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floralscented · 12 days ago

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ㅤㅤㅤㅤBETTER BIRTHDAYS — vampire!dean

slowly, dean is learning to love his birthdays again, after going for decades without letting himself.

not what i intended to write, and not as good as i wish it was, but to be fair to myself i have sickness. and i'm NOT missing out on my beloved baby's birthday! if logistics don't make sense, i don't care. that's fiction baby! vampire!dean is just rent free so it was inevitable.

it wasn’t supposed to be possible.

it was one of those things that dean came to terms with when he’d been turned so long ago — a family? was not something that was personally in dean’s cards. he’d have an infinite life, yes, but any family he wanted would have to be made or created, and not in the way that he’d ever get a chance to hold something so small that was part him.

dean forgot often that the impossible seemed to happen a lot around him.

there was a moment when he thought that being with you was a fate destined for doom. but every step of the way, you’d helped convince him that decades of isolation did not equate to deserving said isolation, and slowly, he’d let you make a home in his heart.

you accepted him for what he was. you trusted him with all you had; let him into your heart, your house, and every room that was deigned yours. no secrets, you’d promised.

it was a promise you held true to, because on a day he’d always remember, june 27th, you’d sat him down and told him that you were pregnant. and, on top of that initial shock, you were three months along.

he’d used the word impossible over and over throughout your pregnancy. this was not something for dean to pour his hope into and get attached to. it had to be a mistake; it had to be a misunderstanding — something.

but on dean’s birthday, a day he refused to celebrate anymore because of how many he’d had, a day that you took into your own hands and made him celebrate anyway—

a little boy was born.

a son with his hair, his face, and your eyes. so human and so real that it stole his breath away, unable to breathe at all even if he wanted to try again.

and it only got more chaotic from there. the little boy was an absolute devil; just as dean had been before sam was born, and before his father sank into a depression that drowned both of them. cassius winchester was a little force with sharp teeth and an affinity for crawling after him everywhere that dean went.

everything about cassius was impossible. that was why he’d been given the name, after all; helmeted warrior, it meant, so nothing could take him, so nothing would try to. now that dean had him, it was not going to be so easy to pry him away.

it was cassius’s third birthday, which meant it was dean’s… he’d lost count, really. either way, it was an incredibly special day for you. your two boys, one grown and one anew, and while you didn’t fit the mold when it came to the family dynamic that your boys painted, you certainly made up for it with your enthusiasm.

“blood in the icing?” you’d asked dean the moment he stepped downstairs, cassius balanced on his hip. “would that make it any more edible for you? for cassy?”

dean, taken aback for a moment, raises his eyebrows. “what would you eat, then?”

“i’m sure a little iron in my diet won’t hurt me.”

his scoff is an amused one, his eyebrows furrowing when he feels a sharp nip on his fingertip. in cassius’s mouth is dean’s finger, gnawing on it like it were nothing more than a teething toy.

his lips quirk up. he hasn’t genuinely grinned in so long that it feels almost foreign all of the time to do it now, since he met you, and even more since cassius. “on second thought, it might not be a bad idea.”

you stop the stand mixer to glance up at them, your eyes glimmering with that look that dean always refused to address. so much love for one person always made him feel on edge, like one day it would all fall away, like everyone else he’d loved prior. his fears had never once deterred you. perhaps it was why he, too, loved you so fiercely.

“he finally learned how to use those little teeth?” you ask, circling around the kitchen island to stand in front of dean and cassius, your expression alight. “what a milestone, my love. and on your third ever birthday.”

it certainly was a milestone. cassius had not let up his biting, little pinches that were certainly going to leave his finger raw for a few hours while it tried to heal. already, dean was planning on tossing all of the teething toys in the house away; he did not care for them like he cared for dean’s pointer finger.

you press a kiss to dean’s cheek, cassius’s forehead, before turning back to the slightly/less-dusty kitchen again. it’d been practically gray before you, but you had to eat, didn’t you? the scattered leftovers of human and forest creature in the boxed refrigerator did nothing for you. but you stop quickly, your eyes widened when you spin back around.

“wait!” you say on a gasp, grabbing something from underneath the countertop. two somethings. very shiny somethings. you jog back up to dean, looping the string of one underneath his chin and planting the birthday hat securely on his head, and doing the same for cassius, albeit with a smaller one. “happy birthday, my boys.”

dean tries to not let it affect him so deeply. how long had it been since his birthday felt like something to be celebrated and not a burden? there were so many years of those feelings that he did not understand yet how to react in instances like this, in the sheer warmth that you and cassius’s joy brought to him.

you were well aware of dean’s affinity for privacy. he was reserved, had made a home in the reservation, and would not leave it, not when he was so comfortable. so you did not call upon his sired to come celebrate — especially not them, when he was only beginning to heal the self-deprecation that came from their being there.

you did, though, dust away his hallway of their paintings, and uncover his painting supplies again. it was special to him, after all, and a hobby he’d locked away for too long after realizing the solace he found in keeping memories forever was embedding him into the past.

the paints and the blank canvasses were neatly wrapped in your room, along with a smaller box — dean’s present pile. there were more toys wrapped in a pile next to it, toys that cassius was far too spoiled already to need, but deserved anyways.

dean is not amused by the blindfold you put over his eyes as you led him to your shared room. or really, he was incredibly amused, but not so much to find out that all it served for was a dramatic way to lead him to his gifts while cassius napped downstairs.

“there are much more fun things that we could do with this blindfold,” he grumbles from in front of you, “there are much more fun things that we have done with it.”

“it is okay to be selfish and accept gifts sometimes, dean,” you say back, lightly kicking open the door with your foot to guide him inside.

dean is at his most shy and timid, somehow, on his birthday. as if he could make himself invisible and shrunken enough to be forgotten about, as if this day was not as equally about dean as it was cassius. “you are well aware of how little birthday gifts i’ve gotten over these years, aren’t you?”

“that is why i’ve got you three today.”

he can’t see, but he can hear the rustling of wrapping paper. shifting around, moving him as you so please, until he’s sat on the edge of the bed, and you are sitting at his feet in front of him, can feel the warmth of your humanity seeping into his legs.

something heavy lands in his lap.

“you may take it off,” you hum, and dean is not surprised to see that when he does, you are wearing a smug grin that makes you all the more beautiful. “go on. open it. that’s why gifts exist; to be opened.”

“i have not gotten a birthday gift in a while,” dean says with a huff, lifting his eyes as he tears into the wrapping paper to meet yours, “but that does not mean i need the process explained—”

his words die in his throat.

his paints. the ones that created life out of people he’d long killed. his heart falters. his mind blanks.

“this—” you pat the biggest gift behind you; flat and hollow when your hand touches it, “is some of the canvases i found too. i was just thinking— well, about how you paint everything you love in case it leaves.”

dean can’t even find the words to respond. his eyes stay locked on yours with a vulnerability you rarely see. “but i’m not leaving. and cassius is not leaving. and i think a family portrait for the front entrance would look lovely, don’t you?”

his swallow is thick and unnecessary, but he feels the lump in his throat and simply can’t help it.

instead of addressing your words, or the paints in his lap, or anything, he looks at the third present sat in your lap. his voice is raw when it comes out. “what is that one?”

dean’s paintbrushes, he assumes. fits the theme, would complete the puzzle.

your lips curl in a little grin. “those are cassius’s building blocks and perhaps a toy train. i can’t spoil everything.”

the attempt at lightening the mood works. he sets the paints aside and leans forward, lifting your chin with one finger and reaching into your lap with the other of his hands. “i meant this, little devil.”

there is no explanation or comments from you this time, as he opens it. it was hasty, the way he tore in, feeling light and airy like he did as a child on christmas. it’d been a long time since dean had felt so free.

it was not paintbrushes as he assumed, though. for the second time in one evening, you’d shocked the words out of him.

impossible, his mind begins to repeat again, but it’s quieter. less insistent. the voice of his subconscious had already been proven wrong once before.

a pregnancy test with two lines sits in the little jewelry box you’d tucked it away in.

the lump in his throat is tight, heavier. his mouth opens, closes, opens again, and no words come out. dean is left holding a pregnancy test between his fingers like it might break, left staring at the one person who heard his cries for company and answered with a family.

a family. how long had it been since he let himself dream? of this, of you, of anything?

