#he was still mad about it. not mad for corrin. but somehow mad At corrin. he was a resentful little prick about it.

[moe-broey]

Oughhhhh............. Takumi with the Corrin plush.................. in my feelings about it.......

[goldenhydreigon47]

Smash Ultimate Roster Fun Facts:

(One per character and according to my headcanons)

Mario: Very supportive of the goals of the roster, even if he doesn't agree with their moral values.

DK: Can talk but only says, "Banana Slamma."

Link: Gender non-conforming and very adorable

Samus/Zero Suit Samus: Many think she's straight but she's actually aroace.

Dark Samus: Interacts with no one at all

Yoshi: Wags his tail often

Kirby: Petitioning for Bandana Dee to get in the next Smash Game (if there is one)

Fox: Feels a lot of guilt for ruining all the viability of half the Melee roster (more reasons why Melee is worse than Brawl and Ultimate lmao)

Pikachu: Belongs to Red but acts more independently.

Luigi: Slightly jealous of his brother, but its more of a friendly sibling rivalry thing.

Ness: Has the most obvious crush on Lucas.

Captain Falcon: Everyone loves this absolute Chad, and he cares about everyone as well

Jigglypuff: Still gets mad and draws on everyone's face when they fall asleep as she sings.

Peach: Sass incarnate

Daisy: Somehow even sassier than Peach

Bowser: Literally every kid's father figure

Ice Climbers: Feel like they deserve the hate they get for being so broken in Melee and Brawl.

Shiek: Trans Icon

Zelda: Her powerful magic kick in her Forward, Back, and Down Aerials were inspired by Captain Falcon's Knee

Dr. Mario: Not a doctor at all

Pichu: Everyone loves him because baby

Falco: Y'know Berdly from Deltarune? Yeah Falco's basically like him.

Marth: Is the most attractive person in Smash

Lucina: Was filled with serotonin when she met Marth for the first time

Young Link: Everyone likes him until they fight him

Ganondorf: Is a Captain Falcon fanboy, hence why their moves look so similar

Mewtwo: Meditates so he doesn't get wrapped in the chaos

Roy: Is our boy

Chrom: Everyone's second adoptive father

Mr. Game and Watch: Is secretly a zombie because the Game and Watch games are dead

Meta Knight: Unlike the Virgin Fox, he, an absolute Chad, is proud of how broken he was, furtherproof Brawl is better than Melee.

Pit: BEST BOY AND A PURE CINNAMON ROLL

Dark Pit: Wants Shadow in Smash because, well, he knows better.

Wario: Still petitioning to get Waluigi in Smash

Snake: Goes, "Hrnnnngh," at the beginning of every few sentences he makes

Ike: Literally everyone is still surprised with how buff he is

Squirtle: Was trained by Mario to perfect using Water Gun

Ivysaur: Is supported far more as the original Plant Gang instead of the idiotic chomper.

Charizard: Gets war flashbacks when seeing a single rock.

Diddy Kong: Pranks everyone

Lucas: Is protected by everyone, especially Ness

Sonic: Has races against Acceleratle Hero

King Dedede: Is a Supastah Warriah

Olimar: Frequently makes, "How's the weather up there," jokes.

Lucario: Since he's already one with the Aura, he's also studying Tarot cards.

R.O.B: Was given a replacement Ancient Minister garb in a good guy colorscheme.

Toon Link: Often paired with Pit in team battle because comedy gold

Wolf: Now has more of a friendly rivalry with Fox

Villager: Set up his own house for vacations

Mega Man: Wants Zero to be added to the roster SO BADLY

Wii Fit Trainer: Only tries to train those he/she deems unhealthy

Rosalina: Treats Kirby like one of her own children

Little Mac: Worst character in the game lmao

Greninja: Fights with honor and dignity

Mii Fighters: Literally no one cares

Palutena: Very proud of her

N E U T R A L

A E R I A L

Pac-Man: Talks with Game and Watch about the good ol' days.

Robin: Is trying his/her best to teach Pit and Kirby how to read

Shulk: Makes Bri'ish jokes frequently

Bowser Jr: Nobody hurts him during his pranks for fear of Bowser brutally maiming them

Duck Hunt Duo: Are good boys because doggo and ducc

Ryu: Constantly training

Ken: Trying to get Ryu to live a little

Cloud: Still getting waking nightmares over Sephiroth

Corrin: Often interacts with the other Dragon Types on the Kalos Pokémon League stage, his/her favorite being Hydreigon, obviously.

Bayonetta: Like Meta Knight, was proud of how broken she was.

Inkling: Has the most swagger out of everyone

Ridley: Joins Sephiroth in giving waking nightmares to Samus and Cloud

Simon/Richter: Christians, but very supportive of the LGBTQ+ community because they actually have standards unlike radical, right-wing, sociopathic Christians.

King K. Rool: Does sumo matches against Dedede frequently.

Isabelle: Gets several headpats

Incineroar: Has met John Cena

*[No one likes or cares about Piranha Plant]*

Joker: Gets everyone to hang out with the other Phantom Thieves, especially Mouse (Pichu) and Star (Kirby)

Hero (Dragon Quest): Is trying to teach Robin the spells he can use

Banjo-Kazooie: Best friends with the Kongs and K. Rool

Terry: Often trains against Ken

Byleth: Was depressed when first added due to the amount of hate they got, but are happier now that the hatred has thankfully died down

Min-Min: The only person so far to beat Little Mac at boxing.

Steve: Has building contests against Villager and Isabelle

Sephiroth: Is your new god now after killing Galeem and Darkhon

Pyra/Mythra: Tell their haters to, "Cry about it."

Kazuya: Trains very often against Ryu

Sora: Was welcomed with open arms by Pit especially

[fire-emblem-drabbles]

Precious Time and Little Lies

Pairing: yandere Xander x reader

Description: Once, when he was a different man, you had loved him. But now, Xander was a manipulative, terrifying monster of his former self, one you had no qualms running away from when the time came. However, you doubted how much he adored you-- and the atrocities he would commit to getting you back by his side.

Rating: sfw

Word Count:

Content Warnings: general yandere behavior, emotional manipulations, mentions of blood

Notes: Another commission for the ever so lovely @modern-zervis-lovemail! In addition, a friends helped me beta this one too, so thank you to @khaenruin for helping me figure this hot mess out. Also would you believe me if I told you I was listening to Kakusei from Promare the entire 5ish hours in total it took me to write this? Because why would I lie about that...

~*~

Today shouldn’t be a day spent on the battlefield. But fate had other plans for you, devious ones that wouldn’t be undone so easily. How long had you been running, escaping his grasp only to find yourself in the midst of his bloody desires? Xander may not be king of Nohr yet but defying still met certain death; or, it would have, had the crown prince of Nohr not held an unhealthy obsession for you…

In better times, kinder, gentler ones, you might have relished in his affection, may have even returned it and been something… more with him. But there was no going back on this choice. Not after you had seen the lengths he would go through for you… that he still continues to do. You can’t think about the lives tolling up in your wake because of him-- that’s just what he wants, for you to think this was all your fault, to break down and lean to him for support. To trap you in his grasp and cradle you there, coddling you and fooling you into thinking he wasn’t a monster with his sweet smiles… You wouldn’t fall for it any more.

Today was the Day of Devotion. You knew, he would be more motivated than ever to find you. You could hear his words now, feel them plaguing your very skull; how sweet it would be, to be reunited on the Day of Devotion. It was sickening. But you had to had to remain strong, Graciously, the Hoshidian’s had allowed you refuge in their country, even letting you travel with their army for a short amount of time to Cyrkensia, where you would hopefully be able to flee the continent altogether, right under Xander’s nose no less. Azura’s performance would be the perfect distraction for you. The fight that would inevitable follow was merely a bonus.

“I can’t thank you enough for allowing me to travel with you this far.” You turn to Corrin and Princess Sakura, as well as Prince Takumi, and bow your head. “I wish I could help you further, but even my mere presence here now is a danger to you all.” Corrin shakes his head, while Takumi just huffs.

“The information you provided is has been immensely helpful. It’s thanks to you we even know Xander will be here today. We can be prepared because of that.” Corrin offers you a small smile, which you return with one of your own.

“You’re absolutely sure they’ll be there?” Takumi isn’t as convinced. For the few days you’ve been here, he’s been on his tiptoes around you; you can’t blame him for his behavior, though.

“Positive. King Garon loves the shows here and…” You heave a sigh, shaking your head. “...had I still been by his side, this would have been the day Xander proposed.”

“Goodness, really?” Sakura gasped. “In front of all these people? How do you even know?” Her face is flush from the mere thought.

“It was the day he wanted to go public with it. We… were engaged far before that. He knew I couldn’t deny him in a front of a crowd of people who adored him…” You clenched your fist tightly.

“Xander…” Corrin looks troubled. Xander was his older brother, after all. The rejection of his younger brother, and now you, his beloved fiancee… Perhaps there was an explanation for his behavior but never an excuse. “I’m sorry this all happened to you _____, I can’t help but feel part of this is somehow my fault.”

“Corrin…” You sigh softly. “It’s no ones fault but Xander’s own. We made our choices, and though they were in opposition to him, they were ours to make.” You take his hand in yours, surprising him before you continue. “But if we fault in the paths we’ve taken, everyone, from the people in your army to Xander himself, will suffer for it. Stay strong.” With one last squeeze of his hand you drop it.

“...Right.” He nods, and you can see him steeling himself. “Today, we’ll end this…”

“The shows about to start, we should hurry.” Takumi sends a look to you over his shoulder, ushering his siblings closer.

“Stay safe everyone. I believe in you.” You send one more smile Corrin’s way before heading off on your own to the ports. If things went okay, they would be able to defeat Garon, and maybe even stop Xander…

You knew little about the world outside of Nohr, Hoshido, or even Nestra, but anything was better than the war that countries faced and the terror that followed you here. It wouldn’t be easy start anew in a foreign place… “You should catch a nice price though…” From your pocket, you produced a ring; casted in white gold, and gilded in the finest of amethyst, any woman would have been proud to where it on their finger. But these engagement ring would be a new start for you in a different way.

“…You kept it?” You gasp and snatch the ring close to yourself, surprised to find yourself cornered by none other than Xander himself.

“W-what? How did you…” Your words died on you tongue as he approached you. You were frozen in place, malleable to his touch as he carefully opened your hand and once more slipped the engagement ring on your right ring finger. His silence, and the lack of any signs on anger on his part made you apprehensive.

“Why did you have to leave me?” He held your shoulders, preventing your escape. His ruby gaze was inescapable, his apparent sorrow scalding.

“Why?” You frown, willing yourself not to fall for his tricks. “Look at you! You’ve become a puppet of your fathers will, Xander!” You wrench yourself free from his grasp, surprising yourself. “Once you were a kind prince, someone the people looked up to; someone who I looked up to.” You take a step but to distance yourself from him. “But you’re just as mad as him now. You’ve taken away my rights, treated me like a child, chased me down the realm and back, and for what? Will you drag me back to your side? Will you prove yourself the craven beast I know you to be?” You glared up at him now, trying your best to read his mood, to not be affected by the hurt you saw in his eyes. He had already done far worse to you.

“Who has fed you these lies, dearest?” Xander approaches you, finally acting on his desire, lies spilling forth from his lips as he stocked towards you. “Who has fed you this poison, that you are so freighted by me even my face before you has you trembling?” You hadn’t even noticed it before, but you were; your hands were shaking and the familiar feeling of adrenaline was beginning to course though your veins. Fight or flight was beginning to over take your mind as he merely got closer, spoke a little more softer to you. “Won’t you tell me who I need take care of?” He got close enough to caress your cheek with his gauntlet only for you to flinch away from his touch. He faltered, if only for a moment.

“You’re too blind to realize it was you yourself who led me to this. I would sooner forsake my homeland and take up arms with the Hoshidian’s than return to your side once more!” You tried to be fierce, to show Xander you weren’t afraid of him. “I won’t go with you.” He was frowning now, lurching forward and taking your arm in a gasp that wouldn’t easily be shaken off.

“Why don’t I take you to see the show? To see what happens to traitors.” His voice was even, his face turning dark as you tried to struggle. His grip was bruising, and you were willing to cause a scene.

“Corrin is your brother!” You argue. “Why are you willing to show lenience to me and not him?” You cry. His shock is enough for him to drop you. You pull back dramatically, gently rubbing the spot on your forearm where he caught you.

“You’ve yet to totally betray me.” His eyes linger on the ring you let him replace on your finger. You hold it protectively to your chest.

“That’s… this is different.” You huff, scowling at him. “There’s nothing left in me that cares for you as I once did.”

“Don’t be foolish.” You yelp, looking back to find Xander’s backed you up to the a large crate near the docks. “You just listened to the same lies those rotten Hoshidian’s fed to Corrin, didn’t you?” He shakes his head softly. “I won’t let them take you from me as well _____.”

“You’ve listened to nothing I’ve said!” You cry. “Xander, stop this! Actually listen to me for once in your life!” You beg him, hands finding place on his chest.

“You must be so confused… And scared…” He sighs, as if some great sorrow was just discovered, as if you really were as scared and confused as he claimed. He was clearly delusional, at least when it came to you and your thoughts and feeling; you really had to escape him now, lest you be stuck with this man who could not see you for what you were the rest of your life.

“I’m not confused! And the only thing I’m scared of is what you’re planning to do-- Xander, Xander stop!” He takes you by the arm, as any prince and gentleman should, and begins leading you over the performance hall. “Let me go!” Though you are loud and vigorous in your attempt to not be lead away from him, the grip he has on you is stronger than anything you could put up a fight against. There isn’t hardly anyone on the streets to see you struggle against him, everyone has gone to the hall to watch Azura preform… You know once you’re in there, it’s too late for you. People will recognize you, hanging off the princes arm. And if his siblings are there, they’ll only reinforce their brothers delusions…

“Everyone’s going to be delighted I found you once more, _____. Elise is even here with us… I dare say she missed you as much as me.” He laughed softly as he lead you inside, as if you weren’t fighting like a rabid animal to be free of his hold.

“...Elise?” You stopped your struggling at her name. You couldn’t let the young Princess know just how twisted and vile her dear older brother had become in your name… if she saw you…

“Xander! _____!” As if on cue, the young girl appeared before the two of you as you entered the building. Barely, you managed to catch her in a hug as she barreled towards you. “Ohh, I missed you so much! I was so scared for you.” She looked at you with big doe eyes, and your heart beat painfully at it. So, this is how he planned to keep you in line…

“Hey sweetheart…” You gently smoothed down her hair as she snuggled into you. “I’m sorry to have worried you, I just…” You pause, looking to Xander as he frowned softly.

“Xander said you didn’t love us anymore, is that true?” Her eyes were watering. You hushed her gently, moving to sit on your knees to better be at her level.

“I could never stop loving you, you know that.” You gave her a smile, a genuine one. Elise’s innocence was something to be protected… You couldn’t let her know the true nature of your relationship with Xander. “I just… had some business to attend to before our big day here, that’s all.” You sigh softly.

“Big day!” She gaps. “Are you two--” You hush her by placing your finger over her lips, and winking.

“It’s a surprise! Don’t ruin it for anyone!” You manage a smile for her.

“Come on you two.” Xander is smiling as well. He helps you to your feet and you can’t help the looming sense of dread that lingers in you as his hands leave you. “The show is nearly over now, and father is expecting us. We’ll get to announce the news after that.” With the joy only a young girl could bring, Elise bounds over to the stairs that lead to the balcony over viewing the stage. Once alone with you, he speaks again. “You even remembered what today was, didn’t you?” You hate how… in love with you he looks. It looks genuine; it brings up old feelings you would rather forget…

“The Day of Devotion.” You frown, looking away from him as you ascend the stairs.

“Today is the day we first say I love you to one another… Was it really two years ago?” He sighs softly and you falter for a moment.

“I said that to a man you no longer are.” He’s silent as the two of you finally make it to the terrace. Elise is there, as is King Garon. You’re greeted with the usual dismissal and nod he had given you in the past; you doubt he even noticed you absence. You look past him, to the crowd gathered on the boats and docks below. You note, its not yet Azura singing… She must not have preformed yet. You can’t see any familiar faces in the crowd, so perhaps Corrin’s army is more well hidden than you thought… Maybe, there was still a chance for you to escape.

