#{I got feels over Dain okay-}

[dutybcrne]

@strdstd replied to your post:

{...Pyro Boothill thinkings are being thunked-}

👀

[strdstd-m]

{Bruh, thinking abt Dain realizing how disastrous the Cataclysm really was & him just breaking down over it, letting out centuries of repressed emotion & grief. How no life whatsoever was spared, no titles, no social standing mattering at all. How indiscriminate, how merciless, how utterly cruel it was for the whole of Khaenri'ah being wiped out. Him stumbling around the wrecked, burning streets, the frightened cries now silenced. The monsters have moved on, to terrorize the rest of Teyvat. Celestia, satisfied by what they'd done, had the Archons also vacate the area. His sword being the only thing keeping him upright as the reality is weighing him down like a steel block on his shoulders. Dull eyes dazedly looking ahead, long-dried tear tracks visible on his cheeks, unsure if the blood on him is his own or someone else's. Pain from injuries are ignored when he finally falls to his knees. Why, why was he left alive after suffering through such a thing? To be some kind of walking example of what Celestia did to those they deemed "unworthy"?

The sheer realization hitting centuries later, for sure after the Chasm Incident. How the royal family trusted him, how his troops followed him such relentless loyalty... how unforgivably he'd failed every last citizen of Khaenri'ah-}

[ally-writes-many-things]

Home for the Holidays (X. Riorson) Part 1

Summary: You return home for Christmas with Xaden who is pretending to be your date.

Words: 1.2K

Fandom: Fourth Wing, Xaden Riorson

Warings or A\N: Not yet 😜 Just throwing this out here. If yall have an request for any Fourth Wing male characters let me know. (Not the professors or the commanders\generals)

Tags: @daisydark @ablev92 @luxsky @graciereads

Art Credit here

As your mom continued her endless rambling on the phone, you couldn't help but let out a  sigh. She had an uncanny ability to stretch a conversation for an eternity before finally turning her attention on you. "So, are you finally coming home this year? You know, last year you promised but ended up disappointing us," She questioned, her disappointment still lingering from the previous year.

        You remembered the frustration of not being able to go home due to work commitments, and your mom never let you forget it. It wasn't as if you had a choice in the matter; your boss had denied your request for time off, leaving you with no other option. However, this time around, you were determined to make things right. "Mom, I assure you, I'll be home for the holidays. In fact, I'm leaving on Saturday," You reassured her, hoping to alleviate any lingering doubts.      

     As your mom casually mentioned the idea of inviting Dain, your ex, to the holiday gathering, you couldn't help but feel a surge of frustration. "Mom, don't even think about it," you interjected, hoping to put an end to the idea before it gained any traction.

       Her response was dismissive, "Why not? He used to come every year."

      You couldn't believe she was even considering it. "Yeah, that was before we broke up. It's not appropriate to invite your daughter's ex-boyfriend to a family event," you firmly stated, trying to make her understand.

     But your mom seemed oblivious to your reasoning. "But everyone else will have a date or someone with them. You'll be the only one without a partner," she persisted, seemingly determined to play matchmaker.

     Rolling your eyes, you couldn't help but feel annoyed at the reminder of your single status. "Mom, I'm perfectly fine being single," you asserted, hoping she would finally hear you.

      However, your mom continued on, completely disregarding your words. "Yes, I think I will invite Dain. Maybe you two can work things out and fix whatever caused the breakup," she mused, completely missing the point.

       Realizing that reasoning with her was futile, you decided to bring the conversation to an end. "Hey Mom, I've got to go. I'll see you on Saturday night," you announced, hoping to escape the mounting frustration.

      "Okay, love you sweetheart," your mom replied, seemingly unaware of the tension.

      "Love you too," you responded, quickly ending the call. 

       Overwhelmed with frustration, you let out a scream, releasing the pent-up emotions that had been building throughout the conversation.

       "Tough call,"

Startled by the unexpected voice, you turned around to find your hot neighbor, Xaden, standing there. "Oh, you scared me. Yeah, you could say that," You replied, still feeling the lingering frustration from the conversation with your mom.

       “I've got a bottle of white wine and was planning to cook some steak, if you wanna come over,”

        Xaden's offer caught you off guard. "I couldn't impose like that," you hesitated, not wanting to intrude on his plans.

       He shrugged, a charming smile playing on his lips. "It's not imposing if I invited you," He replied.

      His confidence and the thought of a relaxing evening with him was tempting. 

      "Great. See you at seven," he said, already assuming your acceptance as he walked away, leaving you with a mix of curiosity and anticipation for the evening ahead.

     —

      As Xaden poured the wine into your glass, he posed a question that struck a chord. "Why didn't you tell your mom the real reason why you two broke up?" he inquired, his voice filled with genuine curiosity.

      You took a sip of the wine, contemplating his question. "Everyone loves him. My parents. My siblings. Hell, even my grandparents do. If I were to tell them that he cheated on me, they wouldn't believe me because 'he's a good guy'. It's frustrating. And honestly, I never even wanted to date him in the first place," You confessed, the weight of the situation evident in your voice.

      Xaden's expression turned sympathetic as he listened to your words. "Then why are you going back there? It sounds like they're super toxic and don't deserve you," He remarked, his concern evident.

      A smile tugged at the corners of your lips at his comment. "They're the type of people who see the good in everyone. It's just how they are," you explained, understanding the complexity of the situation.

      Xaden beckoned you to join him on the couch, asking, "Once you're down there, what's your plan?" You followed his gesture, clutching your wine glass as you settled beside him.      

      Contemplating his question, you replied, "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure. I'll try to maintain a civil demeanor. However, deep down, I know that once him and I are both there, everyone will gaslight me into rekindling our relationship,”

      Xaden leaned in, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Ask me," he urged, leaving you puzzled.   

      "Ask you what?" you inquired, trying to make sense of his cryptic statement.

      A sly smile played on his lips as he revealed his proposition. "Ask me to accompany you as your pretend date," He suggested. 

      Your heart skipped a beat, and a rush of excitement coursed through your veins. The thought of Xaden joining you at your family's gathering sent shivers down your spine. Not only would it silence your family's nagging, but Xaden's undeniable attractiveness added an extra allure. "I couldn't possibly ask you to do that. It's a two-week affair, and don't you have work?" you hesitated, concerned about inconveniencing him.  

      Dismissing your worries, he shook his head. "Don't worry about work. Just ask me," he insisted

     You remained silent, unsure of how to respond. 

      "Ask. Me," He repeated. 

      Succumbing to defeat, you let out a sigh. "Will you join me at my family's holiday gathering?" You finally asked, your voice laced with vulnerability. 

      A wide grin spread across Xaden's face as he replied, "I would love to, Buttercup. I thought you'd never ask.”

     —

      Xaden parked the car in front of your parents' house, he prepared to step out, but you gently placed a hand on his, halting his movement. "Just give me a moment," you requested, your voice filled with a mix of nerves and determination.   

      Xaden settled back into his seat, his gaze fixed on you. "Hey, look at me," he said softly, capturing your attention.

      Turning to face him, you met his reassuring gaze. "If at any point you feel the need to leave, for any reason, big or small, I promise I'll get you out of there," He assured you, his words offering a sense of comfort. 

      You nodded, acknowledging his support, and withdrew your hand from his. A warm smile graced Xaden's face. "Don't open your door just yet," He advised, causing you to raise an eyebrow in curiosity. 

      He chuckled, breaking the tension. "I know we're pretending, but I still want to make a good impression on them," he explained.

      With that, Xaden exited the car and made his way to your side, opening the door for you. Extending his hand, he offered his assistance, ready to help you step out of the car.

      Inhaling deeply, you gratefully accepted Xaden's assistance. He retrieved the luggage from the trunk, and together, you approached the front door. As you reached out to knock, Xaden's arm gently encircled your waist, providing both comfort and an unexpected surge of warmth that ignited your senses. After a few moments, your mother opened the door, her smile widening as she laid eyes on you. However, her expression quickly shifted to one of surprise as she turned her gaze towards Xaden. "Oh, whoa," she exclaimed, clearly taken aback.

[markantonys]

hi there! i'm wondering, what is your take on perrin and dain bornhald? i know those two have like five-ish minutes of screentime all season with about 30 seconds of that in the finale, but i can't get them out of my head. they have such an interesting dynamic and now that it's more complex than in the books (perrin did actually kill dain's father and dain sees it) i'm fascinated to see them reunite.

(also i know you probably don't take requests but it would be fun to see a gifset of them too. for...reasons.)

my take is that it is TASTY!!!! it is DELICIOUS!!! when dain's casting was announced i was like "i bet simple-minded cretins will ship him with perrin now that they are BOTH hot boys in the show, but you won't catch ME shipping anybody with whitecloaks, let ALONE poor perrin!" and now joke's on me, i'm a simple-minded cretin and i am shipping them HARD! but mostly in an "i love mess" type of way rather than an "i legitimately think they should and want them to get together" type of way. although i would not be opposed to a post-last-battle scenario of dain saying "fuck the whitecloaks" and leaving to become perrin's househusband in the two rivers! okay, faile probably wouldn't be into polyamory, but there WAS also that time in TSR when she was like "perrin why don't you go into rand's bedroom alone in the middle of the night and i'll see you in the morning and you can tell me all about it ;)" so maybe she would be down as long as the other person isn't berelain jfkgh

anyway! there were Vibes in their like 4 scenes. mostly on dain's end, just going around calling perrin by a cute nickname okay sir you want to fuck him we get it. dain is gay and homophobic and has a giant crush on perrin that he doesn't know how to deal with, and perrin is oblivious that any of this is happening. and then they had a brief Battle Couple moment in ep8 and i was like

(genuinely i'm pretty sure i did clap my hand to my forehead because i could FEEL myself succumbing fully to the ship in that moment haha it was a powerful moment!)

and THEN!!!! perrin violently (and SO justifiably, not that dain knows or would believe it) murders dain's dad right in front of him!! and dain fucking loses it!! has to be dragged away while screaming for perrin's blood!! TASTY!! DELICIOUS!!!! move over rand/gawyn, we've got a new "you killed my parent and i will not rest until i run you through with my sword in every sense of the phrase because i also want to fuck you so bad it makes me look stupid" ship in town. and i can't WAIT to see what goes down between them in season 3!

and finally, you're in luck because i already was leaning towards making a gifset of them haha it was floating kinda far down on the to-gif list 2x08 gave me but now that you've gotten me thinking about their dynamic again it's bumped up towards the top, so i might possibly do it tomorrow!

[lia-land]

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

3.5/5

Spoilers for the first book in the Folk of the Air trilogy.

The Cruel Prince cares about the destination and not at all about the journey. It’s hard to rate it overall because some parts were 2 stars and others were nearly 5. Let’s settle on 3.5.

I feel like I'm not allowed to dislike this book. |'ve briefly touched upon how I didn't love it on Reddit and there are definitely lots of loyal fans who will die on the hill that this is the best book to ever exist. As with all of my reviews, my opinions are exactly that. Mine. I really did want to love this and I'm very happy i read it once in my life, but it fell short.

I had heard such great things about this book, but I just found it too childish. It was too ‘girl falls for her high school bully.’ I was expecting more after hearing about this series for years. I did keep reading, though, because I met Holly Black at a signing with Cassandra Clare a few years ago and she was very nice.

It got better around 200 pages in. Since it's only 370 pages, it shouldn’t take like 60% of the book for things to pick up, in my opinion. The only character I found interesting was Madoc for most of the book. It’s not that he’s necessarily interesting, just the best of the worst. I really didn’t like the whole Shadow squad or whatever they were called. Every time they’d interact with anyone or each other was just written awkwardly.

Many plot points were incredibly underdeveloped. Why did the Prince randomly appoint her as a spy and send her on a mission without any training? This was so casually skipped over. He fully just sent her into Balekin’s house and she casually walked in and out. And how does Jude get away with it for so long without being caught? This wasn’t a case of something ‘bad’ being normalised in Faerie and is casually written because it's normal in that universe; this was the crown prince appointing a human with no experience to be his spy. This book as a whole seemed rushed. Lots of significant things happen and big decisions are made, and then skipped over as if they were descriptions of the weather. This was especially apparent during and after the coronation. It was like the writing was trying to catch up with the plot. It read like those old Wattpad fics where the mom would sell the main character to One Direction, and then the way it was written was as if it was a very common occurrence to sell your child to a boy band. It’s apparently quite normal for your adoptive father to stage a coup. And for your twin sister to knowingly let you date her fiancé. And for the crown prince to come and ask you to be a spy as a teen with no training. ‘I guess I live with One Direction now. Anyway, what should I wear for my first dinner with them?’ Like… go back and expand on what just happened. Develop the plot. Develop the feelings about the situation.

The random piece of paper with Jude's name on it was weird and didn't really get acknowledged as much as it should have (in the rest of the series, too). Like why was Cardan just writing her name over and over? Ick.

