#does this count as royal trio ...

[axoqiii]

🐾🐦‍⬛ shuake week day 2 ^_^

[akechi-stole-my-heart]

i should probably post abt my royal trio fic on here more often but i'm so private abt my creative process and i can barely draw so idk what i would say

[raven-dor]

you are my moonlight

In which gwayne hightower meets his future wife, and his timing is most unfortunate

PAIRING: gwayne hightower x reader, alicent hightower x PLATONIC!reader, rhaenyra targaryen x PLATONIC!reader

WARNINGS: fluff, young love, friends fighting, creepy viserys, horrible timing

WORD COUNT: 3.5k

AN: this could be read as a prequel to come back to me, but does NOT have to be read to understand any context!!

The tourney was in full swing, Y/N sitting eagerly on Rhaenyra’s left. The first two matches had finished rather similarly, with Sir Criston Cole being the winner. What the trio was actually waiting for was Prince Daemon’s match. It was all Rhaenyra had talked about for days and the fact that he’d gifted her a necklace of Valyrian steel, a rare and precious token that many in the realm could not afford. Of course, Rhaenyra and her family were the exception, as they were one of two of the only remaining High Valyrian houses left.  

The knights of the realm lined up before the Prince, the Master of Revels, announced the man himself. “Prince Daemon of House Targaryen, Prince of the City, will now choose his first opponent.” The prince rode down the line, inspecting each knight briefly. He quickly settled on Alicent’s brother, Ser Gwayne. “For his first challenge, Prince Daemon Targaryen chooses Ser Gwayne Hightower of Oldtown, eldest son of the Hand of the King.” 

Alicent grew restless, picking at the skin surrounding her fingers. Y/N wished she could comfort the auburn haired girl herself, but Rhaenyra grabbed her friend's hand quickly, stopping her from further injury. The two men lined up on their respective sides, racing towards each other. 

Ser Gwayne released the first blow to the shock of the stands. Y/N beamed, though she did not know why. She hardly knew the knight, only hearing of him through Alicent when she recalled her childhood. The second round was quick, and at the last second, Prince Daemon lowered his joust in front of the horse's legs, causing it to topple over, taking Ser Gwayne with it. She gasped, a hand covering her mouth. She mumbled, knowing Rhaenyra would not stand for any untoward talk of her uncle. “By the seven.”

Ser Gwayne did not move, and Alicent grew more anxious by the second. Y/N reached her hand out, grasping Alicent's briefly. “He will be alright, Alicent, I know it.” The squires lifted him from the ground, walking him over to the medicine tent. He would be transported later to the sept, Y/N assumed. She would have to visit him and keep him company while he recovered. 

Prince Daemon approached the Royal apartment, and Rhaenyra instantly approached her uncle. “Nicely done, Uncle.” Alicent and Y/N followed suit, still squeamish from the clearly immoral act.

“Thank you, Princess.” Daemon nodded his head. “Lady Y/N.” 

“My Prince.” 

He turned to Alicent. “Now, I’m fairly certain I can win these games, Lady Alicent. Having your favor would all but assure it.” Alicent walked away, and Daemon smiled once more at the ward of the crown. “Next tourney, my lady, I shall ask you.” 

Y/N laughed. “I look forward to that day, my Prince.” 

Alicent returned swiftly, placing her favor on the Prince’s joust. “Good luck, my Prince.” The three girls sat down, waving at the crowd. The tourney had turned sour near after, with three fights breaking out, all ending in death. The knights, who had never seen battle, were bloodthirsty from what she could tell.

Y/N grew nauseous quickly, begging Rhaenyra for pardon so that she did not grow sick. Rushing out of the royal apartment, she decided to visit Ser Gwayne while she still had the nerve. The tent was quiet, with the exception of a few masters concocting ointments. Y/N peaked around the corner, coming face to face with Alicent’s brother. She curtsied, bowing her head. “My lord.” He tried to sit up, but she quickly stopped him. “Please, there is no need to further harm yourself.” 

He smiled gratefully. “I must ask for your forgiveness, my lady; I do not remember meeting you.” 

“I am Y/N of House Hawthorne. A ward of the crown and a friend of your sister’s.” 

“A pleasure, my lady.” He tilted his head. “Has she sent you here then?” 

“Alicent remains at the tourney. I-” She blushed, realizing how foolish it sounded. “I saw your joust, and I wanted to see that you were well. For Alicent’s sake.” 

He nodded, a smirk growing on his lips. “For Alicent, of course. I must say, I have not heard of House Hawthorne.” She smiled, sitting beside him.

“We are located in the Westerlands, my lord, and are sworn to House Lannister.” She looked closer at his wound, wincing. “Your wound looks rather agitated still. Would you mind if I-” 

He shook his head quickly. “Please. I would be most appreciative.” 

She stood, sneaking a cloth and an herb she knew caused numbing. Wrapping it carefully, she dipped the cloth in water, tapping it lightly on his skin. “This should numb the pain, for now, my lord. I’ve known this herb to speed the healing process along quite nicely.” 

He hummed, closing his eyes. “How did you become so well acquainted with such knowledge?” 

“My mother was a trained healer, my lord.” 

“Please call me Gwayne.” He peeked through his eyelids, giving her a kind smile. “You’ve all but earned it.” 

“Very well, my lo- Gwayne.” She nodded. “If I can call you by your name, it is only fair that you call me by mine.” 

He scoffed. “Hardly. That would be highly improper.” 

She raised an eyebrow, still delicately tapping the cloth. “Opposed to what you have asked of me?” 

He nodded, steadfast. “You are a lady. You should be addressed as such.” 

Dipping the cloth back in the water, she laughed. “Hardly.” 

“Using my own words against me.” He laughed back. “My, you are a wonder.” 

“Y/N?” 

She froze, turning around quickly. For some reason Y/N felt guilty, caught even. But seeing Alicent stand at the end of her brother’s bed, her face as pale as the winter snow, made the girl forget her worries. Y/N dropped the cloth in the bowl, rushing to Alicent’s side. “What is it? What’s happened?” 

“The Queen. She’s-” Alicent leaned closer, whispering in her friend's ear. “She’s dead.” Y/N gasped.

“I-” Y/N turned back to Gwayne, waving quickly. “It was wonderful to make your acquaintance, my lord.” The two girls rushed off, leaving the knight thoroughly confused. 

“Call me-” The girl was out of the tent before he could finish his sentence.

The funeral was a somber affair, as to be expected. Alicent and Y/N stood close by to Rhaenyra, staring at the covered bodies. Syrax, the Princess’s dragon, stood at the top of the hill, waiting for its orders. They stood in silence for the better part of an hour before Prince Daemon whispered in Rhaenyra’s ear, no doubt telling her that she would have to be the one to give the order. 

A shiver ran down Y/N’s spine as her friend stepped forward, catching a sob. “D-” Rhaenyra took a deep breath, commanding her dragon. “Dracarys.” 

The yellow fury let out a great blast, effectively burning her mother and brother’s corpses. Rhaenyra turned away, unable to look at her deceased loved ones. Soon after, the crowd dissipated, leaving Rhaenyra, Y/N, and Alicent still standing by the sight. Y/N stayed back as Alicent approached their grieving friend.

“My lady.” 

Y/N turned, smiling lightly at the Hightower. “My lord.” 

“I believe last we met, I asked you to call me by my name.” He smirked. “Or am I mistaken?” 

She laughed quietly. “I believe the herb I applied made you hallucinate, my lord. You never said anything of the sort.” 

He laughed. “I’m sure you would never lie to me, so I shall take your word for it.” 

Y/N looked back at her friends, her heart aching. 

“She is an unlucky Princess,” Gwayne muttered. 

“Yes, indeed. Losing a parent is never easy.” 

“I am sorry.” Y/N turned back to the young knight, confusion etched on her face. “It is just- I assumed that with you being a ward of the crown-” 

“You would be correct. But it has been so long, I hardly remember what it was like to have parents.” 

He frowned. “That is horrible. I lost my own mother just a year ago.” He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she tried to ignore the shock that rang through her body. “It is never easy.” 

She shook her head, placing a hand delicately over his. “You are, unfortunately, correct.” 

A cough broke the pair apart, Y/N practically jumping at the interruption. “I could use some company on Dragonback.” Rhaenyra practically whispered. “Would you join me?” 

“Of course.” She turned back to Gwayne, curtsying quickly. “My lord.” 

The two girls walked up the hill, arm in arm. Alicent looked curiously at her brother. “What are you doing?” 

He whipped around, laughing at his sister. “Whatever do you mean?” 

“I only meant to say, you’ve taken a recent fascination in Y/N.” 

“Yes.” He nodded. “And your point?” 

Alicent smiled, shaking her head. “Merely a statement, brother.”

The palace gardens were in full bloom this time of year, and Y/N always found comfort in the little corner with a quaint fountain and an outlook of the ocean. Rhaenyra and she frequented this spot often in their youth, and Y/N needed respite from the high tensions at court. She’d been stuck on the same page for what seemed like hours when a voice broke through her focus. “We meet again.” Gwayne bowed his head, grinning much too widely. “My lady.” 

Y/N made no effort to stand, raising her eyebrows. “I am beginning to think, my lord, that you have been following me.” 

“Not that I am…” He started, sitting at the end of the cushioned chair that she occupied. “But if I was, it might have something to do with the fact that you are still not calling me by my name.” 

She laughed. “Is it that simple?” 

He nodded. “Quite. But do not worry yourself, I’ll wait.” His eyes sparkled. “My lady.” 

Y/N welcomed the challenge; she could sit there for hours, reading and ignoring the handsome knight. She glanced down at her book, ignoring his devilishly handsome smile. “You’ve read that page three times already.” She glared over the top, and he held his hands up in surrender, laughing. “Sorry.” 

She looked back down, flipping the page to prove a point. He sighed, standing and walking over to the daisies that bordered the fountain. Picking the fullest one he could find, he stopped in front of the girl, holding it out. “May I?” 

“I will not wilt at the sight of you because you are a lord.” She stood, closing her book. “I am not a flower like the thing you hold in your hand.” 

He nodded. “You are not.” He raised the daisy, tucking it behind her ear. “You are however, as pretty as one.” 

Her cheeks turned pink, and she murmured. “You flatter me, my lord.” 

“And why shouldn’t I? One should always flatter a beautiful woman when given the chance.” He smiled. “I believe calling me by my name shall suffice as thanks.” 

She scoffed, smacking his chest lightly. “You are quite confident, Gwayne.” 

“You’ll find-” He stopped, his smile brightening ten fold. “You said my name.” 

Y/N nodded, walking away. “I did.” 

He followed after, like a lost puppy. “What shall you do with the rest of your day, I wonder?” 

She shrugged. “I do not know, but it will most certainly be out of your presence.” 

