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hel-phoenyx · 8 days ago

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It is over.

Around me, behind me, everywhere, there's only death and blood. I am sitting on a graveyard where the bodies are not even buried.

People say it is the reality of war. But what I have witnessed is not war. It is slaughter. One-sided, cruel, revolting slaughter. The kind born from betrayal and trust reduced to ashes.

My life is slipping away. Arrows are covering my body, one of them planted in my breast, too close from my heart. My blood run black, proof I am no longer controlling my magic. My curse is running out, tainting everything around me, but it is no use caring about this, for I am sat only on mangled bodies.

My hand run through feathers, obsidian black only broken by the purple-red of blood. Nru, under her owl form. She took me far away from the fights, before a wyrm got her in flight. I survived only because she was there to cushion my fall.

A sacrifice I fear would be useless. Because there they are, standing in front of me. Paper's new official leader, the one we put on the lead by killing everything standing in his way, including my own brother. The girl, tears in her eyes, falling on the ground like crystals, as she can't move an inch except her mouth to announce our death sentence.

And him.

The only one smiling.

His magic is the only one active. Of course. Who knows how he managed to escape the incantation that stopped every flux, almost killed Kal and made the one I love disappear. All I know is that he needs it, to manipulate the girl in his crutches, holding a power I have never seen before.

His bow is in his hands, an arrow notched. He's ready to kill me, I know it. He only doesn't because he wants to make me suffer.

I am not suffering anymore. I just feel empty.

"Adam. How kind of you to show yourself in person."

"Well, you were kind enough to eliminate all the threats. Thanks to you, I finally have access to Ourania, and to the Word of Death."

His smile gets even wider. Hungry. Cruel.

"Oh, but I guess you don't know who she is. It was Paper's best kept secret, after all. The king had sealed her prison, afraid of the power she held. His death broke it."

His hand runs on the cheeks of the girl, that doesn't move, still crying, still mute. She looks like she's trying so hard to fight the physical and mental control Adam has on her, yet, not hard enough.

It's complicated to feel pity when a single syllabe killed so many of my men, my friends, my loved ones. Yet my heart can't help but ache seeing her in so much pain. She's fighting so fiercely after the slaughter he made her do.

I don't spare any of that compassion to the other one next to her. Blonde, eyes adorned with dark and devoid of emotion, Faloi is standing there, sword in hand. He took the lead of the army, officialy, he was the one announcing the attack when the army walked on us in droves. I know now he's under a spell. I don't care the slightest.

I just look at the true responsible of the carnage I stand in the middle of.

"I suppose you will kill me, now. Go ahead. I don't have much to live, anyway."

"I could. But it wouldn't be funny. You still have much to tell me, and much to do for me, Asura, my dear. Starting with the localisation of the queen."

His eyes fill with hate when he utters that last word. The queen. With the original royal family dead, Draco's original lineage is no more, the current queen holds nothing of their former power ; but before being the queen, she is Lina Frosilaen.

And Adam Frosilaen can't bear to see his little sister, the favorite daughter, alive somewhere.

All the other siblings are dead. Nru is under me. Makhai and Kami were reduced to ashes, with Death's Word, Death invoked and controlled by that girl, that Ourania. Phoebe and Niall died in the fighting. Now the only siblings left are the rulers on opposite sides and the victor wants to claim the loser.

I won't let him harm the only friend I have left.

"Drop dead, Adam."

His smile disappears.

"You will be singing another song when I'm finished with you. You, and every survivor you try to hide under the bodies."

My blood runs cold. So he knows, despite how hard I tried to conceal my thoughs. My only subordinate left alive, barely breathing under Nru, still breathing only because his constitution offered him a unique resistance against Death's Door. Alicante, that I manage to hide under bodies and empty words for so long.

I thought my curse was strong enough to conceal his magical imprint.

I was wrong.

Seeing he struck bullseye, Adam's smile comes back on his lips.

"Faloi, kill the pawn under the dead bird, will you ? Then bring her to me. She needs a little adjustment."

Faloi doesn't even nods. He just walks one step. Two steps. Three steps.

I spread my arms wide to try in a futile attempt to stop him.

Four steps.

He's next to Ourania now. Sword lifted. Eyes fixed on me.

I just look at him with the defiance of the dead.

You promised me peace.

Five steps.

He stops.

Raise his arm. Magic is boiling in him. His eyes are still devoid of emotion.

His arm go down.

I hear a gasp of agony.

Before Ourania falls on the ground, eyes full of a relieved surprise, Faloi's duel sword deep between her ribs.

Blood starts flowing again, magic is boiling, and far, far away I hear the anger of a Death finally free of her clutches. But she's still so far, too far, on the battlefield. She won't reach us in time. She won't save any of us.

Adam's eyes are just dots in overwidened lids.

"What... WHAT DID YOU DO ?"

Faloi doesn't answer. he's still controled, or so it seems. He doesn't have time to, anyway. Adam's arrow just planted itself between his two eyes, followed by another one in the heart, then in the liver, and another one another one another one. In just a second, Faloi Frosilaen falls on ground, covered in arrows, dead where he standed, and Adam jumped towards me to take my neck between his hands.

My blood is tainting his skin. Sweet, sweet consolation to see my curse passing on.

"Careful, Adam, I utter between two shaky breaths. I am cursed. It would be disastrous is the Luxure malediction passed upon you."

"I don't care about that you stupid whore ! What. Did. You. DO ?!?"

His look of desperation is soothing my heart.

A man is walking behind him.

His hands tighten on my neck. It's not exactly enjoyable to feel yourself die choked by a temperamental manchild, yet I still smile, for I will bring my secret to the grave and now that Death is free, Adam knows his time on the world is limited, too.

A sword rises under the action of nothingness. The sword of a dead man, a nameless one, now cluched in the left fist of another nameless.

Adam's face is nothing but rage and madness. He doesn't even realise he's spitting on me in the middle of his threats.

"Stop that ! Stop ! Stop ! STOP !"

Yet i can't stop Death approaching.

I can spy her from the corner of my eyes. Running towards us, announcing the omen of her words.

And then she stops.

The sword is raised.

She stops, and looks behind Adam in absolute stupefaction.

Adam doesn't have time to realise what's happening.

The man is behind him.

And the blade is planted in the heart of Love's son.

He coughs blood. His grip weakens. He turns around. Slowly. The sword is ripping his insides as he does so, yet the pain seems to be secondary compared to the expression on his face.

Pink eyes meet blue ones, hidden under a borsalino. The only touch of color in the face of a grey, ageless silhouette, dressed in a costume I don't know whick epoch it comes from. Jet-black hair falls on his face framing a face hidden in the shadows yet so similar to the one he looks at.

A face devoid of all emotion for Adam's is dripping with every last of them.

".... Dad ?"

His only answer is a trembling lid and empty words.

"How long has it been, Adam..."

Adam doesn't answer. He can't anymore. His very last drop of life left him the moment he falls on the ground, a pool of blood forming underneath him.

In death the tears stain the face of a lost child

Killed at the hand of his own father.

#lysara #lysara ibruael #hel ocs #hel stories #hel writing #people I cooked :D #the scene may be rewritten accordingly since I had to tweak a lot of the lore already #but the heart of it will be the same :D

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immoralimmortals · 3 months ago

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A Song With Ten Names

Chapter 31: Sally's Song

Chapter 1 ☆ Next chapter ☆ AO3 ☆ Featured song playlist

Summary of chapter: What’s so wrong with Kakuzu playing around? It’s not like her affection will last. Nothing ever does.

Author's Note: I have a very strong attachment to this song. I try not to be *super* 1-1 with my personal experiences to what the reader analog "Takara" is supposed to be, but this one can't be helped. I love this song, it's the first song outside of church that I memorized, first song I sang for the purpose of wanting it to sound good. If Sally's Song has no fans, that means I am dead.

I really, really admire the Fiona Apple cover of this song especially, but for whatever reason it was removed from Spotify, apparently a couple of years ago. The rendition added to the fic playlist will be a music box instrumental by Music Box Rockstar. (Forgive me if I change my mind later).

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

And does he notice my feelings for him?

And will he see how much he means to me?

I think it's not to be

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Dappling light is a lot more awe-striking when you’re relearning how to see the world, the way it blots over each thing like flecks on a watercolor painting and makes you reevaluate its shape. The sun isn’t visible right now where the performer is, instead diffusing its rays through the fading foliage in this magical way. It’s fascinating, really, how in autumn so many plants seem to give one last hurrah by bleeding out all their bright colors before it’s time to die. There’s a similar reason why the performer is now stuck with her once favorite dress and sweater.

She wears both now, of course, as there is nothing else in her wardrobe. In the springtime with Hidan and Kakuzu’s initial company, it was quite fitting! White with pink and blue detailings, sort of like flowers fresh from the melting snow. Summer managed to fit still, sweater removable and sunhat appropriate. But now in fall, the warming hues of crimson, orange, gold, and brown make her miss a scarf she used to have with matching colors. The fiery rainbow refracts in her eyes until a cool-toned finger gently brushes up and down her arm. Kisame always oozes with a strange, contagious sort of vibrancy even though he doesn’t bounce off the walls like Tobi nor raise his voice like Hidan. It’s subtle, and though his color is blue, it’s an attitude that suits red maple leaves and yellowing morning glory vines that climb up old, moss-sodden lattice.

“Told you it’d be nice to get out of the place,” he asserts, having figuratively dragged her from bed for this. And she beams up at him, as though the woman is bone-tired, he is still right.

“Hey!"

…Someone shouts to get their attention. A head of spiked hair perks up with double the attentiveness for his ward who can hardly blink, shifting his shoulders to turn them both around. Once it's had, Hidan purses his lips and gives the fish a judging look; he lets it sink in before putting in his two cents. "You shouldn't be carrying her everywhere.”

