#(also- yeah. I made a diamond sword because I was having a lot of trouble making your normal sword so.. I apologize if you didn't like it!)

[mel-loly]

-A person who likes pink <3

@tsutsujinothere

[give-grian-rights]

HERMITCRAFT 8 LIVEBLOGGING

fifteen hermits worth of liveblogging. i am losing my mind. LONG POST AHEAD.

JOE HILLS (First HC8 Video)

Mumbo did the speech. he forgot everything he was supposed to say <3

Pearl and Gemini were just .in a pit . having stuff thrown onto them

Every Hermit is staying on the same continent !!

FIRST DEATHS VERY QUICKLY, Iron Golems took out Tango and Etho (maybe more?)

Joe seems to be the only one looting the chests

Evil Jevin !!

Evil Xisuma appearance on Jevin’s 60 second video!

Pearl has something planned for an “archeticual wonder” for a resupply area upon death?

Stress, Xisuma and Joe are capturing villagers and starting up a resupply debut.

Bdubs is killed by Cleo and is now OUT FOR BLOOD

First death counts- Etho, Tango, Bdubs, Cleo?

Cleo was killed by Keralis

Joe has now supplied Cleo with weapons and food . She left but not before saying “Time to kill BDubs again!”

Gemini was killed by Bdubs! They both died and are now at spawn.

Pearl was killed by Cleo

Pearl is planning a respawn inn !!

Cleo was killed by Iskall

Cleo was killed by Pearl

False, Stress, and Gemini team up??? AA!!! they brought a delivery of supplies to Joe <3

i wish i knew what was happening on that end .

APPARENTLY XISUMA IS ONTO MAKING THE SECOND VILLAGER BREEDER ALREADY ??

Iskall is the first with Diamonds??

Breathe in that ash !

WAIT IS TANGOS EYES LIKE THAT RN BECAUSE HES TEAMED WITH KERALIS AND BDUBS ???

KERALIS, BDUBS, AND TANGO TRIED TO DO A SHAKEDOWN ON JOE. HE TRIED TO DROP LAVA, GOT HIMSELF ONTO TWO HEARTS BECAUSE HE PLACED IT ON HIMSELF, AND IS NOW SWIMMING OUT INTO THE SWAMP

the big eyed trio are now off to shake down Gemini

Joe fell in Lava in the Nether

Joe Death To Lava Two: Electric Boogaloo

Joe drowned trying to kill a glowsquid

WATCH JOE’S VIDEO OH MY GOD SEAN HILLS RECAP RAP??? MY BELOVED????? i am gonna be streaming this unironically later LIKE OH MY GOD THIS SLAPS. ALSO THE CREDITS AT TEH END IS HILARIOUS

Zedaph Episode Recap

Zed gave us a recap of the continent every Hermit will be living on !!

Wouldn’t recommend Zedaph as the first video for the season, he skips the intro/speech but it’s Zedaph and hes making it fun!! Lots of nice editing :)

~SCIENCE TIME !~

Zedaph.. why is your starter base made out of concrete ?

There are no sheeps whatsoever on his mountain

Hes calling his lab an icecream sandwich..yeah i see it

Zed tried to make a portal underater...f

Scar died to a creeper </3

Zedaphs base is gonna be tracking how long hes there/someones loading the chunk!

XISUMA LIVE BLOGGING

A cool cinema scene of him becoming an axolotl!! <3

NOW I CAN SEE IT, GRIAN WAS THE FIRST DEATH!! Death by Iron Golem!!

XIsuma’s baseplans need over 45 THOUSAND BLOCKS TO BE PLACED

He’s also planning on making a shulkershell farm!!

i’m not gonna lie ! talking axolotl X is horrifying ! thanks !

Day one Villager Breeder... chaos.

Xisuma Derp! looked straight at a buncha wool and said how badly he needed beds and then walked away

THE GIRLS CAME OVER AND CONVINCED HIM HE NEEDS TO MOVE THE DESIGN OVER MY FIVE BLOCKS FOR SWAMP VILLAGERS..

THE GIRLS ARE JUST LAUGHING AT HIM AND HIS VILLAGER TROUBLES

day one and Xisuma has got his axolotl!!

Very pretty starterbase!!

XB’s

..I’m not gonna lie theres not much to say!! He’s very calm :) he says hes going into it without a plan, and htat last season was the only time he had any thought of what he was gonna do.

He made a real nice starter house and thats about it!

Cleo’s

Bdubs: “She ain’t gonna hurt me!! i’m invincible, babey!”

Cleo learnt that BDubs will never hurt her even if she deserves it . I am starting to realize why she kills him

SHE DECIDED SHES GONNA BE A PROPER CHAOS GREMLIN THIS SEASON...

AISDJASID CLEO GOT PAID TO KILL BDUBS?? HDUIAIHSI SCAR WHY

“Alright I found my mission for the season! Murder.”

Cleo, Mumbo, Grian, and Scar are all holed up in a cave together!

..Scar died from a skeleton !

Cleo has now split from Grian and Mumbo! Scar is missing in action

CLEO FOUND A GOAT

SHES KILLING THE GOAT???

she got a HORSE <3 and Joe gave her a saddle! I think her name is..Widget?

She LOVES the candles for shamboo n waterbottles and bits n bobs for her armorstands!!

Got her Armorstand stickgod book <3

Geminitay POV

NEW HERMIT NEW HERMIT NEW HERMIT!!

She has a LOVELY voice!!

The pov of her in a hole . being surrrounded . is kinda hilarious

It might’ve been Etho who was first death?? I GENUIENLY CANNOT TELL BECAUSE OF EDITING

All the murder was just for heads!

Seriously her voice is. wow

WE LOVE A QUEEN WHO KNOWS HOW TO CRAFT A SHIELD WITHOUT USING THE GUIDE <3

False, Gemini, and Stress are on the great journey for MOSS !

Gem just blew their minds with the moss.

TANGO KERALIS AND BDUBS ARE BACK Keralis: “Show the diamonds show the diamonds show the diamonds!” Gem: “Keralis. This is not how you make friends.”

The boys suecessfully recieved a diamond each

Etho n Iskall are travelling together!! You dont see those two together often

Etho got a glowsquid head!!

Gem: “Etho doesn’t share, is what i’m learning..?”

Etho hooked her with a fishing rod and said she has to do what he said .

In order to get the diamonds, Tango, Keralis, and BDubs placed down a sign saying “Gem is Great!” and Gem used a glow inksack on it.

Etho: “So..What is this? Do you have an ego, or this a motivational thing, or..?” He said, while laughing

Iskall: “I think its really funny that you have set your base up in the middle of a birch forest.” Gem: “I love birch forests! Do you not like my birch forest? Iskall: “I love it, yeah.” Gem: “This is the best biome in the game, Iskall.” Iskall: “Mmmm..” Etho: “I’m pretty sure I heard Iskall talking earlier that like, of all the biomes in the game, there was one he hated more than anything. Gem: “Oh really? And what was that one?” Iskall: “..Taiga.” Gem: “Taiga.. That’s true, thats a good one, thats a good one.” Iskall: “Don’t like Taiga.” Gem: “Mhm.” Etho: “Which one do you hate more than anyone?” Iskall: “..Diorite fields. Thats a bad one.” Etho: “Yeah thats a bad one.” Gem: “Didn’t know about that one. Well make sure to avoid’em. Birch forests are really good.” Iskall: “I’m a big fan of birch forests.” Gem: “Yeah, me too, me too. I’m glad we’re on the same page :) This is so beautiful! All the white and- and the like zebra stripes! is fantastic.” Iskall: “I..Um.. Yes.”

OH SHE’S CANADIAN,, ETHO HAS A FRIEND /j

She’s still in college :O SHE’S A SCIENTIST?? SHES WORKING AT A HOSPITAL?? POG!!

She accidentally found an enchanted golden apple in a mineshaft!! she thinks its the first she ever found in survival!!

She has a cow, sheep, and a few crop farms set up!! Her starter house has INTERRIOR!

SHE CHANGED HER SKIN AND ITS SO PRETTY AND HAS OVERALL AND I LOVE IT!!

shes doing a cottage core inspired base!

WOAHH!!! SHE MADE HTE MOST GOREGOUS CUSTOM TREE I’VE EVER SEEN ??

BDUBS IS HERE and he is so so so impressed by the tree ?!

also hes carrying a clock.. :(

He’s here with a present!

HE BROUGHT BAMBOO!

she thinks its so funny that he stops conversations to sleep AOIDHFEAUI\

SCARS

WE GOT A TRANSITION SCENE!! the canonical reason for the bed in his old village always being occupied is because underneath it, was his wizard portal!

Bdubs: “It’s a new season! You’re the little guy now!”

They are all very amused by that ^

they’re rubbing the fleece of bdubs jacket .

Bdubs: “Have a nice rub :)” PLEASEAHSIOJDIUASLDHIASDA

His starter base is gonna be a wagon and he wants the end game to be a bioshock esque skyscraper!

he confused a horse for a player . flashback to iskall thinking mumbo was a mob

PEOPLE THINK MUMBO DOESNT HAVE PANTS ON.... </3

Scar, Mumbo, and Grian.. have NO braincells. at all. THey just placed a crafting table with a boat on top with a bed on top with a boat on top .

this is what BROS FOR LIFE looks like.

BOATEM POLE !

SCAR IS STUCK UNDERGROUND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT IRL AND HAS NO PICKAXE..

AND HE DIED TO A CREEPER .

it seems like Grian, Mumbo, and Scar are working together !!!! HOLY SHIT !!

THERES SO SO SO MANY FARMS???????

he died several times trying to catch a skeleton with a sword

FIRST CHEST MONSTER OF THE SEASON <3

SCAR JSUT TOLD BDUBS HE LOOKS LIKE OSCAR THE CROUCH... BDUBS CANNOT EVEN ARGUE

OH NO.... GRIAN WENT AFK IN A HOLE . WITHOUT A HELMET .

THEY PUT A  GLOWSQUID HEAD ON HIM

OH MY GOD MUMBO MADE A NOTEBLOCK SONG?? AJUDA

SCARS BUILTING IS SO SO SOOS GOREGOUS SERIOUSLY GO WATCH THE VIDEO OH MY GOD ITS HUGE

its a giant ass house boat wagon . its pulled by a llama . that killed him . so now its trapped, pulling hte agon, forever

Grian: “..Thats a very big house, for a very little hat.”

GRIANS SUPER SPECIAL EGG??

SCAR PUNCHED IT..

they really came out here . and killed the egg already.

Scar: “..I touched the thing”

TANGO POV

We see the three big eyed boys forming <3 they interrupted Tangos intro

THEY’RE BULLYING HIM ABOUT HAVING SMALL EYES AHIDUIASUHDWIS

HE TRIED TO CALL THE TRIO TEAM BUG EYE... THE OTHERS ARE VERY OFFENDED

they found an axolotl and Bdubs was TERRIFIED just screaming “WHAT IS THAT YELLOW THING?!”

BDUBS IS ATTACKING IT ???

okay nope Bdubs caught one and Tango lost it

Bdubs is naming his axolotl Idiot

AMAZING HOUSE. WHY IS TANGO SO GOOD AT BUILDING AND REDSTONE??

Impulse POV

MUMBO TRIED TO PLACE DOWN A BERRY BUSH TO HURT IMPULSE . HE FORGOT HOW BUSHES WORK..

I DIDNT EVEN NOTICE THAT IMPULSE WAS IN THE BOATEM POLE

so it looks like those four are hteo nes who grouped up together

PEARL BROKE THE CONSTITUION SHE GOT IN THE WRONG BOAT SMH

THIS IS SEASON EIGHT! FIVE BROS !

So its gonna be about five people in the same area!!

YOO!! Fantasy build for Impulse!!

G gave Impulse a spyglass, they had a fun moment of zooming in on eachothers face and complimenting eachother IHAUDIHAW

Grian and Impulse worked on an xp farm!

ASHDUIWAHISD GRIAN JUST LOGGED ON INFRONT OF HIM

a pillager stole his boat . not just any pillager . the one with a banner. </3

he has to live with Mumbo tuning a song .. </3 haha

Mumbo POV

it took fifteen seconds until Grian ran in during Mumbos intro

CONFIRMED? GRIAN WAS FIRST DEATH?

SECOND PERSON TO THINK MUMBOS PANTS ARE SKIN COLOR. GRIAN..

Grian: “Can you..Briefly explain why you’re just wearing a hawaiian shirt?” Mumbo: “Uh- what do you mean ‘just wearing a hawaiin shirt? I have shorts on as-well, dude”

FOLLOWED BY

Mumbo: “Can you explain why you’re wearing a red jumper?” Grian: “You know- you know i was born with this!”

MUMBO AND GRIAN STOLE THE BOAT LOOT FROM RENDOC

I THINK RENDOC JUST STOLE THE DIAMOND MUMBO THREW??

Grian: “Is that Scar?” Mumbo: “I can’t see past your giant waffle!”

DSFSDFJIOA they did an edit where they placed down a boat, both Mumbo and Grian got in, they made noises and then bopped up on top of the ravine they were in <3

THEY HAVE NO BRAINCELL THEY JUST PLACED DOWN A BENCH AND SAID “THIS IS THE MARK OF OUR VILLAGE!” and then placed a torch and a boat and a bed and aANOTHER BED..

..Mumbo is trying to be a pacifist this season!

Grian’s taunting him with beheaded things

And obviously part of being pacifist means he’s gonna be vegetarian in minecraft!

..he cannot use monster farms because pacifisim..

Mumbo was in the middle of reading the magical Timmy shack that Tango made (did i remember to mention that? who knows) and IN THE MIDDLE OF GETTING TO THE PART ABOUT IF YOU REMOVE STUFF FROM THE CHEST, NOTHING WILL BE ADDED IN IT AGAIN. Grian opened the chest . Mumbo SHOUTED HIAUDHUW Grian jumped man

They renamed it “Cave of Do Not Enter” HIAUEDUH

Mumbo and Scar BOTH did not know- at least Mumbo didn’t, Scar forgot,  that podzol spawns from two-by-two spruce..

him and his guitar song to be played underneath his house.. it goes with the aesthetic i suppose

MAN HE NEEDS SO MUCH HAYBALES I FORGOT THATS NEEDED FOR THE TUNE HE WANTS

Mumbo: “What.. On Earth.. Scar, it’s meant to be a starterbase, buddy! What is this? This is many things, many many things, a starterbase is NOT one of them!”

HE LITERALLY DIDNT KNOW THAT THE DRAGON EGG TELEPORTS... WHEN YOU TOUCH IT...

BDUBS

nothing special we havent seen yet!! just him screaming about axolotls.

He was working in the Mesa in his intro, skipping the “speech” from Mumbo

He released Idiot the Axolotl and lost it .

Him SCREAMING “Gemini” is HILARIOUS

While Gemini gave away those three diamonds, Keralis got so excited he won a bet with Tango and Bdubs, that he gave back . two of the diamonds . and none of htem released until well after they left

Bdubs: “That’s why i have my mwoss skin!” PLEASE I LOVE THE WAY HE SAYS IT.. make the moss hood.. REAL..

it took me a while to figure out what his base is but i LOVE IT so so much!!!

Nothing much new to add !!

Stress pov

please i love her . very good !! False seems to have joined her sheerly because Stress sounded like she knew what she was doing. she does not.

False felt peerpressured and asked Stress for permission to fight her because everyone was killing eachother .

It ended up with Stress following False. they found a village!

ISKALL only saw him one other time today!!

JEVIN APPEARS AGAIN !

XISUMA FELL INTO HTE BREEDER AND IT WAS SO FUNN IUAHHYIAUSD

Ren: “Ya look goregous, Stress!” Stress: “Thanks! Don’t murder my dog!”

She’s so proud of herself for caving!! (with False n Gem

Iskall blew up!

..Iskall fell from a high place

Stress has a LOVELY ravine base!!

False

False wants to become pirates with Stress <3

gatekeep gaslight girlboss

BIG OL MUSHROOM HOUSE !!

it looks like a mushroom church and i LOVE IT.

Nothing new we didn’t see from Gem. She does want to come up with a banner design for her base, though!

Grian

..Mumbo just thought Grian had a purpose so decided to follow him <3

ALSO HIS INTRO, AS HE JOKED ABOUT IN THE OTHERS VIDEO, WAS, IN FACT, THE BOATEM POLE

Grian is SO PROUD of the fact taht they got good loot from a treasure map. Ren and Doc are NOT IMPRESSED

Grian: “Lets go, potato boy!”

Mumbo: “I don’t have to replace everything I break! Peace Love and Plants- are these plants..?” He says, mining amethyst

pants

he who controls the egg, controls the server... Grian.. you’re doing great sir

...He decided.. his goal.. is to make his OWN..caves and cliffs update... HELLO..?

Grian was the first one to kill the enderdragon, MAN. Speedrunning career WHEN? /j

Grian: “And now [Mumbo] is flexing on my bed!”

he might not have a base. but he has an egg.

It is now 2am. i cannot do this anymore. This will be continued.. tomorrow!

[dork-empress]

Singing in the Dead of Night

Damian Wayne meets a new masked persona in Gotham, and everyone has to adjust to her.

AKA I have a lot of headcanons about Lucy Quinzel and I'm making it other people's problem.

I want it up front that I haven't read these comics, just a lot of wiki pages and tiktoks. If there's a fun thing in the comics you can tell me, but this is my own version of this universe and these characters.

This is going to be the main story, but I may do some offshoots. If you want to subscribe, chapters are also posted on my Ao3 (link in my description).

“You need to take things less seriously.”

Damian looked up, looked down, and then looked back just to be sure it was really his father who asked. It was hard to tell sometimes if your superhero father had been replaced or possessed or something. “Are you serious? YOU’RE telling me that?”

“That should enforce to you how dire the situation is.” Bruce said, leaning back in his chair. “You’re still a kid,”

“I’m 15,” Damian said, then thought about his varied adventures, “Technically…”

“My point exactly,” Bruce said, turning a page on his crime reports, “You should enjoy being a kid, for a while.”

“Oh, did you enjoy being 15?” Damian said, and maybe that was a low blow, but if Bruce wasn’t ready for him to call him out he...shouldn’t have made him upset. Hmm.

Bruce looked up and stared into his soul, and Damian worried he might have stepped in it a bit. He backed up a step in case. Bruce took a deep breath, looking at him. “My childhood was stolen from me, but I at least had one. As did all the other Robins. You’re not responsible for what happened to you,but I think you could use some time. I couldn’t offer you a childhood then, and I can hardly do that now, I know, but I can do what I can.”

“And what are you doing?” Damian asked, narrowing his eyes.

“You’re suspended from Robin duties.”

“WHAT?!” Damian exploded, getting in his face. “What are you talking about?!”

Bruce didn’t flinch, “Until the Wayne Manor Christmas Party,” Bruce said, “I’ve called Tim and he’s willing to cover for you until then.”

“He doesn’t NEED to cover me,” Damian snarled, “I’m right here! I’m not injured, or dead, or ANYTHING I just--WHY?”

“I told you,” Bruce said, “You need to find other...hobbies, or form connections or SOMEthing. Anything other than the lifestyle. You have two months, you’ll live.”

Damian curled his fists, shaking, but had no more arguments. “You’re the WORST!” He said, and went off to his rooms.

The room was left in stony silence for a moment. Alfred came in, changing out Bruce’s cup of tea. “You don’t actually expect that to work, do you?”

“Not really, no,” Bruce said, “But he’ll be out of my hair for a little bit.”

Alfred was very dignified and so did not snort. But it was close.

Damian went out at night, saying he was off with a friend. Best to keep things vague, but if Bruce pressed, he’d say he was with Jon, and could probably bully Jon into vouching for him.

He dressed all in black, jumping from the rooftops, looking for trouble. There was usually plenty of it in Gotham. He just had to avoid the Bat Signal hanging in the sky and he’d be fine.

He heard a crash and looked down. Jewelry store robbery. Perfect.

He jumped down to ground level and approached the broken in window, taking out his sword. “Anyone in here, it’s better to surrender now,”

Of course, because it was Gotham, he wasn’t met by a normal jewel thief. No, instead, what approached him was a small walking orange balloon animal dog.

Because of course it was.

With an act first, think later attitude, he stabbed at it. He regretted it instantly as it let out some sort of opaque gas, the effects of which he didn’t want to find out. He pulled his shirt up over his mouth in hopes of preventing himself breathing too much in.

“Oh wow,” a voice said behind him, “Are you Robin?”

Damian whipped around and scowled. The gas was obscuring whoever was there, but the silhouette seemed like something of a ballerina. Why couldn’t one criminal just be normal?

He jumped back, ready to attack, but she didn’t fight him. “I’m not Robin,” he said, “I’m…” he didn’t think of another name. Ugh, this was more complicated than it needed to be.

“Huh,” she said, heading over to the display case, “This city sure has a lot of teenage ninja fighters, doesn’t it? Is ninja appropriative? Hmm, will have to think on that.”

She picked up a diamond ring from the display case and headed for the door. “Put that down!” Damian yelled at her, lifting his sword up.

“What, are you going to kill me for one ring?” She said, holding it, “Kinda overkill, don’t you think, Blackbird?”

Damian put his sword up to her, blocking the exit. “I’m not going to kill you, I’m just going to stop you,” he said, determined, but then her words sank in. “Blackbird?”

“Well, I’ve got to call you something, isn’t that how these superhero fights all go?” She stepped forward out of the fog, a girl about his age with a white painted face, lips painted into a heart, and bright orange and pink eyeshadow. “I’m Commedia, the hero of funny, the dancing clown, the laughing knight, etc etc.” she said, “im still working on my name too.”

She did a fancy twirl, getting out of range of Damian’s sword, which he countered to block her from the entrance again. “Oh, you like to dance?” she said.

“Clown, huh?” he said, staring her down, “You work for the joker?”

She laughed, high pitched and sweet, “Very much no,” she said, twirling again through the store, “Though I understand the confusion. No, Joker is...well, a joke. He’s not even registered in the clown registry.”

“There’s a clown registry?” He swung his sword.

This time, it came to a stop, with a matching jingle. He frowned, and saw it was a tambourine that the woman had lifted and stopped the sword like a shield.

He stared at the girl, Commedia, in stunned silence. She smiled brightly at him. “Well, this has been fun. But I really ought to head out. Raincheck on that dance, Blackbird.”

With a spin and a jump, she made it past him and rushed out the door, throwing a pink flower behind. A gas filled up the room in her wake, obscuring the view. Damian unfortunately got a whiff before he could block his nose, but he knew a simple fog cloud scent when he smelled it.

Damian went back into the shadows before the police inevitably arrived. It did seem below his paygrade, fighting someone who only stole a single diamond ring. But it was even stranger for that fact. A strangely dressed clown woman engaging in very strange and specific crimes in Gotham screamed “beginning of a dangerous plot.”

He wanted to go in swinging as usual, then remembered that if his father heard anything about a young person with a sword threatening police, he might catch onto the fact Damian went out that night. So, he went with the subtle approach. Breaking into the jewelry store’s records.

He was glad he did. It turned out that ring in particular had a history. It had been bought, returned, bought again, and returned once more, all by the same man, a Matthew Crenshaw. A quick records search brought up that he was a simple caller at a center. Nothing special about him. But, he was tied to the ring, and that tied him to the girl, so that was his first stop.

He tracked down the apartment to find Matthew Crenshaw in the middle of a very strange day. Damien watched through the window as Matthew lay on the floor of his meager living room, looking up at Commedia herself. She held the ring out to him, offering. “Well come on, man! Take it!”

“I don’t…” he mumbled, “Who...who are you?!”

“Just call me your fairy godmother,” she said. “Come on, you said you wanted it! So take it!”

“That’s…” Matthew said, “That’s the ring that Jenny liked...that she…”

“That you said would make the perfect proposal!” She said, dancing around, “So? Here it is! Now you can propose for real!” she said, giving it to him.

He juggled it, nearly falling over. Commedia came rushing over, jumping through the window and onto the fire escape. “Alright, hands up,” Damian urged her.

She turned, smiling. “Why, Blackbird? We going on roller coaster?” She put her hands high in the air and swung around the fire escape ladder, “Weeeeee!”

Damian followed her, pointing his sword tip at her chest. “Stop,” he said, “What are you planning?”