He gasped, holding his chest. “You hurt my heart when you say such things.” 

She laughed, stopping and pretending to check him over. “However will you survive?” 

“I think it is terminal my lady.” 

“And what affliction have you caught, Ser Gwayne?” Y/N forced a giggle back, trying her hardest to behave seriously. 

“Lovesickness.” He sighed. “I’m afraid there is no cure.” 

She stepped closer, a pink dusting her cheeks. “I shall mourn you then.” 

“Well, I’m sure we could-” 

“Y/N!” 

Gwayne had never hated the Princess Rhaenyra more in his life than that moment. She was a generally tolerable girl, and a good friend to his sister, but in that moment she stood between him and you, and he wanted nothing more than to tell her to leave. He stepped away from you hesitantly, bowing quickly. “Princess.” 

The Targaryen made no effort to hide her humor at the situation. “I apoligize for the intrusion. Alicent and I were about to go to the Sept, and I did not want you to think we left you behind.” 

Y/N smiled brightly, waving disapointedly to the knight. “Feel better, my lord.”

Alicent tilted her head, yelling back at her brother. “Better? Are you quite well brother?”

Y/N yet again found herself in the gardens, but this time she was here for the soul purpose of seeing Gwayne. She wore her best dress, had her maid’s put her hair up intricately, and even applied some rouge. Not too much, she wouldn’t want people to think the wrong thing. She was a lady, as Gwayne never ceased to remind her. Sitting carefully on the cushioned chair, she positioned herself towards the entrance, waiting for the familiar mop of auburn hair to peek through. She’d begun to think he wouldn’t show when his familiar tenor broke through the tranquil silence. 

“My lady, I thought I would find you here.” She lowered the book, her stomach fluttering when his eyes widened slightly. “You look-” 

“Gwayne, I-” They both stopped, laughing at their ill timed words. “It seems that we cannot find a moment of peace.” 

He nodded, breaking the distance between them. “I have wanted to tell you something for quite some time now. I cannot seem to summon the words to leave me.” He laughed, but his nerves were evident. “It is just…” 

“Yes?” Y/N smiled, hating how nauseous she felt. 

“I wanted to say that-” 

A loud sob rang through the garden, pulling them out of their haze. Gwayne drew his sword, in case the sob resulted in any trouble. Y/N tried to round the corner before him, but he shook his head, leading her carefully through the hedges. 

“Rhaenyra?” Y/N quickly left her place behind Gwayne, rushing to her friends side. “Are you alright?” 

“She’s betrayed me. I cannot- I can’t-” The princess looked up, glaring at the knight. “Can we go some place else?” 

Y/N nodded, her face visibly disappointed. She walked Rhaenyra out of the gardens, sparing Gwayne one last look, mouthing the words ‘I’m sorry.’

The castle had been throw off it’s axis by the sudden shift within it’s walls. Rhaenyra was no longer speaking to Alicent, which meant Y/N was no longer speaking to Alicent, which meant that the once close knit group of friends were no longer a trio. 

It had been that way since they were children, almost ten years ago. Y/N not speaking to Alicent meant she could not speak to Gwayne, or so she assumed. She and Rhaenyra had not talked about it much since the day it was announced, always leaving a sour taste in the Princess’s mouth. 

Y/N just wished Rhaenyra could forgive her friend for something she had no control over. The Royal Wedding was tonight, and Rhaenyra had insisted that Y/N walk in with the princess, even though she wasn’t family. When Y/N brought this up, her friend scolded her, saying that ‘My father has insisted, I’m afraid. You are his ward, and he has grown to think of you as his own.’ 

Now, she sat beside Rhaenyra while the ceremony took place, sneaking glances at the brides brother. Rhaenyra had picked out Y/N's dress herself, saying that she needed something worthy of a princess. She was not one to argue and let the Princess do whatever she wanted as long as she was distracted from the day at hand.

Arm in arm with the Princess, she dreaded when they finally reached the hall and had to congratulate the ‘happy’ couple. Poor Alicent, married at fifteen, was not something she wished on her worst enemy. Especially to a man twenty years your senior. The doors opened wide, the crowd quieting at the sight of the princess and her companion. Among that crowd was Gwayne, staring at her with desperate eyes. 

Her cheeks turned pink, quickly breaking the contact. Chatter quickly filled the hall once more as Rhaenyra reached the top of the steps, curtsying quickly. “Congratulations, step-mother. Father.” 

Y/N shivered. Rhaenyra's tone was as cold as the Wall. She wanted to curse her friend for making her go after that display. She sunk to the floor, bowing her head. “Many happy returns, My Queen, My King.” 

Viserys smiled gratefully. “Thank you Y/N. You have been a loyal friend to my daughter and wife. I shall not forget it.” 

The young girl nodded, equally disgusted and horrified at what the king had just said. Surely he realized how immoral it was. “Of course Your Grace. I live to serve and provide assistance to my Princess.” 

She released a breath she hadn’t known she was holding, sitting down beside Rhaenyra. “Could you at least have tried to be nice?” 

“I was.” The princess raised an eyebrow, and Y/N almost laughed, realizing her friend was being serious. 

“Of course. A jest, my lady.” 

Rhaenyra laughed. “So formal.” 

“We are at a wedding, Rhaenyra. It would be inappropriate for me to call you anything other than my lady, by the court's standards.” 

“Well I am the princess, and I say you call me Rhaenyra.” 

“Very well.” Y/N smiled, taking a large sip of her wine. “This will be an entertaining night.” 

Besides the occasional snide comment thrown at the obviously overwhelmed bride, the night had been otherwise peaceful. Y/N tried her best to sway Rhaenyra from attacking the queen outright, and she’d been successful. So far. She’d been in the middle of listening to Rhaenyra’s adventure of gathering the stolen dragon egg from her uncle when a cough interrupted. 

“Excuse me, Princess.” The pair turned around to see Gwayne staring at Y/N not Rhaenyra. Odd. He had addressed Rhaenyra, not her. “May I ask the Lady for a dance?” 

Y/N widened her eyes, looking in between the two. She was sure Rhaenyra would say no or burst out in flames from having to talk to Alicent’s brother, but she simply nodded her head, going back to her meal. Gwayne extended his hand, leading her to the dancefloor. He whispered as they moved, keeping in mind the intruding ears that surrounded them. “I have missed your company, my lady.” 

“I have missed yours as well.” 

“I know much has happened since we last spoke, but it has not deterred me. If anything, it has made me realize that I cannot stand to be apart from you.” Her cheeks turned pink for the second time that night. 

“You are very kind, Gwayne.” 

“Yes, well, it is not hard when you are the one I compliment.” He shook his head. “I am returning to Old Town soon. In two weeks time, after my sister settles into her new life.”

Her heart fell, eyes watering. “I hope your journey is swift.” She gulped, mumbling. “I shall miss you in truth.” 

He tilted his head, smiling. If she were not in a public place, she would admonish him for smiling at her pain. “What I mean to say is, I am infatuated with you. And I would like to seek your hand in marriage. From the king of course.” 

She gasped, her eyes widening. “I beg your pardon?” 

“I would like to marry you.” He spoke softly, now fully grinning. “If you would have me. You do not have to say yes, but I assure you, your affection for me will grow with time.”

“With time? Gwayne, I-” Y/N whispered so quietly she wasn’t even sure she’d spoken. “I have already grown to admire you. Much more than a friend should. That is no concern of mine.” 

“Ah.” The knight nodded. “Well, that settles it then.” 

“Settles what?” 

“We are to be married.” 

“Yes, well…” She sighed. “You cannot propose to me at your sister’s wedding. It would be improper.” 

“Damn impropriety.” He hissed, twirling you as the dance required. “Praytell, when would be a proper time then?” 

“Any other day, my love.” 

He stopped in the middle of the dance floor, her face growing red. “Gwayne people are looking.” 

He seemingly did not hear her. “My love.” 

“If you are going to tease me-” 

“You called me, my love.” 

“Gwayne…” She whined, gesturing to the prying eyes. “Can we please leave the floor? People will start to wonder…” 

“I desperately want to kiss you.” 

Thank the Seven the dance ended then. She bowed quickly. “Thank you for the dance, my lord.” Rushing back to her seat, she stared at the table, shock running through her veins. 

“Did he propose then?” 

Y/N whipped her head over, glaring at her friend. “You knew?” 

“Of course I knew. Y/N, I’ve known he was going to propose since I saw him approach you at my mother’s funeral.” 

“Rhaenyra, I’m so sorry.” 

“Whatever for?” 

“I don’t want you to feel betrayed. I had no intention of-” 

“Do not apoligize to me.” She placed her hand in Y/N's. “You are my friend. I am happy for you, truly. He is a good man, he will treat you well. I know it.”

“I haven’t said yes, Rhaenyra.” 

“Yet.” Her friend laughed. “You haven’t said yes, yet.”  

[vashtijoy]

whose phone is that, anyway? character signature colours and yoshizawa's phone

There is a perennial debate over what's going on with Yoshizawa's phone. Isn't it Kasumi's phone that she's dragging around for reasons? What's even wrong with it, and why?

I have no opinion on the last two questions (other than that her difficulty communicating likely symbolises the things she's hiding from herself and others.) But I do think we can put that first question, of ownership, to bed.

First let's take a quick look at...

character colour coding

Most playable characters in P5 are assigned a colour, which is used more-or-less consistently for various things. For instance, their chat icons use them:

Their gloves use them. Makoto is the exception here with white gloves (perhaps because she uses fist weapons, so her gloves are always hidden?):

More to the point? Their phones are all colour coded:

Clockwise from the top: Ryuji (gold), Ann (hot pink), Yusuke (pale blue), Haru (purple), Futaba (green) and Makoto (dark blue).

royal trio: joker

The Royal Trio throw this nice little arrangement for an absolute loop.

First off, let's take a look at Joker. Silver phone (you may have observed it). No chat icon that we ever see to my knowledge, though it seems highly unlikely that he wouldn't have a red one. And indeed, his gloves are red. (as you may also have observed)

royal trio: akechi

Our resident Gemini, of course, stomps in with his steel-capped kicker boots and does everything twice. He's got two pairs of gloves, which match his apparent alignment (white or black, with his "day gloves" being black):

And his phone? Well, it's red (though the anime has it as dark grey, because, again, never not extra). Because, to this day, he's still playing hero—with the emphasis by now very much on "playing"—and part of him still wants to be the hero....

So Joker and Akechi have a reverse colour scheme going on with their phones: Joker has the silver/white/colourless phone that you might expect Akechi to have, and Akechi has the red one you'd expect Joker to have. Or rather, Joker has the "bad guy" phone while Akechi has the "good guy" phone, because he's a fucking liar and because each of them, to a greater or lesser extent, is walking that line between hero and villain.

