#even afterwards nature kept trying make big animals

[adreamthatsworthkeeping]

Right, so we know that the Jurassic, Cretaceous, etc periods were millions of years apart. If the meteor hadn't ruined their good party fun times, do we think this was going to be a dinosaur planet only? If they hadn't been wiped out to make way for Mammal Time, would it just be dinosaurs of various degrees dominating forever?

[acidblum]

— Яitual ¹

Rockstar!Ellie Williams x Vampire!Reader (w/c: 2.2k)

DO NOT BUY TLOU

AO3 MASTERLIST/SERIES MAS.

⚠︎ WARNINGS: +18 MINORS/MEN DNI, reader isn't mentioned as much in this part, talks of animal consumption, sisterly banter, nothing that bad. no mentions of readers skin colour or hair texture.

ⓘ A/N: AAAAHHHHH y’all i’m super excited to start this, this chapter is a bit short and there isn’t much dialogue but i promise the next one will have more of that, i can’t wait for y’all to meet our feisty reader. i’d love to know your thoughts and all that so don’t hold back <3

a cruel big ball of nothingness. is what this world is, at least to Ellie, a rebel in hindsight should’ve never rebelled. with a heart that yearned for the unknown, a love for something bigger that was never sedated.

one could look at her and think nothing of her but a wannabe rockstar, merely looking for fame, with a level of charm that was unmatched. She got away with everything she did, coming back to the hotel after gigs with girls hanging off of her arms like trophies, waking up the next day with no memory of it at all and kicking said girls whose names she didn’t bother even learning out with no remorse. getting drunk and high like no other motherfucker in New York.

Ellie grew up in Boston with the dream of becoming just like her father, he taught her how to hit the chords right and to strum a classical guitar with soul. From then and to his disdain she switched to playing an electric guitar, making him go through many sleepless nights and a lot of yelling and shouting filling up the two story—usually very calm and tranquil house.

she also ached to be like her sister, Sarah. perfect in every way, soft with no hard edges, a pure angel who does no ill whatsoever. who did try to smoke a cig with Ellie and her friends that one time “ellie please let me try..just this one time i swearrr” big brown eyes pleading her sister even though she knows who’ll be kicked out for the night if their dad finds out. “hmph..You’re about to get me in big trouble sis” she coughed from the first inhale she dared to take—meanwhile it was second nature to Ellie from the first try, and there was no way of stopping her afterwards.

painting her room black opposite to Sarah's pink colorful and very sunny one, coming home reeking of pot, body littered with hickeys, and bloodshot eyes—getting a head shake of disappointment from her big guy. driving her truck drunk out of her mind, getting arrested and spending the night in jail as a punishment from her dad. She was mature enough to know what was right and what was crossing the line— yet she loved acting as if she didn't.

When Jesse started playing the drums and Dina was already on bass, with ellie as their front man they decided to form a nu metal band together, dina came up with the name. The Lost Of Us. and it was just something silly in their minds to pass the time by. Eventually prompting them to move in together, they started doing small gigs here and there, whilst uploading their videos on YouTube. Until a record label from New York reached out to them and they sure would’ve been dumb to refuse the generous offer.

because now they are one of the most popular bands in the entire planet, doing numbers and topping charts left and right. Everyone who claimed they were satanic and doubted them heard them on the radio and it was least to say.. inescapable

𓃭

and then there's your mother who had you and three of your immortal siblings, you were the youngest, she loved you like no other which prompted utter jealousy from your siblings, in the end favoritism existed even among the undead.

your childhood was filled of conversations that could be said to be silly and downright gory—which at least kept the household a tad bit alive

“mother can i eat Riley’s bunny for dinner?”

she tuts “no that’s the eleventh rabbit now” when your sister comes in view from the other side of the spacious dining room. hitting the table after taking a seat “she is such a spoiled cunt!”

“language Riley..you will respect each other” prompting the both of you to murmur “yes mother” flipping your older sister the bird with a mischievous glint. making the rest of your siblings laugh quietly at the both of your antics.

you're the one that ought to be hidden, for your allure was out of this world. not even the underworld could deny how divine and breathtaking u are, a menace? yes you are. leaving scattered bodies all over the fort and sucking the forbidden fruit dry. but everything can be looked over when you look like that.

You were always a lover of music, back then and now. you’ve encountered many good musicians, heard and befriended the best of them. roamed the world and lived many lives under many different names and identities—for safety purposes.

rumor says that your kind cannot mingle in the sun for a millisecond which isn’t all that wrong, you’ve gone the extra mile of asking a very dear friend of yours who is a psychic to orchestrate a special ring to keep your vessel from turning into ashes.

𓃭

"hey Ells uhmm Dina says we should head to the studio to check out this guy's samples?" Jesse peeps over the door into Ellie's room who’s sitting on the bean bag in their hotel suite "yeah sure just lemme get my phone" standing up, stretching her arms, shaking off the drowsiness, she picks her phone from the table and walks behind Jesse.

"gosh i told you to go get her what took you so long" Dina stands with her hands on her waist wearing a turtleneck sweater with black jeans and black boots "what, i had to go pee first" he whispers making Dina groan before taking the suite card out and locking the door.

With Jesse driving and Dina beside him Ellie sat in the backseat. pulling out her headphones from her jeans back pocket and putting them on she puts her Spotify on shuffle to Type O Negative, before her nose picks up on the most enchanting smell she's ever smelt and she can't even pinpoint where exactly this smell is coming from " y'all smelling this?" Dina looks at her " hm smelling what? ew Jesse did u fart are u serious right now" she shakes her head while Jesse is laughing his ass off "no why the fuck do i smell this right now"

"i think you're just sleepy Ells, just nap till we get there"

and she does just that. waking up to a blood curdling scene where she's standing in front of a mirror, naked as the day she was born in some type of a chamber with an unknown woman standing behind her in a red robe. Fangs bared with red eyes that are looking into her soul she tries to look around but sees nothing other than dead bodies lying around, on the bed, inside the bathtub and all over the floor with blood and the smell of it everywhere.

she looks back at the woman with nostrils flaring, tears welling up in horror that she can't even move her pinky finger, a sharp fingernail running from her waist to her pebbled nipple and flick, she tries to breathe in at the feeling that is almost too real, but feels like there is not enough air in her lungs to do so.

voices start whispering around her figure, the woman behind her inching closer to sink her fangs into Ellie's neck.

she jumps up feeling dread and utter fear, breathing in and out "Jesus fuck Ells you scared me” Dina looks at Ellie in confusion wanting ask more “what wa-“

Before Jesse cuts her “we’re here” she feels the cold sweat with her hand "yeah I'm awake shut up” spitting the words out harsher than intended to no one in particular. trying to come back to her senses.

They all get out of the car, her nose still plagued with the rich smell of the perfume, and the eyes of that certain woman who couldn’t be real. She tries to remind herself that vampires don’t actually exist.

They head inside with their manager, before meeting with this 'guy' their manager talks about "I swear you're gonna like this one" . He said that about the last producer and he sucked ass. Dina chuckles "you already said that last time mickey, what's his name?" mickey was one hell of a manager, he wasn’t a very well known one in the industry but he ran a tight circle that opened many doors for the band. clearing his throat uncomfortably " Orpheus, i mean he looks a bit sick as fuck but you'll like his music". Dina looks at Jesse mouthing at him "a weirdo?"

�� just like you dee, guess we found your twin”

Mickey opens the door motioning for them to head in, the air shifting around to this weird cold feeling making them all shiver before the producer greets Ellie with a stretched hand “Orpheus, nice to finally meet the band”. for a second there she swore his eyes turned red, full on questioning her sanity “yea…hey man” shaking his freezing hand, showing him a half uninterested smile before heading to the couch on the corner of the dark dimly lit brown room. Taking out her phone scrolling aimlessly.

He plays the sample and all of a sudden she’s very interested in what this guy has to offer, going to stand beside him “can we keep the backup vocals?”

“yeah of course but i’ll have to get permission from the hired vocalist”

“u need permission for that??”

“yeah trust me i better then not to get this one’s, we 100% need to do so”

he heads outside the door seemingly calling someone, she shrugs before going to the drinks tray on the right corner of the room. filled with expensive drinks and liquor that dates back to the 1950s, definitely should be displayed in a museum.

“hey Jesse get your ass over here n check this out”

“what”

“look at this bottle man”

pushing the bottle close to his face, she got so close to breaking it on his nose before he read it and turned to Dina.

“this is wild i swear dee you have to see this”

she replies in an agitated tone “stop being such kids n sit the fuck down guys” murmuring incoherent words under her breath before going to check on the producer opening the door as tiny as she could eavesdropping at him

“yes ma’am o-of course…no your younger sister will hear none of this"

he instantly spots her, turning her way with his eyes looking straight into her soul with a smile that's not quite reaching his eyes. sending shivers down her body. she closes the door so slowly with pressed lips “whoops”.

Staying for a couple of hours in the studio was no feat for the trio, but staying in a dark weirdly decorated one that smells like the most expensive musk which also had them feeling jittery was something else entirely, the producer worked amazingly with them but the vibe was entirely off, especially for Ellie whom after that weird dream couldn't get her lyrics right most of the recording session.

After wrapping it up everyone bids their goodbyes before heading to the hotel to prepare for their awaited show where their makeup and costume staff is waiting for them which also gives them no time to rest.

𓃭

“Can i get a cup of hot chocolate please Suzanne”

Ellie says to their assistant from her place on the makeup chair sighing while a makeup artist is doing a subtle dark shimmery look on her, she’s already wearing her signature fit of black on black with hints of chrome and a few patches here and there on her black jacket.

“Gosh you do actually never beat the loser allegations” Dina comes in before taking her seat beside Ellie in front of the very lit mirror.

“You claim that but I saw you with your tongue down Jesse's throat in an alley last week, much for being the bisexual of the band huh?” she looks back at her with a gaping mouth “yeah i saw that” Ellie taunts and Dina cannot but flip Ellie the bird, continuing on putting her spike earrings on.

“Do you think we should tease one of the new songs?”

“Eh no?..unless you’d like to give Mickey a heart attack??”

“I mean it’ll be funny seeing his face backstage while he's losing it” Jesse sits beside Dina putting one leg on top of the other on top of the dressing table looking at her longingly while she’s putting on some mascara. Stretching his hand to put it on her waist without Ellie seeing. “Bro I can literally see you from the mirror wha-...”

She’d rather die than third wheel these two, especially with them being in a whole band and finally gaining recognition ain’t no way this is going to be another fleetwood mac experience for her. She might’ve had a bit of a crush on Dina and maybe smoked pot with her and ended up making out on their beat up sofa. Which could also mean it's a bit too late for her to not let them live it out.

Before any of the two respond with anything the screams of their fans catches Ellie’s attention before Jessica is back with the hot chocolate and their headworn microphones

“You’re out in 30 c’mon guys i need you to kill this” Mickey comes in before doing the rock on as hard as he could, seeing the disapproval of everyone including the assistants, clearing his throat he takes a seat on the chair drinking his bottle of water as if nothing happened.

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© 2024 acidblum, All Rights Reserved.

[greeenchrysanthemums]

Thus Always to Tyrants

Chapter 7: Distrust and Fear + Picture Books

Gem is the commander of the Wintertide royal army, Grian is the leader of a resistance hell bent on taking the crown down no matter the cost. It was only natural that they would become enemies.

Beginning -> previous -> next (tba)

Read on ao3 ❀ here ❀

CW: violence, mentioned starvation, mentioned death, minor animal death, tension

Words: 10,764

Pov: Pearl + Gem

❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀

“Stay safe out there.” Bigb said as he pulled the cloak - black instead of her usual red  - tighter around her shoulders in the same way Pearl imagined a mother would for a child they were sending out to play or run errands.

“This isn’t my first time doing this.” Pearl said with a fond roll of her eyes. 

“Of course it isn’t. You’re a seasoned veteran in this type of work. That doesn’t stop me from caring for your wellbeing.” He said before pulling the hood up and over her eyes, messing up her hair and momentarily blinding her in the process.

“Hey!” She snorted. 

She fixed her hood and smoothed her hair back underneath it to keep the locks out of her eyes. She straightened the thigh strap that held her daggers and then tightened it, letting the cloak fall back into place afterwards. While the weapons were mostly hidden, they were obvious to anyone that looked hard enough. Innocent and unassuming at first glance, but deadly upon a further look; as was her brand.

She detested having to use the daggers, even with how easy they were to conceal and keep up an innocent image with. Her usual choice of weapon would be a scythe, in fact it was the only weapon she felt she was proficient in. However, it was far too difficult to carry around when she was trying to be sneaky, so... daggers it was.

“I better head out before it gets too much later.” Pearl said with a sigh. 

“You don’t have the advantage of cloud cover tonight either, so you better go before the moon gets too high in the sky. It’s a full moon tonight, so it’ll be fairly bright out.” Bigb said before settling down into the cushiony seat that sat near a candle by the window.

“Just the way I like it.” Pearl said with a devilish smile. She waved Bigb goodbye before opening the window and settling her boots on the sill. She exhaled before dropping down into the night, her cloak billowing out around her as she fell.

Her smile dropped from her face as she touched down and began walking towards the outskirts of town, where the large forest that surrounded the kingdom was. The moon and the castle framed her from behind as the wind nipped at her fingers and the cold of the cobble she strode upon seeped in through her tattered boots to numb her toes.

As far as Bigb knew - as far as anyone knew - she was heading to the castle to do a little bit of reconnaissance before the big day of the party. She, however, had other plans for the night, more important plans that pertained to their dear leader in a different way. She wanted to feel bad for lying to Bigb about her whereabouts, but she couldn’t bring herself to. She was long past feeling guilt for sneaking around behind the backs of people close to her. It was part of who she was at this point, a habit she picked up at a young age and never was able to shake. It had kept her alive thus far, though, so was there really a need to feel any sort of guilt? It was just survival.

There was hardly a soul in sight with how late it was but still she kept to the shadows as she went, not making a sound even as Tilly silently moved to join her from wherever it was that the wolf-hound had been lurking until that point. 

Soon the humming buzz of the city limits gave way to the thrum of life as her feet transitioned from the hard cobble of civilization to soft soil and crunching mulch of the forest. Crickets singing, birds chirping, movement rustling in the underbrush, and the noise of stray animals all reached her ears as the smell of crisp, unfiltered winter filled her nostrils.

“Alright, girl, lead the way.” Pearl whispered to Tilly, giving the old dog a pat on the head as her tail wagged and her tongue lolled out past her large teeth. Tilly didn’t have to be told twice as she raised her snoot into the air, taking a few big sniffs before letting out a low yip, taking off into the forest on quick paws.

Pearl followed behind her old companion at a similar speed, keeping her body close to the ground as she went. The wind whistled through the bare trees and snow sodden leaves flattened under the pounding pressure of their feet in a drum-like rhythm. They traveled so far into the heart of the woods that Pearl would have feared they were going the wrong way if the guide had been anyone other than Tilly. The old dog’s powerful nose had never once been wrong Pearl's entire life, and she couldn’t foresee that changing any time soon, even with old age setting in. 

The forest grew more and more unkempt the deeper they went. Gnarled trees grew thicker in width, their large roots swelling from the dirt like waves upon the ground. Long, twisting branches hung low enough to leap over. It was a terrain that would be difficult to undertake with any less experience than Pearl herself possessed. As it was, she maneuvered through the forest with practiced ease.

The cold of the winter air whipping through her hair as she ran and the light of the full moon beaming down onto her were among the most freeing feelings she’d ever experienced in her life. It always felt like she and Tilly were the only beings in the world

Unfortunately, it was hard to enjoy the feeling on tonight of all nights, because they were not simply out for an evening run. Instead, they were here in the heart of this forest to spy on their leader to find out what he was keeping from them after weeks- no, months - of obvious dishonesty.

Up until this point, she had put too much faith into Grian, hoping that he was just under a lot of stress and that was the reason for his strange behavior. She wanted nothing more than to play the part of dutiful informant for him to help further his cause, their cause.  However, as time went on, the job began to feel more and more slimy and wrong. Even when putting her doubts revolving around screwing over Gem aside, none of it felt right anymore. She could no longer overlook how dirty the job made her feel, how cruel Grian felt in his intentions and actions.

She shook the thought of Gem out of her mind. The all-consuming guilt was better saved for another night

So, while her heart raced with the adrenaline of the run, of the hunt, it also ached. A grief-like feeling boiled in her blood and gripped her lungs like a deadly pair of talons that sought to tear her apart from the inside. She couldn’t believe it had come to this, sneaking around and stalking after someone who was once her best friend.

But it had come to it. 

Grian wasn’t the same person that he was when she had met him in her youth. There was barely any proof that the mischievous but kindhearted avian had ever existed. In his place was a cagey, dismissive, untrusting, and suspicious person. Where in her heart was once trust and adoration, there was now only wariness and a bitter sense of resentment that seemed to grow day by day.

She had already made up her mind to find out the truth for herself by any means necessary long ago, it had only been a matter of when and where it would happen. It had felt like a prime piece of meat had been handed to her on a golden platter when Mumbo had let slip while she was visiting him the previous weekend that he believed Grian would be meeting with his man on the inside on the night of the full moon, just a day before their next group meeting.

He knew he made a mistake mentioning it to her immediately after the words left his mouth and refused to give up any other information, so she hadn’t been able to confirm anything right up until Tilly smelt Grian’s presence enter and then exit the city limits just as the sun began to set.

Pearl knew she had arrived almost instantly, and she skidded to a horrified halt. 

The aura of the forest changed from one foot fall to the next.  The comforting buzz of life from the forest was extinguished abruptly like a candle blown out in the wind, replaced by a static silence that buzzed in her ears so loud that she had the overwhelming urge to cover her ears, and she would have if not for the fact that she felt frozen in place, unable to move even a single inch.

The air became thick and oppressive, pressing in on her from all angles like it was a physical presence. She could practically feel it crawling along her skin like a dozen centipedes. Her stomach dropped and a cold sweat broke out along her whole body. It became impossible to breathe.

This was magic stronger than anything she thought was possible. She could basically taste it on her tongue, thick like molasses but not nearly as sweet. 

After the introduction of the grimoire into the mix, Pearl knew that Grian was dabbling in magic, but it was supposed to be a dying art. The strongest caster Pearl knew was Tango, and he could barely do more than summon enough fire to start a small bonfire. This amount of magic? It was unthinkable. It was dangerous. It was terrifying.

Tilly let out a low whine at her feet and it snapped Pearl out of her stupor. She gulped, her throat tight. She trembled lightly as she lowered herself down to run her hands through Tilly’s thick winter coat to ground herself. She took a few shaky breaths as she hunkered down into the underbrush with the old dog, praying that her moment of fear hadn’t caused her to be detected by whatever this was.

She tried to steal her nerves, her stomach twisting in knots. She knew that in order for her to get what she came for, she would have to venture further into this disgusting mass of magic. 

Her mouth was dry as she began to move, and she swallowed in an attempt to bring some moisture back. She stayed crouched at Tilly’s height, holding onto the wolf-dog to keep her balance as she carefully guided the two of them further into the forest, now stepping carefully over the overgrown roots and taking more care to not step on twigs or leaves. They were in dangerous territory now; they could not afford to make any more noise than they already had.

She prayed to whatever force might be out there that whatever kind of magic this was, it could not detect her presence simply by virtue of her being there.

Unease settled on her like a slimy film, and she could not deny that she had thoughts of turning back now while she still had the chance. She had already come this far, though, she could not give up now simply because she was letting herself succumb to fear.

Her heart almost stopped in her chest as the low murmur of voices finally reached her ears. The volume slowly increased as she inched closer towards what she could only assume was the epicenter of this cluster of magic if the way it clung to her skin like tar was anything to go by. She halted her movement when the voices became loud enough for her to make out the words being said.

“- everything you asked for! This is small by comparison!” A voice shouted into the night.

“I would hardly call this a small request!” Pearl’s heart jumped at the familiar sound of Grian’s voice. He sounded frustrated 

It appeared that she had arrived right in the middle of an argument of sorts. She crawled behind a tree with a trunk big enough to hide her body, braced her hands on the rough bark, and leaned to the side to try and catch a peek.

There, in a small clearing no bigger than a few yards in either direction, stood three cloaked figures under the light of the full moon. All of their hoods were up, and their faces obscured. She could clearly make out Grian among them, his short stature and hunched posture as he crouched upon a fallen tree were dead giveaways of his identity. She couldn’t make out enough of the other two figures to decide their identities, but one of them held a book open in their hand. 

She quickly ducked back to be hidden fully by the trunk. She decided that with their positioning and their obscured face the likelihood of Pearl being caught was higher than her chances of catching a glimpse of Grian’s double man. Or double men? There were two figures, after all.

She closed her eyes and focussed back in on the conversation happening.

“I know for a fact that he has the ability to do it. Put that damn book to use and accept my conditions or this all ends here and now! ” The other voice bit out.

Pearl furrowed her brows. The voice sounded so very familiar and yet she could not place where she had heard it before. Tension grew in the already uneasy air as neither of them made a single noise, before Grian finally huffed, a displeased groan following the sound.

“You are making things a lot harder than they have to be.” He said. Pearl could perfectly envision him rubbing the spot between his eyes.

“I’m not denying that.” The other agreed. “But I am not backing down until you agree.”

“I cannot make any promises that it’ll work,” Scar’s voice suddenly interjected, causing Pearl’s whole body to tense even further. Tilly’s fur bristled under her palm. The man had always unsettled the both of them. In conjunction with the fact that the man had no scent, there was just something about him that was off, something that felt almost inhuman. 

Grian had also claimed that he went to these meetings alone. No one else in the resistance was supposed to know the identity of the double agent. Grian had very adamantly refused to tell any of them.

“But I will do what I can, you have my word on that.” Scar continued.

“A chance, that’s all that I ask for.” The mysterious voice said, almost pleading.

“And a chance you will get!” Scar bolstered loudly, his voice bouncing around in the stagnant air. A chance at what?

“Now that we’ve agreed to your ridiculous terms, will you answer my question?” Grian snarked.

“I don’t appreciate that jab, but yes, preparations are all ready. As long as there are no further screw ups on your end, everything should go well.” 

