#What manner of fuckery awaits??

[evilfloralfoolery]

Daggers and Deception - Part III

The two neighbors meet. Neither is what the other expects. ___________________________

Indigo adds a bit more tea to a second infuser and grabs the kettle full of water.  Surely the other man has mugs.  His own quarters are well-furnished in this aspect.  

After pausing to stuff another handkerchief or two into his pocket, he exits the room and walks into the hallway.  As promised, the door beside his own is wide open in invitation.  He hesitates only a moment before stepping across the threshold, rapping his knuckles against the wood.

"It's your neighbor calling,"  he says.

Heavy, booted footsteps from the kitchen.  "In here." 

The man's voice is a deep, rumbling growl of sound even more nuanced than Indigo imagined.  Low and soft, with the potential for menace or gentility in equal measure.  He pads across the creaking wooden floors, the heels of his shoes tapping upon the slats.

He halts with a short, barely audible gasp.  His neighbor is a shirtless tower of muscle and ink, broad shoulders nearly twice the width of Indigo's own, sprawling, intricate tattoos covering not only his back, but his arms as well.  Dark hair rests just past his shoulders in casual disarray, the strap of a sling crossing his back, a pad of gauze taped near his shoulder blade.

He glances over one shoulder before turning to face Indigo full-on and Indigo must keep the facade of his placid demeanor firmly in place.  

"Hey," he says.

Indigo wets his lips and commands his voice to obey.

"Good afternoon," he says a bit too formally.

The topmost portion of the man's hair is pulled away in haphazard ponytail, exposing the chiseled line of his jaw which is peppered with a short beard that is more stubble than hair.  But it is the eyes that truly capture Indigo's attention, a dark cognac hue that observes him with a fierce intelligence and calculation so intense that he nearly takes a step back.

"You can set that wherever," the man says, nodding towards the kettle.  "I'm sure I've got mugs in here somewhere."

Indigo sets the kettle upon the nearest burner and extends a hand to his neighbor.  "Indigo," he says.

Calloused fingers slide into a firm but gentle grip to meet his own.  "Grimm," he says.  "Nice to put a face to the piano playing."

"Oh, dear," Indigo says.  "I do hope I did not keep you awake at all hours of the night.  I hadn't any idea the walls were so thin."

"Nah," Grimm says.  "The opposite, actually.  Couldn't sleep.  Listening to you helped."  A hint of smirk pulls at the corner of his mouth.  "When you weren't sneezing your ass off."

Indigo laughs a bit self-consciously.  "Yes, well.  I seem to have been blind-sided by nature.  We haven't such abundant plant life in the city limits." 

"Hmn."  Grimm glances out of the kitchen window.  "It's kinda nice.  You know, if it wasn't so damn quiet." 

He reaches for the cabinet door and Indigo does not miss the slight wince that accompanies the gesture.  So, this explained it, then.  Clearly, the man was suffering from a rather painful injury if reaching for something with his good arm was that difficult.

"Please, allow me," Indigo says.  "After all, I am the one who offered."

Grimm steps aside without comment and Indigo rifles through the cabinet for a moment before coming away with two mugs, neither of which coordinate with the other, much to his chagrin.  And amusement.

"Well, then," he says.  "Do you prefer Christmas from 1982 or Mother of the Year?"

A low chuckle.  "You should take a look at the bowls."

Indigo snorts.  "I believe I shall spare myself the indignity." 

The dark bass of Grimm's voice is marred by something thicker, an edge of congestion from. . .

Well, certainly not the gratuitous floral nonsense weaving itself into every possible corner of the estate.  

No, this is something else.  The first dregs of some manner of illness.

Oh.  Oh no. 

“Wanna sit?”

Indigo snaps out of his overly analytical train of thought. 

“Yes, thank you.”

After removing the infuser, he pours the other man a generous serving of the steaming liquid before tending to himself.

The behemoth of a man sinks down into the nearest chair, the slow unfurling of his limbs in an almost indecent sprawl, accompanied by a low groan of what could be either relief or pain. 

"Sorry about my half-naked bullshit," he says.  "Hard to put a shirt on with all this crap."  He nods towards his bandaged shoulder before taking a sip of his tea, a strange, almost genteel gesture that belies his impressive stature.  "Hmm, this is good shit.  What is it?"

"Jasmine green," Indigo says. "A favorite of mine."  He pauses with an abrupt stiffening of his spine and sets the mug down upon the end  table in a haste, fumbling to jerk the handkerchief free of his pocket just in time to muffle a harsh “--EKTSSCHiih!”  Or two.  Three.  Great gods. 

"Hmmn."  Grimm arches an eyebrow.  "Maybe you shouldn't be drinking shit with flowers in it, buddy." 

Indigo dabs at his eye with a chuckle.  "Do excuse me," he says. 

"Yeah, yeah."  Grimm shrugs his good shoulder, flicking his gaze to the couch where Indigo sits and squints.  "Been doin’ a little of that myself. Dusty shit in here.” 

A quick glance around the dated-yet-pristine room attests otherwise.

What a curious form of denial.

They sip their tea in silence for a moment before his neighbor puts down the now-empty cup and regards him with a slight lift of his head, fingers tugging through a ruffled section of his dark hair.

"So," he says.  "What are you in for?"

"In for?" 

Grimm gestures to the room.  "You didn't come here for a fucking vacation." 

"Mmm, and what if I did just that?"  Indigo says.

"I'd say you're lyin'.” 

Indigo chuckles.  How delightfully direct.  A pleasant change from overly saccharine formalities and such.

"It's a bit of professional burnout, I'm afraid," Indigo explains.  "I was ordered by my employer to take a rest, although I'm not certain as to why he insisted upon this place in particular.  Seems to be quite the odd choice."

