#there can’t be too much regis on this blog

[whispers-and-ice-flowers]

Intro...

Hi, this blog is run by yours truly. I’m kaley218 on AO3, but you can call me Lee. I write, cosplay, play too many video games, and watch too much anime...and I stream on Twitch. Maybe I’ll share that some other time. Plz hit up that ask box if you have any questions about my fics, want to bother someone, or have any requests. Can’t promise I’ll take em but I’d like to get into the habit of writing more short drabbles.

Also, my main blog cause I’m way more active there: fantasticalfan

Current WIPs:

Halcyon (Bleach) (Rated: Mature) (roughly 17/25)

- Toshiro/OC

She Who Was Forgotten (Witcher) (Rated: Explicit...soon) (shit bro idk)

- Regis/OC w/ potential third Dettlaff in the future

Complete:

More (Dead by Daylight) (Rated: Explicit) (1/1)  (~15k)

- Trickster/reader

[faimrpg]

Hello, and welcome to member appreciation time! Every week, I’ll be posting a snippet from everyone’s blogs that I felt was jaw-droppingly fantastic, as both a thanks to you for being here and putting your character on the dashboard, and so other members can appreciate your artistry as well. There is no doubt in my mind that writing is, perhaps, the most grueling fucking hobby in the world. It’s hard to do, difficult to grapple with, and often time consuming, but the fantastic part is that we do it anyways, and everyone else gets the opportunity to read it. I don’t want this blurb to get too long, so I’ll be shutting up shortly, but I’d like say from the bottom of my heart that I am grateful that you’re all here!

AGRIPPINE: Who is this noble who speaks with more authority than Agrippine has in their entire body, who calls them champion yet treats them like a child? It’s hardly an offense to their pride, of which they have so little. Even they can’t deny they have swum too far into the deep end, over their head and out of their league whilst at court. No noble lies awake in the dark, haunted by what they do not remember and what they may never find.

BEAU: It’s against her very nature to step out of the shadows and into the opening, to be so vulnerable. Her heart is racing, at the sight of the ghost in front of them as their footsteps grow closer and closer. Closer than they’ve been in so long, there’s no doubt in her mind now as she catches surprised but so familiar brown eyes.

CECILE: It is still a regular occurrence that Cecile brings flowers to her mother’s grave, and shares a peaceful silence with her final resting place. She still talks to her, sometimes. But these days, more often than not her worries are not things she can say aloud, even in the quiet of the graveyard, for fear of who may be listening.

CYRIL: She wanted out of there. Cyril can still feel the tension she felt back in that room surrounding her, even as she put as much distance between her and that place. She’s used to gilded halls and marble floors, not blood pools growing bigger by the heartbeat. Her bubble had burst and Cyril was afraid.

DEGARE: Degaré knows well that anything whispered over a flagon is tricky, fickle, maybe even downright false. It could be fact, could be fiction—himself, he doesn’t much care. Whether the honest truth or little more than a myth men tell themselves, he knows one party likely to be interested.

GISELE: Surely, the word Lady has never been uttered with such distaste, so jarringly, transparently through gritted teeth in an otherwise lyrical performance, like a pianist striking a discordant note midway through a scale. “Is your nobility nothing more than a hat you don only when convenient and matching your dress? Have you been attending Court only to gawk at your own gowns, as though this were nothing but a showroom for your wares?”

HELENE: She knows what Helene has done, all of the sins and all of the misery exacted on behalf of Celestine, but she could never truly understand that power was merely secondary to order. Order kept her lands green, order kept violent warfare on the streets, and order prevented yet another King of Fools from emerging underneath the rot and filth that seemed to only well up in the streets where the nobles dared to tread.

ISEULT: Names had never been his forte— he’d sooner know her by her blade of choice, in all the places it’d previously clashed with his. As was the Guild and Underworld rapport: the honest sellsword awaited their turn at the billet bank, the successful one poached theirs. No contract passed without protest, and Iseult knew by sound alone he’d had the (mis)fortune of crossing theirs in the field before.

LIANE: Undoubtedly, they take her for a fool, nearly retching on their own tongue in the hopes of cradling Liane’s undivided attention in the palm of their hand like a child who wishes to thieve shining stars from the night sky. She has half a mind to disregard the act, to leave well enough alone, but a trail of vines thorn around her blackened heart as she teeters on the brink of hunger, and as luck would have it, Sidonie Dupont appears to be ripe for the taking.

MATTHIEU: Matthieu gnashes his teeth together. He catches his lip in the press: vice-grip, vice-sanction. He thinks about his friends, now notches in the frame of his bed; crosses and circles, sleeping together with the rest of his kills. He thinks about the weight of Leon’s hand. The way it perched on the back of his neck, the tight sound in his throat when he whispered into his skin. Maybe we’ll go somewhere, you and I. What do you say? After this is over.

PATRICE: The adrenaline had kept his mind far from the stinging feeling of the cut across his bicep, but now, the warmth of blood flowing down his skin, a calm river compared to the pounding of his heart, that made it feel as if his veins were roaring rapids in contrast.

REGIS: Long strides take him past rows and rows of soldiers who have made themselves into the shape of ornamental decorations. They do not blink. They do not breathe. They dare not move. An occasion of some kind has called Alain here today, thus his presence, but Régis is here with other intentions.

SAINTE: Sainte knows that to outsiders, her morals may look skewed. How can one take a man’s head off his body, and still feel wrong telling a lie? Perhaps she’s balancing things however she can. Some things, she feels, have been set out before her by Odeline, so very clearly. Other decisions are hers to make alone, and feel, therefore, much more muddy.

SAVATIER: A wild, young world is often violent; but the bloodshed committed in the name of order has always left Savatier with a strange taste. He’d live freely before the displacement, knowing no rulers nor loyalty aside from that to the earth’s phenomena, and Odeline. Odd, to be asked to pledge similar faith in an Empress who has sacrificed nothing besides familial blood.

SIDONIE: If one looked closely enough, they would notice the fire brimming in their gaze— a stilling anger that they attempted to reel in as they watched her, completely unmoving. They loathed the way the nobles looked upon her as if she were their courtly pet. As if she’d been there for to sole purpose of their entertainment, and not a living, breathing human. They would never know her— never learn her in the way she had, but this Violaine did not mind.

VIOLAINE: If only I could spend a lifetime impressing you, they do not say, because admitting such would turn what was previously palpable, present occasionally in her lingering gaze, or even the hesitation of her whispers, into something tactile, permanently cauterized into the webs of their affections. So soon they would not sully their mind with doubt.

YVON: From within her sleeve a stretch of white is drawn, the watery silk reminiscent of the shucking of milky, pale meat from a sea creature’s gold shell. Yvon extends the square in pinched fingers, pearlescent and thin as it hangs in the air between them. Here, a thing from within my husk.

ZHENYA: Such was the nature of the tenuous push and pull by which they were bound; in her furious suspicion and flaring spite, Gisele burned, and with his chilled apathy and callous disregard, Zhenya only ever stoked the flames.

[bigassheart]

Updated TUA Timeline

A little over a year ago, Aidan posted a timeline for the events of the Umbrella Academy on his Instagram. I posted it on this blog at the time and promised I was going to update my TUA Timeline post with that info. Never did. But I am now! So, here it is. The updated TUA Timeline.

Also, there will obviously be spoilers, so don’t read this if you haven’t watched season 1.  

October 1st, 1989 - The Umbrella Academy kids are born.

1993 - Grace Joins the family. This is according to Aidan’s Timeline. Depending on the time of the year, the kids would be 3 or 4 when this happens. This may or may not be when the kids get names. 

1993/1994 - Vanya forgets about her powers. Vanya also trains with Reginald and is subsequently made to forget about her powers around this time. Though we don’t get a specific date or length of time that Vanya trains, the flashbacks don’t appear to show her training for a super long time. I think a good guess would be less than a year for this training, putting Vanya’s age at 4. (This also matches up with the casting for the young Vanya and young Allison roles, which I used previously to estimate this age/date)

1997/1998 - Klaus is locked in the mausoleum for the first time. I am basing this on the casting for the role of young Klaus, which has him at 8 years old.    However, it’s not quite that simple, because when Klaus is talking to his dad in episode 7, he says that his dad locked him in the mausoleum when he was 13. Complicating matters even further, there is a post somewhere out there that took a screen shot of Reginald’s journal with notes about locking Klaus in the mausoleum. (I have not been able to find that post again, so if anyone knows the one I’m talking about and has a link, I would love to put it in here). The date recorded on those notes is 2001. (I don’t remember the month, but I think it was summer) That would have made him 11 years old. It’s possible that this was just an inconsistency in the writing. Or it’s possible that Reginald locked Klaus in a mausoleum on at least 3 different occasions at age 8, 11, and 13. Possibly more. 

2001/2002 - The Umbrella Academy stops a Robbery  I’m basing this on the fact that all the same actors were used for these scenes as were used in the scene where Five leaves, so they can’t be much more than a year younger than that. 

November 10, 2002 - Five leaves the Academy  According to Pogo in episode 1, Five has been gone for 16 years, 4 months, and 14 days. The date in that episode is March 24th, 2019 (according to Vanya). That means that Five disappeared on November 10th, 2002, a little more than a month after the Umbrella Academy kids all turned 13. (This date is also confirmed on Aidan’s timeline)

(Side-note. Remember when Klaus mentions being locked in the mausoleum when he was 13? That means it probably happened not too long after Five disappeared. Holy Fuck Regi!)

2006(?) - Ben Dies OK, this is only a guess, BUT it’s a good one and if you scroll down to the additional notes at the bottom, you’ll see why. 

2014 - Vanya publishes her book In episode 3, we learn that Vanya wrote her book 5 years earlier. (when they were 24) At this point, Ben is already dead and Luthor has not had his accident yet.

2014/2015 - Luther has his accident We’re not sure how long it takes Regi to send Luther to the moon after his accident (days? weeks? months?) so all we really know is that the accident happens sometime between Vanya publishing her book and the moon trip.

