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anne-i-write · 4 years ago

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moriarty the patriot headcannons pt. 1

| requested by anon: Can you write about all male characters in moriarty has a same look of their children and hpw many children they want? |

william x reader; louis x reader; albert x reader; sebastian x reader; fred x reader

word count: 2397

pt. 2: 221b boys

a/n: I DONT KNOW WHY I DIDNT WRITE THIS EARLIER IM SO SORRY THIS REQUEST HAS LITERALLY BEEN IN MY INBOX FOR SO LONG I AM SO SORRY I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS

william: 487 words

with his whole plan to clean the world of the filthy nobles, william never really stopped to think about having children

well, until he met you

you both were in town one day and he saw you fondly watching a child speak with her mother

“i think two children would be nice”

“i didn’t even ask”

“i know, but the look you gave that mother was telling enough”

n e ways he is a simp and he did eventually give you what you wanted

fast forward a few years, you have two children: a boy and a girl

and they look exactly like their father

like,, it lowkey pains you how much they physically take after their father

you wanted to be like “oh they have your personality, but they look just like me!”

granted, your son took after you in an emotional sense but your daughter was a daddy’s girl through and through

like she looks like him, she acts like him, speaks like him, she even EATS like him

ok but the men w your children

fred is a freaking sweetheart ok

like he’ll watch over the kids when no one has the time and they love him too so they’ll help out in the garden which you are SO thankful for

tbh they only like uncle albert bc he brings them lil trinkets from when he gets back from london LMAO

louis doesn’t show it, but he absolutely adores your children and makes extra snacks for them at tea time

you caught onto this at one point bc for some REASON your kids would not stop bouncing off of the walls before bed and they told you uncle louis gave them chocolate

and sebastian loves messing w your kids bc,,, sebastian

but he accidentally made your son cry ONCE and he was at the mercy of every adult in the moriarty estate including the boy’s younger sister

needless to say, he watched his actions and words around your children after that

now, william

i’m just gonna say this straight out: most of the men never really thought about having kids (save john and albert)

but when you finally had kids, william had a different outlook on life

like fr,, this man works overtime now trying to get rid of the filth that is called nobles

he doesn’t want his kids to be raised in a world where just because you have more money than another means you get to look down on them

you still instill in them those good morals ofc

he also tries to be very present in their lives since he and his brother were raised as orphans

when he was younger, he didn’t mind it all much

but now that he had this small family and a brighter future, he did everything in his power to make sure they’re happy and grow up in a cleaner and kinder world

louis: 320 words

it took you a week to get him to at LEAST humor you

“if you could, how many kids do you want?”

“none”

like, this guy is so dedicated to his brother and his cause it is a WONDER you somehow wormed your way into his heart

but you did and honestly, the brothers are actually very happy that you’re with them

william especially

louis rarely emotes but when you came into their lives, you got louis pissed at one point and everyone was like,,,, wtf?? he has emotions???

anyways, his answer is one kid LMAO

and when you get that one kid, he looks just like louis

yall already KNOW that he’s ready to die for that child as soon as louis holds him in his arms

the only kid sebastian wouldnt even try to mess with

he can deal with william’s albert’s or fred’s kids but louis lowkey intimidates him so he’s as nice as he can be

that being said, louis teaches his kid how to properly handle stuff around the house

you want to cry bc ur son is just so??? the little kid just loves helping out no matter how small the task and he’s just so cute it hurts

even sebastian’s kinda like,, “aight he’s the only kid i will tolerate”

louis grew up with only his brothers so he also wants to give his son a shot at a normal family

is actually aware at how he thinks he’s indispensable for william’s cause and he doesn’t want his son to end up like him

he also teaches his son some badass fighting moves

oh and louis smiles a lot more too

cried bc his son saw the scar he got on his cheek, rubbed some dirt on his lil face and said “i have daddy’s cool scar now”

all in all his son is the best thing to happen to all of you

albert: 505 words

same as louis in the fact that it takes him a week to answer

“you know you haven’t even answered my question”

“i’m sorry, what did you say?”

“how many kids do you want?”

genuinely takes time to ponder that question

he hadn’t thought of that since his family adopted william and louis

but with you?

“i think two darling girls who take after their mother is enough for me”

pls he’d be so sweet 🥺🥺🥺

you two end up having a girl and a boy, who look just like their father

and tbh, you’re not even mad

you love them so much so when albert comes back north, the three of you are ecstatic

the happiness was short lived for albert tho

he found his son spending time with william and there’s nothing bad right????

“where’s your sister?”

“she’s with mr. moran”

his heart DROPPED

out of all the people in the manor

HIM

he sees the two running around the garden

it all happened as soon as albert’s daughter went up to sebastian and said “you’re very pretty! you’re my knight now!”

he decided to “adopt” the little girl and now he’s lowkey whipped

you found albert staring at sebastian playing with his daughter and updated him about everything going on

“but him??”

“he’s just a big softie for her let it go”

isn’t really surprised when he finds out they can fight a little

actually glad that they can hold their own, God forbid anything happens to them

otherwise mi6 has to deal w family matters lmao

“albert, she only tripped”

“you shouldve seen the fear in her eyes as she fell”

“IT WAS A STRAY COBBLESTONE”

would raise hell if anyone even THOUGHT ill of his kids

william and louis are the doting uncles

william more so than louis bc your kids have never seen louis smile

now they’re on a mission to make uncle louis smile

louis was on child duty one day and they managed to slip away

omyGOD he was stressed but also,, extremely worried

so when he found them he had the most genuine smile on his face

your daughter was like (・∀・)

she loves uncle louis

ofc your son adores his dad like,,, who else wouldn't feel awesome at the age of 10 if you found out your dad was a high ranking general

feels superior to sebastian bc of his dad

lmao this 4’5 kid thinks he can rule sebastian for some odd reason

the house is always dirty bc him and sebastian always prank each other

your daughter is trying to catch a butterfly but she can’t so fred helps

instantly loves fred

“is that what heartbreak is”

“i guess that’s what happens when you try to get close to my kids colonel”

albert is kind of afraid of turning into his dad but he has you and everyone else to remind him that: no you are not your father, you are so much better than him

loves your family with his entire being

sebastian: 844 words

“i see you looking at those kids and the answer is none”

lmao you’ll get so pouty around him bc you want kids dammit

that and he spoils you to no end so that's why you’re pouty lol

“fine we’ll only do one kid and bc one kid is all i can tolerate”

bruh

this man gives you three in four years LMFAO

two boys a year apart and a girl in the fourth year

you wanted to smack sebastian

when the two boys grew up, it was obvious they were already taking after their father in the physical sense

it was terrifying

they genuinely look like mini sebastians and you know everyone in the manor is afraid that you two birthed satan

and the satan was your eldest one

he’s just a feral sebastian moran in a tiny body

your second son, god bless him, looked just like his father but with fred’s temperament

and see, you were fine with your sons looking like their father

it was FINE right

you prayed to God that your third child would have at least some physical resemblance to you

your daughter was birthed, she grew up

and you cried

“HOW DO THEY ALL LOOK LIKE YOU”

“i’ve got some strong genetics, baby”

you sulk for a lil bit

but you accept it anyway because you love your goddamn kids

thankfully, your second and youngest child are both soft spoken and it's only your husband and his tiny clone bringing hell to earth

smacking sebastian bc all of your children suddenly started swearing up a storm at each other

“WHYD YOU HIT ME”

“YOURE THE ONLY ONE WHO SWEARS AROUND THE KIDS”

finally sitting down and trying to convince them to stop swearing

“father does it!”

“your father’s stupid”

speaking of your daughter

she’s his little princess and no he will not take criticism

spoils her more than he spoils you

did she glance at a toy at a passing store?

he buys more toys than he should from said store

you have to physically hide some of his money bc there is only so much you can buy

and her older brothers are so caring you want to sob

if a person accidentally shoved her over bc she was tiny and they couldn’t see her

oh boy

get ready to restrain them like chihuahuas

“little sister will be protected at all costs”

since his second son is so different from him, sebastian actively makes time to talk about what the little boy is doing and what he’s getting from it

doesn’t want to be pushy and suffocating like his dad was so when his younger kid does want to be left alone to his devices, sebastian does so

but honestly loves that your second son is so literate

lddhsajdsfk what yall dont know is that they’re all in cahoots

kinda funny to see them all together bc they all take after their father so much it's like having three tiny sebastians go around town

anyways,,,, yall know the promised neverland right

you got ray, norman, and emma

granted one of them wasn’t as smart as ray but he definitely knew what stealth was

regular sibling rivalry was still a thing but if they could smell the pudding from the kitchen, they know they have to work together

sebastian caught his eldest smuggling biscuits into a small bag

he had half a mind to scold him

but then he ended up giving tips TO ALL HIS CHILDREN on how not to get caught next time—

bc of this they beg him to tell them some stories from afghanistan bc “there’s no way a man as old as dad knows this many stealth tactics”

louis is so fed up lmao

albert is in london most of the time so he just thanks the lord that he doesn’t have to deal w the propaganda that sebastian feeds his children about how “mr. albert is a bad man”

william is fine w it as long as they don’t trash the library

your younger ones love the library so they would cry at the thought of one of the books losing any of the pages

your second and your daughter are definitely the moriartys’ favorites

they don’t show it, but you just KNOW

your eldest could care less about that though

as long as you and his father still love him

and of course you both do

and fred is definitely your youngers favorite

they like to hang out in the garden

ok they still fight all the time though

just because your second child is soft spoken doesn't mean he’s afraid to throw hands

their sister likes to join in for the hell of it

but if someone wrongs any of the children

just because the younger ones are the moriartys’ favorite, doesn’t mean that they’re not gonna hunt someone down if they even think about trying to hurt the eldest too

yeah,,, good luck to them and their families

they got the entire moriarty estate coming after them

fred: 241 words

cmon yall are like,, young

but you did ask him bc you were curious if he thought about it

he wants one

and when yall do have the kid, you guys actually do have one kid and its a girl

since you both are young, you can immediately see a resemblance between her and her father

everyone who meets her would die for her

ABSOLUTE CUTIE

especially when she walks around the garden w her hand in her dad’s and he’s showing her all the plants and telling her how to take care of them

needless to say she grows up loving plants

any type of plant

the boys love giving her flowers or anything from bc she has the biggest smile every single time

no matter if it’s just a single rose or a rock

this was found out one time when sebastian gave her a rock bc everyone else had given her like,, two roses each

was afraid she was gonna cry

“thank you so much mr. moran! i will treasure this until i get old!”

she was like 4 at the time

and had the widest smile you’ve ever seen on her

guys u don’t understand she smiles a lot but this was like,, genuine happiness

but everyone was just,, i will destroy the world and myself if anything happens to her

fr it’s just sunshines and rainbows every single time she’s around

everyone just loves her ok

moriarty the patriot general taglist: @zoehanji

#moriarty the patriot #moriarty the patriot x reader #yuukoku no moriarty #yuukoku no moriarty x reader #william james moriarty #william moriarty #william james moriarty x reader #william moriarty x reader #louis james moriarty #louis moriarty #louis james moriarty x reader #louis moriarty x reader #albert james moriarty #albert moriarty #albert james moriarty x reader #albert moriarty x reader #sebastian moran #sebastian moran x reader #fred porlock

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edelegs · 4 years ago

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so I have a very specific interpretation of the Edelgard/Hubert dynamic that I don’t think is particularly common, but I feel is worth sharing. This is largely because some people end up diminishing the importance of this relationship when pairing each of them with other people. It’s disappointing because I personally prefer these external ships (namely Edeleth and Ferdibert, for reasons I will make clear) but often see either Edelgard or Hubert reduced to some jealous, cuckoled cockblock in them. Honestly, that’s just . . . boring.

(Long post under the cut)

TLDR: Edelbert is fascinating because it can be argued that Hubert’s feelings are born from guilt and shame rather than romantic love. This dynamic is unhealthy but deeply interesting, and it deserves to not be diminished in fan interpretations of these characters.

Something that makes Edelgard so compelling is the fact that she’s full of contradictions. She can’t stand people/creatures with more power than humanly possible, yet she must use her own superhuman power and cooperate with what she despises to achieve her end goal. More specific to Edelbert, this end goal is equality, yet Edelgard is not allowed to be equal to anyone. She is a detached, untouchable princess who needs to learn how to meet her friends where they stand. It is through her connection to Byleth and to the other Black Eagles where she learns how to adapt her ideals to work in reality - and to be human.

Unintentionally, Hubert does the opposite of this. His devotion to Edelgard began as an inherited role and evolved into something he does out of personal conviction. Either way, he is putting her on a pedestal and addressing her as a vassal rather than as a friend. Many of his supports with others involve him comparing them to Edelgard and telling them they’ll never reach her level. He takes it as his personal mission to protect her from those ��unworthy” of talking to her. I don’t think this is intended to be selfish or malicious. I think that because of his role as her vassal and his failure to protect her from the Hresvelg experiments, he takes on this absolute devotion and prescribes it upon everyone else.

Their relationship is unbalanced as a result. Edelgard makes constant reference to “fighting alone” and being prepared to end up isolated and maligned. The line “the solitary reign of Edelgard has come to an end” in her S-support is particularly telling. While she clearly views Hubert as someone important to her, she does not seem to view him as someone she can be fully open with. Hubert’s constant addressing of her as “Lady Edelgard” implies that he would not take the opportunity to call her “El” if it was presented to him. Edelgard and Hubert are both so caught up in the weight and scope of their revolution that they begin to enable each other’s bad tendencies. Hubert doesn’t dare challenge her, because he thinks of her as untouchable, and this devotion allows Edelgard to take him for granted. It is not a healthy relationship. I don’t think this is a particularly hot take. Their external supports are crucial for shifting these patterns of thought and allowing these characters to grow.

What I think may be unpopular is this: I don’t think Hubert’s feelings for Edelgard are actually romantic.

(For context, I am aro and just really hate m/f friends getting shoved together romantically. It may be easy to dismiss my thoughts as just me being bitter that we can’t have a m/f friend pair without one of them catching feelings but allow me to argue my point.)

Hubert was assigned to Edelgard at a young age and told it was his house’s sacred duty to serve the Hresvelg family. He loathes his father for his involvement in the Insurrection of the Seven, which happened when he was ten. It goes without saying that this largely shapes his devotion to Edelgard. I would even say these events traumatized him to some degree. He mentions this in their A support, where he declares that his loyalty has been to her alone since she returned from the Kingdom. The path that these two share is informed and shaped by trauma - what Edelgard went through and Hubert’s powerlessness to stop it. More critically, these events radicalized them both and created the “shared vision” mentioned in his B support with Dorothea.

That particular support jumps out to me. When I first played the game, I felt unbelievably validated by it. Hubert denies accusations of unrequited love in an edgily self-aware way (the line ”do I really look like the kind of drooling simpleton to have that kind of motivation?” made me literally cheer) and goes on to describe their relationship as walking the same path. He then highlights the qualities he feels towards Edelgard (gratitude, respect, awe, empathy, trust, and hope). None of these require romantic attraction. Dorothea then goes on to say that “loving another is really about wanting to be loved . . . I’m pretty sure that’s different from how things are with you and Edie”. This scene spoke a lot to my own experiences - my feelings for my best friend largely echo Hubert’s (though way less dramatic, of course) and I found the form of deep platonic love I feel for her reflected in that conversation. The acknowledgement on Dorothea’s part that it was different from romantic love (whether or not she truly believes it) is what blew me away. This is honestly one of the few times where a piece of media made me feel seen which makes me forever mad about the Edelbert A support.Though it could be argued that he’s just closed-off and could easily pull off lying about it, I know those feelings well. Others might see this as definitive proof of Hubert’s unrequited love for Edelgard, but I just can’t and I wanted to articulate this perspective because it means so much to me. Close, all-consuming, and important relationships can be platonic.

I know better than to claim that the confession scene never happened. It is interesting to evaluate because it shows Edelgard finally calling attention to Hubert’s unknowing perpetuation of the gap between them. When Hubert states his feelings plainly, he is as composed as ever. Edelgard blushes and states that “you never cease to surprise me”. Hubert laughs this off, and that’s the end of that. It clearly is supposed to be a genuine love confession, but I think it’s more interesting to consider a man with only one real close friend misinterpreting his blind devotion towards her as love because he doesn’t really know what it is. I think it adds to the kind of fucked-up nature of their relationship (is it love or obsession? How is he supposed to know if a connection borne from trauma stems from love or guilt?). It also speaks to how difficult it is to identify romantic feelings when you’ve never truly felt them.

That being said, I actually do ship Hubert with other people. I love Ferdibert because their personality clashes create a sense of mutual growth that helps Hubert learn to openly challenge Edelgard rather than subvert orders he disagrees with and it’s honestly just really funny. I also love Hubernie because the idea of a terrifying man and a girl who’s scared of everything learning to meet each other halfway shows similar character growth. I just think that for many years, Hubert’s devotion to Edelgard gave him a really fucked up understanding of human relationships, both romantic and platonic. There’s a tendency to erase the weight and importance of the Edelbert dynamic when both are shipped with other people as well as a great opportunity to show that strong platonic relationships can and should be perceived as equal to romantic ones. I have read so many Ferdibert things that suggest that their love is all-encompassing and Makes Them Whole. Wouldn’t it be more in-character to explore how they navigate the web of relationships in their lives? I love the Black Eagles’ interpersonal relationships so much and each one shapes the characters more and more. I’d love to see that reflected in ways that center platonic relationships!

#long post #hubert is a demiromantic bi king and we stan #fe3h #hubert von vestra #edelgard von hresvelg #ferdibert #edeleth #character analysis #black eagles

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laceymorganwrites · 4 years ago

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The story of the sad chapter 17

Word count: 1,792

Pairing: Ban x goddess!reader

Warnings: uuuuh swearing, maybe a teeny tiny bit of blood and gore?

A/N: eheheehhe we´re back~ I´ll try to update this at least once a month but I can´t promise anything. thanks for your support

Grabbing your sword, you dashed forward and slashed Hendrickson´s shoulder, though the wound you inflicted didn´t last very long, soon you were followed by your friends, each of you getting a few good hits in.

Though nothing seemed to work, in this state he was invincible and it enraged you.

How dare he use magic as dark as this? Wasn´t he aware of what happened all those millennia ago? Wasn´t he aware of the consequences? What goal could be so great as to forget all about that?

Resurrecting the demon clan to him meant power, but he didn´t think about the source of it, he didn´t think about the fact that they would betray him as soon as they could walk the earth again.

“Leave the rest to us…” Meliodas announced to Elizabeth before joining the fight.

The princess now rested next to Hawk, trying to protect his dead body.

You tried to regain your composure and focus on the fight, trying to make out Hendrickson´s weak points, but he kept attacking you and your friends so that it was almost impossible.

In a flurry of magical blows, Gowther lost his head and glasses, you almost stepped on them, but quickly picked them up to hand them over to him.

Meliodas told all of you to get ready for your big attack.

A smile formed on your lips, finally.

It was time.

All of you got ready to use your strongest attack on Meliodas, so that he could in turn counter them on Hendrickson.

You made it your mission to distract the demon while Meliodas gathered as much magic as he could, using your wings to take him off his feet and slashing your sword at him with full force.

“Tell me, what did you gain from all this? You know, demonic magic might be strong on its own, but you underestimated us! This is the end for you” you called out to Hendrickson, letting him know that he has lost.

It was impossible to dodge or stop Meliodas´ attack at this point.

The shockwave from the attack was so great that it shook the ground, you had trouble staying on your feet and fell against Ban, who caught you.

He smiled at you, even through the chaos and was more than relieved and happy to see you mostly unharmed.

All eyes were on the exhausted Meliodas as Merlin returned with the king, he was better now since she treated him.

You looked around the battlefield, holding Ban´s hand tightly and took in the damage and loss, but also a bitter sense of victory. At least for now.

For now you allowed yourself to smile, to exhale the breath you didn´t realize you were holding, to revel in your boyfriend´s presence and feel the happiness of him being there with you.

In a fit of guilt the holy knights knelt down before the king, apologizing for their sins and asking for his punishment.

You had to chuckle a bit, they were good souls after all. But that was just how the demons liked it, they took the good souls and made them rotten, good souls were easier to corrupt, to bend to their will.

It wasn´t their fault, they simply were taken in by a greater power than them. A power they simply couldn´t defeat by themselves.

The king announced that there would be no punishment and that the knights should repent for their sins in rebuilding the kingdom and working hard.

Then the king faced you and your friends, expressing his gratitude.

“I guess that´s just what we do” you chuckled.

“We can´t help but aid those in need” you stated, smiling at him.

No matter how evil they painted you as, your group were always after helping people.

Elizabeth also got praised for being brave and making this all possible, if she hadn´t searched for your group and wouldn´t have stumbled into your bar, you wouldn´t have been reunited with all the others.

Well, most of them anyway.

The princess started crying, blaming herself for Hawk´s death, while you and Ban went over to his dead body to pay your respects.

He had been with you in those years when you were almost happy, always being there for you and everyone else.

As if by some sort of miracle, the little pig revived, making everyone around you smile in shock and happiness.

You only smiled to yourself and looked over to Elizabeth, she probably didn´t even realize what she just did.

A part of you was glad she didn´t, that meant she didn´t remember anything heartbreaking and utterly sad, but even so… not remembering your one true love was still the worst curse in your opinion.

Everyone cheered and for a moment it felt as if everything was back to normal, whatever that strange state might be.

Elizabeth hugged Meliodas and healed his wounds, once again not comprehending it was her doing.

She reunited with her sister, overwhelmed by everything happening, her cheerfulness knew no bounds.

You leaned against Ban a bit and he laid an arm around you, pulling you closer to him and gently tracing his fingers over your shoulder.

Exhausted you all made your way back to the Boar Hat to rest a bit.

“I just want to sleep… for a week” you groaned as you threw yourself onto the bed.

Elaine giggled.

“But then you´d just miss everything! And we´d miss you” she joined you on bed, resting her head on your shoulder.

“Hm, okay you got a point” you thought out loud, shifting a bit so you were more comfortable to which Elaine jokingly complained.

“You can´t even sit still even when you´re supposed to rest, can you?” she giggled.

“I guess not….it used to be so easy back then. After every battle I´d just sleep the whole day” you reminisced.

It was a nice memory, the bed always felt the softest after a long and hard battle. Returning home meant feeling each and every one of your muscles ache, sneaking out to meet Estarossa for a bit only to have to hurry up the rest of the way so you wouldn´t cause any suspicions.

