#at least you gave Snow a good scare before your demise

[mostofthingsmostofthetime]

My thoughts on The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes movie

I don’t know if I liked it as much as the original films (maybe Mockingjay 1 & 2 as they are pretty emotionally draining), but I still enjoyed it.

I think where it fell a little flat for me is 1. The beginning was a bit slow (tbh I only really started getting interested when Lucy Gray stuck that snake down that girl’s dress & even then I enjoyed the story more when the setting changed from the Capitol to the district) 2. I knew Snow would survive 3. I’d already been spoiled online for a lot of stuff that happens & 4. while I know the director did his best to make Snow as “likeable” as he could for as long as possible, even before he started getting “a little too comfortable” with killing & snitching I didn’t find him as sympathetic as Katniss or Peeta (but that is probably again down to the fact that I know what he goes onto do & there’s no real way around that), this made engaging with him difficult for me.

The world is fascinating. Getting to see all the new locations we never had access to before as well as old locations now in a totally different light (for example district 12 which, while still clearly suffering, seemed like such a bustling industrial town compared to how it is in Katniss’s time). It might have a much more retro aesthetic but there's also just a more vibrant, natural, wild & lawless atmosphere to this movie compared to the others in the franchise. The whole scope of the film just felt more cinematic then I remember the others being yet also weirdly intimate. Maybe because it was one contained story & we knew the main character’s fate from the start. I also loved the title cards signifying the start of each section of the story like from the books & wished they'd done something similar for the other films. It just added a certain flair to the whole thing. Almost gave it the vibe of a tragic play.

The costuming was great. The bright red of the academy uniforms.  Flickerman’s snazzy suits. Snow’s dapper black & white outfit. Both peace keeper uniforms (despite one of them giving very ‘1930’s Germany’ vibes) looked great. Grandma might have been a bigot, but at least she was well dressed. Everything Dr Gaul wore (except the top that looked like a used tampon, lol) was exquisite. The main ladies of fashion, Tigris & Lucy Gray slayed. Our Future Capitol stylist looked like some regal yet exotic bird & Miss Survivor was giving Bohemian, country girl realness the entire time she was on screen. Even the extras were serving (like that random couple Snow walked past on his way to the reaping ceremony).

The music was amazing. Every song that played was fantastic (shout out to Olivia for her end credit contribution). The lyrics & instrumentation were beautiful & my god does Rachel Zegler have pipes! Anyone who says the singing scenes are cringy is just stupid like I’m sorry you can’t appreciate art. Also, the words ‘ballad’ & ‘songbirds’ are literally in the title. Plus, Lucy Gray is from the poorest district, so what exactly do those people want her to do in her free time? She can’t exactly hop on an X-box for a few hours. Not too mention that (as the offspring of someone who’s musically inclined) I can tell you, it’s completely realistic for a musician to use their craft to help them deal with trauma & Lucy Gray clearly had more than her fair share of that.

The Grandma'am helped to paint a sadly very realistic background for Snow. As who among us hasn’t met at least one delusional old person who thinks that their/their group’s suffering (regardless of the severity of it or the reason behind their former/newer status in society) means that no one else are deserving of even the tiniest shred of humanity & there are some people who are unlucky enough to not only be related to these people but be raised by them.

Hunter schafer as Tigris is clearly the superior Snow when it comes to things like empathy & overall mental stability but I do kind of wish they’d been more for her to do. Credit where credit is due though her & Tom did actually look like they could be related & I did buy their familial bond (which makes her appearance in Mockingjay so much sadder in hindsight).

Peter Dinklage as Casca Highbottom was a bit of a mix for me just due to his purpose as a character & the limit of film as a form of media. Like sure the audience know that Snow’s going to become an irredeemable monster in the end but without a window into his mind it really does just seem like the Dean is just out to get him & even when we find out why it seems kind of unfair. Like sure his dad sucked but haven’t the Games shown that blaming children for violence caused by others is unjust (& like ok he hates Coriolanus & probably the grandma but Tigris hadn’t done anything to deserve living in poverty, as she can’t control who she’s related to)? Plus, it felt like he could have at least tried taking Snow under his wing at some point to try to hinder Dr Gual’s influence. Saying all of that, though, Peter Dinklage is great at playing an addict with depression & the idea that some drunken rambling could lead to such long-lasting suffering is terrifying. Also its pretty realistic that living with that kind of guilt & in such a cruel environment for that long would make most people jaded & bitter, even if they did have good intentions.

Omg we finally get a Mayor family on screen & they’re assholes! Madge would be so disappointed 😭. It was interesting to see how harsh & overall “boot licky” the mayor & his family seemed compared to decades later, which makes sense as the war wasn’t that long ago for them so the dad probably felt more incentive to align himself with the Capitol as well as not feeling very connected to the district people as 12’s decline probably didn’t fully set in until they really started running low on coal & Snow became president (oh I just know he wanted to blow that district off the map 😆). I also wouldn’t put it past Billy to come up with some sob story of how he really does love Mayfair but wicked Lucy Gray is somehow preventing them from being together. Still no excuse to try to send her to her death twice in one week, though. Definitely not a girl’s girl.

Ok, so a liar. Cheat. Drunk & someone who hits women. Is there anything good about Billy Taupe? Also, trying to get your ex back, while your current girlfriend is literally standing right next to you? Dude, have some god damn back bone! You made a choice, now stick to it. Also, fumbling Lucy Gray, for a girl like that? What’s it like having no brains or taste? Well, too bad, coz you’re stuck with her forever now, lol.

Viola Davies, the actress that you are. What else is there to say? Dr Gaul is almost comic book levels of insane. Like she is how the Right see women in STEM, on crack! I don’t know what she did to get into character, but whatever it was, it worked.

Jason Schwartzman as Lucretius Flickerman is a very interesting addition to the story despite playing such a small & seemingly insignificant role. He is strange in how unthreatening he is while also extremely blasé about the abhorrent violence he witnesses that it’s as funny as it is disturbing. Making him come across as  more human yet harsher than his son, who at least pretends to care about the tributes (in a very Capitol way, obviously but still). There’s also a polish & confidence to Tucci’s performance that I think Schwartzman did a great job of avoiding copying (despite knowing what audiences were probably expecting) because not only are their characters in entirely different stages of their careers but the whole ethos of the Hunger Games is different in Snow’s youth than it is in Katniss’s. Caesar is a well established presenter & during his time, the games have always been a success (minus the year with the tundra) that the entire Capitol is invested in & seemingly in support of. On the other hand Lucretius had the unique task of not only coming into a job like this with zero experience (I mean imagine going from announcing the weather to presenting the fucking hunger games) but also there were no vibes to try to emulate let alone guidelines to follow because he truly was the first person to do this. On top of that, the "event" his presenting has been panned for years as both boring & unethical. Schwartzman brought a slightly awkward, experimental, yet try hard vibe (like a comedian who's desperate to get a laugh) that I think worked wonderfully for the character.

Tom Blyth's performance was great & he was visually perfect for a young Snow (the power of a good wig! Who knew lol). Even having the cool, analytical stare of Donald Sutherland, down pat. While his appearance was very Eminem during his peacekeeping days, his realisation in the cabin and subsequent breakdown in the woods were crazy. There was so much tension between him & Rachel in that scene that for a second, it literally felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. I could almost hear the record scratch for both of them, & all that building paranoia finally coming to a sudden crescendo in the way that it did? Pure cinema!

Josh Rivera, as Sejanus, was honestly a mix for me. Obviously, I agree with his morals, but his way of going about it did seem a little dumb. However I do think it’s pretty realistic that a teenager, especially a rich one, would be rather naive. Also I’ve heard that he’s smarter in the book & I think at times my frustration with him is more just down to the fact that I’m seeing him from Snow’s point of view. Meaning scenes that would be portrayed as noble in any other film instead come across as almost painfully inconvenient because the focus is always on how they affect Snow rather than the actual victims of the situation. Lastly, sorry, Snowjanus shippers, I just don’t see it (especially on Snow’s end), but whatever floats your boat.

Rachel Zegler played Lucy Gray with the perfect mix of natural charm & emotional vulnerability with clear pride in her culture & a refusal to let the world around her change who she is. Yet there was also an air of mystery & a subtle resilience to her that makes her potentially surviving out in the woods for years without being detected actually believable (though I don’t buy the theory that she went on to become president Coin). Definitely the highlight of the movie for me.

PS. I'd love to know what you think of my review in the comments/tags & am open to criticism (as long as it's respectful) just remember that I'm only talking about the movie so please don't reference anything spersific to the book.

[devinescribe]

To Get Back To You

Ch.11 of “My Sunshine” [TreechxReader]

Warning: death, dying, kids dying. Cabin typical stuff, swearing, one part alludes to it being kind of suggestive? There’s just two comments made.

The next morning, you woke up early. Quickly getting dressed and fixing your hair before getting out of the house.

You were the first person in the auditorium.

You took a moment to straighten out the chairs and desks as you looked up the screens. Mostly everyone was sleeping.

One person was up watching, and you couldn't exactly see who it was.

You sighed, going through the bleachers and picking up trash.

"Why are you doing that?"

You jumped, scared by the sudden voice. Looking up you saw it was just Dean Highbottom, and you continued what you were doing.

"Oh... um... just got here early and was bored...plus people should really pick up after themselves," you responded with a smile.

"You remind me of a girl I once knew... too kind and good for this world. She let one man in... loved him with all her being... and he froze her heart over, killing her. Not physically... but mentally and emotionally," he explained.

He gave you a look of pity as he went by the desks, turning on your guys' computer systems to send gifts.

"Was she pretty?"

"Oh yes. Matter of fact, that's why he went after her. Sending snow storms of roses so beautiful could make any woman fall in love... but he only wanted her."

You smiled, it sounded like a bed time story.

"Well this woman... where is she now?" You asked, sitting on one of the bleachers.

"Six feet underground my dear. Loving that man caused her demise," he said, sitting next to you.

You wondered why he compared you to her.

"If I were you, I'd be careful of whom I trust. Do not fall for the theatrics and roses. Beware the frost that creeps into your garden when he's around. You are a very special lady. And I would hate to see anything horrible like that happen to you. The Snow gets stained with blood too."

And with that he walked away, leaving you with your thoughts. What did he mean by that? Who was this woman? Who was the man? Who was he warning you of?

Your eyebrows creased together in thought for about five minutes until you were broken from it by a tap on your shoulder.

"Oh goodness, you scared me Coryo," you laughed, looking up at the boy. "I brought some pastries if you want one... thought I'd give one to everyone..."

He smiled and extended a beautiful white rose out to you.

You recognized them as the ones from his grandmother's garden. Slowly and carefully grabbing it, you twirled it in your hands.

"It's so beautiful, thank you." You smiled.

"Well... it's the least I could do... you've helped so much... you deserve more than one rose... in the future maybe?" He said, a small smirk playing on his lips.

You nodded.

_-_-_-_

The events of the night before had Treech waking up every hour.

His anger was almost immeasurable. It pained him to know you were hurt. Your teary (e/c) eyes looking at him through the gate... he wished he could have helped.

Coral was getting aggressive. Very aggressive. And soon the group would fall apart. He figured tonight, although it had only been a day so far, he would run away during what would be his turn to watch.

He could run to the underground and find a spot to hide. Yes, that is what he would do.

_-_-_-_

It was the late afternoon and nothing had happened. On one hand, you were glad. On the other, it was torture knowing they would eventually release something into the arena to light a fire under them if they didn't put on a good enough show.

You saw Dill slowly come out of the tunnels and to a small puddle of water. She drank it, although it was dirty.

"There's Ill-Dill, tuberculosis on legs, we haven't seen her in a while," Flickerman said.

You watched curiously as she began to cough, holding her throat.

This wasn't normal for people with that illness, there was something off about it. She spat up blood, and lied down, her breathing coming out raspy and shallow until... silence.

You covered your mouth as tears formed in your eyes.

"Dill? Dill?"

Reaper's voice came into focus, and you saw him running to her side.

He checked for a pulse and screamed in anger.

He carefully picked up the young girl and placed her next to Bobbin.

The boy Coryo had killed.

He went around, grabbing the bodies of all the deceased, laying them next to each other. He walked to one of the sides, ripping a Capitol flag from the wall making the room gasp and chatter explode throughout the room.

"Are you going to punish me now?!" He yelled, staring into the camera.

You cried, softly placing your head on the table.

No.

You sat up and forced yourself to watch. Reaper took the flag and placed it over the bodies of the tributes.

You heard a faint voice call out to him.

Lamina.

Somehow the audio wasn't picking up what she said, but she dropped down her bottle of water to Reaper. He once again ripped another flag down making even more people cry out in outrage.

He threw it up to her and she used her axe to catch it, and draped it over herself to cover from the sun. Smart girl.

The two had an alliance of sorts. Good.

Reaper went back down to the tunnels.

Not to long after, you saw Lucy Gray run out of the tunnels screaming.

"Where's Jessup?"

That was answered shortly after, as Jessup came running after her. You were confused.

They had been so close, why would he turn on her? You saw the white foam coming from his mouth and the crazed look in his eyes.

"The bite... he's rabid," whispered Coryo.

He turned to Lysistrata and told her to send water. He was already a lost cause.

Lucy Gray stumbled up some slanted debris, and Jessup chased after her.

"Why are you running away? What's wrong?"

He sounded so confused. It pained you. Rabies made everyone forget who they were and what was happening. There was a bad outbreak back in seven. Some wolves had gotten it from who knows where and were spreading it to other animals, who in turn spread it to humans.

Drones flew in, dropping water bottles that shattered on impact, making him scream and swat them away, falling to the ground a sickening thud as he died.

That word kept popping up in your mind. But you couldn't use another. The sounds were sickening and horrible.

Lucy Gray slid down, closing his eyes softly, comforting him in his last moments.

Then, the pack quickly came out, seeing her out of the tunnels. She ran, but got trapped.

The pack closing in, she went to run one way as Tanner sang, "Lucy Gray~•

Treech quickly ran, sliding into place, and pointing his axe at her.

"Stay right there."

The small smirk afterwards had you looking down with a small blush.

'Yeah he's missed out on a lot of kisses... and other things. Victor's prize once he gets out. God get your head out of the gutter now is not the time to be thinking about that!'

He wasn't hurting her, but he also wasn't helping her.

"What is he doing I thought-"

"You told me to tell him to not hurt her. Not that he couldn't help others who might kill her."

"That's kind of implied, but I guess it can't be helped."

You shot him a glare, watching as Lucy Gray looked for an out.

Suddenly he started sending in drones of water.

"What are you doing?!"

"I'm just sending water."

The drones flew in and began to circle around the group, attacking them, giving Lucy Gray the opportunity to run. She grabbed a bottle of water and ran behind some debris.

The pack was fighting off the drones, and kind of failing.

Treech slashed one with his axe, which accidentally sent it flying to Coral, before getting hit with another which sent him to the floor.