As for his chat icon, it was grey in vanilla [source], while in Royal it was changed to brown. So: two sets of gloves, two chat icons, two phones (if we count the anime). Complicated.

what about yoshizawa?

Just like Joker and Akechi, Yoshizawa is too cool to be bound by any stupid dress code... pretty much. Her outfit is essentially girl Joker, and so her gloves are red, like his. Her chat icon is a deep purply-pink—more hot pink than Ann's, in fact, whose colour hot pink is!

It's possible her icon is meant to be red, but it's been shifted to purply-pink because a red icon on a red background would look bad.

But there are a couple of other things we can look at. And they tell us it's incredibly likely that the malfunctioning phone Yoshizawa carries through the game is not Kasumi's, but her own.

Remember that Yoshizawa's codename, Violet, is taken from her true given name Sumire—which means "violet". In Maruki's Palace, there's a cinematic of her with the real Kasumi during their accident, where both girls have umbrellas. Kasumi's is yellow—but Sumire's?

It's violet. And what colour is Yoshizawa's phone, when she pulls it out on 10/3, still believing that she's Kasumi?

It's violet. Violet for her true name, violet for her codename. Violet like the umbrella she carried when Kasumi died. This is clearly Sumire's phone, not Kasumi's.

Why is it broken? Still damaged in the accident, maybe?—Sumire is knocked flying. Unconsciously sabotaged? Space pixies? Who knows.

[simp2537]

SCYLLA

A/n: I’m super excited for this one. I’ve gotten really into dead boy detectives lately. I’ve also just fallen in the love with Monty and found there aren’t enough fics of him. Now this does have some sensitive topic that are in the show. Along with a few added ones. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. Other then that please enjoy.

Word Count: 1.776k

Trigger Warning: Religious themes, gore, murder, violence, suicidal thoughts, alcoholism, demons, blood,  self hatred, cannibal tendencies in flashbacks, child neglect, ptsd, self neglect, imprisonment, torture, consumption of other demons,  more warnings to follow

CHAPTER ONE

It was loud in Hell. Louder than she thought it would be. After being dragged down however many years ago she’d lost all hope of ever leaving. Her father was not much help, some high lord demon he was. Couldn’t even free his own daughter for the prison of his own making. 

She could never quite drown out all the screaming. Her ears were better than that of normal humans, she could hear everything. Every soul being tormented. Every demon who laughed. There was not one thing in hell that happened that she couldn’t hear.

However as the door to her torture chamber opened slowly she did not recognize the footsteps of the ghost who quickly hid. Her eyes slowly lifted upwards, her face red and puffy of tears.

There on the ground next to her was a boy her age. With pale skin, blood dripping from his forehead, almost black hair and the most intense emerald eyes she’d ever seen. His face was covered in terror as he looked around the room.

Bodies covered every inch. Bloody mutilated bodies. Limps and guts were torn out and scattered about. The faces of horror forever laced in the corpses.

“Who are you?” Her voice came out hoarse, her last screaming fit having only been a few minutes ago.

“….Edwin Payne.” His voice was soft, maybe a bit fearful. 

She chuckled softly, pain? His last name was Payne and he was in hell. 

“I think you’re in the wrong room.” She whispered softly, leaning closer to him. He shook his head furiously, the blood in his face crippled down.

“No! I shouldn’t be here at all!” He whisper yells. The girl nodded softly as some demon crawled in front of her door. Edwin froze up, his eyes locking upon the entrance.

“Don’t worry sacrifice, most of the demons avoid this room.” She mumbled laying her head back down in her knees. He slowly turned to her, he studied her frame quickly.

“Come with me.” He whispered. She snapped her head up staring into his soul. 

“Excuse me?”

“Come with me, I’m escaping. If these demons are so afraid of you then maybe it will be better for the both of us.” She didn’t answer. 

Her gaze traveled around the carnage covered room. Her father wasn’t evening much help getting her out of here. Her own mother laid with the corpses. Maybe that wasn’t really her, maybe her soul was somewhere else.

“That doesn’t frighten you? That demons are afraid of me?” He shock his head. 

“Not if it gets us out of this place.” She nodded her head. He slowly stood up, lowering his hand for her to take. 

Then she took it.

…………………………

This was royally stupid. 

Her feet pattered against the ground as she ran away from the ghost the persuaded them. Her thighs ached as she followed after Charles. His bag bounced as Edwin ran next to him. 

This was not how she wanted to spend her Saturday. She had planned on sitting in the couch with a cup of instant ramen and watch Peter Pan. However the boys had other plans. 

And now she was running from some crazed soldier who was screaming his head off. She watched as the boys bickered between each other. Charles threw the bag to the ground going through it. 

The trio stood in a circle, as Charles pulls out an iron knife from his bag. 

“Iron knife! Give him a right smart burn if he tries anything.” Charles snapped as he raised the knife. Y/n rolled her eyes as her hands gently lit up in hues of scarlet. 

“Real smart Charles.” She mocked him as she moved her body slightly in front of Edwin.

Ignoring Y/n, Charles continued, “I say with clip the mask, destroy it, he moves into her afterlife, case closed.” 

“Bait and match gambit?” Y/n asked as her lips curled into a smirk. Charles chuckled softly as he tossed the knife into the air. 

“I’ll need Minor Arcana, volume four. It’s the sort of small, purple one.” Edwin starts. Charles loved to his bag rummaging through it extensively. 

“It contains the fire spell.” Edwin continued. Y/n’s eyes dropped slightly as she watched Charles. 

“You don’t have it in the bag, do you?” She watched as his entire arm sunk Kylo the bag. The way his face dropped as she spoke. 

“Right. Small hiccup there. I left it back at the office.” Edwin whipped around his face full of panic. Y/n glared down at her friend with his arm still in his bag. 

“Charles, you have a backpack that can hold an infinite number of things.” 

“Well I didn’t know we’d need it did I?” 

“This is why you boys let me pack the infinity bag!” The ghost howled above them as he jumped down. The trio stared at the ghost soldier as he held out his own knife. Slowly there gazes turned to Charles knife.

“Go!” With Charles’s warning the group sprinted off again. The ghost continued to chase them through London as they ran. Y/n was seriously annoyed that she hadn’t just stayed home. 

“Y/n! Could you please be helpful and use your magic!” Edwin yelled to her. She stoped her run allowing the boys to pass her. His footsteps falters as he watched his friend lower herself to the ground.

“Y/n!” Charles yelled but was ignored. Slamming her hand against the gravel, debris shot up. With scarlet hues covering the brown pieces they formed a wall, stopping the outraged ghost in his tracks. 

As Y/n turned around Edwin spotted a glass mirror. The boys ran to it as she groan in annoyance. They always forget I cannot mirror travel!

Because they don’t care!

Rolling her eyes once again at her voice she tracked after them. Edwin looked back slightly to see her still running with them. 

“I’ll meet you boys at the office!” She yelled to them. With her words boy boys disappeared through the glass. The two men holding the mirror stared at her as she ran past them. 

She continued to run not minding all the stares she received as she dashed to an alleyway. It wasn’t easy being a dead boy detective when the living can see you. Dead boy detective was still strange to say.

If anything she was just a bodyguard for the two boys when they got into trouble. Leaning down to the ground and pricking her finger she drew a circle in the air. 

Quickly the blood floated in the air swirling as made a portal to the office. The vast book covered shelves and desk being show through. 

The office I pay for.

With my wealth.

She scoffed softly at his voice. She mocked his softly repeating to herself. She quickly jumped through the portal of her own making, landing in the office rather gracefully. 

She panted softly as she brushed off any dish that might have found it way into her clothes. She wore a simple black suit with white collared shirt underneath. Black vest around her waist and her sleeves rolled up. At the back of her suit jacket Charles as sewn on a large drawing of a hydra.

As she looked around she couldn’t find the boys. They’d jumped into the mirror before her, they should’ve already been back. Before she could process another thought, Edwin’s lanky body crash into her.

Her stomach hit the ground with a thud as he lay on top of her for a few moments. He jumped off quickly pulling the crazies girl to her feet. 

Charles body crashed just to the desk, pushing the furniture. Edwin panted softly. 

“Now, before he arrives,” The sounds of Charles changing cuts off his words. Moving forwards out of the mirror the ghost clutched onto Charles throat. The boys body slams on the desk, sliding onto the floor. 

Y/n pushed the emerald eyes boy away as the soldier ghost goes to attack Charles. With a flash of red the knife that had been aimed for Charles head is thrown away.

The soldier ghost rises in the air. His body jerking around as Y/n glares sharply at him. Charles shoot’s up, grasping at his iron knife.

“Sorry, chap. That mask has a hold on you, so I’ll need to take it.” Charles mumbles as he rubs at his neck. The knife slices through the mask effortlessly and is quickly thrown to Edwin.

Blood drips from the ghosts mouth as he screams in disarray. The blood drips down onto the carpets in front of the desk. Y/n’s eyes sharpen as she turn to Edwin.

“EDWIN PAYNE! These are my nice carpets! Hurry the fuck up!” Upon her instruction Edwin beings to chant in Latin. The mask lights on fire, slowly burning. 

The soldier ghosts screams turn into a gentle whimper as his mask turns to ashes. Slowly Y/n lowers him to the ground, her eyes no longer so sharp. 

The ghost curled to the ground and slowly she reach her hand out. It gently rested on his shoulder as he whimpered in anguish.

“It’s alright mate. You win the war. Kids read about it in school boom, yeah? You’ve done brilliantly.” Charles’s words echo through Y/n’s mind.

“You’ve done brilliantly sweetling.” His words as calm as ever. His hand the combed through her bloodied hair cold as always. His eyes…. His eyes that cursed blood color. 

Shivers ran down her spine as she felt Edwin grasp into her arm. She quickly brought them outside. The boys clung to the window as she floated besides Edwin.

“Charles, Y/n that was a job well done.” Edwin told the pair.

“Yeah, pretty chuffed about it myself. Except for the part where he chocked me.”” 

“You’re welcome.” Edwin’s snickers brought a smile to both faces. The room quickly lit up in a bright blue. 

“Death.” Edwin whisper faintly. “She’s here.”

The trio looked through the sides of the window. Death stood before the old ghost speaking to him softly. 

“They will come back, come back again. As long as the red Earth rolls. He never wasted a leaf of a tree. Do you think He would squander souls?” Y/n repeat with Death softly to herself. Edwin looked over at her, his eyes softer. 

“You ever think, what if death did catch us? She’s force us to go to the afterlife and split up.” Her own eyes faltered at the thought. She couldn’t go back. Not to the place. Not to that room. Not to him.

“I will make sure that never happens.” Slowly the blue light faded away. Just as the soldier ghost and death did. 