“Jab for jab, I see.” Grian said, now sounding slightly amused.

“I am only stating the truth. Your people left all sorts of obvious clues all over the castle, even after I made it almost laughably easy for you to be able to get the grimoire from the library.” 

“If you’re done talking about my team's incompetence, can you hand over what I came for?” Grian asked. 

Pearl heard the rustling of paper as the inside man presumably handed over some kind of delicate information. She bared her teeth, lip curling back at the subtle insult that was made at her expense. Getting into the castle relatively undetected was not nearly as easy as they were making it out to be. She was far from incompetent.

“And Gem herself made these?” Grian said, the parchment still ruffling, as if he was flipping through it. Pearl’s ears involuntarily perked up at the mention of the royal commander.

“That she did, though I have made some minor adjustments for your benefit.”  The other replied, and then they continued. “I actually have one more question before we end this meeting.”

Grian paused, “What is it? Do you have yet another impossible request to ask of me?”

“Something like that,” They replied simply.

“Oh? Well, don’t leave me in suspense.”

“How long are you going to keep everyone in the dark? When are you going to start telling the truth?” They asked. Grian, at first, didn’t respond. Pearl heard him shuffle, his talons scrapping roughly against bark.

“...You are well aware of the reason the rest of the resistance can’t know your identity-”

“You know that's not what I mean,” They interrupted, “When are you going to tell the truth about everything.”

Pearl perked up, her eyes darting to the side even though it did nothing to help her see. This was what she had been waiting for. She already had confirmation that Grian was keeping things from them in the form of Scar’s deeper inclusion, but now she had further confirmation that he was keeping something more from them. Something big.

“They don’t need to know.” Grian replied without missing a beat, his tone harsh.

“They deserve to know. This is far too big of a deal to keep it a secret so close to doomsday, especially with their lives in the palm of your hands!” They tried to reason, their voice raising.

“I said they don’t need to know!” Grian shouted over the other, causing Pearl to jump, her shoulders going to her ears. Tilly emitted a low growl that Pearl quickly hushed. She had never heard Grian sound so angry, so…desperate before in her life.

“You know as well as I do that’s not true.” The other person responded in a low tone. “If thing’s go south, if even one little mistake occurs everything we’ve worked for, everything that’s led up to this, will all be for nothing.”

“It won’t come to that.” Grian all but whispered.

Pearl was so invested in the conversation that she barely noticed Tilly’s ears perking up, the old dog now at high attention. She thought nothing of it as Tilly pulled away from her to disappear into the underbrush, she simply moved her hand to clutch at the front of her cloak in place of Tilly’s fur.

“You don’t know that!” They shouted in response. “If you don’t tell them before D-day, I’ll-”

“You’ll what?” Grian interrupted harshly, “You’ll tell them for me? You know the second your involvement is revealed that worst case scenario you mentioned will be a reality for sure. You have less cards in this game than you believe you do. They don’t need to know.” 

Grian ground out that last part of his sentence, putting heavy emphasis on every single word to drive his stance home. A sick feeling swirled in Pearl’s stomach 

“You’re a bastard.” The other person spat, not arguing against Grian’s point.

“I think it’s best we cut this meeting here.” Grian responded dully, leaving no room for argument. “All we’ve done tonight is go in circles and fight with each other. We’re getting nowhere with any of this.”

“There you go, running away again.”

“Enough. Scar, you can drop the barrier now. We’re leaving.” Grian said. 

“Alrighty!” Scar’s chipper voice replied.

“They’re going to find out one way or another, Grian. You’d do well to lighten the blow for yourself while you still can.” The mysterious person said, only to be met with no response.

The book shut with a loud snap. Pearl had to stop herself from gasping as the feeling of magic disappeared suddenly and abruptly, pulled from the very air with violent force. The sounds of the night rushed back in an instant, now overly loud in her ears after being deprived of them for an extended period. She clamped her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut for a brief moment before snapping them open again, unwilling to let herself be caught off guard. Black dots danced in her vision.

In the time she had adjusted to the absence of magic, a more natural silence had fallen over the forest thicket, though the unease still sat heavy in her stomach. Cautiously, oh so cautiously, she leaned her back against the tree further and peeked around the bend, trying to gauge whether or not she was alone.

Her eyes widened and she immediately drew back with a choked off gasp.

Grian and Scar were nowhere to be seen, evidently having left while she was adjusting to the change in noise. His informant, however, was still stood in the same spot as previous. His hood was lowered, his face now on full display, his eyes reflecting the light as he gazed up at the moon with a forlorn expression. 

Slowly she leaned back around to confirm what she just saw. Sure enough, it was him; she was positive of it. There was no mistaking it, anyone in the kingdom would be able to recognize that face. She had no doubts of his identity, even as he turned his back to her to walk in the opposite direction. 

She couldn’t believe her eyes, even as she blinked and rubbed at them to ensure she wasn’t dreaming. Grian’s informant, the man who had betrayed the crown, it was-

“I know, I was surprised as well.” A voice suddenly whispered into her ear.

Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth - to gasp, to scream, she wasn’t sure - but a rough palm was pressed over the lower half of her face before she could make any noise and an arm around her waist pulled her away from the tree she had been taking shelter behind.

She struggled, throwing her elbow into the ribs of her attacker and kicking at their knees in an attempt to break free as she was dragged away from the clearing and back into the darkness of the overgrown forest. Who had caught her? Where was Tilly? What was happening?

Somehow, she managed to get a firm grip on the wrist connected to the hand over her mouth and used her core strength to flip the person over her shoulder and onto their back. She twisted their wrist and planted her foot on their chest, immobilizing them as they let out a pained wheeze.

“Wait, wait, wait! I’m not an enemy!” The attacker said frantically.

Pearl ignored them and pulled one of her knives out of the sheath on her leg with her free hand. She was about to crouch down for easy access to their throat when Tilly erupted from the underbrush and began licking the attacker’s face, her tail wagging as she did so.

“Tilly, what-?” She asked in disbelief as the person sputtered and pulled away from the dog slobber despite the way it pulled on Pearl’s hold on their arm. She released her death grip on the wrist and stumbled back. The stranger pushed Tilly away by the snout and sat up, causing their hood to fall.

It was the Crestian man, Joel, Pearl believed his name was.

She crouched next to him and grabbed ahold of his collar before dragging them face to face. The man let out an “eep!” and raised his hands to show that he meant no harm, his eyes blown wide. Tilly let out a displeased huff against Pearl’s shoulder, but she ignored her in favour of glaring at the Crestian in her grasp.

“What in the hells are you doing here?” She hissed through her teeth, trying to keep her volume down. Not that it mattered, their initial scuffle had likely already been seen and heard anyway, but it was the principal of the matter.

“The same as you, I imagine.” Joel stated as he leaned away from her in a way that was undoubtedly straining his neck. “Neither of us trusts Grian.”

Her eyes widened. She dropped him roughly before standing and walking a few feet away, running a hand through her wild hair and knocking her hood off. She crossed her arms and gave him a look over her shoulder

“Is that really something you should be announcing so brazenly while he might still be near?” She questioned with an eyebrow raised.

“They’re gone by now. Not even the other guy saw us,” Joel said with a wave of his hand. He stood and dusted himself off, rubbing at his tender shoulder before pointing at Tilly with his thumb. “Besides, I think your mutt would know if the blokes were close anyway. I was on the other side of the clearing, and she sniffed me right out. I only barely managed to stop myself from screaming bloody murder when she latched onto the cuff of my trousers and led me to you.”

“Don’t call her that.” Pearl snapped, reaching down to pet Tilly’s ear. Tilly would smell Grian if he was close and alert Pearl immediately, though, so he was right on that part. They probably were safe to be talking. “You make a lot of assumptions, you know.”

“I like to think of them as observations, not assumptions.” Joel said, pretentiously shrugging his shoulders. “I mean, am I wrong?”

“Whether or not I trust Grian is none of your business.” Pearl said, her lip curling in annoyance. She turned away from him. “Just forget you saw me here and I’ll do the same for you.”

“Why don’t we join forces?” Joel asked, hurrying to keep up with her as she began moving through the forest. 

“And why would we do that?” Pearl asked, not even looking at him.

“It’s pretty obvious isn’t it? He’s lying to us, we don’t trust him, and we have a common goal.” Joel stated.

“There you go again, not only assuming I don’t trust him, but that the two of us have some kind of goal  in common.” She said, shaking her head. Tilly walked between them, turning her head back and forth to look at both of them each time they spoke.

“Sneaking through the underbrush isn’t exactly trusting behavior, in my opinion.” Joel said. From her peripheral vision, she could see him raise an eyebrow.

“It’s…not that I don’t trust him.” She said hesitantly. She shook her head, wondering why she was even indulging him this far.

“Then what is it?” He asked, cursing under his breath as he tripped over a root and almost fell flat on his face before catching himself roughly on the bark of a tree.

“Why do you care?” She snapped.

“I”m trying to gauge whether or not I should be working with this man.You saw who he was working with! You felt that insane magic, which he somehow felt no need to mention he had at his disposal! How do any of us know this isn’t just some elaborate scheme to use us and then dispose of us once we’ve served our use? ” Joel reasoned, gesturing grandly with his hands.

“It seems like you have already decided that he isn’t worthy of your trust.” Pearl pointed out. She pulled a branch out of her way, ducking under it and then letting it go. It snapped back and hit Joel right in the face. He sputtered and flailed before righting himself once more.

“Well, yes, I have, to be completely honest. He has been shady and secretive about his real intentions from the very start; I have been against this whole alliance ever since it was first proposed. The only reason I’m here is because my que- the queen insisted his cause was worth supporting.” Joel said.

“Then what does what I have to say matter?” She asked. “Whatever you think I’ll do for you, you’re wrong. I have no interest in working against him.”

“You say that, but I know you want the truth just as much as I do. You heard them, whatever it is that he’s keeping from us - all of us, you included - is something that could put our lives at risk. Don’t you want to know what we’re really dealing with?” Joel insisted. 

Pearl’s steps slowed to a stop and she glared at her feet. She wanted to turn him down a second time, but she had no real argument against his words. If she truly had no interest whatsoever in working against Grian, she wouldn’t have come here tonight. They wouldn’t even be having this conversation.

“Even if that is the case, I have nothing to offer you.” She said after a moment.

“You can offer me perspective.” Joel shot back immediately. “What brought on your distrust?  What makes a supposedly devoted member of the resistance turn on her leader?”

“I already told you, I don’t distrust Grian.” She said with a huff. “It’s just that he’s…different. He’s different from the avian I knew as a child. It’s like he’s an entirely different person.”

“Isn’t that to be expected? I mean, people change with age, it’s highly unlikely he would be the same boy you knew. Surely that’s not enough to breed the uncertainty that you bear.” Joel said.

“I never expected him to be exactly the same, of course not. I know people change. I’ve changed a lot since my youth.” She defended. Once she began, suddenly she could not stop. The words spilled and spilled from her mouth like vomit. 

“It’s that he’s changed so much. There isn’t so much as a trace of that sweet boy. The Grian I knew was mischievous and a bit of a devil, sure, but he was never ever cruel like he is now. He was never once dismissive and full of himself. He was caring and kind. He would give you the skin off his back if he thought you needed it. 

“He was like the older brother I never had. He was my best friend. When he first met me, we were both starving orphans on the street that no one gave two damns about. He saved me from starving to death when no one else would spare so much as a heal of moldy bread. He gave me the very last bit of his food with a smile on his face even though he was also starving. 

“We kept each other safe; we kept each other warm during the winter. He always did whatever he could to make me smile and laugh even when there was nothing to be happy about. He was like a light in the darkest of times.

“He-he made me feel loved and safe when the world wanted nothing more than for me to disappear. But-but I just can’t see that part of him anymore, and it- it-!”

“It what?” Joel prodded gently as she struggled to find her words.

“It scares me.” Pearl whispered. She hadn’t noticed that thick tears were rolling heavily down her cheeks until she tasted the salt on her lips. Her lower lip trembled as she pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes and sniffled in an attempt to stop the tears from falling. Tilly whimpered, leaning into Pearl’s side in an attempt to comfort her. She swallowed and then continued. “I want to know if I’m doing the right thing, helping him with this insane plan, even if I agree that the king needs to be replaced. I want to know if my Grian is still in there somewhere, if he’s really doing this for the benefit of other people and not…”

“For himself?” Joel asked. His expression was more somber now. Pearl nodded, squeezing her eyes to rid them of a few more stray tears. She took a deep breath and then nodded again, more firm and resolute this time.

“I’ll work with you.” She said, “I’ll help you figure out the truth of what’s going on. If not for your benefit, then my own. And if not for my own, then for the people of this kingdom and yours.”

A smile broke out across Joel’s face and he clapped his hands together. “Does this mean I have your support to bring his secrecy up during the meeting tomorrow night?”

“...Yes, you have my support.” She said with a sigh, once again wondering if she was making the right decision. It felt nice, however, having her feelings validated in this way. It had been so long that she had been holding that within herself.

“Yes! We’ll confront him together and demand answers!” Joel said, pumping his fist. He paused and then looked at her, his moonlit concern evident. “How likely it is, do you recon, that your peers would turn on us. Is their loyalty to Grian blind?”

Pearl thought for a moment. “I know that there are others that are just as unsettled by Grian’s behavior as I am. If it comes down to it, they’ll be on our side no matter what happens. Others…they’re so desperate for this rule to be overturned that they don’t care what Grian’s hidden motives might be, they’ll follow him. If I had to guess, it’ll be split nearly even. And this is only us assuming Grian’s secret is deal breaking to even us.”

The thought of infighting this late into the plan was frightening to Pearl, but she could not deny that this was something that needed to happen. If it came to it, and lives were at risk, the plan would just have to take a back burner.

“That’s good enough for me.” Joel said with a shrug. “Grian's plan works in Coral Crest’s favour, so I really hope it doesn’t come down to a divide, but we’ll be prepared for it if it does.”

He then reached forward and handed her a piece of parchment. She turned it over in her hands, her brow furrowing as she realized that it was entirely blank. The only thing that tipped her off to the fact that it wasn’t a normal piece of paper was the way her fingers lightly tingled under its rough surface.

“What is this?” She asked.

“It’s enchanted parchment. I have its sister piece with me, so whatever you write on your piece will be transferred over to mine and vice versa. They’re old, made back when magic was in its height, so their enchantment has worn over the years, but they should still work well enough if you have something urgent you need to convey to me before the next meeting. Grian isn’t the only one with magic at his disposal…though ours is a little more tame..”

“That’s amazing…I didn’t even know such enchantments even existed.” Pearl said in awe.

“Yeah, well, they’re as rare as they come, so you be careful with that. I don’t have another one.” Joel said, pointing a finger at her.

She marveled at the parchment for a second more before shoving it into the waistband of her trousers, much to Joel’s apparent displeasure as his face twisted up. The two of them shook hands and parted ways, electing to go in opposite directions to avoid the chances of them being seen together once they reentered the city.

Pearl kept a hand on Tilly’s scruff for comfort as they walked back to the bakery. The wolf-dog kept so close to her that Pearl would have been tripping over her with each step if this was not a familiar song and dance that they did every time Pearl was nervous.

She didn’t know if she had made the right decision in agreeing to support Joel. She was just as scared and unsure now as she was when she set off at the beginning of the night. The trembles going down her frame weren’t from the cold. She chewed on her lip enough that she feared the delicate skin would break under the abuse.

She had a lot of thinking to do to make sure tomorrow night didn't end in great disaster 

For now, she was ready to drop with the exhaustion of the night weighing on her. She almost sighed in relief as Big Bakeries came into view, the building a sight for sore eyes. She took no note of the light in the window above as she entered the alleyway and rounded to the back. She led Tilly into the bakery through the backdoor using the key Bigb had entrusted to her years ago, which she kept on her person at all times. She locked up behind herself and climbed the stairs.

She yawned as she pushed the door to her and Bigb’s shared bedroom open, stretching her arms high above her head as she crossed the threshold. She paused as Tilly let out a confused whimper. Pearl's eyes snapped open, her arms dropping down to her weapons in an instant.

The candle still burned, nearly a stub at this point, illuminating the small room with its dying light. Bigb was sitting in his chair facing the door, his arms crossed over his chest with his eyes closed, but they slowly opened as soon as the door creaked loud enough to announce their presence.

That was not what gave Pearl and Tilly pause, however. That honour went to the figure sitting on the sill of the open window.

“Welcome back, Pearl,” Bigb said, “You have a visitor.” 

                                           ❀       ❀      ❀

The gentle pink of the dawn sunrise filtered in through the frosty castle windows, scattering pale, rose tinted sunbeams along the high walls and red carpets. Though Gem had been awake since long before sunrise, she couldn’t help the sneaky yawn that escaped her as she passed by several groggy castle staff who were just now rising to attend to their duties, their own yawns far too contagious for her to handle.

She had hardly slept a wink the night before, the revelation about the grimoire far too heavy on her mind to allow her any rest. She simply could not accept the idea that it had been a simple thief that easily. It seemed far too convenient.

So, she decided to take a day “off” to visit the library and speak to the librarian for herself. Luckily there were not many preparations to make for the party anymore, and she had already sorted out that week's patrol routes and divided them up between her soldiers. The only thing she really had to do was oversee training in the evenings, and she already convinced Impulse to take that over for her, leaving her with enough free time to do as she pleased.

She shouldered open the grand doors that spanned from floor to ceiling, barely grunting at the weight of them like most would. The smell of parchment, ink, and dust immediately assaulted her nose.

Thick drapes were pulled away from long, palladian windows all around the vast room to let that rosey sunlight into the otherwise dark, cluttered space. The large, overflowing oak bookshelves sprawled so high that they kissed the ceiling, which were decorated with gorgeous murals of times long past, with flowing swirls of magic painted in pops of bright and bold colours. 

The library was two floors tall, with a winding staircase in the center of the room, where also sat the large desk that the head librarian occupied. On this second floor - which was off limits to those without clearance - ladders were fixed onto the ends of the shelves, their purpose being to reach books that were otherwise too high. 

The floors were marbled, but were interrupted by plush red carpets in several spaces, mainly those that would see a lot of traffic like walkways between shelves. There were chairs and tables scattered around and near the windows, each one housing a candle stick.

She made her way over to the head librarian's desk, flashing the woman a wide smile when she looked up as Gem approached.

“Hello, Sam.” She greeted, setting her hands on the cold oak. “I got your report. Would you mind showing me to the case where the book was stolen?”

The middle aged woman pushed her wide, circular spectacles further up her nose, giving her  eyes a large appearance as she blinked owlishly up at Gem. Her blonde and brunette mixed hair fell from the lazy bun it was pulled into at the nape of her neck, strands of it falling around her shoulders and into her face. Her long, boney fingers smoothed down the pages of the book she was reading, her eyebrow cocking in tune with the tilt of her head. An amused smile graced her thin lips.

“Right to business as always, aren’t ya, miss?” She asked before standing. 

“I’m all work, no fun, they say.” Gem joked with a laugh as she followed Sam around her desk and up the winding staircase that sat behind it. The librarian walked with a bit of a hunch, her hands folded behind her back; her lavender dress swayed with each step she took. 

Gem looked around as they ascended the stairs, their steps clicking with each new stair they climbed. She really wished that she took more time to visit the library every now and then, it really was a beautiful place. There were so many books that the shelves were all bursting at the seams, overflowing. 

The sunlight coming in through the windows was taking on a more golden hue compared to the previous pink as they made their way over to the sturdy glass displays atop a long table situated in the middle of the room that were previously unseen from down below. They were simple things, just dark oak frames filled with panes of glass on all sides as well as the top; their bottoms made of deep, polished obsidian. 

Gem looked at each of them carefully; there were three of them in total. There was a gemstone in the smallest case on the rightmost half of the table. It was a deep purple around the edges, but took on a pink to white gradient towards the center, which was cracked open like a horrible wound to show off a deep, blood red heart on the inside. 

On the leftmost side of the table was a thin wand made of a lavender tinted, white wood Gem didn’t have the knowledge to identify. It was embellished with delicate vines and flowers carved into its long faded surface. Capping its bottom and its tip were fine silver that was remarkably polished and taken care of despite the obvious signs of age that the rest of the wand showed. 

Her eyes zoned in on the empty middle case.

“Right, well, this is it.” Sam declared, giving a lackluster flourish of her arms before letting them drop to her side.

There were no obvious signs of tampering, and it made sense as to why. The method to open the cases was almost laughably simple; all one had to do was lift the frame off of the bottom to gain access to the delicate wire stands within. It was remarkably easy to steal from them. It was an oversight that had Gem gritting her teeth and mentally smacking herself in the forehead.

“Tell me about the stolen item.” She requested. Sam nodded, her wide eyes growing glossy with excitement.

“These are a collection, actually. We believe that all three items were once owned by a powerful wizard in ancient times, long, long before any of us were born! The first item here is The Evoker’s Wand. It was said to have been handcrafted by the caster himself as a rite of passage from youth into adulthood! Wands were actually used only for minor spells, as their ability to conduct magic was very limited due to their size, making them the perfect items for fledgling wizards. Though there have been casters who were capable of producing grand amounts of magic with wands even smaller than this one!

“And then this stone here, I know it doesn’t look all that glamorous, but it's actually a crystal that was once used in the tip of the wizard’s staff. It was said to have been one of many of its kind, one of the End Crystals of myth! This one has long since lost any magical properties, but these crystals used to be grand conductors of magic that were highly sought after. They say that the spells the wizard was able to produce with this crystal were world shattering.” Sam said, her hands up around her face, here shoulders hunched with her glee.

“And the missing book?” Gem asked with an amused tone. "With how you’ve described the other items, I would think they would be the first someone would think to steal. I hardly believe this grimoire was simply just decorative if these other items are so great.”

Sam’s face flushed a little with what Gem assumed was embarrassment. She cleared her throat and straightened her posture before carrying on. 

“Right, yes,” She cleared her throat again. “The grimoire… it came with the other items when the king - the previous king, not our king Ren - bought them, so we assumed it was part of the set, but it really was an anomaly. We don’t know much about it to be quite honest with you, miss. The writing was a language no one has been able to decipher before, and the cover was almost entirely destroyed long before it ever came to us. 