“i know it is yours and cassius’s day, but i figured…” you don’t even need to finish the sentence for dean to get it. this was something that he’d wanted desperately, a secret he shared only with you. his childhood was bleak and unforgiving. all dean wanted was a chance to start anew and make it better.

here it was, in the form of a stick and a woman and a toddler.

he is more ginger with the pregnancy test than he was with the paints. as much as he appreciated the sentiments being brought back up, painting sam and judas had pulled all of the fun and the peace out of the hobby. he had no intention of digging back into the part of himself that loved the art of creation, in any way.

but now, in his head, there’s the grant entrance of his manor. and above the fireplace is you next to him in acrylic, a little cassius painted onto his hip, and a little baby in your arms. it would be updated every time his children grew. it would be updated every year, maybe even, so he could have multiples of you in the dresses he loved so dearly, and to see the progression of his kids. his family.

the hand on your chin moves to the back of your neck, tugging you up and into his arms. his eyes close, breathing you in slowly. he’s always loved the warmth of your livelihood, and it felt that much more intense, knowing that there was another life now, too.

“you have a talent for making a man forget he doesn’t deserve this,” he whispers into your throat.

you grasp at the sleeves of his coat, the grin on your face evident even as its buried into his chest. he can feel it, the pull of your lips, your smiling mouth in his shirt. “i hope to foster that talent, then. to become an expert in bringing you a lifetime’s worth of better birthdays.”

dean doesn’t know how to tell you that these years with you have done plenty. this was all he needed — you and the family you brought to him — to have better days and better birthdays.

so he stays silent and holds you to him, letting himself slip away into this life that felt more and more like a wish come true with every passing day.

and it is only when the sounds of little footsteps start stomping up the stairs toward your room, toward his presents, that dean’s eyes lift up to meet the sleep mussed little boy babbling to himself — and the big brother t-shirt you’d had him in, only now noticed.

notes. i literally woke up just to write this quick asf & post it PLS. if it sucks my bad. i'm just a girl. happy bday my pookie beloved baby waby!!!

tags. @titsout4jackles @moonstruksandco @starzify @ultravi0lence14 @itzavahere @sagegreen17 @bruceewayne @jays-bonnie-on-the-side @deansbeer @blushpinkdoll @warpedless @sabrinasopposite @k-slla @deansbite @foolinthera1n @honeyryewhiskey @angelblqde @whyyouegg @bluemerakis @fallbhind @florchids @figthoughts @beausling @chevroletdean @mccartneyqp @bluestrd @sthefferrete @rubyvhs @tortureddarkstar @aileenunfiltered @frosttbitessam @theosaurous

#──★ dahlia's jrnl #──★ gothic horror #dad!dean #vampyr!dean #dean winchester #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester x you #dean winchester one shot #supernatural #spn #supernatural one shot #spn one shot #happy birthday dean winchester!

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alaydabug2 · 2 months ago

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I'm definitely going to disect the scene in Unraveled with Cassius

But at the moment thing are DEFINITELY going to go down in book 10

And I don't JUST mean Elysian and Stellerlune

Cause like... Keefe new Alvar was alive (and even though I loved Alvar's presence in this book) it's going to put more strain Keefe and Fitz's already separating friendship

Now I think both sides are valid here

Fitz will have every right to be upset at Keefe for that and he's probably going to yell

Especially when they had gotten so close

I don't blame Fitz for that

But on the other side

I don't blame Keefe for how he handled the Alvar situation

I don't agree with the people who said he forgave Alvar too easily

I don't think he necessarily forgave him at all for the stuff he did

I feel like I can understand Keefe in thus situation a bit because of my own brother

Now while my brother isn't a murderer or held people hostage or anything he's still done some pretty awful selfish stuff

He's in prison right now due to his own choices with drugs and stealing and lying

And while I do love my brother I don't forget about that stuff because he's also taken money and items from me my whole life

I love him but I don't necessarily forget about it

At the same time we can still get along and even joke and mess around

I'm equating this similar because Keefe thought of Alvar as a big brother

He looked up to him for a lot of his childhood before being betrayed

He also followed Alvar to make sure he wasn't going to do anything sketchy

Took him with him to London with him to keep an eye on him BECAUSE he didn't trust him

He was also super distant when Alvar tried to get him to do stuff

And definitely didn't let him off the hook for the kidnappings

But like I do with my brother he kind of... worked around it for the sake of getting along

Brought it up and reminded Alvar of the things he did and hiw they weren't justifiable

Also remember Keefe wasn't really where he should be mentally in Unraveled

He was separate from his friends and anyone to check him and tell him ideas were bad

Also super lonely and probably going stirr crazy trying to make progress in London

He hadn't really talked to people familiar in who knew how long

Even if it wasn't ideal (or necessarily smart) his brain probably latched onto something familiar

Something he USED to trust

Cause he was desperate

And soon that turned into a half baked alliance

Cause (while it wasn't on screen) him and Alvar had a thing going before the books

It's only natural that they'd go back to some of that after starting to trust each other more

Again I'm not taking away that Fitz VERY MUCH gas the right to be hurt and upset with Keefe and should confront him about it when it inevitably gets out

But I still understand why Keefe did what he did and can't necessarily blame him for it

And honestly... they need to scream it out they really do

It will be good for them

About EVERYTHING

Alvar, Keefe running away, girl troubles, them falling out, not being like they used to

Their relationship probably won't be the same after

But that's ok

Because I feel like once they both get it out of their systems they can finally work to understanding each other

Then I need them to hug it out

Maybe with tears (should I write this...)

And slowly work on building their bond back up from a clean slate of understanding

Cause they really need it right now

#unraveled spoilers #kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #kotlc keefe sencen #kotlc fitz vacker #kotlc Alvar

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the-morningstar-family · 3 months ago

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Mama lays there. Thin and gaunt like never before. Cassius hasn't come home for days.

He didn't help anyway. He made it worse. It's good he hasn't been there.

Alastor looks at the crying boy. He's just turned 14. Mama had apologized so much for not being able to do something for him. But the boy just took care of her. He'd simply wanted her to get better.

Alastor stares at the corpse. His teeth grind together painfully, and he glares at the boy.

Alastor, voice low: “Can't you do anything right?”

The boy barley looks up, fixated, tearfully, on Mamas cold unmoving face.

Alastor: “How could you just let her go like that? She deserves so much better”

The radio demon's voice is unusually emotional, almost breaking at the end. He doesn't hold anything back, in fact, he lets it grow in his chest.

Alastor: “You could've done so much better!”

The boy is entirely engulfed by the mother's death. Alastor would be understanding if it wasn't this boy. This boy is the exception.

Alastor: “You could've stolen his money, for a doctor or at least medicine. Why didn't you?”

His words are almost pleading now. The command sucked away. Almost begging himself to find an answer. Why he didn't do this or that? Turn the time back and do anything to avoid the inevitable, what already happened

Alastor: “Get this under control”

He motions to the boy's tears but doesn't really look at him anymore.

Alastor: “You know he won't care”

If one listens very closely, there's a soft note to it. A little sorrow for the. Boy with a father who won't cry with him. Who won't help him at all, and worse, might pose a tantrum for the emotions in the first place. A few more shuddering sobs. And the boy takes a deep breath. Then he gets up and wipes his tears away. With shaky hands he rearranges the blanket of his Mama, then does her hair one last time. She is so still and cold and unmoving. He just wonders how he'll arrange a funeral, without any money.