“_____…” The songstress’s words are dying in your ears as you meet Xander’s gaze. It’s nothing but tender gazes and bygone feelings that twist around in your stomach. Oh, gods above, he’s kneeling-- Elise is gasping and even Garon has shifted his attention to the two of you, an unreadable look on his face. It’s nearly too much as your stomach turns and shifts inside you. “We’ve been through so much together-- I’ve proven to you I would do anything to keep you at my side. I’ve found you at the ends of our shores, and brought you back where you belong. Please, I can’t bare to be without you-- do me the honor of being my wife, and give me the privilege of being your husband.” He’s so serious. You know you can’t refuse him. Not here, not now. But still, words hesitate to leave your mouth.

“X-xander… I…” You stumble over your words, staring down at him as he gazes adoringly at you. Faintly, you can hear someone else has begun to sing. Their voice is familiar, and even the words they’re singing… Its not until you notice Garon in pain that you gasp. “Azura!” You drop Xander’s hands, much to his dismay, and turn to watch her. Her performance is breath taking and amazingly, its affecting Garon. He looks as if he’s about to burst or something, and things quickly devolve after that.

You can hardly keep up with it; someone is telling Xander the Hoshidian’s are here, Garon is quickly taken away to recover, and Xander is gearing up for battle as Corrin and his army show themselves. Xander, though it all, looks more than angered; you can see through his crimson eyes that this is something that cannot be forgiven.

“They dare ruin our moment?” Xander won’t even let you leave his side, hoisting you up on his horse to fight before you can think twice. “I think it’s high time I show them, and you, just what happens when you betray the kingdom of Nohr.”

“Xander wait! There are still innocent people here!” You beg, gripping on to his back as he rode into battle. “Please, let them escape! It’s not as it if Corrin knew what you had planned today! It’s not worth innocent lives to try and stop them.” You beg. “You have me now. I won’t leave, I promise. I’ll marry you if it means no one gets hurt here today.” Your desperate for Corrin and his army to make their mistake. A battle where they can get away is a battle they might be able to win in the future and that means a future where you might escape Xander.

“_____, dear, had you so easily forgotten what happened when you defy me?” He sighs softly, shaking his head. “These lives I take-- the blood I shed, its all on your hands as well. Perhaps, had you stayed by my side… we wouldn’t be here today.” You hide your face in his back as you feel warm blood quickly rush over you. He’s charging straight for Corrin and the other Hoshidian royals, you know. It’s all you can do to remove yourself from the situation and try not to internalize his words. Still, you can help but wonder… would things be like this had you stayed with him, so long ago? Would there really be no blood on your hands?

[crystalelemental]

And now, ranking the Fates characters by how good they are as parents.  I’ll just be ranking the canon parent, since generic supports annihilated cohesive characterization by making all the parent dialogues identical.

Also, I do need to address this.  Every parent in Fates is garbage.  They throw their kids into an interdimensional time portal and essentially don’t raise them at all.  So comparing them like this is basically comparing turds by how rank they are.  It doesn’t matter that some aren’t as awful as others, you’re still not gonna find one that smells good, you know?

Corrin - Honestly, she’s got a strong Camilla-esque vibe to her protectiveness toward Kana.  I like it.  Also Kana knows when Corrin is coming to visit, and seems to imply that this is a routine thing, making Corrin one of the few known parents who actually makes a point to visit her kit.  A-rank.

Azura - Once again, your decision to be cryptic for no reason causes nothing but problems for everyone involved, and your son, who you didn’t raise on your own, had his entire village annihilated by foes that went after him to get to you, but you never warned him or them about anything?  D-rank.

Jakob - While hyper-critical, he’s not entirely off the mark, in terms of what Dwyer needs to be doing.  He’s not a bad kid though, so it does come across as more harsh than he really needs to be to make a point, since Dwyer is ultimately self-sufficient and capable.  C-rank.

Silas - Actually a pretty good dad.  He’s one of the few that just actively admires his child coming out of their deeprealm to help others, is fully supportive of them staying with the group, and is supportive of Sophie in general. It is Silas, so he’s a little generic with his praises, but it’s still a better parenting approach than most of them. A-rank.

Kaze - And here to completely outdo Silas is Kaze.  Again, Midori seems to know when he’s coming, meaning like Corrin, his appearance is a routine thing in her life.  Not perfectly routine though, which creates a bit of conflict between the two, in which Kaze is able to express that he always did his best to be there for her, but kept her here to be safe.  Willing to admit mistakes, accepting of her decisions, clear care for his child despite the poor general decision of leaving your children unattended in deeprealms, but is willing to actually be a parent and reprimand them for their poor decisions, while still being compassionate in his approach.  S-rank.  Kaze’s a good dad.

Ryoma - Honestly, I love that Shiro actually calls him out about not raising him at all.  Also the unnecessary secrecy about who he is and not letting Shiro know his status, and then being irritated when Shiro grows up without any direction in life.  Honestly I’m coming around on Shiro, who has so far been right on the money about how shit a father Ryoma is.  D-rank.

Takumi - Honestly Takumi’s pretty solid?  The support has him being a bit of a dick because he’s jealous of his own kid’s ability, but in the paralogue proper he’s honestly a pretty solid dad?  Like he shows up unannounced so we know he’s taking time to actually meet with his kid, and is fairly protective of him.  He does give in to letting Kiragi come along for dumber reasons, but on the whole he’s solid.  A-rank.

Saizo - He’s kind of a dick?  This is very much how Saizo is, but his entire thing is like...the honor of the family name to the point he doesn’t seem to have any connection to his kid, just his bloodline.  He does eventually let his kid be himself, but only in that, when he demonstrates “his own brand of honor,” Saizo gives him that freedom, but by basically disowning him as next in the Saizo line.  Which is I guess what the kid wanted, but still, it’s kind that “Grant your freedom, but you’re not my son” type feel.  D-rank.

Kaden - He’s alright?  He doesn’t do much, but he at least makes plenty of time to go visit his daughter just for the sake of visiting.  Still, he’s so bad at raising his child that she doesn’t know what dead means, and thinks poachers are there to play.  So present, but perhaps too permissive and uninvolved in actually raising her.  C-rank.

Hinata - Apparently just fucking forgot to make time for his kid.  He’s loving in his own way, but clearly not putting his child as a top priority in a lot of cases.  Not the worst, but certainly not good.  C-rank.

Azama - F-rank.  I don’t really need to explain this, do I?  Fuck Azama.  Even Saizo realizes how much of a callous fuckhead he is toward his own kid.  SAIZO!  Also you somehow gave your daughter a separate world from yours, in the attempt to give her a life of peace, which she achieves and is happier without you, so you storm in only when she’s in active danger, then insist on dragging her out of this peaceful realm into the world of constant war...just because?  Fuck Azama.  F-rank forever.

Subaki - He’s a decent dad.  It does kind of imply that he’s been away for a while, so questionable how much time he’s actually spending with her.  And while he’s generally doting and kind toward his daughter, there is that weird ending bit where he gets nervous about her outperforming him.  I’ll give it a B-rank overall.

Hayato - Honestly, he’s wishy-washy.  Either you fully support your daughter’s mad science or you don’t.  You can’t half-ass this, acknowledging she loves the dark arts and permitting her to mess around with it, and then step in and insist it’s off limits when it turns out the dark arts also have some potentially evil consequences.  Stepping in when he does to take things away feels more like backpedaling on a decision he already made to let her do as she pleases, which was probably too permissive as it stands.  C-rank, which is honestly pretty good for a teen parent compared to some of these other shitheads.

Xander - Finally on the Nohrians.  Xander actually like...talks to his kid.  Siegbert knows what his role is, and even if Xander can’t visit as often as he’d like in person, he keeps in contact through missives.  Now, there is the issue of his stance being “You have to learn to shoulder some burdens alone,” and thinking his son refusing to contact him about these fucking swamp demons was commendable.  So he’s definitely not perfect on this front.  But he does acknowledge that this is the burden of a leader having to make such choices, is accepting and understanding of his son’s autonomy and decisions while still being firm about keeping him safe from war and sending him back should he prove himself unready.  A-rank overall, I think.

Leo - Okay listen.  While I do recognize that Leo comes around and starts trying to be a better father, and I recognize the importance of growth and improvement. But the fact that Leo has spent most of his son’s life avoiding him because he disapproves of his interest in feminine fashion is just inexcusable.  The time to step up as a parent and learn this shit was a long-ass time ago, man.  You’ve basically been out of your child’s life this entire time, shown up only to angrily disapprove of how he lives his life, and now want to walk back in and expect that trying to change means he should give you that chance?  Why?  There’s no reason for Forrest to be the one who has to acknowledge you’re changing and growing as a person.  If nothing else, at least Forrest completely tells him off, and when Leo makes his attempt at reconciliation, his first thought is that he’s excited to get to know Elise.  Get fucked, Leo.  At least you go to save your kid, and don’t seem to express that you’re willing to let him die.  But you did stall on going, so like...fuck you.  F-tier.

Benny - And now for the exact opposite.  Benny’s an absolute sweetheart, and it’s no surprise he’s the same with his son.  He seems to care greatly for his son, is proud of his actions, and while protective, is willing to support his son’s decision to become stronger and learn to defend others with courage, while also teaching him that he’s not as fearless as he seems.  Honestly, maybe it’s just the feeling coming off of Leo, but S-rank.  We don’t really know how often he visits Ignatius, but I’d like to believe it’s often.

Keaton - Nothing too exciting, nothing too bad.  An easy, uninteresting B-rank.

Arthur - Apparently he’s never visited.  And openly stated that because he thought his son was safe here, his job was done.  This is the most intense version of just literally not being there for your child at all.  Still, at least he gives a shit, so D-rank, but a low D.

Odin - I think he’s solid.  Honestly there’s nothing outstanding here, but I really like Odin as a person, so A-rank.

Laslow - Okay, so in the intro to her chapter, Laslow mentions that Soleil has a band for town watch, and that she should be in her Deeprealm but goes where she pleases.  Which implies he knows she’s in his world already.  So he’s already letting her do as she pleases.  He’s openly aware she’s bi (let’s be real, here) and is fully supportive (LEO).  He taught her some great mechanisms for coping with difficulties in her life, and helps her realize it’s okay to not be positive when it feels forced.  And when confronted with the reality that Soleil is way better than him at flirting with the ladies, instead of being an insecure prick about it, he’s like “Hell yeah, that’s my girl!”  S-rank, easy.

Niles - I hate Niles, but as far as parenting goes, he’s not the worst.  It’s not clear if he’s been to visit her much (sounds like a no), but he at least has clear care for her.  He does try to emphasize to her what kind of life he’s had and that he doesn’t want her to have to live like that too, so I do appreciate that angle for him.  B-rank.

And that’s everyone.  There are some decent parents in all this.   The only real failures are Leo and Azama.  I think Azama’s a bit worse based on not showing any inclination to change or any particular care about his child, while Leo at least learns something and grows from it.  Though Leo’s issues are such a problem for me.  I think Laslow’s the best, though Kaze and Benny were also really great.

Shame about the Baby Realm thing, though.  That whole idea was just so stupid...

[fire-emblem-heroes-supports]

Fallen!M!Robin/Fallen!F!Corrin C-S Support

Written by @huinari

C SUPPORT

Grima: Hmm?

[Grima peers into the forest to see Corrin lying under a tree.]

Corrin: Hah… That’s better… [covers eyes with an arm.]

Grima: Do you plan on actually digging into the dirt and becoming a worm?

Corrin: Huh? Oh. It’s you… Hello.

Grima: Spare me your pitiful attempt at niceties. It’s almost as pathetic as your idiocy.

Corrin: My… excuse me?

Grima: You heard me.

Corrin: I did, and I was hoping it was the blood rushing in my ears that distorted my hearing… You shouldn’t be near me… it’s dangerous…

Grima: Hopes and wishes are for fools, of which you seem to be a prime example of. Your puny current self has no hope of harming me.

Corrin: …

[Corrin stares at Grima until he breaks eye contact.]

Grima: …Hmph.

[Grima turns around and leaves.]

Corrin: He really is… something.

[Fallen!M!Robin and Fallen!F!Corrin have reached support rank C.]

B SUPPORT

Grima: Another battle, and yet here you are, still emulating an actual worm.

[Corrin, leaning against the tree with her cape covering her legs, glances towards Grima.]

Corrin: ...Hello, Robin. I see you’re here to insult me again.

Grima: I am the fell dragon Grima, fool. Do not mistake me for that weak tactician.

Corrin: Ahh… How could I forget. Nngh. [Grimaces in pain.]

Grima: !

[Grima reaches out to pull away Corrin’s cape, uncovering gashes to her legs.]

Corrin: ! Hey!

Grima: I thought I smelt blood. It seems you were lesser than a worm, with dreams of being food for maggots instead.

Corrin: It’s just a small wound...

Grima: Would the healers say the same?

Corrin: …

Grima: It seems you know the answer. [raises hand and gathers energy.] I may as well just end your existence now.

Corrin: ! [rolls out of way just as the attack hits where she was.]

Grima: It seems the worm can still squirm.

Corrin: Ngh…! Get away! [dark energy begins to break out across her skin.]

Grima: Heh. That’s more like it. Come, let me see what you’re really capable of.

Corrin: RAHHHHHHH!!!!

[Fallen!M!Robin and Fallen!F!Corrin have reached support rank B.]

A SUPPORT

Grima: A worm with the homing instincts of a pigeon, back in the dirt. If it weren’t for your power, none would ever mistake you for a dragon.

Corrin: …

Grima: …

Corrin: …What do you want, Grima?

Grima: [grins sharply.] So there’s some fight in you, then?

Corrin: More curiosity than fight… I know you’re trying to anger me… trying to pick a fight with me.

Grima: …Don’t presume we are peers on equal footing with each other. It’s all-too clear to me that your heart and will are both too weak and hinders what your blood could give you.

Corrin: … heh heh.

Grima: You laugh? Are you mad or foolish?

Corrin: With my blood and how it boils, probably both… but Grima, you only ever come close to me when I’m having difficulty holding myself together.

Grima: And how would I know when that is? Cease this senseless sentimentality, wailing soul.

Corrin: You only talk to me when I’m here. And… I only come to this place when my blood boils and I’m close to losing control. Because these woods… they slow down my blood somehow.

Grima: …

Corrin: And when I did lose control… you kept my rampage to this area and stopped me from hurting anyone other than yourself… Thank you for that. I wouldn’t have been able to… forgive myself if I’d…

Grima: …You are sorely mistaken if you think I take pity on your pathetic state. I merely wish to see when you finally make the choice to give into what you are truly capable of.

Corrin: Which would be?

Grima: Despair. Destruction. Death. All things of unparalleled beauty you with your weak heart and parroted morals cannot understand the true worth of. And when you finally do, and make the choice to let your blood run free as it was meant to, I will enjoy myself immensely in the carnage you create.

Corrin: …So you think I’ll make the choice?

Grima: Yes. And I will witness the results you chose and relish them.

[Grima leaves.]

Corrin: …I wonder if he knows… that he’s fleeing …

[Corrin covers her eyes with her arm.]

Corrin: …I think I really am going mad… if I find comfort in those words … .

[Fallen!M!Robin and Fallen!F!Corrin have reached support rank A.]

S SUPPORT

Grima: …

[Grima fights a rampaging Corrin.]

Corrin: HAARGH!!!

Grima: Hm!

[Fade to black.]

Grima: [looking down at an unconscious Corrin.] Until you become the agent of havoc and chaos you were born to be, until you make that choice yourself, you will continue to waste your potential.

Corrin: …

Grima: And I have no tolerance for fools, let alone fools who cannot accept the gift they have been given. Until you choose with your own will the might of your power, I shall not permit you to rampage blindly.

Corrin: …

Grima: That is why I stop you from leaving this forest in your rampage.

Corrin: … [coughs]

Grima: …

Corrin: …then …

Grima: ?

[Corrin raises her head to look Grima in the eyes.]

Corrin: Then… I guess we’re going to be seeing each other here… for a very long time…

Grima: Oh?

