#anya moonsbane

[nightlynightwing]

lady and the tramp & sleeping beauty + fjord >:3c

lady and the tramp - how have you and your f/o changed over the course of your relationship?

Anya and Fjord have definitely gotten more affectionate with each other; their relationship honestly started out with a lot of denial. neither of them saw themselves as the falling in love type, so at first they were like “nah we just happen to be inexplicably attracted to each other, and also occasionally sleep together, it’s definitely casual”

after they accepted their feelings, they still are pretty nonchalant about their relationship and dont act much different from before they were together, just now they arent scared to be outwardly affectionate and also are much more blatant about staring at each others asses.

sleeping beauty - any hurdles you have had to go through during your relationship?

a couple; first off that whole not accepting their in love thing. another was Anya’s anxiety about her lycanthropy. just before they officially got together, Anya and Fjord actually had a falling out about it, because Anya was constantly being stand-offish towards the rest of the group. i’m actually writing a fic about this bit, but its currently 8031 words and nowhere close to being finished, so lets see how that turns out. :’)

[nightlynightwing]

sometimes when you have a feature that youre insecure about, you project it onto your self insert and believe your f/o would think it’s cute ;;

[nightlynightwing]

get to know fj.ord/anya in 5 minutes!

link to original: https://twitter.com/VenaCoeurva/status/1156658347711565825

[nightlynightwing]

a night of rest

word count: 1,772 ship: f.jord/anya notes: this takes place at the end of this past week’s episode. it’s technically a two-parter, but the second half is… a bit more spicy. we’ll see if people want it lmao. also, there’s a scene mentioned thats based on this drawing that i plan on also writing out eventually. also, this is Mostly Canon, but it might change later into the campaign, so (shrugs)

Beau and Jester were having their conversation in the stairway as they made their way to their room. Their voices, though they spoke in “whispers”, were loud enough to carry all the way down to the main floor. Anya could hear Caduceus’s basey voice reply, followed by Caleb calling up the stairs, also in response. The girls expressed their annoyance, and everyone in the Nein couldn’t help but laugh.

Anya stood up from her chair, smoothing out her cloak. She took in the sight around her, watching as Caleb pulled out a small flask, and Anya could already guess what was going to go down. She made her way to the stairs that would lead to her room on the XorHouse’s second floor. “Ah, you headin’ up?” 

Anya almost bumped into Caduceus as he made his way back to answer a summons from Caleb. He gave her a smile, one of those he would give that made Anya feel safe.

“Yeah, I probably should,” she nodded in thanks as Caduceus sidestepped to let her up into the stairs. “G’night, Fairy Floss.”

Caduceus returned her sentiment as she ascended, her aching body crying out for the sweet embrace of her mattress. Though, at this point, she honestly couldn’t tell if the pain she felt was physical, or if the emotional stress from everything that had happened was taking some sort of external toll on her body. Probably both.

She had just reached her door and was pushing it open when she heard the sound of footsteps from around the corner; Fjord almost bumped into her as he turned to head down the hall towards his own room.

“Ah,” Fjord stopped himself, taking a step back. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Anya responded, her voice soft. 

Images, memories of moments spent with Fjord suddenly flashed in her mind; times she had been alone with Fjord, and the feelings that had erupted in her chest when she thought she might lose him in the fight against the Laughing King; feelings that he had seen on her face, and heard in her voice. Stronger than that is the memory of the warmth that flooded her whole body as she sat beside Fjord, separated from their group, barely illuminated by the light of the fire, and their faces mere inches from each other. 

They stared at one another for several seconds, the time stretching between them, awkwardness thickening the air.

“We… We should talk,” Fjord managed to say.

Anya gave an embarrassed laugh. “Yeah… yeah. Come on in.”

Anya pushed her way into her room, lingering with her hand on the door as Fjord slipped inside as well. Closing the door behind him, Anya shuffled around the room quickly, using the small shafts of moonlight shimmering through her curtained windows to guide her to the candles scattered around her room. 

When she had finished lighting a few, their warm, dim glow revealed Fjord standing in the middle of Anya’s room, awkwardly glancing around. 