"Hmph, tell me about it."  Grimm scratches at the strap across his shoulder and brushes a stray strand of hair away from his eyes.  Sniffles almost liquidly.  Clears his throat. "So, what's the burnout?  If you can't talk about it or some shit--"

"Oh, no," Indigo interrupts with a wave of his hand.  "It's quite uninteresting, really."  He crosses one leg over the other and sits up a bit straighter.  "I am the editor-in-chief at a leading publishing house.  Apparently, I've run myself a bit ragged keeping up with the literary whims of a rather troublesome young writer."

"Huh."  Grimm rubs at the fuzz on his chin again, an absently thoughtful gesture.  "Didn't think book editing could make you crazy enough for the nature nut house."

Indigo suppresses a snort of amusement into a cupped hand.  "And you?"

Grimm leans back in the chair.  “I got shot," he says. 

So matter-of-fact.  Blunt.  As if such a thing were a mere occupational hazard.  And perhaps it was.

"Shot?" Indigo repeats.

"Yeah," Grimm says.  "Tried to stop some guy from shooting a client.  Guess he got mad about it."  He shrugs his good shoulder.  "Ain't  the first time." 

"The first time being shot or the first time you've angered a man with a gun?" Indigo asks with as much polite decorum as possible.

Those striking eyes fix him with a stare that is somehow both casual and frank.  "Both."

It is, of course, at this point that his tea companion loses his rather iron-clad grip on his physical composure, his expression dissolving into a helplessness that is so contrary to stern assessment, Indigo has to fight to keep his own composure casual.

“---hhh-huuh! UHCHISSSH!” Grimm makes a rather poor attempt at ducking into the crook of his uninjured elbow.  

He straightens with a soft hiss of an inhalation, lips thinning into a slight grimace.  “Sorry. Don’t know what my problem is.” 

Indigo certainly does. He also does not miss the fine trickle of sweat the ebbs down the side of Grimm’s neck, losing itself in his hair before it can travel further.

“No apology necessary.”  Indigo waves his hand again in a dismissive gesture. "Have they given you nothing for the pain, then?"

A wry, almost huff of a laugh.  "They gave me something. I just ain't taking it." 

"And why not?"  Indigo asks.

Grimm shifts in his chair in an effort to better accommodate whatever discomfort might be plaguing him.  "I don't wanna be groggy and out of it," he says.  "Gotta be alert in this field."

"Yes, well." Indigo adjusts his spectacles with the push of a finger.  "I can certainly understand the need for vigilance, but given your current location, perhaps a bit of relaxation is not only allowed, but expected."

"I don't know how to do that," Grimm says.  "Sending me out here isn't gonna make a damn bit of difference."

Indigo could see that.  Here was a man who appeared to enjoy a casual conversation with a stranger, but the calculated assessment of his stare attested otherwise.  Every movement, every breath, every flicker of emotional content was being cataloged, observed, and graded for appropriateness of response.  Even now, his gaze has shifted to the folded handkerchief that rests upon Indigo's lap a moment before Indigo's sinuses prickle, forcing another muffled “MmphKTSCH!”

"Gods," he mumbles.  "Do excuse me."

"Damn," Grimm says when he gives a repeat performance.  "So, you know there's a nurse or caretaker or whatever somewhere, right?  Pretty sure she'd give you something to stop that, if you asked her." 

Indigo dabs at the corner of his eye beneath his glasses with a sniff.  "Thank you, but I'm not quite that desperate yet.  I would prefer to keep my wits about me as best I . . . ." His voice trails into nothingness as Grimm leans forward with a slow tilt of his head.

"Huh," he says. "Didn't think you need your 'wits' to edit shit."

Indigo arches an eyebrow, leans back against the couch. "I disclosed no such information."

"You always this damn formal?" 

"Are you always such an interrogatory delight?”

Grimm smirks, strokes the edges of his chin again, audibly scratching at the fine covering of hair with his short nails. “Okay, smartass.” He rises to his feet, mug in hand.  "Gonna see if there's any of that flower tea left."

Flower tea.  Indigo resists the urge to chuckle into his palm.  The man is oddly charming in his blunt, almost abrasive way.  Not at all what Indigo expected, really, especially not from a tattooed mountain of muscle.

(TBC.....)

[rozelic]

Infatuation || AoT - Jean Kirschtein x Reader

Word Count: 2033

"Really now?" The fact that he had been so quick to keep you by his side made your heart flutter, causing a giddy smile to appear on your face. You'd had a crush on Jean since the very first day, a crush that had done nothing but grow with every day that passed. However, you had never done anything about it, convinced that Mikasa was the only girl that Jean had eyes for. But, could you still have a chance? "And what consequences are those?" You continued your teasing before you got lost in your own thoughts. "Having to stand seeing your ugly mug for more than five minutes?"

"Hah!" Jean scoffed. "We all know that this ugly mug is irresistible." He gestured towards his face, chest puffing out as he showed off. You couldn't help bursting into laughter, Jean joining in only seconds afterwards.

Jean sat alone in the dining hall, bored out of his mind. Everybody else had gone to enjoy their day off, but Jean had had to stay behind, grounded like a child for getting into yet another fight with Eren Jeager.

The youth scratched angrily at the wooden surface of the table with his fingernail when Eren crossed his mind, brows lowering into a deep frown . The fight hadn't been his fault. All he had done was call Jaeger out on his usual bullshit, and then the little bastard had practically leaped on him, throwing punches and landing kicks wherever he could. Of course, Jean had had to defend himself.

