#O wizard cat to be in your presence“

[aerequets]

IM OBSESSED WITH THIS WIZARD CAT GUYS PLEASE OMG

[wufflesvetinari]

ok here is a 1k-word preview of Astarion Holiday Son-in-Law Simulator (it will be choose-your-own-adventure once complete and posted to my ao3)

-

You are ULDER RAVENGARD. 

You have safeguarded your city against dragon cultists, Bhaalist incursions, the many-headed hydra of organized crime, and—not a year past—the absurdly apocalyptic attack of the ELDER BRAIN. You withstood the fall of Elturel; survived the Absolute’s parasitic presence in your very soul.

Your maids are fucking giggling at you. 

They flit from room to room, hanging the holly garlands and blown glass baubles traditional of the upcoming MIDWINTER festivities. They paint red stripes on wooden Canes of Frost to symbolize the aging of the year. They pose an effigy of Hroth’s surprisingly jolly and generous servant Saint Claw on the upper landing, a nod to the coming month of Alturiak, known as the Claw of Winter. 

It’s the kind of exquisite holiday detailing expected of Ravengard Manor, home of current Grand Duke WYLL RAVENGARD. Soon to host Baldur’s Gate prestigious MIDWINTER’S EVE BALL. 

But you are ULDER RAVENGARD, and the maids whisper behind their hands when you pass.

Surely this is ASTARION’s doing.

Your son is completely besotted with his fiance, but you can’t figure out the appeal. And the feeling appears mutual: the lad’s taken an inexplicable disliking to you.

Certainly not due to any action of your own.

He communicates to you chiefly in cutting remarks or cheerful anecdotes about killing people. He makes no effort to hide his fangs when lounging about the formal events you host, and he said something deeply heinous about Lady Gemilia’s parrot mere moments before you would have clinched her financial support for the Fist’s new armory. 

He’s spoiled, and petty, and seems chiefly concerned with draining the Ravengard coffers. You are, frankly, at your wit’s fucking end.

You corner a butler about the giggling servants and he mumbles something about the Duke-Consort-To-Be’s generosity with the staff: with the contents of the Ravengard wine cellars, but also—more importantly—with idle gossip. 

With stories gleaned from the new Grand Duke about his father’s youthful indiscretions. Something about the Blushing Mermaid, a monk, and a redcap. 

This cannot stand.

But you are a mature adult—a politician!—who can control his wrathful urges. Surely Astarion can be brought to heel if approached with respect and an open mind. 

Or perhaps it would be wiser to approach Wyll with your concerns. Astarion would certainly accept correction from his fiance.

>DISCUSS YOUR CONCERNS WITH ASTARION LIKE A MATURE ADULT POLITICIAN

>DISCUSS YOUR CONCERNS WITH WYLL LIKE A MATURE ADULT POLITICIAN

***

>DISCUSS YOUR CONCERNS WITH ASTARION LIKE A MATURE ADULT POLITICIAN

You seek out your future son-in-law after evening falls. He’s lounging about in the darkened greenhouse, sharing a bottle of wine with SNIDE-WHITE-BRAID. 

Snide-White-Braid is one of Wyll’s little friends from that time he saved Baldur’s Gate and also the world. You do not remember her name, but she is frequently in your house drinking your wine. She is either the cleric or the wizard, and you are terrified of having a full conversation with her in case you guess wrong.

Tactically, you ignore her. 

“Ah, Astarion!” you say, as though you frequently visit your greenhouse at night and have only caught him here by chance. “I was hoping to have a word.”

“You were,” Astarion says lightly. He stretches out like a cat on the—you believe the contraption is called a lawn chair, and he had it shipped in from Waterdeep at full expense. He blinks at you languidly. “Well, go on, then.”

You glance at Snide-White-Braid, who raises a dark eyebrow at you. 

“Alone?” you try.

Astarion sighs, a perfect picture of put-upon luxury, and Snide-White-Braid hums in a distinctly judgemental way before leaving the greenhouse. She takes the wine bottle with her. It is, of course, one of the good years. You will not see it again.

Business-like, you sit on the lawn chair beside him. You pick a disarming opening gambit. “Astarion, I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot.”

“The wrong foot?” Astarion says, pressing an offended hand to his chest. “Whatever do you mean, father dearest?”

You fight back a full-body shudder. “Don’t—please don’t call me that.”

Astarion shrugs and sips his wine. He continues to recline, leaving you looking awkward and stiff in comparison. 

“I mean that we are very different people,” you try valiantly. “And I can respect difference. Wyll clearly cares about you—”

“Of course he does!” Astarion flutters his eyelashes, and you grow distinctly uneasy. “And he cares so much about you, as well. Even after…well, you know. All that unpleasantness between the two of you.”

“Er,” you say eloquently, your unease only growing. “Yes.” 

“So of course, I have to play nice,” Astarion says, grinning over his glass. “You needn’t fear any aggression from me. Why, I’m just happy to call you family.”

You flounder. “That’s…good to hear? Perhaps, then, we could discuss some smaller matters of—”

“By the way,” Astarion says silkily, placing his glass on the greenhouse floor. “Ser Augustus won’t be coming to the MIDWINTER’S EVE BALL after all. His invitation got mixed up in the mail somehow—instead he received the rather scathing meeting minutes from the Planning Council’s discussion of his budget indiscretions.”

Astarion covers his mouth with his hand, the picture of scandalized. 

You breathe deeply. He’s trying to bait you, the gods know why. But for Wyll’s sake—for your own dignity—you can’t let him.

“The MIDWINTER’S EVE BALL is an important political event,” you tell him calmly. “For Wyll especially, as the new Grand Duke. Ser Augustus’s presence would have been a boon to him.”

“Or at least to the Flaming Fists’ new armory fund,” Astarion says, examining his nails. “Pity.” 

You grit your teeth. “Anything else you’d like to tell me?”

“I’ve changed the main course to venison.”

“Venison? I—Astarion, I am organizing this event. On my son’s behalf.”

“And your son,” Astarion says, his eyes flashing, “prefers venison.”

Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Don’t give into his petty games. Don’t let him drag you down into some insane secret war. 

“Be that as it may, venison is a commoner’s dish. I can provide better for him.”

Astarion looks at you coolly. He reaches down to run a finger over the rim of his wine glass.

“Can you?” he says.

He’s not talking about the venison anymore. This is abundantly clear. You see the distaste in his eyes—the dismissal—and embarrassment washes through you.

It’s quickly replaced by rage. How dare he judge your mistakes, when anyone can see that Astarion is a mistake Wyll is in the midst of making? It’s a father’s duty to correct mistakes.

The INSANE SECRET WAR is declared without a word between you.

You lean forward in your chair, eyes alight. “It’s good that we’re getting along so well, for Wyll’s sake. I’d hate for him to sense any discord between us.”

“Quite,” Astarion agrees with a smile. “That sweet man has enough on his mind. You have my word he will never notice an inkling of a problem.” 

“Then we are agreed,” you say.

The TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT are set. Wyll will never learn of the SECRET WAR. The war that, on your honor, Astarion will lose.

Your honor levels are not inconsiderable.

[daydream-believin]

EVERYDAY IS VALENTINE’S WITH YOU BABY

SUMMARY: let’s go dancin’ with doux for valentine’s day

A/N: lipstick and skirts and being cute are gender neutral. fight me. also o///o

TAGLIST: @moppetwithamanbun @alovesongshewrote @blixeon @prismarts @transformers-insanity @fantasyiswaybetterthanreality @ukuleles-and-roses @rookiedookselfship @faraum

You smeared your lipstick on. Tonight’s a good night to make cute little kiss marks on your beloved’s face. You checked your teeth in the mirror. No stray lipstick on your pearly whites, good to go. You did a little pivot in the mirror, you felt pretty cute. And feeling pretty cute was essential for getting a little extra confidence. Tonight was gonna be a good night.

You heard footsteps come down the hallway. Doux must have just closed up shop. He leaned in the doorway of the restroom like a cat stretching. You watched him in the mirror, pretending not to notice his presence, or him checking you out.

“I need to finish up a few things right quick and then we’ll go, love.”

“Can’t wait,” you grinned.

And with that, douxie bid you adieu, off to go do those bookstore business things. Or wizard business things. You were never really sure with him.

After he left, you fought back a squeal. Damn you really couldn’t stop smiling. You couldn’t help it, you were just so happy! It’s the first time you’ve ever really had a Valentine’s date and it’s with Doux and life was just very sweet to you right now. You could smell the sugar in the air. So sweet.

You shook your head in an effort to snap yourself out of it, before leaving the restroom in favor of the living area. Douxie was putting something in an envelope, standing at the table. His pink tongue licked along the envelope to seal it and you wondered if he’d taste like glue.

You came up beside him, pulling his face over to yours. Douxie dropped the envelope, choosing to instead occupy his hands by placing them on your hips. He did taste like glue.

Pulling apart from you, Douxie rasped, “Have I told you I loved you today?”

You pretended to ponder the notion, “Hmmm, maybe,” you gave him another peck, “but it’s always better safe than sorry. Why don’t you tell me again?”

Douxie smiled, “I Love You~”

“I Love You, Babe~ Woah—!”

Doux dipped you into another kiss, quite literally sweeping you off your feet. You wrapped your arms around his neck, for support and for fitting closer into his embrace. He ended it way to soon for your liking. You pouted as he helped you back onto your feet.

Douxie checked a watch he didn’t wear, “This is very fun my darling, but we need to go.” he tapped the imaginary watch, “We don’t need to accidentally spend another date night snogging in our living room.”

“Alright, let me grab my sweater. I understand we’ve become recluses.”

“People are asking where we’ve been, Y/n!” Douxie teased.

He didn’t notice but he was already wearing your color too. So he made no effort in wiping it off. You were matching.

•••

The dance club was packed, but that’s to be expected on a holiday like this. The place was like a buzzing beehive. You know, cause bees dance to communicate. Everyone was movin’ everyone was grovin’ baby.

Y’all saw some of Douxie’s friends and greeted them. Two punks like most of Douxie’s friends you’ve met, but one very pink lolita girl. They told you that they were here celebrating “galentine’s day.” Marvelous. You loved their vibes. The pink girl you’ve decided must be part fairy told you that your eyes were pretty, like glistening gemstones. The dreamy way she said it made you inclined to believe her.

Saying goodbye to the gals, y’all made your way over to the dance floor. Douxie took your hand. He pressed a kiss to your forehead before placing his other hand on you hip. You couldn’t make out the words the band was singing, only able to hear the music. Whatever it was, it was lovely.

You swayed together in a way that only be described as a really messy foxtrot. Neither of you could be called the best dancer, sometimes you even accidentally stepped on each other’s toes, but you loved to dance together. That’s what made it romantic, the sloppiness.

Douxie leant down to place a chaste kiss on your lips before spinning you. You skirt flared out as you spun. frankly, that was the best part of wearing a skirt, the fluttering. You giggled as Douxie pulled you back into him. His smile was radiant, and damn, you could almost see the hearts in his eyes.

You had never felt so treasured before. A blush heated your face just thinking about how much he loved you and how much you loved him and boy. is it hot in here?

His hand felt so gentle on your back. You pulled the hand that was intertwined with yours to your lips. It was right there of course you had to kiss it. The color of your lipstick marked his skin. He stumbled right then, stepping on your foot.

“I am so sorry, darling!” he pleaded.

“It’s okay babe,” you laughed it off.

You didn’t blame him. It was your fault really. You distracted him.

The band started playing a slower song. Y’all got closer. As y’all slowly swayed to the melody, you rested your head on Douxie’s shoulder. You could here him humming along. He must know this song, you thought.

You pressed a kiss to his temple. He made a cute little noise in the back of his throat. Smiling to yourself, you took the time to savor this moment. His chest was pressed so close to yours you could feel each other’s heartbeats. It was sweet. The music, the dancing, your partner. The other people might as well not be there.

“Hey dewdrop,”

“Mmmm?”

“Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Douxie stayed silent. You softly looked back up at his face. He was staring into space, right above your head, incredulously.

“It is February 14, innit?” you quirked your brows up at his mystified tone, “oh dear, that explains why there’s so many people here.”

“Doux!” you bust out into laughter.

“I hadn’t realized,” he scratched the back of his neck, “somehow,”

“And here I was thinking you were so suave,” you teased.

“If it’s any consolation, I didn’t notice because everyday feels like Valentine’s when I spend it with you, Y/n.”

You planted one on him as passionate as you could get in a public place. Douxie stumbled a bit. Your tongue slipped past his, giving you butterflies. Douxie parted from you with a gasp.

“I— uh,” Doux cleared his throat, “may be tired of dancing already.” he tried to be nonchalant.

“There is a bottle of wine I was saving for tonight in the kitchen,— woah!—“

He spun you one last time, “Sounds like the natural end to our evening then.”

[twisted-imagines]

Sup! Can you write headcannons about silver and a s/o with insomnia if you’re not busy?

Yay! First requests! Hehe I'm happy~

A small scenario and general headcanons are coming your way, precisely because I have a lot of free time right now~ There's not much information on Silver right now, but I tried my best. Thank you veeery much for requesting, I hope I was able to write this piece to your liking. Please enjoy!❤ (You can also send me anonymous asks now, in case any of you feel more comfortable that way.)

Silver and a s/o with insomnia

There it was again. Your mind was buzzing with thoughts like a beehive again, despite your body being near it's limits after the long day. Even though your eyes were hurting as if they were thrown at least a kilo of sand at, you still couldn't close them and rest. Instead you were looking at the face of your dear boyfriend, quietly sleeping beside you. You spent your free day together, mindlessly walking through the college grounds, eating at cafeteria, watching birds at the square, listening their joyous songs and just enjoying each other's company. It was a perfect date, you couldn't help but smile a little remembering it and how Silver almost fell asleep several times. You used to be offended, it made you question whether you were that boring, but with time you learned that there was nothing malicious behind it and started to admire this trait of his.

Maybe you were even a tad bit jealous of it, as you lay in the bed in his room, where he invited you to absentmindedly at the end of the day. He didn't lie, about how he wouldn't attempt anything, falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillows, which left only you wide awake and unable to sleep.

Silver was very pretty like that, you had to note: his chest was rising in steady rhythm; soft lips, you kissed them today plenty of times, permitted only the quietest of snores out; his face completely relaxed. If you didn't know better you would think a silverhaired angel was sleeping near you. Your restless mind grew quiet just a bit observing Silver, but that wasn't satisfying at all, not if you wanted to get up to your classes tomorrow. You signed crestfallen, and shifted for ninth time that night to try and find a better pose, that would hopefully allow you to sleep.

Maybe it was the sound of your distress, the movements on the bed or his own intuition, but Silver woke up from his dreams to see you frowning and fidgeting, clearly not sleeping at all.

"Hey, [Name], are you asleep? "

His voice was nothing more than a whisper, but your eyes snapped open instantly, and that's when he knew something was wrong. Still groggy from waking up at the middle of the night, the boy moved closer to you, his hands slowly hugging you to his chest. You felt a warm peck on your forehead.

"Why 'r u 'wake? Nightmare?"

His words were slurred, said in a sigh, but they held comfort and care like none other.

"Can't fall asleep. I have nights like that often."

Your own words sounded harshly to your ears, not like your boyfriend's feather light questions, who grunted in response to let you know that he heard what you said. For a few moments there was a complete silence, and you, somewhat sadly, thought that he had fallen asleep once again, but instead Silver rose up together with you. You could see how he was struggling to chase away the sleep and it definitely didn't sit right with you.

"What are you doing?! If you wake up right now, you may not fall asleep later!"

You whisper scolded him, since it was not in your plans to make one more person suffer from lack of sleep that night.

"Heh, believe me, that's the least likely to happen with me of all people. "

With you in his firm, but gentle grip, Silver sat on the bed and looked curiously at the clock on his nightstand.

"Wow, it's already so late... Early? If you hadn't fallen asleep by now, remaining in the bed won't help. Let's go~"

The boy yawned before getting up and taking his coat from the chair. To your unvoiced question "Where to?" he replied:

"Outside. I remember reading it from somewhere, that a walk and fresh air can help sometimes. Come on, give me your hand."

The warmth of his hand encompassing yours, and his caring worlds nearly made you, so tired and frustrated, cry, but you followed his lead out of the room and to the hallway.

It was considerably colder there; not enough to make you freeze, just to freshen up a little, not to mention the cozy coat that Silver has thrown on your shoulders when you exited his room. The Diasomnia dorm was a different sight at night, still as solemn and majestic, with mysterious atmosphere, but the magic curling at the empty corridors, crawling on the floors, slipping around the corners, evading the green light of magical lanterns was almost palpable. Were you alone, you would scramble back to the room, the oppressing aura of the dorm was too much for you, and that meant something coming from the person, who lived in the infamous Ramshackle dorm. But with Silver at your side, your hand in his, you felt more at peace, not as fearful of descending further into the darkness of Diasomnia hallways.

When the boy stopped walking and moved to open the window, you understood where you had been led to it. It was a spacious balcony in one of the towers. It had a spectacular view, allowing you to take in the image of dorm grounds at night.

You could never imagine it to be so grandiose under the moonlight. The scenery looked straight out of a fairy tale. You neared the window in awe, your tiredness and bad mood were taken away with the heavy blow of wind. You shivered a little, but soon felt warm hands embrace you from behind. Silver's torso was against your back, and his chin was resting on your shoulder. He didn't say a word, most likely slowly falling asleep, just like he always did when he peacefully held you in his arms. You were his haven, a person who brought peace to his heart no matter what, with whom he could always feel himself comfortable and relaxed and he genuinely wanted for you to experience it too.

"Does it happen very often?"

His question was nearly carried away with the wind, before you heard it thought the state of serenity you were currently in. A deep sigh escaped you.

"Almost every night. Even if I fall asleep fast, I wake up at night and just wait for the morning, it's impossible to return to sleep. It's very tiring..."

It pained him to no end to see you so distressed, he couldn't bear to see his loved one hurt. He asked you a few other questions, determined to pry more details.

He made a resolution to learn more about the ways he could help you, maybe about remedies not traditional to you, especially in the field of magic. If he, a wizard from the Diasomnia, couldn't help you, surely an immense mistake was made in the dormitory's description, and it didn't hold the most proficient at magic personalities. Silver hugged you even closer placing a kiss to your temple. His voice was like a lullaby in your ear.

"When you're in pain, or struggling with something, I want to know about it. So, please, from now on, tell me about it, okay? I want to help you in any way I can. I'm your boyfriend after all."

His last replica embarrassed you to no end, even more than the following kiss to your cheek. So cheesy, yet so sweet, you didn't manage to keep yourself from laughing out loud. Compared to how nonchalant he sounded before, you could hear how bashful Silver became right away. You wanted to see his face so bad at the moment, but he prevented you from turning around, tightening his grip even more.

"Suddenly laughing like that...Was it so funny to you? Geez..."

A thud at your shoulder inspired an even funnier picture in your mind of a white cat burying it's head in it's paws. Nobody said anything anymore, relishing in the presence of the other. Calming melody of the wind and Silver's warmth started to lull you bit by bit. Your eyelids became just a bit heavier, mind pleasantly silent for a change.

"Think you can rest now? Not like you have left a lot of time, but it's better than nothing."

You heard Silver's voice and nodded. One way or another, tomorrow will be a hard day for you, but this impromptu walk improved your mood quite a bit.

"Sure. Let's head back. But before that-"

Silver, who was half-asleep at that point could only smile at the feeling of your lips on his.

"Thank you, Silver."

The boy in question only grumbled, before his weight started to slowly slide down on you.

• No need to mention, how exhausted you were, after Silver refused to wake up at any cost and you had to drag him back to his bed. You fell asleep from the complete lack of energy that night, and while it was not what Silver intended, you were able to survive at least to the end of morning classes.

• The boy himself was present at his own classes only on physical level, though nobody was surprised enough by that sight to question what he was doing at night. Gladly, he recovered enough energy to spend it on something he swore to do last night - learn more about your insomnia.

• He browses through books, internet resources and goes as far as asking Malleus and Lilia about the ways he can help you.

• While he does gain a lot of useful(and a few misleading ones from Lilia) advices, he still integrates some classic habits to his routine with you: he prepares beverages like hot cocoa or milk for you, cuddles and massages you when you stay at his room.

• He doesn't mind you shifting in bed or causing some noise when you sleep together, but he's also not best at keeping you company at night time, even if he sincerely wants to sometimes.

•He tries to help you with your studies as much as he can, searching for his old notes or revising the material together with you. Though it sometimes leads to you reading and explaining your exam themes to a completely clocked out Silver... You don't hold it against him.

• While he's your complete opposite in sleeping routine, he's very sympathetic and worries about you. Silver is completely understanding of how you may not have energy for anything at times, your health takes priority to him.

