#do these even like count as valorant tags anymore

[cypher05]

guys you'll NEVER believe what today is

silly unimportant things below :]

originally i was going to draw shit! that didnt turn out well i got lazy and didnt finish either of these. maybe one day but theyre not exactly a priority

aand some texts i thought were funny

didnt think id be posting about fnaf and valorant on my birthday. what a wild life i lead

[shixcherie]

Switch Me Up Like Nintendo | Jeong Yunho ☆

~ ~ call me chérie ☆

Navigation | Kinktober List

☆ Day 09 : Riling Up, Public Sex

↬ [ Synopsis ] : Riling Yunho up has its dangerous consequences, but you can't resist the thrill, especially when you know his rewards will leave you craving more. Angry Yunho = GodMode unclocked!

Word Count : 2.1k Genre : Smut, Gamer Au. Pairing : GammerBF! Yunho x GamerGF! Reader

WARNINGS : Established relationship, riling up, angst, dom/sub undertones, soft dom! Yunho, unprotected sex (don’t do it kids, wrap it up), internet cafe public sex, praise, pet names, size kink (its Yunho, so ofc).

Tag list OPEN! - let me know if you want to be tagged for this Kinktober list

☆☆☆ NOTE : Day 09 is here with our fav puppy boy, Yunho. ma chéries, I enjoyed writing this so much, hope you love it darlings.☆

Yunho isn't usually a sore loser when playing video games,well, maybe just a little. But repeatedly losing can test anyone's patience, and if you had a hand in his defeat, it's bound to become a problem. A problem you're more than happy to endure, especially when it comes to facing the consequences.

An intense match of Valorant is unfolded between San and Yunho, but with a twist—it's a blindfolded battle. One player is blindfolded while their teammate guides them to take down the opponent and secure a kill. The first team to reach 10 kills wins the match.

It’s you and San versus Yunho and Yuna, and let’s just say your guiding skills are a little too effective, enabling San to successfully kill Yunho every single time. After all, you didn’t reach Immortal rank for nothing.

The first two kills were a breeze, Yunho and Yuna weren’t quite prepared, as Yuna was still warming up to her role as Yunho's guide. Meanwhile, you and San, having played countless matches together, secured easy kills. Yunho wasn’t too bothered at this point, after all, it wasn’t the end of the match yet.

But then came the next five kills. In a flash, you directed San through a series of crazy, sneaky attacks from ridiculously clean headshots, one-tap kills, and to even a jaw-dropping knife kill that sent the crowd into a chorus of cheers. The score was now 7-0, and let’s just say Yunho's patience was wearing thin.The whole internet cafe erupted with cheers as you looked around for familiar faces of your freinds as Wooyoung, Hongjoong and Jongho’s face came into sight.

The match was intense, the tension in the room thick. Yunho was laser-focused, determined to turn things around, while Yuna, now fully in sync with him, guided his every move. But even with San blindfolded, you were in control, leading him with precision, knowing exactly how to push Yunho’s buttons.

“San, let’s take our time… no need to rush. We want to savor every moment before we finish them off.” you whispered, just loud enough for Yunho to hear. The tease in your voice was unmistakable. You heard him let out a low groan, oh…music to your ears. Riling him up slowly and steadily was exactly how you enjoyed it.

With the score at 9-0, you couldn’t help but smirk. You knew exactly what you were doing. Each time San landed a perfect headshot or a sneaky kill, you could see Yunho’s frustration building.

“Sannie, let’s get in close, really close… I want them to feel our every move.” you said, your smirk evident in your voice, a smirk Yunho could almost picture behind his blindfold, one he was eager to wipe away.

It wasn’t just about winning anymore, it was about making him squirm and enjoying the way you were getting under his skin, after all that is when you gonna get your sweet reward, as an angry and frustrated Yunho is a sight to behold. And when he fucks you crazy with your eyes rolled back as he devours you with wet kisses, choking you with the perfect amount of force, a point where pain turns into ecstatic pleasure while overstimulating the heck out you yet not letting you cum.

But as much as you enjoyed riling Yunho up, you didn’t want him to leave completely defeated. There’s a fine line between being playful and harsh. So, as the next round started, you decided to give him a chance.

“San, hold on a moment” you said, your voice carrying a hint of concern. You paused deliberately, giving Yunho and Yuna a chance to catch up. With Yuna’s guidance, Yunho managed to slip through and land a shot on San, finally getting a kill.

The score changed to 9-1, and Yunho’s face lit up with a mix of triumph and something else, he knew what you were doing. Despite being blindfolded, he shot you a playful glare and said, “I’ll be keeping this in mind for later.” His frustration turned into a competitive grin. You’d given him a small win, but it was clear he was plotting his own revenge, a sweet revenge at that.

In the final round, you decided it was time to end the match. With San blindfolded, you guided him with intense focus, directing his every move with precision.

“I love how you follow my every command, San. Now, let’s show them how perfectly we work together.” you said, earning a confident “Fuck yeah! lets finish them off” from San.

“I see you’ve got quite the skill. Maybe I’ll need to have a closer look at your talents later.” Yunho teased, his voice laced with playful intrigue. While his mind was fully focused on the game, his body ached to get up and take you right then and there. The crowd’s noise faded into the background as his thoughts were consumed by you and your sweet voice guiding San, effortlessly overshadowing Yuna’s commands.

“We’re not done yet. Let’s see if you can really finish this.” Yuna shouted, bringing Yunho back to his senses. He tried to focus on the match as much as he could, but despite his efforts, he struggled to keep up.

The tension built as you carefully led San into position, like a predator waiting for the prey you were up with a perfect shot lined up for Yunho - Yuna.

In a dramatic climax, San took a deep breath and landed a flawless single headshot, securing the final kill. The match ended with a thrilling 10-1 victory.

The room erupted in cheers as Yunho and San removed their blindfolds.

San enveloped you in a warm, bone-crushing hug, which barely went unnoticed by Yunho as he thanked Yuna for her guidance. As Yunho made his way toward you and San, his eyes were fixed on yours, a mix of challenge and affection in his gaze. San and Yunho exchanged their usual fist bump and hug, as they always did after game nights.

You’d won the game, but you knew the real victory was yet to come later, when it was just the two of you, and Yunho had the chance to get his sweet revenge for all the teasing you’d put him through.

But for now, you basked in the victory, knowing you’d managed to rile him up just the way you wanted.

—

The party was in full swing as the internet cafe you competed with Yunho celebrated its seven-year anniversary, unaware of the real celebration occurring behind the closed doors of Minho’s office, the owner of the cafe. Music blared at full volume while you and Yunho’s friends danced the night away, sipping on their bottles of soju, completely oblivious to the rhythm in which Yunho was moving his long, hard length against your aching core.

Yunho’s lips moved in perfect sync with yours as his length rubbed in a precise back-and-forth motion against your throbbing core, sweet juices leaking in his wake. Your legs wrapped around his waist, your back pressed firmly against the wall, clothes discarded in some dark corner of the room.

“Yuyu… I-I can’t… I nee-need you,” you stammered, barely able to form a coherent sentence as his slow, delicious movements against your aching core clouded your mind. “Too much,” you whimpered, a soft cry escaping your lips. Yunho’s mouth nibbled on your earlobe, making you squirm, your cries muffled by the loud music outside.

“Too much? That’s cute, baby. Didn’t you say something about savoring the moment to San earlier?” he teased, biting your earlobe and earning a sharp yelp from you. “That’s exactly what I’m doing—savoring you bit by bit,” he chuckled, a glint of mischief in his eyes.

“Yunho, I—” you tried to protest, but his pace increased, the friction intensifying as he moved back and forth faster, making your toes curl. Soft, desperate moans escaped your lips like prayers, as if calling for angels.

“Speechless already, baby?” he mocked, pulling his head back to touch foreheads with you, savoring every expression on your face. Your eyes were tightly shut, cheeks flushed a deep shade of red, and your lips, still swollen from the earlier kiss, were now caught between your teeth as you bit down to control the sounds of pleasure his movements brought you. The sight of you—lost in the moment—was almost enough to finish him, but he decided to drag this out just a little longer.

“Tell me what you want, and maybe I’ll give it to you, pretty,” he asked, offering a flicker of hope that he’d finally give in. But then he added with a teasing grin, “Just like you gave me one chance.”

“I want you, Yunho… buried deep inside me, so deep I’m seeing angels,” you panted, your voice trembling with desperation. “F-fuck me harder than ever before. Make my legs give out, make me go completely dumb. I don’t care; just please, make me cum already. I need you more than I need to breathe.”

Your words tumbled out in a messy, breathless rush, a plea so raw it felt like you were confessing your deepest desires. Yunho’s low chuckle sent shivers down your spine as he gripped your waist tighter, teasingly brushing his lips against your ear.

“You’re something else, you know that?” he whispered, voice full of amusement, but his gaze was anything but playful. "I'll give you everything you're begging for... and more." With that, his teasing finally came to an end.

Lining himself up perfectly at your dripping entrance, Yunho slowly pushed in, his thick tip stretching you inch by inch. The sharp sting quickly melted into pure pleasure as you struggled to adjust to his monstrous size. No matter how many times Yunho had fucked you, it was always a challenge for your small body to take him, especially when he was angry. But that never stopped you from teasing him, pushing his buttons whenever you could.

Your nails dug into his back as waves of pleasure shot through your body, your walls gripping him tightly as he bottomed out inside you. Yunho’s mind short-circuited at how tight you were, like it was the first time all over again, no matter how often he took you.

“You’re so big, Yuyu,” you whined, your voice trembling. “I might break apart.” His slow, deliberate movements inside you were torturous, teasing you to the brink, but you could feel the anticipation building for what was coming next.

“Keep up, babygirl,” he groaned, his breath hot against your neck as you clenched even tighter around him. “You’re taking me so well... I might just lose it and empty myself deep inside you.” His voice was thick with lust, wanting to completely mess you up.

As Yunho’s pace quickened, each thrust grew harder and deeper, sending shockwaves of pleasure through you. His fast rhythm made your mind hazy, every movement driving you closer to the edge, while his lips left soft kisses along your shoulder.

“You take me so well, baby,” he groaned, his breath hot against your skin. “I can feel you trembling.” He pressed another kiss to your shoulder.

You could barely form words, your body already teetering on the edge, each thrust pulling you closer to the breaking point. “Y-Yunho, I’m gonna—”

“Not yet,” he growled, pulling back slightly before driving in even deeper. His hips snapped against yours, sending tremors through your entire body. “I want to feel you cum around me, baby. Give me a taste, won’t you?”

The intensity of his words overwhelmed you, pushing you right to the edge. His deep, rhythmic thrusts filled you perfectly, and with each stroke, your moans grew louder, your body unable to resist any longer.

“Now, baby,” Yunho whispered, his voice laced with satisfaction. That was all it took for you to fall apart, the tension inside you unraveling in waves as you cried out his name, your release crashing down hard.

Feeling you clench tightly around him, Yunho groaned deeply, his movements growing more erratic until he thrust one final time, releasing inside you. Good thing you were on birth control, because with how intense it was, this day you would’ve definitely ended up pregnant with his baby. You both stayed still for a moment, breathing heavily as the aftershocks of pleasure slowly faded away.

After a while, you both made your way out of Minho’s office, fully dressed and somewhat recovered from the intense make-out session.

You rejoined your friends, continuing the party as if nothing had happened in that room, like you two had never played your own intimate game of switching moods like a Nintendo console, moving up, down, left, and right, enjoying each other's pleasures.

~ ~ Chérie ☆ signin’ off

DISCLAIMER: This is totally fictional and not a real depiction of the ATEEZ members. It's all just for fun only so please don’t take anything seriously and keep the mood light around here.

© ShixCherie.

[strafethesesinners]

Oc Tag Game

Tagged by @socially-awkward-skeleton @nuclearstorms and @strangefable to fill out this list for my ocs thank you!

Tagging @deputyash @depyotee @unleashed111 @shallow-gravy @florbelles @adelaidedrubman @henbased @inafieldofdaisies @trench-rot @afarcryfrommymain @wrathfulrook @deputy-morgan-malone @direwombat @roofgeese @clicheantagonist @allthearchetypes @nightwingshero @detectivelokis @8bitpizzacoupons @amistrio @cobb-vanthss and whoever wants to!

Favorite OC

What can I say? He’s my best friend, he’s my pal. He’s my homeboy, my rotten soldier. He’s my sweet cheese, my good-time boy. He’s my everything really. Cooper was the first ever OC I’ve ever made for a fandom and he helped free me from a years long stretch of no writing ideas. I’m still so excited about him and I think about him every day. I love that he’s become so iconic because he means so so much to me. I will hopefully get around to telling his full story soon.

Oldest OC

Once again it’s Cooper! Well, if we’re counting still active OCs. Technically I have some older for original stories but I don’t make stuff for them anymore. I made Cooper in May of 2020 and the rest is history. Haven’t looked back since.

Newest OC

Ward Drachen (real name Edward Smithfield) is my most recent OC. I made him uuuuh I honestly don’t remember exactly when but towards the end of last year I think, for rdr2/rdo. I still don’t have much for him, but I really wanted a red dead OC and came up with a basic idea. Hopefully more will come!

Meanest OC

Ward is the meanest OC hands down. This is one mean sunovabitch. He’s taciturn an standoffish, and has no discernible sense of humor. He sometimes delights in cruelty towards his enemies (who luckily can’t be called innocent by any stretch). Ward doesn’t give a shit about other people or their feelings, unless they get close to him and that’s a difficult feat.

Softest OC

It’s Valor! Valor puts on a bit of a tough guy act occasionally but it’s easy to see through, and honestly, he doesn’t try that hard to maintain it. This guy is a sweetheart honestly. He’s open and generous, friendly and upbeat. Once might even say bubbly. He’s a criminal but has never hurt anyone in the course of crimes (pre the events of his story) since they mostly consist of vehicle theft and sometimes data theft. (Cooper loses this one by having a little bit of a mean streak to him; he likes starting fights a little too much).

Most aloof/standoffish OC

Again it’s Ward. He’s not a people person.

Smartest OC

Heath is a pretty smart cookie. He was validictorian for his class in high school and all that and could have easily gotten in to most colleges if he hadn’t decided to join the army instead and then go onto the DEA after getting out. He’s also a little bit of a sleuth. He has a knack for investigation and moved up fast in the DEA because of it.

Dumbest (affectionate) OC

Sigh. Cooper was made to be a little bit of a himbo at first but gradually got dumber. This man went on the run from the law without changing his name or anything about his appearance. He can’t do basic math. He has a huge amount of trouble focusing on anything and is absent minded to the max.

OC I’d be friends with IRL

Valor! I love Cooper but he and I don’t have much in common so I think it would be hard to keep conversations going. Valor and I could totally talk video games and go out on the town together and look for hot guys. Valor is also interested in learning about new things and has a curious mind and great sense of humor so I think we’d get long great. I’d love to be friends with Coop but Valor is a more realistic option for someone I’d actually be friends with.

[starylust]

Facetime? Part 3.

✧ I W A I Z U M I  H A J I M E ✧

✧ M A T S U K A W A  I S S E I ✧

genre: ANGST, fluff

warnings: verbal argument

Word Count: 1245

part 1 | part 2 | part 4

Iwaizumi finally arrived and parked in the parking lot. You were drunk and tired and couldn’t even walk straight.

Iwaizumi got out of the car and walked to your side and opened the door for you. Instead of carrying you this time he put your arm over his shoulder.

“You okay?” He asked.

You hummed nodding your head. He carefully put his arm around your waist for support.

You led him up to the apartment and searched for your keys. You searched through your purse finally finding them.

You unlocked the door and Iwaizumi slowly opened.

Your eyes widened and your heart dropped as you saw the person sitting in front of you. As drunk as you were you felt sober now seeing the person in front of you.

Matsukawa sitting on the couch looked over at the door and saw you and Iwaizumi.

Matsukawa let out a chuckle.

The expression on your face right now could not even be explained. So many different emotions ran through you at once. You haven’t seen him since that facetime call and you didn’t intend to see him again.

The chuckle of his brought you out of your thoughts.

“Not even a week and you’re already with other guys huh?

The irritation and anger that rose inside of you was unexplainable. Was he being serious right now?

“Are you fucking kidding?” You hissed at him.

Completely sobering up now you got your arm off Iwaizumi’s shoulder and walked towards Matsukawa. You did not want to talk to him right now. But if you were you were going to get answers from him.

“Matsu, why’d you do it?” you said as tears from frustration bubbled up.

“You got fucking boring that’s why,” he said rolling his eyes.

You stared at him in disbelief. That’s why he cheated on you? Four years together and he cheated because he was bored?

“I’m being serious, why?” You asked genuinely but still sounded angry.

“I know you can hear. You’re boring that’s why.”

You didn’t know what you wanted to hear but that definitely wasn’t it. The tears that bubbled up had now started falling.

All while this was happening Iwaizumi stood at the door just watching you guys argue. He didn’t want to leave you here but he also didn’t want to interrupt this conversation you needed to have.

“You’re telling me you couldn’t have broken up with me? I wasted four years on you.” You scoffed.

Matsukawa let out another laugh.

“You’re so fucking clingy and sensitive I couldn’t have broken up with you even if I wanted to. You were always up my ass about everything.”

You were speechless to him. He had said things like this here and there during arguments but always made it up to you.

When did it all change? He was head over heels for you when the two of you started dating. He did everything in his power to be able to be with you. 

He treated you so well with an expectation of a couple times but he always made up for it. So when did it all change?

“How long?” You managed to say.

He didn’t answer.

“How long?” You asked once more.

“God damn shut up. For a couple months now, happy?”

Months. Months that he was with you and was fucking another girl. Months that he would come home to your shared home and act like everything was normal.

You stared at him with such hatred and anger in eyes. All Iwaizumi wanted to do was pull you away and comfort you but he knew he shouldn’t interfere, not unless he needed to.

“What the actual fuck is wrong with you,” you said with such pain in your voice.

“What? You’re already out fucking other dudes anyway, just like the slut you are. God I’m surprised you didn’t cheat first. All you do is dress like a dumb fucking slut.”

“I’m surprised I even stayed with you for that long,” he chuckled.

The man you once thought you were going to spend the rest of your life with, the one who was going to have your children, the one who you were going to grow old with spits the most vulgar things at you.

Iwaizumi couldn’t take this anymore. He couldn’t just stand there while your ex boyfriend shit talked you so badly.

Iwaizumi walked over to you and grabbed onto your wrist. He glared at Matsukawa so that if looks could kill he’d be dead.

The fire in Iwaizumi’s eyes pierced into Matsukawa’s body.

