#THEY’VE TAKEN TO HUNTING IN PACKS

[captainbucky-yt]

LUKE THOMPSON as Benedict Bridgerton and LUKE NEWTON as Colin Bridgerton | S03E02 ‘How Bright the Moon’

[loosethreadsofyoursoul]

one thing about benedict bridgerton is he’s going to have the most iconic lines of the season

[theminecraftbee]

Joel and Grian are curled up on either side of Jimmy, and Jimmy is lying wide awake.

He shouldn’t be worried, of course. In a lot of ways, he’s not, really. Sure, Joel sort of smells like blood and Grian sort of smells like gunpowder, but that’s to be expected of the two of them, especially considering the amount of bloody gunpowder from the day before. Joel is happily and contently asleep, having mellowed out almost instantly after his kill for the day, and Grian had taken longer to sleep but fell into it easily enough, oddly sated, and Jimmy—

He’s still awake. He’s staring at the stars.

He sort of feels like he’s a human who got adopted by a wolf pack?

Which, like, okay. Joel occasionally hums in his sleep, which is weirdly cute. If someone tried to attack them in the night, Jimmy’s pretty sure Grian would actually bite them. Like, Jimmy’s pretty sure he’s seen Grian bite before. The rules of the game say no killing on green but Joel loves killing and Grian will tie himself in knots to avoid the rules so it doesn’t matter.

There’s nowhere in the world Jimmy could be safer, really. Like, outside of the fact Joel and Grian are both morons who convince him to do dumb things too, but from the moment Joel came across him and asked if he’s a bad boy too, Jimmy knew that would happen. It’s fine. It’s fun, even.

It’s… heady, even.

Jimmy lies on his back and looks at the stars. He feels like a human who got adopted by a wolf pack. Sure, he doesn’t know how to be a wolf, but that’s okay. They do. They’ll show him. They’ll make up for the places he can’t fight.

They’ll make up for the things he fails to hunt.

They’ll…

Grian turns over. Jimmy lies stock still.

They’ll do it until they realize he’s not a wolf. Then what? Joel brought him into the pack. Grian joined on willingly. They knew what they were getting into, really, they did. The two most bloodthirsty men on the server, they’d known what they were doing, taking on one of the only men here who hadn’t managed to kill almost at all. They had to have known, right?

They had to have known. They’ve made fun of him for it before. They still make fun of him for it now.

But.

But.

Jimmy lies awake on his back and looks at the stars. A human adopted by wolves—it has things the wolves wouldn’t. There are reasons wolves decided to let humans run in their packs long enough to make them dogs. There are reasons to take a human in, if you’re a wolf.

Jimmy wonders if there are reasons to take him in, or if he’s just… dead weight.

Joel hums in his sleep. Grian turns over again. Jimmy doesn’t move.

For now, though—for now it’s good. Feels good, lying between two wolves. Feels good. Feels better than lying in the cold, at least. Feels like he can almost be one of them. Feels like he could understand.

Gods, he’s never telling Joel or Grian he thinks of them as wolves. He’d never hear the end of it. He wonders if Joel knows how to bark.

Slowly, he stretches an arm around both of them. They get closer.

He may as well enjoy it, he decides warily. If they never realize he’s a lamb in wolf’s clothing, that’s on them.

[magnolia-among-the-stars]

the last bit of us (chapter four)

Plot: Tyler Owens hasn’t been home in a year. He’s survived all the storm chasing and motel living with his new partners as they try to save lives. But with all the damage they’ve taken from driving high beams first into monster storms, it’s time to pay the piper and bring the truck in for repairs. And the only person who can fix them is the best mechanical engineer he’s ever met. Eleanor Harding, his estranged wife.

Pairing: Tyler Owens x Estranged Wife OC (Harding Daughter)

Word Count: 1.3k (little shorter today)

Playlist Song: texas by jesse murph ft. marren morris

Guest appearance this chapter from a certain person :)

prologue / one / two / three / four

Tyler stays in the truck while I pop inside the small town pharmacy to get my dad’s medication. Jeffry, the pharmacist, smiles sadly at me while passing over the paper bag. He slips a chocolate bar inside with a wink before passing me the receipt. I’m grateful. My stomach feels hollow and grumbling as I realize how long it’s been since I last ate something.

When I get back into the truck, Tyler is on the phone. His voice is low, rumbling and his face is turned away under the light of the street lamps. “Nothing? At all?” he asks without looking at me.

My phone buzzes. It’s a text from my mom. Doctors want to keep him one more night, we’ll be home tomorrow. Go get some sleep xx

“Well, there must be something. How many people are really staying there? Honestly,” Tyler huffs. “…Hold on.”

I look back up at him, raising a brow. We shake a look and I pull my seatbelt on. “What?” I bite.

He licks his bottom lip and pulls his phone away from his cheek. His eyes are soft. I hate him. “Boone said that they can’t find anywhere to stay for the night.”

“There’s two Hiltons in town,” I reply, shrugging.

“They’re too expensive for three rooms,” he says. I look away, out the window at the McDonalds across the street. I’m starving.

“If you are trying to ask something, can you just spit it out?” I ask. When I turn back to him, he’s holding his breath. “What?”

“I’d like them to stay at the house.”

“What house?” I lean back, tilting my head at the question.

“Our house,” he says, his tone confused.

“Our. House.” He can’t be serious. And yet as time passes, the amusement seems to seep out of the truck. “You mean my house.”

“Eleanor, I don’t want to do this with you. Please.”

I stare at him for a long time, wondering what I truly did to be stuck in this never ending nightmare. I want to make him suffer, hurt. I want to tell him to go fuck himself, get out of my truck and leave me alone. But then I think of Boone and Dexter. Of Lily and Dani. That they don’t deserve the wrath of my good for nothing husband. Exhaustion floods my system, taking the wind out of my sails.

So I find myself wiping my face and nodding. My voice is soft as I say “Fine. Can you just drive back?” I can feel his gaze on me, even after looking away.

“Eleanor, we’re here,” I feel hands gently shake me. I hum, blinking. Tyler’s staring down at me, blue eyes vibrant under the cab lights of the truck. “You fell asleep but we’re back at the farmhouse. I…I would’ve carried you inside but I can’t get inside.”

I sit up and take in the familiarity of the barn. “That would be because I changed the locks,” I unbuckle and nudge him, sliding out of the truck as he steps back.

“Well, I gathered that,” he crosses his arms. He holds out my car keys, the dozen different shaped and sized jingle at the movement. I can see the RV in the distance, the wranglers leaning against the siding in the dark of the evening. They all start to move at the sight of me like a pack of wolves ready for the hunt. Boone catches up, in step with me as I climb the steps to the rickety porch.

“Thank you,” he whispers, kissing my cheek as I slide my key into the lock.

“Yeah, yeah,” I say.

“Seriously. I know how hard this is for you. Letting him back in,” Boone says as other footsteps join us. I ignore the comment, toeing off my boots and flicking on the light above the kitchen sink. “There’s a guest room down the hall and Lily and Dani can stay upstairs in the loft. The rest of you can use the blankets in the living room.”

Tyler says, stepping over the threshold with his duffle bag in hand. He looks around the familiar space, probably noting the empty spaces where our photos had once been. It had seemed more empty over the last year and a half. I’d spent only a few hours shuffling the wedding photos, the knick knacks, the quilt from his grandmother out into the barn along with all of his extra purchases and furniture.

I roll my eyes and head over to the fridge, pulling out a beer. I stare at the empty shelves, my stomach growling again. The choice of an old yogurt or a container of romaine stares back at me. Fuck, I knew I should’ve gotten my groceries yesterday. This whole day has gone to shit.

“Uh, El?”

I close my eyes. “Yes Boone.”

“There’s…some guy out on the porch?”

“Huh?” I turn to look at him, then to the living room. I step around him and peer out the window to see the black Carhart, the baseball cap. I swing the porch door open and cross my arms. “Rhett, hi.”

The man turns around to look at me, eyes shaded by the brim of his hat under the flickering light. He wipes his hands on his jeans, a soft expression falling on his face. “Hey El, was on my way back from a competition and saw your lights were on. I wanted to come make sure you were okay.”

“You came all the way out here?” I wrap my arms around myself, the cool Summer air giving me goosebumps.

“Course,” he nods, stepping a little closer to touch my shoulder. “Are you?”

“Not-,” I don’t get to finish my sentence, hearing the squeak of the coil on the doorframe.

“Well, Rhett Abbott, what a surprise,” Tyler’s voice is loud and boasting. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

Rhett glances behind me, looking a little shocked. His recovers quickly though, looking down at me. I turn, hands on my hips. “Tyler. Didn’t realize you remembered where home was.”

“You been making house calls? Get lost on your way back from the rodeo?” Tyler puffs out his chest and I can’t help but roll my eyes.

“Alright, that’s enough,” I say.

“Bold thing to say when you left your wi-,” Rhett starts, fists clenched tightly as he steps closer.

“Enough,” I call, stepping between the two. I look at Rhett, palm sliding over his chest and pushing back slightly. “Rhett, thank you for coming to check on me. I will call you in the morning, okay?”

He doesn’t move for a moment, eyes narrowing at Tyler. I press harder on his chest and he finally steps back, eyes finding me. He nods and turns, heading back down the steps. I watch until the headlights of his truck turn on and he’s backing down the dirt driveway.

“What the hell was that?” Tyler says.

“You’re overstepping before you’ve even gotten a welcome,” I tell him, poking his chest harshly. “What? Your newfound life going so well that you feel the need to come back and ruin mine again in the process?”

“I’m looking out for you, he’s not a good guy El,” he says.

“That’s good, that’s funny coming from you,” I shoving him, catching him off guard. “Coming from the man who walked out on his wife in the middle of an argument and disappeared for a year and a half. Changed his number, took his truck and his friends. Popped up with that big, pearly white grin on YouTube like some kind of hero. Do your fans know what kind of a man you are? You don’t get to come back here and start to lecture me on who I spend my time with. You don’t get to come back here at all,” I slam into his shoulder as I walk back inside.

I stomp passed his friends, past his little girlfriend and up to my bedroom. I slam the door shut, locking it before the tears can really start. Tears stain my face as I pull my hair up, wash my face and change into my comfy clothes. I crawl into bed, knowing first thing in the morning to finally pull the divorce papers from my junk drawer.