Soon most of the pack was on the floor groaning.

"Not now..." you heard Coriolanus whisper, seeing Lucy Gray on the big screen.

What did he mean by that?

"God damnit..."

There was an interaction between Coral and Tanner you couldn't hear.

She then grabbed Treech by the collar, your eyes widened.

"Get this water into a pile, lumberjack. And then when you're done, you two can watch that beam while we get your little friend from back home up there at least," she hissed.

Treech looked up at Lamina and looked away.

_-_-_-_

He didn't know Lamina. Or at least, not that well. He knew what she’d told him the past week.

But he cared.

He cared because that was the only semblance of home here in the arena.

He knew who her parents were. He knew her from school.

His fear of being killed by Coral in this moment outweighed that as he began to grab the water and put it all together.

-_-_-_

"Looks like my girl has your little toy scared out of his mind," they snickered.

You glared at them.

"At least my boy has somewhat of a moral compass," you hissed.

You shook your head and turned your attention back to the screen.

Lamina noticed the pack coming closer to her and she climbed back on top of the beam, gripping her axe.

She looked... bored.

You giggled slightly, seeing Coral try to climb and fail at first until she gave her weapon to Tanner. Then her and Mizzen began to climb up.

Mizzen was slow, and not really climbing.

Lamina turned her attention to Coral.

"No not the girl..." Pup whispered.

"Well she can't take two at a time. Coral is climbing... Mizzen can barely get his footing," you giggled.

Lamina walked to the side where Coral was. She scoffed and swung her axe, making Coral slide down about a yard. You saw a tuft of her hair fly away.

"Fucking badass, Lamina..." you whispered.

Mizzen finally got up, and Lamina turned her attention to him.

He wasn't sure of his footing up there, making it easy for Lamina to swing her axe at him, making him loose his knife. The second swing, she brought the flat side against his knee, making him lose his balance. He fell, catching himself with one hand. The blow made Lamina fall back a bit.

Finally, Tanner was able to throw the trident at Coral who caught it, and cried out. Lamina defended herself well, the first few blows getting blocked by her axe.

You held your breath, watching her fight.

Pup reached over his shoulder to grab your hand and you squeezed it tightly.

Coral weaved the trident skillfully, plunging it into Lamina's stomach. She cried out in pain, and Coral got her knife out as a second solution.

It wasn't needed as Lamina fell back off the beam, dying on impact.

"No!" Pup screamed, the echo reverberating through the hall.

You put both of your hands up to your mouth, crying softly.

"(Y/N), you ok?" He whispered.

You nodded, sniffling as you dried your tears. Lamina was dead. You could have done more… you could have been nicer..

He left, going to sit where the rest of the mentors who had lost their tributes.

Coral helped Mizzen up, and down the beam, using Lamina's flag and tying it around his knee.

She picked up her trident again, and the camera switched focus to Treech.

He looked... scared? Upset?

He took a step back, and looked around, his chest heaving with fear.

The camera switched focus as Coral used the trident to stab Tanner, killing him instantly.

You gasped. You knew this would happen. And he needed to get out of that.

"Go grab the water-"

She looked the the pile of water bottles that had now been emptied, only one remaining.

She cried out in frustration, pushing Treech to the ground. He groaned, but stood up again.

"I don't trust that last bottle..." he said, as Coral went to go drink it. "Weird how she emptied all of them except that one, leaving it in the middle."

You heard Coryo curse besides you.

You sent some water and food his way, and when the drones dropped them for him, he offered water to Mizzen, the young boy happily taking it and giving some to Coral. He then split his food with the other two.

"Thanks Sunshine, your sweetness graces me once again," he called out with a smile.

"Are you thanking her or praising a goddess?" Coral teases.

"Is there really a difference?"

The crowd awed and the cameras were on your blushing face.

_-_-_-_

He felt guilty. He should have stopped them. He should have protected Lamina.

He should have never even joined the pack.

Coral was already killing them. She wouldn't kill Mizzen. But he was definitely next, which made his plan to get the hell out of there a lot clearer to choose.

_-_-_-_

It was a bit later when you saw Wovey come out of the tunnels.

"It's Wovey! She's still alive!"

Her mentor celebrated that.

She saw the water bottle and grabbed it.

That water... there was something wrong with it.

"No..." whispered Coryo.

There was something wrong with it and he knew. What did he do?

She took a few sips before she curled up on the floor, similar to what Dill did, and stayed there.

You watched and waited for that sweet girl to get up, but she didn't.

In your head you could only thank whatever would listen that those baby girls didn't have to die violently.

Reaper came out once more, and saw the corpses. He gathered them, putting them all together. The only one he wouldn't touch was Jessup. He was smart, and didn't want to get infected.

Grabbing a piece of the flag, he took it and went to the top of the stands laying down.

There was no more 'excitement' for the day.

You decided to sleep there overnight. You didn't want to go back to the silence that gripped your house.

The other mentors decided to do the same, all of you arranging yourselves around the hall.

Late into the night, you couldn't sleep, so you stayed watching the screen.

That's when you saw Treech carefully sneak away. He went down into the tunnels, and hid.

The first place, he stayed for a while and cried. Your heart broke at the sound. You wished you could go comfort him.

You heard him mutter apologies in his crying.

Tears streamed down your cheeks, matching his. You hated seeing him cry.

He sniffled and stood up, going to find a place to actually hide.

Wherever he hid, you couldn't see him.

But you heard his soft voice as he quietly sang your lullaby.

"Close your eyes, my love, so dear...Underneath the night so clear. Dream of worlds beyond this one, Where the gentle moon and stars do run. Rest your head upon my chest, Feel the rhythm, soft and blessed. In dreams, may this forever shine, In your heart, for all of time..."

You felt your eyes softly close and you fell asleep.

_-_-_-_

He cried for what he'd done. He let her die and he felt guilty about it.

Would Lamina forgive him? Would her parents? Would people back home forgive him for leaving her?

Would (Y/N) forgive him?

Hiding in a corner somewhere in the tunnels, he quietly sang her lullaby, hoping it would calm him down.

_-_-_-_

The morning soon came and you groaned, standing up and clapping your hands together.

It was almost time for everyone to be here.

"Guys... time to wake up..." you said softly, turning the lights up slowly.

You went one by one, waking each of them up gently.

"Where's your tribute?" Coryo asked.

"He got away from the group last night. He's hiding. My smart boy," you giggled.

The door opened and someone you weren't expecting to see walked in.

"Clemmie?"

The group of mentors rushed to her, asking her how she was.

She glared at Coriolanus.

Yeah, something definitely went down with those two.

——

Nothing had happened so far other than Coral cursing out Treech when she found out he was gone.

Mid day, and nothing had really happened. Clemmensia tried sending food to Reaper but he ignored it.

Your broad cast was interrupted.

"It is with great sadness that I must announce a tragic death. One that affects us all... Felix Ravestill, son of our beloved president, has this morning succumbed to his injuries sustained in the rebel bombing..." Dr. Gaul's voice echoed through the room.

People gasped, and started whispering. Some started crying. You were upset loosing another classmate. And one who was tolerable at the very least.

"Out there in the districts, they will be celebrating this young boy's death as a triumph. I will not allow my games to give our enemies such a victory. I swear to you here and now before the sun goes down tonight; a rainbow of destruction will engulf our arena. Even if it means there is to be no victor in these games."

You gasped and covered your mouth.

Coriolanus ran out of the room.

You wondered where he was going.

"No victor? What? Then who will win the Plinth Prize?"

You couldn't believe how shallow they were. These were human lives that were on the line. And they treated it like... well, a game.

About half an hour had passed and you saw Treech quietly walking out of the tunnels. Coryo came back, sweating and panting.

"Where were you?" You asked.

"Had something come up..." he answered. He looked you in the eyes.

He had figured it out. You only believed him when he made eye contact. But there was still something about your expression that made him think you didn't believe him.

You didn't.

Suddenly you heard the sound of wiring. You looked at the screen to see a drone, bigger than any that brought the tributes gifts, bringing in a giant tank.

You saw all the tributes stare up at it. Well, the visible ones.

The tank was set in the middle, and you all watched confused.

Treech took slow steps back.

The tank suddenly erupted, and snakes began to come out.

You gasped.

Clemensia screamed, falling back and out of her chair.

_-_-_-_

"Oh fuck me," he groaned, running away from the snakes, climbing the score board, and sitting on the ledge.

He watched the chaos.

Sure, it was morbid. But he was safe. He made you a promise that he would come back to you, and he was going to get back to you.

_-_-_-_

"Oh fuck me," Treech groaned.

"Oh oh goodness that's.. uh..." Flickerman stammered for words.

"Sounds like a job for (Y/N)," one girl called out.

You blushed and rolled your eyes, watching the screen.

Coryo watched obsessively. Lucy Gray wasn't out in the arena. She was in the tunnels.

You watched as Coral helped Mizzen get to higher ground, getting bitten.

The action made you feel bad for her.

Mizzen cried out for Coral, tears streaming down the boy's face.

A cry was heard from a woman.

Lucy Gray. It had to be. Unless Teslee was hurt? No Teslee was on the beam.

Coryo gripped onto the desk tightly, worried.

Suddenly you heard singing coming from the tunnels.

Lucy Gray backed out softly, singing, the snakes following her.

By the end of the song, the snakes had wrapped around her and not attacked.

"The singing. It must calm them," Coryo said.

——

Five tributes left.

The snakes had been cleared out, most dying from the night and the cold. You assumed they weren't used to being outside of Dr. Gaul's lab, which is why they died so quickly.

You all watched as the tributes all did different things.

Teslee was still messing with a drone like she and her district partner had been doing. She actually got it to work, and it flew up, her with it.

She laughed brightly but you were confused. What was she going to do?

The other drones flew and everyone was freaking out.

What was she doing and how?

The question was answered when Mizzen was knocked over, falling, a cry of Coral’s name slipping past his lips. He landed on the concrete, breaking his neck and dying on impact due to her and the drones.

She laughed again, kind of celebrating the death.

It didn't last for long as an axe was struck into her skull.

You gasped.

Treech had just killed her. He stared in horror at his hands and the blood pooling around Teslee's body. You heard him whisper an apology.

"And then there were three. Let's see how this plays out," Flickerman announced.

Reaper, who hadn't really done much was behind Lucy Gray.

Was he going to attack her?

Treech went over, and went to get him away from her. He wasn't aiming for Lucy Gray.

"He's protecting her?" Clemensia questioned, turning to you two.

He was. He wasn't going to kill Reaper, but maybe get him away. Enough to buy time for them to run away.

Lucy Gray didn't see that. She panicked and hugged him. Treech dropped his axe, hugging her back.

But his face soured immediately.

He swiftly pulled away, grabbing his axe and tripping Lucy Gray. One of the rainbow snakes slipped from her hand, and Treech hit it with his axe, chopping its head off in one fell swoop.

_-_-_-_

"Treech I-i... I'm sorry I-"

"Yeah yeah, save it song bird. Have fun defending yourself. You know, I never told Coral and the group when you came up if they were sleepin'. I purposely tried to fail and give you an escape. I mean for fucks sake, I know what happened to that water bottle and I let you. I let Lamina die because I didn't alert them to you bein' in the open again. I did all of that because (Y/N) asked me to not hurt you. She begged me to at all costs leave you be. My sunshine is sweet. Too sweet. Because she lets people like you and that blonde prick manipulate her. And she'll still feel sorry. I won't hurt you, 'cause I promised her. But I ain't defendin' you anymore," he spat, kicking the snake's corpse away.

She tried to apologize.

But he didn't listen to any of it, climbing back up the scoreboard.

He almost died because he was touch starved. He missed you. He missed his mom. He missed his dad. He wanted to go home. And he almost ruined that because of a hug?

"You can sing your way out of trouble, Lucy Gray. But you can't sing your way to an apology."

_-_-_-_

You looked at Coriolanus.

He knew what she did to the water? What had she done? Did Coryo know about it too?

"Down to three! How are you feeling Clemensia?"

"Well, I think that Reaper is going to do well. I mean, Lucy Gray can't sing her way out of everything. And she lost the only alliance she had with Treech. So she's kind of by herself. He just hasn't eaten yet, which reminds me-"

Clemensia sent him some food and water. He ignored them.

"How about you (Y/N)? There's been lots of whispers around about all he's said about you, and we are all curious."

"Treech is strong. And fast. He's smart too. Right now neither of his opponents can climb like him. The only bad thing is he has a close range weapon. But he's familiar with it. Like my classmate mentioned, Lucy Gray lost his trust, so I think... he'll do well. And about everything he's said... I've kept mental notes," you explain, giggling at the end, winking at the cameras.

"And finally, Coriolanus Snow. You and Lucy Gray were second Capitol favorites, beat only by Treech and (Y/N). How do you feel about this is going to play out?"

"Lucy Gray is smart. And if Treech had not noticed the snake, he'd be dead making her odds better. She can't sing her way out of everything is what people keep saying, but so far it's worked so..."

You glared at him.

He was supposed to be your friend. He was the one who told you to tell Treech not to attack Lucy Gray. Lucy Gray knew about the arrangement right? Coriolanus said it would be mutual. Had he been lying? What had he told you? Would he have lied?

You turned your attention to the screen where Lucy Gray was getting Reaper's attention. He looked sickly. Maybe he had gotten rabies from Jessup? He was acting how he had. And he had moved the corpse eventually. He moved it when he moved Coral's, Mizzen's, and Teslee's.

She yelled at him, and he merely looked at her before going back to laying down.

She huffed, grabbing the flag that covered the dead tributes.

That got his attention.

_-_-_-_

He couldn't believe what he was witnessing. Lucy Gray was trying to tire him out.

For what?

Probably to kill him. But how? She had no weapon. Well... except that little compact of hers. He'd noticed it. She put some white powder into that water bottle. She killed Wovey.

That water puddle... wait. The water puddle that Dill drank from.

She killed Dill too.

He scoffed.

When he killed Teslee... he couldn't believe what he had done.

He looked at his hands.

She laughed. Laughed at the death she caused. And Mizzen. He was a sweet boy despite the circumstances. He was like the little brother Treech never had. And to watch this girl laugh and mock him for screaming out for Coral before dying?

It made him upset.

But was he any better than her? He killed her. It didn't matter what the circumstances were. He killed her.

Would you ever forgive him?

Would he ever forgive himself?

_-_-_-_

After Lucy Gray dropped the flag, Reaper stopped chasing. He grabbed the flag, spreading it over the tributes.

Clemensia sent water again.

He ignored it.

"What the hell is wrong with him!" She shouted.

He went to a puddle. The same puddle that Dill drank out of. He took a few sips, before he passed out.

No... died.

You watched as Lucy Gray went and offered Treech a water bottle.

_-_-_-_

"Do you think I'm stupid?" He scoffed, swinging his legs on the scoreboard.

In that moment, a drone arrived dropping water for him.

