#like when i was a kid i used to write letters as a knight all the time

[good--merits-accumulated]

John Steinbeck's dedication to his sister Marie in The Acts of King Arthur............

[nellielsss]

+†+🪦 A Pɾσρҽɾ Bʅαƈƙ Bυʅʅ Wҽʅƈσɱҽ!

Summary: when you date a Magic Knight Captain, it's only a matter of time until you meet their Knights! A/N: just some fluff for Yami! I tried to include as many characters as I could but I'm still getting used to writing multiple chars in one scene. Pairing: Yami Sukehiro x fem!reader CW: swearing, suggestive jokes

╰┈➤ "Is this really where Suke lives?" you asked nobody as you approached his base. "He's always told me not to visit, but this place is just... creepy. Still, I feel bad for making him visit me all the time. Why not pay him a surprise visit?"

You had been dating the famed Captain of the Black Bulls, Yami Sukehiro, for a few months--4 to be exact--and things were starting to get serious with him.

But they were never serious enough for you to meet his squad.

Sure, you had seen them in passing, tagging along with him on missions, but you've never met the Black Bulls in person. It was like they were his kids that he never wanted you to meet for whatever reason. Whenever you tried to ask him if you could meet them, he'd always say: "Nah, not happening. I don't need you meeting those knuckleheads; they'd probably blabber some stupid story and scare you off, and I don't need that."

For the better part, he actually made the effort to go and see you wherever you were. He'd venture as many miles as needed in order to do so. He also just never introduced you to the public in general because he was scared of someone going after you for a vendetta or revenge against Yami (he was a man with many enemies, after all). So, he was content with just going on private dates in secluded bars or spending the night at your place. Any chance he could take to spend time with you, he'd snatch it right up.

Why did you venture to the secretive Black Bulls hideout in the first place? Well, Yami had been busy with training for a while. The missions were swamping him, and his efforts to keep the devils at bay were, inadvertently, keeping your relationship at bay as well. He never had any time to leave the hideout unless it was to go on a mission or to an official summons, and because you were basically forbidden from going to HQ, it meant all you could do was communicate via letters.

And you were sick and tired of it.

You were an impatient girl. You didn't like being basically banned from seeing your boyfriend, no matter how legitimate his causes or concerns were.

You haven't had dick in ages--you were starting to lose feeling down there!! And lord knows his dick was good, so good it left you unable to walk on several occasions.

But you weren't there just to fuck him (although it was a big bonus of dating him); you were there to mend your little broken heart.

So, that's how you wound up on their doorstep. You went at a time which you knew it'd be empty, so you were sure you wouldn't have to meet those bulls. Even if he, himself, was out, you could just wait in his room as a little welcome home surprise.

"I don't suppose I have to knock before entering," you muttered, grabbing the latch of the door and opening the giant wooden slab. Just as you'd expected: the place was empty. Not a peep to be heard throughout the entire tower of oddly shaped rooms and windows that were jutting out of the wrong places.

"Well, this sure ain't too bad. I thought it'd be in ruins by the way Suke described it," you thought to yourself. As you stepped on the cobblestone floors and ventured inside the place, you took note of it. It had a certain charm to it, like a cozy tavern you'd seek refuge from a storm in. There were torches lit up by mana, different flags hanging from the walls, and a big bar in the left side of the room. "If he wasn't so protective of me, I could imagine myself living here with him..."

"Hello... who are... you?" a ghostly voice suddenly said from the hallway.

"Gah! Wait- is it seriously haunted? Was Sukehiro telling me the truth this whole time?!" You immediately hid behind a couch when you saw the mint-haired man standing there.

"I'm... not... a... ghost! I... keep... this... place... running," the ghost said.

"Are you sure? Because you certainly don't look too- gah!" this time, you were surprised to feel that all your mana was being drained from you, simply by being close to the man.

"I'm.. sorry... I... drain... people's... mana... on... accident. Don't... stand... too... close."

"Figured as much," you muttered, somehow able to break free from the man's mana pull. "I knew I shouldn't have come here... I thought all of you would be out for the day."

"You... didn't... answer... my... question. Who... are... you?"

"Oh, right... sorry about that," you said, rubbing the back of your neck, "I'm, uh... I'm Captain Yami's girlfriend. I came here hoping that none of you would be around, but it seems as though I made a mistake. I thought all of you would be on missions for sure!"

The man's ghostly face lit up in surprise when he realized who you were. "Oh! I... know... you... or, at least... I've... heard... of you... Captain Yami's... always... talking... about... some girl... who... he's... been... dating. We all... just... thought... that he... was... lying."

"You seriously thought that he was lying?" you asked in disbelief. "Then again, he is an acquired taste... Anyway, what's your name?"

"My... name's... Henry. I... don't... go on... missions... because... I'm... too... weak, and I'm... bound... to... this... house."

"Too weak?" you asked, feeling a bit sorry for the guy. "Jeez, that must suck. Anyway, Henry, nice to meet you- ahhh!!" he started draining your mana on accident again and you pulled away.

"Sorry..."

"It's fine, Henry; I forgot about your little quirk," you reassured him with a wave of the hand.

"You're... really... pretty. Too... pretty... to... be... dating the... Captain," Henry remarked, making you snicker.

"Well, thank you, Henry! Yeah, you probably couldn't picture him and I together, if I'm being honest. I guess I just have a thing for oblivious brutes," you giggled, making him smile in return. "Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell Captain Yami about my impromptu appearance; he doesn't want me hanging around you guys. Somethin' about 'putting me in danger'? As if I could be put in danger," you remarked rather confidently. "I'm not really the type to submit to his wishes all that easily, but he seemed pretty serious about keeping our relationship under wraps. If you don't mind me, I'll be on my merry way-"

"Wait...! The... others... are... supposed to be... back... soon! You'll... get... caught... if you... don't... hide!" Henry warned you suddenly.

"H-Huh? Really?!" you asked him, already freaking out.

As if on cue, you could hear several voices chattering from the other side of the door, and you looked around in panic, trying to find a hiding spot. Henry was blocking the hallway, and if you got too close to him, you'd probably faint on the spot. You tried to hide behind the bar, only for the door to literally break down as the rowdy Black Bulls made their way home. You knew they were loud, but you didn't know that they were the type to break down doors! At the sight of the bunch, you instinctively froze up in fear, akin to a deer in headlights. You ducked for the nearest couch, hoping that they'd choose to go in the opposite direction.

"Did you guys see the way I took that guy down?! It was awesome! I totally surpassed my limits out there!!" A rather enthusiastic, short boy said to the others. That must've been Asta: the anti-magic user.

"You were pretty good out there--not that I'm complimenting you or anything! I'm still royalty compared to you," a similarly short girl with silver hair said. Based on how she was jabbing the boy with her words, that was probably Noelle.

"Just you wait, Asta--I'm gonna get stronger than you!" another guy with a mohawk and glasses said. Magna, if you weren't mistaken.

"I'd like to see you try to get stronger than him! If you do, then I'll spar with you until I get even stronger!" a blonde boy with a psychopathic smile quipped. Luck.

"Just don't go around breaking shit, okay, you numbskulls?" your oh-so handsome boyfriend Yami Sukehiro sighed. "We don't have the money to keep repairing the damage you guys cause."

"I'm going to go worship my sister, Marie," a guy with an apparent sister complex said: Gauche, to be precise.

"What a weirdo," you said to yourself. A few of their heads turned in the direction of your voice, and you hid your entire body behind the couch.

"What was that?"

"Whatever it was, it was telling the truth."

"If you boys don't mind, I'm gonna go have a drink at the bar!" a female voice said, her words already slurred.

"Aren't you already drunk, Vanessa?" another guy asked the witch.

"What's one more drink, Finral? You should come join me!" she replied. You quickly realized you were in deep shit when you remembered that the couch you were hiding behind was right next to the bar.

Well, this is the end, you thought. There was no way you could hide from these guys now. Even if you tried to make a run for it, your boyfriend was right there, and he'd probably teach you a lesson!!

You braced yourself for when the witch, Vanessa, would see you... which was right at that moment. "Umm, guys? Why is there a stranger hiding behind our couch?"

Your eyes shot open in fear, and you looked up at the girl, your face red with embarrassment. "Vanessa, what are you talking about? Are you seriously seeing things?- Oh, hubba, hubba!" the guy named Finral said once he saw you. "If I knew that cute girls would be sneaking into our hideout, I'd leave the door unlocked more often!"

One by one, all the Black Bulls clamored around the couch, wondering who, exactly, the two were talking about. They were all in wonder until Yami came over. Oh, how you dreaded this from the moment you walked in...

"(Y/N)--what the hell are you doing in my base?!" said boyfriend asked, making you flinch with how loudly he asked that question.

"Heh... hi, Suke," you said quietly, only for the man to pick you up by the scruff of your collar and make you stand up.

"Wait, do you actually know that girl, Captain Yami?" Finral asked the man.

"He sure does..." you said meekly.

"Yeah, I do," he sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "Great, this is just what I needed: my Bulls slobbering all over my girlfriend..."

"Did you just say GIRLFRIEND?!" all of them asked in unison.

"I guess there's no time like the present," the man finally relented. Yami stopped pinching his nose and instead wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling you next to him. "Everyone, this is my girlfriend of four months."

"GIRLFRIEND OF FOUR MONTHS?!"

"I didn't even know a woman could stand to be in your presence, let alone for that amount of time!" Noelle exclaimed.

"So, you mean to tell me that you bagged a babe like her?! Captain, you need to give me your secrets!!!" Finral said, practically on the verge of losing it at this revelation.

"Don't call my girlfriend a babe, pipsqueak!"

"THIS IS SO COOL!! SO YOU MEAN TO TELL US THAT YOU WEREN'T LYING ABOUT HAVING A GIRLFRIEND ALL THIS TIME?!" Asta exclaimed, his voice drowning out everyone else's questions. "PLEASED TO MAKE YOUR ACQUAINTANCE, MA'AM--MY NAME IS ASTA AND I'M FROM HAGE VILLAGE, AND YOU ARE VERY BEAUTIFUL!!"

"Stop yelling in my girlfriend's ear, are you trying to make her go deaf?!" Yami asked Asta before grabbing his lips and shutting him up forcefully.

"Would you like to spar with me?!" Luck asked, way too enthusiastically for his own good.

"How about a drink?" Vanessa asked.

"A nice, warm meal would be a great welcome for her!" Charmy proposed.

"I don't care if you're Yami's girlfriend: if you touch my sister Marie, I'll kick your ass," Gauche threatened you directly.

"Creep..." Yami muttered. "For the love of the Wizard King, all of you get off of her and stop harassing her with all your questions!!" he barked, now pissed off at the situation.

"Yes, Captain Yami, sir," all of them said, piping down finally.

"This is exactly why I didn't introduce her to all of you; none of you know how to act properly!" Yami yelled again, this time gritting his teeth in anger. You could tell he was getting riled up, so you put your hand on his chest and silently told him to calm down. His frustrated expression settled down to a simple frown, and he offered you a tiny smile. "Sorry, princess."

"I've never seen someone rein him in so easily," one of the bulls remarked in wonder.

"It's clear that Yami appreciates this woman and that we should treat her with the same respect with which we'd treat one of our own," Gordon whispered. Everyone still side-eyed him for how quiet he was being.

Yami took a deep breath and faced his subordinates again. "Anyway, this is my girlfriend of 4 months: (Y/N) (L/N). I expect all of you to treat her with the same respect you'd treat me, just as Gordon said." Everyone nodded, and for once he didn't feel like bashing their heads in.

"Captain Yami, if you don't mind me asking: how come we haven't met her before if she's so important to you?" one of them asked this time.