“Don’t fucking talk to her like that,” Iwaizumi yelled.

Without letting Matsukawa or you say another word he pulled you out of the apartment and slammed the door as hard as he could.

You stood outside of the door just staring at the ground as tears dropped out of your eyes. Your heart felt like it had been stabbed over and over and the pain would never stop.

Your head was spinning and felt fuzzy, not from the alcohol but from the words he threw at you. Who knew he felt such a way.

Iwaizumi stared at you with sadness now in his eyes as he thought about the pain you felt before increasing by so much.

He reached out his hand and cupped your cheek. He brought your face up so that his eyes met yours.

“Don’t listen to a thing he says okay?”

You nodded sniffling a bit.

Before either of you said anything Iwaizumi pulled you into a hug and put his arms over your shoulders. He held you tight as you put your arms around his torso and hugged him just as tight back.

You started sobbing into his chest once more as the pain was starting to get overwhelming for you. Iwaizumi pulled back from the hug before getting to your eye level.

“I’m gonna bring you to my place for the night okay? It’s getting late and I don’t think your friends are still up.”

You nodded agreeing with his before he took your hand into his. He walked all the way to the car like this squeezing your hands a few times trying to comfort you.

-

Iwaizumi watched as you walked out of the bathroom after being done freshening yourself up for bed. He smiled slightly at this sight of you in his shirt. It basically swallowed you up.

He then frowned a bit to see how red and puffy your eyes had really been. Iwaizumi, already laying in bed, lifted the blankets and tapped the space next to him.

You smiled softly at him before walking over and laying down next to him. You snuggled yourself into his side inhaling his scent.

He rested his chin on top of your head and put his arm around your torso. The legs of the two of you tangled into each other.

“Thank you,” you mumbled.

Iwaizumi smiled once more. He didn’t answer but you knew he heard when he kissed the top of your head. You smiled into his chest as he smiled, the corners of your lips curve up. 

This made his heart hitch a bit but worried not too much about it as the two of you were comfortable the way it is right now.

The two of you fell asleep in each other's arms. One person who just got broken by love and one who is willing to show what love really is to the other.

. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : – ⭒ ⊹ ⭒ – : ✧ : -˚̣⋅ .

taglist: @pelicanpizza​ @kac-chowsballs​ @rrroadkill​ @rosiemalx​ @its-the-aerieljeane​ 

btw for the taglist i kinda just tagged people who asked about parts or asked to be tagged! sorry if i did forget anyone;)

part 4!

hiii guys,

so uh i lied i was playing valorant and then got like a really big urge to write this so i did LOL. im thinking of making like a sequel kind of thing like showing some time in the future and how the three of them are doing!

~𝓶ღ

[spidersmiceandeverythingnice]

OISIN - 4* CASTER - PROFILE

Under the read more!

Summon: “My name is Oisin. I am a poet – and now, I am your Caster-class Servant. Though our time together won’t last forever, I’m glad to meet you, Master."

Initial Information:

A beautiful poet, blessed with eternal youth and wisdom. Though he is a great knight, he is most famous for his silver tongue, which has preserved the legends of many heroes in what is now called the "Fenian" or "Ossianic" Cycle of Irish mythology.

Passive Skills

Territory Creation A

Item Construction C

Divinity C

Active Skills

Heroic Legacy A – Increase defense for three turns and clear own debuffs, increase attack and star generation for all allies for three turns.

Blessings of Youth A – Apply invincibility for 3 turns, apply Arts, Quick, and Buster up for 3 turns. Costs 9 critical stars.

Storyteller B – Drain all enemy NP charge, increase own NP charge, increase party NP gain for 3 turns.

NOBLE PHANTSAM: Dord Fianna – the War Cry to Defend Humanity (QUICK)

Area of effect Noble Phantasm that deals damage to all enemies, special bonus damage to any Threat to Humanity trait enemies. Applies defense down, critical strength down, and slight chance to inflict Terror status to all enemies. Applies attack up, critical strength up, and NP damage up to all allies for 3 turns.

Lines - Room

Idle: “Master, are you doing anything right now? If you’re bored, I can show you the song I’m working on now. No? You’d rather go outside? Well, that’s alright, too. I’ll tag along.”

Master-Servant Relationship: “I’m used to working, living, and fighting alongside others, so this situation is fine for me. Honestly, it brings back pleasant memories.”

Opinion of Master: “I could write a thousand songs about your adventures. I really do consider it to be a privilege to fight at your side!”

Scheherazade: “I think she and I could have a lot in common. And so beautiful too… hey, don’t look at me like that. I’m happily married, you know!”

Author Servants: “There are a lot of very talented people here. I consider myself a formidable opponent, but I think I’ll work a little harder, regardless of that. [laugh]”

Saints: “It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just that I can’t really understand them. I have my reasons, but that may be the one story I’m not interested in telling.”

Irish Servants: “There are so many famous heroes here from ages past. Of course, I already know the tales by heart but I wonder if there would be any differences in the first-hand accounts…”

Diarmuid: “Diarmuid! It’s been too long since I’ve seen your face! Master, this is the only person in the world who is smarter than my father. He always used to beat us at chess, and that’s just the start of it. I’m sure you already know. What? Oh, don’t be modest! And here – look! I brought you some letters from your relatives. They say you hardly ever visit anymore and – hey, where are you going?!”

Fionn: “Ahh… It’s good to see him in his prime like this. He seems to be very at ease here. Seeing that he’s able to smile and relax like this… honestly, he looks just as Mother always described him. Ah, wait a moment. Please don’t ever tell him I said that.”

Lines – Battle

DECK: QQ/AA/B

Start 1: “Just because I am an artist doesn’t mean that I can’t do battle when I need to.”

Start 2: “That look on your face… I have to wonder if you’re not taking me seriously. Well, it can’t be helped. Best of luck to you!”

Skill 1: “This is the blessing I was given.”

Skill 2: “Hmm… still a bit out of tune.”

Skill 3: “With the strength of my own limbs.”

Skill 4: “With actions that will match my speech.”

Attack: [IDK SOME NOISE]

Extra Attack 1: “With purity in our hearts!”

Extra Attack 2: “You won’t underestimate me a second time!”

Noble Phantasm Activation: “If the time has come to defend humanity – then I will serve with all the power I have.”

Noble Phantasm 1: “For the things we have forgotten, and for all that we have to gain – there is something that I, too, must protect. I swear that I shall defeat all evil in the world. With the purity of our hearts – Dord Fianna!”

Noble Phantasm 2: “This is a story of those who stood should to shoulder to defend humanity's destiny, from all that would covet and destroy it. No matter when, or where, we will always rise to meet this challenge. This is our sacred duty – Dord Fianna."

Noble Phantasm 3: “This hunting horn is not for making music – if you’re skittish, you might want to cover your ears. Listen – to our sacred battle cry!”

Injured 1: “Rude!”

Injured 2: “At least make sure to avoid my face!”

Incapacitated 1: “It seems that… once again… I can’t stay beside you until the end… I’m… sorry…”

Incapacitated 2: “It’s always like this, huh… Strange… this time, it doesn’t hurt…”

Victory 1: “I told you from the start. Before I am an artist, I am also a knight!”

Victory 2: “You know, I think I could make a song about this victory. Someone give me a tune! Hey… wait a minute… why are you all walking away?”

Bond 1: “You know, Master, I spent a long time out of human society. So, I need you to tell me to my face if I ever say something strange. Seriously. I’m not joking. I really don’t know what people talk about these days. I’m counting on your guidance.”

Profile 1: Oisin, the son of the legendary hero Fionn MacCumhail. Because his father had already eaten the Fish of All Knowledge, he was gifted from birth with wisdom and a quick wit. His name literally means "little deer" or "fawn."

Bond 2: “What was it like, growing up with such a famous father? Well, that’s a difficult question. Father has always been good to me. I’ve always felt that the Fianna were my family. Even the most loving and tight knit families sometimes fight… and even so… hm. I wonder… …Um, sorry. [slightly nervous laugh] What was I saying again?”

Profile 2: The story of Oisin's birth is a tragedy. His mother, Sadhbh, was Fionn's second wife. Though they were madly in love, his mother had another suitor, who was a cruel and wicked mage. One day, when Fionn was out hunting, the mage lured the pregnant Sadhbh out of their home by impersonating her husband, and transformed her into a deer before loosing her in the forest.

When Fionn returned to their home and found it empty, he immediately marshaled his knights and began to search for them, leaving no stone under-turned.

Eventually, the toddler Oisin was recovered - but his mother was never seen again.

Bond 3: “Yes, yes. My wife is the most beautiful woman in the world. Every man says that about his wife, but in my case, it’s actually true! She’s a wonderful, wonderful woman, and her family always treated me so kindly. I simply lost track of time, that’s all. Yes, I always meant to go back and visit, but the opportunity always… Eh? I trailed off again? I’m not sure why I keep getting lost in thought. Anyway, let’s talk about something else.”

Profile 3: Fionn was never the same after Sadhbh's disappearance. Plunged into a deep mourning, it was said that his entire personality shifted, until he was nearly a shadow of his former, magnanimous self. It was Oisin who volunteered to seek a new bride for his father, perhaps desperate to see his father smile again. It was these events that eventually lead to the Pursuit, another tale that is narrated in the Fenian Cycle.

Bond 4: “Was it hard? Yes, I suppose it was. All the places that I had loved, and all the people I had loved were gone. Even my own father. Even my first son. And then, I was even stupid enough to fall off my horse. Hah. Sorry, Master, I’ll go now. No, no. It’s alright. It’s just that I would never want you to see me like that. That’s all.”

Profile 4: Like the other Knights of Fianna, Oisin lived a long life full of adventures too numerous to recount in full. He married a fairy woman and went to live in Tir na Nog, the land of eternal youth. Eventually, he decided to return to the mortal world to visit his family. His wife gifted him a magical horse, and told him that he would not be able to dismount, or the blessings of eternal youth that he had been granted would disappear.

When Oisin emerged from the Land of Youth, he discovered that 300 years had passed, and the Fianna had all but completely disappeared.

Bond 5: “I will make sure that they remember you. I’ll fight beside you until the end – and then, I’ll make sure that the world remembers you. Really, it’s the least that I can do. But let’s not talk about depressing things. For some reason, I’ve been wanting to write a love song lately. What do you think? ‘Too early…’ It’s never too early for beautiful music! [laughing] Really, you ought to enjoy life a little more, Master.”

Profile 5: DORD FIANNA - The War Cry to Defend Humanity. A war cry to strike fear in the hearts of humanity's enemies, a power that can wake sleeping kings.

This Noble Phantasm would not normally belong to Oisin. It is said, in Ireland, that their great hero Fionn is not dead, but slumbers beneath a mountain, surrounded by his loyal knights, and that the one who blows upon his hunting horn will rise him from his sleep. When he rises, he will resume his duties, to protect humanity.

But the stories of the Fianna exist in the modern age because, after emerging from Tir na Nog, Oisin wrote them all down. Using his talents for word and song, he told the tales of valor and heroism and adventure, the stories of his friends and family to anyone who would listen. After an accident caused him to fall from the horse that should have carried him back to his beloved wife, Oisin lay dying, feeling each of those 300 years seep back into him, even as he desperately tried to finish the story he was telling.

So in this form, the Dord Fianna is not a war cry, but more like a song.

Bonus Profile, Post Interlude: In one version of the story of Oisin, he encounters a certain saint while traveling around Ireland. The saint listens to the knight's tales, but even so, because Oisin is still a pagan and an immortal himself, he and the saint don't get along very well and part on bad terms. Even though Oisin claims that it wasn't like that, and even so, he never holds grudges, he still can't help but make a face whenever the saint's name comes up in conversation.

[saigonharrington]

when worlds collide // Harry Potter fic

Harry Potter x teen wolf crossover

fem!harry, platonic (or is it🥴???) love between fem!harry and scott & stiles

summary: the trio was friends for years, since early childhood, but was it always perfect? Not only boys, but also Harriet was having a secret. What is going to happen now, when the truth has been told?

Harry is Harriet now btw ;)

word count: 2,4K

Words in italics are either narrator’s words or fragments from deathly hallows

requested by @aIaka2109

tagging some people who might be interested: @nerdyblogger06 @laheysdork @blessednereid

//

— — — — — —

The friendships that we create in our childhood are special. Even if they didn’t last long, they made us the way we are now. However, the ones that survived the hard times are something else. That impact is bigger, stronger, just different, but in a good way.

Being friends with Scott and Stiles for sure was magnificent. When Harriett joined that duo, making it a trio, they definitely weren’t the coolest people at school.

Some considered them quirky, nerdy, and awkward, but it didn’t really matter. They were having the best time, successfully ignoring the chatters.

Sadly, that friendship was challenging. After years of adventures, Harriett had been accepted to Hogwarts. The boys had no clue about the wizarding world, being forced to believe that she had just simply moved abroad.

It broke their hearts, but somehow they managed to spend at least half of the summer together. Harriet found it hard not to tell them everything because going to Hogwarts would be an amazing experience, but she had to follow the rules. Her parents said that it could have horrific consequences, and they just couldn’t risk everything.

Something had changed when Scott joined the supernatural world as well. He felt bad that only Stiles knew about it, but how could he tell Harriett?

He loved her, maybe a little more than a friend normally would, but he could not take the chance and lose Harriet. Imagining it was painful, and it being a reality could literally tear him apart.

But today?

Today was the big day for both sides. Stiles and Scott were only miles away from the Dursley’s house, revising the words from the speech that they prepared. They weren’t sure if they were ready to open up, but it was high time to do it. They cannot keep this secret for long.

The boys were just around the corner when Scott had stopped and tried to focus on his hearing abilities.

“I think something’s happening outside the Dursley’s house. Stay here, I’ll try to take a look and check what the conversation is about”

“No dude, I’ll go with you” Stiles replied eagerly, but Scott only shook his head and peeked, hiding behind the walls of the building.

“I see Dudley, and his parents...but Harriet isn’t there. It looks like they’re moving out. Oh, never mind.” Scott took another quick peek around the corner, “I noticed Harriet, but clearly she’s not going with them. There are two more people, looking rather weird.” He gave a description, leaving Stiles curious.

“But what are they talking about? Something might be wrong. I know they aren’t fond of Harriet’s existence, but would they leave her for no reason?” Stiles asked, as Scott tried to focus one more time.

“The man is named Dedalus, I also hear Dudley saying goodbye to Harriet.”

“So it’s true! They’re leaving her!” Stiles started to panic, pacing around in order to calm himself.

“They will see us if you won’t stay still. Let me continue doing my job.” Scott stated, his tone flat.

“And?” Stiles asked after a few minutes, feeling a little more relaxed.

“Okay, something is definitely wrong. These two people sound like they are not humans at all. They don’t understand how to drive a car.”

“Do you think they’re like you? But you can drive a car… maybe they’re like Malia? Hidden in the woods for years, not knowing what is going on in the world…”

“I mean we can’t reject that option. They might not be werewolves, but even I don’t know every creature from the bestiary. We have to ask Harriet.”

“But when? Are we going to wait until they all disappear? It might take a while.” Stiles started asking a lot of unnecessary questions, but Scott wasn’t listening to him.

“They’ve just left” Scott replied, getting ready to step out of their hiding spot.

“No! Wait a minute. If we go now, she might figure out that we were eavesdropping.” Stiles chimed in.

“Fine. But it shouldn’t matter, since, you know, we want to tell the truth. She will feel obligated to explain it to us as well.”

Harriet was now ready to close the door and sit in the almost empty house alone. She didn’t know if she should feel sad, that everything is changing so fast and is out of control, or happy, because she got rid of the Dursley’s and can taste the freedom that she waited for so long.

She heard the weird sound of someone creeping, immediately feeling in danger.

Harriet held her wand in her hand, just in case the use of Expelliarmus might be needed.

“What are you guys doing?! I was ready to punch you!” She yelled, hiding her wand quickly, hoping that they didn’t see it.

“Thanks for your kind welcome, Harriet.” Stiles replied sarcastically.

“We aren’t here to harm you, darling.” Scott added. “There’s just something that we want to talk about. Can we come in?”

Harriet nodded, and the three found themselves in the kitchen, where Scott had found himself a bottle of water.

“Could you explain why the Dursleys left?” Stiles asked directly, not being able to keep it in.

“Oh, I was hoping you wouldn’t notice. It’s a… long story” She tried to avoid this topic, but not today.

The boys were ready to tell everything, and she had to be even with them.

“They were talking about magic. There were two people that didn’t know how to use a car. I don’t think that they were kidding.” Stiles blurted out of nowhere, making Scott split the water of his mouth.

“What we mean is… we heard something while getting there. I know it sounds weird, but honestly, everything is not normal. Please say that you can explain it to us. It won’t frighten us. In fact, we have something not-so-typical to tell you as well.” He said after punching Stiles in the arm because he planned to handle it differently.

“I… don’t know how to start. Even if you won’t be frightened, please just promise me you won’t get mad. I had to keep this a secret.” She started the monologue, making all of them to sit on the floor, so no one could hit his head while fainting.

Telling everything from the start wasn’t the easiest. She had to explain all the weird, unsaid things from their childhood, moving on to the moment when she got to Hogwarts. The stories from the school were definitely her favorite ones because after all these years she was able to share her experience with her friends.

“Woah, after hours of explaining you guys look... not as surprised as I thought you would be. But this is it. What’s your story? Hope I didn’t make you speechless…” Harriet muttered.

“Actually, I think you will feel relieved when you hear our secret. We didn’t get mad at you, so please do the same.” Scott made eye contact with his friend, making sure that he’s okay with Scott taking the lead in explaining. “Stiles, you can add something if I miss it”.

There it was, a historical moment, where two sides of the friendship got to know the secrets of the other. To be honest, they were shocked, all three of them. But considering their problems from the past, they found it easy to understand why some things weren’t said earlier. All they had to do now was try to keep up and spend some time together because they hadn't talked in months.

Harriet connected the dots immediately. Scott was a werewolf, like Lupin. There was not a chance that they knew each other, but she still imagined the meeting of these two, wondering if they would be talking about her.

Unfortunately, Scott said that he doesn’t know Remus.

“ So what are we going to do now? Now that you know that Scott is a werewolf, and you know that Harriet’s a witch. Shall we watch a movie? Too much information today.” said Stiles, trying to find a TV. “Don’t tell me that these stupid Dursleys have taken the television too.”

“They did. They left me only my bed. But never mind, because this evening I’m gonna be somewhere else. Shit, I haven’t told you about this, have I?”

Boys confirmed that they didn’t hear a word about this, so Harriet tried to tell them as much as she could, but it was harder than she thought. Maybe because she did not know what the plan was, or because she was stressed about this.

