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muuum-am-i-adohhhpted · 2 years

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The Path to Godhood (Empires SMP)

Summary: Joel is just an average, mortal, boy living with his single mother in what will become the Ancient Capital. The Rapture hasn't occured yet, but Joel is given a surprise when his father visits him, telling him a humanity-wiping event will happen in twenty years. He gives Joel an offer that includes safety from it.

Or, how Joel became a god that doesn't include the Fountain of Strength.

AO3 Link

Word Count: 4511

Warnings: Death, death of a parent, bad parenting, lies, temporary amnesia, references to bullying, fire and smoke inhalation.

~~~

Even from a young age, Joel had been obsessed with the gods. He'd search out shrines of smaller deities in the outskirts of the capital, committing their names to memory. He'd sit with the older folk in town and listen to stories of adventure, morality, and jealousy. The gods were messy, and human-like, and they made mistakes just like everybody else. But they were just that: gods. And Joel was a mere human, tethered to the earth like a bird with clipped wings.

Keeping to himself and only interacting with elders put a target on his back. The kids his own age taunted him for his height and scrawniness, throwing dodo poop at his clothes and tripping him wherever he walked.

His mother said that children preyed on the weak, and that Joel was an old-soul. "Keep true to yourself, and they'll eventually tire of you. They're looking for reactions, and the best thing you can do without making the bullying worse is to pretend they don't affect you."

The thing was, it did affect him. A lot. His mother was on the shorter side, and Joel was too. They had a lot in common, in fact. The same untamable brown hair, and chestnut eyes. The only trait Joel apparently got from his out-of-the-picture father was his rather bulbous nose. Joel liked to keep it that way; he much preferred to look like his mother who Joel considered his one and only parent.

A lot of stigma came with being an only parent, and Joel was ready to fight anybody who even blinked at his mother the wrong way. But none came. The children had plenty of opportunities to say something rude about his mother but didn't, and no whispers came from the adults.

Joel didn't truly understand it. Until one night, sitting under a froglight tree in the orchard, a man appeared in front of him. He was wearing a pure-white chiton, blond hair and blue eyes. His entire being was ringed with gold, indicating his godhood. The thing that stood out the most to Joel was the man's nose. Large and bulbous—exactly like Joel's own.

"I must be dreaming," Joel muttered, and he quickly stood up. Because gods didn't just come down to the mortal realm. And if they did, they definitely made sure to be hidden, and they definitely didn't have children with mortal women.

"I'm afraid you’re not. Joel, I am your father."

The world seemed to fall away from under Joel, and he instantly sat back down. "What?" This revelation felt like one of those hackneyed melodramas some of the older kids wrote and acted out in town square. All he needed now was an amnesia plotline, and he'd be set. "Why are you telling me this now?"

Joel could now place which god this was—the god of the sky. It was his job to paint the heavens blue every morning, and black in the night. Only when he was sad or upset did the sky end up a melancholy grey.

The god of the sky looked down pityingly at Joel. "The Fates have read of a terrible future, and it's quite imminent. It won't happen in this area, but it will affect the entire world causing earthquakes and rising waters. Nearly every mortal will die."

A shiver went through Joel. "How soon does everyone have?"

"Twenty years, at the most," the god replied. His lips were pursed and he seemed to not know where to look—at Joel or somewhere else.

Twenty years felt like a long time away, but Joel supposed if he was immortal, that period wouldn't seem nearly as long. "So. Everyone's going to die. Are you planning for me to be the messenger to tell everybody? Maybe we can build something? A safe house?" His mind was already running with ideas on how to do such a thing. Obsidian, perhaps?

The god shook his head. "No, the mortals will descend into chaos if they were to know. No Joel, I'm asking you if you would like to be granted the gift of immortality and live with me and the other gods. It will be safe up there."

“Immortality?” Joel repeated. “With you?” He could hardly wrap his head around the idea. The prospect of living forever, alongside the gods no less, sounded incredible. He’d be safe from whatever terrible event would occur in two decades.

“Is my mother allowed to come too?” Joel thought of his mother who cared for him, loved him, and also held a demanding job at the copper aging facility below the capital.

The god’s face turned pained, “unfortunately, that’s not possible. You’re half-god, and already have some claim to it. Giving mortals immortality is incredibly difficult; the other gods all have to agree and I haven’t exactly made friends with all of them.”

Joel’s mind was then made up. “I can’t leave her behind. I’m the only person left for her here; she’d be all alone for the end of the world and I can’t do that to her.”

For a long time, the god stared at Joel with an inscrutable expression. Then, he patted Joel on the shoulder. “Very well,” he finally said. “You’re a good son, Joel. I’m proud to have you as my son. Farewell.” And, in the blink of an eye, he disappeared.

Joel stayed sitting under the froglight tree until the sun came up once again. He pictured his father running along the sky, giving it a beautiful pink and orange hue.

Joel never told his mother about the meeting.

~~~

As Joel grew older, he struggled with whether or not he should tell the city that humanity was going to die. But his father had been right; if people were to know, everything would fall into chaos. Crime would run rampant, and panic would ensue. Besides, if the Fates said that almost everyone would die, there was nothing to be done. The world might as well live in ignorance.

And so life went on.

He was nearing adulthood and, while he had sprouted up significantly, he was still in the middle of the pack. Nevertheless, the bullying backed off. He wasn't sure whether it was because of his new height or because they all grew up. Either way, Joel was glad.

In the meantime, his mom was getting older. Spending so much time underground had faded her usual liveliness. Her wrinkles seemed deeper, her eyes foggier. Grey streaked through her dark hair. Joel was scared.

He took up a part-time job at the froglight orchard, eventually working there full time after finishing his schooling. In the blazing sun, constantly plucking froglights from the trees, gathering them in a basket, and carrying them inside to be washed, Joel slowly felt himself become stronger. When he had first started at the orchard, he could only carry seven or so froglights per basket, but now he found he could lift nearly twenty.

Joel was proud of the accomplishment; he liked the way he looked in a mirror. The bulk fit him in a way the scrawniness hadn't. Unfortunately, his new appearance did remind himself of his father who he hadn't seen since that night under the froglight tree.

When his mother took a nasty fall in the copper aging facility, Joel was finally able to persuade his mother to retire. At this point, Joel was making enough money for the two of them to live comfortably along with the money he had already saved.

On her deathbed, early in the morning, Joel's mother pulled him into a loose hug, her hair tickling Joel's neck. Her hair was nearly all grey now, her hands shaking and frail. "Son, I need to tell you something. It's about your father."

Joel's face pinched. "Shhh," he told her. "It's okay; it doesn't matter. He isn't here now, and he's never been here to care for this family." A part of him wished his father was here, so he could see what he could have prevented by allowing the both of them immortality. Joel was positive his father could have gotten the other gods' permission, but he hadn't even fought for it. Hadn't even tried.

"But—" his mother argued.

Joel shook his head, and he could feel tears threatening to spill. "I love you."

Joel's mother gripped him tighter, pulling him closer into the hug. "I love you too, and I hope you know that physicality doesn't always denote strength."

"I know, I know." And this time, Joel couldn't hold the tears in. He felt them run down his cheeks like a waterfall and Joel could feel the exact moment his mother's heart slowed to a stop. "You are proof of that."

~~~

After the traditional funeral rites had been executed, Joel left.

He couldn't stay in the capital any longer. People looked at him with pity; they brought dishes upon dishes of food, saying that his mother was in a better place now. Joel seethed inside, knowing that this could have all been avoided.

It was the closest he had come to yelling that the world was going to end.

He travelled the world with only his thoughts as company. The places he visited were a comfort. They didn't know his mother was gone. They didn't know he hadn't always looked like this. They didn't know they would all die in just five more years. He hated seeing civilians pregnant with children, knowing that all was for nothing.

Everytime the cloud of grief began to be too much, Joel skipped town to the next one. And then the next one. He experienced new smells and sights, and met all kinds of people of different walks of life.

Too quickly, the five years were up, and Joel found himself in a snowy taiga village. That morning, the sky turned a terrifying red, and Joel wondered whether or not this was warning from his father that the end of the world was upon them all.

Groans rattled through the earth, shattering windows and scaring away livestock. Soon, the earthquakes arrived, and fire spread like the entire world was dry and parched. It didn't matter that snow decorated the ground, fire jumped from rooftop to rooftop.

Villagers rushed around, eyes wide, calling for their children.

Joel couldn't help but think that this village was lucky. The walls of most of the houses were made of cobblestone instead of wood. The walls wouldn't collapse on anybody. However, that didn't mean the roofs wouldn't.

"Pixlriffs!" A mother was screeching, nearly hysterical. Her cheeks were streaked with tears. "Pixlriffs! Where are you?"

Another villager was physically restraining her from running back into the fiery debris that had been their village. "You can't go back in there—it's a death wish. All we can hope is that your boy has already made it out."

Joel stepped forward. "I'll go in," he told the woman. "I'll glance into the houses to see if I can see him."

The other villager violently shook his head. "The boy is either dead or safe with the other children. You shouldn't—"

But Joel was already gone. He couldn't stand and watch as another son was ripped away from his mother. If the boy was still inside the village, as his mother thought, Joel was going to reunite the two of them if it was the last thing he did.

The smoke coming from the wooden roofs and light posts immediately engulfed him, but Joel continued on. "Pixlriffs!" He called out, before doubling over and letting out a cough. Still, he went deeper into the village, holding a scarf up to his mouth and nose.

His ears instantly perked up when he heard the screaming of a young boy, the voice coming from inside the house to his right. "Help; anyone! Please! I'm stuck!"

Joel bounded inside, taking in the scene in front of him. A beam from the roof had fallen, sandwiching Pixlriffs' leg between it and the floor. He looked to be seven or so, with a blue cloak and brown hair filled with ash.

Joel was instantly at his side, and he heaved the beam up an inch—enough for Pixlriffs to wriggle out from under the beam. The boy's breathing was laboured, and Joel wasn't sure if Pixlriffs had broken a leg or not, so hoisted him up on his back. "We're getting you out of here," Joel said, determination laced in his voice.

He stepped out of the house, using one hand to keep the scarf over his face and the other to keep Pixlriffs on his back. "Pull your shirt up over your mouth," Joel instructed. "It'll help keep the smoke out."

Joel felt shifting on his back as Pixlriffs did as he was told. "I'm scared," he said quietly, and Joel nearly didn't hear him over the crackling fire surrounding them.

"It's okay," Joel told him. "It's going to be okay. You'll reunite with your mother, and everything will be okay." He wasn't sure if he was just telling Pixlfirffs this or also himself. To get Pixlriffs' mind off of their current situation, Joel began talking. "My name is Joel. Did you know that I'm a god? In my true form, I can wrestle the ender dragon and I tower over everyone I meet. I only look like a regular man now because, if I were to show mortals what I actually look like, everyone would be scared of me." It was more than an exaggeration, but Joel hoped it was capturing Pixlriffs' imagination.

"The capital where I live worship dozens of gods, but I'm one of the most important." They were nearing the outskirts of town, and Joel could just barely see the outline of trees, currently not on fire. They wouldn't be that way for long, but Joel focussed on them nonetheless. He needed something to walk towards. He could feel it getting harder to breathe, and his nose burned from the irritation the smoke caused. Still, Joel continued talking. "The capital has this massive catacomb with a huge statue of our main goddess. People ride along the streets on dodos instead of horses or donkeys. I'll take you there one day."

Finally, they were out of the village, and Joel could see Pixlriffs' mother run towards them, eyes shining with relief.

Joel tried to take in a breath of fresh air, but ended up in a coughing fit, Pixlriffs sliding off his back in the process. Each cough seemed to come out harder than the last and, eventually, Joel collapsed into a heap on the ground, his heart stuttering and slowing down, almost at a deathly pace.

~~~

When Joel opened his eyes, he was in an unfamiliar room lying in an unfamiliar bed. A man sat at his bedside, looking nearly the same age as him. With blond hair and blue eyes, he looked almost familiar but Joel couldn't place him. "Where…where am I?" He asked. "Who are you?" With striking realization, he immediately sat up. "Who am I?"

"Hey, hey, it's okay," the other man said. "You've just been turned into a god; it might take a while to get used to it."

Something in Joel's stomach dropped, and the slightest wisp of this isn't what I wanted passed through him before dissolving, and he couldn't quite remember what it was he had just felt. "Oh."

"I'm your father," the blond man said, and he gave Joel a bright smile, teeth pearly white and straight. "You just turned 29 and I gifted you immortality for your birthday." In a playful voice, he said, "can't have five-year-old immortal gods, now can we? We often wait for the kids to grow up before stunting their growth."

Joel blinked rapidly, his thoughts and feelings like mush in his head. "I'm a god," he repeated, almost under his breath. Yes, that sounded about right. Almost. But who was he to question his father who just gifted him something like immortality? "Why can't I remember anything?"

His father patted Joel's shoulder comfortingly. "You spent all of your life down in the mortal world. When you arrive up in the god realm, your memories from down there are taken away so what you saw in the mortal world won't cause you pain. Don't worry, if you ever go back to visit the mortals, your memories will return."

Joel's eyes lit up. "Can I go back now?"

"Not a good idea," his father said with a sad shake of the head. "The mortal world is going through a tough time. Nearly all of them are dying."

"Can't anything be done?" Joel asked hopefully. While he had no memories of any mortals in his life or even walking among them, it felt wrong to not help them in any way he could. "Give them a sort of sanctuary?"

"If it would change anything, I would," his father sighed. "The Fates have foretold the Rapture would kill most of humanity. Anything the gods do would mean nothing."

"Most? You mean they'll be survivors?" Hope bloomed in Joel's chest.

