#wherever i go i always return to old man yaoi

[aweisz]

i need to draw old man yaoi again ugh

[whumpacabra]

Freelancers

Starting with the ‘Post-Retirement’ drabbles, this story has unfurled into a full fledged universe of espionage, terrorism, and torture. The main story line following that original starting drabble takes place in a roughly early aughts to modern-day setting, with a disowned son turned away from his younger brother’s birthday party. The only gift he left was the bloodstain on the front steps.

Here you will find these story scraps stitched together in a chronological timeline - be wary that this series is not posted chronologically! Past sections will have additional pieces added as they are posted. The current total word count is 130k+, so feel free to jump in wherever you want your fix of whump or start from the beginning for a full view of this wild world of spies, assassins, and just some guy.

Originally intended as an experiment to see how I would write when unable to easily reread past piece, this was written in its entirety on my phone’s notes app. Let me know if you spot any typos or mistakes - there’s sure to be some!

🚧 Recent Construction - let me know if a link is missing or isn’t working 🚧

Swansong

Our older cast members had colorful, vibrant, brutal lives well before the events that led to the creation of the Freelancer crew. Ghost found - and lost - his only true apprentice in the art of black market business. Harrison, for all his confidence and competence as the future team leader, almost broke at the hands of an unlikely foe. And Sarah - wasn’t Sarah.

[Dogs of War AU]

[The Wolf and the Hare AU]

Changing Tides

Everything has a beginning, a moment before the balance shifts. Despite his jaded heart, Ghost cannot avoid the call to protect and prepare that which is not his to keep. RJ and Casey have far from gentle introductions to the world, but with Ghost’s help, they learn to survive, and unexpectedly, thrive. David - young, dumb, and loved - put his parent’s patience to the test as he struggled to find his footing in a world all to eager to throw him down the stairs.

Boy Meets World

RJ and Casey hunt down those responsible for attacking the closest thing they have to a father. Harrison and Sarah, in pursuit of loose ends for the CIA, find allies in the black market hitmen. David, two years sober, in love and loved in return, and happily settled in sunny California is presented with manmade horrors beyond his expectation.

Intersection

Worlds collide - spies and hitmen are working together to take down a dangerous drug lord and his experimental product. A perfect plan of entrapment and execution has a wrench thrown into the works - who's this random civilian caught up in their blackmarket world?

Retirement

“You don’t retire from this work. It’ll kill you.” Truer words have never been spoken for spies and hitmen, but for a few years, they can find peace. They rest, they recover, and they are blissfully unaware of the colliding worlds around them.

Post-Retirement

David’s had a rough go at it - drugs, thugs, you name it, he’s survived it. Somehow he even made some friends along the way. But no matter how far past it he feels, it’s always there. Waiting for the right moment to pull the rug out from under his feet and destroy what little he’s built. He’s probably just paranoid, right? Right?

—

As originally posted in:

Febuwhump2023 / Whumpril2023 / Whumptober2023 / Febuwhump2024

Asks/Non-Canon/Miscellaneous:

Chuck (2007-2012)

What do Anders and Smith think the other's greatest fear is?

Wolf’s best and worst memories

Who is Liza O’Hare?

What is Cortazar's fucking deal?

What's wrong with Casey? Doesn't he want to be happy?

Who is Ghost?

What would Ghost do differently?

Who dances?

A different Wolf

TWaTH AU: Does Wolf want a cozy blanket?

TWaTH AU: What are Wolf and Harrison to each other?

Picrews and Art:

Swansong Characters Post-Retirement

East and Jackson Old Man Yaoi for the Soul

TWaTH AU: he ordered no pickles...

TWaTH AU: Before and After (And bonus lore!)

[pak-pak-suhgar]

Lost One

Pairing: Johnny x Jaehyun

genre: angst, happy ending at the end.

Summary: In which where Jaehyun caught Johnny and Taeyong on their bed. With Johnny on top of Taeyong— topless. How did the two older guys got into that position? Jaehyun doesn't know and Johnny doesn't either, leaving the younger in a broken heart state.