For sure it could be dangerous, not only for her but for her other friends as well. And now that Scott and Stiles came here, she felt responsible for their safety too.

Telling them about Voldemort was the most exciting part. They never really thought about Harriet’s bravery, but hearing all the stories in detail made them proud of their friend.

Harriet proved that no one should mess with her, and honestly, it impressed Scott. He had a crush on her for quite a while, and now, knowing that she takes part in the supernatural world, he didn’t feel so guilty about it.

He hid his feelings so far because he was worried that she might hate him and reject his feelings. Not anymore. He had a lot of respect for her, for her persistence and valor.

Was it bad that he wanted to kiss her right now? He tried to focus on something else, but hearing her heartbeat as he moved closer to her was making him crazy. If he couldn’t kiss her, he would want to read her mind. So he decided to shoot his shot today.

“Guys, I don’t want to worry you, but Ron has just informed me that they’re coming here in a few minutes. Please hide in this closet.” Harriet’s tone carried a hint of worry, “I don’t want more problems. We’ll talk soon, okay? And try not to leave immediately after us. You-know-who’s sympathizers might be everywhere and I don’t want you get hurt. Understood?” She asked, watching as Stiles was trying to get comfortable in the not-so-big closet.

“Harriet, can I say something?” Scott started, taking her hand and receiving approval. “I...I feel something towards you. I know it’s not the best time, but please remember that I admire you and I want to be more than friends. I understand if you don’t feel the same way, but please, take care of yourself. We will be alright, and hopefully, so will you…” Harriet interrupted his monologue, giving him a kiss, to make him shut his mouth.

“We’ll get back to this conversation soon, I promise. Now, please hide. They’re coming.”

Harriet tried to look casual, as if she was doing something normal and waiting for the visitors, but instead, she looked overwhelmed and disorganized. It took a while until she calmed herself down, and understood everything from Moody’s plan.

“Any questions?” Moody asked after the explanation.

“Er — yes,” said Harriet. “Maybe they won’t know which of the twelve secure houses I’m heading for at first, but won’t it be sort of obvious once—” Harriet performed a quick headcount, “fourteen of us fly off toward Tonks’s parents’?”

“Ah,” said Moody, “I forgot to mention the key point. Fourteen of us won’t be flying to Tonks’s parents’. There will be seven Harriet Potters moving through the skies tonight, each of them with a companion, each pair heading for a different safe house.”

From inside his cloak Moody now withdrew a flask of what looked like mud.

There was no need for him to say another word; Harriet understood the rest of the plan immediately.

“No!” she said loudly, her voice ringing through the kitchen. “No way!”

“I told him you wouldn’t take it well,” said Hermione with a hint of complacency.

“If you think I’m going to let six people risk their lives —!”

“— because it’s the first time for all of us,” said Ron.

“This is different, pretending to be me —”

“Well, none of us really fancy it, mate,” said George earnestly. “Imagine if something went wrong and we were stuck as specky, scrawny gits forever.”

Harriet did not smile at George’s playful joke.

“You can’t do it if I don’t cooperate, you need me to give you some hair.”

“Well, that’s that plan scuppered,” said George.

“Obviously there’s no chance at all of us getting a bit of your hair unless you cooperate.”

“Yeah, thirteen of us against one girl who’s not allowed to use magic; we’ve got no chance,” Fred chortled.

“Funny,” said Harriet, “really amusing.”

“If it has to come to force, then it will,” growled Moody, his magical eye now quivering a little in its socket as he glared at Harry.

“Everyone here’s of age, Potter, and they’re all prepared to take the risk.”

Mundungus shrugged and grimaced; the magical eye swerved sideways to glare at him out of the side of Moody’s head.

“Let’s have no more arguments. Time’s wearing on. I want a few of your hairs, now.” Moody ordered.

“But this is mad, there’s no need —”

Scott and Stiles were patiently waiting behind the door, trying to hear everything correctly. When they heard that there were going to be six more Harriets, they found it hard to sit still.

Stiles, being the curious one, had peeked through the small hole, because he couldn’t believe what was happening.

And he saw exactly what the people were talking about. Seven Harriets and some other adults, who were probably going to guard each one of the Potters. That was insane, and the fact that they couldn’t come closer made him and Scott a little angry.

As everyone was leaving, one of the Potters secretively winked at them, trying not to look weird by winking to a presumably empty closet.

Fortunately, only the boys saw it, others in the room weren’t paying attention, as they were trying to get ready for the adventure. That simple gesture had shown the boys that Harriet remembered them, and that she is hoping to talk to them soon.

But was there a chance for that to happen?

Scott wanted to believe that they were going to chat as soon as possible, but knowing that both of them had lots of supernatural issues around, it wasn’t going to be easy.

//

I’m sorry to inform you that this is the last fic to be published by me for now, I’m taking a break to study, I still might be active here from time to time, but I’ll come back to writing in June

I hope that you people, the 173 of you will still be there, love you guys

[geraltcirilla]

i know you love dousy but what other daisy ships did you love? did you like skyeward staticquake or quakerider? how would you rank these ships?

The thing with Daisy is I love her a lot and I’ve loved her since Day 1 so I’ve actually at some point or another shipped every ship she’s been involved with. But I’ve also fallen out with a lot of them too. My rank from best to worst would be:

Dousy

QuakeRider

StaticQuake

SkyeWard

I don’t consider it a secret - simply a great source of shame - but basically I did ship SkyeWard in season 1 and even partially into season 2 because I wasn’t sure where the writers were taking Ward and his character. Remember this show is 7 years old so I was actually still in high school when it started airing and my young self had different shipping standards. After the Hydra reveal I thought there was a redemption arc in his future and the writers even played into those expectations. It was only after Ward kidnapped and tortured Bobbi we as an audience knew for sure there’s no fixing him, he really is just evil and it wasn’t Garrett who made him that way. (Remember his excuse this whole time was that Garrett saved his life and so he was loyal to him and that’s the only reason he joined Hydra and betrayed the team. And that argument actually kind of held some weight until season 2. Because Garrett wasn’t around telling him to do things anymore and it was his own choice to kidnap Bobbi. That makes it the first true instance of “Ward isn’t just manipulated, he’s simply evil”.) So I stopped liking his character after that and he only got worse and worse so by season 3 he was genuinely detestable to me. I couldn’t stand watching any of his scenes and I was grateful when he was killed off. Don’t hold any of this against me I’m telling y’all because I trust you to hold back judgment, pobody’s nerfect okay. 😭

With StaticQuake I did NOT ship them at first, because I actually didn’t care for Lincoln’s character. Ward was a main character so we got some backstory and character motivation but with Lincoln he was some nobody we knew nothing about and were offered no information on, therefore giving us no reason to be invested in him or in his relationship with Daisy. I only started liking them together after their first kiss because I thought it was an incredibly intimate and well-shot scene. And I kinda liked the angst of him being on the run and not being a fan of SHIELD but joining them to be with Daisy. But once they were in an established relationship I realized they were incredibly dull and flavorless and I stopped shipping them again. For a ship to be good both characters have to be equally complex and developed and the writers were simply unwilling to commit to Lincoln, and the tiny backstory they did give him was stale. When he died I wasn’t sad, I was just glad Daisy was single again so they could introduce a better love interest for her.

QuakeRider is the only ship on the list besides Dousy I actually still ship to this day. The chemistry? There. The well-developed, complex, and interesting backstory for Robbie? There. The heart-eyes? There. The angsty longing? THERE. Everything was there, they were perfect and unmatched and honestly after being introduced to Robbie I’m so sorry I ever gave Ward or Lincoln a chance, old me was such a stupid bitch and she should be cancelled. 💀  I will still happily read fanfiction for them, go through their tag on Tumblr, or watch fanvids for them on YouTube and get that high. But given the character Daisy developed into by season 7 I actually think they probably were not compatible long-term and I’m okay that they didn’t get together. Daisy needs someone stable and reliable and that simply is not Robbie, god bless his sexy soul.

That leaves me to Dousy. The ultimate OTP for Daisy. Sousa is such a great love interest for Daisy. He was the main character of his own TV show and a hype man in his own right long before he ever met Daisy, so he has the street cred to be worthy of her. He’s a WWII vet, a war hero, Chief Security Officer of the entire Western Division of SHIELD, and a “SHIELD Legend” who was the first fallen SHIELD Agent with his name right at the top of the Wall of Valor. He’s brave, smart, loyal, an incredible agent, but also mature, dependable, and solid. He’s the exact type of person Daisy NEEDS. He fits perfectly in that missing whole in her heart. As an orphan who never lived anywhere for more than two years her entire life, who never had a home or a family, what she needs more than anything is stability and that’s what Daniel is. But also he has the chemistry with her to not be some soggy whitebread ship. 

After meeting Daniel it’s very clear he’s the best option for her as none of the other past love interests have those essential qualities of basically being a rock to Daisy’s river. Ward? Evil. Lincoln? His own trauma often overwhelmed him and his relationship with Daisy. (When Daisy had what’s arguably her greatest trauma in the entirety of AOS, her Hive possession? His reaction was “we need to work on ourselves before we can talk about us” which is a perfect example of how Lincoln was simply too damaged himself to be able to help Daisy at all.) He was also incredibly flighty and always trying to run away from SHIELD and everything that Daisy cared about. Robbie? He had bigger priorities than Daisy, like his Passenger and his dimension-hopping. So long as he’s Ghost Rider he’d never be a source of stability for Daisy. Daisy can count on Sousa to ALWAYS be there for her and that’s what she needs more than anything else in a partner.

[tisfan]

Hey, are you still doing those prompts? If yes, would you write some IronFalcon - or even some WinterIronFalcon? (which huii ~ *fans myself*) With either 21. "Are you being sarcastic?" "Me? Sarcastic? Never." Or 82. "What a load of bullshit." Please and thank you! :D (If you don't do them anymore; whoops my bad :P)

Title: Welcome to the Club Collaborator(s) Tisfan Link https://archiveofourown.org/works/24235783 Square Filled Y4: Collateral Damage StarkBucks Bingo: B1: walking disaster Ship/Main Pairing Bucky/Sam Bucky/Sam/Tony Rating general Major Tags/Triggers/Warnings some homophobic language, homophobic parents, Howard Stark’s A+ parenting, pre-slash, possible threesome much much later Summary Bucky’s getting some use out of his terrible Christmas Present. Unfortunately, Tony gets in the way. Word Count 1580

For @buckybarnesbingo @starkbucksbingo and @justsomeoneunordinary

Tony took the empty cardboard boxes, neatly broken down as requested by the big sign in front of the dumpers, down the stairs. Moving in the day after Christmas had been rough, and he was glad he didn’t have a lot of stuff to take with him. (Howard had practically growled the whole time he was packing, making sure he didn’t take anything valuable with him to sell on the other side.) 

The smallest rental van he could afford and a few trips, and he was now the proud renter of a shitty apartment with almost no furniture, some crappy dishes, his clothes, and Dum-E taking up space.

On the plus side, he’d discovered that his mom had slipped a couple thousand dollars into one of the moving boxes before he left, so he had a little less precarious problems than he had before he’d unpacked it.

Tony about jumped out of his skin when the dumpster next to him exploded. Debris rained down on him, sharp and stinging.

He hit the ground, scraping the denim out at the knee, and erasing some of the skin underneath. “Son of a bitch,” he yelled, covering his head.

The moment of sheer panic subsided and he realized what he’d thought was a bomb or gunfire was, in fact, the shattered remains of a plate.

He stared around, until finally he looked up to discover two men standing on a balcony overlooking the trashcan. One of them had his hand over his mouth and looked aghast. The other was laughing like a loon, pointing at the first one.

“Shit, man, you okay?”

Tony climbed to his feet, hissing as his knee stung. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Sam’s chuckin’ china,” the other man said, still giggling. “Sorry, you’re just collateral damage.”

Tony looked down at his ruined jeans. “Yeah, great,” he said. “Fantastic. Terrific.” He limped a few steps back toward his apartment, the cut dripping blood down his calf and into his sock. Shit. He didn’t even think he owned a first aid kit.

“Seriously, man, you okay?” Sam was practically leaning off the balcony, and while it wasn’t that high up, falling three stories onto a cement sidewalk wasn’t going to be good for anyone.

“Scraped my knee,” Tony reported. 

“You missed, you asshole, you missed,” the other guy said.

“Hang on a minute,” Sam yelled, then smacked the other guy who was still laughing. “Shut up, you walking disaster.”

Both of them vanished into their apartment. Tony waited for a moment, then decided he didn’t really need someone taking pictures and for it to end up in one of those cheap supermarket magazines. It wouldn’t take long for Howard to figure out that Tony hadn’t even made it one day before something stupid happened.

He got all the way to the stairs before his leg decided enough of this shit. Fuck. Well, maybe he could just rest a bit, and--

“Wait, no, don’t sit down, we’re comin’,” the laughing guy said. 

Don’t sit down, what was he, crazy. “Don’t sit down,” Tony grumbled, “what are you, crazy?”

“Don’t you mind him,” Sam said. “Look, if it’s okay, we goan carry you upstairs and see to that knee of yours. You can trust me, I’m an EMT.”

“Don’t look at me,” the other guy said, “I just drive the ambulance.” The other guy was hard not to look at, honestly. Grey-blue eyes and a jaw you could rest a shot glass on. Man, Tony would like to do shots off that jaw, honestly. He decided that not getting punched in the face was the better part of valor, however, and didn’t say so. 

“You guys--”

“Work for the local hospital, yeah. I’m Sam Wilson, this is my partner, Bucky Barnes.” Sam offered a hand to shake.

“And you’re going to carry me upstairs,” Tony continued. “Are you sure you didn’t hit me in the head?”

“Yep,” Bucky said. He and Sam did something, and suddenly their hands were aligned in such a way, with one of them gripping the other’s forearms, that made a little basket of their arms. Something to sit on. Huh. Tony was impressed. Sure, why not.

“If you all drop me down the stairs, I will sue,” Tony said.

“I ain’t drop nobody yet,” Bucky said. “That’s Steve.” And at Tony’s blank look, he added, “another guy on our crew. But me and Sam are the same height, so we can do this.”

“Huh. Okay.”

Gingerly, Tony sat down on the little seat-frame they made.

“One, two--” Sam said, and suddenly Tony was being carried like he was the damn Prom King or something, and they went up the stairs with alacrity. Two flights and Tony might have been breathing hard, but these guys weren’t even breaking a sweat. 

“Uh, don’t you even want to know what floor I’m on?”

“Nope, you’re coming to our place,” Sam said. “My kit’s there.”

“Am I being kidnapped for my kidney, this sounds like it might be--”

“Oh shut up,” Sam said, “an’ open the door. It’s unlocked.”

“All right, here, on the sofa, and--”

“Drop your britches,” Sam said.

“This is sounding more and more like a kidnapping at every turn,” Tony said, but he did what Sam said, because there was, in fact, an EMT kit right there on the coffee table. And also, treating a scraped knee was going to take either getting the pants off, or cutting them open. And Tony didn’t have that many pairs of pants, really. He could get one of those iron on patches, and whine at Pepper, maybe, until she fixed them. Although she would probably just look up some videos on YouTube for him and tell him to stop assuming she knew how to cook or sew just because she was a woman. Maybe he wouldn’t ask her.

See, Pepper, I can be taught.

Sitting in his boxers on someone else’s sofa that he didn’t even know was super weird.

“This is super weird, guys,” Tony said.

“No, no, the guy we had to triage about fifty feet down a drainpipe, that was weird.”

“I dunno, I liked the lady who got stuck to the inflow pipe of her swimming pool. That was fun.”

The two of them traded stories back and forth, Tony listening with rapt attention, as Sam cleaned out Tony’s knee.

“Here, you got some gravel in it,” Sam said. He pulled out a pair of extra long tweezers and a kidney shaped metal dish, plucking the rocks and debris from Tony’s wound with an expert hand. The gravel made little plink noises as it hit the dish.

“Little bit of bacitracin and some topical numbing agent--”

“Like the stuff in solarcaine,” Bucky added helpfully.

“--and a bit of spray on skin, to seal it up. Wearing a bandaid on your knee is all but pointless,” Sam said.

“Huh.” Tony looked down, then put his pants back on. It still hurt, but it wasn’t bleeding. So, you know, that was good. “So, uh, why were you throwing dishes off the balcony?”

“So, Bucky and me, we’re partners, right?” Sam said. “And--”

“My father doesn’t approve, which you know, whatever, screw him anyway,” Bucky said. “Although I can’t figure out if the problem is, I am gay, or that Sam is black.”

“Usually with that type, it’s both,” Tony said. 

“But he’s been trying to-- I don’t know, get fuckin’ brownie points with me by pretending everything’s still cool,” Bucky said. “It’s stupid, but I reckon he don’t want to end up being old and my bein’ the person who gets to pick his nursin’ home or something. Or he doesn’t want people to ask the wrong sorts of questions.”

“Bucky’s a hero,” Sam said. “It was in the papers and everything. So people do ask about his son.”

“So, he sent me this fuckin’ Christmas present, right?”

“Dishes?”

“Yeah, like, not even ones you can eat off, but those bullshit things you put on the wall,” Bucky said. 

“Bradford Exchange,” Tony asked, because Rhodey had gotten big into those for a while, buying plates with Star Trek ships on them, and the like. He had a whole collection of them.

“An’ like, not even nice ones of those. Crappy ones. With bible verses on them. That you get from like, the Dollar Store.”

“Which would still be okay, spirit of Christmas, maybe,” Sam said. “Except he regifted them. Someone at his office gave them to him, and he left the receipt in the box. Probably not on purpose--”

“With George, it’s not like you can tell whether he’s bein’ a jackass or not,” Bucky complained. “What a load of bullshit.”

Tony recognized that tone of voice, too. That was the tone of a man who still cared, and was mad at himself that he did. Wanting Dad’s approval and hating himself that he wanted it. And still not getting it.

“So, this happy asshole here,” Sam said, “was trying to see if he could hit the dumpster from the balcony. Which is how you ended up involved.”

“Hey, I got two of them in, which ain’t half bad. You’re the one who missed by a mile.”

“My dad kicked me out three days ago, because he caught me in my room with a boy,” Tony said. “So-- can I join your club?”

Sam and Bucky looked at each other, then grinned. “We’ve even got jackets.”

[until-the-sun-rises]

Virgil’s Promise

AU Intro Post

AU Creators: @a-valorous-choice and @ironwoman359

Summary: Virgil, his mother, and his little brother Thomas have been living in the woods since a virus outbreak wiped out most of the population, including Virgil’s father. Life can be bleak, but they make the most of what they have. However, when Virgil’s world is turned upside down again, will he have what it takes to keep his little brother safe?