• If he notices your insomnia getting worse he won't shy away from using the spells Malleus shared with him. As long as it's of any benefit to you, he's not going to withhold it. But those are still drastic measures, and he discusses it with you prior.

• Being the one awake most of the time, you help him to stay conscious at crucial moments, and search for him, when you suspect that he has fallen asleep somewhere he shouldn't and he's thankful for that.

[ren-c-leyn]

The Hero’s Guardian

 Hello, hello, another fusion story for you guys. I don’t think I’m actually making a whole lot of progress in cleaning out my drafts, as I add just as many new and amazing prompts as I use (sometimes more) but I’m having fun trying.

 This one is made up of this prompt by @p-r-o-m-p-t-s, this prompt by @write-it-motherfuckers, this prompt by @soprompt, these 1,2 by @humdrummoloch, these 1,2,3,4,5,6 by @thependragonwritersguild, this prompt by @scandy-inspo, these 1,2,3,4 by @givethispromptatry, and finally, this prompt by @promptslair.

 A similar premise to my other short story, Flowers for the Hero Maker, but I love the trapped, immortal guardian trope every since I played final fantasy 2, at least I think it was number two with the guy and the word labyrinth. *shrugs* 

 There is quite a bit more swearing than what is normally found in my short stories. Some mention of injuries, and one fight scene. Nothing gory, though.

~

 A boy with orange eyes crossed my path, and the world began to change. Not just mine, but the entire thing. It was so long ago, such a different time. I don’t even recall much of it, only the reassured smile on his face and the hard lesson that came after: Choices evaporate in the presence of fate. 

 It was a harsh one that came from my elder sisters. I remember they were all doing their own tasks, mixing medicines and making things. It was... so beautiful to watch. It seemed almost like magic. How silly, how naive, but it brought me happiness. I remember, the day after I told them about the boy with orange eyes, I just opened my mouth and said what had been on my mind for years.

 “I want to be like you when I grow up!”

 “… No, sweetheart.” My sisters glanced at each other before turning back to me. “What we do is not important. You will be important.”

 “You’re important to me.”

 “And thank the gods everyday for you. You will be better than us.”

 I didn’t understand, couldn’t understand. What was more important than them? Than the smiling faces they made? Than the people they mended? The priestess told me. The priestess told me many things, including my fate... a fate she used magic to bind me to.

 Before a statue of the orange-eyed boy, she made me swear an oath I couldn’t comprehend. She made a child swear away their life, and I did it because my sisters smiled and nodded. I swore to guard the Forest of Fate... for all of eternity. Oaths mean something around here, even for those who don’t understand what they mean.

  I was blinded by the white light. Everyone was blinded by the white light. The white light that gave and stole everything from me.... The light that bound me to this forest, for the rest of time.

 Several heroes later, and it was just another day, another chosen one. Only, this one was not particularly promising....

 I looked up and down his scrawny frame, the old sword in it’s tattered scabbard, the soft hands, and smirk, and all I felt was simmering annoyance.

 Fate was doing this on purpose, the ass.

 “So, guardian, what’s my trial? The grand fight before I get my legendary weapon to slay the wizard with as my destiny demands?”

 “Your destiny?” I threw my head back and laughed. “You don’t seem to know how Fate works. Should you fail, he’ll replace you. He always does.”

 The young man frowned, his dark brown brows furrowing as he straightened himself.

 “I won’t fail.”

 My laughter ceased. He said the words with such conviction I almost wanted to believe him. Almost. But I knew better.

 “We shall see,” I said, pulling my eldest sister’s jewelry box from my pouch, “for your first trial lies within this.”

 He tilted his head, like a confused pup.

 “What monster fits in such a tiny box?”

 I undid the latch, allowing the slime to bounce out of the box. The young man’s confused expression turned to offence.

 “A slime? They’re weak enough children can beat them!”

 “We shall see.”

 I snapped my fingers and the deceptively quick blob of green ooze flew at him, hitting him squarely in the abdomen. No defensive skills, noted. He slashed at it with all of the grace of a drunken horse. No sword training, noted. He then attempted to chase it down as it rolled around the circle. Average speed, noted. By the time he succeeded in defeating my trusted friend, he was winded and displayed nothing remarkable aside from his tenacity. A bonus, I suppose.

 “You are not worthy.”

 “I am chosen! Of course I’m worthy!”

 “It simply means you have more potential to be worthy than the average citizen.” Fate only fucking knows why. “But as of this moment, you are incapable of wielding the weapons and magics I guard. You are far more likely to hurt yourself or innocents.”

 “How can you be so sure?” he pressed.

 “Do keep in mind that I was here before you, and will be here long after you’re gone. I have seen many come and many go. I know what happens when the unproven attempt to handle what I guard, and like it or not, you’re one of them. Become a man of consequence, and we’ll have this conversation again.”

 He huffed.

 “And how do I do that?”

 I gestured to the forest.

 “There’s plenty of monsters to train with. All as, if not more, ancient as myself and just as dedicated to fucking up chosen ones as I am to guarding the place.”

 He paused at that.

 “But... if it’s full of monsters, what are you guarding this place from?”

 “People, mostly, sometimes evil deitys, but that’s really none of your concern. Now either go train, or relinquish your title. I may have eternity, but I assume the normal people you’re tasked with saving do not.”

 He frowned as he scrubbed the slime off his face with a handkerchief. 

 “Where do you suggest I start?”

 “The clearing to the west. Stay away from the lake and the mountainous areas. Oh, and if you see a cave, avoid that too.”

 “Fine. I’ll be back.”

 And then he stormed off.

 About three days later, while I was going through my daily training, the bushes began to rattle. I prepared myself for battle, watching them closely. Only, instead of raiders or servants of the god of destruction, the skinny guy from earlier crawled out and collapsed onto the stones, breathing hard.

 There was a long moment of silence before I sighed and continued going through my stances and strikes.

 “Why are there so many scratches on your face?”

 “There was a weird cat with like... five tails, and they had spikes on them....”

 “So you decided to challenge it. Smart.”

 He sat up, glaring at me.

 “You don’t have to be so gods’ damned sarcastic about it! I didn’t know what the fuck it was! And you haven’t been a whole lot of help....”

 I couldn’t help but laugh.

 “You can thank Fate for that. He decided to deal the creatures here strange cards so adventurers wouldn’t, and I quote, ;get bored’. He also forbid me from teaching chosen ones about the monsters here.”

 He stared at me like a kicked puppy.

 “But... but why would...? That doesn’t make sense.”

 “Welcome to my world. Though, I suspect it may have more to do with training them to discern weaknesses and tactics of enemies for themselves, in case something unpredictable happens.”

 He mulled it over for a second before nodding.

 “That does make a lot more sense than the boredom thing.... But what’s the point of choosing people if they’re allowed to just die here in the middle of some forest?”

 I paused at that, movements and all. I couldn’t help but think back to that day, the day I was led to this place and made my oath.

 “I’m not sure there is much of a point.”

 He tilted his head at that, but I did not elaborate as I swung my blade with more force than what was needed.

 I’m not sure when he left, hours or minutes ago, but it mattered little. I spent the night, and the next few days alone again. He came back eventually, covered in scabs, bruises, dirt, various bloods, and leaves.

 “... There is a stream.”

 “I know, This is just what I collected between here and there....”

 I shook my head, laughing lightly.

 “The forest feels threatened. That is a good sign.”

 “It is?!” he asked, brown eyes lighting up in hope.

 “It is,” I said with a nod, “but you’re still not ready.”

 He sighed, shoulders drooping. 

 “Well... at least I’m making progress?”

 “You are,” I agreed, continuing my training.

 “So... I’ve been wondering something, since well, even before we met. How did you become the guardian of this place?”

 I didn’t answer, choosing to focus on my breathing and my movements.

 “I mean, everyone says you were a human once, and not a divine creature.... So, what happened?”

 I sighed, lowering the blade as I looked over at him.

 “Once upon a time, I was a plucky, young kid going about my day, then shit happened and now we’re here.” 

 “Touching story,” he replied with a flat sarcasm that probably matched what I gave him at news of his fight with the cat-creature.

 I shrugged before resuming my practice.

 “Not all tales are. Besides, mine isn’t the important one here.”

 He blinked at that.

 “And what makes you say that?”

 “Because I’m not the hero.”

 There was a long silence as he just sat there, staring at me with wide eyes and a disbelieving stare.

 “But... but you’ve fought monsters, and evil deities....”

 “Their minions, mostly, but yes.”

 “You’ve christened all of the mightiest heroes.”

 “After they passed their tests, yes.”

 “You’ve served Fate for...” he paused, as if he was searching his memory for the number, “a... a really long time.”

 “Doesn’t make me the hero, just makes me a guardian.”

 He gave me that kicked puppy stare.

 “How can you not be?”

 “No one praises a guard dog for doing it’s job, and that’s basically what I am. I’m just doing what the oath compels me to. Nothing more, nothing less. I save no one, I really don’t help anyone, either. I’m just here, running at the end of my leash, growling and snarling at all whom aren’t my master.”

 “Oh... is that why you were an ass when we met?”

 I glared at him.

 “No, that was because someone who couldn’t even beat Squishy thought he could just show up and have a legendary weapon of unfathomable power.”

 He winced and then tilted his head.

 “Wait... Squishy?”

 “The slime, it’s name is Squishy. I gave it to it when it first decided to make it’s home in the box.”

 The color drained from his face.

 “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to kill your pet!”

 I nearly fell over laughing, which stopped the sputtered stream of apologies and something about a funeral.

 “No, no, no, you didn’t kill Squishy. Fate granted Squishy special... abilities, as a reward for my service. He does something... kinda nice once every hundred years or so for me.”

 He stared at me.

 “So... it wasn’t a normal slime?”

 “It is in all things except it’s immortality.”

 “Oh... Damn, I was hoping it was a super slime.”

 I laughed again.

 And so the routine continued. He’d survive in the wilds for a few days before coming to visit for a few hours, sometimes mimicking my movements when conversations and laughter were over. Then, he’d vanish again. That is, until I got a terrible feeling.

 A flock of birds scattered far to the south, the way towards the lake, and a pit formed in my stomach. That dumbass wouldn’t... would he? I thought about it for a minute before recalling his previous encounters and grimacing. He would. He most certainly would.

 For the first time in many years, I left the stoned area, rushing down a distantly familiar trail towards the lake. Screeches and deep roars pushed me to move faster and faster, until I stumbled into a clearing, just in time to see him fall. Behind him was a water dragon. Thankfully, a young one. It looked hurt, but not nearly as much as he did, and it looked much angrier than him as well.

 Before I could even put any thought into it, my body was in between the two, and the creature was bearing down on me.

 “No! Guardian!”

 The shouted barely registered in my mind as I ducked out of the way of raking claws and rolled to the underbelly. My blade sought out the grooves between the stomach plates and dug in as far as it could, biting at flesh and tearing at muscle. The dragon screeched loud enough to nearly deafen me. All I could hear was a ringing in my ears. It could have been disorienting had I not fought under such conditions a hundred or more times before.

 I cut again, my own fierce shouts a distant echo in my ears. Again and again I sliced, moving with the beast to keep myself from being trampled or squished. The deadly dance did not end until the creature was on the ground, breathing it’s last.

 With a dull click, I slid the sword into it’s sheath and moved towards him. He stared back at me through big, brown eyes. Without warning, I pulled him back up to his feet.

 “I told you.” I sighed as she shifted his arm around my shoulders to support him. “I told you.”

“Hey, can you not yell at me when I’m actively in pain?” He whimpered when the movement irritated his probably cracked ribs.

“No! You were a stupid shit and I’m going to tell that directly to your fucking face! Why do you do these things?!”

 “To impress you.”

 “You know what would impress me at this point?! You staying out of danger for twenty-four hours! No barbed-tail cats, no slimes, no DRAGONS, just a day without bruises.”

 He smirked at me.

 “Is that what it’d take to become a man of consequence?”

 I smacked him upside the head.

 “No, but it’ll help keep you alive long enough to become one. Seriously, recklessness won’t help anyone. Think of the people. They’re waiting on you to save them. You can’t do that if you’re dead.”

 “But... I can’t just hide and hope it goes away, either.”

 “No, you can’t, but you can learn to pick battles you can win.”

 He went silent for a while.

 “Do... do you think the fight with the wizard is a battle I can win?”

 I thought about it for the rest of the way back to the stones. He sighed just before we got there.

 “No, huh? I guess you’re right....”

 “You can.”

 His head snapped around to look at me.

 “And once you’re healed up, I’ll show you how.”

 “But I... I thought you weren’t allowed too....”

 “Teach about the animals of this forest, he didn’t say shit about teaching people how to kick evil wizards’ wrinkly asses.”

 I grinned at him, and he smiled back before laughing.

 Using my sisters’ medicines, I was able to get him back to training shape fairly quickly. Thankfully, his ribs weren’t broken, or I may have gotten a different hero. We spent the next few weeks training, with me imparting as much of my years of experience as I could in so little time. And before I knew it, the time had come for his final test.

 “Alright, and now you’re ready to try again.”

 He grinned at me.

 “I’m ready for it. What’s my final test? Squishy? A dragon?”

 “Me.”

 His face fell at that.

 “You? But... I don’t want to fight you.”

 I shrugged.

 “That’s the rule.”

 “But... you’re my friend. I won’t hurt you.”

 I snorted.

 “You can’t hurt me, I’m immortal.”

 He frowned.

 “But that doesn’t mean you can’t feel pain.”

 “Are you going to give up after I actually went to the trouble of saving and training you for the sake of accomplishing your goal?”

 “Well... no, but....”

 “Then fight. You don’t have to hurt me, just defeat me.”

 He glanced around before looking back at me. Eventually, he drew the old sword.

 “Okay... but only because I don’t want to waste your effort.”

 I grinned at him as I drew my own blade.

 “Good.”

 There was a pause, a moment of silence, and then we both burst into action. It was insane how fast he had improved. No other chosen one had learned so fast. Then again, I had never taken any effort to help any of them, nor had they shown an interest in mimicking my own training. Or maybe, maybe this was what Fate saw in him. 

 The clashing of steel rung out through the trees as our feet flew across the ancient stonework. Light flashed off the edges of our swords. Time and time again, the tips of sharpened blades teased at biting into flesh, but always stopped a little short. That is, until there was a horrible snapping sounds, and then the clattering of steel against stone.

 We both stared at the broken sword, laying on the stones, and then we looked at each other.

 “I... I guess I failed?” he said, voice on the verge of cracking.

 I grinned at him.

 “You’re kidding, right? Do you know how much it takes to break a sword? And what it takes not to be crushed beneath my heel like an ant?”

 There was a moment of silence before his eyes lit up with realization.

 “You mean...?”

 “Congratulations, hero.”

 He let out a shout before throwing his arms around me in the biggest hug I had ever gotten. I laughed.

 “Little early to be so excited, yeah? You haven’t even replaced your old sword yet.”

 “Who cares about the weapon! You called me a hero! The guardian thinks I’m a hero!”

 He laughed before finally releasing me, a huge smile on his face.

 I shook my head before leading him back to the lake.

 “Uh... guardian?”

 “Don’t worry, they won’t come.”

 “But...”

 “Just take this.”

 I held out a sword hilt to him.

 He titled his head, but accepted it.

 “So... what do I do with this?”

 “You place the handle in the water. When you withdraw it, picture the weapon you want to hold in your hand. The lake will forge it for you.”

 He paused before doing so. The familiar magic caused the water to glow and bubble, and before long, he was pulling out the most beautiful blade I had ever seen in my life.

 “Good luck breaking that one,’ I teased.

 He snorted.

 “Tell that to the wizard.”

 He paused before shuffling a bit. “Um... thank you, for everything....”

 “You can thank me by kicking that wizard’s ass using the techniques I showed you.”

 He grinned at me.

 “Will do.” There was another pause before he gave me a nod and started walking back up the path. He paused by the trees and looked back at me. “I’ll visit again. Wouldn’t want the guardian to get bored.”

 I laughed.

 “It’s the heroes who aren’t supposed to get bored here.”

 He smiled at me and then disappeared.

 For several years, it was just me and the forest, as it usually was. Still, I couldn’t help but feel a bit hollow. The same as it ever was, but I found myself wanting more again. Laughter and joy. It had been so long since I had them, I didn’t know I missed them until he was gone. My first friend in gods only know how many years, and he was gone. Stupid Fate, fucking destinies. 

 I was grumbling to myself, violently going through my daily routine when a voice called out to me.

 “Uh-oh, don’t tell me that another chosen one is giving you trouble.”

 I spun around so fast I nearly feel over.

 “You’re back! ... And you have flowers?”

 “For you! It’s the fifth year anniversary of when I met you and was attacked by Squishy, so, I thought I’d bring you a present.”

 He held the bouquet out to me, that grin on his face.

 “No ones ever brought me flowers before….”

 “Do you not like them?”

 “….I love them, thank you.” I accepted the flowers from him. “But, I don’t have a present for you....”

 “That’s fine,” he said with an easy smile and a shrug. “Actually, I was hoping to see the super slime again.”

 I grinned mischeviously.

 “Sure.”

 I undid the latch on the box and watched Squishy fly out and onto his face, knocking him to the ground. He swore and floundered around on the stones, shouting about the worst hug ever. I couldn’t stop myself from laughing if I wanted to. Even after he got my dear friend off, I was still giggling.

 He grinned up at me, hair a mess and armor well-slimed.

 “I missed hearing your laugh.”

 “Yeah, well, I missed having something to laugh about.’

[vivienna-vivid]

The masters of Red have no personalities so I made them up.

Feend vor Sembren

Ah yes, Nasuverse!Edgeworth

Strict AF college professor who actually cares about his students. They affectionately call him “Professor Fiend”.

W O R K A H O L I C

A total romantic who loves his wife and son. If only he made a habit of actually coming home…

Did you know this man is 52??? Did you know his son Fezgram is 24???

The only one here who knows how to be a functional member of society.

Pretty heavy smoker, so he has a raspy voice.

Surprisingly, Feenie’s a connoisseur of wine. Kayneth introduced him to a lotta high-end alchohol in their college days.

Yes, he knew Kayneth. They were good friends before Kayneth bit the dust.

I dare you to make vore jokes in front of him. I dare you. You’ll die but at least it’ll be fun.

Listens to a lot of 70s-80s bands. In case you’re wondering, he’s a big fan of Queen and Fleetwood Mac.

Pretty technologically advanced for a mage. His pragmatism towards technology was inspired by a certain gun-wielding magus killer.

Was married into the Vor Sembren family. Since he was born a poor boy, he’s always trying to prove himself.

His parents were Chinese Singaporeans, so he’s fluent in Mandarin.

Feenie’s magecraft focuses on transmutation. With select materials, he can transmute one thing into another. He mainly uses his magecraft to heal wounds and create pseudo organs and flesh.

Has at one point intimidated a person by showing them a transmuted heart and lying that it’s theirs.

His wish for the Grail is… Well, he plans to give the Grail to the Association, so he doesn’t particularly care about the Grail.

It’s to run away from mage society with his family

Rottweil Berzinsky

OH BOY LOOK AT THIS DISASTER.

Australian. Because of that, he has a noice Australian accent.

S H A R P   T E E F S

Man’s been in too much explosions

His Crowley-esque shades hides his lizard eyes.

“If I’m gonna do horrible things, at least I can make them FUN”

Think: Steve Irwin but borderline psychopath.

Is surprisingly good with kids! Rott’s the kinda guy who’d chastise a child for being mean and/or rude, but would teach them how to stab assholes. “Y’see a weird man offering candy from his van. Wha’dya do? Shank ‘im!”

Man’s a natural prankster. He’ll prank E V E R Y O N E and A N Y T H I N G.

Likes: Sunbathing. Hates: Cold weather and winter.

Thinks Gene Rum is a cooooooooooooold bitch with a stick up her arse.

Gene and Rott has some history. Both tend to be employed by the same people.

Rott may be a murderer, but he has standards! No killing children, no harming children, if employer does anything to children he will kill them.

Has killed more employers than actual hit targets.

In the manga, Rott can change into silver lizard form. He doesn’t like changing his form since the more he uses that ability, the more monstrous and mindless he becomes.

Rott is indeed a Chimera, a mage who is able to turn into an animal to some degree. He didn’t become a Chimera from his own volition, so that’s also a reason why he rarely uses his ability.

As a Chimera, he’s gained some lizard perks even in his human form. For starters, his saliva is toxic and has lizard eyes. He also can shed his skin to heal certain wounds. In Chimera form, he’s covered in nigh-indestructible scales.

Rott was an orphan who was adopted by a mage named Zagreus Berzinsky. The man wanted to create mythical beast of yore by forcefully fusing children with all kinds of beasts. Rott was one of those children.

