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pluckyredhead · 2 years ago

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Red Hood and the Outlaws #1 (2011)

It's been a while since I've read RHATO, so I figured I'd reread it - and if I'm doing that, why not make you all suffer with me? I will probably get tired of this before I finish all the various series, but let's see how far we get.

Roy, that would probably work better if your bow had a string.

The issue begins with Roy in a prison in Qurac for trying to overthrow a dictator. He's rescued by Jason, in disguise as a pastor in a fat suit (sigh). There's so much wrong with these opening pages: the fat suit, the writing off an entire Middle Eastern nation as evil and corrupt, the fact that there's no way even a collapsed bow would fit inside a hollowed-out bible, the lazy way the panel layouts waste space...and yet. And yet.

These pages. THESE FUCKING PAGES. "His name is Roy Harper. He's an idiot. Nice guy, but an idiot." "His name is Jason Todd. A lot of people say he's crazy...Let's just say the Red Hood is my kind of crazy!"

This kind of parallel narration always makes me think of the 2003 Superman/Batman comic, which used it extensively, to extremely (and likely unintentionally?) homoerotic effect. After I read this issue, I told a friend that I got it now: Red Hood and the Outlaws was Superman/Batman for edgelords.

Which is to say, I'm pretty sure I started shipping these assholes just from these first terrible pages.

(But seriously, there are three pages up there and only five panels. Five panels! Plus some pointless maroon boxes that don't do anything! I want my money back.)

This panel is super misleading, because it implies that Roy and Jason know each other well enough for Jason to tease Roy about being a chatterbox, but later issues will show that barely know each other at this point. But then, trying to keep the backstories straight in this or any Lobdell book is like watching sand run out between your fingers.

And again here, it implies that they were already friends, a team, partners...something. But later we'll learn that they only met once, and it was years ago, when they were kids, so...what gives?

(This page is actually interesting, because Jason is constantly saying playfully mean things to Roy and Roy never seems to mind, but here he clearly hurts Roy, and he knows it.)

Siiiiigh.

To add insult to injury, Jason immediately announces that he's fucked Kori. You'll notice I aggressively ignore this in every fic I've ever written. Part of that is because I love Secret Virgin Jason, but also it just doesn't mesh with his and Kori's relationship throughout the rest of the series or his hilarious lack of game in general, and it's also so inextricably part of Amnesiac Sex Doll Kori that I just want nothing to do with it.

HATE. HAAAAAATE. The devious smile on Jason's face in the bottom row and Roy's calculating expression are so deeply disgusting to me. "This woman can't meaningly consent! She's like a cave fish with a vagina! Sweet!" Scott Lobdell is a vile human being and so is everyone who signed off on this piece of shit. (Fun fact: this was a HUGE controversy when the New 52 launched and the outcry was so loud they walked it back in a later issue when Kori tells Roy she...just lied about all of that for no reason? Okay.)

Also, "ask her about the gang you used to hang with." Uh...what gang is that, Jason? Because Donna didn't exist at this point, Wally was 12, Garth was a literal baby, Vic joined the League immediately upon getting his powers, and Gar was a child being tortured in a lab somewhere. So was it just Roy, Dick, and Raven? And they certainly weren't the Titans, because Tim's team was the founders in this continuity...which Lobdell should have known, since he was also writing that book.

The person asking to speak to Jason is Essence, his ex, who tells him something cryptic about murder victims with missing organs.

YOU DON'T KNOW MOST OF THOSE PEOPLE EITHER, ROY!!! "Remember Garth? The baby?" (Literally, he is a baby who shows up for one panel. In Atlantis.) And who the fuck is Dustin?

Anyway, Kori propositions Roy and he's like "Sure, why not." Did the target audience actually think this was hot? It's so depressing.

Essence tells Jason that something called the Untitled has attacked something called the All Caste, and Jason makes a surprised Pikachu face.

Elsewhere, a guy in a basement looks at a picture of Kori online.

I will admit to liking two things about this page: the fact that Jason's helmet is in the nightstand implies that Roy and Kori fucked in Jason's bed, which is either hilariously rude or an invitation that sailed right over Jason's head, and the red hand print on Roy's chest. It's the first glimpse of a recognizable Roy in this book; he did always like getting manhandled by scarily powerful women, pre-Flashpoint.

Jason goes...somewhere, to a temple of sorts with a lot of vague cultural appropriation going on, and kneels over the corpse of an old lady. "I'm sorry I wasn't here for you, Ducra," he says, before a bunch of people attack him. END OF ISSUE!

And that's Red Hood and the Outlaws #1! It's confusing, misogynistic, lazily drawn, and not very funny, and there's no reason to be invested in whatever the fuck happened at the end because I know nothing about Ducra, Essence, the All Caste, or frankly, this version of Jason. And yet I am absolutely going to read nine more years' worth of this shit. See you in issue #2!

#rhato reread #red hood and the outlaws #jason todd #red hood #roy harper #arsenal #starfire

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i-have-insane-that-i-am-paper · 2 years ago

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The ball - Brienne of Tarth x Faerys

Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Visual of Faerys

Master list

Prompt from here: 49: Your mistake was not in the hiding place. It was thinking you could hide from me in the first place.

Warnings: Angst, hurt/comfort

Words: 2.322

"My lord, it is with great honor that I send this letter in hopes of your highness honoring my daughter and me with your presence on the island of Tarth. Purpose of which being a ball."

Selwyin of Tarth

The one who received the letter had no interest in travel yet didn't necessarily want to refuse the lord. So he called upon his older sister.

"Come on Faerys we can't flat out refuse them. Plus you are the better dancer between us." Her brother argued. "I am better dancer, but you know as well as I do brother mine that people wouldn't appreciate seeing two women dance." Older of the two spoke with amused voice and snarky smirk on her face, knowing this was Rhaegar's way of asking for forgiveness given he had been an ass past few days. "Oh, come on. We both know they wouldn't dare speak ill to or for that matter of you. Knowing my dear sister, she would knock them on their asses before they could even think of a bad thing. Plus who said anything about dancing with a woman?" He spoke his mind and did so with pride in his elder yet ending in teasing manner. Girl barked out a laugh. "You were so much more interesting when you were drinking milk instead of my blood and babbled gibberish instead of sound mind." Rhaegar laughed at her prods. "What can I say? I had good role model."

"You know dear brother mine that flattery will bring you nowhere, right?" Rhaegar shrugged his shoulders with arms in the air "Well it's worth a try, given the fact I saw you smile when I read the letter and asked you to go in my stead... I already presume you are willing to go but not without torturing me first." No way that she could miss the way his smirk shined when her face contorted in embarrassment. "You are an ass. You know that?" She spoke as she hugged him. "I will be departing as soon as I get my belongings ready, see you soon little one, do keep out of trouble my dear baby brother. I love you." Hug was reciprocated just as tightly, as her brother nodded. Usually he would chastise her how he isn't a kid anymore, but not now. Never when she is going on a trip, knowing very well that no matter what no one is hundred percent safe. "I love you too, be safe." Pulling back she smiled and nodded leaving him to get ready.

Travel to Tarth was peaceful and pleasant, the sea was kind. As the woman walked off of a ship she saw welcoming face of graying man his eyes gentle blue, tall in stature but not imposing. Moving her eyes from him to the girl beside her breath caught in her throat, she stood taller than her father, sandy yellow hair slicked back, eyes deepest shade of blue. "Welcome to the island of Tarth my lady. How may we be of service?" Man spoke, getting sense of herself girl smiled back and spoke. "Thank you my lord, I am elder sister of Rhaegar Targaryen. He couldn't come, so he asked me to go in his stead." Recognition flashed on man's face as he nodded and bowed. "It is my honour to meet you my lady. My name is Selwyin and this is my daughter Brienne." He spoke as he gestured to a girl on his side. "The honour is all mine my lord, my lady." Faerys smiled as she spoke. The lord of the house turned to one of servants and spoke "Get lady Faerys's chamber ready." The woman was immediately on her way, he gestured to walk with him. Soon Faerys fell in the same step with Brienne, smiling up at her she spoke. "Well it is good to know I won't be the only one here to suffer with men." Her tone was teasing intending on starting friendship with tall girl on her side. But realised she might've said the wrong thing given the way her shoulders stiffened and eyes squinted. "No men will be chasing me, I'm afraid you are in it on your own my lady." Brienne's voice was clipped. Instantly recognizing she may have spoke out of turn Faerys rushed to apologize. "I am truly sorry if I offended you my lady. I meant no harm or ill will with my words, they were merely a joke. Poorly thought one as I see." Faerys spoke with genuine regret lacing her voice. Brienne nodded and spoke "Just Brienne is fine my lady, I'm no lady." Faerys looked confused. "But you are daughter of lord Selywin that makes you a lady by birthright. Now it is another thing that you don't wish to be referred to as such. But then I must insist you call me Faerys." She smiled at the taller of the two. Brienne nodded.

Few days have passed past initial misunderstanding between the two have become fast friends. It was day of the ball, and Brienne was glowing, the lords were fighting for her attention threatening to duel when they thought it was their turn. Faerys sat on the side with other maidens not really registering what they talked about, well not until... "Look at that beast, I don't know how can they even look at her let alone dance with her." Faerys's turned to the source of the voice to see all dolled up woman in her forty's probably a mother of one of the youngsters. Not being able to keep her mouth shut Faerys spoke. "Says the one who looks like shes years past her expiration date and was meant for cemetery months ago." Blinding rage took over silver haired girl as she stood up to leave. Woman went to stand up so she could be on eye level but was stopped. "If you dare to stand up, make scene and ruin my friend's evening I will make sure to let my lion feast on your insides and I dare anyone to try and stop me." Of course her threat was empty she had no lion nor would she feed human to it, but intimidation is very useful weapon. Her eyes bulged out, fear overtaking her as she sat back. Faerys walked away not wanting to spend even a second more with such people. As she moved through the shadows she saw few boys sniggering and high fiving each other curiosity getting better of her she stalked toward them. "Did you see her face. I didn't know she could get any uglier than she was but I was wrong. I admit." One of them spoke. Frowning Faerys looked around just to see Brienne with tears streaming down her face she bumped into someone he gently led her back to dance floor, drying her face of tears and speaking to her she nodded every now and then soon smiling. Seeing she was taken care of Faerys walking to the boy she spoke loudly.

"I challenge you to a battle. You may choose horseback riding, sword fight or hand to hand combat. He looked at the girl smirk on his face. "The only combat you can and would be able to have with me is the one in the sheets." He spoke smugly.

"With the likes of you? Who makes a lady cry in her own halls while you are the guest, the one who has mouth nastier than pig stalls, the one whose stench is biting my eyes? No. Now, sword, horse or hand to hand." Faerys spoke the guy just smirked. "Hand to hand. I will beat you and then take you in my rooms." He spoke as he took his stance.

"May I have honor of fighting for you my lady." Spoke a man who was speaking to Brienne just moments ago she smiled gently and thankfully at him but shook her head. "Thank you for the offer but there is no need for that my lord. This piece of work is mine." He nodded. Soon fight started he threw punches as she avoided every single one, dancing around him.

"What is the meaning of this?" lord Tarth spoke as he saw man trying to hit me. "The meaning is that this wench challenged me to a battle and I accepted so when I win I will take her in my rooms and fuck her hard enough for everyone to hear." He stopped attacking as he spoke looking at the lord Tarth.

Faerys had enough honour to not attack him while his back is to her. But the second he turned to attack again his fist flying to her gut and landing, Faerys didn't double over like he expected, no she stood there looking unimpressed. "You call that a hit? I've met grandmothers hitting harder." He continued with his barrage punching her face, gut, legs but nothing happened not one yelp of pain, not one wince just stone cold face. Then it came, fist square to the jaw, tooth flew out and blood spilled trough his lips his jaw dislocated to the right side. He was on the floor whining in pain, tears streaming down his face. "Pathetic. I let you land at least dozen hits and yet you are down after one." Gasp was heard in the crowd and soon woman flew to her son. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY BEUTIFUL SON?!" She screeched. "I gave him a makeover. He looks better like that." She spoke and then turned to the man on her beside "Don't you agree?" Smirking he nodded. Soon the brat was taken out of the foom and to the meistars, room was soon empty besides the man who's name I learned was Renly, lord Tarth and Faerys. Brienne disappeared in the middle of the fight. "I hoped that this day would be different, that people could see past her height and see wonderful person but it seemed it is a lot to ask for. Until you two, I want to thank you both for being there for my daughter. Lord Renly my offer still stands."

"I would be honoured to be with your daughter but I do not look for a spouse right now." Renly spoke. Smiling apologetically at the man, he just nodded and smiled back. "And to you my lady, thank you. I couldn't do that for it would create a rift but the satisfaction I felt when I saw that boy on the floor was immeasurable. Especially after the words he said." Faerys smiled and nodded in thanks.

Soon under the guise of being tired she left. Her concern for Brienne only growing with every second. That is until she remembered something Brienne told her.