Clearing her throat, Anya pulled a chair away from her desk, gesturing Fjord to sit. As he complied, Anya went to sit on her bed.

For a moment, silence hung in the air like a fog, and Anya just looked Fjord’s face over as he studied her in return. The flickering illumination of the few candles she lit made his features more intense…

“So…” Fjord said.

“So.” Anya’s spoke softly, and she had to clear her throat to rid herself of a weird catch in her voice. Now that they were here, she had no clue what to say, so she just said the first words that came into her mind, “Are you okay?”

This must have taken Fjord by surprise, because it took him a moment to answer.

“I… guess I’m alright. Alright as I can be, anyhow,” he responded. “What about you?”

“Just the same, I suppose…” Anya muttered, absentmindedly rubbing at a bruise on her ribs.

“Well… what happened?” Fjord asked, his tone hesitant. “I know things’ve been… different between us for a while now, but I ain’t ever seen you act like that,”

Anya felt her stomach clench as she remembered how she had screamed her throat raw in the battle against the Laughing King, calling Fjord’s name as she desperately tried to figure out a way to save him; how hard and uncontrollably her tears had fallen as she had shakingly tried to use the last of her arcane energy to heal Fjord as much as she could, because she couldn’t help but think of herself mourning over his beaten, lifeless body.

“I… I don’t know,” she replied. “I don’t think I’d ever felt that way before.” She looked down at her hands, thinking back to how hard they were shaking; she elected to blame these memories for their slight tremors now. 

“How did you feel?” Fjord’s voice was low.

Anya swallowed nervously, and it took her a moment to find the words to respond with. 

“Like… if I lost you, I wouldn’t know what I’d do with myself.”

Her words lingered in the air, sinking into Anya’s own mind, and she could feel her face beginning to flush.

“You said things have been different for a while,” Anya said quickly. “What do you mean by that?”

It was Fjord’s turn to search for words. Anya could almost see his brain working to put his thoughts together, his hand in his chin, fingers covering his mouth that she could see was slanted in a frown. His eyebrows furrowed, leaving creases in his forehead. 

“I’m sure you remember that night we were alone in the woods,” he began. Anya nodded. “It’d been growin’, that feeling that things were… weird. That somethin’ was changing. And that night really brought it to a head…” 

Anya couldn’t tell if the dancing shadows of the candlelight were just playing tricks on her eyes, or if Fjord’s cheeks seemed darker in the way only a blushing orc’s face could be.  

“Those feelings…” Fjord had been looking off to the side, but when Anya spoke, he turned back to her. “Those feelings from that night, I’ve felt them before. But… they’re feelings I’ve been used to only feeling for a night, with someone who understood they wouldn’t be there the next morning…” Anya face was really burning now, and a strange lump had formed in her throat, pounding in rhythm with her racing heart. 

She forced herself to look up, to look Fjord in the eye, who was looking at her with an intensity she knew wasn’t just a trick of the light.

“This is the first time those feelings have lasted so long.”

Maybe Fjord could feel it too, the dizziness that had suddenly swept the room, the weird electricity that raced all along the top of Anya’s skin, and that’s what made him stand, made him cross the room to meet Anya, and maybe it’s what made Anya stand up from the bed to meet him, as well. 

Anya had no clue how long they stood there, eyes locked as if in a trance, just inches from each other. She felt as though someone else had decided to move her hands as they reached up to grasp at the front of Fjord’s shirt, tugging to move his face down close to hers. They’d been this close before, tantalizing and magnetic, always interrupted by confusion or the voices of others. No voices came this time, and the confusion that still lingered wasn’t enough to break the force pulling them together.

Fjord was the one to close the inch of difference, and Anya felt her stomach jolt when Fjord’s lips met hers. 

The kiss was soft, slight, tentative and curious. Their skin barely touched, and they let themselves stay like that for just a moment, drinking in all these new feelings. It was Anya who pushed, let the embrace deepen enough that she could feel Fjord’s newly sprouting tusks underneath his bottom lip. Fjord’s hands were on her waist, and the pressure of his touch felt warm and strangely heavy. 

