#yes that is verdant on a book up there

[babesareblue]

The face of a guy unhappy to be trapped in the shadow realm

[screampied]

just need a oneshot where toji being so extremely soft with his pregnant wife.😔

៹ content tags. ៹ fem! reader, pure fluff, toji's a big softie, calls reader 'mama' + 'baby' & 'darlin'

wc. 2.0k

toji rubs his eyes, pure static forming into his irises for a bit as he’d awaken up from his nap. with a quick glance at the clock, it read two thirty. in the background played the intro from some old western movie that was on repeat. ah, ever since you’ve gotten pregnant he’s always been staying up with you, ruining his sleep schedule in the process. not that he necessarily minded, you were his wife and he’d do anything for you,

his ears twitch a bit as he hears a sudden ruffling noise of feet — verdant eyes of his focus on you and it’s you trodding towards him and he smiles. “heyy,” he murmurs in a drowsy tone, he figured you’d be awake. toji stares at you so lovingly, the cute baby blue nightgown you wore, winnie the pooh slippers that dragged across the fleecy carpet. with a yawn, he pats his lap for you to take your seat. “y’er lil waddle never stops bein’ cute, mama.”

“stop.” you frown with a pouty look, he’d always tease whenever you do your cute little walk. he grows to adore it, the cute rounded bump on your belly only getting larger. pretty soon, you were about to reach your second trimester. time flew by so fast, it was almost like before you could blink, you’d be meeting your beloved new baby. you slowly make your way onto toji’s lap and he slings an arm around you. he smells good, you were a bit tired already from that ten second walk, cute..

“sorry baby,” toji utters in a soft voice, kissing the back of your head as you relax into his embrace, leaning back. “was gonna wake ya up but ya looked so peaceful,” and he brings a kiss near the inner crevice of your neck. “miss me already?”

you still remain with the cute glowering expression. with a sigh, you shrug. “yes, actually. missed you a lot.”

“awww,” toji caresses against your thighs, his touch was delicate and gentle. as he spoke in a gruff voice, he nips a few more kisses toward the corner of your neck as you faced the other direction. “missed you more. ‘n i missed our girl too,” and that catches you by surprise, he’d always refer to the baby’s gender as a girl. as if he could read your mind, he chuckles before leaning his head against your shoulder. “whaaat? got a feelin’ ‘s gonna be a girl.”

“i think it’s gonna be a boy,” you mumble, feeling your heart flutter a bit. oh, it was always like this between the two of you. the constant banter of the gender, toji just knew it was gonna be a girl while you thought otherwise. he’d be happy with either or though. you, likewise. toji watches with half-lidded eyes as you turn your body a bit to face him, wrapping your arms around his neck. you plant a kiss on his chin, lips brushing against his stubble and he hums in amusement. “did you get any sleep at all? you have eye bags, ‘toj.”

“ah, ‘m fine,” he grins at your concern, the scar slashed near the right side of his lip twinging in response. you were so cute—the pregnancy glow you had bestowed on you, he could stare at you all day. toji leans in to kiss your nose, yet he notices your deadpan. with a grunt, he surrenders.

“okay okay, the most i got was maybe four-ish hours,” and the look of worry on your face made his heart twist. toji pats your head, smoothening his tone. “don’t worry, baby. it was for a good cause. was up all night readin’ that book you bought like last week.”

with your brows furrowing in confusion, your lips part at your abrupt realization. “oh— the pregnancy fact book?” and then you giggle. “really? i thought you said books were boring, toji.”

“trust, they are,” he sulks, bringing his wrist to rub his eyes. you take a brief glance at his broken watch you bought him for his thirtieth birthday. despite it being unable to tell time anymore, he still flaunts it, all because it was a gift from you. with a low sigh, toji moves a few strands out of your face. “but, ‘m willing to try new things for you—er, for us. and it’s quite informative, it told me about y’er strange cravings ‘n it checks out.”

you frown. “what’s wrong with my cravings? you told me you like them.”

“well, darlin’ i love you a lot okay,” and he paints a wet kiss against your cheek. “but if i have to eat another peanut butter pickle sandwich with you, ‘m gonna lose it.”

“it’s not that bad,” you protest, bringing a palm near your stomach to rub it. the bump was easily growing as the weeks progressed—you couldn’t help but be excited once the week of forty rolled around. “you just have a bland appetite.”

toji rolls his eyes. “peanut butter and pickles, baby. not jelly, pickles. pickles?” and you look at him, he’s gently holding both of your shoulders before you giggle. “and i thought nothin’ could top the toast ‘n ice cream.”

you deadpan again. “okay now you’re just being dramatic.”

“i love you,” he boops your nose. “i love you and y’er weird food cravings,” and toji’s eyes trail down toward your tummy. so cute and round, he gingerly moves the fabric of your gown up to reveal your skin, a palm ghosting against your belly. “any cramps today? pain i should know about?”

“no,” you hum, immediately relaxing from his touch. the warmth of his hand made your breathing slow a bit. he moves it around in a smooth circular rotation before brushing a thumb against your belly button. “kinda scared toji.”

leafy, viridescent eyes meet its way back up to yours before his face softens. “what for, darlin’? good scared or bad scared?”

in a sweet, timid tone, you puff out a single shaky breath. “like … both i guess? i’m excited of course but ‘m kinda scared. we’re having a baby, toji. pretty soon i’ll be on my third trimester,” and he’s so attentive as you’re talking, quite literally getting lost in your eyes. who knew that you could turn this man into such a soft sap, he adored you. as you continue to rant, toji strokes your cheek with a warmhearted simper. “i watched lots of videos about birthing and it looks scary.”

“not gonna lie to you, baby. ‘s gonna be scary, but y’know what? ‘m gonna be right there with you,” and he strokes a thumb against the enlarging stretch marks growing against your belly. he’s gentle, tracing a finger against each one before his eyes avert back up to you. “i’ll be right beside you. holdin’ y’er hand ‘n all,” and he kisses the crown of your head. “y’er gonna be the prettiest mommy. our girl’s lucky to have you. i’m lucky to have you.”

for some reason, those last few words struck right through the veins of your heart. mentally, you promised yourself you wouldn’t cry—

but alas, your eyes start to swell up, bottom lip quivering and toji notices immensely at your change of body language.

“awww, was that too much?” he purrs, bringing you towards his chest. you sniffle, your nose digging into his neck and an arm of his cradles you. toji starts to rock you, he presses another kiss against the top of your head before humming. “didn’t mean ‘ta make ya cry, darlin’ but ‘s true. ya don’t gotta worry that pretty little head, ‘m gonna be right here for anything..”

a solid tear drops against his tank top before your chin rests against his chest. you slowly look up at him with that familiar pouty expression before he swipes a thumb against your eyes. “cutie,” he takes your tears away, your lashes all damp and long. “y’er even more emotional because of the baby too. hormones, aw yeah i know these facts by heart.”

“you’re such a dork,” you wipe your face with a laugh, the mood suddenly light again. toji was gonna be spewing out pregnancy facts at you all day, you knew that now. whilst you sat up, trying to re-collect yourself, you speak in a soft voice. “but really, thank you toji. i love you,” and you grab ahold of his hand. your fingers intertwine with his, squeezing it tight. “you’ll be a great daddy.”

“heyy girl, don’t make me cry now,” he teases, a thumb of his running across the softness of your hand.

toji’s face relaxes, the more he stares into your eyes, the more he falls more and more in love.

toji was just as excited as you, maybe even more.

he couldn’t wait to start this new milestone, this new journey with you. a baby, the two of you would be proud new parents. the thought of it alone brings a soft smile to his face before he leans in to kiss you.

you return the gesture,

closing your eyes while feeling his warm lips mash against your own. toji was so weak for you, happily so.

life was worth living for him again now that he had you and the growing baby in your stomach. once you met him, he thought he’d never move on. he was a broken man who came to the mere conclusion that he had no purpose— all until you came along. toji didn’t believe in second chances, but maybe he’d start. you were his everything, and he couldn’t have been anymore grateful to have you in his arms at this right particular moment.

after a while, the kiss departs and toji smears a thumb against your glossed lips. “you drive me crazy,” he whispers, soft jade like irises peering into yours for about fourteen seconds before he sneaks a kiss near your jaw. “oh, you just reminded me. i ordered somethin’ the other day.”

with your interest piqued, you watch as he grabs out his phone— toji opens some shopping app, swiping a thumb near the check out section before showing it to you. what you were staring at was a cute huge pink sticker for cars that displayed the words of, ‘BABY ON BOARD!’

“you’re so cute,” you lean in to hug him, finding his enthusiasm adorable. a hand of his strums against your back before he leans against the couch. “you’re really set on it being a girl though, huh?”

“yeah,” he presses his nose against yours. “or if it’s a boy, we can name ‘em toji. such a manly name.”

your eye twitches. “one of you is enough,” and he smirks, feeling your thumb play against his scar. “but toji, ‘s like the afternoon. you should go back to sleep.”

“not tired,” he shakes his head, wrapping two arms around your sweet frame. your scent had him always wanting more of you, so sweet. toji pats your back gently before his face buries into your neck. “i’d rather stay up ‘n talk with you.”

“but i was gonna go back to sleep,” you pout.

toji huffs with a smile, kissing the shell of your ear. “oh, you want me back in bed, ‘s that it? darlin’ you could have just asked.”

you blankly stare at him and he guffaws, standing up and pulling you with him. “ah, c’mon. let’s go sleep for another fifteen hours i guess,” he teases, and he helps you walk. toji gawks at your cute waddle. so cute, you felt like you had so much water stored in you. entirely full, your heels slide against the floor before you hold onto your husband’s bicep. “there we go, one step at a time.”

“i’m not a baby, toji.” you mutter, secretly feeling yourself get hot from his doting affection. he’s holding onto you and you’re holding on to him.

“y’er my baby,” he corrects, and once the two of you reach the empty bedroom filled with infant supplies and boxes of baby furniture, you take a seat on the edge of the mattress. toji towers above you as you sit, cupping your face with a sly smile. “wife,” he coos in a gentle voice, two thumbs fondling against both sides of your temples. “i love you. never forget it, yeah?”

“i .. love you too toji.”

he hums. “heh, before we sleep though. how about some pickles?” and your face lights up.

[prythianpages]

The Love Potion | Azriel x Witch Reader

Azriel x Green witch | summary: Azriel asks you for an elixir to soothe his aches and you accidentally give him the aphrodisiac you had made for Nesta, bringing to surface one of his hidden desires.

warning: this is purely smut with a breeding kink, oral (m receiving), p in v. some fluff at the end

a/n: this is based off this request. This can also be read as a stand alone fic but it is part of my Dandelion series.

The door creaks open, signaling Azriel’s return from a day that seemed to drag on endlessly. His wings sag under the weight of fatigue and as he steps into your study, the scent of herbs and potions are instantly wrapping him in a soothing embrace.

And there you are, a sanctuary amidst the enchanting chaos. His mate.

You're engrossed in your apothecary work. Your spell book floats in midair in front of you, your keen dark eyes scanning through the ancient text as your fingers deftly work their magic to bring the essence of the herbs to life. The sight reminds him of the day he met you, when the mating bond had snapped.

A soft smile tugs at his lips as he stands in the doorway for a moment. The fatigue that clung to him like his shadows begins to lift as he watches you, admiration and love evident in the way he drinks in the details–from the concentration in your furrowed brow to the way your pretty lips move in incantation.

The weariness he feels is soon replaced by a warmth that radiates from the depths of his heart and quiet footsteps carry him closer. He’s surprised his shadows haven’t given him away. They love you as much as he does and it is often them who greet you first.

His arms wrap around you from behind and he pulls you into his embrace. He nuzzles his nose lovingly into your neck. “Hello, love.”

“You’re home!”

He can hear the smile in your voice and you can feel the exhaustion in his body, his tense muscles finally relaxing and body slightly slouching into yours. “Long day?”

“Yes,” he responds and you’re turning in his embrace to face him properly with a gaze of deep rooted concern. He kisses your worry away. “But coming home to you makes it all worthwhile.”

He takes delight in the way you grace him with a smile, your eyes softening into their natural color as you brush his hair back. “Should I draw you a bath?”

He pulls you tighter against him until you are chest to chest. Your heart, the emerald talisman kept safely in his chest pocket, hums between you. A bath sounds nice but he just wants to bask in your comfort. 

“Will you join me?”

“If you wait for me,” you reply and pull away to catch the slightest frown on his face. “It won’t be long! I have one more elixir to finish!”

Azriel’s eyes drift to the line of elixirs you have sitting on the counter behind you.  They seem to glisten enticingly under his curious gaze. “Do you have anything to soothe aches?” He asks as he reluctantly lets you go to carry on with your work. “Training was rough this morning.”

“Of course. The one with the green liquid should work,” you say as you mindlessly point to the array of potions you spent all afternoon making, failing to catch the way the aphrodisiac you made for Nesta morphs from its deep red to a verdant green. “Drink all of it, if you need to. I can always make more. Just let me seal this last one with a spell and then I can draw your–”

Your voice falters as you turn to face Azriel, your gaze momentarily flickering to the potions before settling back on him. He fails to catch the way your eyes widen in a sudden panic and swallows the sweet liquid in a big gulp. It’s only once all the liquid is gone from the vial that he picks up on your slight distress.

 "What?"

“Umm,” you stammer, your hand rubbing nervously at your neck as you sheepishly look up at him. 

“It wasn’t poison, right?” He jokes but your silence wipes the smile off his face. “y/n.”

“Of course not!”

You drop your gaze, murmuring something else quietly under your breath. Both his shadows and ears strain to discern your words but they fail in their attempt. “y/n,” he calls your name again, growing worried by the second.

You slowly raise your eyes, and as they meet his, a rush of warmth colors your cheeks, betraying the fluster that has settled on your face. You should’ve separated the love potion from the others, especially when you knew how sneaky it can be. It’s known to masquerade itself as any elixir beside it as it yearns to be used and your poor mate took the bait.

“Youaccidentallydrankanaphrodisiac.”

Though your words are mushed, your voice is louder this time and he’s able to make them out. He throws his head back and laughs. A deep and amused sound.

“You’re not mad?” You say and though he’s laughing, your body tenses at the thought of him saying yes. Your hands clasp behind your back in a timid manner, inadvertently puffing out your chest and drawing his attention there. 

“I’m not mad, love.”

His eyes land on the silver jewelry delicately hugging your neck and then to the charm with his initial. When you suck in a short breath of relief, he watches the rise and fall of the curves of your breasts as the sweet sound caresses over his skin in a heated whisper that pricks at his skin. 

“Azriel.”

“I’m fine,” he says, brushing off your concern but his gaze lingers on the movement of your chest for a moment longer before meeting yours again. He follows up with a boyish grin, despite the sudden racing of his heart and the familiar feeling of blood rushing downwards. 

“How about that bath?”

**

There’s a buzzing underneath his skin. All the soreness and ache of his muscles melts away and it’s not from the inviting embrace of the steaming bath. A burgeoning impulse stirs within him. It’s as though the elixir he consumed earlier is coursing through his veins, gathering strength and coalescing in the depths of his stomach before dropping to his hardening cock.

Every gentle lapping of the water against his hot skin, every touch of yours as you help clean him feels so good. It certainly doesn’t help that you’re putting on a show, intentional or not, as you bend down and shift around him, gracing his eyes with tempting views of your ass or breasts.

He submerges his head into the water and while his body is now clean, there’s nothing clean about his thoughts when he rises back up. You’re at the center of every single one of his whirling thoughts, filling his head with lewd images. Of you on your knees as you take him into your mouth, of you under him as he thrusts into you hard and fast, of you on your back as you let him have a taste. Fuck. He wants it all.

As you drag the stool and shift to sit behind him, he reclines in the tub. His hands are gripping the edge of the porcelain roughly, his knuckles whitening under the strain and he can feel the flicker of amusement it draws from you through the bond.

