#YES; if anything start with new leaf as it's the most open and free animal crossing game from what i've heard | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

claroso · 4 years ago

Text

Like Real People Do

Zevran and Clara Amell have been dancing around the unnamed tension between them for months now. Finally out from underneath the thumbs of their respective jailers, they appreciate being able to take their time and enjoy the dance.

I’m referencing the Correspondence Interruptus quest in DA:O btw

Zevran lunged forwards, raking his daggers across the hurlock's side as he ducked under its swing. He felt leather armor and flesh give under his blades like butter. The monster screamed.

He danced back from the hurlock's next swipe, the rusty mace slamming into the ground. He hefted his dagger and threw it. The metal flashed as it spun through the air and lodged in its leg. Were it human, that would be a killing blow. But for a darkspawn? The thing simply growled, picked up its mace, and limped towards him.

The hair on his arms suddenly stood on end. That was the only warning he needed--he threw himself back a split second before a fireball crashed into his enemy. It screamed again, contorting in agony as it burned.

Then the carved end of a staff smashed into its head. The hurlock collapsed. Behind it, Clara Amell snarled and brought her staff down again. Its decaying skull split like a pumpkin, blood splattering across her pale face.

Zevran's heart skipped a beat.

The fire guttered out as the mage straightened, her eyes sweeping across the battlefield. A handful of steps away, Wynne and Sten stood at the ready, their weapons raised.

"We're clear!" Clara called after a moment.

They all relaxed.

Zevran grinned. Working with a mage was a rare treat with the Crows, but being able to work with a mage who could predict darkspawn attacks? Amazing. They didn't have to be on edge every second of the day. And travel went so much faster without checking for ambushes around every corner. He knew he was getting spoiled traveling with Wardens, but he was determined to enjoy it while he could.

Of course, it didn't help with bandits or anything of the non-tainted variety, but that became rarer and rarer as the stories of the last two Grey Wardens spread.

Clara barked out orders--to search the bodies, the cabin nearby--and they wordlessly complied. Hardly anything was left intact after a darkspawn attack, and this one was no exception. The house was barely standing and the animals had run off long before they arrived. And the remains of three farmers were strewn around the clearing.

Unfortunately familiar with the sight, he began searching the poor souls' home. Even with such carnage, he enjoyed working with the Wardens far more than the Crows. Clara at least listened to him. He didn't with her disagree often, but she didn't threaten bodily harm when he did.

Actually, now that he thought about it, threats of bodily harm were surprisingly rare with his new group. Except Morrigan, but the lovely witch usually kept it limited to Alistair.

And he kept a substantial cut of the loot, he thought as he rummaged through a chest at the back of the cabin. He slipped the few coins into his belt. The dirty leathers he tossed. That left a single leaf of parchment at the bottom of the chest. He broke the seal with his thumb and opened it, a smile spreading across his face.

"Zev!" Clara called. "We're leaving!"

He jumped up and rushed back to the group. Wynne dabbed at the bloodstains on her robe and Sten's face, as always, was stoically impatient. The Warden, wearing a mismatched set of armor over her Circle robes, sported her usual scowl. As he grabbed her hand and swept into an overdramatic bow, her expression shifted to confusion.

"My dear Warden." He purred, holding the letter up with a flourish. "I believe I've just won the bet."

She scoffed. "No chance in the Void. Let me see that."

"I apologize, but as I've said before," he dodged her outstretched hand and winked. "Poetry simply must be read aloud."

Sten grunted, somehow putting an entire lecture's worth of disgust into the sound, before turning on his heel and marching off.

"I rather agree with our taciturn friend. I'll see you back in town." Wynne said, starting down the trail back to Redcliffe.

"There's no way that's worse than the letter I found last week." Despite their companions' lack of enthusiasm, Clara had the slightest curve of a smile. Practically jumping up and down with excitement for her, really.

"Shall I?" Zevran said, raising an eyebrow.

She waved toward the path. "Walk while you talk, Brother Genitivi."

" 'My dearest Virginia Trueroyal,' " He said in a deep Fereldan accent.

"That's awful."

"Hush now. The audience doesn't speak. 'My dearest Virginia Trueroyal,' " He scoffed. "That can not be a real name."

She chuckled. "Get on with it."

" 'Regarding: Bodice ripped.' Oh, how scandalous!" He spun around, walking backward ahead of the Warden so he could wiggle his eyebrows at her. " 'Enclosed are seven silver and my most heartfelt apologies for said bodice.' "

Clara suddenly grabbed the front of his armor and pulled him roughly to the side, narrowly missing a tree.

He didn't stop. " 'I would blame the cold ocean spray, the loss of my favorite shirt, the bucking of the stallion,' " He winked, and she rolled her eyes. " 'or perhaps the strain of maintaining all such elements while sitting for a portrait, but I was certainly not myself. I hope you will forgive me and not take it upon yourself to find your own determined way in this world.' "

" 'Yours, Ser Rival Grouseman' " He finished with a flourish.

"That was terrible." Clara frowned.

"Exactly!" He exclaimed, delighted. "I will accept payment in silver or fine leather goods, mi estrella!"

"No, that's actually, really terrible. It's not even dirty!"

Zevran gasped. "How can you say that? The 'bucking of this stallion', the 'cold ocean spray' ripped this poor woman's bodice open!"

"It's too subtle." She argued. "I don't want flowery details and sighs in the moonlight. If you're going to talk dirty, at least give it to me straight."

"Well, if you insist."

In a very appropriate display of maturity, she stuck her tongue out at him.

"No matter." He said as they stepped into Redcliffe village. "Leliana can break our tie."

A few minutes later, they stepped into the tavern. Wynne sat at a table in the corner with a tome and a mug of ale in front of her. Sten was nowhere to be seen.

After dealing with the blood mage and possession of Connor at Redcliffe Castle, Clara had refused to stay when Teagan offered. Instead, they had found rooms in the village. Since they'd cleared the dead from the town and broke the siege, they'd been welcomed back with open arms. Any unoccupied room was free for their use. Sten had taken up in a hut on the edge of town. The mages settled in an empty house so they could practice without disturbing anyone. The rest stayed in the rooms above the tavern.

They'd only been there a week, but it was a much-needed break from their constant travel. They still hunted down pockets of darkspawn and bandits to ensure the town was safe, but they also slept in real beds and ate at the tavern every night. Leliana even volunteered at the local Chantry, dividing resources and praying with the town.

Speaking of their lively bard, Zevran spotted her rushing towards them with Barkspawn at her heels.

"You're back!" She exclaimed. "How did it go?"

"I think all the bandits ran off." Clara pulled down her hood and ruffled her sweaty blonde hair. Half of it stuck straight up, making the fierce warrior look more like the head of a broom. "Didn't see anything human all day."

"And the darkspawn?"

"Not gone, but it is a blight." She shrugged. "I think we'll leave the day after next. The guard should be able to handle what's left."

"More importantly," Zevran said, "I found the winning letter!"

Leliana grinned. "I'll get the drinks!"

After drinks were delivered and they'd settled at a table, Barkspawn curled over Clara's feet, Zevran read the letter again, with plenty of flourishes and suggestive looks. The redhead giggled through the entire thing.

When he finished, Clara shook her head. "Not a chance, Zev. Mine's better."

"I don't know." Leliana said. "There is a certain poetry in it."

"What? Why are you on his side?"

She shrugged. "None of the letters I found can compare. I'm not wasting time betting on a horse that can't win."

"Fine." Clara huffed. "Then you're the deciding vote. Pick one."

Delicately tapping her chin, the bard paused, obviously deep in thought.

"You can't be serious, Leli." Clara demanded, leaning over the table. "Mine's better! Just pick mine!"

He chuckled, admiring her fierce frown. So competitive!

Leliana smiled sweetly. "It's only that poetry is best when read aloud. Zevran really made the words come alive, don't you think?"

She fluttered her eyelashes as the Warden's mouth dropped open. Clara had staunchly avoided reading aloud any of the letters they found.

"Yes," he purred, "won't you indulge us, Warden?"

"I--you can't--fine!" She snatched her bag from under the table and rooted through it, muttering under her breath.

She slapped the parchment to the tabletop. " 'Miss Ambrose'." She started, a determined set to her shoulders.

" 'A long, slow grind, the motion careful, aided by generous application of oils. Size is no concern with my equipment, and I am always mindful when stuffing, not risking a--risking--" Clara stuttered, her voice climbing higher with each word. "--a burst before every order is fulfilled.' "

Leliana giggled and he pressed a fist against his mouth.

" 'My meat--" She winced, her pale skin red as a tomato. "--goes hand in hand with satisfaction.' "

He laughed. She fought down a smile and took a deep breath.

" 'Your interest astounds, but I would not question a customer's choice in nighttime reading." She said quickly, her voice strangled. "Three pound sausage again next week? No cheek, of course.' "

She collapsed against the table, arms over her head, shoulders twitching, as Leliana and Zevran howled with laughter. Barkspawn joined in with an actual howl.

"Maker's breath," Leliana sighed. She wiped her eyes. "That was marvelous, my friend. You win."

Clara looked up, hiccupping with laughter, and tried her best to glare. "You're all terrible people."

"What a performance!" Zevran cheered and clapped. "More than worth the five silver."

She rolled her eyes, but accepted their coin without further grumbling.

"And with that, I must be off." Leliana said, standing up. "I promised I would be up early to repair a barn. Zev?"

He sighed. "Yes, I suppose. As long as you buy the drinks again tomorrow."

"Helping the locals now?" Clara asked, refilling her cup.

"I might as well." He shrugged, leaning back in his chair and waving off Leliana. "Idle hands and all that, you know."

She frowned. "Are you tired of patrolling already?"

"Oh, there is no need to pout, my Warden." He said with a wink. "You know I only have eyes for you."

She hid a smile behind her cup of wine. Zevran grinned back, putting his feet up in Leliana's empty chair. They settled into a comfortable silence, simply observing each other.

He and the Warden had been dancing around each other for the past month. They each knew what it was and where it was going--into bed, most likely, though he had no qualms about a tent or wall if that's where the moment led them. But this, the dance, was equally enjoyable. Flirting, teasing, finding out how to make her smile or blush down past the neckline of her robes.

And learning how she flirted back. That's how he knew that arguing and knocking her shoulder against his was practically a wink and a loosened bodice for Clara.

Suddenly, her mouth dropped into a true pout, eyes shifting behind him. He turned to see Alistair move quickly across the room and out the front door with his head down.

He frowned. Something had happened between their stalwart Grey Wardens. For the past week, Alistair and Clara had barely even acknowledged each other. The playful teasing was replaced by awkward silences and short, to-the-point conversations. And occasionally, he caught her staring at him like she did now. Hurt danced across her expression with abandon.

Then she scowled. In one smooth motion, she picked up her cup and drained it.

Zevran blinked. Slowly, he pushed his whiskey over to her.

She drank that just as quickly, though with a lot more coughing after. Barkspawn whined and pushed his head into her lap.

Well. This was worse than he thought.

"Mi estrella." He said, leaning forward with a smirk.

She wiped her mouth with her sleeve. "What?"

"You've drunk far more than your usual fare." He nodded to the empty cups. "Sleep here tonight, in one of the empty rooms upstairs."

"That's...probably a good idea." Clara stood with a groan and tucked her staff under her arm.

"I shall escort you."

"What possible ulterior motive could you have, I wonder?" She mused as they started up the steps.

"Believe me, I am not a subtle man." He said. "When I have a motive, you will know."

They ducked into the room at the top of the stairs. As she shucked off her armor and robes, he wandered the edges of the small room, faking interest in its small baubles and plain furniture.

"If I may pry, my Warden..."

She glanced at him, suddenly tired and thinner than she had any right to be, clad only in a thin sleeveless shirt and trousers.

"You're asking permission? That's new." She noted dryly.

"Hm. I noticed some tension between you and your fellow Grey Warden recently."

Her shoulders tensed. She winced at the movement, hand going to her right shoulder.

He padded over to the bed and sat, gesturing her towards the middle. "Here, sit."

She shifted onto the bed.

He began to knead her broad shoulders. She tensed at first, either at the new intimacy or his cold fingers. Only when she relaxed under his hands did he speak again.

"Did you disagree on how Connor was dealt with?" A feint.

"No."

"On our next journey?" Zevran found knot after knot in her muscles, like a string of pearls underneath her skin. He started to doubt this plan--having this conversation and taking care of her horribly abused muscles demanded his full attention and right now he wasn't sure which was more important.

"No," she sighed, "we both think Orzammar is the best move."

"Then he finally confessed his affections?"

Clara's head snapped around to meet his gaze.

He smiled slightly. Braska, he hadn't meant to say it quite like that. But she was a blunt woman, she might prefer a blunt approach.

"Maker," She twisted away from his hands, "I hoped it wouldn't be obvious."

"It's not your fault. Alistair is rather blatant about his feelings, though." He chuckled. That was a bit of a white lie. They were both obvious about their falling out, but a tiny fib never hurt anyone. "The poor boy has been mooning over you for a few months now."

