#—— but me i’m still a sunbeam ↻ ⌊ kai ⌋

[tubatwo]

sunlight - huening kai

summary: a very sunny morning in bed with kai

pairing: gn reader x huening kai

genre: fluff and tiniest bit suggestive; 0.6k words

a/n: writing hyuka again because he’s on my mind 24/7 NINGDUNGIES I WILL SAVE US FROM THE FIC DRAUGHT also i mentioned pokemon again so think of this as a little continuation if you’d like!

you wince slightly and groan in your sleep as sunlight hits your eyes, and you try to find a comfortable position again. you and kai had stayed up until the early AM playing pokemon scarlet and violet together. you both were struggling with certain gym leaders and refused to sleep until they were finally defeated. you hear a small snort as what previously felt like the strongest sunbeam in the world suddenly disappeared. you peek one eye open and see kai’s large hand blocking the sunlight.

‎

‎

“hyuka?” you roll over to face him. even though the physical sunlight may have no longer blinded you, seeing kai’s sweet smile in the mornings always made you feel as if you were still bathing in it. “yes, cutie?” he asks while softly fixing your hair.

“you’re awake already? and you just had to let me sleep until-” you glance over your shoulder to read the clock on your nightstand.

8:30 AM

“oh, it’s still early..” you cover your face with the covers as kai lets out his famous laugh. “yah, you just woke up and you’re already ready to scold me?” you shake your head in denial and lightly slap his arm. “I thought it was the afternoon! you know we stayed up late last night...” kai leans over to plant soft kisses on your lips.

“exactly, so you should get some more rest.” he continues, “I should have never asked you to play with me! you’re more addicted than I am.” you ignore his teasing and lean back over to meet his lips. soon enough, he’s hovering over you as you two exchange sweet nothings through each kiss. your hand quickly finds his hair, and he lets out a quiet whimper as your fingers lightly scratch his scalp. you pull away and leave a soft kiss on the bump of his nose. “we both need some sleep, you know.” you remind him. he nods in understanding, despite a small part of him wanting to take things further, and goes back to spooning you.

“hey,” you begin. “were you just going to hold your hand up forever while I slept?” kai chuckles at this and shakes his head, even though you can’t see him. “honestly, I was waiting for you to fall asleep again so I could get up and close the curtain.” you nod.

“so,” you hesitate. “could you get up and close it now?”

silence.

“well, to be honest, I don’t really feel like it anymore…”

“babe!” you whine and lightly slap his arm once more. if any of the boys were to wake up, all they would hear is the sound of you and kai giggling obnoxiously. “i’m sorry, i’m sorry!” he apologizes while trying to catch his breath. this was always the highlight of both of your days: waking up together. even if you both had duties for the day, even if you were in a rush, even if you were only able to lie in bed for a mere two minutes. every second mattered. every glance, every giggle, every touch. and every day was another reminder that you wanted to do this for the rest of your lives.

eventually, your giggles die down, and the only sounds in the room are his soft breathing and fabric ruffling from him rubbing your tummy. “I love you so much.” you feel his breath on your neck. you roll over again to look at the angel you were able to call your boyfriend. “I love you too, hyuka.”

you end up hugging each other as you drift off to sleep. the sunlight was no longer blinding you, but snuggled in your arms instead.

[shieldofiron]

Hey so I know that I've been kinda gone but I do have something started for part whatever of HTFTD but I'm dying rn. Just imagine for a second Trans!Jason x Eddie and Jason getting his period and Eddie cuddling him and all that sappy shit. Please please I need it rn.

Actually I mentioned something like this is But I’m A Cheerleader, why is it so cute??? Anyway, let’s do this.

Eddie can usually tell when it's about to happen. He tries not to be weird about it, but a few days before he surprises Jason with an extra basket of fries at lunch.

Jason's nothing if not a creature of habit, though, so Eddie knows when Jason shows up looking vaguely pissed off, in the faded blue hoodie he only wears when he isn't feeling well. He doesn't act any differently, just has a sort of pinched expression on his face.

Eddie shoots him a text to meet him in the van at lunch, and it's a 50/50 shot whether he shows up. Jason has a whole complex about pain, and being the "strong" guy. But he does show up, hands tucked into his hoodie, and Eddie just smiles, trying not to be weird about it.

"Hey, Tiger," Eddie smiles, "You wanna cuddle?"

Jason scoffs, "This is why we're skipping lunch?"

"Yeah," Eddie just smiles wider, "I missed you."

It's not a line, and Eddie can tell Jason knows that he means it.

"'Kay," Jason frowns, but there's nothing sharp in his eyes. "Weirdo."

Eddie tosses a few drumsticks and some books off of the beanbag chair and waits for Jason to come so they can fold themselves into it.

"You gonna go to practice later?" Eddie asks softly when Jason flinches as they settle in.

"I was thinking of skipping, maybe," Jason frowns and cuddles close to Eddie's chest, tangling their legs together. When they're finally as close as can be, he sort of melts, going soft and clingy.

"Yeah?" Eddie presses his lips against Jason's forehead, "Wanna come over? Wayne's making pot roast so there will be tons of extras."

Jason's fingers dig in tightly to Eddie's sides, "He won't mind?"

"Fuck no," Eddie snorts, ruffling Jason's hair with a puff of air, "Are you kidding? He'd prefer it if I didn't come home to dinner."

Jason makes a grumbling little huff, "That's not true."

Eddie curls around him and rubs his back, "It's a little true."

Jason shakes his head, "Don't be jealous because me and Wayne are bros."

Eddie rolls his eyes, "I have never been a bro to anyone, I promise I'm not."

Jason buries his face in Eddie's chest, "Can we have the blanket?"

Eddie nudges Jason a little so that he can kiss Jason's temple, "Yeah of course. Is it... is it bad today?"

Jason hesitates, and then nods just a little.

So they curl up under the musty blanket in the afternoon sun streaming through the van windows.

Eddie kisses Jason's temple again, then his forehead, and when Jason finally turns his face up towards Eddie, his nose. Jason laughs a little, ending on a wince.

Eddie kisses his lips softly, "When it hurts, just squeeze me tighter."

Jason smirks, "I'll hurt you."

Eddie grins, "Don't threaten me with a good time, Tiger."

Jason squeezes and Eddie relaxes into it, kisses Jason's cheeks and holds him back.

"I don't break so easily, and neither do you," Eddie kisses his nose again because it's just so cute.

Jason huffs, but he's still smiling, and snuggling impossibly closer to Eddie and practically purring as a sunbeam hit them. They ended up being late to their next class, but it was worth it. It was always worth it.

[oshawottarchive]

Afterthought

Chapter 1 - Dreams

Sunlight shone through the cracks in the roof, dust floating in the beams. A figure sat on the wooden floor, staring at nothing. It tried to sigh, but nothing came out. It couldn’t breathe, it felt suffocating.

A door creaked, and the figure turned around. It tilted its head, confused. “Why are you here?” Its voice echoed around the room.

It blinked sadly. “Oh, okay.” It sat down. “I’ll leave.” The figure started to fade, and eventually there was nothing.

All that was left in the room was the dust dancing in the sunbeams. All there was, was silence. . . .

—— —— ——

Jay was training in the Monastery courtyard. He whipped around his nunchucks and used them to strike a training pillar. “Haha! Take that, Skulkin!”

Kai watched from the steps, leaning on Zane’s shoulder. “What was that?” He called teasingly. “This is feeling like amateurhour!”

The blue ninja scoffed. “Well I’d like to see you try it!” He smirked at Kai. “Do you wanna?” He taunted.

“Kai is currently tired.” Zane stated. “He had a fight with an owl last night, and did not get any sleep.” Kai glared at him. “You know I can still fight, I have plenty of energy!”

Zane looked at the red ninja with concern. “But you are still injured, you do not want to reopen the injury.” He pointed to a a bandage wrap on Kai’s upper right arm. The Blakiston’s fish owl’s claws were sharp, and the raptor had been large, having a six foot wingspan.

Kai waved him off, though the gesture clearly caused him pain. “I’m fine, Zane. Nya and Sensei fixed me up.”

“Sooooooooo, no fighting?” Jay pouted, though he was clearly exaggerating. His expression changed to something more sorry. “I hope you’re okay, honestly.” He told Kai. Something about his voice seemed forced.

Cole walked out onto the patio. “I can train with you.” Jay’s face lit up. “Okay! Come over here!”

Cole smiled, walking over to his boyfriend. On the way, he lifted his scythe from the rack, holding it over his shoulder. “Ready?” Jay swung his nunchucks confidently. “Ready!”

[starbcrn-kids]

@unscrxpted​: Kenna said “I’m a nobody” to Kai Meme: Angst Sentence Starters always accepting!

“wHAT?” Kai’s head whips around and he drops what he’s doing to rush over to her, wrapping his arms around her. “No, no, no, now I know that’s not true, Kenna. Never in a million years.”

[starbcrn-kids]

unscrxpted​:

Kenna raised an eyebrow at him, laughing and holding up her hand, putting it in front of his face. “No no, you’re still in trouble for that comment you made!” She giggled, crossing her arms.

Tayen chuckled and shook her head. Adorable idiots. She turned back to the bar, sighing softly.

Kai whines and kisses her palm when she blocks him, wrinkling his nose at her as he pulls back. "I said I'm sorry!!!" He laughs softly and pouts at her.

[yeojaa]

wrong direction.

no pining?  for once?  groundbreaking!

pairing.  jjk x f!reader.  rating.  explicit.  tags.  soft filth, sort of?  like, not-intense porn with plot (if you squint hard).  college!jungkook deserves his own warning, though.  and taehyung’s a cockblock.  wc.  1k.

“Hi.”  One word - just one word.  That’s all it took.

You should’ve known, then and there, with his red solo cup and peach-pink hair, that he was trouble.  Should’ve spied it hidden behind the flutter of his lashes, the flash of his teeth - far too bright and blinding.  Boys like him were the kind your mother had always warned you about.  They’d build you up and strip you bare, all before you even knew what hit you.

Three months of senior year.   Four parties.  Two afternoons caught in the rain.  One kiss.  

Then another and another and another.  You were gone for.

"You can’t be so noisy, pretty.”  As if he’s not the reason you’re nearly wailing, far too loud even with the reverberating bass that pumps through the main floor.  He pretends, with that unbelievable full-force grin, that he’s without blame, bouncing you in his lap like it’s just another Friday night.

It’s difficult - having to choose between kissing him senseless and keeping quiet.  You’re not even sure you’re making a conscious decision;  it feels a lot more like being led by liquor and lust.

“What did I say?”  Punctuated by a particularly hard thrust, the head of his cock brushing agonizingly against that spot that has you squirming.  “Not so loud.”

“It’s not my fault,”  you whine, dragging your hips in impatient circles.  It feels so good you can’t stop, driven to a point of frustration by the way the pressure builds too slowly and how he won’t stop laughing, low and taunting against the shell of your ear.  Even when he shifts, stills his own rutting against you, you can’t give it up, pushing back against him like a demanding, needy girlfriend.

“Whose is it?”  Jungkook hums the question against your neck, teeth bared against the pulse that jumps erratically beneath it.  “You want me to stop, babe?”

“No!”  It shoots wayward and desperate off your tongue, a bullet with no mark.

His nose traces the slope of your jaw;  you can feel the sweat from his temple against your cheek.  You’re burning from the inside out - crumbling beneath the heat of him as he drags you closer, locking both arms around your waist.  It’s a particularly vulnerable position with hardly any give.  Just the way he likes it.  “No?”  

You’re ready to repeat the words - chant them until you’re hoarse and he can’t possibly believe otherwise - when the door flies open.  