“I have personally taken to calling it ‘The Eye’ because of the strange drawing in the center of the book, which took up two entire pages. It felt like the book was staring at you whenever it was open to those pages…I imagine it was a very powerful spell book back when the owner was alive, but it was hardly worth anything now in the magic sense. That's what makes it purely decorative now. There probably isn’t a soul alive today that can read its text.” Sam finished with a shrug of her shoulders.

Gem bit her lip.

“Why do you think the thief chose to steal the book over any of the other treasures? Surely the crystal would sell for more. Or even the wand, the detailing is quite beautiful.” She questioned.

Sam thought for a moment before she shook her head. “I haven’t a clue. To anyone who doesn’t know the history, the wand is simply a pretty piece of wood, and like I said, the crystal isn’t all that glamorous after years of wear and tear. The book itself was damaged as well, but it was an easier fix than the crystal.  If I had to guess, they simply thought the book would sell for more.”

Gem nodded, though it left her with more questions than she had answers. She would just have to accept it as it was; a thief looking for a quick bit of coin stole something from the king’s collection and the choice was likely random. But something still just didn’t sit right with her…

“I’m sorry I wasn’t more help in your investigation.” Sam said remorsefully, rubbing her elbow nervously.

“Oh, no, you’ve been wonderful. It’s not your fault that this is such a strange mystery with no substantial leads.” Gem said, waving her hand in a way she hoped was more reassuring than it was dismissive.

“Is that all you came here for, miss?” Sam asked.

“Actually,” She started, looking up, “I was wondering if you had any books on Evalore?”

Sam blinked at her in that owlish way of hers. “Surely I do! Would you like me to go fetch them for you?”

“I would love it if you could help me find any that you have.” Gem said with a nod. Then she tacked on. “If it’s not too much trouble, that is.”

“It is hardly a bother! Barely a soul comes here anymore, I delight at being able to do my job.” Sam said in a somewhat joking tone, “Why don’t you go make yourself comfortable at one of the tables and I’ll bring you what I find?”

“Oh, no I couldn’t ask that of you. Let me help collect them?” Gem requested.

“Oh thank the gods, I just hate climbing those ladders.” Sam said, shoulders sinking with relief. Gem laughed heartily as Sam began leading her through the library to collect the books.

The sun was properly in the sky by the time Gem was sitting at one of the tables in the far corner of the library with a stack of books in front of her. She had expected there to be more, because in the end all she ended up with were seven books, three of which were children's books of pictures and few words.

“Though I am sure you already know this I must still warn you, miss. When it comes to Evalore, most everything you read or hear about the tragedy itself will be more myth than reality. It was incredibly hard for scholars to grasp the reality of the situation since it was such an isolated incident. Because of this, it is likely you will run into many inconsistencies across sources.” Sam said, patting the topmost book on the stack.

“I understand. I figured as much would be true.” Gem said.

“Then I’ll let you get to it. I hope you find what you’re looking for.” Sam said before disappearing around the shelves to return to her desk.

With a long, suffering sigh, Gem pulled the first textbook from the top of the pile and began reading.

The first few books described the land in glorious detail. Like Skizz had told her, their kingdom was situated in the heart of the great redwood forests, but what he hadn’t told her was that the kingdom itself was inside of the trees. 

Within the pages of these books were drawings of beautiful, unique buildings carved into, and built around, the tops of these giant trees, with pathways and bridges connecting each and every one of them together. Spiraling staircases were built around the trees all the way from bottom to top, but they were not needed by most of the inhabitants because they were a civilization of avians.

Gem had  heard that there was once a kingdom of purely avian citizens during the time of magic, but somehow Evalore had never come up by name before.

According to two separate books, Evalore’s main form of trade was their spiced wine, which was harvested from the sprawling apple orchards that they cultivated on the border of their kingdom. However, another book also claimed that they made a pretty penny off of jewelry made from polished stones, beads, and their own feathers. Gem ran her fingers down the beautiful drawing of a bracelet, wondering what it would have looked like in person. 

Music was another thing Evalore had been known for, particularly their flute work. It was custom to carve an instrument from the wood that was dug out of a newly created home and give it to the occupant as a gift. Most often it was a flute of some kind, but string instruments were also common.

It came as no surprise that they were once host to competitions pertaining to flight, including races and diving. What was a surprise, however, was the fact that they also hosted wrestling competitions during their yearly festival.

She soon found herself lost in the pages of the books, immersing herself in the history of this land which no longer existed as the hours passed like the blink of an eye. They painted a picture of a beautiful kingdom full of beautiful people and beautiful culture. 

However, the tragedy she was hoping to learn more about was hardly mentioned more than once or twice, and only as an afterthought.

After countless hours of reading, she knew just as much as she did at the start of the day. By all accounts the fall came out of nowhere. There wasn’t a single explanation in sight for the sudden massacre and destruction.

There was no mention of a foreign power at play, no mention of growing tensions with another kingdom. Hells, there wasn’t even any reports of growing tensions within the confines of the kingdom itself. No unrest, no uprisings, no interpersonal wars, nothing. Evalore was thriving and happy one day and then it was gone the very next.

Gem sighed deeply and sank into the chair with a groan, her forehead resting on the edge of the book with her nose squishing against the wood of the table.

It truly felt as though answers were never within her grasp.

She heard footsteps approaching her through the near silent library, and then a familiar voice said, “I was beginning to think we needed to send out a search party.”

“Hi, Scott.” She said with a sigh. She sat up and ran a hand through her hair to get a few stray curls out of her face. She wished she had the foresight that morning to wear her hair back or in a bun. “Am I needed somewhere?”

“No, I was just wondering if you were getting up to. Surely looking into the grimoire situation wouldn’t have taken this long.” He said. Dusky hues of purple and blue backdropped him from the window as he sat down in the chair across from hers. He picked up one of the books and then raised an eyebrow. “Evalore?”

“Yeah,” She confirmed, planting a cheek in her palm and grabbing one of the unread children’s books from the pile. “I don’t know what I was expecting to find, but I haven’t found it.”

“You must have heard what the knights have been saying, I assume.” Scott said, sighing as he set the book back down on the table.

“That we’re going to end up just like that?” She asked, eyes still downcast. She flipped the children's book open lazily, running her finger tips down the inked parchment. 

“Evalore was an unpredictable tragedy, no one knows how or why it happened. The situations are entirely different.” He said softly, reaching out to take ahold of her hand in a comforting manner.

“I see as much now. I guess I was hoping that if I found out what caused the fall of Evalore, I could pinpoint a way to prevent whatever it is that Grian is planning and make sure we don’t end up in ruin.” She turned the page of the children’s book, “But it was all for nothing. It feels as though everything I have been doing lately is all for nothing.”

“Come on now, Gem, you know that’s not true.” Scott said, though his words fell on deaf ears.

Gem turned the page to the book and paused, her posture straightening as her eyes landed on something…peculiar. She pulled her hand away from Scott’s and took the book into a proper hold, flipping back to the first page.

This particular children's book had no author, only the initials F.S delicately inked in the bottom left corner of the cover, and it had taken a more childish method of telling Evalore’s tale, with a baby bird as the main character and a snake as a villain. It was so fictionalized that she hadn’t paid it any mind when she first spotted it. Truthfully, she hadn’t even intended to read it in the first place, but now she was studying each page with great care.

The party was grand, with flowers aplenty and food in abundance. The birds danced and danced around the sparkling fire until the stars were high in the sky. Their joy knew no bounds.

The baby bird had long grown tired of the party. He was exhausted, his little body craving for nothing more than the soft leaves that cradled him in the bottom of his nest. He searched and searched around for his mama and papa, for he had yet to learn how to fly and needed their help in getting home, but they were nowhere to be seen.

When he found them not in the thicket of the party, he wandered out onto the thinner branches. But before he knew what was happening, his little talons slipped! 

The chick fell from the alcove so high up in the trees, falling past colourful leaves and flowers, his little wings flapping desperately to stop his fall to no avail. His tiny body bounced off of the soft soil of the ground he’d never touched before. 

Everything was new, everything was strange. He was so, so very scared. 

He knew the way up, but he was too small, too weak to make the climb on his own. His wings were too tiny, his skills too undeveloped. He could not make it home on his own.

“Won’t someone help me!” He cried from the ground so far below the branches. The jovial noise above continued on, oblivious to his pleas

“I can help you.” A voice whispered from the underbrush.

Frightened, the chick turned to the voice. A snake, long and purple and covered in speckles of black slithered from the shadows. His eyes glowed like the embers of a hungry fire.

“Who are you?” The chick asked.

“I am one who watches. I watched as you fell, I watched you cried, I watched as they ignored you.” The snake hissed in reply.

He circled the young bird, his long body coiling around and around the chick’s own small one. The chick looked up at the snake, his tears beginning to dry.

“If you welcome me into your home, I can bring you up high into the trees.” The snake hissed.

“But Mr. Snake,” The chick asked, “Your teeth are so sharp  and your gullet so large. Will you not eat me and my own?”

“No, little chick, I would never eat you. I am a friend!” The snake replied. "I only wish to help."

“Do you promise?” The chick asked.

“Why, of course I do.” The snake said, his words sincere where his eyes were not.

And so the chick climbed atop the snake’s back and led him through the branches, welcoming him into the tree he called home. Up and up they went.

However, as soon as the two of them made it to the top, screams erupted!

The snake darted for the rest of the chick’s flock, throwing him from his back with little care as he devoured all in his path. They tried to run, but they were too slow. The once loud, happy party was now silent save for the chick’s cries.

“Snake, you promised!” The chick weeped. “You lied, you lied!

“Oh, little chick, I never lied. I promised not to eat you and I have not.” The snake hissed with eyes as cruel and as sharp as a the fangs in his mouth, his belly now swollen.

"How could you? I thought you were my friend!" Cried the chick

"I am one who watches. I watched as you fell. I watched as you cried. I watched as you foolishly trusted me-

There! Gem paused her reading on the page that had initially caught her interest. It was a full face shot of the snake. He was drawn to be smug, his cruel face taking up the entire page in a way that was undoubtedly meant to be unsettling, but that wasn’t what was intriguing. What was were the markings etched onto the snake’s forehead, which was exposed with the downward angle he was drawn in.

It was an eye.

“Gem?” Scott questioned, his confusion evident.

She ignored him, jumping to her feet with the book in hand and taking off through the library with her mind racing. She bumped into several shelves on her way, knocking more than a few books to the ground in her haste. Sam was looking in her direction with wide, alarmed eyes as Gem approached with alarming speed. She skidded to a halt in front of Sam and shoved the book into her face.

“Oh!” Sam exclaimed, flinching back.

“Was this similar to the eye you saw in the grimoire?” Gem asked, panting for breath. Scott stumbled to a stop behind her.

“What is going on?” He asked.

Sam looked between her, Scott, and the book with that same startled expression before she adjusted her glasses and squinted her large eyes at the page. Her eyes widened again and she took the book from Gem’s grasp. Her mouth fell open and she blinked a few times before looking up at Gem. She set the book down gently on her desk and nodded once.

“What is this about?” Sam asked uncertainty. 

“Is it at all possible that the stolen grimoire was a relic from Evalore?” Gem asked, ignoring Sam’s own question.

“From Evalore?” Scott asked in disbelief. “Everything from Evalore was destroyed during the incident, it would have been a bigger deal if Wintertide got its hands on even a piece of its vast wealth. No one who has handled that book has ever made such a connection.”

“It’s-it’s possible. We came into possession of all three treasures during the first war, and the king never did say exactly where he got them from… But the grimoire was hundreds of years older than the kingdom of Evalore itself, and it wasn’t even written in the language that they spoke. That would only raise the question of why it was there.” Sam said slowly, her eyebrows furrowed in thought. “And as sir Scott pointed out, no one has ever placed such a high value on the old book before. It really was just a dusty old book.”

“Then how do you explain the similarity?” Gem asked, stamping her finger into the page for emphasis, accidentally crinkling the page a small amount with the force used.

“I can’t say I have ever even seen eyes used as a symbol in relation to Evalore.” Scott said. Sam shook her head.

“Nor have I,” She said, “Though I can’t deny how strikingly similar the eye looks to the one in the grimoire…”

“Surely it can’t be more than a coincidence.” Scott said. He carried on, a little more exacerbated with his next words. “It’s nothing more than a children's book, Gem.”

“Surely it has to be more,” Gem said. She grabbed the book, flipped it around and then brought it back to the first page. “It seems an odd twist of fate that a book with a similar symbol within its pages as the one in this book, one that is speculated to be of high magical value, has gone missing so soon after Grian has announced to me a suspicious ‘plan’. Not only that, but there is a party fast approaching, a party just like the one in this book.”

“Slow down, Gem. When did we begin assuming that it was the resistance that stole the book? I thought we had decided that it was a thief looking for riches.” Scott said, holding a hand up. 

“That was before this!” Gem exclaimed, gesturing to the book.

“You cannot seriously be suggesting that Grian has based his plot for overthrowing the kingdom of Wintertide off of a fictitious children’s book.” Scott said slowly.

“That’s not what I’m suggesting!” Gem said, annoyed. “What I believe is that somehow Grian made the connection that Wintertide was unknowingly in possession of a powerful magic relic and intends to make use of it at this party.”

Scott was silent for a moment, taking in her words. 

“Even if that were the case, what could he really hope to accomplish? No one who can cast the kind of magic that it takes to bring down entire kingdoms even lives in this day and age. There is no way he could ever hope to cast that kind of spell.” Scott reasoned.

“With enough man power, he just might.” Gem said, deadly serious.

A pin could be heard with how silent it suddenly became in the library. Sam looked between the two of them with clear horror and fear written all over her now very, very pale face. Scott took one look at the librarian and then took a hold of Gem’s arm, pulling her out of Sam’s ear shot before leaning in and whispering.

“Do you understand the implication of this theory of yours?” Scott asked, unease, or perhaps fear, leaking into his words. Gem nodded.

“Whatever it was that happened to Evalore all those years ago, Grian is trying to replicate it.”

[protect-namine]

it's interesting that yingdu E1 is gonna be the episode that really tells you if you like S1 story structure more, or S2 story structure more.

I thought yingdu would be more like S2 but I'm actually pleasantly surprised it starts more like S1? and I already knew this about myself but I really loved the episodic, slice of life nature of the first half of S1 (and the chibi shorts). I loved S2 and all, but the first time I fell in love with link click it was because of the day-to-day kind of issues they face before they started playing mind games with other people who have abilities like them. and I think I wouldn't have enjoyed S2 or even the back half of S1 if the show didn't start with episodic, low stakes cases. of course, I think they'll probably mix both storytelling styles this special season.

but idk, I really missed that vibe. shiguangling being domestic is sweet. I did like the cosplay story more than vivian's story, though I think them trying to set up the scammer parallel to lu guang was funny. I think cheng xiaoshi shines a lot in these kinds of moments because he's very empathetic even with the little things. lu guang is the one dealing with a lot of big picture stuff (time and death itself) but cheng xiaoshi? he just wants to set up a photography studio and maybe help a couple of people out when he can. play basketball. find a cosplayer to return her paintings. help their student council president to not get scammed.

he's just a little guy! look at him! he thrives in low stakes situations!! give him milk tea and he's happy 🤗

I think the most surprising details in this episode were:

lu guang is in the anime club :o

lu guang kept a detailed notebook of the past?? damn. I feel like he spent one timeline just memorizing and noting down events, down to the last minute.

"your eyes remind me of two people I knew" holy shit. time traveler parents possibly true. what if cheng xiaoshi's parents are lost to the time stream? like, they faced the consequences lu guang said you'd face if you stayed more than 12 hours into a picture (notably though, lu guang doesn't seem? to have this issue when he dives? or I guess past 12 hours you get "stuck" in the past and aren't able to come back to your "present")

what is up with cheng xiaoshi always wanting lu guang to be his partner "for life" asdfghjkl. my guy. you're so sweet

lu guang moves into the photo studio during their university years and bridon happens right after. and he's wearing cheng xiaoshi's summer clothes...

cheng xiaoshi did not clap when he activated his powers with the bridon picture (his hands were holding the envelope and the picture). which is... weird? how did that happen? also he went there as himself which means this picture was... not taken by a photographer? because otherwise he should've possessed someone like normal

finally: lu guang didn't have a watch in the beginning. idk why I always thought he had a watch. anyway, I think we can use the placement of his watch as a signifier of which timeline we're in

no watch: original timeline. when lu guang dives back here, I guess he buys a watch afterwards

watch on the left hand: either the og timeline (after he buys a watch) or the first time he dives? the timeline with cheng xiaoshi's first death? the style of the bedroom makes me think this happened in the first time they go to bridon (which isn't necessarily the same timeline we're seeing in the donghua right now).

edit: actually, scratch that. now I think this might have been lu guang's bedroom lol. the date is 4/12 which is the day cheng xiaoshi reads the 👌 text from lu guang about playing basketball again

it's also consistent with the flashback to cheng xiaoshi's death in S2E1 — watch is on the left hand.

watch on the right hand: S2 finale dive / yingdu E1 dive. which means vein showing up in the photo studio happened sometime during our "current" timeline.

lu guang keeps his watch on his right hand during S1 and S2 as well (catguang in the chibi shorts also has a watch on his right... paw).

there's probably other details I missed but anyway. welcome back link click!! I'm already one square away from getting a bingo in my yingdu bingo card lmao

[home-for-wayward-fawns]

𝓒𝓪𝓽𝓬𝓱 𝓜𝓮 𝓘𝓯 𝓨𝓸𝓾 𝓒𝓪𝓷

A commision I wrote for the lovely @hurthermore in which Alastor fucks her OC Pastelle with his rifle >:3

Trigger Warning: Gun Play

Alastor sat in the armchair of his bedroom, looking out across his unending bayou with his rifle sitting heavy in his lap. 

“Catch me if you can,”

Pastelle was pure light, a perfect ball of delightful energy to contrast his slow, careful movements. He had known from the moment he saw her, dancing across an illuminated stage, that she would be his. It hadn’t mattered that she wanted to play the long con, dancing around him just out of arm’s reach. He was a patient man, a clever man; he knew how to get what he wanted. He showered her in gifts, in praises, in favours. He gave her everything at her request; there were no strings attached, no questions asked. She fell for it of course—fell for him—and the moment he had her beneath him; he knew she would never escape. 

She was a surprising creature, a delightful one. He knew the ways in which a man and a woman were expected to behave, but she introduced him to a whole new world of pleasure. Her demands were ceaseless, things she wanted to try, games she wanted to play. He indulged her in every single one, eager to make her happy—make her whine. She made the most delicious sounds when he held her down by her throat, forcing her to beg him to allow her breath. She would be so eager when he tied her up—trussed like a wild animal—so she could do nothing but wait as he pleasured her. She never needed to ask, not really. An off comment, a wanton glance, was all he needed to know she had a new game in mind. 

The gun had been surprising. 

He didn’t use it anymore; he didn’t need to with his endless power, but he kept it hung above his fireplace regardless. It had been such a huge part of his natural life that he liked to look at it, to see how far he’d come. Pastelle had noticed it a few times, commented on it, but never anything out of the ordinary. It had started with little comments, enquiring why he would even need such a thing, but that had changed as of late. She took note of the length of it, the thickness of it. 

The first time he’d gotten it down for her was when she was on her knees. He wasn’t sure how she’d respond; he never did with his dear darling. She’d been begging for his cock all day, begging to choke on him, but he saw the way she watched his gun, the way she craved it. He pressed the head of the rifle against her lips, watching her with baited breath, but he never should’ve doubted her. She eagerly spread her lips for him, spreading her legs at the same time, as he pushed the long weapon down her throat. Drool pooled at the corner of her lips as she looked up at him, her eyes blown wide with lust. 

He’d been harder than he’d ever been in his life, watching those eyes never leave his, before he threw the damned weapon away, allowing it to fall with a clatter on the floor. She coughed, but barely had time to respond before his pants were around his ankles, and he was buried deep past her lips. She moaned and whined just the way she knew he liked as he gripped her hair tightly, fucking into her face. 

“Mine. My Whore.” He growled, pushing himself as far down into her as he could. She’d told him he was big before, the biggest she’d ever had, and it made his chest swell with pride as her tongue swirled around his member. 

He remembered the memory fondly; she’d been such a good girl afterwards—pressing kisses down his neck, telling him how she loved him, how good he was to her. 

It was the real reason he played her games; he loved how good she was after—rolling around on his bed, covering her face with her hands as she giggled. She’d be so pliant too, spreading her legs eagerly for him to thrust into her. He loved that she was his whore, but more than that, he loved that she was his darling. 

He tapped his fingers on the butt of his rifle. This was the best part of the hunt; the anticipation before the catch, letting your prey think they’d escaped—as if his pretty pet could ever outrun him. He had promised her a head start, promised to pretend to give her half a chance. He hadn’t expected her to agree so quickly, to allow him to hunt her; he loved to watch her run. Her radiant pink hair cascaded in the wind, her perfect tits bouncing as she went. She knew he loved to watch her run, but he knew the real reason she had agreed so quickly. 

“I’m going to hunt you like the prey you are, my darling, and then you’re going to beg me to fuck you rather than shoot you.” He had growled, pushing the muzzle of his rifle between her thighs, and he couldn’t help licking his lips lewdly as she began to rub herself on the cold metal. She was beyond perfection—she was his. 

He looked at the clock; time to go. 

He whistled as he stood up; it was a familiar tune—one of her songs. 

She had terrible taste in music, wanting to perform for the most degenerative of creatures, but she always made it sound good. He found himself often listening to her music, playing it on his radio station in between screams of the damned. The whistling was just to put her on edge, make her run faster—distract her. 

She was used to playing his games, but she wasn’t familiar with trying not to get caught. He took a deep inhale, recognizing in the familiar scent of his bayou as he searched for hers. It didn’t take him long; she stuck out like a sunflower amongst the weeds. He fired a shot into the air, a broad grin spreading further across his face. 

“Found you!” He called out into the wilds and laughed as he heard her cry out from the shocking sound of the gunshot. 

Who went hunting without loading their gun, after all? 