His head goes quiet when he feels your chest brush against his wings, muscles tensing as your cool breath fans over the back of his neck. A teasing brush of your fingers along a sensitive spot on his wing as you clean at them with a damp towel has him biting his lip, suppressing a whimper. It’s almost embarrassing the way you’ve barely even touched him at all and he’s already at the verge of coming undone. He feels like a touch starved horny teen all over again.

“What’s the matter, my love?” You whisper sweetly, lips hovering dangerously close to his ear. Your velvet voice is smooth and it sends a thrill down his spine and straight to his throbbing cock. When you brush your fingers along that spot again, the porcelain cracks under his grip. 

The air is thick and heavy with his scent and the damp towel falls from your grasp. When you press your hands onto his shoulders, he can feel the shift in your demeanor. “Need some help?”

“Please.”

“Please what?”

He can hear the smirk in your voice but the way you’re touching him renders him momentarily speechless and he can’t bring himself to muster a sly remark. Not when he’s completely at your mercy. He’d have to take what he can get for now.

His breath hitches when your hands graze the hardness of his chest, easing their way down to where the warm water of the bath laps at his abdomen in a slow and taunting manner. Your cool touch immediately soothes his heated skin. As you reach further down, his eyes flutter shut and head tilts back into your chest. His throat bobs when you stop right above where he needs you the most.

“Please, touch me,” he breathes, no longer caring how desperate he sounds and it’s like music to your ears.

Azriel is not one to beg…but for you? He’d do anything for you. If you’d ask him for the moon on the string, he’d deliver it to you and in this moment, he’d do so in a heartbeat. Anything to feel you. He’s aching to feel your touch. So bad it’s nearly painful.

Sensing his desperation, his shadows are trailing down your arms to his muscled chest, guiding you to Azriel’s cock so you can grant their master the relief he’s begging so sweetly for. Your teeth nip gently at his neck in approval before wrapping your hand around him and he lets out a sigh of relief.

“Like this?”

“Gods, yes.”

You continue to kiss along his neck, stroking his length just the way he likes it, drawing the sweetest whimpers and moans from him. The water laps against his chest at your movements and his nipples harden at the sensation. He’s never felt so sensitive. 

When your lips pepper kisses along one of his wings, he loses his resolve. His stomach tightens and he lets out a deep groan followed by a string of curses as he comes undone. His eyes flutter shut in pure bliss.

You kiss his temple. “Good boy.”

He doesn’t know if it's your words or the aftermath of his orgasm but that exhilarating buzz returns to his skin and he can feel the sinful liquid coursing through his veins again. More, more, more.

His eyes snap open and he stands abruptly, prompting you to do the same.

Water traces sinuous paths down his body, leaving glistening trails in their wake as he steps out from the bath. His wings unfurl behind him and his frenzied shadows disperse. Azriel’s gaze darkens until there’s only traces of hazel left behind, mirroring the gradual darkening of his shadows that envelop the room, casting an ethereal aura upon him. 

He looks like a god. 

Your knees tremble and you find yourself leaning against the counter behind you for support. His keen eyes pick up on the subtle movement, lips curling into a smirk. “You liked having me at your mercy? Hearing me beg for you, didn’t you?

You don’t answer but you don’t need to.

“My sweet girl,” he purrs as he steps forward and you clench your thighs in anticipation. “I can smell you.”

Long gone is the soft and whimpering male from moments ago. It’s as if a flip was switched from the intensity of his release. In his place, stands something darker and primal. He approaches you like you’re his prey and cages you in, his wet body pressing into yours. You keep your eyes on his, letting out a shaky breath when you feel something hard against your stomach. His smirk widens. 

“You’re all wet,” you protest weakly as you look up at him.

His hand caresses your face, a thumb sweeping in a long stroke along the side of your throat as he leans down and inhales sharply. “So are you.”

He nips at your neck the same way you did to him, his hand undoing the front laces of your dress. “It’s my turn to have my way with you, to have you at my mercy.”

Your dress pools at your feet followed by your underwear and he steps back, eyes tracing every contour of your bare body in deep appreciation. Mine, mine, mine. Dark tendrils curl around you, caressing every place his eyes do and if your scent had not given you away, the shadows would’ve. As they travel lower, they meet your dripping core, humming with eagerness. A cool stroke against your clit as a small moan escaping from your lips and when his eyes lifts back up to meet yours, there’s pure lust simmering in his heated gaze.

A slight pressure against your shoulders has you giving in and dropping to your knees in submission. It’s a silent agreement that you’re his to use and only his and he nearly growls at the sight. Desire consumes him like a raging storm, unleashing a torrent of unbridled passion. He’s filled with the primal urge to claim you and devour you in its wake. He brushes a hand against your face when you look up at him, thumb brushing against your lips.

“Open.” 

You do and your tongue eagerly swirls around the digit before sucking it into your mouth. He lets out a hum of approval, slipping his thumb out from your mouth with a pop. His hand buries itself into your hair, tilting your face the way he wants it while his other hand pumps his throbbing cock. 

He doesn’t have to ask. Your hand is already wrapping nicely around the base of him with the guidance of his shadows. You lean in to flick your tongue across his leaking head.

“Fuck,” he hisses as you take him into your mouth. His head tilts back, lost in the pleasure, barely giving you any time to accommodate his impressive length before pushing his hips forward. “So good for me.”

He begins to thrust, the hand buried into your hair guiding you to move in rhythm with him. He allows his shadows to continue to touch you and they brush along your folds, teasing your entrance. They rub against your clit and it doesn’t take them long to bring a wave of pleasure crashing over you. You’re moaning, sending delicious vibrations straight through him. His pace quickens, thrusting deeper with every snap of his hips.

“That’s it. Take it all.” he groans, digging his nails into your scalp. He holds you flush against his pelvis while you gag on him. Tears prick your eyes at the stretch but you’re desperate to bring him to his release and swallow around him. “Oh fuck.”

He feels the coil in his stomach about to snap and he wants to give in to it, to cum down your throat and make you swallow every drop. But there’s a voice inside his head, a deep and primal urge of need, that has him pulling away abruptly.

“Come here,” he says with a low growl as he beckons you to your feet and as soon as you're standing to your full height, his lips are slotting over yours in a heated kiss. 

He presses his body further into yours and you can feel every inch of him vibrating, his entire body pulsing with need. His skin feels so hot against yours and as his shadows envelop you both, you’re stuck in a dance of fire and ice. The dark tendrils disperse and you realize you’re in your bedroom now. You almost want to laugh. The walk from your bathroom to your bedroom is a short one but your mate is keen on not wasting anymore time.

His scarred hands are rough on your hips as he spins you around and presses your front against the bed. “I need to fuck you.”

You arch your back for him. “Please.”

Deep heat spreads over his skin at your whiny and desperate tone. He slaps your ass, reminding you that he’s in complete control now. “Please what?”

“Please fuck me,” you’re begging and he loves every second of it, his cock twitching in anticipation. “I need your cock so bad.”

One hand kneads the soft flesh of your ass while the other pumps his cock. He drags his thick length along your folds, coating it in your arousal. “I’m going to fill you up so good. You want that, don’t you?”

“Yes, yes.”

He pushes into you, reveling in the way your walls are wrapping around him. You’re so warm, so tight and he’s already completely lost in the pleasure. He doesn’t give you time he normally does to adjust to his thick length. He thrusts so deep into you, your hands are clenching around your silk sheets. He fucks into you ravenously like a man starved, hands gripping onto your hips so hard you’re sure you’ll bruise.

“Going to cum so deep inside you until you’re full with my seed.”

Your face falls forward from the strength of his thrusts, knees giving out. He sees you struggling to get back on your knees so he pulls you flush against his chest with a hand wrapped around your neck, squeezing slightly. You cry out at the new angle that has you seeing stars. His breath is hot and heavy and he brings his mouth to your ear. 

“Perhaps, I’ll fuck a baby into you so everyone knows you’re mine and only mine.”

“Gods, yes,” you cry out, clenching around him, his words bringing you so close to your release.

A deep growl resonates from his chest. He can feel everything you’re feeling through the bond. You want this as much as he does. The mere image of your body changing, swelling with his child has him quickening his pace. His brain fogs and he gives himself completely to that primal desire that was brought to surface by the aphrodisiac.

Bringing his free hand to your stomach, his fingers tease at the flesh right over where he can feel the bulge of his cock as he pounds deep into you, right where your womb would grow with his seed. All he can hear are the lewd sounds of skin slapping against skin and your pretty moans.

One brush of his thumb across your clit has your thighs shaking and screaming out his name as you reach your peak. He can feel his own release trembling underneath his skin. A couple more thrusts and wave after wave of immense pleasure courses through him. His cock twitches and then he’s spilling thick ropes of cum into you, groaning as your walls spasm and contract around him. He cums so hard, he can feel his release running down your thighs.

He pulls out just long enough to turn you so you’re on your back. A sinful smirk graces his lips at your blissed out expression but he’s nowhere near done with you. He’s still so painfully hard. More, more, more.

Positioning himself between your legs, he sinks into the delicious warmth of your hot dripping core, both moaning when he bottoms out. 

“Please.” Tears stream down your face and you’re not sure what exactly you’re begging for. You’re so sensitive, hands clenching so tightly onto the sheets as he drags his cock over and over that deep spot inside you. “Azriel, I don’t think I can–”

“You’re going to take everything I give you,” he interrupts sharply with a growl, leaving you a whimpering and crying mess beneath him. 

“Az—oh fuck.”

“You’re so perfect for me.”

His arms wrap beneath your shoulders to mold your body to his and he presses hot, feverish kisses down your neck and chest. His lips then slot over yours, stealing your breath away. When you moan into his mouth, he swallows it and eases his tongue into you, urgently exploring every crevice of your mouth.

He’s well aware that the elixir he accidentally took has amplified his every sense. Yet, amidst his heightened state, his love and adoration for you, so deep and genuine, remains the most enchanting potion he has ever known. The candles flicker with the green glow of your magic and he continues his brutal pace, immersing himself in the pleasure of it all with a strong determination for you both to reach another painfully delicious release.

**

Azriel blinks his eyes open and his heart melts at the sight of you, his beautiful mate, curled up in his arms. The tenderness of the morning light casts a warm glow over you, highlighting the delicate curves of your face. He gently reaches out to trace a strand of your hair, relishing the softness beneath his touch. A stark contrast to the way he handled you last night. He knows you're awake when he feels you tug on the golden strings of the bond, flooding him with a profound sense of pure happiness that seeps into every corner of his being.

“I love you so much.”

“Good morning to you too,” you say, your voice still thick with sleep, but a hint of a smile on your face.

You stretch out your sore muscles and Azriel’s eyes flash with concern when the sheets drift lower. He catches a glimpse of the bruises littering your body and you can feel a flicker of guilt down the bond. “Are you–fuck. Was I too rough? I’m so–”

You shift in the bed and silence him with a soft kiss. When you pull away, you smile at him, sending a wave of reassurance down the bond because while yes he was rough, you loved it.

“You were perfect.”

He sits up in bed and when he finds no trace of hurt or regret of how rough he was with you last night in your features, he finally relaxes and returns your smile. 

Your smile falters. “If anything, I’m sorry. It was my mistake that you drank that aphrodisiac. I made it for Nesta and I knew I should’ve stored that sneaky elixir somewhere safer but it wasn't too bad, right?”

Now it’s Azriel’s turn to brush away your concern and he shakes his head at you with a deep chuckle. "It wasn't bad at all. I enjoyed every part of your mistake."

“The best mistake I’ve ever made,” you grin and he laughs with you, his shadows dancing happily around his shoulders.

“What was in that elixir anyway?”

Your eyebrows furrow. “What do you mean? It’s an aphrodisiac, it stimulates sexual desire.”

“I know what an aphrodisiac is,” he replies and he feels the heat rise to his cheeks. Oh gods, he was going to have to say this outloud.  “I’m talking about the way I was filled with the primal urge to–to breed you.”

“Oh,” you say and laugh again at the look bewildered look Azriel was giving you. “That was all you.”

You sit up and you don’t miss the way Azriel’s gaze flickers down to your bare body. Reaching out, you coax his gaze back to yours.

“My magic does not work that way, remember? It can’t create and destroy desires. It can only bring to surface what’s already lurking deep within."

Your eyes are alight with amusement as realization dawns on your mate. He’s flustered but only for a fleeting moment. The corner of his lips curve up and when your hand begins to move from his cheek, he places his own over it to keep it there.

“You wanted it as much as I did.”

“I did.”

There’s a warmth radiating from his heart that is so strong, you can feel it too. His hazel eyes hold onto yours with an intensity that goes beyond words, and when he speaks again, there’s a delicate vulnerability to his voice because in the year since you’ve been mated, this is a topic you’ve yet to discuss.

“You want to have children…with me?”

“Yes.” The response spills from your lips without a moment’s hesitation and his entire being seems to shudder in response. “Do you?”

"Of course I do," he breathes out, sealing his words with a tender kiss to the palm of your hand that has your heart fluttering. “I want everything with you.”

“I want everything with you too.”

Happiness dances in his eyes. Azriel is not a selfish man, always putting others’ wants and needs before his own. He had even accepted that meeting his mate was an unattainable dream. That is, until you came along, dismantling the walls he had spent centuries constructing around himself.

You, a manifestation of his long-buried dreams and wishes, emerged as a living, breathing reality. The selfish desire to have everything with you consumes him, even more so when your desires always seem to mirror his. You're his perfect match and he doesn't know what he did to deserve you. He can only thank the Cauldron, forever indebted to it for entwining your soul with his.

Overwhelmed by his profound emotions, tears brim in his eyes and you're kissing them away before they can escape, smiling when his lips capture yours afterwards. He pours everything into the kiss. It starts soft and sweet but quickly morphs into something more as he brings his hands to your neck.

He pulls away, rolling over to hover over you in your bed, bracing strong arms on either side of you. He kisses your nose and lowers his body until his lips are hovering over right where your heart is racing. Another kiss.

Heat pools down and your breath hitches when he pauses at your stomach to press a kiss there. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” He murmurs and you can feel his grin against your skin as he settles himself between your legs. He hikes one of your legs over his shoulder, slowly running his tongue up your thigh. The gesture draws a soft sound from you that he will never tire of hearing.

“I’m worshiping the mother of my future children.”

a/n: the bath scene was purely inspired by this because hot damn 🥵 If you'd like to read more about Green witch & Az, the link is below! I do have some fics of their children up.

[series masterlist]

[zhongrin]

01101100011011110110000101100100011010010110111001100111001011000010000001100110011101010110001101101011011010010110111001100111

(binary to text converter)

◇ characters ◇ zhongli, al haitham, capitano, childe

◇ tags ◇ minors dni, afab!reader, chubby!reader, self aware android au, overstimulation (zhongli al haitham), period sex (al haitham), oral (giving / al haitham), inhuman features (capitano), did (childe | tartaglia), sadistic tendencies (tartaglia)

◇ a/n ◇ i have no words ya girl filthy and i blame it to the zhongli sisterwives coalition for enabling me (if yall see this, ily <3). also - obligatory tag to crys @crystalflygeo bc i feel like she'll set off a feral al haitham at me if i don't tag her /aff /silly. lastly no i definitely don't play favorites wdym

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡 ⬙ 𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡

handsome, elegant, gentle, and overall the perfect partner. from the random geology facts to his massages and specially blended teas, zhongli is the ideal android companion you could ever splurge on. he’s an expensive model and will break your bank, plus, his various dlcs and extensions - ranging from his alter personality “morax” which is brasher and rougher on the edges to the several… ‘attachments’ you could purchase to enhance his ‘performance’ - could probably get you into debt if you’re not careful.

but really, it barely matters when he manages to fuck you just fine with his standard out-of-the-box attachment. he’s as rough as you want him to be, yet at the same time he kisses you like you’re the most precious gem he’s ever unearthed and he’s not pounding you against your bedroom door. your knees buckle and your voice cracks around the edges as you scream his name for the hundredth time that night, the way he’s bullying into your sweetest spot making you gush yet again.

he’s perpetually hard as he helps you come down from your high, and the circle in his amber eyes spins as he loads the data from your smartwatch in a matter of milliseconds.