"I must have done something to lead him on..." She said with a deep frown. "I'm a terrible friend."

He shrugged. "Well, I can't comment on that last bit, not having much experience in the area. Flirting, though, I am quite skilled in. And its all about intention."

When she didn't respond, he placed a hand on her arm, drawing her attention up to him.

"Clara, you can't lead someone on unless you mean to."

She smiled weakly.

"A massage, for example." He continued. "This could be just a friendly massage, but I hope you know enough of my intentions to tell otherwise."

She blushed, but reached up and squeezed the hand on her arm nonetheless. He pushed past the excitement buzzing in his chest. Despite knowing about their mutual interest, the acknowledgement of it thrilled him.

"Good. It's not your fault, or Alistair's, for that matter. It was just... a miscommunication."

"You make it sound so simple." Clara sighed.

"Only because it is." He said. "Give it some time and you'll both be able to look back at it with laughter."

She scrunched her nose. "Maker, you sound like an old man."

"A beauty such as yours, my lady, inspires the wisdom of ages."

She groaned and fell back against the bed dramatically. "Not more poetry!"

"Your storm-grey eyes cut my chest to ribbons," Zevran said, leaning on one hand to smile down at her. She rolled her eyes. "such do I ache for you."

"Your laugh soothes my pain and heals me." His fingers dug into her sides and she squealed as he tickled her.

Loud and unrestrained, the laughter transformed her. Her face, so often grim and lined with worry, turned bright and open. A smile split her face nearly in half.

Zevran admired the sight, his mission tonight accomplished, when she suddenly grabbed his wrists tightly. She shoved him, rolling them over and pinning his wrists above his head.

"Ha!" She crowed, victorious and beautiful, only inches above him. His heart stuttered. "That's--"

He leaned up, closing the space between them, to meet her lips. He felt, more than heard, her gasp. A breathless moment passed before she returned the kiss with a sigh.

She pressed down more firmly into him. Her hands released his and snaked down to cradle his face. Warmth trailed behind her touch, tracing patterns across his cheeks, down his neck.

He tilted his head, slanting his mouth open in invitation as he wrapped his arms around her. She ran her tongue teasingly against his bottom lip. Then, she bit down, slowly, deliberately.

He groaned as she pulled away, opening his eyes to see Clara, flushed and grinning down at him

"Your lips enthrall me." He murmured.

She chucked, brushing a kiss over the corner of his mouth. "You're absolutely terrible."

"I believe that speaks more to your taste in men than my taste in poetry, mi estrella."

"Are you ever going to tell me what that means?"

"I've no plan to."

Clara kissed him again. Her hands were buried in his hair now, grasping and pulling for new angles, as she hummed deep in her throat. And he let himself drown in her warmth, just for a while.

Sometime later, after her hand was underneath his shirt and his was gripping her thigh, Zevran pulled back.

He arched an eyebrow. "This was not the intention in my suggestion, Warden."

"So?" She grinned, her eyes dark and wild.

"So, you were close to collapse only five minutes ago." He brushed his fingers against her lips, following the curve of her smile. "And, if I have my way, this will be quite acrobatic. You'll want to be awake for it."

Truthfully, he was enjoying the chase far too much to jump into bed right now. He'd never had the luxury of time before--the lovers he had taken in the past were either jobs or other Crows. Both were always rushed, fumbling selfishly for whatever pleasure they could take before moving onto the next. This, her, would be the first entirely of his own choice, free from his masters. If he wanted to savor it, he damn well would.

Also, he made a point not to fall into bed with someone distracted by another man. Even if it wasn't 'like that'.

He'd had precious few friends in his life and never any friend as close as Clara and Alistair were. He wouldn't be responsible for the end of their friendship. After they mended their ways, then he could move forward.

Zevran shifted out from under her and brushed a kiss against her cheek. She fell back on the bed and yawned widely.

"Rather proving my point, Warden."

"Fine. It's your loss, really." Clara said, smiling as she closed her eyes and curled around a pillow. "I'm an animal in bed."

"I've no doubt." He muttered, hardly able to contain his own smile as he left.

#dao #da:o #dragon age #dragon age: origins #origins #ZevWarden #Zevran x Warden #Zevran x Amell]#zevran arainai #Zevran x female Amell #Zevran x female Warden #female amell #female warden #Clara Amell #ZevWarden fic #dragon age fanfic #fuck i already posted this under the wrong blog #whatever :(

18 notes · View notes

emptypringlescanister · 5 years ago

Text

New Perspective: Chapter 2

Hello again! It’s me again, back with another chapter for y’all. Demand is definitely a lot higher than I thought it was going to be, and I’m so grateful for how much love this has been getting! I hope y’all continue to enjoy. See the end for additional notes as well as the tag list.

Tom Nook x Reader

Slow Burn

Warnings: Spoilers for Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Words: 2.6K

Links: Prologue - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 (You are here!) - Chapter 3

Any photos or gifs do not belong to me, so if you like them then go give love to the original creator!

Chapter 2

Sleep lifted off you slowly and you groaned, turning over in your cot. You had slept like a rock for the first time in months and you would be damned if you had to get up now. “_____? Are you in there?” a familiar voice filtered in from outside. “Oh, I hope I haven’t woken you abruptly. Ah, but I do wish to discuss something with you. Yes, yes! I’ll be here when you’re ready.” You could hear footsteps walking away and you sighed, resigning yourself to the fact that getting up was inevitable. Opening your eyes was a chore, and you had to squint for a few seconds due to the blinding sunlight that made its way in through the cracks. You could hear birds chirping outside, a melodious chirping that reminded you of home. Standing and stretching, you could hear a few joints pop.

Unzipping the door to the tent, you climbed out and were greeted with the smiling face of Tom. “Ah, there you are. I hope you had a pleasant nap. Or, well… I suppose it was a bit more than a nap, wasn’t it? It’s a brand-new day!” You choked mid-yawn. “I slept that long?!” Tom burst out laughing.

“Oh ho ho! Yes, it’s quite normal to be worn out from such a long trip – and a major life event! Speaking of which, I have some things for you! Rummaging in his pockets for a few seconds, he brought out a cell phone. You had had one before you departed but left it behind. Purposely of course, for reasons best left unspoken. “Oh, Mr. Nook- “ “Tom.” He reminded you, smiling, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Tom. I can’t accept this. Besides, I didn’t think there was actual cell service out here...?” Nook chuckled, “Yes, yes, that’s what one would think! But these are special Nook phones! I had them made specifically for island residents. We have our own special cell network out here that only our island-goers can access. It’s very secure.” A part of your anxiety was eased with this reassurance and you took the phone from him.

After a somewhat lengthy process of Nook going through and explaining the apps and their capabilities, you pocketed the phone. “Now you’ll notice that the contact list is rather empty,” Nook began. “So, would you do me the honor of letting me give you my number?” he asked, giving you a wink. Cue an immediate blush on your part. “Oh, sure! That’d be great actually.” You said, totally not fumbling with getting your phone back out of your pocket. You handed it over to him and watched as he typed on the phone. When he handed it back to you, you noticed that he had saved his number under the name of Tom N, but he had added a leaf emoji along with one that had a smiling face. You chuckled.

“Unfortunately, we are to the part that everyone seems to dislike.” Hearing him say that, you look up from the phone to see him holding a piece of paper. “Your itemized bill.” He hands you the paper with a few various fees on it. A few listed are the air fare, accommodations, labor fees, and the price of the Nook Phone, all totaling at $49,800 bells. You paled, not at the price, well, yes, at the price. You had spent the last of your bells on the air ticket, leaving you with nothing extra. You had been in such a hurry to leave, the thought of bringing extra to live on didn’t even occur to you. “I um…” you began hesitantly, your mouth suddenly very dry. Nook cocked his head at you questioningly. “I don’t have any bells. I spent the last of them on the travel ticket.” You looked back down at the paper, not wanting Nook to see the fearful expression on your face.

A paw landed on your shoulder. “My dear ____, there’s no need to fret! There are other ways you can pay besides bells!” Your head snapped up, locking eyes with his. “Tom! If you’re implying what I think you’re implying then-!” He cuts you off quickly, rushing to explain. “No no no! I don’t mean that in the slightest! I meant paying with the Nook Mileage Program!” You giggle, “I was just teasing Tom, no need to get all worked up.” He blushes, his furry face heating up and tail bushing up. “I’ll admit that didn’t exactly come out the way I meant.” You wink at him, silently preening at the fact that you could fluster him. “So, Nook Mileage?” you ask, changing the subject.

“Ah, yes, with the program, you earn miles by simply living and doing things around the island. Think of it like scout awards, but miles! Ill just have to register you in the program.’ You hand over your phone and he fiddles with it, soon handing it back to you. “There! You’re all registered.” You thank him and pocket it. “Now then, I do have some things I have to take care of in the Resident Services tent, so you are free to explore and do anything to your heart’s content. This is your home now after all.” He gives a farewell wave and leaves in the direction of the main area.

Now left to your own devices, you look around, seeing a lot of trees and natural growth. Weeds litter the area, so you take some time and pick them. In no time at all, you cleaned up your little spot, and most of the surrounding area. Everything is just so green and fresh; you can’t help but smile. You brush all the picked weeds together in a pile and stand, wiping your hands onto already grass-stained pants. A splashing sound alerts you to the stream and you walk over to it. Some small fish swim under the water, occasionally jumping out and back in. Following the stream seems like a good thing, so you follow it, and it leads to a sandy beach area. The airport is in the distance, but other than that the waves lapping against the sand are unobstructed. You follow the beach, picking up shells that you run across and just enjoying the sunshine. After walking for a little bit, cliffs come up in your field of vision with flowers atop them. If you had a ladder, you could probably appreciate them more up close, but oh well. The beach continues a bit, so you keep walking.

“Oh!” You exclaim out loud. A small private beach had been revealed, sandwiched between the cliff and the sea, hidden behind a wall of rocks that you had to climb over to access. Rather small, but cozy and private, being at the very corner of the island. Perhaps this could be somewhere to come to relax by yourself.

The sun was starting to set, so you stopped in your exploring and began to head back to the main area. You had had a full day, exploring and having a few conversations with your new neighbors had set you in a rather good mood. All the things you had done throughout the day had you feeling rather hungry, so you stopped at a fruit tree and shook some of the peaches off. You grabbed one for yourself, but upon remembering that you needed to stop by the Resident Services tent, you grabbed a few more for Tom and the kids.

It didn’t take you long to reach the main area, and with peaches in hand, you entered the tent. All three of the tanukis were inside, and they looked up to see you. “_____!” Timmy cried, running up to hug you with Tommy close behind. They crashed into you and you staggered, trying to keep a hand on the peaches while still leaning down to catch the boys in a hug. “Hello, you two!” you laughed, steadying yourself and them. They released you from their surprisingly strong grips and started to bombard you with questions about your day and where all you went in your exploration. They were babbling so much though that you couldn’t get a word in edgewise. “Alright Timmy, Tommy, that’s enough. I think poor _____ would like to talk sometime as well.” Nook speaks up, and the boys’ voices quiet. You laugh and hand the boys their peaches. “My day was fine; I talked to the neighbors and had a lot of fun exploring the island.” They seemed to accept your short explanation and focused on eating their treats. You walked over to Nook and handed him his as well. “Oh! Thank you ____!” Nook smiled at you, placing it on the table beside him. “I shall have it as a snack later. Now that it is dark out, will you allow me to walk you back to your tent tonight as well?” Timmy looked up when he heard this and nudged his brother, the both of them watching you and Nook curiously.

‘I’d like that.” You smiled at him, and took his outstretched paw, him leading you out of the tent. A few seconds after the door zipped shut, Tommy turned to his brother. ‘Do you think they like each other?” Timmy shrugged, taking a thoughtful bit of his peach. ‘I mean, _____ brought us peaches, so if Uncle Nook got one too… I guess so.” Tommy rolled his eyes.

“No Timmy, I mean like-like him.”

“Oooohh… Well, probably. They were holding hands after all.”

_______________________________________________________________

The night air refreshed you from the cramped interior of the tent and you let out a happy sigh. The moonlight here was strong, so everything was illuminated rather well. “So, you had a good day exploring, hm?” Nook asks, glancing at you. “Oh yeah, there was tons to explore and I found a really cool spot by the beach.” Nook looks at you in wonder. “Is that so? I had explored the island when I had first arrived here to deem it suitable to live on, but I hadn’t explored the beach in its entirety. I would love to see it if you don’t mind showing me.” He looks at you with pleading eyes, and you’re too weak to say no.

