#chasing tomorrow | isekai | dórverold | chiyoko

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CHASING TOMORROW | ISEKAI AU

ft. dórverold aka my original lore

prologue:

we know how the story goes: chiyo grows up, achieves her dream of becoming a mangaka and then... life keeps going. yet she finds herself stagnant, or worse, falling backwards into old habits, isolating herself and second-guessing her place in her loved ones' lives. but tomorrow will be better. it will.

mál makes sure of it.

the dimension-hopping god favors chiyo, has a feeling about her. he tells her so as an explanation for why he plucks her from her cushy, modern life and drops her into dórverold, a land ravaged by a traitorous king and his undead army. she's the key -- or at least a piece of a key -- to saving them all, he's sure!

chiyo? she's not so sure. in fact, the only thing she's sure of is that she'd wring mál's neck for bringing her here if he weren't her only way home. he says his power has a " cool down, " so she's stuck here for now. she's pretty sure he's lying. after all, he seems pretty determined to make her his " champion " ( " my mom's gonna have one, too! but i'm gonna be first, heh. " ), granting her magic she doesn't want and a connection to him she could do without. her mind doesn't feel as private as it once did.

but let's skip ahead a little, hmm?

what's happened and what's happening:

mál remains with chiyo, travelling with her until he finally leads her to prince delwyn. at this time, he's on his way to stay with one of his father's bannermen, and the free army is only an idea in his frazzled mind. chiyo and mál are assumed to be refugees, and chiyo befriends delwyn on their journey.

at mál's insistence and because she doesn't have much of a choice, chiyo sticks with delwyn when he decides to form an army, growing closer to the prince despite her own social status ( she realizes that actually matters now ). she's a willing ear, and he doesn't pry; he asks her opinion, and he seems to truly consider it.

chiyo is the one to urge delwyn to seek out rin, find out if she's legit, and recruit her if so. this is in the free army's best interest as the dwarves will house them if they have the lightwielder, but it's also in chiyo's best interest. if rin is who they say she is, then sunna's champion will surely be more important than mál's. maybe chiyo's role won't be quite so big.

rin joins the free army, and time progresses. mál grows restless and unhappy with chiyo's refusal to practice her magic. she's wasting her potential! she's not meant to fight. she's always been a fighter. she just got tired. hasn't she rested enough?

mál leaves after that conversation. chiyo tries to not think about how alone she feels.

a day comes when someone tries to kill delwyn, darting out from the shadows, dagger glinting in the moonlight, and--- there they remain. frozen in time. it doesn't last long, but it's long enough for delwyn to incapacitate them and turn to chiyo with surprise and suspicion. but she's too busy staring at her hands.

delwyn and rin interrogate her, though much less formally than the rest of their inner circle would like. she spills the beans about mál -- as much as she can without sounding completely insane, which means she tells them he blessed her with magic she didn't want, told her she was his champion, etc. that seems to be enough. for now.

fast forward to the present, and chiyo practices her magic with a few different mages, including bronwyn. her status as mál's champion is kept under wraps for the time-being, if only to give her time to grow. it's apparent that she might not survive assassination attempts, as untrained as she is, yet it is also apparent that the time god was correct. she does have great potential with the magic he gifted her.

chiyo's pretty sure that wasn't what he meant, though.

other info:

chiyo's current cover story is that she's from across the sea, and that's why she's so unfamiliar with the land. her family were merchants visiting delwyn's kingdom when king edmund seized power. it's a story that could easily be unraveled, but she's been lucky so far.

mál gave chiyo time and teleportation magic -- basically his own powers on a smaller scale! there's a good deal that she can do with this combat-wise, but seeing as she's a beginner, she's mainly used to stopping people in their tracks, travelling small distances, and using time magic to heal wounds ( if she rewinds time, it's temporary; progressing time is risky if the wound isn't treated first ).

along with her magic, mál blessed chiyo with an impeccable memory and good luck when travelling. it's not something she really notices bc it's pretty subtle.

chiyo's connection with mál means she could call upon him for aid if she needed to, and he's told her so! she has admittedly called upon him bc she misses him :' ) this connection also allows him to hear her thoughts and vice versa, but he tries to respect her privacy and doesn't often use the connection like that.

unlike rin, chiyo will not be revived if she dies. mál isn't capable of such a miracle like sunna is, which is why he gives chiyo the power to call him.