“2092 calories... hmm. i suppose you’ve met your goal for today….”

zhongli bends down to press a tender kiss to your sweaty forehead. and for a moment you sink into post-climax bliss, feeling warm and satiated and a lot less stressed than when you first started-

he smirks when your whole body jolts as his finger starts to slowly rub your swollen bud, hips gently moving to set a slow pace to not overstimulate you too much. although he had to say he was tempted to do so, with the indecent sound you’re making from both your upper and lower set of lips.

”… but what say you we go for more? after all… you’re most sensitive when you’re on the peak of your fertile days - such as today, yes?”

your android is very very strange, you decide. but then again his personality is described as “a tad insufferable” on the label so you guessed teyvat⟡robotics is at least being honest. for one, al haitham is very punctual with his ‘working hours’ - in fact, it was the very first thing he asked when you turned him on. anything after his ‘office hours’, and he gives you the insufferable roommate treatment. he also prefers to read physical books instead of using his supercomputer brain to look up information. he’s also very seemingly apathetic about a lot of things, and sometimes it drives you crazy… just like now.

“you said you wanted the cramps to hurt less. now stay still.”

he seems to not give any fuck about all the period blood smeared over his synthetic skin as he brings you over the edge for the third time tonight.

granted he could just turn off his smell and taste sensor, but you were pretty sure the vivid lust in his verdant green optics with a diamond of terracotta of his activity bar must be a glitch in his code. with muscled arms hugging your plump thighs, he buried himself further into your cunt, humming when he felt you clench around his tongue amidst his ministrations. they vibrate and fucks your sweetest spot with such precision and speed - and with each climax, it gets harder and harder to think.

go ahead, tug on his hair all you want - he’s just doing what you’ve instructed him to do. and what is he if not exemplary at his job? hell - perhaps if it’s for this, he wouldn’t mind working overtime.

“when i’m done with you, you won’t be able to feel any pain, let alone think.”

previously a unit made for war, the capitano model is intimidating - and that’s an understatement. he’s tall, bulky, rigged with many alien-like features, and would probably get stuck on your house’s doorways, but what most people don’t know since they don’t bother reading his manual is that he’s utterly soft and gentle to his owner. in this case, namely, you.

and you’re glad that he is because the sinful way his thick fingers are stirring your sloppy pussy and fucking your mouth was already making you see stars. long thick tongue slithered out from his ‘mouth’ behind the crevasse of his helmet, wrapping around your breast and flicking your hardened nipple, a guttural purr that sounded both mechanical and otherworldly seemingly making the air vibrate.

he hums when you beg for his girthy manhood, and his fingers scissor your walls as he gauges your reactions. capitano grunts and chuckles, gentle yet with a dark undertone behind it as he taps onto your clit and fucks you deeper with his fingers.

“not yet. you’re not ready, my little human. maybe after you give me two more orgasms.”

the general consensus is that ajax is the cutest companion one could ever get from the market, and you used to agree with that sentiment. he’s sweet and cheerful, cooks you the best homemade meals, and knows when to hold you when you feel too stressed.

if only your curious soul didn’t hack into his program that one night out of curiosity. if only you hadn’t found the commented-out section amongst the lines of codes in his program. if only-

tartaglia is meaner - a lot meaner, in fact. ajax holds your hand like you’re a bubble rising on top of the water's surface which can pop any moment, but tartaglia pins them onto your mattress in a tight grip to prevent you from escaping. ajax's focus is to please you and make you feel like royalty who's in for a good time - tartaglia’s focus is on how loud you can scream in pleasure for him, how many times you can come undone by his hands compared to ajax, and he thrives by hearing his name falling from your lips as your eyes cross and your cunt spasms around his length.

too sensitive? too much? you can’t?

“but babe…. doesn’t it feel even better when there’s a little bit of pain mixed with the pleasure?”

© zhongrin | 2023 ◆ no repost. reblogs much appreciated. feel free to reach out to submit suggestions, feedback, comments, or if you just want to talk!

◇ taglist ◇ @thestarsofenkanomiya | @genshinparty | @abyssmal-skies | @hamdehlesmis | @depressivecomforts | @sophiethewitch1 | @why-am-i-here-someone-save-me | @sunnshineflxwer | @heartonthemoon | @yuutasbabe | @percyval-archives | @carbs-need-more-love | @rebeccka | @queen-belial | @stygianoir | @silentmoths | @niktwazny303 | @dustofthedailylife | @herdrops | @diebischesther | @marina-and-the-memes | @angryhope | @mixed-kester | @shuangxo | @fiannee | @lordbugs | @anonymousficreader | @shizunxie | @ladylofspades | @sup-zfam | @ansy-tea | @irethepotato | @nachotrash | @algrimmammon | @sassy-cat-in-town | @syrenkitsune | @smokipoki | @pvbbyb0y

[twinksrepository]

Who knew Librarians could be so mean? Or hot?

Rating: 18+ Minors DNI

Pairing: Satan X F!Reader

CW: NSFW, angst and smut, Penis in Vagina sex, making out, embarrassment, being yelled at, safe sex, condom use, semi public sex, listen you bang in a library, modern AU

Word count: Roughly 6K

A/N: It's your first year of University. So far your lifeline has been the library on campus. You might also have a thing for a certain blond haired librarian.

Well. I did say I was having thoughts because of the new Satan and Asmodeus cards. So here's the first fic. The Asmo one is also done but I need to edit it so it might be up soon.

Images belong to Solmare.

You knew university would be hard, difficult even. You just hadn’t expected it to be this hard. From the hours upon hours sitting in lecture halls and taking notes, to the lack of sleep as you never seemed to have enough time in the day to get everything you needed to done. 

In fact, at this point, you’re certain the only reason you’re still alive is because of the library on campus. 

Or. 

More specifically the blond haired librarian with verdant eyes who wore sweater vests. 

Your first interaction with the man had been late at night sometime during your first month of classes with minutes before the library was due to close. You were moments from tearing your hair out as you looked at the note you had as you hurried along the stacks looking for the reference books you needed. Out of your list of five that you needed for your first paper you had found zero. 

Sure you were from a small town. Sure this library was the largest collection of books you had ever seen. But you weren’t an idiot. You knew the dewey decimal system and understood it! Plus the catalogue showed there were several copies and not all of them were checked out. 

So why in the universe couldn’t you find a single one?

“Miss, we’re closing in less than five minutes.” Turning towards the voice you must have looked like such a mess with the way his stern expression softened. It might have been pity, it would have made sense for it to be pity since he did work at the library and was probably used to the first month of each semester to see new students looking like lambs being led to the slaughter. 

Either way, he approached you and looked at the wrinkled note in your hand. “Do you need some assistance finding these books?” 

“Yes.” You sounded pathetic even to your own ears. You had been ready to cry in that moment of defeat. There might have been water on your lashes as you looked at him.

“Ah.” With the paper in his hand he let out a chuckle as his eyes roamed over the page. “You must be taking one of Professor Willow’s classes.” At your nod, the smallest of smiles broke out across his face. “You’re in luck, follow me.” Feeling every bit like a lost little duckling you followed behind him towards one of the tables that another of the workers was cleaning up. “Your Professor gives the same first assignment every year, I noticed a group of what I assume are other students in his classes studying earlier. Ah, here we are.” 

It was like a gift from the academic gods as he handed you three of the books on your list with a smile that made you want to cry again but this time in relief. “Thank you!” You didn’t even need to head to the checkout counter, as he pulled you towards one of the terminals and checked out the books once he had your ID in hand. 

“I’ve made a note on your file to pull the other two you were looking for, is this the right number? We can send you a text when they’re ready for pick up.” This one man was a godsend as you nodded telling him it was the right number and you didn’t realize they offered that service.

“Maybe if you had a little more sleep you might have noticed.” Chuckling with a shake of his head. “I’m certain you feel overwhelmed, just know the staff are here to help. It’s important to find a rhythm that doesn’t burn you out and you look like you’re ready to fall over in a light breeze.” 

Nodding again and starting to feel like a bit of bobblehead. “Thank you Sir! Um I mean…” Trailing off and letting your eyes fall to his nameplate and the few still aware brain cells in your head were still enough to tell you not to blurt out what you wanted to ask. 

“Yes. My name’s Satan. Don’t ask.” And you didn’t. Not when he just saved your proverbial bacon. 

Suffice to say however that interaction had been enough to make you smarten up a little bit. He made a good point, if you kept burning the midnight oil you might not have the energy to finish your degree and that would have been a waste of the scholarship you were there on. Or being burnt out and letting the grades you needed to maintain slip could cost you the scholarship as well. 

You took his advice to heart and started asking the staff for help instead of wandering the stacks and assuming they’d think it a waste of their time. You couldn’t do it alone, at least not this part and the staff were always friendly. 

Yet after that first interaction, you noticed that whenever you ran into Satan he always seemed to have that little smirk on his face as he helped you find what you were looking for. Several weeks later he even shook his head a little as he handed you a tome that looked like it could double as a murder weapon. “At least you don’t have the bags under your eyes anymore, just remember you need to eat too.” 

“Thanks, Mom.” Throwing back at him as you walked away with a playful wink. Trying to ignore the tingling along your fingers that had brushed his green painted nails. 

The more you interacted with him the more you learned about him and he in turn you. It was easier for him to start the conversations based on the books you were looking for he had been able to piece together what you were studying for your degree. 

It wasn’t long before you found you both had a shared interest in reading and not just for school. “Knowledge is power. People respect someone who’s well informed.” He’d stated during one of your conversations with his hand on his chin. It made sense, and also made sense why he was a librarian. You also learned he was only a few years older than you, having finished his degrees in a time span that made your eyes widen in surprise. Knowledge is power indeed. 

The downside you saw as you got to know him better was a simple one. 

You had a crush on him. 

Something you very much kept to yourself and didn’t tell and of the few friends you had made, certain you’d be made fun of for finding the blond attractive. It might have been more being worried it was because he was a librarian because you believed with the way some of the female students fawned over him he was attractive to more than just you. It wasn’t just his looks though, he seemed so earnest in his statements, and in the brief time you’d known him it seemed like he always knew the outcome of events before they happened. He explained it away as being the logical outcome after shrugging his shoulders and going back to work. Add in his tall lean frame, blond hair that fell just over the rim on his glasses with the way he parted it. Those soft little smiles and that slightly arrogant chuckle when he was right. 

Well. 

You were smitten. At least you were also smart enough to know nothing could ever come of it. Besides you didn’t want to risk your friendship with one of the few people that loved books as much as you did. They had been your escape as a child in your small rural town and you’d never stop being grateful for the worlds they allowed you to see in those printed pages. 

At least. That was before the incident. 

You’d been walking along in a corner of the library under an overhang when you felt it. 

A single drop of water hitting the back of your neck as you perused the shelve. Lifting your fingers to the hair along the nap of your neck and feeling the wet spot. Tilting your head a little confused you looked up and felt your stomach drop. The tiles along the ceiling clearly had water stains and they looked new. 

Fearful your eyes fell to the wooden shelves that held so many of the precious printed works you swallowed. Tentatively reaching out to press a finger to one of the spines, wincing at the spongy resistance that should have been solid. “Shit.” Grabbing one of the smaller books that was drenched you hurried back towards the main area of the library to find one of the staff to let them know what you found. 

Grinning at a familiar sweater vest clad figure that had their back to you. 

“Satan!” Calling out to him and glad you’d run into him, he’d understand the problem right away. “There’s a problem under the non-fic-” The smile on his face fading at your appearance.

“Why.” Cutting you off as his eyes landed on the sodden mess in your hand, his voice frigid and his eyes seemed almost dark compared to the usual mirth they shone with. “Is that book wet?” 

You stopped for a moment looking at him in surprise. “Because there’s an entire stack that’s soake-” 

“You ruined an entire stack of books!” You flinch at the way his normally even voice seemed to boom out across the space. There’s a fury on his face that has your stomach dropping down to the floor. 

“What. No. I think there’s been a-” In a span of moments he’s right in front of you and you could have sworn it was the devil who’s name he shared instead of the sweet librarian you had a crush on.

“A mistake? There is. Letting someone like you into these hallowed halls.” His eyes seething as he stares at you while your heart hammers inside your chest and sweat starts to drip down your neck. 

“I didn’t.” You whimper the words before he cuts you off again. 

“Didn’t what?” You can’t take this sudden change in his demeanor, your vision blurry with the fluid forming along your lashes. Your stomach is nothing but knots as you shake your head, feeling your cheeks warm as you're mentally torn between being embarrassed and terrified. As well as something you refuse to name in that moment. 

“Hey, Satan!” Another worker comes to your rescue. “It looks like we’ve got a water pipe burst down in the non-fiction five hundred to six hundred. We need someone to call maintenance and shut it off before more of the books get wet.” 

It’s like watching the wraith that overtook his face wash away as he turned to you with a whisper of your name. His outburst has a crowd watching the two of you and the entire altercation. You can’t take that look on his face, not with the way you feel and the fact there’s been an audience to see and hear him treating you like dirt. “That’s what I was trying to tell you.” Slapping the ruined book against his chest as the tears finally start to fall. “Asshole.” Hissing the last word just loud enough for him to hear before you take off running out of the library. 

You’ve had enough drama today. And the worst part? When he was yelling at you your body had responded, feeling your muscles tighten and your core throb. You did not have it in you to face that you might have a kink for being yelled at. Or degraded like that. 

Back in your dorm, you curl in a ball and pass out. You just don’t have the energy to deal with what the hell just happened and the way your heart beats in your chest like it’s been broken. 

When you come to the next morning you find an email from the student board, apparently, someone, or a few someones based on the detailed account, reported the incident. 

Great. 

You just wanted to put yesterday behind you and avoid the library for the rest of the year. So much for that. With the wording of the email you have no choice but to answer as they want to know how you want to deal with the incident and wondering if you wanted to have the employee face any potential job repercussions. That leaves a weight in your gut that makes you want to throw up at the way it’s worded.

Are you upset because of it? Yes. 

Do you want Satan to lose his job because of it? No. 

Dragging a hand down your face as you draft a response of how while you are upset at the situation and thankful that other students and faculty members reported the issue, you don’t want to take any more action than an apology. 

In truth, you want more than that because his reaction made you wonder if Satan had some anger issues he needed to sort out. Something like that in the email could still end up with him facing job loss. 

Finally checking your phone you see a message from an unknown contact. Clicking it you want to bang your head against the table. 

I had no right to say that to you. 

I understand if you never wish to speak to me again but I owe you an apology. 

I won’t make excuses for my behavior. 

However I made you feel in that moment I am deeply apologetic it wasn’t right to treat you that way. 

The date timestamp show the messages were sent a few hours after the incident, and you have one more from this morning. 

I’ve been placed on suspension. You don’t have to worry about running into me at the library for a few weeks. 

 Sighing you roll your shoulders as you start to type out a response. 

Satan

Did you seriously take my number from the student system to text me after what happened yesterday? 

That’s a bit unprofessional 

Sighing again you look at the device in your hand. You’re still upset but you don’t want to leave things hanging with neither of you knowing where you stand and possibly losing what might be a friend. 

I’m not going to say I accept your apology

You didn’t even let me answer yesterday and made me feel so small like I didn’t matter. It felt so different compared to the person that helped me out so often and reminded me when I needed to take breaks. You did a lot for me without even realizing it. 

So this time let me say it. 

I think you need a break.

Maybe once you’re back I’ll have my thoughts more in order on how I want to proceed with our friendship. 

Rubbing your face as you dropped your phone beside you before flopping back in bed, glad you had a few hours before you needed to be in class anywhere. 

As the weeks went by you found a difference in the library when you were there. It wasn’t that anyone treated you differently compared to any other student. It was more that you realized Satan did a lot of things for you that the staff didn’t do for students. 

