#gift story thing

[omies-odd-writing-spot]

Shinnies?

Gift story to @gullivertravelstowonderland based on their story A Monster of Divinity. I love their story, and a prompt thing I tossed in my discord just... really, REALLY had me hyper fixate on their Flynn/Slayer with it. and got like 10x longer then I thought it would be

Have a smol bean that's a good little nugget seeing the giant Slayer, not know who he is and baffle each other. Oh. And feels. It's me, I like feels and soft things. [This is a doom story so there's under tones of cannon violence, but not completely the focused, as its post Eternal]

.

Big.

That was one of the thoughts that finally rattled free as Iris tilted her head to her right. Then slowly to the left as if that would help her process what she was seeing. She crouched in her hiding spot, trying again to tug off what the bad ones put on her neck and wrists. Her bindings were only half done, it was the reason she got away, and being small.

She was good about being small, and had to learn to stay alive with what was left of her family. Keep away from monsters.

Iris was not so sure if she was seeing a monster as the big thing shifted. It was not boney, like the monsters, or leathery like the really big monsters. Metal, but not any colored metal she was used to seeing. Most plane metals, or the oily rainbow shiny, even coated in white or blue plastic paint.

The girl did not feel that itchy, static feeling in her spine that said monsters were near. At least too near. She was safe to rest and puzzle over what this thing was. Something was familiar about the shape but not quite fitting into place.

Maybe she was more tired than Iris thought. She had been moving and running from one hiding spot to another all night. The girl had not meant to fall asleep in this spot as the reddish gray light of dawn started. After waking up to odd vibrations through the ground, Iris found everything looked different in the light.

The girl could not quite tell if it was because of the difference in nighttime or not. Everything seems scarier at night, normally, but Iris was pretty sure that she saw more bushes and hiding spots in the hazy almost light. She had crawled under an old car…truck. It was a truck, it had a lot of black berries all around it and once she got on the ground and used her backpack to push some brambles, it opened up under. Even had a little spot where she sat now that was light out. She could pick a few berries that were just barely in reach before noticing the odd thing.

Watching the thing, trying to understand what it was, kept Iris from thinking about how hungry she was. The few berries, even the not as ripe blackberries, helped a little with the fact she lost her water bottle in the night. Iris remembered she could not get it free from one of the hiding spots. Needed to leave it behind to go to another hiding place.

She wished she had it, grandpa gave it to her-

The big metal thing moved suddenly.

Iris held her breath in shock, trying not to let out a sound out of a trained habit. Wide eyes watching, trying to sort out if she needed to play dead. Watching the big metal thing, as it was turning to her left, the shape was also changing. 

A foot?

A boot?

Was it a statue? 

Iris took a breath, trying to make sure she did not feel herself make a sound. She felt the ground vibrate as she watched the big metal…foot move again, almost back into the safe spot. As far as Iris knew statues did not move…she hoped they did not.

If this was not a statue, or a monster, what could have a foot that big?

The girl tilted her head, watching how the metal foot moved. It stepped away from the building it was near- Iris blinked. Wondering where that building came from. Had she really been so focused on the metal thing that she didn't notice the better hiding spot?

Buildings were nice, as long as it had no monster traps before you go in. Traps left for monsters could hurt people too, that's what Grandpa said.

Iris tried not to gasp, as she realized there was a second foot now. Watching how they moved. Shapes made a lot more sense with the things being feet.

Was it a robot like those comic books they found?!?

If those were really real, the ones with the red mark were heroes, right? So maybe it could save her grandparents! Checking to see involved getting out of her hiding place. Iris was not sure she was ready for that. 

The (possibly robot) feet were walking around the area. Did the owner hear her?

Iris curled up focusing on trying to not vocalize, to make any sounds. She reflexively looked for her Grandma to double-check. Suddenly struck with the realization once again that her grandparents were missing.

Maybe she was the missing one, because grandpa said to run away.

Iris sniffed as she pulled her legs close to hug them. Trying to hide her face as the girl really wanted to cry, trying desperately to hide it. If she had to play dead with any monsters around, crying would make that harder.

There was an odd sensation then,  feeling a vibration in the air as well as through the ground. It felt different though, like Iris should know what it was. The girl uncurled party to lay down and peer under the shielding blackberry plants. It was not a lot of space but more than some hiding spots, and Iris could see through the thinner parts of the vines. Watching the big feet pulling backwards as the leaves if the blackberries moved in a breeze. 

Iris sneezed unexpectedly at the drifting dust and ash that came off the shielding plants. At the same time a massively… big hand rested on the ground not far. Iris was trying to grasp this new thing as she curled up against the feeling of another sneeze. Unable to stop it she balled up to try and muffle the sound. 

It did not look like a robot hand. 

Iris was not sure if she was disappointed or curious as she sagged. Going limp as she reflexively played dead. She was not sure why playing dead worked with most monsters, just that it did. Better when in a hiding spot. She watched as a second hand was placed on the ground and closed into a massive fist before a knee. Then a big forearm.

…was it a person? The scale, once again, was throwing Iris off so much. A person who was as big as the giant robots? Was that really possible?!

Did that make this giant-robot sized person a stranger?

Her grandparents said to always be careful around strangers. Did this mean whatever this was, was not a hero like the robots with the red mark?

Iris felt so confused, more so when the bigger than big person, maybe stranger was now crouched down, braised on the ground. Just seeing the edge of a head, some dark brown hair.

Definitely not a robot.

Wait, was this big stranger looking for her…?

Iris belatedly realized that as there was a feeling of attention being shifted onto her hiding spot. She squeaked in fright, before putting both hands over her mouth and tried to hold her breath again. Time to play dead, Iris tried really hard as this bigger than big stranger was laying down to peer into her hiding spot. Pressing her face against her hands and struggling to not gasp. To try and breathe really slow and play dead.

She counted to twenty in her head before daring to peek again. Iris squeaked again, finding herself looking at a… face?

Again the size was confusing, it almost seemed like an adult, he was watching under the blackberries and truck. Eerie blue eyes landed on Iris as she lay still on her own side. Watching back with her wide eyes, trying to understand the scale of things. Iris was not so sure she was not dreaming now, or if she woke up. 

There was a low puff of warm air, and a low vibration in the air and ground. The giant stranger-person was slowly shifting, as if laying down and bridging the other hand up a bit more. Closer to Iris’ hiding spot before waving two fingers at her.

Iris hesitantly gave a little wave back, but when the big hand got a little too close, she flinched. The big hand froze just outside of her hiding spot, but the girl was retreating back under the truck to grab and hug her bag. She scraped herself on the blackberries again, but did not seem to really notice as Iris went back to watching.

The girl watched the big hand being rested on the ground. Watched the face that looked at her as if confused. If it was not for the constant, if not lesser, scent of smoke and burning meat and plants in the background, Iris might wonder if she was in a different world. If she had gotten so lost at night and showed up in a different place.

Hugging her backpack tightly, Iris whined softly at that thought. Suddenly all at once missing her grandparents. There was another puff of air from the giant, and Iris sneezed at the stirred up dust. Likely not intended but it helped her focus on the bigger then big stranger… man? 

Iris gave a little wave again, finger spelling out, ‘H-I’

To the girl’s surprise, the giant person shifted to lift his right hand off the ground to finger spell back. ‘H-E-L-L-O’

Iris sat up under the truck, shocked that the bigger than big person could sign that she moved too quickly. Iris clucked her head on the undercarriage and whined again, laying down and rubbed the sore spot. She did not cry though, had to hold that in.

The girl looked back at the bigger than big stranger, debating. ‘Big.’

After a moment and the giant squinting to look into the hiding spot, he grinned. A vibration like thunder seemed to come from his direction, it was fascinating. Iris had felt real thunder a few times, and she stared intently at this stranger as he started to look around at the outside of her hiding spot. Lifting up to peer at the top of the tuck before shifting to try and motion. Paused, clearly trying to sort out how to sign something with both hands while needing one.

He ended up settling back down and slowly finger-spelled at Iris in her spot. ‘S-A-F-E. C-O-M-E O-U-T?’

Iris tilted her head, watching the giant peering back under her spot. For the first time wondering if she had too good of a spot, as it was like he was having trouble seeing Iris. she looked around under the truck, the shadowed space and inched closer to the giant. Then peered at the spot she came from, as well as the entrance to get in her hiding spot.

‘Monster and bad people out. They follow?’ She turned back and tried to sign clearly, closer to the light. Iris hesitated as the girl tried to explain. What if the bad people followed?

The big stranger frowned, his right hand edging closer but paused as Iris noticed and stilled as if about to play dead again. ‘Bad? What bad?’

Iris blinked, surprised, did this stranger not know? Did he get so lost to end up in another world? How could he not know about monsters and the bad people? The girl shifted and hesitantly reached out her left arm, putting her hand and arm in the light. Shaking it to hopefully make the loop of chain rattle on the binding on her wrist, pointing to it before pulling her hands back. Trying to explain as she might have signed too fast. ‘Bad-bad people. They help monsters. Ran away.’

The stranger blinked, his frown deeping before sitting up. Iris missing the scowl forming and darkening his face. She could just watch as he stood back up until only she could see those massive metal feet. Watch them walk around her hiding spot, not turned towards Iris but walking two large circles farther away as he must be looking around. Checking for the bad people?

Iris sneezed again, carefully looking around as the giant was now far away from the truck. She saw a familiar glitter in the grass, the girl starting to sit up. Even if she did not have the special water bottle, or the big straw-like thing… surely it would be safe to get some sips off the top of a puddle?

Not really thinking sense, as it had been so long since she had water, let alone some food. Iris was scooting to a spot that seemed a bit more open, pushing her bag first and wiggled out from under the truck, and out of the thicket of blackberry brambles. The girl squinted at the direct light, feeling odd vibrations again as she looked around, spotted the water again. Iris clung to her bag and fuelled by desperation, she started for the big puddle. It had the ash snow on the surface, but it was water!

The girl was just at the edge of the pool, puddle, her bare feet sank into the wet grass somewhat as the vibration grew stronger. She reached for the water, dropping her bag and hands cupping to scoop up-

It felt like a tree was wrapping around Iris, she yelped as thick bands wrapped all the way around her. Her fingers grazed the surface of the water, before she was being pulled up and back. The girl cried out, needing to drink so much now that she saw it. She whined as the ground seemed to fall away, and a massive hand was coming up from her left, wrapping around her.

Two giant hands were holding her.

