#The way Chil says “but she’ll probably get by all right.” gets to me… Having faith in his daughter and letting himself be optimistic

[fumifooms]

Do you think maybe a large part also of why Chilchuck's wife left him was because of how much he changed after becoming an adventurer? He seemed naive and spirited once, but became more jaded the more dungeon crawling he did. I like to think with the new image of his wife that Flertom and Puckpatti's cheerful demeanor came from how Chilchuck was once as a child. But she accepted that people change. And yet that night, meeting how he is with his coworkers, reminds her of how he used to be.

Yes I do! I go into it in my masterpost on Chilchuck’s family, though I made it before we got his wife’s face reveal. If you want to see my thoughts on what things might have pushed her to leave I recommend you go to the ‘Possible strains on the marriage’ section!

Ooh I like your thoughts! Flertom and Puckpatti inheriting good cheer from him would be soo cute (it’d also be funny with how he’s like "Meijack, my daughter most like me" meanwhile the ones with the opposite of her personality got it from him. Sike Meijack’s like her mom the most lmao), but for Puckpatti at least I’m skeptical.

Chilchuck likes good cheer out of work sure, but he dislikes optimism/carefreeness. It makes him worry on if they can take care of themselves or if they’ll be able to make it (in part due to how he was himself tricked by parties in the past), so I’ve theorized that Puckpatti’s carefree demeanor is actually an effect of Chilchuck working out of home more and more as the years go by, and thus having the least of an influence on his youngest child, leaving his wife to do most of the raising and teaching lessons.

I don’t know what to make of his wife’s portrait yet, she does seem pretty jaded herself, or like she has a lot on her mind. Since it’s supposedly set into the present of canon, it could just be that she’s still affected and upset by having left him… Or maybe that’s just how she is! Maybe Chilchuck rubbed off on her too, or maybe she grew that way more over the years by herself, or maybe she’s always been a little gloomy/ice queen looking, no clue! I don’t think trying to take away a lot of her personality from just the portrait would be effective or wise, but now I do think she’s the more reserved and serious type.

"Yet that night, meeting how he is with his coworkers, reminds her of how he used to be" Asker I looooove this, you’re so right!! That could definitely be part of it, I hadn’t seen that angle. He’s very cheerful and open when sharing drinks with people as we see, so it’s possible she’s like "Wow, he’s having such a good time here with his coworkers. Why isn’t he usually like that with me?" plus just being hit with a ton of bricks of realization that that part of him was why she loved him, but he’s changed so much so maybe they should cut their losses and part away. And especially since they were childhood friends, too! 20 years sure do change a man. Chilchuck does say she fell into a bad mood after the outing on the way back home but didn’t know why, so there’s a lot of thoughts and feelings we can assign to her. Again, I encourage you to read my big post on it if it interests you, I give many different interpretations and whatnot~!

[mrpenguinpants]

Genshin: University AU [V1]

I love modern au. Or any “everything is fine, no one died, it’s just a fever dream” au. Half of me is thinking, damn maybe I should answer this serious- LOL HAHA no. That’s not happening. Time to crack my knuckles and let my brainworms take over again.

Once again, this is 90% crack 10% content. I want to switch up my characters from the last brainworm post but I included Kaeya and Diluc.

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Today’s appreciation post goes to twistedwishes. Hey! I’ve been seeing you pop up a lot lately and thanks for the support 💕💕 I hope things are going better for you and you’re doing alright^^ I feel kinda bad for making appreciation posts on crack fics but hopefully this is somewhat funny haha. 

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Genshin: Holding Hands [V1]

Genshin: When you’re cold [V1]

Genshin: Roommate [V1]

Genshin: Royalty AU [V1]

[Masterlist]

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[taglist]  <- if you want to be added, please read this first.

  @mikeysbike @hanniejji@unionwitch @musekala @twistedsunnshiii @stanzastic @akaasea @xoneaboveallx @adoring-ghost @asheseiler @childelover @dilucsz @dai-tsukki-desu @thicmitten @youaskedfurret @diaxfeliz @wintergreen-aix @dandelily @thegayrubberducky @lovelykittycatmeow @yuunoagivesmelife  @dokidokisama @simpygrimoire @minakohasmanyhusbandos @strwbrry-lia @tigerpriestess @yuu-yuukurotsuki​

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Diluc

Absolute pretty boy who has braincells, but only if Kaeya is not there. In his mind, Kaeya’s presence makes his room loose 40% of their common sense. He can’t prove it just yet but he’s working on it. He majors in accounting but also has a minor in marketing, logistics’ management, fia- he majors everything business related. He’s going to become the next Elon Musk through smarts or by getting the competition drunk. There can be no contest if he’s the only candidate. He’s actually a hard working guy that overworks and stresses way too much. You have daily “Diluc recharge” evenings where he just hangs onto you while you go through your day.

“Don’t fucking talk to me until I’ve had my coffee,” except there is no coffee - he drinks grape juice out of juice boxes and his only energy boost is when he meets up with you - and that’s his constant mood. So he usually only hangs around you and Jean, since she has childhood friend status and is actually an angel. By default, Lisa is added and Diluc doesn’t mind her but if he see’s Kaeya, it’s full on war paint mode. If he's not busy with work or studies, he's usually with you either in your dorm or his apartment.

He has a fanclub and he seriously hates it and tries to do everything in his power to get Ningguang to take it down. Shouldn’t this be against his rights? But she refuses for whatever reason and makes a whole speech about free will. No matter what he does, someone manages to take a picture and it get’s printed in the university’s newspaper. The only bonding time he has with Kaeya is every Monday, where they collect and burn all the universities newspapers before anyone can get their hands on it. You always bring marshmallows to make smores during their arson activities.

“When I graduate I’m going to burn this school down to the ground. That’s not a threat it’s a promise.”

