#what a nightmare. caligo you are my one and only love

[mildmayfoxe]

STAY ★ TRUE || patreon print for dec / shop

[locktobre]

In your Barbie-verse, what was it like for Rip growing up, and when he was an adult, post-getting out of fairy prison? Also, what happened to his mom? In the movies, we don't see her, and iirc, she was never mentioned, so I just assumed she died at some point, or Break was just a single dad.- That PCS Anon

Rip backstory is my favorite and I sure have a lot of it lmao

Rip’s mother was Barbra “Barb” Bloom, and she died when he was 9 (his brother Chuck was 11). But up to that point, Rip actually had a pretty good childhood. Barb also has a power, she was pretty sure, but it was so nebulous she could neither prove nor quite define it--either the ability to always find what she was looking for, or simply being in the right place at the right time, one of the two. Break didn’t believe it, and she didn’t bring it up a lot, since again, she couldn’t really explain the feelings she got, she just knew that some moments were special.

When Rip first started seeing things, she thought he was just being an imaginative kid, but then she realized it could actually be magic when she noticed that like... Rip doesn’t really have that great of an imagination. He’s more analytical, he doesn’t really color outside the lines or tell lies or get in trouble. Idk how to explain it, but sometimes ppl just seem like the type to say anything, you know? And then there’s ppl you can’t imagine ever lying or doing anything crazy or anything like that.

Anyway, so they were in it together while she was alive, and he had her there to talk about what he was seeing. But then she died, and Rip took it very hard. Everyone did, but Rip lost the one person he could really talk about magic with. And on top of that, he didn’t even know if he believed in magic anymore, bc if Barb was in the right place at the right time, she wouldn’t have been hit by that car, would she? So he doesn’t know what to believe, bc if she was wrong about her magic, then was she wrong about his? How does he know that he’s not just crazy? And he can’t talk to Break about it, bc Break does not believe. Chuck doesn’t really, either, but he’s nicer about it.

So that all leads to sort of a downward spiral as Rip grows up, bc he doesn’t always trust his perceptions. And that leads to the desperation to just jump thru a flyway when he’s 17, he was really not in a good place at the time. I touched on it in my other post, but he was gone for a couple weeks, and Break legitimately thought he was dead. And then when he tried to explain about the flyways and getting lost, of course that just pissed off Break even more bc it’s just more of Rip’s bullshit, right? So Rip eventually just says he ran away and then came back when he ran out of money (which is kinda-sorta the truth, if you strip the magic out). So Break’s furious with him (and so is Chuck), he’s grounded forever... But that’s actually a good turning point for him, bc he met Lilliana. And after the flyways, and Lilliana giving him some (begrudging) answers, he knows he’s not crazy. His friendship with Lilliana only lasts a few months, but by the time she cuts him off he’s friends with Finn, who may not believe him but also doesn’t fight him at every turn when he brings up magic, he’s more like lmao ok buddy whatever you say, which is honestly better than what Rip gets at home. And Finn does come around awhile to like wait no shit, really? For real? Which Rip can’t really believe but he’s so grateful.

Anyway so that’s up to 1989. Fast forward a couple years to 1991. Finn and Anne have been together for awhile, but Finn’s kind of like... He doesn’t want to break up with Anne, he still loves her a lot, but since their relationship has to be a secret, and it can’t really be any other way, it’s starting to wear on him. And he’s started to develop some romantic feelings for Rip that he wants to pursue, in part bc it would be much easier, honestly. But when he brings this up to Anne, she really doesn’t want to break up with him, either, so she says that he should just date Rip, too. And Finn’s like and... you’d be fine with that? And Anne’s like I will learn to be, anyway. And Finn’s not really sure if this will work or if Rip will even go for it. Rip is hesitant but he’s open to basically whatever so he’s like we can try it for awhile, I guess. Anne really makes an effort to be chill but it is hard on her and Rip’s like maybe we shouldn’t do this and Anne’s like I think the problem is that we don’t really know each other. Like Rip and Anne aren’t really friends, they’ve obviously met before but never really hung out one on one so Rip really knows her as Finn’s girlfriend, and she knows him as Finn’s weird friend. So they decide to start trying to get to know each other and be friends.

Rip doesn’t talk about any magic stuff with Anne for a couple reasons, one of which is that he doesn’t want to come off any weirder than he does when he’s trying to befriend the woman, and also bc she’s a royal and Rip does not care for royals. Not bc of anything politically, he just doesn’t think they are careful enough with magic and he doesn’t trust them with it. (He doesn’t trust anyone with magic, actually. Not humans, not fairies, not anyone.) So he has to give her the edited version of events when she’s like have you dated anyone before? And Rip’s like it wasn’t really dating but I did have a brief relationship with Lilliana Roxelle and Anne’s like. You mean the French supermodel? And Rip’s like yeah and Anne’s like how did you even meet her and he’s like I crashed her NYE party. And Anne doesn’t know what to make of him, bc it’s such a wild, specific thing to say that it could be a lie but it just feels like it’s true, bc why not say something more believable if you were going to lie? Anyway Rip’s more chill about not being believed at this point bc he has one person on his side again (Finn), so he just shrugs it off. And they just kinda move on and talk about their families and not getting along with their fathers, which are very different situations but it’s enough to commiserate over, and they just keep going like that.