Joel's father stood up. "Not many, but yes. Enough to repopulate the earth. Now, you should get some rest, son. I'm sure you'll be back on your feet in no time; then we can see what kinds of powers you wield."

~~~

Living with his father and the rest of the gods was exciting. He couldn't tell time passing as he met new people, and honed his thunder and lightning abilities. His father said only a couple of months passed, but it felt like days.

Whatever hesitancy he had previously felt about being immortal, he chalked up to weariness and thus promptly forgot about.

He enjoyed helping Peril with creating storm clouds for mortal farmers, and sparring with Jeremy among the clouds. Some of his favourite days were spent just hanging out with his father, accompanying him as he coloured the sky with a variety of shades he created in his home.

Still curious about the mortal world, Joel often asked his father how the mortals were faring down below. He wanted to visit to see if he could help in the aftermath of the Rapture. Joel could help move large debris or help close up cracks in the earth by filling them with boulders.

And, everytime, his father would say, "the mortals need to learn to care for themselves. If we always help them out when they are in times of trouble, they won't learn and evolve. It's better to visit when they're thriving, which is going to take a bit more time."

So Joel dropped the subject and continued on about his day until he would remember the mortals once more and bring it up again. It was a never-ending cycle, and Joel had no reason to think anything was amiss.

That is, until all the gods became translucent. Except for Joel.

"They're forgetting us; the mortals are forgetting us!" Peril exclaimed that day when all the gods gathered together to figure out what to do next.

Jeremy gestured to Joel, who was still solid. "Why isn't he being forgotten—he's our newest god! This doesn't make sense at all. No one could possibly remember him; he hasn't even been down to earth in his god form before."

Joel's father put two hands on Joel's shoulders, staring deeply into his eyes. "Joel, it is time. You must travel down to earth to help the mortals remember us. In our translucent forms, we are weakened and unable to travel there for long periods of time. I have no answers as to why you're not being forgotten, but we mustn't question it; you may not stay like this for much longer."

Joel swallowed the lump in his throat. He had no memories of ever being in the mortal realm before and, as such, it was practically a new experience. "Do we know how many mortals are still alive?"

His father shook his head. "We don't. You'll have to find them on your own. You must help the survivors remember and get them to give offerings to us; we're counting on you."

Joel didn't know how he could force mortals to worship the gods. He knew the capital he had come from was the main area where people believed in them, so he hoped descendents from his old hometown were still around. If not, and the survivors believed in different gods or no gods at all, Joel was going to have a tough time.

"I'll try my best," Joel said, and he managed a strained smile. Then, he descended down to the mortal world.

~~~

When Joel finally landed on solid ground, his head immediately felt like it was being split open by a cleaver. Instantly, he fell to his knees, gripping at his skull, and scrunching his eyes closed. Old memories came to him in waves, crashing into him like a tsunami, nausea rolling through him. His old bullies, his mother, his old home. His father giving him the option of immortality at a young age and gifting it to him later in life when Joel was on the brink of death.

Joel laid there for what seemed like hours, nursing his migraine and the rush of his mortal memories from who knew how long ago.

As the pain ebbed away, and Joel mentally sorted through his memory, he couldn't help but feel the anger burning within him. His father had forcefully turned him into an immortal god. He had lied about who Joel had once been. Did he want to save his father and the rest of the gods? Joel wasn't so sure anymore.

And so he walked. He had no idea where he was in the mortal realm—nothing looked familiar. Any sign of old architecture from his city or any of the other empires from his time were gone. Just how long had he been up in the god realm? His father had told him ten years, at the most, but Joel was beginning to think that that was just another lie. Chills ran through his body. Finally, as Joel was about to give up looking for civilization, he found a familiar hill. It was much grassier than he remembered, but it was the same one he remembered climbing as a young boy before the Greatbridge and his home came into view.

Joel crested the hill, and the familiar sight took over his senses. Tears formed in the corner of his eyes as the bridge's path led to the gatehouse. The bridge was cracked and looked worn, but it was still there. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He couldn't believe that he was finally home.

Joel slowly made his way across the bridge, glancing down the side to see the water gently lapping at the stone pillars holding it up. The pillars were undecorated, probably destroyed in the Rapture or stolen by pirates.

He made his way through the gatehouse, the wooden doors already cracked open just slightly, before stopping in his tracks. Joel blinked at the scene in front of him. There were no buildings, just parts of the foundation roped off. Off in the distance, the froglight orchard grew wild. His home was…an archeological dig?

"Joel?" A voice asked, and Joel spun to the source, only to see a mortal man in a blue jacket and brown hair. "Is that really you?" The man looked awed, and he pulled off a pair of gloves, nearing Joel. "I didn't think I'd see you ever again."

It clicked, then. Why he wasn't being forgotten like the other gods. Pixlriffs had remembered him. "Pixlriffs?"

Pixlriffs chuckled. "The one and only."

"How long has it been? It looks like it's only been thirty years or something." Part of Joel was relieved that it hadn't been too long since he'd been gone. Pixlriffs had been quite young when Joel saved his life, and now he looked to be in his mid thirties. Maybe he had just arrived in the mortal world in a spot uninhabited by people. Maybe this was an archaeological dig sight because a landslide had covered the entirety of the town.

Pixlriffs went serious and he shook his head. "Joel, you've been gone for over 1000 years."

"1000 years?" Joel repeated. "But—but you're here. You're not an immortal god. This isn't possible. I must be dreaming."

"I can't explain it either," Pixlriffs said. "But, one day, I stopped aging. I don't know if I was always like this, or if it was a substance I touched or ate or if it was something else entirely. But Joel, it's been over 1000 years since you saved me. New empires have formed, and the others have no memory of the Rapture at all, only versions of it in their legends."

Joel's voice came out in a whisper as he said, "the gods are slowly fading away because nobody remembers them. I'm the only one not affected because you've remembered me."

Pixlriffs let this sink in. "Tell me about the gods," he finally said. "If I remember them, then they won't fade away. Still, you should find some villages too. Spread the knowledge around in case anything does happen to me. And," he added with a smile, "later, you can tell me what your ancient capital used to look like and I'll re-build it to its former glory."

And so Joel did. He told Pixlriffs about Peril and Jeremy and the other gods he had lived with for a thousand years without knowing. When he finally got to the god who painted the skies, with blond hair and blue eyes, and a nose like his own, Joel paused before making up his mind.