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[venesins]

Lonesome West: Random Ideas

Just gonna drop these before I forget in the morning lmao

Since Dream represents exploration, and the bravery/courage it requires, being around him for an extended period of time would cause someone to become fearless and/or have less restraints when it comes traveling into the desert or mountains. Think of it as hubris. When he was young, Dream didn’t know he had this lingering effect on the people around him (due to the fact Nightmare was there to balance it out) and it only became obvious after his and Nightmare’s separation. People he cared for and would spend the majority of his time around would ignore warnings when traveling and usually meet their end in gruesome ways. Ever since he’s realized what effect his presence has on others he’s taken to distancing himself in subtle ways: taking long missions in far-off towns that Blue could have easily done himself, excluding himself from his return parties under the guise of fatigue, etc. It’s hard for him to form relationships with others this way as he fears they will eventually end up like his companions so long ago.

Nightmare, since he represents the wild, has some semblance of control over majority of the wild-life. Bounty hunter that’s getting overly curious over his and his gangs’ location? Enjoy the rattlesnake that snuck into your tent. Going hunting in the forest near their campsite? Watch out for the 10-point buck behind you! He gets a kick out of it really. It’s less of a mind-control ability and more intent focused, surprisingly he’s an animal guy and gives them the choice to follow through with his commands. (just don’t catch him petting the doe that showed up right before they were about to pack up and leave, you might find a scorpion in your boot the next day)

Dust and Axe like to sell their own individual creations at the markets. Dust sells carved knives, polished figures, etc. while Axe sells hides and other leather works. (Killer helps supply him with the hides since he has a better aim when hunting) Occasionally, this veiled figure buys Dust’s entire stock and they’ve become a sort of client for him: Dust still doesn’t know how they figure out which market he’ll be at every time.

[ghost-bxrd]

Oh even better

What if Calvin was taken in around the same Dick was by Bruce after the Flying Graysons ‘accident’ but he’s the one to suspect foul play involved first so he’s the one who encourages Dick ro sneak out at night along with him ( neither of them have any shoes or socks for better traction of course) to investigate along as the Circus was packing up and they both run into the Batman who was also investigating the case?

Oooo, so I think Calvin would already be very protective of Dick at this point. They grew up veery differently, and Calvin is hyper aware of the fact that Dick never had to learn to be wary of adults, or people in general. He‘s been sheltered in a way Calvin never was, so obviously he needs to keep him safe in the wake of this tragedy.

Sadly, Calvin‘s idea of “danger” is a little skewed (which is why canon him ended up with the Court), so hunting for the Grayson’s killer sounds like a marvelous plan (and a great way to get away from the maybe-maybe-not creep that took them in).

Batman is already hunting for Zucco and… is taken completely off guard when two awfully familiar children just kind of fall into his path.

And then his dad instincts kick in and he realizes those are HIS children and they’ve been traipsing around Gotham at night with no protection whatsoever, and feels his soul nearly leave his body.

He did not expect parenting to be this hard.

It doesn’t help that Calvin and Dick manage to slip away from him in the hot second it takes Bruce to get his bearings because H O W even!?

[seiya-starsniper]

For the flower prompts: Hyacinth - loser has to ask out...

I will leave pairing(s) to your discretion, whoever most strikes your fancy ❤️

TJ, thank you for the prompt! I went with Dreamling, with a nice little monsterfucker twist to ring in the first day of @monsterfucktoberbingo!

Square: Were-creature.

Flower Prompt Game!

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

“You ready for tonight?” Johanna asks, dropping her densely packed duffel bag onto the table before plopping in the chair next to Hob. She’s tense. Hob can tell without even looking at her. But there’s also a thrum of excitement coming off her in waves.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Hob replies, not looking up from his stake sharpening. “How many stakes have you got in there?” he asks.

“A dozen wooden, and three steel,” Johanna answers, patting the duffel with pride.. “All consecrated, and plenty of holy water.”

“Good girl,” Hob praises her. He means it too. Johanna’s one of the best damn hunters he’s ever worked with, and he knows she’s going to give the vampires they’re hunting tonight absolute hell. It’s one of the biggest nests they’ve ever come across. Nearly six dozen vampires all quartered in a large abandoned grain barn that spans nearly a quarter of an acre. They’ve been hunting all the nearby towns, picking off the elderly first, but soon moving onto the adults and children. Their mission tonight is to raid the nest for hostages and kill any of the guard vampires, then torch the whole thing at dawn when the rest come back to sleep. Their reign of terror should hopefully end tonight.

“How many are you aiming to gank yourself?” Johanna asks casually, but Hob can hear the competition in her tone. 

“You looking to put some money on that?” Hob replies cheekily. “I thought you’d have learned with the banshees that you can’t ever beat my record, Constantine.”

“Those were unfair odds and you know it!” Johanna whines. She’s right, of course. Banshees tended to flock more to men, and so Hob had taken out far more than Johanna had. But a bet was a bet and Johanna had had to clean Hob’s shotguns for a month after.

“I’m just saying,” Hob says, shrugging his shoulders. “I’m happy to let you clean out the Impala when I trounce your numbers tonight.”

Johanna grimaces. It was no secret that Hob lived out of his car and that he was a bit disgusting about it. She’d once opened the back door to sit in the back and had been greeted a rat he hadn’t even known was there. To this day he doesn’t know where it came from. 

“How about this instead?”Johanna replies. “If I get the most vamps in this nest, you have to ask Peggy out.”

Hob sighs. He should’ve seen this coming. “Johanna—”

“I’m serious Hob,” Johanna interrupts him. “I know you two get along and I see the way the two of you look at each other. You’d be good for one another.”

“Peggy’s young,” Hob argues. “She deserves someone who will get her out of this life.”

“You and I both know she’s never getting out of this life,” Johanna replies solemnly. “And she’s 25 for Christ’s sake. Not even a decade younger than you, stop looking at her like a child.”

Johanna was right. She was usually right, not that Hob would ever tell her unless under extreme duress. Peggy may have been a child when she first became a hunter but she was a full grown woman now. And well…she was quite beautiful and smart as fuck. Hob could maybe love her. It’d been almost fifteen years since Eleanor was taken by vampires herself, and the void she’d left behind had gotten easier and easier to bear with each person he saved. 

Hob sighs. What could it hurt? If things didn’t work out, he knows he and Peggy could still be friends. 

“Fine, but if I get more vamps than you, you’ve gotta ask out Rachel instead,” Hob says back. 

Johanna blushes a furious shade of red and Hob smiles. Now that was a relationship he was invested in seeing bloom.

“You got yourself a deal Hobsie,” she replies, and the two of them shake on it. 

—------------

Hob is at five vampire deaths when he starts chasing three fledgling vampires into the woods. They’re fast, but uncoordinated, and Hob thinks he can probably pick them off one by one if he times his shots right with the crossbow he borrowed from Johanna.

He realizes too late that the vampires have isolated him from the other hunters, and that he’s been led to a clearing to be ambushed. There had also been a fourth he hadn’t accounted for, and he curses at himself for falling for such an obvious trap so easily. He manages to take out one of the fledglings, but the remaining three overpower him. Just as they’re getting ready to tear into his flesh, Hob gets unexpected support in the form of a fucking were-panther.

Hob watches in awe as the beast knocks aside one of his assailants, freeing Hob from their hold and allowing him to stake one of the remaining vampires holding his arms. He then watches in awe as the panther tears into the throat of the fledgling it knocked aside, before the beast grabs the thing by the hair and yanks the head clean off. 

The final vampire is easily picked off between the two of them. Hob is surprised by how fluidly they work together, despite this being the first time he’s ever met the creature. When he is certain there are no others approaching, he turns to the panther, who is looking at him with curiosity and brilliant golden eyes. 

“Not that I’m not grateful for the assist, but what the fuck is a were-panther doing here?” Hob asks.

The air seems to vibrate for a few moments and Hob recognizes the tell-tale signs of a shift and moments later he’s face to face with a pale naked man with a shock of messy, jet black hair, and the most brilliant blue eyes he’s ever seen.

Fuck, but he was gorgeous and Hob’s type in every single way. Despite his shifter disposition, the man’s human form was void of any hair, and though he was thin and almost lanky, Hob could see the ripple of muscle in his legs and arms. Hob knew he was staring, but for some reason he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the man. It was only when his hands landed on the man’s cock that he jerked his gaze upwards, and instead of disgust, he found the were-panther actually looked pleased at Hob’s obvious leering. 

“My name is Dream,” the were-panther introduces himself with a smirk.

“You certainly are,” Hob replies then slaps a hand over his mouth. “I mean—” 

God’s wounds, why had he said that? He was smoother than that! Had the vampire hunt really scrambled his brain that much? 

Before he can come up with an apology for his poor brain to mouth filter however, Hob hears a low, rumbling noise, and he belatedly realizes that Dream is purring.

“You are pleased with me,” Dream says, stepping closer into Hob’s personal space. “That is…good.” 

Hob suddenly smells his grandmother’s homemade bread and his favorite beer. He realizes quickly the delicious scent is coming from Dream, and before his brain can tell him otherwise, he pulls the pale man in a desperate, teeth clacking kiss.

Dream moans into his mouth and pushes Hob down into the grass in the clearing, grinding his hips down on Hob’s rapidly hardening cock. He growls and tugs angrily at Hob’s jeans, and Hob quickly works at shucking them off before the were-panther could tear them clean off. Now that would be embarrassing to explain to the rest of the hunters. 

It isn’t long before Hob’s completely naked underneath Dream and it feels absolutely amazing and right the way their bodies fit against one another. Dream’s cock is a pleasant weight against Hob’s own as he strokes them together, pleasure building higher and higher with each needy whine and moan shared between them. 

“That’s right, love,” Hob pants, increasing the speed of his strokes when he realizes he’s close. “I’m so close, I wanna come with you, come on—”

Dream wails as his orgasm hits him, and then there’s a sharp pain in Hob’s shoulder when his own orgasm follows shortly after. His brain blearily registers that Dream’s bitten down on him, and though there’s some part of him that knows he should be alarmed by that, his body is too blissed out from the earth shattering orgasm his just experienced to care.

“Mine,” Dream mumbles, licking at the new mark on Hob’s shoulder and snuggling into his chest. “My mate.” 

Ah, fuck, Hob thinks as he drifts off to sleep, wrapping his arms protectively around Dream. Johanna was absolutely going to skin him over this.