Mikasa, Armin and you had stood aside, as usual, at a safe distance, the dark haired asian keeping an eye on the pair should the fight get out of hand. Armin, instead, simply shook his head in dissapproval and turned back to you, resuming your previous conversation. You were already used to the fights, they did happen at least once every few days after all, and had nothing to add on the matter.

It was at that moment that the head instructor had bursted into the room, yelling at the top of his voice to put the fight to a stop. Eren and Jean had frozen in place when they heard Keith, fists clenched in the air and gripping on each other's clothes. Keith had then asked who had been responsible for all the fuckery, to which everyone pointed at Jean. Of course, he had protested, explaining with elaborate hand gestures what Eren had done to provoke him, but as usual Keith blamed the person who had been yelling the most.

So now, while everybody else was out and about, he was stuck here with only himself for company for the rest of the day. Jean sighed loudly and let his head fall on the table with a loud 'thonk', followed by a pained groan and arms drooping off the edges of the table. He hated this so much. It would have been so much better if Eren had been punished for his actions too. He had been the one that had started it, after all.

The feeling of fingertips softly grazing the back of his neck startled him, making him jump and quiclky lift his head. ''W-What the-'' He stuttered, covering his neck with his hand. You stood behind him, the usual soft smile on your face as you waved your hand in a quick greeting motion. Jean only glared at you in response. ''Don't scare me like that."

You giggled, taking a seat next to him. "Aw, but it's so fun." You faked a pout before laughing again.

Jean simply grumbled in response, letting his head fall on the table again, though this time he was a little more careful. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"Isn't it obvious?" You crossed your arms over the table, copying Jean's position but leaning your cheek on your arm so you could look at him. "I came to keep you company."

Jean did the same, giving you an odd look. "On your day off?" He lifted an eyebrow quizically. You nodded, the smile you had already been sporting growing wider.

Jean thought he saw the hints of a blush on your cheeks, but he quickly pushed the idea aside. "Why?"

"Because we're friends, you idiot." You sighed in exasperation. "I thought it was pretty obvious that we were friends but if that's not the case then I'll be taking my leave." You pretended to be offended by his question, beginning to stand up only to be pulled back down again by the brunet.

"Don't go." Jean knew perfectly well that you were just messing with him again, as you usually did, and wouldn't actually leave, but he didn't want to risk you going in any way. "You made the choice to sit here with me so now you have to deal with the consequences." He lifted his head, the corners of his lips curling upwards into a grin.

"Really now?" The fact that he had been so quick to keep you by his side made your heart flutter, causing a giddy smile to appear on your face. You'd had a crush on Jean since the very first day, a crush that had done nothing but grow with every day that passed. However, you had never done anything about it, convinced that Mikasa was the only girl that Jean had eyes for. But, could you still have a chance? "And what consequences are those?" You continued your teasing before you got lost in your own thoughts. "Having to stand seeing your ugly mug for more than five minutes?"

"Hah!" Jean scoffed. "We all know that this ugly mug is irresistible." He gestured towards his face, chest puffing out as he showed off. You couldn't help bursting into laughter, Jean joining in only seconds afterwards.

You lost track of time as you both spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in a similar manner, laughing at each others antics and sharing stories. On more than one occasion Jean would start rambling on and on about all the things Eren would do to annoy him, but every time you would subtly change the subject to something else. You knew very well that once Jean started talking about anything that bothered him, he'd go on and on and on. You were enjoying having his attention all to yourself too much to let him drift off like that.

All too soon, the sun dipped behind the mountains that surrounded the trainee camp, causing the room to grow a little darker with each passing minute. Jean was the first to notice this, since you were too entranced with his childhood stories to even realize how late it already was.

"Jeez, we must have been talking for hours." Jean said as he returned to his seat next to you after lighting a few candles around the room.

"How long do you think it will be before everybody comes back?" You asked, worrying that this special moment was over already.

He shrugged. "Dunno." He frowned a little as he looked towards one of the many windows. "The sun went down just a little while ago, so... about an hour maybe? Or a little less?"

You nodded, thoughtful. This had been the first time that you and Jean had spent so much time together, and the fact that it had all gone by so fast had to mean something, right? From what Jean had said, it was safe to assume that he had also enjoyed himself. Was this the right time to say something about how you felt? Or... could your assumptions be wrong?

You were snapped out of your thoughts by Jean calling out your name. "Hey, everything okay?" Not knowing very well how to answer you just nodded again, gaze fixated on the table before you.

Jean raised an eyebrow, puzzled by your change in mood. Just minutes ago you had been laughing at his every joke, even his bad ones. You had connected in ways the he didn't know where possible and he had come to realize that he cared for you deeply, so your sudden silence confused him.

"I don't believe you." He replied, inching a little closer to you. If you weren't going to directly tell him what was on your mind then he was at least going to try and guess. "Has Eren been a little shit again?"

A small smile appeared on your face as you looked up at him. A slight shake of the head let him know that wasn't what was troubling you. "Eren is only a little shit with you, remember?" "Ah, so you agree with me about that." Jean grinned proudly, but said nothing more about when your smile was quickly replaced with a glare, daring him to continue. He reluctantly dropped the subject and returned to trying to figure out what was wrong.

"Oh." The corner's of Jean's mouth curled upwards into a sly smile. "It's a guy, isn't it?" He asked, sure that you would burst out laughing just like you usually would, but instead you blushed deeply, gaze quickly returning to the table.

He hadn't expected that sort of answer, and his confusion only grew. An odd feeling settled in the bottom of his stomach like a heavy rock. What was it? Jealousy? No, it couldn't. He liked Mikasa, but... if that were true why did feel this way at the thought of you with somebody that wasn't him?

