#if i've forgotten anything important then please feel free to correct me!

[musette22]

You know what I've been thinking about recently? That if Stucky was actually just a friendship and everyone agreed on that (excluding us) Tony would definitely have a line telling Steve something while referring to Bucky as "your boyfriend". There's no way Tony wouldn't do that. But I don't know man, I know if anything, it would actually be the opposite. but also, can you see my point?

Like yes, if anything, it should be the opposite. but I'm saying that because they knew and they didn't touch that subject whether we're talking about Marvel Studios or people in their universe. So to me that seems like more tension buildup, you know? They barely ever gave us "direct" reference to that matter (I correct, they never gave us), and with a lot of other ships, real people or fictional characters, the actors or the writers just go with it jokingly. Sometimes they even talk about it too much and after that, for me the 'craving for more' stops and I realize or assume that this is definitely just a joke. If it were not, they would never do it. And for Stucky, it's the exact opposite, poor guys can't even talk about it not getting edgy. And I crave that. Because I guess I'm a masochist 😂

So, I rest my case. ✍🏻

Oohh, I'm not 100% sure if I entirely understand what you're saying, but I think it's that the fact that in the MCU no jokes were ever made about Steve and Bucky being lovers only reinforces the notion that the bond between them is in fact more than just platonic, and that the creators were well aware of that, yes? And that if any of the movies had jokingly alluded to a romance between Steve and Bucky, it would have actually kind of undermined the ship more effectively than the whole 'straightwashing', no homo thing that Marvel decided to go with instead?

I have to admit, although I believe you, I don't actually recall whether or not a joke like that was ever made in any of the movies. I feel like it must have been, but that might well be because I've only watched the movies a couple of times and I've read so much amazing fic in which that is a given that is has completely replaced canon in my mind 😂

But if you're right, then yes, I fully agree. It's SO obviously present in the Cap movies, this deep love and bond they share, that it would be kind of crazy if no one ever made the 'boyfriend' joke or something to that effect. And if so, the fact that no one did almost has to mean that that was a deliberate choice (because they're cowards and they were afraid of giving people the 'wrong' idea and invite them to ship them (more), even though in reality it might have actually done the opposite, mostly because people were already intensely and very seriously shipping them, lol). Of course, the topic has come up during promo, and the Russos have joked about it too, but the movies themselves were very rigorously no homo'd, that much is true. The closest we got to someone alluding to how it really was was Rumlow's "Your pal, your buddy, your Bucky" line, I think, but that was far from a joke, of course.

Anyway, this is an interesting thought for sure, thanks for sharing, nonnie! 💓

[hunterclaringtonswitch]

PM: Captain Clarington, I wanted to let you know that I got your note. First let me say how much I appreciate you taking the time to write to me. I'm glad to know that Veronica thinks enough of her old man to speak well of him to her friends. As a parent, I've felt how difficult it can be to balance being a teaching, guiding force and yet also support and love your children. Hopefully you won't mind me speaking freely for a moment. When I first read the details of your claim, I didn't quite understand it and didn't quite see the value in it. Headmaster Jones was so completely supportive of it though, so I gave it another look. I stand corrected. You are an impressive Dominant Hunter. Never doubt that. I'm glad if I can be a role model, but you should know that you are, in fact, a role model for others. Your parents' particular brand of unsuccessful only serve to highlight your own success young man. I understand that your relationship with your parents is slim to nothing. Please feel free to come to me and Hermione if ever you require assistance that one would normally seek from a parent. I mean that wholeheartedly. My door is open to you.

PM: Thank you for your very kind response, Mister Mayor. All your children do seem to hold you in some esteem and clearly they aren't wrong or simply looking at you through the rose colored glasses of loving children. I think perhaps you raised them far too sharp to fall into that kind of folly, though Alex is very sweet. My brother cares for him deeply. I know Veronica better than Roman, but he does seem to have a good handle on what he wants from life and his time at the institute. My claim isn't the most common kind, but I value Sky's company and companionship. Sexual release and scenes, those can be achieved through many kinds of relationships, having someone I trust, someone who makes me smile and understands me, that is far more important to me. You flatter me and I will definitely continue to look to you as a positive example of how to be a successful dominant who doesn't have more than one child going no contact. Thank you, Sir, your kindness will not be forgotten. If you need anything that you feel I can provide, please don't hesitate to ask.