I couldn’t decide if Jude was really stupid or really smart. She’s been through a lot and can clearly stand up for herself, and she’s not a generally dumb character, but then she spent five minutes alone with Carden in Dain’s office and suddenly we get this line: “Maybe I wasn’t fighting Carden at all. Maybe I’ve been fighting my own shadow.” Girl, please get a grip. This guy bullies her and then gaslights her, and then they start making out!!! Carden literally cannot lie and said that he is disgusted with himself for thinking of her, and her response is to kiss him.

The worst thing about all of this for me is how Carden doesn’t even make a good attempt at justifying his previous actions. He’s all like ‘I hate you because I can’t stop thinking about you and it’s disgusting’ and she’s like ‘okay, no worries, I’ll make that make sense.’ Then while he’s touching her up, she knows that he’s going slow because “he doesn’t want to want this” but everything we’ve been told about her character so far is that she’s not the type of character to put up with this. It didn’t make sense to me. Her attraction to him isn’t really explained. The story doesn’t flow and it reads like an early draft or a very late one where she had to meet a low word count but didn’t end to cut any plot. The only reason I can think of to justify this sudden nonsensical thing between Carden and Jude is that perhaps they are mated and we’ll find this out in later books, if such a bond even exists in this universe. I have low hopes for this, though, and I think it’s just a result of bad plot development. I get that she was also trying to punish him for wanting her, but it wasn't written well.

Jude is the most inconsistently written character that I have ever read about. Jude falling for Locke was so sudden and incredibly underdeveloped. How was she entrusted to be a spy when she couldn’t even see Locke’s red flags? He literally spelled it out for her multiple times. I got the ick when he said he wanted to “compose an ode” for her. It was also very random when Jude challenged Taryn to a duel. I understand the reason for it, but that seemed out of character for her until that point. There’s a difference between an unpredictable character and an inconsistent one. She doesn’t feel like her own character to me, rather, a plot device to make sure the story plays out the way the author wants it to and I think that’s lazy. Having a fast paced plot is not always a good thing. I would have rather read a developed story of this same length that ended at the coronation and then picked up in a second book.

I'm disappointed that nothing more was done with the tournament. A few books from around the same time that this was published have done this thing where they introduced some sort of contest and then they don't actually do anything with it. I assume it will come up in the later books, otherwise, it was not entirely necessary.

Something that was made obvious is that Holly Black does not like writing travel scenes. I have a very unclear idea of how far places are from each other because Jude would just say she was going somewhere and then she'd just be there. This doesn't affect the story, but it does impact the world building.

To be entirely fair, most of the books I’ve read in the past five months have been between 600-800 pages so maybe I’ve gotten used to stories being a little more dragged out. I don’t think that’s the only reason I felt that this book was rushed, but maybe I’m being more harsh. I think this whole series adds up to about 1000 pages and I’m unintentionally holding previously read longer books as a standard. Either way, this book would have benefitted from at least 70 more pages of smoothing out the development of the plot and characters. It felt clunky, for lack of a better word.

The writing itself is not bad, but it isn’t a style I personally enjoy reading. I had a similar issue with the Raven Boys series and also Neil Gaiman. They are not bad writing styles, but they’re not for me.

The high school bully thing is just a very juvenile trope in my opinion. Obviously this is a YA book, but it deals with mature themes, so the target audience is very specific. When I was at the age when I would enjoy these high school settings, I wouldn’t have completely understood the political themes. This point isn’t a criticism of the book, necessarily, just part of why I personally wasn’t as invested. As for all the political stuff, it was a stronger aspect of the book, but still underdeveloped. There was so much potential for this book to be amazing if it had just been a little less rushed. There was too much happening for a story of this length. The plot of this book alone could have been a duology.

[c6jpg]

dainsleif quest

the lore drops. fucking impeccable. but also i feel edged the fuck on. like we learned a liiiiiiiitle but also get 10 thousand unanswered questions as well

that's pretty standard for dainsleif quests though ig

the quest itself. can we even call that a quest it was so anticlimatic ajkdfladjsf like just content-wise i think that genuinely might have been our worst dainsleif quest the lore was CARRYING this shit and all we got was more questions and it felt SO short

as an aside its also criminal how long apart these quests are bc i honestly already kinda forgot what happened in the previous one (caribert) and i had to like. really use my brain to remember the lore we got then

DAINSLEIF BROTHER????????????

just in general like. my mind was exploding when we were talking about the five sinners of khaenri'ah. i want to learn more about them so bad

"i'll tell you all you want to know" YOU'RE NOT TELLING US ENOUGH DAINSLEIF ELABORATE

WE DESERVED A PROPER DAINSLEIF VS ABYSS TWIN ANIMATED FIGHT CUTSCENE. HOW DARE YOU JUST FADE TO BLACK ARE YOU KIDDINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

ngl when we first saw caribert i actually thought this might be dainsleif's brother and i was like NOOOOOOOOOO THEY CAN'T NPC DAIN'S BRO

i just KNOWWW his brother is gonna be so sexy whenever they reveal him. sorry i had to say it. anyways.

caribert man... his whole deal honestly felt like a sidequest within the quest but that was sad :(

not to be a #scarastan but i was just thinking so hard about the parallels between caribert and scara, implanting vs removing oneself from the memories of the world. both doing it to bring comfort to others, even if futile. i'm not smart enough to expand on this but i'm sure yall know what i mean

anyways okay. so the loom of fate can weave ley lines, that name makes sense now. now can literally anybody please explain what the fuck yall want to do with it

honestly the twin reunion scene felt kinda. idk. flat? like i was more hyped about the abyss twin vs dainsleif part kadjlsflds (speaking of which the way dain clenched his fist lmaooooooo i was just thinking of that one arthur meme)

i do love the detail that the twins call each other by their canon names though

was kind of 🙄 when we got hit with the "yeah btw you won't remember any of this once we're out of here." okay plot convenience

actually is it even plot convenience? like literally what harm would there have been of the traveler remembering???? what are they gonna do???? the only actionable thing of substance we learned was that the loom of fate was completed which dainsleif should have figured out anyways since he got the eye taken from him????????

actually i think it was great that dainsleif got bamboozled though. dude has been carried by plot armor for too long

sea of flowers mention interesting (i have no thoughts on this just interesting esp since i'm pretty sure that's the place shown in the teyvat trailer)

so basically confirmed the heavenly principles are asleep/inactive for some reason. idr if it was explicitly mentioned before. i actually DID wonder why we didn't get some celestia nail action smiting after all the shit that happened in fontaine, a lot of people thought that was gonna happen too with the whole celestia is floating right over fontaine

and then we wake up and the quest just ends??? LET ME TALK TO DAIN HELLO

also like. why did dain want to confront the abyss twin again??? maybe it was mentioned in an earlier quest and if so i forgot but either way i don't understand wtf dain was up to by luring the abyss twin out

no literally that felt like half a quest

objectively i think that quest kinda sucked but i will forgive it solely because of the lore drops no matter how tiny they were and bc i did really like caribert's story

[we-will-be-reun1ted]

i'm glad you liked my thoughts!!^^ I just had another one specifically for the twins communicating one/aether signing.

Basically just, in the scenario Aether is the traveller; The reason he didn't speak with Lumine when he finally saw her again in the We Will Be Reunited Quest™ was because everything before and the current environment was already just leaving him with a constant feeling of dread. But then seeing Lumine be so cold to him and just. Not behaving how she normally would made him feel like something was deeply wrong and it just threw him off very off. (plus the fact that in official art, and even in game cutscenes, Aether is always the less expressive one of the twins but in this quest when he sprinted after Lumi, he ended up being the more expressive one out of the two just makes me wither on the floor in emotional pain)

Meanwhile in the scenario where Lumine is the traveller, i feel like the fact Aether the sunshine boy (as you wrote before) acting like a colder version of her, and then also Actually Speaking even though she was with Dain (someone Aether considered his enemy and therefore wouldn't speak around) made her just feel like something was just Horribly wrong and very much added to her distraught when she realized Aether was leaving her behind. I don't really have a reason she didn't speak here tho, in the game, other than maybe for the first time she was left so emotionally confused and overwhelmed she found herself unintentionally using her brother's preferred form of communication.

Also the fact that in the second Dain quest the traveller said to Paimon that this was the first time the twins were separated just adds to the absolute emotional pain they would've gone through after seeing someone they've been together with for Aeons is willingly choosing to leave/separate

Also partially unrelated but i always get so happy when Hoyo adds things in the game that makes the twins different from one another (Lumine faster attack speed, Aether higher defence stat; Aether faster runner/climber than Lumine; Jeht having a crush on Lumine but not Aether; Variations in speech/behaviour. Stuff like that.)

(Also did you know that "Nara Varuna" is actually the abyss twin? If you play as Aether, Nara Varuna gets called she/her; but when you play with Lumine, Nara Varuna is suddenly he/him. Also the fact the Aranara say "Nara Varuna was a golden Nara just like you". I just think it's nice that at some point in their travels, while the player-twin was asleep, the future-to-be abyss twin went out of their way to help the Aranara)

This is how your sad headcanons are making me feel. You’re hurting me physically, spider.

Aether being less expressive in general yet when he’s faced with the loss of his sister, being the most expressive of the two is making my heart AGGRESSIVELY BREAK

No cause just imagine (going off of your headcanon where he uses sign language often to communicate) he’s been barely talking due to the constant feeling of dread he’s been getting. How wrong everything feels. When out of nowhere he’s met with his sister, the one person he’s been looking for this entire time. The one person he can talk to freely without it feeling uncomfortable at all.

Yet he can’t talk to her. There’s so much he wants to say. He wants to grab her and drag her away from the abyss. Beg her to go home with him. Leave this world.

But he can’t do any of that. He’s stuck in silence. His face being the only thing that can show the utter agony he feels as his sister turns away from him and disappears once again.

IM GONNA LEAVE THE LUMINE ONE FOR NOW CAUSE IVE GOT A POST IN MY DRAFTS GOING INTO HOW LUMINE FELT WHEN HER BROTHER LEFT HER AND THAT FITS IN PERFECTLY but seriously I don’t know how these guys are gonna recover from this.

Okay one thing that really bugs me about the game is how brushed over the travelers feelings about their twin is. All we really get is the Dain story, and then one or two voice lines about looking for their sibling. We don’t get any in depth lore about how much the traveler is going through. Having to save nations while looking for their twin.

Just the fact that Dain says that this is the first time they have been separated proves so much more that they would be taking this awfully. Not just happily going across Teyvat here there and everywhere. They are suffering. Whether in silence or not. They are taking this terribly. I’m going into all this in another post as some point heheh

YEAH I DO LIKE THAT ABOUT THE GAME it makes it feel a lot more personal! I know a lot of people consider Aether and Lumine pretty much the same character but they are genuinely so different from each other. I always get super happy whenever I’m playing and I see a mention of the twin anywhere or see something about them. I only play as Lumine but I really want to make an account with Aether so I can see what it’s like playing as him!

NARA VARUNA IS THE ABYSS TWIN??? Holy SHIT I did not notice that. I’m not gonna lie I’ve pretty much only just started the aranara quest and I’ve not been able to keep up with them. All these stupid names the aranaras really get on my nerves. But wow that’s actually gonna be so much more interesting to play now that I know that! I can get my serotonin fill whenever the twin gets mentioned now 🫶

[sio-writes]

A Servant and His Knight (Part 2/2)

<<Part One

Tags: NSFW, anal sex, slight exhibition kink, semi-public sex

“Dain,” his mother says as she opens the door, her smile taking up half her face.

“Hi, Mom,” Dain says as she ushers him inside and shuts the door. The living area above her jewelry shop is small, really only meant for a single person, but she always clears a space for him.

Dain tries to visit her regularly, at least every few weeks as a way to check on her. She's here by herself, and he worries she gets lonely.

“How are you, dear?” She asks, busying herself by putting on some tea. Her long hair is pulled into a braid that falls past her waist, her skin is a darker brown from being in the sun. She looks healthy, vibrant, and Dain is glad for that.

"Have you been receiving payments?"

"Yes," she laughs. "Every cent has been accounted for." She flourishes a small book, marked with tallies that count each payment the royal treasury sends her every month. 

“Good, good,” Dain says as he takes a seat in the kitchen.

"How have you been, my love?" She asks again, running a gentle hand over his hair. She ends the motion by ruffling it, the same way she did when he was a boy, and he gently bats her hand away with a smile. She sits on a stool next to him, resting her elbows on her knees, and her chin in her hands.

"Well," he starts, and his mother scoots closer, giving Dain her full attention.

"I'm competing in the games," he says, and she breaks out into a smile.

"That's wonderful, what a great opportunity!" She lightly smacks him on the bicep. "You could finally show His Majesty you're ready for the knighthood!"

Dain tries not to roll his eyes. She’s been vying for this since he started at the castle. "I enjoy serving the prince. It's easy, and pays well." 