"When I need calm I go to the forest by the stream, when I need fresh air I go to the ocean and when i need space I go to the mountains."

With clear indication where she was Faerys rushed to the forest.

She was right. There Brienne was sitting by the stream her back to Faerys but still she could see small shaking of her shoulders and quiet sobs. As she walked towards Brienne she purposefully stepped on to a branch so Brienne knows she is behind her. Immediately turning to see what is behind her, Brienne comes face to face with her friend. "How did you...?" Voice rough from crying, her eyes puffy and red.

"Your mistake was not in the hiding place. It was thinking you could hide from me in the first place." Faerys spoke with smile on her face, she sat beside Brienne "Whatever they said to you cry so, it wasn't true." Tall girl shook her head. "But it was. I am no lady but I'm not a warrior either. I'm something far too beastly for anyone too look with anything but disgust. I mean I was betrothed three times. One dying two years after betrothal, one being old man whom I challenged to a duel in which if I won I wouldn't have to marry him and one being straight up disgusted with my appearance so much that he called it off mere minutes after meeting each other." Sobs wracked her body again, clearly torment of people taking it's toll on her. Taking Brienne's face in her hands Faerys spoke. "But it isn't. Your hair is like finest silk, your eyes are bluer than the seas of this isle, and your smile God your smile is most precious thing i have ever seen. Your beauty is unconventional, it is rare and not many see it. But it doesn't mean it's not there. But my dear Brienne as beautiful as you are physically nothing matches your heart. You are kind, courageous and honorable. Body fades with time, heart and mind stay forever."

Soon sapphire blues were dry, sobs stopped and were exchanged with a small smile and reddened cheeks. "I... I have no idea what to say to that." She was bashful. "You don't have to say anything my friend. What you do need to do is go get some rest. You deserved it after today." Brienne nodded, soon they were in front of her room. "This is me, good night Faerys." The girl smiled and pulled Brienne in a hug, and then kissed her forehead. "Good night, Brienne." With that she pulled away and walked in to the darkness of the corridor. Leaving blushing Brienne behind.

Soon it was time to depart. To live sapphire isle and go back home. Brienne and Faerys promised to keep in touch and visit each other, and they did. Until few months after when her father was dead and she was forced to flee with her life. Leaving Brienne to think that her dear friend is dead for good, never to return. She cried herself to sleep that night and many ones after.

#movies #got #game of thrones #brienne of tarth #reader #oc #original female character #brienne x reader #angst #hurt #comfort #hurt/comfort #ball

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mybelovedwoo · 2 years ago

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Long Journey - Chapter 1: Shadows of the Past

Life hurts a lot, that's just how it is. At least that is what Destiny thought, living a life where living hurts more than dying. But one day everything changes when an unexpected guest appears. What does this long journey hide behind? Will it be worth it to be alive again?

"Sailors tell stories, Pirates make legends!"

ateez pirate au, fluff, angst, smut

??? x named reader

word count: 2.4k

warnings: violence, fighting, guns and weaponry, blood injuries, trauma, smut, sa, pa, abuse specific to this chapter: physical abuse, strong language, injurie, blood

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The next day I woke up thinking about if what happened yesterday was real or just a really bad dream. I would rather wish for the first option to be true, but the burning feeling on my right cheek reminds me of last night's happenings.

The rest of the dinner was spent with boring business discussions between my father and the Captain, they talked about hiding something, but I didn't really catch the whole point of it, my mind was still everywhere else but there. The captain and the rest of his crew will come here early tomorrow morning, and for this night the two men will return to their ship, which is in the main port of Albagon.

My father ordered me to escort our guests, which I did without any words. At the door, they politely bowed for me once more. When they were enough far away, I finally exhaled, it felt like as I was holding my breath back the whole time. And as if he heard my wondering thoughts, the taller man turned around for one last time, and he looked at me again, the first time since the awkward conversation at the dining table. He just stole a glance and carried on his way, but he didn't hide the fact, as if he wanted me to know about it.

After they left I ran straight up to my room, to hide from my father. I don't want to find out if he's mad at me or not, plus he's been drinking wine the whole night, so he's more aggressive than usual.

It's common for me to wake up this early, even before the sun comes up. I like to go for a ride all the way to the stream, past the glade at these times, it helps to clear my head a little. I try to be as quiet as possible, I don't want anyone to catch me sneaking out.

On my way to the stables all I was thinking about why are these men so important to my father. Why is he letting them into his house? And what dirty business can be between them?

The cool air hits my face, and I can feel my cheek burn again, so I start rubbing it as if it helps with it, and all I can see are the frames of the night in front of me.

"Destiny, where are you?" I can hear my father shout from my room, his footsteps are coming closer to my door. Anxiety rushes over me, I've already seen this happening many times, but still, I can't get used to it, I'm still as scared as I was when I was just a little girl.

He bursts into my room, the door almost fell out of its place. My whole body starts to shake unintentionally. But I stay strong as always, if not me, then who else stays strong for me? I get up from my bed and stand straight in front of my father.

"You ungrateful little bitch. What do you think you can embarrass me in front of others like that? Didn't I tell you to get that crap off your arm?" And the next thing I realized was that he swung his hand towards me and a strong slap hits my face. It stings as hell.

And here I am standing in front of the stable, holding my cheek in my hand. It still hurts a lot, but not as much as my heart. I hesitate to go inside, I don't know why, but the shakes haven't stopped since yesterday, I usually take this better, I've had it worst before. I take a big breath in and out to calm myself and open the heavy door and step inside the slightly warmer place.

"Good morning Percy, how are you today?" I walk up to my beloved horse, pat his side a little and make a hm sound as if I'm expecting him to answer me, but unfortunately, he never does.

"You often talk to animals?" A voice comes from right behind me, and it scares me so much I almost fall over as I turn around to find out where it comes from. Across from me a deep brown-haired boy leans against the wall and looks at me strangely like I'm crazy or something.

"Who are you and what are you doing here creeping behind me?" Should I be concerned about him? I'm here alone with a stranger, even if I try to ask for help it's likely that no one will hear it, everybody is still asleep. That's why Joanne always says to tell at least her where I'm going, what if he tries to murder me.

"I mean I was here long before you, but if you would have an intimate conversation with your horse I could leave you alone." I don't know if he's joking or not, his face has no emotions written on it.

"Very funny. And you often stalk on girls early in the morning?" I hit back, copying him, trying not to show my emotions either. I can finally see on his face that he got a little embarrassed. I got him.

"A-as I said, I was here way before you. I haven't stalked on you, I only heard you by accident." He stuttered on his words.

"And what were you doing here if I may ask you?" Now I'm a little more confident, I feel like the advantage is at me.

"I'm Choi Jongho, a crewmember of Captain Kim Hongjoong. The other night, there was a very big storm, and I didn't really want to sleep on the cold, rocking ship, so I figured I would spend the night here." He explains to me. So the Captain's crew is already occupying our house. Although I haven't seen the others yet, I don't know how many there could be, but I doubt that I will be able to avoid so many people.

"Great, it was really nice to meet you Choi Jongho, but I want to be alone for as long as I have the chance before the rest of your crew arrives, so I'm afraid I have to take your bedfellow away." I'm not saying anymore, and don't even give him room to breathe, I'm just leading my horse out there. I gallop away from my house so fast as if I'm not coming back ever again, and I even consider this thought, but quickly pushed it away, it will never happen anyway.

It's around noon when I come back from my little runaway, and the first thing I do is curry Percy, he must be just as tired as I am, if not more. I'm almost done when Joanne comes in quietly to the stable.

"Nini, you really have to stop doing this." She says with a calm voice, almost whispering. To be honest, I kinda hate this nickname, but she's the only one who's calling me that, it sticked with me ever since I was little. "Your father has been looking for you everywhere, I told him I sent you to the market this morning. He wants you to meet with the Captain's crew instantly and lead them around." She's coming closer to me and places her hands on my shoulders.

"Jo, I don't know how much longer I can take this," I confess. I never said this aloud to anyone, but I can't keep it in me any longer. If I do I might break into pieces.

She doesn't say anything, just embraces me in her arms and we stand there for a good five minutes. We don't have much time before my father sends someone else after me.

Walking up to the front of the house, where it all ended yesterday, it's exactly where it starts today. I can see a group of young men standing there, it seems as if they're bickering about something. They look very young, the Captain is also young, but not as much as them, they must be the same age as me. I'm very surprised, I thought there would be more people on a ship, to be honest. And much older and more experienced people.

When I reach them, I clear my throat loudly to be noticed. Now all their eyes are on me, I wasn't fully prepared for this. The shade of the trees helps to block the midday sun, but I still can't look up properly. Despite the big storm last night, today's weather is the complete opposite, but it's quite normal around here.

"Good afternoon gentlemen! My name is Destiny Dempsey, the daughter of Randall Dempsey. I'm here to show you around today." These seven men are standing in front of me, I scan all the new, unfamiliar faces, but I spot one in the back that I've already seen and he searches my gaze inquisitively. The Captain's right hand.

"Oh hi there, animal whisperer." I hear someone say from the side of the group. It's the guy from this morning, what was his name again, I totally forgot it. I hope he didn't tell anyone he met me earlier, if my father finds out that I wasn't in the the town, I'm not the only one in trouble this time.

"You know her?" Seonghwa asks him curiously, stepping closer to us. I'm praying he won't tell the truth.

"In the sta-" I panicked, so without even thinking, I quickly cut into his words and didn't let him finish, what he wanted to say.

"It's kinda funny that you let one of your crew member stalk on girls. I wonder if the Captain knows about it." All the eyes landed on the young man in question. He tries to explain himself, I can see how embarrassed he got, and I just hope that I got away with it this time.

"So that's where you disappeared this morning, Choi Jongho." A very tall guy, with black hair and with perfect silky skin spoke. That's right, he reminded me of his name once again, Jongho. My name memory is really bad, I can recognize people by their faces better.

"I swear it wasn't intentional." He put his hands up out of frustration, and I admit I felt a little sorry for him. I know what it's like when no one believes you. But it rather be him than me.

"I promise I will talk to him." Seonghwa came up to me and tried to put his hands on my shoulders, it only was supposed to be an empathetic move, but I took a step back. I didn't really mean to, but I have this thing, that I can't accept any physical touch from anyone, except from only one person, and that's Joanne.

It seemed like he acknowledged it because he took a step back too. "Well, I hoped you could take the boys to the town till the Captain finishes his discussion with your father. Maybe, show them around for a bit, in the meantime, they could get a thing or two we need."

"As you wish, Sir." I bowed to him. "Please follow me!" I turned to the others and they more or less listened to me.

I took them to the market as they had to buy some things, it was the most convenient because everything can be found in there. The bustle of the place and all the different smells made it difficult to pay attention to the boy next to me, who hadn't shut his mouth once since we left. He was acting as if we were good old friends. The guy on my other side, he talks less but is more hyperactive. From time to time, I can see his gaze wandering here and there, and it's as if he's not even with us, his attention is completely elsewhere. Park Seonghwa hasn't come with us, he had to stay there if the Captain urgently needed him. But he reassured me that I can trust the navigator, Yunho, the very tall guy if anything happens. But what could possibly happen?

We were walking on the busy street of the town square when an old lady came up to us. And the black-haired boy beside me finally stopped talking.

"Oh, my dear. You grew so much, I haven't seen you since your mother tragically passed." I froze. My legs were literally shaking, we don't ever talk about my mother, like ever. I wasn't able to mention her name for years, if I ever tried to I always broke down. But when I was finally ready, my father forbade me to even mention her, along with everyone in the house.

When the lady noticed that I'm not gonna say anything, she continued. "She was the best healer in town, we all miss her so much. Maybe you will follow in her footsteps?"

"No Miss, I don't do anything like that." I take the courage and answer her.

"Hm, what a shame..." And she is already walking past us, while she's shaking her head. I'm starting to feel like that, not a word that came out of her mouth was genuine, she just wanted to kick me where it hurts the most. I don't even know who this lady was, I've never seen her in my life, at least I don't remember.

"How rude of her!" Says the talkative one next to me. I look at him, and I can see his deep brown eyes staring judgingly up and down at the woman whos disappearing in the distance.

"Wooyoung, you don't have to say everything you think out loud, you know?" Warned him the other one, San, sensing the sudden mood change.

When I regained my consciousness, I look around and noticed that the other boys were simply absorbed, I could not see them anywhere. So far they have been a couple of steps ahead of us. They must not have noticed when we stopped. Luckily Yunho is with them so nothing bad can happen, right?

The next moment was a complete blur. A pistol shot was heard very loudly. All three of us fell to the ground from the sudden noise, and people around us started screaming and panicking. I can taste the dust in my mouth, it's not something pleasant.

"Thief! Thief! Someone get him!" Someone yelled.

San tried to help me get up from the dirt, but I didn't accept his outstretched hands. I stood up on my own and dusted off my dress.

