#but for quick fights and necessary situations she can power up and fly where she needs to

[mlady-magnolia]

I made another PJO girlie, Roman Edition!

Her name is Adonna Leighton, she’s a child of Venus, and she has a magical choker that gives her the ability to conjure up a pair of wings for a short amount of time and fly around like Cupid

[amlovelies]

Kindling

big thanks to everyone on discord for your help and feedback on this one 💜. Julia and Cyn rescue some hostages and then make out in an alley 😉

fandom: fhr pairing: Julia Ortega/f!sidestep (Cynthia Basri) rating: M, death/violence mention as well as some mild spice words: 2.9k read on ao3

               Even without your telepathy, it’s easy to know where to go. The craned necks of passersby and the distant sound of sirens all point towards Los Diablos’ latest disaster. Ortega had been frustratingly vague in her message, no information, just an address and a ‘come quick’. Not that you really need details. There’s nothing else you’d rather be doing.

               There had been a time when you had to work to slip behind the barricade unnoticed. Back when you were still an unknown vigilante, as likely to be a nuisance as an assistance. When you had to amplify your usual projections: ‘don’t notice me’ and ‘there’s nobody there.’  It’s still uncomfortable letting them drop, feeling the moment when you are seen, when you are recognized. Feeling little excited exclamations of ‘Sidestep’ and ‘hero’ in the minds around you.

               Uncomfortable, unfamiliar, but also real. You spend so much of your time hiding, just a ghost in a crowd, dancing at the edges of life, but not now. Not when the officers give a respectful nod in your direction. Not when they look at you like someone who matters, like someone who can help.

               You allow your mind to expand, to scan the city block around you as you take in the scene.  Brushing over the crowd, you sense nothing to be concerned with, just morbid curiosity and anxiety. A customer is worried about their favorite teller. Exclamations that this is a nice neighborhood, things like this aren’t supposed to happen here. Never mind that they have no idea what ‘this’ is, they’re just irritated at the disruption to their daily routines.

               You know the moment Ortega notices you by the lift at the edge of her mouth. She throws a smile in your direction that makes your stomach knot before returning her attention to the officer in front of her. You still don’t know what to do about this new thing. Fuck, you shouldn’t even call it a thing, that makes it too real. So what if you’ve been kissing, so what if you’ve let her see your face? You’re sure it’s just a passing fancy on her part, a new way to stave off boredom, and you are too stupid and selfish to stop it.

               She nods at your approach, and you take the opportunity to listen in. An established routine, it’s happened more than once that the LDPD failed to give the Rangers crucial information.  Sometimes it was simple incompetence, like an officer in over their head who was unable to recall the right details. Not always though. Not everyone has such an appreciative viewpoint of the Rangers, and some have a real problem with having to play second fiddle to a woman. Want to see her knocked down a peg or two (or in that case, nursing a couple broken ribs).

                               Even if she hadn’t asked, you would have checked. Would have let your consciousness spiral out, gentle fingers touching lightly against the minds around you, getting a fuller picture of the situation. It’s too ingrained a reflex, your primary role, reinforced in endless hours of training. Always meant to be a fly on the wall, not a part of the action, only there to report and monitor. Not anymore. You are so much more now.

               Seems like a botched robbery. The ringleader is a fire boost, Pyradical, and he has at least two modded goons with him.  That’s more firepower than the LDPD can comfortably deal with. It makes sense they called the Rangers in. You’ve heard the name before. He’s new on the scene and young. Early twenties or so, another desperate kid taking a chance with the boost drugs and looking to get rich quick. He was blamed for the robbery of La Brea Jewelers last month. Nasty. Last you heard, the security guard was still in the ICU recovering from the burns, but that had been a solo job. He’s getting more daring.

               Ortega gives you a look as the officer mentions hostages, and you switch your focus. A year ago, this would have been outside your range, but not now. A deep breath as you push your consciousness out to toward the darkened bank. Heat, intrusive and suffocating, blazes across your consciousness and your lips pull back in a snarl in response. You change direction, not trusting yourself to touch the knotted maelstrom of Pyradical’s thoughts. Even that brief connection was enough to make your muscles tense and bunch.

               The hostages are easy to pinpoint, beacons of terror and despair. The officer had said four hostages, but you only count three. Did they separate the hostages? Or is this an inside job? You need more information so you let your consciousness dip down, no longer a light brush, but letting yourself connect with one of them.  

               You rear back almost instantly as the scent of burning flesh fills your nostrils. A steadying hand on your shoulder keeps you from wobbling.

               “You okay?” Anathema asks. Her brow is furrowed until you give her a small nod. Her frown returns, however, as you relay what you had seen in the teller’s memories. The branch manager was dead, Pyradical holding a flaming hand to his face when he refused to input his half of the vault combo. You need to move quick.

               It’s a simple plan: you and Anathema will sneak around back and focus on getting the hostages out. Ortega will create a big showy diversion and keep Pyradical busy. Getting attention is what she does best after all. Power has been cut to the building, so you don’t have to worry about any alarms. Anathema rubs her hands together and you grimace as the sharp scent of acid fills the air.  You’ll never get used to the sound of metal bubbling as she presses her palm against the lock. You close your eyes and focus on the minds inside. The world narrows down. Narrows down to just this building, you feel yourself settle into your body. Awareness focused, reflexes honed, like an arrow ready to be fired, listening and waiting to react.

               The mod guarding the back door goes down easy. He had no hope of dodging your punch to his throat. Especially not when his brain is telling him you’re still a foot out of reach. He goes down and you keep moving.

               It’s stuffy inside, warm even for Los Diablos. Sobs, muffled and hopeless escape from behind the teller line, but no sounds of alarm. You step over the prone body and into the dim interior of the bank, Anathema following close behind. Any second now Ortega and her distraction should arrive.

               Glass shatters as her familiar form crashes through the front window. A roar of surprised anger erupts and chaos descends. It takes an effort to ignore the sounds of the fight, the fizzle of Ortega’s mods and flesh hitting flesh, you have to ball your fingers into a tight fist as you resist the urge to join her. Orange and white light paint the walls in bright flashes as you draw closer to the hostages.

               You catch an intention and roll to the left as a bullet narrowly misses you. Before you exit your roll, Anathema is already moving, her fist flying towards the shooter’s face.

               You trust her enough to turn your back on the fight. The hostages look dazed, eyes unfocused and tears staining their faces. The fear rolling off them hits you like a wave and you strengthen your shields. You make quick work of the zip ties binding their ankles and wrists. One of them begins to bolt, fear clouding his judgment. He’s only focused on the safety promised by the daylight shining through the shattered window, not one the flames shooting from Pyradical’s hands.

               It’s a good thing you’re quick, hands flying out to grab the back of his jacket and pull him away from the danger. Heat billows in waves from the lobby. Even through your mask, your eyes burn from the acrid smoke as cheap décor goes up in flames.

               Ortega’s voice taunts from the lobby. You can’t make out the words, but you know the tone. As long as she’s laughing things are under control.

               It’s easy enough to soothe the hostages, just a gentle brush against their minds, a promise of safety, of making it out of here alive, to trust, to be ready.  A firm command to their minds and they follow you out the door.  

               You lead the hostages to the waiting hands of the paramedics who are waiting with shock blankets and oxygen masks. Your objective completed you turn back to the building. Smoke pours out the shattered window mixing with the omnipresent Los Diablos haze. If you don’t end this fight soon the whole building is going to go up.

               You’re nearly to the building when Ortega leaps out the window.

                 “Get down!” she yells. Not that you are given a choice as she barrels into you. The wind is knocked out of your lungs as she tackles you to the ground.

               “What the fuck—” but the words are lost in the explosion that shakes the ground.

               Your ears ring. Ortega’s lips are moving, but you have no idea what she’s saying. Probably some dumb quip.

               This is not the time or the thing you should be focused on, but she’s so close. It feels different. Different now that she’s kissed you. Different now that you’ve felt her lips against yours. Fuck, you want to feel them again.

               You should focus on the fact that there was just an explosion, but instead your whole world has shrunk down to the weight of her body pressing you into the ground. The concrete is hard and painful under your body. There’s nowhere else you’d rather be.

               “Was that really necessary?” Your voice has none of the steel you were hoping for. It’s a gulping flustered thing.

               “Better safe than sorry,” Ortega says with a wink. “Besides, I’m quite comfy.”

               “Really? Is that all you think about?”

               “Only around you,” she says as she presses her lips down against yours. Even with the mask in the way, you can’t help but gasp. She doesn’t need her mods, or even to touch your skin to leave you feeling electrified.

               And then she’s up, all movement and action, turning back to the burning shell of the building. Anathema emerges, one of the goons in tow, and you breathe a sigh of relief as Julia surges forward to help her. Smoke rises in thin tendrils from her suit, and there are patches where the fabric has burned away to reveal her pale freckled skin underneath. Skin that is untouched and undamaged despite being caught in the explosion.

               Pyradical is dead, going out in a blaze of glory rather than allowing the Rangers to bring him in.

               The hostages are shaken up, but physically fine. The goon you’d left unconscious by the back door is carted away in the back of an ambulance, the other in the back of a cop car. He’s lucky to be alive. Anathema shielded his body with her own during the explosion. Not that he’s feeling particularly grateful right now.

               The action is over and you let yourself slip into the background. Anathema has already left, back to HQ for a shower and change of clothes. Ortega holds court answering questions and smiling for the cameras. You should leave, head home, but you can’t bring yourself to yet. Not with the glances Ortega keeps shooting you.

               At last satiated, the press leaves, and with them the rest of the crowd. It’s oddly peaceful. The fire from the explosion has long since been put out, though smoke still hangs in the air. The surrounding area is almost empty, now that the excitement is over, people go on with their day.

               You fall into step with Ortega as she walks to where her motorcycle is parked. It’s a natural instinct to envelop her in your projection, to let her pass unnoticed as well. A young woman nearly walks into her, and Ortega shoots you a questioning glance. You shrug, she should be used to this trick of yours by now. It’s just easier to wrap you both in a bubble of anonymity. To not have to worry about sharing her with the public.

           Her smile turns wicked, and something in your stomach flutters, twists, knots. You don’t have the language to describe the things that smile does to you. You can’t read her thoughts, but you can guess her intentions. This is when you should dodge, should step to the side, distance yourself. You don’t. You let her grab your hand and pull you into the dimness between two buildings.

                Her hands are quick, nimble, as they roll up the edge of your mask with ease. As if it was a regular practiced movement, and maybe it is becoming one. How many times have you let this happen now? You’d have to stop her if she tried to remove the whole thing, but she doesn’t. Only your mouth is exposed, and only for a moment, before she captures your lips in a kiss.

               This is so much better than that ghost of a kiss during the fight, so much better when you can feel the brand of her lips on yours. A small sigh escapes you, and that’s all the invitation she needs to deepen the kiss. Her tongue darts out, teasing and quick; one hand grips the back of your head. Her nails scrape against the nanoweave of your mask as she angles you exactly how she wants you.

                Oh, this is foolish. This is playing with fire and knowing that you will get burnt, but not caring. You have so many scars already, what is one more?

               The kiss breaks and she pulls back. You chase her lips, wanting more, needing more. Another drag, another kiss, you’re used to wanting things that will end up hurting you.

               “You’re too damn tall,” you huff. You need her closer, but you don’t trust your footing balancing on your tip toes. Your arms wind around her neck as you attempt to pull her down to your height. She concedes bending down to kiss you again. She chuckles against your lips, the reverberations traveling down to your toes and sending a shiver down your spine.

               Before you can protest, her hands move to your waist, and she lifts you with an ease that draws a surprised squeak out of you, one that is cut off as she captures your lips again. Your legs wrap around her waist as if by instinct, pulling her flush against you. Nothing but your skinsuits between you. You trust yours to stop a knife, a bullet, but now it feels so insubstantial. Unable to protect you from hungry press of Ortega between your thighs as she holds you pinned against the brick wall of the alley.

               Adrenaline from the fight is still coursing through your veins. Your very blood transforms into an electrical current, dancing through your veins and grounding you on the feel of Ortega’s lips. You wonder if this is how she always feels. Your fingers knot in her hair, pulling it out of her careful braid. The small curls at the nape of her neck wrapping themselves around your fingers much like how your limbs are wrapped around her.

                You should stop this, eventually you will have to stop this, but that thought is a small voice compared to the screaming of your body. A voice drowned out by the groan Ortega makes as you nibble on her bottom lip, and her grip tightens on your thigh. For a few moments the rest of the world ceases to exist. There is nothing but this moment. You don’t think, can’t think of anything but her. Her hands and her lips and the blood pounding in your veins. You thought you felt alive during that fight? There’s no comparison.

               Eventually, the kiss breaks, and she rests her forehead against yours. You both are breathing heavy; your pulse is a wild erratic thing. A softer kiss this time, not quite a peck, still letting herself linger, but the frantic need of a few moments ago has dissipated.                

                Your legs wobble when she sets you back down on your feet. From the smug smile on her face, you know she notices. You wish you had a sharp quip at the ready, but you’re still too drunk on her.

                At least pulling your mask down means she can’t see your facial expressions.

               You walk back to the bike in silence. She’s closer than she needs to be. Her hand keeps brushing against your arm. Gentle, accidental touches which you know are no accident at all.

                “Come back to HQ with me?” she asks as she climbs onto the bike. “I’ll order pizza and you can keep me company while I do paperwork?” 

               You don’t have to read her mind to know she isn’t thinking about paperwork. Not with the way her eyes trail over your body. Letting you know she is looking, appreciating.

                “Only because I’m hungry,” you lie as you take the helmet from her outstretched hand and climb behind her.

                “Don’t worry,” say says with a wicked laugh, her hand squeezing yours where it rests on her waist. “I’ll make sure you’re satisfied.”

[dreamwraith]

DxS did actually develop in canon

Before I get started, I gotta be upfront, I don't ship it. I prefer to avoid it, in fact. My friends and I rewatched the series last year, though, and watching the episodes all together like that made something stand out to me. The criticism the ship gets about lacking development is...off point. It develops! Even in the third season, the growth is there and it's beautiful and subtle because it builds upon each episode so you really only see it when it's watched all together.

And I think part of the problem is the popular idea that Sam and Danny were crushing on each other before the series began or even just early in the first season, and, like, if you ship these two, please believe me, you don't want that. You don't want to start at the finish line, you'll have gone nowhere, and that is why people assume it didn't have any growth.

But you can see in the first instance when Danny and Sam are called a couple in Mystery Meat, Sam sounds and looks offended while Danny is incredulous. Even in Parental Bonding, Sam doesn't show a preference for Danny over Tucker, she just wants a friend to invite her because her ideals aren't going to let her go to "some stupid dance" unless she has the excuse she's doing it for someone else. The narration is obviously moving her and Danny in that direction, but they're not feeling anything yet. She and Danny dance, and there is none of the blushing you see in later episodes.

Why is this?

Because GROWTH

I don't think the romantic subplot really even starts to affect them until the fake-out-make-out happens in Shades of Gray. They're still only friends after it happens, it's incredibly awkward, they're cringing because they just crossed a line, necessary or not. If you watch the scene without any expectations for the coming relationship, Danny is very alarmed that Sam is kissing him. He’s freaking the freak out, he lost control of his powers (just as Sam had hoped) and he’s wide-eyed and pounding his fists on the ground. He did not expect this AT ALL. Any of it. And even when he sits up and he has that half-lidded look on his face, he’s not looking at Sam, he’s just looking off into space in a very “a girl just kissed me” boy daze. Congrats, Danny. He snaps out of it once Sam speaks, and then they both get this grimace on their face. I don’t think it has anything to do with secret feelings, I think it’s because people have been teasing them about being lovebirds and now they’re going to get mocked and teased mercilessly, and oh fudge. 

So they don’t feel anything there, BUT the simple act of kissing gets them thinking. It must get them thinking because the next episode is Fanning the Flames.

The important detail isn't the love spell, it's how receptive Danny and Sam are to each other at the beginning of the episode. Last episode, they kissed out of necessity, and now they're blushing when they hold hands, smiling shyly at each other, giving compliments, staring at each other, blushing, blushing, blushing. It's as though that fake kiss flipped a switch and now they are aware of each other in ways they never were before. In fact, Sam is shown to be very taken with Danny flying in the sunlight, a very clear moment in the series where there's a shift in the shading, the angle of the camera, and we the audience are allowed to see through Sam's eyes as she looks at Danny and sees him in a different light in what might be to her the first time.

And quick aside here, you have probably heard the argument Sam loves Danny for his powers, but you may not have heard this isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's an expression of Sam's character to, not only delight in the unique and odd, but to appreciate action when it's called for. Danny is a half ghost hero who refuses to sit on the sidelines when someone is in trouble. These are things Sam values, and Danny being who he is and what he does is going to make her heart pound with admiration. He's her dream guy, but more than that, he's her friend. She knows his flaws and who he is as a person. There is absolutely nothing wrong with her loving his powers and how unique it makes him in addition to liking him. I see it a little bit like having a thing for drummers and then your friend develops an aptitude for drumming. It's not going to change the friendship, but you might notice him a little differently. The only problem here would be if she liked him for the powers and not because there is something more there. For Sam, I think, it’s not just the powers. Danny Phantom isn't a stranger who is half ghost and saving people, he's Danny, her friend. She has watched him develop into a hero, starting from episode one, when Danny decided to do something with his powers.

It's a wild, new perception of Danny that would be hitting her in this moment, and if Ember hadn't interfered, they may have actually gotten together much sooner. But she did. She placed a spell over Danny and threw into question everything they have been feeling and made things move too fast, way too fast, for Sam, who, as you’ll remember, couldn’t even admit she wanted to go to a dance a few episodes ago.

Idk if you guys have noticed this or if anyone else agrees, but I fully believe it's Sam who sets the pace. For all the clueless jokes and teasing, Danny has shown from the get-go he's receptive to the idea of him and Sam getting together. Just look at the way he smiles whenever something happens between them-- it's usually Sam who pulls away or ducks her head. Such as in this episode, when the love spell is broken and she, not Danny, makes an excuse for why they hugged for so long. If we focus on Danny in this relationship, the progression of his feelings aren't very linear. There are moments when he notices her or learns to appreciate her, but they aren't major shifts for him. Like he said in Urban Jungle, "I always thought you ruled, Sam." When I rewatched it, I didn't see Sam waiting for Danny, I saw Danny waiting for Sam. You might see it differently, tho, idk, I don't ship it :P But for this meta, I'm going to say it's her. She's not ready. And there's many reasons why.

For one, we saw in Parental Bonding she isn't comfortable admitting she wants the same things other girls want. Even though she really wants to go to the dance, she pretends she doesn't. It's important to her that she is different, even when it's an act. It's possible too then that she's not ready to give in to romance, especially one that others have been pressing on her. I don't think that would have stopped her in the long run, given how she was responding to Danny, but...Ember. That love spell. Idk what was fully intended to be going through her mind after that, but I believe it assured her it was best they stay friends, which is why she pulls back and makes an excuse. Danny's obsession under the spell was annoying, creepy, and it ruined what they had as friends. It's reasonable she wanted to take a step back. I think Danny looks like he understands? He was the one who caught on she wanted to go to the dance despite her denials, he must understand her pretty well on some level, so he probably recognizes that she isn't ready. He’s smiling when Sam makes the excuse. Or maybe he suspects that's the case. I might be basing a lot on his little smile and blush at the end there, but he also blatantly flirts with Sam at the end of Memory Blank and she's the one who smiles and ducks her head while he beams and raises his. They seem to be on the same wavelength here as far as his feelings and hers go, and it doesn't make sense for all these blushes and smiles between them to be something Danny... just... didn't pick up on when he's often responding to Sam's reactions. He's not clueless between these episodes, but he's not pushing her. He's not pushing himself. They're letting their friendship take priority.

So what changes? How does Danny go from knowing to clueless?

I'm thinking it was Reign Storm.

This, I think, is the moment Danny starts to think he had it all wrong. Since they've never actually spoken about how they feel, he can revisit the events of Fanning the Flames and the "Sam? But I thought..." "I thought too..." and start thinking Ember really did ruin things after all because at the climax of Reign Storm...Sam turned him down. Or she let the chance slip away. He didn't admit his feelings, but he indirectly asked her about hers, giving her a chance to say something before he faced his toughest fight to date, something she was afraid he might not survive, but she didn't say anything. She couldn't. She wasn't ready. Valerie had come onto the scene, and the burgeoning romance between her and Danny made Sam insecure. Valerie is beautiful, comfortable flirting with Danny, and Danny is responding to her. Valerie is what Sam isn't, but she isn't cruelly shallow like Paulina, there isn't an easy dismissal here. It's the first time Sam is faced with competition for Danny's affection and she... doesn't know if she wants to fight for it or not. She's hesitant to meet Valerie's challenge in that final scene, and whenever she opposes Danny's friendship with Valerie she uses Valerie's ghost hunting as the reason. It's a fair excuse, I just don't think it's the only reason. She's too angry and too hurt for there not to be personal undertones. But she can't admit it out loud, maybe not even to herself. It's the dance situation all over again, but this time Danny is distracted by Valerie and doesn't think Sam wants him back. Why would he? In a life or death situation, she didn't say anything. Silence carries its own words. Danny must have assumed she doesn't like him back after all.

Obviously, things come to a little bit of a head when Danny starts to get serious about Valerie. Events are manipulated by Technus, of course, but the feelings are Danny's own. Technus didn't make Danny stay up talking to Valerie all night; he chose to. Technus didn't make Valerie lay her head on Danny's shoulder; she chose to. So, when Danny responds to Sam's "Do you really think the universe wants you two to be together?" with "I don't know...I might." It's significant. Sam knows it too. Her voice actor did a great job putting pain into that gasp.

So Sam does what she has since Fanning the Flames; she puts her friendship with Danny first. If this is what he wants, she's not going to get in his way. Events may have continued apace in this fashion, with Sam silently pining as Danny explores a relationship with Valerie, BUT things aren't as simple as Danny or Valerie would like them to be. Misunderstandings and secrets undermine them from the start, and Sam's self sacrifice sees an immediate payoff when Danny trusts her with the ring he was going to give Valerie.

I...don’t really want to get into the WES ring thing, but Jack’s assumption here that Danny is dating Sam (not Valerie) is probably due to him seeing Danny dip and kiss Sam in the lab during Memory Blank. Sam wished for Danny to keep his DP symbol, so this whole scene probably still played out, and Jack likely still remembers he saw Danny kiss Sam, only now he remembers her name wasn’t actually Paulina. 

Idk if I’m grasping at straws or not with this, I’m just trying to give meaning to Jack’s mistake haaaaa...

I'm not going to get into the WES ring thing, I'm sorry. It hurt my feelings and it has Butch vibes all over it. Tucker’s “What is this, the eighties” has me freaked because yeah and the fact that it’s Jack’s class ring and not Danny’s because Danny is too young to have a class ring? I don’t like it I don’t like it ahhhhh

But. That Sam tosses a ring that has her name on it into the air and yet calls Danny clueless is an ironic joke I'm forever going to snicker at. Well played. Even if the rest of it was a dick move.

Sooooo...Valerie has withdrawn, Sam is smugly triumphant, but Danny is still pining after Valerie. The relationship between Danny and Sam is at a standstill because Sam's preferred status quo is back, aside from Danny is now blind to her.

Enter Gregor.

Oh, this little shit...

My personal opinion on this episode is that it wasn't necessary to pull the jealousy angle on Danny when he already had established feelings for Sam in the earlier episodes, but it does let Sam explore romance without risking her friendship. That's really all it is, you can see it in the way she behaves with Gregor. She's infatuated, but there isn't anything deeper than attraction and shared interests (or so Elliot makes it seem). Gregor's color scheme probably played a part in catching Sam's attention by making her think of him (a stranger) in a positive light. It's Phantom's color scheme from top to bottom. I'm pretty sure the writers made him that way, not for Sam, but for Danny. "This could have been you" they're saying "you should be in his place."

Ahh jealousy...

While Sam is exploring her sexuality, the romantic parts of herself she's been denying for so long, Danny is losing his god dang mind. If I focus on Sam, I like this episode much better. Danny is an absolute dick here. Someone stop him, pls, omg. The jealousy arc in a friends to lovers trope is pretty easy to understand. This is meant to make him recognize he could lose Sam to someone else if he keeps chasing after Valerie, it's supposed to make Sam the focus of his attention again, to make him aware of his feelings for her, make her desirable, a possession, objectified ect., ect.. Jealousy is a bad look on all romances, please don’t do this

Sam, though, I like her potential here if I continue with the idea she's been afraid to open herself to the idea of dating until now. It's a little fast, given that she's crushing within five seconds of seeing the guy (Danny at least was given two episodes and death defying adventures), but that's sort of the idea? She's not thinking here. She's... taking a plunge of sorts. She's letting herself follow her emotions instead of trying to beat them down, possibly because Gregor is new to the school, possibly because he also claims to be Goth so there is a sense of community she's responding to. Possibly because some part of her is tired of tormenting herself over crushing on Danny, and Gregor offers a fresh new take on something that has, so far, only caused her pain. Idk. It depends on how you want to interpret her feelings here. In my mind, she jumped on dating him so fast there had to be something else prompting her to open herself like that. It's not very consistent with how she has approached relationships and feelings in general up to this point, so I have to assume it was some sort of breaking point.