Ningguang

Is secretly the leader of the Diluc fanclub - not that she likes Diluc, she’s in a questionable platonic poly marriage with you and Beidou - but it was the easiest way to gain funds for the student council. Which she is the president of, so rip Diluc the fanclub stays. Ruthless business woman I tell you. But she can run in heels so her danger factor rises by at least 20%.

Majors in social sciences and law but more specifically the political science & government. She saw the Imperial State Crown that the Queen of England wears and says yes, that’s mine now. If she’s not with Beidou and you planning on “how to infiltrate the state government just for lols”, then she’s with Keqing, Ganyu, and Zhongli discussing student council things. Should they or should they not tell the student body that they can see everyone’s search results? Sit back and relax as the school goes into chaos. 

She’s probably the scariest person on campus No, she is the scariest person on campus. She’s the scariest person on campus. But secretly she’s popping 20 aspirins just to make it through a night. She has the digestive system of steel. She still holds the title of "seriously do not try and beat her in a drinking game it's never going to happen" and that's her proudest achievement in life but sadly she can’t put it on her resume. Kaeya is still trying to beat her out of spite but so far it hasn't been working. You’re seriously concerned for her when she get’s challenged but Beidou gives you a way-to-hard slap on the back and cheers her on. If Ninngguang somehow get’s alcohol poisonings she’ll somehow find away to make a profit out of it.

"I'll let him die, I'll get the insurance money."

Kaeya

One day he chugged too much mouth wash, passed out, and somehow woke up in university majoring in law. His idea is that if he is apart of the law, he can therefore stand above it. To be fair, his only goal in life is to say “I am the manager” and he can go live the rest of his life in bliss or as a hermit. He’s secret best friends with you but wouldn't be caught dead beside you. He will stab a bitch if you ever get hurt but will still trip you on the way home. Seriously, you have no idea why people find him attractive. Your guess is it’s the eye patch or the clap of his ass cheeks that keeps alerting everyone.  

He’s apart of the newspaper club and if anyone asks: No, he has no idea who keeps taking all the newspapers and burns them in the back of the campus. Originally, he joined because he was nosy and needed to join some type of club for his resume. He sometimes feels bad for his junior assistant Amber because he keeps tricking her and says that Diluc is secretly a demon that is trying to steal all the jobs and is apart of the lizard government hell bent on eradicating the human race. He even brought out a whiteboard for this joke, he’s dedicated to his job ok? 

The type of guy to try and be humble and say his work is “okay” but will choke a bitch if anyone agrees. He tends to leave everything last minute and says that it’s his drug since actual drugs could land you one year in prison and a maximum penalty of $2,000. You have to awkwardly hold in your concerned mother head shake when you see him speed running his assignment literally right when the professor is walking around to check if students finished. 

“I was taught how to lead not to read.”

Mona

Broke wallet #2. Zhongli is broke wallet #1 but Childe simps for him so is he really a broke wallet at this point? In this essay, I Mona Megistus, will explain why I have the rights to the title “Broke Wallet #1″...

Believes that astrology should be an actual career path but refuses to take astronomy as her major. I can read the stars not a textbook that tells me how to calculate the mass of the sun divided by the fucks I give. Instead she went into Philosophy and cries to Albedo, who is an actual prodigy genius- sir lend some braincells to everyone else please?, that her professor keep turning her paper down because “star reading” is not an academic source.

Fischl wants her to join the occult club because, surprisingly, Mona is very good at telling people’s fates through her crayon sketch ouija board. She thinks first year Fischl is cute but is put off by the cosplay roleplay that she has going on. She would join except that stupid hat wearing gremlin in her lit class would make fun of her if he found out.

You gave her half your lunch one day and bought her a doughnut "because she seemed upset" and "out of the goodness of your heart" whatever the hell that means. She thinks you pensioned it but once that thought comes she takes a bite. Poison from a doughnut is not the worst way to go out, classes are hard enough. She’s waiting for the lord to strike her down anyways. 

“Its not about passing, its about doing better than everyone else.”

Venti

Slept through most of highschool and people question how he got into university. He’s a music major (wow how fucking original is that), and if anyone asks him to serenade someone or just do anything, he’ll do it for the right price. Or if you buy him alcohol because he still keeps getting ID checked. He’s banking on Kaeya actually becoming a lawyer or being on good terms with Diluc so he can finally stop being arrested for looking like a toddler.

Takes one step into classes and quickly nopes out and goes back to bed. Professors have no idea how he hasn't dropped out or failed. He just has some god given talent. He does whine at you to pretty pretty please with a cherry on top tutor him because you're such an angel and would never leave your poor but awesome best friend hanging right? He needs to get this essay down but how he is suppose to explain how the number 10 is symbolic and connects to the universe or the meaning of life. Do you think he can just say it’s apart of his culture and make up some random myth to pretend it looks like he knows what he’s doing? 

He’s honestly going with the flow and put his brain on the back burner all of highschool and only now realizes wait, I actually have to use my brain?

He’s been banned from most club chats since Venti has the no chill card. Someone says “lol I look ugly today.” and he’ll respond "yup, you look like a cow." and he get’s banned. Zhongli keeps a speed run timer on his phone just to document these occasions.

"Sad spelled backwards is das and das how it be sometimes."

Childe

An actual dumbass that somehow does well. He eats sandwiches with the crust off, this heathen. Surprisingly he’s studying to become a physical therapist but most of his experience has come from breaking his own bones. You’re scared how he's going to be if he actually becomes a therapist. If he'll make bets with his patients or try to one up whatever crazy injury they get into. Everything is a challenge to him that sometimes the best way to deal with Childe is to knock him out. 

This man really knows the way to a Zhongli’s woman's heart. Through micro transactions. Mona saw him accidently drop $20 and just shrugged and walked off. She has never been both spiritually and physically offended in her life. She did take the $20 though. As much as you hate leeching on Chile when he’s basically a walking wallet that probably uses bills as tissue paper, you can’t help but give him puppy eyes while planning on how to get into his will. If he even plans on having one, he might honestly write “whoever wins in a gladiator style duel in my funeral’s tournament, they will get my fortune.”. 