[lusi-raul]

The difference in the vibes between each team during the latter half of the day was so funny lol. We have the Green team grouped together walking around in a pack like wolves hunting out for their prey mostly having calm conversations and figuring out their strategies. The blue team was efficiently gathering resources while having a mild internal conflict mostly between Tina and Bad. The reds… well, they were going ape shit crazy AHAHAHAHA. It’s amazing how the blue and green unintentionally ganged up on red which was the breaking point that made them go insane. It wasn’t planned at all but watching the red’s pov first made me think it was premeditated by both teams lol.

Looking back, the Reds could’ve secured a 2nd place spot if they didn’t give up. Even after Etoiles clutching those last minute global tasks for the greens, Red was way ahead of them that had they strived to at least complete the potatoes & apples and had not piled up their death counts further there was no way the Greens could catch up. Even so, there is absolutely no remorse and grief for the 2nd place they could’ve been because frankly I love the madness they’ve become. The red team really is the perfect team for all this misfortune to befall on because they can take it and make us laugh about the situation instead of malding our heads off. Yes it’s absolutely unfair but it’s also absolutely hilarious. The other two teams would have never taken it this well.

What I’m sad about is the missed opportunity for the reds to call their team name “The Big Swellers” 😂

[the-martyrfication-of-the-matron]

ANOTHER LORE QUESTION!

Werewolf kingdom/tribes! I want any form of lore or opinion because I find it so upsetting how much they were pushed to the side, especially given how big of players they can be!

This has been in my inbox for eons (I just remembered I haven’t posted your Katelyn ask lol)

But anyways.z

Tw, Religion /neg

Werewolves are typically quite solitary. Not in that they are always on their lonesome, but they prefer no contact with outside communities. They don’t like to be bothered, especially not by humans, who like to bother them. They tend to locate their own communities rather far away from human towns/villages/cities, and are rather content with settling anywhere as long as basic needs are met.

Most werewolf communities tend to be rather nomadic, migrating to the areas with sufficient resources whenever they begin to run out, as they’re not particularly agricultural and run more on a Hunter/Gatherer basis, regardless of the size of the tribe/kingdom. Some may farm if they were raised human, or near human communities, however they will almost always prefer to forage for food, when possible. The communities that farm tend to be smaller, and not reliant on their crops/livestock, usually using the food as a fallback when they run low, or as traps for prey.

As a result of being nomadic, and primarily Hunter-Gatherers, werewolf communities tend to lean smaller. It’s traditional for them to only be family, at most 3 or 4 generations, and the political structure will always hold the matriarch/patriarch at the top. Typically matriarch (not for woke, for accuracy). This can differ, of course. Some communities are made of close friends/companions, however there will always be a clear head of the political structure.

Being a matriarch/patriarch doesn’t mean they have total power, or that they’re the strongest/most dominant, but just that they’re the most responsible. The alpha is usually one of the older members, though not always the oldest, and they are the ones who make decisions and ensure the safety of the group. It’s more of a parental role than a monarchal role.

Larger males (usually of a younger adult age) in the communities are also typically the main hunters, but rarely ever considered the most skilled. Most are educated by the elders of the pack, particularly former alphas, who are hailed as the best hunters due to experience. Werewolves will also hunt in packs, whether with others, with children, or with actual dogs.

Because yeah. They have dogs. Not even in a ‘haha werewolveesss’ way, but simply because they’re useful for hunting. Dogs and wolves are treated with respect, though not entirely like kin, and are often allowed to eat second after the alpha during meals. Not all packs have dogs. But a few do.

As for larger communities, they usually form for a *reason*. It’s easier to keep up their cultures and lifestyles when in small groups, so to converge into a ‘kingdom’ only really happens for political reasons. Some packs will have been in alliance already, even sharing hunting grounds, but kingdoms only really begin to arise once Garte successfully ascends the long-abandoned throne. With the push of a religion werewolves often don’t abide by, and the eradication of multiple werewolf groups who refused to comply, many banded together for protection.

Giving up a nomadic lifestyle wasn’t ideal, especially when it was to keep the rest of their lifestyle their own. But not many of them wanted to just accept what was happening. Kingdoms exist as a way to protect themselves from persecution. Despite appearing more ‘civilised’, as they’ve taken on more human custom, kingdom wolves will be more aggressive to outsiders, and have grown almost cult-ish about their religion, practicing it in excess out of spite, and hoping that they will be able to preserve it if they insist upon it enough.

Kingdom wolves will also often try to make alliance with Meif’wa, or be incredibly hostile towards them. On one hand, Meif’wa are seen as distant kin, refugees from another religiously oppressive monarch who targeted their communities with excess. on another, Meif'wa are seen as weak and invasive, many wolves disrespect them for running instead of standing up for themselves, and hating them for taking prey from their hunting grounds without permission. of course, the sentiment is shared. meif'wa disrespect them for giving up parts of their culture because they're too stubborn to leave, and hate them for hoarding resources for themselves.

And there’s a lot more. But. Y’know. Long post :P

I want to talk about Werewolf religion and culture and AAA but you got me ranting about Hunter/gatherer communities and shit.:. So… sorry

[chaotic-orphan]

Could you write a story where a king who outlawed magical beings (like fae, elves, sorcerers, etc Bc they’ve tried to kill him multiple times ) has a trial for a young magical creature found in his lands, but the creature isn’t evil, didn’t even KNOW they were trespassing, and is terrified they’re gonna be executed or tortured or something. But the king doesn’t hurt it, since the magical being didn’t mean any harm? Could turn into found family or he just lets it go or something

Love ur writing!!

A Benignant Mischief

@annablogsposts THIS ASK HAS CONSUMED MY EVERY WAKING THOUGHT SINCE I GOT IT! IN THE MIDST OF FEBUWHUMP NO DOUBT! THE GALL, THE NERVE!!!! I must say, this idea has taken hold of a good chunk of my brain and I have just been obsessed with Cosimo and Henrik (who will be introduced in part two), I hope you love them as much as I do. There is far more than this part written, but I had to divide it up to get some of it published so you didn't think it was just collecting dust in my inbox.

Thank you so much for this ask, it has rekindled an obsession with writing plot that isn't exclusively whump?! If that makes sense. I hope you enjoy it!

*~*~*~*~*

Cosimo ran through the forest with a sharp urgency, an unconscious boy cradled close to his chest as he went. The rain pattered down on his head as he ran, bare feet clawing at the ground to keep his grip. To an onlooker he could have been running on plain terrain instead over the wiry and rough forest, leaves slick with water; as if he were one with the Earth; knew every root, every nettle and broken tree bows that he hopped over with graceful ease.

His sharp eyes searched the forest frantically, pleading for a shelter to open up to them. Ahead was a wooden fence, tree branches crisscrossing before him like a blockade. Cosimo bowed his head and turned to the side, curling his upper body around the smaller one in his arms. Branches snapped and scratched at him as he pushed his way through with a determined resolve.

When he finally emerged from the branches, he found what he knew would be waiting for him. A small burrow made in a circle of trees, an opening in the trunk of a thick elfbow tree, the size of three fully grown oaks. A shelter mercifully presenting itself. Cosimo let out a soft sigh and whispered a soft thank you to the forest for providing.

His limbs grew heavier and heavier the closer he got to rest, but he walked on, slower now but just as strong as he was when he set out from court. He lay the boy in his arms down on a bed of leaves for the moment under the shelter of the elfbow. Cosimo touched the trunk as he entered, his heart feeling full as he did.

“Thank you protecting us,” he whispered, pressing his forehead to the entrance. Then he pressed his knuckles against the unconscious boy’s forehead, letting out a soft sigh. He was okay. Not as hot as he was before. Cosimo would gather food and herbs tomorrow to help the fever, but at least he was stable for now.

Cosimo took off his pack that he had hastily gathered from home. Two blankets, two pillows, a canteen of water, a hunting knife — just the essentials.

“The very bare necessities, Cosimo,” Cosimo chastised himself with a sigh, running a hand through his soaked hair flicking the rain from it. Cosimo put a pillow under the boy’s head and wrapped him in a blanket to keep him warm. Cosimo sat with back against the trunk of the tree, arms wrapped around his knees that he hugged to his chest and just watched the rain patted down on leaves outside the elfbow. The gloomy grey of the evening bled into a darker, broodier grey but the rain let up before night fell with its coat of deep purples and midnight blues.

Cosimo didn’t know at what point he fell asleep, but he woke to footsteps cracking the leaves beneath its feet and he was immediately alert. His hand shot and grabbed the hunting knife, unsheathing it and lunging forward teeth bared.

He came face to snout with a fox that was frozen in place, brown eyes meeting Cosimo’s with a slightly dazed and stunned glimmer to them. Cosimo let out a breath that reflected on the air with a rolling wave of smoke, before settling back into the nook-like shelter of the elfbow. The fox didn’t retreat, instead he sniffed the air and timidly took a step towards Cosimo and the unconscious boy beside him.

Cosimo inclined his head slightly and the fox entered the elfbow with all the inquisitiveness of a cat trying to sniff out the source of fish. The fox turned his head to the boy, and glancing back at Cosimo quickly for permission he curled up on the unconscious boy’s chest. Curling into a little ball on top of him, deep brown eyes meeting Cosimo’s again before closing half-lidded.

Emotion clogged Cosimo’s throat as he reached out to pet the fox, allowing the animal to sniff his hand before allowing the affection.

“See?” Cosimo whispered to the air. “You’re not nobody. You’re like me.”

Cosimo didn’t sleep exactly, but he at least got some semblance of rest before Dawn broke and he woke with it. He looked down at the sleeping boy, who was still asleep, the fox now curled up to the boy’s side. Cosimo reached his hand out and brushed the boy’s hair back from his forehead to feel it.

He was warm, not too hot. Maybe the fever had passed with the rain? Cosimo didn’t know enough about it, but he knew the rejuvenation powers of rain that came with him so he suspected maybe it could be the saviour of the boy too.

Cosimo drank some water from the canteen before grabbing the empty rucksack he took with him and slinging it over his shoulder across his body. He took the water and the hunting knife and set off about the day. When he exited the elfbow the sun was only starting to rise, birds heralding the morning.

Cosimo looked back to the sleeping boy and the fox. He pressed his hand to the tree and leaned his forehead into the back of his palm.

Protect them, please. I’ll return with food.

Cosimo felt the rush of feeling that flooded him when he felt around nature. Then he turned and walked out of the small clearing and into the embrace of the forest again. He remembered hearing running water when he was running with the boy, the sound distinct from the patter of the rain.

The dense woods were not nearly as imposing as they were the night before, when Cosimo’s thoughts were on finding shelter and nothing else. There should be some mushrooms nearby he could roast, maybe some berry bushes if he was lucky and water. Not enough to feed them properly, but to sustain them? It would be enough.