Regardless, she snaps out of it when they kiss. 

And she does kiss him back. Before it cuts to commercials, she closes her eyes and wraps her arms around his neck, he pulls her close, and that's when we zoom in on Danny's shocked face. I suppose this is the moment where he's meant to feel the most pain. Unlike Sam who put friendship over her feelings, however, Danny lashes out. He does come around when he's talking to Gregor in the locker room, though. Fair points to Danny, he does come around in the end. It's just a little too late.

I would feel bad for him, but he annoyed me a lot in the episode. 

Sam already looked like she was rethinking the relationship with Gregor after the kiss. He smoothed things out after she shoved him away, but she still looks uncertain when they walk off. In my mind, she was cool with the relationship because it was fun and everything, but she wants Danny, and Gregor isn't him. When he kissed her, it felt good, but then it didn't feel right and she pulled back. The romance was fun for her in this episode, but I think this was the moment she committed to Danny as the one she wants, despite the risk to their friendship. She still defends herself from Danny and walks away from school holding Gregor's hand, she's not giving up on Gregor yet, but she doesn't seem nearly as into him as she did before. Him snapping at Tucker and revealing his true colors just made everything easier.

Bye-bye tacky Danny substitute.

Danny recovers some ground then by complimenting her as a person. Sam might be able to see his feelings for her shining through, I think. The whole moment just felt wholesome and gooey sweet lol.

They still don't talk about it, though. Poor Tucker. I would be screaming in his place.

That brings us to season three.

Sam and Danny have both committed to how they feel about each other at this point, they just haven't said anything. They don't know that the other feels the same, only that they really like their friend.

Mutual pining, fully engaged.

Danny, in particular, has gone full blown. He's not even trying to deny it anymore, he's just shy and nervous about it, trying to hide it because he doesn't want to get hurt. He's usually bold when it comes to matters of the heart, especially by this point in the series, so he's holding that ember pretty close to his chest like he's afraid someone is going to blow it out. He has reason to be. He's been crushed in Fanning the Flames and disappointed in Reign Storm. He's all in, now, and very vulnerable because of it. When Johnny and later his dad ask about his "girlfriend," he stutters and shies away. He's not confident about anything except how he feels. Sam hasn't shown him any indication at this point in the series that she feels anything for him outside of friendship.

Urban Jungle pushes things, but Sam is a puppet. Undergrowth is speaking through her, using Sam to bait Danny into a trap. He can't trust the things she says in that state, and, kindness points to him, he doesn't. They don't blush when he gives her the ice crystal; they won the day, and he let's her off the hook like she had for him back in Control Freaks.

No, nothing for them changes until Frightmare.

Frightmare is the most important episode for their relationship. It is, in fact, in some ways more of a climax than Phantom Planet. They have spent the entire series not talking about how they feel. Sam has kept her feelings for Danny so tightly guarded he didn't know she still felt anything for him. The dreamwalking let's him see what Sam has hidden for so long, and once it's out, it's out. Danny knows. Sam knows he knows. Sam doesn't know that Danny dreamt about the same, she's only responding to the idea Danny now knows about her feelings for him. And Danny's actions after he finds out is positive, accepting, encouraging. But not pushing. They're still waiting. They're balanced on a pinhead and comfortable and happy to be there again after all they've been through since Fanning the Flames.

You can see the change in their relationship during Claw of the Wild. They're acting off each other. They haven't spoken still, but they're working in tandem. Danny is confident enough to do that arm move, a far cry from the boy in Girls Night Out who was trying to hide how he felt.

Sadly, D-Stabilized happens after, and as everyone knows, canon ends there. How Danny and Sam ultimately get together (assuming they get together at all) is up to you :3

............

Okay fine...

Phantom Planet is a fanfiction given canon status, but it does fit into the development of their relationship fairly well.

Danny and Sam know how they feel and how the other feels, they just haven't made anything official yet. It's kind of a foregone conclusion at this point, and they're kind of acting like it, such as when Danny lays his hand over Sam's after he loses his powers. There's his confidence in romance again. You love to see it.

It is a bit rocky here. Danny isn't listening, Sam isn't communicating, there is a lot of passive aggressive shiiiiiit going down before Sam becomes overtly aggressive and Danny finally notices something is wrong. That idiot...

I don't remember the whole speech. I remember thinking there were undertones because they know how each other feels now, but I can't remember the words exactly. Sam was frustrated and Danny finally gets his head out of his ass and starts listening, and he starts to consider just what it was he lost. What he gave up. And for what? Sam makes him look beyond the immediate problems, and there is value in that.

Being dissed by Dash after he failed to save him might have been the final nail, though, to be fair xD

Sam obviously likes Danny's unique powers, but she was at her most thrilled when he started trying to be a hero again even without his powers. His attitude was what was frustrating her, and once he stopped caring only about himself, she forgave him.

I will still hold, however, the dialogue was not great. Her reaction to seeing Danny's ghost form again was something like "Danny, it's you! I mean it was always you, but you're you again!"

It wasn't great, combined with everything else. It's just not. Since she just saw him (almost) die, I might have had her go with "Danny, you're alive! Er, ish! Alive-ish!"

She's actually going to see him (almost) die again a few minutes after this too! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! Poor girl.

I believe they hook up shortly after this in Antarctica. Idk. I blanked out on a lot of the movie. Sorry. I do remember, there wasn't a huge confession or anything. The only real, um, shock? Reveal? Was Sam noticing the ring had her name on it when she tried to give it back to him. They've known for a while how they felt, they're just finally (FINALLY) addressing it, so it's kind of low-key. Just. Finally giving voice to what they've felt. That must be so freeing. It wasn't a reveal, it was an acceptance.

(Does this play into Danny saying nothing is official until he gives [Valerie] the ring back in Flirting with Disaster? I think it might be.)

If you ship it, you can probably fill in the emotions of this moment better than I can. My experience was to laugh. I'm aro, lads, I did not give a hoot lmao. Can't help thinking now that the spinning camera angle, plus the 3D asteroid, is probably what tanked half of the third season's budget.

Urban Jungle's advertising got the other half lol

It was effective, though, I've seen how well loved that moment is for its fans. It was a long time coming, it took a lot of build up and courage to reach this point, well done you two.

And of course you got the hill scene. Sam's ring officially placed on Sam's ring finger (remove it this instant and put it on the correct hand, omfg, BUTCH, you had one job--The boyfriend's class ring goes on the right hand, ring finger, I'm screaming THEY’RE TOO YOUNG TO BE ENGAGED) and they talk! I don't fully remember what it was about, Danny coming to terms with his ghost half, probably, and how Sam has helped him accept himself. It was very sweet and cheesy lol. But the climatic moment for this ship during the finale was in Antarctica. It culminated what they've left unsaid for so long.

And then Danny lifts Sam into a bridal carry (gdi Butch) and they fly off into the sunset, and that’s the end of the show!

... my messy interpretation of Phantom Planet aside, hopefully this has helped you love your ship more, though I understand this is just my interpretation of things. I really wanted to write this for myself, to help me understand the ship better. I enjoy analyzing things as a writer, but with this ship, I often focus on the negative, not the positive, and I wanted to give it it's dues. It is a very sweet ship when taken all together.

I do want to talk about how canon failed this ship and just didn’t hit its full potential, but for this at least I wanted to focus only on what they did RIGHT. There was actual progression in the relationship, although it wasn’t always linear due to what I suspect was Sam’s hesitation to give up friendship for romance and Danny’s attraction to Valerie. In the end they worked things out, and I think the defining moment for Danny was a callback to Sam’s worth to him in Memory Blank, when he discovered she made him a hero, and then in Phantom Planet she did it again by pushing him to be more than your average citizen, more than who he was before the accident, and he was like alright, that’s it, it’s you. It has to be you. 

[moipale]

Scientist’s Curiosity

This fic was written for Ectober Week 2020 Day 2: Bones/Pulse and can be found on AO3 and FFN as well as here!

You can find me on this blog or on my main @faedemon

Maddie is alone when she catches it.

Jack is out of town visiting a convention, and she still hasn’t managed to rope either of the kids into coming out on these little patrols, so it’s just her and the whistle of the empty street that bears witness to Phantom’s fall.

It hasn’t even been weakened by another ghost—it’s been a peaceful night, quiet, and what allows Maddie to bag the ghost boy is nothing more than luck. Luck, and a lapse in judgement on Phantom’s part.

Maybe it’s a good thing Jack isn’t with her—his lumbering, bless him, surely would have given them away by now. But Maddie is quiet, and she creeps into range with a stealth she didn’t realize she could still maintain, well into her forties. The weapon she’d decided to carry for this particular venture is perfect: an electric net-thrower, and Phantom, sitting casually on the edge of a rooftop, its legs dangling off the side, is well within shooting distance.

She readies the gun, looking up at its silhouette. If it were human, she wouldn’t be able to see its facial features this late at night, but the ghostly glow that emanates from its form lights it up like a beacon, and as she steadies her aim, her eyes scour its face, studying it.

Phantom’s facial features are soft. Its body holds that look of someone who’s just about to lose the last of their baby fat, but hasn’t reached that point quite yet. It looks young. Childlike.

It’s really too bad that Maddie knows enough to check Amity’s death records, because no one matching Phantom’s rough age, description, or the name ‘Danny’ has died in Amity Park since its founding.

Ghosts truly are evil creatures, to play the part of a child.

She pulls the trigger, her aim true, and the net flies toward Phantom faster than it can react to. It wraps around the ghost, glomming onto its limbs as the bolas bond themselves to its ectoplasm—a nice touch Jack had thought of, she should really thank him when he gets back—and effectively immobilizes it.

Phantom starts struggling immediately, its eyes going wide as it tries desperately to wriggle out of the net. Maddie has to fight back a titter of amusement when it wiggles its way off the roof, falling the two stories down to the pavement. It can’t fly, either—good to know the power nullification agent in the net works as intended.

She approaches, and Phantom catches sight of her quickly enough. The look in its eyes goes through a peculiar flash of emotions—fear, a pause of confusion where it relaxes slightly, and then fear again, almost like it had forgotten for a moment who she was and what its capture meant.

No matter. Maddie will be able to study all its “emotional” responses up close soon enough.

She’d gone out tonight without the van, which is a shame—she hadn’t been expecting to collect a sample tonight, so she’d wandered a fair distance away from home. It’ll be hell to carry Phantom all the way back. She’s not willing to risk leaving it there to go grab the van, though, so lugging the ghost back it is. At least ectoplasm is fairly light—most of the weight she’s carrying comes from the net.

“Hey,” the ghost says as she hoists it onto her shoulder. “Mo—Maddie, listen, you don’t want to do this. Please put me down.” It pleads, quite pathetically, as she adjusts her grip and starts walking. It’s late at night, so she’s not particularly worried about anyone seeing this little spectacle, but even if they did, she isn’t expecting anyone to stop her. It’s not like she’s carrying around a person.

“Maddie—” it says again, but she interrupts it.

“Ask again and I’ll turn my taser on you and I won’t turn it off,” she warns in a sharp voice.

There’s a beat of silence before it mutters, “Oh, yeah, tase the guy who died from electrocution, that’s nice,” and then falls silent.

Well, that little tidbit has given her an idea for a whole new line of experimentation. The thought puts a little pep in her step, and she starts to walk a bit faster. Phantom seems to sense this, and it starts to wriggle again, trying to worm its way out of her grip. She holds onto it more tightly and continues on.

Fentonworks comes into view about fifteen minutes later, and she darts up the front steps, more giddy than she’s been in a long while. There’s a keypad next to the lock, and she punches in the numbers that will disable the anti-ecto array inside—it wouldn’t do to have her specimen polka-dotted with holes before she can even get it onto the examination table. Once she hears the whine of the machinery powering off, she lets herself in, beelining for the lab.

Normally, if she manages to capture a specimen while Jack’s not around, she’d call him to let him know what she’d picked up and then hold off on examination until he returned. This, though—this is big, and Phantom is a known escape artist. She can’t wait and risk losing it, not even for a phone call.

She deposits Phantom on one of the clearer tables before making quick work of all the junk on the floor, shoving it to the sides or, in the case of more fragile pieces, putting them away where they won’t be touched. After she’s confident the lab is clear enough for her to move around without danger of tripping, she takes the table Phantom is steadily trying to wiggle off of and drags it to the center of the room, directly beneath one of the overhead lights and well within range of any of the tools she may feel necessary to pull out. The fluorescent light above Phantom has the added bonus of partially blinding him, and making her look like little more than an indistinct silhouette.

As convenient as built-in restraints would be, ghosts’ forms are too variable for her and Jack to have ever installed any that would be universally effective, so she goes back to the old tried-and-true: paralytics.

Maddie preps a sterile needle—sterilized more for her benefit than Phantom’s, in case of an accident—and fills it with a concoction she and Jack had developed fairly recently: a paralyzing agent made from a mix of chemicals that would be frankly concerning—if it were meant for humans.

Phantom’s eyes are locked onto the needle as she turns around and approaches the table. It looks almost surprised, and Maddie wonders if it’s only now that the true reality of the situation is dawning on it. If ghosts can even have that kind of emotional realization, anyway. She hasn’t quite determined where the threshold is.

“Hey, what are—what are you doing?” It had stopped talking on the walk back to Fentonworks, but now it starts up again, babbling protests and pleas. “Please, don’t—I have a responsibility, I have to—” Maddie stops listening after a moment, not bothering to even respond.

Phantom begins to wiggle more fiercely, to which Maddie sighs quietly, reaching out to physically hold him down with one arm. It takes a moment, but she manages to slide the needle in just below the elbow, pushing down the plunger without any real regard for how fast she’s injecting. It’s not like it even matters where she inserts the needle—the entirety of Phantom’s body should just be ectoplasm inside; its not like there are any particular veins she’s trying to hit. Its body does give a good illusion of blood vessels from the outside, though. Except, of course, for the fact that they’re green.

After a few seconds, Phantom’s movements slow, and within a minute its fully immobilized, save its eyes, which dart back and forth rapidly. Its thrashing had left it sprawled in an unlikely position, and Maddie has half a mind to leave it like that for the humiliation before her thoughts catch up with her and she realizes how unscientific the impulse is. Pursing her lips, she arranges Phantom’s body to her convenience: on its back, legs and arms extended, both sets of limbs pulled slightly out from the body. She also closes its mouth, which had been hanging open dumbly, but not before spying how humanlike the inside of it looks. She makes a note to examine it more thoroughly later, after she’s gotten the samples she needs.

Seeing Phantom laid out like this, immobile, entirely at her mercy, is far more vindicating than it probably should be. The ghost boy has been the source of so much of the Fentons’ ire, and now she finally, finally has it where she wants it. A lesser scientist would probably take advantage of this situation, but Maddie is a professional. No matter how eager she may be to get her hands on it, she will keep her composure.

Maddie and Jack have had two goals since they first laid eyes on Phantom: to study and understand its obsession and its physiology.

Phantom’s obsession has been a thing of curiosity for them since the beginning. Something in Phantom compels it not only to avoid attacking humans, but also actively try to prevent other ghosts from attacking humans. Maddie has hesitantly labeled the obsession as ‘protection,’ but the notion is a vague one—what, exactly, is it protecting? An individual? A group? Or not a person at all, but the town? Why Amity Park, of all places?

And aside from that, Phantom’s unusual physiology is obvious even when observing it from afar. It’s not like the other ghosts—its ectoplasm is denser and less malleable, it seems to activate powers consciously rather than subconsciously, and its appearance mimics a human’s almost concerningly well. In regards to the latter, Maddie would assume Phantom is a recently-formed ghost, and the human body is not too far of a memory for its form to retrieve and recreate, if not for the research she’s done. Phantom, whatever it is, has appeared as far back as ancient Rome, and has made multiple appearances in the 1600s and in the 20th century.

She meets its eyes again, though she’s sure it can’t tell through the red sheen of her goggles. It watches her, terrified, the slightest hint of resignation creeping in.

She’s always wondered where the line is between mimicking emotions and feeling them. If you can force your heart to race and tears to fall, even if you made it happen, is the adrenaline spike any different? The choked throat?

She’s always wondered why, even when caught or observed alone, the ghosts never stop emoting. Muscle memory? Habit? Truth?

She and Jack had agreed long before now on what samples would be taken, should either of them manage to capture Phantom: five ectoplasm samples at intervals leading toward the core from the extremities, a sample of the core material while active and one while inactive, a piece of the hazmat suit, hair (and nails, should it have them), and anything else of note.

She gets to work immediately, taking up a pair of scissors from one of the nearby tables. This, too, she sterilizes, and then wastes no time in cutting her way down Phantom’s suit, first down the torso and next down each of the limbs, so that the suit falls away from the body, exposing its form beneath. She snips off a sizable chunk of the garment’s chest and stores it in a specimen bag, setting it aside for later examination.

It’s as she moves to begin carving out chunks of ectoplasm that she notices something she really should have noticed far earlier. As the scalpel she’d picked up moves closer to Phantom’s skin, its panicked breathing picks up.

Its breathing.

Maddie slowly turns her head to look down at Phantom, watching its chest rise and fall rapidly, enough so that it would be considered hyperventilation in a person. It watches her back, eyes flicking between her face and her hands, unable to do anything but lie there.

Does it have lungs? she wonders, detached, her scientist’s curiosity getting the best of her as she reaches with one hand to lay her palm flat on the ghost’s chest. If it has lungs, what else does it have?

There’s no reason I can’t dissect it, she reasons, already unable to redirect her thoughts, curiosity burning within her. Just to find out. It’ll only take a little longer than what I’d initially planned.

She was going to remove chunks of Phantom starting at the calf and working her way toward the center of its chest, where the core should be, and the terror it had shown at that prospect was quite acute. It has nothing, however, on the terror that mounts in Phantom’s eyes as her scalpel redirects, moving toward the center of its chest.

Maddie reels herself back in as she does so, stopping herself from making any unplanned incisions. Instead, she carefully puts the scalpel down before moving over to the desk in the corner to retrieve a permanent marker. She uses it to draw careful lines down Phantom’s chest: two branching down from its shoulders, then meeting in the middle and heading straight down the chest. The ‘Y’ of an autopsy.

Phantom is dead, after all.

Before she picks up the scalpel again, out of pure curiosity, she rests her hand flat on its chest once more. She can feel the low hum of its core, as expected—you can feel it in all ghosts, provided you get close enough—but she can also feel something else. Something familiar.

Beneath her palm, through the rubber of her hazmat suit, Maddie swears she can feel the tha-thump of a heartbeat.

Phantom has a pulse.

She looks it in the eye once again, almost trying to memorize the flickers she sees in its gaze. Terror, hysteria, desperation. She feels so strangely detached from them. Maybe a long time ago it might have stirred something in her, some sympathetic belief that perhaps ghosts do have the capacity for feeling, for thinking beyond following the program of their obsession—

but not now. Not this Maddie, who feels a heartbeat beneath her hand in a creature long dead and feels curiosity grip her with a fervor she can’t shake.

She takes up the scalpel and begins to cut.

[scribble-blog]

Soulmate AU part 4!

Tag list is open again! I’m trying to figure out some things, but I definitely want to expand beyond the 50tag limit on mobile!

First • Previous • Here • Next

Marinette had long since shooed her friends back to their rooms, but now she felt at a loss. She had tried to lay down and fall asleep early but her whole body seemed to buzz with awareness, the same livewire feeling as earlier but muted. She tossed and turned as the sky got dark, and eventually she gave up, pulling on a light jacket and bringing Trixx and Kaalki sleeping in the pockets before grabbing a sketchbook and making her way to the roof.

Gotham was gorgeous, even under the dark sky, lights giving shape to the gothic architecture and the silhouettes of darker areas balancing the brightness. People and cars moved down on the street below, and from her spot on high, she thought she saw a few quick shadows leap from one building to another farther away on the horizon. The famous vigilantes of Gotham, she guessed.

And then she heard feet, landing softly on the roof behind her. And she remembered exactly why this city had vigilantes.

She waited, counted to two as she heard their slow approach, and then spun, one leg flying low and knocking them over, her hand reaching out and twisting one arm back while she kicked the other one away from where they had tried to use it to catch themselves. In a half moment, she had them pinned, face into the gravel roof top.

And then she recognized the costume under her knee.

“Mon dieu, je suis desolé, je suis- I’m so sorry, Mr. Red Robin, Sir, I didn’t-“ she scrambled away, and then jumped forward again, grabbing his arm and helping him up. “I’m so sorry.”

To her shock, he laughed. “Oh my god, that was incredible. Where’d you learn to do that?”

She felt her face heat up. “Oh, well, France has its own villains, and I just- I thought you were-“

“I think that’s on me for sneaking up on you like that,” Red Robin said congenially. “Don’t worry about it, Miss...”

“Marinette!” She blurted out. “I’m Marinette.”

“Well, Miss Marinette,” Red Robin gave her an appraising looks, and she couldn’t help but try to stand a bit taller, straighter. “I wasn’t aware there were any major villains in Paris right now, let alone ones serious enough for schoolchildren to be learning that level of self defense.”

“Not aware?” The words almost blew Marinette over. Almost four years of protecting Paris, and people weren’t even aware there was a villain? “We’ve been fighting off Hawkmoth for four years!” She paled as soon as she said it, the implications of her superhero activities in that sentence catching up to her. “That is, literally, everyone has to fight him off, since he targets us with the Akumas, and then-“

Red Robin held out a hand, stopping the flow of her words. “Hold up, wait. Explain what this... Hawkmoth? Does.”

Marinette took a deep breath. “Hawkmoth has the ability to find people with overwhelmingly negative emotions, and then he uses magic to turn those innocent people into monsters called Akumas which do his bidding. He’s been doing this for almost four years, to the point where people in Paris are afraid to feel anything negative, or he might try to use them. And with so many people repressing their emotions, they’ve started breaking down, and the buildup of extreme negative mental states just creates increasingly powerful Akumas.”

She said it all in one very long breath, and at the end felt lighter. On the one hand, it was horrifying that no one outside of France, or possibly even just Paris, knew about any of it. On the other- if they didn’t know, then she could try reaching out again, this time face to face. She could ask for help.

Red Robin just stared at her, incredulous and- worried? “Are there any heroes who are trying to stop him?”

She leaned back, indignant. “Of course! We’ve got Chat Noir and Ladybug, and the entire Miraculous Team!”

Even with his eyes covered in that disconcerting white, she could see them narrow. “Do you think you’d be able to tell me a little bit more about them? About what’s going on in France?”

Marinette assessed the situation, and then very quickly came to a decision. “I think I can do you one better. I personally know some of the heroes, and if you think you can offer anything to them-help, or training, or even just advice- I can ask Ladybug and Chat Noir to come here to speak to you.”

His eyes seemed to widen. “I can’t guarantee anything of that sort, Marinette, I’m sorry- but if I can talk to them, and bring Batman in on this, then we’ll see what we can do and if we can help.”

Marinette nodded. “I can have them meet you tomorrow night. Up here on the roofs?”

He cast his gaze around. “Wayne Enterprises. The rooftop there. You’re certain they can be here tomorrow, say around ten?”

“They can use magic to get here,” she confides, and he nods, seeming to understand.

“I’ll meet with them first,” he tells her carefully. “And then, if necessary, I’ll call Batman in to speak to them as well. I’m sorry that Paris has been suffering alone.”

She nods, feeling tears gathering in her eyes. She wants to hug him but she holds herself back, overflowing with gratitude and exhaustion and over all of it, relief that they might actually finally receive some sort of aid. “Thank you, Red Robin.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he mutters, and Marinette can’t help but feel that she might not have been meant to hear it. “You should get inside. Even this high up, Gotham can be very dangerous at night.”

She nods, and gathers up the unused sketchbook. “Even if there’s nothing you can do. It’s good to know that somebody- knows. Thank you.”

She turns around before he can say anything else, ducking back inside and making her way back down to her room.

Trixx and Kaalki immediately zoom out of her pocket.

“Marinette, are you sure about this?” Kaalki questions, but Marinette just nods.

“I tried reaching out to the Justice League- several times!- back at the beginning! And Chloé said her father had sent in messages asking for aid as well! And now-“

She sat down on the bed and curled up, putting her head in her hands and just breathing. Trixx and Kaalki settled on her shoulders comfortingly.

“I need Adrien and Chloé.”

She pulls out her phone and calls Chloé first. She answers on the fifth ring.

“What’s wrong, Dupain-Cheng,” Chloé demands.

“Not emergency. But I need to talk to you and Adrien now.”

Chloé huffs, and Marinette can almost see her eyes roll. “I’ll grab him.”

The blonde hangs up before Marinette can say thank you.

Carefully she uncurls her body and stands up, stretching lightly before she starts to pace. Is seems like only seconds after that there’s a knock on her door, and Adrien and Chloé are let in.

“I just had a run in with one of Gotham’s vigilantes,” Marinette begins with no preamble, “and they have no idea about what’s been happening in Paris. I volunteered to have them meet with the heroes tomorrow night here in Gotham in hopes that they’d be willing to work with us against Hawkmoth.”

She watched both of her friends blink dumbfoundedly.

Then Chloé snorted. “Yep. Dupain-Cheng, actual shitty action rom-com main character.”