“Well, I’m planning to go sneak up to that window up there so I can look in and see what Matty and Jenny have going on,” She said, “Wanna join--OH!”

Damian pressed his sword up to her neck. “Cut the games,” He said, “You’re up to something, I know it. So tell me.”

Commedia sighed, giving in. “Matthew doesn’t want to get married.”

“I...what?” Damian said, confused.

“Matthew Crenshaw, the guy up there,” Commedia said, “He’s a nice guy, and he cares for his girlfriend Jenny, sure. But she’s been pressuring him about getting married, even though he doesn’t really like the idea of getting married. He’s talked himself into saying that he needs the perfect ring, but when he bought it, he decided he couldn’t afford it, and gave it back. So, I got it for him.”

Damian’s scowl only deepened as she kept talking. “Who’s he to you?”

She tilted her head, confused. “He cold called me to try and offer me a deal on car insurance.”

Damian put down the sword. He just. She said it so sincerely. “Who ARE you?” He demanded, now out of confusion more than anger.

She smiled brightly once more. “Why, I’m Commedia! The hero clown, the dancing--”

“Yeah, you said all that before, but like,” He sighed, “Why?”

Commedia’s smile fell down to something simple and kind. She offered a hand to him.

Hesitant, curious, and just...confused, he took it.

She led him to the other window, where they saw Jenny walking through the door. She gasped and ran to Matthew. “Oh, Matt! Matt, yes! Yes, I do, I do, I never thought this day would come! Oh gosh, I gotta call my mom, I’ve got a few dresses all picked out. You’ll see, it’ll be a huge party with everyone we know and-”

“Jenny,” he said, “Jenny wait, I...you know I don’t...I’m not comfortable with crowds and...and I don’t--

“But it’s MY DAY!” Jenny wailed, “You wouldn’t take MY day from me, would you?”

“C’mon,” Commedia muttered.

“Please, Jen,” Matt continued, “Look it’s just...if, if we did get married, shouldn’t--wouldn’t it be my day too?”

“Oh come ON, Matt,” Jenny said, walking to the counter, “We both know I’m the one who knows what’s best for you. It’ll be good! You’ll finally get to shine, and if you don’t like it, you’ll have ME there to take the rest of the spotlight!”

Matt’s hands balled into fists, and his face set, “No.”

“What?” Jenny said, incredulous.

“I’ve had it! I’m tired of-of you telling me what I like and what I don’t!” his lip trembled as he stood up. “I knew I was hesitant, but I didn’t know why! Now I see it’s becasue I didn’t want you in the rest of my life!”

“Hey now,” Jenny said, “Matt, calm down--”

“Get out of my house!” Matt went to the open window Commedia left behind and tossed out the ring.

“Whoopsies,” Commedia said and dropped away. Damian, confused, dropped down after her.

She picked the ring up from the ground and held it out to Damian. “I trust you can get this back to the jewelry store.”

“So, all of that…” he said, “was to help a guy get out of a bad relationship? That you barely knew?”

“He sounded sad on the phone,” Commedia said, “Made me curious.”

Damian scoffed, staring at her. “Who ARE you?”

She chuckled. “My guess is you’ll find out sooner or later,” she said, “So I’ll pick later, for now. But I’m sure I’ll see you again soon, Blackbird.”

She took out another flower. This one shot off into the distance like a grappling hook, and pulled her twirling into the night.

Damian could have followed her, maybe. But, holding the ring in his hands, he didn’t see much need to.

Across town, Batman was called to a bank robbery in the middle of the night. Inside, however, he didn’t find the vault broken in, and nothing stolen, other than a number of complimentary lollipops. “You know there are easier ways to get my attention.”

“Aw, Come on Bats!” Harley said, swinging from the ceiling with one of the lollipops in her mouth, “Ain’t this a classic? Brings me back to the old days.”

“Oh, you’ve stopped doing crime then?” He said, leaning back and looking up at her, “News to me.”

Harley flipped down in front of him. “Batsy, you know I’m tryin’! I do good, is it a crime to have a little fun while I do it?”

“If you hurt people, yes.” Batman said.

Harley deflated. “I haven’t done that in a while now. I’m goin through some life changes.”

Batman hummed, staring down at her. “I’m guessing this is about the small clown that has been reported around town recently doing strange acts of minor crimes to help people?”

Harley brightened again, balancing on the teller counter. “She’s my new apprentice! A bit of a goody-two-shoes, but I’m doing my best to train her.” She did a handstand, “I came to ask for some advice at raising child soldiers, considering you have so much experience.”

Batman always scowled, but it seemed his scowl deepened on that. “I help some people come to terms with terrible things that have happened to them, and teach them to be a force of good in the world instead of falling to the world’s darkness.” He thought back on his children, “It doesn’t always work.”

Harley laughed, “No kidding,” she said. She sighed, thinking. “To be honest, Commedia is already pretty good. I can’t claim credit for that.” She rocked back and forth, feeling uneasy.

Batman approached, slow so as not to scare her. “Well, we both know she didn’t get it from her father.”

Her face was already white, but she blanched further. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, “She’s my niece, she ran from home so I’m taking care of her and-”

“Harley,” Batman stopped her rambling, “I’m a detective, remember?”

She frowned, shaking at him. “He doesn’t know,” she said, “No one knows, she...she’s never met him and I don’t want her to I--”

Batman held up his hands, stopping her again. “I know,” he said, “I understand, really. And I’ll help.”

She blinked up at him, smiling. “Really?”

Batman nodded. “I’ll help you protect her. As for advice....if you ever figure out a perfect way to raise masked vigilantes, let me know. I mostly just do the best I can, and make sure they can do a proper spin-kick if they need to.”

Harley snorted. “I’ll make a note of that.” She grabbed the box of free lollies on the counter, “I am going to be robbing these though, and you can’t stop me.”

She headed for the back entrance and away. “Harley,” Batman called her again, and she froze, “The year you were gone, when you disappeared and suddenly your sister had a child she wasn’t pregnant with. I want you to know, I noticed.”

Harley smiled, turning, “Thanks Bats-” When she turned, he was gone. “And people call me a drama queen.”

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

It's that time once again when Diabolical plays in my head on loop.

Can I please get fic where Hels gets back on hermitcraft server? Causing some shenanigans and general trouble?

This was so much fun to write, thank you!! It also ended up being WAY more angsty than I expected but I’m sure you’ll enjoy it anyway, my friend :) Slight CW: minor descriptions of injuries

...

  Welsknight had been avoiding his nether portal as much as possible since he saw his doppelganger disappear through it. Something about the formerly harmless particles and whooshing noise when he walked past it now just about gave him an anxiety attack every time he walked past it. Once, when Jevin popped out of it to say hello just hours after Helsknight had left, Wels had reacted so violently that Jevin was STILL wary around him all these months later. 

  Nobody used his portal anymore. He made sure of that. 

  One sunny day, he finally worked up the courage to go to the shopping district, something he hadn’t dared to do in weeks in case something happened. He went straight past his own portal and flew all the way to Etho’s; there was no way he was going to use the portal his evil clone went through to go back to the hell dimension from which he had come. 

  The shopping district had changed a lot in the weeks Wels had been avoiding it. He couldn’t help staring around at the myriad of new shops that had sprung up. It almost seemed like an entirely new place. 

  As Wels entered the barge, he found another Hermit already inside, browsing the chest full of golden carrots. 

  “Hi, Joe,” said Wels politely, unable to hide a smile at the sight of his old friend. 

  Joe turned and gave him a wave. “Howdy, Wels. Haven’t seen you around here for a few weeks.”

  “Yeah, it’s been… a while. Just been busy, that’s all.” Wels awkward;y indicated the chest. “You, uh… buying stuff?”

  “Nah, I’m not dealing with diamonds this season. I thought Grian might be open to some kind of trading system using stuff other than diamonds but he hasn’t responded to my message yet, so in the meantime, I’m-.” He broke off with a frown. “Okay, I think I might have forgotten to actually send the message.”

  Wels chuckled. “You’re busy too, huh? You only start forgetting stuff when you’ve got a lot on your mind.”

  Joe matched his chuckle. “I’ve got quite a few projects going at the moment, yes. You wanna come over to my base sometime and I’ll show you what I’m working on?”

  “That sounds nice, Joe, thanks.”

  At that moment, the sound of a firework going off nearby caused both of them to look up. A second later, a figure glided through the door and landed neatly on the ground, his elytra closing as he took a few steps further into the room. “Hey, Wels,” Etho said, giving a friendly wave. “Man, you really got here fast.”

  Wels frowned at his friend. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, I just saw you over by Shade-E-E’s a minute ago. You said hello to me and everything.”

  “That…” Wels’s heart skipped a beat. “That wasn’t me.”

  Etho frowned back. “Well, then… Someone must’ve stolen a spare set of armour or something, cuz it looked exactly like you.”

  “Oh…” Blinking very fast, Wels let out a nervous breath. “Oh, boy… Please don’t tell me he’s back…”

  Etho and Joe exchanged a confused look. “Who?” asked Joe.

  Wels considered either making something up or dismissing his comment, but looking at the concerned faces of two of his best friends on the server, he decided to tell the truth. “The evil clone of myself that Beef and I accidentally created who ran off into the nether after I beat him in a rap battle when he tried to destroy the server.”

  Etho stared at him with wide eyes. 

  “I thought it might be something like that,” said Joe, nodding.

  “How can you possibly have been expecting that?” Wels said in disbelief.

  Joe shrugged. “I’ve heard weirder.”

  “Well… anyway. His name is Helsknight and he’s from a nether-like dimension called Hels, apparently. I thought I’d driven him back to where he came from but I should’ve known he wouldn’t stay away for long.”

  “To be frank, beating him in a rap battle isn’t quite as definitive as beating him in PVP,” said Joe. 

  Wels scowled. “The last time I tried PVP, you dropped an anvil on my head from a great height.”

  “Oh yeah.” Joe snickered. “I did.”

  “Leaving that aside,” said Etho, “it seems there’s an evil clone of you loose on the server, so we should probably deal with that. Helsknight, you said his name is?”

  Wels nodded. “He looks exactly like me except his eyes are red, his armour is slightly greyer than mine, and his hair is a darker shade of blond.”

  “Ohh, I noticed the darker armour,” said Etho. “I just thought it was the shade from my shop. I guess we’d better go find him, huh?”

  “Yeah, I need to find him before he causes any more chaos. You guys should probably warn the other Hermits so they-.”

  “No, we’re coming with you to find him,” Etho interrupted. 

  “It’ll be quicker if the three of us look together,” Joe added. “Plus, I’ve never met an evil clone before, so it would be rather thrilling to do so.”

  Wels frowned at his friends. “Are you sure? He’s really dangerous. I don’t know exactly what he’s capable of, but he’s from a hellfire dimension, so...”

  “As sure as the day is long,” replied Joe, patting his friend on the shoulder. “You need our help and we aren’t gonna abandon you.”

  As Etho nodded, Wels gave a small smile. “Thank you, guys. I really appreciate it.”

  “No worries. So where should we look first?” asked Etho.

  “Well…” Wels thought for a moment. “He’s probably trying to cause some shenanigans on the server. If we check certain prominent places on the server, we’ll probably find him trying to lure me out somehow.”

  “I’ll check the rest of the shopping district, then,” said Joe. “He might still be here.”

  “I’ll have a look round the nether hub and the Upside Down,” Etho added. “You said he’s from a nether-like dimension so he might gravitate there. What about you, Wels?”

  “I’m going to Bdubs’s castle,” said Wels. “It’s the most medieval build on the server, so if he isn’t there now, he’ll end up there eventually.”

  “Okay, but be careful, Wels,” Etho said softly. “Don’t do anything reckless.”

  “I won’t.”

  With that, the group split up. 

  Wels flew straight over to Bdubs’s base. As he got closer, he couldn’t help marvelling at the sheer size and grandeur of the cliff and the castle sitting atop it. It was one of the grandest bases on the servers, so Wels felt sure he would find his clone here.

  He landed atop the cliff and started looking around. As he explored further, he spotted the person he was looking for standing at the entrance to Bdubs’s castle. 

  “If you’re looking for your little friend Bdoubleo, he’s in the nether,” crowed Helsknight. “I watched him go through his portal.”

  Wels glared up at his doppelganger. “You know I’m not looking for Bdubs.”

  “Are you here to rap battle with me again, then?” Helsknight grinned. “I warn you: I’ve been practising.”

  Shaking his head, Wels drew his sword. “No, Hels. I’m going to do what I should have done in the first place.” 

  Helsknight sighed and drew his own sword. “So boring. Come on, then.”

  His doppelganger’s relaxed, indifferent manner sent a bolt of anger straight into Wels. Letting out a yell, he charged to attack.

  Their battle lasted at least ten minutes, though to Wels, it felt like hours. He poured all his energy into his swings, attacking his evil clone with all the rage and fear that had threatened to consume him since Helsknight had disappeared into the nether all those months ago. He was done letting his negative emotions control his life. 

  Finally, Wels managed to knock Helsknight’s sword out of his hand and kick him to the ground, aiming his own sword at his evil clone’s neck. 

  Helsknight simply grinned evilly up at him. “You gonna kill me, Welsy? I wouldn’t do it if I were you; we Hels Hermits only get stronger when we die. If you kill me, I’ll come back with a vengeance. We have a special lava fountain in Hels that can-.”

  “Oh, shut up,” snapped Wels suddenly. “I’m not going to kill you, but not because of any stupid threats you make. I don’t care what you have in Hels. I’m not going to kill you, because I’m merciful. But if you ever come back here again, I won’t be so forgiving. Do you understand?”

  Helsknight simply stared back at him. “You’ve got some great friends here, Welsy. Better hold onto them in case something… happens.”

  Wels narrowed his eyes. “You stay away from them. I swear to god, if you-.”

  He hadn’t realised that he had lowered his hand slightly until Helsknight moved, fast as lightning, and kicked the sword out of his hand. Before he could react, Helsknight jumped up and grabbed him by the throat. He took two steps forward and threw Wels over the edge of the cliff. 

  The fall seemed to take only a split second, but the cliff was tall enough that Wels’s left leg broke immediately upon impacting the ground. He lay still in shock, too numb to cry, despite the searing pain in his leg, which was folded painfully underneath his body. 

  Helsknight appeared above him and effortlessly picked him up off the ground, again by the throat. He grinned, his face less than a foot from Wels’s.

  “You know what else we have in Hels?” Helsknight taunted. “Fire. Lots of fire.”

  He lifted his free hand, which was now engulfed in burning hot flames. Wels weakly struggled in his grip, trying to lean as far away from his counterpart as possible, as Helsknight slowly moved the fire closer to his face, taunting him with the fact that he couldn’t escape it. 

  The flames started to burn his face. He held his breath, trying not to let his pain show, trying not to give Helsknight the satisfaction. 

  But finally, he couldn’t hold it in any longer. He let out a cry at the burning agony across the side of his face.

  Helsknight barked a laugh and retracted his hand, as if all he’d been after was a reaction from Wels. “Maybe you should stick with the rap battles next time.”

  With that, he dropped Wels on the ground and walked away.

  Wels lay where he fell, unable to move through the burning pain in his face and leg. His chest moved quickly up and down as he struggled for oxygen, still winded from the battle. 

  “Wels!” yelled a familiar voice from somewhere behind him. 

  Seconds later, Joe appeared on his right and Etho on his left, their worried faces peering down at him. 

  “Is he okay?” Joe gasped.

  “H-His face…!” Etho gently touched Wels’s burnt cheek. Wels could feel his friend’s cool fingers trembling. “Wels, can you hear me?”

  Wels couldn’t speak, couldn’t reassure his friends that he would be okay. His leg would heal. His face, he wasn’t sure yet. The only thing he knew wouldn’t heal was the crushing feeling of failure, of knowing that because of said failure, an evil clone of himself was still running around the server, potentially hurting people he cared about. The pain in his leg and face served as an agonising reminder that he wasn’t strong enough to stop his doppelganger. 

  How was he supposed to protect other people when he couldn’t even protect himself?

[melon-wing]

The Kissing Challenge 7/8

[PART 1] [PART 2] [PART 3] [PART 4] [PART 5] [PART 6] Grian grinned happily as he landed in the Hermitcraft Challenges area next to Mumbo. Apparently Mumbo had finished his challenge, which meant that Grian was also done with his, didn’t it? He’d be done with all the kissing… Not that it was that bad. He’d really gotten used to it and most of the other Hermit’s seemed to be more amused than annoyed by his new behaviour. He also didn’t know how he felt about suddenly stopping. It would mean he wouldn’t get to kiss...

“So I need to show you what I got”, Mumbo greeted him and then pulled out item after item from his shulker box. Grian wouldn’t admit it, but he was slightly impressed at how fast Mumbo had acquired all those things. Well… All those things except the bell maybe. That was rather unimpressive.

“I also brought something to show my progress”, Grian replied proudly once Mumbo was done and pulled out his book to throw it at his friend who barely managed to catch it. Turning the pages, a tiny blush began to appear on Mumbo’s cheek. Whether that was because he saw his own name or because of how many names were in there, Grian wasn’t sure.

“Well, I see Scar’s name in there quite a lot. Any Explanation?” Mumbo looked at him curiously, but Grian just shrugged.

“He is my neighbour, you know? I see him more often than the rest of you guys. And I don’t like to pass up any opportunity to make you happy.”

Mumbo raised an eyebrow, looking at him doubtfully, but he didn’t say anything else on that matter and Grian was thankful for it. He didn’t want to think about any of those kisses meaning anything. It was just a prank after all.

He took the book back after Mumbo had read all the pages.

“Now that that is done, I think I won my challenge, right? You need to ring the bell!”, Mumbo finally concluded, a bright smile lighting up his face again.

Grian grumbled a little, looking at the bell like it had personally offended him. But he still punched against the metal. Mumbo laughed and then hit the bell as well. This whole thing was so absurd. “Congratulations Mumbo, you won. You got good. Now that this is over,  I can stop with the kisses as well, right? You won, I didn’t.”

Mumbo only shook his head. “Oh no. Hermit Challenges is not about winning. It’s about the challenge. And I did challenge you for the whole season, didn’t I?”

“But you rang the bell!”

“Oh yeah I did… To tell you, good job so far, keep going!”

Grian frowned, but then a wicked grin appeared on his face. “Well you see Mumbo, if I’m not finished yet, that means I still have to keep going, right?”

Mumbo looked at him in confusion, but as he nodded something dawned on him and he shook his head. “Don’t you dare.”

“Oh but Mumbo… You said it yourself. I need to keep going.” Grian walked up to Mumbo, who was standing with his back to one of the pillars now. “So I’ll keep going until you ring that bell announcing my victory”, he finished, grabbing Mumbo’s tie to pull him down. “And until then I think I need to visit you more often.” Grian pressed his lips onto Mumbo’s and enjoyed the blush that appeared on the other’s face. He kept the kiss short and chaste, but it was still enough to get Mumbo pretty flustered.

~

Grian was whistling a cheerful tune on his way back, walking through the forest instead of flying, just enjoying the soft breeze blowing through the trees. Sure, he had to continue that stupid challenge, but somehow he didn’t mind. He had fun and he hadn’t even gotten to all of the Hermits yet. He really wanted to put all of their names into his notebook at least once before the season was over. If he did something, he always did it right.

A beep came from his communicator and Grian looked at it, a pained grimace appearing on his face. So Scar was fighting the Wither, huh? Why would he do something like that now? Guys like them were supposed to buy their beacons. They weren’t good enough at the whole fighting thing… But well, maybe Cub was helping him. They usually partnered up for stuff like that.

Grian couldn’t help but grumble a little at the thought. Cub should really be more careful at protecting Scar if they were really fighting together.

Grian kept walking and another death message popped up on his screen, making him wince.

<Grian> You alright? Need any help?

Grian kept walking into the direction of their bases, mentally already planning what he would need to gather to join in on the fight. A few minutes passed without a reply, but there had been two more death messages and it made Grian worry a little. Tango had now also send a message, offering his help.

<Grian> Scar? Tell me where you are! I’m coming over to help. Respawning so often can’t be good for you.

And finally – finally – there was an answer. Just the coordinates and a short thank you, but that was enough. Grian flew off towards his base, gathering his stuff and almost crashing through his door in a hurry to get to the mine Scar must be in.

He jogged through a long tunnel and the sounds of fighting and a Wither on the lose grew louder.

“FUCK!” Scar’s voice echoed through the tunnel and Grian’s communicator beeped once more. He didn’t have to look at it to know that Scar had respawned again. Grian reached him a minute later, next to a makeshift quarter.

“You alright Scar?”, he asked, startling the other a little.

“Yeah sure...”, Scar replied, slowly turning away from the chest and looking at Grian with a weird look in his eyes, looking him up and down, as if he was searching for something. “You came to help me?”

“Of course I did! I can’t have you dying here! You had me really worried. And we still have a dinner date to get to this week after all. Can’t have you miss that.”

Scar’s eyes widened and whatever had bothered him seemed to disappear, as he smiled again. He gently grabbed Grian’s arm and pulled him into a hug, resting his head on Grian’s shoulder. “I knew he was wrong...”, Scar murmured so quiet, that Grian wasn’t sure, he had even understood that right, but before he could reply, Scar had raised his head and pressed a soft kiss onto Grian’s cheek.

“Scar… Why are you even fighting that thing alone? You know it’s dangerous.”

Scar looked a little guilty at that, but he simply shrugged. “I just I needed to get some steam out of my system, you know?”

“Couldn’t you have gotten Cub to help you?”, Grian asked.

Scar’s face hardened after that, turning into a scowl. “We… No, he’s the reason for this. We had a fight. Just… some differing opinions on,” Scar took a deep breath. “things. He’ll come around and see how wrong he was. I don’t really want to talk about that now. I know I’m right and everything will turn out fine. I just… I… Let’s go and kick that Wither’s ass. And after that… Maybe we could celebrate together.” Grian smiled at the pleading look Scar gave him and nodded, leaving Scar’s embrace reluctantly.

Grian stood in the destroyed cave, trying to catch his breath. He hadn't thought battling a Wither would be this hard. They had managed, but it had cost him a lot. His armour had been blown to pieces and he had to retreat more than once to get suited up again. Not to mention the trouble Scar’s ridiculous bed placement skills had given him. Just as the dust of the Wither blew away he could hear loud footsteps and Tango came rushing into the cave, all decked out in shining diamond armour, sword ready in his hands, looking like a dashing hero right out of a fairytale.

“I’m here. I’m…” He looked at Grian, then at Scar and then to the Nether Star in Scar’s hands. “Oh…”

Grian laughed a little and pushed one singed strand of hair out of his face, before walking up to Tango. “Thank god, Tango. You saved us all. You are my saviour”, he said and pretended to faint right into Tango’s arms, putting one of his own arms around Tango’s shoulders.

Tango looked at him in confusion and then to Scar, who just shrugged, and giggled. “You are welcome?”

Grian grinned and put his free hand onto Tango’s cheek. “Let me give you a token of my gratitude, dear knight”, he whispered in a low voice and then put his lips onto Tango’s. He had planned to make it a chaste kiss. Nothing special. He wasn’t sure if it would make Tango uncomfortable. But Tango seemed to have other plans. Confused, Grian noticed, that Tango’s eyes were still on Scar for a few more seconds, before he buried his hands in Grian’s hair and pulled him flush against his body.

Grian gasped in surprise and a tongue entered his mouth. Well… That was unexpected. Unexpected, but not unwelcome. He’d just never thought Tango to be up to a spontaneous Make-out session. He felt his heart beating faster, pressing his mouth harder against Tango’s, their tongues moving against each other. He could taste Tango in his own mouth and it was exhilarating. All thoughts left his head as he just tried to get even closer to the other body. He felt one hand wandering under his jumper and he let out a tiny moan into the kiss. Oh god… This was good. This was…

“Guys?”

Oh damn. Scar!

Grian broke the kiss a little abruptly, completely out of breath. Tango seemed unaffected, still grinning happily, his eyes wandering from Grian to Scar and back again.

“Well that was nice. I need to save you more often, Grian”, he said mockingly, planted another soft kiss onto Grian’s lips and laughed. “I’ll leave you two to it then. I bet you have a lot to talk about. Call me when there’s another Wither to fight, alright?” Grian was still slightly dazed as Tango looked past him at Scar, his grin becoming almost demonic, before he turned around and left them.