[noel-levine-fan]

blog introduction

(i'm sorry this is so long, you really don't have to read it, most important thing here is the spoiler warning.)

----- personal info -----

they/them, 18.

moved from my previous witch's heart blog. the posts from that blog are privated, so don't seek it out—that was at least several years ago now and i was a minor when running it so i cringe at a lot of my old posts. many of my opinions on a lot of things have changed since then.

----- fanon -----

this blog is based largely on personal interpretations of the work. i tend interpret media based on what i personally think makes most sense with what happens on screen rather than authorial intent (though i might sprinkle in some author statements into my interpretation if i find them interesting or insightful), and authorial intent does not always come across as intended, and that's okay, media interpretation is cool and fun. the headcanons and interpretations featured on this blog are not out of hostility towards iz, their intentions, or anyone who disagrees with my interpretations. i tag all my content within the guidelines and am not violating any rules or boundaries.

nothing on this blog is official and i am not claiming it to be. go into my posts assuming everything i say is my personal interpretation, and that just because i have an interpretation doesn't mean i think it's more correct than everyone else's and doesn't mean i'm not aware that it is not official.

if interpretations that iz has explicitly stated were not intended bother you, please block me, i'm not offended. but please remember i am just a little guy having fun and trying to engage with a thing i like.

that said, other than AU content, most of my posts are (or at least try to be, i have a bad memory) game canon-compliant. (though they include many headcanons and unintended interpretations, nothing actively contradicts the game unless i've forgotten things.) as for official statements, i cite them from time to time, but sometimes ignore them, and there are many i just don't know about. again, not out of hostility. i'm just having fun.

----- interactions -----

if you want to use my art as an icon/banner or repost it i don't really care, just credit me please.

this is not an unrequited sirinoel blog! please do not bring up unrequited sirinoel unprompted on requited sirinoel posts! i don't dislike the interpretation, that is just simply not what is on my blog, and contradicts my posts. and for that matter, please only bring up ships when they actually have something to do with my post. if i make a post that's character a x character b, please don't bring up the ship between character b and character c out of nowhere in the tags!

feel free to reply to my posts or send me asks!!!

if i ever reply to you disagreeing with you/correcting you, please be aware i am not trying to be argumentative nor do i think you're stupid! i like having little discussions about details and interpretations!

i don't use "witch's heart" as a tag on my posts due to the unofficial nature of all my content! when possible, i tag things only by character, but when not possible, i tag the posts "whnoc."

----- warnings -----

!!! SPOILER WARNING. majority of my posts are spoilers. i tag all my spoiler posts with "witch's heart spoilers" but otherwise don't indicate within the post that it's a spoiler unless. when it comes to SC spoilers i will often put a "read more" and a warning, and until dec 26th I plan to do that will all WC related posts.

dark topics, par for the course with witch's heart. if it's in the game, is has the potential to be referenced on my blog, but i'll still tag common TWs where applicable, and posts that heavily involve commonly triggering topics will probably have a "read more" and warning.

i draw suggestive stuff (as in; jokes relating to sex, i can't draw anything more spicy than that because my skill level is not high enough LMFAO), but not very often.

----- alts -----

currently in the process of adding image alts. (it's a very slow process i'm sorry :') ) i'm very sorry they're not very good i'm not good at describing things. also... i just found out that uh, if you edit an image to have an alt, any reblogs of that post from before you added the alt will not update to have an alt. meaning, some of my reblogs where i add new art onto a previous art post where the context of the first drawing is necessary to understand the one in the reblog, uh, isn't there. i haven't been able to find a way around this unfortunately :/ in the future i'll add alts to images as soon as they're posted but yeah. also, for descriptions, if there's a post with child noel in it that's already spoilerly in some way besides featuring child noel in it, i'll call him noel, but if it's a post where it'd only be spoilers if you knew noel was "patricia," i'll describe him as patricia.