"And I'm the god of the skies and thunder and lightning."

~~~

Later, after Joel and Pixlriffs finally parted ways, Joel found himself in a grassy field in a village that had taken to his godhood quite easily. The sky was clear and, as Joel looked up at its endless blue, Joel pictured a sparkling marble empire in the sky.

He hadn't wanted to become immortal for the sole purpose of being with his mother, but she had died before the Rapture occured and there was no way to take it back. Now, the only way he could die was if he was erased from mortal's minds and wiped from history books. And Joel wasn't ready for that yet.

Joel exaggerated his feats and his traits to the people living in Lower Stratos; he didn't want to be forgotten. Memory was too precious to him—he would never go back to the god realm ever again. He wanted to make a name for himself here. Not only to prove the bullies who had picked on him wrong, but also for his mother who had always been there for him. Every morning to pep himself up for the new day, he told himself in the mirror he was strong. Both inside and out.

#empires smp #empires smp season 2 #smallishbeans #pixlriffs #empires smp fanfic #empires smp fanfiction

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rocklandjbrin · 1 year

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It had been a rough night. Rockland’s nose was still stuffy, but his face had since dried, no longer paved with icy streams as the wind blew upon it. Right cheek aching, he found a spot on the left side of the subway, and leaned his head up against the window until the rattling got to him. He hadn’t bothered checking the time when he’d left the house, hadn’t exactly been a priority, but it was clearly the middle of the night. So much for getting a good night’s sleep.

He sprawled out on one of the train benches as soon as it cleared up, using his hood as a makeshift pillow. His arm was slipped through one of his backpack straps to try and make sure no one ran off with it.

It was bordering on morning by the time he stepped back onto firm ground, the birds were singing, the sky ever so slightly lighter. Took him a few moments to get his bearings, but once he had he decided on a destination pretty quick. Early morning trail walk on Old Putman, and who needed school, or exams, when he could go to the library? Riverdale wasn’t too far off.

Laughably, when he first saw blue out of the corner of his eye, he’d thought it was a flawk of birds, or some flowers or something. Course, in his defence, the scales were off in the distance, and partially hidden by trees.

Rockland squinted, ducking to try and get a better look. Looked almost like a lizard tail or something?Had to be a statue, right? Weren’t any lizards that big in New York. But who puts a statue off trail? Could it be a Banksy or something? Maybe it wasn’t a lizard at all, it was far enough away he could be seeing it wrong.

He stood there for a while, torn between the call of the library and the call of adventure. Man, he was pooped, Riverdale had comfy seats, but... His curiosity got the better of him. Shouldn’t take too long to check it out, wasn’t that far, even if it felt it with his limbs like lead. His knee was getting tired, too. Couldn’t take too long.

Careful with his footing along the uneven terrain, the teen slowly made his way over. He only glanced up every so often as he watched for sticks to slip on or bug nests or whatever else could be in his path, so he didn’t realize just how close he’d gotten to the mysterious statue, until his eyes darted up and he realized just how wrong he’d been. Red eyes met his blue, and the boy froze, gripping his cane tight, every muscle stiff.

“Shi-” The teen squeaked, voice probably two octaves higher than normal.

No way. No way, no way, no way- dragons didn’t exist... did they?

His forcefield bubble flickered up around him all the same. Was it fireproof? Not a clue, but he sure hoped so- A DRAGON. There was a massive dragon- this wasn’t some kind of movie or even a news report or somethin’, this dude was right here. In front of him. And he had to admit, it wasn’t that much of a reach. Aliens existed. He could make forcefields, and other mutants could do some pretty wild things- wait. “A-are you a mutant?”

Man that’d be such a cool power. He didn’t know what would freak him out more, and he didn’t know what would be more exciting. Well, a real dragon would probably be more exciting, but only if they weren’t about to turn him into a s’more.

His head was like the length of his entire body. Badass.

#XD #Rockland is fascinated excited and terrified all at once LOL #uncxntrxllable

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ladyfly · 2 years

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New Parts- The Wedding 9

I googled a website to make a name for a fazbear campsite. and it's gems are special. The top one is good but what are those other ones? I like #2. 1) Freddy's Family Campground 2) disfunctional Freddy 3) cambear 4) Camp Pizza 5) the best campground in america

CW: talk about sex,

You ask Moon how he was able to build the body to so closely resemble yours. All he tells you is he salvaged the parts. Outright telling you at one point that one day he will tell you but today is not that day. You accept the answer with a kiss.

With your bags in hand the three of you sand at the employee entrance waiting for your ride. A six passenger street legal cart rolls up. You can see it through the little window on the door. You weren't sure what you were expecting but a shitty little six seater golf cart painted to resemble Freddy was not on your list.

The driver is a modified staff bot with a bright olive green shirt and poop yellow hat. It assaults your eyeballs. The three of you take a seat. Sun and Moon sit next to each other and you sit behind them with the luggage. They each have an arm behind their seats so you can hold their hands.

Their eyes are full of wonder as they look around at the world around them. It reminds you of kids visiting Disneyworld for the first time. It warms your.. circuits? You don't really have a heart anymore. Not a real flesh and blood one anyway.

The drive takes you behind the plex along a grey gravel driveway. It's three miles to the campground. Sun and Moon ask many questions about nature and the forest. You answer every question you can. The air is cool leaning towards cold. It being Autumn in the more northern region of the world.

A warm cup of tea would be lovely. Too bad you can't drink tea anymore. You spend some time lamenting all the things you can't eat or drink anymore. However as you gaze up at Sun, who is looking at you in concern, you know you made the right choice. Sun nudges Moon pointing at you.

Moon looks at you carefully as you enter the gate to Freddy's Family Campground "Are you ok? Is... IS something wrong? You aren't regretting-"

You cut him off "NO! ... No. I uh I was just thinking about all the things I can't eat and drink anymore. I don't regret this. I'm just mourning a loss. I'm good now."

Moon climbs into the back of the cart with you. He pulls you into his chest "I'm sorry I couldn't find a way for you to eat."

The cat stops in front of a large log cabin with a sign that reads "Welcome! Office check-in inside!"

It has an image of Bonnie waving while wearing a ranger hat and a sky blue Hawaiian shirt with pine trees and camp fires on it. It looks cute. The three of you climb out of the glorified golf cart.

Sun rolls the gravel under his foot "Ooo! I like that sound!"

Moon helps you out of the cart and Sun take the luggage.

The driver bot holds out a map "TAKE A MAP!" It screams very loudly.

You make a mental note to put this on your list of things to change/fix. The map has a cabin circled on it. It has the same number as the key in your pocket. The cart drives away leaving the three of you alone. You walk up to the main office and try the door. Locked.

You look back down at the map "Let's go find our cabin. After that we can explore the area."

Moon slides a hand around your waist "Or, we can finally take you as your husbands. Show you why you made the right choice. In the bath, in the kitchen, outside."

Sun takes the map from you "It's not far. Lets go!"

The walk to Cabin #21, as stated on the key, takes fifteen minutes. You hope the cart will take people to their cabin. Not that the walk is hard but customer satisfaction. Another thing for the list.

The cabin looks like it came out of a Yogi Bear cartoon. Around the back is a hot tub and fire pit. You wonder if you can use the tub.

As you walk up to the door Moon stops you. "Wait! We need to carry you across the threshold!"

You are about to say something when Sun and Moon pick you up together. They carry you sideways into the cabin. Inside looks like someone took a Cabellas, threw it into a blender, and dumped it into the house.

It has leather couch with buffalo plaid pillows, faux fur rug, and a TV over a fire place. The kitchen is big enough to fit two people. It has a bar for eating. The bathroom has a big shower with a seat but no tub. The bed is a California king. Big enough for the boys. Good.

Moon stalks up behind you and pins you to the bed "You are ours now starlight. Inside or outside?"

Sun pouts "I want to cum inside not out!"

You nod "Cum inside."

Moon chuckles "Not what I was asking."

You wiggle your hips into his groin "Inside then. I wanna fuck you outside tonight."

Sun giggles "Two times? Really sunshine?"

You nod "It's a start!"

#sundrop x reader #moondrop x reader #talk about sex #map bot is aggressive

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fakeloveaskblog · 1 year

Note

(Hi, me again.)

I’ll hold of on anything life ending until I get Remus’s permission but I will cause every lamppost, tree, bush, postbox and bin to move into his path so he walks into them. And every car door to open as he goes past to once again hit him. And make all traffic lights take forever to change. And make the ground really uneven so he keeps twisting his ankles as he walks. And get lots of birds to poop on him. And when he gets home, mess with his house key so it doesn’t quite fit in the door without lots of effort and frustration. And when he finally gets inside, warp his door’s so they don’t open or close without pulling or pushing then really hard. And make lots of creaky floorboards. And move all the furniture two centimetres to the left so everything feels slightly off, and he constantly stubs his toe on things. And make lumps in his mattress. And make all the taps either run to hot or to cold, and either a tiny trickle or a massive spray. And make all the floors slightly slippery, not enough to constantly fall over but enough that you’re constantly worried you might. And make his duvet slightly to small so his feet will stick out the end when he lies down. And make all his food taste slightly different, not rotten but different. And add a device in the walls that will randomly play Spring by Vivaldi at full volume for about twenty seconds before stopping, and it moves around so he can never find it.

I think that’s probably enough for now. I had way to much fun coming up with minor inconveniences for Oswald. Happy April fools! Anyway after setting all these things up I’ll check on Remus and see how he’s doing.

(By the way you don’t have to write Os reacting to all the things I did. I’m content to imagine his not so silently cursing me as he deals with all of my shenanigans.)

Glow Eyes

Shortly after Janus and Remy had helped Remus back to his apartment he fell into a weak slumber. He went in and out of sleep, tossing and turning on the living room couch. The shock of seeing his abuser had made him exhausted to the point of passing out but his body was too on edge to let him sleep peacefully.

Remy had opened a window and was sitting right next to it so they could could smoke. Janus sat beside them and was doing the wordle of the day because when he got stressed doing puzzles helped him stay calm.

Neither of them spoke. Partially because they didn't want to wake Remus but mostly because just sitting next to each other was enough for them. Eventually Janus got up and got a book before sitting down next to his partner again. Remy cuddled up against him and watched as he turned one page after the other while they heard his heart beat.

Remus' eyes suddenly opened but he stayed still for a long time after that. Janus noticed but his boyfriend didn't look like he was panicking so they decided not to disturb unless he said something.

"Can we have ice cream today?" Remus asked after nearly half an hour of silence.

Remy jumped out of surprise. They looked as if they were ready for him to burst into tears any second now. "I mean it's like your place. You got any ice cream?"

"Unless there's any monsters out we should be able to go out and buy some. And if there are we can go buy ice cream And kill monsters. Double win"

Janus sat their book aside and smiled lightly "The evening sun is quite warm. Darling you got enough spoons to go out on a walk?"

"Think so" Remy replied.

"I'd remembered his eye color wrong" Remus blurted out "I remembered them as much more blue.....I didn't even hear his voice, what if I'm remembering that wrong too" A shaky breathe of relief left his lips "I hope I can one day remember all of him as wrong. Just a fuzzy fucking stupid memory"

"One day" Janus got up and stood by the couch. They meet their boyfriend's eyes but let him move first.

Remus hugged his partner. His arms snaking around their waist as he leant his head against their stomach and Janus in returned ran their fingers through his hair. They saw as he closed his eyes and felt as he pressed his arms around them ever so slightly harder. Remy sat down next to him and quietly leant against his back until he let out some tiny notion of their name to which they pressed a kiss to the back of his neck, right where his spine stuck out.

"I love you two" Remus murmured out "Like- Like how vultures love corpses"

"Yeah I know" "How could you not love me" The other two replied almost instantly. Before both adding "I love you so so so much babe!!" "Darling I love you too"

"Seeing him was...horrible...so am I fucked in the head if I say I....I feel...not better but....less....scared?"

"How so?" Janus replied in a soft tone.

"I dunno. It just- it's like....Closure I guess"

"I get that babe" Remy said "Getting to say goodbye to Viv instead of like having to just run away helped I think. I mean it's not I know how I woulda felt otherwise but I imagine I would have felt even more like unsure"

"Yeah..It felt like.....He can't touch me anymore....Cause I know you two would...would keep me safe" Remus' voice went a bit shaky as if just saying it aloud made him feel all warm and fuzzy from happiness.

"Oh girlie I was fully ready to destroy that man's entire cock and balls"

"I would create the most insidious of traps to make him suffer"

It made Remus chuckle lightly "And you still got that contact with that psych right? Who I can like go talk to?"

"Picani? 'Course girlie. I can call him about like getting you a session any time"

"Okay!" Remus took a deep breathe like he was hyping himself up before exclaiming "You two wanna go get that ice cream now?"

"Sure!"

"Of course dear"

Remus pouted while making grabby hands for the both of them to which both Janus and Remy kissed him. Janus made some snarky joke about Remus stealing their partner so Remy kissed them as well.

That night the three of them all cuddled up together under the warm covers of the bed. Even if it took them all, and especially Remus, a while to fall asleep none of them had any bad dreams that night.

This is the last part before the end. If you want to send any last asks to any of the characters before the epilogue this is your chance.

#the fucking vivaldi playing dfhkjghdkjf #thanks for the ask!#glow eyes

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uppermocns-moved · 3 years

Note

if you’re taking requests maybe roadtrips with eren, jean, armin and connie?

road trips

oh my god this is the greatest idea i’ve ever heard.

eren, jean, armin, connie + road trips

(going on a road trip with all four of them at the end)

cw: fairly gender-neutral, modernverse, weed references

𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗷𝗮𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗿

eren insists on driving the whole time, no matter how long the trip is.

his phone is plugged into the aux because “my car, my rules” but he doesn’t complain when you unlock his phone and start picking songs.

forcing him to pull into a drive-through so he can eat real food, not just the 44 oz of mountain dew and monster energy he got from the gas station before you left.

hand-feeding him french fries.

playing i spy when it’s too dark to see anything, or on long highway stretches where the scenery doesn’t change.

“i spy... something blue.” “is it the sky?” “you’re so good at this, babe.”

it’s very easy to talk him into impulsive detours, even if they’re in the opposite direction – he may be the one driving, but he’s relying solely on you for instructions. just tell him where you’re going and he’ll take you there.

“___ is only a two hour drive from here! we should go!” “yeah? okay.”

driving with the windows down and enjoying the cool nighttime air.

car-camping in national parks – putting the seats down in the back and throwing together your bed for the night, sitting on the hood of his car to look at the stars with no light pollution, getting baked and watching a dumb show off his phone before going to sleep.