"Not nearly well enough to get out of this place! Who's teaching you? Sir Fiain? Lady Caillte? Or-- oh! Sir Aonair is so handsome, if you're training under him, you two should pay me a visit."

Dain laughs, and it feels good to do so. These visits are like a balm on his soul. He worries over his mother, wonders if she gets lonely in the city on her own. After his father passed, she wouldn’t leave the house, or eat, or do anything but cry. It had left Dain to care for the house in her stead, and by the time he was old enough to work, it was all but ingrained into his system. But seeing her like this, lively and smiling and whole, it eases the tension in his heart. He wonders what she’d think of Warrec.

They hadn’t met up today, and it’s been on Dain’s mind for hours. Warrec usually saw Dain when he was doing chores, but there hasn’t been a single glint of metal since yesterday. Dain wants to ask about him, but he wouldn't know who to ask.

"You've got a look," his mother teases. "Who're you thinking about?"

Dain chews on his bottom lip, running a hand over his hair and mimicking the ruffle his mother is so fond of. "My trainer."

 She leans forward. "Oh?"

"He's, um…"

"Is he handsome?"

Dain laughs. "I'm not sure, actually."

At his mother's confused expression, Dain feels his face warm. He never could keep anything from her. "He's one of the living armor suits."

His mother's eyebrows shoot to her hairline. "Oh," she says, not disappointed or disgusted, but surprised.

Dain looks down at his hands, and then forces himself to look up into his mother's face. "Is that…okay?"

She blinks a few times, and he can see her thoughts pass in front of her eyes, before her expression relaxes and she smiles. "Whatever makes you happy, my love. I mean that honestly." She ruffles his hair again. "Does he treat you well?"

"He does."

"That's all that matters. But tell me what else he does. How did you meet?"

"I was setting up the stalls and stepped on a nail," Dan waves off his mother's pointed glance down to his feet. "He carried me to the river to clean it off. Trust me, it was an overreaction."

"That's very romantic. You know, your father did something similar for me."

Dan leans forward in his chair. She speaks so little of his father. "Really?"

She nods, humming an affirmative note. "When I was dancing in the troupe, we were practicing for a performance before the stage was set-up. Very rough ground, lots of rocks. Your father was watching us, and I got, let's say distracted," she laughs. "He was very handsome, back in those days. I fell and sprained my ankle, broke a toe too. He carried me to the medicine tent and remained with me all day."

Dain smiles, looking down at his hands. Warrec had been his shadow after he'd returned to the stalls. "He did the same. Wouldn't leave me alone."

"That's a good man. A keeper."

They spend the rest of the morning spending time together, catching up and just existing in each other’s company. By the time Dain leaves, it feels as if no time has passed at all.

***

The day of the brawl comes quicker than Dain could fathom. Ideally, it would never come, it would remain a ghost of an idea floating on the breeze, carried very far away from him. But as he readies his stance against the first challenger— the candlemaker’s son— his nerves refuse to let him lose.

“You’ll go down,” he says, pointing his sword at Dain.

The son— Dain swears his name is Thomas— is wiry, with cropped blonde hair and sunken eyes as if he was up late the night before. His footsteps are uneven, favoring the right leg ever so slightly, so he must have injured the opposite leg at some point and never adjusted his gait. When Thomas gets into his stance, Dain sees his left side is carefully guarded while his right has several openings that would be easy to exploit.

Dain mirrors the stance, fixing the openings so Thomas has nowhere to hit, and when the bell chimes for the match to start, he holds his ground and waits for Thomas to rush him.

It’s a fool’s move, charging at the opponent without considering their fighting style. But, as Dain blocks the first overhead blow, then the second, he realizes Thomas doesn’t have a fighting style. He’s swinging wide, completely on the offensive, broadcasting his moves so far in advance that Dain feels as if he’s three steps ahead.

Thomas strikes at Dain’s side, giving Dain the opening he needs to sweep his feet from under him and knock the sword from his hands. Thomas lands flat on his back, and the bell rings out just as Dain presses the tip of his blade to Thomas’ nose.

They’re both breathing hard, the few scant seconds of fighting more than enough for sweat to break across his brow, but Dain is focused on other things.

He won. He won! He won his firsts fight!

That’s unbelievable, really. That Dain bested someone in combat. Thomas was his first opponent of several today, and he was by far going to be the easiest. He won this battle, but he needs to keep a level head for the oncoming war.

As a show of good faith, Dain extends his hand for Thomas to take, and is stricken by the parallel. He’s in the same spot Warrec was not a week past. Does this mean he actually has a chance at winning?

Thomas sneers at his hand for a moment, but takes it and hauls himself up.

“Not bad,” Thomas mutters as Dain returns his sword and they exit the ring.

Dain nods in response, and Thomas walks off, defeated. Dain watches as his name advances in the chart, hoping he’d get to see his next opponent fight, but they still need to go through the other contenders.

It’s hard not to feel excited. Between the rush of the fight and the crowd cheering around him, and the taste of victory that much closer, Dain has to fight to keep a smile off his face.

He’s pulled out of his thoughts by a heavy hand on his shoulder, and a familiar voice saying, “You’ve done well.”

“Warrec,” Dain breathes, turning around to face the knight fully. “You saw that?”

Warrec nods, and Dain’s smile grows. “Your teaching has paid off.”

“Don’t get comfortable, you have the whole day ahead.”

Dain nods, affirmative. Just as he goes to turn back to the ring, he notices Warrec’s other hand held behind his back. He usually keeps them to the front, or at his sides, and Dain narrows his eyes. 

“Are you hiding something?” he asks, only teasing up until Warrec straightens further. “Do you have something for me?” Dain teases again, crossing his arms over his chest, expecting absolutely nothing at all, but Warrec surprises him by nodding, and shoving something red and conical into his hands. It smells of the perfume that the ladies of the court like to wear.

“Flowers?” Dain asks, shifting the bouquet to one arm so he can see around it. It's massive, at least a dozen roses all clipped at the exact perfect time. He swallows around a nervous lump in his throat, feeling his heartbeat in his ears. Warrec is straight as a rod, hands down by his thighs, helmet facing forward and looking past Dain and over his shoulder.

“I know that they’re used in courting,” Warrec says, voice short and quiet. “So consider this my official request.”

Dain looks back down to the bouquet. Roses don’t come cheap, even less so in the middle of a tournament.“You didn’t have to spend money on me, but…thank you.”

Warrec is asking to court him, and to court him properly. That meant gifts, negotiations, a shared living space and eventually a marriage. That’s what Warrec is truly asking, to spend the rest of their days together. 

The weight of the question makes Dain’s head spin, so much so that he nearly has to sit down or risk falling to the ground. From a practical standpoint, he should refuse this, it’s nothing more than the whims of a magical item stored within metal plating. But then again, Warrec is much more than that.

They’re standing on the fringes of the crowd, not attracting any wayward stares, but Dain still feels the heat in his cheeks. “Yes,” he says before any other thought can tell him to turn Warrec down. Dain wants this, he wants to be with Warrec, he can’t imagine himself anywhere else. Even if saying yes makes him want to run for the hills.

Warrec starts, surprised. “Yes?”

Dain smiles, pressing the flowers to his nose and taking a deep inhale. “You heard me, my good knight.”

Warrec looks to the side, considering. “I suppose I did.”

***

Dain wins his next fight, and the one after that, and every fight he's against for the next three days. Each day he wakes with anxiety clawing at his lungs, only to have it resolve in the calm of battle, however short it is. The fights were all rather easy, his competitors either too open to guard themselves, or too stiff to make an attack. Dain is thankful for Warrec’s emphasis on form over speed, and by the end of it all, Dain’s worked up his mind into a fantasy of winning. There's only one day left, one more fight that he may win. It’s hard to push down, his excitement, it bubbles up like water from a well.

The final days of the tournament are in full swing, each day feeling more loose and improvised than the last.  The celebration that floods the halls is grandiose, and Dain wonders how they can afford to be as merry today as they were a week ago. The smell of mead and braised pork belly wafts through every corner of the castle, leading one by the nose straight to the dining hall. The royal family is in their best dress, His Majesty King Guthanna has roused the crowd into singing shanties, so charismatic that even Her Grace Queen Catherine has joined in along with several of her handmaidens.

Dain watches on the fringes, unsure if he belongs here. As champion he's been invited to the feast, but he's still just the Prince's hand servant. All these faces in the crowd have seen him cleaning up after the royal family, have seen him in the halls carting laundry or scrubbing the floors or any other menial chore unbecoming of a tournament contestant.

Even now, Dain's got a load of sheets in his arms, ready to be scorched clean and hung to dry. He'd only stopped in the entrance of the grand hall to see what all the singing was for. No one has spotted him yet, he could probably slink by without rousing any suspicion.

"Why are you standing out here?" says a sudden voice behind Dain, making him jump and nearly let out a scream. He whirls around.

“Warrec!” Dain says, affronted but still smiling. "How do you keep doing that?"

Warrec looks down at himself, and Dain realizes he's changed his armor. It's ceremonial and shiny, with less wear from battle. There's golden filigree inlaid along the seams, and even a black plume extending out of the back of his head. "Doing what, m'lord?"

"You're so--" Dain gestures to all of Warrec. "--Loud most of the time. But you still manage to sneak up on me."

"A good warrior knows when to make noise, and when to remain silent."

Dain scoffs, faking offense. "And you use that skill to shave years off my life."

Warrec laughs, quiet and reserved, before he straightens. “I came to offer my congratulations, it was you who was standing in the hallway.”

Dain looks away and rubs the back of his neck, taking the subject change in stride. “It’s only thanks to your teaching.”

“You’ll be challenged fully tomorrow. Keep a sharp eye out.”

Dain nods, his stomach twisting. “I will.”

The champion's final test was a fight against one of His Majesty's own, and typically that meant a knight from his royal guard. Every one of them were at least a head taller than Dain, with the build to match.  Sir Fiain is rumored to have a glare that freezes his opponents solid, and Lady Caillte is so quick she could slice off his head without it falling to the ground. Today had been a day of rest, allowing Dain's mind the chance to latch onto all these ideas of who he'll be facing, of all the ways they could tear him to the ground in a heartbeat. 

But here in the hallway, with Warrec at his side, he could conquer anything.

Dain speaks up the same time as Warrec. “I was hoping to—“

“Are you going to—“

Dain pauses on a laugh, nervous and trying to remain still so as to avoid scuffing his feet against the ground. Warrec motions for Dain to continue, and Dain bounces on the balls of his feet. 

“Follow me, I have something for you,” Dain says, pulling Warrec through the halls and down to the servants’ quarters.

The trip down is short and one they've taken before, but Warrec still allows Dain to guide him, never once withdrawing his hand from Dain's. The halls are emptied out, most of the staff either celebrating in the city, in the grand hall, or tucked away in the backrooms to gamble and drink away from royal eyes. It leaves the two of them much like that first night, with only each other, and Dain chews on the inside of his cheek at the possibilities.

It's highly improper for a courting couple to be alone together. There's been more than one occasion where Dain has been with the prince and his betrothed under strict supervision by a chaperone. The affair is always stiff and awkward, as Prince Galliant much prefers riding horses and strolling the city  to drinking tea in the garden. It's never been Dain's style, the formal, practiced events of the crown. 

But there's something to be said about being in his sleeping quarters with the object of his affections, still grasping his hand as he leads him towards the bed. Warrec has seen him naked, this shouldn't feel as scandalous as it does, and yet Dain still has to bite down a smile and resist making a joke to ease the tension in his gut.

Dain reaches underneath his pillow, grasping at the thin stem there and straightening to present Warrec with a single chrysanthemum rendered in metal. “Since you got me roses,” he says, embarrassed.

Warrec looks down at the flower, and Dain tries to quell the rising anxiety in his throat. He hadn’t had enough coin for anything fancy, but he’d convinced the craftswoman to place a shard of green glass in the middle of the piece, right at the center of all those branching petals. It isn’t a true gem, but it sparkles like one, reflecting off Warrec’s metal helm as he inspects it. 

With great care, Warrec takes the flower from Dain's hand, saying nothing as he turns it in his fingers and holds it up to the torchlight to watch the glass reflect off the walls. 

Dain purses his lips. "I only thought it fair." 

Silently, Warrec threads the flower through a strap on his armor, and then twists the stem around itself to knot it there. Before Dain can open his mouth to speak, Warrec envelopes him in a hug. It's tight, the metal digs into Dain's skin over his clothing, but he hugs back anyway and buries his face into Warrec's shoulder.

It's a long moment before they separate, and Dain has half a mind to ask Warrec to stay, just for a few more minutes. The incident with the tub has sparked an itch under his skin, one that's within reach, one that he may be able to scratch.

Warrec speaks before him, though. "We should go back."