Alastor stares at the cloth. Almost tempted to pull it back. She is dead still, but oh does he miss her face. But a blink later he's starring at dirt, and a self made little wooden cross.

The bayou had always been a part of home to Alastor. So he'd taken it to hell.

Though this is not hell's. The boy never could get that money, and after another one of Cassius rage filled rants, he was afraid that he might find her body gone. So after after three days, he puts Mama to rest at their favourite spot under a tree and it's the most empty he's ever felt. The boy is remembering one of Mama's favorite songs in the radio.

Boy: “Well meet again, don't know where don't know Wh- when- b-But I know we'll meet a-again-”

The boy's voice cracks to hard, and his breath is too uneven to continue to sing.

Alastor: “You won't”

He says matter of factly. But as another sharp breath is drawn in, the boy burries his head in his arms. And suddenly, the demon doesn't have the heart to remain synical.

Alastor: “... It is for the best, rest assured she's happy.”

The boy looks up at Al as if asking for an answer to a question he doesn't even know.

Alastor: “You will always miss her. But you will learn to bear it”

The boys sobs quiet a bit. They look into nature in front of them. No word is shared. And yet, it feels right somehow. That in someway he's made a step forward, while not having moved at all.

#send asks #ask #ask blog #ask me anything #hazbin hotel ask blog #alastor the radio demon #hazbin alastor #hazbin hotel alastor #alastor #alastor's mother

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timetravellibrarian · 5 months ago

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Zoro x reader

Soulmate AU

Summary: A man seeks to follow his dreams, following only the path his swords carve for him and wherever his crew goes. Little does he know that the missing piece in his life, his soulmate whom he doesn't admit that he tries to seek would end up in a love-hate relationship. Wherein a princess and pirate cross paths.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Two

____________________________________

"Your Grace. I present to you, Prince Cassius of the Arkand." The royal Stewart announced.

You sat beside your older sisters. Your brothers sitting beside your father. Being the middle child of five children really put you in the position to get married off, seeing as there was no hope of gaining the throne.

Prince Cassius' escorts had entered the grand throneroom. They came in with a flurry of green and blue, representative of their kingdom's dominant colours.

You were surprised at how they managed to fit a large elephant carrying the said prince, it's back decorated with soft rugs and golden jewels. Your eyes went up and met with fiery brown ones, his smile breaking out at the sight of you scanning his features. Dark hair with skin kissed by the sun. It was a mystery to you on how he hadn't been married years earlier even if he was the same age if not a bit older than you.

The elephant stopped in front of the throne and the prince slid down the elephant without any hassle as though he usually did so daily. The rest of his people followed behind as he walked up to the steps that led to where the royals sat and bowed.

There was a small silence as your father looked over towards your future husband and his parade. He stood up, leading everyone present to stamd up.

"It is an honour to have you present." Your father said, his eyes still cold yet welcoming.

"No your majesty, it is my honour," The prince replied with a silky voice, his eyes glancing at you before a small smirk graced his features," You have allow us to take care of one of the many flowers in your beautiful garden."

You quirked an eyebrow in thought, 'Do I go through photosynthesis too?'

"We hope to nurture and care for her as much as you and your kingdom have, if not, more."

Your father chuckled," I am glad to hear that, bit for now, onto the celebrations. I hear your father may come in later since he's handling another matter."

"He will Your Grace, and he sends his regards as well as apologies for being late."

Your father nodded before gesturing to your kingdom's stewart," Lead them to the dining hall. They had a long journey, they must be hungry."

Soon the visitors from Arkland had followed the man. Their servants heading out to place the large and cute elephant somewhere it could rest. Your father made his way with your mother in hand. Your brother's trailing behind with their own swagger. Your sisters taking a glance at you with a small smile before heading to the dining hall.

Lyra almost seemed to magically appear beside you as you walked," So, what do you think?"

You looked at her," Judging by the fact that he looks like God took his time to make him and that he only gets a wife now, I may be dealing with either a hoe or a Draco Malfoy."

"Actually your highness, people of Arkland are only allowdyto marry from the moment they reach 18. He's had two years to find a wife and only now accepts a partner. " Lyra stated.

"Still doesn't change the–"

"I also hear that he's one of the many who don't have a soulmate mark. Rumours speculate that whoever it would have been must've died long before he could meet them."

Your eyes widened in shock and a bit of empathy started to form withing your heart. How much it like to not have known or felt a soulmate mark on your body. No red string, no tattoo, no initial..

"Well, maybe I'll be a bit kinder then." Your hand went to the sting you felt in the initial on your wrist, pulse beating through it. 'What if whoever they are is hurt?'

The thougt had come one evening when the supposed initial had seemed to fade a bit but now it was darker than it was.

_________________________________________

Zoro had enough. Not only did he feel a weird sense pulsating through his body, hos eyes were searching around for where everyone went. It felt like he was going in circles.

In truth he was lost trying to find where the Arlong Pirates were. Again. Nami had set him free and now that the truth about her having saved Ussop from dying at the hands of the fishmen reviving everyone's hope to save her. But his navigational skills were nonexistent so he resolved to finding someone he knew.

He caught sight of Sanji lighting one of his cigarettes. Approaching the cook he saw Luffy in the distance, without his hat. Nami beside him.

'Im guessing it's time to fight, properly.'

He disregarded the feel of his wounds aching after his fight with Mihawk a few days ago. Now was not the time to lick wounds. It was time to save a friend.

____________________________________

@mythicallystupid

@mars-mizuko

#one piece #zoro #roronoa zoro x reader #roronoa zoro #x reader #soulmate au #xreader #one piece x reader

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sunlessea · 8 months ago

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“ you need to learn patience. be good and i’ll give you what you want later. ” - plot twist! nestsegg / nestsely :clown:

all i had for this ship was s.mut so uh 🤡 / @londonfallen

cassius helsing, now ashburnum, does not belong in the company of vampires. least of all their elders, the masters of the bazaar who had spread their curse among humanity with lacking remorse. he's their inevitable end, or at least that's what his family says. raised nearly from birth for the sole purpose of hunting and killing them, one by one : he's hardly a revolutionary, but the way the masters of the bazaar are prophesied to fall by his hands, one would think the name cassius to be a war cry for london's rebels.

he tries not to think about how disappointed anyone would be, if they knew. his own heart pounds 'gainst his chest in equal parts guilt, humiliation and excitement that he can't quite bury, even 'neath anger at this point half feigned. here he lies, the master's greatest enemy — and it's mr nests with his wrists pinned down, claws pressing as deep into his skin as its other hand is deep 'neath his slacks. they're tangled in a mess, the two of them, his own clothes ripped and ravaged to expose him, one leg half wrapped 'round its waist where he'd attempted to kick it and had ended up with one of its legs 'tween his thighs instead.

" — get off of me," his voice is torn between harsh growl and pathetic whine, his ears flat 'gainst his head in the same breath his tail is fluffed up a few sizes. no matter how hard he writhes against its hold, it just ends up with his blood on its nails, and every time his body moves, it purrs louder. he knows it's making fun of him, because they both know he truly could fight back harder if he wanted to ... but he doesn't! and that's largely the issue here, what makes his heart ache every bit the same as his body when its palm wraps 'round his erection and makes him whimper.

he's incredibly sensitive. touch starved at his best, completely untouched generally. the feeling is so intense he ends up kneeing it in its side with his leg, and all he can do is glare up at it at the same time he's blushing mad!