"Because, if I introduced her to all of you, one of you would blabber your mouths, and then word would get out that I had a girlfriend. That would put her in some serious danger, considering how many foes we face and enemies we have," Yami explained--and quite calmly at that. "And I like keeping my personal life separate from my life as Captain. I don't want the two to intermingle, even if both lives are equally important to me."

"I guess that makes sense..."

You decided that it was your turn to speak: "truth be told, Suke's always been so overprotective of me. He thinks I'm some delicate little flower who needs to be guarded at all costs, even if I'm a stage 0 mage. It's honestly ironic, considering how his type is strong women," you added with a giggle.

"Well, I can't let you get hurt because of me, princess," he said to you quietly. "Even if you are strong, there's always the chance that someone might go looking for you."

"Look at him, he's so protective of her! It's honestly kinda cute," Vanessa remarked, taking another sip of her drink. Yami merely glared at her before looking at all of them again.

"How come she found out about the base if you're so protective of her? Isn't its location supposed to be private?"

This was a question meant for you, it seemed, even if it was directed at Yami. "Well... your horse and buggy's a little quick to give up information if you're pretty enough," you giggled mischievously, playing with your hair as if you were innocent.

"Finral!" Yami said through gritted teeth.

"I-I just figured she was curious!" the boy said, trembling at the possibility of being punished by their Captain.

"I guess I just have my ways," you giggled again. "I couldn't stay away from my boyfriend for too long, not when I have needs!" you shot a wink at Yami, and all he could do was blush in place.

"I don't even wanna know what those needs are..."

"Don't speak of such things around my sister, Marie," Gauche quipped, making you furrow your brow.

"She's not even here--that's a picture you're holding!!"

"She's here in spirit."

"Stop starting fights when we have guests," Noelle interjected, being the voice of reason for once. She then decided to ask you a question. "So, I simply have to know: what possessed you to date the man for four months? From what I've seen, he's not the most perceptive man out there!"

"Noelle, you can't just say that about our captain in front of his girlfriend!" Asta said to Noelle.

She huffed in response. "As if you'd be any better!!"

"Slander my name to her like that and I'll kill both of you," Yami threatened them, making them both jump.

"But I didn't even do anything wrong!" Asta whined defensively.

"To be honest," you started, making everyone look at you again. "I was the one who initially had a crush on him. I know he's not everyone's type, but he sure is mine. Anyway, it was kinda hard getting him to notice my feelings for him. In the end, all it took was for me to simply confess my feelings for him and hope that he'd reciprocate them! And Suke may not look like the boyfriend type, but he's actually the most caring and considerate man I've ever met; he just doesn't show any of you that side... At least, not as forwardly as he does to to me."

Noelle thought about your words, and she couldn't exactly do anything but take your word for it. "If you say so... But, I still just don't get it! You're so... pink, and he's so... whatever he is!"

"Well, everyone has their type," you shrugged.

"But, how do you deal with his bowel issues?"

"Noelle!"

You couldn't help but giggle at her question. "By buying extra toilet paper, of course!"

"(Y/N)..." Yami trailed off, embarrassed by the topic. "All of you: bowel issues are no laughing matter! I go through battles every single day in that room."

"Yeah, we know."

After the Black Bulls laughed at your little statements, he decided to move on to the next part: "alright, enough of a Q&A session. Since you came all this way, I'd imagine you'd be staying over for dinner?"

Your stomach growled in response to his question. "Oh, yes, please. I'm starving--this place is so far from the nearest town!"

"Not to worry, my fair lady!" Charmy suddenly said, standing up on the table. "Chef Charmy here will cook up an amazing feast to welcome you to our humble abode!"

You looked at Charmy and then at Yami. "Can the half-dwarf really do that--cook well?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised. Her food is rich with mana."

"Fear not," Charmy repeated, "for you deserve a proper Black Bull welcome!"

Just as Yami promised you: Charmy cooked up a feast fit for several kings from far away lands and then some. Her cotton magic combined with her food magic made for plenty of meals and dishes to go around, and, although simplistic in their nature, each meal left you wanting more.

You were, of course, seated beside your boyfriend Yami (you were almost touching him), and the pink-haired witch, Vanessa, decided to sit on the other side. "You simply must try this drink, (Y/N)!"

"Oh, I don't drink much, but thanks for the offer," you said. Your efforts were in vain, seeing as she had already filled your cup.

"Don't overdo it, princess. I don't want you stumbling about the place. Y'know, since you can't really handle your liquor," Yami warned you.

"I'll try not to, Suke."

After filling up your cup, Vanessa decided to ask you a boatload of questions, as did all the other Black Bulls. Asta asked you about your family back at home; Vanessa asked you about your relationship; Luck asked you about your fighting skills; Gordon asked if he could be your friend (and make a doll that resembled you?); etc. All the other Bulls asked you unique questions that were different according to their personalities and interests, and you were happily to answer all of them. It wasn't everyday that you got to talk about your wonderful relationship!

As the night settled down, though, a certain personal question was asked by a certain witch who was to your right. "So, (Y/N), I hope you don't mind me asking you this, but... are you happy in your relationship?" It was on brand for the witch, considering that she liked to talk about relationships and was also quite drunk.

"Vanessa, don't ask those kinds of questions," Yami warned the witch. "You've just met her-"

You answered it, though, regardless of how personal it was. Maybe it was the alcohol that opened you up more, but you gave her a smile and said: "more than you could imagine, Vanessa. Suke makes me happy in ways I cannot imagine. Brash as he might be, he still cares for me, and I can see that he also cares about the lot of you in his own special way. You're his family, after all; I'm just the lucky girl who he chose to open up to." It was more than you intended to say, but it got the point across pretty well. You took another sip of your drink, unaware of the way that they looked at you.

"Wow, that's... I sure am glad that you're happy!" Vanessa exclaimed, throwing her arm around your shoulder (and almost falling out of her chair).

"We all are, (Y/N)," Noelle also said with a slight smile.

"We might've just met you, but if you're a friend of Captain Yami's, then you're a friend of ours!" Asta exclaimed.

"I hope we can be great friends," Gordon whispered.

With each praise, each remark of approval, you couldn't help but smile at them. Truth be told, you'd been longing for a group of people who you could call home. Much like Noelle, you, too, had been shunned by your family for reasons you couldn't explain. Yami had been your lighthouse, your guiding rock all this time, but the idea that there was a whole other group out there who you could lean on for support kept your spirits up.

You might've just met them, but you already felt at home.

"Welcome to the fold, kid," Yami muttered into your ear before kissing the skin behind it.

Now that dinner was all cleaned up and over with, the two of you retired to Yami's bedroom. He shut the door behind him quietly, breathing a sigh of relief. "(Y/N), you have no idea the heart attack you almost gave me back there." Although he let the stoic mask drop and be replaced by the softness that he showed you, he still couldn't help but scold you. "Seriously--I wasn't prepared to introduce you to all of them."

"I didn't mean to surprise you like that, I just... look, I planned on sneaking in and going to your room and surprising you there. I wanted to see you--you've been so busy these past few weeks! I really didn't mean to meet them so early," you said, taking your earrings off and putting them on the nightstand.

Yami took the opportunity to sneak behind you and wrap his arms around your body. "I know I've been busy, princess; I would've snuck you in if you asked me to, though."

"I was impatient, Suke. You know how long those letters take to deliver; I wanted to see you today."

He didn't scold you; rather, he chuckled deeply and pressed his lips to the top of your head. "Well, aren't you an impatient princess?"

"You gave me that title, Sukehiro," you quipped, making him chuckle again.

"I guess I did."

After a few moments of silence, and after you'd taken your jewelry off, he took the opportunity to hug you tighter and let his lips travel down your neck. "Well, since you're here... I might as well get that loving in, hmm?"

"You might as well," you quipped. You stopped talking, instead letting him kiss your neck and your shoulder. You were so small in his arms--like a goddamn kitten! Even though you were strong, confident & fierce in your daily life, when you were with your beloved, you were like putty in his big hands, reduced to mush in a matter of moments.

"Good god, woman, I've missed you," he growled, letting his big hand trail up your shirt. "You have no idea how hard it was to resist the urge to just drop everything and come running to you."

"That's no way for a Magic Knight Captain to behave," you teased him, making him spank your ass out of annoyance.

"I know, princess." He went back to kissing your exposed shoulder and decided to take it a step further. "Turn around for me, baby," he rasped into your ear. You obliged happily, turning around to face your boyfriend. "That's more like it," he said, cracking a smile before attacking your lips. His chapped, rough lips kissed your much softer & sweeter ones, his tongue intermingling with yours and tasting the sweetness of your mouth. "Missed this... the way your lips taste," he whispered, angling your head so he could kiss you deeper.

"Missed yours, too," you murmured to which he raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't you say I smelled like cigarettes and beer?"

"That was before I made you quit all that shit. Now, shut up and kiss me," you said before diving in again.

"As you wish." He spun you guys around so that he was sitting on the bed and you were in between his legs. "What're you standing there for? Sit on my lap, sweetheart." You happily obliged and straddled his hips, letting the man pull you in for another deep, passionate kiss. His wandering hands trailed up and down your sides until he finally decided to peel off your shirt.

"Suke, it's cold," you whined.

"Then lemme heat you up," he rasped, continuing to let his hands run amok. Every time he got his hands on your soft, supple skin, he felt his heart skip a beat. You were just so goddamn perfect for him--you were like an angel, sent to keep him tamed. He trailed kisses down your neck and to your chest, kissing and biting at the soft fat of your breasts. "Mind if I take this thing off?" he asked, sticking a finger underneath the clasp of your bra.

"Only if you take this off," you quipped, peeling your boyfriend's tank top off, giving you access to those sweet muscles that you were so incredibly attracted to.

"Like what you see?" he rumbled with a cocky grin on his face.

"More than you could imagine," you giggled, pushing him back onto the bed and earning a spank from the brute's big hand.

"Come here and give your man some loving, hmm? He's missed having you in his bed."

You promptly requested a change of squad the next day. The Crimson Lion Kings would understand.

Bσɳυʂ ʂƈҽɳҽ: Nαƈԋƚ Fαυʂƚ! ⋆♱✮♱⋆

"So, this is the girlfriend I've been hearing so much about, Captain Yami?" the man, who was his vice-captain, asked him. It was a rare occurrence for him to leave the shadow realm and go back to HQ, but when he heard that his old friend of so many years had gotten himself a girlfriend, he couldn't resist the urge to meet you. His eyes flickered from Yami to you, and you felt like they were staring into your soul.

"Yeah, this is her: (Y/N), (L/N). Try not to scare her off and say anything bad about me, 'kay?" Yami asked of the young man.

Nacht offered you a smile and even outstretched his hand from his coat. "Pleased to meet you, my name is Nacht Faust. I was wondering when Captain Yami would find someone who'd put up with his antics," he said, surprisingly friendly for how reserved he seemed.

"Do I really have that kinda reputation?!"

"Yes, you do."

"Um... nice to meet you as well," you replied, unsure if you should be scared of him or be glad he was so friendly.

"Anyway, I should get going. I can't exactly stand to be around your boyfriend for so long," he said in that eerily calm voice before slinking back into a shadow. "It was nice to meet you again!"

"Yeah, it was..." you trailed off as the man disappeared into the shadowy side of that wall. "Is he always like that?"

"He's usually worse," Yami sighed. "Anyway, let's go back to bed. I'm tired."

"But it's 3 pm!" you protested. He merely scoffed and threw you over his shoulder. "Hey, put me down!!"

"Does it look like I care? I'll cuddle my girlfriend anytime of the day I want."