Corrin: You seem to have some… strange faith in me… that it’ll be my choice that drives me over the edge…

Grima: What of it?

Corrin: That’s a faith… that I didn’t have in myself… and yet you’re adamant that I will choose the path of destruction and madness… and willing to act to keep me from accidentally harming allies.

[Grima and Corrin stare at each other, not breaking eye contact.]

Corrin: You’ll have to wait a very… long time… because… I have no intention… on giving in to the madness in my blood. No matter how much… it burns and boils.

Grima: Heh. [Grins.]

Corrin: I won’t give in… I won’t hurt those I care about with my own hands… That’s my choice. And it won’t change.

Grima: We’ll see about that.

Corrin: We will. Watch me, Grima… And I’ll prove it.

[Fallen!M!Robin and Fallen!F!Corrin have reached support rank S.]

[fatesdeepdive]

Entry 30: Oops! All Supports Volume #4

This’ll be the last big Support drop before I beat Birthright. I still have dozens of Supports left for the Hoshidans, plus hundreds more for the kids, Nohrians, and Revelation exclusive Supports, but I’ll deal with that when it comes. Til then, time for a few more Supports.

Support: Azama/Kaden

C: Azama predicts a rainstorm and tells Kaden he was warned about it by God. After Kaden leaves, Azama calls him an idiot for believing him.

B: Azama tells Kaden he'll be able to hear God's voice by sitting under a waterfall. Then Azama calls him dumb for believing him and explains that he simply looked at the clouds the other day. A: Kaden says Azama's awesome for sitting under waterfalls and being able to predict the weather and that Azama will be able to hear God eventually. Azama gets mad at Kaden's niceness.

Review: Azama is an unbearable asshole, as per normal, but Kaden shrugging off his meanness in the A-Rank isn’t too bad. Otherwise, this one is just kinda okay; I am glad they brought back the idea of Azama being an Atheist, but it doesn’t do much with it.

Support: Hinata/Setsuna

C: Hinata hurts himself while training. Setsuna offers him some of the medicine she keeps around because she keeps hurting herself.

B: Setsuna shows off her massive collection of salves.

A: Setsuna makes salves for Hinata; one of them is nice, the other is alive somehow.

S: Setsuna makes Hinata better medicine because she likes him.

Review: Not bad. I especially like Setsuna shrugging off Hinata’s salve coming to life as “Science is a mystery”.

Support: Mozu/Takumi

C: Takumi accidentally tramples Mozu's crops. He volunteers to help fix them.

B: Takumi tries his hand at farmwork, which turns out to be really really hard.

A: Takumi manages to improve at farming.

S: Mozu says she loves Takumi because he pulls his weight around the farm.

Review: I actually liked this one a lot. Not sure why, it just struck a cord with me.

Support: Azura/Subaki

C: An assassin tries to kill Azura, but is stopped by Subaki.

B: Subaki protects Azura once more; it's revealed that the assassins were sent by cousins of the Hoshidan royals who want Azura dead.

A: Azura mopes about how, all her life, people have hated her and ponders if it's her destiny. Subaki bows to protect her.

S: Subaki says he loves Azura because she's withstood suffering and vows to protect her.

Review: Good, but odd. Subaki comes across as a valiant knight in shining armor, more so than in any other Support. The fact that cousins of the Hoshidan royal family want Azura dead is mentioned once and then never again in any part of the game, which is really weird.

Support: Corrin/Orochi

C: Corrin asks Orochi about Mikoto. Orochi tells Corrin stories about Mikoto being absent-minded.

B: Orochi tells Corrin about how Mikoto always treated her with kindness.

A: Orochi tells Corrin about how Mikoto was heartbroken over the kidnapping.

S: Orochi acts weird then tells Corrin they're going to get married. I don't even understand what happens in this S-Rank.

Review: A pretty good platonic Support that expands Mikoto’s character with an incomprehensible S-Rank.

Support: Hinoka/Silas

C: Hinoka has Silas explain Nohrian tactics to her.

B: Hinoka questions Silas over why he spared an unarmed enemy. Silas is shocked by her brutality.

A: Hinoka explains that she's been attempting to see if she could trust him and admits her own issues regarding Nohrians.

S: Silas takes Hinoka to a mountain on the border of the two nations and proposes, asking her to marry him and work to bring peace to the world.

Review: Not bad; Silas being interrogated for possibly being a traitor is a bit of realism the game usually forgets about, and him sparing an unarmed enemy is honorable. And also good from a gameplay perspective, because unarmed enemies are best used to train weaker units.

Support: Hana/Hayato

C: The wind tribe sends Hayato a bunch of dolls and purses, which he does not want. Hana takes them because she thinks the flower patterns are cute.

B: Hana talks about how she likes floral patterns then informs Hayato that she needs more purses to pass out to the rest of the army.

A: Hayato gives Hana more purses; Hana requests a custom purse for Sakura.

S: Hayato says he likes Hana because of her girliness that only shows up in this Support.

Review: So why were the Wind Tribe women sending a male soldier purses in the first place? I mean, it’s fine, gender roles are horseshit, but it’s still unusual. Whatever. This one is fine, but nothing special.

Support: Kaze/Oboro

C: Oboro and Kaze are cleaning the pantry when they find a mouse

 B: Kaze comes up with a plan to used poisoned dumplings to take out the mouse.

A: Oboro catches the mouse; she and Kaze flirt with each other.

S: Oboro gives Kaze nonpoisoned dumplings as an excuse to hang out with him.

Review: Fun, but nothing special.

Support: Saizo/Sakura

C: Sakura finds an injured Saizo and heals him, despite his begging of her to run and save herself.

B: Saizo thanks Sakura with a box of sweets, but runs before she can share them.

A: Saizo reveals sweet things make him nauseous. Sakura laughs at him.

S: Saizo reveals he loves Sakura because cute.

Review: An okay, but a bit disjointed, Support. The serious drama of the C-Rank and Saizo running away from pastries are both good, but tonally don’t mesh well.

Support: Rinkah/Ryoma

C: Ryoma asks Rinkah to tell him about the Flame Tribe and praises her aggressive fighting style. Ryoma angers her by pointing out her recklessness in battle.

B: Ryoma teaches Rinkah to meditate so she can keep a calm head during battle. Rinkah does not enjoy meditation.

A: Rinkah masters meditation.

S: Ryoma proposes to Rinkah because she's calmer now.

[derekscorner]

I had to research Corrins family tree

Ok, so, I’m near the end of my Awakening runs and about to dive into Fates cause I’m insane but before doing so I just HAD to look up Corrin’s biology because more than one thing was not adding up for me. lol

At the end of this research I’ve decided to share what many likely already know because this is so full of convolution it’s hilarious to me. Ready? Here we go~

Hoshidan Siblings

The first discovery is that these guys aren’t even Corrins “birth family”. lol All four are Corrins step-siblings via marriage.

The only one old enough to know this is mr Lobster man himself it seems. lol

Nohrian Siblings

This is the most straightforward one on the list since these guys father just kidnapped Corrin as a baby....they also seem to be the most popular among you guys? Or is that just because of titty milf? I guess I’ll found out myself in a week or two.

Momma Fates

You’re probably wondering why I didn’t consider this one the most straightforward of Corrins kin since she is the biological mother. Well that’s because of the lazily explained lore my dude!

Apparently, Mikoto is from Valle and escaped the kingdom when Anankos went on his rampage. She arrived sometime later in Hoshida with the baby Corrin. The king and queen took pity and allowed her sanctuary.

At some point, after the king and his wife had their four children, yet before Corrin was still a yout’, she married the king as his second wife. She eventually became as loved as the former king & queen and rules the country with the aid of her step son.

OH BUT THERE’S MORE!

Momma Milkies

Apparently, this woman, one of the queen consorts of Nohr’s king, Azura’s very own mother, was the “sister” of Mikoto.

Granted, I can’t find anything that exactly states they’re sisters of blood but the fact they considered each other family or in a sisterhood of some kind is important.

She ran away with Mikoto with her own daughter but ended up in Nohr...somehow(?).

Azura

So going by this information that makes Azura Mikoto’s niece. This can explain why she was kept unharmed in Hoshido though I currently lack the context of how she got there.

But more importantly, my dear shippers, that means she’s Corrins first cousin. I mean sure, it may not be biological but oh well. You kids keep on pursing that closer kin deeper in logic.

(jokes aside, do kinda feel bad for her from what story I know lol)

Dragon Daddy

And here, this is the whole reason I started this dive into Fates bullshit to begin with. I really wanted to know why Corrin was a dragon when all their family is either adopted and their mother is human, then I found this guy.

This man here is Corrins biological father, a splinter of Anankos. Anankos, being a dragon, chose to cling to his corporeal form despite the risk of degradation and when this struggle against insanity gave out the human Anankos was born.

Despite his insanity, what was left of Anankos’ benevolence broke away forming this man. Initially amnesiac, he later settles down with a human woman (Mikoto) fathering Corrin.

After his memories returned he did the best he could to stop...well himself. The escape of Corrin, Azura, and their mothers was his doing as was the summoning of Severa, Owain, and Inigo.

He eventually died trying to stop Anankos madness. Quite tragic, I am saddened the games didn’t use this better.

Ananokos

Technically the same as the guy above but I included it anyway because Anankos isn’t just a dragon or even a divine dragon. Oh no. Anankos is a “primordial dragon”.

Meaning, on top of all bullshit Corrin’s got going on, their father isn’t even a normal dragon. Corrins father is a primordial entity, a god in lesser words. And you guys thought Byleth’s ‘chosen one’ bullshit was bad. lol....no wait ain’t this just the same plot- *shot*

Surprise I’m your sister bi*ch

This one shocked me the most. Of alllll the cast that worships the ground Corrin walks on, this girl right here is the only sibling that is truly of blood to Corrin.

And no, it’s not that simple. Mikoto didn’t birth this girl, Anankos (the evil dragon half) did what all primordial beings do in myth and just...spawned her?

Tbh, the more I read the more interesting she was compared to the royals. Her birth also doesn’t bother me too much because more than one myth have primordial beings just spawning children or consorts.

Her story is also a bit sad. She was sent to kill the human Anankos but she was swayed by the unconditional fatherly love he showed in contrast to the abuse of dragon Anankos.

She was watching over Corrin due to this display. She ran off to find her sibling and guard them after the human Anankos died. The games should’ve did more there but I hear they dont.

Kana

Lastly, I’ll end this post and my poor jokes on Kana. Kana themselves makes the most sense. Corrin had a baby, that’s it.

Of course, the whole forced Deep Realms mechanic is...um...”meh” I guess? But of all the cast I look forward to this one the most. I’m told Kana is Corrin but done good. (or “good” for fates)

--------

Okay rambles done. Good bye for now~

[annhellsing]

Thirsty.

notes: i gave up near the end and this sucks but have the first original thing i’ve written in two years. it sucks, ha. rating: teen af pairing: dracula kinda / female reader. word count: 3,284

Autumn slouches in to the city a little late this year. The leaves don’t turn until halfway through October and you were doubtful that homey, fall chill would come at all. The mad sprint towards winter is awfully hard for the weather to pass up, you imagine.

But in the middle of the month, you’re greeted with red leaves and grey skies. It rains every other day and any lingering humidity evaporates into a wet kind of cold. It sticks to your clothes and your hair, a sharp breeze blowing off the lake freezes your fingers on the walk to work.

You have your phone in your hand on the 31st, outside the warmth of your jacket pocket. It rings for longer than you expect, the noise rattles around in your head this early.

So when it stops and the call time starts ticking, you almost don’t register the hesitant, “Hello?” on the other end.

“Oh!” you exclaim, “hi, I know it’s a little last-minute but I was thinking about being a vampire this year. But the thing is, I can’t find anywhere that’s still got teeth in stock. Could you check if you have any for me?”

There’s a long silence on the other end of the line, you’re almost certain you can hear someone whispering. You hold the phone a little closer to your ear, tilting your head to try and hear what on earth is being said.

“It’s okay if you don’t—” you start, but there’s a sound like a frenzied gasp before the voice from earlier replies,

“You want to become a vampire?” they ask. It sounds like a man with an accent you can’t place. Without thinking, you laugh.

“Ideally, yeah. But all the usual places tell me it’s too close to Halloween, there’s nothing left. Shame on me for waiting, I guess. So, you got what I need?” the voice goes quiet again, but there isn’t any whispering to listen to.

“It can be arranged,” he says. You find yourself giggling again.

“That’s great, I’ll swing by around five,” perhaps the disembodied voice seems to sense the end of the conversation. There’s something frantic about the response.

“You know the way?” he says, “it’s quite remote,”

“Yeah,” you sound bemused. The man on the other end doesn’t sound so old to be unfamiliar with Google Maps. “Don’t worry about it. I’m in the area.”

There’s a muffled sort of sound, you can almost distinguish a, “Ah, yes, in that case—” before you’re greeted with more silence.

“I— cool, then. I’ll be there later on today. Have a good one,” you take the phone from your ear and tap the red button. The conversation ends.

Local costume stores are the weirdest, little places.

—

Have a good what? Dracula wonders why you were not more specific. His phone goes silent, the sound of a stranger’s voice still ringing somewhere in the high ceiling. It was like cold water thrown over him, both the scream from his device receiving a call and the idea of speaking to another person.

It’s dark in the chapel, lit only by braziers before the dilapidated organ at the end of the aisle. The sound of him playing nearly drowned out his ringtone, if it were for the infernal buzzing he might’ve missed the call. Fear grips him at tat.

He looks up at the bell tower that extends forever, turning over the conversation in his mind.

A hundred years of silence gave way to a very pleasant numbness after a while. His need for companionship dwindled, or perhaps he only wished it would. He grips the phone in a cold, tight fist and wishes he asked the name of his newfound companion.

But you’ll be here by five o’clock, apparently, though he knows not how. The why, on the other hand is clear. You wish to be like him.

He shoves the phone in his pocket, where he’d forgotten it for decades. How remarkable that its first and only connection would drag him forcibly from isolation. A century ago he might’ve been annoyed, might not have agreed so easily to such a commitment. But the promise of contact dissolves any hesitance on his part. He couldn’t feign disgust if he wanted to, not when this is perhaps his last chance.

The door to the main hall is ajar, spilling candlelight onto the stone. Worse still than the cathedral is the rest of the castle, he knows the state it’s in. And it won’t do for guests, certainly not ones who’ve expressed interest in staying here forever.

He takes two steps and thusly dematerializes, turning to smoke in a blink because he wills it so. The door is shut with a loud bang and a scattering of dust, Dracula’s allowed the place to crumble around him with no thought to its presentability.

There is a great deal of work to be done. He crosses the great hall in a blink, moving over old, brown bloodstains scattered on wood and a faded carpet.

It might, he thinks, be time to wake some help.

—

The costume store was a bust, the bell rings over your head as you leave empty handed. A bored teenager manning the front desk gestured vaguely to a picked-over rack and an absolutely tragic lack of something to pass as a vampire costume.

You thought it best not to ask after the man on the phone, she went back to browsing a magazine while you put up the pretence of shopping. Now, the cold bites your cheeks as you make the trek home.

Disappointment hangs heavy, but what did you expect? It’s the day before Halloween, the whole situation just snuck up on you. The sky is charcoal above your head, the light deciding that it’s had enough even on an overcast day. Soon, you’re walking in the dark down an abandoned street flanked by townhouses.

You can pick yours out of the bunch, it’s the one with the kitschy Halloween decorations scattered lovingly in the front yard. There’s an orange glow welcoming you, you consider that might just be more fun to stay in and hand out candy if you’ll be spending the holiday without a costume.

It doesn’t sound too bad, you suppose. You put your key in the lock and jiggle it slightly before it can turn. Inside is just as dark but decidedly warmer.

More important than any existential crises about what you’ll wear is how you’ll squirm out of the party you’ve been invited to. It seems like something of a cruel joke, to finally have plans only for life to eclipse them. You barely remember the host from high school and contemplate for a moment the embarrassment of being asked by strangers who you’re dressed as.

It’s not life-ending, but it wouldn’t be much fun.

You settle on the couch, reaching without looking to turn on the table lamp. In your other hand, you unlock your phone. It opens to the same page you landed on just before that strange, brief call earlier this morning.