Any sport the university offers Childe is probably in it. Which is how he met Zhongli, challenged him to a fight, proceeded to have his ass handed to him, got a backhanded compliment, and screamed to you he was in love and how he found his soulmate. He's secretly very sappy and has cried and watched every Disney and Pixar movie at least 28 times.

"IM NOT TOO SPICY! I’M A TINY BIT ABOVE MILD IF ANYTHING!”

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God if it isn’t Scaramouche, it’s Childe that ruins the aesthetic. This is why I hate you. Why do you people enable me like this, it isn’t even good. This is pretty much a @ yourself moment and I vibe hard with Venti. This entire post was just to make a joke about the clap of Kaeya’s ass cheeks alerting the guards.

This week might slow down since I have classes and assignments. My reply’s are gonna be late too, sorry;; (oh and thank you to everyone that was so supportive and nice when I mentioned it. All of you. Beautiful 💕💕 )

[lifewithparanormal]

Today is a very special day for me and for this blog. 

Phantom Investigators is turning 18 today. Yes, may 25th in 2002 was the day the show premiered, and it’s already been 18 years. Man how time flies. 

Lots of time have passed, we aged, we reached adulthood. This gang was 12 years old in 2002, 18 years later they would have been 30...

...But fictionnal characters have one advantage: they have the power to never age, staying as they are and continue to influence other generations.

.........Unless someone does a small alternate universe where the gang is now grown up and 30 years old in 2020...

...To tell the truth, this one-shot small fanfic wasn’t supposed to exist. But I fell lazy drawing the whole gang together as fanmade adults on the same sheet. I wanted to at least do something for this very specific birthday! So, did a small part AU/fanfic instead.

Click on keep reading to read the whole stuff and enjoy!

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The night was almost falling in San Francisco. In the nice season of fall, the weather was getting cold. But to one particular adult, that wasn't really important right now. In a house, a red-haired adult, named Daemona Prune, looked distressed. She was making calls, preparing  food and tried her best to make the room presentable. She seemed to receive visit very soon. ...Well...in her head, they were supposed to arrive, but they seemed very late.

''What are they doing?'' she thought.

Sitting on her couch for some time, a souvenir picture was lying side to her. She looked at it with a very nostalgic feeling. A 12-year old kid, dressed with a green detective coat and a green mask, was standing along with her three friends: a black girl; a boy with glasses; and a orange-haired guy wearing fashion right out of the 2000 years.

On the back of the picture, the four names were written, in order of left to right. Casey, Kira, Daemona and Jericho.

''They're late! What are you doing? I hope you didn't forget me, cause I sure remembered you!'' she suddendly spoke.

It's been a few months since she found back this picture and that she remembered simpler times. Oh, sure, in her now-30 years old, she did see some of her friends again. But often alone, and not together. Now was going to be the first time, and boy there were some catching up to do.

But right now, Daemona was anxious, a lot happened in her life and she was scared to be forgotten. The more someone can grow up, the less time some people have to contribute to their friends. What if they didn't come? What if they only stayed for one hour after all the preparations she made?

A lot of these nervous questions quickly fade away as soon as she heard the doorbell. Waiting a few seconds to not look too awkward and impatient to herself, she then rushed into the entrance and opened the door. She went silent for some time....oh, it was not in the negative way, never was she more happy than now.

''...After all these years, you managed to all come at the same time!'' Daemona happily greeted. ''Yeah, for old time's sake, it's good to see you again Daemona!''

It was one of her old friends from the picture, Jericho, who was just saying that. 

Meanwhile, Kira and Casey were transporting boxes out of the car. They were all wearing a coat for outside temperature. The gatherer looked at all her friends with admiration, they all grew into fine people. Jericho had longer hair, tied like a ponytail; Kira let her hair down; Casey, a little gain of weight, transported two boxes at once with great force.

The admiration changed slowly into question, Daemona wasn't really aware about all these boxes.

''Uuuuh...did you make a detour? I only asked you to come directly...'' ''We allowed ourselves to make a special stop.'' Kira explained, while transporting her box into the house. ''You will understand after dinner. You must be hungry after preparing everything.'' Casey added, entering the house. ''Well duh!'' Daemona added.

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The dinner went along for some time. Not only eating, but talking about life in general: where the gang is at this point, their jobs, their family, their love life. Only Daemona seemed to be quiet about her own. Nobody seemed to know about that. ....At least not Jericho and Casey.

After dinner, the gang showed Daemona what was inside the boxes. What she found, was the surprise of her life.

''Oh by all the elementals of the netherworld, you brought the stuff from my parents's home at my old attic?'' She exclamed herself. ''Yes, we just thought it would be nice to bring some souvenirs.'' Kira explained. ''Just like old times, the more you grow up, the less you forget.'' Casey added.

If any of these objects in the box would be normal, Daemona would probably have taken this more likely, but what could she expect when she was leading the Phantom Investigators at 12 years old in an halloween costume?

Most of the adults Daemona knew in her childhood were likely oblivious to all that was paranormal or ghosts. And now, it was her and her friend's turns, it was to wonder if they still had their powers or thought about ghosts, due to their idea to bring full boxes of gadgets, books about paranormal and the netherrealm, added with souvenirs pictures of them as childs, along with Jinxie and Wad, monsters they have worked with.

''All these things? But don't you think that we're quite too old for this? I mean...we're thirty now and...'' Daemona quietly brought. ''Daemona, you're not fooling us, Kira told us about your job.'' Casey revealed, smugly smiling.

The women backed up from surprise. She directly stared at Kira.

''Wait! I told you to keep silent about this!'' Daemona frowned, pointing at her DJ friend. ''Hey, they're your friends too, they have the right to know!'' Kira shrugged.

Jericho, who was kind of silent since the dinner's end, had his eyes widened up from the realisation.