© ʙʀᴜɴᴇᴛᴛᴇ-ʙɪᴛᴄʜ77 on tumblr - get your own shit bitches | ca. 7/1/2024

[shadovvheart]

new inky just dropped ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

Her name is Lorraine, she's an innovator and reformer, a science wizard enchanter with an interest in inventing new practical ways of applying magic for everyday use to "serve man". A devoted andrastian with some religious trauma (tm) who thinks the circle institution under the chantry is outdated and needs to be changed.

She's reserved, observant, analytical, can be a bit awkward. Has trust issues, and forming relationships doesn't come easy for her, especially with non-mages. Kind of an "aloof, autistic scientist who can appear rude but is determined to improve the world with their inventions" archetype.

More ramblings under the cut 👇🏻

• Lorraine's fam were extremely pro-templar and raised their kids to be devout to the chantry. Magic was considered a dangerous burden, something to be hidden and kept away from regular people, so Lori has some internalised shame due to being a mage. Though she eventually does come to a realisation that her parents' views were unjust and that she shouldn't feel this way, and that her magic is a gift rather than a disgrace. Still, she does her best to put her magic to good use and invent new ways of aiding people through it, in part as a way to prove herself to the world. She believes mages should be allowed to contribute more to society, have professions and hobbies and more safe spaces to experiment with their gift.

• Before discovering her love for academic study and experiments, Lorraine wanted to be a templar. As the youngest child in her family with close ties to the chantry, she couldn't think of anything more fitting as she didn't want to be a cleric, and the idea of being a knight in shiny armour was compelling for a kid. Her magic manifested when she was 11 years old in the dead of the night when the estate was sound asleep. Waking up from a nightmare, she found herself surrounded by fire. She doesn't have much memory from what happened that night, only that she was dragged away by the templars from her home.

• The fire she caused was devastating to the estate, and Lorraine's parents and siblings didn't survive the night. She knows this, but due to the trauma caused suppressed her memories about what really happened. For many years being stuck in the circle she believed her family were so disappointed with her being a mage that they completely turned away from her, refusing to even write letters. That grew some serious resentment and shame inside of her. Her then mentor, Lydia, decided to spare the child more suffering and encouraged her delusions.

• Lydia was like a mother to Lorraine, and while she didn't have many friends at the circle, she considered her fellow mages to be her new family. She's often distrusting and cautious of non-mages, having a hard time believing that they can be accepting and caring about her - a mage - without having some ulterior motive. During the inquisition she bonds fastest with her mage companions. I also see her being closer to Dagna than any other non-mage companion due to their shared interests and passions.

• Eventually, when Lori received the vigil of trust and was allowed to make trips outside of the circle, Lydia told her the truth about the night when she was taken to the circle and encouraged her to reach out to her more distant relatives. Lorraine didn't see the point, as none of those relatives chose to reach out to her all these years either.

• Unlocking those memories for her was...ugly. There's still some unresolved trauma that she tries to learn how to live with. Naturally, the Nightmare demon in here lies the abyss quest takes full advantage of that because Drama. :3c

• I reckon Lorraine is interested in studying lyrium and finding ways for both mages and non-mages to work with it safely. She's also intrigued by the fade and the veil, so naturally she chooses the new, "experimental" fade rift magic later in the game. Apart from rift magic, she often opts for the frost element and spirit schools. She believes people shouldn't shy away from more sophisticated enchantments and other forms of magical crafts, taking inspiration from Tevinter and how they implement magical solutions to everyday problems.

• She would probably invent a magical fire alarm system enchantments to be installed in people's homes.

• While she's the kind of a person who would rather sit in a lab/study all day without interacting with a single living soul, she at one point got frustrated enough with her ideas being denied by the first enchanter that she decided to get into politics and push for reforms that would allow her to practice magic more freely.

• Speaking of politics, Lorraine spent most of her circle life in the aequitarian camp that generally tries to follow the chantry law. She always abided by the rule that magic should serve man in ethical ways, but also considered the system to be rather old-fashioned and limiting. She wrote drafts of reform programs detailing a secure and steady transition in which the circle would gradually provide more freedoms to mages, eventually letting mages govern themselves with as little chantry supervision as possible. When the mage rebellion started and fraternities split into two sides, Lorraine begrudgingly sided with the libertarians and supported the full separation from the chantry.

• Anyway, she has some serious personal issues but doesn't like letting it show and stays put. She's very focused on her work, determined and efficient, and is self aware enough to not take herself too seriously, so while she's not talkative and prefers to keep to herself, she doesn't sulk or dwell on her traumas, and tries to be friendly and accommodating to others. Although from her perspective, that equals to just being patient enough not to tell others to go fuck themselves fifteen seconds into the conversation.

Etc etc I think i could go on but I'm yet to complete a full playthrough with her and this is already a lot so maybe I'll yap about Lori more sometime later 🙈

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

The Arcana Drabbles: Explanation and Masterlist

I'm going to add examples below, but drabbles can range from several sentences to several paragraphs and cover everything from humor to angst to fluff! They're written more like train-of-thought fanfic, instead of the structured bullet points I use in HCs. What really sets them apart though is that drabbles focus on one or two characters at a time and are not limited to the M6!

Drabbles can be as oddly specific as you want, to as randomized as you want. Here's some examples of what you could request, and some links of past drabbles -

"I really like the idea of a cozy night in with Portia where she takes care of my hair, could you write a drabble for that?"

"Can I have drabbles of Selasi being just The Best to MC?"

"I have this really specific bittersweet moment in my head - [insert description here] - could you do a drabble of that with whichever M6 parent you think fits it best?"

"How about a drabble for [specific character]? Whatever you want to write about them!"

Julian and quill pens

Portia's hair

Asra and Muriel and campfire teamaking

Nadia and Favorite Foods

Scout's self care

Lucio's hair

Inanna and Muriel

Mercedes and Melchior and Lucio

Chandra missing Nadia

Malak and Julian

Pepi being a Cat

Faust and Asra and Faust's knife

Cuddling Birblian

MC transforms into a "monster"

Vesuvia Weekly: Baby Fever (M6 oneshot)

M6 building IKEA furniture

Lucio realizing the dogs are his familiars

Family-burdened MC and nothing-is-taboo Lucio

Asra's sweet tooth

Julian and his waterproof plague clothes

Nadia's poorly-worn clothes pet peeve

Portia's garden

Muriel's favorite colors

Vesuvia Weekly: Don't Wake MC!

Vesuvia Weekly: "Why are we hiding?"

Modern AU Pre-Prologue Setup

Work Lunches with Asra

Julian's Pirate Adventures

Prince!Lucio and Bodyguard!MC

Prince!Lucio and Bodyguard!MC, pt 2

M6 vs Mechanical Bull (oneshot)

Comforting Julian during a storm

Bodyguard!Muriel and Royalty!MC

Julian when MC gets tendonitis

Vesuvia Weekly: Learning (love) Languages

Vesuvia Weekly: Guilty Pleasures (poorly doodled)

Inanna protecting MC's stuffed animal

Malak upstaging Julian (on purpose)

Faust and Asra trying to learn MC's secrets

Chandra trying to share her puzzles with MC

Pepi sharing her secrets with MC

Mercedes and Melchior "helping" Lucio be a good boy

(Art prompt) Muriel's prosthetic proposal

Youngest Child Nadia

Honorary Grandma Portia

Big Brother Julian

Ageing Lucio angst

Resilient Asra angst

Asra's inherited fashion sense

Nadia the Countess Engineer

Julian as a castmate

Lucio's dental habits

Portia's domestic feminine rage

Muriel's bad posture

Julian and the canals

Asra and weekly dusting

Nadia and the South End Theatre

Muriel's pockets

Portia's to-do list

Lucio's bathtime

Post-upright route evening with Nadia, Asra, and Julian

Julian & Portia talk to Malak & Pepi

Knight!Muriel and Royalty!MC, pt 2

M6 all cook in one place

Asking Muriel to crush a watermelon between his thighs

Prince!Julian and bodyguard!MC

MC and Julian get arrested while Portia bails them out

When Muriel's kid is a walking heart attack

Mercedes and Melchior accidentally halfway merge

Julian getting used to normalcy

Asra sharing a bed with you

Nadia sharing her room for the first time

Muriel sharing his thoughts with you

Portia getting used to your attention

Lucio not understanding your love

Julian when you're stressed and quietly waiting

Asra when you've been wronged by someone

Nadia's fluctuating code of ethics

Muriel's scathing letter talents

Portia on AITA

Lucio realizing he can weaponizing his capacity to annoy

Vesuvia Weekly: A Date With Disaster

Vesuvia Weekly: To be loved is to be ...

Motorcycle Mishap

Julian with an MC who smells their hair to think

Vesuvia Weekly: MC is M6's embodied impulse control

Vesuvia Weekly: Sleepover Horrors

Vesuvia Weekly: One More Dance Before Bed (Julian)

Vesuvia Weekly: Moments of Reprieve

Trick or Treat: Khamgalai's coping mechanisms

Trick or Treat: Aisha and Salim's water lanterns

Trick or Treat: Palace Passageways

Trick or Treat: Bribing Mazelinka

Trick or Treat: Vesuvian Canal Culture

Trick or Treat: Selasi's Friendship

Trick or Treat: Courtier Meetups

Trick or Treat: Young Nadia's Pranks

Trick or Treat: Muriel's Splinters

[fuckyeaharthuriana]

Characters in the King Arthur anime

Given this anime is impossible to find with subs, I decided to write a bit about the characters. I made some subtitles here (for the Italian version), but you can also check the Japanese (no subs) version here.

This has spoilers!

Arthur - Classic shounen protagonist, bold, without being arrogant, living to help others, thrown into a completely new world at the start of the anime. He was raised as Ector's son and starts the anime finding out he is actually Uther's son (and Igraine's) and the king of Camelot. He firmly believes in being honorable and if often blind to risks to himself.

Kay - Arthur's adopted brother, as he is Ector's son. He is very close to Arthur, and often ended up in trouble when they were kids because of Arthur. Still, Kay is completely loyal to Arthur and dearly loves him. He also has a sharp organizing mind so Arthur names him the administrator of Camelot. He dies towards the end of the series, killed by one of Arthur's enemies - the ordeal almost breaks Arthur.

Tristan - son of the King of Cornwall, Tristan is a silent intelligent knight who often is seen playing the harm. He joins Arthur at the start of the anime. Tristan has had to leave Cornwall because his father decided to ally himself with the evil King Lavic (the man who killed Uther and Igraine). Tristan is quite smart and often has a plan to help Arthur. Percival's sister has a crush on him.

Lancelot - Lancelot is the boisterous and skilled son of King Ban. Ban was wrongly accused of having partecipated in the assassination of king Uther and Lancelot is on a quest to clear his family name. After a rough meeting, Arthur and Lancelot become friends and Arthur decides to believe him. Lancelot is probably the most skilled among Arthur's warriors and he often trains with Percival.

Galahad - Galahad (in Italian he is called Gareth) is a little kid who decided to join Arthur. He runs away from his father's castle to try and save his mother who has been kept as a prisoner by King Lavic. He is particularly close to Percival, and they often are on adventures together.

Percival - The son of a knight, Percival was not raised as such but he was raised in a village and he is introduced to the show protecting that village (and his sister). He is quite bold, and a bit quick to judge a situation, he also often fights with a staff, and his training is a bit lacking even if he can fight quite well.

Guinevere - Daughte of King Leodegrance, one of Arthur's allies. She is kidnapped and then saved by Arthur in the first few episodes. Since then she has been living at Camelot and often adivising Arthur. There is not really any romance between her and Arthur, strangely, or even between her and Lancelot.