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dashing gentleman, huh? his voice sounded much too sweet, honeyed; chiyo had to wonder how easily this astarion managed to get his way most days between his pretty face and that charming tone. were she not on edge, even she might be lulled into relaxing ( who was she kidding? she didn't trust easily even before this mess ). as it was, the artist had to repress the urge to squirm beneath astarion's gaze.

" chiyoko, but i prefer chiyo, " she replied, not quite ready to lower the frying pan. there was a beat before mál raised a hand in greeting. " 'm jon, in case you were wondering. " again, chiyo felt his amusement when astarion did not look away from her. mál found it funny how she held astarion's attention -- or rather how it made her feel. she shot the god a look before turning back to the elf.

" well, now that introductions are out of the way, uh... what're you doing here? we don't need to worry about getting stabbed when we turn to leave, do we? "

Was it so bad to find somebody using a whole satchel and frying pan to knock people unconscious hot as hell? Perhaps. Certainly not terribly normal, but then again he had never been the normal type to begin with. To say that he was even more delighted that her attentions turned to him instead of whoever it was that stood with her, was quite the understatement. He loved it.

"Who I am? Well, I'd be delighted-" a flourish of his hand and his body bending at the hips, Astarion bowed before her, hand held to his chest as he did so. "I am Astarion - dashing gentleman at your service.." he chuckled at his own antics, mostly to himself, as he stood.

"Do I get the extreme pleasure of knowing your name, darling?" not once did Astarion turn his gaze to the other. Instead, his gaze remained firmly fixated on the girl, his eyes dark and nearly brown in the night time.

As he stood there, the wind tussled white hair, some getting in his face... though he made no move to brush it aside.

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suddenly realizing that in chiyo’s dorverold au, she has to be introduced to certain nobles/polite society at some point bc she’s revealed to be a champion of mal and everyone wants/needs to know who she is! and it’s a little bit of a nightmare bc people have questions about where she came from and who she was before all this and she’s gotta have answers! i’m sure she would have planned ahead and done her research for this situation, but it’s nerve wracking and she hates all the endless socializing :’ )

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IMAGES FROM DÓRVEROLD | ft. delwyn, rin, chiyoko, and cyrillo

" you're taking me with you? " chiyo asked, eyes a little wide and voice a little high. " but i'm-- my magic's not that good yet. " cyrillo tutted and threw an arm around the blonde, squeezing her into his side. " oh, cara mia, you don't give yourself enough credit! and anyway, i'll be coming, too. there's not so much pressure now, eh? " that didn't appear to comfort chiyo quite as much as he'd hoped; still she frowned, brow furrowed as she looked to delwyn and then rin. neither of their expressions changed ( rin looked pleased as ever ), though the prince would not make eye contact with her. chiyo could only imagine he did not want her coming, either, but he knew she needed to come regardless of any reservations the two of them had. no matter how green a mage she was, chiyo was god-touched like rin. they couldn't afford to leave her behind. rin stepped forward, physically waving away her worry. " look, those rich snobs would marvel at the simplest spell. you'll be fine. " chiyo sighed, leaned her head back. she could spy cyrillo's smile from the corner of her eye. oh, this was going to suck without a doubt, but maybe she could run away from the festivities after an hour. that would be fair, right? " ...i don't even own a fancy dress. " the vampire grinned beside her, gave her another gentle squeeze. " leave that to me. "

pg. 1/?