And at the beginning of this, remember, Anne thinks of Rip as just Finn’s weird friend. She has no idea what he sees in Rip, romantically. (Or platonically, for that matter. Like he’s fun to hang out with but why not literally anyone else?) And Rip’s not super good looking, either. Like, he’s handsome enough, but you probably wouldn’t look at him twice. (He’s Break’s son, so that kinda limits how hot he can be lmao.) But he just has something about him. Like, when you talk to him, you get his full attention, he’s really supportive and sympathetic and he always feels like he gets what you’re going thru. So Anne starts to get it, and then she’s like wait am I catching feelings for this guy? THIS guy? And yeah, she is. So the three of them actually end up dating for awhile, which is a lot more complicated but they like each other enough to make it work.

However, meanwhile, Rip has met Calissa. And she’s a mermaid, and a queen, and she’s married, and she has a kid, but... Well. The heart wants what it wants. So Rip has to break it off with Finn and Anne. He can explain to Finn about Calissa, so they could maybe still date, but he can’t really tell Anne about a mermaid, and if he doesn’t tell her she’s a mermaid he doesn’t really have a good excuse for why they can’t ever meet this other girl and it just feels weird. And it’s already complicated, he can’t be in so many complicated relationships at once. And Anne’s really confused about why Rip would break it off, until he says that the girl he wants to see is already married, and Anne’s pissed that Rip would pursue something with a married woman. And he says he knows it’s wrong but... he’s gonna do it anyway. (He can’t exactly say that she’s not in love with her husband but can’t get a divorce bc she’s a queen and it would be a political nightmare... Which might not help, anyway, but at least it’s better than interfering in a loving marriage, right? Right?) Anyway, Anne thinks he’s not the man she thought he was and she doesn’t even want to be friends with him anymore. Finn still is, but they don’t hang out the three of them pretty much ever again.

Rip has his secret relationship with Calissa, she gets pregnant, and then they don’t really know what to do bc they don’t know if it’s Caligo’s baby and it’s fine or if it’s Rip’s baby and they need to panic. But as her pregnancy progresses, she’s pretty sure it’s Rip’s bc the baby’s movement feels different, she’s pretty sure the baby has legs and not a tail. So they really start to panic. Rip obviously wants to take the baby, but he can’t just show up at home with a random kid and say that hey btw my mermaid girlfriend gave birth. Break would think he was insane. Anyway so that’s when Rip gets the idea to fake his death, which he does. And he moves down the coast a ways and raises baby Merliah for about a year, until the Gloss Angeles guard track him down.

Cue botched execution and 17 year exile in Fairytopia, and then he returns to Earth in December 2012.

And life is actually... pretty damn good. He’s reunited with Calissa and Merliah, and his dad now knows he wasn’t lying about seeing fairies and meeting a mermaid and all of that. He has a lot to contend with, re-adjustment-wise, with how much the world has changed in the intervening time, and he also has 2 other daughters he had no idea about, and then Calissa gets pregnant with twins pretty fast so there’s a lot going on, but he’s used to chaos and having to learn about new environments so he takes it in stride, pretty much. He also reconnects with Finn (at Merliah and Kylie’s urging), so he even gets his old friend back.

And then, in 2016, a year post-RNR, Finn tells Anne that Rip’s alive. Which is in response to her telling him about keeping Sloane from him, and so he takes the opportunity to say I’ve actually been keeping something from you, too. (Idk if those two secrets are roughly equal, but for the characters I’m going to say they are.) And so Anne reconnects with Rip, too, and finally gets brought into the loop and learns about Rip’s powers and what really went down with him and Calissa and all of that. Which is a big shock but also he has some helpful advice about how to approach the situation with Sloane, having done it twice himself lmao. So honestly, everything comes up roses for Rip. He gets to live the rest of his life in quiet domesticity, which is all he ever really wanted.

The ONLY thing that kinda sucks is that due to how mermaids (and fairies) age, Calissa basically looks the same for their whole marriage. So as he gets older, she looks more and more like some young trophy wife, and he hates that anyone looking at him would think he’s some weird old man lmao. (He’s only 3 years older than her in actuality.) But that’s basically the only thing that sucks. Everything else in his life is very good, bc he deserves that goddammit.