Grian’s heart was still beating unbelievably fast. But no longer because of Tango. He suddenly dreaded turning around and facing Scar. And he didn’t even understand why he reacted like that. He surely must have kissed someone in front of Scar again. They were neighbours after all and if visitors dropped by he never passed up the opportunity for a kiss. And why would he care about how Scar reacted anyways? Why would Scar care? Grian took a deep breath. He was no coward. He had no reason to be scared. Slowly he turned around and for a second there was an absolutely devastated look on Scar’s face, but it disappeared so fast Grian almost thought he must have imagined it.

They stood there in an uncomfortable silence for about a minute, uncertain what to say or how to proceed. That was until Scar finally spoke up.

“So Cub was right, huh? You really do go around the server kissing everybody just for fun?”

Grian looked at Scar in confusion, but then shrugged. “It’s just a joke. I mean you must have known about Mumbo’s challenge. Almost everybody does. But don’t worry, I try to keep it all in fun. I don’t want anyone to be uncomfortable. Tango was a little unexpected though”, Grian replied, feeling even more heat rush to his face thinking about what had just happened.

“I see. Well… It’s all good then. Just some fun…” Scar smiled at him, but for some reason it felt off to Grian. He just couldn’t put his fingers onto it though. Maybe he was just tired after they fought the Wither together.

“Scar…?”

“Let’s go, Grian. We still have to talk payment for helping me with the Wither.”

Grian looked at Scar’s retreating back in confusion, but then shrugged it off. He was probably reading too much into it. Scar would have told him if something was wrong, wouldn’t he?

~

Grian slowly crept into the Guardian Shop. He needed Dark Prismarine. Again. It felt like the moment he had some of the materials he needed, there were already gone again. And the building of his mansion didn’t progress as fast as he had hoped. Impulse probably earned all of his diamonds from him. The problem was, Grian was almost out of diamonds. Between the building and planning he barely had time to go mining any more. And because his own shop wasn’t done yet he had no other real source of income. He was willing to sacrifice a lot for his base to look just like he wanted it to.

As he opened the chest an impressed whistle left his mouth. He was lucky. Impulse had restocked and nobody else had raided the shop yet. If he got all of the blocks, he might be able to finish the front. Then it would at least look finished from one angle.

In a rush, Grian took all of his diamonds from his Enderchest to switch them out for a few stacks of Dark Prismarine. He didn’t even get half of what Impulse had in stock. Maybe… Maybe he could take a little more. Maybe he’d just write an ‘I owe you’ note and get away with it. Such a note could be far more valuable than diamonds sometimes. Impulse could get almost anything from him with that note.

Having made up his mind, Grian put a paper onto the shulker box, bending over it to write. Just as he was finished he felt the warmth of a body against his as someone was leaning over him to read the note.

“‘I needed some more Dark Prismarine. I owe you, G.’… Well look at that. So early in the season and you are already getting into debt? That isn’t healthy at all, Grian. I can’t support that bad habit of yours.”

Grian hurriedly turned around, looking straight at Impulse, who smirked at him just like he always did, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

“You could have just asked, you know. I’m sure I would have come up with a really creative payment method. Just like old times, when I helped you with your redstone and you got down onto your knees and…”

Grian hurriedly shut up Impulse by pressing one of his hands over the other’s mouth. He didn’t need to hear anything about that time. It had been just once and they had both been high on some stuff Ren had smoked with them.

“That was just once! You agreed that we wouldn’t talk about that again! I won’t ever pay you like that again. ‘m not that easy…”

Impulse eyes still looked amused and suddenly a tongue darted out of his mouth, licking over Grian’s hand. He pulled it away as fast as he could, stumbling back and landing in a sitting position on the barrel he had just emptied.

“We only agreed to never talk about it again in company. I don’t see anybody around here. But it’s fine with me. I only have fun with those who want to have fun. Not even an ‘I Owe you’ note changes that. I’m just wondering, what you are willing to do if I offer you a Shulker filled with Dark Prismarine for free… What is it worth to you, Grian? How badly do you need it?”, Impulse asked in a low voice, leaning against the wall, basically looming over Grian.

“I mean...” Grian felt heat rise into his cheek, as he averted his eyes. He had meant what he said, about no longer paying Impulse like that, but he couldn’t get the memory out of his mind. But that still left the question: What was he willing to offer? “What would you give me for a kiss?”, he finally made his offer, not sure if Impulse would really be satisfied with that. But hey, it would help Grian with his challenge… And he’d rather not repeat the failure that had been his experience with Doc… Though he was still pretty sure, that it had just been the stress getting to his head that time.

“Well if we talking of a peck I’d give you a stack. I’d say half a barrel for-”

Grian didn’t let Impulse finish, pulling him down by his shirt to smash their mouths together. He could hear Impulse chuckle against his lips and then Impulse pressed back with even more enthusiasm. They separated a few times only for their lips to meet again. Somewhere in between kisses Impulse had moved from his looming position to sitting in Grian’s lap, the barrel creaking below their combined weight, but none of them cared enough to notice.

Suddenly there was a hand on Grian’s back, moving lower and lower and making its way under his waistband. And Grian just froze. He didn’t even know why. It was like back at Doc’s mansion. It felt like he was doing something utterly wrong here and it all came crashing down on him.

Impulse’s hand retreated at once and he broke the kiss to look at Grian in worry.

“Sorry. I guess I misinterpreted the mood there. You alright, little guy?”

Grian shrugged helplessly. Was he okay? He didn’t know. He had always done these casual hookups before. Why wouldn’t they work for him anymore? A thought tried to come to the forefront of his mind, but Grian pushed it down as hard as he could. He was alright. He was just a little off, that’s all. He had been losing too much sleep over building. It had nothing to do with...

“It’s alright, Impulse. I’m… just not… I don’t know… feeling it?”

“You wanna talk about it?”

Grian opened his mouth, so close to spilling all of those things that had been on his mind lately. He really needed someone to talk about it and a sudden burst of courage overcame him to say aloud what he hadn’t even dared to think about before.

“I think I might be fall-”, Grian started, when someone slammed open the door to Impulse’s shop and froze. Etho stood in the door frame, with wide eyes, taking in the scene before him. The way Impulse still sat on Grian, both of them out of breath, their lips an angry red.

“Oh… Well that is interesting now isn’t it? Not the place I’d pick to get into the mood for a quick-” “Etho!”, both Impulse and Grian interrupted in unison, looking at Etho, who just shrugged, grinning at them.

“Hey, you fuck in the shopping district, you gotta live with the audience… Gotta admit, it’s a nice way to draw attention to your business, Impulse. Will that be the new add campaign? Buy this Prismarine and the hot guys will be falling for you?”, Etho kept on teasing, the smirk clearly visible below his mask. “I wouldn’t mind to have you sit on my lap as part of a business deal.”

Impulse groaned and finally stood up, turning his back onto Grian. “You are an idiot! I swear the next time you buy something here I’ll double the price!”

“Ooooh, so I get double the amount of kisses? Done! You got a deal, sir. No take-backs now!”

The two kept on bickering and Grian used the opportunity to compose himself, standing up slowly and taking a deep breath. “Sorry to interrupt, but I’ll leave now. I’ll just pick up the Prismarine next time I’m here.”

“Grian, wait...” Impulse tried to stop him, but Grian pressed past him and Etho, hurrying to get out of the shopping district. “Grian, please. We should talk. You’re not okay. I’m sorry, I...”

But Grian shook his head, fumbling to get his rockets out and soaring into the sky. The small moment in which he had almost been ready to talk about his feelings, or whatever was going on with him, had been long gone. Now all he wanted to do was throw himself head first into some more building.

Flying high over the island, he suddenly noticed a huge stage that hadn’t been there before and it caught his interest. Turning around once more to make sure Impulse had stayed back, Grian landed in the middle of the stage, looking at the signs. A head hunting game? Well that sounded like something that would help him relax a little. Nothing better than an opportunity to cause some chaos.

~

Grian smiled to himself as he put Zedaph’s head onto the board at Cleo’s minigame. He felt pretty good about his little stunt there. Nobody had expected him to interfere. He wasn’t that good at fighting after all. But being sneaky was probably the only way he could win this game at the moment. He wasn’t a total asshole, though.

He finished putting Zedaph’s stuff into a shulkerbox, intending to just leave it here for him to find. He didn’t want to be hit for being a nice guy after all. The only thing he had miscalculated was Zedaph’s spawn point. Apparently it hadn’t been in his base but right here in the shopping district.

The blonde was running up to him and Grian readied himself for another fight. That was until he saw the broad grin on Zedaph’s face. He also wasn’t armed at all. If Grian wanted to be mean, he could kill him all over again and get a few more points for a second head.

Well, it looked like both he and Zedaph knew he wouldn’t stoop so low.

“I collected your stuff”, he simply said, gesturing vaguely to the shulkerbox next to him.

“Thanks, mate! It would have been annoying to lose everything.”

Grian had never really interacted with Zedaph much last season and seeing him up close like that. Well he was nice on the eyes… And still missing for his challenge. Some small voice inside him, tried to hold back Grian, reminding him of his encounter with Impulse the day before, but he decided to ignore it.

“Hey how about a little thank you.”

“… For killing me?”

Grian blushed a little. Yeah, that might have sounded utterly stupid. “No for sticking around to get your stuff and risking being killed by you, Cleo or Keralis. I mean I am a good guy and do it out of the kindness of my heart, but if you were to give me a little thank you kiss, I wouldn’t say no to that.”

Zedaph stopped rummaging through the shulker, apparently frozen at such a blunt request. “What?!”

“Well you don’t have to, if you are scared…” Grian’s grin widened and he tried to look as innocent as possible. I just thought it would be nice to find out who’s the best kisser of Team ZIT. Tango and Impulse weren’t as reserved as you. Amazing kissers those two. But if you aren’t as brave as…”

Grian never got to finish that sentence as soft lips pressed onto his. And while Zedaph wasn’t as aggressive as Tango or Impulse had been, he wasn’t shy by any means. It only took a few seconds for a tongue to enter his mouth and hands to land on his butt.

When they separated, they both were a little out of breath, lips red and wet.

“So… Who is the best kisser of Team Zit, huh?” Zedaph looked at him in amusement before stepping back, a cheeky grin on his lips.

Grian couldn’t help but grin as well. Zedaph’s good mood was really infectious. “Would you let me kill you once more if I said you’re the best I ever had?”

Zedaph just laughed, shaking his head. “You probably say that to all the guys you kiss.”

[noordledoordle]

“There are fundamental things about ourselves that we know to be true. It's important to remember those things when you find yourself in a tough situation, or you need to make a decision from the heart, but it's equally important to know that you can surprise yourself, too...”

Novel-sized post under the cut:

I don’t say much on my art posts or on Tumblr in general, but as we’re in the home stretch before SU leaves forever, I thought I’d leave a bit of commentary for the five people who may happen across this.

I started watching the original series a couple weeks after Friend Ship aired in 2015, mostly because I love MST3K’s Joel Hodgson and heard he was playing Mayor Dewey. I know it’s a common refrain that you have to sort of “endure” SU up to Mirror Gem, but that was not the case for me. The kookiness, the gentle nature of the characters, the overarching mystery of the setting - SU had me hooked right off the bat.

I loved all the characters (and I still love all the characters! Even if Ronaldo is best left as a background role and Resident Plot Oracle), but I was especially fascinated by Steven. Outwardly, he was as laid-back as his dad, and seemingly took a lot of stuff in stride, even his odd living situation. And every time a Big Reveal happened that re-contextualized the episodes prior, he would react a little bit in the moment, but never too much. Like clockwork, this pattern kept repeating itself. He would continually focus outward on the immediate problem or person in front of him, and get deeply emotional for their issues instead of his own. He’d also get emotional for surface-issue things, like Cookie Cats and snakes.

I found that odd. And intriguing. At first I figured it was just a narrative device since he was the MC and my window into the world of SU, but it happened so often that I finally got suspicious. What was it going to take for this kid to really express himself? He was so good at getting others to open up, why couldn’t he do it, too? Yes, he had times and even a couple episodes where he’d tip his hand for a bit and show something deeper, but they were oh-so-fleeting.

As I started watching the remaining S2 and S3 episodes as they came out, this pattern kept up. The layers of the world and its characters slowly unwrapped, but Steven stubbornly kept to himself and was mostly content to point the audience away from him. (Not a bad thing, narratively, as the stuff with Peridot and the latter half of S3 were wild rides!) Back then, I felt pretty alone in giving a shit about him as a character when it seemed a lot of others didn’t, but, dammit, he was my favorite little mystery regardless and I just hoped his reticence was going somewhere, especially as the show’s stakes got higher and higher.

Sweet, sweet vindication came when Mindful Education aired. The second he started giving terrible advice to Connie, I knew we were finally due to for a good look into his brain. And then came the butterfly on the sword, and well, everything else. Yeah, he’d dropped enough breadcrumbs prior to Mindful Education implying he was proper fucked up about his identity, but this was a whole loaf of fresh French bread. It was now clear beyond any shadow of a doubt that Steven was bottling up the majority of his issues and probably had been from the start.

I mean, damn, the Pink Diamond reveal? Amethyst couldn’t drag more than a couple grumpy lines out of him over pizza, and like most things Rose related, was more about his feelings towards her than what that meant for him. When he flipped out at a hologram of his mom or cried for his dad, his family wasn’t present to hear his inner thoughts. Regardless, after CYM happened and he’d resolved his identity crisis, I was content enough that they’d acknowledged his constant deflection and almost tyrannical need to help others as character flaws and would have been fine with what we got as an ending. Still, there was a lot about Steven that had been left unsaid, and I was excited to see was S6 was gonna be about...

And then the movie and SUF came along, and I swear to God I don’t even know what to do with all this vindication. Rebecca Sugar may as well have beamed into my living room and screamed “LOOK HERE ARE 20 EPISODES OF CONTENT TAILOR-MADE JUST FOR YOU.” Finally, they’re really unwrapping the mystery of our main character. They’re tearing him apart right down to the core of tragic nougat at the center of his being.

So, anyway, here we are at the lowest point of Steven’s long story. He’s burned King’s Landing. He’s crossed the Rubicon. My son, my boy, has shut out everyone he loves and has an honest-to-goodness kill count, and it can’t be justified by saying he was backed into a corner or that he was fighting to protect someone. He didn’t mean to shatter Jasper, but it’s clear he meant to hurt her.

I was always adamant that he’d never shatter anyone, but now that he has, I get why.

Steven is all about that duality. He’s human and Gem, burdened with Special Magical Destiny yet supposedly free to choose his own human path. The closer he gets to discovering his future, the deeper he has to dig into the past. He’s a cute little critter who can quietly drool on himself while napping on a road trip and also an angry teenager frustrated over a life he never had. He’s trapped between reality and facade - all those healing Rose-style powers he worked so hard to get in the original series were a cover for something older, more ancient, more destructive. And, most pertinent to Fragments - he adores soft things like romance and weddings, yet also values tough things like strength and power.

And he’s having trouble walking the tightrope between all these contradictions. When it comes to power, for example, he loves gaining new powers in order to feel useful to his family, but, in fights where he isn’t pink, he’ll always stop just short of using them to their fullest and stay on the defensive as long as he can possibly get away with it. He’ll even apologize or warn his opponent if he tries to do something big. He’ll nearly always fall on the side of softness over power, but the power is still very much there, if unused. And even up to this last episode, he’d always stop just short of going full feral even when he was pink. Part of this is because Steven is a good kiddo at heart, but also afraid of what he can do to someone unchecked.

And now, here at a bad point in Steven’s life when he’s loaded up with PTSD and cut off from his usual support, Jasper (who is also...going through some things) gives him permission to indulge in the sort of thing he’s avoided since that day he summoned a shield with an ice cream bar. She tells him to not hide a part of himself, so for just this fucking once, he lets go. The ecstasy of battle overtakes him. He doesn’t tap into the soft, rounded Rose-style powerset for even a second. No bubbles, no shield, just that raw diamond geometry. And when he gets to the moment of the KO, there’s no stopping, no break to talk things out, no “yo watch out!” He even pins her down to make damn sure she can’t get away. It’s a surprising facet of Steven we have never seen, but it’s still absolutely him, just another one of those parts he squirrels away out of view. He didn’t need that “training” at all... it was always there.

When he told Jasper he’d been holding back, he meant it. He’s been holding back for years, in so many ways.

[razorblade180]

Twin Snowflakes 22: Ground Zero

Part 21 -> here! <-

Bad luck has been a part of Qrow’s life for as long as he could remember. It manifested in a variety of ways but there was one in particular that was absolutely the worst, travel. Flat tire on a road trip, inconvenient. Plane delay, well that one was probably not his fault, but it felt like it! Certain cases like that were always a little iffy on if it was him or life. As the veteran huntsman stood on the deck of his son’s boat in the pouring rain with a Kraken raising from the depths, Qrow was sure of one thing. This one had to be his fault.

“I didn’t think grimm this big were still around. We’re in the middle of the ocean for crying out loud.” Qrow sighed, grabbing harbinger.” It’s cases like this he’d usually leave. Two big problems though. Problem number one, Sparrow was already firing cannons at it. Problem number two, it was waving Oscar around like a toy. He seemed okay though.

“CAN I HAVE SOME HELP HERE!?” He screamed, louder than the roaring winds and rough seas. “THIS GUY IS REALLY SLIMY!!”

“Slip out then!” Sparrow shouted in earnest. Oscar might’ve been far away but Sparrow could tell the man was not amused by that response. “What!? Do you want me to shoot that arm with you in it!? Penny will have a fit if I shot you!”

“PENNY WILL HAVE A FIT IF I'M EATEN!!!” Oscar wiggled and squirmed before finally managing to create an orb to push the tentacle off, then dispelling the orb to drop straight down. Cannon fire rained down on the center mass like grand finale fireworks, but only angered the beast. More tentacles cut through the air to reclaim its lost hostage.

“Give me a break.” The rain continued to pour down and sting against Oscar’s skin. He paid no mind to the whirlpools forming or the ship deck quickly approaching. Oscar simply closed his eyes. “Hey it’s been awhile. Mind lending a hand?” He called, subconsciously to his old friend.

“Hehe Oscar, do you even have to ask?”

Oscar smiled, opening his eyes and seeing Oz smile back through the reflection of the rain drops before seeing his own again, complete with white hair and golden eyes. “Let’s get to it shall we?”

xxxx

Nick remained quiet as Weiss drove back home from school. He was happy he made it back in time. A gigas dragging him away after his fight with Valerie would’ve made the entire incident worse. Though if he was being honest, fighting a gigas sounded cathartic in a way. He gently pulled up the window switch over and over, repeatedly.

Weiss took note of her son’s unusually sad demeanor. “Alright, wanna tell me what happened in there? You were full of energy before getting your work, and I doubt the workload has spooked you.”

“Nothing I’m not used to.”

“Ah, Valerie troubles.” Weiss glanced over and saw Nick glare at his own reflection. Looks like she was right on the money. “Take it from me, I’m sure whatever happened had more to do with her own personal feelings and not the feelings you have for her.”

“You say that with such confidence.”

“I was a teenage girl once too, you know? One with plenty of personal hurdles I tried to associate with other people instead of myself. It doesn’t ever really stop truthfully. You just get better at accepting the fact the problems fix itself when you decide to change how to respond to it.”

“Do you think I have a problem I should change? Loving a girl who pushes me away, it probably makes me look like a joke.” He tried rolling down the window again but found the switch had been locked. Yet another thing to make him sad.

“I think it’s not the wisest thing you’ve done, but it’s definitely the most normal teenage thing about you. Joke or not, feelings are feelings. They’ll work themselves out. Just don’t force anything and before you know it, you’ll see things a lot clearer.” Weiss reached over and ruffled his shaggy hair. “Who knows, maybe you’ll see this dew of yours needs to finally change.”

“As if!” Nick laughed, “I look too much like uncle if I cut it, and any longer makes me look like dad.”

“Not if you style it. Oh, or grow it out even longer. Like when you’re little! “Weiss cooed, “You and Summer were really hard to tell apart then.”

“Yeah, and people kept calling me ‘she’ and stuff. Nooooo thank you!” He folded his arms in protest.

“That won’t happen now that you got your father’s looks. You’ll just be a pretty boy. Then if you get facial hair!? Nick, let me make you gorgeous! I have Coco on speed dial!”

“This is why you had a boy and a girl, mom! So I can escape this torture.”

Weiss pouted, “Summer likes doing her own makeup and hair. I should be proud considering it’s my old look from waaaaay back, but I still wanna change things up. I’d give this entire family a makeover if you all weren’t so whiny about it.” Weiss looked in the mirror at neck length hair. She remembered how free she felt the first time she cut it. Having twins meant twice the hair pulling, three times if she counted the one person she wanted to pull her hair. Thinking back, there was a good chance it was one of times Jaune pulled it that gave way to the discussion of kids in the first place.

“Hmmm, maybe I should grow my hair out. I miss the old length sometimes.”

“Summer would be so upset.”

“Good, then she’ll change it. That’s one family member down.”

Nick playfully rolled his eyes. A makeover didn’t sound too annoying actually. Maybe after the tournament? He’d think about it. “Hey, mind if we train again today? I got a lot of pent up energy and new ideas.”

“I suppose. Someone has to make sure you don’t overdo it. Winter is coming over too, so it’s for the best I warm you up anyways. I’m positive after your recent school events that she has a few words for you.”

Nick gulped, knowing he was in for a workout. “Well now…guess I’m dying today.” He could already feel his muscles ache.

xxxx

Meanwhile in the woods, Summer and Veronica had crossed into unfamiliar territory, casual conversation. It wasn’t going well. They both agreed to chat but neither of them were actually talking! They were just walking with Veronica taking the lead, leaving Summer awkwardly following a few steps behind.

The girl had finally pulled herself together after her little episode. In truth, she was a little embarrassed to say anything after it. She hated looking weak, especially in front of Veronica, a girl who manages to look strong against even the harshest of critics and peers. It was quite envious, her attitude. Summer would give just about anything to have it. Summer looked down at her scroll for what must’ve been the tenth time. Still no missed messages.

“Expecting a call?” Veronica finally said, noticing the Schnee’s gaze consistently drifting. “Got a boyfriend or something I don’t know about?”

Summer felt like that might’ve been a jab but chose to ignore it. “Nick always calls me if Shiva gets out or nearly escapes. He’s always had a sixth sense for knowing her moves. It’s unlike him to not immediately call, even if he’s doing something urgent.” Summer put her scroll away. “Him not calling is odd.”

“Are you telling me she almost got out earlier? I didn’t really smell anything.” Veronica looked back to see the girl look at her confused. A fitting look honestly. “The one time Shiva was out and even when we argued yesterday, I smelled peppermint, a disgusting amount of it. The diamond dust smells the same.” Veronica pointed to her nose, “I didn’t smell that earlier.”

“Oh.” was all Summer could say. It should’ve been a relief, but it wasn’t. “Great, my panic attack was just unhinged. Even when she’s quiet, she’s ruining my day.”

“Are you saying Shiva tries escaping when you’re hysterical?”

“Apparently not, or at least not all the time? Agh, it’s impossible for me to tell.” Summer was even more perplexed than before. “Just when have I been talking to her? They’re not all fake, but...they’re not all real either? I can’t afford not knowing the” Her train of thought was broken when a snowball thrown by Veronica hit her coat. “Hey! Wh-”

Veronica quickly covered Summer’s mouth. “Shhh! Grimm.” She pointed several yards into the distance where two sabertooth grimm were roaming. “Alright, do your thing.”

Summer looked at the grimm, then back at Veronica, who gave a casual thumbs up. “Wait, you’re not helping?”

“Nope.”

“Whhhhyyyyyy exactly?” Summer questioned.

Veronica sighed, because one of the reasons I wanted to be out here is to better see you in action. Why else would I tell you to bring your blade?”

“You lead me here under the assumption of a fight…” Summer deadpanned, “Couldn’t you have looked up old videos of me? I didn’t see you drag Nick off to fight grimm so you can make his outfit.”

“Nick has double the videos of him fighting, as well as him figure skating. Also, I pay more attention to him than I do you.” It might’ve been rude, but it was the honest truth. Summer didn’t even seem surprised. She just looked at Veronica with judgment. “What?”