The devil stands in the doorway, presented in the form of Kim Taehyung.

“Are you guys not coming down?”  Cocked head, narrowed eyes, two Texas sized mickeys of tequila clutched in each fist.    

You’d respond if not for the sudden pleasure-pain mixture that sears through your system, liquifying every part of you not already ignited by his touch.  It’s all too much all at once, the edge of his teeth sharp where it matters most.  Even the wet of his tongue does barely anything to soothe the ache.  

“Nah, we’re good.”  You can practically hear the smile in Jungkook’s voice.  “We’re just watching a movie.”

A poor excuse - which Taehyung catches onto immediately.  “There’s nothing on.”

“We’re going to watch a movie.”  

“What movie?”  

“Dunno yet.  Any suggestions?”  

How they manage to have a conversation, you’re not sure.  All coherence has left you - stolen by the capable fingers that slide over your clit in purposeful, measured glides.  There’s too much tension for you to think straight, every nerve ending coiled tight in the pit of your stomach.  

You just want him to move, Taehyung be damned.

You shift, experimentally, with a subtle flex of your knees on either side of his prone legs.  The comforter that swathes you white and downy is enough of a barrier, you think.  You can have this.

The pinch to your clit is harsh, more a reminder than a relenting.  You can’t help the way you jolt despite going nowhere, the arm slung across your hips acting as an anchor. 

“You okay?”  Taehyung’s barely a step closer before Jungkook clears his throat.

“She’s fine, hyung.”  

“Oh—kay.”  Realization seems to dawn then, spilling into his expression like sunbeams.  Suddenly, the third year is beside himself, backing into the hallway with finger guns aimed directly at the two of you.  “Enjoy your movie, kids.”

Over your shoulder, Jungkook laughs.  It shakes your entire frame, vibrating through your chest as he slips his hands back between your legs.  You’d snap them shut if not for how his fingers dig into the soft flesh of your thighs, forcing them wide.  “And shut the damn door!” 

Taehyung does, with a last shit-eating grin and slam of heavy wood.

“You’re the worst,”  you grumble quietly, petulant in a way that makes Jungkook smirk. 

He knows exactly how to get back into your good graces - all the buttons to push to have you lit up like a switchboard.  He still likes to pretend, though.  Drag it out until you’re silly and stupid and begging to be fucked into next week.  “Why?”  

“Because I always knew you were trouble.”  You’re doing that thing he adores:  hiding behind your curtain of hair, sweeping it over a sun-kissed shoulder like it might save you from him.  Pretty.

“Trouble?”  He echoes.  A gasp starts on his tongue - offended, disbelieving - and ends on yours - needy, desperate - dragged into the quiet by a snap of his hips against your ass.  “Dunno what you mean, babe.  I’m so nice.”

You want to tell him all the ways he’s wrong - how he’s awful because he’s ruined you for anyone else, with his bunny smile and muscled thighs, that hyena laugh and those twinkling eyes.  But it’s hard when he’s dragging his cock through your fluttering walls and palming at your tits.  

You can hardly think when he’s kissing you, let alone filling you so well.  

“I always noticed you, but I wasn’t supposed to.”  It’s not everything you want to say but it’s enough.  He gets it.  He has a reputation - the soft bad boy with the heart of gold.  The one who brings cupcakes to celebrate birthdays and rescues cats from trees - seriously, he really did that in his freshman year.

He doesn’t mind, though.  Not when it’s brought him, you.

“Well, thank god for that, huh?” 

[starbcrn-kids]

unbrxken​:

DM-001 did not like whatever this was. She tried to keep her cool, tried to stay in control, but she couldn’t. Dammit, she was panicking. She wasn’t supposed to be panicking. They told her she wasn’t supposed to panic, she was supposed to be able to handle this!

“What’s going on?” she yelled, her voice shaking. “Who are you people?”

Mackenzie nodded to Alara, hurriedly rushing to collect the others, flipping open her communicator. “Mackenzie to… Orville, I guess. If anyone is near Melina, Damian, or Scott, direct them to the transporter room.” She shook her head, rubbing her eyes. “Mackenzie to Kai, willing to bet Kenna’s with you, yes I’m directly attacking you both by saying that, and it’s also because I really don’t feel like clarifying for the stupid communicator. She’s needed in the transporter room.”

She didn’t even wait for a response before closing her communicator, stepping into the classroom and clearing her throat. “Miss Bashir, sorry to interrupt, but I need my regulars.”

“Oh, here we go,” Brynn sighed, standing carefully.

Nari stood slowly, rolling her shoulders. Lyssa glanced to Nick, then stood, helping Opal get her things together, as well. Mara looked rather displeased, but said nothing, just standing and getting ready to go, grumbling quietly to Freddie and Kyla. Celestia looked to Grayson, confused. Arthur nodded to his brother before getting up and collecting his things, taking a deep breath.

Lily holds up her hands. “It’s okay. It’s okay. We’re jus’ abou’ as lost as you are, lassie, yer okay, I promise, just breathe for me, okay?”

Kai blinks at Mackenzie’s callout, frowning and glancing to Kenna before shrugging and kissing her cheek. “Be safe. I love you.”

Lara glances up at the interruption before nodding slowly. “Well, go right ahead, don’t worry about it. Looks like a bit of a rush.”

Nick shrugs when Lyssa looks at him as he gets up as well, reaching out to hold Nari immediately. Kyla nods in agreement with Mara and rubs her back gently before reaching down to grab both of their hands on instinct. Grayson glances at Celestia and gets up, holding out a hand to her. “C’mon. That means someone else from our universe, from a lab like us, just showed up on the transported pad by accident. We go so they have someone who understands them and can help them feel at ease.”

At Grayson’s explanation to Celestia, Diana blinks, getting up as well, shrugging to Kye a bit as she gets her stuff together. Roxanne does the same, albeit looking rather unsure of herself.

Wynn nods back to Arthur, picking at his hands a bit. That meant something or someone was in engineering with mama and mom. He didn’t know how safe they were but... he had to hope for the best.

[autumnslance]

What I’ve actually been working on for a bit over a week, now that the Zenos brainworm has been evicted. Back to Stormblood 4.0 and two besties having a post-sparring chat about current crushes and past regrets. Below the cut for those who prefer Tumblr to Ao3:

--------------------

Lyse and Aeryn fell on their backs onto the palm of Rhalgr, laughing as their early morning sparring session ended in a draw.

“Maybe we got a little carried away...But you have to admit that was fun,” Lyse said, lolling her head in Aeryn’s direction. “You’re getting better at hand to hand.”

“C’oretta’s been putting me through my paces. Got to keep up with her energy,” Aeryn replied, staring at the now-blue sky, the sun high enough over the mountains to have burned away the last of the early morning colors.

“I should practice with her more then,” Lyse said. “When we’re done with...all this.” She vaguely waved her arm, before letting it flop back to her chest. She kept watching Aeryn. “So what are you going to do once we’ve saved Krile and freed Ala Mhigo?”

“Nap,” Aeryn said immediately, setting off another round of giggles from them both.

“Oh-kay, that’s fair. But after that? Or maybe before?”

“If you’re going fishing you’re going to need actual bait, Lyse.” Aeryn turned her head enough to grin at her friend.

Lyse grinned back and rolled to her side, propping up on her left elbow. “I’m just asking, if there’s anything--or anyone--you’ve been thinking about.”

Aeryn frowned for a moment, looking to the sky again. “...Not particularly.”

Lyse wrinkled her nose. “You’re a terrible liar. C’mon, Aeryn, you can say it.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” she replied, her hands briefly gesturing from the wrist only before dropping back to their resting spots on her stomach.

“Right, because you didn’t spend half our time in the Far East writing letters to and talking and thinking about certain charming rogues.”

Aeryn didn’t reply, her brows drawing down as she frowned more.

“Aer-yn.”

“What do you want, Lyse?” Aeryn sighed, turning now to mirror Lyse, propped on her right elbow.

“For you to admit whatever’s going on in your head concerning—”

“Oh don’t—”

“Thancred,” Lyse finished. At Aeryn’s wince and blush, she grinned again. “Aha-ha! I’m right, I knew it.”

“We’re friends—”

“So are you and a lot of other people, none of whom make you look like that.”

“...Like what?”

“You’re not just blushy, you’re...I dunno, like someone’s knocked the wind out of you, but in a good way. Your eyes practically glitter when you’re looking at him. Which is a lot when he’s around, by the way.”

“You’re exaggerating. Also we’ve seen Thancred for a whole, what, half a bell since we returned?”

“I know what I saw. What I’ve been seeing, every time you got a letter. Or wrote one, for that matter; you even write to him differently than you do to Rashae or anyone else.”

Aeryn rolled her eyes, but the blush had deepened and crept up her ears and down her neck. “You know I don’t--It’s not that easy--I…” she frowned again, trying to organize her thoughts, but from the thoughtful little crease between her eyes, Lyse knew Aeryn was now truly considering it.

“And you believe you messed up with Haurchefant,” Lyse said quietly. Aeryn didn’t respond. “That’s why you don’t realize what’s been happening.”

“And what, pray tell, has been happening?”

“You acting like a besotted schoolgirl, that’s what.”

“I am not.”

“Oh yes you are. And it’s adorable.”

“Take that back.”

“I shan’t,” Lyse replied in sing-song. Her smile quickly faded and it was her turn to sigh. “I didn’t want you getting involved with him when you first joined the Scions, you know,” she mused. “One, I knew you weren’t interested, and two—well, I’d known Thancred too long.” They both snorted and giggled again.

“But,” Lyse finally continued once they’d calmed. “You two have always had a rapport. You got to be pretty good friends, and I don’t know, it seems like with everything since finding me and Papalymo again, and then after Minfilia left...It’s become something else and it’s...nice.”

Aeryn didn’t answer right away, staring at some spot on the stone palm between them, and for a moment Lyse began to think she had definitely overstepped when Aeryn finally replied, very quietly, “It feels nice.” She frowned and looked at Lyse again, her grey eyes dark. “Things have changed but I don’t know that it’s,” she stopped and thought for a moment. “I don’t want to...ruin anything.”

“I have a hard time believing you could ruin anything, even if you tried.”

“You’d be surprised,” Aeryn said, rolling onto her back again. “I tried relationships when I was a girl in Thavnair. Twice. Neither worked out because...well…”

“You don’t like sex.”

Aeryn winced at Lyse’s bluntness. “It’s not that I don’t like it, it’s just...not something I look for. It’s fun in the moment, but not a priority. And for a lot of people…”

“It’s important,” Lyse said. “So you think any relationship is doomed because you don’t have the same wants as other people?”

Aeryn nodded.

“Hrm. Well, I’m no expert, but seems to me that’s one of those things you’d just have to talk about. That whole being adults...thing.” Lyse waved a hand again, gratified by Aeryn’s small smile in response. “Which you likely just weren’t experienced enough for all those years ago, right?” She paused, frowning. “Orrr, is this also about Haurchefant?”

Aeryn covered her face in her hands and made a frustrated noise. “Gods, if I could purge those rumors and stories and the damned songs about that…” She sighed again and let her hands drop to her chest. “It...was sort of like those earlier attempts. He was kind, and I knew how much he cared for me, and I guess I...tried to reciprocate. Confusing his feelings for mine, maybe? Sometimes it’s hard to tell.”

“You mean because of the Echo?” Each Walker’s Echo was a little bit different, and Aeryn’s made her especially empathic at times, Lyse knew.

Aeryn nodded. “Probably didn’t help that everything after Ul’dah was just...I was lonely, and scared, and I thought…” She shook her head. “I was stupid, and before I could apologize and fix it...Well.”