The privacy is quickly shattered, the interrupting voice reminding the performer of how, exactly, she even managed to go outside: that Kisame only got her here by picking her up and taking the lady himself. He’s so strong that it became second nature for a few minutes, and the silly thing entirely forgot that she is a grown-ass woman that can suddenly be held like a toddler. Mute, she instantly shrinks closer to his cloak— which he now dons over his indigo tank top with the chiller weather— a redness on her cheeks. The taller man blinks with a frown at his sudden opponent with gray hair and righteous attitude. "It's better than her staying in one spot for too long, isn’t it?”

Hidan effectively scrunches one half of his face, corner of his mouth pulling up and the right eye squinting. He’s seen her move on her own; why not just let her? It doesn’t make sense! Will she forget how?! “Then have her walk!”

A whimper is all she’s got, hiding more into the dark cloth at the shark’s neck. Kisame defends, a snarl curling his upper lip: "She's enjoying it."

The shirtless grim reaper stares long and hard to verify this to no avail, rolling his eyes back up to the fellow Akatsuki. "She looks unhappy, asshole."

"Yeah, now that you're scolding her,” the swordsman parries, holding her just a little bit closer as if the arm of his cloak can shield the poor woman from misunderstanding cruelty. “Can you either get with the program or shut up?"

"What?!” Hidan, of course takes offense, redirecting his attention to the one he’s actually worried for. “Girlie, hey! Look over here!" To Kisame’s dismay, ever so slowly…she abides, and he notes the anxiety in her eyes. "You enjoying that?" A flush in her cheeks...but she nods. There is no way to deny that this is oh so very wonderful. The priest blinks twice in disbelief. “W—... really?”

Hidan’s double down is about to knock her off her feet (metaphorically, too):

"Then— then let me carry you, too!"

Kisame’s response is immediate: "...What the hell?" he blinks back with his own shock. His shaming doesn’t work on a man who has no shame to speak of.

"If you get to, so do I,” Hidan argues, folding his arms matter-of-fact. “Simple as that!"

...By technicality, that is true. The kiri-nin looks to her attached to his side for approval or lack thereof once more. "You don't have to say yes...” he reminds under his breath.

But the consideration is heavy, her soft eyes glancing over to the silver-haired man standing on this path outside their house. Is Hidan only asking because he's jealous? Does he even want to? They haven't really talked since they…you know. But the firmness there... Regardless of motive, it does seem to be a sincere want. But she has her own, in spite of how she misses him: "I don't...want to be a bother..."

To that he frowns, and his hands lower onto his waist in a sure, somewhat annoyed stance. "Yer not." His half-lidded stare alone dares anyone to ask why he wants this, including her.

Unable to formulate an acceptance as an apology...she just nods up to the shark to abide by the other man’s wishes. Kisame reluctantly, awkwardly passes her to him, muttering something about not fucking dropping her, and she’s unsure what to do with her own arms in this exchange—

"Come ‘ere."

So Hidan does the actions for her, careful fingers with a ring like dusty dry blood adjusting her hands to loop around his neck and the back of her knees to go over his cloaked arm. The way he looks at her...hooded eyes so close to her own... Geez, it's a bit more believable Kisame is so strong, being so very tall and less human looking. Hidan is just... a guy. But she gives him no problem whatsoever...!

She remembers abruptly how heavy his scythe was. Oh.

…

...

"Okay..." Hidan asks the swordsman after glancing her up and down, "Now what?"

It's Kisame's turn to raise an eyebrow this time. "...What do you mean,” he asks flatly.

"The fuck do you do next?"

Kisame squints so much harder that his actual eyes aren't visible, merely small black gills over a widening grimace. He is starting to regret this pass-off. "You...hold her...?"

"I'll do it, un."

Before Hidan can argue his place, a blonde takes her into his own sure, smooth grasp. Oh dear. He's even smaller than Hidan but picks her up like she's lighter than a kitten...! It shuts her up into pure, unadulterated silence with a stare as big as two dinner plates. "Hey, darling." The artist blinks, smiling still but brow curling, shy girl saying nothing to help alleviate tension. "...What are we carrying you for...?" Deidara inquires.

"That’s what I was asking! Now let her down, okay?"

"Why?” Deidara scoffs at Hidan, backing half a step away as the latter ninja approaches to grab her back. “You were the one holding her, un."

"You didn't ask!"

"...Did I need to?"

"Yes," both fish and Jashinist confirm in aggravated unison.

Ohhh my gosh. Her face hurts from blushing so much, eyes from being so wide. Kisame takes it as his cue and he tentatively steps up, reaching out to take her back from this problem he incidentally started. "Let me...just—...” he stammers, ready to rescue from a social faux pas. “Come here, Takara-hime—"

"Swoop!"

With a flash of black and orange, an unexpected fourth man slips between them and flees, pastel-dressed prize in his arms. He trots away with the speed of a child stealing from a candy store, reaction stagnated by shock just until his long, trailing scarf is out of sight:

“TOBI!”

“TOBI?!”

“TOBI, YOU GODDAMN COCKSUCKER!!!”

The chase begins, a whine at the back of the kidnappee’s throat that wavers with each bounce of his feet. “Heehee!” he laughs, “Takara-chan is mine, mine mine mine!” the jester teases, shit-eating grin surely behind the spiral he wears as he revels in the tight grip lovely fingers make into his clothes. The swift shinobi weaves around one corner of the house, speeding through a pile of leaves which scatter about like Tobi had stepped on coals of a fire, flying sparks and embers that crunch instead of crackle. “If—” he huffs an exaggerated breath, “—They can’t decide who has you—” Breath. Another corner of the house is rounded. “—Then—” Breath. He stomps through a couple-days-old puddle, water droplets splashing cold against her legs. “It’s gonna— be me!”

The thief twists around one more side of the ancient home lined in dead vines like a gold trim only to be caught by surprise. Abrutptly, he stops to a halt, seeing something before his dear Takara-chan can register the new danger.

“Oh?” One...Two...Three. Surrounded!

Kisame is grinning to the left, Hidan is frowning to the right, and a fuming Deidara is directly behind, sliding open the back door with Tobi’s name cursing from the back of the tongue within his head. She’s not even the one running and this is all making the traveler lose her breath. How the hell did they move so fast...?! It’s only been all of, what, ten fucking seconds?!

"Oh— guess you got me!” He's playing, the fellow performer can still tell. Something's up his sleeve. Okay...so what does that mean—? “Catch!"

It means she's not ready for what's next, not all.

“AAAAAAH-!”

The woman screams as she’s tossed unceremoniously up to the clouds, feeling the force of gravity first in the way that her body attempts to break it, climbing up and up and up with the power of his throw. A couple of times on roller coasters have prepared her instincts well: her stomach sinks in anticipation for the rest of her, just as the acceleration slows and the drop is about to begin.

“AAA—” … And she waits for a fall that does not come. “...Oh…?” The first thing in her vision is the bright blue sky in contrast to the vast forest. Wow...what a view. It’s open like she’s high above—

—Oh. Oh Jesus. Is she really two stories up in the air? TOBI?!

A heavy, heavy sigh is heard from an open window nearby, practically behind her ear. It wakes her up to look down, first at the guys staring up at her from the ground, then a bit closer to her own self. Black threads wrap around her body, around from her back and then loop over and over around her legs; it feels as secure as, well, if you somehow warped metal straight out of the flame to a custom fit just for you. The sight of herself is enough to swallow further shrieks, much to the relief of he who has rescued her from such reckless affairs.

Kakuzu leans down, open fist outside the threshold of the window pane with threads weaving out of rips in his skin that keep her in place. Menacingly, his glower rolls down to the ants below. "You...stupid motherfuckers."

"IT WAS TOBI, JACKASS!" Hidan quickly accuses, pointing to the culprit. A growl and a death glare is all it takes for the masked man to whine like a scared puppy. That’s good enough to appease Kakuzu. For now.

Ironically enough, it's his turn in this ridiculous game: "Come on, then..."

The three watch as the woman flies back into the house, a small eek on the back of her tongue and window promptly shut behind her with a slam. A moment of silence, all four men staring up to where she was spirited away.

…

“He’s going to kill you, you know,” Hidan states without any urgency, glancing over to the orange spiral. “He’s kind of famous for that.” And though Tobi fakes shaking in his boots very, very convincingly, everyone else still thinks he’d deserve it.

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

What will become of my dear friend?

Where will his actions lead us then?

Although I'd like to join the crowd

In their enthusiastic cloud

Try as I may, it doesn't last

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

What a mess, Kakuzu thinks. He exhales, fully undressed besides a pair of pants, no face covering nor shirt to cover his unnerving stitches. Thanks, Tobi. A small “oof” is muttered as the woman is set down on his bed without a second glance, man himself turning around to retain what little respect he has left. It's an opportunity for the performer to briefly gain her bearings. Kakuzu’s room, she vaguely recalls. Really has been inside it only once— no, not even inside . She’s only seen into it less than a handful of times. Frankly, it’s pretty...ordinary. It’s clean. It at first seems to lack hobbies. No piles of clay, no sword to polish (re-wrap??? Samehada is a stick of bandages, after all), no circle to pray in. But it becomes apparent that what he has instead of things to humor him is...finances. Receipts and bills are nicely organized or are in a pile waiting to be, a bingo book of wanted criminals open that perhaps may promise enough funds to keep this makeshift horrid fucking family alive another day. A couple of briefcases are neatly lined next to his desk, metal and heavy looking as if to transport valuables.

Her head shifts side to side. Grumbling, taking no heed, the treasurer has walked over to his closet in search of attire to make him better suited to be around a lady. He forgets so easily that the strangest thing about him isn't just the stitches but what they lead to on his backside…

"What...?"

Thinking this is about the metal threads, he looks over his shoulder as she finally looks to him and speaks. “They—” he begins. But, oh. Oh, no, it isn’t those her eyes are locked on; the threads have slunk back into his hollowed body already. What he sees, instead, is her pointing squarely at the masks. There's four of them, different animals and colors.

"Are those...attached to you?"