And nobody would bother you in the day after the battle, it was a peace and quiet you didn´t know anymore.

But it was also one you never wanted to have again.

You much preferred the chaos of your friends, talking with Ban until you both fell asleep in each other´s arms.

“Now you have something to fight for” Elaine smiled and you nodded.

You never gave it much thought back then. Sure, you always thought you did it for your friends, but you didn´t have friends. It was simply your duty you had to fulfill, the expectations that came from leading the army rested heavy on your shoulders, making you more exhausted than ever.

But now you had your friends and love lifting you up, cheering for you, truly. It made you feel so alive, more vibrant than the brightest colors imaginable.

You would always give it your all when it came to protecting your loved ones.

With that thought and a smile on your face you and Elaine slowly fell asleep.

Within the next few days the rebuilding of the capital and everything else that got destroyed was of the utmost importance.

Everyone helped and of course so did you.

It was nice having a routine again, it felt going back to your normal every day life even though you never had anything of the sort.

Though lately you seemed to crave normality.

It wasn´t like your life was bad at any means, it was just that you were sick of fighting.

Elaine and you were on lookout and helped rebuild the roofs and other things in high places, handing the others the things they needed.

Together you worked quite quickly, after all you unfortunately had a lot of experience.

After a while you came down to the ground again and stretched your tired muscles.

“I´ll go see what the others are up to, keep an eye on everything for me, will you?” you smiled and Elaine nodded.

“I hope they´re almost done! The festival is about to start” she reminded you to which you nodded and made your way to the Boar Hat.

As soon as you stepped through the door you could smell Ban´s cooking, making you even hungrier than before.

You exchanged loving smiles and you joined him behind the counter, checking your inventory.

“Mel, we need to stock up soon” you remarked and he nodded.

“Yeah don´t worry about that!” he said.

Gilthunder visited you a bit after you arrived and sat down to talk with Meliodas.

Meanwhile you and Ban sneaked into the kitchen, cleaning up together.

Well, you were cleaning until Ban grinned at you and gently pushed you against the wall, a dreamy smile on his lips and his eyes full of adoration as he closed the distance between you and kissed you passionately.

His one hand gently cupping your cheek, tracing his fingers over your beautiful skin, his other placed on your waist to be even closer to you.

Heaven wasn´t a place, no. It was right here, right now in this moment. With you.

Your lips against his, this feeling of needing air but not wanting it, craving more and more of your touch.

This was truly heaven to him.

You eagerly kissed back and hooked your arms around his neck, smiling into the kiss and just enjoying his presence.

If you could you would stay like this forever.

Ban still had the same look in his eyes as he broke the kiss, so focused on you, getting lost in this moment. Nothing else counted right now. It was like the outside world didn´t exist.

“Fuck, I really love you, you know that?” he whispered, his smile never leaving his lips.

Time stopped, your heart jumped out of your chest and stopped at the same time.

Those were the words you both dreaded and wished for at the same time.

And now that he uttered them, you didn´t know what to say.

“You don´t have to say it back right now, I just wanted you to know. Now was the right moment for me and I will wait for yours to come. And if it doesn´t that´s alright too. I would never pressure you into anything. You´re too precious to me” he said and it was in this moment that you knew, though something held you back.

You didn´t like it in the first place, this queasy feeling in your stomach.

Ban laid an arm around you as you two exited the kitchen, celebrating Elizabeth officially joining your party.

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moonchildsaurora · 4 years ago

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Garden of Words

✤ prince/king!Yunho x tailor!reader ✤ genre: Prince AU // angst, fluff ✤ t/w: sfw, lots of bittersweetness, rated PG ✤ count: 3.5k+ ✤ [ part 2 ] of Lacuna miniseries

a/n - look, when I was writing my plan out for this, my notes only centered around the garden scene. . .and here we are 3000+ words later hahahaaaaaa, this is what happens when the mind goes “what if” and gets invested in the before/after rather than just the now 😔 one day I’ll be able to write shorter, sweeter pieces but today isn’t the day. I’d like to whole-heartedly thank anyone who reads through this entire piece, for your time and hopefully it was worth it. Also I’ve decided to have a little bit of fun with subtly featuring other members in each others’ mini stories, so see if y’all can spot who the next character we’ll be visiting next! 💙 P.S. paragraphs in all italics are flashback scenes!

“Excuse me, are you the fae of the garden?”

The watering can of butterscotch shade in your hands tilted back to pause in the sprinkling of water droplets on the freshly bloomed red gardenias. Turning around, you found the source of the small tinkling voice.

“Good morning Young Prince,” you greeted him, setting the watering can down on a nearby bench before making your way over. Sunlight shone abundantly down on the Royal Glasshouse, some areas where the stained-glass windows stood were bathed in colourful hues. Where the light hit your peachy robe made of georgette-silk gave an ethereal glow to your figure.

The Young Prince looked at you with wonder as you bent down to his level before speaking to him again, “and how did you manage to find your way here, little one?” You recognised the mahogany velvet capelet that wrapped around his form; after all, just two weeks ago were you tirelessly hand-sewing those dainty pearls that left a trail of constellations across the velvet surface.

“Hmm…I followed the pretty blue butterflies!” the Young Prince excitedly pointed to where several of them were fluttering over the yellow hibiscuses. Of course he would, he is the King’s son after all and his smile was perfect proof of that too.

Your eyes soften and the sides of our lips tilted further up, “Well they definitely have led you to a special spot haven’t they?”

“Please don’t tell anyone!” the Young Prince turned to look behind him quickly, as if to check if the coast was clear before taking a few shy steps closer to you. He brought up his little hands to cup them around his mouth and anticipating that he was going to whisper, you leaned in with a listening ear.

“I’m not supposed to come here on my own but Father brings me here sometimes and always tells me that the flowers here are most happy because of the fae who cares for them. I wanted to meet the fae because they never are around when Father and I are here.”

With great effort you suppressed the giggles that threatened to spill out, not wanting the Young Prince to think that you were laughing at him but rather at how adorable of a pout he formed by the end of whispering his little secret to you.

“Who told you that you couldn’t come here by yourself?”

“Everyone says that this glasshouse is Father’s most favourite and no one should come in without him saying ok. Even Mother doesn’t come here.”

Now it was all starting to make more sense to you, trust him to give you a title like fae of the garden. Letting out a gentle sigh, you gave the Young Prince a reassuring smile and held out your pinky.

“I promise not to tell, if you don’t.”

His eyes sparkled immediately as his little pinky was quick to curl around yours, “Oh thank you great fae!”

The soft spot in your heart grew once more.

“Would you like to see what fresh blooms will greet us today, Young Prince?”

The initial shyness he had melted away and the eager tug on your hands with a delighted laugh was a clear answer to your question. You let him lead you down the cobblestone pathway, patiently answering his questions whenever he’d point out flowers to you along the walk.

“Ah! Father’s favourite flower!”

The both of you slowed to a stop where the sea of multi-coloured freesias clustered, like a protective circle, around the Juliet Rose bush. With glowing apricot coloured petals that looked tender to touch, the rose bush stood dignified in the middle. Oh, the amount of care and love that went in to growing these roses, it truly is the treasure of the Royal Glasshouse.

You could still feel the phantom prickles on your fingertips from when you’d accidentally catch on one of the thorns whilst pruning. But you also remembered the warm hands that used to encompass yours and those same hands fought many more thorns to build this piece of Eden just for you.

“Shall we get some to give to him later on?” you suggested, having swiftly gone round the corner to retrieve the pruning knife from the crate.

“Yes, yes! Oh but won’t our shoes get muddy going in there?”

“Your Father didn’t mind losing many good white trousers to the dirt when he used to tend to the garden.”

“Father did that?” gasped the Young Prince, his eyes locked on as you moved with practiced ease. Still unsure as to whether he should risk a scolding from his tutor later on, he stayed behind the pebble border.

You hummed in reply, tip-toeing to avoid disturbing the freesias to reach the rose bush. “He drove the palace tailors mad with the amount of buttons he’d lose…but it was all worth it in the end.”

Your hands cupped one of the larger roses, observing the intricate layers of petals within the heart of the bloom. Just like the layers of memories that stirred within you in that moment.

”Not again Your Highness!”

Shoving the tunic you had been sewing to fix up a rip at the seams to the side, you hurried over with a handkerchief towards the Crown Prince as he came out of the Royal Glasshouse. When he wasn’t attending his classes or royal duties, all free time was spent on the garden. The only rule was that no one but the Crown Prince was allowed inside.

“Blossom, we’ve talked about this. You know I’d prefer it if you used my name.”

“That’s the last thing you should be worrying about now! The Queen won’t be too thrilled to know that you–“

A snow white camellia was tucked behind your ear, distracting you to a pause. Your hand immediately reached up and your fingers were met with the morning dew still upon the petals.

“This is first of the few that have successfully bloomed.”

“You’re distracting me on purpose, Yunho!”

“Well it got you to say my name, did it not?” he laughed, crouching down slightly to allow you to help wipe some of the soil off his cheeks. Even as you continued to fret over his mess of a stained blouse that certainly will cause a ruckus over afternoon tea, Yunho looked at you with so much affection that it would’ve made the rest of the flowers blush.

“You are impossible,” with no real bite to your words.

“And yet you’ve stayed by me all this time.”

You weren’t just the child of the Queen’s personal seamstress, no, you were Yunho’s first real friend within the palace. He treasured the friendship, for being with you meant Jeong Yunho could breathe freely.

The hallway had a woeful chill despite the midday sunlight streaming through the arched windows. Perhaps it was reflecting your current state of mind, your feet scurrying with haste to carry you to the safety of your chambers. Only behind closed doors did you allow your walls to crumble.

“It’s settled then, we shall entrust you with the task of creating the wedding gown. After all your sewing skills are immaculate and the Princess herself personally requested for you.”

Your mind kept replaying the announcement, echoes taunting the reality right in your face. Extremely confused at the absence of feeling on top of the world that you’ve been tasked with such a prestigious request nor were you jumping with joy knowing that Aethevintis and Cilon were officiating a strong alliance through a royal engagement.

“Every tailor in the kingdom would’ve killed for this job! Soon you’ll be making a name for yourself!”

The palace staff showered words of encouragement and your mother couldn’t be any prouder…

...yet it did nothing to ease the piercing cold emptiness that invaded your shattered heart.

“Blossom that would be considered as assault against the Crown Prince.”

You threw an unamused look his way, right after you had nearly kneed Yunho in the face when he effortlessly hitched you over his shoulders. Without so much as giving you a valid explanation as to why he arrived unannounced at the tailors’ room, only to whisk you away from your half-sewn bodice.

“Some of us need to work, Yunho!”

“You’ve been working a fair bit lately, I simply miss spending time with you.”

Now that you have actually acknowledged your feelings towards him, you couldn’t afford to let such words feed the false hope; not when you knew there will be an inevitable split in your pathways. You had been purposely avoiding him since preparations for the Engagement Ball have started, under the guise that you needed complete focus on your commission. It numbed the hurt inside temporarily, but you couldn’t deny that you’ve missed him.

Terribly so.

“Where exactly are you taking us?”

Scrunching your nose slightly at the smell of hay and heavy worn leather upon entering the stables, you noticed the saddle was already on Yunho’s Friesian stallion. Had he planned this beforehand?

“On an adventure!”

Of course, Yunho may have forgotten to notify you that he was supposed to be at a council meeting at that moment instead of bolting out of the stables like your lives depended on it.

He needed to breathe again and you decided to run with him for once, rather than away. The faint shouts of his name could be heard in the distance but consequences be damned if it meant seeing his radiant smile be set free and feeling the steadiness of your entwined hands.

“Watch your step.”

For whatever reason you couldn’t fathom, that Yunho somehow managed to sneak away from his own Engagement Ball without getting noticed and now was guiding you through an alternate and poorly-lit route towards the garden. Had it not been for his insistence that this matter was of great importance, you would’ve dragged him back in to the Grand Hall yourself.

Not even daring to think about the implications of his future wife being left, having to wait inside and what should happen if any of the guests or palace staff saw you with the Crown Prince in this questionable state?

“I’ve already talked to Captain Song and requested for his guard unit to ensure this area is kept clear for tonight, so you needn’t worry.”

His warm hand that held onto yours gave a reassuring squeeze, dampening your anxiousness just a little. You ended up facing the entrance to the Royal Glasshouse, the window panes were crystal clear in the dark that you could see the stars that hung above in the night sky in the reflection. Admittedly this place hadn’t graced your mind in months and you immediately felt disappointment towards yourself for not checking in with Yunho over time about his progress.

As you were about to speak, your vision suddenly goes pitch black.

“Hope you don’t mind but it’s a surprise,” Yunho whispered softly and only then did you realise that those were his hands covering your eyes. Wordlessly you nodded and allowed him to lead you in, an array of floral scents hitting your senses almost immediately, indicating that you both have made it well in to the glasshouse.

Something brushed against the top of your head unexpectedly and you flinched back, hitting Yunho’s solid chest.

“It’s ok, it’s just the blue jade vines. I’ve got you.” You wished your heart would stop fluttering as you felt him shuffle around you.

“Had it been anything else, I would’ve been right out the door and never stepping foot in here again,” you murmured.

You heard Yunho’s low chuckling before, “And leave me behind? That’s harsh. Who would I ever share this with then?”

His hands lifted and you blinked a few times to settle the initial haziness. Your breath caught in your throat as you took in the view; there were lanterns both hanging from the roof and ones scattered around to illuminate the interior with a soft glow, fireflies danced about unbothered and even with the vast amount of plants it wasn’t a suffocating space.

Taking tentative steps to look at some of the flowers up close, you couldn’t help but let out a breathy laugh. Just when you thought Yunho couldn’t get any more incredible than he already is.

“Yunho, this is…you really did it! From which fairytale did you pull this garden out of? All of this is exquisitely stunning!” you said, gently running your hand over the pink and white baby’s breath bushes.

Unbeknownst to you, Yunho’s barely keeping himself together under his calm façade. His heart has been yearning to just go against all odds and take you away with him but that meant condemning you to a lifetime of hardship, in a world where tradition doesn’t take too kindly to change.

He would never do that to you.

If he couldn’t be free to love you openly, then he’d love you in all the ways that required unspoken words. He poured his time and love into creating something, untouched by others and solely from himself, that he could give to you.

Just like he already has with his heart.

So when you heard him call your name, rather than the usual term of endearment he’d use, it set off the butterflies in your stomach. He reached out for you and you met him halfway.

“Did you know these are my favourites? They’re still young but as they grow, you’ll see that they aren’t just ordinary roses. They’re called Juliet Rose.”

Yunho showed you around the garden, telling you of the different flowers and their meanings. Peruvian lilies for lasting bonds, bluebells for devotion, gladiolus for strength, chrysanthemums for happiness, carnations for faithfulness. You were so caught up with keeping track that you nearly missed what Yunho had said next.

“–for an undying love or you’re the only one…”

“What...did you say?”

A barely-there whisper as you choked the words out. The running water from the mini fountain in the lily pad pond was the only sound among the silence that stretched between you both. And then there was the feeling of dread again, that you needed to run. Far away. Now. “W-We should go, th– your future fiancée is wait–“

You barely made it past 4 steps before Yunho caught your wrist and this time, he wasn’t going to let go. He called your name again.

“Please look at me.”

Perhaps it was the desperation in his voice that got through to you, telling you that you’d deeply regret it if you were to leave. So you willed your heart to stay through the pain and to stay for Yunho. It wasn’t until you felt damp velvet against your cheeks that you realised it was from the tears that cascaded down from your eyes and soaked in to Yunho’s suit, for he held your shaking form close to him.

“I’m such a fool.”

“Well, I guess we’re both just fools very much in love then.”

And then it dawned on you.

This entire garden being Yunho’s vow to you, which made you cry even harder than if he would’ve just confessed out loud to you right from the start.

Your hands grasped onto his back, fisting the fabric as you buried yourself further in to him. Noting that he smelled of clementines on a cool breezy summer day, you ingrained that scent to your memory. Wishing upon all the stars above that time would stop and allow you both to just live in your little garden.

“And with your permission, could you allow this fool to be selfish for a while more?”

A light kiss to your forehead before your face was tilted up, sore tear-stained eyes meeting his matching ones. “You? Selfish? Impossible.” Keeping your voice soft, partially from not wanting to break the peaceful ambience as you clumsily wiped his tears away.

Yunho knows he already has been selfish especially with time, he can’t stop it but he can draw it out at least. And he’s selfish in wanting to take from you when he knows he cannot give back entirely. But if it’s once in this lifetime that he gets to have you before having to return to the cruel world of normality, then he will get on his knees to beg for your forgiveness for being selfish.

He pours out everything in to the searing kiss he places on your lips and whilst you never imagined your first kiss to be like this, at the very least you finally have closure. Swollen lips, rosy cheeks and warm hands that refused to part until the very last second. Words that you both have been meaning to tell each other over the years are woven into poetries.

The garden kept it all, kept your love safe and your hearts safer.

“Do they make you happy too?”

Just like that, you’re brought back to the present. “What gave it away little one?” you asked, glancing to smile at him before focusing on cutting off two large roses.

“You were making the same face at the roses as Father does when he’s happy…when he tells me about you and the garden,” replied the Young Prince with honesty. The blue butterflies from before came fluttering around the roses that you held in your hands, much like the ones that stirred inside you once more when you heard the words.

Some things never change, do they?

You started to take the thorns off the stems with the pruning knife before replying, “They do, and this is my happy place.” Once you deemed the stems were safe enough for the Young Prince to hold, you made your way back over to him. You knelt down and presented the roses to him, “What do you think?”

He cautiously took the flowers that dwarfed his small hands, peering in to the layers curiously and taking a whiff of the delicate scent. “They’re really pretty! I think Father will like them very much!”

“Shall we go look for a few more blooms? You can create your very own little bouquet.”

The Young Prince made little noises of excitement and rushed to hold on to your hand once more, continuing on the quest to pick more flowers. It wasn’t until awhile later when you were showing the Young Prince how to arrange the flowers he picked to tie them together, that you heard the sound of approaching footsteps.

“Father!”

If Yunho hadn’t already learnt how to harden his heart these past years, the scene before him would’ve surely made him cry with happiness. For a second he could pretend that this was real, that you were the one with the aquamarine diamond band around your finger and that he was coming to join his actual family for tea in the garden. His eyes never wavered from yours, even when his son came barrelling in to his legs waving his bouquet merrily in the air.

“Your Majesty,” you greeted with a formal bow, not missing how Yunho’s smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Father, I finally got to meet the great fae! We spent all morning finding these!”

Only when you subtly flicked your eyes down towards the child did Yunho respond, quickly reaching down to take the bouquet from his son’s outstretched hand and bringing him in for a hug too.

“I had a feeling I’d find you here, sneaking off from your tutor again,” amusement lacing Yunho’s tone, “and what an intriguing choice of flowers you’ve got there.”

Father and son both adorning mirrored grins on their faces, “they’re for you, do you like them? And I’m sorry for sneaking in here Father!” said the Young Prince, little brows furrowing slightly.

“Very much, thank you…the both of you. And it’s ok as long as skipping your lessons doesn’t become a habit,” said Yunho as he ruffled his son’s hair affectionately and drew his gaze back to you.

“Unfortunately we must take our leave now.”

“How come? Do we really have to go?” The Young Prince seem to have inherit the puppy-dog eyes from his father, putting on the best pout he could muster as he looked between the two of you. Yunho shook his head, bending down to pick his son up. “Remember Grandpa and Grandma are coming by for lunch? Your Mother even asked the cooks to prepare our favourite dessert,” as if attempting to appease him.

“But…I wanted to spend more time here!”

“You’re always welcome back here little one, if His Majesty is ok with that–”

“Of course, although I hope it won’t be too much trouble?”

You gave a gentle smile and eyes twinkling with mirth, “Considering he hasn’t lost more than two dozen buttons within the last two weeks nor requires daily stitch repairs, I’d say it won’t be too much trouble at all Your Majesty.” That drew out an apology and light laughter from Yunho.

You walked the King and the Young Prince back to the entrance of the Royal Glasshouse, and just before stepping out Yunho turned to you once more. “Have you stopped by the pond recently?” the random query puzzled you.

“I thought I saw something interesting growing there the other day.”

Please go.

Right after waving a goodbye to Yunho and his son, without a care of making it obvious you hurried to where the lily pads floated at. It wasn’t hard to miss the bundles of serene blues nestled in the damp soil near edge of the pond. As you got closer, the realisation of what those were made your heart soar and ache at the same time.

A couple of tears fell onto the sea of blue petals as you reached out to cradle them with your hands.

“As if I could ever forget…my beloved King,” you whispered to the forget-me-nots that silently delivered Yunho’s words for you—

This garden is forever yours and so is my love, always. Never forget that.

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daughterofzagreus · 4 years ago

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The Astrological Signs of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" characters

Part 1 - Team Avatar

♎ Aang - Libra

Libra is an air sign and Aang is an airbender. More than that, though, Libra (represented by the scales) is the sign of harmony and balance. As the Avatar, restoring and maintaining balance is Aang's primary duty. Aside from all that symbolism though, Aang's personality is a lot like a Libra.

Libra is the opposite compliment to Aries, a war sign. Libra don't really like discord (at least, they don't like to be IN the discord and chaos). They're lovers, not fighters, so they tend to be peacekeepers. This is Aang to a T. Aang is not only one of the youngest characters in the show (and therefore, the most likely to be uncomfortable with violence), but he is also a monk, raised by other peaceful monks.

He values peace and all life. Even his fighting styles are evasive and are more about using an opponent's strength against them, rather than attacking. It's something that is brought up in the Book 2 episode "Bitter Work", when Aang has trouble learning earthbending from Toph. Libras (depending on the rest of their chart, of course) often tend to respond to conflict in a similar manner, by being avoidant.

You see the pacifist in Aang anytime he needs to mediate a conflict. Examples include "The Great Divide" in Book 1, where Aang has to mediate between the two tribes (as well as Sokka and Katara). He does so by telling them that "Harsh words won't solve anything. Action will". Of course, when that doesn't work, he just lies and makes up the alternative story of WeiJin and JinWei. I don't think Aang is a big fan of lies, but it was for the sake of peace, a means to an end. Very Libra.