“I am not!” Marinette yelled as Adrien doubles over laughing. “Listen, I’m going to use Kaalki to retrieve Tikki tomorrow, and then I was going to have the three of us meet them. On top of Wayne Enterprises.” She looked them both in the eyes, trying to impress upon them how serious she was. “We’ve been fighting against him for almost four years now, and between our inexperience and our actual lives, we haven’t gotten any closer to actually finding and stopping him. I think this is our chance to do that, and I need you both with me.”

Adrien hugged her. “We’ve got your back, Mari. You don’t have to worry.”

She relaxed into it as Chloé wrapped them both into her arms. “Thanks, guys. So, I was planning on telling them...”

TAGLIST:

@the-fusionist @rebecarojas07 @lowandco @kotaleartzu @resignedcatservant @alenee13 @mystery-5-5 @ladybug-182 @actual-disaster-human @loysydark @rumbelle18 @magic-miraculous @vixen-uchiha @athena452 @mochegato @ash-amg @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @thestressmademedoit @sassakitty @doriebell @jessigurl-design @emotionalsupportginger @kceedraws @kuroko26 @moonystars14 @toodaloo-kangaroo @myazael @theatreandcomicfreak @mer-mel @dahjokester @northernbluetongue @area51qt @renscorpio @redscarlet95 @razzledazzle247 @rosep16 @tired-butterfly @catthhay @shamefullove @imanerddealwith @chaosace @captainmac6 @dast218 @abrx2002 @cici-schnee @multplelifes @shreky-boi @purple-people-eaters-productions @crazylittlemunchkin @weird-pale-blonde-person

[fullmetalscullyy]

the way it was - chapter 40

summary: what if riza never went to war? riza hawkeye has just married the man she loves. six months into their marriage, an unexpected surprise stops her from following roy to the military. a canon divergence au that explores what might have happened had riza been unable to join the military. there will be plenty of family fluff, angst, and royai.

rated: m | warnings: graphic depictions of violence (updated)

read on ao3

1915

i'm not afraid of burning bridges

'cause i know they're gonna light my way

like a phoenix, from the ashes

welcome to the future it's a new day

The fight against Father was not what Riza had been expecting. Roy had briefly described the situation as they were lifted into the sky by his alchemy – that they needed to drain Father’s Philosopher’s Stone and the many lives contained within it in order to beat him. Numerous souls being trapped inside one man was unfathomable, however after learning about homunculi, “world ending” plots, and one being’s desire to become God – however briefly that had happened – Riza didn’t think it was too far out the realm of possibility at this point in the day.

Riza had been Roy’s eyes, guiding his attacks and gauging distances for their target. She let him know what was coming their way and when to defend against it. It had been difficult as her vision wavered with exhaustion, but Riza pushed through. With a quick slap to her cheeks to perk herself up, Riza forced herself to keep it together and continue fighting.

After a rather large stream of fire from Roy, Father sent it back their way with no mercy.

“Incoming attack, dead ahead!”

Roy clapped his hands and dropped like a stone, slamming them into the ground. Riza kept her grip on his shoulder, so her body jerked as he moved, but managed to maintain continuous contact. After the sharp movement her head spun, and a burst of light-headedness almost overwhelmed her. Through the fog in her vision Riza saw a wall of stone pop up from the ground as a shield. It sent the incoming flames off their path, dispersing them around and away from them.

“Nicely done,” Riza complimented, feeling relief relax her shoulders as the force of the flames stirred her hair and loose jacket. She hadn’t even had time to explain what was coming, but Roy had saved them both, as well as Major Armstrong, from being consumed by the fire.

Roy smirked and thanked her, remaining low. Once Father’s attention had been diverted away by someone else, Riza patted his shoulder twice, indicating they were about to move. Wearily, Riza steadied herself with a hand against Roy’s chest and one on his shoulder.

“You okay?” He picked up her slight sway before they started to move, as well as how hard she was gipping onto him. It was much needed to keep her upright. He was a pillar of support that kept her moving forward.

“Fine,” she nodded, starting to move.

Riza guided them around the wall of stone, so they’d have a clearer view of the fight. Roy’s arm slid around her back, holding on as tightly as he could. More support. As they walked, he assisted with keeping her upright while she assisted with keeping him on a safe path. They worked together fluidly ducking out of the way so Major Armstrong could demolish the wall with an enthusiastic yell and alchemise it himself, turning it into an attack.

“Are you really okay?” Roy prompted her again. It was not out of disbelief towards her, but probably fear of the unknown in his current state.

“Tried, but okay,” Riza reassured. “You don’t trust me?” She made sure to pat his chest affectionately and keep her voice light so Roy could hear she was only joking, as a means to lighten the mood.

“On the contrary, there’s no one I trust more.” He faltered as Riza tugged him gently to the side, prompting him to sidestep to avoid a large stone. “That’s why I asked you to be my eyes, after all.”

Riza angled her head to look at him, smiling.

“However, I know what you can be like, Mrs. Mustang,” he teased. The corners of his lips tugged upwards slightly in a smile.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

Her quip was quickly forgotten and before Roy could open his mouth to reply, Riza pulled him up short.

“Debris, incoming! From the left. Fifty feet in the air.”

Roy clapped and dropped low again without missing a beat. Riza followed him, crashing painfully onto the concrete as her knees almost gave out. Both palms hit the gravel, scraping her skin roughly as it bit into her skin. Darkness consumed her as a sheet of stone rose up and covered their heads. It extended far over their bodies, much larger than was necessary, however, Riza appreciated it, nonetheless. There was the sound of gravel as it rained down upon their shelter, followed by a loud thud above them. Riza looked over, noticing Roy’s drawn expression and how he cringed at the loud noise. She tried not to think about how and where that could have hit them if she hadn’t noticed it in time.

“Are we okay?”

“Wait here.” She squeezed his shoulder as she passed by, crawling towards the edge of the shelter he’d made.

“Riza?”

It was much larger than she realised, and it took a while to reach the edge, especially in her tired state. Her muscles protested and shook as she moved along the concrete. Sharp stones bit into her palms, irritating her skin.

“Riza?” Roy prompted her a second time, impatience and concern clouding his voice.

“I’m fine,” she called over her shoulder. “We’re fine. The shelter’s a lot larger than anticipated. I’m still crawling to the edge.”

Looking out, Riza found they were safe. Her tired legs quivered as she fell to the side and sat on the ground, before shuffling back over to Roy.

“I made it too large?”

“After that thud we heard, nothing could be too big,” she reassured.

“I suppose you’re right,” he chuckled.

“The expanse was much appreciated,” Riza reassured, placing a hand on his back. “Head straight forward. You’re safe and there’s nothing in the way. Just stay low so you don’t bang your head.” The ceiling above them wasn’t too low, however, she didn’t need to add a potential concussion onto their already too long list of injuries.

She eased herself out after Roy. A heavy hand was placed on the roof of the shelter to help Riza lift herself to her feet.

“What’s our next move?”

“Everyone’s attacking with alchemy,” Riza explained as she looked around the battlefield. “They’re draining Father’s power, but they need more.”

“Then let’s give them more,” Roy smirked.

She nodded. “I’ll give you the signal.” Riza grasped his elbow and turned Roy so he was facing Father directly. “He’s dead ahead and unmoving.”

“Do I need to hold back?”

“No,” she replied firmly, giving his elbow a squeeze. “Give the bastard all you’ve got.”

Roy snorted, muttering it would be his pleasure as he wrapped an arm around Riza’s waist. She rested her hand on his chest, moving the other to his lower back, sliding it underneath his uniform jacket, as she watched for an opening.

Another round of shells and a boulder hit Father’s shield but didn’t pierce through. Izumi transmuted the ground to rise up, high into the air, forming a cone around his body. Father didn’t move, didn’t react. He remained still.

“Now, Roy!”

The fire burned so hot and so bright that Riza took an instinctive step back. Her eyes screwed up after the blinding flash of flames. As the light eased the fire became a violent vortex inside Izumi’s transmuted cage, towering high into the sky. Embers fluttered on the wind across the battlefield as everyone cringed, taking brief cover from Roy’s alchemy.

It still hadn’t been enough. Riza’s stomach dropped.

Nothing was enough.

Except…

The attacks continued and Riza watched on as Edward approached, almost striking Father in the head with a well placed kick. However, Father had to block Edward’s leg physically, rather than using his shield.

“Anything?” He was hopeful, but Roy’s tone was still reserved as he asked for confirmation on his attack.

“It hasn’t been enough, but –”

Edward was thrown off to the side, landing in a heap painfully after he rolled to a stop. Riza’s heart jumped into her throat and her grip on Roy tightened as she feared for the teen and his safety. He’d already lost his automail arm, thanks to Father. She didn’t want him to lose anything else.

Black tendrils of smoke started to escape from Father’s mouth. He clutched his head, body bowing forward and writhing in pain.

“He can’t keep the power of God he claims to have in check anymore!” Hohenheim’s cry echoed around them as Father continued to struggle to keep a hold of his power. Red sparks jumped around his body as they all stared in disbelief and horror. An eye appeared inside Father’s mouth, staring out at them all.

Father screamed as the light reached a crescendo. A pulse of energy pushed out from his body, blasting back everything in its path. People went flying into the air with a cry and Riza didn’t even have time to warn Roy of what was coming when it hit. Their grip on each other loosened with the surprise of the sudden attack, as they were knocked back in the shockwave of energy.

Riza hit the ground painfully, landing on her back. The wind had been knocked out of her, causing her to gasp and desperately try to refill her lungs with air. Rolling onto her uninjured side as she coughed, Riza searched for Roy. He’d landed a few feet away from her.

“Riza?” Roy coughed as he lifted himself slowly to his knees with a groan. His expression was twisted into a grimace of pain and his back was hunched over, his body curling inwards as his arm clutched at his stomach. “Riza!”

She couldn’t even reply to him. She tried, but still felt like she couldn’t breathe. Roy started to crawl in her direction, following the sound of her heaving breaths. His arm never left his stomach as he moved and his shoulder dropped every so often, giving out underneath his weight.

“I’m okay,” she tried, but it was nothing more than a croak in between gasps.

Roy’s hand reached for her calf, which he clamped onto immediately. He ran it up to her hip, over her waist, then to her shoulder.

“Riza?” His hands fretted over her, his expression pulled into deep concern.

“I’m fine,” she finally managed.

Roy’s hand slid up to her neck, his touch gentle as his thumb stroked her cheek.

“The wind was knocked out of me.”

“Apart from that, are you all right?”

Riza grimaced as she assessed her injuries. Nothing felt too hurt or out of place. Her back hurt from the impact but that was it. “Sore back,” she revealed, “but it’ll be okay.”

“Do we have time to take a minute?”

Riza glanced around, noticing others rising to their feet slowly and nodded, a movement which Roy felt. “We do.”

“Easy,” he soothed.

Her elbow supported her weight as she shifted to a half-seated position. Roy’s hand moved to rest on her back, taking some of her weight, but the arm across his stomach remained in place.

“Are you okay?” Her breath left her in a wheeze as she tried to speak louder.

He grimaced. “My old wound is playing up. I think I landed on something, but I’m not entirely sure.”

“Let me see.” Riza shifted and sat up properly to take a look at him. Gently, she pried Roy’s fingers away. “There’s no blood.” She looked back in the direction of where he’d landed. There was some gravel littering the ground accompanied by some larger stones. “It looks like it might’ve been a stone. Something blunt, but solid.”

“It certainly felt that way,” Roy chuckled, but it was pained.

They helped each other to their feet before they were halted by a chilling call.

“Al, no!”

Riza’s head snapped up in alarm as she heard Edward’s cry.

Lying on his back, Alphonse’s arms were raised into the air, where he clapped. That one clap seemed to echo around the whole area, signalling a finality that Riza didn’t particularly understand but could definitely feel.

Blue light consumed Alphonse completely, expanding outwards, however, this was much gentler than Father’s had been.

“Alphonse!”

Riza looked on in disbelief and with fear, after hearing Edward’s anguished cry.

“Was that –?” Roy never even finished his sentence and Riza didn’t think she’d be able to reply to him anyway, because Edward Elric miraculously had his arm back. The automail was gone. He surged forwards and ripped the rebar from his arm, attacking Father without mercy.

Everyone cheered him on, urging him to keep fighting. A true show of moral support for the teenager who was squaring up against the one person who had tried to kill every single one of them.

“Edward!” Riza offered her own cry, urging him onwards to beat Father. Her heart was in her throat, thinking that he finally had a chance to stop this, to put an end to Father and his scheme. Her pride for him surged inside her chest, wishing, and hoping that his alchemy attacks would be enough to stop him once and for all.

“Fullmetal!”

Riza turned to look at Roy. He was looking in the direction of the fight, but all he had to go on was the yells around him. She gently placed a hand in between his shoulder blades, rubbing his back slowly.

“Riza, what is it?” His head briefly turned to acknowledge her presence but returned to face ahead, towards the battle. “What’s happening to Fullmetal?”

“He’s fighting Father,” she relayed. “It’s a fist fight. Everyone’s cheering him on.”

“Is… Is he winning?”

“Looks that way,” she confirmed, almost hesitantly, in fear of jinxing Edward’s chances.

“Do we need to assist?”

“Not right now. But we’ll stand by.” Riza stepped closer to him, moving her hand to his shoulder as Roy wrapped an arm around her waist. She leaned on him for the moment, giving herself a brief moment of rest.

Riza watched as Edward Elric struck Father again and again, until finally, Father was beaten. After a powerful strike to his stomach, red streaks escaped from Father’s new body made of carbon - thanks to Greed’s sacrifice. What seemed like thousands of souls raced into the sky above, dissipating the higher they climbed, until they were gone. Father staggered before dark hands sprang forth from the hole in the centre of his torso. He screamed in desperation as he fought against their restraints, but there was nothing he could do. The small hands consumed his body whole, leaving nothing in their wake. He winked away into nothingness.

The world was silent as everyone basked in Father’s defeat.

“Did he beat him?” Roy’s voice was quiet as he voiced the question. The arm around Riza tightened its grip a fraction as he waited for an answer.

“Yes…” Wonder clouded Riza’s tone as she was suddenly flooded with relief.

It was finally over.

There was movement around Edward as people began to approach him. His father was speaking to him, but Riza didn’t know what about. With an anguished cry, Edward looked over towards her and Roy. Riza wasn’t sure what he was searching for in that moment – they were too far away to make out any distinct conversation – but Riza trusted him. She nodded once in encouragement.

Whatever he needed to do, she’d support it.

“What’s happening?”

Riza didn’t want to tell Roy, to reveal what sacrifices had been made in order to defeat Father, but she couldn’t keep the truth from him.

“Alphonse… Al is… gone.”

“Gone?” Roy was immediately alarmed. His body tensed.

“He – He sacrificed himself and returned to the gate. I don’t think he’s bonded to his armour anymore.” That thought terrified Riza, but she exhaled slowly, willing herself to remain calm. Alphonse was incredibly smart and would have known what he was doing. She placed her trust and faith in him, as well as his brother, knowing what they were capable of.

“What?”

“Come on,” she encouraged, sensing Roy’s anxiety. “Let’s go over and see them.”

Roy’s feet were moving immediately, walking forwards with purpose and confidence. Once Riza had caught up she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder before sliding it down to his elbow. Carefully, she guided him around the debris and breaks in the concrete.

Edward was sketching something on the ground by the time they arrived. The piece of rebar scraped along the stone, sometimes catching, and squeaking horribly enough to make Riza wince.

They were both silent as Edward drew a transmutation circle.

She didn’t particularly want him to go ahead with it. After hearing Edward being referred to a sacrifice and his disappearance, she just wanted him to be safe… But Riza trusted Edward and his abilities. He knew more about alchemy than she did, and knew his ultimate goal was to get his and Alphonse’s bodies back. Whatever he had planned, it would work towards achieving that, Riza was sure.

After a flash of light, Edward was gone. Riza tried her hardest not to panic. This was the second time Edward had gone to the gate and with Riza’s own personal experience of someone going to the gate, it was not one she wanted to witness again or wish on anyone else.

The payoff, despite Riza’s fears, was certainly worth it.

Another flash had her shielding her eyes, but when they opened, Edward, and his brother Alphonse – not in a suit of armour, but in a real, human body – were sitting before them.

“What happened?”

“It’s… It’s Alphonse. He’s…” Riza blinked at the grinning face of the young man before her.

“He’s what?”

“He’s back in his body.” The smile that spread across Riza’s face almost split it in two. Slightly dazed still that she was finally looking upon Alphonse Elric in the flesh, Riza slid her hands underneath Roy’s black overcoat. His arms lowered from her body automatically so she could remove the piece of clothing from his shoulders. “I need your jacket.”

Roy didn’t protest and proceeded to shrug himself out of it.

She stepped forward and held it out to Edward. He paused as he gazed upon his brother’s face and turned, showing Riza everything she needed to know about how elated he was to see Alphonse in the flesh again. His eyes were filled with tears, but they never fell. His grin wobbled on his face as emotion overwhelmed him, but when he set eyes on Riza he inhaled sharply, sucking in a breath as he tried to compose himself.

“Here,” she offered warmly. Riza gave Edward a proud smile, handing over Roy’s jacket.

Edward took it gratefully and wrapped it around Alphonse’s small form. It dwarfed him, but it was him. It was Alphonse.

They’d done it.

Those two kids had really done it.

Riza laughed quietly to herself as she slipped her arm around Roy’s back. She placed her head on his shoulder as she held him, blinking away tears.

Roy pressed a kissed to the top of her head “Is everyone safe?” His question was quiet, spoken in a breath so only she could hear him.

Riza nodded against him. “They’re okay.”

Alphonse laughed and Riza felt Roy’s head jerk up as he listened carefully, recognising the sound and noticing how it wasn’t distorted by hollow metal.

“They’re both back.”

*      *       *      *      *      *      *      *       *      *       *      *      *

In the aftermath of the battle, those who were well enough to keep working assisted with assessing and moving the injured. Both Roy and Riza were ushered into a hastily thrown up medical tent so they could finally be seen to about their injuries.

Roy sat on a chair by her bedside. Both of his elbows rested upon his knees and his head was down, facing the floor, as they waited for a medic.

She’d been given priority status. Being a civilian was a pain because Roy could pull that excuse and get Riza help faster than anyone else. No one wanted to argue with the man who’d successfully staged a coup either, so the urgent request was undisputed. Riza huffed quietly to herself. There was no doubt in Riza’s mind that her injuries were serious - she was well aware of the fact she’d almost died today - however there must have been others who needed immediate medical attention before her. She’d seen the result of the fight with her own eyes, seen the bodies. Riza would feel guilty taking up a space in place of someone who needed it more.

There was no use in arguing with Roy though. Once sitting on the cot assigned to her, Riza had removed her jacket as instructed by the trainee medic and pulled aside her shirt as best she could, exposing her injured neck to the world. Roy had fumbled to find her shoulders once she was settled and gently pushed, urging her to lie down. Automatically her mouth had opened to fight it, to insist she was okay and could manage, but his brow had been furrowed with such deep concentration as he felt out the dimensions of the bed with his foot – probably worrying he’d push her off the edge – that Riza just situated herself on it comfortably and lay down.

Lying there, her head spun often. The blood loss was hitting her in waves and hard enough sometimes that it made her whole world blur. However, she fought the urge to let her eyes droop closed like they so desperately wanted to. Roy had asked her to be his eyes and losing consciousness would mean that would disappear for him. She didn’t want him to be left alone.

A sigh left her husband making Riza’s head turn on the bed. It didn’t move far. There was the distinctive feeling of her flesh moving that made Riza pause and bite her teeth in discomfort. It felt like the skin of her neck was moving against itself in a way that was not natural. As though the wound was open and gaping, open to the elements and the dusty air of Central. Forcing the thought from her mind, Riza let out a slow, quiet breath to calm herself. The urge to reach up and touch her skin, just to make sure it was still stitched together, made Riza’s fingers twitch. Casting the disconcerting feeling aside, Riza tried to think about anything else. 

Remembering his sigh, Riza tried to watch Roy out the corner of her eye as best she could. She was worried about him. He would be just as battered and bruised as she was. Not to mention he’d been stabbed through both of his hands. Physically, there were no issues with his eyes. Truth had taken his vision away. That was it. Riza’s heart sank as she realised that he’d never be able to set his eyes on their children again. He wouldn’t physically get to see Mia or Maes grow up, grow taller, or witness them succeeding in anything with his own two eyes. The thought was sudden and unbidden, bringing along with it a wave of tears that made her nose run as one escaped her lids and fell into her hair. She tried to remain quiet. Roy would only worry if she didn’t, and she had no way of articulating any of her emotions after the day they’d had.

However, she failed. At the sound of a sniff, Roy’s head jerked up. He searched in her direction with concerned eyes as he tried to determine what was the cause of her upset.

“Riza?”

“I’m fine,” she reassured, breathing out slowly as she got a hold of herself. Being so exhausted was wearing her thin. It was breaking her down.

His hand reached over for her, searching for contact. Riza grasped it, feeling him holding on for dear life.

“Please tell me what’s wrong,” he begged her quietly. His voice caught in his throat as he spoke.

It broke her heart. He’d always been very attentive and noticed a lot about her, even the minute changes in her mood or expression. They’d been together for so long that Riza found herself feeling the same way as him, easily picking out his moments of stress or worry. Now that was all gone for him.

“I’m all right, I promise. I’ve just been doing some thinking.”

“About the kids?”

Riza froze, and Roy noticed. Shifting in his seat, he moved closer and swiped his thumb over the top of her hand. The bandages across his palms were coarse against her skin, but his fingers were the touch she remembered.

“I was thinking about them too,” Roy admitted.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s fine –”

“I would always want to talk about it with you, Riza,” he interrupted softly. “No matter how hard it may be. I…” He coughed, then swallowed thickly. “I keep thinking about Mia’s smile,” he frowned, “Maes’ too, as well as yours. I keep trying to picture them in my head, but it doesn’t seem right. It feels like a figment of my imagination, like a false picture. And I… I want to see them again. Just to check.”

Sorrow engulfed her. Tears collected in the corner of her eyes. “I’m sorry, Roy.”

It surprised Riza to see him shrug. “It is what it is, I suppose,” he stated grimly. His expression was pulled tight though, indicating he was lying. The muscles of his brow trembled before relaxing with a heavy sigh.

“Roy…”

“I should’ve gotten so much worse in this life,” he scoffed. “This,” he gestured to his eyes, “is a punishment, I suppose.”

“It still wasn’t right for them to force you to open the gate so Father could try and kill everyone,” Riza reminded him. “Plus, you’re still needed in this country.”

His blind eyes lifted to meet hers, but they weren’t on her face. They were looking just above her head on the bed.

“You successfully staged a coup and took down a corrupt power, one that was trying to kill all of this country’s citizens. You had a dream, remember? We’re not there yet. This was only the beginning.”

“I don’t know if I can get there blind,” Roy replied gently, trying to soften the blow for her - or for himself. “I had a vision,” he chuckled darkly, “and now it has been taken away. Quite literally. How kind of Truth,” he scoffed, casting his eyes down to the floor.

Riza struggled to sit up in the bed. Her neck ached, the muscles shaking with fatigue, and her head grew woozy as blood rushed there.

“What are you doing?” He’d sensed and heard her movements. Roy’s brows pulled together in disapproval.

“Come here,” she commanded.

“Riza –”

“Come here,” she repeated calmly, tugging him towards her gently by his hand.

Huffing, Roy stood and took a tentative step. Patiently, Riza guided him over to the cot, making sure he was sitting comfortably by her side. Her weight leaned heavily against his side as he snaked an arm around her back.

“We’re both alive,” Riza stated, eyes fluttering closed to relish in the warmth he provided. “We’re both physically able to walk and talk.”

“Except you shouldn’t be,” he muttered, referencing her insistence that she was all right.

She nudged him gently with her weight, a slow smile spreading across her face. “No, I shouldn’t be. Not anymore, anyway. But I couldn’t let the team down,” she smirked.

“You were extremely helpful in that final fight against Father. I feared I would’ve hit our own soldiers if it had just been myself.”

“Happy to be of assistance, Colonel.”

“I ought to promote you to a Lieutenant,” he added thoughtfully, angling his head so his cheek came to rest upon it. “Make you my aide full time. And Hayate too. That pup was invaluable today. He has a nose for homunculi, who knew?”

“I bet that would’ve been useful to discover beforehand,” Riza snickered.

“Oh, absolutely! I would’ve taken him to the office and let him loose to see if he could sniff them out for me,” Roy joked. “It would’ve saved me so much time and effort.”

“You’re just lazy.”

“… Maybe.”

Riza snorted, enjoying hearing his amusement as well. They laughed quietly together on that bed, both alive. Knowing that everything he’d work towards over the past year was over… It was surreal. Despite the tumultuous storm of emotions and fatigue brewing inside of her, one emotion that stuck out the most in that moment was relief. They were alive. They’d won. The plan to stop Father had succeeded and they were both still here to see through the aftermath.

“It’s all over…”

“I know,” Roy agreed. “It’s hard to believe, isn’t it?”

“I’m proud of all you’ve accomplished, Roy.”

“Most of it is thanks to you.”

A proud smile fought its way onto her face.

“I just listened.”