at this point, eren realizes he forgot to pack his phone charger so you’ve gotta share.

getting breakfast together. eren’s not a morning person, but he can’t be grumpy when you’re looking so cute and sleepy in one of his hoodies.

eren driving with one hand on the wheel and the other holding yours, occasionally lifting it up for a kiss as a silent thank you for being there with him. as if you’d dream of being anywhere else.

𝗷𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗸𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗶𝗻

listening to the radio to keep things spontaneous, usually the classic rock stations.

jean taking his hands off the wheel because he needs to air-bass along.

listening to true crime podcasts when the radio cuts out – it’s funny watching jean’s face twist up in disgust during crime scene details, and sometimes he yells in response as if the podcasters can hear him. you also play detective about who you think did it – loser buys food at the next stop.

music keeps things energetic at the start, but podcasts keep his mind stimulated when he’s been driving for a while.

the original plan is to split the driving, but you end up falling asleep with your face smushed against the window and jean doesn’t have the heart to wake you up. he doesn’t mind driving the rest of the way.

stopping for food every couple of hours to make sure you’re both eating properly, not just snacks. you do have plenty of snacks, though.

jean going "uh – excuse me” whenever you open a bag of something and sticking his hand out. he’s like a dad, he always needs a handful of whatever you’re having. sharing is caring.

jean always packs a lot of unnecessary things, and he will reserve the right to say i told you so when his double-hammock comes in handy.

limited stops along the way (minus food/gas/bathroom) – getting there relatively early means you can relax in the hotel room and maybe explore/go out for dinner later that night.

when you take over driving, jean is a big window-watcher and takes a lot of pictures of the mountains/scenery.

already making plans on cool things you can do on the way back, when you have no time restraints – day trips, scenic rest stops, hikes, etc.

𝗮𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁

stopping at a starbucks first-thing to get drinks for the road (he makes sure to get some food too so you’re not just running off a venti iced coffee)

splitting the driving – armin is the better (and calmer) navigator so you usually take the first and final shift.

dozens of cute polaroids to put in your adventure scrapbook

researches fun (and romantic) things you can do when you get to your destination and reads them aloud to you. you come up with a plan together. that waterfall hike sounded really fun.

armin takes lots of videos because he likes making little montages for his socials

you’re in control of the music. armin likes when you show him new artists – he’ll slowly nod his head along and inevitably add the songs to his spotify. he really likes snail mail.

he takes over driving when you get tired – he likes holding your hand when he drives, or sometimes you’ll lean over and rest your hand on his thigh.

armin trying not to melt when you put on one of his hoodies for warmth – you have your own, but his are comfier and they smell like him.

silly games to pass time like i spy or looking for different license plates. it’s fun until armin gets clever and spies things like the mile marker from 10 miles back.

you insist you aren’t going to fall asleep because you wanna keep him company, but you end up curling into your pillow and dozing off mid-conversation. it’s adorable, and he doesn’t mind. he’ll usually turn on a podcast or an audiobook.

armin stays awake the whole time but it catches up with him once you reach your destination – all he wants to do is cuddle and rest up

𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿

leaving a day in advance or very early in the morning because you stop at every tourist attraction along the way.

scenic lookout? let’s go there. world’s biggest ball of yarn? fuck, count me in. meteor craters? already merging onto the exit. dinosaur bones? you read my mind.

picking up cool souvenirs along the way like geodes and stickers to put on his water bottle. maybe a funky lil alien to hang from the rearview mirror, along with his 20 tree air fresheners.

taking cute, cheesy pictures of and with each other – connie posing with his arms out like he’s holding the mountain, standing in front of national park signs, etc.

you collaborated on a road-trip playlist in advance (it’s 12 hours long)

somehow you end up listening to veggie tales or absolutely losing it until the car starts rocking to britney spears

"i love this song” to every song, as if he didn’t put it on the playlist

listening to connie sing along and butcher all the lyrics. impressive falsetto, though.

arsenal of snacks – more than you realistically need

screaming every time you see a new “welcome to ___” sign

“WELCOME TO ___!” “WOOOOOO!”

connie rocking the socks with slides. it’s comfortable.

pulling through drive throughs every once in a while for food, continuously forgetting to throw out the trash bag from your last stop.

𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗽 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺

stopping at the gas station to fill up the gas tank and stock up on snacks for the road – almost everything from the candy aisle, giant bags of doritos, slushies, energy drinks. nobody really thinks to get actual food.

the driving is split between eren “i’m serious, pull the fucking car over or i’m gonna piss myself, jean” jaeger and jean “eren stop honking my fucking horn, traffic won’t go any faster” kirstein. armin is the navigator because they’ll both get everyone lost.

everyone has their turn with the aux cord – until connie cracks himself up playing the same song over and over, then you have to pry it from eren’s cold, dead hands.

so many pictures

impulsive stops at tourist attractions.

playing dumb games to pass the time (quickly turns into replacing one word on each sign with “poop” because they’re all a bunch of children).

finally stopping at a diner later that night for real food

making it to the campsite and setting up tents and hammocks

getting baked around the campfire and telling spooky stories

connie complaining and scaring himself while he wanders off into the dark forest to find a spot to piss

smores (ofc)

going on group hikes and jumping into lakes/down waterfalls together. video of jean belly-flopping.

#attack on titan x reader #aot x reader #eren jaeger #eren jaeger x reader #eren x reader #eren yeager #eren yeager x reader #armin arlert #armin arlert x reader #armin x reader #jean kirstein x reader #jean kirstein #jean x reader #connie springer #connie springer x reader #connie x reader #my writing #mine #mystiiclevi requests

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grasslandgirl · 3 years

Text

FALLING for you

It was an accident. Really. Katja was tall, and she’d always been more comfortable on horseback than on her own feet. So when a root sticking out of the ground caught on her boot while she was walking home from school with Ostentatia; it was an inevitability that Katja would trip. And take Ostentatia down with her. And somehow, through a feat of physics Katja didn’t understand, ended up sprawled on her back with Ostentatia on top of her- their faces mere inches apart.

Katja stared. Ostentatia stared back. Katja didn’t think about how she could smell Ostentatia’s strawberry lip gloss, the Love Spell perfume she reapplied at lunch, the oregano hair rinse her Nonna made her use every weekend. Ostentatia blinked down at Katja. Katja was sure she was bright red and probably smelled like the stables (the bad stables smell, like dirt and sweat and poop- not the good stables smell of fresh hay and Cinnamon’s special cinnamon-scented mane conditioner).

Ostentatia sat up, rolling off of Katja and sitting down on the grass beside her. Katja closed her eyes for a moment, staying sprawled out on her back. Her stomach was one big knot and she could still feel Ostentatia watching her. Her knee was right next to Katja’s ribs, and if either of them moved even an inch, they would be touching. Katja opened her eyes again, looking up at the blue sky through the branches of the tree above her.

She sat up. Ostentatia was still staring at her, mouth pursed up tiny and determined.

"I- I'm sorry-" Katja started to say.

Ostentatia shoved her hand out towards Katja's face, holding one finger in front of her face to silence her. "Don't say you're sorry." Ostentatia commanded, and Katja's mouth snapped shut. She tried very hard not to think about how close Ostentatia's hand was to her mouth. She tried not to think about how close Ostentatia’s mouth had been to hers a minute ago. This is just how Ostentatia, Katja told herself, she's loud and she's pushy and she goes into my personal space because she cares about me- like a friend. That's it. "Don't apologize to me," Ostentatia continued, scowling up at Katja. "You did not to anything wrong."

"But I-"

"No!" Ostentatia interrupted again, "I need to tell you something! And I'm going to say it!"

Katja nodded, mute with worry. Ostentatia stood, unspeaking. Her eyes bored holes into Katja. Her jaw trembled, even as she glared, and Katja worried for a second that Ostentatia was about to cry.

Ostentatia crying was the third worst thing Katja could think of, after Cinnamon dying or her Dad being upset. Katja very pointedly did not think about the connecting factor between those three things. If Ostentatia started crying, than Katja was going to start crying too, and then Ostentatia would be upset she'd made Katja cry, and then Penny would appear out of nowhere- she had a weird sixth sense ability to tell whenever one of them was crying- and the weird moment would be broken.

Katja didn't think about how pretty Ostentatia still managed to look- even when she cried. Tears streaming down her face in clean lines, eyes sparkling even as she glared at someone or something, nose turning bright red. Katja always ended up with a lot of snot over her face, and that wasn't a good look for anyone but Cinnamon (who looked beautiful always and forever no matter the circumstances).

Katja wondered what was so important or so bad that Ostentatia couldn't bring herself to say it aloud- even to her. There were only a few things that Ostentatia struggled to say (that was one of the things Katja lo- liked the most about her; how Ostentatia wasn't ever afraid to say what she thought)- not like Katja, who still felt the most comfortable talking to Cinnamon.

"I'm going to say it." Ostentatia repeated, but it sounded more like she was saying it to herself this time, not to Katja. Her finger was still an inch away from Katja's lips. Katja still wasn't thinking about it. Ostentatia had really pretty hands, too: perfect nails with real gems on them, she and her mom had a regular appointment to get them done together every month. One time, Ostentatia invited Katja to go with them, but Katja didn't end up going- it's hard to set up horse tack with inch-long acrylics. (Even if Ostentatia said her nail tech could totally do a horse design if Katja wanted. Even though Ostentatia had taken Katja's hand in her own and told her she had nice nail beds. Even though Ostentatia's hands had been warm and gentle on hers.) Katja blinked. Ostentatia was scowling.

Back before they were The Maidens, back before they were friends, Katja had thought that Ostentatia's scowl was the scariest thing in the world (after the thought of Cinnamon getting hurt or dying, of course). But, Katja realized with a little bit of pride, she knew Ostentatia well enough now to know this wasn't her pissed-off-at-You scowl, this was her pissed-off-at-Me scowl.

"I'm gonna say it," Ostentatia said for the third time, almost murmuring it. Her perfectly-manicured eyebrows were low over her eyes, jaw set and determined.

"I love you," Ostentatia whispered.

Katja's heart fell out of her chest.

Ostentatia wasn't one who was afraid of telling people she loved them- she did it often, loudly, and with pride. But this was different. This wasn't how Ostentatia said it to the other maidens, or even how Katja had overheard her say it to her family. This was quiet, an intention behind the words that Katja was terrified to put a name to.

Ostentatia huffed, blowing a small strand of hair out of her face. "I mean like- whatever, I love you. Like. Eugh-" she finally took her hand away from Katja's face, gesturing with both of her arms wildly- "Like love you, okay! Like, Zelda and her weirdo boyfriend, like Danielle and Antiope, like Sam and that fucking bitch Aelwyn. Like- like you. Okay??" Ostentatia's voice rose in pitch and volume as she talked, but behind all her bravado, Katja saw something she'd never seen in Ostentatia before- uncertainty.

Oh.

"Oh." She breathed, and like she was waiting for any response from Katja, Ostentatia froze- arms hanging in the air, mid-gesture.

"Oh?" Ostentatia echoed. Her voice was angry, but her eyes were still uncertain, even- afraid.

"I, uh, like- love you too." Katja mumbled. She'd read a lot of the romance-centric books in the Babysitter's Horse series (even written some stories of her own for some of them, but that wasn't here or there-) but nothing Katja had ever read could have prepared her for how hard it was to say it aloud. "Uh, I didn't know that- but you just- and I don't know how to. Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Uh. Did you want to-" Katja racked her brain for something cool or romantic to say. (In most of the Babysitter's Horse books, they went and got hay from the same trough together- or even sugar cubes in some of the later, teen editions- but Katja didn't think Ostentatia would want to do that.) "Get ice cream? From Basrars? With me? Just me- not the other girls? Or, I mean, if you wanted to invite them too we can if you want to, but I thought maybe we could-"

"Yes." Ostentatia was twisting one of her rings around her finger- a nervous tic- but she was smiling up at Katja. She had a really pretty smile, and it made something go mushy and warm in Katja's stomach to realize that it was her that was making Ostentatia smile like that. "Yes. Basrar's. A date."

"Oh. Okay. Cool." A date.

"Okay," Ostentatia said definitively. She took Katja's hand in her own- warm, with callouses on her palm and cool metal rings on her fingers. "Let's go." Ostentatia tugged Katja to her feet.

“Ostentatia?” Katja hated how her voice wavered, hated how even in this wonderful, important moment, she still shook with uncertainty. She turned, raised an imperious eyebrow; but there was still that warm smile on her mouth, her hand around Katja’s- and that was enough to bolster Katja’s courage. “I wanted to kiss you. Earlier. When we-” Katja felt like her face was on fire- “and also. Before then. A lot. So.” She grimaced, looking down at Ostentatia’s warm hand still tight around hers. “Sorry, I’m not good at this.”

“Katja.” Ostentatia took a step closer. Katja could see her pristine Fantasy Uggs in the grass. “Look at me.” How was Katja supposed to ignore that? She did, tugging her gaze away from their interwoven fingers. Ostentatia’s smile was a blinding, burning thing, spread across her face. Katja had heard her talk about her god’s Holy Forge before- how it had burned impossibly hot for centuries, how no mere mortal could look upon it without Logran’s blessing or their face would get burned off- Katja thought that’s what Ostentatia’s smile looked like. So beautiful she was scared she would go blind from the force of it. “You’re good at this. You’re good at a lot of stuff. Don’t shit talk my girlfriend like that.”

“Girlfriend-?” Katja squeaked.

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

“And for the record? I thought about kissing you, too.” Ostentatia tipped her head, huffing as though she’d just won an argument. Katja beamed. “So there. Can we go get ice cream and make out now?”

“Ye- yeah. Yes. Let’s go.” Katja held Ostentatia’s hand the whole way to Basrar’s- and she didn’t trip once.

#HHHHHHHHHH THEYRE SO.....#d20 #the seven #fic #ostentatia wallace #katja cleaver #whats their ship name? kastentatia?#anyway s/o to casey aberfeath as always for being my sounding board love uuuu

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guqin-and-flute · 3 years

Text

And A-Fu Makes 4--Ch. 3

[Happy belated birthday, Jingyi! 🥳]

[Ao3 Link]

Things got a little better in school. Not too much. What they were learning was so boring that paying attention didn’t really make it better even when he did use his new rocks so his ears woke up. His ears just didn’t like what they were hearing. When Yellow-Father visited the Cloud Recesses and gathered him up and asked him all smiley what his favorite thing from class today was, A-Fu scowled. “When I leaved. ”

Yellow-Father’s eyebrows went crinkly. “An education like this is a great privilege, Fufu. You’re very lucky.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t feel lucky. Not never.”

His father’s crinkles turned into a little frown and he said, all serious, “There are a great many people who never get to go to school, let alone have the life you’re going to have.”

“Then they’re the lucky ones.”