Another thing that makes Aang a Libra is the fact that 1) Libra is ruled by Venus and 2) Libra rules the 7th house, which is essentially relationships. Aang's relationships (platonic and romantic) mean EVERYTHING to him, and there's a reason why putting one of his loved ones in danger is initially the only way to activate the Avatar state. He's a very friendly, charming and loving kid (like most Libras) and he's the first one from team Avatar who believes they can make it through the secret tunnel, because of how strongly he believes in his love for Katara. The final point is Aang's reluctance (or sometimes downright refusal) to cause harm to others unless absolutely necessary. While others use violence, Aang is more likely to want to befriend his enemies, and that's actually a good thing. It's Libra's superpower.

♋ Katara - Cancer

Cancer is a water sign that is ruled by the moon, and Katara is a (very powerful) waterbender who draws her powers from the moon. In astrology, water signs are known for being on the emotional side. And with Cancer's ruling planet being the moon (the planet of emotions and also the celestial body that pushes and pulls the tides), Cancers are known to be so emotional, that they're often just archetyped by it. Katara is similarly emotional (see the Book 3 episode "Ember Island Players"). However, Katara being so in touch with her emotions also makes her extremely emotionally intelligent. Like Cancers and most other water signs, her heightened sensitivity allows her to almost psychically sense how others are feeling, and to know how exactly to respond to and comfort them. There's a reason why Katara has such great chemistry (when it comes to her one-on-one conversations) with so many people (Aang, Haru, Jet, Zuko, Toph). Her emotional intelligence also makes her very mature for her age and allow her to see things clearer than others, or to foresee things that others don't.

Cancers are often either family oriented, or they love and value their home (this can either be their childhood home, current home, or the city, country or culture that they came from). This applies with Katara. As a waterbender, being from the water tribes is a big part of who she is, and she has a deep love for her culture. We see how being the only waterbender in the South Pole and having no one to show her the ways of waterbending saddens her, and how happy she is to hear that Hama is willing to teach her (the only other waterbender from the Southern water tribes that Katara has ever met).

With regards to Katara being mature for her age, she's also very motherly. The Book 3 episode "The Runaway" (as well as most of her interactions with Toph) demonstrates this. The moon (which rules Cancer) is The Mother in astrology, and so most Cancers have a significant relationship with motherhood. Katara was very close to her late mother and her death still affects her.

Following the death of her mother, Katara has basically had to become everyone else's mother and hold things together. You see this as well (in a more positive light) in the Book 2 episode "The Desert". In this episode, Appa is missing, Aang is too upset to think or act clearly, Toph can't see properly because of the sand and Sokka is high off cactus juice. Katara is the one that is keeping everything together in this episode.

On the downside, Katara's mothering can turn to nagging sometimes, but I don't blame her. She's a child that's had to grow up way too fast. She has a lot of pressure on her. With water, that pressure can build up, until it bursts like a dam wall (which it's likely to do). It's the combination of this, as well as Katara's strong and fearless sense of right and wrong that lead to those cataclysmic outbursts that both Katara and water signs are sometimes known for.

♋♐Sokka - Cancer sun, but with a lot of Sagittarius aspects in the birth chart

Okay, let's start with the Sagittarius side of things. There are a lot of elements of the Sag personality in Sokka. For one thing, luck. Not only does he manage to survive (and thrive) in the entire series WITHOUT any bending powers, but that boomerang ALWAYS comes back! That's some Jupiter-luck energy if I've ever seen it.

Sokka was originally going to be a more serious character, but the voice actor decided to improvise and add some of his own humor to the role, which created the Sokka that we know and love now. I mention this because the voice actor (Jack De Sena) is a Sagittarius. Sokka has the kind of personality that provides humor in difficult times and can lighten up the sometimes very heavy atmosphere in the group. He doesn't just make people laugh, he likes to laugh as well (at his own jokes and even at his enemy's jokes). In the book 3 episode "The Ember Island Players", heeven goes to the effort of getting Suki to sneak him backstage, so he could give the actor playing himself some tips and extra jokes (and low and behold, the crowd actually laughs at them). In his words, he's "just a guy who loves comedy". In fact, I think he's one of the only ones there who just decides to kick his feet up and enjoy the show (by basically turning the situation into a date night for him and Suki). Sagittarians love to laugh and make people laugh. They're optimists who like to have a good time, and are likely to be the make-lemonade-out-of-lemons type.

He's also one of the smartest and most competent characters on the show. He has excellent problem solving skills, and isn't afraid to look at things through a different angle and try new things to expand his worldview and knowledge. This is relevant, as Sag rules the 9th house which includes, amoung other things, higher learning, truth and knowledge. He can be a bit tactless and insensitive...a little slick at the mouth, but it's largely ignored by others, as he is likeable and funny enough for others to let it go. That's quite a Sag trait.

The Cancerian part of Sokka's personality is less pronounced, but it's there. He's VERY protective of his loved ones, even before the situation with Princess Yue. He is family oriented in that he admires his dad and the traditions and customs of the water tribes. He loves and is just as proud of his culture and home life as Katara is, but just in a different way. He also always looks out for the other members of team Avatar. He can tell when a member of the team needs support and immediately jumps to action (for example, the way he immediately grabs Toph's hand to guide her in "The Serpent's Pass", in "The Desert" and on the air ships during the final battle in the series finale). He's also very loving and protective of his sister, despite how often they fight. Also, quiet as it's kept, Cancers are one of the funniest signs in the zodiac.

♉♈Toph - Taurus sun, but with a lot of Aries aspects in the birth chart

Let's start with the Taurus aspects. Taurus is not just an earth sign, it's FIXED earth. It embodies the firm stance and hardheadness of not just Toph, but earthbenders in general. Tauruses are very stubborn and like to do things their own way at their own pace. Combine that with the independence and confrontational nature of an Aries, and you've got Toph.

Aries value their independence, sometimes to the point of being selfish, which is what we get with Toph in the Book 2 episode "The Chase". In this episode, it's Toph's first time riding with the group, but it's also her first taste of freedom. Like an Aries, she hates the idea of seeming weak or helpless, and has to learn that freedom doesn't mean that she has to do everything alone.

As Toph shows us, there is, however, power and strength in valuing independence, so long as you're not insecure about independence or projecting. Toph is a wealthy, sheltered child who is blind, which, in most cases, would make her vulnerable. But it's not the case. Toph ran away once before when she was little, and that's where she learned earthbending from the giant blind moles. She learned earthbending not just as a martial art, but as an extension of herself and her senses, and as a way to see. She would have never been able to master doing that (nor would shehave gone on to do even greater things like train the avatar and discover metal bending), if she didn't have the will, bravery and self assurance to run away in the first place. That little pilgrimage (her life changing adventure, if you will...but still not with Zuko, I'm afraid😔) showed the value of independence. Of going out on your own journey of self-discovery. Much like how Zuko needed to be be alone for a while during Book 2 for his own journey of self-discovery.

Oh, speaking of "Zuko Alone"...

♈Zuko - Aries

Zuko's arc in the show shows us the transition from a dark-sided, low vibrational Aries, to a high-vibrational Aries at it's best: passionate, brave, protective, strong, innovative, a good leader, driven, energetic and independent. Zuko embodies many Aries (and general fire sign) traits, both good and bad. He can be impulsive, and doesn't always think things all the way through. Aries is cardinal fire, so it's about getting up and going, just DOING something. Zuko is known for never giving up. These are things that that Iroh, Sokka and Ursa have mentioned. Zuko is an impatient person and is very fiery, hot headed and reactionary even for a firebender.

His reactionary nature makes him prone to a bit of melodrama (and I imagine that's why it's so fun for Azula or even Iroh to get a rise out of him). This is definitely the case with Aries. They're not the only sign with a temper, but they are the most likey to cause a scene and storm off in a huff about it. Or challenge you to a fight. Zuko can't refuse a fight for the life of him. At least not until he evolves and figures out his ✨true destiny✨.

One the other hand, he also keeps that same fiery energy when it comes to defending those who can't defend themselves and fighting for what he believes is right. In these cases, he refuses to back down. Even if his chances of winning are low, he'll still keep pushing forward. That's the will, energy and drive of cardinal fire. Zuko just needs to chanel all that power into something useful and constructive, like creating change for the greater good, and not distraction. Like with fire in general, Aries (and Zuko) is useful and powerful, but requires direction, guidance and purpose, so as to not risk letting the fire run wild to cause destruction and devastation.

#astrology #astro observations #libra #moon #cancer #aries #sagittarius #taurus #avatar aang #avatar tla #atla #the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #katara #team avatar #sokka #zuko #avatar toph #toph beifong

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stellarstarwarsimagines · 4 years ago

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Daydreams With Me

Pairing - Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader

Summary - Obi-Wan Request: For several months now, Obi-Wan and you have been in a secret relationship. With being a Princess, and him being a Jedi, you knew that it would never be more than that, and you were okay with it. Until a secret plot threatens not only your relationship, but everything you hold dear.

Word Count - 4,472

Warnings - None!

“I don’t wanna.” You whined as Obi-Wan finished lacing up the back of your dress.

His chest shook with a chuckle against your back, his hands moving to rest on your hips. “You don’t have a choice, my love.”

“Shouldn’t the Princess be given a choice about what frivolous parties she has to attend?” You asked him, leaning back into his warm embrace with a sigh. “I want to stay in here with you and pretend nothing outside exists.”

Obi-Wan’s lips pressed against your cheek for a moment before he nuzzled into your neck, causing you to giggle as his beard tickled your skin. “You have a duty to dazzle all of your citizens and government with your intelligence and beauty.” He said, looking at the two of you in the mirror. “As I have a duty to protect you.”

You turned around in his arms, pressing your forehead against his. For years now, since he had become a Jedi Knight, Obi-Wan had made frequent visits to your planet under an order from the Council to protect you. Your father had a good relationship with them, and was a very important member of the Republic Senate. Due to a fraction of men no longer wanting to adhere to the matriarchal society it had held for so long, your planet was at constant threat of a Civil War and in need of Jedi negotiators. Any public appearance had your life threatened.

It had only taken several visits and him to take a blaster shot for you to realize you were in love with him. You were pleased to discover the feeling was mutual.

Not that anyone could know.

So stolen moments, like the one you were in now, were all that the two of you could share. It made going out in public all the more irritating when all you wanted to do was curl up in bed with him and look out at the sky. As the future Queen though, you knew that wasn’t an option. “Can you expand your duty to entertaining me tonight as well? If I have to listen to another word from Lord Tarsi about the grass levels, I might end up having to throw myself off the balcony.” You asked him, your fingers tangling in his long tresses.

“See, that’s where my protecting you would come in.” He replied, bumping your nose with his.

“Oh, that even applies to me hurting myself?” You teased, grinning at him.

“Especially when it applies to you hurting yourself.” He replied, pressing a soft kiss to the tip of your nose, causing it to scrunch up at the tickling sensation.

“I suppose that means no jumping off balconies?” You asked him.

“I’m afraid not, my princess.” Obi-Wan replied, an affectionate smile on his face as he looked at you.

While you heard the title several times, from everyone you came across on your planet, there was something even more special about hearing it from Obi-Wan’s mouth. He said it in such a way that you knew he didn’t mean that you were the princess of your planet, but the princess over the territory that was his heart.

You would guard that heart with your very life, like you would your kingdom.

“I suppose I’ll have to be on my best behavior then. For your sanity of course.” You said, pulling away from him, but keeping a hold on his hands. “But just in case, I would appreciate it if you escorted me into the ballroom, Master Kenobi.” You said, a grin on your lips.

A glint in his eyes appeared at your use of his title, “You might want to work on that best behavior while the night is still young Milady.” Obi-Wan told you, but nevertheless held his arm out for you to take. “I will escort you though, for your safety.” He added as if that was the reason.

The both of you knew it wasn’t.

By the time the two of you made it to the ballroom, you were all giggles, your face heated from the words that Obi-Wan had been whispering in your ear when your father appeared. “Darling, you look beautiful.” He told you, kissing both of your cheeks.

“Thank you,” you said, smiling at him, leaving Obi-Wan’s side to embrace him. “Where is Mother?”

Your father tried to keep his face the same, but it didn’t escape your notice how his shoulders slumped and the tiniest frown formed for the briefest moment. “I’m afraid she had a small spell. She’s hoping to be along later.”

An uneasy feeling filled your stomach at the information. Your mother was having more and more spells as the days passed. You knew that they were trying to keep it from you, but despite the healer’s best efforts, your mother wasn’t getting any better. You weren’t ready to think about the implications of that.

You didn’t know how he did it, something to do with the Force most likely, but Obi-Wan could always sense your emotions. He stepped forward to greet your father, but in the process placed a comforting hand on the small of your back. “I’m sorry to hear that Senator. It looks to be an entertaining evening.” Obi-Wan said.

“Ah, it always is Master Kenobi. I appreciate your attendance and diligence watching after my daughter. I know it’s not an easy job.” He teased, shaking Obi-Wan’s hand and giving you a teasing smile that you rolled your eyes at.

“But an important one.” Obi-Wan replied, the short look he gave you implying the job of looking after you as more than important to him.

It made your heart flutter in your chest as you gave him a gentle smile.

“Indeed.” Your father interrupted the moment, taking your arm. “If you’ll excuse us, we’ve got to get dinner started.”

“Of course,” Obi-Wan replied with a bow. “I need to find my Padawan anyway.”

You shot Obi-Wan a look over your shoulder as your father pulled you away, mouthing the words, “help me!”

He gave you an amused smile and shrugged his shoulders.

“Darling, there’s someone I want you to meet.” Your father told you as he led you to the high table.

Those words never meant anything good. Whenever you heard them, you knew it was another attempt by your father to set you up. These days it seemed that all he wanted was to see you married off. Not that it mattered. The decision on who you married was up to you in your society, and since the one person you loved wouldn’t be allowed to marry you, you were destined to live out your days as a “single” Queen. Not that it mattered to you. “Father, we’ve been over this.” You groaned.

“Yes, I know Sweetheart, but -”

“I don’t want to get married right now.” You cut him off.

“No one is saying you have to get married right now, but your mother and I think you should meet him.” He continued.

“Why?” You asked, stopping in your tracks so you could face him. “Why are you and mother pushing this so hard?”

Your father glanced around to make sure that no one was listening. When he turned back to you, it was as if his whole body slumped. He looked so . . . tired. How could you have failed to notice the bags under his eyes? The droop in his shoulders? “Darling . . . your mother . . . she wants to know you’re happy before she -”

You placed your hand on his arm, stopping him from finishing a sentence you knew that you weren’t ready to hear. “I . . . I’ll meet him, but I’m not going to promise anything.” How could you? Glancing over at a corner of the room where your Jedi now stood with his Padawan, a caring look in his eyes and a smile on his face as he spoke with him and pointed out various features in the room, you knew that nothing could ever come from this man your parents wanted you to meet, no matter how much they wanted it too. What you could never tell your mother was that you already were happy. So happy you wanted to shout it from the rooftops. You wanted to visit every planet in the galaxy to scream it.

But he was a Jedi Master, and you weren’t going to let your love take that from him. The galaxy was a better place with him looking after it.

“That’s all I ask.” Your father said, oblivious to your inner turmoil. He took your hand and brought you to the head table. “Linor, this is my daughter.” The man stood up and gave you what you assumed was supposed to be a charming smile, but to you he looked pained. The man took your hand and pressed a kiss to it.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He said.

“Likewise.” You replied, your years of being trained to be polite stepping in.

Linor pulled out a chair beside him for you. “Will you join me?”

It took all the self control you had to not sigh and give a polite nod instead as you settled into your seat.

“Well, if you two don’t mind, I have to go have a word with Master Kenobi about some security details for the evening.” Your father said, giving you a pleased smile as he left the two of you alone.

If you hadn’t been with company, you would have called him out on that one.

“He’s not very subtle is he?” Linor said from beside you.

You turned to look at him, studying his features for a moment. He was handsome, that you couldn’t deny. He had a clean shaven face, a strong jawline and high cheekbones. That, combined with the full lips and head of dark hair gave him a confident look, but there was something about the darkness in his eyes that made you uneasy.

Or maybe it was the fact that they weren’t a light blue filled with warmth.

“He’s not, I apologize for his behavior.” You said, watching him walk across the room to where Obi-Wan and his Padawan Anakin were standing.

“No need to apologize. I’ve been eager to meet you Princess. Not even in power yet, and you’ve made quite an impact on our planet already.” He said, raising his eyebrows at you.

Despite his supposed eagerness, there was no admiration in his voice as he spoke, in fact he sounded as if he was merely stating the conditions outside. “Oh? What action did I take that made you so eager to meet me?”

He smirked. “I found your protection order on the caves to be very intriguing. What made you decide to focus on that?” He asked.

“I found the farmland that rested on top of it to be far more important to us than the metal that lies inside. Not to mention the dangers of those caves. As of right now we’re unaware of the stability of them, and what they would do to the people if they collapsed, above and inside them.” You took a sip of the drink in front of you. “I don’t believe in endangering the people for some unnecessary scraps of metal.”

“Unnecessary? Aren’t you worried that we might need that at some point?” Linor asked, his lips pulling into a tight line.

Okay, now you were sure that there was something about him that you didn’t like. “For what?” You asked, narrowing your eyes at him.

He seemed to know that he had set off alarms for you. He backed off, and what was meant to be a charming smile once again formed on his face. “Oh, nothing. I’m sure you’re right. You are the future Queen after all.” He said, raising his glass to you while he took a sip, never taking his eyes off of you.

Your stomach churned, and you turned away from him, looking out at the crowd until you found Obi-Wan. He seemed to be in deep conversation with your father, and you frowned as you noticed the look on his face.

You’d spent many hours with Obi-Wan now, and had become somewhat of an expert at reading his expressions no matter how hard he tried to hide them. Whatever your father was telling him . . . it was upsetting him.

Almost as if he could feel your eyes on him, he looked up and met your gaze. The longing that was there as he looked at you took your breath away. When you gave him an inquisitive look, he gave the smallest shake of his head, and turned his attention back to your father.

Well, you were for sure going to have to ask him about that later.

____________________

By the end of the night, you were not only exhausted, but worried as well. Several times throughout the night you had attempted to talk to Obi-Wan, even get him to dance with you, but each time he had cited an excuse and managed to drift away. Even now, as he escorted you back to your quarters, he was silent, and seemed to be lost in thought.

You couldn’t help but think that something was wrong, and that whatever your father had said to him was the cause of it. Wondering what it could be, you wouldn’t have noticed you had made it to your quarters if Obi-Wan hadn’t brought you to a stop. “I’m afraid this is goodnight Milady.” He said, bringing your hand up to his lips for a kiss.

“What?” Okay, now you were positive something was wrong. There hadn’t been a night when Obi-Wan visited that didn’t end with him holding you close as you both drifted off to sleep in many years.

“Anakin and I have been called back to Coruscant. We’re leaving first thing in the morning.” He told you.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t stay tonight.” You said, gripping the hand he was holding tight. You had known he wouldn’t be able to stay much longer, but you weren’t ready to say goodbye before you had to.

His expression softened as he looked at you, his thumb stroking your hand. “I thought it might be easier -”

“Please stay,” You said, “Besides, you’re the one who said you slept better with me by your side.” You reminded him, raising your eyebrows at him.

He couldn’t argue with that, and you knew it. Obi-Wan nodded and let you lead him into your room. As soon as the door shut behind you, you turned back to him, letting go of his hand and crossing your arms over your chest.

“All right. Tell me what’s going on.” You said, trying to make your voice sound stern. It was hard when he was looking at you with those gentle blue eyes.

“Darling, it’s not something we have to talk about.” He told you, shaking his head as he took a step towards you.

“I think it is. It’s distressing you enough to want to leave without a proper goodbye.” You took a step forward yourself, uncrossing your arms and leaning up to cup his cheek in one of your hands. “Tell me what my father said to you that has that frown on your face.” You said, brushing your thumb across his cheekbone.

Obi-Wan closed his eyes, letting out a soft sigh as he leaned into your touch, placing his own hand on top of yours. You thought for a moment he was going to try and avoid the subject once more, but he didn’t. “Your father asked me to try and convince you to marry that man. He believes, considering how close we are, that you would listen to me.”

Everything made sense. “Oh, Obi . . .” You shook your head, upset with your father for asking that of him, but also knowing you couldn’t blame him. He had no idea the position he had put Obi-Wan in. “You know that will never happen.” You told him.

He squeezed your hand, and opened his eyes, staring into yours with that longing once more. “Maybe it should.”

You shook your head at him, not believing for one second that was what he wanted. “You don’t mean that,” You said.

“He might be good for your people. Bring some more prosperity to your Kingdom.” He tried to reason with you, but made no move to put more distance between the two of you.

“Our Kingdom is fine without his help. I assure you. You know that too considering how many meeting notes you’ve watched me pour over and tell you about.” You reminded him.

“He could give you children . . . and a marriage.” He admitted.

Ah, so here is what he was concerned about. “You’re right. He could give me those things.” Obi-Wan’s gaze drifted to the ground. “But I don’t want them with him.” He looked back up at you. “There’s one man in the entire galaxy I would want those things with, and that’s you, Obi-Wan Kenobi. I will never love anyone like I love you. I couldn’t marry another man knowing that.”

Obi-Wan pulled your hand to his lips, his warm breath heating up your palm as he closed his eyes again, seeming to struggle with what he wanted to say. “Do you want me to leave the Order?” He whispered.

Your eyes widened in disbelief, your mouth parting in shock. “What?” This wasn’t something the two of you had ever discussed. You had imagined the rest of your life with Obi would be as it was now, but this . . .

“I love you with everything I have . . . If I left the Order, I could marry you, I could give you children . . . anything and everything you want and deserve.” He pressed another delicate kiss to your knuckles as he opened his eyes. “All you need to do is ask.”

It was tempting. It was so, so tempting, the life he had laid out for you. You had dreamed about it often, because dreaming was all you dared to do. No longer having to hide your love for each other. A beautiful wedding in the gardens at sunset, your mother all smiles as your father gives you away to the man in front of you. Him ruling by your side, a fair and just ruler as you knew he would be. Then becoming pregnant with a little boy or girl with his golden hair and crystal blue eyes. You knew he would be a perfect father, and as he said, all you had to do was ask.

But it would be selfish to do so.

“I could never ask you to do that Obi. The Council needs you. Anakin needs you. The galaxy needs you. My desires fall far under those.” You told him with a sad smile.

“Not to me,” He argued.

He was not making this easy on you. “Fine then. I desire for you to keep saving the galaxy while I wait patiently and happily for every moment I get to spend with you.”