“And that help was invaluable. Your input has always been a massive help to me, and I want to hear it every time I come up with a plan. It kept me on the right path and kept me moving forward.” His head cocked to the side in thought. “I really should enlist you. You’d be a big help at the office. I could probably promote you straight to a Lieutenant too after all your help today,” he tempted.

Riza hummed tiredly to herself.

“Get some rest, Riza.” Roy’s body turned slightly and a hand ran up her arm slowly to find her face. Once he did so, a kiss was pressed against her forehead.

“I will,” she reassured, feeling a wave of exhaustion roll over her entire being, now that her eyes were finally closed, and the adrenaline had worn off.

 “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

The wound on her neck was throbbing in time with her pulse and it would be so easy just to stop fighting and let go, give into her fatigue, and let sleep claim her.

“Sleep.” Roy’s command was soothing, lulling her further into unconsciousness while reassuring that he would be right there beside her, every step of the way.

*      *       *      *      *      *      *      *       *      *       *      *      *

Reality returned to Riza slowly. She didn’t remember dreaming of much. There were fleeting memories of Mia and Maes’ faces as she slept peacefully, but not enough for her to grab onto and remember why they were there. It was a comfort, seeing them again. Now, in the land of waking, that comfort was replaced by longing. She wanted to see them. Riza wanted to hear Mia’s tales from her holiday with her grandmother and see Maes’ little hands reach for her with a grin, begging to be held close.

Her entire body ached. That was the first thing she noticed. Every muscle felt like it had been through the wringer and then some more. They protested as she tried to shift on the hard mattress below her back, a light grunt erupting from her throat.

“Riza?”

It took a moment to realise someone was calling to her. Her head turned to the side automatically and Riza instantly regretted it. A sharp pain suddenly flared there, making her hiss loudly. She gasped, squeezing her eyes tightly closed as a hand clumsily lifted to protect the area of injury.

“What’s wrong?”

Roy was fretting. Slowly, Riza turned her whole torso to look over at him, grimacing at her aches and pains, and opened her eyes. His hands were ringing together in his lap. His eyes were wide and staring in her direction, flicking back and forth.

“I’m all right,” she soothed, but it didn’t lessen the nervous energy so apparent within him. “I turned my head too quickly.”

“The doctor said you have to keep it as still as possible,” he admonished firmly.

Riza almost nodded, then realised that probably wouldn’t be the best idea. “All right.”

“But are you okay?” He was stressed, still worrying over her.

“Roy?” She called to him, waiting for a response to try and slow down his mind that was probably picturing the worst, given his expression. It worked because his head perked up immediately and his hands still in his lap. “I’m all right.”

It took a moment, but slowly his shoulders relaxed. His posture slumped slightly.

“Promise?”

“I promise,” she replied sincerely.

It couldn’t have been easy for him to be unable to verify it for himself. He trusted her implicitly, Riza knew this, but still, suddenly becoming blind would be difficult to adjust to. He’d always been so good at picking up how she was feeling from micro expressions alone, so the sudden lack of it would be frustrating. Not to mention the fact she’d probably been out of it for a while. It certainly felt like it, despite still feeling exhausted upon waking.

Before anything else could be said, there was a knock at the door and Breda entered. Riza watched as he and Fuery piled into the room with grins on their faces. They stared at her, ecstatic to see she was awake.

“Hello,” she greeted warmly, extremely pleased to see them all.

Before anyone could reply, Rebecca Catalina stole all of Riza’s attention, just like always. She butted past them both hurriedly, stopping as she zeroed in on Riza.

“Riza!” The volume of her cry made her wince. “I’m so glad you’re okay!” Riza’s vision was filled with the black hair of Rebecca’s ponytail while she was enveloped in her best friend’s arms.

Riza patted her friend on the back gently. “Hey, Becca.”

“How are you doing?” She wasted no time pulling away to examine Riza’s face with a critical eye.

“I don’t know,” was Riza’s honest reply, “other than I feel okay. I just woke up.”

“Any pain? Any discomfort? Do you need to… go?”

While her questions were short and sharp, Riza still appreciated her friend’s concern.

“Fine, Becca,” she soothed, patting her forearm. “It’s just sore when I move my head.”

“You keep it still then. Do you hear me?” A finger was shoved into Riza’s face. “Don’t go messing up the good work the hot doctors did on you.”

“Hot doctors?” Riza raised an eyebrow at her.

Rebecca’s face lit up in glee. “You were so lucky,” she snickered.

Roy cleared his throat from his bed, unamused.

“I’m kidding, Mustang,” Rebecca stressed, but still loudly whispered, “no, I’m not,” before slipping off the bed, walking over to Roy’s. “And how are you doing Colonel?”

“Ready for the day,” he nodded, very matter of fact in the way he spoke.

“Good. We have a lot to cover,” Rebecca announced, taking a seat by his bedside. Her legs were lifted, propped up on the edge of his bed. Feeling the dip, Roy turned his head downwards towards them, but said nothing.

“She’s right, boss,” Breda interjected. He pulled a book out from underneath his arm and flipped it open. “Good to see you awake, Riza,” he grinned before continuing.

“It’s so good to see you, Ma’am,” Fuery gushed, eyes twinkling with joy behind his glasses.

“You too,” she replied. During the Promised Day, she’d lost sight of them and was glad to discover they were safe and visibly unharmed.

“Before we get into it, could we get a minute?” Roy’s question had no room for argument as he gestured between himself and her.

“Uh, yeah, of course,” Rebecca hastily reassured. Her feet hit the linoleum floor with a thud before standing.

“Of course, boss. We’ll be back…” Breda shot Fuery an uncertain look. “We’ll give you guys some time. We’ll be back in an hour.”

“Thank you.”

The three of them filed out, leaving Roy and Riza alone. She felt exhausted, feeling it creep up into her head and take residence behind her eyes, forming a dull pain, after only a few minutes of conversation. Just what she needed on top of the slowly receding pain in her neck. A headache.

“Do you need anything?” Roy’s tone was asking her for the truth. Pleading with her for it. He couldn’t see it for himself so needed her to be honest with him and give more than an ‘I’m fine.’

During the Promised Day there had been so many bigger things at stake than her. Riza had kept focussed and kept moving forward, to do the right thing and put an end to those that had wronged her, her friends and family, and the entire nation with their lies and schemes.  She had to be there to assist Roy and help the Elric brothers fight Father. Looking at the bigger picture, it was absolute top priority that they succeed on that day. So, her own health and wellbeing were pushed aside for the greater good. She was filled with dismay to realise that her insistence of being ‘okay’ had resulted in Roy pleading with her for the truth. He shouldn’t have to, but now that they were safe and unknown danger no longer lurked around every corner, Riza knew what she had to do.

“I don’t feel like I need anything at the moment,” Riza answered. “My neck hurts a little bit,” she added quietly, “and it really hurt after I moved my head too quickly.”

Roy’s fingers dug into the sheet over his legs.

“So I’m staying as still as possible. It was an automatic reaction to turn my head. I need to remember not to do that.”

“Like I said, the doctor said you have to keep it still.” His voice was authoritative, betraying his worry and concern for her. “They said the morphine will probably wear off soon, so if it does, we have to let a nurse know. Has it started to wear off yet?”

Riza paused to assess how she was feeling. “I’m okay for now. The pain from before is already fading after I moved too quickly.”

Roy’s lips pursed. “If you need more, we will get you some –”

“I’ll let them know if I do need more, I promise.”

Roy nodded, but Riza could still see the tension in his body. He would never fully relax, Riza was sure.

One idea to assist and make things easier on him popped into Riza’s mind.

Throwing the sheet off her body, Riza slowly swung her legs out of the bed. Every muscle protested and she groaned quietly.

“What are you doing?”

“Just… Give me a second.”

“Are you getting out of bed?” He asked as if it were the most ridiculous course of action she could have taken. “Riza –”

“I’m fine. I can walk okay.” Her feet were sore as they contacted the floor and the muscles in her legs were aching, but that was just from overexertion.

“Get back into bed,” he growled at her. “You shouldn’t be up –”

“This will help us both,” she interrupted him. There was a brief feeling of light-headedness as she stood, but it passed quickly.

“How?”

Riza didn’t answer. She shuffled over, movements stiff after being still for so long, but she managed it.

“Move over,” she commanded, nudging his shoulder gently with the back of her hand.

Roy was unimpressed, but did as she asked. Riza slipped into the bed next to him with slow and careful movements. As much as she would have loved to curl up against his side, she couldn’t with her neck, so opted to remain on her back. However, Roy took up the mantle for her. He rolled onto his side and immediately latched onto her. His arms pulled her into a tight embrace, one that told Riza she’d have great difficulty removing herself from his hold. Not that she minded at all.

“You will be the death of me, woman,” he muttered. Immediately his head was by hers, his breath warming the skin of her face. His forehead came to rest upon her temple.

“You love me for it though,” Riza countered with a smile.

“I do.” Roy lifted his fingers carefully towards her face, contacting her skin gently. He caressed her cheek with his thumb before cupping her chin and moving forwards to kiss her cheek.

He placed his head on the pillow and adjusted the arm that lay across her stomach. With his bandaged palms he couldn’t grip onto her completely, but his fingers did as best they could. His hold was still weak – a detail Riza noted and shelved for later. If he pressed too hard with his fingers, from the direction his palms had been sliced into, too much pressure may aggravate and reopen his wounds.

“Now I feel much better,” Riza sighed happily.

Roy hummed in agreement. “I must admit, I do prefer having you by my side.”

Riza ran her hand up his bare arm, noticing him shiver. “I can’t imagine it’s been easy.”

“It's hard being unable to see you for myself.”

“How long was I asleep?”

“It’s been about two days. It’s hard to grasp time and keep track, but that’s what the doctor said when they came in this morning. So probably just over that.”

“I’m sorry I was away for so long.” He’d asked her to be his eyes, and she’d left him.

“It’s hardly your fault,” he scoffed lightly. “You sustained life-threatening injuries and needed to be cared for too, as well as rest.”

“I know.” She swallowed. There was a twinge in her throat as she did so, and Riza silently hoped the injury wouldn’t affect that action too much.

“You getting the help you needed was my top priority. I’m just glad to finally be able to feel and hear that you’re up and awake.”

“I love you.” Her hand stopped on his bicep and gave it a quick squeeze.

“I love you too, Riza.” A kiss was pressed against her shoulder just below her bandages.

“How are you feeling?”

Roy shrugged. “Sore and tired. They performed surgery on my hands. There was enough to work with to repair some of the damage but they won’t be perfect. However, the correct care and physical therapy will help. And my vision… I’m completely blind. I won’t recover from it.”

Riza nodded in acceptance. She always thought that would be the case. Hearing it confirmed wasn’t easy, but she’d support him through it. They would adapt and adjust.

“We both went through a lot on the Promised Day.”

Roy nodded. “We did. And you…” He swallowed. “Helping me with Envy…”

“I would do it again in a heartbeat, you know that.”

“I almost lost it all.” His voice was hoarse.

“You stepped back from it though. Being subjected to torment like you were over the murder of someone you loved��� How could anyone not be upset over that?”

“I yelled at you too. That was undeserving when you were only trying to help.” Roy snorted, his face twisting in disgust. “It seems I have a track record of that,” he added bitterly.

He moved to pull away from her, but Riza didn’t let him. She held on tight. “You were upset.”

“That’s not an excuse.”

“No, it’s not. But you were upset and teetering on the edge. They were trying to goad you over the edge, but you didn’t let them.”

His head bowed so his forehead came to rest upon her shoulder.

“You won that battle. Remember that.”

Roy was silent as they lay there. As they did so, Riza’s mind wandered towards her own wrongdoings on the Promised Day.

“Besides,” she swallowed, “I’m not completely innocent in all of this either. I killed someone.”

Roy’s hand moved from her stomach. He rubbed her upper arm gently in comfort. The bandages scratched her skin slightly, but not uncomfortably. “I can’t tell you that guilt and regret will ever go away, because it doesn’t.”

Riza clutched at his shirt tighter, scrunching it as she realised his meaning.

“But you’re not alone in this,” Roy reassured her. A kiss was pressed against her shoulder. “I’m right here.”

“I know you are.”

“You saved my life, and I’ll be forever grateful to you for that, however, I’m aware it comes at a price. I’m sorry you have to pay it.”

“I vowed to myself that I would do anything to protect my family.” Riza swallowed. “And I meant it.”

“It still doesn’t make it easy, does it?”

Riza shook her head. “No.”

“Talk to me whenever you need. Although it was incredibly difficult, sometimes impossible, I wish I had opened up more after Ishval. If I had, I could’ve maybe spared us some heartache.”

“We were both still young,” she reminded him. “Your world had been cruelly turned on its head and you’d been turned into a weapon, so, on an emotional level, I don’t blame you for wanting to briefly shut it out.”

“I could’ve been better, though.”

Riza sighed. “We learned from it though.”

“Sometimes I didn’t,” Roy grimaced. “What I would give to take back how I handled Hughes’ death.”

Riza patted his shoulder in comfort. “I think we were both at fault. Grief isn’t easy and it can be unfair. Especially when forced upon us so suddenly and,” Riza swallowed, “so violently.”

Roy repositioned his arm across her stomach, giving her body a tight squeeze. “We made it through in the end.”

“We did,” she confirmed.

Silence descended over them as Riza struggled to try and find the right words she needed to voice her thoughts.

“How… How do you deal with it, day-to-day? The memories of what you’ve done?”

“Before the Promised Day it was by working towards the coup. By taking down Bradley and the corrupt powers, I was working towards stopping something like Ishval from happening again. Now that’s over with… I want to rebuild Ishval. That’s the next project on the agenda. That’s why the team has been coming here every day, so I can learn about their customs and practices. I took part in taking that away from them, so I’ll work to give it back. Then…” He exhaled a long breath. “After that, I will continue to try and make up for all that I did until my last breath.”

“After Ishval?”

Roy nodded. “If I become Fuhrer I can enforce laws that ensure nothing like Bradley and Father will ever happen again. By devolving power and turning the system into a democracy, it removes it. And then, those who were involved with Ishval will be punished for their war crimes.”

On instinct, Riza’s body stiffened. They’d been over this. They’d discussed this outcome plenty of times and she’d somewhat made her peace with it, however, it didn’t mean it was easy. However, she’d respect his wishes, as well as the Ishvalan’s.

“Sorry,” he added quietly, noticing how she tensed underneath his hands.

“No. No, it’s okay. We have to talk about it.”

“If my execution is called for by the elders, then I won’t fight it. I have no right to deny them of how they judge me.”

Riza swallowed. “Obviously, I don’t want to lose you. I love you. However, I want you to know I would never fight it either.”

Her shoulder was squeezed tightly.

“It… It hurts to think about and talk about. It always has, throughout the years, but…” Riza sighed, the weight of the conversation settling heavily on her heart and her mind. “I agree. We can’t take that away from them. Not after what you did.” Riza almost cringed at the bluntness of her words, but she shouldn’t shy away from what happened. Roy wouldn’t, so she shouldn’t either.

“You’re right,” he agreed.

“I helped put that out into the world, so I always felt partly responsible. I suppose that will be my punishment for it.”

“It may not even come to that. If they don’t choose that avenue for me, then I keep on working as best I can. Whatever happens though, we will deal with it.”

“Yes,” Riza agreed, “and I will be with you every step of the way.”

His fingers lowered to entwine with hers. The digits were stiff and couldn’t move too far, which made Riza think back to her concern about how much pressure he could apply with his hands. Riza curled her fingers around his carefully.

“We can work to redeem ourselves together.”

“Until the very end,” Riza vowed.

Roy’s head cocked to the side when she let go of his hand. Riza shifted on the bed, rolling into her side. It wasn’t painful like she imagined it would be. Her neck showed no signs of discomfort as she lay down on the soft pillow.

“You okay?”

“Perfect,” she smiled. She brushed his fringe off his face.

Roy lowered from his elbow to lie next to her. His hand found her lower back and he shuffled in closer to her body. Gently, she cupped his cheek, but noticed how he flinched slightly at the sudden contact.

“Sorry,” she murmured, alleviating the pressure she’d placed on his face.

“No, I didn’t realise what you were doing.”

“I’ll need to be slower and more careful in the future,” she scolded herself lightly.

Roy lifted his bandaged hand to place it on her wrist. He pressed her hand back against his cheek, back to where it had been when he’d flinched. “You don’t need to do anything. You’re perfect. It's… jarring. Being in such inky blackness and feeling something so suddenly, not knowing where it came from. Especially after everything we went through that day.”

Riza studied his face as she tried to rack her brain for a way to announce herself before touching him. Her thumb stroked his face lightly and he sighed into her touch, his body relaxing underneath it.

“What is it like?” She hated to ask, but she wanted to know, so she could find or work out some way to help Roy ease into his new condition.

“It’s terrifying. I hate it.”

Hearing that was like a punch to the stomach.

“And I want to see you again. I so desperately wish I could.” His breath hitched and as Riza blinked, tears appeared in her eyes. “I miss you,” he admitted hoarsely. “I miss your beautiful face and your gorgeous eyes,” he grinned as a tear tracked down his cheek. “And your winning smile.” His hand lifted to cup her face, and he made contact with no issues whatsoever. He didn’t bump into her or end up off target.

Riza smiled. “You did that without thinking,” she praised. Her fingers trailed from his temple to chin, stroking the skin lovingly as she smiled. “You knew where I was.”

His mouth opened then promptly closed again.

“We’ll work through it,” Riza whispered, closing her eyes as their foreheads moved to rest together. “I promise. You won’t go through this alone.”

“I know.” Roy inhaled sharply before letting it out slowly. The hand on her cheek moved to rest on the back of her neck. “I know I won’t.”

She kissed his cheek, pulling him into a tight embrace. The two of them remained there, holding each other, finally able to do so and rest properly after all they’d experienced on the Promised Day. For Riza, she finally felt at peace laying there in Roy’s arm.

Two hours passed before Rebecca knocked on the door, apologising, but asking if they were ready to get to work.

[genshin-impact-fics]

To Protect

Pairing: Kaiser x Albedo (OcXCanon)

Warning: If you haven't done the "We Will Be Reunited" chapter of the story know that this fic is kind of spolierish.

A/N: It's been a while since I've written a fic so I'm a lil on the rusty side. I'm also thinking of writing an alternative route/ending of this story which will go one of two ways I have in mind :3

It seemed that the Abyss Order was hunting down any sort of lead of powerful beings that the prince/princess could utilize to rid the world of the archons and gods alike from this world. It seemed like their latest target was a certain alchemist that spent his time up in the cold mountains of Dragonspine.

Once again Albedo was up in the harshly cold mountains working on a new experiment that should enhance a person’s resilience to the sheer cold in Dragonspine. If he could manage to create an effective formula then it would make traversing the cold land a little bit easier especially the knights that needed to be there; however the traveler was away doing commissions which meant he’d have to look for someone else which thankfully Albedo was able to once again request the help of his fellow knight member and friend Kaiser. The two were currently standing by a fire nearby the open area where the cyro hypostasis resides. “I’m not going to get sick from this one will I,” Kaiser asked while examining the liquid contents within the vile as last time he had her assist with an experiment, they quickly discovered that she happened to be very allergic to energy nectar. Albedo still felt terribly about that incident as he never wanted to harm others with his experiments though there just seemed to be some things that were out of his control; since then he’s made sure to not give her anything with any nectar in it, not wanting to see her suffer like she did again.

“I promise you that you shouldn’t get sick from this as I’ve taken the liberty of trying on myself first to ensure your safety. But because I don't get too bothered I needed someone who would best benefit from this,” he reassured her as yes after a prolonged amount of time he’ll get very cold so the data he’ll collect from this trail should give him a good understanding of where to go from there. “Right,” she said, opening it and drinking it all before handing back the empty vile. “So all I have to do is stay in the cold for however long until I feel like I’m freezing,” she reiterated to clarify what she was doing exactly. Giving a firm nod he gave a ghost of a smile before saying, “Yes you’re correct. I’ve mapped out areas with groups of hilichurl camps that you can take care of. If at any time you’re getting cold or don’t feel well we can rest at a safe spot and go over my findings.”

With that the two set out as Albedo led the way to the locations he plotted in advance. Things were going smoothly thus far as currently they were at the fourth location and Albedo watched in the short distance observing Kaiser fight the last frostarm lawachurl. Her movements swift and flawless, truly a beautiful sight to witness: the way her long black hair flowed in the chilled winds and flakes of snow, how the electricity she admitted danced around her, even the precision of her swordsmanship with her rapier. Albedo had the urge to take the time to draw this very moment to capture the elegance he saw in Kaiser, but stayed focused on keeping notes as he certainly had taken notice that her normal speed rate was decreasing possibly due to the cold most likely starting to take effect.

The frostarm lawachurl was finally defeated as Kaiser walked over rejoining Albedo and now that she was much closer he could easily see her cheeks and nose were a soft pink color. “How are you feeling,” he asked immediately as he was thinking of possibly calling this a stopping point so she could warm up not wanting her to over do it. “Feeling pretty cold but it isn’t unbearable. Shall we head to the next location? You said there were two more right so let's head out,” she said, turning to walk off but by instinct he quickly grabbed her wrist to stop her from going any further to which she seemed to instantly glance back at him with narrowed eyes. “I think we should at least to take a break and get you warmed up; you’ve surpassed the estimated time I initially hypothesized,” he voiced his opinion to the slightly taller woman. Letting out a small sign a puff of air came from Kaiser as she glanced at his hand that was holding her wrist before glancing back to him; he really was lucky she liked him because if this had been any other person she would have most likely beat the crap out of them by now. “I’ll be fine, besides it shouldn’t take that much longer right? Let’s just finish up and then I’ll rest,” she said persisting that they continue forth with the experiment. Much to his displeasure he decided to listen as he’d be sure to keep a little closer in case he needed to step in and finish the fight so he could get her somewhere warm and possibly mend what injuries she sustained.

For the fifth location they ended up in the open area that had a once active fighting mechanism as there happen to be a few hilichurls still hanging around. He watched as she went over to repeat her process of fighting enemies. His note taking didn’t last much longer as finally he succumbed to his urges of sketching Kaiser and even including the astonishing serpent made out of electricity that went around attacking the hilichurls. When it seemed like she finished off the last one suddenly more came running out of nowhere to attack. Not wasting a second he tossed his clipboard aside to assist her in fighting as surely she had to have been at her tolerant limit.

“I had it perfectly under control. I didn’t need help,” Kaiser said, looking over to Albedo after the last one fell. Her face was much more redder in the nose and cheeks as he could see how she tried to refrain from shivering; letting out a sigh he shouldn’t be surprised, she really does do everything to finish a job by any means necessary. Letting out a small sigh he now stood in front of Kaiser as he was grateful for her hard work but he also worried for her well being. “Yes I know but the way all those hilichurls came out of nowhere was very strange almost as if-” he was saying now holding his chin as he was speculating until suddenly there was a large and strange portal that opened up a couple feet away from the two knights. The two exchanged glances before looking at the portal as two abyss mages came floating out and another one came out that they’ve never seen before: a very tall being dressed in full armor that was dark blue stood between the two mages. “So it is true that the prince of chalk walks these lands. My highness will be pleased with our findings,” the armored being spoke.

Albedo was confused by what this being was saying, but regardless it didn’t sound good. Gripping her rapier tighter in her grasp despite the violent chills running up and down her spine she was prepared to fight. “You’re in no condition to fight,” Albedo said as he knew this fight would be pretty much unavoidable yet he feared that at this rate she’s at a high risk of falling ill and even possibly fainting during battle. “I’ll worry about it later,” she simply said before she was gone in a flash of purple electricity for him to see her already attacking the tall figure with whatever full force she had left in herself. Quick to join the fight he could only wonder if this was the same being that Jean mentioned from the incident that took place in Wolvendom not too long ago. The mages were the easier ones to take out; however, it seemed that even with the two of them against what they learned was to be an abyss Herald was surprisingly difficult. It was when a large burst of water sent them flying back some leaving a couple of feet that separated the two. In a fit of coughing Kaiser slowly pushed herself back up; her body feeling like she fell in the cold waters that surrounded the area, at this point it felt so cold that it was burning. Albedo also recovered from the knock back looking over to check on his dear friend who seemed to not be faring well and how the Herald was staring in her direction, that didn’t sit well with him. “What an interesting display of power,” the Herald said before turning his attention onto Albedo before continuing with “But onto more pressing matters.”

The Herald was beginning to speak in an old language chanting some sort of spell that soon enough right underneath Albedo a circle with various symbols began to appear in a glowing purple color. The glowing beneath him caught his attention causing his teal eyes to widen in surprise; his body standing still instead of moving to get outside of the mysterious circle trying to read the symbols. The glowing only seemed to grow stronger as more purplish mist came from the ground, he might have just left himself in a bad situation. The sound of running boots crunching in the snow didn’t register to him until he was broken out of his thinking when feeling hands harshly pushing him away as he heard, “Move it!” Feeling the cold snow that he landed in it fully brought him back to earth; the sound of rattling chains rung in his ears.