Ah. Right. Damn . He exhales yet again, not moving so she gets a good long look, ogles to her heart's content at the freak he is, get it out of the way. Guess it was inevitable she find out. "Yes." Then he reaches forward, a tank top chosen off the shelf with an open back for these creatures. It’s more comfortable, for one, and for another makes it easier to fight if they don’t have to pop through and ruin a perfectly good shirt. Never can be too prepared. Not too fast as to not scare, he turns his front back around despite his bare chest facing her. She looks so small, somehow, head hunched down and eyes angled up as she sits upon the edge of his own bed. How do they always get off the wrong foot when they don't even try?

"I'm sorry." Because of course she is. There’s footsteps coming up the stairs.

One thing is sure: "Don't be."

A thread drifts away from his bicep like an autonomous, thin tentacle, locking the door just in time to hear the nob shift futility and Hidan knock ever so impatiently to be let in. His head turns sharply, a snarl on his face. She notes how the way his eyes scrunch up is such a common expression above his usual mask; does he always frown like that when they do? "Give the girl ten damn minutes without your nonsense!"

Vague but clearly angry response muddles through the closed door, but Kakuzu's expression stays and so does his order. A moment of silence and gradually the arguing fades, something about promising to be back later. The hunter’s tense brow relaxes and so do the corners of his lips, and red and green eyes stop bulging. In. Out. He catches his breath and turns boiling rage to a simmer. For her sake. Calm down, for her sake.

The stitches on his face move with his cheeks, she can tell from where she grips the edge of the bed; they are, most certainly, not just burns or scars or face paint. His eyes catch hers, a challenge in them that regains a sliver of the anger he managed to beat back, daring her to call him a monster. Unnatural. Hideous. It’s all true, just get it over with. A flash of something else was before that, though, on his face. It's an emotion that feels familiar in her own chest.

Despite his expectations, she reaches out to him, slowly raising her wrist with a begging, upward-facing palm. He doesn't flinch, eyes starting at the woman’s fingertips, trailing up her arm and to her face.

"...What?"

How can she say it? Both palms, now, come back, gesturing together for him to come here. Out of pure confusion and desire to know what the hell she means, Kakuzu simply obeys.

Shaky hands go to the brown arm as he grunts with the unexpected contact, even as her touch is more gentle than he could have imagined. Maybe even especially so. As she sits on his bed, one hand goes under his palm to steady it in place while the other wanders up to explore, both visually and tactilly...

The bounty hunter…has two tattooed bands on his forearm. At first she assumed that's where they come from, but no, the actual stitches are higher up, unmistakable as the source of his eldritch-seeming threads. She traces up to the shoulder, then under his chin. There's even more of these lines on his torso, seen far, far too easily as he hasn’t yet slipped on his top in this unexpected intermission, and she can tell they all lead like train tracks to the masks embedded into his latissimus dorsi. Her eyes consume him, taste him, know him. She's far from the first to witness him like this, in battle or otherwise, and so he ignores the sense of novelty that washes over him and behaves with expectations that are tried and true. Something Kakuzu and his musician have in common is how they’ll insult themselves with the truth before you can turn it against them first.

"...I know. I know what I look like." But she acts like she hasn't . She's seen him before, though, the times she barged in at the peak of midnight...why is it different now?

Sometimes trauma heightens the senses, lets you take in things better than before. The quivering touch of the performer moves to reach further upon his skin, still. In awe, fingertips barely brush against his chest and most unbelievably, he doesn't stop her.

Tears well up on her eyes, which to his surprise turn up to his own instead of staying locked lower down on his ugly, deformed self.

"Does it hurt?"

...That’s not something he's been asked before. IF it hurt, yes, when “it” happened decades ago. If it does when hearts pump out of his back to attack and spew the elements at his enemies. Yes and yes, answers to both as well as if others have been so brave as to inquire directly to the bastard himself. But does he hurt now , merely existing with this curse? It's been so long with the aches stitched into him that he's forgotten, so he searches the numbness under his skin for what the answer may be.

"...Yes," he discovers, despite how it might make her cry. He knows she likes the truth. "...But it's better than before,” Kakuzu softens. In several ways. Better off with than without them. Better off than being fully human. Better off than being dead.

He sits down next to her and unbelievably, after rubbing the saltwater from her face, this woman shifts. Yes, yes, he is not mistaken; this woman now crawls onto his lap.

And he lets her.

All hearts pounding in discordant, unmatched pulses, he lets her. Legs wrap around his side, thighs seated atop his own. She trusts him. Even after everything, even seeing him like this...—? Oh so delicately, with a hesitance that draws her away before curiosity pulls her back in, this soothing lady traces the metal woven into him. The way he is… It reminds her of something. Something distinct. A visceral sort of memory, one from long, long ago…

…Kakuzu notices before she does that his performer is humming.

It's a tune both sweet and melancholy, befitting a creature like her and somehow, too, the way she approaches a beast like him. His gaze softens, lips no longer a stern, stretched line, and he drinks her wonder in. Kakuzu missed the songs that used to always tinge her voice, and this is the first it’s come back since she has come back home to him, even if so, very small.

“...Oh…!” The woman pulls back, somehow both after too long and far too soon, and she...smiles up at him. This…who he is…makes her happy? “...You remind me of...a rag doll.”

…

Dark brown hair drifts past his face as he savors that nickname, elaborates to himself on the implications. He’s been called it before, yeah...usually just before deciding to detach the person by their arteries. How can it seem so... kind from those lips? So adoring…? She has an answer, and it’s silly just like her.

“When I was little…” the performer tries to explain with stilted words, as plainly as she can so as to not confuse, “...I loved a story. It had a rag doll...who...stuffed herself with leaves.”

The Frankenstein's Monster stays silent, does so regardless of if there’s more for her to add. The slightest, softest inhale and the humming begins again...this time closer to the singing the Akatsuki miss, just without words. Down, up, and up...down… Down, up, and up...down… Lovely indeed, whatever it is, even if simple and bouncy. It was, after all, one of the first melodies she memorized on her own volition. Idly, she traces him again, finding a spot just at his collarbone and right at her line of sight. The threads are stiffer than they look, less like woven fabric and more like surgical staples. How do they move with such lithe grace, so little effort?

As she ponderers this question, one of his own springs off Kakuzu's tongue like a diving board.

“...You never sang when you were alive?” To his relief, the humming doesn’t stop; it’s such a piece of her, this melody that she can do it without thinking. A free hand wipes her eye again, and despite the nature of everything, her tiny smile does not waver nor flinch away as she answers.

“...I wanted to,” she murmurs after a moment, voice light and wispy much the same way as she seems next to someone rough like himself. “I wanted to be a singer...a musician…” A guitarist, a keyboard player, a...star. A performer. “I...learned...to stop doing it...just because I felt I had to, and started doing it...for fun by myself.”

Eyes close, and she tries to identify these marks on him with touch alone, tries to narrow down exactly what he feels like skin on skin. Kakuzu wonders if she can feel how his pulse is stronger than one any normal person should have.

“You could have been.” And she is now, he reminds himself. Or at least she will be once this nonsense is said and done and she can get back to a nondescript civilian life. But...she shakes her head.

“Too scared,” the woman says, “Too shy.”

“How do you know that? Did you try?” Perhaps foolish to challenge; the thing she is surest in besides the persistent strength of humanity is the failures of her own making.

“I had the chance...I was offered...to be in a play…” The smile widens, showing teeth and hiding a grimace. “...I was too little and too scared. And I never…”

…

She doesn’t continue that thought.

“Why didn't you try again? You were just a child, right? Children are allowed to be wrong.” But as soon as he says it, he knows this isn’t true. He knows from experience. So does she. A long, painful silence...and then her eyes open. The humming continues, sweet and sad. She reaches up into his hair, delicately, to see if it feels as smooth as it looks.

"She falls in love with someone...who can't see his demise coming,” the woman explains of the rag doll with leaves. His brown hair is silky and soft. “She tries to help. In the end...it gets her in trouble. He realizes she's in danger and saves her." Kakuzu raises a brow, stitches at his mouth exaggerating a purse of his lips.

"What monster pairs with a living rag doll?" And to his surprise, she beams once more:

"A skeleton!"

...Oh. He grunts, his way of chuckling without being so vulnerable as to give off actual mirth, eyes hooding and smirk forming. "I know what you're going to say, Takara...that that’s like us."

The combing stops, big eyes blinking their befuddlement as the curled fingers pull away. "Excuse me?"

...Oh, dammit. She has never even seen Hidan's ritual form, and so Kakuzu feels his face flush at making the connection himself. Goddammit… As if Hidan could ever save him. It's always the other way around...

"Am...am I...a...a skeleton?" she stutters, not getting it.

"No,” he cuts in sharply. Too sharp, in fact— “I mean— ...never mind."

…

The now free hands of the woman fidget index fingers, pressing tip against tip. "There's another character...that's filled with bugs," she adds, as if this is helpful in any way whatsoever.

"…" Kakuzu answers, gaze narrowed and mouth in a straight line.

"I like bugs."

And so he exhales yet-fucking-again. "Takara, you're very fortunate I happen to be tolerant of the dumb shit you say." Hidan owes him for that, too, really.

"Oh." The woman on his lap doesn't need to say: she's sorry. She gets shy and withdrawn and her hands drift even further away. Exasperated, Kakuzu takes them into his own grasp.

"...But it's better than you never talking again."

He can't touch her with his own hands; surely he's too rough, both literally and figuratively. The threads come instead, strange and cold and inhuman. It only makes her remember what it was like to hold him by the fingers, though, as she did once when Kakuzu taught her how to read the stars.

"...Can I ask you something rude?"

What a weird thing to ask. He shrugs, just barely so not to shake her too much up and down as she sits on him. Is this fine? Is she safe so close to him? Is it proper for a man to let her do it? And yet he can’t bring himself to pull them apart. "Alright."

"Why is your skin... so...?"

It isn’t a sigh this time as he releases air from heavy lungs, but a chuckle. You can tell it comes from deep in his chest, even if quiet. "It'd be rude if you ignored it. That's just how I am now."

She blinks again, lashes fluttering. "You weren't... always...?"

"No. I was someone else a long time ago."

"Like me?"