Lucy Gray sat defeated at the bottom.

He rolled his eyes.

"What are you going to do if you win?"

"Well... I'm going home."

"I mean about your girl. She Capitol. She'll have to stay."

"... Home is a lot of things. District Seven. The forest. And her. If it meant starting over in the Capitol I'd do it. If they send me out to 12, I'd fight my way back to her. I could be dying and I'd crawl home. I'd crawl home to her. Just as I am willing to give up everything for her, I know she'd be willing to do the same for me. I know that's hard to comprehend since blondie wouldn't do the same for you." He said, using some of the water to rinse his hands and face of the dust and grime.

The silence filled the arena.

"I'm sorry. Just... guess I'm still upset. What about you? What will you do if you go back home?"

"I'm going straight back to the Covey. I miss them like crazy. You wouldn't believe... I miss performing for people to have fun. Not just because I need to."

"Well, I promised her lots of things. That I'd get out of here alive, that I wouldn't hurt you... but we have a mutual deal that if I win, she gives me all the letters and things she's written for me over the years, and I'll give her mine. I'm excited for that," he laughed.

A sudden noise in the arena made him jump.

"Congratulations to our victors of this year's Hunger Games."

_-_-_-_

The crowd had changed and begged for both to live. And Dr. Gaul never ever wanted the games to be recieved badly.

So she let both out.

You got up, people were congratulating you, but you ran out the door.

Out the door, out the school, thorough the streets... until you were in front of the arena.

Flickerman was there somehow. The guards let you pass, and you ran inside.

"Hi sunshine, long time no see," he whispered, his eyes filling with tears.

"Hey there Lumberjack... did ya get stuck in a tree?"

And with those words you ran into his arms. You pulled back and looked up at him, kissing his lips as tears rolled down both of your cheeks.

"I promised I'd come back to you... I promised you," he mumbled in between kisses.

"Careful camera is here," you laughed.

"I don't care I just survived the fucking Hunger Games and now I want to kiss my Sunshine. They can kiss my ass," he scoffed, pulling you into another kiss.

“I told you, years of kisses to catch up on.”

[figurctives]

     henri was fifteen when she realized theodore was her future. 

     or more like, when she realized she didn’t have another option. the first time she had a crush on a boy it happened fast. she’d met him at her summer hagwon. he was smart and kind and always saved for henri next to him. it took weeks for her to gather up the courage to ask him out; she wanted him to be her date for a charity event her mother was hosting. it would be her first time doing so, going with a boy. but it wouldn’t be the boy from her hagwon. her mother denied her of that immediately, like it wasn’t even worth considering. oh, no, henrietta. you’ll go with theodore instead, how about that?

      the idea had seemed outlandish at first. theodore, the boy who teased her and laughed when she cried and got her in trouble. she wanted nothing to do with him, only dealt with his shenanigans because he was always around. looking back, she wants to ask her mother, don’t you think we were too young? but she hadn’t thought that back then, she hadn’t even realized yet. not until the first time turned into the second time and the third turned into the fifth. instead she’d asked her mother, why theo? there’s a boy at my hagwon i really like, why do i have to go with theo?

     her mother had brushed her fringe from her face and said, because you and theodore look so lovely together. i’m sure you’ll make him very happy. there had been no more room for arguing after that. it was settled. for almost every formal event or gala or dinner henri attended for the next five years of her life, theo was her date and vice versa. he never even asked her to be his girlfriend, but somewhere along the way they fell together. started holding hands even when they didn’t have to, going places that were more than just the events they were expected to show up to. movies, dinner, each other’s houses and dorm rooms.

      it was easy to go along with. when theo kissed her for the first time in spring four years ago, on the sidewalk in seoul under the cherry blossoms, when their classmates teased them and said, you guys are such a cute couple, and theo didn’t deny it. just laid his arm across henri’s shoulders and smirked. henri had blinked, realization dawning over her and said, thank you, because it was easy to go along with. until it wasn’t. 

      until theo’s kindness and his interest ran full circle. until henri stopped knowing how to make him laugh or smile or pay attention to her. until she realized she would only be allotted into his life based on convenience and appearances. you’re so naive, henrietta, he’d say. because he gave it up first. the idea of them together, actually together. the hope that their future would be more than cold business arrangements and familial expectations, he never held on to that very tightly. not the way that henri did, for so long. 

      but finally, she was starting to let go of it, too.

––––

      “one week suspension,” theo sneers, tossing his phone across the room. it crashes into the wall and makes henri jump. “that’s all this incompetent staff is capable of.”

      “hold still,” henri says, fingers under his chin, tilting his face towards her with one hand and a damp cloth in the other. she stands between his legs in his room, at the edge of his bed, cleaning the dried blood from his bandaged nose. he’s been at it since that afternoon two days ago, face red even after the blood was cleaned from his skin. he’s done, he’d said as the nurses flitted around him in the infirmary. he’s finished. 

      he looks a little ridiculous now, his swollen skin a watercolor canvas of bruises, his nose stint ugly and silver. 

      "they’re a bunch of greedy cowards,” he goes on. “as if leonard park’s hush money is enough to allow his vermin son to continue tarnishing st. agathe’s. he should be expelled. his younger siblings, too, they’re all nothing but bad news.”

      silence settles as henri removes the bloodied gauze from theo’s nose, his anger simmering. she does her best to hide her relief. only a suspension, and not the permanent removal theo is fighting so hard for. the thought had scared her at first, that sinclair might be sent away and not allowed to return. would these feelings still exist inside of her if that were the case? would the sound of his name stop making her heart stutter if he was no longer around? would her life go back to normal, then?

      she hasn’t been able to stop thinking about it, hasn’t been able to stop trying to figure out how it all fell apart before they were even able to learn how they fit together. i’m probably the most exciting thing that’s ever happened to you. her fingers pause where they’re wrapping a strip of gauze around itself, as the words play over in her head. as she thinks of how sinclair’s shaking hand had felt in hers as she bandaged his bruised knuckles and he told her his secrets. 

      “he’s really not that bad,” she says, quietly, as she pushes the clean gauze  gently back into theo’s nose. he hisses, pulls away to look at her, offended. 

      “you’re defending him?”

      “no,” she assures. her hand finds the back of his neck and she pulls him close again to remove the blood and bandages from the other side. “but i think it’s important to take into consideration that calvin is his best friend, and they aren’t on good terms. if calvin is really... if he and sinclair never get the chance to work things out, it would be really devastating for him.”

      henri can’t get that out of her head, either. that look in sinclair’s eyes. that desperate need for answers, the fear that theo’s words might be true. but then she thinks about the way theo’s face had sounded under his fist, and she pushes it all aside. when theo grimaces up at her and says, you’re too naive, henrietta, she can’t help but to agree. 

––––

      the week of sinclair’s absence is relatively uneventful, with the school year finally approaching its end and finals just around the corner. with both calvin and sinclair gone, campus has grown quiet.

      this time last year, there had been a list of secret parties going around, all leading up to their final day, making the last weeks before summer exciting rather than stressful. but now, it feels inappropriate. the same way st. agathe’s had gone dark in the weeks following valentina’s demise, they’re all paying their premature respects to calvin. there’s been no sign of him. no ransom letter like the police thought, no clues as to where he could have gone. nothing. people were starting to lose hope. 

      but for all the parties that aren’t happening, henri still finds herself invited to one. halfway through the week, an unexpected face stops henri at the library’s front desk. as she hands over her book to be checked out, a body leans against the counter beside her.

      “hey,” luna says, friendly smile a little awkward. “listen, my birthday is coming up, and i know this is kind of out of the blue, but i’m celebrating this weekend, and i wanted to invite you.”

      “oh,” henri says, blinking away her confusion. she can count on a single hand the conversations she’s had with luna, and she’d still have fingers left over. she has no idea why luna would want to invite her to her birthday celebrations. “i don’t, um... i don’t think-”

      “i know it’s sudden,” luna interjects. she chews at her lower lip in contemplation for a beat, before she sighs, shoulders sagging. “but here’s the thing: simon is always making fun of me for not having any friends, so when i said i wanted to celebrate, it was kind of too embarrassing to admit that he was right, so i told him to plan something and that i’d bring people, but i don’t have a lot people i can ask, so. will you come?” she clasps her fingers together. “for the sake of my pride, please?”

      there is a glaring list of pros and cons that immediately presents themselves to henri, but with luna standing right here, staring henri down and holding up the line, she knows that that list doesn’t matter: she can’t say no. her lips press into a tight smile, and she nods. “sure. i’d, uh... i’d love to.”

     really, she’d rather do anything but. because the first con on her list is enough to wash away any of the pros. sinclair is without a doubt, one hundred percent, going to be there. and as luna tells her the time and place, disappearing before henri can change her mind, a sense of dread begins to bundle in her gut. 

      but she finds herself outside of the riot house at the end of the week, anyways, knocking on the front door as the sun begins to settle low in the sky. she very pointedly does not think about the last time she’d been in this position, snow sparkling beneath the sun instead of a green, carefully manicured lawn. when the door swings open, her heart catches in her throat. she doesn’t know why she came here.

      simon stands on the other side of the threshold, a ridiculous party hat on his head, the elastic strap pressing into the skin beneath his chin. 

      “you came!” he rejoices, ushering her inside. “i didn’t believe luna when she said people actually accepted her invitations. you can be honest, she paid you to come, didn’t she?”

      “hey!” luna scolds, as henri and simon emerge from the entryway into the kitchen. to henri’s absolute surprise, leaning against the island in the middle of the room, is professor kwon. he smiles at her, and nods his head in greeting. luna continues to defend herself, like none of this is even the least bit odd. “i didn’t bribe anyone. everyone i invited said they would come, and they did.”

      “so, this is it? this is your party?” simon asks, like he can’t help but be disappointed. “two people?”

      “of course not,” luna says, emphasizing the final t. “i invited archie as well.”

[resident-of-edgy-evil]

She’s kinda hot though

I know it’s not winter season or anything and not everyone celebrates Christmas, I know that maybe I should wait to post this until December, but I’m not gonna, sooooo- I hope you enjoy regardless.

- Fluff, just fluff, lots of fluff

———————————————————-

“I’m sorry for hitting you.” He whisper yelled at you with a sincere, yet sheepish smile.

The snowball fight was beginning to get serious. Chris began throwing chunks of ice and it was making Leon overly anxious, especially since you were caught in the crossfire.

Still, you looked so carefree, so lively despite the fair chance that you were bound to get hit with something worse than a fluffy ball of snow.

“It’s okay, I’ll get you back later.” You stuck out your tongue, scrunching your eyes in a playful manner.

You were cute- you knew it and so did everyone else. Too cute for your own good, he noted mentally. Though this was a whole lot of leverage against everyone you came in contact with.

“Alright, that’s fi- wait,” Momentarily, he was relieved until the realization struck him. “You’re going to what?”

You smiled, saying nothing as you continued to form more objects to throw at the opposing team. You’d never purposefully cause any harm, of course, but if Chris kept up the act, then he was sure wasn’t going to see the light of day on Christmas.

“Alright, Redfield. I’m coming after your ass as soon as I finish up with pretty boy over here.”

Leon almost choked at the thought of you enacting your revenge. On the flip side, he couldn’t complain after your ‘pretty boy’ comment. You looked so cute and non-intimidating. Although he should know better considering he has seen you take down BOW’s quadruple your size (and then some) with ease on numerous occasions. You might not look the part- however, you were anything but harmless. He should be scared that your attention was directed towards him in such a manner.

You flashed your usual toothy grin masking your true nature as though nothing fazed you at all. He always knew that you’d cause his demise, just thought it’d be at the expense of sacrificing himself on a mission, not during a childish game.

He flinched preparing for impact as you reared you cold hand back. This was it, this was the end of the Kennedy boy.

“Wait,” he waved his hands in surrender. “Let me make peace with my God first.”

You quirked an eyebrow at the silly request, weighing your options. You could either give in out of respect or cause his pain to be over with quickly, subsequently being more humorous. It was only a game, after all, so you complied and lowered your raised arm. It’s not like you’d ever hurt him anyway, maybe a bruise or two, but nothing fatal. Wouldn’t want to let a face like that go to waste.

Leon kneeled as if he was at an alter and began praying aloud. You let him take his time for theatrics, searching for Chris all the while as he was your true target.

When you found him he seemed to be frantically creating more balls to defend himself with when he’d have to face you next. If you performed anything remotely close to the way you did during combat, then he was completely, utterly screwed.

Out of the corner of your vision, Leon raised himself from the cold ground, holding a praying position with his hands.

“Prepare to meet your doom, Kennedy.”

And that was it. You felt something cold and solid break on your face causing a stinging sensation to your lower lip and nose. It immediately dawned on you that you had been hit. It was a coward move, but a well done one, nonetheless. You had to give him props after you obliterated him.

You were about to laugh until you saw the look of concern on his face. The stinging hadn’t quite gone away so you wiped some of the snow from your face, shaking it off. It felt wet, warm, and sticky. Snow wasn’t supposed to be warm or sticky, so you looked at your hand, seeing a stream of blood. But you mentally shrugged it off, it was just a bloody nose, maybe a split lip. Nothing world ending.

The look of alarm on the grown man’s face only grew at the sight of your bloody hand and how your face contorted into a look he couldn’t discern. You were perplexed. It wasn’t a big deal, he had seen worse injuries before. Not thinking much of it, you pinched your nose and wiped your hands on the ground, tilting your head out of his sight as he rushed over to you. This gave you a splendid idea.

When he kneeled to your level, you feigned a hiccup as you cried out. He tried to get a better look at the injury but you wouldn’t budge.

“Agh, don’t do that, it hurts.” You swatted his hands away.

“(Y/n), I’m so, so, so sorry. I didn’t mean to.” He startled rambling profusely, so you cried out again. “I mean, I meant to hit you, but I didn’t think I’d-“ He stopped short.

“...I’m so sorry.” He smoothed out your hair, yelling to Chris to go inside for some paper towels. You couldn’t see his face, but you were sure it matched Leon’s as well.

Despite your cruel little joke, you couldn’t help but smile slightly. Leon really cared about you and it showed in all of his actions. He was being very sincere.

Wiping your nose again, you slid your hand on the ground, staining the snow crimson. You kept your head down, burying it in his chest as you wrapped your arms around him in a hug. The tension melted from his shoulders slightly.

He held you like that, refusing to shift even though his foot was falling asleep. It was comforting to sit like that with him, though it was because of a mean trick.

“Are you okay?” He asked without moving.

There was no way to hide the smile that made its way on your face as you dug into the snow behind him. He sure wasn’t going to like this and there’s no stopping it now.

You brought the half formed sphere to his head and smashed it forcefully, laughing when it fell apart and began to slowly melt in his hair. He kept his arms around you but leaned back, gazing at you in confusion and disbelief.

“Yeah, now I am.”