For the first time since he had stepped into your room, a small smile graced his handsome face. He let go of your hand to wrap his arms around you, tugging you into his chest and resting his forehead against yours. “So stubborn, little one.”

You rested your hands against his chest, fidgeting with the edges of his robes. “You must be rubbing off on me.” You teased, smiling yourself when he pressed a short peck to your lips.

The two of you sat in silence for a few moments, enjoying the moment together in each other’s embrace. When Obi-Wan did speak, it was soft, hesitant, even vulnerable. “Tell me I have nothing to worry about.”

Obi-Wan was so strong and confident, it was strange hearing the worry in his voice. The almost pleading in his tone as he spoke. “You have nothing to worry about, Obi. It’s always going to be you who owns my heart.” You reassured him.

He let out a deep sigh of relief before pulling you in for a sweet kiss.

____________________

You weren’t sure what it was that woke you up. Normally, when you fell asleep wrapped up nice and warm in Obi-Wan’s arms, you slept for hours until you were woken up. This time it was still dark outside judging from the doors to your balcony, and try as you might, you couldn’t get back to sleep.

Deciding to give up for the time being, you pressed a kiss to Obi-Wan’s forehead and slipped out of his arms, smiling as he clutched the pillow you had been sleeping with close to him. Hoping some fresh air would do you some good, you decided to take a step outside. As soon as the doors shut behind you, you took in a deep breath, inhaling the fresh night air.

Until you felt a blaster against your back.

It was an instinct at this point, the way your body leaned into it for a moment while you turned towards your assailant, using one hand to strike him in the neck while using the other to grip the blaster so he couldn’t retract it. You distracted him with a knee to the groin and as he stumbled backwards, you took the blaster from him, backing away and aiming it straight at his chest.

“Your lover has taught you well.” Your attacker spat, unbothered by the blaster now pointing at him.

“What the hell are you talking about, and what are you doing on my balcony trying to kill me, Linor?” You snapped.

“I wasn’t trying to kill you. Just subdue you. Killing you would defeat my purpose, and is Master Kenobi not lying in your bed right now?” He asked with a smirk, taking a step forward.

You faltered for a moment. How the hell did he know that? “What’s your purpose then, if not to kill me?”

He ignored your question and gaze, dancing his fingers across the railings in front of him and staring out at the city below. “I tried to understand you know. It’s been taught to us that women are the more intelligent beings. More capable of a fair and just rule, but then . . .” He let out a low sigh. “Your protection order? You don’t even have the slightest clue what you’ve done. It showed your lack of ambition, Princess.”

“I think it’s time you leave.” You said.

Linor continued on as if you hadn’t spoken. “Pretty soon . . . the world’s going to change. There’s a new power rising, and I, for one, am going to be on the right side of it.” He said.

“Oh yeah? And how are you going to do that?” You asked, raising your eyebrows at him.

“By marrying you of course.” He said, turning around to look at you. “Once I do, and once your mother passes, oh you’ll be in charge, by name alone, but I’ll be the one pulling the strings. Your order of protection will be withdrawn, and the mining will begin again.” The grin on his face made you want to throw up. “You know, Princess, the Trade Federation is very eager to get their hands on that metal, and they’re willing to pay handsomely.”

The Trade Federation? What would they want with that metal? You didn’t have a clue, but you did know one thing.

Linor was crazy.

“If you think I’m going to marry you after all this, you have lost your mind.” You snapped at him, fingers tightening on the blaster.

He shook his head. “Princess, I know you will, because if you don’t, the whole Jedi Council will find out about your relationship with that Jedi in there.” He said, pointed back to the doors. “Unless I’m mistaken, the Jedi aren’t supposed to form personal attachments, and I’d say what Obi-Wan Kenobi feels for you is a personal attachment. I wonder how he would go on, no longer being a part of the society that shaped him so.”

If the Council discovered his relationship with you, you knew what their reaction would be. He would be stripped of all his honors, having to relinquish his lightsaber, possibly banished, if not worse. There was no telling what would happen to Anakin. What would happen to the galaxy without Obi-Wan there to protect it so valiantly. As much as he had reassured you earlier about this same subject, you couldn’t help but wonder if there would be some bitterness in his feelings towards you.

Your voice was shaky when you replied, and you cursed yourself for it. “Sounds like I should kill you where you stand. Let it all go away with your corpse.”

“You think I’m the only one with this information? You don’t think if you kill me another will rise in my place? Then your intelligence has been grossly overstated. Face it, Princess. You have no choice. Either way, you’ve lost your Jedi for good.” Before you could even react, he’d snatched the blaster back out of your hand. “If we do it my way, at least he’ll still have his dignity.”

“Get out,” You gasped, unable to look at him for a moment longer.

“As you wish my dear. I’ll leave you to think about it.” Linor said, leaning forward to press a kiss on your cheek that had you shivering in anger. “Don’t wait too long though.”

Without another word, he climbed down your balcony.

Was this what it felt like, you wondered, to have your world crumble around you in a matter of minutes? Less than ten minutes ago, you had been comfortable in the loving embrace of Obi-Wan, happy for your life to continue the way it was. Now here you were, blackmailed, about to be forced into a marriage that would not only ruin your kingdom, but break a man’s heart. A man who you had just told had nothing to worry about.

You leaned against the wall, trying to calm your breath. There had to be something you could do to change this. Some loophole that you could discover that you were too tired to think of right now. Brushing some stray tears from your eyes, you took a deep breath and headed back inside. After stripping yourself of your robe, you climbed back into bed, curling up into a still sleeping Obi-Wan’s arms.

Your reappearance woke him up, and he groaned as he nuzzled his face into your hair. “Is everything alright?” He mumbled, still half asleep as his lips brushed against your head.

“It’s going to be fine, Obi.” You whispered, tightening your own grip around him. “It’s going to be fine.” You repeated, more for yourself than him this time.

Because it would be. No matter what it took, you would do anything not to break this man’s heart.

#obi wan kenobi #obi wan kenobi x reader #obi wan kenobi x you #obi wan kenobi imagine #star wars imagine

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lesserfandomappreciation · 4 years ago

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Good to see you! Always glad to get a Red Shoes ask! How are you? And thank you! I really appreciate that! I’m working on getting a little better each day! BTW, how did you develop your art style? It’s so cute!

Jelly boys (RSaT7D)

Merlin

Merlin loves his s/o. Truly, unapologetically with his whole heart and mind. He thinks he’s not obvious but mage, please. He openly swooned over Snow White what makes you think he’d be different with s/o, it’s just a matter of whether or not they notice. Knowing that Merlin is aware he one very lucky man and that most wished they could be so lucky. And are willing to try their luck, regardless of his s/o being in a relationship, thank you.

Drama prince. You’d think he was campaigning for dumbass of the year sometimes.

He’s not jealous! Why would he be jealous? It’s not like he would care some scumy person with no sense of personal space hit on (Name) and tried to make them blush. Save the baseless accusation for someone who cares, says Merlin as he wraps an arm around s/o and refuses to leave their side some time the offender has already left. The idea of it really.

You mentioned Jack’s jealousy and that brings up an interesting point when it comes to Merlin. Jack is secure in who he is and where his relationship stands. Merlin has only one of those things, and it’s the latter. From what we’ve seen, the wizard has a lot of deep-running insecurities that are tied from his sense of self-worth. Sure, he shows off, says “You just got Merlin’ed” unironically and gloats over some of his victories, but give him a moment to self-reflect and he runs from himself. He spent an entire year as a dwarf specifically because he put all his worth on his outward appearance.

This applies to his s/o in that Merlin doesn’t see himself as enough for them. (Name) is amazing, look at them go! Have you seen them? Have you seen him? They deserve the world and instead they’re stuck with him. Unlikely as he is to say it, Merlin is genuinely frightened of the day they wake up and realize they deserve someone fitting, better.

Out of the three, his is the one that needs addressing the most. Jealousy in general isn’t inherently good or bad, but that depends on where it stems from. Jealousy based on self-hatred can have long-term problems for all parties involved if left unresolved. Merlin wants to be enough. Merlin needs reassurances, enforced boundaries and uplifting praises for him to realize that they’re not going anywhere.

Prior to this pivotal moment, his go-to method to dealing with awful people was lightning, possibly getting pouty about it. Nowadays he’s unfortunately learned from Jack that unrelenting affection is a fantastic way to deal with unwanted attention and my, if it doesn’t work wonders.

He’s a monster now. Slides up to s/o, arm around them, flirting with them as if the person wasn’t there.

Still gets pouty a bit at times and needs cuddles.

Arthur

I have to be honest, Arthur’s jealousy was a pain and half to figure out because it is hard to pin down. A jealous Arthur is nigh-impossible to tell apart from a generally protective and chivalrous Arthur. Dwarf-form, human-form, it doesn’t matter - if someone he cares about is struggling to defend themselves and the other person can’t take the hint he’s going to step up between, telling them to back off.

The reason it’s so hard to tell apart because even Arthur isn’t 100% sure what he’s feeling in that moment with his s/o. For all the self-hyping the F7 gave themselves, Arthur and the others seem to have exactly 0 experience actually being in relationships (he thought a slap was a gesture of affection this man hasn’t a clue what he’s doing). Getting kissed by a thankful princess is worlds different from building a bond with someone, caring for someone. The first time Arthur is struck with jealousy, he’s not at all sure what he’s feeling. He just knows his heart is gripped tightly, his blood is running hot, and that he’s not about to let some scumbag continue to be rude to (Name).

Look for his reaction afterward. That’s the ticket for an outsider looking in to figure out something’s up. When Arthur is protective (about anyone he cares about), the second the issue is dealt with he’s first concerned about their well-being and then pretty positive about being able to protect his loved ones. When Arthur is jealous though, he goes quiet afterwards. He’s not mad at anyone other than himself, because he doesn’t know why he got so fired up and he views (Name) getting harassed as a failure to protect them. He’s sullen, but will make an attempt to hide it if asked about it.

The jealousy Arthur experience comes from the same places as his protectiveness. Concern and duty. The incident with Snow White being in danger by guards and his doing nothing has definitely left an impact on him and it’s made his concern for others, even strangers, all the higher. In this case, the person he’s worried about is his s/o and that adds a burst of affection into his actions he’s not used to being there. Duty comes into play in terms of his beliefs and morals. Arthur has a really strong moral compass, with ideas on what is right being pounded into his brain early on. He likely has a sense of what he should be doing in a relationship, and what his “duties” are to his partner. They’re not all bad, but they do need a reality check.

He’s ashamed to admit he’s jealous. He’s not supposed to get jealous - Arthur trusts his partner! Yet, he can’t deny he hates seeing them being harassed.

Also, the childish, selfish part of his mind he pretends to not have can’t stand that some schmuck is getting their attention when Prince Arthur is right here, hello? Don’t tell anyone, he’s embarassed.

Arthur doesn’t need much in terms of redirecting. A good reminder that his s/o is grown and will absolutely call on him if they need his help quells a lot of his concerns. Time in the relationship also helps - the more he knows and builds his relationship with s/o the more relaxed he’s going to feel. He winds up being the guy who will look to s/o to see if he needs to put someone in a headlock.

Should he get pouty (happens to everyone really), this man is such a slut for physical affection, hand-holding, hugs, sweet peppering kisses that any combination of them will get him to give the goofiest smile.

Hans

Now here’s an interesting one. Hans is like Jack in that he’s secure in himself and his relationship. He trusts his s/o like crazy, respects boundaries, has enough emotional intelligence to know when he needs to step in versus when he wants to step in and follows through on that. But. He dislikes people disrespecting his s/o strongly, has pretty quick strong reactions (he knocked out Snow White with a pan), and puts his foot down with no wait time required.

When he spots someone pushing it what’s a guy to do but inject themselves into the conversation? It’s hardly his fault the sleazo ran off when Hans grabbed (Name)’s hand and talked to them sweetly, all while giving the offender the glare of a life time.

Oh yes. Hans is that guy. Sure he could try to be tough (like Arthur) or pretend to be tough (like Merlin), but where’s the fun in that? This method lets people know (Name) 1) is taken. 2) in a very healthy/happy relationship 3) has a boyfriend who is right there and 4) their boyfriend will use a shield as a weapon if need be. It’s foolproof!

...Well, almost foolproof, save for the part where Hans decides to not talk about his feelings. Emotionally intelligent when it comes to others, Hans himself is not good about expressing his emotions. (Name) was the one who had to deal with that offender for so long, they’re the ones who were actually affected by the offender’s actions, Han’s feelings should be on the back burner then! This thought process is flawed. He views himself as the caretaker and not as someone to be cared for like he does for others, and that mindset is going to lead to a lot of bottled feelings if not dealt with early on.

What Hans needs is honesty. Direct confrontation on this, because he will try to skirt around the issue instead of talking it out if possible. Once the direct communication is had, it’s a long journey of learning to be vulnerable, validation of feelings, and understanding what a relationship of equal give-and-take looks like that leads to him bettering his response to jealousy.

Hans still is the guy who smoothly cuts in, but nowadays its followed up by a dual session in the kitchen where the both of them can get frustrations out by kneading some dough. Nothing like the promise of warm tasty bread to distract from the offenders from earlier. Along with floury kiss marks on the cheek. It’s the one time he doesn’t mind a mess in the kitchen.

#rsat7d #rsat7d imagine #imagine #hans #arthur #merlin

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robobirdie · 4 years ago

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Fan Story Forward

I have long struggled with mental illness my entire life and in 2012 during a very low period in my life I got a little parrot I named R2 even though we always called him Tooie. I had always wanted a bird, a living dinosaur, ever since I was very young and given my state my family thought it best to get me a companion parrot. He helped me get through many troubled times but in 2018 my beloved companion Parrot when he passed away suddenly July 12 at only six years old from a fungal infection. Just three months later my cat Keiko a beloved companion of 14 years was diagnosed with cancer in the jaw bone the week of Halloween. She was given only a week to live but hung on till February 26 of 2019. R2 loved watching TV with the family or when people played video games. My younger sister got me into watching Ninjago around late 2016 and I came to love it and so did he. Watching the show helped me feel better whenever times were low. I didn’t get into the Nexo Knights till after he passed but knowing him he would have loved it too. I had gotten into the Elder Scrolls series in 2012 during my very low period and it really helped me get by and both R2 and Keiko enjoyed hanging out watching as I played Elder Scrolls games. I’ve always been strongly creative and often write, draw or work digitally to create things and shortly after R2 passed I had started to come up with an idea involving three of the things we loved the most; a story involving the ninja and Nexo Knights. I only started writing however shortly after Keiko passed. I wrote this story as a sort of way to get over the grief of their loss. When I started I had a sense of where the story was going but no real end and many aspects were still blank. I was heavily inspired by the Elder Scrolls series particularly the third instalment Morrowind, the fourth instalment Oblivion and its Shivering Isles expansion plus the most recent instalment Elder Scrolls Online which my younger sister got me as a birthday gift in 2019. This inspiration is heavily noticed in environments, names and parts of the mythology in the story. While the story deals with the very dark subject matter of death and grief I tried to keep it light and keep in plenty of humor despite the dark subject matter. I also tried to keep it light enough in tone for young children which is very hard when dealing with such a dark subject. I originally wanted to keep it short but as I was writing I found that really was not going to work. The story became so complex that restricting it in size was not really wise. I knew from the start I was going to focus on two of the ninja similarly to how the show works. The two I chose are my two favorites', Zane and Cole (if you’re wondering Aaron and Clay are my two favourite knights). As I wrote I began to feel the story was best put into two parts. While the two are focused on through the whole story the focus is more prominent to Zane during the first half and Cole in the second. Part one is titled The Land of Ice and Ash while the second is titled The land of Stone and Shadow.

I have seen all the Nexo Knight seasons and Ninjago up to season 13 of the show so it will fit chronologically up till this point. It also takes aspects from Tomy Andersons story "Way of the Departed" since I have read those. Overall it is not heavily reliant on other seasons being focused on the story at hand though there are times when content from other seasons is implemented. Taking hint from what one of Ninjagos creators said, I believe it was Tommy, the knights and ninja are given a pretty hard time in the story but that helps propel the story and make it interesting. They are thrust into a strange world with strange people who have mixed views of them many hating them and beings who wish to destroy them at every turn. Overall I believe it is a fun, entertaining and heart warming story. It might even help you get over any grieving you might be having. It did that for me.

Originally when I started writing this story I had intended for the Knights of the Prong to be Legos Nexo Knights but did not know how to properly bring them in so simply came up with the Knights of the Prong as a stand in and this helped me get the story out. I always felt I could do more with the knights and as I have gotten close to the end I finally figured out how I was going to bring in the Nexo Knights and I think it offers more to the story The ninja are still the major focus of the story but the knights have their part and help flush out some parts and offer a different view of this place the two groups find themselves in. Like with the ninja the parts with the knights is not heavily reliant on the seasons of the Nexo Knights but does rely that you know who the Nexo Knights are and a bit of a back story on them.

For those who don't know about the Nexo Knights here is a bit of back story to help you know who they are:

The Nexo Knights come from a place called Knighton where they fight monsters created by a necromancer named Monstrux. They work with the great over 300 year old wizard Merlok who gives the knights magical aid to boost the knights powers against monsters. Due to an accident he became digitized. With help from two knights in training Ava a tech master and Robin a mechanic and inventing expert he was integrated into the knights moving fortress a vehicle called the Fortrex. The two are children and rarely get directly into a fight often working in the background alongside Merlok. Ava prefers her technology over magic and Robin aspires to be a full knight like his role model Clay. Clay Moorington is Merloks nephew even though for the longest time he did not know this. He wields a sword and is leader for the knights being the most serious and devoted to the knights code to protect others. During the 3rd and 4th season he got corrupted by Monstruxs magic which turned him to stone. He cured himself when he unlocked a power with magic he did not know he had. His mother was a wizard like her brother Merlok but got corrupted by monstruxs dark magic turning her evil when Clay was young. Macy Halbert is the daughter to Knightons rulers the king and queen however she prefers to be a knight over a princess often sneaking her weapon, a mace, and armor in to places when she is supposed to be doing princess duties. She is the second most serious about being a knight and cares little for the duties of a princess. Aaron Fox is the groups archer wielding a crossbow and is an ultimate adrenaline junky thrill seeker often using his knights shield as a hover board during a fight or for fun. While he often doesn't seem it he is serious about his duties as a knight. While Clay was corrupted he took over as leader for the knights taking his new role seriously. He is most often wearing headphones. Axl, who has no last name, is the muscle of the group wielding a war axe. He's kind, gentle, plays music and loves food. His younger sister has a crush on Robin which makes Robin uncomfortable. Lance Richmond is the spoiled party son of a rich lord. He's super into his good looks and social media and has been known to pay others off to do or finish jobs for him. Despite this he does take his role as a knight seriously despite originally not wanting much to do with the life of a knight. He has a pet pig named Hamletta and a little sister who's training to be a knight like him. The knights have special shields which can harness Merloks magic for use in combat. Another prominent character who does make it into the story as well is Jestro the courts royal jester. While not a knight he trained alongside the others and is a deep friend of Clays. He is very insecure and anxious and tends to have the unfortunate luck of falling to evil influences, particularly Monstrux, despite his attempts to avoid them. Even when corrupted he’s hesitant to truly hurt the knights preferring to just mess with them.

I am a strong visually orientated person so as I went I created many concept arts to help me visualize environments, creatures, layouts and characters in the story. I will include these with the story so you can help visualize things as well. Many of these artworks you can find here: https://www.deviantart.com/nerdy-hyena/gallery/72478681/story-project

Overall I believe it is a fun, entertaining and heart warming story. It might even help you get over any grieving you might be having. It did that for me.

Keiko and R2:

As in all Elder Scrolls games there is a prophecy that foretells of heroes journey for the ninja their prophecy as foretold by the scrolls is:

“The scrolls foretold of this; His defeat was merely a delay; after the oni would fall the dragons would fail. When their wings are clipped and they have fallen to shadow the border between realms shall weaken and fall and darkness shall come. Realms once light and familiar shall be covered in shadows, shadows that are in plain view yet hidden consuming the world in darkness. There is only one this darkness fears; one of its own. But to gain this darkness and for the realms to be saved knights must fall to ash and shadow and dragons must enter the tower of first light and fall to its darkness in order for realms to see the light.”

To find all chapters look here: https://robobirdie.tumblr.com/archive

You can also find a copy of the story written here https://archiveofourown.org/works/34894561/chapters/86888878 and here https://www.wattpad.com/1087355671-ninjago-the-oni-scrolls-foreword-important-info You can also find images pertaining to the story here: https://www.deviantart.com/nerdy-hyena/gallery/72478681/story-project

#ninjago #fanstory #ninjagofanstory #elderscrolls #nexo knights #ninjago zane #ninjago cole #ninjago nya #ninjago jay #ninjago kai #ninjago lloyd

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oveliagirlhaditright · 4 years ago

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My dark Kairi story “Swallow” chapter six.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21456412/chapters/67338394

Author’s Note: Just so you all know, the world they're visiting in this chapter is Pixel Perfect.

Thunder and Lightning

Sora’s PoV

Sora and Yozora were walking through Yozora's castle now--a temporary reprieve that Sora knew Yozora was giving him, since Sora was useless without his Keyblade--but Sora appreciated it for what it was.

Eventually, Yozora asked him the question that Sora knew he would, whilst he was taking in the grapes engraved into the walls beside him.

"Tell me about your Stella."

"Her name's Kairi. She's feisty... and I love it. And unlike you, I wouldn't lock her up for it," Sora quipped, even in knowing he was on thin ice here.

"Stella tried to kill me and enslave my entire country, Sora. Somehow, I think you'd be less than forgiving of Kairi if she did the same to you."

And Sora wanted to argue that he would be... and that Kairi would never do something like that, so it was a moot point. And that maybe it was somewhat justified, since Yozora could turn into a possessed asshole.

But he didn't. Instead, he said arrogantly as he noticed the walls turning darker and darker--perhaps to hint at the end of his freedom--"You still shouldn't have put her in that box. Even though with her Princess of Heart-like powers, she can be the world's hope."

"...Even if the cost of giving her better living conditions was the World?" Yozora asked, with sorrow in his voice, as he placed a hand upon Sora's shoulder. And Sora hated this closeness... hated Yozora being like this, because it made him doubt everything.