The phone number’s written out on the costume shop’s website. Out of pure curiosity, you dial it up again.

“Corrine’s Costume Castle,” a familiar voice says over the phone. But it isn’t the man, you must be speaking to the girl at the counter. “How can I help you?”

“Hi— uh,” at this distance it might be safer to mention the other person you spoke to, “I had a chat with another employee earlier today, we talked about what was in stock. Could I speak with him?”

A pause, then, “Nobody else’s been in today,” the girl replies. She sounds like her nose is still half-buried in the magazine. “Maybe you got the wrong number? There’re a couple other costume shops, like, a stone’s throw away.”

“That’s probably it, whoops,” you tell her, perhaps a little too quickly, “thanks, have a good one.”

The line goes dead. You pull up the list of recent calls, looking to the one right below what you just dialled. You grip your phone a little tighter.

There’s an extra digit. Whatever number you called this morning, it wasn’t anywhere local. You were tired, your finger must’ve slipped and hit one number too many. And it made a great deal of difference.

—

He keeps time with the grandfather clock at the end of the dining room. Its large face and iron hands tell him it’s nearly nine in the evening. Long, thin fingers tap glass-like nails on the table. The blood in his glass has coagulated.

And still you have not arrived. Dracula is too cynical to be panicked, or to assume you’ve somehow lost your way. If it weren’t for the single number, your number trapped in his phone screen he might wonder if he imagined the whole thing. All his excitement and for nothing.

Glaring at the top half of his flip phone solves nothing, however. He shoves the glass of blood away and it falls over onto the table with a thud. Red blood gone cold and slimy trickles out, on to the tablecloth. In a flash, a man materializes and quickly removes the unwanted offering.

But the stain will stay, Dracula knows. He glances at it before turning his eyes back to your number. A brief pause before he decides what he’ll do.

Inhaling needlessly, he clicks the redial button and watches his phone spring to life. It doesn’t feel like very long at all, despite his mounting anxiety, until you pick up.

“I’m sorry,” is the first thing he hears. No hello, no hesitance.

“You are late,” he replies, keeping his tone very cool. Despite his inclination to think the worst, Dracula is coldly polite. You sputter on the other end of the line, it’s not exactly encouraging.

“Oh, man, listen—” you cut yourself off, “your area code is in Romania and I am decidedly nowhere near there.”

“Why would you insist you were nearby if you were not?” Dracula asks, the ice in his voice unmistakable.

“I didn’t actually know it was you I was calling,” you try to explain, “I dialled the wrong number, I just didn’t realize it.”

“It was a mistake?” he asks. And, just there, just around the edges is the faint trace of disappointment he’s tried to conceal. Perhaps you realize how much he’d been hoping.

“I thought you were a costume shop I live near, I wanted to go as a vampire for Halloween,” he exhales sharply, just as needlessly. As if what you’ve said is preposterous.

“I should have known,” he grits his teeth, the ends of his fangs press against his bottom lip. Such is the sudden pain in his chest that he can’t bring himself to care if you can hear it.

“Who are you?” you ask it, very slowly. He considers what he’s saying, what you must think of him and his jaw unclenches. You might hang up if he scares you, he grips the phone tight enough that the plastic is in danger of giving way.

“The name may not be familiar to you any more,” he begins. But to his great surprise, you laugh uneasily.

“That’s kind of the point when talking to strangers,” you tell him.

“In this case, it is somewhat different,” he says, “I asked if you wanted to become a vampire because it is a wish I can grant.”

“You’re a vampire?” you ask, sounding more bemused than incredulous. He doesn’t know why he cares if you believe him. “Like, Dracula? That isn’t your name.”

“How astute,” he replies, “yes, like Dracula. But that is my name.”

There’s a clunking sound from the other end of the line. What you say is rude and barely audible, he pushes his chair back from the table and stands.

“Pick up the phone,” he says, to his horror it’s more of a question than a demand, “please?”

“Shit, that’s—” your voice gets closer again. And though it sounds breathless and disbelieving, it’s still beautiful to hear. “You have to be kidding me.”

“I assure you that I am not,” he replies. He’s greeted by your nervous giggle.

“That’s— shit,” you finally decide. Dracula’s laugh is significantly more stilted, like the rustling of reeds.

“So you have said,” he seems just as startled by his own laughter as you.

“I mean, the logical progression of that is can you prove it?” you ask, but some of that earlier mirth slips back into the way you say it.

“Well, if you cannot make the journey here—” he starts.

“You think I’m going to let a vampire in my house?” you tease. Part of him wonders why you’re still on the line, even Dracula’s aware of the dissonance. “And one I barely know at that?”

“It was only a suggestion,” he replies.

“I want to believe you, actually,” you say, your voice sounds softer. Perhaps a little sad, “for a lot of reasons.”

“Why is that?” he reclines in his seat, propping his elbow against the armrest. The phone is still clenched in his hand.

“Maybe I’d be less alone,” you say it like it’s nothing, but his still heart gives a strange lurch.

Dracula’s hand errantly finds his chest, he presses his palm to his sternum but finds no movement. There is no source of the sharp pain in him, so distinct from but nevertheless in conjunction with loneliness.

“I am not lying,” he sounds perhaps more insistent than he ought. He worries briefly that he might offend or terrify. “I swear it.”

“On what?” you ask. To his delight, you brighten a bit.

“My own grave,” he replies, to a specific end. And it works, he hears your soft shout of laughter so many miles away. It’s a warm sound.

“Do you get lonely? In Romania?” you sigh and seem to regret saying it the second it’s said. Dracula hums.

“You are the first I have spoken to in a century,” he admits, “I think I am only beginning to understand how lonely it can be.”

“Wow,” you sound less incredulous, unflinching, “will you laugh at me if I offer up comfort?”

“Why would I do that?” he knows before you answer.

“In case this is a prank,” you tell him, “or you’re not who you say you are.”

“Whatever you choose to believe, I will not laugh,” is all the reply you get.

“That sounds like a level of isolation I don’t fully understand, honestly,” you seem to make your decision, “provided it’s true.”

“There is a reason I do not want you to hang up again,” he says, “considering I will be receiving no company this evening.”

“I won’t hang up,” you tell him, “I haven’t talked to anybody I know since I got an invite to this Halloween party.”

“Which is why you needed the costume,” he says, the pieces start to fit together. You hadn’t meant to call, that’s true, but he has a promise from you.

“Yeah, exactly. I put it off and now I’m stuck,” you say, “I wanted to be a vampire but it didn’t work out.”

“What I offered is considerably more permanent,” he says, he can hear the smile in your voice.

“I guess so, but I don’t know if I stand by my original hesitance,” you say, “unless you’re actually just crazy. Now you’ve given me hope!” you exclaim. But you sound uncertain, especially uncertain. “It’d solve a lot of problems, being a vampire.”

“Perhaps, but it creates many of its own that are distinct,” Dracula says. He’s become careless with his tone, settled into his chair.

“Oh, yeah,” you say, “but it’s been such a long time since anything happened to break up the monotiny. It’s just nice to dream.”

“I have been without companions like myself for considerably longer than a hundred years,” he says.

“Don’t you have brides?” you ask. Dracula hums and the sound is humourless.

“An exaggeration,” he dismisses. You choose not to press it.

“At least I go to school with other humans,” you tell him, “would you really turn me after a half-hour conversation?”

“If that is what you wanted after all,” he replies. Dracula blinks and shifts again in his seat.

The conversation is one he never expected at all, he hadn’t the faintest idea where it would lead. But it has turned sharply, come full circle with a new understanding shared by the both of you.

But then, there is a change.

“Oh, dammit,” you mutter, sounding distant from the speaker.

“What is it?” Dracula asks, “what is wrong?”

“Nothing, sorry,” you reply, “I just got a look at the time and the party—” the dread in your voice does something special again to him. There is another lurching that he still fails to anticipate. But Dracula does not assume that he is dying again a second time. “It starts soon and I’ve got nothing.”

“That is unfortunate,” he sounds at a loss. Perhaps now you will break your promise.  His heart sinks and the sensation is intense.

“I don’t know if I want to go, now,” you admit with a sheepish softness to your tone. “But I probably should, I can throw something together.”

“I understand,” it isn’t that he’s run out of words to say, but he knows when the fun’s ended.

“It’s been nice talking to you,” you tell him. He thinks you might just mean it.

“And I to you, my dear,” Dracula holds the phone to his ear, even as you say goodbye. Even as the sound of your voice and the slight static is interrupted by nothing.

He flips the infernal thing closed after a few moments of silence and sets it on the table. Dracula lifts his hand, debating summoning a minion to bring him a fresh glass of blood.

The buzzing from his phone is short and amplified by the hard wood underneath it.

—

The party is loud, painfully loud but you breeze through it easily. While the dark corners look appealing, you do have someone to greet. You see your friend through the crowd, Marnie’s wearing a red wig and you couldn’t miss her.

A few people turn to stare as you weave between bodies. The alcohol is flowing and the world is all dazzling colours. Distantly, you hear Monster Mash pouring from someone’s speakers.

Arms are around you as soon as your in range. Marnie’s always been friendly, even more-so when tipsy.

“I was fully expecting the text saying you weren’t coming,” she says with a laugh in her voice. You know what she means.

“I almost did,” you tell her. She holds you suddenly at arm’s length.

“Oh, my god, you look incredible,” she exclaims. Her head lolls, she looks you up and down with a beaming smile.

“So do you,” you reply, “you’re a perfect little mermaid.”

“The wig’s from Party City, you don’t have to lie to me,” but where the fuck did you get those contacts?

“My friend knows a guy,” you tell her, glancing over your shoulder.

Marnie’s eyes follow you over the sea of people dancing and enjoying the revelry. Tucked into a corner that you found more than appealing is a man. He’s tall, death-pale in a way that only makeup can explain. He stares off into the middle distance but suddenly and sharply turns to look directly back at you.

“Who’s he?” Marnie asks, “is he in one of our classes?”

“Not exactly, it’s a little more complicated than that,” you say, but you don’t turn back to look at her. You smile, showing fangs.

[jasperlion]

[ some waffling and putting thoughts to paper on the campaign. Wasn’t going to actually post it, but I want my drafts clear u_u so here I go

Not relevant to any blog existing au ]

You’re a boy in a town that tries to look good to survive. You don’t know where you came from or who left you, but you know who saved you and fed you when you needed it most. Under his roof, you think you’ve thrived, and that’s enough. Some favors here and there, keeping his business clean, ending to clients and working to earn your keep. Life’s alright, you have friends (even if some have left, and you don’t know why), and even if they’re a little dumb about their feelings for each other, you love them very much. Your parental figures care for you, all of them, and you care for them in turn — this is all you’ve known, and you think it’s all you’ll need. Asking for more feels selfish, wondering why some things just don’t feel right feels fruitless, so you smile and you support those who have stayed around you and their effort to quietly, thanklessly, keep the Fort safe. Life is good.

------

You’ll become your own man soon, a grown up in the eyes of the law, and so Clive trusts you to keep the Shack safe while everyone else has gone. A werewolf breaks in, and suddenly your life has changed. Your friends still love you, they go with you to what could be dangerous regardless, but you let them down in trying to protect them when forces that cannot harm you harm them instead, yet somehow the pain takes you under to the land of dreams. You have a vision of pain and a light, of old faces impassive at your hurt. You awaken and find the monsters you’ve been told are dangerous by your makeshift family not only hurt your friends, but heal them too. They’re sorry about it, they’re kind about it. It doesn’t take long to connect the dots — the mounted werewolves in the shack, the stuffed corpse that was stolen, were the living one’s family, yet he doesn’t hate you for a crime you never committed. The light that harms from your dreams appears in the distance, it leads you to an old friend, to new ones, and your world is upside down. There’s good monsters, there’s bad monsters. One of them just proposed to another, who proclaimed the world was ending (what was that about?). You band with the good monsters to stop another’s rampage, and you tell your old friend’s dad of your vision. His cryptic response makes you think. Yet upon your return home, Lukas says they’re all dangerous people, bad people. He reminds you of the plague in the monsters, that Saber and Clive do not get along, and that you should never see them again. You never tell him you promised to.  For the first time, you feel you can’t tell him everything. You begin to understand why Celica and Conrad had to leave. Maybe it’s why Faye and Kliff had to leave, too. At the very least, Lukas says he’ll deal with Clive about the stolen stuffed werewolf for you.

-

Gray and Tobin don’t remember what happened the night before. They tell you of a story that never happened yesterday, and Gray describes having seen some of the people you met yesterday perfectly. He describes Celica. You wonder if it means you’ll see her again, and you wonder if she’s the one who messed with their memory. You decide not to tell them about last night. For the nth time, you feel you can’t tell them everything. Gray is still being stupid about how he feels about Tobin. Tobin is probably being stupid about how he feels about Gray. It’s stressful, but the usual. Somehow, it stresses you out more than it usually does that they’re this dense, but maybe you’ve talked some sense into Gray.  Sudden pains like an inner burning fire send you to the land of dreams. You see Clive. He tries to kill you as the people in a town you’ve never been ignore your plight. You hope this dream does not become real, like the light did. You awaken in your own room, your very first room. Python and Forsyth married, you remember, and Lukas told you they got a house. Lukas told you they wanted you to live with them. You thank them, you tell them not to worry— you feel better, the scare at Gray’s is gone now. It’s not the truth, and you wonder when you became such a liar.

-

You’re late to the meeting with Saber and the others, the dream and sickness made it so. The man who shot Gray the day before is still angry— Saber told you his name was Leon. The werewolf still looks pretty sad, he doesn’t talk very much. Celica’s not here, but it sounds like they know her. Like they work for her. You worry for her, it sounds like whatever she’s up to is very important... very much not something someone your age should be involved in. You’re told the monster you defeated is still out there, it could hurt people. You need to lure it, capture it, maybe save it. The plague can be cured. Suddenly, what your family does feels unnecessary. Cruel, almost. One of your friends there is like you, she lives with Monster Hunters, but unlike you, she is one too. The other says she’s God and you have no way to refute her. You wonder if it’s true. Maybe it is, God doesn’t know what straight is. The two men who proposed to each other the day before aren’t there, and you wonder if they’re alright. You tell Saber of your dream again, and he tells you it won’t happen. From the glint in his eye, you hope it won’t spark a fight that will end in tragedy.

For levity, you suggest a place that you think is funny to lure the monster to. Surprisingly, everyone agrees. You meet there in the dead of night, and maybe have a little laugh at Catria because she brought her horse. You see Conrad again, but you can’t even reunite properly, because he can’t save the monster and it makes him upset. God tries to do it. She kills the monster. Before you can process what it means, God’s brother appears, and they bring it back. You wonder if God and her brother could bring back the werewolf’s family. The monster man is healed from the plague, but he doesn’t have clothes. It’s a little embarrassing. You treat him to dinner. God finally knows what straight is, and everything that isn’t (she says she’s pan). The waters feel more muddled now. A part of you wonders if you’re not what you thought you were.

------

You know Berkut is throwing the biggest Halloween party this year in town. That means you’re not invited, he’s still mad about chess. You don’t mind, really, but your plans to just stay with Gray and Tobin for the night are turned upside down when they both get sick. You decide not to meddle in that mess. Unexpectedly, you’ve been invited to the werewolf’s house. Saber lets you know, on one of your morning walks in the woods. You think Valbar is nice to invite you, and accept, even if you don’t know how to get there. Saber tells you he’ll pick you up. When the day arrives, you dress like the men in black after some consideration, thinking it’ll be a funny joke. When Saber picks you up, you realized he lied about not knowing where Faye and Kliff went. Kliff is there, in the car. He’s dressed up just like you, and you catch up on your way there. He’s been traveling, he says, and he wants to travel more. You realize there’s more to this world than you’ve ever known, you realize there’s places just for people like him and Celica.  You wonder why they’re letting you in, when your family hunts people like them. A part of you wonders if you’re also one of them. You dismiss it because of what it could mean.