This wasn’t their first kiss, but it was so, so different. Before, everything had been so strange, new, and a little daunting. Now, everything seemed to fit into place; one of Anya’s hands had curled up and around Fjord’s neck, cradling his nape and pulling him closer to her; Fjord’s arm moved to wrap around Anya’s body, curving her body into his so that their stomachs pressed together, his other hand gripping at her waist more tightly.

Lips parted, breath quickened, the room was thick with this strange energy holding them together, and Anya could feel her heartbeat echoing through every inch of her body. It wasn’t until her lungs were screaming that she finally forced herself to break away.

Her breath came in hot puffs, stirring the stray strands of ruffled hair. When she pulled back, Fjord’s tongue was left lolling out slightly, a small string of saliva connecting it to Anya’s lips that quickly broke as Anya moved away. Fjord removed his hand from Anya’s waist, using a thumb to swipe the stray strand of spittle away.

There was another stretch of silence until Fjord moved his hand, gently swiping Anya’s hair from her face, tucking it behind one ear and letting his hand drift to tangle with her short, choppy hair.

Lightly pressing his forehead to Anya’s, Fjord whispered,

“Will these feelings still be here tomorrow morning…?”

Anya let his words settle, let herself really feel everything she was feeling in that moment; what she had said before was true, the emotions rocketing through every nerve were ones she had felt before. But these were different, just like everything that had happened with her lately. These felt so much deeper, so much more frightening… and so much more exhilarating. 

“I think so…” she breathed back to him, putting her face close enough that her lips faintly brushed against his as she spoke. She raised her hand to touch it gently to his cheek, and a spark of something flashed in her eyes as her mouth tilted into a crooked smile. “You could always stick around and find out…”

Anya was expecting Fjord to laugh, to end their encounter here with notions of it not being the right time, or too soon. And she was perfectly fine with that; her suggestion wasn’t entirely serious, just her throwing out her usual playful musings. Her remark of “just kidding” and the beginnings of a laugh were just gathering on her tongue when Fjord tilted his head a bit his mouth curling in consideration.

“Y’know… I think I just might.”

[nightlynightwing]

2, 3, 5, 7, 8 and 11 for your Critical Role s/i? - limey

@limey-blue-arty-do !!

How similar is your s/i to you? Are they a carbon copy, completely different or a mix of the two?

its a mix! she has a lot of my personality, but i tend to make my ocs a bit more of a romanticized version of myself, the kind of person who i'd like to be.

Does your s/i have a full backstory yet? Or is it still in the works? If it's done can we see it?

she does! you can find it here! shes the second one down

Do you speak about your s/i in first or third person?

third person, usually. im not exactly sure why, it just doesnt feel right referring to her, or any of my ocs, as me.

Give us 3 random facts abt your s/i!

1. because she left before getting really serious with her training, she can have a hard time controlling her lycanthropy curse, especially during full moons.

2. in the same vein, because she has the lycan traits, she tends to crave meat.

3. after seeing her friends get seriously injured and die, she took it upon herself to learn the spell Revivify. it felt silly since they have two clerics in their party, but she just feels better having it just in case.

Does you s/i have one outfit they're always seen in or multiple?

she has one main outfit she wears the most, and then a couple costumes for performances that she carries with her. shes gotten some more clothes since the Nein were given their house in Xhorhas, but she doesnt carry them with her.

[nightlynightwing]

aaaand finished! i finished this last night but didn’t want to post it at 5am lmao. the critical role cast has playlists for each of their characters, including explanations for each song’s significance to the character, so i thought i’d make one too, just for fun!

i planned to do this for a while and have been considering songs for a bit, and i had decided to put How Far I’ll Go on Anya’s before i saw that Travis put it on Fjord’s, too;;

it’s also a little longer than the cast’s playlists because i dont play by your daddy’s rules.

anyways, explanations under the cut!!

How Far I’ll Go - Auli’i Cravalho

Anya takes great pride in her role as future leader of her Clan… but there’s something that tugs at her spirit as she looks off her tiny island into the endless expanse of the ocean, and it’s becoming harder and harder to ignore.