Rott was able to escape with a few kids. Eventually, they made their way to the Clocktower. While he himself never went to school, he 100% made sure his “younger siblings” are enrolled in the Clocktower. It’s for their safety.

His wish for the Grail is for an antidote for Chimeratization. Oh! And to kill off Zagreus too!

Gene (Jean?) Rum

Gene, short for Genevieve. (Or Jean, short for Jeanette)

Straight-laced lipstick lesbian.

Likes books because, unlike people, they’re actually engaging. Nah she’s just a bit awkward and self-conscious.

Grew up reading Shakespeare, Arabian Nights, and Grimm’s Fairy Tales.

Since she’s broken into Ivan the Terrible’s library at least once, I can tell you that she’s a professional lock-picker. Wizard who took a level in Rogue.

Fluent in many languages due to her time abroad.

Favorite Genre: Russian Literature

HAS PUBLISHED HER OWN POETRY BOOK!! Though, it’s under a pseudonym and bringing it up will make her really embarrassed.

Thinks Rottweil is a bITCH-ASS MOTHERFUCKER.

Gene doesn’t care much about the morality of her employers. As long as she gets paid, she won’t stick her nose in her employer’s business.

You’d think she’d have Mystic Eyes what with her chilling side-eye.

Loves puns but you’d be hard-pressed to get her to laugh at one in public.

Finished her education in the Clocktower but chose to lead a life of a mercenary. Her family was… pretty miffed.

Never attends family meetups.

Org Rum is her little brother and his presence turns on her latent Cain instincts.

Do you have your rival family’s documents? Do you want to ruin them by exposing these documents but they’re encrypted? HIRE GENE RUM TODAY!

Gene’s magecraft focuses of aeromancy, the control of wind.

Her most famous technique is the ability to make thread-thin tornado chakrams. Anyone who touches these tordano-wheels will get sliced. If she focuses a bit harder, she can imbue her chakrams with lightning.

She makes those storm-threads with a small buckler-sized spinning wheel she bring along. It’s her mystic code and she’s very protective of it.

Cabik Pentel

The current patriarch of the Pentel Clan, a family of esoteric assassins/mercenary group.

Hardly ever emotes so it’s hard to tell what he’s thinking.

But he’s usually very honest and won’t sugar nor exaggerate his words.

The only reason he’s can understand other people (to a degree) is because his brother is such a good person.

Yeah, Cabik loves his brother very much. And as such, he loves his brother’s twin daughters. He’s somewhat of a cool uncle to them.

Doesn’t quite know how he feels about being patriarch since the clan is awful as all hell. He’s good at being an assassin, so he’ll continue the work in the meantime.

BOY ONLY KNOWS HOW TO KILL PEOPLE HE DOESN’T KNOW HOW TO HUMAN, BLESS HIM.

Proud father of houseplants and a cat

Q: Weren’t you and your brother called “The Gum Brothers” in college?

A: ………………………………………Ah. So you’ve chosen death.

How many daggers does this man have? A LOT

Seriously, you’d think he has a limit to how many daggers he can carry but. No. He just… fucking pops out another pair if the ones he’s using are lost.

His twin knives are called Rahu and Ketu and he loves them very much.

The Pentels specialty magecraft is body modification. Cabik uses this to make his body pliable as fuck.

This bitch can basically make his body have the consistency of a ferret’s.

Need to dodge? Fuckin’ dislocate your spine! Gutted? Move your organs upwards to not make them fall!

Deimlet Pentel

The older brother of the Pentel siblings. Supposed to be the next family patriarch but left that position for his brother.

Big teddy bear man. Big teddy bear wrestler man.

“HAHAHA!! I AM HERE!!” -Deimlet (and totally not All Might)

Divorced man of two daughters. BUT!! HE STILL LOVES HIS EX-WIFE VERY MUCH!!!

“I may want to remarry my ex-wife. Or not, haha……. Unless…;)?”

Stronk dad to stronk daughters. He taught them how to wrestle and….. he’s so proud of them ;’)

MADE OF LITERAL SUNSHINE!! IF YOU SEE THE SUN IN MIDNIGHT, YOU MIGHT BE LOOKING AT DEIM!!

Super protective of his mustache. It’s his magnum opus so do nOT MESS IT UP

Legitimately hates the Pentels, but still loves his baby bro.

Q: Weren’t you and your brother called “The Gum Brothers” in college?

A: What? I didn’t hear you there! Mind *cracks fingers* saying that again?

While he married out of love, his responsibilities as heir-apparent (and assassin) made him incredibly distant to his family. 

When he was tasked to kill his then-wife’s brother’s family, he did so with much hesitation. Because of that, his brother-in-law nearly killed him and ended up dying anyway.

His wife was… not happy, to say the least. That’s why they divorced and she took the kids.

And that’s how he left the family! Killing, as it turns out, sucks ass!!

Good ending tho: he moved to Finland and started tutoring the Edelfelt kids in wrestling.

He’s… actually a masked wrestler there. He’s been on TV a bunch of times!

Joined the HGW mainly to make sure Cabik is doing fine.

Uses his family’s magecraft to super harden his body. 

You can’t gut this man ‘cause he made hIS BODY INTO LITERAL STONE!!

Man is just Indian Alex Louis Armstrong. Thatse it! He cannot change this!

[alma-berry]

Kit’s Secret Fire Message # 12

Masterlist   1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11

The main hall of the London institute was crowded, Ty suspected, in an unusual way. For an institute as nearly vacated as it was, one could expect some enthusiasm from his permanent residents, but even he knew better. He remembered the perpetually sour look on Evelyn Highsmith’s face from when he and his family had stayed here, and from the looks of it, it hadn’t changed. 

Breakfast was a buzz of excitement and chattering voices from his fellow Centurions, mainly thanks to the occurrence of the night before. Kit’s name was mentioned over and over, making Ty’s stomach flip each and every time with its own kind of excitement. Though Kit’s absence was noticed, no one but Ty really expected him to show. Having been injured and visited by the silent brothers, they all seemed convinced he was still resting in his room. Only Ty had heard his music in the smallest hours of the night, pirouetted through the darkness like a wisp of smoke on ice. Only he had read Kit’s words, “It was only you”.

He longed to see him, and feared it. What was he to say? A simple hello seemed so little.. he wanted to feel the warmth of his skin against his, to hear the fastened beating of his heart and to know, most of all, to know beyond a doubt, that he was safe. 

“Blackthorn! By the angel, stop daydreaming and pay attention!” The irritated voice of Carl Lindquist made Ty flinch, and he cursed himself inwardly for losing focus in front of the others. Carl, in particular, would use any excuse he could to scold him. Ty knew what lay behind his petty behavior, he could see the greedy way the centurion looked at him when he thought he didn’t notice.. but he had no idea what he was supposed to do with that information, other than not encourage him.

“We have twenty minutes to get ready and then we head out” Oscar eyed him with a patronizing glare. Ty and the others had agreed they should look the old warehouse for more clues about the meaning of the attack. The thought of leaving without seeing Kit made him feel uneasy, but Ty knew the importance of this investigation, and nodded in agreement as he went towards the main staircase. 

When he climbed the first step, a sound rippled through the air and Ty turned to see a portal shimmering bright in the center of the hall. Not a second later, a large, threatening shape had leaped at him, pinning him to the ground with a low growl. 

“Irene!” Ty called with astonishment, and lifted himself to his knees. He reached out and took her into his arms, running his fingers through the thick, silky fur of the lynx, relishing on the familiar softness of her. From above him, came the stern voice of Catarina Loss.

“Tiberius, I came here on a serious expedition. You see, I would appreciate it if some of my other students will be allowed to keep their limbs intact for the rest of the year, I’m sure you won’t object.” She loomed over him in all of her blue regalia, and gave him that piercing look she always had when she was trying hard not to make comments of other people’s intellect. Naturally, that look wasn’t often directed to Ty.

“Oh, and I promised young Mr. Anush that I would assure you of his relentless attempts to sedate you feline friend, or at least to keep her in your room. But alas, Anush is rather prone to hysteria, as you may know, and he did not take her constant snarling well.. thus, our current presence.” 

Catarina paused for a second, and Ty had a feeling he was expected to make a comment of sorts, but when he hadn’t, she continued.

“Rest assured I will be informing dear Anush of your eternal gratitude, Mr. Blackthorn? The poor boy was terribly crossed with the idea of disappointing you.” 

Oh, Ty realized this was when he was supposed to say thank you. It wasn’t that he took his friend for granted, it was just that he was so utterly surprised.  He hurried to correct his mistakes, “Yes, thank him for me. And thank you as well, Ms. Loss, for bringing Irene to me.”

She gave him a sweet smile and waved her hand in dismissal, when her eyes paused, narrowed on something behind him.

“Ah! I was wondering when I’ll be seeing your dashing face”

Ty turned his head as a laugh, light and warm as sunlight rang into his chest.

“As soon as I heard your voice, Catarina. I couldn’t miss a visit from my third favorite warlock.”

Kit was standing in the middle the staircase, his smile radiant. Ty felt his breath orphaned on his lips, and the quick succession of his heart almost hurt.

“Third? Second I understand, with your adoptive mother and all.. but are you telling me you prefer the company of Magnus Bane to mine?”

Catarina glared at him with obvious suspicion. 

“Of course not. I meant Gandalf.”

The others were looking back and forth between Kit and the Catarina like they were watching a tennis match, which is another one of those mundane sports Ty never understood. It was probably that they were amazed by the familiarity between the two, or they were more likely confused by the mention of a fictional wizard. 

Ty didn’t notice any of that, he only saw Kit’s blue eyes, alive and pulsating like the shimmering surface of the ocean, right when the sun is at its highest point. He was unable to look away, even when Kit’s gaze fixed on his, pupils slightly dilated, their blue deepening with emotion obvious even to him.

“Well, as much as you’re all lovely to look at, I have other lazy Nephilim to attend to” Ty heard Catarina’s voice as if from a distance. 

He was still locking eyes with Kit, even while the portal gleamed shut at the corner of his eye. 

Usually, direct eye contact was something Ty would do with an effort, but that wasn’t the case.. he just couldn’t look away, and it was too much, far too much. 

Kit came down the steps and stopped mid way, still a safe distance between them. He looked to Ty’s feet, his eyes widened for a split second, and Ty could feel Irene’s body tense next to him, sensing the approach of a stranger.

Everyone in the room fell silent, acknowledging the potential of danger. Ty wanted to assure Kit that Irene would not hurt him, but he wasn’t looking at him. In fact, he didn’t seem to be tense at all. He was looking at Irene with the same intense look he gave Ty just a minute before, and Ty was surprised to find that she was looking at him with the same curiosity. 

They seemed to be appraising each other for a long moment, and then Kit kneeled down to look at her directly in the eye. Ty wasn’t sure who was winning that stare contest. Eventually, Kit leaned towards her, his hand stretched forward gently, not touching her, but as if offering her to approach. Ty held his breath, Irene didn’t like to be touched by anyone other than him, but Kit seemed confident and relaxed. 

Ty was transfixed, as Irene stretched her long limbs and strode towards Kit. She placed her head under his hand, inviting him to stroke her. Kit patted her with his long, strong fingers, and she purred contentedly under his touch. 

Ty was baffled. That was a first, and the muttered gasps around him showed that he was not the only one to notice the magnitude of Irene’s gesture. She was a wild animal, and as much as she was loving and fiercely protective of Ty, she never showed that inclination towards any one else in the slightest.

Kit seemed content with his accomplishment, and looked up at Ty with a wide smile. “What’s her name?”

Ty found it hard to answer back, his throat felt dry and he tried to concentrate his gaze on a point behind Kit’s brilliant face. 

“Irene”, he responded with a croaked voice, hoping nobody noticed his discomfort. 

“Huh.. Irene” Kit repeated his words with a thoughtful voice, “The woman”.

Ty couldn’t help the smile from reaching his lips. Kit remembered, after all. It was a sign that something of the old friendship they had was still between them. He could feel the terrible weight of his fears slide off his chest, and wondered when was it that he stopped noticing it was there. 

His eyes scattered around Kit’s face again, trying to study his expressions without having to commit to the overwhelming power of his eyes on his.

“Yeah, well.. she’s The only woman, if you know what I mean”. Carl Lindquist stepped between them, his blonde hair pulled back tightly, making his angular face seem even more grouchy than they usually did.

“No, I actually don’t know what you mean” Kit slowly rose to his feet, and Carl took an involuntary step back. Kit was taller than him, and wider, a fact that Carl seemed to be painfully aware of. 

“I mean Blackthorn’s gay” he declared with a smirk on his thin lips. It seemed like he was saying it as an insult, and Ty couldn’t understand why.

It was true, of course, he was gay. He never felt the need to hide it, as much as it didn’t seem relevant to mention it to random people, especially people like Carl, which he didn’t really like. He also didn’t understand why Carl of all people would try to use it as an insult, when it was obvious he was-

“And..?” Kit said slowly, his voice sweet and deadly like a honey trap. His cheeks were slightly flushed, but in his eyes Ty saw the menacing and defiant look of a warrior. He almost forgot how well it suited him.. how his jaw tightened and his chest heaved with suppressed expectation. 

“And so if he’s gay than his beast of a cat is the only woman he will ever have” Carl looked at Kit like he was missing the punch of a very clever joke.

“Wow. I thought they only let the smart ones into the Scholomance. So what song did you sing for the auditions, Gretel?”

A chorus of giggles came from behind them, and Ty was surprised to find that even Bridgette, who apparently entered the hall while he was busy staring at Kit, held a hand to her mouth and failed to look imposing. 

Carl probably tried to growl at Kit, but the sound that left his mouth sounded much like a raccoon sneezing. Ty saw a sick baby raccoon once, he snuck him to the kitchen inside his jacket and fed him warm milk in one of Tavvy’s old baby bottles. 

“Ten minutes and we’re out!” He was snapped back into focus, and saw carl’s back as he stumped up the stairs.  

-

Kit stood in the hallway as everyone went to get ready for their patrol, even Irene left, probably off to terrorize Evelyn. 

Only Ty remained. He was still looking intently at a point right behind Kit, the silver in his eyes stirring, bewitching him into a hazed trance. When they were finally alone, Kit found his voice.

“He’s into you, do you know that?” 

It was obvious to him from the second he laid eyes on the slimy, pompous face of that centurion bastard. He could see the way his eyes kept running to Ty and away, like he couldn’t stop looking at him and it made him angry and hurtful. The memory made Kit taste acid down his throat, and not from jealousy. Ty was unbearably handsome, anyone could see that. But the edge of violence that stained the centurion’s words felt like a threat yet to be made.

And just because he could see it didn’t mean Ty could too.

“Yes. I’ve noticed.”

Kit examined his face, there was no trace of anger or resentment in them. He said it matter-of-factly, almost absent-mindedly.. like there was nothing to be done with it. Kit suddenly felt lighter, like someone inflated a dozen balloons inside his ribcage. He could almost feel his feet leaving the ground.

He forced his eyes to the soft hollow in the base of Ty’s neck and took a step towards him, “I-“

“I want to talk to you” they started at the same time, but Ty had an eagerness to his voice that made Kit’s eyes fly back to his face, desperate to see the bundle of emotions he felt reflected back in them.

And they had. Ty still wasn’t looking directly at him, but Kit could feel the surge of electricity that sparked between them. Every part of his body suddenly aware of their nearness, of the fact that after years, they were standing right in front of each other.. and he was no longer overpowered by hatred, grief or demon poison to cloud his thoughts. He was right there, looking straight into Ty’s grey eyes.

“Are you leaving now?” His voice sounded thick to his own ears, but he couldn’t care less about being obvious with his feelings.

“Yes, but.. will you be here when I get back?” He replied in a small, worried voice.

Kit’s chest expanded beyond what was humanly possible. He couldn’t believe how one question could have such a powerful effect on him, but it did. 

Ty wanted him to be there, he wanted to talk to him, and Kit didn’t care what about. If it was to call him every imaginable name for leaving as he did or to tell him he was stupid to send him those letters all of these years, it didn’t matter. He still wanted him there.

It wasn’t the blind need of friendship and affection that made him throw all caution to the wind when they were fifteen, it was the simple fact that there will be a tonight with Ty, and maybe even a tomorrow. That he will have a chance to fix what had happened, a chance of redemption.

“I’ll be here. Jem and Tessa are coming soon, with my sister. And it’ll be nice to train in a room that is not baby proof for a change-“

Kit was knocked backwards as that fuckwit centurion stepped right between him and Ty. He regained his balance quickly and shot him a glare he wished would burn a hole in his greasy hair. 

“Watch your face, pretty boy” the centurion called, probably satisfied that he caught Kit off guard, something that Kit promised himself will never happen again.

“Aww, you think I’m pretty?” Kit pulled out his most charming smile, the one that made several Devon girls and boys swoon beyond coherence. 

Weasel-face didn’t look impressed, though. He gave him a venomous look and spat on the floor.

“Eww. That’s rude, and disgusting. What the fuck is the matter with you?” Kit couldn’t stand people who just spat at floors. Did he fall asleep and end up in a goddamn western? Because those boots are where he draws the line. 

“I don’t like you, Herondale”

This guy really needs to work on his comebacks, Kit thought.

“Well, you’re not making much of an impression yourself, dick wheedle” Kit watched with amusement as his ferret’s face reddened with indignation. 

“I’m not- you can’t possibly- you don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Kit could feel Ty shaking at his side, holding in the bubble of laughter. He knew that there was no chance Ty knew what dick wheedle means, but the way that weasel-face was changing colors was simply hilarious. 

“Call it an educated guess, will you?” Kit grinned widely.

He gave them one last hateful look and muttered under his breath while strutting out of the institute. 

Kit heard the word “cocksucker” and called “That’s not really an insult, that’s an observation!”, but the centurion never turned.

A second later his words sank in. He felt his cheeks flare with fierce intensity and slowly faced Ty again.

A trace of amusement danced across his lips, and Kit forgot all about weasels and ferrets and the existence of other human beings. The warmth of Ty radiated through the small distance between them, and Kit ached to close it. 

“So you’ll be here when I come back, right?” Ty said hurriedly, and his hand clasped Kit arm, gripping tightly.

He found no words, not a single one. He only nodded his head and wished like an embarrassing cliché that time would stop in that very instant, when Ty’s long fingers were sliding slowly down his bicep, tracing the webbed veins with a softness that made him shudder. He couldn’t help a gasp and his eyes caught hold of Ty’s in a symphony of shallow breaths. 

“Than I will see you later.” 

His voice was clear and steady as his fingers detached themselves from Kit, leaving the numbness of loss spreading all through him. 

Ty was out of the institute in three immeasurable seconds, which were all it took for Kit to fall to his knees.

The numbness was instantly gone, leaving in its place a net of stinging needles that attacked him from every direction. Kit felt like his bones were shaking, like the tight coil that held him in place had suddenly snapped and there was nothing to keep him from evaporating into thin air.

As he watched his shaking limbs, a bright layer of light had formed on the bare patches of his skin. He felt the cold dread of recognition trickling down his spine like a single drop of sweat. He bolted to his feet and ran up the stairs towards the roof, moving as fast as he could while watching with growing terror how the light on his skin seemed stronger with every step.

He almost ripped the door off its hinges as the cool London air hit him like a scorned lover. 

Kit looked down at his hands and felt the power surging in him, begging to be released. It felt heavy, as it always did, like all the blood in his body had solidified. The weight made his muscles flex like they were both light and warn.

He closed his eyes shut and tried to concentrate, like he was taught by Tessa. He heard her voice echoing through his clouded mind like a bell ringing from a great distance. 

But as he welcomed the darkness, the thought of Ty’s touch slammed into him all over again, and he remembered that electric wave stream between them.

A desperate thought haunted the back of his mind - what if he could never touch Ty again? Was he putting him in danger? Or more importantly, was he losing control of his powers because he was losing control of his heart?

-

Ty was the first to enter the institute. His fellow centurions found a posh looking oyster bar down St. James’s and he was able to ditch them right after they ordered with the excuse of not liking the anything on the menu. That wasn’t really an excuse.. he really didn’t like anything on it, let alone the loud hubbub of people that only seemed to increase by the second. He didn’t really understand Carl’s insistence on the place, with its high prices and seemingly miniature dishes, but it turned out well for him. He was eager to return to the institute, to Kit. 

Ty didn’t allow himself to think about him during the investigation, but as the hours passed and they found nothing of substance to go one with but scrapes of ichor and blood, his thoughts trailed uncontrollably to Kit. 

He made an inventory list of everything he wanted to ask him, or at least he tried. Why did you leave me? Are you still angry with me? When did you learn how to play your guitar? Why did you send me those letters? Do you still dream of me? Did you decipher my letter? Do you still wish you never knew me? Did you miss me? because I have, I have I have. 