-

You say hello to everyone you see at the party. There’s new people there, but there’s people you know, too. The men who proposed don’t come, but Catria brought friends, and the man who had the plague has company now (maybe he remembered who he was?). Celica isn’t here, but her brother is, and Saber left after he dropped you and Kliff off. You say a brief hello to those present, then instead focus on the host (Leon still looks like he hates you, though). You hug Valbar. He lost his family to yours. You tell him you wish his wife still wasn’t on display in the Shack. You don’t ask what he did with the body he stole of his child, it’s not your business anymore. Instead you talk with him a little more. He tells you that you’re getting into the spirit of things by dressing as a person. You decide not to understand what it implies, and instead tell him he looks good in his costume of Billy Ray. He insists the men in black aren’t real, you think it’s funny.

Catria collapses suddenly while you’re saying hello to the man who no longer has the plague (his name is Ezekiel?), and you hurry over. Corrin saved her, says something about a demon, and you wonder what it means.

A little girl bursts in, followed by her brother. She says her name’s Delthea, and she’s friends with Valbar. She’s here for candy and wanted to read fortunes to ‘practice’. She claims she’s God, and that Celica is too, along with the lady who was holding hands with Catria earlier (Sonya?). You wonder if it means Corrin and her know each other. They don’t.  You’re not sure what any of this means. Delthea likes you because you’re friends with Celica. She reads your cards, and you wonder what some of them mean, while others make sense. ... Your dread returns.  She reads the cards of other people present. They seem unnerved by the result. Delthea leaves after you remind her there’s more trick or treating to do. She leaves with her brother. He doesn’t seem to like Leon much in particular, and is very mean. Leon leaves the house. Catria, her sister and the red-haired lady leave afterwards. You’re worried about Leon, he looked upset, and Conrad says he’s scared to follow and doesn’t know what to do. He tells you what you know (Leon hates you), you promise to try to fix it. Conrad is a dear friend to you, Leon is his friend. You’d rather be on good terms than bad. You decide to follow Leon.

-

You see things you wish you hadn’t. You learn a truth that hurts to the core. The people you looked up to are murderers. Killers. That boy was innocent. He just wanted to show the boy he loved something beautiful. You feel Leon is right to hate you. Those people feed you, they clothed you, they raised you. And they hurt others for a price tag— Clive hurts others for a price tag. Forsyth pulled that trigger. Lukas looked for the item that kept him looking human and revealed him. Python let Leon go. Leon showed you his past and thought you were in it. You tell him your truth and listen to his. Together, you watch the horizon and the town beneath the mountain, the town where you live. You both cry. When Leon feels better, he walks away. A shadow near him disappears. You hope it means something good.

You return to Valbar’s house. You’re not sure how long you cry. At least Kliff is there.

But then you feel like you don’t fit inside the house. Like something is burning inside. Your arms hurt again, your head hurts again, and you politely detach from Kliff to go outside. Something’s wrong.

Valbar comes to see you. He somehow makes it better. Maybe he knows what’s wrong with you.  You’re too scared to ask. Instead you focus on the news he brings to you:

Celica’s going to the dance. She’s invited you to go with her. You accept.

------

You’re told about what happened while you were with Leon (and crying). It sounds like something out of a scary B movie. Corrin invites you to the house of the guy she’s living with (Subaki was his name, right?). They have 14 children now. You’re not sure what to make of it. The one named Owain is kind of funny. It sounded unbelievable, but seeing them in person really does bring it home that they lived in a mineshaft for so long. All their life, maybe?

Corrin says she has something to talk to us about. It’s just Catria, Conrad, Saber, Leon and yourself. Owain is here, too.

She tells you of her Father, of creation and what she knows and remembers. You’re not sure how to feel about the fact that you are apparently within the dream of a God that’s been sealed within it. You’re not even sure how it works. He sounds bad. Corrin loves him very much. Suddenly, you’re reminded of how you feel about Clive. You’re reminded of what you’ve been thinking about since last night. Crying about since last night.

Catria talks to herself. She tells everyone of a lizard that whispers mean things to her. You tell her to tell it that it’s stinky, and it suddenly shows itself. You feel like it’s your fault. You realize the demon is the lizard.

It taunts everyone. It tells Corrin her father is angry. Leon hits the lizard when he’s mean to you with a book. Corrin stabs it, and it screams and screams. There’s blood on Corrin. Conrad’s freaking out. Catria’s trying to keep Corrin standing — she’s been hurt. You react without thinking. You want it to stop. So you slice it’s head off.

Corrin collapses. The Lizard’s head rolls away. You almost killed Corrin. The thought mortifies you. All you can do is comfort Conrad so he can save what you broke. Owain is crying. Catria takes the speaking head outside.

Corrin is better. Catria says she has to hurry home.

All this time, it asked things. Who it is. Where people are. If anyone know them. Something tells you not to answer it. You wonder if it’s any use.

At least, before Catria leaves, it disappears.

Conrad still looks pale. Corrin looks like death, but she’s okay now. You leave with Leon. Saber takes Conrad home.

Suddenly, Leon turns the car around.

He takes a girl from Subaki’s barn. One of the 14 children. Her name is Nah. You ask why, and he asks you why you only ask him and not Saber. You wonder if Saber takes children regularly. He tells you he took her because she’s ‘like us’.

Leon has confirmed your fears. You don’t know how to feel. He says there’s one more detour to go before he takes you home.

-

Leon brings the girl to Valbar’s. They tell her she’ll be incredible, that she will become something great. You decide to follow just to say hello. You still feel bad about Valbar’s family.

The girl follows you when you head back to the car. 

She says you’re like her. She says she has a lot of time to find out if she likes waterfalls. You don’t like what this means. You smile for her anyway. She won’t tell you what you are.

Nah tells you that you will know.

You spend the night looking through the books in the Shack about encountered monsters.

------

You spend the rest of the week looking through those books when no one’s around. You find no answers that feel right.

There’s no one you feel you can talk to. Not without any worry. You never know when you’ll see Saber next. Leon rightfully hates your family, speaking to him about your fears would only upset him. The same goes for Valbar. Conrad is emotional, you don’t want to burden him. Gray and Tobin don’t even know people like you exist. You don’t know where Celica, Kliff and Faye are. Catria’s family hunts monsters, and Catria has an evil lizard following her. Corrin has enough on her plate. Your family... You don’t trust them anymore.

The Shack disgusts you now. It has been disgusting you for a while. You have laid flowers at the feet of Valbar’s wife when no one else is around ever since you learned who she was, but now it’s hard to even go to do it.

It’s hard to look at your family. You wonder if they know something is wrong. You wonder if they know you’re a not like them.

You wonder if you were taken from your real family. Raised like a crocodile for leather. You wonder if Lukas thinks the same of you as he thinks of others like you. You think he’s right. You almost killed Corrin. It haunts you even now.

You wonder if Python would save you, if you were in Leon’s shoes. You wonder if Forsyth would shoot you if Clive told him to. You wonder if you’re in Clive’s ledger, if there’s money under your name.

These thoughts and more plague you all week.

The day of the dance arrives. It’s the only thing that’s kept you getting up in the mornings.

------

You wear your best tie, shirt and pants — good enough to dance in, and good enough that you won’t look like a fool. You don’t want to let Celica down, you’re her plus one. Clive lends you his boots. Something about them, aside from the fact that they’re a size too big, makes you feel discomfort.

You don’t mind that she’s not here yet. Saber, Leon and Conrad are. They let you know she’s getting ready with some friends.

Around you, you can see a lot of tables. Corrin brought some kids, and you wonder if you’ll get to say hello to Nah. Palla and Catria are there too, but not the redhead that you were so sure was Palla’s girlfriend. Maybe she’s sick today. Corrin’s brother isn’t here again. Neither is her boyfriend.

Conrad looks a little silly, you think, in that hoodie. Gray passes by you with a wink, and you watch in horror as he spikes the punch with tequila. Before you can stand to admonish him, though, Tobin approaches and asks you to come with.

You tell your friends at the table to avoid the punch. You’re sure Saber won’t listen.

-

Tobin tells you he thinks he’s married. He explains what he means after your outburst. You guide Tobin through his thoughts. You make him promise to talk about his feelings with Gray, all you have to do in return is talk about yours with Celica— maybe hold her hand. It’s easy to agree to those terms. You see him off, then head back to the table.

You catch Delthea as she leaves the table in a hug. You tell her to take care and watch in horror as she heads to the punch table. Your calls for her to not do that are ignored, and you decide it’s for the best if you don’t meddle. (You’ll regret that)

Leon seems bothered. He leaves after a short chat. You consider following him, you’re worried about him. You don’t want to make Celica wait for you. When you ask Conrad, he says he won’t follow. You decide to leave things alone. (You’ll regret that)

-

She arrives with two of her friends. You’ve seen them before, they had been in Saber’s car, when you saw the light and met Ezekiel as a blob monster. She says they’re Mae and Boey, and they argue a lot. She thinks it’s funny, and  you think it’s funny, too. She says it’s been a while, you give her a hug. When she hugs you back, it feels like things will be alright. 

She gives you a corsage to pin to your clothes. You think it’s the cutest thing. It makes your colors match with hers. You thank her and tell her you like it. She holds your hand, you hold it in turn.

Mae and Boey continue to argue. Celica teases Conrad about his hoodie, and you laugh with her over it. Everything would be alright, the world feels perfect. You want to dance with her.

Berkut arrives, and not even he can bring down your good mood. He tries to jeer, but it feels like this time his words hold no weight. You and Celica laugh him out, he leaves with Rinea in his arm. You feel a little bad for her, she looked like she didn’t want to be there, so you give her a friendly wave when she looks back.

Python comes by. He warns you of who you’re with. That Clive will be angry if he sees. You decide you can’t abide by the warning, and would prefer to stay. He gives you a backpack. It has his clothes in it.

You wonder why he gave it to you, but you thank him anyway. There’s a Diviners jacket in there. You remember it’s Subaki’s group, and you wonder if he’s joined it.

Python gives Saber a big, thick book. Your stomach drops at the sight, more so when Saber pages through it. You ask to see it anyway. You recognize it right away. Unable to bear the thought of what you may find within his ledger of death, you close it and slide it back. Names, locations, prices... it’s all there. You hate the thought of its existence. But it can help. It can save others. It’s better left in Saber’s hands.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Conrad’s been under the table, he slid down there while Python was still around. He scrambles back out, and shadows follow him. Ghosts. You feel you should probably be scared, but you feel more sorry than anything. One of them is the boy you saw Forsyth shoot in Leon’s memory, you know because you recognize his voice.

He says Leon was looking for a chance. He’s found one now. Your stomach drops.

Clive’s hand grasps your shoulder, clamps down, hard.

Things aren’t okay anymore.

Even if you look up to him and nerves jump out your throat, you refuse to leave the table. You refuse to let go of Celica’s hands, and you desperately try to find how to salvage the situation. 

When you try to tell him they’re good people, and things are okay, Corrin suddenly hits Clive over the head. She tries to overpower him. You stand to try and stop this from getting worse.

A shot rings out.

Lukas has a gun on his hands. Leon is on the ground. You can’t think anymore. You scream in anger and rage and sorrow. You want Lukas to stay away from Leon, you don’t want Lukas to hurt Leon anymore. You want to push him away. It’s that thought that drives you forward, and everything is a blurr.

Lukas is against a broken wall. He says he’s sorry, and passes out. Conrad shambles forward. Leon is on the floor. You don’t know what to do, you don’t know how to react, you can’t think.

Conrad is on Lukas. You can’t think.

Lukas is dead.

You toss Conrad away from him. Python is there. You have to take Lukas to Corrin. You have to take Leon to Corrin. You remember Ezekiel. You believe it can happen again.

You take them to Corrin. It doesn’t occur to you that people should not fit in your hands. Corrin is distracted with Clive, so you make sure Clive can’t leave.

You wait to see Lukas come back.

...

Lukas isn’t coming back.

Tears won’t stop. He’s not coming back. He’s gone. You never said sorry. You hurt him. He was right about you. You’re a monster. Saber leaves. He must think  you’re evil. Celica disappears with her friends. She thinks it’s her fault. You’re sure she hates you. You’re bad. You did this. You hurt your family. You scared your friends away.

Leon is still hurt. He asks for Conrad. You don’t really care right now, but you look for him anyway. It’s scarily easy to lift him, dangle him over Leon. Conrad stops moving, you set him down beside Leon.

You nudge Lukas. You cry over him. Python’s here.

He tells you not to cry. You cry harder. He cries with you.

He doesn’t hate you.

You’re now aware of how much your body hurts. You are aware now of how big you are. Your body feels foreign. Your body feels right. Your nose nudges Python. He tells you he’s sorry.

You don’t know if you can talk. You cry instead.

Clive claims Corrin killed Lukas. You killed Lukas, you set off the events that lead to his death. It makes you cry harder. Python quits. He leaves after telling you he loves you. It feels hollow against your crime. You believe him anyway. Even now, you trust Python. He takes Forsyth. He was passed out and you did not notice.

You don’t like that Corrin and Clive are fighting. You don’t like that Catria is pointing a gun, but you think if she shot you, you deserved it. You don’t know how to explain what she’s asking. You cry. Corrin does for you. What she says isn’t making sense. You wish you could explain.

Clive says he loves you. You want to believe it. Clive tells Corrin she should not kill a father in front of his child. Hope blooms in your chest that he still sees you as family. You release him under his promise, and he disappears. 

You wonder if he’s lied about the rest.

All that remains is a handful of friends you hope don’t hate you and a corpse. You wish you could disappear. Suddenly, you’re as small as you feel.

-

Catria lifts you on her shoulder. You hope it means she and her sister don’t hate you, you like them a lot. They carry the bag with the clothes, Conrad lifts Lukas. You want to cry again. You do. 

You need to go to the station. You need to meet with Saber. He didn’t leave you behind. You have to leave Lukas somewhere.

With immense guilt, his body is taken to Python’s house. With Conrad’s guidance, you regain your human form. For a moment, there’s darkness. You see a train that goes faster and faster until it crashes into a town. You snap awake. You let them know. They don’t believe you. You’ve never told them of your dreams before, have you?

Your human form is not so human anymore. Your body hurts so much. All of your new scales feel like pinpricks. It’s painful to walk. You do it anyway. You do anything anyway. You deserve to feel pain after the pain you inflicted.

Socks and shoes don’t fit. You have to be careful not to claw the pants, shirt and jacket. The floor is cold. You deserve to walk on it like that. You dimly realize you probably lost the present Celica got for you. It makes you feel a little worse.

You think Python should hate you when he opens the door to see the body again. You should have left it where he had died. Now you have made Python and Forsyth accomplices. The guilt gets worse. At least he lets you have a belt. You know they can’t stay here long. You fear what will become of them.

But you have to go. Corrin said Saber was at the station.

You bid Python farewell and hope it’s not the last time you see them. You wonder if he gave you clothes because he knew what you were. You wonder if everyone knew except for you.

You’re not sure what you are. Some sort of big dinosaur monster that can become very small. It’s hard to adjust to the tail. It feels wrong to walk as you do.

Questions that can wait. You can’t stay. You’re a monster.

You meet Saber. You board the train. For a moment, you want to be alone. Conrad feels awful. You feel even worse. You started it, and you say it so. You don’t think he heard you. Maybe no one heard you. That’s okay.

But it bothers you. You need to walk. You need to tell Saber of your dream. You need to make sure it doesn’t happen. You’re in pain, you’ve done wrong, maybe this time you can make things right for everyone. You tell Saber. He tells you not to worry. You take a walk anyway.

You find a body on the next cart.

He’s dead. He’s a target. He’s a stranger. You call for help, but no one comes. You call again. Saber arrives. The train’s speed up, you both run to the conductor’s cabin.

It’s locked. Saber can’t lockpick it. You burst in. The town’s in sight, the controls are busted, no one is in there.

It’s the end. All you can do is cover Saber with your body.

-

A lady in white stands before you in a void.

She tells you to try again.

-

You find yourself in the train station.

You’re a monster cast out of your hometown. An evil. You’ve brought harm.

But you can at least try to save everyone. 

[pangtasias-atelier]

Merging Mass Part 2

This story is going to be a series of shorts featuring various big FE characters

Warning: this story contains male weight gain

With the summoning system somehow changed the way it was, Alfonse had gently tried to persuade you from summoning. Not that his conversation with you had any effect, if Alfonse were summonable, you would enjoy aiming for some of his combat manuals. Unfortunately for you, you hadn't even obtained one copy of his spring variant before the summoning portal to it closed.