[headcanonseverywhere]

Living With A Vampire

Plot: Guilherme decides to bring Anastacia to his university’s dormitory, and they live there together for some time. Then, he gets invited to another party by Baron Ashley Rivers, and decides to bring Anastacia along with him, but first, they gotta go shopping! :D (Regency AU)

The Encounter series

Encounter With The Vampires

Encounter With A Human

Encounter With The Vampires (part 2)

Encounter With The Witches

Living With A Vampire [you are here]

After spending the night at Miss Fiona Detweiler’s apartment, Guilherme decided it was best to head back to his university’s dormitories, since he didn’t want to attract any unwanted attention towards Miss Fiona by remaining at her place much longer, especially since she was kind enough to heal his wounds from his horrific encounter with the vampires from nights before.

“Don’t worry.” she reassured him, as they stood by the doorway leading out of the kitchen. “I know how to take care of myself, thank you. But I am more worried about your little vampire friend.”

As soon as she mentioned her, Anastacia entered the living room, still wearing her nightgown from the first time she met him. It had already been completely worn out and dirty from fighting Algernon, as well as from running away from him in the forest.

“I told you, she’s staying with me.” Guilherme reaffirmed.

“Well I hope you live alone, because having a vampire surrounded by humans usually means trouble.”

“I’d never hurt anyone!” Anastacia cried, cutting in between them. “I am not like my family!”

Fiona turned towards Guilherme, who simply looked down at her, shrugging his shoulders.

“I trust her.” he smiled, and Fiona just sighed.

By nightfall, everyone made their way down to the apothecary. Luckily, the enchanted carriage was still at the front of the apothecary, just as they had left it. They all bid each other farewell, and as soon as Guilherme and Anastacia entered the carriage, he ordered it to take him to his university’s dormitories. The carriage rumbled to life once again, and zoomed down the street, leaving Miss Fiona Detweiler and the apothecary far behind them.

They quickly arrived at the university’s campus--despite being far from the city--and the carriage stopped right at the doors of the dormitory. Guilherme was the first to leave, and extended his hand to Anastacia, like the good gentleman he prided in being. She gently placed an icy hand onto his, and swiftly hopped off the carriage.

 “Now how are we going to get rid of it?” asked Guilherme, as he studied the carriage. “The staff are going to question why there’s a carriage outside the dormitory.”

Anastacia took a step forward, and carefully whispered something to it in a language that sounded like Italian, but much older. In an instant, the carriage shook itself to life one last time, and zoomed out to the horizon.

“Where did it go?” he asked.

Anastacia looked back at him and smiled. “Don’t worry about it, let’s go in!”

They reached Guilherme’s dormitory, and they were very careful to not make a sound, since everyone in the entire building was fast asleep. Guilherme’s room was roughly as big as Miss Fiona’s entire apartment, except it was rather larger. Anastacia looked around in awe, checking every crevice of the room.

“Do you live here all alone?” she asked him once she finished observing the place.

“Now I do.” he answered, closing the door behind him. “I used to share a room with someone, but he proved to be quite intolerable, so I asked if I could have a room to myself.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s fine, at least you’ll be safe here.”

But as Guilherme tossed his coat on a chair nearby, he quickly drew his breath. 

“The maid might find you here.”

“Don’t worry, I can just leave.”

“How, the sun will--”

But before he could finish, Anastacia disappeared right before his eyes, leaving behind a trail of a smoky black shadow, then reappearing moments later.

Guilherme stood there with his mouth wide open.

“Wh-Where did you go?!”

“There’s a small room with brooms right below us,” she explained. “So if there’s ever a visitor, I can hide in there for a while!”

Guilherme nodded as he ran a hand through his hair, coming to a sudden realization that he is hiding a vampire in his university’s dormitory, but also that his life may never return to normal, now that he knows of the existence of occult creatures. He glanced again at Anastacia, who was currently bouncing up and down while seated on his bed, and carefully observing an ink pen she had taken from his writing desk.

His life might never return to the way it was, but perhaps it might be a little better.

Days turned into weeks, and Guilherme found himself accustomed to seeing Anastacia rummaging through his things (discovering more and more about the human world) as he returned from his classes. For the first time in a long time, he was enjoying someone else’s company. He would spend hours explaining to her all of the modern inventions humans had made recently, as well as a few that had been around since before his time (though quite obviously after her’s). At the same time, Anastacia would tell him more about vampires and the occult, how there were different kinds of vampires, some who were born, such as herself, and others who were turned. She also talked about her family, the Caligos, and about other vampire families and how they worked, and how each family had a Head of House, and each of them formed a council, who would gather once in a while to discuss matters within the community. He was fascinated by all of this, and grew more and more curious about the supernatural, all while Anastacia grew more and more fond of humans.