“You are far from stupid.”

“Doesn’t mean I can’t make stupid mistakes.”

“Well, sure. Still, you couldn’t have messed up that badly.” At Aeryn’s cringe, Lyse raised a brow. “Come on.”

“I did sleep with him—once.”

“Really?” Lyse rolled onto her stomach, chin propped in both her hands.

Aeryn rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t...It was a stressful day.”

“You’ll have to be more specific. Your idea of a stressful day is different from other peoples’.”

“Fair.” She grinned at Lyse. “I had to babysit Emmanellain de Fortemps.”

“All right, that does explain a lot.”

“He got himself kidnapped by the Vundu…”

“Of course he did.”

“I went ahead, while Honoroit ran back to get aid--so, Haurchefant and a couple Haillenarte knights--and that was the day we learned about Bismark, as Cid rescued us with his ever-exceptional piloting before we were eaten.”

“That is a stressful day, even by your standards.”

“We stayed the night at the Rosehouse, there in the Sea of Clouds. Haurchefant came to my room--he claimed he had some nightmare that I had gone to fight the primal and had to see if I was all right; an irrational concern--”

“I don’t know, it’s what you do.”

“Well, yes, but not--anyroad, we spoke, and...held one another; not uncommon. But I felt as though something in me just...broke, and I wanted...I don’t know. Comfort? Closeness? ...I fear I may have simply used him…”

“I doubt that,” Lyse said gently. “You cared for him, right?”

Aeryn nodded.

“Well there you go. You had a vulnerable moment like any of us mere mortals,” she ignored Aeryn’s latest eyeroll. “It happened. And given what I’ve heard of Haurchefant, it couldn’t have been that terrible.”

“It wasn’t! But...As soon as he left—had to ‘protect my reputation’ or whatever—I realized...I didn’t,” Aeryn huffed as she paused in thought again. “I loved him, but not...like that. I couldn’t give him what he wanted.”

“And what’d he say to that?”

“That’s the thing; we never got to talking about it. I...avoided him for a bit after that, just to get my own head straight, think about what I wanted to say and why...and then we went on our mission to Dravania, and then it was just one thing after another and…” Her voice cracked. She took a breath and shook her head. “I regret not taking the opportunity to be honest with him.”

“Makes sense. And I can see why you’re hesitating to open up like that again. You’re afraid what you’re feeling is a reflection of Thancred’s feelings.”

Aeryn made a face. “I wouldn’t go so far as to presume what he feels—“

“I would,” Lyse stated. She smirked at Aeryn, then shrugged. “Before I would have said this is one of his fleeting infatuations. Buuut I’ve been watching since we rejoined you all in Mor Dhona, and he’s been...different.”

“How do you mean?”

“Well if I didn’t know better, lots of what I hear about how he behaved, up ‘til about Papalymo and I got back to the Toll, sounds like he was flat jealous.”

“Of what?”

Lyse scoffed. “Of other people being interested in you, of course. Not that you notice that ever. There’ve been talks he and I have had, where I look back and realize there were multiple meanings going on and I hate that he can’t just talk plainly like a normal person, but anyway the biggest one was when we did see him briefly in Castrum Oriens before he went off to find Krile.”

“He seemed normal to me,” Aeryn said, though she was pointedly not looking at Lyse.

Lyse recalled how Thancred had turned and smiled, his shoulders lifting as if a weight had been removed from them; not unusual in anyone, really, when the Warrior of Light walked by, but something about Thancred had lit up from within, and his uncovered eye had practically devoured Aeryn head to toe before simply settling on her, like someone basking in a sunbeam in the bath. In all the time Lyse had known him, he had never looked at anyone like that. And Lyse had known Thancred through some of his earliest attempts at relationships, when the experiences and emotions were all new (and Yda had teased him so much back in those days, before Lyse herself really understood what was happening), as well as more recent ones as an adult he had no real serious interest in.

“Well, he wasn’t normal,” Lyse said, uncertain how to explain it all out loud. “Neither were you, for that matter. If you’re acting like a schoolgirl, he’s just as bad.”

“Ugh!” Aeryn sat up, wincing a little, resting her arms on her half-drawn-up knees. “I still say you’re exaggerating.” She looked away. “...And given my Echo, it’s possible just one of us reflecting off the other.”

Progress, of a sort. Lyse sat up too. “I still say I’m not, and I don’t think so. Know how I know?”

“How Lyse?” Aeryn glanced at her friend, brows drawn into a helplessly annoyed expression.

“The way you were in the East when he was nowhere around,” Lyse reminded her. “Writing him letters, and excited to get his personal reply along with the reports. You wouldn’t even realize you were mentioning him, or telling stories, and the way you sounded and looked when doing so. And I know you were thinking about him other times, too.” She smirked as Aeryn went crimson again.

“...Fine. Maybe. It’s still...weird and makes no sense and doesn’t mean anything.”

“Means a whole lot, actually. You did say earlier that it felt nice.”

“Yes but...He’s a friend, and a colleague, and he...well…” Aeryn made a helpless gesture.

“Oh no; use your words!”

Aeryn let out an exasperated noise. “I don’t want to make the same mistake again,” she blurted finally.

“So, don’t,” Lyse shrugged, chin on her hand, elbow propped on a knee. “You know what went wrong with Haurchefant, and those others when you were younger. Thancred’s a smart man, and more considerate than he lets on. You can figure it out.”

“I don’t know that I should. It may not be a good idea, given...everything.”

“‘Everything’ like what, exactly?”

“Like, that we live and work together as Scions. That we’re in the middle of a war--which, by the way, we really ought to be meeting the others--and just…everything.”

“You mean being the Warrior of Light.”

Aeryn sighed. “Gotta admit, there’s a lot of...a lot, with it. Most of it I don’t even want.”

“Or it’s all the more reason, given who else outside the Scions really knows what you do?” Lyse shrugged as she got to her feet and stretched. “Food for thought, at least.” She reached down to offer Aeryn a hand up. “I think it’s a good idea, for the record,” she said as she hauled Aeryn to her feet and into a hug. “But that may be because I want to see my friends happy.”

Aeryn returned the embrace. “Thanks, Lyse. Let’s get cleaned up and meet the others.”

She was deflecting again, but that was all right; she was at least thinking about it now. Lyse nodded in agreement. “Thanks for the practice; I know I feel better.”

They negotiated the massive stone wrist and forearm to reach the entryway back into the old temple, then down the long, twisting stairs to the base. On emerging from the old door at the literal foot of the statue, they were met by Resistance runners delivering updates on matters in the Lochs, and a request from General Aldynn to return as soon as possible now that Alisaie and the other injured were safely in the Reach.

Lyse sighed as the runners left to make their next deliveries. “Guess cleanup can wait. If we teleport to Ala Ghiri we can meet Pipin and the others there and head to Praetoria together.”

“Good thing it has to wait, since Naago’s already there,” Aeryn said, a sly smirk on her face as Lyse stumbled.

“Wha—? I don’t know what you--Since when did she okay you calling her that?”

“I’m just pointing out that you call her that. Often. And I’m thinking maybe she can help you clean up since you’re so familiar.”

“Aeryn!” Lyse gawped.

“What?” She asked, all fake sweet innocence, hands clasped behind her back as she rocked on her toes.

Lyse peered. “Maybe you do notice more than you let on,” she muttered. Then shook her head. “I’m the Commander of the Resistance now, which means Na-M’Naago is my subordinate--don’t you dare!” she threatened, wagging a finger as Aeryn bit her lip, though that did nothing to suppress her giggles. “And it...it wouldn’t be proper or professional or...or something…” Rhalgr’s sake, now Lyse was the one feeling hot and blushing; her skin must have nearly matched her dress.

Aeryn patted Lyse’s shoulder as she buried her face in her hands. “I think no one’s going to care.”

“You know what? I take it all back; you’ve obviously spent too much time with Thancred already. Any more and it’s irresponsible levels of corruption.”

Aeryn laughed. “Don’t poke if you can’t handle getting poked back, Lyse!” She wrapped her arm around Lyse’s back and gave her a quick hug. “Though I do think you two are cute and I definitely know what I’ve seen is not me projecting,” she stage-whispered, grinning.

Lyse side-eyed her, trying very hard to be grumpy. “You’re lucky you’re my best friend and I love you or I’d kick your arse so hard right now.”

“Like you didn’t half a bell ago?”

“That was a draw! I could have had you!”

“Probably!” Aeryn sang, adjusting so they were walking arm in arm as they crossed the Reach toward the aetheryte.

Lyse grumbled, but couldn’t help smiling, too. This had been a nice reprieve from everything else going on before the final push to Ala Mhigo, and hopefully saving Krile along the way.

Alphinaud joined them at the aetheryte, grinning in that cheeky way he had when he had gotten the last word in on his and Alisaie’s latest verbal spar. Just to playfully annoy him, Lyse lightly punched him in the arm while Aeryn ruffled his hair before she initiated the teleport to Ala Ghiri for all three of them, to get back to the business of the war.

Despite that, Lyse knew that at some point in all this mess she was going to have to catch and play Little Sister to their resident sneak and probably just straight up bully him into admitting what he was thinking and spur him to do something about it. These two idiots would be happy one way or another, dammit, if Lyse had her way.

And if nothing else it might distract them from Lyse’s own love life issues. One could always hope, anyroad.

[thewritingdesk]

It Had to be You ~ Part Two

Summary: Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world she walked into hers.  Lin Beifong saw the world in two colors; black and white. That changes though when she meets the siren working with one of the largest gangs in Republic City.

Azami never had a choice. Didn’t have a way out. But she could destroy things from the inside. She could move information around. She could lie and smile with the best of them.

Neither needed anyone. Neither needed love. So what happens when fate ties them together? Can they save each other? Or will a smoking gun end something before it begins

A/N: A 1930s/40s LOK AU. Note that there will be themes that were present during this time including smoking, drinking, underlying homophobia, and potentially smut later on down the line. Writer’s views are not that of the characters.

Word count: 2046

In a city that shines from both street lights and stars, you’d think that all that glittered was gold. That truly, such a marvel of a city had achieved a beautiful balance in the world and everyone lived peacefully. Crime is minimal and the law has won.

But Azami knew better. The mirror’s reflection reminded her of that.

She’d experienced what it had been like to beg for her meal and hope the abandoned building had a dry place for her to sleep. And that the cops wouldn’t kick her out if they found her. Her parents had died young. Trip Threats said her father owed them money. Tossed him in the bay tied to a boulder. Her mother had been shot in the head when she’d tried to run. Azami hid in their pantry and heard it all. 

She’d been fifteen when she took her first stage job. A lie and enough makeup to pass for eighteen had gotten her the gig. When they’d figured out her talents when it came that, the smaller leagues used her to move information around. Supply runs and caches for those that had needed them. Throw off the larger gangs and the police in hopes to feed those that the rest of the world turned their back on. 

Brush strokes through her hair. One-two-three-four. Moving in time to the tinny sound of a trumpet and drum. Eyes that she displayed for the world that filled themselves with fires looked tired. Cheeks were gaunt. 

“Nothing a little makeup can’t fix, doll.”

Takao had said to her after he’d smacked her across the face for sneaking the bus boy some food from the kitchen. Never enough to bruise. Only enough to control. Him and the four cronies that had started to show up more and more to stir things up. Setting the brush down, fingers pinned the front of her dark brown locks into a victory roll, leaving the rest of her hair to curl around her shoulders. 

“Dyke freak like her would want ‘em soft.” 

Feed the chief lies. Hook her with a smile. Leave her always wanting more, but remember, stay out of reach. 