Content Warnings: Apocalypse AU, angst, character death, death of a parent, guns, knives, violence, mentions of blood, zombies (called terminals in universe), mentions of eating people (in a zombie sense, not a cannibal sense), crying, grief, sympathetic deceit, sympathetic remus, cursing, bittersweet ending. PLEASE let us know if you need anything else tagged, and stay safe! There are moments of comfort sprinkled throughout but this is mostly an angst piece with, again, a bittersweet ending. Do what you need to do to protect yourselves <3

Word Count: 5,464

Read on AO3 Here

Author’s Notes: Here it is, the first installment of the AU! I had such a fantastic time writing this, I’m really really proud of it, and can’t wait to hear what you guys think! Looking ahead, you can expect more introduction fics like this for our other main players, then we’ll get into other details of the main plotline! In the meantime, asks are open if you’d like to scream at us about the AU, we’d love to scream back! Love you guys, thanks so much for the support! -Taylor ☕️

--- --- ---

“Mom, I found more berries!” 

Virgil looked up to see his eight-year-old brother holding out a handful of dark purple berries with a wide grin stretched across his face. 

“Thomas, put those down!” their mother Emma cried, rushing over to Thomas’s side. “Those are pokeweed berries, honey, you can’t eat those. They’ll make you very very sick if you eat them, okay?” 

“Oh...okay. Sorry.” 

Thomas’s lip wobbled a little, and Emma smiled, smoothing back Thomas’s hair. 

“It’s okay, sweetie, you didn’t know. They’re very pretty berries, aren’t they?” 

“Uh huh,” Thomas agreed, nodding. “That’s why I thought they were fine to eat.”

“There’s lots of things in the woods that look pretty, but not all of them are safe, okay? Pokeweed berries are never fine to eat, they make you really sick. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, I do.” 

“Good boy.” Emma smiled, and pointed over his shoulder. “Now, see those white flowers behind you?”

“Uh huh.” 

“Those are Queen Anne’s lace flowers. And their roots are actually wild carrots! Why don’t you go over and dig some up for us, okay?” 

Thomas nodded eagerly and skipped over to the patch of flowers. Emma sighed in relief, and sat back on her heels, smiling fondly as she watched her son. 

“I thought pokeweed was okay sometimes?” Virgil asked, coming up behind her, causing her to jump a little. 

“Virgil! You startled me, who taught you to move so quietly?” 

Virgil grinned. 

“You did. When you insisted you take me paintballing for my sixteenth birthday.” 

“Fair’s fair,” Emma laughed. “What did you ask me just now?”

“Pokeweed,” Virgil repeated. “I thought you could eat it sometimes?”

“Ah, I see,” she said. “Well, that’s true, but never the berries, or the roots. You can eat the leaves sometimes, but only if the plant is young. If you see the berries start to form, even if they’re still green, you shouldn’t even try. And you should boil the leaves first too. If you’re not careful, you could get vomiting or diarrhea...and that’s something we want to avoid when we’re fighting for our lives, isn’t it?” 

She said it in an upbeat tone, but the sombering nature of their reality couldn’t help but settle over Virgil’s shoulders anyway. He tugged the sleeves of his hoodie down over his hands, gripping the soft fabric tightly. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you,” Emma said softly, and Virgil shrugged. 

“S’not your fault. The whole world is kinda upsetting right now.” 

It had been three months since the outbreak, three months since Virgil’s father had died and he’d been on the run with his mom and brother, trying to stay alive. Fortunately, Emma was an avid camper and lover of the outdoors, so the three of them had been able to avoid towns for the most part. Sure, staying away from civilization meant that they were living off of mostly foraged plants and birds eggs, and it’d been ages since Virgil had taken a real shower, but those were small prices to pay for being able to mostly avoid the terminals. Thy tended to be in larger groups closer to towns and cities, so sticking to the country meant fewer encounters with the deadly infected creatures. 

People, Virgil thought grimly. They may be like monsters now, but they used to be people.

“I know it is, sweetheart,” his mother said, pulling him from his thoughts. “And it’s not fair, how fast you’ve had to grow up now.” Emma sighed, looking over to where Thomas was eagerly digging up roots for their supper. “You should be enjoying your summer, deciding on a college or a career...not this.”

Virgil shrugged. 

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to do anyway.”

“I know that,” Emma said, giving him a sad smile. “But you had time to figure it out, to explore the world and decide what kind of man you’re going to become. Now that’s a luxury you don’t have anymore.”

Virgil looked down at his shoes, swallowing nervously. It wasn’t like his mom to be so openly melancholy; if anything, since they’d gone on the run she’d become even more upbeat and cheerful than usual. He had a feeling that she was trying to keep a brave face up for him and Thomas, but just because he knew it was partly an act didn’t mean he didn’t appreciate it. Some days he could almost pretend that this whole thing was just an extended summer camping trip, and then they’d go home and their dad would greet them at the door and they’d tell him all about it while sitting on the sofa in front of the TV. 

That illusion shattered every time they came across a terminal. 

“Virgil, listen to me,” Emma said, and there was an urgency to her voice that made Virgil look up. “Right now, the only thing we can be certain of, the only thing we can rely on, is each other. It’s my job to look out for the both of you, and it’s your job to look out for Thomas. Protecting him has to be the top priority, alright?” 

“Yeah,” Virgil nodded, swallowing down the lump in his throat. “Yeah, I know, Mom. I...I won’t let anything happen to him.” 

“Oh, honey, come here,” she said, and Virgil let her wrap her arms around him. 

He felt exceptionally small in his mother’s embrace, but not the bad kind of small where he felt powerless and afraid. He felt safe, protected, shielded from all the horrors of the world. Her grip tightened, and Virgil realized with a start that she was trembling.

“Mom?” 

“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered. “You’re so strong, and so brave. Thomas is lucky to have you for a big brother.” 

Virgil didn’t feel strong most days, and he certainly didn’t feel brave. Most of the time he just felt scared; strength and bravery were attributes he’d be more likely to apply to his mother than himself. But the way she held onto him now, as though he’d disappear if she let go for one second made him realize that she was also scared. Scared for herself, but scared for him, too, and for Thomas; scared that she couldn’t keep them safe in this new world full of dangers. 

Virgil may not have had much faith in himself, but he had faith in his mother. And she was putting her faith into him, and he’d be damned if he let her down. 

“I won’t let anything happen to him, Mom,” he repeated, hugging her back tightly. “I promise.” 

--- --- --- 

Virgil’s heart was pounding so heavily he was sure it was going to burst out of his chest. Wouldn’t that just be his luck, he’d escape being eaten by terminals only to fall over dead from a heart attack. His lungs were on fire, and his legs threatened to buckle underneath him more and more with every step. But then Thomas whimpered in his ear, burying his face deeper into Virgil’s neck, and Virgil took a deep breath. He adjusted his grip on Thomas’s legs and pressed forward, his mother’s instructions echoing in his ears and urging him onward. 

The old cabin had seemed deserted enough, with no trace of the previous inhabitants anywhere, so they’d gotten a little too relaxed as they searched the building for supplies. But it turned out the area wasn’t as deserted as they thought, and the sound of his little brother screaming had brought Virgil barreling out of the bathroom and into the main room to see three terminals bearing down on his family. Virgil’s mother was gripping a tire iron like a baseball bat and standing between Thomas and the advancing creatures.

“Virgil,” she’d said in a low voice. “Take Thomas and get out of here, now.”  

Virgil hadn’t wanted to leave her, but the look in her eyes had left no room for argument, so he’d scooped his brother up piggyback style and fled towards the back door, wincing as he heard his mother let out a primal roar, followed by a sickening *thwack*.  

Virgil didn’t stop running until he stumbled back into the clearing where they’d made camp, collapsing to his knees and letting Thomas climb off his back. Every muscle in his body ached, and for a moment he just stayed on the ground, gasping as he fought to get his breath back. 

“Virgil?” Thomas asked, voice wobbling, and Virgil looked up to meet his brother’s tear-filled eyes. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah,” Virgil gasped, managing to give his brother a small smile. “I’m...I’m okay...just...just catching my breath.”

“Is Mom okay?” 

Virgil opened his mouth, then closed it again. Part of him wanted to lie, to promise that their mother would be just fine and would come and get them when the scary monsters were all gone. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it, and he met his brother’s gaze with a grim expression. 

“I...I don’t know, Thomas.”

Thomas fell silent, and for a moment neither of them moved, Virgil still gulping down breaths of air, trying to get his wind back. Then, so suddenly that it made Virgil jump, Thomas crawled forward and nestled himself into Virgil’s lap, wrapping his arms around his middle and laying his head on Virgil’s chest. 

“Your heart is beating really fast,” he said, and Virgil nodded, wrapping his arms around Thomas and drawing him closer. 

“Yeah, it is, buddy,” he said quietly. 

“You should count your breaths like Mom says to do. Okay?”

“Okay, yeah. That’s a good idea,” Virgil said, grateful for something that could distract them both. “How about we do it together? Remind me how it starts again?” 

Thomas scrunched up his nose as he thought. 

“You breathe in for four counts, right?”

“That’s right, good job. Let’s do that together, okay? In, two, three, four…” 

Virgil led them through the rest of the breathing exercise over and over again until Thomas drifted off to sleep, exhausted by the stress of the day. Virgil wanted nothing more than to join him in a nap, but he couldn’t sleep now, he had to stay up and keep watch, to see if their mother...or anything else, would approach the camp. 

He waited for what felt like hours, every sense straining for any sign that somebody was coming. Finally, just as the sun was starting to dip in the sky, he caught sight of someone slowly walking towards the campsite. His heart leapt as he recognized his mother’s silhouette, short but strong with hair pulled up into a high ponytail. 

“Thomas?” he murmured, giving his brother a small shake. “Wake up, Mom’s here.” 

“Hmm?” Thomas asked blearily, still half asleep. 

“Mom is…” Virgil trailed off as he looked back towards where their mom was walking. 

Something was wrong. 

Oh no...oh god, no, not this, please not this…

“What about Mom?” Thomas asked again rubbing at his eyes. 

Oh god, I can’t do this, I can’t deal with this, please…

Virgil’s grip tightened on Thomas, and he scrambled to his feet, backing away while keeping his eyes trained forward. 

“Virgil, what’s–” 

“Thomas, listen,” Virgil said urgently, setting his little brother down. “I need you to hug this tree here and close your eyes, okay? Whatever you do, whatever you hear, don’t open them until I tell you. Do you understand?”

“Virgil, is Mom–” 

“Do you understand?” Virgil asked desperately, and after a beat, Thomas nodded. “Good,” Virgil breathed, pressing his forehead against Thomas’s for a moment and taking a deep breath. “Close your eyes now,” he whispered, and he stood back up, turning back towards his mom. 

No. That’s not Mom. Not anymore. 

The woman that was lumbering towards him moved her limbs in broken, jerky motions, as though she was a poorly controlled marionette. Her eyes were bloodshot and empty, and saliva drooled out of her open mouth. A low moan escaped her lips as she came closer, and Virgil’s heart tightened in his chest. He’d seen terminals before, knew how they worked and how to kill them. But this...this was different. 

This was his mother, and now she was a monster. 

Virgil scrambled towards the log at the edge of their campsite where they’d stashed their supplies. There wasn’t much there, just one change of clothes, a few handfuls of food, the last of their bandages, and...there. His mom’s .22 rifle. 

“We only have one bullet left, Virgil. So until we can find some more ammo, we’re not going to hunt or travel with this anymore, okay? We’ll keep it here in case there’s an emergency.”

Virgil’s hands shook as he pulled out the gun and checked to see that their last bullet was properly loaded. He’d never cared much for shooting, but after they’d made a run for the woods, his mom had insisted he learn to use it, teaching him how to hunt rabbits, possums, and other small animals that she’d then showed him how to clean and skin before cooking. 

He’d never shot a terminal before. 

Realistically, one of three things would happen. One, Virgil’s mother would attack them and he and Thomas would die, leaving their mother to feast on their remains. Two, Virgil’s mother would attack them and he and Thomas would turn terminal themselves, which basically boiled down to being brain dead while your body shuffled around in search of food. Or three...

Virgil raised the rifle up, tucking the butt to his shoulder and blinked away the tears that were forming in his eyes. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, then he squeezed the trigger. 

The gunshot echoed through the forest, and though Virgil’s ears were instantly ringing, he could still hear the sound of Thomas’s scream from behind him. Everything seemed to slow down as Emma’s body dropped to the floor of their campsite, instantly going still. A blur flew past Virgil, and he just barely dropped the rifle in time to catch Thomas as he rushed towards their mother.

Thomas struggled desperately against Virgl’s grip, sobbing as he tried to get free and run towards her. Virgil just held him tighter, ignoring his own tears as he pulled Thomas away. 

“Thomas,” he choked out as Thomas kicked and struggled. “T-thomas, no, it’s not safe...th-they can still turn you when they’re dead if you’re not careful…”

Thomas just kept kicking and sobbing, and Virgil could do nothing but hold him back, even as his own tears fell. Eventually, Thomas went limp against him again, though his little body still quivered with sobs, making Virgil’s heart ache even more. He wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball with his baby brother and sleep, sleep until all the anguish bled away and left him empty. 

But a steely voice inside him insisted that no, he couldn’t do that. The terminals were drawn to loud noises, and the gunshot was sure to attract more of the creatures to this spot. They needed to move, and quickly, if they wanted to avoid any more confrontations with the creatures, and with only his hunting knife left to defend themselves with, Virgil would rather avoid running into more of the terminals. 

“Thomas,” he said, drawing away to look his brother in the eyes. “Thomas, look at me.” 

Thomas looked up, his eyes puffy and red with tears trailing down his cheeks, and Virgil had to resist pulling him close for another hug. There would be time for grief later. 

“I need you to go to the log and gather up all our things, okay? Can you do that for me?” 

“M-mo...M-mom–” Thomas choked out, and Virgil cupped the back of his head, pressing their foreheads together. 

“I know, Thomas, I know,” he said, more tears pooling in his eyes. “I am so, so sorry, but it’s not safe for us here. More of them will be coming, and Mom would want us to get far, far away so that we can be safe. Okay?” 

Thomas sniffled, but nodded, and Virgil smiled at him through his tears. 

“There’s a brave boy. Now go gather up our things, we need to move.” 

Thomas stumbled over to the log, and Virgil took a deep breath before turning towards his mother’s body in the clearing. His stomach churned as he approached, and he swallowed down the bile that rose in his throat. It wasn’t pretty, but he knew what he had to do. 

Virgil pointedly kept his gaze away from his mother’s  face and carefully knelt down, sliding the straps of her knapsack off her shoulders. He took care not to touch anywhere near her now foam filled mouth, remembering what the news reports had said about the creatures when the outbreak had first occurred...back when they were still running news reports. 

The virus is transmitted via bodily fluids; even if the infected subject is deceased, their corpse may still infect others if their blood or saliva comes into contact with open wounds.

Virgil tugged the bag out from under her, stepping away as she fell back against the ground. A quick rifle through its contents revealed most of the supplies that they’d gathered from the cabin, and his heart twisted again in his chest. By the looks of things, she’d managed to fight off the three terminals from the cabin and had stayed herself long enough to gather up their supplies and head back towards their camp. She probably hadn’t even realized she’d been infected until it was too late. 

Virgil took one last look at his mother’s body, and paused as he saw a glint of gold around her neck. He looked over his shoulder to where Thomas was packing up their bag, then bent down and quickly pulled a heart-shaped locket from around his mother’s neck. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered again, allowing himself one brief look at her face. “I’ll look after him, Mom, I promise.” 

He slipped the locket into his pocket, then turned and walked over to Thomas. 

“Hey, buddy. Got everything?” 

Thomas looked up at him and nodded solemnly. 

“Good. It’s time for us to leave then, okay?” 

Thomas looked over at their mother one last time, then back up at Virgil. 

“Can you carry me?” he asked. 

Virgil could already feel exhaustion creeping over him, and his limbs still ached from their earlier escape, but right now? There was no way he could say no to his little brother. 

“Sure, buddy. I’ll need you to carry the backpack though, okay?” 

Thomas nodded, and after Virgil had helped slide it over his shoulders, Thomas climbed up and linked his arms around Virgil’s neck. Virgil gripped Thomas’s legs and stood up with a grunt, taking a moment to readjust his hold now that he was standing. 

“Ready?” he asked, and he felt Thomas turn his head to look behind them again. His chest ached, and he reached up and gave Thomas’s hands a squeeze. 

“Yeah,” Thomas said eventually, laying his cheek against Virgil’s back. 

“Okay,” Virgil murmured, grabbing hold of Thomas’s legs again and stepping away from their campsite, one thought repeating over and over again in his mind as he walked. 

I’ll keep you safe, Thomas. I promise.

--- --- ---

Keeping an eight-year-old alive and safe in the woods during the apocalypse turned out to be harder than Virgil had anticipated, and it wasn’t long before he was completely desperate. He’d tried to replicate the traps his mother had set, and tried to fish using makeshift spears or reels, but he was either doing something wrong or had horrible luck, because the traps remained empty, and he was unable to catch more than one or two tiny fish per attempt. It wasn’t long before their meager food supplies ran out, and eating roots and leaves could only satisfy a growing boy for so long. Virgil was out of options. 

So he found himself here, gripping Thomas’s hand and standing on the outskirts of a small town at the edge of the woods. 

For most of their time living wild with their mother, they’d avoided towns. Areas that were once populated may have meant more supplies, but they also meant more chances of running into terminals, and Emma had wanted to avoid that at all costs, choosing instead to rely on her history of camping rough with her family as a child for survival. 

But Virgil simply wasn’t good enough to scrounge up enough to feed the two of them from the forest alone, so here they were. 

“Okay, buddy, remember what we’re looking for?” he asked, looking down at Thomas. 

“Canned food, clean clothes, blankets, and medicine,” Thomas rattled off, and Virgil smiled. 

“Yeah, that’s right,” he said. “Now, anything you find, you bring to me first to check the expiration date first, okay? We don’t want you eating something and getting sick.”

“I can read the dates myself, you know,” Thomas muttered, kicking at the pavement. “I’m not a baby.” 

“Right, of course,” Virgil agreed with a smirk. “You’re not a baby, you’re just a pipsqueak.” 

He reached down to ruffle Thomas’s hair, but his brother ducked away. 

“I am not!” he huffed, glaring up at Virgil, and Virgil held his hands up in surrender. 

“Okay, okay, whatever you say. Just let me look at the food before eating it anyhow, okay?” 

