#drifters jade coin

[its-a-beautful-day]

Check out my Etsy for bug stickers, funky jewelry, and more!!

Right now im slowly adding new items over to my Kofi as i'll be moving away from Etsy due to the multiple issues.

Over on my kofi i have pride necklaces, earrings, and my first two prints!! These lino-prints are limited quality at the moment (waiting on more ink) so grab them while you can!

[imonthemoonitsmadeofcheese]

I never noticed! This makes me happy.

eris has drifters coins in the lofi stream

[imonthemoonitsmadeofcheese]

Destinytober24: Day 27 - Unlikely Allies

Link to Ao3 if you prefer to read it there

- One -

"Drifter."

"Hey, Rayray! Not used to you callin'. And on one of my secure channels too. Huh. I'll have to change that later. What can I do ya for?"

"Is Eris with you?"

"Well, that's a loaded question with a lot of implications. Let's just put aside why you might think she's here and get to what you'd need her for if she hypothetically was."

"There's a large disturbance in the Hellmouth and she is not answering her comms. If she's not with you, she's there and-"

"She's here. She's safe. I'll go wake her up. Gimme a bit though. Gotta be gentle so I don't get stabbed."

- Two -

"Drifter. What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same, Warlock Vanguard spymaster scary lady, but I'm pretty sure we're both here for the same person. Your reasons are probably more official than mine, though, so you go first."

"That's unusually charitable of you."

"Charity ain't got nothin' to do with it. If it's somethin' important and I delay it she'll get mad-mad. And while she is super cute when she's a little mad, when she's actually pissed off it is fuckin' terrifyin' so by all means, after you."

- Three -

"Hey hey! Moondust. Spy lady."

"Germaine," Eris turned away from the table she and Ikora were working on to face him. "We will be but a few more moments."

"All good." He leaned back against the wall next to the door and pulled out a jade coin. "I can wait."

"The problem is getting inside the complex." Ikora pointed down at the diagram.

Eris leaned over the table so that her Ahamkara bone was illuminating where Ikora's finger was pointing. "We can ask Crow to send in a competent Hunter for infiltration."

"He already has." Ikora said, concern in her voice. "They did not return."

Eris nodded solemnly. "I see. A frontal assault will be more dangerous and will require considerable time to hack the electronic security…"

"Ok this ain't my business," the Drifter stepped forward with his arms out in what he hoped was a disarming gesture, "but I can see what you're lookin' at and what you really need is a key to that lock and then you can walk on in and go hard and fast. They won't know what hit 'em."

"If we had keys to this lock we would not be having this discussion." Eris glared at him.

"Do you uh…" He looked from Eris to Ikora and then back to Eris. "Want one?"

"What?" Ikora looked up from the map.

"Hmmm… Infiltration…" Eris turned to look at Ikora. "It is one of his areas of expertise…" She turned back to the Drifter. "A pity you do not work for the Hidden or the Vanguard."

"Oh I don't. But… if the Bane of the Swarm wants a thing, she has an associate who has been… useful in the past for gettin' her… things, right?"

"Yes. He has."

"And maybe if you wrap this one up quick you can get uh.. some… extra vacation time?" He looked over at Ikora with an eyebrow raised and a Cheshire grin.

Ikora frowned at him. "How?"

"Oh, Rayray…" His eyes sparkled with amusement. "You absolutely do not want to know. Trust. But uh…" He reached out and took Eris' hand with a light touch. "Gimme two hours," he said gently, gazing into her three eyes. "I'll get your key."

Ikora stared at him in disbelief, her eyebrows high.

Eris' lips formed a small smile as she held his hand, brushing one of her fingers along one of his. "Hmmm… very well."

The Drifter gave Eris' hand a squeeze. Then he winked at her and transmatted away.

Eris turned back to Ikora.

"What is he going to do?" Ikora asked.

"I have no idea but I highly doubt it would be anything resembling legal… It likely involves interactions with unsavoury characters… and may possibly include war crimes…"

"If he compromises this operation…"

"He will not."

"How can you be sure?"