Nightingale, that is what they’d started calling her. Her voice was melodic and rang clear like the songbird. She fluttered around and went unnoticed, like the songbird. She was caged, like a songbird. The stage was her cage, no matter how she loved it. No matter how she had lied to herself and painted it in gold. 

It was on the stage that Takao had discovered her. Had found her her family had been, and what her father had once been. It was the stage that he’d watched her eyes linger not on the men that came through the door. It was the stage that he chained her to the floor. 

“Remember, little bird, the world has no sympathy for a freak with no power.” 

Men like Takao had seized power after the uprisings that forced the council to step down as the head of the city. They had turned a blind eye to things such as who could love who. The president who was easily bought, easily swayed, was not so easily blinded. It was this man who had let the three major gangs begin to take over the city. Allowed for those who had already oppressed, already crippled, to only feel the hand around their throat tighten. It was his fault that she…

“Ten more minutes until curtain, Miss Nightingale.” 

Jumping from her reverie, Azami turned to the young boy who had come to her door and nodded to him. Thanking him quietly, she quickly moved to dress in the crimson red dress that had been selected. The dress hugged and skimmed over her hips and showed off her thin waist. The V in the back showing off the soft skin, while thin straps sat on her shoulders. 

A doll, she was a doll. 

Slipping into her shoes, white gloves were slipped on before she left the room and headed for the stage. 

Lin wasn’t sure how she found herself back in the smoke filled club. Or how she found herself seated at a table, whiskey in hand, rather than leaning against the bar. She’d even gone home to change out of her uniform. Black trousers that cinched high on her waist paired with the white silk blouse that tapered into her form, two buttons left open to allow her neck to be seen. She’d kept the bun, but put on some lipstick.

Maybe it had been something in those eyes that made her forget herself. She was just here to get information, she’d be able to sit without standing out dressed like this. 

That’s what she told herself anyway. 

So lost in her thoughts Lin had been that she hadn’t noticed Azami take the stage, hadn’t noticed the shift in the room as it stilled. Waiting for the first notes from the maestro that stood on the stage.  

“Stars fading, but I linger on, dear

Still craving your kiss

I'm longing to linger till dawn, dear

Just saying this”

The siren’s pull had moved from her ears and down to her belly. The smooth sounds catching her off guard as pale green eyes sought out the darker green ones. Something was off about them tonight. The fire was still there, and they still held hers captive but there was something deeper. Something Lin couldn’t put a word to.

“Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you

Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you

But in your dreams whatever they be

Dream a little dream of me.”

The song faded as eyes locked, whiskey came to her lips and burned her throat. An anchor. Something to hold her there. She couldn’t fall under the spell completely if she was still feeling the burn of the alcohol. If she could feel the outside world still tugging at her. 

Unlike the previous night, she didn’t make her way to her immediately. She waited. She listened as she sang through the upbeat tunes. Watched as she accepted a martini from a man, only to set it back on the bar when his back had turned. 

Sitting back in her chair, she pulled her own cigarette from its case a bit too forcefully before lighting and releasing her own mark into the air. She knew she was there. 

Azami had felt the chief’s eyes on her most of the night. Felt them as she made her rounds, made her wait. Tempted her to fetch her from the hands of others. She was almost disappointed when she didn’t. Finally making her way to the table, she offered Lin one of her signature smiles before taking her seat. 

“I’m glad you could make it, chief. Did you enjoy the set?” Azami asked, a finger motioning one of the waiters over. Ordering herself another gin and tonic she sat back in her chair. 

Lin brought the cigarette back to her lips and had just pulled a drag from it when fingers reached over and plucked it from her hand. She watched the other woman bring it to her lips deliberately, eyes never leaving hers and watching her expectantly. 

“It was...good.” Her hand reached for the cigarette when it was handed back to her, noticing the way the two lipsticks seemed to mingle. “Now, about our deal.” 

“Patience isn’t your strong suit, is it chief?” Azami asked, offering the waiter a winning smile when her drink was brought to her. “While I enjoy my drink for a moment, why don’t you tell me about your day.” 

“My day? Why the fuck would you want to know--”

“Do you see that man behind me? The one in the obnoxious red suit?” Azami asked and waited until she received a nod from the chief before speaking again. “That’s Jun. Not a major player so he wouldn’t be on your radar, but he reports back to Ju-long who…”

“Who is one of the higher ups to the Agni Kai triad.” Lin finished and reached for her drink. 

“Very good, chief.” Sipping her drink, Azami watched the woman. “All of these men know you. All of them are trying to discern if you’re you, or if you’re just another woman.”

“And what happens if they find out?” Lin asked, sipping her whiskey. 

“They let you go the other night. Coming in more than once means one of two things; you’re willing to be bought, or you’re on to something. Guess it depends which you present to them.” Azami answered, setting her glass down. 

She could feel Takao’s eyes on her and tried to ignore it. Instead she tried to focus on the pale green of Lin’s eyes, she wondered if she realized there were small auburn fleks in the green. Probably not. 

“And how did a lady like you get caught up in this?” 

“A lady she says, been a while since someone called me that.” Azami chuckled and folded her arms. “That’s a long, sad story. Maybe I’ll let you convince me to tell you about it, one day. Now, to our deal, there’s four people that keep coming in to speak with the owner, two men, two women. One of the men seems to be the ringleader, keeps one of the dames on his arm. Not sure what their deal is, seems to be upset about that young kid with ties that could shake up the layers of power. Don’t have any names.” 

Lin leaned forward, she’d heard rumor of this group, had heard of the destruction they left behind them. “Can you come down to the station to describe them?”

“And risk my own neck, or find myself in the bottom of the bay? No thanks, chief.” 

“We could protect you, Azami.” Lin pointed out, I could protect you, her mind whispered back. 

“No, you couldn’t chief.” Azami answered, reaching to finish her drink. “So I guess your need for me is done.” 

Let me protect you. Get out of here while you can.

“When is your next set?” Lin asked, almost shocked that the words had escaped her. 

“Two nights from now.” Azami answered, watching the woman quietly. Gone were the flirtatious smiles. This woman was good, she didn’t want to drag her into this world. But too many people outside this club relied on her keeping Takao’s eyes off of them. “Should I expect you?”

Swirling the amber fluid in the glass, Lin tossed the rest back and hummed. “Will you have more information for me?”

Sing pretty bird, sing just for me. Sing the sweetest song you ever did see.

“Perhaps. Guess you’ll have to show up and see.” Azami answered and stood. She was tired. Her set was done and the next doll took the stage. She wanted out of the dress. She wanted to remove the facade. She wanted to go home. 

A caged little bird, a sweet little doll. Remember child, you’re only as good as what they need you for.

Lin watched Azami walk away as she turned to reach for her grey trench coat. She moved with an effortless grace, but this time her head stayed lowered. Only the staff received any kind of smile when they came over to speak with her on her way to the back door. Had her eyes seemed despondent when she had asked if she’d have more information in two days time? 

Now why would you care? Her mind whispered back.

Shaking it off, she stood and began out of the club. This nightingale, Azami, she corrected herself, had been something she’d been trying to look into since their first meeting. But every lead she found seemed to dangle in the wind. Women like that were dangerous. Women like that would get you killed.

But then, why did she feel her stomach clench when the fire in those eyes had dulled? Why had her heart tied up when that voice had hooked her in despite her best attempts to ignore it? Why was she dreaming of green eyed sirens when she closed her eyes?

She needed to get home. She needed a stronger drink. And she needed to crack this mystery so she could leave this woman behind.

[moth-and-raven]

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

We fly back through the narrow passageways chased by Lucio’s howls of protest, Julian explaining in fits and bursts what his plan is. Skylar is an old friend, he says, that he met when he still went by Ilya. If anyone would know something about what had happened three years ago, it would be him. I ask why he hadn’t considered contacting him before, and, with a guilty shrug, Julian admits that reaching out to old friends was never something he’d been good at. He and Skylar would often go years without interacting, only to run into each other again in the most unlikely of places.

With any luck, that can happen again.

Portia opens a panel in the wall for us to escape through. We emerge in a familiar corridor, the same one that led us to the greenhouse last night, and follow it outside. There’s a great gathering of servants on the other side of the lawn, overseeing the setup of a number of tents. Portia’s gaze lingers, guilt knotting her brow, before she turns away and ushers us down the narrow path back to her cottage.

Pepi barely stirs from her warm sunbeam, twitching her ears at our entry. Portia shushes her sleepy mew and steps into the sitting room, gesturing for us to make ourselves at home. “So where to now?” she asks.

Julian sinks onto the sofa and sighs, patting the space next to him in invitation. When I join him, he leans his head against mine. “I would bet dollars to donuts that, if he’s truly here, we’ll find Skylar at the Red Market,” he says. “For the plants, you know. Marvelous specimens here.”

Portia sits down on an ottoman across from us. “You’ll have to change again, then,” she says heavily. “If you show up dressed as a servant from the palace, they probably won’t even let you in.”

“Do they think so little of Nadia’s policies?”

She sneers. “It isn’t Nadia they hate, it’s the rest of the court. Vulgora put up such a huge tantrum when the Market moved into the Coliseum, I swear they were gonna run down there and set fire to the stalls themself.”

“The Coliseum?”

“Oh, Ilya. You’ve been gone a long time, y’know? Lots of stuff has changed.”

“Surely not the Red Market. That’s been a standby of Vesuvian tourism as long as the Coliseum itself has.”

“They kicked the whole thing out of the canals of the Flooded District a couple years ago to ‘clean up the area.’ Like they’ve ever cared about the Flooded District…”

“Well, I know seedy underbellies.” Julian snuggles closer, brushing his thumb across the back of my shoulder absently. “Those are the same no matter where you go.”

Portia smiles at him. “I guess. I can’t come with you, though. I really need to help with Masquerade prep.”

Julian nudges me and chuckles. “I think we’ll be alright, don’t you, darling?”

I think we’re venturing into yet another arena in which I have little to no experience. But I nod. It’s just a market. Maybe the goods are a bit spicier, and the clientele a bit rowdier, but we shouldn’t be there long and if Julian says he knows what he’s doing, I’m inclined to trust him.

“Excellent.” He kisses my cheek. “We’ve yet to go on a proper date anyway.”

She rolls her eyes. “You have terrible timing.”

He catches my gaze and arches a brow, soft grin turning cheeky. “Don’t I know it.”

“Be careful, okay?” Portia stands up. “And go get changed. I’m not leaving you two lovebirds alone in my house.”

I don’t blame her for that. Julian laughs and rubs my thigh before retreating into the bathroom and closing the door behind him. I’m casting around for something to do, some way to help, when I notice Portia watching me with a grin like a cat and a gleam of interest in her bright blue eyes.

“So,” she says. “You and my brother, huh?”

Me and her brother. She said she would ask, didn’t she? “What about us?”

“That’s what you’ve gotta tell me, isn’t it? How long have you been an item?”

“Oh, uh…” I think back through everything we’ve done. “We met a week ago.”

She just stares. “What?”

I can’t help but flush an embarrassed scarlet. All of it — breaking up and getting back together, sharing Mazelinka’s tiny bed, the eel bite, talking late into the night at the Raven, even him sneaking into my shop… it’s all happened in the last seven days. “Yeah.”

“Damn, you work fast.”

I shrug.

“So… how’d it happen?”

“What do you mean?”

She shakes her head impatiently. “Did he see you at a bar and start hitting on you? Were you in line together at the chancery? Did he… did he run into you in the marketplace and knock all your groceries out of your arms, then help you pick them up and offer to walk you home? Come on, Reyja, I’m dyin’ here.”

