#We hardly knew ye Terra

[supersumc]

Heroes of Ryperna: Earth's Rise

Prologue

The Sands of Time

It was in the wee hours when the coyote Terra awoke in her bed with a start. A rare thunderstorm was raging in the middle of the night as the howling wind blew rain against the muscovite panes. Her senses were heightened, knowing that something world-changing was happening though she couldn't tell whether it was right or wrong. Donning her flax nightgown and fastening its squirrel-bone pins, she softly treaded through the cliffside sandstone palace in the city of Pueblosa. She gently opened one of the grand acacia doors to the throne room, gazing upon the pillars lining the path to the throne she had occupied for the last 90 years. She knew she would soon be another one of the semblances of chieftains and chieftesses past carved out of the pillars.

The coyote had two faces on the front and back of her head, with limbs to match, and Rypernans never knew if they were looking at her the right way. She traced the names of those before her with the twin tails on each side of her body. Reverently, she read them aloud: "Gaia the Lioness, The One Who Awakened; Dustin the Ferret, The Disgraced and Unnamed; A’Tuin the Tortoise, The One Who Carried All; Onuuar the Aurochs, The Wise and Strong; Atlas the Aardwolf, The Hunter of Crawlers..." As she came to a blank pillar after passing several more chieftains and chieftesses that came before her, she couldn't help but wonder, What of me? What will my legacy be?

Arriving at last at her throne, she heard the large doors behind her shut as talons clicked on ceramic tiles. "You didn't have to come, Brontus," Terra said as she faced the thunderbird approaching her from behind. She briefly wondered if he were responsible for the storm outside, then dismissed the thought. He only wielded lightning; controlling a whole storm was as of yet not anyone’s ability as far as they knew.

"And miss the opportunity to see my wife off into her next life of feralhood? No, I think I shall indeed come, and come I did. Besides, how else will the other Primes know where to search for the next Prime Wielder of Earth and Spacetime?"

She sighed. "I remember when I saved you from that giant wolf, all those years ago, at the cost of what I was,” she digressed. “You loved me from then on, whether I was badger or coyote."

"89 years have passed since then," he replied, concern evident in his voice as he continued, "Though our bonds with the elements through wielding them grant us longer lives than the Feral beasts and the Wieldless, that is still no mean feat for such threats that you faced."

"And what would have happened had I died during that time?" Terra sighed as she folded her legs atop her bronze throne, the seat's back unyielding to her rear-facing limbs. "The unraveling of time and space? The end of the world? Feh, we may be Prime Wielders of the elements, but we aren't Primals. That age, when the elements themselves were said to be at stake, passed with the end of Gaia's Awakening."

"'Nearly thirty-five hundred years have passed since she sacrificed herself to stop the Draconian Wielders, passing her power from Primal to Prime,'" Brontus recited. "Some Primes lived far longer than you and I, in days when wars and conflicts were few and far between, while some reigned but a few months as assassins sought them out." He glanced at Dustin's pillar, sighing through his nostrils. "The poor lad had his part of the chronicle written without him."

"You will tell Sylvia the truth about herself when the day comes, yes?" Brontus nodded, and Latrana Terra Mawwed beckoned her husband forward, whispering in his ear, "Then listen closely, for my time grows short: Watch the bands of Time where the Earth is cut deep, the tales of yore laid bare by the passage below: there the next Prime Wielder is conceived this day."

Thor Brontus Mawwed nodded, writing the words on the back of the throne with lightning. As Terra's body started to glow, it shrank and reformed itself into a young coyote and a young badger eager to escape the city into the wilderness beyond. There, the cycle of Feral to Feral-Born could begin anew. Orbs of light trailed from the animals to a pillar as it left the hall, reforming the stone into Terra's appearance and carving in the plinth the words below:

Terra the Badger and Coyote

The One Who Broke Barriers for Honor

The ceremony of the transition of power to the chieftain-in-standing the following day was a solemn one. Outside the courts of the Prime Wielders, most Rypernans believed that the Primes died when the next generation of Primes conceived, and that might as well have been the case because of all the mental changes that occurred when they transitioned from Wielder to Feral. Those that visited the throne rooms said that the Primes’ Rypernan souls were housed in the walls and pillars of the palace, for the eyes of rulers past seemed to follow them from sculpted semblances. They then added that the souls within the Ferals left behind were those of mere beasts. Others said that the souls of Primes transformed from those of Rypernans to those of animals, for wielding Pawd-like power must come with a cost in the end: after all, they didn’t see billions of animals cavorting about the Eustrom. Many Rypernans shushed the latter group of people when they shared their beliefs, for they feared the implications of them being correct. Far better to have beasts replace their souls, leaving them to haunt the palace they ruled, they reasoned, than being cut off from Pawd for all eternity or no longer existing. Neither group was right.

These thoughts lay heavy on the minds of the servants as they readied the palace for its audience. By the time the sundial in the plaza reached 3 in the afternoon, they were ready to open the gates to the citizens of Pueblosa. Many elders in the boroughs of the cities and towns throughout Mesartis were cubs, pups, or kits when Terra took her place on the bronze throne, and thus they had the most to say about her. One such elder, a badger by the name of Bartholomew Bauson, had this to say about the circumstances of her rule and where she left them:

“I’ll be frank with all of you: I do not like the system we currently have, where the Wielders make the decisions, for they live far longer than we average folk unless sword or poison takes them. But Terra was a good ruler, and I’ll be darned if we have a better one.

“My parents were excited when a badger became the Prime Wielder of Earth. Even though she lost her badger-hood because of the Gorgantuan Wolves, she was still well-accepted in the Sett Streets - after all, badgers and coyotes are good friends. She met her husband during that crisis, our chieftain-in-standing Brontus, and it was a match made in the Eustrom.”

He paused, letting a tear roll down his cheek. “All was well in Ryperna, in Mesartis...until the Wieldless of Minartia, the people of the nation of the Stone Wielder, revolted and cast him and the Wielders into the mines, sealing them off from the surface on pain of death should they try to escape captivity. The loss of trade from them to Arcterra to the rest of us caused a civil war to break out in Arcterra, and thus two Primes were lost or exiled.

“The outcome of the tragedy has been clear. For the last 79 years, the Wielders have isolated themselves from us Wieldless. They only come out when duty calls and when they gather our youth and the Feral-Born for the Eustrom Festival. I pray that by the time the next Prime comes into power, the Wielders in this land that we all share will intermingle with us once more.

“For my parents always told me, ‘You cannot expect those living in shining towers of tusks to understand the needs of the people scrubbing them clean.’”

The ceremony proceeded after Grandpa Bauson was assisted off the stage to stand with his family, and soon everyone was being sent back to their homes. Later that day, while Brontus sat on the throne, a mephitic servant reminded him that it was time to start making preparations for the Eustrom Festival in five months. When Brontus asked why, the skunk responded, “It may be only Febrooary, sir, but you need to lead a search for every young Rypernan who is 16 to 18 years old, as well as any Feral-Born. It ranges across Mesartis to Mervenia in the southeast, Caldéara to the west, and the Aera’nos in the north.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard, should it?”

“The process takes 4 months - 3 when the Prime of Earth, Space, and Time is around to help - and we always end up missing at least a few Feral-Born who are drawn to the festival in Julycan like moths to a flame. As you would know, the Gorgantuan Wolves were a pair of Feral-Born.”

“Yes, and we don’t want anything like that happening again. Very well, send some teams of Wielders out.” Brontus leaned back in the throne and draped a wing over his eyes. He was not having a good first day, and he wondered if Terra ever secretly used her wielding of spacetime for illegitimate purposes to get away from it all.

“I do hope you understand, sir, that the Pueblosan Council of Elders has decided that you will be leading the team on the primary route, as a way of engaging more with the populace.”

“Eh?” he asked, parting the feathers to reveal his eyes.

Thus, Brontus and a group of his fellow Wielders set out from Pueblosa to the border town of Malhimar on the edge of the savanna bordering the foothills. Within the mountains beyond lay the gateway to the Eustrom, but they would not go there just yet. Surrounded by walls of balboa logs planted upright and sharpened to points, the town was used as a trading post between the Mesartisans and the Aera’nos. On the streets around the town square where Rypernans of plains and mountains alike hawked their wares, he came across a young bat-eared fox named Anna panhandling. Recognizing her, he approached and said, “This is no place for a vixen like you. What happened after the last two festivals? Why are you out on the streets?”

“After the last festival, my parents threw me out,” Anna explained, her head shamefully bowed. “They died when their den burned down after a trade with the Tauriscians went awry.”

Brontus frowned. Yet another orphan as a result of the Tauriscians - the name Minartia’s Wieldless took upon themselves after a mishap with their Prime’s experiments - and their insane terms of trade, and this one less than a year from independence. Something has to be done. He sighed, knowing she would likely end up a Wieldless, and took her under his wing figuratively and literally. At the festival, his suspicions were confirmed, but at least she would have a roof over her head. As they passed a canyon on their trek home, singing “Lionhearted,” she told him, “I don’t know how or why, but I get the feeling that the next Prime Wielder has been born.”

Meanwhile, in a hollow in the canyon's walls, a feral ringtail was experiencing pains that she never had before. Crying out, she gazed forlornly for the one who had fed her throughout her pregnancy, only for him to leave her alone and guard the den. Finally, with a pop, the troublesome passage was done, and four other kits followed without the pain that had plagued her so.

Their father returned, bearing a rat for the mother, and she had a well-deserved feast after her labors. They both stared at the first-born, the one who had risked the mother's safety with the pain he had caused her. His head was larger than the others', the forehead taking up about half of his face. There was no doubt that behind it slept a more advanced brain that would bring him above mere instinct. This one is different, they knew, and thus he deserves a name.

_____________________

The young ringtail, whom they named Trevor, grew much more slowly than his littermates. Many times over the course of the next three years the mother, whom he lovingly called Margit, nearly threw him out into the wilderness to fend for himself, but each time she did, some cosmic force kept her from doing so. Thus, the day came when, in a kitless year, she and Trevor were lounging in one of their dens when a thunderstorm unleashed a tide of water that swept them out. Putting Trevor ahead of herself, Margit grabbed him with her teeth by the nape of his neck and put him atop a branch that was floating by. She was too heavy for it, though, so she could only watch as he cried out for help for both of them. They were his first words: "Help, I'm stuck!"

Meanwhile, above Gaia's Canyon, Umbrina, a mountain lion and newly christened Wielder of Shadow, was patrolling the nighttime camp alongside Brontus. As the others in their entourage slept, cries for help were heard as they neared the canyon's edge. Even though Terra's prophecy was on their minds, it was the middle of a dark and stormy night, a time when mimic birds - abominable lyrebirds cursed by the Void - would be doing their hardest to snatch someone from the caravan. Thus, the cries for help had been ignored despite sounding unfamiliar.

It’s been a long journey from the Eustrom Festival, where the young Rypernans that came of age this past year gathered to be tested by the elements in a realm beyond our own to receive a power that they must bear with responsibility. Three times, once per year, young Rypernans are tested before they are deemed Wieldless, common folk that did the jobs necessary to keep civilization going. Some are happy with this lot, as Wielders have much expected of them, especially when the nations have disagreements that can only be put aside on this day of truce. Those who are unhappy with the arrangement are often not heard from again when they try a fourth and last time despite recommendations against it. The Primes are apart from these squabbles, for they are expected not only to lead but to hold the balance should things start to escalate too far. Only twice have things gone out of paw, and the second time saw the loss of two nations to other forces, their Primes exiled... That was during Terra's reign. These thoughts were on Brontus' mind as he saw Umbrina dash to the canyon wall before jumping into the froth below. The cries had increased in intensity as she shadow-jumped to the bottom. Bewildered, he saw her down there, swimming toward a young ringtail hanging on to a branch and one that appeared to be drowning, and he could hear the young one's cries from where he stood: "Please, someone, help! I can't hold on much longer... Mommy, please be okay, please!"

As Umbrina grabbed them, she went under the lip of the canyon before she appeared behind Brontus in his shadow cast by the moonlight. Turning around, he saw her wet and sodden, her four mawed tentacles shining wet with water as her fur clung to her like grass in the rapids. Solemnly, she set the young ringtail - who at first glance seemed to be no more than three months old due to being Feral-born - down along with his mother. "I...I tried to save them both, but..."

The ringtail child let out an ear-splitting wail as he lunged toward his drowned parent. "Mommy, no! You can't be dead, you can't be..." When he lay his paws on her, there was a distortion in the area around the two of them, as though the ground and air were turning into liquid. His mother's eyes opened and she breathed again, no water coming out of her lungs.

The two standing over them were awed at what had just happened, yet they could feel the eyes of a thousand mimic birds - killers of the young and old alike - upon them. "Umbrina," Brontus whispered sharply, "get them back to the camp, now!"

"We...we found the next Prime..." was all Umbrina could say as she gently scooped them up before disappearing again, forcing Brontus to run after her.

When we get back to Pueblosa, Brontus thought angrily, I'm going to have a talk with that girl...

________________________

Meanwhile, in a different plane of existence, a hydra-like python with six heads, six limbs, and six tails, each recurring to the third degree, stood alongside a dragon who was neither of light nor darkness. They gazed upon the events unfolding and, from a thousand viewpoints, maliciously stared at the young child and the adolescent cougar, well on their way to the capital of Mesartis. "Thissss will be interessting, yess?" the snake hissed sibilantly, rubbing its 144 finger-maws together.

"Yes, and this time, we have no intention of watching and waiting," the dragon growled. "We shall make a return to Ryperna and conquer it completely, as you once did with your nation, and no Primal Wielder’s awakening can stop us this time."

"Indeed... Gather the otherss trapped here in Dracona. We have work to do, and much iss to be accomplisshed before the child iss of age..."

____________

Okay, might as well start posting some Heroes of Ryperna content here, so Imma reblog this with the "first draft" prologue and the following five chapters so I can go back to worldbuilding with occasional insights from dreams.

[lokigayforhela]

Power-Hungry

TW: None

Rating: PG

WC: 2398

A/N: We’ve almost reached the end of this little oneshot-turned-minific. Just one chapter left after this. I apologize sincerely if Thanos is out of character. He’s very difficult, personally, for me to write for, and I hope I did him any kind of justice at all. Enjoy!

Installment One

Installment Two

Installment Three

Installment Four

Installment Five

With the help of the Mind Stone’s subtle yet firm control over you, you settled into your new reality with ease.

Which wasn’t a difficult thing to do when that simply meant becoming little more than an ornament decorating Thanos’ throne room on his ship, placed strategically so that both he and any of his so-called Children, as you’d learned they were known as, could benefit from your power at any given time.

The small part of you that was still you wanted to scream and fight and figure out how to get out of there. Wanted to break the chains that Thanos had placed around your mind and come back to yourself so that you, in turn, could get back to Hela.

Hela.

Who had sounded more frightened than you had ever heard her sound, after Thanos had touched you with the scepter and taken over your mind.

Hela.

Who had looked at you with an expression that had been easy to register, with the Stone’s all-encompassing knowledge, but harder to comprehend why it had been directed at you.

Hela.

Who had been left in the crumbling walls and dust of the Collector’s tower as you had walked away with Thanos, never turning back once to look at her.

The part of you that wasn’t you had made that easy. Easier than you wanted to admit. Since it had been Thanos who had wielded the Mind Stone on you, it was Thanos’ voice you heard in your head. Guiding you, instructing you. Assuring you that whatever you’d had with Hela was of little importance now, because you were going to be helping the entire universe.

And you’d believed him.

Really, you’d had no choice but to. Still You was becoming harder and harder to hear in your mind, when you had so much to know and to hear from the Stone and from Thanos. Still You was hardly a whisper now, above the roar of overwhelming cognizance.

“You’re sure that Hela didn’t have any of the Stones yet?”

Thanos’ deep, drawling voice drew you back to awareness as you obediently turned your head to look at him, nodding.

“I already told you all that I know of them, which is precious little. She refused to tell me anything. All I saw was a glimpse of a drawing of the six of them. I didn’t even know what they were, at the time. She mentioned only that she was hunting for them.”

“And she was on Knowhere for the same reason that we were?”

You nodded again. “Yes. She was under the impression that Tivan knew where the Soul Stone was. I don’t know how. She was reluctant to tell me anything that she felt I had no business knowing of.”

Thanos considered that for a moment. “Well, I suppose now it is your business. You’ll be accompanying us while we search for the Soul Stone, as well as the others. We know Space is on Terra, as Hela mentioned.”

“The Tesseract,” you filled in, though you really didn’t need to. Even with the Stone’s knowledge, you were the least informed in the room. No doubt, by Thanos’ own intention. There was something he wasn’t saying, and it simply wasn’t your place to know. Just like things had been with Hela.

“As for Power, Time, and Reality… Those we’ve still yet to track down. But we’re getting closer. Perhaps now that you’re here, we can finish that up and gather them all, fulfilling my destiny to restore balance throughout the entirety of the universe.”

You said nothing to that; there was nothing for you to say. Despite the mind control, and the convenience your power provided him with, you were still little more than a pawn while Thanos aimed for a checkmate against the universe as a whole, and you were all too aware of that.

The quiet hiss of a door sliding open brought your attention to the entrance to the throne room, where you saw two of Thanos’ Children, the woman from before and another man, with graying hair and spindly fingers that were threaded together as he walked with his hands clasped together. As they both drew nearer to you, you could feel more of your energy being leached off of you, now being used by all three of the other members in the room, and you tried to ignore the weird tug in the pit of your stomach that had started to develop since you’d arrived, and that only seemed to be getting worse.

In the two days since you’d boarded the Sanctuary, you had been of constant use to re-energize Thanos and the others. Even when he had retired for the night, his Children seemed to take turns guarding the throne, where the scepter was left under strict watch. Which meant that you did not have a break to re-energize yourself, and given that you were in deep space and without a sun in sight, the fear of your powers fizzling out for good had returned. Not that you could ever relay that information to Thanos. As it was, you felt grossly out of your depth, dealing with the Stones. If he were to realize that you were of no further use to him, there was no telling what he would do with you.