''Wait! It was really true? It wasn't a joke?'' Jericho shouted, out of surprise. ''Indeed, the books, the double identity, her cheesy rhymes about how her new book deserves the look, everything was true!'' Kira precised.

During the speeches, the mysterious job hider felt stuck in a corner. Oh well...what she did right now kind of had a close link to what she was doing as a children. It couldn't hurt to show to the same friends with which she founded the Phantom Investigators in 2002.

Warning that she'll be back in a minute. She ran into a closet right in her room. She opened it, inside was hanged a green detective coat along with green shades and a pile of books. She took one of the books, on it was written...

Putting the complete costume, she went out of the room and showed the book to her friends. Jericho was the most surprised of the gang, exclaiming himself.

''So it's really true! YOU'RE Monie! Now I recognise the outfit and the book title!'' ''She literally has the same haircut as before and it took you this long to figure this out?'' Kira weirdly gazed at his friend.

Daemona laughed, looking at all her friends.

''So, I see you're an avid fan of my teenager novels about paranormal!'' Daemona proudly boasted, playing with her hair. ''My kid loves your stories! But we never saw you in person! Do you think you could autograph one of his books now that I know it's you?'' Jericho asked.

The now-revealed author nodded, with a flattered smile.

''Sure, next time you visit my signature booth, bring your kid!'' she informed.

Kira was mocking Daemona a little, the simple look on her costume made her remember some hard, but good times.

''You know, in the end, you really haven't changed! Your excitement about supernatural and getting out with your weird outfits.'' ''You get a pass Kira, since you're one of my best friends...'' Daemona gazed.

Casey scratched his head.

''To be perfectly honest, I think my job doesn't fit with reading these kinds of books. But I guess I could shuffle some of them in my waiting room. Your stories are so light-hearted.'' ''Thank you, but you know, just because you're a vetenary and serious at your job doesn't mean you can't have feelings anymore...'' Daemona advised, putting his hand on Casey's shoulder. She seemed to know that he was hiding his true excitements. ''....I guess I... read them when I have free time.'' Casey blushed, a little shy to admit it.

Putting her hand out of her friend, Daemona sighed, looking at all the boxes of souvenirs.

''You know...I was kind of ashamed to admit my job to all of you, because I was scared that you would regret our childhood together, or that your forgot about all our trips to the netherworld.'' she revealed, out of worry. ''Seriously, how could we forget THAT?'' Jericho asked. ''I mean, we're adults now, obviously at first I thought you passed that age.'' Daemona said. ''Oh please girl friend, we're not like our parents or all the adults we knew. Being part of a team who investigates ghosts and almost got hurt everyday, it's really hard to forget. I'm an overbooked DJ, but deep down I still have the good memories of the PIs.'' Kira patted her friend's shoulder.

Daemona was really flattered about this small speech. 18 years have passed ever since she was the leader of Phantom Investigators with all her three friends present here. How surprising to her that in the end, they also kept their heart of child? Maybe less, but they were kind enough to visit her and bring her all these souvenirs.

With a wave of nostalgia, her eyebrows slowly changed of emotions, lowered down. She had a more serious voice.

''I wonder if right now, our mentor Navarro would be proud of us.'' ''Wherever he is right now, I'm sure he would be proud, same being said for your grandparents.'' Casey affirmed. ''How about Wad and Jinxie? They also were of use most of the time.'' Jericho added. ''They're monsters and eternal, I'm sure they haven't forget about us. At the very least, if there's children out here going through the same stuff as we did, I'm sure they're helping them....or scaring them.'' Daemona presumed.

Everyone looked at each other. This wasn't really an idea to throw out of the window. Maybe there was actually another team of children with powers, similar to the Phantom Investigators, seeing the same thing as they did.

Maybe this kind of mystery would be eluded one day. But right know, the memories were continuing....

''So Kira said you're still doing cheesy rhymes? ....Hey...how about one right now? For old time's sake?'' Jericho suddendly asked.

Daemona playfully rolled her eyes, fists on her hips.

''All right, just for you...''

Saying that, the costumed girl looked for a certain object in multiples boxes. Finally searching what she was looking for, she took it...

...A green phone straight out of the 2000 years. Acting like she was speaking, she held it close to her ear. Her friends started to get excited about what she would come it at that moment, so they could make jokes about it. It's after a few seconds that Daemona cleared her throat and finally said the following sentence...

''...Phantom Investigators, it's been a long time, describe us your slime!''

[juniper-rose-blower]

A World on Fire

(( pre-BFA plot! Enjoy ^_^ ))

On the other side of the portal, the trio found themselves dropped into the ashen ruins of Astranaar, burning buildings abandoned to smolder by its inhabitants.

Malodar stumbled on his feet when they arrived, the usual discomfort and unease taking over for a moment. He shuffled sideways to the side of the nearby inn and leaned against the wall to recover his composure. He jumped back but a second later as it became clear through his slight haze that the building was on fire. At the very least, the adrenaline caused him to forget the nausea.

June covered her mouth, coughing softly, noting the burn of evergreen oil in the air. She furrowed her brow, looking around quietly, "It's been evacuated already... by a few hours, at least." She looks around again and turns her attention across the burning town, toward the western archway out into the forest, "We'll need to keep our eyes open."

The forest and the village were markedly different from his previous visit. The smell was nothing but burning and death, and aside from the crackling of the flames, it was eerily quiet. "There's nothing to the east but more Horde. They'd have to move west a bit before turning north to make it to Darkshore. If I know her, she'll try and rescue every soul she comes across. Compassionate..." Mal marked, "but it'll slow her down. If we ride quickly, we should close the gap fairly soon."

June hummed in agreement, already breaking into a sprint to start moving. There was nothing to wait for, after all. As the trio zipped through the forest, Leon was practically on fire, rushing across the land ahead of them, scanning anything and everything that moved. "Hold on, Bells. Just hold on."