———————————————————-

I hope that didn’t suck to bad, but I still hope you enjoyed it at least a little bit!

[deathonyourtongue]

Winter Passing | Chapter 1

Summary: Injured and left for dead in the middle of a nowhere state, he traverses peaks and valleys for days without seeing any sign of civilization. Just as death’s icy fingers begin to coil around him, he finds a cabin in a clearing. Terrified from years of being told fairy tales and ghost stories, he nevertheless knocks on the door. When he wakes, he finds not a demon, but an angel, long removed from the insanity of the modern world. Pairing: Slightly AU!Henry Cavill x OC Word Count: 2.4K Warnings: Mentions of blood A/N: Like if you want to be added to the tag list. Message me if you want to be removed.

@radaofrivia​ @crushed-pink-petals​ @henrycavillfanpage​ @kirasmomsstuff​ @bluestarego​ @redhairedmoiraandtheliferuiners​ @safiras​ @honeychicana​

It had been one of the worst storms the area had seen in years. Snow, wind, ice, and hale had all done their best to batter down their part of the earth. Despite the severity, it had only succeeded in blanketing the clearing with a fresh coat of powder. Protected as it had always been by the mountain on one side and the ocean on the other, the clearing’s stream and small lake stood relatively untouched by the late winter assault; she wouldn’t have to break the ice for water today, but she would have to cut more wood.

Starting her day as she always had, Olivia woke as slowly as the sun did, brewing a tea of peppermint and the last of the season’s lemon balm to warm and waken herself from the inside out. She gave Gunnar his first meal of the day, smiling as her 4-year-old Husky grumbled his way to his bowl, clearly muttering to himself about how long she’d taken to get up. Her own breakfast would come after her morning duties, and before she set about the early afternoon’s activities of reading, cooking, and writing. It would be a simple day, topped off with a sumptuous dinner of braised rabbit stew and homemade bread and wine. Winter was a vacation from the various duties of the other seasons and Olivia looked forward to every second, fleeting though they were.

She’d forgone snow pants the moment she’d moved to the clearing, having studied the area well enough to know she’d never get snowed in, and never deal with the sharp, nipping temperatures the rest of the state felt throughout the winter months. Wearing long johns, jeans, woolen socks, and her tried-and-tested winter boots, she set about collecting the water, cutting the wood, and feeding her small crop of animals, talking to each one as she went. She doted on her creatures, all of them telling her a daily story of the previous day’s activities simply with their eyes, their sniffs, and their eagerness for food. Petting her lamb, she reminded herself to start on her next knitting project using her old girl’s spring sheering, Olivia excited by the prospect of a new, even cozier sweater.

The incense was lit once she’d come in with the water, and the hearth was stoked in preparations for the afternoon’s cooking. It wasn’t until she was in the middle of chopping wood that she felt the shift in the air. Stopping all movement, she scanned what she could of the clearing, assuaged in her fear only by the fact that her rifle sat on a stump at arm’s length. Bigger game was rare, only due to the difficulty in accessing the area, but she’d had one run-in too many with a bear to trust that it was impossible. She registered the silence of the birds with trepidation, but as they hadn’t flown, she knew whatever was coming wasn’t as dreadful a predator as it could be.

Finally, her eyes caught the part of the clearing that didn’t belong, the shape dark against the white of the snow and mountains. It wasn’t an animal, but from far off in the field, she couldn’t tell whether it was a man or a woman who approached her door. Moving silently, each step soft and calculated, she flanked the stranger and quickly made her way into her small cottage by way of the back door. Old habits die hard and even in the middle of nowhere, she kept her front door locked and latched, a practical protection to top off all the more mystical ones she’d placed on the location upon moving in. Shoe-less, she slid across the hardwood floor, using the column that divided the kitchen from the front room to her advantage in order to catch a glimpse of the person knocking desperately. To her shock, the first thing she saw was blood, a mask of it covering the face of a man who couldn’t be older than 35. His breath fogged the front windows, and before she could even call out, he’d fallen like a sack of potatoes at her doorstep. Whatever had happened to him, had been bad enough that he’d decided to brave the wilds rather than stay by the road waiting for help. Her only hope was that he wasn’t dead. The trek into town was laborious under the best weather conditions; in winter, it was nearly impossible.

—————————–

Henry’s day had gone from bad to worse. 

Packing up had been hard enough, with Tabitha’s cat trying to bat at or bite him at every given opportunity. His ex certainly didn’t help matters, her words as cutting as her cat’s claws. Though they’d been together nearly five years, Henry felt like he barely knew the woman she’d turned into over the last few months. It was the great tragedy of his life, but it was quickly becoming his worst nightmare; he had no choice but to move on. 

With the last load packed, he’d hit the highway one last time, looking forward only to ordering a pizza and calling it a day in his new, ramshackle, bachelor pad. He worried his Escalade would look out of place among the sea of Hondas and Kias that littered the parking lot of his new residence, but Henry knew he’d be trading in the car soon enough, and vowed to get into something a little less conspicuous. 

He was halfway to his destination when the ABS light came on, blinking rapidly. Nearly as soon as it had come on, the light switched off once more. Henry thought little of it, but made a mental note to mention it to his mechanic the next time he went in for service. Before he could even finish his thought however, the car in front of him began to slow down. Pressing the brake, Henry felt a cold chill go through him as his foot went directly to the floor. Trying again, and pumping the pedal this time, he got the same result. His immediate–albeit regrettable–thought was that Tabitha had drained his brake fluid and caused him to ride dry. Without the fluid, there’d be no way of applying pressure to the discs, leaving him without an option that didn’t involve a crash. 

With the car ahead quickly approaching his front bumper, Henry looked around, trying to figure out the best possible route. He couldn’t switch lanes due to a semi on his left, and careening across four lanes seemed deadly even if it did get him to the inside shoulder of the highway. Heart sinking, he closed his eyes and veered right at the last moment, knowing full well he was about to die. Aside from the small patch of forest, there was little to keep him from rolling right off the side of the mountain and to certain doom. Bracing, Henry did his best to keep the wheel straight once he began cutting through brush, hoping for the best. 

The violent scream of metal on rock accompanied his own cries as the SUV began to roll and skid at a steep descent. Henry dared not open his eyes as all the windows shattered, the dash caved in on itself and his steering wheel made contact with his head more than once. He blacked out as the car careened down the side of the mountain, waking only when it came to a bone-crunching stop at the base of a sturdy pine tree. 

His consciousness mercifully kept him in and out until the smell of burning rubber woke him for good. Feeling the heat building in the footwell, Henry moved only through the power of adrenaline, scrambling for his seatbelt cutter and taking a deep breath before slicing through the woven fabric, his body hitting what used to be the roof with a sickening thud. Crawling through the shattered glass of the passenger window, Henry moved as far away as he could, turning back only to see the car engulfed in flames. With the fire making it too dangerous to try and save any of the trunk’s contents, Henry patted his body down, looking for his phone, hoping he could at least make a call to get out. When he came up empty-handed, one look back to his vehicle confirmed what he’d feared; his cell was still in the center console, burning to a crisp with the rest of his things.

Though he wanted to sit and wallow in self-pity waiting for help to arrive, a sharp sting of wind reminded him he had to move.  Having considered himself something of a well-prepared man prior to the accident, Henry cursed himself for not having worn his winter coat while driving, the warm garment turning to ash along with his winter boots in the fire. He chuckled to himself, thinking of how thrilled his ex would be to learn of his demise, out in the woods at the bottom of the mountain, walking in circles until he’d succumbed to the elements. 

“You’ll finally get your wish, Tabs. Me out of your life for good!” He called out with a barking laugh, Henry tucking his hands into his pockets as he looked around for a suitable walking stick. The flaring pain in his knee was enough to warn him against trying to walk unassisted, and with fresh powder coming nearly to his thighs, he knew better than to try it even in perfect health. 

Red coated his vision as he bent over to grab a snapped branch. Rubbing at his eyes, the breath caught in his throat as the back of his hand came away soaked with fresh blood. Logically he knew head wounds bled more, but at that moment, it scared him badly, Henry once again being reminded that death was nipping at his heels. Propelled forward, he limped in the only direction he could go; towards the lake.

—————————–

Gathering her courage, and sliding her sharpest knife into the back of her belt, Olivia crept to the door and opened it, gasping as the man’s head fell lifeless into her home, thankfully still attached to his very poorly-clothed body. Most residents of the state knew better than to go anywhere without a snow coat, good sturdy boots, and thick pants, yet the man had on little more than jeans, sneakers, and a sweater. It’d be a wonder if she could save him even with all her knowledge. Mildly annoyed that her perfectly-planned day had gone haywire so early, and more than a little grumpy from lack of food, Olivia nevertheless hooked her arms under his and dragged him inside, laying him down in front of the hearth before locking the doors, and setting about gathering what she would need in order to try and wake him, patch him up, and hopefully get him out at the earliest possibility.

For lack of ammonia, she used alcohol as a smelling salt, waving a cotton bud soaked in it under his nose as she watched the water begin to boil in the pot on the fire. A homemade salve, several lengths of cotton batting, and honey from her own hive all sat to the side, ready to be used in cleansing and dressing whatever wounds were causing him to bleed so profusely. As she waited for him to come around, Olivia took stock of the man, noting his fine features, soft hands, and well-manicured beard. A nomad he was not, though his clothes had broadcast as much the moment she saw them. No, wherever this man was from, he was definitely not prepared for nature, and if she had to venture a guess, he’d crashed on the road above the clearing and had been driving in a climate-controlled car before being ejected into mother nature’s frozen arms.

When he showed no sign of waking, Olivia set to work on cleaning what she could see. The two gashes on his head, both at the hairline were her first priority. Cleaning them thoroughly, she applied a liberal amount of honey to each before fashioning the bandages so that they pulled the wounds closed. While she was a fair hand at sewing, none of her threads were strong enough to hold skin together and she didn’t want to take the risk of adding to any potential infections. 

With the rest of his body still clothed, she pushed his large frame closer to the hearth, covering him in her thickest blanket and taking off his water-logged shoes and socks to check for frostbite. When all she saw was irritated red skin, Olivia dried his feet and applied cornstarch before letting the blanket fall back over his toes, knowing he needed to get warm, but without shocking his system and short of a warm bath, laying next to the hearth would be his best bet. 

Satisfied that she’d done as much as she could, Olivia cleaned up and went upstairs to change into something a little more comfortable than all the layers she’d been wearing. Donning a gauzy moss-green dress that dragged along the floor, she threw a long-sleeved shawl over it and, feeling the beginnings of a hunger headache starting, took down her hair from its messy bun, knotting only the top half before putting a hair stick through it, Olivia feeling immediately better.

—————————–

Henry wasn’t sure what heaven–or hell–was supposed to be like, but he was almost certain neither place was supposed to be wet. Groaning, he turned his head, only to feel like his entire brain had shifted sloppily from one side of his skull to the other. Unwilling to open his eyes, his hand found its way out from under the weight that was on it, managing to bat away whatever was causing his face to feel like it had been slimed. 

“Gunnar!” A voice hissed, and though it hurt to do so, Henry finally cracked open an eyelid, wishing he could move faster as he found himself in a veritable witch’s cottage. Dark wood served as the backdrop for more candles than he had ever seen in one home. As his vision cleared, Henry made out several animal bones, and what he could only imagine to be an altar of some sort, given the rather large deer skull surrounded by rune stones, a dish of herbs, more candles, and a beautifully polished stone of some sort. 

Waiting for the stereotypical hag to appear, Henry was startled when around the corner came the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes on. If he were in heaven, he’d gladly deal with the pagan stylings of whatever angel called this place home. 

Watching as the dog who’d just been giving his face a bath moved away, Henry tried to find his voice, but what came out was a croaky jumble of words that only served to put an amused smile on the angel’s face. 

“Dead? You heaven?”

[sohin-ace]

Dio - Eternity

This is cross-posted from Wattpad and available on AO3.

Enjoy~

You stood at the entrance of a particular alley in the dead of night. The same alley you always stood at when you waited for clients.

The night was cold and the icy air hit your lungs painfully, freezing you from the inside. Your hands were numb and flushed red as you rubbed them together, trying to get some desperate amount of heat to warm them up.

Tonight, you were waiting for him. You've known him for years, way before he moved from the city to live with the Joestar family. But he recently came back to you and started asking for your services.

"My apologies," You heard from behind you. "I made you wait out in the harsh cold." The man said, his voice deep and quiet he slowly approached you.

You turned around only to be met with the blonde man you were expecting. You sighed with relief upon seeing his face.

"Dio..." You breathed out with a smile, your breath visible in the night air. "It's fine, I didn't wait long."

You wanted to get straight down to business as you reached inside your pockets, but before you could even try, he leaned down and grabbed your hands and engulfed them in his much bigger ones.

You gasped slightly. His hands were surprisingly warm and almost burned against your frozen ones, but it felt nice.

"It has been quite awhile since last time, Y/N. Let's take our time tonight." He looked down at you and squeezed your hands a bit tighter, feeling them warm up by the minute.

"Don't you want your merchandise and get back? It's pretty late too... Or should I say early?" You chuckled and looked up at him as he gave off the ghost of a smile. "You should just take it and go home quick. You don't have to pay me tonight, since it's you."

"No I have the money. I just want to cherish my time with you." You quirked an eyebrow in surprise.

"Oh? That's new. I didn't remember Dio to be this affectionate." You teased a bit but softened your tone. "Why do you sound like you're going to die soon?"

"Don't be stupid." He spat, "You're closer to death than I'll ever be, look at what you do for a living."

You gasped dramatically, pretending offense. "Hey! Don't judge me, Mr. Attorney who buys drugs!"

He released your hands and glared at you as you giggled at his expression. You hit a sensitive spot. You reached for your pockets again and took out a small pouch. You opened it to reveal a bundle of tablets to him.

"I don't know many people who would order this one, so I shouldn't be mistaken." He nodded and you secured the bag again and handed it to him.

"Thank you." He hid the product inside his coat and you looked away, worry evident in your eyes. "What's the matter, Y/N?"

"Dio... I don't usually ask my clients questions because it's really none of my business, but you're important to me..."

"Oh? Then ask away as you like, darling." He replied almost teasingly as he took in your soft trailing voice.

"Who are these for...?"

He paused for a second, his smug grin faltering from his face and his eyes cast in a strange shadow.

Dio could trust you with a lot of things, but he would never give away his own plan. Despite what you did for a living, you were a good person. If you knew the truth, you would for sure turn your back to him.

He couldn't take that risk. He thought for a moment, choosing his words carefully.

"I think what you are asking is, are those for me? No need to worry, those are not for me."

You sighed in relief. "When I started selling them to you, I warned you about the doses and the side effects."

"I am aware, Y/N."

"Those are deadly, Dio. Be careful."

He puffed in sheer amusement, making a cloud of condensation in the process. Oh how adorable you were when you were worried about his safety. Him, a complete demon. The last person to worry about.