“Nothing, much.” Summer drew her blade and put a glyph at her feet. “Any requests for data purposes?” She could not believe this was happening.

“Just handle them how you would normally, oh huntress in training.” Veronica teased lightly.

Summer pointed her sword out with her right hand and her right foot forward, then took off. The distance between her and grimm was closed in a matter second. She leaped over one, slicing it’s head off through the back of its neck. Another glyph formed midair behind her. Summer used it to kick off right after the attack and thrust her blade through the second grimm’s eye socket. Not even a snarl was heard before it died instantly.

Summer looked back at Veronica. “Cake walk. You’d get more data out of a video than th-”

“BEHIND YOU!” Veronica shouted.

Summer looked over her shoulder to see a third one already pouncing. With a subtle breath, Summer slowed its approach and then back stepped to safety. One more glyph was put under the paws of the beast and pulled out like a rug to trip it. Summer spun the chamber of her Myrtenaster and threw into its ribs like a javelin. The chamber landed on flame dust, setting it ablaze.

“Phew! That was...unexpected.” Summer said, coming down from a surge of adrenaline.

Veronica ran over to Summer, surprised. “How did you do that, the breath thing?” Veronica asked, “That’s a trick I’ve never seen.”

“ Oh that? Well…” Summer took her left glove off and focused. Little snowflakes started floating upward from it in place like a snow globe. “I’m not too good at it, but I can control a bit of Shiva’s powers. Only when I’m cold though, or freaked out, but that second one is more involuntary.” Summer put back on her glove, “considering the potential risks and conditions, I don’t use it in fights. Explaining it to officials would be a pain anyways.”

That made sense. Veronica could smell a hint of peppermint coming off Summer. That was Shiva’s power alright. This also explained the mass amount of ice she saw Summer create in her video fighting the Paladin. “Permission to touch you?” Veronica asked, like she always did. Summer nodded. Veronica reaches out and places two fingers against the pulse in Summer’s neck. “Any other Shiva related tidbits to share?”

“Ummm, we share a subconscious, sort of? More like a neutral ground.”

Veronica paused momentarily, “what?” She said, annoyed by all this cookie cutter information. “Gonna need more tidbits?”

“It’s hard to explain. I don’t understand it either.” Veronica looked at Summer, unblinking. Apparently that wasn’t a good enough answer. “Look, imagine something like...an ocean, just water and the sky above. Now flip it upside and make that ocean completely frozen. That’s more or less what the subconscious looks like. There’s ground to stand on, but I can’t really see. Depending if I’m actually dreaming or in a certain place, then that’s what the subconscious can look like. The only constant is that ice ceiling.”

Every sentence from this girl felt like a fever dream to Veronica. “Summer, I doubt you're lying to me, but do you by any chance also do drugs? You know, the hard kind.”

“As if!” Summer swatted Veronica’s hand off her neck. “First of all, drugs and I don’t mix. Second, be serious!”

“It was a valid question. Rich kids do a lot of things. If Nick told me he tried it before I wouldn’t be surprised. Saddened, but not surprised.”

“While I would be hounded by you no doubt?”

Veronica crossed her arms, “I’d berate anyone who would do drugs.” Her tone was stern and cutthroat, “It’s an ugly slope that goes down fast.”

The way she spoke about it was rather serious compared to what Summer was used to. “Have...you done drugs?” Summer asked cautiously.

Veronica thought about her answer carefully for a moment. “For a brief time, yes. I’m past it however, totally clean. I thought it might help control my instincts.” Veronica slouched over with a sigh, “Unfortunately, noooo dice. Come on. Let’s keep moving.” Veronica continued to walk.

Summer stood quietly for a moment, then followed as well. She wasn’t expecting to get to the topic of Veronica’s genetics in such a personal way. Then again, someone’s very birth is nothing but personal. Curiosity began to get the better of her. They did make a deal after all.

“V-Veronica…?” Summer stuttered, “I held up my end of the bargain. The only other thing that may be worth mentioning is Shiva only knows what I know when she tries escaping, and I only know what she does if I’m conscious. Other than that I think all the dribble about the state of mind would make you snore. So…..”

Veronica could tell where this was going. “Relax, I’m not about to break a deal that I proposed in the first place.”

She reached for a nearby branch and plucked a silver flower off of it. It’s five petals were spread wide Veronica placed it in her own hair. “I take it that even your school isn’t bold enough to ignore basic faunus knowledge and history, despite their…questionable place in said history?”

Summer nodded, “Hey, Atlas isn’t the kind of place to bury the leads. Older society and its people simply do what they want, how they want.” Summer cringed, “Not that doing so is exactly better in the long run. Besides, you think rich tycoons wouldn’t tell their heirs and shady dealers how they amassed their fortune? Atlas’s people might know too well the benefits and contributions the faunus play in our history and in a work capacity.” Summer felt sick saying that. “It’s disgusting really.”

“Couldn’t agree more. With all that said, how much do you wanna bet there’s aspects glossed over?” Veronica wagered.

“I could’ve sworn you made it clear that you have no interest in money?” Summer quipped.

Veronica let out a humorous breath, “Tah, a girl can change her mind can’t she?” Veronica watched Summer reach in her pocket and pull out a hundred lien casually, giving it up. Veronica was surprised. “We didn’t even make the bet yet.”

“If I knew everything, then I wouldn’t be curious about this in the first place. Odds of you teaching me something new about your people is a given.”

Maybe it was the fact that Summer was made of money, or had good intentions for learning more, but Veronica couldn’t take the money. She could only waved it away. “Geez it was a joke. Making you pay would look bad.” She said, in a forest with nobody but themselves around. “Qualities Like night vision and other adaptations aren’t the only animals traits given. It’s fundamentally built into everything about us. Disposition, personality traits, social skills, everything; the animal you are influences all of these in a variety of ways in varying amounts.”

“Like how faunus with nocturnal animal traits tend to take night jobs?”

“Veronica nodded, “Yes. A bird faunus might choose a home at high elevations, even if they don’t have wings. A deer or rabbit faunus may have to work harder at public speaking than let’s say a wolf faunus. The subtles can get even tinier; or as obvious as a feline faunus loving fish.”

Summer never really thought about it, but that made sense.“What you’re basically telling me is for a faunus, nature vs nurture takes on an entirely different level of complexity? Nothing stops a rabbit faunus from being a motivational speaker, but it would be more work, unless their parents or even their environment had predisposed them to be apart of a more vocal and outgoing lifestyle?” Summer’s eyes lit up. “That’s actually really fascinating, sowhere do you fit in with all of this?” She asked, wanting to learn more.

Veronica was taken off gaurd by how interested Summer was. “For a person who apparently hates school as much as I do, you look eager to learn.”

“School sucks because of social pressure and redundant information.” Summer deadpanned, “Anyone would get bored of learning material that is forced upon them and is as quickly discarded.”

“Well, I guess that’s true. I wouldn’t say I’m in love with any aspect of school, but learning is the least problematic part of what I had to think about it. Anyways, what I’ve told you so far applies to all faunus. With the way the world is and all the kinds of possible traits, finding a place to fit in isn’t difficult. Those animal instincts are very much submissive compared and don’t hinder our ability. Like you said, a rabbit faunus can do public speaking. A bat faunus can absolutely walk around in broad daylight. However, there’s a minority among faunus that have their animal gene act way more dominant than the majority. Roughly 13 to around 18 percent of the faunus population, if I remember correctly. This group, my group, are easily recognized by having exaggerated or extra features. Extra large wings, skin more animal than human, cold blood-”

“Ears and a tail?” Summer interjected, “appearance wise, you seem to have gotten off easy. You covered in fur or having whiskers would be a little distracting. Not gonna lie.”

“Externally, I’m just a tick higher on date lists for everyone with disturbing cat girl fantasies. Make no mistake though, I’m not the average faunus. Super faunus, the minority, have their animal qualities cranked up and deformed. I can’t see in the dark, but my nose is keener than any dog I’ve encountered. All those little traits I mentioned before? They tend to manifest in my people aggressively and often. To put into perspective, I have more in common with my grandpa than I do my mom, on an animal level.”

“Wow, that’s…intense. Your grandpa roars and gets all apex predator on people when he’s pissed- oh! Wait, your temper is shit because of your genes!?”

Veronica inhaled, ignoring the insult for the sake of conversation. “To a degree, yes. I cannot pin the blame entirely on my DNA, unfortunately…” she added that last bit quietly. “Despite what people write online about my family, we aren’t just cats. We are big cats. I’m a panther for crying out loud.”

Summer squinted, “Well, seeing how you’re mostly blonde, aren’t you technically more of a jaguar or a leopar-”

“Panther.” Veronica said, this time with feeling. “I could dye my hair red and that doesn’t change my DNA, Summer.”

For her own safety, Summer wisely chose not to make a very easy pink panther joke. She thought about it, but this conversation didn’t need to fall apart for the sake of Summer wanting to be a smartass to Veronica for once. “Fair enough, continue.” She said, still thinking about the joke.

“My athletic ability is exceptional, hearing too. My tail gives me balance more than other faunus. Despite the term super, anyone with the mutation would tell you how daunting it is. The type of animal, like everything else, determines what the faunus might deal with. For me it boils down two major things that contradict each other. Problem number one, not eating enough meat.”

“What happens?”

“Same thing that happens to any starved predator. I become impulsive, irritated easily, confrontational, my senses get...sensitive, adrenaline makes me dizzy-”

“So you’re super hangry?” Summer said without thinking. She immediately tucked her lips in and accepted the “you are an idiot” look that Veronica gave her without mercy. “Why the hell did I say that?”

Veronica groaned, “Minutes ago I heard you bring up nature vs nurture for comparing and explaining what I’ve said. Now you compare things to being hangry? It’s not even about how full I am, it’s the nutritional and instinctual part of devouring meat that my brain wants. It’s no different than your body craving milk for calcium. If I’m not careful and reach my limit, I tend to lose sense of reason and even blackout into a haze of instinct. Essentially, I go feral. Your brother can tell you that it’s not a pretty thing.” Veronica frowned.

The bruises on his face that day after school started to make a little more sense. No way he’d just let Max and Darren get clean hits in! He was dealing with an enraged Veronica. It actually put a lot of things in perspective. Summer couldn’t count how many times Veronica looked like she wanted to actually claw a person’s eyes out. She might’ve actually been thinking it over! That...was a scary thought. “What’s problem number two?” There was no way it could be just as bad.

“Eating too much meat. That’s when I’m an apex.” Veronica said, giving a thousand yard stare. Summer immediately took her statement back. That sounded way more problematic. “My attitude shifts. My fuse isn’t as short as when I’m starved but let’s say I can be very...demanding. Yeah, let’s go with that.”

Summer raised a brow, skeptical of that statement. “Are you saying-”

“Better think twice before saying I’m already demanding. Neither you or Nick has seen me when I’m caught up in the euphoria of being what I am. I’d put that girl Amber to shame, and my physical prowess are even better. I’m wild in a completely different way. Filter, broken. Can’t even put that state into words. So yeah, that’s my genetic mishap in a nutshell.”

“You being a food snob and all of your diets make a lot more sense now. Why keep this to yourself for so long.”

“Simple, it’s not anybody’s business what I’m dealing with. It’s handled, and doesn’t need to be explained among faunus. Living normally isn’t hard when you know what you’re dealing with, which is why I’m shocked every resource hasn’t been poured into figuring out your problem.”

That stung a bit. “Oscar is currently crossing the sea to potentially find answers, I have you know.” Summer said defensively.

A scoff came from Veronica. “No offense, but that sounds like a waste of energy.”

“Saying no offense doesn’t make me feel less hurt.” Summer folded her arms. “How would you know? Unlike you, my affliction has no prior information to go off of, and isn’t a genetic thing at birth. Any move could be closer to the truth, or a shot in the dark. For all intended purposes, you were born and live normally like anyone else.”

“Hate to make you sound stupid, but a test tube baby isn’t normal in most circles. Two moms, remember?” Veronica said, coldly.

Summer stopped walking. For some reason, that didn’t sit right with her. “Isn’t that name...an insult?”

“Yep.” Veronica kept walking, “Keep up. I’ll leave you out here.”

Summer listened. Maybe it was her imagination, but that atmosphere between them felt like it changed again. They had both held up their end of the bargain. Now things felt cold between them like before. Summer wasn’t expecting to learn as much as she did. Many things were answered today, so why did it feel like she knew less about Veronica. Blanks were filled into a picture she never knew the true size of, and still didn’t. One of those pieces felt out of place. The piece that helped put build up to this situation in the first place.

“Veronica…?” Summer uttered, “By any chance, does any of what you told me having anything to do with the torn pages in your-” suddenly, Summer’s words were stuck in her throat. Veronica had turned around to look her dead in the eyes, coldly and without care. Summer felt herself become small and beneath Veronica yet again, inferior.

“Never bring this topic up again, got it?” Veronica had to stop herself from balling up her hands, or she’d cut them with her nail. “Got it?” She said again, doing her best not to blow a fuse.

“S..sorry. I just...thought-”

“You thought wrong.” Veronica said. She turned around and kept walking. “We’re not friends.”

Heat rose to Summer’s face. It was impossible to know if she was feeling embarrassed, upset, or anything. All she knew was for a moment, she felt tears well up before vanishing. She breathed through her nose and bit back. “Yeah, I’m well aware.”

xxxx

“Sloppy!!!” The commanding voice of Weiss’s sister cried, knocking her nephew into a bush for the tenth time today. “You’re unfocused! Surely you can do better?”

Weiss witnessed her child stumble back to his feet, hair messed up and panting. He stabbed his sword into the ground to brace himself momentarily. His aura was still high, and yet… “Winter, he’s still under the weather. Ease up.”

“This is me easing up. You simply coddle him too much. Nick is more than capable of continuing. I don’t remember going as easy on you when you asked for training all those years ago. You turned out fine.”

“I wouldn’t exactly use our relationship as a standard.” Weiss mumbled.”

Nick raised his sword quickly. He channeled a fire ball to the tip of his blade as fast as he could, but was still too slow. Winter had already rushed towards his left. He had no choice but to abandon the fire attack for a block that barely withstood his Aunt’s blade. Nick slid backwards on the stone ground.

Winter shook her head. “Once again, you waste aura and energy not because the attack was a bad choice, but because you simply cannot use your semblance fast enough.”

Winter shot off a fire ball not even a second later. She waited closely for Nick to raise his block, then used a standard glyph to propel herself forward. Her speed surpassed the fireball, and Winter was able to position her blade behind him as the flame made contact with his.

Nick looked over his shoulder at her, frustrated, but not willing to yield. He pivoted around with his blade held out to direct hers away, then put a glyph between them. By the time he did so, Nick already knew she was on the move again. “Don’t count me out!” His left hand pulled a summoned sword from the glyph. Nick swung it out to the left and around to his back while his actual blade was swung right. The weight to Winter’s attack came from back and was blocked, perfect. He leaned his body left with his blade as he felt Winter shift that direction to his opened side.

Winter could only smile as she went in to strike. Nick just played her and she knew it. Her blade still clashed with the summon weapon, leaving his right blade free to use the momentum from the lean and make a clean stab with no chance for her to block. Winter did the wise thing and jumped back, abandoning her assault. His left side was never really opened. It was bait. Both swords were used to block wherever she came from. The right one only stopped short because the left one did the job of making sure she aimed for his back by swinging outward. Winter would have either been hit or blocked if she immediately attacked left or right, and the glyph protected the front. By making her attack his back, he all but ensured she would aim left next because it was the only unguarded spot, a spot he was ready to defend and attack from simultaneously. It was this kind of quick thinking and reckless style that separated Nicholas from anyone else. Even his sister. Especially his sister. Winter loved Summer to death, but the girl was quick to panic if plans fell apart.

Normally Winter would hear him say something self-indulgent. Nope. Just a quiet stare and a fireball he had to fire off thanks to the distance between them. Still…

“Nice effort.” Winter said, knocking it away with ease. “But no. The simple fact you can summon the sword of an Arma Gigas so easily yet remain sluggish with more basic functions of your semblance is a baffling talent. If it wasn’t for your unconventional swordplay that you somehow make work, I’d say getting a gold medal would be impossible. Still might be. It only does so much.”

“Well it’s a little late to change my style now. This is what I know best.” He dropped his sword and slowly let out a breath, filled with irritation. “I know I’m lacking.”

Winter raised a brow. She looked at Weiss confused, “What’s wrong with him? The usual?”

“No. Well, yeah, but he’s been stretched thin in general recently.”

“I’m not stretched thin. I just...nothing feels like it’s enough. Training in particular. Like you said, I can make swords in my sleep. All the other things our family is supposed to be good at, I’m average!”

Winter turned off mentor mode for a moment. Clearly this is more than about training, but she’ll play along. It was time to be an aunt. “Nick, you are in a class of your own. Sixteen and this skilled by no means is average. In regards to us, your family, no one here was perfect. Nobody here is perfect. Your mother still over extends her strikes from time to time and your father definitely wasn’t a genius by any means.”

Weiss narrowed her eyes, “Hey, I’m free game but be nice to my husband. You’re right, but be nice.”

“Like me, you choose to wield two blades. Unlike me, it’s your go to stance.” Winter informed, “Our semblance works best when we have a free hand. That’s why shields aren’t a good option for us. The choice to use two blades isn't bad by normal standards. I’ve faced many foes that pressured me with similar tactics, even beat me. Though only one is real, another sword has made it harder for you to use glyphs. At least it should be, but summoning and a video of your exam says otherwise.”

Nick looked at his summoned blade in frustration. “I still don’t know what I did differently that day. I was faster and more in control than I have ever been. Not only did I actually make a gigas, but even all my other glyphs felt on par with Summer’s.”

“Remember Nick, You and Summer excel at different things.” Weiss reminded him. “Yes, her fundamentals and use of dust are better, but she has a knack for it. That’s her edge. In a fight, Summer’s wide range of dust and glyph combinations always means she’s never out of range to attack or control a fighting space. You may not have that but your speed, stamina, and reflexes make up for it. In close quarters, no one your age matches you in Atlas.”

“That merit just so happens to have made you neglect the need to sharpen your other talents. Do you know how dangerous you could be with-”

“Time dilation? Yeah, mom told me.” He interjected, “something about those other things simply don’t click in my head. Can’t even get a fireball right.”

He sat down on the ground and took another breath. “The way I fight, it isn’t like I built it to be the most versatile. My offense is my defense. The use of momentum to add power behind my strikes helps keep in moving. It’s why my stamina and speed is good, to push my body for relentless attacks.”

He didn’t say it out right, but he didn’t have to. Nick made a style that didn’t make him good against a variety of people in mind. No, Nick thought of style against Shiva. In the end, that’s the only fight that matters. Beating others with it was a way to refine it for the moment it mattered. Abandoning it was not an option. Only improving.

Winter could only look upon the boy's face and see someone who only ever has the best intentions for others slowly begin to waver. Her teenage years were long gone, but no one ever truly forgets the confusion they went through during that time. Winter walked over to her young nephew and sat in front of him, legs crossed. “Why is it always the most caring of people who can never give themselves the break they give others? Nicholas Schnee, you are a kind, hardworking young man that never doubts himself often. Much like your mother, you take hold of what you want and clench it tight.”

“Lately holding on seems to hurt more than letting go. Nothing...feels right. Not just in training either. I feel like a gap between me and everyone else has been growing, like I’m out of a very important loop. Val, Vee, even Summer.”

“This time of year gets people stressed. It’s possible every one just needs a breath. I can speak much on a gap, but I’m positive time will mend it. Despite my feelings towards the young Belladonna, it is pretty clear the two of you get along. Confide in her.”

Weiss and Nick went bugged for a moment. They both looked at each other and then back at Winter.

“Wow.” Weiss spoke, “That’s pretty big, coming from you. Anytime you see that girl, you have nothing but disappointing looks.”

“Yeah Auntie, I’m shocked.”

Winter turned a little red, “I don’t see why. I may find her a bad influence on you and your sister, but my opinion is one of many. With you, Veronica is a welcome distraction to break up your daily routine. I’ll give her that much.”

“How generous,” Nick said sarcastically. Veronica was starting to sound more like a battle tactic than a person. Though she probably wouldn’t mind if it meant spending time with him. Regardless, “I appreciate the suggestions, but my time is better spent training at the moment. If I can be half as capable as I was during my exam, then I chalk that up as good progress.”

Winter hit his head. “Fool, you’re not getting it!”

“Ow! What!? All I said was- Ow!” Weiss also hit his head, much lighter though. “Stop hitting me! I thought this was a pep talk!?”

“It is.” Winter stated, “It’s also a lesson. The way you are now, you can’t progress much further. I urge you to really think about what made that day different from now; what made your last attack against me different even. That is all the hints I will provide to him. I do hope your mother keeps quiet as well.”

“Hey! I get I’m a little...lenient with him, but I would never skip an opportunity to watch him grow. Besides, telling him wouldn’t mean he could do it any faster anyways.” Weiss teased. She could hear Nick’s ears practically buzzing.

“If that’s the case then say it!” He asked eagerly. He was given no answer. Winter and Weiss walked away from him like they didn’t peak his curiosity. He assumed training was about to resume like normal. However, it didn’t. A look of shock came to him when both of his elders faced him, blades drawn.

“What, both of you at once.” He said nervously, grabbing his sword and rising quickly to his feet. “What happened to me being under the weather, mom!?”

Weiss smiled, “Hey, you wanted fast results. Until you find the answer to your glyph problem, we’ll double down or swordsmanship. Brace yourself. I’ll hold back.”

“I will not!” Winter smiled.

Nick didn’t even get a chance to blink before the two of them came after him. He gulped, “Should’ve stayed in bed.” Nick prepared himself when suddenly, a cold chill went down his spine. Weiss and Winter immediately recognized the look of fear on his face and stopped their approach while he pulled out his scroll to call his sister. “Pick up. Come on Summer, pick up!” He muttered.

xxxx

Summer felt like an idiot. Of course nothing has changed. Why would it? A talk didn’She walked faster, out pacing Veronica.

“Hey, slow down. I haven’t told you where we’re going.” Veronica said, but Summer didn’t listen. “Hey!”

“Leave me alone! I may not come here often but I live here. I’ll find my way without you.” Summer said, grunting as she forced her way through dense branches and bushes.

“Can you not act like a child for once!?” Veronica yelled, running after her. “And stop ignoring me!” Veronica was near her wits end.

“.........”

And then she reached it. Veronica’s tail and tensed up. “Summer!” Veronica yelled again, going through the bushes. “I said stop ignoring-” the potent odor of peppermint invaded her senses out of nowhere. Veronica looked around the area, seeing nothing. Nothing, but a frozen lake, shimmering with diamond dust below the surface; and Summer standing in place, shivering.

“Summer…?” She said, concerned this time. Her words didn’t reach, not immediately. The scent wasn’t only coming from the lake. Veronica didn’t dare to move as she watched a finger point across the water. Her eyes looked in that direction to see nothing but scared trees and large rocks that had been chipped rather deep.

“A fight?” Veronica thought. She looked closer. All the markings looked to be going outward and from one spot. A spot several feet off the lake. Even with all the dust, it was clear that spot smelled the most foul. “No, an explosion.” Her attention went back to Summer. “A dust explosion.” Veronica yelled again. “Hey! Summer! Answer me, please!?” She could no longer be calm. Veronica ran to the girl screaming her name.

Summer might as well have been deaf to Veronica’s voice. All she heard was laughter. Her laughter, coming from Shiva skating on the ice.

“Hahahahaha! Oh wow! We haven’t been here in ages Summer!!!” Grinning and filled with joy, Shiva extended her hand, “Summer, come join me!” The glow of her eyes grew more dazzling, as well as her smile. “Just like before….”

[carewyncromwell]

The next Cinderella AU part is here...and I am so thrilled about this part, because not only do we get a new character (who I’m quite sure you can identify from the sketch above -- only my second time drawing him ever, and I’m actually pretty happy with it!), but we’ll also get a nice serving of drama! Goodie!!