Iris whined, not sure what to think of it as she helplessly just watched the ground, and puddle, go farther away and the world rumbled and vibrated from behind. A detached part realized her bag was also left behind on the far away ground. The girl went limp, half training to play dead, to not fight back like with the bigger monsters. Twice a big monster had picked her up, but set her down somewhere as if distracted because she played dead.

She could not help but tug a bit on one of the big digits. Reached for the water, trying to remember how to say it. “Pleeeez?”

There was an odd vibration behind her before warm air washed over her. Different from the heat waves from portals, different from the bigger monsters. Iris felt the… hand holding her losened, the other hovering and then closing in. She did not fight being lifted and moved, turned to look up at the giant stranger.

He really was bigger than big. 

“Pleez?” Iris tried again, pointing roughly at the ground. Seeing the giant shake his head, the girl could not help but whine and tried again to be as clear as she could. “...pleeze?”

This strange… stranger winced, the bigger man looking around and turning. Iris felt the rumbling vibration again, definitely coming from the giant as she was carried with. Taken with? The girl let herself go completely limp, chin and arms resting on the massive finger over her front.

She was really thirsty now that she had seen the water.

The massive hands shifted, Iris not sure what she was supposed to do so she did not resist as she was lifted. Now so high off the ground and level with the giant's face, it was a bit dizzying. He blinked at her, looking worried and that confused Iris as her head was lifted a bit with the knuckle she was resting against. 

It took a second to focus on the face in front of her. “Pleeze?”

The giant winced, and shook his head while glancing at the ground. Wincing again at the soft sound Iris made as she was lowered to his chest level. Only able to be carried by him towards the building. It was odd to feel the grip on… her change, to be held up like a kitten in one hand. One hand holding and supporting Iris as the other dropped away and reached for one of several things on a roof. 

The giant man, with possibly robot feet, was using one hand not to sign again. He was moving several large things Iris’ tired mind could not fully understand. At least until she saw water reflecting light.

Iris squeaked, looking up and for the first time gave a little wiggle. Legs kicking uselessly in the air but she grabbed at the fingers holding her. Her own hands flexing in want as she saw the other large hand setting a container down. Then picking up an odd smaller, maybe bowl between his fingers. 

She could not help but reach out seeing the ‘smaller' container being brought closer to her. The girl was unaware of the excited sound that slipped out. Iris grabbed at the dish as it slowly came into range. Not trying to tug it free, it was a good foot or more wide, and as deep as her hand. Iris held her breath as the container was finally coming into range. The girl got what water she could as it was filled to the brim. 

Gasping for air, Iris lifted her head, clinging tight to the edge of the container. Not wanting it to be taken away as she caught her breath. Then ducked to start drinking again. 

Iris was just starting to feel odd when the water was taken away at her third attempt to drink. She tried to hold onto it but the water was moved away, set on the rooftop. Iris whined at it being taken, kicking at the air in protest. Then the other big hand came back to cup around her. Iris shivered as she was being introduced to heat coming off the bigger than big giant. Still pouting at the water taken away, Iris tucked her head against one of the massive fingers, trying to hide. But it seemed like her only option was to go limp again. 

She was moved, not resisting and after a few confusing moments as she was moved. Iris was pressed against a wall of gray fabric, she grasped it and lifted her head in confusion. It took a second, the clean fabric was… his shirt? Iris was being held against the left side of the giant’s chest. She could feel it really was clean, and she almost started to lean away. The girl knew she had gotten really dirty since her last bathtime a few days ago. Before the bad people came and found her family.

Iris could not let go and instead hid her face against the fabric, feeling the giant person lift his other hand around her. Iris felt so oddly safe at the moment that she tried to hide there while her stomach settled from all that water. 

Maybe it was not so bad to be held by the giant. Iris felt squished for a few moments, the hand holding her shifted to be under the girl. The girl blinked in confusion again, still, but found herself in a cupped hand against the giant’s front. Watching his other hand moved to touch her back with two big fingers.

Iris tucked her head against the living warmth that was just holding her. Not understanding why, or who this was, but he did not seem like a bad stranger now. Not minding at all her back being rubbed, or petted. The girl did not resist as a large thumb shifted to her side, then up and under her left arm. Lifting it as the giant bent his head as if to look at her closely. Warm air passing over, in time with the chest dipping. Iris blinked, belatedly remembering how she showed him the band on her wrists before, but that had been in the hiding spot.

Maybe he had not seen it well?

Hesitantly, Iris slowly let go of her handhold on the fabric of the giant's gray shirt. Gripping his finger tip instead and stretched out her arm. Letting him see the binding in that arm, feeling a different vibration starting in his chest. Different from the rise and fall of him breathing, though almost in time. Different from the heartbeat at the same time.

Iris was shifted, her other arm being nudged by the big fingers. Guessing what was wanted, she slowly let go with that hand too and found herself sitting between the massive hands, more in one palm. Lifted up a bit more, the giant focused not on her face but the bindings the bad people put on her wrists. Iris did not resist but sat calmly, if not passively in the big hand, watching him back.

The eerie blue eyes focused on Iris, realizing she was watching him so intently. He smiled. 

It was not a big smile, and the scars in his face pulled it a little odd. It was still a real smile, and Iris shyly smiled back. Giving this odd giant a little wave, not resisting as one big digit moved slowly to nudge against her chin. Pushing up a bit.

Understanding, Iris grasped the fingertip with both hands and leaned back into his other hand. Lifting her head up to stretch her neck and let him see the binding clasped on her neck. It was a bit uncomfortable, as it was made of metal. Yet, he did not seem to see really well? The giant kept squirting a lot.

He was frowning again, focusing on what was on her neck. Then after what seemed like a long time Iris squeaked as she was moved to be held against his chest again. A little lower but it was warm and smelled clean. Sort of like rain. Iris tried to burrow herself against this safe feeling.

The giant was using a thumb of the covering hand to rub up from her shoulders, over the binding and against the back of Iris’ head. That felt nice, she was happy with the attention. In her position she felt that deeper, almost thunder like vibration again, only this time could feel it with her whole body.

She was distracted from noticing the giant man turning to look around. Missed the flash of teeth of a snarl she could not hear. To her it just felt… nice.

The growling was a deep vibration that felt like what thunder did. It felt like what a moving earth looked like it should. Iris closed her eyes as she focused on the oddly safe feeling she had here, even when the deeper vibration slowed. She felt the massive form moving, but just hid her face and accepted being carried, it was not like Iris was strong enough to make something… someone so big to do anything.

Iris almost dropped into a nap, but lifted her head as the hands holding her were shifting again. She was being lifted again into one hand, and almost did not let go of the fabric in time. Iris squinted herself at the light again, blinking rapidly as she was held wrapped up in a big hand before it lowered and she looked around. Staring at the things set down near her… on a roof?

This was different enough for her to make a confused sound, looking up at the giant man as he set her down beside his things. She was almost disappointed that his hands pulled away, they were warm. Only to light up at being offered the same container as before, grasping and getting a good long drink again until she sat back gasping. Disappointed that it was pulled away and set down some odd feet away. 

Iris was just debating going after but a massive hand moving caught her attention. The girl focused on it, then belatedly realized it was a sign. A little weird seeing it from someone so big. She hesitated and spelled out carefully. ‘What say?’

The giant man slowed a bit and tried again. ‘Who are bad people?’

The girl fidgeted with the bindings on her wrists, hesitating as she tried to think how to explain it to someone that might not know. Then she looked up, pulling her legs to sit with them crossed. ‘They are people that like monsters. They are bad, they hurt others and give good people to monsters. I ran away. Grandma said run so I ran away.’

The big person here looked around, shifting his mass and Iris noticed they were not in the same spot. The big man had stepped over a wall, or fence, there were both that were tall and protected a big… yard? That was what this place was! There were even buttercups!

Movement had Iris paying attention again. Watching the giant sign again. ‘Where are bad people?’

She had to think about it, looking all around from this odd new place. Iris hesitated, her hands flexing in the air to show she was unsure. She swallowed and eyed the water. Then looked up, ‘where was hiding spot? Back of the truck?’

The giant paused and then pointed behind Iris, she looked that way, finding she was looking at the roof. It took a long second, or rather minute for the girl to process first that they were on the other side of the building. She thought about it, starting to sign but stopping. Then slowly started turning back to the bigger than big giant. She started to explain. ‘I found the back of truck? Hid under, but came from that way. Saw a stream, could not get there. Turned from. from…’

Iris frowned, trying to think of the map she saw. Struggling for a moment to explain what was in her mind. ‘I ran… north. Saw a town, didn’t go in. Then I followed a road, saw a stream, and tried to get down. Got lost… found the truck, found you?’

She watched the giant man as he looked over the rooftop. Studying what was there before his attention to her again. ‘What is your name?’

Iris blinked about to sign but paused. Belatedly remembering he was a stranger again, and clearly debating on if it was okay. She took a deep breath and looked up at this big person carefully. Iris made the sign that her family came up for her name, holding her fingers out to sign ‘flower,’ but making the motion for ‘girl.’ Once the giant man copied it, she then finger spelled her name carefully. ‘I-r-i-s. Like the flower! Grandpa said Mommy loved them.’

The giant had an expression Iris did not know how to read. He was watching her intently though. Then spelled out something slowly, watching the girl track his hands. ‘F-l-y-n-n. That's me.’

‘Big mountain.’ Iris could not help it but to point out. Watching the man grin wide at that. Then Iris dared to ask. ‘Why is mountain… why is f-l-y-n so big?’

There was a pause, the giant looked down at himself, then at the girl sitting on the rooftop at his lower chest level. He seemed to be confused before trying to answer. ‘Ate all my veggies.’

Iris stared with wide eyes, she almost just ate veggies! Then sat up and asked, ‘Magic veggies? Or can?’

Did he find a magic can of green beans?

Flynn awkwardly lifted a hand to rub at his neck and shrugged. ‘Something magic. Got big. Try to help.’ 

He was reaching for the water again, holding between two fingers to offer. It was a good distraction as Iris focused on getting another drink. This time she did not try for nearly as much, definitely slowing down. The girl sat up, not gasping for air, resting as the container was not pulled away. She tried another sip but her stomach was full, Iris did not resist the container being pulled away. Looking up at the giant, not resisting or trying to pull away as a massive finger was gently put on her head, sliding down her back.

Iris hesitated but leaned into the touch, any comfort was good at the moment. 

‘F-y.’ Iris paused, and then tried spelling the name again, ‘F-l-y-n, can I have my bag?’

‘Bag?’ the giant paused.

