#ardentdawning

[lupicalled]

❝ R A Z O R. ❞ An announcing of the name slow as quill traced the letters in phonic order. Following back before looking over the boy's held charcoal pencils, figuring his bluntness would fracture a slender feathered pen.

❝ Now go on & repeated what you saw. Draw it down on the blank sheet. ❞ Sitting up beside the wolfborne to permit him an attempt.

             THE PENCIL FEELS TOO SMALL FOR HIS HANDS. charcoal smells different than ink but both seem unnatural. it feels out of place, holding such a thing in his wild hands, but he promised that he would try and razor is not a liar. he wants to be able to read and write letters to bennett and lisa and diluc. but lisa tends to baby him a lot. diluc doesn't. he's firm but slow when razor needs it, and more often than not, lupus minor’s needs were met without talking. which he likes, razor isn't very good at talking.

             he watches, intent as always with the swordmaster, as diluc carefully spells out his name, writing each letter and pointing to it as he does. it's...familiar. lisa has shown him before. but her handwriting was...fancy and loopy and connected. diluc's is large, bold, and easy to read.

             razor says nothing when it's his turn, instead, grabs his own blank sheet of paper and holds his hand to it. for a moment, nothing happens, just holding charcoal as it hovers above the paper...but eventually, he presses down, and begins to write out a crude, but recognizable 'r.'

             diluc doesn't comment on it, which gives him more confidence to keep going. 'a' is fine, it's easy, but the z trips him up. he writes it backwards. but when he's done anyone who could read would be able to tell what he was trying to write. fingers set charcoal down on the table so he can grab the paper, and present it to diluc like a toddler showing off macaroni art.

             "i do it?" // @ardentdawn

[spinaea-archived]

It's a wordless appreciation whilst the pair sat among the ley line leading to the alabaster bark. A tree that aged them both, him moreover as amber pools gazed upon the closest representation of the felled nation apart from his own brother & herself. It brought his gaze to the snaking patterns along her flesh; moon silver winding vines bracketed with thorns snuck between where her clothing didn't conceal.

The followed sensation was of inquisitive fingers tracing the pattern against fair skin of the vampire. Following it along the arm, shoulder to nape as it perused locks of hair before halting again.

❝ Hm. ❞ unprompted.   /   always accepting.

rosaria knew what she was doing when she’d invited him there, how much abyss energy seeped through the tree & its immediate surroundings.  it was the only way she could think of to show him something she hadn’t shared with any mortal outside of khaenri’ah.  he’d seen her skin glisten before from the sun & moon, but this was entirely different & something far more meaningful for the abyssal;  it mattered enough for her to wear something different to make it easier for diluc to see the twisting vines & thorns that were normally invisible to him.

it’s impossible for the intricate marks adorning her form to remain hidden near such energy, glowing brightly as they shifted from silver to cerulean & back again.  rosaria let him look closely as darknight traced them with his fingertips, watching as they trailed higher before shifting her gaze to his face.

‘   i was born with these  ---  we all were.  we could see each other’s when we were near one another, but those born outside of khaenri’ah could not see them unless we’re near strong abyss energy.  ‘   a pause as she brushed long magenta tresses out of the way, turning her face so he could better see the marks that were present there & on her neck.   ‘  they could be in certain places or all over.  scholars theorized that the marks could be signs of foretelling or just be passed down from family, but it wasn’t the same for everyone.  it’s even possible for them to change.  ‘

rosaria moved the collar of her blouse enough for him to see part of the crown of thorns on her chest & how the surrounding area appeared to crack like ice.   ‘  this used to be a rose, one that was in bloom.  around 100 years after i was turned, it changed into this.  ‘   bright hues met his gaze once more, a soft look upon her features that she’d only given him time & time again.   ‘  you’re the first person to ever see them because i trust you, diluc.  you’re unlike anyone else i’ve ever known.  ‘

@ardentdawn​

[jadescreens]

Just casually going to loft the idea of Ningguang & Diluc formally meeting; Wealthiest in Liyue & Richest of Mondstadt in the same room?

they’d be the plastics of teyvat, that’s for sure. diluc can be regina george while ningguang can be gretchen weiners. i can already see the chaos that would ensue should they ever cross paths.

[championglider]

@ardentdawn​ liked this for a Windblume Festival starter!

➼ | "Wow, Diluc! I didn’t know you could play the lyre, too!” Then again, mostly every bard Amber’s met has been seen playing the lyre. And with the Windblume Festival going on in Mondstadt, others (not just bards and musicians) are getting in on the fun as well! “To be honest, I had no idea you were the music playing type. But you’re pretty good at it!~”

[abysslarchived]

         &.   —   @ardentdawn​,   from.

         by me.

         by contrast,   the idea of intoxication would now turn his blood to frigid ice. alcohol was many things ; a release, the slow unlocking of a barrier bereft of societal expectancy, but it was also a gateway   —   said gateway being the unhinged river of kaeya’s free thoughts, the feelings and complicated emotions he shielded behind spires of tempered glass. many in their old units would know that his sharp wit became no less dull under the influence of drink, but more unhinged, less discrepancy when it came to who kaeya would verbally rip to shreds. most of the time, all had been said in good fun, and the younger ragnvindr would be praised for waxing poetic no matter how scathing. but in a bad mood, oh, kaeya became the epitome of brutality. and so, kaeya no longer drank, and standing on the other end of someone’s bottle, he could see why diluc abhorred it so much.