[anthonyzoxide]

Rating and Reviewing the Mean Gills team name options

(This is unfinished but it’s been in my drafts for 3 months so I’m just going to impulse-post it now)

-Mean Gills: The best name, naturally, being the one that they went with and all. So much potential for reference humour, rolls off the tongue... If you wanted to analyze it story-wise 'gills' could foreshadow the ocean mutations that both of the gills (Another plus: 'Mean Gills' allowing me to use 'gills' as a replacement for 'girls') start to get throughout the series. And the 'Mean' part could foreshadow all those times they murder people in cold blood on purpose? It does bother me how little they actually reference Mean Girls across Limited Life, if at all, with how much potential there was- But that's a complaint unrelated from the name itself, so I won't count it as effecting the rating. 10/10

-Coral Kids: Sounds cute, and I like (or rather prefer) how it was worked into their area being called the Coral Isles. Though in the lore monologues, this would probably be even harder to take seriously when referenced than 'Mean Gills'. 7/10

-H2-Bros: When pronouncing this name out loud, it either has an awkward pause or is automatically said too quickly to process the joke- And, additionally, in retrospect I quite understand how one of the deciding factors between this and Mean Gills was not perpetuating the same masculine energy of the Bad Boys. Not a fan, but wouldn't have been particularly upset if they went with this. 4/10

-Santa's Little Kelpers: For how summer-coded Limited Life comes across as, this totally feels like the wrong kind of seasonal. In particular, the Mean Gills always felt tropical to me- Would've been a ton of tonal whiplash if they were named this. Also brings to mind a certain song, which I'm not convinced is a positive. Also, introducing Santa's Little Kelpers to the Life Series means adding Santa to the Life Series, and I don't want to know where the pipeline of lore additions would go from there. 2/10

-Sons of Beaches: I feel as though this is either a reference to a band that I haven't heard of, or there for the soundalike to a certain curse word. Assuming that it's the latter, I don't believe that joke would've had much staying power- It's catchy, however. 3/10

-Big Buoys: Had to look up what a buoy was after mispelling it in 3 different ways when making the list of Mean Gills names. I now hold a vendetta against this name. Also sounds quite a lot like the Bad Boys, and I'm not sure I could've taken whatever kind of feud would arise there if the two groups were name-destined rivals. 1/10

-LGB-sea: Not a bad name, but I've got quite extensive nitpicks. The use of an acronym makes you think of BEST and TIES, but neither gill has a name that starts with L, G, or B, so it feels peculiar if you don't recognize the pun at first (Which I did not). Even if you dissasociate it from the prior context of those other acronym team names, it feels as though it would be a trio name so that there can be a person for each letter (and then tying them all together with the shared theme of 'sea'), and out of the Life Series players there aren't any lesbians to be the L, so that'd be tricky to work around. Also, I feel like it should be 'LGB-sea Community' instead of just LGB-sea, but I'm assuming this would be thought of quickly if it was what they went with, so I won't count it as a complaint. With all of that nitpicking out of the way, I do think the pun is quite funny. I dunno. A rather mixed 5/10

-The Shell-dons(?): I'm not even sure I heard this one right despite rewinding it many times. 1/10

-Beauty and the Beach: This name implies that only one of the Mean Gills is 'the beauty', and I do not believe in pitting two beautiful gills against each other in such a manner. I am also definitely not the target audience for Disney references- Though this would have potential as the name of someone's royal AU Mean Gills fanfiction. That'd be pretty cool. Though the writer must specify which one of them is the beauty, to the other's dismay. And where the beach is in relations to their castle or whatever. 2/10

-Damp Dudes: No. No. This is very unpleasant. Reading it feels like stepping in a large puddle and getting water into your sock. I don't wish to dwell on this one. 0/10. Maybe even -1/10 on a bad day.

-Puddle Pals: This, however, is quite cute! The Puddle Pals sound like a group of silly whimsical fellas from a cartoon, and the Mean Gills would work quite well as that kind of dynamic if they were in a series where they did not have to withstand The Horrors (as is the way of the Life Series). While the 'D' illiteration in Damp Dudes made it sound more uncomfortable, the 'P' illiteration makes Puddle Pals sound catchy and rhythmic. I approve. 7/10

-Mean Shells: ...I'm glad, at least, that this got reworked into the final name of Mean Gills. It sounds awkward, and the reference isn't apparent upon reading it.

-Sal-men: I forgot to review the Sal men🙁 Post over. Go home

[sillydummydum]

Hello Everybody!!!

My name's Luna, I'm an autistic 16y old demiaroace bissexual girl who really enjoys playing games, drawing and self shipping!! I've been doing it without knowing since I was like 8 so yeah -v-" I'm a little bit shy and definitely don't know how to make pretty aah tumblr posts but I try to have fun! Never interacted with much people from the self shipping community due to shyness-- but I'm happy to make new self shipper friends!! I tend to talk allot so sorry if I yap! I got the silly--

☆ She/her ☆

I really like:

- Persona (main special interest)

- Pokemon (very strong special interest!!)

- Sonic

- Undertale

- Touhou

- Rpg

- Honestly videogame and uh-- hell! even anime in general!! sign me in! I really like to learn abt other people's passions so plz show me lots of cool media!! I'll love it!

- Does my boyfriend counts?... cuz I do like him allot

- Making friends!!

I don't really enjoy:

- fighting on the Internet (I swear don't fight me I'll cry) /j

- Basic dni stuff yk just bad people in general

- Anti self shippers duhh

- People who don't like my boyfriend

- People who DO like my boyfriend/j

Romantic F/O's:

- Goro Akechi ♡ (my main f/o!! My boyfriend! My silly!~ Will mostly if not a 100% of the time talk about him!! And I'm usually mocking him lol he's stupid, miserable and fun to laugh at/pos Not really comfy with sharing! Aaah sorry i mean i don't mind if you interact but you knoooow... ><")

- Naoto Shirogane (kinda jealous so nu-uh)

- X!tale Chara (don't mind!)

- Satori Komeiji (don't mind~)

- Shuichi Saihara (don't mind!!)

Short list lol the only ones I am very invested in are Goro and Naoto, i'm a detective kisser ig 😭

Platonic F/O's:

- Honestly all the persona 3/4/5 main cast are my best friends in my respective persona alternate universes, change my mind. BESTIES BESTIES BESTIES!!! I LOVE MAKING FRIENDS AND BEING SILLY WITH THEM!!!

- Akiren and Futaba specially tho, Leblanc familly makes me happy happy happy hi Sojiro plz adopt me :3

- Sumire too, THAT'S MY BESTIE RIGHT HERE EVERYONE!!!! (Can my royal trio favoritism be noticed throughout this post? Impossible challenge.)

- Nanako as well!~ my cute little consideration sis <3

- Sumireko is my absolute Touhou bestie!!!

- Flandres is my sis <3 (Remi too naturally cof cof)

- Cream the rabbit as my little sister? HELL YEAH, CLAIMED!! (I really enjoy having siblings leave me alone 😭)

- If a character exists in a media I self insert into, i'll probably be their friend or steal their blood/hj

Okay let me stop myself before i start becoming a friends/sister with the whole fictional universe...

So that's it! I'm not really good at using tumblr or... talking to people-- so yeah lol sorry!! I just really really like my boyfriend and wanted to share that! he makes me happy and joyful and makes me forget about my problems to worry about his ♡ And i wish that everyone could be able to experience that hapinnes without judgements! happy self shipping for everyone!!! And remember...

Your F/O loves you ♡

|....☆.....☆......☆......☆.....☆.....☆......☆......☆.....☆....|

[futuresoon]

#that royal trio roleswap fic would've been so good you guys. so good

Not to bring up tags from two days ago, but: is there any place where you summarized like what plot points and themes you wanted to hit? Cause this sounds so good and I would love to see even just the overview of what it would have been! (no worries if not, of course!!)

i never wrote down an outline, but i shall write my scattered thoughts now!

basically, it's wild card sumire, black mask akira, and social link akechi. after akechi killed wakaba, he fucked off into mementos and was never seen again; after akira's arrest, yaldabaoth told shido that akira could be a replacement, and akira became black mask minus the detective part, on a very short leash and very miserable about the whole thing. akechi, meanwhile, has been living in mementos, completely unaware of anything that's been happening in the outside world--until akira shows up there, and he realizes he's been replaced. he bonds with akira, sort of, but he can't really do anything about akira's situation. and also akechi is kind of feral at this point.

sumire awakened to her persona when maruki tried to actualize her. she goes through basically the same Starter Phantom Thieves Experience as akira, but when she goes into mementos, she meets akechi and decides to befriend him. she keeps coming back to mementos to see him and he reluctantly warms up to her.

akechi is caught between akira and sumire: he knows akira is a danger to the thieves, but he feels responsible for akira's situation and correctly assumes that if akira is defeated by the thieves, shido will kill him. eventually akechi does join the team and tells them about akira. this culminates in the engine room, where akira, realizing that his only friend has betrayed him, re-awakens his persona as "dantes", a reference to edmond dantes from the count of monte cristo. because, y'know, betrayal.

and that's all i had! i think it would've been good if i wrote it, but i didn't write it, so this post is all that shall ever exist of it.

[whoishotteranimepolls]

Pride month Battle Royals

I've gotten a question about what I will do for pride month next month. Well, I still have a gigantic backlog of requests so probably the only thing I will do is a bunch of themed Six-Way Battle Royale polls. Does that count as an event?

Now because I don't watch near as much anime as I'm pretty sure everyone thinks I do if you have a character or Duo/ship or trio that you think needs to be included in those polls. Please put them in the comments or reblogs of this post. Remember I do need character names and shows so I can look them up later

The characters have to follow the regular rolls and I honestly, I don't care if they're Canon or Fanon or just coded LGBTQ+. Now it would be nice to know the difference between the two so I could make separate polls for actual Canon characters. But that is the only requirement for this event and that includes the duos or trios because I'm assuming that's going to be a lot of ships.

Now, depending on the state of my inbox and how many characters I have for this event. I may actually open up my inbox in 3 weeks specifically for this event. However, I'm trying to keep things organized so I can work through the inbox as quickly as possible

I hope this makes sense. So start thinking of characters that would work for this event and please put them in the comments and reblogs for now

[eternalfarnham]

The core of Aigis's crisis, in The Answer, is that she has exactly two invested human relationships, one of which only half-counts because it's with a dog, and the other just died.

Note that in the post-Nyx "epilogue" month, where relationships formed via SEES kinda-sorta persist (MC-Yukari-Junpei trio, Ken and Shinjiro, etc.), no one remembers Aigis besides the protagonist, or even mentions her unless she's right there. She's some girl in their dorm. This influences her self-perception and indecision in the Abyss – Metis is the way she is, fixated on a single person and incapable of caring about anyone else, because Aigis was that way.