As he opened the heavy iron doors of the institute, Ty was greeted by a loud shriek, accompanied by two sets of very different footsteps hurrying towards him.

There was a little girl, approximately three years old, standing in the middle of the hall, with Irene’s short black tipped tail clasped tightly in her small hand. Ty froze in terrified bewilderment. Was every member of the Carstairs household, for this was undeniably the young child of Jem Carstairs, immune to the fact that Irene was not a small kitten, but a fully grown wild animal? 

The child beamed at him with her glistening almond shaped eyes, and giggled.

“Cute Kitty!” Ty lowered himself to her, examining her delicate porcelain skin, the softness of her swollen cheeks. She was quite lovely, he had to admit, and there was a reckless energy about her that reminded him of Emma, somehow. 

“Yes, she is cute, isn’t she? Her name is Irene” The child looked dazed by the new information, “What is your name?”

Her smile became shy and she hid her face in Irene’s spotted fur. 

“Mina”, she said, her voice muffled by the fur.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mina. My name is Ty.”

“Hello, Tiberius” a soft voice came from behind them, and Ty turned to see Tessa grey, leaning on a large tapestry of Raziel. Her oval face had a tender expression to them as she watched her daughter play with Irene’s pointed ears.

“Hi,” Ty answered, a little startled by her appearance, all though it was completely to be expected, for the child- Mina, he reminded himself, would not be allowed to wander the institute on her own. 

“Would you come to study with us? The fire is lit and you must be awfully cold”

He obliged and walked after her with a slight apprehension, what would she want to talk to him? Was it to scold him? Did she know what happened on Lake Lynn? 

But Tessa’s face were kind and thoughtful, and as he scanned it for any clues of her intentions, the grey of her eyes caught him by surprise. He remembered their color, so similar and so different than his, but as he examined them by the light of the fire, he saw that there was blue in them, too. 

He wondered if Kit ever looked into them and thought of him, and then remembered a line from one of his poems, “Must I live or die every time / The light welds the grey of my mother’s eyes / Into the blaze of silver” and a violent shudder went through him.

“Are you still cold?” Tessa asked with a worried look on her face.

“No, it’s nothing”

She eyed him doubtfully, but didn’t push the matter.

“Ty, I.. I actually wanted to talk to you,” he sucked in a breath, “I wanted to thank you for all that you have done for my son. You were a true..” she paused, hesitant, “friend, to him.”

Ty puzzled over her hesitance. He wasn’t friends with Kit for years, and now.. he wasn’t sure what they were to each other. 

Tessa gave him a knowing, affectionate smile. 

“And also, my Mina is fascinated by your lynx. She is beautiful, isn’t she?”

“Yes.. I was surprised that she wasn’t afraid of her. And that Irene let her hold her tail.. she usually doesn’t appreciate it when people do that.”

Tessa laughed a light, musical laugh. “Well, Mina is quite unusual when it comes to the feline family. She demands affection, and it is usually granted to her.”

“Usually?” Ty mused.

��Magnus’s cat took some time to win over.. about ten minutes. Mina was deeply crossed.”

Ty looked at the small child, cuddled with Irene by the fire, “Are you leaving?”

Tessa gave him a sweet smile, “Yes, Jem is just saying goodbye to Kit in his room. You should go and see him.”

There it was again, that look, as if he had dirt on his face and she was debating whether to tell him so or not. What was it that she knew?

He nodded and rose to his feet, when she spoke again.

“And.. Ty? You will take care of him for me, will you? I know it’s been a long time, but now that you are here..” there was honest worry in her fierce eyes, and Ty forced himself to look straight into them when he answered.

“I will.”

-

Kit was sitting on his bed, his fingers playing nervously with threads of his pillow.

“I don’t have it under control, Jem.. I’m scared.”

He was pointedly not looking at his adoptive father, afraid of finding anger in his dark brown eyes. 

“Earlier we just.. we just talked and he touched my hand and I.. I lost it, it was so close.”

He risked a glance at him, but found nothing but affection and worry in them.

Jem was silent for a long moment before he talked.

“Nothing happened, Kit. You managed to contain it.”

Kit rolled his eyes and punched the plain white pillow in his lap.

“I understand that it’s frightening, and we don’t know nearly enough about the nature of your powers, but you managed to control it today, and you can do it again. You have to trust your instincts.”

Didn’t he understand what was in line? Didn’t he see what Kit was risking by merely staying at the institute? He was dangerous, like an exposed wire under a stormy sky.

“But what if I can’t? What if I end up hurting somebody.. what if I hurt him? What if what I feel will be the cause of-”

“Christopher, look at me,” Jem’s eyes held an intense emotion that Kit couldn’t back away from, and he was surprised to feel a solitary tear, cracking down its way through the scorching desert of his cheeks.

“Your heart is nothing to be feared.”

-

Ty climbed up the stairs that led to Kit’s room. His heart was hammering loudly in his chest, and he wished Livvy would stop practicing how to hide from him and tell him what to do.

He had a feeling that so much depended on this talk.

His hands were fidgeting restlessly with one of the toys Julian had made for him long ago. his fingers dismantling it expertly. 

He was nearly there.

Ty took a deep breath and whispered, “Livvy?” But Livvy was nowhere to be found. 

The voice that answered him, though, was one he wasn’t expecting.

“I don’t know how to be near him..” Ty felt his heart stop, and he was amazed to realize Kit was.. crying.

“I’m scared, Jem. I don’t want to hurt-”

“You will figure it out, son. I have faith in you.” Jem’s voice was firm, reassuring.

Ty felt a bubble of hurt nestling inside inside him, releasing its venom. Was he talking about him? Didn’t he want him around? Why would he chose to stay in the institute if he didn’t? He wasn’t a formal part of any investigation, he wasn’t required or forced by any law to remain here. 

He felt tears, treacherous and unwanted, streaming down his cheeks. 

How could he have gotten everything so wrong? When Kit looked at him this morning, he could have sworn that there was fondness in him. Not just fondness, emotion. When he touched his hand, he saw Kit’s eyes darken into the color of the night sky, his lips parted with amazement.

Did he imagine it? He had seen that look before, several times, and he thought he knew what it meant.. but Kit was a mystery to him like any other he had encountered. 

How could he be so wrong?

Jem’s voice woke him out of his revery. 

“Listen.. I know that you wish to stay here, with Tiberius,” Ty’s heart leaped up his throat, did he? did he want to stay? so why-

“But Kit, you must be careful. There are still those who are searching for you, you know there are whispers as well as I do. And now that there are centurions here.. don’t look at me like that, my dearest. I know that they are not the cohort, but I still need you to be cautious.”

Ty felt the attack of a thousand questions like a swirl of bees inside his head. He loved bees, as he loved questions, but the loud, violent hustle of them was painful. 

He pressed his back to the cold wall behind him, and heard Kit answer in a small voice,

“I will”.

Ty turned on his heels and headed to his room.

Kit was not just a mystery to him, he was a mystery to others, too. People were looking for him, and if Jem had any reasons to fear the involvement of centurions, this has to mean fairy. 

What did Kit have to do with the fey? Who was looking for him? 

Ty felt a surge of protective fire flare up inside him. If Kit was in danger, if someone wanted to hurt him, Ty had to know why. He had to solve this.

The well known, cold calmness of the beginning of an investigation settled over him as Livvy materialized at his side. 

She gave one look at him and called, “What’s wrong?”

“Come,” He didn’t smile as he answered, his voice hard and sharp like a newly forged sword. 

“We have a case to solve.”

[mystical818]

Natsu is Hungry

Based on episode 180. Natsu is starving as the rescue team is stuck in the underground labyrinth so he needs Lucy to feed him again.

Warning: Smut.

"Is there something you can do for him, Wendy?" Lucy asked with worry.

"No, I'm sorry. I've done what I can but there's nothing else I can do. I'm sorry." The young Sky Maiden said sadly before covering her face letting sobs and tears out.

"Its alright Wendy. You that Natsu you made poor Wendy cry." Lucy lightly shouted down at the pink-haired man.

Natsu laid unmoving but the rumbling in his stomach was getting louder.

"Come on Natsu." Lucy groaned as said Fire Wizard laid on the ground on his stomach.

"I can't help it. If I don't get some food in me I'm gonna keel over." He said as his stomach growled loudly.

"Yeah, and you're our best fighter but I doubt we can find something to munch on," Mira said holding her face in her hand.

Natsu sat up on his knees and groaned while leaning over and holding his empty monster of a stomach.

"Well, lets at least try and look around for another way out," Pantherlily said getting the attention of Yukino, Mira, and Wendy.

"You guys try and do that," Natsu said standing up and pointed to walking in the opposite direction.

"Wait where are you going?" Lucy asked shouting at him.

"Come on, Lucy. I need your help." He said looking behind him at her giving her his serious eyes.

"Unh. O-Oh." She said shaking her annoyance away and stood up straight.

"I see." She said rubbing her arm and turning back towards their confused friends.

"You guys keep looking Natsu and I are gonna try something and we will meet up after were done," Lucy said barely looking at her friends while her face was almost glowing in a blush.

"What are you guys gonna do?" Wendy asked.

"Come on Lucy we don't have much time," Natsu said walking away unconcerned about his friend's curiosity.

"Yeah, I'm coming." She said shouting back at him.

"Lucy?" Yukino questioned.

"It's just a power-up that Natsu and I do to help each other when we're down on magic, energy, or food. So we won't be long." Lucy said quickly before turning and lightly running to meet up with Natsu.

"But how can you guys do that, can you help all of us?" Yukino questioned loudly.

"No worry its just something that Natsu and I can do for each other and it takes a lot of training to control. I'm sorry just give us some time." Lucy shouted back making Natsu grab her hand and lightly pull her to keep up.

"Okay?" Mira said with confusion as everyone else also got confused as Natsu and Lucy disappeared into the darkness.

"I hate it when people ask questions about this," Natsu said holding his hands behind his head as he leads the blushing Lucy away.

"Yeah and it's embarrassing when they keep wondering what it is and just ask more questions about it," Lucy stated holding the edge of her skirt while blushing.

"Well, nothing to be done about it now." He said as he found a small dead-end cave.

"Here we go." He said as he pulled Lucy by the hand. She blushed as she knew what to do.

"Here," he said unwinding his scarf and handing it to her, she nodded and blushed as she wrapped it around her neck. Natsu stood over her before he nodded to the floor in domination. Lucy nodded back in understanding, she picked a spot that was soft enough and tall flat rock. She laid back as Natsu held her hand to help with her balance, her eyes were glazed over and her breath gasping as Natsu removed his vest as he loomed over Lucy and just glared at her with passion and lust.

Natsu let his vest fall to the floor before removing his shoes and the cape he wore over his pants, he rolled them up and leaned over to gently lift her head and place it under her neck and head to give her a pillow. Lucy watched him as he slowly stalked around the rock bed she laid on, he was using his dominating presence that made her river flow, she lightly shook as he crawled up on the bed, walking on his legs before he gently grasped her knees and opening them, her scent flowed into the air causing Natsu's mouth to water.

"Mmm. My lunch smells delicious." He growled before he reached down and used hot fingers to burn away her panties to reveal the source of his lunch.

Natsu stared at the bald, pink, tight flower and licked his lips as he drooled while his stomach growled.

"Looks tasty." He said before leaning down quickly and growled a chomp as he covered the flower with his mouth. Lucy lightly cried as she bit down on the scarf as she shook in immense pleasure. His tongue was fast and long as it entered her flower and tickled her cervix.

"MMmMMMMmmmMMmM." She groaned as she held the scarf to her face while her other hand went to his hair, Natsu was giving the delicate flower a deep and loving but starving kiss as he ate with hunger and furver then taking the small bead in his mouth he growled as he sucked.

"Natsu." She moaned into the scarf grasping his hair in her fist.

"You taste so good, Lucy. I love it when you have to feed me." he moaned against her flower as he continued to eat.

"Natsu slow down." She whispered with a scratchy voice as her build-up was coming to an end.

"I'm sorry I can't we got stuff to do so we need to hurry," he said pulling away for a moment to show his wet face and serious but passionate grimace before he chomped back down on the flower with only his lips.

"Mmmmm." He moaned as he picked up his pace stroking her insides with his tongue while his top lip flicked her bead.

"MNMNMmnmNmNmNmnMnmnMn." Lucy groaned into the scarf as her whole body tensed up and relaxed as electric pleasure raced through her body, as her essence flowed out of her flower and was swallowed by the hungry dragonslayer.

"Mmm." He groaned again continuing his actions to take as much from her as he could.

"AhhHh." he sighed in happiness as his belly was being filled.

"Tasty." He said as he licked his hand after wiping his face as if he was a cat, he stared at the shining chocolate eyes from the shuddering body of the blonde goddess that laid before him under his complete dominance.

"Now for the dessert." He said as he unbuckled his belt and letting his long purple cock out before he let the tip point at her slit as he fully leaned down on her.

"Natsu be gentle there still tender," she said as he gently grasped the top hem of her shirt before pulling it down and letting her milky globes out into the air, he smiled in happiness before fully leaning on her his hips did light thrusts as his tip kissed her flower entrance while his hands went her breasts giving wonderful and light massages.

"Yummy." He said happily before taking a nipple in his mouth and sucking with more hunger and letting the sweet milk fill his mouth.

"Mmmmm." he groaned as Lucy shuddered at the feeling of her breasts being massaged and her flower being stabbed gently with a hot blunt tip.

"Natsu, this feels so good." she groaned as she held his head close to her while the suction pulled his saliva into her nipple so that a new batch of milk can be made with extra protein specially for the one sho feeds from them.

"MmmHmm." he agreed with a vibrating growl against her nipple as he emptied her breast.

He pulled away taking the nipple with him before her nipple was released from his mouth with a pop making Lucy groan in pleasure, hot fingers took the sensitive bud and began rolling and flicking it as the hot mouth moved to the other nipple and latched on covering the nipple and the surrounding skin with pleasureful immense heat.

Lucy shook as the precum of Natsu felt like hot bath water as it touched her swollen clit.

"UNH." She groaned as a single drop entered her body and filled her with wonderful heat.

Natsu was beginning to shake as well as pleasure also coursed through him.

"Natsu?" She groaned as the final actions caused a wonderful wave of pleasure crashed through her again making her body shake, closing her eyes as she felt the heavenly pleasure course through her.

"I'm getting tired," she said as Natsu emptied her breast and released the wonderful globe with a pop.

She opened her eyes and looked up as the pink hair passed her eyes before his handsome face overpowered hers.

"You look so beautiful when you feed me." He smiled down at her as her brown eyes shook with admiration, he wrapped her up in his embrace as he captured her lips with his.

"Mmmm." They moaned together, he held her by the torso while she wrapped her arms around his neck, She groaned as her flower was forced open and the long column of firey flesh entered her body.

"Open up for me Luce. Its time for the after-dinner work out." He smiled down at her shaking happy face, he took her lips back against his own as his tip kissed her cervix but he felt that he still had half of his tool left out of her.

"I'm ready, Natsu." She said as he moved to kiss her neck. he chuckled before pulling his hips back and slamming home fully stretching her open and filling her up fully.

"MMMMMMMMM" She screamed biting down on his shoulder and not breaking the skin.

"That's my girl." He said feeling her body convulse around his member.

"Natsu." She begged, wanting him to start.

"I've got you," he said giving her his toothy smile showing her his dominance over her before he was quick to start off hard and fast in pounding her womb entry with his hot pleasureful tool.

She bit into his scarf to hide her moans from getting loud.

"Give me what I want Lucy. Let me fill you up just like you did with me." He exclaimed pulling them up to sit on his legs and he controlled her body letting his member hit her harder.

"So good. I've missed this so much." He groaned as he removed the scarf from her mouth before replacing it with his mouth and swallowing her screams, he felt her shudder around him as he felt that she was close.

"Cum for me Lucy. I want to feel you." He ordered before reaching down and pinched her clit before taking her lips back against his own.

"MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM." She groaned into his mouth as she fell apart around him. Natsu kept thrusting loving the feel of her shuddering around his member that was just waiting to fill up the blonde goddess.

"Almost there," he said as he focused and pumped into her harder.

He finally shuddered as released his own essence groaning at the wonderful feeling.

Lucy felt the familiar lava pool in her belly and shuddered as it made her body feel the chill in the air.

Natsu slowly held himself as he lowered both of them back down onto the rock bed, he laid down beside her and they just held each other letting their energy returned slowly.

"Natsu?" She questioned as she just wanted to sleep.

"I'm tired but we need to go." She continued.

"Yeah your right," he said sitting up.

"Now for the final part of my meal," he said holding her close before moving her vest away from her neck to show the 2 older bite scars around the dragon's mate mark in the shape of a dragon flying around a heart.

"My after-dinner drink." He said rubbing his finger over the scars and mark.

"Be gentle." She said blushing and waiting for the pleasing feeling.

"Always am," he said leaning over slowly and carefully biting her neck and letting his fangs slip into her delicate flesh and felt the warmth of her blood flood his mouth before he swallowed the sweet substance and felt it give him the energy he needs groaning in final satisfaction.

Lucy felt the wonderful pleasure of his saliva entering her veins mixing with her post-coital pleasure, moaning with absolute happiness.

Natsu licked the wound and watched as it closed up quickly as his magic was healing his mate.

"Now, time for you," he said removing the wrist band to show the bite marks on his wrist, he bit down and pulled away taking some flesh as well swallowing it and moving the wound towards her face letting some drops fall on her face as she gently held her hand against his arm and opened her mouth and covered the wound with it and let the hot lava run in her mouth and swallowed with happiness as the energy filled her.

She drank until the wound closed and her hunger was gone.

"Rest for a minute," he said pulling her up to sit for a moment, she sighed in happiness.

"Thank you, Natsu." She said as he fixed his pants, while she removed his scarf from her neck.

"Sure, thank you." He said as he took the scarf and wrapped his neck, she sighed in completion as she felt her naked flower drip honey. Natsu finished fixing his clothes and pull on his shoes as Lucy glared at him.

"Did you really have to burn my underwear?" She groaned at him while he just smiled his goofy grin.

"Come on you know I've always got you covered," he said pulling out a pair of red frilly panties from his pocket.

"You've been stealing my underwear?" She glared at him while holding the delicate piece of fabric.

"No. I bought that especially for you in case this ever came up," he said looming over her.

She leaned over to begin putting them on when she groaned.

"Oh, ow." She said clutching her stomach.

"Here I gotcha." He said taking it and kneeling before pulling the red lace over each boot.

"You spoil me too much you know?" She said with a loving but straight face as she watched him pull it up her legs and rest it on her thighs before he stood up taking her hands to stand up straight, he reached down again and pull them up into place.

"I kind of have too. You are like a Princess and since I'm a dragon it's in my genes to keep you well dressed and clean because you completed my hoard of gold and treasure," he said standing up straight and brushing her gold hair before holding her face in his warm hand.

She sighed with a smile resting her head in his hand. He smiled at her before pressing his forehead against hers.

"Oh, best keep this covered otherwise Mira would see it," he said pulling her vest up to cover her mark.

"Yeah, I'm not ready for everyone to know that we've been together for a while now. But I gotta admit it will be hilarious when they all get upset because none of them will know who won the betting pool." She said embarrassed at first but then became happy and mischievous.

"That's my girl," he said happily before pulling her face to his.

"Now let's get back," Natsu said grabbing her hand and they began walking back towards their friends.

"You know someday you're gonna make me pregnant with these little adventures of ours." She exclaimed coming up to hug his side with affection.

"Well, we will cross that bridge when we get to it, but for now we will just enjoy our adventures." He said hugging her back as they slowly walked.

"I'm ok with that, but you best get back to that idiot persona before Wendy and the others hear that you're actually smart." She exclaimed gently pulling away and putting the same distance between them.

"Yeah, just like old times huh Lucy?" He said giving her his goofy smile.

"Yup now let's go," Lucy said lightly running making Natsu follow happily.

[theladydrgn]

Thanks in no small part to @icibue I just spent the last day crafting RWBY/Pokemon AU headcanons. Please keep in mind that this is 50% funny, 50% serious and 100% self-indulgent!

·         Ozpin gives each new student an Eevee egg to hatch and train as part of their course work.

·         All the schools give different particular pokemon, Ozpin is just very fond of Eevee because of how much it can ‘change’.

·         Mythical and God-like pokes cannot be captured and instead ‘choose’ trainers. Being chosen by such a Pokemon is considered a very high honor but also puts that trainer at risk of being targeted by Salem.

·         Xerneas and Yveltal take the place of the God of Light and God of Darkness.