While he was still distracted by his discussion with the others, you closed your eyes, and tried your hardest to push your will against the all-encompassing control of the Stone, urging something in you to take back the reins and fight back until it was just you again. No Stone, no Thanos, no presence in the forefront of your mind that seemed to be fighting back just as hard as you were.

Just you.

Despite the fact that you were exerting no physical effort whatsoever, you found yourself panting from the struggle, trying desperately to keep quiet so as not to draw attention to yourself as you felt the Stone fully wash back over your mind again, subduing you once again.

“…lasted a lot longer than I thought he would,” Thanos’ voice floated back into your awareness, and you made yourself tune in to the rest of the conversation, turning to watch him as he waved a hand dismissively. “Kill him. We got what we needed from him. Maw, redirect us to Vormir, at full speed.”

“Yes, Sire.”

Both of his Children bowed, and then took their leave, and you couldn’t help but to feel the slightest bit of relief now that you were back to only energizing Thanos. Even if you felt like you were going to collapse at any moment.

“Vormir?” You asked, turning to look at him. You hoped you didn’t look as guilty as you felt for trying to break free from his control.

“Yes. According to Tivan, that’s where the Soul Stone lays. I can’t believe that sliver of a man held up to over twenty-four hours of torture to get it out of him. I would have thought he’d have folded much more easily. Shame.”

You declined to comment on that, realizing not for the first time that your presence here, on this ship and alive, could be taken from you at any moment, for any reason. If you so much as said or did the wrong thing, everything would be over. No finding the rest of the Stones, no getting away from Thanos.

No seeing Hela ever again.

And it was that thought, despite everything, that was getting you through this. Despite everything Thanos and the Mind Stone was telling you, promising you, you found yourself still going back to Hela in what was left of your own mind. Found yourself wishing that you were back on her ship, in her quarters, listening to her talk about the minute details that went into planning battles or how she had terrorized her parents as a child while she gently braided your hair. You would give anything to go back in time and re-do everything that you had done in the Collector’s tower. You would never have put yourself between Hela and Thanos, would never have tempted fate by speaking on things you knew little about.

But if you could just figure out how to break free from the Stone, you could at least try. You could find an escape vessel, get back to Knowhere and find Hela and make sure that she was okay after everything that had happened. Perhaps you’d even find it in you to admit to Hela how you had started to feel about her, even though you knew that nothing could ever come from the admittance.

Even though you knew that you could never come between Hela and her desire for power.

Sparing a glance at Thanos to make sure he was still preoccupied with something else, you closed your eyes again, putting every ounce of focus you could into your own consciousness as you struggled with the Stone’s rooted deep in your mind, holding on to your thoughts and your memories with such strength that it felt as though it had been embedded in the very fabric of your existence, threaded with each and every thought and memory and idea in your mind until it was hard to tell what was still you and what was the Stone now. You could feel it tugging and pulling and fighting back, and it only made you want to fight back even more as you fought to regain control of yourself. You felt the pit in your stomach give another gut-wrenching tug that almost knocked the wind out of you, and for a terrifying moment, you felt that horrible flicker again, for longer than you’d ever felt it. You tried to ignore it, and steeled yourself to keep fighting against the Stone’s control.

And then all of a sudden, your mind cleared itself of its own accord, as though a switch had been flipped and all that remained was a blank space for the Stone and Thanos to use to their advantage.

You’d been caught.

And there was no telling what the punishment was going to be.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Thanos’ voice was collected and even, and it scared you far more than you had the words for.

You swallowed thickly, even as you turned to look at him with as much innocence as you could muster, hoping that, despite his presence in your mind, you’d be able to concoct a convincing lie.

“…I don’t… know what happened,” you tried, making your brow furrow. “I think… I thought about Hela again, and there was a little part of me, despite myself, that tried to… come back. Fight back.” Imbuing your lie with a little bit of the truth seemed like a good way to sound honest, and you hoped that it would work.

“I thought I told you you didn’t have to worry about her anymore?” If Thanos suspected anything, he didn’t outwardly show it. It was hard to decipher what he was feeling, when his voice was so eerily calm, balanced in a way that felt threatening and dangerous.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me. I’ll… I’m trying to be better.” You bowed your head, playing up your innocence to the best of your ability, and with the way your power was being drained and leaving you hardly able to keep yourself up, you thought you might actually look convincing.

“If that were true, you wouldn’t be trying to lie to me.”

In an instant, Thanos’ voice had gone from calm to deadly, laced with promising threat.

Your blood ran cold.

“Have you forgotten that with the power of the Stone, I’m present in your mind, whether you like it or not? You’re foolish to think that someone like you could overpower an Infinity Stone. Your power may be helpful, but it’s no match against magic like that.”

You took a shaky breath, nodding to yourself as you gathered every ounce of your courage, trying to ignore the Stone attempting to keep your mind at bay and your body subdued. “I’m stronger than you think. And I’m not scared of you.” You lifted your chin high, even as you trembled from the effort of it. The pit in your stomach had begun to spread, and you could feel a hollow numbness in its place, coiling and seeping outward as Thanos took a step toward you. If this was how you were going to go out, it wasn’t going to be without a fight. “Hela’s going to find you. Even when you kill me, Hela’s going to find you, and she’s going to massacre you with a smile on her face all the while, and gods, I wish I could be there to witness it.”

Thanos sneered, looking more self-satisfactory than anything else, and before you could say or do anything else, he had grabbed you by the forearm and hauled you up.

But the direct contact was the catalyst for the numbness that had started to leak to the rest of your body. And with the touch, it felt as though you had been snapped in two, but not your body. Your being. You felt the numbness surge throughout the rest of your body, encompassing every nerve-ending and cell until you felt your power fizzle out with one last little flicker of your powers. You fought the urge to crumble under the sudden hollowness left within your body, but Thanos’ grip on your arm was strong enough to keep you upright, even as you felt yourself wilting from the effort of it.

Thanos seemed to realize what had happened shortly after you did, and an unreadable expression crossed his face for just a second before he nodded, almost regretfully.

“Well, I suppose there really is no need for you now.”

You exhaled heavily, steeling yourself as you looked up at him, ready to face whatever was going to come next.

And then there was a horrid sound of metal creaking and bending and snapping, and the entire ship shook with some sort of impact, the force of it knocking you out of Thanos’ grip, and you flew across the room, only coming to a stop as you collided against the sealed doorway, head knocking painfully against the frame, and the world faded to black.

[atlas-of-a-human-soul]

are you doing to make a part 4 to the riven one? i’m in love, it’s so good!!

Come back to me

Pairing: Riven x light!fairy

(A/N - there's a little nod to my Silva fic in this one 😂 I finally managed to type this out despite my burned fingers, but the burns are healing. Also, does anyone have an idea for a theme song for this mini series?)

========================

Y/N felt on edge as she listened to the girls talking about a dress they saw while they were on Earth with Bloom. Despite trying to engage, she could hardly hear their voices from the constant pounding of her unsettling heartbeat in her ears.

Swallowing thickly, she glances at the door with a thought, 'What if something happens to Riv?'

Shaking her head, she lets out a heavy sigh, noticing Musa's gaze lingering on her a little too long to ignore. It's more than likely that Musa can feel the dread gripping Y/N's insides and Y/N hoped she wouldn't ask questions because she didn't know if she had the ability to lie anymore.

Gasping as the door slammed open with Sky rushing through had sent Y/N in a state of panic.

"You have to hide or leave Alfea", Sky spoke quickly and loudly, yet Y/N caught the subtle tremors in his usually steady voice.

"What are you talking about?" Stella narrows her eyes at him, unnerved by the way he barged into the room.

Grabbing Bloom by the hand, Sky rolls his eyes, "I'm talking about Rosalind testing out students in direct confrontation with the Burned ones!"

"What?!" Bloom hisses, yanking her hand back, "What does that mean?" She furrows her eyebrows, glancing at the girls.

Gripping Bloom by her arms, Sky shakes her ever so slightly to get her attention, "It means that Rosalind is setting Burned ones loose on the school to test everyone."

Drawing a shuddered breath, Y/N stands on her shaky legs, "Sky", she steps closer, "Where is Riven? Does he know?" Her lips quiver as Sky's jaw clenched and her heart skips a beat with his answer.

"Y/N, please leave. All of you need to go."

Hands trembling, Y/N realized Riven did know of this. He knew and he asked her to find company so she wouldn’t be alone and in a way, it warmed her heart. In other ways it had made her mad - instead of sticking close to her, he decided to throw himself in danger’s way. 

Is he going to fight these things or is he the one standing guard while others are butchered?

"I will once you tell me where the fuck is he", Y/N raises her voice ever so slightly, much more determined than before.

"He's waiting for me to come back", sighing, Sky licks his lips, "We want to stop Rosalind." Glancing at Bloom, Sky frowns because he knew Y/N was told the truth but he never told Bloom anything. "Tonight", he adds and Y/N nods.

"So you two are playing heroes?" Chuckling dryly, she folds her arms across her chest, "You want to get killed?"

"Sky, I'm not leaving if you're not", Bloom steps back and Y/N moves next to her.

"I don't give a shit about what Riven or you say, I'm staying." Y/N states, suppressing the thought of how angry Riven would be at her stubborn refusal or how amusing he'd find her swearing again.

"One of the soldiers we managed to get on guard duty is helping Silva escape tonight. If we manage to stop Rosalind and", Sky pauses as his eyes flicker to Stella.

"And my mom", Stella finishes for him and he nods, adding, "And my father, we could regain Alfea's independence again."

Swallowing thickly, Y/N inhales sharply, "You said Riven is waiting for you?"

Sky nods and she heads for the door, "Come on, we don't have much time. Sundown is upon us."

Sky lead the girls to the archive room, careful not to draw too much attention. After all, one wrong move and the rebellion would be over.

Faced with the possibility of such consequences, Y/N refuses the very thought of giving up. She didn’t care what peril awaits, only that Riven is in the line of fire. 

Some say to grow up means you have to move on from the ones you're attached to, but Y/N thought you’re meant to hold them closer to your heart. The tender, small gestures are what matters and perhaps Riven isn’t a hopeless romantic she once thought she’d end up with, but Riven is her beginning, her middle and she’s hoping he’ll be her end too.

As Sky opens the doors, Y/N holds her breath as her eyes find Riven. It’s a basic instinct, second nature really. Riven didn’t see her as Sky stood tall before her but the moment they stepped further inside, Riven’s gaze fell to her and she couldn’t read him; not anymore. His stare, his parted lips, his silence had unnerved Y/N and she didn’t know what to say or do. 

“What the fuck is she doing here?” Riven snaps at Sky, but his eyes are chained to Y/N. “Take her back, take all of them back!” Riven shouts and Y/N rolls her eyes at him.

“Did you just”, Riven chuckles dryly as he nears her, “roll your eyes at me?” 

“Yes”, Y/N raises an eyebrow, “I can do it again if you didn’t get the full experience the first time around.”

“What’s going on?” Terra pipes in, nervous as she tries to step between the two.

“They’re boning”, Musa steps in as well, giving Y/N a pointed look.

“AM NOT”, Y/N exclaims, scoffing at Musa’s knowing smirk. “We’re...” Y/N trails off, unsure what they are. They’ve kissed a few times, exchanged love proclamations and he wrote her love notes...well, Riven’s version of love notes.

“I’m whatever she wants me to be”, Riven sighs, taking her by the hand.

Nodding, Terra steps aside. She joins the girls and Sky, giving the pair a chance to clear things.

“I asked you to stay inside”, Riven speaks softly, quietly enough for Y/N to hear but not the others.

“And I would if you weren’t on a suicide mission.” Wetting her lips, Y/N wraps her arms around Riven, pulling him in for a hug. She can feel his muscles relax under the palm of her hand, bringing a smile to her face. “Don’t be the hero, Riv.”

Parting, she swallows thickly as he furrows his eyebrows, “But heroes get all the girls.” Chuckling, he tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear, “And I have one particular girl I want to make mine.”

“Ever thought she might be a sucker for the bad boys?” Smirking, Y/N can feel her heart is where it’s supposed to be, with Riven. When he smiles like this; when his eyes smile even when his lips are still, that’s when she can sense both the gravity of the situation and his love shining through. 

“Don’t be the hero, Riv”, she repeats, “I’d rather be with a bad boy than a dead hero.”

He nods with that serious look that still has his warm eyes, "While you're by my side, Sunshine, I promise I won’t be reckless. Not when I have you to come back to." 

And that's just what Y/N needed to hear, that he's hers for now and into the future... that there will be a future... one they can survive.

“Riv”, Sky calls out, “It’s time.”

As Riven’s hand captures Y/N’s, the sense of dread inside her grows. It’s taken root and she can’t help but fear for Riven’s safety. For all of their safety.

PART 5

[imkylotrash]

I Don’t Know Why You Say Goodbye

Pairing: Saul Silva x reader

Request: Graduation is coming up and while Saul is preparing for a break up, you’re getting ready to propose. Anonymous And Is it possible for a Saul Silva x reader where the reader is related to Ben, Sam, and Terra? Maybe she takes a job at the school to help train the earth fairies after the Burned Ones start appearing more? Anonymous

Tagging: @grey-girl @intoanothermind @anreeixcobra @kingunder221b @lflores2008 @alexiapayne12 @quuenofblacks @quarterback-5 @estelmei @bitchwhytho @music-of-melody @artsyle​ @baueoud @glowingatdawn @shadowhuntyi​

Summer is inching closer and with summer comes graduation. It’s the perfect time for you to take your relationship with Saul to the next level with the help of your trusty siblings Terra and Sam. You haven’t spoken much about what you’re going to do after graduation but you know you want Saul. You want to build a life with him and you’re ready to start now. 

“Just going to put this out there, okay? Flowers.” You burst out laughing not because it’s not a good idea but because it’s so typical to acquire the help of two earth fairies and their biggest contribution is flowers. 

While you’re busy making a plan for how to give Saul the best proposal, he’s in Farah’s office worried about what might happen after graduation. 

“Surely, they’ll want to see the world. Travel. Perhaps we can take a break so she has that chance,” he says thinking out loud much to Farah’s dismay. She just so happens to know what you’re planning but she’s been sworn to secrecy by your dad who was not supposed to share the news with anyone. 

“Or maybe they’re perfectly happy where they are,” she offers but Saul isn’t convinced. He’s never been as happy as he is now and if life has taught him anything, it’s that what goes up must come down at some point. And he’s fearing graduation is the day where he has to come down. 

But you, on the other hand, are more than excited. You keep fidgeting in your seat too impatient to wait much longer. The second you have your diploma, you run over to hug Saul. 

“Come with me,” you whisper in his ear dragging him with you. Sam gives you a subtle thumbs up while Terra gives a not so subtle squeal of excitement. Luckily, Saul is too distracted to notice either. 

“Where are we going?” Saul asks wishing he could delay what is inevitably going to happen next. 

“I just have something really important I want to talk to you about.” This is it. This is the part where he loses you, he thinks to himself but you’re not a mind reader and you’re not an empath. Too busy with your own excitement, you barely notice his glum facial expression. 

“Stand right here,” you say once you reach the middle of the grass field outside of Alfea. 

“Look, we don’t have to make such a big deal out of this. I already know what you’re going to say,” Saul starts and immediately your face falls. Who told him?

“You already know?” you ask wondering why he doesn’t seem happier about it. Even if he knows you’re going to propose, shouldn’t he be happy about it? Unless he’s going to say no. 

“There’s no reason to have this grand gesture. I agree, it’s probably for the best that we break up.” Your heart shatters and you can’t do anything other than stare at him. Suddenly, the black velvet box feels heavy in your pocket. 

“Is that what you want?” You’ve never felt this tiny before. He might as well just finish the job and stamp on the pieces of your heart not completely mauled by his words. 

“Of course, I don’t. I thought it’s what you wanted? Isn’t that what this is about?” He gestures with his arms now worried he might have got this all wrong. 

“It’s not what I want. At all.” He looks sheepish now realising that he’s got this whole thing wrong.

“Okay. Good,” you breathe out feeling relief wash over you, “then shut up so you don’t ruin this.” He keeps his mouth closed in a thin line to prevent him from saying anything else. This is probably the easiest it’s ever been for you in regards to channelling positive feelings. The sunlight starts flickering creating several tiny rainbows wherever your magic moves. It’s some of the most complicated magic you’ve ever done but Farah had been teaching you how to control the light to your advantage just for this moment right here. 

“This is beautiful,” he whispers in awe of your powers. It takes an enormous amount of effort to concentrate but you manage to form the rainbows into letters one by one. 

W I L L   Y O U   M A R R Y   M E ?

You furrow your brows in concentration as you try to hold onto the magical rainbows while simultaneously getting down on your knees holding out the ring. It’s a simple band with the today’s date engraved but you knew he wouldn’t want anything fancy. 

“Of course. There’s only one answer to that. Yes!” He helps you stand up again completely taken aback as you slide the ring onto his finger. 

“You sure? It’s a step in a very different direction than a break up?” you tease him with tears in your eyes. You’re so happy you wonder why you haven’t burst yet. It can’t be possibly for a person to be filled with this much happiness. 

“Funny,” he says right before kissing you. It’s hot and forceful letting you know just how happy he is. 

“Done with the moping around, I see.” Farah is standing there watching the two of you and your whole family as well. You look over at Saul but clearly, that’s a conversation for another day. They all congratulate you exchanging hugs and kisses. There are tears and laughter and it couldn’t be better than this. 

“A toast to the happy couple,” your dad exclaims bringing out the champagne. Terra and Sam complains loudly when they realise they’ll be getting soda instead of champagne. Their bickering with dad makes you feel nostalgic. You’ve hardly graduated and you already miss them. 

“Congratulations, my sweetheart.” Your dad hugs tightly once more. If this is as good as it gets, you have no complaints. Right now, you are utterly and incandescently happy. 

[phoenix-downer]

Melody of Memory Thoughts

I finished the game yesterday and have a lot of thoughts on it, so I thought I’d stick them all in one megapost. Contains spoilers, for obvious reasons. 

So, going into the game, I knew the plot choices would be questionable/disappointing because a few friends warned me, but I didn’t know the exact details. I was actually relieved things weren’t as bad as I feared they might be—I was worried Kairi would be going back to sleep or going back to Destiny Islands to patiently wait, so at least we did not get that. I think knowing what I was getting into beforehand helped prepare me for the plot points we did get. 