He laid a big hand on your cold cheek surprisingly gently, lifting your face up to meet his amber eyes as he leaned down to your level.

"Y/N, keep on fending for yourself, like the strong woman that you are, and stop fretting about me, as I am a strong man as well."

You stared at his hypnotizing orbs and laid your hand to rest on his own as you nuzzled in his warmth, closing your eyes. "Hmm... If all my clients were as charming as you, I would go out of business so fast."

He smiled and let go of you as he gave you your amount due. You weighed the bag in your hands and looked at him with wide questionning eyes.

"Th-... This is way too much...?"

"Keep the change." He simply stated, putting his hands back in his pockets and you scoffed at him.

"Are you looking down on me, Lord Dio?"

He smirked at you, knowing well you were only half serious. He wished he had more time with you to drive you even more crazy. You neatly put the money away in your coat and wore your best smug expression.

"Joke's on you, Brando, I'm already used to robbing the rich."

"Good for you, Dealer Queen." He mocked and you joined him in his laughter. "Well, as much as I enjoy your company, it is time for me to go. I am... Unsure of when I will come back."

You showed him a reassuring smile. "Well you know where to find me, Dio. Same place as always."

"Sure. Don't stay out too long, Y/N." He turned on his heels and started walking away as you called out.

"Okay. Tell your brother I said Hi!" He turned his head around and deadpanned at you, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Yes, I'm telling my goody-two-shoes brother the local drug dealer said Hi."

You burst out laughing as rolled his eyes and finally left, ready to pursue his evil plan. Once he was done with all of this, he would come back to take you, he promised to himself.

"You just wait..."

You walked alone in the dark streets that you knew like the back of your hand. You were directing yourself back home after finishing all your business.

Fleeing away from the stinky alleyways and taverns, from the drunkards, prostitutes and drug addicts, even though you were partially to blame for their demise.

A lot has happened during the last few weeks and you didn't know what to think anymore. As you neared the Thames, you heard a noise behind you. Footsteps on snow, to be exact. You tried to ignore it, but the anxiety-inducing, padding noises were getting louder and louder.

Whoever he was, he was following you, for sure.

"What the hell do you want?" You spat without even turning around, gripping the small knife you kept in your pocket tightly.

"You wound me, Y/N. At least face me if this is how you greet an old friend." You'd recognize that deep voice anywhere. You gasped and whipped around to look at him.

"Dio?!" You smiled and approached him, sighing heavily with relief. "You scared me! Don't creep up behind me like th-..."

Your breath cut short as you walked up to him and got a better look at his features. You noticed something was different, but you couldn't quite put your finger on it.

He showed you a confused look as to why you went quiet so suddenly. You squinted your eyes slightly at your blonde friend.

"Have you... Done something to your eyes...? You look so pale too, Dio are you okay...?"

Dio decided he would go straight to the point. He was looking for you for a reason and he would not beat around the bush.

"Y/N, I came for you." He spoke honestly and your eyes widened slightly.

His tone was different than usual and something told you that he didn't come to you as a client tonight. Nor as a friend, either.

"For me...?"

"I realized something crucial. Humans have their limits," You didn't say anything and listened closely to his words, taking in his grave tone. "But I have walked beyond humanity."

"Beyond..." You repeated with confusion, trying to process what he was talking about, but he just continued.

"I rejected all of it in order to go further."

You couldn't understand any of what he meant, but you knew he was dead serious and it scared you. That intense look in his blood red eyes piercing right into your soul made your heart pump faster in your chest.

"...What do you mean... Dio?" You said, voice shaking between heavy breaths.

He took out an ominous looking stone mask and you stared down at it, eyes wide and mouth agape. What was that? What was happening?

"Y/N... join me. There isn't much people in this filthy world that I can trust, but you... I want you by my side. Come and spend eternity with me."

He offered an inviting hand towards you. You glanced from his hand to his face and gasped as you finally noticed his sharp fangs coming out of his mouth. Just, what did he become?

But before you could voice your thoughts or even react and him sensing your hesitation, he forcefully grabbed your wrist and pulled you right against him. He wouldn't take no for an answer.

"D-Dio wait-!"

You struggled, but he wrapped his strong arms around you, locking you flush against his solid chest. You tried to push him off, but it was useless, he was way stronger and bigger than you were.

Your mind was racing, you never felt this scared in your life. You knew Dio had always been a tempered man, but never had he ever brutalized you in any way, shape or form. You couldn't recognize him.

He secured one steel arm around you, making sure you couldn't move away, only to then bite on the hand that was holding the mask. Immediately after, he slammed the stone mask onto your face, smearing his blood on it in the process.

You gripped on his hand and the mask in a desperate attempt to remove it as it effectively muffled your screams and whimpers.

"PLEASE DIO, I-" You were sharply cut off by the mask planting its appendices right through your skull, killing you instantly, leaving him in a haunting silence.

Your soft cold hands slid from his wrist and you went completely limp in Dio's arms as he held you close, preventing you from collapsing to the ground.

The mask shook and abruptly retreated its grip on you, slipping from your face and revealing to the blond the sight of your peaceful expression. Your face now pale with death and your lips darkening with blood.

"Absolutely gorgeous." Dio breathed out, admiring his work of art under the moonlight.

You were already a beautiful woman before, but now you were just stunning. The look of immortality suited you best.

Just then, your lids twitched slightly and your eyebrows furrowed, signaling your awakening to him.

"A-aah..." You groaned, feeling a burning sensation in your dry throat. You weakly grabbed on Dio's coat for support as you looked up at him, his familiar face welcoming you back. "Dio... What happened?"

"How do you feel, Y/N?"

"I-...I'm thirsty... I'm so thirsty it hurts..." You whimpered with pain and confusion and Dio tightened his protective hold on you.

"Shhh, it's okay, calm down." He shushed you with a soothing voice as he studied the fragile look on your now crimson eyes.

Perfect. It was just perfect. Everything was falling into place and with you beside him, his goal was coming even closer to his reach.

"Don't worry about a thing, Y/N. I'll explain everything to you in due time. For now, sleep."

Your mind clouded, you could only obey as you closed your eyes, falling slowly into slumber.

You trusted Dio blindly, and not having much to lose anyway, you didn't mind anything that was occuring.

You could hardly be blamed, most people trusted the man carelessly as well, that is how charismatic he was, after all.

He hoisted you effortlessly in his arms and walked off, ready to take care of you. He looked forward to this new life with you.

Oh how eager and motivated he was to get rid of Jonathan now.

[venacoeurva]

Aftermath, Chapter 10: A Familiar Coldness

You can read this on AO3 here.

If you are new to this fic, you can start from chapter 1 here. And PLEASE read the tags and the notes at the start of each chapter for content warnings, I am not responsible for your mental health, you are.

This chapter is rated: T (mostly for language)

Terra considers the main personal topics of the month, Isa is angry and kind of a mess(again), Lea is disappointed in Isa (again), and night lights are an important part to a home. This isn't a very action-packed chapter, mostly fleshing out a pathway to future events and to get some of Terra's perspective and concerns before more Isa perspective-centric chapters.

No trigger warnings for this one unless you don't like someone having a panic attack, otherwise it's fairly mild.

            The clouds began to cover the world in a blanket of snow, sky a dark gray and quiet as everyone went to their homes.

           There were a few persistent things on Terra’s mind as he power-walked back home, them being what Xemnas was up to, was Vanitas acclimating to not having to fight all the time, and if Isa was fine with being called Isa now or if he was just running with it because everyone called him that. It seemed like he’d ask at least him and Lea to call him something else if he wasn’t for being called that, though. He’d have to ask.

           Vanitas was still very much a work in progress, as much as any teenager who was originally existing only to become a weapon and was beaten in combat every day. The pain he felt with every Unversed’s demise only made it harder on him. He still mostly avoided everyone sans Ventus, who he was very clingy toward despite proclaiming how annoying he was. His days still comprised of trailing warily after Ven while holding on to some article of clothing which was usually a sleeve or wristband, being angry, and having panic attacks before going to his room for hours. He was very sensitive to being seen crying. So yeah, he had a while and needed to work on a lot to even be remotely functional.

           If he was mature enough and comfortable, he could sit down with Isa and discuss their abusive upbringings and find solidarity, but Vanitas definitely wasn’t at the point of discussing that. It wasn’t like Isa was open to just telling anyone about his childhood, either; he’d probably just shut off his feelings again and Saïx-mode would activate.

           Speaking of, Saïx mode hadn’t been seen in quite a while. Maybe he was coping with emotions better now, or just better at suppressing them to the point where it wasn't like there was an on-off switch on him.

           And then there was Xemnas. It also wasn’t hard to tell he did not like Xemnas—he represented the darkest point of Terra’s existence. He was his own body moving and doing without much of his input, and now he was basically a copy of him with a different personality that budded within his body prior! Xemnas was a walking effigy of trauma for him.

           Now, he could sympathize with Isa as to why he was apparently somewhat fond of him, though. What he did not understand was how those feelings coexisted so easily with his plans to casually murder him. Saïx was an enigma, and he would use the useful and discard the impractical if the situation called for it—that was about the best reasoning he could come up with. Also, abandonment issues and patricide.

           As time went on, more memories from his time as Xemnas and Xemnas as a separate entity came back to him, and the more he began to comprehend their interactions as well as the thoughts and feelings of the people within his body at the time. He could see the branching off as their heart recovered and Xemnas gained his own sense of self. It seemed only natural for him to do so while his heart formed even if he was going to be strong-armed as a vessel if he didn’t want to comply. Whether he was reluctant or not was debatable, but he has his own motives outside of that whole issue.

           Some information was helpful socially, like he remembered that Isa couldn’t lay on his stomach and feel something on his back or else he’d panic and get violent and he had always hated people touching him before he could see them. In retrospect, that made a lot of sense why when he was affectionate he’d be consistently looking at whoever the recipient was or initiated it himself. Prior to remembering this, Terra wasn’t sure if Isa disliked the latter purely because of his jumpiness after moving into the apartment—partially because of what he went through and because his mental breakdown put him in a pretty bad place. That was an easy assumption to make, to be fair.

           Other things he could recall were that Braig was very picky with what brushes he could use to tame his hair (no wonder it always looked so silky and free of snarls), Lea would drink basically anything caffeinated but really liked macchiatos and energy drinks that should probably be banned and he was double-jointed, and Vexen could reach incredibly high octaves if you scared him badly enough. The man could be an opera singer or could join a choir.

           Regardless, it would be so strange to see Xemnas separate from him, to see someone who was basically an exact clone going about completely independently from him and Xehanort. This wasn’t to say Terra anticipated seeing him; he would greatly prefer he instead melt back into nothingness and everyone could just move on like before he made his not-so-grand return. It wasn’t like he could state this out loud, as it was fairly harsh, but he knew that sentiment could be read from him enough already. Maybe that’s why Isa felt so distant on a personal level; he didn’t feel like he could talk about any of it with him, now. Too much bias and Isa got a sense that discussing him was basically taboo. That kind of hurt.

           He knew Isa was in a strange place emotionally, he was showing signs of slipping into a depressive episode again, and he remembered now that Xemnas…well. He knew Isa couldn’t know that—not now. It wasn’t even his place to say it, it was Xemnas’, but he felt responsible in keeping it from him as long as he could if he didn’t already know. There was no benefit for anyone, it would just cause more problems.

           He had to wonder if that would bite him in the ass later.

           The fluffy snow bounced off him as he continued on and wished the climate was a bit more tropical or arid. At least a hot shower would feel wondrous. Then he’d make dinner after that—it was his turn—and take a nice nap.

           He unlocked the door and stepped in, slipping his shoes off by the mat. He heard Lea in the kitchen, voice low. Freezing where he stood, he listened in.

           “…I mean, I’m glad you’re doing better but I don’t think you should act like here is the perfect place to cap your recovery off.” Lea sighed.

           “How am I doing that?” Isa asked, irritated, “And do you even know what the full extent of what I need to recover from is?”

           “Just—why? You were doing so well and getting used to people and all that then you start cutting other people off again!”

           “Any improvement from being an antisocial hermit seems like a big one, Lea. It’s plateauing right now since I can function for the most part but I still have incredibly low energy and my depressive symptoms aren’t as manageable knowing I can feel. There’s a burnout in improvement once it’s survivable, and mine happens to be a long but not intense one.”

           Isa sighed and continued. “Just because there’s still feelings, too, it doesn’t mean I’m going ahead with it. There’s no guaranteed chance of that. It’s not like he’s the only one, either, and you know that. We simply grew up too much for our relationship to stay romantic and functional, so can you stop blaming this for the reason why I’m not dating you again?”

           “How am I using that as an excuse?” Lea sputtered. “I mean, duh, I’m a bit salty he’s an option for you and not me, but that’s not…”

           “Why can’t we hold a conversation without this happening?” Isa hissed, half at Lea and half at himself. “Why do you come over like you’re not going to let your jealousy turn into an argument?”

           “It’s not jealousy! I’m just worried because, y’know, maybe developing feelings for your former superior who is also kind of nuts is a bad thing.”

           “You have some gall to act innocent when you’re part of the reason that’s even an issue now.”

           Lea growled, "Seriously?"

           Isa stood up, hands slamming hard on the table. “It was your idea to go into that castle, dumbass! And then after that horror show and we were proper traumatized, you just decide to fuck off and abandon me!”

           “Your interests weren’t for the better good, by that point, and they weren’t just about getting out! You were emotionally torturing these kids because you saw them as weapons and the fact I was friends with them when we thought we couldn't feel anything. And—and don’t act like I never went back for you! I care about you, but not enough to jeopardize other people I care about.” Lea snarled.

           “Well too bad you didn’t stay and we would have gotten the job done before any of that would have happened!” Isa roared, a familiar vibration in his voice that signaled that maybe it was time to step in.

           Terra loudly closed the door and could hear them turn in their seats.

           “Just me.” He called.

           “Ah, hey, dude.” Lea grunted as he casually got out of his seat and walked into the living room, attempting to make his expression as relaxed as possible.

           Isa didn’t follow and could be heard sipping something out of a mug with the intensity of a thousand suns.

           “Sorry for not being able to catch up with ya, I have places to be.” Lea stated and slipped past Terra.

           “Are you sure…?” Terra quietly muttered as he watched him close the door behind him.

           He walked into the kitchen to see Isa sat at the table with a rather peeved expression and clenched fists.

           Folding his arms, he gave him a sympathetic smile. “I, uh, walk in on something? There was yelling.”

           “He’s got the wrong idea, and I wish he’d stop being caught up in the fact I’m not attracted to him anymore. Just because I don’t want to date him doesn’t mean I don’t care about him. That, and he shouldn't get to act like he never caused me pain just because he came back and because I did things wrong, too.”

           “It can take a while to process being rejected, especially if it’s someone you used to date and thought you had a chance with again. Plus, a lot has happened with you two--sort of, uh, hurting each other.”

