voice trailed off. Moira stared down at her, filling in the blank with her own words. Rushed? Yes, she was rushed. She needed to begin the ritual soon. It was so close to sunset. The sooner she got home the sooner she could set up. She couldn’t stand around chatting all night. That wasn’t what Angela was thinking though. Moira realized then that Angela didn’t look concerned. She looked frightened. Moira could see it in her pale blue eyes. There was fear in there. “Look a little what?” Moira asked suddenly, wanting to know the answer. Dark? Dangerous? Powerful? Does what you see scare you, little Mercy? Are you remembering all the rumors back at school about the meddling I’ve done with dark forces. Satan worship they called it, the imbeciles. Moira didn’t say any of this out loud but she wanted to. She was tempted to. “No, it’s nothing.” Angela forced a smile and stepped back. “Sorry to have bothered you. It was nice to see you.” Moira hurried on her way, barely listening to the niceties Angela muttered behind her. +++

Moira stopped at the top of the staircase, laying eyes on her apartment door. Her heart was beating a little quicker in her chest and she had to tell herself it was from rushing up those four flights of stairs. As she reached out with the key to unlock the door she found her hand was trembling, just a little. She stopped to steady herself, drawing in one deep breath after another. There was no need to be nervous. She wasn’t nervous. She just wanted this to go right. It pained her to imagine what might happen if she messed up the ritual. The Goddess might be angry. She might come bringing pain and death. Moira found that she wasn’t scared of dying. What worried her was the idea that The Goddess might not come at all. That had happened to others. Others who had done the summoning ritual perfectly. The Goddess simply hadn’t been interested in appearing for them. “Not me,” Moira told herself. “I’ll summon her.” She unlocked the door with a click and pushed it open. The room was precisely how she had left it; nearly empty. It was a blank slate of a room to begin with. She hadn’t moved any furniture in. The only thing she’d brought to adorn the place were candles and dried flowers. Purple irises, yellow daffodils and pale gladioluses. The candles, free of scent and white in color, and the dried flowers were both elements required for the ritual. The most important part, however, was the sigil Moira had carved into the hard wood floors. The sigil was almost as big as the room itself. It was a painstakingly intricate piece of work containing circles inside circles, shapes, symbols, runes, and interconnecting lines and curves that crossed one another a thousand times over. It had taken her a week’s worth of endless toiling to complete. It wasn’t good enough to simply make the impression of the sigil, she had to get it exact. Perfect circles, perfect angles, perfect shapes. She’d used protractors and rulers, checking and double checking her work. If one line was off by a centimeter, if one circle wasn’t exact in its circumference The Goddess would not come. Moira took a deep breath, stepping into the large sigil. She produced the drawstring bag of jewels from her pocket and emptied them into her hand. She knew the sigil by heart. She knew which gem went where. She got down to her hands and knees, finding the crevices she had carved into the wooden floor. She placed each gem in its carved slot, adoring the sigil with small twinkles of sparkling color. When she was finished she sat back on her heels, wiping her forehead. The gems were evenly dispersed around the outer circle. She hoped this offering of beauty would please The Goddess immensely. Moira checked her pocket watch, noting that it was almost exactly sunset. She need only light the candles and begin the prayer. +++