Gameplay

I’ll talk about the gameplay first because that’s easier to summarize. I had a lot of fun with it, and the trip down memory lane with all the familiar music was wonderful. I played with Sora, Donald, Goofy, and then Terra, Aqua, and Ventus, and it was really satisfying in particular to play as the latter three because I always wanted to see them fighting as a team more often. I need to try out the other teams; perhaps I will soon. 

I loved the attention to detail with the character animations and the little loading screens. The main menu scenes were adorable too, and it was nice seeing the characters chatting to each other. Riku’s scene with the Dream Eaters was precious. 

I played the songs on various difficulties, depending on the extra challenges. One thing I did notice is that the difficulty was variable even for the same level. Some Proud mode songs I was able to complete, others I really struggled with and gave up on for the time being. I can imagine it was difficult to create a consistent standard of difficulty when the music itself varies so much. I noticed that battle songs, songs with strong downbeats, and songs with syncopation translated better into rhythm games. The slower songs did not, and for a couple of songs I noticed that the buttons were not matching up with the rhythm, which threw me through a loop. Overall though, most of the music matches the timing of the buttons much better than in previous KH games, so I appreciated the improvement there. 

The Memory Dive and Boss Battle system is different from the Field Battle system, so there was a learning curve for me there. KH3 features more Memory Dive segments though, probably to show off the nicer graphics and to prepare you for the final battle. By the time I got the hang of the Memory Dive system, I was enjoying myself a lot. I still wish KH3 songs had featured more, but perhaps they’re planning on a Melody of Memory Volume 2 or some DLC or something. 

Pretty much all of the character themes have to be unlocked. I’ve done Kairi’s, Naminé’s, and Sora’s so far, and the videos accompanying them are really nice. I honestly wish I could watch someone play so I can pay attention to the videos because the glimpses I catch are lovely.

Maybe it’s because I marathoned the game, but it does start to feel grind-y after several hours of playing. It’s the kind of grinding I enjoy doing, but by the time I unlocked BBS and DDD, I stopped trying to complete the extra challenges because I wanted to get to the plot. Speaking of the plot, by the way, all of the new stuff is at the end of the game. Everything up till then is just a summary of what’s come before. I do understand why Nomura went with that, but it does make it a little tiring to get to the new plot because of the sheer number of songs you have to get through first. 

Now that we’re discussing story, though...

Story

I. The Good

1. Kairi is playable (well, this is more gameplay, but it also ties into story). 

I know a lot of people watched videos that cut out the gameplay, but she does get a couple of segments of her own where she is playable and you get to do a Memory Dive-esque segment. The first instance is set to “Stranded Beyond,” the music that plays in the Final World. The second instance is set to the music box version of her theme I believe it was as she gathers pieces of her heart. She did get a render for the game, so I was expecting her to be playable at some point, and I was happy she was. 

2. Kairi puts up a darn good fight against Xehanort. I wish we could have played through this part, but she kept attacking and didn't let him grabbing her Keyblade deter her. She's clearly improved even since the Keyblade Graveyard. 

3. Sora showing up to help her is really sweet, as was her thanking him. 

It would've been nice if we got to do that fight as the two of them or as Kairi herself (and more on that later), but the romance of it all was nice. The boy's not even in the real world anymore, and he still shows up to help when Kairi’s is in danger. At first I thought she'd managed to summon his Keyblade, which is awesome and shows how connected they are, and then he appeared and I was like woah okay guess their hearts really are connected thanks to the paopu fruit. 

 4. Kairi’s going to train with Aqua! Yes! 

The fans have been clamoring for this for years and it's finally happening! And she chose it for herself. Leave it to her to try to make the best of the short end of the stick. 

5. Letting Riku go alone takes a lot of trust on her end. Yeah, it would've been nice if she got to go, but she's also realistic about her own abilities, and that is in line with how she's been in previous games. I think especially after her failures led to Sora disappearing, she'd be hesitant to rush into danger if she's worried she'd be a liability.

6. It was a pleasant surprise that the Nameless Star was the third key (with Kairi and Riku being the other two) and not Yozora. I thought for sure he would be, so I’m glad Nameless Star gets to be instead. She seems like a kind soul and I like her a lot already. 

7. It was nice hearing Kairi's thoughts on Sora's sacrifice for her in KH1. I also love the implication that everyone’s told Kairi their stories, hence why she’s able to tell them to us. The BBS segments especially sound as if she spoke to Aqua in particular about what happened, which ties in nicely to how Aqua’s going to train her at the end. 

8. Alyson upped her voice acting game in this, props to her. Her lines when Kairi was facing off against Xehanort were great, and her voice was very soothing to listen to for the narration. 

III. The Bad

1. Kairi should've been playable in that last battle. I can see why Nomura had Sora show up though; he's the hero and people want to see him, etc. The same issue happened with Riku getting sidelined in KH3, so it's hardly unique to Kairi; it just seems worse because of Kairi’s past treatment. Sora showing up was a cool moment and looked neat visually, but it would’ve been better if he and Kairi had fought together or if he’d encouraged her and then she’d done the fighting herself. Sadly, Sora winds up shining more in this game than Kairi does as a result, and the advertising feels like a huge bait-and-switch. Again. 

I'm honestly beginning to wonder if part of the story for ReMind was written after Melody of Memory, because Melody of Memory seems to follow more directly from KH3 whereas ReMind almost feels like it was written... in reaction to the fanbase being upset about how Kairi was treated? I think Nomura must’ve had his heart set on certain plot points for the story post-KH3, and instead of letting his characters guide him, he’s forcing his decisions on the characters. Which leads me to the next point: 

2. Kairi staying behind does feel like a character regression. It made sense in KH1 and during Blank Points I suppose, but it's disappointing she didn't go with Riku this time. I guess it's realistic though, and so the whole plot point is a mixed bag. It's hard for me to make a final judgment call on this until we see more of the story. Is she training with Aqua so she can be shunted aside, or is she going to be in a game with Terra, Aqua, and Ven that delves into Ven's past or something? Until we know more, I’m not sure how to feel. 

3. If I had to guess, the next game(s) will have Riku, Yozora, and Mickey be playable. Possibly Sora too because Nomura can't help himself lol. This is... about what I expected. I figured Riku would be the one in Yozora's world just based on the secret ending of KH3. I wonder how all of this is going to go down (I know Square has several KH teams now, so multiple games are probably in development right now). 

4. I don’t know how I feel about us possibly getting DDD the Redux + Yozora for the 20th anniversary in 2022. Having another DDD-esque game would not be treading any new ground, and it feels like Nomura wants to do Versus XIII at all costs, the main plot of KH be hanged (hi Foretellers and Luxu, we miss you, you were disappointingly absent in this game). But I do think the Yozora game is next in the cards, and then maybe there will be another game focused on Mickey going to Scala ad Caelum. I really hope it's not just Mickey by himself in that game... And I’d really like a game about the Wayfinder Trio + Kairi...

5. Riku's character is getting worse and worse. His entire character has become about saving Sora, and saving Sora isn't any different than his role in DDD. Feels like a rehash of past plot points, much like Kairi having to train feels like a rehash of past plot points. And at this point it just feels like he’s taking away screentime and agency from other characters, Kairi in particular. David also kind of phoned in the voice acting again on this game. To be fair, he only had a handful of lines, but some of his lines in KH3 also sounded tired and bored. 

6. There’s only a passing mention to Roxas, Naminé, Xion, Axel, etc., and not even by name (they’re just lumped together as the others in Twilight Town or something along those lines). It would've been nice to know what they've been up to; they feel strangely uninvolved in the plot. At least we know Kairi will be training with Aqua, so there's that. 

7. I really wish Kairi had argued with Riku more about going. She did briefly, but it's sad that she gives up so easily and that Riku doesn't really trust her. It's such a huge contrast to how Sora treats her; whereas he believes in her and raises her up, Riku is like, "Nah, you should stay behind, you're not good enough yet, let me handle this." Riku still coddles her too much and treats her like she’s a doll on a shelf whereas Sora invites her to fight alongside him in ReMind and comes to her aid when she needs it. Riku comes out of this looking like a jerk, which I doubt was intended by Nomura, but it is what it is. Especially because Mickey is really worried about him going alone later on. 

8. Kairi's backstory being used only to forward the plot instead of delving into her feelings more is a missed opportunity. Also features retcons galore with Xehanort apparently sending her away to save Radiant Garden all along? That part confused me. And the meta implication that Riku is getting to go on the journey she was originally meant to go on... It makes me wonder if Nomura thinks the implications of his writing through. Riku is literally stealing her role and her plotline now, and neither of them react like two people in such a situation would. I hope Nomura’s going somewhere with this and that it's not just completely unintended bad implications, or worse, fully intended bad implications...

III. Miscellaneous Thoughts

1. It's hard to know how to feel about this game without knowing the next chapters of the story. It does feel like it leads directly from KH3, but it feels like a regression character-wise from ReMind. 

2. I hope Kairi going to train with Aqua isn't just an excuse to sideline her from the plot... again. I have some serious caveats about her role going forward, but I'm relieved she didn't go to sleep again or go back home to Destiny Islands. That was my worst fear, and thank goodness she is taking her fate into her own hands in the small ways she can. I wonder if this is Nomura trying to continue a plot point from BBS Volume 2 that had to be scrapped or something. Let's hope Aqua can actually teach her competently, unlike Merlin...

3. Mickey getting a Melody of Memory render confuses me. He wasn't playable, was he? I didn't 100% the game so I have no idea. Maybe he is playable somewhere in the game and I haven’t gotten to it yet. Or maybe he really will be playable in a future game as a main character. 

4. No one will ever be able to claim Kairi is a Mary Sue lol. She's had an (almost disappointingly realistic) learning curve when it comes to fighting, especially in comparison to the other characters. I hope that by the time KH4 rolls around, Nomura will let her be fully competent/fully trained. It's frustrating that pretty much all of the other characters get to learn as they go, but she is relegated to more training.

5. This game almost makes me more impatient for the next chapter of the story when I was feeling pretty content after ReMind. I guess the game has done its job in that case, but while I feel better than I did after KH3, I feel slightly worse than I did after ReMind. I wish Nomura wasn't so fixated on maintaining the status quo and would stop rehashing past plot points. But again, it'll be hard to judge all this until we get more material, which probably won't be till 2022 at the earliest if I had to guess.

6. The Yozora stuff wasn't as hackneyed as I feared it would be, but I still can't shake the feeling that that whole plot point is sucking up precious screentime from other characters. I think Nomura's going to spread himself too thin again and have trouble wrapping all of this up in KH4. Because now we have the Riku-going-to-Yozora's-world plotline, the Mickey-going-to-Scala-ad-Caelum plotline, the Kairi-training-with-Aqua plotline, the overall-rescuing-Sora plotline, the Luxu-Foretellers-MoM plotline, the Subject X plotline... how on earth are all these plotlines supposed to be connected to each other and resolved in a satisfying fashion?

7. My guess is that the switch to Kairi being narrator instead of Chirithy happened late into development of the game, perhaps because Nomura saw how much the fanbase does appreciate Kairi and wanted to throw us a bone. Unfortunately, what resulted is a bait-and-switch that made us hope we'd get a Kairi-focused game, only for it to... end the way it does. Ironically, I think it might've been less disappointing if Chirithy had remained the narrator. I'm glad Kairi got to be the narrator, don't get me wrong, but I think the way Nomura handled things set us up for disappointment again. I just hope whatever comes next makes this game feel better in hindsight.

8. I’m not entirely sure what to make of the whole “unreality”/fictional worlds thing. I guess I’m having an easier time accepting it than I thought I might, but it still feels like the whole plotline was introduced just to shove Versus XIII into the KH universe. I sympathize with Nomura for having his baby taken away from him in the first place, but I worry both it and KH will suffer as a result of combining the two. 

IV. Future Speculation

1. If I had to guess, Kairi is probably not going to be very involved in the Yozora game(s). It'll be focused on Riku, Yozora, and possibly Mickey and Sora too. Yozora and Nameless Star will probably be instrumental in bringing Sora back "to the real world,” and then Sora will come home just in time to have to face off against the Foretellers and the Master of Masters in KH4 (which, I'm gonna make a wild guess and assume we'll get in 2025 or 2026 at the earliest).

2. I do hope Kairi plays some role in bringing Sora back, and honestly, I think it's possible she will. Nomura, I would imagine, is setting up her reunion with Sora to be Big and Important™️, so it wouldn't surprise me if he wants to save it for KH4. I think a part of Sora’s heart might be inside Kairi or linked to Kairi, and that will be the final key to bringing him back. The whole scene where Sora appeared reminded me of when Ven briefly manifested when Sora was facing off against Vanitas, and Ven was inside Sora’s heart at the time. 

3. We know from past covers that the current cover actually foreshadows future events in the story. KH3's cover depicts parts of Tokyo and then Sora wakes up there (oh excuse me "Quadratum" lol nice one SQUARE), the KH2 Final Mix cover depicted The Final World, so maybe MoM's cover is meant to depict future events as well.

4. Sora being unable to speak in Kairi’s dream when he faces off against Xehanort has me intrigued. Why can’t he speak? Is it because his heart is in the unreality? All I can think about is The Little Mermaid when Ariel lost her voice because of Ursula’s curse “deal” with her. 

5. I don’t think the person Kairi and Sora actually fought was Xehanort. Why would a dead Xehanort care about where Sora is? It would make more sense to me if it was the Master of Masters (hinted at by the acronym for the title, MoM), and that he was using Xehanort’s image (and then Xemnas’s, and then Ansem SOD’s, and then Apprentice Xehanort...) to manipulate Kairi. It would fit his whole “puppetmaster behind the scenes” vibe I get from him and his previous manipulation of Xehanort. I think he was trying to locate Sora’s heart in this game, and Sora stepping in to help Kairi allowed him to pinpoint Sora’s location. Now he seems to know where Sora’s heart is, so mission accomplished, I guess? Ooooph, Sora walked right into that trap if that’s the case.

V. Final Thoughts

Fun if uneven gameplay and some questionable story choices dragging down the good stuff. I’ll hold my full judgment till we see what happens next though. 

Congrats if you made it all the way to the end of this, haha. I’d be happy to hear your thoughts! 

[lustfordespair]

Crimson & Clover [ Peter Quill X Reader ]

Note: This story takes place after Endgame! (Y/N) has been with the Guardians since the ending of the movie, she was originally with the Avengers but she wanted to travel with Earth's Mightiest Hero, Thor. Over time after looking for Gamora, they choose to take a break, thus developing (Y/N) and Peter's.. unspoken thing. Their bond grows quite close over time and soon closer once Quill finds out her love for old music. Also, I have this story posted on Wattpad as well, but it’s with an oc, so I made a reader one on here:) Anyways, enjoy the story!

They travelled peacefully in the Milano, Nebula relaxing in the corner next to (Y/N) whilst Rocket, Drax, Groot, Mantis, and Thor made casual conversation, sometimes bullying Quill and stating that Thor was better than him (which that comment was mostly made by Rocket ) Quill would ignore the animal, focused on piloting the spacecraft.

"So (Y/N), how was life on Earth? You were there longer than Quill, correct?" Mantis asked the (H/C), (Y/N) sat up and formed a smile on her face, "Aha, yes correct. Life on Earth has changed a lot since Quill was last there. Walkmans turned into spotify and cameras turned into iphones. Music has changed a lot since then too." She answered. Mantis nodded as she got her responses.

"I bet you don't even know the amazing way music used to be. 70's / 80's are the best and always will be." Quill stated, "I find music in general quite annoying at times, I enjoy the silence." Thor spoke. Peter rolled his eyes, which stated he didn't care for a response from him.

(Y/N) stood up and made her way to the speakers of the Milano and connected the Ipod she still had from Terra, soon music made it's way through the speakers, it blasted modern day music, she played a Lady Gaga song as a joke, to be specific 'Paparazzi' Quill put the Milano in auto-pilot immediately and got up.

"Wha-What kind of music is this?" he shouted, "You've just proven my statement to be correct, (Y/N) ." The woman ignored him and playfully sang along with the song, the walked towards Nebula and laid on her, dramatically singing the song which caused Mantis and Thor to chuckle. "You look like an idiot!" Rocket stated as soon as he bursted into laughter. "Why thank you very much!" She replied. She quickly got of Nebula, lucky enough that she was able to lay there even for a second. Quill simply rolled his eyes, crossed his arms, and chuckled at the dork she was being "Got any better music than that?" he questioned.

(Y/N) smiled, staring up at the man, "Well I do indeed as a matter of fact, maybe something you'd like." she grabbed the Ipod and scrolled through it, finding one of her most favorite songs in the world.

Ahhh

Now I don't hardly know her..

She started swaying to the music and singing it softly to herself, whilst the rest of the Guardians went to their rooms, knowing there was some type of chemistry going on between the two, before Groot heads out, she grabs the teenage plant by the hand and begins to dance with him. Rocket, Mantis, and Drax staying behind watching them.

But I think I could love her

Crimson and clover..

(Y/N) kept dancing with the plant who was confused but yet enjoyed the attention, Drax walks up next to Quill and whispers to him, saying words he once said before , "There are those who dance and there are those who do not. (Y/N) does. You do. The two of you are equally pathetic." Mantis walks up towards the two and places a hand on Quill's, "I can tell you do have romantic feelings for her, why don't you go for it?" she asked.

The man removed his hand from Mantis' touch and sighed, "But.. Gamora." he spoke, being cut off by a surprising Nebula, "This Gamora is different Quill. She does not remember you or anything that happened after 2014, sadly all we know she is was snapped away with Thanos or the simple fact.. she does not want to be found if she is hiding this hard." The three looked at Nebula, surprised she would even make a statement in this situation.

Mantis made her way towards (Y/N) and Groot, tapping the male on the shoulder, signaling him to move, with that and no hesitation Mantis began dancing with (Y/N), with the only intention to touch her hand.

Ah,

when she comes walking over

Now I've been waiting to show her..