·         Celebi chose to be Oz’s partner centuries ago and is always the first to find him again after reincarnation.

·         The Xiao-Long family have raised the Kommo-o line of Pokemon for generations and it is customary for a Jangmo-o to be their child’s first Pokemon.

·         The Roses were known for raising Roselia and Roserade for show.

·         The Honchkrows Ozpin and Qrow have are from the same clutch of eggs.

·         Ozpin owns and cares for many pokemon but keeps two teams at the ready. One is a public team that is well known. The other is a private team that contains pokemon he has had through many lifetimes.

·         Because of the presence of Pokemon on Remnant, the world is a little safer for everyday citizens, though Grimm ARE attracted to pokemon just like humans.

·         The Huntsman Academies teach how to hunt Grimm and how to raise Pokemon.

·         Beacon Academy focuses on living in harmony with Pokemon and working together with them. Using pokeballs is optional for Huntsmen who have demonstrated close bonds with their Pokemon.

·         Atlas Academy focuses on Pokemon’s use in military tactics and has an extensive breeding program focused on breeding the strongest Pokemon. Pokemon are not allowed to be out of their pokeballs without military sanction.

·         Haven and Mistral are well known for their Pokemon Contests and shows. Battling is taught at Haven but definitely takes a backseat to the ‘art’ of raising Pokemon.

·         Since law and order is rare in Vacuo, almost anything goes. Having a strong team that can protect you and yours is what gets taught at Shade Academy. Since pokeballs are easily stolen they are very rarely used.

Now for Team Headcanons along with my personal reasoning for why I chose the teams I did. I was getting very tired towards the end of the team building, so I apologize if some teams aren’t as ‘fleshed-out’ as others.

STRQ

Summer Rose

1.      Shiny Roserade – Obvious choice honestly

2.      Alolan (Menagerie) Cubone – Summer having a poke that lost it’s poke-mom and human mom was too entertaining to not do.

3.      Sylveon – Summer being the ‘heart’ of team STRQ

4.      Blissey – Since Yang described Summer as ‘super mom’ having a pokemon described at ‘nurturing’ seemed fitting.

5.      Gardevoir – The entire Gardevoir line is very sensitive to emotions and I headcanon Summer as being fairly bubbly.

6.      Altaria – I didn’t have any super specific reasons for this one. Just seemed like a poke Summer would have ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Taiyang Xiao-Long

1.      Jolteon – Jolteon fits Tai’s color scheme. Sue me.

2.      Pangoro – A fighting type that doesn’t like it when the weak get picked on

3.      Kommo-o – The only fighting dragon pokemon and it just so happens to fit Tai’s color scheme

4.      Herdier – I mean, it’s obvious isn’t it?

5.      Bewear – Another fighting bear but this one loves hugs

6.      Drampa – A dragon that protects kids

Raven Branwen

1.      Mandibuzz – Specifically said to hunt ‘weak’ prey

2.      Salazzle – Rules over similar pokes and fits Ravens color scheme

3.      Weavile – Hunting in small groups to take down larger prey sounds a lot like the Branwen tribe

4.      Umbreon – The only Eeveeloution that fit ravens color scheme ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

5.      Hydreigon – Brutal and destructive

6.      Bisharp – Rules over packs of similar pokes and is called ‘pitiless’

Qrow Branwen

1.      Honchkrow – Do you have to ask?

2.      Absol – A pokemon said to bring misfortune/bad luck.

3.      Umbreon – Fits Qrows aesthetic and the twins having the same Eeveeloution is funny to me.

4.      Alolan Marowak – This is actually Summers Cubone evolved and I felt like Summer wouldn’t have brought a young untrained poke on a possibly deadly mission. Also seems fitting that Qrow would take to raising it since Tai would have his hands full raising his own team and the kids.

5.      Staraptor – A loner birb that leaves its flock after growing up fits Qrow pretty fucking well.

6.      Scrafty – A poke that comes off as rude and actually cares about its loved ones.

RWBY

Ruby Rose

1.      Scyther – It has scythes for hands, what’s not to love?

2.      Roselia – Wanting to keep Ruby’s family legacy going, Tai gives Ruby a Budew as her first Pokemon

3.      Shiny Eevee – I mean silver Eevee… silver eyes… Also, it hasn’t evolved yet cause Ruby and Eevee are unsure of what they want it to be.

4.      Rockruff – A pup that turns into a wolf, nuf said (it will probably turn into the midnight form…).

5.      Electrike – A speedy boi that gives of showers of sparks as opposed to Ruby’s showers of petals

6.      Zigzagoon – Another speedy boi

Weiss Schnee

1.      Glaceon – Obvious is obvious

2.      Alolan (Atlesian) Vulpix – Pretty snow fox for the pretty ice queen.

3.      Dratini – Of course the rich kid would have something really rare

4.      Furfrou – Fancy dog for the fancy girl

5.      Brionne – A pretty poke that sings? 100% Weiss’s aesthetic.

6.      Braixen – You can only have so much blue and white before you need a splash of color and a poke that uses a wand like how Weiss uses her weapon seemed fitting

Blake Belladonna

1.      Litten – A cat that like to be solitary and doesn’t often display emotion… sounds like Blake to me!

2.      Umbreon – Somehow Umbreon just fits for way too many people but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

3.      Purrloin – Cute purple cat

4.      Litwick – Blakes shadow clones kinda remind me of a ghosts sooo purple ghost poke?

5.      Frogadier – Blake is a ninja. She absolutely needs a ninja Poke

6.      Noibat – It’s purple and has great hearing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Yang Xiao-Long

1.      Jangmo-o – It’s a punchy dragon and fits her color scheme ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

2.      Makuhita – Yellow, punchy, never gives up

3.      Flareon – Yang’s hair literally lights on fire. I would be dumb to NOT give her Flareon

4.      Combusken – I mean it’s fire, it’s fighting, and warn when hugged!

5.      Rufflet – Ok SO Rufflet and it’s eventual evolution into Braviary fits Yang really well. Rufflet starts out feeling like it needs to prove itself and fighting everything it can (including it’s own parents). After evolving it still fights like a champ, but for more ‘noble’ reasons, aka to protect friends and loved ones.

6.      Corphish – JuST hear me out on this one. Corphish are said to be REALLY hardy and able to survive in the worst conditions. They also like to fight a lot.

JNPR

Jaune Arc

1.      Growlithe – Friendly and loyal ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

2.      Eevee – His Eevee eventually becomes Sylveon because Jaune is a cinnamon roll

3.      Buneary – Won the egg from cereal box tops

4.      Riolu – Riolu and Lucario are described as loyal and having a very strong sense of justice

5.      Honedge – This one has been in has family for a long time

6.      Skarmory – Jaune only had a team of 5, but when Pyrrha died her Skarmory was the only survivor and Jaune took it upon himself to raise it.

Nora Valkyrie

1.      Jolteon – What did you expect?

2.      Rhyhorn – It has the lightning horn ability for obvious reasons

3.      Flaaffy – Happy, fluffy, pink, and electric

4.      Teddiursa – Cute, loves sweet things, and it’s evolution is a rage bear. Nuf said.

5.      Munchlax – They both have bottomless stomachs

6.      Woobat – If Nora’s heart cannons are anything to go by, she would love this Pokemon

Pyrrha Nikos

1.      Magnemite – Polarity… Magnetism… Magnemite… I’m not very original

2.      Eevee – Pyrrha’s Eevee would have become a Jolteon if she were still alive.

3.      Skarmory – Steel types really are obvious choices.

4.      Nosepass – It’s nose is literally magnetic

5.      Victini – With all of the talk of Pyrrha being ‘fated’ for victory, it would be silly to not give her the pokemon that makes that true.

6.      Buneary – Pyrrha ended up being given one of the Pumpkin Pete mascots

Lie Ren

1.      Espeon – When I think of Ren I think of psychic pokes so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

2.      Natu – Calm and cautious like Ren

3.      Nincada – Only other ninja poke that isn’t Froakie

4.      Espurr – Another calm psychic ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

5.      Joltik – A cute little critter to remind him of Nora

6.      Zorua – Can hide it’s self which is closeish to Ren’s semblance

Misc.

Ozpin – Public Team

1.      Espeon – Espeon’s tail fork is said to be able to sense danger so it makes sense Oz would keep one around.

2.      Klinklang – I mean, the gear aesthetic it obvious isn’t it?

3.      Mimikyu – I headcanon that Oz can very easily see the worth in literally anyone so giving him a poke that thinks it can’t be loved was a no-brainer

4.      Shedinja – Pokemon with no soul VS man with too much soul

5.      Honchkrow – Oz having a ‘dark’ pokemon and people think he’s shady? No way! (also, I’m a shipper shhhh)

6.      Ninetales – Of course Oz would have a stupidly long lived Pokemon

Ozpin – Personal Team

1.      Celebi – Of course the one person who can be found in almost any time period ever would be chosen by the literal time travel Pokemon… Also, Green.

2.      Dragonite – Dragonite’s are kind, altruistic, and long lived.

3.      Magearna – Man-made poke that has a gear aesthetic ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

4.      Metagross – Made from fusing two Metang together.

5.      Aegislash – Despite Ozma being a ‘wizard’ he was also a ‘warrior’

6.      Zoroark – Uses illusions and would even sacrifice its life to protect loved ones.

[howlingheartdemigod]

If you are still looking for prompts maybe beau is forced to meet up with her parents, they insult her while jester or yasha or jester and yasha are there with her

whooie this took on a life of it’s own

tw for emotional abuse & manipulation

willing to practice

It was well understood that the last thing Beau wanted to do was visit Kamordah. She, loudly, stated as much, every few miles, in fact.

“I think we should ghost this fucker.” She said, arms crossed, practically pouting, in the back of the cart. “We dip out, then next time we’re in  the city we steal out blood bac, and say a big ol’ fuck you to the Gentleman while we’re at it.”

Fjord let out a long suffering sigh. “Great idea. Let’s just torpedo an important alliance. Perfect plan.” He rolled his eyes, looking over at her from atop the horse he was riding.

Jester turned around on the bench at the front, batting her eyelashes. “We will only he there for a day Beau.” she reminded. “And anyway, we don’t know if the rich people we’re going to find are your parents anyway. We might be stealing the stuff back from some random rich people.”

Beau grumbled a little bit, leaning back against the cart. They were right, of course. They needed to fix their relationship with the Gentleman. Especially after fucking off the the ocean, and then the Xiorhausian conflict for months. Favors received required favors given, and this is what the Gentleman needed done.

Still, it didn’t sit right with her, going back there. It made her nervous, made her stomach twist.

Beau felt a knee bump hers, and looked up, catching Caleb’s eye. There was an understanding there; Caleb could see this was just fear. Fear of going back to the place where she was hurt. Fear of dragging others there. He could recognize it, recognize the pain. She appreciated that he didn’t think her pain was stupid, was silly, even though it wasn’t as serious by comparison.

He gave her a little smile. “You have friends who have your back now.” He told her mirroring her words from their journey to Felderwin. “We’re here to defend you, and kick some ass. Just like you do for us.”

Beau looked at him for a second, then nodded, eyes dropping. There was a snap, and Frumpkin appeared in her lap. He turned circles, then curling up to sleep. Beau pet him behind the ears, letting the sleeping Faye calm and distract her.

A few miles along, Caduceus spoke up from where he was steering the cart next to Jester. “Someone up ahead.” He called back. Beau reached for her staff, straightening her back. She leaned an arm over the side of the cart, looking down the road. She felt the weight of Frumpkin shift off her lap, and saw Nott move to sit just behind Caduceus, hiding in case she needed the element of surprise.

Beau squinted, head tilting, but it was Jester who saw first, gasped and let out a little laugh. “It’s okay!” she said. “It’s Yasha!”

Yasha joined their little parade a few miles outside of town, to cheers, and hugs from Nott, Caduceus, and Jester They explained where they were headed, and then set off. They shifted around the cart, Jester and Nott taking the horse that had been trailing behind, Caleb moving to sit by Caduceus, Beau and Yasha in the back of the cart.

“We’re going to you hometown?” Yasha asked Beau.

Beau nodded. “Yeah, uh… Yeah, but I don’t want to spend too much time there. The Stormlord lead you this way?” she asked.

“Yes.” she said nodding. “I believe he knows that I wish to come back to you, uh, you all.” she said, nodding a little. She shook her head, seeming to search for something else to say. “It will be nice to see where you grew up.” Yasha said.

Beau let out a little broken laugh. “Well, I hope that you all don’t actually have to. That estate sucked.”

“We aren’t gonna go there.” Jester called from the horse. “We’re gonna run in, get the stuff from the rich people, and get out. But if we do, we’re gonna run and smash shit and take it and run!”

“Yeah!” Nott said, from where she was holding on to Jester’s cloak. “It’s gonna be great.”

Yasha nodded a little. “It would be nice to see a little bit of it as we smash things, then, if we have to go there.”

Beau smiled, nodding a little in agreement. “Yeah, smash shit and run.”

It quickly became clear that it was definitely Beau’s parents who screwed the Gentleman over. Beau went quiet as they loaded into the cart to head the few miles out of town to the vineyard.

“Beau,” Caduceus said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to come with us.” He said. “You don’t have to go back there.”

Beau looked at her friends, strapped up to go and head out and deal with her family. “Yeah, yeah I do, Duceus.” she said. “But, thank you.” she said.

Beau headed towards one of the horses, but she felt a hand grab her wrist. Jester gave her a little smile, and pulled her towards the card. “Sit with me.” she said.

Beau nodded, and clamored up into the cart, words not coming. Jester held her hand, as Nott hopped up into the cart, tucking against her side.

They headed out, and the quiet radiated out from Beau, settling over them all. Beau watched the lightly wooded area, turn into the familiar fields of grape vines. She tensed up, eyes scanning the horizon.

“That big tree is the one I fell out of, when I broke my arm.” she said softly.

Jester followed her gaze. “Oh, yeah, that makes sense.”

“I kept climbing it, though.” she said, nodding. “Carved my name at the top junction there.”

Beau forced herself to keep talking, telling little stories about growing up. Trying to keep her head clear. She couldn’t go in ruled by fear. She couldn’t let that rule her.

Nott started asking questions, laughing a little at funny things. She started to supply her own stories, of Luke as a toddler, trying similar escapades to Beau’s. She felt her heart catch in her throat. Nott had chosen to leave Luke and Yeza in Allfield, to keep traveling with them, to find a way to become a halfling again, and because she wanted to stay with her friends, but it clearly weighed on her. Hearing her talk about Luke, hearing her relate to Beau’s stories, it made Beau feel closer to her than she could possibly explain.

Beau was feeling better, swapping stories as they rode along.

But the top of the house, the manor, came into view and her voice got caught in her throat.

“They have a son.” she reminded they quietly. “He’s just a kid, so… you know… don’t let me burn the house down.”

Frumpkin suddenly appeared on her shoulder, purring, which was a little comfort, but not enough. She reached the hand Jester wasn’t holding back to scratch the cat, lifting her eyes to the wizard riding in the front of the cart. Caleb gave her a nod, a promise.

The stopped a few dozen meters from the door, and she let out a little breath, then slid to the edge of the cart. She picked up her staff, and jumped off, turning towards the house that was once her house. She walked towards the door, and stomped up the stairs putting on all her vibrato and confidence before her friends could even get off the cart to back her. She hit the door with her staff, then took a step back.

“Come out, asshole, I know your home, you never leave.” She called, scowling. “Mother dearest.” She shouted. “Father o’ mine. I’ve got business with you.”

Beau stared at the doors with rage in her veins, waiting for the showdown she’d been building for her whole life. She took a step back when she heard it unlock, hands curling into fists. She took a deep breath and held it, feeling a strong presence step beside her, feeling some kind of reassuring energy pouring towards her. She couldn’t bring herself to look over and find out who’d joined her on the porch, though. She had to keep her ground.

The little huff of disgust was expected, when her father’s eyes locked on her. She suddenly realized she should have tied her robes proper. She should have changed. She should have washed her hair, or scrubbed some of the blood away. She lifted her chin a little as her father looked past her. “What kind of riff raff have you dragged onto my lands, Beauregard.”

Beau swallowed, “We’ve been hired to retrieve an item you stole. Let us in or we’ll bring crowns guard. We’ve already found some you haven’t paid off.”

She watched her father scowl and think, clearly wanting to turn them away, but not wanting the trouble. “Well,” He said, making up his mind. “Do come in, then.” He turned his back, leaving the door open.

Beau turned her head to nod them inside, and quickly realized that they were all still behind her, down the steps. She looked to her other side, noticing that the heat, body heat she’d been sure, was gone. She blinked, and took a shocked breath. There was no one there, but, the air, she realized, smelled like lavender.

Beau sood with her arms crossed in the open entry way. She knew that the stairs to the left lead to the library and her fathers office. She knew the ones to the right lead to the wing that housed the various bedrooms. On the main floor to the right was the dining room, the kitchens, the sitting room. Far back into the house on the left was the master suite was. She’d been in the upstairs wing, housing the bedrooms for guests, and for her. She knew there was what she knew was supposed to be a nursery near the master. She’d never lived in it.

The space was all pale golds and dark browns. It was supposed to make you think of royalty. Make you think of wealth. Make you think that their money was older and more powerful than it was. She’d called her father a moonshine peddler once. He’d thrown the expensive bottle of red he’d been holding at her head. Luckily he had shit aim.

There were small benches on either side of the door. One of them, she knew, had her name carved into the back. She’d pulled it out and quietly scraped it in one day, out of boredom. The paintings on the walls were all of old family members, and a few of the vineyards themselves. Beau hated it.

She stayed quiet as Caleb explained very carefully, that they wouldn’t be leaving without the property that Beau’s father had unlawfully stolen. They knew, from Beau, that his father had the local guard in his pocket, but Jester wouldn’t hesitate sending a message to friends a little farther off to come by.

Beau just stood there, trying to keep from looking around. Trying to keep from caring about every little thing that had changed.

Beau’s mother came down the stairs, and let out a shocked little gasp. “Beauregard.” she said, brow lifting in horror. Beau thought about how she must look through her mother’s eyes; half shaven, a tattoo peeking out the back of her robe, still dirty from the road, probably still bloody as well, surrounded by a band of people from races her mother would routinely scoff at and judge. She was the farthest thing from the daughter she’d tried to hard to mold her into. “You should not be here.”

“It’s fine.” Her father spoke up, interrupting her mother how he always did. “They’ll be leaving shortly.” He called a servant over, and instructed them on what to go get. Fjord walked over to Beau, brow lifting. “You good?” He asked.

Beau looked over at him, and swallowed. She nodded, but something in her eye betrayed her.

“For the record,” He said, voice still low. “You clearly made more of yourself than they ever could have dreamed here. Not enough imagination to understand you.”

Beau gave him a half second of a tense smile. “Thanks Fjord.” she said, reaching to give him a hard pat on the arm.

She heard a scoff from nearby, and looked over to see her mother’s upturned nose. “Should have known.” she said, even though at the distance she couldn’t possibly have heard the conversation. Beau scowled at her, hands curling into fists. “You come in here, acting like a man, disgusting, and fraternizing with monstrous races.” Her eyes stuck on Nott, who was hovering by the door. “You were always trouble, Beauregard,” Her mother continued, before looking to Fjord. “but bedding one? That’s disgusting.”

Beau looked from her mother, to Fjord, then back. “Are you kidding?” She said. “How did catching me with my head up a girls dress not alert you to the fact that I’m not interested in men?” she asked.

Beau’s father let out a hiss. “You can’t expect us to believe a dalliance like that was going to hold. But if it has, clearly this is just proof of what we already knew.”

“Oh and what was that, hua?” she spat, taking a step towards him, footsteps echoing in the empty space. “What? come on, I’d love to hear an original thought from your tiny brain.”

His face contorted into something like a grimace. “You are a disgrace, Beauregard. You’re a mistake. You shouldn’t have ever been born in the first place.”

As blood rushed Beau’s ears it was all she could think that she didn’t think he’d have the balls to say it. She’d always known what her parents thought of her, but she didn’t think it would go for the throat like that. And, despite knowing, despite preparing herself for a fight, she felt herself go still, go quiet, go cold. She felt her staff slip slightly in her grip, the end of it striking the ground, the curl of her fingers keeping it from falling. She felt her breath catch, in shock, in pain. Saw the world slow down as her father sneered at her, the form of her mother a few paces back from him, looking almost smug.

Time zoomed back in, though, when she saw a great sword press to her father’s throat, when she saw her mother tense, hands going to her head. She blinked, taking in the forms of Jester, fingers alight with green energy, hand lifted towards her mother, and Yasha, rage in her eyes, keeping her blade pressed to his neck.