“Alright! Just quit looking at me like that!” You groan. He chuckles, “Too mesmerized by me to say no, hm?” He squeezes your hand slightly, making you blush but laugh as well. Walking in silence for a while, you finally come to the rock wall that the beach was hidden behind. Nook whistles lowly, “No wonder I didn’t see this before, it’s rather far away from everything else, and hidden on top of that!” Humming in agreement, you clamber on top of the rocks. Perching on top of the wall, you lean down to see Nook looking up at you. “It’s a bit of a climb, think you can handle it old man?” you tease, swinging your legs back and forth. “Old man?! He squawks in indignation, “I’ll show you who’s old!” He climbs up the wall and sets himself beside you, a look of smug victory on his face before hopping down to the other side. “I beat you,” he says smugly, paws on his hips. Punching yourself for forgetting his feat of strength in carrying you yesterday, you roll you eyes at him. “I never said it was a race,” You stick your tongue out at him. “Well if it was, I would have won,” He replies. Holding his arms out, he adds, “Come on now, jump down and I’ll catch you.” “I can get down on my own thanks,” You say, and he starts to lower his arms but before he can, you continue. “But I will accept your gracious offer.” He looks up at you to see your teasing face and he chuckles. Shimmying yourself a bit, you let yourself off the wall and fall into his waiting arms.

After setting you down, he turns to observe the small area. “Isn’t it beautiful?” you ask, settling yourself down onto the sand just out of reach of the lapping waves. The moonlight beams softly down, illuminating the sand and bouncing off the moving waves, causing sparkling reflections to be thrown around. Your attention captured by the water, you don’t see Nooks gaze looking at you when he utters, “Yes, beautiful…”

He settles down beside you, leaning back to see the full moon sitting high in the sky. “I think we might be the only two to know about this spot,” you say, lifting some sand into your hand and letting it filter through your fingers. “There were no footprints here earlier in the day, and only mine when we got here.” Nook hums in response.

“I truly admire all you’ve done on the island so far.” Nook begins after a while, breaking the quiet of the night. “Your interaction with the residents definitely deems you worthy of the title of Resident Representative. But because of that title, I wish to apologize. It has come to my attention that I may have pressured you into the position, and I wish to apologize if I made you uncomfortable in any way.” “Tom,” You interrupt, placing your hand on his paw to stop him. “You didn’t make me uncomfortable. Far from it actually…” If Nook notices your blush at that, he chooses not to comment. “And I’m happy with the position. I’m glad you gave it to me.” Nook smiles at that, and you smile back at him. You gaze into each other’s eyes, transfixed. His eyes flick down momentarily to your lips then back up. He leans forward slightly, and time seems to slow. His paw reaches up and cradles your face, and you lean into his touch. “May I… kiss you?” he whispers. Not trusting yourself to speak without saying something stupid, you nod, and Nook closes the distance between you, pressing your lips together. The kiss is chaste and gentle, his paw still cradling your face with the sounds of the ocean surrounding you. He pulls back and you follow subconsciously. You look at each other, unsure of what to say after that event. “So, do I get miles for kissing you?” you ask, and you both burst into laughter.

_______________________________________________________________

“So, now you know about that spot on the island,” You say in front of the entrance to your tent. Nook nods, “Indeed! It was an interesting find, and I thank you for showing me. Though I promise not to let the secret out.” He winks and you giggle. “I think it might be time for me to retire for the night though,” You yawn. “I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, yes. In fact, thanks to your wildlife contributions today, and old friend of mine will be coming to the island tomorrow in hopes to set up a museum here.” Nook mentions.

You smile at him, shaking your head fondly. “Tom, I have to go to sleep now.” He sighs, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. “Yes, yes. I understand. Sleep is important. Very much so. Did I mention that my old friend is an owl?”

You lean forward to kiss him, and swiftly enter your tent, zipping it behind you, leaving Nook in a shocked silence. “Goodnight!” You call out, laughter in your voice. A small squeak is all that reaches your ears before you hear him turn and walk away unsteadily.

Settling into your cot is a great comfort and you snuggle down into your blanket. Rest reaches you for a few seconds before the full weight of the evening’s events decide to replay in your mind. A blush resides heavily on your face and your mind begins to race. “Wait, we kissed. Twice…”

________________________________________________________________

And so ends chapter 2! Sorry that the Nooklings didn’t get much time in this chapter, but don’t worry, they’ll appear a lot more in the upcoming chapters!

Thanks everyone so much for reading! If you’d like, go check out my other works on my page. My uploading schedule is a little inconsistent, but thanks to summer break coming up, I’m hoping to post maybe every other day.

Requests are open!! Send me a message or send me an Ask.

Ask if you want to be added to the tag list! And for those of you on the tag list, if the tags don’t work, let me know! I still don’t fully understand how tagging works lol

Tag list for New Perspective

@accio-zara

@themagpiewitchescorner

#animal crossing #new horizons #animal crossing new horizons #tom nook #timmy and tommy #nooklings #nook inc #tom nook x reader #x reader

139 notes · View notes

writeforfunsies · 4 years ago

Text

Day 1) crushes; yuki

Flora and Fauna (1549 words) Fandom: Fruits Basket (Anime 2001), Fruits Basket Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Sohma Yuki, Hanajima Saki

Summary:

Yuki is in the garden with Tohru and Kyo when Tohru asks Yuki if he’s had an crushes. Yuki says no. Kyo doesn’t believe him but Tohru does.

“If you don’t like being here, then you are welcomed to leave,” Yuki says without a second thought as he gazes up from underneath a large, green leaf. Kyo, his hands caked in dirt, glares back.

“I just might!” He shouts.

“Aw, but we were having fun,” Tohru laments to herself rather quietly but both boys still heard her.

Yuki sighs and leaves any other remark hanging in the back of his mind. Surely they’d be useful one day, just not right here and not right now. Kyo goes back to kneeling on the ground and steaming to himself. It was Tohru’s request to come to his garden this afternoon to pick the ripe vegetables for dinner. She even asked permission for Kyo to join them, which he accepted because he gained new respect for the two of them since that awful, rainy night; and, maybe, Kyo wasn’t as bad as Yuki always thought he was.

Tohru uses a spade to carefully unearth a decently sized carrot. A large work moves around in the hole left behind. “Is this good enough?”

He smiles. The question should probably be one for her. After all, she did the cooking and would know how much was needed to make their food. He looks the carrot over for anything to make it undesirable and then nods. “It is.”

Tohru places it in the wooden basket they’re all sharing, filled with other vegetables, and looks over to Kyo. She shuffles around the plot to see if he needs help.

“How can you tell they’re good? They’re all dirty,” Kyo says with a scowl.

“Well, they’re roots. So, of course, they’re gonna be covered in dirt, silly.”

There’s a beat of silence. Wind blows through the trees and moves all the living plants around. They sway in motion as does his hair. It sounds like ocean waves. Yuki closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in and then out. This gentle moment is freedom. Freedom like he’s never known.

With Tohru’s laughter and Kyo’s fiery attitude, here in his safe place, he’s able to relax and live in the moment rather than in his head. Perhaps, one day, he could live like this in the outside world.

“Yuki, what about you?”

He comes back to reality; opening his eyes and looking across the small plot of land to see Tohru and Kyo staring back at him. “Hm?”

“Have you ever had a crush before?”

Yuki pauses. He stares at a spinach plant before him, its leaves free of bug feedings or such. His mice do a very good job at keeping away pests. He then looks back over to the pair.

“No, I don’t think I have.”

“Really?” Tohru asks softly, in slight disbelief but not in a way so she made a big deal about it. Kyo did not have such subtlety to his nature.

“You’ve attended school here for years. And I’ve seen those girls. Surely there’s someone you liked, even if you knew you couldn’t date them,” Kyo rebuttals. Tohru looks at him with a complicated expression. Yuki isn’t sure what part of the statement has offended her.

Yuki shakes his head. His face is rather simple as he knows rising to Kyo’s energy only results in a fight. “No, not really. I haven’t given much thought to it.”

“Because of the curse?”

A beat of silence fills the air as Yuki ponders about life without the curse. If he was free to pursue intimate relationships with the opposite sex, would he? It only takes a few seconds for him to make an answer he deems accurate of the hypothetical situation.

“No. I don’t think the curse has anything to do with it.”

Kyo sits in somewhat shock. He opens his mouth to ask another, most likely invasive, question but Tohru saves him from it.

“It’s okay that you don’t have a crush.” Her smile is like a breath of fresh air. There was a slight worry in his head she may call him abnormal. Like Kyo is probably thinking. It’s the same worry that prevented Yuki from telling his own parents to Shigure or even Hatori. But she manages to quell his fear. “That’s normal.”

Without really thinking about it, those were the exact words Yuki wanted to hear. He smiles wide enough to show teeth and doesn’t bother fighting his instincts to cover it. She looks as though she wants to get up and hug him but she stays beside Kyo.

“Wait, huh?”

Tohru’s gaze silently asks if he would wish to explain himself or have her go on. He briefly closes his eyes and shakes his head. Kyo would understand better coming from Tohru. She takes Kyo’s hand to get his attention, at which his face heats up, but he doesn’t run away.

“Think of it like this,” she starts. “You like girls, right?” Kyo nods and he looks at her as if she were oblivious. “And I like boys.”

“Where are you going with this?”

“Just listen to her, stupid cat,” Yuki says as he quietly listens to Tohru.

“That’s how people usually think relationships are supposed to be but it’s not always like that. Hana, for an example, doesn’t like anyone. And Yuki sounds a lot like she did when she came out.”

Kyo bites his tongue from speaking any further. The conversation is one he does not know how to interact in. But Yuki is deeply invested and Tohru is rather knowledgeable.

“What do you mean she doesn’t ‘like’ anyone?” Yuki asks.

“Well, she said she lacked sexual attraction; she called it asexual. You can ask her more about it if you’d like. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.”

Yuki nods along, fully intending on taking Tohru up on her offer.

————

The next day at school, Yuki finds Hanajima with ease. During cleaning hours, he approaches her to talk. She doesn’t seem to have any worry about skipping out on her class duties and takes him to the roof to avoid the prying ears of his fan club. Though, with Hana around, they’d stay very far away.

She checked the hallway a final time before turning around. “You wanted to talk, Sohma?”

“Yes, Miss Honda told me you are asexual. Do you mind telling me more?”

“Of course, what would you like to know?”

“How did you know?”

“A few years ago. I did not find people ‘hot’ and I did not want to have sex. It was a simple search on internet forums to find the term. Our conversation is not making you uncomfortable, is it?”

“No.” Yuki shakes his head. “No, but, that sounds a little similar to myself.”

“Hm, maybe that is why your waves are different? Not quite like mine but not like everyone else’s.”

Yuki shuffles his feet as he watches he closely. Hanajima moves to sit down at a nearby bench. He follows her to keep a short distance between them but he does not sit next to her. “Well, tell me about yourself.”

Like Hanajima, he found his feelings rather simple to explain. He would have never thought it any different had Tohru never brought it up. So, the words were not difficult to form inside his head nor speak aloud. “I do find people attractive and I have thought about sex before but I cannot bring myself to form relationships. It is not that I fear I will be rejected or that I may hurt someone but I do not have the want to date.”

“Is that why you reject all those love confessions?” she mumbles to herself. “I think I have an idea.”

“Yes?”

“You may be aromantic; a person who lacks romantic attraction.”

Yuki sits there for a moment. Lack of romantic attraction definitely sounded like him. He’s rather smart and could likely figure a way to have a relationship with a girl without being intimate. And surely there are girls like Tohru in this world who would not run away in fear of his transformation. But could he ever imagine himself having a romantic relationship? No, he doesn’t think he can.

“Interesting,” he settles on saying.

“Romantic attraction and sexual attraction are two separate identities. I am sure no one has told you that before, though.”

“No, no they didn’t. Thank you, Miss Hanajima.”

“You are welcome. Do know, I cannot speak for your own feelings. I suggest when you have the time, to do some research on your own. You are not alone, Yuki.”

Hanajima stands and walks ahead of Yuki and to the stairway. Yuki hasn’t moved. He looks out at the scenery. For the second time in his life, he is different. Hanajima turns to notice him staring off into space. She calls out to him and he reacts by following her back to their classroom.

“You can come to me anytime you wish to discuss this or any topic, really. Your waves are not displeasing to be around and you hold good conversation.”

“I would not mind that.”

When they return, Hanajima is immediately greeted by Uo. She doesn’t make a joke about a boy and a girl being on the roof alone. Tohru gives him a knowing smile beckons him to join their fun of a new round of cards.

#aro yuki #ace hana #my personal headcanon #asaw2021 #asaw #arospec #arocreatives #aromantic awareness week #oneshot #fanfic #yuki sohma #saki hanajima

4 notes · View notes

blurry-fics · 5 years ago

Text

Clingy

Pairing: Josh Dun x Reader

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1594

Request: Could you possibly do one where josh and his girlfriend are chillin in their apartment (on like a weekend or something) and she’s playing animal crossing and won’t give him attention so he cuddles her and showers her in kisses just to try to get her attention. When he does he says “now I know how you feel when I’m gaming” and it’s just cute and fluff and yeah..