Cosimo found the stream under a thicket of leaves. It was slightly lower than the ground that Cosimo was on, so he simply extended a leg and slid down the bank to the stream, opening his canteen as he went. His feet settled into the damp earth, and he crouched down to refill the canteen. Not before drinking the last of the remaining water.

He heard a huff from his left so Cosimo glanced towards the sound and saw a horse lapping up water from the stream. Cosimo froze like the fox had the night before, before kicking himself into action. He sprung up, canteen forgotten in the stream and bolted back up the bank, his fingers clawing into the clay.

He scrambled to the top and was met with a pair of legs. There was a flash and a pressure on his chest and Cosimo was airborne, gravity grabbing at him and bringing him down hard into the outer bank of the stream. Cosimo let out a gasp of air on impact but quickly sprung to his feet and turned to hop the stream to the other side.

A hand grabbed him by the strap of his rucksack, and he was yanked backwards. “Hey! Wait!” Cosimo cried, bringing an elbow back sharply and his head back too. He slipped under the strap of his bag and grabbed the hunting knife and hopped the stream with ease. He didn’t look back.

Humans were bad. They killed people like him, there shouldn’t even be any for miles around!

Cosimo climbed up the opposite bank of earth with deft speed and hoisted himself to the other side, knife ready in one hand, the sheath in his other with one thought and one thought only — to go back to the boy in the elfbow.

He didn’t account for more soldiers to be on the other side of the stream. Cosimo froze again when he was first recognised by another man. They were all fully grown humans. Cosimo had yet to pass his fifteenth year, at least he had a slight boost in height, but he was too skinny to fight.

There wasn’t time to think before a hand was bunched in his shirt again. Cosimo whirled on his heel, slashing out blindly with the knife. The blade cut into the soldier’s cheek Cosimo realised with wide eyes, and the Soldier let him go. Cosimo fell to the side at the sudden lack of force holding him, but quickly got his bearings again and ran to the right of the soldier’s camp.

An arrow whizzed by his ear, startling him and Cosimo lunged to the left only to be caught with a kick to his leg. Cosimo stumbled but remained standing, turning to his new attacker baring his teeth only to get a punch to the face. Cosimo’s eyes rolled into the back of his head as he fell, stiff as an oak onto the forest floor.

A boot stomped down onto Cosimo’s wrist wielding the knife and Cosimo cried out, reaching over with his free hand to paw at the boot but it wouldn’t budge. A knee to the chest followed and Cosimo cried out, trying to wiggle himself free but the human was too heavy. Whether his weight was from his diet or the weight of the uniform of metal that the man wore Cosimo didn’t know.

“Well, well, well,” the human man remarked. Cosimo swallowed the lump in his throat, struggling to free himself from the man’s pin. “You’re only a baby, aren’t you?”

Cosimo bared his teeth in response. They were so close to where Cosimo had left the boy and the fox, and he prayed that the elfbow would protect them from the soldiers.

“Let go of me,” Cosimo demanded, eyes blazing up at the man. The man smiled, something wicked twinkling in his eyes.

“Have you run away from home? You do know what we do to your people in these parts, don’t you?”

Cosimo let out a cry of frustration at trying and failing pathetically to free himself from the man’s grip.

“Please,” Cosimo said. “I don’t mean you any harm. I was just coming for water.”

“Won’t do harm my arse,” the soldier that Cosimo cut ground out, fury winding his features tight. Cosimo didn’t see him lift his leg, but his head whipped to the side with the impact. Cosimo righted his head too early as the man he injured stomped a foot down on Cosimo’s face.

Cosimo heard the bones in his nose crack inside his head while he screamed out loud, a quiet whimper following after his scream died in his throat.

“Hey!” The soldier pinning Cosimo growled. “You can’t kill it. They must be brought to court before their execution.”

Execution?

Cosimo’s struggles to break free renewed at the thoughts of the soldiers taking him away from the boy. “No! No, you can’t! I can’t leave the forest, please!”

The man above him tilted his lips down into a frown. “Sorry kid. Orders are orders, we have to bring ya in.”

“Don’t talk to it like it’s a child,” the angry soldier scolded. The man on top of him reached over and plucked the knife from Cosimo’s grip. Cosimo let out a soft whine at the object of his defence leaving his grasp.

“Just get the irons and let me deal with h—” the man above him said, then corrected himself, glancing down at Cosimo with a frown. “It.”

The angry man stormed off out of sight. Cosimo just stared above at the man still pining him to the forest floor.

“Please…” Cosimo tried. “Please don’t kill me.”

“Like I said kid,” said the man. “There has to be a trial in front of the king.”

Cosimo’s eyes widened significantly. There wasn’t a king for miles around court… how far had Cosimo travelled, and in what direction? The question lingered on his tongue, and he wanted to voice it, but thought better of asking the enemy… or even worse, letting them know just how clueless Cosimo really was.

The man stared down at Cosimo with a stern glance. “I’m going to get you to sit up, if you try to escape, we will catch you, and the other soldiers will hurt you again. Do you understand?”

Cosimo nodded. He hated himself for it, but he had to listen to this man. He seemed to be the only one who didn’t want him dead at that moment. The angry soldier returned with two bands of metal attached together with a thick link of metal between them.

“What— what are they?” Cosimo asked, his voice cracking with fear. The soldier helped Cosimo to sit up which caused a wicked amount of pain in his nose to flare up and Cosimo grunted with the effort.

The man took the metal from the angry soldier and dismissed him with a wave. The other soldier didn’t want to listen but obeyed the man when he told him to go verbally.

The man opened the metal loop and showed it to Cosimo, saying with a reassuring smile: “They open like this, see?”

Cosimo leaned in closer to inspect the metal. “What do they do?” He asked, a little less scared at seeing them up close. The man lifted his hand and put the metal over his own wrist.

“They tighten over your wrist like this, see? They lock— well, they essentially keep your hands tied behind your back so you can’t hurt someone again.”

Not have use of his hands. Cosimo shook his head vehemently. “No. No. I won’t hurt anyone else; I promise. Don’t put them on me.”

The man’s smile faded back into a frown. “I’m sorry, but I have to. Please don’t fight me. I don’t want you getting hurt again.”

Cosimo was trembling in the man’s hands, but he nodded his consent for the man to grab Cosimo’s wrist. Cosimo screamed when the metal touched his wrist and bolted back away from the man.

“Wait! Please! Please! Wait! Ow, please! I won’t hurt anyone!” The man caught Cosimo’s ankle before he could get further away from him and dragged him back. “Please don’t. Please! I’ll be good.”

A shadow crossed the man’s face as he grabbed Cosimo’s arm and pulled it behind Cosimo’s back before locking the second cuff around Cosimo’s wrist.

Cosimo let out a hiss as the metal burned a circle around his wrists, tears coming to his eyes. “Please, I’m sorry. Take them off. I’m sorry. What— agh! What is it?!”

The man grabbed Cosimo’s arms to stop him struggling more and hurting himself. “Iron. It’s a metal that is poisonous to your kind.”

“Please,” Cosimo whispered, the plea coming out soft and childish, fat tears trailing down his cheeks. “Please take them off.”

“I can’t,” said the man. “I’m sorry,” and it sounded like he meant it. The man then got to his feet and waited patiently for Cosimo to do the same. Cosimo pushed himself up, his balance going off and he hissed as he moved his hands to catch himself. All they touched was iron and it burned. The man put a hand under Cosimo’s armpits once he saw the boy struggling and helped him into a standing position.

“Thank you,” Cosimo said, the words like ash on his tongue. Thanking humans now? What would court think of him? His mind trailed back to the boy in the elfbow and guilt flood his body as he was pushed forward gently by the man.

“Change of plan, boys. We are bringing this one back to the King.”

One of the other men stood up, his face the shape of a weasels; small wisps of hair clung to his upper lip and chin in what Cosimo could only assume was supposed to be a beard and a moustache. The soldier lifted his nose high in the air when he looked up at Cosimo, grinning up at him and revealing yellowing teeth.

“It’s not even fully grown,” said the soldier with a high-pitched voice. The nice man holding Cosimo scoffed and pushed Cosimo forward again.

“Either are you, McClagen.”

“Does it know that we kill things like that?” McClagen sneered. The man didn’t reply, but Cosimo’s fate weighed heavy on him, heavier than a cloak made of stone. He frowned as the nice man led him passed the other Soldiers readying to take off again.

—

Continued here

[angelsworks]

Dating Klaus Mikaelson

Type: Headcannon

Request: yes, however I feel I’ve taken a darker route with some of it. Hints of dark! klaus and yandere! Klaus. But I hope you like it :)

Summary: What dating Klaus Mikaelson would be like

Dating Klaus is going to be difficult to navigate for anyone. However you can plan on that being a lot more difficult depending on who you are in mystic falls.

Innocent bystander

Klaus: Normal

If you aren’t involved in any of the supernatural sides of mystic falls, then things will run a lot smoother.

It makes it easier for Klaus to introduce himself, without you knowing anything about him.

Maybe he sees you at the grill, hanging out with friends, or working there.

He’s cool and calm, extremely flirty. Expecting to sweep you off your feet immediately.

It’s happened many times before for many other women.

Yet with you it doesn’t work.

You’ve seen men like him before, flirty and kind until they’ve gotten what they want.

As attractive as he might be, you won’t let him in that easy. You can almost see through his flirting to the man hiding underneath.

It takes several more attempts before he realises being honest and vulnerable with you is the only way to get your attention.

Maybe draws you on a napkin. One from his table at the grill. It’s a rough sketch, but undeniably you.

He hands it to you at the grill, a genuine smile on his face as he explain how beautiful he finds you and that he’d like to take you out.

From there it’s dates, dates and more dates. To grand dates going to museums and restaurants, to smaller ones having a picnic in the park or midnight stroll somewhere.

You’re happy to go anywhere with him as long as he’s genuine.

You see a side to Klaus he often tries to hide. With you he can’t do that. It’s like you repel any persona he tries to put on.

And he’s thankful for it.

Eventually he’ll tell you he’s a hybrid. Although he may scale down the fact he the original hybrid and his family is the most deadly to ever exist.

Life with Klaus is sweet. He keeps you protected with various talismans and charms. He makes sure you take vervain every day.

He most likely keeps you a secret, away from supernatural activities. Only his inner most circle know about you. That being restricted to his family only.

