#i went desperately hunting for gems and finally got to roll

[k-kuja]

[:re birth] half year anniversary → arima kishou + kaneki ken ⚡

[jacksonroseroth]

Welcome To The Neighborhood Chapter 9

A/N: We’re only a day late! :D We hope you guys have been enjoying the fic! Here’s Chapter 9 of mine and @badwolf-in-the-impala​‘s collab!

Disclaimer: There is some Spanish used in this chapter. So we would also like to add that this is a second language for both of us. We did our best to do the research to make sure things we as close as possible to accurate. So if it’s not the best/correct, we do apologize. Any helpful pointers or tips would be appreciated. But please, no rude comments. <3

Warnings: violence, angst, implied rape, More angst…So much angst.

Moodboard made by @badwolf-in-the-impala​, none of the pictures are ours.

~

Kacey had cried so much on the ride back to Charming that she could barely speak, let alone function by the time they made it back to the clubhouse. Opie having to practically pry her off the back of his bike as she sat there, staring off blankly into the distance, as he picked her up so that they could head inside. The group silent as they stepped into the clubhouse, save for the whispers from a few of the Crow Eaters and some of the members. That silence was soon broken as Gemma came out of the kitchen, hell-bent on chewing some ass.

“I swear to God, Kacey Calhoun when I get my hands on you and your sister! What gives you the right to think you can run off--” Gemma stopped as Clay held up a hand and shook his head. “Where’s Harper?” Gemma asked suddenly as she pressed a hand to her chest; fear setting in.

“She gave herself up.” Kacey sobbed hoarsely against Opie’s chest. “Harper gave herself up to protect me!” Gemma’s expression fell as she stepped forward to embrace Kacey as Opie set her down. Pulling her close as she said, “Oh, Sweetheart...I’m so sorry.”  

“They’re gonna h-hurt her, Gem...and it’s all m-my fucking fault.” Kacey sobbed as she held onto Gemma. Opie still behind her as he squeezed her shoulder tightly.

“Don’t you say that!” Gemma said sternly. “Don’t you dare fuckin’ say that. This isn’t your fault, Baby, and we’re gonna find a way to fix it. We’ll find a way to fix it...Right, Clay?” Gemma added as she looked over to her husband, Clay at a complete loss as he shook his head. Not even knowing where in the hell they would begin, without inciting an all-out War, in trying to get Harper back.

“Well, we can’t just leave her there!” Gemma cried at him.

“You think I don’t know that?!” Clay shot back at Gemma. “We almost ended up in a Goddamn shootout over the issue. She went willingly. And Alvarez gave his fucking word, Gem. It’s not like we can just waltz in and take her back. Not without starting another fuckin’ war!” He added, rubbing a frustrated hand over his face. “We’ll find a way to get her back...But we need time.”

Gemma let out a sigh as she looked down at Kacey, pressing a kiss to her temple as she patted her cheek before pushing her back into Opie’s arms as she said, “Why don’t you go get cleaned up, Baby...Maybe have Chibs take another look at your arm? Looks like you may have torn your stitches.” She gestured to the bloodstain on the sleeve of Kacey’s shirt.

Chibs seconded the statement, patting Kacey’s shoulder gently before she tucked herself back into Opie’s side. The crowd that had gathered during the commotion parting in order to let them pass and head down the hall for the dorms. Gemma turning to face Clay and the rest of the guys once Kacey was out of earshot.

“Where’s Jax?”

~

Jax didn't know what to do with himself. He was more than ready and set to go and hunt Nico down, stake out his house and wait for them to get back, taking Harper with him. But as he rode home, his mind cleared, if only a little. On the way back into Charming, Jax stopped at a little cafe to rest. As they rode home, Opie, Clay, and Chibs saw him sitting outside and stopped to ask if he was okay. Jax waved them off, promising he wouldn’t do anything stupid, and they left him.

He sat on the side of the road, only a few cars stopping to ask if he needed help, and he had gone through half his pack of cigarettes as he sat just underneath the date scratched onto the rock. J.T. 11-13-93 Complete with the Sons logo. He leaned his head back against the rock and blew out the smoke from his last drag. He snubbed it out and stood, going to his bike and getting on, buckling his helmet before starting it and taking off down the street. He knew there would be questions as to where he went, what he did, but he didn't feel like answering to anyone. So with a quick text to Clay at a stop light, as he came back into town, Jax turned off, riding away from the club and going back home.

As it were, with Harper gone and everything good between Sons and Mayans again, the lockdown was over, the other charters leaving one by one. When Jax got to his house, Gemma was outside, getting out of her car. Jax sighed as he pulled into the driveway and cut the engine, kicking out the kickstand and taking off his helmet.

“I guess Clay didn't give you the message?” Jax asked as his mother walked over him.

“No. I got it.” Gemma said, giving him a look, stopping just short of his bike and putting a hand on her hip. “Why are you here at home, Jax? You should be at the clubhouse coming up with a plan to get Harper back!”

“You don’t think I know that, Mom?” Jax snapped, sauntering up to his front door and opening it. He tossed his keys into the bowl that sat on the alcove and went to the kitchen. Gemma followed him inside and closed the door behind her. Jax turned to her, twisting open the top to a bottle of beer and said, “There’s nothing we can do until an opportunity presents itself. She fucking gave herself over to them to stop any sort of war between the clubs because we refused to let them have her. What can we fuckin’ do?”

Gemma stalked over to him and hissed, “You can kill that son of a bitch who started this. Nico or whatever his fuckin’ name is. He’s the one who caused Alvarez to even want justice and forced Harper’s hand.”

Jax scoffed as he let out a short laugh and said, “Believe me, Mom. I want nothing more than to do the son of a bitch in myself. But he’s Alvarez’ fuckin’ nephew. I do that to get her back, it stops being about what they did and becomes a fuckin’ problem for us all.”

Gemma huffed at him and turned away, taking a few steps and bracing a hand on her lower back as her other hand reached up to rub her forehead, trying to think. Finally, she turned to her son and said, “Well, if you’re not going to find a way to bring her back, you better get the fuck over to the house and comfort Kacey. She’s a goddamn wreck.”

Leaving it at that, she walked out, jumping in her car and taking off.

~

Once Alvarez and his men had brought Harper back to the clubhouse, she was instantly on edge. All these men knew what she and Kacey had done and now she was forced to face them again. Or so she thought. As she slowly got off Alvarez’ bike, handing him the spare helmet, before she could even start to follow him inside, Nico grabbed her arm and yanked her over to his bike.

“Nico, what the fuck!?” Harper shouted. The back of his ringed hand sent her to the ground before he roughly hauled her up again, planting her on the back of his bike, not bothering with her helmet, and took off before Alvarez could even look back. As much as she would rather let go and take her chances with hitting the road, she clung to Nico, sobbing. Her only resolve was that she was going to figure out a plan to kill Nico herself and escape back to her sister, the club, and Jax.

When Nico pulled into his driveway, he grabbed Harper’s arm and tugged her inside, shoving her through the door so hard, she missed the step and tripped, stumbling to catch herself before she landed, sprawled out on the hardwood floor. With a whimper, she tried to pick herself up, settling for an attempt to crawl to the couch and hoist herself up. She didn't think Alvarez would let Nico take her, knowing he would lay down some beatings at some point, and she didn't think it would happen this fast. But when she rolled over on the rug, staring up at Nico and seeing the fire that raged in his eyes, she knew it was over.

“Nico...Please…” She begged softly. Nico snickered and nodded.

“That’s right, bitch. Beg. You think Bastien’s beatings were bad? Baby, you have no idea.” Nico said. He yanked her up and wrapped his hand around her throat, but before he could do anything, Harper’s absolute worst fear was realized when she heard Sara call from the back of the house, “Nico?! Is that you?”

“Yeah, Niña. Come see what I brought you.” Nico called back with a smirk. Harper shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut, tears seeping out of the corners.

“Nico, please. If I ever meant anything to you-” Her plea was cut off as Nico slapped her again.

“Went out the window the day that little bitch beat my sister.” Nico hissed. As Harper gripped Nico’s wrist, trying to pry it away, Sara emerged from the hallway, stopping for a moment when she saw Harper. A small smile spread across her face as she slowly made her way over.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Sara taunted as Nico turned her to face Sara, still holding her neck. Harper whimpered and looked at her.

“Sara-” Her fist connected to Harper’s face, sending her backwards over the couch. She whimpered as she picked herself up, trying to scramble away from the siblings as best she could. She managed to catch a glimpse of Nico’s gun stash and made a mad dash for it, grabbing one that she desperately hoped was loaded and turned on them, pointing it with unsteady hands.

“T-Th-That’s f-fuckin’ enough…” She sobbed, her hands trembling so bad she was afraid she would drop the gun as her finger lightly gripped the trigger. Nico chuckled and said, “Can you even see straight to do it in one shot, mi Amor?”

“Do you want to f-fucking test me, Nico?” She said, her voice trembling though she was quite confident in her skill. Nico smirked and cocked his head to Sara and said, “Sara, go down to Diego’s and get some food. We’re gonna need it.”

Sara glanced at her brother, giving him a look before looking back at Harper. “You think I’m leaving you alone with this stupid bitch? Que loco, Nico.” She said. Nico turned to her and said, “Sara, fucking get your skinny ass down there!”

He gave her a stern look, though his lips pricked up in a small smirk, and said, “And make sure they get the order right. Take your time.”

Sara pushed him away and turned, whipping her hair in his face and swiped her phone and keys off the table as she walked out the door. Nico turned back to Harper and said, “Put down the gun, Harp.”

“No! Fuck you!” She shouted, cocking the gun to show she wouldn’t listen. Nico took a step closer as he said, “You think if you kill me that they won’t go after Kacey? The Alvarez’ don’t die easy. It takes a perfect shot to the head to do it. Just ask Esai.”

Harper seethed as her hands shook even more. “I wasn’t fucking involved in that! I loved Esai like a fucking brother!” She yelled.

“And yet you’re sleeping with the man who made it happen,” Nico said, getting closer. “Put the fucking gun down, Harper. Now.”

Harper clung to the weapon, not sure she’d ever get this chance again, but she finally, still reluctantly, lowered and uncocked it. “Now, put it back where you found it.” He said. Harper took a breath, cursing her next movement as she turned her back to him, setting the gun back in its place. The second her hand left the gun, she felt Nico’s fingers dig into her hair, grabbing a fistful and throwing her across the room, to the couch.

“Now you’re gonna regret not giving us your sister.” Nico spat. Harper closed her eyes, wincing at the pain from everything. They shot open when she heard Nico’s belt buckle clink, widening in shock and fear.

“Nico. Nico-”

“Keep your fucking mouth shut. You know what you are, baby? A goddamn biker whore.” Nico said, rushing at her as she made her move to try and run. He grabbed her and pinned her down with one hand, while the other ripped down the shorts she wore. Harper whimpered and clawed at him. “And now, you’re going to get treated like one.”

“Nico, don’t do this!” She screamed, struggling under him. Another backhand from him silenced her. Even if he had held his hand over her mouth, she still wouldn’t have made a sound.

~

The week went by quickly without Harper, knowing where she was and not knowing what was happening to her. Kacey was distraught for three days, refusing to leave the house. Opie and Gemma made sure she had everything she needed, not knowing how long it was going to last. But as day four, turned to five, Kacey’s distress steadily turned into anger as she finally managed to climb out of the whiskey bottle she had been hiding in. Trying to bury her feelings in hopes that this was all just some messed up dream. But as reality eventually set in, Kacey was forced to pick herself up. Saving her pity party for a more convenient time as she threw herself right into the middle of trying to come up with a plan to save Harper.

And while Opie, Jax, and Gemma were more than supportive, happy just to finally see her out of the house and sober for the first time in nearly a week...Clay was a little less than thrilled. Especially by her impromptu sit-ins on any club meeting Kacey thought might contain discussion about her sister, which in turn only lead to more arguments and tension among the clubhouse.

Gemma did her best to keep things neutral with Clay, but with Kacey on the warpath, and Jax only adding fuel to the fire, she didn’t know how much longer it was going to last before somebody pulled a stupid stunt and managed to get hurt...Or worse.

“We have got to get this shit sorted out…” Gemma muttered to herself as she took another drag from her cigarette as the muffled argument between Clay, Jax and Kacey escalated behind the closed doors of the Chapel.

“Hm...And how do you propose we do that?” Opie spoke up as he set his beer down the bartop, turning his attention to Gemma who shook her head as she allowed another drag of smoke to trail past her lips slowly.

“Hell if I fuckin’ know...But if they don’t figure something out, and soon, I’m afraid your lil girlfriend is gonna give Clay a Goddamn coronary.” Opie snorted with a laugh but nodded his head in agreement, knowing Gemma was more than right.

“Yeah...She can be a bit, difficult, sometimes.” Opie added.

“Sometimes?” Gemma scoffed with a smirk. “Baby, that girl could bring down an entire nation if you pissed her off enough. I don’t envy you the first time you really piss her off.” She chuckled as she reached over to pat Opie’s cheek. “You’ve got yourself a good one, Ope.”

“Thanks, Gem.” Opie finished just as Clay came storming out of the Chapel, muttering to himself angrily as he headed for the front door. Kacey the next to emerge in a rage as she stormed off towards the dorms; leaving Jax who approached the bar, rubbing his forehead as he waved Half-Sack down for a beer.

“This is a fuckin’ disaster.” Jax sighed heavily as he leaned his hands against the bar. “If Clay would just listen--”

“I know, Baby.” Gemma kissed his cheek lightly as she moved around the bar. “But we’re gonna figure it out. And don’t you worry about Clay...I’ll deal with him. There’s gotta be somethin’ we’re missin’ that we could use to get Harper back. We just need to dig a little deeper.”

Jax let out a soft sigh as he took a large gulp from his beer, sliding onto a barstool next to Opie. Gemma combed back his hair a little before taking off to check on Kacey, mainly to make sure she wasn’t diving head first into another bottle of whiskey. Opie planted a firm hand on Jax’s back and leaned forward on the bar.

“How are you holding up, man?” Opie asked. Jax shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair.

“How are you supposed to deal with something like this, Ope?” Jax asked, softly before turning to look at him. “I mean, who knows what the fuck that bastard is doing to her!”

“She’s very strong-willed, Jax. She can hold her own.” Opie said. Jax shook his head and took another drink, draining half of it.

“Not against Nico. Did you see the way he fucking looked at her? He wanted to kill her, Opie.” Jax said.

“Hey. Don’t think like that. You start thinking like that and everything goes to shit.” Opie said, sternly. “We’ll get her back Jax.”

While he wanted to believe it was true, there was no light that Jax could see at the end of this unbelievably fucked up tunnel. In his mind, there was one way, and one way only, that he would ever have the chance to have Harper back in his arms, and it surprised him at just how ready he was to do it.

~

While the rape was a one-time occurrence, the beatings became regular, Harper becoming little more than a slave. Nico and Sara both seemed to take pleasure out of seeing the bruises on her face, her split lips and bruised arms. Whenever she dropped something or wasn’t quick enough in getting him what he wanted, a swift backhand was all he did, keeping him satisfied enough. At night, when he got drunk or had a bad run or whatever bullshit excuse he gave, he beat her. Sometimes just a few slaps before passing out, sometimes it lasted several minutes. Only once did Sara take full vengeance on the sister, slicing her up so bad they had to call the club medic to the house, Nico paying him off so it didn't get back to Alvarez. Though Nico already had the excuse of Harper falling off his bike on the highway.

Alvarez checked in on Harper often and Nico meticulously planned his beatings, making sure she was healed enough to use the falling excuse and Alvarez bought it. But it soon became too much for Harper and she decided to speak up in his presence, knowing Nico wouldn’t hit her until after he had left.

“Tío. What brings you here?” Nico asked, letting Marcus in, closing the door behind him.

“I wanted to stop by. I’m heading out to Lodi.” Marcus said, glancing around for Harper. Nico knew he really came by to make sure Harper was still alive, so he called out for her.

“Harper! Marcus is here!” Within seconds, Harper hustled down the hallway and gave Marcus a half smile. Marcus returned it in kind and lifted her chin, inspecting the new bruises she had.

“Those look bad, chica. Fall down again?” he questioned, raising his eyebrow, the excuse beginning to wear thin. Harper glanced over his shoulder at Nico, who had taken out his knife and played with it, his eyes never leaving her. Harper looked at Marcus and said, “I’m fine.”

Marcus nodded and released her chin, beginning to turn away, but Harper stopped him. “How is Alejandro?” She asked, making him turn back to her. “I-I couldn’t help but notice I haven’t seen him around lately.”

Marcus glanced at Nico and said, “You haven’t heard? Alejandro got shot by some fuckin’ Niners...Right after you left, actually.”

Harper’s lips skewed in a smirk as Nico took a step toward her. “Really? Cause from what I remember-”

“Harper, shut the fuck up.” Nico hissed. Marcus glanced at him and said, “Why don’t you shut your mouth, Nico, and let her finish.”

Nico stepped back, ready to bolt, as Harper continued, “The last time I saw him, was when I put a bullet in his head when he tried to rape Kacey.”

“You’re fuckin’ dead, you bitch!” Nico screamed, charging at her. Marcus turned and caught him by his Kutte and gave him a rough shake.

“What happened to the Niner, then, Nico?! You told me that stupid chato got a bullet in him too! That they took Alejandro when they killed him!” Marcus shouted.

“She’s a lying whore, Padríno! She’s a fucking liar!” Nico shouted as Marcus shoved him back, crashing into the table behind him.

“If I’m lying then why do I know you paid off the LKQ junkman to let him bury the body there?! Dangerously close to where we met you two weeks ago!” Harper shouted. Nico chucked his knife at her, which Harper easily avoided as Marcus grabbed him by his Kutte again and dragged him to the door.

“Well, we’re gonna see if she’s lying, aren’t we?” Marcus said. He turned to Harper and said, “Stay in the house, Harper. We’ll be back.”

Nico pitched a fit the whole way as Marcus dragged his nephew to his car and shoved him in. Harper waited until the tires squealed, Marcus peeling out of the driveway before she tore through the house looking for one of Nico’s burners and dialed the clubhouse, a number she thankfully memorized, not knowing if Kacey would be able to pick up. As the phone continued to ring, she slowly began to lose hope that anyone would answer and she only had a short window to get ahold of someone. Finally, the line picked up, not bothering to wait to see who it was, she screamed, “Let me talk to Kacey! Or Jax! Or Gemma! It’s Harper! Please, please let me talk to them!”

“Harper!? Hey, it’s Half-Sack, hold o-Jesus, Kacey, alright, alright!” There was fumbling before Kacey was on the phone shouting, “Harper!? Is that really you!?”

Harper instantly began sobbing as she smiled and nodded. “Yes! Yes! Kacey!?” She cried. Clutching the phone she sunk to the floor and sobbed.

“Where are you, Harper?! We’ll come get you!” Kacey said. Harper shook her head and said, “No, don’t. I mean not here. I’m at Nico’s. We-I have to get out first.”

“Well, you have to get out of Oakland! Where can we meet you?!” Kacey asked. Harper sniffed and wiped her face as she said, “I-I don’t know. I-I’ll find a way to get out. Um, what-what about Lodi? Have-have Jax reach out to the Bastards. Nowhere near LKQ. I-I told Marcus about Alejandro.”

There was a moment of silence where Harper’s heart dropped and she looked at the phone to make sure Kacey hadn’t hung up. “Kacey?” She asked.

“You-You told M-Nico didn't hurt you?!” Kacey screamed.

“No! Marcus grabbed him and they just left. Kacey, I need to leave now.” Harper said, beginning to shake.

“Okay, Harp-Yeah...Yeah. I’ll tell her, Jax. Harper?” Kacey called.

“I’m still here!”

“Okay, listen. I’m going to text you. Jax said to go to the Grim Bastards clubhouse in Lodi. Just go. I’ll text you. When you get somewhere safe, check it and meet us there!” She said. Harper sighed and nodded.

“Okay. I-I’m gonna leave now. T-T.O. knows I’m gonna be there? I’ll have to steal Nico’s bike!” Harper said.

“Harp, don’t worry! We’ll tell them! Just go!” Harper left the number of Nico’s burner and began to search around for the keys to his bike. As she grabbed them and turned, Sara stepped out from the bathroom, arms crossed and smirking.

“And where do you think you’re going?” She asked, with a sneer. Harper took a step back, bumping into the counter.

“Just let me go, Sara, You got what you wanted!” Harper said. Slipping a hand behind her, she felt around the counter for anything she could use to hit her. Her fingers closed around the handle of a knife and held it tight.

“Oh, no. I think you’re much better off here, mamí. Besides, if you run, we’re going to find you.” All the while she spoke, she inched her way closer and closer to Harper, until she was just within reach. Harper shifted, all pain replaced by adrenaline, she spat at Sara, “Well, I’d second guess that if I were you.”

Before she let Sara say anything else, she lunged at her, sinking the knife into her shoulder. Sara screamed and dropped, Harper rolling off her and shooting out the door. She didn't bother with the helmet, if she got picked up, she could still get away from Nico. She started the bike and took off, trying to figure out a way out of Oakland and on the highway to Lodi without being caught; By cop or Mayan.

~

Hope you guys liked it! Feel free to drop a comment! If you want to be tagged in future fics/chapters, let me know! I’ll add you to the list!