He took chase, and it was almost pitiful how slow she was. She wasn’t used to the damp ground of a bayou, wasn’t expecting how many overgrown roots would be trying to trip her up at every corner. This wasn’t just his territory; it was his home. 

It didn’t take him long to find her, her ankle trapped beneath an overgrown root, and he savoured the way she gasped softly as he pressed the head of his rifle against her temple. She looked up at him with those big beautiful eyes. 

“Poor thing,” he cooed at her, “hunters don’t play fair, dear.” 

This was his domain; it obeyed his commands, and the root pulled at her ankle, tugging her legs apart. The scent of her need, her desperation, was calling to him, and he wasn’t sure how long he could play along with her little game. 

“You cheated,” She pouted, and he chuckled darkly, deciding—just a little longer.

“You’re a very brave prey.” He purred before he felt his throat constrict on air as she reached up, pulling the end of the rifle down to her lips. She pressed a gentle kiss against the warm metal, and he groaned. “A very naughty prey.” 

“You don’t want to hurt me; you want to fuck me.” She accused, before she kicked her other leg out, spreading herself perfectly for him. 

He dragged the rifle down the length of her body, pressing it against the perfect delicate lace. She was right of course; she was always right. He’d give her anything for the feeling of her perfect heat around him. He didn’t even care how he got to experience it. He didn’t care if she wanted to ride his fingers, his face, his cock; she owned him completely, his perfect starlight leading the way home. 

“Beg for me.” He commanded, and she let out a delicious whine, rocking her hips into the head of his weapon. 

“Please, please fuck me with your gun; use me Alastor.” She begged him so prettily, and he let out a possessive growl. His name on her tongue was always divine; the only word she’d ever need to ruin him. 

He crouched in front of her, pulling at her pretty lingerie with one sharp claw. She gasped as he pulled it, ripping it from her soft skin and watching as it fell away. He pressed the end of his weapon against her wet hole, staring into her eyes. 

“I’m going to ruin you, Starlight. No other man will ever compare to what I give to you.” He growled lowly before he pushed. 

She let out the most delicious, delirious moan. 

His perfect slut, rocking her hips into his loaded gun, her eyes never leaving his. She knew what he really craved: her undivided attention. 

“What would the papers say, my darling? Hell’s Superstar Turned into Nothing More Than The Radio Demon’s Whore,” He growled, just to watch her moan again, just to see those beautiful eyes roll back. 

He began to fuck her slowly with the gun, spreading her pretty pussy open for him. She was a delicious treat, and he couldn’t help the need to press his lips against hers. She was divine, and he couldn’t help moaning into the kiss. 

“I love you, Pastelle.” He whispered against her lips and she whined for him, “I love you so fucking much.” 

He slowly pulled his gun out of her, throwing it over his shoulder as he stood up. She let out a whine with a beautiful pout at the feeling of being empty—not for long, never for long. 

He unbuckled his belt, watching as her eyes stared at the bulge in his trousers. She licked her lips, but he didn’t want that. He needed to be deeper; he needed to have her in a way only he was permitted to. The roots faded back away into the ground as he dropped his pants, lifting her up by her throat. 

“Alastor,” She gasped, before she was dropped on his throbbing cock, “Alastor!” 

He pushed her against the bark of the tree, thrusting deep inside her, and he panted into her neck. 

“You have no idea what I'd do to keep you; I’d burn it all down,” He whispered against her neck, sucking down on her collarbone. 

He groaned as she ran her hands through his hair, scratching behind his ears. 

“I love you, Alastor.” She whispered lowly, the softest of confessions she was capable of. 

She was too much, too perfect; her perfect heat was so tight around him, and he knew he was close. He bit down on her soft flesh, forcing her to scream so deliciously for him. His claws raked down her sides as he thrust as deep as he could go, thick ropes of cum filling her insides and she moaned lewdly for him. He panted against her skin, before pulling away to look at her flushed face. 

“Alastor,” She sighed, content, but he wasn’t finished. 

Never finished with his perfect slut. 

He continued to thrust, even as it ached, even as it stung. 

“Alastor, Alastor, you can stop!” She giggled, but he only held her hips tighter, pounding deeper into her. 

“Not until you cum for me, Starlight,” He grinned at her, watching as those pretty eyes rolled back—he wondered if she could see stars. 

The thought made him chuckle before she pulled on his hair, riding him aggressively as she chased her release. She was beautiful and perfect, and he was going to level the entire Pride Ring to keep her making those pretty noises. He felt her tighten against him, panting desperately. 

“Cum for me; cum for me now,” He demanded. 

He needed it, needed her. He needed her more than air, more than life. 

She screamed, her legs falling limply off of him and he spread her wide on his cock. He continued to piston inside of her, even as she whined weakly. 

“I’m not done with you yet. You’re going to stay right here and keep me warm until I’m ready to use you all over again.” 

She collapsed against him, blissfully unaware of how much the pain of his dick was fueling him. They’d keep going until she couldn’t talk, couldn’t think, and only then would he finally take her back to his room. 

He should really get his rifle out more often.

[uncle-dusknoir]

[A video is uploaded! Dated for late in the night on Saturday.

... Though it's more of a voice log. The screen never varies from a feed of the night sky, the large waxing moon brightening the evening. Occasionally, a shiny Misdreavus wearing a King's Rock might bob overhead, or one of the three Shuppet Basil brought along, but that's not the important part of the video.

Instead, Basil's voice is heard, saying a word or maybe just finishing a sentence. (For ease of reading, her dialogue's in blue for this exchange.)

"... grounded?"

"That's it."

Sounds like... Derek @misdreavusmishap, maybe? His voice sounds off; as if he's trying to hold onto it, but it keeps drifting up into almost a more cartoon villain tone.

Zee of @ladyzee-oddityhunter responds:

"You or her?" Her voice is the furthest from the camera.

A beat.

"me."

Basil sucks in a breath; before asking, a bit hesitantly: "Derek. Can you tell me about your misdreavus again?"

"About what, specifically..?"

A beat. She had to think for a second.

"How did you meet the couple?"

"...I met them around the time I started my island trials. They er. Always floated around in our "backyard" so to say.. I thought I was special for being able to barely see them through their daytime camouflage at the time, which, I now realize is, likely quite common, and just. Started offering them scare-dates. kept them fed."

You could almost hear a bit of a smile coming into Derek's voice.

"And eventually they decided that was good enough. And felt safe enough to evolve in my vicinity."

"Scare dates..." Basil replied with a laugh that slipped into more of a giggle. "Hmh. We would have been friends as kids, i think. But i was usually the one scaring the other kids..."

As the conversation continues, she sounds slightly more comfortable. There's still that slight bit of hesitation; as if she doesn't know if she even SHOULD be talking; but she still does.

"I imagine it was a word-of-mouth thing afterwards... the two of the vouching for you to the mass haunts of other misdreavus?"

The lighter tone carries over to Derek's voice; "hmhm, right, I was an easy source of food, so naturally they'd want to share with the rest of each other. I ah... ... hate to admit it, but I wasn't exactly the toughest fear source then, either," he laughed, and thought for a moment. "... we might've. I feel like we share enough interests."

"Fed off you as a kid so much that they feel bad about doing so now," she replied. You could almost hear her grinning. "Makes enough sense, though. Little kids are easy to scare, no... what's the.... object permanence, i think. No life experience."

The camera jostles as she adjusts her position slightly. She's gone from trying to satiate a wild animal to just having a conversation with her (slightly more dangerous than usual) friend.

"Reminds me of when i was in middle school... one time i found this big ass pelipper skeleton in the woods, took one of my friends at the time to see it. Screamed loud enough you could hear it back in Undella, i had to write her an apology. even though she said yes when I asked if she wanted to see..."

"Oh my," Derek laughed; "... I think I've only seen diagrams of Pelipper skeletons. I would've wanted to see, I believe." He sounds like he's starting to tire.

(An offended little "chwaw??" sound chirps out from what might be @pokeglitchden Simon's Pelipper, Gilligan.)

Basil keeps talking. It's about the only thing she can do.

"I don't doubt i'd be able to find another one back on that route... route thirteen, Unova. Right above Undella Town. The wild Absol hunted them down sometimes, but i think they preferred the wild swellow. less of a... watery taste, if i had to guess."

A beat of thought, just for half a moment.

"Maybe sometime after this all clears up, we could visit. It's not Alola, but it is a lot warmer on the east coast of Unova during summer than Icirrus, tucked in the mountains. Sometimes there'd be a swarm of shuppet around there, too. Wonder if that was foreshadowing anything."

A long beat as Basil waits for Derek to respond. When he does, he sounds like he's on the verge of falling asleep.

"... yeah, I would imagine Absol likely wouldn't...

...

appreciate the decreased savor..."

The silence is heavy as Derek, presumably, drifts away into sleep.

"... G'night, Derek."

There's finally some movement in the video as Basil's skirt swings over the camera; looks like she's standing up. She stands there, still, for a moment as Simon's voice chimes in.

"Right... We'll... fix this tomorrow."

The video ends as Basil steps above the camera, headed off... somewhere.]

[archive-of-the-lost]

𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 @glumii

꒰Your match is Niko Ikki!꒱

꒰I꒱— Impression (Their first impression of you)

She's probably like me. He first saw you at the manga shop he frequently visits, so he knew you have the same interest as him as he watched you check out with a new manga volume in hand. He didn't think to approach you at first, he's an introvert after all; but as he saw you at the same manga shop over and over again, the thought of befriending you became more compelling. The problem was that you were always there with your friends, and he was too shy to try and talk to you with them around. Until one day, finally, his chance came.

꒰A꒱— Anecdote (A little story about you and your matchup)

Your first date with him was at a cute, not too pricey cafe. He was really nervous and kept looking down at his lap as he tried to make conversation. You're both the type to let someone else lead the conversation unless it's on a topic you're interested in, so he decided to just ask about what kind of anime you're into a few minutes into talking. The date ended up going well since you both started taking turns talking about your favourite animes, mangas, and games. It's not until he returns home with a happy sigh that he realises he didn't even find out simple things about you like your family dynamic, what future career you're considering, goals you have. Even if he doesn't enjoy small talk, that seems a bit much for a first date...

꒰E꒱— Expression (The one little thing they do that shows how much they love you)

He knows you don't like being alone, so he tries and accompanies you whenever he can. Like when you can't get your friends to go to an event with you, he'll offer to come with you. Same with running errands like going grocery shopping. It doesn't matter how mundane or "boring/tedious" whatever you're doing is. He likes spending time with you, and wants to make sure you have company.

꒰R꒱— Revelations (What did they learn about themselves after getting into a relationship with you?)

It's astounding to him how you can make him come out of his shell almost easily. When he approached you in that manga shop and asked you out after getting to know you for a bit, a big step for him as he doesn't approach others often. How he'll accompany you through new and crowded places like train stations because he knows those places make you uncomfortable, how he'll order for you at restaurants even though you both would rather let others order for you, pushing himself out of his comfort zone so you can be more comfortable. When he talked about his beloved Yu-Gi-Oh! cards then apologized for rambling, but you told him to continue and said you like hearing him talking about something so passionately. You accept him completely and encourage him to be more open around you. It's comforting. He wants to be someone you can take comfort in too.

꒰Q꒱— Question (Who popped the question? How did it go? - Answers to this letter take place after a time skip so the character is aged up)

He was the one to propose. He took you to the manga shop where he talked to you for the first time, even though you both had moved to another city by then. He didn't even try and pretend he had a special order to pick up or something. If you guessed what he was planning on your way there and asked him about it, he didn't answer. There, by the furthest left aisle of the shop where he approached you, he pulled out a velvet ring box and popped it open to reveal a diamond ring. He got down on one knee afterward because he was so anxious, and forgot to do that before pulling out the ring, but he made it look natural like he was planning to do that so you couldn't tell. He's gained more confidence and maturity since you both started dating, but you can still see a glimpse of that nervous boy wanting you to accept his request to go out with him all those years ago in those teal eyes of his, no longer hidden behind his bangs. You see him fully, and he sees you.

꒰Thanks for requesting! Hope you like it.꒱

[shinidamachu]

In the bonus chapter since then why did inuyasha try to hide the kikyo thing from kagome ?

For the same reason Kagome sat Inuyasha. Takahashi actually regressed their character development for nostalgia's sake. And Miroku can back me up on this one:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but It's my understanding that Since Then is an extra chapter, created with the sole purpose of raising funds for charity. As such, it didn't need to be clever or a valuable addition to the franchise. It just had to sell. And nostalgia sells.

Inuyasha had a very definitive, very tied up ending. And we can argue for hours on end about if the fan’s general reception of the series and Sunrise’s “creative licenses” regarding characterization in the anime influenced Takahashi’s perception of her own characters and affected her work or not.

But regardless, it’s pretty clear – at least to me – that she was going for the “some things never change” trope by having Inuyasha hiding something Kikyo related from Kagome and then Kagome sitting him over it later on.

The thing is... most things do change. Inuyasha and Kagome went through major character development. The situation presentend on the epilogue only makes sense if we’re thinking about 15 years old Inuyasha and Kagome. And even so, only until a certain point.

For instance, there are many times in which Kagome sat Inuyasha that felt really out of character to me, especially from the middle to the end of the story. And I also have a lot of trouble reconciling the Inuyasha we saw being honest with her about never being able to forget about Kikyo or explaining to her how Kikyo appeared to him in the illusion created by the Flower Prince and apologizing for not realizing Kagome was suffering too to the Inuyasha of the bonus chapter.

It’s not that he has never hidden stuff like this from Kagome. He has met Kikyo in secret before and it caused Kagome pain. Not because he went to Kikyo – in many occasions Kagome actually encouraged him to go see her –, but because he goes without telling her about it and doesn’t really acknowledges her feelings when she gets mad afterwards.

Kagome told Inuyasha that it’s inevitable for him to go after Kikyo, just as much as it’s inevitable for her to get upset when he does. Because they loved each other and were in an impossible situation, Kagome was more understanding than most people would be in her place. Inuyasha checking on Kikyo wasn’t the problem, but rather leaving Kagome in the dark about it. Why does he do it? Precisely because he doesn’t want her to get mad at him.

Inuyasha knows Kikyo is a delicate subject when it comes to Kagome. He knows that she gets sad when he goes to Kikyo and hates to be the one to break Kagome’s heart – but he also can’t help it because his survival guilt and sense of honor are that strong.

What Inuyasha doesn’t seem to know, however, is why Kagome gets so upset. In his mind, he isn’t doing anything wrong. And in this especific aspect, I have to agree with him. Every single time he met Kikyo alone, they did nothing but talk. The only two times the pair ever kissed, Kagome was there too, which, to me, undoubtedly contributed to her biased and innacurate perception of Inuyasha and Kikyo’s relationship, but that’s a whole other rant.

My point is that, faced with the risk of Kagome getting mad at him over what he considers to be not that big of a deal, he took the easy route and kept it from her: out of sight, out of mind. It’s not, by any means, mature or fair from his part, but he’s a 15 years old with a whole lot of baggage and since Kikyo was brought back, he did the best he could, at that moment, to be there for both girls.

There were better ways to handle the situation? Of course! But nothing I can really demand from a teenager character who spent his entire life dealing with an avalanche of prejudice and traumas. It’s only natural that he would want to avoid a situation in which the feelings of the person who meant everything to him got hurt. Inuyasha canonically can’t stand when Kagome is truly mad at him because nobody’s opinion matter more to him than hers.

This isn’t an excuse for his behavior, by the way – because it was wrong of him to sneak out and it doesn’t help his case at all – it’s just an explanation for what I personally think he was trying to do: fulfilling his obligations with Kikyo while also being cool with Kagome. His flawed way of dealing with it is what gives him depth and makes him a compelling character because, let’s face it: if he didn’t make mistakes, then he is just another boring, one dimensional male lead.

It’s precisely because his best efforts to keep his vow to Kikyo and being with Kagome at the same time constantly blows up on his face that makes his situation so tragic and his arc so interesting. The painels above are the perfect example of that. And Kikyo wasn’t even in the equation anymore, which to me just makes it even more obvious that his motivation was always more about being afraid of Kagome getting angry enough to finally leave him than anything else. But by trying to protect her feelings and avoiding confrontation, he ends up hurting her anyway. It’s a game he can’t win, no matter what he does.

It’s important to emphasize, though, that Inuyasha was absolutely willing to let Kagome walk away for her sake. She was the one who chose to stay knowing what she was signing up for and it was incredibly brave and selfless of her. But sometimes people almost act like he forced her to be with him and I hate it because this take is not only an insult to Inuyasha’s character but also strips Kagome off her agency (whatever agency a ficitonal character can have).

That being said, it’s pretty telling that the painel above is from the bonus chapter and not the original story, because it’s the same excuse for Inuyasha’s actions that he always had, only now is said out loud. Which means Takahashi wants me to believe that, three years and six months after Kikyo died, Inuyasha felt the need to keep crucial information from his wife because he still thought, since the issue was Kikyo related, that she would get angry at him over it. Not only that, but that Kagome would sit him because of it instead of having a mature conversation like the two adults they both now are.

I can’t really buy it without compromising canon character and relationship development, as well as considering the fact that time has passed and the miscommunications that were excusable – and even realistic – when they were teens make absolutely no sense at this point of their lives anymore.

And I’m not under the false impression that Kikyo became less of a hurtful, awkward subject between them just because it’s been a while. That’s not how things work. But given that she was such a point of contention between them in the past, especially when Inuyasha didn’t tell Kagome something Kikyo related, it’s hard to buy that he would still make the same mistake now that he knows better, as much as his heart was in the right place.

Although, none of this is surprising. it wasn't the first time Takahashi regressed her characters a bit in favor of the narrative she was going for. Inuyasha constantly reassuring his feelings for Kagome at the beginning and then pretty much stopping doing that halfway down the story is a good example of that.

Other aspect of it all is that Kikyo is a fan, studio and mangaka favorite, but they had already killed her off, so this was the way they found for her to make an appearance of sorts (because God forbid she was used for anything other than causing unnecessary drama between Inuyasha and Kagome). This becomes even more obvious in the animated adaptation, where Sunrise added Kikyo drama that wasn’t in the chapter just because.

TLDR:  Inuyasha tried to hide the Kikyo thing from Kagome because he didn’t want her to get angry at him over it, but this kind of behavior simply doesn’t agree with the character he was when the story ended, meaning there was a huge regression in his development.

And now that some time has passed and the high of having new official Inuyasha content drawn by the original author herself has worn off, I can finally say that, in my opinion, the extra chapter was incredibly out of character.

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Ares

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hades, Dionysus, Demeter, Athena, Hades Pt. 2, Poseidon, Ares

Lucifer

He cannot overstate what kind of damage this mortal was able to do in their first few seconds in the Devildom...

The instant they got to their feet, they had managed to incapacitate Satan and knock down Beel. Lucifer himself tried to get between them and Diavolo but…

If he hadn’t moved his head, if he was standing just ONE INCH to the left… he wouldn’t have a head anymore. Barbatos was there to intervene, but had he not they could have probably taken out the Avatar of Pride and done critical damage to the Demon Prince himself in one strike...

Frankly, Lucifer prefers not to dwell on that moment... He's sure Ares must be proud of this one...

He pretty much treats the mortal like a live bomb afterward, if he can get away with not interacting with them at all, that’s what he’ll do.

He’s NOT scared of them... much... It’s just that they have a bullish and uncooperative attitude at best and since they know they can take any of them, they don't even consider him - Lucifer, the eldest demon brother - a threat...

But you know what the most frustrating thing is? They won't give him an inch of respect, but they'll always listen to Levi! Levi!!

Look, Lucifer knows he may not hold a rank among the Hell's army and he might not have been a major player in the Celestial/Demonic wars of the day, but he's still the strongest demons here, dammit!! 😡

Lucifer finds nothing is more embarrassing than having to ask Levi of all people to keep the mortal in line because he can't... Oh, the humiliation… He hopes they leave soon...

Mammon

At first, he thought they were scary. But in time he thought they were scary… and also pretty damn awkward.

Mammon wasn’t there when they more or less wiped out the majority of his brothers in the Conference Hall but when he finally showed up he'd never seen Lucifer look so pale… If THAT doesn't make you shit your pants, he doesn't know what will.

Naturally, he kind of toned it down on the "stupid human" stuff real quick after seeing that…

But here's the thing. After the two made a pact together, Mammon started to notice that the MC wasn't all that mean, they were just… violent?

He legitimately thought that they couldn’t stand him for a while until one day a guy on the street called him a dirtbag. The MC threw a punch right there! No questions asked, they just decked that guy!!

It was kind of touching… and messy. Very messy. Did he mention that they’re terrifying yet? 😥

As it turns out, the MC has apparently spent a lot of their life just fighting things and being asked to fight things so they're not very used to showing non-violent affection… 

It took him awhile, but he realized that their way of saying, "I like you," is, "I will attack your enemies." So now all he does when his brothers tease him is say, "I'm telling MC!'' and they'll stop immediately. It's great!! 😁

Considers them to be his bodyguard when he goes out to gamble in some… shadier places. Most of the time not even the bouncers want to take on the MC, ain't nobody getting paid enough to lose that many teeth…

Leviathan

Okay, so. It's not very obvious anymore, but he USED to be on the front lines of the war against demons in the Celestial Realm. He was in charge of battle strategies, he led armies, and even now he still holds the highest rank of the royal navy!

So leave it to the kid of a war god to sniff all that out about him, huh…? They appeared to know all about his record the instant they saw him and they actually seemed to respect him for it!

For context, this mortal tells pretty much everybody to shove off but any time he’s around they call him “Admiral” or “sir” and actually pay attention to what he says! He can tell it drives Lucifer insane, but honestly? It’s a bit of an ego boost. 😌

It’s sort of cute when they come to him asking for tactical advice… They get just as into it as he does with his anime and any time he points out something that they haven't seen before they get so excited it's like they're a kid watching a magic trick. HUGE ego boost. 😏

Speaking of anime, it’s hit or miss whether or not they can watch any of it. Anything with good fight scenes (and let’s be honest, not that much talking) they’re on board for. But if the hero and the villain talk to each other for like an episode before throwing punches then the MC will just rant...

MC: “The enemy is distracted... Why aren’t they attacking yet??”