The truth was, he had put his duty before Kairi for a long time. And he'd finally chosen her over it, in deciding to die for her... But if it ever came down to it... when he did get back to Kairi and the choice ever came, would he choose her life over the World's? Sora wasn't sure.

"No, probably not..." and it was for his hideous answer here, that Sora would allow himself to be locked up again this time.

The original being of Yozora was too dangerous for Yozora's world of Verum Rex, after all. What if the former's subjects started to listen to him instead? That was Yozora'a fear... and even Sora's, somewhat.

Kairi’s PoV

“Kairi, you really shouldn’t be doing this,” Pip admonished Kairi, as he hopped into the gummi ship’s bathroom, and saw her pick up a razor that she’d meant to slice her legs open with.

And because Kairi cared about her new best friend’s innocent eyes, she didn’t do so before him… but she promised the nagging thought in the back of her head, that she would later.

“And if you don’t stop what you’re doing, I’ll tell Riku and make sure he sends you to therapy.”

Well, that put a damper on things, didn’t it? Because even with as much progress she and Riku had made lately, Kairi still didn’t want him knowing this little secret of hers.

Kairi thought that, perhaps, she could lie to Pip now and hurt herself in secret later, but she also wasn’t going to risk it… at least not at the moment. So, instead, she leaned over where Pip was sitting on the sink and kissed the top of head. “Thank you so much, my most cherished friend, for keeping me in a good head space,” she whispered.

And the princess meant it—that was true—since the bonds between humans and animals were often times even stronger than that of humans’, since the love there was unconditional. But she was also trying to get him off her back, it was true.

Kairi even found herself thinking how she’d received a few kisses to the cheek at the last world. Riku’s made sense, it had been brotherly… but since kisses on the cheek usually were between family and friends, Kairi found herself wondering if that meant something when it came to Ava or not.

“Kairi, are you okay?” Pip asked, as he craned his head to the side and regarded her now. And since Kairi didn’t exactly have a good answer for him, she wondered if he might go write about it to try and figure out her “character”.

“I don’t know, Pip… I think there might be some sort of connection between the Foreteller Ava and me—she seemed somehow familiar—but I can’t imagine what it would be.” She couldn’t be another Nobody of hers, could she? Or a Replica? But then, that didn’t make sense, seeing as how Master Yen Sid seemed to think they were from the distant past.

“She seems to have some sort of time magic,” Pip muttered now, as he now seemed to be on the wavelength of theorizing with Kairi. Which was good. So good, for so many reasons… “What do you think that could mean?”

“I- have no idea,” Kairi answered. And knowing so little about their new enemy terrified her, so that she forgot about the blade in her hand and it fell to her leg and cut her of its own accord. She smiled at the pain; and Pip may have teared up just the slightest bit as Kairi was hurt by some unforgiving fate.

…

“I think the world my gummiphone has pinned is actually a data one this time,” Riku was telling Kairi, as she made her way out of the restroom and joined him by the driver’s seat. The picture on his phone certainly looked “data” enough for Kairi, with some swirling neon green web wrapped around part of the world.

Speaking of green, if Kairi looked close enough… Riku’s hair had the faintest tint of that color in it now. She wondered if that had to do with when they were swimming in the Caribbean. Or if his hair was slightly changing color with age, and she just hadn’t noticed it now—as wrapped up as she was with Sora, even if she was trying to care about Riku again—it could have been either, neither, or both, she supposed.

“You know what else I’ve noticed, Riku?” Kairi questioned now, as she went and stood beside some of the sharper jade areas of his gummi ship, almost wishing they were the amethyst of her own for some reason. “I think the theory that Sora was going to worlds I’d like is a flop… I don’t think he’s been able to leave wherever it is that he’s at. And maybe, if we think he was originally sending us to worlds I’d like by being on the same wavelength as me—us—I think he’s stopped now, for whatever reason. But that’s okay… I’m a quitter too, aren’t I?”

And there were numerous examples of this that Kairi could think of… How she’d told Donald and Goofy that she wouldn’t leave Sora and Riku behind, only to run away as a Heartless (Sora, though she hadn’t known that at the time) had approached her… how she’d told Sora and Riku that wherever one of them went, the other followed from now on… only to not train at all between the boys’ defeat of Xemnas and their Mark of Mastery exam, so that they had to leave her again… Or how she’d told Sora she’d protect him in the Keyblade War, but really hadn’t… so that he’d had to make the ultimate sacrifice for her.

She thought now, that maybe she even should have held onto some of her recent anger at Riku—for “stealing” a spotlight that she wished was hers, or that she could at least share—and for liking Sora (had there ever been a moment where he’d been a rival for his affections)? But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. If Riku was “quitting Sora” to be her friend again, then she would easily do the same.

Maybe the truth was, they were all quitters. Like, Sora hadn’t seemed too adamant about trying for the Mark again, after he’d failed… and he’d given up on life to save her, even though Kairi wouldn’t have made that choice for them herself. So why should this new development even surprise her? It was old news at this point, really.

And Kairi didn’t even realize she’d fallen into the co-pilot seat and was ridiculously crying—sobbing, even—until Riku was kneeling at her feet and then wrapping her in a hug. “Let it all out, Kairi… I think you’ve been trying to be too strong for too long… I imagine you think you’ve cried too much. But Kairi, there’s just too much going on… if you don’t allow yourself to feel, it’ll suffocate you. So, come apart.”

And Kairi noticed that as he was telling he this, he himself had begun to shake and there were slight tears falling from his eyes, too. And Kairi held onto Riku, as if he was her anchor at sea—she imagined that she was that to him now; and Gods, why hadn’t they allowed themselves to grieve for their best friend together until now?—and she wondered just how long Riku had kept everything locked tight, in trying to be there for her. She’d been the worst friend ever… to both Sora and Riku, in so many was because she was weak. But maybe she could finally be strong now?

“Riku…” Kairi whispered, for she thought if she tried to make her voice go louder than this, she might not ever be able to say what she had to now. “When we find Sora… you can have him. You love him, I know. And you deserve him so more than I do, so…”

Except that Riku was telling Kairi not to be stupid the moment she was speaking. “Sora loves you, Kairi. You. He always has, and I imagine he always will. And I know you love him, too. ‘Deserving’ has nothing to do with loving. You two taught me that. And you’ve done more than you know. What I want more than anything now, is for the two of you to live happy and long lives together. You’ve both earned that. Hell, we’ve all earned seeing you guys get that. And how do you know that Sora isn’t guiding us to worlds you love now, even with the data connection? Do you just hate yourself that much? Believe in your heart, Kairi… like Sora always did, and always will.”

Kairi wanted to tease Riku here, that his speech was too perfect and he really sounded like Sora again. But she didn’t. Because she didn’t want everything between them to just be about Sora anymore. It hadn’t used to be, and she wanted to capture those days again.

So Kairi followed her heart, and pulled out some of the alcohol she’d saved from George and Ursula’s wedding—she’d thought that maybe she’d been being a baby in only enjoying cyder in that world, and that maybe she should try to be spirited as Riku had been—and gave it to Riku in thanks, since she knew he loved the stuff.

She then directed the gummi ship to take them to the world that Riku’s phone had connected to, praying that this would be the world they’d finally find Sora and they could both tackle-hug him.

…Kairi hadn’t told Riku what the Master of Masters had done to her last time—how he’d picked a fight with her and knocked her out—because she didn’t want to worry him, or make him feel horrible for having missed that while enjoying the party.

And he’d deserved to enjoy that party, as even she knew they sometimes needed some joy now… The brain could only take so much pain and trauma, after all.

But there was something about his fixation on her, that bothered Kairi. And she had no idea why he had one, because it was starting to seem like it had nothing to do whatever plans he probably had with the Princesses of Heart so he could rule the worlds.

As Kairi bit into her lip, as they were being pulled into this new destination’s atmosphere, she prayed to the gods on Mount Olympus, that she wouldn’t run into him here.

“Kairi,” Pip said, as he sat on her head now. “If that freak makes a show again, I’ll bite him in the jugular and kill him.” And Kairi sincerely hoped that he would.

…

The new world that the two were in was very suburban. And Kairi thought that the weather was fair here, for what looked like fall.

Kairi was about to mention to Riku, that the brown leaves looked lovely near so many roofs of the same color, but she was distracted when she took in a woman who looked like Naminé—though older—fighting a foe that Kairi had never seen before.

She thought they were probably Heartless… but they had an almost faded effect to them, that Kairi had never seen with the beasts before. And she might have been imagining things… but it didn’t seem like they were easy to defeat, but rather would disappear and reappear somewhere else.

The woman was fighting them with what appeared to be a trident and light magic—and so Kairi wondered if she was like Keyblade wielders—but she was also singing some opera-like tune… it was pretty.

And just as she’d finished up her ditty, a massive hand seemed to appear out of the ether and smashed many of the Heartless surrounding her, before dissipating again.

But as even that wasn’t enough to get rid of the menace, Kairi and Riku decided to stop gawking at that moment and go help the lady out.

“Naminé!” Riku yelled, as he charged her way… and while Riku was clearly wrong and this wasn’t Naminé—but Kairi could easily see why he’d make that mistake—it made her heart soar to know that he cared so much about her former Nobody.

Kairi shot a homing Firaga spell at all of the Heartless around her, and Riku used his Dark Firaga to get at all the ones around him. And within a few moments, the threat that all three of them had been fighting so surely finally ended.

Before Kairi or Riku could say anything to the woman, however, she was already speaking herself. “If you don’t mind… please don’t tell anyone you saw me using such magic. My city is mostly normal, and I don’t how they’d react to it… But when these creatures showed up, I also couldn’t simply stand by and do nothing.”

“Of course we won’t. Just thank you for doing what you do, Miss…” Riku began.

And here, the platinum blonde smiled ever so slightly. “Lunafreya. And of course. Thank you for your aid, as well. Before I followed the call to try and best these beasts, my boyfriend—Noctis—also took up the mantle to try and fight them. Though it did not go well for him, and he ended up in the hospital soon after. I wonder if he somehow could have been allergic to him. But seeing you two battle… it gives me hope that maybe we are supposed to do this, and he’ll be alright. And in fact, I should really be with him right now for moral support.”

And before the friends could introduce themselves, this Lunafreya was already running away. Kairi could hardly blame her—for if it was Sora, she knew that she and Riku would be the same. She prayed that the girl’s boyfriend would be alright, and that these new Heartless would stop making such a scene.

But speaking of the girl’s similar looks to Naminé, Kairi remembered something she had to do. She pulled out her gummi phone and left her sister a voice mail—since it seemed she still wouldn’t answer her phone—and spoke from her heart. “Naminé, Sora’s fate right now has nothing to do with what happened in Castle Oblivion. None of that was your fault. And you brought Sora and I back together, when the Organization would have kept us apart. You put too much on your shoulders… but I know that I’m the same. Go out… and have fun. Let all of your pain go. From the way you dress, I feel like you’d be a lovely figure skater. Maybe go out and give that a try—make a day of it—and get back to Riku and me when you see the beautiful girl when you look in the mirror that we do.”

And Kairi made sure that Riku’s self-satisfied “hmph” was heard over the speaker, before she hung up and preceded into some sort of strange restaurant before them.

…

The first thing Kairi heard, when she went into the restaurant that wasn’t a bar—since it was going for a family atmosphere—but was still clearly trying to be a bar, was loud rock music. And though Kairi had been miserable lately… she felt herself feeling good again, in hearing it.

Once upon a time, she'd been edgy, after all. So, the music was actually right up her alley.

And the dancer on stage was amazing! Her moves reminded Kairi a lot of Aqua… and of Sora. So needless to say, she was transfixed.

"You may find me just a little strange... I like dancing barefoot in the pouring rain," the singer—the same person as the amazing dancer—sang. And Kairi couldn't help relating to these lyrics. Hadn't she just thought about the girl she had been, who had loved Queen and all? (1) And she'd always loved water, with her namesake and all…

Kairi was having... fun here, as strobe lights danced over her when they were meant to travel over the band instead.

But Riku brought her attention back to the matter at hand, in speaking in terms that Kairi couldn’t help feeling didn’t belong in this place. "I wonder how this is a data world?" And she had to wonder the same thing… though a large part of her thought that it wasn’t that at all, and they’d somehow gotten off track.

"I don't know. But we'll find out, we always do," Kairi answered sternly. But then she found herself being drawn into the show before her again.

Or, she was at first. But then Kairi spotted a redhead like herself standing at the back of the stage... and looking towards the blonde singer resentfully. And Kairi found herself thinking that... if she'd been as lost in the past as she currently was now, that maybe she would have been as jealous of Naminé, as this girl was of their lead singer.

And maybe it was that empathy that she still felt within her heart that prompted Kairi to act. "Do you see that girl? …She looks so upset, Riku. I'm going to see if she needs a glass of water or something."

"...Kairi, they're in the middle of a performance. You just can't-"

"But I can."

And without stopping to overthink it, Kairi went up on stage and asked the redhead if she was alright... to which the girl's reply was a clearly baffled, "Yes." But Kairi could tell she was lying.

But the princess had been so caught up in this poor girl seeming to be heartbroken, that she'd missed what Riku had been getting at earlier: Kairi was near ruining this band’s performance!

But fortunately, since Kairi always had a melodic-sounding speaking voice, and often spoke poetically—and since she'd nearly sat in the girl’s lap, as she’d gotten so close to question her—the judge thought it was part of the group’s act and gave them a gig, after the blonde’s voice rose beautifully.

And somewhat bashful now, the ginger took Kairi’s hand in her own and thanked her. “Uhh, it’s weird to say… but thank you for caring about me? And coming up on stage like you did? It actually seemed to help us get the gig, so…”

“Seriously.” Said a new voice on the scene. But if Kairi thought about it, she imagined she might have seen him in the front row watching them the whole time. He had short, spiky hair and eyes that seemed to smile from behind his glasses. He reminded Kairi of Sora a little bit, just in looks alone, but he was so unlike him in other ways. “You have no idea how long Sam has been waiting for a chance like this. She might not tell you how thankful she is—she’s gotta hide behind that cold aloofness, after all—but I know how much this means to her, so thanks. I’m Roscoe, by the way.”

“Kairi,” the New Seven Heart introduced herself, as she pointed a finger to her chest. She then indicated Riku. “And this is my best friend Riku. And I’m so glad that I was able to help… but I’m confused. I assumed this was the blonde’s band.”

And just as Kairi said that, said blonde girl—Loretta, she would soon learn—blinked out of existence as they all stood backstage.

Roscoe—and to a lesser extent, Sam—seemed clearly panicked that Kairi and Riku had just seen that, but Kairi (and Riku too, she was sure) thought it was the coolest thing in the world. So, their lead singer was a hologram! Was that why they had been called here?

“I guess I get why it’s Sam’s band now,” Kairi whispered, whilst she kept staring at where Loretta had just been, waiting for her to come back again—though it seemed she wouldn’t at the moment, because Roscoe’s laptop was out of battery—“and I think it’s neat. If you want… Riku and I can be a part of your band, so you have more people in it and since the judge seemed to like me.” And after Sam and Roscoe exchanged a look, they seemed to decide that that was a fine idea. So, the two from Destiny Islands headed over to Sam’s house.

…

And it was when Kairi was going under the beads hanging over the door at the top of the stairs—and trying to make an entrance—that Riku pulled her aside. “Kairi… I get that maybe one of your dreams was to be a rock star. Who’s isn’t? But I think you should slow your roll some. It’s clear that Loretta stole Sam’s dream, for whatever reason. And you don’t want to do the same, do you?”

And Kairi certainly knew what Riku was talking about, just as an image of Sam’s jealous and pained expression returned to her. Right. She wouldn’t do anything to cause Sam more pain—even if an evil part of her wanted everyone to ache the way that she was right now—so that also meant no finding a way to get Pip involved in the routine. She gave him a meaningful look now, so he’d know not to begin singing to “Nothing’s Wrong With Me”—the song from this band that Kairi had just learned—and then sat down on the floor amidst new friends, pretzels, drinks, and board games.

"So… why do you have a hologram as the lead singer, if you want to be the star, Sam?" Kairi asked the question that had been plaguing her mind for a half-an-hour now, as she inched closer to the other girl.

But Sam—even though she didn’t seem to have an issue with Kairi herself—didn’t seem to enjoy the proximity. What? Did she think she was competition too, and was trying to compare their bodies as she got closer to her?

That seemed to be the answer. Because after holding the bridge of her nose and sighing irritably, Sam responded with: "Because apparently, if you want to be a singer now you also have to dance. And be hot."

‘But you’re definitely hot,’ Kairi found herself thinking about Sam, but not saying out loud since she didn’t know how well that would go over. She was, however, about to say that she could teach Sam how to dance if she wanted to, but before she could Riku was speaking.

"That's... rough. And seems unfair. Who comes up with these dumb rules?" Riku muttered, crossing his arms over his chest and shaking his head. And Kairi wondered if he was thinking about what she was: of some of Sora's rough dancing—when he'd wanted to be an idol—before he'd gotten good at it... But people still hadn't turned him down from singing when he’d been unable to dance. What a critical world this was.

“It is rough,” Roscoe allowed. He was fiddling with his computer and seeming to be downloading some new outfits for Loretta to wear. And Kairi didn’t know how to feel, with him being here kindly defending Sam… while his mind was in cyberspace, seemingly being Loretta’s number one fanboy. “But Sam’s music is too good not to get out there. She’s worked too hard. And if nothing else, I’m glad Loretta can help her to succeed.”

Except that it sucked that Sam couldn’t make it succeed with her own talent in this heartless world! Kairi somewhat knew the feeling: of how, during the Keyblade War, she’d probably learned fast and done better than anyone else who had never held a weapon before would have… but it still hadn’t been enough. And she hated everything for that reason.

"…If you want, Sam, maybe I can be your back-up dancer? Maybe you can watch me as you do backup vocals and play your guitar, and can eventually carry some of that into your own routine. Background dancing is easy, and I’m sure you can pick it up no problem. Riku can help, too… He’s a pretty good dancer. But more than that, he’s a good singer… Even better than me, when usually girls are supposed to sing better than boys or whatever.”

“That sounds… really sweet. Thank you, Kairi. I’d love that. And if Riku wants to help, too! The Zetta Bytes doesn’t have any guy vocalists, but maybe that’s exactly what it needs to make it to the top!”

“We’re going to be stars!” Someone exclaimed. And at first, Kairi had thought that it was her—because Riku was right about this being a dream of hers… about it being anyone’s dream, really—but she was shocked to see that it had been Riku, as he punched at the sky… Apparently he wasn’t as above seeking stardom as he had wanted to believe. And it was refreshing to see.

Everyone laughed, but then they threw themselves into mastering some new songs. Loretta too, for she was up and running again—with a new blue shirt with a circle on it, as opposed to the white blouse and pants she’d been wearing earlier—and Kairi couldn’t help noticing that Loretta sent Sam some nasty looks now and then… even while Roscoe fiddled with making Loretta’s voice even better.

And all of that would spill into a very cruel discussion that Sam and Loretta would have with each other, that Kairi would not recount because she wanted women to support women, okay? …Not this.

…

“So, Kairi… Do you think we’re here to make Roscoe realize he’s missing the great girl in front of him, as opposed to his invention that he’s fallen in love with?” Riku asked Kairi, as the two of them were walking downtown to find stylish outfits to go with Sam’s new song “Get Real”. Kairi supposed they really should have been finding ensembles for “Notice Me”, what they were going to sing at their gig—where a number of record companies would be, apparently—but since that was the song that Sam and Loretta had had a huge fight over, it now left a bad taste in her mouth… even if it was a lovely song that Kairi could understand.

“I suppose that’s possible, since romance seems to be a big deal in a lot of the worlds we go to. And Sora and I are in a romance… but I don’t know. We could just as easily be here to defeat the strange Heartless here. “Which, speaking of… I think they are part hologram. Which makes it seem like they’re connected to Loretta. But how? Do we think she’s getting real emotions and creating something like the Unversed?” Kairi pondered. And it was just when she had mentioned said Heartless, that more showed up that moment to attack her and Riku.

Kairi swatted him here, but then they would just show up again over there. It was frustrating… and she wished that Luna were here to help them again, but she also didn’t: since Luna not being here hopefully meant she was spending some lovely time with her healed boyfriend.

Eventually, Kairi and Riku learned if they used water on these Heartless and then electrocuted them, it would destroy them… But then one hundred more showed up to take their place. But defeating them like this was the best lead they had… so they would keep at it. And they did.

…

Unfortunately, Kairi and Riku showed up late for their moment… and a right mess. Thankfully, they were on deck and weren’t supposed to be on stage yet, but it was still a nightmare. The part of Kairi who had been a punctual girl going to school still, while Sora and Riku had been off being heroes, was horrified at herself.

Riku was a guy and had it easier than her… so once he’d splashed some water onto his face, he was up on stage making sure their equipment was ready. He even took Pip with him, so he could tell Riku if even a toddler would be able to see them from the balcony if a parent held them in their lap.

And while Riku and Pip were out bonding, Kairi heard an angry conversation between Sam and Roscoe and it almost made her sick.

“I just… want to know what part of me you used to make her. What part you thought was good enough to keep.”

On stage, music had started up. Kairi assumed that the band before them had ordered Riku to worry about their equipment later and give them their turn, already. Kairi heard the lyrics “don’t even try it” being sung, but all she could listen to was Rosco’s whispered answer of, “…I gave her your ears.”

And now Sam was storming off angrily—Kairi could hardly blame her—to the stage where Riku and even Loretta were presumably already at. Kairi should have been going in that direction, too, but she was rooted to the spot… and ashamedly let Loretta, Sam, Riku, and even Pip perform without her.

Because she was just… so disgusted that Rosco was clearly in love with Sam—even if he couldn’t see it—but was so lost in a pursuit of perfection, that the only thing he’d taken from the girl of his dreams to put “onto perfection” were her ears!

Kairi was near walking up to Rosco and yelling at him for this… when she heard mad cheering coming from out near the stage. And there were shouts of “she’s not real!”, “she’s a hologram!”

…So, it seemed that the crowd had learned Loretta’s secret but didn’t care. Rather, they seemed to love the Zetta Bytes more as they screamed out for them to do an encore now. And Kairi was finally found where she was at backstage, pulled on stage, and forced to sing for their gleeful audience: their gleeful audience who had apparently just gotten them a record deal—Sam was whispering in Kairi’s ear now—and was snapping picture after picture.