“Fine,” Thomas grumbled, and Virgil held back a sigh. 

The two of them had been on their own for just about three weeks now, and while some days were perfectly fine, other days there was an unmistakable tension between the two. It was worse when they were hungry, and with nothing but flower roots to eat for the past three days, it was fair to say they were pretty hungry now. 

“Thomas?” Virgil said, kneeling down so that he was eye level with his brother. “Can you look at me?” 

Thomas glanced over at him, and Virgil offered up a small smile. 

“I’m sorry if I seem too...overbearing. You know why that is, don’t you?” 

Thomas shrugged, and Virgil placed a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s because I want to make sure that nothing bad happens to you. I know I’m not always the best big brother to have, but all we’ve got is each other now. So if I...make some mistakes along the way, just know it’s because I want to keep you safe, okay?” 

Virgil was expecting Thomas to nod and move on, so he grunted in surprise when instead Thomas threw his arms around Virgil’s neck in a suffocating hug. 

“Okay,” he whispered, and Virgil didn’t care that he could barely breathe, he hugged his brother back just as tightly. “You were wrong about something though,” Thomas added, his breath tickling Virgil’s ear as he spoke. 

“Oh? What’s that, buddy?”

“You’re the very best big brother to have,” Thomas mumbled into Virgil’s shoulder, and suddenly Virgil was blinking back tears. 

“Thanks, Thomas,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut and pulling Thomas closer. 

He was about to let go when suddenly Thomas gasped, his whole body tensing up. Virgil’s eyes flew open in an instant and he stood up on instinct, gathering Thomas into his arms as he did so. There, barely a hundred feet away ambling into the street from behind one of the houses, were two terminals. It didn’t seem like they’d noticed the two brothers just yet, but searching the houses on this street had just become last on Virgil’s list of things to try that day. 

“Don’t make a sound,” he breathed in Thomas’s ear as he slowly stepped away. 

He tried to turn back the way they’d come, but froze as he saw three more staggering towards them from that direction. He spun around, his eyes scanning the street, and his heart slowly sank into his stomach. There was no way out of this neighborhood that wasn’t blocked off by private fencing or didn’t involve going past the growing number terminals. 

Well. 

Not for him anyway. 

“Thomas?” he said quietly. “Listen very carefully, okay?” 

Thomas nodded, his cheek brushing against Virgil’s, and Virgil held his breath for seven seconds. 

“I’m going to put you down,” he said slowly. “Then when I tell you, you're going to run straight down the street back the way we came, do you understand?” 

“Virgil?” Thomas asked, and Virgil pried him off his neck, setting him on the ground and staring at him intently. 

“Do you understand?” he asked, and Thomas’s wide eyes filled with tears, but he nodded. “Good,” Virgil whispered, squeezing Thomas’s hand. 

The terminals were ambling closer now, and he straightened up. He allowed himself one more squeeze of Thomas’s hand, then he let go and opened his mouth to scream. 

All of a sudden there was a *thwap!* sound that came from between the houses, and then the terminal closest to Virgil and Thomas had an arrowhead sticking out between its eyes. The creature fell forward and Virgil froze, too stunned to move. 

“Woo hooooooo!” a voice yelled from the direction the arrow had flown from, and the terminals turned towards the new source of sound. “Perfect headshot!” 

“Virgil?” Thomas asked, and Virgil dropped to the ground again, gathering his arms around Thomas and pulling him close. 

Another arrow flew into a nearby terminal’s chest, accompanied by more cheers, then a wild looking man in a dirty green t-shirt with a white streak in his hair burst out onto the street, a machete gripped in his hand. 

Virgil barely had time to wonder where on earth that maniac had gotten a machete before he was charging the terminals with it, squealing with delight every time his blade connected with a creature’s neck or head. It wasn’t long before every last one of them was no more than a bleeding corpse on the ground. 

“Coast is clear!” he called over his shoulder, wiping his blade off on his already filthy pants. “Oh, no...wait,” he added as his gaze found Virgil and Thomas crouching beside a house. “Looks like we’ve got a live one, Dee!”

Another man emerged from across the road, a yellow beanie on his head and a bow and quiver strapped to his back, though Virgil’s eyes were first drawn to the large burn scar covering the right side of his face. 

He approached calmly, ignoring the way Virgil scrambled to his feet and shoved Thomas behind him. He stared at the two of them for a moment, at Virgil’s narrowed eyes and Thomas’s hand clutching at Virgil’s leg before turning to his companion. 

“Remus, put your blade away, you’re scaring them.” 

The wild man, Remus, apparently, rolled his eyes but slid the machete into a sheath on his back and gave the pair of brothers a toothy grin. 

“Whoopsy! Wouldn’t want to give off the wrong impression. Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you, as long as you’re not a terminal or about to turn terminal or about to steal our stuff or hurt our friends or just be a dick in general!” 

“Forgive Remus, that’s just how he greets new people,” the man with the burn said, rolling his eyes in a fond sort of way. “He really does mean no harm...as long as you don’t fall into any of the aforementioned categories.” He raised an eyebrow at the pair. “Do you fall into any of those categories?” 

“We’re not thieves, if that’s what you mean,” Virgil growled, and the man raised his hands. 

“No need for the hostility, how about a ‘thank you for saving me and my…’” he raised a questioning eyebrow at Thomas, and after another moment of silence, Virgil mumbled,

“Brother. I’m Virgil, and this is my brother.”

“I see,” the man said, then he surprised Virgil by squatting down so he was at Thomas’s eye level. 

“What’s your name, little man?” 

Thomas looked up at Virgil, who placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a small nod. 

“Thomas,” he whispered, and the man smiled. 

“Thomas? That’s a wonderful name. How old are you?” 

“Eight,” Thomas said, then he puffed out his chest a little. “Almost nine.” 

“Almost nine, my my! So grown up!” he smiled, then glanced up at Virgil. “And what about big brother?” he asked, standing up.

Virgil frowned, and pulled Thomas a little closer to his side. 

“What’s it to you?” he growled, and the man quirked an eyebrow. 

“Just wondering if big brother is grown up enough to take care of an almost nine-year-old all by himself.” 

Virgil should have found the question insulting, but oddly enough, meeting the stranger’s eyes, Virgil didn’t sense any malice from him. 

“I’m eighteen,” he admitted quietly, and the man nodded. 

“Got anyone else in your party?” he asked, and Virgil clenched his fist at his side. 

“No,” he said, forcing himself to keep his eyes dry. “Wouldn’t be trying to scavenge alone with an eight-year-old if I did.” 

“Almost nine!” Thomas insisted, tugging on Virgil’s pants, and Virgil allowed a small smile to pull at his lips. 

“Okay buddy, almost nine,” he said quietly. 

“Right,” the man said, a smile flitting across his face as he looked down at Thomas. “Well, if scavenging alone on the streets with an almost-nine-year-old is getting a bit much to handle...I may have somewhere you two could stay for awhile.” 

“You’re offering them a space at Eden?” Remus asked behind them, shaking his head. “Wade’s not gonna like that much, Dee.” 

“Fuck Wade,” the burned man grumbled. “If he doesn’t like it, he can leave and they can take his bed. They’re just kids, Remus.” 

“Hey, I didn’t say I had a problem with it,” Remus said shrugging. “And I’ll take any opportunity to fuck Wade. Not the fun kind of fucking, mind you, the violent kind.” 

“Virgil, they said a bad word,” Thomas whispered, tugging on Virgil’s pants again, and Virgil didn’t know whether to attempt scolding the strangers or to laugh. 

“Seriously, though,” the man called Dee said, turning back to Virgil. “We have a place out in the woods. Nice and secluded, hardly any terminals around, and plenty of people to fight them off in case a few do show up. We don’t have much, but we can offer you a warm bed and a roof over your head.” 

It sounded tempting, Virgil had to admit. He could barely remember what it felt like to sleep under a roof, let alone in a bed, but he was skeptical. 

“What’s the catch?” he asked. “What do you have to gain by taking two strangers in?”

Dee shrugged. 

“We’re not a charity, if that’s what you mean. You’ll be expected to pull your weight around the place. But if you’re up for that, then you’re welcome to join.” 

Virgil thought it over, but it didn’t take him long to come to a decision, really. He couldn’t ensure Thomas would be safe and fed every day if he stayed on his own. If there was even a chance that what these men were saying was true, Virgil would have to take it. He leaned forward, fixing Dee with a glare.

“Anything happens to him and I’ll kill you, you got that?” he asked in a low enough voice that Thomas didn’t hear. 

Dee grinned, not unkindly. 

“Got it.” 

“Okay.” Virgil took a deep breath, then looked down at Thomas. “What do you say buddy, do you want to go somewhere safe with these, uh, gentlemen?”

Thomas seemed to consider it, staring up at Remus and Dee, then his stomach growled audibly. 

“You have food?” he asked, and Dee chuckled. 

“Yes little man, we have lots of food.”

“I wanna go then,” Thomas said, and Virgil smiled. 

“Okay then,” he said, holding out a hand to Dee, who shook it. “We’re in.” 

“Yay, new friends!” Remus said cheerily, bouncing on his heels. “This is gonna be fun, it’s been way too long since anyone interesting joined the camp, it’s no fun having only stinky Wade to share patrols with…” 

Remus continued rambling on, about what exactly Virgil wasn’t sure, but he didn’t really care. He looked down at Thomas’s hand in his, then up at Dee who was watching the two of them with an unreadable expression, though it morphed into a smile when he saw Thomas looking up at him. 

“Thank you,” Virgil mouthed at Dee, and the man nodded back. 

Virgil couldn’t say exactly what he was getting himself into with these two, but he hoped that whatever it was, it would mean he could keep his promise. He slipped his free hand into his pocket, fingering his mother’s locket. 

I’ll keep him safe, Mom. No matter what.

--- --- ---

Until the Sun Rises Taglist:

@the-permanent-fixture @maybe-i-like-the-misery @paint-in-flames @antisocialdragonenby @certified-demon @nonasidesstuff @idiot-annonymous @weird-spooky-broody-dude @ao-koshka @viana-dascolli @snail-giggles

[blondepomeranian]

OC Meme - Enoch the Changeling Bard

Hi, my Home Game Girl Gang has been playing our Hoard of the Dragon Queen campaign lately with our other one being on a brief hiatus, so it’s been giving me Feelings(TM) about my character. So even though none of y’all asked or tagged me in this, y’all gotta suffer anyway sorry I don’t make the rules.

I added a few questions in there to make it more relevant to DnD, so it has been modified from its original format. Also I can only post what my group has gotten up to thus far so B)

GENERAL

(picsource)

Name: Enoch, but also [redacted].

Alias(es): None so far, but [redacted].

Gender: Genderqueer masculine.

Age: 23

Class: Bard, College of Valor (GOTTA DO HITS!!!!!! EVEN THOUGH HE DIES!!! A LOT!!!)

Place of birth: He grew up in a traveling changeling clan, so geographical place wasn’t of much importance.

Spoken languages: Common, elvish, and draconic. He learned draconic naturally from [redacted], but he was a bit of a self-study for elvish due to one of his old bandmates being a Drow elf. He made one of his go-to alternate appearances a Drow elf so she would feel more “at home” when they would all go out. It’s not as easy to make fun of a whole group of Drow, so he learned elvish so they could play the role and also shit-talk people.

Sexual orientation: Pansexual Aromantic.

Occupation: Formerly a member of Chaos! at the Carnival. Currently? A bard who performs in spoken word and “rhythmic speaking” (the term for Ye Olde Fantasy Hippe-Hoppe).

APPEARANCE

Eye colour: Dark brown with gold flecks

Hair colour: black

Race: changeling, but presents as half-elf as Enoch.

Height: 5′11″

Scars: none.

Overweight: Not unless he’s eaten at the Vaughnborg’s lately.

Underweight: Sometimes. Still catching up from life as a druggie.

FAVOURITE

Colour: Gold

Hair colour: no preference because they’re all beautiful? Though, secretly he is a little jealous of Sonja’s naturally magenta hair.

Eye colour: no preference.

Entertainment: He prefers to BE the entertainment, whether it’s performing for a small few, enthralling a tavern, or as of late performing a one-man-show of Sonja’s Many Romance Novels whenever they camp out. Other than that he loves to see his friends doing their own version of Awesome (Sonja in her element as a paladin of Torm, and Avi being a smart and shrewd business woman and tinkerer).

Pastime: performing as above, drinking, doing drugs, and being the resident bicycle. He’s trying to be better at staying sober, so he’s going to try to learn to tailor and make his own clothes, hopefully in lieu of having the urge to hit the hard stuff again.

Food: Breakfast foods are the way to his heart. Especially for dinner. Don’t tell Mama V.

Drink: Anything and everything, he’s not picky in this regard.

Books: He was never a big reader, but he’s very much a big reader of Sonja’s Many Romance Novels now.

HAVE THEY

Passed university: Nope. Barely has the equivalent of a Ye Olde GED from Clan Homeschool.

Had sex: Basically at any given opportunity.

Had sex in public: Yes, most likely. May only remember it vaguely.

Gotten pregnant: No.

Kissed a man: Yes, and then some.

Kissed a woman: Yes, and then some.

Gotten tattoos: No, never really considered it because changeling.  

Gotten piercings: Yes, has earrings.

Had a broken heart: Hmm, kind of? I mean if you count [redacted].

Been in love: Nope, not his jam.

Stayed up for more than 24 hours: Oh, absolutely. In his band days, it was a regular thing to keep the party going well into the next day and make to the evening and start the shenanigans all over again.

ARE THEY

Religious: Not outwardly. For the year he spent in Greenest with Sonja, he attended almost all of her Torm meetings and affirms any “Hail Torm!”, but not with any zeal beyond knowing it’s important to his friend and respecting that. He does keep to the [redacted], however.

A virgin: N O P E

A cuddler: Yes, very much. He wouldn’t admit it, but when he looked forward every night when he got to be the little spoon to Sonja’s big spoon when they all had to share one bedroll. He wanted Avi to cuddle with him, too, but she said no and she kicks in her sleep so that was a no-go.

A kisser: Only if the other party wants to.

A smoker: Not anymore, but can be socially coaxed.

Scared easily: Yes, actually, he’s low-key scared all the time.

Jealous easily: Nope.

Trustworthy: He likes to think so.

Dominant/submissive: Enoch tends to be more on the submissive side but can play either role. Apparently, we found out today he’s Better As A Bottom, though, so there’s that Canon Fact for us all.

Single: 4lyfe.

FAMILY

Sibling(s): none, was an only child.

Parents: a father who called him “idiot” a lot and [redacted]

Children: None that he knows of???? ohhh shit.

Pets: None. Had a kitten once as a child but learned very quickly that he couldn’t [redacted].

RANDOM QUESTIONS

Have they harmed themselves: has he done harm to himself with the intention of self-harm? No. But he would do it when [redacted].

Thought of suicide: No, never.

Attempted suicide: No.

Wanted to kill someone: Yes.

Actually killed someone: Yes.

Ridden a horse: Lorenza is a beautiful but judgemental beast of burden.

Have/had a job: He’s worked in a circus before as a side-show attraction, played in a very successful band, and now is with his group to hunt down the Cultists of Tiamat.

Have any fears: Yes, so very many. He plays it cool but can’t bear the thought of losing his friends. He’s constantly afraid that people will see that he’s a changeling and will [redacted].

Tagging (for DnD or non-DnD OCs) @cantfakethecake​, @vodkacheesefries​, @416lottie​, @dragginage​, @aban-asaara​, and @theherocomplex​. If you want~

[haikumaiden-moved]

tagged by: stolen >)

tagging: do me like i did them

nickname: q star sign: gemini height: 5'3" time right now: 6:19 pm favorite music artist: um??? i listen to video game music a lot does that count. song stuck in your head: none last movie watched: it’s been a while. logan, maybe? last tv show watched: steven fuckin universe what are you wearing right now: my pajamas. i’m sick so sue me when did you create your blog: like. four days ago? what kind of stuff do you post: like. rps and some aesthetic stuff. do you have any other blogs: none that are active lmao do you get asks regularly: no (winky face) why did you choose your URL: she’s a shrine maiden who writes haikus. hogwarts house: i’m a gryffindor pokemon team: valor! favorite color: orange lmao average hours of sleep: 7? lucky Number: 1 favorite character: in fe? donnel. my boy, my son, my child how many blankets do you sleep with: one and a cat Dream Job: i don’t even know anymore following: 46 followers: 44

[minhyuksmelody]

✨Get to Know Me Tag✨

Rules: Answer the questions in a new post and tag 20 blogs you would like to get to know better. Tagged by: @iheartchangkyun​ Tysm!! I love doing these~😺

Nickname: Ali (not sure if that counts, it’s just an altered version of my name) Gender: Female Star Sign: Virgo Height: 5'2 Time right now: 12:03am Last thing I googled: “how to remove sparkle nail polish” Favorite bands: Monsta X, BTS, Astro, SF9, GOT7, Up10tion, NCT, Seventeen, SHINee, EXO Favorite solo artists: Agust D (idk if he technically counts, but sTILL), Eric Nam, P!nk Song stuck in your head: Bebe Rexha - I Got You Last movie watched: Rogue One Last TV show watched: Supernatural When did you create your blog: Like two weeks ago. I’ve loved MX since the beginning, but I have so many other blogs that I wasn’t sure if I should add another. I’m glad I did though. I adore them so much.💜 What kind of stuff do you post: Mostly reblog MX with the rare BTS reblog, but I’m working on some MX memes to post myself and maybe fanfiction… When did your blog reach its peak: Not yet, but maybe once I post my own things, it’ll get bigger. Do you have any other blogs: Oh man, a handful. I have a blog for: BTS, Astro, SF9, Up10tion. NCT, Mystic Messenger, Final Fantasy XV, and one for Seventeen (but I haven’t touched that one in forever..😩) Do you get asks regularly: Nope, but I really love when I do! Why you chose your url: I think it’s pretty and it relates nicely to Minhyuk’s beautiful singing voice.🎶 It actually has nothing to do with BTOB. I didn’t even realize their fandom name was Melody! 🙈 Following: 94 Posts: 170 Hogwarts house: Gryffindor Pokémon team: I don’t play it anymore, but I had chosen Valor. Favorite colors: Red. I also like soft shades of most colors or neutral colors like creamy beige or light gray. Average hours of sleep: Maybe 8? If I could, I’d sleep for like 20 hours, no lie. Lucky numbers: 9 and 7. Favorite characters: Prompto Argentum from Final Fantasy XV. I love him sooo much and he actually reminds me of Minhyuk.💙 Levi Ackerman from Attack on Titan is another fave. And Baek In Ho from Cheese in the Trap. What are you wearing right now: A soft blue hoodie and gray Star Wars sweats. I’ve been sick, so I get to dress extra-comfy. 😚 How many blankets do you sleep with: 1. I get too warm otherwise. Dream job: When I was little, I wanted to be a veterinarian. Now, I’m taking classes to become a veterinary assistant, so close enough! If I could though, I’d want to be a coordi noona for a group like Monsta X, BTS, or any of my other bias groups. I really want to take care of them, offer support when they’re struggling with anything, buy them food, and make sure they’re as comfortable and healthy as possible.💕 Being one of their camera crew would also be pretty amazing. I’d love to be able to film spontaneous videos of them and travel around with them, capturing special and funny moments and cherishing every second with them. I’m getting sappy, aghh. Dream trip: Seoul, Tokyo, New York, Rome, Paris, Dublin, London, anywhere in New Zealand, and maybe Edinburgh or Glasgow. I love places with castles, palaces, cathedrals, temples, and other old buildings. But I also really love more modern cities that look really pretty and that have a fun nightlife.