June huffed softly as they sprinted, keeping her pace steady. Her legs were burning, but not nearly as hot as the forest. They -had- to keep moving. Ahead, as they turned north, Maestra's Post came into view... or rather, what was left of it. The armory and tower were both engulfed in flames, thick black smoke rising high above them.

June raised a hand to shield her face from the heat of the flames. "This is not good."

Mal managed to keep pace with the pair of them. He was never one built for speed, but he had the legs to run for miles and miles without stopping. He came upon the post thirty seconds after the others with a frown on his face. "The Horde have harassed this post for years, ever since they established that fort on the coast after the Cataclysm. But it was skirmishes at worst, reminding us they were there. Nothing like this. This is savagery."

June shook her head again, more worry lines drawn into her forehead. "It's vile... Astranaar was a place of peace... and healing... and now it's destroyed." She looks at Mal and Leon, pale eyes shining.

The priest set his hand on her shoulder. "Whatever it is, it's beyond our help now, and if we linger they may turn on us next. We must keep on, the shore isn't far. With luck, the Grove will be intact, that is the likeliest spot for refugees."

June nodded again, watching as Leon sprinted ahead of them once again. She bit her lower lip, "He must be really worried," she commented, catching sight of Leon lifting a hand to his front, no doubt clutching his crescent medallion.

Malodar nodded silently and stretched out his legs and arms. He dug in his heels and took off down the road after their companion.

As they passed into Darkshore, June lifted her pale gaze to the sky. Ash and thick black smoke drifted above them. The air was acrid and made their eyes and throats burn. June coughed, tugging her scarf up from inside her collar, covering her nose and mouth. She looked to Mal as they sprinted, her voice muffled as she shouted, "We're getting closer... keep your eyes open!"

Malodar paused long enough to pull a cloth from his bag and tie it around his face. "I could try and find her but there's too much noise." He glanced around through the smoke, the animals scurrying around helplessly. He looked up and down the road. "We should move off the road as well, they're sure to have patrols here as well and we're not equipped for a fight if we're outnumbered."

Leon seemed to either be unbothered by the horrid state of the air, or simply didn't care about it. He gave a nod, turning his gaze up the road. June watched him stare hard - as if the smoke around them didn't hinder his vision in the slightest. "I don't see anyone on the road," he said, looking back to Mal, "But Bells would likely have done what you said. I just hope..." but his words trailed off, along with his shrouded gaze. June frowned beneath her mask, sharing a look with Mal.

"The shores are dangerous, exposed," Mal reasoned, "I don't think she'd be to the west. East, at the foot of the mountains is the farthest out of sight and there's no reason for the Horde to go that way. You can't reach her on your device?"

June nodded in agreement to Mal's words, turning to look toward the mountains. Leon, meanwhile, reached for the medallion on his neck again, clutching his fingers around it. But nothing happened. He frowned, "Bells is either rushing around, or trying to stay hidden. She does not answer."

Mal turned north and points into the trees. "The Grove of Ancients is but a few miles north of here, its magics will protect it from assault. We should start there."

Leon nodded, already starting forward, still clutching his medallion. June bit her lip in hesitation, looking to Mal, "There might be one other reason she isn't answering his call..." she said softly, not wanting to say it too loudly.

Mal nodded once. "Hope is preferable to despair. And with all due respect, do not take her for the doting housewife she may have appeared when you met. She knows a thing or two about surviving." He smirked beneath his mask and took off into the trees.

June 's brow knitted together on her forehead. She hoped he was right as she set off into the woods after him.

After passing through the Grove, the keepers there pointed further North. The smoke in the sky was growing thicker and more horrid, and the smell of burning wood was all anyone could smell. Leon's behavior was growing more agitated as they moved along the eastern edge of the forest, following the river at the suggestion of the Grove's remaining protectors. By the time they passed the ruins that were Auberdine, June was getting uncomfortable. Pale eyes shifted around, taking in their surroundings uneasily before turning back to Mal.

Followed along, slowly starting to show signs of the journey. Sweat covered his exposed skin from a combination of heat and smoke and the exertion. "It can't be much further now. We're nearly to Lor'danel. Its defensible enough to get refugees out, but apart from that, its surrounded." He looked to Leon. "Would you like me to search again?"

June's gaze drifted off to one side, and she rubbed her arm.

Leon huffed in frustration, grasping at his medallion again, "Come on, Bells! Come on, Angel... we need you to answer..." Several long moments passed before the medallion glowed a soft silver, a broken voice coming through, a little stronger than when they were Kun-Lai:

"L...on? Leo.....s that yo...?"

Leon looked like he might leap for joy, "Bells?! Bells! Where are you??"

The woman's voice echoed back at them, still slightly broken: "W......iding... mounta....s... nea........Maw."

The broken communication didn't offer much but at the end Mal looked to June with a neutral expression. "A familiar spot. Its a nasty spot just up the ridge." He said to Leon. "Dangerous, but probably far away from anywhere the Horde is interested in."

June gave a solemn nod, letting her pale gaze shift toward the rather large pit, where rushing water was running rather quickly before falling into the abyss. Leon's grabbing her wrist broke June out of her reverie, confusion painted on her face. He motioned Mal to hold onto his back, "Get on, I can get us across faster."

Mal arched an incredulous eyebrow, "You're kidding me..."

But Leon didn't wait for his answer. Instead he pulled Mal onto his back, wrapped an arm around June's waist, and said, "Better hold on," before leaping into the air with them in tow. As they began to fall, his wings flew out wide, and they glided smoothly to the other side of the little ravine. Once on the other side, he gently placed June down and stood up straight so Mal could get down. "What's the matter, you don't like flying?" he asked with a lopsided grin.

"I'm not a fan of piggy back rides...well, not in that sense anyway." The priest said as he dusted himself off and examined the rim of the pit and the rushing waters into it.

June couldn't help but chuckle as they walked along the path. Leon was already ahead of them, sniffing about like a tracking hound. June tilted her head at the behavior, glancing back to Mal, "Can he actually smell her?!?"