           Isa rubbed his temples, shaking his head.

           “I can see why you’re kind of reluctant to have him over if that happens every time.” Terra added and went to get a glass of milk.

           “He clings to the past too much, and I think he’s jealous but won’t admit it flat-out.”

           “I’m sure that’s part of it. He’ll get over it and be bearable to talk to…probably. I think he expected you two to go back to being on really good terms when, well, too much changed and he got out of the pessimistic mindset from earlier and ended up with some hope.”

           Isa groaned and sank in his chair, taking another drink.

           “He acts like I was the one who abandoned him first.”

           “Give him time to cool down and probably a mediator.” Terra reassured, turning to him. “What are you hungry for?”

           “I have no real preference. I think I’m going to nap this off. I’m getting a migraine.” Isa uttered.

           Terra watched him aggressively shuffle to the couch and lay down. He turned back to the counter and looked over his options. They had a nice new rice cooker, so they could at least have rice to put something on. Maybe stir-fry? No, he wasn’t going to attempt that. He could just bake some potatoes; those kept well for a few hours after being made.

           Tying his hair back, he shuffled to the pantry and pulled a few big potatoes out.

           How and why did one of the major issues right now end up being relationship drama? He should be thankful for that, but still, why? hopefully that would resolve soon.

           “It’s getting pretty dark out.” Isa groggily stated, looking up from his place on the couch and out the big window above it. “I think that snow storm is coming in.”

           “At least the weather can decide what it wants to do. By the way, some baked potatoes are in the oven when you want them.” Terra said as he walked by with a laundry basket of his clothes to put away.

           “For a few days.”

           Terra resumed, walking into the bedroom and sliding open the drawers on his side of the dresser. He set the basket down and flipped the light switch up. The shadows in the corners dissipated and he sat on the floor to fold some pants.

           He pursed his lips, deep in thought (and annoyance) about the weather and how uncomfortable it would be to work out in that world if he was going to. It wouldn’t be as bad if the gardens didn’t get so icy.

           He stood, and the room went pitch black.

           The hairs on the back of his neck prickled, stomach twisted, and electricity shot up his spine. Blood rushed through his ears and the primal fear set in. If he could have seen the room, it would be spinning.

           Frozen but his heart beating out of his chest, Terra softly gasped. He felt absolutely trapped, suffocating in the inky dark. Oh no, not again. He expected to feel the pain of a heart ripping forcing its way into his chest, the blue moon glaring balefully down, and watching himself split into two people in succession, but every memory pounced on him at once.

           He squeezed his eyes shut so that face wouldn’t be staring at him, but he couldn't quash the images flashing under his eyelids or the feeling of what it was like to fade. Oh, god, he couldn’t breathe. One hand on his chest and the other on his throat, trying to force himself to breathe normally, damnit! His balance was off, head light, and he felt like his legs weighed tons.

           “Terra. Breathe.”

           A hand slowly pressed onto his shoulder.

           He blinked, shivering and wrenching his eyes upward to make some sense of where he was.

           “Terra,” Isa murmured as he knelt down, a small flame dancing on his hand, “the power went out.”

           “The—oh…”

           Using water for electricity was fairly cheap and generally stable, but they had to adapt with the wind, magic, sun, and coal after the fall. There were quite a few blackouts and brownouts already. That was the nice thing about The Castle That Never Was--it didn't have outages.

           Isa wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him up onto quaking legs and letting him lean on him. If there's one thing he learned about Terra, it's he reacted well to tactile stimulation when panicking or anxious. It was unusual compared to other people with similar issues to the two of them, but the fact he went a decade with dulled senses and a lack of stimulation made sense of why he found comfort in being touched and being able to feel it fully. Isa was the same way, but he just didn't like being alone in that state.

           “It’s warmest in here, so let’s sit on the bed while you calm down and I'll get the extra blankets.”

           Isa patted his shoulder and led him around.

           “I didn’t think the dark would do that to me.” Terra grunted and sat. "I thought it was the moon."

           He gripped the covers under him and took a few slow but deep breaths. Maybe it was both?

           Isa sat down next to him. “We could always get one of those dusk-to-dawn nightlights that are hardly bright but are noticeable and have a battery for when the power goes out. We, or I, could go get one today while picking up some other things once you calm down more.”

           He dug into his nightstand for a flashlight, adding, “Maybe the power will be back on by the time we get back.”

           “Or maybe tomorrow. Look outside, it's snowing pretty hard and I'm sure a lot of places have no power. But I just…can’t believe I’m afraid of the dark.” Terra groaned, tired and sulky.

           “To be fair, it’s so dark out and the blinds are closed, it was very abrupt." Isa clicked the light to life. "There's usually some light pouring in from outside, even at night.”

           “It’s such a lame thing to be scared of, though, even if there are valid reasons!” Terra sighed, standing back up now that he could get his bearings and it didn't feel like his lungs were going to implode.

           Isa patted him on the shoulder again and stepped past to go to the living room. “Terra, I’m scared of walking down stairs with someone somewhat close behind me. Yours makes sense after everything you went through and because it's so much harder to avoid the dark.”

           “So does yours…” Terra quietly retorted as he slowly followed after him.

           Just because it's been so long and you don't remember what...

[the-gedonelune-times]

Blossoming Romance

Hello everyone! I come with good news xD firstly, *pops confetti* this blog has officially gotten 20 followers and I think it’s amazing! Thank you guys so much for the support~. Secondly, I’ve finally caved in and decided to write my first Lulias story, I had actually planned to write one a while back and I started it, but I left it unfinished, because I lacked the motivation and I felt that the writing for it was terrible. But I recently found it and decided, “why not?”

So here it is! A short fluffy story for all the Lulias fans out there~ I hope you all enjoy it and as always, comments are accepted and welcomed! xoxoxo

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It was just another ordinary day at Gedonelune Royal Magic Academy, students were packing their things and shuffling to get to their next class. One such student with his prominent look and dignified stance made him stand out among the rest, his blonde hair and violet eyes were a dead giveaway for a certain green eyed girl. who now chased after him. "Hey Elias!" the girl called out while waving to him, he would give a gentle smile and would stand there for a few more moments, watching her push her way through the "zombie" hoard of students.

"You know we are going to the same class together right Nadia? Was there really a need to stop me in the middle of the hallway?" Elias folded his arms as he spoke, watching the girl rummage around in her bag. "As a matter of fact, there is. Klaus wanted me to give this to you." As she spoke, she brought out a note and handed it to him

"I won't be attending classes for the rest of the day, I've been excused from it by your brother." Elias let out a soft chuckle "is he finally taking you on that date you were hoping for?" Nadia blushed softly before laughing nervously "if by "date" you mean having to work until my legs are like jelly, then yeah, I'm going on a date." The girl then laughed and said "see you later" before turning around and heading in the direction of the prefect's office.

Elias then took his leave and headed to his next and final class, today it would be potions with professor Merkulova, which for him would be good news, since Merkulova usually gave a small exam for them to work on. For him, this meant that he could finish rather quickly and use the remainder of the time to read. This thought alone gave the will to smile, but that smile faded away rather quickly when he saw that Luca actually showed up for class.

What on earth was he doing here? Luca rarely ever came to class and when he did, it would only be when Nadia would bring in sweets, or when he knew she'd screw up a spell, so he could tease her. Luca turned to look in Elias' direction, that trademark smirk of his was plastered on his face, Elias quickly looked away, his face was becoming warm as he hurriedly made his way to his seat and waited for class to begin.

"Soo my dear prince how has the day been going for you?" Luca's warm breath tickled his  ears as he whispered "it was fine until you showed up.." Elias then hid his face inside the pages of his Grimoire. Luca let out a sigh and headed to his own seat, which at that point, Elias put his Grimoire on his desk and sighed in relief. He'd never admit it to Luca, but in reality, he was glad he had attended class today, in fact he wished that he'd come to classes more often, but he knew thatit'd most likely never happen.

The rest of the class had went well, until Merkulova had insisted that this particular exam, would be done with partners. Of course, Luca took this opprotunity to pair up with Elias, though, much to Elias' demise, he was the one who did most of the work while Luca stood there teasing him constantly. Of course Elias gave a few hisses of distaste when he'd do that, but the truth of it all, was that his heart would race and his thoughts ran wild when Luca teased him the way he always did.

Students ran out of the classroom as the final bell rang out, leaving only Elias and Luca in the now empty room. "You did really well today Prince, determined and regal as usual" Luca's voice filled Elias' ears as he finished gathering up his stuff, and when he looked up, he realized Luca was right in front of his face, a smirk plastered on his face.

"Don't you know when to shut up?" Elias snapped at him and looked away afterwards "guess not, maybe you should make me" Luca's comment made Elias blush, but luckily his back was turn and his face was hidden from Luca's gaze. "Maybe if you came to classes more often, you'd learn how" Elias didn't wait around to hear Luca's remark, instead, he began to walk rather quickly back to his dorm.

Once there, he tossed his bag aside and flopped down on his bed, slightly groaning. "What's wrong with you? Did Luca have something to do with this, or..?" Yukiya, whom had been silently been playing around with Snow, now spoke up and Elias rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling for a few moments before letting out a sigh. "It was Luca, he actually attended classes today, I guess it justt shocked me a little". "You know...I can see how you act with each other in class, I've seen it a few times, today included.."

Elias pushed himself upwards, allowing him to sit on the edge of his bed, looking directly at Yukiya. "What exactly do you mean by that?" "I mean...you act so differently around him then with others.." Elias scoffed at Yukiya's remark before folding his arms. "I act differently around him because he's obnoxious, loud irresponsible, oh I just...I--" "like him.." cutting Elias off, Yukiya looked directly at Elias. "What?!" "You like him Elias, I can see it on your face and by the way you act around him."

"Yukiya, you're wrong, that's not true at all, there's no way that I like Luca, never in a million years." "keep telling yourself that Elias...but you and I both know the truth. You should just admit it to him or at least admit it to yourself...you shouldn't always ignore that feeling you have. Trust me when I say that next time you see him, you should tell him about what you're feeling. It might make you feel better.." Elias was now silent after Yukiya spoke, he knew that Yukiya was right about it all but there were so many factors that came into play with a situation like this.

"What do I do then? How do I tell him? I don't even know what to say or how he'll react or even how other would react, it scares me a little being unable to see what could happen in the future." Elias could feel tears starting to swell and threaten to fall down his cheek, but his composure remained strong as he waited for a possible answer from his friend. "You could always ask Nadia, she's a girl and she's dating your brother, she's can also see the future, maybe she could tell you how everything will play out?"

Closing his eyes, Elias forced the tears back and let out a sigh "I might go and have a talk with her tomorrow. Thanks for the talk Yukiya, I really do appreciate it" "no problem". Elias had changed into his sleepwear a few minutes later and then lied back down in bed. He was on his side, the wall was the only thing truly in his vision, but in his mind, Luca kept appearing. Elias knew that tomorrow was the day he had to confess to Luca, he had to, because Yukiya was right, if he kept hiding and pushing these feelings away, it'd only make him feel worse. Even now, he felt bad, the number of emotions that were swirling through him, made him just want to scream, but he knew that even screaming wouldn't do much good at this point.

Elias guessed that his thoughts pushed him to the brink of exhaustion, because when he woke up, the sun was shining brightly through the curtains of their balcony door. He grumbled softly and got up, rubbing his eyes, he then looked at the clock on the wall and noticed that it was already nine. "Shit!" muttering under his breath, Elias hurriedly ran to go get his clothes and take a quick shower, he'd never been late before in his life and he wasn't about to start now. As he grabbed his clothes, he could hear a faint snoring and noticed the Yukiya was still fast asleep, oblivious to the situation that was taking place.

"Yukiya!" Elias quickly made his way to Yukiya's bed and began shaking him, "Yukiya, wake up! We're going to be late for class!" Elias heard Yukiya mumbled something under his breath before he swatted Elias' hand away. "Yukiya! I'm not messing around, get up!" Elias' voice became louder as he spoke, which prompted Yukiya, who was still half-asleep, to open his eyes a little and look at Elias. "Why are you yelling..?" "because we're going to be late for classes! So get up!".

"There's no classes today Elias...it's a leisure day, don't you remember professor Merkulova mentioning that during our exams..?" Yukiya groggily asked before pulling his blanket up to cover most of his face. Elias stood there with a confused expression on his face, how could forget something like that? Then it hit him, during their exams, Elias had been so fixated on Luca, that it was possible that he didn't hear Merkulova mention it.

"I'm sorry for waking you then, Yukiya" the only response Elias got out of Yukiya, was more soft snoring, Elias couldn't help but laugh a little at this sight, however, he didn't stay for long. He had let and made his way to the bathroom where he quickly took a shower and got dressed, he then sat down and wrote a magic note, telling Nadia to come and meet him somewhere so that they could talk.

Elias had headed out to the designated spot and was now sitting on a bench out by the botanical garden, waiting for Nadia to come. "Elias!" Elias looked in the direction of the voice and saw Nadia running towards him, she looked almost out of breath when she got to him. "I'm so sorry...I..I had to do a few things before coming here. Plus Klaus' training didn't help much" Nadia then took a seat next to him. "I take it that my brother's training tactics caused much needed sleep loss?" Nadia gave a soft chuckle "yep, but that's besides the point, you said you needed to talk? What's up?"

"I...need help with something, see, what if you have something important to say to someone, what would you do? what would you say?" Nadia tilted her head to side a little before putting her hands together "That's a good question, I guess it'd depend on the situation". "What if it had to do with..um..feelings?" Elias' voice trailed off at the last bit of the sentence, causing Nadia to smile softly. "Well...then I can't help you much then Elias." Elias' expression turned into one of confusion "w-wait, what do you mean by that? Why can't you help me?!" Elias' heart almost dropped to the ground as he spoke.

"Elias.." gently patting him on the back, Nadia smiled "for situations like these, you have to rely on this" placing her hand on her chest, where he heart was, Nadia gave another soft smile. "I have to rely on..my heart?" Elias asked curiously, unsure if this would really help or not, "Of course! Your heart can help give you the answers you seek, but only if you let it help you." Elias raised an eyebrow and looked at her, still a little confused "you seem so confident in saying this..." 

Giving a soft giggle, Nadia smiled at the sky, "of course I'm confident, I listened to my heart and now here I am, an official student of the academy, not to mention my relationship with Klaus has continued to strengthen. So Elias, listen to your heart and I promise that you too, can find the words you want to say to your special someone." This time, it was Elias' turn to smile "Thank you Nadia, I'll keep this in mind. I'm sorry to cut this outing short, but I really should get going, thanks again."Elias got up from the bench and began running to where Luca's usual spot was, leaving Nadia to chuckle to herself before she too, headed out her own way. By the time Elias made it to the old small library, where some student came for quiet study, he noticed a figure propped up against the window. The sunlight poured down on the figure, their sleepy face looked elegant in the sun's embrace, not to mention a lone earring shimmered and sparkled in the light. Elias knew right away who it was, but he refused to say anything, because at this point in time, they were sleeping. Elias couldn't look away though and instead he moved closer to the sleeping figure.