While (Y/N) was confused why the lady danced with her, Mantis touched her hand, realizing the (H/C) felt the same way towards Quill, perhaps even stronger feelings. "Do you like Peter?" she asked, (Y/N) dumbfounded by the question, blush appearing on her face, "I-If I'm being honest, I like like him a lot and I wouldn't really tell that to anyone but you." Mantis smiled brightly, stopped dancing with the girl and walked away, whispering to the male, "She feels the same." with that comment, the rest left and Quill watched as she danced alone as if no one was watching.

Crimson and clover..

Over and over..

Quill slowly walked up to her, "May I?" he asked, she nodded, placing her hand on his shoulder and one in his hand while he placed the other on her waist. The two danced peacefully together, swaying to the music.

Yeah

My, my such a sweet thing..

(Y/N) didn't once look Peter in the eye, she was still blushing from the question Mantis asked and over the fact she was dancing with the man she found really attractive, charming, and dorky. Peter couldn't help but stare down at her, she was much shorter than him, a small smile formed on his face. Ever since they lost Gamora and were unable to find the 2014 Gamora, Quill hasn't felt very much happy unless he was around (Y/N). He'd be lying if he said he didn't like her, hell maybe even love her after the time and bond they've created together, but he still felt his heart belonged to the Gamora who was no longer with them.

"Hey" the man spoke, causing (Y/N) to finally lift her head up at him, making direct eye contact. It was weird, Quill never felt this way towards anyone besides... you know who. When the 5'4 girl looked up at him, into his eyes, he couldn't but think about how cute she is. Then he remembers Drax's words, 'There are those who dance and those who do not' then Nebula's, 'This Gamora is different Quill, she does not remember you or anything that happened after 2014.' The man then thought to himself, the fact that Gamora cared about him and the fact he was sure she wouldn't want him moping around all the time and missing her. "Quill?" the girl spoke softly, his attention brought back to her, the words that came out of his mouth was something he or (Y/N) didn't expect him to say, "You're so beautiful.." his voice was soft, like hers, maybe even emotional as well.

Although the two knew each other for a couple months, (Y/N) could imagine a future with the man dancing with her, perhaps she was thinking too far, "I'm sorry?" she asked with a confused look, her eyebrow raised and her lips pressed to a thin line. The two kept dancing, "I, uh, said you're very beautiful." He repeated. Peter loved Gamora, now here he his falling for the woman standing before him, at times he would find himself admiring her curves, the way her dimples formed when she smiled, how adorable she was when she laughed, and even the way her hair would fall down after she removed her ponytail after a battle or some sort. He felt no hope for Gamora, the Gamora he knew was gone and the one that exists now.. doesn't remember him or anything else after. So, he decided to give this a shot.

I wanna do everything..

"Listen, (Y/N), I-I like you. A lot even.." he began, "I like you so much I don't know what to do..if I'm being honest, I wanna be with you but I can't help but think about-" "Gamora?" she cut him off, truthfully she expected this, "Yes.. Gamora. But then I have Mantis telling me to go for it, Nebula saying the Gamora today doesn't remember me or anything that happened after 2014 and that if we still have yet to find her, she probably doesn't wanna be found. Even Drax saying how equally pathetic we are." he removed himself from her, standing there, no longer dancing.

The music still played, "And I have Rocket making fun of me for adoring you, Thor constantly teasing me, along with Mantis telling me to go for it." she confessed. After realizing she basically confessed her feelings towards the man, she sighed crossing her arms, "Look, it's all your choice Quill. If you want to give this, us, a shot. I'm not going to force you." (Y/N) turned and began to walk away to her room.

Before she fully exited, Peter grabbed her by the wrist, turning her around and placing a soft desperate kiss on her lips. (Y/N) was shocked but soon found herself returning the kiss.

What a beautiful feeling..

Crimson and clover

Over and over..

The dirty blonde male pulled away, "I do. I do wanna give this a shot." he admitted. "Like I really REALLY wanna give us a shot, you have no idea how bad I want to (Y/N), I just-" the woman placed a finger on his lips and giggled softly, "Shut up and kiss me again, Star-Lord." Once he heard her say that, he immediately kissed her again.

Crimson and clover

Over and over

Crimson and clover

Over and over

"Wanna maybe, I dunno, head to my room?" he asked, winking at her. Knowing what he was obviously implying, she rolled her eyes and replied, "Sure. But my only limit is cuddling Quill, nothing else." Peter sighed, "You called me Star-Lord man.. come on that's like my automatic turn on." (Y/N) simply grabbed his hand and walked towards his sleeping quarters, "Cuddles and kisses." she repeated then whispered, "Maybe something else if you get lucky enough in the future.." Peter blushed and smiled like an idiot, he knew he was gonna enjoy this girl and he knew he made the correct choice of giving this a chance.

Crimson and clover

Over and over

Crimson and clover

Over and over

And like (Y/N), Quill could see a whole future with this woman in front of him.

[frye7]

So I binge watched Fate the winx saga today and I must say I quite liked it.

Here is what I think.

(I wrote SPOILER and put some * in some points so if you don't want to read just go down after the second set of *)

I agree with everyone who said that if they were going to do a remake, they could have kept some things the same. For example, the whole whitewashing thing was totally unnecessary and uncalled for, and I get why a lot of people are angry for it.

That said, I really liked how Musa came out. As for Terra, is still unclear if they want to keep her as a replacement for Flora or if for some unknown reason she actually is her cousin and is there instead of her and we will see Flora in the future or not. And Terra is such a sweetheart, you can't hate her. So I get it they are not their original selves, but they don't need to feel all this hatred from the fandom, as the actresses don't. As for Tecna, who knows, maybe we'll see her in the future as well.

Personally I have never liked Riven and in the show that hasn't changed, but I think they did him justice.

I think Sky was okay too, and I am as frustrated as you all are about the absence of Brandon, Timmy and Helia, especially Brandon, I loved their brotp in the original. But who knows, maybe they'll be added in the future as well.

Now for the Winx.

I really really really liked how they did Bloom. I think she is the one they kept the most similar to the original character between them. Hot headed, stubborn, determined, not too caring about the rules and a bit too trusting sometimes, but not too much.

(SPOILER

*****

I don't believe for a minute she is either a Ravenclaw nor a Slytherin, thank you very much)

*****

Stella, well. I think she is the most out of character between them. The first few episodes I was really shocked by how she was behaving with her roommates. Then she improved but I wish they had given her more screen time.

(SPOILER

*****

The fact that they completely erased her first meeting with Bloom and, like, everything about their friendship almost made me close the app more than once. I mean, their friendship is one of my favorite things about the original Winx club and not seeing it at all here really did upset me. And yes I liked the friendship Bloom has with Aisha instead, but it simply is not the same and I don't think it will ever be, so THEY BETTER FIX IN THE NEXT SEASON.

Also I didn't really like how rushed her change of heart was. I mean she did the right thing in the end, but for me it was strange to see her going from almost getting Bloom killed in one episode and then helping her discover the truth about herself breaking Faragonda knows how many rules in the process (even if that had never been a problem for our Stella) without even having a proper conversation with her. She calls her a "pain in the ass" and then basically says "but she needs answers and is our friend" and just like that they are all friends again.

Honestly I would have liked to see more scenes of our fairies just chilling together and doing nothing but bond and get to know each others. Hope they'll fix this too in the next season.)

*****

Musa, well, I really liked her and her powers. I know I know that they have nothing to do with music, but they fit her well. And yes, whitewashing her was wrong and unnecessary, and we all agree on it. That said, I really liked the job her actress did and I hope fans won't throw on her all their hatred for decisions she had nothing to do about.

Terra is the same, I liked her, she is a sweetheart but can stand up for herself when she wants to. And I think the same things I said about Musa and the fans and their hatred.

Surprisingly, I really liked Aisha as well. I say surprisingly because I couldn't stand her in the original series, but that could only be me. Anyway, she is a good person and a very good friend, and that's it. She cares for her roommates and help them when they need it.

SPOILER

*****

Okay maybe at the end we all didn't like when she snitched them at the headmistress, but could you blame her? None of them knew the truth, yet Bloom wanted to free a potential threat, putting in danger the entire school when she could have waited A DAY and the headmistress would have talked to her and told her everything (or, at least, what said headmistress thought was the truth).

So yeah I didn't like her in that moment either, but I could hardly blame her, so..

*****

As for Beatrix, her presence was neutral to me, meaning that I didn't particularly like or dislike her. Sometimes she was a bit too dramatic but honestly who wasn't?

She is NOT a fusion of the Trix by the way, she has nothing to do with them at all in fact.

SPOILER

*****

About that, since they mentioned the blood witches, do you think that this could mean that we'll see the witches on the show too? I seriously hope so, I mean, in the original show there couldn't be Winx without Trix. And since the girls of the Winx club have just now became a group, maybe the Trix we'll be there to contrast them in the future. Also the Dragon Flame is mentioned at the end of the first season as well, and the Trix were after that, so... I don't know, one can only hope.

*****

Overall the plot was good, but I wish there were more episodes to develope it. Some things are still unclear, but I think that's normal for a first season of any series, especially one with such a few episodes to start with.

Oh and I LOVED the last episode, I literally SCREAMED at one point.

So please, before you judge it or decide to sabotate it or to hate it on principle, please at least watch a few episodes first.

I think there is a lot of hatred for this series just because it's not the copy of the original, and I get it. I get it okay? I get that it feels like they only kept the name of the series we all loved as children as still like now just to have us watch this new product.

They did so many changes it may not seem the same thing at all with the original, and for some aspects it's not, but IT WORKS. Heck, in some points I even thought that it felt more real, and then I realized that was probably the purpose of those many changes (not all of them, let's be clear, I'm NOT talking about the whitewashing)

I'm Italian and I grew up with those fairies and I still keep them close to my heart, so I was in the front line for having doubts about this show. And yet, I watched it out of curiosity and I'm happy I did it.

It is not perfect, it is not the best show I have ever seen and I wish they had done some things differently (like the whitewashing, the change in some characters, and all of that), but it is good, and I like it.

I'll definitely watch it again and also wait for the second season with much more positive attitude than when I was waiting for this season to come out.

[tatyana-dreaming]

Potenza irresistibile: Leonora is Unstoppable

aka an empowered reading of (yet another) tragic opera heroine

aka my thoughts on Il Trovatore pt 3

(title from Manrico’s line in Act 2: Potenza irresistibile hanno de' fiumi l'onde! - The waves of the rivers have an irresistible force!)

with pictures because I have provided you ample walls of text as it is

Quick aside before we get into the libretto: in part 2 I concluded that both Azucena and Leonora are the only ones who really get what they want in this opera, and I think it’s pretty clear with Azucena... “Sei vendicata, o madre!” (even if we are unclear if she intentionally organized Manrico’s death and/or was conflicted by it or not).

Leonora. “I just came out to have a good time and honestly I’m feeling so attacked right now.” @ Ines, @ di Luna, even @ Manrico at the end

Because, out of everyone in this opera, Leonora is... happy? (I mean, yeah, she’s kind of set 100% of her hopes and dreams on this guy, and when she thinks he’s dead, she’s ready to head to the convent to pray to God until she can be reunited with him in death, saying “un riso, una speranza, un fior la terra non ha per me!”  - earth no longer has for me laughter, hope, or flowers! But look at her circumstances and context, and it’s still a choice she’s making, herself, about how she wants to live. Respect.)

[sociological examination about religious/cultural factors influencing WHY she would make that particular choice: coming to a bookstore near you in 2022]

“I swear go God, Ines (literally, I just did) can you just support me for once and trust me on this” (jk I love Ines she’s just doing her best too)

Okay, but to get back to the point... Leonora just has this sparkle. She’s filled with life and joy and happiness in the beginning (and - while yeah, my 21st century feminist me is like *facepalms* don’t make it dependent on another person, especially not a guy, especially not a guy who isn’t really even that focused on you as a person, but more as a possession he has to jealously protect from Rivals - her joy is revived when Marico returns and honestly thank gosh he does, since otherwise di Luna was gonna wreck those convent plans.) ANYWAYS  - di Luna clearly sees and wants to possess this sparkle, clearly having none of it himself.

Some exerpts from the libretto of this sparkly joy none of the characters ever get....(di Luna tries, haha...“la gioia che m'aspetta, gioia mortal, non è!“ but learns that maybe trying to seize someone against their will isn’t the best way to Spark Joy)

We’ve got Act 1 - “Gioia provai che agl'angeli solo è provar concesso! ...Di tale amor che dirsi mal può dalla parola...”  Joy only the angels can feel...such love that cannot be described by words! - Act 2, upon rescue by/reunion with her beloved - “Non regge a tanto giubilo rapito il cor, sorpreso!”  My surprised heart cannot bear such joy! - and finally, Act 4, once she is certain of saving Manrico - “ Vivrà! Contende il giubilo i detti a me!” He’ll live - my joy strips me of words!

Gosh, for such a tragic opera (if you take it seriously), Leonora is just this bundle of joy. Even in Act 4. It’s impressive.

She just has this energy, and I think it’s some sort of radiance from self-awareness and knowing exactly what she wants. You also may notice Leonora doens’t leave a body count the way di Luna, Manrico, and Azucena do. Well, unless you count herself :( but my point is she’s not about hurting people to get what she wants. And Leonora makes it explicitly clear from Act I: “ S'io non vivrò per esso, per esso morirò” - if I cannot life for him, I will die for him.

Leonora knows what she wants and nothing, NOTHING, and NOBODY is going to get in her way! And HOO BOY does di Luna try! So the convent kidnapping shit he tried to pull with the “not even God can claim [Leonora]” attitude didn’t pan out... but it also proved to Leonora that God wouldn’t necessarily save her (convent-style at least) so she leveled up and remembered OH YEAH PLANTS! *cue Juliet line*:

“ I'll to the friar, to know his remedy: If all else fail, myself have power to die.“

And honestly, she’s badass about it, too. From Act 1, she’s pretty fearless, from the moment Ines expresses fear and doubt about her infatuation with Manrico -

INES: Quanto narrasti di turbamento m'ha piena l'alma! Io temo...   What you say disturbs my soul, I fear [for you!] LEONORA: Invano! [You fear] in vain! (or: don’t fear!)

Leonora’s not afraid. She’s simply on a mission. Once Shit Gets Real and di Luna promises to kill Manrico, maintaining strict alignment with Mission “S'io non vivrò per esso, per esso morirò,”  asking di Luna to “Piombi, piombi il tuo furoresulla rea che t'oltraggiò, vibra il ferro in questo core che te amar non vuol né può”- Let your fury fall on the evil girl who offended you; plunge your sword into this heart that cannot, will not love you!

[again, not condoning Leonora’s choices, such as throwing herself under the ‘di Luna is going to blame Leonora for all his psycho actions’ Bus, but I respect her making her choices and fighting back]

Of course, di Luna is like “YOU CRAZY!” and literally tells Leonora her blood wouldn’t be enough to quell his rage. “l tuo sangue, o sciagurato, ad estinguerlo fia poco!” - Your blood, wretch, would hardly be enough! ~really playing the romance here~ :)

Leonora doesn’t get the point, since in Act 4, she repeats her pleas to exchange her live for Manrico’s - still not getting the Blood is Not Enough memo, apparently - “Svenami, ti bevi il sangue mio!” - Take me out**, drink my blood!

**no, di Luna, she isn’t asking you out on a date (sorry it’s so hard not to just 100% shitpost this opera) - but I couldn’t find a better translation. You don’t really say “faint me” in English and I don’t think the direct translation is “kill” but “take me out” seemed like an acceptable euphemism.

Of course, Leonora ultimately ends up accomplishing her Mission. [Like I said in part 1, my initial reaction to her self-sacrificial death was just anger and disappointment. But in context, she’s pulling a valid Juliet move... her circumstances are awful and suffocating and there are very few ways out for her in the world she lives in... but she ends up exiting the game on her terms.

{At the subjective level, at least. Objectively, her only choices are a vampire who will suck her life dry [di Luna] - in which life might be merciless - or choosing to withdraw from life with Help from Plants [poison] - in which death is merciful. Again, sociological exploration of Leonora’s CHOICE ARCHITECTURE coming to booksellers near you. Might even include Alternate Ending: running away into the mountains with the gypsies instead, but we all know that isn’t part of Mission “S'io non vivrò per esso, per esso morirò.” Plus I think we are all familiar with the concept that as humans we are more likely to stick with the evil we know rather than strike out into the great unknown. Heck, somebody stop me, these asides will be the death by boredom or exasperation of us all. Wait, are you reading this!??! WOW and bless you!! Thanks and I’m sorry}

Unfortunately, Manrico has to be a little turdball and start cursing Leonora, being the jealous self-centered guy that he ultimately is, before he realizes what she’s done to save him. “Manrico I’m literally dying FOR YOU and this is how you repay me?”

In Act 1, she begs di Luna to see reason through his jealous rage, but by Act 4 it’s her own beloved, the person she’s organized her Life Goal around, who is displaying the same jealous, blinding rage, refusing to listen to her. “Oh come l'ira ti rende cieco! Oh quanto ingiusto, crudel, crudel!” Oh how rage blinds you, how injust, how cruel you are [Manrico]!

Oh, the sweet and cruel irony Leonora getting her unconditional, immense, “eternal” love dismissed because Manrico doesn’t get it the way he wanted it [i.e. uh oh are we going to circle back to possessiveness/jealousy? Is Leonora the only one - and granted, she is a little psycho/obsessed/infatuated à la di Luna, but without trying to POSSESS her object of affection -- who can love in a semi-healthy way in this opera?? apparently]. My poor girl. At least Manrico Comes to his Senses before she dies (just in time for him join Leonora’s fate himself). *sad cheering*

Let me end by emphasizing that Leonora did not die JUST to “save Manrico.” Yes, the libretto says “Prima che d'altri vivere, io volli tua morir! “ - Rather than live as another’s, I wanted to die yours. But to me, it’s pretty clear she’s dying for herself - dying as her own self, as hers (I mean, technically she never became Manrico’s “legal property” anyways if we want to get into the morbid lack of womens’ rights, so she wasn’t even “his” in that way). And in the end, choice architecture aside, the point is that all the way, Leonora knew what she wanted, made her own decisions, stayed true to herself, and accomplished what she set her mind to. Nothing and nobody stopped her. Who’s to say what else she might have wanted if she had had different opportunities, choices, knowledge, or most importantly had been born in a different context.