Compare/contrast Yukari – she ends up putting herself back into the position of "enemy of SEES," contesting them for the sake of achieving (the truth behind her father's death/the MC's resurrection), failing to acknowledge her relationship with Mitsuru (who takes her side partly due to the history between them, and who reminds her of that fact).

Aigis... just genuinely doesn't have anyone in the way she had the MC, not like Yukari does. The question of suicide via sacrifice is a real and legitimate one for her; it's why she gets Metis in the first place! Metis is both her capacity to care (the part of her that wasn't mechanical and rote) and her fatal flaw, her failure to recognize that there are other people to care about in her life, represented pretty directly by Metis insisting on being Aigis's "sister" and living exclusively to protect her. Aigis turned herself into an Arisato (complete with Wild Card!) and generated an Aigis to never, ever let her go like she wished she could've in the first place!

This is part of why I think Junpei's point, that they are nowhere near guaranteed a win in a rematch with Nyx, is so much more thematically potent than Akihiko's "respect MC's decision to sacrifice himself, because changing the past is wrong!" The world is full of people. Everyone's alive. "Accept loss" falls flat for me, considering the whole Great Seal thing and also, just, my entire understanding of life, but "there is no quantity of losing others you can experience that can make life stop mattering as a general case, because the world is full of people, and the best way to keep going is to keep caring about people and finding people to care about" works for me.

And this is absolutely not a tack any other Persona game could take about its MC! It's been noted that SEES aren't quite friends as a group, just psychodrama paramilitary coworkers, but it's that awkwardness and growing into imperfect relationships with one another that lets them live without the MC. Yu Narukami is more of a "most important person" to the Investigation Team – Yosuke, obviously, and Teddie, and arguably Rise – but they do at least have dynamics with one another, kinda, Chie-Yukiko and Naoto-Kanji.

Joker is the person who matters most to every single Phantom Thief, absent dead family members and NPCs who spend most of their time offscreen, and Royal makes it clear that they don't have the same "any cost" dedication to any of those dead family members or NPCs that Aigis and Yukari had for P3MC. Does Ryuji even hypothetically have more important dynamics with anyone? Certainly not Akechi. Not Yusuke. The Phantom Thieves would risk killing the world for Joker's sake. It isn't even really a question!

P3 was just so thematically aberrant compared to the rest of modern Persona that I can't help but admire it. I disagree with many of its takes, but by god does it have them.

[cryptofmadness]

EC Comics' New Horror Hosts Revealed!

By Chet Reams

The new trio of horror hosts for the upcoming EC Comics revival have been revealed! Introducing "The Grave-Digger", "The Grim Inquisitor", & "The Tormentor". These three new characters have been designed by Dustin Weaver, and are planned to be used throughout the upcoming EC Comics horror-themed titles that Oni Press is co-publishing with EC!

In alphabetical order of name/title, here are their character images and descriptions as provided to Crypt of MADness by Oni Press:

The Grave-Digger: IN HIS CEMETERY, EVERY TOMBSTONE TELLS A TALE! As the central host of the upcoming EPITAPHS FROM THE ABYSS series from EC Comics and Oni Press, The Grave-Digger’s charming visage will soon regale readers far and wide with the tales of murderous intent and ill fortune that earned his cemetery’s denizens their places six feet deep.

The Grim Inquisitor: THE DEACON OF DOOM! THE VICEROY OF THE VICE! THE PRINCIPAL OF PUNISHMENT … OR SO HE’D LIKE YOU TO THINK! A mad monk with a fanatic’s eye for keeping his secret sect’s surprisingly extensive bureaucracy of terror running like clockwork, The Grim Inquisitor fears no man . . . except The Supreme Inquisitor, who demands extremely exacting results from his right-hand man and deputy master of obscure occult rites.

The Tormentor: INTRODUCING HER ROYAL TRAVESTY OF PAIN! A one-eyed butcheress with a penchant for playful flaying and audacious amputation, there is no weapon of opportunity or implement of torture too grisly to escape The Tormentor’s notice. But she still holds a fondness for “the classics” – like her red-hot poker and rusty pruning shears!

(All character art by Dustin Weaver; images copyright William M Gaines Agent, Inc.)

From the official Press Release (provided by Oni Press):

"PORTLAND OR, (June 25, 2024) – JUST AS EVERY COFFIN NEEDS A CORPSE, SO TOO DOES EVERY STORY NEED A STORYTELLER! FORTUNATELY, THIS TERRIFYING TRIO HAS YOU HANDLED ON ALL COUNTS . . . Just one month away from the long-awaited resurrection of the infamous and influential EC Comics in the pages of EPITAPHS FROM THE ABYSS #1, Oni Press – the multiple Eisner and Harvey Award-winning publisher of groundbreaking comics and graphic novels since 1997 – is proud to unveil the first look at EC’s all-new, never-before-seen, dead-and-not-getting-better-anytime-soon trio of horror hosts . . . Meet EC’s all-new masters of menace: The Grave-Digger, The Tormentor, and The Grim Inquisitor! Making their first full appearance on the EPITAPHS FROM THE ABYSS #1 Horror Host Variant cover by acclaimed artist Dustin Weaver (Avengers, Paklis), Weaver’s work on and character designs for EC’s new torturous trio will be featured throughout the double-sized, 40-page issue arriving in comic shops worldwide on July 24th . . . and continue through multiple new EC horror series yet-to-be-revealed in the future. “Usually a big part of designing characters is costuming, but in looking back at the original Tales From the Crypt comics, it's clear that the most important and defining features of the horror hosts are their ghoulish faces,” said Dustin Weaver. “It's all about the faces, and with these modern host designs I wanted to carry on that tradition. Making sure the faces were suitably fiendish, properly cruel, and the right amount of unseemly was key, but there's also an effort here to go a step further and bring some more thought and characterization to their costuming and physicality as well. Ultimately, it's just such a treat to draw characters so unabashedly wicked.” “Crafted from the dead center of depravity and delight, these new horror hosts are primed and ready to assume their roles as storytellers,” said Corey Mifsud, Executive Director of William M. Gaines Agent, Inc. “All three characters honor the creepily comical spirit of EC, but contribute uniquely twisted points of views that will surely keep the reader up at night!”"

[akechi-stole-my-heart]

code violet: an emergency code that can be called by any person who is a witness to a violent incident or a combative individual that poses a threat

The engine room confrontation goes down a little differently when one Yoshizawa Sumire is there, hiding in the shadows.

-

It's been a long and wonderful journey, but now at long last, code violet is complete! Thank you so much to everyone who's joined me while I fell in love with Royal Trio. And if you're new, now is the perfect time to start reading, as it's now all on ao3, ready to be binge read (if you so desire). In this chapter I push the Sumire With Braids agenda. Sumire with braids!!!

unique and elegant hairstyle, perfect for sumire's graceful personality

allows for infinite experimentation, ideal for someone trying to discover herself!

has a ribbon running through the twist, in honor of kasumi, while not being identical to how her sister wore the ribbon

braids are Pretty

seriously it's just perfect for her!! even the half up is derivative. this is something that's all her own. and sumire deserves that!!

excerpt from ch 16 under the cut :)

Akira’s days in juvie slowly pass by. He scrapes by unnoticed by those around him. For once, he hangs his head low and does his best to move through life without causing any incidents. He can't afford to act out when his friends are counting on his innocence to get him out.

There's still plenty to rebel against, of course. Akira's just as aware of the injustice around him as ever. The kid bullied into giving up his meals while the guards look the other way. The young, fragile-looking boy who's obviously going through withdrawals and getting none of the care he needs. The guards who shout at and manhandle inmates when they so much as slow down the food line.

He should speak up. He wants to defend the outcasts and call out the abusers, like he's done before so many times. But without the Metaverse and his friends, Akira is utterly powerless against the forces holding him down. He'd only cause more trouble for himself and anyone associated with him, and make his own release that much more unlikely.

Akira's spent a year fighting injustice wherever it cropped up and looking down on those who turned a blind eye and let the corruption of society fester. And now, put in the place that corruption runs most rampant, he does nothing. Says nothing. Becomes the quiet, meek pushover society wanted him to be when this whole thing got started.

Because more than anything else, Akira's tired. He's so tired. He doesn't want to be the one who causes trouble. Because that's what will happen—he’ll stick his nose where it doesn't belong, and then the fist will come crashing down to force him back into his place. He's sick of it.

His friends would call him a coward. A hypocrite. And they'd be right.

[eleanorwolfson]

Rosewood Readathon Day 17!!

Chapter 54

- Jamie being completely physically unscathed from the Partizan fight when Saskia was left a bloody mess gives him so much aura omg

- Serious and present danger AMONG US????????

- It’s really dark that Lottie has to consider the option of pretending she was fine on the phone and going through with being kidnapped because she’s “expendable”. Wtf.

Chapter 55

- This chapter is very short but I like it. I like that we get a moment from Ellie where she really genuinely asks Lottie how she feels about everything. As much as this reread has reminded me how selfish Ellie really is, it’s moments like this that also remind me that she does really care about Lottie

Chapter 56

- I love whenever Ellie or Jamie described as a wild animal. Whenever they’re compared to wolves it scratches a certain itch in my brain

- While we’re at it where did Ellie even get a golf club at a royal ball

- Banshee foreshadow?????

- The royal trio bonding makes me emotional :,) they’re just kids

- Jamie is so sweet to Lottie in this final scene I could cry real tears

I finally finished UP!!!! Wow I just love this book. I’ve read it more times than I could ever count. It might be my favorite RWCH book? It’s either this one or PIP. But UP really does have some of the most iconic moments in the entire series and it’s just so magical and special. I’m really happy I was able to read it again :) ONTO THE NEXT ONE!!

[marinerainbow]

I have a Roo thought for you 😅😅😆

Imagine the Roo's dressing up as the Lion King's Hyena trio for Halloween XD Rena is obviously Shenzi and she & King (as Banzai) get totally into it; are making dumb jokes and cackling all night, while Ryan's Ed is just completely uncharacteristically silent and scowly, drinking whiskey or something XD

What Disney henchmen/or/sidekicks do you think your WFRR OC's might dress up as for Halloween? XD

(*cough* Lottie would turn up as full-on Scar.)

I need you to know that I literally squealed when I saw this notification. ROO THOUGHTS!!!

Oh my god XDDD yes. I love this. This is probably the one time King actually chose to get specially dressed up for the night XD I need Ryan being all grumpy in his hyena outfit watching his sister and in-law make fools of himself XD (if Maya was still around, she could have been Zazu? Or one of the background hyenas so Ryan won't be alone ^^ XD) And Lottie showing up as Scar is PERFECT!

Ohhh which sidekicks my OC's would dress up as?? Hm...