Mal shrugged slightly. "I imagine something in his...abilities allows him to sense her. She must be close." He leaped from the bank to the rocks and along following Leon.

Leon clutched his medallion tightly, taking solace in its soft glow. "We're coming, Bells." As they followed up the hill, the thick smoke carried past the mountains overhead. June coughed again, blinking her burning eyes a few times as they climbed.

The smoke didn't seem to bother Mal much, and he offered his arm out to help June climb as they neared the top of the hill. "After the Cataclysm these hills were rent apart, opened up all sorts of caverns and crevices to hide in."

Leon stopped them just outside the cavern, glaives drawn. He let out a rumbling growl that echoed out across the ridge, sounding very much like a wild and vicious animal. It took June several long moments to realize that he was trying to scare away any potential Horde assassins. But by the time she realized it, a soft woman's voice echoed from out of the back of the cavern: "Leon?"

Several tense moments passed before a soot-covered Belle tiptoed out of the cavern, several tears in her robes, with a small child following behind her, using the woman as a hiding place.

Mal looked around suspiciously until Belle stepped out. He relaxed slightly, but kept his hand near his dagger just in case. "You're a hard woman to find." He pointed out. As he straightened up he looked around, the cliff seemed to be empty, but he felt the need to be sure. He closed his eyes and focused. Less than a minute later he opened them again and blinked. "Near as I can tell… we're alone."

June gave a soft sigh and relaxed as well, looking back at Belle. Leon was standing next to June, holding his arms out for his mate to come to him.

But the priestess was staring past them both, eyes wide, utter horror on her face. "No..." she whispered softly, tears falling freely down her cheeks, leaving trails in the soot on her skin. A few steps forward, and she collapsed to her knees, still staring forward... and as the woman went down, June saw it in her eyes, whirling around to take in the sight.

The great tree Teldrassil, home of the Kaldorei and one of the World Trees was now engulfed in flames. From base to canopy, completely uncontrollable, issuing forth great gushes of acrid black smoke.

Mal stood, watching as well, as the smoke filled the sky before them. He didn't have much of an attachment to his homeland, but the horror of it was impactful nonetheless. He stared in silence for a long time before he turned. "I know you've been through a lot, but we have to go now. This isn't a fight that's going to be won, and the window of escape is closing quickly."

June and Belle both seemed utterly lost, staring up at the horror of it, both with equal looks of loss in their expressions. Leon's expression hardened as he too took in the sight before looking back to Malodar quietly, "We should... we should give them a moment..." As his words trailed off, he approached Mal, side-glancing both girls, "We'll need to get back to where they've taken everyone... surely they were able to evacuate and portal them to Stormwind or... something... right?"

Malodar clenched his jaw. "Any delay is risking our chance at escape." He looked up at the roaring inferno that was once their capital city. "The portal in the city would've been dispelled. And I cannot imagine they would allow one in Lor'danel for long. If the Horde broke through that could bring them straight to Stormwind." He looked in the direction of the small town. "The Horde do not have a substantial fleet, escape by ship is the most feasible, but they will not linger long with the Horde pressing in."

Leon nodded in agreement, "Right." He tried to speak gently in Belle's ear, "Angel, honey, we have to go-" but just as he tried to break her out of her reverie, she lost her composure, wailing in emotional agony.

With a sigh, he nudged June.

Though she looked like she wanted to do what Belle had done, she nodded and inhaled softly. After a moment more of looking down at Leon's hand, she turned and headed into the cavern. It turned out, however, that the small child was the only survivor Belle had hidden away with her - the girl looked maybe five or six. Certainly not old enough to be handing such things. June frowned at Mal’s words, "Then let's make our way to Lor'danel and out of here, yes?"

Mal looked steely on the surface but somewhat unsettled in his eyes. It wasn't the first time he had to evacuate innocents from the horrors of war, and it was as ugly and terrifying then as it was now. He nodded once and turned to the couple. "We must make haste...Leon can you carry her and...I'll take the child..." He stepped around to the little girl and held out his hand trying to look as friendly as possible under the circumstances. He had a quick thought and reached into his bag, extracting a small piece of candied fruit he had bought in Pandaria on their journey to the summit. He offered it to her in his open palm.

As they gathered together, Leon nodded, taking Belle into his arms, "Yeah. Let's go."

(( mentions: @malodarstarstrike @moonsorrowhouse @bellalily-moonsorrow ))

[awakendreamersworld]

Here’s chapter 4! Above the Ocean Surface

After a few days of swimming miles away from her home on the ocean floor in the Mariana Trench, and swimming through currents across oceans, she came upon another ocean part. It was in Italy and she was in the Golfo di Genova ((Golf of Genoa)) Portorroso, and Maria was starting to get a little hungry. "I wonder if there's any food around..." She said, it was night time and she could hardly see, despite being nocturnal and can glow a violet blue spotted pattern over her body when it gets dark. She sniffed around and smelled some fish a few miles away and started swimming towards the smell, but then her nose caught another scent, it smelled like another fish but not any kind she would usually smell, maybe it was a new species? She then instead changed course to go to the new smell of new fish, she started by heading higher up to the ocean surface, she wondered what was beyond ocean, maybe another ocean? Or Land Dwellers? A bit anxious and a few inches from the ocean surface, Maria could smell that the new fish scent was getting stronger the closer she got to the surface, so she took a deep breathe and peeked her head out of the water and looked at what was beyond the horizon. It look like an island, but it had lights and strange looking homes she's never seen before, then Maria looked to her left and saw that there was another island but it was separated from the bigger island with the lights. Maria decided to swim towards the separated island first to see what was over there, she swam up to its rocky edges to the sand and looked up, she saw a lot of green stuff around, it looked as if the sand disappeared and turned into this green moss. She swam to the other side and looked up, it was another weird looking building, but it looked as if it was made out of big rocks and had a cylinder shape, but the top of it had a big gap for anyone to easily climb in. Maria wondered if anyone lived up there, but didn't seem to be bothered by it much.