A/N: My first yaoi fanfic on this blog and my first johnjae fanfic as well. This was written on phone so sorry for the mistakes. English isn't my first language either so I apologize for the grammatical error! Happy reading~

Johnny and Jaehyun has been dating for almost 4 years. Yes, you heard it right. They've been together for whole fucking years. So, why is it one of those times now where Jaehyun has to see an unpleasant scene before him? He stood at their door, frozen in his spot. Both guys haven't realized his presence not until he accidentally chokes out a sob. Johnny looked back, ready to glare whoever it was that interrupted them only to have his eyes widen. He immediately got off of Taeyong while the other older guy sat up. Panic was plastered over their face as Johnny quickly dresses himself and sprinted his way towards to Jaehyun. Ready to explain whatever bullshit he could come up with.

Jaehyun remained on his spot, unmoving but his eyes were avoiding the taller one's who was now grabbing both of his arms. Jaehyun was emotionally drained- exhausted, numb. His feelings was all over the place that he doesn't know what to feel, "Jaehyun.. I can explain... It's not what it looks like-" Slap! Jaehyun could feel the excruciatin pain on his palm the moment it landed on Johnny's cheek, "But it is what it looks like." he replied spitefully, as much as he wanted to sound emotionless and harsh. He was too hurt to even try to sound like one. Jaehyun doesn't want to hear Johnny's explanations, so he swatted the elder's hands and made his way towards their shared closet. He grabs his bag and began to put all of his stuff or whatever he could grab from the closet.

This put Johnny on alert as he stood behind Jaehyun and held his wrist in attempt to stop him, "Baby, what are you doing- where are you going?" he bombards the younger with questions. Jaehyun doesn't bother to reply as he only prys Johnny's hands away, when he settled most of his stuff. His eyes were bloodshot red, he looks at Johnny then at Taeyong who couldn't look straight in his eyes. He wanted to shout at both men and tell them off. But he decides that they aren't worth it, so instead pushes Johnny out of the way and left their room, "Jaehyun- baby, wait!" Johnny calls out but Jaehyun never turned back.

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

A few weeks had passed since Johnny has last seen Jaehyun, he couldn't contact him either and he was worried sick. Jaehyun wasn't in the dorms, that was alarming. Johnny had tried to contact Jaehyun's closest friends, but none of them spoke about the younger's whereabouts. Or at least they wouldn't out Jaehyun just like that considering of what he did to Jaehyun. Johnny runs his hands through his hair in frustration and punched the wall, Taeyong who had witnessed the scene came up to Johnny and held hos hand, Johnny pushes him away and glared at him, "Don't fucking touch me! I-It's all your fault! Jaehyun is nowhere to be found and our relationship is at stake!" Taeyong could only scoff before glaring back at the taller male.

"If you could have had kept your dick in your pants and didn't allowed yourself to get seduced by me, you wouldn't be in this situation, Johnny. You put yourself into this situation." Taeyong says, before he leaves Johnny alone. He remained speechless and unmoving in his spot, what Taeyong said was true. Johnny wasn't able to wait for Jaehyun that he just let his emotions eat him up and control him to give in to his desires. Jaehyun had been fairly busy with his drama film that Johnny barely saw Jaehyun- let alone have sex with him. Whenever Jaehyun comes home, he was dead tired and would knock out the moment he sleeps in their bed. Johnny blames himself from everything that happened. He was afraid, he was scared- scared to death that Jaehyun will leave him for good. He sat on the floor and hugged his knees as he could do nothing but cry his heart out hoping that the pain will fade somehow.

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

"Sicheng, I really can't bother you and Kun hyung anymore.. I'm sorry for crashing in but thank you for letting me stay." Jaehyun says, looking so apologetically at Sicheng. The male could only snort and waved his hand in dismiss, "Jae, you're always welcome here. Are you sure you can go back? Are you ready to face him?" Sicheng asks, concern written all over his face as he looks out for his friend. It took Jaehyun a few moments before nodding his head, "Yeah... I have to go home. I can't run away from it forever." he replies, he could feel the tears pricking his eyes but he blinks them away. He had been crying for weeks and his eyes honestly hurt a lot. Sicheng nodded his head in understanding, sighing at his friends' demise before giving Jaehyun a pat on the back, "Fine, but if you wanna come back. You're welcome to." He reassures with a smile, to which the younger returns happily. They hug one last time before Jaehyun went back to the dorm.