@tephi101 @shieldmaiden25 @staystrongsoa @badwolf-in-the-impala @captstefanbrandt @imgoldielikehawn @grungyblonde @courtrae89 @romanchronicles @crazyanonymous4u

[lizord-lord]

Splashing, Wading, Knee-Deep, Drowning

(Felt this was really the only opening for this chapter sjhdjsahhsfgsdf. I FINALLY GOT THIS GODDAMN CHAPTER DONE! I know it’s been a while, I got hyperfixated on TTS and then Locked Heart and now I have another AU in the works, (my friends are getting contagious) so this took a while because it was my botton pritority and inspiration was running dry. But tbh since this I’ve had a lot more growth as a writer-so the reason this was so hard was because the middle chapters of this story are kind of a mess and I’m the kind of person who needs a strict outline. So I need to write that down XD and that should help! Anyway, here we go...the first actual interaction, featuring a brief cameo from my lovely beta reader @poisonedapples, who puts up with Virgil’s blatant racism against his bird brethren. ON WITH THIS, FINALLY!)

Chapter One

Chapter Four

Warnings: Blood, falling out of trees?

Chapter Five

Roman wasn’t sure whether it was the blade or the shout that jolted him out of his stupor, but regardless, he jolted, eyes flicking back between the still-quivering blade and the piercing glare the stranger was directing his way.

Roman made a noise - halfway between shock and offense, as an equally heated glare spread across his own face.

“What am I doing? What are you doing throwing knives at innocent passers-by!” “Well excuse me for not being so comfortable with, I don’t know, someone pointing a goddamn crossbow in my face?”  The stranger’s voice was laced with spite and dripping sarcasm, emphasized by the assusing wave of his hand in the direction of Roman’s weapon.

It took the prince a moment to respond. Honestly, in his awe of the transformation he’d witnessed, he’d almost forgotten the bow in his hands. Though now, with the option of backing out on his rather...snappy introduction, or putting the bow down..he chose the former. For his dignity!

“Well it’s not my fault! I thought I was just hunting some random bird!”

The man seemed to pause at that-and Roman smirked at the small victory. But he quickly recovered, eyes trained just as sharply on the weapon as he spat out another jab at the prince.

“Well you aren’t! So mind putting that thing down??”

“I-” yes he would! “I will not! You just turned from a bird into a man, how do I know you’re not some-some dastardly magician lying in wait to terrorize the land?”

The stranger made a noise - a startled grunt, looking shocked for a second. And then his expression hardened even further. “You-You think I’m an evil sorcerer!? I was fucking cursed by one you moron! I’ve been here for like a month!” “And how would I know that? How do I even know you’re telling the truth?” Roman countered.

Well for one, he could see the rage twisting the stranger’s face.

“Well I don’t know, maybe because if I was an evil sorcerer I would have cursed you by now? That’s basically what they do, shoot magic at people just trying to get some food-kinda like you and that bow!”

The man took a step forward—rather brave considering how much the weapon seemed to set him off, and Roman was once again scrambling for a retort.

“Excuse me for wanting to have defense against a possible evil magician, I’m not still bothering you about this am I?” He took one hand off the weapon to reach behind him and pull the dagger out of the wall. He was distracted for a moment by the red gleam of a gem set into the pommel, considering the plainness of the dagger otherwise, it was likely spinel rather than ruby.

It was at that moment that he was yanked forward and the bow slipped from his hands.

Once Roman’s eyes registered that yes, the stranger had in fact just grabbed and taken his weapon (though luckily he looked completely at a loss as how to use it and was holding it under one arm with the bolt pointed down) he decided that the level of offense this dark stranger had committed was...incorrigible!

“Give that back this instant, you heathen!” he demanded, instinctually brandishing the dagger-though it likely looked a tad silly, considering he was doing so as if it was a sword...when he still had his sword at his hip. The other man did not comply.

“Sorry I don’t want to get shot!”

“I wasn’t going to shoot you!” Roman retorted, and to that, the stranger looked half surprised and half further annoyed.

“Then why wouldn’t you put it down if you weren’t gonna use it!”

...Roman actually didn’t have much of an answer for that. Not outside of ‘I didn’t want to’, at least. That would just sound silly.

“Because-“ he began, “Because—well, because it’s mine! Now give it back, you are stealing property of a prince!”

Now that properly surprised the stranger. He stepped back, posture losing a hint of its defensiveness..though his face still held suspicion.

“If you’re a prince, why are you hunting birds in the woods?”

“I needed a breath of fresh air,” Roman responded simply, but when the man still didn’t budge, he groaned and rolled his eyes, folding his arms across his chest.

“If you’re too much of a skeptic to believe what’s right in front of you, check the bow, it has my family crest carved into it.”

He was stared at for a few more seconds. But then the stranger lifted the bow back up, eyes scanning the pale wood.

“You could have stolen it,” he pointed out after a minute in a begrudging voice-and Roman has to bite back another groan.

“Why would I lie to a strange bird-man in the woods? I’m Prince Roman, and you are holding a bow that Count Logan Veritas gifted to me, kindly give it back,” Roman announced, unconsciously puffing out his chest.

There was a beat of silence. The stranger looked at him for a long moment, as if scanning his face. The suspicion faded, and a triumphant smile began to spread across the prince’s face—until something else made its way into the stranger’s expression. Something he didn’t place as deviousness until his bow went flying into the thick, twisting branches of the tree above him.

“WHAT IN MERLIN’S LIBRARY WAS THAT FOR!?” Roman screeched at the top of his lungs, sending a lone sparrow fleeing from its nest.He looked up, frantic, but the weapon had landed not in the section he could see—the inexplicably bare branches—but deep in the mass of dark green leaves.

The stranger didn’t answer. Instead he grabbed his dagger from Roman’s limp right hand—he must have cut himself from the hiss of pain—and was storming off into the trees before Roman could react.

Flabbergasted, the prince just stared for a long moment. Rage was replaced with nervousness, and with a frustrated growl of defeat, he realized it would be no use pursuing the man into an unfamiliar section of the woods just to give him a tongue-lashing or drag him off, and instead turned to the tree. Striding up to the thick trunk, he took a good look.

Prospects weren’t good. The branches didn’t start until at least twenty feet up and...wow, these trees really were immense.

He tried of course, to grip at the trunk and hoist himself up, but the bark was too smooth for any real hold. Roman’s hands slipped down it, and as undignified as it was, also attempted the ‘tree hugging’ method, but the trunk was far too wide. He slid down like eggs thrown against the wall..felt the part as well. At least he seemed to be alone again, unless he wasn’t and the stranger was watching? ...No, Roman resisted the urge to look over his shoulder and instead stepped back to circle the general area. Perhaps there was another tree he could climb into, and then cross the branches to get to the top of that one? Yes! The prince scanned the trees around..and his brief smile faded. There were trees with branches lower, yes, but none of them his height..

He thought the bow was lost for a minute, until he noticed the closeness of two trees behind him.

Roman’s grin appeared as an idea formed in his mind.

Turning and moving to stand between the two thick trunks, he placed his hands out to his sides and against the dark, smooth bark. And then he sucked in a breath—hoping with all his might that this would work—before jumping up into a split, letting out a whoop of victory as he felt the soles of his feet hit the trees. ...Maybe that hadn’t been the best idea, but he was doing it! So, Roman carefully brought his right hand up and placed it back higher on the trunk. Grinning, he repeated the process for his left hand, then right foot, then left foot, about three quarters of the way to the branches now...just a little farther and-

But as the prince reached up with both hands, he found himself losing balance. Wavering. And then suddenly, he found himself leaning ba-

Roman shrieked as he suddenly found himself plummeting to the ground, trying desperately to stick his arms out to catch himself between the trees-

His exhale was shaky, and his palms burned like fire from skidding down the bark, but he hadn’t cracked his skull open in the middle of the woods and that was far more important.

Despite what had just occurred, Roman gritted his teeth and continued upward. It hurt, his hands still stung—but he made it back up, and this time, very carefully lifted only one hand to grab the branch.

It snapped.

And again he was losing balance. Thank goodness he didn’t fall again, but it sent his heart into his mouth regardless as he pressed his palms to the trees so hard his elbows started to hurt.

The next branch was at least another five feet. The prince knew better than to look down, but he must be at least ten feet in the air now, another five—no! No, he couldn’t just leave Logan’s gift behind!

Taking a breath, he continued his slow pace upwards. Steadily and carefully—two words that barely ever described him—until he grasped firmly at another branch. Tugging hard just to make sure it wouldn’t break, he slowly reached up with both hands to grasp it firmly and pull himself up.

Huffing, he climbed onto the branch and carefully stood up, gripping one above his head for stability. Now where? The foliage of this tree were dense, but he could see that through the leaves, it was not connected to the tree the stranger had hurled his crossbow into.

“Dammit,” he muttered, but there was no giving up! He stepped onto another branch to his right, where it did connect to the next tree, slowly making his way to it, and then to the tree next to that...

But it was slow going. And in this slow going, he had almost no light to go off of.

It took another ten minutes in the dark, in the trees, before Roman realized he was not making his way towards the tree he intended. In fact..he didn’t even know where he was relative to it. The prince turned, squinting through the darkness to make out the tree—to make out anything, really. But the night was thick and inky black, and what with the canopy both around and above him being as dense as it was, Roman could barely see his hand in front of his face as this point.

No…

There was no way now. How was he supposed to find the bow now?? He had to be home soon, before someone noticed..oh no.

Roman leaned out, peering desperately through the darkness. But then when feeling the branch dip, he flinched and scrambled back to the thick trunk.

Cold, heavy guilt blossomed in his chest. Roman might be a brave optimist (actually he’d been called reckless on many on occasion) but he couldn’t see a way to even begin retrieving the bow. He’d have to leave it behind..oh what would Logan say, what would he think of him? He  knew the Count’s penchant for occupying twitching hands with whatever he could, including a whittling knife..he’d no doubt carved the designs himself, anyone else’s would be inferior in his eyes. And now he’d immediately gone and lost his beautiful gift..

He’d have to come back. He wouldn’t leave it here in the woods where—where that snappish stranger might be able to do something with it!

The guilt in his chest hardened into resolve, and Roman crouched down on the branch. Gripping it tightly with both hands, he slowly lowered himself down so he was dangling, then one hand over the other, slowly, he moved down to the thin end of the branch, being carried farther down as the wood bent under his weight. With five feet left to go, he dropped, bending his knees as he hit the ground. It was jarring, but thankfully he found himself uninjured.

Now...to find his way home...

After a moment of glancing around in the dark, he found there was just enough light to distinguish his fingernails from the rest of hand-hopefully that was enough. Reaching into his hunting jacket’s left pocket, Roman retrieved the small compass he kept there, bringing it nearly all the way up to his eye and heavily squinting in order to read the needle. Not dignified, but necessary. It took a minute, but finally he was able to discern which way was south, he sighed in relief and began to walk.

It wasn’t long before he slipped the compass away and drew his sword instead, it never hurt to be wary..and he swore he noticed a glint of pale blue from a bush. Always be ready. But to his great relief, he didn’t encounter any beasts on his way out. In fact, it seemed much easier to find himself out of the eerily tall and thick inner wood, and back at the more spacious edges. He let out a long sigh of relief at the sight of the moon peeking through the foliage above him.

Journeys from always did seem to be shorter than journeys to, and that was a relief for the tired prince. He emerged from the edge of the woods and back onto the green grasses of the castle grounds with the moon not even halfway to its apex. Roman sheathed his sword and began his trek across the lawn, intending to head for the same kitchen door he used to escape (he knew the head chef took a long time to clean up after the day, and if he didn’t get lucky—well, he’d just climb up the wall to his room!)

He did get lucky though, quietly opening the door and slipping inside-then making his way up the steps without even checking to see who was around. Wood worn from countless shoes turned to impeccably polished boards as he moved from the servants’ end of the castle to the main halls, and then to the royal wing.

From there, he tiptoed his way through the gold light of torches lining the halls to the door of his room, all smooth polished wood that gleamed even brighter in the firelight. Carefully, Roman pushed it open, slipping inside  and spinning on his heels to shut the door just as quietly. Hm, that was strange, he hadn’t left any candles burning, had he? “Welcome back, Roman.” …Oh.

He winced, bowing his head and gritting his teeth sheepishly, as he turned to face the figure sitting on his bed. “Ah...yes, good evening mother…”

“Sit down.” She gestured to the carved chair in the corner next to his bookshelf, and Roman winced inwardly, dragging himself to the seat like his feet were bound by chains and sinking into the plush upholstery with dread pulling him deeper.

His mother folded her hands on her lap.

“So. Sneaking out at night, are we?” “Well it was really more of an evening walk-” Roman rushed to say, letting a bit of what he hoped was sheepish mirth into his voice, but with a snap of her fingers the queen silenced him.

“In your hunting clothes? Roman, you missed another meeting, and you’re lying about it. Going out hunting is one thing. Going out hunting late at night when killing the heir to the throne is a popular thing to do it another. So is deliberately sneaking out and lying about it. And missing a meeting that deeply concerns you.” A sharp edge slipped into her voice at the last words, and Roman bit his lip.

“I...I apologize, mother. I was only trying to get some fresh air, to clear my head...these past few days have been taking a toll on me as well you know.” For the first time, he heard his mother sigh, And it felt as heavy as his own. “I know, Roman. I know. But these are luxuries that for once we cannot afford. Once everything is sorted out—”

“Yes, what about that?” Roman burst out (quite against his better judgement, but then again, Logan was most of that) “Once everything is sorted out I’ll become king! And then I won’t get much of a chance to go out and hunt, will I? These are my last days, Mother! I would like to enjoy them!” He saw sympathy in his mother’s eyes. Just a little. But aside from that, it did not show.

“I’m sure you will find times here and there. Times are not always so turbulent. But for now, we cannot have you galavanting about in the woods when there is work to be done and safety is such a concern. You will be confined to the castle at all times until I say so.”

“Mother-”

“No.” She held up one hand, once again silencing him. “No ‘Mother’, no ‘buts’. I apologize if your safety and the stability of Volona is a more pressing matter than your excursions. I expect you to get out of those clothes and go to bed, we will have to make up that meeting tomorrow. Goodnight.” She rose from his bed and strode out the door, offering no further words to her son as it shut behind her. Still seated in the chair, Roman bit back a frustrated scream.

He grabbed the pillow behind his back and punched it instead.

Moron! Fool! Blind, forgetful, how could he have let that meeting slip his mind!? Of course they’d come looking for him, he should have been more careful! And now he was stuck here, with Logan’s beautiful present lost to that cretin in the woods! ...No.

Roman’s lips settled into a thin line as he clenched and unclenched his fists, rising from the seat as he roughly pulled off his sword belt his other weapons, then his hunting clothes. Even as he changed into his bedclothes, the thought remained constant.

He wasn’t going to let the crossbow rot in that tree. He could be smart. He could be careful. He’d get it back. Somehow.

Virgil hissed as he slunk away into the woods, wincing at the red line across the palm of his left hand. Well, at least he had his knife back..but he couldn’t shake the shaky feeling that spread through his body at what had just happened. Prince Roman, heir to the Volonian throne. In his woods. In the woods period! Why...and he’d basically bitten his head off. Virgil felt a little proud about that.

But hopefully he wouldn’t come back without that bow..he shivered, recalling the memory of the crossbow bolt pointed right at his face.

Thank god that was over.

He stepped deeper into the woods, switching the knife to his right hand. Sure, he wouldn’t be able to use it as well if he needed it, but it was better than irritating the cut. He’d bandage it later...well, if he could spare the fabric from the hem of his coat.

Luckily, Virgil didn’t encounter any danger. He made his way back around to the lakeside near the fallen tree with no problems and dipped his hand in the water, swirling it around. The blood tinged the surrounding silver rippled a pale orange, and he wiped it on his pants. Maybe not the most sanitary option (he did attempt to wash his clothes-if wash meant ‘leave to soak in the lake while you poke at them with your beak’) but it was all he had.

...Did he really have to bandage that? Looking at it, the cut wasn’t too deep..What would Patton say about it?

“Virgil!”

Oh. Well apparently he wouldn’t have to wonder. Virgil quickly turned around, meeting the striking blue eyes of the wolf he could still understand even in this form. They’d assumed it was a bond of the curse, but it seemed magic shouldn’t be something to think too hard about if you weren’t a practitioner.

“Hey Patt,” he replied-and was promptly tackled to the ground, a very concerned wolf now nuzzling at his hand.

“What happened? Why are you hurt? Did something attack you? Do I need to kill it?”

“What—no! I just cut myself on my knife, I’m fine!”

“Oh.” Patton sat up, allowing Virgil to push himself off the forest floor with his unhurt hand. “Well in that case, why weren’t you being more careful?”

Somehow, in the month since he’d been cursed, being scolded by a wolf had become normal to Virgil, to the point where he actually did hunch his shoulders, as if being reprimanded by his own father. Though his expression was more annoyed than sheepish. He’d been getting to that!

“Well-” actually, how to phrase ‘a hunter pointed a crossbow at me and probably would have killed me if I didn’t change back then and there’ in a way that wouldn’t prompt Patton to hide him in the den and not let him out. Ever.

“...Well, because the prince of Volona kind of showed up?” “The-the prince?” Patton sounded about as shocked as he’d felt, though far more awed. “What would he be doing here!? And-” he paused. “Actually, who did you say the current prince was again?”

“Some prick named Roman,” Virgil muttered, trying to scoot back to stand up. Luckily Patton got the hint and stepped back. “He was hunting, and he kinda...well, tried to shoot me—but I changed back just in time I’m FINE!”

Luckily, he did not get tackled again, and with a sigh of relief, continued. “I mean, he stole my knife. That’s why I cut myself, I had to grab it by the blade. Threw his crossbow into the tree though, serves him right for accusing me of cursing myself.”

“Wait, he accused you of being the magician?”

“Yep,” Virgil responded, popping the ‘p’ and pulling up his left sleeve, grimacing as he shakily cut away a strip of cloth from his jacket with the knife, taking the scrap of black fabric and tying it around his left hand, mostly with his teeth. Oh, how he wished he could get a new one, Patton’s fur was probably the only thing keeping him from freezing to death when he slept at night.

“Well...that’s not really a great first impression…” “Tell me about it.” He pulled the knot tight and slipped the knife back into his pocket. “I just hope he doesn’t come back to get that stupid bow...”

He got to his feet and looked down at Patton, but the wolf seemed to be frowning, thinking. Either that or sniffing something out. It was still a bit hard to tell. “Well, if he does, would it be all that bad? I mean, maybe he could help us somehow!”

“How?” Virgil frowned, not following, and a bit shocked by the idea.

“I don’t know, but maybe he could explain our situation to someone? At least then we wouldn’t be stuck here..maybe even ask some other magician if there’s another way around the curse!”

Virgil bit his lip. It was...a thought. Possible. Unlikely. Especially for him, Patton was just an innocent baker, but he’d probably either get told he deserved what he got for his life of thievery or just thrown in jail.

Neither of those options sounded very appealing, to be totally honest.

“Maybe,” was the answer he settled with. Patton sighed in response, nosing at Virgil’s uninjured hand.

“Well, I guess it’s up to whether he comes back or not anyway..now come on, let’s get you back to the den okay? You need rest!”

“Patton, it’s just a little cut-”

“Virgil. You stayed up until sunrise last night, and the night before that. I know why, but you still need sleep. Rest.”

Virgil groaned aloud, but he knew there was no arguing. Patton would either lick, tackle, or just straight up stare him into submission if he didn’t comply, so he shoved his hands in his coat pockets and followed the wolf into the woods, then down under the hanging roots.

He nestled himself in soft, gray and tan fir with the tiniest of smiled-and Patton really had a point, as much as he’d never admit it, because in less than ten minutes, Virgil was asleep.

(GOD I AM SO RELIEVED TO HAVE THIS DONE AND POSTED HOPEFULLY Y’ALL ARE STILL INTERESTED XD-however I think it’s clear that while i’ll still be writing this, updates will come much slower from now on, since it’s a lower priority. But I hope you enjoyed!)