"this — this is morally reprehensible, get off of me! i don't — i don't want anything from—" its thumb presses against the head of his cock and he winces, voice choking up 'fore he can continue to protest too much. they would kill him. the garou would kill him if—this is illegal, this is against their— "a—ah—" all it takes is a little more pressure in the movement of its hand along his length for him to wilt proper, breath stalled and lip caught 'tween his fang. why! this is pathetic! "this is wrong—"

#londonfallen #i feel like garbo so trash writing </4 #alas #` ✞ elysium. ⁞ and if i only could‚ i’d make a deal with the gods.#ship tbt.#` ✞ scandal. ⁞ right in front of my glory?#suggestive ―

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gay-witches-are-the-best · 7 months ago

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here goes nothing

I wrote--and am still writing, by the way, this is NOT finished yet--some angsty au thing where Dex and Sophie don't get rescued in book 1. They just...disappear. Anyway, here is a little bit.

Edaline’s POV:

Edaline saw Sophie, her foster daughter, ignore her husband Grady’s calls and race towards the cliffside. Edaline knew the caves were down there, so she conjured up Iggy’s cage and ran after her. “Sophie, wait!” She said, grabbing Sophie’s arm. She placed the tiny imp on Sophie’s shoulder. “In case you need a friend.”

“Thanks,” Sophie said, wiping away a tear.

“Be careful down there. Looks like a storm’s coming.”

Sophie nodded and climbed down to the caves, her blond hair whipping wildly in the wind behind her. As Sophie vanished into the gaping mouth of the cave, Edaline turned away and walked over to Grady, who had picked up the satchel Sophie had thrown on the grassy pasture ground.

“She’ll be back soon,” she reassured him, taking the satchel and snapping it into the void. Grady sighed.

“I don’t know, Eda. What if this time. . . it’s too much?”

“If what’s too much?” a familiar voice interjected from behind them.

“Dex!” Edaline said, hugging her nephew. “Sophie is in the caves, if that was why you came.”

“She seemed really upset when I saw her in the halls today.” Dex kicked the ground and looked away. “Did I do something?”

“No,” said Grady. “It’s our fault she's upset.”

“Oh.” He seemed relieved. “Well, Fitz told me I should stop by, so. . . .” Dex’s voice trailed off. “I’m going to go check on her.” He ran to the caves without saying goodbye.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine. Let’s just go inside and wait it out.” Grady said, pulling Edaline close and hugging her. They walked to Havenfield, passing Verdi on the way. She looked out towards the ocean, letting out a nervous ROOOAR.

Grady and Edaline sat on their giant, squishy couch for a few hours. They both drifted off when the sun started to set, but were awakened by a loud squeak and the sound of ripping fabric. “Iggy!” Grady yelled. Instantly, the imp stopped tearing apart their pillows and darted over to Edaline’s face, flapping his wings and squeaking.

“Gah–what do you want?” She yelled, shielding herself. Iggy might be a ball of fluff, but his claws were sharp. Iggy flew over to the window, pounding himself against the glass a few times before repeating his squeaking-flapping-pounding pattern.

“You want us to go outside?” Grady asked, getting up and heading to the enormous front door. Edaline followed, quickly running down the steps and into the pastures. Iggy followed, leading them towards the dilophosaurus pasture near the cliffs.

The dinosaurs all looked fine, but Edaline still scanned over their tall, thin bodies for any injury. Aside from a scratch in one’s neck frill, they were fine. Iggy seemed insistent that they still follow him, so she hurried on. That’s when she realized: “Grady! Sophie and Dex are still in the caves!”

Grady started sprinting down the uneven path to the caves, rocks and loose sand crumbling out behind him. Edaline lifted her gown and caught up with her husband in a few moments, but when they reached the cave, it was empty.

“SOPHIE? DEX?” They called, looking into the darkest crannies of the cave. When it was clear they weren’t there and the moon had risen to the top of the sky, Edaline decided to hail her brother-in-law, Kesler. After a few tries, he answered the Imparter, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Are Dex and Sophie over there?” She asked, her heart racing with fear for her daughter and nephew.

“No, I haven’t seen them,” Kesler said, his eyes widening with worry.

“Well, please hail me if you hear from them.”

“Will do,” he said, all of the sleepiness gone from his voice.

After that, they tried hailing Alden, Della, and even Lord Cassius. No one had seen them.

Grady eventually convinced that they were fine, probably just mad and hiding somewhere to cool down.

“But where are they ‘hiding,’ Grady?”

He couldn’t answer that.

They both crawled into bed, but Edaline knew neither of them got a wink of sleep that night.

TO BE CONTINUED, please let me know what you thought of this

figured I'd tag some people too so @myfairkatiecat @lisalovesapplesauce @kale-of-the-forbidden-cities @stunning-mess @doodle-do-wop @sophiejacksonchase @ilov3b00kss0much @riordanverseaddict

#kotlc #kotlc fandom #kotlc sophie #kotlc dex #dex dizznee #sophie foster #kotlc angst

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thatfoxnamedfinley · 6 months ago

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LO, REAPER aka Red Rising thoughts

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT

Lettsss GOoooOOooOOoO

I like how ruthless Darrow is. I was reading a review about the book and one person was like "the MC is too intense and cruel. I can't continue to read the series." Meanwhile I'm sitting here like

Tommy Shelby from Peaky Blinders and Captain Flint from Black Sails are two of my favorite characters ever; if you know then you know. I won't say I like cruelty in characters, but I find the capacity for cruelty to be fascinating in characters we are supposed to be rooting for. Darrow grows to care for some of these people and I actually think he cares for less people than readers think at this point. He knows that to be an effective leader you must be feared AND loved and he almost seems to FAKE his care for most of them. It doesn't stop him from taking steps on his mission. The fact that (DON'T CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG) I believe Darrow will not only be a Peerless Scarred, but an Iron Gold by the end of this story is exciting. He's a great MC. I also like moody, broody characters so LMAO he fits the bill.

Sevro is a baby boi. A feral baby boi, but a baby boi. The fact that he's like this little wild child that runs around in a smelly wolf pelt stabbing people's eyes out and follows Darrow so loyally is endearing. I want to know more about where he comes from.

Especially at the end when Darrow had Sevro cut together the footage of the invasion at the Institute and when he heard Darrow say "bloody damn" Sevro was whistling like "its so crazy, the wind was just so LOUD and it was just HARD to make out your words so I just....DELETED them. 😇" I'm like you CHEEKY LITTLE BOI! He knows exactly what's going on and has respect and love for Darrow despite it. Without him and his Howlers, many of Darrow's plans wouldn't have been able to happen.

I don't like Cassius. Never did. I understand his plight and I'm empathetic in a way because his brother was killed. He sees Darrow as manipulative because they were close so he feels...betrayed I guess? However...didn't he also kill someone in The Passage? And joked about it? So...

I think he's an INTERESTING character, I won't lie. I look forward to his arc, but at the moment I don't like him. Wait til he finds out Darrow is a RED kekekekekekekekkekekeke

Jackal is crazy, don't know too much about him though besides his lineage. I knew he would cut off his own hand, there was no way he WASN'T with the hints here and there throughout the story. I do know this boi is going to be a problem tho.

Roque is interesting, still don't know much about him. I was happy he wasn't dead though. He seems to be valuable on the intelligence front so I wonder if he will come into play when doing tactical planning in the future. I'm on the fence with Tactus because I thought he was going to have to be killed like Titus (I also GASPED when we found out). Even after the whipping incident, I'm wary about him because I could see him being

A.) Loyal as fuck

B.) Betraying snake

So, we'll see. I kiiiiinda like him, but I'm also fully prepared to be disappointed by him XD

Mustang... O, Mustang. I don't think she's been developed super well but I like her only because I was like Darrow and thought once we found out her lineage that she had betrayed them all. When we found out she was the Jackal's twin sister I literally smacked my forehead and was like

But she pulled up with him bound up and I was so shocked that she got a +2 with me from that alone. I look forward to her character development.

Lots of people say this book is one of the weakest which is good news I suppose. At first I wasn't fully on board how great Darrow was at everything but ya know...? I remember feeling the heat of rage before about something much less important as Darrow's loss and I was like ya know what, ok. I get it. I can suspend some disbelief here that maybe his rage (which is something I like, that he has anger issues) CAN fuel him further than others. My man shanked Apollo in the eye while they were grappling mid air. I mean DAMN bro.