"What the hell happened to them?" We looked to the way Wooyoung pointed at, and all we can see is all four boys rushing towards us, holding up Jongho, who can hardly stay on his feet. As I see the panic on their faces, my gaze wanders down. It's red, everything is covered in red.

note: i'm really excited for the next chapters, oh god. it's gonna get crazy. also, we are slowly meeting new characters.

i'm soo grateful for the comments i got from the previous chapter, you are all so sweet, and you keep me motivated. i love to read all your thoughts, so don't forget to share them this time too.

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celiastjamesoscar · 1 year ago

Note

There's so many awesome display case options out there. I upgraded to Moducase (now Moduspace, I think?) and the wait time sucks (though they've been getting better) because they're made to order so I waited almost a year and half to get my first order (my second order should be here soon. I think. Though I ordered this one in Nov 2022 still). But they're so nice and I've seen some really awesome Lego displays with them. So, kind of want my entire collection to be displayed in Moducase stuff.

So, best place to buy stuff would be BigBadToyStore (they got $4 shipping, and you can create a pile of loot and ship everything all together for only $4!). Dark Horse Direct is also a good site, they do a lot of exclusive stuff so even though shipping sucks that's where you'll get the limited quantity stuff or limit time pre-order stuff. Prime1 stuff (if you're willing to pay that much) ordering direct from Prime1 will get you the stuff quickest (shipping is insane though) but you can also order Prime1 from bigbadtoystore (more of a wait though) and the site gfxdistrubition is the US distributor for P1 so you might have better shipping but again wait time is insane (I have the Jin Sakai on order from them and I ordered April 2022 and it released not long after and I'm still waiting for it). Also, a plus side to ordering direct from Prime1 is payment plans! $1500 looks like a lot but when you break it down to only paying $89 a month for 12+ months it makes you feel so much better! Almost forgot! Gaming Heads. They are a website that does statues I think they still have the Ellie from TLOU2 for order (which is out now) and they're doing a Joel & Ellie from 1 (which is a pre-order and a bit of a wait) and they do some exclusive versions that are limited (like I got the hunter edition Ellie, and she comes with a blood head sculpt and an interchangeable bow or machete.

Literally the only reason I have such a cool collection is because I pretty much only work and go home. And home is still living at home (one of the good things about not being able to afford living on your own?) also payment plans. Payment plans are literally the best thing ever for expensive shit (I wish Lego did payment plans).

You are a saint!!! I just wrote down all of those names in my Notes app and I cannot wait til I get paid so I can buy some display cases! Payment plans are so underrated and it also helps me save money (in a weird way).

I looked at some of the Moduspace ones and those ones look so awesome! I really like how they are made for order. You seriously should not have told me about Moduspace because my obsession with Legos is about to reach a whole new level. Right now I’m currently looking the website and I’m kind of excited to see what they have. Thank you so much for telling me about this! I’m also going to look into the other ones as well!

I looked at an Ellie statue on Gaming Heads and it was like $600. there was also a death claw one from Fallout for like $1,500 😭

#bender chats #anon message

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rose-of-pollux · 1 year ago

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AU Roulette, Entry 2/3

My chosen fandom for the AU Roulette challenge was Scooby-Doo.

My second prompt was: High Seas AU.

As before, posting this just to tumblr for now; if I ever expand on this, I’ll crosspost it to AO3.

Title: The Point of No Return (1/1) Fandom: Scooby-Doo Rating: K+ Summary: [AU] Captain Frederick Jones and his loyal crew aboard the good ship Mystery are in pursuit of notorious brigand Morgan Moonscar after the pirates run off with important artifacts of a familiar warlock.

Captain Jones look out over the bow of the Mystery, his green-painted ship, as it sailed the warm waters.

“What’s our course?” he asked.

Navigator Dinkley looked up from her charts and compass.

“We followed the trail of the Maelstrom through the Gulf and through the Caribbean Sea,” she reported. “We’re passing from the Caribbean to the Atlantic.”

“Like, I’m keeping her steady as she goes, Captain!” First Mate Rogers called from the wheel of the ship.

“But we still haven’t seen any sign of the Maelstrom—or our quarry on board of it,” Tactician Blake sighed, as she paced the deck.

“Given the direction and speed of the currents, this is the quickest and the easiest way that the Malestrom could have come,” Navigator Dinkley promised. “It’s only a matter of time—just wait and see.”

“I hope so,” Blake sighed. “The Great Mage entrusted us with retrieving the artifacts that were stolen from him. We can’t let him down—why, I feel like I’d be disappointing my own father!”

“Have faith, Tactician Blake,” Jones assured her. “We won’t allow that thieving pirate to get away with this!” He looked up to the crow’s nest of the ship, where a large Great Dane kept watch. “Ahoy, up there! What do your canine eyes see?”

“Rhots of water!” Watchdog Scooby barked down. “Rhand a few clouds rhout there, too!”

“Well, keep a lookout for the Maelstrom!” Jones instructed. “The Mystery may be smaller, but we’re also faster—we should catch up to Morgan Moonscar and his men in no time at all!”

“Right!” the watchdog barked.

First Mate Rogers sighed, suppressing a nervous gulp as he maintained the ship’s current course.

“What’s wrong?” Jones asked, sensing his distress.

“We’re faster than the Maelstrom, sure—like, I don’t have any doubt that we’re gonna catch up to it,” he said. “…My worry is what happens when we do catch up! I mean… are the stories about Morgan Moonscar and his men true? They’re supposed to be the cruelest band of pirates to ever sail these waters!”

“It’s possible,” Jones admitted. “I wouldn’t put anything past Morgan Moonscar—especially if he’s brazen enough to steal from the Great Mage.”

“And that’s why we have to stop him!” Tactician Blake exclaimed. “The Great Mage has many magical items and treasures that were taken—imagine what could happen if Moonscar and his men figure out how to use them!”

“The last thing we need is for them to become even more dangerous than they already are,” Jones sighed. “We have no other choice—plus, we gave our word to the Great Mage. Maintain our course, Rogers.”

“A-Aye-aye, Captain,” Rogers promised, his voice a little shaky.

They continued onward, the sun sinking through the sky as time ticked on; soon, it was dusk, and the stars were beginning to brighten in the sky.

It was then that Watchdog Scooby suddenly froze, his night vision mercifully better than that of his human crewmates. He yelled out an alarm—

“A Rhip!” he barked.

Captain Jones seized his spyglass and ran back to the bow; he could, indeed, discern the shape of another large ship.

“Is it the Maelstrom?” Tactician Blake asked, her eyes wide.

“I can’t make out the name,” Jones sighed, frustrated. “Hold on—let me see if I can see what the flag is…” He focused the lens as his crew fell utterly silent, waiting to find out what they were up against. Jones suddenly exhaled. “They’re flying the Jolly Roger—that’s got to be the Maelstrom!”

First Mate Rogers shivered, but continued to grip the ship’s wheel.

“A-Awaiting instructions, Captain…!” he managed to say.

Jones turned back to his crew; they were all looking at him for instructions, not just the First Mate.

“What’s our current position?” he asked.

“We’re nearing the Bermuda Triangle,” Navigator Dinkley announced.

“Rhand there’s a storm brewing there!” Watchdog Scooby added, taking note of the thick, dark clouds obscuring that part of the sky.

“We need to catch up to the Maelstrom and find a way to board it to get the treasures back,” Jones realized. “We have the element of surprise right now; this may be our one and only chance—and the storm may prove to be the cover we need to catch up to them further. Maintain our course, Rogers. And Tactician Blake? Prepare plans to board the Maelstrom!”

“Aye-aye, Captain!” they both echoed.

Captain Jones continued to stand at the bow, watching the Maelstrom draw closer.

He had no idea what he and his crew were getting themselves into. But he was determined to protect them from Morgan Moonscar—to the end, if necessary.

It was the least he could do for his crew—his friends.

#AUroulette2023 #scooby doo #fic

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aloudplace · 8 months ago

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Fidelity won 3

Loki pulled Sig out of the captain's chair and laid her carefully on the floor while the ship broke free of Midgard's atmosphere and hurtled into space.

She was breathing. He felt an unexpected rush of relief.

The little time-witch was there at the console when he turned, pushing buttons and flipping switches.

"What are you doing?"

She looked back at him as he rose.

"Auto-pilot," she replied cheerfully. "Sigyn will need to rest a while. Her form is very depleted. I will keep us safe until she wakes." And then the strange little creature just popped out of existence.

"Wait!" he cried angrily, rushing to the console. The controls were locked. He cursed. "What have you done?"

There was no answer. He looked back at the woman lying unconscious on the floor, and then again at the console. He could at least try to override the locks.

He'd barely reached for the console when the time-witch popped back in beside him.

"Bloody hell!"

"You shouldn't do that," she said politely. "The controls are set to recognize only Sig and me. You'll make her angry."

"I hardly think she's going to notice at the moment."

"Not Sigyn, the ship."

Loki suppressed his exasperation, taking a diplomatic tone. "If you'll be so kind as to unlock it, I'll be happy to navigate us to-–"

"No, thank you."

"Listen, witch," he grated, reaching for her. She was gone before he'd completed the movement.

Cursing under his breath, he turned back to the controls and attempted to hack the security protocols. The ship immediately issued a high pitched warning tone and the console flashed an alarming shade of red.

"Alright, alright," he held up his hands in submission. "I get it."

He looked around again at Sig. He considered threatening to kill her if the witch didn't unlock the controls, but it seemed a better idea to ingratiate himself and wait for a better opportunity. He had to admit, they'd planned this well. He'd have taken the ship and dumped them both at the first opportunity. Probably.

But even as he thought it, he wondered if it was true. That little time-witch was a problem without a solution. And the woman–-Sigyn-–was remarkably powerful.

Plus, if he was being completely honest with himself, the idea of being on his own again, wandering an inhospitable universe, with his name at the top of Thanos' shit list was...less than appealing.

I could certainly use some powerful friends.

And the two of them were nothing if not powerful. He had an inkling the witch had even more up her sleeve than what he'd seen so far. And the other... he looked at her again.

He'd watched her take the full brunt of Thor's power—and then wield it, if to her own detriment. She was Asgardian, too. He'd bet his life on it.

With power like that...

But she was clever, self-assured. Perceptive. Not the type to bow to his leadership.

Perhaps he could seduce her. That might give him some leverage. He measured that long, sleek body with his eyes. It wouldn't exactly be an unpleasant undertaking, either.

Then again, Sig didn't fit into the category of woman who usually fell under his spell, for the same reasons that she wouldn't likely accept his leadership.

It was an uncomfortable situation for him, to say the least. Needing powerful allies, but having little power to wield over them.

As he sat there thinking, calculations gave way to a quiet sort of exhaustion.

With nothing but silence for company, he found himself thinking of Sakaar. Of Thor.

Loki, life is about growth. It's about change, but you just seem to want to stay the same. I guess what I'm trying to say is... You'll always be the God of Mischief, but you could be more.

Why did he keep thinking of that?

"Patronizing bullshit," he spat into the silence.

But it had been lodged there in his mind for months. Hovering on the edge of every thought. Every pause. Every stretch of stillness.

Hounding him.

You could be more.

He couldn't pretend not to see that his life replayed itself like a carousel. Patterns repeating over and over.

Lies, betrayal, destruction, loss—his birth, his upbringing, his place in Asgard. Exile. Torture at the hands of Thanos. Promises made and summarily broken. Failure after failure. Humiliation. Judgment.

Mother.

No, he wouldn't think of her.

And there was Hela. More secrets swept under proverbial the rug. Locked away. The true history of his people, like a festering wound broken open. Odin...

I love you, my sons.

Lies.

Asgard in ruins.

Betrayal.

Nothing to return to.

Loss.

Round and round and round again. For what?

And through it all there was Thor. Always the golden child. Always the hero. Bumbling, idiot Thor.

You could be more.

How dare he.

Loki seethed. There was no defense. No way to soothe himself. Just the silence and a well of simmering rage.

And those words—again and again—like acid on his heart.

You could be more.

... ... ...

"Are you sad?"

Loki nearly leaped out of his skin. The little witch was standing at his elbow.

"What?"

"Are you sad?" she repeated, enormous eyes unblinking. "You appear unhappy."

For a moment he could not respond. Emotion backed up in his throat. Rage and pain. Something else. How long had it been since anyone asked him how he felt?

Since Frigga.

"I would be happier if you unlocked the controls."

"No, thank you," she replied. "Will you sleep? Your form is depleted."

Abruptly, he became aware that he was exhausted.

"There is a bed," she continued. "There."

Loki turned. She pointed to a panel in the floor.

"Perhaps you will carry Sigyn."

He opened his mouth to respond, but she was gone.

Rude.

A bed did sound rather wonderful, however. He rose, stepping carefully around the unconscious woman on the floor, and pulled up the panel. The lights came on instantly—two little rows along the floor, leading away from the steps directly below the opening, and more along the walls. They revealed a surprisingly large living chamber. Easily as big as the flight deck.

He lifted Sigyn and carried her down the steps, spotted the bed in the far corner and deposited her there on the rumpled blanket. She sighed and her head lolled to one side. Her eyes were ringed in shadows. And her lips were too pale.