Mrs. Flowers, the maid, would come into his room for the usual morning cleaning, and everyday Anastacia disappeared off into the broom closet downstairs, only to reappear again once she left. Mrs. Flowers was a sturdy old woman, who had grown quite fond of Guilherme, since he--according to her--was the only gentleman in this campus who didn’t spend his time in debauchery, and she admired him a lot for that.

Today seemed to be like one of those days, Mrs. Flowers came in the morning, to which Anastacia had already teleported herself to the broom closet, and began cleaning up the room as Guilherme was getting ready to head to his morning class.

“Oh, Sir Monteiro, I still cannot believe you went through such a terrible accident!” she cried, as she was dusting the furniture.

Word about Guilherme’s accident went around pretty quickly for the past several weeks, though the story he had told was that he got into a carriage accident, leaving him stranded in the middle of the woods for days, until he found a kind soul that nursed him back to health.

“It was very traumatizing…” said Guilherme, remembering Algernon’s piercing gray eyes.

“Well, thank heavens you’re safe now!” she cheered, giving him a warm pat on the shoulder. “Oh, by the way, I was meaning to give this to you.”

And she reached into the pocket of her apron, and held out a letter to him. Guilherme thanked her and took it, and once he opened it, he quickly realized that it was a party invitation by none other than Baron Ashley Rivers himself.

“Baron Rivers is holding a masquerade ball.” he told the maid. “In my honor.”

“You know, usually I don’t condone to such futility,” she began, leaning a little closer towards him as though she didn’t want anyone else to hear her, even though they were the only ones in the room. “But I say you should go, the party is being held in your honor after all, and it would be immensely impolite to refuse!”

“I suppose so.” Guilherme agreed.

“And, it’ll keep your mind off of that horrible accident, which I’m sure it still torments you to this day.”

Guilherme nodded. There hadn’t been a day in which he didn’t think back to the vampires attacking him, especially of Algernon clutching onto his neck with unbelievable strength. His glare still haunted his nightmares, making him wake up in the middle of the night in cold sweat. Anastacia had taken notice of it, but he tried his best not to worry her because, despite everything, Algernon was still part of her family, and he knew she still respected him, so he didn’t want to cause a rift in their friendship by bringing it up.

“Are you going to bring someone?” Mrs. Flowers asked, quickly snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Pardon?”

“I asked if you’re going to bring someone.” she repeated. “Perhaps a nice young lady?”

Guilherme was about to deny her question, since he wasn’t really interested in bringing anyone with him, but suddenly Anastacia bore into his mind. This would be a perfect opportunity to show her how human parties have changed over the centuries, and he was absolutely sure she would love it.

“Yes, I will bring someone.” he answered.

Mrs. Flowers gasped. “Are you finally courting?!”

“Of course, not!” he scoffed. “I’m only bringing a friend.”

She slightly slumped her shoulders, and returned to dusting off the furniture. Guilherme chuckled, and patted her on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Mrs. Flowers, if I ever start to court, you’ll be the first one to know.” he promised.

Mrs. Flowers smiled, and after another hour of banter, she gathered her cleaning supplies and left the room. A few minutes later, Anastacia reappeared, as smoky black shadows trailed off of her.

“What is this?” she asked, noticing the party invitation on the desk.

Guilherme explained to her everything that had happened a moment ago, minus Mrs. Flower’s urging of him to court someone.

“And, I would like to bring you with me.” he finished. “If that’s alright with you, of course.”

“A party?!” Anastacia exclaimed, clapping her hands together, and her eyes glimmering with pure joy. “Oh, I’d love to go!”

Guilherme smiled. “I’ll need to purchase some fabric, and have a tailor make a dress for you, I just wish you were there to choose.”

“Why can’t I go?”

“Because the sun will hurt you, isn’t that correct?”

“Yes, but, we can go at night!”

“Anastacia, all of the shops are closed at night.”

“But you forget, I can just teleport us into the shops! It’ll be fun!”

Guilherme choked. “A-Anastacia, that’s--that’s breaking and entering, I can’t--what if someone sees us!”

Anastacia hung her head low, while absentmindedly fiddling with the edge of the party invitation. A small pout began to form on her lips, and Guilherme let out a deep sigh.

“We can look at the display windows, at least to choose the fabric.”

Anastacia instantly perked up and ran up to him, her icy cold body colliding onto him as she gave him an enormous hug. Guilherme stumbled backwards a bit, but managed to regain his balance and return the hug.

By sunset, Guilherme and Anastacia arrived at a small town near campus, where several fabric and tailor shops ran. The streets were calm and barely empty, and a few street lamps were beginning to be lit up.

They walked past a few stores, looking at several pieces of fabric displayed on their windows, when they stopped at a fabric store, since Anastacia gasped as she set her sights on a beautiful yellow silk fabric, with intricate golden flower patterns across it.