Moira’s tongue felt thick and dry. Her voice was raspy and cracking from the chanting. She repeated the words of the prayer again and again, a kind of musical cadence to them. She’d said them so much they were no longer words in her head, just noises. It didn’t even feel like she was speaking them anymore. She was so entranced, her lips and tongue were moving by rote. Her voice was not her own to control. Her body overrode, acting compulsively. She couldn’t mess up now, couldn’t deviate, couldn’t stop. She had to keep going, keep repeating until The Goddess arrived. Her knees ached from kneeling on the hard floor. The room had grown hot, unbearably hot, as she chanted. She couldn’t remember how long she’d been kneeling here repeating the words. She only knew that she had to continue. Sweat prickled all over her body, beading on her forehead. She didn’t think of it. She repeated the words, willing her desires into being. Perfection, she thought as she chanted. Come to me, please, Goddess. I’ve done it all perfectly for you. The air burned her lungs as she drew in breath. It was so hot in here. Though she was uncomfortable, sweating through her clothes and desperate for water, she didn’t have room for those thoughts in her head. Perfection, she thought again. It’s all perfect. It’s all for you. A crackling sound nearly made her miss a beat in her chant. The sounds of distant thunder had been rumbling in the background all night but now it sounded like a bolt of lightning had hit the floor in front of her. She opened her eyes, not knowing when she’d close them. Her eyes watered from how hot it was. Heat waves shimmered in front of her. She squinted painfully, noticing something was falling from the ceiling. Her chanting quieted but continued as she looked up. Ash. Ash was falling down, and flakes of something smoldering with the spark of fire. Her heart leapt in her chest. Before her The Goddess appeared, a shimmering mirage. She was molten like magma, a burning heat radiating from her chest. Her eyes were bright, white hot beacons. Dark horns curled back from her head. Her skin was a breathtaking mottling of black purple and burning orange and bright white gold. She was so much more beautiful than Moira ever could have imagined. “Symmetra,” She whispered The Goddess’s name, bowing before the demon. “I’m honored.” Moira didn’t even have time to be proud of her accomplishment and the fact that she’d actually done it. She was too busy being in awe. She had summoned other demons before, but never one so powerful as this. Never one she had such reverence for. “You called?” Symmetra mused in a dark voice, heat radiating from her body. “I beg of you,” Moira whispered, “Bestow upon me your knowledge.” “You must please me first.” Symmetra told her. Moira looked up, not daring to look The Goddess in the eye. Instead she stared at her cloven feet. “Does the sigil not please you?” She asked, confused. She must have done it right or else The Goddess would not be here. What more could she offer? The flowers? The candles? “You’ve done fine work with your hands.” Symmetra replied. “Now show me what your tongue can do.” Moira gasped softly, the realization flooding through her. Again her heart leapt in her chest. Yes. Oh, yes. She never dreamed she would be worthy enough to touch The Goddess, let alone use her mouth. The privilege was not lost on Moira what-so-ever. She crawled, hand and knee to the demon’s feet and sat back. She raised her hand to part Symmetra’s skirts and found that this time her hands were not trembling. Though it burned her to be so near the molten skin of The Goddess, this did not stop Moira. She buried her face between the thighs of the demon and licked at her folds hungrily. She felt like she was licking hot fire. A sharp taste burned her tongue. It was delicious. She licked for more. She put an unmatched enthusiasm into the task, her own body alight with pleasure. She couldn’t believe this. To taste the sweet juices of The Goddess, Symmetra. How could she be so lucky? Pleasure thrummed through her own body. Her eyes rolled back into her head. She got lost in the task, the same way she had gotten lost in her chanting. Her tongue worked tirelessly, attempting to please The Goddess with all she was worth. The heat intensified around her, becoming insufferable. She couldn’t breathe, but she didn’t care. Blackness washed over her and even in her last waking moments she gave her all to satisfy the demon. When she came to, Moira was dusted with ash. Her lips and tongue tingled in pain. She was sprawled in the center of the sigil. Crisp flurries, alight with fading fire still floated down from the ceiling. She pushed herself to sit up, trying to get her bearings. In the dark she saw a pair of bright yellow eyes, burning intensely. Moira stiffened immediately, suddenly aware that she was still in the presence of The Goddess. “Thank you,” She whispered hoarsely, offering her appreciation. She was at a loss for words for a moment. “Have I pleased you, Symmetra? Will you bestow upon me your knowledge?” The demon shifted, stepping forward. Her chest began to glow yellow. The room grew hot once more. She came closer and closer, crossing into the sigil to where Moira lay. A terrible energy clouded her, something dark and dangerous and powerful. Something Moira ached to have. For a moment she was sure The Goddess was approaching her to kill her, to rip her throat out, to devour her whole. She accepted her impending death. Instead, Symmetra bent at the waist. “From light into being.” She said calmly, as if these words held all the answers of the universe. She reached out, tapping a finger to Moira’s head. The world cut out. +++

Moira woke with a choked cough like a woman drowning. She turned on her side, coughing and hacking miserably. Her head was burning, a massive migraine making her nauseous. She tried to remember what had happened but it was all a mess, bits and pieces coming back to her in chopped and screwed memories. She could barely even remember what The Goddess looked like. Only those burning eyes and the seam of hot lava that ran down her chest. The candles had burned down to nubs and the room was in darkness. In the slim light she could see that the dried flowers had shriveled to brittle brown clumps. The gems in the floor did not sparkle, they were dull and sad. She reached for the nearest one and found it was cracked in two. She held it in her palm, staring at it as if it held some answer. A corner of the garnet prism caught some light source and it sparkled, barely. Light. From light into being. Moira gasped, choking again. Her head pulsed with pain but she remembered. She remembered. She remembered everything Symmetra had shown her. The intricacies of the universe and all that it had to offer. How she need only bend the light to make it hers. The broken gem clattered from her hand as she began to make the motions she had learned. A soft wave, a pinch of her fingers. It took all her energy but a soft blue light blossomed in her palm. A new gem formed, perfectly shaped and whole. Tears sprung unbidden into Moira’s eyes. She laughed. She’d done it. She’d called upon The Goddess and gained her knowledge. She felt more powerful now than ever before.