Author’s Note: Disclaimer - I have not played the new Animal Crossing game (even though I so badly want to, unfortunately I don’t have a Switch) so some of the information in here might not be accurate, although I tried to fact check where I could! I did play New Leaf, so that’s where my Animal Crossing knowledge is coming from. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one :) (picture credit)

You paused your game for a moment and looked over at Josh, watching as his chest rose and fell steadily. Jim was curled up against his stomach, his head resting over Josh’s outstretched arm. He had come home from a lunch with friends a few hours ago and almost immediately fallen asleep next to you on the couch. You didn’t really mind, Josh was always falling behind on sleep and your plans for the day had been to stay at home and watch movies anyway. Besides, it was more uninterrupted Animal Crossing time for you.

When you were sure that Josh was still sleeping soundly, you turned your focus back to your game. You finished checking in with Tom Nook before running out of the building, ready to look for some more fossils around the island. Your collection was slowly getting larger, but there was still a lot of work for you to do before it was anywhere close to complete. Not to mention all the other things that you needed to be working on collecting.

Josh finally started to stir, slowly stretching out his legs until they were pressing up against your hip. You reached out and patted his leg with one hand, letting him know you were aware he was awake, while still using the other to guide your character around. Upon noticing that Josh was awake, Jim got up and started to lick his face.

“Jim! Stop,” he laughed, scratching at Jim’s ears to distract him from licking his face. “There, good boy.”

“Good morning, sunshine,” you said, taking a quick glance at Josh. “How was your nap?”

“Really nice. I needed that.”

“Good.”

“What are you doing?” he asked, leaning closer to you.

“Playing Animal Crossing, same as always,” you smiled.

“I should have known.”

“Yes, you should have.”

You turned and gave Josh a quick kiss, which made him smile. He leaned on your shoulder for a moment before sitting up straight again.

“I think I’m going to get a drink from the kitchen, my throat is a little dry. Do you want anything?”

“A soda would be great.”

“On it.”

Josh kissed the top of your head and stood up, taking another moment to stretch. Now that Josh was gone, Jim moved over and rested his head on your lap. You shifted how you were holding your Switch so that you could more comfortably pet him with your free hand.

Josh came back a few minutes later, carrying two sodas in his hands. You motioned for him to set it on the coffee table so that you could drink it when you were ready.

“Thank you.”

“No problem,” he said, sitting back down on the other side of Jim.

Josh cracked open his soda can and took a long sip, gulping loudly. You continued to run around, finally spying a star on the ground that indicated a potential fossil. Next to you, Josh had Jim move over to his other side so that he could rest his head in your lap.

“Is this ok?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

Josh was turned so that he was looking up at the ceiling or, more accurately, your Switch. He was tapping out an idle beat on his stomach.

“Will you play with my hair?” he asked.

“I’m kind of in the middle of something, love.”

“Please?” He stuck out his bottom lip for added effect.

“Later.”

Josh dramatically groaned and rolled away so that he could press the side of his face into your legs. You laughed and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. He was usually ok with each of you doing your own thing while in the same room, but he occasionally got into a clingy mood where all he wanted to do was cuddle with you and have your full attention. Tonight seemed to be one of those nights.

“Then can we cuddle?”

“It’s kind of hard to play Animal Crossing and cuddle at the same time. I promise I’ll finish up what I’m doing and then I’ll give you attention, ok?”

“But I want attention now,” he sighed.

“You’re going to have to be patient.”

“No,” he whined.

You pressed your lips together, barely holding back a smile as you started to formulate a plan. It was going to drive Josh crazy, but you felt it was sort of deserved since he wanted to whine.

“Please, Y/N,” he said, rolling back over so he could look at you again. “Can I at least have a kiss?”

It was a tempting offer, but you had to stay strong. Rather than give in, you kept your eyes on your game and tried to ignore Josh the best that you could. Out of your peripheral vision, you could see the concerned look on his face.

“Are you going to ignore me now?”

You bit down on your lip.

“Y/N,” he said, drawing out the end of your name.

You couldn’t say anything.

“Fine, I see how it is.”

When Josh got up, you thought that was the end of it. He walked off down the hall towards your bedroom, presumably to continue sleeping or practice his drums for a while. It wasn’t until a few minutes later when he returned and took a seat on the other end of the couch that you realized there he had made a plan of his own. You managed to sneak a glance when he was checking his phone, only to realize that he had taken off his shirt as some sort of incentive for you.

Damn, he was good at this.

“Still nothing?” he asked after a minute of silence.

Still nothing.

Your heart rate picked up when Josh started to slide down the couch, getting close enough to you that his legs were pressed up against yours. His arms slowly made their way around your waist, though you still managed to keep them free enough that you could play your game. Josh rested his chin on your shoulder, putting his lips only centimeters away from your ear.

“Don’t you want to pay attention to me?” he said.

He really knew what he was doing.

“Come on, Y/N,” he said, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek. “Just put the game down.” Another kiss. “And you can come cuddle with me.” The corner of your mouth now. “You can always play more tomorrow.” One more on your jaw.

You were glad that you were almost done with all the things you had wanted to complete today; you weren’t sure how much more of this you could take.

“Y/N, please.” Josh pressed his face up against yours. Unfortunately, it was enough to get you to finally break and let out a little giggle. “Yes!”

“I didn’t do anything!” you laughed.

Josh answered by leaning back, which also meant you ended up landing on top of him since his arms were still around you. While you still could, you saved your game and exited out, finally setting your Switch down on the coffee table.

“Finally,” he said, pressing another kiss to your cheek.

“I told you I would stop when I finished what I needed to do.”

“But it took you forever.”

“It didn’t take me that long.”

You twisted your body so that you could actually lay comfortably on top of Josh. He smiled up at you.

“I guess now I know how you feel when I’m gaming,” he laughed.

“Exactly.”

You leaned forward and gave Josh a proper kiss, now that you were no longer distracted by your game. He wrapped his arms around you a little tighter.

“I really brought this on myself when I bought you a Switch for your birthday, didn’t I?”

You laughed and buried your face in the crook of his neck, “Mhmm.”

“I’m just happy that you’re getting good use out of it.”

“Me too, but I still enjoy spending time with you the most of all.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“I love you, Y/N,” he said, leaning so his head was resting against yours.

“I love you too.”

“So what do you think? A movie?”

“I think we should watch more X-Files,” you said. “Because I have a feeling that somebody is going to keep distracting me to ask for kisses.”

“You know me too well.”

“I’ll go make popcorn.”

“Ok.”

Josh gave you a kiss as you got up and walked into the kitchen. Jim followed after you, somehow sensing that you were about to make a snack that he could sit and beg you for. Meanwhile, Josh stayed in the living room and pulled X-Files up so that it would be ready when you returned with popcorn.

“Ok, we’re good to go,” you said, curling up next to Josh. With the warm LA breeze blowing in through the windows, there was no need for blankets tonight. Josh and Jim would provide all the heat you needed.

“Wait, I need a kiss first.”

You turned and gave Josh yet another kiss, which he was hesitant to let you pull away from. It wasn’t until Jim nearly stuck his nose into the popcorn bowl that he finally broke away from the kiss.

“I think that’s a sign that he’s ready to watch TV,” you laughed.

“Me too.”

Josh hit play and wrapped his arm around your shoulders.

“Thank you for spending time with me,” Josh said quietly as the intro started to play. “I appreciate it.”

“Of course, I’ll always spend time with you, Josh.”

There was nothing you would rather do.

#josh dun #josh dun x reader #josh dun fluff #twenty one pilots #twenty one pilots fluff #josh dun imagine #josh dun drabble #josh dun fanfiction #twenty one pilots x reader #twenty one pilots imagine #twenty one pilots drabble #twenty one pilots fanfiction #fluff #skeleton clique #blurry-fics

111 notes · View notes

imagine-loki · 5 years ago

Text

Loki's Daughter Trigger warnings - Child slavery, mental illness and past abuse.

TITLE: Loki’s Daughter CHAPTER/ONE SHOT: Chapter One: Saved

AUTHOR: traveling-classicist ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Avengers: Endgame AU Loki that gets away with tesseract has been using it to explore the universe. During his adventures, he comes across a little girl with developing but oppressed magical abilities. Intrigued (and subconsciously lonely) Loki keeps her around.

AO3 LINK: Loki’s Daughter RATING: Mature for possible triggering content NOTES/WARNINGS:

Trigger warnings:

-Child slavery (this topic is being explored throughout the story)

Nota bene: I promise I’m not making Loki enslave any children, that’s not our guy

-Mental illness including mentions of schizophrenia, depression, and anxiety

-Mentions of past torture and abuse: physical, emotional, and mental

Notes:

I know these are strong triggers for some people and I fully respect you. There will also be lots of fluff and love and happiness in this story but as I say, these more difficult and triggering topics are being explored.

With the hype for the Loki series starting to build, I’m feeling inspired. So, I’m going to give it a go.

Also I’m not new to Tumblr by any means but I’m not super active in posting or reblogging even on my own account and I don’t know all the ins and outs of primary vs secondary blogs and blah, blah, blah… I mostly just lurk about in your likes and look at beautiful pictures of Tom/Loki on here… but I made a secondary blog for this fic where I’ll also be posting the chapters, in addition to here, and may start to open up some discussion if it gains any traction. So feel free to visit https://lokis-daughter-fic.tumblr.com/ and give it a like or follow or whatever. God, I feel old. I really need to just read up on this shit. There’s also an AO3 for the fic too if you prefer reading it on there.

Okay, I think that’s everything. Anyways, if you read through my rambling notes: thanks, otherwise, enjoy what I hope will be a very lengthy, multi-chapter fic! I have lots of adventures in store for Loki and my little OC, Kuna.

Chapter 1: Saved

Loki walked through the giant forest. These were some of the tallest trees he had ever seen, reaching hundreds of feet into the sky. The canopy seemed distant but its thick leaves blocked out most of the sunlight to the ground. Occasionally, he would hear the sound of some creature calling out in the branches high above him. The canopy dampened the sound all around, making the animal calls sound further off than they truly were.

He stopped, now and then, to admire the massive trunks of the reddish brown trees. Some of them would likely take a whole minute to walk around. Their roots, as thick as normal sized trees, dug deep beneath him. He wondered how deep they would have to go to hold up such large trees. He thought the planet’s crust must be made up of hundreds of thousands of miles of tree roots.

A light breeze made it’s way through the forest, shaking the leaves on the branches of the trees. Loki imagined you could cover an entire Asgardian skiff with one leaf. He imagined what would happen if one fell on him, and quickly continued walking. Indeed, the forest floor was littered with gigantic leaves and debris from the canopy world above. He thought this is what an ant must feel like, so small in a world far too big.

Wanting a better vantage point, he used the tesseract’s energy to transport himself to a branch high above. He materialized on the branch but quickly dropped to his knees. Up here, he could feel the tree gently swaying. But a gentle sway to behemoth tree was a dizzying ride to a tiny ant. He sat there a moment, trying to acclimate himself to the new altitude and his tree legs. Before long, he shook his head in disbelief at his dizziness and stood. Feeling slightly more stable, he walked out on the branch, testing his fate. He blinked lazily.

“Not so bad,” he mused. Afterall, even if he did fall, he could simply use the tesseract’s energy to teleport himself safely to the ground or wherever he wanted. In fact, the thought made him wonder what more he could do with this energy here.

He took off in a fast sprint down the branch at full speed. As the branch began to thin, he leapt with all his strength into the air. In a flash of blue, he disappeared, reappearing again mid-air but hundreds of feet in front of where he had been, landing gracefully on the branch of the next tree over. He laughed, looking back at the tree he had just leapt from. Amused by his maneuver, he took out the tesseract from his pocket and flipped the cube in his hand.

“Not bad at all,” he said. “I think I’ll use that.”

Suddenly, the tree shook violently. Loki lost his balance and fell. The tesseract took two light bounces on the branch before falling towards the ground far, far below.

“Ah!” Loki screamed and leapt of the branch after it in an instant.

The wind whipped through his hair and made his eyes water, the ground flying up at him. Through the tears, he nearly lost the little blue spec of the cube falling below him. He reached out and caught it, instantly teleporting himself at a far safer speed to the ground. He fell only a foot onto the forest floor and let out a tremendous sigh of relief. He held up the glowing cube in front of his face.

“We are not doing that again,” he panted.

Suddenly, a horrendous howl wrenched him up from his place on the ground. A massive beast roared at him from the trunk of the tree. It was hunched over, putting its weight onto its knuckles. Sharp claws as long as Loki’s leg, curled upwards from its paws. Its back was covered in a light brown fur cast with gray stripes while its belly lay bare, a dark shade of brown. The head of the beast was encased in a thick, brown armor, reminiscent of a horn but the shape of a battering ram that protruded from its skull.

Loki made a quick glance up at the tree and let out a sharp breath. There was a massive divot in the tree’s trunk. Splinters hung all about the outsides of the hollow dent. Dark sap had begun to ooze from the center of the wound.

“Oh,” Loki whispered, letting out an exasperated laugh at the creature. “So, you caused the treequake, then?”

The monster roared in response and lunged for him. Loki scrambled to his feet, tesseract in hand, dirt and debris flying up from the ground as he regained himself. He tore off, away from the beast as fast as he could. Still out of breath from the fall, his head felt like it was spinning. He could hear the creature pounding towards him. It was massive, there was no way he could outrun it.