Pulled - Krysta Rodriguez, Adam Riegler

How did she get here? How did she find Anya? This strange woman, telling her she has the choice for a different path… a different destiny. Anya knows she shouldn’t listen… but she can’t help it. She’s being pulled in a new direction… and she thinks she likes it.

I Am My Own Invention - Darren Ritchie, Janet Dacal

Help me so I can remember… Dreams to share, with dreams to spare, imagining a dreamer just like you. Anya’s training to become the next life of a centuries-old bard begins. Her teacher will lead her into becoming her own invention.

Let it Go - Idina Menzel

Anya’s old life tugs at her from behind, the thought of her abandoning her family weighing heavily on her heart. But she realizes… she’s free. The family that worked to make her something she just couldn’t be can’t control her anymore. It’s time to let it go.

You Are the Moon - The Hush Sound

The beast Anya was taught to be in something she fears. She can’t help but hate that part of her, can’t help but think it’s hideous. Her teacher tells her not to think this way, to embrace that part of her, and recognize its beauty. 

Magic - Mystery Skulls (feat. Nile Rodgers and Brandy)

Then comes the magic. The soft words, the movements, the music, all coming together to weave into a beautiful arcane production. From her first spell cast, Anya’s heart raced, exhilarated and a bit frightened. She wondered if this is what it feels like to fall in love… can you fall in love with magic?

Centuries - Fall Out Boy

The blood moon arrives, the ritual is performed, and the title of the Blood Moon Bard is finally resting on Anya’s shoulders. The weight of a hundred different lifetimes suddenly shifts onto her, but she holds her head up with confidence. She was the next step in a legend, and she would be remembered for centuries.

Why Worry - Set It Off

One thing her teacher taught her is when worry’s never helpin’, why worry at all? Anya was so used to feeling trapped, of being such a worrisome person, but now, there’s no point in crossing bridges that don’t exist. Let’s take these issues step by step by step to work it out, day by day by day we’re fallin’ down… but life goes on.

Kill the Lights - Set It Off

Even though she’s beyond happy with her new role, Anya still can’t help but feel, deep down, maybe she was wrong to leave her home without a word. There are times where she feels like she needs to kill the lights in her little performance…

Geronimo - Sheppard

Falling in with a new crowd can be quite the leap; this strange group of vagabonds she stumbled upon really seem interesting, and after fighting by their side, and how easy they fall in step, maybe this plunge is one that could be good for her…

Out Tonight - Rosario Dawson

Even throughout her travels as the Blood Moon Bard, Anya never had many close friends; now that she’s found friendship in the members of the Mighty Nein, it’s time to paint the town red with those that make her smile. Let’s go! Oooooouuuut tonight!

True Colors - Phil Collins

Finding they’re more than good company, Anya is surprised to find herself considering this group of misfits she’s buddied up with more like… family. Growing closer with loss, it’s easy to see everyone’s true colors, and she’s sure they can paint a beautiful picture.

Duality - Set It Off

Though the words of her teacher to embrace her more volatile side echo in her mind, with this new ground of friends, now she’s even more fearful of what might happen should she lose control… Perhaps it’s better to build a few walls, and push away.

In His Eyes - Carolee Carmello, Linda Eder

The sound of the wind in the leaves; the warmth of the fire, embers dancing into the inky sky above; the feeling of his breath on her lips… she’s not used to this. What happened to her walls? This isn’t good… but she can’t stop.

Dirty Little Secret - All American Rejects

She doesn’t know what happened. These feelings won’t go away, and she’s so scared. That night on the tails of the pain of losing someone, the fear of losing someone else, especially him… no one needs to know. It can be their secret…

Scream - Zac Efron

The voices tell her it’s so easy to just leave, to turn off the whole thing and pretend nothing ever happened, to distance herself… it’s for the best. They echo in her mind, bombarding her with talks of knowing what’s best… she just wants to scream.

Can’t Help Falling In Love with You - Diego Luna

Short… simple… sweet… acceptance. A flood of warmth. This feels right.

Wolf Bite - Owl City

They come back for her… of course they did. But she’s okay with it. She has people beside her who will support her, and she has things to make up for. She’ll bring her found family to help her reconcile with her blood family, and all will be right.