"It would… disappoint me." She turned away from Ikora and cradled her orb gently in both hands. "He is… attempting to impress me."

Ikora sighed, her hands on table, looking away.

"…and you," Eris continued. "But mostly me… and I will admit he is … succeeding."

"If he can get us in it will probably save more lives than he costs."

"Yes and… he has an interesting sense of morality but… he does have one… it is unlikely he will do anything too terrible… "

"I don't trust him."

"I know. You shouldn't. But you do trust me. And he would never do anything to damage that."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because, as was previously noted, he is not doing it for the Vanguard or the Hidden. He is doing it for me."

- Four -

"Knock knock! Ooooh! Rayray, if looks could kill I would absolutely be dead from that one."

"Why are you here, Drifter… in a secured Hidden location… having bypassed my security… again?"

"I needed to talk to you."

"You couldn't leave a message?"

"I left four."

"I see. It has been a busy night. I take it this is urgent?"

"Uh yup."

"Wait… does it have to do with Eris?"

"Uh yup."

"Where is she?"

"I dunno. That's the problem. Do you know?"

"No."

"That's a bigger problem."

"When did you last see her?"

"This mornin'. She said she had shit to do on the Moon. Didn't show up for dinner. Comms dead last six hours. If she was doin' shit for you I didn't wanna go in guns blazin'. But, since she ain't, guns blazin' it is."

"Wait."

"What?"

"I'm coming with you."

Link to the entire month's worth of prompts on Ao3, posted daily.

[erisxdrifter]

Make this story

1. Drifter and Eris doing dirty talking then Ikora catches them HAHAHAHAHAHA

2. Eris is sick so her beloved Rat takes care of him.

Here's the story for your first request, hope you love it!! I'm working on your second request, and I'll try and send it soon! 🥳 Thank you so much for the requests!!

The Drifter ran two fingers along the bright orange railing in his section of the Annex, collecting a small layer of grime and dust on his fingertips, staring at it with speculative and judging eye.

  "Observing dust are you, Rat?" Came a mellow voice from behind him.

  He turned towards the doorway, a smile already on his lips.

  "Hey, Moondust." He greeted. "C'mere, will you?"

  Eris eyed him suspiciously, cautiously approaching where he stood.

  "What is it?" She asked, looking down at the railing when he pointed at it.

  "Look," The Drifter replied. "What do you see?"

  Eris frowned. "Dust."

  "Exactly. Dust and dirt, on the railing. How?" He stared at it quizzically.

  "Perhaps from the rafters above." Eris replied, unfazed. "The idea is not particularly strange."

  "But c'mere, look at this too," he walked them over to the table nearby which was topped with books, a pot, jade coins, and a Cabal helmet.

  "Look at the table." He pointed to more dust. "How is the table so dusty? 'Specially the coins, you know I use 'em like a hawk. How come they're already covered in dust 'n grime?"

  "I doubt the Tower is without it's vermin, Drifter." Eris replied, observing the table and coins. "A mouse or rat could easily have crawled across the rafters and kicked down the dust and dirt you see here."

  "This much dust? Nah, that don't make sense. How does dirt get up on the rafters, anyway?"

  "Rats are not typically very clean creatures," Eris jabbed at him teasingly. "When did this start?" She asked before he could make a jab back at her.

  "Been goin' on for a few days." He told her. "And don't tell me a rat kicked down this much dirt, Moondust. I've been cleanin' it up every day and it's still comin'."

  "I will admit that is strange." Eris relented.

  "Run your finger through it," he told her.

  "What? Why would I do that?"

  "So you can see how thick it is."

  "Rat-"

  "Moondust," the Drifter interrupted.

  "Fine," Eris eventually grumbled, running the tip of her gloved finger through the dust. "It is surprisingly thick, I will admit." She said as she observed her finger.

  "Exactly, isn't that-"

  The Drifter was interrupted mid-sentence by the sound of a throat being cleared from the doorway.

  Both Eris and the Drifter jerked their heads toward the sound, finding Ikora Rey standing at the entrance of the room.