Tags: @royallyanxious, @whatwashernameagain, @sandersmarvel, @the-incedible-sulk, @supremestoverlord, @hanramz-the-fander, @childhood-wishes-and-dreams, @thestoryoferissur, @nepturanus-thy-planet, @anony-phangirl, @pleasebringmerlinback, @ultimate-queen-of-fandoms2, @applecannibal, @super-magical-wizard, @unicornlogan, @anonymmm, @spiralofsilencetheory, @cdragontogacotar, @enderamethyst, @bussacaglia, @em-be-lievable @merlybird500 @abigail-kaulitz

[3d10fire-damage]

red sun summary (4/29/2021)

the party spent some time at their new settlement, with some silliness before getting back to business. namely, cybil took the time to talk with Sabira’s donkeys daily, and calypso at one point tried to ride the donkeys. seeing this, cybil approached her in donkey form, looking expectant. “...is that you? cybil?” a (donkey) nod. “...would it be weird to ride you, or…?” a (donkey) shake of the head. calypso climbed aboard and asked if they could go fast. judging from their moderate walking speed, not very. “this isn’t very fast, kid. was kinda hoping it’d be faster.” cybil, in donkey language, pointed out that they’re an adult and this was as fast as they could go. calypso pointed out she didn’t speak donkey language. cybil shifted back into a human, causing them both to collapse onto the ground. calypso suggested warning her next time and offered a hand to help cybil up. “unfortunately, had i warned you, it would have also been in the donkey language.” calypso chuckled and asked if it was the ass language, which cybil confirmed. “s’funny, yeah?” “i am... unsure.” “you’re a tough crowd, kid.”

the concern of needing money for the settlement was brought up, phosphorra asking the party about ways to raise funds. zoroe suggested perhaps dungeoneering or hunting monsters, since there were worms in the desert and those at least left behind gems occasionally. calypso pointed out that, per the monks’ philosophy, they weren’t supposed to kill the worms. zoroe also mentioned exporting goods and trading, which were methods of making money in other towns. there was a conversation about trade routes with Sabira, and phosphorra suggested trading uncommon materials like tin, based off of the riddle Sqeddix had given the party. maybe they would need a supply chain or producer of goods, much like what merchants often have, or they’d have to travel to different places to buy and spread goods around. calypso griped that this would take too long. phosphorra said they should go to faraway places that trade doesn’t normally get to, such as crossing the harrowing worm desert— they’d just need someone with intel on where goods are.

at this point, khaela nudged zoroe, citing that Kissare, with her little spy network, would be a good contact. if someone’s gonna have the Scoop on intel, it would be Kissare. phosphorra said they’d have to pitch the whole “we killed gnomes and now i’m sworn to Himyar” thing softly to Kissare, and calypso got a giggle out of the “soft pitch” metaphor. so the plan was to hit up the group’s contact in Abban Serru. this was communicated to Sabira, just to keep her posted. Sabira was cool with that, and said she’d be scouting the area for grazing land and other resources. khaela wanted to stay awhile and do that with her, so the party put off traveling for another week to get the lay of the land. pooling some decent Survival rolls together, the party went looking for local wildlife, gems, and building materials. overall, it was determined that: there was no lumber in the area, so that would need to be imported; there were rocks that suggested some metals might be in the area; clay was available for building, even if it would take some labor to harvest and wet it; there were no major sources of water beyond the settlement’s oasis; and there were many small mammals in the area, along with snakes and scorpions, and signs of wild goats to the east (and perhaps signs of monster-tier animals?), so there were options for things to hunt. during all this scouting, zoroe kept at her weaving practice, also having been tasked with casting Sending to Kissare about the group’s plan to go to Abban Serru. zoroe told the party that Kissare was currently in Etaqu, and she had invited the group to visit to discuss options for high value trade deals and the like. 

following all that, the party headed north toward Abban Serru. along the way they noticed a trickle of people travelling to the desert, likely Djekker specifically. they carried all their possessions on their backs, and were likely desperate enough for food to brave the desert, aided by the autumn’s waning heat. Kurigalzu was generally pretty chill, with some traffic going northwest. when the party finally arrived in Abban Serru, the massive city was still big and fancy, but the energy there was a bit different. there were fewer people on the streets, and they appeared tired, a bit like the people in Asortsistan, the drought hitting hard. the streets were dustier than before, even if it was hard to notice. zoroe asked calypso about going to see the nursery, and khaela perked up at her mention of the babies there. calypso asked if the kids were all squares like zoroe. “hmph. you’ll have to see for yourself.” khaela asked when naga become adults, the answer to which is at 26 years old. calypso said that zoroe was old, having been an adult for so long when calypso had only been one for a handful of years. phosphorra seemed skeptical of that, asking “really?” “what’d you say?” “nothing.” “fuck you, cake pop.” as the group kept walking, calypso was pouting but hiding it. khaela patted her on the back, and zoroe said that adults are also capable of sulking, prompting calypso to push her hand away. cybil mentioned they were 21… at some point, but didn’t clarify their current age.

approaching the nursery, the party could see several children playing outside, who didn’t seem super interested in the party, since visitors aren’t uncommon. khaela went to zoroe and presented her with what she felt was very important: do teen nagas hit a growth spurt and become all weirdly proportioned? according to zoroe, yes, that can happen. and she also mentioned something about naga tails during the growth spurt causing them to have troubles with doorways sometimes. cybil asked if naga shed their skin, and davke said that some do, that it’s pretty common among the many different naga subspecies. cybil also asked if davke had any shed skin on hand. “no? why would i keep garbage?” “i was simply curious. i did not intend to offend you.” zoroe then strolled right in through the door, the rest of the party following her.

at the party’s entrance a couple of caretakers came to greet them. zoroe recognized one of them, named Bau, as a quiet girl that she had been around but didn’t know that well. the other caretaker introduced herself as Ri, and zoroe told them she wanted to show her friends the nursery. Ri seemed accepting of this, saying that it was good to get the kids used to meeting new people. phosphorra mused that this was a very sociable way of being brought up, and cybil commented that they have similar customs in their Circle. zoroe was then tackled by children from about four directions, and handed her staff off to calypso. at this point the rest of the party was like “whoa, the noodles.” the kids began excitedly pestering zoroe, asking about her adventures and wondering if she had wrestled a god yet, and they demanded to be introduced to her friends. without missing a beat, zoroe settled a young naga on each hip and nodded to the group, introducing each person. davke was already at home, arm wrestling one of the children. khaela wondered if these young naga have bones, and zoroe pointed out that she had bones, so… yes?

zoroe told the swath of children that those who wanted storytime should come to the mat, and suggested those that wanted to play to go to the others. maybe tag. calypso asked if any of the kids were fast enough to catch her, and about seven kids were like “YEAH” and thus started a very speedy game of tag. zoroe cast Message to tell calypso privately to let some of the kids win, to which calypso said ‘hell no.’ calypso was easily outpacing most of the kids, though some of the older ones were working to cut her off, and she start to slow down for them a little bit. khaela took over a few stragglers, and zoroe mentioned that khaela had never been taken down, since she’s the strongest. naturally this incited a dogpile, and khaela maintained her balance for a long time before about eight kids knocked her over. zoroe suggested phosphorra, who was a little overwhelmed by the number of children, do some puzzles with the kids as a fun, calm activity. cybil sat down with a small group to teach them about survival skills. “remember, the skin of the beast is just as useful as the flesh.” they lost some of the kids’ attention, but others listened closely, looking to cybil as a hero. cybil said that the naga could perhaps use their shed skin as armor or food. one of the kids procured some shed skin from outside and presented it to cybil, who tasted it and concluded it was not good to eat. the nursery caretakers didn’t mind any of these activities, happily taking the opportunity to relax.

zoroe’s tales were slightly altered for the kids’ ears, but she did tell them of freeing a town, capturing the bad guys, and saving a princess. during these stories, calypso briefly brought the game of tag inside so she could vault over zoroe, doing dope monk shit along the wall. phosphorra made conversation about books the kids had been reading lately. cybil managed enough tact to not mention the merits of cannibalism in disaster scenarios. khaela, meanwhile, wrangled her group of children into a basic fighting class. she took out Siege and offered her sword for a kid to practice with. Ri at this point was like “maybe… not the sword?” and the kids booed at her. khaela asked Ri if they provided unarmed training at the nursery, which they do. khaela gestured at calypso. “look at that red lady over there. she’s deadly with her hands.” “so? the kids can’t cut themselves on a hand!” “no, but they can punch you out…” khaela argued that she would only do this training with the older kids, so it would be fine. in the midst of this combat training, one of the kids swung a morningstar (khaela provided Several weapons) and clipped another kid. khaela went to them and used Lay on Hands to heal the damage. Ri and Bau stood off to the side, watching this whole thing closely, not pleased. at this point khaela sighed and figured it would be wise to switch over to showing off her spells.

eventually, cybil left the nursery on their own, to go flying around Abban Serru as a vulture to scout out the city. another caretaker soon approached zoroe; Shreya, a kind, older naga lady that zoroe knew very well, and the two of them took some time to catch up. around dusk, zoroe wound down storytime and collected her party so she could introduce them to Shreya. zoroe described Shreya as the one who saved her life, to which one kid said “i didn’t know Shreya was cool.” Shreya thanked the party for taking care of zoroe, and told khaela she was about 200 years old when she asked. khaela gave a more formal introduction for herself, bowing and giving her full name. she then clapped zoroe on the shoulder, making the cleric stagger, and said something similar to the “i’ve only had this dog for two days but if anything happened to it…” bit. calypso added that zoroe is pretty cool for a square. zoroe said her goodbyes and gave a big tight hug to Shreya and the party headed out. calypso asked khaela to help pry off the pair of clingy naga kids looped around her horns.

on their way out, zoroe asked if the party had fun, and the consensus seemed to be positive. calypso said that the kids lied about being fast enough to tag her. khaela did however mention that one of the caretakers didn’t like her, and talked about giving the kids weapons. calypso laughed at that, saying she had seen khaela with the kids and said that she was crazy. phosphorra asked what was wrong with khaela, and khaela insisted she only did the training with the older children. “whatever, i was younger than them when i started weapons training.” zoroe pointed out that khaela was kind of a special case, but khaela just gave her a doubtful look. “it’s just a rule, khaela. i’m sorry.” “it doesn’t matter, the kids loved me.” moving on from that conversation, zoroe mentioned the party could stay the night at her old temple of Hvare. after some jokes about zoroe being both old and a baby, phosphorra said that didn’t want to impose on the temple and would just go to a tavern as usual. zoroe wanted to keep the party all together, and that had just been feeling nostalgic. ultimately, the party found a tavern to stay in that night, with zoroe using Create Food and Water to treat the tavern’s patrons and save some money.

at some point during the evening, cybil returned from their solo activities… in the form of a vulture. then they returned to their human shape and announced to the party that they may have useful information. apparently during the day they had heard a number of rumors throughout Abban Serru that might pertain to the party’s plans. these rumors included: conflicting claims about the people of Parikh either posturing at the border or vanishing mysteriously from the area; the decade-long war between the elvish peoples had ended; the giants of Dzlieri Sakhli had shut down their nation and kicked out foreign merchants, as well as formed walls of boulders to block off mountain passages; the Kobold nation of Aaliyah was pressured into resuming tin exports by Djekker and Ugarit; diplomats from Hattusan seem to be leaving from several nations; and no merchants have come from the dragon nations in months, therefore several goods, especially tin and silk, are in low supply and very high demand.

phosphorra told cybil this was amazing information, and cybil added that there are so many people in the city, and that they perhaps talk too much for their own good. “that's true of most people, cybil.” calypso commented that turning into a bird makes cybil really smart. cybil countered that they don’t experience any notable gain in intelligence. really, the vulture’s superior hearing allowed cybil to learn all of this information. then calypso approached khaela and said she could come with her to see the city. khaela agreed to this, saying “yeah, i don’t wanna be around zoroe right now…” as they headed out, calypso assured her that it wasn’t personal, talking her down basically. 

the party’s next stop was Etaqu, which appeared to be the same kind of slump like everywhere else, Etaqu being right at the edge of the fertile zone. faced with the prospect of meeting up with Kissare again after such a long time, zoroe grew a bit shy. there was a joke made having cold feet (or not, because naga), then davke said she was off to visit her mother. phosphorra wanted to go with her, so the party decided to put off business with Kissare for a day. there was the implication that zoroe would be privately meeting with Kissare for “business” and khaela refuted something zoroe said by grabbing calypso by the face and kissing her and going “see?” so those two went off together and cybil headed to a market by themself. they did a little bartering, offering some shed naga skin in exchange for a bracelet, but the merchant only accepted gold for it. cybil then flew off as a bird, naturally.

the next day, the party met up at Kissare’s office. cybil, noting the hickeys visible on zoroe, bluntly asked if she and Kissare had had sex, and zoroe hurried to cover her face with her scarf. Kissare simply said that a lady doesn’t tell. getting down to business, the party gave their explanation of what happened with Zahira and the Himyari gnomes. Kissare leaned back and thought for a moment. she explained that most trade routes worth anything have enough incentive for people to make sure it’s safe, and most are safe anyway, since the world is pretty interconnected. that being said, the dragon nations have been very quiet lately, so the party could make money running silk out of Ctesiphon, which is probably the richest city in the area. Kissare added that if the party weren’t into boring trading, which she couldn’t blame them for, the most reliable or fastest way to make big money would be to find other jobs. she said that we could see about freeing the Abban Serru merchants in the dragon nations, because currently their whereabouts were unknown, and some had been gone as long as a few months.

zoroe asked if Kissare knew about any other jobs or maybe dungeons the party might encounter on the way to the dragon nations. Kissare mentioned a little crossroads area between the nations and Anshan, the dwarven lands. every once in a while people try to settle there, but it doesn’t ever go well, since it’s not protected by any treaties and both dragons and dwarves want it. so there could be ruins in that area that may be worth checking out. Kissare didn’t know anything more specific than that, but she could have her people do research about and let the party know more in the future. zoroe gave her a bright smile and thanked her for the info. she asked how long Kissare would be in Etaqu, and she said she was headquartering here for the foreseeable future, otherwise she’d be in Abban Serru or Uqair. Kissare then asked khaela to stay behind with her for a moment. cybil, hovering awkwardly by the door, also wanted a word with Kissare afterward.

meanwhile, calypso declared that cybil needed a nickname, and asked if they had been given one back home. “i did not. such things were unheard of in the circle.” “how about… cyb?” “one syllable removed. more efficient. i approve.” calypso said they were funny, and a weirdo, and cybil replied they hadn’t been called that before, interestingly. “i don’t believe that. ya pretty weird.” cybil clarified they were referring to “funny,” which calypso figured was case in point. khaela emerged from Kissare’s office, and cybil headed inside. while they were waiting, zoroe seemed a little upset, saying that she wasn’t outgoing enough for Kissare, and calypso assured her that she was fine. after a few more minutes, cybil came back out and told calypso they believed they had experienced “ass language.” “what does that mean?” “Kissare touched me.” “she touched your ass? what?” then cybil shifted into a donkey, offering no further explanation. phosphorra suggested informing Sabira of the party’s plans via Sending, receiving “k” as her only response. “we picked a good one.”

khaela said that Kissare told her that there was a specific way the party could go, when heading back from Ctesiphon, that might be helpful. that could be discussed later on, obviously after travelling to Anshan first, which was the next move. zoroe excused herself to Kissare’s office for a not entirely brief kiss off, then emerged practically glowing red. calypso joked about young love, which zoroe argued. too late, she’d already been assigned baby by both calypso and khaela. the party traveled south through Uqair, eventually reaching the dwarvish city of Chogha. it was a city of stone, hugging the side of a mountain and looking very impressive. the drought was hitting this place harder than many others, since the land naturally isn’t as fertile.

the party was stopped by guards who advised them to be careful. “we’ve been hearing the roads north are dangerous lately. many people are going missing.” another guard spoke up, saying the party looked like they could handle themselves. “you thought that about the last group, and they’re gone now.” cybil asked if the others could do this, and Wildshaped into a vulture. phosphorra apologized for “our feathered friend” and cybil made a horrible squawk. zoroe simply patted the bird on the head, and assured the guards the party would keep an eye out on their travels.

[unleashthemidnight]

SPN goes NSP: Guess Who’s Back (Just In Time For The Christmas)

Christmas Calendar: Masterlist SPN goes NSP: GWB part 1, part 2, part 3 Chapter name: Let's get this terrible party started Pairing + others: Reader x Gabriel, Winchesters, Danny Sexbang Synopsis: You were doing preparations for the Christmas celebration with Sam and Dean in the bunker when the party invitation threw you in the loop. Word count: 1500+ Warnings: Crack, sexual references, language, song lyrics usage, The Frying Pan™ Notes: This is part of the Christmas Calendar and will be updated towards the Christmas. NSP is amazing band called NinjaSexParty, whose songs, covers and music videos I have used. Songs are listed at the end. Whooo boy, this is something else that I would normally write *cough* Hope you all enjoy this ride we are starting! This is also the shit that no one asked for. Reblogs and comments are loved Do not repost

The white lilies and the golden white light; something so beautiful yet so painful. The memories of the two of you and the painful end danced around each other in your head. You missed Gabriel. You missed his tricks and often stupid but brilliant ideas that made you laugh, as much as you sometimes hated to admit it. You just wished that he would be there with you. You would see again how his eyes would fill with childish joy when he was up to something. You wanted to see them full of hope when you ended up talking about things you wanted to do, when you talked about future, no matter how much it sometimes scared both of you. And oh, how those eyes would darken with lust when… Sigh. It had been long road to get this far from your deepest end but you had Winchesters, your brothers, helping you from the beginning. They had given you the time to grief and made sure that your basic needs were met when you didn't leave from your room until needed to. Little later they had kept you busy with hunts, research and other little tasks so you would think something else for a change. You needed to get moving even if you didn't move on.

”We're gonna need more coffee,” Dean's voice snapped you back to the reality. You were cooking breakfast and the boys were doing inventory as the preparations for the holidays. That meant that Sam was doing inventory while Dean sat at the table sipping his coffee. Sam went through the shelves throwing away all the stuff that should have been thrown away ages ago judging by the smell, and you all listed things that you still needed for the holidays. ”We would be at the store much quicker if you wouldn't just sit there and were actually helping me with this,” Sam complained. ”But I'm too hungry,” Dean mockingly whined back. The truth still was that he really was hungry, it had been awhile since you all had a proper meal. ”The food will be ready as soon as I can fry these eggs, just help Sam. For me? Then we can go to the store and we can pick up all the things we need and if you are on Santa's good list, I will get the ingredients for the pies,” you chimed in while picking up the frying pan. ”You used plural...” Dean pointed out the obvious, doubting your words. ”Yes.” You saw how quickly he moved around the counter to help his little brother. That was easy, you thought smile on your face. ”Hey guys, there's a letter in here…?” Sam picked an envelope from one of the old boxes of cereal. The envelope was decorated with various arts-and-crafts' gems and with fancy letters in the middle of it read ”You're Invited, Dickbags!” ”Let me see that.” Dean took the envelope, ripped it open and started reading it without caring how it ended up in the cereal box or from whom it could be. You had bad feeling about this. ”Oh shit! Congrats, your ass just got invited to the party of your life! Once every hundred thousand years the most epic party in this universe is hold as it was foretold in the scrolls. 'What scrolls?' I hear you asking. Who cares! It's NinjaSexParty -party so you know it's the shit. So take that pudding, pour it on your chest and let your pants hit the floor because your life was totally bullshit until right now. I hope you like fun 'cause we're having it! IT'S GO TIME!” As Dean read the end of the letter with no sender, the world shifted around you making the bunker and the letter disappear. Your head couldn't take the shifting, it made you nauseous. You found yourself lying on the cold floor with distant smell of the fumes and oil. This definitely wasn't the start of the party that one would be excepting after that kind of letter. What even is NinjaSexParty? You coughed and took couple of deep breaths. The hit on the floor was hard but nothing in your body was broken. As you rolled over so you could sit, you noticed your frying pan from the bunker close to you. Weird. ”Oh c'mon! What the hell...” you heard Dean's confusion with slight desperation on the side. ”You alright?” Sam asked as he helped you up. ”Yeah, little bit dizzy but nothing that I can't manage,” you answered and looked around bit more. You were in pale, almost empty two car garage. With you there was four people sitting around cheap knock-off table. The people were dressed up like your typical Hollywood style nerds that were too focused on the game to notice you. ”Um… Hey guys. You playing Dungeons and Dragons or…?” Dean asked from the group catiously, prepared for possible fight. You all needed to find out what happened and how to get back home, now. But before any of the guys could even answer to you, the door to the house flung open making three of you jump. ”ALL RIGHT! This party is off to a bit of a slow start but soon it's gonna melt your brain and fishslap your heart. Check out this leaf-collecting album or two that I made back in autumn,” a tall, slim man with darker curly hair in red silky robe announced and throwed 5 different albums of leafs at Sam, who couldn't hold them all. ”And don't get me started on the balloons! Want 'em? I got 'em!” The man pointed at two different sizes balloons hanging sadly on the wall. Next he slapped Dean on the shoulder. ”Just wait when the music starts to drop, the vibe's gonna change. We've got the country-themed metal garage band,” he continued while walking past of Dean in the middle of the room doing a little spin, ”oh, and the hot girls are showing up, I'm so sorry you had to wait but now they're finally inflated. This shit right here would make the hobbit say 'to the hell with the Shire'! SO GET THIS FREAKING PARTY STARTED!” As he ended his speech, the music started to play and more people walked through the door in different costumes that you could get from thrift store. There was '70s disco, brightly colored suits and velor jumpsuits. Leopard minks, moccasins, gold chains, the list went on. Someone was wearing your grandpa's clothes. You were stunned, not only about you ending up in someone's garage but you could recognize those curry and coffee stains on your grandpa's clothes anywhere. What the hell was going on? ”Did he just...” Dean looked at you and Sam and saw the same look on your faces as he had on his. ”The girls are inflated. As...” you pointed questioning even though you could actully see them as they were, standing in the corner. Just waiting there. Patiently. ”It seems so,” Sam answered. One of the other quests asked one of the dolls to dance with them. It seemed that they said yes and now they both were slow dancing across the floor and past you. ”Alright then… We have to do something about all this, soon,” Dean sighed while pinching the bridge of his nose. You all decided that everyone would talk to different groups of people and see what information you could get. You didn't know what to except when you started to mingle with other quests but this wasn't it. You met a guy who played football and told you that he once won the whole super bowl by himself. Weightlifter said that they could bench an entire continental shelf. One told you they were a scientist who cured all diseases last week. There were also the dragon slayer who found the Dragon's cave at ninety million hundred fifty thousand hundred feet in the air and fought his army of awesome karate bears. That one guy was naked for no reason at all. You also met Manticore who shouldn't even been in this party. You didn't want to ask. ”Why hello there beautiful,” the man from earlier, the one with the silky robe who seemed to be the host, slided next to you, ”I'm Danny Sexbang and I'd like to ask you out on the hottest of dates. Let's ditch these losers and go somewhere else more... appropiate?” he suggested and gave you a rose. Why didn't you pick up the frying pan when you had the chance? ”Hold one hot minute there Casanova,” Dean interrupted, ”Y/N here isn't going anywhere with you and we have couple questions that need answers right now.” ”What's wrong guys? I thought this would be your kind of party! I made this just for you. Not enough of girls?” Danny pretended to be schoked. ”Who the hell are you and why are we here?” Dean demanded to know as Sam found his way to you. ”Oooh, I'm Danny Sexbang, the toughest fucking ninja that you've ever seen but that's all in the past. Let's talk about that other thing some other time,” Danny answered with finger guns and took couple steps backwards from you as other quests slowly formed a ominous circle around you. All of this seemed like a bad dream. Yeah, you must be dreaming. You would probably wake up soon enough. ”Okay, so, this party sucks. Let's explode this building!” You heard Danny yelling. ”WAIT WHAT - -” The world around you shifted again.