I’ll only tag a handful, since idk who’s already done it 🐢 (Please let me know if you don’t want to be tagged in these!): @woonhyuk @aka-minhyukuu @monstasx @gif-trash @shunsyeol

[sugakookie]

I was tagged by @sugashark @hobihun and @taedboy to do this omg so i guess i’ll have to do it lol

rules: answer the questions in a new post and tag 20 blogs you would like to get to know better.  

nickname(s): panda, manders (z), pan, sarah, who even knows anymore

star sign: pisces (same as yoongi *winks*)

height: 5′5″

time right now: 6:18 pm 

last thing googled: bambam dabbing

favorite music artists: bts, actually every kpop group that i stan but that’s too long to list lol, also london grammar, imagine dragons, coldplay, twenty one pilots, pentatonix, idek i listen to too much music

song stuck in your head: lotto. i swear that song is stuck in my head all the time now idk why

last movie watched: passengers. it was ehh....but i can get in for free so whatever

last tv show you watched: hwarang. i’m assuming that counts lol

what are you wearing right now? a white fleece sweatshirt and flannel pajama pants

when did you create your blog? late may 2016

what kind of stuff do you post? sugakookie

do you have any other blogs? yeah a few

do you get asks regularly? i guess so. it’s really off and on sometimes i get a lot other times i get zero

why did you choose your url? bc i was making a sugakookie blog and it was a play on their ship name

gender: female

hogwarts house: hufflepuff otherwise my hybrid house is hufflerin

pokemon team: team valor which is the best team

favorite color: pastel sunset colors

average hours of sleep: 7-9 usually

lucky number(s): 391,993 :)))))))

favorite characters: are you kidding me i have too many and they’re like all from anime i can’t name them all. my ultimate favs are akihito kanbara, kyo sohma and mamura daiki. yeah....

how many blankets do you sleep with? one million

dream job: my dream job is not having a job but having a lot of money

following: 333 

i’m too lazy to tag ppl i’m sorry

[wanderingalonelypath]

OC Interview: Lyanna Rivens

Nobody tagged me, but I just want to do it, so I’m doing it!

The rules: Answer the following questions as your OC of choice.

1. What’s your name?

“Lyanna Elleanor Rivens.”

2. Do you know why you are named that?

“I had a great aunt Lyanna who...fought in some war? I honestly don’t remember what my father told me about her, except that she was very valorous. My mom wanted to name me Elleanor at first, but they agreed Lyanna was a better first name.”

3. Are you single or taken?

Her hand drifts to the dragon tooth on a string around her neck, and she smiles softly. “Taken.”

4. Have any abilities or powers?

“I’m a Winter mage, primarily, but I also know a few spirit spells. I’m currently studying as a Rift mage, which is equal parts fascinating and terrifying.”

(Omitting #5)

6. What’s your eye color?

“Light blue. I like to think it’s because of my winter magic, but my mom had blue eyes.”

7. How about your hair color?

“Redhead. I don’t know where I got it from, both of my parents had black hair, but Bull loves it.” She smirks slightly.

8. Have any family members?

“As far as I know, my parents and younger brothers are still around Ansburg. It’s been 15 years since I’ve seen them though, so I doubt we’d even recognize each other. They’re not my family anymore. But it’s ok.” She gets a wistful look on her face. “I have a new family now.”

9. Oh? How about any pets?

“We weren’t allowed pets in the Circle, and I hardly have time to care for one now. Maybe once all this is over, I could get a cat? Or perhaps a fennec...”

10. That’s cool, I guess. Now tell me something you don’t like.

“The Chantry. I’m all for religion, I’m Andrastian myself, but the Chantry is corrupt and twisted from its purpose. It feeds off the adoration of the masses while letting mages suffer any number of abuses. And I’ll stop on that note, as I doubt you came for a rant.”

11. Do you have any activities/hobbies that you like to do?

“Reading and learning, but that’s a given for any mage, I think. I like taking walks in nature, stopping to meditate in peaceful places. It helps me focus my magic, and reminds me that I’m free.”

12. Have you hurt anyone in any way before?

“Many people. It’s unavoidable in my situation. Before I became Inquisitor? Templars that attacked me for being an apostate. Bandits who preyed on the group I travel with.”

13. Ever… killed anyone before?

“As I said before, it’s unavoidable, especially during combat. I try not to execute prisoners, though. There’s usually something more useful or just to be done with them. And I find I’m quickly growing tired of death.”

14. What kind of animal are you?

“Now there’s a question. I think I’d be a Crow. Deadly, but free.”

15. Name your worst habits?

“Irrational anger at every Templar I meet. Working with Cullen was a bit...difficult at first until I got to know him. Logically, I know not all templars are abusers, just like not all mages are blood mages, but I was showed a...skewed end of the spectrum in my time during the Circle. Nearly every templar did awful things to the mages and tranquil, and those that didn’t were bystanders, which is almost worse. I try to keep an open mind, but it’s difficult.”

16. Do you look up to anyone at all?

“Cassandra. Our opinions on some things may differ, but she is driven, and passionate, and determined, and a strove of other things I wish I could be. I don’t think I would’ve stayed in the Inquisition, in the beginning, if it weren’t for her true desire to make things better.”

17. Are you gay, straight or bisexual?

“Rather narrow list, isn’t it? I’m pansexual. Attracted to pretty much anyone who’s a good person. The only people I can’t seem to be attracted to are human men, for...reasons I don’t particularly want to share.”

18. Do you go to school?

“The Circle gave a thorough general education, but my magical education there was a bit...stiff. Traditional. Solas and Dorian teach me many new things about magic, and I’m always willing to learn more.”

19. Ever want to marry and have any kids one day?

She becomes quiet, looking pensive. “As a mage, I never thought I’d get the chance. Even now, everything is so dangerous and uncertain. I think...I would like to, someday. Get married at least, I don’t think I’m ready to be a mother, though. Perhaps years from now.”

20. Do you have any fangirls/fanboys?

She laughs. “You wouldn’t believe the number of marriage proposals I get from Lords and Ladies all over Thedas. Josephine has taken to using them as kindling in her fireplace.”

21. What are you most afraid of?

“The Circles reforming. All these people I’ve met, things I’ve experienced...my first night away from the Circle, I slept in a tent, on the rocky forest floor with no bedroll, and a rip in the side letting in the smell of pine and fire smoke. I cried at the beauty of it all. If the Circles are reinstated...” She stops talking, a fearful look in her eyes, before continuing on resolutely. “I won’t go back. They won’t get the chance to take me back there alive.”

22. What do you usually wear?

“My armor, mostly. I’m out in the field more often than I’m not. In Skyhold, I usually wear a tunic and breeches, with knee-high boots. Sometimes I’ll throw on a vest or an overcoat if it's particularly cold.”

23. What is one food tempts you?

“Those little Orlesian pastries, filled with custard or jelly? Those are the best! Other than that, I’m fond of shepherd's pie and bacon.”

(Omitting #24 & #25)

26. What class are you (low/middle/high)?

“Before, as a mage, definitely the lower class. I came from a family of farmers. But now? Barely anyone uses my name, they all call me ‘Inquisitor’ or ‘Herald’ or even ‘Your Worship’. So I’d say I’m securely in the upper class.

27. How many friends do you have?

“A lot. I’m close with my advisors, and a good deal of the inner circle. Dorian, Solas, Varric, Cole, and Bull are probably my closest friends. But they’re all dear to me, even the ones I don’t have much in common with or agree with all that much.”

28. What are your thoughts on pie?

“It’s pretty good! I love pumpkin the best, but fruit pies are good as well!”

29. Favorite drink?

“Spiced wine. It makes me feel warm and safe, for some reason. I like drinking it at night, with Bull, and just talking, or doing our own activities in silence. Just being together.” She gets a bit of a dreamy look on her face.

30. What’s your favorite place?

“In the world? Probably the Emerald Graves. The forest is beautiful, and it goes on for miles. I could wander there for weeks. In Skyhold, I actually really like my quarters, especially at night. I have a loveseat I can move in front of the fireplace, and it’s the perfect spot to curl up with a book. On warmer days I like to leave the balcony doors open to let in the mountain breeze. There’s nothing better.”

(Omitting #31 and #32)

33. Would you rather swim in the lake or the ocean?

“A lake. You never know what’s floating in an ocean, or how deep it goes.”

34. What’s your type?

“My type?” She laughs. “I don’t really have one. As long as you aren’t a Templar, you’re probably my type.”

35. Any fetishes?

“Hm. For all how experienced Bull is, our sex is skewed toward the vanilla side of things. Does having sex in odd places count as a fetish? We do it on my desk, against the wall, one time on the war table.” She grins. “Now that was a good time.”

36. Camping indoors or outdoors?

“Outdoors. I can’t get enough of the outdoors, being that I was deprived of it for 15 years. I love sleeping in a bed just as much as the next person, don’t get me wrong, but there’s something about going to bed to the sound of crickets and a crackling fire that reminds me I’m alive.”

(I omitted the ones that ‘broke character’, but I’m sure you can find the full list if you search in the dragon age oc’s tag!)

I tag: Anyone who sees this and wants to do it! @ me if you do, I’d love to read them!)

[ocuk-dnd-5e-blog]

Session 2 - 27/07 - The (Mis)adventures of Down Fail Death Save

Participants Dave N - DM John – Dwon Fai – Monk Alex D – Fyvel – Fighter Stu – Hendel – Barbarian Dan – Darvin – Sorcerer Dave R – Galath – Ranger Andrew – Eriden – Druid Missing Alex H – Chance – Bard As the group stood round considering (some admiring) their handiwork over dealing with the dastardly dwarf Mordred there was a scuff of approaching feet from the caves behind them and they spun around, ready for another battle. From the darkness approached an Elven Ranger and he stood at a distance facing the party he hailed them. After an initial terse exchange of why the group were standing round the corpse of burning dwarf, “we came to rescue him from the bugbear, but sadly we were too late” suggested Darvin and why an Elven Ranger was wandering round a cave complex in the dark by himself; “I saw water coming out of the cave and decided to investigate” “Is water coming out of a cave not a normal occurrence” Darvin shot back. He was accepted into the company to help them as, they informed him, they were looking for a human warrior called Sildar who had been taken captive. There was some rather intense discussion on what constituted a reasonable fee as the group did not think a willing share was fair (DM Note; especially not Hendel, typical dwarf) but eventually they agreed an equal share of anything going forward, he could not touch their coin from before. As the group debated the finer points of monetary policy and suitable remuneration for services rendered all of a sudden the fire flared up and smoke billowed around the cave in a blinding cloud, when it cleared the corpse of Mordred and Chance were both missing… Before heading on their way Hendel hefted the corpse of the Bugbear down the stone shaft on the western edge of the cave to feed the wolves as, apparently, they looked hungry. As they were doing this the group agreed that, thanks to Dwon’s less than sterling approach to danger identification earlier in the adventure that agreed hand signals should be set, waving his arms in the air like a madman would indicate goblins, anything else he would improvise (DM Note; Not the most robust of plans, but perhaps it could be called progress!) Setting off over the rope bridge, goblin corpses below, Dwon stole stealthily ahead as the group moved cautiously along behind awaiting the signal. As always Dwon stole silently forward rounding the corner he noticed a cave with 8 goblins inside at rest, peacefully asleep, Dwon turned and began to wave his arms in the air like a madman, which upset his spear, he made a grab for it but missed and clattered to the floor in an explosion of noise from spears bouncing around and his own curses as he face planted the cave floor waking up a cave full of now irate goblins. Fyvel reacted with his customary skill and haste and put a bolt through each eye of the nearest goblin sending him dead to the floor but the rest reacted too fast for the group, one stepped up and neatly ran through Dwon as he lay prone on the ground before him, and three more goblins successfully turned Eriden and Fyvel into living pincushions sending them sprawling unconscious and bleeding to the floor (DM Note; The group was not happy at this point as from 6 rolls I rolled 2 crits, and 3 hits with a 20 or more score the cries were of loaded dice which is quite frankly slanderous!) The group were panicked now at seeing three of their number iced in the first exchanges but undaunted Hendel charged forward screaming himself into a rage state and cleaved the skull of the nearest goblin who was standing over the bleeding out Dwon. Darvin snatched a potion out of the supplies and healed up the wounded Eriden who himself stumbled up to his feet and healed the wounded Fyvel calling out a warning that this was his last spell. Darvin also cast sleep on the goblins, sending 4 of them into a slumber, whilst Galath downed one with some sniping from his longbow. The odds were turning. Arrows were flung back at the group but Fyvel charged into combat once again killing with his deadly crossbows as Hendel resorted to previous form and despite swinging his axes in a remarkably enthusiastic manner he failed to connect with any Goblins. As a goblin woke from the slumber Eriden took (another) arrow to the chest and was on his back again (DM Note; by the point Dwon had also failed 2 death saves and was looking remarkably nervous) Hendel roared “I will save you” and swung his axe in a mighty arc, completely missing the goblin spinning a 360 and landing on his back staring up at the ceiling, Galath laughed disdainfully and drew bead on a goblin but his bowstring snapped and he punched himself in the eye sending him sprawling to the floor. Taking matters into his own hands Fyvel tried to staunch the bleeding of Dwon but only ended up making it worse (DM Note; two natural ones off the bounce are always amusing to witness) Darvin whistled a firebolt at the chief of the goblins who was then finished by Fyvel and with the last goblin left standing Galath abandoning his bow, snuck around behind the goblin and landed both his swords into the goblins back sending him sprawling to the floor spitting up blood. Before Dwon could fail another save Fyvel had him back on his feet whilst Eriden pulled himself up groggily and the party surveyed the devastation (that they had barely survived) Getting Sildar back to his feet the party got the story from Sildar, telling them that Gundren had been taken to Cragmaw Castle and that it was important he was rescued as he had the map to wave echo cave. Deciding to rest and recuperate the party sat and exchanged tales with Sildar (and argued over loot) the evening ending with Sildar asking Dwon “What did you say your name was again Monk? Down Fail?” On the way out of the cave the next morning Hendel decided it would be cruel to leave the wolves chained up and alone to starve in the cave (DM Note; everyone was shocked at the thought he had a conscience) so Fyvel stepped up and charmed the beasts sending three of them trotting on the way when he released them and the fourth, with a crit, decided it would tag along. Fyvel had a pet, a name was decided almost unanimously “Mordred.�� Arriving back in town with the grateful Sildar the party quickly split up with Dwon and Eriden heading straight to the inn “to secure rooms” (DM Note; and swiftly bought 6 ales for the two of them) whilst Sildar set off trying to get in touch with his contact, Darvin, Fyvel, Hendel and Galath set off to get the group some provisions. Disgusted with the prices of a healing potion (DM Note; 50g is the standard price no matter what you say) the group instead went to Lionshield Coster to get Hendel’s throwing axe which had, to date, battered many a tree and cave wall into submission, sharpened. In exchange for information on where her goods could be found which the group had found stashed away back in the cave complex she gave the group 30 gold and offered to sharpen Hendel’s axe free of charge, Fyvel commented at this point wryly about the fact that “The cave walls of the forgotten realms would now be trembling in fear.” As the group wandered the village rumors were rife about the trouble being brewed, and rumors of a job on the go to kill some Orcs, by a band calling themselves the “Redbrand Ruffians” and deciding to take matter into their own hands the four adventurers set off to see the town mayor (DM Note; whilst Dwon and Eriden continued drinking) they found a sign confirming the Orc job and went inside to confront the mayor. 100g was on offer for clearing up the Orc job but the mayor himself clammed up and was clearly nervous of discussing the Redbrands, calling them a minor nuisance and claiming they had not disturbed him to the extent he told them to leave and he wanted to discuss it no further. Arriving back at the inn the group reconvened and it seemed whilst Eriden and Dwon had been primarily drinking they had managed to drum up some interesting nuggets of information. The innkeeper himself mentioned about how much trouble the Redbrands had been causing in town and as the evening progressed, and the drink flowed for a few members of the band, tales came out from the innkeepers wife and another local named Freda who told the adventurers how the Redbrands had troubled all the businesses in the area, except strangely not the miners exchange, and how a local woodcarver had been killed and his family since disappeared thanks to the ruffians. The group were looking happier by the moment at the amount of interesting opportunities which were popping up, especially Darvin who was almost a constant stream if information about how much gold the group could hope to make. On the tearing the tale of the reluctant mayor Hendel asked if he had any daughters he could have sex with, when queried why he asked he sullenly muttered and turned to his drink refusing to say anymore. Sildar added that his own contact in the town, a man named Iarno had mysteriously gone missing only a few days after appearing in town whilst poking around up at the old manor on the hill. At this point Galath slipped out the inn and went for a nocturnal adventure, he poked around the manor but whilst noticing footprints of passing traffic did not notice anyone in or around the manor or signs of any entrance inside the tumbled down walls. On his way back he passed the Sleeping Giant Inn, a reputed hang out of the Redbrands, and went to investigate. With ninja like agility (DM Note; helped by a natural 20) he dived upon the roof and hung down like a bit to the window watching what went on inside, counting around a dozen Redbrands but unable to find anything else of any use he thought discretion the better part of valor and disappeared back to the Stonehill Inn. The following morning with a backlog of work appearing the group split up and headed off into town. Hendel set off to collect his axe being acidly informed that he should learn to use it properly before swinging it again and Eriden collected a new set of hides and a shield to stop him being stabbed to death as regularly. Galath and Darvin accompanied Sildar back to the town mayor where he introduced himself as an agent of the Lords Alliance, between the alliance and the town they would offer the group a 500g reward for keeping pressure on the Goblins and safely rescuing Gundren from the Goblins clutches, Darvin’s eyes went as wide as saucers at the thought of 500g being in his pocket. He also asked that the adventurers look into the situation with Iarno promising they would suitably rewarded for finding out his fate. Finally Fyvel and Dwon arrived at the Miners Guild to be met by a bitter, acerbic woman named Halia Thornton. She was more open and disdainful of the Redbrands than anyone else in town but still promised the group a reward of 100g if they were able to rid the town of the problem to help get trade going again, she would not reveal why she was not troubled when everyone else in town was and Fyvel and Dwon, whilst accepting the job, left with some reservations about the woman. On heading back to the inn the group was walking through the town square when a group of 8 Redbrands sauntered over “I hear you have been asking after us, time to leave.” One of them declared threateningly and the group not to be cowed barged past them which had everyone reaching for weapons (DM Note; once again the group are not one’s for subtlety when a fight will do) Hendel displayed his newly sharpened axes cutting the first ruffian into multiple pieces before he could even lay his hand on his blade, Dwon was equally adept landing his standard stab/corpse punch combo before he himself was ran through once again to resume his normal position on the floor bleeding everywhere. Fyvel continued his fine form with a couple of crossbow bolts taking out another Ruffian and, with a whilstle, his tamed wolf came charging from out of the treeline ripping out an offending ruffians throat (DM Note; at this point in one single round of combat Mordred the wolf had proved itself more effective than Mordred the deceased Cleric did in an entire session) Whilst the Redbrands fought hard (DM Note; my eye was out here and I was no longer landing crits every roll) the group was in an efficient mood with a raging Hendel killing a second ruffian with his razor sharp axes, the wolf harried another down to the ground as Galath snuck behind the combat to quickly charge in and what could become a signature move, stabbed a ruffian in the back felling him leaving the party as victors on the field. As congratulations flew around they turned to see the wolf fleeing the scene “I’ve never met a being called Mordred I’ve fucking liked!” Shouted Fyvel. (DM Note; A good session that was neatly bookmarked by combat at each end but was dominated by the RP experience for the players which was good to see. Challenging for myself to write a report which focuses on RP and not to make it a conversational log.)