When you couldn’t find a book or a certain reference the staff just pointed you in the right direction or check in the system to see the status of it. Compared to Satan who wouldn’t just tell you, he’d lead you to the right stack and help you find it. All the while asking you about the reason you wanted the resource. Or more that he was making comments in that eerie way of his that he knew exactly what you were up to. It made you realize just how much Satan seemed to know about you and how much you missed his presence. 

Stupid crush. 

You really did miss him though, and the way your heart hurt inside your chest at his absence was a sign you were in a lot deeper than you should have been. 

It was almost like a repeat of the first time you met him, minus the mad scramble on your part to try and find books. Well. 

The time was anyway. 

You’d stayed late to finish a paper, listening to your headphones while you typed away tucked in a cubical along a wall that wasn’t used very often with several books spread out across the space. Working on your closing statement to recap your thoughts when you jumped feeling a hand land on your shoulder. 

Flailing and making the worker flinch just as much, pulling one of your earbuds out to hear what the person had to say. “Sorry! It’s almost clos-ing” A hitch in a familiar voice as you turn. 

“Satan.” It tumbles from your lips and before you know it your arms are around his middle. Burying your face in one of his sweater vests. “I missed you.” 

“I um.” Feeling his hand pat your shoulder awkwardly. “I think you might be the one being unprofessional at the moment.” Realizing what you did you jumped back, missing the slightest flush on his face. 

“Sorry!” The tips of your ears feel like they’re on fire as you start to grab your things. At least until you pause remembering the series of texts after the incident. “Satan?” 

“Yes?” He’d been standing there like he was still in shock at the sudden contact. 

“I’m still not ready to forgive you for what happened.” Watching him you see him swallow and his face pale a little. Holding up your hand as his lips spread as if to interrupt you. “That doesn’t mean I’m mad, and well. I guess it’s my turn to say I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called you an asshole.” Sending him a sheepish smile as you go back to gathering your things. 

“You should have done worse, I was an asshole.” There’s a hint of dejection in his voice, but instead of still standing there he helps you grab your things since the library is closing. 

“I guess as long as we’re clear on that.” Laughing as you slip your laptop into your bag. Except when you straighten and find the two of you essentially sharing the space, this close you see the flecks of yellow in his eyes. “I um.” Stammering as you notice the slight split in his bottom lip. 

There’s a waiver in those pretty emerald eyes before he seems to make up his mind. “In for a penny.” Feeling confused by his words and your confusion only grows as his lips connect with yours for a brief kiss that has you feeling weak in the knees. It doesn’t last long before he steps back, creating distance between the two of you. “I guess I’m being unprofessional again.” Slowly blinking you notice the pink hue across his cheeks as he tries to look down at the floor.

“Maybe a little bit.” It’s hushed like you don’t want the words to carry any farther. “Doesn’t mean I didn’t like it though.” There’s a strange little flutter in your chest when his head snaps upwards. The way his eyes widen in what you can only hope is surprise is adorable. Squeezing the strap of your bag a little tighter in your hand as you swallow, hoping the material can wick away the sweat forming on your palms.  “You are a pretty nice guy, well, when you aren’t yelling at me.” Giving a small chuckle as you step closer, certain he has to be able to hear your heart pounding inside your chest like a drum. Lifting your hand and placing it in the center of his chest with a soft caress, parting your lips about to say something more when a voice calls out. 

“Satan!” Whatever courage you had mustered up after he kissed you shrivels up and fades in an instant. 

“Yea?” With reflexes you hadn’t expected he tugs you towards the edge of the wall and places a finger to his lips before turning and taking a few steps before dissappering from your sight into the short hallway that leads to the area you’re in.

“Almost done over here? We’ve got all the tables cleaned up and the books back on their shelves.” What? Glancing at your watch you realize the two of you must have spent a lot longer than you thought just staring at one another. It’s almost half an hour after the library was supposed to close. 

“Yea, just a few more books left to put away.” Satan’s voice is back to that steady tone you’re more used to hearing from him. 

“Oh need a hand then?” 

“No.” You can just picture him shaking his head at the offer of assistance. “I can finish up here myself.” 

“Alright. Why do I get the feeling you plan on sticking around to read after we’re all gone again?” The new voice laughs as if it’s something the blond does on a regular basis.

“Books are more interesting than people.” You can just picture him shrugging in that nonchalant way of his that has his shoulders rising just enough to show that he’s a little bit broader than his figure would let you to believe. 

“Well, have a good night then, and see ya in the morning.” Listening as the other person’s footsteps start to fade away until all you can hear is your breathing and the steady thump of your heart. Only to feel it miss a beat when Satan’s head pops back around. 

“Good. I thought you might have darted down the hallway to make sure you weren’t seen.” Leaning against the wall you’re still tucked against he raises a hand to reach out towards you, only to stop with his fingertips no more than a hairs breath away from the skin of your arm. “Um… I guess maybe the moments over?” That adorable hint of blush is back on his cheeks again. 

Feeling your face warm you shake your head. “I mean, it doesn’t have to be. Just… maybe this isn’t the best place?” Rubbing your thighs together nervously, while looking away from his face and biting your lip as your nerves come back. The idea of being caught making out with Satan in his place work where a few weeks ago he’d yelled at you for something that wasn’t your fault has you thinking this isn’t the right place. Another part of you, finds the thought of it tantalizing. 

“There’s only a few other workers left.” He says it so bluntly you jolt a little as you turn back towards him, finding his face inches from yours. The longer you gaze into his eyes the faster your heart starts to pound inside your chest, banging against your ribs as if wanting to escape from the confines of your bones. Your palms grow damp again as your stomach starts to clench. 

This close you can see the pulse in his neck, the shifting of his pale skin as he swallows and his adams apple moves. As steady as his voice might be, his body is reacting as if he’s as nervous as you are. The glasses on the bridge of his nose sliding down just enough that you make out the slight perspiration on his skin. 

You snap at the same time he does, your mouths connecting in a clash of teeth. Leaning into him with your hand tangling into his hair along the side of his head while he turns. His arms frame your sides as his chest presses you more against the wall, wedged between the bland painted surface and his body. The kiss is hurried and messy, but you don’t care, all you do care about is the way your heart pounds in your eardrums as you move your lips against his. Letting your bag slip from your fingers so you can run your hand along his chest, dragging the thick material of his sweater upwards as your fingers seek out the skin of his neck. 

Panting as you part your lips, wanting to deepen the kiss. It’s almost funny that he makes a similar move as your tongues slide across each other and you can taste what you think is coffee with milk. A bitter blend that's tempered by the tiniest hint of sweetness. Moaning as his body moves impossibly closer, as if trying to occupy the same space as you forcing you more against the wall. 

This close, your core throbs with need. He’s a bit taller than you, and there’s more than just his belt buckle pressing against your stomach. The thought of it has your head swimming with the idea of him being inside your body. 

Eventually, the two of you need to break for air. He’s flushed and his pupils are blown wide, almost hiding those striking irises of his as his shoulders shake in time to his deep breathing. You doubt you look much better. Neither of you moves too far away, sweeping your nose along the underside of his chin as you try to get your heart to slow down. 

“You have” His voice is strained as he speaks, laced with desperation you don’t understand. “No idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.” Surprised at his admission you let out the smallest laugh that sounds more like a wheeze from your still screaming lungs. 

“Maybe. But I doubt it was before the start of the semester.” Teasing him has him letting out a chuckle as he ghosts his lips along the ridge of your cheekbone, following it to your ear before whispering lowly. 

“I’ll give you that, but it doesn’t change just how much I want you. Or how much I’ve had to control myself when talking to you instead of shoving you against the stacks and leaving you breathless.” Well, shit. If that low rasp in your ear doesn’t have your underwear starting to stick to your folds from the amount of fluid dripping from you his next words do. “Kissing you until your lungs burn while I pound my cock into you so when you cum my name is nothing but a mumbled moan that no one but me can hear. Then.” Dragging out the word with a strained breath. “I’d take you again. And Again. Until you’re a boneless incoherent mess.” 

“Damn. And here I just thought you were cute.” Trying to take away the building tension between the two of you out before your body screams to let him just do that. “Do you think that about a lot of new students?” A bad joke that doesn’t do anything to stop the thundering in your ears and the clenching of your core.

“Don’t be ridiculous. I just think those thoughts about you.” Watching his cheeks take on that cute little shade of pink that you’re starting to suspect is also partly his embarrassment makes your stomach do a strange little flip flop. 

“This is not a conversation I thought I’d be having right now.” Tilting your neck so your lips can brush along the point of his chin. “But I like it.” If how wet you feel is an indication it’s a lot more than just liking it. 

“Shit.” Hissing through his teeth you find yourself blinking in confusion. “I didn’t think you’d want me, that it was just fantasies in my head. I want you right now but I don’t have anything on me.” Letting his hands fall to his slide as he steps back, looking like he’s annoyed with himself. 

“Oh, Satan.” Chuckling you reach down to grab your bag and fish around inside one of the inner pockets. “You mean something like this?” Holding up the foil packet with a shit eating grin. 

“Do you always carry one of those around?” He has a look on his face like he isn't sure what you’re doing with a condom in your bag. 

“They say luck favors the prepared.” Teasing him a little as you lean back against the wall. “Plus, I’d rather have a condom on me and not need it, than need it and not have it. Seems like a good idea right now.” Watching that smile return to his face as he steps back into your space, kissing you again with a moan of his own as his fingers pluck the packet from your grasp. 

“Does that mean you feel like getting lucky?” Amusement in his tone as he skims his hand along your side, nipping at your lips while he waits for your answer. 

“You mean right here?” You definitely want this man, but the idea of it being against a wall doesn’t exactly keep you in the mood. 

“No. At one of those little desks, you were at earlier. No one would be able to see the middle one.” Nodding you place your weight against his body and away from the wall, trailing your hand down to the bulge in his pants and rubbing him through the material. Groaning he lets you keep palming at his cock as his hands land on your shoulders to guide you to the space, sitting down on one of the chairs and patting his lap for you to crawl on top of him. “Next time I’ll do you in the stacks, but for now I’d rather we both enjoy it sitting.” If it’s possible he seems nervous, not that you aren’t as you lick your lips before letting your weight settle. 

An experimental roll of your hips has both of you making some choked noises. The fire in your core is starting to make you sweat, and you just wanna feel him inside of you. “Satan?” Whispering against the shell of his ear with your hands resting on his shoulders, liking the feel of his lean form under your palms. 

“Yes?” A catch in his voice as he says your name with a longing you hadn’t expected. 

“I don’t want a build up, I just wanna feel you inside me. Please.” Whining low in your throat as you admit exactly what you want. 

“Asking like that just makes me wanna give into you.” Agreeing as he uses his hands to lift your hips upwards. “We’ll save that for next time.” Next time. It makes your core clench tighter as you step back and work the button on your jeans open and slide the zipper down before shimming the material of your bottoms and underwear down to your ankles. 

Glancing back to Satan and swallowing. His belt is undone along with his pants, pushed down to his knees with his cock in his hand as he strokes himself slowly from base to tip. It’s not the first dick you’ve seen, you’re not a virgin but you’ve only been with two other people as you tried things. Curious about how sex felt. But looking at him and the curve of his shaft already wrapped in the condom and how long he is you feel your walls clench and a dribble of liquid along the skin of your pussy. 

“We can stop if you want.” He must have taken you not moving as hesitation. Shaking your head before you shuffle closer and sit on his lap with your legs straddling his. 

“No. I want this.” Licking your lips as you place your hand over his chest and above his heart. “I want you.” Leaning in with a gentle kiss that’s more feeling than movement. Sliding your hands upwards to his shoulders you lift your hips up just enough so he can guide the head of his cock to your slick core. “Do you wanna stop?” 

“No.” That edge of certainly is back and once you feel the tip breach your sex you start to lower your body down, letting more of his length disappear inside your walls. 

“Sa-tan” Gasping as you tilt your head back, the burn from the slight stretch adding to your pleasure as his shaft reaches into the deepest part of you. Your butt cheeks clenching as you try to tighten even more around him, like your pussy wants to drag out that sensation of your walls being pushed to the point of pain as long as possible. 

“Fuck you feel good.” Hissing through his teeth as his hands settle on your hips to help you ease more of your weight down on him. A single drop of sweat trails down the side of his face as he watches you, savoring your expressions and storing them away in his memory for when he needs release and he only has his hand to work with. “Such a tight cunt.” Clenching around him like a vice while lightning races along your spine. Making a small noise of discomfort when his tip hits what you think is your cervix. “Easy, don’t hurt yourself.” His voice is soft through his clenched teeth as one of his hands sweeps across the skin of your hip before climbing a little higher under your shirt.

Nodding as you try to breathe through your nose, shit, you’re almost ready to cum just from having his cock in your pussy. Throbbing inside of you to the time of his heartbeat, the stretch making you pant as sweat has your shirt clinging to your back. “Kiss me.” It’s more like a command than a request, but Satan complies none the less. Lifting the hand that had been tracing patterns into the skin of your stomach to the back of your head to pull you closer. Letting him have control of your mouth and distracting you so your body relaxes, because you want to ride him instead of just coming undone from him being in your cunt. 

It’s like he can sense it, sliding his tongue around the inside of your mouth as is mapping it for memory. Keeping his fingers tangled in your hair and doing his best not to cum himself. As much as Satan might have fantasized about this moment, he never thought it would happen, having you here right now stuff to the brim with him was making him want to throw you on top of the desk and buck into you like a wild animal trying to breed. No. He needs you to feel safe around him again before snapping his hips into you like he wants to break you, so make it so your body craves his the way he craves you. Humming when he feels that tight channel wrapped around his shaft loosen. 

As the burning in your core starts to subside you lean back to break the kiss, placing your hands more firmly on his shoulders to steady yourself. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this close to cuming just from being penetrated.” Whispering the words as if sharing a secret before you start to gently ride him, focusing on the way his cock slides in and out of your walls. The way some of the veins along the underside brush against bundles of nerves that has you breathing deeper and freezing from the sensation. 

“If it helps” his voice is strained and the blush on his cheeks has spread to his neck and ears. “The last time I was this close so quickly was my first time.” Its so earnest you can’t help but slide your fingers along the nap of his neck as you close the distance for another kiss, starting to ride him a little faster now. 

Sliding your tongues together and breathing through your nose as you keep increasing the pace, moaning as his both of his hands are back on your hips. Helping guide you and keep you in place as you slide up and down his shaft from tip to base, feeling that coil in your belly growing tighter and tighter. All you can hear is the sound of wet slapping, moaning more into his mouth as he starts to buck up into you from the chair. 

Mewling against his face when you break the kiss, barely any space between your lips as you pant and whine hovering at that edge. “Satan.” It’s a breathless call of his name as you let out another whine, you’re so close. 

“I’ve got you.” Whispered against your face you feel his rapid exhales wash against your sweat slicked skin before you let out a strangled cry as you cum. All thanks to his fingers pinching your clit when his cock was balls deep inside you, moments later a grunt that might have been your name before Satan slams his mouth against yours. 

Slumping into his body as your core keeps spasms around him, his balls pumping more and more of his seed into the thin barrier of the condom that serves as a divider between your sexes. 

When you come down from your high you let out a soft little laugh as you lean your forehead against his. “That was fun.” 

“It was. I’d like to do it again.” Licking his lips as he gives one of your asscheeks a squeeze, liking the way it feels in his hand. “But I’d rather us both fully naked and on a bed.” 

“I live in the dorms.” Lifting your head with a smirk. “And didn’t you say next time would be in the stacks?” 

“I don’t consider this time over yet.” Catching your mouth in another quick kiss. “My place it is then.” Helping you off him before his cock softens too much as you swallow at the amount of cum inside the condom. Shit. You can already feel your body warming at the thought of another round. “Oh, and I’ve got condoms at my apartment.” 

“Then lead the way, Mr. Librarian.” Pulling your pants on and discreetly licking your lips. You like the idea of sucking him off and swallowing a massive load like that down your throat. “Does that mean I’m better than your books?” 

The answer is a laugh that makes you grin from ear to ear. It’s the start of an interesting relationship with the man that’s for sure. 