Levi: “Because the villain killed the hero’s best friend and they’re-”

MC: “They could avenge their friend right now if they ended things right here!”

Levi: “MC, we’ve been over this... That’s not how plot works.”

MC: “And now he got away!! See?? They should have killed him when they had the chance!”

Levi: “*sigh*... Let’s just play some CoD.”

Satan 

The last thing he remembered when the “human” hopped out of the portal was a sharp pain to the side of the temple and Asmo wailing as he fell unconscious…

Yeeeeah, not great. And unfortunately for the mortal the Avatar of Wrath tends to hold a grudge… 

For a comparatively brief moment in time, all of Satan’s considerable ire had shifted away from Lucifer and to their new housemate. They found their bed, clothes, pillows, food, and even their toothbrush cursed!

… But Ares kids must be built from some strong stuff, because half of what he employed didn’t even faze them! He even put an explosive spell on their backpack and not only did they tank the blast, it didn’t hurt them at all!! It was like they’re damn near immortal!

Annnnd they kind of are. Apparently the MC had taken a dip in the River Styx at some point before and became nigh invulnerable…

Was it maybe a little terrifying to know that they had kidnapped a nearly invincible demigod on the level of Achilles? Yes. Did that also mean that they must have had a weakness too? In theory....

Satan honestly devoted a depressing amount of time trying to uncover the “Achilles’ Heel” of his new sworn enemy… until…

The MC was walking with him and Asmo to RAD one morning when they passed by a group of lesser demons harassing a small puppy. Now Satan may be more of a cat man, but NO ONE fucks with animals while he’s around.

He was right about to go over and rip those demons a new one but the MC actually beat him to it! Apparently, the second that they realized what was happening, they launched themselves forward and started bashing the abusers' heads into a wall!

… Live by violence, forgive by violence because in that very moment Satan decided they weren’t so bad after all. He even joined in!

Oh, Asmo gave them both shit all day for the bloodstains on their uniforms and the scratches on their… everywhere, but it’s not like either of them cared. Righteous justice had been served and it was glorious!!

100% would team up with the MC in some kind of vigilante “punish-all-animal-abusers” gig. They have but to ask. 😌

Asmodeus

Oh they TERRIFIED Asmo when they first showed up! How else was he supposed to react?? They brought down his brothers like they were made of cardboard!!

Though he had to admit that the confident, battle-ready look they had about them was sexy as hell, he knew better than to go bear poking! 😣 He avoided them like plague until they finally asked him for a pact.

And then he discovered something… something very unexpected….

They're actually adorable!!!

Okay, like, not in appearance (they look like they could pile drive Cerberus for Pete’s sake!) but he discovered that they have NO CLUE how to handle physical affection. Like zero!!

The first time Asmo actually got the courage to try and hug them he expected them to toss him off, but instead they just stood there like a malfunctioning doll, all flustered and confused… It was so cute!!! 🥰

From that point on, Asmo would take every chance he could to wrap his arms around them or kiss their cheeks just to watch them try and fail to handle it. It's more fun than picking on Levi!!

It took two months for them to finally attempt any kind of reciprocation and even that was adorable! They pecked him on the forehead without thinking about it then nearly passed out from the realization. Apparently, they had never felt like kissing anyone before so he was quite honored!

The brothers know that if the MC's looking too mad to listen to Levi, they just need to call Asmo. A nigh invincible warrior becomes a LOT less scary after you’ve cuddled them into submission! 🤭

Beelzebub

Beel didn't like them one bit, at least not at the beginning. They had managed to get past him and actually attack Lucifer which was NOT a great first impression on their part...

He honestly saw them as a threat for a while, but unlike the rest of his brothers he didn’t avoid them. He just kept an eye on them.... constantly….

Look. Beel is a big guy. Stealth is not his strong suit… If he's tailing you, you're probably going to know about it because there's a six-foot something behemoth in orange following you around while pounding down bags of chips. He's not very subtle…

That being said, after following them around for a while the two finally got to talking and he realized that they didn’t want to hurt anybody or anything. They were just acting on instinct before.

After making the MC promise not to hurt any of his family, they got on much better terms. Hell, he actually got them into fangol!

Beel's sport of choice is pretty much just ultra-violent American football so the MC took a liking to it instantly! After enough begging, the coach let them try out and they got onto his team immediately.

He likes having them as a teammate! They're very good at the game, uh... even if they take it a little too seriously…

They once tried to convince his teammates to decorate the team bus with "the helmets of their fallen foes." They're REALLY into the sport… But hey, they haven't lost a game since they’ve joined. It’ll be fine!... Probably.

Belphegor

Hahaha… He’s in danger… 😥

It took one look at this mortal to make him rethink the whole, “Trick the Human” plan… Since when have humans looked like that?? They could crush his skull under their heel!!

It took all he had in him to play it cool when they first met because his internal monologue was nothing but screaming… THIS was the "human" he had to use to get him out of there?? How in the WORLD was he going to kill them?!

Admittedly, he had to think about it for a while. Belphie's a clever guy… and a demon. So who needs an honorable fight, anyway? If he can’t win one-on-one, then he’ll cheat!

He waited until the MC got the door open and didn't attempt a frontal assault… No laughter, no gloating. He just waited for them to turn their back, claws ready to dig out their heart, and then-!

MC: "Do you really want to try that?"

The MC must have had some kind of danger sense, because they didn't even have to turn around to know what Belphie was doing…

MC: "Look. I like Beel and you're his twin brother… So I'm willing to let this slide. But if you really want to try me…"

MC: *looks over their shoulder with the glare of a bona fide killer* "I won't hold back."

That was... very persuasive.

The MC brought Belphie down to the others peacefully with his tail between his legs and honestly Lucifer was more relieved that he wasn’t a bloodstain on the floor than he was mad… They could have killed him sooo easily… 

They did, indeed, forgive and forget about the whole “attempted murder” thing, though Belphie was never quite able to shake off how frightening they were in that moment… He had nightmares for a while.

Thankfully, Asmo clued him in that the MC would melt into a harmless puddle of fluff if they got even the slightest bit of physical affection... Oh, the sweet payback he could dish out... It’s cuddle time. 😏

[legoshi-plz]

WAIT WHAT ABOUT A CHUBBY S/O WITH NSFW FOR THE G A N G ??? -🐙anon

A/N: Alright alright alright! Now that’s a big-brained prompt right there! I kept it shorter this time and with less characters because doing the usually lineup was taking way too long

Warning: NSFW. Also this is written for Fat/Plus-Sized! Readers. It was intentionally specific in that way. Please no Fatphobia, if you don’t resonate with that then this might not be for you. Reader is also Gender-Neutral.

//////////

Louis:

- So scrawny yet has the most confidence out of anybody.

- Sees having a heavier S/O as a testament of his own prowess.

- “You’re not too heavy, I can handle it. Just trust me, beautiful.”

- Always pushing the limits when it comes to throwing you around and picking you up. You’re always scared he’s going to drop you but he never does.

- Exclusively prefers chubby partners. They just feel right for him, feel softer, feel better, especially during sex.

- Speaking of sex, Louis always has to top, please don’t try to persuade him otherwise. It’s really important to him to prove to you that he’s capable of fucking you out good and proper despite being on the skinner side.

- Please be loud and tell him what a good job he’s doing, it strokes his ego so much.

Legoshi:

- He’s actually not picky about what body type his partner has. Legoshi usually falls for personality first and will love any body that that personality comes in.

- Or at least that’s what he likes to think, until he gets a taste of life of the fluffier side.

- Has a hard time keeping his hands off you, your body just turns him on so much. He even feels pretty guilty about it because the last thing he wants to do is annoy you but one look at your thighs and he’s on you in an instant.

- He’s very gentle with you. You’re just so soft and so delicate, he couldn’t stand if he hurt you. Fucks you nice and slow, making sure you’re well adjusted to his size before he picks up the pace.

- Could go down on you for hours and has. Can’t get enough of your taste, it’s almost hypnotizing to him. Makes you cum with his mouth again and again until you’re literally begging him for a break.

- Legoshi is also a hopeless romantic. Very common for him to go off on poetic tangents about how much he loves your body. Incorporates body worship often during sex but also outside the bedroom as well.

Gouhin:

- Gouhin is a panda so chubby, bigger bodies are the norm for his kind. Despite him being a muscular outlier, he’s still almost exclusively attracted animals with more fat.

- Likes his partners HEAVY, says he just can’t feel anything with a skinny partner. Very open and proud about his preference.

- Craves how warm you are and is constantly sticking his hands up your shirt, down your pants, in between your thighs, etc. to warm them up. Just likes to always be touching you somehow.

- Also loves for you to sit on his lap, even for mundane things. As far as he’s concerned, his lap is your permanent seat and even has you sit on his lap in public. If at a gathering with friends, they know better than to offer you your own seat because they already know Gouhin’s not having that.

- Since he’s so muscular, he’s not afraid to do all the work in bed. He actually perfers it that way, really makes him feel like an Alpha male. He will still let you on top (he has an absolute weakness for you riding him), but his strong arms are going to be wrapped around your waist/hips helping guide you while he’s thrusting up into you. Finds it adorable when you get tired and he has to take over.

- “You did so good baby but now it’s time to let Daddy do the work.”

- Aftercare with him is so sensual. He loves to kiss every inch of you afterwards, especially your tummy. He actually has quite the fixation on your tummy, loves the roundness of it. Usually showers it with kisses and then starts going lower which inevitably leads to a Round 2.

Riz:

- Again, like Gouhin, he’s a bear and bears just prefer animals with more meat on their bones. He sees it as a given and thinks everybody knows about this preference bears have so he’s genuinely shocked when people don’t know this.

- However, unlike Gouhin, he’s a little less... refined in his attraction. Riz unintentionally seems like he has a fetish for plus-sized animals by how horny curvy body types make him, but that’s just his hyper-sexual nature.

- Which is why he nearly worships the ground you walk on. He finally found an animal that’s able to keep up with high sex drive, who’s also able to handle his rough nature without him being worried he’s going to break them in half.

- Sees larger partners as more sturdy, so he feels like he doesn’t have to hold back with you. Manhandles the absolute hell out of you just because he can. Also, he’s always habitually squeezing your sides/rolls, he’s completely obsessed with how solid you are.

- Always picking you up and carrying you. If you’re in another room but he feels like cuddling, he’ll find you, throw you over his shoulder and bring you to the couch/bed/etc. just to curl up with you. Thinks your weak attempts at saying “Put me down, I’m too heavy.” are HILARIOUS.

- “Do you know how strong I am, baby? This is nothing to me,”

- Riz is still very much aware of how huge his dick is so he wouldn’t ever purposely hurt you but he is an intense lover. Mating Press is his go-to position, followed by regular missionary. He loves when his huge body is covering you and you literally have no other option but to lay there and take his fat cock.

- Also loves any position where he picks you up and fucks your soft body into a wall. Thinks it’s cute when your chubby hands slap his shoulder when your orgasm is approaching. Speaking of chubby hands, he likes to put two of your fingers in his mouth and suck them while he’s pounding into you (it’s a really weird kink of his but it keeps him rock hard during sex so you let it slide.)

Collot:

- Like Legoshi, he didn’t really know about his underlying attraction to plus-sized animals until he met you. He’s always been an ass man, preferring the big, round kinds the would jiggle in the palm of his hands. But when he saw your body, he was completely mesmerized.

- He’s still very much an ass man, and takes any and every opportunity to smack yours then squeezing it. You know that thing guys do when they grab your ass so hard they spread the cheeks a little. Well, Collot is the King of that.

- Also loves to spank you. Not always as a punishment either, sometimes he’ll just come home, see you looking irresistible, and will sit down, patting his thighs. “C’mon, you know the drill.”

- Spanks you and marvels at the way your thick thighs and ass tremble before him. Always rewards you by sinking two long fingers into your plush heat. Doesn’t stop fingerfucking you until you’ve made a mess all over his lap.

- He’s definitely handsy in almost every aspect of your relationship. Pinches your cheeks when he’s teasing you, blows raspberries on your tummy just to get your attention, caresses your thighs when he feeling frisky. He also really likes how pudgy your arms are. Likes to nuzzle his face into the soft flabby part of your upper arms (you know the part). It’s really warm and smells nice because it smells like your scent (perfume/cologne/etc.) and he just can’t get enough of it.

- Has a little bit of an oral fixation when it comes to you. Loves to watch you eat, talk, anything that involves your mouth really. And when you’re not doing anything with it, he’s fighting the urge to stuff your face with his cock and see your pretty lips work their way around that. Seeing your chubby cheeks bulge from taking his girth into your mouth sends him over the edge every time.

- He’s extremely possessive over you. Knows exactly how gorgeous you are and how anyone would leap at a chance with your soft, full figure. The thought of sharing you is enough to have him foaming at the mouth.

- “You’re mine, do you understand? Nobody’s coming between you and me.”

- That’s something he says often, usually after sex when his fingers are trailing up and down your spent form. Despite him saying it softly, you know he means every word.

[archived-kin]

you go to a devildom zoo and a penguin attempts to seduce you (the brothers are not happy)

note from kin: this was meant to be out way sooner but covid-19 and a whole lot of catch-up coursework said no to that idea >:(

anyway formatting on mobile is actual ass so let me know if this ends up unreadable!

enjoy, darlings!

fandom: obey me!

character(s): gn!reader, lucifer, mammon, leviathan, satan, asmodeus, beelzebub, belphegor, diavolo (mentioned briefly)

pairing(s): demon brothers/reader, penguin/reader (one-sided), a bat also very briefly tries to seduce you

warning(s): reader really loves deadly creatures which i know isn't really a warning but just as a heads up for those who can't relate i guess??? also this is ended up WAY longer than i intended lmao

genre: fluff (but also crack)

oh the pure joy you felt when you found out that there are zoos in the devildom

zoos full of sphinxes, chimeras, hydras, krakens, manticores, basilisks and griffins, but zoos nonetheless

in fact, you’d argue that the fact that the zoos here are full of potentially lethal legendary beasts is even COOLER

so, naturally, you begged lucifer to let you go to one

his response?

“absolutely not, you could be killed.”

well now that’s just unfair

there are so many things down here in the devildom that could kill you! the heat, the food, the dragons just wandering around in the skies, your fellow students at rad, belphie, not sleeping enough, the stupidly narrow staircases, lucifer himself! in fact, you’d argue that lucifer has already come close to killing you more times than any of those creatures at the zoo

unfortunately that was entirely was the wrong thing to say because now lucifer’s gone all broody on you

you just KNOW he’s gonna spend all of next week either drowning himself in work or sulking in the music room if you don’t cheer him up quickly

so you guess it’s time to pull out the puppy eyes and hope that they work

spoiler alert: they do. you also end up being stuck in lucifer’s arms for about five hours afterwards as he cuddles out all of his negative thoughts, but that’s not a bad thing, so you’re not complaining

the next day, however, you are BACK on your bullshit

and you are back with a vengeance!

you are getting a trip to that zoo whether lucifer likes it or not and you will not rest until you succeed

your first idea is to go to diavolo for help because.... he’s diavolo and lucifer would listen to that demon before anyone, including himself

unfortunately that doesn’t work because diavolo is out on a business trip to the human world with barbatos

(which means your butler buddy, who could probably have helped you make your case, is also out of the picture)

you suppose that you could try getting simeon in on the scheme but you’re pretty sure he’d end up making it worse with his insatiable penchant for teasing lucifer

your final solution?

cry

and it worked a treat too!

lucifer is just a sucker for his human and he doesn’t like seeing them sad okay :((

he finally agrees to let you go to the big zoo just north of RAD since it’s directly under diavolo’s jurisdiction, but he also makes you promise that you’ll take at least one brother with you

(he’s hoping you’ll choose him)

but then you uno reverse card him!

jokes on you, lucifer, your human wants a family day out!!

lucifer would be lying if his heart didn’t swell slightly when you proclaimed you wanted all the brothers to come with you so that you could all spend the day together having fun

although you may have just made a mistake because now lucifer is going to do everything in his power to make sure the day goes perfectly, and if that means smiting the rude demon in line in front of you, then what about it?

(luckily you stop him from the killing someone before you’re even inside, but it was a close call)

the moment the eight of you step into the zoo satan whisks you off to look at the devildom equivalent of big cats

which means the sphinxes and manticores first, then the giant fire-breathing tigers

he’s planning to have a nice heart-to-heart conversation with you while the two of you stroll along the exhibit, but then you both get distracted by how cool the animals are

so the two of you just end up dragging each other back and forth to look at one creature after another

not the romantic scene satan initially had in mind, but he’d be lying if he said this wasn’t also absolutely perfect

holding your hand while you talk enthusiastically about how majestically that manticore leapt thirty feet into the air with your entire face lighting up like the most beautiful lantern in the world? stunning. outstanding. he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

meanwhile, back at the entrance, levi is sulking, mammon is fuming, beel is already stuffing himself with overpriced food stall delicacies, belphie has crawled under a bench to nap while he waits for you to come back, asmo is taking pictures with the extra long-legged flamingo billboard, and lucifer is so preoccupied with trying to figure out just how the hell the walking system here works that he hasn’t even noticed that you and satan have just disappeared into the void

in the end the remaining brothers split off into pairs, all agreeing that whoever is the first to find you and satan will get to have some one-on-one time with you next

and, drumroll please, that lucky pair turns out to be... beel and belphie!

(really they have an unfair advantage though since beel can smell out anyone he knows from a mile away)

meanwhile satan has just spent just about all of the grimm he brought with him on a hideously overpriced plush version of the manticore you were so fascinated with

but the smile on your face when he gives it to you?? the LIGHT that exudes from you when you declare that the plush’s name is now greenie because it has green eyes just like his?? worth it. absolutely worth it.

but uh oh, the moment is soon to be gone, because guess who’s here?

beel and belphie can’t let satan have all your attention! beel is a little more forgiving, but belphie is going to make sure he’s the first to get a kiss today, anti-lucifer club alliance be damned!

he’s not going to admit that of course. instead, he’s going to very subtly hip-bump satan out of the way so that he can hold your hand instead (beel can have the other hand, but if he tries to pull you away, he’s getting what-for.)

normally satan would be pretty miffed by this, but hey, he’s in a good mood right now and he doesn’t want to spoil the day by getting pissy, so he lets the twins get away with it. younger sibling privilege, am I right?

belphie wants to take you to his particular favourite exhibit here, the giant carnivorous cattle with horns the size of chair legs

beel, on the other hand, suggests that maybe you don’t want to see a gargantuan mammal tear apart a giant piece of meat that may or may not have been sourced from a human graveyard (the giant carnivorous cattle are picky, okay? at least they’re not murdering people for the meat)

you, however, are absolutely fearless

besides, what harm can a giant carnivorous cattle with horns the side of chair legs do to you when it’s being kept behind six inches of hellfire trench, with three of the devildom’s most powerful demons close by to swoop in to your rescue?

beel begrudgingly agrees to go see the giant carnivorous cattle, but makes you promise to stay slightly behind him so that he can jump to defend you should they get out of hand

your big strong demon standing in front of you, protecting you as you get to look at a super cool and also deadly creature? you are absolutely on board with this.

(satan is slightly concerned by your willingness to go near creatures that could tear you to pieces in a second, but if he gets to see you smile like that again then... well, what can he say, he’s a simp)

so off you go!

the giant carnivorous cattle are AWESOME. you get to watch a trio of them eat what appears to be an entire car in, like, two seconds, tops, and they don’t even look bothered by the metal disappearing down their massive gullets.

(you ask belphie in an undertone why the cattle are eating cars if they’re carnivorous. his response is that even giant carnivorous cattle need their minerals, so the zookeepers feed them a bunch of the metal stuff you get in human scrapyards.)

(sounds like an RSPCA violation to you...)

you’re practically tumbling over the fence as you lean forward to get a proper look at them and their adorable tiny wings, so belphie ends up having to pull you back

just as he does it, however, he has a very bright idea

so instead of gently tugging you back as he’d originally planned, he practically yanks you into him, conveniently slipping your hand out of beel’s in the process

listen, it’s not that belphie resents letting beel hold hands with you at the same time as him. a demon’s just gotta get his hugs sometimes, alright?

of course you’re a little miffed about being so violently yoinked, so you’re about to turn around and give belphie a piece of your mind, but then he pulls you close to him and nuzzles his nose into your hair

how are you supposed to scold him for that???

he seems so content and he’s even doing that adorable little purring thing demons do when they’re happy that he never does in public

you can’t just pull out of his arms! it’s probably illegal!!!!!

belphie gets a pass for being cute this time. only this time. no more.