That stills Dain's mind, and he nods, leading the way out. They walk hand in hand to the same hallway, where Warrec offers another embrace before he steps away. Dain watches him go around the corner of the hall and feels the responsibilities of his position start to weigh on his shoulders again. With Warrec those things seem to dissolve away, but in his absence come back full force. He can't take too much time for himself, not when there's work to be done.

Dain begins to head back to the kitchens, a path that takes him through the grand hall, when Prince Galliant’s voice calls to him. “Dain, come over here!”

The Prince is inebriated, something Dain sees more clearly the closer he gets the the head of the table. Prince Galliant is practically sideways over his ornate chair, one leg thrown over the arm, the other tucked under his seat. He's leaning heavily on one elbow that's holding a sturdy golden goblet, the other propped casually on his leg.

He waits until Dain is by his side before speaking, “I saw you with that knight.”

Dain stiffens, trying to keep his gaze down. “Yes, your majesty.”

Prince Galliant leans forward as far as his position will allow, catching Dain's eye with a conspiratorial glint. “You’re the one who gave him the favor.”

“I didn't—" Dain starts to protest, but corrects himself. He's still in the presence of royalty, and lying would be an insult. "Yes, your majesty.”

Prince Galliant barks out a laugh as he reclines into his seat, “Hah! I never would’ve thought. Just when I think I know you, you go and surprise me. It’s no matter of consequence, Dain, don’t look at me like that. I was wondering why you’ve been so distracted lately, and now I know!”

Dain fidgets with his hands as relief slowly unwinds his tightened chest. Galliant isn't upset with him. “Apologies, your majesty, I didn’t realize I was distracted.”

He taps Dain with the end of one scuffed boot. “I’m glad for you, my friend. This is a good thing.”

The acceptance in Prince Galliant's tone releases the last of the tension in Dain's spine. It makes room for another anxiety, the creep of the unknown that clouds his future. Dain stares at a spot on the throne, trying to make sense of the noise in his head. It's like a nest of adders, constantly moving, not knowing where one thought ends and the other begins.

Prince Galliant catches on, and his brows furrow, suddenly very serious. He kicks his swinging leg to the floor and props his elbows on his knees as he leans forward. "What is it?"

It's improper to speak to his majesty of his own personal problems, Dain knows this much. But the prince is his companion, they practically grew up together. If he can tell anyone, he can tell Galliant.

"What comes next?" Dain asks, more to himself than his majesty. "If I win tomorrow, I'd have enough to train as a knight, but that would take me away from…" Dain looks around the grand hall, at the walls that are his home as much as the royal family. Would he survive on the outside at all? And if he does, then the knighthood could very well take him away from Warrec.

The prince hums, one hand clapping Dain on the shoulder. "You worry too much. Concern yourself with the here and now, and worry over tomorrow when it crosses your path."

That's the most eloquent string of words Dain has heard the prince put together all night. And it's not a terrible idea, after all, to pick the battles within himself as they appear. Dain concedes, eyebrows raised and head falling to one side. "You make a good point, your majesty."

Prince Galliant brings his other hand to his chin, and hums again. "To be courted by an autonomous knight. I wonder what that will entail?"

Dain huffs, smiling. "I suppose I'll be the one to find out."

Then Galliant smiles, a sharp, dangerous expression, and Dain knows that look. He's about to say something inappropriate. So Dain shuffles his feet, turning on his heel before Galliant can say a single word, striding out the hall to the sound of the prince's laughter.

***

The sunrise cresting over the last day of the tournament is blood red, tinged with orange and yellow like a fire spilling from the hearth. It spells out bad weather for the day, dropping a heaviness into the air that practically screams bad omens in Dain's ears. But he rolls out of bed anyway, ignoring the flash of a memory that puts Warrec beside him, and dresses for the day. 

With a heavy sigh, the matron excuses him from his daily chores, even going so far as to assign Prince Galliant a temporary hand for the day. It frees Dain's schedule entirely, and the lack of things to do leaves him pacing the halls, doing nothing but worrying over who he'll have to face.

So he busies himself on the training grounds, running through drills with the competition sword, trying to adjust to the weight of it in his hands as he faces off an invisible opponent. He tries to remember all that Warrec taught him, reflecting on the openings each stance leaves, covering them with nimble movements of his feet or the strong defense of his sword. The hours tick by but his energy doesn't diffuse, and before he knows it, it's time to be a man. 

Dain is the first to the ring, sheepishly waving to the crowd that cheers him on. There's quite a number of people this time around compared to the previous brawls, and the sizeable audience only sets Dain further on edge. There's cheering and jeering as he takes his place inside the ring, people calling out for his success and his failure all at once. They want a good fight, and Dain is prepared to give it to them. 

That is, he's prepared until Warrec crosses the threshold and into the painted circle to be Dain's opponent, and Dain's  blood runs cold.

Oh, this is what the spirits were trying to tell him.

The royal family is on their dias thrones behind Warrec, and Dain meet's Prince Galliant's eye in a panic. Galliant reflects his expression, eyes flicking between him and Warrec, and he pulls his shoulders up in a shrug. They're both useless against the King's choice.

The King stands, quieting the crowd with a single raised hand, and projects his voice. "No cheap shots, no dirty tricks, the first one to push his opponent out of line is declared the winner."

It's the same rules Dain's been hearing all week, but his head is swimming too much to parse what His Majesty says. All he can see is his own reflection, distorted within the flat plane of Warrec's chestplate, shifting like water each time either of them shifts their weight.

For a brief moment, Dain considers giving up before the match can start. He doesn't want to fight Warrec, especially not in front of a crowd. He's going to lose anyway, most likely in under a few seconds flat. He's only landed a few hits before this, how can he expect to win an entire fight?

Before Dain can raise a hand to forfeit, however, the bell rings and Warrec is rushing at him at an impossible speed. Dain barely manages to jump to the side before Warrec's sword crashes to the ground in a spray of dust and dirt, barely down before Warrec heaves it back up and makes an overhead swing.

Dain barely gets his own blade up in time to block it, using all his strength to push Warrec away before he sweeps Dain's feet out from under him. And using the split second of a pause as Warrec regains his footing, Dain sweeps one foot back and readies the very stance that Warrec taught him. They're in this now, no going back.

Dain rushes forward before Warrec has a chance to reorient himself, spotting an opening on Warrec's left side that he jabs at. Warrec dodges just in time, catching the edge of Dain's blade that skims along his plate armor, creating a horrible shrieking sound that Dain feels in his teeth.

The jab left Dain's left side open, something Warrec takes advantage of by driving his elbow into Dain's ribs and sending him careening to the side. In a flash of movement, Dain manages to stay inside the circle, but just barely. He scrambles to his feet just as Warrec begins to charge him again, the same way Dain had just a moment ago, with a large side of his torso left unguarded.

It's a rash move, not one that Warrec would usually make, but Dain swings towards that opening with all the speed he can muster. The blade hits its mark at Warrec's shoulder and the clang of metal against metal is nearly deafening. The impact sends Warrec to the ground, skidding along the dirt and out of the ring. He rolls onto his back just as Dain steps over him, and taps the flat of his blade to Warrec's helm.

"Dead," Dain says through heaving breaths, and the crowd bursts into a cacophony of cheers.

Dain backs out of Warrec's way, offering him a hand up as the sound of the crowd bowls over him like a physical force. He can hardly hear it over the ponding of his heart in his ears

Prince Galliant is beside Dain in an instant, hoisting Dain's arm in the air as he proclaims, "We have our winner!" And the crowd erupts once more.

It's hard to keep the smile from his face - he won! It's been a hard victory, but he won! Dain feels like he could jump into the sky and land on his feet again. That gold could set him up for the knighthood as well as care for his mother, he could keep training with Warrec and--

Warrec.

Dain looks over his shoulder to Warrec, standing respectfully to the side. He's holding a bit of curved metal, and Dain sees that one of his shoulder pauldrons is missing a piece. The hit from Dain must have chipped it off. Warrec is looking directly at Dain and when Dain looks back, Warrec nods. Pride and a sense of accomplishment swell in Dain's chest, and he turns forward towards the crowd again.

It's a rush, from the intensity of battle to being so adored by the people, it's easy to relax and coast on the golden light coursing through his veins. Prince Galliant says a few more words that sail right over Dain's head, as well as the King announcing the closing ceremonies later in the evening, but Dain can't focus on one single voice. He's still grappling with the fact that he's the fighting tournament's champion.

The crowd starts to clear, though, and Dain slowly drifts back down to the ground. Noise filters in like he's shaking water from his ears, the murmur of the crowd growing sparse as the onlookers make their way to the next event. And Dain realizes that he's pushed himself to his limit. His arms are shaking, the sword has fallen from his hand to the dirt, and he's practically leaning on Prince Galliant so his legs won't collapse from under him.

Thankfully Galliant pulls Dain aside, leaning in like the two are in on a secret. "That was amazing, my friend," Galliant says. "You made that look easy!"

"I did?" Dain asks, incredulous. "It didn't feel easy."

"He folded like a stack of cards for you." The Prince winks. "Not a bad idea to have your dearly beloved up against you, hm?"

At the Prince's words, something sours in Dain's gut, and he blinks away the confusion. "You set this up?"

"Not entirely, but I may have…influenced my father's decision," he laughs. "And I certainly didn't tell your companion to throw the match."

"He didn't…throw the match," Dain says, voice trailing off, each word out of his mouth leaving him feeling less and less confident. The brawl did seem a bit too short, but no shorter thn the others Dain had faced. He'd assumed facing Warrec would last longer, but he was thankful that it hadn't. He's too exhausted to do anything more.

"It's what any good lover would do," the Prince says, nudging Dain with his shoulder. The tap is light and good-natured, but the exhaustion is starting to wear on Dain, and he nearly falls on his ass.

Slowly, things start to fall into place. The rushed attack, the open stance, it all had the airs of a fight cut too short. Dain's mouth goes dry, and he stares resolutely at the ground. He can feel Warrec's presence standing off to the side, and the urge to glance at him is great. But Dain pushes it down, pushes down his retorts as the thrill of victory crumbles in his hands. He has just enough strength to regain his posture, leaning away from Prince Galliant, muttering some excuse as he stalks out of the ring and towards the castle.

***

After a quick rest, Dain's energy comes back in waves. No longer excused by way of the competition, he's given a light load of chores that he dives into. The distraction serves its purpose, shifting his mood from sullen and angry to a flat clear-headed idea of what to do.

As upset as he is, Dain doesn't think facing Warrec for a second time would go in his favor. The very idea of speaking to him proves too much for Dain to handle, and he launches himself into his work. Picking the clothes from His Majesty's floor, scrubbing the tile and handing off dirty bedsheets to be laundered, this is where Dain belongs. He's not meant for greater things.

Galliant invites him to the final dinner of the festival, but Dain respectfully declines. Instead, he chooses to wander the halls, lost in thought. With the winnings in gold, he could afford to enlist as a knight, but that could take him away from the city, away from his mother, away from Warrec.

Dain stops by the window overlooking the festival stands, already half-dismantled if not gone entirely. The whole event felt like a dream, and Dain had gotten swept up in the grandeur of it all. 

The sound of metal steps against stone, stopping right behind Dain, pulls him from his thoughts. He sets his shoulders back. “Warrec.”

“My lord,” comes that soothing baritone.

“What do you want?” Dain snaps.

“I wanted to see you.”

Always so straight-forward. It makes Dain grit his teeth against the warm feeling spreading through his chest. “Well, here I am.”

“I’m also here to offer congratulations. It was a good fight.”

Turning away from the window, Dain glances down at the hand Warrec offers to him, and looks back up at Warrec's helm. “No.”

“No?”

Turning his head away, Dain says through clenched teeth. “I know that you threw it.”

Warrec scoffs. “I did no such thing.”

Dain glares at him sidelong. "You let me win.”

“I respect you far too much to throw that fight," Warrec responds indignantly. "You won that brawl through your own merit.”

Dain whirls on him, pointing an accusing finger. "Oh, don't give me that shit. You gave up!"

Warrec steps up to him, invading his space as he looks down at Dain. "Why would I ask to be yours, and then insult you in such a manner? His Majesty asked me, and I couldn't refuse."

Dain doesn't say anything, as he is out of reasons to talk. Warrec wouldn't lie to him, just as he wouldn't fight without honor. Anything less would be very un-Warrec. 

Pursing his lips, Dain pouts. "The match was so short."

"You must have had a very good teacher," Warrec says, offering a soft, short laugh and Dain's resolve weakens because of it. "You're a quick study, my lord" Warrec offers. "The days leading up to this were not easy for you. Don't be so quick to discount yourself."

Dain chances a glance at his knight, then releases a sigh. “What would you have even done with the prize money?”

“Taken leave,” Warrec says simply. “To keep my lord company.”

Again, Dain tries to push down the warmth curling in his chest, taking place just behind his sternum, but it comes out anyway as a smile and short laugh. “You’d use all that gold just to follow me around like a duckling?”

“Of course,” Warrec says simply, and Dain’s grip on his arms tighten. 