She then heard voices coming from near the island with the lights and saw some people on a small boat, curious to know what they look like, Maria swam closer to them going underneath their boat as to not be seen. She poked her head out a little bit to hear what they were talking about, surprisingly, these strange creatures can understand her language. "Ey, can you hand me the rod there?" Said one of them, it was a male, he looked old with white hair, a big round nose and a droopy smile, but he didn't have scales or any fins on him, was he a Land Dweller? "Yeah, sure thing." Said the second Land Dweller as he hands his friend a fishing rod, he too looked old but a little more younger than his friend, he was bald but had black hair on the sides of his head and a mustache attached to the top of his mouth matching the same color of his side hairs. The older one turned towards Maria's direction and pointed his rod towards the water and put the hook attached to the string in the water. Maria watched him use this weird stick with a wire and a hook attached to it put it in the water, that's when the old Land Dweller saw Maria and gasped. Maria made eye contact and quickly went underneath the boat, "What was that?" He said, "Ah, you probably saw another Sea Monster, relax" The younger one said. 'Sea Monster?' Was he kidding? There aren't really Sea Monsters in these parts of the waters is there? "No, it wasn't, it was glowing!" The old one said, Maria poked her head out the other side of the boat hoping they wouldn't see her again, "Come on, Chapo! There's nothi-" The young one began to say while shaking his head giggling and then facing towards Maria's position to see a glowing humanoid creature, he too gasped and screamed, Maria yet again swam underneath their boat but this time was trying to swim away going back deeper into the ocean. "Its the signora of the ocean! The Siren!" The old man said and then they both started the small boat and started heading towards the island of lights, Maria heard what they yelled and got more curious, how in the seven seas did they know her species? She began swimming after them towards the island and hid behind some rocks, she saw them hop out of the boat, they didn't have end tails either! They are Land Dwellers! She took a closer look at the way they 'walked' on land, she peeked a little more behind the rock and saw that there was a whole town filled with Land Dwellers, there were all types of them everywhere! Big, medium, small, pint sized, thick and thin, they were everywhere. Maria quickly swam away so she wouldn't get caught again, she swam towards the separated island where there was no Land Dwellers.

She poked her head out the water and looked around the island. Yep, just as she thought, no Land Dwellers, the island looked disserted. She crawled out of the water and on to the sand, then something weird was happening, her scales and fins were disappearing! "AH! What the-?" She screamed seeing her body completely changing. Her fins and scales disappeared into her 'skin' and her siren tail split in two into what the Land Dwellers call them, 'legs.' She scanned all over her body amazed at what just happened, she crawled towards the water and looked at her reflection, she looked like the Land Dwellers! But also looked like herself, except the scales and fins, her hair was still brunette but it was long and curly with some curly bangs hanging down from her forehead, her eyes were still an amethyst color with round eyes but her pupils weren't pierced like they usually were, they were round. And her mouth, her sharp teeth had turned into weird squares with only small fangs at the corners, and her ears were oval shaped, no longer glowing siren ear fins. She looked down at her torso, no gills there, but her ripped blue pageant dress was still the same

She then looked at her hands and body, her hands looked the same, but they didn't have their claws. Maria then looked at her 'legs,' they looked like long sticks attached to her torso, she moved her 'toes,' they looked like those tube corals but they were small and could only move back and forth. She then remembered that the Land Dwellers were 'walking' with their 'legs,' so Maria decided to try it. She stood up, was wobbling a bit, struggling to stand up straight, but soon managed. "Ok! What was the first thing they did?" Maria asked herself, she reminded herself when they got out of their boat, the way they were 'walking,' "Ok, one uhh... 'Foot' in front of the other, simple!" She said and did exactly what she thought, she raised her right leg and put it in front of her left, then she put her left leg in front of her right and then repeated. "Ha ha! I'm 'walking!' I'm doing it!" She said in excitement, now that that was out of the way, she turned around to the cylinder looking building that was up on the hill, she started walking towards it, she looked up at the opening and thought how was she going to get up there, then she took a closer look at the rocks and saw that some looked like stairs but were apart from each other. Then she began to put her left leg up on one rock and her right hand on another, then went up and switched with her right leg up on another rock and her left hand on another rock, then she began climbing up to the opening in the building. When she made it to the opening gap, she climbed inside to see a bunch of weird stuff scattered everywhere across the ground, they must've been Land Dweller stuff that they use for their 'purposes.' Maria looked up to see that there was a stairwell that lead to the roof of this place, she walked over and climbed the stairs to the roof. The roof was flat with square rocks for edges and in the center was old burnt wood, someone must've been here a while ago. Maria looked over the edge and saw the island with the town of Land Dwellers, it looked so beautiful, "Hmm, now that I've learned that I can change into them, maybe I can blend in and not get caught!" She thought, "Better to start a new life over there than my... murderous one..." She said sadly rethinking of her mother's horrible fate. But she made a promise to her mother, if she wanted to 'make things right,' she'll venture more into the unknown and 'discover and learn what we should've done ages ago,' but first, she was still hungry, so she climbed back down and went back into the water to hunt for some fish.