‘I dropped.’ Iris explained, watching the giant… Flynn looked around and back the way he must have walked. Hesitated before resting a hand in front of Iris and leaned to the side. Looking over the rooftop, he spotted the bag. 

Coming back, the bigger than big man started to reach for Iris. Hands starting to cup around her before pausing halfway. The girl just blinked back, not resisting as the tree-strong digits wrapped around her again. The most Iris did was to lift her arms and half drape them over a thumb. Gripping the digit but otherwise just went limp to be picked up. The girl was not resisting as she was held, just blinking at the pause.

She wondered if she was going to be held against the giant again, but he was moving and sitting? Iris was moved, partly turned to see a green covered bench. The large hands opened and with a nudge from the thumb to her back, Iris understood to climb off. She wavered, fully back on her feet again. 

Maybe she drank too much water.

Iris looked up as the big hands pulled away. One tapped the bench before Flynn started to sign. She could not fully understand his expression again. ‘Iris stay here, flower is small, need to know where you are. I'm big. Big feet.’

‘I’m small.’ Iris understood and she climbed up on the bench. Turning to sit and hug her knees to show she would sit, looking hopefully up at the living mountain as he backed up.

Iris watched in awed fascination, able to see Flynn moved as he got up. He was so big and strong looking as he just… stepped over the fence. 

The girl watched for as long as she could, tracking where the giant went until the angle of her and the building… hid him? That was more surprising for her, Iris hesitated before looking up and all around, suddenly remembering that she was in the open now, alone. Watching the sky for a few moments, not able to listen for the flying monsters she had to watch now that she was alone. 

It made Iris nervous, she looked at the building, seeing a door. But she was told to stay here… Iris looked for the giant man, not seeing him still she uncurled and slid off. Not to go to the door but Iris was curled up under the bench and long grass there. She could feel the thudding vibrations again, the steps from the giant? Movement by the fence had her peeking out and watching as Flynn came back.

He froze, stepping in the yard again, looking around before Iris moved under the bench. She waved from her spot and saw the giant man looking for her. He stepped closer, frowning again, Iris worried if she was too good at hiding now. She scooted out as Flynn was kneeling down farther away.

The girl was just wondering why, until the giant man was stretching out. Laying down put his hands and head closer to Iris' level and oddly not as big. One large hand slowly came over, touched her shoulder once Iris was sitting up in the grass in front of the bench. Then opened his hand to show the backpack that looked so tiny.

It was still Iris’ bag, and she squeaked happily, climbing almost up into the wide palm to get it. Scooting back to sit and hugged it, signing ‘thank you’ several times around the bag.

Flynn touched his chin back, moving to prop himself up on elbows. He looked between the bench and the girl, using a fingertip to tap a little bare foot. Once Iris focused back on him, the giant signed carefully. ‘Why hide?’

Iris looked up, then back, ‘Monsters fly. Monsters will grab and eat you if there's no roof. I can't hear them, grandma said I have to stay under things.’

He was mouthing a word, something Iris did not understand. Then Fynn looked back with a frown. ‘Did you see monsters?’

‘Not here,’ Iris shook her head, trying to reassure the living mountain. ‘Monsters with the bad people didn't find hiding spots! But saw monsters before, the flying ones. Not here?’ 

She watched Flynn think, not resisting as a large hand came closer. Letting Iris pat at his fingers while he thought. Letting her be fascinated, realizing she was trusting him to be distracted. After a minute Iris tugged at one finger for attention. 

Once she was sure his attention was back, the girl asked. ‘Do you really help people?’ 

Flynn blinked at Iris, as if puzzled at the question before nodding.

Iris fidgeted with the zipper on her bag and was trying to build up the nerve to ask. ‘Can I ask for help?’ 

Flynn nodded, watching the girl, each movement as she opened the backpack and felt around inside and came up with a small, rectangle cookie tin to her. It was almost miniscule to the giant. Iris opened it and pulled out a picture that had to be folded to fit. Showing Flynn first, or trying to.

After a few seconds Iris set it down, ‘Can you find my grandparents? Bad people still have them. Grandma told me to run, but she was tied up in these.’ 

The girl grasped one of the loose rings on the bindings in her wrists. Then the one on her neck, trying to show that loop. So close, Iris could see the giant man's eyes shifting. The pupils were widening, then his eyes narrowed.

Oh!

Iris almost forgot, flailing her hands and tried again. ‘Can you please help find my grandparents?’ 

How could she forget to ask nicely? 

The girl fretted, as she also remembered what her grandfather said about trading with others. Looking all around and then back to the tin. Brightening up and picked out a few things to hold in her hands and show the giant mountain. Making sure Flynn saw them in her hands before sitting in the lid of the tin.

They were her favorite, prettiest polished rocks, and a silver pendant with the absolutely shiniest stone in the middle. Grandma had given it to her, but if ment getting her grandparents back, Iris offered it. 

‘Grandpa said you have to trade for things.  You can have my treasure. All of them, can you get my grandparents from the bad people?’ Iris tried to explain in a rush, picking up the lid to offer up to the giant.

He stared for a long moment, and Iris worried if her treasure was too small for him. She looked down, set the lid in the grass between them. Then she grabbed her bag to look through it, gasping at finding something she had completely forgotten about inside. Excitedly holding the old can of sweet peaches to the giant to add to the trade. The girl watched, puzzled at the look she was getting. 

Flynn's face was hard to read, the girl waiting until a large finger touched her arms. Iris brightened up and moved to set the can between his fingers. Was that a trade? She looked up, for the first time hopeful since running away.

The giant man turned his hand, caught the can and looked at it. Iris looked down and started to pick up her shinies, about to put them in his hand too, but Flynn moved his hand away. He was starting to get up without the treasures, just the can of peaches closed in his hand. He looked around, stared at the direction of her last hiding spot under the truck before getting up to his feet.

“Ooah…” Iris murmured in awe at seeing Flynn's full height unblocked from the ground level. She watched him carefully step around and to the roof with his things. Watching the giant carefully setting the can beside his things. A bag of his own was reached into and Flynn pulled out the biggest cloth ever. A blanket? It looked fuzzy and blue.

Iris watched the giant pour more water in the container as before. He was moving slowly to come back and kneel by the girl. Setting the container of water by the door and tapped his fingertip on it until the door opened in warnds. His other hand moved to Iris, Flynn shook his head as the shinies were offered again.

‘Too small.’ he signed and then motioned for Iris to get up. She hid the treasures in her bag again, in the tin. Getting up in confusion but followed the large hand guiding the girl to the building. ‘Iris, stay here. Hide inside. No drinking puddles. I'll be back.’ 

Iris looked inside, smelling dust as she clung to her bag. She looked back, worried, maybe a bit scared at the thought of being alone again. 

‘Stay here, so I can look for Grandparents.’ Flynn signed carefully, watching Iris light up again. He smiled again, once she was inside the door offered the blanket like cloth at first. Then a little box between two fingers, a package of granola bars. The annoying kind where the bars were all individually wrapped. Better for little hands, and as Iris was gaping at the food, the giant gently eased the cap of his flask in around the side of the door. 

Food, water, a blanket and a hiding spot he knew only opened into the fenced yard. There was supposedly a working bathroom in this building. The tiny girl would be safe in there-

Thoughts came to a halt as he was starting to pull his hand back. Tiny arms wrapped around two digits, Iris hiding her face against his knuckle and for the first time started to cry. All the scary things, she was now crying at the promise of something good. Not knowing how else to express herself.

The other big hand came around, cupping over Iris, almost fully hiding her from sight. The giant carefully, so carefully rubbed his them over her back. The tiny girl was so delicate… fragile to him. It took a surprising amount of willpower to get her off and back inside. He could not resist gently, so gently touching the top of her head. Just feeling the little fuzz of her roughly cut short hair.

‘Stay here. I will come back. Will look for grandparents.’ he grinned, chuckling as the girl plopped in her spot. Carefully pointed at the door, watched Iris scramble to get back up and close the door. Peeking out before it fully closed. 

The giant Slayer stood back up, reaching to set his things from the roof to the ground. Just in case the girl might need anything inside, Flynn thought it should be easy access. She should be safe there as he stepped over the fence. Making sure he was well out of sight, following the basic direction, now and then seeing signs of someone so small falling in the dark.

The Slayer flexed a hand, pulling one of his one-handed weapons from subspace. No little, innocent eyes able to see him snarl as the giant started to hunt. 

The feeling of someone so tiny sitting in his hands. Either having to trust him, or what it felt like at first that she had just given up fighting? He would find her grandparents, could not bring himself to lie that he could bring them back alive. He would find them though. 

[ruporas]

trigunned the hades or hadesed the trigun (id in alt)

[st-hedge]

Many such cases

[rottengurlz]

toxic yuri vampires you will always be famous to me

[whateverisbeautiful]

Hello! Do you have a master post with all of your Richonne rankings linked/listed? I found your page in the middle of the countdown and would love to see them all. Thanks for writing all of these up—it's so fun and beautiful to revisit their special moments.

Hi! I love that idea 👏🏽 Placing the master list right here. Thank you for thinking of that and thanks so much for reading 🥰

Richonne Top 30 - List & Links

#1: For The Future (9.03) 

#2: I’m Still With You (5.16)

#3: Have Your Mints (6.10) 

#4: We’re The Ones Who Live (7.08) 

#5: You’re My Family (9.05)

#6: Cuz I’m Okay Too (4.16) 

#7: How’d I Get So Lucky Finding You? (9.01) 

#8: Must’ve Been Something Else Then (3.16) 

#9: The Two of Us (7.12) 

#10: The Grand Introduction (3.06) 

#11: I See Things (3.12) 

#12: Kiss of Life (7.05)

#13: I Love You (8.14) 

#14: Soon As I Get It, You Will (6.10) 

#15: I’m Gonna See/You Ready? (5.11) 

#16: It’s For You (4.09) 

#17: You Led Me Here (7.12)

#18: We Will (7.16) 

#19: This Is Good (6.15)

#20: I Don’t Have A Problem (3.12)

#21: Rules Keep Changing (5.11) 

#22: He Needs You (4.11)

#23: Glad To See You (4.01) 

#24: Family Fun Days (9.03 & 4.15) 

#25: A Few More Days (7.12)

#26: We Should Go To Washington (5.09) 

#27: To Replace The One You Lost (7.10) 

#28: I’m Not Losing You (7.04) 

#29: Never Seen Your Face Like That (5.12) 

#30: This Is It (7.12)

[exlimix1a]

Quick piece of @luluyamofficial 's character Lucelia + a 30 second speedpaint!