2015 - Luther goes to the moon In episode 6, Luther says that he was on the moon for 4 years, making him about 25 years old when he left. Aidan’s timeline also confirms that Luther went to the moon in 2015. 

March 24th, 2019 - Reginald’s Funeral We know this because they tell Five the exact date. 

April 1st, 2019 - Apocalypse (Dear Commission: Worst April Fools joke ever). 

This Brings us to the present. The members of the Umbrella Academy are all 29, except for Five, who is 58, and Klaus, who spent 10 months in Vietnam and is therefore 30 now. 

Additional Notes on the Timeline: 

Five in the Future Five finds Delores pretty soon after the apocalypse (again, same actor, so I’m figuring a year leeway at most). He tells Klaus that he was with Delores for 30 years. That would make him about 43 when The Handler shows up. When Five gets back to the present, he gives a very specific amount of time he has been gone: 45 years. This means he spent 15 years working for the Comission, making him 58 at this point. Five also traveled through history extensively while working for the commission. His last mission had something to do with the Kennedy assassination, which would put him in 1963.  (Quick note on this one - Someone commented on this post a while back with a correction and I was going to go back and do more research so I could correct these numbers, but now I can’t find the post and it’s been so long that I can’t remember what the correction was. So, if these numbers look off, let me know and I will fix it)

1968 - Klaus travels back in time to the Vietnam War Historical Context: This is 3 years after the first American troops arrived in Vietnam and 5 years after Kennedy was assassinated. Nixon was elected in 1968. This was also the year of the Tet Offensive, a massive campaign by the North Vietnamese Army to push the US troops out of the country and ferment rebellion among the South Vietnamese people. This was the big turning point in the war and marked the beginning of the US troops’ defeat. This was also the year of the My Lai Massacre, where the US Army murdered more than 500 civilians in the city of My Lai. This incident was covered up for a year before the American press found out about it.  

Finally, the reasoning behind my guess that 2006 is the year Ben died: 

Klaus mentions that Ben died “young and tragic”

Everyone left the house after Ben died, according to Vanya.

In episode 3, Alison says that they left their mom alone for 13 years. (13 years ago, they would have been 16) We don’t know how quickly everyone left, if it took days, weeks, or even years, so it’s possible that 13 years ago was when Alison left specifically. It could be that everyone was gone by that date. Or it could be that this is when everyone started leaving. 

Diego mentions moving out at 17. Again, everyone left after Ben died, so it would have happened before that. 

Ben’s statue does not have a date on it, but obviously he would have had to be at least the same age as he is depicted there.

We also have the following portraits sequence in episode 1 that was used to show Five’s disappearance and Ben’s death. Here are all 4 portraits.

Portrait 1 is done when they are all 12 or 13 years old. Everyone looks about the same age in portrait 2, so I’m assuming it Reginald had it commissioned right after Five disappeared. It would therefore make sense that portrait 4 was done right after Ben died. There are clearly several years age difference between portraits 2 and 3. It also looks like there may be another year or so age difference between portraits 3 and 4. Because of this, I would argue that the children are at least 15 years old in the final portrait. Therefore, Ben dies at age 15 or 16.

Last bit of evidence is Aidan’s timeline. Now, the year for Ben’s death is blacked out, BUT we can see the general shape of the numbers. The first number is clearly a 2, so we know that it’s not just a bunch of 0′s as a place holder. The last two numbers are rounded at the top and the bottom. In the font they are using, that gives us these possible years: 2003, 2006, 2008, 2009. 

The placement between 2002 and 2015 is just a little past the middle point, so at first I figured that would mean the year was 2009. HOWEVER, that would mean he died at age 20. The other kids definitely don’t look 20 in the portrait after Ben dies and this doesn’t match up with the comments Allison and Diego make about leaving when they were still in their teens. Also, if you look at the timeline for earlier years, the same space between dates is used across the board, whether those dates are 4 years apart or 9 years apart. 

Conclusion: I think Ben died in early 2006 (making him 16). 

And that’s all I’ve got so far.

If anyone else has more clues for the timeline, please add them to this post. 

[beckmessering]

1-14 on the opera asks!

ahhhh you absolute trickster, i love you...

(tagging @sweatershowgirl @coloraturadiva and @vera-dauriac because you also asked questions. answers are below because...um, i like to talk.)

1. favourite performance you ever attended

met parsifal, the revival in 2018. or the current bayreuth meistersinger.

2. a performance you would’ve wanted to attend (present or past)

one of the historic bayreuth rings, chereau or kupfer. for the visuals alone, maybe kupfer.

3. a piece perfect for your commute

baroque music without drastic volume changes works really well, so either soprano handel arias or the opening chorus to st. matthew passion, which is also the length of my walk to the station.

4. do you have a go-to opera (and version)?

currently a 2017 live recording of st. matthew passion on youtube. 

5. an opera you loved only on the second listening

people i regularly talk to about operas probably know this story, but i’ll gladly expand. i saw die walküre shortly after one of the worst days of my life, and i was mentally really out of it. i couldn’t remember anything about the music or understand any of the characters. it just felt overdramatic and too long and distant. in lockdown in march i started streaming a ring and thought “ugh, i’ll just have to watch walküre to get to siegfried, but it has some singers i like so maybe it won’t be that boring”. and boom, i watched it at my grandpas’ kitchen table and was blown away.

5. a composer you have tried and failed to like

mozart. sorry. i tried and failed. me and wolfgang amadeus do not emotionally vibe with each other. i would’ve been in a uni production of zauberflöte though, so maybe it’s more fun to perform than to listen on my own time. 

6. a character you love and definitely never want to meet in real life

wotan. lord, he’s good at fucking with people’s lives. or scarpia. i’m not tosca, so i’m too scared for murder. 

7. following up on that: your guilty problematic favourite character

alberich, in a way. problematic, but probably he’s cleverer with more emotional nuance than he’s sometimes allowed. 

8. forget anatomy/physiology. which voice category/fach would you choose?

in case it’s not very obvious, a baritone please. or if i stay a soprano, a dramatic soprano.

9. a casting/singer’s voice you’ll defend to the death. (now tell us why)

okay, rant time. 

evelyn herlitzius as brünnhilde is absolutely smashing. no, her voice really isn’t beautiful. some people say it sounds screechy, but i think it’s extremely metallic and definitely an acquired taste. her sound limits the amount of fitting roles, but there are some she absolutely kills because she radiates intensity. her kundry is unhinged and very human, and she’s one of the rare brünnhildes who convincingly portray youth. she’s impulsive, fidgety, tomboyish, clearly her father’s favourite and attached to his hip without realising how sinister this is. she also has absolutely zero understanding of what mortality means to humans and her father’s rotten scheming dawns on her only slowly when she meets siegmund. she visibly grows from this teenage girl persona with too much childish bravado and stands up to her father in the end, but she still loves him more than is good for her (same goes for him) and together, they play loosing each other too well. 

she’s also a very intense physical actress. she carries herself different for every character, and even when she’s silent, she never slips up, and she has great in-character stare-offs with other characters. i live for those. 

10. and a production you’ll defend to the death

“hngffgf the bayreuth meistersinger are too regie and we can stop talking about wagner’s antisemitism now-” BLAH BLAH CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF SACHS AND BECKMESSER FINALLY BEING COMPLEX CHARACTERS AND HAVING AN ACTUAL RELATIONSHIP (and beckmesser finally being in the focus of the production)

11. something you’re a rigid traditionalist (or revolutionary) about?

can the grail in parsifal just please be an actual grail? not like, a symbolic brain or what (looking at you, vienna state opera). and i agree with @dichterfuerstin in that the ultra-strict definition of vocal categories is annoying and prevents some great variety in character interpretations.

12. an opera that made you have an ~*awakening*~ of sorts (any sort)

i thought there was great acting in act one of chereau’s walküre. then i read peter hofmann’s obituary and realised that other people categorised what i saw as “just great acting” as “sexual electricity” and then i wondered if i’m either really fucking oblivious to sexual tension in straight couples or if i should overthink if i am straight. 

13. an opera/music debate do you know so much about that people will suspiciously ask “why...do you know this?”

i know a suspicious amount of things about boys’ unbroken voices. bear with me. originally it was a research topic for a piece of writing, and then i realised i liked the sound of it. now i can vocally distinguish a rather large amount of choirs and boy soloists by sound, name, recording, repertoire, and year, and i have opinions about boys’ vocal technique. 

14. rant about a topic/an opera you love but haven’t found a good time to do so on your blog.

building on the last question, some baroque music purists on youtube are really annoying. either they ridicule female sopranos for having natural vibrato because “bAcH oNlY wRoTe fOr bOyS!!!” or they relentlessly attack 13 or 14 year olds for having tiny flaws in their otherwise very advanced vocal technique. i love hearing passions and cantatas performed by young voices, but only if it’s up to a good qualitative standard. if not, female sopranos/altos are wonderful and brilliant and don’t have to prove their quality, no question! just choose the singers that will give it the best quality and unique sound, it’s that easy. 

[twilight-orchid]

Regis for the “send me a character” list!

AW YEAH THANK YOU!

favorite thing about them: I love how he’s simultaneously extremely eloquent and dignified but he’s also a troublemaker and a rabble-rouser. Like I love that he says he not only thought about becoming a burglar, but that the only reason he didn’t is that he thought it would be boring. He’s so chaotic and I LOVE IT

Least favorite thing about them: This one was really hard, but probably that he seems to kinda to take the world on his shoulders. Like he makes himself responsible for things out of his control and is willing to sacrifice himself and his happiness for others. An example I think of is him essentially torturing himself at Tesham Mutna as a way of repaying Dettlaff. And when we meet Dettlaff for the first time he says he’s working on helping Dettlaff be less bestial as if it's his responsibility and his fault if Dettlaff doesn’t integrate successfully into human society. Idk, I just feel like he’s really hard on himself and doesn’t give himself enough credit.