You always found Alfonse's warning to you funny, the conversation was prompted from Alfonse seeing the male variant of Corrin's much larger frame. And that was him being a simple +1, now at +6, Corrin had several of his retainers pampering him.

But the first hero that felt the effects of the new summoning system was Grima. You couldn't help but reminisce and rejoice over your first new merging project as you went to check up on him. Summoning him forever ago, you became enamored with him despite his attitude. But because of his initial rudeness and and, his eventual warming up to you made you like him even more. You were lucky to have gotten him even once, Briedablik letting you know the chances for each hero somehow.

But you wanted to make him stronger, maybe then he'd like you as much as you did him. So by vowing to never summon since then, you stockpiled until Briedablik notified you of Grima's summoning chances. Nearly a thousand orbs in total, you prayed as you summoned for more Grima.

But instead of Grima, you found yourself with manuals depicting his face on it. Panic entered before you somehow knew this counted as a merge. Eventually summoning a whopping 10 manual, your orbs stash now a sad reflection of what it used to be.

You expected the manuals to work just fine, merging never caused any problems. So when you knocked on Grima's room and he actually happily let you in, you placed the manuals down and gave him a hug, Grima allowing you to get this far, his affection for you growing as well.

Explaining to him the concept of merges, Grima easily accepted, you wonder what he would've said if he knew what would occur you think.

You didn't know better then either, so Briedablik gladly accepted all 10 manuals, and the little number in your head flashed from a full gray +0 to a vibrant green +10.

And then it happened. Grima was laughing from the energy in his body, feeling his power increase tenfold. But he soon paused, placing a hand on his midsection. You looked at him, at the time wondering the problem.

And then he ballooned outwards. You had panicked and looked away as you backed up, you're still mad you didn't even catch a loo peak. When you looked up, you saw the new Grima. His entire frame densely packed with fat all over, no inch spared. He yelled at you, wheezing as he did, trying to get you with his claws but he couldn't move. He was trapped under his own weight. You tried to explain to him but he was still mad.

But you found him much cuter at this weight, and a belly rub led to Grima commanding you for more, and then he ordered you to bring him food.

And that led to the current situation, you were too embarrassed and Grima forbid you from telling anyone, so you had lied. Saying you squandered a thousand orbs by not summoning a single Grima and he had gotten angry so you sent him home.

Some were skeptical but others happily took the lie. You then saw his dragon form out in the forest one day, somehow no one noticing the fattest dragon in Askr. Knowing you couldn't keep them where so many could find them, you used Briedablik to transport them somewhere remote. You found an abandoned castle fort, the location offering no strategic value, and you sent Grima there.

He preferred it he told you, the only worm now being yourself. He yelled at you even more when you notified him that you couldn't stay, but he was appeased when you found magic to enchant the castle's items to take care of Grima. And with multiple promises of visiting everyday, which you uphold.

So by the time you reach your room, you grab the entirety of your hidden stash, you had to be stealthy to not get caught, Gaius being this close to snitch on you until you bribed him with candy.

With all the food available in your room on a cart, you wheeled it into your closet which housed your secret portal to see Grima.

Walking through it, you appeared inside the main bedroom. Currently, Grima was housed inside, lying down on his back, he was just expansive. With no clothes even being imaginable to hold such a corpulent body, and Grima not caring about worm customs, his massive pale body was in full view. His numerous fat fold visible for your viewing pleasure. At such a humongous size, you weren't sure but you think he was bigger now. After the initial merging mishap, you were happy to indulge Grima and he was happy to be indulged.

Upon hearing your entrance, Grima growls. "Took you long enough."

"Got held up, at least more food's here." Stepping on the step stool you placed beside Grima's bed, you hoist yourself onto his stomach. Sinking in, you grab for Grima's favorite deserts, the fell dragon gaining a sweet tooth.

Grima constantly told you otherwise, but you knew he liked being fed. It was the closest thing to having someone to command, a laughable comparison to the subjects Grima had.

Grima is a messy eater, all the crumbs falling onto his cheeks or the bed, and yet he didn't care, only commanding you to feed him more.

And you did, if you had enough food, you would've gladly fed Grima even if he ordered you to stop, the two of you knowing you were in charge. But when Grima asked for more food, you found that your cart had nothing left.

"Where's my food?" Grima panted.

"It's gone. I have to go now, it's getting late." Despite Grima forbidding windows in his room, you could feel it being night, tired from the feeding session.

"I command you to stay, I'm still hungry." You laugh at his order.

"People will get suspicious. They still don't-"

"Please." Is all you hear making you pause.

"I guess I can stay then." With a snap of your fingers, the magically embedded utensils flying into the room and placing the food on the cart.

"Now where were we?" You say as you grab a slice of res velvet, Grima opening his wide maw.

[kimium]

*slides into your inbox* 1- anankos being invested in the trio (possessive or just protective or whatever) is always good, 2- xanlow pirate AU? *eyes emoji* I’d love to hear about it if you want to share?

Hello there, Anon! 

First, I agree entirely with you that Anankos being invested in the Trio (possessively or otherwise) is top tier. Good stuff.

Second, I’d absolutely love to share! Though, I do warn you, I don’t have a lot of concrete details ironed out but here is the basic idea:

-Xander (and the entire Nohrian family plus Corrin) are pirates, running one of the most fearsome ships (Nohr or named something else I’m not sure) on the seas.

-They inherited it from Garon after he died. Garon died as raving, mad man who was threatening their safety. Xander is now the Captain and he has a lot to fix but he has his siblings support.

-They’re on shaky terms with Hoshido. If Hoshido are also pirates or something else, I’m not too sure yet. Still, with Corrin perhaps relations are smoothing over?

-Not 100% sure what the siblings are doing but Leo is definitely their navigator and their tactician. Camilla is probably slaying people while looking Awesome (as per canon). Elise is maybe part of their medical bay?

-Niles is there too, of course. He’s a spy.

-I’m being influenced by this piece of fanart. Of course, I don’t think the fanart has anything to do with Laslow but just hear me out.

-So, I’m still up for debate on the nature of the Trio in this AU. Are they simply people living in the same world (so Ylisse is along side Nohr and Hoshido)? Or are there some dimension hopping craziness in the background? If I have some dimension stuff then maybe we have Anankos involved too?

-Regardless, Laslow has been captured. Maybe on another pirate ship? Maybe as a slave? For some reason? Lone dancer boy wandering around alone and foolishly gets himself nabbed? Maybe Laslow gets to display his prowess for swords. Maybe he was trying to fight his way out of whatever situation he’s landed himself in? Or maybe Laslow is on the other side?

-Maybe he’s a mercenary hired to protect some merchant ship and Nohr attacks? No idea.

-He lands himself with Xander somehow. If it’s due to being saved, then maybe his sword skills or abilities draw Xander in. (Similar to canon where he almost bested Xander in a fight.) He ends up (sort of) hired for the job and then love and feelings happen.

-If it’s him being a mercenary for a merchant then maybe he’s captured by Xander (which would give me an excuse to put Laslow in chains and you know what that’s not a bad image...). Then maybe it’s about him ending up working for Xander. Maybe he realises Xander isn’t what he thought/heard of and the two grow to respect each other. Then love each other.

Sorry this is so jumbled. I honestly haven’t given this thought more than just a quick passing notion. Still, you gave me the chance to think up some plot points and to that I’m happy. Thanks for showing interest in this AU and thanks for the ask!

[halidomhappenings]

Blind Date Results: Part 3

Gangrel/Ron 5 matches!

“Heh, Well... Sir Ron, you specified that you wanted to matched with someone who wasn’t from an Outrealm, right? It seems that you two actually have quite a bit more in common than we thought! Maybe you can bond over common love of dogs and sweets.”

“I’m sorry for who I had to pair you with, Ron. It’s nothing personal... Somebody had to be with the mad king, and your profile matched his well, somehow. As bad as it sounds, I’m just glad he’s not bothering my sister.”

Seliph/Corrin 6 matches

“Lady Corrin, I know you were a bit worrisome about how to list your homeland, but worry not! For today, you are a citizen of Ylisse, and Lord Seliph here is looking to make new friends. Why don’t you both try taking a tour of the botanical gardens and talking about your interests?”

“Hmm... If those two do end up being good friends and Corrin wants to show him her homeland, which would she pick? We’re back to the previous problem them. Ah, let’s forget about it for now.”

Pandora/Saizo 6 matches!

“Happy Day of Devotion to you two! You both have some interesting taste in fruits, which is rather funny since you both also prefer savory flavors. It sounds like you won’t be sharing any desserts today, but perhaps you can enjoy some street food in the square instead?”

“We haven’t got any food that will be similar to your usual tastes, Saizo, but perhaps you won’t find Ylissean food too bad? I think we have a couple of Feroxi and Plegian stalls as well, if the two of you prefer those cuisines.”

Anri/Valter 6 matches!

“....Father... I am... actually afraid to ask why you have so much in common with Lord Valter. Perhaps, ah... it is best left unaddressed. On an unrelated note, I think I’ll visit Mother’s grave today and leave her some flowers.” 

“I know many were dreading being paired with Valter, and understandably so. You might not believe this, but I tried avoiding putting you to two together. Not out of a sense of mercy, I admit, but more since you specified women. Poor Mother. Still, the result was too strong, even with the mismatched preference. Perhaps this is Naga’s way of unleashing karma?”

@bloodthirstymoonstone @exalted--zealotry @childxffell @aloyalninja @vantagx @thegraypath @regaldisaster @dragonknightsworn

[smashy-headcanons]

Each smash character's favorite board game? (Example: Wario loves Monopoly)

Ooh, that might be tough, with how many there are. But I’ll do it because I like to go

Mario and Luigi: Mario Party (that counts as a board game right?)

Peach: Mall Madness

Yoshi and Kirby: Candy Land

Rosalina, Olimar, Corrin, and Lucario: Classic checkers

Bowser, Bowser Jr., and Falco: Battleship

Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and the Ice Climbers: Snakes and Ladders

Wario: Like you said, Monopoly

Links: Dungeons and Dragons. They had to adjust the rules since there’s only five of them (OoT Link, Young (MM) Link, TP Link, Toon Link, and BotW Link)

Zelda, Robin, Meta Knight, and King Dedede: Chess (Meta Knight and Dedede have monthly chess night back home in Dreamland)

Ganondorf: This is the king of evil we’re talking about. Are you kidding me? Such a powerful, evil being such as Ganondorf has no use for mortals’ childish games. Besides, he wouldn’t partake in such useless pastimes anyway!

Samus, Wolf, and Bayonetta: Pandemic

Fox, Ryu, and Little Mac: Cranium

(Most of the Pokemon don’t play board games…)

Captain Falcon: Doesn’t have a favorite. Willing to try just about anything but can’t think of any he likes more than any others.

Ness, Pokemon Trainer, and Villager: The Game of Life

Lucas and Mega Man: Operation

Marth: Jinsei Game (a Japanese game that’s much like The Game of Life but with some differences)

Roy: Ban-sugoroku (a Japanese game that’s much like Backgammon but with some differences)

Ike: He doesn’t have much patience for long, in-depth games like Monopoly or The Game of Life, so he prefers quick and easy games such as Tic-Tac-Toe

Lucina: Monopoly (looking your opponent in the eye while absolutely demolishing their chances of winning is fun, okay?)

Mr. Game & Watch: His home land doesn’t have much in the way of board games

Pit and Dark Pit: Pictionary

Palutena and Cloud: Scrabble

Sonic: Why play board games? They’re slow and boring, especially when the person you’re playing with takes a long time to make decisions.

R.O.B.: Doesn’t play board games. He tried playing one once but it didn’t work out due to physical limitations.

Wii Fit Trainer: Doesn’t play board games since they involve sitting down for long periods of time

Shulk: Mancala (it’s nice and relaxing but also has elements of both strategy and luck)

Duck Hunt Duo: It’s a dog and a duck. I’m not sure what else I should say here.

Pac-Man: Likes them all. In reality he actually has no idea what they’re playing yet somehow he still wins a lot.

Snake: Any guessing game or hidden role game

Holy heck did I do some in-depth Google searching to figure all this out. Whatever, I’m satisfied that I finished this.

….Wait do I have to tag everyone?

Okay, from now on, any posts involving all the characters is gonna have the “all” tag to make things easier.

[hellish-summoner]

To start us off, how about a fun way to learn about the local summoner?

“Well, this might be a bit long, but not like I have anything else to do here, and we are having a pause from the fighting....”

Just for one quick thing before the read more.....

Have a Heca I made in a character maker~

Introduce your summoner

“Ah, introduce myself? My name is Hecatia Lapislazuil, but most people here we refer to me as Heca; feel free to do the same. As dragon-like as I might appear, I’m a friend, I promise.”

How did they come to Askr?

“Well, I was summoned of course! I was never aware of this world before I came here, which is odd given my role back in He-....Well, that’s not important to you, is it?”

what are their favorite hobbies?

“My favorite hobbies? Well, I certainly like engaging in spell card battles or even just normal battles, but there is no one to fight! All my heroes don’t want to even do a friendly battle for the most part, besides one....”

“......I have found that testing out magic is a fun hobby, and so is doodling or trying my hand at writing. Or......playing video games. I have found that magic can work just as well for charging handhelds and mobile devices, so a lack of a tv isn’t too much of an issue....”

Does your summoner have any bad habits that the heroes try to help them through?

“If I do have any, I’m not looking for solving them; it’s a matter of opinion really.”

“Besides, I.....had a bad habit that I would of accepted help with if I didn’t already learn my lesson there.”

How close is your summoner to their heroes?

“It depends on the hero.....My special heroes required more attention when getting them adjusted to Askr than the normal ones. And I do feel like I’m friends with a lot of the younger ones, and the dragons.....”

“.........Though I feel I’m closest with the special heroes from my world; and two of my Corrins. And......a friend who will be called Hydra since I think he prefers it.”

Does your summoner struggle with being a tactician?

“I will say that I have never thought of acting as well, so it’s been a learning process, but some advice here and there from the polite tacticians and leaders from other worlds have helped. Well, helped with directing people; my own tactics if allowed to fight is basically ‘overwhelm them’ still.”

How did your summoner react during their first time summoning?

“I think I just went quiet and realized that ‘holy shit.....I CAN SHOOT PEOPLE OUT OF THIS GUN???’ because you know.....I know what a gun is, but never remember what this thing is named. It’s the summongun now.”

How does your summoner react to summoning now?

“Eh, I’m used to it at this point. Would love it if it could give me those I’m looking for more often; that hawk king and wolf queen look quite fine~”

How well do they adjust to life in Askr?

“I adjusted fairly well; I’m used to places being behind the modern world in terms of tech......Kinda why I know how to charge things with magic.”

How long have they been a summoner?

“Since.......the start of that conflict with Embla? I think? It’s been a while at least.”

“..........Oh fuck, I have probably worried my wife and husband so much by this point.”

Who’s your summoners main team?

“Right now it’s the two Grimas, Lady Corncob, and smol Tiki. But currently I’m working on training two more Corncobs to make a slightly better dragon team. But hmm, to have Lady Grimgram babysit them, or have Hydra get to go with them into battle instead of just with one Corn.....Hmm...”

Who’s your summoners S support?

“Technically, it’s Crescent, aka the one I just called Lady Corncob, but that’s platonic.....My spouses have not been summoned (yet), so thus I wouldn’t feel comfortable getting in another relationship; the feeling is mutual, since Crescent has her own lovers she is waiting for.”

How was your Summoner and ally support building to S support?

“She was one of my first units to get really strong actually; she had quite the drive to be strong so she could help protect Askr. Partly, the relationship formed out of her assisting me often on staying calm....I was not always a Manakete, so the fact I needed to keep myself in control was a foreign concept.”

“................Not helped by me lacking a dragonstone back then. It had to be made specific too....”

How many allies have s support with your summoner?

“......I might be close enough to Hydra for that to be considered another platonic one. Lady Vallite as well.”

What are your top 4 ally x ally supports?