Robin Hood as a legendary figure first originated through the oral tradition, so its history is a little hard to plot out, but his first reference in writing is a ballad from the 15th century. Although our modern image of Robin Hood is that of a chaotic good heroic figure, his original incarnation was decidedly less saintly -- he was a bandit, and although he did refrain from stealing from women, he was rather violent, reckless, and hot-tempered, as well as flagrantly against both clerics and all nobility. Robin Hood’s backstory of being a disgraced nobleman who turned outlaw after losing his title and land and who remains loyal to the “good king” Richard while opposing the unlawful regent Prince John was added later, presumably to make him a bit more “approachable” to an Elizabethan audience who was more accustomed to hearing tales about nobility (just look at a lot of Shakespeare’s plays from that period -- many of them center around royalty or the upper class). Plays about or referencing Robin Hood then increased in popularity on the British Isles throughout the 16th and early 17th century, until the rise of Puritanism in the 1640′s put a halt to theatrical productions. (Bloody kill-joys.) For more information on the history of Robin Hood’s development, I strongly recommend this analysis done by Overly Sarcastic Productions (...actually, just watch everything on their channel, it’s all great XD).

Previous part is here -- whole tag is here -- Katriona “KC” Cassiopeia belongs to @kc-needs-coffee -- and I hope you enjoy!

x~x~x~x

Carewyn had a lot of trouble returning to her daily routine at the palace the following morning. Getting so close to the border with Orion and hearing about how much scarier it was likely to get on the battlefield made her all the more worried for Jacob’s well-being. Even if the spell Charles Cromwell had paid for nine years ago made it so that Jacob would stay alive as long as he willed it, Carewyn dreaded the thought of what harm, physical and emotional, that Jacob might face. If she only had some idea which battalion he was a part of and where on the front he’d be, then she could always just try to send a letter his way...maybe even ask Orion to drop it off to the camp for her, since his father was an officer. But Carewyn had combed every military roster she could get her hands on, but hadn’t been able to find a single record of Jacob anywhere.

‘He must be under another name,’ Carewyn told herself. 

It wouldn’t be too unreasonable that Charles wouldn’t want Jacob to advance in the ranks on the back of their family name. And really, Carewyn knew full well how displeased her grandfather would be if he found out she was trying to reach out to her brother without his approval -- he could’ve even forced Jacob to take on another name, just to try to make it that bit harder for Carewyn to contact him without his approval...

Carewyn’s friends noticed a rather abrupt shift in her mood. She was singing as always, but her choices were a bit less upbeat and her voice sounded oddly distracted and nostalgic. At one point, Andre mentioned offhandedly that he’d been designing themed outfits for his friends to wear to his mother’s New Year Eve’s Masque Ball, but Carewyn had trouble putting much attention on it.

“I’ve already finished some ‘owl wings’ on a cape for KC and a fur-trimmed wolf mask and gown for Erika...I was thinking perhaps a stag for Bill, a dragon for Charlie, and a lioness for Ginny? I considered a horse at first, but I think a pale gold would make her just glow, don’t you think? Yours I’m most excited for, though...I’m hoping to actually make your newest pair of shoes with fabric on the inside for comfort and diamond on the outside for sturdiness, if I can manage it!”

“Mm...that sounds great,” said Carewyn absently.

Her gaze was drawn out the nearest window, as far out as she could.

“...Andre,” she said slowly, “I realize this is very last minute, but...may I have this afternoon off, to go see my family?”

Andre blinked. “Is something the matter?”

“Oh no, no,” Carewyn lied with as pretty and reassuring of a smile as she could. “It’s just...well, it’s nearly Tristan’s birthday. My uncle keeps him very close to home, compared to my other cousins...I merely thought I might stop by and bake him a little something, as a surprise.”

Andre frowned slightly. “You...get along better with your uncle and his son than with Iris, then?”

“No, but Tristan is only a boy. It’s hard to hold any bad behavior against him. And well, maybe if he and the others don’t know I made it, he’ll enjoy it better.”

Carewyn could see Andre still looked confused and a little dismayed, so she quickly added, “I’ll be back by tomorrow morning, in time for my rounds. I won’t allow it to interrupt my duties.”

Andre offered a hesitant smile. “Well, all right...if it really means that much to you.”

Carewyn’s eyes softened. “Thank you, Andre -- I really appreciate it.”

Fortunately for Carewyn, Andre wasn’t the best at picking up on other people’s pretenses. Unfortunately for Carewyn, two of his most regular confidantes were his cousin KC and fencing instructor Erika, and they did pick up on Carewyn’s odd behavior.

“She said she wanted to surprise her cousin with something for his birthday?” asked KC, frowning deeply. 

“Well, yeah,” said Andre. “I admit, it seemed a little weird to do something so nice without even wanting credit, but Carewyn is an awfully selfless sort. From the way she made it sound, she just wanted to do something nice for him.”

“And you believed her?” said Erika rather coldly. 

She whacked Andre’s practice sword out of his hand with her own, making the Crown Prince hiss in pain. 

“I’ve told you before, Prince Henri -- you all may think Carewyn Cromwell’s nothing like her family, but that’s absolute bunk. She might be more pleasant than them, but she’s not stupid and she’s not honest. Or did you not notice that that weird guy she hangs out with keeps calling her ‘his lady,’ as if she weren’t the penniless orphan of a deadbeat merchant?”

Erika picked up Andre’s sword and tossed it back to him with ease. 

“Then of course that guy himself is shady as all get out.”

Andre frowned. “You mean Orion? Come on, Erika, he isn’t that bad -- I thought he seemed quite amiable, myself. Don’t you agree, KC?”

“He is,” said KC fairly. “But Erika isn’t completely off-base. There is a lot about Orion that we don’t know -- that even Carewyn herself doesn’t know. She admitted as much to me, after I first met him. That being said,” she raised her own sword and got into position to attack Andre, “I don’t think Orion’s a threat. You would think anyone with the ability to sneak over the palace walls not once but twice would’ve tried to make some move to attack you by now, but he’s only ever come looking for Carewyn. And although I don’t completely understand the reason behind why she’s acting like a lady around him,” she shot Erika a faintly reproachful look as she and Andre traded blows, “I’m pretty sure it has more to do with her own insecurities than because she’s a terrible person -- ow! Damn it!”

Andre had successfully disarmed KC. 

“Insecurities?” he said, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. “What is there for her to be insecure about? I mean, yes, she has no dowry, and taking Orion’s wardrobe into account, I’d suppose he has to come from a family with modest wealth -- but Orion seemed to enjoy the Weasleys’ company quite well, and their family is poor. I think they’d make a lovely match, really,” he added with a rather smug grin. “They even matched at the Festival, without realizing it.”

KC massaged her wrist, frowning a bit sourly. “Yes...but Carewyn is solely under Lord Cromwell’s charge. He’s the one who sent her here. He’s the only guardian she really has. And I think it’s quite clear how much influence he has over his family -- even his daughters who married into other esteemed families still live at his estate with their husbands and children, rather than moving out onto their own estates. And in Carewyn’s case, she doesn’t even have a parent to help shield her from Lord Cromwell’s will. She doesn’t have a penny to her name. So that means, in effect, she’s chained to him, and in those circumstances...well...”

She hesitated. 

"Well what?” Andre prompted her. 

KC looked incredibly uncomfortable. 

“I didn’t want to say anything before without knowing for sure...but I think someone’s been looking at our military ledgers, documenting troop placements. Everything’s neatly put away the way they should be, but there are more fingerprints on them than before. And usually I’m the only one who has much use to look those up, whenever I’m ready to suggest a new war strategy...”

Erika’s eyes narrowed very sharply and she got right up into KC’s space. “And you’re only just saying this now?! That information could be critical to Royaume’s enemies! What if that guy Orion sneaked in not just to see Cromwell, but to get his hands on those? Or what if it was Cromwell herself, working in collusion with him?”

“Impossible,” Andre said forcefully. “Carewyn would never be a spy for the enemy -- it’s not in her character.”

“And I don’t think Orion would know where those documents would be, even if he did sneak in,” said KC. 

Erika, however, looked unconvinced as she made for the door. “You can coddle those two all you want, but I plan to tell the King and Queen -- they’ll want to interrogate Cromwell and this ‘Orion Freeman’...”

“Erika, belay that!” Andre said in a suddenly much sharper and more authoritative voice. “That’s an order.”

Once Erika had stopped walking and turned back around, the Crown Prince exhaled heavily and crossed his arms in a business-like manner. 

“I’ll get to the bottom of this,” he said firmly. “If Carewyn is heading to the Cromwell estate, she’ll have to take the road through town, correct? I’ll simply take a horse and follow the road after her.”

Erika and KC looked startled. 

“Uh, Andre,” said KC, “you haven’t forgotten that you’re not allowed to leave the palace, have you?”

Andre smirked. “No. I’m just sneaking out.”

Before Erika and KC could articulate an argument, he added in a much sassier voice, “Look, I’m doing it whether you come with me or not. I’d appreciate the company if you want to come along -- all I expect is that you’ll dress appropriately. I hear linens and cottons are fashionable for those who don’t wish to attract attention.”

And so Andre, KC, and Erika made preparations to follow Carewyn...completely unaware that a half-hour earlier, Bill and Charlie Weasley had -- after having a similar, but much more concerned conversation with Badeea Ali about Carewyn clearly lying to Andre’s face -- decided to take their horses and tail their friend themselves. And sure enough, the two eldest Weasleys soon enough found themselves following Carewyn on the road heading northeast, avoiding the Cromwell estate all together.

At the very same time, in Florence, Orion had finalized his plan. Today was the day he was going to request a formal audience with Prince Henri, as Prince Cosimo VII. As Carewyn had said, he’d need to act fast if he was going to stop his father from finding a way to complete his own ruthless strategy -- the battlefield itself would be a difficult place for Orion to make his case, with so many distractions, but he knew a more balanced, peaceful setting wouldn’t be. And so he wrote a long letter to the King, explaining everything that he had learned from Royaume and its people as well as Florence’s own, so as to make a case for peace. He then had the court magician Severus Snape deliver it to the Florentine camp in his stead, while he dressed in his finest and prepared to leave for Royaume. 

When he made as if to take his own horse, however, Orion found Skye and McNully waiting for him, a black coach already prepared. 

“If you’re planning on going to meet Prince Henri, you really should arrive in style,” said McNully with a wry smile. “A good first impression to the King and Queen would help your case by a good 45%.”

“And you have to know there’s no way in Hell we’re going to let you go out and expose your true identity to the enemy without back-up,” Skye added, her arms crossed over her chest. “

Orion’s black eyes softened. “...Thank you.”

As he climbed into the carriage, both McNully and Skye’s faces nonetheless betrayed some hesitation. 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” McNully asked. “There’s a 74% chance they’ll respond badly to it -- I reckon there’s a 39.5% chance they’ll try to arrest you on the spot and hold you as a prisoner of war...”

“I carry no weapons with me, and I come with the explicit purpose of diplomacy,” said Orion levelly. “Therefore I’m not an enemy combatant. As long as I follow their direction while under their roof, then any harm they might do me would be violating the conventions of war...and the Royaumanians, for all of their flaws, do have honor.”

“One could make a case for you having been involved in espionage, though,” McNully pointed out, but Orion ignored him and settled down in the carriage, crossing his legs offhandedly. 

“What about Lady Cromwell?” said Skye, her voice a bit lower and more concerned. “She’ll find out you’re a Florentine. And not just any Florentine, the Prince of Florence.”

Something sad flickered through Orion’s confident, unflappable expression.

“She was going to learn the truth sooner or later,” he murmured. “If our time together has come to an end...then at least I may have the memories to hold onto...and the knowledge that by ending this War peacefully, I may have spared her of more heartache.”

He closed his eyes and began to meditate, clearly having said his piece on the matter. Skye and McNully, however, couldn’t help but exchange a look that was both anxious and very sad. 

As long as they’d known Orion, he’d always been a little reckless, but he was also passive and avoided direct confrontation. This plan to directly appeal to Royaume’s royal family, however, required a lot of guts  -- far more than either of them had thought Orion possessed. And they knew such courage could only have been encouraged by one person...the very same person who Orion loved so much that he would choose to follow her example and protect what she loved, even if it meant destroying their relationship forever. 

Orion meditated during most of the journey to the Royaumanian palace. It was merely fortunate that, as they approached, McNully broke him out of his trance by tapping him on the shoulder and pointing out the window. If he hadn’t, then Orion would not have seen a rather familiar trio of riders on horseback, riding through town past them -- a short, stocky lady with dark red hair and freckles; a very tall blonde with a square jaw and sharp eyes; and a very handsome dark-skinned man dressed in a purple tunic, emerald green pants, and gold-buckled black boots. 

“Stop the carriage!” said Orion, his soft, level voice nonetheless very firm despite not rising in volume. 

He barely waited for the carriage to completely stop before slamming the door open and jumping out.

“Andre! KC!”

Andre, KC, and Erika all stopped their horses in an abrupt halt and turned around as Orion dashed up to them.

“Orion?” said Andre, startled. 

KC looked from the rather finely dressed Orion to the expensive-looking black coach behind him and back. Erika’s eyes narrowed critically upon Orion as he came to a stop in front of them, his hands clasping in front of him. 

“I...had not expected to see you out and about,” said Orion, trying to put on his most pleasant, calm expression. 

Andre glanced over his shoulder up the road, frowning deeply. “Yes, well...some business has come up.”

“Orion, have you seen Carewyn?” KC asked him, her face very serious. 

Orion blinked. 

“Not since last night,” he said. He could feel his heart starting to beat faster. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“Never you mind,” barked Erika, as she turned back to the road. “Come on, we don’t want to lose the trail -- ”

“Erika,” reproached Andre, before he turned back to Orion, his face visibly concerned. “...Carewyn asked for the afternoon off to go see her family, but it was very last minute, which isn’t like her. And according to what we’ve heard in town, there’s been no traffic down the road toward the Cromwell estate in the last four hours...”

“So Carewyn had to have been lying about where she was going,” finished KC, her face much more stoic but her voice no less tense. “We need to find her and figure out why.”

Orion’s eyebrows had furrowed over his widening black eyes. His heartbeat was slamming in his ears as the memory of Carewyn in the woods returned to him -- looking northward, toward the army camps, as if longing to run toward them --

“I know where she’s gone,” he said at once. 

He rushed back to the coach, grabbing onto the window frame and standing on the boot of the carriage. 

“To the northern border,” he urged Skye, who sat in the driver’s seat. “Quickly!”

“The border?” repeated Skye as a sharp whisper. “But Orion, your meeting with the Prince -- ”

“Can come later,” Orion told her very firmly under his breath. “Both he and I must get to the war front.”

He shot a significant look over his shoulder in Andre’s direction. McNully, putting two-and-two together, nodded and inched himself up to the window of the carriage. 

“If you tie one or more of your horses to the carriage, we should decrease our travel time by a good 21% per horse,” he told Erika, KC, and Andre. “If Carewyn left an hour ago, then with one horse, we should be able to overtake her within an half-hour -- two, within twenty minutes, and three, within ten. Though with Orion on the boot, there’s a 12% chance he’ll fall off if we ride at full speed, so we might have to go at 95% instead -- ”

KC fixed the blond-haired man with an incredulous look as she leapt off her horse. 

“Are you really calculating all that on the fly,” she asked, looking as if she wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or amused, “or are you just pulling those numbers out of fat air?”

McNully couldn’t help but grin. “Excellent! Now I can officially say that I’ve been asked that question over a hundred times before.” 

Still looking faintly bewildered, KC moved to help Andre, who’d quickly started attaching his, Erika’s, and her horse’s to the front of the carriage with the two black ones already pulling it, ignoring Erika’s incredibly sour and distrustful expression. There was no time to lose. 

From the boot of the carriage, Orion directed Skye down the same road he’d taken with Carewyn the previous night, Andre, Erika, and KC riding with McNully inside the coach. Once they’d reached the forest, Orion caught sight of a familiar-looking golden eagle with a bandaged wing -- at the sight of the Florentine prince, the eagle gave a loud shriek and flew down into the trees, and Orion urged Skye to pursue him into the woods. The road took them deep into the trees, until at last the eagle landed on a branch over the heads of two familiar-looking ginger-haired men, who were bound with thick rope to a tree. 

Bill and Charlie were stunned at the sight of such an elegant coach, but were absolutely beside themselves with relief at the sight of Andre, KC, and Erika. Erika immediately yanked a knife out of her ankle boot and set about sawing off their bindings -- once she’d cut Charlie free, he immediately rushed forward and grabbed Andre’s shoulders. 

“We’ve got to hurry!” he said anxiously. “They’ve got Carey!”

“‘They?’” said Andre, very startled. “They who?”

“This band of Florentine bandits,” said Bill, his voice very low and urgent. He kept maneuvering his bindings as Erika cut them to try to sever them faster. “They cornered us so they could try to rob us -- they were willing to let Carey go since she was a lady, but she bartered with the leader, saying that they could take her so long as they left us alone. Claimed that they could probably get more money from holding her hostage than us, given her family...”

Both Skye and McNully glanced at Orion. The Prince’s face had lost most of its color -- he’d turned his face away and closed his eyes, breathing in and out slowly as he tried to stabilize his emotions. 

“The bandits in these woods are Florentines, so I doubt they will harm you,” Baroness McGonagall’s words returned to his mind, “but I cannot be sure how they would respond to a Royaumanian, especially one related to one of their wealthiest noblemen.”

“They took all three of our horses and tied us to the tree so that we wouldn’t follow them,” growled Charlie. “They left us a knife so that we’d be able to cut ourselves free, but it’s so dull I reckon it would’ve taken us hours to do it ourselves...”

Bill succeeded in snapping the weakened ropes in half and leapt back to his feet, massaging his wrists. 

“They must have taken her to a camp of theirs,” said KC, her dark blue eyes narrowing. “Even bandits need some base of operation.”

McNully nodded, resting his arms on the edge of the coach’s window. “The lady is right. Given where we are, I’d say the odds are fairer that it’s southeast of here.”

“Closer to the Florentine side of the border, you mean,” presumed KC, and McNully nodded again. 

“They were heading south through the woods,” said Bill. “But we won’t want to bring the coach. They stopped us because they wanted money -- if they have any reason to think any of you have it, they’ll no doubt want to imprison you too...”

“On the contrary,” said Orion in a very low voice, “this carriage may be just the thing we need, to ensure that they don’t imprison us.”

Everyone looked at Orion, their faces all a mixture of incredulity and revulsion, but he seemed disinterested in explaining himself. 

“We must be quick, McNully,” said Orion, and although his voice and face were as level and unreadable as ever, they both betrayed a slight edge. “Time is not on our side.”

With Bill now sitting with the driver’s seat next to Skye and Charlie hanging off the boot with Orion, the black coach set off again. Overhead Orion caught sight of the wounded eagle again, which shrieked at them warningly -- the Prince thought it must mean they were close, but did not respond fast enough to the trap set out in front of them. 

The coach rode right through a certain cluster of vines, and within seconds, they had magically sprung to life, lashing themselves around the limbs of the five horses pulling the coach. The steeds reared back, panicked -- Skye immediately yanked out a sword from her belt and began hacking away at them, and Erika and Andre both leapt from the carriage with their own swords to help, but it was no use. The vines only lashed onto them, binding all three of them fast and making it impossible for them to move. And when things seemed like they couldn’t be any worse, without warning, a group of green-dressed men and women had swung down from more vines attached to the nearby trees, surrounding them in a tight noose-like circle and pointing their arrow-decked bows at them. 

They were trapped. 

“Well, well,” said a voice from the trees above, “we don’t often see coaches that ritzy out here.”

The voice’s owner leapt down to the ground. Unlike his companions, his hooded tunic was yellow instead of green. When he lifted his head enough that they could see his face, it was the host of a mischievous smirk. 

“Especially ones crafted in Florence,” the dark-haired and eyed bandit said breezily. 

Andre, KC, Erika, and the Weasleys all stiffened. 

“Florence?” breathed Bill. 

They all as a unit whirled on Orion. His face was remarkably calm and solemn as he stepped off the coach and in front of the others and faced the bandits’ leader, his hands clasped in front of him. 

“We do not come seeking trouble,” he said. “We merely come to retrieve a lady who surrendered herself to you. Frame like a robin’s. Hair the color of a red sunset. Eyes the color of the sky.”

The bandit’s leader raised his eyebrows curiously. “The maid called Cromwell?”

“That is her.”

“And what reason would you desire her in your custody?” challenged one of the green-dressed bandits with a cocked eyebrow, a dashing man with tanned skin and dark brown hair. 

“Wants to ransom her off himself, no doubt,” sneered another woman with messy brown hair and cold magenta eyes. “He probably works for Lord Malfoy -- we all know he’s the sort to make money off illicit enterprises and keep it all to himself, rather than give it to anyone who actually needs it...”

Two of the other bandits -- a pair of women with long red and short pink hair, respectively -- exchanged a sour look. 

“We have nothing to do with Lord Malfoy,” spat Skye, vainly tugging against the vines binding her. “We wouldn’t collaborate with that rat if you paid us -- !”

“Skye,” said Orion in a quelling voice. 

The last bandit, a very strong-looking man with dark red hair and emerald green eyes, frowned deeply at the leader, who considered Orion carefully. 

“I know your face,” he murmured. 

Orion inclined his head, his black eyes boring into the other man’s face. “I’m sure you do.”

The leader’s thin-lidded eyes narrowed critically -- then they widened, realizing. 

“Bring out Lady Cromwell at once,” he said abruptly. 

The others all whirled on him. 

“What?!” cried all three women and the dashing man. 

“Jae, are you mad?!” said the woman with the magenta eyes. 

“Do it,” said the leader called Jae firmly, without flinching. 

The strong bandit -- the only one who hadn’t questioned the leader’s direction -- grabbed a vine, which immediately retracted back up above them. 

Jae glanced at the magenta-eyed woman. “Merula, have the vines set them loose.”

Merula looked rather scandalized. “What? Oh come on, you know how much of a pain it is, to have to recast a spell after it’s broken -- ”

“Better that we do it now than wait around for the spell to expire on its own,” Jae said dryly. 

Still looking very reluctant, Merula nonetheless did as she was told, holding up her hand, which glowed with light green. 

“The terms are now invalid,” she muttered sourly at the plants. 

The plants sparkled with a similar green flare before falling limply off of the horses, Andre, Erika, and Skye. KC and Bill moved to detangle the now harmless plants from their companions and around the horses’ legs, and Charlie moved to soothe the frightened steeds. 

Within a minute, the strong bandit was back, holding onto the vine easily with one hand and holding Carewyn under his opposite arm. She had her ginger hair tied back in a loose bun and was dressed in the green peasant dress she’d worn to the Festival and her slightly oversized brown shoes -- no doubt because it was the most comfortable dress for travel she had. Orion was also beyond relieved to see that she was perfectly unharmed -- not a single cut or bruise. 

“CAREWYN!” cried KC, Andre, Bill and Charlie in relief. 

All three of the men immediately dashed right over to her and threw their arms around her in a group hug. 

“It’s all right,” Carewyn reassured them with a small smile. “I’m all right.”

“They didn’t hurt you?” Bill interrogated her. 

“You must have been terrified -- ” said Andre. 

“Where are the horses?” asked Charlie. 

“Tied up in a makeshift stable over there,” said the pink-haired bandit with a wry grin and a vague hand gesture. 

“A bit tricky to lug them up into treehouses,” added the red-haired one cheekily. “And no, for the record, we did not hurt Carewyn Cromwell. She may be a stick in the mud, but she’s a decent sort.”

“And brave too!” said the muscled man, beaming. “She wasn’t scared at all, not even when Merula stuck a knife in her face!”

“I was only getting fed up with her smart remarks,” huffed the magenta-eyed bandit called Merula. “You’d think she was the Queen of Sheba, with how she acts...”

“She is a proper lady, to be sure,” said the dashing bandit, shooting Carewyn a rather Casanova-like smile. 

Carewyn tried to stifle a snort of laughter behind her hand as Jae approached her. 

“Seems you’ll have an escort after all, Carewyn,” he said, lowering his bow with a slightly more serious look. “I don’t think I can convince you to reconsider, but under the circumstances...well, just make sure you’re careful. I’d hate to hear of Royaume losing one of its only honorable citizens due to their own stupidity.”

Carewyn inclined her head to him, her blue eyes very solemn. “I’m far from Royaume’s most honorable citizen, Jae, nor from any other country, I daresay. But thank you.”

Jae nodded. He then looked up at Orion. 

“By your leave then, your Highness,” he said with an abbreviated bow. 

He then nodded to the other bandits, and one by one, they all disappeared back up into the trees. 