Favorite line: Okay this is several lines but it’s so Regis and it makes me happy. 

“When speaking of facts, tangible matters, I do indeed strive to express myself precisely and at length. However, when our discussions center on affairs of the intuition or things vampiric, my utterances are indeed towards the taciturn. For even the longest discourse would not allow me to explain to my interlocutor any issue of this purview satisfactorily.”

(side note for below, I think OTP means one true pairing but I have no clue if that's right and if I interpreted the three OTP questions right but here we go) 

brOTP: His friendship with Geralt is such goals. They banter, pick on each other, and yet they’re best friends and each would throw hands for the other. I haven’t gotten to the point in the books where we meet Regis but I am SO EXCITED. And again while I haven’t reached that part yet, I feel like he and Dandelion’s relationship would be super fun too.

OTP: While I don’t really ship characters with other characters, (I'm an x reader xOC kinda gal) I really feel like he and Dettlaff have a relationship that could be suited to a relationship rather than just a friendship. They’re personalities just feel like they would mesh well together in that dynamic. 

nOTP: If it weren’t canon that they’re friends I would never expect him to get along with Orianna. She actively participates in several activities that go against his current moral compass. And while it’s true that he used to do similar things as far as blood-drinking go, he overcame that addiction. It kinda reminds me of when you overcome any addiction and you sometimes have to part ways with the friends you had while you were still addicted because they either don’t understand you getting clean or try to drag you back into it. I kinda feel like she would be one of those friends for him. The game doesn’t say if Regis knows about what she does at the orphanage but if he did, I don’t personally feel that he would be okay it. While she isn’t killing the kids it’s still a really messed up Stockholm situation. Idk though, since he’s also a vampire he may be more empathetic or apathetic towards it especially since she doesn’t kill them. But again, idk I may be totally wrong. Sorry, that turned into an unnecessarily long thing lol.

random headcannon: I definitely headcanon Regis fidgeting when he’s deep in thought/ reading/ studying. Bouncing his knee, fiddling with his fingers, adjusting his clothes, running his tongue across his teeth, tapping his nails on the closest hard surface available, all that stuff. Idk if I’m projecting bc I do those, but the way he always holds and moves his satchel and messes with his gloves makes me feel like he has those tendencies.

Unpopular opinion: This one is kinda weird bc he also gives off mad vibes that he's a boss bitch and he knows it, but I think he has an underlying sense of self-loathing and depression. Living as a higher vampire among humans for eternity while never fully fitting in and having to watch the few mortals you become close to grow old and die would make anyone depressed. He says vampires don’t understand why human cling to life, so it’s not like he ignores that people are going to die, but I feel like it really bothers him that, for example, Geralt will die one day. He also just gives me a feeling of not being happy with himself but burying and masking it. There’s definitely guilt from his younger years but like the little journal he kept by his bed, he questions his choices in life and is at times unsatisfied that he’s chosen to ostracize himself from his peers. I think that may cause some more guilt as well since the opposite is how he used to live when he was young. Idk, I can’t really explain it, and the examples I gave weren’t all of why I think this, but I just feel like he hides self-esteem issues under a guise of eloquence and intellect.

Song I associate with them: Okay don’t laugh, but going by lyrics I think of Boulevard Of Broken Dreams by Green Day. It’s frequently pointed out that he’s a loner and yet he seems to have a hankering for company. And now that I’ve written this down, I now have a vivid image of emo young Regis with black eyeliner and an MCR teeshirt jamming to Green Day.😂

Favorite picture of them: There re a TON of screenshots posted on tumblr that I adore but since I don’t want to repost something, I’ll include my favorite of the ones I’ve taken. (which isn’t a lot I need to work on fixing that. Getting screenshots off my ps4 is a bitch tho lol) I WILL, however, tag some of my favorite blogs that post amazing screenshots and other awesome witcher content. @wholelottatiffy @gharashambles @witcher-not-quitter @mackallackattack @assbuttfromhell

He looks all focused and badass. I also just like how he looks in candlelight.

I do not think the answers were supposed to be this long but boy do I have feelings about Regis lol. Thank you so much for the ask! Also if you follow me and don’t follow @dreamerlavellan, you need to! Both she and hers blog are amazing.

[moonwaif]

FFXV Halloween Week 2020: Day 7

@ffxvhalloweenweeknsfw

Monster of the day: Witches

Theme: Spells/Potions

Scenario: Halloween Party (games, pumpkin carving, etc)

Mod’s choice: Black Cats/Familiars

NSFW: Costume play 

Pairings: Gladnis

Rating: M

Tags: Sex Magic, No actual sex, Awkward Conversations, Getting Together, Paranormal Investigators AU, Enthusiastic Consent 

(Also on Ao3)

---

As an official member of the C.D.D.S. (a.k.a. Chocobro Daemon Destroyers Squad, as dubbed by Prompto), Gladio has a pretty flexible relationship with the word “normal.” However, even he has to admit that nothing about the current investigation is anywhere near the realm of normal.

First there’d been that weird purple envelope with the heavy wax seal. Inside was a letter from one Ardyn Izunia, written in flowing script and kindly soliciting their services at Zegnautus Keep—an old castle, located somewhere in the distant mountains of Niflheim. This was also weird. Sure, the C.D.D.S. may have been well-known exorcists in Lucis, but they weren’t exactly world-renowned. On top of that, Izunia claimed to be an acquaintance of Lord Regis, yet Noct didn’t know him. Gladio didn’t know him. Neither did Ignis, or any of Lord Regis’s old acquaintances. And when Prompto did a websearch, it came up empty.

That probably should have been a sign, Gladio thinks, striding through the castle halls. He glances at the giant portrait of Izunia smirking down at him, framed by cobwebs and moldering tapestries. Its eyes seem to follow Gladio as he passes, its smile shriveling in the shadows. The real Izunia had been just as disconcerting when they’d met him. But Noct had been in a slump since his father’s death. Noct had been depressed. That meant Ignis and Prompto were depressed too, and this seemed like a good chance to get away from it all. Besides, Noct was curious. He wanted to know more about this mysterious acquaintance of his father. So they stuck around, and when they were unexpectedly joined by the Nox Fleuret siblings, who Izunia had also commissioned—well, they figured the more the merrier and tried to be on guard.

 What catchy name will Prompto give this particular case, Gladio wonders? Something about hubris, maybe. Something about old gods. Before anything specific can crystallize, Gladio is already at the set of massive, iron-laid doors. They groan as he yanks them open and steps into the castle library.

 Ignis is still exactly where Gladio left him—hunched over a desk, hidden behind a stack of books. “How are they?” he asks, not even bothering to look up.

 “Stable,” Gladio answers, “at least for now. The curse on Ravus is spreading. Luna still isn’t responding. Cindy’s looking after them.”

 “And still no sign from Noctis?”

 “The planchette hasn’t moved in the last half hour.”

 “Dammit!” Ignis slams the book closed and tosses it aside. He makes a steeple with his hands, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We should never have come here.”

 Gladio draws up behind Ignis’s chair. In the dim light, he can see loose papers full of obscure runes, time-weathered pages penned in tightly-scrawled ink. If this were a normal gig, they’d have wrapped everything up by now. They’d have subdued the spirit, and if that wasn’t possible, exorcised it. The client would be shoving fistfuls of money at them and weeping tears of joy. Ignis would have food on the grill. Gladio would be setting up camp for the night. Prompto would be complaining about EMF detectors and other technical jargon while uploading the latest footage to their blog. And Noct would have been loafing around, watching all of them with a contented smile, asking when dinner would be ready.

 Gladio gives Ignis’s shoulder a squeeze. “What’s done is done—no use beating ourselves up over it. We’ve gotta keep our heads clear if we're gonna help Noct.”

 Ignis sighs heavily. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Gladio. I lost myself for a moment.”

 “Don’t sweat it. Now are you sure you haven't found anything?”

 Ignis drops his hands to leaf through a book. “Nothing about those marks on Ravus’s arm, or what could be strong enough to entrap the most powerful medium in Tenebrae.”

 “What about the portal?”

 “No definitive answers, but nothing that contradicts our initial theories, either. Noct and Prompto are most likely caught between the two realms.”

“Which means Luna’s still our best shot at reaching them. Damn.”

“About that . . .” Ignis shifts in his seat, turning to face Gladio fully. “There is one thing—an old tome, written in Solheim runes.”

Gladio perks up. “You think there’s something in there that could help us get to Noct?”

“Possibly. There is . . . a spell.” Ignis removes a book from the stack. It’s dark and fat. Any markings on the cover have been completely worn away. “A ritual, to be precise. It enables the caster to send spiritual energy to a soul trapped between Eos and the spirit realm.”

“All right! I knew we could count on you, Iggy.”

Gladio claps him on the shoulder. Ignis slumps under the weight. “I’m afraid it’s not that simple.”

There’s something about Ignis’s expression that Gladio can’t put his finger on, but he doesn’t have time to parse it. "Which components are we missing? Anything we can substitute?"

"We have all the necessary items. It’s just, this spell—well, it requires two people."

Gladio nods. "Cool, so we'll tag team it out."

Ignis winces. "I really wouldn't be so quick to say that if I were you."

"Why? Does it require a sacrifice?"

"Of sorts.”

Gladio raises a brow. Ignis closes his eyes. When he opens them, it’s with steely resolution.

“It's a book of sex magic, Gladio."

 ---

It takes less than five minutes to move all the furniture, less than ten to finish drawing the array around the bed. After all, Ignis isn’t the high witch of the Lucis Caelum clan for nothing. He lights the candles with a snap of his fingers while Gladio sets out the bowls of sylleblossom petals and animal fat—six in total, one for each of the Astrals. Then both of them step into the array.

Gladio removes his jacket. He suppresses a shiver as Ignis draws his thumb along his chest and abdomen, leaving behind a maroon sigil. He stays very still as Ignis unbuttons his own shirt, and when it’s his turn to copy the sigil, he tries very hard not to stare at Ignis’s pecs, or the freckles on his stomach.