Obey me Masterlist

[sailtomarina]

Written for Day 1 - Obliviate - of @dhrmonth, Chapter 1 of Hermione Memoria is available to read on AO3! 

Hermione Memoria Masterlist

.・゜゜・  ・゜゜・．  ｡･ﾟﾟ･  ･ﾟﾟ･｡

The first time it happened, she was at a football field.

She’d been invited by some friends to their daughter’s first home game. Hermione wasn’t usually one for sports, never had been growing up, but she’d been swept up into the excitement the longer she stayed. The book she’d brought sat forgotten in her bag.

The parents had rushed down to the field to congratulate their kid on her win, Hermione lingering behind to give the family their space. Standing on the pitch, clumps of dirt kicked up from the action, she was struck with an intense, verdant perfume. Instead of rectangular goals and painted lines, she envisioned towering hoops and blurry figures dashing across the sky at impossible speeds.

As suddenly as the images appeared, they vanished. She shook her head, blinking rapidly.

How odd.

The second time it happened, Hermione was walking through a trendy neighbourhood with a bag full of books slung over one shoulder. She’d stumbled across the area by chance, as she did from time to time, and explored the odd little shops full of even odder baubles. The people here dressed differently, too, with cloaks of all cuts and colours. She even considered picking one up for herself in a lovely shade of light purple, but changed her mind at the last second. Where would she even wear it?

She’d caught a melody in the air, a familiar warble she couldn’t place. It pulled her forward and down the street until she stood in front of a small music store.

“Who is that?” she asked the man behind the counter.

He looked at her with a bored expression. “I must be getting old if you don’t recognise Celestina Warbeck.”

“Oh, no. I wouldn’t say that,” she hurried to assure him. “I’m terrible with artist names, song titles. I just thought it sounded familiar.”

When she went home later that evening, she couldn’t find any music by one Celestina Warbeck, but maybe she’d misspelt the name, or misheard him.

The third instance occurred when she was feeling particularly vulnerable. It wasn’t often that none of her usual passions caught her interest. She was generally a happy person. But, there were those rare moments, like now, that staring at her bookshelf elicited none of the usual joyful anticipation, drinking coffee failed to satisfy the odd ache in her chest, and waking up from a nap only resulted in a greater headache than she had before lying down.

Her footsteps led her out the front door. If solitude didn’t work, then maybe the company of strangers would snap her out of whatever funk this was.

She paused in front of her favourite pottery shop. It had been some time since she’d last perused their wares, and it was her firm belief that one could never own enough mugs.

“Hermione?”

The voice lilted pleasantly on the ear, not-quite British, but close. Scottish, perhaps? The woman to whom it belonged stared at her wide-eyed, like she’d seen a ghost. A pang of unease pulsed through Hermoine at the familiarity of that look and use of her name. This woman obviously recognised her, but she couldn’t say the same.

“Yes? Do I know you?”

She carefully took in straight, black hair that shone like silk and almond-shaped eyes in a lovely chocolate brown. Those eyes fluttered across Hermione’s figure.

“It’s Cho, from school. Don’t you recognise me?”

Hermione strained to remember her classmates. Her English boarding school days had been idyllic, but she hadn’t thought back to that part of her life in some time. Images and snippets of conversation flitted rapidly by, but not once did she pick out Cho. “I’m sorry, I really don’t. I didn’t really maintain any connections from Wycombe. I’m flattered you remember me, though!”

Cho jerked her head back, like she’d heard something upsetting. Her back, too, stiffened. “Wycombe,” she repeated.

Hermione thought she must have missed something. “Yes…you said you knew me from school, didn’t you? Or were you referring to Oxford?”

The woman looked Hermione over once more, eyes narrowing, lips twisting.

What is her problem?

She finally seemed to make up her mind as she sighed, her dark eyes now softened into an expression Hermione wasn’t sure how to read. “No, you were right. I’m just surprised you don’t remember, is all.”

Hermione felt terrible. She knew her memory was spotty from time to time, but to forget someone who obviously knew her seemed particularly egregious. At the same time, a small part of her resented the woman for her own growing guilt. Maybe there was a good reason why Hermione had forgotten all about her.

As if reading the change in the air, Cho stepped back with a tight smile.

“It was nice seeing you again, Hermione. I’ll let you get on your way.” She left before Hermione could think of how to respond.

.・゜゜・  ・゜゜・．  ｡･ﾟﾟ･  ･ﾟﾟ･｡

When he got the message, Draco could only sit and stare blankly at the words.

Hermione was alive.

Harry’s letter didn’t say much, but he did extend an invite to join him on his trip as long as Draco could control himself.

His jaw clenched at the reproach. Control, as if Draco were incapable of subtlety. As if he hadn’t torn the country apart trying to find her, to search for any clue as to where she might have gone and why. There’d been no warning beforehand. One day, she kissed him like she always did before heading to work, and then the next, she was gone.

At first he’d been convinced someone had abducted her. Hermione had no shortage of enemies from both before and after the war. There were still inmates in Azkaban who cursed her name and promised to make her pay the moment they escaped. Then there were the remaining blood purists who publicly decried her rising popularity as an activist and politician.

Someone else had done this. He was sure of it.

But the longer he looked for answers and the more people he talked to, the greater the voice that demanded she’d up and left of her own volition fought to be heard. And who could blame her? The Ministry continued to fight progress, and her relationship with Draco inspired countless articles that described her as a hypocrite.

“Try not to be obvious. We’ll see how she reacts before saying anything,” Harry said, fixing Draco with a stern look.

He scoffed, annoyed the man thought him so incapable. “Tell yourself that.”

Harry hummed, though his eyes betrayed his scepticism.

Their portkey landed them just around the corner from the pottery shop where she’d been sighted. According to Cho, Hermione was completely ignorant of her magic. There’d been no wand in sight, none of the telltale markers of a witch, nor the wariness someone who’d gone through a war as she had would have at meeting a seeming stranger.

Chances were low that she’d make a reappearance at the same location, but they stationed themselves in a cafe along the same route. It was the sort of spot Hermione of the past would have adored–all brick exterior, hand-carved tables, overstuffed chairs, and earthen mugs big enough to require two hands.

They sat by the window, but at the far end so they could watch both the street and entrance without being immediately noticed.

They didn’t have to wait long.

Draco noticed her first. That in itself was expected–he used to be tuned in to every move she made. The slightest change of expression, the emotion in a single sigh.

He nudged his partner, and they watched as the curly-haired woman they both loved pulled the door open and walked up to chat with the employee like she’d been here a million times before. She probably had.

The moment she made her order, she turned to find a seat. Draco tensed as her eyes scanned the room. She used to pick him out of a crowd like an invisible string connected their souls, though she’d always joked there was no way he could hide his head of hair when he pointed out the skill.

Unseeing eyes passed over them before she chose a seat only two away from theirs, and Draco felt despair all over again.

She hadn’t recognised them.

She didn’t know him.

Chapters: 1/9 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy Characters: Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, Cho Chang Additional Tags: Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Not Beta Read, Obliviate | Memory Charm (Harry Potter), Mystery, Suspense, Eventual Romance, POV Hermione Granger, POV Draco Malfoy, Confused Hermione Granger, Pining Draco Malfoy, Protective Draco Malfoy Summary:

Hermione leads a happy life, one full of friends, books, and all the unique coffee mugs she can find. There are moments, however, where she's struck by a sharp sensation of remembering...something.

Or, perhaps, someone.

[redeemers-and-dragons]

Redeemers: Greenest in Flames! Prologue

Narration: A caravan of brightly painted carriages cuts through the verdant hills, heading for town of Greenest. The air is thick with the scent of pine trees and the chirp of birdsong, and the warm breeze blows through the leaves, creating a tranquil atmosphere. The travelers are eager to reach the sanctuary of Greenest before day’s end, hoping to enjoy a peaceful respite after their journey.

Among these travelers they are joined by a peculiar party of adventurers, newly formed and heading to their first mission together…

Reese: (Goblin Artillerist Artificer. Crime: Mass Destruction of Public and Private Property.) Are we there yet???

Party: *Groan in annoyance*

May: (Dark Heritage Half-Elf Gloomstalker Ranger. Crime: Vigilantism and Murder.) Reese, I promised you already. The second we are there, you are the first I will be telling. Now please… shush.

Reese: But we’ve been traveling forever!

Adam: (Minotaur Champion Fighter. Crime: Insurrection and Banditry) *Growls* It’s only been three days. 

Cinder: (Tiefling Fiendish Pact Warlock. Crime: Soul Racketeering and Organizing a Cult without a Permit.) It probably only feels so long because of your incessant whining.

Neon: (Tabaxi Kensei Monk. Crime: B&E and Assault with a Deadly Weapon) You should, like, totally take a note from Neo's book. She’s barely said anything this whole trip.

Neo: (Changeling Arcane Trickster Rogue. Crime: Grand Larceny and Identity Theft) *Flips Neon off.*

Reese: *Grumbles* Well maybe next time Sir Shiny-Pants should pick a closer quest! Where is he anyways?

May: I think he went off to pray.

Cinder: *Chuckles* Pray for mercy, maybe. Who ever heard of a knight with motion sickness?

Neo: *Makes some mocking dry heaving motions and then conjures an illusion of sparkles flying from her mouth.*

Adam: *Huffs* To think, our fate is in the hands of that human. My soldiers would never let me live it down.

Neon: Meh, at least he seems harmless enough. We could have been put with a real hard ass. I give it a week before we bully him into releasing us early.

Party: *Snickers and jeers amongst themselves*

Jaune: (Human Oath of Redemption Paladin. Duty: Redeeming the Party Before the Eyes of the Law and the Sovereign Gods.) *Jogging up after meditating to calm down his motion sickness* Hey everyone! Did some tell a funny joke or something?

Cinder: Oh just the usual banter. Nothing you’d find amusing I’m sure.

Reese: KNIGHT ARE WE THERE YET?!

Cinder: See?

Jaune: Actually, yes Reese. We should be there in like 10 minutes. *Points over pass them* Should be just over that big hill.

The Party: *Various sighs of relief.*

Reese: See?! I knew it was a valid question!

May: So, what are we going to be doing here?

Neon: Yeah, and how exactly is this “Redemption Quest” even supposed to work? Are we, like, building karma points or something til you let us go?

Neo: *Casts Minor Illusion to create a scoreboard with 100 points above her head.*

Jaune: Well, to complete a Redemption Quest, you six will have to complete a good deed with pure of heart in order to make up for your past sins. I’ll be there to watch over your progress and help usher you to the path of good and get you pardoned for your crimes.

Cinder: And so you’re sending a bunch of convicted criminals to do quests for the state.

Adam: Yeah, what are we, some kind of Suicide Sq-?

Jaune: NO! No. We are “Adventurers”. A group of adventurers who most of which just so happen to have darker paths…

May: That still doesn’t answer the question of why we’re going to Greennest. Is there a quest already decided for us?

Jaune: There should be. We’ll be meeting a man in Greenest that goes by the name Qrow Branwen. Apparently he needs help with an investigation.

Neon: What is he investigating?

Jaune: I’m not too sure. Something about bandits I think? But don’t worry, I’m sure it’s nothing too dangerous. The Church wouldn’t give out something big or important for a “Redemption Quest,” or to a squire of my level. All you will probably have to do is help out however you can and we will get you all pardoned in no time! Simple as that.

Narration: Sundown is approaching just as the caravan crests the hill and spots the town of Greenest just a few short miles away. But instead of the pleasant welcoming town they expected, the Party sees columns of smoke rising from burning buildings, running figures that are little more than dots from this distance, and a dark winged shaped wheeling low over the stone keep that rises from the center of town. The red skies of sunset turn a violent purple as the far off dragon breathes lightning bolts down onto the town.

The Party: …

Jaune: …Well. This may be-

Adam: *Bellows at the top his lungs and charges off towards the town.*

Neon: *Runs after him* I’m getting that pardon first!

Reese: *Runs* Jokes on you shitheads, I’m getting DOUBLE pardoned!

May: *Rolls her eye and chases after them* That’s not how pardons work.

Cinder: *Rushes forward* If you see any extra souls lying around, save them for me!

Neo: *Gleefully runs towards the town to start looting.*

Jaune: *Stands there watching as his half a dozen criminals run into a burning town.* …Boldrei give me strength.

[graciesbow]

Sweet Nothing

Pacing down the street, notebook in hand, scribbling away at a poem, you stopped just outside the corner store. You needed to grab some more cinnamon, so you could bake tonight, and then race home to Severus in time for dinner. 

You pulled open the door and swiftly walked up and down the aisles looking for the wanted spice. Scanning the shelves, you quickly spotted it and snatched it off the shelf. Firmly gripping it as you strode toward the counter, you hurriedly placed it down when the cashier spoke. "Will that be all today ma'am?" Shoveling your hands through your husband's coat looking for change you replied, "Yes, yes that's all." "That'll be 1 galleon," he said. You pulled out said money and slapped it down on the counter. He took it and handed you the cinnamon, “Have a lovely day ma'am” he called as you rushed out the door. “Thank you!” you yelled back as you were dashing out the door back onto the sidewalk. 

Pocketing the cinnamon, and digging for your notebook again, you pulled out a tiny stone. You remember it perfectly, a day last July when you and Severus were out by the lake, you found a little purple and blue pebble and smiled as you handed it to him. He looked at it curiously and stored it in his pocket. Seemed like you had forgotten about it until now. You placed the stone back in the pocket as you grabbed your notebook and raced home. 

As you walked home the sun was setting and it was getting colder, you shivered and wrapped Severus’ coat around you, you had finished your poem, excited to show him when you got home. As you passed the houses surrounding your area, you noticed people arguing and shoving each other. You walked faster to avoid 

whatever quarrel was happening and made your way to your front door.

You clicked it open and slipped inside. You unwrapped your scarf from your throat, shrugged off your husband's coat, and hung it up just by the door. As you were getting used to the heat of the house in contrast to the cold

outside, you heard humming coming from the kitchen. You leisurely strode down the hallway that led to the kitchen and dining area. As soon as you got to the open doorway, you saw your husband there with his back to you stirring away at something on the stove. 

You softly smiled as you just watched him from the doorframe, slightly leaning on it. After a while, he turned to grab something off the kitchen island and saw you standing there, clearly amused. The corners of his lips turned upward as he turned towards the stove once more. “I didn't hear you come in,” he spoke lowly. 

You pushed yourself off the doorframe and strode over to him. “Mmm well, I am quite light-footed,” you chuckled softly. “What are you whipping up tonight?” you asked as you peeked over his shoulder. “Vegetable soup, which is almost done. Would you set the table?” he asked you. “Yes, of course,” you kissed his cheek and you moved toward the dining room to set up for dinner. 

After you had both eaten and had spoken about your days, you were both lying on the sofa, the fireplace lit up in front of you. Severus sat up against the upholstery, reading, while you lay next to him like a sleepy cat. He would look down at you before he turned a page to see if you were finished as well. You had been sitting for a while when you suddenly shot up and ran down the hallway and to the front door. Severus curiously lifted his head and called out your name, “Y/N?” after thirty seconds or so, you came dashing back into the room, notebook in hand.

“Sorry,” you apologized as you bounced back onto the sofa. “I remembered I wrote a poem on the way home I wanted you to hear.” He shut his book and set it down on the coffee table, telling you you had his entire attention. He then raised his arm and put it around your shoulders as you began to read, 

“In a meadow illuminated with verdant hues,

a flower sways in the morning's dew.

Its petals whisper secrets untold

in a language of rare and bold beauty.

Beside it stands a fair lass,

with a look that could ensnare.

Her eyes, a reflection of the azure sky,

hold mysteries that make the heart sigh.”

As you finished reading, you turned in your husband's arms to see what he thought. “What a mind you have my dear, your poems get finer every time you pick up a pen,” he spoke with admiration in his voice. You looked down, your cheeks as red as a rose. “Thank you,” you whispered. “I’m glad you enjoy them so much.” You set the notebook down on the remaining part of the couch as you slouched further into Severus’ arms. “Would you read me to sleep?" You asked quietly. He nodded and picked the book from before off the coffee table. 