After that, Yellow-Father closed his eyes and took a deep breath before smiling and asking if he found any good bugs lately--which was such good timing because A-Fu had ! He got to show Yellow-Father the little house he had made for them in the back garden with mud and sticks and a couple rocks--unfortunately, only a couple had actually stayed inside. And maybe that was because they were too busy sleeping on their backs with their legs all curled up but that was okay, because he held them up all proud and Yellow-Father agreed that yes, they were a very nice find and now he could go and wash his hands.

What actually really started to make school lucky was that they began going outside to train and use their practice swords more. A-Yuan may have been good at everything else and just a little bigger than him, but A-Fu was starting to feel great when he got to swing his sword around all strong and fast like his fathers. Up until now, no one at Cloud Recesses had let him whack anything, practically--it was all ‘hold it like this’ and ‘bow like this’ and ‘etiquette etiquette etiquette’. Blah blah blegh. Just another thing to forget. But A-Fu was finding out that his body was pretty good at remembering things, even if his brain wasn’t, and one time, even the teacher passed by and nodded, saying, “Just like that, Lan Fu,” and the sun came up in his chest all sparkly and happy.

He grinned over at A-Yuan, who was concentrating really hard on swinging straight down and didn’t see him, but it was totally okay, because the teacher had told him that he was good! He was doing so good!

After class, he ran all the way home through the sun coming down through the trees to the Hanshi and told the whole entire thing to Blue-Father about 5 times as they walked to the secret bunny patch in the woods. He even stopped on the path to stand with his practice sword to show him his stance and everything. “I’m so proud of you,” Blue-Father had said with a wide, warm smile, waiting for him to catch back up. “You’ve been working very hard.”

“I have! Watch, watch--I can do it so fast! So much faster than A-Yuan! I’m gonna kill all the bad guys!”

Blue-Father shook his head, still smiling, turning to walk beside him with Shuoyue held behind his back. “We should use our swords to protect people.”

Right away, A-Fu copied him, holding his practice sword behind him with his shoulders all straight and his chest puffed out. Their footsteps crunched on the white rocks, every once in a while matching up on a step. A-Fu tried to make them match more, but Blue-Father’s legs were too long. “Yeah, from bad guys that I’m gonna kill! When is the next war?” he asked, looking up at his blue father, all calm and tall against the trees. “Are we gonna win it?”

“Wars are not scheduled, silly boy. Nor should we wish for them.” He held out his hand--A-Fu switched his sword hand and took it as they kept walking. “Your die’s have fought very hard to give you a world free of war.”

What? That was the worst news! “No more wars ? How is people supposed to be heroes, then? That’s not fair, all you got to be heroes! Die, you shouldn’t have ruined it for the rest of us.”

Blue-Father gave a small hum of laughter through his nose before looking down at him with a smaller smile, shaking his head again. “In truth, wars aren’t about glory or heroes. A good leader sees them as a last resort, not something to seek out. The ones who suffer the most are the people who cannot protect themselves and those left behind--and so we dedicate ourselves to the service of those who need us. That should be your goal if you want to be a hero, not the killing. It's what your Uncle Wangji does, when he can. He is known for being where the chaos is.” He looked out into the deep green of the forest shadows. “There is nothing wrong with a peaceful life.”

A-Fu rolled his eyes and leaned way over, hanging from Blue-Father’s hand. “Boooring. I wanna fight--kshh kshh ksshhew!” he added really loud as he reached out to beat up a rock right next to the path, whacking it so loud ‘tok’s echoed around them, scaring a squirrel up a branch.

Blue-Father’s hand squeezed and tugged him back carefully. “A-Fu, don’t treat your sword that way, use it with respect.”

Sulkily, A-Fu stuck it behind his back again.

“And you will have plenty of opportunities to fight, in the life we lead. What’s more important is to have empathy and kindness. Ah, Wangji.” He nodded to him as they finally stepped into the little meadow, bunnies hopping up eagerly to see if they had treats in their pockets. “A-Yuan!” He added with delight as A-Yuan raced up and grabbed onto his thigh with a big grin.

Excited, A-Fu pulled his hand away and wrapped around his other leg, linking his feet behind his heel. “Walk! Walk!” he hollered and so Blue-Father did, walking with careful straight leg steps all around the bunny patch while they both giggled into each others faces when they swung by and the little white puffballs of rabbits scattered in front of them.

A-Fu loved playing near the rabbit hutches with his family--it smelled like sweet hay the rabbits ate and the clean water smell of the stream nearby which made cheerful noises. Some sun came through the thick leaves, but not a ton, so it was green and shady, even on sticky hot days. The grass was thick and fun to jump around and dance and wrestle on.

After 3 times around the whole meadow, Blue-Father shooed them off so he could sit, and A-Fu shyly went with A-Yuan over to go say hi to Uncle Wangji where he sat watching them with a guqin on his knees and a bunny nestled in the corner of his thigh. A-Fu showed him that he still had his rocks from school, tucked in his inner pockets, snug and warm. Uncle Wangji nodded with a little smile and A-Fu felt all shiny and bubbly and thought that this was maybe one of the best days ever. He sat right next to him, leaning on his leg, and told him what songs he wanted them to play when Blue-Father took out his xiao. The grownups played lots of music while they were there; dancey ones and pretty ones and boring ones they played all slow and sad. It was nice because the music was kept close by all the huge trees, like a private recital. A-Fu danced with A-Yuan to the fast ones, pretended to be underwater for the slow ones, then chased the bunnies around when there were too many of those--until A-Yuan made him stop.

Eventually, though, fathers started talking in between the songs, and that got long enough that the instruments just stayed in their laps and A-Fu got bored. Then, he had the greatest idea. He grabbed A-Yuan’s hand and pulled him up so his special speckley rabbit hopped out of his lap. (A-Fu had named it Poop-Eater and A-Yuan had named it Turnip and they both would not use each other’s name--A-Fu because he thought it was lame and A-Yuan because he thought it was gross--even though it was true , because he did eat poop, A-Fu had seen it.) Dragging A-Yuan over to where the grass was long and soft and pretty un-nibbled, he said, “Let’s do a dueling!”

A-Yuan held out his arms wide, showing him in his sleeves. “But I don’t have my practice sword.”

“Hmph. Well, okay, I have mine...so the duel is who can swing the sword the best. You go first.”

A-Yuan scrunched his face up and looked back at where Blue-Father and Uncle Wangji were chatting quietly about something, both petting the sleeping bunnies in their laps. “Do I gotta? I’m playing in bunnies and I'm tired.”

“Yes, we gotta, for really real! We can play in bunnies after!”

After one more longing look at the rabbits, A-Yuan sighed. “Okay.”

They practiced, back and forth and back and forth, and since A-Fu was so good in class, he was able to tell his cousin that his hands weren’t holding it right. Then, that his feet weren’t right, and then that he wasn’t swinging it fast enough or straight enough. It felt great to be the one in charge, the one who knew all the right answers, for once. Eventually, he rolled his eyes and asked, all smug, “Did you even pay attention in class? It’s not that hard. Are you trying at all?”

Right away, he knew he messed up.

A-Yuan’s face got all wobbly and red and his eyes went shiny. He dropped the sword and ran to Uncle Wangji sobbing, saying that A-Fu was being mean to him. A-Fu’s tummy dropped into his feet like when he had jumped off the too high wall. He ran to go hide behind his father--but, of course, he didn’t let him. Blue-Father found his hand and tugged him to his feet and made him stand up straight and tell them what happened. Uncle Wangji sat on the grass and held A-Yuan under his chin and listened to A-Fu explain with a quiet face that didn’t show what he was thinking at all. “I wasn’t making fun of him! We were playing!” There was a long silence, and A-Fu squeezed his eyes shut and covered his ears. “I’m not lying!”

Blue-Father’s even voice said, “Then tell us, A-Fu.”

Desperately, A-Fu looked up at him where he stood, still covering his ears. He was looking down at him with a serious face, eyebrows raised. He wouldn’t let Uncle Wangji yell at him.

...Right?

“Diedie… ”

“We need to take responsibility for the hurt we have caused. There is no getting out of it.”

“You were making fun of me,” A-Yuan sniffed, all miserable, turning in Uncle Wangji’s lap to look at him.

Everyone else was looking at him, too, and A-Fu got all hot and squirmy and ashamed because now everyone was mad and hated him. “I was just...I was teaching him...he wasn’t doing it right…” he whispered, his eyes all blurry.

He just wanted to be good at something. Why was he in trouble for being better than A-Yuan at something when A-Yuan had so many other things he was better at? It wasn't fair.

Uncle Wangji looked at A-Yuan, whose lip trembled as he said in a voice like a wobbly guqin string, “But you said it so mean.”

“I didn’t! That’s how they teach me !” A-Fu cried, pulling his hand down from his ear to scrub at his tears.

“Do you know it is wrong?” Uncle Wangji’s voice was quiet--which definitely wasn't yelling but it sure felt like it.

A-Fu just covered his face and didn’t say anything.

“Should you do it, if you are aware?”

“...No.”

Blue-Father knelt down beside him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You know that this is not how we treat people. You need to practice empathy--think of how he is feeling. If it hurts you, it will hurt him. What do we say to A-Yuan?”

When A-Fu looked back at A-Yuan, seeing him still crying made A-Fu start crying again, which made A-Yuan start crying again and they hugged and A-Fu said he was so so sorry and he would never ever say anything mean to him ever again. A-Yuan forgave him right away, like he always did and hugged him back super tight. A-Fu saw Blue-Father smile a little at Uncle Wangji--who gave a teeny smile back. (A-Fu was getting better at being able to see them. They were there! Just quieter.) Then they both curled up on Blue-Father’s lap and played with the bunnies while Uncle Wangji played more nice songs on the guqin and things just all got so much better.

‘Empathy’ was a Blue-Father word--A-Fu noticed it popping up, like Blue-Father kept it in his pocket. Whenever he yelled when he got too mad or did something without thinking or talked before his mind caught up, it was ‘empathy empathy empathy’. Maybe it was his favorite or something.

Some of his other grown ups had pocket words, too--Great-Uncle Qiren’s was ‘Prohibited’ or ‘Impertinent’ and Yellow-Father’s was ‘Careful’. When A-Fu started looking, he kept noticing it more and more--when he played with A-Qiang a little too rough or balanced on the edge of the koi pond, he got a 'careful'. When he ran around right after a bath, he got a “Fufu, careful! ”

One time, he got a ton of ‘carefuls’ in a row, when he was in Koi Tower and he snuck out behind the nanny’s backs again. He went around and around in the halls to lose them until he was almost dizzy and when he finally stopped, he realized he didn’t recognize anything--there were no windows and more doors than usual, dark and sturdy. The walls didn’t have as many fancy curlicues and dangly bits as the rest of Koi Tower, more plain blue with just some gold circles studding the pillars every once in a while. Well. A-Fu just had no idea where this was.

He wasn’t worried, though, because when he poked his head around a corner, he spotted Yellow-Father facing away, talking to a black and gold someone in a doorway, so he dashed down the hall and catapulted into his father’s legs and yelled a hello with a big grin. It wasn’t until he looked up at his father’s face that he noticed he wasn’t smiling back like he usually was. His expression was all tight and unhappy, his eyes darting between A-Fu and the man he was talking to.

The man was smiling down at him, though. But his eyes weren't friendly--they were dark and... waiting. They glittered like a snake and A-Fu even liked snakes--but he was pretty sure that people shouldn’t have the same sort of eyes.

Yellow-Father’s hand squeezed his shoulder as he tried to turn him around quick. “Fufu, you are not allowed down here, you need to--”

But A-Fu spotted something and he squirmed back around in his hands. “Why do you have that?” He pointed at the man’s hand where it sat on his hip with only the pinky covered by the black leather of his glove. “That’s weird.”

“Lan Fu-- ”

The fact that Yellow-Father just full-named him flew out of his head because A-Fu decided right then and there that he didn’t like this guy when he said, “Wow, you’re a rude little shit, aren’t you?” Then, the stranger man tilted his head, his wide, weird smile growing wider and weirder. “Ooooh, is this Er-ge’s spawn?”

A-Fu jutted his chin forward and folded his arms. “No, I’m--”

“That’s enough. I think you have somewhere to be,” Yellow-Father said. And A-Fu froze, looking up at him with wide eyes. Because Yellow-Father was never rude, no matter what--but his voice had been rough and cold like ice and he was staring at the snake eyed man. And he was finally smiling; all hard like a warning.

For some reason, that seemed funny to Snake Eye Guy and his teeth peeked through. “You’re not even going to introduce us?”

“No.” Yellow-Father took A-Fu by both shoulders and turned him, marching him right back down the hall.

“Rude. Do you like sweets, brat?” Snake Eye Guy called after them.

A-Fu scowled back over his shoulder as Yellow-Father kept steering him in front down the hallway, almost tripping him on his feet. “Yeah,” he said, super tough, just like Gray-Father would. “Why?”

“Come find me if you ever want any.” Then, he laughed, delighted when Yellow-Father’s fingers tightened on his shoulder like claws. “Oh, what, Lianfang-zun? What do you think I’m going to do to him? It’s just candy.” His mocking followed them around the corner A-Fu had to take at a jog.

Yellow-Father had hustled them down the strange corridors until they found the sun again. He was still squeezing until A-Fu yelped that he was squishing his bones out, and he let go right away. When he stopped to kneel down and rub them, he started scolding with a worried frown, “Fufu, you cannot keep doing this. You need to stay with your nannies and out of places that are not meant for you. You have to be more careful.”

A-Fu just wanted to know who that guy was and why his hand was like that and why he was so weird and why was Yellow-Father so mad at him and did he really have candy?

And Yellow-Father wouldn’t answer any of his questions at all. He just kept saying, so serious, that A-Fu could never be around him again or talk about him and that he needed to be careful. And usually A-Fu was annoyed at new rules, but this one seemed to make sense. It would also be pretty easy to follow, because he gave him the creeps and he didn't really want to have to talk to him again. But he still wanted to know-- “Why?”

“He’s not someone a child should be around. If he ever tries to talk to you again, you come and find me right away, Fufu. Do you promise me?”

“Who was he?”

“Do you promise ?”

A-Fu had to think. “Yeah. Why?”

“Just...don’t worry about him. You shouldn’t see him again, but if you do, leave at once.”

“Are you mad? Why can’t I talk about him?”

“...Because it would be gossip. Gossip is forbidden.”

A-Fu guessed that made sense. Maybe. He reached up and grabbed Yellow-Father’s hat dangly, asking, “Are you mad? Are you mad at me?”

Yellow-Father sighed and rubbed his face and then finally smiled at him, all squinchy and small and harassed. “No. No, I’m not mad. I’m sorry.” He pulled A-Fu in close and squeezed, kissing his forehead.

“Is he a bad guy?” A-Fu asked Yellow-Father’s neck. “I can beat him up for you, I’m getting really good at swords.”

Yellow-Father huffed out a breath and smoothed A-Fu’s hair down. “I’m sure you are. But no. Just...just be more careful. Don’t come here again. Stay with your nannies.”

“Why? Careful what?”

Yellow-Father pulled back and rubbed his temple. “It’s time to go back, now--and no more escaping! You can’t be so naughty, what are you going to do to my heart, making me worry? I’m going to have to have a talk with your nannies….”

If ‘Careful’ was Yellow-Father’s pocket word, maybe one of Gray-Father’s pocket words was the grownup word 'Conviction'. A-Fu first learned about it when he went to stay at the Unclean Realm for a whole entire month in the summer.

It was so much fun--he went into town with Uncle Huaisang a lot and hid in the sweet smelling fabric at the silk shops and got a little toy fan, just like Uncle Huaisang’s. Almost every day they went down and both got candied hawthorn sticks as they walked around and looked at things. A-Fu’s favorites were the toy stands--he got pinwheels for him and A-Yuan and A-Ling and A-Kui. He tried to get them in all the Clan Colors but they didn’t have red, so he got A-Kui yellow, too.