Supernatural reader

Klaus : protective

Being supernatural yourself, you do of course know of klaus Mikaelson. You know how other tremble before his name, how the aura of death follows him and how carnage is left in his wake.

You know to avoid him to summarise.

Maybe you’re a vampire, in which case great.

Maybe you’re a werewolf, in which case even better.

Vampire

You go with friends to a party, not realising this is the Mikaelson family ball, which you definitely weren’t invited to.

You try to keep a low profile , staying away from said family.

That becomes increasingly hard when the hybrid himself asks for a dance.

Despite your senses, you accept. Dancing the night away. The two of you talk over your interests and history . Sharing the best and worst stories from your vampirism.

Towards the end of the night he takes you outside. He shows you the stars and points out some constellations.

He asks you out there and then.

If you accept, you’ve made him a happy hybrid.

If you decline, things may get interesting.

While he’s not above compelling you to stay with him, he’ll try to resist.

Instead compelling your friends to change your opinion of him.

Next time he asks he’ll be sure you won’t say no.

Werewolf

This is a situation Klaus can exploit.

Maybe he finds you while hunting werewolves with Stefan.

He sees the fear in your eyes and his ego inflates. While he enjoys it, part of him wants you to look past that.

You watch as he mercilessly attempts to hybridise your pack mates, failing with everyone.

For some reason he keeps you. Takes you with him back to mystic falls.

When he’s sure he can make his hybrids work.

He turns you.

Being sired to him makes it hard to resist his advances.

He likes to keep you close at every opportunity.

Sometimes going as far to keep you on his lap during each and every meeting. Be it with friends, family or enemies.

Earning you the nickname ‘The hybrids Lapdog’

Witch

Maybe he comes across your coven while needing witchy services.

His eyes are drawn to you in an instant and he singled you out.

He chooses you to be his own personal spell caster

Being part of his every scheme brings the two of you close.

You become his confidant so to speak. Giving him advice on his problems.

In exchange for your services he houses, clothes and feeds you. Taking care of your every need.

Being in such close proximity leads you to seeing a side to the hybrid not many do.

It leads him to seeing you as more than disposable.

It leads him to asking you out.

And who are you to deny him?

Inner circle

Klaus: obsessive

You’ve always been apart of the Scooby gang. Maybe your someone’s sibling or just a friend.

There isn’t anything supernatural about you. You have just always been close with the group.

But you can be sure you know how awful klaus has been to your friends.

Terrorising teenagers for fun it seems

You don’t agree with anything he’s done, but your friends make you biased.

You meet klaus for the first time after being kidnapped by him.

His plan is to take you and compel you, turning you into a double agent.

When he realises your on vervain, he has no choice but to wait it out. He has his minions watch you while you’re locked in his manor.

To say you put up a fight would be an understatement.

By the second day your voice is hoarse from screaming. It gets to a point where his siblings are complaining about all the noise.

He has no choice but to interact with you more. Telling you how much he sees your defiance as an inconvenience.

It only enrages you more. Making you scream bloody murder that it’s you that’s been inconvenienced.

He finds it funny. How such a weak being can have so much fire.

Over the next few days he makes it his job to bring you food and water, clothes, whatever you need.

He wants to interact with you as much as possible rather than leaving it to his minions.

Before sending you back he of course compels you.

Over the next couple of weeks he meets you in secret, making you give away valuable information regarding your group.

He takes you out on dates, getting to know you. Without compulsion.

Despite what he’s done he’s been nothing but kind to you so you know

When the time comes he takes you on a final date to the grill. Your friends see you together and put two and two together.

He foils their current plan with knowledge only the inside circle knows.

They accuse you of working with Klaus. To which you deny of course.

Everyone turns their backs on you, which drives you into klaus’ arms.

He has successfully killed two bird with one stone and you don’t even realise.

When he asks you to go to New Orleans with him, you have no reason to say no.

He’s isolated you from your friend and stopped anyone getting in his way of courting you.

You never find out or course. That would ruin the paradise he’s created for the both of you.

[bullet-prooflove]

StolenMoments!Series Part Five: Gone - Vostanik Sabatino x Reader (feat: Sam Hanna)

Tagging: @kmc1989 @novamariestark @words-and-seeds

Part One: First Date - You and Nik have an unusual first date.

Part Two: Christmas in Afganistan - You and Nik reunite in Afganistan.

Part Three: Yours (NSFW) - Nik and you take the next step in your relationship.

Part Four: Last Words - Nik goes on the hunt after you're taken.

Sam finds you sitting alone on the edge of your bunk, your packed bag resting in the space alongside of you. You don’t look up when he enters, you’re too focused on the plush heated blanket that’s folded neatly upon your lap. Your fingertips toying with the edges of it.

“It was Sabatino’s.” You find yourself telling him. “He lent it to me when one of the generators broke.”

“I know you hate the cold.” He had murmured, his lips ghosting along the line of your jaw as his heated form covered yours.  “And I won’t be here over the next few weeks to keep you warm.”

You had told him that a lifetime ago, back when the two of you were sitting in a car watching Sidorov fuck his mistress. You’d been surprised he remembered. He’d laughed when you’d said that, his nose trailing over yours as he’d whispered.

“I remember everything my girl tells me.”

He’d made love to you that night for the last time. His hands threading through your hair as he kissed you. You’ll never forget the way he looked at you in that moment, like you were the most precious thing in his world, like he loved you more than life itself.

“He’s a good guy.” Sam says as he takes up residence alongside of you, his shoulder nudges against yours. “But you knew that anyway.”

You purse your lips together grimly before you tilt your head to look at him. You look like a horror show. The left side of your face is swollen, marred with hues of purple and blue. Your lip is split, and your right eye is bloodshot, the broken blood vessels stark against the white of your eye. Your nose has been reset by the medic on base and you have cracked ribs from the beating you had taken when the Taliban had first tried to interrogate you.

As soon as you had landed back at base you’d been triaged. Your injuries didn’t warrant a hospital visit. You’d been taken away to the medical tent instead while Sabatino was airlifted to Daoud Khan Military Hospital in Kabal for emergency surgery. The bullet had torn through his back and exited through his chest causing him to bleed internally, his lungs had begun to soak up the blood causing him to choke. It had been fucking devastating to watch, the man you love dying right before your eyes.

“I got word that he made it through the surgery.” Sam says quietly as he leans forward, clasping his hands together. “That man is one tough bastard.”

“He is.” You say with a small smile because the Sabatino you know never quits; it isn’t in his nature. “When can I see him?”

Sam doesn’t say anything and that’s when you realise the real reason he’s here. The words that he’s not saying.

“He’s already gone, isn’t he?” You say raising your eyes towards the ceiling as you inhale deeply.

“Yea.” Sam says quietly. “The CIA closed ranks, he was moved as soon as the surgery was completed. I don’t know where they’ve taken him.”

It’s a blow. Sam sees the impact of it as your grip on the blanket tightens, your knuckles whitening. You haven’t learned yet the sacrifice that comes with being involved with a CIA Officer, but you’re starting to. Their lives, they aren’t their own, they belong The Agency. They go where they’re told and they do the job. Sabatino, he’s an important asset, the connections he has, the operations he’s worked, the shit he knows, they can’t afford for him to be vulnerable. Sam knows it must kill you, it had killed him once upon a time when it happened with Michelle. The worst part is, he doesn’t think you understand what Sabatino was saying in the chopper, how he’s betraying the CIA by giving himself to you.

“You don’t know do you?” Sam says softly. “What he was trying to tell you in the helicopter.”

You shake your head.

He slips into Armenian sometimes when he’s emotional, when he’s in the throes of pleasure and he can’t find the words, he wants to say in English. He whispers them against your skin in the heat of the moment, saying the most beautiful things in a language you don’t understand.

“I love you.” Sam tells you in a low tone. “He was saying I love you.”

It hits you hard because in Sabatino’s final moments that’s what he would have wanted you to know, that he loved you. He had repeated it over and over again until he’d begun to drown on his own blood.

“He doesn’t know…” You trail off, your palms smoothing over the blanket.

“You never told him.” Sam states.

“No.”

Your eyes fucking sting, you pinch your brow to stave off the tears, but it’s been a traumatic twenty-four hours and right now, this conversation it’s more than you can bear. Sam’s hand comes to rest on yours, he squeezes it lightly before he sighs.

“If you go down this path, it’s going to be like this. It’s hard, loving someone like him, there’s going to be compromises, ones you don’t even see coming.” He warns you. You know he’s speaking from experience. His wife Michelle was a CIA operative when they met, she’d given it up when they had decided to start a family. “If this were a normal relationship you’d be going home to your man, he’d be taking care of you, helping you recover but it doesn’t work that way with them. They can’t be there when you need them. It hurts the both of you.”

“Was it worth it?” You ask him. “You and Michelle going through all of that?”

Sam smiles, because the years he’s had with Michelle have been the best ones of his life.

“Yea, but that included a lot of sacrifice on her part.” He tells you with a knowing look because that’s what it takes, commitment, endurance. He knows Sabatino is willing to go the distance, but the question is are you. “If you want this, write him a letter and tuck it in the folds of that blanket, sooner or later his belongings will find their way back to him.”

He raises to his feet, his hand coming to clasp your shoulder.

“You need to choose quickly.” He tells you, his eyes meeting yours. “Our ride will be here in an hour. We’re taking you home.”

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[mageofsleep]

Koishi vs Miss Merry The Prologue, Silly but very long story

alright, before I begin this is was all meant to be lighthearted shitposty but got wayyyy too wordy. 🥲 It's a little bit related to these two, but it's self-contained and can be read without them. Also, it was meant to be a hifuu story, too.... I will edit this post and post part 2 later Please click "Read more" after you're done with the first paragraph

In the forests of Youkai Mountain, there’s a small market stall run by tengu reporter, selling books and cawing at youkai passersby, “You should read this book report! As the war between humans continues, sailors from the land of Portugal have arrived in Japan! They’ve been selling specialized weaponry to profit from the war for economic gain! Some of these sailors have been sighted and killed right here on the Mountain by fellow youkai! There are treasures flying about Gensokyo that have been lost and forgotten about! Just as there are wars between humans, wars between youkai are being fought right here in Gensokyo over treasures!” A satori with mint green hair, Koishi Komeiji, strolls along the path and becomes curious, “Hmm? Treasures? Por…tugal?” The tengu cheerily answers Koishi, “Good morning! Would you like to buy one? It’s all about treasures! Gensokyo is scattered with treasures worth plundering! You satori could read my mind and find out that it’s no lie! Give some of those long weapons to the kappa for their research and they will most surely reward you. Act fast, I couldn’t publish a whole lot of them, so what you see here is all I have.” Koishi says, “Well, I can see that you’re not lying. Hmm… I’ve never seen a tengu journalist talking about technology and writing book reports like that… I’ve only seen papers about trashy gossip and drama from the tengu. Hmm…” The tengu then reassured Koishi “Nothing to worry about! These papers aren’t that speedy as that gossipy tengu Aya, but they are packed with information! You see, if you buy this book, you’ll have more knowledge about the treasures and inventions better than others!” “Hmm… Maybe it could convince my sister to go outside and treasure hunt with me, too! She’s always shut-in our little house. She’s so sleepy and I think she’s starting to grow sickly from being indoors so much, too. The tengu hesitated, “Ummm… Yeah… Y-You have a nice day, now,” The tengu then thought, “You can get sick from being indoors for too long?” Koishi replied to her thoughts, “As long as you adventure outside every once in a while, you’ll be healthy and won’t be sick, too! Can’t write reports when you’re always sleepy and tired, y’know.”