“So beautiful!” she whispered.

“I can stop by in the morning to order it.” Guilherme offered.

But Anastacia didn’t even hear what he had said, for she was suddenly at the other side of the display window, the familiar smoky shadow trailing off of her as she rubbed her fingertips on the silky fabric.

Guilherme squished his face onto the glass, horrified by what had just happened.

“Anastacia!” he hissed. “What are you doing?!”

Anastacia smiled up at him. “I like this one!”

“Okay, but you didn’t have to teleport yourself in there--”

But Anastacia suddenly reappeared, only to take his hand and teleport themselves back inside the store. Guilherme stumbled while madly looking around him, feeling dazed and confused as to what had happened, though he quickly regained his consciousness and soon enough a feeling of panic took a hold of his entire body.

“Anastacia, what did you do?!” he hissed again, looking over his shoulder to see if anyone would see them.

“Now we can take a better look at them!” she exclaimed, as she happily hugged the silk yellow fabric.

“We can get caught!” he warned. “The police will think we are trying to steal and arrest us!”

But Anastacia paid no attention, as she skipped along to a shelf that was far into the room, holding more beautiful silk fabrics, each of them in a different color. Guilherme couldn’t help but follow, looking back at the store’s entrance, worried about someone catching them there.

“Look at all of this!” she sang, as she pulled out another colorful fabric from the rack.

“We really shouldn’t be here!” Guilherme continued to protest, but Anastacia simply turned towards him. 

“I thought you trusted me.” she said, sadly.

“I do, but this is dangerous!”

“So you just expect me to stay cooped up in your dormitory, like how I was back home?”

“W-Well, no--I mean--I’m just trying to protect you--”

“Guilherme,” she said. “I’ve been locked away in my room for centuries, all I wanted to do was to see the outside world, and now that I’m finally able to do that, you want to lock me away again?”

“No, no, I don’t!” he denied. “I just...I’m just worried, that’s all.”

Anastacia smiled. “You don’t have to worry about anything, I promise I won’t let anything bad happen while we’re here.”

Guilherme looked at her, then sighed and smiled, nodding his head in agreement. Anastacia returned the smile, and happily went back to the fabrics on the shelf.

“While we’re here, might as well get your measurements.” said Guilherme, and went to look for a measuring tape.

After looking through several kinds of fabrics, Anastacia decided on the elegant yellow silk one she had seen earlier on display. Guilherme then took out the measuring tape he had found, and taught her how to take her measurements. He was quite surprised at how quickly she learned, since she had mentioned before that only the ghoul servants from her manor ever tailored her outfits. Afterwards, he jotted down her measurements on a piece of paper he found at a counter nearby, and placed it in a pocket inside his coat.

“I’ll purchase it first thing tomorrow morning.” he said. “And I’ll send it to a tailor soon thereafter, it should be ready just before the ball.”

“Lovely.” she beamed, as she took his hand, and soon the two of them were standing outside of the shop, leaving a trail of smoky shadows behind.

It was dark outside, the only light coming from the now fully lit street lamps, its fire dancing inside the glass containers. The street was completely empty, except for the two as they made their way back to campus.

“I’m sorry that I frightened you.” Anastacia spoke softly.

“It’s alright.” he said. “You were right after all, nothing bad happened.”

The two of them smiled at each other for a moment, then Guilherme spoke, “I’m just glad you had fun tonight.”

“I did.” Anastacia confirmed.

[moonraccoon-exe]

Coonie, my beloved Prince. I have a thought to share. When you said that it's Ravus who stares at their partner while their sleeping, I got this sudden mental image of Ravus, in the dead of night, startled awake by a nightmare. Good thing he's always got Iggy there to soothe him, right? ;3

*is called “my beloved prince”*

*SQUEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!!!!!*  (*ﾉ▽ﾉ)

*uncontrollably rolls around, hugged to its tail, flailing and blushing and unintelligibly giggling* AHnfjgdkg hakjdfnadgd kaljdaf aaaah  (*ﾉ▽ﾉ) 

*SLAMS FIST ON DESK*

YES.

I DECLARE THIS TO BE A THING IN ANY FLEURENTIA AU. THIS IS OFFICIALLY CANON AND NO ONE CAN TELL ME OTHERWISE.

I’ve always headcanoned that Ravus sleeps very few hours; goes to bed very late, and is already up on his feet and dressed before the sun, or with it. Partly by nature, partly by the strict discipline he endured as a Niflheim soldier, and partly, maybe, due to the Magitek arm, which not only altered his eye color and his inhuman strength, but also drained from him other things like a normal/human sleeping schedule.

But the nightmares?

Oh, boy. I’ve always seen them as canon, too.