That’s an oddly specific scenario. But I ought to tell her the truth. “He broke into the shop the night before I came to the palace.”

“He did what?! ”

I suppose it is rather scandalous. “It was kind of a misunderstanding.”

“Uh-huh, sure it was. And then he was in your shop again the morning we came down to give the Masquerade announcement because…?”

“Um, he was checking on me. We’d spent a lot of time together at the Raven the night before but had to call things early.”

“Why?”

“Guards.”

“O...kay. Have you had any legal interactions with him?”

“Isn’t interacting with him at all illegal, considering?”

Portia laughs. “Fair point.” She leans back and looks me over appraisingly. “Listen, Reyja, no one’s a bigger fan of my brother than I am. And believe me, I know how much of a handful he can be. But you’re serious about this, aren’t you?”

“I am.” I’m almost offended she would think anything else.

She smiles to herself. “He was right, then. You’re someone special.”

He was…? “You already knew all this.”

“‘Course I did. He would not shut up about you last night. Classic Ilya, never using a two-word phrase when a ten-word one would do. He pulled out all the stops, really: you make his heart soar, he feels alive again, he can actually see coming out of this for once… it’s cute.”

My embarrassment fades. It warms my heart to picture him so joyful, and it’s even better knowing it’s because of me. “So why ask me?”

“Because there’s two sides to every story. I know how he feels about you, but how do you feel about him ?”

I pause. “I guess… I guess there’s just something about him. Something in him that speaks to something in me.”

Tightness creeps into my throat, cutting me off, but I don’t want to stop talking. I’ve never verbalized any of this before, what I’ve been missing. What I found with him. Why I care so much, so quickly, and why I’m willing to do almost anything to keep him safe. He may think I’m someone special, but so is he.

“I think it goes a lot deeper than that, too, though,” I continue, pushing the tears away. “I’m not really a happy person, or at least I didn’t used to be. But I’m happy around him. Lighter. He makes me feel attractive and interesting and sexy. Like I belong somewhere. Like I’m… like I’m not as worthless as I always thought I was. He appreciates me just as I am. And— and I don’t want to be anyone else when I’m with him. I never want to be me, but I don’t mind it so much when I see myself through his eyes.”

That’s the biggest thing: I am, for the first and only time I can remember, comfortable in my own skin, because of him. Quiet settles in the room around us, fed by the weight of my confession. I wasn’t expecting to get so poetic, or bare so much of my soul, but Julian does that to me.

“So I guess,” I say softly, “To answer your original question: me and your brother? God, I hope so.”

“Oh, Reyja.”

That isn’t Portia’s voice.

“My darling, can I kiss you?”

I didn’t hear, or see, him emerge from the other room. But there he is, leaning against the door jamb, back in his navy trousers and loose white shirt. Portia is still perched on the edge of the ottoman, her hands pressed to her chest and tears glistening where she had been eyeing me slyly. I don’t know how much he heard, but it must have been enough.

“You can always kiss me, Julian,” I say thickly.

He’s at my side in an instant, sinking to his knees. His lips are cool and soft, not deepening the kiss until I do. We stay joined for a long time, breaking apart reluctantly only after we run out of breath. Even then, he stays close, pressing his forehead to mine and peering at me with both eyes visible, glowing with affection.

“Then I always will.”

------

The last time I was at the Red Market, I was terrified. Not because of the people, or even the contents of the many stalls I passed, but because I was doing something new. It’s been several years since then but trepidation still rises at the back of my throat as the Coliseum fills the sky, towering over us, weeping rubble from the cracks in its smooth marble facade.

The Market itself is accessed through a nondescript doorway. Sometimes there’s a guard or two, neighborhood tough guys stationed to scare away the palace’s minions that come sniffing around spoiling for a fight, but today we’re in luck. I hope it holds; it would only take one person recognizing Julian from the old wanted posters to spoil everything.

Even so, he’s excited. I’m sure it’s been a long time since he last did something like this. And as anxious as I am, I’m nevertheless pleased to be with him, out on the town just like he imagined.

Voices and smoke, spices and charring meat and, barely disguised, the scents of the underground, of unwashed bodies and piss and vomit and blood, slither out of the stonework as soon as we pass into the Market. It’s dark, dingy, as red as its name from the glow of torches and lamps lighting up the tunnels. There’s a decent crowd for the middle of the day, most of them hiding their faces.

I squeeze Julian’s hand and pull him to the side of the pathway. “We should get some masks,” I tell him, gesturing with my head at the steady flow of other customers.

He casts his gaze over them too. “I suppose so,” he says, with a wry smile. “But I’d rather my first gift to you not be so… so…”

“Practical?”

He laughs. “Or such an obvious reminder of all this unpleasantness.”

“It wouldn’t be your first gift.”

“Mm?”

“The starstrand?”

“Ah, yes. The first thing I purchase for you, then.”

I suppress the urge to roll my eyes. He’s sweet, but now probably isn’t the time to be quibbling over such minor details. “Then let me get them.”

“Darling, the sentiment remains—”

“So does the problem.” I catch his hand and mesh our fingers, then stand on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. “It won’t be the last thing we buy for each other."

Julian sighs into my touch and relaxes, just enough for me to relax a bit too. “No, it won’t. I’m being silly, aren’t I?”

“Maybe a little.”

“I reserve that right.”

“I’ll allow it.”

I kiss him again, in the wake of his adoring grin, and we step back into the crowd together. I shift to hold his elbow instead of his hand as we meander down the rows of merchants, keeping our eyes open for clothing booths. It doesn’t take long to find one that will suit our needs; I pick out a velvety black shawl that can dip low over my face and Julian finds a length of fabric to twist into something resembling a turban. I have to roll my eyes then: trust him to find the most conspicuous way to hide.

“That one, huh?”

He runs the cloth through his hands. “Is something wrong with it?”

“It’s bright red, Julian.”

“Is it? It isn’t a sort of brownish-gray?”

Wait… “Are you colorblind?”

He pauses. “Ah. This is Mazelinka and my coat all over again.”

“What happened?”

“Those inner panels? I was sure they were a nice dark brown, sleek and stealthy. Mazelinka laughed at me the first time she saw it and asked if I was trying to torment myself with memories of the Plague. I wasn’t, of course!”

“I’m sure you had fun convincing her it was an honest mistake.”

“I did my best. I don’t know if she believes me yet.”

I laugh and take the scarf. If nothing else, red suits him. And wearing red at the Red Market should only disguise him better, right? I pay for both without incident and help him cover his hair, artfully arranging the end of the turban around his mouth and nose to hide his profile as best I can. After I mask my own features with my new shawl, we set off deeper into the Market.

Julian is obviously comfortable here, navigating the twists and turns between stalls with ease. And never once does he choose a path I would struggle to fit through. We make a whole circuit of the catacombs without any sign of Skylar, but on the next round, I find my attention wandering. So we slow down, perusing the merchandise, looking for all the world like just another couple out buying some more unusual trinkets to keep things fresh.

At one booth, Julian wraps his arms around me from behind, resting his hands on my belly as he holds me close, rocking me gently and humming to himself. I lean into his chest, all thoughts vanishing in a flood of contentment; how he knew that I longed for touch like this, for connection and acceptance and— how he knew that I wanted to be loved like this, I don’t know, but he was right.

We while away at least an hour, maybe more, wandering the Market. With no daylight, it’s hard to tell the time. Eventually, Julian asks if I’d like to get some lunch, and I agree. We duck into a notch at the intersection of several rows of stalls, a larger space with some places to sit and a handful of food vendors scattered around the perimeter. We decide on a Karnassi gyro stand and fold ourselves into a corner to watch the crowd pass as we eat.

We’ve just started another circuit, the opposite direction this time, when luck strikes again.

I hear Julian’s sharp intake of breath, colored by his smile, and follow his gaze to a booth near the entrance. Admiring the books is the tallest man I’ve ever seen, his height made even more obvious by the curved horns emerging from his tightly-coiled hair. His face is unmasked; clearly he isn’t worried about being recognized, and his green eyes spark with intelligence even from a distance. He rubs the stubble on his chin and picks up a book, flipping it open one-handed and frowning slightly as he scans the table of contents.

Julian takes my hand and slips through the throng of market-goers, emerging in the empty space at Skylar’s elbow; he doesn’t even seem to notice us.

“Fancy seeing you here,” Julian chuckles, pulling his mask down. He has to look up into Skylar's face, something I’m sure he isn’t used to.

Skylar startles, but recognition washes over him almost immediately. “Ilya,” he says simply. His voice belies his size, soft and soothing. He puts down the book to wrap Julian in a hug, kissing his cheek too. “Nice hat. Vesuvia again, eh?”

“Vesuvia again,” Julian agrees.

“You’re a wanted man here.”

“They haven’t come after you, have they?”

“Of course not. And if they did, well… I have plenty of other places to go.”

Julian shifts anxiously. Before he can say anything else, Skylar turns his attention to me. “You’re with him?” he asks.

“Yeah. I’m Reyja.”

“Nice to meet you, Reyja.” His green gaze darts between us as he chews his cheek, clearly working out exactly the manner in which I’m with Julian. Whatever conclusion he comes to, he must not be interested in pursuing it.

“I’ve, ah…” Julian clears his throat. “I’ve a rather big favor to ask of you, Skylar.”

“Alright.”

Just alright? Nothing else? No caveats?

Julian doesn’t seem surprised by his easy acceptance. He shuffles closer and drops his voice to a conspiratory whisper. “So, erm. I heard that, ah. You were here, weren’t you? Three years ago?”

Skylar frowns. “Yes.”

“And, ah, and I was here.”

“Yes?”

“Could you…” he trails off. “What happened?”

Several beats of silence meet his question. “What do you mean, ‘what happened?’” Skylar asks slowly.

“Erm, exactly that. I… I find myself in a bit of a… I remember waking up in a jail cell, and working at the palace for Lucio, but everything in between is a bit of a blur.”

Skylar blinks. And again. “Okay, well… uh, yeah, I was here. Helping. Helping you, specifically. You asked me, said the research side of the Plague could be an interesting topic of study. The Palace had opened its doors to anyone who wanted to come, so that wasn’t an issue. I never dealt with any patients, of course, I’d just watch from the sidelines. You even let me observe Count Lucio a few times.”

I smile to myself. I don’t think Skylar knows just how much Lucio enjoyed his ‘observations.’

“Is any of this useful?” Skylar asks.

Julian nods, his gaze unfocused as he tries to force his memories to return.

“I guess it’s not a huge surprise that you can’t remember. You, uh… you weren’t at your best, Ilya.”

He nods sadly. “So I’ve heard. Some say I lost my mind.”

“I don’t know if I’d go that far. But you definitely weren’t doing well. You wouldn’t even tell me what had happened, that fucked you up so bad.”

“Really?” Julian shakes his head. “I had hoped…”

“Sorry. The most you told me was in the last few days before everything went to shit. You said that Valdemar was going to try something big soon.”

“Valdemar…” His voice is mostly breath, lost in the intervening years. Just the passing acquaintance I have with Valdemar sets the hairs on the back of my neck on end at the mere mention of their involvement. Portia had said they were familiar with the Plague. I didn’t realize just how close they’d been to it.

“Shortly after that, they sent me, and everyone else who wasn’t medical, away from the palace,” Skylar continues. “I stayed in town as long as I could, though. I didn’t want to leave you up there by yourself.”

“That must’ve been when…” Julian touches his eyepatch.

“Oh, I just remembered another thing.” Skylar shifts his weight and draws his palm along one of his horns, thinking hard. “You kept talking about a bird man. Like, half-man, half-bird. Raven, I think. You said it was going to help you stop death from stopping death.”