----- blog info -----

mainly a noel blog, he has literally taken over my brain, send help, please dear god, he has been the focus of my maladaptive daydreams for years at this point, i am so autistic about him. (and about this game in general.)

sirinoel sirinoel sirinoel sirinoel sirinoel sirinoel i fucking love sirinoel they're AHH <3333 sirinoel accounts for at least 70% of my content output i think. i'm ausitic about noel but i have a healthy does of sirius autism running around in my brain as well and if i'm not thinking about them separately i'm thinking about them together because there is genuinely so much going for them as a ship in game and i think we as a society have slept on it.

besides sirinoel, i'm a multipshipper (only ship sirius and noel with each other, but when it comes to other characters, anything's on the table). i'm partial to wilclaire, zizelclaire, clairelime, mariclaire, wilashe, charlime, rougezizel, and some ships with a character whose name i won't say yet. i probably won't post about most of these though. also,you're free to tag my posts with ships even if i didn't intend it as a ship! like if i make a claire/noel friendship drawing i don't mind if you tag it noelclaire or something. biggest exception is siriclaire, it just makes me a little uncomfy personally, sorry! (<- also please keep the ship tags relevant to the characters actually in the post!!!)

[lovenona]

LONG ask ahead, sorry T^T

*arrives in a hurry after 2-3 days* *slow, appreciative clap at the ted talk* sweetie, have you got any idea how much i adore hearing you ramble about the creation process??? seeing the whole love and dedication you hold for the odyssey makes my day! (and nooo, i'm totally not reading it again bc i want to have all of it in mind for tomorrow and bc it inspires me to no end hahaha what do you mean :) )

here comes yet another question: what kind of powers do you possess to write so beautifully. your writing literally punches me in the gut every single time, even the simplest of things!! it's hauntingly beautiful and i'm living for it!

(and another one) how did you find out how the odyssey was going to end?

also, it's rambling time because i've been thinking. (i do that sometimes.) each chapter title is a reference to a greek myth, and, in particular, odysseus' myth (no clue if i've written his name right, i've always knew him as "ulysse" in my mother tongue ^^;). and so my brain went: oooh nice, greek lore ^^ and then: yo wait. hold up. which brings me here: analysing the chapter titles. (bear with me please, and feel free to ignore my enthusiastic rambling/correct me if i'm wrong which i probs will)

so first, we have the prelude. david and calypso. while i'm sure david has his importance it's almost 1 am as i'm typing this so i'm going to focus on calypso. poor nymph is stuck in an island because of the will of gods for a reason i've forgotten. but here's the catch: while she cannot leave, others can come to her (good ol' odysseus for instance) until they leave her all alone again. and the cycle unfolds again and again. which brings us to a nice parallel with reader's situation at the beginnig. she, after all, is stuck on an island with no way out but stories. comes the dilf supreme toji aka an odysseus of sorts, until he leaves her. so she's alone again. calypso there illustrates a passive state of sorts. she cannot leave, or so she thinks: while she wants to, we don't see her try per se until sukuna comes in.

ah yes. sukuna’s arrival. chapter title: neptune’s hands. Neptune, god of the seas, all powerful, also known as Poseidon absolutely terrifying if provoked — which is something Odysseus did! well, man is smart enough not to do it to his face. but he did stab a cyclope, which happened to be neptune’s son. son who swore to a haughty Odysseus that he’d pay for it. in consequence: instead of going back to Ithaca without that much of trouble, Neptune goes: nope mate, and promptly sabotage his return (with a storm who leads his ship astray if my memory is correct). Neptune serves as a catalyst in here, to properly start the action. and it so happens to be sukuna’s role! he is, as well, the one who starts reader’s journey — well, odyssey in this case ;) — by making her this offer. plus, if we consider reader as being calypso, a nymph, and sukuna as being Neptune, a god, it shows their difference in power. sukuna is a fearsome curse, captain whose name is enough to strike fear in the cruellest pirate, who can and will kill reader should he get bored of her. reader is but a printer’s apprentice, so weak compared to him it hurts.