Ignis clears his throat. His entire face is red, from his neck to the roots of his hair. “Next we present the offerings. If you don’t mind, I can go first.”

“Be my guest.”

Ignis reaches into the pocket of his trousers. “This pendant was given to me by Lord Regis when I was still a child, in honor of my appointment as the high witch’s apprentice. I have since kept it with me out of respect for the Lucis Caelum line as well as for good fortune. I offer it today as a token of gratitude and good will to the Astrals and to the elements, that they may grant Lord Noctis their aid.”

He sets the pendant in one of the bowls of sylleblossoms (Gladio definitely does not admire the muscles in his shoulders and back when he bends over).

Gladio reaches into their satchel of supplies to remove his own offering. “I brought cup noodles.”

Ignis stares at him.

“Um.” Gladio shifts uneasily. “These delicious noodles are for the Astrals, so that—”

“Just put it down,” Ignis snaps. “In one of the bowls.” He waits until Gladio is finished. When he speaks again, his voice is somewhat softer. “Gladio, before we go any further, are you sure about this?”

Gladio squares his shoulders. "You said it should be the two people closest to the target of the spell. Out of all those conscious and present, that's you and me."

"I know, but you shouldn’t feel obligated. There may be other ways. I could keep looking. I could—”

"Ignis. I want to do this."

Ignis exhales deeply, with a sort of resignation. "Very well."

"What about you?” Gladio asks. “Are you good? If not, me and Cindy are pretty tight. She hasn't known Noct for that long, but maybe if I talk to her, she and I could—"

"No.”

The response is forceful—loud, even. Ignis pauses to adjust his glasses.

“The principal caster should be an experienced magic user,” he continues calmly, “which is me. And if it has to be anyone, I'd rather it be the two of us."

Gladio decides not to read too much into that last statement, but he does feel a little smug.

"So," he asks, "what next?"

"Eager, are we?" Ignis remarks dryly. "Just stand there, for now. And follow my lead."

He turns to retrieve two goblets from the bedside table and hands one to Gladio. The liquid is fragrant with cloves and other herbs. Next, Ignis links their arms together, so that they're each holding the goblet before the other's lips.

"Repeat after me," Ignis says. "Ic bescence þe mīn ferþ . . ."

Gladio repeats, understanding only every other word. But he trusts Ignis, so when the goblet tilts toward his lips, he drinks until it's drained.

"Now then." Ignis's entire torso is flushed now, and Gladio is sure it has little to do with the wine. "I suppose this is the part where we go to bed."

"If that's what the spell says," Gladio concedes.

The mattress creaks as they both take a seat on the edge. Ignis perches very stiffly, arms and legs drawn close to his body.

"So." Gladio leans back on one hand, stretches his legs—pretends to be much more relaxed than he really feels. "How specific are the details of this spell?"

"Any act of intimacy will suffice," Ignis says quietly. "So long as the fertile essences are spilled by both parties."

Well then, Gladio thinks. It shouldn't hurt to look, right? He is, after all, an expert in looking at Ignis—though mostly through stolen glances, or carefully neutral gazes. Now he lets his eyes roam freely. Ignis is slender without his shirt—his shoulders broad and sinewy, his waist narrow. Myriad freckles and moles pattern his skin. Gladio wants to reach out and run his hands over every single one. Instead, his eyes snap up to Ignis's face. Ignis stares back, expression inscrutable. He leans forward, and Gladio inches toward him, arm raising instinctively as he prepares to—

"I've never done this before," Ignis blurts.

Gladio falls back. He blinks, then scratches his head with a chuckle. "Yeah, this is my first occult sex ritual, too."

"No, I mean, I've never done this with anyone, ever—being intimate."

Oh.

"Is that a problem?" Ignis presses.

"Of course not," Gladio says. "I'm just . . ."

Ignis's lips curve in a rueful smile. "Surprised? The role of the supreme high witch doesn't allow much time for romantic escapades. Unfortunately, I'm not very experienced. I hope it won't be too unenjoyable for you."

He says this with his typical flat, sarcastic affect, but there's something tender underneath. Something dark and edgy.

"I'm sure I'll enjoy it," Gladio assures him. "You're perfect, Iggy. Everything you do is perfect. But are you really okay with this? Kind of an intense first time."

"I'm okay with it. Actually, I . . ."

He pauses, gaze darting to the floor. Gladio waits with entirely feigned patience. By the time Ignis looks back up, his entire body feels like it's on fire.

"I've always wanted it to be you," Ignis says.

A raspy, trembling breath escapes Gladio's lips. With it goes the last few tattered shreds of his composure. "Iggy. Fuck, I—I'm gonna take such good care of you. I want to make you feel good, Iggy."

Ignis takes Gladio's hands and guides them to his waist. "I know," he says. "I trust you."

[mashitandsmashit]

America’s Got Talent: Season 15 - Judge Cuts

Well, this pandemic's making a mess out of everything, isn't it?

I guess Simon wasn't a fan of the format for this round from the previous seasons...But whatever format it's going to be in the future, let's...NOT go with this one...As it is, we only know the fate of, like, HALF the acts...And I'm still processing some of them! (Though I can tell that I spoke too soon on some of the acts we didn't see much of before...)

As usual in this round, some decisions I agree with, and others...Well, Thomas Day and Kameron Ross both made it, among other singers that didn't excite me before, so this may not bode well for some of my favorites...But I should still give them credit for sending ALMOST all of my favorites from the auditions through...Some are still pending, and others...well...We can only hope for some good wildcards this year...

Anyway, only ten acts actually performed, so let's rank them...

10: Simon and Maria. Look, these kids are perfectly passable, but you seriously expect me to believe they deserved to advance over some of the other acts!? That said, I guess they have a yearly quota, and part of that quota is a child dance duo...

9: Ryan Tricks. You know, while watching the show, I actually found Ryan to be the superior magician BY FAR, but taking a second look, I do see the staged nature of it all...Where are these magicians making all these connections!? Alesha Dixon, David Hasselhoff, Shin Lim, freaking Tape Face!? This guy definitely has the advantage in charisma, but I do feel like he's being held back from his full potential, by circumstances beyond his, or anyone else's control...

8: Max Major. So everything said...There was nothing from this trick I haven't seen before...But unlike Ryan, he did his trick live with the judges, which scores him some points...THAT being said, Shin Lim Effect is in full swing with this guy! He's gonna need to give us something original for future rounds if this act is to really work out...

7: Craig Reid. Fun...But not enough to stand out...

6: The Ninja Twins. Two annoying schmucks performing one of the most annoying songs in recent years by one of the most unlikable pop musicians? That sounds like something I would reject on the spot! ...And yet these two managed to find their groove through a REALLY creative homemade set and fun choreography! The out-of-breath vocals only added to the appeal...That said, I am glad they didn't go through, because even if you look past the immense backlash such a decision would garner, I don't see myself liking them in the long run...(PS, I missed a perfectly good chance with their previous appearance to make a reference to the “Ninja Rap” by the legendary Vanilla Ice from the cinematic masterpiece, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze”, and for that I apologize!)

5: Ty Barnett. I guess the comedian category WAS getting a little crowded, and I have no real arguments with their selections...But I dunno...I still like this guy, even if the set wasn't quite as funny as before...

4: Brothers Gage. Make these guys a wildcard, NOW! Yes, I won't argue that this wasn't as good as their last appearance, but it's still so much fun! And I'm all for them mixing in some other instruments and even vocals...But the harmonicas are still the heart and soul of the act, and they must never forget that! It's hard to say what's next for them, especially if they DO come back...But I wish them the best!

3: Shaquira McGrath. I guess she abandoned a bit of her unique identity by dropping the country from the act...But “Wake Me Up” is one of my favorite songs, and her rendition of the song really “made it her own” as they say...We'll see if she goes back to country in the next round...

2: Nolan Neal. I would have loved to hear another original song, but I don't see why singers can't mix it up between originals and covers on this show...Still one of the best vocalists of the season, if not THE best! He's got the love!

1: Jonathan Goodwin. Well, all we saw of this guy before was catching an arrow...But he looked badass when he did it, and he continues to be a badass tonight! Not much else to say...This guy's just a badass!

I guess things could have gone better...But...Yeah...

So next week is gonna be another special...I GUESS we'll be going live the week after, but we'll wait and see...

Until then, let's partake in the yearly tradition of choosing our own Golden Buzzer acts! While they haven't revealed all of the live acts yet, I feel I don't need to wait, as none of the TBD acts quite measure up for me. (Actually, Wesley Williams was one of my favorites, but he doesn't rank quite as high as who I'm selecting...)

I almost wanted to select Nolan Neal, but I think I'd rather pick another variety act this year...

So my Golden Buzzer selection this season is...

(Drumroll...)

The Spyros Bros!

It's hard to say how well they'll do in this game, but I think if they play their cards right, they could go very far! They have the story, the personality, and the coolness to potentially do well!

(I also considered Malik, but I felt it would get repetitive if I kept picking the innovative instrumentalists every year...)

Once again, FrankDoc is allowed to make a selection as well! Just remember, it has to be an act that has made the live shows, isn't a wildcard, and isn't anybody else's GB...(Also, you can wait for them to announce the other live acts if you want...)

I'll see if I have anything to say next week with the...I guess compilation of AGT winners...But I doubt it...Otherwise...Well, life has been pretty crazy for me lately...Honestly, I'm not even sure if I can continue posting these blogs for a while...But I'll keep going as long as I can, and will continue to watch this show regardless!

...So much for that livestream idea though...

RIP, Regis: The original AGT emcee!

[artemis-entreri]

[[ Artemis is finally coming to Idle Champions! 😄🥰😍 I am super pleased with his imminent arrival, although this wasn’t always the case. However, Codename Entertainment has not only satisfied my expectations, they’ve blown them out of the water.  