Despite the press of bodies around us and the faint warmth from the many torches and lamps, a chill settles into my skin in the wake of his words. Stop death from stopping death? What does that even mean?

At my side, Julian has turned ghostly pale. He mouths the phrase, wipes sweat from his forehead, skates his fingertips over the fabric of his patch. “I— thank you, Skylar. Thank you.”

“You alright?”

“Yes, yes, I’m, ah… Valdemar, you said?” He turns to me. “The other doctor, it must have been them. They must’ve— I must’ve— The Plague, it’s— And, and…”

I touch his arm, alarmed. He’s rambling, his movements sudden and uncontrolled. Skylar and I glance at each other. Before either of us can do anything, though, Julian starts to pace, taking several steps towards the entrance of the Market and then coming back for me.

“Reyja, I— We need to— Thank you, Skylar, you’ve been more than helpful. I’ll, erm, I’ll be in touch. Yes? Yes. Are you staying at the— the…?”

“Um, Samal’s. The inn,” Skylar offers.

Julian laughs wildly. “Small world, small world. Say hello to Zhannur for me, would you? It’s been awhile.”

“Sure. Are you going to be okay?”

Julian takes my hand, squeezes it, and some of the mania in his expression fades. “Yes. Yes, I’m alright. Apologies. I just, erm. Amazing how a few simple words can bring so much back. B-but, ah, yes. I didn’t mean to frighten you. Either of you.” His gaze lingers on me and he smiles faintly. “Do excuse us, Skylar. I promise, we’ll catch up properly soon. Just like old times.”

Skylar cocks his head, watching Julian closely. But he does seem better already, and after a moment, he nods. “Good to see you again, Ilya. Take care.”

We wave farewell and Julian whisks me away into the flow of the crowd, hunching low to speak close to my ear.

“Valdemar,” he hisses. I’ve never heard him angry before, but the venom in his voice now is unmistakable. “They did this.”

“What?”

He gestures at his plagued eye. “I wasn’t working quickly enough for them,” he spits. “Too focused on patient care instead of finding answers. They held me down, forced essence of the Plague distilled from the beetles that carry it into my mouth…”

Horror crawls through me. “How dare they,” I breathe, shocked almost beyond words.

“Absolute power, as they say. Valdemar was given a free rein. Anything for the cure.” He pauses, and slumps. “Anything for the cure,” he repeats. “If only I could remember why it mattered so much to me. Beyond the obvious, of course. If I didn’t even tell Skylar, it must’ve… well. There are very few things he doesn’t know about me. I can’t imagine what would’ve made me keep mum.”

Mysteries on mysteries. But does this mean…? “So did Valdemar kill Lucio?”

He sighs. “It’s possible. They’d certainly be capable of it, considering—”

I never saw them coming. Julian never saw them coming. It took only moments, measured in the pounding footsteps of armored boots, the shouts of people used to being unquestioningly obeyed, a whirl of red and palace gold. In a beat of clarity, I meet Julian’s eyes. We have less than a second, but it stretches like spider silk as horrible understanding dawns over his features.

His luck has run out.

I scream when he pushes me away, sending me reeling into the gathering crowd, but it’s swallowed by the noise of the guards and no one gives me a second glance. I scramble to my feet to see Julian surrounded by soldiers. One of them, short, clad in quilted red, bares their teeth in his face. He snarls back and they lash out at the side of his head with a vicious-looking maul.

I scream again when he falls, motionless, to the cobblestones.

—————

Skylar belongs to @ollifree​.

prev || next

[kkintle]

Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen; Quotes

The heart is on the left side also in emperors.

And as he sat, it occurred to him that maybe the fairy tale had gone into hiding, like the princesses in the old folk tales, and now had to be sought out. If she were found, she would shine with a new splendor, more beautiful than ever before. “Who knows? Maybe she lies hidden (…)

Tragedy was bottled in champagne bottles that start out with a bang, as tragedy should

“He’s sure like a human being, that pixie!” said the old cat. “Just one sweet miaow from the mistress, a miaow about himself, and he immediately changes his mind. She is clever, Madame.” But she wasn’t clever. It was the pixie who was human. If you can’t understand this story, ask about it, but don’t ask the pixie or the Madame.

An actor once told me that when he played a lover he thought about just one person in the audience. He played to her and forgot the rest of the spectators.

“I could have said that better,” thought the critic, but he didn’t say it out loud, and that was already really something.

You can’t learn imagination.” “But what shall I do to make my living by writing?” “Oh, you can manage that by Shrove Tuesday! Become a critic! Knock down the poets. Knock down their writings—that’s just like knocking them. Just don’t be over-awed. Hit at them without ceremony. You’ll get enough dough to support both yourself and a wife!” “You’ve hit upon the very thing!” said the young man, and he knocked down all the poets because he couldn’t become one himself.

When the clock struck five the five senses were there. Sight came as a maker of eye glasses. Hearing was a coppersmith. Smell was selling violets and woodruff. Taste was a cook, and Feeling was a funeral director with mourning crepe hanging down to his heels.

People who are dead can’t walk again, we know that very well, but works of art can haunt. The body was broken, but not the spirit. The spirit of art was spooking, and that was no spoofing matter.

I have something of the poet in me, but not enough. Often when I’m walking the city streets, it seems to me like I’m in a big library. The houses are bookcases and each story a shelf with books. There stands an everyday story. There a good old fashioned comedy. There are scientific works about all kinds of subjects. Here smut and good literature. I can fantasize and philosophize about all that literature.

There’s something of the poet in me, but not enough. Many people have just as much of it as I have and yet don’t carry a sign or a collar with poet written on it. They and I have been given a gift from God, a blessing big enough for oneself, but much too small to be parceled out to others. It comes like a sunbeam and fills your soul and mind. It comes like a waft of flowers, like a melody you know but can’t remember from where.

“People are like milk that curdles. Some become fine cottage cheese and others thin, watered whey. Some people are lucky in everything, always given the place of honor, and never knowing sorrow or want.”

Everyone has his burdens to bear. We’re not alone in it, and there’s a comfort in that.

There was an open casket standing in the middle of the church floor with a dead man in it, soon to be buried. Since he had a clear conscience, Johannes wasn’t afraid at all, and he knew that the dead hurt no one; it’s evil living people who cause harm.

She looked at all the innumerable little stones on the shore; the water had polished them smooth. Glass, iron, stone—everything that was washed up on the beach had been shaped by water, water that was softer still than her white hand. “They roll tirelessly, and so they smooth out the roughness; I’ll be just as tireless! Thank you for your wisdom, you clear rolling waves.

It’s true that the sea is softer than your fine hands and can shape the hard stones, but it doesn’t feel the pain your fingers will feel. It has no heart and doesn’t suffer the dread and terror you must tolerate.

“You can make one up,” said the little boy. “Mother says that everything you look at can become a fairy tale, and that you can get a story from everything you touch.” “But those fairy tales and stories are no good! No, the real ones come by themselves. They knock at my forehead and say, ‘Here I am!’”

Then they did the hardest dance, the one that’s called “stepping out of the dance.”

Here’s my card. I live on the sunny side of the street, and I’m always home when it rains.” And then the shadow went away.

But we can take comfort that the soul is most clever when it’s on its own. The body only dumbs it down.

The air and light were the flower’s lovers, but light was the favorite. It turned to the light, and if that disappeared, it rolled its petals together and slept in the embrace of the air. “It’s light that adorns me,” said the flower. “But the air lets you breathe,” whispered the poet’s voice.

As is the case with anything done thoroughly, the galoshes could only do one thing at a time.

Our greatest sufferings here we don’t impart, You who were alone at last, and often; Know that in life much presses harder on the heart Than all the soil that’s cast upon your coffin.

The little pixie grabbed the wonderful book from the table, put it inside his red cap, and held on to it with both hands. The greatest treasure in the house was saved! Then he ran off, way out onto the roof and up on the chimney, where he sat illuminated by the burning house across the street, and with both hands he held onto his red cap that held the treasure. Now he knew his own heart and knew to whom he really belonged. But when the fire had been extinguished, and he thought about it; well—“I’ll divide myself between them,” he said. “I can’t completely give up the grocer, because of the porridge.” And that was quite human of him! The rest of us go to the grocer too, for the sake of the porridge.

“Come out on the roof, little Rudy,” was one of the first things the cat said, and Rudy understood. “All that about falling is just imagination. You won’t fall if you aren’t afraid of falling. Come on, set one paw like this, and the other like this! Feel your way with your front paws. Use your eyes, and be flexible in your limbs. If there’s a gap, then jump and hold on. That’s what I do.”

When you’re a child and can’t talk yet, you can understand hens and ducks, cats and dogs very well indeed. They are just as easy to understand as father and mother when you are really small. Even grandfather’s cane can whinny and become a horse with a head, legs, and tail. Some children lose this understanding later than others, and people say that those children are slow in developing and are children for an exceedingly long time. People say so many funny things!

(…) but that doesn’t matter because I have gotten this much out of it: things are not distributed quite the way they should be, either for dogs or for people in this world. Not everyone is created to sit on laps or drink milk.

Never think that you will fall, and you’ll manage!”

You have to climb, and you won’t fall down if you believe you won’t.

When you meet someone from your home when you are far away, then you speak to each other like you know each other.

Luck was with him, as it always is for those who believe in themselves and remember that “God gives us the nuts, but he doesn’t crack them open for us.”

Water is so soft and yet so strong. It has a back to bear weight, and a mouth with which to swallow. Gently smiling, softness itself and yet a terror, with shattering strength.

“The world has no more joy to give me.” Words uttered in an abundance of happiness, repeated in a torrent of grief.

“Little Kai is with the Snow Queen and finds everything to his liking. He thinks it’s the best place in the world, but that’s because he has gotten a splinter in his heart and a little chip of glass in his eye. They have to come out first, or he’ll never become human again, and the Snow Queen will keep her power over him.”

He was carrying around some sharp, flat pieces of ice which he positioned in all sorts of ways, trying to make something out of it. It’s like when the rest of us use little wooden pieces and make figures from them. It’s called a tangram. Kai was also making figures and very complicated ones. It was the game of Icy Reason. To his eyes the figures were quite excellent and of the very highest importance. That was because of the bit of glass in his eye!

Then Kai burst into tears. He cried so that the splinter of glass washed out of his eye. He recognized her and cried joy fully, “Gerda! sweet little Gerda! Where have you been so long? And where have I been?” He looked around. “How cold it is here! How big and empty it is!” and he held Gerda tight.

A tail wind for one is head wind for another.

“Cattle die, kinsmen die, one day you die yourself; I know one thing that never dies— the dead man’s reputation.”

In those days the saying was: “The herds know when it’s time to go home and give up grazing, but a foolish man will always forget the size of his stomach.”

They knew that, all right, but do as I say, not as I do! They also knew that “love turns to loathing if you sit too long on someone else’s bench,” but still they stayed. Meat and mead are good things!

“I don’t quite understand it,” said stork mother, “but that’s not my fault. It’s the idea’s fault. But it doesn’t make any difference because I have other things to think about.”

Then they repeated this and wrote it up as a prescription : “Love brings forth life,” but how the whole thing was going to be worked out, they didn’t know.

They say that raindrops hollow out the hard rock. Over time the waves of the sea polish the angular stones until they’re round. The dew of grace that fell over little Helga hollowed out the hardness and rounded the sharpness. But she didn’t recognize that, didn’t know it herself. Does the seed in the earth, when it’s dampened by life-giving moisture and the warm rays of the sun, know that it hides growth and a flower within itself?

“Everyone flies in his own way,” said stork father. “The swans diagonally, the cranes triangularly and the plovers in curves like a snake.”