[thegreatyin]

ive been screwing around with @violant-apologia's item template again, so behold! scoundrel-themed items! specifically a weapon, a home comfort, and yet another weapon. because there's very little else that last one can be, especially considering how much psychic damage it inflicts on everyone in its immediate vicinity.

[shazzbaa]

For a moment, you can see the bones in your hand...

my delicious friend phosphor gifted me the fate needed to play the exceptional story The Shallows!! I HAD A GREAT TIME AND SAM DID NOT, and I decided the events of this story (which included Samuel having to do the Boatman's duty for a bit) were a great excuse to make him come out of it a wee bit more skeletal than he went in.

Here is some of my context-free liveblogging under the cut (some story spoilers):

Thren: "hopefully he doesn't mind all those 'you should not have done thats'...."

came for the Far Shore lore, stayed for the NARROWLY ESCAPED BECOMING THE BOATMAN OF DEATH FOR ALL ETERNITY

[hitlikehammers]

if you can’t write your own necronomicon, store-bought is fine 📔

(not ideal but: fine) — 1/3

for @klausinamarink, who prompted 'NECROMANCY' at the @steddiesummerexchange

Steve wants this clear, on-the-record, absolutely fucking crystal, okay?

It was not his intention to snoop through Eddie’s shit.

It’s not even a ‘respect for the dead’ thing. It’s just a ‘be a decent dude and don’t go through another dude’s personal stuff’ thing.

So like. Just to be clear.

It does not start out the way it…ends up.

——————

How it does start out is this notion that gets stuck in Steve’s head about the fucking gravestone they’re putting up. He hates the idea of it being installed over nothing, just plopped atop grass and dirt and just, just…nothing.

Almost like they’re saying Eddie was somehow nothing, and when the overall notion hits on that thought specifically Steve has this simultaneous urge to break a window and vomit, and it’s just, it’s not—

He needs to find a way to curb that feeling.

He hates it enough to mention it to the others, who don’t get it. At all. Maybe because it’s Steve, and they don’t think he knew Eddie enough to be this…this. Maybe because it’s Steve and that’s not Steve’s role, is it? Having the feelings. And if Steve was in a clearer frame of mind, maybe he’d be able to wonder if the people he’s asking just can’t handle what he’s asking, can’t process more of…any of it, not right now.

But he’s not. In a clearer frame of mind. He can’t process, either, beyond the kind of fucking all-consuming need to not bury nothing under Eddie Munson’s name.

So he buys a casket. Anonymously, uses his dad’s business card. Ships it to the place he knows is doing the stone, there’s really only one option in town and maybe they’ll be confused, or maybe they’ll be pissed, but Steve makes sure when it arrives that it sits on their doorstep, moves it in the night when it gets dropped after hours: unavoidable. Unignorable. Black on the outside and red on the inside, but Steve moves it all by himself and it’s still too light. It’s still empty. It’s not quite nothing.

But fuck if it’s enough.

The only two people he’s tried to broach the subject with—or who’ve heard him in the process—and who haven’t brushed him off are Robin, and that’s because she’s his soulmate, and they haven’t slept without one another in arm’s-reach at the absolute most since they lost—

Well. Since.

The second person is Eleven, and she’d just overheard Mike scoffing and Dustin blinking silently, and Steve had known when to leave a battle that couldn’t be won because it wasn’t even gonna be fought, but he had caught her with a crease between her eyes. Her face scrunched all thoughtful. Listening.

And if nothing else: not dismissing.

So when the idea strikes—not manic, it’s not a manic sort of idea, maybe it’s close, like in the ballpark of manic but hotdogs and millionaires are also in the same ballpark at the same time, y’know, and they’re nothing alike so fuck you—but when the not-manic idea strikes to put something, something that means something, that carries literal and figurative weight, inside that casket?

He tells Robin, who looks at him with sadness but not with pity, and who asks how they’ll manage it, rather than trying to talk him out of it. He’ll never get over how lucky he is to have her; never learn words that live up to how much she means to him.

But also: it’s good that all she does is ask how. Because Steve actually has that figured out.

He heads to Hop’s cabin when he knows both he and Joyce are gone. He explains in simple but plain terms, the kind he’s learning El appreciates best and processes easiest, especially when feelings are involved. And these feelings she grasps without hesitation, and fills in Steve’s vague ideas with concrete plans, and it takes less than twelve hours to see them at Forest Hills, where the government still hasn’t moved that goddamn trailer to give anyone any semblance of closure but definitely finds the time and manpower to put up new tape around the scene whenever it’s tampered with, fuck those motherfuckers all over again and—

Right. Well.

It takes less than twelve hours for El to distract the guards with a very minor fire on the other end of the park and some suspicious-sounding chittering she bets right on piquing their attention, giving Steve and Robin the in to sneak around the barriers and find their quarry: the version of the Warlock that never saw the Upside Down, knocked to the floor but in one piece. Weighty.

Something that means something, to mourn in the ground.

Robin’s peeking out the window, checking if the coast is clear for them to jet, for Eleven to ease off and meet them back at Steve’s car to go back to their evenings like nothing ever happened, save for the guitar in Steve’s trunk and at her signal Steve makes to follow with said guitar slung awkward across his back but then something…something pulls in him. It’s not even a catch from the corner of his eye or some shit, no, he feels it in the center of his chest:

What if it’s not enough?

So he grabs as many of the books scattered on the floor around a cracked and quaked-apart shelf in the corner as he can fit between both arms, all sorts and shapes and sizes, and then he’s ignoring Robin’s raised brow and crawling as quiet as he can back out of the trailer, out of the half crime scene, half quarantine zone, and running for the trees to get back to where they parked.

El’s waiting for them, and as he drives, honestly?

Steve thought he’d feel better about things, now. He thought this would start to calm that nauseous rage in him.

Maybe once it’s in the casket. Maybe once he feels the heft of it as a real thing.

Maybe.

——————

It would probably be logical to think that it’s the weight of the guitar that makes the shift, that turns the tides.

But that’d actually be a goddamn stupid thought because nothing about any of this—this town, what lies beneath it, the war they’re fighting the battle they lost, Steves fucking life now at large—none of it is logical, Jesus Christ. The guitar. What a fucking dumb idea.

Because it’s the books, of course.

It’s the goddamn books.

Because the guitar helps but it’s not enough. Steve tried his fucking hardest to lift Eddie’s body, had him in his arms but the gates were closing, the rope half-assed at too short after he’d cut Dustin off and with all of their wounds even Robin and Nancy—both with more upper body strength then you’d think—were basically fish in a fucking barrel and Steve was in worse shape but fuck if he didn’t get them out, get everyone out but—

He’d been the last, with Eddie. He’d felt the heft of that body, too cool against his chest but not cold, not yet—not dead weight, not dead weight, he was a person, he was this incredible person Steve was only just getting to know and he was, now he was—

No one had been unscathed to the point of being able to help Steve up. Steve had had the kind of shocking sort of clarity for being ready to stay with Eddie as the gate sizzled and narrowed, no man fucking left behind, right, but for the screaming growing ever more shrill for each failed attempt Steve made at holding Eddie different, at trying to get up and over the threshold together to no avail: he made the call the rest of them were screaming of him to make, despite the messiest fucking tears:

Leave him. He’s already gone. You’re not.

He knew how much Eddie weighed to carry, is the point. And the man was a lanky fucker with a little more build to him than first glance gave away but still: the guitar does barely half the work of filling the void.

Though the exact void Steve’s trying to fill might be…it might be more complicated than just the fucking casket not being empty.

But the casket does need more than just the instrument.

He sorts through the books he grabbed blindly; they all must at least be ones Eddie liked but…The Lord of the Rings. There are three of those, right? I feel like there are at least the three, and there are three right here that look so well loved they can’t not have meaning; Steve wanted to read them. He won’t be quick enough to read these copies, though, and that does feel like such a fucking loss, and that’s the point, isn’t it?

The grave can’t be empty. It can’t be meaningless. The marker’s meant to bear the loss.

They’re big, like, thick fucking books—one of about a hundred reasons why Steve hadn’t picked them up before. And no, he’s not…he’s not going to dwell on the why behind the way he lets his fingers flip the pages slow, stop here and there and drag the nail-tip across a line, a paragraph, wondering what some of the words mean, what Eddie would have thought of them, if he were here to ask—

There needs to be more weight. He shoves the trilogy to the side and grabs for…oh.

Oh, these are the…manual. Thingies.

For the dragon dungeons.

He lifts one, tests it: not as heavy. But there…there are a lot, and—

And Steve’s opening them too, flipping slow just the same: wondering. Wishing he could have a running commentary alongside that boundless energy even in the face of the end of the world, maybe because of the impending doom of the end of the goddamn world and Steve, walking shoulder to shoulder with him in those fucking death woods, he, it was, they—

“He was right,” Steve remarks, and realizes belatedly that it’s the first words he’s said to Robin where she’s flicking through a stack of books much quicker than him, clinical: all about the weight for the casket but Steve’s stuck on a page that takes him back to a conversation he heard only half of, the kids trying to catch Eddie up, trying to describe what they all call demogorgons and Eddie muttering under his breath about how that sounded absolutely fucking not like a demogorgon, and there a drawing right here, black and white and:

“They look nothing like they do in the game.”

Robin meets his gaze and still—somehow—her eyes are sad but they don’t pity him. Not yet, at least.

He’ll take it.

“Nothing in these is even really, like, connected,” Steve mumbles as he flips, flinches at the marked up pages on Vecna, Jesus fuck; “or workable,” he looks at the Mind Flayer and cringes, feels the urge to hide those pages from Robin even if she isn’t close, then decides to play it safe for probably irrational reasons and tosses the book to the side and grabs blindly for another one, oh cool, this looks like…spells and shit: “like, none of this looks apple,” Steve bites his lower lip, the word he’s looking for a little fuzzy when he’s scanning over the words on the page, because they’re, they’re not; “not even applicable, y’know, in reality,” but that’s vague, they’ve set foot in more than one reality, so does that even count as a caveat anymore but then, but then—and what they fuck is his heart pounding all of a sudden, he’s just sitting down, that’s not; but then;

“Or else, not for the Upside…”

His voice gives, peters out. His pulse is thick in his throat. He’s staring so hard at nonsense, at fantasy, at, at useless pretend things that won’t change anything, won’t fucking help, and why does it all hurt in his chest so fucking much and—

“Right?”