I’ve always thought Ravus is one of the most tragic characters, because he endured a very difficult life. And one of my other headcanons (as some that have read some of my fics can tell) is that Ravus’ training was basically torture; that Niflheim took him in to “train him”, but “training” was the soft word for torturing both physically and mentally, in an attempt to take out of him Ravus the human, so they could make Ravus the weapon; someone that was so tortured, he lost his human side (sort of which would explain his stone, expressionless face).

So imagine; not only did he see his mom die less than a meter away of him, saving his life in the process; he also felt abandoned by Regis, had to see people treat his sister badly (if we take that scene of Caligo shoving kid Luna around as canon), and he was taken by the empire only to be tortured after being taken from his throne rights, and then he had to see Luna slowly dying on free will for the jerk that king Regis prefered to save instead of her?

But anyway, I digress.

What I mean to say is, I think Ravus had one of the most difficult lives. And in any verse of the game, Luna dies; but whether a Fleurentia AU lets Luna live or not, Ravus still endured too much to not suffer from at least, as minimum, nightmares every now and then.

Ravus doesn’t sleep much; even less after he got the MT arm. And when he does, he still has to deal with stuff.

Nightmares.

Across many years, Ravus had no one to help him, at least to comfort him; the empire kept him and Lunafreya away most of the time, always under watch. So each time he woke up startled from a nightmare, Lunafreya wasn’t there, and he wasn’t allowed to leave his room to go see her until the morning. So Ravus always dealt with nightmares alone.

And then he met Ignis. Liked him; fell in love; brought him to Fenestala.

It never really crossed his head that Ignis would help with the nightmares; Ravus didn’t think anything except what if he gave troubles to Ignis at nights, be it from waking up startled and hence startling him, or by not measuring the strenght of his MT arm, or just because of how late he sleeps and how early he wakes. Ravus was not thinking about Ignis helping him, he was thinking about how much of a nuisance he would be for Ignis.

So Ravus tried to be a good fiancé and not give him troubles, but the anxiety of “what if I have a nightmare and I wake him up” or “what if I accidentally hit him with my arm” really only did but give him more troubles to sleep, to the point he barely did it, scared that he could hurt or bother Iggy. Ignis noticed that he rarely slept and usually tried to talk it with Ravus, but as much as Ravus promised to try to sleep, he never did.

Until one night it was too much, and he simply couldn’t help and fell asleep.

And so on, he tried to get confidence about sleeping with Iggy, trusting that he was not going to mess up.

Until one night, he had a nightmare for the first time since he started sharing bed with Iggy.

[more under the cut]

Ravus doesn’t always remember what his nightmares are about, sometimes he does, it’s random. 

That night, he didn’t quite recall what he was dreaming about; all that he knew was that he woke up by sitting up, taking in a deep breath as if he had been downing and just went back to the surface, and he was crying even before he was startled awake.

Needless to say, Ignis, light sleeper as he already is, woke up immediately as soon as he heard Ravus’ loud gasp and felt his sudden movement; he didn’t bother with any light and just put a hand on him, and asked him what had happened.

Rauvs couldn’t even reply for a long while. All that he did was sit there, shaking, and breathing heavily and loudly. 

Ignis did not question him any further. All that he did was, he started caressing his back softly, and he spoke tenderly to him, encouraging him, telling him it was okay and that he was doing fine. He cleaned his tears, held his hand, kissed his shoulder, gave all this sort of tiny little gestures, instead of hugging him tight or shaking him. 

Because Ignis knows best; he knows that some people prefer to be shaken awake and out of it, and some just need a hug, but that’s the normal people. Ravus is a different case; his nightmares are something more profound. He doesn’t need to be shaken awake, he needs…comfort. To know he’s safe; he needs to be treated softly and gently. And taht’s exactly what Ignis does.

And when he calms down, all that Ravus does is avoid eye contact, until he gathers strenght to say it.

“I’m sorry…”

Needless to say, Ignis was very confused as to why he apologized. Ravus was sincere with him; listen, Ignis, Ravus has nightmares more frequently than he dreams. He doesn’t sleep early and wakes up before the sun, he can’t control the strength of his arm, and he has a lot, a lot of nightmares, many times per week. It’s okay if he wants a separate bed; heck, it’s fine if he wants to break up even, he understands, because, well, who wants to be with someone half daemon anyway, and a bad romantic partner, and a bad boyfriend, and even worse, someone who can’t do the most simple of tasks like just sleeping without messing it up.

But all that Ignis does is chuckle. Grab his hands and kiss each of his knuckles. Get close and rest his hand on Ravus’ shoulder. Kiss his MT arm. And all that he does is take Ravus’ arms, wraps them around himself so Ravus is hugging him, and he whispers

“I don’t care.”

And so it becomes normal; that Ignis is there when Ravus has a nightmare.