I have high expectations and Book 1 was good.

On to Book 2!!

Side note: I wanted him to go be with Lorn au Arcos at the endddddddddd not Nero. EWWWwwwWWwww

Side, side note: I want to see an Iron Rain SOOOO BADDDDDD

Side, side, side note: I have a bad feeling about Karnus, Jackal and Cassius. I really do.

#Red Rising #darrow of lykos #darrow au andromedus #sevro au barca #Red Rising Saga #virginia au augustus #cassius au bellona

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the-way-astray · 6 months ago

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Keefe headcanons???

when keefe realized he could inflict, he had mixed feelings. on one hand, he always wanted to be able to. on the other, he can only really do it because his empathy's so strong and why is his empathy so strong? because of his mom's genetic manipulations. so like. he struggles with that

he takes longer than cassius to do his hair. look, i know canonically he makes fun of how long cassius takes to do his hair, but you know keefe takes longer then thirty-one minutes, let's be so for real here, anon. canon doesn't exist actually

anyway fitz taught him to do his hair, actually. they were experimenting and keefe liked that style so fitz taught him how to do it

speaking of fitz, they share a room in the elite levels. oh, but the elves don't really do sharing rooms because there's space enough for every- well, guess who doesn't care. that's right. me

keefe learned his . . . dubious use of empathy from his dad. when he was a kid, his dad would always read his emotions and then just casually tell his mom what he was feeling, so keefe learned to do the same thing and doesn't realize it's fucked up

fitz was the first one to call out that behavior but keefe still struggles with it

fitz keeps keefe in line. in my head

fitz is actually the one that won't let keefe touch his hair everyone has it flipped

this post is turning into a keefitz post lemme backtrack

keefe really likes the elvin equivalent of oranges/citrusy fruits and in unraveled if i don't see him intimidatingly eat a lemon like an apple i will simply perish

before the series started, he changed his hair and eye color all the time with elixirs from slurps and burps so he did know dex kinda even before sophie was in the picture

one time he dyed the tips of his hair black so he looked like a porcupine

he's one of those people that buries himself under the comforter even if it's like 150 degrees outside and inside (i think this is canon actually)

(spoilers for crooked kingdom whoopsie) you know that scene where they fall through the ceiling because they spilled really potent acid on the ground? keefe has definitely done that. that's why Nobody Goes To The Fifty-Sixth Floor Of Candleshade. there's just a gaping hole in the floor between the fifty-fifth and fifty-sixth floor

keefe decorated the rim of said hole with tiny chunks of lumenite he secretly shaved off his dad's statue and since his dad never goes to that floor he doesn't know about it

keefe performed the elvin equivalent of a satantic ritual with the hole (he was high on fathomlethes)

his favorite scent is sharpie. unfortunately he's never actually smelled it before. come on, shannon, give the people (me) what they want in unraveled

when he first heard about sophie (not from fitz) he thought she was a rumor

he's ridden verdi before once when grady made him do chores waiting for sophie to come home

he fell off. painfully

he has never baked ever not even once in his entire life. not ever. this is important to me

keefe and fitz are the epitome of the newest, hottest romance trope that's taken the book world by storm: baker x cannot bake for the life of them

keefe was the one that painted that vacker family portrait actually

della told fitz she wanted to commission a portrait of them to celebrate alden's recovery and fitz was like "i know just the guy"

fitz just didn't tell sophie that because he didn't want to ruin the mood during the flashback scene

remember when fitz said he went to the hekses place for a delivery once? actually alden took keefe too and keefe thought it was cool. yes i know canon says keefe wasn't there and thought it was gross but we ignore canon in this headcanon household

he tried to convince fitz to join his hair and eye color changing ways by changing his eye color to teal and hair color to brown but alas fitz refused to join him

oh shit i'm keefitz posting again

he only turned the lab table to silver because it was ugly he wouldn't have done it if it wasn't so crusty-looking why doesn't lady galvin appreciate his efforts no one understands him

he once showered in the elvin equivalent of orange juice

#kotlc #kotlc keefe #keefe sencen #kotlc headcanon #asks #anon #kotlc keefitz #keefitz #<- because i went a little bit off the rails #anon you don't understand what you did you're dragging me back into my keefitz phase #mine

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dervampireprince · 3 days ago

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Hello!

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it’s my understanding that most (or all) of your original characters exist in roughly the same universe. Do you have a timeline laid out or just a general idea for where everyone fits in that you could share? /genq

Your world feels so big and real and i’d love to have a better handle on the timeline.

Thanks so much in advance and for all of your lovely stories <3

yes all my audio ocs so far (apart from sorrow since he's a marvel oc) exist in the same earth.

i don't have any sort of timeline. honestly like... i worry people think more world building and plot exists than there actually is. i was just making asmr videos, i wasn't thinking there needed to be a world or a story. and yes some characters are connected, but the plot thats going on right now with ambrose and arden and johann was only something i've been planning since december. there was never any plans before that to have a bigger story for them. like if i think about it too long then i worry i've messed it all up because lucien and lysander and cassius live in made-up kingdoms, but ambrose lives in germany and england which are real places. i don't know how to reconcile those things and have both be true. i guess you can think about it like our earth with an alternate history and monsters but i don't really want people thinking about it too hard because this isn't some sort of actual story, like there was no planned world or planned world building and when people try and work things out it makes me feel bad because i didn't plan for that, there is no greater world lore. or maybe i change things and have lysander, lucien and cassius exist in a separate world. i don't know.

i was just making random characters with no backstory or plans for asmr audios and then some people liked them enough that i gave a couple of them a backstory, that's it.

i can't give you any sort of proper timeline but i can say that lucien, lysander, cassius, hawthorn, ellis and dmitri's audios take place before the 1900s, there's no internet or cars or modern technology in their audio settings. johann's take place in the 1700s. and everyone else in in the modern, present day.

but that's all i got. there's no years for them, i don't know if hawthorn and ellis exist at the same time or hundreds of years apart.

i'm sorry if the audios give the impression that there's more going on, but i think most asmr audio channels are just making up characters and not really planning lord of the rings style worlds. i know some do, some do have planned backstories and kingdoms and languages. but i think most of us just make characters and not so much worlds.

when people ask questions about ocs like this i just feel bad. i don't have the answers you want. because none exist. i've just been making characters for asmr audios, i wasn't trying to plan a fantasy novel series or anything. i improvise my audios, i don't script them, i can't remember what i've said the moment i finish recording, there's no way for me to have amazing consistency with the audios and world building. this backstory series with ambrose and arden is the first time i've scripted things because i wanted to get things right and it to be a proper story, but i don't want to always be making audios like that.

i think if i spent too much time agonising over making up cities and languages that i would stop enjoying these characters, that it would get too stressful. i already have a fantasy story i've been doing that with since i was 12 and it's honestly stressful thinking that you can't share a character with people until you have tolkien level world building. i'd like to introduce those characters from my fantasy story to you one day as audio ocs. instead of agonising over trying to write books or comics which i'm not suited for, allowing myself to tell parts of the story through getting to know the characters first hand and hope that it's an enjoyable way to get to know them.

oh this got long. i guess i just felt bad you said the world feels big and real when really there isn't really a world there in my opinion. i mean there's one god, and i've struggled to think of any others, and if different characters mention the same things is good enough for people to enjoy those connections then okay. i just don't personally don't feel i've done enough, but i also wasn't supposed too or at elast... i didn't know i was supposed too. idk maybe every other asmrist does plan out massive stories first, if they do i didn't know that, i thought what i was doing was okay, i didn't mean to make anyone feel tricked into thinking there's more planning here than there is.

#the vampire answers #the vampires ocs #faq #the vampire vents

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wolfpawzjakey · 9 months ago

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[child abuse, torture, infanticide, murder, implied by ptsd].