Fun fact: People in the party were totally dancing the dances you can see in I just wanna dance -video and the Dragon dance in Dragon Slayer -video.

Christmas Calendar tag: @sumara62, @authoressskr, @serendiptious-esparza, @be-fantastic, @pizzamanteachings Gabriel tag: @nobodys-baby-now @dlb1999

Hit me with ask or message if you would like to join either one of these lists!

NinjaSexParty's songs used in this fic:

Let's get this terrible party started! x

I just wanna dance x

Dragon Slayer x

Ninja Brian was so Ninja that you couldn't see him under the table..

[heartsuntamed-blog]

.://THE HUNT//:. -- ;{drabble}

If you were to ask the forest how its evening was going, it would honestly tell you that it had seen quieter days. The animals were never usually up at this hour, but today was an exception, and for a good reason. Something wasn’t right. The birds were fluttering swiftly from branch to branch, singing their chorus as they normally did. But something in their tone was different this time – vigorous and more desperate, like trumpets on a battlefield. Leaves rustled together wildly as a sudden flash of blue zipped through the trees, zigzagging in various directions, dodging logs and boulders and other obstacles, though not gracefully, by any means. A pair of eyes darted from side to side, checking their surroundings frantically as the girl they belonged to continued sprinting.

She could feel the freezing caress of her breath against her dry and parched throat as she panted, feel her heart beat so fast that it made her chest ache – which was odd, because as far as she had known back in her life, the dead weren’t supposed topossess a heartbeat, and she could feel the soreness rising in her legs to the point where she didn’t know how much longer she’d be able to run. But she had to keep going. Her very life – or afterlife, rather – depended on it, and though she could not hear the footfalls of her pursuer, she knew they were gaining on her, so she ignored the pain in her legs and pushed herself at an even faster pace.

The squirrels chattered simultaneously in response to the birds’ song, and even the deer were roused from their dens to investigate the cause for all of the noise. The girl paid no attention to any of them, simply seeking a way out of the forest as quickly as possible. When she found it however, her lack of grace finally got the better of her as she tripped over a tree root that rose slightly from the ground, her body propelling itself forward. She let out a small gasp as she went down, beginning to descend down the hill that sent her in a series of unearthly tumbles, unable to see whether she was heading toward grass or water or rock.

When she eventually stopped rolling, she lifted her head slightly and blinked away the blurriness of her vision before struggling to her feet. Quickly, she looked around for a place to hide, for she knew that there would be no point in running again; her hunter was dangerously close. Without a second thought, she dove for a patch of bushes, and crawled beneath them, concealing herself in their shadows as much as she could. She lay there, completely still, breathing haggardly… and waited.

Not even a full minute later, a dark boot appeared just inches away from her face from beside the bushes. Her eyes widened and she fought back a yelp of surprise, eyes lifting to stare up at the face of her tracker through the branches of the thicket – a womer. She caught the glimpse of snow white hair, unholy gray violet skin, and a pair of otherworldly white eyes that shone brighter than any star she’d ever seen. But what made the girl more uneasy than anything else was the manner in which this womer carried herself.

“I can hear you,” came a deep, chilling voice from the mer’s lips as she glanced around the clearing. The spirit suddenly realized that she was breathing a bit too heavily, and clamped a hand over her mouth to silence herself. As she did so, the elf just a few feet away from her smirked knowingly. “I can smell you~” She purred. Trembling, the ghost quietly scooted back a bit, as far back into the bushes as she could to mask her scent. She heard a dark chuckle escape from the mer’s lips. “But more importantly,” the voice continued, “I can sense your FEAR.”

Suddenly, a hand wrapped around the girl’s ankle, and she let out a scream as something dragged her out from underneath the bushes. Looking behind her, she screamed again as she met the snarling face of a Draugr. Beginning to struggle, she thrashed about and kicked at the creature’s legs. With a hiss, it let go of her, and she scrambled to her feet, making a break for it and sprinting down the next hill, taking a dirt path into the forest once more. The Draugr made a move to follow her, but a hand suddenly grabbed its shoulder and halted it. “No.” Came the mer’s firm command as her white gaze settled upon the retreating figure. “Remember,” she murmured as a grim smile graced her lips, “this is my hunt.”

With alarming speed, the elf kicked off of the ground and propelled herself after the ghost. In a matter of seconds, she vanished into the forest. The Draugr grunted and simply stayed behind, watching for anyone else who may have followed them. As the girl blindly sped along the road, having no knowledge of where she was headed, she cast a glance back to see how much progress her pursuer had made. When she saw those brilliant white eyes coming closer, she whipped her head forward once more and increased the length of her strides. But the huntress was gaining ground at a nearly breakneck rate.

Suddenly, a wave of hope washed over the soul as a village came into view, and without hesitation, she made way for it, coming out onto the main road and darting through the alleys between the buildings. Watching this, the huntress gave a simple sigh and rolled her eyes before veering off to the side. Big mistake, little spirit. She thought as she leaped onto a barrel that stood next to one one of the houses and then hopped to the rooftop from there. Her steps remained silent to prevent the occupants of the houses from waking as she sailed from roof to roof, closing in on the ghost from the side. When the girl looked back over her shoulder, she knitted her eyebrows together in confusion when she saw that the mer was nowhere in sight. However, when she faced forward again, her eyes widened as a large stallion galloped into her path and reared on its hind legs. Skidding to a halt, she swallowed, eyes widening as a pair of Draugr came around the corner and approached her. She backed up a few paces before she heard a thud from behind her and turned around… only to come face to face with the mer.

“Well, I must say, you run pretty fast. But not quite fast enough, dear.” The elf said, tilting her head to the side and regarding the ghost with a hint of amusement in her expression. The ghost wanted to punch her, shove her away, do something, but she suddenly found herself unable to move, as if she were glued to the spot all while staring at the huntress with terror. If she were still alive, her face would have paled right now. “Wh-what do you want with me?” She finally stuttered out.

“Oh, it’s not what I want with you. It’s what someone else wants with you.” The womer replied as she reached forward and grabbed the soul’s arms, beginning to examine them. “Though I don’t see why he’d be interested. You don’t really have anything to offer. No muscles, no real physical strength…” She took a hold of the girls hands and squeezed them gently, “And these hands have never held a sword once.” She finished flatly before dropping them. “Honestly, he knows nothing about how to pick a soldier.” She muttered.

The spirit’s eyes grew even wider. “S-Soldier? What are you say–”

“I’m saying that you’re being commissioned into an army. Don’t worry – there will be a lot of little ghosts like you. I’m sure you’ll make lots of friends.” The elf replied, her tone laced with sarcasm.

“But… But I don’t want to do that!” The girl cried, earning a roll of the eyes from the mer once more.

“Well, I’m afraid you don’t have much of a say in the matter,” she replied as she reached into the satchel at her waist and withdrew a black soul gem. “That’s why it’s calledslavery. I got paid a pretty sum to track you down, so you’re not going anywhere.”

“No! Please! Don’t!” The ghost suddenly shrieked as she felt the magnetic tug of the gem in the womer’s hands, wailing as it dragged her into its dark confinement.

“Sorry. It’s nothing personal,” the huntress said as she looked at the now filled gem before placing it back in her satchel. “It’s just business.” With that, she walked forward and placed her hand on the stallion’s muzzle, stepping into one of the stirrups and hoisting herself up into the saddle. “Let’s go, boys.” She said with a click of her tongue, nudging the horse’s sides with her heels and leaning back a bit as the steed turned around and trotted out of the village, the Draugr giving soft grunts while they followed.

[fyeahbatcat]

How do you feel about people claiming that in marrying Bruce, Selina's character will be ruined? I of course see that argument as odd, seeing that she's said numerous times in the past that she wants to be happy, and with that, settling down and having a family. Do you truly think that would waver who Selina is?

You already know that I don’t. I wrote about my thoughts on Selina and family and marriage awhile ago and you can read about it here. Linking it seems like such a cop out but it’s pretty long. On that note I will say this: when people have brought up the idea that getting married would ruin her character I had no idea what they were talking about until I read this. Warning: do not read unless you can afford a spike in blood pressure.

Most notably this critic is says this:

She is a thief.  She is a thrill seeker.  For her, it’s all about the hunt.

And this little gem right here:

I see so many people on social media saying how romantic this is.  It makes me wonder.  Is this just a knee jerk reaction to seeing two long time lovers finally getting together?  Have people really even taken the time to analyze this relationship?  Or, are the ones shipping this the kind of people that value need over want?

Eye roll to the fullest. As a Batcat blogger I take that as a personal challenge. Yes, we have taken the time to analyze this relationship and we have almost 80 years of material to go on and I’ve come with the receipts. 

I suppose this is what most people are referring to when they say that Catwoman’s character would be “ruined” if she got married. Those who are saying that are grossly oversimplifying her character and missing an important part of Catwoman’s development as a character. It reduces Catwoman to just a thief and that does her such a huge disservice. It has been true across multiple versions and media that, Catwoman does not always want to be defined as a thief. That thrill of thievery that they’re referring to, and Selina has said this herself multiple times, wears off. Thieving and other criminal activity has gotten her thrown in prison, almost killed, and she’s had to fake her death a couple of times because of it (as recently as Future’s End). The criminal lifestyle has almost ruined her life and eventually it ends up making her feel empty and trapped. 

Going back to the Bronze Age after Selina spends some time in prison for her crimes as Catwoman once she’s paroled she wants to move on and distance herself from her past. (Batman #308)

Later on during a meeting with Bruce she tries to disguise herself because she worries that being seen in public with her will hurt his reputation and cause a scandal. (Batman #313) 

Skipping ahead to the Pre-Flashpoint era Catwoman’s second on-going series was all about her reforming and becoming the defender of Gotham’s east end. In the very first issue of her series we get a lot from Selina’s perspective on why she does it. To really understand you’ll have to read her first on-going series because a lot of stuff went down towards the end of it that makes Selina disenchanted by the criminal lifestyle. At the beginning of her second series she can’t even bring herself to put on the costume because it’s brought her so much suffering and she feels defined by what she considers to be past mistakes. (Catwoman [v3] #1)

I don’t think that Selina thinks that marriage is the end all be all, but I definitely don’t think that it’s something that she’d completely rule out either. In fact I think that Selina hasn’t seriously considered it because she just never thought that it was an option for her. It’s funny to me that so many people think that Selina is strictly anti-marriage when 1) she’s never said that before and there’s nothing in canon to indicate that she feels that way and 2) some versions of her have expressed a desire to have a family. 

I wrote about this in my previous post but from Catwoman’s second series while Selina steals an ancient dollhouse she talks about her childhood and mourns the loss of her family and the fact that she missed out on that stability growing up. I think that indicates that there is some kind desire to regain that. (Catwoman [v2] #39)

There it is–Everything I’ve always wanted. Everything I’ve never had…Preserved over millennia in perfect condition. Priceless miniature. Stable family.

Emphasis mine. I also can’t stress enough that Catwoman’s Earth-2 counterpart point blank said that she wanted a family and a new life badly enough that she came up with some ludicrous lie about having amnesia in order to obtain it, but she thought it was too late. Earth-2 Catwoman ends up marrying Batman and having a child. The Brave and the Bold #197 was all about Bruce and Selina’s desire to start a new life and finding happiness with each other. In the Bronze Age version Bruce and Selina both retire to raise their daughter together and in the latest version they raise her as a crime fighter. That proves that marriage doesn’t “trap” Selina by any means. She did however feel trapped being Catwoman.

Still not convinced? Okay. I know that The Dark Knight Rises isn’t everyone’s favorite version of Catwoman, but something Christopher Nolan got right… Selina Kyle is introduced as a thief but she’s working for Daggett with the promise that she’ll be compensated with a software that will allow her to erase her criminal record which she wants to use to start a new life. She tells Bruce:

I started out doing what I had to. Once you’ve done what you’ve had to they’ll never let you do what you want to…There’s no fresh start in today’s world. Any twelve year old with a cell phone can find out what you did. 

In Batman: The Telltale Series Selina has an excellent dialogue with Bruce about her criminal career where she lays it all out. She says:

You’re a good man, Bruce. But good men don’t lie with thieves.I know what I am. No noble intentions, just the thrill of breaking what they say can’t be broken. Knowing there’s no safe I can’t crack, no fortress I can’t infiltrate. Proving I can…I’ve stolen from corrupt jerks like Hill, but I’ve taken plenty from good people too. And for what? Some shiny new toys and a crappy apartment on the edge of town? The high is nice but it wears off. And you look around and see…nothing. So you get back out there. Try and chase that feeling down, but it never amounts to anything really.

What has remained true about Selina in the comic books and other media is that she begins her life as a thief, but eventually she wants out but she feels defined by it. She feels like she has no other choice but to keep going. People really look down on Catwoman because she’s a criminal. She gets really dismissed as just some thief. This is something that Selina internalizes and is insecure about. Selina doesn’t always think that she’s a good person and that she can’t be anything other than a thief and a criminal. The idea that all Catwoman wants to do is live a dangerous life of chaos and crime is exactly the type of label she very often tries to break away from. 

The argument that Selina shouldn’t get married because she’ll feel trapped is ironic considering that there’s a lot canonical evidence that she actually feels trapped by The Life™ and it just reeks of concern trolling. Somehow people think that risking imprisonment and death and being defined as a criminal is a more preferable outcome than marriage. 

Catwoman is a character that’s always reinventing herself and always looking for a second chance. I don’t think that that always means marriage and family, but I don’t see why it can’t especially since it’s never been done in the main continuity before. 

I’m not going to bother addressing an argument that Bruce and Selina have a one sided relationship, because it’s obvious nonsense and I’ve dedicated many a blog posts already refuting that. I suggest going through my tags if you really want to know, but I will say this because I think it’s crucial: in spite of everything that people say and think about Catwoman and what she often thinks of herself Batman never stops believing in her. 

Batman has been a constant presence in her life and more often than not it’s his unwavering belief that deep down she’s a good person that inspires her to see the good in herself and get the second chance she so desperately seeks. Whether it’s inspiring her to become the whip wielding defender for Gotham’s most disenfranchised, running off to France, or starting a family. Batman and Catwoman have found a lot of happiness in each other so I find the idea that marriage would “ruin” Catwoman’s character to be, quite frankly, absurd.

Batman and Catwoman have been together for 77 years. It’s just time.

[necrobonello]

Shattered Kingdoms Part 2: Orenan

Summary: After thousands of years after the war that eradicated the original diamonds and nearly all of that generation’s gems, a new trio of diamonds have risen to power and are at war for dominance. A lone pearl is fighting for her sisters, hunted down by Black Diamond and various bounty hunters. But little does she know that she will be a part of something much bigger than her own revolution. 

Shattered Kingdoms Part 2: Orenan

Black Diamond’s stronghold was in an uproar. Gems of all ranks scattering throughout the decorated halls, each rushing to work on their specific tasks. Guards remained alert, drones were as lively as ever, and whatever pearls were around were cleaning and helping their superiors as much as they could. A momentous day was on the horizon. In three days, the neutral gem harvest was about to commence. Three lava drones carried crates of bubbled gems to safes and teleporters.

“This year’s trade is going to be the best yet!” One said.

“We’ve managed to capture quite a few of Purple Diamond’s quartzes. We’re bound to make tons!”Another one cheered.

“And all the pearls. With that rebel force taking em left and right, they’re in a real high demand now. War effort is important and all but once this is all settled we’re gonna need good servants and entertainers.” The third one added.

“And what? We’re not good enough to fill that role?” The first one said.

“Not as good as a pearl anyway.”

They all laughed as they rushed to their station. But then one of the lavas tripped over a crease in the ornate rug that lined the hallways. She stumbled over and landed on top of her crate, the lid popping off and several of the bubbled gems rolling out. She quickly scraped most of the bubbles into her crate, but in her desperation accidentally clawed the last bubble, popping it. Her friends placed their crates down and attempted to pick up the spherical stone, but the gem already began to regenerate. The three lavas stepped back in terror as a blue light formed, showing the gem’s massive frame. The light dispersed from the frame, revealing the gem to be Dalmatian Jasper. The lavas placed themselves in front of their crates, hoping the freed gem wouldn’t smash and release the rest of the captured gems. She gazed down with an enraged glare at the clumsy lava.

“Hey. You got a Camel Jasper in there?” She asked.

The lava shook her head, and the angered quartz cracked her knuckles.

“Well I guess I’m gonna have to smash those little boxes til I find her little ga-”

Dalmatian Jasper gasped as she felt something sharp pierce her back, and then felt another sharp pain in the back of her head. She was silent for a second as the lava’s stared at her in confusion.

“Aw come on I just got he-” Dalmatian poofed away, leaving behind her gem and a pair of yellow sai.

The lavas looked ahead to see one of the higher ranked gems heading towards them. The clumsy lava flopped over and immediately bubbled the gem, rolled over to place it in the box, and scrambled to her feet to salute her superior.

“Thank you for your help sir! I accept full responsibility for my actions and will not repeat them again sir!” She shouted.

The other lavas were afraid of what would happen to their friend.

But the superior gem merely went past them. The lavas looked, confused at the lack of punishment. They saw him smoothing out the carpet with his foot.

“No need to worry. I saw what happened, not your fault.” He said in a smooth voice.

He spoke with confidence and bravado. He gazed at the timid drones with a lazy yet intimidating stare. His pewter pupils unfocused and yet they still felt like they pierced through them like his sai that pierced through Dalmatian Jasper. His long, abalone hair was tied with a white bow three fourths of the way down. His shirt was like an apron, as the pearl river cloth covered only the front of his torso, his shoulders, and a small strip of his back and sides. His twin clear, rectangular gemstones, his shoulders, and most of his back were exposed, showing off his toned frame and white skin. Lastly he wore black slacks and wrought iron colored dress shoes. Though handsome, his looks masked a facade that only the higher ups knew was all too real.

The poor lava was stunned by her superior. She only saw him in the halls every now and then at long distances. She had never even heard the sensual tone in his voice. But she managed to snap out of her daze before he could call her out on that as well.

“Thank you for your mercy commander White Topaz!” She blurted out.

“Understand that I am being lenient on you due to someone else’s incompetence. Undoubtedly another one of your cut has screwed up keeping this place in perfect condition. They’ll receive a talking to as they nearly made you look incompetent. But know that an accident should only happen once around here.” White Topaz warned.

“Yes sir.”

“Now get back to work. I have my own business to attend to and you have bosses that will say what I have to say anyway.” White Topaz ordered.

“Yes sir! Thank you sir!” All three lavas said as they rushed back to fulfil their duty.

White Topaz smiled as he continued on his own business. He walked through the busy hallways and chambers until he finally made it to the giant door to his diamond’s throne room. The door opened for him and he entered inside. His diamond was gazing upon him. The gem bowed his head and approached her grace.

“Good morning my diamond. What have you summoned me for?” He asked.

“Good morning, White Topaz. As you’ve seen, the whole colony is in a tizzy because of the upcoming auction. We have much to offer and much to gain as per usual, and as you know someone has to bid in order to get the best of the best. I would like that to be you.” She offered, “I would go myself, but due to that bit of...terrorism that occurred last time, I’d rather not spoil the affair for all of us.”

White Topaz nodded.

“Anything in particular that I should pick up for you?”

“I’ll send Pyrite-0 to accompany you. She will be your personal assistant and the one in charge of my shopping list.” Black Diamond said.

White Topaz bowed once more.

“Consider it done. When do I leave?”

“Now. I’ve prepared a ship for you and the pyrite shall be your pilot. You depart to K-051. The auction isn’t for another three days so please enjoy yourself before then. You’ve captured many gems for me so it’s fair that you receive a proper reward.”

“You’re too kind.”

“And one more thing. Just in case something still goes wrong, I’m sending Jet to accompany you.”

White Topaz raised an eyebrow.

“Jet? But isn’t she off planet as well?” He asked.

“Yes but knowing her she’ll finish her assignment before nightfall on K-051. Rosen will be with you on the day of the auction as well. She’s busy right now gathering a last minute supply of gems. Purple Diamond has managed to capture a fair share of our troops and Red Diamond is has nabbed a few of our troops as well.”

“I thought that Red-”

Black Diamond rose from her throne.

“White Topaz! What business I have with Red Diamond is strictly confidential. She is an uncontrollable beast that acts on her own accord but she can still be reasoned with to some extent. Our relationship is mutually beneficial despite her troops going off on their own agenda. So I will ask that you do not question my decisions. Are we clear?”

White Topaz bowed his head.

“Yes my diamond.”

She sat back down in her throne, resting her chin on the back of her hand.

“Go.” She uttered.

White Topaz turned around and left the throne room. Black Diamond pressed a button on her throne’s other armrest and a hologram of a wavelength appeared.

“Yes my diamond?” A young sounding voice answered.

“Send a message to agent Jet to go to K-051 as soon as she obtains the package.” Black Diamond ordered.

“Right away.”

/**/

On a cold, desolate planet far beyond Black Diamond’s supervision, a lone Amethyst warrior was running through the snow covered tundra towards a large arm shaped ship. Violent winds sent a flurry of snow from the ground and sky, masking her in the blizzard. Despite the thick blizzard, a couple of Amethysts standing guard outside of the ship managed to see their sister. They waved to her, happy to see their friend, unaware of the terror she is experiencing.