         maybe it made sense why they called it liquid courage, for without it kaeya felt somewhat helpless to the intensity of diluc’s questions, his abject ... disappointment, radiating off his being. or, at least, what felt like it. the frostblade felt as he did when they were still children, stealing pastries from the kitchen, or being scolded for picking fights at school when they were supposed to grow up proper young gentlemen. what a joke, what an absolute riot. here they stood now as two men who had dreamt of swordsmanship and chivalry their entire lives, and now belonged to both the seedy underbelly of society and the gracious face of it. this was the guilt of being caught, but so many times worse. a weight harboured for years and years and yet they still hadn’t made it through the initial impact. would they ever be able to ? ... kaeya just wanted his big brother back.

         a silent swallow, expression solemn, stony to mask the uncertainty beneath it.   “   why do you hate me,   diluc   ?   ”   though the question rang clear, the tonality of it was ... different, made it sound obscure. kaeya without his flair for dramaticism, or the antagonistic lilt he took on whenever he approached diluc with the intent to rile him up. it was asked with sincerity, with an expression that was both resigned and desperate.   “   ...   though i might have kept the truth from you,   but i never lied.   ”   he has a cadence that he uses, a very distinctive tempo which regalled kaeya’s showmanship, his masterful reign on language. although in this instance, he lacked it. there was nothing but the smouldering intensity he hadn’t had all those years ago when he would confess that the fate of a traitor was in his blood. and yet, kaeya’s voice still sounded unsteady, no matter how thoroughly he believed in his convictions. the telltale pinprick behind his eyes, a lump in his throat that made it difficult to speak.

         you are loved by me.

         “   the church has always taught me that i belong to the land of sinners.   ”   they hated his people, khaenri’ahns, those born with the abyss in their blood. for five hundred years, they had been the nation of nightmares, with descendants who could no longer dream. kaeya placed his hand upon his chest, heartfelt, honest with his questions.   “   how was i supposed to tell you i was one of them   ?   ...   i   ...   never got to tell father.   i at least wanted you to know.   ”   when kaeya blinked, steadied his breath, his expression was that of genuine pain.   “   why did finding out make you want to hurt me   ?   ”

         “   ...   i couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen if i told the truth   ...   what if you didn’t love me anymore   ?   ”

         am i right   ?   please tell me i’m not right.

[benevolenceborn]

Unprompted // @ardentdawn​ sent: 

Has Ganyu ever gone to Mondstadt? Does she want to?

Nearly one thousand years ago, Ganyu became acquainted with a songstress named Adelaide Dresden. She hailed from Mondstadt, but regularly traveled throughout Teyvat to put on performances. Chance brought them together enough times for a mutual fondness to blossom between them, and when Adelaide one day retired from her travels to live out the rest of her life in Mondstadt, Ganyu went with her. 

Time would eventually take Adelaide away from her, and it was with a heavy heart that Ganyu finally returned to Liyue Harbor. She has not been to Mondstadt since then... And, her work keeps her from straying too far from Liyue, anyway. Occasionally she does business with merchants and dignitaries that have traveled from Mondstadt, but that’s the extent of her involvement nowadays. 

[regivaem]

mistletoe. under the mistletoe.   /   selectively accepting.

she should have expected there to be mistletoe somewhere in the winery during the holidays, yet the one place she hadn’t considered was the library.  rosaria hadn’t noticed it at first, not until she’d turned around to face diluc when she sensed him approaching where she was.  warmth filled violet gaze when she saw him, a smile pulling at dark lips when she met him halfway but noticed something hanging above the two of them.  was that mistletoe?  just when did he manage to put that there?

bright eyes shifted from the decoration to him as her arms slipped around his neck, gaze searching his as a soft chuckle escaped her.  ‘  if you wanted more kisses you could have just said something, though the mistletoe is a nice touch.  ‘   she closed the distance with a gentle kiss, lips lingering for just a moment before pulling back & meeting his stare.

‘  here i thought i was the sneaky one out of the two of us, ‘   she teased with fanged grin, reaching to fix a stray strand of his hair.   ‘  now that i know it’s here, you should already know i’m going to get as much use out of it as i can but i don’t see you complaining since you put it there in the first place.  ‘

@ardentdawn

[thornyvamp]

At first, he was fuck the abyss.

As of lately, he is fuck the abyss.

you heard it here first, folks.

[askbombasticblake]

Motherfucker, guess I gotta tell 5 facts about myself

Thanks, Lainey, for tagging me in your 5 facts post. ANYWAY, here we go:

1: I've been told I look like (in no particular order) McLovin from Superbad, Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite, Kramer from Seinfeld, Lord Byron, and Matt Smith, and that's not counting the non-celebrities I allegedly resemble.