(*faceplams* had been born?!! She’s a fictional character god Karo go to bed already) (*peels hands off face* it’s okay you are processing outrage over the Female Experience and Leonora represents a lot of real women, living and dead)

I conclude. LEONORA IS UNSTOPPABLE. Let’s part with some lovely lines from our complex (if a bit compulsively devoted), tragic, yet joyful, empowered, and fearless heroine:

Tu vedrai che amore in terra mai del mio non fu più forte: vinse il fato in aspra guerra, vincerà la stessa morte. 

You will see that never on earth was there a stronger love than mine; it defeated Fate in violent strife, it will defeat death itself.

*              *              *              *              *               *              *             *        

Screencaps from IL Trovatore (Met 2011) ft. Sondra Radvanovsky, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, and Marcelo Álvarez

[mekatrio]

OK gonna force myself to put these thoughts into words. firstly insert disclaimer whenever i talk abt kuja that blah blah he is evil bla blah irredeemable, now w that clear... its still pretty fucked up and sad that kuja never got to deal w the basic fact that death comes for everyone and yes, that includes him. it something we all learn about and (most of us)come to terms with throughout our lives. i guess its been so long since i was a kid facing existential fear, but vivi's arc really goes to remind how scary it is to confront the fact of inevitable death. and this was something kuja was never taught to deal with, hell i dont even think he knew he was capable of dying. despite the fact that he killed thousands of people, its still really depressing and sad.

and u can see just how immature his view is, when he says among the lines of "why should the world exist without me? that isnt fair" which is honestly not such an unreasonable way to view it. obviously the world doesnt work like that, but it isnt some reasoning out of this world and unjustified.

he also says smth like "im not gonna die alone. youre all coming with me!", which is another existential fear that we all learn of, that the world goes on without you. it could also be seen as a fear of being left behind, another theme of kuja, seeing as he felt abandoned by garland when he created zidane.

its just... its so sad. its so much to take in, to not just know that u are capable of dying, expiring, of stopping, to essentially cease existing, but that it is coming very very soon. while not ok, kuja's attempts at destruction make sense considering his predicament.

and this is a more abstract way to think of it, but being dead is essentially being truly alone. you cannot have friends once youre dead, you cannot laugh or speak or cry. people cant hear you or see you anymore. you no longer exist. its such a lonely lonely thing, and not just being dead is lonely, but to die alone too is so sad. for your existence to just wink out, to end with no one around, with no one to hold your hand or be by your side, its a terrible thing. so its all the more meaningful that despite everything, all the crimes and atrocities kuja has done, zidane still does all that he can just to be by kujas side, so he doesnt die alone. because although its not expanded on very obviously, zidane also understands loneliness. the desire to do things by yourself, the desire to find a place you belong, where people understand you, he understands this. he went off for three years looking for his birthplace, despite the relationships he forms he hardly lets anyone properly know him, hell his whole arc in terra is about him learning that, lmao cue the fucking song title, You're Not Alone

and he extends it to kuja too, in spite of everything. not to mention only after destroying literally everything in the history of ever(only briefly tho), does kuja come to understand how precious life is. its precious because its fleeting, because it doesnt last forever. its because he understands this that he uses the last of his powers to save zidane and his friends. its because he understands this that he reasons he doesnt deserve to live, because he stole so many precious lives from all the wars he brought about.

its so sad that he only comes to understand this at the very end of his life. it goes to show just how he was raised and brought up, that not even the knowledge of inevitable death was taught to him. its fitting, that a planet of people that tried to evade death would raise him like this. had he known the proper nature of life and death, would he have acted differently? sadly its too late to ever know, all the hopes and wishes of terra die under the iifa tree.

[kessielrg]

[Kingdom Hearts] When you give a bunny kid a cake…

Summary: After living for so long with a pack of toddlers, you grow used to their sweet doe eyes when they're about to get in trouble. Ventus has not grown such an immunity toward Oswald's sextuplet bunny kids and as such they recruit him into sneaking the ultimate treat; Ortensia's triple chocolate silk cake. [lowkey requested by @chibi-mushroom and the idea was just too adorable not to ignore]

Rating: K

Word Count: 2,714 words

If you like this story, please reblog!

---

When Ortensia invited them over for a small fall party, Ventus didn't quite think he'd spend most of the time trapped in his girlfriend's bedroom. Not that they were doing anything exciting to begin with. Playing mancala had been Sabrina's idea, but now she looked like she was ready to go to sleep. She laid against her stomach with her head cradled in her arms, the mancala board at the foot of her bed, and Ven volunteering to sit on the floor. Sabrina's eyes drooped lower whenever Ven took his turn.

“You're allowed to go to sleep.” he told her at some point. “It's just me, Terra, and Aqua.”

“And Vanitas.” she spat back. “There's no way I'm going to sleep with that creeper in arm's distance.”

And so, indirectly, Ventus now had the reason why she had him trapped in her room. She needed someone to keep her awake. Someone that wasn't going to be too loud or annoying just by sharing a room with her. Someone, in other words, that she trusted.

He did not feel lucky knowing he was that someone.

“What did you do last night?” he then asked her. “You look so… dead inside.”

Sabrina opened her mouth to retort -a possible 'that's because I feel dead inside' if he knew her well- but was cut off with six little voices calling, “Sabreenie! Sabreenie!” from the other side of the door. Without skipping a beat, Sabrina shouted back;

“Buzz off!”

“But we need you Sabreenie!” three voices told her.

“And Ven-Ven too!” a single voice reminded them.

“Yes! And Ven-Ven too!” two others chorused in agreement.

Sabrina let out a low groan as she buried her head further into her arms.

Even though he knew she didn't want to hear it, Ven told her, “Can't you humor them for now? They are your siblings.”

“Not by blood.” she grumbled as she started to get off her bed anyway. Ven fought the urge to fondly smile at her while she sat straight up, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes using the palm of her hand. It looked enough like a scene from a movie that Ven wondered if she did it for show.

His opinion on this was squashed easily when she did rise to her feet. If it wasn't obvious Sabrina was exhausted, it became quickly apparent as she made her way to the door. She had a light, unintentional sway to her gait, which almost led to her bumping into the mannequin she used to test outfits before she wore them. It was actually kinda weird that she had it out- she usually hid it in her closet when guests were coming over.

Regardless, she made it to her door with otherwise ease. Sabrina opened the door and was greeted to six bunny children. They had stacked themselves by their shoulders- but even with the added height, the bunny kid on top was just barely tall enough to see above Sabrina's shoulders.

“You have three minutes.” Sabrina said to the bunny kid on top.

“Mama made a cake!” they happily told her.

Sabrina cocked an eyebrow at them. “And…?”

“Mama told Junior, Roy, Ray, Ruth, Herb, and Elias that cake has to wait until dinner.” came the sullen reply. All six of the bunny kids hung their head in misery.

“And I assume you want it now?”

The bunny children eagerly nodded in unison. Their little tower swayed for a moment from the small weight change, but the six were able to readjust quickly.

“Why didn't you guys get Vanitas?” Sabrina then wondered, casting them a suspicious glance.

“Van-Van is napping now.” one of the bunny kids told her. The others gave a solemn nod in agreement.

“But why Ventus too?”

“Sabreenie always hides Ven-Ven.” the bunny kid on top told her.

“We want to play now!” the others happily chorused.

“In other words,” their adoptive older sister mused as she leaned against her door frame, “You need a scapegoat.”

“Why would they need a scapegoat?” Ven curiously wondered, appearing by Sabrina's side. His girlfriend looked back at him with a disinterested raise of her eyebrow.

“When you give a bunny kid a cake,” she informed him, “Nothing after will go down in your favor.”

Now it was Ventus's turn to give her a funny look. He looked back at the bunny kids and saw their pitiful little faces. It was absolutely heartbreaking seeing their long faces; Ven could already hear a few random bars from Sarah McLachlan's Angel playing in the distance. 'In the arms of a bunny child...'

“Aw, come on Sabi,” he tried to gently tease, “Look at them. Look at those sad little faces...”

There wasn't even a moment of hesitation before she spat, “Those are the same faces they make before half the house gets set on fire.”

The bunny children let out a unified sound of surprise, then gave her a rather prude raspberry. Even with her being a good 13 years older than them, Sabrina retaliated with a raspberry of her own.

“You know,” Ven gently said to her, “You're not much different.” To the bunny kids proper, he said, “I'll help you.”

Unified squeal of joy came from the bunny kids as they hopped off each other and into Sabrina's room. Once everyone was in her room, Sabrina grimaced as she shut the door. The bunny kids might have been small, but with all six it still seemed like there wasn't enough room for everyone. Sabrina sat back down on her bed as Ven and the bunny kids started with their game plan.

“Our plan is simple,” he told the kids with a sense of mirth, “Ortensia usually leaves the cake in the fridge before we actually eat it. To avoid a crumb trail -literally- we should take it to the laundry room. All we really need to do is get some plates and forks from the…”

“This isn't going to work.”

Ventus and the bunny children looked over at Sabrina with the same look of bewilderment. It was Ven who soon gave her a rather cheeky grin before asking, “Jealous because our plan doesn't involve you?”

“Hardly.” Sabrina snorted. “While it is rather smart to eat it in the laundry room, Ortensia will hear you all clatter around the kitchen like a batch of chickens with their heads cut off.”

Ven's face immediately fell. “Oh.”

“This is where a divide and conquer plan would come in handy.” Sabrina went on, moving herself so the other seven could get a better look at her. She even pulled out the mancala board to better illustrate her plans. “Half of the six will go distract Terra and Aqua by directing them outside, the other half will keep Ortensia upstairs. Maybe Oswald too, but he's either-or in this kind of situation.”

“But who's getting the cake?” Ven asked, looking up at her with a curious tilt of his head.

“You are.” she claimed. “Alone.”

“Why just me?”

“Because I am making this plan foolproof, and I don't want to get between Ortensia while she's in guest kisser mode.”

Ventus recoiled a little and didn't look at her directly when he mumbled, “I wouldn't say Aqua, Terra, and I are guests...”

“You're not,” Sabrina affirmed with a huff, “But try telling Tense that.”

Ven let out a contemplative hum before looking down at the bunny kids. They looked back up at him with wide, adoring eyes that practically read 'isn't our big sister the best?' When he turned to Sabrina again, Ventus admittedly (and rather embarrassingly) zoned out slightly as she went over the plan to her siblings. There was a sense of concentration etched into her furrowed eyebrows as she went on. If she wasn't so interested in fashion and aesthetics, Sabrina would have made a good strategist.

“Roy, Ray, and Junior, take Ortensia upstairs and be loud about it. Junior might want to cause an 'accident' in the bathroom to be sure. Pops can jump in on that if it's real bad, so he's out of your hair too. Ruth, Elias, and Herb, your job is probably the easiest because Aqua and Terra love the stuffing out of you. Take them outside and show them your jack-o-lanterns. They should still be standing perky after a month. If not, make up a sob story of how much hard work you put into them and now they're rotting. Get some waterworks going and Terra will be eating out of the palm of your hand. All in all, you can only hold Mom's attention for about ten minutes before she figures something is up. Ven should have gotten the cake by then, so let's make that our time limit. Everyone good? Good. Break.”

“Break!” the bunny children immediately repeated with a clap of their hands. The six of them immediately left Sabrina's room to do as they were instructed. Ven remained where he was for a moment. Sabrina looked at him, a soft smirk appeared on her face.

“You didn't hear a word of that, did you?” she asked him.

“Of course I did!” he told her as he stood up. “I just gotta wait for the Six to clear everyone from the kitchen, then I've got less than 10 minutes to take the cake from the fridge and to the laundry room.”

A small snicker came from his girlfriend as she shook her head. “Good guess.” she gently teased. “Now go steal that cake before Ortensia finds out.”

. . .

Sabrina could deny it all she wanted, but the bunny kids got their sense of stealth from her. Or maybe the plan she made really was foolproof. Ventus waited out in the living room while the bunny kids tried to distract their respective roadblocks. Terra and Aqua had been easy targets; at least one of the bunny kids hopping into Terra's arms, and the other two tugging at Aqua's skirt to get her attention. Ortensia was harder to budge. It took two bunny kids to finally make her crack- running down the stairs (how they got up undetected to begin with was beyond Ven) in hysteria.

Just to be sure though, Ventus did wait an extra minute or so before going into the kitchen. He tried to walk as casually as possible, but the sudden anticipation of getting caught made him want to walk on tiptoes. He did find it rather hilarious that Sabrina as indirectly trying to help hide the noise he could have made in the kitchen- not that Cheyenne Kimball's One Original Thing was the best soundtrack to this moment.

Ventus carefully peeled the door to the refrigerator open and nearly let out a sigh of relief to see that cake was placed on one of the higher shelves. It had to be a higher shelf because of the Six, even if they attempted a bunny stack, but it must have been too high for Oswald and Ortensia too. Terra or Aqua must have placed it up there. For Ven, it was an easily reach and careful extraction. He set the cake down on the counter with care.

Ortensia had really outdone herself with the cake's presentation. Looking to be about three tiers, the cake was covered entirely with chocolate frosting with hand piped rosettes around the top edge. In the center was a neatly twirled covering of whipped cream, hand cut chocolate strips decorated the top of it. For a moment, Ven almost felt bad that he was an accessory to a soon to be cake murder by six ravenous 4 year olds.

Almost.

“Cake is for after dinner, Ventus.”

Nearly jumping out of his skin, Ven quickly tried to find the source of the voice before noticing Vanitas coming down the staircase. His twin had an undeniable smirked etched on his face. Seeing it made Ven's blood run cold.

“What are you doing in the kitchen?” he questioned. It sounded so accusatory, as if Ventus himself wasn't trying to do something that would have warranted the wrath of some very angry adults.

“Woke up from my nap and the wabbits weren't there.” came the reply, simple as day. “Came downstairs to harass Terra, I guess, and here I run into you…” Vanitas looked his older twin up and down with a smirk on his face before asking, “What'cha gonna do with that cake, Ven?”

“Eat it.” came the automatic answer. Ventus immediately flinched upon hearing himself. This answer only seemed to amuse Vanitas as he got closer.

“All alone?” he snorted. “I doubt that very seriously.” That was when a certain thought crossed his mind that almost made him laugh hard enough to tears. “This is a cover up operation! Hate to break it to you Ven-Ven, but giving Sabreenie a whole cake isn't gonna help with her seasonal depression.”

Ventus's face immediately scrunched into distaste. “She doesn't have...” he tried to argue, but was soon distracted when one of the bunny kids came down the staircase. The tiny four year old gave the cake a look, drooled a little, and in realizing that Vanitas was there, got right back into action.

“Hey there, squeaky.” Vanitas greeted when the little rabbit jumped high enough to be noticed. “What's eating you?”

But the bunny kid was speaking so quickly, it was hard to follow exactly what they were trying to tell Vanitas. Knowing that the message wasn't easily going through, the bunny kid changed tactics, leading Vanitas into the living room. Ven could only watch in a small awe as Vanitas willingly followed the bunny kid. Apparently Terra wasn't the only pushover when it came to them…

Ven shook his head. The mission was almost a success, and with the unexpected roadblock gone, he had to finish the deed. Carefully picking up the cake again, Ventus made his way around to the laundry room. It was no hassle in setting the cake down on top of the dryer. Letting out a small sound of relief, Ven wiped an imaginary bead of sweat from his brow. He left the laundry room as quietly as he entered it. The mission was accomplished- now all he needed to do was tell the bunny kids and possibly get them a spoon or two.

Going into the living room did lead to a small shock. Somehow, the bunny kid that had gone to distract Vanitas had gotten the teenager to go back to sleep. It took everything it had in Ventus not to let out an unflattering snort. When the bunny kid noticed him, Ven was given a doe eyed look of question. At his nod, the bunny kid let out a happy, “Thank you!” before bounding off to get the others. It was rather adorable, honestly, and Ven felt good about himself as he went into the kitchen to get spoons for the seven of them.

He didn't expect for all six of the bunny children to beat him back into the laundry room by the bunny kids. Someone really needed to come up with a reason why these kids were so fast. It didn't seem right.

“Ven-Ven helped us...” the oldest of the bunny children decided.

“So he gets first slice!” the others finished off with a solemn nod.

Ven chuckled a little. He took his spoon and made a rather generous scoop of cake. Normally, doing such a thing would have physically hurt him. But at the moment, knowing that the cake wasn't going to survive much longer, he chose to ignore it.

“I think this is all I need.” he decided out loud. He gave them all a smile before adding, “Thank you.”

“Is it for Sabreenie?” one of the bunny children curiously wondered. But Ven looked at them for a moment before giving a sly wink. The bunny kids went into a flurry of giggles as Ven started to leave. A smile was also pressed into the corners of Ventus's lips. Sabrina had been a major factor in their cake heist, so of course she deserved a piece of it too. Sure, cake might not help much with seasonal depression, but at least it could show that he still cared about her. And that, for now, was enough.

[whumpcreations]

Part 3 ~ Code

Continuation of this

Words: 929

TW: implied whipping

It was already dawn when Kallias ended the meeting and made his way to his room. He didn't plan on sleeping, he wouldn't be able to anyway, but a shower would certainly be a good idea before he went back to brooding over maps and notes.

Even though the water was steaming down on him, Kallias shivered and a few tears mixed with the water. He leaned his head against the wall and cried and cursed and screamed until all he could do was sob. It wasn't just the overwhelming loss of their general, but also the realization of how wrong he had been about Vanya.

Her betrayal hurt him more than he wanted to admit. In the time she had spent at the base, she had become important to him, and he had expected it to be mutual. He had thought that a serious friendship had developed. But apparently he had been completely blinded by those feelings.

Still, there was a feeling that he could neither name nor simply shake off. Something was wrong. He had overlooked something. Even though he didn't know what, he had learned from his experiences not to ignore his gut feeling.

With a sigh, Kallias turned off the water, got dressed, and went on his way.

Kallias knocked on the door once more, and finally some sounds could be heard from inside.

"Yes, damn it, I'm coming."

He was almost sorry to wake Terra since they had just gone to bed about two hours ago to get some sleep too.