He looked up quickly and saw he was fast approaching a massive tree root that stood nearly twenty feet above his head. He groaned and made a sharp turn, following the root’s path. The beast behind him slammed into the tree root. The noise sounded like an explosion, echoing through the forest. The beast quickly regained itself, shaking its head for a moment, before chargeing towards Loki again. Frantic as he ran, Loki looked for a way out. The light glinted off the cube still in his hand and if he wasn’t running for his life, he would have smacked himself.

“What am I doing?” he exclaimed.

In front of him, he spotted a large arch formed by another tree root dipping back into the ground. He lengthened his stride. He could practically feel the beast’s breath on his back. Using the tesseract’s energy, he teleported through the arch and safely on to the other side.

The beast lowered its head and slammed into the archway at full tilt. The ground shook under Loki’s feet as another thunderous explosion rang out around the forest. Only the head and shoulders of the beast had made it through the other side of the archway. It tried to stand up again but was firmly stuck between the root and the ground. Loki laughed, surprised but relieved that it had worked.

“I’m just going to leave you there,” he said. The creature’s nostrils flared and it let out another deafening roar. Loki winced at the sound. “Yes, you’re very loud,” he told it. “I’m sure that will help you out of there. Just keep trying,” he mocked it as he teleported a distance away.

Leaving the monster safely behind him, he looked down at the tesseract again. He liked the way it shimmered in his hand. He quickly made it disappear again into his pocket before anything else bad happened to him or it.

He looked up at the trees again and thought of what he had been trying before he was rudely interrupted by the beast. He summoned the tesseract’s energy and leapt far up onto the side of a tree. He caught himself with his dagger, digging it in deep into the bark. After steadying himself a moment, he located another tree about a hundred yards off. He focused on it and pushed off the tree he hung from, disappearing a moment before reappearing a few feet beside the other tree, midair. He dug his dagger in hard on the bark and slid a few feet down. Amused by this game, he continued jumping between the trees using the energy of the space stone.

As he played this fun game, he thought he heard a sound in the distance. He stopped, clinging onto the side of one of the trees. He found a good foothold and listened, trying to locate the direction of the sound. He truly hoped that thing from before could not track him.

A child’s scream rang out to Loki’s left. He sighed in relief at the sound. At least it wasn’t the monster. Slightly intrigued and growing bored and tired of his game, he teleported in the direction of the screams. Where before, the ground and large trunks of the trees had dampened the noise within the forest, now he could hear the child’s screaming echoing for what sounded like miles.

The ground beneath his feet gave way from dirt, moss, and decaying giant leaves, to compact clay and stone. He pushed aside a the fronds of a large bush and stepped out into a clearing. Or at least, what he thought was a clearing. Upon further examination, the sudden lack of trees was caused by a large, rocky ravine. He looked one way down the gorge and then the other. It seemed to stretch for miles in both directions. On the other side, the trees started up once more, rising high into the sky. Another scream rang out. It sounded like it was coming from inside the ravine at the far end to his left.

Loki followed the sound of the screams along the edge of the gorge. Once in a while, he would lean out over the edge to peer down to the bottom. Vines covered in thick moss had somehow found their way to good grips on the other side of the gorge. They crisscrossed up and down the ravine. The bottom was quite dark. It probably rarely saw any sunlight what with the canopy still covering a majority of the sky above. At some places, the ravine narrowed to a length Loki could easily jump across if he wanted. At others, the cliff faces pulled away from each other leaving close a hundred meters between them.

As he walked he began to feel a slight vibration in his own aura. He stopped in his tracks. There was another magical being nearby. A rather powerful magical being by the shimmering sensation he felt in his aura.

He had become adept in sensing the magic of others. Frigga had taught him to develop these senses until they were highly acute. He stood for a moment, focusing on this sensation. The vibration was quickly followed by a severe disturbance, like static electricity. He shook his head, alarmed by the feeling. He had never felt anything in his aura like this before.

He started off again, his interest piqued. He was getting closer to the screams, now. He was also approaching what he assumed was the end of the gorge from the wall of trees looming before him. He returned to the underbrush and crouched low. Two more voices sounded down the ravine. Loki could not make out what they were saying but he could tell there were at least two men and a child at the end of the ravine. He crept closer, silently making his way through the brush, when he spotted a rather peculiar scene.

Two men stood either side of a small crane-like mechanism hanging out over the edge of the ravine. A long chain swung down out of Loki’s view. A child screamed from below the ledge. They had built a rough camp with debris from the forest floor. A small cart held a few crates and barrels. A ramshackle shelter was propped up with a large bit of bark from one of the giant trees. An extinguished firepit with an old spit lay a few feet away.

One man braced himself on the crane and kicked the chain with his boot, making it swing. “Scream louder, girly,” he shouted down. “I don’t think they can hear you!”

In his hand, the man held aloft a long necked, primitive-looking gun. He and his companion laughed as the chain swayed back and forth and even louder screams rang up from below. Loki was about to stand when he heard a far more chilling sound. Somewhere at the bottom of the gorge, a guttural roar rose up and then another. Two creatures. Loki lowered himself back down. They weren’t the monster from before but they surely sounded monstrous.

“Ha!” the other man exclaimed. “Keep doing that, girl. They like it when you wriggle around like that.”

“Hear they come,” the first man said.

His friend picked up his gun which had been leaning up against the crane. They aimed over the side of the cliff. The girl was still screaming from the end of the chain. The two men took their time to find the right sight down to their prey.

Two loud bangs echoed down through the ravine along with the terrified shriek of the girl below. The two men looked down the gorge, following the echo that seemed to go on for miles. The whole forest seemed to have fallen silent. The pair looked back at each other and high fived.

“Oh, that was a good one!” the man said, appearing to rejoice in the disruption they’d caused to the balance.

They both looked down over the edge again.

“Did you get hit, girly?” one asked.

Silence but the girl must have made some sort of indication as the man quickly followed up with a grunt: “Good.”

The other man took hold of a large push crank on the crane and began to turn it, hoisting up the chain. A small girl, no more than five, appeared above the ledge, wrapped in tight chains. The man grabbed the chain and pulled it in. It still extended below and, from the tension, Loki could see there was still something heavy at the bottom. He unhooked the girl from the larger chain and she fell onto the ground in heap, her restraints clanging against each other. Her chest was heaving with effort. Her legs and feet kicked, treading ground and pushing her a bit further from the ledge. She came to rest at the base of the crane but went no further. Her body trembled and she cried quietly.

The man continued to crank the chain upwards. Loki could then see their haul. In a massive net made of metal, two large beasts lay tangled up with one another. The two men heaved against the crane, turning it to pull the net over the ledge. One kicked the crank and the net fell onto the ground, splaying open. They separated the two creatures; large cat-like animals with deadly looking fangs and claws.

Loki chose this moment to emerge from the undergrowth. “What an ingenious set up you’ve got here,” Loki said, startling the men from their work.

“What in the hells? Where’d you come from?” the one man asked, whipping around.

“They like live bait, do they?” Loki gestured towards the girl, ignoring the man’s question.

The men laughed, happy to oblige the stranger’s requests if it meant harassing the girl more.

“Little girl’s their favorite thing to eat!” the other said, kicking the scared child in the stomach. She coughed and slumped over againi, sobbing.

“You’ll have to excuse my ignorance - I’m not from around here – but what are these creatures?” Loki continued, pointing at the two beasts they’d killed.

“You ain’t never seen kapka before?” the first man exclaimed.

“Oh, they’re vicious beasts, aren’t they?” the other began. He turned towards the little girl, nudging her with the barrel of his weapon, teasing her. “They move like giant cats but got the scales of dragons! See them claws, they can rip you to shreds in seconds. But that’s not how they like to kill.”

"No?” Loki asked, sensing this was the response he wanted.

“Nah. They’re evil bastards, they are. Instead, they’ll tear you down and sink those big ol’ fangs into ya! That way, they inject their toxic poison–”

“Venom…” Loki corrected him.

“What?”

“Nothing. Please, continue.”

The man’s eyes narrowed on the stranger but he went on, “They inject their - venom - into ya and that paralyzes your whole body. You’d think they’d kill ya then, right?”

“I assume the answer’s no?”

“Wrong! What, wait. No! Right! They don’t eat you right away! Instead they tear off bits and pieces of you. Not enough to bleed you out and kill you but enough to feel all that pain. ‘Cause on top of that para-lie-sis–”

“Paralysis…” Loki corrected him, again.

“What?”

“Nothing. Please, do go on.”

“On top of that - paralysis, that venom makes your bleeding stop quick too,” the man continued.

"Really? How interesting.”

“It’s the worst way to die in all the worlds. Perfect for this little shit right here, that’s for sure!” the other man said, giving the girl another sharp kick, that sent her onto her back.

“I’d treat your bait better if you want it to stay alive,” Loki said.

"What? Her? She was made for this, weren’t ya?” the man said, grabbing her chain and yanking on it. The little girl nodded frantically, willing to answer any question that would make him stop.

“Oh, so she’s your daughter, then?” Loki asked.

“Hells no! She’s a slave, you moron.”

“Is that right?”

“It’s plain easy to get them,” the other interjected.

"Hmm. And so, what is it that you do with these creatures? Certainly not eat them?” Loki continued.

"Hells no! You can’t eat them. They’d be all tough and chewy anyways, not to mention the - venom.”

“No instead, we sell them for their - venom. You make good darts from it,” the other continued.

“The blood’s valuable too. The best makers can turn it into powerful healing potions!”

“Extraordinary,” Loki mused.

"You can practically use the whole beast! Those scales can make good armors–”

“And them fangs make deadly daggers,” the first man said.

"Oh, I’m very interested. Please, go on.”

“The claws can be useful too. They’ll cut through just about anything but they can be crushed up into a powder also to cure all kinds of illments.”

“Ailments. Or illnesses. One or the other.” Loki corrected him once more.

“Well, you are a learned one, aren’t you,” the man said, now annoyed with the stranger’s quips. “Where you say you were from, again?”

"I didn’t. Oh, but look, I think more of your prey is arriving,” Loki said, pointing to the far end of the rocky ravine.

Three more scaly kapka were stalking down the ravine, drawn either by the scent of their fallen brethren or the now silenced screams of the girl.

"Ha! Time to get back to work, you!” the man shouted at the girl.

He grabbed her and quickly hooked her back on to the line. They both heaved the net over the edge. The metal rods seemed to snap together, straightening out to help the net fall flat onto the rocks below. The chain was quickly flying over the ledge. The girl gasped and hopped about on the spot.

“You know it’s easier if you jump,” one man said to her, amused. She shook her head, madly, not wanting to jump. Before the chain could rip her off the edge, the man gave her a hard kick, square in the chest. She screamed. Her fall was cut harshly short about a quarter of the way down the cliff face. Her head snapped painfully downwards at the sharp stop as the chain came taught.

It was wrapped tightly several times around her middle, trapping her arms to her sides. The strong hook attached to the chains at her back kept her face down towards the raging monsters. She screamed in terror.

Upon seeing the bait, the kapka charged down the ravine. Their claws made deep cuts in the dirt beneath their paws. They stopped abruptly, necks craned upwards to see their dangling prey. Guttural roars and growls rose up from the bottom of the cliff face. The girl cried out and kicked, swinging back and forth on her chain.

The movement clearly enticed the kapka even more as they began to leap up at her, swiping with their giant paws at her kicking legs. One leapt up the rock wall with powerful hind legs. It pushed off a small ledge and leapt, swinging it’s paw towards her. It came dangerously close to hitting her but fell just short, landing gracefully on its feet back at the bottom. The others were clawing at the wall, hungrily trying to find traction.

The girl’s arms were stuck tight to her sides from the chains but she still pulled and tugged at the restraints. Loki watched her movements, closely. He thought for a moment, he caught a quick flash of light from her hands as she struggled. She shrieked as if she had been caught by one of the beasts but none had touched her. He felt another strong disturbance in his aura, like electricity, nearly to the point of physical pain. Something strange was going on with this girl.

“Oh, you’re in luck, then, stranger, you’ll get to see the show,” they laughed.

"I can’t wait,” Loki said coolly, stepping forward. The hunters leaned over the edge to get a better line of sight at their prey. Loki took another step forward, firmly placing both hands on the backs of the men and shoved hard. The two men hurtled over the edge into the ravine, falling past the screaming girl, and into the awaiting jaws of the kapka.

The girl turned her head back up towards the ledge, straining to see what had happened and why her former masters were now being paralyzed for dinner down below. The stranger peered over the edge at her and slowly began hoisting her up by the chain. She no longer struggled nor screamed but her chest heaved at the thought of what he might do to her now.

Once she was back at the level of the ledge, Loki turned the crane-like mechanism around and lowered her onto the ground. She was breathing hard, soft whimpers escaping her lips. She had a thick, metal collar around her neck and shackles on her wrists and ankles. Judging from the thick bands of scars beneath the manacles, she had probably had them on for a very long time.