Still in a daze, as she carried her violin backstage, Kairi mostly missed Loretta wanting to go outside where it was raining and telling Rosco that he should have made her real.

…

Kairi and Riku—now that they were richer than they had ever been before, and in just a few days’ time. Who would’ve guessed?—were staying at a lush apartment together. Though it wasn’t just lush because they were being selfish! No, it needed all the technological advancements, because sometimes Rosco asked the two to house Loretta here… since Rosco’s dad now wanted to steal her for his business.

(And speaking of Loretta, Kairi was closer to her than she ever had been before. The two of them had recently had a conversation… Kairi had told Loretta that she’d heard some of her conversation. And that she somewhat understood her, because she’d once had another version of herself that hadn’t been real: a version that sometimes Kairi could see the memories of. And Loretta had smiled, then, and stolen all of these clothes online for Kairi and had had them shipped here… Not that Kairi had wanted her to do that. But it was done now, and Kairi was happy for the attempt at friendship.)

But anyway… the group was finally about to do something with Kairi’s favorite song “Get Real”—to record a demo of it, actually—and while they waited for the limo to come pick them up, Kairi found herself doing some research on the laptop she had here.

“…Riku, the Internet tells me that I’m right. Holograms should be incorporeal. So it can’t be holograms we’re fighting, right? Unless the darkness has found a way to possess them and change their consistency?” Kairi asked, as she nibbled at a mushroom. She had used to hate these fungi when they’d lived on Destiny Islands… but she’d become stronger in doing things she thought she’d never be able to, so why not also this?

“It’s a good theory,” Riku admitted. But just as soon as he was done saying those few words, he dove back for another drink of water. Kairi swore that ever since he’d discovered just what a good singer he was here, it seemed like he was drinking a gallon a minute.

But she wouldn’t complain. After everything Riku had been through, he deserved to have a little fun. And water was good for you, anyway.

“But what if they’re this way because it has something to do with Sora? Going off of the theory that he’s somehow controlling the worlds we’re going to.”

Kairi playfully threw a pillow at Riku for that remark (which he just laughed at, before he gently put it on the couch beside him, then).

This room was so big… and there were so many red plush pillows around them, that she doubted anyone would notice one had been moved, if they came into the room now.

She got where Riku was coming from, of course… Since this place reminded Kairi a lot of what had happened to Sora at Castle Oblivion—and could he have wanted them to see something in that? Like how he wanted to thank Naminé still?—but in order to do what Riku was saying… it suggested that Sora would have used the power of darkness to make it happen. And Kairi just couldn’t imagine that.

“Maybe the world is supposed to tell us something about you…” Kairi started now, as she put a finger under her chin and considered. “You told me that when you went to the Grid during your Mark of Mastery, that a Flynn had to realize that perfection was right in front of him. Do you think the same thing is going on here, and we have to help Rosco—and maybe his dad, who invented this technology—see that?”

Now it was Riku’s turn to consider, as he came closer to sit beside Kairi.

And man, how she had missed being close to her older brother like this. How had she ever pushed him away?

“Maybe… in which case, I’ll go talk to the men here. Maybe it’ll help us ‘finish this world’, so we can get our next clue about Sora. You keep working on the Heartless riddle.” Kairi didn’t have to be told twice. And she didn’t watch Riku go, but rather desperately looking at her screen again. She would have liked an excuse to eat more before she got back to work... but oh well. Riku had given her an order, so she would follow it. Her health be damned.

Riku's PoV

It was funny how fast things changed, Riku thought. He’d just been in this world for a few weeks, and he and his friends were somehow already popstars.

But he should have supposed this sort of thing was possible, since he’d been the one to say during his Mark of Mastery exam that time moved differently in every world.

And boy, did it. It made no sense that he should feel no nervousness in now being on the billboard charts, but was scared to just have dinner with his new friend and his father. Yet here he was, anyway.

And since Riku was here on a mission, he decided to rip the bandage off and get to the heart of the issue. “Sir… I hate to say this… but Rosco’s mother left you, didn’t she? And is that why you started working in holograms… and why this house is so immaculate?”

Rosco breathed sharply at Riku’s line of questioning, and he dropped his knife and fork onto his plate in a loud clutter. “Riku-” Rosco started, in turning betrayed eyes towards Riku: a gaze that he held, because he’d done way worse than this, of course. “Why-”

But the man who was just Rosco in thirty-years-time—if he didn’t change his ways—held a hand up, to halt whatever defense Rosco may have laid at his father’s feet. And he laughed without humor. “Why deny what this man has so easily seen? Especially when I have no one to blame but myself for my own unhappiness.

“Listen to this, Roscoe,” And the middle-aged man held up his wineglass into the light spilling in from the window. “Look at all of the colors this refracts. One would easily look at this and deem it as perfection, wouldn’t they? Except if you look just here, this cup is splintered at the side… But somehow, that allows it to make even more patterns on the wall. So, it’s quite perfect in its perfection, isn’t it?”

Riku could practically see the wheels turning in Roscoe’s head here. And he wondered if he was imagining the lipstick he saw on the corner of his lips. Had Sam kissed him earlier, or-

“So, you’re saying that even a- design flaw is something that can be beautiful and should be ignored?”

“I think,” Riku chimed in—his thoughts thinking about both his best friends Sora and Kairi here. Naminé, too—“that perfection is something we made up in our heads. And the more we chase it, instead of trying to love without boundaries, the more insane we become and the more harm we do.”

“Precisely,” Roscoe’s father said with a sharp nod and smile in Riku’s direction, as the three of them finally dug into their steaks.

Kairi’s PoV

In the near future—when everything would go horribly wrong with Sam—Kairi would realize she should have known that Loretta would take too long getting there.

She had come to Kairi in her dreams—much like Ava had. But Kairi sensed that this was somehow more… real than what had occurred with that Foreteller, maybe—and when Kairi was at first confused about this, Loretta waved her concern away with a flick of her hand.

“I think the girl who was once in you—your Nobody, I believe you said—delved into machinery that connected to her mind. And because of that, I can get into your mind. But Kairi… Harshtone Records wants to steal my will. All holograms they now create’s wills, actually. But Daryl Fibbs is offering me my freedom. He’s going to upload me onto the net and act like I just got away… so I’m not going to be able to be at our next performance from the get-go. You need to stall. But you think this was the right choice, right?”

“Yes,” Kairi promised the girl, as she got up out of her bed in this dream and strode forward to touch Loretta’s face—for she felt the blonde wanted to feel anything, and it broke her heart that she was still unable to—“you’re definitely growing your own heart. I’ve- seen that, now that I think about it. So, don’t let anyone take that away from you. I’ll stall as long as I need to. Take- take care, Loretta.”

And while Kairi didn’t know it at the time, that would be the last time that she really got to see Loretta… and that they’d be on good terms.

…

As Loretta had promised, she wasn’t there right away when they were debuting “Get Real” for the first time.

And the people wanted Loretta… so Sam had chosen to go on stage pretending to be her. She had a wig for it… and Loretta’s ears, as well as part of her voice. Sam also knew Loretta’s moves like no one else did—of course she did. This band was really hers—and had apparently been practicing Loretta’s dancing in her spare time.

So even while Kairi thought she could have handled Loretta’s dancing better—she had the Keyblade, after all. And that gave her certain powers—she didn’t want to destroy Sam’s confidence even more than it already had been. So both she and Riku smiled and nodded at Sam when she jumped into the fray… And while it started out okay—with Sam twirling and flipping like the rest of them—it ended in disaster: with Sam falling off the stage and banging her head on the concrete.

She was unconscious immediately, and responding to nothing… in a coma, it would seem. “Riku, Roscoe’s panicking! Tell him he needs to call the hospital of this world! We can’t heal her; you know we can’t. Not out of a coma. But maybe there’s something else we can do… unless-”

What if Kairi went into a coma, too, and tried to find Sam in the haze?

Riku, seeming to read Kairi’s mind like he so often did these days, was shaking his head at her as Kairi rose to her feet. But she was paying him no heed. Instead, she stabbed herself in the heart with Destiny’s Embrace, just like Sora had for her years ago.

Kairi didn't mean to release her heart or anything like that, but rather have a near death experience. And she knew that Riku could chastely kiss her to wake her up. It wouldn't be a kiss of love... but he did love her, so Kairi knew that that would work, as her eyes closed and her mind drifted elsewhere.

…And though a part of her had selfishly wanted to see Sora when she fell asleep, it was actually Sam who Kairi witnessed... and she was glad for it.

The poor girl looked like a drowned rat. And it seemed as though she couldn't speak... or that if she could, talking took too much effort for her to even want to do it. She strummed a broken guitar; and when Loretta found her—what was she doing here?—Kairi tried to decide, as she hung back now—the guitar seemed to be the only thing that Sam cared about. "It's broken," she whispered listless, as Kairi crept slightly closer to the two girls in this barren wasteland.

"No, it's not," Loretta said with the sweetest of smiles, that Kairi had ever seen and with a false smile. "You're just looking at it the wrong way." Loretta then gently touched the acoustic guitar, and it was instantly restored...

And Kairi—as she stood there in a lovely gust of wind, that turned the desert into a lush meadow—couldn't help thinking that these were the powers a Princess of Heart should have had... but she didn't.

She was just destruction now.

The torrent had pushed Kairi further back; and more hologram Heartless showed up to help keep it that way.

If she was hearing correctly, Sam was now telling Loretta that this sort of thing was why she’d been so jealous of her. Because she was perfect.

And Loretta snorted, in what was a beautiful moment—or at least should have been, because Kairi couldn’t help feeling… suspicious—and poured her heart out. “If I’m perfect, then why do I feel so limited?! You can grow… change… get better. And I’ll always just be this… Which is why youneed to wake up.”

Except… why didn’t Kairi believe Loretta as far as she could throw her? Why did this whole area feel as though it was charged with lies?

If Kairi was being honest with herself… she had used to think that Naminé had once been a manifestation of her insecurities. A part of herself that she couldn’t forgive. But in her heart now… had Loretta somehow become that?

Very many things seemed to happen then, in just the blink of an eye.

Kairi found herself waking up, ever so slightly, and this world blurring, as she felt Riku's lips pecking hers.

And Kairi heard Loretta telling Sam that she was currently healing her body... but she'd unintentionally taken it over, but that she would give it back in a moment... But did Kairi really believe that?

Kairi felt rain all around her—and ignored how Loretta had always wanted to feel that, and how now was probably her only chance to—and then there was a flash of lightning. And Kairi didn't know what would and would not be out there in the real world, when the flash ended.

So, she dove at Loretta, just as Kairi thought she felt Riku jumping at something, too (was he shaking her body, trying to get her to wake up?), and struck her with her Keyblade... with water and electricity coming off of it.

And Loretta smiled—something that would haunt Kairi's nightmares forever—and then broke apart: like an astral body shattering into pieces and giving way to light.

And then Kairi was in her own body again—in the hospital?—and Sam was to the side of her… sobbing about Loretta. For in her mind, Loretta had just somehow died as the two of them had finally become friends. And maybe she had. And maybe Kairi had been responsible for it, because she thought that she was trying to steal Sam’s body for her own.

She… she was a murderer! And for some reason, Riku seemed as shaken as Kairi herself was about something. What? Had he thought he was close to losing her, too?

“Roscoe, you should… you should just create Loretta again. You have the files, right?” Kairi cried, sitting up as nurses ordered her not to. But even as she said that, she knew it would be a cop-out because it wouldn’t quite be the same Loretta they had all known and come to love.

And everyone seemed to realize that, too. So, they said nothing, and just tried to move on… and move on, they did.

Shockingly, the Zetta Bytes made it without Loretta, since everyone had been amazed by Sam’s performance when the news got out that it had been her going that far for her beloved audience, and not Loretta. The public was actually pretty understanding in general at the loss of Loretta, as they saw how disturbed the band was without her.

Sam was having a concert now (with her now-boyfriend, Roscoe, happily waiting in the wings)—a more laid-back one, as she sat on a stool and sang about the rain falling—and Kairi and Riku were aiding her in it, to try and help her get her footing without Loretta (until her new band mates Rachel and Cindy got here).

And while Kairi thought Riku in particular did a good job in harmonizing with Sam… it was nothing like Loretta would have done. Kairi wishes that the poor girl was here, to be on Sam’s side just like this, but she wasn’t.

And that was why Kairi was again feeling like she deserved nothing again… and that she should just stay here and bury herself, instead of finding her life’s dream in Sora.

It was on one day when Kairi was buried under her covers on the couch, staring unseeing at the TV before her, that Pip tried to get through to her. “Kairi… what happened to Loretta? I was watching that whole scene from your hood. And I don’t think it was you. I think-”

“What-” Kairi started.

But she was cut off, when there was suddenly a Corridor of Light in front of her and a beautiful girl standing in front of her in her living room. She was gorgeous, with long black hair, yellow eyes, a white and black jacket, and a jean skirt. “Who are you?” Kairi asked, as she cocked her head to the side and regarded the girl. Because that’s what you did in this sort of situation.

“I… am someone who was experimented on by Ansem, just like you. Though… he did much worse to me, if you don’t mind my saying. But then- then I was taken away, to a place with spaceships and holograms. I was- locked away there. But I finally learned how to mess with their technology… and I ended up here. Finally, free. I- I don’t know my name, though. How silly is that? I believe it may have started with an ‘S’, but I don’t know. You can call me… Soul, I suppose.”

“I-” There was so much Kairi wanted to say to all of this. So much she wanted to do.

First off, this girl seemed like she had just escaped from some terrible fate, so she and Riku needed to take her somewhere safe as soon as possible.

And they would. That was why Kairi screamed at Riku to join her now, and started rambling as she pointed at the girl who was now hiding under their sofa.

Secondly, Kairi figured they had just cracked where the hologram Heartless in this world had come from. “Soul” had somehow created them in trying to escape her prison.

And thirdly, “Where you’re from… it sounds like a great prison to keep someone you don’t want to be found, doesn’t it, Soul?”

“Con-considering that I’ve been there for near thirteen years—and no one ever found me—I would say so,” Soul answered. She was slightly calmer now. Riku had called Merlin on the gummiphone, and he’d teleported over here post-haste. He was now entertaining Soul with some of his magic… and had even put her in a lovely purple dress to try and disguise her from her captors.

“And, question: if the Heartless you created somehow created a path to this world, do you think it works in reverse?”

But Kairi didn’t wait to hear the answer to that. She ran outside with Riku and waited. With the hearts of two Keyblade wielders in front of them, no doubt Heartless would be cornering them soo-

There they were! Before Kairi could think better of it, she grabbed Riku’s hand and dove with her hand outstretched towards one. And as her flesh touched its… data? Kairi soon found herself, Riku, and Pip transported to somewhere else entirely: with constellations as far as the eye could see.

Kairi felt horrid that she was leaving things with the Zetta Bytes as badly as she did… but maybe it was for the best. While they’d always be in her heart, she’d never forgive herself for what she did to Loretta… and neither would they, if they knew. So probably best to leave things like this in a somewhat positive place for them, huh?

But those sorts of thoughts were exactly why Kairi deserved to be locked up and not find Sora, huh?

Author’s Note: Oh, man. I feel like I had so much to say this chapter, but I’ve probably forgotten a lot of it. First off, I swear I’m not trying to make all these worlds live-action (and they all won’t be). But just at the start of this story, that’s how it’s somehow ending up.

(1) Kairi liking Queen is a reference to my story “The Best Laid Plans”, that I may have just made canon to this story (though you don’t have to read that to understand this). It’s basically an alternate Re:Mind, that I wrote before Re:Mind came out.

So… I changed up the end to Pixel Perfect somewhat, and my inner-child who loves this movie and Loretta is hating me for it. But tbh, Loretta seemed a bit sketch in that ending, so I can get why Kairi and Riku jumped to the wrong conclusion. It also happened, because I needed Kairi to mess up and do something bad since this is still a “dark Kairi” story.

But actually… while Kairi tried to kill Loretta, and will definitely be feeling the guilt for that, it was Riku who did it. Though Kairi doesn’t realize that (yet) and Riku might not tell her. But that was what Pip was trying to tell her at the end of this chapter. Because Riku was jumping to the same conclusions that Kairi was: that Loretta might try and take Sam’s body for her own… and that in doing that, Kairi might stay trapped in their weird dreamscape somehow, and Riku couldn’t take that chance. Tbh, I’m not entirely sure what Riku did to manage it (wow, me. I’m the author of this story, and I don’t even know). I want to say he deleted her file… but would that even work if she was in Sam’s head at the time? Or maybe he extracted her heart from Sam’s… but then where did he put it afterwards? Ehh. Hopefully I’ll work it out next chapter. Or you guys tell ME how he should have done it, with all this weird science stuff this movie did with Loretta.

And, yes: Riku pecked Kairi on the lips to wake her up, but I swear they’re still completely platonic and will continue to be.

This chapter was probably rushed—and I’m not editing chapters as much now as I probably should be, but it actually allows me to get them out—but whatever.

I actually was not going to have Skuld be in this chapter at all (maybe not even in this fic). I was just going to have the hologram Heartless (and Loretta?) be the “threat” of this chapter, because I’m falling into a “Foretellers show up every chapter and say cryptic things and then leave” trap. But then I realized she was kind of needed to get them to the next world. And Skuld isn’t a Foreteller, so I guess it’s kind of different. -shrugs-

Riku can sing in this as sort of a joke—or to differentiate him from his English voice actor, David Gallagher—because David Gallagher can’t. And singing didn’t seem like a Riku thing to do… which is exactly why I had him do so for fun.

Oh! And Luna! Luna is here because I realized this story needs Final Fantasy cameos, and I wanted a Final Fantasy character who could sing, with all the singing stuff going on. But it’s one of those FF cameos like, “Squall is totally from Radiant Garden and never lived in a place called Gaia” ones. She’s not her FFXV self. She’s from the Pixel Perfect world (her, and this Noct. And this world’s Chocobos, probably). And it’s probably the last we’ll see of her, sadly, to not confuse her and the other FFXV characters with the Verum Rex ones, but at least it was something.

I hope everyone’s enjoying Melody of Memory!

Also, I did this entire movie from memory, because Disney does

-Shanna

#swallow #kairi #kh #kingdom hearts #swallow chapter six #chapter six #mine #my work #Shanna writes #my writing #and yay! I got this out before mom like I wanted to

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imagine-loki · 5 years ago

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Pride and Prejudice

TITLE: Pride and Prejudice CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 15 AUTHOR: wolfpawn

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Loki was raised on Jotunheim as Laufey’s son after the war, but an agreement was then made that he would wed Odin’s daughter so Odin could secure the alliance of Jotunheim through the marriage. Loki, in turn, was raised to be king of Jotunheim, but how he views Asgard is far different from how Odin’s daughter is raised leading to a clash of cultures as well as uncertainty between the pair of betrothed youths. RATING: Mature NOTES/WARNINGS: Forced Marriage, not all fun and games. My first real step back into the Loki scene in over a year.

Tags - @skulliebythesea @asimovethroughthisworld @blackcherry26-blog

Loki stood in front of his father, his advisors and the Allfather. He waited with bated breathe to see what the Allfather said. He knew of Ella’s pleas to her father. He had heard her beg for the Casket to remain, her fight was entirely for the betterment of the people of Jotunheim, they were her concern. He had been so wrong. He thought her to be her father’s spy, his eyes and ears on the Ice Realm, that the agreement to have her wed him was solely to have his children on two thrones, to have them both rule, not simply to have his son rule on Asgard, but he was wrong. He was entirely wrong. About the Ella, about the Aesir way of life, even in some manners about the Allfather and he ruined everything with his error. He never considered that perhaps they were not as he had thought, that the daughter of the tyrant he always loathed was not her father’s daughter, that she could possibly care for the people of Jotunheim, that she was willing to suffer for Jotunheim.

“I have deliberated with my daughter, who has argued valiantly against removing the Casket from Jotunheim. Even after everything she has endured, she wishes to protect the realm from the actions of a few on it.” Odin glared at Loki as he spoke. “She will return to Asgard with me this evening, the pact will be nulled, the marriage will be deemed void, this farce will be like it never happened and my daughter will be deemed to have attempted to fulfil her duties as a wife, so not to besmirch her honour. She should not be deemed unfit to be well wed as a result of this farce.”

Loki bit the inside of his cheeks. He was not yet deemed to no longer be wed to her yet there was talk of another marriage. He could not comprehend such a manner of living. He felt guilty, all he felt was guilt when he thought of the Aesir he was forced to wed. He thought of the attempts to create a child, her lack of experience, her virtue. It clearly meant something to her to keep it until she was wed, and even now, it’s maintenance seemed to be of more importance than anything. According to Arden, the reference to the marriage as void had to be proven with more difficulty due to her virtue being taken, it could not simply be annulled.

“Yes, Allfather.” Loki could not look at his father as he spoke to the Aesir king. “We will not contest such. I only ask one thing.”

“You have no right asking anything.” Odin snarled.

“I merely wish to show her those flowers I referenced, if it is permitted,” Laufey explained.

Odin deliberated for a moment. “I will see if she is willing.”

“Thank you, Allfather.”

“Have you anything to say?”

Loki looked at Odin. “Would you listen if I did?”

“Not likely.”

“Then, I have nothing to say, I only have an apology.”

“Your apology means nothing to me.” Odin scoffed.

“It is not to you that I apologise, Allfather, so your opinion on it matters little.”

“You will not go near her again, you have done enough damage.”

Loki gave a slight smirk and looked to Arden before nodding slightly. “I gathered you would say such, so instead, I have written something to her.” Arden gave the folded piece of paper to the Allfather.

Odin looked at Loki for a moment before unfolding it and scanning the few words and huffing a small laugh. “It took you long enough to realise it. If you had spent even the briefest of times trying to get to know her, you would have realised that.”

“I learnt the hard way, but I learned.” Loki looked him in the eye as he spoke.

Odin nodded slightly. “You may not send this realm to ruin yet if you do so quicker with the next woman you take. Try not to have her suffer as you did my daughter.”

Loki said nothing. He did not trust himself to speak for fear he would make things worse. He bowed slightly and left the room.

Though she was still tired, Ella asked to be allowed to see the flowers that Laufey had referenced. Her progress was slow through the deep snow, but she made her way to the area they were in, looking sadly around her as she did.

“You appear as though you will miss it here, Princess?” Laufey commented.

“I will. I feel very much like this is more to my nature.” She stated, looking at the ice columns around her. “Asgard can get very warm.”

Laufey chuckled. “Aye, it can.”