I’d been anticipating Artemis’ addition to the game with both excitement and dread. Excitement for the obvious reasons, and dread because I’m extremely particular about how he’s presented. Too many people erroneously depict Artemis too pale, to the point of making him a white dude, when in reality, as a native Calishite, Artemis’ skin tone would be dusky brown, similar to how people from our world’s Middle East look. Furthermore, an oft-overlooked fact is that even in canon, Artemis is stated to have brown skin. Post-Shade absorption his skin is tinted gray, but gray mixed with brown is brown-gray, not grayish-white like many people think it is for some reason. 

The second mistake that many make is depicting him too young. While Artemis’ exact age isn’t known due to his birthdate not being known, during The Sellswords he estimates himself to be in his 40s. Calculating based on this, he first meets Drizzt in his early 30s, and first set off after Regis in his late 20s. While he’s not old, he’s not exactly young either. It is explicitly stated in the books that his aging was frozen to his middle-ages. Many people depict Artemis with the face of a 20-year-old, and while it is also stated in the books that he has the lean athleticism of someone half his age, this refers more to the exceptional state of his physique rather than his facial features. 

I’m so happy about how Idle Champions has exactly nailed down Artemis’ physical appearance. His skin color is appropriately dark, comprising of an awesome mix of brown and gray. His portrait shows the wrinkles of an older man (who also happens to be done with your shit. XD) 

His in game sprite is such a delight too! When I first saw it, I couldn’t help but wonder if CNE’s artists might’ve considered my own artwork in making his design. Pretty much everything I’d studied from Lockwood’s paintings is there: the concave shape at the bottom of his leather breastplate, the distinct triangular cloak clasp under which extends the two belts, shoulderpads over sleeves composed of strips ending in rivets, a double-belt with unique angular-shaped buckles, belt over one leg, vambraces arcing over and around his elbows, kneepads over his tall boots, dual belts over his boots and the double earrings. Heck, even the sword and dagger shape are the same as how I’d interpreted them.

Honestly, if I’d been designing his sprite, there is very little that I’d have done differently. For comparison, here’s the line art of a chibi-style painting I did back in 2015:

I can’t express how giddy I am that CNE’s artists apparently studied Lockwood’s paintings as much as I had. It’s something that pretty much no other artist I know has bothered to do. They picked up even the smallest details, for instance the shape of the base of Artemis’ sword, which is really such a minor feature in this painting:

There are some aspects in CNE’s depiction that don’t come from Lockwood’s paintings that I can’t help but wonder about. First, Artemis’ garment underneath his armor, it wasn’t until very recently that I noticed Lockwood having depicted it as a complex series of even more layers and rivets:

I’ll be changing my own depiction of his outfit from now on, but up until now I’d interpreted what was underneath as a gambeson, which can be seen in my lineart above. In CNE’s depiction, he’s also wearing a gambeson underneath his breastplate.

While both CNE and I apparently drew our inspiration for the vampiric dagger’s design from Lockwood’s paintings, Lockwood’s depiction of the dagger does not contain any gems, despite the weapon’s jeweled nature. As seen in the sprite above, Artemis’ dagger has an emerald in the crosspiece. Is it just yet another coincidence with this painting I did in 2017?

And of course, those double earrings -- a feature that most artists change, yet it is one that’s both prominent and consistent in all of my work. 

Ultimately though, despite these similarities, as much as I’d like to think that my own art contributed to CNE’s depiction of Artemis in what’s an official WotC/D&D product, I fundamentally believe that it’s all just a happy coincidence. In Idle Champions, Artemis’ earrings are silver, his leg belt’s on his right leg rather than left, the pommel of his sword is different and his facial hair is different. However, I do know that I was able to affect his final appearance, for originally, his portrait had brown eyes, and his sprite’s dagger had a red gem rather than a green gem. CNE addressed both of these things after I’d brought them up.

Game mechanics-wise, without having seen him in action yet, I really like how CNE designed him. Artemis’ superb improvisational abilities are a big part of what makes him such a capable fighter, so his kit in Idle Champions being built around him mirroring other DPS champions’ buffs makes a lot of sense. His jeweled dagger, as his signature weapon consistently throughout the ages, is similarly adequately tied in to his damage-dealing capacities. 

I absolutely love that Artemis will be in seat 3, next to a certain drow mercenary. (灬♥ω♥灬)

The one thing that is a little strange is the nature of his epic items. 

Idle Champions’ snapshot of Artemis, based on his game description, is from the pre-Sellswords era. During this time period, Artemis had the bat-winged cloak and his dagger, but it wasn’t until after he thought he’d killed Drizzt did he acquire the nightmare figurine, the bolero, Idalia’s Flute, and Charon’s Claw. By that point, he’d lost his bat-winged cloak. The bolero was disassembled and presumably discarded after its final usage in Road of the Patriarch. In the current timeline, Artemis only has his dagger, Claw, and the nightmare figurine. Furthermore, he’d be quite displeased if presented with Idalia’s Flute again, and most likely would reject having it in his possession. All in all though, I can understand why CNE chose these items, and I really love how the flavor text isn’t Artemis discussing them as they are for other champions. It is definitely more fitting to cite them as rumors whispered among third parties.  

Overall, it feels like the “real” Artemis has come to Idle Champions, and I’m very glad about that. I’ve been saving up forever for Artemis’ arrival.

He might very well fall flat like new DPS champions have in the past and/or not be up to par to the current meta best DPS champion, but the recent trend with new champion releases is that each has been better than the previous, so I’m hoping that it’ll mean Artemis will be the new meta DPS. However, even if he isn’t, I still plan on blowing all of this on him, because sometimes, personal preference trumps the need to min/max. 

Thank you so much Codename Entertainment! Artemis coming to your game is already such a great joy, but to arrive in the way that he is -- I’m absolutely thrilled! ]]

[secret-engima]

Yo! I see all this final fantasy stuff on your pf and it looks interesting. But, I have no idea where to start it??? Like where to I go? Is it a book? A show?? Pretty sure someone once told me it was a game?? Is it a game?? I'm clueless over here dammit. Where do I go to start reading/watching/whatever final fantasy??

*cracks knuckles* MY TIME HAS COME. In all seriousness though, the main Final Fantasy stuff I reblog is from or about the Final Fantasy XV universe. In case Final Fantasy as a whole is unfamiliar to you, it is a franchise of games (and occasionally other stuff) that all share the same name and a few basic world-building elements but are actually a different story each time (Final Fantasy VII, the other one I reblog is totally different universe from FFXV).

NOW. FFXV is the latest in their lineup of games and, again, the one I post most often about (the Nox verse AU that has been haunting my blog is a fanfic of FFXV). It is on PS4, Xbox One, Windows PC and Google Stadia (whatever that last one is) and I CANNOT recommend it enough. If you have anything that will play it, try it, but make sure to get the Royal Edition. It has an extra dungeon, more side quests, extra gloriously heart-breaking ending cutscenes, and all the dlc but like- one of them which was released after the Royal Edition came out. I have all the patches and stuff and I don’t regret buying the vanilla day one version in the slightest, but it IS less insanity inducing to get it all in one neat package (my Walmart has been selling the ps4 Royal Ed for like- 20-ish bucks for over a month now and I think it’s currently around that price on their online store too).

Keep in mind, this is not a game to rush through. You CAN, but it will be hard (never believe the level min on the quests, except for like- the first five, you need to be at least three levels higher than the min if you want to survive without using up all your med supplies) AND you’ll miss out on the more subtler pieces of world building. The plot likes to hide in the background sometimes and there’s even two extra cutscenes that you can miss if you’re in too much of a hurry. So if you get it, just take your time in ENJOY it. Explore the gorgeous open world, listen to the four MCs do really good random dialogue, find the little side-quests and random in-game news articles/books that tell you in-game lore. It’s a great game world to get lost in and there are a few quests that only become available post game so there’s still stuff to do after you finish the main storyline (you can also replay individual chapters and all their associated story quests if you want without having to replay the entire game from scratch or new game plus). :D

NOW. One or two things of note is that the game isn’t the only part of the FFXV segment of the franchise. They also released a prequel movie called Kingsglaive (I recommend playing the game first? But either works) and it’s ... it’s one of those imperfectly perfect movies, you know? I know some people don’t like it but I love it and therefore I recommend watching it at least twice, once just for the overall feel and the second time to pick out all the unspoken character cues and clues there are (because there are a lot, the motion capture is lovely, also Sean Bean plays King Regis in the movie and he’s awesome at it).

There is also a five-ish episode anime on youtube you can watch called Final Fantasy XV: Brotherhood which offers flashbacks to the four MCs of the game and how they met/glimpses of their childhood and stuff. Also one on Ardyn, but DON’T WATCH THAT ONE until you’ve finished the game. Seriously, don’t. It’s a major Spoiler Alert.

Sooo, yeah. TL;DR Final Fantasy is a massive franchise that you do not have to start from number 1 in order to get into because each installment is different, FFXV is their latest and my favorite game ever despite it’s quirks and flaws and if you play it and become a fellow fan, feel free to come screech at me in my ask box because I will happily screech back.

Or you can watch walkthroughs of it on youtube if you can’t/don’t want to play it. That works too. :DD

[terato-onlyfangs]

/Rules remake

----

Hello, I'm Dusy, I am the person behind the Muse. I am 19, later to be 20!

This is a side blog, so I'll follow or like on my blog @the-goblincore.

I also have an art blog! @goblinsareus

----

Please read my roles first, much appreciated if you do.

My muse, Emiel Regis is obviously over 18+ and possibly 500+ or 700+

I like to discuss the plot at times but I sometimes swing it.

And it's totally fine to send me starters.

I've only seen the Netflix series and played The Witcher 3. So I'm sticking to the blood and wine DLC.

Multiverses are fine!

Really not into rping NSFW. MAYBE I'll write NSFW headcanons but that's still on a thin string for me.

Please tell me if you have any rules and triggers. And tell me if I'm godmodding.