Marine/Marlene - She is Percival's sister and she has a crush on Tristan. She is usually attending to Guinevere and dreamly listening to Tristan's music. In the picture here she is finding out that Isolde wrote a letter to Tristan.

Phine/Fine - A mysterious knight who is actually a woman and works alongside Merlin. Interestingly the reveal does not particularly surprise the main chaarcters (a part from Lancelot) and she is just considered like a rogue mysterious knight who often helps the main group, but does not live at Camelot. She always has a hawk on her shoulder.

King Lavic (King of Rabick) - the evil king who killed Uther and Igraine and betrayed them. He is the main villain of the story, and wants to conquer all the kingdom around him and defeat Arthur.

Medessa - King Lavic's main ally. She is a witch. I am unsure what she wants if not power.

Merlin - One of Uther's old friends, a wizard, and the man who saved young Arthur when Uther and Igraine were murdered. He does not appear much but he is the character who tells Arthur what to do to defeat Medessa's powers.

Isolde - Tristan's cousin from Cornwall and the princess of Cornwall. She is being used as a pawn, as someone who can marry an ally of King Lavic for an alliance between Cornwall and Lavic. Tristan saves her from the marriage. She appears in episode 19. It is unclear if there are any romantic feelings between them (Isolde denies it).

Ector - Arthur's adoptive father. He knew of Arthur's real heritage and is quick to announce he is not his father anymore but his subject, once Arthur takes the sword from the stone. Still, both Ector and Kay continue to be Arthur's family, and Ector often acts as an advisor to Arthur, also telling him a lot of how Uther and Igraine used to rule over Camelot (as he knew them).

Media - She is the daughter of the Witch Medessa and she is also a witch. She allies herself with King Lavic to find revenge after Arthur kills Medessa. She only appears in episode 28, for the final few episodes of the show. She falls in love with Tristan, and ends up helping him and saving his life.

[kirkenovak]

So. Xedgin marriage of convenience canon divergence AU?

Like, raising a kid by yourself after your wife is killed is hard. You have no money and your new BFF is trying to convince you to start stealing to make ends meet which is, you know, the thing that got your wife killed.

Hard pass.

He remembers that paladins are good source of income if you marry one and the orders are always looking for willing spouses for their knights, providing for the family even if the paladin gets killed and even providing scholarships and education for children if necessary. Which is exactly what Edgin and Kira needs.

He presents himself as a candidate and writes a letter of intent to his potential future husband (and yes, he only wants a husband, he cannot imagine himself being married to a woman again, he was, once, Zia was once in a lifetime, he feels like a new wife would be a betrayal— he makes sure to point out no halflings tho, he trust Holga but better safe than sorry!). He feels he’s a good catch, he’s good looking, thanks to having been a Harper he has multiple useful skills that a paladin would appreciate like taking care of weapons and armour, horses, he’s also a decent cook and he can knit? All he needs is someone who’d provide for his family; himself, his daughter and newfound sister.

He quickly gets a reply from a potential candidate, who is absolutely taken by his story, having also lost a family to red wizards of Thay as he himself is a Thayan.

Even harder pass. No Thayans are going to be sharing Ed’s house and bed, and he won’t let one near his daughter.

But tendays pass and no other replies come and he’s starting to get desperate. He finally writes the reply to the “Xenk” agreeing to engagement (he asked around, everyone, including Holga, knows stories of the guy and they are all positive, and if there’s a part of him that is like “maybe you deserve to be married to a Thayan after your previous spouse got killed by one and it’s all your fault?” he’s not gonna argue with the self-loathing voice in his head).

A letter comes asking him to meet at the temple of whatever god Xenk is a paladin of in a couple of days so they can get married.

Edgin doesn’t want Kira to come with him but Holga insists, it’s probably a good idea to get his daughter used to the fact that there’s gonna be a new person living in the house with them from time to time?

And so on a nice afternoon they all go the temple where Edgin meets his fiancé for the first time ever, and literally 10 minutes later is married to him.

There are good times (turns out that Xenk is really really really - and I cannot stress this enough - REALLY good at sex) bad times (Edgin freaks out when he hears Xenk speaking Thayan to Kira) and average times.

Some time down the line Ed eventually falls in love with Xenk, because that’s how these stories go. Oh and they also go on an adventure and thwart an evil plot to undeadify the entire city of Neverwinter because destiny likes to make sure things that are meant to happen, happen.

[jjkeremika]

ha(u)nted soldier

description: eren meets you while abroad for war and tells armin about you; written like letters between eren and armin

eren jaeger x fem!reader (also friendship eren x armin)

Dear Armin,

Went into *redacted* to replenish supplies. It's a nice city. I wish I could show it to you. But don't go enlisting and joining me; I need people to come home to.

I met someone today. I went to the local library to find the right words to describe her to you. Ethereal and enrapturing come close, but they're not right. She has this lightness about her. Different. Nice.

Write soon,

E. Jaeger.

**********************

Dear Eren,

Nicer than the last place you told me about? Still no green skies? Annie and I took Erwin Jr. to the new aquarium. They managed to bring in all kinds of marine life from all over the world. When you come home I'll take you!

Ethereal, huh? It would make sense. You'd need an angel to balance you.

I write more frequently than you do,

Sir Armin A-L.

P.S. I wasn't going to enlist anyway.

****************

Dear Armin,

Stop signing off with 'Sir' like a dick. We get it -- Queen Historia knighted you for a railway system. It's not like you gave your life or anything. I would say I'd hope Junior takes after Annie more, but she's a dick too. He sees Mikasa too right?

I asked her to dinner tonight, apparently she's engaged. Convinced her to walk along the beach with me instead. She captured the sunlight so nicely. They write poems about that right? Can you give me one?

I'm at war dickhead,

E. Jaeger.

*****************

Dear Eren,

I don't believe you need to give your life to contribute to society. Where you got that notion is beyond me. And he's a great kid. I hope you get to meet him one day.

Poems are supposed to come from the heart. But if she's engaged then...

I know. I worry for you every day,

SIR Armin A-L.

***************

Dear SIR Armin Dickhead,

She visited the docks again to see me. I wanted to tell her everything, Armin, but I couldn't say anything. I wanted to tell her I've seen the beauties and riches of this world but I've never been interested until her. I wanted to tell her life is unrelenting and unrewarding, but seeing her was inspirational. I wanted to tell her that I used to stay up thinking of the endless horrors of war and now I'm thankful for it to have brought us together.

It was a silent walk. I almost kissed her. But I could hear your voice in my head telling me not to. At least I think it was your voice.

I'm scared I'm forgetting what you all sound like,

E. Jaeger.

P.S. Don't tell Mikasa I said that. I don't think she could handle knowing that I can't remember your voices.

******************

Dear Eren,

You don't give her enough credit, but I won't say anything. I'm not sure how you expect anyone to handle that.

Nice poem. Have you told her?

It's a stamp,

Sir Armin A-L.

********************

Dear Armin,

I've been spending my free nights at her residence recently. Can't say I've been sleeping. The way she moves is--get this--captivating (found another word for you). Touching her and feeling her is electrifying. Is that how it felt with Annie?

I think you two would get along. She has such interesting things to say, I can't always keep up. And she has all these hobbies and books I've never heard of. We're reading a few pages of this one Adventure book. I've been tracing the images while she sleeps to show you eventually. It's a long process. She's very convincing about returning to bed.

Get a new stamp,

E. Jaeger.

[rook-laidir]

28 and 30 from the Rook codex prompts!

28 - Propaganda for or against Rook

*Excerpt from The Minrathous Mirror*

Trouble in the city? Is Minrathous under attack? Suspicions arose when seeing known enemy of Tevinter, the Inquisitor meeting with a runaway slave at Dock Town’s famous tavern, The Cobbled Swan. Who is this “Rook,” many are asking. Several magisters reached out to assure my readers that rumors of a slave uprising are false and that the city is safe from Inquisition influence. If anyone has information on the identity and whereabouts of this “Rook,” citizens are encouraged to report them to Knight-Commander Lenos, who assures that they will answer for their transgressions against our city.

30 - A note/letter that Rook never sent

Mom,

I’m not even sure why I’m writing this. You’re gone. You’ve been gone for years. A letter won’t change anything. Emmrich said talking to the dead can help ease the living. Not sure if that’s still true when it’s been this long, but I promised him I’d try.

You’d like Emmrich. He’s one of the friends I made. Remember when you’d tell me to make some friends? Well, I don’t know if you can really remember things. I’m still shaky on how all of this really works. But that’s not the point. I finally made some damn friends (language, I know.)

I joined up with the Lords of Fortune. They’re good people. Mostly. Isabela’s their leader. She’s that pirate woman I used to sneak off to talk to on the docks. She remembered me and everything.

I know you really cared about our culture as elves. I met some Dalish. They would’ve talked about their culture and their gods with you for hours. Probably showed you some weird ancient elvhen artifacts too. Things are…complicated with them now - the gods, I mean. It’s hard to tell where all of us stand on it - elves, I mean. You and Strife would’ve talked about it until your lips fell off. Strife’s another friend of mine - sort of. He’s a friend of Bellara’s, who’s a friend of mine.

I’ve changed a lot since you died. For better or worse. I don’t know if you’d be proud of everything I’ve done. Probably not everything, but it all got me here, so that can’t be too bad, right? I’m saving the world so that’s pretty crazy. I hope I get it right. If I do, I promise I’ll make it better than it was when I lost you. If I don’t, I guess I’ll see you again soon enough. Here’s hoping I figure it out.

Your favorite kid,

Osha Rook

[desultory-novice]

Why do I see Magolor using his ship to look into other timelines, to which he ends up stumbling upon the timeline where Adeleine and Noir end up fusing into that... thing and ultimately die. (Or any alternate timeline of Apologies really, they're all despressing and messed up!)

He probably turned the screen off pretty fast.

[Requiem For a Mask]

-

Magolor:  "Heheheh... Kirby and friends will be SO surprised when they see these masks!" (And I'm giving them a two for one deal! Am I generous with my genius or what?)

Magolor:  "But what to do for Adeleine? No offense, but from what I've seen, she's pretty boring--...I MEAN! She's a good girl with a stable head on her shoulders!" (...No one heard me say that right??)

Magolor:  "But that makes it hard to imagine a good alternate mask for her. Maybe she gets more interesting in another timeline? Lor...? Do me a favor and search her dimensional signature for me!"

-

BZZT KSSH

Adeleine:"...You're not allowed to leave, Noir." Noir:"...I don't want to leave you either..."

-

Magolor:  "...Hmm? This looks different. ...I'd heard she had a brother, long, long ago. Is that what he looked like before he got turned into...?" (...You know what? I'm not ready to go there...)

-

King Dedede: "Hey, I think these two are still alive...!" Waddle Dee: "But...what are they...?" Meta Knight: "They don't look like anyone else alive on this planet." "Frozen remains of an extinct species?" "But how are they the only ones who..." King Dedede: "What they are is kids in need of help, obviously!" Meta Knight: "...Well, Kirby? It's your decision." (Hey, don't go above me! I'm the king here...!) Kirby: "I say we help them!"

-

Magolor:  "Ahh, yes, yes. And they get rescued! Happily ever after~! Just what I expected from Kirby and friends! ...Only difference I can see with her here is that she's not wearing that hat. Boy! Does that girl have a forehead you could park the Lor on or what? Heh he--"

-

Noir:"Adeleine...!! What did you DO to her?!" Dee Child: "We didn't do anything! We just asked if...!" Dee Child 2: "The ground!! It's turning to snow...?" Adeleine: "N...No...ir..." Dee Child: "Is that...her doing...?" Noir: "Don't TOUCH HER! Stay back...!" "...Stay away...from BOTH of us...!!"