“I prefer wearing furs and being warm here in the crisp air, and I will deeply miss many of the foods, especially since the fauna has grown once more.”

“It has become far more interesting to eat these past weeks.” He agreed.

When he showed her the flowers in question, Ella smiled brightly. “Oh, my Gods.” She walked over to them and knelt down, looking at them closely. “I...they are the most beautiful things I have ever seen.”

“They are as delicate as thin ice,” Laufey explained. “They crumble if touched by any but the coldest of beings.”

“So I do not get the honour of their touch. A pity.” Ella looked at the flowers. “Thank you, My King, for showing me this.”

“I am no longer your king, Princess.”

Ella looked down sadly. “I tried.”

“I know, we all know.” He placated.

“If I had been stronger, if my seidr had not…”

“Princess, this was not your doing.”

“But I was not strong enough, I failed.”

“You failed no one.”

“Loki…”

“My son is the one to have failed. He failed to see that the prejudices he held…”

“Valid enough prejudices,” Ella pointed out.

“Even if they held validity to begin with, Princess, he did not see fit to see if they were accurate,” Laufey interjected. “He failed to accept that he was wrong, he failed to acknowledge that the differences in culture required both of you to learn and make sacrifices, he merely expected you to mould to us and him to have to do nothing in return.”

“Does it worry you that he will do such when he is King also?” She asked curiously.

“No, for in that role, he accepts that change is required, he does not respect that marriage is similar.”

“Marriage is not a concept here though, perhaps it was too foreign for him.”

“Even with our version of such, with our manner of mates instead of wives, we need to create a bond with them, to work together to create a pair, a solid unit in which to raise our young. We need to learn our mates, and when you are of higher standing, you often have more and you must learn to work with them, to be able to manoeuvre the relationships between themselves and your own self. It has no ribbon tying, no ceremony, but it is the same living, a mate is the same as a wife and she requires the same care. Even if nothing else, he knows how to treat a mate, he could simply have applied such practise to you.”

“But mates are a meeting of some aspect of a being, mind, body or other, we never had such.” Ella felt a painful pang at that. “I was never who he wished for.”

Laufey looked at her studiously. “‘Who he wished for’, not what?”

“That too.” She felt a presence close by and looked around, unsurprised to see her father’s most powerful and decorated Einherjar mere meters away. “I take it that this is my call to return.” She rose to her feet again. “It has been an honour to be on your realm, My King. I thank you for your wise counsel, your great company and for the welcome that you bestowed on me. So many would not have shown such grace or kindness, especially when my father was the man to put you and your realm into such a position. I can never express my gratitude enough to you. I hope that Jotunheim continues to flourish.”

“I thank you, Princess, for your grace, your open mind, your respect and your sense of duty to do what you could for our realm, so many would have shown us contempt. Your kindness and valiant fight for us to have our Casket remain when so many would so easily have demanded it be removed again in retaliation for how you suffered here.”

“I could never do such a thing.”

“You are a better being than most any I have ever met. I had hoped my grandchildren would have shared your good nature. I thought you would be more actively involved in the future of Jotunheim. Your contribution will never be matched, but I had hoped you would have been here for it.”

“I wish I was. Know that though I leave today, I wish I did not have to.” She bowed slightly. “Thank you, My King.”

“I am not your King, Princess.” He reminded her.

“Not officially.” She smiled in return, walking to her father’s guards.

Laufey, unable to watch her leave when he had grown fond of her, stayed looking at the flowers, Nal’s favourites when she lived. She only ever could touch them without breaking them whilst she carried Loki. It had made them all the more special to her while she did. Where once he looked at them in happiness, now all they brought the old king were painful reminders of what happiness had been possible.

Ella walked towards the area where the Bifrost would collect them. She noticed Loki standing in a doorway with Helbindi by his side, both watching her. With an order to her father’s guards to remain and knowing that her father could not see her, she walked over to the Jotnar princes. “Prince Helbindi, if I may be so bold as to ask for a moment of privacy with Prince Loki?”

Helbindi looked at Loki for a moment before looking at her again. “And were I to decline?”

“Then that is your given right. I can only make the request in hope of a favourable answer.” She smiled politely.

Helbindi nodded slightly before jumping down from the doorway and walking off, Ella giving her thanks as he did. Loki, however, remained in the doorway, looking down at her.

“Thank you for your note.”

“Thank you for speaking to the Allfather and convincing him to allow the Casket to remain.”

“I could not allow for Jotunheim to suffer, not for this.” She looked around slightly. “I wish I could have seen it return to its former manner. I have little doubt that it will be anything other than glorious.”

“It will be.”

“Rule it well.” He frowned at her. “In court, you were fair and just, it would do well for you to remain such. It will make you a good king.”

“You think this?”

“I have six-hundred years of court experience, I like to think I have a slight knowledge of such things.”

“I thought it was only five and a half centuries you were there.”

“That my father knows of, I snuck in long before I was caught.” She smiled proudly. “I only was ever caught because Bjorr found me whilst looking to covet Tyr’s wife.” Loki’s brow raised at that. “I wish you every good fortune going forward, Prince Loki.”

“I thought you would not be so kind worded, considering.”

“I hold no ill against you, you never pretended to like me or wish to be stuck with me. You never lied and declared to care for me or other such things.” She shrugged. “I was not in the vision you had of how you wished for your life to be, hopefully now you will be able to have the one you yearned for.”

“How…?”

“Do I know of her? Put simply, the second-ever time we attempted for a child, you groaned her name in my ear as you entered me. Her father is of your father’s court. She glared at me every time she looked at me. You stared longingly at her the few times she was present. It was not too difficult to place the being to the name.” She explained.

“I…”

“You need say nothing, I understand.” She smiled sadly. “I am sorry I was not what you wished for. I had thought to try and be a better wife but hearing you say her name caused me to realise no matter if I simply just continued to lay there or make an effort, you would not care. I am sorry I made it unpleasant for you. I cannot imagine it to be appealing to attempt to feel interested in one like a corpse, as you put it, but I just...it felt wrong to do anything, knowing you were thinking of her. There was no point trying to build something with someone who was not available to build it with.”

Loki felt his throat feel tight, as well as pulsing in it. He had not realised that she knew, both of Angrboða and his thoughts of her abilities. “How…?”

“You told me the night we consummated the marriage that we needed to go to breakfast, I returned to the rooms but you were with your brothers when I entered your rooms speaking of it.”

Loki felt terrible. The guilt from before magnified exponentially as a result of everything. The look in her eyes, the hurt he saw when he entered her company, the manner in which she simply lay there expectantly was all because she was aware of her duty, but also of his severe lack of interest in even trying to make a marriage with her. “I’m sorry.”

“So am I.” She turned to leave. “Thank you, for what knowledge you have bestowed on me, for showing me my faults, know that I will endeavour to work on them moving forward.”

“Your only fault was bestowing fate in those unworthy of it.” They both turned to see Laufey standing closeby. “Come, your father is waiting for you, Princess.”

Ella walked towards away from Loki and past his father, Laufey glaring angrily at Loki as she did, telling him that he had heard some, if not all, of their interaction, and of how he had failed his duties in even more manners than he had previously been aware of.

#loki #others #Submitted fic #submission #chapter 15 #pride and prejudice #wolfpawn

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bi-outta-cordonia · 5 years ago

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I wish I could say that I’m intoxicated right now but I’m super not. Also take into consideration that most of this rambling is heavily predicated on people’s TRR MCs being married to Liam.

Anyway, theory time:

It’s been long explained that TRM is vessel that connects TCaTF and TRR/TRH and the historical aspects that influence aspects of both stories. Cordonia’s origins as a nation starts with the unification of the Five Kingdoms and the current history of Cordonia is set by the events of the 1600s that make up the crux of TRM’s story. It’s very likely that the book we are playing is the book that explains Liam’s immediate family history and is traced to our MC, who is probably going to end up Queen of Cordonia. With that being said, there’s a likely chance that Liam is going to be blood related to the MC of the book.

This is important.

So... Today....

The chapter of TRM opens with MC screaming while a burning tent collapses on top of her. She has that narrative moment of closing her eyes, opening them--and realizing that she hasn’t been hurt. A sort of magical barrier thinly surrounds her, thwarting the blaze and keeping her from becoming harmed. Interestingly enough, this isn’t the first time that some odd power of sorts has protected her. While she was climbing the ladder to get onto Hunter’s yacht, the wind catches and she winds up clinging to it for life. By all accounts, she should have died or been hurt on two separate occasions, but she winds up walking away from both situations unharmed.

We’ve seen the magical connection between TRM and TCaTF. While the magic of TCaTF was far more open and involved in the day to day aspects of life, within the Cordonia of 1600, only nobles posses magical items that emit obscure and very niched magical properties--such as a comb that gives a person perfect hair, cleans stains from dresses, or forges the perfect outfit from thin air. These house charms seem more like novelties of status than of anything particularly useful in a manner exceeding practical use. It’s a status symbol.

It’s been said on numerous occasion that the incredible magic of the Five Kingdoms era has been lost, both in the most modern version of Cordonia and in the version set in the 1600s. And yet...

TRM MC is capable of some form of magic. On two occasions, she has been imbued with a power that has specifically protected her from harm. Two occasions she has been faced with circumstances that should’ve killed her and twice, this form of hard magic has surged up and protected her from said harm. Now, the theory that TRM MC is actually Queen Kendra’s blood daughter is still up in the air for me until we start seeing some actual hard proof, but let’s jut focus on the fact that TRM MC is capable of a form of magic that keeps her from being harmed.

Liam. He’s a Crown Prince--the Crown Prince of Cordonia.

Throughout much of Liam’s life, danger has always lurked right around the corner. Assassination attempts were a part of his childhood enough to the point that he was specifically trained to protect himself in situations where someone was trying to make an attempt on his life. As the prince, he had the King’s Guard and, as the King of Cordonia, he has them and the years he’s spent training in various disciplines, self-defense tactics, and weapons training to keep him safe. Danger has very much fallen unto Liam in various situations.

So here’s the part of this where the rambling starts making sense as I, completely sober, say this with my chest--

There is still magic in Cordonia.

And Liam possesses some of it.

TCaTF depicts Cordonia before it became Cordonia, when it was the Five Kingdoms and Queen Kenna united it. TRM depicts Cordonia in a more modern time frame that eventually gives birth to the version of Cordonia we know in the modern day. Assuming that the TRM MC is possibly the birth daughter of Queen Kendra, or somehow related to Kenna nonetheless, and assuming that the MC of this book is one of Liam’s blood related ancestors, I believe that this magical power that she possesses may have been passed on to him through the blood and he now possesses a very latent and subtle version of this power.

My evidence: literally look at the trajectory of Liam’s life.

At some point in his younger years, an assassination attempt was made on him and his family by way of the Nevrakises. They, along with their allies, attempted to stage a coup and eliminate the royal family so that they could inherit control of Cordonia through the ancient law that existed between their house and the house of the Crown. Their attempt failed, the assumption being that the King’s Guard and Constantine’s vigilance may well have kept the family from facing any further harm. The coup was dismantled, the Duke and Duchess of Lythikos were executed, and Liam went on living alongside his family.

Later, another assassination attempt was made on Liam’s life when he was in either his late teens or early twenties. He survived this attempt as well though it left him shaken. So far, this is twice that he’s been attacked.

The next time that an attempt is made on Liam’s life is during the Homecoming Ball when he’s introducing his nation to his future queen. The lights cut, when they cut back on, assassins with weapons ranging from guns to knives have overrun the ballroom and Liam has to defend himself while his guard scrambles to get him to safety.

See. Guns. The Sons Earth possess weapons that can harm people from long ranges. Ignoring the fact that PB didn’t want to deal with widespread murder and whatnot, say that the attackers were in fact shooting at Liam. How could they miss that many shots at a man who was locked in once place while his guards fought to get to him? How could he dodge that many bullets coming at him?

Maybe. Just maybe. He didn’t have to.

Because his blood is the blood of TRM MC, the potential blood of Queen Kendra, and the blood of Queen Kenna even further back. A subtle buzz of the magic could be passed off as nothing more than adrenaline and the build up of energy as he fights. But maybe some of the attackers were dumbfounded at how none of their bullets touched him. Maybe some of them traded strange looks as they realized that shots that should’ve definitely connected and killed him were straight missing him.

Liam is ushered into safety eventually as the King’s Guard reaches him and he lives to rule another day.

The second time he is put in immediate danger happens during the Costume Ball. Liam is standing in the ballroom conversing with his father, brother, and his fiancé. Things seem to be fine until a serious of explosions rock the palace and sends patrons screaming. Another bomb goes off, sending chunks of the building hurtling towards him. By all accounts, he would’ve been crushed under the debris.

But he gets shoved to the side. And the debris instead falls on top of Constantine.

Constantine has not always been a good husband, father, or king, but what he was was devoted to his family. We read the scene as a father devoted to protecting his child, which it was. If there was any moment that Constantine would’ve seen the only choices as being saving Liam over saving himself, he would’ve chosen saving Liam very easily. But what if...

What if part of Liam’s shield works like a geas. Magic still exists in some form in Cordonia but with the passage of time, it has weakened considerably. It would’ve been in its strongest form during Kenna’s reign, held left overs in regards to what remained during the 1600s, but in its modern iteration it has adapted to the lack of either energy or other magic it can pull from. Perhaps this shield adapted other qualities, such as a geas to help it perform its duty to the blood it courses through.

In that it provides very distinct, subliminal message that may compel people and have them assist in the performance of his duties. Perhaps the shield is strong enough to protect it from smaller versions of harm, manipulate outcomes so that certain death inducing events do not happen. And maybe, it can also compel people to provide assistance in ways that it is not powerful enough to do so--such as a pillar or large piece of debris hurtling towards him.

That perhaps the shield did in fact protect Liam and did so using his father as a vessel to achieve this.

The next time that Liam is explicitly attacked is when he goes to retrieve his wife, who has been kidnapped by Anton. The ensuing fight has him outnumbered and outgunned. He walks away from it with hardly a scratch on him, both a testament to his fighting prowess but also possibly the work of the shield.

We see how it works in the physical sense and in ways that are far more psychological in nature, such as through the work of geas.

So let’s throw another dart at the board-- MC got into a car accident as a fully pregnant woman.

Remember that homage to the tragic death of Princess Diana? The fact that the car was run off the road and MC, who by all accounts could’ve been seriously injured or could’ve been forced to deliver her child early walked away with only but a few scratches?

Well. If that child is Liam’s...

Perhaps the fact that MC walked away completely unharmed had less to do with Bastien and more to do with the child. As Liam’s blood, potentially the blood related descendant of TRM MC who possesses the shield, TRM MC potentially being Kendra’s actual daughter, and Kendra herself being Kenna’s descendant, perhaps the magic inside the child has passed from father to baby and they too are capable of invoking the shield at such an early age.

Magic existing in subtle aspects of modern Cordonia is a possibility and, theoretically, Liam could have it but it works in a way that it has been forced to adapt to as a result of magic diminishing over time. Perhaps it isn’t as prominent as it was in Kenna’s day, or as it does with TRM MC, but it is there. It is more subtle than at the height of its true power but just enough that it provides enough protection to its host as it sees fit.

Anyway, it’s gonna be funny when TRM MC is revealed to not be related to Kenna or Kendra at all and I look foolish for this lol

#playchoices #choices #the royal romance #the royal heir #king liam

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wolfpawn · 5 years ago

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Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 15

Story Summary - Based on an idea I had that I submitted to Imagine Loki. Imagine Loki was raised on Jotunheim as Laufey’s son after the war, but an agreement was then made that he would wed Odin’s daughter so Odin could secure the alliance of Jotunheim through the marriage. Loki, in turn, was raised to be king of Jotunheim, but how he views Asgard is far different from how Odin’s daughter is raised leading to a clash of cultures as well as uncertainty between the pair of betrothed youths.

Chapter Summary - The decision is made for Ella to return to Asgard with Odin but Laufey has one last request before she goes. When it comes time to say goodbye, Loki realises how much Ella knew all along.

Previous Chapter

Tags - @peppermint-j @damalseer @perpetual-fangirl @tinchentitri @inspired-snowflace @raphaelaisabella @alexakeyloveloki @caffiend-queen @devilbat @nonsensicalobsessions @skulliebythesea @majoringinlife @salempoe @lotus-eyedindiangoddess

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NOTES - apologies for the delay, I ran out of data....what a first world problem.

“Yes, Allfather.” Loki could not look at his father as he spoke to the Aesir king. “We will not contest such. I only ask one thing.”

“You have no right asking anything.” Odin snarled.

“I merely wish to show her those flowers I referenced, if it is permitted,” Laufey explained.

Odin deliberated for a moment. “I will see if she is willing.”

“Thank you, Allfather.”

“Have you anything to say?”

Loki looked at Odin. “Would you listen if I did?”

“Not likely.”

“Then, I have nothing to say, I only have an apology.”

“Your apology means nothing to me.” Odin scoffed.

“It is not to you that I apologise, Allfather, so your opinion on it matters little.”

“You will not go near her again, you have done enough damage.”

“I learnt the hard way, but I learned.” Loki looked him in the eye as he spoke.

Odin nodded slightly. “You may not send this realm to ruin yet if you do so quicker with the next woman you take. Try not to have her suffer as you did my daughter.”

Loki said nothing. He did not trust himself to speak for fear he would make things worse. He bowed slightly and left the room.

“You appear as though you will miss it here, Princess?” Laufey commented.

“I will. I feel very much like this is more to my nature.” She stated, looking at the ice columns around her. “Asgard can get very warm.”

Laufey chuckled. “Aye, it can.”

“I prefer wearing furs and being warm here in the crisp air, and I will deeply miss many of the foods, especially since the fauna has grown once more.”

“It has become far more interesting to eat these past weeks.” He agreed.

“They are as delicate as thin ice,” Laufey explained. “They crumble if touched by any but the coldest of beings.”

“So I do not get the honour of their touch. A pity.” Ella looked at the flowers. “Thank you, My King, for showing me this.”

“I am no longer your king, Princess.”

Ella looked down sadly. “I tried.”

“I know, we all know.” He placated.

“If I had been stronger, if my seidr had not…”

“Princess, this was not your doing.”

“But I was not strong enough, I failed.”

“You failed no one.”

“Loki…”

“My son is the one to have failed. He failed to see that the prejudices he held…”

“Valid enough prejudices,” Ella pointed out.

“Does it worry you that he will do such when he is King also?” She asked curiously.

“No, for in that role, he accepts that change is required, he does not respect that marriage is similar.”

“Marriage is not a concept here though, perhaps it was too foreign for him.”

“But mates are a meeting of some aspect of a being, mind, body or other, we never had such.” Ella felt a painful pang at that. “I was never who he wished for.”

Laufey looked at her studiously. “‘Who he wished for’, not what?”

“I could never do such a thing.”

“I wish I was. Know that though I leave today, I wish I did not have to.” She bowed slightly. “Thank you, My King.”

“I am not your King, Princess.” He reminded her.

“Not officially.” She smiled in return, walking to her father’s guards.

Helbindi looked at Loki for a moment before looking at her again. “And were I to decline?”

“Then that is your given right. I can only make the request in hope of a favourable answer.” She smiled politely.

Helbindi nodded slightly before jumping down from the doorway and walking off, Ella giving her thanks as he did. Loki, however, remained in the doorway, looking down at her.

“Thank you for your note.”

“Thank you for speaking to the Allfather and convincing him to allow the Casket to remain.”

“It will be.”

“Rule it well.” He frowned at her. “In court, you were fair and just, it would do well for you to remain such. It will make you a good king.”

“You think this?”

“I have six-hundred years of court experience, I like to think I have a slight knowledge of such things.”

“I thought it was only five and a half centuries you were there.”

“I thought you would not be so kind worded, considering.”

“How…?”

“I…”

Loki felt his throat feel tight, as well as pulsing in it. He had not realised that she knew, both of Angrboða and his thoughts of her abilities. “How…?”

“You told me the night we consummated the marriage that we needed to go to breakfast, I returned to the rooms but you were with your brothers when I entered your rooms speaking of it.”

“So am I.” She turned to leave. “Thank you, for what knowledge you have bestowed on me, for showing me my faults, know that I will endeavour to work on them moving forward.”

“Your only fault was bestowing fate in those unworthy of it.” They both turned to see Laufey standing closeby. “Come, your father is waiting for you, Princess.”

#loki fic #chapter 15 #Pride and Prejudice

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mediaeval-muse · 4 years ago

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Book Review

Bride By Mistake. By Anne Gracie. New York: Berkley Sensation, 2012.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Genre: historical romance

Part of a Series? Yes, Devil Riders #5

Summary: Eight years ago, Lieutenant Luke Ripton made a hasty wartime marriage-in-name-only to protect a young girl from a forced union and left her protected in a remote mountain convent. Now, Luke is Lord Ripton, but he has been unable to obtain an annulment. Which leaves him no choice but to claim a wife he doesn't want. For nearly a decade, Isabella has waited like a princess locked in a tower, dreaming of her handsome, dark-haired prince. Her dreams are shattered when Luke reveals himself not as a prince, but an autocratic soldier, expecting her unquestioning obedience, which is something Isabella's fiercely independent nature will not tolerate. And while Luke and Isabella's fiery personalities clash at every turn, they remain bound to their vows, never expecting that the passionate fury they share could become passion of a different kind...

***Full review under the cut.***

Content/Trigger Warnings: attempted sexual assault, violence, sexual content, torture

Overview: When I started reading this book, I had the strangest feeling that I had read it before, but I didn’t remember how the plot went, nor could I find any record of a review, so here it is now. Bride By Mistake had the potential for a great story: a fiercely independent heroine, a journey to rescue an abandoned half-sister, love growing between two people who married to prevent one of them from suffering a worse fate, etc. I think I would have been on board if not for the hero, who I found hard to like. I didn’t feel like he respected our heroine at all, even after he opened up about his past, which made it hard for me to root for the relationship. As a result, this book only gets 2 stars from me.

Writing: Gracie’s writing seems to change between the first thirty or so pages and the rest of the book. The first couple chapters seem to rush through the narrative quickly, dumping a bunch of dialogue and a rushed flashback on the reader to set up the situation before getting to the main plot. Once we get to that point, the writing seems to flow a bit better, giving insight into what characters are thinking and feeling. Granted, it’s not a high literary style - Gracie’s prose is simple, and sometimes has a tendency to be repetitive (there’s a lot of observations of what the heroine’s legs and backside look like in her riding pants, for example, and we’re repeatedly told how Isabella isn’t pretty/not conventionally attractive), but I was able to immerse myself in the story, so I feel like it did the job.