Another beauty of the relationship with Jason - one of many is that they are similar in their dirt and darkness.

As a child, Percy would squeeze his small wrists and say that he accidentally burned himself, and the fact that the burn was perfectly round, like from a cigarette, was also accidental. As a child, Jason clenched his teeth and remained silent when he was mercilessly bitten by wolves of Lupa or senior legionnaires whipped him as punishment. In the battle for Manhattan, Percy knew no pity and he sincerely did not care from the bottom of his heart that these were children.

Jason carried out executions from the age of 10 as soon as he was finally accepted into the legion, they both did not count the number of people killed with their own hands.

Kronos, Saturn, it doesn't matter, was raising an army not only from the Greeks, Jason prefers to call it an execution on the spot, although it was a simple massacre, a bloodbath that he staged. the youngests was 10 years old, Cassius Adrian Brown and Lucius Maximus most likely they were the sons of Neptune, - this is the only and most terrible thing that Jason clearly remembers.

Percy tortured the goddess using her blood and tears. Jason almost killed Medea by simply taking her breath and stopping the electrical impulses of her brain.

They are both terrible, they can both not lie to each other by pretending, and both can find real understanding and comfort in each other. They accept and do not restrain each other. They don't judge each other and they won't call each other monsters. Or they're both monsters?

Percy and Jason don’t have to pretend to be okay with each other. There are few other campers who would understand the two and their share of horrors. Not even the ones they’d considered closest could understand, not would they try that hard. It’s hard to grasp the awfulness of a person you love, it’s hard to love two murderers who had no choice but to play the roles they’ve been dealt. People will either discard them with disgusted looks or ignore it all together. Nico had the most clue of it all, the kid was fucked up too. But Nico didn’t understand it all.

Jason and Percy understood too well, the grit and gore they’d dealt. Not the same, but similar enough. Jason could sympathize the best when Percy’d wake to a churning stomach, guilt causing him to lose his stomach contents once again. Not ceasing until it was all gone, not ceasing till the images and visceral feelings tingled out of his body.

And Percy was there when Jason woke up, locked up in fright with his blade pressed sharply against Percy’s neck, he was the only one who could talk him down, especially when the tears kicked in after. Especially when Jason would spiral into self blame and hatred after.

It was just them, two recent adults, two men made into monsters by their life circumstances.

Dark Jason and Percy, not necessarily evil but just showing a lot of their more fucked up sides, are so fucking interested to me. This is more believable to me than the happiness, sometimes false happiness, the book shows. Traumatized people can be so happy they appear normal, I know that 100% but they do show so much of that trauma externally if they think they do or not. I think they’re so interesting to write when they really fall into the dark grey morals they kind of actually have more of than anything else. Sure, these two are hero’s, sure Percy is like the leading face of changing the wrongs the gods have done to their children, he’s change so many things for the better, but this should lead to neglect his past actions as a whole. He’s so well rounded and without the grit and grime he has, he’s not so well rounded anymore.

And Jason…. You were never given a chance to be well rounded because Rick wrong you and us for not giving your character a chance to flourish with returned memories and personality. Sorry king, but your trauma deserves to be shared too. We will imagine on our own accords.

Thank you again for the food anon.

#jason grace #percy jackson #pjo #hoo #toa #tw trauma #tw ptsd #tw death #tw murder #tw child death #tw torture #tw infanticide

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lemurious · 1 month ago

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2024 stories

tagged by @malkaleh , thank you very much!

Leitmotif of the year: memory & legacy & history & how all of these are influenced by whose words survive, in the end.

My best story of this year: My favorite and/or truest story of this year: I don't know about "best" and I feel I am not the one to judge, but my favorite this year is the last chapter of To Be Remembered.

Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion: more like, in a fandom that needs more stories - that would be my Alcibiades story, A Garland of Violets

Story with the single sexiest moment: I am very, very ace for these :D but, I did write my first M-rated stories this year (extremely tame, of course). So. Mark Antony and Cassius at Hellespont.

Most "Holy crap, that's wrong, even for you" story // Hardest story to write // Best title: Heroes of Their Time, a take on the Iliad that is might-be-modern-might-be-ancient throughout most of it and deliberately modern at the end. It's not really wrong for me, but it is dark and it was hard to write. In the way war is dark, and it is very, very hard to come back from one.

Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters: Mme Pontmercy Pays Her Respects put me squarely in the Support Cosette At All Costs camp for Les Miserables.

Biggest disappointment: uh, none? I am Unimportant Enough that people don't come to my fics to be unpleasant, fortunately!

Biggest surprise: Les Miserables and its wonderful fandom <3 <3

Most unintentionally telling story: And Crimson Like the Dawn, because after writing it I realized how much this year will be known as The One in Which Lemur Develops Social Consciousness.

Story I haven't yet written, but intend to: A proper longer-form fic about Catilina! And a Les Miserables AU about Cosette living happily ever after and co-authoring a certain Brick.

I am really awkward at tagging because What If I Annoy Someone so please consider yourselves tagged? I would love to see it for folks I follow on Tumblr <3 and art or story, too!

#lemur writes #lemur muses #tag game!#writer tag #2024 has ben the most productive year since i started writing fic during the pandemic in 2020 #(yes i am a late bloomer okay)#les miserables #late roman republic #please consider yourselves tagged! this was very interesting to reflect on

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cassius-casim · 3 months ago

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Despite My Despair:Chapter 2

Trigger Warnings:Historically acurrate ableism , mentions of violence / injuries , senskry overload aftermath, mentions of war , unhealthy coping habits.

Word Count: 3900

⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎⚣︎

(Tommy’s Pov)

Thank fucking god that was over.

That meeting was a total shit show. Leaving the room gave me instant relief.The room that was calm at first glance, but upon further inspection revealed a choking atmosphere. One that only needed a spark to set it alight.This looked completely different. As it was loud and with so many people , it was hard to get around the place . The warm light gave a relaxed air , taking solace in . How the fuck was this meant to work and not ruin everything I have, without losing Aunt Pol, that through Kimber we wouldn’t have to worry anymore. As much as what we have going on is good I can't risk it . Not with what I have now.

Filtering across the busy bar to go see Harry, who was helping the barmaid manage the crowd,when it starts to calm down I piped up:

“Hey Harry, can I get another one of these?”

“Yeah sure Tommy.”He took my glass , as seeing the familiar honey coloured liquor it contained asking what was bothering me .

“Thanks,has Polly already left with Cassius?”

“Polly left but I hadn't seen Cassius with her.”

Thank god at least we won’t have to fight about this aga-. wait did he say ? That can’t be right , someone else must’ve picked him up.

“Did he leave with someone else ?”

He must’ve , no-one would be thick enough to leave him by himself.

“No. Honestly I haven't seen him for a while now.”

No.This can't be happening. How can this be happening?

“Harry , when was the last time you saw him?” I asked while willing myself to remain calm.

“When you were with him about an hour ago?”

My eyes bounce across the room , maybe he’s around here somewhere? But no , no matter how hard I look I can't find him anywhere.

Fuck. Okay Tommy calm down.We need to get it together . I need to get Arthur now , whilst using all my willpower to keep it together with each step I take.

“Arthur, have you seen Cassius?”

“No Tom, is something wrong?”

“I don't know where he is , he hasn't left with Pol or anyone else.”

“Fuckin hell….right I will ask around to see if someone has seen him,don't worry we'll find him.”

“Alright”.

Leaning against the bar I once again force myself to relax , he wouldn't leave the building by himself but then why would he still be here? And how come nobody knows where he is ?

“Tommy , come over here !”

Head snapping up ,springing off my chair to go where Arthur was gesturing.

“Yes Arthur, have you found him ?”

“No but I think I found out where he might be.One of the guys-”

He gestures to a conflicted weasel of a man whose soul seemed set on leaving his body. That paired with a large stain on the front of his shirt. He was surrounded by his group of friends who were loud and incoherent ,at the bar

“-saw him in the bathroom.”