-

Magolor:  "...Hmm? What's happening to...?" "O-Oh... Ohh Stars......."

-

""Is ts He un rk tr sa MD oe rm ea TS he ah nT Jo ut sn tI Mg yn Hi eh at ry tr .e Iv tE He ug rn tu sl IP no MT yt Sn oa uW lI""

-

Magolor:  "......Shut it off, Lor. Back out. Cancel the stream. Now."

- King Dedede: "Don'tcha hear them screamin' in there?!" Meta Knight: "...Of course I can! Which is exactly why we nee--!"

-

BZZT KSHOO

-

Magolor:  "................"

Magolor:  "...Boring is good, I think."

-

Magolor:  "Let's stick to boring."

-

-

-

-

Zero III's dialogue reads: "It hurts more than just my heart. It hurts in my Soul." "I want to plunge everything into the same Darkness."

-

Since we're here, I just wanted to take this moment to regale how hair-pulling it is to write Zero III's dialogue!

It starts with thinking up something somewhat fitting for both siblings to say (Adeleine's dialogue always leaning towards sad or naive, Noir's always leaning towards rage or guilt) then stretching and twisting and trimming till they are the exact same number of characters, which generally means making a good guess, finally flipping Noir's backwards and painstakingly inserting each letter after Adeleine's, one by one, until I realize I was off by ONE letter and have to start the WHOLE PROCESS over again!

This happens about three times per attempt. All to come up with a dialogue quirk that NO ONE can read and that I have to spoil what they say at the bottom of the post anyway! XD

-

Also, Magolor's feelings on Adeleine do not reflect my own!! I think she is a good girl (/genuine) and I apologize for writing up a bunch of timelines where awful things happen to her! (...Looking at my Marx, Magolor, DMK and others, that's kind of a theme with me, isn't it? ^^;;)

And while the sadness will continue for a while longer, I can assure you that Apologies DOES end with Adeleine, Noir, and the rest of their new family both safe and content!

[randomnameless]

I forgot Saint Cichol's day :(

Fodlan AU :

Back when they were still kids living in Zanado, kid!Rhea gifted Cichol a stick figure drawing for his 1200th birthday, of them holding hands with a book for a bedtime story with some blurr that was supposed to represent Macuil in the background.

Cichol kept that drawing when he left Zanado to "explore" Enbarr, and forgot to remove it from his travel bag.

(let's say it was preserved with magic so the ink and the paper wouldn't fade over time)

After Nemesis' party, the drawing was what he thought to be the only memento he had left of his kid sister.

Returning to Garreg Mach, he put the drawing in his drawer, and once a mortified Rhea asked him what the crap he was doing with that "old stuff".

"It is just an old present."

Rhea believes he's teasing her and she doesn't like it at all, she learnt how to draw since that time! Maybe she can give him a new drawing for his next birthday?

(but then she feels like dirt : she cannot draw them together anymore, between his 1200th birthday and now, she ruined his life, made him a widow, made him lost his powers and is the reason why his daughter is convalescent! Maybe, deep inside, Cichol really hates her?)

Maybe a portrait of him and Cethleann would be better, but now that she thinks about it, she saw him talk to Manuela, maybe she can add her? But if she adds Manuela, she must add Hanneman, and Billy too, has a professor, but also, as a member of their family! And yet, she knows Catherine will be upset if she is left out of the portrait, adding Catherine also means adding Shamir, and she can visualise Flayn holding Cyril's hand while Alois would be in the background and...

Billy thus pops up after having waited 180 seconds behind the door of her office, to make their rapport, without hearing anything and spots her writing something? Or not?

Having never drawn anything before, because Jerry's picked lifestyle isn't suitable for children to draw, Billy is fascinated by the simple act of "drawing", and wants Rhea to teach them how to, before realising they didn't have anything planned for Seteth's birthday, isn't it Saint Cichol's day? Maybe he'd like a fishing rod? Or some flowers?

Rushing to meet Flayn, they ask her what he would like, only for Flayn to say that anything Billy will have picked would please him, especially if it's a handmade present. This is why she Mercedes graciously accepted to help her bake biscuits for his birthday (but she frowned when Flayn suggested to use fish stock to flavour them).

A bit lost, Billy wants to give a personalised letter to him with the flowers and fishing rod, and inspired by Rhea, they try to draw, but the result isn't satisfying. Maybe their students would know how to draw?

Supreme Leader brags about the famous "Hresvelg artistic skills" passed down since the dawn of the Empire, but Hubert makes her reconsider using her time displaying her talents to a mere mercenary turned professor.

Dimitri wishes to help, but since his days as a kid, he gave up on drawing anything on paper since he was afraid he would break any quill, but he remembers he played a lot with Felix back then, drawing their favourite knights in the snow (Felix calls him a moron and denies having wasted his time like that).

Claude pretends he doesn't know how to draw - fully aware that maybe his technique would betray his Almyran heritage - but tells Billy that Ignatz might help them... only for Billy to mention how Ignatz's current drawing reminds them of Rhea, and Ignatz being a bit embarassed because he was painting a portrait of Saint Seiros.

When Seteth receives his presents, he got a bottle of alcohol, several new quills, a pair of dices (if the bottle came from Manuela, who gifted him a pair of dices?), some sort of handrest to help him after hours of paperwork, a new lamp, edible biscuits shaped like lions (is Flayn subtly telling him she wants to spend more time with the Faerghan students?), an enormous flower bouquet with a happy birthday letter with what is supposed to be a cat (?), a new fishing rod and a portrait of his colleagues and family, save for Rhea herself.

Thanking everyone - even if he still told Manuela that no, they aren't going to finish her bottle in one night but he'll accept sharing a drink with coworkers - he makes sure to pat Rhea's head, when they're alone, to thank her personally. As expected, it annoys her and she calls him senile.

But isn't she the one who forgot to draw herself? She came a long way from her "stick figures" era, but she forgot the most important : them holding hands.

Rhea promises she'll think about it the next year, but then Flamey rings.

[fangirleaconmigo]

I just finished Time of Contempt for the third time and I am deep deep deep in my Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon feelings again. Now that know what’s coming and I understand her arc, I’m catching a lot more.

TW: mentions of sexual assault

Ciri’s descent, which we see a hint of at the end this book, her “corruption arc” is the story of what war, and what the associated abandonment and abuse of children, does to a society. It is a visceral story about how (as the saying goes) A child who is not embraced by the village, will burn it down to feel its warmth.

Probably the worst interview of Sapko that my eyes have had the displeasure to read was a guy who asked him basically (paraphrased) how could Ciri’s mind be so “weak” that she falls into murder and crime after everything she learned from Geralt.

And like BUDDY DID YOU NOT READ THE STORY? Wow ok.

Sapko is like…because that is real, look around you.

“Well, I suppose here my fantasy becomes very real and lifelike. What happened to Ciri happened to hundreds of teenagers, in that number some I knew.”

There is a narrative.

And when kids are all by themselves and repeatedly traumatized and threatened, they will turn where they need to for safety. Their minds and the way they process empathy and emotions will change as a result of related abuse.

And to me, that arc is very believable. And it is part of her rite of passage of ultimately choosing good and coming fully into her power, choosing the love and example of her found family (primarily Geralt and Yen but also Kaer Morhen and Dandelion). In this terrible interview (seriously someone let me interview the man I could do better) he says:

And – last not least – that’s me, the author, who has invented Ciri and her fate, who has invented the whole storyline, and the storyline required of Ciri to become a teenage killer. It was a stage in her rite de passage, the rite of passage.

It is an arc. And for me a very believable (if extremely painful one) First there is the “before”.

The story is very clear who Ciri is before she is alone without the protection of Yen and Geralt.

Her character is already established by Time of Contempt but the narrative still goes through the trouble of showing her deny the offer of destructive power.

As a little girl, (in Blood of Elves) Ciri risks herself to save Triss’s life when she and Geralt’s caravan is attacked. She doesn’t wait for someone else to help, she shields Triss with her body. (That made me feel some kinda way in retrospect let me tell ya)

In the same scene we see how tender hearted she is towards the elves plight and how she resolves not to be neutral.

Blood of Elves and Time of Contempt both show how she is just a little kid who wants parents (running away to see Geralt, writing him letters from Meliteles temple begging him to come see her, identifying fiercely as a witcher girl of Kaer Morhen, idolizing Yen)

But at the end of Time of Contempt, Ciri still makes two dramatic, narrative establishing decisions, that show what kind of person she is.

First is the refusal of power. The refusal of revenge.

In the desert, she taps into prohibited power (fire power) to save Little Horse. It begins to consume her, offering her dominion over the world. It is personified by Falka and it shows Ciri vengeance. It shows her her enemies. It shows her the people who killed her grandma and sacked Cintra. It shows her the black knight.

Ciri and vengeance is already a theme. We know she feels urges towards vengeance for the people who slaughtered her family. The only bad fight she’s had with Geralt was about that. (She says she wanted vengeance and he overreacts and has to follow her and comfort her and apologize. The narrative doesn’t let us hear what he says, it’s through Triss’s eyes, but it is heart wrenching)

And now she is being offered vengeance by showing her what it really looks like. People suffering and dying. And it’s asking hey little girl you want this? Because I can give it to you.

This power also shows her her loved ones.

At this point in the story, Ciri is alone, lost in a desert, and feels abandoned. And any kid that feels abandoned blames her parents. It makes her a very believable kid character. Im alone? Where are my parents?? They’ve abandoned me?? At least that’s what she says.

But when the power offers her the opportunity to take the hurt she is feeling and hurt them back she is horrified.

She shouts out loud that she relinquishes it. She relinquishes all the power and collapses.

She makes an incredibly important decision to refuse destructive vengeful power.

The second thing that happens to establish her character at this point in the saga is she is being pursued by people who want to kill her and/or turn her into Nilfgaard. She is running and trying to escape. She is armed and gets a clear shot at a pursuer but again, sees a human face, and can’t do it. She shows mercy because her empathy will not allow her to see a persons face and kill them.

She is very lucky to survive that encounter.

She is a good, decent, human being.

But the story doesn’t leave us there. It gives us an ominous hint of the oncoming storm.

To get out of a life threatening situation, she joins a gang called The Rats. The Rats are a group of heavily traumatized war orphans who have been abandoned, raped, and abused and have banded together to not be alone. They’ve become murderers and no longer feel empathy for those they harm, but rather they take pleasure at killing others. She sees the look in their faces and identifies it as evil.

They adopt her. They protect her. Suddenly she is ‘safe’. Suddenly she is with others like her (war orphans with heavy trauma). Suddenly she is no longer alone. She is being offered a new identity (her old identity will get her killed at this point) She is them.

They also sexually assault her. (Cycle of abuse. I had to fast forward those parts. I’m listening to the audio and I can’t do that again)

But by the end Ciri has a new family. It’s the only option to her for survival. She finally manages to kill someone and takes the name Falka.

And as the return reader, you already know just how horrific it’s gonna get before it gets better. The feelings of doom. Ooof.

There is so much coming and if you’ve already read it, the dread is real.

It takes worse torture and assault than you can possibly imagine for Ciri to become the “teenaged killer” the narrative demands.

Because above all Ciri is like Yen. She is a survivor. She is angry. She has impulses for vengeance when she is harmed. All of these things are normal and human and can be given healthy outlets in normal situations. But this is not a normal situation.

So yeah I love her so much and the feelings of doom I have going into the next book are hanging over me. Of course it makes the bloody vengeance at the end that much more satisfying. But yeah.

And just to be clear I don’t judge her at all for anything she does during this “corruption” arc. I just don’t. She is surviving and no one can make me hate her ever. I’m an irrational person when it comes to her. And the her growth, her arc is one of the most satisfying I’ve ever read.