He looks up and Rob’s already got eyes on him. He can’t imagine how he looks. His vision’s a little…blurry, and it doesn’t even feel like it’s from tears, which…it does feel like it should be—but she might have crossed over to watching him with pity, now. He wouldn’t be able to tell.

But either way: Robin knows him, down to the cells. She knows the question he speaks out loud isn’t the question he’s asking. He’s not asking for reassurance, or confirmation. He’s not even asking her an opinion. He’s sure as shit not asking for permission.

Because he’s dizzy. His heart’s pounding, and he’s fucking dizzy, and it’s nonsense, it’s not real, it’s all a stupid game and the names don’t even match—

But. All of it was real. In some way, it was real.

It’s not an exact science, not a perfect match: it never was. But that wasn’t the point. It was a roadmap. It was a way to process the unfathomable enough to get from point A to point B.

And looking at the words on the page where his fingertip is drawing a long below: he can’t…not wonder. And if he’s already set on wondering, then fuck, fuck—the rage in his chest is easy, his heart doesn’t feel so squished and his might not sick up his lunch for the first time after trying to eat more than a peanut butter sandwich from the community hub. There’s something in this. It’s what he’s been searching for. He reads the words again, again, and again and yeah, they’re absurd, they’re absolutely insane:

RAISE DEAD

But maybe…maybe they’re a roadmap. Inexact but…but up to the task. What if.

They can’t not…try.

Steve will not live with himself if they don’t try.

🖤🪦 NEXT >>>

🖤✨🖤 join the tag list below or follow #store-bought necronomicon for updates

✨permanent tag list: OPEN (lmk if you want to be added/removed): @pearynice @hbyrde36 @slashify @finntheehumaneater @wxrmland @dreamwatch @perseus-notjackson @estrellami-1 @bookworm0690 @imhereforthelolzdontyellatme @nerdyglassescheeseychick @swimmingbirdrunningrock @goodolefashionedloverboi @sanctumdemunson @theheadlessphilosopher @lawrencebshoggoth @xxfiction-is-my-realityxx

divider credits here and here

💫 ao3 link here

[chasing-faith-and-fate]

is Falcon the only cat with powers or do a few of the others have them

About half the clan has them.

Silk, Beetle: sensitive to the afterlife

Dew, unnamed kit: can see the dead

Valley: impossibly strong

Crane: can only see the world of the Takers

Rattle: cannot freeze

Jay: impressive bursts of speed

Epilogue: can hold his breath for an obscenely long time

Falcon: fearless

Unnamed kit2: huger than natural stamina

Unnamed kit3: darken

[seldompathic]

And then a really fucked up AU was born 🫠

[omies-odd-writing-spot]

Warmth: gift 2

<_< >_>

@gullivertravelstowonderland Have a thing, I love your MoD story and just.... GET LOVED ON! Also have a young Vito before the bad happened.

Also a part of the GT july, warmth prompt, just...out of order.

Warmth: Flynn and Vito

It was one of those strange, and rare moments of knowing he was dreaming of a memory. Not too early of one that it was hazy, maybe some odd years old, but he was also realizing it was not fully a ‘bad’ memory. Looking around, Flynn could recognize that he was in one of the better healing chambers of the arena. Not so deep in the pits, he was sitting in a chair with the back removed. It had been to let his back be treated better, and this had been the first day someone used a healer’s wraith gift on him while Flynn was awake. 

He wanted that healer to come back, the cool, almost numbing energy felt nice on his exposed back. More so after the time he had spent in hell.

Not the arena, now that he was awake and aware, the fighting arena was almost fun. The fighting part, not so much the treatment up until this point. He shifted in the dream, looking around from where he had been put in the corner. With two half walls it gave the impression of Flynn having his own space to himself for once.

Even if it was an illusion, and a healer could walk over to check on him at anytime, or offer another cup of water. It was nice to have some semblance of space and not have another prisoner pressed up against him. The healers seemed confused at him though, but not in a hostile. Though not weak as he saw a woman about his height bodily lift and drop a fighter in armor onto a bed and strap him down.

Strong woman!

Flynn was actually smart enough to just… sit. And watch. He could stand and stretch now and then, but the chains on his legs kept him in a set area. The one time he did go to a half wall was to get attention and get some water by offering the empty cup and slowly saying the native word for water he had learned. 

After that he found if he sat quiet during that day, the healers would bring him water, then some of their tea. Then… food.

Snacks?

It was a roll of soft bread, what seemed like a cross of a cookie and cornbread. Then a fruit. He let them fuss with his back, and got a honey flavored brownie. Let the two younger healers, a girl and boy that could not be even as tall as him, that noticed and watch the accelerated healing… he was allowed to walk unchained to the local equivalent of a bathroom. Even with an armored guard escorting, the silver colored guard was different then some of the others. Oddly quiet and just calmly standing guard for the healers more than seemingly to guard him.

That had been much better then what was in his prison cell before!

At least the corner was dimmer so Flynn could dose when it got boring. He was picking up some of the native words of this world, but not so much to fully understand why he was here (there?) and not being pushed to fight.

Then, an almost impossible thing happened around midday. More strangers had come to talk to the healers in the bigger part of the room but a sound had Flynn looking up to see a small frame peering around the half wall at him. Wide black-gray eyes looking up at him from a child’s face.

Bigger than a human child likely of the same age, the boy looked like he would be around ten, but was just taller like the locals all seemed to be. The boy was in one of those awkward stages of growth, starting to lose the baby fat but the boy's face was round and soft still. Flynn felt something in his chest soften, no matter the annoyances and insults from some of these strange people, kids were just… kids. This little black haired boy looked as confused as he was excited by the wall.

The man gave a soft chuff like sound, something he had heard done lowly to the big wolves.

“Hi?” The boy offered the simple greeting, watching Flynn back in that intense way of kids trying to sort something out in their heads.

Flynn hesitated a moment, before daring to speak in a low voice. Not wanting to draw attention, but also the return greeting was likely still very accented, “Hi.”

“I saw you fight with father! From above, he only spars and trains with the Sentinels now.” The boy chirped, hesitated as if not sure what to do but then in that senseless, fearless way of the young came closer. Dressed in a simple style of clothes, but it seemed pretty good quality to hold up against the chaos kids could get into. Not ‘fancy’ but durable, and had pockets to hold all the boy's random things. “Father liked you, he said you fight with… heart? Not mean though.”

What an odd compliment.

“...thank?” Flynn hesitated, not sure what the rest of the phrase was here. Or what a good chunk of that ramble was, yet grasp just enough to understand the boy saw Flynn's last fight…. The day before?

The boy was clutching a few idems as he looked up at the still taller outlander. The expression of innocence wonder, not judgemental greed or calculation of what to throw him into a fight with next. It had the man relaxing a bit, taking in a partly eaten yellow-green fruit and a little book.

“What that?” Flynn asked slowly, trying to make sure he was speaking the new words right while he motioned to the book and saw the little boy brighten up. The man was surprised and pleased as the boy came over to show him.

Holding up the book to show it was a plain cover, small for Flynn's hands but he picked it up and opened it. Almost expecting to see a story book but instead…

Doodles.

A little sketch book for the boy with a type of pencil in the spine of the book. The book was not grabbed back, so Flynn skimmed the pages. Finding shaky lines of the young learning to draw more things. The boy was drawing what was around him, including plants, animals that Flynn was not sure were real or made up. Something that looked like a dragon with a person on the back with a fuzzy cap? Another page had an egg with purple and blue colors added. There were a few pages of someone far more experienced drawing in the book too. Landscapes, a waterfall, and another, detailed egg in a nest. 

Then there were doodles of the child of some of the architecture around the arena building in the later pictures and… some of the fights? It was a rough picture of him, he recognized some parts of an opponent's armor.

“Like?” The boy asked, trying to repress a wiggle and failing at it.

“Nice,” the man smiled, finding the pencil again and pulling it out, pausing to see if it would upset the boy. The kiddo looked far too interested though and bounced in place to see what the strange outlander would draw.

“What is it?” The boy asked, watching as an animal he had never seen formed on the page.

“...rabbit.” Flynn said in English, smiling as the boy tried to copy what he said. It sounded so strange with the kiddo’s own accent. “Close.”

“What are… rab-bi-ets? Are they big like bears?” The boy asked, taking the book back once offered. The looked up at movement and gasped in delight at the small distance Flynn measured between his hands. “Small?”

“Small.” Flynn agreed, “Soft…nice.”

The boy looked back to the new drawing in his little book then froze as a low voice called from the other side of the big room.

“Vito.”

The boy, Vito, had much the same look as a human child. That internal debate if he could get away with not answering, then looked guilty at his own thoughts. It was kinda cute, if not funny to the outlander.

“Yes sir?” Vito turned to look back at a man not much taller then Flynn. Someone with short white hair, one eyes clouded and likely blind, the other almost the same black as Vito's own eyes. Planly dressed like some of the non active Sentinels, though being half blind the older man might be retired despite the fit build.

“Do not bother the fighter,” the father spoke clearly, “Let him heal in peace son.”

Vito turned back, looking worried as he peered up at Flynn… hesitated before he offered his fruit, there was just two small bites taken out from one side. “Sorry! I didn't know you were healing!” 

“It… okay,” Flynn spoke slowly, carefully using the native words still. Then hummed in surprise at the odd fruit put in his hands, watching the boy run out of his area and back to the father.

Flynn took a careful bite, looking down surprised at the cool, if not mold flavor. Something…nice. 

He remembered the taste of the odd fruit, it was one of the first real nice, natural flavors…

Something he wanted more of.

A clatter of sound jarred the altered man out of his sleep. The following sound of someone jumping up from their spot against his shoulder. Reflexes kicked in for Flynn those few seconds before his companion. Reaching up and wrapping his hand around the injured Sentinel in half armor. Fingers curled to hold the smaller man firmly, yet he managed not to press on the wounds. 

Both froze into the stillness to match the winter storm outside. The giant scanned around, waiting to see where the demons were flooding from-

A single, hell mutated gargoyle was plastered against one of the few windows. It's tattered, twitching wings were freezing in position as the snow bank rose around the very… ice solid demon freezie.  Arm half lifted to catch the smaller Sentinel.

Flynn snorted deeply, glancing to his side at the young Sentinel.

Dark, shiny black eyes stared back with an unimpressed expression that mirrored his far more scary mother. Mirrored, not an exact copy of the look, but enough that the giant grinned. “Can you let me go?”

There was a notable pause as Flynn slowly smiled wide enough to flash teeth.