…

He thinks about this, long and hard. This girl does, after all, remind him of who he used to be. So what does that mean of her before? He recalls her mentions of a life before a death, an existence riddled with agony, debt, and servitude. A broken loyalty to a system that felt nothing for her, and waking up to abandon it by any means necessary. …So, perhaps, they have switched lives. Silly boy to serious man. Serious woman to silly girl. Funny how life works out. They both had a death of sorts in between to make it happen, and here they are.

"Sure. Like you, I guess."

"Thank you," she responds inexplicably, despite the implications he sees, an emotion so bright dripping from her mouth like honey from a hive. There isn’t even a blush on her face; with the next action, it’s all whimsy and instinct and no thought whatsoever. It has to be, to be so silly.

The woman leans up and presses a kiss on his forehead, for once bare of the headband marked with his betrayal. A sensation tingles down his own cheeks, down his neck, into the depths of five dark hearts. Despite it all...he feels joy. It makes him tense up. Alas, this is so easy to pick up on with how close they are, and she jerks back immediately, crawling off his lap just as quickly as she got on. Now her face is red.

"Sorry…! I—... Sorry."

Sorry... That’s the right word for giving a guy like him the time of day, the warmth from a sixth blood-pumping organ somehow tied inseparably to his quintet. "It's fine,” he responds in calculation, choosing not to tell her how much he enjoyed it. “Just...be careful who you do that to. Alright?"

Instead of asking why, she simply says, unable to look him in the face: "I'm bad…" And calmly— oh so calmly compared to a moment ago— he retorts, his own voice murmured and already longing for her song.

"I didn't say that."

...

"I meant it,” the taki-nin elaborates, both as a comfort and an admonition. “We're all like this, Takara. ...If not outside like me then on the inside. Keep your wits about you. Save your affection for those who are deserving. It isn’t you that’s wrong, here. If someone has to be called 'bad'…" Childish worldview as it is, to be so black and white, the answer is undeniable. “...It’s us. They threw you, for god’s sake.”

"But...I...—"

"And if you can't," he adds selfishly, and the next is a whisper. "At least be tactful about it." The scariest part about what happens next is that he does, indeed, mull it over before it’s done. The outcomes are considered, the details poured over, and the fool still does exactly as he's warned her of.

A press of his world-weary lips comes from out of nowhere yet arrives so, so gently, just as soon pulling back before she can even tell what's happened. And though he isn’t brimming with sunshine like Takara can, this old man still can’t hide he’s making a silly, silly choice. "...Duckling."

And that’s it. There’s the slightest smirk on his face as he slinks backwards off the bed, visible until Kakuzu turns around and throws the signature cloak of his ilk over leathery-textured shoulders. The traveler gapes, what she thought as her mistake now his confirmation—

“Oi!” another guilty pleasure beckons impatiently behind Kakuzu’s locks. The bounty hunter huffs, allowing the woman one last opportunity to see a widening grin before the mask slips back on.

“Perfect timing.”

Before she knows it, another, paler set of arms come around the performer, Hidan complaining with his chin upon her head of her terrible, unforgivable absence for all of ten minutes. It really is over so very, very quickly. It has to be, lest the choices grow poorer and poorer between a half-naked man and a lady not even back to herself.

But he hums the lonely rag doll’s song back to himself all the same in private the rest of this day, up through dinner, in the bath, hell— maybe even in his sleep. It somehow sounds just fine on his old, gravely tongue as a mind re-walks the life it’s led just to work up to something as stupid and risky as this. Dead leaves fall down past the window where the zombie scooped her into his waiting lap, and he wonders what it would be like to stuff them underneath his patchwork skin.

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

And will we ever end up together?

No, I think not, it's never to become

For I am not the one

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

#kakuzu x reader #hidan x reader #kisame x reader #obito x reader #akatsuki x reader #deidara x reader #aswtn fic #songfic #btw there are hints of hidan x kakuzu and i will evilly elaborate later

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starfyhero2 · 8 months ago

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The Indie Underground AU

So y'all are familiar with underground music scenes? In this au, the idea is taken more literally. Originally founded by the Almighty Trollmir and some of the ancient critters, the Indie Underground is a haven for the misfits and outcasts of the tribes, as well as smaller genres and sub-genres in the troll kingdoms. Now, did I mention that the Underground is sustained with the help of Trollmir's magic? More info under the cut regarding those two new troll ocs and why Poppy and Branch look like that!

(I'm gonna say right now though, that this au is probably gonna be my most complex/dense one yet, probably even beyond the upcoming harmonic heroes au; this story is taking some old ideas of mine from past aus I made outside of this fandom)

So, there are various kinds of citizens in the Indie Underground:

-monochrome trolls: trolls that were born gray, but otherwise is like any other colorful troll; the techno troll pictured above is a Monochrome Troll by the name of Monna!

-robot trolls: with the assistance of magic, trolls have been able to engineer robots not only with self-awareness, but some of these robots also harbor the souls of trolls that perished 'too soon'. The robot funk troll is named Shelly!

-acapella trolls: normally mute trolls that wear face masks pretty much all the time. They are the experts at making sounds with their voices and bodies. They love to provide backup instrumentals to other's songs, but maybe you'll be lucky to get one to sing...?

-alt. rock and grunge trolls

-trolls with physical abnormalities for their tribes (feral trolls fall under this category)

-the general outcasts

-trolls that went gray (note: the leaders of the underground have been trying to invite branch for years but for some reason something always happens to the invite...)

-trolls that prefer a different lifestyle than what's acceptable to their tribe

Monna and Shelly were originally designed to be Broppy adopted children but then I realized that there's something much more fitting for those two that I have in mind!

As for the hand signs Monna, Poppy and Branch are making: it's a common symbol for the trolls of the underground to use. Basically, their motto is: "When you call, we'll always be there." They're the definition of a community coming together like a big family.

Now why does Branch look like a monster?

Now there's quite a bit of plot-related reasons, but basically:

-the place Trollmir resides is basically the 'Heart' of the magic in the troll kingdoms, north of the classical mountains

-over the years, she would select specific trolls to take on the role of Light Keeper, trolls that hold the power to protect their world and to guide their people in times of crisis; it's also a way to help protect the sacred Heart

-Poppy, Branch, and a few others were identified to have been given the title, alongside the magic associated with it

-Poppy was also given the role of the Mediator: she's an expert healer and magic user and has the ability to see Biosouls (I'll explain them another time), she’s also able to ‘control’ Branch in his Attacker State (a major reason as to why she's primarily wearing blue), and make sure he doesn't get too animalistic or feral.

-Branch, instead of the Mediator, was instead also given the role of the Attacker: he has the ability to not only see Biosouls but can transform into a powerful beast. While in this 'attacker state', he can't really physically speak, but thanks to a bit of telepathic magic, Poppy can hear his voice in her head, so to speak. He can somewhat control himself as a monster, but is more prone to go berserk. Other than that, his job is to be able to protect his gf.

#trolls #trolls indie underground au #trolls poppy #queen poppy #trolls branch #trolls oc #feral branch #heads up for the wall of text under the cut!

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cherrietypes · 1 year ago

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a.m. writings

author's note: i wrote this in the a.m. while also sobbing so oops mistakes? anyway, i love joshua and his comforting persona so he is my inspiration; however his name is only mentioned at the very end so everyone can apply it to whoever they want. i mainly just published this to have it somewhere in case it gets deleted from my notes overnight:,)? idk it's the first post i'm making so wish me luck.

word count: 2117 words

p.s. the song i am mentioning in the writing, that causes the crying, is kidult because personally, that song makes me cry always and i do have it banned from listening it. but again, anyone can imagine anything else. bye bye have a lovely one.

it's like a soft knock can be heard from the door, but i make no movement to check if it was my imagination or reality, the song in my earphones muting out everything else. three moments later, i feel my bed dipping under someone's weight, which makes me succumb deeper in my shield of thick blanket, hiding away from whoever sat down, so they can't see my tear stained face.

when the person moves on the bed again, i allow myself to think that they will leave. to prove me wrong, however, half a moment later i feel two arms wrap around me, or better said around the blanket that was around me, nonetheless hugging me from behind and slowly stroking the place where my arms would be. unexpectedly, this small gesture draws fresh, hot tears to my eyes and they fall without a second thought, dampening the material under my touch.

one of the arms around me move slightly, adjusting me closer to them, and i feel a soft hand gently trace my face, not with the intention to turn me in their direction, but more to bring comfort and tranquility. i would recognise him and his touch anywhere and anytime, even in a sea of people. it's him. after a heartbeat, one of my earphones is taken away from me and i assume it goes to my companion, so we end up sitting together, no words uttered among the two of us, just the song that brings me both comfort and heartbreak at the same time.

when the song is ready to play again on a loop, he moves both of us again, very gently trying to take away the blanket from around my face and neck, but i oppose myself and get a tighter grip on it, keeping it on myself, and he stops trying more, instead resuming the stroking motions.

after what felt like an eternity and also a heartbeat, i move my head just slightly, slotting myself better under his chin, so that he can lean on top of my head more comfortably. he looks down at me, studying my face, or at least the part he sees of it in our position, and i look up at him, convinced i look disastrous after all this crying. he takes one of his hands and ever so gently wipes the remnants of my tears from under my eyes, and others threaten to escape in their place again. he must notice my glassy eyes because next thing i know, he moves under the blanket with me and hugs me as tight as he can to his chest. the barrier of the blanket out of the way, i can feel his heartbeat under my hand, bringing me a sense of calmness only a loved one can.

i take out my earphone and place it on the bed and he follows suit, maintaining the silence between us; not an uncomfortable type of silence, but rather one where words are not needed to express what's to be expressed. he gently places a hand on my cheek again and my head leans on it, closing my eyes and inhaling deeply, grounding myself. he slowly turns my face in his direction, and this time i don't show any signs of opposition, being met with a pair of soft eyes scanning mine without a trace of judging.

"hi", i say shyly, not wanting to break the magic and the intensity of the moment.