Plot: Aside from the romance, the main plot of this novel takes place a number of years following a war. Our heroine, Isabella, and our hero, Luke, married as strangers during the conflict in order to protect Isabella (an heiress) from being forcibly married to her cousin, Ramon, who was after the family fortune. Because Luke was still a soldier, he left Isabella in a monastery for her own protection. Now, eight years later, Luke has been denied an annulment, and so he has come to Spain to collect his wife and return to England. However, before she leaves, Isabella insists on travelling to her family estate to retrieve her abandoned half-sister, who she fears might have been forced into becoming Ramon’s mistress. Meanwhile, Luke’s PTSD makes him anxious, and he constantly fights with her about returning to England so he can arrive in time for his youngest sister’s first come-out.

In terms of setting up a conflict, I feel like this book had potential. I liked the idea of Isabella doing the right thing by her sister, despite having mixed feelings about the favoritism that her father showed towards his illegitimate daughter. It nicely mirrored the family feelings Luke had towards his own sister, and the two protagonists had some good conversations based on those parallels. However, a lot of the middle of the book felt like an uneventful journey. Sure, the protagonists had personal conflicts, but nothing really built the anticipation for their arrival at the family estate. Instead, we get some silly things, like an inn having fleas and causing a whole debacle. I’m not against light, fluffy things like this, but I would have liked to see Isabella and Luke working together more to come up with a plan in anticipation of their showdown with Ramon.

When they finally do encounter Ramon and Isabella’s sister, Perlita, I found the character interactions to be both interesting and silly. I liked how Perlita and Isabella talked about their childhoods and came to respect one another, as well as how Perlita’s desires were quite different from what Isabella expected. It’s complicated and messy and utterly unsatisfying, but in a way that challenges the reader to think about accepting what other people want, even if it’s not “proper.” That being said, Ramon and Luke’s interactions completely transcended the bounds of reality for me. In one scene, Ramon and Luke threaten to kill one another over Isabella, yet once it’s made clear that Ramon would gain nothing by marrying her, everyone settles down and has lunch. Ramon and Perlita then invite the two to stay overnight, which seems preposterous given that the men almost came to blows and, as far as I could tell, still hated one another.

After they leave the estate, Isabella and Luke visit a family friend, and there, they encounter someone from Luke’s traumatic past. I found this part of the plot rather rushed and somewhat sloppy. Despite the trauma supposedly affecting Luke from the beginning, it felt like the details were dumped on the reader with barely 1/3 of the novel left, and so it felt hollow and inserted for a final bit of action. I wish this part of the plot has been more integral to the story, rather than having it all condensed into a few pages near the end.

I will caution readers that early in the book, we are shown a flashback that details how Luke and Isabella meet, and it involves attempted sexual assault. Luke, who is a soldier returning from an errand, happens to hear a girl screaming, so he goes to investigate. He finds a nameless Spanish soldier attempting to rape Isabella, who is 13 and has been stripped naked. While the soldier isn’t successful and his violence against Isabella isn’t overly graphic, we are subject to some descriptions of Isabella’s body, which, in my opinion, had a tendency to be uncomfortable. Descriptions of how she barely has breasts and no hips just shows me that Luke is taking note of these things, which feels icky. Thus, I wouldn’t recommend this book if you’re sensitive to plots involving attempted sexual assault.

I will also say that this book doesn’t do a very good job regarding representing Spanish and Roma culture. Every description of Spain and Spanish life seemed to be banal, from randomly eating churros to taking a siesta. The richness and complexity of Spanish culture isn’t really explored, which is a shame since Isabella’s Spanish heritage mainly seemed to enhance the idea that Isabella = Spanish = passion, contrasting with the frivolousness of English women and society. On top of that, there is a scene where Isabella and Luke are at a market, and they happen to witness some Roma people singing and dancing. Gracie uses the g-slur, though I don’t think it was used in malice. However, the dance is sensual and erotic, which causes Luke and Isabella to become aroused. It further lent credence to the implication that Spain is a land of passion for Luke, and though Spain is not overly exoticized, I do think implying that it is a world where passion can flourish is rather stereotypical.

Characters: Isabella, our heroine, is fairly likable in that she doesn’t let Luke push her around. She’s headstrong and confident, and on top of that, she has a strong sense of duty to her sister. I admired that about her, and loved seeing moments when she would defy expectations and show that she really is capable of handling things herself. The only things I found mildly irritating was her ridiculous innocence regarding sex and her tendency to be overly emotional. Regarding the former, Isabella has cringey moments such as thinking that sex with a man might be like sex between horses or other animals. I dislike it when virgin heroines are that naive because it’s not very realistic. Regarding her emotion, emotion itself isn’t a bad thing, but it didn’t endear me to her when these moods seemed to be connected to her childishness rather than anything substantive. For example, Isabella dramatically flees the scene and cries when she learns Luke requested an annulment, in part because she had been entertaining childish fantasies that he would sweep her away from the monastery like a knight in shining armor. She also gets extremely upset and yells at Luke for not being happy that she is a virgin, which would have been ok if it were mostly about honor, but the scene also involves a discussion about Isabella’s ignorance about sex and what it entails. It just felt like all her passionate moods were in some way framed as juvenile, and I wasn’t really into it.

Luke, our hero, is hard to like because at best, he’s a gruff ex-soldier who expects obedience from his wife, and at worst, a misogynist. I could have been on board with an ex-soldier who approaches marriage as a commanding officer would, but then learns that the two are very different and a partnership is more fulfilling. Luke, however, doesn’t seem to be open to the idea. At least early on, whenever Isabella would do something, he would think things like “He was going to show her tonight who wore the pants in this marriage.” While he never hit or raped her, the idea that he would “show her who is boss” left a bad taste in my mouth. On top of that, Luke would also think about how he despises certain traits in women. He thinks of Isabella’s friends at the convent as mindless and frivolous, he rejects London women because they are shallow, and says a few times that he can’t stand dishonesty in women because of the one time in his past that a woman hurt him. It was honestly tiring and because it takes so long for him to even begin to reexamine himself, I wasn’t convinced that he had any admirable qualities other than being physically attractive.

Like Luke, our main antagonist, Ramon, is also fairly misogynistic. Though he had more complex motivations than we are initially led to believe (which I appreciated), he did use words like “bitch” and “slut,” which killed much of the interest I had in seeing him as a multifaceted character.

Perlita is much more interesting in that she harbors little malice towards her sister and refuses to be rescued. She emphasizes that her living situation is enough for her and does not want others making decisions on her behalf, even if they would raise her to enjoy a more “proper” life. I liked the relationship that she had with Isabella - the two talk at length about how their father treated them differently and how they feel about each other, and I loved that they came to feel real affection for each others’ well-being.

Romance: I’m just going to say it - I wasn’t a fan of Luke and Isabella’s romance. Luke was way too dominating and didn’t seem to value Isabella at all, and it only seemed like he came to value her once he opened up about his past (and even then, he seemed to value her for what she was able to do to comfort him and keep him on his toes, not as a partner in her own right). Some may chalk it up to his anxiety about being in Spain again, where his worst memories took place, but just because a character has trauma, that doesn’t mean he can be a jerk without consequences. The point where this particularly became a big “nope” for me was when the two first had sex. Isabella and Luke are staying the night at an inn, and they start to get it on, as couples in a romance novel will do. However, when he penetrates her, she screams in pain. Instead of stopping to see what’s wrong, Luke keeps going until he is sated, and then they make a big deal about Isabella’s virginity. This lack of caring for her physical and emotional well-being put me off completely, and I gave up hope of Luke ever truly learning how to see his wife as a partner (rather than a subordinate).

Overall, this book suffers from a lack of suspense and an insufferable hero, and while I did like the heroine and enjoyed the interaction between the sisters, it wasn’t enough to overcome the lackluster narrative progression and rapey vibes from Luke’s POV.

#book reviews

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brightsun-and-darkmidnight · 5 years ago

Text

My Hand is Not Yours to Hold

TITLE: My Hand is Not Yours to Hold

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Oneshot

AUTHOR: brightsun-and-darkmidnight

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: You are a princess. When you come of age, your parents decide to hold a tournament, the winner gets your hand in marriage. Invites for the tournament are sent to all of the nine realms and beyond.

NOTES/WARNINGS: Arranged marriage. NSFW.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Serilda has a secret that Loki finds out and uses both male and female forms to satisfy his princess.

*Thanks again to @cateyes315 for having wonderful ideas! Especially for urging me on when I need the push.

My Ao3: brightsun_and_darkmidnight

*FINALLY..Read the warnings. Once you agree you can handle it...

~ ~ ENJOY ~ ~

Serilda was called to her parents throne room for apparent "important business."

The guards opened the door and when in front of them she curtsied. "Mother. Father. You requested me?"

"You are of age now and are to be married off to make a strong alliance with another world."

"That is ridiculous! How is an arranged marriage going to work. I don't want to be married -you can't!"

Her mother scolded her. "Serilda you knew from when you were young, the day would come when you are to be married. It is your duty as Princess."

Her father spoke loudly. "We will send out invitations tomorrow to all the neighboring worlds for a contest for your hand. The winner will be more than able to protect you and thus their world will be best to make an alliance with."

Serilda hoped her assumption was right. "So there will be a contest to battle for my hand?"

Both of her parents nodded in agreement.

Serilda stomped her foot and turned towards the door. "It is a stupid idea!"

However once in her room she grinned mischievously in the mirror.

~^~^~

Loki saw Thor walking to the throne room.

Loki asked, "Did father call for you as well?"

Thor nodded as he kept walking.

Loki stayed silent on the walk.

The doors opened for the Princes and then shut once they were in. Both of them bowed to their father.

"You have both been invited to a contest for princess Serilda's hand. I would advise both of you go. The Queided have numerous animals that could aid Asgard and the nutrients from their plants are the healthiest of the entire 9 realms."

Thor asked, "Aren't the Queided exotic beings?"

Odin spoke, "yes. Their appearance is not like any you have seen. You will treat them all with respect and honor. You are dismissed. Go and train. You leave in two days."

~^~^~

Loki trained the hardest he ever had before. Mixing his magic in with his daggers. He hit the bulls eye so much that there was no longer color for that part of the target but a noticeable divot. Just because Loki was not thrilled about being in an arranged marriage, he was not going to just lose.

Besides the main point of all the training was to prove Loki he was worthy of something.

~^~^~

Serilda trained all night with her sword.

No one but the wild animals knew she had a sword, other than the blacksmith. Even then she was in a heavy disguise at the time of purchase. That disguise would come in handy once again when she won her freedom, her own hand.

~^~^~

The day came when all of the suitors stood in front of Serilda's parents, who were delighted the Asgardian princes accepted.

Serilda stood tall and confident among the suitors in her own disguise. She did not say more than needed due to her throat finding it difficult to keep the deep rumbling voice active.

No matter what... she would win. Her confidence was the highest it has ever been because she was a woman fighting among men. Her parents would throw a fit if they knew she was a fighter but they would find out when she won.

Girls were never meant to fight on her planet, but she didn't care.

If lady Sif could fight her way to get noticed as a warrior among men why couldn't Serilda do the same?

~^~^~

While Thor and most of the other suitors went to binge the food and drinks, Loki went for a journey.

The wildlife were not scared of him and they were surely interesting to watch. Some had many legs, some had wings but did not look anything like a bird. All animals and plants had unique prints on them. When the light went down many things glowed with intricate patterns.

It was a truly interesting world.

Before leaving Asgard, Loki had found a book on this world and nothing could compete with the real world.

Loki heard a woman grunt and he went to see if she was in distress. The women were prized and were protected. They were not allowed to fight.

Loki seen a woman with nightshade purple hair. A petite figure with, distinct pale skin and yellow eyes.

It was the Princess.

Loki stayed silent as he watched her. Observed her moves and how well she was doing. Loki understood her fighting style in a few moves then left with the information in his mind.

Loki paced in his room as he tried to figure out what the princess was doing with a sword and knew how to use one. He couldn't ask anyone because she would be in trouble but finally everything made sense the next day when he seen the mysterious suitor fighting.

It was the same sword. The same movements and Loki knew who it was, giving him even more reason to make it to the top. He knew she did not like the idea of being married off since she made it clear by not being present at most things...but the mysterious one would be at.

Perhaps if Loki was in the final round and let her win she could have her freedom.

~^~^~

Serilda was anxious. She made it to the final round but she had to go against Loki. He was a quick study and found weaknesses so blindly fast he won all of his battles easily.

The fact he was pleasantly charming and by far the most polite out of all the suitors, her parents were in favor of Loki.

They said he is the best choice -not the mysterious one. Which in all fairness, Serilda would not like a potential suitor who did not give information.

Loki on the other hand was knowledgeable, he seemed to know everything that was brought up in a discussion and he held himself with such confidence.

Serilda was starting to like the attempts to talk to her.

He had so many questions about her world and snuck in questions about what she liked and didn't.

~^~^~

Loki seen Serilda and went to her.

"Would you like to walk with me?" Loki offered his arm.

He seen the hesitation before she gently held on.

"Where are we going?"

"Is it okay if we go to the forest? I frequented there every night since I arrived. The animals are quite nice compared to Asgard's beasts."

Serilda visibly took on a frightened look. She cleared her throat quickly. "Yes. Asgard have bilesnipe. Are they really that dangerous?"

"Oh yes. But in order to keep their numbers down we have a hunting season for them."

"We do not hunt many animals here. We have our plants for important nutrients, our waters to keep hydrated. We get milk from all animals, some of them so sweet it is practically nauseating."

"I have yet to find something that sweet. And I am told I have a terrible sweet tooth."

Serilda giggled. "Perhaps I should get you some. It is mainly used as an ingredient for cooking. Have you tried the red and gold circular candy with the silver goo inside?"

Loki smiled, "yes and I fear it was not sweet enough."

Loki laughed at her highly surprised face.

"That is absurd. It is the sweetest food we make here and it only has five drops of the milk!"

Loki grinned. "I ate 5 of them."

She teased with a smile. "Have you slept?"

"Like a newborn babe." Loki took her in the direction of her training area and she held onto his arm and tried to take him elsewhere.

Loki took both of her hands and looked at her face.

"I know your secret."

Loki let her take her hands away.

"I have no secret."

"You are the mysterious suitor no one knows nothing about. I have seen you practicing here."

She searched his face. "What are you going to do?"

"I was thinking we could practice a battle to where I loose and you can have your own hand."

"Really?"

"I think it sounds like fun. Just a little Mischief of course."

She smiled and agreed.

~^~^~

Serilda's parents watched with anticipation as the battle went on but the mysterious one won.

Serilda smiled in victory as she took her helmet off.

The gasps of the crowd and the disbelieving rage on her parent's faces was worth it.

However it did not go well.

Serilda was scolded and her parents apologized to each suitor as they left with damaged egos.

Odin however did not accept any apologies and instead bargained.

"You, princess Serilda, are a brave fighter. If you would accept to be my youngest son's wife you would bring along great fortunes from Asgard to your planet. There would be trade and your people would prosper and be protected by Asgard with a stronger alliance."

Serilda felt all eyes on her and seeing how different she looked from the Asgardians made her question if she really wanted to stick out somewhere in such high royalties.

Her father broke the silence, "Serilda you are to marry prince Loki since he is the real champion. That is, if he would have you."

With a glance at Loki she decided it wouldn't be so bad.

He was the nicest of everyone and she knew more about him than all the others. Loki also kept her secret and helped her try to get her freedom. Loki seemed to care about her own choices, since he was willing to lose for a chance of her own freedom.

His lips formed a smile then a thin line as he tried not to.

"I accept."

Loki was asked, "do you, Loki, wish to marry our daughter and create a great alliance between us?"

"I do."

Then he smiled and it forced Serilda's lips to curve upward as well.

~^~^~

It was decided the ceremony would happen at Asgard so Serilda was packed up with everything she wished. The servants were nice to her but she saw their lingering stares.

She went to the forest for a moment to be alone.

~^~^~

Loki was on his way to retrieve Serilda so they could be together as they walked through Asgard.

However, he saw her headed to the forest while wiping at her cheeks.

Loki paused for a moment before observing the area.

No one seemed to notice, or at least did not acknowledge her leaving.

Loki followed her through the forest and was careful not to be seen or heard.

~^~^~

Serilda leaned on a tree to stabilize herself.

Sobs turned into bawling.

One of the animals sensitive to emotion nuzzled into her to which she threw herself at.

The soft fur was distracting and the hum of the animal's calming song enveloped the area.

Serilda talked through her sniffling.

"How am I to marry a prince? A man?"

She twirled some fur around her finger then let her hand rub signs into the animal.

"Oh Zen. I am going to miss you. You know all of my secrets. You are the only being that knows I prefer women. Not that there is anything wrong with Loki-or that I am repulsed by him… it's just."

Serilda let out a groan of frustration.

"I have a protective nature, and I fight for what I want. Those things are not accepted by my people, being a woman that is. I highly doubt things will be different in Asgard. And the way people stare is making me worry more. I am different in so many ways."

Serilda continued to rub Zen's fur as a thank you for the comforting time to just talk.

The calming humm stopped causing Serilda to look around.

Behind her was Loki.

~^~^~

Loki stood behind Serilda and decided the next words were crucial.

"Everything you said makes you, who you are."

Serilda's eyes were wide with fear as she clung to the animal.

"Serilda do not be afraid. You will be prized for all you are in Asgard. The reason everyone stares is because they are in awe of your beauty."

"What of the marriage ceremony? You still…"

Loki offered a timid smile as his magic shimmered across his body.

A melodic voice took place of a deep velvet voice.

"People have called me a plethora of names but I am comfortable being whatever I am."

Serilda's eyes scanning over Loki's body made her shiver in excitement.

Serilda hesitantly questioned. "You can be both male and female?"

"Simply put, yes. I am a natural shapeshifter, for me to change into whatever form I wish -or perhaps, you wish, is easy for me. I do not mind one or the other because who I am does not change."

Serilda rose to her feet and stood awkwardly.

"What form would you like to escort you into Asgard as my partner?"

Serilda looked down in thought then glanced at Loki. "We will be expected to have a child?"

Loki went to his male form. "It is expected of us, yes." Loki smirked, "though you don't need to worry. Most of the 9 realms know I change forms. Word will likely reach this planet as well. People love to talk, especially those who have no idea on the subject."

Loki held out his hand and Serilda took it.

Loki smiled and kissed her hand. "Your secrets are safe with Zen and I."

"Thank you Loki."

~^~^~

Serilda was sweating profusely as Loki held her from behind.

He moved her feet further apart.

His breath hot on her ear "you need to move like this."

Serilda nodded silently and let his hand move hers towards her body.

With his hand starting to go back to her elbow she then flicked her wrist to throw the dagger.

He kissed her temple. "Better."

Serilda grunted. "It wasn't a bullseye."

Loki pointed to the target where there was a cluster of daggers.

"You hit the same area every time. You just need to adjust your stance."

Serilda went to position herself as Loki has been working tirelessly to perfect.

Loki kicked her foot, then again because apparently she didn't get it right. He tapped on her shoulder and hooked her chin up higher.

Serilda didn't remember her face needing to be so high.

Her eyes met his and then he spoke with a smile.

"Your body is holding a lot of stress."

Serilda became flustered with how intense his gaze was.

"Is it the training, or the ceremony on your mind?" Loki leaned in slowly, eyeing her lips and husked, "or something else?"

Serilda watched that special tone of green appear in his eyes.

Loki hummed in question with a raised eyebrow.

Serilda's eyes were wide as she watched him back up and rock on his feet.

She huffed and threw the dagger at the target.

"Stop teasing me!"

Loki pointed to the target with a dagger almost touching the bullseye.

"I am starting to think the more flustered you are the better you are at training."

Serilda growled as she went to retrieve her daggers.

"So what is getting your body so tense?"

Serilda glared at him as she threw another dagger. She glanced at the target and the dagger was actually in the center of the target.

Loki moved close to her, "perhaps a little more tension will get the next bullseye?"

Serilda ran from him with a laugh.

Laughing even harder as she was caught.

Though once his mouth started to work along her neck she had to close her mouth in fear of being heard.

"I can not wait till this ceremony is over with. You will be calling out my name-"

"Loki!"

He chuckled into her ear. "Not quite like that."

Serilda knew they were alone but the way he spoke such sinful things so easily made her stomach warm and her legs to close tightly for any amount of relief.

Loki's hands went to her hips and she could feel his arousal.

"I look forward to having your mind swimming with the need for release as I tease you relentlessly with both body forms one at a time."

Serilda felt his body change. No longer was there something rubbing on her ass but the soft mounds pressing into her upper back.

The melodic voice was close to her ear, "will you be the judge to what form is the best at giving pleasure?"

Serilda could only nod due to fear of what sound would escape.

Loki parted from her and Serilda glared at the beautiful woman.

Loki pointed to the targets with a sexy smirk.

"Back to target practice. Or do you need another pep talk?"

~^~^~

After the ceremony they were carried to Loki's chambers much to his delight.

All of the teasing from the past few days did not leave Serilda the only one tense for release.

Loki admired Serilda's appearance even when some Asgardians thought her odd looking. Loki let her know her looks are far more captivating than anyone he has seen on Asgard.

Her pale skin stood out of his darkly colored rooms.

Her yellow eyes matching the gold trim of his pillows.

And her hair sprawled all around her head captivated him and he could not stop touching it.

Loki changed to his womanly form and let Serilda explore.

Serilda gave Loki the best orgasm of her life, to which Loki returned the favor once Serilda was done with her feast.

As their bodies moved together in slow movements Serilda moaned loud enough Loki was sure the whole palace could hear.

Loki was sure to feel all of Serilda with slow hands of his masculine form. Of course Loki would attempt similar actions since he was being judged. Equal treatment was needed for fair judgment after all.

Loki watched with fascination as she came to completion, his name ringing through the room. She tugged on his hair and kissed him as he drove her to completion three more times before finally finishing himself.

He laid there with her and she held onto him as they both regained their breath.

Loki covered themselves with a thick blanket.

"So which form did you like better?"

Serilda hummed in tired delight.

Loki kissed Serilda's forehead. "Perhaps in the morning we could start another round..."

#brightsun-and-darkmidnight #my hand is not yours to hold #loki #oneshot

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