(as an aside, this sort of thing happens at least once a day because belphie’s a whiny little baby who can’t go twelve hours without your love)

anyway now beel looks a little downtrodden which you are not having

your solution? wait until belphie lets go of you on his own and then you can give beel a hug of his own.

unfortunately belphie doesn’t seem interested in separating from you

luckily you don’t end up having to deal with that, because then satan steps in

partially because he feels bad for beel and also partially because okay that’s enough touching now, know your boundaries

which means it’s BEEL’S TURN TO SHINE

does this demon want you to die? because that is what’s going to happen if he keeps being so friggin sweet

first of all he buys you a bunch of treats from the nearby food stalls with his own money and offers every single one to you

is he on drugs? is that what’s happening here? what happened to the avatar of gluttony who ate first and asked questions later???

of course you aren’t going to be so cruel as to take every single one of the treats he’s offering when you can physically hear his stomach rumble as he holds them out to you

instead, you take a handful or so and tell him to eat the rest himself because he deserves it

beel almost tears up he’s so happy he loves you so much in that moment

some may say he’s being dramatic but beel says that every moment with you is a treasure and he has every right to be emotional

belphie is a teensy bit pissed that satan simp-policed him when he’s just as whipped but it’s beel so... he’ll stay down

satan, meanwhile, starts snapping pictures of you at every opportunity, most of them candids, to save to the album he has dedicated especially to you, and also to send to the brothers’ group chat to brag

asmo responds to each one with even more heart emojis than the last, levi always has some kind of jealous comment to make, lucifer stays silent (satan knows he’s saving the photos to his own gallery to gaze affectionately at later though), and mammon just keeps sending angry stickers and then quickly adding that they’re not aimed at you but at satan for having the audacity

anyway, the four of you end up leaving the giant carnivorous cow exhibit after spending a few minutes just sitting together on one of the giant benches while you and beel (mostly beel) eat the giant pile of food he purchased

(beel’s not evil so he offers satan and belphie some obviously, but he makes it clear that you’re getting first pick)

beel’s about to ask where you want to head next when

here comes trouble

and make it double

asmo and levi are IN the building (zoo)

levi, having gotten so antsy waiting for you to show up, disregards all subtlety and basically throws himself right at you, scoops you up, and takes off

leaving behind your poor manticore plush, a stunned satan, beel, belphie, and asmo, who immediately starts running after the two of you, shouting ‘hey, that isn’t fair!’

satan, belphie and beel are left to exchange disbelieving looks and attempt to follow

(don't worry about greenie, satan picks him up and vows to keep him safe until he meets up with you again)

meanwhile you are being quite literally swept off your feet

“levi. levi stop i can walk. levi i’m coming to aquarium with you. you don’t need to pull me. levi i’m getting a little dizzy over here. levi please”

luckily you are saved from your impending doom (because, realistically, there is no way mr hasn’t-exercised-in-several-millennia can carry someone halfway across the biggest zoo in all three realms without tripping) by asmo

now, asmo does not like exercise. it makes him all hot and sweaty (and not in the sexy way) and it’s just... not it. however, because it’s you, he will make an exception just this once.

so he grits his teeth, pins back his long-ass fringe with a cute butterfly clip, and runs for it

normally jealous-mode levi will not stop for anything, but a running asmo in the right situation is even more terrifying than a quiet angry lucifer, and a quiet angry lucifer normally means multiple people are getting burnt alive

so what does levi do? naturally, he stops in his tracks, lets out a scream of such a high frequency that he disturbs a flock of deathseye hawks nesting in a tree nearby, and almost drops you on your head

asmo immediately stops running, takes a moment to dab off any sweat on his forehead with his dainty little pink handkerchief, and lets his hair back down

because he is not exercising for a second longer than he has to

anyway, now that you’re not being torpedo’d halfway across the world, you can finally take a second to breathe and actually ask levi what he wants

he goes pink and stares shame-facedly at the ground and refuses to say a word, especially with avatar of lust ‘i like teasing my brothers to the point where it might be sexual harassment’ asmodeus Right There behind you

but you want your purple boy to be honest!! which means it is puppy dog eyes time again

finally, staring determinedly off to the side, levi mumbles, “you promised we’d go see the fish...”

oh your poor heart

you’re inclined to start pressing kisses all over his face, but you just know he will immediately blow up on the spot if you do in such a public area, so you settle on giving him a subtle hug and reassuring him that yes, you will go see the fish with him

now, asmo’s a hoe for attention, we all know that, but even he has his moments

so, making you promise to go see the birds of arcadia with him later, he departs with a wave and a very sneaky kiss planted on your cheek to let you and levi have your time together

thanks asmo

so off you and levi go!

the aquarium FUCKS

sorry that was too strong

the aquarium is GORGEOUS

it’s got this beautiful deep blue-green ambient lighting, and there are enormous tanks for the giant sharks that essentially make up the walls and ceiling

and there are SO MANY FISH!

rainbow fish, neon pink fish, fish with tiny markings that make them look like they have moustaches, fish with scales that change colour every five seconds, glow-in-the-dark fish, fish the size of a small car

literally any kind of fish you can imagine? they HAVE THEM

you’re almost too distracted to notice levi tugging aggressively on your sleeve

when you do, though, he quickly ushers you over into the tunnel exhibit, where the dolphins live

devildom dolphins look pretty similar to regular human dolphins, except they live in what’s essentially hydrochloric acid and are pitch black in colour with bright purple eyes

you’re pretty confused as to why levi wanted to drag you in here so quickly - you’d have thought he’d go for the goldfish, or the venomous water serpents, or even the special hydra exhibit they’ve got for a limited time

but then levi pulls you over to the very edge, taps his fingers lightly on the glass, and... starts clicking and chirruping?

you’re about to very concernedly ask if he’s feeling alright when something amazing happens

the giant male with scars all over it who, according to one of the signs along the tunnel, spends most of his time skulking as far away from the glass as possible and will eat any demon who comes too close, swims over to him

then, wearing the gentlest little smile, levi turns to you and tells you to say hello to captain

you almost yell out of sheer excitement, but you manage to collect yourself

instead, what comes out is an aggressively whispered:

"hello!! hi, captain!! it's lovely to meet you!! i love you!!!!"

and captain loves you too!!!!!

he swims right up to you and butts his nose against the glass

well you can't not immediately press your face against the glass as well so it looks like you're bumping noses with him can you???

so you do exactly that

all the while going "hello!! hello!! you're such a pretty boy!! what a handsome boy!!"

levi almost cries because you are just too perfect

you love captain? and captain loves you too? he seriously has to hold himself back from dropping to one knee and proposing right then and there

after taking a moment to get his heart to calm down, he translates what you're saying to captain, who immediately starts clicking back

and guess what??? captain says you're the prettiest!!!!!!!!! you’re the handsomest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

now you're going to cry

you and levi spend ages in that tunnel together, just talking to captain and holding hands and exchanging little kisses now and then

levi is so in his element here in the aquarium that he isn't even as nervous and stuttery with his affection as usual

it's almost jarring, but are you complaining? absolutely not

when and levi emerge from the aquarium, both a little giddy and still enthusiastically talking about all the other creatures you said hi to after captain (who you are most definitely coming back to visit sometime), asmo is waiting outside so impatiently that he's getting a lot of irritated looks for his aggressive foot-tapping

levi wants to go see the reptiles now, but then asmo plays the 'i let you get away with having alone time, now let me have mine, bitch’ card

and to be honest levi's pretty sure that even self-proclaimed romance expert asmo can't top the mini-aquarium date you've just had with him, sooooo...

buying you a little keychain replica of captain just to get a final one over his brother, he bids you goodbye and goes off to the reptile house on his own, pulling on his headphones on his way so that he won't accidentally end up talking to some stranger again

it is now asmo's time to shine!!!

and so off the two of you head off to the birds of arcadia exhibit

however, it seems that asmo doesn’t have much interest in the birds themselves apart from for taking pictures with them for his devilgram

the birds are beautiful indeed, but guess what else is also beautiful? here is a short and concise list:

1. holding asmo’s hand

2. giving asmo kisses

3. receiving kisses from asmo

4. giving asmo hugs

5. receiving hugs from asmo

6. cuddling with asmo

7. sleeping with asmo (in the literal sense)

8. sleeping with asmo (in the not so litera—)

this has been a short and concise list of things that are very beautiful and you should absolutely do right this second (not ghost-written by asmodeus, avatar of lust, not at all)

anyway, it’s kind of hard to concentrate on that adorable neon striped pecker sitting close by to you when asmo is draping himself all over you like a damn scarf

it’s cute! it’s cute. but.... the birds...... you want to see the birds.........

in the end the two of you settle on a compromise: asmo will let you have some time to just look at the pretty birds as long as you keep holding his hand, and then the two of you will go and get matching face paint together

asmo’s kinda pouty about it at first, but he quickly changes his mind when he sees how enamoured you are by the birds

you really are too cute!! he just wants to scoop you up and cover you with kisses, but he’s already promised to leave that for when you aren’t in the middle of a busy public space

(he definitely isn’t the slightest bit jealous of them because he wants to be the only beautiful thing that you look at like that. he knows he’s prettier than those birds.)

(but, like... he’s still gonna puff up his chest a bit when he catches one edging just a bit too close to you. he may be the avatar of lust, but he does have his moments of jealousy as well… even if they’re at blooming birds.)

finally, when you’ve decided that you’ve had your fill of gorgeous birds, asmo immediately pulls you off to the face-painting booth

all the designs the demons managing it have come up with are pretty beautiful, so he’s not bothered about which one to get as long as you two are matching

which means you get to choose!!!!

at first he thinks you’ll ask for the super popular one that imitates the feather pattern of the most popular bird of arcadia, the lesser spotted spectra

but then you turn to look at him, think for a moment, turn back to the demon doing the painting, and ask if they do custom designs

asmo can only watch on, confused, as you and the demon whisper conspiratorially back and forth for five minutes

then the demon has started painting, and the cheeky little grin on your face is making him a little worried that you’ve deliberately asked for a really stupid design just to mess with him

but then, as the strokes and colours all come together, he realises something that might make him a little teary eyed. just a little bit.

the design you’ve asked for just so happens to be the gorgeous, swirling pattern of the avatar of lust’s pact mark

and it’s not just that, either. he takes a closer look and realises that the little flowers added around the edges are his favourite kind of rose as well

and THEN the demon doing the painting turns to him and tells him with a smirk that, by your suggestion, the paint he’s using has been enchanted so that it goes rainbow when you kiss the person who’s wearing it

oh, he really should have had more faith in you! this is even better than anything he could come up with!!!

(he takes about a million photos of you while he’s waiting for his own turn and sends at least a quarter of them to the group chat)

asmo is practically vibrating with excitement as he sits there getting his own face painted

and if you think he doesn’t drag you off to some secluded corner for a good half an hour just pressing little kisses all over your face and giggling when he pulls away and your face paint has gone all the colours of the rainbow, you are severely wrong

of course, he wants kisses as well. this is a give-and-take system and he wants just as much as he gives!!!

unfortunately, there is one disadvantage to spending so much time just canoodling

the others haven’t heard from you or asmo in a good hour and they are beginning to PANIC

mammon in particular is practically shooting off the walls and just constantly spamming you with ‘WHERE ARE YOU’ and ‘COME BACK’ messages

asmo doesn’t want you to go but he’s also kind of running off a high right now so he decides it’s okay and sends you off you find mammon with a cheery wave (and a love struck sigh once you’re out of earshot)

you find mammon just walking in circles in the communal area outside the cannibalistic not-zebras exhibit

he almost bursts into tears when you come up to him and tap him on the shoulder because it feels like he hasn’t seen you for what feels like hours and hours and he just,,, he missed you okay

after five minutes of him just furiously rubbing his eyes and refusing to admit why, he gathers himself and asks you what you want to go see

you have to think for a good long while because, while you’ve been to plenty of zoos in the human world and know by now the sorts of animals most of them have, devildom creature species are unpredictable

you could jokingly say ‘hyper-aware empathetic goose’ and they’d probably have one

but then you have a look around you and see the big map

and what is the first thing you see on that map?

‘vampiric venomous bats’

oh fuck yeah

mammon is a little concerned because the vvbs are known to randomly swoop down and attack the people who walk into their exhibit

he knows you can protect yourself!! but when you’re being swarmed by a horde of more than fifty giant bat creatures with enormous teeth full of venom that can kill you in seconds, there’s really not much you can do

and there is no expressing the amount of absolute misery that would descend on him if he let you get hurt

so instead, you make a compromise and decide to go to scheduled talk on the vvbs in ten minutes instead

normally mammon finds these zoo talks boring as all hell, but heck, if he gets to hold your hand for a whole forty five minutes without having to make an excuse to do so, he’s down

so off you go to the talk!

you’re having the absolute time of your life as the keeper shows you one of the more lethargic bats and describes exactly how it paralyses its prey with high frequency screeches and then kills it with a single bite to the neck

mammon, on the other hand, is honestly kind of spooked

that bat may be half-asleep, but it’s got the eyes of a murderer

so what if he shuffles a little closer to you every time the bat moves?? it’s not like he’s scared of it or anything! no way!

(please hold him or he may cry)

but then... DISASTER strikes

the keeper looks out across her bright-eyed audience, listening attentively to her explanation of how the vvb detects prey through the slightest vibrations in the air... and asks if there are any volunteers who want to hold it

everyone goes quiet. they’re all looking at the floor and avoiding eye contact like students who don’t want to be picked to answer a question in class. they may be demons, but even they know danger when they see it.

except...

mammon is just commenting to himself in amusement about how quiet everyone’s gotten when he looks to the side and practically feels his heart freeze

your hand has flown straight up into the air, and before he can pull it down, the keeper has called on you

mammon may be just as terrified of that bat as everyone else, but he isn’t going to let you go near that thing without him to protect you

the keeper looks a little befuddled as to why one of the most powerful demons in the devildom is following you up to the front like a very attached duckling, but luckily she goes along with it

first she gives you a super thick dragonhide glove to wear, just in case the bat gets violent

then she attaches the little lead around one of the bat’s feet to the end of the glove, so that even if it tries to attack an uncovered spot on your body, it’ll just get pulled back

(meanwhile, mammon, standing just behind you, is just barely holding back from bursting into demon form and wrapping himself around you to protect you)

and so, as you watch in anticipation and mammon in terror, the keeper slowly moves the bat from her arm to yours

at first it just kind of sits there and blinks and... doesn’t really do much

the keeper, however, seems very happy about this

“it means she already trusts you!!!”

and she tells you to try a simple little trick

“just flick your wrist up and she should swing down to hang from your hand!”

mammon is very pointedly whispering to you that that’s enough, you’ve held the bat, come on let’s get out of here

but you are determined to continue putting your life in danger, it seems, because you do exactly what the keeper says

and it works!!!

piki, which you have learned is the name of this particular bat, lets out a quiet squeak and drops to hang from one of the enormous fingers of your glove

you immediately go ‘wooAAAAAAAAAH’

mammon almost bites his tongue in half because of how on edge he is, but it turns out that he doesn’t need to be

because the bat turns to you, blinks once, and suddenly puffs up around the neck

you panic a little at first, but the keeper seems incredibly excited

“she’s displaying!!!!!!! she likes you!!!!!!!!!!! she sees you as a potential mate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

okay mammon is not having any of that

he is not about to be upstaged by a goddamn bat

and so the instant the bat and glove is removed from you, he grabs you by the hand and charges right out of that room, shouting something about it being urgent

leaving poor piki the vampiric venomous bat squeaking sadly because her new crush is gone

sad :(

now mammon is buying you a giant plush to make up for dragging you away like that

happy! :)

and you KNOW this means a great deal because mammon does not part with his money very easily. in fact, most of the time, one would have to physically threaten him into buying something for them

and the fact that mammon bought you a ridiculously expensive enormous plush that probably dug a pretty big hole in his savings without you even asking??? your heart basically melts on the spot

now you definitely can’t get angry at him for pulling you away so suddenly

so instead the two of you go to see the giant narwhals

you’re fascinated, but mammon is too distracted to even look at the narwhals

he just keeps staring at you looking so happy hugging the giant plush he bought for you so close to yourself with this giant dopey grin on his face

(s i m p)

he’s shaken out of his infatuated daze when he hears a camera shutter directly behind him

at first he whips around ready to fight because he’s expecting levi or asmo, but then he looks up slightly and comes face to face with none other than his beloved older brother

lucifer doesn’t even try to hide the tiny grin on his face as he very slowly raises his phone and takes a photo of mammon’s half shocked and half irritated face

mammon is so dumbfounded by how much kinder lucifer looks when he smiles like that. he doesn’t even recover in time to tell you who’s just showed up - you end up noticing by yourself

you should have given lucifer a bit of warning because the moment you turn around and and greet him with such a bright and happy smile on his face he is DECEASED

all you and mammon see is his cheeks going pink but let me tell you this man is screeching like a trapped possum on the inside

lucifer may act like he’s a Big Important Unfeeling Demon but everyone else knows that this man would quite literally bring you the moon if you asked (he probably wouldn’t be able to pull down the entire moon, but damn him if he isn’t going to try)

he has to stay silent for a moment because he knows that if he speaks his voice is going to crack and mammon absolutely would NOT let him forget that for the rest of his long life

once he’s managed to get his puddle of a heart back to a state where he can speak without sounding like the physical embodiment of being smitten, he’s quick to offer to take you to the nearby penguin exhibit

he’s paid attention to the messages he’s been receiving periodically from the other brothers throughout the day about the things you’ve been getting up to with them, and he has seen a pattern in the sort of creatures you like the best

that pattern is: the more deadly, the better, with bonus points if it still looks cute

and lucifer has been to this zoo enough times to know most of the best exhibits pretty well (especially since diavolo’s taste in deadly creatures is very similar to yours, so he knows that any of the demon prince’s favourites will probably end up pretty high in your list as well)

therefore he knows that the devildom’s penguins are about two and a half meters tall, with millions of retractable fangs in their beaks and venom sacs in their necks that they can spray so violently and quickly that they’ve become known as ‘venom machine guns’

and you are ALL ABOUT THAT

you’re so excited by the concept of these penguins that you don’t think twice before tucking your arm into lucifer’s outstretched one and following him off to the exhibit

leaving mammon pouting furiously behind the two of you

now, while the avatar of greed doesn’t dare to directly interfere with his older brother, he most certainly dares to inconvenience him

what does that mean? it means that mammon is immediately whipping out his DDD and shooting a quick message to the group chat specifically made without lucifer to let everyone know what’s going down

and, within ten minutes, every single one of the other brothers are heading right for the penguin exhibit as well

lucifer is in the middle of listening to you excitedly talk about piki the bat when he feels something hit him in the back

he turns to see, with great dismay, that the six other brothers have started following behind the two of you, and have begun taking turns throwing things at him. satan doesn’t stop even when he realises that he’s been spotted.

lucifer feels a vein pop in his cheek when satan manages to nail him right in the middle of the forehead with a screwed-up ball of paper

unfortunately for lucifer (and fortunately for the other six brothers), you quickly take notice of the group following behind you

the avatar of pride can only watch in dismay as you call out for the others to come join you to see the penguins

well, obviously, the others are coming now that you’re inviting them over!!

asmo immediately jumps to give you a little kiss on the nose just so he can see your face light up in all the colours of the rainbow again

(which earns several surprised noises from the other brothers since, while they knew from the pictures from asmo that the two of you had gotten your faces painted, they didn’t know the paint did that)

belphie subtly shuffles up behind you to give you a little prize figurine he spent way too long trying to win on one of the zoo’s mini claw-machine games, while beel attempts to find a stealthy way of sneaking the bag of treats he’s carefully sourced for you into your pockets, but ends up giving up on that and just hands you the bag instead

levi is still on a bit of a high from the mini aquarium date, so his face immediately goes fifty shades of red when he sees you, but instead of running off like he usually does when he’s flustered, he just offers you the WIDEST smile

satan is a little disheartened when he realises just how much bigger the plushie mammon got for you is than greenie... but who cares!! greenie is small and cute!! he most definitely isn’t puffing up slightly like an indignant owl when he sees you hug that plushie to yourself like it’s the softest thing in the world!! no sir!!!!!!

mammon is being kinda whiny about lucifer barging in and ruining your one and one time together, but then satan reminds him that they’ve all just interrupted lucifer’s one on one time with you before it could even really begin, and also points out (a little saltily) that, judging by the giant plushie in your arms, he’s already spent more than enough time with you

(luckily mammon isn’t exactly perceptive so he doesn’t pick up on it or else satan would be in for one hell of a teasing)

you, meanwhile, don’t miss the way that lucifer not so subtly presses himself closer to you as the eight of you are walking to see the penguins

so close that your arms are physically touching

it’s not like lucifer to be this clingy (well, clingy by his standards, anyway), but you aren’t going to bring it up considering that he would probably immediately move away out of ~pride~ if you did

unfortunately the other brothers don’t need you to point out lucifer’s behaviour to immediately start attempting to sabotage him

by the time you all get to the penguin exhibit, you’re surrounded completely by all seven of them, and they appear to be executing a genuine attempt to crush you if the pressure on all sides is anything to go off of

looking on the bright side of things, though, the penguins are SO CUTE

sure, they’re about nine feet tall with beaks full of millions of tiny serrated teeth and very toxic-looking feet-claws. but they’re ADORABLE

you love them so much!!!!!! but now the brothers are being big MEANIES and aren’t letting you get close to the fence

“those penguins can shoot venom up to twenty feet, we’re not taking any chances” so WHAT you just want to see the goddamn penguins!!!!!!!! you’ve survived countless near-death experiences down here, you can manage a bit of venom!

eventually your very pointed complaining finally gets most of them to relent (asmo is still against it, but majority vote says you get to get closer to the penguins, so HA) and you are allowed to go right up to barrier that separates the attraction from the spectators

you’re absolutely delighted, but the brothers quickly realise that their concerns about this whole thing were not unfounded

because that fucking penguin over there is totally giving you the googly eyes

levi is the first to notice - as the general of hell’s navy, he has a natural connection to all animals of the seas, even the ones that are only semi aquatic

satan notices soon after him - he’s been to plenty of ‘taming dangerous creatures’ club meetings, and he knows how to recognise attraction in animals

you yourself are pretty clueless until you suddenly notice that one of the flock is now sliding beak-first on its belly towards you

levi silently hopes you’ll be scared into leaving, but instead you just lean right up to the barrier (lucifer hurriedly grabs you by the arm before you fall over it) and whisper-shriek “hi baby!!!!!!!!!!!”

oh the brothers did not like that at all

but the penguin seems absolutely THRILLED

you’re pretty sure you see its eyes light up. like physically light up, not in the metaphorical sense - its eyes glow

(do devildom penguins understand human/demon speech?? you could swear from the penguin’s reaction to your greeting that they do, but when you ask satan about it later, he just scowls and shakes his head, proclaiming that devildom penguins have ‘a brain smaller than a tangerine and the motor function of a slightly bent paper clip’)

(damn satan you didn’t have to do the penguins like that)

anyway, this penguin, now thoroughly convinced that you are its destiny, hops to its feet, nods its head several times, then proceeds to start making the weirdest noise at you

you don’t even know how to describe it. it’s like a laser beam has been combined with a motorbike combined with a vacuum cleaner combined with levi when his favourite idol group releases a new song combined with that godawful screeching violin satan has been playing on repeat for two weeks just to annoy lucifer combined with, i don’t know, a turbo-charged printer or something. and then the whole thing’s been shoved through a dubstep filter.

it’s such a rattling sound that asmo, mammon, levi and belphie clap their hands to their ears, beel frowns so hard his entire face squishes inwards, satan recoils so far backwards that he’s about two feet further away from you than he was at first, and even lucifer actually physically flinches