Because he doesn’t mind. He didn’t say yes to Ravus because of who he is when awake, he said yes because of who he is as a whole. Asleep or awake, sad or happy, it’s all Ravus, and it’s Ravus who Ignis loves. What sort of partner is he if he was with Ravus only when it’s happy and okay? No. Ignis will be there in the good and the bad times, and that includes the nightmares.

And Ravus thanks him. Every night and every morning. And as the weeks go by, Ravus’ instinct when he wakes up from a nightmare is now turning to his right side to look for Ignis, who he knows will always be there, and who always is there, with open arms, ready to receive him, ready to give him whatever he is, be it the caress of a hand, a proper hug, the caress of his hair, a kiss, words, anything that Ravus needs.

And Ignis really doesn’t mind; he wants to help Ravus, and it really is no troubles waking up in the middle of the night for him, if Ravus needs it. And Ravus, dear Ravus, at first so shy and guilty for startling Ignis awake, slowly and eventually lets go of the guilt, and learns what love is as Ignis gives it to him; that unconditional support, even in the bad times, all that help, all that tenderness and affection.

It’s usual in the king’s chambers, that the king is startled awake by a nightmare, and his dear fiancé is there to soothe him and comfort him until he goes back to sleep.

And it takes long, months, maybe even years before Ravus notices, because the process was subtle and slow, but…all this that Ignis offers, all the nights he spends soothing him after a nightmare, they help, little by little, until Ravus not only learns to accept the comfort and his first instinct is look for Ignis. It also has been helping to make Ravus’ sleep much better, much more restful; he’s even learned to sleep more.

And what’s more impressive, all these times of Ignis soothing him after a nightmare, they actually reduce the nightmares; if Ravus used to have five nightmares per week, a couple months later he had four, then three, then two, then one, then it happened only every once every each months, and so on throughout the years…

But back to the present, yes. It’s normal that Ravus catches a nightmare every now and then, and for Ignis to be there to soothe him. 

Sometimes, Ravus will be hugged to Ignis, resting his head on his chest, while Ignis caresses his hair and his arm, and Ravus will wonder how he could live before Ignis, how he could be alive before knowing him, before marrying him. And he loves to be snuggled there, in his arms, and he’s not scared of the nightmares anymore, because Ignis is comfort, and protection, and safety, and love.

H-hhhnnngnggnnngg

HNNHNHNGNNHGHG

GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

*EXPLODES*

*SHORT CIRCUITS AND COLLAPSES AND STOPS FUNCTIONING*

What have you done to me, Kit whAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME KALSJDKLAS FJKLADJF ALKDJF

*HYSTERICALLY FLAILING ALL OVER THE PLACE*

YES. YES SO MUCH TO ALL OF THIS, I’M A SUCKER FOR HURT/COMFORT AND THIS- THIS LOVELY, WONDERFUL- honestly that’s one of my favorite things about Fleurentia, it offers so much for hurt/comfort scenarios and this is ONE OF MY FAVORITES. NIGHTMARES AND COMFORTING BACK TO SLEEP HNGNFD HND I AM-

WEAK. SO WEAK FOR IT I AM AN IDIOT. 

*cries*

Honestly though, THANK YOU SO MUCH, so goddamn much for this LOVELY entry. It’s got me weak and no matter how many times I read it, I still freak out because it’s so cute and sad and cute again and hndnhdgn ;A;

Thank you SO, SO, SO MUCH for this LOVELY and BEAUTIFUL ask, Kit dear! And how dare you trigger me like this aaaaah

But really, thank you so much!! ( ´ ▽ ` )

ALSO, “MY BELOVED PRINCE” AKSLDJALDKGJALKDFJ AKLSFJ AKLDGJADKLFJ AKLDFJ AKLGJ KDLGJADKLFJ ALKJ 

I STILL CAN’T GET OVER IT AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH (*ﾉ▽ﾉ)

*LOUDLY SQUEAKING AND UNCONTROLLABLY BOUNCING ALL OVER THE ROOM*

I hope you’re having a MOST FANTASTIC night, Kit!! (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ

[onceuponaprime]

Fictober Prompt 2

Cor/Titus : Trembling hands  - from @titusdravtos Or should I say angstober... There was a nice smut idea for this in here somewhere and then this horrible idea happened instead that I decided to write late at night so uh yeah. It’s been a week. 

Titus has a nightmare that’s a bit too close to reality. Warning here for choking (not the kinky kind) 

His footsteps echo loudly in the cold grey halls of Zegnautus, endlessly twisting and turning with no sign of an end. Why did he come back? There was a reason he came back, but he doesn’t remember it. A door opens to his left, and he catches a glimpse of MT clones inside, he keeps walking. All the doors are open now, various scenes playing out that he doesn’t interrupt, that's not why he’s here. Why is he here? Caligo Uldor scowls out at him as he passes another room, and he almost stops, but that's not it, not why he’s here. Then the hallway ends abruptly with a closed door blocking his path. This is it, this is why he’s come. His hands are trembling as he opens the door, and the urge to slam it closed again is almost too strong to fight. There’s a body on the floor, one he knows, doesn’t understand.