Better to have something in your tummy when you’re alive than be made a fuss of when you’re dead!

People don’t always go straight to hell, but they can get there the long way around, if they have talent.

Tears of sorrow that a mother cries for her child always reach the child, but they don’t set it free—they only burn and make the torment greater.

“The Portuguese is a gifted speaker,” they said. “We don’t use such great big words, though our sympathy for you is as great. But if we don’t do anything for you, we’ll be quiet about it. We find that the noblest.”

It’s so cold here that the clouds freeze to pieces and fall down in little white patches.” It was snow she meant, but she couldn’t explain it any better.

Oh, to grow, to grow, to become big and old! That’s the only beauty in this world, thought the tree.

“Enjoy your youth!” said the sunbeams. “Enjoy your fresh growth, and the young life that’s in you!” And the wind kissed the tree, and the dew cried tears over it, but the spruce tree didn’t understand.

“Take pleasure in us,” said the air and the sunshine. “Be happy in your fresh youth out in the open air!” But the tree wasn’t happy at all. It grew and grew. Both winter and summer it was green. Dark green it stood there, and people who saw it said, “that’s a lovely tree,” and at Christmas it was cut first. The ax cut deeply through the pith, and the tree fell with a sigh to the earth. It felt a pain and a powerless-ness, and couldn’t think of any joy. It felt saddened to be parted from its home, from the spot where it had grown up. It knew, of course, that it would never again see its dear companions, the small bushes and flowers all around, maybe not even the birds. The departure was not at all pleasant.

“How lovely the world is!” said the caterpillar. “The sun is so warm! Everything is so pleasant. And when I shall one day fall asleep and die, as it’s called, I’ll wake up and be a butterfly!”

“I’ve let myself be taken by surprise,” he said, “so I’d better surprise them too.” And he did. He was gone. Gone all day, gone all night (…)

“The world isn’t so bad after all,” said the dung beetle. “You just have to know how to take it.”

Here he could live, but “living is not enough,” he said. “You must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower!”

The flower understood it in his fashion, as we understand things in ours.

“How terribly alone he must have been,” she said. “Terribly alone,” said the tin soldier, “but it’s lovely not being forgotten!”

No, rather with friendly handshakes, and they get bread and pastries from each other because foreign food tastes best.

Harsh words bear harsh fruit. How would this end?

“The less you know, the less you’re burdened,” said Mother Søren.

Embedded in Andersen’s story is a notion that good tales can expose even the storyteller.

[wearesorcerer]

[5e] 8th-Level Spells

The glorious thing about 8th-level spells is that they are almost the same thing as 9th-level spells: horrendously powerful in ways that are barely limited. The limitations on 8th-level spells might be a smidge greater than those on 9th-level ones, but it’s not so much that (IMHO) it matters. (TBF, in 3.x spell levels vary by class; mass cure critical wounds is a 9th-level Druid spell but an 8th-level Cleric and Healing domain spell.) 8th-level spells have several perks over 9th-level spells despite being roughly as powerful: they’re available at a lower class level and you can use them more often (because you can use 8th-level and 9th-level spell slots to cast them). From experience and hearsay, I’m well aware that games don’t often get to the highest levels, but they can get to 15th/16th.

In other words, your choice of 8th-level spell is more important than your 9th. The 9th-level spell is the cherry; the 8th-level spell is either the whipped cream or some kind of drizzle.

Primary List

Abi-Dalzim’s horrid wilting · dominate monster · earthquake · incendiary cloud · power word stun · sunburst

That’s four boom-booms and two crowd-controls, with some CC mixed in with the boom-boom.

Abi-Dalzim’s Horrid Wilting: you violently dehydrate all creatures (except constructs and undead) in a 30-ft cube, dealing 12d8 necrotic damage (Con half; plants and water elementals take double damage). Non-creature, non-magical plants in the area wither and die instantly. This spell didn’t have an associated mage’s name in 3e, so I’m not sure where that came from. Other differences: it deals necrotic instead of typeless damage (you’re not applying what 3e would call “negative energy”), so undead and constructs are now immune to it; it deals a flat number of d8s instead of 1d6 per caster level (up to 20d6); and vulnerable creatures take double damage (makes sense) instead of increasing the die type to d8s. I don’t have much to complain about with this spell. It’s not my personal cuppa, but it sure is effective. Good.

Dominate Monster: you charm a creature, turning it into your mind slave for up to an hour. This is overall a downgrade from the 3e version (which lasted for one day per caster level and allowed you to perceive through the subject’s senses if you concentrated), but you don’t have to worry about issuing weird commands to prevent a creature from pulling a Sorcerer’s Apprentice problem -- and, well, you’re not waiting until 18th level (as you had to in 3.x) to get it. Do not pretend you are not horrifically evil for using this. “Good” in the sense that it’s highly useful and powerful.

Earthquake: This is the structural aspect of meteor swarm without the direct damage. It’s nearly as spectacular and will assuredly scare people in the area. The mun doesn’t care for the Earth element, but can still respect this thing’s power. Good.

Incendiary Cloud: a moving fireball that deals a flat amount of damage (10d8 fire, Dex half) but is effectively a DoT. Y’know, in case just blasting things to death wasn’t good enough for you. So far, so good.

Power Word Stun: target of 150 HP or less within range is stunned (no save); it remains stunned until, on each of its turns, it can succeed at a Con save. I like this spell a little better than power word kill in that there is some chance of the effect wearing off, as opposed to being an “I win” button almost regardless of level. It also affects more HP, so you’ll get more mileage out of it -- provided you don’t cast it on something with a good Con save. It’s not dominate monster levels of “I win,” but it’s also not mind control.

Sunburst: much bigger than fireball, blinds for one minute and deals 12d6 radiant damage (Con negates blindness, halves damage; oozes and undead have disadvantage on the save). Creatures blinded by the spell can save at the end of each of their turns to remove the blindness. ”Radiant” damage is a hold-over from 4e and was the term used to replace “positive energy,” which related to the plane of the same name. The 3.x version deals half as much typeless damage (bigger radius, though), ‘cuz it’s a light effect, not a holy effect. Sorcerers don’t get a lot of spells that deal Radiant damage unless they go Divine Soul and the Elemental Spell metamagic (UA variants) doesn’t let you change to or from Radiant (or any physical, Force, Necrotic, Poison, or Psychic) damage, so if you’re trying to cover your damage types, this is probably the spell for you. Unless you want sunbeam. A good boom-boom of boominess.

Cleric (Divine Soul) List

antimagic field · control weather · holy aura

Antimagic Field: magic stops working in a 10 ft. radius sphere centered on you. That means you shut down your class. Why would anyone do this? Mainly because of other casters. I WOULD NOT PICK THIS SPELL UNLESS YOU FIND A WAY OF ALSO BEING COMPETENT IN MELEE.

Control Weather: I’m pretty sure this is also an option for the Storm Soul or whatever it’s called, but whatevs. You’re Storm from X-Men. Need I say more? TAKE THIS SPELL!

Holy Aura: for 1000 gp, you can pretend to be a Paladin for up to a minute (with concentration). You and creatures you choose glow; they (and presumably you) have advantage on saving throws and all other creatures have disadvantage on attacks against them; Fiends and Undead that hit a creature must save (Con) vs. blindness until the spell ends. The effects are kinda neat, but why am I spending an 8th-level spell on this? Like, seriously, this is a second-level spell’s power. Pass.

Variant List

Demiplane: you create a permanent 30′ x 30′ x 30′ extradimensional room; every time you cast the spell, you can either create a new plane or gain access (via shadowy door) to one you’ve made or know of. It’s like having a better version of a bag of holding and a worse version of Mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion at once. The advantages over MMM (no costly material component, the space is permanent) outweigh its drawbacks. For Sorcerers who have incredibly awesome plans and/or just like planar magic.

Spells I Wish Were on the List

animal shapes · antipathy/sympathy · clone · glibness · illusory dragon · maze ·  mind blank · telepathy · tsunami

Animal Shapes: as I said about 9th-level spells, animal shapes is better for anyone who cares about polymorphing party members. There’s bound to be a Druidic or therianthropic origin at some point.

Antipathy/Sympathy: because 3.x got rid of inverting spells (a thing in AD&D), these were separate ones, so it’s good to see them as one effect. The downside is...why is this so high level? You specify a kind of creature (which sounds like species rather than type) that is affected by the spell and either wants to approach or flee from within 60 ft. of something. In real life, 60 ft. is not all that big; it’s tremendous in D&D because D&D is weird. The 10 day duration is really the only thing that justifies this spell’s level, but that’s an upgrade (it was two hours per caster level).

Clone: as I recall, this was the spell that made me realize how restricted the 5e Sorcerer’s spell list was, to my great disappointment. I’ve never used clone, but it’s a spell that’s worth using. You want to pull a Naraku? You can out do Naraku. You want to be a lich? Why would you when you can just use this spell and find a better method of gaining immortality? Such a good spell!

Glibness: This is something of an upgrade, yet not. The spell was new to 3.5; it was a Bard-only spell and third level (why it’s a Transmutation effect and not an Enchantment is beyond me), whereas here it’s 8th-level. The effects are identical save that the 3.5 gave you +30 on the check and worked for 10 min./level (which, given how Bards worked back then, meant 70+ minutes), whereas this treats your roll as a 15 and lasts for an hour. Rolling a 15 in 5e is much better than it was in 3.x given how easy it was to inflate die rolls, so the spells are roughly the same...except that this is an 8th-level spell, which is mind-blowing to me.

Illusory Dragon: other than going off of Investigation (3.5: Search) instead of Perception (Spot), this is pretty much greater shadow conjuration one level higher and with a specific thing it can do. I’d say compare it against phantasmal forces from O/B/AD&D. Still cool.

Maze: I’m assuming you can accomplish the same thing with imprisonment, but regardless, mazing is awesome.

Mind Blank: this is pretty much the best abjuration magic against spells that affect or target a creature’s mind. (I’d say that unequivocally, but I don’t know all spells in 5e.) Yes, it’s worth having. Very much so.

Telepathy: the only advantages this spell has over telepathic bond (a 5th-level spell) are that it lasts for 24 hours, you can cast it on a creature on the same plane from any distance, and it affects basically all creatures (IIRC you can’t have 0 in a stat anymore). The duration is key here, as permanency is no longer a spell.

Tsunami: I just like the idea, ‘kay?

[starbcrn-kids]

Open! Starring Kai N’Livek-Kirk-McCoy-Chekov-Nichols-Verrin

“I swear my sisters wake up and choose violence.”

[starbcrn-kids]

unscrxpted​:

Liam reached over to James, gently setting a hand on the other’s wrist. “Hey. We’re going to figure this out. It’s alright. Just keep an eye on yours, and I’ll keep an eye on mine.”

Jocelyn tapped her foot nervously. Lydia. She had to find a way to call Lydia. She cleared her throat. “Okay. I… guess I’m off to see if anyone can get in contact with the Narada.” She flinched a little, but stood before anyone could address it. “But first, the captain.”

And before anyone could say anything else to her, the Romulan turned and hurried out, on her way to the bridge. She didn’t like this. She didn’t, at all, but… but it was their safest bet.

Ironic, almost. A ship with Jesse Riker-Troi, and Holly Chekov, their safest bet…

James nods, breathing hard, clearing his throat. “Okay. Okay. Yeah.” He just hopes they’re wrong, that they’re just paranoid, that...

Angie looks at Jocelyn, worried, reaching up to her but then the girl leaves and Angie sighs, frowning, looking back at Liam and James, looking worried.