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don't mind me but i'm thinking about the fact that chiyo's never been in a fight or purposely hurt someone before. she's never had to kill anyone before -- why would she in a modern age where violence isn't the norm in day to day life? yet mal brings her into this world where fighting is a necessity, where most who travel at least know how to wield a dagger or a sword or a bow or something. he makes her his champion and expects her to wield magic in order to save and protect others, yes, but to cut down enemies as well. he expects her to accept violence into her life bc for so long, it has been part of his and those he loves. but it's not that easy.

chiyo cries the first time mal kills a rabbit so she can eat. she gets sick the first time she sees him kill someone. she has an anxiety attack when she first stabs someone trying to kill her ( they don't die from it, but her hands are red, red, red ). and it's really not even the fear that makes all of this so hard bc chiyo can work through fear, suppress it. it's the idea of taking a life. it's hard to come to terms with. it's hard to think of it as necessary even though it really is at times. and mal feels guilty about that, which is why he initially doesn't push chiyo too hard to fight.

she eventually gets used to the violence that comes with living in dorverold but :' )) man is it rough for someone like chiyo :' )))

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we're gonna talk about chiyo's relationship with mal and del and how rejecting/hiding her magic impacted their friendships : ) set in her dorverold au, ofc, and buckle in bc i talk a lot!

we all know chiyo's a lonely person despite how she might act, and being dropped into dorverold doesn't change that. she's angry with mal for taking her away from her home, yet he's the only person who knows where she comes from. she doesn't have to pretend around him, hide part of who she is, watch what she says. out of everyone she goes on to meet, mal probably knows her the best bc of their unusual situation -- chiyo doesn't even hide her true personality around him bc she's initially she's so angry, and then she just doesn't have any choice but to trust him. that sort of experience tends to make putting on airs unnecessary.

whether she'll admit it or not, she also begins to depend on him a little. he's her one constant, doesn't just abandon her, and that means something.

when chiyo meets del, it's all bc of mal. he leads her straight to him, going so far as to push her in front of delwyn's horse to create an " eventful meeting " ( and chiyo definitely rips mal a new one asdf ) . they meet not very long after edmund's betrayal, so del's feelings are still pretty shaken and raw. he's lost his father and brothers, his sister and mother are captives, and now he and his guards have to figure out how to stop his uncle. it's all too much for one young man to handle alone. mal knows this, which is exactly why he pushes chiyo to del. if she's to be his champion, she needs to have connections... like a prince. and tbh, mal knows she can do del some good if given the chance. he's being a little manipulative, but it's for a good reason!

doesn't make chiyo feel any less guilty bc she sees what's going on. but she can't just ignore del's sad eyes, so! she tries to make the situation lighter for him, tries to help with the decision-making when she can. she gives him the chance to vent without judgement, the chance to not be strong, dependable prince delwyn and instead delwyn, the boy who just lost his family and his home. that means something to him. it means so much that del makes sure that she's taken care of when they arrive to his bannerman's estate, makes her his personal guest rather than allow her to be ushered off to join the lord's servants. it's a little bit of a scandal.

del's never cared for that stuff very much, though, and no one dares to gossip where he can hear.

everything's hunky dory for a while. delwyn establishes the free army, chiyo urges him to recruit rin, and mal? mal gets impatient, frustrated. chiyo still won't use the magic he gifted her, and if she keeps this up, she won't learn anything.

yeah, he brought her here bc he wanted a champion to aid in the fight against edmund, but he also saw how chiyo lived her life before, watched as she based her value on the opinions of others. he watched her begin to settle, to lose the fire she'd once had. mal wants chiyo to realize her own worth, and he wants her to fight for the things she cares about. he makes her his champion to show he believes in her, to put her in a situation where it can't be denied that there's something special about her. and he chooses this time of war to do it to force the fire in her chest to reignite.

but chiyo doesn't do what he wanted. she rejects everything ( which is a reasonable reaction tbh ) and continues to be a bystander, protecting herself and biding her time. it frustrates mal, especially when chiyo tells him he made a mistake, that she's not a fighter. she's wrong!! so wrong!! and he can't stand that she's so stubborn!!! so mal leaves -- not for good, but just so he can clear his head and regroup.

it's really hard when mal leaves. there might be people around her, but chiyo feels utterly alone. there's no one to mutter crucial details in her ear about the culture or the history of the world, or to save her from a conversation that might expose her otherworldliness. she's on her own.

and then comes the attempt on del's life. the fact that she's hidden magic from him raises suspicion, as much as he hates that it does. he can't help but wonder about the timing of his meeting chiyo, how they met at his most vulnerable. was she edmund's spy? was she going to betray him, too? he wants to believe she was always sincere in their friendship, but fear and a bit of anger pushes him away from her even after chiyo comes ( somewhat ) clean. he doesn't understand why she wouldn't just tell him that a god blessed her like they did rin.