[until-the-sun-rises]

Patton’s Goodbye

AU Masterlist

AU Creators: @a-valorous-choice and @ironwoman359

Summary: Isolated on a farm, Patton has been survivng the apocalypse as best he can. The loneliness is hard to deal with sometimes, but at least he has his sister by his side. But not even their remote farm is completely safe from the terminal hordes. On the brink of losing everything, Patton meets a group of other survivors for the first time and must come to terms with the new reality he's facing.

Content Warnings: Apocalypse AU, angst, character death, death of a sibling, guns, knives, violence, some minor blood and gore, zombies (called terminals in universe), crying, grief, sympathetic deceit (in the fic in genral, not this part), sympathetic remus, cursing, bittersweet ending. Let us know if you’d like something else tagged!

Word Count: 6,897

Read on AO3 here

Author’s Notes: It’s done! We hope you guys enjoy this, it has been a labor of love from both of us, and we couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. More character introduction fics are on their way, as well as some less plot heavy, more slice of lifey fics. We hope you’re enjoying this au as much as we are!

---

The day began like any other. Patton got up early, splashed some water on his face, and pulled his straw hat over his eyes. He let the chickens out for the day, scattered a handful of seed in their yard and emptied their egg boxes, then turned his attention to the garden. The sun beat down on him as he worked, but the brim of his hat helped keep him cool, and he hummed a gentle melody as he pulled away sprouts of weeds and spread compost around the vegetables. Most of the morning had passed when a sound coming from the field beside him caused him to look up from his work.

He straightened when he saw a single silhouette moving slowly towards the farm.

He glanced at the axe that he kept within reach  at all times, but he made no effort to grab it. The figure was moving slowly; Patton had time to finish his chores before it got here.

Even though he had seen enough terminals to know that the person ambling towards him was not of the living variety, it never stopped him from wishing it was. 

It has been so long since he heard anything from the outside world that Patton wasn’t sure anything even existed besides his farm anymore. He certainly prayed there were still other humans out there, but he was beginning to feel as though he would be the last man standing. 

Patton was not somebody who enjoyed isolation, and dwelling on how lonely things had become these days just tended to upset him, so he pushed the thoughts out of his head and grabbed the axe.

He strode over to the fence and unlatched the gate, studying the terminal as it came closer. This one had been a young male, and only recently turned, judging by the lack of decomposition he could see. As disgusting as it was to think about, this terminal wasn’t literally falling to pieces as it approached, so it couldn’t have been more than a day or so since he’d changed. 

If he was being honest, terminals made Patton sad to look at, and he’d just as soon not deal with them at all, but he felt he owed it to them. They had once been people with lives, jobs, families, and friends, and all that could not be brushed aside or forgotten because of what they had become. 

Patton spent a few moments wondering what kind of life this man might have lead, perhaps he’d had a girlfriend or a boyfriend? Had he been a good person or a bad person? Patton hoped the former. 

“Good morning,” Patton said cheerfully as the terminal finally stumbled through the gate. “Beautiful day, isn’t it?”

Morgan hated when he spoke to them, she said that it freaked her out, but it gave Patton a sense of normalcy. Patton tried not to view them as monsters, it wasn’t their fault that they’d become what they were. Besides, it had been so long since he had met another living person besides his sister that the solitude was starting to settle in like a weight on his shoulders. Treating them as if nothing had changed was as much for his own sake as it was for theirs. Even if they didn’t know what was going on, Patton did. He could at least show them a little respect before ending it all permanently.

“Have you travelled far?” Patton asked. “We haven’t really seen anybody out here for some time.” 

The creature groaned, moving closer with outstretched arms, and Patton took several steps backwards. He wondered, not for the first time, if they could actually see or if they were just drawn to something the living had that the dead didn’t, like a smell or some kind of hormone. 

“I’m sorry this happened to you,” Patton said softly. “Nobody deserves this.” He paused, raising the axe. It never brought him joy to bring it down. “I hope your family is somewhere safe... I hope wherever you end up is better than this.” 

Patton took a deep breath, steeled himself, and swung the axe, flinching when it collided with the terminal’s skull. 

No matter how many times he ended a terminal, Patton would never get used to it; it made him feel like a murderer. He knew that technically, they were already dead, but it didn’t stop him from feeling icky.

He exhaled slowly, pulling the axe free and wiping off the blood as the body dropped to the ground.  “I’m sorry,” he repeated. 

Patton reached down and closed the man’s eyes and paused to give the man a moment of respect. He would give the young man a proper burial later, but for now he had to check on Morgan.

He cleaned himself off and headed into the house, reaching into his pocket for the key to Morgan’s room. He knocked lightly on the door before he spoke. 

“Morgan? It’s Patton,” he said, though he didn’t know why he bothered clarifying. It wasn’t like there was anyone else that it could be.

“I’m still me.” Her reply came back soft and weak, but it was still her, and that was enough for him.

Patton slid the key into the lock and pushed the door open gently. His sister was laying down on her bed, head propped by several pillows. She looked paler than she had last night, and Patton resisted the urge to stare at the gauze poking out from beneath the collar of her nightgown.

 “Hey, kiddo,” Patton said softly. “How do you feel?” 

A healthy Morgan would have rolled her eyes and said, “kiddo? I’m five years older than you!” but the Morgan before him now only shook her head and said, “I saw you kill that one.”

Patton frowned and sat down on the edge of the bed. “I thought I told you to stay away from the windows,” he said firmly. 

“More of them are finding their way here,” Morgan said, ignoring his comment. “Every day we’re getting at least one or two, it’s not as secluded here as it used to be. It’s kept us safe awhile but it won’t be long before something really big happens. Maybe next time it will be the living.”

“This is exactly why I wanted you to stay in bed,” Patton told her. “You’ll stress yourself out, you need to rest.”

“It’s a little late for that,” Morgan laughed bitterly. “What good will rest do me anyway? I’ll be getting plenty of it soon enough.”

Patton winced at her words and she grabbed his hand, looking sheepish. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that,” she whispered.

“Yes, you did,” Patton said, “but it’s okay.”

“It isn’t,” Morgan protested. “None of this is. You’re going to be on your own, and it’s not fair. No Mom or Dad, no Jason, no-” she broke off, tears in her eyes. “I’m your big sister, I should be here to keep you safe.”

Her breathing was starting to become erratic, and Patton could see the fear rising in her eyes. He couldn’t blame her, he was scared too.

Morgan was all he had had for quite some time now. Their parents and older brother Jason had died in the early days of the outbreak, and it had been the two of them on their farm ever since. At first they had managed, living off the land like their mom and dad had taught them to, but eventually, as more and more people on the outside died, the number of terminals increased. Attacks by the creatures on the farm went up from one every month or so to several a week, until finally one had gotten to Morgan. 

Patton didn’t dare look at the deep gash on her shoulder, so he kept his gaze on her face, stroking her hair and trying to alleviate some of her fear. 

“Let me take care of you for once, okay?” he said. “You and Jason protected me for my entire life, let me return the favour.”

“But it’s just not fair.”

Patton couldn’t help but agree with her, but he didn’t want her to worry; she had enough to focus on right now. 

“You’re warm,” he told her instead, pressing his hand against her forehead. 

“You’re changing the subject,” she retorted. He chuckled and handed her a glass of water that was beside her bed. 

“Drink,” he instructed her. 

There was really no need for her to do that, it wouldn’t help at all, but it made him feel like he was helping, and she wanted to keep him happy, so she obliged.

 “You just want me to stop talking,” she joked as she finished the last of the water.

Patton opened his mouth to insist that was not true, if anything he wanted her to keep talking, but something caught his eye and he leapt to his feet. 

“Patton?” Morgan asked as he bolted over to the window. “What is it?” 

Patton pressed his face against the glass in utter disbelief. There was no way he was seeing this, it had to be a dream or a hallucination.

“Patton!” Morgan snapped. “What’s going on?” 

“People,” Patton murmured.

“Huh?”

Patton pulled back from the glass, staring at her in shock. “There are people outside.” 

“What?”

Patton ignored her, opting instead to stare in disbelief.

There were actual living, breathing, people coming towards the farmhouse. Patton could tell the difference immediately; the figures coming towards him didn’t lurch or stumble. They moved with clarity and precision, and what’s more, they were clearly talking to each other, pointing at the farmhouse as they approached. There were four of them– no, wait. Five, there were five real, living people on his farm. 

And one of them was a child. 

Patton did a double take. No, that was definitely a child, a young boy by the looks of it, who looked to be around ten or eleven years old. A small bow and a quiver of arrows was strapped to his back, and he was holding hands with one of the others. Patton had to admit, he was impressed that a kid had managed to survive this long. 

“Patton?”

Patton glanced back at his sister, whose body was so frail now that she could no longer leave her bed for more than a few minutes, and something inside him steeled. 

“Wait here,” he said, quickly pressing a kiss to her cheek and slipping out of her room before she had a chance to protest. 

Patton locked Morgan’s door before heading out the back door into the garden. He stood still for a moment, watching the group advance, then his fingers wrapped around the handle of his axe and he walked out into view. 

“Good morning,” Patton called, catching the party’s attention immediately. “Beautiful day, isn’t it?” 

The five strangers immediately tensed, and one man swung a shotgun into view, pointing it squarely at Patton’s head. 

“Don’t take another step!” he snarled, and Patton obligingly stood still, raising his empty hand up in a peaceful gesture.

“Have you travelled far?” he continued, as though he wasn’t being actively threatened. “We haven’t really seen anybody out here for some time.” 

“What’s it to you?” the man with the gun growled, but he seemed to be the only one who was actually angry. 

“Wade, calm down,” hissed the one at the back holding the child’s hand, and the man with the gun (Wade, Patton presumed) rolled his eyes. 

“Last I checked, you’re not the leader of this raiding party, Sanders.” 

“Last I checked, neither are you,” a woman standing next to Wade said cooly. “You there!” she called to Patton. “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”

“I’m Patton,” he said, and he smiled wryly. “And this is my farm, so I feel like I should be asking you what you’re doing here.” 

For a moment, a tense silence hung in the air, and Patton held his breath. Then all of a sudden, the fourth adult in the party threw his head back and let out a loud laugh. The shorter man in the back (Sanders was his name?) flinched, but then rolled his eyes fondly as the laughter continued. 

“I like this one,” the laughing man said, pointing towards Patton, an action that probably would have looked less unhinged without the machete gripped in his hand. “He’s funny.”

“You think everyone’s funny,” Wade grumbled, lowering his gun with a huff. 

“That is not true, YOU have never said anything funny in your LIFE.”  

“ANYWAY,” the woman said, holding up a hand before either of the men could retaliate. “I’m Lauren. The one with the blade is Remus, the one with the attitude is Wade, and that’s Virgil with his brother Thomas.” 

She gestured over her shoulder, and the shorter man let go of his little brother’s hand to throw Patton a two-fingered salute. 

“Nice to meet you folks,” Patton said with a smile. “What brings you out this way?” 

“What part of ‘raiding party’ didn’t you get?” Wade snarled, and Patton decided he didn’t much like this man. 

Still though, looking at the ragtag group of survivors, Patton felt something stir inside his chest. He glanced behind him at his family’s two-story farmhouse, his eyes lingering on the window of Morgan’s bedroom, before turning back to the group, a perfect smile sliding into place. 

“Well, don’t just dilly dally in the garden, come on in!”

He walked back towards the house, half expecting to find a bullet between his shoulder blades the moment his back was turned, but he reached the kitchen door without incident, shooting the group of scavengers another smile when he saw they hadn’t followed him. 

“Well? I assume you’re here because you want supplies, right? You can’t very well get them from out there.” 

The group exchanged looks, but eventually Lauren muttered something to them and they began filing into Patton’s kitchen one by one. 

“Okie dokie!” Patton said cheerfully, leaning his axe against the door once everyone was inside. “It’s been awhile since I cooked for this many people, but I don’t think I’ll have lost my touch just yet. None of you have any food allergies, do you?” 

The group was silent, exchanging furtive glances with each other, and Patton sighed. 

“If you do, you need to tell me, I don’t want to accidentally poison anyone here.” 

After waiting until each of the raiders shook their heads, Patton nodded brightly and turned, throwing all his energy into preparing a meal. He had some fresh bread left, and plenty of eggs thanks to the chickens, and before too long, he had a decent batch of breakfast food cooking.

“Now, food of course is important,” he said as he dished out plates of scrambled eggs with peppers and onions and slices of toast. “But what other sorts of supplies were you hoping on finding? I may be able to help out with some of them.” 

Patton sat down with his own plate, sweeping his eyes around the room. His guests were an awfully quiet bunch...that, or they were still reeling from finding someone who was actually alive out here, which he couldn’t really blame them for. He could empathize with that feeling, after all. He noticed too that no one had touched their food yet, and Wade in particular was looking down at his plate with what could only be described as a glare. 

Patton rolled his eyes and picked up his own fork, then took a massive bite of eggs, raising an eyebrow as he did so. Remus cackled, then cheerfully began shoveling his own food into his mouth. 

“I’m telling you, I like this kid,” he said around a mouthful of egg, and one by one, the others began to eat as well.

“We’re looking for anything that’s useful, really,” the leader, Lauren, said. “Food, blankets, medical supplies, weapons...anything we can use.” 

Patton nodded as he took another bite. 

“Well, we’ve been doing alright for ourselves out here. I can’t offer much, but what I do have you’re welcome to take what you need from.” 

“I don’t wanna sound rude,” Wade said, and Remus rolled his eyes. 

“Since when?” he scoffed, and Wade glared at him. 

“But, why would you give up your resources to us? What’s in it for you? What’s the catch?” 

“Why does there have to be something in it for me?” Patton asked, frowning. “Has everyone thrown kindness and hospitality out the window since the world came to an end?” 

“I’m struggling to understand how you’ve survived this long if you still believe people care about hospitality in days like these,” Wade shot back. 

Patton raised an eyebrow. 

“And I’m struggling to understand how, if the world is as cruel as you seem to think, nobody has killed you yet.” 

Remus snorted so hard that he choked on his toast, and the boy, Thomas, hid a giggle behind his hand. Wade’s face was turning into quite an amusing shade of red, and Patton allowed himself to enjoy it for a moment before he spoke again. 

“There’s nothing in it for me,” he said, looking down at his plate and pushing some food around. “But you’re right about one thing...there is a catch.” 

“Oh really?” Lauren asked, narrowing her eyes and leaning forward. 

“You can have anything you need,” Patton explained. “Take whatever you want from the house, the barn, the garden, I don’t care.” 

“And the catch?” Lauren prompted, and Patton looked up, meeting her eyes. 

“You can’t have it until my sister is gone.” 

--- --- --- 

Patton plucked a petal from the flower he held between his fingers, and watched as it fluttered down to the ground, lying white against the grass. One of the chickens at his feet perked up its head and pecked at the petal curiously, but dropped it upon realizing that it was not the tasty morsel it’d been hoping for. Patton’s eyes were trained on the ground, watching the chickens peck the ground at the edge of his garden beds, so he didn’t notice the other man until his feet were right in front of him. 

“Patton?” 

Patton jumped, his eyes flying up and his hand moving towards where his axe sat beside him but he relaxed when he saw a pair of gray eyes peering down at him from beneath a swathe of dark bangs. 

“Virgil! Goodness, kiddo, you gave me quite the fright there!” 

“Sorry,” Virgil said, leaning back on his heels sheepishly. “I didn’t mean to scare you, I just...I can go, if you want.” 

Patton shook his head quickly and smiled up at Virgil. 

“I don’t mind the company.” 

Virgil hesitated for another moment, then sat down on the ground next to Patton, drawing his legs underneath him.

“Are y’all finding what you need in the barn so far?” Patton asked, and Virgil nodded. 

“There’s a lot there that will really help us out...thank you for letting us take it.” 

“Well, I won’t have much use for most of it anymore,” Patton said, wrapping his arms around himself. “You may as well take it.” 

“I guess so…” Virgil said, glancing over at Patton. There was a beat of silence, and then…

“So, you and your sister have been here together this whole time?” 

Patton’s heart skipped a beat.

“Pretty much,” he whispered, then cleared his throat to continue. “Our parents...they died in the initial outbreak. The last thing we heard from them was a voicemail telling us not to leave the farm, and that they’d be home soon. But…” he trailed off, and Virgil grimaced. 

“They didn’t ever make it back?” he finished quietly, and Patton nodded, blinking quickly to try and stop tears from welling up in his eyes.