“Oh my~ Personally, I love to see Mikoto and Hydra interact; lovers separated far too soon finally getting reunited is quite a touching thing to see. Same with Crescent and the only one of her loves that has shown up; I swear, that green ninja follows us into battle even when he isn’t actually among the group fighting; though she has told me that two are still missing, though I don’t know where to find an orange kitsune and a half-dragon that favors a bow over a dragonstone or sword...”

“Who else that wouldn’t require much explaining....Ah yes, the male Grima is a possessed Robin who isn’t the normal one you see summoned, and I summoned a Olivia who uses a pegasus; and got to see Grima actually happy for pure reasons. He was so happy to see his wife again, that even the fell influence could do nothing to stop him from running up and hugging her. Also learned his name is Lunar.....”

“And then.....Ah what the hell, the other Grima, the female one, is quite small and unintimidating in this Askr, but it was quite interesting to see her cling to Henry and refuse to let go of him when I summoned him in his halloween outfit....I think Henry just ended up holding her until she was finally ready to let go.....Kokoro or Miyu is her name I believe, depending on if you are extremely close to her or anyone else.”

“..........I think I saw Kokor-...Uh, Miyu start crying when I summoned male Morgan. Said something about not being able to believe that she is able to have children....”

What does your summoner miss from home?

“I miss the heat......And I miss Isamu and Junko.....I would say I miss my loyal lampad, but CP seems to have followed me here somehow, it just took her a while to find me. And Therai.....I have missed my old friend, but with his appearance comes me needing to earn his forgiveness. He’s......still rather mad at me....”

If they could bring one thing from home with them what would it be?

“Ok, I know I can’t bring a person......I would love to bring a TV......Maybe also some dvds and blu-rays.....”

Is your summoners robe unique?

“...........Wait, we can get unique ones?! Fuck, all I got was one that has holes for wings and horns!”

Who are your fellow summoner friends?

“Let’s see.....There’s Alex, who has long suffered trying to fully comprehend me and magic in general......Lemon, who is from a race adept with time, and banged a dragon, a choice I can 100% respect....Mari, who thirsts for many, and should maybe bed both Xander and Ryoma instead of trying to choose one at this point....Mina, who is quite the lovely lady and understands the pains of being very limited in terms of strength; I honestly hope she regains her lost power, she deserves it......And-...Well, this is long enough already, I guess....”

What does your summoner wear if during their down time?

“I still have my Welcome Hell shirt, and wear it a lot in my downtime; or other t-shirts.....I like wearing skirts, since those are nice to wear, though I have been advised to wear shorts if I plan to go flying or do anything that might lift it up....”

How do they handle merging heroes or sending them home?

“I have never seen dupes of the same exact person, and normally send dupes of the same person from different timelines back home right away....”

What abilities/ weapons do they have?

“I got tomes, dragonstones....I had a lance until I had to give it back to the angry lizard. As for abilities.....Well, it’s not like myself to reveal all my tricks, but I will admit that I’m quite adept with magic even without a tome.”

Would your summoner like to know magic?

“I know magic already, though I would like to learn any new forms I didn’t already know.”

Are they able to hold their own in a fight?

“Yes-.....Kinda. I’m a bit of a glass cannon without my full power it seems......”

How many heroes have you acquired?

“A lot......I have lost count my friend. We certainly have an army here....”

What book has been the hardest? Emotional or battlewise.

“Going with emotional for my allies.....The most recent one; the death curse is very concerning.....Mostly because someone other than that prince got one too; and that poor child’s timer is only five days......I pray for Vallite that she does not have to see her son die, as I’m unsure of how a death from that curse will affect him, or even if it might cause him to get dragged to Hel....”

If your summoner went into battle what would be there class?

“Um....I use Tomes and Dragonstones....which matches no current class. I guess a Nohr Noble but without the swords?”

Are there any heroes they clash with?

“Therai.......though I willingly fight him, since it gets his anger out.”

Which hero have you pumped more into?

“I guess.....Crescent? She has asked to train with a lot of heroes before they go home. She has learned many things from them as a result.”

Which hero do you get a lot of while summoning?

“I see......a lot of the more common heroes.”

Which hero’s have they adopted?

“Harm any of the dragon children, and I and the Grimas will give you absolute hell.”

Do they participate in voting gauntlets?

“When I feel like it.......Not often now, since I need to focus on other things.

How do they handle their orbs?

“I save....sometimes.......Vallite said she saved something called Wisdom Cubes one time and still didn’t find the one she was looking for until she searched some sea a lot....”

What hero do you wanna see in fire emblem heroes?

“Someone let my fellow summoners summon the Silent Dragon. He is very nice if you summon the sane one. Mikoto can help keep him nice and calm.”

Will your summoner stay in Askr? Nifl? Muspell? Hel? Emblian?

“...........Muspell was nice and warm.........I would love to find a way to travel between this world and my own, honestly.”

What is your Summoner life like years later if they stayed? Askr. Nifl. Muspell. Hel. Emblian.

“Honestly....If I seemingly stayed, I would have a way to go back and forth.....So normal really; I have multiple bodies in my world, so maybe I can form one that can stay here, or just travel back and forth as needed.”

“.....Hell doesn’t need me that often anyways; I have those under me that can deal with things there just fine.”

Summoners family reacting to your summoners significant other?

“..............I don’t have much of a family. Isamu and Junko’s families are dead. And.....I actually don’t know what Junko’s parents thought of Isamu. Guess it’s completely unknown then.”

In a twist of fate, if your summoner could change one thing what would it be?

“...............I would say to make it so at least one of my spouses got summoned with me, but one, that would just worry the one that was not summoned more, and two......I would use it to either give that poor child a longer timer or prevent him from having to jump in front of Vallite to protect and thus causing some form of anger for Hel.....”

[01littleunicorn]

I know this isn’t in your normal request structure, but I really want to see a fiction where Reyoma keeps lecturing Takumi about stuff he keeps messing up on, and Takumi ends up getting really mad at Ryoma. I imagine it happening sometime before the war, as something that feeds his insecurities you know? (This sort of thing happens between me and my sibling and it made me think about if something like this happened between the two of them.)

Hey there!!! 

Finally, I am done with your request! Sooo sorry it took me so long to finish it - -’’

As you may have seen I had quite the struggle with this fic at first, but I pulled through and now I quite like the final result ^^ I did derailed a bit from the prompt you gave me so I hope you’ll still like it ^^’’

(And don’t worry for not using the typical prompts, I gladly accept all type of request ^^)

So here goes!

Prompt: none in particular

Pairings: Takumi & Ryoma (no ships)

Warnings: Angst (but it’s Takumi so no big surprise).

Also take note that Takumi is a very unreliable narrator xD Open ending so you can chose which path Corrin will chose later on ^^

- Takumi!

Ryoma’s voice resonatedfrom the end of the hallway and Takumi instantly stopped in his tracks, sighingand preparing himself for what was to come. As his brother’s footsteps gotcloser and closer, the younger prince closed his eyes, fists clenched inanticipation.

Even if he knew Ryomahad caught up to him, Takumi chose to stay silent while waiting for his brotherto initiate the conversation.

- Would you care toexplain to me what happened back there at the council?

Ryoma’s tone was stern,strong and demanding. His voice stayed calm, yet Takumi could feel theunderlying scolding laced in it.

- Nothing…

His own voice feltmeek and subdue. He tried to sound detached and composed, but like every other timebefore, he lost it all when facing his brother.

- Exactly. Nothing atall!

The samurai’s voicewent up a notch and Takumi felt himself flinch involuntarily.

- Not once did youraise your voice to contribute to the discussion. You just sat there, with thatforlorn look in your eyes, as if only waiting to be dismissed from the room.Tell me… Am I wrong?

Even if his wordswere phrased in the form of a question, Ryoma left no place for contradiction.No matter how much Takumi could protest, his brother had already made up hismind about what was true and would not listen to him. He had learned thatlesson before and didn’t even attempt to defend himself.

- No…

A long silencelingered for what felt like an eternity while Takumi could feel, without evenseeing it, the glare of disappointment from his brother crushing him down.

- Takumi…

A word and sigh.That’s all it took for the tears to start brimming at the corner of the young prince’seyes as his teeth gritted tightly. Yet, he just stood there and said nothing…How pathetic.

And Ryoma continued.Continued to berate him about how he is a prince of Hoshido, how he hasresponsibilities and that he couldn’t just be slacking off. “This is a war theyare fighting and doesn’t he want revenge for Father and Corrin? Hinoka andSakura all seemed to understand it so, why couldn’t he?”

Takumi had heard itall before… So many times he stopped counting, truly.

The first event he couldrecall happened not too long after their father’s death. Hoshido was nowwithout a king and, despite Queen Mikoto stepping up to assume the role ofleader, Ryoma still had to bear the pressure of both being the future king and havingto take on the mantle as the new defender of the family. And, although Takumidid understand that his brother’s position was difficult, he couldn’t help butfeel that Ryoma had become much stricter and demanding, especially towards hisyounger brother.

So, one day, while theywere all sitting at the family table, the samurai suddenly brought up how herecently learned that the two youngest royals had been trying to avoid attendingthe last formal event. Being put on the spot like that was already rather humiliating,however, when Ryoma turned around to put the blame solely on the younger princeinstead of scolding them both, Takumi just couldn’t believe it.

Yet, there it was andthe young boy could only sit there, as his brother clearly explained how such ascheme had to have come from him and that he clearly was a bad influence on hislittle sister.

Truth be told, it wasSakura who had been the one to come to him and ask for a way out of theseevents. She hated being in front of people and having so much attention on her,with her stutter and shyness only making it a real nightmare. Takumi alsodreaded these events, mainly because he hated playing the social type,especially in such dire times. That’s why he instantly acceptedto help both of them find an escape plan.

Ryoma, however, didn’tknow that. And there was no way Takumi would try to get out of this mess byblaming his sweet little sister.

Therefore, he stayedsilent. He could feel the heavy disappointed and judgemental looks from hisfamily crush him, yet he chose to stay his tongue. And, despite Sakura’s pleato let her confess the truth to Ryoma and Mother, Takumi hushed her to staysilent, somehow feeling it was his cross to bear.

And it went on foryears.

No matter what hedid, it always ended up being the wrong thing to do, in Ryoma’s eyes anyway.From his choice of clothing not being appropriate for a prince, to his attitudethat was apparently too off-putting, every aspect of his life seemed to bedisapproved by his older brother.

On the day he waschosen as the bearer of the Fujin Yumi, Takumi foolishly found himself thinkingthat, finally, it would show his brother that he was actually worth something. Afterall, he was now the only one in the family, besides Ryoma, to be able to wielda divine weapon. But, if he indeed showed some pride on the day of thediscovery, the samurai was quick to remind him of the pressure it also involvedand that he now had to prove himself worthy of such a legendary item.

And Ryoma wouldremind him, constantly. Should his training get even slightly slacking orshould he end up losing against some of the castle’s retainers, he would havehis brother lecturing him on how he had to be more serious and diligent. TheFujin Yumi wasn’t just any weapon and he had to show the proper reverence andresolve it deserved.

Yet, even when Takumitook his words to heart and almost lost himself in his training, there werestill things to criticize in his brother’s perspective.

According to Ryoma,princes couldn’t rely on brute force alone and he needed to hone his intellectjust as much as his strength.

It’s not that Takumidisagreed with his brother on that point, after all, history books had alwaysbeen a passion of his. Except that now, instead of enjoying a good read by thefireplace, he had to read through every book he could come across, subject bedamned, in hopes that it could provide crucial information in their war againstthe kingdom of Nohr.

The books were interestingand he did find himself learning a lot of things he really enjoyed, but havingto read through countless books out of obligation to his country instead ofpassion, took a lot out of the experience. However, he kept those thoughts tohimself again and simply did as he had been instructed.

Nevertheless, whenall was said and done… it still wasn’t enough.

And now, here he was, being lecturedabout his lack of participation in the war meetings, as if his brother didn’trealize how pointless it would be. The people of the council wanted Ryoma, theHigh Prince and defender of Hoshido, and not Takumi, the always useless secondprince.

But, like in every past instancewhen faced with his brother’s disapproval, he kept his mouth shut, simply feelingthe weight on his heart grow heavier.

- So, can I count on you to, at thevery least, try to show some interest in the next council?

Takumi already knew there was onlyone possible answer to his brother’s query.

- Yes brother…

The words were empty and he’dalready given this answer more time than he could remember. Yet, it seemed tosatisfy the samurai who nodded approvingly before turning around.

- Very well. I will be counting onyou from now on.

Then, for a second, there was somesort of hesitation in the air. As if unsaid words were just hanging there, inwait to be spoken.

- Takumi…

There was something in the samurai’svoice. Something that Takumi couldn’t quite pin down. Something that made hisheart beat with a hint of hope, though the archer didn’t even know what he washoping for.

-…. Good night brother.

And, with that, the moment was gone.Ryoma simply continued forward in the hallway, walking away from the youngerprince.

And Takumi was left there, feelingonce more like a fool.

Before anyone could see him, he quicklyturned around and ran towards his room, eyes tightly shut to stop the tearsfrom running down his cheeks.

But it all came crashing through the moment he found himself behind closed doors,unable to contain his bottled emotions any longer.

His back slowly slid down againstthe door until he was sitting on the floor of his room, knees huddled close,while he buried his head in his arms to muffle the sound of his sobs. Likeevery day before, he would probably end up crying himself to sleep, only forhis fear of failure to follow him in the nightmares that would then fill hisnight.

What a pathetic sight for a princeof Hoshido, his brother would probably say.

Yet, Takumi couldn’t help it. Itjust hurt too much. He always tried so hard to keep everything under control,to not show his emotions, his weakness. All he ever wanted was for his familyto be proud of him. For his brother to acknowledge all the hard work he wasdoing.

But it was never enough… HE wasnever enough.

The full moon was bright in the sky andits light was falling perfectly on Takumi, as a spotlight shining on hisfaults.  When he finally raised his eyes andhis gaze fixated itself on the star filled sky, the Hoshidan prince suddenly feltsomething shift in him.

What was he doing, crying on theground like a little child?

With a swipe of his arm, he quicklywiped away his tears, instantly hardening his face.

That was enough.

Now, he had to be strong. More thanthat, he had to stand tall and proud, to really become the prince he wassupposed to be.

No more tears, Takumi decided.Starting today, he would keep it all inside. He wouldn’t let his weakness show.He wouldn’t let anybody, not even his siblings, close enough to hurt himanymore. He would build walls around his heart and simply focus. Focus onproving himself.

Filled with a new purpose, thearcher rose up from the ground, walking slowly towards his window. And, as he baskedin the light of the moon, the Hoshidan prince hardened his resolve.

No longer would he let his family’sdisapproval shame him in thinking he couldn’t do it. Not even Ryoma’s. He woulddo what was necessary. He would work tirelessly, endlessly, to prove to theworld what he was worth.

And maybe that day… maybe thenightmares and the pain would finally go away…

Yes, Takumi thought, he WOULD provehe was a true prince of Hoshido!

Or he would die trying…

[yukiwrites]

Morgan, Sharing Stories

Thank you so much for commissioning me again, @xpegasusuniverse! I’m sorry for the wait, but hopefully you’ll laugh as much as I did :D

Summary: Still unsuccessful in making Saizo wear one of her masks, Morgan walks with her friends towards the stables to get ready for another day. There, she meets Camilla and Hinoka, somehow suddenly remembering embarrassing stories of her brother and sharing them with the princesses. She didn’t expect to hear many more shameful stories from them, though...

Commission info HERE and HERE!

Part 1 - Part 2 -  Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5

After befriending both Second Princes from Hoshido and Nohr alike, Morgan's days got even busier than before: Now, she had a lot of different playmate-er, friends to hang out with!

First there was, of course, her brother, who would always patrol with her and sometimes share her table during meal times. Then there were Ini- Laslow and Sev-lena. Morgan enjoyed seeing Laslow being turned down as much as she did in Ylisse, so she would sometimes dedicate her day to following him around just to get a few laughs. Selena often took her to have tea with Lady Camilla (mostly at the princess' orders), so Morgan was becoming well-acquainted with that world's (or at least Nohr's) cuisine. It vastly resembled the ylissean one, honestly, which was one of the reasons she had made herself at home so quickly. If even the food tasted the same, it couldn't be such a bad world!