Dain folds his arms, looking back out at the festival. "I'm still upset with you."

Warrec steps up behind Dain, close enough to cover his back as he rests heavy hands over Dain's hips. "Allow me a repentance, my lord."

Dain swallows hard, but says nothing. His silence only spurs Warrec on, leaning further into him, stepping between his feet, and Dain exhales sharply. "Right here?" Even saying it out loud sends a thrill up Dain's spine. His anger, already at a simmer, boils away to be replaced with a thick arousal.

"Wherever you like," Warrec mutters in his ear.

Dain pulls his lower lip between his teeth to suppress a shiver. What an idea. But a sharp noise from around the corner, like a plate clattering to the floor, has him thinking better of it, and he leans backwards into Warrec's form. "I think we're a bit too exposed here."

Warrec steps back, leaving Dain feeling cold, but his hands remain on Dain's hips. "Then lead the way, my lord."

Grabbing one of Warrec's hands, Dain tries to think through the haze of lust fogging his brain. There's a servant's passage past the next bend, and many of the other staff have retired for the night. It should be empty and out of the way, so Dain pulls Warrec into the damp hallway.

In less time than it takes to inhale, Warrec has Dain against the wall, pushing him forward into it so they're back where they were moments ago. The wall is smooth and cool  under Dain's palms, and he pushes his hips back against Warrec's, hoping to feel something indicating his excitement, and gasps when hardness brushes the seam of his pants.

"I didn't know you--" he gasps again as Warrec cants his hips forward, pressing against his ass through his pants.

"It takes effort," Warrec says, voice cool and level. "But not impossible."

On hand lands back on Dain's hips, pressing in like a declaration. "O-oh," Dain chokes out as Warrec palms his erection over his pants. "Could it—"

"Yes," Warrec says, grabbing the hem of Dain's pants and yanking them down. The cold air against his bare ass makes him flinch, but he's distracted by another thought. 

"Are you going to open me first?"

"It won't work well with my hands." Warrec scratches Dain's skin lightly, making the soft leather of his gloves apparent, and Dain rests his forehead against the wall with a thunk. 

"You will have to do it yourself," Warrec continues, and the statement makes Dain stand upright.

"What? I'm not doing that."

"If I’m going to fuck you—“

“Shh!” Dain hisses, hands flailing as he frantically looks around. “Not so loud.” The hall is empty, but who knows when someone could come within earshot?

If Dain is being honest with himself, it’s exciting, this idea of being caught, of making eye contact with someone as Warrec fucks him against the cold stone wall. Of continuing despite prying eyes, giving them a show.

Dain shivers, skin oversensitive and hot, as he covers his fingers in saliva and inserts a finger into himself, hissing at the intrusion and letting his eyes fall shut. The spit eases the way, provides the glide as he begins to thrust quickly, pain resolving into more heat that diffuses through his bones and makes his knees weak.

Then there’s a weight at his back, and for a moment Dain thinks he’s been caught, until Warrec braces his feet on the inside of Dain’s and rests a hand on his lower back. It leaves him feeling exposed and sheltered at the same time. Like Warrec is staking a claim on him.

“What a sight you make,” Warrec mutters as he draws his hand over Dain’s flank, and Dain shuts his eyes against the embarrassment attempting to flood his system. He’s not done this in front of another person before. It’s so quiet, so intimate. 

Dain flexes his fingers, gritting his teeth against the stretch. This pace is faster than he’s used to, but he needs to hurry up before someone sees them. Not that it would matter, it’s not unheard of to steal away from the crowd, even with the living armor, but the shame at being caught still burns under his skin. It combines with the arousal into a simmering emotion that makes his cock swell.

He’d never considered himself an exhibitionist, but it’s an attractive thought that Dain wants to explore. What would Warrec want to do, how far would he push?

“Okay,” Dain pants against the wall, pulling his fingers away and feeling emptier than ever. “I’m ready. Go.”

Warrec hums, thoughtful, drawing a slow line up Dain's back with his free hand. It's an anchor of touch, drawing Dain's focus away from the empty hall, and inwards towards his own desire flaring in his belly. His hand stops between Dain's shoulder blades, and Dain arches into the touch.

Without a word, Warrec adjusts behind Dain, a simple rustling of cloth, and then there’s a hot, thick presence pressing into him, splitting him open. Dain digs his fingers into the wall in a futile attempt at finding purchase as sweat breaks out along his brow. Warrec goes slow, but he’s still big, stretching him nearly to a breaking point and Dain doesn’t think he can take much more, until cool metal is resting against his ass.

Warrec’s hand smooths down his side as Dain acclimates. They’re really doing this, out in the open, where anyone can see. It sends a shiver down Dain’s spine, and suddenly Warrec is much too slow.

“Are you—“

“Yes, yes! Hurry, before someone sees,” Dain breathes out, his feelings coming out in a rush.

Warrec grabs Dain’s hips with both hands, folding himself over Dain’s back as he pulls out nearly all the way and then snaps his hips forward. He sets a brutal, almost punishing pace that quickly has Dain gasping wetly against the wall. 

It feels so good. Even when his cheek scrapes against the stone and Warrec presses bruises into his skin, Dain softly moans each time Warrec’s hips hit his ass. It’s like they were made for each other, every part of Dain feels full, and he questions why they hadn’t done this to begin with. 

Warrec grabs him by the hair, pulling backwards and forcing his mouth open wider, turning his panting into open moans that echo off the stone. The sound is loud and obscene, and that pool of shame wells up inside him at the thought of someone hearing them, and alongside it pleasure coiling tight in his belly. Dain tries to yank his head away, but Warrec growls low, almost threatening, and releases Dain’s hair to hook two fingers into his mouth.

“No,” he says, sounding far too level for being balls deep inside of him, and resets his grip over Dain’s hip, fresh points of contact before driving in deep and making Dain see stars.

The shame and excitement burn in tandem in his chest, and Dain swallows as best as he can with Warrec’s fingers in his mouth. He’s going to come completely untouched like this, a fact he quickly makes peace with as Warrec creeps his fingers further into Dain’s mouth enough for him to lick at the leather. That’s fine. This is heavenly.

Dain’s muscles start to lock up, pleasure releasing like a spring inside him and then his vision goes white and he’s coming, so hard, hips stuttering, toes curling. The two of them shudder together, and Dain feels Warrec twitch inside him before he spills. The hand in his mouth travels back to his hair, to an affectionate touch over his spine as Warrec straightens. It’s an overload of sensations, so many that Dain just floats as he tries to catch his breath.

Faintly, he’s aware of Warrec pulling out, and once his arms stop feeling like they’re made of water, Dain hikes his breeches back up and turns to lean against the wall.

“You think anybody heard us?”

“I only care about you, m’lord,” Warrec says, joining Dain to lean against the wall. Dain’s legs are still too weak, so he slides down, careful to avoid the mess he made on the wall, and crosses his legs beneath him. Warrec mimics him, with much more clattering and a horrible scraping sound, but Dain rests his head on Warrec’s shoulder all the same. "I feel foolish for even thinking you'd allow me to win."

Warrec squeezes his hand. "I almost did."

"Why?"

"You're a competent swordsman; seeing that in action is quite the turn-on, and very distracting. That, and you don't belong in here, my lord. These walls stifle your light."

Dain huffs. "Stifle my light," he repeats flatly, scoffing. In truth, he worries how he'll fare outside the castle walls. They're the only place he's known. Would he be up to the task if he were to leave?

Warrec doesn't press the issue though, allowing the two of them to sit in companionable silence. It allows Dain to think, to reflect on the past weeks. He's certainly changed, but he wonders if it was for the better, if setting on this path was the right choice. Undertaking more responsibility through the knighthood meant more potential at a glamorous life, but was he even ready for it?

Warrec pulls him out of his thoughts by softly speaking up, “You seem melancholy.”

Dain breathes out through his nose. “It’s nothing.”

“Please, unburden yourself.”

Dain sighs. “It was something his majesty said. That a man’s not a man if he doesn’t know how to fight.” He looks down at his free hand, flexing his fingers and feeling the callouses there. “I know how to fight now, but I don’t feel any different. I feel stronger, certainly, but no more a man than I was before. Did I not do it right?”

Warrec doesn’t answer immediately, looking down at their joined hands, then he shakes his head. “You were enough of a man to begin with.”

“I just feel like myself.”

“Are you happy?”

Dain squeezes Warrec’s hand, smiling softly. “Yes.”

“Then that is enough.” 

[xandriagreat]

Teaching and Learning with The Paw | Chapter 4: The Missing Paw 

First Chapter | Last Chapter | Next Chapter

Author’s note: Ok, this chapter is going to be serious. Also big thanks to @vanessafangirl13 for helping me again with this chapter.

Notice/Warnings: fighting, hospital mentioned, anxiety/fear, crash, shout/yelling, CAPs

▪▪▪

For the past few days, Diane has been tense and uptight.

Everyone in the prison noticed this, including Milton. 

Diane was in her head during her Good Class with Milton.

“Diane? Diane!” Milton called out to her, getting her back into reality. 

“Hm? What?” Diane asked, looking at him when she got back.

“Is something wrong, Diane?” Milton asked, putting the marker down after putting the cap back on it. “You look distracted.”

“I’m… ok.” she reassured, forcing a soft smile. “I promise that I’m ok.”

Milton looked at her with a concerned look. “I know that it’s not my place but did something happen?” he asked, trying to not push too hard on her.

Diane sighs as she looks at Milton and asks, “Do you know what the trauma anniversary effect is?”

Milton nodded. “Yes. It is when the anxiety gets bigger whenever the time of trauma comes up.” he said with what he knows.

“Yeah… it’s happening to me right now… with what happened to the Lost Girls… and the camps…” Diane said, looking down. “I’ll be a bit out of it… But I’ll be ok. I promise. I know how to handle it.”

“Okay, I trust you.” Milton said with a calm voice. “And it’s ok to talk about it. If you want to.”

Diame looked at him to see him smiling reassuringly softly. 

She smiled a bit back. “Thanks, Dr. Park… I don’t feel like talking about it right now but thank you for reminding me that I’m not alone.”

Milton nodded before looking at the time on his watch.

It was almost finishing time.

“Well, it’s almost time.” he said, getting stuff put away. Diane nodded, still looking down. “Yeah… sorry.” “No no. It’s ok.” Milton reassured with a soft smile. “It’s good to talk about it.”

Diane gave a small smile back and she got up from her seat as they went out of the room.

Diane went to the mess hall and met up with Ruth as Milton went to the Warden’s office to talk to the Warden.

“Hello, Warden Keen.” Milton said as he entered the office.

“Doctor Park.” Warden Keen said, looking at Milton and noddeding to him. “How was the lesson with Foxington?”

“It went alright.” Milton answered with a bit of a shrug. “She is learning quickly but we finished about half the lesson.”

“Oh? What happened?”

“Everything is ok.” Milton reassured Warden Keen, putting a claw hand up to show that everything was ok. “It’s just that Diane told me that she isn’t going to be at her best self for a bit.”

“What do you mean by that?” Warden Keen asked.

Before Milton could explain, there were loud shouts from the mess hall.

Warden Keen and Milton ran out to see what’s going on.

◇☆

In the mess hall, Daine was fighting another prisoner while all the other prisoners watched.

“YOU TAKE THAT BACK!” Diane shouted as she attacked the prisoner and pinned her to the floor.

The prisoner looked at Diane in fear while trying to fight her off.

The next thing Diane knew was that got tackled by the other inmates and then punched so hard that she got knocked out.

When Diane woke up, she was in the medical ward. 

“W-what…?” she mumbled as she tried to shake her head to fully wake up.

“Ah, you’re finally awake.” Warden Keen said, looking at her as he walked over.

“What happened?” Diane asked confusedly, looking at him. “All that I remember is fighting… Then I got knocked out.”

“Yes, you were in a fight, which got out of control.” Warden Keen said, looking down at her and shaking his head. “And, you know that fights are not allowed.” 

Diane glared at the warden. “I did not do that for ‘fun’.” she spat, her green eyes almost looking like a green fire of anger. “Some friends and other prisoners were being bullied and I don’t like that.”

The warden stared down at Diane as the fox took control of her anger and sighed. Diane let her head rest on the pillow as she explained, “So, I tried to be nice and talk to the bullies. Then some words were exchanged and the next thing I knew was that I was fightin’ them.”

Warden Keen nodded. He looked somewhat worried and Diane noticed it.

“Something happened, because you look worried.” the fox said, looking at him.

Warden Keen rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “Well, the medical staff just informed me and… you got hurt badly during.” the Warden said, looking at her. “You are going to be transferred to a hospital. There will be guards, so don’t think that you’re off the hook.”

“I figured.” Diane hummed flatly, nodding slowly. Then she sighed, “So, when will the transfer happen?”

Warden Keen looked at his wrist watch and said, “A few minutes.”

Diane nodded before she started to wait for the transfer.