  "Am I interrupting something?" She asked, appearing faintly amused. "Something about dust?"

  The Drifter coughed. "Yeah, I was just sayin' how the Vanguard charge me too much to keep a room that's got dust and dirt fallin' from the rafters."

  "What brings you here, Ikora?" Eris interjected.

  "I heard you were in the Annex," she began. "And I came to make sure there wasn't something wrong."

  "Why would anything be wrong?"

  "I supposed that perhaps the Hive had become a more dire threat once again, and that you had come to the Tower to give a report in person." Ikora explained. "But I am glad to see the only matter is... dust."

  "And dirt." The Drifter added.

  "Yes. Well, if that is all then I will be going." Ikora offered a small smile. "It's good to see you, Eris."

  Eris gave Ikora a nod as she left the room. "Enough talking about dust, Rat." She told the Drifter once Ikora was gone, sighing and shaking her head.

  "But it's still weird!" The Drifter exclaimed.

  "I'm sure it is merely a rodent crawling across the-"

  "Rafters. Yeah, yeah, I know." He sighed.

  "I will be going, Rat, before you get any more worked up on the matter of dust." She turned away, heading for the exit.

  "Hey! I'm not worked up!" He called after her. "Moondust! Come back!"

  She laughed quietly to herself as she walked down the hall. 

[thefirstknife]

can you explain the class system? things like what are class items, what stops guardians from switching classes, what can unclassed guardians do with their light (looking mostly at drifter here, but i'm sure there are other examples).

These things are largely unclear in lore. Obviously in gameplay we're limited so we can only use one class, but story-wise there's not much preventing Guardians from switching classes, besides their own abilities and willingness to learn. These abilities can be taught and learned, it just depends on the Guardian if they're interested to try.

Class items seem to serve as symbols for classes once a Guardian chooses and most Guardians don't seem to be interested in switching classes at all. I have a few posts with a similar discussion. Basically at some point after rezing, a Guardian will figure out what they're most attuned to or interested in and get trained to fully embrace their class (and often preferred subclass). We can assume this is also when they pick their armour and class item.

They don't really do anything specific, outside of being symbols for the classes and probably holding some sentimental value as a part of the Guardian's identity. For example, Titan marks tend to symbolise some important event or have symbols of a Titan's order on them. Hunters have a tradition to take the cloak of their fallen friend, something best shown with Cayde who took up Andal's cloak after his death.

Unclassed Guardians are super rare these days. We really only know about Drifter who still refuses to pick a class. He also very rarely uses his Light and we only really have a few instances of him doing it. Every time we see him using it, it's just generic solar Light. Once he did it in the Dark Age:

The man lifted his other hand, smoldering from a Solar glow, and held it against Judson's wound.

The other times he'd just use solar as a sort of a trick during old Gambit Prime intros where he'd light the jade coin on fire. Outside of that, he's never been shown using the Light so we simply have no clue what an unclassed Guardian could do. I think it's safe to assume that they can technically use anything they learn and train for, including cross-class abilities. We just don't have any examples of this.

Drifter is also seen using Stasis, though we only see him throw one grenade. These aren't class specific and, to boot, stasis can be wielded by non-Guardians as well.

Drifter was also briefly a member of the Pilgrim Guard with Orin; the Pilgrim Guard is the oldest Titan order dedicated to protecting the City. It's once again unclear if he aligned himself with Titans at the time (and if he ever learned any Titan abilities) or if the Pilgrim Guard wasn't being too picky about who joined them in those early days. He could've joined them and remained unclassed. But he must've been capable of using the Light somehow while he served in the Pilgrim Guard, given their task of protecting the City so it's at least clear that unclassed Guardians are perfectly capable of using the Light. We just don't know how that Light manifests for them. I think it makes the most sense that they can do anything they pick to learn and train for.

[bbyfacedx]

trying to finish some destiny wips ive been working on for ages and this is genuinely one of my favorite drifteris snippets ive ever written. maybe perhaps i will Finish It

Eris Morn is not a woman who wishes for pity. Sympathy makes her ache nearly as bad as any physical ill she’d suffered; more foreign in her than her own three eyes. The tentative, placating words of others do nothing to put her at ease. Words alone cannot bring back anything she’d lost, sacrificed, or gambled away of her own free will, after all. She isn’t fond of them in the slightest.