I prefer to see your rules first anyways.

Myself, I have a heavy fear of pregnancy and childbirth.

And I do not put up with rape, slurs, suicide, and underage sex.

I'm okay with gore and violence, alcohol consumption, cursing, mentions of abuse, and angst.

And I'll tag trigger warnings. I'll just use _____tw or tw____

And if you're uncomfortable or stressed out, please tell me. I will understand 💛

I'm fine with freestyle, I just kind of yeet myself. But any kind of writing style is fine.

Please don't worry about paragraphs too, or bug me if I'm writing too much or too little. Also take your time :>

I'm fine with story plots, fluff plots, angst plots, or just simple character interaction.

I'm open to all story genres.

For shippers, Regis is single but I'm fine for x OC, x canon character and x reader roleplay.

Or hell for fanfiction and imagines.

But I do not promote unhealthy relationships.

Grammar and style don't bug me. Though please spell things right, I know myself I might spell things wrong but I try not to. But if I have, please shoot me a message.

Also if English isn't your first language, then don't sweat it.

I'm fine with short-term and long term roleplaying.

Will use Ooc and Ic

Though ooc is more crack or jokes.

I have a god awful memory, so if I forget to respond to a thread or so on, please just gently remind me.

Please be 18+ up, just not that comfortable rping with minors.

I'll have my spells where I'll be gone for some time so I'll post hiatus and if I'm open or closed on requests, etc.

Regis is fine with any gender and race. Love for all!

But please send in oc references.

If your rp blog is a side blog, and you don't want it in the ask just put @/place your rp blog url here/ or just shoot a message.

I can't always follow back, the app is a mess and it won't let me follow others back. ú-ù

I can be selective, and here's why. I have bad depression, anxiety, and ocd.

So if you're involved in fandom drama constantly, a map/ pedophile, nazi or nazi sympathier, not lgbt+ friendly (including people who dont support ace and pans) then I'm going to say no.

And do not put me in drama, or anon hate. I will block you.

If you're known because of past drama but bettering yourself, then you're welcomed here.

I'm not my muse! Though I love his character, we are not the same person.

Personally I don't use icons, might use gifs but don't feel like you have to or if you're not allowed to.

If I forget anything, might it be in the rp, canon plot, rules, etc please tell me.

Requests and asks are all okay!

▶Out of character will be like this:

/Hey! Or /Hey!/

Totally fine with roleplayers advertisements/ shout-outs. And I don't mean just for myself. Just send an ask and I'll post.

Fanart too! Hell I might make fanart for you.

I lean more to asks and reblogs then messages. But messages are okay.

I can also rp as different canon characters for the rp. Yet I can get overwhelmed if I rp too many characters at once.

----

I take art requests and fanfiction requests, rules up above count with these requests.

Now not to godmod I use dice for fighting, a d&d thing. 20!

You can use this as dice rolling:

https://rolladie.net/roll-a-d20-die#!numbers=1&sides=20&length=1&last_roll_only=false&totals_only=false&start=false

(Only for none planned out fights I'll use the die)

I love criticism, it helps me to improve. And I'm willing to give out criticism if you ask too!

Anyways I hope you all have fun!

your local cryptic, Dusy

[valiisthea]

Okay, so here are the lesser known parts of my oc Jess' story because they involve the "taboo" act of giving an OC some sort of relationship to canon characters so read at your own risk.

[To be fair, it's hard for a comrades OC not to have friendships with the Glaives, as a glaive. ]

Also this is just her canon story line. I've shipped her with Gladio in the past, and an Ignis and Prompto once as well. I'm open to all sorts of relationships with her - when she had her own blog she had the best broship with a Noctis and a Nyx, too. All of my muses are open to a myriad of different relationships regardless of their canon lines!

[[MORE]]

Jess and Luche are childhood friends, much like Lib and Nyx. They've known each other since they were quite young, around 5. That's why when Jess defects, it's not hard for her to follow Luche.

Speaking of her defecting, she wasn't told of the plan to kill the king. The traitor glaives were smart in their recruitment, telling others only what they would feel strongly to and not all of the bad stuff just to grow numbers. She never wanted Regis to die or Insomnia to fall. Luche knew that, so he left it out. She WAS heartbroken by Luche's much bigger role later when she finds out.

She dated Pelna for a little while, up until his death. Pelna had asked both Lib and Nyx to look after her in the event of his death back when they first started dating. Nyx was the one to inform her of his passing.

Nyx of course died later, too. Jess went straight to Lestallum after the fall and Lib went back to Galahd for a while. When he came to Lestallum, though, there was a huge tearful reunion between him and Jess. He also upheld his promise to Pelna. Perhaps a little TOO well.

Jess and Lib did end up sleeping together at some point. I'm still on the fence as to whether or not they became exclusive or if they just slept together occasionally. I feel like both of them arent good at no strings attached though, so they probably did go exclusive.

Yeah, yeah, y'all can all roll your eyes at me now 😂

Also, in an AU where Luche survives, she finds him in the rubble and can't leave him there, so she takes him to Lestallum and treats his wounds there. Lib isnt happy at first, but he finds forgiveness after some time.

[fragmenthearted]

SHIPPING INFO !! 

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING FOR YOUR MUSE SO PEOPLE KNOW HOW SHIPPING WORKS ON YOUR BLOG.

>> WHAT IS YOUR OTP FOR YOUR CHARACTER?:

Oh geeze - I guess I’ll limit this to ffxv muses because to list them all would take a long time ... be prepared

Ardyn: Lunafreya, Older!Noctis, Verstael, Aera (depending on my mood)… 

Somnus: Aera, I guess? He's not a very shippy character.

Noctis: Lunafreya (?)

Regis: Aulea - I can't really imagine him finding anyone else

>> WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO WRITE WHEN IT COMES TO SHIPPING?:

Most stuff. I really like cute family and kids stuff? But also toxic/hateships, best friends, adoptive parents… I'll write soft n s f w occasionally when I feel like it, but more often than not, I'm also perfectly happy with skipping the details too. I'm not comfortable with non-consensual stuff though.

>> HOW LARGE DOES THE AGE GAP HAVE TO BE TO MAKE IT UNCOMFORTABLE?:

Mnnn I get a bit iffy if it's more than 5-6ish years - but that being said, I've got a lot of older/immortal muses, so as long as both characters are of age, (and especially if the younger is pretty mentally mature) it's fine in the end. Usually it just means a little more development between them is required, because my characters won't immediately fall for a muse that's much younger.

>> ARE YOU SELECTIVE WHEN SHIPPING?:

Yes, in that I think ships are great, but it's very difficult for me to write pre-established relationships, so our muses usually have to have interacted before so I have an idea how they get along - or don't, as the case may be.

>> HOW FAR DO STEAMY MOMENTS HAVE TO GO BEFORE THEY ARE CONSIDERED NS/FW?:

If clothes come off - or there's intense touching/teasing going on….

>> WHO ARE OTHER THE CHARACTERS YOU SHIP YOUR CHARACTER WITH?:

Ahhh, i’m pretty willing to try most pairings? Each character does have their preferences - though I could see Ardyn being comfortable with almost anyone... For example, I've always thought Regis and Ardyn would be great friends in an AU where they weren't fighting.

Ardyn is with @the-first-oracle​ (Aera), @starstrucx​ (Aranea, Ignis), @lucianprincess​ (Aurora), and @emily-lotus​

Somnus is with @driftingjazzbard (Erin), Aera, and @lunafreya-ncx-fleuret

Regis is with Aulea, and he adores his daughter Aurora

Noctis hasn't interacted much, so he doesn't really have any romantic ships, but he's pretty fond of his sister Aurora too

>> DOES ONE HAVE TO ASK TO SHIP WITH YOU?:

 Ah yes because I'm very dense and will just be confused if you don’t XD 

>> HOW OFTEN DO YOU LIKE TO SHIP?:

I like building up ships a lot - but I tag all serious relationships, not just romantic ones, including siblings, etc, so pretty much any muse that spends enough time with us will get "ship" tags. The actual qualifications for getting a tag are usually, "I want to reblog something that reminds my muse of this relationship" or "I'd like to be able to refer to these two's posts" so it's pretty simple as long as we're interacting...

>> ARE YOU SHIP OBSESSED OR SHIP MORE-OR-LESS?:

More-or-less I suppose.

>> ARE YOU MULTISHIP?:

Yes, but in separate verses (except in certain very specific cases of shared verses - i.e. my Somnus, Noctis, and Regis all know Aurora is dating Ardyn - that have to be discussed with me)

>> WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SHIP IN YOUR CURRENT FANDOM?:

Ah Ardyn/Luna probably? Older!Noct/Ardyn - and I've been considering Ardyn/Noct/Luna xD I have a problem...

>> FINALLY, HOW DOES ONE SHIP WITH YOU?:

Just bring your muse over and tell me about them, and I'll see if I think it'll work out! And/or we can try a few threads and see how it goes.

TAGGED BY: @musesbyarya thanks!

TAGGING: I'm tired, so just take it if you’d like!