"hi, love", he offers me one of his signature smiles, that has his eyes turning into little moon halves, wrinkling a little at the corners, making my heart ache again, but also putting a smile on my own face as well.

i extend my hand to copy his own movements and cup one side of his face, gently tracing his cheekbones and he leans into my head like i did moments ago. we sit in this soft atmosphere together, smiling softly at each other, until i feel my heart become lighter, no longer crumbled under heavy mountais. the mountains are still there, but now i am not alone under them; i am not alone and i am stronger with him there with me.

after a while, his other hand that was gently stroking my back stops on my waist and he leans in to place a kiss on my forehead.

"should i ask? or do you not want to talk about it?" he asks almost in a whisper, his lips still against my forehead.

"you can ask, but i don't think i know to give you an answer", i admit honestly, to which he nods in an understanding manner.

he moves away from my body for a second, and my eyes dart in his direction immediately, scared he'll leave me now, and he probably notices the emotion in the way i look at him, because he extends a hand in my direction, which i take instantly, and he guides me to the headboard of the bed, against which he leans and pulls me to his chest again, so we're almost the same as before, but now we can both lay down a little, which turns out to be more comfortable almost in an instant.

one arm under my head and the other wrapped around my waist, he starts slowly stroking my hair, and mixed with the rhythm of his heart that i can hear under my ear, bring me many steps closer to a slumber. however, i start speaking instead of sleeping, letting out every nonsense and repetitive thought i have.

"i don't even know why it happened, really, i was doing just fine yesterday. i went out with friends, we had a good laugh, i managed to finish my assignment, i cooked, i did some cleaning, i did everything i said i would do. and i was alright, i really was. i felt... okay. i didn't feel anything bad or negative. and then this morning came around and i could feel this... darkness approaching, but i managed to keep it at bay until a few hours ago. but then, the song comes in my playlist that i had playing around, you know which song i am referring to. and at first i didn't realise it, but then its bridge came around and i really just lost it and started crying in the middle of the kitchen. i don't even know how that song got in this playlist because it's banned from all playlists because you know this is like the only song i am literally never listening to exactly for the reason of crying. and so i started crying and all these thoughts came onto me like a tornado and swept me up and then i found myself here, bundled up in this hot blanket and listening to that song on loop for... hours i suppose? because i couldn't get myself out of it. all these thoughts were keeping me like hostage, and even though they brought me literal dread, i just couldn't escape", i ramble and ramble and ramble, but he listens to it all and nods along, signaling me to continue as i have all his attention.

"at first it was just the basic thoughts, like regretting not calling mom yesterday because i was out and i came home late and it made me feel like a bad daughter because, after all, i moved away from home and here to follow my dream with my parents' help so i should be grateful but i am not even capable of picking up the phone when they call me. but then it escaladed to thoughts of me being a disappointment to them because i'm starting to regret my choices, but i can't give up because i and they invested too much in this already. and also it's my last year of this degree, what am i supposed to do after i finish? how am i even gonna finish this when i literally can't write my thesis because i've been in a writer's block for weeks and it starts to feel like a literal mental block, like was i really this dumb all along? and also let's not even go through the fact that since our friends started dating, i am constantly reminded that i am alone and honestly, i love being alone, after all i am an introvert, but i am lonely. i've been feeling so lonely lately that it's eating at me and all the happiness i have for my friends is bittersweet because of that. and also some mornings i just don't know how to get out of bed. i don't even want to wake up. and i have to push myself with all the energy i have left in me to keep going, to continue this choice that i came to resent and regret deeply. and i don't know, really, i don't see the point in any of it anymore but i can't give up, you know i can't. and i have people around me that would be disappointed if they knew what really lies behind the smile i show them. and now you will be disappointed too and i really can't take this anymore. i don't know what to do, really, but i can't", i end up in tears again, spilling on my cheeks and i have to get back up in sitting position, my sobs buried in my hands on my knees. i feel him get up too behind me and embracing me, turning my body towards him and he cups my face, tilting it back, making me look in his eyes to see the sincerity and support in them.

"shhh, it's okay baby, take a deep breath with me, okay? come on, inhale and exhale, let's do it a few times more, okay?", he helps me breathe in through my nose and out my mouth, calming my racing heart in my chest along the way. "that's it, love, just like that. is it any better?" i nod wordlessly, focusing on just breathing, taking in his scent, comforting me. "listen to me, love, alright? it's okay to feel lost on your way, to not know what you're doing, even to mess everything up. because you're living this for the first time. and it's okay to feel these emotions just as much as it is okay to feel complete happiness. because they are all part of who you are, they make the incredible person that you are. and every person that has you in their life knows how hardworking and passionate you are, how brave and inteligent, and they are all proud of you, your parents are proud of you. i am proud of you. and believe me, there is nothing you can ever do to make your parents to be disappointed in you. because what matters the most is that they have you in their life, that they have such a wonderful child that they love more than anything. and love", he brings his face closer to mine, his eyes looking into mine with an intensity and emotion that burns straight to my soul, "i can never be disappointed in you either. i admire you and i am so proud of you and who you've become, who you've evolved into. and i will always be here by your side, no matter what burdens fall on your shoulders." he puts his forehead on mine, and we both sit in silence, our eyes closed and souls communicating.

after a few moments, he starts stroking my cheeks softly with his fingers, his forehead still pressed to mine. "whenever you feel like you can't continue for another day, come to me, alright? i'll give you my tomorrow so that you can have today." his words make me move to wrap my arms around his neck tightly, burying my face in the crook, inhaling his scent deeply, until i feel it fill my lungs and every little morcel of my body full of him.

"i love you, to the stars" he says, wrapping his arms around my waist and stroking just right under my shirt, giving me the comfort my heart needed.

"to the stars, i love you" i say it back, meaning it with all the sincerity there is in the world.

in that moment, it felt like all those burdens weighted nothing more than a feather, while our souls were touching the beautiful stars that hid so many fates in themselves. whether or not him and i were meant by fate or not, can't know; but one thing is sure: joshua was your angel and the stars were reachable with him by your side.

#im crying here #comfort #fluff #joshua hong #hong joshua #svt joshua #seventeen joshua #seventeen fluff #kpop fluff #seventeen comfort #joshua comfort #joshua

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negative-speedforce · 9 months ago

Note

Your OCs find themselves face-to-face with a fairy-tale trickster! They're told they have to perform one song of their choosing, and it must be suitably entertaining to the trickster, or they'll lose their greatest skill forever! We're talking superpowers, Max's ability to design tech, Hyun-Ki's kills with performance (how ironic), whatever it is that makes them stand out.

What song do they pick, and how do they make sure the trickster is entertained by their performance?

Siv: Shows off their years of guitar lessons with a half-decent performance of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"

Jay: Can't sing to save his own life, so he gives backup vocals for Cassandra's performance.

Cassandra: Sings "Texas Hold 'Em" by Beyonce, and while her performance by itself would have impressed the trickster by itself, she ends up making them leave because they got uncomfortable when Jay and Cassandra started making out.

Hailey: "Jokes on you, you can't curse me, I'm dead."

Ember: Uses his powers to make gemstones rain on them from the earth as they lipsync to P!nk's "Raise Your Glass" in her glitteriest outfit.

Arya: Mostly impresses the trickster with the fact that every songbird and squirrel was falling out of the trees around them because of their siren song, rather than their performance of BlackPink's "As If It's Your Last"

Gina: Asks if the trickster can wait like ten minutes, and she calls a few of her choir friends over and they perform "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" together.

Esme: Performs "Work Bitch" by Brittany Spears, and impresses them with the fact that no one should be able to dance that well while wearing heels that high and a skirt that short and tight

Cat: Joins Gina and her choir friends for "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" because they're gonna need someone for the alto line (or potentially the tenor line, if Freaking Travis doesn't show up again).

Max: Takes the microphone and starts singing Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" while slow dancing with Kyle and looking longingly into his eyes.

Kyle: Gets his old turntables from when he tried to learn how to DJ and makes a sick remix of Mad Love by Mabel

Eric: Pulls out his violin and performs "The Devil Went Down To Georgia".

Jacob: Serenades his husband with Elvis Presley's "I Cant Help Falling In Love With You".

Khalil: Sings "Daniel In The Den" by Bastille, attempts to impress the trickster by using his magic to create illusions to go along with the lyrics

Ameerah: Growls out a passionate cover of Hell's Coming With Me by Poor Man's Poison

Reggie: Manages to get through Rap God by Eminem without missing a single beat, impresses the trickster because xe's just this tiny kid who can rap that fast.

Antonio: Follows the trickster around for two hours playing The Song That Never Ends on kazoo until they promise not to curse him (yay psychological warfare)

Rania: Sings "Can't Catch Me Now" by Olivia Rodrigo and manages to impress the trickster with the sheer emotion coming through her performance (she is actually crying tears of rage by the end)

Kelsie: Sits the trickster down and pulls out a pad of paper and her glasses, and begins digging down into why they feel the need to do things like this. They feel much better after this impromptu therapy session.

Torryn: Just steals the trickster's magic and runs off with it.

Cory: Impresses the trickster with her fry scream and midair acrobatics while singing Monstarrr by Ennaria

Meredith: Starts signing aggressively about how she's "deaf and mute, dipshit, how is she supposed to perform music?" until the trickster feels bad and goes away.

Director Hawke

Onnie: Disintegrates the trickster before they can curse them and then she goes on with her day to day life.

Pippa: Sings a dreamy cover of "Flowers In My Hair" by Wes Reeve while daydreaming about kissing that mysterious Thawne girl she's only met a few times...

Jessi: Performs one of her own hit singles, puts on a really great show, and attracts a crowd of people because "OH MY GOD IS THAT JESSI JUNO???" (if you're looking for a real-world song with a similar vibe to her music, try "Bitches" by Tove Lo)

Hyun-Ki: Sings a haunting cover of Ave Maria, because no one expects the K-Pop star to be classically trained.

Marie: Screams out Girli's "More than a Friend" while useless lesbian-ing out over Qiara's existence, until she's blushing so bad that her face is bright green.