Yasha spoke, “You, sir, are the disgrace. You abused and belittled your child into believing she wasn’t deserving. You treated her like she was a burden, not a gift. You, frankly, didn’t deserve her. And I fear for the child you have now. I truly hope he breaks free of your grasp before you ruin him like you’ve ruined yourself.”

Jester hissed something in infernal to punctuate. Beau felt like the air was lead as the servant who’d been sent off entered the room. His eyes went wide at the scene around him. Caleb stepped forward, a hand outstretched for the parsel. She heard the door open behind her. She heard Caduceus’ soft voice call Jester and Yasha. She watched the tense stare down between Yasha and her father, before Yasha sheathed her weapon. She heard Jester hiss something else to her mother who responded by cowering. Beau stared at her parents, trying to decide how to feel. Trying to get her feet moving.

Yasha put an arm around Beau’s shoulder, turning her. Jester looped her arm around her waist. They walked her out.

They got her into the cart, waiting until they were a ways away to start talking, start trying to get Beau to come back to. Jester was on one side of her, all soft curves and words sharp throwing them back towards the manor. Yasha framed her other side, taking her hand, made of hard lines, and delicate actions.

Beau stared at the building that used to be her house, and took a breath. “We should have smashed more shit.” she managed, slumping between them.

There was a laugh from nearby, and Nott handed Beau her flask.

That place had been her house, sure, but this, tucked between two women who were ready to kill for her at a moments notice, this was home.

[gcldenchilds]

narcissa black

i’m trash for picking narcissa up again but i’m more trash for thinking i could leave this bitch. if you wrote with my other narcissa you’ll be in for a nice treat bc this version is completely different!

isn’t that NARCISSA BLACK? yeah that is HER, sitting there at the SLYTHERIN table with those other FIFTH years and i think i heard sybill saying they look like VIRGINIA GARDNER… whoever that is! when she looks into her crystal ball she sees a perfect pink smile and glaces through long lashes, silent coughs into lace handkerchiefs, answering any criticism with a girlish giggle, & a string of pearls sitting heavy around your neck.. anyway i’ve heard they’re pretty SUPERFICIAL, PETTY, and LOYAL. apparently they’re a PUREBLOOD but i’m sure that’s not related. —— [ mhairi : bst : 18 : she/her ]

basics

NAME  Narcissa Carina Hekate Elladora Black

NICKNAME  Cissy, Used to insist on Cissa but has stopped, Called Carina by her father Cygnus

AGE  Fifteen

DOB May 14th 1961

SEXUALITY  Asexual, Biromantic

PARENTS  Cygnus Black & Druella Rosier

SIBLINGS  Bellatrix & Andromeda

HOUSE  Slytherin

RELATIONSHIP STATUS  Single

appearance

HEIGHT  4′11″

WEIGHT  89 lbs

EYES  Blue

HAIR  Blonde

GLASSES/CONTACTS  Neither

extras

PERSONALITY TYPE  ESFJ

ALIGNMENT  Lawful Evil

TEMPERAMENT  Phlegmatic

PATRONUS  Cissy has never attempted to cast a patronus but if she did it would take the form of a wildcat.

If your patronus is the wild cat then you are intelligent and quick thinking.Quick thinking you often outsmart those around you.Often quiet and reserved, those with the wildcat patronus do have a sharp side. If the wildcat is your patronus you have a fiery heart. This feisty streak makes you formidable compared to most opponents.Tough and clever, you are resilient enough to withstand events others could not and intelligent enough to excel in anything you choose to do.

source

BOGGART  While close to her family Narcissa’s biggest point at this point in her life is not them dead but instead them turning their back on her. Casting riddikulus would cause the image of each of her family members to spin around at a rapidly increasing speed.

WAND  Elm, Kelpie Hair, 8“ 1/4′, Wishy. Narcissa’s wand is an heirloom wand, it wasn’t intentional instead Narcissa had been messing around with some of her ancestors wands when one chose her. Coincidentally it was her Great Great Great Aunt Elladora’s wand, who she is named after.

ELM  The unfounded belief that only pure-bloods can produce magic from elm wands was undoubtedly started by some elm wand owner seeking to prove his own blood credentials, for I have known perfect matches of elm wands who are Muggle-borns. The truth is that elm wands prefer owners with presence, magical dexterity and a certain native dignity. Of all wand woods, elm, in my experience, produces the fewest accidents, the least foolish errors, and the most elegant charms and spells; these are sophisticated wands, capable of highly advanced magic in the right hands (which, again, makes it highly desirable to those who espouse the pure-blood philosophy).

KELPIE HAIR  Kelpie hairs are incredibly tempermental cores, explaining their rarity. They were once common in Celtic wandmaking, however, the import of demiguise hairs has resulted in them falling out of favor. They have similar qualities to demiguise hair, and are powerful Transfiguration cores when they don't backfire spectacularly.

ZODIAC Taurus  

taurus is patience, the slow tick of the clock, lazy naps and plants and the smell of the earth after rain. they want to enjoy the pleasures of life, luxury and love and food and beauty. loyal and sensual, stubborn and traditional. stable with roots deep in the earth, they often get called materialistic for their love of beautiful things. but taurus is ruled by venus, and they long for romance before anything else, to care for someone and being loved in return.

source

SORTING  Narcissa’s sorting was a quick affair, soon as the had slipped onto her head she asked a question in a perfectly polite way “If it’s not a terrible issue Mr Sorting hat, sir, could I be in Slytherin please? I’d love to stay with my sisters” this put an end to any consideration between Ravenclaw or Slytherin

report card

Bee’s in her fifth year and will be sitting nine OWLs, getting four Exceeds Expectations, two Acceptable’s and three Outstanding’s in her end of year exams.

Astronomy, E.

Ancient Runes, E.

Charms, A.

Defence against the dark arts, E.

Divination, E.

History of magic, O.

Herbology, A.

Transfiguration, O.

Potions, O.

bio

Born on a new moon in may 1961, Narcissa Black’s name was never meant to be Narcissa. Brought into the world too early at 27 weeks, the name Carina (a constellation part of the larger Argo Navis) long picked out for an unfortunate outcome of a third daughter, did not suite the tiny child.

Oh so pale, delicate, and fragile, the new born babe was not thought long for this world, maybe not even day, definitely not a week, hardly worthy of a name from the stars. No, the girl would never be a star, wouldn’t live long enough, destined to be beautiful but short lived she would be little more than a flower.

And thus she was named Narcissa, just Narcissa not worth the middle names.

But the healers pulled off a miracle, and she survied not only the day but a week, and then two, and then three, and after a lengthy St. Mungo’s stay baby Narcissa was home.

More of a fighter, more of a warrior than her appearance let on suddenly her name seemed an oversight. But Narcissa had stuck and so she got the name she would’ve had as a middle name. Carina Hekate Elladora Black became Narcissa Carina Hekate Elladora Black. Hekate for the Greek goddess of magic and witchcraft, Elladora for her great, great, great, aunt Elladora (the one who started the tradition of beheading house elves)

Finally home from St. Mungo’s she was a baby full of noise and life, always giggling, or cooing, or babbling, you would think that it would be an unwelcome behaviour in the black house hold but at three months old Naricissa already had her parents wrapped around her tiny fingers.

Her unlikely survival had proved her a fighter in the eyes of her father, his fighter, he’d taken to calling her Carina. Always full of praise that his other daughters would rarely receive Narcissa could do no wrong. But to Druella she was always Narcissa, a flower, her flower. Her beautiful child, picture perfect, always so calm, always so pliant, any mothers dream.

But her early entrance into the world had taken a toll on her health and as a child CIssy was often sick, and as a consequence always coddled. 

By the time she was old enough to be aware of her situation Narcissa was already in love with it, she could charm any adult with a sweet smile and perfected pleasantries, she could make friends at the drop of a hat with giggles and a few sweet comments.

Going off to hogwarts was a scary thing for Narcissa she wouldn’t have the constant affection from her mother and father and she would be around more people than she had been in her entire life.

One of those should never have been a concern as the tiny blonde haired girl fit in perfectly into Slytherin house beloved by all. With those in other houses? Well they didn’t really matter.

The other however would prove to be a more major concern with the young girl, frequently finding herself consigned to the hospital wing, even having to be sent away to St. Mungo’s in her third year. Even now she’s frequently poorly.

Her illness was never a hindrance to her studies however as despite weeks at a time away from classes she’s always maintained exceptional grades. Her health does seem to be improving of late and she’s even taking up a spot on the quidditch team; surprisingly as keeper instead of seeker.

hcs

She knows what her parents expect of her, as the daughter of a great pureblood family her role is to marry into another great house but part of her can’t help but want more, want love. Maybe there’s someway she can do both?

Hopeless romantic, reads all sorts of trashy wizard romance novels... maybe she even gets someone to get her muggle ones?

Doesn’t really believe the whole blood purity thing whole heatedly. Of course purebloods are better but why should they kill all the others? Whats the point of being on top if there’s no one to be better than?

Desperately wants to show others she’s not weak because of her poor health and keep her spot on the quidditch team, maybe she’s getting someone to make her health draughts that are above her level under the table?

[theincompetentgenius]

Hello 😄 Life generator is totally awesome idea! I already love it and would like to request one for Arcana world. I hope it won’t be too much of a problem, and thank you in advance ❤️

I’m a big science nerd, especially good in math, hungry for knowledge, with unsatiable curiosity. But at the same time, i radiate dumbass energy. Most of the time i’m silent, because i don’t really know what to say, since my mind is tv static. I enjoy creating, my hobbies are singing, drawing, painting, scupting, embroidery and other forms of crafting. But i really don’t have any creativeness on my own. And i lack in artistic skills, but i substitute it with persistence. I’m really patient and can go over one place hundreds times until i’m satisfied, and i’m never giving up on any wips, they just wait for their turn (..same about people, even if have no contact with them anymore i still consider them as friends, i don’t cut ties). Even if they pile up and there’s probably no way to finish it up in one lifetime. Damn, i wish i was immortal. There’s so many knowledge and skills to learn, and art to consume and create in the world. But i don’t really have any passion or hiperfixation, i’m just all over the place, a jade of all trades and master of none. Most of the time is spend resting, on internet, because i run out of energy far too quick, especially physical and social. The problems of being contained in a body that wants to rest at all costs xd Physically i’m really weak, even though i work out regularly, my super low endurance doesn’t improve. I’m so quickly drained and need to recharge that for long so it looks like i’m lazy. Basically i’m never bored, but i can get frustraded when i’m wasting time.

I’m pretty open and honest person and have no brakes, i overshare whenever i have occasion (as you can see xD). I’m not hiding my emotions, except showing that someone hurt me (because i’m too proud to do that if that was meancingly, or i don’t want them to feel bad if it wasn’t). I’m friendly, very empathetic, eager to help if approached. I can easily put myself into other people’s shoes and always try to understand where others come from, their reasoning. And i care about others’ well being. But i’m quite a hermit, i barely have any social needs, and never approach people first. I’m fine on my own. Since i can remember, i only lived inside my own world in my head. Being around people is nice too though, but i’m pretty socially clueless. I don’t really experience loneliness, unless i miss certain people. And that happens super rarely too, i don’t get that attached to even closest people. But it happens, i can get really attached.

I can get anxious and uncertain around people, because i don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable, cross boundaries or face any sort of negative consequences. But i don’t care what people think of me n my actions, especially if i don’t know them. Social norms are only chains. There’s no reason to follow them. I prefer my order of doing things. Order is really important to me, i need it for my things, my actions, my plans. My free time is dictated by algorithms i make, that get more and more complicated with each update. Most of the time i’m in neutral state, pretty apathetic. Emotions can be easily triggered, but die as fast and i go back to the state of nirvana. I rarely get stressed and don’t care too much about issues, life always works out in one way or another. That’s why i’m chill, patient and calm.

I love cute and pretty things, sweets, plushies, hugs, cats. When it comes to nature, sure i like it and it is interesting, but i don’t really like being close to it because of bugs. They’re yucky >.> I’m hesistant about a lot of stuff and super cautious about things that could cause physical harm, which i guess makes me a coward. And i don’t enjoy travelling. I mean it is okay, but doesn’t spark any emotion, besides maybe knowledge seeking. Instead, i’m big fan of magic and powers. Not that boring stuff like astrology, but rather like you k'now, superheroes or wizards things. Wish that kind of stuff existed irl, and wish i had it all, just like with irl skills xd Also i’m really, really picky eater.

Thank you for your interest in the world of The Arcana. You will be reborn into your new life shortly. The simulation will begin in 3…….. 2……. 1……..

B A C K G R O U N D

Your mother had left you in front of the doorsteps of a poor orphanage when you were only months old. She felt that she was unfit to take care of you because she was not financially stable, but she could only hope for the best for you. Fortunately, you were left at the hands of caring and understanding individuals who supported you through your childhood. However, your scattered interests in the arts, sciences, and magic had left many people confused. They couldn’t wrap their heads around the concept that a young girl could explore such complex concepts, but that never mattered to you. Your interests were in your newfound magic. While you wouldn’t practice magic in public, you would use it when necessary or convenient. Yet these few moments caused panic within your town. You were becoming too smart, too powerful, and too curious. The townsmen felt threatened by your mere presence, so they banished you from the city under the pretense that you were a “threat to their well-being.” Yet you never saw the bursting potential buried within you.

F R I E N D S  

Julian

Now that you had been kicked out of your hometown, you had absolutely no idea where to go. There weren’t too many cities near your own and you weren’t sure if you had enough supplies to last you through your entire trip. Although you were sure that you could find a small village nearby, you still felt the need to check over your supplies to prevent excessive spending. The fact that you had to travel through the heat didn’t make things any better.

You aimlessly wandered through the leafy forests, hoping that the direction of winds, clouds, and the sun would give you some indication as to where you were. Unfortunately, you had crossed the same dead lizard five times. You were moving in circles. A sigh escaped your lips as you trudged through the forest. Your mind had gone blank and you couldn’t think of a plan to get yourself out of this mess. Your calm demeanor was wearing thin as all your plans had begun to fall apart.  The thought of blasting yourself into the sky with air magic had crossed your mind, but you knew that you were incapable of landing safely.

In the midst of your thoughts, you bumped into a tall, brooding figure. You instinctively elongated the vines from the plants, preparing to attack whatever was in front of you.

“Don’t hurt me with those vine things! I’m just a traveler!” A man with cooper hair and an eyepatch yelled.

You did a quick lookover and dropped the vines from your grasp. The man let out a sigh of relief and scrambled to his feet. He looked back at you and collected his things. Although you did not want to speak to him, he probably knew the jungle better than you and was your possible ticket to getting out of this mess. You mustered the courage in your chest to call out to him.

“Wait! I’m sorry that I shot those vines at you. I thought you were a monster, but that’s beside the point. Do you know where we are?”

He looked around with a suspicious glance. “I have a general idea. Can’t you use your magic to get yourself out of here?”

“If only I could, then I wouldn’t be wandering around with a loaf of bread and a flask of water.”

The stranger let out a chuckle. “I suppose you’re right. How did you get stuck in this place?”

And so you told him your story and your woes as an exile. You looked away, expecting him to make a rude remark but he chuckled and shook his head.

“Maybe we’re not so different, Magician. I happen to be an informally-exiled doctor for murdering a Count.”

You raised your eyebrow. For a murderer, he was rather friendly. Before you could ask any more questions, he told you his story (or whatever he remembered from it). There seemed to be many holes, but you were fairly entertained by them.

“Is Vesuvia close by?” You asked.

“Yeah, just a little down south. I’m going there to get some answers about myself. Are you going to join me?”

Other friends: Nadia, Muriel

R O M A N C E

Asra

Once you arrived at Vesuvia with Julian, the two of you went separate ways.  Not that any altercation had taken place, but Julian was more focused on uncovering his past while you needed a place to stay. So you went about, searching for possible adobes for shelter. They were either too expensive or in terrible quality. But you didn’t give up, there had to be something you could find.

As you passed through the unfamiliar streets, you looked for possible places to sleep for the night. The pillar looked too stiff, the grass was too moist, and sleeping next to a building would hurt your back. Things were looking rough for you.

Your thoughts were interrupted by a tap on your shoulder. You spun around to see a handsome young man with fluffy, white hair and a soft smile. “You look a little lost and I don’t think I’ve seen you around. Are you new here?”

You let out a sheepish grin. “Yeah, I’m just looking for a place to stay. Do you know any place that’s inexpensive but sanitary?”

The man placed his hand on his chin, presumably to think of an answer to your question. After a moment, he responded. “You can stay at my place for the night. It’s not big, but it has a cozy feel to it.”

You shook your head. “You’re too kind, but I can’t infringe on your privacy like that. After all, you must have better things to do than help a random vagabond.”

“Well I used to be a vagabond myself, so I know the pain of wandering around with no place to go.” A snake slithered from his sleeve and cocked its head. “See? Even Faust thinks you should stay over.”

“You’re too kind!” You were about to accept his offer, but a new thought crossed your mind. What if he was trying to lure you to his home for dangerous reasons? There was no way to verify that he wasn’t a kidnapper or someone with ill intentions.

The stranger noticed your sudden discomfort. “If you’re worried about ill intentions, that was probably the furthest thing from my mind. How about you I show you around Vesuvia instead? If you feel more relaxed, you can stay at my place. But I’m not pressuring you if you don’t want to.”

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea.”

“By the way, my name is Asra. Shall we get started on this tour?” The two of you wander through the colorful stalls of the city, examining the golden trinkets and wooden toys. There were racks of fruit neatly organized based on size and color with shelves of pastries next to them. Asra bought you a few desserts despite your protests. Although most products were overpriced, there was a rustic charm to them all.

By the end of the tour, you felt more comfortable around him. The two of you had spent the time exploring and talking about anything and everything. You even told him about your exile from your hometown. As he heard the story, he placed his hand on your shoulder.

“You know, I’m a magician too. If you ever need help with anything, just let me know.” He gave another one of his angelic smiles.

“Thanks. I think I’m mentally okay, but I do need to strengthen my magic.”

“I have an idea to fix that. Would you like to become my apprentice?”

F I N A L    F A T E

Originally posted by autumncozy

You had taken Asra on his offer to become his apprentice and ended up staying at the shop for convenience purposes. It didn’t matter because most of your time was spent with Asra to improve your magic. Although you claimed to not have an affinity towards any type of magic, Asra would say that you were the best at everything you attempted. With each practice session, you grew better and more skilled in your magic. It was only a matter of time before the apprentice had become the master. Asra was amazed at your progress, but you weren’t so confident in your own abilities. There was always room for improvement in your eyes.

Word had spread that another talented magician had entered the Vesuvia, but that never bothered you. If they could accept Asra, there was no reason for them to mistreat you. Not everyone was as biased and prejudiced as the people of your hometown, yet you were cautious when performing your magic in public. When you did, you were surprised when receiving compliments and paid jobs from the public. And to make things better, Asra was always there to help.

Soon, the two of you felt that the shop’s business wasn’t doing too great and decided to close it down. After all, it gave you more living space so it wasn’t the worst feeling in the world. Instead, you came up with the idea to teach other aspiring magicians so they would not be stranded like you were. At first, Asra was unsure since he wanted to live alone together in a cottage further north from the city. But when you made the compromise to teach magic only during the summer in a remote location, he couldn’t refuse. He’d still have you all to himself during the spring, fall, and winter. Well, as long as Faust didn’t steal you away from him.

As time went by, you went on to train some of the most powerful magicians in the following generation. Some had gone to save other countries from treacherous monstrous while others had become the monsters themselves. There was regret harbored in your heart for you could not have the one who turned towards the dark path, but some people could not be saved. Nevertheless, you will be remembered as one of the pioneers of magic; it’s influence spread across the globe

T H E   E N D

[novantinuum]

Death and All That Follows (Ch. 2)

A03

Fandom: Trollhunters

Rating: K 

Words: 4000~

Summary: When Merlin's elixir began to work its magic, it cleaved the then-human trollhunter's soul in two. One half lived on in a hybrid's body. You know how this portion of the tale goes, of course.

But what of the other half? What happens to him?

Well... this is his side of the story.

Chapter One

Note: Unfortunately, fic circulation online is getting harder and harder as the months pass. Please, if you read to the end and enjoy, consider helping me out by reblogging this post, or even commenting/giving kudos over on AO3. Thanks! :D

Chapter 2

His soul eclipsed with sheer happiness and relief, he practically threw himself at his once-thought-lost friend. For a split second he feared it was all grief and smoke and mirrors, that he’d merely phase right through the troll’s blue tinted spectral form, even though grabbing Kanjigar’s hand earlier surely proved this world had some degree of solidity. But blessedly, this was not so. Draal stumbled one step backwards as Jim wrapped his arms as far around him as he could, dropping his head against his chest.

“You’re alive,” he gasped in relief.