Quick to look over where he once stood to see what happened his eyes widened in terror; Kaiser was trapped completely binded by chains that had that eerily purple mist around it. “Kaiser,” Albedo called her name as once again she protected him from a dangerous situation. His stomach turned feeling nauseous and his chest stung as if it was being twisted. Kaiser looked like she was trying to struggle against the chains yet it was clear she didn’t have much energy to keep up the struggling for too long. “How unexpected,” the Herald said without much of a change in it’s tone. “Get out of here,” Kaiser said looking over to him from the corner of her eye wincing out of pain from trying to breath. Looking over to her he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, she was asking him to just… abandon her here? Shaking his head in a quick no manner he loudly claimed, “I simply cannot just abandon you here by yourself! I will do no such thing.”

“I’m not asking, I’m telling you to leave me here and head down the mountain!”

“But-”

“Can it! Go and alert the others, I’ll try to hold on for as long as I can,” Kaiser said internally knowing it wouldn’t be for that much longer before she blacked out. He’s never felt so useless in his life before yet here he was unmoving from his spot on the snow covered ground unsure of what to do. He was starting to blame himself for everything and there wasn’t a thing he could do to save the person he deeply cared about.

“For someone who holds so much animosity towards the world you still protect its people. Why? Why oppose the Abyss Order,” the abyss Herald asked as Albedo looked at Kaiser. He knew of her past from the stories she’s trusted him enough to tell him and so he understood her anguish… But he never really realized how deep the anger she harbored truly ran. “Just because I hate the world… Doesn’t mean I- have to hate… Everyone in… It,” she managed to speak through her teeth.

Out of nowhere did a tornado come flying through hitting the abyss member and causing him to be pulled away a bit. “You leave our friends alone,” the familiar high pitched voice of Paimon could be heard as much to Albedo’s relief as the traveler had shown up just at the perfect time. Watching the traveler fight against the Herald was outstanding. While the fight was progressing Albedo noticed the chains suddenly disappearing around Kaiser and her body starting to fall over he was quick on his feet and stopped her from falling into the snow. Landing on his knees he held her close feeling her trembling unconscious body against his. Her already pale enough skin now looked almost porcelain white, he couldn’t waste any more time; he needed to get her back to the safety of the lab. Adjusting her and picking her up into his arms he made a hasty escape, the two of them wouldn’t have been any help to the traveler in their condition, they would have just gotten in the way.

Thank the archons that he managed to get back to his lab in the cave safely, but this wasn’t the time to take it easy. Quickly but carefully laying Kaiser at a safe distance from the fire he rushed to get the first aid kit and whatever medicine he had on hand that could help with her recovery. Never had he felt this… Frazzled in his life. Albedo was always so calm and collected he usually was always able to think logically, but now his brain was racing. Cleaning and mending her wounds he wrapped her in two layers of blankets that they kept just in case for the nights if anyone was staying for the night to help warm her up. Sitting beside her to observe her condition though so far she was doing well: the color in her skin was slowly coming back, her breathing didn’t seem to be too strained or shallow, and thankfully nothing appeared to be broken though she may have a bruised rib or two at most. Gently running an ungloved hand over her cheek before brushing some of her black locks away from her face. “Oh Katherine, what am I going to do with you,” he softly questioned himself using her actual name; he thought her name was beautiful and befitting of her yet she didn’t agree.

Hours had passed until she finally awoken as a soft groaning escaped her lips. It took her a moment to register where she was as she tried to recall what happened since the last thing she remembered before passing out was a vortex of wind hitting the abyss Herald. “Please refrain from getting up. Your body needs rest, you put yourself under a lot more stress than you should have,” Albedo advised her while walking over to kneel by her to check on her. She didn’t heed his words as she proceeded to carefully sit up feeling the soreness of her body. “Katherine your wounds won’t heal if you don’t take the time to rest.”

“What did I say about using my name?”

“Well you did say that I can be permitted to call you as such when it was just us Katherine,” he said in a matter of fact tone unable to contain the soft sigh. “I hate when you do that,” she said with a soft narrowed look as though she may have sounded annoyed, but it didn’t match the slightly amused expression on her face. A soft chuckle left his lips as he felt a little bit better seeing she wasn’t acting much different from how she usually did so at least that was a good sign. The two ate the meal Albedo cooked for the two of them as he filled her in on what she missed and how he sent the traveler to go ahead back to the headquarters to report what happened to Jean. After having finished eating and her taking medicine the two sat quietly in front of the fire. The only sound to be heard was the crackling of the fire and the whistling of the cold winds outside of the cave.

“You can’t keep doing this,” Albedo’s words breaking the silence between the two, looking over to her with a soft expression. Looking over she raised an eyebrow confused.

“Doing what?”

“Almost getting killed for protecting me.”

“Albedo if I didn’t save you when I did you would have been captured by the abyss order for whatever they’re planning! One thing for sure is that they’d turn you against us,” she rebutted as sure being in dangerous situations was something she was used to before being brought into the Knights of Favonius. “E-Eh, hey wait why are you crying,” she said in a slightly panicked manner as never in the time she’s known him has she seen him cry; actually she was pretty sure that he had just about never cried yet here he was. He hadn’t fully noticed the tears falling from his eyes as he felt a rippling pain in his chest listening to her as the events from earlier replayed in his head.

“Even if they did capture me I’d at least know you were safe. I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself if that creature had taken or killed you,” he honestly spoke as calmly rubbing one eye and the tears just didn’t seem to stop. Surely he would feel even more guilty if he had been the reason behind her and everyone else he cared about suffered, but he knew if it came to that Albedo had faith that the traveler or Kaiser would stop him. The slight irritation she felt from the conversation at hand subsided while listening to him talk. Letting out a sigh she carefully moved herself before reaching her arms out to grab him as she said, “You idiot, come here.” Hugging him around his neck she held him close as there was a moment of hesitation until he wrapped his arms around her completing the embrace. “Everything is fine now, we’re both alive… I’m sorry that I overdid things again. If I had just listened maybe we wouldn’t have gotten into that mess,” she said, speaking in a much softer tone than her usual cold tone, her face turning a light pink color.

Albedo pulled away to look at his beloved friend who he had come to cherish so much; how the fire gave her a soft orangish red glow to her figure. “It wasn’t your fault, you were just helping me as neither of us knew that attack was going to happen… I really do value the time we get to spend together, so please promise me that you’ll continue to stay by my side,” he spoke freely taking one of her hands into his own feeling the slight roughness of her hand. For someone who almost never made any kind of expression that showed his emotion, the faces he made were pretty cute. “... Yeah, I pinkie promise,” she said letting out a small chuckle before leaning in to give his cheek a kiss before resting her head on his shoulder feeling the tiredness kicking in again.

“A pinkie promise?”

“Hehe, what can I say; us Snezhnayans take our promises very seriously.”

“Is that so? I’d be interested to hear more if you’re willing to share,” he commented as it was comfortable being cuddled up like this by the fire, Albedo found it very pleasant to be this close to the female knight. The rest of the night Kaiser shared the old nursery rhyme and stories of her past along with the things she’s encountered during her travels in the past until the two of them fell asleep in each other's arms.

[clan-sayeed-fic]

Business (Kamilah Sayeed & MC)

Previous chapter: 1

Book: Bloodbound (property of Pixelberry Studios)

Pairing: Kamilah Sayeed & MC: Amy (I do not own those characters, they’re the property of Pixelberry Studios as well)

Warnings: a little bit of angst (I think) 

Rating: Mature

Author’s note:  I’m not a native English speaker, I’m sorry for any mistakes (feel free to correct me).

I know it took me some time. But believe me, this chapter started with 1300 words, then I extended it to 2000, and then I rewrote it a few times, so we ended up here 😂

~ 1700 words

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Chapter 2

A bolt of lightning cut across the starry sky.

Centuries ago, somewhere in the middle of the forest, loud screams came from the old tavern. The gleam of the night peeked inside the building, seducing men to go outside to face the threat which came upon them. To fight what made them go through the days in constant fear, depriving them of their peaceful life.

Every single day, sunset meant for humans the beginning of the nightmare. As long as the sun was high in the sky, brightening the landscape around, locals remained safe. As if the danger was waiting in the shadows, afraid to step into the light, not having enough courage to show itself.

That day, a mutual threat brought them, leaders of all clans, together in the tavern.

The group of animals attacking their villages under cover of the night forced them to take the final steps. Their last hope was buried in the best hunters of this land. But even they ended up being captured by the darkness, disappearing without a sign.

The pattern repeated itself as bloodsucking creatures left death behind.

Suddenly, lightning hit the ground once again, causing the earth to tremble under its power. At the same time, doors were opened by the wind, revealing the shape of the man barely standing on his legs.

Leaders run toward the only survivor without double thinking, bringing him closer to the light.

"They... are not..." the man managed to mutter, "are not... animals."

Another thunder brightened the inside of the tavern. Silence fell between men as unsureness sneaked into their minds.

"Who are they then?" one of the leaders dared to ask.

The hunter lifted his head slowly at those words, putting enough effort to open his swollen eyes. His face appeared in the faint light of the torch for the first time, revealing scars on his face.

And two dots on the side of his neck with the path of blood flowing out of them.

"Humans," his voice broke when red liquid showed itself in the corner of his mouth. "Only one..."

The man's body moved in convulsions as the coughing took over him entirely. He was spitting out blood in agony until his eyes went blank, and heart stopped beating.

"How can one man lead to such bloodshed?" one of the leaders spoke as the rest lifted the corpse. "It's witchcraft."

Their eyes moved on the body of the dead hunter lying on the table with hands resting on his chest. Words kept echoing in their heads as the realization hit them one by one, making those powerful men feel the fear of the enemy they were not prepared for.

Because what chance did they have in fighting something so inhuman?

Was there even a weapon out there that would be strong enough to restore peace?

And what if coming into possession of it meant sacrificing humanity on their own...

***

The air was thick with anticipation.

Half of the security crew was gathered around the conference table, the rest of them waited outside right by the doors.

It was perfectly quiet inside the room. No one even dared to breathe louder, afraid to distract Paine's daughter. Kamilah and Adrian just watched the girl, trying to examine her reactions while she was studying the documents.

But Amy's face was unreadable for most of the time. She focused all her attention on the words before her, reading paragraphs of the contract carefully. Only from time to time, she had a habit of looking through the window to collect her thoughts or let her eyes rest.

But even then, her expression was impossible to read.

She almost got to the end of the files when her left eyebrow raised slightly for a second as she read the most significant part of the deal. Kamilah squinted her eyes at this, wondering what was going on in this pretty head.

Finally, Amy put the documents aside and looked directly at both CEOs as if she was waiting for them to say something. As if they were supposed to react in a certain way before her final decision.

But nothing happened.

Such a shame, Amy thought, sighing lightly.

Adrian stopped the awkward silence, grunting meaningfully. He stood up, buttoning his suit, just to offer the girl a pen to sign the contract.

But at that exact same moment, Amy got up out of the chair. She turned around without a single word, letting her blonde hair fly in the air with the movement.

"We're done here," she spoke to security guards with the audacity.

The girl intended to put her glasses on when Adrian spoke aloud, confused.

"I don't understand..." his voice showed pure astonishment. "Was there a problem?"

Amy turned around with surprise written on her face as if she just reminded herself about their presence.

The familiar feeling of victory filled her chest.

"Well, if we are talking about those documents, then yes, it was," she kept his gaze confidently.

"It can't be, we've already discussed the details with your parents," Adrian stepped forward, lifting the papers. "This meeting was supposed to be just a formality."

"And it would've been," Amy spoke, lifting her chin a little bit more, "if the details that you discussed together were included in the official version of this contract."

Adrian went through the papers in a hurry, searching for any mistakes. He put all his hopes in this deal, he wasn't ready to give up on it so quickly.

While he was searching through the files, Amy looked behind him, meeting with Kamilah's chestnut eyes. To her surprise, the woman kept her silence this entire time, standing there with the corners of her mouth slightly curled up.

"I'm sure you are aware of what trust means to this family," Amy's eyes challenging, voice sharp, "Mrs. Sayeed."

Adrian followed her gaze, quickly recognizing the look on his best friend's face. Realizing that the woman must have had this planned all along.

"I am absolutely aware of that," Kamilah wasn't smiling anymore. "Mr. and Mrs. Paine need to understand what kind of situation they've put us in," she knew what exactly needed to be said to get to this girl. "We were discussing details with them, not their young daughter."

The tone of her voice provoked Amy immediately, causing her stubbornness to show off.

"Unfortunately, now I'm the one who you need to convince, not them," she said, raising her left eyebrow, challenging.

"I'm sure we can reach an agreement," Adrian tried to ease the tension in the room, standing between two women.

Amy kept her arms crossed as a way to exaggerate her impatience. At that moment, she indeed looked like the stereotypical only child, raised in a wealthy family.

"Of course, we can always come back to the original version of the contract," Kamilah said with a smirk, making her way to the desk where she had everything prepared.

And by doing so, she caused the family pride to burn inside Amy.

She might have been young, but smart enough to know what was happening there. Kamilah was making Paines look bad in this situation, showing the dominance of her own company.

"That won't be necessary," the girl's mind worked fast. "I've already lost more than enough time for this nonsense," she was done playing nice. "Under those circumstances, the last version will not cover the damage to this meeting. I would like to discuss the details again."

Kamilah opened her eyes wide for a second, impressed with this attitude. The harsh tone of Amy's voice made her feel both: bitter and fascinated.

"Fair enough," she held back a smile, getting what she wanted from the start. "We can arrange a personal meeting tomorrow if there are no contraindications," she sensed Adrian's mood changing.

"Amelia, we..." a bodyguard stepped forward, speaking in a muted voice.

"Nothing stands in the way," Amy interrupted, sending him a meaningful look.

Both CEOs shared a quick glance, wondering what that was about. But the girl's tone didn't leave much space for discussion.

"It's decided then," Kamilah nodded to herself, keeping in mind this situation.

She looked at the girl's eyes once again, finding herself drawn to this intense shade of green.

The color annoyed her memory as the long-forgotten past was asking for her attention.

***

"Why, Kamilah... why?"

They came back to her office right after the meeting.

"I don't see the reason to panic," Kamilah's voice remained calm as she got behind the desk, already occupied with work.

"You almost ruined our chance for this collaboration," Adrian couldn't believe that it was the same woman standing in front of him.

The same one who would kill for the deal, push all the buttons to get what she wanted. And at that moment, they both wanted to get this contract signed with Paine's surname.

Or at least, he thought so.

"I needed to make sure what we are walking into," she leaned back in the chair, relaxed. "Besides, I will meet this girl, and everything will be exactly the same."

"Oh, you will?" Adrian's eyebrows lifted, he didn't like the sound of those words. "I thought that we were going to meet her," that's when it hit him. "No, no, Kamilah, leave her out of it."

"Don't be such a baby," the woman frowned at him, slowly losing her patience.

Adrian looked at her closely, noticing something that he assumed faded away a long time ago. This characteristical glow on her skin. Corners of her lips barely curled up as she was holding back a grin. And what was betraying her the most:

eyes of the hunter.

"I know that look on your face," Adrian cheered up, forgetting about the contract. "I haven't seen it for a while, but I would recognize it anywhere."

"Stop this nonsense," Kamilah said with a smile, turning toward the window, away from his gaze.

What Adrian said was true.

She was in the mood to play.

And Amy seemed to be the perfect match for this game.

----------------------

Next chapter: 3

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tag list: @cheeto-choices @kamilah-is-queen @ariaminsinclair @helpconfusedpersonhere @ayushixo @nydeiri

[the-genesis-caveat]

saw some dialogue prompts so imma write a thing now ig XDD wasn’t sent any they just showed up on my dash and i had ideas. they under the cut

there’s mention of a character getting drunk and fighting in the first story, and there’s mentions of injuries and a character getting attacked in the second story, as well as death so uh. be mindful ig.

1. Fate

“Fate has spoken. We belong together.” Dorian was using the same casually flirtatious tone they used when talking about- well, anything, honestly. Same dramaticism too, and while he usually enjoyed it, right now it was just irritating.

“You do not get to blame fate for getting us locked in here.” Iden rattled the iron bars again, growling with frustration. His wings twitched as he glanced around the small cell again, looking for any possible escape. His cellmate and business partner was lounging on the little cot shoved into the corner, looking far too relaxed for the situation at hand.

He glared at Dorian, growling again. “Are you gonna help or what? I’m not spending the night in this stupid cell because you decided to get drunk and start a fight.”

Fae flashed him a cheeky grin. “Aww, don’t you like spending time with me, little angel?” Iden rolled his eyes, and Dorian chuckled. “Alright, alright. Just sit tight, the guards will come back around in a second and I can bribe a way out.”

“Do you ever do anything honestly?” 

They tilted faer head. “Hmm. I’m not quite sure.” She shrugged. “Does it matter?”

Iden sighed. “No.” Yes. “Just... whatever you tell the guards, make it quick. I wanna get out of here.”

“Don’t worry.” Dorian stood, stepping closer to run a hand through Iden’s hair. “I’ll take care of it.” I’ll take care of you.

2. Tough

Rev slammed the door to the apartment as they entered, tugging off their boots to be haphazardly piled by the coatrack. Emi heard them rustling about the place, opening and closing doors and cupboards with more force than necessary, until they ended up in the living room. They dumped the first-aid kid on the coffee table and sat down with a sigh, tugging off their jacket and shirt to reveal scratches and bruises all over their arms and torso.

Emi raised an eyebrow, passing them a damp washcloth. They accepted it, caught his glance, and shook their head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

He snorted. “Tough. If I came home looking like that, you’d never just let it go, and you know it.”

There was a moment of silence as Rev cleaned their wounds, barely even wincing. They reached for a roll of bandages, and Emi snatched it before they could, tapping them on the nose. “Hey. What happened?”

They let out a long breath. “Just some dumb assholes. They didn’t even take anything, just roughed me up and moved on their their day. Probably wanted a one-up on the new death-god.” It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened- ever since Rev had gained the status of a death-god, they’d been targeted. But usually they could escape before anything happened.

“...They blocked me into an alley where I couldn’t fly away,” Rev added, guessing what Emi would ask next. “I... I didn’t want to kill them. I couldn’t. That’s not what I sought this power for.”

“So you let them hurt you? Rev-”

“Can we not talk about this right now? Please?” They sounded almost desperate. “I just... I’m tired.”

Emi sighed. “Alright. But... promise me you’ll at least defend yourself next time.”

After a moment, Rev nodded. Because they both new there’d be a next time. And a time after that.

But they couldn’t keep the two down forever.

[whitherliliesbloom]

mettle of metal

[ ffxivwrite2020 ] ★ [ my writings ]  ★ [ prompt #04 - clinch]

[ raubahn v.s wol ]  ★ [ 1,315 words ]  ★ [ post-heavensward spoilers ]

‘ to confirm the winning or achievement of ’

on the day the bull butt heads with the lamb, who was the true victor?

“I’ve always wanted to test my mettle against yours, Warrior of Light. I can’t say this situation displeases me at all.”

It does me. 

Illya has never been one to thrive off conflict or needless confrontations. Quite strange, most definitely, considering her fame as one who almost single handedly tore a hole right through the castrum’s stronghold. A test of strength against a friend, above all else, was something she absolutely abhorred. 

Not that she ever has a say in the matter.. she was, after all, always a slave to the whims and wants of others. 

The representative of Ishgard stood stock still in the midst of the freezing cold, with bed of hair tied into innocent little braids camouflaged into a sea of white around her. And yet in spite of the foreign colors she wore, Raubahn was all too familiar with her visage. 

A pair of violet jewels, spectacular in their luster, though holding just a tiny glint of danger within them. He’s seen that look in her eyes plenty, and yet it’s the first the threat of her soul piercing gaze has ever been directed at him. And in her hand, a rod made of metal and amethyst, name amply fitting for the diamond in the rough, the hero that held it - for the stardust that was their very own champion of Eorzea. 

Not now, however.. Raubahn had to remind himself, as he pushed the visor of his helmet down and raised his sword. In this very moment, on this very battlefield, she was his enemy, and the enemy of the alliance. And just as he’d sworn upon the sultana’s bedside, with tears that’d nearly spilled so uncharacteristic of his reputation, he would not fail to strike down any who would consider themselves enemies to her - friend or not. 

To his surprise, his foe had struck first, blasting the center of where he’d just been standing not less than a second ago with an unforgiving strike of lightning. The general of flames had dodged, just barely, and felt the full sting of electricity prick at his skin and cause his hair to stand.. and he hadn’t even been hit by her attack at all.

The mage waits not for him to recover, before she detonates a ball of fire upon his person that sends the bull flying across their arena.

He nearly rolls into the ring of flames he’d lit, and the man could do nothing but smile devilishly beneath his helm.

“You’re not the only one who can wield the power of flames. Behold!” 

The bull of Ala Mhigo was quick to pick himself up, and with a raise of his sword he conjured up his own raging flames, an inferno that burned hotter and brighter than the feeble little puff his foe had thrown at him. For his wrath and determination too towered over his foe - the girl he knew to be too softhearted for her own good. 

Illya was kind and gentle, almost too much so.. He’d once wondered of how a lamb could carry the flames of Eorzea as she does, rise to such fame and strength that not even the strongest of the imperials, the Legatus holding the title of the Black Wolf, could hope to match against her might. And though the general has long learned to not belittle the girl for her inconspicuousness, he has always wondered what the secret behind her strength was - what set Illya apart from himself?

She was the tender to his hardy, the white to his black, the gentle moonlight that would never meet his blazing sun. If he was a warrior, forged by the battles that has painted his entire body with enough scars to map the world, then she was a flower that had bloomed upon that very battlefield he fought on.

But flowers who could not accept its need for their own sustenance, a flower who refused to grow thorns.. will not survive for long in a war torn environment. If nothing else, he hopes her defeat will teach her that.

The flame general’s attack causes the girl to step back and stumble, the first Aymeric had seen her done in a while, and watches helplessly as Raubahn charges the girl with his sword swung to his side.

It was all she could do but to physically block his blade with her rod, grimacing as she barely avoids the sharp end of his sword from grazing her head before sprinting away from the man.

“Do you plan on running forever, warrior?! Your weapon is nothing more than a mere stick next to mine!”

Any distance she’d hoped to draw between them was always effortlessly closed, and any time she’d planned on buying to cast her spells to counter his attack was whittled away bit by bit, as was her strength. 

Raubahn was as observant of his enemies as he was strong, he surely must have noticed the lack of resistance as he struck the shaft of her rod. As was necessary for the conjuring of black magic, all of her magic was being imbued into her longstaff, but not herself. 

The wall of flames general Aldynn had summoned was not to damage her, great as her defense against magical damage as she was. It was to throw her off balance so that he might close the gap between them.

“I’ll finish this!”

The bull of Ala Mhigo charges, sword raised high above his head that he swings down towards the lamb, who helplessly raises up her rod. 

Foolish girl, doing that with her weakness will only cause her to crash down beneath his feet.

Metal against metal, steel against steel. The smell of ash fills his nostrils, and all he could hear was the deafening screech of his sword against...

her sword?

“What?”

Stardust has faded. The moon has sunk beneath the horizon, leaving naught but darkness. And from beyond the horizon, a shadow rose. 

How many summers has it last been since he’d had his sword pushed aside so effortlessly like this? He’d been reminded of his bouts with Ilberd, of his time as a calf who could barely even tell a swords’ hilt from its pommel. 

The feeling of fighting a foe he’d dreaded to clash blades with, a foe he knew to be stronger than himself in every way.

It would seem.. he’s underestimated the Warrior of Light again.

“I never knew.. you knew how to wield a great sword.” 

What a sight it was, to see the Lalafellin he’d always known for her dainty little staffs and canes to be carrying a jet black sword that was larger than herself, and to see the lavender glint in her eyes glow an almost ominous red. Illya’s stance was nothing like before, nothing like the stumbling, flustered lamb he’d thought her to be.

“If...If it’s a close fight you want..” Illya’s voice was the only reminder he had of who she was - of the delicate flower he’d watched bloom in his midst. He had just not taken notice of the thorns beneath her roots until it was too late. 

“Don’t blame me... You were the one who forced my hand.”

She didn’t want for it to come to this.. wished with all her might that she needn’t use him. But the unforgiving crystal in her breast pocket whispered to her, reminded her of the disappointment she’d cause her allies were she to fall without even giving it her all. 

And in that, the secret behind the Warrior of Light’s strength.. the crippling fear of failure, of the demon that laid dormant inside her. 

A victory clinched, a battle that was hardly even a contest. On that day, the bull had been brought down to his knees, and he stared up at the shadow with fear and pride in his eyes. 

[enchystemporarydomain]

A quick story wrapped around an idea I had. It involves superheroes, but is mostly about a budding BDSM fetish… I have a few more ideas for these particular characters, exploring a Super, Mortal relationship...

I’m reposting this because I can’t find it on my other blogs...

A blue cape of smooth material. with a lustrous gold frame, connected to a massive frame of muscle. She was wrapped in white kevlar from neck to ankle, and stood on sturdy black boots with blue soles and rims. No symbol upon her breast just yet, as she was fairly new on the super block, but aside from so there was no doubt she was a fully fledged, capable powerhouse. She walked across the small bunker room in pronounced, careful strides, her hands balled into fists. Her gaze focused.

She tossed her hair back and posed. And smirked.

Watching her was a man dressed in black. His ensemble was practical and protective but not without aesthetic appeal. The black bulletproof vest could be overlooked altogether thanks to the much more noticeable sleek shoulder pads and electronic gauntlets. He wore unusual sunglasses with rims made of some sort of technology and dark red lenses. Where his partner exemplified strength and power with her muscular frame and walk, his ensemble painted the picture of the mechanical and engineering genius he was.