ah, yes. the narcissus pool aka siren gojo, aka me simping so hard for this man I might squirt with the mere mention of him. yes, siren gojo is that powerful, feel free to lure me in with them baby blues sweetie *blows him a kiss* hem. anyway. long story short, an oracle said: if narcissus sees his reflection, he’ll die. people prevent him from seeing himself. ofc man is so handsome it hurts and has women and men alike running after him, including a nymph named echo. he rejects her. hera is somehow involved in the mess and makes it so that he stumbles upon a river and sees himself. entranced by his beauty, he desperately tries to reach himself and stays near the river until he dies. this one is a bit trickier (especially considering I’m writing this as I go with no coherent preparation whatsoever but damn if I’m not having fun). but. *proceeds to read it again* *sighs in ‘why the hell ain’t siren!gojo real pls sir take me’* anyway. it’s never mentioned in narcissus’ myth, but I’m pretty sure he was tempted to look at himself. at least once, considering he could wonder why on earth all those people kept falling for his looks. (or he could be pretty dumb. let’s say he isn’t) so he’s tempted by his own reflection. just like reader’s tempted to follow segsy siren gojo. he doesn’t up until hera is involved and ends up seeing his reflection. he falls. not literally, but in love — with his own self. here it’s different (and the reason why i’m strugglingTM to gather coherent thoughts). gojo is the very embodiment of this temptation — so he acts as narcissus’ reflection here. he’s the one seducing reader, the one luring her until she falls in the waters, just like narcissus did. she didn’t die though, unlike him. (thank you sukuna. I guess. yes I would’ve given my life for gojo to consume me in both ways and??) now, this is very simp-tainted (sorry bout that ^^;) and the thing I’ve noticed is this: narcissus isn’t a character in the og odyssey. could it be bc to my absolute despair, gojo’s not as much of an important character as sukuna and toji? only you know!

(the hades, psyche analysis comes in tomorrow *looks @ time* *sees it's 1 AM* well, later on! have a lovely night/day!)

- the LRE (who's very happy tumblr allowed her to do paragraph breaks/to have a pirate history book recommandation! thanks about that one btw, it'll come in handy for a ff of mine (yeah it involves pirate gojo))

wait this is so precious n thoughtful oh my gosh 😭 thoughts n vibes under the cut :’) 

first of all THANK U!!!??? ur making me blush out here omg my hEART 😭 

as for ur first question, ur SO SWEET n IM LOSING IT bye i genuinely don’t know i just scream and throw a bunch of commas and metaphors everywhere and somehow things happen 💀 i read a lot (english major vibes) and it’s very helpful because i tend to imitate writers/phrases/books that inspire me while i'm figuring out how i want to write !! 

secondly: how did i figure out the ending of the odyssey??

answer: i think i just stumbled across this one 😭 i was brainstorming w my bestie (@/suedebunn) n she originally suggested a different version of the ending that i was like “oh wait” and then i played with it for awhile until i arrived at the version i have now ! i want to tell u more about how i arrived from point A to point B and what the process was but i will withhold because i am not giving anything away >:)

onto ur TITLE ANALYSIS!! this is SPECTACULAR! ur pretty much on the nose for all of them god damn i don’t have much to add :’) i’ll give u some of my takes tho!!

david and calypso – ur absolutely on the nose for the calypso aspect; david’s just a passing nod to the pirates of the caribbean portrayal of davy jones and the doomed relationship between him and calypso (mirroring the doomed relationship between toji and reader since he leaves them) 

neptune’s hands – yes! yeah! sexy! pirate sukuna is being compared to a sea god!! also a minor teaser but sukuna’s hands are important symbolically ;-) 

narcissus pool – ur brain is so big here god damn 🤲 narcissus is more of a loose reference to the idea of pride/ temptation and also hollowness/mirages (the emptiness of a reflection versus the tangibility of the real thing) so it’s not immediately a reference to the odyssey itself or even the myth (i'm taking creative liberties bye homer) but probably the best entity to use when describing gojo – the dichotomy between pride/emptiness is a lot more apparent in part 5 

gosh thank u sm for this!! excited to see what u have next!!!!!!

[aetherlocket]

Follow the River

BNHA X READER

Fantasy AU

This is chapter 1. Read the rest on FFNET, AO3 or Wattpad!!