“Open the ship doors! Get it running, we have to leave!” She screamed out.

The violent winds were overpowering her pleas. The once happy Amethysts were now confused at the desperate cry of their sister. Their confusion was then eradicated as they saw their sister’s form as she emerged from the blizzard. Her arm was missing, a chunk of her long hair was burned off, and she had a nasty, gray cut in her stomach inches away from her gem.

“I said start the damn ship!” She screamed.

One of the Amethysts rushed to her sister while the other one opened the door to the ship. The three quickly rushed into the ship, the injured being carried by her counterpart. As they entered, a couple more Amethysts rushed over to the injured friend.

“V-022! What happened to you!?” One of the new Amethysts asked.

“I’ll explain later! You have to get us out of her before she arrives!” V-022 begged.

“We’ve been trying to start the ship up! It’ll take another four minutes before it reaches optimal power levels. This damn blizzard is making it hard to move out of here.” The Amethyst that brought her in said.

The group of Quartzes were interrupted by a sudden alarm.

“Attention all available units! The ship will be ready to depart soon with the cargo. However we see an abnormality outside of the ship! A...cloud is on the ground!?” The announcer shouted.

V-022’s eyes went wide. She knew what was coming. She grabbed  one of the gems by her uniform and pulled her in close to her.

“You have to make them start the ship up! Lift us up now and worry about coordinates later! We can’t let her in here! She destroyed my squad!”

“Who did!?”

“One of Black Diamond’s generals is here! She destroyed all-” V-022 was interrupted by the sound of glass and metal being torn asunder.

All quartzes looked at the door and saw a black sword decorated with gray nubs down the middle of the blade pierce through the ship’s door. A gray liquid dripped off the sword, sizzling as it hit the ground. The quartzes all stood their ground, gearing up for the fight, except for V-022 who was still lying on the ground.

“NO! You have to run away and get as many troops as you can together! She’s too strong!” She pleaded.

“Can you stand?” One of the Amethysts asked.

V-022 stood up slowly. The sword was effortlessly gliding through the thick door as V-022 was being pushed away from the group.

“Warn the others and get some destabilizers! We’ll stall them as long as we can!” The Amethyst assisting her said.

“I told you there’s only one gem!” V-022 shouted.

“Then she’ll be gone before the cavalry arrives. But just to be safe, go!” The quartz closest to the door shouted.

Begrudgingly V-022 ran, clutching her stomach as she abandoned her stubborn friends. She made it to the end of the corridor as the four amethysts looked to see the blade almost done making a circle through the door. The free bits of metal started to slide from their position and into the hallway. They were about to tilt over and fall, but an unknown force pushed them downwards. As they fell, a surge of snow and fog flew into the corridor. Dazed by the sudden burst, the amethysts were caught off guard by a shadow in the fog. One of the Amethysts was cut in half, her scream was accompanied by the sound of liquid being spattered across the wall, followed by a sizzling noise. The next three amethysts quickly fell as well, each one bisected in some form, causing them to poof away.

V-022 looked over her shoulder to see the fog of death leak into the hallways. Her fear reached its peak as she sprinted as hard as she could to reach her crewmates.

“Gotta tell em! Gotta warn em!” She thought to herself.

The fog was closing in on her from behind, but she saw her remaining squadron of gems rushing to her. She smiled as she dashed towards them. She saw ten quartzes all armed with destabilizers and blasters.

“Girls quick! Forget about me and shoot-” She was cut off as the dark sword of the intruder flew through her neck. The blade melted her form like a hot knife through butter, sending a splash of gray liquid and purple blood spurting from the exit wound. As it flew towards the others, the entirety of the blade could be seen. The chappe was shaped like a skull, with the guard shaped like sharp, curved horns pointed towards the blade with a black jewel in the center. As V-022’s form and the sword dissipated, the group of quartzes saw a figure in the fog.

“Kill her ass!” One of the quartzes shouted.

There was a brief flash of light from the shadows and then the ten quartzes fired their blasters at the figure. Green light illuminated the hallway, piercing through the fog and hitting the walls. Explosions, the sound of decimated metal and glass, and the war cries of the quartzes echoed throughout the corridor. After twenty seconds of continuous fire, one of the quartzes raised her hand to signal the others to hold their fire. They all did as instructed, but remained on guard. Smoke was mixed in with the fog, but the majority of it started to clear up. It finally cleared, revealing the hall littered with rubble, the walls and ceiling littered with holes of all sizes. One of the amethysts tapped the other on the shoulder.

“You five check the rubble for her gemstone.” She ordered.

Her comrade nodded and five of the troops did as instructed. They pointed their blasters at the ground as they kicked over the chunks of rubble.

“Be careful with how you kick that stuff V-048, we’re gonna need that stuff when-” One of the quartzes let out a small yelp as they felt something burn their shoulder.

“What was that V-042?” V-048 asked as she turned to her friend.

V-048 felt her shoulder and felt something burning her. She looked to see something eat its way through a bit of her shoulder. She looked up to see one of the larger blast holes had an edge coated with a mysterious gray liquid. She suddenly realized what had just happened and turned to the other gems.

“She’s in the vents!” She screamed out.

Gray fog came flooding out of the hole and the quartzes were in a state of panic. The shadowy figure dropped from the hole and swung her sword in a circular arc, cleaving V-048 in half and flinging acid at the other gems. The liquid spattered over all five of the gems around her, causing each of them to scream out in pain as it burned through their forms.

“My eyes!” V-042 screamed as she tried to desperately scratch the liquid out of her eyes.

The figure rushed towards the other quartzes and swung wildly at them. She managed to take down one of the burly gems before they begun to strike back with their destabilizers. Two stabbed at her, but the assassin dodged the first attack and parried the second one to hit another quartz. A loud buzzing noise roared out over the chaos and a burst of light showed the forms of each of the gems. The assassin was a little over half the quartzes size. In that flash, the assassin slashed at the quartz that attacked her, cutting through her head and causing her to retreat into her gem. A couple gems that were investigating the rubble poofed away as well, the acid eating too much of their forms away. One of the quartzes managed to grab the Black Diamond agent’s arm, holding her sword in place as the second quartz aimed her destabilizer at her torso. The trapped gem dropped her sword onto her captor’s foot, it sinking and melting it as the tip effortlessly melted through her. The small gem let out a torrent of fog from her mouth, the violent hissing noise complementing the intense pressure of the gas battering the face of her enemy. She pulled another sword out from her chest and slashed the quartz across the chest, creating a deep cut filled with her acid. In the background, one quartz managed to aim her blaster at the assailant as the remaining amethyst writhed in pain.

“Evil...bitch!” She screamed as she pulled the trigger.

The mystery gem grabbed the remaining amethyst and jerked her downwards. She caught the large gem in one arm as it took the brunt of the blasts. She hurled her sword in a forward arc towards the trigger happy quartz. The gem she took as a shield poofed away, but before the last quartz could deliver a deadly shot, the sword cleaved through her right shoulder and a large portion of her chest. She poofed away, and the only remaining gem and noise came from the last quartz still crying in pain. The fog started to clear up as the assassin calmly walked towards her wounded prey. She summoned one final sword from her gem as she approached the downed gem. As she raised her sword to deliver the finishing blow, the quartz swiftly grabbed her by the ankle and yanked her off her feet. Black Diamond’s agent fell on her back and the quartz quickly got on top of her, grabbing her small head with her giant hands. She started to squeeze tightly, the large stomach wound from the acid spray began to leak blood onto the agent as she strained all her muscles to crush her enemy’s skull.

“Die you piece of shit!” She seethed.

Black Diamond’s agent screamed out in pain, but she managed to force herself to thrust her hand into the gem’s wound. The amethyst winced and clenched her teeth in pain, her vice grip loosening slightly. The hand inside of her felt like a blade, but she mustered all her strength to try to win this struggle. But as the gem’s fingers began to spread and pull back inside of her, her strong grip began to soften as she yelled out in pain. In an instant her form vanished as her downed enemy’s hand ripped through her chest from the inside. The fog was finally clearing and Black Diamond’s agent breathed heavily, the pain from her head slowly going away with each breath. She got up onto her feet and looked down at her gray hand. It was coated with purple blood and the fingers looked jagged and sharp, as if they were made out of crystal.

“It’s been a long time since I had to use this technique. I’m getting careless.” She thought to herself.

A light enveloped her hand and her fingers returned to normal. With a quick flick of the wrist she whipped the purple liquid from her hand. She reached into her cool gray sash located around her slim waist and pulled out a black sphere. She pressed the side of it with her thumb, activating it and displaying a wavelength.

“Are you finished commander Jet?” A gruff voice asked.

“Yes. Send in the clean up crew. I’m going to the control center to see if there’s anyone left.” Jet answered.

“Right away.”

With that Jet walked out of what little smoke and fog remained, revealing her form. She had straight black hair that reached an inch past her shoulders, with bangs covering one of her blue gray eyes. She wore a shoulderless black dress with three gray frills going vertically down torso. The dress split a little above the knee level, revealing a pair of dark gray boots with white gray toe boxes and heels. Her black, spherical gem was located in the center of her upper chest. She had a mid sized, flat dorsum nose and mildly thick lips coated with oxford blue lipstick. She had a stern stare on her face as she approached the cockpit of the ship.

She opened the door and saw a large room filled with chairs and benches of uniform size. The rim of the ship was lined with control panels littered with various buttons and electronic boards, and a glass window surveying the outside of the ship. Inside the cockpit were three terrified pearls. One had her hands on the control panel, but was motionless in Jet’s presence.

“Don’t bother. We’ve been jamming your ship’s signal. You’re ours now, and you will cooperate otherwise you’ll be imprisoned like your security. Understood?” Jet ordered.

“Yes!” One pearl blurted out.

“Good.” Jet moved to the center of room and sat down, “Set your coordinates for planet K-051. Your cargo is now our cargo.”

“Yes miss!” One of the pearls uttered, “It will take us about ten minutes to do so!”

“Good.” She uttered.

/**/

A red, rectangular cruiser flew through space at light speed. Meteors were shattered into dust as it blitzed through the cosmos. Inside the ship housed Crazy Horse, Fluorite, and a couple of red pearls which were piloting the ship. The two mighty gems were resting in the back. Fluorite was reading a paperback book titled “The Relic” while Crazy Horse was scrolling through a public newsfeed via a holographic touch screen. She stopped when she noticed her and Fluorite’s names on a headline titled “Red Diamond’s Forces Spread Chaos on K-024!”. The featured picture showed Crazy Horse stomping on a Black Diamond quartz while Fluorite tore into a Purple Diamond amethyst with her teeth. She chuckled and nudged Fluorite.

“Hey buddy, check it out. We made the main feed again.” She boasted.

Fluorite looked away from her book and at the hologram, made a noise of mild amusement and then went back to her book.

“Wow what a riveting reaction.” Crazy Horse joked.

“It’s all the same anyway. Some story trying to downplay the incident we caused. Nothing but watered down crap.” Fluorite responded.

“Yeah I guess it gets a little boring after a while. But this was a good haul. A couple of Black Diamond’s troops, a few of Purple Diamond’s, and even some neutral gems.”

“They should’ve known better than to try anything.”

“I know right? We just wanted to relax and have a nice time, view some of K-024’s calming and gorgeous scenery when some of Black Diamond’s grunts throw a shit fit. In our infinitely merciful and empathetic natures, we assisted in quieting down the jerks and then we get blamed for it. Neutrals  have no form of respect.” Crazy Horse commented.

“Well of course they don’t they don’t have any authority figure to watch over em.” Fluorite said.

“At least they offer some safe zones to relax. Had a couple interesting conversations with people on the other side. A lot of them ended in bloodshed but the talks were interesting before it got to that point.”

“Mhm.”

Fluorite turned the page of her book and continued to read on.

“You know a lot of human literature was transferred to digital text, right?” Crazy Horse said.

“Of course. But I prefer this. I like the texture of these antiques.” Fluorite said.

“Well if we’re good you might get a chance to grab some more antiques.” Crazy Horse said, “Human shit’s always been an oddity to me.”

“We oughta be thankful for it. If it wasn’t for them sparking the first revolution all those years ago we wouldn’t be where we are now.”

“With a new troop of diamonds at war with each other in order to establish dominance over the others instead of a singular order?”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. I was speaking more of the general acceptance of gems as what they are. The views on fusion have also shifted drastically.”

“What’s got you in a philosophical mood all of a sudden?” Crazy Horse asked.

“You know I’m in a more talkative mood after I crack some skulls.” Fluorite said.

“Fair point. And yeah I get what you mean. Status quo is still around though, not that it’s that big of a deal. Wish I could’ve met at least one human before they all bit the big one. Least we can replicate their wares to an extent-”

A sudden beeping interrupted the two gem’s conversation.

“Incoming transmission from the home planet. It’s from Red Diamond!” One of the pearls announced.

“Well what are you waiting for, answer it!” Crazy Horse demanded.

The pearl pressed a button on the control panel and a large rectangle holographic display appeared before the two large gems. The display showed Red Diamond. She sat on a crudely shaped throne of stone. A flow of lava fell behind her like a blazing waterfall. She was a massive gem with a demonic motif. She had a wide face with an equally wide and wicked smile that showed off her jagged and sharp teeth. Her eyes were covered by a dark red, metallic mask with iron mesh covering her eyes. Her clawed hand scratched her pointy chin, bright red nails scratched her blood red skin. Her clothes were nearly destroyed. A black chain mail covered most of her torso, though one sleeve was ripped off, the over was covered with holes, and the torso had a few minal rips. She also wore ripped up leggings. A dark circle was housed on each hip, inside the circle another one that was an even darker shade of crimson, and pants were now as long as shorts, littered with holes near the thigh level with the back of what remained of the pant’s legs hanging off the base of what remained of her clothing. Her ruby hair reached the back of her neck, and from her forehead sprouted a pair of scarlet horns that intertwined and tangled around her head to make a crown. Her spherical gem was located in her chest.

“Hello my babies!” She gleefully shouted in a deep tone.

“Hello mama!” Crazy Horse waved to her.

“I read your article. No doubt they censored a lot for the masses.”

“Yeah it was a bloodbath!” Crazy Horse boasted.

“Of course it was my pride and joy! And you captured what you could?” Red Diamond asked.

“Yes. We got a bunch of em.” Fluorite commented.

“Goodie! Now I have even more of a reason to give this order. I want you two to go to planet K-051 in preparation for the upcoming auction. You know how big of a deal this is.” Red Diamond ordered.

“You’re putting us in charge?” Crazy Horse asked.

“Oh no no no! You’ll be second in command. Obsidian is already there.” Red Diamond said.

Crazy Horse and Fluorite flinched at the mentioning of that name.

“Whaaaat? Why’s that stick in the mud in charge?” Crazy Horse whined.

“Because she made it there first. Plus she’s the one who’s been supplying us with excellent gear and ships. She knows what materials we need the most and that’s why I sent her.” Red Diamond said, “So get there and be on your best behavior. No fighting til the auction’s over!”

Crazy Horse pouted.

“Yes Mama.”

“Good! Fluorite, you watch your sister and make sure she behaves herself. I’ll deposit a bit of walking around money in your accounts to make sure you have some normal fun.”

“Alright but if anyone gets in our face like earlier today we’re going to have a problem.” Fluorite said.

“Be as violent as you want so long as you can justify it to the security drones there. But I’d rather you not get banned from going there. Anyone can do this but it’s such a nice place to be.” Red Diamond said.

“We’ll get you what you need Mama.” Fluorite promised.

“Good! Alright see you soon.” Red Diamond said her goodbyes and the transmission ended.

Fluorite went back to her book and Crazy Horse slouched in her chair.

“Can’t believe we gotta deal with her.”

“Just suck it up. Obsidian isn’t that bad.” Fluorite said.

“Yes that geezer is.”

Fluorite rolled her eyes and flipped the next page of her book.

/**/

On Purple Diamond’s planet, Sardonyx, Sodalite, Carnelian and Chalcedony were riding a cabana boat along the lazy river towards a giant gilded pyramid. They are on their way to personally meet with their diamond, who has summoned them shortly after the cleanup of the base that was destroyed by Number 8. Carnelian was at the helm of the ship while Chalcedony looked over the side. Sardonyx was sitting in the shade at the back of the boat while Sodalite sat in her own corner eating fruit she acquired from the orchard. She gobbled down the delicious purple fruits with one bite each, throwing the ruined leftovers over the edge of the boat. Sardonyx had an irritated look on her face.

“We have rubbish bins here you know.” Sardonyx brought up.

Sodalite ignored her and continued to feast.

“Oh let her be Sardonyx. Her scraps feed the fish.” Chalcedony said.

Sardonyx eased her glare and looked over to Chalcedony.

“The fish eat fruit now?”

“Oh yeah! They eat anything that falls in here.” She pointed to a purple fin cutting through the water at the helm of the ship. The fin swerved to the side and went towards one of the discarded fruit cores that was floating in the water. A giant, violet and white, arapaima like fish raised it’s head out of the water and swallowed one of the cores in one swift motion. A school of them soon followed, leaping out of the water and splashing Chalcedony.

“You should get  away from the side before one of them hits you.” Carnelian warned.

“Oh please that hardly happen-” Chalcedony was silenced as one of the giant fish headbutted her as it breached the water. The cloudy gem was knocked to the ground and the fish bounced off the side of the boat, flopping back into the river. She got up and shook her head.

“What did I just say?” Carnelian asked.

Carnelian rubbed her head and Sodalite let out a hearty laugh.

“This is why I do this. I love seeing those big guys jump.”

Sardonyx rolled her eyes but then immediately perked up when she saw the pyramid her diamond resided in. A large, rectangular protrusion housed a gate at the end of the river. Carnelian raised her hand to the gate. Inside, two pearls confirmed who she was via holographic identification and went then opened the gate. The gate rose up high and the boat powered through the current to enter the inner sanctum.

Inside there was a great lake of purple. On the surface of the lake were various facilities floating on islands of gold. Quartzes and pearls alike worked in luxury, weaving tapestries or fishing for the mighty creatures that made the ancient lake their home. The ceiling of the pyramid was translucent bronze, shielding the gems from the harsh rays of the sun while allowing them to still warm them. Great palm trees rose from the surface of the lake, bearing fruit of the most wondrous variety. At the center of the concealed city, raised above all via it’s own pyramid, was a giant square cloaked in golden silk. Inside the outline of their mighty diamond watched over all gems.

“Awright no time for dilly dallying. Let’s get to business. Full speed ahead!” Sodalite called out.

“There’s a speed limit here for a reason you dolt.” Carnelian said, “Besides we’re almost there.”

“Whatever.”

The four gems made it to the steps of the pyramid and began to walk up. Two Amethyst guards opened the veil to them, revealing their diamond. She was laying down on a cushioned, biedermeier bench. She sat up straight when she saw her champions enter. She smiled down upon them as they all kneeled before her.

“Rise my knights.” She requested in a calm, yet authoritative tone.

The four gems did as they were told and looked up at their diamond. She sat with her legs crossed. Her thick, deep plum lips were pursed into a smile, and her violet eyes, which had twin markings underneath them, conveyed a warm emotion to her servants. Her long black dreads mostly flowed backwards, pushed back by a gold crown that housed her diamond shaped gemstone, which was located on her forehead. Two long bands of hair bound at the ends by gold clasps fell to her shoulders. Her neck, shoulders, and upper torso were protected by a gold armor piece. From the shoulders a black veil flowed down to her feet. A white top covered her breasts, but left a v-shaped gap in the middle which revealed a portion of her chest. Her midriff was exposed, and a curved gold belt wrapped around her hips, bending downwards to a sharp tip. From the bottom sides of the belt a white dress bottom wrapped around her hips, growing longer as it wrapped around her legs and eventually reaching down to her ankles at the back of her legs. In the middle of the belt was another black veil that covered her white pants piece and flowed down to her feet. Her biceps and shins were covered by gold bangles and her flats were snow white.

“What business do you have for us, my diamond?” Sardonyx asked.

“As you know auction day is coming very soon. I need a representative to go there and purchase as much military power as possible. The cargo we have acquired was pillaged by one of Black Diamond’s commanders, and we need all the help we can get.” She said, “Sardonyx, I want you to transport our trade goods to the auction house along with Sodalite. Carnelian and Chalcedony will fill in for your roles while you are away.”

“But my diamond, we were just recently attacked! We oughta stay behind and let the two of them go and-” Sodalite started.

“I am fully aware of what happened and I appreciate your concern, but what happened was just a simple group of Red Diamond’s marauders. Their barbaric actions surely won’t be repeated unless Red Diamond has decided to do a full scale invasion. Luckily for us our scouts out in space have confirmed that no other ships have come by us ever since that day. So what we need now is a pair of gems that I can trust and have enough authority to influence and intimidate any and all potential buyers that will attempt to take what we need.” Purple Diamond explained.

“You have specific requirements?” Sardonyx asked.

“Go to the shipyard and leave immediately. One of our pearls will give you a listing of what we need in order of priority. You should arrive by the end of the day. Hopefully by then Tanzanite will have made it there as well.” Purple Diamond said.

“Tanzanite’s already left?” Carnelian asked.

“Yes, she’s currently in an attempt to pursue Number 8.”

“Again? Doesn’t she get that shi...gem is next to impossible to get? He’s like a ghost. And even then capturing him is just gonna paint a huge target on her, or worse yet us. Lots of rebellion factions need him for missions against the other diamonds, not to mention the personal crap he does for Black Diamond.” Sodalite ranted.

“He has to have some sort of hidden agenda with Black Diamond. He at least does good work at taking out threats.” Carnelian said.