Shelter - Porter Robinson, Madeon

A parent just wants to protect their child… Mama, this one’s for you. Sorry for leaving in the dead of night with no explanation… and stealing the family sword.

[nightlynightwing]

i know their every look his eyes!

they’re like an open book his eyes!

but most of all the look that hypnotized me!

-

-

OOPS ACCIDENTALLY DELETED THIS;;;;;

[nightlynightwing]

-slides over- 1, 5, 7 and 13 for you and Fjord? - limey

@limey-blue-arty-do

1. When is your f/o the most gentle with you?

at night before/while they’re out on a potentially dangerous mission.

5. How does your f/o kiss?

very hesitantly, but then with a lot of passion once he gets into it

（＊ノ∀｀＊）ノ

7. What’s your f/o’s style of affection? (Soft, reserved, nonstop, etc.)

very soft, reserved at first, but once they’re “officially” together, he starts being a bit more relaxed about it.

13. How much time do you or your f/o devote to relaxing/cuddling?

any downtime they get together is spent relaxing together, whether its just napping together or talking. Anya’s not really much of a cuddler, but she likes to let Fjord lay his head in her lap and stroke his hair while she sings softly to him.

[nightlynightwing]

2, 4, 6 and 8 for any f/os? 😁

i’ll do them for fjord, since he’s at the forefront of my affections at the moment!

(reminder than im one of those people who refers to their self insert ocs in third person lmao)

2. Does your f/o have trouble expressing love to you?

just a bit, i think. Anya is much more used to being outwardly affectionate even towards friends, so comparatively Fjord is a bit more conservative with how much he expresses himself.

4. How much do you say you love your f/o? How much do they say they love you?

Anya tells Fjord very frequently that she loves him, especially when they’re out in the field. Fjord doesn’t say it quite as often, but he’s very emotional about it when they’re in private.

6. At what point did you and your f/o start getting affectionate with each other?

Anya was always very physically affectionate, even before she realized she had feelings for Fjord. Fjord really didn’t start returning it until after they first spent the night together, and wasn’t open about it publicly until a good couple of weeks after that.

8. What’s your favorite thing your f/o does to you?

Anya just loves when he listens to her stories and songs, and when he comes up with stories for her.

[nightlynightwing]

*A letter with ‘Anya’ written on it appears in your inbox!* Dear Anya, it feels like ages since we last got any time to ourselves. Your company is very appreciated in these times. Anyway, I am simply writing this note as a chance to ask you about something. I figured that, during our last talk you sang a little and very well, you could maybe give me a few singing pointers? You have a beautiful voice and it would be honor to learn from someone such as yourself. -Fjord

[nightlynightwing]

i needed this for a thing, heres my critical role oc

bonus:

[nightlynightwing]

old art, but here we go, an introduction post for my critical role self insert!

-

Name: Anya Moonsbane Fandom: Critical Role Alias(es): The Blood Moon Bard Age: Mid to late 20s Birthday: 27th of Dualahei Height: 5′4″ Residence: N/A Occupation: traveling bard, member of the Mighty Nein

Relations:

Ruven Moonsbane - father Azalea Moonsbane - mother Unnamed - brother Fjord - love interest Yasha - love interest Mighty Nein - companions Atem Vandiir - mentor

Extra:

✦ she took her training with her Blood Hunter clan very seriously. she’s proud of her family and her heritage, but she knew their way of life wasn’t for her. she still feels extremely guilty for leaving.

✦ she talks about her supposed immortality as the Blood Moon Bard so straight-faced, even skeptical people can’t help but wonder...

✦ she can play a total of 6 different types of instruments (flute, dulcimer, flute, pan flute, lyre, piano). she spent a lot of time of her bard training learning to sing properly.