“What are doing!? Ack!” Vito started to ask and then let a started yelp

The much larger demigod lifted his left arm that was holding his only companion at the moment. Stomach flexing as he sat up, eyed the still frozen demon. Making sure there was no glow of energy in it. Looking back down, Flynn grinned one more at the now upsidedown Vito. Shifting into a better position he lifted his other hand to help support the now limp young man. Vito letting the giant turn him carefully to squint at his left side where his broken under suit was mostly on but had a good section cut off for the wound to be treated earlier. 

“Must you?” Vito demanded, tolerating being moved and inspect only because of the trust he had. 

“Mmhm..” Flynn hummed, then carefully helped Vito right side up, watching as the young Sentinel still leaned back on his right hand for support. The jolt of adrenaline must have drained out, Vito’s carefully selected position to get the best heat was now gone. His smaller form was remembering that there was a winter storm still and started to twitch as he fought the shivers. 

Flynn gave a low rumbling sound of worry.

“I'm…. I'm fine.” Vito shivered a bit more. “Gods I was kinda warm th…there.”

He felt the giant shift, not resisting being lifted up into the right hand. Watching as Flynn shifted to reach behind to grab and pull the bear-like pelt. Having been laying on it, it was also a mix of bed and warmth, like Flynn’s shoulder had been. Vito could only watch in curiosity as he was moved as the giant sat up. The young man basically tucked under the heavy fur and used the massive left arm to wedge against the living warmth. Vito made a relieved sound as the body heat and insulating fur was thawing him out. Not resisting his giant commander as Flynn inspected the building they were stuck in. Then found a slightly better spot to sit and learn back into a reclining seat. 

The giantanic man peered down, checking on Vito and smiled a bit at finding him dozing off again. He tucked the fur cloak around his smaller friend. 

Flynn blinked, pulled the rest of the cloak around and checked the inside. For the first time realizing he did not see more than one seam in the middle. What… what animal was big enough to make this? He puzzled over that while settling down and held one of the few completely unafraid persons of his altered self. A low rumble excepted the massive chest, Vito leaning against Flynn like he would settle in a wintherin nest. 

They still had at least the rest of the night to doze off while the storm raged before there was anyone able to look for them. Sentinels or Hell’s beasts. Or one angry wintherin rider commander, Vito's mother. She still scared him more than Valen.

Flynn grunted as he realized he had a sudden craving for the odd yellow-green fruit like in the dream-memory. 

Well, that was not fair.

[roboyomo]

hey. pspsps. for whenever u need it. hands u a Talk About Yuor Beasts ticket for azrael and kenix. disappears into my shrub again. woe

HELLOOOO HAI. I FINALLY WROTE THIS HOLY SHIT. just to prepare you people, this thing is going to get LONG. EXTRA LONG COMPARED TO MY USUAL OC RANTPOSTS. 57 paragraphs and about ~7000 words. Yeag ^_^ read at your own risk and if you have a Lot Of Free Time Alrightsies? And also if you want to hear about fucked up and doomed little queer guys! I had tried to cover everything about azranix in here so let's goooo !!!

okay so first of all i will Definitely be reusing some of the old info i have already said about them before because Yeag ^_^ it is definitely needed for context for all the other people that have been following my blog and never read my previous rant posts. And those who just Never Saw Said Oc Posts dhehdsh just so this all would make some sense

and God. i've had kenix and azrael for abouttttt 2+ years by now i think ? ? and their story have changed a lot but GOD they still have such a grip on my soul.,,, cannot think about them without being Plagued very intensely and extremely and severely. they were this one Thing but then their dynamic and relationship evolved and so did they as people and it makes me So Sick of them soemtimes i swearrrr.. . .

so to start off! yeah the already known thing is that they're part of the seven deadly sins order of characters but to make it easier i'll just call them either sins crew or seven sinners. For my own Convenience. The concept of the sins crew is that they are mirroring the main original timeline cast. While the main cast is blessed by the divine in the name of keeping peace of their perspective duties. the sins crew Unfortunately did not get such treatment. To be part of the sins crew is to be abandoned by the gods above Basically. which is exactly their fate! they have curses and not blessings and. to make it short that's just how they have been punished for even having desires! Quite Unfair,, , ,

each of them have their own perspective sins and here, azrael and kenix have envy and lust as their assigned sins respectively. each of their actions that lead to this point are represented by said sins ofcourse but in their own ways (so No not That kind of lust for kenix i know please do not) i think i have explained all the needed context before i get to both of them on their own and then together ^_^ firstly i'll explain azrael because Yeag.

azrael is kind of. Complicated to say the least. a living weapon of some sorts! grown up in a hostile environment where the sole goal was To Win. there was little importance in personal happiness because it was all either to kill or to be killed. and he just grew tired of it yk? his hands only knew the warmth of blood and not the warmth of an another person. A dull and terrified view on life. He could only yearn to know how it is like to live normally without having to worry about being someone's next target.

and then there was someome who knew such happiness. a nameless girl, so full of life. just like him, she had no name from birth. Only a serial number. But yet. She was someone that had no worries like he did. Someone who Had So Much. stood right next to azrael. It felt unreal. Like a dream! A false scenario because surely! Surely that kind of bliss wasn't possible in his world! and yet. Yet. someone knew that feeling that he wished to knew the warmth of himself. Was right in front of his eyes. But he also was envious of her to some degree deep down. envious that she had what he yearned for his entire life while working with these bunch of assassin-esque people. but also!

it is very very safe to say that she meant Everything to him. Like how could she not? her attitude changed his worldview on such a fundamental level that azrael was. Fully convinced that he wouldn't be able to exist without the bright colors she intergrated into his life. spending all of his time with her. her happiness and optimisim was everything he needed. It (the whole relationship) wasn't even exactly anything to Her. like both of them very much saw each other as friends! but azrael meant something different by friends Me Thinks,, , , more like a person that he committed himself to.

"oh you are my friend and i am yours? okay then you have my devotion now. We are Friends and More Than Friends at the same time now :)" like they had something Very Intense and at the same time so one-sided. which is Unfortunate for azrael because! Wow my dude you trusted someone So Much you have let your guard down! Bad Choice my guy! because now it wasn't azrael who was the target. It was her. the nameless has been seen with him so many times that she was in danger because of him. and since he has let his guard down it led to. You know. Her death eventually happening.

the loss of the nameless girl not only broke azrael but changed his worldview once again. Because now he wasn't just apathetic to the entire world around him like he used to be before she appeared in his life, but he despised everything about the world. he was so jealous because now seemingly everyone had everything he had ever wanted! that source of happiness! something he had just mere moments ago! the warmth of blood on his hands coming back to haunt him!

It felt nauseating to see others have that joy. and in a series of overthinking it all, he came to the conclusion that. The others surrounding him have decided to keep happiness a secret from azrael. they were all on it. They knew what they were doing when she died. it is like they have purposefully taken the girl whom meant the world to azrael away from him! but of course how could he not see the truth that was displayed in front of his him this whole time!

coming to that conclusion utterly broke everything azrael knew and built it all anew. His envy was ever so clear to see. he knew that the people surrounding him wanted him to keep being envious of their joy. And so he just decided to ruin it all for them! after all. how come they get to have such happy moments while he has to be left behind in the dark, destroying his youth away for this constant cycle of death to keep going in circles on and on? it felt so utterly unfair to him. There was no use to continue doing what he always did when there wasn't a reason to keep doing it from the start besides living. and how could he live now without the person he treasured by his side?

in the end, his envy of others spiraled into a huge breakdown and caused him to go on a rampage. there were no exact names as his targets, only what his heart and shattered mind told him was the target. and that whole ordeal lead to quite a lot of deaths. ranging from people who at least were azrael's enemies from the past to some degree to innocent bystanders of the world who didn't know that azrael even existed

he found weird comfort in their deaths. Like "wow. i have finally gave in and destroyed what only worsened my misery and envy.. .," he kind of just, , did not feel sorry at all for the murders. even relishing in them in a ?. ? Way. but it all came back to stab him in the back. And Quite Literally too! that is what lead to his death and now his current state. being cursed and with the sin of envy being forever carved into him as a person, his jealously turned into pure venom. like Actually. he has venom running through his body, created from the purest desire for happiness. A man now destined to roam afterlife, forever seen as the pure embodiment of Consequences

so spiteful. so hateful at his very core. although he may be hiding it, but the Venom is present and is very obvious when you look closer into it! his only way to deal with this is to be distant from people. there is no reason to be conversing with the beings that once saw him as such a lowly being. azrael's way of thinking this through is just. Very confusing to say the least. he acted upon his desires but tries to rationalize them at the same time. trying to show that he doesn't care. No he doesn't care. . at least he is convinced so but Truly it is just ?.?? it is clampicated to describe for him. Or something

and now about kenix. Oh god This Dude Man. kenix is Incredibly Fuckjng Complicated as a person man. To start off, i will refer to him as his real name (Yi Dal) sometimes alright? kenix is Very Much a very deeply troubled guy that just represses such feelings. ever since he was born, he was in the dark. Metaphorically and kind of Literally?. since he was a child, he had the whole thing between him and his parents and just His family in general. which was Just Good Fucking Lord how much Inferior he felt to them. he was mostly, if not all the time, reduced to a "servant" for the family. which really contributed to him trying to seek value in himself through being useful to his family

obeying all the orders from his family? No questions asked, although it may hurt, he will at least get some attention. No matter positive or negative. he really just. didn't have a say in anything. for both of the parties, it is all just listening to what he is told to do. And his parents and siblings made that decision consciously. there was never any reason for him being neglected. not that kenix even knows of one! but it was like he was destined to be unacknowledged by them.

kenix was scared to take up space, because what if they find something to be angry about? Something to scold him for? Something to hit him for once again? he may be seeking attention but not in the form of being yelled at or having objects thrown at him. such treatment is still terrifying to him to this very day, a haunting memory at best. He genuinely felt like a little tiny being not deserving of attention with how obvious it was that his siblings were favored far more than him.his parents' treatment towards him made him think that he doesn't have the right to exist in this place without value or a purpose.