When they opened the door, he felt even more guilty. Those dark purple circles under their eyes highlighted their pale face. Their hair, which they usually wore in a neat bun, was sticking out in all directions. Since they had received the message that the mission had gone wrong two days ago, Terra had hardly moved away from their screens and the days before, they had been busy planning the mission. They really deserved a few hours of sleep. But now Terra was already awake and they could just check his guess as well.

They stood there leaning against the doorframe, almost seeming to fall asleep standing up again.

"Come on, let's get some coffee and then I need your help."

Terra groaned, but asked no questions and followed him.

"I need to watch the video again. Something is wrong, we must have missed something," he explained to them and Terra stopped.

"Kallias, I know Vanya was important to you. You got along well and you believed and trusted her. Of course, it hurts that in the end she chose her people. She betrayed us - you - and that sucks, but you can't change that now. There is no point in chasing the wishful thinking that the situation is different. Get over it and let me sleep."

Kallias knew Terra was right. There was a good chance that the situation was exactly as it obviously seemed to be in the livestream, and yet he had to act on his feeling or he would not find peace.

"I'm sorry for waking you up, Terra, but it's important. Please. It won't take long. I'll look through the recording again and if I don't find anything, we'll go back to bed. But I have to make sure first."

With a loud sigh, Terra started moving again.

"Okay. Can you play the whole thing slower? And skip the first few minutes," Kallias instructed Terra.

"You'd almost think you were enjoying the video."

"Just do it," Kallias replied a lot harsher than he meant to. He knew Terra was just trying to make a joke, and he was grateful that they tried to help him, but his nerves were shot. Besides, he also knew they were right. This was now the fifth run-through of the video. Still, he had to watch it again, the last time, he told himself.

He turned back to the screen and suddenly his eyes fell on Vanya's hand. Not the one holding the whip, but the other one that seemed to be hanging down loosely. He had to watch the whole thing for some time before he realized what exactly was bothering him about that hand.

"Got it!"

Terra started up. They had obviously dozed off and startled when he screamed out loud.

"I know what seemed strange," he repeated, more quietly this time. "Look at her right hand."

Now, with genuine interest, Terra zoomed in on the relevant section of the picture.

"If you were whipping someone, would you be doing finger exercises with your other hand?"

"You're right. That's the military sign system." Terra rewound to the beginning, but kept the focus on Vanya's right hand.

"There's someone else in the room with her." Kallias knew Terra understood the signs too, but it helped him to say it out loud.

"That's probably why the signs are barely visible."

Kallias nodded and continued his analysis while Terra took notes, "D-T-T-O. That doesn't make any sense at all. Play it again."

Again and again they looked closely at the clipping and tried to form a word from it, but the poor angle and minimalistic execution didn't make it any easier.

"Date! It's `date'," Terra suddenly shouted, their tiredness seemingly blown away by now.

Again the sequence ran and now Kallias recognized it too.

Now the ice seemed to be broken and in a few minutes they had filtered the rest of the video for more messages, but it stayed with the few words:

There is someone in the room. Date: 14.11.

[maddrmatt]

Kairi’s Epic Journey: The Quest for Sora

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Chapter 15: Kairi’s Letter of Departure #2: Never Land

Never Land

Dear Sora,

Of all the worlds for the Wayfinder to bring me to first on my journey to find you, who would’ve thought that it would bring me to Never Land, the home of Peter Pan?

It’s quite a beautiful place, Sora.  It’s unfortunate that the most you, Donald, and Goofy saw of it was the inside of Captain Hook’s pirate ship.

Also, in addition to properly meeting Peter Pan and Tinker Bell, who already knew who I was due to having been among your summon spells, I met a few people you haven’t.  They’re a group of boys in animal suits known as the Lost Boys. Much like Peter, they too never wish to grow up and spend their eternally youthful lives just having fun and adventures.

Unfortunately, Sora, I’m sorry to say that it didn’t go very easily as I would have liked here in Never Land.  

First, I met a group of mermaids who were nothing like your friend Ariel.  Their idea of fun was trying to drown me.  

Then, when I first ran into the Lost Boys, they attacked me thinking I was a pirate trying to steal from them.  Peter stopped them but then I had to put up with their childish behavior in addition to Peter’s insensitivity and Tink’s jealousy.  It was not something I wanted to deal with on top of trying to find you.

The worst part truly began when Peter tried to teach me how to fly.  Ever since I felt you do it during the time I was within your heart, I’ve wanted to try it for myself and it would’ve also been a great ability to have on my journey.

But I couldn’t do it since happy thoughts are needed for it to work.  And ever since losing you and fighting with Riku and the others, I can’t think of any because my happiest thoughts all center around you and our friends and I couldn’t even think of them without bad memories interrupting.

Then, after I couldn’t put up with Peter and his friends anymore, I ran away from them and ended up getting captured by Captain Hook and his pirate crew.  And wouldn’t you know it?  The reason he captured me was so he could lure you to him so he could get revenge on you.

The fact that he tried to use me as bait really got me angry. Speaking as someone who’s been used too many times by villains to get to you, I never want to be in that position ever again.  Especially since the last time it happened had far greater consequences for both of us.

My visit to Never Land seemed to be nothing but one misfortune after another.  But I guess your visit was hardly any better.  

After all, when you first came here, you had to see me in that unresponsive state due to my heart being within yours.  Also, you had to watch Riku sink further down the dark path he was on. It’s amazing that even after all that, you were still able to fly.

Looking back on your first adventure, the fact that you were able to keep it together even after losing our home and being separated from me and Riku just shows how strong you’ve always been.  I only wish I could be as strong as you on my own journey. But I think it will be a lot harder for me given everything that has happened.

I’m sorry to be such a downer, Sora.  I just really needed to let it out and you’ll be glad to know that things got a lot better for me in Never Land.

In spite of what I had said to them earlier, Peter and his friends came to save me.  Then, together, we took on the pirates and defeated them all.

When it came time to face Hook himself, I ended up doing something that wouldn’t have approved of: I requested to fight him alone without the aid of Peter or anyone else.  I know you wouldn’t have liked it, but it was the only way I would get any better at fighting.

The duel was close and for a brief moment, Hook nearly beat me. But thanks to some timely help from Tink and a very useful strategy from Peter, I turned the tables on the pirate. Then, once I was satisfied, we all sent Hook overboard where he was chased away by the crocodile (though as amusing as that was, I do hope Peter is right when he says that the crocodile never catches him).

The battle against Hook opened my eyes to many things.  It showed me that I was able to hold my own against a major villain even if he wasn’t in the same league as our other enemies like Maleficent and Xehanort.  If I show the same strength against any future enemies, then nothing will stand in my way.

It also showed me the better side of Peter and his friends. They may have their flaws.  But their courage and devotion to their friends is very admirable.  Much like your own.

Before I parted ways with Peter and his friends, I promised that I would return with you.  After all, you still need to take me flying and I know that once we’re together, I will soar the skies for sure.

But you will not believe this, Sora.  You actually weren’t the first Keyblade Wielder that Peter has met. As it turns out, Terra, Ven and Aqua have visited Never Land too.  And according to Tink, Roxas and Axel have also been here.  Peter and Tink said that they’ll be glad to share those stories when we return.

So, my first world visit may not have been entirely enjoyable. But I’d say that making a new group of friends and defeating my first real bad guy definitely made it worthwhile.

However, a few new mysteries have presented themselves.  

For example, during the fight with the pirates, one of the Lost Boys, Toodles, was in trouble and no one, including myself, was able to help him. But then, a strange power enabled me to throw off my current opponent and transport myself across the pirate ship to where I could save him.  I have no idea how I was able to do that.

Also, just before I parted with Peter and the others, this mysterious card that has a moving image of them appeared out of thin air.  I’m keeping the card, which I’m calling a Memento Card, with me because I think there’s some kind of magic in it.  I only wish I knew what it was exactly.

But the strangest mystery concerns the Wayfinder.  The woman in my dream said that when it glowed, then I would know it’s time to move onto the next world.  But she never said what I had to do to get it to glow so when it finally did, I don’t know what I did to make it happen.

So many questions and so few answers.  Still, I guess I can take comfort in the fact that whatever I did to make the Wayfinder glow has put me one step closer to finding you.

Now I am about to depart with Pluto to wherever we need to be next. And wherever you are, Sora, I hope the happy thoughts that enabled you to fly in Never Land keep you going until we’re together again.

See you soon,

Kairi

________________________________________________________________

Much like she did back home, Kairi stood with Pluto by her side on Never Land’s beach and watched the bottle drift off past Skull Rock.  She hoped that it would reach the person it was meant for.

Holding the Wayfinder, she was about to place it to her heart and activate its power.  But before she could, she heard laughter and tinkling from up above.  She gazed upward.

Frolicking around in the sky, were Peter, Tink and the Lost Boys.  Apparently, they had decided to go flying after she took her leave of them. They laughed and giggled as they played what looked liked to be an aerial version of tag.

Despite wishing she could join them; Kairi couldn’t help but smile.  Hearing their joy brought back so many memories of the fun she had with Sora and Riku when they were younger.  Back when it seemed like the good times would never end for the three of them.

‘Peter, you and your friends don’t know how good you’ve got it.  An eternal youth-filled lifetime full of fun and adventure in a world where nothing truly bad can ever happen.  I’m glad that the darkness never took this world and if I or Sora or any of the other Guardians of Light have anything to say about it, it never will.’

Thinking about the other Guardians made Kairi’s heart sink a little and caused her to wonder about something.  She turned to Pluto.

“Pluto, I was so hard on Peter and his friends.  And yet, they came to save us from the pirates.  So, I can’t help but wonder if Riku, Mickey and the others would do the same after what I said to them a month ago.  Do you think they would?”

Pluto just smiled and let out a bark.  Clearly, he thought the answer was a yes.

Kairi sighed but gave a small smile while petting the dog on the head.  “I wish I could be as positive as you.  But I was much harder on them than I was with Peter and his group. But I know that we can fix things once I bring Sora home.  We’d better get going.”

Pluto nodded in agreement and wrapped his tail around her ankle like he did before.  Kairi placed the Wayfinder to her heart and once again, willed it to take her where she needed to be.

As the tunnel of light formed around her and Pluto, she looked up at Peter as he and his friends continue to play.  She watched and listened until she couldn’t see or hear them anymore.

‘Someday, I will return to Never Land and we’ll all fly together.  Once I regain the smile in my heart.’

________________________________________________________________

Nearby, perched on a tree branch, Diablo watched Kairi and Pluto vanish.  Faithfully following his mistress’ orders, he had been watching them unseen throughout most of their time in Never Land.  

Now that they had departed, it was time for him to leave as well.  Flapping his wings, he took off and flew away.

As he flew through the Never Land sky, he reflected on what he had observed.  Like Kairi herself, he did not know what exactly she had accomplished in Never Land in regard to bringing Sora back. All she had done was make new friends and defeat a villain which seemed irrelevant.

When Kairi had been captured by Captain Hook, Diablo was certain he would be able to tell Maleficent that the pirate had dealt with the Princess of Heart and they wouldn’t have to concern themselves with her anymore.  But those hopes had been dashed when that flying boy and his friends rescued her and handed Hook yet another humiliating defeat.

Diablo shouldn’t have been surprised. Of all of the villains that Maleficent and Pete had allied themselves with, the pirate captain was probably the least likely to defeat a Keyblade Wielder.

The raven was so lost in his ponderings that he never saw Cubby flying right toward him.  He let out a caw of surprise and the Lost Boy screamed as they headed for a collision with each other.  But just before they made contact, Cubby stopped in mid-air just as Diablo made a sharp turn to the left.

“Hey, watch where you’re going, you stupid bird!” yelled Cubby causing the raven to let out a loud caw of anger in response as he flew away.

“What’s with that bird?” asked Slightly as he, the other Lost Boys, Tink and Peter gathered around.

“Yeah.  We’ve never seen him around Never Land before,” said the Twins.

“Don’t worry about him, men. Looks like he’s leaving. He won’t bother anyone here anymore,” said Peter as they all resumed their game.

As Diablo flew away, he made a mental note to make a request to his mistress after he reported to her about Kairi. Once she had succeeded in conquering every world in existence, he hoped she would lay waste to Never Land and see that Peter Pan and his friends were appropriately punished.

In the raven’s opinion, they already deserved to be punished for whatever role they played in helping the Princess of Heart on her quest to bring her hero back.

________________________________________________________________

Onto the next chapter!

[avengerscompound]

Her New Home

Her New Home:  A Lady Sif Fanfic

Buy me a ☕

Character Pairing:  Sif x F!Reader Square: @ladiesofmarvelbingo​ - N3, Lady Sif

Word Count:  1892

Rating: E

Warnings:  Smut (F|F, light d/s, vaginal fingering, strap-on use, squirting)

Synopsis:  Sif has lost a lot over the past five years.  Her friends.  Her homeworld.  Half the galaxy.  But she has you and when she and her crew finally track down Midgard, you both decide to celebrate.

Her New Home

Sif tilted her head up, listening carefully.  The past few years had been… hard.  To say the least.  She had gone off-world to deal with the uprising and Thor’s fears of Ragnarok happening.  When she’d called Heimdal to open the bridge, nothing had happened.  After a few days, she gave up trying.

She had been stuck on Svartalfheim for a week before catching a ride with an unregistered transportation ship she’d bribed with the promise of Asgardian riches if they took her home.

I hadn’t been a hard sell. The pirate was greedy and she was clearly in the armor of Asgard.

When the ship arrived at the coordinates where Asgard should have been, all that was left was rubble floating in empty space.

The captain had not been happy about it.  Just when Sif had thought she was going to have to take command of the ship by force or be ejected into the emptiness of space he had turned to dust in front of her.  As had the ships pilot, gunman, main technician and three of the other people who were paying their passage through space.

What remained of the ship’s crew and passengers were the navigation specialist - an Ataraxian named Lexatora, the ship’s cook, a Badoon - known as Ala, and three passengers, two Luphamoids, Xoda and Miline.  And finally, there was you, a Midgardian who had inexplicably ended up lightyears from home.

With no one to pilot the ship or make repairs, they’d had to limp it to the closest planet, which had taken them eight months.  There they had discovered the issue of people randomly turning to dust had been universal.  Half the lifeforms had vanished suddenly.  Rumor was that the source of the problem had been on Planet C-53.  The planet she knew as Midgard.

Thankfully, using the promise of the ship as payment they’d picked up a small crew to get them moving again.  The galaxy was in chaos and Sif didn’t know her place in it anymore.  With no home, no king to serve, no cause to fight for, no family, no friends, all she had was the people on the ship.

So they had become family.  No more so than you. Five years of being trapped in close quarters as you hopped from planet to planet moving displaced people around had given the two of you time to well and truly fall in love with each other.  To become inseparable.  Sif had never really understood how Thor could fall in love with someone who would only really be around for a small portion of his life, yet here she was completely smitten with you.

“I know you’re there, lover,” she teased as the floor creaked in the far corner.

“Aw, man.  Sif!”  You whined, before breaking down into giggles.

You came over to her, swinging your hips.  That was the thing she had been attracted to the most.  The way you could continue keeping this playful air about you, despite being stuck on a junker ship for five years longer than you were meant to.  Even when the galaxy seemed to be falling apart around you, you managed to make her feel like things were okay.

“How do you do that?”  You asked, taking a seat in her lap.

“Thousands of years of training, my lady.”  She said putting her hand on her thigh and squeezing it gently.

“Hey, it’s good you’re here,”  Lexatora said, bringing up a holographic map over the transparent shield in front of them.  “See that star way off there?”  The map circled a star ahead of the ship and seemed to highlight it.

“Yeah.  What’s that?”  You asked.

“That, my dear.  Is the sun that warms Terra.”  She replied.

Your eyes lit up in a way Sif had yet to see in you before.  Like a fire had been lit inside you.  “That’s where Earth is?”

“It is.  I know we’ve gotten off track a bit since we picked you up.  But you will be back home in a few days.”  Lexatora said.

“We’re not going to do a jump?”  You asked.

Lexatora shook her head.  “No.  There’s been some weird activity in the region with the jumps.  I’m a lot more cautious these days.  You know, with what happened to Asgard and then … the dust.”

“Yeah, right.  I get it.”  You said, shifting a little in Sif’s lap.  “I wonder what’s going on.  When I got taken, we hardly had any space stuff happen.  There was Thor of course.  Then that hole in the sky in New York.”

“There had been more visits, my love,”  Sif said.  “You just didn’t know about them.  But you’re right.  It is strange there is a lot of activity now.  Best we be cautious.”

“Don’t you want to fight it?”  You asked.

She gave your thigh a rub.  “And I will when we arrive.  But if we go through some active jump site and turn to dust, I can’t fight anything.”

“What if everyone I knew is gone?”  You asked.  There was a slight strain in the pitch of your voice.  Like you were trying to remain the bright light in the dark world that you always were but it was causing you pain to do it.  Sif wrapped her arm around your waist and rubbed her cheek on your shoulder.

“Then you still have me.”  She said.

You took a deep breath and let it out slowly, lying back on Sif.

“I’m not going to lie to you, they might be.  The whole universe is different.  I lost everyone.  I can’t promise you didn’t.”   She said, gently.  “But as someone who has lost everyone, trust me when I say, it’s better to know.  And maybe they are all still there.  You can go home.”

“Would you stay with me?”  You asked.

Sif sighed and kissed your shoulder.  “Can I tell you something, my lady?”

You nodded and put your hands on hers, linking your fingers together at your waist.

“I know this is perhaps just hopeful thinking, but I am hoping that whatever it is that led to Asgards destruction, was something Thor escaped.  The two of us were going off-world at the same time, following the same leads.  He had a love of Midgard, I think you know.  If he is alive, your homeworld is where he is.  If not, there are others I know there.  But you are my home.  Perhaps we have a large group of family and friends waiting for us.  If not we have each other.  That is more than many these days.”

You smiled sadly at her and leaned in and kissed her deeply.  She wrapped you tightly in her arms and pulled you flush against her.  The love for you she felt flaring up inside her.

Lexatora cleared her throat.  “If you don’t mind.”  She said.  “Take that to your bunkhouse.”

You pulled back, giggling and Sif brushed her fingers over your cheek.  “What do you say, lover?  Shall we go and celebrate seeing our home?”