The only balm capable of soothing her is a strange one, made from unknown ingredients and applied in a thick layer whether Eris likes it or not. It stings, seeping into her skin, penetrating her down to the marrow each time. He can’t help being obnoxious, she’s aware, it’s simply in his nature. An ointment of his own to rub over the wounds of being known. As much as she’d like to say she knows the Drifter, she doesn’t. Eris has no weapons or words capable of piercing through that thick, cold skin, but she doesn’t necessarily mind it.

Whatever truth lies buried under the Drifter is inconsequential to her. She knows his hands, each scar and callous and imperfection; his voice, the cadence and lilt of it, the way he clips the ending clean off of his words and slurs them into a drawl. She knows that he fiddles with his jade pendant when he’s nervous, upset, frustrated, thinking hard, or holding back excitement. She knows his nicknames for her; Moondust when he’s trying to be romantic, Three-Eyes when he’s trying to push her buttons. Eris knows enough about the Drifter to keep her curiosity sated, for now.

The Drifter’s Gambit is one thing Eris has never bothered to study much. Why should she invest her time learning the ropes of a simple game meant for trigger-happy Guardians to shed the blood of aliens and their own? How could Eris hope to participate while she had nothing but an Ahamkara bone in hand and Stasis replacing her Light? Why was she pacing around the Drifter’s alleyway, eyes darting impatiently from the open grate to the swirling bank of motes to the jade coin discarded on the table? More questions with answers that Eris will never know.

[that-bug-kid]

Drifter absolutely flips the jade coin to decide what to do in the bedroom

“Alright, alright, alright, lets see what we’ve got.”

*flips coin, peeks*

“OOOOOOO! Pegging, on the horizon”

[faller-of-kharbranth]

Heh.

Had a funny idea:

[Video ID: It’s Malkah, clearly rather drained after whatever knocked her out.

It quickly illusions faerself as a scruffy-looking man in leathers and furs, a jade coin pendant on vermillion string around “his” neck.

“He” says, in a perky illusioned-in voice:

“If you think Heartbreaker Charles’s battles are a mess, just wait until you try Gambit Battles, Sister!

And my name…?

You can just call me Drifter.

Trust.”

She drops the disguise and chuckles softly.]

[take-a-gambit]

The Drifter has been, well, not quiet. Quite the opposite, he’s been loud and exuberant, even more then usual.

“You lot ever eat a Hive before?” He runs the jade coin through his fingers as smoothly as the hundred other times he’s done this trick. He savors the feeling of the cold jade to his skin, and pauses before reappearing the coin.

“Like I always say, I’ll eat anything once, even in..unconventional ways.”

He smirks, pulling the coin out from his sleeve, revealing the Hive token.

“Hive! Bring a sword.”

[its-a-beautful-day]

My first prints are now available in my Kofi shop!

Styled after Drifter's Jade coin, I currently have 6 prints. Four are in green ink, one in black, and then one is a mix of the two. I'll be getting more ink in soon; so just in case they sell out, I'll be making more.

[fallseidol]

“So, got a question for ya.” The Drifter idly tosses a jade coin from one hand to the other, though his eyes remain on Cronus. “A couple months back y’all got some snow. An’, now, don’t get me wrong, ain’t nothin’ wrong with that, just call me curious. Why was everyone actin’ like it was the end of the world?”

"Because we hadn't had winter in---"

Cronus paused, counting on his gold tipped claws.

"Three hundred and eighty three years. I like it warm, and eternal summer seemed to go over well with my constituients"

[a-driftamongopenstars]

In her solitude, Eris smiled. And for once, it was not of a triumph or a discovery. It was a smile tinged with the taste of odd swill that the Drifter poured for anyone willing. A smile that came from companionship and understanding.

She yearned to be understood and seen. He did. The Drifter did. And she saw, through his smoke and mirrors, a man with a wound gashed open and never healed.