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

A loud banging woke Johnny up from his sleep, he groans at the noise and flutters his eyes open, "Come in." he says in a groggy voice before sitting up, Haechan slammed the door open as he ran towards Johnny, "Hyung. Jaehyun hyung came back home last night" with the information that Haechan spit out, Johnny became wide awake as he looked at Haechan, "J-Jaehyun? Where is he? I need to go see him." he says, almost wanting to fly towards wherever Jaehyun is, "In his old room! At the 10th floor!" Haechan shouted before Johnny disappeared into sight.

He wasted no time going upstairs and instantly inputting the passcode to the dorm, thankfully no one was inside so he invited himself in. He didn't think twice to barge into Jaehyun's room, his eyes searching for the man everywhere and when it landed on the figure. He felt like he could breathe again, like suddenly the air that was knocked out from him came back. His gaze softens as he looks at the man who was peacefully asleep. But his heart breaks when he realizes that Jaehyun may probably break their relationship off. It explains why he went here instead of going back to their bedroom. Of course Jaehyun wouldn't want to be reminded of what happened in that room.

They made so many good memories but also made the most hurtful one. Johnny was about to caress Jaehyun's face when the younger suddenly woke up from his sleep, he suddenly sat up and moved away drom Johnny, making Johnny's heart break into pieces, "What are you doing here?" Jaehyun was the first to break the silence, sucking in a deep breath as he looks everywhere but Johnny, "I... I know it's too late but I wanted to apologize." Johnny said, pausing for a moment and waits for Jaehyun to respond. When the younger didn't, he assumed that he gave him the chance to explain now so Johnny began doing so.

"I.. I let my emotions get to me. You were just so busy that we barely had time together.. When was the last we had sex? Whenever I took the initiative, you'd brush me off. And whenever you're back in our room, you knock out. I know you have drama filming but you didn't give us some time together-" Johnny was cut off by the loud scoff that Jaehyun made, the younger finally looks at him. And he felt his heart break as he sees the tears in Jaehyun's eyes. "And that gives you the excuse to fuck Taeyong? He seduced you and you give in? Have you even thought of me when you let your 'so called emotions' eat you up?" he asks, Johnny couldn't speak and this made only Jaehyun snort. He was right, it's no excuse for him. It's the end, Johnny thinks.

Jaehyun took a deep breath before finally speaking, "Look.. I know, we haven't spent much time these days.. I was planning to take you out on a trip because we finally finished our last filming. As soon as we finished, I came back as early as I could, John. That day... I planned everything out. But you- you and Taeyong hyung..." Jaehyun couldn't continue to speak as he chokes out a sob. He harshly wipes the tears away before covering his face with his hands, Johnny couldn't take the scene anymore and ended up pulling the younger in his arms. Hugging him flush to his chest as he sniffs in Jaehyun's scent. God knows how much he missed holding the younger in his arms like this, Jaehyun didn't bother pulling away.

When he felt the younger calm down, Jaehyun pulls away and wipes his tears. Johnny dreaded this moment, the silence was triggering his anxiety when Jaehyun kept his mouth shut. He was anxiously waiting for the younger to speak and when he did, he cut Jaehyun off. "Johnny, I think we should-" "No!" Johnny imemdiately declines, startling the younger male. "No... please... don't.. I... I don't-" "You don't wanna make up?" Jaehyun asks, tilting his head innocently. This caught Johnny off. He wasn't breaking up? "You won't... break up with me?" Johnny asks, hope fills his eyes, Jaehyun blinks at him in confusion before slowly nodding his head. "I won't... you hurt me, John. But when we first dated.. I told you no relationships are perfect.. and so is ours.. However, I can't really forget about this. But, no matter how painful it is.. My love is still stronger. I just needed a break and to gather my thoughts.. Breaking up with you crossed my mind and I debated over that for a few weeks that I was gone." Jaehyun says, biting his inner cheek as he confesses his feelings out. "But, I realized that my heart will always long for you, it will always love you. Because you are my soulmate, Youngho. I could never leave you."