None of the people on the ground, however, gave them much mind. All of them had turned back around to face Orion -- Carewyn felt like her heart had stopped still as she stared, taking in his neat ponytail and finely tailored black doublet and hose and boots. 

“...‘Your Highness?’ ” repeated Charlie, shocked. 

Andre’s eyes widened. “Then...then you’re...?”

Orion swallowed, but somehow managed to keep his composure as he nodded. His eyes were locked on Carewyn’s face, never shifting and as turbulent as a black ocean. 

“King Cosimo’s new heir,” KC breathed, her face flooding with fresh understanding around her amazement. “Cosimo VII.”

[obeyme-and-you]

Lucifer Son of the Morning Star Part 2

Gabriel is italics

Kimimela is Bold

Verses are normal

                            Lucifer Son of the Morning Star

                                                Who are ya?

                                      PART 2 (Here we go again)

*Spoilers for chapters 16 and onwards, especially after chapter 20. Minor spoilers for the Lamp and Baddies events and the Search For Self Devilgram.*

Ezekiel 28 (King of Tyre)

“1) The word of the LORD came again to me, saying,

2) “Son of man, say to the leader of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord God, Because your heart is lifted up And you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of gods, In the heart of the seas’; Yet you are a man and not God, Although you make your heart like the heart of God-

3) Behold, you are wiser that Daniel; There is no secret that is a match for you.

4) “By your wisdom and understanding You have acquired riches for yourself And have acquired gold and silver for your treasuries.

5) “By your great wisdom, by your trade You have increased your riches And your heart is lifted up because of your riches-”

Until we know all the events that caused the Celestial War in Obey Me, we cannot say with 100% certainty that Lucifer thought that highly of himself, but considering he is the avatar of pride and the Lamp event  (he was also the Queen of Hearts in the Baddies event), it wouldn’t be reaching to assume he thought of himself as such. Lucifer is very wise and it’s hard to keep a secret from him. He knew MC went up into the attic without seeing them go up there or them saying they did. He also knows that Diavolo is hiding information from him in later chapters. 

“6) Therefore thus says the Lord God, ‘Because you have made your heart Like the heart of God,

7) Therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon you, The most ruthless of the nations. And they will draw their swords Against the beauty of your wisdom And defile your splendor.

8) “They will bring you down to the pit, And you will die the death of those who are slain to the heart of the seas.

9) ‘Will you still say, “I am a god” In the presence of your slayer, Though you are a man and not God, In the hands of those who wound you?

10) ‘You will die the death of the uncircumcised By the hands of strangers, For I have spoken!’ declares the Lord God!’”

The explanation of these verses will be explained in a different essay >;) (secret OwO)

“11) Again the word of the LORD came to me saying,

12) “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “You had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.”

When Simeon meets Lucifer for the first time since the fall, he mentions how beautiful he was. (Luke mentions his Beauty as well) 

“13) You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering The ruby, the topaz and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, Was in you. On the day that you were created They were prepared.”

In Lucifer’s demon form he is seen to have a black diamond on his forehead, which could be a single stone left behind after the rest were stripped. 

The demon brother’s eye colors are also similarly colored to the stones.

Lucifer- The Ruby and Onyx

Mammon- The Lapis lazuli and Topaz

Leviathan- The Jasper and Lapis lazuli

Satan- The Emerald

Asmodeus- The Beryl (beryl is usually clear but can be found red, some of which looking pink in color) and Topaz

Beelzebub and Belphegor- The Topaz (comes in purple, blue and pink)

(It could also be for nail colors which would be: Lucifer- ruby, Mammon- diamond, Leviathan- lapis lazuli, Satan- emerald, Asmodeus- the beryl, Beelzebub- jasper, Belphegor- turquoise)

“14) You were the anointed cherub who covers, And i placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.”

*Note: Cherubim are described as angels with 4 wings except in Revelation 4:8 which describes them having 6 wings like the Seraphim.

Before Lucifer was cast out of the Celestial Realm, he had 6 wings, which were all ripped out by himself. When he became a demon, he grew 4 back. (This is mentioned by Satan in the Search for self Devilgram)

“15) You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created Until unrighteousness was found in you.

16) “By the abundance of your trade You were internally filled with violence, And you sinned; Therefore I have cast you as profane From the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covered cherub, From the midst of the stones of fire.”

Lucifer was full of anger and hate, and he allowed it to grow and fester to the point of sin, and when he sinned he created Satan. He was thrown out of the Celestial Realm, after ripping his wings off and destroying his angelic form.

“17) Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, That they may see you.”

Lucifer was cast down into the Devildom, and the first demon to find him was Diavolo, the future king of the Devildom.

“18) By the multitude of your inequities, In the unrighteousness of your trade You profaned your sanctuaries. Therefore I have brought fire from the midst of you; It has consumed you, And I have turned you to ashes on the earth In the eyes of all who see you.”

Lucifer was consumed by his pride and wrath and it destroyed him. His wings and possibly his hair have become black/dark gray when he fell, as if he was covered in ash.  (The official opening of the game has Lucifer catching a black feather before it turns white and disintegrates in his hand)

“19) All who know you among peoples Are appalled at you; You have become terrified And you will cease to be forever.”’”

All the demon brothers are frightened of him (even though they do try to hide it) and fear his anger, so even though they do get in trouble with him frequently, they have been shown to hesitate when they know it will upset Lucifer. The MC has opportunities to act frightened or not by Lucifer, but whenever MC shows signs of not being afraid Lucifer is shocked or confused as to why MC isn’t scared.

Verses 20-24 talk about the judgement of Sidon, while verses 25-26 talk about Israel and will possibly be discussed in a future essay.

Summary: somethin about Lucifer being a beautiful baby boy but also deserves to be punched, jk that has nothing to do with this. Fuckin blah blah blah, lucifer this lucifer that, first half is mostly theories and this will have to be revisited at a later date once more info is unlocked. Second half is mostly just straight up info about Luci with a dash of bros and god have you ever thought about how fucking tragic this is??? Like, the fall was his own doing,,,,he was jealous and went “why do i gotta care about the humans huh? Why dont they worship us? I thought we were supposed to be your favorites! I thought I was your favorite!” and then he went and fought a war he never stood a chance against and like fuck man, idk if its cause im tired or emotional or both, and like ik you aint supposed to feel bad for him cause thats how he gets ya but damn. The one person who is most in need of a hug, or forgiveness, or whatever will never get it because he made a mistake. Can you imagine? Cause like, yeah sin and hell and blah blah blah, but he can never seek forgiveness, never get a second chance, hes doomed to his fate and thats just, so sad. Oh god dammit this is why i fucking picked Lucifer, its cause hes a damned tragedy, fml >:(.

Stupid game i swear  (You good fam?)

Summary: Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 talk about the fall and destruction of Lucifer and Jesus Christ did the creators of Obey Me go ham wild with the research for their game. There seems to be a lot of connections between these two stories and the information received in Obey Me thus far. There is plenty of information that will need to be revisited further down the line once more content is released (or if me or Kimimela find some in Devilgrams and side stories). But until further notice, this is Lucifer and he brings with him foreshadowing. 

SEE PART 1 HERE: Lucifer Son of the Morning Star Part 1

[disasteromnia]

a hoe really out here doing this huh…anyway this is the short version of her profile and I’ll edit it once I complete everything….god I hope that happens soon

☃ 【Alesia’s Profile】 ☃

❄ Name Data  ❄ 

Name

Xxxx Xxxx Xxxxxxx

Alias

Alesia

Katakana

アリシア 

Nickname(s)

Ali

Chaos Trio Leader, Headache #1 (by Crowley)

Mom (by Ace & Kalim)

Tsundere (by close friends, usually just to make her more flustered)

イーラ (a hint to her real name!)

Etymology

Alesia : “noble natured” ; a variant of the name Alice, which was derived from the Germanic name Adalheidis

❄ Personal Data  ❄ 

Gender

Female

Sexuality

Bi

Birthday

"January 18th"

Age

XX

Horoscope

Capricorn

Blood Type

AB (Rh-negative)

Hometown

According to Ali, it’s always snowing in her hometown

Race

“Human”

Song Themes

“It’s Not Like I Like You!!” (painfully obvious lol)

❄ Professional Data  ❄ 

Affiliation(s)

Night Raven College

Dorm

Diasomnia

Year

2nd Year

Best subject(s)

Sciences

Hobbies

Calligraphy, playing guitar, singing, stargazing

Under the cut : Personality, Background, Relationship, and Magic

❄ Personality ❄

Ali is a very gentle and friendly person, often befriending most people easily. She can also be quite reckless, always doing whatever she feels at the moment instead of thinking things through. She is often out causing chaos in Night Raven College with others (notably, Choco and Wende) much to the staff’s chagrin. She is also self aware of her annoyance and proudly claims herself as a 12 yr old, as if it were some sort of medal. 

Despite her usual childishness, Ali is very capable of stepping up to the responsibility when she feels like it. Usually, it’s when one of her friends is feeling down and needs someone to talk to. While she does allow others to come to her for comfort, she is very hesitant on relying on others for emotional support. She has a few people she openly cries to, but she never tells them why.

When she feels like the other party is comfortable enough with her, she will continue to talk to no end. Often, these conversations are without rhyme or reason as she just genuinely enjoys being able to be with friends. There is, however, a particular topic that she refuses to speak of. No matter how close someone may be to her, she will never talk about her time before Night Raven College. If anyone were to ask her why she refused to talk, she’d answer vaguely like how it was just a normal life before quickly changing topics. If someone were to try and pry the information out of her, she immediately acts cold and defensive, and the air around her starts becoming freezing. Depending on how hard they try to pry, she will not hesitate to cut off that person from her life right then and there.

As long as someone doesn’t try and dig into her past, she will remain fiercely loyal and caring for them, no matter if they were close friends or not. However, this blind loyalty is usually her downfall, especially when it comes to a certain contract-making dorm.

Ali isn’t quick to get mad, and is usually unaffected by whatever people say of her. Most times, she takes any insults as compliments. The only time she ever openly expresses anger, aside from someone trying to pry her past out of her, is when people point out her feelings for two certain individuals. She is very tsundere, openly expressing that she has no such feelings despite being beet red.

Alignment

Chaotic Neutral

Strengths: 

Loyal, caring, is usually up to no good so it won’t be a boring time, does anything just to have a good time, great friend to bring along to buffets, unaffected by most things, either helps you or lets you copy her homework, has enough confidence to do stupid things in public, great for hugs during a hot day because her body feels cold

Weaknesses

Is usually up to no good so expect to get in trouble, tsundere, blind loyalty usually leads to her in very unfavorable situations. childishness that makes her look apathetic at times, horrible sleeping schedule, very reckless

Skills

Quick to learn (but never studies), decent flexibility and has good lower body strength, natural air cooler, guitar serenading

❄ Appearance ❄

Hair

“Dark brown,” her hair reaches down to her shoulder area and usually has a a portion of it tied up with a green or black ribbon. 

Eyes

“Black eyes,” however when using magic there is a strange pale green tint.

Height

165 cm / 5 ft. 4 in.

Weight

120 lbs / 54 kg

B/W/H

35-27-36 in. / 88-68-91 cm

Chest

34C (US)

❄ Background ❄

Background story unlocks at Bond Level 10

❄ Magic ❄

Ice Magic 

Ali is very proficient in using ice magic, and often uses it to cause mischief. However, when she becomes too flustered her will accidentally freeze anything within a 3 meter radius of her.

Freezing Arrows : an offensive-type spell that can be very deadly ; a large oval-shaped ice block appears in front of her and continuously shoots arrows made of ice. It is able to not only freeze anything it touches, but impale her targets. The spell ends once the ice block has been fully used up or if destroyed.

Hailstorm : an offensive-type spell similar to Freezing Arrows, but is not as deadly. Instead of shooting arrows, the ice block shoots chunks of ice, and at most it can give a concussion and some cuts and bruises.

Frost Flower Shield : a defensive-type spell ; she creates a large shield resembling a flower. Penetrating through the thick ice is very difficult, even if it is up against fire magic.

Ice Wall : a defensive-type spell ; often used to create an obstacle for whoever is trying to catch her. (i.e. Crowley)

Ice Floor : Ali freezes the floor underneath her, making it very hard for anyone to stand on it.

Snow Maiden’s Dance : A fighting style she created by herself, she creates ice sword projectiles imbued with other elements. It was based off the exotic traditional dances she saw as a child. She currently has 5 dances. She often uses these for show, but makes sure not to put too much power into it. (to be expanded with what 5 elements she can use it with)

Water Magic

She uses water magic as an extension to her Ice Magic. She doesn’t use it as much, and often uses water for healing.

❄ Relationships ❄

Canon Characters ; from Ali’s perspective

Diasomnia

Malleus Draconia : Ah Mr. Dorm Leader! Mhmm mhmm, I’m not all too close to him, but he makes it easy to tease Sebek.

Lilia Vanrouge : Ah, the grandpa! He’s much easier to talk to, we actually get along fairly well. I just wished he’d stop teasing me.

Silver : Has a VERY punchable face. I would kick him in the gut…What?! No, I don’t like that moron! DEFINITELY DO NOT!

Sebek Zigvolt : Ah, that brat. He’s fun to mess with. Any time I join them for tea time and Malleus isn’t there, I make sure to give him a heart attack. Heh.

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts : Listen, if you’re gonna threaten to cut my head off make sure to actually do it, coward!

Ace Trappola : MY SON! I love you so much you are my precious child I-

Deuce Spade: Also has a very punchable face. Of course I mean what I say- I DO NOT LIKE HIM EITHER

Trey Clover : Broccoli? I don’t talk to him much, but he looks really cool with his bike. I think his hair looks stupid tho.

Cater Diamond : HEEEEEEEEY BROOOOOOOOOO! We make lots of inappropriate jokes together and it usually ends in both of us choking on a drink or food (laugh)

Octavinelle

All three of them are the end of me. That is all.

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim : MY OTHER SON I LOVE YOU SO MUCH BOTH OF YOU ARE SO PRECIOUS TO ME (ugly mother tears)

Jamil Viper : Jamil I swear to god if you do anything to Kalim you better be ready to catch these frozen hands-

Pomefiore

Vil Schoenheit : I know he can be…a bit over bearing, but thanks to him my skin is clear even though I sleep horribly. His fashion tips tho…they’re 50/50 for me.

Epel Felmier : YOU ARE MY SON. DON’T ASK, NOW LET ME LOVE YOU MY CHILD-

Rook Hunt : The one time we talked he asked me to put an apple on my head while he blindfolds himself and try to shoot it. Thankfully, it really did hit the apple. Though truth be told, I wouldn’t mind doing it again.

Ignihyde

Idia Shroud : Honestly, sometimes I forget what actually looks like. Whenever I think of him I just think of his mains in our game. Ah- yeah, I play with him from time to time. You would not like to see him in competitive play.

Ortho Shroud : He’s such a good kid, but what’s with his feet-

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingscholar : HOW IS HE SO LAZY AND HAVE A GOOD BODY!? BOY SHOW ME YOUR TIPS-

Jack Howl : One time I punched him and he said I hit like a grandma. He was not wrong. Oh, and don’t tell him this, but I have his number saved as “Extra Virgin Olive Oil.”

Ruggie Bucchi : He’s basically…my spirit animal. Hah. 

[phantombmoll]

                             NEW CHAPTER

And The Wind Began To Howl - Rupert Giles x OC Fanfic

Extract;

"Maria figured all that out." Ripper pointed out. "She also took out that one, gave him a right nasty clout."

"Well yes but I had help from Rupert, I really couldn't have figured it all out without him." Maria started and Willow made an aww noise before clapping a hand over her mouth when everyone turned to look at her.

"I'll just-" She said holding up a bag and walking over to the counter, pulling two cups down.

"So, they needed this-" Maria said holding up the amulet by its chain. "Because it unlocks one of the sarcophagi at the museum, which in turn holds, or is rumoured to hold a sword who's hilt is filled with rubies and emeralds and probably a diamond or two."

"They weren't trying to hurt anyone. It was a heist." Ripper said and Maria glanced back at him. "Maria worked it all out when we found the uniform and the torch."

"From what I can gather and from what you've said, Rupert is the elder, well I mean the older, uhm more experienced member of your little gang. The patriarch, intelligent and strong and learned-" Maria paused realising she'd said too much and been too complimentary. "-and because of this they thought if they incapacitated him in some way, you would struggle to work out what was really happening. Then by the time you did figure things out, or the spell wore off, they'd be long gone with the jewels."

"But they didn't count on Maria here being the beauty of a bibliophile that she is." Maria looked around at Ripper a smile spreading across her face that made Buffy roll her eyes, she resisted the urge to make a gagging sound. "Smart and sexy." He pushed and Maria blushed furiously. Until Xander coughed and Maria looked away from Ripper.

"Uhm, yes, so- so yes, they didn't count on me knowing what I know and being able to read all those languages and they also didn't count on you lot being quite so smart and-"

"Tea's up!" Willow called. "This," She said bringing two cups around and handing one to Maria and one to Ripper. "Should bring you back to normal."

"Normal?" Maria asked.

"Help you remember everything, get you back to your old selves." Willow smiled.

"Oh, that's brilliant. Will- uhm, will we remember everything that happened?" Maria asked glancing back at Ripper.

"I don't think so. Why, is there something you want to remember?" Willows teased.

"No, no, just that well I helped solve a heist and took down a demon. I wouldn't mind remembering that." Maria replied. Lifting the teacup to her lips.

"Don't worry it happens all the time around here." Xander said, playing with the edge of a cabinet.

"Well- uhm- it was-" Maria started, turning to Ripper with a hand outstretched. She was looking for the words to say it had been nice to meet him. She didn't know if that would seem odd though, given that, in their older selves they were clearly friends. "It's been-" She started but what exactly was the correct term in this situation? Pleasant? Interesting? Fun?

"Yeah it's been-" Ripper replied scratching the back of his head before downing the tea Willow had poured out for him.

"I suppose I'll see you on the other side." Maria swallowing down her own bitter tea.

"Oh, bugger it, if we're not gunna remember it anyway." Ripper swept Maria into his arms and into a dramatic kiss that made butterflies erupt in her chest. Heat raced up from her stomach as Ripper's firm, but gentle, hands and lips led them in their brief embrace.

"Are all Bibliophiles this much trouble?" He asked as he pulled away, his lips still dangerously close to hers.

Maria nodded, swallowed and that time it was her who instigated the kiss. Sliding her hands into his hair and wishing that she could pause the moment. Just linger in it a little longer, not forget this and return back to whatever her older life held.

Also available on AO3!

[wat3r-w1tch]

Chapter 2

[word count: 2052]

Impuse was, frightened to say the least. Zed and him walked through a random nether portal, got dropped in the middle of nowhere and now he's holding a demon at sword point. His morning could have been doing a lot better. His fear only grew as he felt Zed's shivers and shakes through his grip. But he swore he would keep Zed safe, even if its the last thing he does.

Tango was a different case. He could barely hold in his excitement. His wings twitched as he quickly put his hand out to greet the humans.

"Hello! I can't believe this is happening, This is awesome!" 

Impulse jumped at the movement of the demon. He pushed his sword closer to the demon, Hoping that would keep him from getting any closer. Tango tilted his head and pushed the sword aside

"Do all humans use gold? Diamond is much better!"

Tango stood up and stretched. He proceeded to shake all the sticks and leaves from his body. Zedaph took a few steps back, Pulling impulse with him. This demon was, Very tall. The light elf gulped as he adjusted his sword again.

"N-no, i use gold because I like it! Wait- Who are you! What do you want with us?"

Tango stared at them for awhile before pushing impulses sword aside. He cheerfully put his hand out again, Flashing a huge grin

"Im Tango Christopher Tek! But please, Just call me tango! I've, Never seen humans before!" his tail swung behind him and he waited for the human to shake his hand. After a while without a response he gained a confused look.

"Is shaking hands not a normal human thing? You guys don't talk about do you? Man! Humans are so small!" he jumped from comment to comment, circling the two. Impulse was terrified. Why did this demon not care about the fact he was holding him at sword point?

"Well... Actually, We're elves..." Zedaph said in a soft voice. Impulse gently elbowed Zed in the chest. Tango halted his movement and his ears shot up.

"Really? That's even better! What are your names?" 

He went back to standing in front of the two. He bounced on his heels waiting for a response. When he didn't get one he thought of something

"Heh, I'm not going to hurt you, You do know that right?"

He watched as taller elf's stand softened. He was still gripping onto his sword but at least he wasn't pointing it at him anymore. The smaller one's grip on the other had been let go.

"I've, Been stuck in a city full of only demons forever! I've never been able to see humans, nonetheless Elves! When I made that portal thingy i didn't actually expect it to work!"

Impulse's ears shot up at the mention of the portal.

"Wait wait wait, Your the reason that random portal showed up in the nether?"

"Nether? Is that where those portals lead? I've never heard of that" He walked around the pair and went towards the portal. He reached his hand out to it and traces his fingers around the obsidian.

"Y-Yeah! Its a huge realm with tons of lava and these weird white monsters called ghasts!" Zed jumped up and started to explain what the nether was. Tango's eyes lit up. His wings started to flap as he ran back to them.

"That sounds so amazing! Please tell me more!"

Zed proceeded to go on about the mobs in the nether, such as the blazes and wither skeletons. Impulse quickly jumped in and went on about glowstone. Tango watched with wide eyes as the elves in front of him talked with their hands, watching when they would reach parts they were very passionate about. They rambled on for a few minutes before they stopped. Tango took a second to process all the information he just got.

“That’s… amazing!!! I would love you know more about the other realms ... uh… what’s your guys names?”

“Oh! Im Zedaph and this is impulse!” Zedaph grinned as his ears perked up.

“Nice! Also, if you both are elves, why do you both look so different?” He said gesturing his hands to zed’s ears and hooves. Impulse looked over to Zed, hoping that he’d be the one to answer. But when Zedaph gave him the same look, his eyes darted back to the demon and gulped.

“Ah, well. There’s multiple types of elves. Like me, for example! I’m a light elf! I basically have electricity surging through my body. I can power Redstone lamps and basic redstone circuits. And in certain situations i can give energy to plants!”

Tango looked so amazed, he didn't think that elves were capable of such things. “And Zedaph is a Nature elf. They take care of animals or plants! Depending on what they choose they will gain the same appearance as the thing they take care of! Zed takes care of sheep, and that gave him his ears and hooves! There’s a bunch more but we’re the only two examples here right now”

Tango clapped his hands and had a slight bounce in his movements. Tango went on and on about how amazing they were. He managed to lead them to a nearby spot in the forest that he had set up earlier. He sat down with them and talked for ages about whatever came to mind. Impulse didn't expect it to be this easy when talking to tango. He didn't feel any fear. The demon would mention a certain topic and both elves would jump on the train as if it was nothing. They rambled on for hours and hours, just bonding over the simplest of things. Then, as the sun started to set, Tango got up and stretched. “This was, Amazing!!! You guys are so cool!!! Maybe, if you want, we can meet back up here tomorrow?”

 Impulse gave a nervous smile, a gentle nod and gently shook the sleeping zedaph awake. He mumbled something into Impulse’s sleeve and softly snored.  He chuckled and moved to pick Zed up. Within moments Zed had latched himself onto Impulse like a baby koala.

“That.. would be nice tango… Thank you for letting us ramble with you” He chuckled has the demon’s wings flapped and tail swayed. The elf gave a wave to the demon before watching him disappear into the dark forest. Impulse shifted and moved the sleeping nature elf to a comfier position. He slowly walked back to portal with his thoughts racing. What had he gotten zed and himself into?

======================================================================= Tango grinned from ear to ear as he walked through the forest. Impulse and Zed were very fun to talk to. They seemed to really like him. The demon council were a bunch of liars, Humans- No elves are very nice! Tango’s ears twitched at the thought that he was going to get to see his new friends tomorrow. When the city came into sight he took a deep inhale and lowered himself. He slowly crawled till the gate was in front of him. He climbed a tree and started at the guards. He glanced at the moon and started counting. He had done this many times, this was nothing. As soon as the guards slipped away from the gate tango leaped down and crawled back into the city. He creeped around the back alley just so no one would see him. He was right next to his house when he ran into something. Or better yet, someone. He shuddered as he recognized the color of the clothing. Tango quickly stood up and shot his eyes above him.