“When was this ?”

“Like 15 minutes ago.But Tom he said tha-”

I didn't let him finish that sentence before barging into the bathroom calling out:

“Princely, are you alright?”

Hoping that he would be there , while my eyes adjusted to the dim light of the bathroom wondering my next move. Is he okay? What do I do if he's hurt?

Under the flickering light bulb there laid Cassius curled up on the dirty wooden floor , hitting his head in a frenzy whilst looking in agony. Making weird sounds impossible to make out. Running over to him wanting to help but not knowing what to do.

It hurts to see him like this but I must push my feelings aside as he needs me now. Taking a deep breath to get my shit together,trying to figure out what to do. Asking gently as possible:

“ Princely are you okay, what's wrong?”

Please don't be hurt.

“Noise….it's too loud.”

He strains out as he rocks back and forth.

“Is it okay if I hold you ?” asking gently as to not upset him further.

As nodded , I moved over to hold him from behind, wrapping my arms around him to stop him from harming himself . Holding him I think :

How did this happen? How could nobody notice?

Does he need to go to a doctor? But the answers to those questions had to wait. First priority was getting him home safely.

“Princely I'm gonna take you home now. Do you want to walk or do you want me to carry you?”

“...carry”, he responded faintly.

Placing my arms under him whilst lifting him up bridal style carefully as possibly to not cause any further harm.Just as I was about to reach the door Arthur bursts in with his usual loud voice.

“Tommy oh thank god I found yo-"

he stops as his entire expression shifts as he takes everything in front of him. Lowering his voice he asks

“Tommy, are you alright? What’s happening?”

Honestly I don't even know the answer to that question.

“I don’t know Art ,Cassius is not doing well. I need you to go get the car ready so I can take him home.”

“Will do.I’ll meet you out front.”

Getting ready to leave the bathroom , it gives me time to re-examine the situation.Judging by how Princely looks I need to get him out NOW. Once I finally get the door open with one hand my eyes strain from the sudden shift to the bright light while simultaneously getting hit with the smell of smoke,booze and wood.Feeling something down my arm, I see Cassius trying to hide his face in my neck, shielding himself from someone's gaze. It’s the beer stain guy from earlier,talking to a group of people surrounding him while pointing in our direction. For what reason? Zeroing in on his group his voice carries across the short distance:

“-and then I saw this cretin spazzing out on the floor acting like he-”

Son of a bitch.As much the idea of me dealing with him is appealing I have to take care of Cassius. Resuming my journey out of this buildung inconspicuously proves challenging.

“Wait, is that the freak you were on over there?”

Oh for fucks sake.

Turning back around which lets me get a better look at them,even though they're a group,only two of them are actively in the conversation: beer stain and this other guy who looks in a sort of daze. But it’s clear they're both shit-faced, if their red-toned, snow-powdered faces are any indication.

“Yeah that's him, you should have seen him earlier, acting like he belongs in a looney bin.”

“Wait, is that Tommy Shelby carrying him?”

“Probably to spare us the misery, by the looks of him he needs to be put down.”

“Why don't you deal with him yourself?”

“You’d need to pay me to touch a lunatic like him.”

“How about I buy you another pint if you do?”

“Deal”, beer-stain responds with intent.

He shuffles off his seat ,turning his attention to me as he approaches.

“Alright Mr Shelby, let me get that freak off ya hands.”

He says whilst looking at Cassius as though he was something to dispose of.Did he not know what he is doing? Jesus, how much Snow did he take ?

“No. Get the fuck away from him .”

“What? Why’re you defending this freak?”

“That's none of your fucking buisness .”

“None of my fucking buisness? This imbecile is the reason jobs that should be going to men like us , men that fought for this country instead they are going to freaks like him. Freaks that are taking away money that could help us and you don't want to fix this?”

His anger is not unjustified but his target is wrong.

“You're blaming your lack of a job on him?”

“ No Mister Shelby”

He walks closer to me, putting his hand on my arm while getting so close that I could see the individual hairs on his moustache. He must be so far gone if he thought this pathetic display would be seen as intimidating.

“I'm saying that those like him are a burden on us.After all,that happened to us in the war why should he get the benefits that we deserve by doing fuck all? If anything we would be claiming what is rightfully ours.”

What in the actual fuck? As much as the desire to beat the living shit out of them grows by the second, it's not worth it and inconvenient. Why beat up a man clearly in turmoil? A man whose means of coping is not different to my own? But getting Cassius home safe is at the forefront of my mind. My first priority. Thiugh how the fuck am I meant to manage that with beer stain blocking the door? Just from first look alone, getting out of this could get ugly, so I’m double fucked. I cant fight without risking Cassius getting hurt and they’re too far gone to be reasoned with.So what do I do now?

SLAM

Oh thank god.

Arthur burst in his usual fashion.

“There you are Tommy! Thought you got lost.”

Sensing the tense air, Arthur shifts with stance from casual to anticipatory, ready to spring into action.

“What’s going on here?”

Arthur said, tone filled with apprehension.

Turning over to me he sees what’s happening: me trying to leave with Cassius and how beer stain guy is stopping that from happening.

“I was just about to leave.”

“He's free to after he hands that idiot over.”

“Why would he do that?”

“Because like I told him , that thing needs to be put down.”

“YOU FUCKIN BASTARD”

Arthur roars lunging close to bear-stain leaving him to veer off to the side.

With that sentence the whole atmosphere around me changes to a whole new level of chaos setting off as Arthur punches beer stain man in the face. Suddenly, the whole pub shifts from eerily quiet to a total brawl as men are fighting each other with whatever they can get their hands on. Debris littering the floor. Violence for the sake of violence, no reason necessary.

Dodging this mess was challenging to say the least, continuing to navigate my way out of here between dodging flying fists and the onslaught of objects in my way. As I approached the exit, I proceeded to scan my surroundings in all directions, on my way out noticing Grace looking at me. She seemed largely unaffected by what was happening, with how despite the chaos in front of her her station is somehow clean. Though that didn’t explain the annoyance in her gaze which though significant at first glance but insignificant in terms of current priorities.

Princely I hope you didn't hear anything those bastards said.

Finally in what seemed like forever, we made it outside unscathed. Taking advantage of the calm we rush to the car as quickly as possible. Thinking about what to do once I got there. It took me longer than it should to start the car, even though the car was going as fast as it would go, everything around me felt suspended in time. For now everything is alrigh-

HONK

THAT FUCKING BASTARD . WHAT WAS HE THINKING!? Wait, did I hit someone? Why is there yelling? Looking back to see Princely freaking out, curling into a ball whilst yelling and crying at the same time.

Getting out to open his door ,pulling him into my arms , stroking his hair whilst trying to do my best to comfort him.

“Princely, it's okay. The car is gone, everything is going to be okay”.

“I know you can’t talk right now but I’m here, we’re not that far from home now. You think you are ready to continue our way home.”

He nods

Getting back into the car,we continue our way back looking at Princely through the side windows , bloody hell he looks so out of it like a walking corpse.

When we finally approach home, we are greeted by the familiar light from the house.Picking Cassius up,he looks so out of he I don't think he knows what is happening,getting us to the door which when i finally manage to open . Cause ruckus due to forgetting that I was carrying Cassius . Who knocked over the coat rack.

“Tommy what is happening?”

Turning around to see Ada who looks dressed up for this time of night.

“Ada what are you doing up?”

“Waiting for you, now tell me what’s going on?”

“Cassius was left alone at the Garrison when I found him he was like this . I don’t know what to do.”

“Tommy, listen, it's going to be okay. Take him upstairs and get him ready for bed. I'll make him a plate of his favourites , I will meet you up there.”