“Thomas and I lost our parents too.” Virgil fiddled with the edge of his sleeves as he spoke, and he turned to Patton with a grim look. “Our dad when things first went to shit, and our mom a few months later. She um...” he clenched his fists and let out a shuddering breath. “She got...turned. ” 

 Patton winced, then looked over at Virgil, taking in the baggy clothes and the dark bags stamped beneath his eyes. 

“It’s still really bad out there, huh?” he asked quietly, looking out into the field that stretched out past his garden until it met the woods. 

Virgil hummed in agreement. 

“It’s not great, no.”

“How old was Thomas? When...when you lost your mom?”

“Eight,” Virgil whispered, and Patton’s eyes widened. 

“Oh my goodness, poor kiddo...so he’s what, eleven now?”

“He turns twelve next month,” Virgil said, and Patton shook his head. 

“And you’ve raised him all by yourself this whole time? That’s incredible.” 

“I’ve had a little help since settling in Eden, but yeah, for the most part,” Virgil agreed. “Sometimes...well, a lot of times, actually, I think I’m screwing everything up, but I’d do anything for him. He’s all I have left, you know?” 

Patton swallowed a lump in his throat. 

“Yeah,” he whispered. “I know.” 

A heavy silence hung in the space between them, and Virgil fiddled with the edge of his sleeves before glancing up at Patton. 

“If it’s okay for me to ask,” Virgil said slowly, and Patton looked over at him. “How long ago did your sister...um…” 

“When did she get bitten?” Patton asked, his voice sharp, and Virgil shrank back. 

“I’m sorry, if you don’t want to talk about it, I-” 

“No, it’s fine,” Patton said, deflating almost instantly. He looked up at the farmhouse, his eyes lingering on Morgan’s window before he turned back to Virgil. “It was...it was three days ago. She didn’t actually get bitten, it’s just a scratch from one of them, but that’s still enough to transmit the...virus, disease, whatever it is, I don’t know.” 

“Will she still turn from that?” Virgil asked, and Patton nodded. 

“It...it takes a few days, but from what I can tell, the infection spreads slowly from the wound and just...shuts the body down. Then it...you know.” 

Virgil grimaced. 

“Yeah. But wait...if you’ve been here on the farm this whole time, then how are you so sure what’s happening to her? I’ve been going on scavenging trips out in the wild for three years now, and I’ve never seen anything like what’s happening to your sister.” 

“I’m sure,” Patton said cooly. “Since that’s how my brother died.” 

“Oh, shit, Patton, I didn’t mean-” 

“No, no, it’s okay,” Patton said. “You didn’t know, it’s not your fault.” He laughed wetly, the words unable to stop tumbling from his mouth now that he’d started. “We didn’t even realize ourselves at first. I mean, we knew he’d gotten injured in the attack, but we just wrapped up his wound and continued on like normal, why wouldn’t we, right? But he just kept getting sicker and sicker, and we didn’t have any medical supplies, we didn’t know what to do, and all the news said in the beginning was that the bites would turn you, and this was a cut, but then a few days later Jason wasn’t Jason anymore, and he...h-he…” 

Patton choked on a sob, and buried his face in his hands. Part of him was ashamed to be crying in front of what was essentially a stranger to him, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He’d been trying so hard to stay strong for Morgan, to show her that she wasn’t alone and that he wasn’t scared, but he was, he was so so scared, and he hated it. 

A warm hand touched Patton’s back, and he flinched. 

Virgil drew his hand away as though it had been burned, the beginnings of an apology halfway out of his mouth before Patton cut him off by throwing himself into Virgil’s arms. Virgil caught him easily, one hand gently rubbing up and down his back, and Patton buried his face in Virgil’s chest. 

He wasn’t sure how long he cried, but eventually, his body declared that it was out of tears and he pulled away, looking up at Virgil sheepishly. 

“I...I’m sorry,” he began, but Virgil just took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. 

“Don’t be,” he said quietly, and Patton nodded. 

“I...I should probably go check on Morgan,” he said, climbing shakily to his feet, and Virgil followed suit, his eyes turning serious. 

“Do you want me to go with you?” he asked, but Patton shook his head. 

“I appreciate it...but no. Go join your friends and finish gathering what you need...I’ll come and get you when…when...” His breath hitched, and he bit his lip to stop another round of tears from falling.

“I get it,” Virgil said quietly. “Just...let me know if you change your mind, okay? You don’t have to do this alone.” 

“Thank you,” Patton said, giving Virgil a shaky smile. 

Virgil smiled back, then with a quick two-fingered salute, he turned and headed back towards the barn. Patton watched him go, then turned back towards the house and took a deep breath. He picked up his axe by the handle and headed inside, paying no mind to the pile of dirty dishes left on the kitchen table. He’d clean them up later...if he could be bothered to.

Patton hesitated when he reached the door to Morgan’s room. He knew that putting off going in wouldn’t do any good, but a part of him wanted to believe that if he just didn’t open the door, then the inevitability behind it would cease to exist. That if he turned around, Morgan would be standing in the hallway, chiding him for worrying so much about her. 

“I’m the older sister,” she would say. “I’m supposed to worry about you, not the other way around!”

Patton swallowed the lump in his throat and knocked quietly on her door. 

“Morgan?” he called, his voice barely audible even to himself. 

“I’m here, Patton,” she called back, and Patton unlocked the door as quietly as he could. 

“How’re you doing?” he asked. 

“Patton…”

“D-do you need anything?” Patton asked, his voice shaking. “Water maybe, or, or more pillows, or–” 

“Patton–” 

“I, I made scrambled eggs, you should try to eat some eggs, you haven’t eaten anything and scrambled eggs are your fav–” 

She took his hand, her grip weak but determined, and Patton sank to his knees beside her bed. 

“I’m sorry,” he choked out. “I’m so sorry, Morgan, I-I don’t know what to do anymore.” 

“Hey, hey,” she soothed, running her thumb over his hand. “It’s okay.” 

“It isn’t,” Patton said bitterly. “Nothing about this is okay.” 

Morgan sighed and looked out the window toward the garden. 

“You’re right,” she agreed. “It isn’t okay. But...but I think you will be. Eventually.” 

“How can you say that?” Patton asked, staring at Morgan incredulously, and she smiled sadly. 

“You’re the strongest person I know, Patton. You’ve worked hard every single day, and no matter what we’ve been through, you’ve stayed positive. You’re so brave, and I know that...that you’re going to be okay.”

“Morgan,” Patton whispered. “I...I don’t know. I don’t know if I can do it, without you. Without all of you.” 

“You’re going to have to, baby brother,” Morgan said. “Just...promise me something, okay?” 

“Anything,” Patton said immediately. 

“Don’t lose sight of that spark of yours, okay? No matter what happens, whatever this world throws at you next, don’t let it turn you cruel and heartless. Your kindness and your faith in people is just as much a part of your strength as your bravery...you hang on to that for me, got it?” 

“I will,” Patton said, bringing her hand up to kiss her palm. “I promise.” 

Morgan relaxed visibly, and she gave him a tired smile. 

“Good. Last thing I wanna be worried about right at the end is whether or not my baby brother’s going to be okay.” 

“I’m hardly a baby anymore,” Patton said, nudging her, and she laughed. 

“It doesn’t matter, you’re the youngest, so you’re the baby brother for life. Those are the rules, can’t do anything about them now.”  

“Not fair!” 

“Tough luck!” 

The pair continued to banter, and for a moment Patton could almost pretend that everything was normal, and that Morgan just had a particularly nasty cold. But he couldn’t pretend forever, and the longer he sat in her room the more the reality sank in. 

“Can I get you anything?” he asked softly, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen over the two of them. 

“Maybe...could you maybe open the window?” Morgan asked, and Patton was on his feet in an instant, opening the window wide and letting the breeze blow into the room.  

Patton took Morgan’s hand again and she let out a soft sigh. For a time, the only sounds in the room were Morgan’s slightly laboured breaths and the occasional chirp of a bird from outside. After what felt like an eternity, but could have only been fifteen minutes, Patton wasn’t sure, Morgan spoke again. 

“I’m scared, Patton.” 

Her voice was so small, so timid. Not at all like what Patton was used to hearing, and that, more than anything, made him want to curl into a ball and hide from the world. But instead, he stroked her hair gently and whispered, 

“I am too, Morgan.” 

“Will you stay with me?” 

Tears welled up in Patton’s eyes, and he nodded, pressing a kiss to her forehead. 

“Of course I will.” 

--- --- --- 

“I just don’t see why we have to wait. We’ve gotten what we need from the barn, so let’s scavenge from the house now so we can get back to Eden before nightfall.” 

“Patton said we couldn’t take what was in the house until after his sister was gone.” 

“So what? There’s one of him and four of us–” 

“Five, I’m here too, you know.”

“Whatever, kid. There’s five of us, my point is, we outnumber him! Why are we just listening to him, no questions asked?” 

“This still technically his home, Wade, we can’t just–” 

“It’s the fucking apocalypse, Lauren, why the hell does that matter now? Is legal ownership even a thing anymore?” 

“Don’t. Swear. In front of my brother. And besides, can’t you see that the guy’s been through hell? Cut him some slack.”

“We’ve all been through hell, Sanders, that doesn’t make him special.” 

“‘Scuse me.” 

The sun was low in the sky when Patton stepped into the barn, interrupting the group of scavengers’ conversation. They looked up, surprise at being overheard written on their faces, but Patton ignored them. He stepped past where they were sitting in a circle and grabbed a shovel that was leaning against the wall. 

“I need this.” 

Everyone exchanged uncomfortable looks with each other as Patton hoisted the shovel over his shoulder and turned to leave. 

“So...the house?” Wade asked, and Patton stopped walking. 

The air was thick with tension; Patton was certain several people were holding their breath, and he closed his eyes, breathing out through his nose. 

“The house is yours,” he said, his voice clipped. “Take whatever you want, I don’t care.” 

He started walking back towards the garden, but before he'd made it twenty feet, a screech echoed across the field. 

“We’ve got ourselves a horde, bitches!” 

Remus came sprinting into view, a manic grin on his face. His machete drawn and as he came closer, Patton saw that fresh blood stains splattered his clothes. 

And there were about twenty terminals lagging after him. 

“Patton, get down!” Lauren ordered from behind him, and Patton dropped to a crouch. 

A gunshot echoed from behind him, and he looked over his shoulder to see Wade on his feet with his shotgun braced against his shoulder, his expression a mask of cool determination. He fired another shot, and Remus gave a cheer. 

“Headshot! One down, a fuckton more to go!” 

“Remus!” Virgil hissed, placing a hand on Thomas’s shoulder and stepping in front of him protectively. 

“Sorry Virgey!” Remus chirped in a tone that did not sound sorry at all. 

“Reloading!” Wade called, and as he lowered his shotgun Lauren raised up a rifle that she’d been wearing strapped to her back. 

More gunfire echoed in Patton’s ears, and a few more terminals fell, but there were still far too many coming towards them. 

“Options!” Lauren called. 

“There’s nowhere to run to, but too many to fight head on,” Virgil said. “And we haven’t found any new ammo this trip, so we’re limited.” 

“I have my arrows!” Thomas piped up, and Virgil squeezed his shoulder. 

“Only if you have to, buddy, let us take care of it.” 

“Thin the herd from here, then spread out and pick the rest off in smaller groups,” Wade said, and Remus clapped his hands. 

“Sounds like a plan, Stan!” 

Wade glared at him, but lifted his gun to his shoulder again and focused back on the still advancing horde of terminals. Shots rang out, bodies fell, and the crowd still inched forward. 

“Spread out!” Lauren called, her voice sounding strange to Patton’s ringing ears. 

Remus was quick to oblige; he darted out past the horde then let out a wild cry, attracting several of the creatures’ attention. They began ambling towards him, but before they all turned around, Lauren darted the other way. Her gun was slung back over her shoulder and she had a large knife in her hand, and she let out a scream of her own, drawing a few of the terminals in her direction. 

They were getting confused now, turning back and forth between the two sources of sound, and Remus used that to his advantage to dash at the few heading towards him, hacking wildly with his machete. 

“Wade!” Virgil called, and he tossed the man a baseball bat, which Wade traded happily for his shotgun. 

“Get the kid to pick off the ones still confused in the middle,” he ordered, before running in yet another direction, hollering to catch the creatures attention. 

Virgil glared at him, but turned to Thomas and muttered something Patton couldn’t hear. The boy nodded seriously, then pulled out his bow and notched an arrow carefully. He aimed for a moment, then the arrow flew loose and struck a zombie in the leg, causing it to stumble. 

Patton had to admit, watching the group fight was impressive. Despite their earlier bickering, it was clear they had done this many times before. In fact, Patton was so distracted that he didn’t notice that one of the terminals was getting closer until it was nearly right on top of him.

“Patton!” Virgil cried out in warning, and he raised the shotgun up.

Patton moved without thinking, springing to his feet and swinging his shovel around like a bat. He hit the terminal square in the face and partially dislocated its jaw, causing it to stumble backwards. It groaned and tried to move towards Patton again, but Patton wound the shovel back and swung it hard with a cry, hitting it in the exact same place. 

The creature dropped to the ground, and Patton flipped the shovel so that its blade was pointed downward, driving it into the creature’s neck and effectively severing its head from its body. He pulled the shovel free, then looked up to see more terminals coming towards him, attracted to the sound of shovel blade connecting with bone, or maybe just Patton’s own defiant shout, but specifics didn’t really matter. He gripped the rough wooden handle tighter, and as a scream bubbled up from deep inside of him, he ran forward and raised the shovel over his head. 

The first time he’d killed a terminal he’d been so scared. The creature was so much more horrifying in person than on the news, with its rotting flesh and soulless eyes, yet killing it had still hurt. It had once been human, after all...not an “it,” but a “he” or a “she” or a “they,” and Patton had cried for hours in his older sister’s arms after that first attack on their farm. And while he’d gotten more used to dealing with the creatures in the past three years, he’d always had to push past his hesitation when it came to killing them. 

But now, all Patton could think about was the panic in his parents’ voices on their last voicemail to him, the way his brother’s eyes had rolled back into his head the day he turned, and Morgan’s hand finally going limp in his own. 

He swung the shovel, over and over and over again, holding nothing back. Bones crunched, blood splattered, and he kept on swinging. Someone was screaming, Patton thought it might even be himself, but he didn’t care.  He swung the tool again; it was what he lived for at this point. There was nothing but the swing of the shovel and the crack of metal meeting bone and the thud of terminals hitting the ground. 

A voice called his name, but it sounded far away and out of focus, as though he were underwater. A face appeared in his vision and he swung again, but this time the face dodged out of the way, reappearing a moment later. Patton wasn’t used to an opponent that could move so quickly, and before he knew it, his shovel was gone and he'd been wrestled to the ground. 

“Patton!” the voice said again. “Patton, they’re gone! You can stop!” 

Patton kicked and struggled, letting out an angry cry, but his attacker sat on his thighs and grabbed his wrists, holding them down.

“I know,” he said, and Patton realized it was Remus who had pinned him down. 

He blinked tears out of his eyes (when had he started crying?) and tried again to twist out of the grip, but Remus grabbed Patton’s shoulder and shook him, staring intently into Patton’s eyes. 

“Trust me,” Remus said, his voice more earnest than Patton had heard all day. “I know. But you have to stop now. Let it go...that’s it…” He smiled as the tension began to drain out of Patton’s shoulders. “Just let it go.” 

Slowly, Patton began to calm down; the rage and grief that had filled him only moments before slowly drained away, leaving him feeling hollow, and as he finally stilled, Remus rolled back and let him sit up. 

“I get it, I really do,” he said again, getting to his feet and pulling Patton up behind him. “You gotta let it all out, I feel ya. But you can’t lose yourself like that...you gotta be able to pull yourself out outta that frenzy, or you’re gonna have regrets.” 

“Patton?” 

Patton turned to see Virgil approaching, Thomas following carefully behind. Looking around, he finally realized that the horde was in fact defeated; between the five adults and the occasional landed arrow from Thomas, the terminals had all fallen.

“Are you okay?” Virgil asked. 

“I...I will be, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to lose control like that, it’s never happened to me before, I–” 

“I didn’t just mean about the terminals, Patton,” Virgil said gently, and Patton looked down. 

“I don’t know,” he admitted in a whisper. “I...I don’t really know...what to do, now that...” he trailed off, and Virgil exchanged glances with Remus.

“Well,” Virgil said slowly. “I don’t wanna assume anything...and I know this is your family farm and all, but if you wanted to...you could come to Eden with us?” 

“Go with you?” Patton asked, frowning. “Is that, I mean, can you even offer something like that? What if Lauren–”

“Lauren’s the point on this expedition but she’s not our leader,” Remus piped up. “Dee is in charge of the whole operation, and if Virgey and I here say you’re good, you’re good.” 

“Only if you want to though,” Virgil added quickly. “I’d understand if you want to stay here, I just thought...maybe you’d like to, you know. Not be alone?” 

“I…” Patton looked back at the farmhouse, at the garden and the chicken yard and the barn, then back at Virgil. “I think that I would like that.” 

“Really?” Virgil asked. “Because I really do get it if you want to stay–”

“Really,” Patton said firmly. “There’s nothing left for me here now, only memories...memories that I don’t know if I could face alone.”

“I get it,” Virgil said, and somehow Patton knew that he wasn’t just saying that...Virgil really did understand how he was feeling right now, even if he couldn’t even properly articulate it himself. 

“Can...I just do one thing before we go?” he asked. 

He picked up his shovel again, and Virgil nodded silently. “Do you want any help?

Patton opened his mouth to say no, thank you, but he could take care of this himself, but then he stopped, his sister’s words echoing in his mind. 

“Your kindness and your faith in people is just as much a part of your strength as your bravery...you hang on to that for me, got it?” 

“Yeah,” he said, letting Virgil take the shovel from him. “I think I do.” 

---

Until the Sun Rises Taglist:

@the-permanent-fixture​ @maybe-i-like-the-misery​ @paint-in-flames​ @antisocialdragonenby​ @certified-demon​ @nonasidesstuff​ @idiot-annonymous​ @weird-spooky-broody-dude​ @ao-koshka​ @viana-dascolli​ @snail-giggles​ @penguinkool​ @kawaiiartist04​ @safesandersides @ismossie @an-absolute-failure @incoherentfangirl @deceitfullyanxiousprince @daniel-the-anxious-emo @why-should-i-tell-youu2 @rebeyerfdog @foreos @imliterallyvirgilandlogan @anxietea-and-insanitea @rosiepupper @fearthepenguinboye @singularthoughtofstatic @midnight-tragedyy @whizzie72 @scared-ghosthunter  @imabad-b-youcantkillme @ollyollyoxinfree @musikasworld @notyourperfectmexicandaughter @thewhimsicallibrarytech