Then there were Sakura and Elise -- they would often get together to craft more masks for Saizo, who would exclusively show himself after the hoshidan princess begged for a long time... Only to elude them with his ninja skills right after.

"I'll get him one day, I swear!" She held both fists up with determination one morning as she walked to the stables with her youngest friends.

Being Prince Leo's friend, or at least playmate (or someone he looked for to be amused at her knowledge, if there were a word for that), sat rather strangely with her brother, who was his subordinate. It also mixed up Morgan's schedule since, from the beginning, she had asked to share on Odin's burdens and help him with his work.

Meaning, she half worked for Leo, half treated him as equal.

She shrugged. Oh, well, it's not like their relationship changed much, anyway!

"I-I'm sorry I can't hold him for long, Linfan..." Sakura looked down, apologetic. Every single time she made Saizo appear, she would grab him and try to keep him still so Linfan could shove the mask on his face, but of course the ninja was much stronger than the frail princess and would easily break away from her. After the initial shock, that is.

"Aw, it's okay, Sakura!" Elise bounced on Linfan's right as the hoshidan princess took the left. "Next time you call him, I'll try bonking my staff on his head!" She made a swishing movement, making Linfan and Sakura duck. "Then Linfan can jump in and put the mask on 'im!"

Sakura gasped. "I-I'm not sure that's saf-"

"YEAH! That sounds great, Elise!" Linfan bounced right back, fired up. "Maybe I could even throw a tome on his head... I do have experience on that, anyway."

"You have experience in throwing tomes at people? Not reading them and using magic and stuff? Haha!" Elise laughed aloud, "how did that happen?!"

Morgan puffed her chest. "Well, it all started--" stuttering, she then remembered she was supposed not to remember stuff, so she curled her tongue, almost biting it. "Iii don't really remember how it started, but I know a friend needed to be able to dodge? Stuff? And then I threw my books at her."

"N-not practice k-knives?" Sakura put both hands over her chest in awe. "It must have been scary to dodge heavy books..."

Elise widened her eyes and placed one hand under her chin. "You knowwww, maybe we should try that sometime! Since they're heavy, they're bound to be slow, right? I need to sharpen my reflexes anyway."

Linfan gave the princess a thumbs up. "Count on me! My tome-throwing skills are the finest of the realm!"

The three girls were making their way to the stables so Linfan could feed and clean Leo's horse. It WAS one of her jobs, despite her friendship with the boss, after all. Still laughing at the prospect of having another book-throwing session, they found that the barn wasn't empty -- both eldest princess of Hoshido and Nohr were taking care of their mounts.

Well, Hinoka was caring for her pegasus, since Camilla had released her wyvern for it to hunt a while ago. They were chatting as the hoshidan princess brushed her steed, but stopped once they heard the approaching laughter.

"Oh, Big Sister!" Elise saw Camilla from the door and ran to her. "What're you doing here so early?"

Camilla laughed lovingly, patting her little sister's head. "I could ask the same of you, Elise. Aren't you usually asleep at this time? It's barely before breakfast."

Sakura bowed to Hinoka from afar, walking at Linfan's pace towards the older women. "Good m-morning, Big Sister."

"Hey there, Sakura. What're you all doing with... her?" Hinoka pointed with her chin to Linfan, obviously still suspectful of her.

"Good morning!" The blatant distaste bounced right off of Linfan, who greeted them with a smile.

"Aw, don't be so harsh on little Linfan, Hinoka." Camilla patted the foreign girl's head, "she is just the sweetest, did you know? We often talk over tea. And since she's my precious Selena's friend, I don't mind her presence at all."

Taken aback at both Linfan's enthusiasm and Camilla's protectiveness over her, Hinoka cleared her throat. "Yeah, well, I just can't trust people that easily, okay? We don't even know if she really lost her memories and all."

Linfan placed her closed fist over her open palm, as though she had figured out something. "Oh! It's funny how everyone believed in Corrin when he said he forgot stuff from his past, but with me, people doubt it! Heeheehaha! Guess I'll have to deal with it anyway, huh?" She smiled brightly, not meaning to poke at Hinoka so much as she did.

The hoshidan princess frowned, clenching her fist. "Yeah? Corrin is my brother, of course I'll believe him."

Taking her index to her chin, Linfan looked up. "Hmm, yeah, Odin also believed in me after some tim- AH!!"

All but Camilla took a step back in surprise due to Linfan's sudden shout.

"Wh-what happened?!" Elise and Sakura asked at the same time, holding Linfan's arms. "Are you in pain?"

The apprentice tactician then burst into laughter. "Hah! Talking about Odin made me remember a super embarrassing thing he did when we were younger! I GOTTA tell him that later! Hahah!"

"A new memory!" Elise rejoiced. "What did he do? Dish!"

Linfan dried one tear of mirth from her eye, snorting so as to stop laughing. "It's so disgusting! I need to write this down before I forget it again," she searched on her person for her small notebook, immediately writing with the pocket feather pen. "It was the first time we were having special noodles from my father's friend's country... It was something like congratulatory noodles? They were suuuper long and very easy to cut."

"Oh, like buckwheat noodles? Your father has hoshidan friends?" Hinoka added, shifting her weight to another leg.

"I dunno!" Linfan closed her notebook, used to writing quickly. "I just know that we were about to eat it, but then my brother said that he would conquer that enormous bow by himself or he wouldn't call himself Odin Dark!" She gestured, making her brother's signature pose. Elise and Sakura giggled as Camilla chuckled. "Then he started to slurp reaaally loudly, and got a lot of noodles into his mouth by accident... But he kept on slurping!"

"That's madness, those noodles are super long!" Hinoka started to get into the story, slightly bending her body towards Linfan.

"... Yep." Linfan snorted. "He choked right after and started coughing noodles everywhere... then they started coming out of his nose! Eww! And A LOT of them, too! All those wriggly, thin and long things coming out of his nose!" She wriggled her fingers on Elise and Sakura's faces, who were contorting in disgust.

"Ewwww, bleargh!" Elise slapped both hands over her face, shivering from head to toe. Sakura brought both hands to her mouth, wanting to laugh and throw up at the same time.

"Hah!" Camilla snickered, throwing her head back in laughter. "That does sound like our Odin!"

Hinoka was as red as her hair from trying to hold back her laughter, but immediately loosened herself. "I also got one!" She got into the mood.

All the princesses gasped. "One?!" Sakura was the most shocked out of the four. "About Odin?!"

"Oh, no, not him." She shrugged. "About my big brother. Ryoma."

"I-I'm not sure I want to hear this." Sakura covered her ears, though her fingers had a wide space between them.

"Did he also choke on noodles?!" Linfan couldn't hold back her snorts, thinking about the hairy Walhart coughing and crying noodles.

"I don't know which one was worse, but no, he didn't cough up on noodles. He... Well. You all know how he likes to meditate and stuff, right?" She didn't wait for their replies as she would explain it anyway. "He goes under a waterfall and empties his mind; usually at the start of the day to be more focused."

The young girls all nodded, their eyes wide in expectation. Even Sakura's. Camilla placed one hand over her cheek in amusement.

Hinoka opened her arms. "Only that... he does that naked." Barely was the word out of her mouth, Morgan started barking a loud laugh, already predicting the end of the story. Elise and Sakura blushed deeply. "Okay, well, not naked, but only on his fundoshi."

"Which is basically naked." Camilla added as Hinoka nodded.

"Yeah. One day he went to meditate as usual -- stop laughing already, Linfan! I'm not done! -- but when he came back, he, well... He was HOLDING his clothes on one hand, but walked around the entire castle from the garden 'till his quarters only on his fundoshi. And it was wet."

Camilla finally cracked a laugh. "And they're white, if I'm not mistaken? Oh, the sight!"

By then, Linfan was already purple from laughing as Sakura brought both hands to her face in horror, Elise snorting loudly. Taken in by the atmosphere, Hinoka continued her story under snickers. "Yes. And he ONLY noticed he was basically naked after he got into his room and started his duties -- he was still dripping wet and I swear to the Dawn Dragon he took two entire hours to leave his room because he was ashamed. And when he left? He was so red my hair couldn't even compare! Hah! I'll never let him live that down." She finally followed Linfan and laughed aloud. "Sometimes I remind him of that just to see his reaction and it's always so funny, no matter how many times I do it!"

"I-I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!" Linfan was choking from laughing so much, bending over herself to catch her breath. "This is amazing! It's way better than mine!"

"Are we holding a competition now?" Camilla giggled. "I'm afraid I haven't many embarrassing stories of Xander to tell. Apart from the usual clumsiness... Ah, if I remember correctly, there was one time he failed to crack a joke as we dined."

"That Prince Xander cracking a joke? He's the most serious man I've ever met!" Still with an air of laughter, Hinoka commented with a smile. Sakura nodded beside her, wanting to forget about her naked brother.

"You have no idea! I started crying right away 'cause I thought he was possessed or something! He even had a half smile and tried to raise his eyebrow like Arthur does, it was horrible!" Elise held onto Linfan's arm for support; just remembering that terrible sight making her chest tighten.

"THAT I can't imagine." Linfan looked up in thought, trying to picture that serious Crown Prince smiling like a fool, but her own mind filled his face with mosaics, as though to protect her sanity.

"I think I would cry too." Sakura looked down in horror, not liking these stories.

"Right? Right? It was terrifying!" Elise huffed.

"He learned his lesson, however." Camilla patted her little sister's head. "Never again did he try."

"For goodness' sake, too!" The young princess puffed her chest, then looked around to the princesses around her. "Is it my turn now? But how am I supposed to choose ONE embarrassing story of Leo? He embarrasses himself all the time!"

"BWAH!" Linfan choked a laugh, her stomach already hurting. "Lord Leo does?! No way! Tell me, tell me!"

Elise looked at Linfan in disbelief. "No way, you never saw it? I saw some people even bet on whether he would show up on his pyjamas or not the other day. They bet over how many pieces of his pyjama he would be wearing... the more people got right, the more money they got."

"Lord Leo is that careless? I GOTTA see it for myself!"

"You won't need to look for long, trust me." Elise snorted. "There was also one time he was half-asleep and sat down beside me to have breakfast. But then he chugged down MY strawberry juice instead of his usual tomato juice! I still haven't forgiven him for that! I was so looking forward to it!"

"Oh? You forgot to mention a tiny detail, dear." Camilla giggled. "The part where he realized it wasn't his juice halfway to the glass..."

"... And choked." Elise concluded. "But since the glass was already almost all turned up, everything else came down while he coughed, making such a mess I had to throw away the dress I wore that day because the stay never disappeared!"

"Oh my Naga-" Linfan slapped both hands over her mouth to hide her laughter. "I can't laugh anymore, please stop...!" She huffed, once again bending over herself.

"O-oh, something like that happened with Takumi, right, Big Sister?" Sakura turned to Hinoka, who nodded. "He was tired from his morning training and sat with his back to the table... then he took one of my cherry mochi instead of his own rice mochi... and wolfed it down in one bite." Sha looked down, distraught. "I really wanted that mochi..."

Hinoka put one arm over her sister's shoulder. "You forgot to mention how he choked with it and not only knocked over your AND his miso soup, he fell down from the tatami into the corridor."

"... Right in front of a servant who was still putting the table." Sakura started getting red from mirth, holding back her laughter. "Who t-t-t-tripped over him and m-made a mess... pfft... I-I'm so sorry, Big Brother..." She giggled under both hands, reliving the absurd scene.

Just by imagining the scene, Elise and Linfan both laughed so loud they startled the horses. "GODS, why wasn't I there?!" Linfan sputtered, her body already exhausted from all the laughter.

"You can come over next time -- I'm sure there won't be a shortage of opportunities for Takumi to embarrass himself." Hinoka snorted, not realizing how friendly she just sounded towards someone to whom she showed such blatant distaste not even one hour ago.

"For me to do what?" An exasperated voice was heard from the door. "What're you all laughing about? It's echoing all the way to the mess hall."

Prince Takumi and Prince Leo both opened the wide doors to the barn. They were both looking for their little sisters so they all could start breakfast when they met along the way, hearing the loud laughter coming from the stables. "So you were here, too, Linfan. Odin's looking all over for you, too."

"Oh!" Linfan slapped her forehead. "But I thought we agreed that it was my turn to clean your horse today!"

The princes approached, their brows raised at how their respective little sisters avoided eye contact with them. The girls' lips were so tightly pressed against one another that they turned white, in contrast to their red faces, as though they were trying not to laugh. Hinoka snorted openly as Camilla giggled and made her way to her little brother, hugging him.

"Well? Is it clean? You've been gone for one hour already." Leo said after he disentangled himself from Camilla's grip.

Once again did Linfan slap her forehead, making a round pink mark appear. "I didn't! Can I do it after breakfast? All that laughing made me hungry!"

Leo groaned. "Yes, you can. Just don't take too long, alright? I need my horse by noon."

"Yessir!"

"... What were you laughing about?" Takumi crossed his arms, watching his sister saddle her pegasus and bid it farewell.

"Why, that is a lady's secret, darling." Camilla booped Takumi's nose, making him jerk away from her and blush. "Would you pry on five ladies' private matters like that?"

"Embarrassing private matters," Linfan whispered, stealing a loud snort from Elise and setting Sakura off.

For some reason, Leo and Takumi felt like they were the reason for all that laughter. "What's the big idea? Don't tell me you're laughing at US!" Takumi looked at his sisters, stopping at his friend Linfan.

For some reason, when she looked up at Takumi and Leo, she mixed up her own memories of Odin snarfing down the noodles, somehow imagining Leo and Takumi both coughing noodles from their noses.

She couldn't take it.

"BWHAHGH-"

"Heehehaha!!" Elise followed, setting Hinoka and Sakura off.

Bright red, the princes looked at each other. "SISTER!" They grinded their teeth at their older sisters. "What did you tell them?!"

Camilla threw her head back in laughter as she once again hugged her little brother. "A few stories of the past, darling. Nothing worth- pfft... mentioning..."

"CAMILLA!" Leo let go of the hug, watching his increasingly red older sister laugh. "What's going on?! I won't stand around here and be mocked!"

Weakly, Linfan held onto Leo's sleeve as she laughed. "We were just... sharing embarrassing stories... of our brothers." She coughed, trying to stop.

Takumi's entire face and neck redded. "W-what did you tell them?!"

Hinoka laughed so much she was crying, but managed to hold Takumi's shoulder. "About that... time you ate Sakura's mochi."

Realization slowly hit the hoshidan prince. "NOOO!" He covered his face in shame. "Not that one!"

"BWARGHAH!" Once again Linfan laughed, holding onto Leo for support.

"... And mine was?" He tried to hold onto the little pride he had left, raising his chin.

Elise sputtered, bending over so as to catch her breath. "The... strawberry juice one... pfft...!"

Leo tried to maintain his composure by closing his eyes, but his bright red face betrayed him. "I'm- How could- I'm divorcing this family." he said in a low voice, turning on his heel. "Just wait until I remember your most embarrassing story, Elise!"

"W-wait, Lord Leo-" Still holding onto him, Linfan almost tripped when he started walking. "C-c'mon, why don’t we all go together to the mess hall? We can still share a lot more embarrassing stories now that everyone's here!"

"Well, I don't WANT to tell any embarrassing stories!" Takumi still hadn't recovered, holding his face in shame. "I'll never live this down."

That almost set Linfan off again, but she managed to gulp the laughter down and straighten her back. "C'mon, it's gonna be fun! We can do it by turns, and it doesn't need to be about the family, how about it?"

Leo pursed his lips, almost pouting. "Well, I do have quite a few stories about Odin… But I still want to talk about Elise’s."

“Hey!” The young princess crossed her arms as Linfan snapped her fingers.

"I have a lot of stories about my brother too! C'mon, he won't be there anyway, so let's embarrass him all we can!" She held onto Leo's arm, slightly turning over her shoulder to wink to Camilla. The eldest princess giggled, then nodded.

They would make sure to think up the most shameful stories of everyone in that army, or her name wasn't Linfan!

... Well, it wasn't, but you get the idea!