Sometimes, though, they would go into the forest and find a little stream where Uncle Huaisang would tie up their sleeves and they would try to catch fish with their hands. Uncle Huaisang was really bad at it and A-Fu told him so. He got so offended that he splashed him and got his robes all wet. And one day, they followed a little blue bird for-ev-er until A-Fu started complaining and scared it away. Uncle Huaisang had paid him in candy to not repeat any of the words he yelled at the sky as it flew off above the trees. Oh well. A-Fu liked hunting for things on the ground more anyway, like frogs or turtles. They couldn’t fly away and they were easy to stuff in his pockets or his sleeves. One time, he brought back, like, five toads and Gray-Father said the same bad words as Uncle Huaisang when they got on his important letters. From then on, toads were banned from the Unclean Realm, which made A-Fu grumpy. But at least he still had the 3 salamanders he found and he was learning new vocabulary words, like he did for school.

Other times, he would help weed and water the vegetable garden out behind Uncle Huaisang’s room. They had planted it together the last time that A-Fu had stayed a million years ago and things were still growing--but there were a couple beans and lettuce and carrots he got to munch on after they rinsed them off. It was kind of boring, but he got to look for worms and eat, so it wasn’t so bad.

Nie Zonghui, Gray-Father’s second in command, always had a nice smile and showed him how he could use his double sabers, which was the coolest thing next to Baxia. Now that he actually knew things about swords, A-Fu followed him around a lot when he was doing practice drills in the training yard with all the pink flower trees around it, copying his moves with sticks, since his practice sword was back in the Cloud Recesses. “I’m not certain I should be teaching you these,” Nie Zonghui said with a smile down at him as A-Fu hacked at a practice dummy’s butt. “Sabers and swords use different techniques and I don’t want to spoil your learning before you even start.”

“Well, if it’s my sword, I can use it how I want, right?”

“Mm. Not quite. You’ll be taught Lan skills.”

A-Fu frowned, wiping sweat off of his face with his sleeve, then shoving his headband up when it slipped. “Then I’ll get two--one sword, one saber and I’ll use them in two hands like you and it will be the coolest thing anyone has ever seened.”

Nie Zonghui grinned and looked over at the Nie shijie that was snickering nearby at the next dummy. “Uh, that will be a sight. I look forward to it.”

A-Fu nodded firmly at them. “Yeah, you do that.”

When Gray-Father stopped doing boring work talking to people and came out on the training grounds, A-Fu would challenge him to a duel and fight him with a Nie practice saber. It didn't always go so well because Gray-Father knew more moves, but when it got too complicated, A-Fu just whacked his shins and knees really hard and then tackled his tummy so they fell on the dirt and laughed. When Gray-Father wasn’t around, the cool Nie disciples sometimes let him whack them in the knees! He just had to promise to avoid the nards, which he thought was fair.

He would go walking and playing with Gray-Father on days where he was back from Night Hunting and meetings, riding on his back or one shoulder like he was Clan Leader--or even a King! When he sat up there, he was so tall, he could probably be in charge of anybody! Sometimes Gray-Father was grumpy and not in the mood for a lot of wrestling. Sometimes he told A-Fu to ‘calm down and cut it out’ when he got super bouncy or loud. But most times, he was happy to see A-Fu and threw him up into the air or pretended to eat him or asked him all about his day. And A-Fu was so super happy to see him too, because he missed him.

Sometimes, though, he got a little sad and missed Blue-Father and A-Yuan and his Cloud Recesses friends and the bunnies and Uncle Wangji and even Great-Uncle Qiren. Sometimes, he had nightmares where he woke up in a place he didn’t know and no one would look at or talk to him. Those times, Gray-Father would let him crawl into bed once he knocked on the door. He would hug him close to his chest and pat his back and say that he missed Blue-Father, too, and he wouldn’t ever leave A-Fu anywhere he didn’t know. The Unclean Realm was his home, just like Cloud Recesses and just like Koi Tower, but he just had a whole bunch more practice of Cloud Recesses. He was used to the night noises of the bugs and the shush of the tree outside his window when the wind blew. Well, he told his father, A-Fu just needed to stay here more often, that’s all! And he had smiled.

When Gray-Father heard about how good he was getting at swords in school, he was so totally proud of him. His father ruffled up his hair and smushed his cheeks and said, “Practicing a lot, are you? You’re going to be a fearsome warrior just like your die? Smite all the evil?”

A-Fu got that happy sparkly feeling bubbling up again. “Yeah!”

Uncle Huaisang grinned and fwipped his fan shut, patting A-Fu’s shoulder with it. “Ah, good job, good job! What about reading and writing, xiao-Fu? I bet your calligraphy is going to be impeccable!”

A-Fu wrinkled his nose--peckable? "We don't keep birds like that in the Cloud Recesses, shushu," he reminded him, all patient. Ugh, did he ever think about anything else besides birds?

His uncle and his father looked at each other. "Oh, of course! My mistake. But I bet with your shu-gong on your case, you're the top of the class!"

A-Fu shrugged, flapping his toy fan open and closed really fast, the way that made Uncle Huaisang wince (and he did). “I hate reading. It’s stupid and hard. I like doing swords way more, I’m better at stabbing. ” When he said it, he jabbed the fan forward with both hands toward Gray-Father’s chest.

Gray-Father did a complicated twisty thing with his hand and snatched it right from A-Fu’s fingers, bopping him on the head with it. “Good boy, practicing.”

A-Fu wrapped both arms around the sting and scowled. “Hey!”

Uncle Huaisang sighed. "Aiya, another one. Promise me you'll at least still paint with me?"

Before he could answer, Gray-Father asked, “How are you with a bow and arrow? Have you started yet? Maybe we could try hunting sometime soon.”

Uncle Huaisang made a scrunchy face, folding his arms. “Da-ge, don’t you think that’s too rough for him? And... would Er-ge approve?”

Some of the happy went away from Gray-Father’s face and he looked over at Uncle Huaisang. “I went out with die around his age. And Xichen has agreed that he should have a broad education.”

“But he’s just a baby!”

What!

Extremely offended, A-Fu puffed up and raised his fists. “I’m not a baby! I can hunt! Die, die, I can hunt, can’t I?”

“Of course you can. I can take you later today. How about it?”

When A-Fu cheered, Uncle Huaisang rolled his eyes and muttered something, fanning himself real fast.

When they went, it was still a nice day but the sun was so bright when it peeked through the leaves, A-Fu had to squint against it and sweat kept trickling down his neck, even though the air was cool up in the mountains. They were both clopping through the forest on Gray-Father’s big brown horse, Leiting, with A-Fu perched in front on the saddle. He felt very important and tall and he kept very quiet just like Gray-Father told him to be, looking around with his practice bow in his lap. When he snuggled back against him, he felt Gray-Father chuckle in his belly and he reached down to pat A-Fu’s chest. Then, his father sat up, straight and quick, and twisted to the side, shooting his bow with a twunnnnng before A-Fu even knew what was happening.

And it turned out that Uncle Huaisang was actually right.

Because when they got down and found the arrow butt poking up from the bushes, A-Fu’s tummy clenched up tight like a fist. The other end was stuck in a bunny. It was lying there all floppy with blood coming out of its mouth and nose. The one dark eye he could see was looking at the sky, reflecting the sun coming through the leaves. It wasn’t moving. It wasn’t ever gonna move again.

It was dead.

And all A-Fu could think was that this bunny wasn’t ever going to feel the hot sun again or eat a flower or anything.

He had heard about killing before, and he knew what dead was. Kind of. Sort of. He had just never thought about it for Really Real, actually happening. It was for stories and legends. It hadn’t meant anything before now.

Suddenly, the nice day was horrible and awful and he burst into tears, startling Gray-Father and Leiting, who swung his huge head around to stare at all the noise. Then, he puffed out a breath and shook his head with a jangle.

“Why did w-we gotta shoot it!? It’s j-just a bun-unny!”

Gray-Father frowned and knelt down next to him, a hand on his shoulder. “What did you think hunting was, child?”

“I do- hic- on't know! Why did you do that?!”

“We hunt animals and take them home for their fur and meat. For food.”

He stared down at the bunny’s big gray body, just laying there on the ground. “Food?!”

“That’s how we eat. What did you think was in rabbit stew?”

“I don’t k-know ! Bits! P-Parts!”

With a face screwed up, Gray-Father pinched his nose with his fingers, then looked at A-Fu again. “You thought we just cut parts of an animal off? That would be cruel, their legs and things don’t grow back. Chicken is chickens. Pork is pigs. We kill them and eat their meat, just like wolves and tigers do. It’s the natural order of things.”

This was the worst news in the world. All this time, he had been eating silly chickens and fluffy rabbits? They were dying? No wonder there were Lan rules about not eating meat or killing in the Cloud Recesses! He wrapped his arms around his tummy and yelled, “I hate it!! I’m-m never gonna kill an-nything ever!”

Sighing, Gray-Father picked him up. A-Fu put his arms around his neck and wiped his nose on his shoulder, smushing his face into his chest. He smelled like leather and the sun. With a thump, Gray-Father sat down on something, maybe a log, patting his back. “We are cultivators. One day, it will be your job to kill evil things--”

“Bunnies aren’t bad guys! They never hurt anyone! ”

Pat pat. “I never said that. Listen to me. You don’t have to like it, but it’s important to know what goes into your food. Everything in this world has its price.”

“I’m n- never gonna eat meat ag-gain!”

“Child--”

“No ! Never! It’s ho-horrible!”

A-Fu felt him heave another sigh as he kept pat-patting. “Alright, alright, deep breath. It’s your choice--you’ll be like your Blue-die and rest of the Lan. If this is what you decide, then we’ll make you vegetarian food when you come here...and I’m sure the cooks in Koi Tower will do the same. But you can’t be picky about what you eat, because you need to grow up strong. You’ll eat what’s put in front of you.” Gray-Father peeled him back and looked down at him with a serious face as A-Fu sniffled. “That means no more of Jin-shao-furen’s rib and lotus root soup or pork bao. No sneaking things with meat from the kitchen just because you get tired of it. If you have a conviction about something, you stick to it. It means nothing if it changes when you please--that’s not conviction, that’s convenience. Do you understand?”

This was obviously a way bigger decision than he had thought when he first said it. He scrubbed at his eyes and stared at the threads sparkling on his father’s robes in the sunlight as he thought. They were bright gold in the dark green, like the fish scales in Uncle Zixuan and Aunt Yanli’s koi pond. “...N-no more pork bao? Or bo-mu’s soup?”

Gray-Father raised his eyebrows and nodded. “Or chicken or fish or any sort of meat.”

He snuck another peek over at the arrow poking up out of the bushes, then stuck out his chin, crossed his arms and announced, “Yes. Never.”

With a big, rough thumb, Gray-Father wiped his tears away from his cheeks, then rested his hand on his shoulder. It was really warm. “Alright. Think more before you decide, because it’s a big change. And if you believe in something, I expect you to mean it.”

A-Fu wasn’t going to think more because he meant it, he really, really did. He didn’t even look at the body of the rabbit as Gray-Father brought it home and he hid behind his hands when they stopped by the kitchen to drop it off. When a golden Jin butterfly fluttered from the sky, Gray-Father scowled and lifted A-Fu down from Leiting’s big back and set him on the ground. “Go find Huaisang. I’ll be by later.”

Instead, A-Fu first wandered to his room and ate the rest of the sticky candied hawthorn that he had forgotten next to his bed and felt a little better. Then, he went and found Uncle Huaisang. He burst right into his room and announced how terrible hunting was. “Did you know they kill the animals!?” he demanded up at him. “Did you know that? I think everyone should!”

Uncle Huaisang pressed his lips together, looking at the door like it had said something rude. Then, he took A-Fu out into their garden and together, they threw seeds on the warm ground and watched the different birds come fluttering down, bright as little bits of colored cloth. He even showed A-Fu how to follow them from behind and reach down to catch it. He wouldn’t let A-Fu try on his own, cause he might grab too hard, but he let him hold one really, really gentle in his hands after he caught it.

It was tiny and smooth and he could feel its little heart beating super fast against his fingertips through its fluff as it looked around. It was so light and small that he all of a sudden got worried that he would squeeze too hard and kill it, so he let it go.

The rest of the day while he played and ate and ran around and snuggled with Gray-Father, the rabbit totally wasn’t even in his head.

But that night, after he was tucked into bed and the lantern got blown out, he laid there and thought about the bunny and death. What if they killed a baby bunny's mommy and now it was all alone in the dark? What if it was a Cloud Recesses bunny's cousin? What if they had just killed A-Yuan's bunnies’ A-Yuan? A-Yuan would cry and cry and cry all day if he had seen.

Rolling over onto his back, he watched the branches outside wave against his ceiling in the moonlight, rustling outside his window in the wind that blew in the sweet smell of flowers. Death seemed to be what big, strong things did to littler, weaker things. It made sense--people were bigger and stronger than the bunny, so they killed it. Tigers were bigger and stronger than regular people, so they killed them.

Were his birth parents small and weak? They had to be. Had someone shot them through the heart, just like Gray-Father did today? He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed them, green and black speckled clouds of stars squishing around in the dark. Before today, they had just been a story Blue-Father told him. It hadn’t been real life. And he never really thought or wondered about them dying; they just were dead already. But he guessed that they didn’t just come that way because dead people couldn’t have babies. It was weird.

It was better that he had his real fathers, now. They wouldn’t ever leave him and Gray-Father could beat up every tiger.

When he got back to the Cloud Recesses at the end of the month, he made sure everyone knew what hunting really was. “And the bunny just died!”

Great-Uncle Qiren sipped from his tea cup, then set it back down in front of him. “Yes, that is the nature of hunting. If you’re worried, it does not sound like the creature suffered.”

“Uh…” No, he hadn’t thought about that. “That’s good. I guess.”

Blue-Father squeezed the base of his neck, comfortingly. “That must have been quite a shock if you weren’t expecting it.”

“Yeah….Did my birth parents get shot by an arrow?”

Blue-Father took in a quick breath, but it was Great-Uncle Qiren who said, in a quieter, kinder voice, “No, Lan Fu. They died in battle, protecting their Clan. You don’t need to know more than that.”

“Why?”

“There is no need to trouble your mind with such knowledge while you are young. Know they did what they could to protect you. As Xichen does now.”

“I won’t be troubled!”

Great-Uncle Qiren shook his head, mouth a tiny bit smiley under his moustache. “Enough.”

“Will you tell me later? When I’m older?”

He tilted his head a little. “Perhaps.”

“7?”

“No, it will be many years. Do not ask again, I will not answer.”

A-Fu looked up at Blue-Father, who was petting the ends of his hair where it laid over his shoulders, watching him with a soft smile. “I’m never gonna go hunting again,” he said, firmly. “I’m gonna eat like a Lan always.”

Blue-Father’s eyes curved up and Great-Uncle Qiren made a little bit of a pleased face and nodded. “It is wise of you to consider the sanctity of life and purity of your body. It is why we have this rule.”

Huh! There were good reasons for rules! A-Fu never knew.

When he told his class, some of them already knew about it, like the older kids and A-Yuan--which wasn’t surprising because A-Yuan knew everything. But a lot of them asked questions, which he did his best to answer while feeling very important. They asked him things like ‘did you see its ghost?’ and ‘was it scary?’ and he demonstrated being dead a couple times, then Gray-Father being the hunter. After a while, they all wanted to try and they ended up all taking turns pretending to die and kill each other in a big game around the practice yard, which was really fun! Until Teacher Lan Hai came back outside and had them practice tightrope again.

#my fic #my stuff #3zun raise jingyi au #3zun raise jingyi au content #3zun