“O-Oh… Hello Council Hastaur… Mighty fine to see you tonight… at my house… just as I get back from a walk…”

“Tango Christopher Tek, Do Not Lie to Your council” His voice was deep, Rough, and demanding. Hearing his full name in such a tone made his whole body shiver. Tango knew he had messed up. Usually it was Proserpine or one of the lower demon councils who’d show up at tango’s house. But no, It was Hastuar. He was the head of the council. He loomed over tango, His lime green eyes flaring in the dark.

“I-I would Never lie! How dare you even accuse me of such-” Tango quickly cut off his sentence as Hastaur let out a bone shaking growl. “What were you doing out of the city young man?” “I wasn't doing anything wrong i swear! I was just exploring! It gets boring in this city!” Tango’s wings were slowing wrapping around him. It was something he did when he was scared. Hastaur let out another growl and walked closer to tango. With one hand he opened up the bag on his hip and pulled out a book. He threw it into tango’s arms and He instantly recognized it. He knew he should have taken it with him. “They would you like to explain why this book is missing a page? And why multiple city folk saw you running through the library and main street like a mad man?” “Hastaur, Please! I can explain if you just let me-”

“Tango i swear to any of the demigod’s still out there, if you did Anything to put this city in danger, I will Have your Wings cli-”

Hastaur Cut off his sentence as he looked at the small demon. His wings were around his body, ears pinned down and his eyes flashed with fear. He took a step back and ran his hand across his face. “......Im, sorry Tango. I didn't mean to threaten that….. Listen, today has been long.” He sighed as he walked from the alley, gesturing tango to follow. Tango shivered and slowly followed. When they got in front of tango’s house, Hastaur looked at the smaller demon.  

“Three other council members were looking for you, and to find out that you had left the city…. It made them go overboard” Somehow, within a few minutes all anger from his voice had left. Hastuar’s voice was soothing and soft. He always tried his best to keep tango out of trouble, and to not scare him. He watched this demon grow up.Seeing anything happen to him would made Hastaur sick. He crouched down to be at eye level with tango.

“Tango i need you to listen to me. I try my hardest to keep you safe from the council, but you make that so Hard when you go around doing this! Had I not been the head of council, Your wings would already be clipped! I, I don't know how much longer I can defend you from them”

Hastuar gently put his hand on tango’s shoulder. He looked off to the side, still feeling bad about saying what he did earlier. “I need you to promise me something tango. You will stop all of these shenanigans. Promise you'll stop going behind the council's back and to not leave the city ever again"

Tango looked Hastaur in the eyes. He shifted uncomfortably under his grip and sighed. He gently nodded and to his relief, Hastaur let go of his shoulder. He stood up and stretched his wings. Tango yawned, eyes slowly trying to close.

"Alright Tango, Try and get some sleep. The council would like to talk to you tomorrow, So please be up by then"

And within a few seconds, Hastaur was already out of sight. Tango get out a shaky exhale. He hated lying to the demon council but he was gonna see impulse and Zedaph tomorrow, even if that meant not being able to come back. His mind raced thinking about the two elves, but soon all his trails of thought led back to the moments before. He didn't want to go to the council meeting, so he was gonna have to wake up early to avoid it. It was just going to be them yelling at him anyways. Nothing he hasn't heard before.

He walked into his house and threw his bag on the ground. He flopped down onto his bed and let out a loud groan. He quickly shuffled under his blankets and wrapped his wings around him. As he slowly started to drift asleep, he couldn't help but still feel a little bit of joy for tomorrow.

[ninaxpark]

⌠ JENNIE KIM, 21, CISFEMALE, SHE/HER ⌡ welcome back to gallagher academy, NINA PARK! according to their records, they’re a THIRD year, specializing in COVERT OPERATIONS (CP) + KNIFE FIGHTING SKILLS, SWORD TRAINING, PRECISION SHOOTING, FIREARMS & SWAT TRAINING; and they DID go to a spy prep high school. when i see them walking around in the halls, i usually see a flash of ( skater skirt, thigh-high boots, cherry flavored lip gloss, ice latte, french manicured nails, pink diamond choker, floor filled with shopping bags, echo of punching bag through the halls during unholy hours ). when it’s the gemini’s birthday on 05/27/1998, they always request their COQ AU VIN from the school’s chefs. looks like they’re well on their way to graduation.  BIO , WANTED CONNECTION & PINTEREST

TRIGGER WARNING: death mention, alcohol, underage drinking

Hi, it’s me again with a second character. I can’t resist. Anyway, here’s my other baby girl. As early as now, I am asking for forgiveness already for everything about her.....

Being the only youngest and only daughter in her family, Nicolina Park or Nina was so used of getting her way. From life-size doll-house to limited edition designer bags, if she will do well, she will have it all. Not like it was hard for her at all. She was cunning and wouldn’t mind side-sweeping her brothers just to be the number 1 in their household and get rewards.

With 5 years gap between her brothers, she never really grown close to her brothers. Even if they were off to boarding school, Wesley and Charles still gets the attention of their parents so whenever they are home, she made it her life’s mission to torment them. Nina mostly gets away with it.

The lack of attachment with her brother was compensated with the bond that she had with her cousins, Jude and Rose. They grew up together along with Josephine Tran. Nina would practically dragged them to her antics if she could.

Nina always had this high energy but that changed when Rose was found in her room. With Jude avoiding her and her practically blaming Jo for Rose’s death, she had no one to turned to. For her, she was not given a moment to grieve which turn her a little bitter.

 Came her first year in Gallagher, she was a little excited because maybe she will be reconnected with Jude but little did she knew, she was taking a break. She figured, she couldn’t let her world stop spinning, she had to move on and so, she turned to her new best friend, Little Miss Tequila with a dash of lime and salt.

Nina didn’t reach the point where she became addicted to it because let’s be real, it’s hard to obtain alcohol in this goddamn school but it became a problem of it own. Her almost harmless pranks to torment her brothers when she was younger had been honed into manipulating skills. She had learned to talk people into doing things for her like obtaining drinks or stealing homeworks so she could be ahead of the class. She had thrown people under the bus along the way really.

It was at the end of the first year when she went on a down low when she got a boyfriend. At first it was nothing serious but she felt hard, too serious that she almost said those three damn words, too serious that she discovered she was scared of attachment---or it was something she developed. If her very own cousin could turn her back on her, the others will do so she ended it.

A year of being a good girl and she went back to her old habit. Not to say that she couldn’t have a soft spot for anyone but for those who got to know her a little bit, any acts of niceness is questionable.

PERSONALITY

Alright so is hmm she is a bitch. Joke. I really don’t know how to describe her aside from that but she is very competitive, ambitious to a fault. She hates idiots but probably hates you more if she thinks you can be better than her. She had a lot of energy to argue especially if she is right ( she thinks she is all the time ) and very passionate about things she likes. Nina has little to none filter although she didn’t say things just to be mean but she tell things because it’s true ( at least that’s what she likes to tell herself ). She has a tendency to downplay great things she sees in people and would often nitpick someone’s flaw first before knowing the rest about them so yeah, she is a bit judgy. Kdding, she is VERY judgmental. First impression really last for her. She will never apologize for anything and will stop at nothing until get what she wants. Nina has a few likable traits like hmm well uhm she is…responsible? And actually a good leader when it comes to projects. Never late. LIKE NOPE. It’s hard to get on her good side but once you are in, she will probably ruin everyone who did you dirty. Like she is definitely not the ideal friend a person could have especially when it comes to giving emotional support but she is good at figuring things out. Nina never forgets when you did her a solid and will ban you from her hate list.

OPEN CONNECTIONS

THE BEST FRIEND - they are probably too much alike or the opposite. Nothing in between. The only person who can stand Nina probably. Also, someone to call Nina’s bullshit tbh. She met Nina during her first year, pretty much when she is in the process of ‘almost’ grieving for Rose. Probably the only person that saw her cry.

THE EX-BOYFRIEND - once upon a time, Nina was in love and when she realized how hard she fell, she got distracted and she didn’t like it so she broke up with him. They've been together for a year in a half or less. It could either end in bad or good terms, depends on how he took it. She is probably still like ‘MINE’ whenever someone’s around them. This someone doesn’t have feelings for her anymore probably.

THE ENEMY - someone she had double-crossed. Or someone she had an unhealthy competition with them. This person used to be a friend but Nina only befriend them to take advantage of them.

OK here is some randoms but equally wanted

Spy School mates - gals she went to spy school with

Exes - nothing to serious on her end to be honest. She only had that ONE serious love she royally fucked. Like she probably cheated on them lol

Flings/FWB/ONS - bitch needs to fuck the stress out of school ok

Annoyances - people she constantly butt heads on bc she is a fake bitch

Study buddies - coz studying is srs business ok

BI - someone Nina had been a bad influence with. She had probably got them in trouble at some point.

[cas-lost-grace]

1 and 24 please for the writing prompt!

Fake relationship +Historical AU

Thank you for the prompt! I made it into quasi-historical fantasy AU, because pretend gay relationship in real history didn´t make much sense to me. I hope you don´t mind. I think it´s still very sweet.

“What’s wrong?” Dean asks nudging Cas’ side.

Cas heaves a sigh and pets his horse who tries to munch the laces of his tunic. “The Solstice,” he says and pushes the horse’s head away.

“I thought you liked Solstice, that it’s a big deal for your people.”

“It is,” Cas says closing the door to the stable. Dean waits for him to elaborate. Eventually Cas caves in.

“There’s going to be a huge celebration in my mother’s house and I’ll have to show up and she will parade me in front of all the unmarried rich man in hope that one of them might find an interest in me. I will have to smile and be polite while I feel like cattle at the market,” he explains on one breath.

Dean frowns. The fact that Nebesians approve of relationships between two men or two women is still hard to wrap his head around. It makes him uncomfortable in a strange way. He often catches himself thinking about it late at night. What has never occurred to him is that Cas would actually have to get married being the second son with no inheritance.

“Do you have to go?” he asks.

“It’s my mother, my home. I want to go, I just wish… I wish I had more freedom in that regard. Like you.”

Dean barks out a laugh. He doesn’t have to marry since he has no family and has been supporting himself since childhood. But he’s not free. There are too many rules that tell him who he can or cannot be with. At least that’s true in his country.

“Is there any way to stop her from acting like that?”

It’s Cas’ turn to scoff. “Do you think I’ll manage to get married till Solstice?”

Dean bites his lip as a spark of idea ignites something in his chest.

“Would being engaged suffice?”

Cas cocks his head. “Yes but I don’t-”

“We could pretend,” Dean suggest, “you can tell her I’m your fiancé and she will leave you alone. Unless-”

“Unless what?”

“Unless it would be an issue that I’m not Nebesian.”

Cas shakes his head. “No, that won’t be an issue. Nebesian tolerate marriage with foreigners.” A happy smile slowly lightens his face. “You would really do it?”

There’s a lump in Dean’s throat. He swallows around it.

“Yeah, you’re my best friend, I’d do anything to help you.”

The smile Cas gives him makes Dean’s heart beat faster.

It’s easy to forget Cas is an aristocrat when Dean usually sees him road-weary in his riding clothes. It’s impossible to not think about it upon seeing his home. Where the rich people in Dean’s country tend to bury themselves behind thick stone walls, Nebesians prefer airy intricate architecture with high arcs and slim columns. They also love immaculate decorative gardens like the one Dean and Cas has to cross to get to the palace.

Inside Dean’s attacked by lights and colors. Everywhere Dean looks he can see the finest silk in bright colors embellished with gold and gems. He feels like a spider among butterflies in his black pants and jacket. The only thing that resembles a jewel is the silver badge of his rank on his chest - a pentagram in a fiery circle. He wasn’t allowed to bring his sword which makes him nervous, but at least he carries an ornamental dagger on his belt.

Cas gently grabs Dean’s elbow and leads him through the crowded room.

It’s the first time he sees Cas in a traditional celebratory outfit and it takes Dean’s breath away more than all the splendor of the house.

He’s wearing a long sleeveless robe opened at the chest, revealing his tattoos. He’s shining with silver thread and sapphires. His face is painted according to custom - sparkly powder dapped on his cheekbones and the bridge of his nose, his eyes framed by black kohl. He looks otherworldly.

Dean’s only able to tear his eyes off him when they stop in front of Cas’ mother. She looks equally stunning as her son but in a regal, kind of intimidating way. Her robe, similar to Cas’, is silvery gray adorned with clear crystals, Dean thinks they might actually be diamonds.

Cas bows deeply, catching his mother’s hands and kissing them. “Mother dearest,” he says stiffly when he straightens, “it’s a pleasure to see you after so long.”

She gives him a smile that brightens her stern face. “You too, son. I’m happy to see you’re well.” Her blue eyes turn to Dean. “Who’s your friend, Castiel?”

Cas lets go of his mother’s hands to put a warm palm on Dean’s shoulder. “Let me introduce my fiancé, Dean Winchester.”

Dean bows down deeply. He can hear it, the wave of whispers expanding through the crowd. When he looks up, most of the eyes in the room are on him.

"Fiancé?” Cas’ mother says in a cold tone.

A muscle jumps in Castiel’s jaw as he clenches his teeth. “Yes, mother, my fiancé.”

There’s a pause that feels like an eternity. Then she smiles, but her eyes remain cold.

“How lovely,” she says with a fake cheer. “Let’s go somewhere we can celebrate in private,” she says and turns her back to them.

Dean shoots Cas a nervous look, Castiel takes his hand and squeezes it tightly as they follow his mother.

The moment the door clicks shut Dean feels trapped.

“Who is this man and why do you think I should accept him as your future husband?” Cas’ mother strikes, her demeanor changed.

Dean stares in awe as Cas grows in front of her, squaring his shoulders and holding his head high. He hasn’t let go of Dean’s hand.

“Dean is the right hand of ambassador Singer,” Castiel says. His mother’s eyes widen as she hears the name of the richest and most influential foreigner in all of Nebesa.

“We’ve met when we were both on a business trip and we decided to make each other company on our travels. Dean helped me out of trouble several times because he’s brave and strong and clever. He’s also the kindest man I know and I love him deeply.”

Dean can’t breathe, his cheeks are burning. He tries to remind himself Cas is just acting, but it’s too hard.

To Dean’s horror, Castiel’s mother turns to him. “Are you going to drag my son out of Nebesa?”

“Na, Ma’am. My place is here. I have to travel a lot, but so does Castiel. We always come back here though.”

Her eyes narrow before she speaks again. “Are you able to provide for my son?”

“I’d say so, ma’am. My job is well paid and the ambassador can provide a suitable living for me and my husband if we decide to settle down.” Dean’s voice hitches on the word husband but otherwise, he’s proud of his speech.

Castiel’s mother takes a long time to study both of their faces. Then she sighs. “Welcome to the family, Dean,” she says stepping closer. She offers him open palms and he puts his hands into them. Her smile is genuine. “Call me Naomi.”

Dean nods, stunned. “Thank you for accepting me. Your son means the world to me.” He says and his eyes automatically dart to Cas who’s cheeks are as red as Dean’s must be.

Naomi takes them back to the main room and announces their engagement. There’s a round of cheers that makes Dean a bit uncomfortable, but then the celebration turns back to the Solstice.

There are chants and sacrifice, burning ritual fires and dancing ritual dances. But then it’s just people having a good time.

Dean enjoys it immensely. He loves the food and the heavy Nebesian wine but most of all he loves posing as Castiel’s partner. It’s so easy it’s almost scary. When people ask how they’ve met, Dean does have to lie. When they ask what he likes the most about Cas, he can go on for hours.

It’s quite late when Cas grabs Dean’s hand - something Dean got used to very quickly - and whispers into his ear: “Shall we dance?”

Dean smiles and follows him to the dance floor. Nebesian dancing is strange, they just lean close to each other, arms wrapped around their partner’s waist and sway with the ethereal music played on harps and flutes.

Castiel’s body is warm against Dean’s. He feels like he could bask in the warmth forever.

“I think our acting was quite good,” Cas whispers. Dean nods, his cheek brushes against Cas’.

“But maybe, we could do one more thing to make it more plausible.” Cas looks at Dean with his beautiful eyes and wets his lips with his tongue. Dean’s heart is beating so heart it must be audible over the music.

“What?” he asks even though he knows. He just needs to hear it, to be sure there’s no misunderstanding.

Cas smiles softly and cups Dean’s face with his palm. “I’m going to kiss you.”

Dean leans down, their lips meet. It’s like fireworks going off. It’s like everything he ever wanted and feared to ask for.

He pulls Cas closer and slips his tongue between Cas’ parted lips. Cas kisses back just as hungrily, his hands clench in Dean’s hair.

They are both breathless when they part.

“I’m not sure this kind of kissing is appropriate,” Cas says with a chuckle.

“Would it be appropriate to leave to your rooms?”

Cas’ answer is a bright grin and a tug on Dean’s hand.

They bid goodbye to the remaining guests and Naomi and head upstairs into Castiel’s chambers.

The moment the door shuts behind them, Castiel pushes Dean against its hard wood. His kohl-rimmed eyes look dark and fierce as they pin Dean in place.

“I don’t want to pretend anymore,” he growls.

Dean’s heart drops through his stomach, he can feel blood stopping in his veins.

“What?” he whispers breathlessly.

He knew this was just a game, he should have been more careful than getting so lost in it. He just hoped it would last longer.

“I don’t want to pretend that this is just an act, that I’m not actually in love with you.”

Dean’s ears must be playing tricks on him because there’s no way Cas has just said this.

“You’re… what?”

Cas presses closer to him. “I loved this night and I know you did too. I want this to be real, not just an act, not just a dream I dream when you sleep next to me on our travels.”

Dean stares at him with jaw slack.

A shadow runs across Cas’ face. He lets go of Dean and takes a step back. 

"Oh-”

Dean grabs him and pulls him back in. Cas makes a surprised sound when Dean kisses him.

“I want it too,” Dean mutters against Cas’ lips, barely able to stop kissing him now he’s allowed to, “oh god how I want it.”

They stumble to Castiel’s wide bed where they undress each other. They’ve seen each other naked before, but this is different. They take the time to discover and cherish each other’s body with eyes, hands, and lips before they join their bodies in one.

If the quests hear the sounds of their passion it’s alright, they’re a young engaged couple after all.

[thedepthsremember]

TRR 3.20 "A Warm Reception" what does that mean. does that mean FIRE i am on edge

I'm expecting it to go all nice and heartwarming, and then Anton shows up at the end. We shall see.

Officially longer than any other TRR book! We’re in uncharted territory now!

From what I saw from my roommate’s Liam playthrough, a lot of the carriage dialogue is mostly the same no matter who’s there, but, I do like this as a callback to awesome-storm Maxwell-Riley from the Homecoming ball, or Duke Whirlwind Dancemaster-Deluxe. With Maxwell, everyone keeps emphasizing how our lives together will be full of adventure and never be boring. ♥

You fools, take this chance to make out in the carriage! No! F O O L S 

Oh. Hello Ana! She’s got a new dress for us, of course. 

... Mehhhhh sorry not into that plasticy cutout look. Why do they keep doing that, it doesn't look like fabric. Sorry Ana, I’m gonna stick with what I've got. 

Maxwell says it doesn’t matter what Riley’s wearing, he and everyone else won’t be able to keep his eyes off her. :’) ♥ bro

Ana, a true friend (despite how I keep tossing out all her hard work) leaves us alone in the boutique. 

We are a storm... a hurricane… a mega punching robot... of love

sweet nervous boy. Riley literally said “I do” (well, ‘hell yeah’ in my case) and he’s still can’t help doubting a little. 

now makeouts?? nope, Madeline. Girl you are about to get stabbed. ANA, WHY DIDN’T YOU STOP HER, I’M SORRY, I’LL WEAR THE DAMN DRESS

(If we keep trying and then getting interrupted, only to finally succeed I will actually love that.)

Oooooo the reception hall is so pretty! Damn, they have really been outdoing themselves with the art lately. First the cathedral, now this. *__*

People coming up to tell us how we made them cry out our vows! Yessss tell us all about your tears! Our love is powerful, baby.

Took no screenshots of Hana’s parents so I can ignore that they came. 

NEVILLE?! WHAT THE F. RASHAD, DID YOU BRING HIM. DUDE. YOUR FRIEND IS SHITTY AND NO ONE LIKES HIM, STOP BRINGING HIM PLACES. 

You know, at the beginning of the tour we heard Neville wasn't even planning on coming to the wedding so I guess that's........ ssssomethingg..g..........…

like maybe he’ll get shot this time. aim better, assassins 

Anyway, better people now! Hello friends! 

Hana says we were like a fairytale! Even Drake is getting poetic. Liam sees how much we love each other. Maxwell has won the wife lottery. Excellent, so much love here. 

LMAO....... SAVANNAH EYEING BERTRAND LIKE, HUH.... MARRIAGE..... HOW BOUT..... THAT...…. :|

Me and Maxwell, poster children for impulsivity: YEAH, JUST DO IT JUST JUMP INTO MARRIAGE IT'S GREAT

Bertrand : *SWEATS BUCKETS* 

Hgnngggg I would stab a man for that wedding food right now. I picked Drake’s beef pork stew and oh my god...……. How do they always make it sound so good??? 

[pause to google feijoada recipe]

Time for toasts! Maxwell’s...….. awwww. ;___; 

He starts it as a Once Upon A Time story of how Riley was whisked away to love a prince, but her happy ending was swapped when she fell for the court jester instead. 

(Flashing back to the apple festival and Maxwell being excited to be jester. Good times.) 

My heart is bursting. I love our story too T_T 

Andddd he just blurts out about the hippo tattoo to everyone and covers it up with an awkward metaphor. That's a deeply Maxwell moment and I love it. ♥ 

Omg. Might regret it but I desperately want to hear Olivia's idea of a wedding toast.

EXCUSE YOU MADELINE, SCHEDULE SMEDULE. THE BRIDE DEMANDS TO HEAR EVERYONE RAPTURE ABOUT OUR LOVE

Olivia:  So soon after I met Riley I was like "I hate that bitch" Riley: a-awwww....thanks...…… 

I'M DEAD "LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT" I WON OLIVIA’S RESPECT! :’D BEST DAY EVERRR

I mean we also got married but like. you get it. 

“As we say in Lythikos, you’re still alive, so drink!” never change. 

Liam: Aww...…. He tries but falls back on being super formal, referring to me as "Cordonia’s newest dutchess” and me “being a friend to Cordonia and [him]”

It's ok buddy, sneak out whenever you're ready. Hana and Drake can cover for you.

Hana: Hana wins the toast both for having the most insightful things to say, and also being LITERALLY THE ONLY ONE (besides Bertrand) TO TALK ABOUT MAXWELL. She also made me cry, so like, triple points. 😢 😭 I love her so muuuuch.

Drake: “I knew you were trouble when you walked innnn~” 

Those were some real nice things you said about me but YOU ARE THE BEST MAN. 

I know I'm great and we're all in love with me, but come on. 

Alright here’s Bertrand, he’s gotta talk about Maxwell. 

new big bro you will be NICE to your BROTHER or I STG

starting out rocky what with the “wow Maxwell made like so many mistakes” business. let him rest, it’s his day, good lord 

*snaps fingers in front of his face* BABS, FOCUS

OH. OH OKAY. HE TURNED IT AROUND. HE SAID HE LOVES HIS BROTHER IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. THE DANCING COMMENT AND EVERYTHING AND HE ADMITTED MAXWELL DOESN'T NEED TO GROW UP. I'M. OVERWHELMED. 

In which I will take any choice that turns Riley into a woo girl. And Kiara’s family continues to be my favorite. They’re coming over to Valtoria Revanasi all the time. 

After all that, my toast was … whelming. I did get my vows already, so I guess it’s whatever. 

First dance time! Aww this track is giving me HSS prom flashbacks. Michael I hope you're happy out there.

Apparently Maxwell picked the song, which can only mean he is a secret HSS fan. 

“Partners” is such a lovely title for these two. I've always loved the term, you're partners in crime, partners for life, but they're also dance partners.  

Number of times Maxwell has done the dip kiss: 4. This boy SMOOTH AS HECK. 

Bertrand is scandalized by our nonsense but Drake understands they should take what they can get.

(where are my boy’s damn jello shots) 

..... I think I just married Emperor Kuzco. 