Koishi happily strolled away with her purchase, but the tengu cawed back to her, “Wait! I forgot something! Come back!” Koishi turned back, and the tengu gave her a small felt bag, “As my very first customer, I’m obligated to give you one half of the treasures I found while I went outside for once, as a bonus offer. I’d hate to spoil the reading a bit, but since I’m thinking about it, anyways, and you can read minds, I had to let you know that they are one of the most valuable treasures. I was ordered by my boss to find any treasures that landed on the Mountain for her, and found these bags of seeds by the corpse of the sailor at the foot of the Mountain that nobody seemed to bother taking. Nobody else had gotten a hold of these, either. If you plant these now and take good care of them, then they will allegedly grow unique and sweet fruit next year. Once they do, that will make Gensokyo one step ahead of the rest of Japan!” Koishi took the bag of seeds and continued her journey to her house while reading the book report.

Koishi entered back down to her and her sister Satori’s small little house on the skirt of Youkai Mountain with the tengu book report and seeds. “Satorin! I’ve got some stuff!” Koishi sees Satori sleeping with her head on her desk with stacks of paper, and her quill taken off from her hand, as it had dripped strands and drops of ink onto the paper. “Satoriii! I’m too late! She fell asleep!” Koishi tries to shake the shoulders of Satori in order to awaken her, but she had barely opened her dark baggy eyes. Koishi rests her sleepy sister against the chair, and places the bag of seeds on the desk. Koishi tries another method to wake her up one more time, “Satori! You look so sick, you need sunshine! I got a book for you to read! It’s a book report about treasures from the tengu,” Koishi said as she opens the book to a random page and hands it to Satori. Satori was enticed by sketches of a mansion, and her eyes opened up even more. Koishi continues, “The tengu who wrote it even gave me these seeds, too. She told me to keep them safe, they might contain strange fruits we don’t know about! Maybe we can go outside together, get some fresh air plundering for treasures, or even garden! Also, I wanna try out that memory digging hypnosis magick you taught me!” Satori sighed, “Oh alright, Koishi… I do want to see what sorts of information we can dig up with that skill and our mind reading powers. I guess I’ll go outside, but let me finish reading this first.” Koishi beamed with excitement, “Yay! In the meantime, I’m going to brew some remedies for exploring and for you since you are so ill from being inside all the time.”

The Komeiji twins wander around the foggy mountain and come across two different paths with the sign at the top pointing to the left that says, “Forest of Magic” and the sign below it that says “Misty Lake”. Koishi exclaims, “There shouldn’t be any more treasures on the Mountain since the tengu took them all, so we should head downwards. Where should we go first? I bet the Forest of Magic has magicians with tons of knowledge on treasures that we can memory dig from!”  Satori then warned her, “Koishi, some of those magicians are pretty scary, even for satori like us. Some of them are weaklings, sure, but some know terrible spells from youkai who live in an underground world deeper than Hell. Some know how to give us headaches for reading their mind… some can even forcefully close our third eye with magic stitches that seals it forever… I think we should take another path.”  Koishi turned to Satori and startled, “They can do such a thing?! Wouldn’t that just make us lose our ability to read minds?”  Satori replied “I don’t know for sure, but I’ve heard scary stories from other satori on the mountain. Our third eye is our ‘heart’, so if the stitches seal the eye, then the ‘heart’ is also sealed. Another story is that those whose hearts are sealed are forever forgotten.’” Koishi shivers, “Why would such a thing even exist? Do other youkai hate and fear the satori as much as humans do? How do you know this stuff when you’re always in your room?”  Satori tells her, “Koishi, maybe you’re a shut-in yourself if you don’t know those horror stories. Anyways, Let’s try that lake with fairies and mermaids. Fairies are weak enough and we can grab some information from them with our memory digging hypnotism. Same goes for the mermaids, too.” Koishi agrees with her, and they continue their descent from Youkai Mountain to the lake.

Later on, a purple magician aimlessly wandered through a foggy forest on the Mountain. She passed a cliff and heard a youkai communicating with her, "So she says, 'Well... I think I’m lost, but I guess I have to make my way to the top somehow.'" Another voice was then heard after, "'Well, I know it's a mountain filled with youkai, but I just hope that I don't encounter anything uninteresting,' How silly this human is!" The purple magician turned around and looked at the cliff behind her: she saw the two Komeiji sisters. Satori had continued to mock her thoughts "'Oh dear, not just a youkai, but a satori…’” and Koishi followed “‘Weren’t they banished to Former Hell?’ Huh? Satorin, this one’s thoughts are a bit silly… What’s she talking about?” Satori had replied “Here to climb the mountain to find more ‘interesting’ youkai like the oni? Might as well write your wills.” Satori looked at the human magician more carefully and mocked her once again, “‘Oh dear, I must’ve landed in a time period where they were still on the mountain,’ Hmm… I think this individual isn’t human, Koishi, she might be the gap youkai Yukari Yakumo. That youkai is more terrifying than us satori, she can set up barriers that block our ability to read her mind! The barriers are filled with nonsensical readings that might give you a headache, sister, so try not to read them too much.” The magician chimed in, “I don't know if I'm even human either, but I’m pretty sure my name is Maribel Hearn, not Yukari Yakumo.” Koishi cheerily says, “Oh, a human who speaks her mind for once. This silly human’s name is ‘Maeribeu’ or something. Satorin, she might be a sailor! Thinking she’s in the past! Oh goodness, in her mind she says she’s from Ireland and moved to Japan, she wants to reach the summit.” Satori then followed after, “Pay attention and read carefully, sister. Look, ‘At least they think I’m someone else, a stronger youkai even. I might be able to just walk away from them and just head to the top,’” Maribel walked away from the two and continued to traverse through the forest, Koishi was shocked, “Oh right, right! We were supposed to prank humans like her and warn her about the mountain, but she’s getting away! It would be very tragic of a silly human like her to die. We have to chase her and prank her before the other youkai kill her, sister!” Satori replied to Koishi, “If you say so, I’m too lazy to prank today, though. I do want to see what interesting things you can do with pranking her, so I’ll just follow you. Maybe you can test your new skills of hypnotism that I’ve taught you on this human, Koishi.” The Komeiji sisters continue to follow Maribel deeper into the steep forest.

Maribel had carefully tried to walk along very steep terrain and found shrubs bearing small pome fruit. She inspected them carefully, but found that they were still not ready to be harvested. While distracted, Koishi had talked behind her, “I wouldn’t eat those fruits if I were you, they’re pretty sour and can make your face scrunch up and maybe even kill you! We wouldn’t want a dead human while trying to read her mind, right?” Maribel became startled and fell down. Koishi continued, “Maeribeu, right? Would it be okay if I called you Miss Merry instead?” Satori scolded Koishi, “Koishi, you scared our test subject and killed her. How are we gonna find another human to test the hypnotism I’ve taught you now?” “Aww…” Koishi poked Merry’s head with a stick and read her mind “‘Hmm, I don’t think she’s dead, I’m still able to read her mind. See? She thinks, ‘Oh dear, these two are not going to leave me alone, huh. Well, I guess I could make a report about the satori for my studies, instead.’” Koishi turned back to Satori and excitedly claimed, “Satorin! This’ll convince Miss Merry to play with us, too!” Merry, annoyed by Koishi poking her head, tries to stand up. Once she stands she tells Koishi, “Alright, Koishi, I’ll play with you. Do be warned that I do know some magical skills myself, though.” Merry takes out a strange rectangular device with a set of lenses to the side. Koishi mocks her mind one more time, “‘Bullets from youkai turn to nothing with thi-’” but Koishi was interrupted by a flash, "Aaah!" and a shudder was sounded from the strange device.Koishi recoiled back, “Wait! Restart! Let me start first! I attacked from behind you, so it's only natural that my turn is first! Also, if you lose, you have to play with us again! I’ll start by testing this skill that makes you think of your true inner secrets and traumas!” Koishi spinned lasers towards Merry and scattered simple yellow bullets of light throughout the field. Merry’s vision had grown darker and darker throughout until she could see nothing but the light of the danmaku. Merry had felt as if she had died, and this feeling is what floods her thoughts of precious memories and traumas.

“I see them now… This skill makes it so I can dig up precious and unforgettable memories and traumas stored in a hidden part of the mind that satori can't read by forcing one to think of them! But Miss Merry’s precious memories… they are a bit strange… I feel a bit of a headache but… It’s like they are from another world! Or more worlds than one!” Koishi said, “Miss Merry is no ordinary human who landed on the mountain… She’s a magician who studies minds from a world stranger than Gensokyo, or maybe even the future! Precious memories of the future, of leaving her faraway country to Japan. There’s tall, rectangular prismic buildings… And she’s always with another girl who studies the forces of nature and things that are tiny and unseeable! She’s traveled to Paradise… to the Moon… to Hell except it had a big castle in the middle… and then there was another stranger Hell??. She’s traveled to the past and seen the formation of Japan by Izanagi… As a matter of fact, the girl standing before us isn’t really her, but a doll of some sort, that she created to possess and traverse these strange worlds without endangering her real self who’s just sleeping in her room in the future! What a strange human!” Satori tries to read the trancing Merry’s mind as well, but she develops headaches and passes out from the information she’s read. Koishi shocked, “Oh no!! Merry put sister Satori back to sleep! I’ve got to have vengeance!! Alright, so I’ve narrowed it down to three choices: A battle with a silvery blade maid of a vampire, visions of a fiery Hourai immortal, and a battle with a cat-like chimera youkai from a spacey place with wings! Although, there isn't enough information about their attacks, as each one of them ended with her waking up in the end, so I will collect them and do each of them in order.” The bullets of yellow light and lasers continued to rotate. Merry had started to develop migraines and vertigo after trying to just dodge and time out the attack, but then remembered that she can’t time out Koishi’s attacks because they are not spellcards. She then tries to use her strange device to flash against the bullets and Koishi. “Eek!” Koishi recoiled against the flash once more, “That strange device, it’s a ‘smartphone’? Spellcard rules? Don’t worry, my first attack will be from your future! My next trick is to use the attacks of the blade maid you’ve battled once before! This one will have a timer.” Despite delivering an attack to Koishi, Merry’s headaches continue to develop into more severe migraines. Koishi scatters knives throughout the field. Knives are placed behind Merry, but she was too distracted by her migraines to pay attention to the patterns. The knives then, all at once, quickly jolt towards Merry. The ‘doll’ that Merry is possessing is destroyed and disappears before Koishi.