An awkward silence settled between the two of you, your blush deepening ever so slightly as you refused to speak, afraid that you might accidentally say something you might regret. Jean didn't say a word either, too busy sorting out his feelings. He'd never been in this kind of situation, a situation where he'd have to try and figure out who he liked the most, but... when he really thought about it, whatever it was that he felt for you was much stronger than what he felt for Mikasa. You two had connected after all, and you were the only person to make him forget about the horrid monsters that awaited them outside the walls.

Biting his lip, he turned to you and called your name again to get your attention. Your eyes flickered towards him before returning to their previous spot. Jean said your name again, before asking a very daring question.

"Could it..." A moment of hesitation. "...Is it me?"

You burried your face in your hands, sure that it was impossible for your face to be any redder. You hated acting like this, like some insecure little girl, but you couldn't help it, this was all just too much for you. Still, you might as well answer. Jean had been brave enough to ask and you wasn't going to be any less.

"Yes." You just about managed to say.

Whatever doubts Jean had about his feelings for you vanished with that single word.

"...Me?"

You parted your fingers to steal a peek, heart leaping in your chest when you caught sight of the stupidest grin on his face. He was... happy?

"Yes, you, you moron."

A silence settled between the two of you, though you wasn't sure if you could've called it an awkward silence. Jean was the first to break it, though not with any words. You felt his calloused fingers brush against the hands that still covered your face, gently prying them away. Then they cupped your face and turned your head to look at him.

"Do you really mean that?"

Laughter bubbled from your lips once again. "If I didn't mean it I wouldn't have said it." Your eyes locked, staring at each other. Neither of you knew what to do next, still processing the fact that you had basically confessed and your feelings were mutual.

You smiled, deciding that now it was your turn to be daring, and leaned forward to kiss him.

It was nothing like you had imagined your first kiss to be like. Your noses collided, causing you to regret trying to kiss Jean and try to pull away. Jean didn't let you. He chuckled and brought you close again, his hands still cupping your face. You both tilted your heads this time and pressed your lips together. Your hands crawled their way up Jean's chest, settling on his chest and gripping onto the fabric when he began to nibble on your lower lip.

However, you both interrupted by the door bursting open. You quickly pulled away, though Jean would later say you had almost jumped to the other side of the room.

"I see you two finally hooked up." Eren said from the open door, crossing his arms over his chest smugly.

"Jaeger, I will fucking murder you!" Jean yelled as he ran after him. Eren laughed before running away, yelling his usual insults as Jean ran after him.

You stayed where you were, fingers on your lips as you processed everything that had happened that day. You blushed again as you smiled to yourself.

''What an idiot."

[ferilclawmane]

The Letter

The hour was late on a more rare as of recent trip to the Alliance capital. The night air was cool on his skin, the satchel at his shoulder heavy with supplies and treats. The cherry of his cigarette burned bright as he inhaled, casting a mild glow about his bearded features, matching the glow from his amber hues. Smoke trailed after him as he walked, heading along an alleyway towards the mage tower. Old Town had been quiet in recent times, something he was grateful for after the absolute lunacy that had infected the place not all that long ago. 

His thoughts lingered on the wife and daughter awaiting him at home, leaving his heart with a swell and a faint smile curled on his lips. For a moment, those thoughts were so deep he almost didn’t notice the unnatural pool of blood forming a few paces ahead. It wasn’t until the moon’s light caught just right that he came to a halt, hand flying to his blade as the stars shrouded him in Elune’s grace. Tensed and ready to strike, he paused to see what manner of fuckery might befall him. 

First, horns rose, then the top of a head, finally the entire visage and so on, until what some might think was an elegant and striking draenei woman stood before him, not a drop of that blood pool upon her. Tall, as tall as the man himself and perhaps even a bit more, stood the woman - long white locks of hair flowing around her features. Crimson eyes stared from blackened sockets, the darkened veins spidering out from them like some sort of deathly corruption. 

“Feril Clawmane.” 

The man tensed and let out a huffed grunt at the sound of the voice. This was by no means a method of being stopped he’d experienced before and it set him on edge.

“Speak quickly your reason for being here.” 

The woman let out a mirthy chuckle, reaching a hand into a long sleeve to withdraw a letter, which she held over to him. 

“Do not act so surprised, ancient one. I am not here, set against you. Rather, I am here to enlighten you. To help you. To reunite you with something long lost.” 

His amber hues had taken on a golden tone, shining more brightly from his sockets than before. Ears flicking, he simply stared at the letter for a long few moments, leading the woman’s lips to flatten as she shook the letter once. 

“Your caution is admirable but as I said, I am not here as your enemy. Now take this. It will be the first step in a journey I believe you will find comforting.” 

A voice in his head told him it was okay, that there was nothing foul about the letter - at least in aura. The stars still hung about him, like weapons hovering and waiting to strike out as he reached for the letter. Once it was in hand, he looked the envelope over. The only script was scrawled elegantly and read ‘An’da’. His heart seized in his chest before he went to try and grab the woman. She was suddenly several steps away, as if she’d simply glided from his grasp. 

“You may not touch me. What you may do though, is read that. Read it all and then be there at the given time. Do not disappoint her.” 

The mirthy tone was long gone and there was almost something like a coldness in her voice, perhaps something protective. In another instant, she had sunk from sight, back into the pool of blood which receded from sight altogether after another moment, no trace that it was ever there. His hand shook now, unusually so, while he looked down at the letter. He didn’t want to open it, he felt like he was already being tricked - in the cruelest way possible. With a shake of his head, he reached out over the seal, determining if his daughter and wife were safe. When he knew they were, he fell against the wall of the alley, slowly sliding down to sit. 