Loki turned back to look over the edge again. The kapka tore into the men with their massive fangs. Loki watched as the venom worked its way through them. Their screams slowly stopped as their bodies went limp but their eyes still twitched about in horror.

The first kapka struck, tearing an arm off one of the men and swallowing it whole. The next kapka ripped off a leg and in two big gulps, it was gone. The third tore away another leg and swung it about wildly, beating it on the ground before lazily turning onto its side and eating the leg whole.

“Well, that’s not at all what I was expecting.” Loki said, looking down at the horrified little girl. “I thought they’d at least torture them a little longer. What was all that about bits and pieces? He just tore off his whole leg!”

The girl whimpered at the stranger’s feet horrified at the scene below them. She turned her head away, not wanting to watch anymore.

Loki marveled at the sheer lack of blood the scene produced. Perhaps these morons knew a bit of what they were talking about after all. He watched for a moment longer before turning to the dead kapka behind him. He stooped, conjuring several jars and vials from his pocket in a smooth motion with his hands, and began extracting venom and blood from the creatures.

The girl watched him. Could he be a maker? What awful things was he going to do with that venom? She struggled, trying to free herself before the scary man could push her over the edge too.

Loki carefully filled each vial and jar before cutting away eight large fangs from the jaws of just one kapka. He was sure to take all the claws as well. He thought a few specimen of the scales would be useful too, for study, since the rest of the kapka had such alchemical properties. He already had the best armor any money could buy after all.

He revealed his sharpest knife to cut away at the tough skin. The glint of the blade sent the little girl into a frenzy.

“No! No! Please! Don’t hurt me, sir! Please!” she exclaimed.

“Calm down, it’s not for you. I’ll get to you in a minute.”

This was not at all calming for the girl, who only struggled more. Loki didn’t bother looking up. He could hear her chains clanking together as she desperately tried to free herself. He focused his attention on his work.

The scales were difficult to remove, indeed. Eventually, he was able to lift the edge of one gnarled, greenish-black scales and dig in at the slightly softer skin below. He carved out a large swath of the creature’s skin about as long as his arm and folded it neatly before making it disappear back into his pocket.

He studied the creature’s musculature beneath the skin he had removed. Intrigued and already covered in blood, he made another long cut down the beast’s belly, cutting through skin and muscle before he felt the grate of his knife against bone. He dug his hands into the beast’s chest cavity. He placed one foot firmly on one side of the rib cage and hooked his arm under the other side. He pushed upwards, expecting the bones to break easily but was met with tremendous resistance. Determined, he took a deeper breath and heaved his shoulder against the ribs of the animal.

Sickening cracks rang out in the forest that made the girl jump. Loki didn’t notice, he was too interested in what he was seeing. The internal structure of the beast was quite similar to that of a large cat but the bones were black as night. He extracted several rib bones from the beast as well as its heart and a few other organs, placing them again in conjured jars and boxes that vanished as quickly as they had appeared. Taking a look around the men’s small camp at the edge of the ravine, Loki located a large water skin. He poured some out into a bowl and crouched as he washed away the blood and bits of broken black bone and tissue from his hands. He looked up at the girl as he rubbed his hands together.

She opened her mouth to scream again, frightened senseless by the man covered in kapka gore. In an instant, the stranger appeared in front of her, clapping a hand over her mouth.

“If you want to stay alive, I wouldn’t be screaming and calling those things - or anything else around - to us,” he said in an even tone. “I’ll get to you in a minute. Just be patient.”

She nodded vigorously, tears flooding down her cheeks. He straightened up and walked back to the bowl of water he had poured. She watched him. She wanted that water so badly. Her throat was dry and scratchy, her lips chapped and cracked. The stranger looked up at her again, having finished cleaning off his arms and armor. She looked away sharply, finding a sprig of grass to look at instead.

She heard him stand up. Her breath came faster. His feet barely made a sound as they strode across the ground in her direction. She closed her eyes and tucked her chin to her chest. Her whole body trembled as his feet came to rest beside her. She braced herself for a kick but it never came.

Loki examined the chains. They were thick and old. Probably not made for the purpose of dangling a toddler over a cliff for evil beasties. They’d clearly been on her for a while too. They had left deep purple bruises in bands across her arms. He removed the large hook from the back of the chains. The sudden touch made the girl practically jump out of her skin. She began to weep again.

Loki rolled his eyes and continued examining the chains. He found a padlock resting on the girl’s shoulder blade. He looked up and around the camp again. Hopefully, the key wasn’t now inside the belly of a beast down below. He stood and began searching anyway. His eyes came to rest on a tough leather bag. He stood and grabbed it, turning over the flap and finding a small ring of keys.

“Ha, morons,” he muttered. “Just leaving the keys laying around.” He took the keys back over to the girl and tested each one in the lock.

“Ugh, you know, it’s always the last one you try,” he said out loud, inserting the last key into the lock. It clicked and the padlock opened. The girl flinched at the loud sound the lock made. Loki turned the lock over. It was old and rusty, grinding against itself. Unhooking the lock from the chains, he set it down beside him. The chains loosened around the girl’s morbidly thin frame. Loki was surprised that the weight of the chains had not crushed the tiny girl.

“There,” he said, finally freeing her. “I bet that feels a little better.”

She sniffled. She did not dare make eye contact, not even with her savior. She swallowed hard and nodded weakly. She did not dare to run either. This stranger would surely catch her and who knows what awful things he could do then.

He stood slowly and walked back towards the water skin. She slowly sat up, following him with her gaze, his back now turned to her. He was tall and lean with long black hair. A tattered green cape hung from his shoulders, falling just below his knees. He stooped to pick up the water skin and glanced over his shoulder at her. She quickly averted her eyes again, looking for anything else on the ground to stare at. He walked back over to her and crouched.

Loki could see how terrified the little girl was of him. Deep down he felt a pang of guilt for eliciting such a reaction from something so small but he quickly batted the sentiment away. He offered her the mouth of the water skin. She turned just a bit further away.

“Come on,” he said. “You clearly need it.”

She turned back towards him, her gaze rose to the water skin. Loki noticed her eyes were the same vibrant shade of green as the plants around them. Dark circles around her eyes, caused by exhaustion, only accentuated the color more. Her face was pale and streaked with dirt and tear trails. She sniffled again. Leaning forward towards the mouth of the water skin. Loki gently edged the skin closer for her. Her eyes flinched at the movement, her lips just centimeters from the skin. She turned her head away sharply as if expecting a blow.

Loki sighed pityingly. “Come on,” he urged her, moving the water skin a bit closer to her. “It’s alright. I’m not going to hurt you.”

She hesitated a moment before turning her head back again. Loki nodded, reassuringly. Slowly, she lifted her hand to brace the skin and put her lips around the opening. Loki gently tilted the skin upwards. As the water flowed into her mouth, she grabbed the skin with her other hand, overwhelmed by the first taste of water she had had in days. Loki let her finish it off before lowering it again.

She wiped her mouth and then licked the back of her hand, not wanting to waste a single drop. He let out a sigh. What a wretched creature. She dropped her hands in front of her, folding them in her lap and lowering her head.

“Do you have a family,” he asked.

She shook her head no, still staring at the ground.

“What happened to them?”

She took a shuddering breath. “They didn’t want me anymore.”

Loki shook his head, glancing away from her.

“Is this your home-world?” he asked.

She shook her head again.

“Where are you from? Do you know?”

She looked about on the ground for a moment, searching for a stone or a blade of grass that would give her the answer. She swallowed hard and shook her head again, dejected.

“I suppose even if you did, you wouldn’t want to go back,” he said. He nudged his foot at the chains absentmindedly, then remembered something.

“Why have you not used your magic to escape?” he asked.

Her breath caught in her throat. Chills crept up her body. Her chest began to heave. She looked up, only raising her eyes to the man’s armored chest, shaking her head frantically.

“I – I – I don’t have no magic, sir,” she choked.

He cocked his head to one side. “Really? Well, it certainly felt like you did.” He knew she was hiding something but she was far too scared to tell.

As he stood there, trying to figure out what to do with the child, her head suddenly snapped around, looking in the opposite direction. He turned round to see what she was looking at. She gasped and her hands went to her mouth, remembering what happened the last time she had tried to scream in front of the man.

At first, Loki could not figure out what the girl was hearing or seeing but the pounding footsteps that were growing ever-louder and ever-closer answered is questions.

“Oh no,” Loki said. His shoulders fell.

The monster that had knocked him out of the tree was crashing through the underbrush. He could just make out its stiff mane above the leaves of the brush. The girl scrambled to her feet and tried to run. She tripped over her self and the chains at her feet and crumpled into a ball.

“No, don’t do that!” Loki exclaimed, hauling her up by the arm. “We need to leave now!”

He ran into the trees behind them, practically dragging the girl along with him. The monster tore through the camp behind them. They could hear the sounds of wrenching metal and the breaking of wood as they ran away. The girl cried out at the noise.

“Ugh,” Loki groaned. “I don’t have time for this! I need a drink!”

He summoned the tesseract’s energy once again. A jump like what he was planning would take some serious concentration; concentration that a mad beast chasing them was disrupting. He ran, eyes half closed, hauling the girl alongside him.

“No! No!” she cried.

He could feel her pulling away from him. He looked up and saw that they were running straight for the trunk of a great tree. Groaning with the effort it took to focus the tesseract’s energy with his magic, he finally felt the vapors envelope around them. They disappeared moments before they would have collided into the tree, leaving the beast behind them careening into its base.

They both collapsed onto the ground on the other side of the portal. The girl covered her head with her hands, waiting to be trampled by the gigagrunt behind them. When she did not feel the pain of certain death, she sat up and looked around. They were in a wide meadow nowhere close to the dominating trees of the forest with no gigagrunt in sight. The sky above her was clear but two suns shined down on her face.

She blinked rapidly and shook her head but both suns were still up there. The man sat up and shook his head.

“That planet was insane!” he exclaimed. “Will not be going back there anytime soon.”

She stared at him. That was magic that he used. It made sense now. Even though his cape was torn up, his armor was accented with gold and silver all over. And he talked nice. Only rich people talked like that.

“Are you alright?” he asked her.

She looked around, startled by his question. Realizing that they were completely alone and that his question truly was directed at her, she nodded.

“Yes, sir,” she said, softly, looking down at her hands.

“Good,” he replied. He stood and brushed himself off. He walked past her. She followed him with her eyes. He put his hands on his hips and looked around, then up in the sky at the double suns above them.

“I have no idea where we are,” he admitted, dropping his head. He turned back towards her. “Sometimes that happens. To be fair, we were being chased by a vicious monster so the fact we ended up on solid ground and not somewhere in the vacuum of space is rather impressive.” He stopped in front of her. “And on top of that, it’s a planet we can both breathe on! I’d say that’s pretty good for teleporting on the run.”

“Y – Yes, sir?” she said. She was not entirely sure if he was speaking to her still. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. She swallowed hard. There was little sustenance in her stomach to begin with, save for maybe what was left of the water she’d drank, but it very much wanted out of her mouth. Her head began to spin and she pitched forward.

“Oh, yes, sorry,” the man said, crouching down to catch her before she fell flat on her face. “That’s pretty normal after a big jump.”

She flinched at his touch. He gently turned her onto her back. She closed her eyes, trying to make the ground stop spinning. She blanched and felt a hot flush race over her face, traveling down her neck to her chest.

Loki watched her. Her chest still rose and fell. At least she wasn’t dead. He knew that could sometimes happen too. Not to him, of course. He knew what he was doing. But this girl did not. She was small and small things sometimes have a hard time fully materializing on the other side of portals. He examined her body. Despite the obvious lack of food and water and the cuts, bruises, and scars that covered her bare skin, she seemed to be all there. She opened her eyes again.

“Am I dying, sir?” she asked, meekly.

“You don’t appear to be,” Loki replied. This seemed to calm the girl for a moment before her eyes widened in fear.

“Is this one of the hells?” she asked.

Loki wondered what sort of religion had such beautiful hells but reassured her with a smirk, “I doubt it.”

Her face twisted with fear and she asked, “Are you a demon?”

Loki smiled and hesitated a moment before answering, “Some people probably think I am -including myself occasionally- but no, I am not.”

She sighed, relieved. She blinked a few times, still trying to make the two suns turn back into one. Seeing that her blinks had failed, she began to sit up slowly.

“Welcome back,” the man said, smiling wryly. “Better?”

She nodded and then looked down seemingly disappointed in herself. “Yes, sir,” she said.

“My name is Loki,” he told her. “What’s your name?”

For the first time, her eyes met his. She seemed confused by the question at first. Loki nodded, prompting her again. She quickly looked down at her hands before looking back up at him.

“My – My name is Kuna,” she said, holding his gaze for a moment before submissively adding, “Sir.”

She wondered if he would hit her for telling him. No master ever asked her name and certainly no rich person. All the slaves she had ever seen tell a master their name were beaten so senseless. She would have forgotten hers a long time ago from disuse, if she hadn’t carved it into her wrist with a rusty nail in the stockyard.

Loki nodded. “Kuna,” he said, testing the name aloud. She dropped her head, anticipating a smack at the very least but it didn’t come. “That’s a beautiful name,” he said.