There was a great white palace that was impossible to not catch eye of peering over a fog blanketed summit, where King Enji, Prince Shoto, and Enji's other children resided. Many knights guarded the palace and served under the King, and (Y/n) was one of them.

She was born and raised to become a warrior and serve for one in a higher position. It was something of a family tradition for the women to become something of the sort. Her father was more of a businessman, her grandfather a chauffeur, while her mother was a dragon hunter, and her grandmother also a knight, though not quite so skilled.

Although (Y/n) didn't have the natural talent her female family did when it came to fighting, she tried her best and eventually earned the respect of many skilled warriors in the Kingdom of Yuuei. Every day, she seemed to learn something new in the art of combat, while dedicating her life to the protection of Prince Shoto.

Only few, including her, knew of the corruption underlying King Enji and his family. The blatant favoritism when it came to King Enji choosing his heir went overlooked and uncontested in the community due to his outstanding reputation.

On the road not too far off from the great palace was a white horse. (Y/n) the knight handled the frantic animal attached to the carriage as if it was nothing, and Prince Shoto watched carefully as if he would learn just by watching her armor covered hands move the reins.

"How far is this kingdom?" he asked.

"If you fall asleep, it'll feel like nothing," the knight's voice was echoey and serious inside the steel helm.

"So it's far." Shoto sighed and his eyes fluttered closed as well, sinking into his seat just a bit. "All I must do is speak with this noble's daughter, correct? And then I may go home?"

"Yes. I've forgotten her full name, but your own father is considering a marriage between you two," (Y/n) replied without hesitation.

"I- what?" Shoto blinked. "Why hasn't he told me this?"

There was no response.

"Why do you know, but not me?"

(Y/n) stayed silent, and only swallowed nervously.

"Ah," Shoto sighed. "I see. You weren't supposed to say that."

"Please don't tell King Enji I said anything.." (Y/n) squeaked, not befitting for a warrior graced with the strongest armor and sharpest sword in the kingdom.

"Don't worry about it.." Shoto's voice lowered as he turned his head to the side, watching the trees rapidly pass by him, his hair covering some of his view as a frown made its way to his face. (Y/n) turned her head away from the road for a second to make sure Shoto was alright, and something in his expression flicked a switch in her.

"I.. You know, he isn't sure. It's just to see if she's up to his standards, I guess. Not a guarantee-"

"Won't you get in trouble if you keep talking?" Shoto said with his usual dead tone, but he was just a bit relieved on the inside. He had no intention on marrying anyone, and being forced to would further destroy the already unbearable relationship between him and his father.

(Y/n) nodded without a sound and focused her eyes on the road from then on. But then Shoto pouted. He wanted to know more.

"How do you feel about this?" Shoto asked. "This.. marriage."

(Y/n) hesitated for a moment before answering. "This.. is what the King wants, so there isn't much I can do about it. I just don't agree with it, per say... It's not right..."

"That's all I needed to know," Shoto replied.

(Y/n) always wondered what was going on inside of Shoto's mind, and that moment was no exception. He was an enigma. She didn't blame him for being cold at times, however.

She also wasn't particularly so sure about that area. She hadn't been to their destination before, so she simply trusted her instincts and a ripped map to take her and Prince Shoto there.

Being trusted with such an important figure in the kingdom gave her stomach butterflies. As she began to feel a smile free itself from under her helmet, the carriage came to a sudden halt, throwing both (Y/n) and Shoto forwards.

"Step out slowly. Keep your hands in the air and don't try anything," said a voice, and a battle axe was pointed at the pair. Three, to be exact, one for each silhouette.

(Y/n) knew better than to reach for her halberd, and reassured Shoto with a quick, soft metal touch to his shoulder, slowly leaving the white carriage. "You're challenging someone with armor and a weapon while you're bare? I hope you know that you won't be leaving with the Prince."

"Oh, we don't care about the Prince. We just happened to hear from someone that you're carrying a lot of money in that carriage to offer the daughter of that noble," said a different man, presumably a second bandit. "But we may have to kill him if you resist. There's three of us, and only one has to get close to him. Your armor means nothing."