“I won! I won! Miss Merry was nothing compared to a mountain youkai! She has to battle us again!” Koishi cheers, but then she turns back to the downed Satori. Koishi crouches down and tries to gently shake Satori’s shoulder in an attempt to wake her. Satori slowly wakes up. She then sits up but tries to hold her head and faintly responds to Koishi. Koishi takes out a vial of medicine and hands it to Satori. Satori drinks the vial and tells Koishi, “I told you… I told you those magicians are terrible… I think this fog made us go the wrong way…” Koishi cheers, “We’re on the right path, and we won! Miss Merry was from the future and she was possessing a doll that looked just like her. I used all my power, copied abilities from her memories, and she lost! We can go back to siphoning information and finding treasures! Then prank Miss Merry again once she comes back!” Satori sleepily responds, “Koishi… What are you even talking about? That human magician was from the future?” she then, still drowsy, smirked, “We can’t prank Merry because she’s from the future, and I lost anyways to her, so that makes it a tie. No more migraines from Miss Merry ever again.” Koishi sulked, “Well… if we live long enough, we can see Miss Merry in the future again… right?” Satori questioned Koishi, “How were you even conscious during that whole battle? Miss Merry’s memories and thoughts gave me such a headache.” “I think I can explain but let me help you stand back up so we can explore more afterwards,” Koishi helped Satori back up, they both paused and their thoughts scrambled with time travel and other worlds. Koishi then snapped out of it and clarified, “Miss Merry’s future is where humans like her study minds and become magicians, and she’s traveled to other worlds, other time periods. She has a friend who believes that everything is made from really tiny things we can’t see. If humans can end up learning tricks like that, then we youkai must grow and form new tricks, too!  We satori can only read what people are thinking about at the moment, there has to be more to the mind than just what people are thinking about. For example, memories are stored in a place of the mind that us satori can’t read unless one thinks about them at the present moment, so we needed to learn that magic about how to hypnotize people to reveal their memories and traumas. If we learn more psychic skills like memory digging, we could learn more about that side of the mind and become powerful, so much more powerful than Miss Merry even! We could do so much and change fate if we just explore!” Satori smirked, “We satori will become the most powerful youkai there is.” Koishi and Satori then continued their journey and wandered downwards from the foggy Mountain.

Afterward Notes: So for this beginning part I wrote them in the Sengoku period, because of Zanmu Nippaku who's based on a monk from that time, Zanmu Nichihaku. (their given names are spelled slightly differently in kanji and surname for the real guy is pronounced Nichihaku instead but with the same exact kanji spelling as Nippaku) There's not too much information about him either way and he's a bit enigmatic, but Nichihaku's death is recorded in 1576, or in touhou lore Nippaku from TH19 "purposely descends into hell and becomes an oni" possibly vaguely around that time. If you want to read more about the lore of Zanmu Nippaku and Nichihaku I suggest reading this post. And obviously after she turns into an oni, Nippaku from TH19 is the one who convinces the Yama and the dwellers of hell to abandon the underground/former hell in favor of a new hell. This first part of the story takes place many years before that time and the middle of the youkai expansion project, tho.

This may be obvious but the original joke is because Maribel is Merry but Koishi pretends to be a vengeful spirit urban legend named Miss Merry/Mary in ULiL that nobody in the game seemed to get because gensokyo residents dont know what a phone is. And also this part having Koishi before she closed her eye happy about her mind-reading ability... well... I know AO3 exists but also im too lazy to make an acct, i just bookmark things on my browser when i read on there, but I'll crosspost anyways if i do

The pome fruit that Merry sees is the quince of some species of Chaenomeles that is native to Japan, and is a member of the rose family (Rosaceae) and Koishi uses roses as bullets. It's a very hard fruit when its raw and very sour in general but the flowers are quite amazing to look at during the spring.

[sepublic]

Now I want to elaborate on the Makuta of Odina as our big bad villain. The thing about Vamprah is that he’s a hunter, and one who has taken a vow of silence; He acts animalistic, all things considered, and wears the Mask of Hunger, which adds to his motif as a predator who feasts on prey. 

One of the earliest descriptions of Makuta was that of a “raging, kicking, screaming beast” and it’s a depiction that’s really stuck with me. Less of a person or god and more of a monster, an animalistic force of nature incomprehensible to the Matoran. 

When Makuta was first introduced, it was as the master of the Rahi, powerful and dangerous beasts that have been placed under his sway by masks he infected. This precedent was not forgotten later down the line, when 2003 established Rahi Control as one of Makuta’s powers, and it was eventually revealed that the Brotherhood of Makuta’s original purpose was to create Rahi for the Matoran Universe. 

So Makuta in this story is the apex predator, the leader of a pack; The most powerful beast in the land, for whom all others answer to. And an unnatural, ravaging monster with endless hunger, and a taste for sport. There’s a sadistic side to Makuta, who ravages ecosystems like an invasive species.

Humanity has a primordial fear of beasts lurking in the darkness, waiting to strike; Unseen with only our imaginations to fill in the gaps. So let’s incorporate that idea for the Makuta of Odina; A creature who brings darkness with it, enveloping the area in shadows for Makuta to hide in and strike unseen. Like Shelob from Lord of the Rings, and especially like...

You ever heard of Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal? It’s a wonderful animated show, about a caveman and his T-rex surviving against some horrible odds in prehistoric times. My favorite episode is the The Night Feeder, and the titular beast is a cryptid that strikes only at night, in total darkness. It remains entirely unseen for the whole episode, so you can only see from its perspective, and glimpse the damage it inflicts on prey and environment alike.

We only get to see the Night Feeder’s dreaded true form in the last minute of the episode, for a few seconds. This is after our protagonists learn that its fear and weakness is fire; Fire which brings light, which allowed humanity’s ancestors to conquer the darkness and explore new horizons. The Night Feeder is beaten as it is seen and revealed, stripping it of the infinity of the unknown by making it quantifiable via comprehension.

I want to play with that idea; A thematically protean creature that can be anything, whatever its prey imagines, because it’s a Schrodinger’s Cat situation where if you can’t see it, who knows what it is? And thus so many options are on the table. Makuta is a monster of shadows, so the way to defeat it is with light; Light thematically reveals its true form, taking away both the shadows it uses to hide itself, but also taking away a lot of the mystique and fear Makuta employs. It is no longer a formless entity, you can see now that it’s limited to the physical form that is illuminated. Like Jean Jacket from Nope, seeing the beast is a form of victory over it.

And it’s neat that I bring up the idea of monsters and beasts that must be hunted, primordial times and whatnot. Because Vamprah’s domain in G1 is the very headquarters of the Dark Hunters... So what if we took that name literally in this adaptation? You’ve got this mercenary group, not exactly good guys, but our protagonists hired against an even greater threat. Makuta ravages livestock, it slaughters entire herds for no other reason than the fun of it, while eating something unknown from its prey that cannot be interacted with.

Enter our Dark Hunters; A group of trophy hunters, monster hunters, that kind of thing. They’ve conquered the most elusive and dangerous cryptids, but this is their greatest hunt yet. They learn the mistake of underestimating the Makuta; They think they’re the masters of the shadow? The Dark Hunters believe it’s their territory and camouflage from which to strike? Their greatest asset has now been turned against them by the Makuta. 

Our protagonists can be Dark Hunters with explicit ties to hunting and/or animals; Such as Airwatcher, Savage, Charger, etc. Tracker and his pet bull are must-haves, as is Primal, whose name and use of a simple spear feels VERY relevant given the influences I’m incorporating into Makuta here. The Hordika Dragons can be a pack of hunting dogs, feared and reputable, only to fall against the Makuta. 

There’s definitely the tension of Man VS Nature, Man trying to conquer the wilderness and its animals, taking trophies. Maybe Makuta is a punishment sent upon these Dark Hunters, who kill for sport, and now find themselves on the receiving end of a karmic beast who inflicts the same. It eats light, spreading the night and darkness across Odina, thereby spreading the Makuta’s territory. It can only strike in shadows, but when it does, it’s virtually unstoppable. Courage is tasty and Makuta knows its scent, devouring bravery to leave nothing left of its prey but terror in their souls as they are shredded.

While other Dark Hunters rely on fancy tools and machines that fail in the face of the supernatural power of Makuta, Primal (whom I shall refer to by the name Nuoka given by creator Peter Dolan), our main protagonist, prevails in his simpler toolset; He hearkens back to the ancient hunters of prehistoric times who fought like animals and thus better understood them. He can fight on Makuta’s level, by Makuta’s rules, and actually make it out alive. Firedracax is another hunter with a specific grudge against a species of pack predators, whose whole power is fire; This could thematically put him at odds against Makuta as another main protagonist.

There can be some discussions of industrialism vs nature, the idea that perhaps a society more removed from it isn’t necessarily better. Cities aren’t necessarily more ‘advanced’ than a nomadic society, after all. This ties into Nuoka as a former member of a tribe, who has his own defense against the prejudices of other Dark Hunters. Likewise, civilization may not be as divorced from nature as it likes to think; Society is still a part of nature and thus has a responsibility to it. 

Makuta is a challenge to human arrogance; Not literal human arrogance, these characters aren’t human. But you get what I mean. The shadows have birthed a dark creature, like the Grendel that Beowulf fought, or many other beasts sent by the gods and/or nature to punish humanity’s hubris. Makuta is the Scorpio to the Dark Hunters’ Orion. Maybe Makuta was once a hunter named Vamprah, who was cursed for his bloodlust with a form that reflected his heart, and even infects others with this transformation to create Rahi.