While she waited, she noticed a black feather on the windowsill and in the distance, there was a murrder of crows. She started to feel her heartbeat spike and beat fast with fear as the paramedics and a few guards walked over to her with the stretcher.

☆◇

“Alright. You ready?” one of the paramedics asked as they got inside the ambulance and got ready to go.

One of the three guards followed them into the ambulance.

Diane just stared at the ambulance ceiling, fear and panic in her eyes.

The paramedic noticed the fear and panic after getting the stretcher secure. “It will be ok.” the paramedic reassured her.

Diane tried to believe it as the ambulance started to move.

It was about five minutes since the ambulance started to go to the hospital.

The paramedic was checking Diane to see if there was anything else wrong with her while they went.

Diane was just quiet.

She was scared.

Her breath was starting to become heavy and quick.

She had a very bad feeling that something was going to happen.

She tried to calm herself.

‘Everything is going to be ok.’ she thought, slowing her breath. ‘Everything will be ok-’

The next thing Diane knew was that something crashed into the side of the ambulance, flipping it upside down.

The gurney was still connected to the floor of the ambulance and Diane was still strapped down onto it, so she just hung onto the gurney while the guard and paramedic landed on the roof of the vehicle.

Diane’s breath became more hitched and heavy while the guard and paramedic tried to get up as the doors opened.

Two figures, wearing black masks over their faces, had weapons and shot at the guard and paramedic before going to Diane.

“GET AWAY FROM ME-!” she started to shout but one of them had a needle out and put it in her arm, tranquilized her.

Diane whimpers, feeling her eyelids getting heavy and then passed out as the two figures got her off the stretcher.

☆◇meanwhile◇☆

Governor Moe Wolf and his team went to the Wonder mansion.

They had finally gotten a meeting with Abby after trying to find out their scheduling.

The door was answered by the family butler and the Governor and his team were led inside, talking to the butler as they went.

Then they got and went into the home office, where Abby Wonder was at.

Abby was at her desk when they entered the room.

Abby was a white bunny rabbit with black and yellow patches on her ears and on her hands. She had her left ear up while her right ear was down, since she’s hard of hearing.

She was wearing a blue jumpsuit. 

The bunny rabbit looked up and smiled at them.

“Hello. It’s nice to see you again, Governor.” Abby said with a smile, offering her paw to Moe.

“It’s nice to see you again too.” Moe said, shaking her paw when he got close to the desk before sitting down on one of the seats with his team.

“So, what do you want to talk about?” Abby asked as she sat back down in her chair.

“Well… we heard that you used to be friends with Diane Foxington,” Herbert started, “also known as the-”

“The Paw. Yes, I do know her and to let you know, I’m still friends with her.” Abby said with a soft smile. “Another thing to mention is that I was not part of any of her plans or crimes if you’re wondering.”

The team hummed and nodded. 

“Ok.” Herbert started, adjusting himself in his seat a bit. “We just have a few questions about your relationship with her-”

Abby’s soft smile became a frown as she glared at the team and Governor before taking a deep breath and calming down. “Let me guess… you found the newspaper article.” the white bunny rabbit said, trying to be calm. “The deal that ruined lives…”

The team and Governor nodded, starting to get worried. 

“Yes, but we’re not here about that.” Moe said, reassuring Abby before she started to vent angrily about what happened. “This is more of what Diane is like? Also try to understand her better.”

Abby stares at Moe for a moment before nodding in understanding. “Right… Sorry about that… That was wrong of me.” she said before clearing her throat. “Diane and I have been friends for a long time. Good friends. I don’t know a lot of things about her but she likes the color purple, normally light purple. She likes to try things… Sometimes she gets emotionless or numb after things get too much or stressful.”

The team nodded and hummed.

“Alright. Another question, if you don’t mind. Have you met the Lost Girls?” Pepe asked, tilting his head to the side.

Abby's eyes widened at that. “I have. And to let you all know, The Lost Girls were psycho.” she said, nodding for a moment.

That caught the governor and the team off guard.

“What do you mean?” Stefaine asked, confused.

Abby sighed, rubbing her paw against her forehead as if to say, ‘where to begin’. “Well,” the bunny rabbit said, lowering her paw onto the desk so she could look at the five, “when I met them for the first time, they were a bit closed off at me. Rhodona, the small fighter dog, did try to attack me but thankfully Diane was there to stop her. Diane had a little talk with them after that. Then they start to warm up to me, not enough that they trust me but enough to be chill with me… They were still scary though… Mostly Pam… You can tell that she’s the ‘ringleader’ of The Lost Girls.”

Governor Moe and his team were confused by that.

“Wait, isn’t Diane the leader of The Lost Girls.” Lou said, looking at the team before looking at Abby again.

Abby thought for a moment as she tilted her head side to side, unsure of how to explain it.

“Well… The Paw and The Lost Girls are very different sets of criminals.” Abby explained after a moment. “The Paw knew how to do some crimes, like stealing, some hacking, disguises, and heists. But she also knows when to stop and when to leave… The Lost Girls on the other hand… They also know how to steal, hack, disguises, and heists. They also know chaos, pain, and… fires… The Paw was more of… ‘new management’ for The Lost Girls, you know? Making sure things go smoothly with the heists and telling them to stop before things get out of control and make sure there is no fire.”

The team was surprised by this. They let the shock go over them.

Abby noticed the shock on their faces. “Yeah…” she started, rubbing the back of her neck. “But that’s all that I know about them and it just told me some of the things since The Lost Girls did warm up more to me a bit before they left on their trip.”

“Trip?” The governor and his team asked.

Abby nodded. “Yeah.”

The governor and his team looked at each other for a moment. 

Then there was a knock and a butler came in, which got the six’s attention and looked at him. 

“Yes, Jackson?” Abby asked, looking at butler.

Jackson looked a bit worried as he got to her. “I’m sorry for interrupting your meeting, ma’am, but there’s something on the news.” Jordan answered. “It’s about your Paw friend.”

Abby got worried as she looked at him. “What?” she breathed in worry. “What happened?”

Jackson looked at Governor Moe and his Team, who were worried too. "What's going on with Diane?" Moe asked, wanting to know.

Jackson sighed and said, “The Paw is missing. She was taken to the hospital but didn’t get to it. She's been kidnapped.”

All six’s eyes widened when hearing the news.

“What?” Abby asked worriedly.

“WHAT?!” the governor and his team shouted worriedly.

▪▪▪

Author’s note: Sorry but this has a cliffhanger! I really wanted to get this chapter out but I hope you enjoyed it!

[tamlindudley]

I get why you find it unreasonable for everyone to hate Dain and ofc ur allowed to have that opinion but have you considered that Xaden has quite a powerful mind reading signet that he might not be able to turn off on instinct whereas Dain had a choice to read Violet’s mind and touched her in that way many times which led to her not even considering he would do that without consent.

He follows the rules and it’s good for people to follow the rules but there’s a point where enough is enough. His excuse for not wanting violet is the rules, he didn’t believe her because of his fixation on rule following.

It may be beneficial that he suggested that Violet go to her dream quadrant where life is not threatened on a daily basis but eventually it’s practically in every sentence he says (im over exaggerating Ik) and eventually it just sounds like he doesn’t see all the hard work she’s done and how much she’s struggled to earn her place in the riders quadrant and when she has achieved that he continued to undermine her success. Thank you for reading this if you have and I’m not trying to tell you you’re wrong just bored, saw your post and decided to do something less boring. Sorry for bad grammar I’m tired after maths tutoring lol.

I believe Xaden's signet lets him choose if he can read minds because he says to Violet that he stopped reading her mind as soon as he realized he had feelings for her and didn't want to do it anymore. Which makes it pretty clear he has enough control to pick and choose who's mind to violate. So unless we think he lied about that to Vi, we have to assume he has enough control.

I never said Dain being a rule follower wasn't annoying, just that when Vi didn't follow rules with her combats, the narrative cheers her on (her poisoning her opponents) but as soon as Cat broke rules while fighting Vi, Vi and her friends got indignant and angry. So why does Vi get to have some kind of monopoly on rule breaking? Cat can't break rules against her but Dain must, for her?

Which makes it pretty obvious that the narrative is blowing up the mistakes of characters we are not supposed to like, while brushing off mistakes of those which we are. This kind of gaslighting from the author to sway audience minds is something I really detest in any media I consume. Its okay, I can see you are not trying to tell me I am wrong, happy to discuss civilly, but trust me, I know Dain isn't perfect. It's the hypocrisy which bugs me, both in the fandom and in the narrative.

Edit: I also think it's hypocritical to say Dain was not fair to believe Vi about his friend Amber while Vi also never trusted Dain over Xaden and her new friends. It's unfair to think Dain didn't have reason to believe Amber, he'd known her for over a year and I think it's fair to not blindly believe something bad said about a friend he'd known that long.

Thank you for the ask!

[69misato69]

🐇 masterlist + request info + completed reqs

intro post ✦ archive of our own ✦ twitter

alhaitham + kaveh

🍊 masterlist

ceasefire

control, i've got no

desperate times call for desperate measures

kavetham / haikaveh valentine week

prism

halcyon — sfw

hostile — sfw

kashmir — sfw

zhongli + childe

repulsive

game over

slumber

blossom

unravel

are you praying to me?

moonage daydream

happy birthday, ajax

forever and after — sfw

childe + kaeya

wither

long lost words

setâre

childe + kaeya + kokomi

missing link

kaeya + dainsleif

my immortal

beidou + ningguang

madder — sfw

candace + dehya

lovers lost in silk pathways of tears — seven prompts

dain + childe + kaeya

pavo ocellus

thoma + ayato

now we're even

a housekeeper's chores

attention

sweet dreams

clumsy

childe + diluc

golden

entropy

anytime (you want it)

a severe lack of father figures? — crack

never fade in the dark

zhongli + diluc

genesis

zhongli + venti

the wind

zhongli + xiao

salvation

dottore + pantalone

ravenous

kokomi + hu tao

icing and sprinkles — sfw

fischl + collei

icing and sprinkles — sfw

childe + ganyu

qilin's allure prance

thoma + childe + diluc

iter vulpes part 1

tighnari + cyno

oasis

alhaitham + cyno

after hours

kaeya + albedo

welcome home

knights of favonius

old hills, new roads — platonic

jing yuan + luocha

above all else, guard your heart

ruby ribbon

🍊 request information

✦ asks and dms are always open. ☁️ 🍭 👽 🐣 🍁🎐emojis are taken by current anons. you can track request status on my pinned post!

✦ structured one-shots, drabbles, headcanon lists for a ship or character and imagines are all okay. feel free to scream about your favs in asks as well, i really enjoy reading and contributing.

what i will write

✅ popular genshin / hsr / hi3rd ships + rarepairs — platonic, familial or romantic. binary trans, non-binary and fluid identities, disabilities, chronic illnesses, bodily hcs are all okay. if not specified i will work out these details on my own.

✅ topics that may be triggering or uncomfortable to read such as depression, self-harm and dysphoria — will always be stated explicitly before the work

what i won't write

❌ incest, pedophilia, active rape / kaeluc, yaeyato

❌ omegaverse

❌ wlw pairs as mlm or mlw — nblw is alright

❌ reader inserts

keep in mind that i might reject things i am uncomfortable with even though they are not listed here, but i will always answer the ask even if my answer is no.

🍊 completed

transboy kaveh in a skirt x transgirl alhaitham

alhaitham and kaveh playing truth or dare with classmates

childe and zhongli couples camboy show

kaveh with avoidant restrictive food intake disorder

childe and zhongli ramble

kokochaeya ship explanation

transboy haytham riding transgirl kaveh

haytham loves kaveh's eyes

dom transmasc zhongli x cis sub childe

cyno riding haytham's face

cytham fighting over who tops the other

childe kaeya drunk kissing

itto tending to gorou's wounds after battle

jing yuan luocha hand holding

please be respectful and patient with requests, enjoy!

[anime-is-godlike]

dainsleif x reader

Xx angst xX ..meation of fire blood and death

If you are uncomfortable Reading anything related to the bit above please click away and read some fluff

I was walking around the market in the kingdom of khaenri'ah my home and the home of my husband dainsleif who works as a guard and our 3 year old daughter clover who’s accompanying me today on our shopping trip as we walked I hear her yell out

“Daddy!!” I look up and sure enough it’s my husband he looked in our direction with a smile

“Hello you two” he lifts clover in his arms and give me a peck on the cheek and riffles clovers hair a huge smile plastered on his face the whole time

“I was just getting ingredients for dinner tonight” he smiled and put clover down

“I see, I need to get back to work I’m running a little late and you know what those twins are like” I giggle and wave to him as he runs to the castle, as we were walking clover stops dead in her tracks and stairs at something or someone it was a boy a little older then her with blue hair and he seemed to be alone my momma instincts kicked in and I went over to check to see if he was okay

“Excuse me young man are you okay?” He looked up in shock but then smiled

“I’m alright Madam sorry I’m just waiting for my father” he looked around then looks down with a frown

“Are you okay big brother..um” clover piped up trying to think of a name

“Alberich you can call me that” clover nodded with a giggle

“Okay big brother al” I’m guessing his names to difficult to pronounce I giggle to myself, he then looked up his eyes sparking

“My father has arrived thank you kind madam and little lady” he ran of waving that sight made my giggling worse he reminds me of dain when we where younger, I grabbed clovers hand and nudged her to walk with me as we made our way home.