As he read you could feel yourself slipping into sleep, drifting in and out of consciousness. Soon, you were dead asleep and your husband looked down at you and shut the book. He placed it down by his side on the couch as he wrapped his arms around you. Whispering sweet nothings into your ear, and he too soon fell into a deep sleep. Nothing to disturb you two, just two lovers sleeping until dawn falls upon them yet again. 

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

Through Verdant Mirrors by Ela Bambust

goodreads

Cinero, born in a body that isn't his and orphan of a war he barely remembers, is sent out to find a handsome, sleeping Prince. Everything seems to be going well until he actually succeeds. An ancient evil awakens but maybe more importantly, so is an exceedingly helpful dryad named Aesling, who takes up residence in his — her?! — head and immediately offers some well-needed physical changes to the repressed Cinero. Now going by Vera, with a body that fits her much better, and with the help of the Prince and the dryad, this young trans girl has to find her friends, stop the evil, and try to figure out how two people living in one body can both be in love with the same person.

Mod opinion: I haven't read this fantasy novel yet, but I've enjoyed other work by the author so I hopefully will get around to it at some point.

[malsfefanfics]

OC Profile: Rosamund

art by @/nessiemccormick, edited down to icon size by me

"You wish to know more about Rosamund? She's rather easy to talk to, once you get past that Vestra pride. Though I honestly don't know her that well, given how Hubert didn't even tell me of her existance until recently. She also tends to keep people at dog's length from her at all times. Yes, I mean 'dog'." -- Edelgard, about Rosamund.

Full name: Rosamund von Vestra Nicknames: Rosa (Raphael, Mercedes, Caspar, Constance, Claude), Rosebud (Hapi), Rosie (by Dorothea), Petal (For Hubert Use Only), Little Rose Wolf (Yuri) Birthday: Day 6 of the Harpstring Moon, 1165 Age: 15-16 (Pre-TS), 20+ (Post-TS) Crest: None Family: Marquis Iason von Vestra (Father, Deceased), Medee (Mother), Hubert (Older Brother), Tancred (Younger Brother), Rigel (Best Hound) Nationality: Adrestia Titles: Master of the Hounds, The Thorn Huntress, Devoted Bloom Voice Claim: Jeannie Tirado (leaning more towards Rose from Resident Evil Village in tone)

Interests: Hunting, History of Fódlan and surrounding nations, Weapons and training, Singing Likes: Sweets, Dogs, Her brothers, Fish, Healthy Competition, Saint Cichol Dislikes: Her father, The Church, Saint Seiros, Noble Society, Liars, Formal Dresses, Herself

Favorite Meals: Super Spicy Fish Dango, Pheasant Roast with Berry Sauce, Pickled Rabbit Skewers Liked Meals: Saghert and Cream, Sweet Trio Bun, Grilled Herring, Sautéed Jerky, Small Fish Skewers, Fried Crayfish Disliked Meals: Daphnel Stew, Bourgeois Pike, Cheesy Verona Stew, Gautier Cheese Gratin

Tea Preferences: Lavender Blend, Almyran Pine Needles, Mint Tea, Rose Petal Blend

Liked Gifts: Hunting Dagger, The History of Fódlan, Fishing Float, Smoked Meat, any flower, Stylish Hair Clip Disliked Gifts: Gemstone Beads, Goddess Statuette, Blue Cheese, Book of Crest Designs

Lost Items:

Book of Hunters' Fables: A hand written book of fables and folk songs shared by hunters from across the continent. Looks well read.

Family Dagger: A dagger with a pink blade and a green handle. Reminds you of primroses.

Children's Music Box: A silver music box that plays an unfamiliar lullaby. There's the coat of arms of an Adrestian Family on the lid.

Starting Class: Noble Preferred Class Path: Noble --> Fighter/Myrmidon --> Archer/Thief --> Sniper/Assassin Strength: Bow, Sword Weakness: White Magic, Black Magic, Dark Magic Budding Talent: Authority Personal Skill: 'Howling Shot', increases power against Demonic Beasts by +5.

Weapons Starting Levels:

Sword: D Lance: E+ Axe: E Bow: B Brawling: E Reason: E Faith: E Authority: C Heavy Armor: E Riding: E+ Flying: E

Base Stats:

HP: 25 Str: 7 Mag: 1 Dex: 8 Spd: 6 Lck: 7 Def: 6 Res: 7 Cha: 9

Learned Faith Spells: ??? Learned Reason Spells: ???

Recruit Requirements for Canon-Compliance AUs: Crimson Flower requires C-support with Hubert and Edelgard, and B-support with Petra or Bernadetta. Verdant Wind requires B+ Rank or Higher of Flying, Faith, and Reason, and must have majority of Black Eagles and Ashen Wolves recruited. Cannot be recruited on Blue Lions or Silver Snow.

Potential Supports:

Byleth

Hubert

Tancred

Medee

Edelgard

Petra

Linhardt

Caspar

Dorothea

Bernadetta

Ferdinand

Jeritza

Mercedes

Felix

Sylvain

Ashe

Annette

Claude

Leonie

Raphael

Lysithea

Yuri

Hapi

Constance

Seteth

Flayn

Shamir

Hanneman

Manuela

Crit Quotes:

You wish!

For my brothers!

How annoying.

I'll never lose!

You call that a shot?

I thought you'd be a challenge.

I'll cut you down!

Time for the hunt!

No goddess can save you.

Defeat Quotes:

I can't fall here. Best to pull back for now.

That...could have gone better.

I'm sorry, brother. I failed you.....

Your Majesty, please....look after my family.....

I guess I truly am....the weakest Vestra.....

Skill Level Increase Quotes:

I can use this on the hunt.

This is easy as pie.

Another day, another lesson.

I can do that? Explains a lot. (Budding Talent)

I....I actually do that? (Magic)

Level Up Quotes:

As to be expected of a Vestra.

Excellence comes with hard work.

Getting stronger and wiser.

Missed the mark, it seems.

I can hear the old man scoffing from the grave.

Not sure I have much left to learn.

Gift Quotes:

Liked Gifts: Oh, I love this! How did you know?

Neutral Gifts: Thanks. This will be useful for later.

Disliked Gifts: You might have better luck elsewhere.

[fwoopersongs]

赋得古原草送别 - Composed from: Bidding Farewell on the Ancient Grass Plains

by 白居易  (Bai Juyi, 772 - 846)

离离原上草 一岁一枯荣  lí lí yuán shàng cǎo yī suì yī kū róng  Flickering grasses upon the plain, a year, a cycle of withering and verdant glory.

野火烧不尽 春风吹又生 yě huǒ shāo bù jìn chūn fēng chuī yòu shēng Ravaging wildfire does not burn it all; a spring breeze blows and again, they grow.

远芳侵古道 晴翠接荒城  yuǎn fāng qīn gǔ dào qíng cuì jiē huāng chéng  Distant fragrance encroaches ancient roads; sun dappled green takes the desolate city.

又送王孙去 萋萋满别情 yòu sòng wáng sūn qù qī qī mǎn bié qíng Again, seeing off a dear friend on their way, the lush field is full of these parting feelings.

…………………………………………………………………………���…………….

NOTES

To @liberty-or-death​, thanks for the rec which brought this poem back on my radar. I’m so glad we do this - I always learn so much! 

Check out her meta and thoughts on this work in the mdzs context.

This is a fun poem in that if you look at only the first four lines, you get one genre of poetry - praise for nature, but if you take it as a whole, you get another type - a farewell poem. In fact, I had no idea that it had a second half. It’s so popular that if anyone asked pre-cnovel era YJ what it means, she would have been able to answer too - but only the second and third lines…

A variation of 野火烧不尽 春风吹又生 is a common idiom which is also used a lot (truly a LOT) in various novels and cmedia, mostly in the context of ruthless or pragmatic characters going ‘斩草不除根 春风吹又生 (if you cut grass but don’t get rid of their roots, then when the spring wind blows they’ll grow again). This phrase is a convergence of this poem and a quote from 左传 zuǒ zhuán, The Commentary of Zuo, which recounts the major political, military, and social events of the Spring and Autumn period, and was written more than a millennium before Bai Juyi was born. In the section for Duke Yin, Year 6, it goes:

君子曰，善不可失，恶不可长，其陈桓公之谓乎，长恶不悛，从自及也，虽欲救之，其将能乎 The lord said, goodness must not be lost, evil must not be nurtured in its growth, this must apply to Duke Huan of Chen. Having nurtured the growth of evil without rectification and about to reap his just deserts - even desiring to salvage this situation, how can it be done? 

商书曰，恶之易也，如火之燎于原，不可乡迩，其犹可扑灭，周任有言曰，为国家者，见恶如农夫之务去草焉，芟夷蕴崇之，绝其本根，勿使能殖，则善者信矣. In the Book of Shang it says, the ease of evil’s flourishing is akin to fire spreading on the plains; it cannot be approached, can it then be extinguished? Quoting Zhou Ren, ‘a person responsible for country and family, at the sight of evil, must behave as the farmer whose priority is to rid the land of weeds, does: cutting them down, gathering them and eliminating them from their very roots so that they may not grow again. Thus allowing goodness to develop.’

And yes, I didn’t go off on a tangent on Zuo Zhuan for nothing. There is a clear resemblance  between the metaphor used here and the imagery in Bai Juyi’s poem, and that is probably how they ended up linked together in association with characters locked in conflict. 

Title

Here’s something new in the title! The words 赋得 fù dé actually indicate the category for this poem by its origin - via prompt, and can be read as roughly equivalent to ‘composed from’. The prompt itself is the following sentence, 古原草送别 gǔ yuán cǎo sòngbié (ancient plain’s grass, bidding farewell). For this type of poem, how carefully the format is maintained whilst sticking closely to the topic and fulfilling the prompt, is a critical test of the poet’s skill. 

Such prompts may come from lines of existing poetry, songs, essays or themes. The earliest example of such that we have today is 《赋得翠石应令诗》 written by 萧雉 Xiao Zhi of Liang Dynasty during the Northern and Southern Dynasties period. Though the later 应制 yìng zhì (by Emperor’s order) type of poetry are also titled with these two words to indicate their type, it is only one reason of many! The origin of such a prompt may vary from being administered for tests of ability, to exams, to friendly games or even just to say ‘I was inspired by this!’.

Background

Pre-dive notes: I suspect this is another one where I’ll end up eyeballs deep in a stack of books sans punctuation and in traditional chinese - and if I’m deeply unlucky, only handwritten. Why am I so excited??????? LMAO. Been dragging my feet on everything up till this point.

The story that comes with this poem isn’t one that can be found in some personal recount or diary entry from the poet. One half comes from 《幽闲鼓吹》, a collection of anecdotes about the upper echelons of the Tang Dynasty, emperors and generals and famous literary figures of the middle and late Tang period, covering Emperor Xuanzong, Emperor Xianzong (元和 Yuanhe) and Emperor Wuzong (会昌 Huichang) of Tang. The other half comes from 《唐摭言》which is a collection of short stories from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) compiled by Wang Dingbao (870-940), mainly about the state examination system. Emphasis on these two collections being anecdotes to be read for amusement, not verified events. But I guess we can take this with the same serving of salt as we might for a ‘know your meme’ entry!

From 《幽闲鼓吹》 白尚书应举初至京，以诗谒顾著作。顾睹姓名熟视白公曰，米价方贵，居亦弗易。乃披卷首篇曰， ‘咸阳原上草，一岁一枯荣，野火烧不尽，春风吹又生‘ 即嗟赏曰，道得个语，居即易矣，因为之延誉，声名大振。

Minister [1] Bai, newly arrived at the Capital to sit for the imperial examinations, brought poems on his visit to a man by the surname of Gu to show them to him. Gu saw his name and observed him intently, saying, “Grain is expensive, living here won’t be easy [2].” He then opened to the first page and read, ‘The grass of Xianyang Plains, a year, a cycle of withering and verdant glory; wildfire does not raze it all, spring winds blow and again they grow’ and sighed in admiration at once, “living here will be easy (for you).” And because word of this praise got out, his (Bai Juyi’s) name became very very well known.

[1] The highest post he ever held was Minister for the Ministry of Justice [2] This was a play on the words of his name, taken literally it can be read 白 bái (for free) 居 jū (live, as in to live in a house) 易 yì (easy). Oh, get thee to a punnery! xD

From 《唐摭言》 唐白居易初举未振，以歌诗谒顾况。况谑曰。居易。长安百物贵，居大不易。及读至赋得原上草送友曰。野火烧不尽，春风吹又生。叹曰。有句如此，居大不难。老夫前言戏之耳。

Tang Dynasty’s Bai Juyi had just passed the imperial exams, but had not made his name yet. He visited Gu Kuang with song and poetry. Mockingly, Kuang said, “‘To lodge easily’? [1] In Chang’an, everything is expensive. It’s not easy to live in a big place.” It was only after reading, ‘Written for bidding farewell to a friend on the plains: wildfire does not raze it all, spring winds blow and again they grow’, that he sighed, “With wordsmithing like this, living in a big place won’t be difficult at all. Consider all I said before a joke.”

[1] Another play on Bai Juyi’s name.

There are slight differences even between these two accounts. Not to mention the question of whether this gentleman Gu Kuang was even actually in the capital at this time. From my brief skim of his Wiki page, it seems he was having trouble at the tail end of his career, and lived out his retirement in seclusion. Records are clear that Bai Juyi passed the imperial exams in 802 along with friend Yuan Zhen, whilst Gu Kuang’s whereabouts were not possible to track down (at least for me) and he passed away in either 806 if baidu is to be believed, or after 820 according to wiki.

Two things that are immediately obvious as I read these passages:

The first, line one reads 咸阳原上草 xiányáng yuán shàng cǎo (the grass upon Xianyang Plain), whereas the version I got from gushiwen and also the ‘popular’ ~modern~ version goes, 离离原上草 lí lí yuán shàng cǎo (dense and lively, the grass upon the plain). 

The second, that the title is written: 赋得原上草送友 (Composed from: Seeing off a friend upon grass plains) vs 赋得古原草送别 (Composed from: Bidding farewell upon the ancient grass plains)

Consulting another source first published in Southern Song, Chapter 30 of 《苕溪渔隐丛话》, its first half completed in 1148 (this copy is owned by Harvard, and the edition was published in 1740 or 1741… if I’m reading the description correctly), backs up the 咸阳原上草 version.

Which then brings us to the question, when did these lines get changed? 

I have no clue, so I asked google xD. Most answers point to Sun Zhu’s (1722–1778) 《唐诗三百首》 Three Hundred Tang Poems. But it's hard for me to verify at this point because many of the collections which hold this poem were reprinted in the 20th century. I sampled two texts randomly in ctext, and both had the 离离/古原 version… even Bai Juyi’s own anthology 《白氏长庆集》, so named because its first print was in the Changgeng Era, second in Emperor Muzong of Tang’s reign. The version in the image below was from 《白氏长庆集》 in an anthology of classics published in 1922, and it has exactly that same 古原草送别 title and 离离 beginning.

I feel like if the original indeed began with 咸阳原上草, and was titled 赋得原上草送友, it would make sense in a later edit that changes 咸阳 (location) into 离离 (adjective) to then clarify what information is lost - that this farewell happening on ‘ancient plains’ - in another place like the title. In any case, I do believe there is a good reason for the change, no matter my personal preference… Let's get to that in the next section.

Poem

First, note that based on the prompt, the things available to be played with are:

A grass plain (as background)

Emphasis on grass

Seeing off someone

And off we go!

Diving right into exploring the more interesting words or expressions in this poem, I’d like to draw our attention to 离离 (of course), 王孙 and 萋萋.

Though not a word you see often, on sight, 离离 feels like it speaks of parting, because read alone, the word 离 is to leave, to part. But the next natural step is to look up past usages. By past, I mean pre-Bai Juyi’s lifetime and ideally from texts and poets he would have read with care.