“Ah, Drautos! So glad you could make it!” Ardyn Izunia spreads his arms in a mockery of a warm greeting. “This is your history after all.” Two scientists scuttle by them and lift the body with only some trouble, the head drops forward, a mess of dark hair hiding the face as the scientist drag it away, leaving the blood and tools behind.

“Why am I here?”

“Why are you?” Izunia replies flippantly, he walks around him, twirling a syringe between his fingers. “Perhaps you were just due for a little walk down memory lane, I know how hard you try to forget it. You never do keep in touch with your dear friends here in Niflheim.”

“I have no friends in Niflheim,” he says before he can stop himself. The Chancellor grins.

“Oh I’m hurt, Drautos, and here I thought you were thankful for all I’ve done. What would dear old dad think?”

“You know nothing of my family,” he snarls, and he calls for Glauca, but no metal bleeds from his skin and he feels suddenly exposed.

“Oh, my dear Drautos, don’t go biting the hand that feeds you.” He shakes his head almost laughing. “Though I would love to see you try, I do love it when they try.”

Is this why he’s here? Titus doesn’t think, he just acts, taking the bait. He’s on Izunia in an instant, a hand around his throat. The man has the gall to laugh.

“Is this how you save your home?” Izunia manages to wheeze out, still grinning even as Titus tightens his grip.

“I’ll find a way,” he growls, his free hand joining the first until he’s well and truly throttling the smaller man and still Ardyn Izunia grins.

“Oh, Drautos-” Titus cuts him off with more pressure, and he feels something hit his leg hard. “Drautos, please!” So quiet and desperate now. Just a little more and then he’s free. Nails bite into his wrists, but the Chancellor remains still, that grin still in place even as his face turns red from lack of oxygen. Something hits him in the head, weak but jarring. It wouldn’t be long now.

“Titus!” He wakes suddenly at the sound of his name so starkly different from before, dazed and still lost in the movements of the dream. His eyes focus, and his blood runs cold. Cor looks up at him with something that can only be fear in his eyes, face turning blue, hands tight against his wrists. Titus let's go in an instant and throws himself to the side, scrambling until he drops to the floor and stays there. On the bed Cor gasps for air loudly and Titus feels his own breathing stutter an erratic rhythm. Hands trembling he sits there staring off into space, trying to ground himself. It was a dream, it had all been a dream, and he’d almost killed a man for it, had almost killed Cor. Even his worst nightmares have never been so visceral, so physical. It was all a dream.

“Titus?” Cor’s voice cracks on the vowels, a hand coming to rest against his shoulders and he flinches, shuddering violently. Deep breaths, even, count, stay in the now.

“Don’t,” he says desperately, unable to look at the other man. How can he when he’s nearly strangled him in his own bed. Titus shudders again at the thought of Cor waking up to his hands around his neck with deadly intent, caught unaware and almost helpless. The bed creaks and he knows Cor is sitting there above him.

“Drautos...” A hand touches his shoulder and he flinches away. Cor gets up, steps around and then crouches in front of him, hands resting on his shoulders. “Drautos, look at me.” After a long moment he does, Cor’s face is drawn tight in concern, bruises already blooming in the shape of his fingers on his neck and Titus turns his head away.

“I could have killed you.” The reality is terrifying, and he refuses to analyze his feelings. He feels sick because he almost did it in his sleep, like killing has become as easy as breathing, because Cor didn’t have a chance to fight back, because no man deserves to die like that.

“You weren’t yourself.” Titus scoffs.

“It doesn’t matter,” he snaps, and then quiets again, still shaking. “How can you even look at me?” Cor sighs.

“Because the second you realized what was happening you stopped, and the look on your face… Shit, Drautos.” Cor’s hands drift to his cheeks, urging him to lift his head and meet his eyes again. “I’m alive. The nightmares’ over. It’s alright.” And then Cor is holding him, a gentle hand combing through his hair, and Titus clings to him, grounding himself in the sound of Cor’s heartbeat beneath his ear. “What happened to you?” Cor whispers against his hair, almost too quiet to hear. Titus doesn’t answer, just breathes him in and tries to tell himself that it's okay.

The stay like that for a long time, holding each other on the floor, until Titus finally feels himself calm and the shame finds him tenfold. Cor doesn’t stop him when he pulls away and moves to start getting dressed. They don’t speak, there’s nothing left to say. There are no goodbyes when Titus slips out the door.