Me and dain met when we where very young our families where friend and often we went to each others houses, yes we where childhood sweethearts as we grew older our feelings never change we got married and soon after clover came into the picture life was amazing…..I wish it remained that way

—————

I was in the kitchen fixing up dinner and clover was in the living room playing it was still early and everything was peaceful

I was just about to light the oven when I felt the ground shake and a glass fall to the floor

“What was that?” Earth quake’s don’t happen here so….

“Clover?” I walked into the living room to see her looking out the windows unmoving

“Sweetie?” I look out with her

“Mummy what’s going on?” I was in shock everything was red it was

“Fire?” My first instinct was to run but what about dain? I then looked to clover..no I need to protect my daughter I pick her up and walk way from the windows in case they shatter

“Mummy?” I look down smiling I need to be strong and not panic I don’t want to frighten her

“Don’t worry hunny everything will be fine we just need to go find daddy okay” she nod and nuzzles her head into the crook of my neck and closed her eyes I take a breath in

Dain don’t worry about us we’ll see each other again, I look out the window it seems the fire is spreading closer to our house we need to get out of here so where not trapped I grab a scarf from the coat rack and tie clover to my chest so she’s got more security in case I need to run with one last knot, I open the door smock filled the air and was nothing but fire and ash I look down to clover so see she’s dozed of that’s good just let he sleep

I look around to see if I can spot my blond and blue eyed husband but to no avail as I was looking around I noticed people gripping there heads in pain I wanted to see if there okay but I have clover with me I need to get out of the kingdom fast

I was now jogging to the edge of the kingdom I was trying to reach the forest outside the walls

“Ehh reee” I then Heard this weird clunky noise and this Machine I’ve never scene before was right in front of me it was huge and had a single hole in the middle of its chest with long arms and legs

“Wait I think dain told me about this I think there called field tillers?” He walked past me and toward the kingdom engulfed with flames…our home I’d no more what are we gonna do now, I look around

“Dain!!?” I yell out to the kingdom

“Dain!!” I call out again I can find him where is he?

“Well, well, well who do we have here?” The voice which spoke out was echoing and didn’t sound human at all I look around and didn’t see anything

“Wrong way human!” I look up to see a figure on the roof of a building in armour head to toe with a huge spear hanging by his side

“Nothing personal” he jumped down spear in the air he was aiming for us I turn around protecting clover with my body and hug her close

“Mummy?” I hear the groggy voice of my now awoken daughter

“Hey sweetie did you have a nice dre-” I then felt something sharp go through me and blood trickles down my back

“Mummy!!” My strength gives out and I fall to the floor still keeping a tight hold on clover

“…Y/n?” I look up to see

“..da..i..n” I see him dash over his face was completely pale and his eyes where in shock, I felt him hold me

“Daddy!!” Clover yelled out hugging me

“Take clover and run” I look at him, he gripped my hand and I smile at him, I could feel my body getting weaker by the second I can tell I’m dying soon

“Hate to brake up this family moment” that voice echoed out again

“I have but one mission” he points his spear at us

“To eradicate all of khaenri'ah” I tug on dains sleeve

“Take…..clover run” he looked at us then to the figure and stood up

“I won’t let you harm my family you piece of shit!!” He ran forward and lunged at the man, the man dodged, I looked down at clover and she looked pale I tried to comfort her but I have no strength in my body to move but I could still speak

“Clover” I felt her more her head slightly

“Mummy loves…..you and will forever….love you” she didn’t really respond to that but I felt a slight nod..why is she so quite?

I heard a huge crash and I saw dain fly into a building I wanted to get up and help but my vision went slowly dark

Is this the end for me?….clover…dain I’m sorry everything was going black and cold

“…n….y….Y/N!!” I heard dain but where is he?

“D..ai…n?” I think he grabbed my hand and I felt something warm against it

“Ple…ase look af..ter clov..er” I felt drops hitting my face..is he crying

“My sweet kni…ght live…and lov..e again p..promise me” I lost all sensations and took my finale Breath

“I’m sorry!! I’m sorry I wasn’t here quick enough please..please stay with me both of you…Y/N!! CLOVER!!!!!” Dainsleif cried over the body of his wife and child the side of his face was badly burnt and he was trying his best not to completely break

“Come back please!!” He pressed his forehead to his wife and child what his wife didn’t know was when the spear went through her it also went through clover as well they both died moments apart

Dainsleif was left alone without the two people he loved the most in the world, no longer will he come home to a smiling wife and his daughter running up and asking to play, no longer will he parole the streets to protect his home he looks out to the burning city with one thing on his mind…………revenge

Revenge on those who destroyed his home and most importantly revenge on those who killed his family

He was a changed man after that day he never opened his heart to anyone ever again the once bright cheerful man was now cold and alone

[queen-ofsunflowers]

"You're Magic Now" WIP Preview: Chapters 16 - 20

Since these are still works-in-progress, it is likely that the following excerpts will change between now and the final draft! Please keep that in mind while reading.

Chapter 16: Secrets Within Secrets

(As they get closer, Lumine can feel something wrong with Xiao, similar to how he was during the Rose Festival. And after that… it wasn’t good.)

Lumine: (in a low voice as they stand face-to-face) Are you okay, Xiao?

Xiao: (whispering) I’m fine. Just focus on the match.

Lumine: But, Xiao--

Xiao: I said I’m fine! (Lumine still looks a bit worried, but keeps quiet. She glances up at the box where her friends, their families and Dain are watching her. She swallows a lump in her throat.)

Lumine: I saw your dad. He seems like a nice person. (They bow to each other out of respect, and Xiao seems a little surprised.)

Xiao: He’s actually here?

Lumine: He said that he wouldn’t miss it for all the Mora in the Magic Dimension. (Xiao looks a bit apprehensive, glancing over at a spot in the stands. Maybe they weren’t able to see each other before? She would have to help Xiao find him. With the negative feelings she’s sensing from Xiao, he could use some time with his dad to calm down.) Good luck, Xiao!

Xiao: I should be saying that to you. (Lumine grins a little. He’s relaxed a bit, but that energy still isn’t fading away. Maybe putting an end to this as swiftly as possible would be a good idea. She can remember the last time that power got out of control. And Xiao doesn’t look too well already.)

Announcer: And begin! (Lumine takes a deep breath, gathering her energy into a magical ball that she launches at Xiao. Xiao catches it on his staff’s pole, though it pushes him back and makes him skid to the edge of the circle. If she could knock him out, that means the match would end. He grips his staff tightly, a bit of misama flaking off shaking hands.)

Lumine: Xiao-- (He launches his spear at her, and Lumine flies up into the air to avoid it. But the spear was a distraction. In a flash, Xiao’s holding her ankle and pulling her to the ground. Lumine kicks him in the face to get him to let go.)

Xiao: Forfeit.

Lumine: What? (Why would he want her to-- Xiao grabs his spear again. Something wraps around Lumine’s ankle as she tries to rise into the air again, but Xiao doesn’t seem to notice. It’s a bit of the miasma that’s coming off of him.) Xiao! (When Xiao looks back at her, the panic in his eyes is evident. The miasma winds up Lumine, restraining her. She struggles as Xiao trembles, turning paler. The miasma has grown noticed by the crowd. Lumine eventually flies upward and frees herself from the rings that return to Xiao.)

(This has to end quickly, and Lumine doesn’t want to let Dain down but she doesn’t want to hurt Xiao either. She sends three small energy balls at Xiao, which he blocks once again, swiping at the air to disperse them. Lumine stares down at him.)

Xiao: I said forfeit! (The miasma around him reacts, turning into six sharp tendrils as he rushes forward with his spear and lunges at her. Lumine gasps, dodging the spear and barely able to avoid the miasma as a few of the tendrils shallowly cut through her arms and upper thigh. The miasma grows, and Lumine can hear the announcer saying something about what’s going on but it’s hard to focus on as she stares at Xiao with worry. Was what happened recently taking more of a toll on him than she thought? That it caused this to happen again? What even was this?!)

(Lumine knows it was her light that caused Xiao to stop last time, but she knows she can’t replicate it without getting worked up or worse. And with everyone’s eyes on them… She launches herself at Xiao to try and force him out of the ring. He smacks her back with his spear’s pole. Lumine conjures a ring to throw at him, but it doesn’t work. The miasma hisses, but its not enough. It’s building around Xiao the more he fights.)

Chapter 17: Goodbye, Magix

Dain: It’s nice to have someone with a magical touch helping out.

Lumine: Ayaka taught me that trick. She said that Thoma would use it so much that he taught it to her before she left for school. (She slams the box down before leaving the room.)

Dain: Lumine—

Lumine: I finally have friends, and you went ahead and took me away from them! Do you know how much that hurts?! I finally felt like I fit in somewhere, and… and you just…!

Dain: You were in danger. You—

Lumine: I had friends and teachers who did whatever they could to keep me safe. I am more than capable of defending myself! I don’t belong here. I’m miserable here. And even if I wasn't as safe as I could be back on Magix, I was surrounded by people who made me happy and cared about me and would do whatever they had to so I would be safe! But you don’t care. You care so much about my safety that you don’t care about my happiness at all.

Dain: …Lumine, I—

Lumine: Forget about it. I’m… I need some air.

Dain: Lumine! (She’s already stormed out of the room.)

Chapter 18: An Attack on Alfea

Lyney: What’s going on here? I don’t know what this is, but I don’t like it. (The three of them laugh.)

Childe: Still don’t get it, do you, kiddo? (He hooks an arm around Lyney’s shoulder, trying to act as casual as possible but the tension in Lyney’s shoulders just grows worse.) There’s no need to worry. I get that it sucks being left in the dark, but we have it all under control. (Lyney steps out of his hold.)

Lyney: Is that true?

Scaramouche: Are you second guessing us?

Lyney: Yes.

Signora: You and your sister are becoming thorns in my side…

Lyney: Keep Lynette out of this! She doesn’t know… She shouldn’t have been involved! You should’ve never done what you did to her! I never wanted something like this! Father didn’t want something like--

Signora: Your ‘father’ would’ve done the same thing that we are if she got her hands on the Lunar Drive. But you were too cowardly to take it when you had the chance.

Lyney: Lumine is a friend. I would never betray her.

Scaramouche: But you would betray the Fatui? Do your ‘friends’ even know about the work you’ve done? All the spying you’ve done? Gathering information to pass on to the Knave, helping us in the struggle against that little club you want to be a part of so badly?

Lyney: No! I won’t let you get away with this! This is not what the power of the Celestial Forces is meant for! You let it go to your heads! (It was supposed to help people, not… not this!) I’d rather be a traitor to you than to those I care about.

Chapter 19: Master Maneuvers

Dain: For now, Fonterossa is going to draw their attention the best that they can. It’s a noble sacrifice on their part, but once they fall, Alfea will be next.

Navia: Hopefully that won’t happen. (to the students) Right now, you need to listen carefully., The only thing left for Lumine to return to Khaenri’ah while Fonterossa holds the Fatui’s attention.

Students: What?!

Lumine: You want me to go to Khaenri’ah? I don’t get it. Why? And why now? (Navia glances over at Dain.)

Dain: I believe that, perhaps, there could be something  that could help you find a way to regain the power of the Lunar Drive from those who took it from you. This could possibly be our only chance. (Lumine bites her lip.) You have little reason to worry. I’ll be accompanying you.

Barbara: And so will we! (Huh?)

Lumine: Huh?

Keqing: We’ll be going with you.

Ayaka: Absolutely. You can count on us. (Lynette mews in agreement, hopping on her shoulder and nuzzling her face as if to say that they weren’t going to let them go by themselves. Bennett opens his mouth but it's covered by Kazuha.)

Kazuha: Best for us to stay here. Our ability will be more useful here in case something goes wrong. Apologies, Lumine. (Bennett looks a bit disappointed, but doesn’t argue against it.)

Lumine: It’s alright, I promise. (She hadn’t been expecting her friends to stand by her like this.

Navia: (to Dain) That’s what I was worried about. (Dain heaves a sigh.)

Dain: Are you sure about this? Lumine is the Keeper of the Lunar Drive, and I am her guardian. Khaenri’ah is a wasteland after what had happened. It’s dangerous for--

Barbara: When we met, I was being chased down by monsters. My ship was attacked. If that’s not dangerous, then I don’t know what is. We’ve been in this since the beginning and we’ve been through this together. As dangerous as it is, I know that we can do it no matter how strong we are individually. …we’re stronger together than we are alone. (A beat. Barbara… Dain heaves a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. He turns to Navia, silently asking her to step in and do something. But Navia only shrugs.)