Nodding back I get to the task at hand whilst carrying him up the stairs being careful not to let anything hit him , as I help him get change into his favourite blue nightie… wait what? That can't be right.Double checking to see it again , that can’t be right.There were a sea of purple bruises decorating his back spreading to his right arm which looks like someone dug their nails deep into him,enough to draw blood.It barely looks like a human did this , more like an animal.How on earth did he get these injuries? His job wouldn't do this as how can he get this carrying baggage? And he could have been mugged as he still has his things.His injuries look recent so this must've happened just before he went to the Garrison? Why on earth would he go to the Garrison if that was what happened? Is this why this is happening to him ?

If that's the case no wonder he looks spaced out , poor thing he must still be overwhelmed from what happened hopefully rest will help. While he was nearly ready for bed , the thought stayed in my mind but it wasn’t the right time.As much as I want to ask about his injuries he's in no state to answer.

There is a knock on the door.

“Tommy, can I come in?”

“Yeah Ada come in”

“Hey Cassius , here are the biscuits you made here and some Ribena. It will be right here if you need it.”

As she places it on the side table.

“thanks”

“Do you need anything else?”

“no ,thank you.”

“Okay but if you need anything me and Tommy will be downstairs okay?”

How is she doing this so effortlessly , has this happened before?

She turn over to me

“Let’s talk downstairs okay?”

“Okay”

I tuck Princely in

“Night , night Princely”

After kissing him good night , dressing to my nightie to get comfortable.Then I went downstairs to talk to Ada. She is at the living room drinking whiskey looking like a lot of on her mind.She notices me staring, lifts up the bottle:

“Hey, you want some?”

“Fuck yes”

Sitting down on the chair next to her, the exhaustion I didn't know I had now hits me.

“How are you feeling?”

“Honestly? Shit. I found the man who I love suffering but I couldn't even help him.”

“Tommy, you didn’t know what to do , this is your first time seeing this.”

“Someone had beaten him before?”

“What? What are you on about?”

“When getting him ready for bed,I saw bruises and marks on his body.Isn’t that what caused this?”

Ada looks at a loss for words

“No Tommy, that isn’t how this works.Did he mention anything to you?”

Ada got up from her chair to get more whiskey.

“No ,nothing”

“Oh shit.”

Ada exclaims whilst looking at the back of her chair.

“What?”

“Tommy, you should see this.”

With that she throws the coat at him . Looking closely at it it's Cassius's work coat but the damage on it doesn't completely match his injuries. As one of the sleeves was torn , so how did he get the puncture wounds ?

“How the fuck did this happen?”

“No idea but trust me when I say me and Pol are gonna get to the bottom of this.”

“thanks Ada but can I ask you something?”

“Go for it”

“You said this happened before , what happened?”

“It was during the War when it happened . Cassius was at the factory coming home from work when we were meant to be expecting letters from home .Arthur and Johns came but yours didn’t that set him off.Since he was he was convinced you were dead as according to him you promised you would never forget to write to him . He then freaked out, hitting himself , not talking, and made weird noises whilst rocking back and forth.”

“I didn’t think he would notice.”

“Why do you think that? He would bake something on the day he got it to celebrate you surviving, he thought it gave you good luck.Honestly i felt that was the only reason it kept him sane at the time.”

That explains why he likes baking so much.

“Did you take him to a Doctor?”

“Yeah me and Polly took him down to one , we thought it was hysteria at first but when he looked at him . He told us that he was insane,even ranked him as feeble minded and told us he shouldn't go out and about . Saying he needs to be put in a colony.”

Wait what? That can’t be right.

“Colony? He wanted you to send him abroad during a war?”

“Not that type of colony, it's where they sent people like Cassius to villages where they would be taken care of.”

“Why didn’t you send him there?”

“Because if i did then you wouldn’t’ve seen him again.”

“What?”

What does she mean by that?

“Tommy, when someone is sent to the colony, they are separated from society so no one ever sees them again.”

“Bloody hell.”

“Luckily for us , the people in the Colonies were working in the factories so the Doctor couldn’t send him there. Yeah so after that , me and Pol figured that he only had these episodes when overwhelmed or things were getting to him like if the noise was too loud.”

“What was happening here ,besides the whole letter thing, that could lead to him being overwhelmed?”

“Just because you were fighting a war over there , it didn’t mean that we weren’t affected here.”

“How?”

I thought only those that fought suffered how they did suffer? I thought they were safe from it.

“The years where we spent in fear not knowing whether our loved ones would die every day,where we had to work ourselves to exhaustion to get by , fearing for our lives if we lost, what would happen to us? It messed us all up to the point we had to find different ways to deal with it :Polly had to pray every night to sleep,Cassius had to bake everyday to keep it together and read your letters constantly,and I had to keep myself busy so I wouldn't think about it in order to survive.”

“So how come he never told me this?”

“He’s scared.”

“Scared?”

“He’s afraid that even though you love you won’t be able to understand him no matter what happens so he’s afraid for you to see this part of him in case he scares you away.”

“I feel the same way towards him. But that doesn’t make sense. He helped me through the shock after I came back.”

“You’re not seen as a lesser for it , he is.”

“ Fuck Ada what do i do now?”

“Talk to him about this , after me and Polly find out the truth.Until then keep an eye on him and don’t let him near any loud spaces for a while.Okay?”

Getting from my chair I turn back to Ada.

“Okay, again thank you Ada”

“No problem ,night Tommy”

“Night”

Going back upstairs , what Ada said to me is bouncing through my mind. So this is part of his Autism,but how can I get him to talk to me about this? How do I convince him this is nothing to be ashamed of ? I can’t do this alone but how could I find a doctor that won’t send him to the colonies?

Fuckin hell

On top of the whole Kimber and guns , I wonder how I am even functioning at this point. Thank god i can finally rest.Reaching my bedroom entering as quietly as possible while going back to bed where I left Cassius. Despite everything that has happened today he looks so at peace, something I envy him for ,as I held him in my arms I vow to myself to never let this happen again,never let him think he has to hide this from me again and to find who on earth would do this. I hope Ada and Polly give them hell.

☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎☟︎︎︎

2 hours later

Polly emerges from the door,entering gently so as to not wake anyone up in the early hours of the morning.Just as she was about to approach the stairs she notices a figure in the living room, hunched over drinking. Thinking it was her nephew who was causing a lot of trouble recently her energy returns to speak her mind to him. “Tommy what are playing a-”

She doesn’t finish her sentence as it is not Tommy but Ada.

“Ada what are you doing up?”

“Waiting for you , we need to talk.”

Pulling up a chair Polly sits down preparing for the worst

“What has Tommy done now?”

“Nothing.This is not about Tommy ,it’s about Cassius.”

“What’s happened?”

“Tommy came back freaked out , he was carrying Cassius who was having an episode.Do you have any idea what could’ve caused this?”

“This is important?”

“Yes Polly ,I need to know.”

“Okay Cassius came home with a tattered coat, all he would tell me is that a customer tore it after a petty dispute and his boss docked his wages.”

Ada said nothing , just sat there and took on what Polly said.

“There’s more to this, isn’t there?”

“Tommy thought you had to be hurt to have episodes.”

“ Why on earth would he think that?”

“Because he saw marks on Cassius’s body whilst changing him.”

Polly pauses , as she notices the shift in atmosphere.

“What type of marks Ada?”

“Bruises and a puncture wound , like he had been beaten.”

“Why would he hide this from us Pol?

“We’ve been there for him when he needed us the most, why not tell us about this?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do we ask him?”

“No, we have to find out for ourselves, we don’t want him freaking out anymore than he already has.”

“So where do we start?”

“You know this boss’s name?”

“Sort of ,I know his secretary Ms Jameson from a dance hall I go to sometimes.”

“Alright, here's what we’re gonna do. We are going to get some rest , god knows we’re gonna need it if we need to get to the bottom of this.I think it’s time we pay that secretary of his a visit don’t you?”

Next Chapter

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