Liah: Dances to "Bombay Dreams" by KSHMR and shows off her skills from her former job as a Bollywood star.

Qiara: "No." *vanishes*. Jokes on you, you can't do that to an omnipotent space god.

Soraya: Asks for a religious exemption, since she's of the school of Islam that doesn't allow music or singing, so therefore she doesn't really know that many songs.

<note: for the Star Wars OCs, just assume it's the space equivalent to the song>

Thalia: Sings Elastic Heart by Sia (Space Version), actually does a fairly good job.

Reyna: Thinks she sounds great, but actually sucks so hard as she quite literally screeches out Space Demi Lovato's "Cool For The Summer".

Laila: Sings "Trouble" by Space Halsey, very obviously singing it to Athena. Stabs the trickster for even daring to suggest cursing her once she's done.

Athena: Manages to capture the trickster in a sack and then takes them back to her lab, where she decides to vivisect them to see how they work, all while singing a very sultry, seductive cover of Space Ariana Grande's "Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored"

Pyrrha: Screams out "Weapon" by Space Against the Current (which is basically her theme song), and impresses the trickster with her dance moves, since her cybernetic limbs have higher strength and range of motion than her natural ones.

Samira: Duets "Rewrite The Stars" with Aldrich, since it's their song as a vampire/human couple (BIG taboo on that one)

Aldrich: Duets "Rewrite The Stars" with Samira, taking Zac Efron's part while Samira does Zendaya's part.

Sohelia: Sings "Snakes" By PVRIS, all while visualizing Mr. Head of the Hunters' Guild, immortal alchemist, and accidental creator of Vampires everywhere, Thaddeus St. James, so she puts far more vitriol into her performance than necessary.

Dolores: Sings "Which Witch" by Florence + The Machine and impresses the trickster with her powerful belting and the sheer emotion behind the performance (living your life at risk of being hunted for sport will do that to you)

Victorie: Plays Vivaldi's Four Seasons on violin, since that was new music when she was alive.

Matt: Sings "Believe" by Cher, can't really do anything that special with his performance with his EDS and everything, so he makes sure and puts some extra "oomph" in with his voice.

Vanessa: Sings "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri, while slow dancing with Victorie, putting special emphasis on the line "Beauty is all she is".

Ellis: They're an angel, so they sing the Hallelujah Chorus with the voice of one. Probably go into the full "be not afraid" Biblically Accurate Angel form too.

#ask revan #oc shit #practically-an-x-man

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koreposion · 1 year ago

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Geno makes a mistake of eating a jar of honey and then talks to Blue about it.

The jar was empty and sat in front of Geno as he had the spoon in his mouth. He hadn't mean to keep eating it, it was supposed to just be a spoonful. Yet he found himself eating more and more of the sweet substance.

It was at that time Blue had shut the front door and headed to the kitchen. His plan was to get started on dinner but he was startled by Geno being at the table. He noticed that his companion seemed to be lost in thought. Given past times with questions, Blue just decided to wait for Geno to bring it up himself.

The question of why there was an empty honey jar on the table itched his skull. He almost caved until Geno snapped out of his stupor,

"Blue did you get any cravings when you first started working for Dream?" Geno asked as he took the spoon out of his mouth and tossed it into the sink.

"Uh.." Blue thought about it for a moment, he did have an odd craving for pineapple. At the time he found it weird because he didn't like the taste of pineapple when he first had it, "Yeah, but it was a fruit we'd found when we first came to the surface. It's called pineapple! It's very sweet and kinda sticky, also acidic?"

Geno leaned back in his chair as he listened, "Do you like pineapple?"

"Uh no not really, but it was always in the house..." Blue said as he took the empty jar and tossed it into the trash, "I don't think I've bought any recently. But my brother likes honey so it's always in the house."

"I don't like honey." Geno's tone was grim as he spoke, "I actually hate the taste of it, it's earthy and sticky. It's not even sweet in a way that I like and reminds me of candle wax."

Blue was skeptical of that, it couldn't possibly be true if Geno had just sat there and had a whole jar of the stuff. He sighed softly, "Maybe it's just you getting used to-"

"How long is it going to take me to get used to Dream's magic?" Geno cut Blue off with a glare, "Because I've been doing this for a few months now and I'm tired of not getting a proper explanation. What about Dream changes me? It can't possibly just be his magic that, that's impossible."

"Well you've been studying with Cross right, I thought he'd explain to you that-" Blue's voice suddenly became echoey and muted at the same time. He was singing but he was speaking, "So you never really get used to it but...it gets easier to deal with."

"What? I didn't understand what you said, could you repeat it?" Geno asked less curious and more afraid that something was just wrong with him.

Blue blinked slowly, but opened his mouth again. This time his words layered over each other and mixed together. Music left his mouth but it wasn't... something Geno could understand. It wasn't like a song either, more like chanting or a call? Once Blue was done speaking Geno got up out of his chair.

"Thanks, I'll try to talk with Dream to see what I can do about it." Geno responded like he understood, it didn't fool Blue in the slightest.

"Dream can't help you fix it, I just said that."

"....Yeah but maybe he has something to make it easier on me?" Geno said, quickly heading towards the living room, "Look, I'll just be back soon. Hopefully in time for dinner."

"Hm." Blue responded, knowing that even if he pressed Geno he wouldn't get much about it, "Take care of yourself while you're out. Make sure to drink water."

"I will! Love you, Blue thanks for talking with me." Geno then put on his shoes and headed out of the house quickly.

A flash on pain went through Blue's skull, and he rubbed his temples. He should have been able to handle this instead of Geno going to Dream. Being better about these things is what being a team is all about! A apart of him felt upset that Geno wouldn't just talk to him...he should push him more.

Maybe then Geno would see things his way and they could become closer.

#thoughts #headcannons

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wanou-dorm · 1 year ago

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DAC - Shizuke Toiyama

Name: Shizuke Toiyama

Name origin: It's basically. Meant to be Shin Kuze think Shin Godzilla you can interpret it as Shiro Kuze as Kuze is Black Rock Shooter

Twisted from: White Rock Shooter

Age: 19

Birthday : 13th of June

Hair color: White with Pink streak

Eye color: Pink

Build: Taller than Kuze I'll give him 180cm/5'10

Weapon: Scythe(That Can Transform into a Cannon) , Katana , Wings

————

School: Deaths Academy Of Combat

Dorm: Starnovelle

School year:Third Year

Class: 3-B

Clubs: Dance team , Gymnastics

Best Class : Tact and strategy

Worst Class: Lethal Poisons

Favorite Food : Strawberry Fruit roll ups, Macarons Least Favorite Food: Licorice

Likes: Singing , Dancing , Fighting , Writing Songs Kuze

Dislikes: Boredom , Crows, " That Green Guys keep looking at me weird", Alot of the Idol Industry , Dark, Muted Clothing

Unique Magic: World Maker- Allows Him to Body the Power Of his attack by Engulfing them in his Flame These Attacks also gain an effect that By pass Most Defensive Magics like say Kuze's Insane Devoler

Talent: Able to Switch between Scythe and Cannon faster than a Person be can blink,Sing, Dance, Gymnastics

Personality and Background :The Anomaly of Starnovelle , Unlike others in the Dorm , Shizuke stands out like a Sore thumb, While the Other look …Goth. Shizuke looks Straight out a Pop Concert though with merit He is a Popular Pop Idol called Eros,it was a dream for someone whom he lost .

Most people In Starnovelle dislike him for that Fact alone as well as his more Laid Back, often dismissive and Cheery Attitude couple with the Fact that he's Terrible at Communicating Feelings Properly(says he Used to have a Twin Brother who helped him with that so his Improvement at its Slowed down) ,He's a Curious individual ,who is often Bored by most people and unfortunately impulsive individual who seemed to just going along with Anything without thinking of repercussion.

However, it's this Lack of impulse Control that makes him Dangerous in Combat as He's way Smarter than he Looks and often More Dangerous In Combat as it leads him to doing very Unexpected things that no one would do .Its like Something just Snaps in his Mind and He starts Laughing like a Madman More Than Happy to be Fighting you and will often be Disgusted by people who he can Beat Easily( This technically isn't true he just can't Figure out to express his Disappointment so his only Response is to be Disgusted)

Trivia:

everyone in Starnovelle has suspected him to be related to the Dorm Leader , one thing people point out Kuze and Shizuke Um's , World Maker making Shizuke able to Pierce through Insane Devolers effect of let Kuze Handle anything attack thrown at him.

Also the Fact Shizuke shows even more Skin than Kuze and Laughs it off.

And the Fact that the cannon his Scythe turns into is similar to Kuze.

It's also been seen they can over Power each other to a Draw meaning hes on par with Kuze .And the Fact that Shizuke's Manage has Requested that His last name not be said out loud .

The Fact that He Brings up that his Brother was more Friendlier,Liked by everyone and better at knowing how to Communicate emotions and he Likes to hang around Kuze Alot .

The one thing that people try to bring up against the Kuze Relations is Skin Color and the Fact he says he has a Twin but Shizuke points out biracial Twins exists and that Thier Birth was on the Local News.

He's has some hatred towards Idol and Music Industry practices .

It's Unknown why he's so good at Fighting, Shizuke said he used to pick fight alot at school but unless You're Zeon but Shizuke doesn't Remember anything from the time his Twin died as he fell into a Deep Depression and when he started his Idol career it's Believed he was made into a Weapon for the War Zeon and Io were in at some point.

Shizuke's communication issue stem from the Manga , were Everything Started Due a Communication Error WRS trying to say Her Clones Were Cute but instinctive saying she would Eat them as she Nebladed most of them

Voice Claim: Kaeya from Genshin impact

Theme song :Yosabi- Idol

youtube

DAC- @deaths-academy-of-combat @rookvonhunt

Starnovelle- @fumikomiyasaki

#deaths academy of combat #twisted wonderland #disney twst #disney twisted wonderland #twst #twst fanschool #black rock shooter #Starnovelle #Youtube #Shizuke Toiyama

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respectthepetty · 2 months ago

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Pride Petty Watch (SOTUS) 4.5/5

I'm almost done watching my second blacklisted shows (Love in the Air and The Untamed are the others), but what was only supposed to be a five part rewatch for my former sworn enemy SOTUS has magically turned into six because the last half of this show is AMAZING! I suffered through four other parts to be here in this glorious moment (first, second, third, fourth), so what was supposed to be the fifth and final part is now two parts since I'm saving the finale for its own post.