Most of us may not be war orphans being pursued by half the world. But the parallels to being an unprotected teenaged girl in a world that wants to exploit you, chew you up, and spit you out, is something those of us who came from abusive homes can understand. It is ultimately very validating and inspiring.

So I’ll be skipping the worst parts on audio. Some of them I just can’t do again. But I’m still obsessed with this story and I love my girl.

Ok thanks for reading my Ciri feels.

[naboman]

𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫

Chapter Two: The Murphy Law's. Description: Kawaguchi [Name] ended up causing trouble for the entire journalism club by refusing to lend support to Takashi's project, and when she employs her brazen antics to rectify her mistakes, they only worsen. Notes: the chapter is write in first person, just for yo understand the persona and carater at main character. She is not a good person in her actions, but there is a reason for her to behave this way.

[Previous] [Next]

"What have you done?!" the guy sitting in front of me exclaimed, his face drained of color from shock. I narrowly avoided messing up the lettering.

His almond-shaped eyes widened like saucers in horror, almost popping out of their sockets. He was so astounded that he seemed on the verge of tearing out his hair. I wonder why all this drama. It's not like a little mistake like this could lead to a catastrophe that would condemn us to the gallows.

Or could it?

"As I said, Mizushima..." I said calmly, going over the homework without caring about his condemning gaze burning just inches away, "I repeated several times that it was a terrible idea and a waste of time, and since he kept insisting, I ended up... getting a bit angry. Blame Yuuma; he's the real instigator of all this discord."

I repeated loudly, clearly, and without any guilt or remorse. Like a saint.

"You... You idiot! The president is going to kill us!"

"Relax... He won't."

"Yes, he will!"

I huffed in inflexible response to the other's mindset. I rolled my eyes around the room - empty, it's worth noting - trying not to meet the condemning gaze from across the table. That was one of the disadvantages of being part of the student council; members are constantly reminded and encouraged to always arrive early. It's a major pain.

Returning, my eyes fell on the horrified silhouette whose hands were trembling slightly, cold sweat forming, already considering the worst. Even though restraining himself, the noticeable quiver of his hands on the table persisted.

"Scared?" I asked, watching his almond-shaped eyes hover over me in surprise. "Don't be shy, damsel. Your knight in shining armor will take on this responsibility."

I said in a dramatically ironic tone, raising an arm in the air as if wielding a blade. Adding,

" Do you Like? I took theater classes when I was a kid."

My lighthearted comment made him furrow his brows in disapproval.

"Of course, I'm scared, and how can you make jokes at a time like this?" he asked, agitated by my nonchalance, as his astonishment gave way to an angry expression. "We'll be warned again, all because of you!"

"My fault?!" I exclaimed, offended by the accusation. "I did my duty, as requested. If you wanted things your way, you should have taken responsibility."

"You can't just do things however you please; this isn't about abusing power. Holding a high position doesn't give you the right to act like a dictator! That's ridiculous and immature!"

"You can't do this, you can't do that either," I mimicked in a shrill voice, seeing that I succeeded in irritating him. "When are you all going to stop complaining? I always do what you ask. When will I get a day off?" he asked in ecstasy, resorting to a topic that had long been neglected. "Besides, I didn't even ask for this secretary position!"

In the heat of the moment, I stood up and slammed both hands on each side of the table - the materials trembled with the action. It didn't take long for the vice-secretary to follow my movement, wearing a displeased expression.

It seems we're back to square one.

"Listen here, it might mean absolutely nothing to you, but see, I care!" he said in a threatening tone, making my blood boil with disgust. Even though I knew that I didn't like it at all, he continued. In fact, I believe it urged him to drive the knife even deeper. "I take great pride in having a guaranteed spot in the student council, but people like you don't care about others' efforts, do you? You only care about yourself and your comfort! I'm sure you don't even know the struggle during elections since you were invited!"

I laughed scornfully, trying to disguise the knot forming in my stomach, a lump in my throat that seemed to constrict my vocal cords, preventing me from retorting. Have some patience...!

"Are you jealous of not being invited? Should I feel sorry for your suffering?" I retorted. I wanted to hesitate but kept pushing forward. "You're trying to belittle me for not competing, but that just shows how many levels above you I am! Don't try to convince me with this talk of 'effort and hard work'! It's pathetic!"

He clicked his tongue.

"Arrogant as always. If you're so superior, why don't you try facing the president? He'll be happy to help you remember who you really are."

"You don't know anything," I practically spat the words.

"Wrong, you're the one who doesn't know anything. It's not about hard work, but the moment you stop even trying, your presence becomes entirely replaceable," he replied, locking eyes with me. "The student council isn't just about high grades and academic coordination. It's about representing and assisting others. Keep that in mind."

"Congratulations. Now tell me, what's it like stating the obvious?" I didn't break eye contact for a second. This is a battle, and I can't afford to lose. "So, what's the moral of the story?"

For the first time that day, I saw a smug smile pull his lips upward, catching me off guard.

"The moral of the story is that petty people like you don't belong in the student council. You only act for your own benefit. How does it feel to be so selfish, honorable secretary?"

I geared up to respond, but he continued,

"Deep down, you're worse than those delinquents."

The words are harsh, meant to cut deep. They left me speechless; I couldn't recall any argument I had prepared at that moment. It rendered me momentarily blind, as if I had gone and come back from the deepest pit of hell. Bitterness quickly made itself present in the back of my throat.

"How... How dare you compare me to those infamous people?!" I stammered with disgust. "Those... Degenerates. Don't you ever say that again!"

"I'm serious, dead serious," he emphasized, paying no mind to what I said. I was sure the expression on his youthful face now was one of pure disgust. "If you want to get us out of this hole you've put us in, you better talk to that guy before he goes to the president himself."

"And if, hypothetically speaking, I don't do that?" I raised an eyebrow, challenging him. What could he threaten now?

"Then say goodbye to the newspaper, chief editor. I'm sure the sports club would love a new room to store their materials," he declared, and my confidence unraveled in the blink of an eye, leading me into an existential shock. He couldn't be serious. "I'll be more than happy to talk to the president myself if necessary."

"Mizushima, you wouldn't..."

I provoked him, narrowing my eyes.

"Wouldn't I?"

This time, he broke eye contact, gathering the scattered documents on the table, miraculously undamaged. He quickly stored them in his folder and headed for the door of the room. I hurriedly checked the time on the wall clock. It was 7:56 in the morning, almost time for us to gather for a meeting in the Student Council room.

Damn!

"Good luck, [Name], you're going to need it," he dragged me out of my reverie. However, I didn't have time to retort because when I turned to face the brunet, the door was already closing. And I was alone.

I slump into the chair as if I don't care, rubbing the space between my eyes. Now, in addition to the newspaper, I also need to get in touch with the president.

I need to grab a coffee at lunchtime, or I'll end up sleeping on this desk, and let's be honest, it's kind of humiliating to be in such a deplorable state of exhaustion.

I made a mental note to remember these things by the end of the day.

Summoning the strength I no longer had in my body, I hurried to leave the room, my backpack hanging on my right arm.

Ship's log, entry one: The year is 2005, and I am humiliating myself. Is there still a chance to go back on my word? Spoiler: No, there isn't.

The closing time for classes was uneventful, without any disagreements or unforeseen events. With my hands in the jacket pockets, I walked briskly to the Student Council room, even though my inclination was to turn the corner and head back the way I came. He always stayed an extra half-hour waiting in there; it was impossible for him not to be there now.

"President... President Yamazaki, are you there? I need to talk about something important," I called with two soft knocks on the door, easily producing a loud sound in the deserted corridor.

When I heard a muffled "come in" behind the door, I turned the handles of the double doors and entered the room. I came face to face with the guy sitting in the chair, putting a book in his backpack and now looking at me with one of his more pleasant and inviting smiles.

Yes, that's right; he has this "aura" that makes everyone want to be around him. He's welcoming and comfortable, although I have a different interpretation. The energy he exudes can be suffocating on certain occasions.

"[Name]? What brings you here?" he asked, giving me a subtle smile.

'I work here, idiot'. I cleared my throat. He seems to be in a good mood; this is the perfect chance to pitch my idea.

"President," I maintained my rigid posture; it's now or never. "Not long ago, I sent you a report about the... Incident with the Home Economics Club. Do you recall?"

"Perfectly. You slandered the club representative in your letter. If I wasn't aware of your capabilities, I could easily say that was a hate speech. But I know how sharp you can be when you want to be."

He continued to smile, even after insulting me. I clenched my fists beneath the jacket sleeves.

"It must be your impression, President. Words may sound brutal coming from anyone who reads them. I polished my report very well before sending it. I believe the issue isn't with the text."

I should have stitched my tongue before coming. He's not an idiot; he must have understood that I called him ignorant. Fuck!

I was about to offer an apology when a laugh escaped from the other's lips.

"Always with the best responses. It's so good talking to you, [Name]-san, I always have fun," he remarked, waving his hand for me to come closer, and I did, proceeding cautiously with each step. "So, where are you going with this?"

"I want to reconsider my actions. I made some hasty decisions and prioritized my will over others. Could you... think about it?"

I swallowed hard.

I chose my words carefully. If I wanted to achieve something with this, I needed to persuade him to agree with me, and for that, there's nothing better than submitting to his abnormal sense of optimism and willpower.

He's considering it, that's progress.

"No," he said in response, catching me off guard. Where the hell did I go wrong? Just a few minutes ago, I was almost checkmating the president. What kind of bipolarity is this? Needless to say, I needed a full minute to recover from this major slap in the face.

I felt the urge to curse him, but - fortunately for me - my body didn't move a muscle to fulfill that desire.

That's when he added to his speech,

"Choices have consequences."

"Ah... I see," I muttered, my throat choked with all the insults I know.

"However, we can make a small agreement," he held the pen deftly, twirling it between his fingers and positioning it as if he were about to jot something down, which, indeed, he was.

"What's it about?" I asked curiously.

"Well, [Name]-san, I think it's evident to all of us that the school newspaper, undoubtedly, has been losing its quality as the days go by," he made a cutting remark. It hit a nerve because I was fully aware it was true, but whenever someone insisted on making the same observation, the urge that arose was to look at the person and say, "You should do better, then." But even I know how inconvenient and immature that can be.

So, I contented myself with nodding and agreeing with a small satisfied smile.

"Thank you for the feedback, I'll keep that in mind."

"Yes. I'm well aware of that."

I reluctantly agreed.

"So, if you want to recycle the idea of the yearbook, I suggest you take responsibility and write something decent," as faint as his tone might have been, his words contradicted it entirely. I could sense the dissatisfaction and disdain permeating his words from afar. "You know; You scratch my back, I scratch yours."

Having said that, he stared back at me deep in the eyes, with his smile - anything but - pleasant. If I were some extremist lyricist, I would say this guy has the devil in his eyes.

To my dismay, his silence didn't last long.

"You know you don't get something for nothing. Besides, we're talking about a school project!" he said as if it were the most surreal thing in the world; like seeing a flying saucer. "Let's make it very clear: no, reconsidering is not an option. But we can always negotiate, Kawaguchi-san."

He stared at me expectantly. I hate that look. Having people stare at me like that is profoundly exhausting. It lodges in my head, demanding my time and commitment. It gives me the creeps.

"Alright, President," I accepted without giving in.

"I knew you'd understand!" he said finally, pleased. "I believe in you, I know you can do it."

As soon as Yamazaki handed me the paper with the notes, I left the room as quickly as I could with a nod. I walked down the hallway, bubbling with anger.

At this rate, I'll be gray-haired in my '20s.

The next day, during the journalism club activities, I slipped into my matching pairs of shoes and walked in all my glory to the club room.