D&D Character Sheet Information:

College of Lore Bard Lv. 6 / Order of the Lycan Blood Hunter Lv. 3

STR 10 (+0) / DEX 18 (+4) / CON 16 (+3) / INT 9 (-1) / WIS 12 (+1) / CHA 20 (+5)

Proficiency Bonus: +4 Walking Speed 30 ft Initiative: +6 Armor Class: 15

Skills:

☆ - Expertise / ✧ - Proficient / ● - Half Proficient

✧Acrobatics +8 / ●Animal Handling +3 / ✧Arcana +3 / ●Athletics +2 ✧Deception +9 / ✧History +3 / ✧Insight +5 / ✧Intimidation +9 ✧Investigation +3 / ●Medicine +3 / ●Nature +1 / ✧Perception +5 ☆Performance +13 / ☆Persuasion +13 / ●Religion +1 / ●Sleight of Hand +6 ●Stealth +6 / ●Survival +3

Proficiencies and Languages:

Armor: Light Armor, Medium Armor, Shields Weapons: Martial Weapons, Simple Weapons Tools: Alchemist's Supplies, Disguise Kit, Lute, Lyre, Pan Flute, Viol Languages: Common, Elvish, Sylvan

Abilities:

(I don’t want to make this any longer than it needs to be, so feel free to google these things, you should find info you need)

Countercharm, Hybrid Transformation, Unarmed Strike, Bardic Inspiration, Blood Curse of Mutual Suffering, Crimson Rite, Cutting Words, Blood Maledict

Spells:

Cantrips: Message, Thunderclap, Vicious Mockery Level 1: Cure Wounds, Earth Tremor, Longstrider (4 Spell Slots) Level 2: Calm Emotions, Invisibility, Shatter (3 Spell Slots) Level 3: Fear, Fireball, Glyph of Warding, Nondetection, Revivify (3 Spell Slots)

Important Equipment:

plain dagger, the Moon Song (family longsword) (tentative name), leather armor, flute, dulcimer, lute, lyre, pan flute, costume, disguise kit, tinderbox

[nightlynightwing]

-runs in- plz can we get dancing and/or stuck in the rain prompts for you/Fjord? - limey-blue-arty-do

sorry for any blatant mistakes in this, i’m posting it without reading it over.

-

A flash of lightning sliced through the sky, illuminating things for just a moment in the darkness of the sudden storm. A heartbeat later, a roar of thunder harmonized with the angry waves crashing against the rocks of the clifface, sending spouts of salty sea spray up to the two figures slowly inching their way along a narrow path protruding from the crag.

A harsh gust of wind slammed against them, and Anya dug her nails as hard she could into the ungiving surface of the rock face, bracing herself against the gale. When it let up just so, she glanced back to where they had come from. The thick sheets of rain made it impossible to see pat a few yards; the beach they’d been exploring just before was nowhere in sight.

Another sound caught her attention, and she turned to look the other way. A few feet ahead of her, Fjord was calling to her, gesturing with one hand to something ahead of him. Trying to blink away the raindrops clinging to her eyelashes, Anya could just make out the mouth of a cave just a ways in front of them.

After a few minutes of hesitant walking along the thin ridge, during which Anya’s foot slipped on the slick rock and she just managed to right herself, the two finally ducked into the cave, their heavy breathing drowned out by the pounding of rain outside.

“Do storms come out of nowhere like this a lot in the Menagerie Coast?” Anya huffed as they made their way towards the back of the cave, trying to distance themselves as much as possible from the din of the rain.

“Yeah, happens pretty often,” Fjord responded, running a hand through his sopping hair to get some stray strands out of his face.

“And is it considered a good idea to run off to a clifface when it happens?” Anya’s question was accented by her shaking her head like a dog, sending flecks of water every which way from her soaked hair.

“Ah… no, no it’s not,” Fjord said in a sheepish tone. “Wasn’t really thinkin’ there. Doesn’t help that we got separated from the others.”

Anya just sighed, unclipping her cape and pulling it off. “Well, I guess you can call me the fool for following you,” she said, pulling her bag from off her shoulder and kneeling down to shift through it. “I’ve got a tinderbox here, let’s see if we can’t get a fire started. Just a small one should get us warmed up and last us through the storm. Hopefully it’ll let up soon and we can go and find the crew.”

After a while of rummaging around, Fjord managed to find a few rocks to arrange into a firepit. It took a few tries, but Anya managed to get a spark big enough to light the tinder from her kit, as well as a few other things the two had managed to find on their person and sacrifice to keep it going.