I'm so fucking hype! LET'S GO!

The picture on Arthits vanity is of The Beatles and their song "HELP!" but I feel that image is speaking directly to me and Arthit because this queer crisis is hurting us both, and I need this boy to kiss another boy RIGHT NOW!

She dated Bright?! BRIGHT?! You know what? It makes sense. I would've done it to.

This awkward tension at the wedding is fucking delicious. Can't even stand next to each other without making it everyone's problem.

The fact that I forgot everything about this show even though this second half is doing everything I love is very telling of the fallout of the Krist bullshit. I'm not elaborating on that drama because if you know, you know, and if you try to gaslight me saying it never happened or try to defend him in retrospect, you can miss me with that bullshit, but in a way, I'm glad I forgot this show because I'm sitting here in 2024 losing my shit over Arthit grabbing Kong to stop him from walking away.

And making small talk about colors to keep Kong standing there because Arthit just needs Kong near him but can't sort his feelings out long enough to understand why he needs him. This is my special brand of drug.

And this is why confessions change things. Arthit can't just be nice to Kong anymore because it will give Kong hope. They can't be like before. Arthit can't have a friend because Kong doesn't want to be just friends. I am seated, sat, and sitted for this pink moment!

AND NOW WE ARE GETTING THE BRIDGE SCENE! Arthit is saying how awful he is and can't understand why Kong would like him, but baby, he likes you BECAUSE YOU ARE AWFUL! He likes that you yell at him. He likes that you push him around. He likes that you drink pink milk. HE LIKES YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE YOU!

Can he accept you?! Kong is the smartest boy in his class and possibly the school, and he wants to fuck you so badly that he looks stupid! So can he accept you?! BITCH, ALL HE WANTS IS YOU! HE IS LIVING AND BREATHING FOR YOU! HE DOES NOT EXIST IF YOU AREN'T TELLING HIM TO EXIST! KISS HIM ALREADY!

That Krist fallout involving kisses is popping back up to attack me and the show is trying to sell this kiss as something big with this background music (MUTE!), but I'm going to give it a pass because, in this moment, it works. Kong is surprised. The kiss is quick. Arthit is still reserved. I can work with this kiss under these conditions.

This entire sequence is saving the kiss moment. Kong is a puppy trying to play, and Arthit is not having it. My GIF is shitty, but the dynamic is elite!

And now Kong is fully embracing his BDE, and everyone in their friend group should know what's up because if I can feel the tension from my screen eight years later, they had to have felt the shift in the air in that hallway.

Kong drinking pink milk. Arthit trying iced coffee. Kong giving Arthit his heart. AND NOW ARTHIT IS GIVING HIS HEART TO KONG. My hair is shining. My skin is glowing. My immune system is thriving!

Yes, he did! It's their kink and they are embracing it. LET THEM LIVE!

Homophobe-to-homo Arthit understood this eight years ago, and some of y'all are still struggling with this today. Sorry I didn't recognize your evolution, King.

Singto and these damn eyes of his! This man can act, and I feel bad for his acting partners because they look weak in comparison to him, which is why He's Coming to Me is my number one Thai BL. Ohm and Singto were breaking my heart with just one glance, and here in this moment, Singto is telling me that Kong felt that icy shift from Arthit when he mentioned kids. The United States had barely implemented marriage equality the year before this, and now I'm in my feels all because Singto can fucking act.

And now that string bracelet is right there between them with Arthit saying Kong could take it off because IT'S DIRTY (break their bond because it's something bad), and Kong saying Arthit was the one who tied it (brought them together), and I NEED A DRINK BECAUSE I'M IN MY FEELINGS over eyes, marriage equality, and string bracelets.

I know I just wrote Singto can act, which implies Krist can't (and it's partially true and why I dislike him - I wrote what I wrote!), but Krist acting out Arthit's uncomfortableness when Prae sees them together is sitting in my throat in a way that makes me want to explode. He keeps shuffling back, crossing his arms, and looking away, until Prae asks if they came together, and even though Kong just said they were on a date, and even though Arthit was so happy about that, he immediately says NO and that they just randomly bumped into each other, and every queer in the audience is ready to breakdown over the trauma of our youth.

This episode is beating my ass on a Sunday while I was just trying to enjoy my tea. The barrier between them during this meal. The stunted conversation. All of it hurts, but what gets me the most is Arthit didn't switch his meal with Kong's. He didn't berate Kong for his 'baby food' choices. If Kong wasn't in pain before, he is definitely in it now because if there is one thing that Kong needs in this moment is reassurance that Arthit cares about him even if it's through punishment, yet Arthit is giving him nothing. Poor little masochist is really going through it at this table.

The way Arthit yelled at Kong to not touch him! This is so good. The second half of this show did not need to go so hard especially after that lackluster first half, yet here it is, giving me everything and more.

ARTHIT IS IN PINK! He is pink and telling his best friend that he likes a guy but doesn't want to ruin that guy's life because Kong is smart and handsome and could be with anybody, but Knot said what every BL boy needs to be reminded of is that Kong wouldn't be happy with anyone else but Arthit. Arthit cannot sacrifice himself when that would make neither of them happy. Arthit is exactly what Kong needs. Now go punish him so he knows you care.

Unlike Bright's casual use of "fag," this "queerbag" feels right. It's from one queer to another and it shows me that Arthit has accepted himself as a queer. Am I getting emotional over a man screaming "queerbag"? Yes.

Kong wrote Arthit a love letter where he states that he is disobedient, self-absorbed, and teases Arthit to the point that it stresses Arthit out, but only Arthit makes him happy, and the kink is staring me directly in my eyes. It is breathing down my neck. It is reaching into my soul. It is touching the deepest part of my heart, and I am in love with this!

The face that Kong (Singto) made when Arthit untied the string was the perfect way to punish this disobedient boy because two seconds later Arthit replaced it with matching bracelets and declared them as boyfriends in front of all his friends and God, and that's how you treat a masochist. That's the thrill you gotta give them. It's pain then pleasure.

I LOVE THIS FUCKING SHOW!

I love it so much that I'm excusing Kong's "I don't like men" because it feels right that he doesn't like men, only Arthit. Once again, watching this from a kinky lens has changed the way I view this plot. Before, I saw it as a BL and this felt like a cop-out, but now it makes sense that he doesn't like anyone. He only likes the one person who reprimands him and rewards him.

He is a dog, and I mean that with all the affection in my entire body.

Much better kiss. The first kiss was a test. The second kiss was a promise.

The smile after the kiss and the way Arthit scrunches up his body to be smaller because he is shy. My heart is exploding. I'm dying. I'm dead. I've died. Deceased.

I did not remember that Arthit spoke to Kong when he was applying to schools and convinced him to stick with engineering. This is so Thai BL of them, but I have no energy to complain about it because Arthit finding his home and queerness in a safe place and giving that to Kong is what I'm taking away from this.

Now to the finale and my final thoughts.

#pride petty watch #sotus #sotus the series #I love this show #it only took eight episodes to get here #but now that I'm in it‚ I'm IN it #I'm invested in this kinky relationship

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bwsdragon · 1 year ago

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I’ve seen your twitter works of your oc’s; Celeste, Christopher, Suniki, ect. And they look EPIC AND AMAZING AND PHENOMENAL AND FANTASTIC AND AAAAAHHHH, SO GOOD!!!!

I need to know everything about your oc’s and if they have stories and thier inspo and everything! What do you use for art, where do you come up with oc ideas, do you write, how did you start drawing because YOURE SO GOOOOOOD!! AAAHHH, I’m OBSESSED!!!

OH MY GOD THANK YOU SO MUCH AHHH <33333333

Gosh I have too much to say. First the easy questions! I use Clip studio paint pro, and an ipad pro 12 inch (2020 edition I think)! And yes I do write! Like once in a blue moon though haha, I much prefer to draw, and most of the time I update the lore so quickly the writing doesn't make sense anymore hahaa

Inspo is a lot, at first it was Percy Jackson and RWBY but that was a long time ago. Now I'd say the plot is more inspired my Puella Magi Madoka Magica (anime). Characters themselves I'm not too sure, just a lot of everything. They've lived in my head for so many years I can't put anything for definite down on paper for inspo haha.