(short break for a personal headcanon of mine but hear me out here: this man probably listens to nothing but full professional orchestra classical all day. he absolutely has that thing where his ears are sensitive to poorly played notes or just harsh grating sounds in general. you know, like how lan wangji and lan xichen in mdzs are physically repulsed by the sound of bad music? yeah that)

you wince slightly, but the pain in your eardrums is overpowered by your thrill about the fact that this penguin is actually talking to you

you smile wide and reply, leaning right up to the banister, “hello!! hi!! it's nice to meet you too!!”

if the penguin was happy before then it’s absolutely over the MOON now

it makes the weird honking sound again, nodding its head furiously at you, all the while shuffling closer and closer to the barrier

you are positively delighted by this development, but each of the demon brothers seem to be taking the penguin’s approach as a personal threat both to them and to you

beel’s expression is steadily scrunching up more and more in displeasure as each second passes, asmo’s glare could probably boil the penguin alive, and you’re pretty sure you just heard levi hiss at it

you turn around to try to tell them off for getting jealous over a penguin out of all things, but they are just not listening to reason

the penguin meanwhile is desperately trying to get your attention back by nodding even more frantically and honking so loudly that lucifer actually reels back a little

you try to turn back to it but then belphie decides that he’s going to shove his way right between you and the barrier and block the penguin’s line of sight

the penguin immediately sets up an extremely loud complaint, but belphie refuses to give it any rope at all

at this point the other brothers begin catching onto what he’s doing

mostly because of his weird twin telepathy thing, beel is the first to join belphie’s quest, with his giant frame being substantially more effective as a barrier, while asmo and satan work together to not-so-subtly start ushering the entire group backwards and away from the penguin

you’re attempting to protest, but lucifer is practically shouting over you about how interesting and fun you’ll find the giant giraffe exhibit, which just so happens to be on the other side of the zoo

the penguin is positively screeching at this point, but a moment later is suddenly goes silent. for a moment you’re afraid that one of the brothers have lost their nerve and actually killed it, but then you manage to spot it sliding away again around beel’s massive shoulder

turns out that, though his brothers don’t seem to care about his status and power placement at all, the avatar of greed’s glare is enough to silence even the most passionate of penguins

while the brothers exchange triumphant looks as they lead you away from the penguin exhibit, though, you’re more than a little upset by this whole ordeal.

the disrespect? abundant. the lack of sympathy? rampant. the audacity? sheer.

you make your displeasure very clear by scrunching up your face, crossing your arms, and refusing to respond to any of the brothers when they try to ask you something

goddammit, it was supposed to be a good thing that they saved you from the so obviously dangerous penguin, but now you’ve got them feeling bad

in the end, though, you still can’t stay mad at your boys for long

they all apologise (well, all of them except lucifer, whose pride will forever be his downfall, and belphie, who genuinely doesn’t think he’s done anything particularly wrong), and you can’t bring yourself to keep dampening the mood

so, with a short scolding that’s really little more than a light slap to the wrist to remind the boys that you don’t need to be protected from everything like some sort of delicate glass case despite how much they might think that’s the case, you’re back to your previous happy self

thank fuck

the rest of the day goes smoothly! the eight of you do indeed go to see the giant giraffes, which you actually get to feed, and beel somehow manages to knock down an entire row of rigged carnival targets to get you a pretty wooden carving of a super cool dragon

(you’re still not entirely sure how that happened but it was probably the sheer willpower)

you convince all of the brothers to take about three hundred photos with you in the cheesy green screen safari booths (it was mostly levi, lucifer and belphie who needed convincing, since beel and satan weren’t too fussed about it either way, and mammon and asmo were downright thrilled to do so)

lucifer buys the whole group matching keychains, despite the fact that they were pretty basic wood-and-plastic affairs but still cost a good fifty grimm each

(you’ve noticed that he seems to like doing that, considering the harrison porter keychain you’ve still got from that trip up to the human world back during the whole body swap fiasco)

he gets himself a fire-breathing peacock, mammon gets a gold-hoarding crow, levi gets a sea serpent, satan gets a good old regular cat, asmo gets a lesser spotted spectra, beel gets a manticore (since they’re known to eat more than three times their body mass on good days), belphie gets a giant carnivorous cow, and he begrudgingly lets you pick out the giant penguin design - as an apology for his actions earlier.

(you don’t fail to notice the slightly irritated looks levi and satan in turn both send the keychain as you tuck it safely into your pocket)

all in all

a lovely day out

10/10 would do again

[rotshop]

hiiiiiii i have a disease,,,im gonna make a seperate post for 8 other characters i had in mind w/ this same prompt for the sake of me not dying <3

anyway here's a few random madcom characters + an animal s/o because im deranged <3333333

Hank

-this one is a LITTTLEE easy i will admit but,,,Cat,,,,,it just fits!!!!

-he's very good at just kind of. dealing with whatever it is that you kinda throw at him. if you randomly decide you wanna try and take up all the space on his bed (good luck, its fucking Big) that's ok, he'll just lay down next to you somehow. if you decide you wanna lay on him then whoops!! he's stuck there till you get up now lol. (the amount of times deimos and sanford come back from missions and just see him sitting on the couch with you laying on his lap is uncountable,,,each time he just makes a gesture for them to be quiet so they dont wake you)

-VERY gentle w/ you, especially after becoming a mag. he always pets you very carefully with his more normal hand because he's scared of hurting you (there was one time he'd accidentally nicked you a little with his claws and he felt SO bad, kept fussing and asking if you were alright afterwards)

-you both purr!! his is a little louder than yours naturally but he kind of. tries to force it to be quieter because he wants to hear you :[ you kind of. get him into the habit of not doing that so instead he just lays his head on your chest or stomach so he can hear / feel it

-he can pick you up so easily its really funny. exactly ONE time on a mission where you were about to get hit from behind while dealing with another grunt and he just like??? SWEPT you up off the ground and wrecked their shit. the entire time you're just kind of there like 🧍

Sanford

-I'm so serious about this one dont even TALK to me. bnnuy.

-HE JUST THINKS UR CUTE!!!!,,,,ur a lot smaller in comparison to him (dont even get him started on how you look standing next to hank or any mag agents) and it makes him go :] ,,, on that note 9/10 he's carrying you around, he just likes picking you up and holding you since it's real easy and its a way of keeping you close to him (also he likes showing off his strength to you a little bit but shhh)

-rip to you though because you've got more sensitive hearing and. if you've heard his voice lines. then you know. this man. isn't always the quietest. BUT as soon as he noticed how you kinda flinch whenever he's yelling something on a mission or to one of the others then he apologizes a bunch and does his best to keep it to a minimum around you,,

-deimos is a menace and he would try and get san to confess to you a bunch'a times and it would usually just end in him trying to like. cover your ears or something so he can tell deimos to stfu. it barely works but its funny as fuck to see your confused expression and sans flustred one to dei

-all in all he just thinks you're really cute and kind of funny...sometimes you just kind of. sit down next to him and kind of stare because you want him to pet you lmao. on that same note at some point you just kinda. got into the habit of coming to his room to lay down with / around him and he just <:']

Sheriff

-AS MUCH AS I LOVE CATPERSON + SHERIFF,,,fox,,,,,,,,

-You're incredibly sly and fast, directly complimenting his more flighty nature. he is a coward who avoids danger and you ARE said danger, u are fucking deranged <3. at first he kinda thought of you as an enemy because you kept swooping in and saving him but the entire time you kind of. dragged him around like a ragdoll SJFFDJWCDS,,,you're running off as you pull him by the hand to follow you and you like. looked over your shoulder and gave this fanged smile back at him and he just . his brain fucing exploded you killed him. he didn't stop thinking abt it for like 3 days.

-anyways. you run circles around him its crazy, you two playfight and roughouse a lot. however he did have to ban you from biting too hard because you accidentally drew blood one time,,,,,u were apologetic and you kept checking the wound to make sure it was ok and that he was doing alright,,he wont admit it but he thought it was funny to see you all worried abt him, teases you about it but you just bare your fangs (jokingly) and threaten to do it again. he just gets flustered and rolls his eyes with a little scoff.

-you make a lot of like. squeaks and yips when you're excited or otherwise kinda worked up and he thinks they're real funny. he tries to imitate them but he ends up failing and 10/10 you hear his voice crack BUT he still considers it a win when it makes you laugh so :)

-admittedly he does poke and prod a lot lmao. he likes to trace your paws and to kinda. brush against your claws a little because he thinks they're really cool. also again this mans fucking weird, he's stuck his hand in your mouth before because he wanted to fuck w/ ur sharp teeth again. you bit him. he does not do this anymore.

Hofnarr

-(looks at a very specific mutual) hey. yeah no hof cat s/o lol

-he just!!! thinsk you're neat :) he really likes how sweet you can be and also still be evil and fucked up if you so please. you cause problems on purpose and he has to get you out of trouble lmao, SO...most times you just kinda stick around him (unless u have ur own work to do) and watch what he does. sometimes he'll have you help him out with certain things, eventually you kind of just. start picking up knowledge abt this and the first time you say something before he almost messes up on something he's just kinda 'oh yeah ur right....HEY WAIT YOU REMEMBERED-' he doesn't know WHY but it just makes him happy

-it is. admittedly. a little nerve wracking. to be nonhuman. in a lab that sometimes experiments on people. and nonhuman people. for some kind of obvious reasons. so he gets a little nervous about that sometimes. he does his best to kind of keep you out of serious trouble bc of that, keeps you away from phobos or any of his higher ups like him as much as he possibly can because he's scared of what they might do to you :[

-ON A MORE LIGHT HEARTED NOTE,,,u two stay up pretty late at the lab a lot. you just kinda help him out and you both get carried away. it's not an uncommon sight to any night guards or janitors to see you both talking in the dark with only like. a kinda dim lamp on as you both work. its like 1/4 you actually getting things done and 3/4s you two just talking about whatever comes into mind, he shows his more casual and laid-back nature in these moments especially. also not uncommon for people to see you both passed out in his lab curled up against eachother lol

-pets you absentmindedly a lot,,he isn't sure why he does it he just!! does!! he just kinda subconsciously reaches for you (sometimes you have to kinda. put your head under his hand for him which he appreciates). also likes messing with ur paws and claws a little, he's a lot more careful though since he's nicked himself on your nails before

[yandere-sins]

The Fox Wedding - RUN [Bad End]

Summary: You are to marry the fox spirit Kita Shinsuke after you accidentally agreed to become his wife by signing the deed to your new home. A contract is a contract, he says, but is there more to this marriage than you know? Will you be whisked away by one of the foxy twins instead, or have to marry Kita after all? Can you be with a creature that only seems tender on the surface, or will you try to run even if it might cost you your life? Choose your route carefully, you never know what these foxes are up to!

Characters: Kitsune!Kita Shinsuke, Reader

Rating: Explicit

Warnings for this chapter: Major Character Death, Blood mention, Death mention, Animal attack, Gore, Yandere, Kidnapping, Forced/Unhealthy Relationships

What makes a human life worthwhile?

Was it the prospect of forming a family? The continual circle of birth, life, and death? Was it the growing as a person that gave each individual worth? Learning how to laugh and love? Long, thoughtful nights and the achievement of creating something? Relationships, conversations, experiences, are those the things that made it worth to live? 

Or was it pain, fear, and fight? Would your worth rise if you had to clench your teeth and run until your lungs threatened you to give up if you didn’t stop and rest? Could your life only gain worth from being so scared that your body trembled, but your senses heightened in an attempt to be warier of your surroundings? Every inch of your body was feelable, every muscle straining to get your attention. The perfect coordination of orders to follow was only achieved by panic and fear of falling into the hands of the people you had to get away from.

Or their paws.

Or their teeth.

These and so many other unimportant questions plagued your mind as you stumbled over roots and against trees as if you were in a haze. Was the brain capable of enduring as much fear as you were feeling, or was the reason for your questions that it was unable to continue feeling this way? Going numb would have been a preferable action, as well as a deadly one. As such, it kept you occupied, one way or another.

A loud bang resounded from behind you. It was still far away but too close at the same time. The loud crashing of a tree in the distance was only spurring you on, spreading panic as you questioned what kind of creature could break down a whole tree. You weren’t clever. You didn’t actually know an answer to that. 

You didn’t want to know.

Thicket scratched at your skin, broke it, and drew blood as if it were a hundred deadly arms reaching for you, their nails scratching as they tried to grab you. Nothing in this forest wanted to let you go. Not the trees, not the bushes, not him. 

Of course, you had regrets now that you chose to run. You regretted being an idiot and doing this to yourself even though there had been so many warnings. Not one of the fox people had advised you to run - at least at your own. But you couldn’t wait for a prince in shining armor. Or fur. You could wait for nobody to save you from this fate. Breaking out when you found some loose stones around the window of your cell, without proper clothing or a sense of direction, is nothing anyone would suggest you do, but then again: what else could you do?

However, most of all, you deeply regretted that you weren’t running faster.

It was almost as if it was taunting you, the heavy footsteps galloping after you. They weren’t created by feet, but you could recognize them as something very different. Perhaps watching these nature documentaries had been a waste of time, but at least they made you remember the sound of bears running through forests, their big bodies producing a hollow, echoing sound. 

Not one inch of your brain wanted to acknowledge what was after you, but you were sure it wasn’t a bear. 

Somehow, you wished it was. A creature that wasn’t sentient like a human would be just as deadly, but you imagined that it would be less awful than what awaited you. Even if your body still ran and ran some more, way beyond the point of exhaustion, inside of you, you were slowly losing hope. 

Maybe hope is what makes life worthwhile, you thought quietly as you kept pushing forward. Only the sounds of your breathing and gasps left your mouth as you tripped over roots on the ground, but never words. Hope could create inspirations and aspirations. It ‘made mountains move’ and saved people from their worst selves if they could stay hopeful. So when had you given up the hope to escape?

Was it when Kita locked you into that cell? When he mentioned the contract? When these two fox brothers visited you but got sent away? Somewhere along the line, you must have lost it, though perhaps, only just recently, when you realized you had been found out. If this hadn’t felt like a hunt rather than a chase, maybe you could have stayed hopeful. But no matter how hard it was to look truth in the eye, you knew you were the prey of a creature you shouldn’t have messed with. All you wanted was to get out. Out of the forest, out of the vicinity of the monster chasing you. 

Out of this seemingly endless nightmare. 

If you were to die here, could you say your life had been worth something? Did you always do the things you wanted to do or was breaking out from the prison of the foxes your only glorious achievement? Would you leave earth with regrets or regret leaving? 

These questions were the last you could think about before the hellish pain of long, sharp fangs puncturing your torso tore you out of it. How nice would it have been to die instantly on impact, unable to feel how the jaw clenched down, your lungs pierced, and your shoulder entirely crushed by force? Hear the bones cracking in the back of your mind and your arms and legs going limb? 

You had imagined death differently. Even if you were unsure how you imagined it, you didn’t think it would be this way. There was so much pain that it stopped hurting. Briefly, the feeling of blood pouring out of you and dripping down your body was noticeable before it disappeared, too, as your ability to feel stopped. You realized in your mind that you shouldn’t have been able to turn your head, but pressed by adrenaline and the last, untorn nerves, you did, looking into the gleaming eyes of your monster. With a head as big as your whole body, you could only recognize the shimmering, white fur. The beautiful blue shine was mesmerizing, captivating you in these last moments of your life. Long tails waved in the far corner of your vision, and blue light illuminated this creature, making you wish it wasn’t so darn beautiful to look at, so you could have felt anything but astonishment.

The next thing you knew, the jaw around you loosened, making you drop to the ground, the last parts of your body that still twitched and jerked starting to cease their movements. In awe, you got to see how the beast turned back into the form of a human, your eyesight growing weaker by the second the more blood you lost, but you were still able to recognize the face that stepped closer, crouching down beside you. 

In your head, you formed the thoughts to taunt Kita, rub it into his face how you escaped. Had you been able to, you’d have told him you’d never marry him and that he should stop crying like a child. But you were unable to. Gripping the only hand still intact tightly, Kita brought it to his face, nuzzling it. Blood - your blood - was smeared all over his face, and he kept taking deep, pained breaths of anguish. Even now, he seemed dignified, mourning the death of his beloved, and even now, you despised him for it, thinking he had no right. 

“No… no…” he lamented, and you thought that it was unfair he got to cry small blue tears about you while you weren’t able to control what was going on with your body. 

“I’m so sorry, [Name]! I’m so sorry… I… I couldn’t control it… I was so angry and hurt… I couldn’t…”

Somewhere in the distance, the sound of other creatures approached, and Kita took a deep breath. As if he could hide these emotions he was feeling by simply pushing them deeper inside of him, he bit his lips to keep them locked inside before deciding he’d rather kiss the back of your hand with his mouth. “Forgive me,” he whispered. “Please… forgive me.”

What kind of man or creature could sit by the side of the person they claimed they loved, mauled, and then ask for forgiveness? His hand brushed over your head as if to comfort you, and you heard more voices approaching, though they turned quiet as they understood what was going on. Someone said something you didn’t understand, and Kita only muttered, “Not yet,” in return. His eyes never left you, and finally, you realized that this was how you were going to die.

By Kita’s side.

Ah, if only you could have said something to him. Something that would have haunted him for the rest of his life if he truly cared for you as much as he assured you before. Finally, you understood these novels where people sought revenge against others. Though it was probably your body torn apart, but it was as if something was eating you from the inside, this intense desire to at least have an impact on your murderer’s life. Take some of the worth from him just like he had taken from you. 

“Do you remember--”

His sentences started to become incomplete. Kita’s mouth moved, but you didn’t hear what he was saying. It was hard to see now, your vision was not blurry, but you couldn’t focus anymore. 

“--- fox --- gave me --- we --- never ---”

Then, your name. Again. Your shoulders shaking, but all you could focus on was how hard it was becoming to breathe. 

“--- don’t leave --- I love ---”

Taking your last breath felt almost like taking a big gulp of water and breathing out afterwards. 

And then it was dark. 

It should have been different. Your whole life should have been different. Moving to Japan should have been a new start to an entirely new chapter, but it led to the worst decision you had ever made. Perhaps you shouldn’t have run away. Maybe you should have stayed and embraced the marriage. Or you could have waited just a little bit longer for someone who’d keep you safe after all. Even if you had accepted the marriage, something good could have come out of it, and you should have just taken what you could. 

But you didn’t. You died in the arms of the creature you wanted to get away from. The person you despised the most for putting you into this situation and killing you. Are you sure this is the path you wanted to take?

Was it worth it to risk your life?

Or will you try again?

➤   Go back to the prologue to change your fate

➤   Stay dead

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket Manga Review , ch 110

The writer doesn’t need to rush to akito (antagonist) & give us quick background exposition & escalate her mentality to the exploding moment, simply cuz tohru (the protagonist) isn’t emotionally in her most vulnerable moment yet. Tohru’s issues will be presented deeper  with each pov chapter she’ll have. So what should the writer do now?

This is a connected plot, meaning the emotions belonging to the previous chapter are still lingering & needs to be dealt with. There is no stupid laughing & cooking or even dumber momentarily amnesia. Nope! There is this:

-The Art of Writing Slow-Burns: (Lingering Emotions:)

Last time kyo hugged tohru thro the sheets. sth he wouldn’t do if it weren’t for the heartbreaking moment of tohru’s tears & the reason behind them. Why wouldn he do it? cuz he believes he’s the reason of her pain & is setting his mind on leaving her & being imprisoned as a punishment. He  wouldn’t do it cuz he loves her but he did it cuz he loves her. why? cuz love is illogical. Kyo’s heart moved him effortlessly to embrace her & “ his tenderness covered her pain” as the writer put it at the end of ch109.

Last time tohru hugged kyo thro the sheets, sth she wouldn’t do if it weren’t for the comfort of his warmth enveloping her loneliness & providing safety & a home. A home can a person. Why wouldn she do it? cuz Tohru is someone who hides pain behind a smile, someone who thinks she’s ugly & unlovable cuz she’s grieving still after all this time. She’s thinks she’s a burden. But here she confessed to kyo unprompted or advised by anybody. He only asked a fleeting question. but tohru cant hide who she is friom him anymore. Still, he accepted her & tenderly held her thro the sheets & she threw her body at him, she initiated the hug.

The sheet hig is the biggest emotional moment between kyo/tohru yet. It altered how they feel for each other cuz in that moment tohru’s mask fell & kyo was the most honest with himself emotionally. That’s not sth you move from with the stupid ED song. They both try to carry out normally afterwards cuz they live together after all. The slightest touch brings..... sexual tension!!!  it was so bad poor yuki left the house running!!!!!!!!

The writer cleverly escalates the sexual tension as they awkwardly try to find a talking topic, then dissolves it a bit when kto asks if tohru wants to go out together & where, then escalates it when tohru suggests buying eggs cuz she’s awkward, then dissolves it when kyo grumpily agrees but this is just grocery shopping” not a fun going out”, the escalates it when tohru said she’s happy for just bring together with him regardless of the location & kyo looses it! sexual tension explodes!

The target of the slow-burn isn’t the characters... the target is the audience! the writer plays with their emotions & cleverly puts the audience in a place where they desperately want these two idiots together but still remember why they aren’t! that’s very important. Having the readers cheer for a romantic relationship includes the readers understanding the obstacles ahead & how big they are & still cheer. If the obstacles are meh~ the readers will find the couple unrealistic, if the obstacles are so big & the couples emotions aren't buildup properly, then the couple themselves will feel meh~. Glad kyoru survived such writing mistakes both manga & anime ( anime hurt their characters more than their relationship).

-Yuki wants to move on from the unofficial son third wheeling his mom & her man:

The writer jokes abt yuki admitting he felt as a son watching his mon & her bf. I love tha this joke becuz it cleverly addresses the following points:

it is cleverly weaved in with the kyoru incident from last chapter. Sth happen & yuki doesn't know what is & doesn't want to! Yuki represents the audience I talked abt in the slow-burn point above. He is us. He’ll cheer for them to be together & will be so frustrated when they can’t. It adds to yuki confronting kyo at the climax!!! You see in the anime kyo/yuki stopped interacting much in se03. Then tada~~ big fight when it’s a must! & can’t be escaped... Here we still have kyo/yuki moments despite each boy moving away from his issues being the fault of the other. Basically better writing.....