“Is this some sort of hidden hobby of yours prince Elias?" "L-Luca?! N-no!, I just...came here to study" opening an eyes, Luca peered at Elias, a smirk formed on his face and Elias swore that if he kept this up, his face would be red as a cherry. "You came here to a cramped area to study, instead of the massive library? Now do tell me, why you'd do that?" Luca stretched and yawned softly before moving to the end of the couch he was laying on.

"Luca..." taking a deep breath Elias then took a step forward, "there's something that I need to say.." Luca locked eyes with Elias' and crossed his arms, while giving a curious look "what is it?" "I...I um..I well..." "I get it prince, you want me to leave you be so you can study." Luca laughed as he got up and headed towards the door and opened it, but as he was about to step out, he felt a tug on his arm and was then pulled backwards, where he came into contact with a blushing faced Elias. "Luca, that's not it!" "then what is it then?! Why can't I leave?"

Having gone silent, Elias was now biting his lip and had his eyes averted from Luca's gaze "if you have nothing to say then I'm leaving" Luca then slid Elias' hand off of his arm and turned around, only to be pulled in again. "Stop doing that! You can't leave! I haven't even told you that I loved you yet!!" Elias then gasped and put his hands on his mouth. "What..?" "y-you heard m-me, I said I love you, you big idiot.." Elias then bit his lip again and looked to the side, his eyes closed and his face, red with embarrassment.

Luca smirked and gently forced Elias to face him "L-luca what are yo--....!" Elias was unable to finish his sentence. Luca had gently placed his lips against his, causing Elias to close his eyes. Luca's lips tasted like macaroons and he wished he could taste them forever, but Luca then pulled away, leaving Elias not only breathless and embarrassed, but also craving more. "So, that's what you wanted to tell me?" "Y-yes...it's not bad right?" Luca shook his head at Elias' question and then gave a smirk "truth is, I liked you too, I probably should have told you earlier, but seeing you be bold like that, made this all worth while."

"S-so...does..this um, mean e're official..?" Elias looked at Luca as he spoke and Luca smirked softly before stroking Elias' cheek gently and placing another kiss on his lips "does that answer your question?" "m-maybe you should confirm it once more..?" a smile crept on Elias' lips as he spoke which caused Luca to smile in response.

"Anything for my beloved prince" Luca then cupped Elias' cheeks and planted another kiss, one that was longer and more passion filled then the others. Once their lips parted, they headed out of the room together, hand in hand back to the dorms, where Elias even mentioned plans for Luca to come home with him one day during a holiday break. Their love was now blossoming into something big and Elias couldn't be happier.

[ardynium]

Since so many of you liked Dad!Cor, Kid!Prom and ye olde weird uncle Ardyn, have a second part, some years later. If you got any wishes/ ideas what to do with our merry roommates, shoot me a line.

“I don't think you can keep her. Look, she must belong to somebody.“ Cor took a deep breath and steeled for the flood of tears that was bound to come. “But... but... we can't put her back on the street! She's hurt.” Prompto held on to the puppy, gentle for a nine-year-old. “Look!” “That she is.“ Uncle Ardyn stared at her in utter distrust. Usually he liked dogs, but something about this puppy seemed to rub him the wrong way. Prompto looked up at him. “She... can stay in my room? You won't even have to see her. Just until she's all healed up?” Cor sighed. “We will take pictures of her and make leaflets. Until then, she can stay. If it's alright for your uncle.“

The boy's puppy eyes were almost better than the real deal. He looked at Ardyn. “Please?”

The uncle was too busy to notice, carefully holding a finger into her direction. Very slowly, like a knight testing the potential wrath of a sleeping dragon with his sword. The puppy eyed the slow-moving hand, sniffed at it and started wagging her tail. His critical gaze intensified. “She reminds me of someone,” he finally stated. “Have you met her in the park with her owner?” “No. It is not someone I know yet.” He petted her head gingerly, like she was more cactuar than dog. “But it will be inevitable, so she may as well stay for a while.” “Yes!” He was too used to his uncle's cryptic talk to pay it any mind. “Okay. She's patched up, so I'll get her some food, and some water, and maybe a blanket in my room and...” He deflated a little. “Then I'll take pictures for the leaflets.” He sighed and peered up at Cor. “Because somebody

sure misses her.” “First things first, Prom. Go and get her some food, and why don't you get us something for dinner while you're at it. Something spicy would be nice.” Cor handed him some bills, not really caring for the sum. He wanted to get the boy out before Ardyn couldn't hold it together anymore. He saw the older man trembling, steadying himself on the countertop. Prompto looked from one adult to the other, and finally caught on. “Yeah. I'll be back later! Bye!” And out the door he went. Better not to be around for this. Ardyn managed to wait until the boy was gone before he escaped to the bathroom, not locking the door this time. Cor gave him a few minutes before he came after him with glass of water.

He sat in the empty tub, arms wrapped around his knees, but at least looking up when the marshal entered and sat down on the floor next to him. “Hey.” He offered him the glass, but Ardyn shook his head. “Want to tell me what upset you?” “Death.” “You know it is a puppy. And that you could have said No.” “She is bound to my demise, but it's not her fault.” Black tears ran down his cheeks, and Cor tried to pat them away with some toilet paper. The first times this happened it scared him half to death. “She smells like death and snow.” “She'll only be here for a few days, I'm sure.” Cor himself hoped so. Not because of strange premonitions, but because none of them had time or nerves for a dog. “I don't want to die...” Black oil now not only streamed from his eyes, but from Ardyn's skin. pooling around him lazily on the white porcelain. It had been quite a while since a spell was that bad.

“I'm home!” Prompto called from the door, giving the grown-ups a good warning ahead before he made his way to the kitchen. He had brought enough dog food to last the week for the puppy, ready-made bowls of curry for themselves, and some brightly colored sweets for his uncle. Maybe those would cheer him up a bit. Cor was in the kitchen, doing dishes, the puppy taking a nap on the couch. Music was softly playing on the radio, and he was humming along. It was rather peaceful. Prom unpacked the food, put some of the dog food on a small plate and set it on the kitchen floor. “How's uncle Ardyn?” “Trying to take a nap. He's sorry if he scared you. Said it was just one of those days.” Cor got them two plates, filling them with food. “But he said Tiny may stay until she decides to leave.” That was not all he said. Ardyn was very sure she puppy would not leave before she had done what she was sent to do, whatever that might be, and fighting it would only make it harder for the boy, and he did not want that.

“It's okay, he was probably more scared than I was.” He went to pluck the puppy off the sofa, and sat her down in front of the bowl. The food he bought seemed to be fine, and after a proper sniffing, she dug in. The marshal took a deep breath, watched the both puppies. “Want to take pictures of her anyway, even if it's not for a mugshot? They grow up so fast.” Tiny wagged her tail, and it seemed like she agreed happily.

One day, the dog was gone. Everybody was sure not to have left the door open, and uncle Ardyn had an alibi, even one with witnesses. Real ones. He seemed weirdly proud of that. Prompto did his best not to cry. Camped outside the door with a bowl of food and treats, even though he had already done that hours before. Didn't really feel like dinner that day. Tried the whole procedure again after school on the day after that. No puppy to be found. That went for a few days. Sometimes the adults sat with him, eating dinner on the doorstep. Cor was close to getting the boy a new puppy, just to see him smile again. That was when the letter arrived. Neat handwriting on expensive paper, some perfume still lingering. Dear Prompto... He read, and read again, and then said, “Can we make muffins? I need them tomorrow.” “Muffins? Ask the old sweettooth, not me. But why muffins?“ Cor pointed at the letter, but didn't try to read it. “It's from Tiny's owner, and she says thank you, and she thinks I'm friends with someone in my school, but I'm not. Not yet, because now I have to make friends with him, because she's so happy about me being his friend , because he doesn't really have any.” Prompto took a deep breath. “Plus he's really cool, and I want to make muffins.” The correlation between cool and muffins went over Cor's head, and so did the content of this letter. “So you told this boy at your school about Tiny, and he told her...?“ “No, I didn't. I guess Tiny ran home when she was better. And he's at the same school and the same age, and I... um. It's an easy mistake to make?” Cor looked at the boy's beaming face and decided to think this through first. There was certainly a reasonable explanation for all of this. “Get your jacket, then. We need to get groceries anyway.“ And so Prom did. “I didn't want to say it when we were home, because uncle gets really upset when the king is on TV, but the other kid is, um, Prince Noctis.” “Mh.“ Something was wrong here. Too many lucky accidents. Had he been telling someone at work that there was a dog in the house now? Weskham, maybe Wesk, but things you told him usually stayed buried within those well-dressed depths. “Then we probably should get things for something with chocolate. Noct loves the stuff.“ “Me, too.” Prompto wasn't a big kid, not by any means, but all angles his body could have had where neatly cushioned by the love for sweets and the steady supply of them, courtesy of Ardyn. “There's always someone around, but he doesn't really talk to them...” “His dad hoped that would be better in school, when he's with other kids.“ Apparently it was not. “Did the lady who wrote you have a name?“ “Yup.”

“But it's a secret?” Wasn't the kid too young for this? When he was in that age, Cor was into... oh well. Some early formed habits were kept well into adulthood. “Yup, “ Prompto replied again, this time with a grin. Maybe really a bit of a crush, or he just liked the idea of having a secret that was all his own.

[frozenartscapes]

Possible New Fic from Me - Frozen/Beauty and the Beast

Ok, so I’m going to try something.

I’ve been sitting on this fic for a while now. Parts of it are physically written, other parts are written in my head, and others still I haven’t really thought about yet. But most of the story is there. I’d like to get back into fic writing, but the last few things I’ve written haven’t really gone very far when it comes to viewership. I know the fandom’s really quieted down lately, so I can’t expect the same kind of response that I got a few years ago. But it’s still a little disheartening to put effort into something and for it to maybe be seen by, like, four people. I really hate saying this, because it feels like I’m being selfish, but that’s been a big reason for why I haven’t been able to write stuff lately. For a while there I was considering scraping any WIPs I had and just calling it done until the sequel, as I feel like my Frozen muse is also going away.

That being said, I still want to keep going with this one. I kinda hope with the live action Beauty and the Beast maybe this will be a little more popular than my other recent fics. But right now I’m just going to test it.

This is the prologue/first chapter. It’s pretty much a Beta - I know there are things from it that will likely change as I write more of this story. But I really want to hear from you guys. Do you like it? Does it make sense? Will this story even work? If the responses are good (and by that I even mean constructive criticism - anything would be good to hear) then I’ll continue to work on this story.

If not, well, I’m not going to say that I’ll stop fics all together. I still have a few ideas for DA!Verse stuff and I might still work on the odd prompt (or the ones I’ve been given and just need to finish) but I can’t promise they’ll be frequent. I’m about to start school soon, so production will slow even more. But if I know that maybe a few people at least are looking forward to this, then maybe I can get myself to keep writing it.

Prologue:

Once upon a time, nestled amongst the Northern Mountains and the fjords, lay a small Kingdom by the name of Arendelle. In the town lived a beautiful young woman named Idunn. She was a simple peasant girl, who had fallen in love with a young inventor by the name of Adgar. But before they could properly marry, the King of Arendelle, a brute of a man, sent out a declaration that all eligible maidens were to come before him, and he would choose his wife from among them. Idunn’s father forced her to go, but she tried to blend into the crowd to go unnoticed. However, despite her attempts to hide, the King spotted her, and decided her beauty was greater than any other. He made her his wife, and she had to say goodbye to Adgar.

The King was known throughout the Kingdom to be a cruel and selfish man. He was aggressive and vulgar, oftentimes acting more like a barbarian than a king - but only in private where no one else would know. But it was his kingdom, and as such it was his to do whatever he pleased with it. And what he desired was to leave it to his son. He was very adamant about leaving it to a son.

Idunn, when she became pregnant with their heir, grew more and more worried as the King went on, especially when he started to threaten her with execution should she bear a girl. The poor child would not fare much better, and would likely be fed to the wolves. And so one night she went out, taking a map from an ancient book in the library and travelling to a mystical place known as the Valley of the Living Rock. There, as the legends said, would she find the Trolls.

Trolls were a dangerous, mysterious folk. They sometimes helped, and other times harmed. And they almost always harmed in order to help. But Idunn needed their help, and was willing to pay for it. She was more scared of her husband than whatever the Trolls would do the her.

The Troll King confirmed what she feared most: her child would be a girl. She pleaded with them to do something, anything to keep both herself and the child safe from the King’s wrath. And so the Trolls gave the child something that would make up for the fact that she would be the wrong gender: magic. The Troll King assured Idunn that upon witnessing the magic the child would possess, the King of Arendelle would forget all about the importance of a son. But he then warned her about the dangers of greed. If she were to return and ask for more magic for the child, the consequences would be grave. Idunn agreed to the terms, and returned to the castle with relief in her heart.

When the child was born, the King initially was outraged. But before he could tear the fragile baby girl away from her mother, she sneezed…and snowflakes appeared in the air around her. He demanded from Idunn an explanation, and she told him about the Trolls. She told him that their little girl would be just as strong as a boy, her magic making her a force to be reckoned with.

The King smiled wickedly, before stating that that was an understatement.

Under the cover of a full moon, the King forced the Queen to ride alongside him to the Valley, where he then demanded that the trolls make the child stronger. He didn’t want a mere witch. If she were to have magic, he wanted a demigod. He wanted her to be the most powerful being on the planet, for no other man would have boasting rights like he would. The Troll King told him that his words meant nothing. They had to come from the mouth of the mother. The King then ordered Idunn to request what he wanted.

Idunn, remembering the Troll King’s words, refused. But then the King drew his sword and threatened to flay the child right then and there if she did not do as he said. So she did as she was told, and asked the Trolls for more magic to be bestowed onto the child.

The sky grew dark, and the auroras flowed around them in streaks of red and deep violet. The Troll King, his voice louder than thunder, declared that her wish would be granted, but with a heavy price to pay. And so the prophecy of the Snow Queen was born:

“Your future is bleak, your kingdom will splinter.

Your land shall be cursed with unending winter.

To punish your Greed, a deadly sin,

one year after a decade will this curse begin.

    A change will affect all who dwell inside your palace,

    but the only ones who need to fear

    are those who’s hearts are filled with malice.

        Your child’s power will grow ever stronger, consuming until she is no longer.

    She has until she is of age to find control,

    and must master all aspects of her gift,

    or else this curse shall take it’s wicked toll.

With blasts of cold will come dark art,

and a ruler with a Frozen Heart.

Then all will perish in snow and ice,

unless saved by a sword’s sacrifice.”