And maybe, even if things do get toxic. Jaehyun will be too much of a martyr person to ever leave Johnny. So, they eventually make up and try to patch their relationship again.

Johnny kisses Jaehyun's forehead as he held the younger in his arms, "Thank you, Yoonoh.." Jaehyun tilts his head and glances up at Johnny, "For what?" "For not becoming my lost one."

[razberryyum]

Gintama manga chap 700

~

Dear Gintama gods and Sorachi-sama,

THANK YOU! THANK YOU FOR FINALLY LETTING THE YOROZUYA SEE AND ACKNOWLEDGE EACH OTHER!! So CLOSE! SO UNBELIEVABLY CLOSE! I CRIED! I wish they were actually in front of him so that they could finally have a proper hug together, but the fact that they actually got to lay eyes on him and support him was enough to make my eyes well up with happy tears. Their heart-breakingly desperate expressions as they called out to Gin-chan and his touching response in return made my heart clench up even more. I loved that he fought off the enemy with their weapons. I wish they could fight all the enemies off together, side-by-side or back-to-back again. Sorachi-sama, you’re really so cruel. How much longer must we wait for a real Yorozuya family reunion?  

Still, I’m glad that everyone is getting closer and closer to Gintoki but again, I wish there wasn’t so much rushing.  I mean, finally, you granted one of my wishes from a long time ago and actually let Otae join in on the fighting this time around, but we didn’t even have time to enjoy it because everyone is rushing along. I know that sounds ridiculous considering the dire circumstances they’re under and the fact that they’re rushing for a good purpose, but for example, that moving exchange between Shinpachi, Kagura and the Shinsengumi boys happened almost so quickly and matter-of-factly that it didn’t feel like anyone even had the chance to digest it. And it was such a touching exchange too!  I had to stop a moment to cope with the emotions their words brought on. Tears flowed from my eyes because I was suddenly overcome with sadness. Even though their sentiments were composed of hope and joy and promise, their words also sounded so final that my heart started hurting. Why must this be the last time of anything?  I want the Yorozuya and Shinsengumi to be friends...forever...helping each other and thanking each other always. Sure, they can also hurl insults at each other, but I don’t want their relationship to only be based on snide remarks and snappy comebacks. I want to see them sit down together, share meals, share drinks, watch the rain, and have friendly tussles in the river bank or wherever else that may suit them. And it’s not just because I ship half of them to each other, but rather, I think after all they have been through, they have more than earned friendships to last a lifetime. Therefore, seeing any of them say “last time in this life” about anything simply fills me with gloom and a little fear since it also sounds foreboding. Not that I think anything would happen to the Shinsengumi...or, I should say, I hope not...but I would also be lying if I said I wasn’t a little worried.

Strangely enough, what I never worried about through the entire chapter was whether or not Takasugi was going to live. I know he came close to becoming dust particles a la Cyclops pirate Batou, but I still wasn’t convinced that would really be his end since he still hadn’t met up with Matako and Henpeita yet. I don’t think you would be cruel enough to deny them their last moment with the man whom they have followed most of their lives, especially Matako who lives him so much, so until that reunion happens, I have faith that you will continue to let Takasugi live. It was heartening once again to see the Joui boys fighting together as one unit united under the teachings of their beloved teacher; even though Zura was physically separated from Gintoki and Takasugi, it was obvious that spiritually he was still fighting there beside them. I especially loved that since Oboro’s blood was flowing through Takasugi, he was essentially fighting alongside them as well. I hope wherever he is, he will be just as proud and satisfied of the outcome his fellow classmates—nay, brothers will be able to accomplish to finally give the being that was once their teacher its final rest.  