The third bandit made his way behind the carriage, closer to the Prince, just in case. Shoto gave (Y/n) a look, though she couldn't tell, facing away from him. She was already sweating in her armor from the sun and quite worn out from training, so this wasn't the ideal situation for her. And yet, she didn't downplay herself.

The knight lifted the front of her helm, exposing her face, riddled with sweat. "Yes, there is money. There's a bag next to where the Prince is sitting," (Y/n) said, taking the chance to look at Shoto. He shook his head, as if reading her mind, diverting his gaze to the bandits, his hands inching closer to his sword by the second.

"Before you go and do that," (Y/n) said, stopping the second bandit from walking past her, "Who gave you this information? Only us, the King and the noble were informed of this."

"I won't say. You'd have them executed. They're a big help, so we can't have that," he said, and smiled. (Y/n) cursed mentally. Was it one person, and the bandit refused to reveal their gender, or is it another group of people?

As the second man placed his foot on the edge of the carriage, (Y/n) halberd left it's holster, its tip barely making its way to the second man's neck before the edge of an axe was placed dangerously close to Shoto's neck as well.

"You're risking the life of your Prince? I don't understand you. Some knight you are," said the second bandit.

"I apologize," (Y/n) said, moving her halberd away from his neck.

"Thank you for the distraction," Shoto said, and before anyone could process it, blood fell down like a fountain to dirt. The second bandit tried to speak, only to cough up blood. "Speaking with a sword through your heart proves to be difficult, doesn't it?"

The loud thud of the large man hitting the floor made even the knight flinch, watching the man writhe in agony, holding his fist weakly against his heart for his last few moments. She then realized; she wasn't doing anything to help whatsoever.

"Fuck!" The other men had tried vigilantly to swing their axes at the Prince, who jumped back off of the carriage. It seemed that they had completely forgotten about the money, and focused their attention on the death of the Prince.

The knight missed her attack, but they couldn't even reach the Prince before a clean slice to their necks were delivered by who they were trying so desperately to kill. They went into a stiff paralysis and fell over, holding their necks and drowning in their own blood.

(Y/n) could only stand there mesmerized, lowing her bloody halberd, almost forgetting to wipe the acidic substance coating it.

She was also, frankly, ashamed.

The blood on her halberd wasn't because she had killed them, saving the Prince. It was splatter from the Prince having to defend himself with an incompetent knight by his side.

"I assume we'll have to reschedule this little trip," Shoto said, wiping some blood off of the edge of his lips and softly running his fingers through the docile horse's mane. "Turn the carriage around."

****

Many could tell, simply by watching (Y/n)'s face in the rare times she had her helmet off, or even completely covered, simply from her body language, that she didn't enjoy working in the palace. Even Shoto could tell how much energy wearing the heavy suit and sparring with the others as training took from her each day.

No one could blame her. No one liked working for Enji Todoroki. Ask anyone in the palace for their opinion of him, and it will be some variation of 'bastard' or 'good for nothing.' Ask people outside the palace, and it will be something positive or indifferent, because they believe whatever the newspapers tell them.

Shoto had asked his knight once: "What do you think of this idea; I run away from this place and start a new life."

To which (Y/n) blinked and removed her steel helmet, a way of expressing her concern. It was then that Shoto knew she was serious. "Are you really considering this?"

Shoto only nodded. He felt often like he had said too much, basically, whenever he spoke. His father did a great job of making this point around him.

"I understand," said (Y/n), to his surprise.

He expected a, 'You're delusional. You're a rich prince with everything you could ever want!' or, 'Don't take your position for granted. I'd kill to be in your place.'

"I doubt that," Shoto replied, attempting to provoke her into speaking her mind a bit more, hoping for more encouraging words.

"I can tell why you do, my Prince," (Y/n) said. It wasn't working.

Shoto sighed. "I can't talk to anyone without them treating me like a Prince. I'm just a normal kid on the inside, damnit.." His voice was as low as a whimper, but (Y/n) could hear every syllable as they left his mouth. She pretended not to hear and kept her head down.

***

Shoto hadn't dared to enter the knight's quarters without permission once before.. but he had made up his mind that night about something.