A breathless sigh escaped me. I took a moment to catch my breath before continuing the audible reading, massaging my temples and relaxing in the chair. The room might be small, but at least it's comfortable - there were some cabinets with documents and others with snacks hidden in the back.

The window at the center of the room was open, and the curtains swayed back and forth simultaneously.

"If you keep sighing like that, your soul might end up leaving your body," the boy in glasses and a gray cardigan said, not taking his eyes off the computer.

"Tsubasa, where can I find 'true stories'?" I asked, ignoring his comment.

"I don't know, on... The internet?" His response sounded more like a question than an assertion.

"Was that a question or an answer?" I raised an eyebrow in doubt, and he just shrugged as if to say "I don't know, you tell me." "And we need to gather the information ourselves, it's written here too."

I shook the paper in my right hand.

"Well... What a complicated life," I said.

"We should be thankful; we haven't had a good article since last month, and he never complained," he pointed out, indifferently. "I think he held onto it so much that when he had the chance, he let it all out at once. Like a sniper."

"Yeah, and apparently the shot came right to my forehead," I added ironically.

I heard the other emit a weak laugh in response.

"Relax, it's not the end of the world," he gave me a glance over the table, looking at my feet crossed over it. Yuuma has no idea that I can put my feet on my own table whenever I want; he would go crazy if he knew that. "Aside from this detail, the rest is a piece of cake. We just need to gather the team and scour every corner of Tokyo. There's always something to talk about."

"It's going to be a bit tough, considering my right-hand man is still sulking with me," I argued, shrugging.

"There are other people to write; our team isn't that small," he countered.

"You talk as if we're a secret society."

"But of course, we're practically the Men in Black. Or almost, since we don't investigate UFOs."

I cleared my throat, thinking about how to respond.

"Well, it depends," I commented, crossing my arms behind my neck. "Does the President count as an Alien?"

The other laughed at the remark.

"Do you think he's an alien?" he asked sarcastically.

"I'm 95% sure he's a disguised reptilian," I responded with disdain, standing up from the chair and leaving him to ponder. To my surprise, Tsubasa seemed genuinely engaged in thought.

"And the other 5?"

"For the other five, I think you should stop talking and get back to work," I lightly tapped his forehead with the notebook.

"Nice try, but I'm already done," he boasted.

"Great," I said simply. "I've been thinking about writing about a specific topic and continuing with the same one every two months. That way, we gain some spare time for research."

"Are you crazy? Unless you have a radar to attract good stories, we won't be able to keep that up for even half a month, let alone two."

"Ever heard that haste makes waste?" I asked.

"Only laid-back people say that kind of thing."

"Maybe so, but I want to give it a try," I shot him a mischievous smile.

The boy just sighed, conceding defeat.

"It's up to you."

"Don't worry, I'll come up with something by Monday," I reassured him. "We have a meeting on Monday."

"You better put your brain to work."

"These shoulders carry a good head, don't doubt it for a single second."

He didn't respond, so I took the opportunity to ask:

"Speaking of the meeting... Have you seen Suzume?"

"The vice president?" He thought for a few seconds, and I crossed my arms, waiting patiently. "I heard her saying she needed to take care of something in the computer club today, but I'm not sure. Why do you ask?"

"She disappeared with my things."

"I see... Well, she probably hasn't left yet; try finding her around."

"Well, I'm off then."

I waved and gathered my belongings, leaving the room in a hurry, but not before giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder, resulting in a surprised look directed at me. I was a bit intrigued – do people think I can't be nice when I want to?

When I closed the door behind me, I took a moment to compose myself. I've never been one to lose my cool easily; however, last days events are making me rethink that statement.

"Damn..." I clenched my fist, cursing under my breath.

A few steps ahead, I knocked on the door of the computer room without much patience, and a short girl with colorful streaks greeted me. Her expression was serene.

"Hmm? What's up?" she grumbled, leaning against the door with her arms crossed.

"I want to talk to the vice president; she took my camera," I informed, seeing her raise an eyebrow. I felt the corner of my left eye twitch "now."

Then, a light bulb went off in the girl's mind.

"Oh, you're [Name]?! Come on in!" She opened the door wide, allowing me to enter.

It wasn't very surprising to walk in and come face to face with the club in silence, except for the sound of fingers tapping on keyboards. No one noticed my presence as I passed through the door, which was a relief – my social self is crying tears of joy on the inside.

I approached a table where the vice president was, and when I touched her shoulder, she turned her head to face the wave I was giving to her.

She made sure to hand me the camera before anything else. I felt a wave of relief to see that it was still intact – and clean, it's worth noting.

"Thank you, [Name]! You saved our skin!" she said with a charming smile.

"Can I consider this my good deed of the year?" I asked, a smug smile directed at her. Her cheeks turned rosy due to her melodic laughter. I cleared my throat and looked away. "Anyway, I'll be going; I still have my part-time job today."

"We'll meet at the entrance before the meeting," Suzume decided on her own. "See you on Monday!"

I waved from behind as I passed through the door again.

As I changed shoes, I stretched my arms and elongated my body in a futile attempt to send fatigue away. At least now that I'm free from the school's corporate activities, I can think properly about the things I'm going to do.

A yawn escaped my lips as a few tears formed in my eyes involuntarily. Working at the cash register is worse than scrubbing the floor because, in a way, there's no lie that justifies my fatigue.

"Sleeping, [Name]?" he asked, almost accusingly.

I was aware it was a rhetorical question, but still, I felt tempted to answer.

"Your impression, manager," I said, flashing a sly smile. "By the way, here come some customers."

I pointed to the door through which four teenagers entered, how can I say... battered. With bruises on their faces and arms, clothes stained with dirt, and faint traces of blood. Shouldn't these crazies go to a hospital or something? Instead, they came to eat, laughing and chatting casually as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

Go figure.

"I'm going to take out the trash, good luck, maybe they'll ask for band-aids instead of soda," I commented mockingly.

I got up from the counter and went to the back door, where the fresh night wind welcomed me, making me shiver from the cold to the bones. I must have left my coat inside. The lighting was stable, looking on the bright side.

This yellow apron is the most ridiculously attention-grabbing thing I could find for today. But as long as it kept me clean, it was fine by me.

Finally, after throwing the garbage into the dumpster, I took a good look at the sky, with no sign of stars, only the moon decorating the night density like a white button on a large layer of velvet.

I got distracted for a second, and when I came back inside the store, I saw something I wouldn't have wanted to see – and no, it wasn't the boys from earlier, as they had already left. On impulse, I threw myself behind the counter as if there were no tomorrow.

"That guy..." I murmured, scolding myself.

The guy from the Home Economics club was at the gas station, filling up a motorcycle. If he weren't dressed like an angry punk, I would swear he had landed a job as a gas station attendant. Trying to be altruistic, I tried to think positively. It could be a much worse situation; he could be inside the store and then have the audacity to ruin the rest of my day.

"I wonder if he saw me?"

"Who saw you?"

I jumped in surprise when I saw the manager standing behind me with raised eyebrows, tapping his foot lightly on the floor.

"Um... No one. And stop appearing out of nowhere; it's creepy!"

"Are you owing money for someone? Those who owe nothing have nothing to fear."

Well, I do. And many people at the same time! I'd make a joke about it if it weren't so tragic and disappointing.

"Don't tell me... You're getting involved with loan sharks!" He deduced, eyes squinted to draw that conclusion.

"I don't owe any loan sharks!" I scoffed.

"Then, if you're in such perfect condition, get up and attend to the guy coming in there," he ordered, impatient. "It's your turn to serve customers now."

The universe is hilarious. Simply because it helps me and then crushes me with double the force.

Reluctantly, I returned to my initial position, leaning my elbows on the counter and opening a newspaper.

"Do you have..."

"It's a convenience store, we have everything here " I retort with a cynical smile, resting my chin on my elbow with the most innocent expression I could muster, tossing the newspaper somewhere.

"Since when do you work here?" he asked, shocked, blinking repeatedly to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

"Since forever," I replied.

He was visibly uncomfortable. Not surprising, I must have left a memorable impression on his mind - whether it's good or bad.

"You didn't finish the sentence. What were you looking for again?" I asked, breaking the silence that lingered between us. On the other hand, Takashi still looked at me as if he were seeing a ghost.

"No problem, I'm heading somewhere else," he said, moving away to leave.

There was my chance to return to tranquility, my easy life, and my status slipping through my fingers like running water. No, no, no, you can't just be taking the pony out to pasture and leave me here! Before he took another step to distance himself, I threw myself over the counter, grabbing him by the shoulder.

I was already humiliating myself anyway, so all that was left was to continue.

"What the hell..." he turned to look at me with bewilderment.

"Wait! We need to talk!" Once again, I cut him off mid-sentence that day. "It's very important, I won't take much of your time. I promise."

It sounded a bit desperate, which wasn't exactly the intention. After a few seconds of contemplation, he relaxed his posture.

"All right, but... Can you let go of my arm?" he asked.

"Oh, sure. My bad."

"So? What did you want to tell me?"

We were both outside the convenience store, standing side by side with serious looks. I swallowed hard. I remained silent for about five minutes, and he respected that time. Which was strange. Delinquents aren't like that, right?

"Do you know about the yearbook?" I started, swallowing hard, as he made no noise to respond. I spoke because he didn't say anything. "I'm going to fix that for you."

He turned his face to look at me, probably trying to identify any hint of a lie in my expression.

"Are you serious?" he asked, surprised.

"Yes," I replied without hesitation. "I talked to the president; he demanded a few things from me but allowed me to restore it. Now it's up to you to decide whether you want to proceed or give up on the project."

He looked at me suspiciously.

"And what made you change your mind?" he asked, leaving me speechless. "I thought you didn't care."

"And indeed, as you said, I don't care," I confirmed, turning to look at him directly. "In fact, I couldn't care less about what you do inside or outside of school. I just want to get the president and that backstabbing suck-up off my back."

"Backstabber?"

"Long story."

Technically, it's not a lie, but it's also not the whole truth. If I told him that the newspaper is at risk of being dissolved, he would deduce that I only approached him out of self-interest – which is not entirely untrue – and my plans would go down the drain. Again.

"That sounds like a cock-and-bull story," he said, still not satisfied.

"Think whatever you want," I replied with disdain, "but if you want to put it into action, you'll have to come talk to me."

"What do you mean?"

"You need authorization," I explained, "in this case, my authorization. And if you want my help, come here tomorrow, at the same time."

"Are you always like this?"

"Maybe, ..."

"Forgot my name?"

"Absolutely not, Takashi."

"For someone who hates me, you sure know how to remember names, secretary."

"Don't jump to conclusions; I never said I hate you."

Surprise once again took over his usually impassive face, even if he tried not to show it.

"I hate all delinquents equally. So, it's not just limited to you."

Then his expression returned to its stoic state.

"Anyway, see you later. I still have work to do," I said, turning my back and walking away briskly.

Soon, I heard the roar of the motorcycle starting.

"Did you fight with your boyfriend?" The menager asked when i returning.

"Depending on what I say, will it positively affect the amount you pay me?"

"Not at all."

"Then it's none of your interest," I replied finally. "And he's not my boyfriend. Are you crazy?! I would never date a guy like him!"

[vulnonapixs-marvel-corner]

Question about your Dragon Peter Au: Who all are apart of Hobie's band of misfits? How did Hobie find/rescue Miles and what kind of misadventures do they get up to after Hobie takes Miles in? I'm very invested 👀

thanks for the Ask! I am sorry that the response took so long ;-;

The members of Hobies little group are the other Spiderkids! So its Hobie himself, Gwen, Pav, Margo and Miles.