[browniefox]

The Dark And Light Side Of The Moon 5

Pro No Evens of @trulymightypotato‘s Royal Expectations Au

Edel discusses what’s going on with Agora

Bluescale shines light on the situation

oOo

“She’s awake.”

Agora is leaning against the wall right outside of the assassins cell. The lady is indeed awake, stubbornly looking at the wall and avoiding eye contact with both the protector and the noble.

“I’m surprised you haven’t tried to get information out of her yet.” Edel comments, noting that the lady seems to be unharmed with the exception being her head.

“I was going to, but Gregg stopped me.” Agora nodded to the guard at the end of the hallway. “Anyway, I was having a hard time focusing. Too many complicated emotions.”

“I didn’t know you were so upset over this.” Edel’s forehead furrowed, watching the way the would-be assassin was almost curled up around her hands.

“Me? Not too much. But you are.” Agora’s hand ghosts over their arm, the arm that they had cut into when they were bound together.

“You can feel my emotions?” She knew that her dad and Snow could do it, but that was after years of practice and a war where knowing how the other was doing was almost a necessity, helped to keep one sane.

“Not normally.” Agora shrugged. “But you’re absolutely hammering me with upset emotions. I’d almost think you were dying.”

Edel looked away almost in embarrassment. Of course Agora would feel it. She felt like she was dying inside. It was so painful, when her father - no - when Gar woke up and didn’t recognize her, went right to Snow so desperately. And it had hurt even more when he realized that she was his daughter. It was too similar to that distant, faded memory of her clutching onto her mother’s skirts as a man sobs in front of her, a hand reached out yet seeming afraid to touch her. That if he touched her, she may just disappear.

Had this man never seen his own Edel? She wasn’t sure how much she believed of what he said, but if he was really in hiding or whatever it was possible he never came home after the war. She and her mom were in hiding in a different place. Or they could be dead.

“Edel, did you find out anything? Did he wake up?” Agora looked at her curiously.

“Uh, maybe. He did wake up. He seems to want to go by the name Gar for some reason, but recognizes Lozul as his name too. It’s really… weird. He claims he��s from some other path of time or something, where he didn’t defeat the empire and is in hiding.”

“Do you believe him?” Edel shrugged.

“I… don’t know? There’s something else there, I just don’t know what it is. The biggest things is… well, Agora, he had a medallion.” Agora’s eyes widen, their own hand going up to rest on their medallion.

“I’ve never heard of a noble, much less a Royal, being a protector. Did it have the, y’know, the sigil he was wearing?”

“It did.” Edel nodded. And that, more than anything, made her believe that this not-dad of hers was lying to at least some extent. Because her real dad, Lozul, had been trying to teach her to be better at seeing the ‘tapestry of magic’ and while she wasn’t terribly good, she was good enough to know that the medallion hadn’t been just a black rock on a necklace. It had been real and tied deeply into his magic.

Light-blue magic.

“Do you trust him?” Edel looked at Agora. Agora was still watching the assassin.

“Do you?” Agora shook their head.

“You know what I think. I don’t trust him. He could be a demon or something, and if he had to be summoned using your dad he must be a bad one.” Agora looked at Edel again. “But it doesn’t really matter what I think. Do you trust him?”

“I… I don’t know.” Edel ran a hand through her hair anxiously. “I think I do, but so much about him just doesn’t make sense. But if anybody were to be the most suspicious of him, it would be Snow, and he was willing to be alone in the room with the guy.”

“Snow could take him if he was a demon.” Agora nodded.

Edel continued to stare at the woman, who had slowly been turning so that her back was to them.

“Gregg, let me into the cell.” Gregg jumped, a bit surprised at being addressed, but in a moment has the key ring out. Agora followed Edel past the bars. The assassin quickly moves as far away from them as she can get, into a corner and glaring at them.

“Finally going to talk to me like I’m a real person?” She hisses at them. Edel puts a hand on Agora’s shoulder before they can retaliate.

“What’s your name?” Edel attempts to sound a bit warm and a bit aloof. The woman doesn’t respond, just looks away. Edel sighs. She had been hoping that the woman would be willing to work with her, help her find out what she had done out in the woods. She waved Agora to come down to her level so she could whisper in her eyes. “I need you to check out her hands.”