I know the general hubub has been that the next chapter will be the end, but honestly, Sorachi-sama, I don’t believe it. Not because I’m in denial, but I honestly cannot for the life of me see how you can possibly end everything in just one short chapter, whether it be 50 pages or 100 pages long. Just thinking about what you would have to cover in the next chapter to even end the battle on the ship—Sadaharu finally reviving and quelling the Altana stream (WHOO-HOO!!!!! PUPPY SAVES THE WORLD!!!!), the defeat of the (pardon me) stupidass Tendoshuu old farts (or Tendenists or whatever the hell they decide to call themselves next, I’m sorry, I really hate them) Takasugi’s ultimate fate, Baby Utsuro’s ultimate fate, Yorozuya’s full reunion, everyone’s full reunion—is enough to overwhelm me and give me a headache. I know you are always amazing, but realistically speaking, how could you tie all of those loose ends in neat, satisfying bundles in just one chapter’s length? If you were given the entire volume of the next Jump Giga, it still might not be enough but at least that will be better than just a mere chapter.  

Unless, perhaps in the end, your intention was never to conclude Gintama in just three issues of Giga anyway? Perhaps you will indeed be ending the battle portion of this leg of the arc in the next chapter (“Climax of the climactic battle”), but then save all the more emotional moments—the reunions and final fates our two “villains” (yes, I do count Takasugi, since I will not forget that  at one time, he was THE villain of the series before Utsuro reared his crow head again) and, hopefully, everyone’s future outlook, for the next set of Giga volumes? I will be completely fine with that, Sorachi-sama. Of course ideally, I wish there will never be the end, but I will take any more Gintama I can get even if it means waiting longer and for only a finite number of chapters.  

But as we head into the next chapter, I would like to make one humble request: if Takasugi were to finally reach his immortal limit and therefore meet his mortal end, please let Bansai be the one to lead him to the other side. I think I’ve mentioned before that I’m already resigned to the possibility we may very well lose Takasugi when this battle is over, and in many ways, I think that is probably the best ending for him. At least he will die a hero again and not a villain as he used to be, but I still want his journey to the afterlife to be a good one, so I hope Bansai will be by his side so his final trip will not be so lonely.  Your consideration is greatly appreciated.

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(^3^)

[ancient-trees]

So, tell me about your fictional children! I like hearing about people's characters! ^^

Thank you for asking! Putting this under a cut because it’s really long. Includes minor spoilers, especially for Tamuran, but nothing earth-shatteringly major unless you haven’t read the comic.

tl;dr:Varony: monster nerdEffire: snarky cobra nerdMath: grumpy old man nerdEmmie: +10 EPIC NERD also the best grandma

Versinthenet: dragon nerdRathe: swordie nerdPerrath: overly helpful nerd (w/ bonus cool doggo)Sukah: Gandalf is on strikeAleoth: the angstiest nerd

and Artreias: mostly an asshole (secretly a huge nerd on the inside, don’t tell anybody)

NERDS ALL NERDS.okay, read on:

I’ll start with Tamuran - I assume that’s what most people are following me for:

Varony you know if you read the comic - he’s the guy in my Tumblr icon. He belongs to a race of big arboreal predators that live deep in very dangerous forests, but for now he’s (sort of but not quite voluntarily) bound in the form of a big gangly human. For the most part he is okay with this arrangement (all except for the new “possibly permanent” aspect - see recent events in the comic). He’s endlessly curious, and he thinks humans are the weirdest, most bewilderingly fascinating things he’s ever encountered. He’s been human-shaped for (most of) about six years at this point - shortly after he was changed, he was found and taken in by a clan of traveling merchants, who taught him language and basically How To Human. They became a second family to him, as have the Ragtag Band of Adventurers he’s currently found his lot thrown in with, but sometimes he misses the trees.