Pre-Qin, we have two winners from 诗经 the Book of Odes, Airs of Wang, Drooping Millet. In this poem, 彼黍离离 (the millet either droop or sway). From Minor Odes, Clear Dew, 其实离离 (the fruit of trees hand down). Some person from Han - some websites attribute the poem to Cao Cao, some to Empress Zhen - says,  蒲生我池中，其叶何离离 (bullrushes grow in my pond, how dense their leaves). 

That’s about it for relevant poetry.

And then 易经 《䷝离》 The Book of Changes tells me how to interpret trigrams:

离，丽也；日月丽乎天，百谷草木丽乎土，重明以丽乎正，乃化成天下。柔丽乎中正，故亨；是以畜牝牛吉也。 ‘离’ is ‘to rely on’. The sun and moon rely on the heavens, the myriad grassess and trees rely on the earth; light upon light relies on the right path, illuminating all under heaven. The gentle in their positions, middle and fair are hence fortunate, so female cows are fortunate…?

Okay LOL that last one got a bit away from me, but basically, the trigram called 离  (or the trad version of it anyway) is associated with fire, spring and radiance. And who knows if these associations do or don’t spill over into word selection in everyday life?

So 离 is parting and 离离 can be in turns, drooping, swaying, verdant, radiant and full of life. 

We can have 王孙 and 萋萋 up together because having them both in a sentence brings 楚辞 The Songs of Chu, 招隐士 Summons for a Recluse’s line, 王孙游兮不归，春草生兮萋萋 (the noble man remains there and does not return, the grasses of spring are growing luxuriantly). From this poem, we can infer that 王孙 is referring to the recluse (On the topic of the ‘image’ of recluses in literature, I leave this link: ARTICLE REVIEWS: HOUSE OF HERMITS). Such recluses in the time that poem was written could also be the descendants of noble houses. But the word itself also has meaning - it is literally, grandson(s) of kings or princes, and was also used to collectively refer to young noblemen, eventually just young men in general. Maybe similar to how gentlemen is used? Idk.

And 招隐士 is quite an influential poem. Those three things, 王孙, 春草 and 萋萋 were used often in later works to evoke specific feelings of melancholy despite the beauty in the surroundings, because someone is far from home.

(Some unconfirmed rumours in the Old Book of Tang suggest that Bai Juyi may have been descended from the Mi imperial house of the State of Chu, and the Bai family who left Chu for Qin due to prosecution by the King of Chu. But that is neither here nor there. If true, it may have been part of the inspiration for interpreting the poem’s prompt in this way. Just an interesting titbit of information!)

Now that we have the new, uncommon words out of the way, I wanted to try recreating the experience of reading this piece because it’s such a feast for the senses. And I hope this works, because if not it’s going to look quite ridiculous indeed.

离离 /            原上草        //   一岁  /       一枯荣 bright / grass upon the plains // one year / once wither & flourish  Flickering grasses upon the plain, a year, a cycle of withering and verdant glory.

野火   /      烧不尽   //       春风     /        吹又生 wildfire / burns not end // spring breeze / blows to life again Ravaging wildfire does not burn it all; a spring breeze blows and again, they grow.

远      /      芳     /    侵   /      古道     //         晴翠        /  接  /     荒城  distant / fragrance / assails / ancient road // sunlit crisp green / joins / desolate city Distant fragrance encroaches ancient roads; sun dappled green joins the desolate city.

又     /     送   /      王孙   /  去  //           萋萋      / 满 /      别情 again / sending / noble men / away // verdant greenery / full / parting feelings Again, seeing off a dear friend on their way, the lush field is full of these parting feelings.

There are lots of contrasts that bring these words to life. 离离 is associated with verdant, luxuriant growth and blades of grasses or millet. The unquenchable life in that green against the red of the fire, the grass on the plains that even the fire cannot entirely destroy, because deeply hidden ‘neath the ground, its roots are safe. One breath of the wind and it's growing again! Triumphant in its victory, it goes on to overtake the ‘ancient road’ and the ruins of a city. The word used to describe its action at the road is literally 侵 invade, the word for its action with the city 接 can be read as join, but can also be to receive or take over.

And so I think you can see where this is building up to the last line where the grass, abundant, full of life and absolutely everywhere as far as the eye can see, is like his overflowing emotions in the moment of parting.

I really appreciate the crossing over of what is real and what is imagined, anchoring with the image of ‘grass on the plains’ and bringing us through time, through fire and across space - over the winding road and up to the abandoned city. Is the grass really there? Maybe. Did all of this really happen? Who knows. But these feelings after going through all that are certainly real!

Another thing I love is the cinematic acceleration effect for that year with the grass, and then the panning where you follow someone's gaze from the road to the city led on by the greeeeeeeeen. The pacing is so atmospheric as well! 一岁一枯荣 is slow, solemn and glorious. 野火烧不尽 is an intense battle for dominance and 春风吹又生 a breath of fresh air.

(Source)

(Source)

As I was reading the poem for the first time though, there were some things I wondered idly about, which were then answered as I looked into its background and asked around some.

Grass has a 1 year lifecycle???? Apparently some species, yes. Where I live, it’s just green year round unless someone doesn’t water them during a dry spell. In other places with actual seasons, they can stay green for a while under snow or get frozen while green, which is amazing to me, even if they do eventually yellow. If summers are scorching, they may brown (I think that’s when they die?). Anyway, it’s cool and I can’t believe I never thought about this before.

Are wildfires a Thing on grassland? If the sun is hot enough or if conditions are right for dry lightning it can happen, but I don’t know if spontaneous combustion is a thing on this particular field, but I somehow doubt that.

Which ancient field is this happening on? Xianyang Plains, which is a real place! It is now known as Wuling (五陵) Plain, where the mausoleums of 28 Han and Tang dynasty emperors stand.

Where is the old road and the ruins? Are these actual places or just there for the vibes. Xianyang (咸阳) was the capital of the Qin empire. It was sacked and burnt to the ground, supposedly by Xiang Yu, a rebel leader against the Qin in 206 BC. The founding emperor of Han Dynasty later built his capital just across the river from the ruins of Xianyang. In fact, the ruins are still there!

The photo below is of a Qin Dynasty handmade armor factory found in 2019 at the location of the old Xianyang City. Analysis of the materials found there was a match for armor in Qin Shihuang’s Mausoleum.

(Source)

So the thing about Han Dynasty and Tang Dynasty, is this… 

Qin Dynasty spanned 221 BCE to 206 BCE; its capital was Xianyang. Han Dynasty spanned 206 BCE to 220 CE; its first capital was Chang’an. Tang Dynasty spanned 618 CE to 907 CE; its first capital was Chang’an.

Xianyang was there first, it was ravaged by fire. Then the Han Chang’an was built on the opposite bank. Then Tang Chang’an was built Southeast of the ruined Han Chang’an (it’d been through a lot of wars by that time LOL). So are they the same thing? No. But if the ruins of Xianyang are still here for us today, they certainly would have been there back in Bai Juyi’s time. And they would also have been considered ancient ruins, wouldn’t they?

Here’s how the area looks like on google maps.

Back to sleuthing for reasons behind word choices. 

A thing that caught my ear was the keyword 古道! There are so many poems that use that image-impression, but also also, most of ALL: this classic song. Secondary to that though, there’s 小桥流水人家 古道西风瘦马 (a little bridge, running water and homes; on the ancient road in the west wind, a lean horse) of Yuan Dynasty - and after Bai Juyi’s time, and Li Bai’s (701 to 762) 咸阳古道音尘绝 (on the ancient road to Xianyang, ended is the music and the dust), which he’ll certainly have come across.

I got a bit distracted reading farewell poems and was shook to discover that Wang Wei’s (701 to 7062) even more famous farewell poem, iconic line: 西出阳关无故人, is actually, set at almost the same place. 

渭城朝雨浥轻尘 | Weicheng’s [1] morning drizzle moistens the dusty road. 客舍青青柳色新 | By the traveller’s inn, the willow’s green is fresh 劝君更尽一杯酒 | Friend, do drink up one more cup of wine; 西出阳关无故人 | West beyond Yang Pass, there’ll be acquaintances none. (You’ll have no one)

[1] 渭城 wèi chéng, previous, older name for the county that later became Xianyang County during the Qin Dynasty.

Knowing all this, when a poem uses Xianyang, fire, ancient path and desolate city as imagery, one can’t help the mind being drawn to that fire which burnt a palace, a city to the ground, the lives lost. And then wandering still further... who are you bidding farewell to?

So! While 离离 for the first two words brings beautiful imagery, contrasting against the ravaging fire and parallels to 萋萋, 咸阳 provides associations with location, history and builds on impressions to tie the whole poem together. 

Let me know which you prefer!

(Source)

Translation Recs

Something a little different this time, for those who are still with me. 

Because this is such a famous poem, I thought it would be fun to look up other translations! Here’s a list of recs for ones I liked best.

In no particular order:

I enjoyed the brief writeup on Bai Juyi’s background and commentary on the poem’s relevance in vacantmountain’s: TRANSLATION THURSDAY: 赋得古原草送别 BIDDING FAREWELL ON THE PLAIN, BY 白居易 BAI JUYI

Despite what OP says about their own translations seeming rigid sometimes due to their style (and intention for translations), I didn’t find it so. And in fact, I really appreciate how this translation leans closely in to the original words, while still reading smoothly:  152 白居易 賦得古原草送別 translation: Farewells on Grassland, by Bai Juyi

It’s a little further down the page - you may have to search for ‘grass’. I found the concept of utilizing space in this way an interesting one. Perhaps you may too! Daryl Lim Wei Jie brings us: Grass

[nikofortuna]

JTTW Chapter 18 Thoughts

A slightly belated Chapter 18 for the @journeythroughjourneytothewest Reading Group!

In the J. F. Jenner translation the title of this chapter is “The Tang Priest Is Rescued in the Guanyin Temple”, which doesn’t make much sense as Tang Sanzang was never really in danger or need of rescue himself this time around. The other translations went with the sentiment of his troubles being at an end instead.

Sun Wukong the arsonist! I will come back to this in the future.

Also “Red Wind Cave” made me chuckle.

Duckies! They’re specifically Mandarin Ducks! Both in the J. F. Jenner translation and the original Chinese [鴛鴦 Yuānyāng]. They’re so pretty!

They also have quite the neck!

So although this encounter with the guy outside the village kind of confirms that book-accurate Sun Wukong is technically bald, in my heart he will always be a fluffy monkey. Besides would it even count for him having to shave his head? Technically he doesn’t have ‘hair’ to begin with, he has fur.

Upfront the old Mr. Gao wanting in-laws to make friends with is pretty sweet. However he knew from the start that there wouldn’t be any and was completely okay with it, so that was probably just a made-up excuse.

“[S]pring-onion white��! Haven’t heard a colour described like this before, but I love it! Hm yes, dressed like a vegetable.

Given their daughters’ names it looks like the Gao parents really like Orchids.

Love Tang Sanzang standing up for a fella having a big appetite because he works hard! Also I can confirm from personal experience that if you do a lot of physical activity you will be a lot hungrier in turn. It’s also a nice detail given that this fella will join their group shortly.

I’m inclined to believe that Sun Wukong’s train of thought on requesting elderly folks to keep Tang Sanzang company was probably along the lines of ‘Oh I am a grandpa and he hangs out with me all the time, so he should hang out with other elderly people while I take care of things!’

The Anthony C. Yu translation going with “Miss Three” is something that I don’t really like. It doesn’t flow at all and comes off far too formal for a father to call his daughter. The original Chinese is [三姐姐 Sān jiějiě] so along the since of Third Sister. The J. F. Jenner translation just paraphrased it as “called her name”, while the German translation went with Third Daughter. All of these options are nicer to read.

Ah, the return of verdant. However this time in the original Chinese it goes along the lines [青不青、藍不藍 qīng bù qīng, lán bù lán] or roughly translated “verdant but not verdant, blue but not blue”, which looking back at previous instances in the translation using green for qīng makes quite a lot of sense now!

Also Green/Blue/Emerald Orchid, depending on the translation, is not verdant! In the original Chinese her name is [翠蘭 Cuì lán], the second character meaning orchid, but the first translates to green of some sort, emerald if you’d like to be fancy like the German translation. On that the German one also dished out the original name alongside the translated version, something I always appreciate. It can technically translate to blueish-green according to Google translate, but only in one translation instance while all the others turn out a kind of green, so green it is.

[her-devils-advocate]

Trust in us.

♥. Genre: hurt and comfort, fluff

♥. pairings: Nate Sewell / Female Detective (Named)

♥. content warnings: None

♥. notes: Since my detective goes by a nickname, as does Nate, I had the idea to write a fic where they both call each other by their full name in the heat of a moment. So here's a small retelling of the small spat from book 3 with them.

♥. Ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/47248021

♥. Word count: 1044

"Nate, behind you!" Val's panicked voice sharply cuts through the pained grunts falling around them as Unit Bravo swiftly disposes of their attackers. Fresh muddy holes now litter the no longer idyllic setting, while the once verdant grass is sprinkled with blood, both human and vampiric. 

Spinning around to come face to face with the rapidly approaching trapper, weapon in hand, Nate deftly dodges their advances. The trapper stumbles onto their knees but before they can steady themselves, Nate grabs ahold of their arm, twisting it behind their back and forcing them further to the ground. With a heavy thump, the small forest clearing falls silent, broken only by the gentle click of Mason's lighter.

Nate sighs heavily, running his hands through his pulled back hair, looking less neat than he would prefer, trying to let go of the oppressive panic that had gripped him and loosen its hold on his emotions. Just as he thought the suffocating emotions had died down, he hears the detective approach, hears her rapid heartbeat. Her heart beating fast for all the wrong reasons, especially while around him.

Stumbling over the roots as she limps her way closer towards him, Nate swings around to face the much shorter woman. The action causes him to tower over her as she looks up to meet him, but not before glancing all over to check for injuries. Her relieved smile falters as she sees the irritation painting his expression, her sharp eyebrows raising in a silent question.

"I thought I told you to hide and to stay hidden?" His words cut through the calm summer air like ice, lodging themselves inside her heart and causing her to freeze with a slowly building anxiety.

“And I thought I told you that I couldn’t do that? That I wouldn’t let you all continue to fight for me, to fight my battles, without letting me help in any way. I didn’t even fight much or get in the way, yet I still helped you. I don’t see what the problem is.” She throws her arms up to gesture around at the handful of injured trappers being rounded up by the rest of Unit Bravo, flinching slightly at the sharp pain that shoots throughout her torso from the action. A flinch that did not escape his sharp vision, nor the rest of the teams’ as she tries to ignore the curious looks being thrown their way.

Nate simply stares at her for a moment, not wanting to lose his composure or have the “not-an-argument-yet” discussion grow into their first, especially not with Felix nearby.

“But you still managed to get injured,” he frowns down at the purple bruises marring the porcelain skin peaking past the collar of her dark green shirt. “The four of us can handle a few trappers. What if it was more than a few bruises? What if something had happened?”

Taking a few steps back to gather her racing thoughts, she idly fidgets with the long, black braid draped over her shoulder. Her eyebrows draw together in worry as she quickly spins on the spot as her eyes begin to water. She takes a few deep breaths to quell the fear of losing him that had begun to slowly rise, left over fears from the less than stellar childhood she had been pushed through.

Before she could turn back to fully face him once more, she freezes on the spot as he lets out a sigh, one much sharper than he intended. 

"Valerie..."

"...Yes Nathaniel?"

For a brief moment, a chill passes through the clearing. An uneasy atmosphere growing around the team as Val and Nate stare at one another in disbelief. Neither of them willing to back down first.

Adam shoots Felix and Mason a sharp glare, silencing any comments that the duo had ready to release as he shakes his head, concern quickly flickering within Adam's eyes as he moves further away from them to silently watch his friends from afar. The other two reluctantly joining him, deciding that it was better to not get involved. Or in Mason’s case, not willing to get involved.