She would not wish the horrors of her life upon anyone. But finding in a myriad of immortal souls one that swam through the same oceans, one that opened to her like no other, one that drove her mad and filled her hands with warmth and comfort, and... and joy...

Eris smiled to no one, alone in her room, with a small jade coin held tight within her fingers.

[imonthemoonitsmadeofcheese]

Destinytober24: Day 22 - Flare

Totally cheating here. This one's a chunk for a larger WIP set during Beyond Light that I haven't posted anywhere yet.

Link to Ao3 if you prefer to read it there

Content warning: mature language & themes

"Hey, Moondust."

Two feet from him in the small, cramped cave they had managed to dig for themselves with a combination of Hive magic and Solar energy after the avalanche, Eris's three green eyes brightened.

"I am trying to sleep, Rat."

"It's really cold." Steam escaped from his mouth. His rebreather was, along with most of their bulky equipment, in a small heap at their feet.

"Is it? I'm so glad you pointed this out. I do not know how I would have noticed otherwise."

The Drifter grinned at her.

"Look, I know we only just got here and we don't know each other all that well yet, hardly at all, really, but it's gonna be at least six hours before the blizzard clears, and who knows how many hours after that till the Stranger can get equipment to dig us out of this bullshit. Would you please let me keep you warm?"

"No."

He sighed. "Fine. I guess neither of us are sleepin' tonight then."

"My temperature should have no bearing on your sleep patterns, and you should have no bearing on mine."

"I watched enough people freeze to death, Moondust. It's pretty shitty of you to make me watch you do it, but that's your choice. My choice is to not wake up to find yet another member of my crew frozen to the floor. I had enough of that already, thank you very much. So if you ain't gonna keep yourself from dyin' then I'm gonna talk to you all night long, because as soon as you stop responding, we got about twenty minutes before the point of no return."

Eris glared at him from her sleeping bag for a few moments with a snarl on her mouth. He met her gaze and kept his expression as neutral as possible. After a few moments the snarl left her mouth.

"You are genuinely worried."

"It ain't worry. It's experience. I know exactly what it takes to kill someone with cold and we are in it right fuckin now. No amount of blankets is gonna cut it without an additional heat source and you ain't got no ghost. You will die and you will not come back from this, and that is not an outcome I am willing to accept."

"Bold of you to assume that you are a sufficient heat source to keep us both alive."

The Drifter rolled his eyes, partially unzipped his sleeping bag, reached out his hand between their two faces and snapped his fingers. A jade coin appeared between his thumb and forefinger with a flare of solar energy that settled down to a small flickering flame, illuminating both their faces.

"Hmmm…"

"I don't wave it around much and I don't want it, or like it, but I use it when I need to. And this is definitely a need to situation. And yes I can keep us both warm. So would you please get your stubborn three-eyed ass over here and cuddle me?"

"Very well." Eris growled. "If you tell anyone…"

"Yeah, yeah. Drifter's everyone's dirty little secret. Don't want people thinkin' you're tainted by association. I know. I'm used to it."

Eris removed her chestplate and pauldrons, shuffling them over with the rest of their equipment before draping her sleeping bag on top of the Drifter's and awkwardly climbing in next to him.

It was a tight fit and it was easier to face each other with Eris partially on top of him with his arms around her and her ear against his chest. The Drifter concentrated. A flare of Solar energy made him slightly incandescent. Eris gave an involuntarily contented sigh and pressed herself up against the very welcome warmth.

"This is genuinely better. Thank you."

"Can't keep it continuous but as long as we space it out enough we should be fine. And no one ever need know ol' Drifter kept ya warm tonight. Trust."

"I'm sure you've had lovers who don't mind being seen with you."

"Not really no. Generally lovers implies love, not just a quick lay or, at best, a fuck buddy. I ain't the guy you bring over to meet your friends. I'm the itch ya scratch out back where no one can see, and then ya wash your hands real well after to get the mud off and try to hide the smell, so nobody finds out."