The writer cleverly used this to address that yuki still feels like tohru’s son sometimes despite being more independent now, which is natural as you cant switch ur feelings with a button. But also the writer doesnt stay in this moment long & use it to build the next moment.. yuki/Aya , yuki/machi & aya/mine.... sadly all there dynamics are shortened in the anime like kyoru’s.

-I don’t think yuki/Aya  moment suffered much from the cuts, the entire school parents meeting ep us enough to reconcile the brothers. Aya defended yuki that day & so did yuki. He completely accepted him & stood up to him in front of the mom.

- More aya/mine would’ve been good to see & I would’ve preferred it to yuki/motoko moments in the anime that served nothing. but aya/mine too are stand alone story. They’re the most alike couple in a healthy way. Aya is the guy who protected his woman the most. simply cuz he’s the snake. snakes are secretive. he kept her to himself, even from yuki!!! impressive.

- What I lament from the cut of this mini yuki adventure?

1- This: ( yuki’s facial expressions) This is sth the anime fears, either cuz (a) pretty yuki is 100% pretty all the time, so no expressiveness cuz it leads to showing eyebrows & hiding them under layers of hair is the A.B.C of pretty characters... (b) Yuki in the anime is a prince 98% of the time, except with kyo (they got rid of this in se03 & give them one honest/ugly moment together) & with kakeru (one tiny moment in se03 in match’’s focus ep & then quickly back to prince yuki!)..., ugh!!!!!! I hate how yuki is prince thro & thro in the anime!!that’s why they couldn’t get rid of any motoko content!!! he’s a prince there... heck! school girls float after him the graduation ceremony... what’s up with that!! lol.

2-. This: ( machi with the toy that tohru/kisa/kagura/momiji & kiro like! so cute!!! also, foreshadowing yuki’s future chosen extended family! (his bro & his wife), (yuki & his wife) & best friend/his brother in law! Also, yuki is so himself! no glitters, no bubbles & no pretending anger! <3

Side Notes:

The lovely @mizzraynelly​ made notice kto’s speech in ch109 abt not vising his mom’s grave! Even tho it’s such a minor line, it’s one of the biggest cuts that foreshadow the accumulation of kyo’s guilt towards his mom. Kyo’s thing is guilt towards ppl he loves & fear of hurting them, by keeping this feeling alive in readers’ minds, the writer is making sure that the climax will hurt like sharp knives cuz the readers are on the same wave liength as kyo!!! epic buildup consists of tiny subtle pieces!

 Luckily, kyoru as a ship felt so strong in both manga & anime despite the later cutting half of their moments. Why? cuz the chosen cuts didnt affects the romantic relationship...no... the cuts affects the characters’ own personal struggle... most precisely tohru. Kyo’s own character struggles had better luck in the anime despite the cuts, simply cuz (a) was drawn with very expressive emotions & the anime team lingered on them in his scenes. (b) His character design as a whole was very expressive, the anime team didnt give him constant wide eyes like tohru & didn’t fear expr4essivness will affect for his “beauty “ like yuki. (c) kyo was given one ep per season for his issues which altho not much but way better than tohru (d) most important: kyo’s issues are very universal & very relatable” feeling guilt, mistakes & choosing wrong. That’s sth we all do!!! Tohru’s thing is grieve: this is very personal & most ppl experience it differently. 

I love kyo’s oufit!!! we have a hint of this moment in se03, ep 10 when yuki was fighting kyo... but they made yuki see them shopping as opposed of him seeing them being sexually charged!

I’m so mad this kyoru moment is cut!!!!!! tohru as a woman with pending sexual emotions is so refreshing & underrated in the trope of “ girl saves guys”. Also, it contradicts the pure mom image that’s been suffocating her since se01 ep 1!!!!! oh now i know why it’s cut... That’s why! momma tohru is so pure for such things & only when it’s the last two eps, then will allow her to be a woman choosing to live away with her man by her own desire! Why the anime only allow things ti happen when there’s no escape!!! I’ve always felt tohru/kyo is the type of couple to be expressive emotionally & sexually with each other based on seeing that ALL of their romantic interaction involves body language & I’m so happy there’s a canon proof so early before the future glimpse in finale!!!!!! 

I liked the aya-story, but it felt like the typical “ lesson of the day” formula, so I didnt analyze it much, but I enjoyed the brotherly interaction so much!! It had a gold mine of yuki being himself & so nit a prince! Im so happy I saw it! <3.

Every time yuki looked expressive is a happy moment for me!

[animeyanderelover]

I have been reading your blog for the past few days and I absolutely love it! Is it okay if I request Modern S/o from a Modern World with Yandere! Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, since we have already have Hashirama and the other 2 with Mordern S/o, also take your time!

So many modern reader😂. I didn’t try to get too much into detail with how they would share a darling since I got a request about that as well.

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, delusional thoughts, possessiveness, obsessiveness, vicious behavior, violence, kidnapping

modern s/o

🍜💙🌸Due to Sasuke needing a lot of time when falling for someone, you most likely appeared during the Team 7 days, when all three of them were still genin. They most likely discovered you together with Kakashi one day on a mission, finding a young you all by yourself and looking obviously flabbergasted and shocked when being found by them.

🍜💙🌸And they of course helped you, realizing that you were lost and their Sensei offering you to lead you home if you would tell them where you lived. You on the other hand just stared back and forth between him, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke before muttering something from if you were dreaming, pinching yourself to make sure you weren’t dreaming and that this was reality. After painfully discovering that this was indeed real you wanted to be 100% sure, asking if they were Kakashi Hatake, Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha.

🍜💙🌸Whilst you might have known Kakashi as the famous copy cat, they were all surprised when you knew the names of his pupils. You were pretty far away from their village, making the possibility that you knew them from there very little. It led to Kakashi suddenly getting a weird feeling, his intuition telling him that something wasn’t right here. So he asked you once again from where you were, leading to you explaining yourself. And knowing that they would most likely not believe you without proof, you also used your phone, showing them that you weren’t lying.

🍜💙🌸You were like this brought with them together to the Village, Kakashi deciding that you wouldn’t be safe all out there on your own and if someone would find out about you, you could become very dangerous for them. And just like that you were introduced to the Third Hokage who you showed your proof as well, amusing him greatly that in his old life he was still able to witness something like this. A dimension traveler, how utterly fascinating.

🍜💙🌸But he understood why Kakashi had brought you with him. You had explained after all that in your world their whole story was all written down as a “Manga” and could also be watched as an “Anime”. In short, you knew what would happen in the next few years, knowing what abilities someone would possess in the future and what secrets there were. It made you very valuable and if people like Orochimaru would find out about you, you were doomed. And they would be as well if Orochimaru would find a way to press everything you could possibly offer out of him.

🍜💙🌸So you were most likely given a apartment, most likely near Naruto, and were given permission to live in the village. It was also decided that Kakashi should teach you a bit how to fight, also finding out whether you possessed chakra or not. This was made a secret between you, the Third Hokage and Team 7, all promising to not tell anyone.

🍜💙🌸It should come to no one’s surprise that Team 7 naturally grew closer to you overtime since they had found you and were one of the very few who knew about this secret. So they became quickly your best friends.

🍜And Naruto was the first one who developed some more unhealthy feelings for you, openly displaying his big crush on you and making it obvious for everyone that he liked you. For the reason that you never seemed to make fun of him and always cheered him on, not thinking of him as a monster like many others or just an annoying little brat. Much more on the contrary, you always told him that he would be very strong one day. And you had to know it the best. Since you two lived directly next to each other, sleepovers and just spending every evening time together became somewhat a normality to you two, allowing Naruto to grow closer to you. His obsessive tendencies grew stronger due to the fact that you were from another world and he often begged you to tell him more about your world, listening in awe whenever you did tell him.

💙Surprised by who became Yandere next? I’ll explain later on to why not Sakura. Let’s face it, Sasuke was most likely annoyed when first finding you which might have changed quite a bit after finding out who exactly you were. He knew that you weren’t allowed to talk about it, but it did happen quite a few times that he asked you direct questions about his future and you just told him that he would later on become one of the most powerful shinobi which led to Sasuke hanging out more around you, hoping to squeeze something more out of you. What powers exactly would he gain? Would he meet his brother? How could he reach that point of being one of the strongest ninja to exist? Sasuke would keep it more subtle with his feelings even though his possessiveness was most likely triggered due to knowing that Naruto liked you as well, leading often to snarky comments from him when Naruto was all over you.

🌸Sakura was at first just your best friend for a rather simple reason. At that time she still had a crush on Sasuke and also saw that Naruto liked you a lot. And she cared for Naruto a lot, leading to her being glad that he had finally someone who seemed to understand and support him and she became a huge Naruto x (y/n) shipper. Sasuke is a lot more subtle with his signs that he likes you, but Sakura is very observant when it comes to those she’s close and will notice the way Sasuke keeps looking jealous and annoyed whenever Naruto tugs you away or tries to show off in front of you or the way he seems to tolerate you more than others. Even the way he displays a bit more softness with you which will lead her to feel a bit more conflicted, realizing that you are stuck in a love triangle. But different than with Ino she won’t suddenly start disliking you since she also sees that you keep pushing Sasuke away, most likely because you know that Sakura likes him and take that into reconsideration. You also support her just like Naruto all the time, knowing that she’ll later on become one of the strongest kunoichi to exist.

🍜💙🌸After Tsunade was made the next Hokage, she and Tsunade were informed about your secret as well in order to be able to keep in mind that you were somewhat of a special case.

🍜💙When Sasuke left the Leaf Village he might or might not have tried to take you with him, but since I need you here so Sakura can form her obsession, he failed. Even if he would have managed to take you out of the village, we all know that the with Naruto robbed him temporarily all his power, giving you the chance to free yourself and run. The fight between those two would be in general a lot more vicious than it would have been without you. Sasuke had pent-up frustration inside of him due to the fact that Naruto had gotten so strong, him fearing that Naruto might be one day able to beat him. Not only that, but Naruto also liked you a lot, more than a lot and this poured only even more gasoline in his fire since Sasuke had only you left. And now that blonde idiot was starting to become stronger and the strongest wins always in the end. He despised the thought that he could lose to Naruto. And our sunshine boy was mad as well that Sasuke had dared to kidnap you.

💙And so there is a chance that due to Sasuke’s betrayal another person found out, Orochimaru. He most likely sensed during the Chunin Exams that something about you was different. You didn’t participate or anything, but he kept an eye on you because Sasuke was really close to you and what better way to get his hands on Sasuke than blackmailing him and manipulating him with the one he loves dearly? I can even see him as someone who lit the hatred for Naruto inside of him when he noticed Sasuke’s growing jealousy. Would he seriously let such a weakling like Naruto get his darling? And with Orochimaru finding out this situation will become a bit twisted since Orochimaru will form an obsession with you as well for pure egotistical reasons. He wants to know all the secret and just now a mystery bigger than everything else he witnessed in his life so far was offered to him. So he would be all up for kidnapping you as soon as the chance is there.

🍜If we go with the theory that Sasuke did manage to kidnap you, but you were saved, Naruto would afterwards be so incredibly apologetic and feel guilty for not coming to rescue you sooner, adding even more pressure and misery onto him next to the fact that he already didn’t manage to save Sasuke. But he was also incredibly glad that you were now back, due to the shock most likely clinging terribly onto you afterwards and not leaving you alone until he left with Jiraiya, giving you into Sakura’s care for the time being.

🌸Do you remember my Naruto and Sakura sharing a darling post? It would be exactly the same to that. Sakura spent the next few years training with Tsunade and also dedicating a lot of her time with you. And it was during these years that she started developing feelings for you. The betrayal of Sasuke hurt her a lot and she also felt terrible for what you had to endure due to Sasuke’s selfish act, you were her best friend after all. You could say that after this she finally opened her eyes a bit, realizing that Sasuke wasn’t the perfect man she had always pictured in her head. It was somewhat of a wake-up call, and suddenly she realized how kind you had been to her all this time, making her feel appreciated, a feeling she hadn’t experienced so far that often. She grew very close to you and when realizing her feelings she was totally embarrassed as well as ashamed since everyone knew about you and Naruto. You were unofficially together at this point. It gave her a lot of mood swings since at one day she was on cloud nine and the next felt like hiding in a hole out of shame.

🍜🌸When Naruto came back, Sakura most likely told him about her feelings, a big sign of how close her bond with him was. And whilst Naruto was at first a bit conflicted about this, he and Sakura came eventually to the terms of sharing.

💙Sasuke on the other hand trained in order to kill his brother and get rid of Naruto with the ultimate end goal of finally getting you back in his clutches. He had started feeling incredibly lonely without you, the emptiness inside of him really getting to him. If we do go with the scenario where Orochimaru ended up finding the truth out about you, he would want to meet you as well. Not only are you interesting for him because you’re the person Sasuke’s in love with, but you’re also a dimension traveler. He does try to ask Sasuke a bit out about you, but whenever Sasuke shoots him this glare it’s obvious to him that he won’t talk. If Sasuke does manage to kidnap you, he wouldn’t let Orochimaru touch you without losing it. He knows how Orochimaru ticks and is just disgusted by this. Would be really pissed off the moment he finds out that Sakura is now in love with you too. He used to be annoyed by her because she was in love with him, now he’s mad that she loves you and shares with Naruto.

🍜💙🌸Sharing a darling is not necessarily easy for Sasuke as long as he isn’t really close to that person or it isn’t his brother. All free of them most likely started sharing after the war was over and Sasuke was forgiven his crimes. It would settle for quite the turbulent relationship because Naruto and Sasuke would constantly get into fights and it’ll be yours and Sakura’s job to separate them. More to that when I start the sharing a darling post. I don’t want to only repeat myself.

🍜💙🌸All three of them wouldn’t travel with you back to your world if there should be a chance. I do think that Naruto and Sakura would display a certain degree of curiosity in it whilst Sasuke would be more annoyed about it. But all of them would still stay in their world since all of them are dedicated to something in their world. That also means all of them will stop you if you should try to escape them by fleeing back into your world.

[love-hatred-stuff]

Villain's girl } Im Changkyun [monsta x]

genre: royal/soldier au, vampire au

warning(s): mentions of war(indirect), kind of kidnapping

word count: 1.9k

He, he was perfect, but I just wasn't ready to get involved with him.

I knew I would regret it because we needed each other. But he just hurt me too much. No, actually I really didn't care about myself. Still, I ran away from him again, probably the most unnecessary decision of my life. The only thing that stood in my way was my fear of the gilding of his life. I simply wasn't worth it, was I?

before:...

I was lying on a green meadow that was on a mountain. Hundreds of Lisianthus flowers had grown next to me. I loved them, their scent, their colors and also their sizes. They had a calm effect on me because I had known them since my short childhood.

I've been looking after myself since I was ten years old. My parents? Probably dead. They had left me for a reason unknown to me, but I hadn't thought about it for a long time, because it had racked my mind for the next thirteen years after they disappeared.

Now I was lying here and as far as I knew it was my birthday that day. I couldn't exactly remember that date, but I had celebrated it over and over again on the same day for a long time.

It wasn't a big deal to me as it wouldn't change anything in my life but I was finally eighteen.

The sun had just started to rise, but I wanted to start the day like this, with a quiet hour on my favorite meadow in the morning sun that smiled at me. Unfortunately she was the only one who did that.

Often times I would lie there all night and watch the stars. I was more than lonely, for many years I hadn't met anyone except soldiers who attacked and burned villages, as well as my house eight years ago.

I lost my parents, my house, my food and everything else I owned. Even if it wasn't much, my already small property shrunk even more. But I had to take it for what I was, what I was trying to do.

Despite my health, which had kept up well, I had thoughts of suicide several times. Jumping off a cliff is, eating any branches and herbs. And after a few temptations, I gave up. I couldn't do that to myself yet.

As slowly as possible, I got up to look for something to eat. I didn't really liked to go hunting because I was very fond of animals and hated to hurt them, so I mostly ate berries or mushrooms.

Except once a week, I took my bow with arrow to get me a hearty meal.

When I finally got up on my two legs, I ran and went to my hut, which I had built a long time ago from branches and bushes.

I was there in no time, but something bothered me. Everything was still in its place, but I could make out a musty smell of smoke, which made me cringe.

I looked around silently and indeed, about half a mile away, a huge gray cloud was making its way through the trees.

My heart pounded alarm and without thinking twice, I sprinted in the opposite direction from which the possible fire was coming.

At the moment I didn't care about my growling stomach, nor my hut.

After a while of running I could hear voices in the direction I was walking towards.

I slowly walked slowly in order to be able to listen to every sound, no matter how small. But suddenly a soldier was standing in front of me who looked at me with a grin. I was wearing only a thin, white, yet dirty dress that hung airily up to my knees.

Uncomfortable, that's how I felt. I had never had closer contact with men, how could I (?).

"Well, who do we have here?" The soldier mockingly said.

I just widened my eyes, not to mention my mouth, which had been open since I saw him.

After a short time, more and more soldiers came and looked at me, but I was frozen. People were so fascinating but at the same time so nauseating. The soldier, who was still grinning stupidly at me, stepped closer and grabbed my hand.

"The little one must have forgotten how to speak. But she is breathtakingly beautiful. Take a look at her, guys!" He asked his men to examine me too, which is why they all took a few steps closer.

"Hey!" I heard it from not far away, in the woods.

The one whose voice it was now also ran towards me, which made me take some steps back.

"Don't touch her! She's an innocent one!" The soldier who was now standing in my immediate vicinity.

Fortunately for me, he now attracted the attention that had been on me. He pushed the others away from me, who then stumbled backwards. Then he grabbed my wrist and I felt a heat rise in me instantly, it was a completely new feeling.

I looked into a prominent face with defined cheekbones, which made him look very masculine to me. He looked like someone that could be royal, naturally beautiful.

He looked at me out of his intense brown eyes in which I could have lost myself in, in a matter of seconds.

He raised his hand, pushed a strand of hair out of my face and touched my cheek in the process. All I could do was to stay still like a statue and admire his figure.

His dark black hair that was a little messed up and some strands also graced his face.

A cold but pleasant shiver ran down my spine from his touch. I was fascinated by his looks, it seemed like he looked like a friendly devil. Although his features seemed absolutely flawless, he radiated a dark aura. I couldn't see it but I could sense it. He also had broad shoulders from which two muscular arms protruded. He was looking like a God next to me.

"She really is quite acceptable. Nevertheless, she has to come with me." He pulled me by the arm to the horses, which were not far away at a campsite.

Damn. I should have run faster, now I have to go with them if I don't get a chance to get out of here. I blamed myself silently.

The men were in the majority and clearly superior to me.

The Soldier's grin was quite strong and even when we were already in one of the tents, he was still holding onto my arm tightly. After we I hissed in pain.

Besides all that, I was still totally in shock as it was my first close contact with people in many years.

Suddenly he stopped and took a close look at my body, me not really thinking anything, because I first had to get used to people's behavior and body language.

With his gaze he stopped where he had gripped me tightly to probably prevent me from running away, but slowly the pressure got too big and hurt. Immediately he let go, but he took a closer look at the now yellow spots that adorned my arm.

They weren't the only wounds I had, I kept getting injured and accordingly had blood wounds or scratches all over the place. We were alone in the tent and he finally broke the silence.

"Who did this to you?" He asked, pointing to my wounds, like the blood stain on my dress, over my stomach. At first I didn't know what he meant but then I understood. He meant if I had been hurt by someone else.

"Nobody." I answered clearly and looked up into his wonderful eyes that flashed at me.

"What's your name?" Was his next question.

"Y/n. I think." I guessed to myself.

My name had never been relevant, but I still had vague memories from my childhood and how I was often addressed by that name back then. In the other moment, his gaze softened. He put a strand behind my ear again, as he had earlier. My attention went to his full lips which he twisted into a small grin.

“You are beautiful, Y/n. You will be mine I promise it. Nobody's going to get you." He said with determination.

What did he say? Was that just a compliment? If so, then they sound really nice, but actually I didn't really know what they meant to me. Although I could speak his language fluently and had a good vocabulary to choose from, I wasn't up to date.

"What do you mean?" I was taught to ask when you didn't understand someone, so I did just that.

"Means that we will take you to the palace where you can be sold." He suddenly changed his face and removed his hand from my cheek where it had lingered for a moment.

He had just changed his mind from one second to the other. He wanted me to be his and complimented me, so what now? Now he just wanted to drag me along and let me get sold? Great, I probably wouldn't find a way out on all these soldiers.

"But, to whom should I be sold?" If it was to my advantage I would accept it, then I would no longer be alone and would finally be among people who were equal to me.

"To some rich snob." He simply replied.

I was surprised at his sudden change of heart, but it was the chance for me to finally escape this hole. It had made me sink deeper and deeper until that point. I was redeemed.

"You have to change. We'll stay here one more night before we leave." He stepped away from me and took a white dress down from a kind of drawer, to give it to me afterwards.

A little baffled, I stood there and took the soft fabric towards me. It was soft and embroidered with small flowers.

"Thanks, where should I change and where should I sleep?" I asked briefly.

"Change here. There's a bed back there, behind the curtain. You will sleep with me, I don’t want you to run away." He answered less summarily.

Only after a short moment I could understand what he wanted from me. He was still standing right in front of my feet and looking down at me.

"So I'm supposed to change here and now?" I asked with disbelief in my voice.

"Yes, you should." He persisted.

I suspected he wouldn't give in, so I told him to at least turn around. Then he innocently raised his hands to shoulder height and obeyed my request. When he let his hands fall again, I pushed my dirty dress off my body, which meant that I stood in front of him, completely bare for a moment. Fortunately, he was standing with his back turned to me. But even if not, I would probably have obeyed, because I didn't know whether I corresponded to the typical image of women and had never had unpleasant situations like this before. That's why I never had a reason to be ashamed of my body. But as I stood in front of him I realized how important it actually was to be able to see someone like that.

I quickly slipped into the fresh dress, which clung to my thin body and my delicate curves. It actually looked very pretty, but I could hardly judge it because I still had no taste for fashion.

"You can turn around." I wanted to point out, but my words got stuck in my throat when I noticed that he had already turned around.

I had focused on my dress the whole time and trusted it. Obviously this was a mistake.

-to be continued-