Ever so slowly, he brought the envelope up and turned it over. Sharp nails slid into a crease and peeled the fold open all before he carefully pulled the letter from within. As if in a daze, he unfolded it, until it’s contents were revealed. Fine script filled the page, with what may have been a sketch near the bottom. Golden hues faded to amber as he was given a moment to himself, hands trembling as he tried to still them to read. 

‘An’da, 

How would I even begin?  How would I ever explain what has transpired? For the longest time, all I can recall was being surrounded by darkness. Achingly lonesome and terrifying darkness. So long was I in darkness that I forgot everything and everyone I had ever known. I lay, curled 

into a ball in that darkness, waiting… Hoping… For something I had long forgotten. 

One day I was ripped from that darkness, the darkness that I had almost found comforting in the end. I was lost, no idea who I was, where I was, why I was there. I saw things. Things I was told to speak aloud. A woman touched by spiders. Another swathed in shadows. I knew where to find them and that seemed enough at first. It wasn’t until I was used, like some crude vessel, that things changed. 

I wandered, I believe I even killed, seeking to quench an undying thirst and to find solace in the darkness once more. That is, until a peculiar woman found me. Perhaps the first to show me kindness since I’d left the darkness. I was guided to where I now call home. Shown to a woman who I thought was to be my mother at first. Certainly she has been as such to me, since I was brought to her. I remember conversations. I remember speaking them to her, to the other woman. Letting them know what I saw and what I did not. Something like kindness or affection for me came from the woman and she worked to help me. To restore me. 

I fought at first but then, in time, I conceded and indeed, she helped. Withered flesh returned to being full, my mind once shattered began to reform. It was then that I had my first memories of you. Of min’da. I can see it now as if I was standing there. Your smiling features, her moonlit eyes. The way she looked at you and you in turn looked at me. The love of a father and a mother. The love of a family I had long lost and forgotten. 

I am uncertain if you have moved on, if you have forgotten me. I don’t want to believe you have but even so… I would still like the chance to speak with you. I know your heart must be clenched as you read this. I know what you must be thinking. The fear, the anger, the sense of being lost. You need not risk everything you love, to speak to me. 

In Boralus, in a week’s time, I will be at a restaurant. The only of it’s kind. Open air and in the Upton Borough. From noon to Dusk, I will wait. If you choose not to come, I will understand. Some things lost must feel better to leave that way. I hope however, that is not the case for you. 

With love, 

Your daughter, 

Haeshia’ 

A sketch, of that moment she described, rested at the bottom of the page, the three of them together and smiling, the likeness uncanny. 

His hands shook, the letter falling from his sight as tears rolled down his cheeks. It sounded as though it were her, yet all the same something sounded different. Why would someone drag this from his past to torment him with it now? Unless it was no gimmick. 

It was a long time he sat there, longer than he should have been, before he pushed himself to his feet. Carefully, he folded the letter and returned it to the envelope, which he tucked carefully into his vest. 

No’Vindere. 

He need to speak with her. She would have some sort of advice. At the very least, she would know his pain to push him correctly. His feet began to move of their own accord almost, dragging him through the city and towards the portals that would take him home.

(Tagging @cleansedbymoonlight​ and @velerodra-valesinger​ for mentions) 

[fuckedaroundandfoundout]

Febuary 4, 2022

This one is going to be a bit confusing, as it involves hallucinations, body doubles and a fair bit of what we thought was time and space fuckery. So Nana went down the sloping edge of the endlessly deep hole ahead of us, finding her granddaughter, Velta, terribly wounded several spirals down. We all had to make checks as we travelled down or else be winded and tired by the time we got there, presumably because it was a hard trek or something. Both Nana and Antigone failed this check, and ended up with a mild consequence because of it. The group eventually caught up to her and we talked a bit to Velta who was very distrustful of us until Nana stepped up and said we were with her and the paper. Didn't stop her from being generally distant but whatever, we were strangers. She had a big gash on her leg which we patched up, and after some questioning which went nowhere about what she'd seen down here, we sent her back up with Jebhedaya, and waited until he returned. The most we got from Velta was that she was down here, didn't see anyone or anything and tripped into the hole. She'd been down here for days but because she's related to Nana who's hard as nails tough, she was relatively fine, just couldn't drag herself back up. After Jebh left, we looked deeper into the hole and found Tilly standing a good distance down as well. Nothing we did to contact her would stir her, so we figured she was out of power or damaged. We didn't want to move since Jebh was gone, but once he came back we made our way down to her to assess and come up with a plan to get her back up as well. She just seemed to have run out of power and we reasoned that we had supplies back at camp to refuel her, so up Jebh went again, and this time he would build a pulley system to get us up and down the tunnel without more exhaustion. We were sitting there talking when Tilly's hand fell off, and Jericho tried to grab at it before it went rolling down the slope, missed, and took took steps to snatch it up, but ended up several rungs down. He swore he only took two steps, but Nana and I saw him run all that way. This is when we started to test some theories to see how this place actually works. I had the idea that maybe some weird time dilation was going on here, and was messing with and distorting space and time perception. Jericho and I tossed around some rocks and shit to see if they ended up where they were "supposed" to end up. Nothing came of that, so we theorized maybe it had to do with our relative location to one another, or maybe it only affected certain people. Our tests were all pretty inconclusive, and we just ended up coming to the conclusion that maybe this place just wanted us separated, so it would be best to stick as close together as possible as we awaited Jebh's return. Another test we did was that I tried to antagonize and annoy Nana to get her to move or something, I don't remember what the point of it all really was, but she didn't seem to react in her usual manner to it, no balls of yarn or random objects thrown at my head or anything of the sort. As Jebh lowered the pulley system down, he noticed that he hadn't seen any pale burrowers since he left the pit, presumably they either left us to die down here or were so scared that they wanted to spend as little time as possible near it. We all loaded up onto the pulley system, and Callahan made a strange remark that will come into play later that she didn't elaborate on at the time, but made me very suspicious. She said that we hadn't seen Nana since she went down into the pit, but that made no sense so I pointed to "Nana" and asked who that was then? She just shrugged and said it was Nana. Now this is where shit went down, I don't remember the catalyst for this, but as we were on our way up, Jericho could hear an inquisitor down further into the pit that was dying and calling out for help. No reports had been made about someone coming down here, so I told him if they'd been down here this long, they could wait, and only when I focused and looked down did I see or hear them at all. At this