He thought about undressing her and decided not to. A moment later he relented somewhat and removed her boots, socks, and jacket. She looked so vulnerable, lying there in a thin cotton undershirt with her feet naked and her hair lying in a tangle against her cheek. It made him feel strangely guilty, so he tucked her under the blanket and promptly looked away.

The front end of the ship was a single floor-to-ceiling window looking out on naked space and drifting stars. The wall behind the bed was lined with shelves. There must have been some kind of gravity shield on them because they were full of books and colorful bottles and odd little carvings, all of which seemed to be in order. The opposite wall boasted a series of inlaid drawers and door panels, and there was a low table with a computer console set into the center of it.

At the back of the room, he found a narrow door leading to a bathroom, which he made use of before inspecting the computer console. It beeped and flashed red just as the main console had done when he tried to use it

He might have snooped some more if he hadn't been so tired. But the bed was rather large—large enough to comfortably accommodate two people, anyway—and the bedding itself delightfully luxurious. He settled next to Sigyn and found himself breathing in her scent. It was unidentifiable—soft and earthy and slightly floral. Oddly relaxing.

He was asleep in minutes.

... ... ...

Sigyn woke the sensation of a very full bladder and the murmur of the entertainment system. Lifting herself from the mattress was like rising from a vat of molasses.

"You're awake."

That deep, velvety voice would have jolted her if she hadn't been mid sleep-cycle. As it was, she felt a swimming sort of disorientation.

Loki was in her bed, leaning back against the headboard, long legs stretched out and crossed elegantly at the ankles, hands tucked behind his head.

"She is not done resting. Are you, my Sigyn?"

Mad was perched on the end of the mattress near Loki's feet. Beyond her, the console projected an episode of Game of Thrones at full size, filling the front window from floor to ceiling and making it opaque.

"Loki has never watched Earth T.V. before," Mad explained.

Too muzzy to respond, Sig turned and clambered over the Asgardian on her way to the bathroom. Her knee buckled as soon as her foot hit the floor, however, and for just a moment she found herself looking down into startled blue-green eyes as she sat straddling Loki's hips.

"Sorry," she mumbled, scrambling off.

"No harm done." He sounded amused.

In her haze, that voice was almost too much—like a physical touch, rasping along her senses. She wanted to tell him not to speak, but she was already in the bathroom and that would be a weird thing to say anyway.

Don't talk because your voice makes me feel like a raw nerve.

"No, I can't say that," she mumbled. "Stupid." And then she knocked several bottles off the shelf beside the sink while trying to get her pants undone.

"Are you alright in there?"

Agh! Why does everything he says sound like a caress? "No! Go away!"

"No?"

Before she could muster a response there came a reassuring murmur from Mad. Sigyn managed to finish her business without further incident but realized upon emerging that she would have to climb over Loki again to get back in bed.

He was lying there propped on her pillows just the way he had been. He looked at her expectantly.

And then it occurred to her that she could just walk around the end of the bed and get in that way.

He chuckled.

Sigyn burrowed under the covers and turned her back to him, dropping almost instantly into boneless sleep. She was distantly aware of the two of them for a little while—their voices and the murmur of the show in the background.

Actually, it's nice, was her final semi-conscious thought before deep sleep took her.

... ... ...

The next time she woke it was quiet and dark. And warm.

Very warm.

Her nose was pressed into somebody's chest, and a heavy arm draped over her side.

What the–?

Loki's arm. Loki's chest. Loki's slow, steady breath in her hair.

"Why are you cuddling me?"

He started. "I beg your pardon?" His voice was even deeper than usual, raspy with sleep.

Sig drew her head back to look up at him. "I said, why are you cuddling me?"

He blinked down at her in the dark. "You cuddled me first."

Well.

"Let go."

He lifted his arm and she rolled away, taking the covers with her.

And immediately felt bereft.

Stupid. What's the harm in a little cuddle?

...With the personification of Trouble.

Right.

"I don't suppose I might negotiate the return of the blanket?" he asked. Politely.

"Aren't you Jotun? Do frost giants get cold?"

There was a pause, and then he replied icily. "This one does."

Okay. So the Jotun thing was clearly a sore spot with him. Interesting.

Sig squirmed out of the tangle of bedding and flung one end of the covers in his direction.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Silence, and the sound of his breath, slow and steady. Not sleeping though. His heat crept across the space between them and gathered under her side of the blankets.

"How long have I been asleep?" she asked quietly.

"Ninety-eight hours, give or take."

Yikes. She's gone far too long without. And then there was that incident with the big Asgardian.

Right. That.

"Did I... kill your brother?"

"Highly unlikely, though I wouldn't fault you if you had."

Okay.... "Glad to hear it."

More silence and the sound of Loki shifting minutely against the mattress. The blankets moved, shifting over her legs. Her bare legs.

"Um...Why am I not wearing pants?"

"You left them in the bathroom the last time you woke up."

"Ah."

There was a long beat of silence and then he said, "You talk in your sleep."

Great. "What did I say?"

"Something about coffee and epic poems."

She giggled.

"Also, you called me 'Sugarbottom.'"

"What? I most certainly did not."

"You did."

"I have never—and would never—make use of the word 'sugarbottom' for any reason."

"Mm. I found it a little disconcerting myself."

Sig pressed her face into the pillow.

"I assume you were dreaming of an old boyfriend."

Laughter bubbled deep in her chest. "Please, stop."

"That would also explain the uninvited cuddling."

"Oh my God."

Silence.

Two beats. Three. And then, "Ye-es?"

Sig turned and threw a pillow at him.

He caught it. Chuckled.

When after a few moments he didn't speak again, she relaxed into the mattress, still smiling. Then she found herself wondering idly if he actually liked to cuddle or he'd only been accommodating her.

Abruptly, she rolled back towards him. His eyes were open, looking down at her.

This is dumb, Sigyn.

"Just cuddling," she said, heart beating a little fast. "If you don't mind."

His brows rose. A moment later he lifted his arm. Sigyn squirmed closer and he draped his arm over her side again.

There was a long silence. Sig was very aware of the sound of his heartbeat. He smelled good. And his chest was delightfully broad.

"In the aether..." he trailed off.

She tilted her head to look up at him. "What?"

"You said, 'It's been a long time since I touched anyone.'"

Oh.

For the life of her, she could not think of a response.

"Perhaps I could—" he began.

"Nope."

He sighed.

Sig bit her lip. It really had been too long. And he was so warm. And male. And... She squirmed a little closer, allowing herself to rest lightly against the length of his body.

Wow. "Um..."

"You started it," he said defensively. "It's a perfectly natural reaction."

"Reaction to what? I haven't done anything!"

"You're barely dressed," he accused. "And you're not wearing any undergarments. Also, there's the cuddling, which you initiated. Twice."

"I have panties on!"

"I can see down your shirt."

"You can not. It's dark in here."

"I have excellent night vision."

The neck of her shirt was gaping, she realized, covering herself with one hand. "Have you been perving on me while I was sleeping?"

"Perving?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

"I haven't laid a finger on you," he growled in affront.

Sig subsided into mistrustful silence.

"I may have looked," he said, again in that defensive tone, "But looking is not a crime."

"Oh my god, you were perving on me!"

"Stop using that obnoxious word," he grated. "I've been a perfect gentleman. I could hardly fail to, given the constant proximity of your little friend—Not that I have any interest in...in accosting unconscious women."

She fought not to smile. "You sound like such a prig right now."

He made a sound of pure exasperation. "First I'm a pervert, and now I'm a prig? Make up your mind."

She had, though. Suddenly her mind was very made up indeed.

"Mad," she said, speaking to the empty room. "Privacy, please."

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fierykitten2 · 1 year ago

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I have the desperate need to write a fanfic about at least two (is this my desperate need for shipping? It is, isn’t it?) characters end up travelling through time (and possibly space) in the Pokémon Universe (can you tell I’ve been watching Doctor Who? Yesterday I watched the episode where Rose fucks up trying to stop her father from dying and Nine is just like “you fucked up”) which compared to my current fanfics (two bounty hunters and a mercenary-for-hire go to every Pokémon region basically in order, two Paradox Pokémon and a turtle meet a bunch of futuristic racers and then discover there are more Paradox Pokémon than they thought there were, two bounty hunters and a mercenary-for-hire discover the universe that got sidelined in favour of at least one of the bounty hunters, the most powerful starter Pokémon in existence go up again… an electric rat and a dragon and possibly a genetically mutated cat and an AU where at least the ACNH newcomers (1.0 and 2.0) are actually human adults living in the Pokémon Universe - yeah I haven’t got a name for that one yet I’ve just been calling it The Pokémon AU and chapter 1 isn’t finished yet) seems like a fairly different story idea but my problem is I don’t know who I want as the main characters but I know who to rule out:

Falcon, Samus, Fox and one other are excluded because of AitPU. The first three are also excluded because of Mach Speed

Terapagos, Phoenix, QQQ, Raging Bolt, Iron Crown, Dino Entei and Robo Terrakion are excluded because of Temporal Boost

Spire, Noxus, Miyu and Fay are excluded because of my eventual sequels to TB (as much as I’d love to focus this on Miyu and Fay)

^ since Spire and Noxus are excluded, I’m also excluding the rest of the MPH Hunters

Walking Wake and Iron Leaves aren’t excluded because I’m not sure how to do this if there aren’t any Psychic-types related to time and I don't like Sinnoh. Alternatively I could go for Roaring Moon and Iron Valiant. This is inspired by Doctor Who and I have thought about those two being the Doctor bc of that trailer for Paradox Rift

Draq and Roger or Jody and Kate would be cool. Maybe the reason I’m unsure about them is because I seem to have thought it would be nice to have a male/female pair or multiple male/female pairs

There are many Animal Crossing characters I’ve considered but I’ve said no bc of the Pokémon AU. That said, I wouldn’t mind writing about either Meow and Bow or Fang and Freya (I think I’d prefer Fang and Freya but I don’t think they’d work well for whatever it is I clearly haven’t thought out. That said, if it’s detectives I want, they might not be a bad choice)

For some reason I’ve thought of Robert and Pico. I don’t think I’ll go with that option. Pico and Goroh was also an idea and I don’t think I’ll go with that either

I think my favourite idea is strangely to go with the maidens from Zelda but I think I’d have to give them actual names (Blue could be Skyla, Purple could be Rosa, White could be Bianca (none of those were intentionally named after characters from Gen 5)… the only thing stopping me from going with Stella and Pyramid for Yellow and Red is how samey they sound (and that was before I came up with Bianca). Maybe Mint for Green

I could potentially do characters from the Wii series *thinks about the CPU Miis*… *Wii Fit Plus failure jingle plays*

Maybe some characters from Ring Fit Adventure? Idk

I could do a pair of Pokémon characters but I want it to be a crossover. That said I wouldn’t mind having a male character called Scarlet and a female character called Violet and just match their colour schemes (including hair) to their names from there

Maybe all I should do is just make a fanfic where the 9th/12th Doctor meets a Walking Wake and an Iron Leaves and they become companions - given I’m currently rewatching 9 I think I would prefer 9 but I feel like with the way I see Walking Wake and Iron Leaves 12 would be a better choice (maybe because 12 has had that kind of quirky companion or something while 9 hasn’t)

#Pokémon x Doctor Who x who knows

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froppy-butterflyfan2000 · 1 year ago

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A young girl with freckles and mole on her face was standing on the beach. Collecting seashells by the seashore for her mother, whose is burying her nose into works to make the entire Queendom happy, both mewmans and monsters and humans. Instead of the mother being there for her daughter like she promise to do, she send her servants of dark nymphs to take her place. The child is not sad. Not at all. That is why she is the favourite, not wanting to make her mother emotionally distressed. Plus, she is not alone, the servants are keeping an eyes on her. As she continues walking, her eyes spot the remains of a ship washed ashore. The child’s eyes are widen and run to calls the servants about it. However she heard a voice coming from the ship’s remains. It was a dying stranger, clinging to the wreckage. Dropping the seashells, the child runs up to the stranger. If only she have magic, she would save him.

“The flute alone can’t calls the waves,” he said, pressing the flute in the little girl’s hands. “Let me teach you a song.”

Her mind, now focus on the dying stranger’s last request, and her senses now shutting down and not being in her surroundings, time passed by when she play the song of the Ocean Waves.

Suddenly the princess could hears a loud voice.

“Princess Adrianna-Marie! Princess Adrianna-Marie! PRINCESS ADRIANNA-MARIE BUTTERFLY-DIAZ!!!”

The child, Adrianna-Marie looks at the servants, gathering around her with concern and uncomfortable when she is playing the flute in front of the recently deceased.

The servant, a dark nymph, grab Adrianna-Marie, while clutching onto the flute with her other hand, by the hand and drag her away from the corpse and the ship wreckage. They did not see a faint magical glow on her cheeks, flickering.

The servants report this ‘incident’ to her mother, Queen Star and try to conspicate the flute, promising to give her a new and better flute, but the princess refuse, prefer to play music with this flute to calls the waves.