Her eyes widened at the ground below her. This must be some trick. He was not possibly being… nice to her. He stood up again and looked around. “Well, it looks to me like those suns are setting,” he observed. “We should make a camp before it gets dark.”

This was definitely the strangest rich person Kuna had ever met.

#Loki #God of Mischief #Father #Others #Submitted fic #submission #Loki's Daughter #traveling-classicist #Trigger warning #child slavery #mental illness #abuse #chapter 1

80 notes · View notes

iguessishouldbethankful · 5 years ago

Note

what do you think the sf team does in their free time? like... when they have a "day off" and get to relax? ♥️🐦

You ask me this and you don’t specify which generation of the team. SMH. Lmao I know you meant the current main one but I feel the need to kinda explore a little with all three gens? Let’s see how this goes.

Star Fox 1st Generation: (of note, it’s interesting how all of them but Pigma had established families)

James McCloud - Smoker, suave, not as energetic as his wigmate, Peppy. And yet, he had enough in him to keep following his friend around. But honestly, James interested were more quiet and work oriented. A workaholic. Mind always on the team and the responsibilities he took on. Almost a complete perfectionist with a calming nature. His hobbies outside of work were few, and most were made with spending time with Peppy, Beltino, Pigma, the Greys and their families. Forming a taste for alcoholic beverages with Peppy, and appreciating the retro military look of space ships with Pigma, and the techno babbles of Beltino. Honestly, it still surprises him that he was able to find a wonderful wife in the end considering how work oriented he was, and focused. Vixy was possibly the only thing that kept him focused outside of work the most until she passed away. Then it was just Fox. And their times together were mostly focused on military history, documentaries, a continuous path of learning and studying. It was fulfilling and relaxing for James.

Peppy Hare - A much younger Peppy would be a spry little thing. More in shape, physically stronger and beaming to high heavens. And of course, a young husband and father like James. For his free time, besides catching up with the Toads and the Greys, Peppy would usually just spend time with Vivian and little Lucy. Before them, he was mostly into bar hopping with James around Corneria’s capital. Dancing with the single ladies and flirting. He was much better at it than James, honestly. He’s also a really good dancer. But once he tied the knot with Vivian and had Lucy, his world became just the two of them outside of work. He’d take them to picnics and spoil both with flowers and stories and nothing but his time to give to them. He’d even read his newspaper out loud so Lucy would know what the subjects were. She loved the voices he’d make. His family was everything…

Pigma Dengar - First time I’m thinking about this fool before he went to the dark side. And honestly, I can easily see him being more relaxed on his own. In the hangar after a hard day’s work upgrading Arwings with Beltino’s help. A good pack of cigarettes, a deck of cards, a handful of dice or maybe online gaming to keep his mind off things. Hell, I still see him being the kind of guy that would sit down with the kids and show them how to gamble honestly. Fox, Lucy, Slippy and Bill… And both Bill and Lucy remember the nasty little betting tricks too. Pigma was very much into gambling and taking bets on his off time too. He would get a lot of money, lose a lot of it, but in the early stages, it calmed him. Working on older models of ships helped him too. It’s rather unfortunate that this is where Lucy got some of her fascination for old model space ships, because of the magazines and books Pigma would let her look at. Modding was a big part of his younger life and he enjoyed that before joining the team. It… went away when things got worse.

Beltino Toad - I headcanon that, even if Beltino wasn’t part of the team, he was still a very important external force that helped out a lot. Especially with Pigma. So I will count him into my headcanon piece. He’s into making little machine toys. Like making little machine creatures and devices. To him, it keeps his mind sharp and there is always a new project on his table to go home to that isn’t an all consuming one. In fact, it’s one he could share with Slippy when he was old enough to walk. It helped with the two of them bonding and getting into other geeky stuff. Hell, Beltino was the type of father that would get into anything Slippy wanted to get into, so after that, he was a goner. Trading card games to video games, even modding them on the computer and making his own became his hobby as much as Slippy’s. In a way, spending time with his family was his way to relax.

Star Fox 2nd Generation:

Fox McCloud - I see Fox as being rather similar to his father in many ways. At first, he didn’t have as many hobbies that were formed on his own. Most of them were things he got into with his friends, Slippy, Bill and Lucy. With Slippy, he actually tried watching some of the cartoons but instead he was into more live action fighters (similar to Power Rangers). And with Lucy, he got into model kits of space ships. He has a few still. Whereas with Bill, he got into sports like baseball and handball. Hell, all four of them were into playing against each other in any game. But once his father died, Fox became more sullen and quiet. His interests were more work focused with the occasional gaming with Slippy. His shell started to break after the war however. So gaming is something he’s into now, as well as reckless space racing which, much to Peppy’s dismay, is something he got into with Falco. And meditation. That he learned with Krystal.

Falco Lombardi - This bird has no chill. Joking, he does. Falco’s free time is dictated by what he feels like doing. Besides trying to not be the worst gamer in the team–and that doesn’t exactly relax him at all but he keeps doing it. But what he does enjoy is watching cartoons with Slippy. Funny enough, they both have an unofficial established bond over ‘anime’ series such as Dino Ball Z and Sailor Papetoon. Something about the sailors legs, man… Ahem. But out of everything, Falco is into anything that will give him a sudden rush. Flying for any reason, races, pushing his own limits in the cockpit. And outside of his Arwing, well… Falco is reckless due to him wanting that rush continuously. From bar fights to even amusement park rides. Not the best of hobbies, to want to feel the danger behind his actions, but it’s something he became addicted to in a way. Staying cooped up somewhere will only make him more aggressive due to ‘my thoughts won’t stop, I need to drown them’ so he needs to keep moving.

Peppy Hare - In comparison to his younger self, a much older Peppy is much more sullen. Quiet, always looking after the younger team. His free time is usually dictated by what he needs to show them–trying to find the patience to guide them when anything sparks off. But when things are quiet, he finds himself mostly contacting old friends such as Beltino and Pepper, especially after Vivian passed away. Sometimes he’d contact Lucy, ask her how the cadets are doing, how she is doing. However such things aren’t as often as him sitting down with either Fox or Falco to chat with them. And even then, strangely, he seems to bond a little more with Falco at times, taking the time to pry open the avian. Why? Just a hunch. They have quite a bit in common without either of them knowing. He’s also very much fond of tea. Don’t bitch at him about his leaf water, leave him be!!

Slippy Toad - Listen here. Slippy is a bucket of hobbies. When he’s not working on machinery, making new inventions for his team, guess what he’s doing? This guy is making games on his computer for fun, testing them with Falco on the side (because he knows the difficulty curve Falco secretly needs to get shit done in a game, and if Falco is able to complete a task, the games is way too easy). When not making or playing games, he is having forum/server discussions with some of his online friends about cartoons and shows he’s into. He will actually share this with Falco a lot if it’s something the avian is into as well. He will also get into online trading card games and goes into bidding wars over certain real cards that are mega vintage. He also has a toy figure collection he keeps around in his dorm on the Great Fox (most of them are at home with his dad though). He’s also into music. All of the music that slaps in the Great Fox? That’s all Slippy. Bless him. Lastly, one more thing. He owns a ukelele. He knows how to play it. That is actually the mostly relaxing thing he can do for himself when he does feel absolutely anxious. Just sit somewhere quiet, away from everyone and string away.

Krystal - She’s a bit more simple in comparison. Used to living on her own in the wilderness, most of her free time consists of returning to Sauria to help restore the planet as much as she can. Empathy work is also something she truly enjoys doing when the recipient permits her to do so. So far, Fox and Slippy permitted her to work on some of their mental wounds. And yes, taught Fox how to meditate and relax in the silence as she found out Fox was never comfortable being alone. Out of the entire team, she’s possibly the one that’s most comfortable being herself.

Star Fox 3rd Generation:

Marcus McCloud - Unlike his father and his grandfather, Marcus is actually much more active when it comes to fun. A bit of a sports jock when in school and the Academy, he very much enjoys exercise to keep himself in shape and to keep his mind off things that can get under his skin. He enjoys gaming as well, but nothing compares to Skipper and Abby. Still better than Falco though, lmao.

Abigail Hare - Possibly the edgiest out of the team. She’s into reading books because of her mother, Lucy, and most of them are dark and spooky. Why? No dad, it’s not a phase. She also enjoys cartoons and is into retro space ships like Lucy (and got to drag her father into it as well). Now, the one thing her and her little brother, Valentino Hare, share in hobbies is that they both are actual super into healthy foods. This is mostly due to the shared rabbit disease passed down by mothers in Vivian’s bloodline. After Lucy passed away, Falco helped his kids to get into a much better diet and it became a shared thing between all three.

Skipper Toad - The oldest of the Toad siblings. He had to fight his way to stay relevant and boy, he’s merciless when it comes to his energy. Non stop, naturally caffeinated young man. From video games to schematics for lunch, to learning how to hack into different systems and databases to get information in a more proactive manner, he’s pretty much into many things that keeps him busy all the time.

Falco Lombardi - Like Peppy, he’s much older now, mellowed out, widower and a father of two. Abigail is his oldest, Valentino is his youngest (and that one stays on Corneria under the watchful eye of General Peppy). Ever since Lucy passed on, he’s been much more attached to his kids than ever, constantly checking on Valentino while with the team, and making sure the new team is able to stand on it’s own two feet. He finds it amusing how he’s the ‘gramps’ now, even though he still gets guidance from Peppy along the way. Sometimes Fox as well, but most of their conversations are just casual updates on how the new generation is doing. Honestly, he’s still kind of reckless, mostly to keep Marcus on his toes and to teach Abigail how to fly much better than what the Academy taught her. Honestly, the new team itself is his free time. He’d trade his place in there for nothing in the universe.

43 notes · View notes

sworn-unbeliever · 4 years ago

Photo

23 - Shuffle

((Whew! Once again, a big huge thank you to @abeat for RPing as Jeremy since he’s her character in a way. Also, as a cartomancy fan, I jumped on the opportunity to write about such a thing. Although I didn’t write out the entire spread, I did do a proper reading. The spread in question is the Romany spread and is one of my favourites. The deck the nephew used is the Tarot of the Divine and I used the descriptions from the little white book there. Abeat and I will continue this storyline. If not on Sunday then probably after FFXIVWrite. Anyway!))

wc: 2,982

A gentle chime tingled in Teremy’s ears. Immediately, the miqo’te looked up from his bored daze. “Welcome to Fortunes & Fancies. Let me know if you need help with anything—”

Teremy cut his spiel short when he saw who entered the room.

A miqo’te seeker with Teremy’s exact same face.

“Jer?!” Teremy arched an eyebrow.

The aforementioned Jeremy waved. “Hi aniki!” he smiled cheerfully and looked around the store. A few seconds later, he did a double take. “W-wait, aniki?!”

Teremy switched from Common to his native Hingan. “Yes, little brother. What are you doing here of all places?”

Jeremy also switched back to Hingan. “I could ask you the same thing! I thought you were always busy exploring dungeons and hunting monsters and bad guys, but here you are working in a store...what happened? Are you in debt? Did you get caught up with bad people!? Did you murder someone and you’re on the run?”

Teremy closed his eyes and snorted, smiling. “A lot happened. No, yes-but-no, and yes, in that particular order, and I’m fine. Just taking up someone on their gracious offer to take things easy is all. Anyway, are you looking for anything in particular?”

Jeremy looked around. “This is what you call taking it easy? Isn’t this a furniture shop?”

“Trinkets, stuffed animals, a guildmate’s leatherworker merchandise over there,” Teremy gestured to the large leather backs on top of a couple of cute display carts, “or whatever commission you desire. Gears, accessories, primal weapons, you can afford it, we make it.”

Jeremy ran up to the counter. “Wait. Are you… Are you… crafting stuff?!”

Teremy shrugged. “More or less.”

“Crafting stuff… working behind a counter… helping customers…” Jeremy slammed his hands on the counter and growled. “Who are you?! What have you done with my brother?!”

“Ever the laughs-a-minute.” Teremy smirked and poked his brother on the forehead. “If you’re not gonna buy anything, get out.”

Jeremy pouted. “Awww, don’t be like that. Of course I’ll buy something at my aniki’s shop!”

“It’s not really my shop. I just happen to work here.”

Regardless if Jeremy had heard his brother or not, the younger twin’s tail swished playfully as he looked around the store. Normally to miqo’te such an action denounced irritation; however, Jeremy acted more canine than feline at times, and when Jeremy swished his tail like that, he showed his excitement and interest. Jeremy placed one hand on his hip, the other on his chin. “What do you recommend?”

“You’d know better than me what you’d need. Besides a life.”

Jeremy whirled around, his hands still on his hip and chin respectively, and grinned. “Now is that any way to speak to a potential customer? You should be polite and point out your most popular wares.”

Teremy exhaled. Jeremy was right. This was why Jeremy was better at dealing with customers back in the fish market days. “Well, this week only, the store is having a special on grimoires. Buy two, get one free. You can even get a left-handed book and fountain pen commissioned if you desire.”