Ben: Doesn't dress up for Halloween in general, so I can't see him making an exception here. He's such a spoil sport (though, I do imagine him dressing up as The King of Hearts, even if he's not exactly a sidekick).

Henry: oh Henry would absolutely dress up as Honest John or Br'er Fox. C'mon, it's right there!!! He can laugh about the irony XD I can also see him pulling off Sir Hiss' outfit (even though it's just a hat and cloak XD), possibly the Sheriff of Nottinham? Might be too flashy for him though 🤔 (how would Rena react to Henry dressed up so handsomely like John or the Sheriff? 😏)

Moony: I can also see him wearing the Sheriff' royal garb- except he'd bring more muscle to the look XD KRONK!!! He could pull off a Kronk costume!! He's got a similar build to the guy anyway. Ohh he could be one of Captain Hook's pirates, too! Or maybe Scroop. It'd be easy, that alien only wears a cap and a vest. Moony can do that~ 😏

Poppy: I can actually totally see her dressing up as LeFou- either version. She'd look cute in the little French man's suit, I bet ^^ she could also pull off a Sir Hiss look, too! And with how small she is, it could look like those adorable designs of tiny characters with big and wide cloaks!! 🥹 ohh maybe she and Shiny can dress up as Anastasia and Drizella?

Shiny: Ok technically Pixar isn't the same as Disney, but Shiny would pull off Ken's outfits, with Barbie's spunk! It doesn't help that I've imagined her interrogating/torturing Greasy the same way Barbie does Ken XDD (also Shiny would be caught wearing her heels through her disguise, even if it's an astronaut suit XD). She also has soooo many burlesque outfits with feathers and fur; she can put her own spin on the animal sidekicks, such as Diablo or the Cheshire Cat (I am terrified of the prospect of a sexy Iago costume 😭)

Terry: Jasper and Horace. But they're so close enough to his style, everyone assumes he's just dressed as normal XD bro has to explain his own costume 🥲

If the weasels can count; Shiny is absolutely putting her own spin on Greasys suit (an open buttoned blouse instead of a pink tie, for one 😏), Moony can be Stu, he's the only one who can wear the shirt and carry the bat comfortably XD Henry called dibs on Smartass' suit, so Poppy wears Psycho's straightjacket (it looks comfy so she'd be happy either way. But I also think she could pull off SA's suit). Terry can be Wheezy, and Ben can be one of the deleted weasels XD

Thank you for asking! This was fun to think about!! ^^

[unpredictable-probabilities]

Azul Ashengrotto of Royal Sword Academy || Chapter 16: Rupturing Pressure

Summary:

Upon entering an underground club and finding Rielle languidly spending his time there, the trio attempts to reach out to him, only to be beaten to it by someone else...

Word Count: 3,823

The ground is not as far down as Jamil had expected, and soon enough they reach an inconspicuous cave, the entrance barely big enough to fit all three of them side by side.

Though currently, said entrance is blocked by an enormous boulder, roughly taller than even Floyd, and as wide as the front of a bus.

Floyd whistles. "Flame Tetra did not mention this big-ass rock."

"This wasn't here back then," Azul says, looking at it up and down. "Looks like they upgraded their security."

"... Are we supposed to push the boulder to the side?" Jamil wonders, muttering to himself. "Hmm, I doubt regular customers could get in if that's the case. And Rielle's strong but not that strong. So maybe something with magic? But what about those who can't use it?" He perks up. "Perhaps there's something you have to tap or say for it to open. Like a password or a code."

"That seems likely, but I don't know how long it would take us to figure it out," Azul furrows his eyebrows.

Floyd taps the rock with his pen a few times. "Doesn't seem like it's sealed," he says. "Octy, shift into yer merform! I bet yer chewy tentacles can move this, easy!"

Azul's frown deepens, and he looks contemplative. Wordlessly, he goes to one side of the boulder and pushes with both hands, his face scrunching up with the effort.

The rock shifts, and a few seconds later it slowly rolls aside to reveal the entrance.

"Hell yeah, Octy!" Floyd cheers. "Ya still got it!"

"Keep your voice down," Azul says, catching his breath.

"No, it's a music club! We can be loud!" Floyd says before quickly swimming into the cave.

Azul sighs and gestures for Jamil to follow Floyd. "Go in first, I'll close the boulder behind us."

Jamil gives him a look of concern, though he does swim in first. "Are you gonna be all right?" he asks from inside. "Here, let me help you."

He utilizes his magic to lighten the boulder's weight, picturing and feeling its heaviness ease up with levitation. It's not enough to move the boulder but it should make Azul's job much easier.

Together, they close the entrance. Luckily, the hall is illuminated by glowing plants, so they're not plunged into darkness.

"Thank you," Azul gives him a small smile, then pulls his hood up. "Let's go."

They walk inside and see glowing plants hanging from the ceiling and along the walls, illuminating the tables that look like they were carved directly from the rock below. In one corner is a band of merfolk, playing some upbeat tune that Jamil doesn't recognize, though some of the instruments look familiar; there's a harp, flute, bass, and another stringed instrument that's probably their version of a guitar being played by a moray eel like Floyd, except with darker blue skin.

In one corner, there's a squid merfolk serving glowing drinks in hollowed out shells from behind a counter. Then on the other side of the room, there are tables where merfolk seem to be playing games while exchanging what Jamil can only assume to be their currency.

Most of the patrons are merfolk, which doesn't surprise Jamil. This place seems pretty exclusive. He scans the room and counts about five other humans among the possibly thirty patrons here. Apart from a few curious glances their way, though, no one pays much attention to him and Azul. The other humans don't seem to be treated differently either.

Floyd, meanwhile, has blended in with the crowd, ordering a drink at the bar.

The place doesn't feel sketchy or illegal, despite the whole giant boulder business at the entrance. But Jamil can see why the royal guards wouldn't think to look for their crown prince here.

Jamil tugs Azul to go and sit at a dim booth where an empty table is propped to the side. "Let's scope the place out from there and avoid drawing too much attention to ourselves."

As they make their way over, the only other notable patron nearby is a quiet kelpman, as Jamil decided to name him, because of the fact that their features are covered in seaweed and barnacles. They are taking a calm sip of drink as they glance curiously at Jamil and Azul.

Jamil feels a sudden bit of discomfort, mostly at the fact that the kelpman's eyes are golden orbs staring at him through the thick tangle of seaweed framing their face. He pointedly tries to ignore them.

Floyd swims over at their table and joins them, slamming a seashell cup down. "They asked for ID!" he pouts. "No wonder Flame Tetra can't drink here. They don't serve alcohol to anyone under 18, it's crazy! I got some lame sparkling fruit drink." He takes a swig and his pout softens. "Alright it's pretty good."

"There he is," Azul says quietly, ignoring Floyd's ramble. "Over there, four tables away."

Jamil turns to look and sees Rielle in his merform; his bare torso has a very similar skin tone to his human form, and instead of legs, he has a tail in two shades of green. He's happily chatting with a small group of merfolk, two mermen like him and three who look like the merperson that Jamil had asked directions from earlier.

"At least he looks fine," Azul says in relief.

Floyd makes a low whistle. "Oh he looks super fine, Octy. We should hang out in our merforms often."

"Floyd," Jamil chastises, though he’s also relieved to see that they've been worrying for nothing. "So… what now? Are we going to get Rielle's attention and then… talk to him?" he asks Azul.

Azul nods. "Let's approach casually, we don't want him to feel like he's being attacked."

They stand up–

CRASH!

Pebbles rain from the ceiling and the patrons look around in a panic as an explosion shook the entire cave.

Large chunks of the boulder roll into the bar, and out of the floating debris of dust emerges a tall muscular man who looks like an older version of Rielle; dark green tail, medium-tan skin, voluminous red hair the same color as his beard, and a glower on his face as he scans the room with his eyes, his golden trident crackling with magic at the tips.

An entourage of mermen guards swim in after him, wearing helmets and carrying spears as they position themselves behind him.

The room falls silent, instruments and conversations stopping abruptly, even the currents seem to have stilled, debris falling meekly to the ground.

All eyes are on the King of the Coral Sea as Rielle swims and stops several feet in front of him, acknowledging his presence but keeping his distance.

Rielle's eyes are cold and determined as he stares wordlessly at his father.

"How DARE you neglect your duties to hide away to this– this hovel!" the King's voice booms and echoes off the walls.

"I did not neglect my duties, father," Rielle answers firmly. "I have completed my work for today, and I simply wanted to exist somewhere that no one expects anything from me."

The King only seems to get angrier. "You perceive your birthright as a burden? Do you know how many merfolk would kill to be in your position? How many have done so already? Your advisors and I are doing all we can to keep our kingdom together while you shame our family name and– and gamble away the royal treasury!" he angrily gestures to the tables in the corner.

"All you care about is the family name!" Rielle shouts, tears noticeably filling his eyes even underwater. "All you ever see in me is the crown prince! You care more about the diplomats from who-knows-where than you do about your own family, and it makes you a much better king than a father!"

Quiet gasps can be heard from around the room, and the patrons begin to huddle in corners, wanting to stay as far away from the royals as possible.

The King is staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed at his son. "I do all of this for you!" the King bellows, jabbing a finger toward Rielle. "And you say you're tired of being the crown prince? After all I've done for this kingdom and this family?"

"I'm not tired of being the crown prince, Your Majesty," Rielle's voice is dripping with venom even as he speaks quietly. "I'm tired of being your son."

With a growl of rage, the King slashes his trident at the roof of the cave and blasts a hole right through to the open waters above. The patrons scream and scramble to swim up, escaping as the King blasts the bar and the tables, drinks and cards and game pieces scattering in the waters.

"Ungrateful child!" He points his trident at Rielle and fires another blast.

A figure darts in front of Rielle and conjures a shield, but it shatters in the face of the trident's blast, and Azul is thrown against the cave wall and falls to the ground. Rielle stares after him with wide eyes.

"AZUL!" Jamil screams, realizing too late that his friend had left his side.

The guards quickly form a perimeter around them, but not before Floyd swims through their ranks and gets in front of Rielle, baring his teeth at the King. "I never liked you."

Jamil tries to swim towards the fallen form of his friend despite the presence of guards, careful of debris and avoiding the attention of the King. Which isn’t hard, because he seems heavily fixated on Floyd floating defiantly before him.

As Jamil passes by the kelpman, he could swear he heard a low chuckle escape their lips, as if the situation was nothing but highly amusing. But he's too busy processing how quickly things went bad to really give a damn about how a random patron feels.

The guards level their spears at Floyd, and Jamil takes the time to slip in past them and kneel beside Azul, who's doubled over and seems to be fighting to remain conscious.

"Leech," the King says the name with disgust. "Your father was a troublemaker, and so it seems are you."