I like to think the Makuta of Odina resembles the Makuta Nui set from G1; A more animalistic take on Makuta that never showed up in the story but was nevertheless deemed canon. It looked bestial enough that for the Maze of Shadows game, the developers even declared it the set depiction of the Ash Bear! This can be Makuta’s true form, revealed in its final moments when light finally triumphs over its darkness, just as Nuoka manages to slay it. This beast spoken of around campfires is now just a campfire story.

I also want to consider incorporating the Rahkshi here as Makuta’s brood; Creatures who wield staffs resembling man catchers, which is a karmic reversal of man trapping beast. The Makuta Nui combiner takes some visual cues from the Rahkshi, since it’s made using pieces from Makuta; Himself resembling his ‘sons’ and vice-versa. So the Makuta of Odina can resemble a more animalistic, bestial Rahkshi, foregoing a tool for massive claws and fangs. Makuta’s visage takes cues from from the Avsa, Kraahkan, Makuta Nui, and Rahkshi.

In darkness, Makuta stalks and hunts its prey across multiple environments, apparently flying and swimming; Suggesting it DOES shapeshift, or maybe it just comes across that way in the confusion and chaos of the dark. Survivors disagree on what they saw of Makuta, who can say for sure? Other Rahi act as smaller bosses for our protagonists to build up through, and maybe reconsider their treatment of beasts, at least for Nuoka. When Makuta is slain, there’s definitely the implication that Nuoka has been motivated by his experiences to bring a change to how the Dark Hunters operate in irreverence to nature, and if necessary, stop them altogether.

[candyswirls]

An Eye for An Eye, A Pup for a Pup Chapter 3

Finnja is just a big ol’ softie.

Duty called. The Thousand Sons retaliated psychically, finally, and the Adeptus Custodes and the Null-Maidens were called to aid. He had to head back down to the planets surface to give rites of the dead, collect geneseed, and tend to the wounded.

A few brothers insisted that as soon as they were packed in a dreadnought they could fight immediately. Finnja just rolled his eyes, assuring them they didn’t need to be placed in a dreadnought.

He helped set bones in place and look over for any psychic wounds or mutations. Deeming those good enough to return to battle. His capsules for geneseed were filled and he sent them back up to the ship to be taken care of. Every few sets of canisters he filled, he collected a set from at least one thousand son.

It was to be sent back to Terra for the Allfather to decide what to do with.

He was anxious to get back to check on his pup. The neophyte had been moved to a private room. Food would be brought by serfs and it was locked with a fellow brother keeping watch outside. But he still wanted to ensure he was okay. Not to mention that another had already tried to escape.

He sighed. He knew this was a deeply traumatizing event for them. But they’d been given orders to execute the legion. The Thousand Sons would be redacted from all records. Erased from history. They were saving these children otherwise they’d be lying dead on the planet’s surface.

“Eager to get back?” A brother questioned.

He nodded.

“You always get fussy with new initiates,” his brother commented.

He smiled.

The brother he was working on chuckled, “Finnja, the mother wolf. Did you know that’s your nickname?”

“Aye, I’m aware.” Finnja commented.

His wounded brother coughed as he laughed and wheezed more, “So concerned with neophytes but once you become a bloodclaw you’d better not cross the mother wolf. You’re no longer a pup. You don’t mess with your younger brothers or he comes charging in.”

Finnja shook his head, “Easy now, you’re wounded, remember?”

His brother spat, “Not as wounded when you yelled at me the first time ever. But well deserved. I was hazing some aspirants.”

“You lot were trouble makers,” Finnja commented.

“Still are,” his brother grinned.

He was the first to be sent back along with the geneseed and those too wounded to continue fighting.

Serfs were able to unload their cargo and teammates as he headed towards the apothecarium.

He met the brother standing outside of the rooms.

“Any issues?” He asked.

His brother hesitated, “They know of the execution of their legion. That they will be the only ones left. That they’ve been spared. How even now as we speak, their planet burns. It was… not given lightly.”

Finnja bristled, “Who in the warp told them that??”

“Jorgen,” his brother answered. “A few tried to persuade their way to freedom and a couple of others tried to escape or fight back. He became angry and snapped at them. They’re devastated and some refuse to cooperate. We’re keeping a close watch on them. Yours hasn’t eaten but is hiding under his bed. He won’t come out. He’s very timid. Brother Rofnir took his neophyte to the training cages to let off some steam. Seemed to help him.”

“Thank you,” Finnja bid as he scanned his hand to unlock the door. He would speak with Jorgen later.

His pup was no where to be seen. The IVs had been unhooked. Finnja could see attempted tampering on the vent grate. He had been working at opening it. A foolish idea. They had sensors in there and occasionally sent in their smaller Fenrisian wolves to hunt vermin. He also had them welded so even if he managed to get the screw out, he wouldn’t have been able to take off the grate.

Finnja got down on his hands and knees and peered under the bed.

His pup was huddled under there, holding his knees to his chest. Tears streamed down his face. His fingers were raw and bleeding from trying to get off the grate.

A deep sadness danced in his eyes along with fear.

Finnja sighed.

He spoke in gothic, “Come out. You’re not in trouble.”

The neophyte eyed him but refused to move.

“You have lost a lot of blood and are not well,” Finnja said. “You can’t stay under here forever. If you come out now I will bring you a biscuit from the kitchens.”

The neophyte shook his head.

“The baked good,” Finnja specified. “Not the canine treat.”

The neophyte refused.

“You know as well as I do that I can lift up the bed and drag you out if needs be,” Finnja muttered. “Let’s not make this more difficult than it needs to be, little pup.”

His pup averted his watering eyes, but he complied, crawling out. He tried to maintain his distance though.

Finnja sighed and sat with his back against the wall. He reached over to reattach the IVs.

“My name is Finnja,” he said. “I’m a wolf priest. It’s our legions version of an apothecary. You are in my care now.”

All was silent.

He continued, “I’m sorry Jorgen told you of what’s happening so crudely. I know he is less than pleasant to talk to. A true oaf. But you’re here now, you’re safe. You’ve been spared.”

His pup let out a sob. He let him have a moment of silence.

“I will protect you,” Finnja assured as he placed a hand on his shoulder.

His pup pushed his hand away and spoke, “why?”

“Because you are my pup now.”

“Why??”

Finnja paused, pondering what words to choose next. His pup’s voice was timid and soft.

“I have always cared for children and neophytes,” he told his pup. “If I didn’t become an Astartes, I wanted to be a father. I had a very good one. Kind and strong as ever. I loved him dearly. He loved me. He especially loved my mother. I think of them often. With the second and eleventh legions I was tasked with ensuring the geneseed and aspirants were no more. It was… horrible. We hate being executioners. We mourn our cousins and Lord Russ’s fallen brothers. But still, we are loyal to the Allfather, the emperor. The last execution we were called for, I had lost multiple neophytes in a row just before. A bad batch of geneseed. Poisoned by radiation. Bad blood for surgeries. The adept that made the mistake tried to hide it. We… lost so many young ones. Ones I knew and worked on. It was devastating. As we purged the legion and we came to where the neophytes were, I froze. I could not bring myself to harm a single one. It was too much.”

“I told Jarl Russ that if we were called to execute again, I would follow orders, but I would not be living afterwards. He gave me a promise. If we were ever called to execute another legion, I could pick one neophyte to save. That promise has been upheld. Granted some of my brothers took up that promise too but at their own discretion. They’re asking for forgiveness, not permission.”

“But why me?” His pup muttered.

“Because,” Finnja answered. “You’re cunning and fierce. You asked for mercy. I gave it. You were there.”

He heard more sniffles.

“I want my mother,” his pup mumbled.

Finnja’s heart sank. If she was still alive, she definitely wasn’t anymore. He missed his own dearly. His pup was young and couldn’t have been an aspirant for long.

He needed to change the subject, “what is your name little one?”

After a few moments of silence his pup answered, “Imho.”

Finnja reached out, “May I, Imho?”

“What?” Imho questioned.

“Your hands,” he clarified.

“Oh…”

Imho slowly reached them out. It was mostly scrapes and raw skin. Some bandages and salve took care of it.

He heard his pup’s stomach growl.

“Are you hungry?” Finnja inquired. “I think a hot meal will do you some good.”

Imho nodded, his hair draping in front of his face as he lowered his head.

“Into the bed with ya,” Finnja said. He helped him stand and over to the mattress.

Imho crawled on and laid back. Finnja pulled the covers up. He tucked him in and ensured he was comfortable. He included his cloak, still not taking it back. Imho seemed confused and weary of this action.

“You’ll find I’m a bit of tender hearted milksop when it comes to you pups,” Finnja explained. “You will be treated with kindness. You’ve been adopted into the Space Wolves legion. I’ll be back.”

He left and ensured the door was locked as he went to the kitchens.

[boundlesschaos]

Don't Awoo (350g Penalty) [July Mission Board]

As you brave the wilderness for more food, you hear the howl of wolves nearby. It looks like they’ve just brought down a massive buck, big enough to feed an entire pack… the hunger pangs return, gnawing at your empty stomach. When was the last time you had a proper meal? Do you have it in you to keep hunting for however many hours it takes, when there is food right here? Trying to steal from starving wolves is a big risk to take—you’ll become prey yourself if you’re not careful. But a deer that size could provide many meals to your friends and allies back in the monastery. You better act fast before the wolves devour every piece of meat. [Grants Lance +1]

In a world where magic brought light to inky darkness and heat to frozen lands, there was something fascinating about the creatures who did not have the means to cast such power. To have to turn to tooth and nail to fell their foes, to rely solely on body alone to determine their outcome...

Today, it would seem fate wasn't so kind to one. It was inevitable - the coordination performed by the wolves left little room for error. The game of hunter had ended as quickly as it began, and with their meal taken down, all the wolves had left to do was eat.

At least, that was the plan. But, as they would soon come to find, they weren't the only one in these woods. A predator would rival them, eyeing the fallen creature with intent, judging the size and make up of the creature.

Yes, this would do. As long as she was careful, she could enter, take what could and should be hers, and then be on her way. Things were not so simple, though. Just as she goes to fish a piece from the staving wolves...

She spots someone else making her way towards that same goal. She can't believe her eyes - of all the times to show up - but quickly, she finds the desire to press on. She would continue on in order take what was hers, and deny this person any right to the same.

All that was left was determining which her adversary would reach towards. Would it be their shared goal, or would she take arms against her now?