Years have passed and Adrianna-Marie not a child anymore, playing the flute front stage at the Festivia’s Choral Shell of Festivities. She is surrounded by floating orbs of light. Azazel’s cranes (born from paint attribute and dream attribute Mewman Magic), mewman & monster civilians, Umbros-Quinn, Lamia, and Azazel watch Adriana-Marie’s performance. The waves of the ocean of Dream Waterfolk Kingdom, far away from the area they are in goes smoothly as it follow the simple melody, and water pushing back and forth slowly on the sand of Dream Garbage Beach.

As finish the final verse of the song, she looks at the crowd, processing her surrounding.

Applause fills the background. Adrianna-Marie smile and take a bow.

“Way to go lil’sister,” said Umbros-Quinn.

“Accord! ACCORD!” Said Lamia, raising her fist up in the air.

“That is such a beautiful music,” said Rose.

“Indeed,” said Azazel. She magically summon bubbles out of thin air and they disappear. Rose is curious to what Azazel is doing.

“Whatcha doing Azazel?” Rose asked.

“I made some bubble projections and send them for those who miss out on the performance.” Said Azazel. “It it not fragile so it won’t pop unless the music is over. All you have to do is press the bubble to play, or say ‘Play’.”

“Oh! So it’s like a video,” said Rose amaze by the Mewman technomancy technique Azazel made.

“Uhhh, kind of.” Said Azazel, whose does not understand the term, ‘video’. She is learning so much from them.

“Oh. Is it ok that I could keep a bubbles you made? It is not for me, it is for a friends of mine and Lamia. Their named are Aria, Skylar, Rain, Diana, and Harmony,” Rose requested. “I do not wants them to feels left out.”

“Oh, sure,” said Azazel, creating five bubbles for Rose. Azazel give the bubbles to Rose, and as Rose held them in her hands, Rose deep down to have the magic open up her handbag, causing the grimoire to float out of her handbag. Rose open up her grimoire and store the bubbles in for safe-keeping.

“Your Royal Grimoire is a extraordinary concept of the Royal Wand,” said Azazel. “May I see some pages.”

Rose nod, smiling. She flip a page showing her content of sketches of fashionable outfits.

“These are clothing designs I am working on for the boutique, Cloudy Designs,” said Rose.

“Oooo, so pretty,” said Azazel, and she gasp at the cute pastel purple coloured Froggy overall.

“This is so adorable!” Said Azazel. “I love frogs, including the ones that can sit on chairs.”

“Oh nice.”

Azazel and Rose continue talking about fashion and frogs. Umbros-Quinn stares at outside, looking around and checking if no one is looking. She see Adrianna-Marie is talking to her new fans. She pokes Lamia, getting her attention. “The close is clear, let’s go.”

Lamia is confused and follow Umbros-Quinn as they are farther away from the crowd.

“Why are we separating from the others?” Lamia asked.

“To see if there a crystal in this world,” Umbros-Quinn, “If Glossarck kept this informations on the existence of the dreamworld and Azazel in my universe, then there is a connection.”

“Ooooooh, right!”

And so Lamia and Umbros-Quinn goes search for the next crystal.

Azazel Lucitor, Adrianna-Marie Butterfly Diaz, and Umbros-Quinn Diana Lucitor belong to @princekaistar/@princekaiofstars

Aria Butterfly Diaz, Diana Butterfly Wong, Skylar & Rain Butterfly Thomas, and Lamia Etheria/Ash Butterfly Lucitor (all are mentioned, except for Lamia) belong to dreamy_artz (Instagram)

Rose Butterfly Lucitor belongs @froppy-butterflyfan2000

I made a filler episode focus on Adrianna-Marie and wanting to expand her magic capability in water magic by having her receive a flute, if equip she will use water-music combo Mewman magic spells, aka water attribute Mewman Magic song spells.

Deep Water Prompt #3152

The remains of a ship washed ashore, one dying stranger clinging to the wreckage “The flute alone can’t call the waves,” he told me, pressing it into my hands. “Let me teach you a song.”

#Adrianna-Marie Butterfly Diaz #Lamia Etheria/Ash Lucitor #Lamia Lucitor #Umbros-Quinn Diana Lucitor #Rose B.L.#rose lucitor #rose butterfly #rose butterfly lucitor #azazel lucitor #The Princess of Life #lost princess #Aria Vs. The Other Universe Fanfic #Diana Butterfly Wong #Rain Butterfly Thomas #Skylar Butterfly Thomas #Aria Butterfly Diaz #era of light and darkness #citadel of Starco: the seven deadly sins fanfic

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phoenixyfriend · 4 years ago

Text

Anakin, Shmi, and the Jedi Babies

(Plus Jango)

A scene from the Anakin and the Jedi Babies

Warnings for: canon-typical discussion of slavery.

Shmi is eleven years old when the stranger comes.

He’s tall, and covered in the kind of dark clothes that are hell in the desert. He’s got some armor, too, but not as much as the Mandalorians she sees walking around sometimes. His expression is mean, even though he’s smiling, and she thinks the trader is scared of him.

He’s buying her.

“Now I just need a name for the ownership paperwork,” the trader says. She thinks he’s sweating.

“The sale is already completed, yes?” the stranger says. He tilts his head and purses his lips, still smirking. “No sudden fees coming my way?”

“Of course not, honored customer,” the trader simpers.

“Anakin Skywalker.”

Shmi’s heart stops. That’s her family name.

The trader gets a little paler, as he realizes why this man is here. Shmi watches the calculations fly, wondering if he can maybe squeeze out a few extra wupiupi on this sale. Former slaves freeing family, even family they don’t know, always fetches the highest price.

The stranger—Anakin—leans across the counter and looms over the trader, smiling in the most threatening way Shmi’s ever seen. “No sudden fees, right?”

“Well, there will be the code transfer f—”

“I’m the most dangerous person in this city,” the man says, smile dropping away like flies from a bantha. “Don’t make me prove it, friend.”

The sale is secured, the codes handed over, the detonator passing hands.

Shmi falls into step next to Anakin, hurrying to keep up with his longer strides. He takes her a few blocks away without a word, and then into a shallow spot in an alleyway, right where foot traffic won’t be a bother.

“Hey,” he says, dropping to one knee and placing himself where, even when she sets her gaze low, he’ll be there. He smiles at her, hesitant but far, far kinder than what she saw in the shop. “Do you want me to deactivate your chip now, or once we’re on my ship? I can’t remove it until we’re out of here; I’m no surgeon.”

“…now, please,” she whispers, and watches him punch in the numbers and codes to neutralize the bomb she’s carried inside herself since she was three. It’s done in less than two minutes.

“Do you want me to break this?” he asks, voice soft.

She nods, and watches in fascination as he crushes it in his fist with seemingly no effort.

He smiles at her, tosses the shards into the nearest compactor, and then offers her the hand that isn’t in a glove. She takes it, like she used to take her mom’s before they were separated, and follows him through Mos Pelgo. He’s family. He’s cleanly, clearly freed her. She should be able to trust him.

“Where are we going?” she manages to work up the courage to ask.

His stride stutters a bit, his hand squeezing hers, but his voice is even when he speaks. “Well, I would like you to stay with me, but if you have… have any family to return to, that you know how to find…”

“I don’t know where my mom is,” she says. “She got sold when I was four.”

He squeezes her hand again, and she dares to look at his face. His eyes are squinted, angry, and focused on the horizon. She’d call it stormy, if she’d ever been to a planet of water, but she was a child of the desert. She could feel his anger, and it wasn’t hot and sharp and blinding enough to be a storm of sand.

(She felt that it could be, in the intuition that had kept her alive these past years.)

“I see,” he says. “I’m… okay, then. I’d try to find her if I could, but I don’t know how to do that.”

Shmi shrugs. “She was sent to Jabba’s. I don’t think she’s… um. She’s probably dead, now.”

He’s silent in response to that.

“How did you find me?” she asks, because her intuition says to trust this man to keep her alive, even if she thinks she may not trust his temper.

He thinks about that for a second, and then lets go of her hand for a moment to brush aside a layer of his tunic.

A lightsaber.

Her eyes dart up to his, wide and maybe a little awed. He grins, a little more carefree than before.

“Jeedai?”

“A full Jedi knight, believe it or not,” he confirms. “The Force led me to find you. I don’t think I’d have been able to do locate you without it.”

“Wizard,” she whispers, and then he pulls her into his side and out of the way of a large, too-fast-for-these-streets speeder.

He swears under his breath in a language she doesn’t recognize.

“So, I’m going with you,” she says. “Um, where… where do Jedi live?”

“The Temple is on Coruscant,” he tells her. “But I’ve got business in Mandalorian space, so that’s where I’m based out of right now.”

“Okay,” she says. Mandalore… maybe that’s why he’s got armor like one of them. “I… I heard that Jedi are all called Master, so—”

“No,” Anakin snaps, turning around and getting to one knee in front of her again, hands on both her shoulders, stopping her in a fraction of a second with a look so intense that it scares her. “No, you are never to call me that. You are never going to bow your head to a master again, okay? You are free, and you are family.”

She stares at him for a long second, and then nods. She thinks her head jerks a bit too sharply, but he’s scary. He cares so much that it frightens her. He must be able to tell, because he closes his eyes and visibly forces himself to calm down.

“I was freed when I was nine,” he tells her. “By a Jedi Master. And I know… I know how uncomfortable it is to live like that, where the word means something different to you than it does to everyone else. I became a Jedi, so I learned to make it mean what it was supposed to, respect for teachers and—and elders. But you, you’re not a Jedi, you’re just a girl, and you matter, and—don’t make yourself say it. Please.”

“Okay,” she says. “Do I just… do I just call you Anakin, then?”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s fine,” he says, and his hands twitch on her shoulders. She thinks he wants to pull her into a hug, but is forcing himself to stop. “Or Ani, if you want, my—my mom used to call me that. Seems like something to keep for family.”

“Okay,” she says again. She can do that.

“Or, um,” he hesitates, and then barrels on. “We’ll be in Mandalore. They say ori’vod to mean older sibling. So, er, you can call me that. If you want. You don’t have to.”

She’ll have to practice. It looks like it means a lot to him. “I’ll think about it.”

“Great,” he says, and dithers for a moment before he stands up and turns around, black robes flaring. “Come on, let’s get out of the sun.”

He leads her to just outside the city limits, where there’s a small ship waiting, enough for a half-dozen people on longer trips, maybe. She doesn’t know much about ships, but this one’s covered in scratches and pits, like it’s been in fights and come out the other side.

They open the door, and are met with wailing.

Anakin rushes past her, shouting, “Ben!”

Shmi doesn’t follow immediately, but he’s been pretty insistent that she’s family, not property. She’s allowed inside.

She finds Anakin in the main room, holding a baby and bouncing it in his arms as he hisses a demand to a boy only a few years older than Shmi herself.

“—my kids, Jango!”

“I’m here to babysit the ship, not the baby!” the teenager argues back.

Anakin scoffs and turns his attention to the baby in his arms. Shmi isn’t entirely sure, but she thinks the baby is definitely less than a year old. It quiets in his arms, tiny hands fisting in the fabric she knows is still too hot from the sun outside.

“Shmi, you can sit down,” he tells her, distracted. “I’d love to talk more but I think I need to make a bottle for Ben. I’ll be back in a few.”

She looks around, sees a bench, and sits down. She presses her hands together in her lap, keeps her eyes on the japor charm her mother left with her years ago, hanging around her wrist. She can wait. She’s patient. She’ll figure out how freedom works eventually.

“Mmmmmmbook!”

Shmi jolts in her seat as a very small body collides with her leg, blue and white and giggling. The head of that small body turns up to stare at her with massive eyes, and she sees the child’s face is orange. Togruta, she thinks, and very young.

The little one pushes a flimsi book onto Shmi’s lap and pats at it, grinning up at Shmi with tiny, pearly teeth.

“Ad’ika, she just got here,” the-teenager-that-is-probably-named-Jango sighs, dropping into the seat next to Shmi. “Let her rest.”

“Sto-wee!” the baby Togruta insists, patting at Shmi’s leg. The little one tries to climb up onto the bench, and Shmi reaches out to help after she realizes the toddler is about to slip. She receives, in thanks, a delighted grin and a montral to the ribs as the child hugs her.

“’m Soka!” the little one introduces.

“She’s one of Skywalker’s,” probably-Jango says. “He showed up with those two a few months ago in the middle of a chaak’la snowstorm.”

“No!” Soka insists, slapping her little hand on the book a few times. “No ‘ssip! Book!”

Jango lets his head fall against the metal wall behind them. “Fine. No gossip.”

Shmi looks at the little girl, and then back at the book. She’s… well, she can read. Mostly. She can read better than most slaves her age, but this is Basic, not Huttese.

She cracks it open to the first page, finds herself relieved that it really is a children’s story with small words and big letters, and starts reading it out loud. She goes slow. The story is about an eopie trying to find its way home after getting lost, asking other farm animals for help. There are plenty of pictures, and sometimes Soka pats at the book and shouts the name of an animal. It’s very cute, overall.