2: I actually have a second brother, Blake Gerald Diamond I. He died during his birth due to the doctor royally fucking up. If he had survived, I wouldn't be here, so my mum likes to say he gave up his chance at life for me to have mine...Mostly as a way of making me feel guilty for how I'm "wasting" my life.

3: I had a HORRIBLE stutter when i was younger. It's still there today, but nowhere near as bad as it used to be.

4: The one habit I have not been able to break is twirling my hair. I've been doing it since I was a wee lad, and it's stuck with me all my life. Beit because I'm thinking or tired or bored, my fingers always find themselves at the top of my head, making little J's.

5: Speaking of hair, I very much have a thing for people with long hair. Men, women, non-binaries, doesn't matter. If you have long hair and we happen to be close, I will gleefully play with it, run my hands through it, whatever else...if I'm given permission, of course.

Okay, now to tag 5 other saps so they have to do it. GOOD LUCK!

[lupicalled]

Character you have, but never use?

genshin impact ask meme || accepting

[spinaea-archived]

❝I forgot what love was. Then you came into my life.❞

rosaria knows how she feels about the darknight;  she’s known for awhile even if she hasn’t been able to bring herself to say it just yet, not wanting to scare him away.  the last time she loved someone was her fiance back when she was a human, & that was over 500 years ago;  no one else had ever come close to being someone she truly held dear in such a way.  until diluc, at least.

her eyes are searching his crimson stare, thoughts in tune with his though she can feel the sincerity in his words as they lay in his bed.  he’d never lie to her about something like that, right?  he never had any reason to before & abyssal can’t see him starting that now.

hands reach to cup his face as she kisses him once, twice, then a third time, smiling against his lips.  rosaria rarely hides her emotions anymore since her transformation & she’s sure diluc knows how she feels about him, but after what he just said?  the vampire doesn’t need to keep her feelings from him anymore.  fingers tangle themselves in scarlet tresses, her lips brushing against his.

‘  i love you too, diluc.  ‘

@ardentdawn​

[jadescreens]

🐤

SEND ME A 🐤 FOR A TWEET / ACCEPTING

[championglider]

@ardentdawn​ replied to your post:

I feel this, though I stay in/around New England for my cons

(Cool!~ I miss anime con season in general, since cosplayers are always preparing each year for every convention they plan to attend, and being able to show off dressed up as the character you love...when it’s 100% safe and okay for anime conventions again, I’d love to go to them again!)

[faerobelle]

ok ok 10 and Martha?

ship: ew / nonono / maybe / ship it / aww / otp / MY HEARTThey are more of a brotp for my but if they had spent a bit more time together and had more chemistry, I may have shipped them

Send me a ship!

[spinaea-archived]

❝Are you to act as mediator between myself & my brother?❞  Where talks have failed before, yet again to the point that old wounds easier concealed than mended were left to just that. Diluc knew what they were - whom they were for the most part. Their kinship much closer with bloodlines hailing to a kingdom sent screaming into the depths itself. There was only one other he knew of, star speckled eyes but he was another concern entirely,

❝What could you tell him to change his mind?❞

Change my mind.

she had not been present for their father’s passing, nor their subsequent falling out.  since rosaria arrived in mondstadt, she’d only seen how the two brothers were when they had to be around each other.  abyssal had her duty to khaenri’ah’s last hope but now that she’s with diluc, she’s around both of them on a regular basis.  at some point, they have to work out their issues with each other & she hopes it’s sooner rather than later for their sakes.

‘  if need be, yes.  ‘   she replies, gloved fingertips running over the rim of her wineglass before violet hues look up at him from her seat at the bar.   ‘  i may not have had any siblings, but i know that life is too short to bear any resentment towards one another for so long.  you’re brothers, you care about each other even if you deny it. ‘

it’s then that she reaches out with both of her hands, taking hold of one of his.   ‘  i know you both well enough to figure out that you’d regret not setting aside your differences before it’s too late.  i’ll play mediator if necessary, but i’ll continue to tell you & kaeya that you should talk things out sooner rather than later.  ‘  

she gently squeezes his hand, her tone softer than before.  ‘  if you can accept who i am & where i came from, why can’t you do the same with him?  ‘

@ardentdawn​

[spinaea-archived]

❝ Did you do something with your hair? ❞ unprompted.   /   always accepting.

the first time he sees her in a month & a half & she’s not even surprised by his greeting.  it’s obvious that her appearance is different in more than one way, even to those she rarely ever spoke to inside the city;  her skin a warmer shade & no longer as cold to the touch, pale hues now a vivid shade of violet with unmistakable stars prominent for the first time in centuries.  abyssal even returned in much different clothes, having trashed her robes given to her from the church;  now that she’s no longer with them, she wouldn’t keep wearing what everyone remembers her in.  it was time for a change.

‘  you mean my headpiece?  that dreaded thing is gone now.  ‘   gloved fingers tuck stray long tresses behind her ear, bright hues meeting his own crimson stare as a warm smile spread across dark lips.   ‘  i missed you too, you know.  we have a lot to talk about & i do believe you’ll want to sit for this.  ‘

@ardentdawn​