[akindlymonster-a]

BASICS:

Name:  Vivien Age:   27 Pronouns:   she / her Sexuality:   possibly ace, definitely into girls Zodiac sign:   leo Taken or single:   single

FOUR THINGS ABOUT THIS BLOG:

–– i’ve only had this blog a few months, and moved into this quieter fandom for a break from a much bigger muse –– i have a soft spot for redeemable monsters, hence why i chose regis out of all the witcher muses –– i didn’t mean to ship as much as i have but fuck it, i love love. –– i seriously need to read the books. i’ve had pretty much everything already spoiled, but I need a better handle on regis’ book dialogue/interactions

THREE MUN FACTS:

–– i have a full-time corporate job which, to be honest, is a little too busy for my liking sometimes. I work a lot of overtime which frequently interferes with my hobbies, and that’s partially why I moved to this smaller, quieter fandom to begin with. –– i studied languages at university and speak semi-fluent German. i say semi because my social anxiety means that i tend to forget my entire vocabulary the second someone asks me to demonstrate. i’m still working on speaking more naturally and translating faster, but it’s a bitch. –– i’m a prolific baker and am trying to start up my own side business selling cakes and sweets

EXPERIENCE:

How’d you start:   i’ve always written for pleasure, but a friend in the girl guides directed me to the neopets rp boards when I was thirteen. fourteen years later, I’m still doing it. Platforms you’ve used:   neopets, skype, AIM, proboards and tumblr Best experience:   the friendships I’ve made, specifically one from my tolkien muse days who remains one of my dearest, most beloved friends IRL. We visit one-another’s countries as often as possible and I live for it. Worst experience:   becoming a victim of toxic ‘friendships’, particularly with people who used their mental illness as an excuse to lie, manipulate and abuse. as someone who HAS a mental illness i now can and will call you out on that regardless of the damage to your precious feelings

MUSE PREFERENCES:

Original or canon:   canon Favourite face:   none at the moment Least favorite face:   i hate anime face claims - i don’t know why, but i can’t stand them Multi or single:  single. i’d like to manage more blogs (particularly to go back to my last muse), but i’m too freaking busy for more than one

WRITING PREFERENCES:

Plots or memes:   both - though i’d really like more consistent plots atm Best time to write:   in the evenings and/or weekends - but mostly it depends when i have the energy Do you like your muse(s):    if i dislike them, i don’t use them? How long (months/years?):   about fourteen years? Fluff, angst or smut:   all of the above

tagged by: @epheemere tagging: @toussainttwins, @betemorne, @sapientiaethumanitas, @winterfollow, @thoseofonen

[darth-salem-emperor-of-earth]

My Top Ten Favorite Characters: Fandom/Character Meme!

I got tagged by @tessa1972 months and months ago for this and figured I stalled on this meme long enough. So finally, I’m getting around to posting this. None of these characters are in particular order and none of the gifs belong to me. 

Dorian Pavus:

There were way too many possible gifs for him to show how awesome, witty, clever, expressive and beautiful he is. I love his character and backstory, he’s a great companion to have around in battles and his romance with M!Inquisitor overloads me with feels. Dorian never fails to amuse me with his wit and comebacks.

Carth Onasi:

So much sass, humor, fight, and emotion all wrapped up in this angstmuffin of trust issues, accompanied by a sexy voice. He was my first video game love ever, I will never forget how his voice made me melt and simply wanted to listen him talk forever. I like his romance with Revan (F!Revan in the game but I like the idea of him falling for Revan of both genders because their interactions and the story behind them falling in love are just so beautiful). They say you’ll never forget your first. They’re right, I’ll never forget Carth Onasi. 

Éowyn of Rohan:

You tell them, Eowyn. I loved her character both in the books and the movie and when my dad always told me the whole story of the Lord of Rings (way before the movies came out), I was always fascinated with Eowyn and wanted to be just like her, to slay the Witch King, continue to kick ass, and be a warrior. She is my baby, I’ll defend her ‘til the very end. 

King Gangrel:

Where do I begin with this ginger trash king? He was such a riot and so unapologetically terrible while enjoying every minute of it. His history and reasoning behind his motives (at least, what small amounts the game shared with us) were fascinating and I was soooo glad we could recruit him later. And he totally shoved my plan to support/romance Walhart out the door (I’ll wait for my fourth playthrough) because his conversations and general personality were such a pleasure to read and laugh over. I love chaotic, goofy characters like him and it sweetened the deal where one of my Avatars could romance him. XD

Varric Tethras:

He stole my heart the moment he made his first appearance in Dragon Age 2. Stupid swagger, chest hair, charming grin and wit, and crafty mind ruining my life! A wonderful, faithful friend, a successful writer and storyteller, and a wicked shot with a crossbow--he has it all and so much more! Bioware let me romance him or dwarves again, I need this.

Garrus Vakarian:

Garrus, my man, you are a wonderful friend and romance option, you keep stealing my heart every time I read your lines to Shepard. XD

I loved his growth from ME1 to ME2 and then, ME3, showing how far he has come and how much he has achieved. I loved his loyalty to Shepard no matter how difficult or harrowing things became and was such a reliable, supportive comrade-in-arms. He had those moments were he could one smooth operator and then turn around to be an adorkable cutie pie. And still be a badass sniper no matter what. 

Catelyn Stark:

She is one of my favorite characters in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. Catelyn is a flawed character, and her story, her journey, and overall character gripped every time I read her chapters. This woman as underwent through so much, even as a young girl, and lost even more as well. She is such a strong character who tries to keep her family safe, balance multiple roles as mother, wife, protector, emissary, sister, etc., recognize and point out the unfairness of the patriarchy in Westeros’s society, and is one of the few voices of reason in this whole series. I know she has made some mistakes and isn’t perfect and that’s what I want. Favorite characters of mine are never perfect, they struggle and don’t always do the right thing according to a modern perspective, but their overall character psyche compels me regardless. And Catelyn Stark is one of those characters and because of her complexity, she gets a lot of hate for it. But not here, not on my blog. I love Catelyn Stark, who was such a force in life that now, in her undead life, she wreaking havoc on those who betrayed her, her son, and the House Stark and Tully. I just hope she can find some peace at the series (yeah, fuck you, Game of Thrones, I won’t forget your crappy depiction of her and Stannis). 

Vernon Roche:

One of these days I will actually play The Witcher 2 in its entirety and read the books but that won’t stop me from basking in the glory that is Vernon Roche. His complex, flawed character fascinated me and I really liked how his friendship with Geralt grows in the game, even if you pick Iorveth’s route, he still goes out of his way to help Geralt out. I also liked how he immediately suspected Geralt was innocent of Foltest’s death and his training, care, and relationship with Ves, his most trusted soldier. I just love what a BAMF he is and his route was my JAM! I loved how little Anais trusts him and how he will do everything in his power to keep her safe and win her crown and throne back for her. Uggh, so many feels!

Also, if you want to know when I realized how much I loved this character, I’ll tell you. It was near the end of the second game, where Vernon Roche brutally castrates Dethmold with his bare hands and then gives him a bloody end. I kid you not, my mind whispered, “I think I’m in love.” XD

Dettlaff:

Apparently in the Witcher universe, I like the hot tempered men. XD

Oh how I love this broody, tormented, and romantic High vampire so much that I can’t even imagine going through the endings where he dies and Regis is an outcast among his own kind, doomed to be hunted. Nope, nope, nope!

Anyway, I loved watching his struggles, his friendship with Regis and how he saved him from being a pile of goo, how deep and far he loves go for love or to protect those he cherishes--even for a woman who clearly doesn’t deserve him--, and down the little things, like his creativity (like his toy shops) or how fond he is with kids and they to them. I just want my high vampire to happy, okay? 

Haruno Sakura

Canon screwed her over so hard and she deserved better than what Kishi gave her (I’m sorry I will never not be over this and will be salty even when I’m dead). Her character arc and development in the beginning was interesting to watch, especially when Shippuden came around and we saw the fruits of her labor under the apprenticeship of Tsunade. I’m amazed how hard Sakura had to work be seen and treated as a shinobi, especially when her training was neglected when she was young and a mere genin. I really liked her personality, how far she came since the first volume, and Sakura could have had the proper story and ending if Kishi knew how to write women and actually cared about his main heroine in Naruto. Will I be bitter about this like 100 percent dark chocolate and revel in fanfictions and fanon ideas? You betcha!

I’m tagging anyone who wants to do this!

[moonraccoon-exe]

Hi there :) ok, so first of all, your pseudo is amazing. Anyway, you were wondering if I was paying intention to the tags... of course omg!!! You put so much energy and love in your comment how could I not have seen it? seriously?? and true fact, I loose time every morning to check the reblogs just in case people put some stuff in the tags and idk, i cannot ignore it. So don't worry your endless tags full of feels will not end into the void ;) thanks you soooo much and have a great day!!

AKSLJDFLKGA DJLKGAJS FLKADJG ALDKGJ AKLDGJAKLG ZOMG ZOMG SCREEEEEEEEEECH IT’S AESTRAMA SAMA IN MY INBOX IT’S AN ARTIST OF PHENOMENAL ART IN MY INBOX SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECCCCCCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

*EXPLODES*

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

PEOPLE GO CHECK THEIR ART OUT IT’S FANTASTIC AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH ASDKLJDAG KDJ GLAKDJGAD

OMG. OMG. ASKJDAFDKHLJ ADKLFAJ DGKLADJGADK ADKLGJADLGKAD

AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH, AESTRAMA SAMA I DON’T KNOW HOW TO REPLY TO YOU HGNNHFHNFG HKFGNH OMG I DIDN’T REALLY THINK YOU’D ACTUALLY DROP BY HNHG AAAAAHHHHH

Let me- let me add a keep reading here, aye? Ah. Omh. Aha,dg

Look, I REALLY want to freak out here because ZOMG IT U, but the truth is I can’t look at your inbox and freak out because I HAVE FAILED YOU OTL

It took me forever, but I did add the tags to yoru artwork where I asked you if you wanted me to…it’s here, if you want to check it out, but…know that I failed you… ;A;

Tumblr only allows 30 tags and there was NO WAY on this planet that I would put my thoughts and impressions of your artwork in only 30 tags, considering as well the space I use for search purposes which left me with like 20 and as hard as I tried to fill them as much as they allow me to, I just…didn’t get even ¼ to what I wanted to express… OTL

So I’m sorry that I kept you waiting for so AGONIZINGLY LONG and it’s not a big deal. You probably expected more but what did you expect me to say? Your art is beyond my vocabulary and mortal comprehension, I couldn’t do it as hard as I tried…forgive this mortal that adores your art but has no idea of how to express how much, almighty Aestrama… OTL

SO WHAT ABOUT I KEEP RANTING HERE BECAUSE I DON’T FEEL FULFILLED YET

IT’S JUST

AKSDLJF

AKSLDJFG LKAJDFKLAS GDKLJLAKDJ FLDKAGJALDKGAD JLK

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

I REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY WHOLEHEARTEDLY LOVE THAT ARTWORK OF YOURS KAJSDKALJG OMG I HAD ALREADY SEEN TWO OR SO ARTWORKS FROM YOU BUT THAT ONE SORTA SLAYED ME ;A;

The Regis-Noct relationship is my fave and it’s always so heartbreaking and touching, and you made it so…beautiful in a way I can’t describe. Your artwork itself radiates all this joy, all this sentiment, kasjdladkgjadkgjda, the artwork contains some load of emotion, and it transmits another load, and honestly, that’s what I think art is.