About two-thirds of the way through, she stumbles. It’s a word she hasn’t seen before, long and with repeating letters that she can’t quite figure out how to say. She pauses, long enough that she’s sure little Soka is confused about why she’s stopped.

“Happabore,” Jango mutters.

Shmi lifts her head, but he’s not looking at her. She looks down at the book again, mouths the letters to herself, and thinks that yes, that probably fits. She keeps reading aloud, letting little Soka tell her about her favorite animals, and when she finishes and looks up, it’s to find Anakin standing across from them.

He’s leaning against a doorframe, bottle-feeding the baby named Ben, and watching them with an expression Shmi thinks might be ‘wistful.’

“Skyguy!” Little Soka cheers, sliding off the bench so she can toddle over to the man as fast as her little legs can carry her. “Skyguy, gots a fweind!”

He smiles indulgently and lets her hug his leg. “I can see that, Snips. You guys have fun?”

“Uh-huh!” the little one tells him. She raises her hands at him. “Up!”

“Sorry, hun, no can do,” Anakin apologizes. “I’m feeding Ben, and I need both hands for that.”

She pouts, and he jerks his chin at Shmi and Jango. “Go back to the bench and you can help me feed him, okay?”

Soka races back.

“Fett, go get the ship powered up,” Anakin says as he ambles over, voice the kind of casually commanding that gives Shmi goosebumps. It’s not familiar, not the way an owner is, but it’s… it’s a voice that’s very used to having authority. “I want us out of here as soon as possible.”

“You’re not the boss of me.”

“I am the commanding officer according to Jaster,” Anakin says, and Shmi watches him raise an eyebrow. “I know it’s not much of a mission, but I am in charge until we’re back on Concord Dawn. You want me to tell him you’re playing at insubordination?”

Jango makes a face, sticking out his tongue. Anakin waits.

Jango goes to start the ship.

“Teenagers,” Anakin mutters, shaking his head. “I want to say I was never that bad, but I’d be lying.”

Soka giggles, bouncing in her seat as Anakin carefully lowers himself down next to her. “Okay, okay, settle down. He’s cranky, kiddo.”

“Wanna help,” Soka stresses, reaching for the bottle. Anakin shifts away from her, keeping it out of her reach. “Skyguy!”

“Slow down, Snips,” he chides. “Climb on my lap and we can hold him together, okay?”

Shmi fiddles with her japor snippet, but she can’t help her fascination with the dynamic presented. Anakin obviously isn’t related to Soka by blood, but he’s adopted her as his own. They haven’t said as much, but it’s obvious. He can’t stop smiling as he talks the girl through holding the bottle for her baby brother, even though it’s obvious from the outside that he’s the one actually holding it, and her, and the baby.

The ship hums to life around them. Anakin tilts his head, as if listening to something, and then goes back to the baby.

It’s another minute before Anakin says, “Okay, that’s enough. I need to burp him. Go on, scoot.”

Soka grimaces as well as a two-year-old can, and slides off of Anakin’s lap onto the bench. He stands and presses the baby up to his shoulder, patting it on the back. There’s a towel there already, something Shmi hadn’t noticed earlier.

“I’m going to go check on Jango,” he tells them. “Shmi, can you get Soka in her seat? I’ll tell you how to buckle her in, but I promised Jango he could fly us back and I want to sit up there to make sure he gets us into hyperspace without, say, exploding.”

It’s only a minute or two to get both of them sat down and buckled in, and Soka spends the entire time until lift-off telling Shmi about how much she likes eopies. This continues well until they end up in hyperspace, the jolt of it making the little one squeal in excitement, even if Shmi feels her stomach drop out. Shortly after, the boys wander back in.

“We’re good for a couple hours,” Anakin says. “Nav computer’s got it until we jump back out. Anyone want a snack?”

“Me!” Soka screeches, bouncing in her seat. “Jan-Jan, snacktime!”

Anakin’s eyebrows climb up towards his hairline. “Well, seems like you’ve got a fan, Fett.”

“Shut up,” Jango grumbles, but he does go over and pick Soka out of her child seat, setting her on his hip and going in the direction of what Shmi assumes is the galley.

“You doin’ okay?” Anakin asks, carefully taking the seat next to her. He sits Ben up on his lap, but the baby has trouble staying in that position. Anakin takes his hands, letting tiny fists curl around his thumbs, to help him stay up.

“It’s a lot,” she says. “But I am happy to be free.”

He grins at her. “Glad to hear it. It’s a lot to adjust to, I know, but… I’m happy to have you with us.”

She nods, eyes on the baby that’s swaying from side to side as Anakin moves his hands, like a very, very small speeder pilot.

“Is he, um, yours?” Shmi asks. “Or did you adopt, like Soka?”

Anakin’s smile, so full of love, drops off. He presses his lips into a thin line, and for a moment, Shmi wonders if she’s made a horrible misstep.

“What… what do you know about Jedi relationships?” Anakin asks, voice quiet.

“Nothing,” she admits, but she’s not ashamed of that. Nobody knows much about the Jedi.

“Okay,” he says, more to himself than to her. “Okay, so… okay. There are a couple ranks in the Order. Younglings go in the crèche, communally raised in groups, and then when they’re five or so, they get to become Initiates. A few years later, usually between ten and fourteen, they can enter an apprenticeship to a Jedi Knight or Master, and the apprentice rank is Padawan. When the apprenticeship is done, they become Knights, basically journeymen, and at some point after that, Masters. There are positions that technically rank higher, councils and heads of divisions, and there’s stuff outside the apprenticeship system, like the service corps, but that’s not super relevant. It’s complicated but we’re only focusing on the apprenticeship path for knights.”

He hesitates, and then continues. “One of the ways to become a Master in the Order is to successfully raise a Padawan to knighthood. I was never an Initiate, because I came to the Order so much later than most. I immediately became a Padawan, and my master was freshly knighted. The relationship between master and padawan is… it’s family. Some of the more orthodox of the Order don’t like to put it in those words, but it really is.

“If I ever talk about my Master, just know I’m not talking about any of the owners I had before I was freed. I’m talking about the man who raised me, the man I saw as a father. He may not have seen me as a son, more a brother, but he was only sixteen years older than me, and… anyway. Jedi lineages are family. Your Master is a parent, or an older sibling, and your Padawan is a child to bring up as your own,” he finishes this off with the kind of deep, heavy breath that she thinks precedes grief. She can’t tell.

“My master is… well, he’s not in a position to teach anyone anything anymore. Ben here is all I have left of him.”

Oh.

Anakin doesn’t look at her, just stares down at the baby that’s gotten cranky again, and rearranges Ben to lie sideways in his arms. He smiles down as the baby burbles up at him, and tickles at the baby’s stomach. Ben grabs at Anakin’s fingers and kicks at the air, laughing in the manner of all children that small.

The man hums, and Shmi is more shocked than she should be to hear one of the lullabies she’s heard in slave quarters all her life.

“He’s your son now,” she says, more firmly than she feels. “He is yours to raise and care for, and I can tell you love him as much as any parent.”

Anakin lifts his head, staring at her like he can’t quite believe she’s there, and tears collect at the edges of his eyes.

“Thank you, Shmi Skywalker,” he says, and she feels like there’s more weight in those words than there should be. He licks his lips, eyes darting away for a second, and then asks, “do you want to hold him?”

She steels herself, and nods.

This is her family now.

Hers.

#Shmi Skywalker #Anakin Skywalker #Obi Wan Kenobi #Ahsoka Tano #Jango Fett #star wars #time travel #de aging #parenting #childcare #baby characters #phoenix posts #Anakin and the Jedi Babies #outside pov

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excaliburssword · 2 years ago

Text

Hot take on ships (part 2 ig 😩)

Yeah, so I decided to make a part two 😃

! OBVIOUSLY SPOILERS, PLEASE DON'T BE STUPID LIKE ME AND CONTINUE READING IF YOU HAVEN'T FINISHED THE S.G.E. SERIES !

Keian

It's a full on ten from me. I might even go above and beyond and break the scale on this one.

Some might disagree, (even though I've seen A LOT of supremacy for these two), but I wouldn't give up the chance to see Soman write a novella about the Arbed boys before everything went down, mainly just to see these guys in action (alongside Japaric ofc).

Their dynamic was so cute together! Obviously minus that one scene in ACOT when Rhian indirectly threatened him, but Kei kinda deserved it for "betraying" him ig.

11/10

2. Hedros (...)

This is obviously just crack, but it's still kinda funny.

I remember someone had asked for my opinion on this, but idk if they were being sarcastic or generally serious 😶

If it was satire, then ig this could be ridiculously hilarious, but could work at the same time.

They literally came around themselves in the last book and became besties, so why not?

I obvi don't ship it, but it is something I would bawl my eyes reading if it worked 😭

2/10

3. Revelyn

Can I just say... that I ship literally no one on the ends of the earth with this bi$h other than her grave?

She was a literal r@pist (in a way) and actually had the audacity to think she deserved to have someone to look after her 💀

Miss girl.... NO.

I think her tombstone makes an excellent partner...so it's okay....

BUT-

She did make one hell of an excellent villain. If Sophie didn't exist to drive Rafal all delusional like he was, these two would've made everyone bow at their feet with no regrets.

Not to mention Japeth and Rhian being there with them 😩

8/10 (ONLY IF EVELYN WASN'T THE SKUNK SHE WAS, BC THEN IT WOULD BE LOWER THAN 0).

4. Tilip (idk is that their ship name?)

If Agatha didn't exist, then they would've been pretty cute together.

But at the same time, they give off the energy of "we're better off as friends."

Idk, it's somewhere in the middle of 5/10 and 6/10 for me.

5. Chaddrix

Eh, they were both the wannabes in their year (sorry Chaddick), so they seriously deserve each other.

Plus, imagine them having kids. God half of them would be whining about their hair and the other half would just be interested in sword play the whole time 😭

5/10

6. Saric

Idk where I saw this...but something inside of me STIRRED that day when I did.

Listen, ik Aric is a complete psycho and he is DEFINITELY where he belongs, but these two would've erupted the whole @ss universe if they were together-

Like do you guys remember those times when Aric was literally FLIRTING WITH HER in the third book? (I'm not romanticising toxicity, because we all know damn well it was all just another play of his).

They would've been great best friends tbh, and idk what the hell is wrong with me, but I rate it a 8/10 📸

7. Jophie

Ik I said that Saric was toxic, but this ship is just straight up abusive.

Japeth LITERALLY assaulted Sophie more than three times in a single book (A crystal of time/ ACOT) and basically excused it by saying "it all was for his one true love."

Like....what?

You literally had her under your full control almost a quarter through OTK??

Now I'm not saying Saric is a magnificent ship that deserves to be seen, because it doesn't, and is basically just crack given the fact Aric is a literal walking red flag, but Japeth is just a whole other story-

0/10

This took me a whole hour (and idk why, cause I'm not even tired), but that brings me to the end of Part 2!

I'm probably not going to do a part 3, (unless I remember another ship I forgot), but again, probably not 😃🕺

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soranis-sunshadow · 3 years ago

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Looking back

@cruelfeline wanted a snippet between Hordak and Glimmer where they contemplated on how much of a fuckup either of them is.

I took it as a prompt and I hope this little oneshot scratches that itch.

It was always better to go to a banquet than to host it, Glimmer thought to herself while making her way down the long hallway of the reclusive palace wing. If she felt at odds or tired or just not in the mood, all she had to do was signal Bow and he’d take her home. But as a host, she WAS home, there was nowhere else to go to. Besides, since she was the esteemed host, she couldn’t leave early. It would be in poor taste.

This year, the anniversary of the end of the war was hosted in Bright Moon and she had to find a secluded place in her own home to take a breather from all the commotion before she had to return to the party and smile and nod and… try not to feel like such an imposter.

She finally found her favorite overlook, the one where she came to sulk whenever her mother gave her a stern -and justified- talking to, the best view and the music of the party down in the main hall was muted. No sooner did she lay her hands upon the balustrade that she spotted movement to the periphery of her vision. It was another person she really didn’t want to interact with due to the sheer awkwardness: Hordak. He was sitting by himself in contemplation, looking on into the distance in the last light of the day.

She and he stood meters apart on the balcony in silence for a while. He seemed to look at peace while staring off into the sunset. She tried to do the same. Her maelstrom of thoughts made it difficult.

During the war, she had never met him face to face, all she knew was what other people said of him – both her own and other hordesmen that were captured and interrogated.

Their first meeting in the flesh had been memorable… for very terrible, nightmare inducing reasons. Even now, she couldn’t look at Hordak without seeing Prime discard his errant tool then threaten to destroy her world in a dulcet voice as if it were the most trite of things. It probably had been to that monster…

Hordak hadn’t been what she – an everyone else thought he was. What made it even more jarring, and unexpected, had been his eagerness to repent and atone following the war.