point, something happened, and the "pulley system" snapped, and suddenly Jebh was yelling about how he was being attacked by eldritch bullshit. We were trying to make our way up to him, but suddenly had our own eldritch bullshit to deal with. "Nana" in the group of Jericho, Callahan and I, revealed herself to be a weird, multicolored and gelatinous Stretch Armstrong lookin' motherfuck, and bellow, I think it was the real Nana also versus a fake "Callahan". Callahan ATE "Nana", and dove down to eat her imposter as we all rushed to help the real Nana while Jebh was dealing with one of these things on his own since he was furthest away via our perception. We all eventually ran up to see Jebhadaya fighting a weird jellyfish looking creature, which I was like hmmm... we fought good, and had a little bit of damage on it, and I had four fate points left, Jericho's players suggested I try to eat it and I was ohoho so tempted, so I was like fuck it, and dove in. It took ALL my fate points plus some invokes to kill it in one foul swoop, Callahan helped a little bit and we Lady and the Tramped that shit. She got all flustered I think as we embraced for a lil bit. Nana was like "Aw, young love." and everyone else was horrified that we'd both managed to shove down a whole ass giant jellyfish creature. Finally the smoke cleared, and we were able to see this place for what it really was. It's possibly endlessly deep, but instead of ending at the crack in the wall we came through, it also goes hella up. We were done at this point and needed to rest and not poke the bear anymore, so we told the burrowers that job was completed and went back to our base camp. We joked around and used the last of our supplies to make a comfy bed for the newly-weds tent, and now I have to deal with the consequences of eating living nightmares tonight, but next session we are committed to seeing if that spiraling tunnel upwards is a shortcut out.

[tellywoodtrash]

ishqbaaz 28.08.17 lb

plain text version here. 

rewatching the scene from yesterday instead of fwding as usual, just to mentally prepare myself for what’s coming. 😐😐😐

favt part: rudra’s bitch!face at pinky. god i love this boy and his steadfast bhaabi love so much. 😊😊😊

god it doesn’t make it easier to hear pinky say “tera jo kuch bhi hai, mera hai, mera, sirf mera!” the second time round either. like i know she’s not just talking about his money, but also his loyalty and commitment and who he is as a person, but man... the money is a huge fucking part, and to hear that from your MOM... just ow. 😖😖😖

usse khud nahi pata wtf the NKK sach is, but the way he played his hand to get pinky to come out with it. well done, shaatir singh oberoi. i haven’t been this proud of your smarts since... well, ever. 😌😌😌

why would she admit the lie out loud? 😕😕😕

guess she’s completely lost it. she’s in that hysterical mode where she no longer has control over wtf is coming out her mouth. 😬😬😬

aw man, their faces. not just shivika’s, but omRu’s too. allllll that suffering they went through for over 4 months, for fucking nothing. 😪😪😪

idk how anika’s found her voice to even say anything. i would have just fucking passed out right there. 😶😶😶

ok never thought i’d feel sympathy for shakti of all people, but oh man... the poor guy. 😞😞😞

WHAT????? MAHI WAS NOT HIS BROTHER?????????? FUCKING NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!! I REALLY REALLY LOVED MAHI VE AND WANTED HIM TO BE SHIVAAY’S BADA BHAIIII. WHERE IS HE? WILL WE NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN? 😫😫😫😫😫😫

GOD I’M SO DEVASTATED RIGHT NOW AT THE LOSS OF MAHI. I REALLY FEEL LIKE A PART OF MY HEART HAS GONE MISSING. 😥😥😥😥

shivaay ka paara chad raha hai bg mein. await explosion in 3... 2... 🌋🌋🌋

omfgggggggggggg what the fuckkkkkkkkk PINKY WAS INVOLVED IN THE KIDNAPPING???? JESUS FUCKING CHRIST. 😧😧😧

ok this is just... WAY TOO MUCH. fucking WAAAAAAAAY TOO MUCH. like fuck, harneet how the fuck can you just ghusaooo all this into the plot right now? how the hell is pinky ever going to come back from all this to redeem herself? 😟😟😟

does pinky really expect him to APPRECIATE all this fuckery? 😐😐😐

ok... nakuul ki *~ACTING~* shuru ho rahi hai. 😬😬😬

LMAO OMG RAMAYAN METAPHOR FROM SHIVAAY, OF ALL PEOPLE. THE SHOCK HAS MADE HIS BRAIN RE-CIRCUIT ITSELF. 🤣🤣🤣

oh boy. ohhhhhhhhhh boy. 😣😣😣😣

omRu instantly running to bolster shivaay. and i have started to cry already. 😭😭😭😭

ok shit, the horrible acting is starting. yuck what is this BLUBBERING he’s doing? 😟😟😟

readying the bread and cheese to make sandwiches with ALL THE HAM. 🥓🥓🥓🥓 (no ham emoji, i have to make do with the bacon.)