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that-blue-vault-dweller · 3 years

Note

Companions seeing soles baby for the first time? (Dont specify the name or gender though please, also could add a bonus for maxson-)

Okay... So I might have been slightly self-indulgent with the Piper one at first since I've got such a soft spot for my favorite nosy reporter. But I tried to balance it out so now y'all maybe won't notice so much! 😅

As for the Maxson bonus, I'm not too familiar with his character, but I tried! In my playthroughs, I've only ever sided with the Minutemen and the Railroad, and the most affection I've felt for the Brotherhood comes in the form of Danse. However, I am starting another playthrough, so I might go Brotherhood this time. I did the best I could, y'all. 👍

I hope you enjoy! 🥰💙💛

Cait - Does not even know how to act. When she comes through the door, her eyes locked on the bundle in F!Sole's arms, she trips over the doorway and immediately curses. However, she swiftly apologizes as if the child can understand the words. F!Sole just chuckles and pats the spot on the side of the bed, inviting Cait to come see the baby up close. Cait very slowly shuffles over and sits down, just staring at the baby. She wants to touch the baby, but she's scared to because what if she makes it cry and then she'll cry and then it'll be a mess and then--- And then F!Sole asks her if she wants to hold the baby. She very hesitantly nods just barely, almost a reflex reaction, and F!Sole hands it to her. She hold it very stiffly, but as securely as she can, just looking down at its sweet, little face. She will protect this thing with her very life.

Piper - Is absolutely in love with the baby as soon as she sees it and she carefully sits on the bed next to F!Sole, just grinning like an idiot as she looks at her best friend's child there before her. When F!Sole asks if she wants to hold it, she wholeheartedly agrees. She very carefully picks it up and holds it in her arms, just marveling at it as she gently touches its face. She wastes no time in telling it that it is definitely going to be just as awesome and full of trouble as its mama is. When F!Sole tells it that its aunt is way worse, she feels like her heart might burst at the very fact that her Blue just called her a member of her family. She's definitely going to be the best aunt that she can be and will undoubtedly spoil it absolutely rotten to the core.

Curie - Is overwhelmed with so, so many emotions the very moment that she lays eyes on the baby. She almost thinks that she will cry from the pure joy and adorableness before her. She hurried over before slowing down just as she gets to the bed. She reaches out before quickly looking at F!Sole in a silent question, and F!Sole nods happily, extending the bundle so that Curie can get a better look. Curie softly speaks to it, her eyes ridiculously huge as she gently pokes its cheeks. She giggles and sniffles, reaching up and wiping at her eyes as she looks down at the sweet baby. She cannot wait to help it get used to this wonderful, strange world.

MacCready - Just looks at it with a soft smile on his face and a few tears in his eyes. He is reminded of how beautiful Duncan was as a baby, and he is now lost in thoughts about two beautiful babies. When she asks if he wants to hold it, he happily accepts the offer and holds it carefully. He baby-talks to it a little, telling it just how adorable it is, and when it reaches up and touches his face, he freezes before smiling gently. He then hands it back to F!Sole only to see that she has a huge grin on her face. He chuckles awkwardly and scratches at the back of his neck, shrugging it off. He will definitely love introducing it to Duncan.

Deacon - Grins widely when he sees it and he pulls out a very small pair of sunglasses, offering them to F!Sole. She raises an eyebrow, somewhat confused and he explains that they're for the baby. She chuckles before balancing them carefully on the baby's face. Deacon laughs happily, and he tells the baby that he's going to be the cool uncle and they're going to be partners in spying. He knows that the baby is going to be an amazing spy and he cannot wait to teach it all of his moves.

Codsworth - Is overjoyed when he sees it and dotes upon it, speaking to it in cheery tones while trying to keep his voice a little quieter than it naturally tends to be. He fails somewhat at keeping himself quiet, but it is the thought that counts. He hovers around the bed, looking at the baby from all angles as he fusses over F!Sole and the child. He will do everything in his power to serve them both well for the rest of his days.

Hancock - Makes sure that he is completely free of any and all chems and is totally sober when he sees the child. He wants this moment in his mind to be clear as a bell. When he sees it, he knows that he is totally wrapped around its finger. And when F!Sole introduces him as Uncle John, he clings onto the name and owns it proudly, talking to the baby about everything that Uncle John is going to buy for it whenever he manages to pry himself away from it. Like Piper, he's going to spoil it rotten.

Danse - Just sort of stands in the doorway until F!Sole notices him and waves him over quickly. He ambles over carefully. As soon as he sees the baby, he is enamored and he just looks at it like it singlehandedly hung the moon despite the fact that it has only been in the world for thirty minutes or less. After a long moment, he quietly asks her if he can touch it, and she nods encouragingly. He gently reaches out, his huge fingers carefully brushing its face. When it grabs one of them, he thinks that he could die of pure happiness. Nothing will ever happen to it as long as he's around.

Preston - Smiles goofily when he sees it, removing his hat quickly so that he does not look so huge and intimidating when he comes over to take a closer look. He is just beaming as he looks down at it, and he tells F!Sole softly that it's going to make for an incredible General one day. He then proceeds to talk in a more baby-oriented tone as he tells it how cute it is and how it's going to be just like its mommy. Preston is so, so excited to see it grow up and to see the amazing things it will do.

Valentine - Is at first somewhat hesitant to come in. What if the baby is afraid of him? After all, he is a pretty ghastly sight. However, almost as if she sensed it, F!Sole asks someone to come get him and he has to come in whether he likes it or not. When he sees the little one, he feels a warmth bloom in his chest like no other and smiles a little as he approaches. F!Sole tells him to get over there and sit down with them. She then proceeds to introduce the baby to its Grandpa Nick. He knows that if he was able, he would definitely be crying right about then, but he just smiles, albeit somewhat wobbly, and he tells the baby that how cute it is. He will forever treasure his new title.

X6-88 - Examines it carefully before declaring that he expected it to more strongly resemble its older brother. F!Sole seems crestfallen as a result, and something strange makes him feel inclined to say something else. He adds that it is not a bad thing and that it will likely be as brilliant as its older brother. F!Sole seems somehow more sad and happier at that response, so he simply remains quiet. Regardless of everything, he will keep a close watch over it for as long as he remains functional.

Dogmeat - Hops onto the bed beside her carefully, being sure not to step on F!Sole, and he stares at the baby with great interest. He moves a little closer and sniffs it. When it reaches its hand out and touches his nose, his tail wags unbelievably fast and he licks its hand gently. This is another person that he will protect and love forever.

Strong - Is strangely fascinated by it. He seems to have no desire to eat it, and he very carefully and hesitantly points at it before asking F!Sole if this is the baby she had in her stomach. When she tells him that it is indeed the one, he then asks if she went behind the tree and pooped it out. This makes her laugh entirely too hard.

BONUS:

Maxson - Is quite proud of his most trusted paladin for giving birth to such a beautiful baby. He is excited at the idea of the child growing up among the Brotherhood's ranks and he just sort of looks at it carefully and fondly as he stands near the bed. F!Sole asks him if he thinks it'll one day grow up to be a paladin as well, and he wholeheartedly assures her that he is one hundred percent certain. If the baby is anything like its mother, then it will definitely be a paladin at least by the age of eighteen.

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mingoyeob-archive · 3 years

Note

omg hey, if not done yet, can we please have 51 + jk? also take your time for part 3, no need to rush and stress about it, you're an amazing writer and good work always takes time 💜

under the oak tree drabble game ⚔️🌳 to make up for my delayed release of part 3 of under the oak tree i’ve decided to do a drabble game!

omg thank you for being so kind 🥲 I wanna end under the oak tree in a good way so I've just been pushing it off until I come up with something thats not a complete disappointment?? but I'm hoping these drabbles give you guys more time to enjoy the characters! hope you like it :)

51. “I can’t help the fact that I’m so goddamn moody all the freaking time” | jjk x reader ft yoongi | word count: 2k

The castle was eerily quiet.

Most days it would be loud with the sound of footsteps and the banging of mugs hitting wood tables followed by the clanking of cutlery. However today, no one seemed to want to make a peep; they were as quiet as a mouse. Unlike everyone else who found the lack of noise peculiar, Yoongi enjoyed it - reveled in it, flourished in it even. Nothing made him happier than being able to sit and enjoy his daily morning, afternoon and evening naps and it made studying all the damn protection spells Jungkook wanted for the castle a hell of a lot easier. But there was one thing that threatened his new paradise, a looming cloud over his glorious fantasy, the grey cloud that he called Jeon Jungkook.

Now Jungkook was never one to be in an especially chipper mood, at least not around most people that is (you on the other hand, seemed to be a completely different story). Yoongi distinctly remembers seeing baby pictures of the lad when he was just a baby with a scowl etched permanently on his face under bushy dark brows. He often found it comical. Here was this lumbering idiot, with a silver spoon practically being shoved in his mouth, the glorious savior of the kingdom, but he was walking around as if his favorite horse had died (which it hadn’t, he checked). It was really starting to get on his nerves.

“Kid, you’ve gotta stop scaring the men. I swore I saw one of them shit themselves the other day.” Yoongi said from beside Jungkook. Currently they sat side by side in the great hall, feasting on bowls of hearty beef stew, the kind with giant chunks of meat and half haphazardly chopped vegetables covered in a thick and glorious gravy. Hmm my favorite Yoongi hummed to himself, eyes slipping shut as he drank up the delicious broth with a loud slurping sound. His spoon made a loud clanging sound against his bowl when he dropped it back down, wiping his mouth to shift his gaze back over to the scowling man to his left. “You know if I were you I would be jumping for joy. You’re filthy fucking rich, whats to be sad about huh?”

Jungkook didn’t even let out his usual grunt in response, opting to continue swirling his spoon around in his stew while glaring down at it as if it had wronged him in some way. But the sudden sound of one the knights from across the hall laughing had him snapping his head up to send a growl over to the group of men which had them instantly silencing themselves, ducking down to continue silently eating their food. Yoongi watched the exchange with amusement, “Yeah you definitely need to get laid.”

Jungkook raised his hand to swing at him to which Yoongi merely stopped with a spell, not even bothering to look at him while he took another spoonful of his food. He knew Jungkook would never try to purposefully hurt him if he knew Yoongi couldn’t protect himself, so this was just considered normal playful banter between the two men. “That’s enough, Yoongi.” He mumbled angrily, dropping his fist to bang against the table. The noise gained the attention of everyone in the dining hall, but none of them dared to turn their heads to look at the commotion, afraid the Duke would redirect his anger towards them. “I can’t help the fact that I’m so goddamn moody all the freaking time.”

“Yeah yeah yeah, you know, that's what tends to happen when you don’t get any for a while.” Yoongi sighed and leaned his hand against his hand, gazing pitifully at Jungkook. He noticed the slight twinge of confusion on Jungkooks face and decided to reiterate himself, “It’s called blue balls idiot.”

Jungkook nearly choked on his spit. Yoongi was never one to mince words and this time was no different, but still his blunt words caught him off guard. “Would you keep it down!” Jungkook seethed, whipping his head around to see if anyone had overheard the topic of their conversation. It’s not like he was scared of anyone mocking him (everyone knew better than that) but still, he didn’t need the whole castle knowing that him and his wife still hadn’t had sex yet since he’d been back.

Yes, you heard him correctly. Jungkook had been back for almost three months and you and him still hadn’t even so much as touched each other intimately. Sure they had a few passionate kisses and lust filled embraces here and there which had left your neck bruised with hickies, but outside of that, neither of you had even dared roaming a hand south of the border. He didn’t know why he hadn’t tried it, perhaps it was because he wanted to make sure you were ready this time, instead of forcing himself on you like last time. He wanted to be positive that you enjoyed yourself as much as he did, wanted to bring you to new heights that made you absolutely euphoric. But until you were comfortable with him enough to let him do so, he would stick to his hand and the dirty images that he had conjured up in his head.

“I know what blue balls are, Yoongi. But I’m perfectly fine with how mine and y/n’s relationship is going.” he mumbled, glaring at the sorcerer. “And I don’t need you meddling in my love life so why don’t you just go and frolic with that stable boy like you do and leave me be.”

Yoongi let out a noise of disagreement, throwing his hands up in annoyance, “How many times do I have to tell you, me and hoseok are not frolicking or whatever the hell you’re into-” Jungkooks foot kicked his leg under the table causing him to let out a hiss but nonetheless he continued, “You can’t keep waiting for her to make the first move. Y/n is a lady and a lady from Aster at that. Those chicks never make the first move.”

Jungkook grumbled and pushed his bowl away from him then sipped at his ale in contemplation. Perhaps Yoongi was right, maybe it was time for him to make the first move. “But how can I make sure she’s ready? What if I fuck up like last time?” he questioned, not bothering to hide the genuine concern in his voice.

The sorcerer just sighed, patting Jungkook on the shoulder, “Trust me, kid. If you fucked up, she wouldn’t still be here. And judging by the noises I heard last time, I’m pretty sure she enjoyed herself.” yoongi shuddered. No more late night walks through the hall he promised himself. “Just try to do something nice for her this time. Don’t just throw her around, take it easy. Try and lighten the mood, understand?”

Jungkook was quiet for a second, the gears turning in his head. When he finally seemed to come to a conclusion, he grunted and nodded his head. The corner of Yoongi's lips tilted up in a satisfied smile and he clapped the man on the shoulder, “Thatta boy!”

Immediately after dinner, Jungkook went to the kitchen to request the finest meats, cheeses and artfully crafted desserts they had along with the sweetest wine the chef could find. The kitchen staff were practically shaken in their boots when the Duke had first walked into the room, afraid they had done something to mess up his dinner. But when they saw how shy yet dedicated the man seemed to be (despite how much he had tried to hide it) they were more than happy to help him, promising him that they would do their best. Jungkook gave them a monotonous thanks and had practically run out the room, up the steps and to the bed chamber. He had a lot to do in a short amount of time.

“I am pooped!” You groaned, complaining to Seokjin about how much work you had done today while walking through the hard stone halls of the castle. You had spent most of today working in the library, learning and going over the finances with Seokjin so you could finally start taking on more of your ‘wifely duties’ and relieving him of some of the burden. “I’m still not sure how the conversion from pences to shillings works. Or is it shillings to pences? Ah, oh well.”

Seokjin merely rolled his eyes as he walked beside you, hands clasped behind his back in his usual gentlemanly fashion. “Yes my lady you did work very hard today. I do believe it is time for you to get a good night's rest so we can start again in the morning.” You whined at his words, stopping as you finally reached the door of your bed chambers. Seokjn just let out a small chuckle at your over the top theatrics, “Have a goodnight Y/n.”