Navia: I’ve learned the hard way that there is no stopping these girls. They’ll find a way to follow you, even if you say no. (Lumine softly smiles.)

Chapter 20: Princess of Khaenri'ah

Dain: I can’t ask you to do that.

Keqing: We aren’t asking for your permission. (She conjures a burst of lightning to strike the ruin guard. It growls in anger, swiping at her to try and knock her from the sky. She dodges, and Dain takes his sword to its ankle. It tries to stomp him.)

Lumine: Dain!

Dain: Its eye is its weak spot, along with that opening on the back! Aim for it!

Keqing: Will that take it down?

Dain: It’ll stun it long enough for us to do so. (It claps, trying to squish Barbara who dodges with a yelp, nearly tripping over her own two feet into the dirt. The Ruin Guard stomps the ground, causing the already broken chasm nearby to widen. The Ruin Guard starts to spin, arms flailing and walking towards them. The ground shakes with every heavy step it takes, shaking the ground and throwing anyone in its way around.)

(And then it strikes Lynette, throwing her towards the chasm.)

Lumine: Lynette! (She rushes and dives for Lynette, grabbing her and holding the cursed cat girl close to her chest as they fall.)

Dain: LUMINE!

Girls: Lumine! (She hits the ground with a soft thud in some old natural waste. Leaves, twigs, soft dirt. She pants heavily, trying to catch her breath. The sounds of combat are coming from above. It doesn’t take much longer for the sound of machinery failing to follow. The ruin guard hits the ground with a thud that shakes the whole ground.)

Lumine: (to Lynette) You okay? (Lynette mews. She’s alright. Lumine gets up, holding her to her chest.)

Dain: Lumine!

Barbara: Lumine, Lynette, are you okay?!

Lumine: We’re okay! Don’t worry! We’ll find our own way out! Just head to the palace!

Dain: Lumine--

Lumine: That’s an order, Dain! From your princess! I mean it!

[elevatorladylady]

Fourth Wing Thoughts

I really enjoyed Fourth Wing, so when I finished I started it over. There was something so immensely satisfying about this book, but also felt like it was lacking a little something. I think after a second read I have a better idea of what worked and what didn't work for me. (Not really spoilery, but proceed with caution)

The Murder Rules

I think the rules around when you could and couldn't murder other riders was a little iffy and seemed to be applied only as needed for the plot to do what it needed to do. It made the stakes feel really high a lot of the time even when the story needed lowered stakes for a scene or two.

Horny Jail

The smut was good. The modern descriptions of sex were okay. But too many of the descriptions of desire felt like telling not showing and it just felt a little cringy.

Fast Paced

I truly love a good fast-paced book, but I think this one was just a little too fast. To introduce so many riders and dragons needed just a bit more time, and it would have been nice to spend a few scenes just inhabiting the world.

Violet's Background

We know some basic info about her life before the book begins, but I felt a disconnect between the previous characterizations and the character we got on the page. I can't picture her as a scholar. I can't picture her as a kid with her mom. I can't even picture her past with Dain. Maybe that's a failing of my imagination, but I think there could have been a lot more on what life as a scholar was like and how she spent her days and a little more on her childhood (especially for world building purposes).

World Building

The world building is super cool, but it felt overwhelming at times and I expected there to be more of a pay off to the info dumps early on. I would have liked more focus on the dragon lore and less on the politics since we didn't really leave the war college til the end. I suspect the dragon info will come with later books now that Violet is bonded, but still, that's what this book was all about.

Idiots to Lovers

This was marketed as enemies to lovers, but I don't really think they know enough about each other to ever really get to enemy status. It turns he doesn't want to kill her at all and it was kind of obvious the whole time that he was being tough on her to train her. She seems to also only dislike him because she thinks he hates her. I loved the tension between the two, it just felt a little predictable and dramatic.

[naifahsaiyara]

So some days ago, I decided to read the hobbit and the lord of the rings. And i finished reading the hobbit. And it was fun. There was a meddling wizard, stupid trolls who argue over cooking methods, nasty goblins, wolves, giant spiders, nice elves, a slightly creepy creature living beside an underground lake, an awesome magic ring, ( yes, i thought that a magic ring which can turn you invisible was pretty neat while reading the hobbit, thank you very much, can we please move on), some nice elves and men, a dragon, a mountain full of treasure, 13 dwarves who seemed to share a single brain cell amongst them and a hobbit who by sheer dumb luck made it to the mountain. Okay so dwarves are greedy bastards and doesn't want to share their gold? Poor lake people got their town burned oh please guys give that bard guy some gold he killed a DRAGON for goodness' sake. Where does the army of elves came from? Why do they want gold? It's not theirs, well factor some not nice elves. There's a pretty shiny rock, oohh i guess that's important ( then i also read a book about 3 pretty shiny rocks and the number of people who died or were killed for them, 😐)Ahh, there is a dwarf army too, i guess they'll fight it out. ooh poor hobbit, don't you dare hurt him mr. Dwarf King. What's that in the horizon? An army of the mutual enemy who wants to kill everyone? And everyone united to kill them instead? How are the eagles involved again? Ohh the king and his nephews are dead, his cousin is now king, well at least he apologized before dying. Ohh bilbo returned home. Okay the end. It was good.

Then i watched the movies.

WHAT? Are you telling me THiS Guy here is Thorin Oakenshield? But but, he is going to dieeee. I don't want him to die. Wait, Fili and Kili are so cute, but they are also going to die.

Ahhh, complex dwarf character, they had a home and then the dragon happened and now they don't have a home and they want their home back even if it means there are only 13 of them, (and a hobbit, and a wizard though he might run away at times, who knows, wizards) against a dragon. It is about reclaiming your home and not only about the gold, ahhh someone kill me imma die from the feels.

Wait, why are you making the- are you making the already hot exiled dwarf king even more hot and complex and broody, it is not fair, he is going to die in the end. Where is the dmaned director, i hate you.

No no heart don't you dare fall in love this guy is going to die and break your heart in the end, red flags, red flags, abort mission.

Waiitttt, so there is the hobbit and the dwarf, are you sureee there is nothing going on between them?

So the little dwarf prince fell for a elf, and his uncle hates elves cause they didn't help them when the dragons came, okay then, but i miss the nice elves from the books, but this elvenking is also kinda hot.

Does this elf prince have spider powers? Man he is reminding me of peter parker how is he maintaining balance while fighting like that?

Oooh damn, bard is also hot. *Screams in a pillow*

I feel like the 3rd movie is gonna break my heart.

Okay the dragon's gone, i likey like bard's children, they are cute. Go away Alfred no one wants to hear you. Annddddd Thorin went mad, so did some dwarves to a lesser degree, and bilbo is sad, you can't literally see the heartbreak in his eyes, you can feel it across the screen, i am also sad bilbo. You are not alone.

Ahhh Thorin smiled at Bilbo and gave him mithril shirt, are you absolutely sure they are just friends mr. Director?

Thorin's eyes, i can see how they turn back and forth between blue and black. I feel the struggle. Ahhh come on Thorin you can fight it.

Ahhh, Bofur you are Bilbo's bff, i knew it.

Wait, are you also sure there's nothing going on between Thranduil and Bard? Or the wizard and the badass lady?

Here it comes, here it comes, the battlement scene, Thorin don't hurt bilbo can't you see you are breaking his heart and mine too.

Ahh Dain is funny. The elves fight so pretty.

See, this is what happens when you ignore the wizard, damn you people, he was trying to tell you about the army since foreever, why are you acting so surprised now.

Is legolas into gymnastics? How the hell could he fight like that? I thought elves were nature lovers and star gazers, i didnt know they were into acrobatics.

Oh thank Eru Thorin's fine now. Yee boys go and bash some orc skulls. No, nooo don't go there there is another army ahhh. *Screams into pillow again*

Nooo, FILIII.... *Starts crying 😭😭😭*

KILI not you tooo ... Tauriel is sad, so am i.

Ahhhh THORIN 😭😭😭😭 ahdievxosnwbixjqoevdooqnckcn

He dies, he dies in his Hobbit's arms and you cannot tell me they are just friends, I don't- i won't believe it.

* screams and cries and throws things, there are tissues scattered everywhere, the family members thinking i am mad.*

So mr. director come here let's have a chat, i have cookies. *Creepy smile.*

Why did you make a greedy dwarf king into a three dimensional complex character who is prideful but also wants the best for his people, and casted a damned hot guy as him and made him look at the camera like THAT and smile like THAT when you knew he was goinggg to dieeee? I was not mentally prepared for this shit and now i have trauma and it's your fault and i swear I'm gonna murder you with conkers you-

[throwaway-yandere]

🐠 Anon

Good thing, no work today, bad think, they kicked me out to go to the shop for ingredients for cooking

Also it's been snowing again for almost all day today

Now skipping over the fact that I hate winter

Faceless Ayato better un-shadowbans you or it's going to be hunting season for him as a prey lol

If I punch faceless Ayato in the void of his face, does my hand vanishes inside? Or I hit something?? Does he has nerves there???

Also about Diluc/Dainsleif working better for creepypastas

1. I'm pretty sure that in 2020 I saw some creepypasta about dainsleif

2. I have sketch somewhere of Childe as Jeff (friend's dare for me on their birthday lmao)

Also, does anybody remember when Albedo was trending because of that glitch where his whole body, clothes etc were black/void except for his face? Like just face, not including eyes that were also black??

Was scared for a moment thinking you got fired or something– I remember romanticizing snow as a kid and wanting to experience it but now that I'm technically an adult this sounds painful cuz I'm incredibly lazy lol–

... bro you raise some good fricking questions.

Yandere Faceless!Ayato with a void for a face. I want that. I want that so bad.

Imagine trying to squirm from his grip by elbowing his face and you feel N O T H I N G. Just the void. And imagine if he gets pissed and you start seeing his floating eyes visibly twitch and you feel his chest rumble for what you couldn't distinguish between amused laughter... Or pure anger.

Me rambling about dain & diluc don't mind this lol:

------

Okay suddenly got the motivation to explain back lol

Why creepypasta!Dainsleif works:

I remember seeing some posts about how Dain always looks at the camera when you're taking photos... Which, I don't think is necessarily true, but his eye design makes it seem like that

Look at him. Look at this jerk and his chilling stare in my low graphics android screenshot lmao

The bastard just have that "I'm always watching" vibes. Why would he be the protag on my SAGAU au? (Because you're a Dainsleif simp in need of content ansy that's why–) It's because out of all the characters, Dainsleif's probably the most likely candidate of being self-aware. (That, and you're a simp ansytea–)

Dainsleif has such an ominous title too, being the Bough Keeper or iirc something along the lines of "the one who picks up branches" in CN makes him sound so ominous. He probably collects the "branches"/memories of the Leylines. Who knows. Maybe he found a way to connect to your world.

And. Just. This line:

"I know all that I need to know."

It's so ominous. It's short but I absolutely fricking love the way Yuri Lowenthal said it.

He'd make a good genshin!Lost Silver I swear it. He'd pass the assignment. Him and his weird zalgo looking "element" lmao.

Why creepypasta Diluc works. And it's definitely not biased:

Based on personal experience lmao–

I'm not joking. 99% of this is based on personal experience. Why do I have C2 Diluc in my main and C0 in my second (which i only use to pull when there's freemogems)

My first Diluc came home on standard at 77th pull. I remember this well, thinking wow that's lucky!!! I got my older sibling's favorite!!! As a AR49 Kaeya main before, I wasn't too thrilled since I believed in Kaeya supremacy. Diluc's alright, no real malice against him!!!

Okay second account time let's test our luc– Oh, it's Diluc. Guess I finally have a proper dps in that account and not Kokomi!!! (that's a lie I still use Kokomi as a DPS.)

Alright, back to main! I'm gonna do a 10 pull in the standard again and I'm chanting "C4 KAEYA C4 KAEYA C4 KAEYA" with my eyes closed and oh I got C1 Qiqi! Love my lil zombie dps but wrong cryo sword character but– C1 DILUC WTF OH NO WRONG BROTHER WRONG BROTHER–

But it's fine! It's great– I've never gotten lucky in the standard! I always reach hard pity so having a double 5 star is so "w o w"!!!

Okay cool it's been weeks since then, let's try our luck in Nahida's banner!!! We've been saving up for her since Cyno!!! It'll be fine!!!

...

... You... You can fill in the blanks–

Okay but in a less personal answer: diluc makes a good fricking creepypasta if you think about his feral phase. Like, the phase where he was absolutely phckass mad and killed fatui members without a vision.

You imagining him in that phase? Good.

Now imagine him phcking g l i t c h i n g. Imagine him in anguish, complaining that the codes are cruel to him. Diluc doesn't seem to care that Venti is his archon– what more for his creators?