HOLYYYYYYYYYYY SHITTTTTTTTTTTT THAPPADDDDDD I WAS NOT EXPECTING THAT 😯😯😯

i am gauri/bhavya in the bg, like just akhdsdhaskdhkjaj @ whatever is going down 😧😧😧😧

for once, dadi’s drama is warranted and aimed at the right person for the right reasons 😗😗😗

shakti ji still pretty measured in his tone and words. he’s a far greater man than we all realized, you guys. 😔😔😔

ok, pinky’s hamming it up even more than nakuul. 😐😐😐

time for omRu to fucking eviscerate pinky. TEAR HER APART, BOYS! 😠😠😠

ok yiiiiiiiikes, pinky’s truly lost it. 

woman, give up already. you’re just digging yourself in deeper and deeper. 😐😐😐

nakuul’s being more measured in his acting than i thought he would, but his voice modulation is a fucking mess. i hate when he does this high pitched shit in emotional scenes. he sounds like hrithik in koi mil gaya. 😒😒😒

“aap shivaay ki maa hai, uski utni khushi aapko kabhi nahi hui jitni khushi aap SHIVAAY SINGH OBEROI ki maa hai, usse hui.”

sigh. my poor son. my poor trash son. 😭😭😭

350 EPISODES IN AND SHIVAAY’S FINALLY ACCEPTING WHAT A SHITTY PERSONALITY HE HAS THANKS TO HIS MOM 😯😯😯

shivaay attributing whatever little goodness is in him is solely because of omRu... dying. FUCKING DYING. THIS IS WHY I WATCH THIS FUCKING SHOWWWWWWWWWW. 😭😭😭😭😭

shivaay talking about om and how he took on the najaayaz tag for him. ok i’m a mess. i’m a fucking mess no one look at me. *weeping bitch baby tears* 😪😪😪

ok but who the fuck was daimaa talking about then??? 🤔🤔🤔😒😒😒

lol ok someone tell shivaay, tej isn’t that magnanimous and that jhanvi fully had to blackmail his ass into complying. god bless jhanvi though. what a good mom she is to ALL the kids in this house. 💖💖💖

this episode is a mess re: what shivaay calls ppl. he’s been calling pinky MAA this whole ep, when he’s only ever called her “mom”. chalo, that let’s attribute to all the EMOTIONS~~~ attributed to the word “maa”. but him calling jhanvi “badi MUMMY”? come on, he calls her “badi maa” 🙄🙄🙄

“mujhe lagta tha ki main, shivaay singh oberoi, the great wall, main apne parivaar ko protect kar raha hoon. lekin mera parivaar mujhe protect kar raha tha, bina bataaye, bina kuch jataaye.”

aw man, i’m glad that for once, the whole fam (other than omRu) stepped up for this kid and did something for him. 😌😌😌

HE’S APOLOGIZING TO ANIKA. HALELUJAAAAAAAAAAAAH. 350 EPISODESSSSSSSSS, AND FUCKING FINALLYYYYYYYYY 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

crying at how her hands are all over him, trying to reassure him. my babiessssssssssss. 😭😭😭

goddamnit pinky, STOP TALKING. 😣😣😣

“MERI ANIKA KE KHILAAF EK SHABD AUR NAHI SUNUNGA MAIN.” 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

ohhhhhhhhh shit. maa ko disowning. ~~DRAAAAAAAAAMA~~~ 😯😯😯

ok kuch zyaada ho raha hai. no need to go to every person standing here and tell them this. 😐😐😐

bhavya be like “shit i’m not even part of this damn family, i’m just here on fucking duty, what the fuck even am i supposed to do or say rn? 😕😕😕”

oh thank god. he’s walked out. it’s finally over. 😓😓😓

ANIKA RUN AFTER HIM WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU LET HIM GO WHEREVER ALONE 😩😩😩😩😩

ok where even is he? why is it so blue? 🤔🤔🤔

hein, tumhe toh samajh aa gaya, lekin mujhe nahi aaya, behen. kuch toh idea dede. 😕😕😕

is silence their version of “i love you”? will they never say it out loud to each other? 😑😑😑

OMFG THE HORRIBLE VFX. IT MAKES IT LOOK LIKE THE GAZEBO IS FUCKING FLOATING IN SPACE LIKE THE TARDIS 🤢🤢🤢🤢

this horrible fucking lighting man. god this show and it’s ajeeb ramleela waali lighting. 😒😒😒

also, it’s so obvious this is set up in that “storeroom”/hall/whatever. 🙄🙄🙄 

yesssss finally, she’s admitting what she did wrong too! FUCKING YES!🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

“tum mere saath ho toh hum sab kuch milkar handle kar sakta hai. yeh bhi kar leta main.” 😭😭😭

the horrible lighting is fucking pissssssssing me off. it’s such a good scene otherwise. 😥😥😥

lol mini-fight about if she’s crying or not. 😆😆😆

oh boy she wanted to suggest he forgive pinky. i can see it in her face. thank god she didn’t say it. too soon. too too soon. 😬😬😬

“mat jao door.” 

aaaaaaaaaand i’m crying. 😭😭😭😭😭

will you fucking finally kiss already????? LIKE LITERALLY WHAT ELSE IS LEFT, FOR YOU TWO TO GET TO KISS EACH OTHER?!??!! 😫😫😫