"You are certainly not making any effort to seem less repulsive now."

"I know what I am."

"And quite proud of it."

"Ain't nobody else ever gonna be."

"And yet you choose to be."

"What other choice do I have, exactly, Three-Eyes? No one expects emotional fulfillment from a fucktoy."

Eris shook her head. "That's… so…"

"Nasty?"

"Yes." "What, you think I should have more self respect? Think of myself as something better than a cock to ride, or a mouth to grind against, a hole to fuck?"

Eris made a face at the sheer crudeness of what was coming out of his mouth.

"…Or several of the above all at once, depending upon the situation." He winked.

"Yes," she said, her voice exasperated.

The Drifter laughed a short bitter laugh and looked down at her with sad cold eyes and a wry smile. "It's almost sweet you think that."

"I am many things," Eris snarled. "Sweet is not one of them."

He looked away with a grin. "Oh I know, still, sure are nice to cuddle, and you're not even making me pay you." He looked back at her and winked again.

"I'm sure you are more than capable of getting people to cuddle you without financial compensation."

"Yeah," The heat flared from within him again, suffusing them both with warmth. "But I wouldn't wanna."

"What? You are clearly desperate for affection."

"Look, I'll lie and cheat and steal, and do anything, including convince someone they wanna fuck me, to survive. Sure. But if I don't need it to live, I'd rather keep it transactional so everyone gets what they put into it and no one gets used."

Eris raised her three eyes to look at him. "What you just described as your… love life… is, by definition, being used."

"Well at least this way I get to choose when and how I get used. And, while I may be everyone's dirty little secret, I'm also a fantastic lay."

"Ugh."

"That's why so many of 'em come back and then continue to tell me not to talk about it." He grinned at her.

"Tsch." If Eris Morn could have rolled her Hive eyes, she absolutely would have.

They lay in silence for a few moments, occasionally shifting, their bodies becoming gradually more comfortable. "You are such a strange creature, Rat."

"Yeah?"

"So many layers and masks and contradictions."

"Bein' alive as long as I have'll do that to ya."

"It is a trauma response."

"Living?"

"Feeling as though one is unable to form meaningful emotional connections with others without a transaction or someone being used."

"Yeah well," Solar energy flared from within him again and they both relaxed against each other in response to the warmth. "That's why I'm still breathing."

Eris moved slightly next to him. She pulled off one glove with her teeth and reached out with a bare hand, her fingers slowly approaching his face.

He jerked his face away from her hand. Her fingers paused, inches away from his cheek.

"The fuck you doin'?"

"Perceiving you."

She slowly reached her fingertips out and began lightly brushing them against his bearded cheek, tracing his eyebrows, her middle finger gently tracing the scars at the corners of his eyes.

The Drifter's heart began racing in his chest. He blinked as her fingers traced along his forehead and down his nose, barely touching. He began to tremble as her fingertip approached his lips.

"Stop," his voice was a haggard whisper.

"Hmmm…." Eris withdrew her hand.

"Don't do that."

Eris tilted her head against him, not looking up at his face. "My apologies. That is not the reaction I was expecting."

"Don't touch me like that… please…" he sounded terrified.

"Why?"

He bit his lips and swallowed. "It… hurts."

"That… was not my intention. I am sorry. Should we resume sleeping separately?"

"No. Just… don't touch me like that, Eris. That ain't fair."

"Fair? I do not understand your meaning."

"That is not how someone like you should touch someone like me." His voice shook.

Eris was silent for a moment. "You genuinely believe yourself less than human. Transformed by your experiences into something else."

"Yeah well, you don't go through what I've gone through and not have… problems."

"It is a sentiment with which I am… familiar."

"Two peas in a pod, Moondust." Solar heat flared out from him again.

"And yet, you do not wish the other… pea… to perceive you as you are… you both want and are terrified of being known and understood."

"That has um… traditionally not ended well for me, no."

"How disappointing. You have been suggesting for some time now that your loneliness might find companionship with mine."

"We can find companionship without you touchin' me like that." He swallowed hard.

"I had thought you would… like it."