A bright flash then filled the clearing as glowing blue energy surrounded the child in Idunn’s arms. It then died down as the magic seeped into the baby, the intense light fading until everything had seemingly returned to normal. The King then scoffed, stating that if that was all the Troll’s magic could do then he had nothing to fear. He returned to his horse and barked a command to his wife for her to follow.

Before Idunn could leave, she was stopped by the Troll King. He told her to hold out a hand, and when she did he dropped a small crocus bulb into her palm. He then instructed her to plant it in a pot when she returned. It would be their hour glass: when it blooms, the curse will begin, and when it dies, the curse will have run its course. If they are able to save the delicate flower from a frosty demise, then that means the curse has been broken. Idunn shakily nodded and took the bulb without a word.

On the way back to the castle, Idunn devised a plan. She knew her horrid husband would abuse their child’s power right from the start, but perhaps there would be hope for her if she could teach her to love from an early age. When they returned, she tucked her little princess into her crib, quickly found a pot and planted the bulb as the trolls instructed, and then composed a letter.

Three days later, the fruits of that letter arrived at the castle in the form of her old love, Adgar, with an arsenal of hidden gadgets in tow. He presented himself to the King as a travelling wizard, who had sensed the presence of a new sorceress in the area. With the help of his inventions, he was able to convince the King of his lie, before offering to train the child in the ways of magic. The King agreed, being sold on the idea that magic was the same as military prowess, and the more one trains the stronger they will be. If his child were to begin learning from such a young age, then that meant she would be all-powerful much sooner than he had first planned. But Adgar insisted that the child must come with him, for the castle did not offer the proper resources for a young sorceress to begin her training. The King was reluctant to leave his castle, but Idunn eagerly suggested that she go in his stead to oversee the girl’s training. The King was reluctant about that, too, but in the end gave in for the sake of the power his child would have. He gave the fake wizard eight years to train her, allowing himself a few years to train her in more ruthless ways for her remaining three years before the curse was supposed to begin.

The next day, Idunn, Adgar, and baby Elsa left the castle to begin Elsa’s “tutoring”. And over the years, the girl did learn. But not the battle-ready magic the King had been expecting. Idunn taught her about Love. She taught her grace, and kindness. She taught her to think only of others and to show compassion and mercy whenever such a time called for it. As a result, Elsa was unwilling to harm even the smallest of insects. She was gentle, and warm. She laughed often and smiled always. When a baby bird had fallen from its nest, she had scooped it up ever so carefully and brought it back home, safe and sound. When Adgar accidentally burned his hand while reforming some metal, she was the first to come running to his side to place a perfectly cooled hand on his to help the pain.

Adgar taught Elsa about Learning. His eagerness to pursue new things, and his own great knowledge, had sparked a desire in the young one’s heart to learn as much as she could. She could read by the time she was three, and her reading level only grew higher and higher. She read philosophers, mathematicians, and inventors. She studied their techniques and ways of thought. She drew out their formulas and hypotheses on paper. And she would build. With her magic, with her own mind, she would build things. Complicated designs, some that would take master architects years to create she could form in mere minutes. Granted, they weren’t full size, but the models were meticulously crafted nonetheless. Yet, despite her obvious talent, her favourite thing to do would be to watch Adgar work. She followed him around constantly, often trailing after him carrying a couple books, some notes, or his tool bag. She would often fetch his tools for him, too, even the ones he had made himself and gave ridiculous names to. She was the only other person who understood what he meant when he asked for a “whatcha-ma-callit”.

Her mother and her mentor’s teachings may not have been direct lessons for her magic, but her power was under her complete control the whole time. It was obvious fairly early on that with each day she grew, so, too, did her extraordinary magic. Yet it never seemed to faze the girl, even as the power she held began to seemingly dwarf her outward appearance. It often left her mother wondering how such a small, delicate child could hold enough magic to freeze an entire centuries-old tree to pure ice.

But there was one more person there who had become a teacher for Elsa, though she had arrived late to the gathering. You see, Idunn and Adgar still loved each other greatly, and after about three years, they had a new baby to prove it. Idunn knew what would happen if the King were to ever find out about little Anna, but he was never going to. She hated the thought, but had resolved to leave the child with Adgar when the time came for her and Elsa to return to the castle, but for the time being, she would let the new sisters get to know each other, and love each other.

And oh, how they loved each other. Elsa, from the moment she first saw her baby sister, had a special place in her heart solely for the redhead. Her powerful magic suddenly became entertainment for a baby, who would giggle and smile in awe and amazement at the shimmering snowflakes her big sister made. Anna taught Elsa how to be a big sister. And while she didn’t really teach anything, Elsa naturally learned what it meant to have someone to protect. She learned what it was like to have someone she loved so much she was willing to do anything for.

But the good times had to end. When Elsa was eight, a royal carriage was sent to Adgar’s cottage with orders to bring the Queen and Princess back to the castle. Tears were shed by all, but no one’s heart hurt as much as Elsa’s did. Anna was only five, so she didn’t quite understand why her best friend suddenly had to leave. Elsa did understand, but she didn’t wish to. She was perceptive, even at her young age, and knew nothing good was waiting for her at the castle based on how her mother acted every time she asked about her real father. But despite possessing more power in a single finger than anyone around her, she had no authority, and no choice in the matter. She was going back to the castle.

Elsa realized after day one that her father was not a kind man. He was the furthest thing from Adgar, and suddenly she wished she had him as a father over the King. The King was mean, and stern. He treated her more like a military captain might treat a new recruit than a father would treat his daughter. Just the second day she was in the castle he started teaching her to fight, both with weapons and her own magic. Each day she would seek out her mother after her training sessions, sore and worn from all the hard work, always with the same question on her lips: why did she have to learn to hurt people? She did not want to hurt people.

Idunn could only watch in terror as Elsa grew more quiet and reserved, choosing to be alone in her room whenever she wasn’t learning how to use her powers for bad things. The Queen feared that her husband would undo all that Elsa had learned about love and kindness, and prayed that her fears would remain just mere worries. Elsa needed to stay good. She needed as much love and hope in her heart as she could get, for the Prophecy was drawing closer with each day and her poor child did not have much time left. She remembered stories of love conquering evil, that True Love would break through any darkness cast by the wicked. Her magic would begin to consume her regardless of how much she loved, but perhaps if Elsa was well and truly good then she could stand a better chance.

But the King didn’t see it that way. The way he spoke made it sound like he embraced the idea of Elsa turning into a heartless sorceress. She would be unstoppable. The whole world would have no choice but to bow down before the might of Arendelle and its secret weapon. And he did everything he could to attempt to squash the love and hope in Elsa’s soul.

Elsa’s tenth year was a year filled with dread. The King and Queen had both elected not to tell the Princess about her coming demise, for entirely different reasons. The King didn’t want to give her any ideas about trying to reverse it, as he feared her knowing about the curse would give her more time to work on seeing that it did not come to pass, or if it did, it wouldn’t last long. Idunn, on the other hand, hadn’t told Elsa for what she deemed to be selfish reasons. She couldn’t bear the thought of Elsa knowing that she had been doomed from the start. She didn’t want to see Elsa’s spirit die upon learning that something terrible and inevitable was going to happen to her. And, worst of all, she feared more than anything that Elsa would blame her for it.

The dread only grew worse when, exactly one month before Elsa’s eleventh birthday, the crocus the Trolls had given the Queen peeked out of the dirt in the pot. The soil had long grown dusty and old, and the pot covered in cobwebs as it sat unmoved from its spot on Idunn’s windowsill, and yet there was a tiny sprout of the purest green she had ever seen. She would have been awed if it didn’t terrify her. Because to her, it was not a miracle. It was an omen, a symbol that time had finally run out, and there was nothing she could do now but wait.

That night she hugged her slightly confused daughter with tears in her eyes and promised her that she loved her no matter what. She always made sure to say the same thing each day after that.

When the day finally came, the tension in the air could be cut like butter. The crocus had reached its full height, the bud ready to bloom at any moment. It was unclear as to when exactly it would open, but Idunn was keeping a close eye on it.

The King had taken his daughter into their sparring room as he always did. It was a dark, window-less chamber in the dungeons with plenty of room for swinging swords and flying magic.  It was while she was there, her father barking orders at her while she tried her best to achieve them, that she suddenly experienced the worst pain she could have ever imagined seize her heart and bring her to her knees. Her vision clouded so much that she momentarily thought she had gone blind. She felt her magic roar to life like a sudden maelstrom swirling inside of her, completely disorienting her from her surroundings as it moved around in her veins. She felt some of the magic leave her, but she wasn’t sure where it went.

When her senses began to return, she realized the room was darker than it was moments ago. The torches had all been extinguished, she assumed by her magic. “Father?” she called shakily, “Are you still there? I…I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened…”

She waved her hand to create some glowing ice on each torch in the place of fire, but found it much more difficult to do than it used to be. It took her several attempts, and even then, she only managed two out of the eight she had been going for. Her head suddenly began pounding, and she had to stop trying to use her magic.

“Father?” she called again, searching the shadows for his form. By this point, he would have scolded her for losing control, but he hadn’t made a sound yet.

Then she caught sight of a large form illuminated by the dim light from her ice. A moment of panic washed over her as she wondered if she had accidentally struck him. “Father? A…are you ok? Are you hurt?” she asked nervously. She dared not approach, since she had no idea if he would be furious with her.

A low growl answered her. But it was not the sort of sound an angry man might make - it was one an angry animal might make.

“F…Father?”

The form stirred, before rising to four feet. It turned its massive head to glare at her with piercing, yellow eyes that glowed in the low light. It snarled again, revealing a huge mouth full of long, sharp teeth.

Elsa stumbled backward. “Father! Help!” she cried into the darkness, hoping that her father, despite how awful he was, was still in the room somewhere and would defend her from this beast. But no other movement occurred, so she quickly flew to her feet and hurried to the heavy door.

She heard the creature growl again before beginning to run at her. She struggled to shove the iron door open. It was much bigger than herself, and weighed probably five times as much, so even all her weight on it barely budged it open. The creature leapt forward, and she scrambled out of the way before it’s teeth made contact with her. It’s sheer size crashing into the door pushed it open, and left the creature temporarily stunned.

Elsa flew out of the opening and raced down the hallway, feeling her heart beat even faster when she heard the beast running after her. She tried to call on her magic to do something, literally anything to slow it down or stop it. But her head throbbed painfully at even the thought of using her powers and nothing seemed to be listening to her. So she did the only thing she could do: she ran.

“Mama!” she cried as she skidded around corners and hastily made her way up stairways, “Mama! Somebody! Help!”

Where were the guards? Where were the maids? Where was the butler, Kai? Where was anyone? The whole castle suddenly seemed devoid of life. She did not know what was going on, but she did not like it one bit.

She headed for her parents’ room, hoping her mother was in there. Her Mama was smart, and strong. She would at least know what was happening, the child thought, and may be able to help her fix her magic.

She turned a corner, revealing the bedroom door at the far end. “Mama!” she yelled again, hoping this time her mother could hear her. She continued to run, since the beast was still right on her heels. She finally reached the door, and quickly threw it open - only to reveal a second creature.

There was much better light in the bedroom, so she was able to see that the second creature was a wolf. It was a bit bigger than normal wolves, and had dark brown fur. Interestingly, it appeared to have scraps of cloth hanging off its body. It turned when she screamed and skidded to a stop, falling to the floor in the process. She caught sight of deep blue eyes before it snarled and lunged forward.

She waited for teeth to sink into her flesh, but they never came. There was a loud crash, followed by furious growling and a vicious struggle. She looked up to see that the second wolf was attacking the thing that had been following her. She realized that it was also a wolf, with deep black fur and scraps of fabric clinging to it, too.

The brown wolf managed to pin the other one. It turned to face Elsa, fear and desperation etched in its face. “Elsa, run!” it, no she, commanded, “Run, Elsa. Run!”

“Mama?” Elsa uttered in a tiny voice. Why did that wolf sound so much like her mother? Why did the other one appear to be wearing her father’s royal medallion? What was going on?

But then the words registered and she shakily ran back out into the hallway and down to the main entrance. She could still hear the fight upstairs, gradually getting closer and closer. With all her might, she managed to open the great castle doors to reveal the courtyard. Except it was difficult to see because of a blinding snowstorm. The wind was so sharp, and the snow so heavy, she feared she could get lost after taking only a few steps. She didn’t know where to go.

Suddenly, the large black wolf appeared at the top of the stairs. It’s yellow eyes locked onto Elsa and it charged. Elsa looked frantically into the white abyss and then back at the approaching demise, terrified beyond reason and unaware of the frost leaking out from her feet.

Before the wolf could reach her, something large, white, and feathery crashed into it. The wolf yelped in surprise as a snowy owl swooped out of nowhere and attacked its face, temporarily stalling it from reaching Elsa. Elsa didn’t wait to find out why or where the owl had come from, and instead ran into the snowstorm.

She had to reach the gates. The courtyard wasn’t that large, but she could barely see her own hand in front of her face. Finding the massive gate was going to be tricky. She didn’t know what was out there with her, at that. She couldn’t see, and for all she knew there was another dangerous animal awaiting her out here.

Then, without warning, she collided with something furry. With a panicked cry, she fell backward, flinching and waiting for whatever it was to gobble her up. When nothing came, she slowly opened one eye to find a terrified little reindeer staring back at her. A second one came into view, sniffing the first one before approaching her.

“Hey. Are you ok?” it asked.

Elsa felt her mouth hanging open dumbly, but she couldn’t bring herself to close it. She merely shook her head back and forth in reply.

“It’s ok,” the reindeer said gently, “But…I don’t… You wouldn’t happen to know what’s going on, do you?”

“N…no,” Elsa said weakly.

“That’s ok. I’m sure someone does. Because I’d like to know why my friend’s suddenly a reindeer.”

“What?” Elsa asked, her voice so quiet it couldn’t possibly be heard over the howling storm.

A furious snarl behind her caused her to leap to her feet. The black wolf appeared through the snow. Before it could lunge, the brown wolf arrived, too, throwing her whole weight into knocking the other wolf to the ground. The wolf, furious that it had been attacked again, whipped around and grabbed the brown wolf by the neck, then throwing it to the side like a rag-doll.

Elsa watched the brown wolf crash to the ground. She lay there for a second before attempting to struggle to her feet, but she had been weakened from the past fights with the aggressive enemy.

The black wolf then turned its sights on Elsa and the two reindeer, both of whom were much to small to stand any chance against it. Elsa found herself reaching both her arms out to protect them. Suddenly, something stirred inside of her, like her power had just awakened and was prepared to finally contribute something useful. Only it then decided to ignore anything she wished of it, and it surged so quickly and painfully inside of her that she blacked out. The last thing she remembered was a searing pain in her head.

So...what do you guys think? I’m interested to know how you feel about the set up, and maybe even what you think might happen. If you have any kind of input, I’d like to hear it. It’d be incredibly helpful to me.

Thanks again!