He watched his partner-slash-boss and laughed as she posed. She joined as well, obviously cheery about testing out her new uniform. 

“Man, what even is that hair flip?” he said. “I said show me your power pose.”

“Hey! I will do a hairflip when I see my enemy,” she said. 

“Oh? Is your hair bulletproof too? Parry bullets?”

The two had a laugh, admiring their new uniform. They were somewhat frightened inside about their job. As upcoming supers their first job was incredibly important if they wanted to be recognized by the major organizations. Fighting supervillains and street criminals was a service to the people and definitely a noble idea, but they also needed to eat and pay bills and the Justice Ensemble offered grants, loans, and benefits.

The two made their way out of the secretly enormous bunker beneath their basement (hidden via a door behind a shelf) and got ready to pursue a lead.

“I mean this legitimately, though,” the lady said, smiling down at her much smaller partner. “I really do love the outfit. To be able to weave not just program nanomachines but weave them into stylish nylon and kevlar… it’s amazing I found you with just a Craigslist Ad.”

“It’s what I do,” he responded, wishing he could think up a cooler quote.

“And you do it much too well for what I’m paying you,” she said, guiltily. “Anyway, hop on my back. I’m flying us.”

“Alright, Madame Bolt!”

“Strap on tight, Puma.”

*** *** ***

Grant had been a medium fish in a small pond back in his home town. An engineer working at his uncle’s garage work. With the internet he had access to fellow geniuses. Cliques of talented, gifted engineers to whom the greatest goal in life was being hired by a fantastic tech firm. Worshipers of tech giants like Bill Gates, or Hurrit Akkar (known among the hero world as a cold villain).

Grant had different dreams. Not bigger or necessarily more ambitious dreams but great dreams. He idolized the controversial supers of the world. The Justice Ensemble, Do Gooders United, Robots For Justice, and all that they did. He had a few years of vigilantism under his belt in the small crime filled towns of North Ontario.

He wasn’t quite sure what was it that made him make the leap, though. A craigslist ad written by an otherwise unknown superheroine looking for an engineer to design suits? The job would take him to America, relatively far from his home, and would be an incredible risk. What if the start up duo never made it to the big time? What if the money dried up and he was left stranded here? What if his employer was incompetent? What if he was incompetent? So many risks, and yet he took the chance anyway.

Now, holding steady on his new partner’s back, flying over the buildings of Candesfinning City wearing his beautifully designed outfits, the wind in his hair, Grant put away all of the worries in his mind. They still had a long way to go, but the thrill and excitement was intoxicating.

They landed in front of the buildings they knew their targets, a low level cartel base, to be residing in.

Alicia, super name Madame Bolt, set Grant down.

“Alright, Puma,” she said, holding back a grin. This was the first time they were using their super identities, so the campy ridiculousness was still fresh in mind. “I’ll do all of the fighting. Follow behind me, but not too close.”

“Got it, Madame,” Grant said.

*** *** ***

Super fast, bulletproof, and strong enough to easily bench over two thousand kilograms, the low level street gang didn’t stand a chance. Alicia had such a handle on the situation that even when stray bullet was fired in Grant’s direction, a potentially devastating tragedy, she saw it moving as slow as a floating slug and stopped it.

It would have struck Grant in his specially designed bulletproof suit, but he was still happy he didn’t have to take that risk. 

With the gangsters taken care of (most of them hired teens plucked from the streets and only five armed adults), and the evidence of illegal firearms and drugs gathered, Grant hacked the three computers in the building. It was an easy job: even without his advanced equipment these cpus had no firewalls in place. Alicia was watching over his shoulder. She must have been expecting more quick-typing and code on screen because, judging by her face reflection on the monitor, she was somewhat disappointed.

“Nothing big. However, in one of their emails they let slip something about 821 Glasglow Island. A meeting between them and another organization, though they were careful enough not to be specific.” Grant said. “I think we should leave that to the feds, perhaps?”

Alicia shook her head.

“We can handle this better than any feds. Gasglow Island is just a few kilometers east from the piers,” she said.

“In that case we could head their right away, if you like-!”

The two of them heard police sirens outside. Alicia swallowed, nervous. There were rules about supers taking the law into their own hands, and so far the two of them hadn’t stepped of line according to them. However…

“...Do you want to make yourself known?” Grant asked his boss.

“No. Let’s get out of here,” she said.

“Okay. Want me to hop on?” Grant unplugged his USB drive and put it away.

“Nope. Stay still.”

“What do you-?”

Before Grant could get a word in edgewise, Alicia’s cape had expanded in size. It’s nanomachines, designed by he himself, manipulated the fabric and bound around Grant. His arms wrapped together in a tight, inescapable hold, then bound to his sides. His entire body, like a mummy in blue and gold. Shocked and helpless, Grant could only give out muffled cries.

He felt himself being picked up by his larger boss. She held him tightly against him, almost protectively. She was gently holding the back of his head as one would an infant, and another on his thighs, ignoring his squirming.

“Stay still, this is going to be incredibly quick,” she whispered, before lifting up off the ground.

She hopped out the window with Grant bound and in tow, then fled at incredible speed.

*** *** ***

She let him down at the island less than a minute later. Though she set him down feet first as carefully as she could he still fell on all fours. 

“Grant! I’m so sorry,” she said, helping up.

“I… I just need a moment… Woof!” he said, catching his breath. Being bound caught him off guard. And now… he was on Gasglow island now? How?

“I’m sorry, Grant. I didn’t have time to explain. It’s dangerous for a normal person to accelerate as quickly as I can so… So I used the cape you made for me to protect you,” she said. “It was entirely necessary.”

“Alice, it’s… it’s fine. I was just shocked…” Grant said. He was blushing rather hard and turned his back to her. Alice raised an eyebrow at this.

“Grant? You’re not hurt, are you?” She reached for his shoulder but he stepped forward.

“No, I’m fine. It was just frightening. Er…” He cleared his throat. “Are… are we going to have to do that everytime you have to fly me really fast?” 

Alice shrugged. “Well… I personally don’t mind. It’s the most effective method we have right now and it doesn’t hinder me in any way. But if you don’t like it maybe we can workshop it? You can whip something up?”

Grant nodded, rubbing his hands together in a way Alice hadn’t seen him do before. 

“Yeah. We’ll do that for now. Maybe I’ll invent a neck brace or something,” he said. He cleared his throat.  “So… this is the island. Should we look up this warehouse and see what the mob wants with it?”

Alicia didn’t answer for a moment. She was watching him, curious about how he was acting… He prayed she wasn’t putting two and two together.

Then she smiled. “Yes. Let’s go.”

She lead the way. Grant sighed and followed her from behind.

*** *** ***

The warehouse, it turned out, was fairly simplistic. No security cameras or even guards. A great many creates full of wrapped goods. Most of them legally owned by, presumably, one of the mob higher ups. But using Grant’s X-Ray tools and Alicia’s speed (and immunity to X-Ray radiation, thankfully) they found a crate of bullets hidden deep in one of the crates, beneath old boxes of cloths and linen. One quick anonymous picture sent to the feds and the two of them left.

Alicia tapped Grant on the shoulder before they left.

“I want to leave as quick as we can, less we’re sighted here and the mob will change tactics before the feds can investigate,”” she said. She beckoned for him to get into her cape.

Grant swallowed.

“Yeah… yeah sure. Just…” He stiffened and turned around. “Go ahead.”

Alicia smirked and wrapped him up in her cape. She held him firmly but carefully. And then they were off, faster than a speeding jet.

*** *** ***

As the weeks proceeded and the two spent almost every day zooming from place to place, Grant began to feel a bit more in his nature. Seeing his tools being used to take down monstrous organizations and help the needy made him happier and more excited than he ever dared. Alicia was similarly giddy, with every successful day celebrated at their home base (currently a modified house’s basement) with chinese food and netflix.

It seemed the city had caught on that it had two new vigilantes to worry of (not that they were hiding this at all). Simply by leaving some clues about their names, usually via cleaned, finger print-free notes with their signatures, the two of them had managed to spread the name Madame Bolt and Puma quite far in such a short time.

They still hadn’t decided on an insignia for Madame Bolt’s costume yet, however. They haven’t allowed anyone aside their enemies to even see them yet, so there wasn’t much to present on that front anyways.

One thing Grant still had to get used to was… the travel…

When they flew, generally she would allow him to ride on her back. It would be an awkward position, but the two acknowledged that it was the most efficient way to travel and they were mature about it. The cape between their bodies made the mode of travel less awkward as well, keeping them apart.

It was when a quick escape was needed where things were a bit… uncomfortable. Or rather, and Grant still had barely admitted this to himself yet, entirely too comfortable. Alicia would wrap her bolt all around his body so tight snug… She would cradle his body against her own, supporting the weaker man… And each time it felt much too nice. Much too comfortable.

And, damn it, it was far too arousing...

Grant was certain it would make Alicia far too uncomfortable if she found out just how much he was starting to like it. Would she fire him and find a less… awkward tech guy? Alicia, the great Madame Bolt, his boss and partner, seemed more like a roommate and friend these past few weeks, but he wasn’t so sure their companionship would withstand the test of… whatever this even was.

Little did he know, Alicia knew more than she was letting on…

*** *** ***

“Alicia? What’s the matter?”

Grant had come out of the little tool lab he had in the bunker to see the blonde avenger staring contemplatively at nothing. He sat down in front of her and leaned foreward. She sighed.

“Grant… Are we ever going to show ourselves to the public?” she wondered aloud. 

Grant nodded, thinking it over. He knew this was going to be something they needed to speak about soon. He let her continue.

“I mean… I know it’s my fault, I’m sorry. I mean, you work so hard. Not just making the tools but managing our brand… leaving those little notes and making sure the police see us as allies… And we need to go public one day if we’re ever to attract funding and attention…”

Grant looked over to the trash bin. Filled to the top with take out boxes and fast food bags.

“The funding would be nice,” he admitted. Alicia nodded. She looked so apologetic it hurt Grant.

“Grant… Right now we’re just vigilantes, and I know we have to move on upward to public crime fighting eventually. And though I have the budget to keep going as we are now for a while longer, I don’t want to put you through this if you don’t want,” she said. “I’m sorry that you’re stuck here. You have such talent…”

“Do not apologize,” he said, firmly. “Is the idea of going public really stressing you out?”

She nodded and sighed, leaning back on her chair. Though still muscular and strong, it would be difficult to tell this was the great Madame Bolt herself. The same Madame Bolt who was invincible, powerful, walked with grace and flipped her hair with gusto.

“Yeah, it is. I just don’t feel ready for it. Truth be told, even being an underground vigilante has been a huge step forward. I… I most likely would never have been able to do what we’ve been doing without your support. Not to… you know, guilt you into staying,” she quickly said.

“I want to stay,” Grant said, rather firmly. “If… if you want to keep being a vigilante instead of a full on hero, I’ll stay right here with you.”

Alicia looked surprised. She smiled. “Really? But why?”

“Because… Well… We do important work. But to be honest, that’s not all. Um…” Grant found himself becoming a tad sheepish. He willed himself forward… “Whenever I see you work… Whenever we’re flying across the city, and we solve a crime, it’s amazing. And you let me share in the feeling… of… you know… being a strong hero. I feel like I’ve done more here in this city with you in the past weeks than I ever got done on my own. I’m thankful you let me be a part of this.”

Alicia didn’t say anything, but her expression softened. Her hand crept closer to his own, though Grant didn’t notice and stood up, retracting it. She looked disappointed.

“I mean, we can stay anonymous if you want. I’ll have to take up a part time job, maybe make some extra cash on the side for us. Not sure where I’d-!”

Alicia had, with tremendous arm strength, slid the table between them out of the way and grasped him. She kissed him then and there, holding him tight. Grant closed his eyes, letting go of his thoughts and letting himself enjoy this…

They separated and looked at each other. He looked up at her, and she down at him. They said nothing for a moment. Then Alicia whispered…

“The bunker room…”

*** *** ***

She threw him down onto the queen sized bed. She chuckled as she crawled over him, letting her long blonde hair drape down over his body. Grant, in turn, reached up to stroke and feel her muscled sides and arms. He grasped at her shirt and reached up to kiss her again.She responded vigorously. 

Her knees surrounded him on both sides. Then she got down and pressed her whole body down on him. Since he was much shorter, however, her hips made it only to his thighs. Frustrated, she curled up again, splitting her knees outward so she could comfortably rest her hips over him. Nice and comfortable, and obscenely intimate. She kissed him while holding him down this way.

Grant needed to vocally mumble for her to stop, so he could remove his shirt and shorts. She was halfway doing the same.

“Alicia… don’t kill me, okay?” he whispered to her, half jokingly. She laughed.

“Oh no no, I’ll keep you nice and safe…” she said. Then she stopped trying to remove her shirt. Her expression became thoughtful again.

“Is something the matter?” Grant said. He worried if, maybe, she was already regretting this…

“Stay here…” she said. She got off of him (which disappointed him greatly) and walked out of the room…

*** *** ***

A minute later she came back in… in full hero uniform. Grant smiled at her return, but his face fell a bit when he noticed what she was wearing… 

She grinned mischievously, waving the blue and gold cape around…

“Not fair,” he whimpered. “You get to be Madame Bolt?”

“Well, I personally think Puma’s costume is too, well, hard and rough for bed,” Alicia said, walking back to the bed. She let the cape drape along Grant, who swallowed nervous. His erection, which was already quite visible, seemed to tighten and grow right then and he knew she could see it… There was no kevlar armor to hide it this time…

“But I know that my costume can be a bit more… enticing…” she said. She bent down and lifted his feet. He watched curious… and then in horror and excitement when she wrapped her cape around his feet, binding them tight together just over the ankle… Like rich, nylon socks…

“...You knew?” Grant said.

“Of course. It was so obvious,” she whispered, letting the cape crawl upward, pulling him closer off the bed…

“I’m so sor-!”

The cape pulled him right up and she caught him in a hug.

“Don’t apologize.”

Then she tumbled back down on the bed while holding him against her. She landed on her back and he landed upon her… face right against her chest. The cape tied him down and she held his squirming body…

“Alicia...M-Madame Bolt… Please…” Grant said.

“Please what?” she asked, continuing to bind him up and cradle him.

Grant didn’t know. He was so excited… his naked body bound, feeling the material quite vividly now… She was pressing him against her breasts… He wasn’t afraid of being kept wrapped up… with his hands stuck to his sides, his legs kept together, squirming against the inescapable hold, and her strong, gentle hands cradling him… He was afraid he wouldn’t last long this way… 

But instead of voicing this, all he could do was whimper. Alicia, Madame Bolt, was so mighty… so strong… too strong to push up against… He wanted to be there, wrapped up, played with by her… 

Sure, sex with her as an equal would have been amazing… but…

Her hand was on his ass. She was squeezing it. Grant groaned in pleasure… 

“It’s okay, Grant. I’ve felt your erection so many times while carrying you. I know what you want to do. I know what you’re afraid of and I want you to know… it’s okay…”

She rolled over so that she was atop him now. She positioned his wrapped up body so that their crotches would align. His head and face just above her chest… smelling and feeling her cleavage, still covered in the protective kevlar..

“I know you’re a strong, capable hero, and I won’t forget that just because you want me to be your mommy…” she whispered, and gave him dry hump.

That did it and he lost control. It wasn’t how their first time should have gone, really… But as he was mercilessly humped and pleasured within her cape, accepting his place in her power, he didn’t care at all what others would have thought. He loved this feeling…

She wrapped her strong thighs around him, groaning as she humped him nice, thoroughly, uninterrupted… Her strong thighs, her sensitive crotch, in the suit’s fibers, against him… She pressed down just firm enough to squeeze his dick, his balls, just firm enough to scare him, and released very slowly each time… She herself enjoyed this power over him… Oh how she wished he wasn’t so fragile… But that was the beauty of it all, wasn’t it? 

He loved being bound, and she admitted now she loved binding him so much. She loved having this cute little man under her power. In her cape. In her arms. Kept safe by her, but more importantly kept close. She yearned to bind him more. To strap him against her forever, and never let him escape. Never let him free. 

She’d pocket him, encapsulate him, belt and lock him, completely own him if she could. As she thrusted against his wrapped up body she fantasized all of these things… That each thrust was pushing him into her until he was thoroughly caught in her essence. The fact that the cape kept them from feeling each other’s warm skin was frustrating, but it would be worth it… building and building the need they both shared for each other...

She stopped when she could tell that he, and also she, were coming close to cumming… 

He groaned, wanting to continue, but she held him firm and didn’t allow it…

She released him from the safety of the cape, despite his protests… Then she stripped down…

She wrapped not her cape, but her warm, large, muscled body around her precious little super-partner instead. And as she allowed him to insert himself in her before continuing to thrust, she thought: “Yes. Now I’ve really got you bound…”

And she thrusted...

*** *** ***

It was almost morning when they finished, relaxing together in the king sized bed, surrounded with concrete walls, safe from the rest of the world. She still had her legs around his. 

“...I quite enjoyed myself,” she said, breaking the silence. Grant chuckled.

“...Um… so… I guess I shouldn’t make that neck brace I mentioned back when?” he said.

“Don’t you dare,” she whispered.

They fell asleep in each other’s arms, her legs wrapped nicely around his.

*** *** ***

“Oh Puma… Come here~” she called for him. Grant turned off the power drill he was using and took off his mask. Still in the smithing apron he left his lab to see his partner, now in more ways than one, standing excitedly. She was in uniform, though her cape covering her up.

“What’s going on?” he said.

“Grant… Next time the police come, I think we should stay and reveal ourselves to them,” she said.

Grant gave a proud smile as well. “So. It’s time for Madame Bolt and Puma to meet the adoring fans?”

Alicia nodded. Then she unraveled the cape revealing her uniform and Puma’s smile fell. 

“Surprise! Since you’re always working so hard on everything-” she began.

“Oh no…” Grant whispered.

“I decided to design my emblem by myself. What do you think?”

Grant, AKA Puma, the great engineer, stared in horror at the red emblazoned symbol on her uniform, just on her breasts downwards. A wonderful star image, and inside an image a bound up mummy, obviously meant to be him. Just stylistic and abstract enough to be mistaken for something else without context…

“Isn’t it wonderful? It represents our bond and teamwork quite well, I believe,” she said.

“Please change it.”

“See? The star is me,” she said. “And this cocoon here represents…”

“Please… No…”

[The End]

[polandspringz]

RWBY OC- Rui Kazahana

I’ve got a new RWBY OC so I’m just gonna catalog a lot of info about her here for later (may or may not see a few writing pop up about her from me and others in the future)

Name: Rui Kazahana

Aliases: Snow Angel

Team: JRST (Jarosite)

Jin @pinkmossy​

Shiori

Tam @kaasblokje​

**Story is set in a VERY self-indulgent AU where JRST attended Beacon at the same time as STRQ, and join Ozpin’s inner circle, and eventually usurp the maiden powers. They join up with the main cast mid Volume 7.

Main Theme: Hero by Caleb Hyles

(Wings?)

**This works as it is also Ironwood’s main theme, and acts a parallel to him except the lyrics are meant to be interpreted differently. Rather than her doing what Ironwood does, and forgoes emotions in favor of saving Atlas and what he thinks is right, Rui throws herself into danger recklessly to save people, not caring what happens to her body or how hurt she gets. Even when she learns the truth about Salem, she is still dedicated to Ozpin and does everything in her power to protect him and Oscar.

Weapon: Hook Shots

Rui has gauntlets and anklets that both contain a hookshot mechanism in them. She can navigate the battlefield by either using the hooks to latch onto something and fly to get closer, or she can pierce her prey directly and retract the wire, tugging her closer to them before engaging in combat. She mainly uses hand-to-hand combat, the gauntlets protecting her skin but allowing for her talons to come through when necessary. Dust is used within the mechanisms, mainly ice and electric, which allows her hits to be more effective. She can also use the hook shots in close range, using them like ropes as she can release the tension on them or stop their flight early, letting her tie or trip up or choke the enemy with them before she grabs the blade at the edge and uses it to cut them.

Semblance: Tiny little diamond shapes lift out of the brown markings in her hair and she can manipulate them around the battlefield telekinetically. She can combine them together into a shield or send them flying with a spin like tiny shurikens. She uses them as a more long-ranged weapon when desperate.

Fighting Style: Rui mainly relies on dodging and swinging around the enemy to keep them from landing a hit. She can use one hook shot to travel through the air while holding the pointed blade in her other hand, cutting the enemy as she swings past. She uses this method usually at the start, then engages in hand-to-hand combat when the enemy has become tired from chasing her around or following her, as it gives her the advantage. The anklets’ hook shots are featured on the back of her ankles, as it allows her a quick exit if an enemy swings at her. She has learned how to properly aim with them, as they typically fly out at an angle upwards (and if not she can correct the wires movement with her diamonds’). Since this motion causes her to fall forward, she will bring her hands out to block the fall/skid along the ground, although in an ideal situation she can jump forward into a handstand into time that she just flies directly up before an enemy claws her.

Background:

A snow owl faunus from Atlas. She was enrolled in a prep combat school there, but while there she was subjected to bullying due to her faunus-heritage, and it resulted in her being pushed into a garbage disposal that chewed up her wings. The accident was witnessed by a young James Ironwood, who reported it to the school and paid for her hospital stay. Despite the best medical care, her wings could not be healed. James fought the school to expel the students, using his influence and family name, and he was the only one who visited her while she was recovering. He told her how things would get better at Atlas Academy, and offered to help her get there through recommendations, but she refused. She told him she wished to leave Atlas forever, and he was saddened, but understood.

Rui’s only family is her grandparents, who cannot come with her to the warmer climate of Vale. Regretful to leave them, James secures housing and a fund for them, and a caretaker sends Rui updates while she is gone. Because of this, she feels a great debt to James and respects him, although she refuses any money he tries to give to her personally. Her relationship with him helps to repair her relationship towards Atlesians slightly, however, during the Vytal Festival, she discovers that one of the girls who bullied her made it to Atlas Academy. She went to Ozpin and broke down because of it, who promised he would speak to the other headmaster about it.

She ran into James on the way back to Amity Colosseum, who asked what was wrong. When she explained what happened, he surprised her by saying that the girl had obviously changed, was an excellent fighter, and a valuable asset to the Atlesian military. He apologized to Rui for not being able to uphold his promise (because he believed it only extended to the girls being expelled from the prep-school, but not anything about barring them from going to any others or entering the Academy), but urged her to think about how people can change and to move on.

Upon graduation, Ozpin extended the invitation into his inner circle to her team, and thus they learned about the fight against Salem. Jinka, Shiori, and Tam received shape-shifting powers to turn into their respective animals, but Ozpin ran out of magic to give to Rui. Instead, he healed her wings so she could be alongside them, but she cannot be a spy in the same way that they can. She still feels incredibly indebted to Ozpin, more so than she ever did to Ironwood, and wants to help him succeed. To absolve himself of guilt for failing to gift her what he promised, Ozpin selected her to replace one of the maidens first.

Personality: Rui is a quiet girl, mainly due to the lingering effects from her years being bullying. She has dependency issues, and can be a crybaby. However, her overly emotional state lends itself well in combat, as when someone she cares about is hurt or in danger, she becomes vicious, not quite losing her head but becoming callous and uncaring about what may happen to the enemy.

Images:

Beacon

Current/Atlas Outfits

[darkershining]

Just watched the final episode of Healin Good Pretty Cure.

The episode begins presumably a few months after the events of the last one, as everyone is back in their spring outfits. Nodoka, Chiyu and Hinata have been invited by Teatine to visit the Healing Garden, and they head to the tower where they meet up with their Healing Animal partners once more.

As they arrive in the garden, they admire its beauty and their partners lead them to the Healing Palace where Teatine lives. They see the statue of Teatine’s old partner, commenting on how much she resembles Asumi. Asumi agrees, showing up to greet the girls, along with Latte who has grown a bit more powerful since last they met, having learned to fly. Teatine greets the girls, telling them she’s been resting up since the final battle. The girls reveal they brought gifts, and Asumi recalls the conversation she had with Nodoka’s parents before she and Latte left.

The girls discover they all had the same idea and brought along Sukoyaka sweet buns, and Teatine suggests they go share them with the other Healing Animals. They first go meet with the adult Healing Animals, and then the younger ones. All of them seem excited to meet the Cures. Nodoka then notices a darker area, which Rabirin explains was a section of the garden that was heavily affected by King Byogen’s attack and that has yet to recover. Nodoka hopes it recovers soon. A monkey named Saruro walks over, and is not too pleased to see humans in the Garden, even if they are the Pretty Cures, complaining that humans cause a lot of damage to nature, even if they’re not quite as bad as the Byogens. Still, he doesn’t have a high opinion of them.

The girls reflect on his words, noting that they can see where he’s coming from, and wonder about how they can make a difference.

While the other Healing Animals continue to share the sweet buns, a stray Nano-Byogen that got into one of the suitcases the Cures brought infects them, creating six Mega-Byogen that capture some of the younger Healing Animals. As one of the Adult Healing Animals scans it, it realizes that only one of the monsters actually has the Element that needs to be purified in it.