First i'd have to introduce Celeste and Cassandra, who are my main character you could call it. Celeste is Queen of Feu (desert Kingdom in my world), she's very focused on helping others and is selfless to a fault. She is very anxious though, and she has autism (very heavily based off my own). She has the gift of plant manipulation and summoning! Celeste is a Lesbian and is asexual! Her and Cas are in a relationship. Celeste's father died when she was young, and her sister committed a couple years later, her mother is still alive though (although Cas's family spend their time trying to wipe out the whole family)

Then you have Cassandra! Cas is very closed off, she's very cold to everyone outside Celeste and Suniki. She's more selfish, but to an extent, she's based off Homura from Madoka. She came from an awful family, and made a deal with a God, receiving time magic. Her magic is very linear though, its like unravelling a thread, she draws herself back to a point, erasing what has happened. She can't go forward, only backwards. She also can't rewind to a time before she received the magic. She fell in love with Celeste and her whole goal (similar to Homura) is to save Celeste from dying. She's the most complicated of my characters. Cassandra is demi romantic. She has an insane back story, but I'll explain that another time maybe haha it's too much

Next there's Suniki! She's Celeste best friend, she grew up with Celeste. She also ends up being quite good friends with Cas. She moved into the castle when she was a kid, due to her stepfather gaining a high position, right after her mother pasted. She's very upbeat and energetic, and she loves a good laugh. She's bi and poly, and has two partners Edris and Onyx! Suniki has a fire summoning and manip gift! Her back story is inspired from the song dead mom from beetlejuice haha

Then we have Christopher. He's.. I'll say he's very morally grey. He's not a villian or evil, he's just bitter and was raised in bad circumstances. Cassandra tends to beef with him a lot, due to him in previous timelines being the one to harm, or kill Celeste. Chris doesn't like the royals, or anyone who lives in the castle, due to his perseption of them. He was poor, and any money they received to help with that, his mother spent on booze. Chris was hired by the castle though, he needed the money so he accepted the job, and it got him out of the place he lived, out of his mother's life. He has the power to manipulate the body, making him an excellent healer (but also making him good at killing). He has a younger sister named Angel who is selectively mute. He's aroace (the couldn't be less intrested kind)

Then we have some side characters! I won't go into too much detail. But we got Onyx, he's blind but has the power of a perfect memory. He has a guide dog named ilay (eye-lay). And we also have Edris! Edris is cousin to Celeste. He's genderfluid and uses he/she pronouns. She has the power of water manipulation

I have so many other characters that you might see me post. Like people from Celestes family, or even Cas's. There are too many details to write in one post hahaha

Thank you so much for your kind words!!! It makes me so happy when people are interested in my OCs :))))))))

Also for how I started drawing. I picked up a pencil and obsesivly drew dragons for three years, then i made human OCs and drew them obsessively, that and fanart. Haha. It's a lot of work, art is so hard, and I can't be bothered studying so my anatomy is kinda eh, but I enjoy it and that's all that matters :))))) I'm no where near where I want to be, but that's okay, because I'll continue to improve, even if it's slow :)))))

#bwsdragon art #oc #original character #original content

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jacke-12 · 2 years ago

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Hunter (1998) - Björk

Genre: art pop, electronica, baroque pop

Peak position on US Billboard Hot 100: n/a (but 44 on UK Singles chart)

Björk is one of the most unique and exciting artists of all time. She's also one of my personal favourites; I can't get enough of her idiosyncratic and unimitable vocals. This isn't necessarily what makes "Hunter", the opener from the excellent Homogenic, so fantastic, but still it is maybe my favourite from that album, which is really saying something.

Björk is often effective on an emotional level (see the deliciously angry "5 Years" later in the album) but this is a very different kind of Björk song, with her singing sounding very cold, even threatening. (Having said this, the bridge is an exception, where the song opens out briefly into some gorgeous multi-tracked vocals. Some of the best music moments ever are when Björk belts out her singing like this.) The magic of the song lies more in the eerie soundscape it creates. A lot of credit goes to the producer Mark Bell here, because he manages to make this heavily electronic piece of music feel evocative of being in nature, even of being hunted. Something about the way Björk's voice echoes conjures up the image to me of being in some woods somewhere, her voice nearby but without indication of where it is coming from. It feels like when you're scared and on your own and suddenly you think the threat is surrounding you and present in even the most common sounds - like those haunting backing "oooo"s representing wind in my mind's eye. And it helps that the music itself is strange and slightly unnerving, with the muted, pulsating drum machines, the synths that sound as though they're being played in reverse, and, perhaps most effectively, the very cinematic but menacing backing from the string octet, with those two repeating notes the cellos (?) play reminding me a little of John Williams' Jaws theme. Everything sounds like a warning that you are in danger.

The intriguing lyrics also add an element of mystery to the song, since they are almost impenetrable and it is never quite clear to me what she means by any of it. It seems like they've been analysed by many people, including Björk herself (whose great explanation of the seeming non sequitur "I thought I could organise freedom / How Scandinavian of me" is that it is basically an inside joke amongst Icelandic people that Scandinavian people are too organised). I prefer to leave it unanalysed - I like not knowing what she is hunting, and why. It is like a cold open to a film, where it will all later be explained, and I suppose in a way it is just that, being the first track on the album.

I highly recommend the music video too. It sounds terrible when you describe it (she gradually turns into a bad special effect bear - the one on the single cover), but it is very well done and matches the surrealness of the song perfectly. It is an underrated music video, as is the song as a whole - sure, it is well liked by fans, but this is one of her very very best and it deserves to have that status.

#music #music history #music review #pop #song review #favourite songs #bjork #homogenic #art pop #baroque pop #electronic #Spotify

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cruelprincae · 1 year ago

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As the brunette bursts into a fit of laughter, Cardan's eyes widen ever-so-slightly in surprise adoration; the sound is warm and bubbly, and it reminds him an awful lot of the wild rivers coursing through the heart of Elfhame as one travels through them. It reminds him of home and if there was a way that he could bottle it up and get drunk on it night after night as though it was made of faerie fruit, then he would have done it ― but alas, such is implausible even for Faeries and so, the Prince finds comfort in hearing it play before him and wishing it could go on for just a little while longer. And just as Bill's laugh is bright, he soon realises it is also contagious for his own gloss-painted lips part to let out a light-hearted ( albeit brief ) chuckle; perhaps the first time he finds himself laughing since the slaughter of his family on his brother's coronation day. It's hoarse and rough around the edges, nowhere near as bright as Bill's but it's welcomed nonetheless.

❛ As a child, I was taught that wearing your heart on your sleeve is less of an asset and more of a weakness. ❜ Answers the Fae as he wipes the cut grass from his hair, as his laughter fades into a crooked smile. It was something his older brother, Dain, exploited to manipulate their father so Cardan would be disfavored for the crown, and later on, what Balekin used to punish him with iron lashes which sometimes still echo in his ears and make him flinch. As a result, the youngest Greenbriar learned how to dance around words, how to spin them in his favor, and although he doubts Bill's questions have an ulterior motive much like his sibling's, he has worn his armor for so long that now, it feels near impossible to navigate without.

❛ This world is a cruel place and I expect very little from it. ❜ Blinking from the deepest blue of the sky where he finds himself to be staring, black eyes move to meet the vibrant blue before he adds; ❛ You appear to be the exception to that rule. But this is a complicated story and sometimes, humans wanting to know something doesn't equivalate to them being ready to hear it. On top of that, you appear to be extremely intoxicated and I've read in go-gles that the chances of you remembering anything that we've said today are extremely slim. ❜

He studies the boy beside him for a long moment, searching his features for any indication of a reaction to his words. Still, all he can see is excitement as the questions fire up one after the other, all surrounding magic and his abilities and Cardan can almost feel his heart clenching within his chest with nearly every breath he draws as if an invisible hand is squeezing it within its grip.

❛ I can enchant people to do my bidding. ❜ He answers truthfully, for he can't see how this piece of information could result to anything other than to satisfy the human boy's curiosity. He shivers at the memory of the glamoured servants in his brother's estate and remembers being unnerved by the vacant, dream-like expressions they wore ― he still is. ❛ But I've never done so. In contrast to what people think of me, I don't relish hurting others. ❜

❛ Although the common Folk can glamour and train themselves to study the stars for future predictions, ❜ Cardan continues, ❛ Faes born in the royal line, such as myself, possess powers that tell them apart from the others. My sister, Rhyia, had a talent for hunting and my other sister, Elowyn, could make anything, from songs to art, come to life. I am. . .not quite sure what mine is. I don't know if I have any, to begin with. ❜ As the palm of his hand comes to press against the muted grass, The Fae can swear he can feel the land vibrate from all around him ― the leaves sway in a non-existing breeze, and the grass feels extra ticklish beneath his fingertips. The feeling was stronger when he was in Elfhame, where the earth has a mind and a life of its own; when he would get drunk under the night sky, he had the impression that the colours around him were more vibrant, more alive. The branches would dance along in the breeze, almost like all the land swayed along with him but as his mind cleared, he would blame It all on the influence the Faerie fruit had on his mind. Why wouldn't he ? Since he was told a plethora of times that he was an inconsequential Prince with no real worth, Cardan had reached a point where he had stopped trying to harness whatever power he had, instead relying on the ones he could use, with cunning and cruelty being the ones he had mastered.

❛ My brother used to say that's because my father had me when he was old and weak. Perhaps that's the case. ❜ With a shrug of his shoulders, Cardan then rolls to his side and looks at the writer through his long, dark lashes before prompting his jaw upon the back of his hand, to support himself in the elevated height. It is certainly easier to open up when he knows none of what he has just said would stick the following day. But himself would still remember. ❛ I've read humans can do magic too. Can you do anything ? Other than your extraordinary ability to judge me, that is. ❜

Bill's favourite season had always been fall. Even when he was a kid and summer was the most freedom that they got to experience, fall was still the best if you asked him. Right now, however, laying in the slowly fading sunlight that shone over the grass, warming them, he could make a pretty good case for spring. Something about those cold months of winter surrounded by snow and ice giving way to the sun made it feel that much warmer. If he didn't know that the temperature would drop overnight, and that it would turn dangerous once the light faded completely, he'd sleep right here happily.

Cardan's question had him laughing brightly almost immediately, straight teeth gleaming white, blue eyes dancing with mirth. "No one works that hard to avoid saying what they mean if they don't have anything to hide," Bill explained, grinning over at the Fae. He didn't think he had ever spoken in as many circles as Cardan seemed to on a regular basis. Doing everything he could to confuse him, throw him off, distract him, whatever it was to keep from having to reply. Mostly, Bill just let it go, but the prince had to know he wasn't being subtle.

His nose wrinkled as the soft blades of grass landed on his skin in gentle, almost ticklish, touches, his smile softening from the amusement just a little. More fond, and a little peaceful. Lips then came together to blow as much of the grass off his face as he could, far too drunk and comfortable to move just yet.

"I always thought words were magic," Bill mused, voice soft as a yawn crept in. "Do you have any other magic?" He asked, fingers plucking some of the grass that remained on him and dropping it into Cardan's curls. "Can you like, read minds or something? See the future?" The questions were more personal than the Faerie probably knew. Or would ever know. Only one of them seemed interested in knowing things about the other, after all.

#scribedhorror #( 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐧 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐥𝐟𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐞 ┊ main au )#idk what this is i'm tired rip

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