“Not alive, regrettably. Not really. This is the Void, remember? I’m nothing but a ghost, same as all the others.”

“I don’t care! I watched you die,” he said, barely able to croak out that last word in his hoarse state. “You took that knife for me, and then you fell and you turned to stone and died, a- and the cavern collapsed, and I couldn’t even stop, couldn’t mourn, o- or-“

“Jim,” Draal reminded in an almost uncharacteristically gentle manner. “My death is not your burden to bear. It is my life and my honor to serve the trollhunter. To… to watch over my friends. And I can rest easy knowing that at least that part of my duty has been fulfilled.”

“But you’re my friend too,” he said, peering up to meet his green and gold rimmed eyes. “I should’ve protected you, should’ve saved you! I was so close, and then…”

Instinctively, he lifted his hand to dab away tears with his palm, before finally realizing with shock that he hadn’t actually been crying at all. He didn’t notice until now but he never had been here, at least not in any physical sense. His heart wept, and he felt like his eyes were puffy and wet, but they somehow… weren’t. Why weren’t-? Oh. Oh, of course. He was a spectral being now. His body was nothing more than an outline of hard light, woven together by the might of ancient magic. And much like the Void’s window to reality, this instinct to feel the tangible effects his emotions summoned was merely an afterimage of the human life he’d left behind. Unneeded habit. Distantly, he wondered how long it’d take for habits like these to fade away, but at recalling the centuries many of his predecessors had spent in this place he quickly shoved this distressing notion into the back closet of his mind. He’d address that elephant in the room later. Much… later.

One day, just one day without a double dose of existential crisis, that’s all he wanted. Wow, it’s almost depressing how low the bar was.

Draal moved Jim’s small hands off his stone skin, breaking their embrace. His expression shone with genuine affection, but also a lingering sense of duty.

“Nevertheless, it in the past. Now is not the time to mourn what could have been, not when there’s still a battle to be fought.”

“He’s right,” Deya spoke up from behind them. “Deep beneath Arcadia’s streets, while the trollhunter trains under moonlight, the dark magic grow stronger with each minute that passes. We can sense it.”

“Morgana,” spoke a distant, stray soul in a mournful baritone, flitting about around them in a flickering azure haze.

“Morgana!”

“Morgana is free.”

“The Pale Lady!”

He swallowed hard. The reminder of the eldritch witch who’d tormented his friends only served to heighten his anxiety, festering like an incurable itch in his overactive mind. Another soul moved in haste right past his ear. He bit back a yelp as he flinched, dodging it. Its whispers were fervent, in rhyme, teetering on the edge of madness:

“She returns in haste and fury, Clad in emerald without light! Crystal’s flame will burn no longer, Snuffed out by Eternal Night-“

Deya lifted a hand towards this restless spirit. “Peace, Heliosa, peace. I promise, our hour of glory will soon come.”

Heliosa’s cryptic whispers abated at her words. Her spectral form grew still, hovering in the space between Draal and Jim. It seemed she didn’t plan on manifesting fully like the others, however. Odd. He scoured his mind as he gawked at the spherical light, trying to test if his knowledge could place a face to her name, but he came up blank. History lessons in Blinky’s library felt so achingly distant now. All those lazy evenings between missions spent in the warmth and familiarity of Trollmarket… the nights Aaarrrgghh let Claire and him lean against his back as he rested, and how his mane of hair always engulfed them… Toby, twisting the amulet’s antiquated translations of A Brief Recapitulation into endless puns… the in-joke he shared with Blinky once upon a time, with their running tally of the (rare) occasions they caught Vendel smiling…

His features softened at the rush of fond memories.

“-may recall from Blinkous’ many, many lectures, is one of the most spiritually attuned trollhunters, and-“

Hold on, when exactly did Kanjigar start talking again?

“Wait, wait, wait,” he spluttered, holding up a hand. The elder trollhunter paused, peering at him with pursed lips. “Sorry, what? I, uh- I kinda blanked out there a bit. Sorry,” he repeated, desperately ignoring the slight embarrassed crack in his voice.

Draal titled closer to whisper in his ear, or at least as close to a whisper his bombastic friend could manage. “My father was introducing you to Heliosa the Harbinger.” He gestured towards the soul still hovering between them, its inner light pulsing at a heartbeat’s pace.

“Oh!” Distantly wondering if there was any way to save this conversation, he rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. God, he might as hell have stuffed them in his mouth. “Uh- hello. I’m… Jim. Jim Lake Junior. Although you probably all know that already, so-“

Deya bestowed him a thin, pitying smile. “Be aware, she’s become a troll of few words within the past decade or so. Today is quite the rarity.”

“Hence why we’re introducing her,” his immediate predecessor nodded. “She only speaks in verse. You’ll soon grow used to it.”

Heliosa, still manifesting as a burst of spherical energy, began to dance in unpredictable corkscrews around the small gathering. The display left him mesmerized, gaze obediently following the faint trail of her glow like a cat’s paw to a pen light. Once more she spoke, her willowy voice laced with an unquestionable arcane authority:

“I foresaw the choice of Merlin, Knew the Lake of fate’s design, Centuries prior, time predicted Hunter born of humankind. Born of flesh, remade forthright Daylight’s child chained by night By wizard’s magic forged anew To eclipse Darkness with their might.”

The three trolls standing beside him gawked— Deya and Kanjigar in noticeable awe— clearly not expecting such a vocal presence from this trollhunter of old today. However, where their reaction brought pleasant surprise, all he felt was… well, the only way he could think to describe it was as a sort of reverse dread. His brow creased, her prophetic truth leaving him hollow. It stripped him bare, like a pumpkin with all its guts scooped out. With a spoon. He found the mere idea that destiny wove the threads of everything he’d experienced— that despite his many gambles and unpredictable strategies she’d led him by the hand to this very moment unhindered by chance— deeply uncomfortable. If fate really was his master, then… then he must be nothing. A minuscule, predestined knot in life’s tapestry. A mere pawn, his choices be damned.

Not that he ever had one to begin with.

He felt his spectral form collapse into a dense pinprick of light, perhaps to match how tiny he truly felt.

“I- sorry, excuse me,” he breathed, genuinely not knowing if he’d said these words aloud or if they merely existed as an echo within his mind.

Everything revealed since he awoke here suddenly becoming too much for Jim to process at once, he pulled himself away, immediately taking to floating as if second nature. The presence of Draal and all the others grew smaller and smaller as he sank further into the shadows of their metaphysical forge.

Betrayed, by destiny…

Confused.

Alone.

So, so alone.

I have to finish the fight! Alone...

If you walk out that door, you will die!

What choice do I have?

Oh there’s always a choice. Run away, save your skin!

My amulet does not make mistakes…

Despite whatever doubts you may have, it is now bonded to you. This is a mantle you cannot refuse.

I thought you said I had a choice!

I care, I do! I just see the bigger picture...

Your humanity is not enough, you are not enough!

In order for Merlin’s magic to work, something had to be left behind.

...

So what am I, then?

“Jim.”

Ambient noise emanating from the dull thrum of the forge became all but absent at the call. Impossibly stubborn and not desiring visitors in his current state of distress, he shifted his presence further into the shadow.

He was being stupid, he knew. The voice calling was clearly Draal’s. Why the hell was he hiding from Draal? And after all they’d experienced together...

As he tried to evade him, he bumped directly into a solid, warm surface instead. Living stone, life energy pulsing beneath. He felt a hand swipe towards him and he dodged. At this point he genuinely didn’t know if it was out of reflex or because he actually wanted to avoid his friend.

“Jim,” he repeated, stressing his name. “Look at me.”

Even if the only stimuli he could truly intake right now in this form was sound and touch, he swore he sensed the moment he himself pulsed with light, matching the wave of annoyance cresting within his mind.  

“In case you haven’t noticed, I kinda can't do that right now,” he shot back.

“I do not mean-“ Draal sighed, the rough sound betraying his otherwise calm facade and revealing his concern. “Look with your soul, not your eyes.”

Despite his current cynicism towards everything in the universe, he gathered his wits and began to focus in on himself. Soul, not eyes. Soul, not eyes. Puzzling, and infuriating. He had no physical form, how on earth was he supposed to—

Oh. Oh. That’s new, he thought, feeling the slight pricking of another consciousness against his own. The consciousness’ shape intrinsically matched with what he knew of Draal, like how one might recognize someone by scent or the timbre of a voice.

“Ah, so you’ve found it. As you can sense now, we exhibit a different kind of sight here.”

“What… is this?”

“We’re the souls of the dead. How else would souls communicate, without the form granted by the amulet’s binding magic?”

“So. Let me get this straight. Basically, you’re saying the physical Void as I know it only exists through Merlin’s magic?”

He gently hovered beside his presence as Draal paused to consider his next words.

“As far as I’m aware, yes? Do remember,” he said, before Jim could probe for information he apparently didn’t have, “I arrived here mere nights ago. Father has only explained so much.”

“Okay, and about that.”

“About-?”

“You. I- I thought the Void was, y’know. Just for trollhunters. How did you…?”

“It was my father’s doing,” he explained. “At his request the elder trollhunters made an exception for me, against the normal rules. That’s all.”

“Well, I’m glad they did,” Jim said softly. “If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that some rules are worth breaking.”

“Some, yes.”

The troll’s presence pulsed with genuine warmth against his soul’s own. He wondered, if he had capacity for sight right now, if he’d see his friend smiling.

“Now tell me, flesh bag. What distresses you at this hour?”

His heart skipped a beat. Well, if he still had a heart, it would’ve skipped a beat. (Language technicality was going to be the death of him here.) In lieu of working organs, he was pretty sure his soul did about the equivalent.

“I’m fine now, really,” he hastily attempted to cover up.

Draal was absolutely not having it.

“Hmm. Interesting.”

“Wh- what is?”

“Your strange definition of ‘fine.’ You ran away, and then hid in the shadow for twenty minutes.”

“Uh- okay, okay. Fine. Or, or,” he stuttered, “not fine, I mean. Just…. there’s a lot to unpack. That’s all.”

“Are you planning to elaborate, or leaving me to ponder forever?”

Jim lapsed into momentary silence again as he considered. Draal was only wanting to help. He knew this. Also, where once his worry was vulnerability, now he literally had nothing left to lose.

“Well for one,” he eventually began, biting sarcasm coating his words, “I’m dead. I killed myself, and now I’m stuck here with a bunch of- of moody former trollhunters for all of eternity. And then. And then! Apparently, it sounds like every day of my life was bound by some divine destiny, or whatever. And I was fine with that, at first, with the idea of destiny. Because I thought-“ the emotion he’d been stifling began cracking through his level headed facade- “I don’t know! I thought it was something I could control. I thought that the amulet chose me for who I was. For being... special, as stupid and selfish as that sounds. But all of this was prophecy, Draal! It was always meant to happen! So what’s the point in it specifically picking me if I was just a pawn to fate all along? And not only that, but one of my predecessors literally knew Merlin was gonna blindside me with all this half-troll business and do they ever consider giving me, you know, a little heads-up? No!”

“It was only a prophecy.”

“Yeah, well it was a prophecy about me! I would’ve wanted to know. Maybe if I had more time, i-if I had the foreknowledge, could actually think on it before just- God, this was all such a mistake!” he cried. He could sense his spectral form growing cold and dim, only suspended by a single thread.

Draal’s consciousness brushed against his in what might have been his attempt at a metaphysical pat on the back.

“You miss your friends,” he observed.

Jim considered levying him a snarky ‘no duh’ in response, but his soul was too weary for sarcasm right now. Instead, with a little focus and a shimmer of daylight, he manifested himself physically once more and wrapped his arms around the one true friend he had left. He pressed his forehead against his chest.

Draal lowly huffed through his nostrils, slowly returning the embrace. While the fierce troll would never admit it, Jim knew from the hours spent fighting by his side that he cared far more than one might assume. Most of the ‘tough guy’ act he exuded was precisely that: a facade. Draal was actually fairly sentimental, and more soft-hearted than a lot of other trolls he knew. (He’d kept a few knick knacks gifted to him by his father in the basement.) If Jim ever brought it up he’d probably throw him in a headlock, though. Some things never change.

“They won’t ever- they don’t know I’m dead,” he said, words sticking in his throat. “They’ll never know, ‘cause to them I’m not-! I-I… can never see them, ever again.”

“I understand.”

He stood there leaning against his friend in relative silence for a time, his breath shaky as he allowed the rest of the emotion coursing through him like an avalanche to gradually dissipate. Draal didn’t budge an inch, still resolute in his duty to support the trollhunter. The smallest of smiles broke through his anguish at this thought, curving across his face. He was so grateful for that.

“Blinky,” he began, small and hesitant, as he pulled away from their hug. “He always said that destiny… that it’s a gift. Thing is, it really doesn’t feel like one right now.”

“Would you like my input, Trollhunter?”

He met Draal’s eyes, the troll peering into his in such a knowing way that it almost made him squirm. “S-sure. Go wild. I’d take anything at this point.”

“You’ve chosen to define the sum of your life as the destination every action leads you towards. But have you considered that perhaps… what matters isn’t where, but how?”

“I’m not following, sorry.”

“Destiny may guide you, act as a beacon for days to come. But in the moment, you decide how you react to the challenges life throws at you. That choice is yours, and yours alone.”

“Oh, great,” Jim muttered, a sour cynicism corroding his tone. “Helpful. So life may suck, but hey! At least I can approach it with a smile!”

“No. That is not what I mean. What happens in the moment has far more impact than you realize, Jim. Consider me, for instance,” he explained, jabbing a finger solidly against his chest. “You chose to spare my life in our duel. A single life. Do you really think the elders’ vague prophecy could’ve ever predicted a young human having the courage to break entirely from tradition, to forge his own path? I wouldn’t be here right now without your intervention. Your camaraderie, and your friendship. Every action— even the smallest— creates ripples, Trollhunter. Do not be so quick to forget that.”

At this reminder, the hollowing of his chest receded, his anxieties ceasing to eat away at him so quickly. Draal was absolutely right. Even moving through the patterns of fate, he still exhibited a great deal of agency. Even within the framework of a game he didn’t create, he possessed the capacity for free will. His grim assumptions earlier were wrong. He wasn’t somebody’s pawn, he was the hand strategically moving the pawn.

Nevertheless, a pang of melancholy ran cold like a shiver through his bones. At the edge of war, he sure hoped his living counterpart realized this too.

“So… what do we do now?” he said. “Not like, about the battle,” he clarified hastily, “but. Just in general? It’s way too quiet here. I could do with some sparring, or something.”

Mischief glinted in his friend’s eyes.

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Blue clashed against blue in a myriad of sparks, the magic that held together their physical forms flickering like television static each time they struck a hit. Jim Lake Jr. grinned as he leapt clear of the latest attack. Draal, compressed into a dense ball and unable to slow himself down, continued rolling up the side of the practice ring and clear into the rafters. Somewhere far above, the troll condensed himself to light and all but dissapeared.

“Hah, missed me!” Jim shouted in triumph, backing a few steps up as he scoped the area. His fingers wrapped ever tighter around the hilt of his sword. “Still one hit ahead of you. Y'know, my offer to play easy is still on the- Whoa!"

He manifested his shield in one hand just as his friend, chuckling boisterously, appeared from thin air and swung a playful punch at him. Even in the Void, the contact shot dull vibrations all the way up his arm.

"Not a chance, novice! Tied!" Draal countered, and immediately tucked himself into a ball again. The rumbles of his movement across the stone reverberated powerfully throughout the vast halls.

“What in the name of-!“  

Uh-oh.

Jim almost regressed back into his spectral state himself right then and there, the surprise of the elder trollhunter's voice merely the cherry on top after Draal's sneak attack. His form flickered as he returned Daylight to its mount on his back.

“Oh, Kanjigar!” he said, plastering an innocent smile on his face. Draal rolled to a stop in between them, looking equally as sheepish. “Are you here to, uh- to spar too?”

The elder trollhunter pressed his palm against the ridge of his forehead. “Am I here to- no! No, of course I am not! We do not wage battle in the harmony of the Void! And Draal, you too?” he exclaimed, widely gesturing at his son. “Must both of you make a mockery of this sacred space?”

Without so much as a second thought, Draal pointed at Jim. “It was his idea.”

“Hey, excuse me!” he hissed at him under his breath, embarrassment growing evident in his posture. That rat! He bailed him out, and in front of one of the greatest trollhunters to live, no less. Still, Kanjigar  was  his father, (and Jim couldn’t imagine ever lying to Blinky, himself), so he supposed he’d have to excuse the betrayal. He sighed deeply, and leveled his gaze towards the great troll with a demeanor of assured confidence only a fellow trollhunter would ever dare summon. “With respect, I’ve only been here for like, barely an hour, if that, and I’m already dying of boredom.”

Kanjigar blinked, utterly failing to capture the deeper meaning of his words. “I’m afraid I don’t follow. By all measures you’ve already died, Jim.

“I know that I’m-“ he groaned, carding his fingers through his hair. “Never mind, it’s- it’s just a figure of speech. My point is, I’m not gonna just float about the ether and armchair quarterback every single little fight my other self has like you, okay? I- I need something to do. Something that won’t be stressful as hell."

"What, like sparring? Sparring is not customary here."

"Why?"

Draal huffed in annoyance, and began to hollowly recite words his father had likely imparted when he first arrived. "Because the Void is a peaceful domain wherein trollhunters should seek the calming pursuits they never had opportunity to give thought to in life. Supposedly."

"We do not wage battle because our lives were a battle, young trollhunter," Kanjigar stated simply.

"But that's not fair, it's calming for me!"

He pondered on this fact as the words passed his lips, upon reflection surprised at how accurate they were. He'd actually grown to look forward to his training sessions with Blinky or Draal, back before the loss of Trollmarket. They were routine, ever-evolving, and functioned as wonderful stress relief. Many a day he'd spent letting his frustrations out on the forge machinery after a bad Spanish or algebra exam.

“Wow," he said under his breath, mostly to himself. "That's actually true, it really is. Huh. Crazy how much can change in a few months. But!" He lifts a finger for emphasis, talking directly to the others once more. "As I was saying."

"Yes, do continue," Kanjigar said, peering between him and Draal with narrowed eyes. He crossed his arms, thoroughly unimpressed.

Jim's hand moved to cover the amulet, hanging directly over the space his heart once occupied. He glossed his thumb across its rim. "I guess... the crux of the matter is, certain customs of the troll world had to change when the amulet picked a human. And now, with part of me dead, it’s the Void’s turn. I'll keep my distance from everyone else while sparring for courtesy's sake, but for the record, it makes me happy. I don't aim to stop."

And with that bold statement, he let his armor fade into light. The expression of dumfounded shock that crossed that old troll's stony face in response was almost enough to make him audibly bark in laughter for the first time today. He pocketed the amulet, and walked past his elder.

"You coming?" he said, gesturing to Draal. "I thought I'd explore around a bit more."

"Count me in."

“I heard you shouting in the distance. Tell me- what did I miss?” Deya asked as Kanjigar returned to the others.

“Nothing important,” he groused. “Only Lake and my son desecrating every rule they happen to lay their eyes on.”

She tilt her head at him, in a matter-of-fact sort of way. The knowing smile she presented— top row of sharpened, squarish teeth showing between her lips— whisked him back to the time when he the foolish youth called by the amulet, and she was one of his elders. Long, long ago.

“They’re sparring, aren’t they?”

“Exactly! And as dictated, the Void is a place of eternal peace. A peace that currently, they’re uprooting by way of their irresponsible foolishness!”  

Deya’s laugh rang out as clear as a bell. “Oh, lighten up, you old misery,” she teased, swinging a punch at Kanjigar’s shoulder. “To hell with the rules. It's perfectly harmless, sparing here. Let the youth have their fun.”

[luv4fandoms]

Of Wood and Steel-CH2

Here is Chapter 2.

You can also read this on ao3 if you prefer.

I do not own any of the canon characters

I own everyone else.

Part 3

Chapter 2-Journey to The Shire

Warnings- Orc killing?

Word Count-2,157

“Ready Lizzie! One more go!” Thistle shouted from her perch upon the moss covered boulder.

“Cat!” She yelled. Concentrating, I felt my limbs begin to shrink and reform.

“So cute! Now...Hawk!”

Again I focused on my new form, soon pushing myself off the ground and flying to her.

“Bear!” She smiled at me, nodding I lept off of the rock and landed, soon feeling my feathers shift into fur while my body grew larger.

“That is quite enough Thistle” Treebeard called as he made his way to us.