The next day, Maria woke up on the roof of the rocky building. She stood up and stretched and then looked at the island with the Land Dweller town, or as their originally called, 'Humans.' "Oh right, forgot about that." Maria said and started climbing back down the building and headed towards the water, she jumped in and turned back into her siren self, "This switching back and forth thing is gonna take some getting used to..." She said still weirded out about the situation, but payed it no mind and began to swim towards the human town on the other island. When she got there, she looked around to make sure there wasn't any humans around. Once in the clear, she crawled out of the water and turned back into a human, "Ok... Here I go!" She said a little nervous but excited to see what's new. She walked up the hill from the docks and turned the corner to see the town once again filled with humans everywhere, she took a deep breathe and walked into the crowd, as she was walking through the crowd she looked around to see what everyone was doing, some were indoors putting clothes on a wire outside and most were outdoors either talking to one another, or playing on a table some kind of 'game.' A ball then bounced towards her feet, she looked down and saw it and looked at who the ball belonged to, it was a bunch of kids staring at her, one said, "Kick it." Maria looked down and lightly kicked it to the human child, "Thanks!" They said and continued to their game, Maria smiled and continued to explore more of the town. "This place is amazing!" She said, "Yeah it sure is! The scenery NEVER gets old!" Said some boy behind her, Maria quickly turned around to face the boy that just spoke to her, he looked like he was her age and wore a yellow tank top with brown shorts that are held up with a rope, he looked slender with tan skin and had light freckles on his face, he also appears to have some pale marking on his upper left arm and was barefooted like her.

"Uhh, hi! Heh, you kinda startled me there for a second!" She said

"Sorry 'bout that. You just seemed really zoned out just from looking at this place, are ya from here?" The slender boy asked

"No, I'm from the uhh... Philippines!" She said trying not to give away her identity

"Where's that at?" He asked

"Its across oce- I mean cross COUNTRY." She stuttered

"Oh that's cool, so what brings you 'cross country?'" He asked her again

"Uhh, just traveling is all, I like to travel to places I haven't been to before." She said

"Oh, so... this is like your first time here, huh?" He said

"heh heh, yeah! And I'm thinking about staying here! It looks so amazing" She said

"You could, y'know? I mean, no one's stopping you from doing so." He said

"Ok! Heh, um... I'm Maria Rose." She said holding her hand out

"Alberto Scorfano, E un piacere conoscerti signorina!" ((It's a pleasure to meet you, miss!)) He said shaking her hand

"What does that mean?" Maria giggled

He didn't say anything, he just gave a weird look and bit his lip, then he said, "Anyways, do you live anywhere around here? Where's your home?"

"I... uhh... Don't have one..." She said awkwardly

"Ah! A runaway, eh?" He said

"How did you know?" Maria asked surprised

"Well, your here by yourself from 'cross country,' and don't have a home so now your looking for a new place to stay. Its pretty easy to notice." He said

"Wow, your pretty good." She said

"Yeah, that's because I'm an expert." He said and Maria laughed "C'mon, you can stay at my place." He said while grabbing her hand and started walking towards a home that was next to the docks at the ocean, he then opened a wooden gate that led to a small backyard with a big tree that had what looked like a wooden bed in-between the branches. "I have some friends living with me here if you don't mind." He said "Oh, no its fine!" She said and Alberto opened the front door and they both entered the house, they went to the kitchen so Alberto can introduce Maria. "Hey guys! Look who's come to join us!" Alberto said with his arm around Maria showing her to his friends. "Who's that?" A young girl with red hair said, she was wearing a hat and a striped T-shirt with blue jeans on, "This is our new friend, Maria Rose! And she's a fellow runaway and is going to be staying with us from now on." He said overconfident, "I-If its okay with all of you that is..." Maria said nervously. "Hmm, ok!" Said the red head with the hat as she and another boy came up to Maria, "I'm Giulia Marcovaldo." She said shaking Maria's hand "And this is my Papa! Massimo Marcovaldo!" She continued introducing her dad, he was huge like a giant and had an arm missing, then a young boy, who looked younger than Alberto came up, "I'm Luca Paguro." The boy said also shaking Maria's hand "It's nice to meet you all!" She said excitedly, "C'mon and eat with us!" Giulia said, "You can sit next to me" Alberto said and grabbed Maria's hand and both sat at the table next to each other. "What are we eating?" Maria asked "Pesto!" Giulia said while placing the food in front of them, it look greenish and looked like it was a bowl of worms, Maria saw how her new friends were eating the Pesto, they were carrying silver forks in their hands, spinning them in the food an the food attaches itself onto the fork, Maria did the same and the food was on the fork, she opened her mouth and ate what was on her fork. It actually tasted good, she liked it and began eating forkfuls of it until the bowl was empty.

"That was great meal, thank you!" She said giving the empty bowl to Giulia, "Glad you liked it, Maria!" Giulia said washing the bowls out with her Papa. After they were done cleaning up, the four of them headed upstairs to a room, it was kinda small and papers and books were all over the floor, it had one bed, a dresser, and a window that led to the big tree outside, "Yikes, um, sorry that my room isn't that big, you can sleep in my hideout outside in the tree!" Giulia said, "Really?" Maria said excitedly. Giulia brought Maria outside to the tree, they both climb up to the top where the wooden bed was, there were also pillows on it to lay on and lights covering  the tree, "This looks so beautiful." Maria said amazed at the shiny lights "Thanks, I made it myself." Giulia said "You can stay up here as long as you like!" "I can keep you company." Alberto said sitting next to Maria "Besides, its too crowded in Giulia's room so..." "That's fine, I don't mind the company!" Maria said smiling, "Ok, you two sleep well! C'mon Luca! I got a new book that tells us what kinds of stars there are!" Giulia said and Luca followed her back in her room. "Stars?" Maria said, "Its those dots in the sky." Alberto said pointing at the starry sky, "Oooh, and the big one?" Maria asked pointing to the moon, "That's the moon" He said then turned over, "Oh, ok..." Maria said and layed down. This was so exciting! Today was the best day ever! Maria got new friends, a new home, a new life! And to think that ever since she got here-... oh wait, the fishermen

"Hey Alberto?" Maria said,

"What?" Alberto said still turned over

"There aren't any Sea Monsters in your home town, is there?" Maria asked,

Alberto chuckled, "Uhh, yeah? Me and Luca are one of them." Alberto said looking at Maria laughing,

"That's a joke, right?" Maria said nervously smiling,

"Nope!" Alberto said and turned back over to go to sleep leaving Maria questioned, puzzled, nervous and anxious

He has to be joking, there's no Sea Monsters here... Right?

Chapters: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3