Anya leaned back away from the flames, relaxing as the warmth spread over her skin that stung from the harshness of the downpour.

She had reached over to inspect her instruments she had been carrying for any damage, when a hiss from Fjord on the other side of the fire caught her attention. Glancing over, she saw him cradling his left hand in the other, gently putting pressure on a couple of his fingers.

“Are you okay?” Anya said, pulling herself around to sit closer to him. He looked up to her, pulling his hand around to his other side, like he was trying to hide it.

“Oh, it’s nothin’, don’t worry about it,” he said, not meeting her eyes.

“Let me see it,”

“Nah, really, it’s fine-”

“Fjord.” At Anya’s stern tone, Fjord heaved a sigh as he pulled his hand back around to show her.

Small beads of blood had gathered on the tips of his pointer and middle fingers, the nails ripped and ragged, pulled away from their beds. Anya couldn’t help but wince empathetically.

“A gust of wind caught me off guard,” Fjord said, using his thumb to press at the wound a bit. “I grabbed at the cliff and ripped ‘em up.”

“Here,” Anya reached out, taking Fjord’s hand in her own and tugging it towards her. Fjord resisted for a moment, but a look was enough to make him drop the opposition.

Taking just another moment to look at the wounds a little more closely, Anya began softly speaking an incantation, motioning her free hand in a small pattern, then lightly touching the injury. They both watched as a shimmer of arcane energy traced over Fjord’s fingers, closing the open cuts.

Fjord pulled his hand back as Anya released it, examining the healed areas.

“Thanks.” he said, closing his hand and rubbing at his fingers with this thumb. “You didn’t have to do that,”

“Hey, broken nails suck,” Anya replied simply, sitting back and pulling her lute over to her, plucking at the strings and sending notes reverberating around them.

“Well, I appreciate it,” Anya looked back up to him, and a strange feeling curled in her stomach at the smile he gave her.

It was then she saw him glance just to her left, a look of surprise crossing his face.

Glancing over, she saw the firelight dance over her skin, illuminating the scar that encircled her entire shoulder. She realized that up until now, Fjord hadn’t seen her without her cape on, and her shoulder-baring top left her normally hidden scars along her shoulders and upper chest exposed. She resisted her urge to over them with her hand.

“Heh…” Anya let out a little huff of laughter, running a finger along the scar and pausing on one of the indents of a tooth. “Another story for another time, I’d say,”

“Fair enough,” Fjord said with shrug.

A good bit of time passed, Fjord looking out the mouth of the cave to watch the rain. Every now and then, a bright flash would light up the churning sea outside, a deep rumble of thundering following a heartbeat later. Now and then, he would turn to stoke the fire, then return to watching the storm.

Anya continued to fiddle with her instruments as she leaned against the cave wall. She caught Fjord’s attention when she started plucking a song out on her lute, mumbling unintelligible lyrics along with it.

“Got a request?” Anya asked when she saw him watching.

“No, I just admire people who can play more than one instrument,” he said, looking over to the other instruments that leaned against her bag near the back wall of the cave. Anya felt that weird feeling stir inside her again, and she blamed the fire for the sudden warmth flooding her face.

“Well, I’ve had hundreds of years to practice,” she responded.

“Right, yeah, so the stories say,” Fjord leaned forward, an eyebrow raised inquisitively. “The immortal Blood Moon Bard. You don’t look a day over three hundred, though.”

“Har har,” Anya gave a facetious laugh. She smiled at the chuckle that rang deep in in Fjord’s chest.

“What about you? Any hidden musical talents?” Anya asked.

“Can’t say I do,” Fjord said rolling his neck to relieve building stiffness. “Closest I’ve come is gettin’ roped into dancin’ at festivals a couple times,”

“I can see you being a dance-y guy,” Anya mused.

“If you can call stumblin’ around dancing, sure,”

Anya was quiet for a moment, then heaved herself to her feet, dusting off her pants and tuning her lute.

“What’re you doing?” Fjord asked as he watched her.

When Anya had her lute tuned to where she wanted it, she held her hand out to him. “Here, get up,”

Fjord eyed her hand suspiciously. “Why?”