You had returned his well wishes, sending him a beaming smile and wave as he walked back down the hallway. Once he was out of sight you turned back towards the door hand reaching out to grasp the knob. But before you got a chance to even touch the brass door handle, the mahogany swung open in front of you, your tall husband's looming figure instantly coming into sight. “Oh hello!” you greeted, surprised by the fact that he seemed to be waiting for your arrival.

Jungkook just stared at you, is he blushing? You asked yourself. The man didn’t say anything, just stepped out of the way and gestured for you to enter. You thought the whole exchange was weird and cautiously stepped around him, not expecting the sight that awaited you.

You let out a gasp, hand flying up to cover your mouth in shock as you surveyed the room. Almost every inch of the place was covered in the most beautiful and fragrant rose petals, the room lit up from the fireplace he had going across the room. Delicious food and desserts covered the tables so much of it that you had no idea how he expected you to finish it all. “Jungkook, what is all this?” you said, whipping around to look at him as he continued to stand by the entrance, stiff as a board.

He ducked his head, hands coming up to fidget as he nervously looked around the room. “Do you like it?” he asked, finally daring to meet your gaze. “I had Yoongi help me. He said you might like all this...or whatever.”

Your irises were practically lit up with admiration, eyes shining with pure undulated joy. You couldn’t believe he had done all of this for you. “Of course I like it! I mean- I love it! But what did I do to deserve this?”

Jungkook just furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, finally crossing the room to cradle your cheek and stare into your eyes affectionately. “What do you mean deserve this? I love you, y/n. I would give you the whole world if I could.”

His words had your eyes tearing up and you brought a hand up to gently hold the one he had placed on your cheek. Your head turned, placing a peck against the calloused skin of his palm as you returned his gaze, letting your eyes show just how thankful you were. “Jungkook...I love you too.” you whispered, watching as his face seemed to light up with your confession.

The rest of the night was spent dining on the luxurious food the kitchen had prepared, mouths full as you whispered sweet nothings to each other and spilled all of your darkest secrets and happiest moments. And despite the fact that the two of you still hadn’t managed to find your way to the bed or explored the rest of each other's bodies that had laid untouched by one another for quite some time, Jungkook couldn’t find himself to care. He was happy enough to be here at this moment, with you.

Blue balls be damned

#drabble game #jungkook drabble #bts drabble #jungkook x reader #jungkook fluff #bts fluff #bts x reader

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p-artsypants · 3 years

Text

P-Artsypants Fic Masterpost!

This information is always available on my blog.

Find most, if not more, of these fics on:

Fanfiction.net | Archive of Our Own | Wattpad

(~AU’s, *Finished, ❤️Author’s Favorites)

Kingdom Hearts

~❤️Rage Awakened AO3 | FF.net- Ten years ago, Terra, Aqua, and Ventus lost their fellow apprentice, Sora, in Deep Jungle. Now, they are to return with two new students, Riku and Kairi, to lock the heart of the world. All the while, something watches from the trees. Feral!Sora AU

My Kingdom for a Heart AO3 | FF.Net - The curse of being one of the Princesses of heart, is that there’s always someone out to get you. As Xemnas looked failure in the face, he reached out in a last ditch effort and destroyed Kairi’s heart. Now her friends must travel the worlds again. Sora, to find a way to recover Kairi’s heart, and Riku, to make amends to those he has wronged. All the while, the darkness grows. [Unfinished, on permanent hiatus]

Miraculous Ladybug

One Shots

*❤️Amalgam- When an young man is rejected for being ‘incompatible’ he turns into the akuma ‘Amalgam’ able to fuse two people together. And later Adrien and Marinette would debate if it was lucky or unlucky that they got hit. (Also Available in Russian)

*Sing We All Noel- After receiving the worst Christmas present ever from his father, Chat Noir finds himself out on the streets with nowhere to go on Christmas Eve. Thankfully, Ladybug finds him and brings him home.

*Speechless- In a world where everyone has a soulmark, the first words their soulmate will say to them, Marinette is born without one. But Adrien Agreste has two. Curious, considering he’s mute.

*❤️Tunnels of Love- The night started out with an accidental kiss from Adrien Agreste, and ended with her bleeding in the Catacombs of Paris. Ladybug, the wielder of the miraculous of good luck. Yeah right. (Some blood)

*The Reveal That Wasn’t- First Parts My ending to kittybug’s Tumblr Prompt

*What A Mess We’re In- Ladybug has a lot on her mind, and when Chat Noir bugs her enough, she tells him she’s going to confess to her Crush, Adrien Agreste. Chat’s reaction is not what she’s expecting.

*Oblivi-oh no! - A retelling of Oblivio, except Ladybug is the only one to lose her memory. How will Chat deal?

*Bad Day (3 chapters) - Marinette was Ladybug! This was Adrien’s luckiest day ever! Except it wasn’t, because all his good luck was used up in one go. Turns out this might be the worst day of his life.

*One Win, So Many Losses- Marinette was forced to break up with Adrien. It had been a low blow from Gabriel, to be sure. But she was Ladybug. She’d find a solution…right? An alternate ending to Chat Blanc, where Adrien doesn’t Cataclysm the akuma.

*❤️Five Minutes- Gabriel has had enough of all these girls fighting over Adrien. He decides it’s high time Adrien picks one, and arranges the perfect opportunity for him to do so. Each candidate has five minutes to present why they’d be a good girlfriend. Marinette decides to take this opportunity to shoot her shot.

~*Panache- Every eligible maiden was invited to the Prince’s ball. That included Marinette, scullery maid in her own household. But her stepsisters destroyed her dress, and she can’t go to the ball in rags. Or can she? (Cinderella!AU)

*Perfect, No Matter What-In which Gabriel sets the bar even lower for himself, a reveal happens because of pain medication, and the new guardian actually goes to Chloé for advice.

*Crushed- Stuck under a collapsed building together, Chat Noir and Marinette have a heart to heart.

*Lovelace- Convinced that he's unlovable, Adrien is quickly thrown for a loop when Marinette confesses her love for him out of the blue. An akumatization and reveal later, he changes his mind about being unlovable.

Long Fics

*❤️Longest Night- (FF.net | Ao3) - The day started out sucky to begin with. Her crush ousted to the class and Adrien. Lila taking pride in exacting her revenge. But by the time patrol was over, a young man was dead, and Ladybug’s identity was at risk. Lila was the least of her concerns. Good thing Adrien was taking it all like a champ. (Rated M for scenes of torture)

*❤️Nine Lives- (FF.net) When Adrien Agreste is scheduled to go to a Military School in Germany, Chat Noir must make a critical decision. Does he give up his Miraculous? Or does he give up his life as Adrien? I’ll save you the trouble of guessing, he gives up being Adrien.

*Tender Words- When Marinette finally gets the guts to confess her feelings for Adrien, some things go so wrong, and other things go so right.

*Integrity- Overwhelmed with her responsibilities, guilt, and drama, Marinette has an emotional breakdown in front of everyone, and even hands over her earrings in a moment of weakness. Only for a few seconds, but the damage was done. Adrien’s pretty quick on the uptake like that.

~Much Obliged- Everyone deals with grief differently. Some take to drinking, others devote themselves to charity. Adrien Agreste? Well, he became a cowboy. Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a witch, one of very few in the world. She knows what it’s like to be doubted, and assumed delusional. Maybe that’s why they got along so well. Or maybe it’s just because they both like big hats. AU where everything is the same, except instead of superheroes, Adrien is a Cowboy and Marinette is a witch. (Unfinished) (Based on a AU by @bugaboo-n-bananoir)

*I’ll Handle This- “I’ll solve all your problems,” Plagg had said. “You just have to agree to it.” A fixed relationship with his father, Lila to stop bothering him, and Ladybug to fall in love with him? Who wouldn’t agree to that? Except Plagg was the God of Destruction and Chaos and had a more…hands-on approach. Adrien just wants his body back. (Body swap fic)

The Ghost of Smokey Joe- Adrien Agreste was acting bizarre. Stilted body language, plastic smile, and he seemed to have forgotten how close they were. Before she can get the truth out of him, Marinette finds herself as the sole heir to the Gabriel brand and the mansion, following the murder-suicide of both Adrien and Gabriel Agreste. The mystery continues as Tikki explains that Adrien was Chat Noir...but if Adrien is six feet under, why is Chat Noir still running around?

How To Train Your Dragon

One Shots

The Vikings Have Their Tea (FF.Net | AO3)

Arranged Marriage- Takes place at the beginning of HTTYD

❤️Breathe- Survival of the fittest

~Childhood Friends- At the Sandbox

❤️Easy Fix- In which Hiccup has a bad day

~Fashion Designer- Astrid needs a fill in

❤️Frozen- In Which Astrid takes a Dip and things get frisky (Rated M)

❤️Headache- In Which Hiccup hits his head….really hard

❤️Heir- In Which Hiccup is Picked (Longer version by FateCharms)

Illness- In Which Stoick is a dad

~Illusionist- Trick gone wrong

~In the Walls- In which there’s a poop ghost

~Knocking On The Wrong Door (2) - A chance encounter

❤️Messages- Astrid is Frustrated with Hiccup’s obliviousness

~To Mirkwood- Hiccup is not a dwarf

~Monster Falls- Hiccup and Astrid take a dip

❤️Mute- In which there’s a quiet stranger

~Music Video (ImgHS)- He didn’t expect it

❤️Operation: Lovebirds- In Which the gang makes a plan, and Hiccup gets Drunk

~Over- Too many nightmares

~Partners in Crime- A normal day at work

~Pirate- Astrid is the greatest treasure

~Prince- He doesn’t want to be a broken King

❤️Sorting Things Out- In Which Astrid gets her ducks in a row

~The Dragon and The Dame- Beauty and the Beast Au

The Pit- In Which Hiccup is rescued

Hide and Seek- Part 1

Lost and Found- Part 2

Long fics:

*❤️Infernal Responsibility- Being the son of the chief takes brains, courage, and a lot of patience. But at his father’s the request for marriage, Hiccup decides he has had enough. When he seeks out a life of ease, he runs into more than what he bargained for.

*❤️Roses and Lilies- “Astrid, you and I both know you’re much tougher than I am. You’re more brave, and a better fighter…but just for a little while…could we pretend that I’m the one protecting you?” “Oh gods yes!” (Also Available in Spanish!)

*~What the Water Gave Me- The sea is a wild and dangerous thing, something that cannot be foretold or predicted. Hiccup discovered this many years ago, in human naiveté. Yet, what was meant as a sacrifice became a new life, one like no one could comprehend. He now finds himself once more in the unknowing hands of those that sentenced him to death. He only prays things will be different this time. Merman!AU

*Parasite- Soulsnatcher Dragons are rare but deadly. But, As Hiccup finds out, it’s the eggs you have to watch out for.

*~320 State Street- Gobber’s Goods. A Hardware Store that was rumored to have everything you needed. She thought she only needed a job. Turns out, she needed a lot more than that. (A Modern AU no one asked for)

*~❤️The North Tower- When Finn Hofferson died, Astrid inherited his castle in Wales…and a whole lot more. Something sinister lurks in the North Tower.

*~❤️Boy Toy- AO3 - At the age of 21, Princess Astrid lawfully has to pick a husband. But when the perfect groom is nowhere to be found, she requests the toymaker to create one for her. It’s safe to say that everyone in the kingdom is a little concerned. (Pinocchio!AU I guess?)

No, You Go First- AO3 - The Chief of Berk was a headstrong viking, stubborn and full of pride, and willing to do whatever it takes to keep his village safe. But for a moment, he puts that aside, and listens to his son. In which Hiccup convinces his dad not to make him go through Dragon Training, and the subsequent changes that follow.

*In Due Time- AO3 - As another illness sweeps through Berk, Gothi needs another ingredient for her medicine…one that doesn’t exist anymore. Fortunately, she kept that old spell book around for such an occasion. Big Hiccup is sent to five years into the past, and his younger self sent to take his place in the future. But it’s only a few days, what could go wrong?

Trollhunters: Tales from Arcadia

❤️Arcadia or Bust- In Which Arcadia welcomes back it’s underground citizens.

Teen Titans

Oneshots:

~Big Brother- Don’t turn out the light (Horror)

Dear Jason- Bruce Writes a letter

Just Drawing- Bruce thinks about Robin

The Prisoner- Starfire is Guilty

Of Mustard and Three Foot Purple Tongues- A collection of Oneshots and Drabbles

Long Fics (*Finished):

*~❤️Carol of the Bells- High in the dark Bell Tower of Notre Dame, there lives a mysterious bell ringer. Legend tells of the angel who fell from the sky, and the curse she bares. There are few who know her true identity though; her master, the priest, and the acrobat that performs on the streets below. Based loosely on ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ RobxStar and slight BBxRae

*No Escape- Three years ago, Starfire escaped an Alien race called the Gordanians, to arrive on Earth. They’re back, and ready to put Starfire back where she belongs, behind reinforced Titanium bars. Robin’s not about to let her go…if only he hadn’t got captured first. How does it feel to be the alien, Robin?

*Now you Know My Pain- When the new Villain, Gender Bender, comes to down, the Titans find themselves in an odd situation. They’ve been turned into the opposite gender against their will! Now in order to change back, they must learn to understand the gender they’ve turned into. Rated T for obvious reasons. A great read if you’ve ever wondered why girls or guys do [blank].

*Paint it Black- Robin disappeared three months ago. Now, Jump City’s crime rate is mysteriously being taken care of by a normal, albeit strange, teenage boy who goes by the name Black. As the Titans befriend this lunatic, they begin to see a relation between him and their missing leader. Will they be able to find Robin, or will Black turn them all insane as himself? Actually, contains NO OC.

*Saving Grace- “When I’m done with you, you won’t be able to walk upright or speak coherent sentences and all you’ll see is my mask and my voice repeating in your head…Weak. Richard Grayson, I am not tough, I am everything that you fear.” Happy Ending! Smudge of RobStar. NO Slash!

Other Fandoms

Final Fantasy XV

❤️Requiem for Pitioss-“O King. The god’s have heard your cries. Know that we weep with you. The Oracle’s calling has not yet been fulfilled. But…Lunafreya as you know her cannot return the way she was.” Noctis looked up, hopeful. “But she can return!” Canon divergence from Chapter 9. Happy ending. Some spoilers.

Final Fantasy X

I Do…I Guess? - “I would…like to ask you something.” “Shoot.” “Well…if it’s not too much…I’d like to ask you…to marry me.” Knowing what’s to come during her pilgrimage, Yuna asks Tidus to marry her, strictly for convenience and having an official next of kin, of course. Starts after Luca and how this decision would affect the rest of the story.

Beauty and the Beast

*❤️Behold the Beast- A Oneshot alternate ending to the Animated Film

Cinderella

*❤️Midnight- “When the clock strikes twelve, the spell will be broken,” the fairy godmother had warned. A retelling of the story, when Cinderella doesn’t escape the ball in time. Oneshot

*So This is Love- What if Jaq and Gus hadn’t made it in time to help Cinderella? A new twist on the ending of the classic Fairytale, and what lies beyond the story. She still gets her happy ending and her Prince, and her step family gets their just deserts.

Sleeping Beauty

*❤️A Love Song Back To Me- Maleficent saw the loophole that stared her in the face. Prince Phillip would break the curse in time, for sure. After all, he was betrothed to Aurora. So in an effort for her evil plan to stay in action, Maleficent takes care of the young prince herself. Phillip never imagined having to live off the land like the birds above. Alternate twist on the classic Disney tale.

Escaflowne

Down Feathers- Hitomi’s depressed. She’s been away from Van too long, he comes back to visit her…but what if something went wrong with the transfer? (Not finished. Never will be finished. Mwahaha) Circa 2012

*Angel’s Wounds- Fanelia’s been victorious in their most recent battle with Basrum. Unfortunately, someone is wounded and just seeks solace in his love that lives so far away. Post Anime.

Momma Look Sharp- With the war between Fanelia and Basrum finally coming to a close, the kingdom is celebrating. The young king, however, is suffering from an experience unlike any he had before. Van finally seeks solace in his wife.

#fanfiction #miraculous ladybug #ml #kingdom hearts #Final Fantasy X #final fantasy xv #sleeping beauty #cinderella #beauty and the beast #Escaflowne #httyd #how to train your dragon #trollhunters #Teen Titans

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