"You're not fit to talk about fathers, Your Pettiness," Floyd says, talking as if he's just arguing with one of his classmates. "Seeing as yer a terrible one."

The King aims his trident at Floyd.

"Father, enough!" Rielle swims in front of Floyd. He glances back at Azul, seeming torn about who to attend to first, and looking relieved when he sees Jamil kneeling beside him.

"This is the company you keep?" the King lowers his trident but glares at his son. "You choose this place of hooligans in favor of your own family?"

Azul struggles to stand up, gripping Jamil's shoulders and keeping his eyes on the King as he tries to rise unsteadily.

Jamil puts a steady hand on Azul's shoulder, telling him to stay down. "No. Keep still. Please." He tries to find the injury the king inflicted upon his friend and begins to pour his healing magic into it.

The color returns to Azul as he seems to regain his energy. However, he uses that energy to shake free of Jamil, and he walks up to the King.

"Your Majesty," Azul says, raising his voice above the King and Floyd's arguing. "Rielle just needs some time to rest. Please, if you give him a few weeks off–"

"You," the King narrows his eyes at Azul, recognizing him for the first time. "I trusted you to look after my son, and now you condone his reprehensible actions? You dare hide from me that you're coming here today. In your human form. I should have never let the two of you go to the surface."

"Sire–"

"Azul Ashengrotto, from this day forth, you are hereby stripped of your knighthood and all the privileges that come with it!" the King declares.

"Father!" Rielle protests with wide eyes.

Azul stumbles back as if the King had just hit him, tears filling his eyes as he seems to struggle to breathe.

Jamil races over to him, reaching for his arm and pulling him away from the King who watches them with a glare.

“I’m not… I’m not a knight anymore, Jamil…” Azul tells him in a daze, tears flowing down his cheeks.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s gonna be okay,” Jamil continues to tug Azul away from the middle of it all. His heart ached at seeing him like that, and he wanted to tell him that nothing the King said will really change who he is, but for now they had to focus on surviving. Jamil saw how powerful the trident’s blasts are, and he’d never let Azul be the target of it again.

"Oh boo!" Floyd yells. "I bet Octy can defeat all o' these guards with seven tentacles tied behind his back!"

"Silence, commoner!" the King whirls on Floyd.

"Father, enough!" Rielle says angrily. "His name is Floyd Leech, and I like him! And you're going to have to live with that!"

"When did you become so insolent?" the King bares his teeth. "You're not worthy to be a crown prince!"

"Well maybe I don't want to be one anymore!" Rielle shoots back. Then he turns to Floyd. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" he subtly nods at the guards surrounding them.

Floyd grins menacingly. "Sea Tornado!"

Floyd and Rielle raise their pens together and a whirlpool suddenly surrounds them, sweeping the guards and the King off their tails.

Jamil keeps his hold on Azul as he feels himself pulled upward and through the hole in the ceiling.

When he gets his bearings together, he sees that Rielle and Floyd are using magic to pull him and Azul behind them as they swim quickly away, leaving behind the angry screams of the King.

They stop to rest inside a kelp forest far from the cliff, Rielle and Floyd catching their breaths after their strong swimming while pulling along two people.

Suddenly, Azul gasps and falls to his hands and knees, breathing heavily.

"Azul!" Rielle rushes over. "What's wrong with him?" he frantically asks Jamil and Floyd.

Jamil shakes himself back to his senses to focus on Azul's condition. "It's the potion he took to stay human," he explains, kneeling next to Azul and putting a hand on his shoulder. "Ash, look at me. You need to turn back into your real form. Please…"

Azul shuts his eyes tight, then opens them again with a grunt. "I can't," he whispers, fear in his eyes. “I’m trying, it’s not working.”

"The potion is unstable," Floyd says, sounding uncharacteristically panicked. "We need to get him to the surface. Where's the nearest portal?" he turns to Rielle.

"At the palace. Come on!" Rielle says urgently as he and Floyd magically pull Jamil and Azul along with them in an underwater wave, their powerful tails allowing them to cut through the water even faster than before.

Less than a minute later, they arrive at the tall palace gates flanked by two guards.

"I need access to the portal," Rielle says urgently.

The guards look at Rielle's companions and exchange glances. "Your Highness, are the humans allowed in the portal chamber?"

Azul stumbles and walks towards the guards with a straight posture and his head held high. Jamil notices that he's using magic just to walk upright, and a glamour to hide the disheveled nature of his clothes and features. His voice sounds magically projected as well, far from the weak gasps he was making in the kelp forest.

"Anyone is allowed in the portal chamber if the crown prince and any of the knights allow it," he says in an authoritative voice.

"Sir Ashengrotto!" one of the guards says in surprise.

"Apologies, Sir! We didn't recognize you in that form," the other says.

The guards magically open the gate and stand aside, allowing all four of them to pass.

They stop in front of the chamber to the side of the palace; a large gate decorated with pearls looms before them, barring the entrance.

"It's locked," Rielle tries a few spells but none seem to work. He turns to Azul with worry in his eyes. "Azul, I need your help. With the absence of my father, the gate needs the magic of the crown prince and a knight to unlock it. Despite what my father said, the gate might still recognize you as a knight. Just a blast of cosmic magic, please."

Azul walks forward with a look in his eyes that reminded Jamil of the time when he rushed his horse at the obstacle course at NRC.

He grabs the bars with both hands and pulls.

There's a sickening creak as the gate is ripped from its hinges, Azul glaring at the space where it used to be, a malevolent smirk on his face.

Jamil watches the events unfold before him with shock and fear. Something is wrong. Very wrong.

"Azul, wait," he tries, grabbing his friend’s arm. "Let's stop for a moment--"

Azul roughly shakes off Jamil's hold and wordlessly keeps staring ahead.

Rielle and Floyd stare at Azul in shock, then Rielle recovers and focuses on the task at hand. He rushes them inside the chamber where glowing gems are set in the walls, illuminating the high ceiling. A tall mirror with a black surface is fixed on one wall.

A magestone at the left of the mirror is glowing.

Rielle turns to Azul in worry. "It's detecting Azul's magic…"

Azul is standing still in his spot, a glare still in his eyes, inky shadows emanating from him and floating around the room.

"Floyd," Rielle's voice trembles slightly and he looks like he's on the verge of panic. "The magestone needs more magic, and I can't ask Azul to use any more. Fire cosmic magic on that one, hopefully it'll be enough that it already detected Azul's." He turns to Jamil. "Look after Azul."

As Rielle and Floyd work to open the portal, Azul suddenly clamps his hands over his ears, his face twisted in pain.

He drops to his knees, his eyes filled with conflict, like he's trying very hard to hold something back.

“Azul!” Jamil rushes to crouch beside him.

Azul's hands drop in front of him, supporting his weight as he doubles over. He shuts his eyes tight and grits his teeth, a vein bulging in his temple.

Then he grows still, and his face goes slack.

He opens his eyes.

They're a startling bright blue, and the pupils are horizontal.

A memory surfaces in Jamil's mind, a conversation he had with Azul on a rooftop that feels like a lifetime ago.

"What are you scared of?"

"Losing control," Azul says quietly. "I have read stories about Overblots, and those who fall into it always hurt those around them. What if I do Overblot and end up hurting or even killing my friends?"

The inky shadows begin to solidify behind Azul, slowly forming the shape of tentacles. His skin is starting to turn purple.

"Sorcerer, help me," Jamil mutters under his breath before he moves in front of Azul and grabs his face.

"The one reflected in your eyes is your master. If I ask, you shall answer me; if I command it, you shall bow to me. Snake Whisper."

With his manic state, it's a lot harder to exert his control, but Jamil pushes as much of his magic, energy, and will into the chant.

He has to make this count.

His eyes and Azul's start to glow a crimson red.

The magic warping around Azul seems to still, and the shadow tentacles stop solidifying.

"Master," Azul repeats in a monotone voice, his face slack and his eyes still glowing crimson.

Eugh. Weird to hear him say it.

Jamil heaves out a sigh of relief before commanding: "Azul, I need you to let go of your human form. It's adding pressure to your state of mind and magic."

Azul's form flickers, a purple glow starts to emanate from him, but then it dies down, and his human form is back.

The shadows retreat until they eventually disappear.

Azul's pupils remain horizontal, and his skin remains purple. Then he frowns in confusion, his form not changing any further like that.

But there's no magic or shadows from him now. Apart from being hypnotized and stuck halfway between his human form and merform, he seems to be back to normal.

"IT'S OPEN!" Floyd yells. "Get over here, Sea Snake! We're leaving!"

Jamil stares at Azul before wordlessly grabbing his hand, fatigue weighing down on him alongside a splitting headache from an exerted use of his Signature Spell.

He pulls Azul with him and into the portal with Rielle and Floyd.

As soon as they get through, he releases Azul from the spell. He doubts Azul would have any memories of what happened; his Signature Spell often leaves the target's memories muddled when it comes to the duration of their hypnotism. Azul's spike in Blot levels would most likely blur some memories, too.

Jamil stumbles out of the portal and ends up in a wide chamber, torches lining the white walls. A sunset on the horizon.

"Is this RSA?" Floyd asks, putting on a shirt that Rielle had summoned from a secret compartment somewhere in the chamber. The denim pants are a little short for him, showing his ankles.

"Yes," Rielle replies, already fully dressed.

The prince explained that the merfolk students here keep a stash of shifting potions and human clothes in their Hall of Mirrors, in case of emergencies.

"How's Azul?" Rielle looks at them.

Azul is unconscious on the floor, his purple skin flickering like a hologram.

"I'll call Jade," Floyd says, pulling out his phone and stepping away.

"Will your dad and his guards be able to follow us?" Jamil manages to ask Rielle, kneeling on the floor from exhaustion.

"Perhaps," Rielle says. "But I doubt they would storm RSA. It would be undignified," he says bitterly.

Floyd returns and nods to Azul. "Have 'im chug a whole bottle of shifting potion. Jade says that since he's mostly stable now, it'll help fully settle his human form or something."

Jamil takes the shifting potion that Rielle hands to him and moves Azul's head to rest on his lap.

Carefully, he pours the contents into Azul's mouth.

Azul sighs in his sleep, and his purple skin turns fair again. Jamil checks his eyes and sees that they're once more in their human form.

"We gotta haul ass back to NRC," Floyd says, sounding exhausted. "Jade's covering for us, but it's almost night and Trein's bound to smell a rat soon."

Jamil sighs then nods. "Please take care of him, Rielle."

He gently lays Azul's head down on the floor and follows Floyd out of RSA.