“Mmm… yes please.”  You hummed.

You climbed off her lap and took her hand pulling her to her feet.  Sif followed along as you dragged her down into the belly of the ship, past the small mess hall where there was already the smell of cooking emanating and into the bunk room you and Sif had claimed.

Sif turned you to face her as the doors hissed shut behind you both and cupping your jaw, she kissed you hungrily.  She guided you back into the room and up against the large window that separated you from the vacuum of space.  An arm of the milky way spread out in front of you both as she pressed you against the glass and slipped her thigh between yours.

She ground on your leg.  The rough fabric of your pants rubbing against the heat of her cunt, sending a buzz through her and making her moan into the kiss.  As she did you ground on her thigh too.

The two of you broke the kiss long enough for her to pull your shirt off and she spun you to face the window and slipped her hand into your pants.

“I am going to so such things to you, lover.” Sif purred in your ear as she teased her fingers over your clit.  Dipping her fingertip inside you and using your own fluids to paint the small bundle of nerves.  “I'll have you screaming my name.”

You braced your hands on the cold glass and leaned back against her, grinding your ass into her.  “Gladly, Sif.”

She ran her finger in tight circles over your clit and kissed the side of your neck, paying attention to the way your pulse sped up and your breathing shallowed.  Slowly she pulled her hands away, trailing them over the bare skin of your waist before giving your ass a gentle spank and stepping back.  “Remove your clothes and stand with your hands against the glass.”

You started to strip and she did the same as she went the drawer the two of you kept your toys in.  She selected one she had purchased in the Iota quadrant when they had been reuniting some people they’d picked up with their only remaining family after the dusting.  It was one that would provide you both with pleasure at the same time and would be perfect for what she was planning.

She lubricated it as she approached you again.  You stood obediently, palms pressed against the glass.  She moved up behind you and lifted a leg pressing it against the glass beside you.  You took a deep breath and held it as she pushed the toy into herself.  When it was in place, the end pressed against her g-spot and one of the small ridged protuberances was resting on her clit, she grabbed your thigh and lifted you, spreading your legs out wide as she thrust her hips up and the toy sunk into you.

“Fuck!”  You cried out loudly bracing yourself against the glass as the toy penetrated you.

Sif smiled against your skin and began to fuck you as she held you helpless in front of her.  Each thrust of her hips pushed the toy in deep into both of you.  It pressed against her g-spot again and again.  It must be doing the same to you because the sounds you made got louder and louder and more out of control.  Grunts and whimpers and loud cries of pleasure came from you and your arousal dripped down the toy and mixed with Sif’s.

Your hands slipped on the glass and your head fell back as you completely lost control.  Sif picked up her pace, thrusting hard and deep into you.  Your whole body seized up and you cried out gushing onto the window.

Sif moaned and jerked into you, her own orgasm hitting her like a wave.  She slipped the toy out of you and let you down to your feet.  “There you are, my lady,” she said, taking the toy out as she supported you.  “Was that a sufficient celebration?”

You let her support her weight and kissed her neck as you looked out at the stars.  “I don’t know, Sif.  For finding our home?  I think we could go again.”

[talpup]

Lost Song: 1

Summary: The war between the Dragons and Griffons ended 233 years ago, and both races right along with it.

Or so it was believed. There are three individuals that will soon change that.

Kai is the last of the Dragons and he seeks to take what he sees as his rightful place and rule over all of Oblvi. Meanwhile, Shouta, the last Sphinx, wants nothing more than to do his job; keep the peace and and teach the young Fourth’s to hopefully avoid the mistakes of their ancestors. And Teris, a Foundling who is just trying to understand and survive in this strange new world that is supposedly her own.

All three have their own wants and desires, but Kai’s plans, Teris’ existence, and Shouta's past mean that none of them may get what they want.

***So this fic will have a LOT more world building than my others.   Please feel free to comment. For those who have read my Chaos fic, yes, I'm reusing the term Oblvi.  Words are hard and I liked the term; but this fic isn't connected to Chaos.  The same goes for reader/oc's name being Teris.   She's not the same Teris from Erase the Shadow.

This fic is rated explicit and has warnings of sex, violence, and other possible triggers.

If you prefer reading off AO3 here’s the link for that: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24009679

Special thank you to @inorganicone2230 who knows of my love for the mythic and encouraged me to start this fic without stressing about the other two I’ve got going.  Your friendship means the world to me.  And I can’t wait to go down the rabbit hole of ideas with in for this fic.

1.1

“What do you mean she wants to give him back!”

The Arbitrators snarl caused the already nervous Miyashita to hiccup and vanish.  With a swallow the Changeling slowly reappeared.

“I—it—it is not a matter of want.”  The nervous Sprite responded.  “Rather a matter of necessity.”

The Arbitrator glared at the little man seated across from his desk.  As a rule, Enji didn’t trust things he couldn’t look in the eye.  So it didn’t help his annoyance that he had to stretch his back and lean slightly forward in order to see the Changeling given that the Sprites forehead barely reached the level of the desks polished surface.

“Explain.” Enji demanded when the Sprite showed no sign of going on.

“Well, ah, you see--”  Miyashita stalled looking every where but at the frightful Manticore.

Enji growled his impatience, struggling to keep his human form.  To think that this little gnat had had the nerve to chitter at him for offering a book on which to boost his child-like frame upon.

“The thing is.”  Miyashita went on with carefully.  “Her Ladyship would not be able keep the Reaping even if she wanted, for he is not human.”

Not human!  Enji blinked.  A second Foundling in as many days.  This was just great.  At least the first, a woman, hadn’t been discovered during a Changeling Reaping.  Though Enji couldn’t decide if that was worse or better.  In any case, this would certainly garner the Council’s attention.  Something nobody wanted.

1.2

“Aizawa. Please, come in.”  Nedzu beckoned.

Shouta stepped into the Director of Traverseen Halls office and closed the door.  At the sight of Yagi and Todoroki, Shouta’s shoulders slightly tensed.  Thankfully, in human form his black hair was long enough to cover his neck and no one noticed the brief rise of his heckles.

“Please. Take a seat.  We have much to discuss.”  Director Nedzu urged.

Shouta did so choosing to take the open chair near the Arbitrator rather than Toshinori.  Sinking into the too soft seat, Shouta tried to think of any trouble his class of 1-A might have caused last time they were in town.  It was the only explanation he could think of for why both the area Arbitrator and Toshinori, the area Elder, were here.

Coal black eyes on the Director, Shouta questioned.  “What’s this about?  I have class in twelve minutes.”

“This will take longer than twelve minutes I’m afraid.  But there’s no need to worry about your students.  I sent Nemuri to cover your class.”  Nedzu told.

Shouta's eyes narrowed.  Though the animal looking creature tried to sound his usual chipper self, he could hear a tight telling of concern in the Hybrid’s voice.  The Sphinx sniffed.  His pure blood and Nedzu’s overly mixed meant that he could smell it too.

He wondered if Todoroki could smell Nedzu’s unease.  While dragons, griffons, and sphinx's were the most ancient of beasts; manticore's were older than most.  It afforded the species better honed senses, especially if they were pure bloods.  Something Arbitrator Todoroki was overly proud of.  Honestly, Shouta was surprised the respect Todoroki showed a hybrid like Nedzu, whose lineage was so mixed and mutated that even Nedzu himself couldn’t say what all he was.

Unlike pure bloods, hybrids carried remnants of their true form over into their human form.  The more muddled ones blood became the more remnants got carried over.  Nedzu’s lineage was so mixed that he couldn’t alter the image of the humanoid animal he appeared as. And given the fact that Fourth’s who couldn’t change into more human-like forms were thought of as less at best, Nedzu had faced a hard life.  Not that one could tell by his usually bright personality.

“Tea.” Nedzu offered the three men seated before his desk.

Enji and Shouta shook their heads, while Toshinori politely took a cup.

Curiosity and impatience getting the better of him, Shouta spoke up.  “Sir. I ask again.  What is this about?”

Nedzu set down the tea pot.  “That’s why I like you, Aizawa.  Focused. Straight to the point.  Something that was rarely found in your species.”

“I wouldn’t know.”  Shouta deadpanned.  He was the last of his kind. Locked in stone as a cub and found long after the dragons and griffons thought they had extinguish his species.

Enji huffed, crossing his arms.  He felt no sympathy for Aizawa's loss. The way he saw it it was sphinx-kinds own fault for not siding with the dragons.

Toshinori lowered his cup of tea.  The reminder of what dragon and griffon kind had done when the sphinx's refused to chose a side in the Dragon-Griffon War still sat ill with him despite him having served the griffons.

Nedzu knew well enough that Aizawa wasn’t seeking sympathy or calling anyone out for their past allegiances.  The Sphinx was merely stating a fact.  “Arbitrator, if you would.”

Enji uncrossed his arms.  “A week and half ago, the Changeling Queen of a local clan visited Terra for a sanctioned Reaping.  Unfortunately she couldn’t keep her claim as the being she reaped turned out not to be a Fourth.”

“A foundling Fourth.”  Shouta mused.  “Irregular to find one young enough that it hasn’t realized what it is, but not impossible. Sprites more than any other Fourth like to mess with humans.  Despite the Council’s laws, Changeling’s will find a way to trade their young for human children.”

“As a member of the Ilca it’s your job to stop them.”  Enji rumbled.

“Your opinion of me flatters.  But I’m only one sphinx.  I can’t be everywhere.”  Shouta stared at the reddening Arbitrator a moment before going on.  “Besides, some Fourth foundling isn’t what this is about.  Such a clear and simple breach of Council law wouldn’t interest both you or the area Elder.”  He glanced passed Todoroki to Yagi.  “So I ask again.  What is this about?”

Shouta realized he was being rude but he didn’t care.  He had a class to get to.  It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Nemuri not to let 1-A run rampant...okay, that was precisely it.

Not one to be rushed by anyone, and certainly not some member of the Ilca, Enji went on.  “The Foundling the Changeling Queen reaped is a man.  Obviously young.  Says he’s twenty-nine.  Likely a hybrid of sprite and spirit.  Though time will tell exactly which species his lineage is.  But that’s not all.  The day prior to that a trader whose license allows him to bring goods in and out of Terra returned with a Foundling of his own.  A woman.  The trader was a Derrick, said he sensed the presence of a Fourth and followed it discovering an unconscious woman in an alley.  Unable to rouse her and finding no pass that allowed her to be in Terra he brought her back with his load.  Since the woman claims she doesn’t know the Derrick and only regained consciousness once here we had no way of verifying his story.  Derrick’s are tricksy creatures--”

“They’re a benevolent species known for pranks of little harm.”  Shouta interrupted.

“That hardly means the Derrick is telling the truth.”  Enji bristled.

Rather than argue, Shouta looked across to Yagi.  “What does the area Elder think?”

Toshinori set down the tea cup.  “I believe him.  The Derrick has no reason to lie.”

Enji scoffed.  Yagi might be a powerful Talos, but he was too kind.  Too trusting.  The Elder’s compassionate, charitable nature made him weak in Enji’s eyes.  He would've been a better Elder.  The area needed a firmer, less accepting leader.

Shouta smirked into his scarf-like piece that served as restraints and a weapon of sorts.  He had never really cared for the boisterous, attention hungry Elder.  But if they insisted on making him late for class, the least he could do was irk the Manticore by reminding him of his lesser place to Yagi.

The Sphinx fixed his gaze on Nedzu.  “As intriguing as all this is, Sir.  What does it have to do with me or Traverseen Hall in general?”

“Both Foundlings are to be trained and placed in your Ilca.”

Shouta's mouth opened.  He worked alone.  And with good reason.  Though the species divided by the Dragon-Griffon War were slowly coming back together, there was one species.  One person.  That they all hated. Him.

“I know what you’re thinking.”  Nedzu said.

“Do you?”  Shouta asked.

“The Foundlings don’t know about our history.  They won’t care that you’re a sphinx.”

“I work alone.”  Shouta said.

“Correction. You <em>worked</em> alone.”

Shouta frowned into his scarf-like piece at Todoroki’s taunting words.

Yagi cleared his throat.  Only he, Todoroki, and Nedzu knew that the woman was a griffon.  But if she was to be part of Aizawa's Ilca, he thought it important for the Sphinx to know.

Sensing the Elder's plan, Nedzu spoke up. “Discovering what either of them are is of secondary consequence at the present.  Neither of them remember anything about who they truly are, if they ever knew in the first place.  They didn’t even know Oblvi existed and therefore know nothing of our world.  The goal is to see that they have the tools and ability to survive.”

“And you don’t think making them part of my Ilca is counter productive to their survival?”  Shouta questioned, levelly.  Just being part of his Ilca would make things unnecessarily difficult on them when it came to making acquaintances, never mind friends.

Nedzu ignored the query.  “Seeing as you have a full schedule teaching and being an active Ilca, I have ordered Oboro to instruct and train the male Foundling.  And Kai do to the same with the female.”

Kai. Shouta's teeth pressed together at the mention of the Dragon.  “So you think she’s a beast of some kind?”

Nedzu nodded.  “She’s certainly not a spirit, sprite, or demon.”

Shouta sighed.  At least she was of the same division as he.  But the other Foundling?  It wasn’t that he had anything against spirits or sprites…

Still ill at ease about keeping the truth of the woman’s lineage from the Council, Enji stated.  “Yagi and I have spoken with the Council. They are eager to learn exactly what kind of Fourth’s the two are.”

Boisterous voice taking on a more serious edge, Yagi told Aizawa.  “I’m more concerned with seeing that these two learn how to survive and don’t inadvertently hurt someone.  Proper instruction and first hand experience are vital to that.  Sending them out with an Ilca member will give them both.  Especially if that Ilca member is an accomplished teacher.”

Shouta disregarded the compliment, silently cursing the Elder’s reasonable thinking.  Tiresome as it was, the idea was logical.  The two foundlings clearly weren’t some young-lings to be enrolled in the Ilca course at Traverseen Hall.  A three year sedate course of learning would only be a danger to themselves and others.  Being older their power would be greater.  They needed to learn to control it as quickly as possible.  While throwing them into the fire might seem a recipe for disaster.  It was only rational way to assure their power displayed itself and force them to control it.

Still, Shouta didn’t like being saddled with two members to his Ilca.  As much as he liked teaching, he worked alone.  Not to mention the hassle and danger of not knowing what kind of Fourth’s they were.

As if reading his mind, Nedzu said.  “Aside from basic base instincts, once they learn and begin to display their inherent abilities, we will be able to narrow down what kind of Fourth’s they are.”

Shouta nodded in agreement.  While a particular species instinct didn’t always run true or as strong for every Fourth of that species; that, combined with the inherent abilities, should give them a better idea of what kind of Fourth they were.  They already knew the divisions of the two.  Beast for the woman.  And spirit and sprite for the man. The next step would be to learning what phylum they were part of, then class, followed by order, tribe, genus, and finally species.

Shouta cursed his own species inherent love of puzzles and riddles.  Even if given a choice by the three seated around him, he wouldn’t have been able to say no to such a tempting mystery.

“I’ll take them.”

1.3

A knock on Kai’s office door sounded.  “Enter.”

Teris eyed the man that had escorted her, slowly walking passed him to enter the room.

“Kai. The Foundling female.”  Hari introduced.

“I have a name.”  Teris snapped.  She looked to the man behind the desk, her breath catching in her throat.

Kai’s head shot up, gold eyes lifting.  The aura she gave off.  The prideful power…

Teris chalked her hammering heart and tingling senses up to the events of the last three days and not the man seated before her.  “Where’s Hizashi?”

“Who?”

“The other Foundling.”  Hari explained.

Kai’s disappointment was palatable.  For a moment he had thought.  Had hoped that she was a dragon.  Just the feeling of ancient, unbridled power she gave had excited and thrilled him.  But that excitement and interest diminished in an instant.  Dragons weren’t pack Fourth’s and whatever this woman was, she clearly was if she cared enough to ask about the other Foundling whereabouts.

Setting aside the quill, Kai closed pushed away the stack of orders.  “The other Foundling will be learning with those from his own division. You will be learning with yours.”

“Beasts.” Teris said, pulling the word from memory.  A lot had been said to her and Hizashi these last few days, it was hard to remember and keep it all straight.

“At least you’re not completely oblivious.”  Kai muttered under his breath.

“I have a three masters and was close to getting my doctorate before--” Teris stopped.  These people.  These things didn’t need to know about her abduction and trouble she had escaped from before being found and brought over.  More over being taken was a sign of weakness and every instinct she had was telling her not to appear weak before this golden eyed man.

“Your Terra education will be of little good here.”  Kai dismissed, not at all surprised she had heard him.  Excellent hearing was a trait of most beasts.  Simmering eyes focused on her.  “Though I can appreciate your obvious interest in learning.  I myself enjoy the endeavor of bettering not just my body but my mind.”

If her world hadn’t been turned upside down, Teris might've remarked that his body didn’t require any bettering; but she kept the passing thought to herself.

“Let’s start properly, shall we.  I am Chisaki Kai.  That’s Kurono Hari.”

“And what kind of creatures—Fourth’s are you?”

“That’s impolite to ask.”  Hari grumbled.

Kai held up a staying hand.  “True.  But forgivable.  I’m a dragon. Hari’s an arepyiai.  And you are?”

“I—I don’t know.”  A part of her still wondered if she should be here. The other, great part, still questioning if this was all real. Maybe she was still back in that cell.  Her abductors…

“Why don’t we start with your name.”  Kai suggested.

“Nova. Teris.”

“And may I call you Teris?”

Teris nodded.

“Good. You may call me Kai.  What don’t you show me your true form.”

Teris’ hand pressed to her shirt collar.  “M—my what?”

“Hari.” Kai commanded.

Hari changed into his true form.  It was a startling sight.  Unlike more ancient Fourth’s, arepyiai’s were far from beautiful.  More horrid miss-mash of the two root species that arepyiai stemmed from. He had the bird-like lower body of a harpy, along with their smaller wings.  While his torso was lion-like with the head of an eagle, showing the griffon part of his species lineage.

Teris jumped back.

Kai noted her quickness even in human form, adding it to the list of telling things about her that would eventually reveal what she was. “Your turn.”