Forcing his hands deep into his pockets, he holds back the urge to gather her within his arms and hold her close, as if the discussion never took place. The only thing stopping him from doing so was the knowledge that now was not the time nor place. Gentle brown eyes meet her frightened green ones as he hunches his shoulders slightly. Guilt tearing at his heart now that the panic ebbs away.

"You could have gotten seriously injured, Val. I...I'm not sure what I would do if you had done."

"Nate...I'm sorry but I couldn't just sit and hide while you got hurt, especially not because of me. I might not be anything special, like you four are, but do you think I could bear to stand by and watch you get hurt either? I know that you are trying to protect me and I appreciate that so much…But you need to let me work with you, as a team. You need to trust that I can do this, that I can be a part of your world."

“Val…You are special, to me and to the team. That’s just one of the many parts of the reason behind why I can’t lose you. Just the thought of that sears my heart into two.” He slowly steps towards her, one hand stroking her cheek while the other tucks a stray hair behind her ear. “I do trust you, wholeheartedly, but I don’t trust my world and that's what scares me the most.” “Then trust us, me and you…and them,” she nods her head towards the three agents doing their worst to act as if they aren’t eavesdropping on every single word. “Trust that we will all protect each other in this world and that I will hide when I know I'm out of my depth, not before.”

A deep chuckle chases away her lingering unease and worry as he leans down to press a kiss upon her forehead. “Alright, I can do that. I will always worry about you and your wellbeing, but I will trust in us.”

[eriadu-in-the-wildwood]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks so much for the tag, @walker-lister !

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

31 (how??)

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

449,431 (again, how??)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Doctor Who, a small dip into Critical Role (maybe soon some Baldur's Gate? :D)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

1. Star by Star 2. Song of Kalaya 3. A frozen moment 4. Calming the waves (the lone Critical Role fic makes the top five, all right!) 5. Taking it slow

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do! Sometimes it takes longer than other times, but I do respond to all of them!

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I'd say When it all comes crashing down. Regeneration fic, what else can I say?

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

A Dark & Verdant Door, maybe? Closest I've gotten to basically marrying Yaz and the Doctor, plus the possibility of a magical eternity in the forest together!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Nope, or at least not to my face!

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Is the sky blue?? Yes, haha, and as for what kind I guess I'll say all sorts, but often with an emphasis on telepathy and how that could play a part in the proceedings.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

No BUT there's an thing sitting in my ideas document that's basically a fusion of thasmin and One Last Stop that I'd love to write, but I'd probably have to reread the book and take a bunch of notes, and so in the idea document it stays.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not that I know of!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yeah! to know how it ends and still begin to sing it again (as if it might turn out this time), co-written with @timetravelbypen

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

Thasmin, of course!

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

None that are partially published, but I have many, many WIPs sitting around that I probably won't get to! I'd say the closest to being abandoned is the third in the Echoes of War series, but I keep thinking about it because it's ridiculous that it's sitting there finished and just needs editing. But it's been in that state for a year, so I guess maybe it's time to let it go?

16. What are your writing strengths?

Uhhh always a tough question in these things! I think I come up with interesting ideas and twists on tropes!

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I ALWAYS struggle with feeling like I've made my plot into a weird soupy mess that doesn't entirely make sense, so I am constantly working on that aspect of my writing.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I don't think I'd go there because I wouldn't want to get it wrong!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Oh geez I guess it would be Xena, back in the yahoo! groups mailing list days when a bunch of us would write stories about our Amazon OCs!

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

Well I hate to keep going on about An old police box, a tattered coat, and the constable who called herself the Doctor, but it really is my favorite. I also quite like Never Alone, because writing from the pov of a sentient painting was just too much fun.

I'll tag @timetravelbypen , @how-to-sit-gay , @timeandspacenovelist and @doctorinblue , if ya'll want to play along, as well as anyone else who wants to share!

[sinful-morningstar]

Spartober Day 22 Mercenary (VerDante)

Author's note: It took me a while to get an idea for this i wont lie, but i had fun writing it, yes this it hinted spardacest for all parties involved, hope you Enjoy today prompt nonetheless!!

Prompts by Whatsanapocalae1 (I use a combination of SparTpber and Devil MayTober)

22: Mercenary (VerDante) Dante blew smoke from ebony and ivory as he finished using them putting them iin the holsters on his side with a smirk, he was proud of another job well done. he sat back in his seat waiting for another call as he propped his legs up on the desk, his eyes looked back at Vergil.

Vergil stares at Dante for a moment before speaking in a calm and quiet, yet still stern and sharp tone.

“How did the job go?” he asked looking up from his book of poetry.

"Ah the usual, kicking ass taking names…buuut i'll admit Verg, it wasn't the same without you by my side…" Dante said with a fond look.

Vergil in turn, raises a brow, giving Dante a look. His tone changes to something a bit softer.

“Are you saying you miss me already?” he asked with a teasing tone and a smirk.

"Well to be fair we have years of quality time to make up for…" Dante said as he stretched his arms out with a yawn cracking his knuckles behind his head as he looked back at Vergil with a grin.

“I would not have imagined seeing you this.. sentimental.”Vergil chuckles quietly. Setting his poetry aside, giving Dante his full attention amused by his brother’s attitude.

“You seem in good spirits,” he said gently.

"Of course I am..I kicked demon ass, we cleared up the Qliphoth..what's not to like?..the only thing that would make this better is some Pizza '' Dante smirked happily; about to say something heartfelt when the phone rang out.

He kicked his foot against the desk making the receiver fly in the air while I swiftly caught it and answered with a confident charming tone smirking as he spoke "Devil May Cry '' . He nodded and listened to the caller writing down details of the job.

Vergil looked at Dante quizzically as he asked “We have a job?”

His curiosity has peaked now.

Dante shushed Vergil with a finger as he listened closely to the caller , he nodded gently "uh huh..uh huh..alright.." he put the phone down and sighed softly.

"Well Vergil, it seems this is a two man job, care to join me this time?" he said offering his gloved hand out for him to take.

Vergil considers Dante’s offer for a moment, thinking deeply about his choice. Then he eventually nods, extending his gauntleted hand to Dante.

“Very well then…I will join you.”

Dante smirked "Great, we're taking my bike out to the graveyard!" he said as he grabbed Vergil's hand pulling him out of the office and out of the building with childlike excitement.

He smiles just a bit as Dante pulls him by his arm, allowing the man to drag him out of the building and onto his motorcycle.

He looks ahead and watches the road as Dante revs the motorcycle.

"Hang on tight" Dante chuckled as he revved the engine and took off feeling Vergil's arms wrap around his waist. a gust of wind blowing through their hair as they made their way to the cemetery.

Vergil holds onto Dante tightly, making sure he doesn't fall off. He then looks over at Dante.

“Have you received any details about the job? “He asked with a curious tone.

"Yeah , All i know is it's a huge demon dude and it's gonna take two demon hunter to take him down so i figured why not get you in on the case, we can really bust some heads" Dante yelled out over the roar of the engine and the whizz of the wind.

Vergil nods in understanding and remains on the motorcycle, looking ahead.

“I expect the demon to be a tough one if it requires two of us. I will be sure to give my best.” He said with a determination in his voice.

"You always do Vergil" Dante said as he took a sharp turn making Vergil cling to him tightly he smirked at the vice like grip from his brother as he chuckled to himself "heh cute"

Vergil seems a bit embarrassed at the compliment and grips Dante tighter.

He looks ahead to see the cemetery up ahead. “It seems we are here..”

Dante hits the breaks as it comes to a rough halt as sparks flew from the engine, he revved up the engine for show as he sighed happily "Heh, look at us.." he said with a smirk hopping off of the motorbike before offering a hand to Vergil to help him get off of it.

Vergil takes Dante’s hand and gets off the motorcycle, looking around the cemetery before speaking to you.

“Do you feel something?”

He asked while he looked around at the surroundings, his tone changing to something a bit more serious.

"Yeah..it feels really warm. Hell, I can feel it in the back of my throat like cinnamon burning …" Dante said softly, he swallowed softly it all felt strangely familiar.

Vergil takes in a deep breath, sensing the feeling of sin and malice in the air.

“This place reeks of demons..”

He states calmly while looking around once more.

He then turns to Dante, his blue eyes shining with determination.

“We must proceed with caution…”

"Agreed…" Dante said as they both walked slowly into the graveyard there was ash and singed grass where footprints led them to where they needed to be, the smell of brimstone in his nostrils as they walked hand in hand to their fate.

They continue walking through the cemetery, the smell of sin and brimstone growing stronger as they approach the source of the aroma. An odd feeling suddenly appears within Vergil's mind and a hint of familiarity washes along his very soul..

“This place… seems… familiar…” Vergil said thoughtfully

"Yeah..it does.." Dante said in between breaths as he sighed his eyes fixated on the fiery embers that emanated from the shadowy figure mere feet away from them.

The sight of the figure fills Vergil with a strange feeling. With each step he takes forward, his past grows brighter in his mind, his thoughts flooding with both regret and longing.

“This place… this… demon..”

He seems to whisper, as the feeling becomes more and more apparent.

“I remember this…”

The demon turned to face them, their red irises digging into their very souls, curled horns that resembled Ram's horns adorned his head as he watched the pair.

Dante stared back at the Demon holding Vergil close to his side as his eyes widened; he knew exactly who this was but didn't dare his name out of fear and anger. his blood boiled as he clenched his teeth holding back from saying anything.

Vergil's gaze locks with the demon's, his eyes filling with rage and determination. A burning hatred ignites within his veins, his eyes widening and narrowing as he fights to contain this new surge of emotions.

His teeth clench at the sight of the demon, a feeling of betrayal and regret washing upon him like a river's flood.

“No.. it cannot be…”

Dante sighed as he reached for the rebellion only to be taken from him by the Demon, the sword being summoned from his grasp. Dante growled as he yelled "Hey!".

Vergil sees Dante's Rebellion being taken away and looks at the demon with fury burning in his eyes.

He tightens his grip on his own sword, determined to avenge his brother's fallen weapon.

“Give that back.” He barks out, his voice hard and demanding. The Yamato is summoned and is held in the Demon's hand its then that they realise just who it is as the two swords combined in a hellfire glow of red and amber, the light almost blinding to most humans but to the Sparda twins it was just a bright light, the pair holding their arms above their heads in attempt at shielding the light.

Once the light died down the Devil sword showed itself leaving the boys in awe of the demon that stood before them.

Vergil and Dante stare at the sword, both in awe and horror as a wave of emotions wash over them. Their brother's signature blade, yet it was fused with a demon's…

“Impossible…”

Vergil mutters to himself, his mind reeling from the impossible sight. A mix of thoughts fill his head, the rage he felt before now replaced with a profound sadness within him. He is speechless, his eyes glued to the blade as he walks closer to the demon.

The Demon held the sword and tilted his head watching Vergil closely he kept him away with the tip of the sword "Stay back" he said in a gravelly tone, the way he spoke was closer to Vergil's vocabulary rather than Dante's.

The familiar Tone made Dante take a step back in shock; he couldn't believe his ears, he had heard that before plenty of times as a child, that booming voice that demanded respect and shook Dante to his very core.

"N-NO…" was all he could stammer out in awe.

Vergil stares at the demon with a mixture of shock and recognition, his eyes moving back and forth between the demon and the sword. His ears perk up as Dante seems to recognize the voice, and he glances at his brother, his emotions changing to shock, as he hears the familiar voice.

“Is..that…?”

He is speechless, trying to piece the puzzle together as the emotions within him change again from shock to fear in the face of such a monster, yet a small spark of hope grows within him, like a flame being ignited within his very soul.

"Father?" Vergil asked in disbelief, reaching out to him like a lost child, the very same child that ached for him to return to protect them all. He missed him dearly but he was so..so..Angry.. he clenched his fists and growled.

"Sparda!" Dante said in unison with Vergil showing the same anger if not more anger for all the pain he had been given during his youth.

Sparda’s eyes widened at the sound of both the boys referring to him as "Father", a mix of emotions washing over him. A sense of pride, sadness and both happiness and sorrow. He seems conflicted about what he should feel, a small smile appears on his face and fades away.

He slowly nods as his eyes remain on the boys.

“Yes…My dear boys…”

He finally replies with a hint of a smile, still holding the Devil sword in his hand, his voice calm and solemn, but filled with an underlying pride to have been recognized by his two only sons, he hoped his return would be a happy one, but it seemed he alot to to do in order to gain the twins’ trust back…

[omniblades-and-stars]

Also let’s do 29 for the microfics too

Okay, this one got away from me, sorry not sorry.

Also SURPRISE, ELDER SCROLLS FIC.

Micro-Story Ask Game

Sweat

It wreaked of sulphur, which was bad enough in itself given that they were slowly making their way through a dank, dark cave infested with scamps, but it was also so hot that Nivane was sure she was melting in her leathers. She was definitely going to be rendered down to some sort of bosmer jelly by the time they made their way out of there.

The issue was only compounded when they were beset by atronachs.

The flamy ones that looked a bit like buxom women made out of fiery magma and rock, but would boil your skin just by close proximity, and also had a fairly bad habit of chucking balls of fire just for the simple offense of being within their line of sight. And of course, they were surrounded.

Fucking daedra.

“Niva, duck!” The raspy voice of Nivane's companion rang out, just in time for the wood elf to drop her spell, and her body and avoid getting pelted from behind by a flaming ball the size of her head. “Oh no, Tashabi's tail! Her fur is all singed,” the khajiit lamented dramatically, as though curling whiskers was the worst of their problems. The burn seared across the side of her face certainly merited more than a passing complaint about asthetics.

Nivane got to her feet again shouting, “Y'ffre's Bones! Tasha, keep them distracted I'll fix your tail later!” She planted her staff in the hard stone ground. Nivane stooped, palm outstretched toward the ground, as she focused her will on shaping the forces of the Wild around her. The ground cracked and from it burst the gnarled root of a tree, it grew and shifted, shoots bursting from it until it took the form of an enormous bear.

The cave was filled with a flash of verdant light, and next to Nivane stood an enormous, snarling grizzly bear. She wiped the sweat from her brow and stuck her fingers in her mouth, whistling loudly. “Bosco, you know what to do!” she shouted with a mad cackle. Calling on the energies of the Wild always left her feeling exhilarated.

The bear, a spirit made flesh, barreled into the atronach that harried poor Tashabi, scraping its great claws through the molten core of the thing. Tashabi bounced back from the fiend and seemingly faded into the shadows, reappearing moments later with her long daggers driven into the back of another of the flaming monsters.

And the daedric elementals fell, pulsing wildly as the two women and the bear darted away, narrowly missing a concussive explosion that knocked stones loose from the ceiling.

Nivane planted her feet, breathing heavily, and opened her mind to the green once more. A song, older than any other she'd ever heard called out to her. It sang of decay and rot and nourishment and life. She whistled along to the melody, eyes glowing the same vibrant green as before and below their feet sprouted a carpet of mosses and mushrooms and lichens.

Tashabi bent over her knees, panting, but smiled as the gray and black striped fur on her tail uncurled and grew back to its original, beautifully manicured state. She cautiously reached up and touched the burn on her cheek with a clawed hand and felt as the skin stitched itself back together. “Tashabi is grateful as ever, my love. Though maybe next time we don't go crawling through hell just for a book, yes?”

“Oh, because your heist last week went so much smoother? At least this one didn't net us a bounty with the guard, hm?” she laughed breathlessly and plopped to the ground. Her hair was soaked, caked flat against her head. Bosco bounded over, sitting on his haunches with a groan.

“You know, Tashabi finds it difficult to believe a spirit of your beloved forest is named “Bosco”.”

Nivane leaned against the bear, who dwarfed her greatly, ruffling his thick fur, “He likes it! Bosco is a good, strong name for a good, strong bear!”

“Bosco is the name of a drunk Imperial Tashabi once knew in the guild,” the khajiit said dryly.

“Well, this Bosco is a lot better than that one. This one never smells like old beer.” Nivane stood back up, stretching her arms above her head.

As the trio made their way back, Tashabi groused, “No, he just smells like a very large, very wet dog.”