Glimmer had decreed that Prime’s little brothers were not at fault for what they had been made to do for their creator, all of them, Hordak included. She couldn’t in good conscience persecute any of them whilst knowing, intimately – unlike the other monarchs- where they came from and what had been done to them.

Hordak however, decided to be difficult, because of course he did.

He insisted that even had his actions been in the hopes of serving Prime, they had been his actions, his mistakes. He owned them, and he owed Etheria. He had decided- by himself - to rebuild the things he had a hand in destroying not out of a desperate bid for forgiveness but because it was what he had been convinced that it was the right, and the just thing to do.

It made it very awkward for her to interact with him… whenever she invited Entrapta to these events, he was always her plus one. Entrapta was a sore spot for Glimmer. She had decided that the Dryll princess would be the first one to be invited whenever Glimmer hosted any event. It was the least she owed her.

She had learned that Entrapta endangered herself to save her back when she had been abducted on Prime’s ship… a few weeks before that, Glimmer had argued with Adora and Bow to leave her on Beast Island for the time being. It was a shame that stung deeply. Entrapta had been a far better friend to her than she had been to Entrapta. To make matters worse, Entrapta seemed either oblivious or not to hold it against her. It made Glimmer’s guilt even worse. At times, she wished Entrapta HAD been angry, she wished the other princess would give her a piece of her mind, at least then, she’d be able to make it up to her.

Huh!

No wonder Hordak “punished” himself with reparations and reconstructions…She couldn't stop a heavy sigh from escaping her. It wasn't an invitation to talk but he seemed to take it as one since the noise startled him out of his contemplation and he slowly turned towards her.

“Good evening, your grace.” It was always a bit comical when one of Prime’s clones bowed to her, they would have to bend over comically low to match her height. Hordak didn’t. He merely bowed his head smoothly and lowered his ears to convey submission.

“Uh, hey.” How dignified of her. She wished she had half as much grace as her mother had. “Uuuh,-“ he looked at her with that blank face that had been conditioned into him. ‘Ugh, say something Glimmer, this doesn’t have to be this awkward. Make an effort, for Entrapta’s sake at least!’. “- lovely sunset, right?”

He blinked slowly then turned back to the vista. “Indeed.”

‘C’mon! Give me SOMETHING to work with here!’ She thought to herself. “What do you think of the party?” That had been a host thing to ask, it was appropriate and neutral right?

It wasn’t... The answer came in that calm, low, dignified and slightly husky voice of his, a voice that had cracked from screaming and had never recovered. His posture betrayed his unease. Hordak further stiffened at the question.

“It is,-“ he paused considering his words carefully “quite sumptuous, your grace.” He bowed again. It was clearly at least as uncomfortable for him as it was for her.

This wasn’t helping… ‘Good job Glimmer!’ If it hadn’t been weird and both of them had enjoyed the companionable silence before, now she had made things awkward.

While considering what to say next, he saved her the effort by saying. “Your guests are enjoying themselves.” Was that a compliment? Was he trying to compliment her? She knew from former interactions with him that he had a very stiff and formal way of talking, very unlike his progenitor. Words fit poorly in his mouth. It was so curious how, despite having the same voice and the same face, almost… they sounded worlds apart. He held himself differently too, Prime had filled every space he was in, he owned every room he walked into. Hordak on the other hand seemed perpetually on eggshells. Was that why he was here by himself?

“You are my guest too.” She said to him, trying to sound warm and welcoming but it came out a bit defensive.

The unasked question hung between them in the dying light of the day.

He saved her from asking it once more. “My presence… makes some of your other guests uneasy, your grace. I did not wish to impose.”

“Impose? Nonsense!” She waved it off with a chuckle. “You and Entrapta are welcome here, I’ve expressly invited the both of you myself. There is no way you could ‘impose’ in any way!” Then it hit her… “Did anyone tell either of you that you were imposing? If they did, tell me who it was and I’ll have a chat with them.”

He huffed out a chuckle then turned towards her once more. A small, tentative smile made its way on his face. “No such thing your grace, the initiative was all mine.” The shared gaze was broken as he looked at his feet then back into the distance. “ I wished to prevent it from becoming an issue. Many of your kinsmen are weary of me, and for good reason. My actions on your world did not endear me to most of your kind.” It seems that guilt had brought them both on this overlook.

“I should name this ‘the shitty overlook!’ Hah!” She laughed. “Because everyone comes on this balcony to feel shitty.” He looked at her, one browridge raised in inquiry. “You’re here because of the whole conquest thing and I’m here because I’ a terrible friend.”

Glimmer continued. “We both did regrettable things during the war.” She too looked on into the distance, the line of bleeding orange light got thinner and thinner as night overtook it, a thin line of fiery hues reflected off the surface of the turbulent lake. Silence hung between them for a few minutes.

“You did what you thought was necessary, your grace.” Despite the curt tone, it was a reassurance. It was uncanny for Hordak of all people to be the one trying to comfort her.

“We both did. It still doesn’t make it feel right.” Both of their closets had skeletons cramped in them.

“It may not but, at the time, you saw no other way to do your duty.” He sighed deeply. “Hindsight is indeed, not a charitable beast your majesty, but it is unfair.” He clicked his claws on the balustrade. The motion was somewhat distracting. ” You know things now that you couldn’t have possibly known back then. Within the constraints of the time and the data available, you did the best that you could, the best that could be expected. You were a formidable opponent.” As sound as his logic was, it did little to assuage the anger she aimed at herself.

“And I had my friends take the fall for me because I thought it was necessary.” She sighed and hugged herself. “I was wrong, even back then but I didn’t want to admit it, I thought the ends justify the means. They don’t. They never do.”

“It’s easy to overthink the choices made when one is aware that there were other options, other paths that could have been taken.” He sounded, small and sad, his own demons haunting him.” The reality of it is that, in the moment, you may not have been aware of other possibilities and time had not been on your side. You decided to move forward down the only path you saw before you. The alternative would have been admitting defeat. Had you done so, you wouldn’t be here to second guess yourself. It was, in general, the right thing to do even if you are left with the consequences of your perceived momentary oversights. You have the privilege now, to make up for your mistakes – a privilege you wouldn’t have had should you have not done the things you did. “

“Thank you. I needed to hear that.” She hadn’t known she needed it nor would she had ever asked for it and that’s exactly why the point had hit home. “She was right, you’re a good listener.”

He chuckled again, an animate chuckle that rippled through him as he shook his head and turned back to look at the lake. She made her way closer and took in the familiar view. Neither of them said anything after that.

They watched the stars appear on the night sky, reflecting off the surface of the lake, somewhat distorted. The ripples of the lake made their twinkling even brighter. The night was peaceful.

#glimmer #hordak #entrapdak #spop fanfic

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eve6262 · 3 years ago

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some rhaast thoughts

There’s nothing worse than silence. It’s a slow killer, infecting your mind like a parasite, nibbling away at the edges of your mind until it gets to the center and you think, wait a minute, isn’t something wrong? Not silence as in the absence of sound, mind; the absence of everything. An abyss, of nothing created by nothing for nothing. Nothing, a perfect 0 that loops like a circle, without even the slight oval dimensions the number usually holds. A 0 shaped like an O. Silence.

It was that, for a long, long while. And then Kayn picked him up, and life has been very loud.

Loud- colors, sounds, a battle- is overwhelming after a perfect silence for so long. Initially he was hurt, wincing every time another light broke its way into his vision, but he didn’t dare complain or show weakness because then he might be thrown back into that silence prison, and all he needed was time, surely.

Time passed, and now he’s used to it. The colors aren’t so sharp anymore, the world isn’t so fast, Kayn isn’t so strange and loud.

“Good morning,” he says to his scythe, brushing his hair while the thing rests on his lap.

Good morning, Rhaast replies, idly watching the mess on his head turn into a sleek black waterfall. It has taken them an eternity and a day to reach this point, seven strange conversations, three days spent melodramatically ignoring everyone else, five hours of betrayal, a minute to murder the people who used to live here. A man and a woman, relation unknown and unimportant, because for now this is Kayn and Rhaast’s house and they are confident the Kinkou will not chase them this far. The daybreak proves it, as there’s not a soul nearby.

Well, there are souls, but none of them living. Ionia is a strange country.

There is, admittedly, one small problem. Zed could and might follow them, try to address this himself. Kayn, he can feel, fears the man, though for different reasons than Rhaast. He thinks that Zed could defeat him, or manage to confiscate the scythe and force him never to stay together again, or perhaps kill him on the spot; but his scythe knows better than that, knows that the leader of the Kinkou is nothing but a coward and an idiot who relies on the shadows that do not love him. The shadows would despise him, no longer grant him his wishes, if only their Queen was awake.

Is that a true story? Did he make that up in the void of nothing, or is it a distant memory that got eaten by time?

His breakfast today looks alright. A mess of rations he had smuggled away, taken with him when they fled, plus whatever they found in the little abandoned house in the forest. Some fresh bread, meats strung up, eggs freshly harvested from the wildlife, considering the lack of a coop. “Better than I expected.”

Of course. They weren’t exactly expecting to die.

“With how old they were? They should have.”

Usually there’s jabs and nonsense and idle conversation with these two, never a dull moment. But now, instead, they’ve found a comfortable silence- and isn’t that funny, the thing he used to abhor- to rest in. Will it eat at the edges of his mind again, until he forgets slowly even the life before this, with Zed and the Kinkou and some nonsensical fight for power when, really, they’re at their strongest as a team?

There are so many stories in the edges of his mind that he can’t figure out the veracity of. Is is true that there was once a reigning emperor of the sands with feathers and a commanding voice and a penchant for men? Or maybe the tales of the Elderwood, a forest not dissimilar to Ionian magic but with gods sealed below the size of mountains and with the power of Targon combined? Surely the Aspects of Moon and Sun have changed- are they still lovers? Surely the Aspect of War has changed- are they still a peaceful tactician who prefers the strategy of war to its more bloody parts?

Was any of that ever true? Are there parts he’s missing, parts he’s added? He knows, mostly, three things: Kayn is with him, Zed could find them, and he has a brother named Aatrox.

Everything else seems to be triggered by happenstance. For example, once, on a trip that led them to the mountains, they met a child with longer hair than their body that faded into the different colors of the sky and he knew, right then, right there, that the old Aspect of Twilight had died, and this new one was named Zoe and that she was very, very annoying. Somewhere else- the location he’s fuzzy on- they met a darkin with a bow and he recognized Varus and called out and his brethren responded “Oh, you’re gay too?”

His brother would have slain that man in twain. Kayn, assuming the darkin was talking to him, responded, “Who cares?”

Secretly, Rhaast thinks Zed would have hated him for it. He seems like the type. Maybe he’s just never “understood” that sort of attraction, or maybe he has an age-old crush on a friend that he pretends doesn’t exist by pretending it can’t be true. Perhaps both, in a way and form, where that interest went unexplored and misunderstood and pushed away.

“Rhaast.”

Yes?

“Did you not hear me?”

No. Say it again.

“Honestly.” He sighs, rolling his eyes. “I was asking you what you want to do.”

Why?

“Why?...I...”

Don’t have anywhere to go, huh.

“Don’t say that.”

Not in a bad way. But no direction.

“Yes, I do. I want Noxus to fall. But I’m not doing that alone, and not now, so.”

He thinks for a moment, then responds. Shurima.

“Why Shurima?”

I want to see what’s left of Azir.

“Who the hell is- ...you know what? Sure. Shurima it is.”

thought I wanted to write ship. turns out I just wanted to do Rhaast character studies. (also, the line about Azir liking men is a hc of mine that you can interpret as false or true)

~Eve6262

#writing #fanfiction #fanfic #league of legends #rhaast #kayn #rhaast x kayn #azir #aatrox #varus #zoe league of legends #character study #azir is gay pass it on

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zerokogane · 4 years ago

Text

Pt 2 of me needing to scream about certain fics so here are some of my favorite persona 5 fanfics (be warned most of these of not all are going to be shuake and ongoing)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/11855097

Shuake, ongoing, rated M, 154k+

Discerption:

Akechi Goro is alive – one of his biggest regrets is alive and standing in front of him looking like he’s ready for some highbrow sports photo shoot when what he really needs is five years intensive therapy and at least five more steps away from Akira.

No, no, no – the universe is not allowed to shove this on him so soon after it just flung him three fucking years into the past.

(Sometimes the only way to save someone is to let them save you first.)

(Huge canon divergence. Akira's past and future affect him big time.)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30228501/chapters/74488923

No ships,ongoing, rated T, 18k+

Discerption:

Even the simplest of decisions can challenge fate.

As it so happens, the 11th of April was supposed to be a fateful one. But as Akira prepares for his first day at Shujin Academy, he notices the dark clouds hanging above Leblanc, and decides to take his umbrella. And while he arrives at Shujin a little rained on and more than a little harried, he manages to arrive on time.

Two weeks later, a strange group calling themselves the Phantom Thieves steal their first heart.