Uh, stuff that I don’t think has been covered in the comic already: Back home, Varony (or Hhr'skhygh - approximation of his *growly-noises* real name) lived with his pack, which included his mother and three older siblings. His sister’s pretty cool, his brothers are jerks. He’s a good hunter, but his pack always saw him as something of a weirdo - asks too many pointless questions, wants to know EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING. When he was little he used to love listening to his grandfather tell his people’s folktales, and legends about the outside world. And yes, he’s officially ace/aro, species notwithstanding. Humans just complicate it even more - his people’s mating rituals are pretty straightforward, while humans’ involve all sorts of flirting and bizarre games that catch him off-guard (and have gotten him into a few ..uncomfortable situations in the past, if you want to know what the deal was with him freaking out on poor Jadsira in chapter 14).

Effire is a Morphus - one of the magical, long-lived Tu Naul race who was born with shapeshifting abilities. All Morphyx get bound into a single animal form and magically bonded to a “worthy” human (for the duration of the human partner’s life) as a sort of cultural exchange/community service. Effire was never too keen on that idea, especially after he found out his partner would be a Zharus Guardsman, and ESPECIALLY after his own bonded form turned out to be a cobra. But after getting used to one another, Effire found that his partner Morgen was a dreamer and idealist with a brain that never stopped - far from the meatheaded soldier-for-hire he was expecting. After their Zharus Academy training was complete, they were hired by the Patriarch of Tamuran to work palace intelligence and security and to keep an eye on the Patriarch’s elder sons as part of their personal guard (much to Prince Johlan’s irritation).

Effire tends to be cynical and sharp-tempered, but he means well. He would do anything for Morgen, whom he loves fiercely. He’s always liked exploring, especially poking around in places he’s not supposed to be. His favorite animals to turn into before he was bound were falcons, swallows, and other quick, agile birds - it was a pretty big blow to be stuck in a form that doesn’t even have limbs. Being part of a prince’s royal guard at least means he’s gotten to travel from time to time, and between Morgen and palace goings-on his life is seldom boring… though the way things have gone lately, he’s starting to really wish for boring…

Mathim hasn’t shown up in the comic yet - the Atriand-side plotline follows his story. He’s a former colonel in the Atriand army who was discharged early for an injury that never healed right, and at this point he’s retired to a town out in the wilderness, a cantankerous old bastard who spends his time drinking too much and cussing out the neighbor kids. His troublemaking teenaged grandson - the only living family he isn’t estranged from - disappeared about a year ago without a trace, though Math’s suspicions lean toward sorceric activity. When strangers pass through town bringing odd rumors, it might finally be the key Math needs to find the kidnappers. But Math has secrets - he was born with a forbidden form of magic, a dangerous, volatile power that has terrified him all his life. The same power that he passed on to his grandson, the power that made the boy a target of sorcerers in the first place. And now Math is going to need to unlock that power if he wants to have any hope of saving his boy…

Emianna was supposed to be a minor character, but she insisted on becoming a lot more important than we’d planned (and I’m glad she did). She’s Math’s wife, who died a few years before the comic story but still plays a big role in it. She was a huge nerd and avid naturalist, though poor health kept her working in libraries rather than pursuing science in the field. The daughter of a prominent Atriand military family, she used to pretend to be a bit daft at her family’s social functions, so that ambitious suitors would focus their attention on her sisters and leave her alone. At least until a shy young officer in search of a restroom literally stumbled over her reading in a closet during one of those parties… 

Emmie likes: books, books, and more books, SCIENCE, yaoi. And also being Gramma Emmie to her family - she’ll make you some amazing cookies, but you might have to pry her out of her lab to do it.

Novel characters: From several books, which are intended (if all goes well) to fit together like puzzle pieces and thus are sort-of in development at the same time (in other words, my notes are a mess).  Standard disclaimer that nothing is 100% canon till the books are finished.