“It’s true. Though he is an enemy he is also our ally. No matter who the target is, no matter what faction, he will go and get the job done by any means necessary. I fear the day that he decides to settle with one faction. It may very well tip the balance of this war.” Purple Diamond said.

“If only we could hire him.” Chalcedony said.

Purple Diamond furrowed her brow and scowled at the cloudy blue gem.

“Chalcedony I am disappointed in you. You know very well that I will not allow a mercenary to be associated with my name. The neutral dogs that see this war as an opportunity to gain wealth rather than for a cause we diamonds have established for our people. Though the neutral factions have done well to battle the other diamonds and help mitigate the pressure upon us, they should just allow us to protect them under my name instead of clinging to their own petty ideologies. They had their chance after the first diamond war thousands of years ago, they can’t try to force their hand again now that we three have come back to restore order to this untamed universe.” Purple Diamond lectured.

Chalcedony hung her head in shame, averting her gaze from her diamond.

“Yes you’re right. Forgive me my diamond.” Chalcedony said.

Purple Diamond smiled and  pat her sullen servant with one finger.

“Don’t fret over it. You’re just thinking of any possibility to help me end this meaningless fight.” Purple Diamond said.

“I am my diamond. I’m sick of this war. Why can’t we just be together?”

“As am my, my child. But the war long ago has taught us that order through intimidation and class isolation will lead to our ruin. Black Diamond wishes to establish the old ways of ruling that caused their downfall long ago. I’m more than familiar with my sister’s devious and underhanded methods to enforce order. I do not wish that upon any of you, or any of her gems for that matter. Red Diamond’s chaotic nature will drive us all to destroying each other. The universe can’t thrive under chaos. The only true way is through lawful order. We will make a just land where law rules over all under a watchful guise rather than one enforced by fear. But we cannot do that unless we have the proper military power to take on my sisters.” Purple Diamond said.

The gems nodded. Purple Diamond pointed towards the ship yard, east of her chambers.

“Now go! Fulfil your duties!” She commanded.

“Yes my diamond!” The four gems called out as they rushed out to leave. The great diamond laid back down and rested on her bench, watching the four gems rush over to the shipyard.

In two minutes the gems made it to the docks of the shipyard and rushed over to a purple ship in the shape of an oval. A pearl dressed in robes bowed before them and guided Sodalite and Sardonyx to the ship. The two gems turned back as the ship began to ascend. They waved each other goodbye as the ceiling of the pyramid opened up in a spiral manner. The two gems backed up as the door to the ship closed and the two gems were escorted to the main control chambers.

“By the way, my mistress Sardonyx, I made sure to send the coordinates to Tanzanite. Her pearls should know where to meet you.” The pearl whispered to her.

Sardonyx smiled and followed Sodalite to her seat.

/**/

In the lone reaches of outer space, a lone ship lazily floated along a cosmic trail of color. Inside, Number 8 sat in his captain’s seat, looking at a locket. It was circular and had a rusted exterior. What little metal that remained untarnished shone silver, and nearly all of it’s chain has rusted away, leaving only a couple links hooked to it. He stared inside of it longingly, aged for eons, nearly broken and yet it holds something precious to him. Something that he stares longingly at when he is alone. Something irreplaceable.

His trance like stare was interrupted by a notification noise. He recognized the sound as a transmission request. He pressed a button and a tray in his chair shifted open. He closed the locket and placed the it inside the tray. As he closed it he answered the transmission call. A holographic display appeared, showing an angered gem.

“You’re not getting away with your crimes this time you mercenary scum!” She yelled.

Her light blue hair was long, fluffy and reached to her lower back, covering the entirety of the back of her chair. She glared at Tourmaline with her lavender eyes and her full lips were pursed into a scowl. She had a toned body, and the protrusion of her crossed legs gave of the impression that she was a very tall gem. She wore a set of purple earmuffs with circular cups etched to look her diamond’s fruit insignia and ocean blue band wrapping around the back of her head. She wore a cyber grape leotard with long sleeves that turned into fingerless gloves. The leotard had six stripes at her center, the top three and the bottom three meeting in the middle with a raspberry stripe, then a boysenberry stripe and the outline of the pattern was lined with a razzmic berry stripe. Her hips and thighs were exposed, but the royal purple skin of her legs was mostly cut off by a pair of royal blue high heel boots. At the tip of each knee rested a small, diamond shaped purple gem stone.

Number 8 rested his cheek on his fist and lazily gazed at the enraged gem.

“Must we do this every time I have an appointment on one of your planets Tanzanite?” He said.

“You’ve gone too far this time. Attacking a base on the same planet as my diamond, attempt to assassinate two of my subordinate officers, decimating one of our most important research facilities, and insulting our military might by just running away from a fair fight with Sardonyx! I’ve had enough of your despicable actions against my dynasty! Get off your ship at these coordinates. You don’t deserve it, but I will take you in honorably.” Tanzanite threatened.

“Yeah I’m not doing that.”

Tanzanite chuffed.

“Then you’d rather I blast you and bring what shattered remains back to my planet?” She threatened.

“That isn’t happening either. I’ve made sure that this ship has a shield strong enough to take a blast from a diamond cruiser. Your ship doesn’t have a chance in hell to pierce it.” Number 8 stood up and walked over to the hologram, “Why do you always have to be the one gem who feels the need to chase me around. It’s pointless.”

“Have you not been listening to a single word I’ve just said?” She asked.

“Oh please this is no worse than that time I sabotaged one of your cruisers, or blown up a few of your injectors on P-04. But to make it up to your diamond, I make the other diamonds suffer as she does.”

“You act like that makes you a better person.”

“I’m never said I was a good person. But I’m good at what I do, and I’m going to make sure I can keep doing what I’m good at until I have what I need.” He stated.

“And what exactly is that?” She asked.

“I don’t have to explain why to you. Just understand that once I have what I need, things will change for everyone.”

“Well knowing that doesn’t make me want to stop tailing you.”

“You’re that obsessed with getting to me? At this point I’m starting to think you just like following me around instead of doing your job Ms. Commander.”

“My job is to keep my diamond and my people safe, and that can’t happen if you’re here prolonging this war for everyone.”

“You could at least let me do some damage to your enemies as a way of saying I’m sorry first.”

“I think I’ll be happy with you in a bubble.”

“Love to continue this conversation, but I have some important business to take care of on K-051.”

Tanzanite raised an eyebrow and smirked at him.

“Really? Well so do I?”

“Is it about me?”

“Not everything I do is about you.”

“Really feels that way.”

“Well maybe if we have a little spare time I can take care of you. Then you won’t have to worry about work ever again.”

“Sounds like a dream, but a really boring one. I’ll see you around.”

“Yes, you will.”

The transmission ended and the display vanished. Number 8 heaved a sigh and went back to his chair. He had a smirk on his face.

“At least she keeps things entertaining.” He thought to himself.

/**/

Deep inside the Pearl Sanctuary, within Black Pearl’s ship, she, Green Pearl, Akoya Pearl, and Champagne Pearl have all gathered around to discuss an event of great importance. They were all sitting in their own cushioned chairs sitting in a circle. They were waiting on someone to deliver them some information. The door opened up and in came a single pearl. She wore a set of shades with cadet blue rims and aqua lenses. Her sky blue hair was tied in a ponytail which was pressed down by her shades. A choker of alternating teal diamonds decorated her neck, contrasting with her midnight blue skin. Her cerulean shirt and shorts were decorated with dark blue and turquoise rings. She wore sky blue leggings and dark purple shoes.

“I have just finished contact with our informant. The auction will be held in three days.” She said.

“Great. Any information on the auction Night Blue Pearl?” Black Pearl asked.

“The first section will be for captured soldiers. The second section is weaponry. The final section is pleasure and slaves.” Night Blue Pearl explained.

“Meaning pearls.” Champagne said.

“Yes.” The blue pearl explained.

“Then we need to go now.” Green Pearl said.

“Three of us will go. Me, Green, and Night Blue.” Black Pearl said.

“Can’t I go too?” Akoya asked.

“We said that only three of us would come. Too many of us around and it might raise suspicion. We summoned you here to let you know that you will be assisting Champagne in our absence.” Green Pearl said, “The sanctuary must remain in order. We’re going on our most dangerous mission yet.”

“But if we are successful, we will free dozens of pearls from enslavement.” Champagne said.

Akoya had a determined look on her face.

“Alright, I’ll hold down the stronghold with Champagne.” She walked over to the blind gem and helped her up.

“Thank you.” Champagne said.

She looked in Black Pearl’s direction and smiled.

“Good luck.”

“We’ll need it.” Green Pearl said.

The two pearls exited the ship and then Night Blue Pearl leaped up to the pilot seat. The ship began to rumble as it levitated off of the ground. In a matter of seconds, the ship began to rip through the air, into one of the meteorite’s holes. It escaped the tunnel and began to shoot off to its destination.

“We should arrive a bit after our contact. From there we will obtain our safe house and we can begin to construct a plan.” Night Blue Pearl declared.

“Excellent. Now then...let’s get to work on our disguises.” Black Pearl declared.

Green Pearl looked over to her friend.

“What did you have in mind?”

“Hmm...I’d say this.”

A white light enveloped Black Pearl’s form for a brief second, completely transforming her outfit. Her hair changed from her natural form having a tapered cut on the sides and back with a big mound of curls on top curled towards her forehead. She wore a purple dress top that covered her breasts and abdomen, though her shoulders and back were exposed. Her hips and thighs were covered with a black cloth, and her legs were covered with spandex.

“I think this works best. A bit more fetching and it’s color coordinated for what we’re doing.”

Green Pearl eyed Black Pearl for a second, shrugged, and then transformed to have the same outfit, though her hair was let down past her shoulders rather than Black Pearl’s style.

“Looks nice on you too.” Black Pearl complimented.

“Whatever. The sooner I can change back to my normal outfit the better.” Green Pearl looked up to Night Blue Pearl, “Are you going to get changed soon?”

“I’ll look at your outfits and copy them before we land. I need to focus on getting us there. But that should only be about five or so more minutes.” Night Pearl responded.

“Great.” Green Pearl looked back to Black Pearl, “So who is this contact we’re meeting? A pearl on the inside?”

“No. My contact is a very old friend of mine. She’s on our most neutral side so I can still trust her.” Black Pearl said.

“Neutral side? You mean Purple Diamond’s court?”

“Yes. Don’t exactly agree with her methods, but the conditions she puts the pearls in are far more tolerable than what Black Diamond and Red Diamond are doing.”

“You know about Black Diamond first hand, don’t you?”

Black Pearl looked away.

“That was a mistake I shouldn’t have made.”

Green Pearl frowned.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to-”

“No it’s fine. We both know why I left, and why I went there. But it’s in the past, and I’m going to make sure no other pearls make the same mistake.” Black Pearl said.

“You mean we all are.”

Black Pearl nodded.

“I fought to make sure the status quo wouldn’t exist anymore long ago. And I will continue fighting until the dream my friends and I had is realized. It’s what he would’ve wanted.”

“He?”

Black Pearl frowned.

“Forget you heard that.”

“Alright.”

There was a beeping noise coming from the ship.

“Planet K-051’s check in is contacting us. Give me one second.” Night Blue Pearl said.

She opened the communications option and typed away at her keyboard, submitting a code in an alien text. She sent the text and it vanished into the aether. She waited for a few seconds and then received a cheery tone and a confirmation message. Night Blue Pearl smiled and jumped out of her seat and then bounded down to the others. She eyed Black Pearl and Green Pearl for a split second.

“Alright! We’re good to go. Just let me change…” A light enveloped her form and she wore the same outfit, though her shades were gone, revealing her ice blue eyes, and her hair was no longer bound in a ponytail, “...and now we can meet up with our informant!”

Their ship slowly ascended down towards the planet’s surface. The planet was bright red with patches of green. As they descended downwards towards a specific patch of green, they began to break through fluffy clouds and peered down at the intensely large continent. On the surface it was completely bare. Massive forests and vast fields of green as far as one could see, even thousands of feet in the air. As they sank downwards towards a field, a hidden gate opened up, revealing a bright metallic tunnel. The pearls’ ship was swallowed by the hole. They all looked around to see that the tunnel revealed multiple floors with ships of all kinds parked. Like a migrating bird, their ship automatically knew which direction to go in. It floated down to the lowest level of ships and parked itself between two spherical cruisers.

Black Pearl was the first to exit the ship, looking both ways to see if their escort was nearby. The other two followed, both were extremely cautious.

“It’s too quiet. You think we were set up?” Green Pearl asked.

“Absolutely not. The line I contacted our friend with was completely secure. And if Black Pearl is putting this much faith in this person, she’s clearly worthy of our trust.”  Night Blue Pearl stated.

Black Pearl continued to scan the environment for her contact, but then saw someone come down through the lit complex. She smiled as she recognized who it was.

“I was beginning to get tired of waiting for you.” Her deep voice called out, “But I knew you wouldn’t pass on an opportunity like this. You’ve always been too headstrong to quit.”

Black Pearl beamed as she ran up to the large gem. The others followed and Black Pearl lept into the arms of her friend. Her giant friend embraced her in her strong arms.

“It’s great to see you Sardonyx!” Black Pearl exclaimed.

“Good to see you too little lady.” Sardonyx shot back.

The other two pearls looked on at the two gems with mild confusion.

“I knew you were good friends but this seems like much.” Green Pearl said.

The two rejoicing friends stopped and looked at the other pearls. Sardonyx let Black Pearl down and smiled down on the other two.

“So you’re her partners in crime? Glad to finally meet you!” Sardonyx said.

“Alright, very nice and all but we shouldn’t be talking like this here. There are most likely security cameras.” Night Blue Pearl brought up.

Sardonyx nodded.

“Right. Let's go somewhere a bit more busy. My associate is waiting for us at one of this city’s establishments. It’s human themed.” Sardonyx said.

The four of them began to walk out of the parking lot. Black Pearl had a smirk on her face.

“Human themed?” She asked.

“Yep. Gems around here are very interested in human culture, so they have establishments that replicate what humans used to do.” Sardonyx explained.

“Very interesting.” Night Blue Pearl added, “I wonder how accurate it all is. All documented footage of humans must be centuries old.”

“It’s pretty accurate. I’m speaking from experience.” Sardonyx said.

The group of gems made it to a glass elevator. The four squeezed inside and Sardonyx pressed a button labeled K-051c. The elevator began to sink down and pass through various levels of the Earth.

“The first two levels are basic needs. Security, authorities, and refueling. They keep an eye on everything that goes on at the main level. Luckily this is a neutral planet, so you three don’t have to worry too much about unfair persecution unless you stir up trouble.” Sardonyx said.

“But that’s why we’re here” Black Pearl added.

Sardonyx chuckled.

“I know, I know. Just make sure you start trouble when you really need to.”

They passed through the first two layers and began to descend down to the city. Despite being underground, it was massive and well lit. Street lamps of bizarre architecture lined the cobblestone streets and an artificial sun floated at the rock ceiling. Liquids of various psychedelic colors soared through the air, and the lapis lazuli’s that controlled them danced with them. Gems of all kinds from all factions littered the streets. The buildings were modeled like human stores, but the gem’s architectural style gave them all their own unique feel. In the center of the city was a giant fountain covered with all sorts of Earth and Alien fauna.

The pearls were in awe at the beauty of the city.

“Yep, I had about the same reaction when I came down here. Welcome to Orenan!” Sardonyx declared as their elevator finally stopped. The gems walked out into the bustling city. Sardonyx led the way through the thick crowd. Each pearl stayed close to her as they walked down the busy block.

“Don’t worry, it’s right here.” Sardonyx assured them.

They came upon a cube shaped, gray building. On it was a neon sign that read “Musician’s Hideaway”. The group went inside and were again blown away by the decor. It was filled with high quality chairs and booths. Tapestry’s of old human album covers littered the walls and the interior carpet was white and covered with musical notes. At the center stage there was an alien DJ booth where two gems were jamming as they played the establishment’s music. There was a bar with a back wall decorated in bottles of all kinds. Gems of all shapes and sizes celebrated here. Drinking human drinks of all kinds, be them alcoholic or not, tasting human food, reading about human music cultures, it was a paradise of foreign information.

Black Pearl looked on in awe at everything, even recognizing a few album covers on the walls while Sardonyx guided her and the other pearls to their table. They could see Sodalite already eating her share of fruits and vegetables while Tanzanite rolled her eyes. The four of them sat and began to talk.

In another part of the restaurant, White Topaz and Jet were looking at each other across from their table. At the bar, Fluorite and Crazy Horse were drinking themselves into a stupor, waiting for Obsidian to meet up with them.

Unbeknownst to all of patrons at the club, a dangerous threat was about to enter the restaurant. An agent of controlled chaos that was hunting his prey. Number 8 was walking through the crowded streets and towards Musician’s Hideaway.

[riverofmemoriesft]

. Between the Lines . 197

After Natsu had returned the king's crown and clothes with an honest apology - the king sighed and let him go back to the party without any consequences - he hunted down Lucy.

Even in the brief instant he'd seen her, his heart had skipped a beat. She was always pretty. He'd known that from the minute he'd found her in Phantom Lord's grasp. She'd been beautiful at the Christmas party, too.

But this…

His eyes found her among the people and his breath hitched as he saw her chatting cheerfully with Sabertooth and Erza and Jellal. He skimmed over their friends and just watched her. There was something about the way the gold and red clashed, the way her soft face lit up with laughter, that made it hard to breathe. She was beautiful, even more than beautiful with her healing wounds and the scars that had faded over time, and he wanted to hoard her away.

Natsu had seen Lucy in various places.

Normal, in the guildhall, her hair tied out of her face and her body clothed in jeans and a T-shirt, her whip and keys at her hip. Dressed up like this, with that regal look that reminded him she'd once been and still was royalty, something he'd never be. He'd seen her in tears, mourning the loss of someone she loved deeply, laughing at something he'd said. He'd seen her covered in blood and desperately reaching for him, pleading for help or trying to help him.

And no matter where she was, what she looked like...Lucy was Lucy, and he loved her deeply.

Finally, he hesitantly approached. Sting caught sight of him first and lit up with a grin, calling his name in greeting. Lucy's head snapped around, her smile faded into a pout of annoyance. He noticed with a smug feeling that her lipstick was a little smudged. "Natsu!" she called, rolling her eyes.

He slid into place beside her, instinctively draping an arm around her shoulders and leaning heavily against her. She grunted, and he pulled back when she warned him she was in heels and didn't want to snap an ankle.

"Hey, Luce," he said happily.

"You," she hissed, stamping on his foot. He jumped with a yelp of pain, and Yukino stifled her laughter. "What did you think you were doing, Natsu?! You stole the king's crown!"

"I gave it back!" he pointed out. "And he didn't punish me. I'm free as a bird!"

She groaned, hands fluttering tiredly before she just smacked him on the arm and crossed her own. "I'm with Gray on this one. You're a dumbass."

He playfully pouted and then grinned at Sting and Rogue. "We kicked your ass."

"We are not here to-"

"Yeah you did," Sting laughed, cutting off Lucy. He grinned at her. "But we'll get you guys next year."

Rogue chuckled. "We didn't expect to beat Fairy Tail this year. We are merely pleased that Gildarts chose to not take part in the festivities. Where is he, anyways? His help would have been great with the dragons."

Lucy nodded. "It would have. He's on a big job apparently. That's what Cana said."

"Too bad. I bet he'd have fun chasing Bacchus off," Yukino hummed, nodding at the man that Cana had been hanging out with. She sat back with a glimmer of excitement in her eyes. "I heard that Levy and Gajeel got engaged?"

Sting gasped. "They did?"

"They did," Lucy confirmed. She elbowed Natsu. "Someone helped Gajeel make a ring without telling me." He gave a sheepish smile and then looked at Rogue when he spoke.

"I thought he'd been hiding something. He was quite antsy when I went to speak with him the other day. Do you know how it happened?" Rogue mused, tilting his head.

"No, they haven't really told us very many details," Erza admitted. She thoughtfully touched her chin. "On the matter of relationships, however, Jellal and I have decided to officially date." Jellal sputtered in shock beside her, as if he hadn't expected the declaration, and it made Lucy grin at the sight of it.

"We have?" the blue-haired mage got out in a strangled tone.

Lucy giggled alongside Yukino. Natsu reached out and patted the man on his shoulder. "Congratulations," Rogue said honestly. "We wish the both of you luck in your endeavors as a couple."

"Good for you, man," Sting told him, raising a glass of champagne that he'd snatched from a platter being offered.

Lucy thought it hilarious, the way that Jellal seemed to turn red, one hand covering the majority of his face as Erza beamed and thanked them. Despite the surprise, however, Jellal was clearly pleased, one hand drifting to lightly touch Erza's back in an affectionate gesture. Lucy's eyes warmed.

After everything that had happened, with how Jellal had tried to kill her and had been supposedly possessed - even if he still heard whispers, something he'd mentioned before - he deserved the happiness that Erza would bring him.

They left shortly after that, fully intending on finding Mirajane for some reason, and it was while Lucy was watching them that a gasp caught her attention.

"Oh!"

Lucy looked over when Sting suddenly started patting his pockets. He frowned, looked expectantly to Rogue, and then beamed when the shadow mage produced a small box, wrapped up neatly. He plucked it from his friend's hand and then offered it. It was wrapped in silver, a bow on top. "A gift from us three," he added. "It's an apology gift. We don't know why Minerva suddenly went psycho or why she targeted you like that, but…"

Lucy blinked, taking it. "Thank you," she murmured, hesitating to open it.

"Go ahead," Yukino told her. "We would have given it to you on your birthday, but...we didn't know when it was."