Shoto chuckled as he saw (Y/n) with her helmet still on as she slept. He removed it as slowly as possible, and wasn't surprised to see that her face was sweating uncontrollably with rosy cheeks, and her hair messy.

He almost forgot why he was there as (Y/n) began to wake up, presumably from the sudden influx of cool, fresh air hitting her face.

Shoto held his hand out before the girl could fully awaken. "Come, I'm leaving tonight."

"Prince? What do you mean leaving? Why are you in the knight's quarters? I-"

"Just get your armor and weapons and come," Shoto put a finger to her mouth, lightly squeezing her arm. She didn't dare protest any further. If it was the Prince's will, then she was meant to follow it, no matter what. But there was something off this time. He seemed happy, in a way, for once, without smiling. Shoto helped carry parts of her armor out of the quarters while she carried her halberd, most dangerous areas facing the ground as Shoto led the way.

"So what's happening exactly?" (Y/n) asked, stuffing some leftover yen into her pocket.

Shoto only walked into his room and gestured for the knight to join him. He was already wearing what he usually did, his royal attire embroidered especially for him along with his holstered sword. "I told you, we're leaving."

"You weren't kidding..?" The knight chuckled. "I understand you want to leave this place, but think about it. Your dad will do anything to get you back-"

"I don't care. I'd like to see him try," Shoto replied coldly, polishing his weapon and slipping on a few bracelets, hiding them under his sleeve. "I'm not going to that noble's place. I'm not marrying his daughter either, so I'll have to leave before the trip is rescheduled. Easy as that."

***

"So where.. exactly.. are we going?" (Y/n) asked the Prince.

"To a certain mountain," replied he.

"You don't mean.. That one.. right?"

After a brief moment of silence, (Y/n)'s worst fears were confirmed, and her tongue began to feel heavy in her mouth. "Sir.."

"Is there a problem?" Shoto asked, looking straight ahead as he walked.

"I'm.. not sure if I can protect you, if anything happens, if that makes sense."

Shoto stopped and turned to face the knight. "What are you talking about?"

"Well.. a few days ago.. those men trying to take the money.. and how I was basically useless.. You had to do everything yourself. It doesn't make sense-"

"You were tired," Shoto interrupted her, then continued walking.

(Y/n) stood there for a moment, staring at the ground before picking up her pace to match the Prince's again, until they reached the base of the mountain.

"Why are there steps?" (Y/n) asked.

"Mount Hosu used to be a tourist attraction.. it's closed because of the dragon rumored to live here now."

(Y/n) shivered. "Dragon."

"Did you say something?"

"Nope."

They continued forward, climbing up an unholy amount of steps before it split into two different paths. One of the paths was dry and bare, while the other had a stream of water beside it.

"Just follow the river," Shoto said, and walked along the path with the stream of water.

"How come you know this place so well, Prince?" (Y/n) asked. As far as she knew, Shoto stayed locked in the castle all his life, and only left under supervision from her or another trusted knight.

"It's not Prince anymore, just Shoto," the boy dodged the question expertly.

***

It took a while, but they finally arrived at the top. (Y/n) immediately used her survival skills. (Y/n) gathered dry wood and use a spindle stick to light a small ember. Shoto tried himself but failed, only giving himself some splinters from the wood.

With the knight's guidance, Shoto successfully managed to roast a wild animal. Of course, Shoto had really understood none of it, but nodded in silence, and hoped that she would help him later.

"Now that I've helped you.." (Y/n) began to trace her finger across the dirt. "How about you teach me more about fighting? A knight should know more, if not just as much, as their Prince. It only makes sense."

Shoto hummed. "You're already known as a strong warrior. I don't believe you need extra training."

"Please?"

"I'm nothing special.. I can't really teach."

"Please?" (Y/n) pleaded.

"... Tomorrow, maybe," Shoto relented. He walked over behind a tree and took out two folded tents.

"Did you plan this or something?" the knight asked.

"I've been considering it for a while, let's say."

As they settled, a teenage boy had just finished climbing up the same steep mountain as the Prince and the Prince's close knight, and he was exhausted. Then, as he caught his breath, he repeated his goal over and over in his head; to hunt down the dragon perched somewhere on this godforsaken mountain.