The girls arrive on the scene, Asumi telling the others to let her handle the situation. Nodoka and the others are quick to volunteer to help, with Rabirin agreeing that they need their assistance. Returning the Element bottles to the girls, they transform and prepare to fight. The Lion lets the girls know which of the monsters has the Element in it. Saruro complains that the girls must’ve unwittingly brought the Nano-Byogen in, which makes the Cures determined to take responsibility for their actions and purify the Mega-Byogens. However, Cure Earth is hesitant to fight the sweet buns since they are still her favorite snack.

Saruro continues to voice his low opinion on humans, to which Latte disagrees. Using her power, Latte somehow summons Cure Summer, who helps rescue the captured Healing Animals. Teatine approaches Saruro, telling him that while she would certainly purify humans if necessary, she thinks humans have the potential to do good for the Earth, having spent time with them in the past.

Eventually, the Cures are able to purify the Mega-Byogens after Latte gets Cure Earth to rejoin the battle, and Cure Summer is sent back to wherever she was summoned from, with her and Grace promising to meet again sometime.

The girls apologize for accidentally bringing a Nano-Byogen into the Healing Garden, and Teatine assures them she knows it wasn’t their fault. Nodoka and the others assure her that they’ll continue to think of ways to continue helping Earth even without their powers, and Teatine and Asumi approach Saruro, suggesting they too pitch in with ideas on ways to help out, with him seeing to warm up to them a little.

Nodoka, Chiyu and Hinata return home, and think about the things they’ll do from now on. Nodoka notes that doing their part to ensure the well-being of both themselves and others might be another part of what life is all about. After the end of the episode, we get the baton pass between Cure Grace and Cure Summer.

A nice little epilogue, and they even managed to work in a cameo by Cure Summer. No time skip showing what the Cures are up to as adults in this one, but I still think Nodoka will eventually become a doctor or something. It was nice getting a good look at the Healing Garden. Really pretty. And the presence of that one Nano-Byogen supports the fact that even with King Byogen and his subordinates gone, the Byogens might still continue to present a threat to Earth in the future.

As for the whole deal with Saruro, I guess the writers remembered “Oh, right, protecting the environment was also supposed to be one of the themes of this season” and threw that in there. I can see why Saruro would distrust humans, though, as there are certainly plenty of humans who have caused plenty of damage to this planet, but there are also those who do what they can to protect it. Still, the implications that the Healing Animals would be willing to go to war against humanity if they let things get too bad seems a bit out of nowhere. At least Teatine acknowledges that she knows humanity well enough from her time with her former partner that she knows it won’t be necessary.

There were some nice moments, with the flashback to Asumi and Latte saying good-bye to Nodoka’s parents before leaving, the reunions between the girls and their Healing Animal partners, and the ending was pretty sweet.

Well, I guess that’s about it. Now that the final episode has aired, I should be able to finish my post with my thoughts on the series overall soon. Looking forward to that!

[spoon-writes]

Ends of the Earth | Chapter 19

Fandom: The Mandalorian

Pairing: Mando x OC

Read on FFN or AO3

Summary: When Sinead's husband is ripped from her, she escapes the Hutt Empire and goes on a quest to find him. Since being a runaway slave in the Outer Rim isn't exactly easy, she makes the Mandalorian an offer he can't refuse, and soon they travel across the galaxy looking for her missing husband.

Chapter index

Chapter 19 - Shelter

“No!”

With a sigh, Sinead grabbed the little pincushion previously balanced on her leg and pulled it out of reach of the child, who had been in the middle of pulling out one of the needles. No matter where she put it, he always found a way to get his hands on it.

She was mending a rip in her shirt, grateful for the distraction from the flurry of thoughts that kept running through her head without ever coming to any real conclusion. It was exhausting how she kept getting pulled in different directions, one second happy, the next ready to crawl under her thin blanket and never come out again.

Eventually, she grabbed some needle and thread and started on some of her clothes that were more hole than fabric at this point. It felt good concentrating on something, the repetitive movement of the needle strangely calming.

The child sat beside her and followed every movement with his big, bottomless eyes.

She had just finished the last stitch when, without warning, all light flickered off. The ship started shaking violently, and she dropped the shirt to grab the kid before he fell off the bunk. Somewhere in the pitch-black something crashed to the floor. 

As quickly as it had begun, the shaking stopped and left behind an eerie silence. The telltale hum of the engine was gone.

Sinead pressed a hand to her forehead and breathed out slowly, trying to still her hammering heart.

The kid giggled.

“Oh, you think this is funny, huh?”

He babbled a reply.

“Okay, then.”

Carefully, Sinead got up with the kid safely tucked into her arms and made her way over to the ladder, where she climbed into the cockpit one slow step at a time. The ship was entirely dead.

The cockpit was bathed in a cold blue glow from a star directly ahead, with a single planet orbiting it.

“What happened? Is that Zessol?”

Mando unfurled from where he had been crouched under the control panel, with a small torch affixed to his helmet. The light reflected off his armor. “I don’t know. Ship suddenly lost power and dropped out of hyperspeed.” He disappeared under the controls again.

Sinead strapped the kid into his seay and plopped down onto her own. It was too dark to go poking around the controls, and she would probably be more hindrance than help.

“Damn it!”

“What’s wrong?”

“The energy cycler got fried when we dropped out of hyperspace.”

“Can you unfry it?”

“… maybe.” Mando got to his feet, mumbling a long string of Mando’a. He went to the navicomputer and pulled off a metal panel underneath it, exposing a mess of wires. After a couple of minutes, it sparked, and the controls lit up, piercing red in the darkness.

"Life support's back on. At least we won’t suffocate."

"We still might," Mando said, trying and failing to turn on the engine. "The star's interfering with the comm system. I can't send out an SOS."

"Aren't you just a ray of sunshine," Sinead mumbled, trying to keep the growing worry at bay. She reached for the kid. "You okay, space bug?"

The kid babbled a string of nonsense, seeming totally unconcerned about their situation.

Suddenly, the ship lurched forward, catching Sinead off guard, and she hurriedly strapped herself into her chair. The turbines were still off, but Mando had managed to patch into the back thrusters, slowly sending the ship towards the planet which seemed pitch black against the backdrop of the star.

"You think we can make it in time?"

"We have to.”

The planet slowly turned green the closer they got, details appearing the closer they got. As the ship entered the planet's orbital pull, it started shaking so hard that Sinead's teeth rattled.

She had to force the words out of her mouth. “You sure you can land it?”

Mando didn’t reply. She was grateful for that.

The green surface turned into a forest that had to span most of the planet’s surface. Very slowly, Mando let the Crest drop inch by inch until it flew just above the canopy. Sinead held her breath.

Finally, Mando spotted a clearing and angled the ship towards it. They touched down with an echoing boom, sending Sinead’s head spinning from the sudden stop.

Stepping out of the ship was like stepping into another world; light came down through the leaves, creating flickering shadows on the ground whenever the wind rustled through the trees. A thick layer of decomposing leaves made the ground feel soft and swallowed the sound of Sinead's footsteps as she walked off the ramp. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. There were no soldiers to fight, no arena to infiltrate, no droids to smash. For a moment, there was only the breeze and the sweet smell of earth.

The peace was broken by Mando, who let out a frustrated grunt. He ducked under the ship and was poking around a bit of exposed machinery, the covering lying on the ground by his feet.

"Doesn't look good?" Sinead said even though she already knew the answer.

Mando slotted the cover back into place with more force than necessary. "The cooling unit is shot. We won’t get through the atmosphere without it.”

"I don't suppose you have a cooling unit lying around somewhere, do you?"

He pointedly ignored her. “I think there’s still enough power to scan the planet. Watch the kid, okay?”

The child came shuffling down the ramp, his big eyes growing bigger as he took in the new surroundings. When his feet hit the ground, he bent down and buried his hands in the dirt. After a moment he pulled out a fat worm that wriggled furiously in his hand.

“Hey, no, don’t-“

She started running, but it was too late. The kid popped the worm, dirt and all, into his mouth.

“No!” Lifting him up, she gave him her most stern look. “No. Spit it out.”

The kid gave her a toothy smile.

“Spit … oh what the hell. I have no idea what you are, you could just as well have an entirely worm-based diet.”

Mando appeared in the opening of the ship and looked up at the bright sky. “The closest settlement is about a day's travel. You two can stay here.”

Sinead looked at the quiet ship and chewed on her lower lip. Staying an entire day in one place with only the kid for company meant a long time for certain thoughts to sit and fester. "Or we could go with you. The kid's been cooped up in the ship for too long anyway, all that recycled air can't be good for him."

As if on cue, the child started wiggling in her grasp.

"He'll slow us down."

"I've already waited five years. What're a few extra hours."

Mando watched her for an uncomfortable amount of time, long enough that Sinead started to wonder if she had offended him somehow before he shrugged and disappeared into the ship.

She and the kid waited outside while he gathered supplies. They weren't stocked for a trek through the wilderness, but if the weather kept up and the undergrowth stayed as sparse, it wouldn't be a problem. Once he was ready, they set out in the direction of the settlement, walking slowly while the kid ambled back and forth between them. He kept wandering in front of Sinead whenever something caught his attention, and when he stopped to watch a sprawling anthill, she let out a huff.

"I told you it'd be slow."

"It’s fine."

They walked on in silence. The forest teemed with invisible life; birds hid in the treetops where they trilled out a warning as the trio passed by; somewhere far off, an animal bleated, and the sound echoed between the trees. When was the last time she’d felt this calm? Not since before Loovria, at least.

That reminded her ...

"You never told me why you hate droids. Back on Loovria."

"I ... didn’t." He fell silent again until Sinead was starting to regret asking. Then again, he had heard her tragic backstory; now it was time to hear his.

"I was ..." he paused again. They passed a lone dead tree that shed white bark in thick curls. "I wasn't born a Mandalorian. My village was attacked by droids. The Mandalorians took me in. Trained me in the Fighting Corps." He spoke slowly like every word had to be carefully considered.

She chanced a quick glance at him, even though his helmet would reveal nothing. He walked stiffly and kept his helmeted face turned away from Sinead.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

He shrugged.

"You know ..." she said without being sure how to continue. The words hung in the air while she wracked her brain for something to add. "I'm Corellian, but I've only been to the planet a handful of times. My mother hated the place, she never wanted to tell me why. My father was a real Corellian, would've spent the rest of his life among the stars if he could.” And in a way, he got his wish in the end. "Now there isn't really any reason to go back." She honestly didn't know why she was telling him this.

Mando was quiet for a long time. He finally looked at her, head slightly tilted to the side. "Sinead doesn't sound like a Corellian name."

That wasn't quite what she’d expected. "That’s because it's not. I’m named after an Alderaanian woman who saved my mother’s life. She got wounded behind enemy lines, and Alderaanian Sinead dragged her to safety. My mother was never the sentimental type, but I guess getting carried through hostile territory for days leaves an impact."

"She was a soldier?"

"A mercenary. Didn't like being called a soldier, which I always thought was a bit backward. My father was a pilot, ran cargo most of his life." She wanted to ask about his parents but figured she wouldn't press her luck. "He taught me how to fly. It's a shame you won't let me touch the Crest."

"You have flown it."

"Once. And that doesn't count! Your arm was hanging on by a thread; it was either that or stay on Loovria and get eaten by a nexu.”

"If it makes it into the air again, you can fly it all you want."

Sinead flashed a smile. "I’m honored."

"Just don't crash it."

"Oh please! Didn't you hear me before? I'm Corellian! We don't crash ships."

Mando's shoulders moved with what might have been a silent snort. "Right."

"It's true. We may do what in certain aviation circles is called a forceful downward trajectory terminating in an acute surface touchdown."

"And is the ship able to take off again?"

"Eventually."

This time she was sure she heard a soft chuckle, and she pursed her lips to keep from smiling. Perhaps the fresh air was getting to him too.

They wandered through a grove of thin white trees with sparse crowns that allowed sunlight to stream through the leaves. Thick moss covered the ground, and Sinead wanted nothing more than to lie down and take a nap between the trees. The kid seemingly had the same idea because when he passed a particularly soft-looking tussock, he slumped down, his little face weary. Sinead scooped him into her arms. "You've had enough walking for now? Lucky for you, you're so small, I can just keep you in my pocket." 

"I can take him," Mando said, watching her as she shifted the child to rest on her hip.

"It's fine. You're carrying the supplies. And I think he's already asleep."

"It's a long walk for him."

"Yeah ..." she looked down at the already sleeping child. "You've ever thought about giving him a name?"

"Not really.”

“Well, you should. I can't keep calling him kid in my head. Just because you're fine with having no name doesn't mean it works for everyone else. He's gonna grow up very confused."

Mando was silent for a moment. "When the Guild business is over, I'm sure whoever raises him can give him a name."

"What?" Sinead stopped abruptly, staring at him like she'd never seen him before. "You're gonna leave him? Just like that?"

"A ship's no place for a kid."

"I grew up on a ship, and I'm fine."

Mando was silent for a moment. "It's too dangerous. He deserves to grow up somewhere stable."

"And that's impossible if he stays with you?"

He started to walk again, and she hurried to keep up. "You saw what happened on Tatooine, and the droid. What if we hadn't come back to Loovria? It's better this way." 

She looked down at the sleeping child in her arms. His small hand had gripped a fold on her jacket. It didn't feel right, Mando without the kid. She didn’t know what to say; it wasn't her business, after all, so she changed the subject. "Do you know how old he is? Can't be more than a couple of years, he's so tiny." 

"He's 50."

She let out a snort. "Right."

"I'm serious."

"He can't speak, Mando. He's not older than us. Or me, anyway."

"I have the last four digits of his chain code," Mando said, sounding annoyed.

"And what does that mean?"

"That I know his age. It's why his tracking fob is off. It's the only reason the Guild hasn't caught up. Some species mature slower than others."

The kid made a soft sound in his sleep, and Sinead pressed her palm against his head, so warm and fragile. She felt a pang of sadness; even if he was 50 years old, he was still a small kid lost in the galaxy. Who knew how long it had been since he'd last been with his family? "I guess he has enough wrinkles to pass as a 50-year-old." It wasn't very funny, but she didn't know what else to say.

"I think, maybe ..." Mando trailed off.

"Yeah?"

"I think he might be a Strand-Cast."

The word rang a bell and brought Sinead back to a half-remembered conversation overheard on Sriluur. "That's a clone, right?"

Mando shifted the pack on his back. "Close. It's more like a … a type of bioengineered creature.” / Or just engineered creature.

That was harder to believe than the kid's age. She studied his small face, trying to find any signs of him being … what? "What makes you think that?"

"I just ... think it's a possibility."

"Hm." She moved the kid from one arm to another, careful not to wake him. "Would explain why the Imps want him back." The implications made her stomach twist, and she subconsciously held him closer. "You notice anything special about him?"

Mando waited for an odd amount of time before he answered, "No. I haven't."

... ... ... ... ...

Din didn’t know why he had lied to Sinead. While he usually trusted his senses completely, there was something about the child's powers that made him uncertain of what he had actually seen. The mudhorn had almost caved in his chest, and he had only been saved by the strength of his armor. The ground had shaken as it charged at him, pain exploded across his chest when he breathed. And suddenly, the beast was lifted into the air. The child saved him even though Din wasn’t his ally.

There was a tightness in his chest, a phantom pain from the battle with the beast.

They walked until the sky started darkening and the wind picked up. Save for the grove of white trees, the forest stayed the same. The child had woken up sometime before and watched the surroundings with curious eyes. Maybe he thought they were back on Sorgan.

"I think it's starting to rain."

As he turned to Sinead, a raindrop hit his helmet, the sound so much louder in his ears. It was followed by a rapid patter of rain on leaves, and soon the rain came down hard, obscuring his vision.

Sinead was barely visible through the sheets of rain.

"Of course this planet has crazy weather," Sinead shouted over the sound of the rain. "This is on me for thinking we could have a nice walk through the woods."

He peered at Sinead through the rain and the darkness. Water dripped from her hair and into her eyes, and the kid had turned his face into her jacket. With a sigh, he undid the fastenings of his cloak and thrust it at Sinead, hoping that she would take it without a word. She offered him a wan smile. The already sodden fabric was better than nothing.

The ground was soggy, and it wouldn’t be long until the whole forest was a muddy swamp. The settlement was hours away, but they couldn't keep going like this.

"We have to find shelter," Din said, motioning for Sinead to follow him through the trees which were running with water, little pools forming between the roots.

"You know, I don't think we're gonna find a cave anywhere near." Sinead held the kid close to her chest, trying to shield him from the worst of it.

"Follow me."

Before long, cold water had soaked through his clothes. He kept glancing back at Sinead, who looked like a misshapen lump under his cloak. The kid had to be freezing.

Desperation crept up his spine, and he started to move faster.  

It had come to the point where he would have accepted a hollowed-out tree or a wide branch when his visor indicated there was something between the trees. He pushed through a thicket, wet branches slapping against his armor, and there, in a small clearing, stood an old cabin. The windows were dark and empty, and the roof drooped under the weight of dead leaves. Nobody had been there for a long time. Years of rain and rot had warped the doorframe, and Din had to shoulder it open, the wood nearly buckling with every shove. It finally gave out with a loud crack.

A lantern hung on a hook beside the door, and Din pulled it down. Amazingly, it spluttered to life with a hiss and cast a weak light on the drab surroundings.

The cabin was a single room covered in a thick layer of dust and animal droppings. There was an overpowering smell of mildew and earth, and the last inhabitants had left multiple stringed cans hanging from the ceiling that clattered when the door was forced open. Most of the furniture left behind was broken. There was a mount of ash in the soot-covered fireplace. A single bed had been pushed into the corner.

Sinead hurried into the cabin and turned in a circle. "It's better than the cave on Luria."

"How is he?" The pack thumped to the ground and Din let out a soft grunt. His muscles were stiff and aching.

She pulled back the cloak to reveal the child. "Okay, I think. He's cold."

Din grunted and set to work. It didn’t take long before a fire was lit from the remains of a chair Din took apart. There was no way he would be able to find any dry firewood outside. It sounded like the rain had picked up since they entered the hut, coming in near vertically and thudding against the grimy windows.

Sinead sat cross-legged in front of the fire with the kid on her lap. He looked solemnly into the dancing flame and now and again would bite into a piece of bantha jerky with a strange sort of ferocity.

Din watched as Sinead removed her braid and combed through her hair with her fingers. He had never noticed how long it was. She stared into the fire in an almost hypnotized way, her long fingers working through every section of hair. The firelight cast deep shadows on her face, making her look unreal, like a painting.

"Mando?"

He blinked. He hadn't noticed her looking at him.

"You okay?" She tilted her head slightly. "There's room for you by the fire if you want. You must've gotten as soaked as us."

He suddenly became aware of how cold and wet he was, his armor feeling impossibly heavy and constricting. Slowly, he sat beside her and immediately felt the warmth radiating from the fire through layers of beskar and clothing.

"You've really never taken your helmet off in front of anyone?"

He watched her from out of the corner of his eyes, grateful that the helmet hid his face. "Never."

"You weren't born with it. When was the last time someone saw your face?"

The fire crackled and threw up sparks.

"When the Mandalorians took me in. I swore to the creed."

"And that means never showing your face?"

"Yes. This is the way."

She looked into the fire with an unreadable emotion in her eyes that made Din look away. "I heard Xi'an say something like that. I didn't know what it meant, and then there were sorta more important things to deal with."

The memory of her dealing with the droid sprung up in his mind; the way she looked standing over the broken corpse with fire and rage in her eyes.

And she’d done it all for the child.

"I'm sorry for all of that."

"It wasn't your fault."

"I contacted them."

"Which you did because of me. You didn't know they were backstabbing bastards."

Maybe he hadn't known, but the revelation hadn't exactly been shocking.

"Well, it all worked out in the end. We have a new lead." Her voice faded away as she stared into the flames.

It was suddenly hard to look at her.

She let out a yawn and looked at the bed. "It's probably time to turn in. How long to the settlement?"

"Depends."

"On what?"

"If the rain lets up."

She made a disgusted sound. "I definitely need some sleep if I'm gonna survive tomorrow." Getting to her feet, she cradled the kid in her arms. "You coming?"

His spine straightened as he looked to the bed. "Uh ..."

"C'mon." Sinead shrugged. "The bed's big enough for both of us, and you need sleep just as much as I do."

Din stood as Sinead went over to the bed and started pulling back the sheets, which disintegrated in her hand. When she sat down, the mattress released a cloud of dust.

"It's better than the one in the Crest," she said while bouncing up and down. The mattress springs screeching with every movement.

Din turned his back to her and pretended to go over the supplies, hands going still when she lay down to a wailing chorus of springs. He didn’t often share a bed with someone else and generally it wasn’t for sleeping. When he couldn’t put it off any longer, he turned to face the bed where Sinead was lying on her back. The kid was swaddled in a blanket, fast asleep beside her.

Get a grip, he told himself as he sat on the edge of the bed to a cacophony of squeaking springs. He tried to control his breathing, but it felt like his heart was beating twice as fast. They had been sharing the same living space for weeks, and sleeping beside her gave him heart palpitations? Giving himself a mental shake, he lay down on the mattress, which was lumpy with age and just marginally more comfortable than the floor. He looked up at the ceiling and tried to focus on a spring that had worked its way through the outer layer and was trying to shank him. The rain pattered against the roof in a hypnotic rhythm, and the dying fire cast a warm light over the small room.

Between them, the child let out a little sound in his sleep.

The mattress dipped as Sinead turned onto her side, and Din's concentration shattered.

“You’re okay sleeping in your armor? Isn’t it uncomfortable?” She spoke quietly as to not wake the kid.

It was. The fire had only succeeded in drying the outer layers and leaving everything else cold and constricting. Even if it weren’t, it was doubtful he'd get much sleep anyway. "I’m used to it.” It came out in a breath.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Sinead prop her head to her hand and give him a faint smile. "'I'm used to it' implies that it isn't." She smiled gently, her dark eyes glinting in the firelight.

Despite himself, he rolled onto his side. The child slept between them, acting as a buffer. 

“It’s fine.”

“Okay.”

Safely hidden by his helmet, Din studied her face; still damp hair lay in soft-looking waves across the mattress, and there was an unreadable look in her eyes, in the way her smile seemed to slowly slip from her lips. She plucked at the kid's blanket. "How were they, the Mandalorians that took you in?"

The question caught him off guard. He watched a spider crawl up the wall behind Sinead while he thought.

"They treated me as an equal, fed and trained me, even though I wasn't their kin."

Sinead's eyes were warm and inquisitive. "Were there others like you?"

It had been a long time since he thought back on those days where alternating grief and gratitude had made his head spin. "We were foundlings. Lots of children were affected by the war."

"Where are they now? Your clan."

He searched her face for any sign of an ulterior motive almost hoping that he would find it and shut the conversation down without a second thought, but he didn’t find any; she looked as calm and curious as before. “After the great purge, they went into hiding.” He hoped that was enough of an answer. It was all he could give.

“Oh.”

The silence stretched between them, only interrupted by the rain and the sound of some small animal running across one of the rafters. Din considered pretending he had fallen asleep when Sinead started talking in a voice barely above a whisper. "Back when … before I was …" for once she seemed lost for words. "Before everything happened. My parents were cargo runners, willing to go pretty much anywhere in the known galaxy even with a little kid in tow. As I said, my father was a pilot, and my mother was in charge of security. As a kid I honestly couldn't imagine a better life than living out among the stars. I still remember the day I learned that most people go their whole life never leaving their home planet. I couldn't wrap my mind around it."

His armor dug into his side, but he didn’t notice. Her words came out softly like she was soothing a crying child.

"We were a pretty tight-knit group. Our co-pilot Raans, I used to call him Uncle. Don't remember a time where he wasn't a part of the crew. He was married to the navigator Tir Farr. Quite the couple.”

Farr. Were all her aliases taken from people she had known in the past?

"We were our own little village. Our old gunner, who I never actually saw leave the ship, taught me how to cheat in sabacc. Said it was better learning from him than after some guy fleeced me out of all my credits." The sound of rain seemed to melt away as she talked. A sad smile played on her face as she told him about the rest of the crew, looking so small curled up on the bed, and Din felt something stir in his chest. Suddenly, the space between them seemed to shrink. If he wanted to he could reach out and touch her.

“I had this old, really cheap voice recorder that I would go around and interview the crew. Must’ve ended up with hours of stories.”

“Why?”

“It was something my father told me once that really stuck with me. ‘As long as someone remembers you, you’re never really gone.’ And in my child mind it meant that if I made sure they would always be remembered then they’d never leave. When I got older and found out that wasn’t how it worked, it sort of became a habit. Every time we landed on a planet I’d find someone who was willing to talk to me. Ended up with a pretty comprehensive collection.”

She trailed off, and the hut was once again silent. The fire had burnt down to glowing embers.

"What kind of cargo did they run?" His throat felt constricted and the words came out harsher than he intended.

"Whatever paid the most, which, as you know, more times than not were less than legal. They thought I didn't know about the smuggling, but I pretty quickly learned what was in the crates they hid under the flooring. I overheard my parents argue over when to tell me. They agreed that once I turned eighteen …" he heard her swallow thickly. “That’s why I have to find Kyen. He’s the only family I have left. No matter if … if he’s changed, I have to know. I owe it to him.”