the neglect coming from his parents, the humiliation from his siblings. the embarrassment of being treated like a stranger whenever the family was in public. all of those factors reinforcing the idea that kenix is nothing of importance or relevance into his consciousness. kenix really just wanted to be free damnit.he yearned for it, he prayed for such salvation to come save him on a random day of his life but there was. No response as expected. he had never properly felt the warmth of the sun and freedom, only the cold air in his room at night. feels kind of suffocating in here, doesn't it? such a sheltered view on the world. It really is No wonder that kenix wished to escape this place. lacking social interaction and awareness of the outside world, , A shame, really

yi dal had been planning his escape from this god forsaken household for so So long, and he has finally been able to execute it when he was still a teen, about 17 years of age. An opportunity so perfect it truly felt unreal to him. An opportunity to finally feel the fresh air for himself forever and ever? you mean it you mean it you really mean it ?? <- deep down he was so Hopeful man. Man. the first time he was outside in nature by himself?? oh yeag. Yeag that felt like heaven that he himself couldn't believe in. feeling the grass beneath him, the light wind in his face, the chirping of the birds sitting on the trees. what else could he have possibly been missing out on? neither kenix or i know how he has survived about 16 years alone as a 17 years old guy with no social skills or concept of how the world really worked. he did make a fool out of himself but. He got the hang of it! Kind of! Normal social life was hard to get used to but!! ^_^

it truly was impossible for him to predict that at the age of 33, he would be found by his siblings and eventually tracked down, oblivious to what was planned for him. poor poor yi dal. only barely made to his early 30s and yet There It Is. Him laying on the floor, completely devoid of his ability to move his body. a small puddle of blood. Was it his blood? Was the blood of his brother he had manage to stab before being paralyzed? no reason to ponder that now, for he could only watch what was about to happen to him and. That was The Most amount of fear he had ever ever felt in his life. nothing could come close to how he felt when he saw his sister holding something in her hands, his brother following behind her. there were so so many things they could do. and it scared him on such a deep level that he didn't even know existed.

there he is now, a dead man walking and roaming the afterlife. the difference between him and azrael is that kenix acted upon his deepest desire only after he had been killed. the desire to avenge himself. to feel what it was like for his family. to be one of the higher-ups. To finally feel Superior. lusting for power in a way that breaks his morals (hence why this guy is assigned lust as his sin). a desire so strong it basically just Breaks Him Completely. In a way that leaves him so vulnerable that just. Makes him so easy to take advantage of. Disturbingly Too Easy. And that is exactly what fucking happens!!

"prometheus", or well, ephai is at fault here for that. no longer having a physical form, they saw a vessel so perfect in what was left of kenix. A soul that has been shattered into pieces since the start. Kind of. He needed just a little bit of a kick to fall over the edge and never come back to what he was. And they have seen it as an opportunity to prove the existence salvation to kenix. You Know. The guy that even fully gave up on religion and "salvation". And it worked of course it worked on kenix that Little Hopeless Thing— yeag. I could go on and on about kenix and prometheus but this is about azrael and kenix not these two's toxic relationship

prometheus is the key to kenix achieving his goals and in a moment of desperation. When he was offered a chance to avenge himself. To strike back at the people who degraded him the most. To feel in power. He didn't even hesitate to agree to the offer which lead to a little "contract" of some sort happening between them and that's just how kenix has been cursed. kind of like being oblivious to the fact that the salvation he was promised was a punishment in disguise. but it's not like he cares now.. . he has stolen fragments of powers from all kinds of divine beings, all for the sake of fulfilling his own wishes. trading his sanity for power. to the point of almost worshipping the one who has given him this opportunity and making ephai to be a divine entity

kenix himself though, is now more than just a god-like being. he is the flow of time himself. But Uh Oh! Bad News Motherfucker! You are Not Alone in this! because to keep existing like this, he had to take the body of an alternate timeline version of himself. Which just so happened to be the Yi Dal from the main cast's timeline. Who was already part of the main cast. And so essentially while taking over Ken's body, he had to replace him altogether unless they switch hosts. which kenix forbid to do because Good God he doesn't want ken to have anything Really. reasons that i'll get to later because Yeag ^_^ another problem is that prometheus is Also There with them. a third wheel or something so no you got 3 whole separate people in a singular body

so now kenix got himself stuck in a situation where he has to keep up a kind of play. Not pretending to be the version of himself he has replaced per se, but to always appear calm, continue to be soft-spoken and amicable with a formal attitude. because such etiquette and manners are what have enforced into his subconsciousness by his family while he was still living in that household. The manners that have been engraved into his mind by his own will. The facade of not caring about his surroundings. He destroyed his chances to live normally for the sake of his desire. so now kenix just has to pretend that everything is fine when really. Really. he never felt like a person, let alone an indepedent one. it is always him being the shadow of someone else and not seen as someone of his own. previously being the shadow of his siblings and now to be the shadow of ken because. Kenix is not perceived as his own self. Not that he has an identity really! But we will Also get to that later ^>^

now to finally talk about azranix together. their relationship had a pretty Rough start i'd say. Like it wasn't bad! But with azrael's decision to purposefully distance himself from others.., it was Hard for kenix to get closer to him without exactly going against his boundaries. Yes, he did pay attention to when he was getting far too close for azrael's comfort. for what reason did kenix even try to get closer to azrael? Well You See ^_^ he just wants to playfully mess with someone! No other reason! Just innocent little teasing that's all! but both of them have started to note. A lot of things about each other. with azrael's distrust, he was very wary of everything single move coming from kenix. And kenix well just. Tried to notice all the details there are about the person he pursued to know. pure curiosity if you could say that. to azrael there was always Something that was off about kenix and to kenix there was always Something about azrael that peaked his interest.

at the start with how used azrael was with seeing people as some sort of assholes trying to ridicule him, he looked at kenix with a bit of disdain. What if he was also one of such people? Why would he try to seek azrael out of all people? There is that sense of cautiousness that haunted him and his actions. and kenix ultimately decided to become a non-threat in azrael's eyes. otherwise how could he get such an interesting and peculiar person to trust him? to lose on such a great opportunity? no! he had to do it. He Had To. (no no it's not for any particular reason you see, it is just. .)

with every single encounter they have had, azrael just kind of like. Questioned everything about this guy! What Is His Problem! Why Is He Trying To Pry On Me! and so on. and with enough amount of times of them meeting each other in various places, azrael just went "fuck it, i'll try to get the answers to my questions straight from him" and such thinking led him to the Confrontation part. with his frustration present, he really just could not wrap his head around the fact that someone wants to know more about Him. that someone would even find Him interesting. he is trying so hard to avoid such relationships for the sake of himself and. Others to some degree. That an idea that someone once again would want to be a companion to him is just a Bizarre Concept. and kenix answered his questions, albeit not exactly. only a smile and "Wouldn't you want a friend yourself, in this place?"

which is exactly what was needed to crack azrael's front, even just a tiny bit. perhaps kenix was right. this place was Lonely. So Incredibly Lonely. maybe even reminiscent of azrael's past. and that made him realize just how much worse the situation was. to finally be aware of he had to stay here like this for hundreds of years, if not thousands. If not for all eternity. Destined to slowly disappear into thin air. with a few other people who are just like you by your side. a reminder that everything that could've saved you has Abandoned You. Even the divine above have abandoned you. A reminder that there is no one. And nothing. that is coming to save them. He is Alone. And Will Be Alone. his decision to distance from his only source of human interaction has always been a self-fulfilling prophecy of him swallowing his own venom. denying himself everything out of envy and hatred that is wallowing inside him. like a serpent on his shoulder. azrael is just a self-fulfilling prophecy of self-destructive at times that it is like Hey Dude. Please Don't Continue To Do That.

realizing just how fucked up everything in this situation is possibly may have made him just a tinyyy bit Desperate. more willing to finally open up to others a little. more accepting of letting people into his life. It is so fascinating that a single question from kenix is what managed to change his mind. azrael letting his guard down after so long! truly a miracle that we Cannot tell the aftermath of. and thus azrael has started to seek kenix out on purpose while still noting more things about him. Trying to figure him out like what kenix has been doing this whole time, you know? if kenix gets to pry on his life, then azrael might as well just do the same

it was a slow, slow way of actually getting to know each other at a deeper level because kenix. Like always. has tried to keep his past and his general life a secret. A mystery of some sorts. he wasn't really an enigma, azrael just. Never could figure out things about his family, his past life and what else has brought him here like the rest of the sinners. there were always moments about his story that he always left out on purpose. he never went into detailing anything he explained about himself. giving azrael only (mostly) surface level bits of information about himself. and azrael well, did much the same because he still felt that kenix shouldn't be trusted fully.

despite all that, azrael and kenix did manage to start bonding more! they both learned more about each other's story and felt. Sympathy for each other's struggles. as well as bonding over facing the same Horrors™ each day and they just had to learn to get through it together. To survive the troubles with each other by their side. learning more about each other through such dangerous encounters with the unknown things unable to be communicated with. having to find comfort in each other's presence if you understand what i'm trying to convey here. which then evolves into far more intimate moments being shared between them both where one helps the other with his problems and their opinions of each other turning into "ohh so we are one of the same to some degree. then i'll trust you more because i have seen you struggle with the same problems i have in the same way i do"

with the circumstances they were in, they got attached to each other's company Pretty Easily. considering how both of them severely lacked such companionship in their lives. it was a change of pace for the both of them For Sure. after years and years of being together, the trust they built in their relationship was Incomparable to anything else to be honest. they knew each other so so So long that it is now like both of them wouldn't be able to get anywhere without each other. they both had their own reasons for pursuing each other in this sense in specific but for kenix. it always was a desperate attempt for find someone to be there for him covered up as curiousity. kenix has always and Always followed orders his entire life, at first from his family now to listening to whatever prometheus whispers in his mind. his decisions always had this underlying tone of not being by free will. he does what he is told to do.

But trusting azrael and trying his best to be a trustworthy person in his eyes is the first decision that kenix has done by himself. It was his own free will which wanted to befriend azrael in specific. clinging onto him, knowing that azrael could be the one person to understand his troubles. kenix is very much aware of his fate being abruptly ended at some point and he knows that it will come soon. It is only a matter of time. following the orders of prometheus is the only way he can buy himself time to survive. Because he Needs to.

He must persist and keep living. he grasped at the concept of him being allowed to live only if he brings value to others for this long that. he just couldn't bear the thought of becoming Nothing if he wasn't anything of such value. seeking attention and validation through all means possible. all of his terrific actions had no reason other than desperation for recognition behind them. A villain who seemed to be enjoying all of this has only done this for the sake of surviving an another day.