OMG THESE DWEEBS ARE STARING AT THE MOON LIKE A BUNCHA NERDS INSTEAD. FUCKING HELL. I HATE THEM. 😒😒😒

nowwwwwwww we talking. 😊😊😊

ugh pheeka pg-13 hug. whatever. fucking kiss, you assholes. 😑😑😑

ok this is the best i’m about to get. *sigh* 😔😔😔

oh lorddddddddd. ragini is here to fuck shit up. GOD CAN THESE KIDS HAVE FIVE FUCKING MINUTES TO THEMSELVES?!?! 😒😒😒

shivaay: oh shitttttttttt, i knew i was forgetting something in the middle of all this. it was to get this chick’s ass ARRESTED. 😐😐😐

ragini’s confidence, i can haz? 😗😗😗

lmao shivaay, do you know anika at all? like hell she’s gonna go wait in the car. 😂😂😂

UM OK WHERE THE F DID ALL THESE PRESS PPL APPARATE FROM

i swear the press in this show is like... all the “news” in this show is based on hearsay. 😒😒😒

LMAO THE VIDEO FROM SUNDARI BUA HOW EVEN IS THIS RELEVANT OR NEWS OR... WHO THE FUCK CARES ABOUT ANY OF THIS 😑😑😑

oh boy, you press people picked the wrongggggg day to fuck with him on this naam khoon khaandaan topic. 😗😗😗

“sirf anika. and there’s no one like her.” 

oh my heart, her smile at that. 😍😍😍

OUFF LECTURE DENA BANDH KAR. 

also how can anyyyyyyyyyyy of this be printed/reported in the fucking news? like... ok forget it. i’m done with complaining about this. 🙄🙄🙄

shot after shot at ragini. and her NKK too. lmao, savage singh oberoi.😆😆😆

CALLED IT. CALLED IT THAT THOSE PAPERS WERE NEVERRRRR FILEDDDDDDDD. 10 POINTS TO RAVENCLAW. 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

lol raginiiiii, this was the most poooorly planned shit ever. like, the fact that you thought this would even get any results is fucking hilarious. 😆😆😆

ok shivaay, no need to go into the details of your dysfunctional af marriage. also, the word you’re looking to use is WEDDING. 😕😕😕

GHUTNO KE BAL!!!!!!!!!!! GHUTNO KE BAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😯😯😯

ok that proposal was fucking perfect. simple. sweet. to the point. his voice modulation and everything, it was perfect. 

aaaaaaaaaaand i’m crying. i’m fucking crying like an idiot. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

“tumhare liye main ghutno pe aa gaya aaj.” 

TOO FUCKING CUTE! 😚😚😚😚

LMAO THE PRESS CLAPPING FOR THEM HAPPILY, LITERALLY SECONDS AFTER INTERROGATING HIM IN THE MOST RUDE AND INVASIVE MANNER 🙄🙄🙄

ragini is me, scrolling facebook and seeing everyone in my age group getting engaged and married: 

‘ugh. straight ppl.’

god shivaay, i haven’t recovered from the last two (three, counting the fake one with tia) weddings you’ve had. just... ouff. give us some fucking TIME to recuperate. 😣😣😣

REALLY? THIS WAS THE  BIG AMAZING PLAN RAGINI HAD THAT VIKRAM WAS LIKE “SOCH LO, THERE’S NOOOOOOOOOO TURNING BACK”?? like, i thought she was fucking going to have her murdered or some shit. what lameass bs. 😒😒😒

OMG OMG OMG YOU GUYS OUR #VIKINI SHIP IS SAILINGGGGGG 😯😯😯😍😍😍😍

VIKRAM WHAT EVEN IS YOUR FUCKING DEAL BRO WHY WERE YOU FORCEFULLY MARRYING ANIKA IF YOU’RE SUCH A BELIEVER IN SHIVIKA’S TRUE LOVE???? 🤔🤔🤔

JESUS YOU KNOW WHAT IDEC, JUST PLEASE TAKE RAGINI AND GO HAVE BABIES WITH QUESTIONABLE MENTAL STABILITY. I’M JUST GLAD ONE OF MY SIDE-SHIPS IN THIS SHOW HAS THE POSSIBILITY TO BE CANON. 🙃🙃🙃

ok iterally don’t care about this tejViLana plot, i’m just watching coz reyhna looks so damn pretty. here, have some caps of her adorable face.

ugh, so gorgeous. this south indian style has taken her from a 10 to a 19. i love her face so much. 

lol omRu watching the proposal on tv like it’s an action thriller. 😁😁😁

their happinesssssssssssssss. i can’t evennnnnnnn. my heart is so full of love for these boyssssssss. *crying happy tears* 😭😭😭😭😭

OH MY GOD OM IS BACK TO HIS SHAYARI. NOTHING INSPIRES HIM LIKE #SHIVIKA LOVE. 😊😊😊

“aankhon mein utari thi jo, ab dilon tak aa gayi. ishqbaazi chalte chalte, manzilon tak aa gayi.” 

ok but where is gauri? why she no here? i really wanted her to be here and all ecstatic at her bade bhaiyya and bhaujai’s progress. 😞😞😞

OM IS FINALLY PROUD OF HIS TRASH SON, AS ARE WE ALL. IT ONLY TOOK A YEAR AND SOME MONTHS. 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

eeeeeeee bulbulllll is hereeee! and she’s here with CAKE! 😍😍😍

DON’T THINK I DIDN’T NOTICE GAURI UTAAROFYING NAZAR OF THEM FROM THE SIDE. I LOVE HER SO MUCH. 💖💖💖💖

these two be eating cake with the sexiest fucking bedroom eyes at each other. take the rest of it up to your room and eat it off each other. 😏😏😏

ok omg WHO EVEN CARES ABOUT THIS TEJVILANA PLOT?? 😑😑😑

OMG THARKI BILLU BACK IN THE HOUSE. FUCKING YESSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😝😝😝😝😝

OMFG dadi playing cockblock, bloody hell what is your problem dadi? LET THEM FUCKING BEEEEEE. 😩😩😩😩😩