(Peni is on Peters side in that AU, so she only comes into play later)

They all have different reasons for adventuring the word, but are still happy that they found each other.

Hobie used to be an freedom fighter before Kingpin was taken down. He decided to travel the lands to share his views on freedom and the spirit of rebellion. He really doesn’t trust Peter and the way he rules the lands.

Gwen ran away from home and escaped the future that her family had decided for her after she met Hobie. Her goal is to find out who she really is. Being the daughter of the Knight commander, she is positive about Peters, since she saw how much changed under him.

Pav is in it for the Money, so he can one day marry his beloved. He met Hobie and Gwen when they broke into the same place. Since it’s always safer to travel together, he just decided to travel with them. Since he comes from another country, he really doesn’t care about peters rule.

Similar to Gwen, Margo ran away from an abusive home to see the world. She had been found by Miguel, who had freshly lost his daughter and the status as Baron, and Lyla, who was a fairy like her. They traveled together for many years, till Peter defeated Kingpin and Miguel got his title and lands back. Gwen and Pav saved her from some merchants that wanted to sell her as a Pet. She is bitter about Peter, since he took away her family.

They find Miles after they broke into one of Kingpins old Mansion, hoping to find treasures.

(Not that they didn’t find one…)

Miles didn’t really have another choice but to join them, because he had no where else to go. (Plot Conveniant Amnesia)

As for the Roles that the Kids fill:

Hobie: Leader of the Group and tactical mastermind, even if it doesn’t feel that way. Uses an Axe for battle, but would rather play his guitar.

Gwen: Cavalier of the group and the one having to carry everything. Uses Lances in battle and has some really wild dance moves.

Pav: Brawler and lockpicker of the group. Uses Knuckle rings in battle, but would rather use his hands to write letters to his Girlfriend.

Margo: Fixes broken things and uses a small needle for battles.

Miles: Healer of the group and magician. Everyone thinks that he is a elve.

As for their misadventures… its a lot.

[natequarter]

i've been thinking about the ghosts' lives, and i think we exaggerate the extent of their loneliness whilst they were alive. i don't deny that some of their afterlives (mostly humphrey) are filled with loneliness and boredom, but that doesn't account for who they were and what they did in life. it doesn't help that, in the case of humphrey and fanny, most of their flashbacks or anecdotes of their lives are centred on their marriages and respective estrangement - but nothing suggests that their lives in general were sad and lonely.

in en français it's mentioned that humphrey is attending a feast, and in the book we see fanny writing letters to her friends, as well as the menu for her own banquet. neither of them seem miserable at the prospect of these social events, which suggests to me they both had friends of their own. we also get to see the captain's interactions with his regiment (aka idiots fumbling around), kitty hitting it off with a young man her age, and pat writing postcards to his family. none of that seems to suggest overwhelmingly lonely or isolated lives to me, even if those feelings were at some point present. within the show, as well, fanny's relationship with george actually seems quite warm and affectionate. it's only with hindsight that we can see carol's cheating or george's threesomes and murder.

another thing to remember is unhappy marriages were common in the past, thanks to arranged marriages and a lack of access to counselling or divorce. humphrey couldn't have annulled his marriage - the reformation didn't actually change the laws surrounding marriage in england. divorce (when it finally did come around) was also hugely stigmatised well into the twentieth century - even when it was legal, it wasn't necessarily a viable option. this is why a happy marriage, whilst convenient, wasn't necessarily the expectation. taking on mistresses or visiting brothels were common behaviour amongst tudor men for a reason, despite being frowned on by the church, so his marriage was not the be all and end all.

we also get an overwhelming focus on humphrey's home life. humphrey is stated to be nobility and a knight, so he almost certainly spent a large part of his life at court, where he would've had frequent interactions with men his age - and just people full stop - some of whom were probably lifelong friends, and whom he would have written to even when not at court. besides court, as a rich and powerful man, he would have interacted with a lot of people in his daily life - guests at his house, negotiations, really a constant stream of visitors, not to mention being constantly surrounded by servants. his life, unlike his death, was probably a far cry from lonely and forgotten.

one other thing we don't really get a sense of in ghosts is the ghosts' family. does the captain have siblings? did mary have a close relationship with her parents? did humphrey have children? we get some answers to these - we see pat and julian's relationships with their families, and we know fanny must have had kids - but with mary and humphrey in particular, we never really get a sense of what their families looked like beyond one or two relatives. we don't see kitty's cousins; we don't see mary's children; we don't see thomas' siblings. and so on, and so forth.

it's just part of how the show is structured, not an intentional flaw, but i do think we sometimes exaggerate the extent of the ghosts' lives. many of these people were surrounded by friends and acquaintances! we just don't see it so much, because those people are all very dead. the only place this is really preserved and present in the show is in the plague ghosts' friendships, which give us an idea of their very communal and interdependent lives. oh, and robin's tribe. and the incest...

it's easy to forget the ghosts' lives when they've been dead for so long, but i think we do them a disservice when we ignore the majority of their pasts to focus on one aspect of their relationships.

[mahvaladara]

Day 1 - Again

(Setting ambiguous. Again Khal returns to the guild, looking for quests to embark on.)

Anis, adverb, Again in the language of the Drahniir. Once more, one more time, to repeat, to return.

Again they asked for his help, from the easiest of tasks to the most complex. Again he found himself knee deep into others problems. Again, he tried his best to help, to serve, save, slave. So was the fate of a ‘hero’, of an adventurer. 

As he walked into the halls of the Guild, where aspiring adventurers dwelled hoping this quest would be their ticket to the status of ‘hero’, he sighed, exhausted. A home for great quests or odd jobs of the common man taking advantage of those hoping to make quick fortune and fame.

They all had their skills. Some skills involved putting food on the tables of the people who filled that hall. Others involved clearing out rubble from the entrance of someone’s home.

When did hiring an adventurer to do an odd job become a cheaper alternative? When did they become so redundant? When did people lose respect for them?

For the adventurers and the wannabe heroes hoping to shape and save the world? That they’d treat them as petty errand boys. He might have started that way, but stars and moons, did he believe they were worthy of more respect than that. He was worthy of more respect than that.

He thought that perhaps he should look for work in another way.

“Oi! Khal! I see you are done with your quest? So, what was it?” Gal had called him over to the counter.

Khalil took a seat by the bar, pulling the old tattered shield from his back and setting it against the counter.

“I was clearing out rubble,” he explained while Gal served him honeyed mead. 

“You’re kidding… They asked you to clear rubble?”

“And said they didn’t like my attitude.”

“Frick…” Gal cursed, lifting his brows. 

“When did the people who seek our aid become so entitled and ungrateful?” Khal asked. “I don’t do this for money, anything to keep my mind off the shield on my back, but still. I am sure my time is worth more than clearing out rubble. I saved the Coast!”

“Khal… it has always been like this,” Gal confessed. “More and more. People rely on adventurers for quick and cheap work. Most of them cannot be employed anywhere else, and when half of them have authority issues, I really doubt any commander is willing to keep a soldier like, let’s say, Makoto?”

Khal chuckled. “Makoto is a great knight.”

“Makoto is a great knight. He’s also a knight who will tell his superiors their idea is shit if it is. I can’t get him jobs currently as he was penalized for punching his employer in the face for, and I quote wasting his time. I’m surprised he even spent three words with the man.”

The two chuckled while Khal played with his drink.

“You don’t have to pick every request for aid that shows up, Khal…” Gal started. "If you try to help everyone, people will take advantage of you, again and again."

“I know. Yet here I am again. What else is there for me to do, Gal? I have cost this world a hero. A true hero. The least I can do is try to help. Besides it gives me stories to write and draw about and forces me to train my speech.”

“You are a hero,” Gal sighed. “You fought the Commander and gods on your own. You saved more people than I can count.”

Khal shook his head and grin. “Exactly why I must do this. I have taken on the shield of the hero. I intend to be worthy of it. I can and will do this.”

He needed to do it again. To set off and try again. Perhaps this time, this quest, he could properly use the shield, he could properly protect the others, he could properly be a hero. Like him.

“So, what do you have for me?”

“Someone in needs help with a group of bandits attacking the local carriages,” Gal sighed and pulled the letter of bounty. “I advise you to invite Makoto to join you.”

Khal just had to try again.

[presidenthades]

I am doing very minor revisions of Daemon’s Handbook (mostly formatting and continuity errors), and I wanted to do some behind-the-scenes commentary before too much time passes and I forget my original thoughts. Here’s Chapter 2!

(Note that these commentaries aren’t canon to the verse until/unless the author writes them into the series. I might change my mind on a few points later, but these are the thoughts I had while writing.)

Those gold dancing slippers with pink roses and sunbursts? Aegon 100% bought those for Jace (in Sunfyre’s colors of course), and that’s why she freaks out about them in Chapter 3.

Helaena has FRIENDS in this verse! Because she gets to grow up with three kinswoman close in age to her! Yay! I imagine her spending a lot of time with Jace, Luce, and Joff while they’re all living at the Red Keep.

That black and green three-pointed star is supposed to be some kind of reference to the three main couples of this series. Please don’t ask for details because I don’t have any 🙈

Rhaena and Baela’s crushes on Helaena and Jace, respectively, have begun sprouting in this chapter. They are very embarrassed by their dad acting like a weirdo in front of their crushes.

Daemon has a mental diatribe about Aegon’s dissolute ways, but in actuality Daemon would probably enjoy hanging out with someone who can keep up with him in Flea Bottom. Alas.

Neither book nor show canon says anything about Aegon or Aemond squiring, but I think healthy young princes would be expected to squire, like Daeron. I’m thinking Aegon strongly disliked the idea of having to squire (which involves a lot of acts of service) so maybe he a) threw a fit or b) used some weaponized incompetence until people gave up. 😆 But show!Aemond would like the idea of becoming a chivalrous knight, and Criston seems like a good option to squire for, considering Criston’s proximity to Alicent.

In this verse, Rhaenyra chooses to move her family to Dragonstone for different reasons than canon (where she felt pushed out by the Hightowers). Here, she’s mostly concerned about Jace and Aegon. I’ll delve into more detailed commentary later for Chapter 6, but basically, the kids have hit puberty and Jace and Aegon have already been caught sneaking around to kiss and hold hands. You can’t really keep them apart if they’re living in the same castle, so Rhaenyra’s solution is to relocate her daughters. Rhaenyra still plans to commute to court as needed (like in Chapter 4), but it’s not the most politically expedient move even if she’s decided it’s best for personal reasons.

We get our first glimpse of what the Jace/Aegon relationship is like. Jace spends a good amount of time trying to make Aegon act nicer (especially toward Aemond; no Pink Dread in this verse). She tends to use the carrot instead of the stick, which is Aegon’s preferred learning method, so Jace is more successful than Alicent who does it the other way.

Daemon doesn’t believe in anything he can’t see with his own eyes so he’s not superstitious, BUT Joff makes him question a lot of things. 😆 He figures out real fast that regardless of whether she’s actually witchy, it’s best to stay on her good side. (Otto also knows something is up with that girl lol)

I’m definitely exploring Joff’s dynamic with Laenor in a future installment in this verse. For now, let’s just say it was complicated. As precocious as Joff is, she’s only 6 and she doesn’t actually know everything.

“Window closes, heart opens, door opens, heart closes.” Helaena’s prophecy is about Aemond’s eye and the Luce/Aemond relationship, though I originally planned for it to play out differently (more to come in Chapter 4 commentary). As the fic currently stands, the prophecy breaks down like this: window closes = Aemond loses his eye. Heart opens = Luce opening up to Aemond again. Door opens = the rookery door when Daemon messes with the letters. Heart closes = Luce and Aemond’s three year estrangement.

Chapter 3 commentary here