Agora dived at the woman, yanking her arms away from their cradled position and forcing her fists open. Edel winced, but for once Agora isn’t the only one who is impatient. Edel desperately wanted answers. And in the careful, deliberate slices in the woman’s palms, she had finally found some. Agora looked at Edel, saying without words that they were on the same train of thought as her. They let go of the woman, who made to lash back out but Agora easily dodged her before ushering Edel out of the cell.

“Find what you were looking for?” Gregg asked as he relocked the cell.

“Yes.” Edel nodded. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you princess. And, uh, everything you said,” Gregg mimed locking his lips and throwing away the key. Edel ducked her head, embarrassed that she had forgotten that Gregg had been there.

“Let’s go tell Snow.” Agora motioned towards the hallway. Edel followed her protector down in.

“We should. But first, we need to go tell Lark about what’s going on. He deserves to know what happened to dad.”

oOo

Gar doesn’t have royal blue magic anymore.

That’s the first thing Bluescale thinks when she sees the man.

And yet there it is, running through him, matching the realm and matching King Barnes. None of the the red-purple taints his threads, no sign that he’s been gutted of himself and put back together time and again. Tapestry, that dreaded sword, rests on his hip. Bluescale could almost fool herself into thinking that it was that time again. When she was young and reckless and he was a prince desperately trying to keep his kingdom together. Before she had had the responsibilities of the Realms on her shoulders. He is definitely the reason for the disturbance in the magic. She can watch as the magic swims around him, gently nudging at him. It knows he’s supposed to be connected, but he’s not and Wade is the current king. There’s no sign he was even bonded to Molly either, no sign he’s a protector. Every part of him points to him being a royal.

To being Lozul.

“Bluescale.”

Lozul speaks up first, looking at her in shock. It’s odd. He looks older than Gar, gray hairs marring his head. The shadow over her diminishes drastically and in a moment Greenscale is standing slightly in front of her, watching Lozul warily. They’ve undoubtedly picked up on the fact that this isn’t the same man that they’d trained in being a guardian not long ago.

“It’s okay Greenscale.” She gives them a reassuring smile. Greenscale looks between them but nods. Bluescale turns her attention back to the man. “Hello Lozul. I didn’t think I’d see you again.” In this state. But she leaves that part off.

“You’re so much… older. How far into the future am I?”

“About a thousand years.” She watches him. He barely seems shaken, just sort of sad at the news.

“A thousand years.” He looks around. “What have I missed?”

“Uh, sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt your reunion, but would you like to come inside?” Wade breaks the into the conversation.

“Thank you, that’d be nice.” She smiles warmly at him. “I’m sorry for having come to suddenly, but I was worried something had happened. And with it being only a little while since the war and the magic suddenly feeling a bit strange, well, I think I had good reason to be worried.”

“It’s no problem.” He assures her. The group moves inside of the castle, and Bluescale is suddenly struck by the how long it has been since she’s been in the castle. How long it’s been since she left her home even.

“I’ll go continue the meeting.” Molly offered. She looked reluctant to leave, but she knew she had to. Molly was a good queen.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Wade reassures her as she hurries off down another hall. The rest of them continue to another room. They the five of them take seat around the room and for a moment there’s awkward silence.

“Lozul, what happened? Why brought you here?” Bluescale breaks the silence, staring at the man before her she still can’t believe she’s seeing.

“I was out for a ride with my daughter-”

And Bluescale doesn’t hear another word he says. How long had it been since she’s thought about Edel? She had been so young at the time, mourning the death of nearly everybody she’d ever loved.

“What’s your daughter’s name?” Bluescale interrupts whatever it was that Lozul was saying. Everyone in the room is looking at her a bit oddly, but she doesn’t care.

“Edelweiss. I… thought you knew. Since you met when she was bound to her protector.”

“I know it. But you never did.” Lozul’s brow is furrowed in confusion. Greenscale puts a hand on her shoulder, but she is currently freaking out over the implications. “Lozul, how did the Empirical War end?”

“The Empire was defeated.”

“No, it wasn’t.” She can see Lozul grow even more confused a dna bit scared. She can’t break it all to him, she doesn’t have the heart too, but he deserves to know at least a bit more of where he is. “Lozul, you’re farther from home than you know. Here, the Empire won. The entire royal family was killed with the exception of Edel, who was taken away before she was found.”

“That… can’t be right.” Lozul was standing now, looking at her desperately, as if waiting for her to say that it was all a joke. “No, my sister’s plan worked. She died, but we were able kill Soulstealer and the Empire’s summoners. Sure it took remolding the entire landscape and I almost died, but the boost of energy I got from the moon gave me the power to do it and power through the pain.” He sounded so desperate.

“Lozul. I’m sorry. You’re not just in the future, you’re in an alternate future.”