"The problem isn't not likin' it. It's likin' it too much. And that ain't somethin' I can do, Moondust."

"Why?"

"It's too close."

"You do not trust me and fear I will betray you."

"Nope. Wouldn't be cuddlin' you to keep you alive if I thought you might."

"A fear of attachment, then?"

"Sure, you can call it that."

"Like an abused animal, baring its teeth and shrinking away from an outstretched hand, so unused to kindness and compassion, you cannot accept it, even when you know that is what is being offered."

"Well that sounds pathetic."

"It is. Tragically so."

"Well, if that's the case, maybe I… maybe I just need time to get used to it."

"Unfortunate. That is one of the things we do not have."

"End of the world. Yeah. Sucks."

"What do you want?"

"Right now? To not have either of us freeze to death would be nice, which reminds me…" Solar energy once more flared out from him, easing the chill.

"What do you want from me?" Eris asked pointedly.

The Drifter sighed deeply. "I… I don't know. Friendship maybe?"

"And yet, you do not feel someone like me should be touching someone like you… like that."

Eris sighed again against his chest, not looking at him, speaking to the ice around them. "I do not know how I am to befriend you if you are so deeply afraid of being perceived. The connections I make with others are not trite. I do not form relationships that are.. transactional but perhaps the terminology will be of use to you."

Three eyes met two. "The cost of my friendship is your vulnerability. Your willingness to be touched, both physically and emotionally… like that."

The Drifter sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, "That's a high price, Moondust."

"Things of great value often are."

"You go lookin' in dark corners, I don't think you're gonna like what you find."

"I have lived in the dark. I do not fear it. It is part of who you were. It does not dictate who you are now."

He bit his lips again. "I wanna believe you on that. I really do."

"Then choose to do so."

The Drifter looked up at the ice above them, tinged with the glow of Soulfire, took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and softly said "Ok."

"Ok?"

He nodded. "Ok."

Eris reached her hand out and once more began exploring his face, her fingertips ghosting over his skin, brushing gently, carefully. Moving slow. As her fingertips brushed his cheekbones once more, tracing the line along his beard, her hand stilled. A single tear, its wetness stark and sharp in the cold, trickled across the side of her index finger, tumbling into the creases in her skin.

She held it reverently as the Drifter's Solar heat suffused into them both once more.

Link to the entire month's worth of prompts on Ao3, posted daily.

[erisxdrifter]

Story request

Drifter and Eris' reaction to the recordings of Chioma Esi regarding the veil and Maya Sundaresh. They're listening to the whole "veil containment" in the destiny 2 story line. I want to see their rection regarding the relationship of Chioma and Maya and how it was destroyed because they discovered the veil and Maya's obsession with it.

Thank you so much for the story request! It was a blast to write, and I hope you love it! :))

"Chioma Esi, research log: the veil. She did it! Maya connected people to the veil. Our own scientist's. And they survived."

  The recording of Chioma Esi's research log echoed throughout the room, bouncing off of the massive fish tanks teeming with life, and through the rows of plants which grew on the opposite wall, filling the silence of the large room within the H.E.L.M.

  The Drifter leaned against a sturdy railing, the circular frame of the portal which led to Ahsa's quarters standing firm behind him as he absent-mindedly flipped a jade coin through the air, sending a high pitching ding! through the room every few seconds. Eris Morn stood opposite to the holoprojector between them, which the Drifter adjusted to have play the veil containment logs, her expression forlorn as she stared down at the small glowing screen.

  "I should be happy, but… happy that all this horror wasn’t for nothing? But I’m not. I’m disgusted. In myself. In Maya. In all of us. This thing, the Veil. It’s… it’s some kind of web of consciousness. Just like the Vex network, but organic instead of artificial. It makes sense why the Vex want it. Paracausal simulations? There’d be no stopping them. I should be happy. To-to be a part of history, to solve a cosmic riddle. Happy for Maya; happy for all of us. But I’m not. I don’t feel anything. Maya is gone. The woman I knew… may as well have died when we landed on Neptune. But her ghost still haunts me… this place. I don’t know what to do. There’s a generation of children born here now. This is their home. [sighs] I don’t know what to do."