Maxwell challenges Drake to a dance off, and holy shit Drake can dance. Or at least spin kick. I'm still fairly certain he has no sense of rhythm. 

....Drake did not dispute the best friend comment and I'm counting that as a win for Maxwell. 

time. for. CAKE????! 

Real life me is a little sad I don’t have cake. I do have fancy rice crispies from my friend’s coworker’s wedding. It’s no passionfruit cake tho :’( 

(they successfully distracted me from wait where’s Olivia with cake. How dare you take advantage of my short attention span.)

Maxwell and Riley have matching swords. I might cry. That's the best.

..... Incredibly tempting to fuck up and cut the table. But OUR CAKE ok doing this right. 

WHOA Bastien hello, where'd you come from.

Aww Madeline has pleased her goblin father.

Maxwell is so happy about the Cheetah cake SUCCESSSSSS [sneakily high fives Gladys]

[I hope Gladys gets cake. At least 3 slices for Gladys.]

Ooooh so Savannah and Drake's mom still came! She’s off taking care of Bertie. Bring forth the Walker matriarch, I wish to meet her. [ spoilers: we do not :( ]

Uh oh Savannah is pissed and I bet I know why~

Bertrand's only just noticed oh dear.

Savannahhhhhh pleeassssse. These two need to work on commutation so bad. I TOLD YOU TO BE DIRECT WITH THIS DUMBASS. YOU'RE STILL HINTING. 

Bride awkwardly hovers outside her own reception trying to get her fool friends to communicate AGAIN.

Like I'm pretty patient and Bertrand is family but oh my god I can't be there for everything

Riley is tired too, bless her. We could totally have snuck off with Maxwell at this point but no, here we are. 

Ok Riley's prize for taking the diamond option to help Bertrand one more time is that she gets to cause shenanigans. You know my girl loves a good shenanigan! 

Oh my god are we getting the band back together YESSSSS

Stop one: Drake. He knows Riley by this point and senses shenanigans a mile away. 

Drake: You don't need my permission, Savannah’s her own woman and all that.  Bertrand: But I'd like it. Drake: ok then FUCK NO. Bertrand: :’O

Bertrand making the shocked face is always funny. Same with his mad face. Really just Bertrand emoting = comedy gold.  

Drake fully won Maxwell's respect with the breakdancing, and he's won Riley's by realizing he has the power to make Bertrand do whatever he wants right now. 

Drake immediately regrets his abuse of power. Aaahaha ok, ease into it.

Somehow we talked Drake into singing. I'm just saying, this would have been so much easier with him last, when peer pressure was on the table.

Maxwell has been waiting for a moment like this moment his entire life, he'd pay to be part of this.

Liam would both do anything I asked and is always down for bromance time.

There is an option to panic and throw the bouquet at Neville. I have to try that at least once. But later. 

Man Riley should have demanded the boys reunite their quartet anyway. BEST WEDDING PRESENT EVERRRRR (after all their other gifts because those were actually really sweet)

Savannah: holy crap you're smiling  Bertrand: Well you make me happy so fukkin get used to it 

^Those are totally direct quotes. 

While I’m making other people happy - TIME FOR GIFTS! 

The book for Liam is a nice follow up to all his talk about how he wants to bring Cordonia peace. You’ve got faith that he can achieve his dreams! Aww.

Everyone else does surprised sprites but Drake is wary as ever. Smart dude.

Hana's gift............... Ok yeah let’s just...… move along. sigh. 

At least Riley succeeded through the roof with Maxwell’s gift, he was about to pass out with all the layers this gift has. Aww, that was so worth it. 

Honestly these were all kind of short. Meh. Maxwell’s was worth it, Liam’s was a nice second. 

Finally can we sneak off--??

MADELINE.............. I WILL STAB YOU WITH MAXWELL’S FANCY ACTION FIGURE, DON'T THINK I WON'T 

Time to see other friends! We go to Kiara first, which is good. I continue to be proud of her forever. 

Penelope is me at every party. Where are the dogs. I can people watch just fine next to the dogs.

HOOOOLY SHIT

DANIEL

D A N I E L

DANIEL IS HERE, TAKING SHOTS WITH LEO

What do you know :D I have friends! Well. One friend. And no family. They’re really determined to leave that open, huh. You know, I’m okay with it. 

Daniel, I admire your thrift, especially considering what it must have cost to come here on a waiter’s salary, but someone is definitely going to think you're here to serve food.

..... Whelp that came true immediately. Hey Regina. 

Leo goes off with him. I guess they're bros now! 

or .... well. I've seen the posts going around. Make this a trip to remember, Leo! ;) 

Awwww nice moment with Regina. Look how far we’ve come!  I've always liked her. She's a practical lady. 

GLADYS

GLADYS IS HERE TO LET US GET ALONE TIME, FINALLY. BLESS YOU GLADYS, I COULD KISS YOU but that’s for Maxwell 

Wait...... I'm getting suspicious. We're just. wandering away......… mmm :|

oh noOOOOOOOOOOooo--[all goes dark]

Aw mannnnnnnn Gladys D: Riley is never trusting anyone in this broke-ass country again. Remember how we kept talking about how in New York you can trust people to be upfront with their intentions???? 

[throws Daniel and Hana into a suitcase] COME ON MAXWELL, WE’RE MOVING BACK TO NEW YORK. 

IS THAT SOMEONE ANTON, GLADYS

:’((((((((((((

I’m so sad, I liked her. I hope we can still win her back to our side. She seemed so surprised every time we treated her decently, I think there’s a chance. She probably got into this plot before she got to know us. 

Things we know: 

Liam is the only LI who doesn’t meet you in the hedge maze if you’re his LI. On the one hand, getting the king to sneak out is a whole nother level, but also he’s likely to have a big part in next week’s plot. 

The poor guy is also still definitely in love with you, even if you softened the blow with the closure option. And he’s especially taking it hard if you’re with Drake. We’ll see how those things go together. 

Olivia disappeared! Before cake. For their plot to work, they still need her around to make her queen. She’s loyal to Liam no matter what, but I’m still holding out hope that befriending her or not is going to play a part whether that loyalty extends completely to you. 

She was also our strongest defense, what with all her knives and proclivity for stabbing. So Olivia is likely to be okay, but who knows if they will be. 

Do they have our friends? We didn’t see them after gifts. concern.

what do you think? 2 more chapters? Wrap up evil plots and then have good things, hopefully? or just keep adding chapters and then it doesn’t have to end hahaaaa 

[ronyxfic]

Educating the Victim - Act VI, Chapter V

Pairing: Pearl/Rose, Pearl/Amethyst

Rating: Mature

Warnings/Tags: none for this chapter

Read it on AO3! - Support us on Patreon!

Educating the Victim Masterpost

(Previous chapter) (Next chapter)

CHAPTER 5: Awkward

 It was Sunday, but this couldn’t wait. Azure had barely put down her phone when she was reaching for her laptop and composing an email to one of her most versatile employees.

Marina,

I need you to meet me as soon as possible tomorrow morning as a matter of utmost priority and discretion. Don’t worry about anything else.

Azure

Marina would understand, and she would be there.

 At eight am sharp, even before the doors to Blue Diamond Games HQ even opened, Marina MacLeod stood at the staff entrance. She opened a blackberry and sent Azure a notification of her arrival as she paced up to the elevator.

 Azure was expecting her. She didn’t make it to HQ very often these days, preferring to work from home, but this was important enough for her to get up early.

She’d made coffee for Marina and herself, and as soon as Marina stepped into the office, Azure locked the door behind her.

“Sit,” she said. “You may have inferred from my email that this is off the books. It isn’t even strictly company business.”

 "Oh, an interesting mission, then." Marina scratched at her nails and took a small, delicate sip. "Do tell."

   “It’s also personal,” Azure said, frowning at the papers she had in front of her, “and confidential. I’m sending Hunter and Ashleigh with you just in case there’s trouble, though for now it’s just reconnaissance.”

   "Oh, I see." Marina's brows shot up for a split second. "I take it that you've got some emotional stakes in this."

 “You could say that. It’s about an old friend’s wine estate. She passed away long ago and never wanted it to be sold, but now someone’s there trying to take it.”

 "Oh? And what would you like me to do?"

 “Find out who’s behind it, and why,” Azure said. “I have a bad feeling about this, and I really hope I’m wrong.”

 "Oh, I see. And whereabouts is this yard?" Marina finished the cup and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

 “France, near Bordeaux. I’ve put together a file for you, but there isn’t much in it yet.” Azure handed over the papers: The letter from the Diment estate, and a copy of Claire’s will. “How soon can you be ready to leave? All expenses will be paid for.”

 Marina blinked, looking at the documents. Her fingers traced a few pages and she glanced up with a mischievous smirk.

"Tomorrow morning works."

 “Thank you, Marina. If you find the Topazes, send them here so I can brief them as well. In the mean time, make any arrangement you need.”

 Marina was already on her Blackberry. "Got it, notifying them to see you. I take it you'll message me later to let me know the details?"

 “You can count on it,” Azure said.

 --

 Study leave had given Pearl the freedom to not attend classes. The way in which everyone else seemed to find it a positive provoked immense envy from her.

School had been an escape from home. Where criticism was monitored, and to at least an extent, she was guarded by a greater authority.

Home was a battlefield, where everything was chaos. And she only had the way she felt, her strategy and no sword.

Perhaps it was solace in a life in university dorms that gave her strength. Pearl often now found herself, eyes closed, imagining a small room of her own, alone and away from everyone. Or, perhaps with friends. Amethyst. If she survived this, was there a life where she could be an adult with Rose?

Thoughts of Rose made her smile as she paced to school. They'd scheduled a brief catchup and study session before the first biology exam on that fresh April afternoon. Trees in full boom, patches of grass and life poking out of city walls.

 Rose came to school just before lunch, oddly looking forward to spending time with Pearl again. She’d invited the entire class for a revision session, but it didn’t look like it was going to be very popular; Rose’s experience for the past few years had been that the girls liked studying on their own terms a lot more.

So there was a chance it was just going to be just her and Pearl. Strangely enough, Rose was okay with that; she was fairly sure they could deal with it.

She got to the classroom early, unlocking it and spreading the materials over her desk.

 Pearl knocked on the door, looking around for other pupils.  "Huh. Looks like it's just me, then."

 “Unless someone turns up late,” Rose said, smiling at Pearl. Then, her expression grew serious. “Are you going to be okay with that?”

 "Oh, yeah. Definetly." Pearl shot back a reassuring look. "It might be a nice time to go over some exam papers I've done. I've filled in all of the ones back to 2006."

 “Well, you certainly didn’t slack off while I was suspended,” Rose said. “Shall we have a look, then?”

 Pearl felt awkward at the mention of her doing. But she didn't mention it, instead opting to dive into her bag and collect a stack of papers that she slumped on the table. "Want to start from the most current one?"

 “Sure! I should have the answers here somewhere.” Rose picked out some papers from her bag. “But let’s see what you have first.”

She hesitated for a long moment, then came towards Pearl, pulling up a chair and sitting down opposite her.

 Pearl swallowed at the closeness but then shook it off. They were at school. Teachers did this.

"I do pretty solid on the first few easy sets of questions. The essays get me."

 “Well, practice makes perfect. Did you time yourself doing them?”

Rose felt her heart beat. She avoided looking at Pearl too much, because that would surely make the awkwardness worse. Instead, she rifled through her papers.

 "I stared doing that after the 2012 paper." Pearl nodded, "it makes me anxious so I procrastinated doing it for a while."

 “It is very helpful to time yourself, it’s probably the closest you’ll get to exam conditions while studying.” Rose looked up, briefly, and smiled. “It’s been shown that you remember things better if you’ve studied them in a similar state of mind to the exam, so that little kick of anxiety might actually be a good thing.”

 Pearl gave a nervous laugh. "If you say so. I'll try and emulate that a bit more, especially now that we're so close."

 “Indeed.” Rose didn’t comment on Pearl’s word choice, but couldn’t help a little colour rising to her cheeks.

“Would you like me to read your practice essays?” she asked.

 Pearl tapped her fingers on the table. She didn't feel too confident with them. "Sure!"

 “Okay. Do you have any exercises you want to do while you wait for my feedback?”

 "I'm sure there's probably something in the textbook." Pearl reached out for it.

 Rose smiled. “Well, let me know if you want anything else – I’ve written a few practice questions that you could answer.” She took Pearl’s essays and decided to go back to the teacher’s desk, taking out a red pen and starting to read the first essay.

 Pearl nodded and tried to read, but found herself distracted as she couldn't help but glance up at Rose every thirty seconds.

 For a few minutes, no sound could be heard except for the occasional scratch of Rose’s pen on the paper.

Then, Rose looked up. Noticed Pearl’s eyes on her.

She shot her a small smile. Forced herself to look away. Tried to read the essay again, but found that her thoughts were elsewhere.

 Pearl managed to rush through an exercise or two to at least give the illusion she wasn't staring. She wondered if Rose really was still bitter about her actions.

She had all right to be. She'd nearly lost her job.

Pearl swallowed. What if she was pretending to be nice? What if she really hated her?

 Rose, meanwhile, had finished marking one of Pearl’s essays. She put it aside and let her gaze wander before starting the next one.

Her eyes lingered on Pearl, her expression... wistful?

Rose found that she didn’t quite want to look away.

 Pearl broke eye contact this time, blushing into her textbook. She scribbled down another answer, eyes flicking over textbook content to double check.

 Abruptly, Rose got up.

“I’ve finished with this one,” she said, “would you like me to go over it with you, or do you want some more time with your exercises?”

 "I'd like to look through it." Pearl stammered, putting her pen down.

 “Okay.” Rose sat down with Pearl again, putting the essay on the table. “Overall it’s a good essay, you demonstrate a clear awareness for the core principles you need to know at this stage.” She looked at Pearl. “But if I was grading this like an exam paper, you’d still lose quite a few important marks. And that’s because you left out a few very important basic facts, maybe because you thought they were obvious enough that you didn’t need to state them.”

 "Yeah, that's why I didn't state them." Pearl sighed, downcast. She made a note of it in her planner.

 “It’s actually something that a lot of very advanced students struggle with. The good thing is that you can try to train yourself to basically state the obvious in an exam paper. Especially now that you know about it.” Rose smiled. “But it’s a good essay. I really wish the marking criteria weren’t so harsh – because it’s clear from this paper that you know your stuff, which really is the thing we should be trying to assess.”

 Pearl's cheeks grew even more red at the praise. "Oh, I'm glad you think so!"

 “Definitely.” Rose looked at Pearl warmly. Noticed Pearl’s red cheeks. She’s so cute when she’s blushing.

She shoved that thought aside. She was Pearl’s teacher.

“How far did you get with your questions?”

 "Just a couple. I, uh, couldn't really focus."

 “O-oh.” Rose’s heart beat a little faster.

She tried to laugh it off. “I suppose I’m not the only one getting an odd sense of deja vu at this, then.”

 It seemed to relieve a little tension. Pearl also allowed herself to laugh. "Yeah. I'm sorry. You would've thought it would be less awkward."

 “...yeah.” Rose gave a half-smile. “But we can handle this, right?”

 "I'm sure we can. Right." Pearl folded her arms, determined. "Is there anything else or should I do more exercises?"

 “I... think it’s fine otherwise, and you did give me a bunch of essays, so I think I’ll get back to marking those,” Rose said, getting up again. “Let me know if you need any help.”

 "Will do." And the awkwardness seeped back into the room, making it hard to breathe. Pearl chewed on the end on her biro as she flicked to a different page and began to work again.

 Rose didn’t allow herself to look up, and definitely not at Pearl. She frowned in concentration, reading Pearl’s essay. When she was done with one of them, she put it to the side, and instead of going over it with Pearl, went straight on to the next one.

 Pearl noticed, and went back to writing, working a little faster and more thoroughly this time. She managed three pages of work by the time Rose was finished.

 The second essay was done, and Rose couldn’t help herself anymore.

She put the essays aside and leaned back, stretching a little and looking at Pearl, who was studiously working.

“How are you getting on?” she asked.

 "A bit better, I think. Wanna talk? About the essay, I mean."

 “Sure.” Rose’s heart gave a weird lurch. “Though we can talk about other things too, if you feel we need to.”

She took the essays over to Pearl’s desk and sat down.

 Pearl watched her and chose to ignore the latter comment, for now. Her eyes then flickered to the page, reading over the red marks. "I see."

 Rose was a little disappointed at the lack of Pearl’s reaction, but just as she was starting to say something, the door burst open.

Amethyst stood behind it. “Whaddup,” she said, “sorry I’m late, I-“

She stopped dead as she saw Pearl and Rose. Rose shot up, away from Pearl, belatedly realising that that only made everything look more suspicious than it already did.

Amethyst’s expression darkened. “Uh, I can leave, if you want.”

   "Nonsense, this is... just a revision session for everyone, Amy," Pearl replied, but then looked at Rose before inching away.

 “Well, that’s obviously why you two are the only ones here. Are you back to dating or some shit, because I don’t approve.”

 Pearl frowned. "Or it's because it's nearly three pm during study leave and no one else wants to be here. I mean, you made it."

 Amethyst stomped into the room and possessively took a chair next to Pearl. “That’s not an answer to my question,” she said.

“Amethyst, please-“ Rose said.

“Don’t call me that. Only Pearl gets to call me Amethyst.”

 "We're not. Rose is my teacher. We've worked things out." Pearl finally answered, reluctant. "Did you come here to study or to chew us out?"

 “Well, I probably wouldn’t have come at all if I’d known I’d be walking into one of your dates,” Amy said.

She was perfectly aware she was being a dick, and yet she found herself incapable of stopping.

She slouched in her chair, pulling out some materials from her bag. “But fine, whatever, let’s do some studying. Like it’s gonna do me any good.”

 Pearl sighed into her palms, all too suddenly not wanting to be there. "So, how was my essay?"

 Rose was watching Amy, who was scowling at her from behind a textbook.

Was it just jealousy, or did Amy actually have a good reason to hate her? She probably wasn’t going to find out.

She stepped towards Pearl again, hesitant. Amy had taken her chair, so Rose remained standing. “It was good,” she said, “There were some grammatical errors, and the same criticism applies that I gave you before, but if you work on those things, you should get high grades in the exam.”

 "Oh, good to hear." She smiled. "If Amy is here and you have the energy to, I wouldn't mind going through a few PowerPoints as a refresher?"

 “If you have to,” Amy chimed in, putting down her textbook. “Don’t tell me you’ve actually been doing work here, P. I mean, I’m just here cus I’m starting to panic over exams, but you’ve done tons of studying.”

“Pearl has actually been working very hard since getting here,” Rose said gently. “I can give you some pointers, too, Amy. And I’d be happy to run through some of my presentations with you.”

 "Sounds good." Pearl blushed again but then locked eyes with Amy and looked away, embarrassed.

  And I thought it was awkward before.

Rose booted up her laptop, which had gone to sleep while she’d been helping Pearl revise. It took its time, and Rose avoided eye contact with Amethyst while she waited.

“Do you know what sort of questions they’ll ask in the exam?” Amethyst asked.

Rose looked up. “No, I don’t,” she said, “but in the past few years there’s always been a question on genetics, so it’s good to know a lot about that.”

Her laptop had finally booted. Rose opened up one of her presentations. “Alright,” she said.

 Pearl, yet again, found herself all too distracted. This time, however, her stomach felt heavy with anxiety. Her eyes flitted from Amethyst to Rose until she finally felt she'd had enough.  "I'm going to pop to the toilet."

 Rose looked up, frowned. “Okay,” she said.

She then looked at Amethyst. “Is there anything in particular you’d like me to go over, Amy?” she asked.

 Amethyst swallowed. "Oh, uh..." She hadn't expected this. She didn't want alone time with Rose. "Uh, I can do the genetics stuff I guess."

 “Do you want my help with anything?” Rose asked. “You’re here, after all – a scheduled session with your teacher.”

 Amy’s face burnt, insides twisting with apprehension. Truth be told, she barely had a clue on what exactly the syllabus contained. "I'm cool, I'll just... work from the book."

 Rose watched her for a long moment.

“Why are you here, Amy?” she then asked.

 Amethyst felt herself lurch. "...To study for the exam that's coming up?" she lied.

 “You could’ve done that at home, or in the library,” Rose simply stated.

 "Did you ask Pearl why she was here?"

 “Is this about Pearl, then?” Rose said mildly.

 "No!" Amethyst said, too loudly. "I'm just wondering why you're asking me why I'm at school...? I'm here because you sent an email to your class about the session and I don't know? I felt I'd be welcome to attend, man."

 “You are, of course,” Rose said, “but you’re not the kind of person to turn up to these usually. I’m – not judging, just surprised. And I’m not sure what you’re expecting from this.”

 Amethyst swallowed. "Maybe I'm changing my ways and just wanna study. The first exam is pretty soon - what, like a month away?"

 Rose frowned.

“It’s next week,” she said. “Don’t you know when your exams are?”

 Amethyst swallowed. "Oh." She looked around flustered. "Must've read it wrong. Oh no."

 “You have a schedule of the exams, right? ...wait, you live with Aurora. She probably knows better than you,” Rose said with a soft sigh. “Anyway. Is there anything you want me to help you with?”

 Yeah, you could stop talking to Pearl forever. "Weren't we gonna go through PowerPoint stuff?"

 “Well, yes. But since it’s just you at the moment, why don’t we focus on some of your specific problem areas?”

 You mean all of it? "Sure. I guess I'll... Do some questions and then you can take a look?" Her voice cracked.

 “Your coursework hasn’t been too great this past year,” Rose said. “What are the areas you feel confident about?”

 Amethyst swallowed. "I liked the courtship behaviour stuff, I guess. It was interesting."

 “Could you write an essay on it?”

 "Right now?"

 “I mean, theoretically.” Rose smiled. “How well do you think you’d do if there was a question on that in the exam?”

 Amethyst shrugged, getting frustrated with the barrage of questions. "Okay, I guess? Who knows if it'll come up at all, though."

 “Well, that’s why you need to be prepared,” Rose said. She took a few example questions off her desk. “Have a look at these.”

 Amethyst sighed and got up to take a look. Her lip curled a she read them. "Looks fun."

 “Think you can do them?”

 Amy's gaze fell to the ground. "I'll give it a shot."

 “I can help you with them, if you’d like,” Rose offered. “Talk you through the different parts of the questions and how to answer them best.”

 Surprisingly, Amethyst agreed. "Alright. We can do that."

 “Alright.” Rose came over and pulled up a chair, like she had done with Pearl before. “Mind if I sit here?” she asked.

 Amy watched her, an odd suspicion on her face. "Okay."

 Rose caught it. “Something wrong?”

 "Nah." Amethyst looked away, avoiding eye contact. "Let's just get on with it."

 The door opened. "Back!" Pearl exclaimed before looking at the two. "If you're busy, I can crack on with a few more textbook bits?"

 “Sure, Pearl,” Rose said, smiling at her. “I’m helping Ameth- Amy with some questions.”

 Pearl nodded and sat back at her chair. Amy frowned, this wasn't what she wanted to do at all, but perhaps it was what she deserved.

She looked at Rose for a minute. She was only there to help. Amethyst scratched the back of her head as she attempted to sound less aloof. "I tend to suck at just figuring out what I wanna say, especially for the shorter questions. It's, uh, probably because I don't know enough."

 Rose beamed at her. “Well, knowing where you have gaps in your knowledge is the first step to filling those gaps!” she said. “And we have about a week to get you up to speed. I’ve met people who crammed for their finals in less time than that and got decent grades. Here, let’s start with this question.”

 --

 Pearl and Amethyst had left (together), and Rose was tidying up. She didn’t really expect to run into anyone as she took her bag and prepared to head home.

However, as she went past the Principal’s office, she heard Marigold’s voice. She couldn’t help but listen, her step slowing down minutely.

“...yes, okay. No leads yet?” It sounded like she was on the phone. A sigh. “You know, I feel like if Roxy was here –“

An icy shiver went down Rose’s spine. She’d managed to forget that Marigold and Roxy had known each other. But of course.

“No, of course not, I haven’t heard from her in years,” Marigold said.

Rose blushed, realising she was probably listening in to a private conversation. Regardless of how she felt about Marigold or Roxy... one didn’t just do that.

She hurried along, trying to put the thought out of her mind.

> Act VI, Chapter VI