"A few months ago," Lucy admitted, remembering the small celebration they'd had. She was twenty now. It seemed odd to think that she was close to an age where it was considered legal to drink.

She unwrapped it with care, and Natsu took the paper for her. She found herself looking at a little velvet box, and when she flipped it open, her heart skipped a beat.

"We knew you were a writer, being a published author and all, and we know you're done with it, but since Natsu gets you so much jewelry-"

Lucy cut Sting off. "It's amazing," she breathed.

And it was.

It was a fountain pen, the same color of gold as the keys of the Zodiac. There were three lines of small rubies and diamonds up to the top, and between each line was a series of Zodiac symbols - all belonging to the Spirits Lucy possessed a contract with.

Gently taking it from her, Sting ran his fingers up one of the lines that altered between gems. "These are real rubies and diamonds, by the way. And the gold is real, too, that's why it's so heavy. I used some gold I got from Natsu a while back and Rogue offered the diamonds when I showed him what I was working on."

Lucy didn't know how to react. She hastily swiped beneath her eyes, trying not to smudge the makeup. "Thank you, all of you." She hugged the velvet box after replacing the pen in it. "It means a lot. Natsu, could you keep this in your pocket for me?"

He nodded. "I won't lose it," he vowed, tucking it away safely with a grin.

Trumpets sounded suddenly and he gasped, "It's the real king!"

Lucy elbowed him with a roll of her eyes and turned her face up to the balcony that Toma was appearing on. Hisui stood on his right with Arcadios on his left, both wearing a blank expression. Silence fell over the party.

"First and foremost," the king said. "I want to thank every single person who participated in defending our country. You all did a marvelous job, even if Crocus was destroyed by no fault of your own. It means a lot to be able to see the lack of mistrust and hatred between mages and non-mages."

Polite applause rang out.

Toma nodded slightly and then continued, "This party is to honor all of you as well as the many people that perished. I have decided that the royal family will contribute to the necessary funds for funerals. If any of you lost someone in the battle, please come see Arcadios or another guard, who will escort you to speak with us. July 7th will forever be known as a day of loss - and strength.

"I find myself proud of my people. You have triumphed over a dire situation that could have been much worse. My heart goes out to you all. I thank each and every one of you for your contribution.

"In addition, I wish to give my most sincere apologies to Princess Lucy Heartfilia of Bosco, Mr. Gray Fullbuster, and Miss Yukino Auguria." Yukino's head snapped up and Lucy's lips parted in shock. "I will not publically announce why, but you three - and Mr. Natsu Dragneel, who I also offer apologies to - are aware of what I speak of."

Natsu made a low scoff beside Lucy, scowling. "His daughter nearly killed me and got the rest of us killed," he hissed. "This is stupid."

"Shush!" Lucy hissed and stamped on his foot again. He whined softly at the pain of a heel driven into his foot.

The king quickly finished up his speech with a prayer that the peace between magic-users and non-magic-users would continue and then slipped away. Hisui and Arcadios bowed to those watching and then followed suit.

"I wonder if she'll be punished," Lucy murmured, pressing her lips together. Music - traditional music that belonged to previous centuries' of Fiore citizens - filled the air and suddenly, she felt Natsu grow tensed with excitement. His head snapped around and he gave Lucy a hopeful look.

"Wanna dance, Luce?"

She rolled her eyes - she seemed to be doing that a lot tonight - and slipped her hand into his. He surprised her by gently lifting her hand to his lips and brushing them over her calloused knuckles. Yukino cooed softly behind her, delighted by the sight, and Lucy felt flustered.

"Of course," she murmured, her dark eyes shining.

She remembered the haunted look in the future Natsu's eyes when that demon had slid through the Gate. She remembered Zeref's breath kissing her face as he slyly told her that he wouldn't forget her. She remembered her future self's death, the sacrifice the future Yukino and Gajeel had made for everyone else.

And she pushed it all out of her mind.

If being with Natsu had taught her anything, it was to enjoy the here and now.

And she certainly intended to do just tha as he led her away from Sabertooth to dance.

[ancientpokemonrock]

So I Married a Dragon...

Hiroshi paced agitatedly back and forth before the couch, his wife Elenora looking equal parts embarrassed and smug. His favorite suit jacket was long since gone, his sleeves were charred, and his tie was hanging on by a single silk thread. Hiroshi refused to think about what his normally neat hair looked like at that moment. In contrast, Elenora was the picture of composed, this in spite of her current emotional state.  She had come out of the three day fiasco looking like she had just been grocery shopping.  Clean dress, gently curled hair, makeup that was only slightly smudged. Only her shoes gave her away, caked with mud and blood and other things he didn’t want to remember.

Against his own desires, Hiroshi gave a great sigh. He loved his wife, really he did; but they needed to talk about what happened and all the things she had been hiding from him. Anger was the only thing keeping him awake, keeping him on his feet, and he clung to it with the stubbornness of a starving dog. Hiroshi had been astonished when their anniversary weekend went to hell, and discovering all the things Elenora had been keeping from him had just been the proverbial cherry on top.

Tired and mad, he flopped on the couch next to her, pulled off his glasses, and covered his eyes with the other hand. The headache was beginning to set in.

“Let’s go over it, just so I know I’ve got it straight,” he began, resolutely studying the lines of his hand, “First off, you’re a dragon.”

“Yes,” she kept her eyes on her knees when she spoke.

“A dragon.” Even after what he had seen, Hiroshi still had trouble wrapping his brain around that one fact.

She nodded.

“An honest to goodness, fire breathing scaled beast that flies and collects precious metals and gems.”

“I wouldn’t say beast…”

Hiroshi raised his voice to be heard over hers. “And you chose to live like a human to get away from your dad’s political scheming. Which you hate, because you’re the sort of person who hates having things decided for you without your input.”

Narrow shoulders slumped. “Yes again.”

“And sometime, when you were hiding and running,” the hand holding his glasses gestured vaguely at the room, “you fell in love with me.”

Her eyes lit up even though he could not see them through his palm. “Oh yes. From the moment I met you I had fallen in love. I yearned for you, darling. You were a temptation I could not resist, nor did I want to.”

Hiroshi removed his hand long enough to put his glasses back on and give his wife a flat stare, which she returned with a quirk of her lips. “Back on track; you’re not just a dragon, but you come from, what was it? A ‘prestigious warrior clan’?”

A flinch, and she looked away with a mumbled, “Everyone thinks we’re warriors, but the only thing my family has really fought in the past 2000 years are accounting forms.”

“What?”

“All the other races think that, since we’re dragons we’re some kind of super warriors, but that’s only true for about three clans in the world. The rest of us have normal professions, like carpentry, or doctors, or mechanics.”

“So that creature in the restaurant…”

“It was a Red Cap, and it was misinformed, like all the rest.”

Hiroshi rolled his eyes slightly. “A Red Cap then. Was it right?”

“Only in that we’re prestigious. Prestigious accountants.” The embarrassment had returned full force. Years ago, when they had gotten married, he had asked her about her family. She hadn’t wanted to speak of them then, and he hadn’t pried, afraid of bringing up bad memories. Now he wished he had.

“Okay, accountants. And you’re the ‘princess’,” he made air quotes for emphasis, “and the strongest of the clan.”

“I’m not royalty, just the daughter of the clan head who was supposed to follow tradition and become an accountant like all my relatives. And as for the strongest-” Elenora hedged. Hiroshi cut her off.

“After what I’ve seen you and the other dragons do? Honestly, I would hate to meet someone stronger than you. That would be a freaking nightmare.”

“You wouldn’t believe the number of combat classes I skipped as a child, nor have I been practicing since I began living among humans. I’m weak.”

“You’re strong enough to beat those Red Caps.”

His wife flinched again, one hand rising to her mouth in a too familiar nervous gesture. It made him feel guilty. “I panicked.”

“You are strong, Elenora,” his tone softened. “I thought you were just strong in heart and mind, now I know you’re strong in body too. Not much has changed the way I see you.”

It took a moment for her to meet his eyes, which were less angry than before. He smiled.  “Now I know why Cassander was always hanging around you.”

Elenora outright cringed. “Please don’t talk about him! Male dragons are slaves of their hormones. Our clans are spread out a thousand miles or more apart to keep territory lines undisputed. Just because I’m the only female he’s met who isn’t a blood relative, he thinks we should be together. The male my father had picked out for me wasn’t any better, just someone whose clan wanted an alliance with us. They’re both too young, and awkward, and—and nothing like you.” Ernest green eyes looked at him, desperately willing him to believe her. It wasn’t hard for him; he had seen evidence of her loyalty a hundred times over the last three days. He knew she wouldn’t have gone through all the trouble of keeping him alive if she didn’t love him with all her heart.

“I know, my dear. I know you love me more than anyone else.” Hiroshi took her hand in his and patted it with the other. “About the rest.”

Another cringe.

“The way you obliterated those Red Caps down to their last molecule was both incredible and terrifying. I can’t handle watching something that again.”

Her head drooped. “I can’t promise that more won’t come. It’s not like I have any control over those creatures.”

“I understand.” He raised her hand to plant a kiss on the back of it. “Just…next time something like this happens, don’t try to hide it from me. I think that caused most of our problems.”

She nodded, the red of embarrassment creeping across her cheeks.

“Alright.” He kissed her hand again and stood up. Hiroshi released her hand to stretch his back, and was rewarded with a handful of satisfying pops. “Where was I?”

“Me being a dragon?”

He hummed. “There was one thing that boss Red Cap said that’s been bothering me. Is it really because of you and your ‘draconic aura’ that has attracted wealth for us and the clinic?”

“Kind of,” Elenora fingered her wedding band. “I drew it in, your own talents made it stay.”

“Huh. Good to know.  Is it possible for you to, I don’t know, turn it off? If only to better hide from those things in the future.”

His wife shook her head. “No, not even if I wanted to. That’s why Red Caps are so anxious to get their claws on a dragon. We can feed their greed just by being alive. It’s caused quite a few clashes in the past.”

“Any that humans would’ve noticed?”

Her shoulders hunched. “Ever heard of Pompeii?”

Hiroshi stared at her. “Seriously?” he threw his hands in the air and resumed pacing. “Pompeii. Pom-freaking-peii.”

“There was also Atlantis, Avalon, Babylon, Sumaria, Ancient Egypt…” she trailed off.

Another sigh escaped him. “Basically, every kingdom that had fallen was because of Red Caps hunting dragons.”

“Yes.” Her hand was back at her mouth.

“Okay then. Why didn’t the Red Caps follow us over the ocean?”

“It’s the salt in the ocean. Red Caps can’t handle salt, and the ones that fell in died almost instantly. It’s why dragons prefer to live near the coasts and on islands. Makes it harder for the hunters to get us.”

His tie finally failed and slid to the floor. Hiroshi just sighed at it. “Anything else I should know about? Anything important?”

           There was a beat of silence. “I’m pregnant.”

           It was too much. Hiroshi fainted.

[ordersreality]

Gus and the Magic Jellybean

So, there is Gus, drifting through the woods, in his wolf-shirt, sniffing at the stench under his nose that seemed so interesting and offensive at the same time. He did not know what it was, or why it attracted him so much. He just wanted to understand what it was.

And eat something besides berries. Berries are good, don’t get him wrong, there. Best yet, they do not run away laughing at you when you hunt them. A wolf, however human, wants something else, too.

The mice and squirrels just laughed at his hunting skills. The birds either chattered and gossiped, or insulted him with more rude names. Except the jackdaws, who just flew in panic to their king to keep them safe. He tried to remind them that wolves cannot climb trees. This just as Gus dropped from a branch after a pheasant flew off.

The fish didn’t see him coming, with wolf paws that can hold those slippery little, ah, got you. That was a good day of hunting. What he really wanted, though, was a cure. If he had been cursed then could he get cured?

At least he had several clean nights of sleep without being awakened to do meaningless chores his mistress preferred her own children not have to worry about. Shame, that, they were in their twenties and still unemployed. How does that work?

The strange part, of course, he went to sleep in wolf-skin and woke up in boy skin. At first this was surprising–he could really turn back. Then, this was embarrassing, because his loincloth was loose, askew, and revealing. The beavers thought that was hilarious.

Gus thought that troubling, until he realized something. The animals did not mind about all that, not really. They didn’t wear anything they didn’t have at birth. Who else would worry about it, the trees, flowers, and nuts? So, he tightened up, listened to the grumbling in his belly–angrier than normal today–and enjoyed another feast of sour berries.

The sun dropped from the sky when the wolf side of him demanded his turn under the wind. Not that there was much of a choice, only drop his britches there or get them torn some more. So, he loosened the front and waited. Then wondered why his tail wagged like that. Was he happy? He never experienced much of that, so it was new.

Gus traveled east, the way that scent might be traveling. None need worry about why. It gave him something to focus on as he tries to survive.

The sun left longer shadows and the dusk painting the skies with her rosy fingers for the evening. Gus started looking for a river to wash in and a clean patch of sheltered grass to sleep on. He enjoyed the bath, and started rolling down a place to sleep on when he heard sniffling. The noise startled him, at first, fearing the mob had finally caught up with him. When he looked through the thicket, he saw a girl.

Well, not just any girl. She was crying. Really, she looked the way he felt. Um, if she were a boy, that is. Of course she wasn’t, and he noticed the differences quite quickly. She had already taken her cloak off, and was opening her tunic. Wow, he had never seen that, before. Yet the dagger stuck into the log she sat on created questions he’d never though of before. She wasn’t hunting, did not have anything to cut. Yet, he seemed to understand she was dropping her tunic to clear the way for trouble with that knife.

Ah, to kill himself. If he could pull it off, he would surely be free of the curse. Yet he felt sad for this girl. Why would she find this satisfying? What does she need a cure for?

How he could say any of that when he could only talk in barks, growls, whines and moans, he would not know. While he sat there thinking about that he watched the last finger of light peak through the clouds and shine onto a fancy looking bag resting on a tree stump. It looked like a sack filled with glowing jewels. It mesmerized him. He was just right to see it amused the girl, too. That gave him an idea. Maybe he could buy the knife with them, save her life, then use it on himself. Later, he could do that when his nature shaped his hands for it.

The idea gained a fresh spark as they looked on. Look at that cricket. He carried a bouquet of parsley and marigolds, singing a sonata for a girl. Well, any girl, really. Okay, not any girl, she had to be one that looked like his mother, mostly. He would sing, jump to a new place and sing some more. This time he had landed, you see, on the bag, kicking up some dust. He took in a breath and his sonnet rose to operatic quality. That made him happy. So happy in fact, he took another breath to sing a new chorus. And, um, disappeared, bouquet and all.

Okay, that was peculiar. Were the gems magic? The bug certainly seemed enchanted by them. Did he just vanish? Will he reappear?

Well, from her advantage the girl had other questions. She looked at something that filled her with alarm. So, he followed her gaze, and learned why. What he saw, a bit larger than he–and then counting the legs–was a gray and red colored spider, sipping on a cricket like it was a Bloody Mary, garnished with parsley and marigolds.

Terrifying as that was he decided to get that bag of gems and give it to the girl. Why? Well, he would never know sitting on his tail, would he? He had never felt this bold in his life. Like that scent that interested him so much, he just wanted to know what it was all about.

So, he sat on his wolfish haunches, tightened his britches, and took a breath. Why tighten his britches? So they do not get torn, thought I said that. He thought this should be easy enough. Just run up to the thing, snatch it up, and be out of there in no time. The spider was, after all, still eating, right?

Ha! He had never really dealt with spiders, not very much. All those eyes, trip lines, and a knickknack for ambush. His only allies would be a full stomach, and neither of them would have had one in a very long, long time.

Well, he crouched down, started at a slow, cautious creep he had learned from the town cat. He sped along, stopped, looked at the spider, then at the girl–who seemed less easy with the nearby wolf and the spider. Then, he would run, stop and look, run, stop and look again. Yes, my young gnome, that cat taught him so much he did not realize. Then, run faster, leap into the air, and wham! He missed as he stumbled over a trip line and tumbled into the nearby bushes. When he looked back, he could see the spider collecting her silk for mending.

She seemed just a little disappointed in the results, and crept into a hole under a log.

Did that mean she was giving up? Did they ever give up? Was food the only thing that distracted them long enough to catch them off guard? Could you catch them off guard? Did I mention the eyes?

Well, he spent a few minutes thinking about all of that, trying to get his courage to sprout and grow again.

What do you mean he should act his age? He is, I tell you! How brave were you in the presence of a giant spider when you were ten? I thought so. Gnomelings.

While he was there thinking about his choices, one presented itself to him. He was looking at his thoughts as if he had written them on his fingers. Yes, fingers, they weren’t quite wolves’ paws, nor quite like he could walk on two feet. He has fingers, though fuzzy, with long, curvy, black, dog-like fingernails. His thumbs dangled quite high on his leg, yet it still looked more like a thumb than a dewclaw. First, he picked up a twig. Then he selected a twig with some leaves, Then a rock. Tossing that was funny, because it leaned to the left of the tree at which he aimed it. Honestly, he did the same when he tried that a year ago when that cat still wanted him at home.

The experiment and exercise were a success. He looked up at where the spider used to be. They saw nothing. Then he turned to the girl, who was now very interested in the wolf who could pick up and toss a rock or two. He studied the bag of magic treasure. It rested on that tree stump. Next to the bag rooted a rusty ax with the ruined handle. All just as it had for many years, now. The ax did not seem usable.

He looked around, surveyed everything with his eyes; the trees, the shrubs, the sound of wind rushing through the coloring leaves above them. He took in the smell of humus, the snow on the nearby mountain peaks, the berries–that made his stomach grumble–the sweet smell of honeysuckle coming from the girl. That reminded him of the girl. She made his body tingle, his heart swell. He wanted to make her happy, just once. Don’t ask him. He does not know why. He’s only just become that old.

Again, he looked around. The spider’s nest only had litter and dusty webs all around it, no spider. He could see the ragged tatters of webbing throughout the drying canopy, but no spider. Yet he was sure she was there, somewhere, waiting. By now she surely knew about the girl.

He took one last inventory of the wooded clearing and ran for the sack. After so many days of walking and running you are bound to expect him to have mastered that by now. Honestly, he still had much to learn, though, given it had only been two weeks, and the wolf only gets out half the time.

He ran, his aim was good, he leaped, and felt a tug on his tail.

A tug, a jerk, and he was softly rolling into a patch of smelly mushrooms filled with human skelitons. He glanced back just long enough to see a lasso disappear into the tree above the stump, a fine selection of his tail hairs drifting free through the air.

He focused, cooled his breath, felt his heart pounding in his chest. He looked at the girl, the bag, the branches above the stump. Gus stood on all fours, formulating a strategy for what to do next. Then, he shook his head as dust and litter fell on it. He took a breath and was about to shake again when a large clump of moss fell on his rump.

He realized he was in trouble. She had not been idle. She had years of experience and tons of desperation on her side. He just had desperation and a wish to make a girl he did not know happy. Now his life was on the line because of all of that! He didn’t think, just jumped forward. He stopped thinking about the bag, his funny feet, the girl. He just wanted to live. Why? Just moments ago he was willing to buy a knife to kill himself. But now!?

He jumped, dove for the space under a log, and kept going.

So did she. No, the space was far too small for her bulk. That did not keep her from jumping over it. Rather than pouncing on him she watched him scramble for a bramble. That won’t do, so she shot him with her web. Missed.

Missed! She never missed! She missed the next two times she shot at him. With the fourth, however, he tripped on one of her lines, and she lassoed his foot to keep him from running off.

He noticed, of course he would. He had spun around, and was desperately tearing at the rope, trying to get free of it. He noticed, just then, she was dragging threads behind her like a drunken sailor fresh from the privy, having not checked for dangling paper in his britches. That gave him inspiration.

She had just shaken the last rope free when he shot back for that space under the log. She laughed at him, silly didn’t he know she knew that was there?

When she shot at him, though, he had jumped over that log, then up a tree to a branch, Where he turned to look at her. I should say here that all those clever insults he had heard while hunting squirrels came in handy. He repeated them, changing them to fit the situation.

With a mouth shaped like a wolf and all she heard was moaning and groaning. Still, she understood well enough. This little whelp was laughing at her. Her! The queen of all spiders and biggest of them all, he laughed at her?

She shot him. Only he had already jumped clear of the branch. She watched him leap onto a rock, wagging his butt at her. That only angered her even more.

She ran, climbed a tree, and shot at him three times while jumping at him. Oh, you should have seen her sail through the air, the grace, the arch, the ease with which she flew at him, shooting, missing, slamming into a stray branch, then another.

She was not finished, though.

He was running for a patch of dog willows.

She shot a fresh web to a tree just above that patch and swung across the meadow. She displayed all the grace of a hungry athlete, flipping and flaunting all her skills while shooting webs and climbing and singing her happy song of the meal she would soon engorge herself on.

She swung, she shot, he would jump out of the way. What was he trying to prove, dinner and a show? She shot, flipped, sure she would pounce and win her dinner. Only he had run under her and called her ‘scaffold’. Scaffold? What does that mean? Is it supposed to be funny or insulting?

She shifted her trajectory, pushed off a tree trunk, bounced off a rock, and flew with all her skill and grace for the spot he was at, panting, catching his breath.

At last, dinner.

Only she landed in a hammock of her own threads. It consisted of bundles of her best, and stickiest ropes. First, she tried to climb down. Except the threads spread her legs out about as far as they could and still be attached to her body. The threads would not let them move more than an inch or so. Then, the hammock started to roll. That was helpful, let her bring her legs in. Her web stretched them unnaturally far for her comfort.

Well, now, the ropes she wrapped herself in, tied, glued, and bound her far better than she could bind any of her prey.