Yet. every time kenix wanted to actually open up to azrael, it turns into a blockage in his throat. Unable to speak up, becoming a voiceless being of some sorts., , the reason being the fear of rejection in his soul. Kenix had to grasp at anything that would've given him a purpose. being prometheus's vessel was exactly done out of that desperation he wasn't even aware of. without the facade, kenix is No One. there is No One behind his carefully curated formal facade. Nothing but an incoherent mess. kenix lacks an identity. But the lack of it, then, is his identity: nothingness, absolute null. All of his emotions and feelings have always been repressed and they continue to be repressed even now. So no matter how hard he tries to differentiate himself from others, he'll end up being someone unintentionally because there is No Originality in him. And that is exactly how there is nothing about his real "self" that he thinks people would want to stay for.

with how much kenix has been repressing his emotions, discarding them and thinking of them as "fake" because he thinks that anything he felt emotionally is a lie. Because he built his whole self on a lie. A lie that he wanted this. he has now managed to lie to himself. thinking that the affection and love he holds for azrael is not real. That their bond is not real. That if he tried to show what he has been hiding behind his front for years, he would drive azrael away from him. When their relationship very much is real! kenix has no idea how to tell what was true and what was fake in him apart, so he just decided to think that everything he feels is a lie

yet. The repressed feelings, the suppressed emotions. They're all still there. Forming an incoherent mess inside of his mind and body. but even then without that mass of emotions, there is nothing else about kenix that is distinct. pure nothingness. and it Truly Scares him to even think of a scenario where azrael finds out what hollow husk of a man kenix is beneath his facade. The fear that azrael would be disgusted. That he would see him as a lowly creature. so kenix can never be truly honest about himself with azrael out of fear that the only person who understood him will leave. he tries to be so careful when talking to azrael lest he would let something about him slip. he can't just lose someone him, no.

but azrael is patient with him, he always has been. he shall wait all the needed time until kenix finally gathers the courage. he may not know what kenix has been meaning to tell him this entire time, but he can see his attempts ever so clearly. kenix is trying his best and azrael wants to make sure that kenix knows that it's alright. azrael may not be an overly kind and positive person but. If it means that someone who needs to be reassured will hear it. Well then. . . yet kenix could never be able to wrap his head around how that could be true. because of how much he was used to the lie he convinced himself with. he has told himself the same thing over and over again so many times that finally being told the opposite truth is just Shocking to him. the fact that someone doesn't want him for his value but for who he is a person

to bring back a previous point, kenix's problem with ken too, is just how much ken makes kenix realize that he is the extra one of the two. Ken had a normal life, he had a normal family, he had everything, ken had it all !. and kenix had nothing to himself. All of it - stolen. it is not even his own physical body, but the body of the original. he is perceived as someone else, he is not distinct from that someone at all in the eyes of others. despite all of his attempts to show himself as an independent person, he will forever be considered. A shadow of someone else. a shadow of the original and it pains him. and now azrael and the other sinners are the only people to ever treat kenix like a person. not like he is somebody else. But his own self. And he couldn't be more grateful that they do. That Azrael Does.

yet he can't be honest. No. No that would destroy everything he has built. everything he has worked for. but the desire. The wish to stay true to the only person he ever would consider being honest with. it has only grown stronger. The reason why he hasn't managed to tell azrael anything is solely because kenix simply felt like it wasn't the time. it will never be the time. so his one and only option was to finally tell azrael his real name. Yi Dal. although it doesn't seem like much, azrael understood the importance of this to kenix. from connecting the pieces of kenix's past story from everything he has ever told him, he could figure out that kenix only has bad associations with his real name regarding his past.

maybe. Just maybe. he could change his view on his real name, the same way kenix changed his view on his surroundings. To become the positive association that is worth remembering whenever kenix is referred by his real name. To be that something to look back at fondly.

And then the Creature™ phases come around with each of them turning into some sorts of fucken beasts ^_^. the cursed forms that in all shapes and forms represent their desires and their inner selves. for each sinner and other curse bearers, these forms are different. but for azrael and kenix.

azrael's form is completely unable to speak in full sentences. it barely speaks Actually. seeming to be straight-forward but it only just shows how azrael was not able to speak out what he thought. he was all action and no talk. which is exactly how his rampage started. he only came to conclusions from so much overthinking and hasn't tried to communicate with anyone. he just thought ot everyone as a traitor and shallow people. it really highlighted just how much he trusted his jealousy and envy rather than confirming things for himself

yet the creature seemed. More over fine with kenix's presence. Like he wasn't just a little friendly being to him! he still lashed out and acted irrationally because this form reflected on azrael's loses and overthinking that jumps straight into conclusions! but he still acted less aggressive with kenix. he didn't need to overthink his actions because of the trust he has in kenix. a bond that was stronger than the envy whispering all sorts of things into his ears. He Knows that he doesn't have to doubt him. yet he is Stuck in this box. a labyrinth of constant hesitation to Trust not only others but himself too. he wishes to free himself from such shackles but it is hard. it has always been hard to let go and change his mindset when it always was his only defense mechanism from being hurt. all of these struggles shaping themselves as a scorpion, a serpent, a venomous creature. something that symbolizes hidden danger. and yet, kenix has found beauty and something to love in such a devasting depiction of his partner. the purest way to show what he truly felt. how much he just hid this somewhere inside of himself. something that he couldn't help but feel pity for

and kenix shall do anything to prove that even then. it's going to be okay. he knows it's okay. azrael has always told him it is alright to feel like this, so surely he meant it for everyone? all struggles will pass eventually and you'll become stronger than ever, that's what azrael has told him a long time ago. even if kenix doesn't see a future for himself, he wants to make that promising future for his only love. To help him become resilient Together. He knows that azrael can do it, he had been through so much. he know he could get through this as well and break free from the curse.

and as for kenix's cursed form and the overrall story it is. So much more .? ?. his cursed form is much more bizarre compared to others. a constant variation of geometrical shapes and other possible physical forms, emiting a some sort of glow. He has lost all of his human characteristics. The true form of his self. the mass of emotions and feelings that have been repressed for decades, even centuries, has finally spilled over. creating a mess out of himself. A fool now no longer bound to a facade but is now letting all of that anguish out. so much madness, frustration and sorrow suppressed in him that is now out in the open for everyone to see. a being no longer able to communicate, for he has turned into something that is only capable of Wails. Sobs out loud. Muffled screams of agony. so many emotions he had yet to properly address yet that it is all coming in as an overwhelming wave of terror. he can no longer hide himself beside a neatly made front

a seemingly unapologetic "villain" reduced to a sorrowful creature. a being so clearly desperate for freedom. to know who he is. to finally be free from these principles chaining him to a life of silence until his death. he feels that his demise is coming soon. and he can't do anything about it. for now he can only be a hostile monster. a vessel, a prophet for prometheus's salvation. because this was planned to be his end a long long time ago. this was his purpose. his only value. once this is done, he will be gone for too. finishing his duty, being allowed rest. despite how much he yearns to keep living. but kenix has always been about acceptance. acceptance of his fate. This Miserable Fate

yet azrael found himself only feeling sympathy, for this was the moment that he has finally learned about his partner's true feelings. and it hurt to hear someone so important and dear to him wallow in pain and anguish like that. that version of kenix was a hostile being, but he still so clearly needed help. he needed the courage to overcome this. to break free from prometheus's influence over everything he did because he never had confidence in such actions. and azrael wanted to help with just that despite their current barrier where they cannot understand one another. just like kenix helped him, he wanted to help kenix create his own future to look forward to. without death. with azrael by his side. to survive. to keep living just like kenix desired to this whole time.

the end of their chapters as cursed beings meant that the both of them could finally experience relief together. a moment of Bliss. the realization that it is over. they get to exist, unshackled from the burdens that once plagued their minds. a possibility for salvation. a chance to live without being bound to their past or their inner desires. just peace and tranquility, their one true wish

But Uh Oh! Bad News Motherfuckers! Y'all forgot this shit was a death timeloop! With how i previously mentioned that the actual protagonist of the story, Yaku, has started a timeloop rooted in the desire of saving what meant the world to him that was dying at the end of the journey. The same kind of important people who cruelly had their lives cut short. And The only other character aware of this timeloop was well. Kenix! with this sudden ending of lives for most of the casts, azrael had also became a victim to these abrupt endings.

having to witness his love's life fade away before his eyes, it is only natural for kenix to also be shocked at the situation that yaku is also stuck in. and this scenario is exactly how yaku became the last one to be cursed, his curse rooted in his one biggest desire. a selfish deed covered up as an act of selflessness. their timelines' restarting, the flow of time now looping on and on until yaku manages to save everyone from these deaths

kenix had no control over this, he was forced to watch the protagonist and his nephew descend into madness over a singular goal. while also having to relive his entire life over and over again. a cycle of misery for everyone involved. the others would never be able to realize that this was a timeloop, so the first and the original time they had done this. Has became their script. that everyone, including kenix, had to follow until the end

of course in the first few loops, kenix had also tried to do everything in his power to ensure that his friends. that azrael. would be safe from their gruesome demise. yet their endings had already been written as part of the unchangeable fate by the forces above. neither kenix or yaku had a chance at succeeding. despite kenix's own attempts to save his partner, there was nothing he could do. he could only Watch how his impending doom was slowly getting closer

it was Painful. he could see azrael, he feel him, talk to him, interact with him in general just like normal. yet it wasn't him. no that could never be azrael ever again. that azrael felt surreal. abnormal. like he was programmed beforehand. there was nothing new about him and he felt so Off. Because kenix was aware that this is just the repeating of their original story. it's like he talked to someone playing pretend. his original feeling of "this doesn't feel real (positive)" when he first met azrael has turned into "this doesn't feel real. (derogatory)" kind of feeling. seeing azrael like this was just tormenting. a painful reminder that he will, one day, leave him not by will. and kenix will have to learn to live without him

to live without the person who had shown him love and how to love for the first time ever. a someone who had changed the course of his life so much. brought down what kenix had thought of the world and built it anew. keeping his silence about the truth because now. it was the only the thing that he could never ever tell azrael. what he had seen that day. None of it. for his sake.

perhaps, if they had never met here. if they had met at a different time.

In short, they are so fucking Doomed.

smth smth. Yeag. Good Fucking Lord They Make Me Sick

[ninthriven]

not to be sappy on main but man i have some of the coolest clients i’m gonna sob actual angels in my DMs paying me fairly for honest work 😭

[malewifesband]

i must be honest with you all i think if eyes started turning towards kabrus womb just bc its near laios to start producing heirs for the throne hed be scheduling a hysterectomy that afternoon. and laios would take him there

[fidgetspringer-art]

✧ The Ardal stars ✧