  The recording clicked off. They still had four more messages to listen to, but instead of tapping the button that would continue them, Eris walked over to the circular glass tank that sat in the center of the room, stretching from the floor to the ceiling. She watched the strange fish as they leisurely swam about, unaware of the dangers that constantly surrounded all life.

  The Drifter came up beside her a moment later.

  "Somethin' on your mind?"

  "As we have both ascertained, Maya Sundaresh was obsessive. Obsessive over the wish to gain knowledge." She watched a large frog hop through the water. "I have already heard these messages before, and I know how this ends. She could have been happy had she chosen to walk away from the veil. But she didn't... She is found dead sometime later, having allowed her obsession to drive her every thought and action, and in return it took her very life."

  The Drifter watched her, remaining silent and listening.

  "Some believe me to be obsessed with the Hive, Zavala has even called me such in the past." She turned toward the Drifter. "I wish for your thoughts on my tactics. Do I overpreocupy my time and energy on these vile creatures? Do you believe I stave myself my chances of happiness?" Her eyes locked on his, pleading for an answer. For his honesty. "You know how dire the outcome was for Dr. Sundaresh. She lost her life, refusing to be happy with what she had, with who she had... you know how important honesty is in this situation, and I urge you to be blatantly, even painfully honest if that is what is required." Eris watched him expectantly as he turned his face towards the glass, observing a school of little fish swim by, his eyes glazed over in deep thought.

  Minutes went by like that, the only sound in the room being their soft breathing, the sounds of the rippling water, and the gentle hum of the portal behind them.

  "Callin' you obsessed would be like callin' Zavala or Ikora obsessed with the Vanguard." He began, tapping his fingers along the flat surface in front of them. "All 'o you are real serious 'bout your work, you're work just happens to concern a crazy race of aliens that've killed hell of a lot of people. Now, maybe you're impassioned about the Hive, about your work... but obsessed? Nah." He turned to her. "The only thing that would be gettin' in the way of your chances of happiness is just you bein' too busy savin' the world. Heh."

  "I would make time for you. I always have."

  The Drifter smiled, arching an eyebrow. "I make you happy?"

  "Do not pretend you did not already know that." Eris turned back to the fish.

  "Heh..." The Drifter slid his hand along her arm. "But back to what we were talkin' about before. Chioma said Maya may as well of been dead when they got to Neptune... she lost herself. You ain't never done that, Moondust. You've never lost yourself, not even when you became a Hive god." He paused a moment before continuing. "Sundaresh had a chance to be happy... but in the end, she chose her work. You and her ain't the same... you're a hard worker, but you still choose to be happy, to focus on the people you got around you." He chuckled. "And in the end, that makes all the difference."

  Eris watched the Drifter's expression in the reflection of the glass, noting the way he smiled warmly at her.

  A few thoughtful minutes of silence passed before Eris finally spoke.

  "Thank you." She smiled ever so slightly. "Your words have offered me comfort."

  "Glad to hear it. You've always done the same for me." He reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it.

  "Do you wish to continue our research?" Eris asked, watching a bioluminescent multi-colored fish swim past, it's long fins flapping behind it.

  "Yeah, in a minute. I'd like to research somethin' else real quick," the Drifter replied.

  Eris turned toward him. "Indeed? What?"

  He smiled, reaching out with his free hand to touch her cheek, the dark tears flowing across his fingers. And in half a second, his face was to hers, his lips gingerly kissing her own.

  "Heh! Just wanted to research what it was like to kiss a once Hive gods face." He replied when they pulled away, a triumphant smile across his lips.

  He luaghed as Eris shook her head, failing to fight off her smile.

  "You are insufferable. Come, we have more messages to listen to."

  They returned to holoprojector and continued their work, hearts lighter with the comfort of one another's words.

[lemmegettamcpictwo]

DESPERATELY hoping that "coin boys" are still a thing by the time I hit the classes so I can flip my jade gambit coins like Drifter in that opening gambit scene