Versinthenet is a dragon. In my setting, dragons are features of the landscape - half-physical, half-spirit beings that come into existence in places where intense magic pools and snags, and serve to tie Magic to the physical world. They can’t physically travel far from their magic “nodes,” but they can use the tides of Magic to communicate with other dragons and watch events as they unfold elsewhere in the world and also stupid cat videos.  Most dragons are located far from human settlements, but some of the ones who do live near humans use their influence over local magic to become patron protectors for their area, and in return the humans see to any physical-plane needs they may have. Verse (don’t call him that to his face) was one of these - fairly young as dragons go, he calmed the seas, quelled storms, and ensured good fishing for the people of his island. But centuries of watching human conflicts and atrocities, capped with events involving the death of his closest mentor, have started him questioning whether these people deserve his help after all. Then an idiot wizard shows up with the audacity to try to bind him and use his magic. The binding attempt goes horribly wrong - the wizard dies and Verse finds his consciousness pulled into the wizard’s body, while the rest of his Dragon self, mindless, flies off to wreak havoc, pulling frayed Magic into a hurricane around itself as it goes. Now Verse has to figure out how to set things right, while being blamed for the actions of the wizard who made this mess… before the dragon unleashes its wrath upon the whole island, or the islanders find a way to destroy the revered protector who has betrayed them. (Beyond all that, the consequences of such a tear in the network of magic may be farther-reaching than anyone is prepared for…)

So yeah, he’s not having a very good day.

Rathe is quick, athletic, great with a sword, and wants to be a hero like the ones in the storybooks. Unfortunately, she’s the daughter of a highly-respected family of scholars in a society that abhors all forms of violence and prizes learning and tradition above everything else. Events conspire to lead her away from home and into the life of adventure she’s always craved… but when her wizard traveling companion goes and does something really, really stupid, she’ll find out that heroing is a lot more complicated than she expected… especially when it involves facing personal secrets she thought were buried in the past.

Perrath has had a magical gift since he was a child - the ability to mend things that are broken - and a passion for helping people to go along with it. Unfortunately, one night a mysterious storm blew away all the magic in his village, including his innate talent, and he’s been searching for it ever since, with a sole still-functional(?) finding charm leading the way and his dog at his side (whom he talks to. A lot). He misses his magic, but he’s found that in the meantime he really enjoys a life of wandering - going wherever his finder points him, meeting new people and exploring places he’d never heard of, using his mundane skills to repair people’s things in order to get by. Until he finds himself in a sticky situation out in the uncharted wilds, and learns that promising to fix something for malevolent shadow-demons is maybe not a good idea…

Sukah is a semi-immortal guardian mage, bestowed with certain powers and nobly tasked with the protection of humanity. Only it’s hard to do your job when your partner has long since disappeared, halving your power, and nobody wants your help or even listens to your advice anymore. So he’s watched history unfold from the sidelines, telling himself that if people want to make a huge mess of things that’s their business.  A crisis involving two worlds and the fabric of magic itself, along with the reappearance of someone he’d thought long dead, might be enough to convince him to dust off his old magic and get back in the fight, but by then it might be too late…

Thanks to a valiant sacrifice-beyond-hope made by the parents she’s never known, Aleoth supposedly harbors within her the soul of a great evil… and no one has ever let her forget it. Stifled and stigmatized by those who were supposed to be her protectors, she runs away and takes up with a band of notorious brigands. But whatever she does, she can’t escape the unnerving creature that has haunted her dreams all her life, or the disasters that seem to follow her steps.  When [plot happens] and events begin to come crashing in around her, she’ll have to figure out who and what she is and what she really stands for.

{Bonus shoutout to my college D&D character Artreias, a sorcerer/planewalker from Sigil who got stuck in a shit-ton of trouble thanks to his sketchy mage father’s sketchy past and even more sketchy friends. Treias was a minor noble on his mom’s side, well-to-do and highly educated, but he acted like he was from the streets since all the nobles he ever met were twelve kinds of terrible. He’d do just about anything to protect his family, though (blood family and family-of-choice), especially his younger sister, and including Infuriating Sketchy Dad, whom he loved anyway. Unfortunately the rest of the party characters hated him, since (thanks to the mysterious circumstances that got him thrown into the campaign events) he had a “trust no one” attitude and could be kind of a jerk about it.}