Um, there is a reason spiders like to ambush their prey. They have not much endurance when it comes to exercise. So, after all that running and flying about she was at the bottom of her reserves. Mind you, they were already depleted when the hunt started. So, she relaxed, rested, and watched as the wolf plucked the bag of jelly beans off the stump, and carry them to the girl.

The girl seemed to understand, and accepted the gift. She struggled to make it look like she was enjoying them, rock hard and stale as they were. That is when they watched the wolf grow, um wider, thinner, and his legs change shape into arms and legs.

Then he stood up on his feet, looking at the girl with a warm, happy, nearly breathless smile.

The girl watched that with mild alarm, him changing from wolf to boy. She had heard stories about the ulfgard, how they would eat people as the king would command. This wolf, um, boy might not be interested in her like that. Just interested in her in another way.

She smiled, and blushed. It was obvious she was trying not to look down.

Well, he noticed that, looked down, and blushed. All those days of not worrying about it and today he should have. He gathered the front edge of his loincloth and tucked it in.

After returning a sly smirk to the girl, he did the most insulting thing he could dare. He turned to the spider, and curtsied. He then snatched the knife from the log and tucked it, carefully, into his waist. After all, he had just risked everything to keep her from killing herself. All he needed was for her to try it now.

[fanofawesomethings]

The Rejected Pack

This was a commission piece for @bixbitesmeepmorps‘s OC Gems

If you want a commission of your very own, message me and I will tell you my prices.

His breaths were hastened by his need to escape his pursuers. The unfamiliar terrain threw everything in his path, determined it make the wolf’s escape harder. A sudden misstep, he slipped into a branch whose claw-like branches grabbed onto his charcoal black hide, ripping off clumps of hair and drawing blood. Injured and tired yet unfazed by everything thrown at him, the wolf darted left to right, up and around all obstacles of the forest while his pursuers, a squad of four ash gray wolves, were unyielding in their hunt.

           The pursuers and the pursued entered a clearing in the forest. Every tree and leaf was a new experience for all the wolves and their instincts took over to adapt. Massive logs were scattered in a disorganized heap in front of the black wolf; he pounced on one stacked on top of another. The pursuing wolves followed, shifting the balancing to one size and knocking the log off its motionless position. The black wolf jumped off as the log tipped to one size with the other wolves still on top. It only made their eyes thirstier.  

Desperation apparent in the black wolf’s pace, he threw himself through a prickly bush. Thorns sharp as knives buried into his flesh with ease. He let out whimpers of his agony. But he was seemingly free at last; the other wolves refused to injure themselves. They gave a howl before turning back. He waited for them to leave completely before moving.

The leaves on the bush were stained with the black wolf’s blood. The thorns that pierced his skin were broken off and left inside to cause him pain as he moved. Small whimpers out of impulse echoed through the forest trees. Lost, every twig and leaf seemed to bewilder the injured creature, leading him to further unknown, until suddenly a landmark caught its amber eyes. The tip of the mountain spotted the wolf and he instinctively limped towards it. His hearing seemed to have been damaged as it could hear the commotion that awaited him beyond the brush.

“Come on again!” Onyx shouted in a drill sergeant fashion.

            Bixbite panted against the tree she leaned on, her face dripping with she wasn’t always aware she had. She punched the bark and charged for her friend, arms out forward like a bull’s horns. Onyx braced to dodge; Bixbite fired two beams from her outstretched arms that blocked Onyx’s escape. Bixbite closed in; it looked to be a sure victory. But Onyx leapt into the air, flipped, and landed behind her attacker. Onyx kicked the back of her heel on Bixbite’s leg, tripping her.

           “Ow—whoo ow!” Bixbite whimpered.

           The expression of intimidation and steel solid on Onyx broke out of concern. “Bixbite, are you okay?! I—I didn’t mean to—not that hard—! I—I just wanted—” She scrambled, nearly crying.

           The magenta Gem pushed against the ground to stand upright. “I’m—fine—come—on.”

           “No, that’s enough for today.”

           “What? No, please, Onyx I want to get better with my powers!” Bixbite protested, acting like her normal, soft-spirited self, which Onyx was glad to see again.

           Earlier that morning Bixbite suddenly asked Onyx to help her train. It took some prodding but Onyx finally agreed to train her Bixbite in the harshest way possible. By midday they began actually training—the rest of the time was spent with Onyx unable to treat Bixbite with anything less than unyielding love and affection.

           “No,” repeated Onyx, firm. “Training also means when to start and when to stop. If you exhaust your body you might poof yourself and you’ll end up losing all your progress. It…happened to me once so I learned the hard way.”

           Bixbite dropped on the ground, pouting like a cranky child.

           “Come on, don’t be like that, Bix. We’ll get more training first thing tomorrow morning.”

           She fell backwards to the ground, her hair acting as a bed under her. The grass could not reach Bixbite’s head, so hardly felt the solid ground, and as she rolled on her side to face away from Onyx her hair was free of any loose blades of grass, remaining flawless—as Onyx would describe it.

           “Why did you want to start training anyway, Bix?” Onyx asked, sitting down next to her.

           “I want to be strong like you, Onyx. Now that I have my powers I bet I could be just as tough as you are,” said Bixbite. She crumbled into a magenta ball. “I wanted to train a few days ago but I got lazy because Jason had that cake he gave us. And then Steven came for a visit and I got tired the next day—so I wanted to start now.”

           “But you are strong, Bix. You blasted Alabaster and Pearl that time we fought them.”

           Bixbite’s small smile didn’t last for very long. “But that was luck. I wanna be able to get total control of my powers. That way I can protect you too.”

           Onyx blushed. It seemed like Bixbite gave Onyx more and more compliments each day since they kissed. The most was probably thirty compliments in a single day, and truthfully Onyx never tired of hearing them. Bixbite felt a warm chill run up her spine; Onyx petted her head, the silk-like magenta strands brushing against her hand. The sensation was so pleasant, Bixbite briefly let out her own version of a cat’s purr, smiling with bliss. Onyx noticed it quickly; she dug her fingers into her hair, tapping the back of Bixbite’s neck with the ends of her fingers. Bixbite jumped with a yelp.

           “Oh, so a Bixbite’s weakness is her neck?” Onyx grinned wide with devilish intent.

           “N-No!” Bixbite rolled away, putting her arms up defensively. “You better not, Onyx.”

           Onyx cracked her fingers and neck. All sorts of torture were written all over her face and none were the least bit waiting for Bixbite to give consent to them. Bixbite gulped. Onyx pounced; Bixbite fought back like a cat trying to escape a cage, but her small frame wasn’t couldn’t break free of Onyx’s larger, muscled body, whose arm alone was enough to trap her. Her body shut down when Bixbite felt a gentle breath on her neck. She whimpered from the overpowering sensation.

             “C-Come o-on—O-nyx—kn-ock i-it off,” pleaded Bixbite.

           The black Gem had no intention at all to stop. Instead, Onyx hoisted Bixbite off the ground in her arms. She didn’t say what was going to happen, but the lustful and mischievous expression her face said it for her. Bixbite feared for her safety.

           Onyx stayed silent the entire walk back to the cave, which was her way of torturing Bixbite by keeping her in perpetual suspense. Bixbite was paralyzed the entire time like a capture animal, only dreading what her captor had in mind. When she saw the limestone mountain and their cave, Bixbite shivered. But Onyx stopped suddenly. She set Bixbite down and pinned herself against the wall and motioning to Bixbite to do the same.

           “What’s wrong?” Bixbite asked.

           “I sense someone inside the cave,” whispered Onyx.

Bixbite lowered her voice. “Do you think its Green Pearl or the Peridots?”

           Onyx pressed her ear to the limestone wall. She heard the faintest rumble echoing from the cave through the walls. The distance between Onyx and the cave made it difficult to hear completely, but Onyx could faintly make out two pairs of feet walking inside. She showed Bixbite two fingers, which Bixbite understood but not the signal—a clench fist—to move. She followed Onyx as she moved. The two rushed into the cave.

           To their surprise the two pairs of feet Onyx heard belonged to the one black wolf. His snout was digging into the rocks and he heard the two of them spring out from hiding and block the entrance. It froze.

           “What is that?” Onyx sighed, lowering her shoulders when there wasn’t an enemy to fight.

           “I…don’t…know,” stuttered Bixbite. She was stricken, enamored by the animal she’d never seen before. “Golly.”

Its bushy tail, sharp ears, long snout, and fluffy cheeks were everything Bixbite adored in her animals. Her cheeks were puffed with expanding joy because never before had she seen all those traits combined into one animal. An overpowering urge to hold the animal in her arms control Bixbite to hold her arms out. With a drooling expression on her face she began to close in on him, but Onyx quickly grabbed her collar to keep her in place.  

When the two blocking the entrance showed no signs of being a threat, the wolf went back to digging around. Already Onyx was annoyed she was ignored so easily. The animal dug around and threw objects over his head, all of which belonged to Onyx. He threw a small mirror Bixbite gave Onyx on their second visit to Wheat Town, a half-empty lipstick container Bixbite gave her on one visit to Jason’s house, but nothing alarmed Onyx more than seeing the wolf hold the bubble Plum in its jaws, only to toss her over its shoulder like the rest. Onyx recoiled as the bubble bounced against the ground on its landing. Her extended fingers—to grab the bubble—balled into fists.

“Hey—thing, get out!” Onyx ordered, stumped on what to call it for a moment.

“But…it’s so…fluff,” stuttered Bixbite in a daze.

The wolf bore its fangs, showing Bixbite a rougher side she wasn’t expecting. He snarled at them with a fire erupting in its amber eyes, and Onyx responded with a crack of her fingers and making her muscles engorge, showing him her snarling rage. Suddenly the two were locked a stand off. Despite the wolf’s smaller size he would not yield to the black Gem, and Onyx was cautious seeing its resilience.

“S-Stop it, you two, don’t fight!” Bixbite wailed.

Neither of them heard Bixbite. They wouldn’t listen if they did. The wolf made the first move, charging while its jaws opened to bite because it did not have the energy to pounce. Onyx saw it going for her legs; she slammed her hand on the back of hid neck and pinned it to the floor. He thrashed around, snarling and snapping his fangs, fruitlessly. Onyx tightened her grip and the animal let out a small whimper out of pain; Bixbite recoiled out of pity. Onyx raised the wolf up to her eye-level, holding it with a firm grip as he continued to wriggle free.

“This thing,” Onyx started, squinting her eyes to see every little detail on his face, “is strange.”

“But it’s so…fluff,” said Bixbite reaching out to touch him, but retracted when he snapped at her.

“It’s got an attitude, I don’t like it. I’ll get rid of it.” Onyx carried it outside. Bixbite worried for its safety.

Onyx pulled the wolf behind her as she took a stance like she was about to throw a javelin. The afternoon sunlight revealed the wolf’s injuries that were hidden inside the cave. Bixbite saw the bruises and the scratches and immediately rushed to Onyx.

“No, you can’t throw it!” Bixbite ordered.

“Why not?” She inquired maintaining the throwing stance.

“Animals don’t like it when you throw them!” Bixbite spoke from experience. Onyx stayed her hand for another moment. “Besides its hurt.”

“Hurt?”

Onyx took a closer look and saw the mark beneath its fur and the many, many thorns sticking to his fur. In spite of all its injuries, and shortness of breath which made him pause in between snarls to catch his breath, the wolf fought to get free. In that moment, for a brief second, Onyx felt something a new empathy for it. That empathy loosened her grip and when her guard was down, the wolf at last broke free and escaped into the forest.

“Hey—”

“Wait!” Onyx called out before Bixbite could, surprising her.

The wolf limped as fast as it could into the brush. He kept himself low to the ground and hid amongst the bigger bushes, though Onyx and Bixbite could still see him shifting through them.

Bixbite started after it, but Onyx pulled her back. “Wait, we should follow it.”

“But why? We need to help it right away!”

“No. It’s a warrior, and a warrior won’t stop until it’s finished its mission. Wherever it’s going that’s its mission. I want to see.”

Bixbite gave a pause. A fire she did not recognize was burning in Onyx’s eyes while the rest of her body shivered in anticipation. She jumped into the forest floor and followed the rustling bushes with eagerness. Bixbite was too surprised for words; she followed behind.

The wolf wasn’t an oblivious, as Onyx predicted. His ears perked hearing Onyx and Bixbite who walked with a snail’s pace to ensure they didn’t make any noise, but the wolf heard them just as soon as they left the cave. Far ahead, when the movement ceased, Onyx stopped herself and Bixbite from taking another step. He didn’t look behind, otherwise the wolf would have seen them standing like statues. The wolf continued. They waited for him to gain more distance before continuing their one-step-at-a-time motion.

Once a great enough distance between themselves and the wolf was reached, the wolf rose from the brush and limped at a faster pace. His breathing was loud and deep, exhaling the fatigue that weighed him down. Soon the wolf could only hear his own breathing and not the two following him. A hairline on its right hind leg opened with his active movement; he left a trail of crimson droplets behind him. Even when he was out of sight, Onyx and Bixbite followed his trail.

“This thing must’ve been in a big fight to get injuries like that,” said Onyx.

“I’ve never seen an animal like that around here. Do you think there are others like it?” Bixbite asked, hoping she was right.

“All the animals around the mountain live in squads. Like Gems. It might be a possibility.”

Bixbite squealed, unable to contain herself, but her joy went unnoticed. Onyx watched the floor with solemn precision, blind to the rest of the forest, including her friend. Bixbite became a little more than a gust of wind, a whisper brushing by Onyx’s ear only heard rarely.

“Do you really like the animal too, Onyx?” Bixbite asked. Onyx murmured a response and suddenly Bixbite was sure that she was.

The real reason went unnoticed by both Bixbite and Onyx. She felt a calling to the wolf, an urge driving her legs to follow the blood-soaked trail and ignore her precious friend as though she were a twig on the ground. Onyx didn’t know the answer herself. The curiosity to find out pushed her.

  On the other side of the brush, the charcoal wolf couldn’t walk another inch and stopped to catch his breath. His pursuers were all but gone and so he let himself rest. The bleeding had not ceased and in fact got worse the more he walked; dirt and leaves from the forest floor sting the wounds as they stuck to him. But the forest began to change into something he recognized. A slumped boulder covered in moss and tangling vines, the size of two men, was in the distance. The wolf knew he was only a few steps from where he needed to be.

Bixbite and Onyx poked their heads out of the brush to see the wolf pause in his tracks. He pushed against the ground to raise his head. His back was straight, his chest puffed with the air he sucked in all at once. For the first time, Onyx and Bixbite heard the wolf howl into the sky. Its high call echoed in their minds and down their spines with a tickling sensation. The call lasted for a few seconds and it only took a brief moment of silence for another call to strike the two Gems. But the second howl was smaller.

Curiosity in the two Gems was peaked to greater heights. They had to see what was at the end of their stake-out; they needed to see what the wolf was leading them to. Bixbite could hardly contain herself as the wolf submerged into a slope. They rushed as quietly yet as fast as they could. Onyx and Bixbite climbed the giant boulder and loomed over the edge.

           Like a couple of gargoyles on the sky, they watched the wolf finally collapse in front of the boulder’s shadow. Four little puffs of dark gray fur waggled out of the shadows with stumpy paws. They circled around the black wolf and nipped at his fur, and though Bixbite and Onyx were about to spring into action thinking he was being attacked, the wolf did not react to the little ones. Bixbite was stunned when she realized the little puffs of gray fur were miniature versions of the wolf—pups.

           “I know what those are. Jason called them…um…uh…Beboos,” whispered Bixbite. “The things on Earth make smaller version of themselves that I think are new things?”

           “Beboos? Like when Gems make other Gems?” Onyx inquired, easily oblivious.

           They shut themselves when they saw another figure leaving the cover. It was another wolf, one of a much brighter coat of fur. Its entire body was covered in a hide of white like untouched snow, with a streak of gold wrapped around its neck. At the sight of the second wolf, the black wolf limped closer to her which triggered the white wolf to hurry to his side. She buried her face in his fur, seemingly setting him at ease. They rubbed their necks together while the little pups danced around their feet. When the attention of the bigger wolves was off them; two of the pups wrestled with each other while the other two chased each other in circles. Neither Bixbite nor Onyx could take their eyes off them as though they were trapped by the scene.

           “I think Jason called that a family,” said Bixbite.

           “A…family? Like…a squad. It has a squad,” Onyx mumbled. The answer for her curiosity came to her then.

           Suddenly the treetops shook violently. The four gray wolves that chased the black one earlier dropped down in front of them, their fangs entered before the rest of them. The black wolf took a fierce stance, snarling, but he couldn’t hold it for much longer than a second; he collapsed to one side.

           “What’s happening?” Bixbite gasped.

           Onyx observed the black wolf’s fighting stance. “They’re enemies!”

           “Oh no! But it can’t fight! What’s gonna happen?”

           The black wolf threw a barrage of snapping barks as a show of intimidation. Undeterred, the gray wolves advanced slowly. The white wolf pushed the pups under the cover and one of the four broke from the pack to run towards her. The black wolf threw himself like a rock, slamming his side into the gray wolf’s stomach and knocking him down. The rest pounced immediately onto the black wolf; even the one he knocked down recovered on jumped on.

A horrific scene unfolded that Bixbite couldn’t bear to look. The pack crunched on every part of the black wolf they could bite, tearing his flesh easily like paper. He squealed in agony, fighting as much as he could but doing nothing to push away his attackers. The white wolf jumped in, biting down hard on one of them and throwing it off the black wolf with a lunge. The others charged at her, but the black wolf suddenly blocked their path. He slammed his head into one’s head, but the attack left him open for the others to tackle him. They went back to biting the black wolf.

It was more than Bixbite could take. In a rush of adrenaline she aimed her hand over the edge, but before firing her beam, Onyx leaped in the middle of the fight. She grabbed two of the four and threw them against the same tree trunk; the impact dropped them to the ground paralyzed. The other two released the black wolf and steered their rage at Onyx. They latched their fangs onto her arms and though the pain stung her Onyx grit her teeth and held her ground. One wolf released its bite and circled around her. Onyx swung her foot behind her and kicked the enemy wolf in the teeth. The last wolf finally saw what the others didn’t: defeat. It released Onyx and ran into the brush. The other wolves slowly got back up and followed its example.

“Onyx!” Bixbite climbed down the boulder, reaching for the ground with an extended foot, worried of falling. She ran to Onyx and inspected the bite marks on her arms with tears flooding her eyes. “Are you okay? You got hurt again!”

“I’m fine, Bix. Sorry for making you cry again,” said Onyx, wiping a tear off her cheek. “But I couldn’t let them win an unfair match.”

A growl from behind startled them. The black wolf stood in front of the white one, doing his best to stand upright with only his front legs working.

Onyx motioned for Bixbite to move back. She knelt down to her knees and bowed her head in front of the wolf. He stopped growling then. A moment of silence between the two. The scene was the same as when the two met but the air wasn’t as tense as that time. Onyx put herself in a submissive state as a means to show she wasn’t there to pick a fight, as surprising as that fact was to Bixbite.

The wolf slowly approached her, one paw at a time. Onyx was an arm’s length away from touching the animal; she slowly raised her hand out in front of it. Closer the wolf crept, flinching backwards a bit with uncertainty. Its instincts advised it of danger even when it none was there. Finally Onyx could feel the heat off its snout hitting the palm of her hand. She held her breath. The wolf tapped its wet nose on her hand before sliding his fur against her touch. He submitted to her.

Onyx held Bixbite’s hand and guided it to at last pet the wolf’s fur. The softness of its fur elated Bixbite and despite her booming excitement the wolf wasn’t alarmed by her either. At the sign of no danger, the pups left their mother’s side and swarmed Bixbite. She was overjoyed. They brushed their puffy bodies against her legs, biting her with their tiny teeth which tickled more than it hurt. Bixbite picked one of the pups up which barked at her, tough. She cradled it in her arms with a bright smile across her face. Onyx guided the black wolf to her side and let him rest his head on her thighs.

“I’m…so…happy,” Bixbite wept.

One of the pups went to Onyx’s feet and gnawed at her toes. She picked it up and petted the top of its head.

“These Beboos are kinda cute, huh,” said Onyx.

“They are so adorable!” She cried. If Bixbite could she’d spend the entire day saying how much she loved the pups, but another mattered suddenly dawned on her. “Wait, Onyx, why did you want to follow it in the first place anyway? Usually you don’t like any of my animals.”

The black wolf snuggled against her leg. Onyx ran her fingers between his burly hide, careful of the scratches around his neck. His breathing slowed down to a relaxed pace that he hadn’t had since coming to the unfamiliar forest. Onyx felt the wolf relax. Her smile was the warmest Bixbite had ever seen when it came to Onyx and an animal.

“This animal doesn’t like the others of its kind. It’s an Off Color, just like me. It’s tough and it’s got a big attitude for something its size…just like me,” said Onyx, earnestly. “I can’t explain it, but when I saw it fighting even though it was injured and alone…I saw myself.”

Bixbite was moved by her words. She sat down next to her and held her hand.

“I had Plume to help me when I was alone. And then, I had you. But when I saw it was alone, fighting off the others to protect its squad, I couldn’t help but protect it. Do you know what I mean?”

Bixbite leaned against Onyx’s arm. She understood full well what Onyx meant and it made feel sure of one thing: she never wanted to leave Onyx’s side.

They sat with the wolves until the light faded in the forest. As the moon arouse to the sky that night the Gems were given a second symphony. The two adult wolves and the small pups howled into the stars, and at up close they enjoyed the full strength of the animals’ voices. Onyx and Bixbite raised their heads directly up and imitated the sound. Their calls echoed.