Author's Note:

Sorry there wasn't an update last week! My family and I went on a short vacation out of town and I didn't have time to edit. Thank you for your patience! I hope you liked this chapter ^_^

<;- Chapter 15

Chapter 17 ->

(Masterlist)

[primamchorus]

Burning Valor

Cor Leonis, youngest person in the history of Insomnia to have become a Crownsguard at the age of thirteen, is now offered a title of nobility for his loyalty to the Crown and her people. His valorous deeds have never gone missed by King Regis. However, the decision to move forward with it weighs heavy...perhaps heavier than any decision Cor has had to make in the past.

Word Count: 2,256

“Marshal, a moment of your time?” The voice cut through the quiet corridor, firm yet friendly.

The marshal, a man of a lean build and serious expression hardened from years of service, stopped and turned toward the voice that called to him. Standing behind him was the king flanked only by one of his closest friends and members of the Lucian Royal Council. Of course, this meant the marshal gave them both his full attention, crossing his right arm over his chest before bowing respectfully to them.

“Highness…” the man respectfully greeted, his light blue gaze still turned toward the ground. “What can I do for you?”

“If you would, Marshal, I request your presence in a private meeting with Clarus and myself,” the king requested. This caused the man to slowly look up, the barest hint of intrigue evident in the serious expression wrought across his features.

“... No trouble at all,” the marshal replied, straightening back up into standing position. The king then nodded subtly toward Clarus, and the trio set off down the hall toward a meeting room nestled away within the base of the Citadel. Normally, Cor gave no thought to the hall and its features, but this time, he noted the long, dark shadows that were cast onto the walls with each light they passed. A distraction, perhaps.

The marshal’s mind churned and twisted with silent questions. It had been a while since he needed to be debriefed on anything major. Had Niflheim made significant movements that needed opinions or a plan of action on? Was there word back from House Vox and their branch on happenings within Niflheim controlled territories that needed the Glaive? Was that why Clarus was present?

Despite the tempest of thoughts, his expression remained stoic as ever. He continued his pace behind both individuals until, at last, they reached the door to a room the man was all too familiar with: the war room. He often came here to help plan strategic meetings and plans of action for the Crownsguard and sometimes the Kingsglaive to follow.

So what was it being used for today? And by the king himself no less?

When the door closed behind them, the marshal stood at attention, hands behind his back. He kept his gaze glued to the king, never even taking a moment to glance in Clarus’ direction. It was the king who summoned him, so it was the king he would make sure had his undivided attention.

“Be at ease, Cor,” the king said, his voice carrying the weight of years spent in leadership as he made his way to the blackwood table. He lowered himself into a chair, a slight slump in his posture -- a subtle departure from the regal bearing usually demanded by his station.

Cor finally gave the barest tilt of his head to the circumstance in which he found himself. If this was not some matter of grave import, then why was this meeting arranged? Regardless, he held his posture, only slightly relaxing his shoulders.

“Your Highness…” Cor started. “Is there ne-”

“Dispense with such formalities, Cor,” the king interjected with a bit of a tiredness to his tone, waving a hand like swatting a fly away. “It does us a disservice behind closed doors to act as if we are merely king and his loyal subject. Please, I would have you speak as you would without titles or duty influencing your every word or thought.”

“... Regis…” Cor slowly started, his posture remaining still somewhat rigid. “I’m curious as to the reason I've been summoned. This doesn’t seem like a typical briefing for a mission or military council.”

“It’s not. Which is why I approach you today with Clarus as friends and former traveling companions. Brothers, if you will,” Regis said in response. He then motioned toward one of the chairs. “If you would, it would perhaps be best if you sit. I wish to discuss this matter with you as it is something that may be seen as a heavy burden.”

Hesitating only a moment, Cor strode to a nearby chair and slowly took a seat. His eyes never left Regis, his mind only hanging onto the question: ‘whatever could he want to discuss?’

Silence hung heavy for a time before Regis finally sighed and clasped his hands together over the table’s surface. Perhaps whatever he had to say was not an easy thing. Perhaps it was just as heavy as the air felt within that moment.

"I wish to bestow upon you the honor of ennoblement, Cor."

Cor’s lips parted ever so slightly with surprise. Did he hear Regis correctly just then?

“That’s…” Cor began, eyes going to the table and tracing over the woodgrain and pattern -- as if trying to find words to use in the natural etchings. 

This would have been the first time someone was elevated to nobility in a while. Two or three centuries, if Cor recalled correctly. “That’s a large responsibility to bestow upon one who merely saw himself as lending his efforts toward the Guard and Glaive. But I suppose you wouldn’t simply do this on a whim and have discussed it at length with the rest of the Royal Council.”

Regis gave a slight nod of confirmation, his attention firm on Cor. “The decision is ultimately yours, my friend. I will harbor no ill-will toward you should you decline.”

There were, of course, a number of benefits that would have come with going through the rite of ennoblement. Becoming part of the king’s circle of nobles would mean Cor got a greater wealth of magic bestowed to him from the Crystal. He could do his job even better. Maybe it was best while he was still within his thirties…

“I can't lie…the benefits outweigh the negatives…” Cor began in response, closing his eyes as he leaned forward. “But…I fear that moving forward with this and making a House Leonis would be short-lived… I've never had a desire to father a child, let alone find someone to make that possible. You'd be making your noble house simply for it to vanish in -- if we're fortunate -- another fifty years. Less if I can't live by that damned epithet everyone's given me.”

“I warned Regis this would be your answer,” Clarus said, his first real interaction since they had all come to meet. A look of mild annoyance settled upon Clarus’ face as he folded his arms over his chest. Regis cast a sidelong glance at him; it seemed evident that their lifelong bond perhaps saw them bickering over the decision before they approached Cor at all. Cor, meanwhile, glanced between them, a heavy, silent sigh making his shoulders and chest heave for but a moment.

Returning his attention to Cor, Regis adjusted in his seat, clearing his throat. “It matters not to me if you want the line of nobility to extend past yourself. It has always been your aid, loyalty, and unwavering, valorous spirit that have inspired me to reach out to you to build the foundation for the Valor of the King.”

Valor of the King… There was a slight ring to it. Still, it was a large responsibility to carry. Cor felt like if he was elevated to nobility, there would be some duty to seeing an heir ascend and take over. Much like all the others that came before: Hand, Shield, Arms, Heart, Eyes, and Ears.

The pregnant pause that filled the room went unmissed by all, least of all, Regis.

“But…you should know…the Crystal will recognize not only you as part of a noble family.”

Cor looked up, a flicker of intrigue and confusion making him tilt his head slightly. “What does that mean?”

“It means your younger siblings will also be recognized. Your parents, too, were they still with us,” Regis explained. “The Crystal will touch all who share your bloodline. It holds no prejudice over any one person within a family with the same blood.”

Realization set in before Cor’s expression hardened once more. “Then my sister's child…”

“...Would carry on the House Leonis line should you accept and have no intention of producing an heir to the House,” Regis finished. He sighed again, heart. “It really is a heavy burden. I have no doubt that you would require time to speak with Cera to gain her own thoughts and insights. Though the decision rests with you, her feelings and decisions are equally important to me.”

“Why didn’t you speak with her?” Cor questioned.

“I felt it wasn’t my place. The head of the House would be you should you accept, after all.” Regis made his thoughts sound so simple. Then he relaxed, going back into a somewhat slouched position in his chair. “Besides…I believe it best for her to have that discussion with you instead of hearing it from me. Though I am a king of my people and wish for their utmost wellbeing, meddling in family affairs does not befit me, wouldn’t you agree?”

Cor supposed Regis was right in a way. Still, that meant arranging a meeting with her at some point.

With a curt nod, Cor rose from his seat.

“... I'll speak with her…” Cor said. The weight of the decision still weighed heavily on his shoulders now that it was placed there. But…so long as Cera was okay with it, then he supposed he had no qualms. “I do believe having more access to the Crystal will likely be necessary against the Niflheim threat. I'll need time to get used to it if my sister approves of the arrangement.”

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When Cor met with his sister, he felt a flicker of warmth to see her cheery disposition, though his face betrayed none of it. He noted with silent relief that she appeared in good health as she approached, her steps light despite the pregnancy. Stepping aside to pull out a chair for her at the table he had been waiting at, he motioned to it; something simple to ease her burden. After all, he knew that she must have had a difficult time during her stage in her pregnancy with little to no help back at home.

Cera was glowing. Clearly, she was keeping to whatever regimen she had at home to keep her appearance well kept. Her brown hair had been neatly pinned back out of her face, the rest of it secured in a loose Altissian braid.

“Keeping well?” Cor asked, his voice low so as to not disturb those around them. He took his seat once she was settled.

“Well enough,” Cera replied, a soft sigh escaping her lips. Her eyes darted from his hands, tightly clasped together, back up to his ever-serious expression. “And you? I can’t imagine you called me here just for a family reunion. You usually don't look so...troubled when it’s merely a casual outing.”

Of course Cera would see through him immediately. She always had a knack for reading between the lines, especially when it came to her brother.

A slow sigh escaped Cor as he looked down at his clasped hands.

Was this how Regis felt when he first approached Cor? The thought struck him with an uncomfortable familiarity -- sitting here, mirroring Regis's posture, burdened by a choice that seemed to weigh heavier with every breath. Cor might have laughed at the irony if the gravity of the moment was not weighing so heavily on his shoulders.

“King Regis spoke with me…” Cor began, his tongue suddenly feeling like sandpaper as he struggled to broach the subject. Should he just tear the bandage off quickly? There was little point in skirting around what needed to be said.

“And?” Cera prodded, reaching over to take up the menu at the table.

“He…wants to elevate my status to nobility…” Cor finally said. “Technically, our status. As he tells it, the Crystal doesn’t discriminate between those that share the bloodline. Should I become recognized by the Crystal, so will you. So will…your child.”

Cera’s lips parted, a look of disbelief settling on her features. She then moved the menu aside and folded her arms over the table, leaning forward as she did so. “So…what did you tell him?”

“I told him I’d speak with you,” Cor replied, voice steady, though a hint of weariness seeped into his words. He could feel fatigue creeping in, threatening to make him less patient than he intended. But he forced it down -- this was still meant to be a cordial conversation, even if Cera’s voice had taken on a bit of a sharper edge. “He believes your opinion matters just as much as mine since this decision will affect you too.”

“And what do you want?” Cera pressed. Her eyes locked onto his, searching.

“... I want to protect the Crown and its people as best as I can.”

Cera leaned back in her chair, one hand resting on the swell of her belly as she considered his response. The silence stretched between them like a taut string ready to snap. Finally, she asked, “Will having a title of nobility help with that? We’ve seen the elevated prowess of House Amicitia, House Chorus…all of them, really. Do you want what they have for yourself, Cor?”

“I find no shame in my capabilities if you don’t want it. That said…I see no downside to receiving such a boon,” Cor replied earnestly.

Cera held his gaze for a moment longer, her expression inscrutable, before finally nodding.

“… Then do it,” she said quietly. “Accept his offer of ennoblement.”