Ed sighs. This was... this was almost boring. He hates it when things are like this around here. Too quiet. He was bored out of his skull.

He takes the schedule Kai has in hand to read and sign off on it, glancing back when he hears someone walk onto the bridge, eyebrows furrowing. “Miss Jocelyn, what’s going on? You look... troubled.”

[iicewitch]

☀️ cult of dionysus

a playlist for my friend caz link to playlist: here tracklist and favorite lyrics below

1. only as good as my god - everything everything And on the steps of my church There, I'm chasing down a red girl with my hooves upon a- Ooh - Wild Ooh - Child If they crawl out of the mud Wash them away in a flood I'm only as good as my god Burnt hair and more money 2. disciples - captain murphy Don't you want devoted followers? Who leave their families for you Give their money to you Give their bodies to you Give up their lives for you Consider you God, and will kill for you Don't you want to become a cult leader? Since the death of God there has been a vacancy open You can fill that void, here is how 3. dionysus - bts Just get drunk like Dionysus Drink in one hand, Thyrsus on the other Art splashing inside this clear crystal cup Art is alcohol too, if you can drink it, you'll get drunk fool I'm now in front of the door to the world The cheers I hear when I get up on stage Can’t you see my stacked broken thyrsus At last I’m reborn 4. good hand - turbowolf And I say No pain, no gain That's the mantra I'm repeating No sun, no rain That's the mantra I'm repeating No pain, no gain, no sun, no No pain, no gain, no sun, no rain 5. addicted to love - robert palmer Your lights are on, but you're not home Your will is not your own You're heart sweats and teeth grind Another kiss and you'll be mine 6. cult of dionysus - the orion experience Or start a secret society for the wild and free Our ideology is "You can do what you want Too much is never enough" We are the Life, we are the light We are the envy of the Gods above 7. hitting on all sevens - lyndon smith Make of me a subject caste Pressed and kept beneath thy glass Every heart thy sent in heaven Always hitting on all sevens One by one as ordered Flank to flank and facing forward Hanging by the word In chapter, verse and sentence heard 8. touch tone telephone - lemon demon Don't hang up yet, I'm not done I'm an expert, I'm the one The one who was right all along Better to be laughed at than wrong I'm an expert in my field UFOlogy, yes, it's all real Ancient aliens, it's all true I'm an expert just like you 9. sundial - lemon demon Don't mind me, I've just got some problems to work out I'm only passing through or maybe just right out Somehow something set my sundial backwards tilted and upside-down Now the shadow hand is pointing time right out of town I don't remember what it is that I just said to you I've got Anubis on my back and something in my shoe 10. mother’s talk - tears for fears It's not that you're not good enough It's just that we can make you better Given that you pay the price We can keep you young and tender Following in the footsteps of a funeral pyre You were paid not to listen now your house is on fire 11. light up the night - the protomen There is a city that this darkness can't hide. There are the embers of a fire that's gone out, But I can still feel the heat on my skin. This mess we're in, well you and I, Maybe you and I, We can light up the night. 12. pure morning - placebo A friend in need's a friend indeed, A friend who'll tease is better, Our thoughts compressed, Which makes us blessed, And makes for stormy weather, 13. aspiring fires - mother mother Baby, so you think you know crazy I think you know what you know, But what you know you don't know for sure A little advice for aspiring fires You'll get put out if you don't get a little wild Try again, try again, it ain't right You don't got the due diligence to lose your mind You're not getting it right 14. oh ana - mother mother I'll play god I'll play god I'll play god I'll play god today Ante up and play that god a poker game Walk away with all our little God's spare change Playing this god it can't be good for— Ana's safety, Ana hear me ! 15. this devil’s workday - modest mouse So I ate the wedding cake 'til the whole damn thing was gone. And I'm gonna drown the ocean. Now ain't none o' that so wrong? I could buy myself a reason. I could sell myself a job. I could hang myself on treason. Oh I am my own damn god. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha 16. kiss me son of god - they might be giants I look like Jesus, so they say But Mr. Jesus is very far away Now you're the only one here who can tell me if it's true That you love me and I love me And a world screams, "Kiss me, Son of God" Yes a world screams, "Kiss me, Son of God" 17. personal jesus - depeche mode Take second best Put me to the test Things on your chest You need to confess I will deliver You know I'm a forgiver 18. charlie’s inferno - that handsome devil Catch you later, I'm off to see the man upstairs They all look like ants from here Stars and crystal chandeliers Excuse me, sir! There must be someone you've confused me for If I could see someone who knew me or someone in uniform I go to church on sunday, truly, usually more! Screaming at the angels while they pushed him through the door! 19. old 45s - chromeo Don't wanna settle Or didn't you get the memo You only get a date if you're walking in stilettos This is enough to drive you mad If you think romance is dead and gone Find an old jukebox full of 45's Pop a nickel in it and it all comes back 20. down at the midnight rectory - ted neeley Down, down, down at the midnight rectory! With jiggle juice frisking under the marquee! The peacocks are strutting behind velvet ropes, Sipping away on their heavenly dope. Gimme two alleluia's and an amen! 21. elevate - dj khalil Can't stop me, can't break me (can't break) What don't kill me, gon' make me (gon' make) Shoot for the stars, no safety (no safety) And now I see clear in HD 'Cause I win, over and over again Battlin' evil, I'm hopin' to win Fightin' my demons, I'm nice for a reason Enticed with the bleedin', I'm showin' my sins 22. come along - cosmo sheldrake We'll dance and sing 'til sundown And feast with abandon We'll sleep when the morning comes And we'll rise by the sound of the birdsongs We'll be here when the world slows down And the sunbeams fade away Keeping time by a pendulum As the fabric starts to fray 23. just one yesterday - fall out boy I thought of angels Choking on their halos Get them drunk on rose water See how dirty I can get them Pulling out their fragile teeth And clip their tiny wings If heaven's grief brings hell's rain Then I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday 24. church - fall out boy And if death is the last appointment Then we're all just sitting in the waiting room I am just a human trying to avoid my certain doom If you were church, yeah I'd get on my knees Confess my love, I'd know where to be My sanctuary, you're holy to me 25. beast dance - kurage p Cast aside your humanity, before you have to grovel on the ground, being at the bottom of society. You want to be loved? In that case, come on. ”Roar roar roar roar roar roar” Inside the cage, ‘kay? 26. black and white - MASA Pour the gospel echoing through the world into your glass. Black&White! Practice your faith through shots and prayers. Open the bottle. Black&White! 27. sister’s mercy - hitoshizuku-p Jesus!! Pray and pray Believer, if you demand for salvation Oh Yeah!! Then pay up more and more for this Bright Red, now! Cheers!! Pour and pour When you’ve filled your stomach with this bright Red, Aa! All your wishes will come true 28. inferno pt. 2 - the buttress The depth of my breadth is unmet I'm becoming unraveled on the road less traveled I know Jesus wept But I abhor the Lord Fell on my sword Forever slept 29. let’s just live - casey lee williams Let's just live Just one day Let's forget about our problems Let's fall in love with life And just be free The sun will never fade The night won't steal our day Let's dance and laugh and love And let's just live 30. ignite - casey lee williams Fool, you shouldn't stare into these eyes of fire You're goin' to regret this little fight You don't wanna mess with me, I'm something higher You'll watch yourself suffer You'll watch me ignite 31. god’s gonna cut you down - johnny cash Well you may throw your rock and hide your hand Workin' in the dark against your fellow man But as sure as God made black and white What's down in the dark will be brought to the light 32. royals - lorde Let me be your ruler (Ruler) You can call me queen bee And baby, I'll rule (I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule) Let me live that fantasy 33. you should see me in a crown - billie eilish Count my cards, watch them fall Blood on a marble wall I'm gonna run this nothing town Watch me make 'em bow One by one by, one One by one by You should see me in a crown 34. rev 22:20 - puscifer Pray til I go blind (Pray) Pray cause no one ever survives Prayin' to stay in her arms just to die longer Satyrs and saints, devils and heathens and lies 35. this must be the place - talking heads Home, is where I want to be But I guess I'm already there I come home, she lifted up her wings I guess that this must be the place I'm just an animal looking for a home and Share the same space for a minute or two And you love me till my heart stops Love me till I'm dead 36. razzle dazzle -  richard gere Give 'em the old razzle dazzle Razzle Dazzle 'em Give 'em an act with lots of flash in it And the reaction will be passionate Give 'em the old hocus pocus Bead and feather 'em How can they see with sequins in their eyes? 37. you’ll be back - jonathan groff You say our love is draining and you can't go on You'll be the one complaining when I am gone And no, don't change the subject 'Cause you're my favorite subject My sweet, submissive subject My loyal, royal subject Forever and ever and ever and ever and ever 38. no light, no light - florence and the machine No light, no light in your bright blue eyes I never knew daylight could be so violent A revelation in the light of day You can't choose what stays and what fades away 'Cause it's so easy, To say it to a crowd But it's so hard, my love, To say it to you out loud 39. shiny happy people - r.e.m Meet me in the crowd, people, people Throw your love around, love me, love me Take it into town, happy, happy Put it in the ground where the flowers grow Gold and silver shine Shiny happy people holding hands Shiny happy people holding hands Shiny happy people laughing 40. a good song never dies - saint motel There was a moment, a hole opened in the sky A chance to join that pantheon For all the times they never heard your battle cry Now be an angel, sing along 'Cause a good song never dies It just reminds you of where you were The first time it made you cry The first time you felt alive 41. king of the clouds - panic at the disco Some only live to die, I'm alive to fly higher Than angels in outfields inside of my mind I'm ascendin' these ladders, I'm climbin', say goodbye This old world, this old world I don't trust anything Or anyone, below the sun I don't feel anything At all 42. battle for the sun - placebo I, I, I will battle for the sun, sun, sun, sun And I, I, I, I am the bones you couldn't break Break, break, break, break, break, break, break 43. walk like an egyptian - the bangles All the school kids so sick of books They like the punk and the metal band When the buzzer rings (oh whey oh) They're walking like an Egyptian All the school kids so sick of books They like the punk and the metal band When the buzzer rings (oh whey oh) They're walking like an Egyptian 44. credens justitiam - yuriko kaida and eri itoh Free, they are With no malice they sing quietly And they told me that my song was louder/lighter Their song Releases the day of all malice I want to be like them And my mind (their minds are) Free 45. 99.9 - mob choir The protagonist of this stage is me Cryin' my life, cryin' my psyche Cryin' my heart in such commonplaces Is this my ideal? Is this my mind? Ahh, I’m looking for the answer ! 46. cruel angels thesis - yoko takahasi But someday you will notice On those shoulders of yours There are strong wings To guide you to the far future. If there is any meaning In the fate that pulled us together, Then I am, yes, the Bible That teaches you of freedom. A cruel angel's thesis And then sorrow comes forth 47. peace and love on the planet earth - zach callison I guess we're already here I guess we already know We've all got something to fear We've all got nowhere to go I think you're all insane! But I guess I am too Is there anything that's worth more? Is there anything that's worth more? Is there anything that's worth more Than peace and love on the planet Earth? 48. now we can see - the thermals We were born in the desert We were reared in a cave We conquered in the sun but we lived in the shade We were born on an island we grew out of the sand Never saw another creature never knew another man 49. love today - mika I said Everybody's gonna love today Gonna love today, gonna love today I said Everybody's gonna love today Gonna love today Anyway you want to, anyway you've got to Love, love me, love, love me, love, love 50. where is my mind? - the pixies With your feet on the air and your head on the ground Try this trick and spin it, yeah Your head will collapse If there's nothing in it And you'll ask yourself .. Where is my mind? Where is my mind?