It was too dark to see her face and for that Din was grateful. "I'm sorry." It sounded so hollow coming from him, but he didn’t know what else to say.

"Yeah. Me too."

They fell silent. The fire had burned down to glowing coals, and Sinead was a black silhouette in the darkness.

"Mando?" She whispered. "Are you asleep?"

"No."

Minutes ticked by. Eventually, Sinead's breathing turned slow. He watched the contours of her chest rise and fall and tried to time his own breathing with hers, but it was like a band had constricted around his chest, making it uncomfortable to breathe.

Forcing his eyes shut, he resigned himself to a sleepless night.

<- Previous chapter - Next chapter ->

[amarabliss]

Oaths and Hearts - 16 (Ignis Scientia/Reader)

So this is a crossover between FFXV and Dragon Age Inquisition.

You fell through a rift into the fade fighting the demons you swore to protect your world from. When you popped out you were no longer in the lands of Ferelden instead trapped in Insomnia. The gracious king allowed you to say recognizing power when he saw it. One thing led to another and now you were part of the procession of the prince to his wedding years later. Before the final battle, after years of fighting, losses, and love…your friend…your king…Noctis has asked you to change it all…

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11  Part 12  Part 13 Part 14 Part 15

(IT WAS A STRUGGLE! but here it is, hope you all enjoy!)

Ignis felt your hand in his gently squeezing as this bewildered man stared at you. You gave him a small smile as you introduced him, “This is Hawke.”

Recognition flashed through his eyes as they met Hawke’s, “Your Hawke? The one told you me about.”

“Hey, there is only one me.” Hawke smirked a little looking between the two of you.

“Yes, that Hawke.” You rolled your eyes a little, “But this isn’t a place to talk…”

Ignis looked back to Hawke as he spoke, “She’s right, we need to get you-”

He was cut off as a dark energy way struck him across the chest. Ignis’ eyes widened as the same creatures before strode toward them. He moved in front of you as the hideous one began to speak, “I see now…love… it always gets in the way.”

“Be quick!” The other hissed at her, “The infernal one approaches.”

He heard you take in quick breath before whispering to him, “Move!”

Reacting to the word he dove toward Hawke as you let out a cry green energy shooting forth from your hands. You hit the purple one directly. Its cry faded to the wind as its form disintegrated. The other one began rushing toward him and Hawke.

He reached out trying to summon forth his daggers, but nothing came. Raising his arm to block the screaming creature he watched as it froze. Literally…

He looked at Hawke whose hand was raise slightly, a small shimmer fading away, “What an ugly bastard…”

“Thank you.” Ignis looked at him before standing and helping him up.

Hawke groaned holding his side as he got to his feet, “Just another day…don’t mention it.”

“You’re hurt.” You walked over to them looking down to Hawke’s side, “Move your hands.”

“It’s fine.” He brushed your hands away as you reached for him.

“Hawke.” You sounded cross, something that Ignis was not used to.

“Inquisitor.” He smirked before reaching down for his staff, “We have more important things to worry about. Getting you both home for one. We shouldn’t waste any more time…your dear friend sounds like he’s on his way.”

“Friend?” Ignis whispered to you as Hawke took a few steps away to get a better idea where to head.

You looked at him a bit of fear lacing your eyes. He found himself distracted momentarily watching the way your lips tightened before you spoke. He missed you desperately and desired to crash his mouth against yours until breath escaped the both of you.

It was your voice that made the daydream disappear and the name you spoke made his anxiety shoot through the roof, “Ardyn…he’s here and…”

When you didn’t go on Ignis pressed you, “And what?”

“And he’s seeking revenge against me for putting him here.” You shut your eyes, “Ignis…”

“We need to move. Now.” Hawke stepped back toward them as he pointed behind them, “That, is what I followed when I found you.”

Ignis followed his hand and saw a dark cloud. Almost like the nightmare, but denser. His eyes widened a little before he looked at you, “Miasma…”

Your eyes widened and Hawke stared at you both, “What, what is that?”

“Another way to make demons…” you frowned looking at them both, “Andraste, what have I done?”

“This is not your fault.” Ignis took your hands in his, “But I agree that we mustn’t linger here longer than necessary.”

“Your way home is this way…” Hawke turned slightly and began walking.

Ignis stayed close to you as you walked silently next to him. His one hand gently came to rest on you back, “You’re thinking quite hard about something…”

“When isn’t she? She’s a problem solver, but you should know that.” You scowled glaring at Hawke as he laughed a little.

“I do know, but I also know she doesn’t share the burden of her thoughts enough.” Ignis smiled at you a little, “The weight gets heavy, you needn’t carry alone anymore.”

You looked into his eyes as they began to water up, “When we get out of here…”

“I will be right beside you. Don’t be afraid.” He squeezed your arms before he spoke again, “We’re so close to waking up, what’s troubling you?”

You looked back to Hawke before you spoke, “Come with us.”

Hawke stopped and turned to you as you went on stepping toward him, “Eos could offer you so much. Please don’t stay here…”

Ignis watched a range of emotions fly through Hawkes eyes before he shook his head, “You might have given up on Thedas…but I haven’t.”

“The chance of us physically coming to the Fade was infinitesimal…finding a door home…less. The rifts are closed, the veil only thins on specific days and I couldn’t even tell you what time of the year it is there anymore.” You told him your frown deepening, “Hawke please…”

“9:51…” He looked into your eyes intensely as he shook his head, “the year is 9:51 and it’s the 12th day of Pluitanis…approximately…I have not lost count. Like I’m sure you know they exact amount of days you’ve been away from you lover here. I will go home, Y/N, don’t lose faith in me.”

“I can’t leave you here again.” You shook your head shutting your eyes, “You’ve suffered enough.”

“Yes! I have, but it’s my choice! It’s always been my choice!” Hawke raised his voice, “I followed you, I didn’t have to. I volunteered to stay; you didn’t pick me! Now stop wasting valuable time, if you die here then there’s blood on my hands and not just yours, but your child’s.”

“Enough.” The both of them looked at Ignis, “Isn’t this what this place does? It takes everything you feel and twists it into something ugly.”

Ignis watched you both take a deep breath in before nodding. He sighed shaking his head, “I can’t imagine the decisions you both have had to make in a world ripped apart at the seams…”

He didn’t get a chance to finish saying how he felt the both of you were smarter then this situation. Dark miasma particulates rushed around him taking you out of his view. He shouted for you taking a step forward falling to his knees. It was like he was in windstorm.

He groaned pushing himself up a bit of panic welling up in him, “Y/N!”

“Yes…” His blood ran cold at the sound of Ardyn’s voice, “Hear your lover’s voice as he worries for you.”

A flash gave Ignis a direction to follow. He heard the sound of Hawke crying out in pain as Ardyn began to speak again, “No, no, no…no interruptions from you this time.”

“Leavuhh…leave him…” He moved closer seeing to silhouettes as you struggled to get out the words.

“You care for this man too…interesting…How many others are there?” Ignis finally came into the eye of the storm seeing Ardyn holding you up by your throat. You were clawing at his hand as you struggled to get air.

“Let her go!” Ignis shouted getting Ardyn’s attention snapped to him. Ignis’ eyes widened seeing the scourge that had taken over is body. Black ooze dripped from his eyes and mouth.

“Oh good…I can commence with the theatrics now.” Adryn’s eyes glowed an amber hue as he smirked.

“I said let her go.” Ignis squared off with him preparing himself for the worse.

“I have no intention of doing that.” A painful gasp escaped you he squeezed harder, “Far from it. She’ll dangle here as I slowly kill you. Then I’ll throw her into another dream until she breaks and I’m able to get what I need to get out of this hellscape.”

Ignis threw up his arms to block the sword that came toward him, but it never came. He lowered his arms slowly seeing a shield similar to one Noctis would use. Kneeling before him a hooded figure daggers shimmering away from his hands. A glaive?

(Art credit to @kantonliu​)

“What now?!” Ardyn hissed dropping you to the ground.

Ignis watched look at the figure in front of him, eyes widening as your hand went to your neck, “…Nyx…”

The figure stood up slowly reaching up for his hood as the shield faded away. The fade haircut was practically a signature for the man in front of him, but his voice was different, “This ends now…”

Ardyn made a move to attack but stranger moved in a blur, the same shimmer of kings, up to him. His hand landed firmly against Ardyn’s chest flinging him backwards and away from you. Ignis stood momentarily paralyzed by what was unfolding in front of him.

As he began to process the man knelt down to you helping you to your feet, “Are you okay?”

Ignis stepped forward as you stared up at this mans face. Another groan drew his attention away for a moment. He saw Hawke getting to his feet looking worse then before. He met Ignis gaze waving him off.

Ignis nodded as he turned back to you and this man. Everything began to catch up with him. He didn’t have the dark hair of Nyx Ulric, nor was it the same length. In fact he wasn’t even the same build as him.

“Who’s this guy?” Hawke asked stepping next to Ignis as he watched you reach up to his face. A very intimate gesture.

“You don’t know?” Ignis felt the crease in his brow grow.

“No…never seen him before.” Hawke looked at Ignis who’s eyes were trained on you.

The man put his hands over yours as you began to shake your head eyes filling with tears, “No…No you can’t be here…”

“Everything has always led here.” He took your hands between his giving them a kiss, “Always…”

“I’ll find a way.” You let out a sob before he pulled you into a hug gently turning slowly so he was facing them.

Ignis felt his breath leave him as he met his eyes. Green pools full of conviction as he spoke, “I know you would…if you remembered…”

“Wha…” You pulled away as his hand came up to your cheek.

“Sleep…” You began to fall back. He easily scooped you up looking at your face a small smile on his face before looking at Ignis, “Take her home, the way should be clear for you now.”

He stepped forward placing you in Ignis’ arms brushing his hand over your hair one last time. Ignis looked at his face seeing the familiar features. His eyes shifted to him again and Ignis felt his lips part slightly as he took a step away.

“Go.” He nodded summoning a set of daggers to his sides, “I’ll finish this once and for all, you don’t need to worry about Ardyn anymore.”

Ignis watched him turn away, quickly he turned to Hawke passing you to him before he stepped toward him, “Ulric…”

He stopped and turned to Ignis before he tilted his head a little smiling. He had your smile, “Guess I shouldn’t be surprised…I knew she’d recognize me…was iffy about you.”

“Why are you here?” He looked toward where Ardyn was before looking at Ignis again, “Ulric…”

“It doesn’t matter…” He wiped a hand over his mouth, that was when Ignis saw the Lucii Ring, “you won’t remember. You need to go. Now.”

He turned again and Ignis felt a lump grow in his throat, “I hope you know, that I love you and I’m proud of you.”

Ulric stop once more before nodding and turning around as tears formed in his eyes, “Every day, dad…I knew every single day.”

Ignis felt a well of emotions wash over him as Ulric stepped back throwing his arms around. He pressed his own arms around the young man, “You’re a Scientia…more then that you’re a Trevelyan and named after a strong man…you do everything you can do survive and go home.”

“Yes sir.” Ulric squeezed him one more before letting go, “Now go, I’ll finish this.”

Ignis nodded watching his son turn one final time heading away to fight the impossible. He wiped a hand over his mouth before forcing himself to turn and walk toward you and Hawke. Each step was agony and desire to turn around and help his son, but if they didn’t leave now…perhaps he’d never exist.

“Everything in order?” Hawke asked as he repositioned you into Ignis’ arms.

Ignis nodded looking at you resting in his arms, “Yes…we don’t have much time…”

“I’ll take point and clear anything out of the way.” Hawke nodded stepping forward.

Ignis followed quickly hearing explosions and roars behind them growing with each passing moment. He forced himself not to look back even as the ground shook beneath his feet. Soon Hawke was pointing ahead to a crack a head. It was bright and shining, and bits of Insomnia could be seen through it.

“There you go…the door home.” Hawke smiled at Ignis.

Ignis looked back seeing a bright light explode in the distance. He choked looking down to you, “Oh Six…”

“That was your boy wasn’t it?” Ignis looked at Hawke as he pulled his staff off his back, “Hmm…I suppose I still have a little fight left in me…”

“What will you do after?” Ignis asked him quietly.

“I suppose what I have been…” Hawke looked at him thoughtfully, “I remember being really foggy when I woke up from the fade…but if you can try to hold on to this…tell her I’m fine, that I found my way.”

Ignis followed him as he began walking away, “I do hope you find your way back to Fenris…”

“Did she tell you everything?” Hawke smirked looking back at him before nodding, “Thank you.”

Ignis smiled at him before taking a deep breath looking back to Insomnia. He looked down to you when you moved a little, “Almost home…”

“…I…-now…opmto…”

Your eyes opened looking up a bright white sheet. You felt heavy as you began looking around. Blurry visions of people came into view to the right as familiar voices began flooding your ears.

“Well we can’t just let them fight alone.”

“Prompto…Ignis told us to stay with Noct, so that’s what we’re going to do.” Gladio’s deep voice tried to be reassuring.

“Guys…” Noct spoke up suddenly, “Look…”

You looked over to where he was pointing. In a bed next to yours was Ignis. He smiled at you before he began to sit up.

“Whoa hey hey!” The boys began to rush over as he sat up all talking at once, “Iggy slow down…wait…you shouldn’t be…”

Ignis held up his hand to silence them as he swung his feet off the bed and stood up taking a step toward you. You watched him lean down to you pressing his forehead against yours. You reached up touching his face as his one hand rested against your belly.

“I had strangest dream…” You whispered getting him to laugh. You nudged his nose with yours, “You’re here…”

“I am…and I’m not going anywhere.” He smiled at you as you both heard the other three giving sounds of victory.

“Alright…Happy moments over.” Dr. Reed broke up the party looking at the couple, “There’s been way too many close calls in the last couple of hours and I want to make sure all three of you are healthy.”

[simplysoriya]

The Water Blade of Weishu, Pt.1

“When the world was young and Pandaria was far less peaceful, when legends walked the earth, there were smiths who forged powerful weapons able to harness great strength. Before the days when monks knew how to harness the power of the elements, these forgemasters would create these weapons that would help them channel that power using sacred resources found here in Pandaria itself.”

“Over the years these masters of their craft became rarer and rarer as the need for elemental weapons began to dwindle. An unprecedented era of peace made them obsolete. Their craft no more sought after then for collectors. Their weapons lining display rooms rather than fulfilling their purpose.”

“Eras passed as the practice quietly ended. Only a few today still know the old ways of folding primal powers into steel in such a way to strengthen it’s user. Embolden the wielder to reach new heights. It has been far too long since I’ve seen such.”

“There’s an old Jinyu who lives in the western reaches of Kun-lai, up in the mountains. Weishu is his name. I must warn you that the trek is dangerous and the list of materials not easy to acquire… but if you wish to do this I will give you direction.”

“First you will need Elementium and Ghost Iron ore.”

The first task was easy enough. It wasn’t that she knew many who dug down into mine shafts all day, or even that she knew many who peddled it. Rather it was all about knowing the person who did. 

“Hey dad?” Soriya piped up as the pair idled about the Jade temple.

“Yes muffin?”

She made a face as she reprimanded, “Don’t call me that.”

“Buttercup?”

“No.”

“Sunshine?”

“Okay, but you’re on thin ice.”

With a bright smirk that seemed exclusive to his kid Kirollis dipped his head down to hide it. Unable to deny the little interactions between them that made him happy as they played out on his face. 

“What’s up?” asked Kirollis with no small amount of interest.

“Weeeeell… I need a favor.”

“I kind of figured.”

“Can you get me Ghost Iron and Elementium?” she posed with a bright, toothy smile. Knowing full well his weaknesses and how to work them.

Knitting his brows together in confusion, the rogue gave his daughter a questioning look. Soon, though, his thoughts caught up to him as he mouthed out an ‘ooooooh’. “Is this for your sword?”

“Yeah.”

“You will need a saya to hold the blade, a handle can be fashioned from the same material. Reinforced wood from the Jade Forest will suffice. You will find an old sycamore tree on the northmost mountains with branches plentiful for your needs.”

There was never any coaxing required once someone posed a trip to the Jade Forest. Never a complaint, nor a face made other than a smiling one. Even if there was a task, as a reason for her being there, Soriya never failed to drink in the sights of that ancient emerald forest, or take for granted the beauty of such a place.

The Tideview Thicket up in the northern most part of the forest was known for it’s thick and sturdy trees that stood near the cliffs. Their trunks and branches sturdy enough to stand the coastal wind that whipped up trying to unroot them. Another eternal fight of nature that had been a stalemate save for in hurricane season.

Walking down the beaten dirt path into the clearing, Soriya was instantly drawn to the pandarian well situated into the cliff face. It’s flat stones were carefully placed one after another until the enclosure was made, spouting water from a koi fish statue atop. Covered in trinkets from travellers, whether it was the paper lanterns with the soft orange glow, or the small bonsai trees carefully curated, or the thoughtful scrolls left for whoever would later find them. Littering the peaceful area and added some local personality.

Pulling a silver coin from her pocket, she tossed it haphazardly into the water with a ploop. Tightly squeezing her eyes shut, “I wish this was an easy task.” said Soriya under her breath.

Tipping her head back as she smiled on the simple wish, she was only greeted with the exact opposite as she reopened her eyes. Greeted with only the sight of a great sycamore tree perched up atop one of the mountain's pillars. 

A laughing sigh pushed past her lips, “It’s never easy.” a jokingly defeated tone was laced in her words as she hung her head dejectedly.

Squaring up against the rock wall with her head directed up the near ten feet it would take to reach the clearing. Palms first she grasped onto a jutting rock, planting herself before her foot hiked up to find it’s own placement. Teal eyes scanned and searched for the next hold as she hoisted herself up step by step until she reached the plateau in question.

“Pure water from the Spring Eternal in the Terrace is an important ingredient.” 

The Terrace of Endless Spring was a sanctuary in Pandaria. It was one of the few sacred locales. It was here that the Pandaran Emperor summoned the fabled mists that coated all of Pandaria, leaving it obscured to legend as far as the outside world was concerned. The very same staff he used to achieve such a feat had been stored there for generations.

It was one of the more ornate structures the land had to offer. With large spanning terraces over a sparkling lake like stages. Running water flanking the walls that encircled, endlessly running down like sheets.

She hadn’t  been to the Terrace since the Sha had infested the countryside. Only those usually with official business could walk the grounds, especially after the destruction and recovery efforts that were still in place years later. But with everything happening in the Vale of Eternal Blossom? The guards were left woefully understaffed.

“Hey, so, I need to get in there.” Soriya said with a bright smile as she approached the lone Pandarian left to watch over the place. Sending her pointer finger to inchworm toward the large gated door.

Gruffly the guard replied, “Nobody may enter without proper clearance.”

Disappointed by the straight denial given, Soriya tugged her lips to one side, “Grandmaster Zheng sent me to go get some water for a project he’s working on.” Tipping her head to the side in faux consideration she pondered aloud, “I mean I guess I could tell him I couldn’t get in. Maybe he would give me a written letter or something.”

“Zheng?” The guard repeated with the hitch of worry in his voice. “Oh, no no. That wont be necessary. Make it quick though, please.”

With a confident smile that her ruse had worked, Soriya skipped right past the guard, through the archways, and started down the massive steps that led to the first level of the spring.

It didn’t take her long to collect a small vial of the clearest water she had ever seen. Hanging herself from the edges of the stage as she plunged the container beneath the surface.

“Finally you will need a Koi fish.”

“A Koi?” Soriya repeated with her auburn brows knit.

“Yes.”

“What component of a sword does that make?” She questioned.

“It is not for me to say. Only Weishu can tell you what the Koi is for. But I must warn you that it will not be an easy task. Travelling with a live fish up a frozen mountain will bring with it many challenges.”

He was right to warn her, of course, as she felt the biting mountain air found nowhere to break once the summit was reached. Draining all the warmth from her cheeks until that cold seeped into her bones, despite bundling against this very thing.

A wicker basket was strapped to her back as she trudged through the snow covered mountain peaks. The hardest part was finding a way to keep the Koi inside warm. With smooth stones enchanted for heating and insulation between the wicker and the lining within was enough to keep the fish alive. But it was a progressive challenge where several times she had to rearrange the stones, adding or subtracting depending on the weather and conditions of her hike.

Though she wouldn’t let the challenge stop her, if anything it made her push harder into the frozen tundra of Pandaria where few ventured. 

As much as she wanted to dwell on the events of the Vale, the journey through Pandaria evoked emotions within her that she hadn’t felt since her first time wandering the island. Slowly she began to realize that this task may not have been about a weapon, entirely, but instead a tour to remind her what she was fighting for.

Abruptly a collection of harrowing howls rumbled and echoed from the mountain, shaking the monk from her abstract thoughts. 

Teal eyes scanned over the hills nearest to her, finding nothing there. Even if she knew exactly what it was. It wasn’t the first time Soriya had tangled with aggressive local wildlife. She knew the howl of wolves, even if she couldn’t see them.

Slowly and deliberately Soriya reached her hand back to remove the bo-staff she had brought with her as the first of the pack emerged from behind a snow bank. 

Black fur and a drooling snarl to display it’s teeth toward the perceived prey. Lanky and gangling the scrawny wolf hadn’t looked like it had eaten in months. Muscles and sinew clung to the bone as if it would fall off if not. The winter must have been tough for the out of place pack.

Stepping forward to charge the wolf, Soriya was halted only by the sound of sloshing water from behind her. Stupid, she thought, quickly realizing that the normal acrobatics of her fighting style wouldn’t save the Koi from flying out of it’s new found home. She would have to be slow, let them come to her.

A second wolf appeared from behind her, snarling a growl that caused the monk to look over her shoulder.

With her attention shifted, the first wolf began to gallop toward her.

Focus… she thought to herself. Her eyes snapping back to the charging beast.

Firmly she planted the pole-arm into the soft snow. Waiting for her opportunity… and when the wolf was close enough, a foot shot out to kick the bottom of the bar. Sending it’s blunt but weighted edge timed perfectly to crop up right under the wolves jaw, forcing that snarling maw closed as the creature flipped backward with the weight behind the strike.

The second wolf joined the fray, rushing to come at her from behind. This time Soriya was ready, her staff already flowing around in circular patterns- the momentum never seeming to cease.

With her hand gripped firmly at one edge of the staff, Soriya used the ball of her foot to pivot in a circle as the staff followed along in her arc, extended out a safe distance from her only to catch that second wolf right in the side of the head and forcing it to abandon it’s charge.

“We can’t like talk this over right? I might have some jerky in my pack. I promise I don’t taste all that good.” Her joking pleas fell on deaf ears as the wolves both recovered to all fours with a rolling growl.

“I’ll take that as a no.”

Once more the wolves sought to make a meal of the monk as they leapt at her in opposite directions. Soriya proved to be too quick as she ducked beneath the rabid leaps, using her staff as a lever to knock both animals in the snout and away from landing on her. Producing a pained cry from either.

Sloshing of fresh water against the snow once more reminded her of her task, and how close she was to completing it. How she would have to go all the way back down the mountain just to retrieve another Koi, only to come right back up with it. An outcome she would avoid if she could. She knew she had to end this quickly.

Rearing back to a standing position she once more twirled her staff. This time using the butted ends of them to send a piercing strike between the closest wolves eyes. Sending the creature reeling as it shrunk back away from it’s target.

The second wolf, however, was far more cunning as it slipped in quietly to sink it’s fangs into her shin.

Soriya yelped out in pain, “Gah! FUuuuuu…-” biting her lip to prevent the pain as the wolf squeezed tighter on it’s latch.

“Let go!” She shouted as she hiked her staff above her head to slam down onto the wolf. Yet it still didn’t release it’s grasp on her. 

Meanwhile the second wolf, recovered now from the harrowing hit to face, receded back to it’s haunches before leaping at the monk. Razor sharp claws drawing blood in four distinct lines of her shoulder blade.

Soriya was pushed forward. Feeling wet on her back it didn’t take long for her to figure that the basket she carried once more spilled from the crease between the lid and container. The moisture was already growing cold as it seeped into her armor uncomfortably.

She knew she had to do something. There was no way she could keep this up while keeping the Koi safe. She had to end the encounter, and end it quickly. Stabbing her staff into the ground the monk took on a fighting stance.

One wolf mimic’d her as it bore it’s fangs in her direction. Leaping soon after to try and tackle down the monk and leave her at the mercy of it’s biting fangs. 

This time, however, Soriya saw it coming. A new look of focus on her face as she sidestepped the wolf. Hands as fast as lightening as she grappled the nape of it’s neck before sending a punch charged with the white outline of chi into it’s side with a bone cracking sound.

It lurched backward, wounded and without interest in the far too difficult food. Stumbling and limping away from the area. The second wolf, watching as the undoubted alpha whimpered away seemed to follow in suit. Luckily for her, it released her shin right then and there.

Her guard was still up, waiting, watching as the pair of wolves scampered with their tails between their legs. 

An exasperated breath was blown through her lips with an uncaring raspberry that was far from intentional. Letting her hands drop back down to her sides the monk caught her breath before checking on the Koi, two hands reaching backward to find the bottom of the basket before she gave it a weight check.

“Do you see what I do for you Icabob? Do you see this hard work I’m putting in just so you can see the top of a mountain? You better appreciate this.” She spoke directly to the fish itself, which, apparently she had named Icabob in their travels together.