“Just come on,” Anya bent down, taking Fjord’s hand and tugging at his arm.

With a groan, Fjord pushed himself up from the floor. Anya took a few steps back to stand in the more open part of the cave, a bit away from the fire. Shadows flickered over her face, the warm orange glow of the fire causing her dual-colored eyes to flash curiously.

“Dance with me,” she said.

Fjord seemed a bit startled at the suggestion, and Anya could see on his face that he was heavily considering rejecting her request.

“It’ll be fun, I swear,” she said quickly. “Besides, what else is there to do?”

Fjord hesitated for another moment before he let out an exasperated breath. “Fine.”

Smiling, Anya positioned him, taking a spot beside him and holding her lute at the ready.

“Just follow my lead,” she said. Fjord looked nervous, but nodded.

Anya strummed out an energetic rhythm, keeping it a bit slow at first as she took the first few steps, Fjord awkwardly following along. She kept the pace steady, softly singing under her breath as they went from move to move.

She watched Fjord keep his eyes on his feet with a furrowed brow, his movement clunky at first, then getting a bit more smooth over time. As the look on his face became a bit more confident, Anya upped the speed of the song to its normal pace. To her surprise, Fjord adjusted easily, keeping in step with her. His expression brightened just a little, and he took his gaze from the ground, grinning at Anya.

The din of the storm outside had become stifled in the energy of their dance, their focus on each other as they moved, subconsciously synchronized. Anya wasn’t really sure when she had let her lute slip from her grasp to hang by its strap off her back, but they had brought their hands into the dance, hovering their hands inches apart as they moved in circles around each other. A strange force kept their eyes locked, the world melting around them as their focus was on the silent music around them and each other.

With a sense of finality, the two of them stomped to a stop. They stood beside one another, the front of their bodies faced towards each other, their sides brushing, each with one with an arm wrapped around the others waist. Their chests heaved as their breath slowly returned to them, expended from all their movement.

They didn’t look away from the other’s face for a moment, still lost in this trance they’d found themselves in. Fjord was the first to blink out of it, clearing his throat and taking his hand from Anya’s waist. This snapped Anya out of it, and she took a step away from him, blaming her flushed face on the exertion from dancing.

“What did I say?” Anya panted, pulling a bit of hair that was stuck to her sweating face and tucking it behind her ear. “You seem like a pretty good dancer.”

Fjord didn’t answer for a second, still looking a bit flustered. He took a deep breath, as if to center himself, then gave Anya a small smile.

“Nah, nothin’ compared to you, really,”

Anya was trying to think of a reply when something caught her attention. She glanced towards the mouth of the cave, her gaze lingering on the now dying fire for a second before moving to look outside.

Though it looked like thick clouds still hung in the sky, the rain seemed to have subsided. The bit of visible ocean was calmer than before, and every now and then, a speck of sunlight could be seen trying to peek through the layer of clouds.

Fjord followed her gaze, crossing to stick his head out and look around.

“Looks like it’s cleared up for the time bein’,” he said, walking back to grab his things. “We should be able to make it back to the beach,”

Anya grabbed her own things, swinging her now mostly-dry cape back around her shoulders. After she made sure the fire was completely out, she made to follow Fjord from the cave.

“Careful, it’ll be slick,” he said as he took a few tentative steps along the narrow path leading back to the shore.

Anya waited a moment to let him get ahead. Just before she took the first step to follow him, she glanced back into the shadows of the cave.

She gave a slight smile, moving to start making her way across the clifface, humming softly to herself.

[nightlynightwing]

anya kinda looks like garbage bc i gave up on her face but fjord looks cute so its ok

ft anya in the midst of a rare transformation

[nightlynightwing]

hey??? fjord stumbling across anya on the deck of the ship late at night while she sings softly out to the stars, maybe dancing in the moonlight

late night talks watching the pitch black waves below, just bonding

i love cliche romantic pre-romantic relationship scenes let me live!!!!!!!!!

[nightlynightwing]

i mentioned i made my critical role self insert a character sheet on D&D beyond, and i wanted to show it off

i only made this so i could have a reference for her spells and abilities when i write fanfic lmao.