“Aww but we were just practicing” Thistle pouted while she watched me change back into my human form. My once short pixie cut had grown over the two years I have been here, now it hung to the middle of my back, the top half tied up with the bottom half free, a braid on either side. The clothing from my world had not lasted long amongst the training and weather of Middle Earth, now replaced with a pair of dark green pants and a green, long sleeved, what would have been called a peasant blouse back home...The sleeves did well to hide the new tattoos I had gained. My brown leather boots were sturdier than anything back home, and they matched my leather vest that protected my chest, as well as had some really cool leaf designs carved into it. And lastly a dark green hooded cape.

“She has practiced enough, word has been sent to Gandalf, and she is to meet them all in the Shire in half of a moon's cycle” Treebeard explained.

“So she is to leave us?” Ashtwig asked, a small Ent to whom I had grown rather fond of, he was often Thistle's playmate of sorts, but he reminded me of my nephews back home.

“I will return, once my journey is over” I promised him, he took my overstretched hand and smiled at me.

“You better missy” Thistle smiled, though I could see the sadness and worry behind it.

“Though you have your magic, you know that you mustn't use it unless completely necessary, or in the presence of those whom you can trust” Treebeard explained again, this was something that I had been told ever since I got here. It seems that in this world Druids are rare...Really rare...Like only one every 500 generations or so. And because of this, they are highly sought after for brides...after all, have a baby with one and the child inherits the mother's powers as well...That could be terrifying mixed with some of the races I have heard tell about.

“So you will take these” He added, placing his hand on the ground, a glow from the dirt illuminating the bark of his hand and arm before he lifted his palm, what appeared to be a wooden axe slowly being pulled from the Earth, soon followed by another, and then a small dagger.

“No Druid has ever fought with an axe, I'm sure you know why” he smiled, handing them to me. But I know that is your preferred weapon, so we shall make an exception”

“What is it made out of?” I asked, watching the glow around it slowly fade.

“Ent bark” he replied, causing me to look at him as if he grew another head...But bark was their..

“It didn't come from any of us my dear, do not fret. The Earth provided it. As you know Ent bark is very strong, it will defend you well” he smiled.

“Thank you” I breathed.

“I cannot thank you enough, all of you” I added, looking around at all of the Ents that had become my family over the last two years.

“You will do far more for us dear, no need to thank us so much” another Ent, Ashwild replied. I still did not know just why I was here, my “destiny” as Thistle called it had not been made clear, I had simply been told that I was to do something important in the years to come.

“And you already know what to do with this” he added, handing me the small bottle, the green liquid inside sloshing from one side to the other...This bottle was very important to a Druid...Because this bottle was me. Upon taking the oath to start training, a Druid must make a sacrifice, your life essence must be handed over...in a way. You get it back, just in a liquid form, this allows you to live outside of your physical form, as long as no harm comes to the bottle...you live...but if the bottle breaks or is emptied...you die.

“Keep it safe” I nodded.

“It is time my dear” Treebeard spoke, pulling me from my thoughts, I simply nodded.

“I will never be to far if you need me” Thistle smiled. I looked around at all of the Ents, the same ones who had become my family over the past two years and who had taught me so much.

“I won't let you down” I nodded, turning to leave the forest for the first time. I had been told that the Earth would tell me which way I needed to travel, and as I looked back at my family once more I knew, no matter what I would face in the time to come, I had to be strong...For them.

Two years in a forest allowed me to learn a lot, but not experience much. Thistle had told me all about Middle Earth, the different places and different races, but I hadn't met anyone besides two of the wizards during my stay here. I had been told to avoid Orcs and Goblins, seems that here they were an actual thing and not a made up race like in my world. I was also told that the other races were as trustworthy as people in my world...Meaning some were good and some were not, though that didn't surprise me.

As hard as I try...I had long forgotten the voice that overall convinced me to come here, the word still rang in my head...amrâlimê...but the one who had spoken it was lost.

My first direction came in the form of a small bird, stating that I was to make my way south-west, to the North-South road. I was told that it would take me through a few places, but ultimately lead me to where I needed to go, a place called The Shire.

The trip to get to the road took from sunup to sundown, and as I set up camp I wondered just how long this journey would take, and if I should have left sooner. The night was chilly but not to cold, and I kept my axes by me just in case. I also received a visitor by my fire, a barn owl swooping down and resting on a nearby log.

“How are you doing dear?” He asked

“I'm fine thank you, I'm afraid about making it on time though” I told him.

“Keep true to the road and you will, though I must warn you, you will be coming upon dangerous lands in the morn, travel quickly, this journey will not be easy, and you will not be welcomed by many.” He warned me, sighing I replied

“I knew I wouldn't be, but I still dare to hope for some hospitality along the way”

“Take care dear” he bowed before taking off into the night, leaving me with my thoughts.

I began my journey the next day at the first light, wanting to do just as I was advised and travel quickly...But fate didn't seem to be on my side.

The first setback was being chased by a pack of men yelling something about Rohan, not sure what their deal was really, but I wasn't about to stick around and find out. It was bad enough that I tripped at one point and most of my food had fallen out of my bag, and I had to leave it behind for fear of being stabbed or beheaded.

The second came later in my journey when I happened upon a small farming family near the Grayflood river. They were kind and took pity on the fact that I had been without much food for a couple of days. They gave me a warm bed for the night, but sadly our slumber was cut short by loud howling and screams, when I asked what the sounds were they replied with what I had hoped they wouldn't...Orcs.

The father and son were very adept with swords, it seemed this happened often and due to that, they learned to protect themselves. The flock was a large though, at least ten Orcs rode atop some strange wolf like creatures, but there were at least fifteen more on the ground.

“Why are there so many?” I asked the man, Theodore as I ducked from an oncoming attack, my axe coming up and slicing through the Orc's stomach before I turned and cut another one's neck just as he was about to strike.

“Hunting” Reid, the son, replied while he killed another. The battle lasted only a little while, but I knew that I needed to be on my way as soon as possible. The first ray of sun hit the farm and I made my way to the road once more, my bag now holding a new stash of bread that Nadia had insisted that I take, and knowledge that The Shire was just beyond the next  river I would encounter.

The journey had taken me ten days so far, and I could only hope that fate would smile on me a bit more from here on out.

“You're up early miss” A hummingbird spoke, hovering next to me as I walked.

“I need to be, the journey isn't over yet, I still have a ways to go” I told her.

“That is true, well I wish you all the luck miss” she happily replied before fluttering away. I couldn't help but laugh, two years ago I would never have pictured myself talking to passing animals..well...never understanding them anyways.

I found myself the target of a much smaller pack of Orcs before I reached the next river, but even without help this pack was easier to take down simply due to the small number. Fourteen days now, and after camping one last time, I set out the day's journey to the Shire.

“He's left a mark on the door of a Mr.Baggins” a butterfly whispered as she landed on my shoulder.

“Just look for the mark” and with that she was off.

“A mark huh? Always clever Gandalf” I smiled. I had met Gandalf only a year after I had came here, I met Radagast first, after he came to investigate, stating that he had felt that something in the Earth had shifted...Guess that was me. Upon realizing what I would soon be, he brought Gandalf to meet me, and I quickly became friends with the quirky wizards.

So when Gandalf came and asked me if I would like to go on an adventure, I happily agreed. He said that I would be a healer for the group I would be traveling with as they were in need of one. Healing was easy, not to mention I could hold my own in battle...but it may be some time before I could use any of my other powers...to see if I could trust this group.

The moon fell behind the hills just as I entered Hobbiton and I had to stop to take a breath...this was it...I could still remember it clearly from the visions I had seen when Thistle found me. She said what I had seen was from her world, but all I had seen so far was the forest. But this...This was one of the places...this was real.

“I'm really not in Florida anymore” I laughed lightly to myself. After everything I had seen and done to get here, and it only really hit me now.

“Right then, mark on the door” I told myself, making my way along the paths and glancing at the doors, surely it would be a rather noticeable mark. But door after door nothing stood out...Until I reached the last house, further up a hillside...There on the bottom of the door sat a rune carving.

“Let's hope this is it” I thought to myself as I made my way up to the door, taking a deep breath I knocked and waited. I could hear loud voices inside, almost like a party, and as I saw the expression of the Hobbit who answered, I realized it was a very unwanted party.

“Hello sir, are you Mr.Baggins?” I asked the now wide eyed Hobbit.

Thank you all for reading, I hope you all enjoyed it, let me know what you think, and I'll see you soon in chapter 3!

[deathdesu]

character: D i o

BUT OF COURSE…. thanks for asking! 

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang

If I hadn’t been made aware that the art book calls him an ikemen type, I would have had no idea he was supposed to be hot. I can see how he is (pretty eyes, a tall blonde, a strong voice) but the circus clothes are pretty bad, braids objectively bad even though I kinda like them in a viking-y way, and the curves in his lips always made me think he looked a bit like a frog or maybe a cat.  Doesn’t stop me from drawing sexy art of him tho lol. 

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

Good now I can publicly explain why I made him Gryffindor on my recent chart. First of all I think it would be really pigeonholing him to put him in Slytherin. “There are dark wizards in every house” as they say. In Dio ending, he tells Phi and Sigma that he’s like a superhero - and in Japanese, the word he used was “seigi no mikata” aka Ally of Justice, showing that he would view himself the way a Gryffindor does. He’s far more brash than he is ever cunning and he’s ruled by his emotions a lot of the time. It simply looks off since he’s a cultist who’s worshipping a Slytherin. As such, Peter Pettigrew is a really good example of the type of Gryffindor Dio is.   

best quality: He’s the most quotable character in the game by a country mile, and his presence in the various routes is just as bombastic. (pun intended.) Dio ending itself is incredibly memorable just for the sheer surprise of his backstory. Who would ever expect that the circus guy dropping F-bombs all the time was a religious nut? Just imagine this guy having a quiet boring church life most of the time and then really cutting loose for his infiltration projects. No wonder he did a swear so many times. He’s hilarious.  worst quality:  I’m kinkshaming his planet fetish- ok that’s jokey, but do I really have to spell it out? What an asshole. There really isn’t anything that you could say is Low Even For Him, he’ll do it all ship them with: Well the most popular pairing for him is Dio/Luna, which is a pairing that I get and that I accept. It’s not ideal for me though, I’m more inclined to think Luna deserves better. My favorite person to ship Dio with requires some finagling to get around the crossover timelines, but it’s Dio/Mira. They’re about even in terms of being terrible so they’d deserve to put up with each other, they’ve both got connections to Brother which could put them in contact or at least be fun and mysterious, and I know for a fact they’d find each other entertaining. Dio is a lot like Eric but worse (so while this isn’t my opinion necessarily, anyone that thinks Eric deserves better than Mira, this ship could also be for you, I recommend Carlos/Eric as a side for your Dio/Mira) …Meanwhile Dio is attracted to “feisty women” perhaps someone who is like Alice but worse. As a note, I definitely think Dio would be attracted to Alice but also I would never ship Dio/Alice, why would you when Alice/Clover is right there. Plus they have a more direct reason not to bang when he or another Myrmidon may have killed her father, yikes.  There are other parallels between them, like making animal metaphors, wearing red and dying of asphyxiation in a pod (like two peas!! Romantic!!!!!!) but this section is already embarrassingly 3x times longer than the others so just trust me that they’re a good match and let’s move on. The direction this ship goes could be all sorts of things depending on how it was set up in the first place… I’d probably be happy with anything? Something like a hatemance would be tasty, though when I RP or draw it, I do tend to make it more positive, piranhas schooling together or whatever. It’s good shipping for if you’re more interested in exploring their villainy than rehabilitation, though I firmly believe they both would be capable of reaching the latter with just eachother as well, it would just take some time and positioning. Maybe copious use of Mira’s willingness to challenge her own beliefs to inspire change in Dio’s zealot approach, or another way, Dio wanting to become better when Mira may not be able to understand his feelings otherwise. 

brotp them with: I think Dio just needs to outsource to ZTD entirely because Carlos would be the nice respectful Gryffindor senpai he never knew he wanted. Like I just think way too much of him in this kind of crossover terms because of my main ship for him. However in canon, hmm. Luna would still be very, very good for him even if it wasn’t necessarily romantic. I also see him trying to bro it up with Sigma and I actually have no problem with that. Like Dio, Sigma and Phi all becoming weird friends after Dio tourguided them around the moon in his ending would be highly legit.  …I also have this RP bromance of Lenga’s Dio with my 707 from Mystic Messenger that works out because guess who already has life experience with a crazy cultist bro. needs to stay away from: NO ONE. SOONER OR LATER, EVERYBODY PUTS UP WITH DIO. I don’t make the rules

misc. thoughts:    no, I’ve already said too much

[glompme]

Katie McCall Chronicles - Dragged Back Into Hell - Chapter 2 UPDATED

A Dresden Files inspired story.

The story is set between Proven Guilty and White Knight.

  Sergeant Karrin Murphy was a police officer with Chicago PD, as part of their SI division. SI investigated anything that couldn't be explained and stopped it, then explained it in a normal mortal way. Rumor had it she's the one that killed the giant werewolf thing several Halloweens ago. Karrin was half a foot shorter than me and was sporting short blond hair. She was very pretty and looked bad-ass in that "she could kick my ass easily" sort of way. She asked me several questions about the incident. It was mostly routine. How many were there, what could I remember about them, and of course, what did they want? I answered as best as I could with Harry standing ten feet away from me and Karrin. She kept glancing at him then back to me. Finally she asked, "Is he afraid of you or are you afraid of him?"    "I'm afraid of magic." I said shortly. "I can feel the presence of magical beings, energies, and things, and his energy is frightening, not to mention his reputation."    She nodded at me knowingly. "Makes sense, plenty of things out there to worry about. Harry suggested you stay with me for a while. Do I have to worry about my computers and tv exploding?"    I nodded awkwardly. "Sorry for the trouble."    Karrin laughed and gently patted my shoulder. "It's okay. You don't have to apologize for having that power. You can't help what's inside of you. Luckily I have some vacation saved up so we can just spend it at my place." She paused a moment. "Do you mind if Harry comes with us so he can set up some wards around the house and keep an eye on you while I turn off all the electric stuff at home?" I shook my head in reply. "Good. Did your power detect what the vampires were?" I gave her a nod quietly. She smiled warmly at me. "Don't worry, we'll get this all sorted out. You trust me right?" I gave her another nod. "Excellent. Gather your things, I need to talk to Harry real quick and then we'll head out together, alright?"    I gave her a weak smile and watched her walk off. I went over to the desk where we wrote down the books being checked out, yay out of date, underfunded library, and gathered my things and a couple of books I was allowed to set aside and read myself. I turned around and saw Karrin walk over. She looked confused. "Is something wrong, Sergeant Murphy?"    She smiled, it was beautiful, "Please, call me Karrin." Her frown returned, "You said the vampire woman Harry cooked kissed you on the mouth right?"    "Yeah. Oh." I closed my eyes as I realized what her confusion was about. I opened my eyes again, focusing on her eyebrows, "Right, the saliva thing. The Warden that saved me six years ago checks in on me from time to time to see if I'm willing to sign up and join the wizard army. Last time I asked if he could make some anti-saliva potions so I could make sure I was immune or at least resistant to the effect. I've got like three more at the apartment."    "No kidding!" She turned around and shouted, "Harry, she has anti-vamp juice." She turned back to me, "Now, what do you mean the Warden who saved you?"   I saw Harry blink his eyes in surprise at Karrin's comment. I guess Harry wasn't expecting me to have that. "A thing happened a long time ago that I'd rather not talk about, but it was," I paused and winced, remembering, "painful. A Warden saved me from that." ----------    We shuffled into the car. Harry was in the backseat and I was in the front with Karrin as she drove. I tried to think calm thoughts during the drive, adjusting my clothes to make sure nothing was left out of place after the attack. Mostly, I tried not thinking about the fact that Harry was a wizard and Warden of the White Council. I tried not to think about the fact that it was August and the broken door was going to take forever to fix. I also tried to avoid thinking about the fact that I felt Karrin Murphy was a beautiful older woman and sitting next to me. Okay I thought about that last part a lot. I haven't had a relationship in years and any chance of a booty call was snuffed out when my date's phone, lights, and tv kept fizzing out. I had tried the motel thing a couple of times but it still never worked out. Broken cellphones seemed to bother people more and more each year.    Tension was thick through part of the ride before Karrin let out a sigh and asked, "So Katie, is that short for anything?"    I gave a nervous glance to Harry and then nodded. "Yeah but due to the fact that many can do things with a person's name from their own mouth, Katie will have to do." I could practically feel the wince at my lack of trust in Harry, but if you were reported as able to throw a car onto someone and having weird conversations with invisible people, everyone would have issues with trusting you too. I'm sure he understood my concern.    "Karrin," Harry started, "I'm not sure Katie is gonna have clothes to change into and we don't know how long this is gonna be. We should stop by her place. It's nearby, right Katie?"    "Mmhm." I gave Karrin the directions and we pulled into the parking lot outside of my apartment complex.    As we got out of the vehicle, Harry said, "I'll keep an eye on things out here, if you run into any problems, scream like-"    Karrin interrupted, "Like a girl?" I couldn't tell if she was giving him a verbal jab, or was bitter at his concern.    Harry gave a rich laugh, "Like your life depends on it, Murph. Because it might. We have no idea what they might have done." We nodded to him carefully.    I pointed him at my windows. "Third floor, fourth from the right along with the two to the right of it." I looked at his nose again, "In case something happens. It's room three-o-four." He nodded.    Karrin was kind enough to go upstairs with me. Harry was watching the car. Once we were up to my apartment, I pulled out my keys and checked the door. It was unlocked. "I didn't do that." Karrin went into the room first and I followed. My lumpy couch, small dining room table which was mostly a card table, my coffee table and bookshelves all looked right. Nothing seemed out of place. I went into my bedroom and reached under my bed to grab my overnight bag, prepacked with various bits of clothing and supplies. I stuffed a few items into it so I could have little pieces of home with me including a couple of unopened letters from my sister, Penny. I accidentally knocked over a photo of mom on my dresser. I didn't remember that being there, picked it up cautiously, and stared at it.    I must have been staring at it a while because Karrin shook my shoulder gently. "Earth to Katie? You alright?"    I blinked a bit and set the photo back where it fell down from. "Yeah sorry I was just-" I held my head as I swayed, my mind fogging. The room was suddenly spinning then everything went black. ----------    I woke up in the car a bit later. My head hurt but it wasn't the throbbing pain I was expecting. "What hit-"    Harry spoke up first. "A magical booby trap, nasty sleep spell. I was able to get it off of you before it did any real harm."    "You hit your head on the floor." Karrin asked, "Is your head okay, Katie? Who was in the photo?"    "I'm alright, thanks. Mom was in the picture. She didn't see eye to eye with me having magic and-then that ass showed up." Barbara the bitch of a mom McCall was the woman who raised and gave birth to me. She was not a kind mother, constantly try to groom me as a professional singer so she could live through me. The training she put me through was grueling. Then I was revealed as a lesbian with that soul gaze, and when I finished processing I did tell mom, and she nearly disowned me. She calmed down, eventually, and insisted I never spoke about what I saw to anyone, and not to tell anyone I'm a lesbian, and that I'd grow out of it. So, that was sweet of her, if sweet meant cruel and mean. I eventually had enough and ran away from home. That's how I met the sorcerer.    "The thing that you don't wanna talk about?" Karrin asked slowly. "I'm sure if you talk it'll-"    "Drop it, Murph. Trust me, it's not something you want to hear. Just know it's taken care of, and she's still dealing with the after effects."    "She told me that much, Harry," Karrin growled but dropped it anyway. I exchanged a glance with Harry and smiled, mouthing thank you to him. Maybe he wasn't such a bad person after all.    Harry nodded to me. "Hey Murphy, can you take care of Mouse for the week?"    "Mouse?" I asked quietly. I wasn't entirely sure who or what Mouse could be. Maybe a cat, a hamster, or-    "Mouse is Harry's pet mammoth." Karrin laughed a bit as she spoke. Okay not what I expected. "Big, hairy, and can shove you to the ground easily."    "He's my dog, he just a bit big for his age. He's also good at detecting magical threats and dealing with the more disagreeable ones." Harry gave me a small grin. "And he's quite the charmer. I haven't met a woman yet who doesn't like him, except for the ones that try to kill me."    I was quiet for a moment. "But he's basically still a dog? Not some sort of weird thing that's disguised as a dog?"    "Yeah. Just one great big dog. He loves long walks, hotdogs, and making sure everyone nearby is one hundred percent safe. Got hit by a van not too long ago but he's recovering just fine." Holy crap, a dog survived getting hit by a van and is already recovering 'just fine'? That was both scary and oddly comforting that he was as against magical evils as I was.    Tension was back with a vengeance as Karrin and Harry waited to see if I would be okay with it. Karrin smiled when I nodded. "Sure Harry. Bring him by tomorrow."    "Thanks, Murph." I had the feeling they were in love with each other.