so chiyo loses the only other person she might consider a constant in her life, and with her new status as a god's champion, she finds herself alienated in a way. people who she easily spoke to before now treat her with so much reverence; people who didn't give her a second look suddenly want her favor; and there's always a certain distance between them all, like she's above them.

she's not. she's really not. she's just someone with horrible luck and horrible relationship skills, apparently. but!! chiyo suddenly finds a friend in rin, who also deals with the same, weird, reverence stuff. and del and mal both eventually come back around!! but it's a pretty rough patch for chiyo and i just think it's fun and we should write it one day <3

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OPEN STARTER | mutuals encounter a wild chiyo!

she looks to be a mixture of embarrassed and frustrated, cheeks rosy and brow furrowed as a curse is muttered beneath her breath. " can you just-- " sweat beads upon her brow; chiyo sighs, forces her shoulders to relax. she doesn't mean to get angry with them. " i'm sorry. what is it? i'm kinda in the middle of... " being bad at magic? being a bad champion? " practice. "

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"i would drown us in blood to keep you safe." - yora to chiyo! ♥

as said by anders | @gatebounds protected chiyo!

her hands tremble as she cleans the gash upon yora's leg ( how strong and fierce she'd been, even when their enemy's blade sliced into her flesh ). she can do this, chiyo reminders herself. even if she isn't the strongest among her comrades, she can still help. she can still help yora. chiyo pushes out a shaky breath, shuts her eyes.

this would be easier if her hands would just stop shaking.

" i'm sorry, " she tells yora, and she isn't sure if she's talking about her delay or her uselessness during the fight. she decides she's more sorry about the latter, swallows down the self-pity claw it's way up her throat. " you got hurt because of me. "

" i would drown us in blood to keep you safe. "

chiyo pauses, looking her companion in the eyes. her lips twitch into a small smile even as guilt rests heavily in her chest. chosen by a god, she should be the one protecting them, taking blows meant for them. it doesn't matter that she didn't ask for this; she's stuck here now, finds herself invested, so she can't keep hiding behind her friends. the blonde reaches out to place a hand over yora's, gently squeezing.

" you shouldn't have to, but thank you, " chiyo utters and pulls away only to ready herself for the hard part -- actually healing their wound. " now, bear with me, okay? this might hurt. "

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chiyo tag drop <3

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chiyo's chest heaved as mál knocked out the last thug, cheeks flushed from the physical toll of trying to not die. while she had a knife for situations just like this, she still couldn't bring herself to pull it out with the intention of killing to keep herself safe. maybe that was why mál hadn't killed anyone this time; he knew she couldn't handle it just yet.

but wacking someone with her satchel? hitting them over the head with the frying pan mál tasked her with carrying? yeah, she could do that.

startled by a new voice, chiyo's grip tightened upon the metal pan as she swiveled on her heel. " yeah? " she furrowed her brow, shifting uncomfortably under the elf's curious gaze. to know he'd been watching them didn't sit right with her ( though, nothing sat right with her these days ). " thanks, but it's pretty messed up that you didn't help. pretty suspicious to sneak up on us, too. mind telling us who you are? " chiyo gestured with her weapon, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth then. she could feel mál's amusement through their connection, could practically hear his laughter. maybe it was a little funny to be threatening someone with a cooking tool.

"unless you like being hit with frying pans, that is. "

A fight? Oh don't mind if I do -

Though Astarion certainly wasn't going to join or help... or no. He stood on the side lines as the woman he had been watching for a short time was struck at, intrigue filling him as he wondered just who might win... and if anybody would die.

Wouldn't that make for quite the delectable night? A smile finds its way to his lips, standing part way in the shadows of night, fingers brought to his lips as he watched... and while he was disappointed nobody had died (he'd lose money on a bet he had made for just that to happen), the fact that the woman had survived only furthered his intrigue.

It almost made him feel bad. Almost.

"My my, quite the fight you put up there, darling.." his accent colored his words, adding to his charm as he sauntered up, his gaze visibly drifting down her form and back up again to her eyes

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