Or, the one where Akira becomes the Phantom Thieves’ target instead of their leader.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21359908/chapters/50877694

No ships, ongoing, rated T, 36k+

Discerption:

Morgana still thought the transfer student was cool; that much was clear when Mona came strolling through the entrance of Mementos with Amamiya on his heels. ...They'd known that if Morgana was fulfilling Phansite requests, he must be accessing the internet with the help of a human, but they hadn't expected that human to be Ren Amamiya. The guy had been requested on the site himself no fewer than four times.

Or: in another timeline, things go a little differently when Morgana leaves the team. Instead of finding a beauty thief, he allies himself with the transfer student who's still a mystery to the Phantom Thieves.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27427372/chapters/67045327

Shuake, ongoing, rated T, 9k+

Discerption:

Goro’s mother never committed suicide and continued to raise Goro for years regardless of how much money she had or what food she could put on the table.

Goro is grateful for everything his mother has done and resents his father with every fiber of his being. Using his rookie detective skills to put his father behind bars.

Akira is a curious transfer student from Inaba who finds himself drawn in by Goro Akechi’s mysterious nature, and naturally tries to find out more.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27602039/chapters/67525049

Shuake, ongoing, rated M, 46k+

Discerption:

Akira knew this wasn't normal. That the life he had come to know was overlapped with a mystery he was unwillingly tied to.

Every decision has consequences. Avoid one terrible fate and you may cause another.

Although it would be great if he knew what the hell was happening in the first place.

~~~

A New Game+ where Akira’s decisions are influenced (whether intentionally or not) by an influx of scattered memories from a past life he has no idea about. And the metaverse has changed, for the better or worse.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31549295/chapters/78053357

pegoryu, ongoing, rated T, 21k+

Discerption:

"You are Phantom!" Ann shouted as she saw the man with the domino mask landing in front of them.

The man smiled at her. His red eyes behind the mask had yet again managed to entrance them making them follow every movement he did. He elegantly bowed at them as his deep charismatic and gentle voice echoed through the room.

"I am quite pleased that you recognize me. But that name is just the one that fans have given me."

He stood up and a splash appeared behind him destroying the shadow. He smirked at them as he fixed his glove.

"The name is Joker. And the Show's over."

An au fic that explores the idea of what if Akira was already a phantom thief before the events of P5. It follows the story of P5, plus P5R but with different outcomes.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31056191/chapters/76721054

Shuake + others, ongoing, rated T, 10K+

Discerption:

misterstealyourmans: aaanyways

misterstealyourmans: mishima told me of an idea he had and i was going to tell it to everyone

misterstealyourmans: but i forgot everyone else is cowards that actually have sleep schedules

tinygremlin: ew sleep schedules

tinygremlin: get it away, kill it with fire

After killing two gods in a row, you'd think your life would go back to normal, wouldn't you?

If you're the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, think again.

(Or, the PT get the ability to talk amongst themselves and the anons of the Phan-site more. Chaos ensues.)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31097024

No ships, one-shot, 5k+

Discerption:

After the interrogation, the Phantom Thieves stay the night at LeBlanc to care for their leader.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24690265

Shuake, one-shot, rated G, 2k+

Discerption:

"i have to go," goro tells him. even as he remains curled up in ren's arms, his wings brushing up against the raven's own larger ones, mottled cream contrasting against dark black. "sakura-san is going to be over here any time, i have to leave before he gets here."

"but why?"

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thebiscuiteternal · 4 years ago

Text

“A Bird in the Hand” Friendship <3, Mutual Interests (Sorta Not Really), Hidden Identities, Kidnapping, The Ship Is A Huge Spoiler Sorry

__________

Having decided he was going to lose his mind if he had to listen to the constant chatter about scores and techniques for one more moment, Nie Huaisang quietly slips out of the dining hall and heads out into the early evening air.

Just a little time to himself to clear his head, that’s all he needs. A short walk, and then he’ll go back. If Da-ge gets upset about him wandering off here… well, he’ll cross that bridge when he gets to it.

Movement in the bush next to him startles him a little, but not enough for him to miss that the small reddish-pink form darting out of the leaves is flying very oddly.

Wing damage at the very least, he calculates. If he doesn’t intervene, it’s probably going to be a predator’s meal soon.

Concern replaces his earlier exasperation; he changes course from the path he’d been planning to take and begins tracking where it might land next instead.

---

The erratic flight pattern makes his task a little more difficult, but there is still a bit of light left in the sky when he finally snares the wounded and bedraggled puff of feathers -a rosefinch, one he hasn’t ever seen this particular color and pattern of- and very gently deposits it in his lap.

“Shh, you’ll be fine,” he soothes, carefully rubbing the poor thing’s cheek with a fingertip to calm it down before reaching into his sleeve for his usual pouch of supplies. “See? I’m here to help.”

Once the bird is gorging itself -no, himself- on seeds, he begins inspecting and carefully cleaning the injuries. He was right about the wing, plus there are nasty cuts to a leg and another to the neck. Claw marks, most likely. “Poor darling, you must have just escaped a cat,” he coos softly as he takes out thread and thin strips of cloth.

“Interesting.”

Nie Huaisang only just barely manages to avoid jostling his patient when he jumps slightly at the unexpected new voice, then freezes when he turns his head to find a young man wearing red and white robes. “Ah! I’m sorry if I entered a restricted area, I just-”

“It’s fine,” the Wen stranger says with a smile. “You haven’t left the guest territories yet.”

“Oh… good. That’s good.” The rosefinch cheeps in his lap and pecks his hand and he looks down and clicks his tongue as he resumes threading the needle he’s holding. “Demanding now that I’ve been nice enough to feed you, aren’t you?”

“May I observe while you work?”

He doesn’t hear the Wen disciple move at all, so when he looks up and finds the young man standing barely a step away, he has to restrain himself from scooting away on reflex. “Er- I suppose? Most people don’t want to,” he says, watching as his new companion takes a seat on a rock next to him.

Up close, there is something slightly unnerving about him. It's the same feeling he notices when Da-ge is trying to intimidate people around him less, like there's something big and dangerous being forced into a too-small hide.

Nie Huaisang swallows and ducks his head, reaching into the supply pouch to produce more seeds for his patient. He finishes prepping the needle and gently coaxes the rosefinch into a better position, feeling an intense gaze on him all the while as he begins the first neat, tight stitches. The bird makes an unhappy noise of pain, but more seeds and petting keeps him from attempting to escape and he only cheeps grumpily to himself as Nie Huaisang works.

"You're very skilled to make it trust you so easily."

Despite himself, he feels his face heat at the rare compliment. Though Da-ge and their cousin Nie Zonghui often try not to get bored whenever they visit the aviary, the only person who’d ever actually been interested in watching this sort of thing was-

He bites his lip and shoves that thought aside. “It’s a lot of practice in patience, mostly,” he says as he finishes with the leg and turns his attention to the wounds that might need to have feathers clipped for proper treatment. “You have to learn how they work, how to follow them without getting them so stressed they accidentally hurt themselves worse, observing flight patterns, all that.”

“Seems like a lot of effort to put in for someone who so infamously avoids it.”

Nie Huaisang stiffens, then forces himself to calm down.

Stupid. He’s wearing Qinghe colors and this disciple probably just saw him hanging around Da-ge. He’s not hard to identify, and his reputation… well.

Still, the unease lingers, though he tries to shake it off by remaining focused on his task. By now the rosefinch is comfortable enough with him that he’s able to gently remove some damaged and bloody feathers. “I just… I like doing this. That’s all.”

“Understandable. A reward only counts as a reward if you want it.”

It’s gotten dark enough for people in the buildings down the path to begin lighting their lanterns, but he’s well-acquainted with working in such conditions. He finishes the neck and wing injuries quickly, the strange disciple remaining in his spot for the duration.

“There we go, all ready to get better,” he croons sweetly, coaxing the finch to his shoulder, where the bird snuggles into his collar.

An elegant hand reaches into his view. “May I?” the disciple asks.

“If he’ll let you,” Nie Huaisang says, tilting his head to give space. The rosefinch is having none of it, however, and ducks to hide under his hair with a grouchy little squawk, tiny claws pricking at the nape of his neck. “Or not. Sorry about that.”

The other man’s lips curve in amusement as he draws his hand back. “It’s fine. Patience, as you said.”

Nie Huaisang begins packing up his pouch. The unease from before has faded into a more readily ignored feeling, especially since the disciple hasn’t actually done anything to deserve it. “Do you want to walk back to the pavilion? Da-ge won’t be happy if I stay out much longer. He’s probably not happy with me for staying out this long already, actually.”

“I appreciate the offer,” the other man says as he stands and needlessly dusts his clothing. “But I live in a different part of the compound.” Another smile, slow and interested in a way that makes Nie Huaisang’s face grow warm again. “There are still two more days left in the tournament. Perhaps we’ll cross paths another time.”

“Ah- well- shouldn’t I know your name, then? You already know mine.”

The strange disciple bows, smooth and sharp, not even a fold of cloth wrong. “This humble one is simply Han-er. I look forward to our next meeting, Nie-er, gongzi.”

It is only later, after Nie Huaisang has returned to his own room with the rosefinch, that he realizes somewhere the ‘perhaps’ had become a certainty.

---

They do cross paths again, more than once, in fact.

After the second encounter, Nie Huaisang can’t help but notice that Han-er always seems to find him when he’s entirely alone.

A spy, maybe?

Maybe not. He’s been keeping track, and Han-er has never asked him anything particularly pointed about Da-ge or their cousin or anything about them that might be considered ‘vital information’, just the occasional offhand curiosity about their relationship dynamics. Their sects may be on bad terms -very bad terms- but Han-er has been nothing but polite.

By the time of their fourth meeting, he feels guilty for ever having had such suspicious thoughts about the man.

“And how is Minsheng doing this morning?”

“Besides being crushed under the weight of such an auspicious name?” Nie Huaisang asks cheekily, earning another of those amused smiles.

“You cannot deny he has earned it.”

He can’t, really. Once no longer in constant pain, Minsheng has become chatty enough that the finch has received at least one threat of being roasted and eaten. “He’s recovering at a good pace. I worry about taking him home, though. With the differing climate, he’ll be miserable while his feathers are growing back in.”

Han-er inclines his head and looks away. “Why not leave him with me?” he asks after some consideration. “I do not have your experience, true, but our time has been... enlightening. And he likes me well enough, now.”

It’s… not a bad idea, really. If Nie Huaisang changes the bandages again just before he leaves, all that should be left to do surgery-wise would be to remove the stitches, and he’s seen that Han-er has a steady enough hand for that… “I can draw up some notes for you this afternoon and deliver them and Minsheng before the closing ceremony, would that be alright?”

“Perfect.”

---

He doesn’t actually see Han-er again before his sect departs to go home to Qinghe, having been forced to leave Minsheng and his notes with a guard who’d smirked at him in an extremely discomforting way. It brings back the troubled feeling lurking in the back of his head and leaves him unsure whether he’s unhappy to have missed the meeting, or somehow relieved.

When word comes several days later that the Cloud Recesses have been burned, he decides on relief.

---

His stomach churns unhappily in a mix of unsatisfied hunger and nausea as they’re dismissed back to their cells after another day of grueling work and so very little food. Each step feels like he’s trying to slog through knee deep mud, and by the time he makes it to their designated hallway, he’s starting to feel dizzy.

Something… something’s wrong. Had the food been spoiled? But no, no one else seems to be...

“Young master?” asks one of the other Nie disciples.

“I’m fine,” he lies, even as it feels like the floor rolls under him like the deck of a boat.

He falls and doesn’t remember hitting the ground.

When he opens his eyes again, the disorientation persists. Something noisy is going on nearby and whatever he’s lying on, it’s too comfortable to be the paper-thin pallet mattress he’d been subjected to for over a week.

This isn’t his cell… Where…?

What is that noise?

Confused, head swimming, he tries to sit up and finds that his hands have been bound behind his back. Before he can start to panic, gentle hands squeeze his shoulders and assist him in rolling over.

He dimly registers that the sound he’s hearing is the chattering of a bird.

But why would there be a bird-?

A familiar figure leans over him, long fingers sweeping his hair out of his face and down his cheek in an affectionate caress. For the briefest moment, he is grateful to see the face of… perhaps not a friend, but at least someone he knows.

Then ice cold terror seizes his insides when his eyes register the crown on the man’s head.

The Eternal Sun.

“Tell me, little bird,” Wen Ruohan says, smile sharp as a knife’s edge and gaze hungry. “Was I patient enough?”

__________

((Author Note: Okay, so, like, if I’m not remembering wrong, Novel!Ruohan is described as ridiculously young-looking because of his high cultivation. Like, we’re talking 19-ish even though he and Jin Guangshan are the only Great Sect leaders who have at least one fully adult child at the time of the Phoenix Mountain competition. So I thought, what if he leaned in to it? Suckered the other sects by having an older proxy take his place at meetings and conferences so that no one actually knows what he looks like except for some of the Wen Sect’s inner circle?))

#mdzs #nie huaisang #and a secret friend!#fanfic

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