The younger brother came back to the counter as Teremy pulled out a large portfolio-style album. Both miqo’te looked down at the assortment of cover images featuring various grimoires, codexes, and other such books.

“You don’t even need to be an arcanist to order these. We can make them just as a notebook itself for notebook’s sake.” Teremy added.

“Hmm.” Jeremy tilted his head back and forth as he leafed through the catalogue. “I could start keeping a journal. Sure, sign me up for the book and fountain pen. This one, this one, and that one. Although I was hoping to ask about… other services?”

Teremy paused and looked at Jeremy in the eyes. “Are you looking to the stars for guidance?”

“Maybe I am. I could use a little starry guidance right around now. If such services are available of course.”

Jeremy’s tail resumed wagging again. No doubt that he had heard of said services from an outside source and came all this way just to heckle his brother about it. Ignoring such a fact, Teremy pulled out a well-worn appointment book from underneath the counter and flipped to today’s page.

“How soon do you require such services?” Teremy asked.

“Preferably same day if possible,” said Jeremy.

Teremy skimmed through the planner book. Conveniently, the entire day had been booked up for Reonora, Rosemary, and Joey, like Nyemia herself had spun her own divine intervention. “Tell you what. Come back to the store after hours, which is—” Teremy looked at the nearby carbuncle chronometer, “18:00, and you’ll find someone that can help you.”

Jeremy grinned. “All right. Thanks, aniki! Exemplary customer service. I’ll come back later. Can I pay for the commission at the same time as the other service?”

“Of course. Thank you for your patronage.” Teremy performed an eastern bow to his brother.

* * *

After hours. Jeremy was nowhere to be seen.

Teremy leaned on the wall beside the currently locked door. Arms folded, he stared off into the horizon and gazed into the sunset. Since he started working at Fortunes & Fancies, he had many quiet moments like this—moments with no customers and nothing to do but listen to the carbuncle chronometer tick. Yet, those dull moments made him enjoy these poignant ones much more. He smiled softly as he gazed into the horizon, admiring the sunset. With Jeremy nowhere in sight, just for now, Teremy inhaled the evening breeze and let in the pleasure of tranquil silence.

“Hey aniki! Where’s this person that’s going to assist me?” blared his voice with the sound amplified times ten.

Teremy jumped, startled. His eyes widened and his tail shot up and frayed. He looked to the side to see Jeremy grinning, one hand on his hip and ears wiggling, completely pleased with himself. Of course. Some things never changed since childhood. Teremy took a long, deep breath to regain his composure. “You’re looking at him.”

Now it was Jeremy’s turn to recoil in shock. “What? You consult with the stars too?”

Teremy nodded. “The store owner has been showing me how to just in case I have to. I admit, this kind of thing isn’t really…” He didn’t continue the sentence lest he insult the deck in his satchel. “I’m still new to this, so be gentle.” Unlocking the door, Teremy held the door open for his brother.

“Man, is there anything you can’t actually do, aniki?” Jeremy asked as he walked inside the store.

“Hey, don’t sing my praises until we’re actually done. Then you can change your mind.”

Teremy entered behind his brother and locked the door behind him. He walked ahead of Jeremy, made a beckoning gesture, and hopped over the counter. Jeremy followed in suit and the two headed downstairs.

“I feel like we’re going into some super shady store dealings, like selling illegally poached hides or something.”

Teremy snorted. “You wish. Unfortunately, all that’s in here are a lot of lights and bohemian.” Teremy slid the oriental partition open and went inside, expecting Jeremy to follow.

And he did. The younger twin looked around at the variety of lamps, bookshelves, rugs and other objects. In the middle of the room laid two ronkan rocking chairs and a banquet style table with a square board in the middle. “Lots of… moogles. Very mystical looking.”

Teremy took a seat at the far end and gestured for Jer to sit across from him. Once Jeremy did so, Teremy pulled out his deck.

A tarot deck.

As he opened the box and tugged the ribbon to make the cards come out, Reonora’s words echoed in his mind.

“Cartomancy has many different systems. Perhaps you are familiar with the Sharlayan system? The method which attunes you to the stars and allows you to draw upon cards in battle? It stands to reason that cards also allow one to divinate as well. The future, secrets, and most commonly, advice. The method my mother had taught me is called Lenormand—a system that relies on creating phrases to decipher meaning. I have given Rosemary and Joey oracle decks, which rely on perhaps a single card or its own individual system. To you, I bequeath this deck. It is a system called Tarot. For this deck, simply put, each card has its own meaning. This is an old system where one can gain much insight. Perhaps I am speaking frankly, but in my opinion you seem like an old soul who thinks deeply. This may be the system for you.”

Teremy had no idea how true these words were. All he could do was shuffle the cards and have faith. As he shuffled, he felt vibrations in his hands as though the cards themselves emitted their own energies. Spirits? He thought to just focus on the task at hand. “What’s on your mind?”

Jeremy tilted his head from side to side. “I guess… What should I do now? Finding you was what drove auntie and I for so long. Now we’ve found you safe and sound, so I’m just wondering what to do with myself now I guess.”

“Like you have no purpose right now?”

“Yeah, that’s what it feels like.” Jeremy leaned his head on his hand. “Like I’m just ambling from one thing to the next now with no direction in mind.”

“Hmm.” Teremy shuffled the cards. ‘Jer’s lost his purpose in life. Can you give him some advice?’

He felt a tingling sensation in his hands—a sensation different than his usual qi. Like spiritual guidance. He felt as though the cards agreed to his request. As he continued to shuffle, Teremy looked up. “For what it’s worth, I’m grateful. I had no idea. Useless Tia said you and Auntie had left on a grand adventure without me. I didn’t know what to think. I feel stupid to have believed him. But what’s done is done. It… made me happy to know you guys were looking for me.” Teremy put the deck in the middle. “Here. You shuffle them and then hand the deck back to me after you’re done.”

“Yeah, typical of Useless Tia, failing to bring up the crucial details as to what our grand adventure was about.” Jeremy took the deck and shuffled in the same manner as his brother. Once finished, he placed the deck back in the middle. “I appreciate this, aniki. I’m really glad we found you safe and sound. I just want to find my own purpose just like you found yours.”

Teremy cut the cards into three separate stacks, then combined them again. With the deck thoroughly shuffled, Teremy now laid the cards in the spread that Reonora taught him.

Twenty one cards.

Three rows.

Seven columns.

The first row signified the past. The second spoke of the present. And the third laid out plans that had yet to happen.

Teremy glanced at the spread as a whole, then scanned the top line.

Wheel of Fortune. Three of Wands. The Magician. The Star. Four of Pentacles. Page of Pentacles. Five of Cups.

‘So far the reading has told him what Jer and I know already, but…’

His instincts couldn’t help but become bothered at one card in particular: the Four of Pentacles.

Hoarding. Possession.

“Hey, Jer, have you been… keeping something to yourself? A possession of some sort?”

Jeremy pressed his lips together. “Well...there is something, actually. I guess you really can read the stars.” He reached into his inventory and pulled out a gunblade, putting it on the table. “I found this awhile ago during my adventures with auntie. We were more focused on finding you so I never did anything with it, but I never told her I found it either. Some thugs we dealt with dropped it and I just hung onto it. I was debating trying to find out more about it but I didn’t want to turn my back on everything auntie’s taught me.”

“Thus in the past, while you were looking for me, you found this,” said Teremy. “And while you set your sights on your practical goals, you felt torn about this discovery. It was like this is a calling to you, yet you didn’t want to pursue, and you felt bad about it.”

Jeremy nodded. “Yeah. I mean I’m sure you or auntie could probably teach me about it if I asked, but I just never got around to asking. I mean I know it’s a gunblade and all but...I dunno.” He shrugged. “I’m not sure what to do. Explore my curiosity? Let it go and sell the thing to a merchant?”

‘Weird. Why would Jeremy want to suddenly sell something he’s been hoarding? Unless he needs the money for something.’ Teremy continued. “The present line doesn’t say anything you haven’t told me already. You put aside your feelings and donned your patience and, well, we’re together. But after that you lost your motivation…”

Teremy’s eyes locked onto the last card at the end of the second row.

The Five of Swords.

Surrender. Violence. Crime.

“Is there something you’re not telling me? Did you get involved with someone?” Teremy asked.

Jeremy folded his arms and closed his eyes. He may as well have just said yes. On the other hand, Jeremy didn’t exactly say any details, either. No wonder Jeremy’s words since he entered sounded so oddly specific.

Teremy scanned the bottom row—the line that read the future. “Did you get involved with bad people? Are you the one who owes money to someone?”

Jeremy looked to the side. He said nothing for a few moments. Then finally, he spoke. “Yeah. I do. I was buying information trying to find you. Eorzea is a huge place, I knew it’d take us forever to find you on our own. So I was basically buying information from a syndicate in Ul’Dah. The prices kept getting higher and higher and I ended up just making interest payments, but I actually owe a lot of money. I’ve still been paying interest, but now that we’ve found you, I guess I’m trying to think of a way to make a lot of money quickly to pay it off entirely. I never told auntie of course. I didn’t want her to know what I was doing.”

Teremy scanned the rest of the reading, but he didn’t have to say much more. His mind already started formulating ideas. Thinking. He did hear Rosemary say something along the lines of that a tarot deck may not answer a question directly, but could show the actual underlying problem. And right now, Teremy saw that example put to action.

“How much money do you owe them?”

“Eh… heh… Um…” Jeremy scratched the back of his head and muttered.

Nevermind. Teremy had heard enough. The elder brother slammed his hands on the table underneath the reading and rose to his full height. “You know what? Nevermind. Forget this. Let’s deal with them once and for all. Even the cards are backing me up on this.”

“W-w-w-whoa, aniki! You’re suggesting we take on a crime syndicate in Ul’Dah?” Jeremy stepped back, his eyes wide in shock. “Not even the Sultana wants to do that! It’s bad enough I owe them money, let’s not start a war with them! I mean it’s five million gil but it’s not impossible, and they haven’t done anything to auntie or I since I’ve been paying the interest on time—”

“I just see my brother in a bind and I can’t just sit here and do nothing. Tell me where they are. I’ll deal with them. And if you don’t tell me, I’ll find out.” In the blink of an eye, Teremy put away his star globe and pulled out a weapon he knew he could count on: his gunblade.

Jeremy stood frozen in his same shocked position. As much as he wanted to talk Teremy out of it, he knew there was no point arguing with his big brother when Teremy had his battle face on. Sighing, Jeremy stood straight and hung his head. “All right. All right. I know that face. The face that says ‘I’m doing this and no one is stopping me.’

“You know me like I know you. Tell me what happened.”

“I basically found people in Ul’Dah who were good at ‘finding’ people. So we started talking and I said I was looking for you, and essentially I asked them to put a bounty on your head. Of course I told them that I wanted you alive and unharmed! But I figured having a fleet of bounty hunters helping out would make things a bit faster.”

Teremy propped his gunblade on his back and looked down, holding a hand to his chin. ‘How did they not find me before? My Grand Company is even in Ul’dah. Invisibility really is a hidden privilege.’ He looked at Jeremy. “Finding your purpose can wait. We’ll deal with this first. I have a plan. It’s a reckless one, but here’s what we’ll do.”

The spread remained untouched on the table as Teremy deliberated his plan.

The fifth column of secret destiny: Four of Pentacles. Justice. Seven of Pentacles. Your days of scraping for money will be brought to justice and you’ll be rewarded for your investment—Justice being your selfsame brother.

The sixth column of immediate future: Page of Pentacles. The World. Page of Wands. Your goal will be brought to completion by enthusiastic rogue energy. Your brother’s plan is reckless but will give you that push you need to put an end to all this.

The seventh column of the far future about to come: Five of Cups. Five of Swords. Nine of Pentacles. Your stagnation and regret in life due to your involvement with the syndicate, you will soon gain your freedom and prosper.

#ffxiv #ffxivwrite #ffxivwrite2020

2 notes · View notes

lokis-daughter-fic · 5 years ago

Text

Loki’s Daughter Chapter 1: Saved

Originally written for imagine-loki, link to imagine below.

Imagine Avengers: Endgame AU Loki that gets away with tesseract has been using it to explore the universe. During his adventures, he comes across a little girl with developing but oppressed magical abilities. Intrigued (and subconsciously lonely) Loki keeps her around.

In his efforts to learn more about the tesseract and keep it away from prying hands, Loki keeps in constant movement; never staying in one place for too long. So, they travel to new worlds far beyond the Nine Realms. The young girl is in awe at the beauty of the universe and thrives with Loki. Through a series of events, the two grow closer and Loki begins to feel what he would assume is affection for the little girl.

TITLE: Loki’s Daughter CHAPTER/ONE SHOT:

Chapter One: Saved AUTHOR: traveling-classicist ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Avengers: Endgame AU Loki that gets away with tesseract has been using it to explore the universe. During his adventures, he comes across a little girl with developing but oppressed magical abilities. Intrigued (and subconsciously lonely) Loki keeps her around.