“I—I can’t do that.”

“Afraid there’s not enough room?  Don’t worry.  Traverseen Hall was built with dwarf magic.  The room was made to accommodate Fourth’s in their true from.  It will expand as much as required.”  Kai offered.

“That’s… Not what I meant.”

Kai sighed.  It was foolish to think it would be so easy.  “Fine.  We met.  I will teach you.  Be back here first thing in the morning.”

It wasn’t as if he had much of a choice.  The Rat, Nedzu, hadn’t given him a choice.

“That’s it.”  Teris blinked.

Hari already back in human form, had the door open, ushering arm extended.

“The day is nearly done and I have work to do.”  Kai stated.

He couldn’t help a small smile.  She was pretty.  And if she was bright enough to have three masters from Terra, she might be a welcome diversion from the rigors of his goal.

Hari returned shortly after seeing her out.  “What do you think?”

“Too soon to tell.  But whatever she is, her species is old.  It’s inconvenient.  Having her around.  Even if it’s just during the day.”

“Wonder if the Rat suspects.”

Kai shook Hari’s concern away.  “Even if Nedzu suspects anything.  A Foundling would make for a terrible spy.  She doesn’t know enough about anything to find something out of sorts.”

“Even so.  I’ll order the rest of the Ilca to be careful when she’s around.”

Kai nodded, pleased.  He was just glad that his Ilca had a full complement of eight and the Foundling couldn’t be assigned to it. That definitely would've made his plans all the more difficult.  He had the thought of teaching her the old way.  The true and right way of things.

“Whose Ilca was she placed in?”

“Aizawa's.”

Kai frowned at that.  The thought of teaching her suddenly became all the more appealing.

I write for my own enjoyment, but edit and post for yours.  If you enjoyed reading this at all please comment and let me know.  It’s the only thing that encourages me to keep editing and posting.

[storm-driver]

Hi! Do you have any writing tips for Roxas and Ventus? :D

I am about to bash heads in with this, you might wanna sit down.

I’m known to be particularly brutal when it comes to analysis and judgement of others’ works, so asking for my advice might lead to me being very harsh about it. I also just typed up a bit of shit and one misclick on my keyboard deleted literally all of and I’m PISSED the fuck off at Tumblr for not having an AUTO SAVE FEATURE ON POSTS. But whatever here we go

I’d qualify this as a character’s study, because that’s honestly what I’m doing. I’m gonna cite to you my character studies for Roxas and Ventus. I’ve spent literal days analyzing their archetypes and who they are as people. And all I’m gonna do is cite it. Below the cut because oof I got a LOT TO SAY

Ventus is one character I see people get half right and half wrong in their fan works. Many characterize him as a bubbly and upbeat, naive child with hardly a copious sense of what it means to be the kind of child warrior that he is. A Mary Sue, to use a term. And to an extent, Ventus can seem very Mary-Sue-like, being such a young person and such a caring and, at times, gullible child.

In the story of BBS, we see Ventus progress through the worlds in search of his friend, deliberately defying his Master’s wishes in the process. When he finds out one of his friends, Aqua, was only out looking for them to drag them home, he called her an awful person. From the moment he met Vanitas, he was flat out rude (though with reason).

Point being, even if Ventus’ heart is literally made from pure light, he is not a pure person. He makes mistakes. He has choices he regrets. He’s not happy with everything that’s ever happened. He has his dislikes, things that make him uncomfortable, things that he hates. He’s not a saint. He’s not without flaws. So in my honest opinion, he cannot be written without them.

One of Ven’s most defining character traits is his personality being a near polar opposite of Roxas’, the character whom he most resembles. Ventus is upbeat, he’s outgoing, he wants to see new places and meet new people. He wants to protect those people and he wants to call them his friends. And sometimes, that’s his downfall.

His overtly strong care for Terra, as his brother-in-training, led him to defy his Master and go out on his own. This led to Ven going about and protecting people from the “monsters” (Unversed) that plagued all the worlds. A good outcome, yes, but it led to Ven’s doubts about who Terra was and what he was capable of. And that led to a falling out in their friendship. To a point where Ven was so hurt by Terra not letting him come on the journey, Ven kept going just to find new friends. A hint of jealousy.

As the series has progressed, though, we find Ventus is acting a bit more mature after he woke up in KH3. When Aqua started to feel down that Terra was still missing, Ventus held his Wayfinder to the stars and assured her that they would be able to bring him home. A role reversal that showed how much Ven has grown as a person, given that it was usually Aqua, one of the most mature characters in the series, who would support Ven in his times of need.

All in all, Ventus remains a very kind-hearted person who I’d hope is still eager to make new friends. Though he’s matured just enough to realize that the world may be a bit more complicated than the black and white views that Eraqus taught him. I.E. When he told Vanitas that he didn’t ask to be split away, that their split didn’t define them. And you can visibly see Ventus get upset when Vanitas insists that all he is capable of being is darkness.

It’s such a strong sign of maturity that Ven also calmly accepts Vanitas’ answer. He doesn’t try to fight it like Sora does. He’s aware that he can’t change what some people think, and he just needs to live with it. Giving up on an argument, especially with someone as stubborn as Vanitas has shown to be, is an insanely strong sign of maturity that not a lot of characters show with such a collected grasp on the situation. Ventus knew exactly what he was saying. And that’s amazing growth from when he tried to argue with Terra and Aqua in BBS.

I would say he’s a kind person. Still a bit childish around the edges, as he’s shown he’s capable of being. But he isn’t quite a child anymore. He knows what he’s supposed to be, what Vanitas is supposed to be, and how this development affects him as a person. He’s very mature for his age, but still very caring. And maybe just a little naive.

Roxas, on the other hand, might feel like a polar opposite.

Consider first that Roxas is just over a year old. He’s almost as close as you can get to an infant in this series, besides the literal children Sora, Riku and Kairi from BBS. He probably doesn’t have a fantastic grasp on even the most simple concepts like gender or friendship. That second one should most especially be true to Roxas.

Something I tend to see people do very wrong when writing Roxas is making him emotionally driven by nothing but sheer anger. Yes, Roxas’ most defining trait is his remarkable ability to dual-wield, something he learned through the unbridled rage of watching his best friend die in his arms. But think about why he’s angry first and you start to unveil who Roxas really is.

First and foremost, he’s a tragedy of a character. Everything about his existence is tragic and leaves the viewer with strong pity and condolences for Roxas. He even pities himself and the fate he’s forced to face by end of KH2. Why, though, is it all so tragic? How come Roxas’ story hurts more than, say, Riku’s or Aqua’s?

Part of it comes back to Roxas being born a literal blank slate. He had no grasp on reality for an entire week after he was born. No sense of purpose, what was right and wrong, self-preservation or care for other things. He needed to be taught what all of that meant, and it was only after he made the mistake of following Xemnas and joining the Organization. It’s akin to a child being adopted and immediately put to work for the efforts of the homeowners. The child knows no better than to do so. Especially for Roxas, who has literally no memories or cohesion of who he is.

Furthermore, the person who taught him what it was to be alive, to be friends with others and to experience joy, ended up betraying his trust and flat-out lying to him for most of the time that they were friends. Axel may not have enjoyed lying to Roxas, but the point being that he did. And it gave Roxas trust issues from that point onward.

Now that’s not to say that Roxas isn’t capable of liking other people. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. We know that Roxas wants to be friends with others. In a way, it mimics Ventus’ wishes to make new friends, and maybe even has some deeper meaning to it. (We do know that Ventus’ heart was with Roxas for some time, so who knows, maybe it was overflow?) We know for a fact that Roxas would’ve liked very much to be friends with some kids he saw in Twilight Town. There’s even a point in the manga where Roxas says that he was jealous of their friendship.

Now I also wouldn’t put it past Roxas to be a little cold towards people. For someone who’s gone through as much tragedy as he has, he has a right to be cold. But it’s not like it was every random stranger’s fault that he had such a shitty start to his life. Roxas has shown he’s capable of being compassionate and kind to others, even to people he doesn’t know too well. I know the Roxas we met in the data Twilight Town wasn’t exactly genuine, but the little mini-games you did during his segment? Just proof that, if Roxas didn’t have his Hell of a life at the constant front, maybe he could’ve lived a bit more calmly. Been a helpful person around town and just an overall calm and chill person.

Of course, he probably has his gripes. I think he’d be playful and teasing with his friends. Maybe give Riku a cold look for that time he stole the munny pouch. Stare at Ventus oddly for a few seconds before realizing that it wasn’t a mirror he was looking at. But he wouldn’t be 99% anger and 1% “ice cream!” Everything Roxas has gone through doesn’t lead directly to rage mode 24/7, despite how much we as a community joke about it.

Roxas is a compassionate and loving person, but because of his numerous trust issues in the past, he might hold some friends closer than others. He can be nice to anyone he wants to, but only so few people know what Roxas is really like. He has a playful side, but he’s also capable of being very aggressive, stubborn-willed, and flat rude when he wants to be. He might even have a bit of a temper problem. But that doesn’t define him. He is Roxas, nobody else.

[floriswrite]

"So, if I asked, would you really make me lunch?" Lea couldn't help but be awkward around Lauriam. The guy was way too bright these days but he knew there was still massive darkness in him. He didn't really care about the Marluxia crap.

"I would." Lauriam nodded. "My personal feelings towards you have nothing to do with my need to make sure you are healthy."

"How do you feel towards me?"

"I don't feel anything."

"What?"

"In general. My feelings are... Muted. They've been that way since I woke here." 

Lea leaned back against the wall. “Aren’t you dating Even?” 

Lauriam sighed and looked to the floor. “I am courting Even. Ienzo thought the same... I am chasing the ghost of a feeling, Lea. If you really must know. Even knows where my emotions lie. We’ve talked extensively about our past. About Brain and Ansem. Aeleus and Elrena.” 

“Not that I care, trust me, I don’t, but isn’t that kinda, I don’t know, /wrong/?” Lea gestured a hand at him. “Sounds like you’re leading him on.” 

“It is hardly any different from Isa’s own emotional state. We all have trauma, Lea. And if I feel like dealing with mine by taking care of others and attempting to learn what it means to be in a normal relationship than I should be allowed to.” 

“Don’t you dare drag Isa into this.” Lea groaned and rubbed his face. “I know you know how he looks at Terra. So, okay, yeah, I get what you’re saying. I’m dealing with mine by having an army of /teenagers/ at my feet.” 

“Have you put more thought into my offer?” 

“...I... didn’t really think you were serious.” Lea admitted and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m not really leader material, Lauriam.” 

“It would only be temporary. Isa would be preferable but there’s still much work to be done there.” Lauriam gave him a small smile. “It’s what Skuld would want.” 

“Yeah, okay. Until Isa can. But not a moment longer. I can barely be responsible for myself, let alone a bunch of kids.” 

“I’ll tell Ven the good news. Would you like something to commemorate it?” 

“Uh, besides lunch?” 

Lauriam gave a small nod. “Ienzo has a choker from me, and Ven wears a bracelet. I’m on good terms with Moogle as well as those ducklings so have access to materials as well as the ability to synthesis.” 

“Uh, I guess whatever you think would be best. I’m still getting used to my Keyblade and the whole magic shift in general from, you know, Axel.” 

Lauriam curled a hand before his lips. “I can work with that. I’ll have something for you in the next few days.” 

“Cool.” Lea swallowed. “You really don’t feel anything towards me?” 

“Should I? Whatever happened between Marluxia and Axel is in the past.” Lauriam responded and crossed his arms over his chest. “You’ve only ever done what you thought was right to protect your own interests. I cannot fault someone for that.” 

“I don’t know now. I guess I thought we were friends. You /act/ like we’re friends.” 

“No.” Lauriam closed his eyes. “You’ll die if we’re friends.” 

“What?” Lea pressed closer to the wall behind him before he sprung forward to grab Lauriam’s collar. “What?!” 

“If you haven’t figured that out by now I don’t know what to tell you. Do you know how many times Elrena has died? Has had her memory altered? Been /used/? Let alone Ven.” Lauriam placed his hands over Lea’s. “Brain didn’t even come to this time. Ephemer is trapped. I’m pretty sure you met Skuld. Broken. My Dandelions... You don’t want to be my friend, Lea.” 

“Huh.” The sound left Lea softly and his hands slipped back to his sides. “Yeah. You got a point there. But if /you/ haven’t realized I don’t make a habit of leaving my friends behind. So I really don’t care. If you want me to be a part of his union crap than we’re friends.”

“Always a way with words.” Lauriam sighed. “I know I cannot change your mind. So welcome to the fold, Master Lea.” 

“Yeah, okay, I need you to not call me that.” Lea mumbled as he tried to keep his knees supporting him. Now he understood why Even always had such a face when Lauriam called him lord. It meant nothing from him but boy howdy was that tone all Marluxia. 

“It is your proper title.” Lauriam frowned. “Ienzo and Ven dislike it as well. But it is what Master Ava would want. I will refrain.” 

“You really don’t get it.” Lea huffed. “Marluxia calling anyone by proper title would be a field day. It’s not the same from you, but it’s still, how do I even put this besides fuckin’ hot... Yeah, that’s it.” 

“So there’s a problem with my delivery.” 

“There’s a problem with your /face/.” Lea sighed heavily. “What happened to your /ego/? Not that I’m really complaining. Marluxia was insufferable. But he was fuckin’ hot.” 

“Are you turned on by me calling you master?” Lauriam questioned. 

“Yeah, sure, we can boil it down to that. Much easier than trying to delve into the various levels of physiological bullcrap between us.” 

“I see. So it is not so much /me/ saying it as the thought of /him/ saying it and since we share the same face... I see. And here I had hoped I wouldn’t have to deal with this with you.” 

“Yeah, basically.” Lea shrugged. “With me? Oh. /That’s/ why you’re still courting Even.” 

“Yes.” Lauriam admitted. “Ven is the only person who sees /me/. The rest of you still see /him/.” 

“Yeah, okay, guilty. That’s just kinda how it is for all of us. Some of us kinda... switched back and forth easier. Half the time the kids still call me Axel and it stings, you know? I’m trying to make this new life for all of us and it... it’s hard. And you’re trying to give me this opportunity to /do/ something to help the future and that’s terrifying. Because when I see you I see Marluxia. And I didn’t /care/ what Marluxia had to say because Saix’s orders and wants were all that mattered. Getting back to Roxas was all that mattered. I just had to make sure Marluxia /failed/. I had no clue what was actually happening at Castle Oblivion because I didn’t /care/. And now we’re here, and you’re offering to trust me again, and I... I don’t deserve that.” 

“Are we not all seeking redemption?” 

“We are.” Lea sighed. “Is that what this is? A way to prove myself?” 

“If you want to see it that way you can.” 

“I will. Can you tell me something?” 

“You know I remember little.” 

“I do. Marluxia was determined to take down Xemnas. Why?” 

“To stop Kingdom Hearts. To stop a reset of the universe. You’ve been to the Keyblade Graveyard.” 

“Yeah, place is hella creepy.” 

“That place is full of people I once knew. The people of my time. Our job as leaders was to protect those that avoided the war. To act as if it never happened.” 

“What?” 

“To accept the future and move on. That was the point of the dandelions.” 

“You’re telling me that the universe almost got /destroyed/?” 

“Reset. Yes.” 

“Same thing.” Lea huffed. 

“No. Kingdom Hearts puts light and darkness back in balance. The few Keyblade Weilders you’ve met wore born from that light. Were gifted it.” 

“So Xehanort was trying to use us to cause an apocalypse, basically.” 

“That’s accurate.” 

“Which is why Marluxia tried to control Sora?” 

“If what I have been told of myself follows, than yes. Marluxia would have had the instinctual need to stop Kingdom Hearts. Even if he could not remember why and had lost his Keyblade to Darkness.” 

“Well, damn.” Lea whistled. “Which I guess explains why Larxene was there too.” 

“The lingering feeling of bonds. Yes.” Lauriam nodded. 

“Huh.” Lea tilted his head back. “Even knowing that I still woulda done what I did.” 

“You had your priorities. I get the feeling that Saix and Marluxia had the same one without knowing it.” 

“Yeah, probably. Xemnas was crazy.” Lea laughed. “We won in the end though. No apocalypse.” 

“No apocalypse.” Lauriam hummed. “Things are finally back to how they should be.” He pressed a hand to his chest. “Just how master wanted.” 

“Don’t get all eerie on me now.”

“Are you not excited for the future?” Lauriam grinned at him. 

“Not sure excited is a word I would use, but at this point I guess I should just be happy I’m alive to see it.” 

“Exactly, Master Lea.”

Lea growled at him. “I’m going to go tell Ven myself.” 

“You have no idea where he is.”

“And you do?” 

“Of course. But if you listen to your heart you should find the way.” 

“Yeah, guiding key blah blah blah.” 

“I believe in you, Lea.” 

“That makes one of us.” Lea sighed and summoned his Keyblade. “You’re really not like Marluxia at all. I don’t get it.” 

“One needs to keep up appearances when their body is all they have. The loss of my sister broke me deeply and if not for the other leaders I would have fallen to Darkness much sooner. There is no point in growing close to people who will only leave you. Marluxia existed solely to try and get back to /me/. To try and fix the future. Is that accurate?” 

“I guess. Are you trying to tell me that Marluxia could have been nice?” 

“He got along with Roxas, am I right?” 

“Yeah. Roxas is always looking at you and junk. But even that was cause he had a Keyblade, wasn’t it? Trick the kid into liking you to use him... Which is no different than what I did.” Lea sighed. “A means to an end. I get your point.” 

“Marluxia is Marluxia and I am me. But all Marluxia was, was a fully broken version of me. The one that became a Nobody instead of a Darkling. The one found by Xigbar.” 

“Yeah. I guess not so different if you put it like that. You just wear a different mask.” 

“Correct.” Lauriam gestured his head towards Lea’s Keyblade. “Go tell Ven. He’s been very excited to know your answer.” 

“Just, follow my heart?” 

“The Keyblade will do the rest.” 

“Yeah, okay. I’ll see you later. Do I just message you about lunch?” 

“That’s what the children do.” 

“Okay. I can do that.” 

“Good. Goodbye, Master Lea.” 

“You’re the worst.”