Not to talk about your art. Which is what I think I talked the less about when it should have been in first place because WOWEE, LOOK AT YOUR ART!!!!!!!!!!

And that one artwork is so good and so nice, because while it’s a fun and cute style, it’s not an artwork to laugh with, it really is touching and heartwarming. It may be the look on Regis’ face, happy and content, when in canon we’re not used to see him smile. I LOVE the colors and how you mad eof blue and black hues so happy and lighthearted. Lighthearted, that’s a word I’d give to it. That, and wholesome.

All in all, I think that your WONDERFUL art skills and the emotion within, plus the emotion it transmits really do a fantastic and phenomenal job at giving that one artwork its impact and impression. It’s really something I can’t put into words and that I will forever love akjsdlkajg aaah… ;__________;

AND THAT’S THAT. I’M SORRY I BURST INTO A RANT, IT’S JUST- I LOVE THAT WORK SO MUCH OTL

A-aah….and…omg…thank you for thinking that my pseudo is amazing, ahah, aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!!!!!!!!! (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄) Thank you!!!

Also, I get what you mean with checking reblogs in case people put something in the tags. I do that, too, but sometimes I just stop checking because no one ever says a thing and I feel I’m just wasting my time. Which really made me think that the chances YOU checked the tags were so scarce, because a little writer with 20 or 30 tags gets tired sometimes from lack of tag content, and YOU, such a wonderful and skilled artist with 200 or more notes…??? So you probably check more reblogs with no tags, so it was probable you just didn’t check them anymore, which is fine and understandable!!

So it really surprised me that you sent this and let me know that you check them. That speaks so nicely about you…Thank you for taking the time to check the tags, despite knowing that maybe 1 in 15 people will say anything. Thank you, really, for checking them. It makes me so, so, so happy to know that my comments didn’t go to the void, at least now with you…thank you… :’)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH AND THANK YOU SO SO SOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH FOR THINKING THAT I PUT SO MUCH ENERGY AND LOVE IN MY COMMENTS KLAJSD ALKGJ ADLKG JADLKGJ ADLKGAJD GLKA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Silly as it may sound, sometimes I do put so much energy into things, and I reblog so many things, that it does tire me out? Which is why, when I first reblogged that artwork of yours, I said that about being exhausted. Sorry if it sounds absurd… OTL

So that you notice that I put energy and love into my comments really makes me so, so, soooooooooooooo happy!!!!! OMg, thank you SO MUCH and immensely for acknowledging that!!!!!!!!! My tags most of the time (or so it feels) go to the void, so that you not only read them, but also acknowledge all the hype I put into them, it really means a lot to me!! ZOMG I DON’T KNOW HOW TO THANK YOU ASLDKFJG LKAJDG AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH ;w;

Thank you so, so, soooooooooo very and so dearly much for everything, dear artist. Thank you for taking the time to read the tags. Thank you even more for having taken up on my request and having dropped by to let me know that you were reading them. It really means a lot that despite how busy you may be and how much of a small blog I am, you still took the effort to write to me as a reply. Thank you for that, so, so immensely.

Thank you for your time and your attention, and thank you for being so immensely, incredibly kind and sweet with me. Besides a super skilled artist, you behaved with me like an incredible person. Thank you so much for being so nice and so friendly, you, wonderful creature… :’)

Thank you as well for sharing your PHENOMENAL art with us!!!! It’s made me so happy and I’m still marveled by it. Thank you!!!

All in all, thank you for everything, dear artist!!!!

I hope you’re having a MOST PHENOMENAL day or night!! Thank you!!! (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ

[musesbyarya-a]

@strengthhonorcompassion | From my former blog @altissiancamelia

Send 🍸 for our muses to have a drink together.

It had been a few days since Camelia had met the Lucians who had come to Altissia to try to rebuild the old alliance between their two nations. The Clautras, an old family of the high society of Accordo who had been part of the resistance for years, had offered Prince Regis and his friends to accommodate them for the duration of their stay in order to ensure their safety in this place annexed by Niflheim.

In order to get to know each other a little better, Camelia had offered to go to a bar on the port whose owner was also part of their anti-government faction. Sitting quietly at a table, the young woman carried her drink to her lips to drink a sip of Martini Bianco before engaging in discussion with Clarice. “I hope you like Altissia, even if it’s only temporary,” she said with a soft smile.

“So far I’ve loved every moment of it.” The sea breeze had been helping her mood, their trip had been long and stressful as the Empire grew more and more bold. Not to mention being here was dangerous for her liege, the constant nagging feeling that something was going to go wrong kept Clarice anxious. Maybe it was just because they were back in a city instead of in the wilderness where she felt free? She couldn’t bring a voice to any of these feelings though, so she reached for her drink and smiled instead.

Always smiling. She had to be a lady, even as a shield. “Altissia is beautiful, I’m glad we were able to make it. You’re sure this arrangement won’t be an issue?”

Camelia gently raised an eyebrow. “This arrangement? Which one are you talking about,” she said in a soft voice before taking a sip of her drink and putting the glass on the table. She comes to take a cocktail pick and pin an olive stuffed with pepper on it. "The one where my family can safely house you here? Or the one for whom His Highness came to this place?“ She sketched a sweet and friendly smile before bringing the olive to her lips with a certain refinement.

“Yes.” Clarice sips her cocktail slowly, knowing drinks like this could be deceptive in their sweetness. The menu had called it a fuzzy navel but really she’d wanted the peach flavor and the presentation was nice, it looked almost like a sunrise. Orange and red swirled together in her glass like a dancing pair. “Both of them really, I understand how much we’re asking of you.” Weskham had picked their contacts carefully, Regis was his usual charming self but Clarice was not one to leave things to the boys.

So she’d proposed a small girl’s trip. Grab a few drinks and get to know Camelia face to face. Besides, she’d been camping with four men for weeks and needed a break from them now and again. Weskham and Cor were with Regis and she could relax for a short while. “We don’t have to talk business if you don’t want to. I wouldn’t mind learning more about you.”

“Don’t worry,” Camelia replied with the same soft smile. “My family is honored to have you here. It’s not every day that distinguished guests come to visit us…” She leaned slightly towards Clarice, gently carrying the back of her hand to her lips as if to tell her a secret. “…other than the Emperor and his Chancellor, I mean,” she finished her sentence in a low voice before straighting up.

“But you’re right, we’ll have plenty of time to discuss the reason for your visit with the others involved later.” The young blonde woman came to pin a new olive on her cocktail pick. “What would you like to know about me?”

“I suppose- um…” Clarice frowns for a moment and puts her drink to her lips trying to puzzle out words, “Huh. You know I don’t have a lot of female friends. I honestly don’t know what girls usually talk about.” She gives Camelia a soft grin, “So I suppose I’d like to know more about growing up here in Altissia. So close to the water, it’s a completely different culture.”

She was usually all business, occasionally it mixed with pleasure but Clarice had spent over a decade learning how to be a shield and diplomat, not how to be a young woman. Even just getting drinking was new to her, she typically avoided anything that might impair her functions. She was almost jealous of how in-control the other woman was, it made her feel out of her depth.

Camelia smiled gently, turning her head for a moment towards the lagoon. “Well… apart from the fact that the sea air is pleasant, that one eats very good dishes based on fish and seafood, and that people seem to have what is called "una dolce vita”? Hmm… I can’t say.“ She sighed gently. "We are fortunate to remain fairly free despite Niflheim’s presence. But many of us have always leaded a double life in the hope that one day we will regain our independence and freedom.”

The young blonde woman turned her attention to Clarice. “I could very well drop everything and make sure that I live my life peacefully on my side, without worrying that the Empire might come looking for trouble. But these are values that I have been taught since I was a child, and I will never abandon my people. As you would not abandon the Lucians.”

Double lives, she knew that feeling well. Trying to live as both a shield and her own person when she was in her late teens had been exhausting. In the end she had picked being a shield over everything else. That had been more important to her than having a social life outside of work. Friends, boyfriends, the one girlfriend that had not lasted longer than a week, and even just going out had all fallen to the wayside the moment Regis asked. If the people here were able to live life in hope of freedom from the empire, more power to them. “I have a lot of respect for your people, it isn’t easy to live with that kind of hope.”

That pointed gaze shocks her slightly as well, she understood the meaning behind the words. Camelia’s people came first, she was helping them because it meant they might be able to help her people in the future. “I understand.” Maybe she was reading too far into it though, “Thank you for coming out with me, I would have been terrified to wander around on my own. I don’t exactly lend to a low profile, and all my clothes are, well…” Dark, work clothes. Crownsguard uniforms. Either purple or black and marked by Mors’ skulls. She looked Lucian, simple as that. “Maybe I should shop while I’m here…”

Camelia smiled gently at her as she took her glass of Martini Bianco back into her hand to bring it to her lips. “You’re welcome, Clarice. It gives me great pleasure to show Altissia to our neighbours on the continent.” She raised an eyebrow when she heard the following sentence of the young woman in front of her and looked at her, tilting her head slightly. It was true that with her typically Lucian clothes, she did not really go unnoticed. The skulls weren’t really a pattern that was found around here. Except maybe those with fish bones. “Do you want us to go shopping after we finish our drinks? I know a few shops where you could find some nice things.”